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That's an awesome photo of "the chicken" Ken. Never seen that one before. Classic!— August 15, 2017 9:36 p.m.
Mexico: Keep that s*** out of the Tijuana River
Depending upon how one defines "time," the United States was at war with Mexico at one time. For old Spanish settlers families that story is part of their DNA. Americans took their land. Just like our sentimental segment of Confederate sympathizers in the South, lost land or power stays in the blood of the underdogs for generations. I kind of see Mexico as the future landscape of America. The inequality where the top families enjoy 90% of the spoils and the rest of the people fight it out to be where they can get in that remaining 10% which is 99% of the population. Mexico is ruled by mass-landowners and the people have to rent the land. There never were any small family farms like in the pioneer America. Those wealthy landowners in Mexico control the government, are many involved in corruption and financing drug smuggling operations. These wealthy people own homes in Spain, the United States and other havens. They do not care about the petty sewage problem in Tijuana. Sure, Mexicans have a voting democracy, but their parties are both corrupt and controlled by the drug cartels, money launderers, oil arbitragers, human Trafficking for labor and sex. All you need to do to understand the corruption in Mexico is to read their budgets. You can see where their priorities are. Most of those priorities are making Mexico City an awesome place to live and to hell with every other city. Mexico City has very low crime because of the military presence. Mexico City is where the oligarchs live to conduct business and then they return to their retreats in Europe, South America or North America. Think about it, what major biotech, electronics, software or other modern field has a major player in Mexico? I hate to say it, not being a Trump supporter, but Mexico is a big drug dealer. That is where most of America’s drugs come from. How do you expect a country that thrives on corruption and greed, to care about the little border communities and their toilet problems?— August 15, 2017 9:29 p.m.
El Cajon councilman sued over Miss Middle East pageant
It saddens me too. I have lived in diverse communities in San Diego for over 50 years. I used to operate a business in El Cajon as well. Over the years there have been waves of immigrants from; Vietnam, Cambodia, Central America, Russia, and more. Each with distinct cultures and attitudes. But the Iraqi Chaldeans stand apart in their arrogance and rudeness. I don’t feel they are assimilating like Asians have in Linda Vista, Kearny Mesa and City Heights. The Chaldeans seem to think they are better, and they seem to want to push out the rest of the population (as they have also done in Dearborn, MI. When they have taken over car washes, restaurants and other local business they fire the existing staff and bring in, almost exclusively, Chaldeans. That has been a disappointing observation. Millions of people are persecuted in their homelands. Nonetheless, we can't continue to have millions of economic refugees settled here. It is no secret why Trump was elected as many Americans supported his campaign rhetoric about clamping down. (I did not vote for Trump, just pointing out that glaring fact.) In El Cajon they may be making “their lives better” but it is at the expense of the legacy American population. The sons and daughters, of those who fought in World Wars, not fled them. There are wars going on in countries all over the world and they have been raging for decades. That does not mean that one group is special and should get a front-of-the-line pass in the refugee line. To me people like Mark Arabo use the “Christian-card” like there is something supremely special about his pet cause. US Citizens have to compete with refugees for social services, healthcare, Section 8 housing and other services. You are proud of your wife and father-in-law, but most of the refugees do not have skills or educations to offer, they are mostly needy. I’m not going to argue with you, some of the things I said are mean. I have been totally put off by most interactions with Chaldeans. I now avoid all of their businesses because I can go anywhere and be treated rudely. Why invite it? Many folks see things quite differently than you. You are married to one and an in-law in the family. Your father in-law (who most likely works at Cuyamaca College) is an exception, not the rule. When the Chaldeans begin behaving like Christians, showing some humility, being grateful instead of demanding, treating their women with respect and equality, assimilating instead of taking over neighborhoods, buying up businesses and canning the existing staff, trying to get political power by calling their cynics “racist”, I might warm up to them.— August 11, 2017 5:19 p.m.
El Cajon councilman sued over Miss Middle East pageant
He served in the California House of Representatives from 1967 to 1983, and in the California State Senate from 1983 to 1993. He is the first Iraqi-American elected official in the United States. He planted the seed in El Cajon to which is why the city has the second largest population of Chaldeans after Detroit. Most get shipped to Detroit and then enter a lottery to grant relocation to San Diego. (El Cajon) The government settles Muslims in the same communities because of their shared diets, language, and other cultural similarities. However, those in power have not learned, or will not admit, the laissez-faire attitude America collectively has serious consequences. We are creating American "West Banks" and the results of terror are of a much higher possibility than any other immigrant segment. "Christian!" Who cares?— August 4, 2017 11:01 p.m.
