Here comes the sun...maybe?

Another independent bookstore in Riverside bites the dust?



In the wake of the closures of Imagine That! and Ananda at the Canyon Crest Town Center and the uncertain future of the Downtown Book Store, it's hard to believe that the city's business sector is really in such good hands. Not that it's easy for independent bookstores to survive in this day and age, but it still goes to show that if you want to "shop Riverside" (even while Riverside's City Hall contracts largely with out-of-town businesses on projects), you might have to go elsewhere to buy books that are not carried by the mainstream book store chains.

The latest installment in the Mystery of the Vanishing Book Stores was interrupted by the latest skirmish at City Hall over the notorious Not-from-Venus "Flyetrap" which is the not-so-affectionate moniker given to the Brockton, Magnolia and Central quagmire where the majority of motorists in Riverside spend most of their time. The battleground was the Transportation Committee chaired by Ward Seven Councilman Steve Adams.


Current Ward Three Councilman Rusty Bailey had promised while running for office that fixing the problems would be a major priority.


(excerpt, Press Enterprise)



But Councilman William "Rusty" Bailey made a campaign promise last year to undo the modifications to the Flyetrap -- the intersection's nickname because it was designed by Bill Flye, the city's first traffic engineer.

Bailey said the changes put in place in August 2006 have made it harder for Magnolia Center residents to move around the neighborhood.



There was also mention of putting speed bumps on residential streets but the city's hard enough up for cash at the moment that if you want any on your street, you'll have to contact Adams and agree to pay part of the cost of installation. It's getting really hard to believe the constant reassurances that the city's not broke.


(excerpt)


"They work," he said.



For those city residents who can pay for them, of course. It's been one of those years, budget wise, and it's not about to get any better no matter how many sound bytes are thrown our way.





Speaking of which, for those who have asked about the elections, the cycle of when they begin and when they end will be the same as it was in 2007. Meaning that the first round will be a write-in election in June and the final rounds if necessary will take place in the autumn. Another reason why it's never too soon to begin discussing Election 2009.



Another day, another panel in Riverside. This time a special panel called the Downtown Parking Committee voted to bring not just one brand of parking meter but two to downtown.



(excerpt)



The recommendation pleased Downtowne Bookstore co-owner Nadia Lee, who has been campaigning for coin-operated meters.

"It is a victory. I still get people who call and say they won't come downtown because they don't understand those things," she said, referring to the SmartPark meters.

An illustration of how people react to the SmartPark meters came from Pat Heida, a retired schoolteacher who lives in Menifee and comes to downtown Riverside about once a month. On Friday, she struggled to pay for a space on Main Street between Fifth and Sixth using one of the SmartPark machines.

"It's very confusing," she said, adding that she would prefer a coin-operated meter for each parking space.

According to information the Public Works Department compiled for the Downtown Parking Committee, individual-space coin-operated meters can cost from $400 to more than $3,000 apiece, depending on the hardware and software included. The multi-space meter the city is considering, a model called Luke from Digital Payment Technologies, costs $8,300 a piece with everything included. City staff will determine how many meters would be needed.

The Luke meter accepts coins, bills, prepaid parking cards and credit cards. It can run on solar power, motorists can add time to the meter by phone if they register online, and they can pay for their space -- including adding time -- at any Luke meter as long as they know their space's number.

In April, the city installed 32 Lukes in the Justice Center portion of downtown.







Press Enterprise Columnist Dan Bernstein writes about how the Riverside County electeds and their staff conduct business.

This particular exchange was between Supervisor Jeffrey Stone (who's up for reelection in that other election) and the CEO of the county, Larry Parrish (who's stepping down from his throne soon).


(excerpt)



Stone may have intended to inspire conservation, but Parrish, who retires soon, was seen (off camera) rolling his eyes. At one point, his neck snapped back like a PEZ dispenser.

Parrish: "I haven't been so uncomfortable in a discussion of a bathroom situation since Sen. Craig described his wide stances. I'm getting out of here barely in time."



Larry, that may be true but if you play your cards right, there might be a seat on the Riverside City Council come 2009. One of the requirements of service is perfecting that eye roll that you seem to already have down pat.


Speaking of the Board of Supervisors race in Riverside, apparently a debate forum was held among the District One candidates in La Sierra by the League of Women voters. Apparently too, one of the candidates, Frank Schiavone went off on a woman in attendance, which led to complaints after it was over. So far there are no accounts of incumbent supervisor, Bob Buster throwing a tantrum.

