By Ken Stone, Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association

Photo:  Jason Robo in one of his YouTube channel videos, which mostly get very light traffic.

November 4, 2021 (San Diego) - Comedian Jason Robo on Wednesday apparently lost his 5-year-old unpaid radio gig in Humboldt County a day after his crude rant against three county supervisors and racist attack on the county’s public health officer.

By Miriam Raftery 

Rebecca Jefferis Williamson contributed to this story.

Update (11:15 a.m.) : See link at end of story regarding Jason Robo. Robo allegedly bills himself as a comedian. 

Photo: Jason Robo’s personal attacks included racial slurs against the County’s Black public health officer.

November 3, 2021 (San Diego) – Personal attacks including profane and racist remarks by an anti-vaxxer during San Diego County’s Board of Supervisors meeting have prompted a prominent civil rights leader to call for limits on public speech.

A man identifying himself as Jason Robo testified that Chairman Nathan Fletcher should commit suicide, then made racial slurs against County Public Health Director Wilma  Wooten, who is Black. Among other things, Robo called Wooten a “f***king Aunt Jemima.”  (View video)

“After months of teamwork, a brave family is finally coming home.” – Rep. Darrell Issa

 Nov. 2, 2021 (El Cajon) --  Today, Congressman Darrell Issa (CA-50) announced that a seventh family and schoolchildren from the El Cajon school district has escaped Afghanistan and will be returning to their home in California.

“For months, my staff and I have joined an unprecedented community wide effort to bring this family and these kids home. Today, we can say that they are for certain on their way back to us,” said Issa. “There are so many people to thank for making this possible.”

By Brian Schrader

Photo: County administration building, from Flickr by Tony Webster

November 1, 2021 (San Diego) -- Everything old is new again, and California seems likely to revive an old idea to solve its modern challenges. Public banking isn’t a well-known or often discussed subject, but proponents believe that it might just be the catalyst of much needed reform in California.

In general, there are two kinds of public banks: investment banks and deposit-taking banks. The latter is the kind that most of us are familiar with—those that offer checking and savings accounts—and while there is an ongoing discussion about public deposit-taking banks, it’s the investment banks that are currently getting the most attention in San Diego and in Sacramento.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Outlier’s Collective near Gillespie Field is one of five legal dispensaries that will be allowed to expand to include recreational, edible and drinkable cannabis products

October 30, 2021 (San Diego’s East County) – Five medical marijuana dispensaries that were legally licensed to open in San Diego County’s unincorporated areas faced closure after Supervisors in 2017 repealed legalization and allowed existing dispensaries to stay open only until April 2022.  But now the current board of Supervisors has voted to remove the sunset clause and allow the five legal dispensaries to continue operations, as well as expand by up to 10,000 square feet to add recreational cannabis products including edibles and beverages.

By Miriam Raftery

October 27, 2021 (Washington D.C.) – Following a rise in complaints by school board members, teachers and school workers over threats of violence, harassment and intimidation, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced plans to convene a meeting with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement leaders to create strategies for addressing this trend.

In a press release, the Dept. of Justice also encouraged education officials to report threats to the FBI’s National Threat operations Center tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI or via the FBI website at http://fbi.gov/tips. “Threats against public servants are not only illegal, they run counter to our nation’s core values,” Garland states. “Those who dedicate their time and energy to ensuring that our children receive a proper education in a safe environment deserve to be able to do their work without fear for their safety.”

Republicans have criticized Garland for setting up what they term a “snitch line on parents” and seeking to suppress free speech. But in testimony to the House Judiciary Committee, Garland made clear that he has no intention of targeting free speech, which he said is “totally protected by the First Amendment…We are only concerned about violence and threats of violence against school administrators, teachers, staff.” 

In response to the Dept. of Justice announcement, Congressman Darrell Issa, a Republican from the 50^th district which includes San Diego and much of East County, introduced the “Stand With Parents” resolution.

By Elijah McKee

October 25, 2021 (Lemon Grove) -- Anyone who owns a car hopes to drive on roads that are smooth and safe, for their sake and their community’s. The reality for many drivers in Lemon Grove is the opposite, as they face an array of holes, cracks, and ridges that jostle their daily transit.

By Miriam Raftery

October 22, 2021 (San Diego) – The American Arab Anti-Discrimination (ADC) Committee’s San Diego Chapter has issued a press release denouncing Supervisor Joel Anderson for his statement linking the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) to terrorism.

During an Oct. 7 hearing on his proposal to fund Afghan refugee resettlement costs from frozen Taliban assets and to develop a comprehensive county response plan to assist the refugees, Anderson sought to block CAIR from receiving any county funds.  “Any organization that has any affiliation with terrorism in the Middle East could have to be excluded and CAIR would be part of that group,” he said. View video. 

October 15, 2021 (La Mesa) -- Four candidates participated in a lively forum last night hosted by East County Magazine on Zoom and streamed live on Facebook.  Mejgan Afshan, Kathleen Brand, Patricia Dillard and Laura Lothian participated. (Note, Lothian joined a minute late due to techincal issues and is not shown in the screenshot)

shared their diverse views on issues including homelessness, equity/police reforms and public safety,  affordable housing and development, the downtown district and neighborhood revitalization, the potential for a new library and/or community meeting space, public health mandates, the role of the new Arts and Culture Commission, and candidates' endorsements.

