Sacramento, CA

After a rather dry October, there are *gasp* actually a few concerts scheduled for November. Sadly, due to the weather, none of them are at Sleeptrain and concert-goers will be forced to endure the crowds at Arco Arena instead. The first one scheduled is for the live tour of So You Think You Can Dance. The top ten finalists including the winner–Sabra–will perform on Saturday Novemeber 24th at 8:00PM. Doors will open at 7:00PM with the parking lot available starting at 6:00PM. Tickets range in price from $35.00 for the upper levels to $54.50 for seating on the lower levels or the main floor, so it’s really not going to be all that expensive.

The next concert of the month will be the following day (Sunday, Novemeber 25th) when the Trans-Siberian Orchestra will be having two different performances at Arco Arena. The first will be at 3:00PM and the second at 7:30PM. Tickets begin at $35.50 for the upper level and go to $49.50 for the lower level and the main floor. Their Winter Tour is an incredible tribute to the Christmas Season which I would highly reccommend everyone to see at least once in their lifetime. They employ a special combination of rock and roll and classical music that somehow manages to create the most unique and beautiful synthesis that I’ve ever heard. If you can’t afford to go to one of the concerts, at least stop by and pick up a CD or two from your local Wal-Mart. (I would personally reccommend A Mad Russian’s Christmas!!) They’re only around $5.00 and the website has samples of their songs that you can listen too. I promise you won’t be disappointed, instead becoming just as fascinated and as enthralled with them as I am.

Arco Arena will also be hosting Van Halen on Tuesday November 27th. Tickets for the 7:30PM concert range in price from $49.50 for the upper levels to $149.50 for the main floor. I’ll be the first to admit that I would love to see Van Halen. Furthermore, I know I’m not the only corny girl out there who still adores Pretty Woman. However, I just can’t bring myself to advise anyone to pay that much to see them. I’ve been very disillusioned the past couple of years by older rock bands who just don’t sound the same anymore–*cough* The Rolling Stones at the Super Bowl *cough*–and I don’t think it’s fair for them to charge so much only to let our expectations fall flat. Perhaps I’m being too cynical, but I just don’t think it’s worth the risk for that price. Sometimes, I think it’s just better to let bygones be bygones…

The final Arco Arena concert for Novemeber will be on Friday, November 30th. 107.9 The End is putting on their annual Jingle Ball show. This year, the Sacramento lineup will include Fall Out Boy, Gym Class Heroes, Plain White T’s, and Cute is What We Aim For. Tickets range in price from $29.25 to $34.25. Granted, this is a pretty good deal and Fall Out Boy is inarguably amazing. However, I would reccommend that you save your pennies and go the second Jingle Ball instead. It’s going to be at the Stockton Arena on December 1st. They have a much better lineup (in my opinion anyway) for around the same price. Avril Lavigne, OneRepublic, Sean Kingston, and Natasha Bedingfield will be performing at that concert. The tickets are a couple dollars more and it is certainly a lot farther to drive, but it’ll still be worth the extra effort!

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Okay, so I know this is going to sound totally malicious and evil but I just couldn’t help but laugh at how far the mighty have fallen. I’m talking of course about the Sacramento Kings whose longtime sold-out record was shattered on Tuesday–officially dethroning them from a title they have been building since 1999. Until Tuesday, the Kings had a 354 home game streak of sold-out games. Not only have they fallen, they have fallen HARD. Instead of being sold-out, their opening game has the record for the lowest attended opening game in the NBA this season.

Melody Gutierrez at the Sacramento Bee wrote a really graet article about it today. She listed all kinds of reasons that sellers have been giving for the severe decline in ticket sales. All the usual suspects were there–you know, not being in the playoffs last year for the first time in ages, poor organization in the advertising department, etc, etc. However, I think it’s safe to say that we all know the REAL reason they can’t sell tickets anymore–and it has nothing to do with any of the lies they’ve been spewing.

