Not much going on in Davis these days . . . coming up short on starter topics . . . #sigh# . . . anyone?
Category: Current Affairs
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Anatomy of an Article: That Wake Up Call was a Wrong Number (Al’s Curiousity Corner #4)
SUBJECT: "Commentary: A Wake Up Call" (Wednesday's Blavis Blansplard)
Only DG could get a robo-call about solar panels from a call center in India and think it was a a wake-up call. I was rummaging through the trash behind Vanguard Headquarters on Thursday evening at 8:17 p.m. and found the recipe for the article. As a public service I am posting it here:
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Al’s Corner – September 2023
This volume of Al's Corner is dedicated to the celebration of the Davis Vanguard's National Issues Open Discussion Page. Of course, this page isn't open to me, or several other banned people. Nor, in practice, is it a discussion. Let's do some stats and declare a winner:
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Wingnut Advocates for Nuclear Mosquito Control
by David AbramsonSteve, who previously spoke to the City Council advocating that we ban all the leaves from Davis returned this past Tuesday to give public comment in support of the pesticide spraying of the Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito Vector District, particularly supporting the aerial spraying over our cities and encouraging them to develop even larger pesticide bombs to eliminate the mosquitos once and for all.I am personally outraged that Steve and the Sacramento Yolo Mosquito Vector Control District believe that mosquito activity warrants dumping pesticides on our heads several times per weeks. -
Vanguard Bias and Censorship Leads Another Longtime Commenter to Quit the Site
by Ron OWell, after several years of commenting on the Vanguard it has finally come to this – I quit.When I first started commenting, the Vanguard allowed a wide variety of comments (and viewpoints) without even requiring that commenters use their own names. It was a lively environment with a wide variety of viewpoints, no arbitrarily-enforced comment limits, and the ability to post comments without pre-cenShorship – as others have labeled it (in reference to Don Shor). Though it seems highly likely that David Greenwald also moderates comments, and is ultimately responsible as the operator of the site.Ironically, the changes that the Vanguard has implemented since those earlier days have not addressed the problems that they claimed to be addressing, whether it's continued personal attacks, doxing, or (perhaps most importantly) – refusing to post comments that the simply don't like. -
YES, Mayor Arnold needs to recuse himself again
Back in June I strongly suggested that Mayor Will Arnold recuse himself from City Council discussion/support of the I-80 Managed Lanes Project – The mayor's main gig is a key role in communications at Caltrans.
He did recuse himself.
Tonight the City Council is voting for approval for one of two variants for re-reconstruction of Mace Blvd (see my opinion on that below).
While it's not a Caltrans project, per se, the continued problem of operators of private motor vehicles using county roads and Mace to try to bypass traffic on I-80 is in large part due to the sad negligence of Caltrans in supporting anything but nice but expensive-to-use and proportionately symbolic commuter-regional railway service (Capitol Corridor), to focus on induced travel as a healthy strategy (the aformentioned Managed Lanes project) and to seemingly ignore any serious consideration of solutions to the awful I-80/CA-113 interchange, modifications to certain on-ramps to permit entering vehicles to get up to the prevailing speed before merging or any kind of substantial long-distance bus service to complement Capitol Corridor (and more…)
The so-called "restoration" of Mace will not solve the I-80 problem, but since Caltrans won't either, and since Caltrans won't help solve the Mace problem… the discussion and vote tonight is very, very much connected with Caltrans and so the Mayor should again recuse himself.
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As an hopefully not so itchy or worse aside in my favor regarding aerial and other spraying for mosquitoes (specifically to counter the threat of West Nile Virus) in relaton to highways workers at Caltrans and private travellers – and in relation to agenda item 4 also in this evening's Council meeting. missing any attachments! – I have repeatedly called via social media – and finally, acknowledged comments from staff for Supervisor Provenza – to ensure better outreach to workers busy on the I-80 pavement rehabilitation project and to people transitting the region by its highways who are unlikely to see or hear local (social) media announcements about the spraying. Some of this is immediately adjacent to I-80 – including tonight, during the Council meeting – and CA-113.***
Back to the Mace Re-re-design: It's a betrayal of the Commons and of the City's symbol and oft-repeated climate change and related goals to prioritize traffic lanes above bike lanes, and to sacrifice (median, in this case) trees instead of traffic lanes for bike lanes… the latter, in other words, is putting people on bikes – or really kids on bikes riding to elementary school – against trees, really, the Greater Arboreal World. It's a sad, sad day… There's no "restoration" — the four lanes of Mace are no exiled monarch, and they certainly ain't democracy – automobilist entitlement is getting its way, once again. Look around: Davis is not getting better for walking and cycling. Anyone who has encouraged this motorized farce will have to face their own conscience.
