This is based on material in the WSJ, Friday, July 17, 2020, The Campaign Finally Begins by Kimberly Strassel.
Trump plans ‘top-to-bottom’ overhaul of the federal environmental review process which stands in the way of nearly every infra-structure project in the country. That would create millions of jobs, attract more business to American and make the USA more competitive.
Biden just released his $2 TRILLION climate change plan, product of a task force co-chaired by Rep. Alexandrea Ocasio-Cortez.
Biden vows to outlaw all use of coal and natural gas to generate electricity within 15 years. He will ban oil and gas production on federal land and offshore. He seeks ‘zero emissions’ cars. Biden is promising to delete the jobs of millions of Americans — at a times of soaring unemployment. A ban on offshore drilling alone would cost 200,000 jobs and damage regional economies. Basic consumer choice would disappear for vehicles, dishwashers, even homes.
Biden wants to massively re-regulate the energy economy. Trump said, “We want to get things built.”
Aptos Psychologist: Let people live their lives free from as much regulation as possible.Let people go back to work when and as they choose.  Open the schools. Start new charter schools — which have fewer regulations – if teachers in union jobs don’t want to teach. Social distancing issues can be worked out. Masks and the wearing of them for long periods of time is  problematic both in terms of cleanliness and simple breathing.
What say you? Weigh in on the conversation about jobs, Biden and Trump.
On toppling statutes:Â Â Â Autres temps, autres moeurs.
In a recent workshop on anti-racism [publicized by St. John’s episcopal in Aptos and other churches] Dr. Lewis of New York City and senior pastor of Middle Collegiate Church, said  if a statute of Jefferson were in her backyard she would topple it. Recently a statute of Jefferson was toppled.  In Portland, Oregon.
Does Dr. Lewis really support toppling statutes? Erasing the past?
Will her next workshop explicate her view of the ‘story’ of racism in America with Thomas Jefferson a central player responsible for ‘systemic racism’ against blacks?  Tune in and see. The cost is $22.03.
Dr. Lewis’ next workshop, titled Answering the Call: An Antiracist workshop,  is offered  July 22 & 23, 2020 from 7:oo-8:30 EST [4pm-5:30 in CA]. Go to middlechurch.org for details and how to pay.
About toppling statutes and erasing history. Perhaps Dr. Lewis and other like  minded souls might consider the following letter.  This letter is a response from Oxford to Black Students attending as Rhodes Scholars to remove the statue of Oxford Benefactor, Cecil Rhodes.
“Dear Scrotty Students,
“Cecil Rhodes’s generous bequest has contributed greatly to the comfort and well being of many generations of Oxford students – a good many of them, dare we say it, better, brighter and more deserving than you.
“This does not necessarily mean we approve of everything Rhodes did in his lifetime – but then we don’t have to. Cecil Rhodes died over a century ago.  Autres temps, autres moeurs. If you don’t understand what this means – and it would not remotely surprise us if that were the case – then we really think you should ask yourself the question: “Why am I at Oxford?â€
“Oxford, let us remind you, is the world’s second oldest extant university. Scholars have been studying here since at least the 11th century. We’ve played a major part in the invention of Western civilisation, from the 12th century intellectual renaissance through the Enlightenment and beyond. Our alumni include William of Ockham, Roger Bacon, William Tyndale, John Donne, Sir Walter Raleigh, Erasmus, Sir Christopher Wren, William Penn, Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), Samuel Johnson, Robert Hooke, William Morris, Oscar Wilde, Emily Davison, Cardinal Newman, Julie Cocks. We’re a big deal. And most of the people privileged to come and study here are conscious of what a big deal we are. Oxford is their alma mater – their dear mother – and they respect and revere her accordingly.
“And what were your ancestors doing in that period? Â Living in mud huts, mainly. Â Sure we’ll concede you the short lived Southern African civilization of Great Zimbabwe. Â But let’s be brutally honest here. Â The contribution of the Bantu tribes to modern civilization has been as near as damn it to zilch.
“You’ll probably say that’s “racist”. But it’s what we here at Oxford prefer to call “true.”  Perhaps the rules are different at other universities. In fact, we know things are different at other universities.  We’ve watched with horror at what has been happening across the pond from the University of Missouri to the University of Virginia and even to revered institutions like Harvard and Yale: the “safe spaces”; the? #?blacklivesmatter; the creeping cultural relativism; the stifling political correctness; what Allan Bloom rightly called “the closing of the American mind”.  At Oxford however, we will always prefer facts and free, open debate to petty grievance-mongering, identity politics and empty sloganeering. The day we cease to do so is the day we lose the right to call ourselves the world’s greatest university.
“Of course, you are perfectly within your rights to squander your time at Oxford on silly, vexatious, single-issue political campaigns.  (Though it does make us wonder how stringent the vetting procedure is these days for Rhodes scholarships and even more so, for Mandela Rhodes scholarships) We are well used to seeing undergraduates – or, in your case – postgraduates, making idiots of themselves.  Just don’t expect us to indulge your idiocy, let alone genuflect before it. You may be black – “BME” as the grisly modern terminology has it – but we are colour blind.  We have been educating gifted undergraduates from our former colonies, our Empire, our Commonwealth and beyond for many generations. We do not discriminate over sex, race, colour or creed.  We do, however, discriminate according to intellect.