Frankly, it’s because the fans have become disenchanted as a result of arrogance which the team has displayed over the past year or so. The entire franchise let itself get way too big headed this past year. First there was that whole issue with wanting the city to pay for a new arena when Arco Arena is perfectly fine. Everyone knew they just wanted to have a bigger arena so they could sell-out with an even higher number of tickets. After all, goodness knows 17,317 tickets per game just isn’t enough! They just wanted to make more money and have the tax payers pay to let them do so.

When you add to that the fact that they didn’t make it to the playoffs, it really just adds further insult to injurey. I know this will sound stupid, but a lot of people I know stopped going to the games this year because they took the loss as a personal offense. To them, it was almost as if the Kings had lost on purpose because they hadn’t gotten their way. It was like a way to punish their fans. Now, I know this is illogical–but then when have the masses EVER been known for their superior grasp of logic?

Personally I think this is the funniest thing ever. I think that athletes NEED reality checks and that they don’t get them nearly often enough. Frankly, I think it’s hillarious when they have their plans and pathways shattered because they seem so shocked about it. Their gigantic egos won’t allow them to accept–or even really understand–what has happened to them. Then they try to explain it away as someone else’s fault. In the end, the spectacle is just the most entertaining part of professional sports.

For me, this was almost like the proverbial icing on the cake. After all, at the end of last year, the Sacramento Monarchs just had a spectacular dethroning at the end of this past season too!!! I know that sounds mean, but it’s just nice to know they’re still human too you know? Besides, reality checks are motivational. I mean look at the Kings–they WON on Tuesday…

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So, I was reading the Sacramento Bee this morning, and I think I can honestly say I won’t be the only person thouroughly ticked off by what I read.

At the end of August, news broke through that the city was planning on cutting several major bus routes and significantly shortening others. These plans are still going to go through in January of 2008. All along, they have been telling the public that the cuts are being forced upon them because ridership is down. They have told us over and over that they just don’t have the money to keep up with these routes–which just so happen to run in poorer neighborhoods in Sacramento.

However, they now magically have enough money to add a new light rail track that is going to cost $46,000,000!!! The new track runs from Eigth and K Streets to the Downtown Amtrak and is the most expensive light rail track in Sacramento. Furthermore, costs were never expected to be that high in the first place! In this morning’s edition of the Bee, officials try to play it off as something that was beyond their control:

Transit officials say they were naive about the difficulties of digging up downtown streets for a rail line. They set an aggressive construction schedule they never came close to meeting. The project took 30 months, more than twice what was expected.

It was slowed by discoveries of unmapped underground utilities that had to be moved, numerous unearthings of American Indian artifacts, intense spring rains in 2006 and a late-hour demand by federal judges that the line be rerouted farther from their courthouse.

I can’t believe how irresponsible this is!!! To waste so much money and then to try to gloss it over as an act of God is completely uncalled for. The worst part is that they know that!!! This morning, an RT Board Member–David Sander–even admitted, “These are taxpayer dollars, and it is extremely important we invest them as wisely as we can…Cost over-runs are a sign we are not doing the best we can managing projects.” All I can say to that is no s**t Sherlock! I mean really, who do these people think they are fooling? Do they honestly think we are stupid enough to buy this crap?

The Chief of Transportation even had the audacity to say, “I’m getting an education in how complex it is”! Well, frankly, we don’t give a damn about your education Mr. Zlotkowski. We DO care that you have succeeded in wasting millions of dollars on a project when you claim to be unable to pay to keep existing lines open!! You can argue all you want about these lines being necessary, but no one believes it. We still don’t have routes to Natomas–or even the airport for that matter. I seriously doubt there are any other major cities in the country that have airports but no way to get to them. It’s a ridiculous example of how easily officials in this area manage to get away with wasting our tax dollars. They have no problem with spending money on outrageous things like stakeouts for golf ball thieves and rail lines they will never complete, but they can’t seem to be bothered with any of the numerous severe issues this city faces everyday. All I can say is disgusting, disgusting, disgusting!!!!

