SEEKING AN ALTERNATIVE LEADER (us!) sandra & robert
when is it i check in, and out, and back in to the political realm?
voted; went years without voting; voted... in presidential election
never cared; cared; voted; back to caring...
i certainly remember voting for obama
and i certainly remember voting to oust newsom (more than once)
-it still baffles me,
how under newsom's leadership as mayor, san francisco went to SH*#
and yet, he was promoted to governor of california. [?!?!]
under his leadership of california..
same SH*# happens at state level as it did under his leadership at the city level.
[i am convicted about using swear words.. and like to lightheartedly joke, -sometimes i still cuss because
when i was baptised i was only sprinkled, not fully immersed]
things of greatest concern to me now:
slipping away of free speech
slipping away of middle class
government overreach into individuals, business, civilian life
technology out-evolving humanity
i think the greatest testimony of our 'state of the city' or 'state of the country'
is how often my husband and i here from people who immigrated here decades ago
this is not the same country it was when we risked our lives to get here
its turning into the countries we left behind
****
-sounds alarmist at first..
but when you hear that from entirely different people, at different times, repeatedly
you hear the pattern; the grave concern
we realize: it should not be taken lightly.
****
freedom isnt free
****
i've mentioned it more than once
no 'rights' were ever generously, benevolently, proactively gifted to an oppressed population
i.e.,
hey fellas.. i was thinkin.. why don't we let women vote..yes! let's include them this year..
hey fellas.. i was thinkin'... we need some women c.e.o's...
-you get the idea.
*****
every freedom; every right; -has been hard earned and fought for
****
a fight against oppression; a fight for freedom
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a fight against tyranny; a fight against dictatorships; a fight against communism
a fight for democracy
u.s. voters are all soldiers and freedom fighters
***
i still have it locked in my mind; i remember:
Gavin says,
"But most of all, the death penalty is absolute, irreversible and irreparable in the event of a human error." /which initially sounds so noble, -write -LIKE HE WOULD NEVER RISK MAKING SUCH AN ERROR
This is true. And the thing to consider, is the painfully high number of inmates who have been released from prisons and who return to the streets and steal, rob, rape and MURDER
Are not those deaths also absolute, irreversible and irreparable. The statistics for 'human error' when it comes to releasing inmates who then go on to kill someone.. Murders which could be prevented. We need to pay much more attention to those 'absolute, irreversible and irreparable' human errors.
The police arrest records, in the case of Richard Allen Davis.. more importantly, the 'he was released & re-released' records, speak very clearly about the absolute, irreversible and irreparable cost of 'human error'
That series of re-releases, ultimately resulted in the kidnap and murder of our beloved Polly Klaas. Kidnapped at 12 years old, from the bedroom of her own home, violated, and murdered, by Richard Allen Davis; currently -and since 1996 on death row
(It is not 'death' row then, if year, after year, after year, after year, after year, for decades you are still alive -write)
The public is indeed safer with a dangerous, murderous, evil predator off the streets and in jail;
And, I would argue, we are all safer still, if a dangerous, murderous, evil, predator is not even on our planet.
and let us speak here about that 'waste of billions of tax payer dollars'
FREE GUARANTEED SHELTER
THREE FREE MEALS A DAY
LAUNDRY SERVICES
CLOTHES
HEALTHCARE
RECREATION
MEDICINES
on and on, etc, etc,
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more recently, we have newsom looking initially noble again,
unless you look more comprehensively at the issue
-gaven signed a law allowing the involuntary treatment of californians with severe mental illness.
and, there isn't anyone i know of, that does not want
severely mentally ill people off our sidewalks, streets, away from our schools, parks, etc.
we all do.
the thing that is missing here, is INFRASTRUCTURE
he can appear noble signing the law,
but we have hospitals, doctors, nurses up in arms because our current healthcare system
is entirely ill- equipped to handle this demographic.
he does not have to personally endure or suffer any of the realities on the receiving end
of the laws he is signing.
California desperately needs to re-open Agnew
BUILD, OPEN AND UTILIZE
neuropsychiatric institutions for the care and treatment of our mentally ill.
THIS SHOULD BE OUR STEADFAST, UNWAVERING DIRECTION:
i know it costs and takes time,
but you do have to start somewhere don't you
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AND so, for myself, personally, i am looking for alternatives to newsom's image-oriented leadership; and looking for a leader with a skill/talent/habit of looking at issues comprehensively
"OLLY OLLY OXEN FREE..."
hallelujah & amen
a first for both of us (mayor matt mahan!) and (me!) sandra harrison kay
yes, quoted quote worth repeating write about now:
garth brooks "john f kennedy who once said,
if more politicians knew poetry,
and more poets knew politics,
i'm convinced the world would be a little better place. "
it was mayor matt mahan's very first state of the city address as mayor
and it was my, very first time, ever attending a state of the city address (robert too..)