Hidden costs of SD homes are nation's third highest
I believe the recent spikes in rising housing costs are being driven by two phenomenons. First is foreign investment, primarily Chinese, in buying up high-end residential real estate and investment properties such as multi-unit housing. The second is domestic investment pools that are buying middle-income residential property and renting houses, taking single-family homes off the market for good. Other factors like AirBNB are also creating conversion of month-to-month rentals, to day-to-day rentals in neighborhoods that are desirable destinations for tourists.— August 4, 2017 9:06 a.m.
The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs
I met Steve Jobs when I was one of the first Apple Computer dealers in the 80's. He was a prick. He was brilliant, but like Bill Gates, he stole technology and was a copy-cat. He stole from Xerox PARC, and he stole from inventors that approached him with ideas. I respect Jobs for his popularization of the personal computer. A revolution I was fortunate to take a ride on. But Jobs was a marketer, a carnival barker, not visionary and certainly not a saint. I wish they would let him rest in peace.— August 3, 2017 11 p.m.
El Cajon councilman sued over Miss Middle East pageant
Chaldeans. Do they all go to church? It seems they all open liquor stores and sell booze, tobacco and lottery tickets. Next are pizza, car washes and other CASH businesses. By way of lobbyists like Mark Arabo and immigration and settlement parasites we have let this scenario play out. Come here as a "refugee" and then immediately find ways to climb whether it involved abusing our generous social benefits or saying "It's time!" to take over the political power. Diversity is derived from divided in Latin. Diversity eventually destroys it's target or host from within. Diversity means "divide." And as we can see, and as why Trump was elected, the Americans... the ones who fought TWO world wars, are concerned about the direction the country is going. And f--k political correctness. These scumbags want to take a shortcut to the American Dream. Theses bastards want us to give them the American Dream while they replicate their barbaric and stone-age culture overtakes our traditional communities. They come here and bleed our benefits, pocket cash without paying taxes while they simultaneously work under the table for Uncle Deddah. Americans need to wake up. It's not a "Mexican" immigration "problem." Mexicans are a scapegoat. It's the unbridled out-of-control immigration that is enabled by numerous lobbies and scumbags like Mark Arabo. These are not Christians! They sell liquor. In Detroit they have huge drug gangs that operate as U.S. distribution channels for drugs, opiates. These "Christians" don't care who they kill... alcohol in their liquor stores or illegal street drugs that kill Americans every 18 minutes. F--k Chaldeans. We should not buy into their sad stories and give them anymore priority to immigrant than any other HUMAN. I thought there was "separation of church and state." So why should we give an ear to Mark Arabo or any other mouthpiece for this farce of an invasion. Screw the Mexico Wall. Let's end this sob-story about so-called Christians from the middle-east. They are not special or endangered. They can leave their homeland for any land, why America? Why does America, built by Europeans, owe these stone-age living folks a place to go because of their civil wars? Lastly, why are we settling these uneducated, unskilled people into a community within a metro that has one of the 3rd highest living costs in our nation? In a metro with such a high cost of living and few jobs for low-value labor, why are we on-board with letting them settle, and convert, an entire community? It's time alright. It's time to put our foot down and stop this insanity. Don't vote for these bastards and don't give Mark Arabo the political platform he is cultivating.— August 3, 2017 10:48 p.m.
Ugly cyclist-car encounter in Kensington
Since cyclist don't pay any transportation taxes via gasoline purchases, why is money being spent on coddling them with special lanes? I used to ride my bike to work, and I had to share the road and beware of the dangers. I rode on Friars Rd., Morena, and other major roads that had small bike lanes. They were good enough for me. What is wrong with this excessively entitled generation?— August 3, 2017 6:54 p.m.
El Cajon councilman sued over Miss Middle East pageant
He's sure no Waddie Deddeh.— August 3, 2017 9:08 a.m.
Rob Stone, Lemon Grove's Soulja Boy
Boy has Lemon Grove lost its way. I remember when doctors, lawyers and accountants made their home in Lemon Grove. As Encanto overtakes the city, with rapid demographic changes and the accompanying lower median incomes, the city is going downhill. Its lost many restaurants and is, like the inner-city it is morphing into, is becoming a food desert. More businesses will close as the crime rate increases. The city will find it harder to raise revenue. Santee, a city with twice the population of Lemon Grove contracts for 4-times as much law enforcement as Lemon Grove percapita. The rising crime rate and dropping tax revenues is a recipe for disaster. Lemon Grove should disincorporate and let the city of San Diego annex them. Lemon Grove has no more unique identity. That ship has sailed.— August 1, 2017 8:52 p.m.