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Okay, so I’m pretty sure that a fair number of you are already sick and tired of hearing me rant and rave about breed discrimination, but I just couldn’t help myself this time because the proposition seems so innocuous. It even sounds really intriguing to those of us–like myself–who are nerdy enough to be totally turned on by things like the Human Genome Project. It’s funny, but it never really dawned on me that such areas of science could potentially be used for nefarious purposes.

Then, I discovered the following ad whilst browsing on craigslist this morning:

Its a DNA Swab-a-thon!!! An exciting new product that uses DNA to pinpoint the breed-mix of a mutt will be demonstrated during a weekend “DNA swab-a-thon” Nov 2-4, 2007.

Representatives from the Canine Heritage™ Breed Test will be on-hand at eight PETCO stores in the Sacramento area to answer questions about the test. Kits will be available for purchase($10 off the internet price!) and representatives will be there to swab your pooch and process the paperwork. The only thing left to do is to wait for the results in the mail!

Quick and painless, the Canine Heritage™ Breed Test is a step forward in DNA technology yet remains very simple to administer. It requires only a simple cheek swab that is mailed to the lab in Davis, CA, with results coming back to the pet-owner in about 4 weeks. The current test can identify 38 breeds which represent about 75% of the most common registered domestic breeds.

Now, I’ll be the first to admit that this seems like a harmless bit of fun. You know, you and your boyfriend have always argued over whether Fido is secretly part lab or part golden retriever. Now, you can finally settle the argument once and for all. However, right after that thought came a second one–this could help to further facilitate breed discrimination in America. Just imagine the possibilities. It will be much easier to determine if a dog is a member of a bully breed or not. This in turn will make it much easier for landlords to dictate which dogs can live on their properties and which ones can’t. It will set in motion a chain of events that–I predict anyway–will eventually lead to the eradication of bully breeds.

We already have issues where states and cities can ban dog owners from having pit bulls. Authorities in those areas can go into peoples’ homes and sieze their dogs for no reason except for their breed. (How they can do this and then wonder why people are willing to support people like Michael Vick is beyond me–but that’s a whole other issue that Susan Mead at My Friendly Pets and I have both already covered so I’ll say no more on it for now!) The dogs are not dangerous and have done nothing wrong. However, these dogs then go on to be euthanized merely for existing. Until now, owners have been able to hide under the cover of declaring their four-legged friends to be mutts. The government could not murder them unless the owners admitted that they were pure bred dogs–or if the animal really had attacked someone. I personally know of at least thirty dogs who have been spared because of this little convenient glitch. However, now the authorities will eventually have the power to demand owners to give them a sample of the dog’s blood so that it can be tested.

This disgusts me because of the complacency with which it is likely to be carried out. No one really seems to notice the nefarious hidden implications that it could have for humanity as well. How much longer will it be before UC Davis sets up medical tests to determine a person’s lineage? Those curious about their heritage will flock to labs around the world like lambs to the slughter. Never mind that somewhere out there, the next fascist tyrant will be biding his time and waiting to exterminate various ethnic groups on a whim. I predict it will be much worse than what Hitler managed to accomplish too. After all, he only had Star of David patches and the word of other people. The next despot will have DNA evidence to back up his personal vendetta–evidence made all the worse because it will have been given willingly! i can’t believe how foolish science can be sometimes–never stopping to even consider the future consequences of their actions! Or perhaps I should instead be chiding the everyday average Joes–after all, WE are the ones who are going along with it without a second thought…

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All of a sudden, it seems like I’ve hit the Halloween jackpot! With the discovery of Scream Extreme in Citrus Heights, I also stumbled across an amazing site that has links to haunted attractions all around the country! In doing so I discovered several more in the Sacramento area–which I will be posting information about over the next couple of days. Thankfully, they should all be open for business due to extended hours of operation just before Halloween.