At one point, the moderator from the League had to yell at people to just shut up, said one individual.

It wasn't covered in the Press Enterprise like many candidate forums have been because apparently no one was there but it did beg the question.

Are these politicians public statemen or are they orchids?



This is an orchid, and a rather pretty one at that.

An orchid as you know is nice to look at, elusive at best to find and always, always must be handled with great care, lest it wilt under heat or pressure. That also applies to the two-legged kind as shown weekly at city council meetings not to mention during assorted election cycles which have titillated this region in recent years.




Someone once told me that Schiavone's treatment towards me last December was my fault because of my style of speaking. Of course, if I had just received his huge political vote in my favor as this person had received, I might have been inclined to agree with that assertion. But it's interesting how the trend of the council's behavior has been towards women. Most often it's women, particularly elderly women who the city council asks police officers to "escort" from the podium. Most often it's women, the mayor cuts off while they're speaking rather than allowing them to wrap up their comments. Most often, it's the women who've been called liars or said to have lied, have no integrity, little or no class. And so forth.

There's very little estrogen on the dais at the moment. Perhaps it's time to inject some more. Just something to think about before the next election cycle. After all, among the names being dropped as possible candidates for Wards Four and Six are some dynamic women which would make for a good and exciting election.

But I never figured Schiavone for being so thin-skinned and volatile, as one person described him at the forum. Adams, yes but Schiavone didn't start his political career with this hair-trigger demeanor he's exhibited in the past year or so. And the truth is, if a candidate can't control himself and is undone by a critical individual during his political campaign, what does that say in terms of how he'll handle himself in a pressure-keg environment like the Board of Supervisors? Both very much and not very much.

If he wins, I guess we'll all find out.

Still, politicians come into the job knowing what lies ahead, or they should know that not everyone's going to agree with them or flatter them because after all, they choose to run and aren't drafted into service, well except in the loosest definition of the word perhaps. They should be equipped and willing to deal with all kinds of people. Just like if you work in food service, you might end up wearing someone's meal they didn't like as I know and you must still do so with a smile, politicians have to learn to deal with all forms of criticism. And the fact is, some politicians in Riverside can't because they're orchids.



It wouldn't be the first time that a political candidate went off on someone who attended what is intended to be a forum of debate between the candidates. Last year, Ward Seven Councilman Steve Adams attacked La Sierra resident and former Ward Seven candidate Jim Martin at a candidate forum. Martin hadn't even opened his mouth before being subjected to an Adams tantrum in front of a crowd of people but having listened to eyewitness accounts of that episode from the pages of Election 2007, I'd say it reflected badly on Adams rather than Martin and probably contributed to Adams falling a bit short of achieving a landslide victory.

Adams and Schiavone allegedly left the council chambers during public comment with City Attorney Gregory Priamos at last Tuesday's meeting because after all, when it comes to city residents speaking their minds from the dais, that obviously comes a distant second to whatever discussion is apparently taking place in private off of the main stage.





The Orange County Board of Supervisors has enough of its own concerns to keep it busy but it shares one with Riverside County and that's appointing a new sheriff to replace Michael Carona who resigned to focus on his corruptions case. Nine applicants have tossed their hat in the ring for the job, according to the Los Angeles Times.


(excerpt)


Among the finalists are acting Sheriff Jack Anderson -- Carona's hand-picked successor -- and three candidates who ran unsuccessful campaigns against Carona in 2006: former Orange County Sheriff's Lt. William Hunt, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Cmdr. Ralph Martin and longtime Santa Ana Police Chief Paul Walters.



Before you get too excited about Walters, bear in mind that he puts his name in for different law enforcement management positions when he's bucking for a salary hike. He pulled that stunt here in Riverside in 2000 when this city was shopping for a new chief to replace outgoing Jerry Carroll. Though he led the pack of candidates, he proved he wasn't serious by dropping out when he got what else, his salary hike at home in Santa Ana. Was it right for him to take advantage of Riverside's current policing crisis for his own personal and professional gain? I guess it's up for each individual to decide.


There was some interesting commentary from Orange County peeps on the hiring process to take place including the candidates now in the ring.


(excerpt)


I think the field is fine," said John Moorlach, chairman of the Orange County Board of Supervisors. "I think we have some very strong candidates here, some that will be real interesting to see how they perform once we interview them."

