Journal Daily

Ahrens makes plea to ban “Caged Bird”

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 23:13:20 -0800

By Brittany Hanson
Garden Grove Journal

Former Westminster School District board member Judy Ahrens was in a hurry. She was in so much of a hurry at Thursday night’s school board meeting that she could not even stay to hear a rebuttal after she made a public statement to remove a book.
Ahrens has been on a crusade to have the book, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” by Maya Angelou removed from library shelves in various Orange County school districts due to portions she deems unfit for children.
On Thursday Ahrens cited two scenes of molestation, a rape scene and a lesbian love scene that are included in Angelou’s autobiography, a library shelf staple since 1969.
Board Jo-Ann Purcell asked Ahrens if she could at least stay to hear rebuttal for her public comment on the request for book removal, however, Ahrens said she was busy and had some where else to be right then. Purcell commented that she found it interesting that Ahrens had not brought this issue up when she used to be a member of the board.
Purcell said, “ You know, I think that a book, even if it touches or helps only one child . . . for that one child it is worth keeping on shelves.”
Her statement was met with applause from the audience, a packed meeting room full of district employees.
Purcell said that she had looked into the matter of the book and had found that it was of national acclaim and that if a child picked up the book and found it interesting they would read it, but if not then they wouldn’t.
Purcell also said that she, and others of her age range, would remember what it was like during the Nazi control of Hitler in Europe when books of all sorts were forcibly banned and burned.
The book has listed by the American Library Association as the third most challenged book through the 1990’s. The controversial rape scene, which has met the much of the challenge from the public, is an account from Angelou of her rape at age 8 by her mother’s boyfriend, a man referred to as Mr. Freeman.
Ahrens said in her statement Thursday and at other public meetings that she feels that children should be protected from “this kind of literature.” She said that she felt that it was inappropriate for seventh and eighth grade students to read a book because of these scenes.
The book is not a part of required curriculum in WSD, and when it is, it recommended by the ALA for students of the senior high school level sue to its mature content.
Angelou has said in interviews that she still bears the emotional scars of what happened to her as a child and included the scene to show the reality of rape and to serve as a message of understanding and possibly help to other victims.
According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Justice in 2000, the highest percentages of reported child sexual assault occurred from ages 6-11, at 20.1 percent of all assault and ages 12-17, with 32.8 percent of all assault.
Young females were the victims of nearly 99.9 percent of all reported forcible rapes and 70 percent of reported and five out of six sexual assaults occurred within the home.
Offenders in such reported cases were more likely to be a family member or known to the family and victim.

