By Jamie Reno

Several years ago I wrote a story about my two best friends - one a Christian conservative Republican ex-Marine, the other an agnostic liberal Democrat college professor. In the piece I described how much I admired both of them but always seemed to find myself in the middle. 

Well, they're still my best friends... and I'm still in the middle. My liberal friend still thinks I'm too conservative, and my conservative friend still thinks I'm too liberal. 

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September 13, 2012 (El Cajon) – The Grossmont College Career Center will present “Doing What Matters to Find a Job,” a free informational workshop for job seekers, from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 19, at the Career Center on the El Cajon campus. Speaking will be Pamela Benge, Grossmont College student services specialist.

Unmaned predator drones are now used for surveillance here in the U.S. and abroad

By Dave Patterson

September 12, 2012 (Poway)--Every Thursday afternoon one can see a demonstration at the General Atomics plant in Poway, home of the Predator drone.  The demonstrators are from the San Diego Veterans For Peace and their supporters, with the goal of enlightening the public on the desperate need for oversight regarding drone technology.

The Predator drone is flying over 16 countries now, loosing weapons over Yemen, Somalia and Pakistan.  The kill statistics would be unacceptable in any conflict but are somehow overlooked because we are at war with terrorism. 

SDSU News Service

September 13, 2012 (San Diego)--Hundreds of students, faculty and staff gathered in front of Hepner Hall to take part in San Diego State University’’s Patriot Day ceremony, honoring the victims and heroes from 9/11.

By Miriam Raftery

September 12, 2012 (San Diego's East County) -- Iberdrola Renewables states on its website that “Iberdrola strives to offer its energy supply and to carry out the other activities undertaken by the Group within a safe and reliable environment.”  But a look at the history of turbine collapses, serious injury, fires, safety violations and at least one death linked to Iberdrola facilities raise serious concerns about the company’s track record.

Despite these dangerous incidents, Iberdrola has been approved by the federal and county governments to install wind turbines at its Tule Wind project in McCain Valley.

September 12, 2012 (La Mesa) – The volunteer citizens committee overseeing the expenditure of millions of dollars in construction improvements at Grossmont Hospital is seeking two additional members.

The Independent Citizens’ Bond Oversight (ICBOC) is overseeing how the Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD) is spending $247 million in capital improvement construction projects at the hospital in La Mesa. ICBOC members are uncompensated East County residents with experience in project management, large-scale construction operations, finance, labor and healthcare industries.

By Chung Mao-Lo

September 12, 2012 (San Diego) -- Patients in Japan who underwent living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) for acute liver failure (ALF) were classified as having excellent outcomes, with ten-year survival at 73%. The findings, published in the September issue of Liver Transplantation, a journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), suggest that the type of liver disease or treatment plan does not affect long-term patient survival following LDLT. Donor and patient age, however, does impact long-term outcome post-transplant.

State's clean fuel standard poised to drive growth in biofuels industry

September 12, 2012 (Washington D.C.) – Despite a challenging year, the advanced biofuels industry continues to grow, according to a new report from Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2). Biofuel production capacity has increased from 437 million gallons last year to more than 685 million gallons, the report shows. By 2015, the industry has the potential to produce 1.6 billion to 2.6 billion gallons of clean, renewable fuel.

September 12, 2012 (El Cajon) – The Heritage of the Americas Museum presents “Native American Song Cycles and Creation Stories in Southern California” with Steve Elster, Ph.D.  on September 22 at 1:00 p.m. in the Museum Conference Room.  Tribal members throughout the region will sing and speak as they give a rendition of their stories.

The cost of admission is $5.00, however Museum members and children are free.  The Museum is located at 12110 Cuyamaca College Drive West, El Cajon.  For more information call the museum at 619-670-5194 or visit www.cuyamaca.edu/museum. 

By Jackie Hanson

September 12, 2012 (Lakeside)--Hi, I’m Jackie! I’m retired, but I keep busy tending a sizable property (that I try to coax into various gardens with mixed results) and caring for many animals (chickens, ducks, goats, horses, cats, and a dog).  I’m also an artist and aspiring interior decorator, and I have so many plans and ideas that I can only hope to live long enough to bring them to fruition!

I’ve decided to write a column to share with anyone who’s interested in getting better at living less wastefully.  I’m calling it “Becoming Green” because although I try to be a good steward of the earth, I am far from fully achieving that goal.  In fact, I’m probably a lot like you, trying to do my bit to recycle and waste less water, but fighting an uphill battle, with bad habits that are hard to break and a busy life that distracts me from doing more.

September 11, 2012 (San Diego) -- The national League of Conservation Voters (LCV) Action Fund and the California League of Conservation Voters (CLCV) together announced their endorsement of Scott Peters for the U.S. House of Representatives in California’s 52nd district. In backing his congressional bid, LCV Action Fund and CLCV cited Peters’ long and accomplished record of public service in the San Diego community, leading initiatives to strengthen public health standards, protect the environment, and grow the economy by creating thousands of new local jobs. Peters, a Democrat, will face long-time incumbent Rep. Brian Bilbray in the general election.

September 11, 2012 (La Mesa) -- This year’s Park Appreciation Day is scheduled for October 20.  La Mesa’s parks are the jewels of the city – help make them shine for the centennial.

Individuals of all ages and groups can join in and help their community.  Civic, church or social groups can adopt a park. To find a project that all your members can do, contact us at 667.1300 or community@ci.la-mesa.ca.us.

September 11, 2012 (La Mesa) -- The Environmental Sustainability Commission invites students to enter the “Our Planet, Our Home” Environmental Literacy & Art Contest.

In this Centennial year, the students (our future!) are challenged with a theme: Big changes start with small steps, and every great development starts with a vision or dream. What solutions or inventions can you dream up to shape the kind of world you want to pass on to the youth of the next century?

By Miriam Raftery

September 11, 2012 (El Cajon ) – Lily Schorm, a teacher, learned some lessons while attending El Cajon City Council meetings. Now she’s among seven candidates running for three Council seats in November.

“It’s illegal to have chickens in El Cajon,” says Schworm, in an exclusive interview with ECM.  She has been working to persuade the City Council to legalize chicken ownership.  During that process, she saw Council  approve expenditures that she considered wasteful.

E - The Environmental Magazine

Written and edited by Roddy Scheer and Doug Moss

September 11, 2012 -- Dear EarthTalk: Which are the most eco-friendly and non-toxic (to people, cats and sanitation systems) cat litters? ­                                                                       -- Sam Barnes, Macon, GA

It makes sense that environmentally enlightened cat owners would want cat litter made from natural products that will not potentially compromise their health or that of their beloved pets. Many mass market cat litters contain significant amounts of silica dust which has been linked to upper respiratory issues in cats and even humans. Likewise, the chemical fragrances in many cat litters can also be toxic to cats.