“That means, inter alia, that when our undergrads or postgrads come up with fatuous ideas, we don’t pat them on the back, give them a red rosette and say: “Ooh, you’re black and you come from South Africa. Â What a clever chap you are!” Â Â No. Â We prefer to see the quality of those ideas tested in the crucible of public debate. Â That’s another key part of the Oxford intellectual tradition you see: you can argue any damn thing you like but you need to be able to justify it with facts and logic – otherwise your idea is worthless.
“This ludicrous notion you have that a bronze statue of Cecil Rhodes should be removed from Oriel College, because it’s symbolic of “institutional racism” and “white slavery”. Well even if it is – which we dispute – so bloody what?  Any undergraduate so feeble-minded that they can’t pass a bronze statue without having their “safe space†violated really does not deserve to be here.  And besides, if we were to remove Rhodes’s statue on the premise that his life wasn’t blemish-free, where would we stop?  As one of our alumni Dan Hannan has pointed out, Oriel’s other benefactors include two kings so awful – Edward II and Charles I – that their subjects had them killed.  The college opposite – Christ Church – was built by a murderous, thieving bully who bumped off two of his wives.  Thomas Jefferson kept slaves: does that invalidate the US Constitution?  Winston Churchill had unenlightened views about Muslims and India: was he then the wrong man to lead Britain in the war?â€
“Actually, we’ll go further than that. Your Rhodes Must Fall campaign is not merely fatuous but ugly, vandalistic and dangerous.  We agree with Oxford historian RW Johnson that what you are trying to do here is no different from what ISIS and the Al-Qaeda have been doing to artefacts in places like Mali and Syria.  You are murdering history.Â
“And who are you, anyway, to be lecturing Oxford University on how it should order its affairs? Â Your ?#?rhodesmustfall campaign, we understand, originates in South Africa and was initiated by a black activist who told one of his lecturers “whites have to be killed”. Â One of you – Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh – is the privileged son of a rich politician and a member of a party whose slogan is “Kill the Boer; Kill the Farmer”; another of you, Ntokozo Qwabe, who is only in Oxford as a beneficiary of a Rhodes scholarship, has boasted about the need for “socially conscious black students” to “dominate white universities, and do so ruthlessly and decisively!
“Great. That’s just what Oxford University needs. Some cultural enrichment from the land of Winnie Mandela, burning tyre necklaces, an AIDS epidemic almost entirely the result of government indifference and ignorance, one of the world’s highest per capita murder rates, institutionalised corruption, tribal politics, anti-white racism and a collapsing economy. Â Please name which of the above items you think will enhance the lives of the 22,000 students studying here at Oxford.
“And then please explain what it is that makes your attention grabbing campaign to remove a listed statue from an Oxford college more urgent, more deserving than the desire of probably at least 20,000 of those 22,000 students to enjoy their time here unencumbered by the irritation of spoilt, ungrateful little tossers on scholarships they clearly don’t merit using racial politics and cheap guilt-tripping to ruin the life and fabric of our beloved university.
“Understand us and understand this clearly: you have everything to learn from us; we have nothing to learn from you.
Black Lives Matters Inc. (BLM) has been much in the national news. BLM has held various demonstrations. What does BLM say about blacks killing fellow blacks, largely in their own neighborhoods?  Nothing.
The corporate organization Black Lives Matter (BLM) has no message opposing killings by blacks of other blacks.  BLM focuses on police killings of blacks and support de-funding the police as their ‘solution’. What will happen to black neighborhoods with even fewer people wearing blue are keeping the peace? More violence.  Just recently, New York City removed 500 plain clothes police from street duty and violent crime in the City has skyrocketed.
So what to make of all this killing? Blacks kill other blacks in huge numbers.  Unarmed blacks and whites get killed by the police.Â
So – is it ‘whitey’ that’s the real problem?  Is racism — your racism–or ‘structural racism’ — is that’s the problem?  Are you ‘woke’? Do you accept your supposed ‘white privilege’ guilt?
Maybe you’re a bit curious and willing to learn more about ‘white privilege’ and ‘structural racism’?
Well, there’s workshops out there that seek to ‘enlighten’ you.
I attended The Call of the Moment: an Anti-Racism Workshop offered via ZOOM by Dr. Lewis. About 1300 attended. Dr. Lewis plans more workshops in the future.
 Two books by Dr. Lewis are listed as available on Amazon. One of her books is The Power of Stories. Â
Dr. Jacqui Lewis, is Senior Minister of Middle Collegiate Church located in New York City.  She was ordained in the Presbyterian Church and has served in a senior position with Middle Collegiate for about 15 years. Â
Published on VOX on May 29,2020 is the following info:
 Dr. Lewis writes: “And it’s not enough to condemn this particular presidential abuse without also naming how the president [Trump] routinely kills and maims those on the margins through policy.
“Tens of thousands of people are killed each year due to ridiculously lax gun legislation he [Trump] defends. Child hunger is soaring because of our woefully anemic safety net and federal cruelty. Thousands have been kidnapped at our border at his [Trump’s] command.