U.S. Senate bid launched in G. Grove

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:04:20 -0800

By Gillian Flaccus
Associated Press Writer

GARDEN GROVE (AP) – Former Silicon Valley executive Carly Fiorina announced last Wednesday she is running for the chance to seize liberal stalwart Barbara Boxer’s U.S. Senate seat, depicting the three-term Democrat as a Capitol Hill do-nothing who penned novels while jobs vanished and government spending soared.
The former Hewlett-Packard Co. CEO’s entry into the race could present California’s junior senator with her most formidable re-election challenge, but Fiorina first will have to survive what could become a scalding Republican primary against state Assemblyman Chuck DeVore, who has worked feverishly to court GOP voters.
The announcement was made at Earth Friendly Cleaners, a company which manufactures environmentally-safe detergents.
The California primary could become a reprise of New York’s 23rd Congressional District race, where a bitter split between GOP conservatives and moderates opened the way for a Democratic victory Tuesday. DeVore, who calls himself a Reagan conservative, says the contest with Fiorina will test “two visions of the Republican Party.’’
Fiorina, speaking to an invited audience in Orange County, a traditional GOP stronghold, described herself Wednesday as a Republican devoted to low taxes and tightfisted budgets. She called herself “a political newcomer who actually knows how to get something done.’’
“What do you say that come next year, we give Barbara Boxer the chance to become a full-time novelist?’’ Fiorina said, alluding to the senator’s political suspense stories.
“Let’s start with living within our means. The rest of us do. Why not Washington?’’ she asked. She promised not to support higher taxes until Congress learns to spend responsibly.
Fiorina’s announcement comes a day after Republicans took control of governors’ seats from Democrats in Virginia and New Jersey, but Fiorina did not allude to those contests.
Boxer is no beloved figure in California, but she easily won re-election in 1998 and 2004. Any Republican will come to the contest with disadvantages.
in left-leaning California: Democrats hold a 13-percentage-point registration advantage, President Barack Obama carried the state in November by 24 points, and both of California’s U.S. Senate seats have been in Democratic hands since the early 1990s.
California Democratic Party Chairman John Burton mocked Fiorina as ``yet another millionaire neophyte in search of a new hobby,’’ an apparent reference to former eBay Inc. CEO Meg Whitman, a Republican running for governor.
``The last thing Californians need in a U.S. senator is a failed CEO who was fired by her last employer,’’ Burton said in a statement.
Hewlett-Packard’s board fired Fiorina in 2005 after she pushed through the company’s acquisition of Compaq Computer Corp. in a deal that cost jobs and reduced HP’s value. The company has since rebounded, but opinions differ over how much credit Fiorina deserves for that.
Fiorina’s name is familiar in the business community, but she is virtually unknown to most voters.
The 55-year-old served as economic adviser to John McCain’s failed presidential bid last year, elevating her national profile, but an independent Field Poll last month found nearly three of four California voters didn’t know enough about her to express an opinion.
Yet Fiorina has plenty of money to broadcast her message. She received a $21 million severance package when she left HP _ a cash cushion that has made Boxer’s team nervous.
Even before her announcement, Boxer used the threat of a Fiorina candidacy to boost her own fundraising, collecting $1.6 million in the last quarter and reporting $6.3 million in the bank last month.
``If Fiorina decides to fund the campaign with her own personal wealth, this could be the most expensive Boxer campaign yet,’’ said Rose Kapolczynski, a spokeswoman for Boxer’s campaign. ``We could be looking at a $30 million or $35 million campaign. ... She could do a lot to remake her image with that and do a lot to distort the Boxer record.’’
Fiorina, who recently completed breast cancer treatment, gently teased herself about her close-cropped hair, apparently the result of chemotherapy. She said the cancer was behind her and ``I feel absolutely great.’’
Boxer, 68, has long been a target of conservatives _ they pounced earlier this year when she chastised a brigadier general who called her ``ma’am’’ during a congressional hearing _ but has yet to face a serious re-election challenge.
Until now, Boxer’s only announced opposition was DeVore. A military officer and businessman from Irvine, he has been aggressively campaigning on a shoestring budget for months, styling himself as the only true conservative in the race.
He is appealing to the party’s base as the true candidate of limited government, lower taxes and conservative fiscal stewardship.
DeVore, 47, said Fiorina is ``attempting to sound like a conservative, and yet when you actually probe the depths of her conservatism ... it’s really not conservatism at all.’’
Fiorina is the fifth Silicon Valley executive to compete in a statewide race in California next year. All three GOP gubernatorial candidates _ Whitman, state insurance commissioner and high tech entrepreneur Steve Poizner, and former congressman Tom Campbell _ have ties to the Valley.
Chris Kelly, chief privacy officer for the popular social networking Web site Facebook, has announced an exploratory bid for the Democratic nomination for attorney general.

