The State Assembly Candidates: Santa Monica Votes June 5, 2012

VOTE     VOTE     VOTE

 STATE ASSEMBLY CANDIDATES
  
 RICHARD BLOOM

 BETSY BUTLER

 TORIE OSBORN

 BRAD TORGAN



SUSAN CLOKE
Mirror Columnist
May 25, 2012

Education, environmental sustainability, development and traffic, and social justice are main concerns of Santa Monicans.

The person we elect to be our Assembly Member can help or hurt us as we try to tackle these issues.  Our Assembly Member’s actions in Sacramento make a difference in financing for education, the enhancement and protection of clean air and water, easing traffic congestion, regulations for fair and safe working conditions, the availability of health care and more. 

In alphabetical order, the candidates are: RichardBloom, Betsy Butler, Torie Osborn and Brad Torgan.  On June 5, 2012 Santa Monicans will decide who gets their vote.  To help in this decision, each candidate has been asked to respond to the same four questions.  In their own words the candidates tell us where they stand and what they will do about education, sustainability, development and traffic, and issues of social justice.  

Each question is written below, followed by the answer of each of the candidates. 

Question 1.   EDUCATION:  Santa Monica schools, from nursery schools through college are struggling with tremendous budget cuts.  As a City we have worked to offset those cuts, but more needs to be done.  Please tell us what you have done to protect education funding and what you will do as an Assembly Member. 

Richard Bloom.  “I am a champion for public education and have helped raise City funding to the SMMUSD from $2.25 million (1999) to a projected $14.4 million.   My wife, my children and I received excellent public educations.  I’ve been a PTA Vice-President, coach and volunteer while my children grew.  I believe every child deserves an opportunity for an excellent education.  We must find predictable funding for all levels of education that cannot be touched by the State.  We must assure the public that their money is being spent wisely and for the benefit of our children.

Betsy Butler.  “I would not vote for a budget that did not address the needs of public education.  Last year, my first year in the Assembly, we structured a budget that came as close as possible to protecting public education.  As a result, the budget before us now will require many serious cuts but it increases funding for public schools by $6 billion.  That funding will be contingent on the voters' approval of the Governor's proposed modest increase in temporary sales tax and an equally modest income tax increase on the wealthiest Californians.  I am confident that every candidate will join with me in urging voters to approve that measure and secure this $6 billion in additional funding for our schools.

Torie Osborn.  “California’s future depends on reinvesting in our education system. I have endorsed the work of organizations like the Education Foundation, the PTA and CEPS, because, through their advocacy and work, SMMUSD has been able to absorb some of Sacramento’s draconian cuts, but we must do more to provide schools with reliable state funding. I would work tirelessly to craft a fair tax code (including closing the corporate property tax loophole, instituting an oil severance tax) so that early childhood education, K-12 education, and higher education can begin to recover.  And I would look to bring Santa Monica’s extraordinary education leadership to broader scale.”

Brad Torgan.  “California’s business tax climate is the 3^rd worst in the country, and that’s even with the property tax protections of Proposition 13.  Our overall tax burden is the 6^th highest in the country.  Yet, our spending per K-12 student is 47^th in the country. When our taxes are amongst the highest in the country, but our education spending is near the bottom, our spending priorities are seriously out of whack.  The Assembly needs to put education near the top of its priorities, not the bottom.

Question 2.  SUSTAINABILITY.  Santa Monica is growing its reputation for sustainability, from our solar powered Ferris wheel, to our green streets, to our no plastic bag policy.  Please tell us what you have done to protect the environment and what you will do as an Assembly Member.

Richard Bloom.  “In the Assembly, I’ll continue the legacy I’ve begun on the City Council.  As Mayor, Coastal Commissioner and in other positions, I have been a constant and passionate advocate for environmental initiatives, including protecting our coast and creating Marine Life Protection Areas.  We’ve achieved extraordinary results in Santa Monica because the community is committed and because we deliberately engage the business community.  I helped shepherd the plastic bag, polystyrene and various smoking bans that improve our environment.  I have worked diligently to enact our green building ordinance and implement our green streets, stormwater runoff, water/energy self-sufficiency programs and more.

Betsy Butler.  “I intend to address water issues across the state and implement policies similar to Santa Monica and its reuse of water. My record as a current Assembly member affirms my commitment to the environment.  Both my bill to ban toxics in products used by babies and my electric vehicle bill passed and were signed into law by Governor Brown in 2011.  I have established my record as an early and effective opponent of the unregulated practice of "fracking" by oil companies.  This process threatens our aquifers and must be regulated.  My work has earned me the California League of Conservation Voters and Sierra Club endorsements.

Torie Osborn.  “Under my leadership, Liberty Hill Foundation brought together mainstream environmental leaders and environmental justice groups in a new coalition – Green LA -- to craft a unified progressive environmental agenda for LA. That agenda included LA’s Clean Air Action Plan for the Port of Los Angeles, Green Building Ordinances for the City and County of Los Angeles; it encouraged city departments to give preferred purchasing to green businesses.  If elected I would continue my commitment to practical environmental solutions so that California, whose wind, solar, geothermal energy should make it the global center of the new green economy, can continue to lead on environmental policy.

