intheav.com Blogs - Denise_Latanzi - My Blog

"Votes for Women" League of Women Voters AV Celebrates 100 years

Fri, 07 Oct 2011 05:38:26 +0000

On Tuesday October 11, the League of Women Voters Antelope Valley will celebrate the Centennial of the passage of the referendum in California that gave women the right to vote. This event will begin at 11 a.m at Poncitlan Square in Palmdale. "In 1848, a group of fearless women launched a grassroots campaign aimed at winning the right to vote, boldly declaring that women are fundamentally equal to men and set about convincing the rest of the country that women deserve the right to vote", according to Centennial Committee Chair Denise Latanzi. Suffragettes were successful gradually at state and local levels over many decades. On October 11th, 1911, California became the sixth state to allow women to vote, a full nine years before women achieved the right nationwide with the passage of the 19th Amendment. Today, women represent 53% of the states voting public. The League will not only celebrate the courageous women involved with the suffrage campaign, but the men of California who came out and voted for it. We will also be honoring our own Patricia Shaw, who was the moving force behind this event. We will have something for people to sign to deliver to her at the square. Also, on October 13th, the League will host the Palmdale Mayoral Forum at the Palmdale School District offices, beginning at 6 p.m.

Update on PK Shaw

Sat, 01 Oct 2011 05:02:04 +0000

Update on Patricia Shaw: Patricia's first week of intensive therapy is over, and has been very successful. She is now able to speak well, but can't always find the right words. She was able to walk with a cane yesterday, and is starting to be able to dress again, which will make her feel much better. She of course hates being out of her beloved Palmdale, but is realizing the value of extensive therapy. ~From Michael Shaw I won't really have time to check up on this, so please remember, the negative things you say reflect who you are, not who Patricia is.

Blogav

Thu, 16 Sep 2010 10:35:09 +0000

Blogav is back, though we had to restart the site. You can register yourself. The server got hacked, and it appears it was not intentionally directed at Blogav, but at people who use the php format I was using, as there was an easy exploit. So we start fresh again.

BYD chooses a home

Fri, 30 Apr 2010 09:50:21 +0000

Shockingly enough, it's not Lancaster. Instead they chose a city that has both a port and a major international airport. http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_14988395?source=rss In a major coup for Los Angeles, a Chinese solar energy and automobile firm announced Thursday it will locate its U.S. headquarters here, potentially creating hundreds of new jobs. BYD, a manufacturer of batteries and electric-hybrid vehicles that is partly owned by billionaire Warren Buffett, said it selected Los Angeles to be its U.S. base after reviewing offers from other California cities. The initial plans call for locating the new headquarters at 1800 S. Figueroa St., at a site that once served as a car dealership. Beyond that, company chairman Wang Chuan-fu said the firm plans to emphasize green energy efforts, including the development of low-cost solar panels for houses. Full story at the link above-----

Here comes the Secretary of State

Wed, 28 Apr 2010 00:19:32 +0000

It's offcial, the Secretary of State will be investigating the election process because of ALL the irregularities in Lancaster's elections. From leaving ballots out in the open for 10 days prior to election to the myraid of improperer actions on election day, its time for a light to be cast on the process in Lancaster.

Surprise!!!!!!!!

Wed, 07 Apr 2010 07:17:12 +0000

Boy did I get a shock tonight. In flipping through my email, I came across a message from someone who had sent me one of Sherry Marquez's recent Facebook posts, and lo and behold, Mrs Marquez does not appear to fancy communists. In fact, in the post she appears to be encouraging a boycott of Disney World because according to rumor, they are now selling Chairman Mao dolls. One has to wonder if she's aware that Mao was the communist leader of CHINA? If she is, she should lean over the dais one day and gently tell Rex, because apparently, he does not know. Now, we have to wonder if Rex is going to stand up and decry her facebook post as racist.. wouldn't that be a hoot! And, as a fine example of the typical bigotry that appears regularly on her page, some guy with serious intelligence issues had to pop up with a comment about how he has been boycotting Disney World since they started hiring "faggits". Smartest comment on the post "Maybe we should boycott Walmart since they are doing far more to further the goals of the People's Republic." Ahhh, there are people in Lancaster who recognize the folly of spreading and enriching communism.

Open Challenge

Wed, 31 Mar 2010 17:50:33 +0000

There are a couple people here that claim to be neutral in the mayoral race. I have a challenge for you, should you choose to accept. Call Time Warner, ask for Russ Williams or any reporter, and ask them about the security footage that "AV Observer" claims exists of "Arnie Rodio pulling up into the parking lot, and then leaving" on March 29th, before 12 pm. While I know the footage doesn't exist, just like I know absolutely he had nothing to do with the "China" commercials, its way past time to set the record straight on the constant and compulsive lying done by this blogger. Even for the biggest Rex supporter, you have nothing to lose by demanding this video. Time Warner I'm sure would love to have this footage, because it would completely prove the position that they believe they gave Rodio the correct dates, and boy would it make good television if the video existed. They've demolished candidates before for making false claims (Gaynor) during an election. So, for AVO, put up the video footage. For anyone else, and ask them if the security video exists.