Flood insurance approved for Stanton

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:02:40 -0800

By Brittany Hanson
Garden Grove Journal

Responding to prodding from the federal government, the Stanton City Council Tuesday night approved an ordinance requiring homeowners to buy flood insurance if they live next to flood channels.
The ordinance came to the city via orders from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The ordinance is to establish new floodplain management regulations to comply with the national flood insurance program.
In order to do this, homeowners that have property next to flood channels must purchase flood insurance against that property and will be informed by either their homeowners association, their mortgage company or by FEMA itself, said Carol Jacobs, city manager.
The insurance price will vary by property in relation to size and zoning use of that property.
At the previous city council meeting, this topic was discussed by the council members and although they all agreed that they must sign in the ordinance, they did not like the terms of having to do so.
All cities must comply with placing the ordinance requirement as directed by FEMA or face losing their membership in the National Flood Insurance Program. Stanton has participated in the program since 1979.
If the city does not comply with the new insurance requirements by FEMA, they risk losing their membership and that would mean not having the aid that FEMA provides in the case of a natural disaster or major emergency situation.
Council members did not like that they were not given options whether or not to join and recognized that the addition of flood insurance during this economic period might not be easy for some homeowners.
However, FEMA is trying to find ways to aid participants in the NFIP.
FEMA stated on its website, www.fema.gov that, “To encourage communities to establish sound floodplain management programs that recognize and encourage community floodplain management activities that exceed the minimum NFIP requirements, the Community Rating System (CRS) was created. This program provides communities with discounts to flood insurance rates.”

Sports Talk: Don finishes his world tour

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:00:30 -0800

In September I embarked on a trip thinking that everyone in the world watched our sports. After all, baseball calls it a World Series.
It all started almost two years ago when Gayle asked me to find a romantic getaway for us to celebrate our over 25 years together. So I set up a neat 40-day cruise to Australia via the South Pacific Islands and New Zealand. Add more than a week in Australia and I am Mr. Romantic, right?
But what I didn’t count on was my Dodgers and Angels both making the playoffs and the Trojans mired in a tough season. Well, maybe I could get the TV at least.
After Hawaii the only TV you get involves rugby, cricket and soccer. Soccer is cleverly disguised as “football” in the promos so you’ll watch them.
ESPN has a transmission (when it’s working) in the Pacific Ocean. But they show strange sports such as rugby, soccer and cricket. I will critique these games next week but believe me, they are no baseball and football!
So it was starting. The Angels and Dodgers in a pennant race and no games on TV. I couldn’t even get scores!
We finally landed in Bora Bora. I rush out to the newspaper stand and they have half of their newspaper devoted to sports but nothing about baseball. I rush back to the ship and finally get a computer slot to e-mail son Dan to send scores which he did the rest of the trip but the only way I could see them was to fight people for the computer slots. There were about 15 of them but there were 2600 passengers!
Dan even threw in some play by play of big innings and the likes of the ending of the Notre Dame-USC game! Wow!
I meet this guy that looked and acted just like Archie Bunker from the TV series. His wife acted just like Edith. The live in New Jersey but they grew up as New Yawkers. I bet him one dollar a game on the Yankees-Angels series. Oh I hated to lose to him. He said he knew the Yankees were going to win. Didn’t want to take my money. I’m trying to decide how to send it to him.
By the way, New Yawkers have an interesting banter that makes you think their marriage won’t last the cruise. They were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. I didn’t think I was going to last the cruise as we headed into playoff time and the Angels and Dodgers had a shot at a Freeway Series.
Somehow through intermissions of great entertainment, slipping out during Gayle’s naps, calling the Brigg, etc. I was able to at least get scores! If not a day late! That’s nothing like watching the games. By the way, when it is 5 p.m. here, it’s about 1 p.m. a day later after the International Date Line comes into play.
You can imagine my conversations with a sports bar tender in Sydney. “What do you mean you can’t get me the Angels-Yankees scores on your computer that you were so nice to get for me. What do you mean it’s going to be played later that day? The game was played on Saturday? This is Sunday! Oh, It’s really only Saturday morning, there. Oops!”
Anyway, I found out later both the Angels and Dodgers were eliminated so I could concentrate on the World Series and the Trojans. But even with the World Series being so big here it doesn’t get a ripple in the South Seas.
For months I had anticipated my helmet dive in the oceans of Bora Bora. Yes, folks, I swear, I donned a big helmet and walked down a rope ladder and played with fish and stingrays in the ocean. There were thousands of sharks too in that same ocean! Luckily I didn’t see them or I would have been out of there before the helmet!
I heard a rumor that a World Series game was going to be on TV so I faked seasickness and ran to our room! Yea! I finally got to watch a baseball game on TV! Gayle came in with tea and cookies and overly pampered me and she said how lucky I was to have the game on to heal me.
All’s well that ends well. Next week I will tell you about cab drivers in Australia and the impact their sports have on the fans.
I was there in Samoa right after the tsunami, too. The number one religion in Australia? Rugby!
-- Don Alexander