***
i never went to hayward's, or kept track of who the mayor even was.. ditto for san leandro, san lorenzo, -but paid some attention in pleasanton (where i was the poet laureate 2013-2015), without attending a state of the city..
my high dive jump into the cold and polluted ocean waters of politics really starts here:
NOTonNOBLE
***
skipping lots to get here: our drive to the city of san jose college campus where mahan's event was held
-the (graffiti is way too soft a word);
-the ugly, disturbing, gross, highly visible vandalism that has taken over the sound walls along 680S en route to the city of san jose campus.. -does anything degrade a city faster?
HIDEOUS. and growing exponentially in size and amount.. both sides of the freeway, for miles..
this exponential growth of destruction of public property, this vandalism, and degradation of our city screams the following:
criminals feel empowered -no one is getting caught.
laws are not being enforced. -no one is cleaning it up.
**
my husband and i have witnessed (in portland oregon) what it looks like, when a city, state, community just utterly gives up. the criminals [vandals, drug dealers, thieves, addicts, etc] have literally won and own (for free, by the way; ownership comes via intimidation) -but these criminals own certain territories -no healthy people, businesses, schools, libraries, stores of any kind exist where criminals have won, -healthy people have all left for safety reasons; businesses have left.. buildings are boarded up, windows broken, litter/trash everywhere -some places look broken beyond repair
it really is like a metastasizing cancer
my husband and i have also watched with great interest the documentary seattle is dying -the cry from the public and small business owners, like when did we just stop doing anything about it? we just watch it grow.. no one is DOING ANYTHING TO STOP THIS -why have they tied the hands of law enforcement officers?!?!
i ache!
i ache! with the knowledge san jose is at a fork in the road of its history
in my six years here now, i have seen san jose heading, slowly, painfully, in the direction of those fatally cancerous sections of portland and seattle we now consciously avoid, and steer any friends/family away from
i ache!
i ache! with the hope, -having had our NOTonNOBLE VICTORY, -having new leadership now, and new leadership on the way..
i ache! with the hope san jose can put the brakes on empowering criminals and start empowering law enforcement; that's the way it should be!
this post could potentially be a thousand pages long, let me point out briefly
in order to maintain law and order, we need law enforcement officers that are given the autonomy and authority to enforce the laws! -write!
in order to recruit and retain high quality law enforcement officers -we need to not just pay attention to pay & benefits, but -culture-
until we improve the culture for law enforcement officers -un-demonizing them, and giving them back the authority and autonomy that belongs to them..
anyway, we need a lot more law enforcement officers...
/side track... do you realize that by just enforcing this ONE LAW, we could save hundreds of small businesses!!
our 'homeless'
our population of drug dealers, drug addicts, criminals, mentally ill, -and small % percent of people experiencing temporary financial hardship..
our growing population of boxes, tents, garbage, dangerous make-shift shelters with any number of potentially threatening, dysfunctional/criminals loitering, panhandling, camping out purposeless and unemployed (or unemployable)
they have been ALLOWED to accumulate near small businesses..
this population and pollution is a HUGE DETERRENT for customers.
now, otherwise thriving small businesses are struggling and adding to the crisis!
-this CAUSES even more people to struggle..! small business owners, who are healthy, who are working, who are contributing.. they have enough obstacles already,
we do not want to ADD ON to the challenges any small businesses face, by allowing a decrease in their customer base DUE TO A PREVENTABLE PROBLEM!
we want to HIGHLY SUPPORT ALL SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS! in these plazas
give them a fighting chance by REMOVING ENCAMPMENTS IMMEDIATELY!
if you do not, you are contributing, consciously, to your unemployed population and crisis.