And more than 16,000 people have already died in my city [New York] because the president failed to prepare for the coronavirus and did not prioritize giving New York the aid we needed. [Oh really? Factual problem here.] Â
Dr. Lewis continues: “So, while I’m horrified by the president’s callousness in demanding houses of worship be allowed to open, I cannot say I’m surprised. And I am not surprised by how many white Americans continue to support him — it is part of our country’s foundational white supremacy. Our social contract has always made its peace with brutality and death to secure the power of whiteness…..” Â
Given the strong bias against President Trump that Dr. Lewis clearly expresses, how ‘loose with the facts’ might Dr. Lewis be when she presents in an anti-racial workshop? More about the Workshop  will be discussed in a separate post. Â
  As. Dr. Lewis lays a huge number of societal problems at one person’s door — President Trump’s door –  how likely is she to consider that behavior on the part of blacks is part of the problem as well as part of the solution?  Â
Per the VOX post, Dr. Lewis blames Trump for killing twelve thousand people in New York City (where she lives and works). The facts do not support her allegations.
It is well publicized that the Mayor of New York moved COVID-19 persons into nursing homes and about 4,500 nursing home patients died. That is what the Mayor of New York City did.  That’s the city where Dr. Lewis lives and works.   It is well known that Trump sent a hospital ship to New York to help out and also it is well known that Trump sent heaps of ventilators that were not needed but New York City received them. There are no indications that Trump killed people in New York.
Dr. Lewis, as published by Vox, states ‘facts’ about Trump that are clearly erroneous for which there is no support. Â
Take Away: The workshop by Dr. Lewis on anti-racism makes no mention of the brutal violence that  male Afro-Americans living in large Democrat controlled cities inflict on other individuals of their color, ethnicity and culture both on physical bodies and on black homes, businesses and neighborhoods. Black violent behaviors harming other blacks was not touched on in the workshop.
Dr. Lewis does talk about ‘holding environments’, that we find our identify in various contexts (home, school, church). She talks about  that the first ‘holding environment’ — the womb. When bullets are flying near by that first ‘holding environment’ is at risk. Â
When black males (6% of the population) commit 50% of murders against their neighbors who are black what’s the effect on the ‘holding environments’ aka wombs of pregnant black women? Check the facts:  Floyd George put a pistol to the stomach of a pregnant woman after pushing his way into her home.  Dr. Lewis writes that there were bullets flying nearby when she was 8, living in Chicago, and it was learned that Martin Luther King had been assassinated.
I think it matters that Afro-Americans are killing, maiming children and aborting black babies in huge numbers. As stated above, 50% of all murders and robberies are committed by black men killing and robbing other blacks who are their neighbors.
In response to what I wrote about blacks killing blacks one person, an episcopal church leader wrote: “Those statistics point to the effects of years of ‘systemic racism’ that have left black people with little to no opportunity and isolated them in ghettos where violence prevails.”Â
A black author in the WSJ Jason Riley says differently. He writes that riots caused businesses to leave inner cities which resulted in social pathologies.  Here are Riley’s words:
“A common assumption among liberals is that the movement of inner-city jobs to the suburbs in the late 1960s is what led to the higher rates of crime, violence and other social pathologies associated with ghetto life. But this gets the order wrong. The business flight took place after the rioting, not before. Will history repeat itself?”
Someone, a christian and member of an episcopal church, wrote on Facebook that a video by Candice Owen  ‘made him feel sick’. He asked people to comment and received 50-60 comments in response.
Some said Candice Owens and Jason Riley, both black conservatives, are ‘shills’ Three disagreed including myself.Â
 Aren’t you just a little more ‘woke’ now ? the person writing on his Facebook page asked of one dissenter. “I reject most of what ‘woke’ stands for” that person responded. Oh dear, not everybody buys into getting ‘woked’.
Another dissenter commented  that for many years most major U.S. cities are run by black politicians …. “ My question:   do these black politicians care about the blacks voters that put them in office? Why have these black politicians produced so little helpful to blacks?
My view: Why blame the huge numbers of blacks killing and robbing  their black neighbors on something called  ‘structural racism’ when it can just as easily be described as  Democrat Party politics as usual? Why? Remember, 2020 is an election year and the Democrats prime goal is to remove Trump from office.
Churches are a main civic organization.  So what has been the response of churches to Black Lives Matters and ‘structural racism’?
The Episcopal Church has been in the news lately.  Remember the picture of Trump standing in front of the church across from the White House which had been torched the night before? Trump had a bible – that picture.
Rev. Curry head of the episcopal church in Washington D.C. says. “I really do believe that we’ve got to face the pain of our past and then work together to create new ways to create a new future.”.Â
I’ve found no discussion by Rev. Curry or other episcopal leaders as to the role blacks specifically play in the violence inflicted by blacks on their black neighbors. Nothing specific as to what blacks can and need to do. The episcopal stance appears to be ‘we stand against racism and structural racism…’ Â
So what are some of the factors why black men commit 50% of all murders?Â
Listen to voices who published Letters in WSJ June 13-14, 2020:  These letters cite Prof. Orlando Patterson’s essay “The Long Reach of Racism in the U.S.” (Review, June 6). One voice names the failure of black office holders. The number of black children born without a father in the home and black reliance on government programs instead of finding meaningful work is listed as another factor by another voice.
My views: It’s complicated and there’s many  factors why black men commit 50% of all U.S. violent crimes. Something not talked about is the role of feminism and easy access to abortions.   Feminism and ‘my body is my own to do as I please‘ comes to mind.  Due to Planned Parenthood, there’s easy availability of abortion as a primary birth control method. In New York City more black babies are aborted than born.  How do those young black almost-a-father and never-had-a-choice black men feel? Ask them.
Black fathers don’t appear to matter.  What about self esteem issues and attaching value for who you are.  Look at the Black Lives Matter website and you will find no role, no value, no interest in black fathers, black sons or black families with a mother and father as a married entity. Marriage and family and the place of the black man as father are not valued  by Black Lives Matters. Take a look at their web site.