Rex, Ron Smith, and Marv Crist

Sun, 21 Mar 2010 18:27:05 +0000

If there was any doubt that this is yet another election where there is a slate of candidates running to protect the gravy train of just a mere handful of developers that make millions of dollars every year from the cities redevelopment agency, the 460's from the "slate" committee should remove all doubt. The committee is called "Citizens for Lancaster's Future", and the money is being funneled into that account by none other than former city manager James Gilley. $52,000 so far that has gone to pay for slate mailers and door hangers. James Gilley, who along with business Partner Frank Visco received close to 10 MILLION dollars to cover the ditch at Amargosa Creek. James Gilley, with Partners Carol Parris and Frank Visco have recieved millions from the redevelopment agency for their downtown development project. The list goes on, and on, and on.. $52,000 is actually a very cheap investment for them to keep the money rolling in, they just have to get candidates elected that will keep the checks coming. http://www.cityoflancasterca.org/index.aspx?page=579

Arnold Rodio- In his own words

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 21:59:26 +0000

It's still a work in progress!

Here we go again...

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 04:25:25 +0000

Tonight's city council meeting was interesting to say the least. Short agenda, all the controversy came as one entered the meeting and during public comment. It appears as if Sherry Marquez has stepped in it big time. In response to a news article on a domestic violence killing in New York she posted the following on her Facebook page- "Sherry Marquez- This is what the Muslim religion is all about- the beheadings, honor killings are just the beginning of what is to come in the USA. We are told that this is a small majority of Muslim's in America, but it is truly what they are all about. And they are one of the fastest growing religions in USA. You disrespect/dishonor them or their religion and you should die (they don't even blink at killing their own wives/daughters, because they are justified by their religion). This is going to become more and more normal. http://www.rr.com/news/topic/article/rr/1110/10118494/NY_man_accused_of_beheading_claims_he_was_battered Notice his defense- he will pursue a defense combining that justification as well as psychiatric claims. Just a hint of what is to come... I know, hard to believe. Ok, so she posted a really, really, unbelievably stupid post to Facebook, she should just deal with it and move on, right?? Not so fast! This is Lancaster, remember? So, as you walked into the council meeting tonight, you were greeted by security, even ridiculous by Lancaster standards. They had the normal guy at the door to peek in purses, except tonight he was digging through them as if expecting a 3 foot sword in a 12 inch bag. Then there were the 2 or 3 guys in the lobby that looked like plain clothes officers checking everyone out. Ok, you might think, paranoia runs rampant in Lancaster, this is just Rex doing what he must to feel secure. Then, as you entered the building, it quickly became apparent that there were almost as many cops in the room as there were citizens. Who is paying for that?? There was a row of folks from the Islamic center sitting in the back, and behind them, standing against the wall, several police officers making sure that they knew they were being watched. As public comment opened, Ms. Marquez made a statement. Did she apologize to her Muslim constituents? Of course NOT! She apologized to her fellow council members for being the cause of all the fuss, but seemed completely unconcerned for the members of this community she had slandered. So, not only did Ms. Marquez do a very foolish thing, the city itself seemed determined to send the message that these community members were violent and dangerous. Oh, it goes further- When Ms. Marquez facebook post became public knowledge, someone actually contacted her to express concern about the message she was sending, and she actually took that very nice and civil exchange and called the commander of the sheriff's station to say that she felt threatened. Not sure when it became appropriate for a council member to use the commander of the sheriff's station as her personal paranoia patrol, but it appears to be the case in Lancaster.

Is this conversation making them uncomfortable?