Wayne Quint, president of the Assn. of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs, said morale among deputies slipped considerably after Carona's indictment last year and the release of a grand jury investigation that criticized the department's management of its largest jail.

The selection of a new sheriff could mark the first step toward improving morale, he said.

"Whoever they select," Quint said, "I hope they put public safety ahead of politics."





Does Temecula's new proposal chill free speech during elections? The Press Enterprise Editorial Board thinks so and has condemned the proposal that would impact those candidacy statements that are filled out in those booklets which are published each election cycle. However, if they really wanted to warm up free speech so to speak, they would advocate for a reduction in the cost of having a political statement included in one of these books as the cost is often prohibitive for grass-roots candidates.


The following is a press release from Portland's very own auditor, Gary Blackmer. Blackmer if you recall is one of two parties (with Mayor Tom Potter being the other) wrestling for control over the Independent Police Review and its stepchild, the Citizen Police Committee, in the wake of a rather pointed critique of both bodies by consultant, Eileen Luna-Firebaugh.



Blackmer also appears to only consider people residents of the city or "community" if they agree with what the city's doing or praise it all the time.




Contact: Gary Blackmer 503-823-4078
May 9, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRESS RELEASE

Auditor Announces Selection of New Independent Police Review Director

Portland City Auditor Gary Blackmer announced the hiring of Mary-Beth
Baptista as the new Director of Independent Police Review. Baptista has
been a Deputy District Attorney in Multnomah County for over seven years,
and previously worked as an Outreach Coordinator for the Sierra Club. She
graduated from Lewis and Clark's Northwestern School of Law, and received
dual undergraduate degrees from Syracuse University in Political
Science and Policy Studies & Public Affairs.

"She is very experienced working with victims, she knows
investigations, and she is an excellent communicator, " Blackmer said.
"Her expertise is exactly what we need to ensure fair and thorough
investigations of complaints, to work with the community, and to
identify ways the Portland Police Bureau can improve its services."

A national search was conducted to fill the position, and finalists
were interviewed by an 8-member panel, including several members of
the public.
Leslie Stevens, the previous director, was hired by the Portland
Police Bureau to oversee its new Office of Professional Standards.

Baptista starts in her position on May 29.

The Independent Police Review Division accepts and oversees the
investigation and resolution of citizen complaints against police
officers and makes recommendations relating to Police Bureau policy
and training.
More information on the IPR can be found at
www.portlandonline. com/auditor/ ipr.




The struggle for improved civilian oversight still continues in Portland including with this hiring of the new IPR director who is seen as being pro-police due to her employment history as a prosecutor. What else did anyone expect from Blackmer?

It's not uncommon to hire former police officers or prosecutors for this position. After all in Riverside, current executive manager, Kevin Rogan is a former police captain and before being taking the job here also considered working for a large police firm in Upland and the District Attorney's office in a different county. The former head of the San Diego County's version of a civilian review board was also a former police officer.



Civilian oversight is also a strong topic in Spokane, Washington stemming in part from a clash that took place between police officers and activists which was caught on videotape.



(excerpt, Spokeman Review)



Spokane needs strong independent police oversight, and we need it NOW!

Hey, I want to trust our local police. I really do. But they keep making it so damned difficult.

Take these magic videos, for example.

On Monday, a district judge delayed the trial of 20-year-old Michael C. Lyons, the only activist with the nerve to hold out for a day in court. (The other 16 either accepted deferred prosecutions or, in the case of Zach St. John, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of riot.


The delay came after prosecutors handed Lyons' attorney the videos minutes before jury selection.

All that was missing from this surprise were descending balloons and confetti.

According to a news story, Assistant City Prosecutor Jim Bledsoe said he knew nothing about the evidence until it arrived Monday morning via the police. Oops.

Ronnie Rae, Lyons' lawyer, had every right to cry foul and seek a dismissal.

On Tuesday, the soap opera continued as a police public relations propagandist attempted to mop up the mess. "It's absolutely our mistake," said Jennifer DeRuwe, according to a news story. "I don't think there was any attempt to deceive anyone."

Why, thank you, Jenny.

But sorry doesn't cut it. This is a violation of a defendant's constitutional rights. Evidence known only by the police must be disclosed to the defense.



What has people upset? That the Spokane Police Department waited until the 11th hour to present evidence to the defense attorney in this case.