Brad Torgan.  “When I served as Chief Counsel for California State Parks, I organized opposition to a toll road that would have destroyed a state beach and Trestles, one of the best known surfing spots in California. I also litigated to keep high voltage transmission lines out of State wilderness.  As a member of the Assembly I would fight against special interest exemptions to the California Environmental Quality Act.

Question 3.         DEVELOPMENT AND TRAFFIC.  Santa Monica is experiencing an unprecedented demand for growth and development, with 15 Development Agreement applications currently before the City.  It is also experiencing an unprecedented degree of traffic congestion.  Please tell us your thoughts and ideas about development and traffic in Santa Monica and how those ideas might be expressed in the job of an Assembly Member.

Richard Bloom.  “We are not alone in having traffic congestion but it is definitely a problem.  In consensus processes our community agreed on a cutting edge land use plan, an ambitious bike plan and, through dogged determination, we are realizing the dream of light rail.  All new development must contribute to reducing traffic.  Nearly all new development is “mixed use”, clustered near transit stops.  Many of the solutions to traffic lay outside our borders.  If neighboring cities, especially L.A., were to adopt Santa Monica-style land use rules, regional traffic would ease while economic development/jobs would accelerate.  Legislation should encourage/incentivize this outcome.

Betsy Butler.  “Like many people here I am disappointed in how some local and state officials allow themselves to be bullied or bought by development interests who cynically use the recession as justification for damaging our communities and the quality of our lives.  Every candidate promises to "stand up to the special interests." I am the only candidate who has done so consistently. 

Torie Osborn.  “Bringing more good paying jobs into Santa Monica and the 50^th District is critical, but it will mean also allowing mixed development that requires the creation of affordable housing.  If we locate affordable housing near job centers, it also cuts down on traffic.  Along with the Expo line (which will cut back on the car traffic) we need to increase funding for bike routes, incentivize environmental friendly shuttles that allows Santa Monicans to get around the city without their cars, and expand regional mass transit systems such as the Subway to the Sea.

Brad Torgan.  “As a Planning and Transportation Commissioner in West Hollywood, I’ve seen firsthand the impacts of overdevelopment.  I also see those impacts fighting on behalf of a community organization in Hollywood, trying to prevent massive increases in commercial density in their neighborhoods.  How Santa Monica wants to develop is ultimately up to the citizens of Santa Monica, but there must be recognition that some development issues and impacts are regional in scope and require regional or state solutions.

Question 4.  SOCIAL JUSTICE.  Santa Monica examples of its commitment to social justice include Program to End Homelessness and the enactment of a living wage ordinance.  Please tell us what you have done to advance social justice in your work and what you would do as an Assembly Member.

Richard Bloom.  “I've led the struggle to end homelessness, provided unmatched services for seniors, the disabled and children (our first accessible playground is on the way).  The Assembly should budget a reasonable safety net.  But the State is broke, from years of fiscal irresponsibility.  High unemployment makes things worse.  Revenue measures like those on the November ballot will help.  But true salvation for these programs and for the State of California requires a resurgent economy.  Under my leadership, Santa Monica has proven how we can have both progress and prosperity.  That’s the Santa Monica-style success I ask voters to send to Sacramento.

Betsy Butler.  “I am honored to have the support and endorsement of numerous social justice organizations, including the Consumer Federation of California, Equality California, the National Women’s Political Caucus, the California League of Conservation Voters and the United Farm Workers. Today, I am carrying the strongest legislation in America to protect farm workers from heat illness and death.  I am proud that Cesar Chavez's United Farm Workers, Lily Ledbetter, the California Democratic Party and Planned Parenthood have endorsed as well.

Torie Osborn.  “My entire life has been spent working for social justice, from the early women’s health movement, to national leadership on HIV/AIDS, and the LGBT movement.  Then, leading the Liberty Hill Foundation, I worked with local groups on successful living wage ordinances and environmental justice campaigns.  In Mayor Villaraigosa’s cabinet and at the United Way, I worked to diminish homelessness and poverty. As a Member of the State Assembly, I would champion legislation on equality, poverty and juvenile justice, as well as fight to restore and protect the budgets for education and the safety net.

Brad Torgan.  “Social justice can’t be achieved when one out of every nine Californians of working age – 11% – is unemployed.  Reducing that unemployment rate will require reforming our State’s tax structure and creating a more friendly business climate. “

The candidates, in their own words, have told us who they are.  What they believe. What they will do, if elected.  On June 5, it will be our turn.  It is our right and our responsibility to vote.

We have all heard or even said, “He’s a politician.”  Usually, it’s meant as a put down.  But doesn’t it depend on context?  Can’t being a politician mean being a person committed to public service?  Santa Monica has had the good fortune to be well represented by people of commitment to community and commitment to public service.  Let us use our vote to continue that tradition.

To our candidates, thank you.  It is hard work and worthwhile to run for office.  It is hard work and also deeply satisfying to be able to do good work.  Thank you for being willing to do this work.  Thank you for your commitment to community and for your public service.