One of them in particular caught my eye because it’s “rated R.” Most of the others were at least child friendly for brave children. However, this one specifically warns against bringing them in at all. In fact, GYRO’s 3D Fear Factory has warnings for many people, declaring that it “is an authentic simulation of many grotesque and shocking events. It is not recommended for people with heart problems, recent surgery, pregnancy,or frequent nausea. Chidlren and senior citizens are not encouraged to attend.”

In honor of Halloween, the Fear Factory has taken over 100,000 square feet of the Westfiled Downtown Plaza mall at 547 L Street. There are two separate haunted houses–Rob Zombie’s “The Devil’s Playground” and “Toxic Terror.” Both of them look suitably terrifying to make even the biggest horror fanatics tremble in terror. (Not that this should really come as a surprise to anyone since Rob Zombie is pretty much the Lord of Gruesomeness!)

The Fear Factory will be open today and tomorrow from 7:00PM to midnight, making it the perfect Halloween activity for those of us who are without children to take trick-or-treating. I think it’s wonderful that Sacramento has so many opportunities for single adults to go and have a good time–in a lot of smaller cities, people aren’t that lucky. On the same note though, admission is a little bit expensive. Tickets are $17.95 per person. However, if you purchase them from Rob Zombie’s Monster Shop at the mall, then they will give you a free T-Shirt. Remember to be safe and have fun…and don’t let the monsters get you!!!

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Throughout the entire month, I’ve been scouring the internet looking for something truly scary to do in honor of Halloween. Up until now, I haven’t been able to find anything other than the corn maze in Dixon–and let’s face it, that’s only scary if you’re bad at reading maps and have seen Children of the Corn one too many times! I was beginning to despair that haunted houses and other such things that go bump in the night were a thing of the past. Then, almost as if by magic, I stumbled across one in our own backyard, The Scream Extreme “Stitches” Haunted Attraction in Citrus Heights.

The Scream Extreme features three different scare zones. They seem to be pretty secretive about the scenes themselves–neither of their websites even hints at what their themes are. However, they do have some pretty wicked pictures up on their myspace page of some of the grisly characters you are likely to encounter. Of them all, my personal favorite is the adult interpretation of Linda Blair in The Exorcist. They’re all pretty realistic looking and some of them could be downright terrifying given the right environment.

On that note, I would advise that you not bring young and impressionable minds to Scream Extreme. They do not allow children under 13 to go without an adult, so that may be an indicator of whether or not younger children should go at all. However, remember that your judgement is still probably the best there is since you know your kids best. If you think they can handle it, then by all means take them along. I always got to go to our local haunted house back home when I was a kid and it was the best fun I had all year!

This year, they have a new location at the former Room Source building at 5961 Birdcage Centre Lane. It is open everyday through Halloween from 7:00PM to 10:00PM. Tickets are $13.00, but they do have a discounted price of $10.00 each if you purchase at least eight tickets. The best part is that if you purchase your tickets online, you don’t have to wait in the same line as everyone else. This is completely wonderful since it is a pretty popular attraction given that it’s really the only one of its kind here in the Sacramento area.

The very best part though is that 100% of the proceeds will go to aiding children with autism in our public schools. If you don’t know what autism is, I suggest you check out Marcie’s page, Discussing Autism. My high school best friend’s little brother is autistic and it is heartwrenching to see all of the aspects of his life that are made complicated by this. Even Halloween can be a challenge for his mother. However, Marcie has some great tips on how to make it manageable and still let the kids be kids. In addition, her page is riddled with a million and one reasons to make you want to help–even if it is only in something as small as the admission price to a haunted house…

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There is nothing more befitting the Halloween spirit than a horror movie. Usually, during this time of year, there are tons of them to choose from. Sadly, this year my beloved horror movies are–for the most part–strangely absent from the theater. I was beginning to fall into a deep well of despair when I saw an ad on tv last night for the latest installment in the Saw franchise.

