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

Zully Broussard

I have to say, that every now and then a true Angel appears. That is what Zully Broussard is, an Angel. She decided to give a total stranger one of her Kidney’s and this sparked a chain reaction for six other patients to receive Kidney’s. It took place at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, with the support staff of 40 to do these surgeries on 12 people. The patients who received these donor Kidneys were on the deceased donor lists. There were three parents and child pairs, one sibling pair and one brother and sister-in-law pair. Thanks to a computer programmer named David Jacobs who was on the deceased donor list years ago who received a Kidney from a living donor. It is much easier and faster for doctors and their staff to coordinate multiple Kidney transplants. David Jacobs created a Match Grid that genetically matches donor pairs or chains quickly. David Jacobs said “When we did a five-way swap a few years ago, which was one of the largest, it took about three to four months. We did this in about three weeks”. He is another Angel, think of all the lives is program saved.

When I was sixteen years old I got my driver’s license. Back then on your license you received a card specify that you wanted to be an organ donor. You would attach to your license. Back then I was thinking if something would happen to me, at least I would help save someone’s life. Little did I know 20 years later I would be diagnosed with Kidney failure and put on the deceased donors list? I was on Dialysis for 5 years. Once I was on Dialysis I felt better but being on it for so long it took a toll on my body. The deceased donor list is a long list and the waiting is agonizing. It doesn’t really matter where you are on the list if a match comes up. The match goes to the sickest person. In my case, I was the sickest person so I received the Kidney from the deceased donors list. It will be 8 years October 28, 2015, one day after my birthday. Now I celebrate the day I was born and the day I was reborn.

It doesn’t have to be this way if more people like Zully Broussard of Fair Oaks California would give this generous gift of life. There are currently 123,175 people waiting for lifesaving organ transplants in the U.S. of these, 101,170 await kidney transplants according to the Organ Donation and Transplantation Statistic as of September 8, 2014. I’m a firm believer we are all connected, no matter what race we are. God Bless you Zully Broussard.

LM

http://fox40.com/2015/03/06/fair-oaks-womans-generosity-prompts-six-way-kidney-transplant/

https://www.kidney.org/news/newsroom/factsheets/Organ-Donation-and-Transplantation-Stats

Chris Brown and the Wild West at The Fiesta!!

Chris Brown and the Wild West at The Fiesta!!
By. Amero
The Fiesta was very un-festive on January 11th. Controversial singer/
rapper Chris Brown was on stage performing one of his singles “Loyal” on
stage as bullets tore through the crowd injuring five people. The KMEL
hosted ‘Capricorn Bash’ was held in San Jose, Ca at the Fiesta nightclub
on Monterey Rd. The Fiesta is long known for its inadequate security
measures in the past with several incidences that have occurred at other
venues. Why do people not value other peoples lives is a mystery to me.
First off security should at least search everybody including artists &
entourage. Second who goes out to have fun and brings a gun? I don't get
it. I was surprised that Chris Brown would do such a small venue as you
can see the stage is jam packed with security. Brown was on stage and in
videos online he is seen smiling as a fight breaks out he shouts on the mic”
them ni**as gettin it in”. What later ensued was bullets and blood and in the
end five people were shot. Four were taken to the hospital on site while
one person showed up to a hospital with injuries. Police have not made
any arrests but several party goers were detained for questioning. What's
so surprising is if you watch the video it seems as if everyone had their
camera out and recording but nobody has a picture of the shooter or
shooters. Fiesta has since been put on probation and also SJPD has
revoked Fiestas entertainment permit. The shooting is one of the latest
bumps in the road for Chris Brown. A judge recently revoked his probation
and the artist faces jail time for leaving Los Angeles County to do this show.
Browns attorney told the judge that his office had incorrectly advised Brown
that he could leave. Looks like its time for new representation Chris!! This
is tough for me to grasp because I love music its just that people need to
learn to separate reality and fiction. Music is an art form not a lifestyle to be
replicated. Just think what the world would be like if you went to an action
movie and people started shooting.All because the actor portrays a
gangster role in the movie and people wanna connect with the character.
Sounds dumb don't it? At least everyone left with their life and can go
home.

GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE CLOSURE

By. Amero
Yes yes people its 2015 and January is rolling by. Crazy how time flies. I'm here to spread the word about the closure of the world famous Golden Gate Bridge.The Bridge will be closed to install a movable median barrier which will provide a safer and more efficient system of separating opposing lanes of traffic. The bridge will be closed starting at 12:01 am on January 10th. And reopen Monday January 12 at 4:00 am. At least they didn't do the repairs during the holidays when traffic is at an all time high but The Bridge District is issuing a ‘no travel advisory’ that weekend, but if travel between San Francisco and the North Bay Area is necessary, there are several ways to get to your destination. 1. Golden Gate Transit bus service will be allowed to cross the Bridge. 2.Golden Gate Ferry will be offering expanded service that weekend, including late night service. 3. Just use an alternate route like the Richmond bridge or the Bay bridge. You can also ride your bike or walk across the 1.7 mile span of the bridge because the eastern side will remain open to pedestrians.What crews are working on is replacing the plastic tubes used to separate opposing lanes of traffic. During the heavy morning traffic southbound lanes are expanded to accommodate commuter traffic from the north into San Francisco and in the evening the tubes are shifted to allow north bound commuters out of San Francisco. The new barrier system will provide a safer and more efficient system of dividing opposing lanes of traffic.The barrier will be installed on the 1.7-mile-long Bridge and on the approach portion of Highway 101, north of the Golden Gate Bridge,starting at Alexander Avenue. Using transfer machines, the barrier will be moved several times a day to create more lanes in a particular direction to accommodate variable traffic demands. This new movable median barrier system will enhance safety by reducing the potential for crossover collisions and will allow the Bridge District to more efficiently reconfigure lane changes to optimize traffic operations on the bridge. This could not come any sooner because of the head on collisions occurring on the bridge. Streetwise Special Delivery Inc. will be open during the weekend for all your package deliveries in the bay area.

One of the Country’s Largest Homeless Encampment “The Jungle” is shut down in San Jose

Well they finally did it! On December 4, 2014 San Jose finally shut down the largest homeless encampment in the country, known as “The Jungle”. It spans 68 acres in central San Jose along the Coyote Creek. It was home to 200 to 300 hundred people at a time. Most of these people have been living there for years. The closing of “The Jungle” is supposed to be a good, thing especially for the people who have homes near Coyote Creek. The fouls smells coming from “The Jungle” will be gone and the home owner will be glad. The bad thing about closing “The Jungle” is all the homeless people who lived there for years, where do they go? San Jose’s officials say they have spent 4 million dollars working with non-profits to find housing and temporary housing for the 200 to 300 people who were living in “The Jungle”. Ray Bramson, the city's homeless response manager said “the city is doing everything it can to ease the crisis: 144 people had been placed in housing, and another 55 have housing subsidy vouchers and are looking for homes through this pilot program. An additional 70 to 80 temporary shelter beds also had been arranged.” I don’t believe that! I just hope we don’t hear of some official stealing this money years from now. It has been known to happen. What about the ones who were living there, that did not take them up on their offer? What about the 5000 plus homeless people living on the streets in San Jose? Santa Clara County is one of the riches counties in the country but the homeless pollution is getting out of hand. There needs to be more affordable housing. All the people who left “The Jungle” where are they now? Michael Ealey of Streetwise Special Delivery Inc. Courier Service in Gilroy, California has already seen tents going up along Highway 85 and Highway 280 in San Jose on December 5, 2014. San Jose may have closed down “The Jungle” but that has not solved the problem. The homeless will always find a place to make their home. Don’t be priced if it’s next door to where you live. If it is you have the County of Santa Clara and the City of San Jose to thank for that. This is such a sad circumstances.

LM

http://www.contracostatimes.com/crime-courts/ci_27066590/jungle-san-jose-shuts-down-notorious-homeless-encampment

Another Grand Jury Gets It Wrong Again

Here we go again! Another Grand Jury gets it wrong again, when the evidence is on video tape live and in living color. On July 17, 2014 Eric Garner, 43 husband, father and son lost his life after several Police Officers in Staten Island, New York tried to hand cuff him. All because he was standing there selling single cigarettes. Don’t the police have anything better to do than harass someone not raping, shooting, robbing and selling legal drugs, apparently not. Police Officer Daniel Pantaleo, is the officer who put Eric Garner in a choke hold which contributed to his death. What is so upsetting, unlike the Michael Brown case there was a video tape of the incident. The Grand Jury in this case had the evidence on video tape and they still refused to charge Officer Daniel Pantaleo. If this is not a case of prejudice and racism, I don’t know what is. It is a disgrace of our justice system. After the Grand Jury Verdict came out on Wednesday December 3, 2014 it spurred a massive protest in New York and cities from Atlanta to California. People are in outrage and are fed up with the legal system. Protester took to the streets in New York after the verdict. In Grand Central Station protesters laid down in the terminal to block walk through traffic. They also blocked the West Side Highway and blocked the Brooklyn Bridge. With these multiple killings of blacks by white Police officers it has spurred a protest campaign known as #BlackLivesMatter. In Oakland California protests are schedule for Thursday December 4, 2014 at 5p.m. Frank Ogawa Plaza, which Occupy protesters rechristened Oscar Grant Plaza three years ago. It will start off peaceful but you can best believe it will turn violent. What needs to happen is for the Prosecutors, Grand Juries and Police Officers to be held accountable? They are all working to together, that is why this keeps happening. The system is truly flawed and it needs to change.

LM

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/protests-erupt-after-decision-in-chokehold-death/ar-BBgioBK?ocid=UP97DHP

http://observer.com/2014/12/de-blasio-says-federal-government-will-investigate-painful-garner-case/

http://www.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2014/12/03/eric-garner-verdict-oakland-braces-for-more-protests

H