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 20:01:57 +0000

Lancaster eye in sky plan aims at crime By Sue Doyle and Kevin Modesti, Staff Writers Updated: 07/19/2009 10:42:00 PM PDT LANCASTER - It could spot burglars breaking into homes from five miles away. It could record unsuspecting bank robbers making their getaways. It could detect car crashes and help police decide how to respond. But would it also take pictures of you sunbathing in your backyard? Lancaster officials are developing an "eye in the sky" surveillance system consisting of a camera attached to an airplane that would fly over the city 24 hours a day on the lookout for crime. It would relay instant footage to sheriff's deputies on the ground, capturing images up to five miles away from an elevation of 5,000 feet. Some civil libertarians and city residents are concerned it may represent a Big Brother-ish invasion of privacy. But Lancaster Mayor R. Rex Parris, who is developing the system with the help of renowned aviator Dick Rutan, touts the system as a high-tech boost for law enforcement. "Suppose your wife is at home and she thinks somebody is breaking in the back door," Parris said. "We can see it in 30 seconds." He acknowledged he has gotten calls from residents concerned about privacy. "I'm astonished by how many people have called me and said, `I sunbathe naked in the backyard or swim naked in the backyard,"' Parris said. But, he said, when the system is fully developed, there will be built-in safeguards against misuse. Those details have yet to be hammered out by city and sheriff's officials. With the system still in development, officials must work out issues ranging from how it will be funded to whether it will be flown by sheriff's deputies or private contractors. Capt. Axel H. Anderson of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department in Lancaster estimated the start-up cost at $1.5 million. If deployed, local officials believe the high desert city would be the first in the nation to use such a system. Parris said he thought such high-powered aerial surveillance was a movie fantasy before Rutan said it could be put into real-life practice and began working on applying the technology. Parris, a civil-litigation attorney, said Rutan pilots his private airplane. Parris expects it to take at least a year - and as long as three years - to put the plan into operation. Anderson recently went along with Parris, Rutan and others on a test ride in an airplane outfitted with an aerial surveillance system borrowed from a private business. From an elevation of 5,000 feet, the camera was able to record images five miles away, Anderson said. Anderson said deputies on the ground could type in a location into a computer system linked to the airplane's camera. The camera would then target the address, allowing officials to see what's happening before patrol cars arrive. "It's not good enough to hone in and pick out a license plate," Anderson said. "But you can really hone in and get a good physical description of an individual involved - height, weight, race, gender, clothing description. That's all quality stuff. "Although it wouldn't be the quality where you can pick the person out of a lineup." Anderson said the airplane operator could spot traffic accidents and suspicious activities and assist patrol officers. Imagining such a powerful surveillance system, some wonder if it could also tread on the privacy of Lancaster's 145,000 residents. UCLA law professor Eugene Volokh said the danger is that authorities could film more than criminals and car crashes. He said the equipment would increase the government's power to see what residents are doing. "They can't just limit the photos to public streets," Volokh said. "They could get photos of someone sunning themselves on the back deck." Despite assurances the surveillance camera cannot closely identify people today, the technology could improve so that it could in the future, said Lillie Coney, associate director for the Washington D.C-based Electronic Privacy Information Center. "They say the detail isn't that good now," Coney said. "There is technology that is that good. Now whether they're willing to invest in it and improve it is another question." Coney warned that if the system is run by a private contractor instead of by government agents, the public might not have a right to know what data is being collected. If Lancaster and the Sheriff's Department do iron out the details, the aircraft carrying the surveillance equipment would be the only one flying above the north Los Angeles County city on a 24-hour basis. The city of Los Angeles is not considering a similar system. Two to three police helicopters buzz over Los Angeles on a 24-hour basis and can respond directly to calls when crime breaks, said Capt. Jim Miller, commanding officer of the Los Angeles Police Department Air Support Division. Miller said the aerial surveillance system proposed for Lancaster would not work in Los Angeles because the job would be too big and costly in a city of Los Angeles' size, and there's too much air traffic over the metropolitan area. "To a degree, we are already doing what they want to do," Miller said. "We are able to get license plates off cars and very good subject descriptions with helicopters by using binoculars."

LCC Strike again

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 15:56:30 +0000

Now you would think that in the Land of Lancaster, it couldn't get stranger than the handpicked, often out of town, and now employed by R. Rex commission members that make the city just reek of insider dealing with a hint of serious ethical problems and more than a little whiff of what smells like complete corruption. But it does.. oh yes it does get stranger than that. Now he is going to try to get a "religious advisory vote" on the ballot in April to ask the citizens if they want prayer before the council meetings. Now keep in mind they will already have the ordinance allowing it to happen and they have already made the changes necessary to stop the ACLU in their tracks, but now the mayor wants the city to float the bill to put an advisory measure on the ballot (not an actual MEASURE that would determine policy) in an effort to get more of the religious people in the city to vote for him in a blatant attempt to control the outcome of an election still more than 7 months away. It's a "let them eat cake" manipulation driven by polling that suggests that Mayor Parris would absolutely lose any city election held tomorrow to any of 3 potential April candidates including Andy Visokey and Arnold Rodio and 1 candidate who will remain unnamed for now. Did that end the absolutely bizarre meeting? Of course not! In a move that drove me to almost fall out of my chair type laughter, the mayor of course had to get in his personal attack, on me of course, and I wasn't even AT the council meeting. His charge that any speaker could impact the "creativity" of the council leads me to believe that he could have a career in Stand up comedy if he wanted. I'm not sure how much creativity it takes to simply nod your head yes at anything the mayor suggests, but it doesn't appear to take much, and maybe its high time for him to realize that any impact on that type of creativity would be a vast improvement over what exists now. Who knows, it might make those heads bobble yes even more vigorously. Was that the end of the bizarro scenes? Of course not! This is LANCASTER we are talking about! In his last rambling, almost incomprehensible tirade, he berated the "Palmdale media" for having the audacity to print the truth about his relationship with commissioner Augusta, used his mayoral chair to blatantly campaign for himself and his "chosen" April candidate Marv Christ, and even seemed to suggest an alternate candidate to Ron Smith in Sandy Smith. He compared himself to a race car, rambled on about wanting more citizen involvement in government, even though he keep chosing people who don't live here to sit on Lancaster commissions, and almost fell out of his chair while patting himself on the back and once again taking 100% credit for the work of councils that existed way before he got elected. The Lancaster City Council meetings are starting to resemble episodes of Survivor. Not the good parts where the bad guys get voted out, but the stinker parts, where the evil manipulators are doing their dirtiest deeds on television for the world to see. It makes for good television to be sure, its definitely one of the best "reality" shows on the tube at the moment, but its just a bad way to run a city.