I was so excited for three reasons. The first is that it means there is actually going to be a horror movie in theaters in time for Halloween which I really didn’t think would happen. The second is that it is a part of a franchise that has become very dear to me. I know it’ll be good because the others have been as well. Finally, the thing I’m most looking forward to is the sheer level of innovation that these films continually deliver. I consider myself to be something of a horror movie expert. I almost always know the endings long before the half way point happens because they’re so formulaic after you’ve seen as many of them as I have. The first Saw film was the first movie in a VERY LONG TIME that I didn’t anticipate the ending to. In fact, I was so shocked that I’m still kind of reeling from it after all of this time. Furthermore, it’s one of those franchises that has somehow managed to retain its sparkle and creativity through all three movies so far. And Saw IV looks to be no different…

…I’m not going to lie, that is seriously fabulous. I’ve been craving something magnificently grotesque this Halloween season, but until now not even something as seriously twisted as a ballet about the Donner Party could sate my morbid appetitie. The best part though is that it will be playing at the good theater, Century Stadium 14 on Ethan Way. There are a ton of different showings, but they’re all probably going to be very busy as well since it is so close to Halloween now so you might want to buy your tickets online.

If dealing with the crowds isn’t really your type of thing–and believe me there will be TONS of people out and about–then there is an alternative option for you too this Halloween. You can always run down to Blockbuster and pick up and oldy but goodie. Liz at Cinema Hype wrote a wonderful review that reminded me of one of my favorites–The Ninth Gate. It’s another one of those creative masterpieces that keep you guessing until the end. Plus, it has Johnny Depp in it, so really, how could you go wrong?

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This won’t be my normal type of Music on Mondays post because, sadly, there aren’t any scheduled concerts for October. However, the Sacramento Ballet is putting on A Woman’s Journey: The Tamsen Donner Story which I think is quite fitting for the Halloween season.

The show is a special brain child of the Sacramento Ballet’s Art Director for the past twenty years–Ron Cunningham. The ballet has been a work in progress for the past thirty years and Sacramento is to be treated with it’s world premiere on Thursday October 25th at 7:30PM. It tells the story of the infamous Donner family as told through the journal entries of Tamsen Donner.Their infamy stems from centuries of accusations suggesting that the family resorted to cannibalism while they were trapped in the mountains on their way to California. The sheer gruesomeness of such a deed makes it ample “entertainment” of the Halloween sort–especially when considering that the characters involved are real.

In the same token, scientists have reently begun debating the validity of these accusations. Thus, it will be extremely interesting to see which direction Cunningham takes with his ballet. My personal opinion is that the cannibalism will have to be dealt with since his inspiration was from the diary of Tamsen Donner. The allegations of cannibalism stem from letters and diaries from the party so to base a ballet and completely omit it would be absurd at best. In any case, it is efinitely worth checking out just on the chance that cannibalism will be an issue. There is little else in the world that can so readily remind us that human beings are also animals and can be just as barbaric and inhuman as any other creature. In short, it is a perfect Halloween activity for those of us who want something a little bit more frightening than pumpkin patches and corn mazes…

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The Professionals Guild is hosting a huge Halloween party for singles at the Doubletree Hotel located at 2001 Point West Way. The party is on Friday Octber 26th from 8:00PM to midnight. Complimentary light appetizers will be served from 8:00PM to 9:00PM.

They expect hundreds of local singles to show up for one of the biggest Halloween bashes in Sacramento. The dress code is either a Halloween costume or dressy cocktail attire. They even offer a discount for people who show up in a costume. Tickets are $12.00 if you are wearing a costume and $25.00 if you are not. They must be paid for in cash at the door. It looks to be a good opportunity for dancing and mingling. In any case, it is definitely one of only a hadnful of adult-oriented Halloween activities in Sacramento. Most of them are geared towards families with young children–like the world’s largest corn maze in Dixon. Be sure to take advantage of the opportunity as there won’t be many more of them this season.

If you’re as hopeless as I am at dating, then you also might want to check out some tips before you head out for your big night out on the town. Sandy at Dating Outlook always has some really wonderful ideas on her site. She also offers great advice and a chance to commiserate with other singles on all of the misery and stress that accompanies the dating scene. Have a great time and remember to play safe!