What Say You? A Murder of Crows

Native American Crow Carving
Courtesy Judy Wunsch

SUSAN CLOKE                                                         

Columnist, Santa Monica Mirror             

Crow complaints are on the rise in Santa Monica.  Neighbors are complaining about early morning loud noise, crows carrying away fledglings from other bird’s nests, crows frightening off other birds, crows eating garbage and crows making messes. 

Complaints about crows are not new.  Throughout history crows have been labeled schemers, pests, scavengers, tricksters and, even omens of death.  Remember the ominous crows in the classic movie, Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds?

Crows live in large flocks, called “a murder.”  This poetic name was recorded in a 1486 essay on hunting, attributed to Dame Juliana Berners, published in the Book of Saint Albans.  In it, she lists the names of groups of animals.  Ravens and crows get the harshest names. A flock of crows is a ‘murder of crows’ and a flock of ravens is an ‘unkindness of ravens.’ 

Very harsh compared with flock names such as, an ‘exaltation of larks’, a ‘charm of goldfinch’, a ‘parliament of owls’, an ‘ostentation of peacocks’, a ‘congregation of plovers’, and a ‘pandemonium of parrots’.

Crows are highly intelligent animals.  They make and use tools, recognize individual people by their facial features, and crow vocalizations are being studied as a possible language.

Crow intelligence has been recognized in myth and folklore.  Crows were tricksters and ancient ancestors in Aboriginal Australian lore, they were associated with the Irish goddess Morrigan, a crow speaks to Apollo in Ovid’s Metamorphoses, crows are considered ancestors in Hinduism, crows are mentioned in the Buddhist Tibetan disciplines, a crow is said to have protected the first Dalai Lama when he was a baby.

A Native American story tells of the beautiful to hear and see Rainbow Crow who received fire from the Creator and brought it back to earth on a burning stick.  The stick charred his feathers and turned the crow black and the smoke and heat of the fire turned his voice hoarse.  The crow is honored because he brought fire to keep people warm.

Garry George, Conservation Chair for Los Angeles Audubon, said, “We’ve enabled the crow.  Their natural habitat is on open plains with trees for nesting.  We’ve replicated that, to a degree, when we changed the coastal desert ecology of Southern California and planted large, open expanses of grass along with large and well-pruned trees and installed sprinklers.

“But crows are predators.  They eat fledging birds at the seashore, including least terns, sandpipers, herons and egrets.  Audubon would like to see people taking appropriate actions to reduce the incentive for crows to be in our urban areas.”

From the PBS video “A Murder of Crows” we learn about the work of John Mazluff, Wildlife Biologist at the University of Washington, who experimented with crow identification of individual people.  He was able to show that crows could not only recognize individual people but could pass that information on to their fledglings.  We also see the New Caledonian crows solving spatial problems in order to make tools and to use those tools to get food.

Crows are omnivores who will eat anything from insects, worms, grasshoppers, fruits and nuts, grains, seeds, crops and fish to fledglings, eggs from other bird’s nests, garbage we leave out, dog or cat food left outdoors and all carrion.

If they survive the first few years, and the estimate is that fewer than 50% do, crows can live as long as 20 years. They reach sexual maturity between 3 and 5 years of age, usually mate for life, the mother and father crow and siblings from previous seasons, called ‘helpers at the nest’ take care of the crow fledglings.  Crows spend up to 5 years with their parents and family.

“There were always American Crows in this area,” said Kimball Garrett, Ornithologist at the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History.  “When the area was largely agricultural the crows that where here were persecuted and shot because they ate the crops.  The crows developed fears and learned to avoid humans. 

“When LA become populated, people changed the ecology of the LA basin by planting large expanses of lawns and installing irrigation systems and fountains and pools, by planting many trees. People left dog and cat food outside for their pets.  People didn’t properly dispose of garbage. 

“As people made the urban areas more habitable for themselves they also made them more attractive to crows.  We created an environment that was good for the crows.   These changes to the natural habitat allowed an artificial growth in the crow population.”

The crows are now happy here and if reducing their urban presence is our goal, it won’t be easy.  There are some obvious things to do. We can be very careful about our garbage, throwing nothing out the window of a car, throwing nothing on the ground, making sure that all garbage is in secure containers.  We can feed our dogs and cats indoors.

Or we could do what the City of Chatham, Canada did and bring in a falconer.  He used his trained hawks to capture, but not hurt, the crows.  Then he released them and the crows did what came naturally to them - they spread the news that there were predators in town.  The crows decided it was too dangerous to stick around.

Or we could take the advice of those who say crows are amazing and intelligent and interesting and we could decide to like them.

I’m going to do a little of both.  My dog food is coming off the porch and into the house.  I’ll let my dog out to bark at the crows if they become a nuisance at my house.   And, as a long time environmentalist, I’ll continue to be careful and dispose of all trash correctly.

And I’m going to look at them in a new way.  I learned so much about crows just through doing the research for this article that I already have a new appreciation for them.  And, I wonder, is it really true that they take care of their elderly parents?

What Say You?