Self esteem comes from learning skills that are age grounded.  Riding a bike at 4. Learning to read and later learning how to reason and think logically by early teens. These contribute to the development of self esteem. Learning a skill that can result in a wage is another crucial step for young people. The union controlled public schools produce poorly educated persons of all colors including young black men.
Effect of the unions.  In the 1930’s thousands of young blacks went north to get jobs. The blacks had carpentry and other skills and got jobs.  Then the Davis Bacon Act was passed which requires that ‘prevailing wages’ be paid. The act was passed to limit blacks from getting jobs. Time to change the law?
Recent events:  Now we learn that a bad, bad white cop with 18 disciplinary actions killed a black man he knew (they were bouncers together) while several other cops stood by and did nothing. Those other cops were complicit and contributed to the death of that black.  For years, that bad cop was protected by the police unions.
Yes — it’s time to rein in the power police unions. And time to rein in the school unions that produce poorly educated persons of all colors.
Unions for public employees. That is a major culprit. The police unions protect the bad cops. The school unions protect the bad teachers. Together as a result we get poorly educated young persons of all colors. And there are all sorts of factors why young black men take guns and kill and rob other blacks.
There’s no real bartering when the police and school unions sit down across the table from the politicians — the Democrats — who they paid to put in office. For example, t he SEIU paid $60 million to put Obama in office in 2008.
We don’t need ‘structural racism’ to explain why black Democrat politicians  in large cities do nothing about the power of police unions and the power exerted by school unions.
Why unions for public employees stay in power:  Old fashioned greed is a simple and better explanation why no change over the years.  Both sides want more and both give to each other more to get more.
This is why there should not be public employee unions. There has to be an adversarial relationship when those representing the public purse sit down to discuss money with representatives of public schools and the police.
So what to do so young blacks stop killing and robbing other blacks? Become part of the solution. How?
Churches: Are you a member of a church? Get local churches to cooperate and work together.   Episcopals with Catholics, Protestants  and others – can work collaboratively to support family values that weaken and reduce the power of Hispanic and Black gangs.  That’s a no brainer. Encourage young men to marry and staying married to the women with whom they have children. That’s also a no brainer.  Intact families with a mother and father in the home create and raise children who go to college and get jobs. How support families?  How and when? Do so around Christmas which celebrates the birth of Jesus into a family with a father in the home.
The organization Black Lives Matters:  Call out Black Lives Matters for what it is –  a marxist organization which is anti- nuclear family and puts forth policies and falsehoods  which harm blacks. Look at their website carefully. There is no message on the BLM web site saying to black men to STOP killing other blacks.  There is no support on the BLM web site for black fathers to marry the mothers of their children. There’s no discussion of the importance of male relationships between fathers and sons. And, there is no BLM message to young woman to ‘stop aborting black babies’ and re-think whether  a government check and transfer payments for the next 18 years is a good deal.
Schools: Work to create more charter schools in your community and use of money that will mean more accountability by public schools to produce better educated (literate and meet specific standards in math and reading) young people of all color. Blacks don’t learn to read in CA schools.  Require schools to provide classes that can assist all students in getting jobs. Require all students to learn at least one skill that could lead to a job.
Note:  This post was reviewed  7/1/20. Some  changes made to clarify the main points and preserve the privacy of persons who commented.
So what say you? Become part of the conversation! It is easy to comment. Monterey Bay Forum is exactly that — a forum for discussion of ideas.
This post was written by Cameron Jackson,  licensed CA psychologist PSY14762     127 Jewell Street, Santa Cruz, CA  95060      DrCameronJackson@gmail.comÂ
Wonder what the young black woman, Candice Owens, has to say?  This is from You Tube and she has a mouthful to say about why blacks kill blacks.
Killing blacks. Looting. Violence. Black Lives Matter? So what say Catholic, Episcopal and Trinity Covenant church leaders in Aptos, CA — if anything —  on Trinity Sunday  about the recent killing of an unarmed black, about riots and looting?
The Catholic priest at Resurrection Church said nothing  about recent events. no reference to the riots, the looting or the killing of an unarmed black man by a white policeman. What Fr. R  said:  God is love and love means relationships and ….  make your daily relationships about love. God is love and love means relationship. A simple message.   Catch it on You Tube.
At  Trinity Covenant Church the  minister T.M. started his sermon with the words, It’s a sin to kill. It’s a sin to loot….  He went on to say, Look at Black Lives Matter website, See  what the Movement stands for. You will find that  Black Lives Matter is anti-family…. Of note, at Trinity Covenant you can worship in the sanctuary (with social distancing), outside in your car in the parking lot or listen in from home.
Take a look at the Black Lives Matters website.  Click the link.  Black Lives Matters  promotes inter-generational, non-nuclear family arrangements. There’s  mothers, kids and they all live together with perhaps a queer or two. Maybe an aunt or two also hanging out with them. No mention about men and their role.
Hey, Black Lives Matters folks: Where are the Afro-American men that fathered the children? Who is telling black men  to stop killing other  blacks and start raising kids with a mother and father present in the home? A terribly huge percentage of black deaths (85+%)  are committed by black men. That is the real problem. Last year police killed twice as many white unarmed me (19) compared to black unarmed men (9). Those are the hard, cold statistics that Black Lives Matters chooses to ignore. Check out last week’s Wall Street Journal for the most recent statistics.