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If you’re looking for something to do this weekend, I’d recommend that you check out the Sacramento State homecoming game on Saturday. The Hornets will battle it out against Montana beginning with the kickoff at 2:05PM. However, the parties and tailgates will be starting much earlier than that at 10:00AM.

In addition to the big game, it is also Herky’s 60th birthday so there are all sorts of things going on to commemorate the special occasion. The hornet’s birthday will be celebrated from 10:00AM-2:00PM at the pre-game homecoming festival in the Alumni Center. There will be a parade and also a piñata for the kids. His birthday is also being celebrated on myspace and on youtube. Myspace has up baby pictures, drawings, and other goofy fun things like that. Youtube is having a contest where you can make a video wishing Herky a happy 60th and upload it for a chance to win an ipod. All you have to do is join their youtube group. Submission are due by Friday at 12:00PM which doesn’t leave much time to churn out something really fabulous. However, they will also be handing out Java City giftcards to random entries. So, even if your video sucks, you might still get something out of it. Furthermore, when I went there tonight, there were opnly four entries so far so the odds are pretty decent.

There is even going to be a tailgate contest for Herky’s birthday. You just have to decorate your tailgate area in Herky’s honor with bonus points for lots of green and gold. To enter, be sure to stop by the Alumni Association booth (on the southwest edge of parking lot eight) to register your tailgate between 10:00AM and 12:00PM. Judging will take place at 12:30PM to determine who will take home the $200.00 prize.

Tickets for the game will be as follows:
$8.00 for General Admission
$12.00 for Reserved Seating
$15.00 for Reserved Premium Seating

The school is located at 6000 J Street just off of Highway 50. Stop by to show your support and have a good time doing it.

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A woman was waiting for the bus Monday morning on the corner of San Juan and Truxel Road when she was approached by a teenager with an infant. The girl reportedly asked the woman if she could hold the child while she prepared a bottle for him. When the woman agreed and took the baby, the teenager took off running. Police took the child to UC Davis Medical Center and he is supposedly in good health. They are currently looking for the mother. The Sacramento Bee describes her as “white, 5-foot-3, with a small build and strawberry blonde hair.” Eye witnesses say she looks to be about 16 years old. Anyone with information pertaining to her whereabouts or identity is urged to come forward to the police at 916-443-HELP. Charges may be brought against her, but at the moment they are only looking to talk to her.

It’s terrible that this type of thing is still happening in California. After all, the state legally allows mothers to drop unwanted children off at any hospital within three days of the child’s birth with no questions asked. We obviously need to further educate our youth on teen pregnancy and the options that are available to them since–hopefully–this girl didn’t know that this option was available to her…

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Yesterday, the Elk Grove police department broke up yet another marijuana network in what is supposed to be the perfect suburban family neighborhood. They raided over twenty homes and confiscated 6100 mairjuana plants, 10 cars, and $200,000 in cash. They estimate that the plants could be capable of producing $24 million dollars worth of marijuana. In addition to the high qauntity of production, police also expressed concern that the people growing the plants are becoming more educated and finding crafty ways to elude detection. For instance, most of the homes raided were the perfect image of suburban bliss. They had well-manicured lawns and furnished living rooms, appearing for all intents and purposes to be the perfect neighbors.

I found this to be extremely sickening and disturbing. People move to suburban areas in order to give their families a better life. They seek to get away from the high crime rates of larger cities and now here it is at their doors–a veritable wolf in sheep’s clothing. Finding out that your neighborhood is full of drug dealers is sure fire way to shred even the hope for safety and security. The worst part though is that it allows them to become commonplace and almost even acceptable in the eyes of the public. The message that it is normal and alright for dealers to reside alongside families also equates to the message that perhaps doing drugs really isn’t all that bad. In particular, it sends mixed messages to our children–ultimately effecting whether or not they will choose to use drugs in their own lives. Frankly, this is the last thing that they need when there are already enough confusing messages coming from various research labs–such as UC San Diego–which argue that marijuana does not harm brain cells. Some experiments are even geared towards “proving” that marijuana actually HELPS GROW NEW BRAIN CELLS!!!

