San Jose California Residents. Are You Conserving Water?

I have lived in San Jose, California all my life and every year there has been less and less rainfall. People start to panic and talk about being in a drought. Then it rains, floods, water levels rise everyone stops panicking. Yea! We have a drought going on now and maybe it will be the longest one ever. I’m not tripping on conserving water? The reason why, I rent a duplex and there is shared water which is included in the rent. I don’t know how much the other unit is using and I can’t do anything about it. The rent continues to go up every year to compensate for the rising cost of water. I have been water conscious all my life. Growing up in a household of seven, my parents had a large water bill to pay. We all  learned how to conserve. I don’t let the water run while brushing my teeth, washing dishes, taking a shower.I wash clothes once a week to conserve water.

For all San Jose residents, it’s illegal for you to wash your car with potable water. For you that don’t know what potable water is, it is drinking water. It is illegal to top off a residential swimming pool or hot tub more than 1 foot. San Jose’s Water Conservation Board has the nerve to say you can drain a hot tub or pool to fix the leak that’s legal. This is one of the stupidest thing I have ever heard, you can buy a pool or hot tub, but it is illegal to fill them. This one is real dumb, don’t put in a new lawn between May 1 and Oct. 31 if it has a sprinkler system. You can however install new grass only if you water it by hand or a with drip irrigation or with recycled water. What about the office buildings and schools that have been around for years with the old system of using drinking water to keep their grass green? Are they paying the fines? It seems to me no matter how you conserve or don’t conserve living in San Jose, California there will always be a drought.

LM

http://www.mercurynews.com/drought/ci_27994069/san-joses-new-drought-rules-how-they-will?source=infinite

http://www.mercurynews.com/spotlight/ci_28144890/california-drought-new-poll-finds-residents-think-its?source=top_stories_bar

Baltimore Maryland Riots Again After 36 years

People gather Tuesday, April 28, 2015, in Baltimore, in the aftermath of rioting following Monday's funeral for Freddie Gray, who died in police custody. Gov. Larry Hogan said at a news conference Tuesday that Baltimore will not have a repeat of the riots that happened on Monday. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

Here we go again! The City of Baltimore Maryland riots again 36 years later. The last time was the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. On April 12, 2015, 25 year old Freddie Gray was arrested for possession of a switchblade which was later determined to be a lie. While in police custody and on his way to the police station he was injured severely. He died on April 19, 2015 from injuries to his spinal cord and larynx. The Gilmore Homes neighborhood sparked a mass protest with the death of Freddie Gray. After his funeral on April 27, 2015 the protest turned violent and civil unrest ensued because the people were sick and tired of the police. I don’t think the people of Gilmore Homes neighborhood should have vandalize their neighborhood it only hurt themselves.

It was not only in Baltimore where mass protests happened. Cities across the country were protesting the injustice that has been going on for decades. Cities like Washington D.C., Ferguson Missouri, Oakland California, Seattle Washington, Minneapolis Minnesota, Philadelphia and New York. Freddie Gray, Michael Brown, Treyvon Martin, Oscar Grant and the thousands of other who we have not heard of have lost their lives at the hands of police or someone who thought they had authority. The people aren’t standing for this type of blatant abuse of authority anymore.

I lived in Baltimore for a year back in the early 80’s. Back then the people in certain areas of were always complaining about how corrupt the police were. When I went back in 1997 it had not gotten any better. I still saw boarded up row houses, kids hanging out when they were supposed to be in school. The police harassing black men on the street. When my Husband and son went back in 2009 it was still corrupt. Everything was so separate you rarely saw white people unless you went to their neighborhoods or out to the county of Baltimore. Coming from California it was a real culture shock. One thing I can say is that it was good to see white people and other nationalities peacefully protesting with blacks and holding signs saying Black Lives Matter.

This is a nationwide matter the Police Departments across the United States have to do a lot better, be held accountable and stop covering up bad behavior of police officers. This hold situation keeps on happening and people are saying enough is enough.

LM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Freddie_Gray

http://news.yahoo.com/photos/death-of-freddie-gray-after-police-arrest-1429716170-slideshow/people-gather-tuesday-april-28-2015-baltimore-aftermath-photo-174203081.html