Who is going to tell blacks to wake up and smell the roses?  Check out the facts. If you black mamas  and black poppas want  your children to go to college then get married and stay married.  And put your  kids in Charter Schools with non-union teachers. And stop buying into the victimhood card. That’s my view.
The website Black Lives Matters celebrates Obama’s ‘if only I had a son he’d look like Trevon Martin. Black Lives Matters  celebrates the Gentle Giant of Ferguson, the supposed martyr who died after he reached in the police car to grab a gun.  Both those  supposed ‘heroes’  of Black Lives Mater are men with long rap sheets and  a history of violence and use of illegal drugs.
Yes, start listening. Click the link and  Listen to  Candice Owens, a young articulate black with views why blacks celebrate black thugs as martyrs. It’s a community thing. You are a ‘honky’ if want to succeed and you are a martyr if you have a violent history and rap sheet. No other culture celebrates thugs as heroes she notes.
Now, what about  the episcopal church leaders in Aptos? What says the episcopal  priest on Trinity Sunday? Mother T of St. John’s focused on current events specifically on  systemic racism in America.
How Whites should  / or  might  respond to the ‘ systemic racism of police killing Black’ s was the sermon topic Trinity Sunday  by Mother T.   The day before, she attended a Black Lives Matter rally  6/6/ 2020 in Watsonville CA where  Mother T   held a  sign, Black Lives are Holy, Sacred and Created in God’s image. There, she saw another sign,  White Silence Equals Black Deaths. She went to the Black Lives Matter rally  in Watsonville, CA to end white silence.
Mother T with St. John’s prefaced her sermon that she identifies as White and in her sermon was speaking to other Whites.
Essence of  Mother T’s sermon: Sometimes white people need to stop talking and start listening. Repeat that sentence.
One way to start listening she says  is to join the Facebook group Be the Bridge.  This group requires new members to engage in active listening (no posting and no comments) for three months. Three whole months. That impresses Mother T. (It is easy to join. Just follow 3 rules.)
Any discussion of the Trinity on Trinity Sunday  at St. John’s? Not that I noticed. Mother T suggested that  her mostly White parishioners focus on the  re pre-scribed reading for the day, The Creation Story.   God created the world and saw it was good.
The episcopal Mother T added,  There are no adequate analogies to understand the Trinity so  be silent in the face of all we don’t know.
Like a good read? Try  Dorothy Sayers Begin Here, the Mind of the Maker. Sayers writes that God is the Creator and He knows the end of the Story. And he knows the main players such as His son and the Holy Spirit. Sayers writes good crime novels too.
For more on Dorothy Sayers, read Robin Phillips Saints and Scoundrels.Â
What say you about the riots, looting and what the local church leaders in Aptos have to say about Black Lives Matter on Trinity Sunday?  Put your 2 cents in! Â
written by Cameron Jackson  drcameronjackson@gmail.com
Democrat politicians expect you to hand over your brain when thinking about recent lootings, the killing of an unarmed black by a white cop and how to manage Covid-19.  Do you live in a town or city run by Democrats? Watch out! Think for your self!
What can you do about Covid-19, looting in the streets and Democrat policy failures? For sure, vote in November.  In the meanwhile, use your brain to make decisions and do so with courage and a heart that is caring.
Courage. A heart. A brain. That’s what the lion, the tin man and the scarecrow wanted. And those are precisely what Democrat Party policies lacks.
New York is a Democrat stronghold.  New York been a hot spot during the Covid-19 epidemic with a higher death rate than the rest of the U.S. The actual disparity is absolutely shocking. As a proportion of the population, the number of excess deaths in New York City during the epidemic has been 16 times as high as in the rest of America.(Wall Street Journal, The Measure of New York’s Covid Devastation, June 3, 2020).
Many east coast and west coast cities and states are controlled by the Democrat parties. Thanks to Democrat progressive policies,  San Francisco on the west coast is known as the city of feces and homeless. That’s Nancy Pelosi’s home town.
Democrat controlled New York City is  now known as the place where the most die from Covid-19. That’s where 4,300 Covid-19 patients were transfered from New York  hospitals to nursing homes. This exposed the oldest, frailest and most vulnerable to the virus. (WSJ, The Measure of New York’s Covid Devastation, June 3, 2020).
The Democrat politicians that run cities have bought into the belief that the police are a bigger problem than rampant disorder. Where did that belief come from? Remember President Obama and his policies towards the police. Eight years of Obama and his AG Eric Holder have had a huge impact.
In response to the recent killing of a black unarmed man by a white policeman Eric Holder was asked to day 6/3/2020 in a podcast on Obama’s website, ‘what is your most radical dream?‘ Holder replied,‘that people be judged by their deeds and not sterotype people.”
Deeds — let’s judge people based on their deeds says AG Eric Holder.  Blacks make up 13% of the USA population and in 2018 African-Americans and made up 53% of known homocide offenders in the U.S.. African-Americans commit about 60% of all robberies.
What about who is killed by the police?  In 2019, the police fatally shot 9 unarmed blacks and 19 unarmed whites according to a Washington Post database, down from 38 and 32, respectively in 2015.
So, last year in 2019 twice as many unarmed whites were killed compared to unarmed blacks. There’s been no outrage or looting because unarmed white men died.
In 2018 there were 7,404  black homocide victims. That’s alot of blacks dying and most of them are killed by another black person That is the sad, rarely discussed story than Democrat politicians do not address.