Each candidate gave a two minute opening statement and a one minute closing statement. (Two other candidates, Jim Stieringer and Michelle Louden, did not participate in the forum but Stieringer sent candidate information. Read more about the candidates at https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/ecm-host-la-mesa-city-council-candida... .

View forum full screen by clicking the Youtube image above or this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htVd2cSh-2E

You can also share this link on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/EastCountyMagazine/videos/981838262677468

Hear radio versions of the forum broadcast on KNSJ (part 1 and part 2) by clicking the audio links below.

By Rebecca Jefferis Williamson

Image, left: Artist's rendering of the apartment project slated to be built on the former police station site on Allison Avenue

Oct. 14, 2021 (La Mesa) -- The La Mesa City Council voted 3-0  on Tuesday to approve  development of the old police headquarters' site, where an apartment project is slated for construction.

Mayor Mark Arapostathis, Vice Mayor Jack Shu, and Councilman Colin Parent voted in favor. Councilman Bill Baber abstained due to a conflict of interest. One seat remains vacant, with a November 2 special election set to fill the vacancy.

The council also approved creation of an arts and culture commission during the October 12^th Council meeting.

In addition, Juneteenth, a new federal holiday, will now be officially observed in La Mesa, commemorating the emancipation of African Americans from slavery. The order reached Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865.

Peril by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa (Simon & Schuster, New York, 2021, 482 pages)

Book Review by Dennis Moore

          “We have much to do in this winter of peril.” -- President Joseph R. Biden Jr. in his inaugural address, January 20, 2021, at the United States Capitol

October 12, 2021 (San Diego) -- Peril, by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa is the scariest book that I have read among my more than 400 book reviews, for it portends the destruction of our democracy as we once knew it. The publishers of this well written book, Simon & Schuster, states: “The transition from President Donald J. Trump to President Joseph R. Biden Jr. stands as one of the most dangerous periods in American history.”

This book is scary for all the revelations made in it about the former president, which is ongoing in the aftermath of the January 6, 2021 attempt at a coup at the Capital Building in Washington, DC, and the ties between former President Trump and his supporters. The co-author of this book, Robert Costa, gives a riveting audio presentation to NPR, which readers can listen to by clicking here.

By Miriam Raftery

October 10, 2021 (El Cajon) – On Tuesday, October 12, the El Cajon City Council will consider a city staff proposal to ask County Supervisors to opt out of the state’s Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operations (MEHKO) program. The proposal before the City Council, item 12 on the agenda, comes after Supervisors Joel Anderson and Nora Vargas introduced a MEHKO measure in September that was approved in concept by Supervisors, as ECM reported. 

The county measure asked staff to draft an ordinance by January 12 to legalize home kitchen operations to prepare, sell and serve up to 30 meals per day, or 60 meals per week and earn a maximum annual revenue of $50,000. Meals would be limited to foods that are consumed the same day that they are prepared.

By Miriam Raftery, East County Magazine

October 7, 2021 (Proctor Valley) – A San Diego Superior Court judge today ordered the County of San Diego to vacate its 2019 approval of portions of the Otay Ranch Village 14 and Planning Areas 16/19 in Proctor Valley south of Jamul near Chula Vista, due to the danger of wildfires in an area that has already had many severe fires.

Judge Richard S. Whitney found that the County’s environmental impact report failed to assess the increase wildfire risk, nor offer any mitigation to reduce those increased risks if the controversial master-planned community were built. 

California Attorney General Rob Bonta intervened on behalf of the people of California to support a lawsuit filed by environmental groups challenging the project.  Bonta praised the decision, stating, “Today’s ruling by the Superior Court affirms a critical fact: Local governments have a responsibility to address wildfire risks associated with development projects at the front end. Doing so will save dollars—and lives—down the line.”

By Gig Conaughton, County of San Diego Communications Office

October 6, 2021 (San Diego) - The County of San Diego’s newly released 2020-21 Annual Report shows the County responding to new challenges while continuing to deliver its essential services.

By Miriam Raftery

View full video of Zoom interview 

Hear audio from our radio show on KNSJ (updated with status on bills signed into law)

Updated October 7, 2021 with status of bills signed or vetoed

October 3, 2021 (San Diego’s East County) – Last week, East County Magazine editor Miriam Raftery

Interviews State Senator Brian Jones (R-Santee) via Zoom.  The Senator discussed his legislative accomplishments in getting several bills passed by the Legislature and onto the Governor’s desk.

 Several have been signed into law, including a measure to help homeless students get resources, a bill to protect foster children from human trafficking, and another to require that conservancy hearings remain private unless a judge finds a compelling reason to make them public.

Others remain pending, including a bill require personal protective gear for social workers during a pandemic, and more.

The Senator also spoke out on concerns over what he views as not enough clearing of forest lands to prevent devastating wildfires, even though funds for the clearing have long been allocated. In addition, he raised criticisms over the state’s homelessness policies and concerns about crime.