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Al’s Curiosity Corner #2 – Open Forum on the Library Issue
While there has been a discussion on that 'other' blog, the reason I hang here is that many comments get deleted there without explanation, especially on this issue and especially comments even modestly politically right. However, this is a sensitive issue, and I am not going to allow outright insults directed at trans people/supporters/protestors nor at persons associated with Mom's for Liberty.
For example, for some reason that other blog allows MFL persons to be called Nazis, and that sort of useless comment isn't going to be allowed here. On the other hand, in the Yahoo comments on the Bee article, about 153 out of 155 comments were against the library actions, despite the article leaning towards supporting the protestors. AND . . . many if not most of those commenting there were denying the existence of trans people, insulting trans people, and/or calling trans people various derogatory terms implying mental illness just for being trans. I'm not putting up with any of that shit here either. I won't outright delete a comment unless it's completely empty of anything but outright hate towards either side, and I'll always explain why a comment or part of a comment was deleted.
My views on the library matter are simple: I'm a Jew who believes the Skokie decision was the greatest triumph for the core of what makes America great: Free speech, baby!
What are your views? I'd like this to focus on free speech vs. hate speech; the actions/authority of the library/library-manager, the actions of those putting on the meeting and those protesting the meeting, and various takes in the media.
(Note: I have a life, so your comments may not be posted for many hours. Deal with it.)
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Al’s Curiosity Corner: What Do Davisites Think of ‘Rich Men North of Richmond’ ?
I'm curious what the people of Davisitesville think of this mega-hit's message.
My reaction, from the lyrics, is this could be a punk song sung by 'Oliver' as a raw country ballad. Rage! Stickin' it to the monarchy, the man, the machine. Anger at what the government is doing to us, against the men in power. Yet this song is being labeled a 'conservative ballad'. True, it is catching fire in conservative circles, but I don't see that in the lyrics. I can easily hear a Johnny Rotten or a Henry Rollins versions of this song.
There's a reference to 'minors on an island'. That happened. Davis liberals don't defend pedophiles (do they?).
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The Appalling Spectacle Now Happening in Yolo Superior Court
By Robert Canning
Like a number of people, I watched the live video stream of the Carlos Dominguez competency “trial” in Department 10 of Yolo County Superior Court last week and will watch again when the trial reconvenes.
As a forensic and correctional psychologist for the past twenty years with experience working in and consulting to jails and prisons on mental health treatment issues, I was amazed and appalled watching the spectacle unfold in real time. The trial is to determine the competence of a young man whose severe mental illness is on display daily in open court for all to see. The law requires the jury decide first whether Mr. Dominguez suffers from a mental disorder, and then if the mental disorder interferes with his capacity (competency) to understand and reason about the charges against him, and whether he can aid in his own defense.
What is most appalling to me is that his mental illness has been allowed to worsen while in custody. If the Yolo District Attorney had not requested a jury trial then Judge McAdams would have been the sole source of the decision about Mr. Dominguez’ competence. Given his comments this week to the public defender, I believe he would have found Mr. Dominguez incompetent to proceed weeks ago. In that case Mr. Dominguez would have been able to receive treatment for his mental illness sooner, possibly in a state hospital setting. If this treatment was provided, it is possible that Mr. Dominguez could be restored to competency in a matter of months.
The law requires that detainees in jails receive adequate medical and mental health care. This has been guaranteed since 1976 when the Supreme Court decided in favor of inmates in Estelle v Gamble. Subsequent case law has reinforced the right to appropriate care and emphasized the role of correctional systems in providing that care.
Because we have a public trial with testimony from mental health and medical experts and jail staff, we can see some of the glaring inadequacies of mental health care in our county jail.
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Welcome to Al’s Corner – “Pouring Gasoline on the Dumpster Fire of Davis Politics” – August 2023
Got a thought on Davis politics, or a even a single politic? Got a thought on the request to give a donation to the Davis Vanguard so they can fund the replacement of their crappy old website? I have a thought — give instead to the Davis-Ite to replace the D-ite's even older, crappier website ! Underfunded old crappy blog structures: It's the Davis Way !
Davisite 