What about the safety of police officers?  A police officer is 18 times more likely to be killed by a black male than an unarmed black male is to be killed by a police officer.  The above statistics are from The Myth of Systemic Police Racism, WSJ, June 8, 2020.
California and New York are both run by Democrats. Both states have been slow to re-open from the Covid-19 pandemic. In Santa Cruz, CA people are still kept off the beaches during th 11-5 hours and people are still “sheltering in place” wearing masks.
What to do? Use your brain, have a heart and show courage.
written by Cameron Jackson  PSY14762 licensed CA psychologist
Assemblyman Mark Stone and Dr. Shirley Weber  District 79 seek to kill the golden goose, Proposition 209, by passage of  ACA 5 which, if passed, brings back the corrupt  policies of “affirmative action”.
Dr. Weber talks the talk that CA needs””opportunity for all” but Dr. Weber walks the walk that women and persons of color are those needing the opportunity and that quotas of “affirmative action” can deliver.
Read Dr. Weber’s Sample Letter which  she wants you to sign and send back to her. The  phrase “women and persons of color” are the persons Dr. Weber actually seeks to assist.
Under the cover of media attention focused on the COVID-19 pandemic and the riots, the Democrats seek swift passage of ACA 5 through the CA state legislature so ACA 5 will be on the ballot in November.
Why is the golden goose — Proposition 209– so golden? Proposition 209, passed in 1996, made it illegal to use race as basis for decisions as to who got into CA state universities, who got contracts and who was hired for public jobs. CA has been “color-blind” and the golden state has benefited enormously.
ACA 5 supporters seek to bring back “affirmative action” to CA.  Why bring back the old, racist policies of “affirmative action” that use skin color as basis for decisions?  Why, given that Proposition has been is a success story why replace it with failed policies?
Recently returning to CA, Ward Connerly allies in 2020 with Asian Americans against race discrimination.  Tenty-five years ago Ward Connerly as a member of the University of California’s Board of Regents got an inside look at the “corruption” affirmative action introduces. Connerly launched Proposition 209.
Mark Stone represents Santa Cruz CA and areas near by.  Let’s get Mr. Stone on the KSCO 1080 radio so he can answer questions about “affirmative action” and why he thinks it’s time to kill the goose Proposition 209 that gives the golden eggs of thousands of success stories wherein students matched better with colleges succeed and graduate from schools in far greater numbers than before Proposition 209.  Why bring back the old quota system? Is this really the way forward for “women and persons of color” to succeed?
What say you?
written by Cameron Jackson, Ph.D., J.D.  licensed psychologist PSY14762
How you can help stop racism and keep California colorblind?
Pick up a phone and call your legislature and oppose passage of ACA5 by the CA state legislature.
Assembly Constitutional Amendment N0. 5 aka ACA5 kills Proposition 209 which in 1996 made it illegal to consider race in making decisions who gets into CA state schools. Proposition 209 has made it possible for far more minorities to enter the UC system and for far more to graduate. The numbers are there which show that Proposition 209 is a success story.  More minorities go and more minorities graduate now thanks to Proposition 209.
For those living in Santa Cruz CA and near by your representatives in CA government are Mark Stone  (916 319 2029) (831 425 2570) and Bill Monning (916 651 4017) (831 425-0401)  are your representatives.
Mark Stone is a co-author of ACA-5. Per telephone contact 6/2/2020 with one of Mr. Stone’s Santa Cruz field representatives,  Mr. Stone believes that getting rid of Prop. 209 is a good thing which will create a level playing ground.Â
How about an invitation? One way to get some questions answered:  Let’s get Mr. Stone on KSCO 1080 in Santa Cruz so locals can get answers to their questions. Michael Z of 1080 attended UCSC years ago. From Mr. Stone’s Facebook page, why not invite him to speak on the radio via KSCO 1080?Â
This is a crucial week for registering opposition to ACA5.  The Democrat controlled CA State Legislature want ACA 5 on the ballot in November. ACA 5 makes race central again in deciding who gets into state schools. Why the push now? With the pandemic and riots dominating the news now,  it’s a convenient time to push the race card and get ACA 5 on the ballot without even a vote in the CA Senate.
ACA 5 overturns Proposition 209 the successful ballot initiative passed in 1996 which made it illegal for CA to consider race for awarding contracts, in hiring for public jobs and in deciding who is admitted to CA state schools. Ward Connerly, age 81, is back in the saddle working to join the fight against a new effort to overturn what he accomplished in 1996 and return race to the center of how decisions are made.
Those who care about a colorblind CA and that it remain that way can join Wenyuan Wu’s organization Asian-American Coalition for Education. Wu’s organization  part of a broader alliance of Asian-American groups trying to stop ACA 5. Click here to become a member of Wu’s organization and fight racism in education.
Organizations that oppose CA proposed legislation ACA5  include a broad range of organizations: the Asian American Legal Foundation, Facebook group Asians Not Brainwashed by Media and Fair Chance for Asians to the Panda Kung Fu Center of the Univerisity of California, Chinese Alumni Association and Silicon Valley Chinese Association Foundation.
These associations have organized against ACA 5 because Ms Wu says, “If it passes, Asian-American students will be further scapegoated and penalized in college admissions.”