Dear Marilyn: The invisible girlfriend’s woes

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:58:33 -0800

Dear Marilyn,
I used to go with a guy I’ll call Alan. We dated for about two years. I decided to break up with him about six months ago.
The reason that I broke up with him is that we had many cultural differences. He is Palestinian and I am Colombian.
Our biggest issue is that our religions are different. He is Muslim and I am Catholic. His family would never accept the fact that we were dating.
Alan never told his family that we were dating. He would always tell him that he was going out with his guy friends, when the truth was that we were going out.
There were several times that I was at his place, and they would call. He would never mention that I was there, of course.
I got tired of it, and I broke up with him. I got to the point that I did not like being his “invisible girlfriend.”
Now he has called me, and he is begging me to get back together with him. He says that he misses me very much, and really wants to see me again.
I asked Alan about his family, and he said that he would still not let his parents know about me. He said that it’s not like we are getting married or something, so there is no reason to get them involved in this.
I realize we aren’t getting married. However, I don’t think I like the idea of being in a relationship where we have to hide from his family.
Do you think that I am being unreasonable? What do you suggest that I do?
Signed, Invisible Girl

Dear Invisible Girl,
I don’t think that you are being unreasonable at all. I completely agree with you. I suggest that you stick with your plan to stop dating him.
It would be different if he were willing to stand up to his parents, and let them know that you are dating.
If they were to be angry with him, then that is something he should deal with, since you are such a wonderful person, and someone that he cares about.
However, he wants the fun of being with you, without the hassle of dealing with his parents. That’s fine for him, but you feel like he is hiding you. He is.
There is no reason you should have to put up with that. You want a guy that is proud to be with you, and that wants everyone to know it.
So, don’t change your mind. There is a reason, and a good one, that you broke up with him in the first place.
Nothing has changed. Let him know that you are certain it is time for you to go your separate ways.

Dear Marilyn,
I really need your advice. I am a girl, and for many years, my only friends have been guys.
I was the one that kept the stats in high school for the guy’s basketball team. I was the one that the guys would vote in as the Prom Queen.
That is fun, in general, but it is not always a good thing. Sometimes they start to have a crush on me, when all I want is to be friends. Or, sometimes, they don’t understand me, and the emotional aspects of having a friend that is a girl.
I don’t want to go my whole life without having any solid friendships with girls. I find myself craving female companionship, but I don’t know how to go about it.
What do you suggest?
Signed, Guy’s Buddy

Dear Guy’s Buddy,
It is totally understandable that you want to develop relationships with female friends. You have missing out on a sense of balance of things, and you are now aware of it.
So, there are two things that I’d like you to think about.
First of all, you need to determine why you haven’t had any female close friends thus far in your life. Is it because you have sent off subtle vibes that you really don’t want any?   Perhaps you used to find the things that girls usually talk about, such as guys, shopping, and fashion, as kind of boring and uninteresting.
Since you never had any close female friends, you may not know that many girls start there, but once close friendships are made, the talk becomes much more personal, and less seemingly superficial.
Or, perhaps you were simply not friendly to them, and therefore you never had a close girlfriend.
Once you understand why you have not had any friends thus far in your life, it will help you to focus on what you need to do in order to find some girlfriends now.
Then, you need to reach out. You will probably not find a friend by waiting for someone to come to you.
Go to a place where you will find a group of girls. You may want to take a class that is usually of interest to females, such as a Women’s Studies class.
Or, you can volunteer to assist in a place where there are traditionally many women, such as in a school, or at a childcare facility, or at your church’s luncheons and women’s functions.
Finally, you have to be the kind of person that attracts friends. That means that you are open, and interested in them, and not focused on yourself.
Good luck. You have a new best friend that is just waiting to meet you!

Dear Readers, please send your questions to Dear Marilyn, c/o Garden Grove Journal, 12866 Main St. # 203, Garden Grove, CA. 92840. Or, send me an email at ggjournal@aol.com.