****
where should they go?
the 'temporary, immediate' relocation should be to somewhere in the outskirts! -not residential areas, not near other businesses.. not where they threaten the safety of any one
-while we continue to thoroughly, comprehensively, address the issue that threatens to turn san jose into seattle
TINY HOMES ARE NOT A SOLUTION
an ongoing frustration for me, is that the mayor, -people in leadership in any variety of cities
they talk about our homeless -that is, -our population of unhoused drug dealers, drug addicts, criminals, mentally ill, -and small % percent of people experiencing temporary financial hardship..
as if they are dealing with a fixed number
we have 6000 unhoused.. build 6000 tiny homes; problem solved
NO!!
build 6000 tiny homes, and 6000 more 'unhoused' will find their way to san jose.
your heart might be in the write place, but you are creating a HUGE INCENTIVE for even more
drug dealers, drug addicts, criminals, mentally ill, -and small % percent of people experiencing temporary financial hardship..
to fill our streets, sidewalks, businesses parking lots, open spaces, etc.
****
/back to: vandalism/destruction of property along our freeway sound walls.
we, that is, us, robert and i, and countless neighbors, -we all take care of the smaller vandalism/destruction issues within our neighborhood by taking the initiative and covering it up, cleaning it up ourselves.
that, and we have had some success by reporting it via 311.
but the sound walls.. the size, the scope,
it is too much for us, or trust me, we would have it cleaned up before you finished reading this.
what we learned, to our surprise, and education, is that these sound walls are NOT THE CITY OF SAN JOSE'S RESPONSIBILITY
the freeway sound walls are CALTRANS RESPONSIBILITY!
AND, that captures another frustration for me, ongoing.. learned during NOTonNOBLE
-just figuring out who is responsible for what, from neighborhoods, to districts, to city vs county vs state, vs citizen, vs. lawyer, vs. judge...
figuring that out, takes so much time/energy i'd love to use for other things!
anyway,
as i write this.. the message to everyone who lives in, near, or travels through san jose:
too bad.
just the way it is. nobody has done anything about, nor will do anything about it..
learn to live with it; watch it grow... -certainly from my first day in san jose, throughout the 6 years, -that has been the message i receive each time we drive to/from san jose airport, via the oakland/13th street path.. AWFUL! and without any action.. PERMANENT AWFUL...
****
i think one of the BEST, one of the BOLDEST, one of the MOST PRODUCTIVE, one of the most RESTORATIVE, STATEMENT moves anyone in san jose leadership could do write now:
to make sure, at this fork in the road in the city's history,
that we turn toward "restored to its former glory" vs. "criminals, vandals own the city"
is to MAKE CLEANING, RESTORING OUR SOUND WALLS A TOP PRIORITY
-this makes a statement, visually, for everyone who lives here, drives here, has friends/family, visit here..
makes it more attractive and healthy for everyone! business people, traveling people.. investors, guests; everyone who loves and cares about san jose
of course,
how do we un-empower the vandals we have empowered?
caught & consequences! we need to also make caught & consequences TOP PRIORITY if we ever hope to create enough disincentive that we don't have to perpetually make this a priority
ideally, it should be an IMMEDIATE, VITAL BIG PROJECT -that then requires manageable maintenance; like weeding...
anyway,
i think, the writeousmom in me thinks...
when you catch a vandal.. when you catch them, selfishly, ignorantly, destroying public property, disrespecting san jose, spreading ugliness
a) thank you! for catching them..
b) they should be made to clean up sound walls for (variable) hours.
c) they should be made to make a public apology
and
demand.. an essay where they have to write why they did it, and more importantly, why they should never do it again -this is like, parenting 101.. and it gets great results!
-what i've learned,
most people hate writing essays so much, that might, all by itself, create enough deterrent
and, on the occasions, someone enjoys writing the essay, -well, we have ourselves a writer..
on the occasions, they enjoy making a public apology, because they like an audience.. well, we have ourselves a public speaker...
on the occasions, we find someone who enjoys restoring the walls to their former cleanliness and beauty..
i mean,
it's not hopeless; that's my point.
a clean, beautiful, safe, -graffiti free- san jose...
i have my dreams.
****
QUESTION: -because in casual conversation it was shared that CALTRANS.. well for caltrans cleaning up our sacred sound walls is not a priority [that already shows..] -and robert and i, we wondered..
we wonder... like, what if the city of san jose, just took the initiative and got the job done? -with an understanding caltrans can't get to it write now... but it desperately needs addressed.
****
they are doing something write in newport, laguna, hunting beach areas... nice and clean there. attracts vs. deters people away... clear messages; law enforcement maybe?
my other dream is to go back to when our parking lot signage read: violators will be prosecuted.
now all of our parking lot warnings are to the law abiding citizens: park at your own risk.
we have to stop empowering criminals.
aren't you so excited to bring your family shopping here? ... to leave even an empty car in the lot...
more later..
in Jesus name, amen
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