Proposition 209 has resulted in more — not less — minorities graduating from CA state schools. See below from Jacoby with
“In the University of California system, four-year graduation rates of underrepresented racial minorities rose from 31.3 percent [before Proposition 209] … to 43.3 percent during 2001-03. In 2014, underrepresented racial minorities’ four-year graduation rate rose to a record high of 55.1 percent.â€
Jacoby continues: “And what is true of graduation rates is equally true of enrollment. Both in absolute numbers and as a percentage of all admissions, there are more minority students on University of California campuses than ever before. The charge that Proposition 209 “stymied†diversity in California’s public higher-education system, Wu says flatly, “is simply untrue.â€
“Last summer, the University of California system admitted the largest and most diverse class of freshmen in its history — without resorting to racial quotas. Fully 40 percent of the new undergraduates, reported the Los Angeles Times, were African-American, Hispanic, or American Indian.”
So why are the Democrats in Sacramento pushing ACA5 now? Because with the pandemic and now riots it’s easy for the Democrats to push it through. So they think. So — pickup your phone. Call your representatives. And call radio stations in your area.
Democrat fat cats in CA state legislature go after the mouse of Proposition 209 which in 1996 made it illegal to consider race in awarding contracts, in hiring and in school admissions.
The Democrat cats running state government in CA go after Proposition 209 ‘mouse’ ….  Run mouse run! Run for your life!  Most ‘experts’ expect ACA5 to win if it makes it on the CA ballot in Nov. That’s why it’s important to act now. Pick up your phone?  What say you……
written by Cameron Jackson  drcameronjackson@gmail.com
Keep it simple — here’s some ways that  you can help open your CA town or city.
It’s what you do – and what you tell your government to do — that will get the economy humming again and do so safely.
Rule #1:  Expect zero from the government and figure out what you can do each and every day to solve problems related to management of COVID-19. It’s what you do — not what the government tells you to do — that matters.
Every town is different. The following is about Santa Cruz CA and their local paper the Santa Cruz Sentinel. Santa Cruz has lots of tourists and a U.C. facility.
A “take away” from reading  several stories in the 5/29  Santa Cruz Sentinel:  Local government bureaucracy grinds on and on doing little to re-open the economy. Local health officials trend along with what state officials say to do.
Put the three 5/29 Sentinel stories regarding COVID-19 together and you read that Santa Cruz County Public Health Officer Dr. Gail Newel is miffed that Gov Newsom did not do as she expected. “The governor is not following the cadence that was expected†she says.â€Â That’s a low whine. Gail Newel thinks Santa Cruz has taken “a very thoughtful approach†and now working “fast and furious†to re-open.  Don’t hold your breath, Santa Cruz folks. This local public health officer  is part of the ‘too little and too late’ crowd. More businesses will flounder. There will be more domestic abuse. And more depressed kids.
One wonders why  Santa Cruz County has such a low death rate from COVID-19. Is it low because of how the health officials count?   Health official Gail Newel says that the state health statistics which currently  list 3 deaths and not 2 for Santa Cruz County are in error because the third death had the virus but that person did not die from the virus.   Â
So when a cluster of elderly living in a Santa Cruz county group home who have diabetes and high blood pressure and obesity die after infected with COVID-19 from a staff person that means those persons did not die from the virus but rather from their pre-existing conditions and therefore should not be counted in the local  COVID-19 count? Is it the way in which Santa Cruz County health officers count deaths? A way that makes for such a low count? Â
How many residents in any Santa Cruz county long term facility have died since COVID-19 (early Appril) became a serious health problem? Were any of those persons tested for COVID-19? Since testing is not mandatory for long term health facilities / nursing homes and only now, three months into the pandemic, state government suggests that a testing plan be made …. There is no easy way to know how many have died due to the virus while living in a nursing home. Â
Look elsewhere how COVID-19 deaths are counted. All over the USA health departments are counting deaths which include a positive COVID-19 test as a death due to the virus. But not Santa Cruz County according to health officer Gail Newel.
Rule #2: Isolation is bad for the soul and hard on people.  We punish people by locking them up — remember that.   Do what’s sensible to stay mentally healthy.
Take specific actions that put money into other people’s wallets. Deliberately buy take out to help local restaurants stay afloat. Go to hardware stores and stock up on items you will need in the future.
Drive around in your car and smile and say hi and count those ‘contacts’ as part of your social routine. Remember who and why you smiled at others.  Those smiles break social isolation. Yours and other people’s. You help others and yourself when you smile. Not a crocodile smile but a real smile from the soul.
Rule #3: Set a daily schedule for yourself that includes what we have learned helps manage COVID-19:  Take your daily temperature before and after your in-home or out-of-home work. Yes you should have a daily “work†routine. Wash your  hands frequently with soap and water. Keep your hands off your face as COVID -19 gets into your body via eyes, nose and mouth. Keep your distance from other people as best makes sense socially. Masks? You figure it out. Just another way to control people, for sure. They are easily contaminated. You breath in the CO2 you just exhaled.
Rule #4: Learn how to advocate for the most vulnerable who are the most likely to get COVID-19 and die from it. Remember — 40-50% of all COVID-19 deaths occur to elderly persons with pre-existing conditions who are living in long term nursing facilities. Since that is where the bulk of deaths occur it only makes sense to do all that’s possible to ensure that staff are healthy and residents are tested and isolated from others when they test positive.
 What you will learn from the news in the Santa Cruz Sentinel is that CA government has done squat — nothing — to ensure the safety of the most vulnerable citizens. There are no required testing, isolation and contact tracing plan of all residents and all staff persons.
Learn how to advocate for persons in your CA town and city.  Those are our veterans, retired folks, farm workers and others who are cared for by a variety of persons. Staff  persons  help get the elderly to the toilet, help feed them and when necessary may diaper them and routinely give medicines to them.
Remember two thirds of all Americans take 3+ medicines  on a daily basis.   These nursing home staff persons have close physical contact with the vulnerable elderly. And if the staff have symptoms it’s easy to pass along the virus to the residents.
How to  advocate for our most vulnerable that are in group facilities? Go visit these long term housing facilities.  Call them. Contact them any way you can.
In the Santa Cruz Sentinel 5/29 had the  following: The State Department of Public Health issues a letter saying facilities should draft testing plans for all residents in settings without cases and all residents who have been exposed to the virus. That this Letter  says it would be a good thing …. means that three months into the pandemic our CA state government and local government have no standards in place and no ‘blue print’ to offer so testing, isolation and finding others exposed is routinely done of persons in long term facilities.
One way to reduce the spread of COVID-19 is to require daily temperature  testing of staff and that they fill out a brief questionnaire  as to possible symptoms they had during work.  Couple monitoring of staff with  appropriate testing of all residents.
Santa Cruz County has about 10-12 long term care facilities which care for about 1,066 persons. The staff that care for them are not highly paid R.N’s but LVN and others without letters after their name. They may or may not be trained in how COVID-19 spreads. Some may live in crowded living conditions which exist in pockets throughout Santa Cruz County. Keeping a close watch on symptoms by staff and residents is crucial to keeping our most vulnerable safe.
Another way to reduce   COVID-19 is to take the needed tests to the facilities. That way testing of staff and residents will be frequent and regular.    A handful of churches in mid-County  currently  fund a truck which provides showers for the homeless. That’s been going on for a year or so.  What about a  truck that would go around to the long term care facilities and brings test kits  to these facilities?
Now is the time to politely ask your county  health officer and other government officials to provide  immediate and regular  testing of all staff and residents of local nursing homes.
As individuals we can do lots to stop COVID-19 in its tracks. Government can test and should test immediately and regularly those most likely to die from it — the elderly with pre-existing conditions.
What say you? What do you suggest that can help re-open your CA town safely and now?
The COVID-19 death rate was lowered recently by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to about double that of flu.  The lowered death rate for the virus is vastly  lower from the initial 2+ million that were estimated to die from COVID-19. Currently, 5.4 MILLION have contracted it and 348 thousand have died world wide.Â
A thought: We don’t close the entire USA economy because of the flu (which kills between 30-60 THOUSAND a year) and, had the CDC and public officials known the correct numbers, we would not have closed the entire USA economy over a death rate double the flu.
Given what we know now — that COVID-19 has a double the flu rate — what stops or slows the re-opening up fully and quickly?
Politics?   Democrats are looking ahead to the USA 2020 elections. Back of their minds: How can the Democrats get votes by blaming Trump?
Remember, the original numbers estimating COVID-19 deaths were based on computer models.  The real numbers that suggest a death rate similar to flu are based on data of actual deaths.
The same Democrat run states – including California and New York –that are loudest in demanding a USA federal rescue have hurt themselves the most with long, strict lockdowns and tax spend policies.
Blue states run by Democrats reopen slower. They represent about 1/3 of the economy. About 2/3 in New York and New Jersey half of leisure and hospitality jobs in CA disappeared between Feb. and April compared to 43% in Florida.
Is this a political tactic?  People dependent upon the government for groceries and rent are more likely to vote Democrat in the 2020 elections.
Some churches in CA have pushed back and the Gov. has changed course.  CA Gov. Newsom relaxed rules which will allow churches in CA re-open with strict rules. Various CA churches have sued Newsom and planned to open by May 31, Pentecost Sunday.
So what to do when out in public?  Wash hands and social distance. Those changes seem sensible.
Wearing masks seems problematic. Taking in clean air is a lot harder to do with a mask on.   Persons with breathing difficulties will have even more difficulties.  The USA has lots of children with asthma issues.  Turning one’s head and covering one’s mouth are easier to do and these were practices taught eons ago. Those practices could be resurrected.
Don’t forget where the COVID-19 virus came from: China. Chinese officials and politicians locked down China and protected their country  from the virus and at the same time they loosed the virus on the world. Now over 190 countries have dead citizens because of Chinese policies.
Will China be held accountable? If we can’t change China we can change our policies. Let’s make sure our medicines are made in the USA and not in China.
Govenor Newsom — like New York – moves persons with the coronavirus into CA nursing care facilites.
On March 30th, Governor Newsom’s administration warned skilled nursing facilities that they “shall not refuse to admit or readmit a resident based on their status as a suspected or confirmed COVID-19 case.”
“California’s directive is nothing less than a death sentence for countless residents,” warned Patricia McGinnis, executive director of California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform.
Half of California’s deaths, or 1,276, have occurred in nursing homes, though not all are the SNFs that were ordered to accept coronavirus patients.
Whitmer, Cuomo, Wolf, and Newsom have been widely praised by the media, even though their disastrous policies likely led to the deaths of thousands of senior citizens in nursing homes.
There were states that got it right, protecting senior citizens by barring the transfer of coronavirus patients to nursing homes, requiring negative tests before a transfer, and creating separate facilities.
Trump or Biden? On jobs? Which do you pick?