They’ve obviously never met any of the plethora of potheads I encountered while attending the University of the Pacific in Stockton. My friend’s college boyfriend smoked so much weed that to this day he cannot function in society. He can’t hold an intelligent conversation–or any conversation that requires more than a yes or no answer for that matter. He can’t hold down a job because he either fails the drug tests or screws up at work because he’s too high to take anything seriously. He’s only 25 and he already has a slew of drug charges and convictions. He just recently violated parole and is likely on his way back to prison and all he can say do is giggle and say, “I sure showed The Man.” Sadly, he isn’t the exception to the rule either. I have also known a number of people who were willing to engage in prostitution in order to earn money to buy marijuana.

I don’t know, maybe I’m just so opposed to it because I’ve never tried it. (At least that’s what people constantly try to convince me of.) I admittedly can’t even begin to fathom the attraction of smoking away your intelligence and acting like an idiot. However, that doesn’t make it any less sad that when you search for marijuana images online all you find are jokes and rainbow covered pot leaves declaring that it should be legalized. Perhaps they’re right on that count though. At least then it could be regulated and taken out of the neighborhoods where our children go to school and play. It would certainly eliminate the need to arrest 14 people while little kids are getting off the school bus across the street and having their innocence and naiveté permanently ripped from them. What do you think?…

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San Francisco Assemblyman Mark Leno recently helped draft Assembly Bill 43–The Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act. The bill basically argues that allowing the voters to decide the fate of a minority group–in this case the gay and lesbian community–goes against the State Consitution, and that, as such, the passage of Proposition 22 in 2000 should not be a legal determining factor in deciding the fate of gay marriage in California. They alos cite groundbreaking earlier actions of the California Supreme Court which paved the way for the elimination of such discrimination for other minority groups. For instance, in 1948 California became the first state to abolish laws prohibting interracial marriage, stating that,

“marriage is … something more than a civil contract subject to regulation by the state; it is a fundamental right of free men … Legislation infringing such rights must be based upon more than prejudice and must be free from oppressive discrimination to comply with the constitutional requirements of due process and equal protection of the laws“ (Perez v. Sharp).

Assembly Bill 43 seeks to eliminate discrimination by ammending various California Codes–such as Section 300 and 301 of the Family Code–to redefine marriage as a contract between two persons instead of between a man and a woman. However, the Bill will not effect Section 308.5 of the Family Code, which incidentally happens to be the Code directly related to Proposition 22’s refusal to acknowledge gay and lesbian marriages from OTHER states. Unfortunately, by purposely not addressing passages directly related to Proposition 22, drafters of the Bill have cast a suspicious light on it as a whole. Instead of noticing all of the positive things that it could accomplish for the gay and lesbian community and its likely ability to pave the way for such futue legislation in the Federal Government as well, all that the public sees is a crafty way of getting around legislation that was decided on by the majority of voters in 2000. It doesn’t matter to anyone that such legislation should never have been brought before voters. It doesn’t matter that “You don’t put a minority group’s rights up to a vote for the people,” or that “It’s up to the Legislature and courts to ensure that minorities’ rights are protected in this country” (Geoff Kors, Director of Equality California).

It certainly isn’t fair, but the fact of the matter is that the State of California ALREADY DID let Californians decide!! They can’t now repeal that decision without causing Californian voters to lose faith in their votes EVER meaning anything. This would be a dire mistake to make in a state where so many young people already feel that their vote is meaningless. The passage of Proposition 22 is the perfect example of this actually. When it was on the ballot, I was a senior in high school and everyone there believed that it was destined for failure. We all felt that in a state as liberal as California, there was no way that something like that would pass. On the day the results were given back, I remember sitting in my French class and everyone was left agape in shock when our teacher told us that it had passed. It was completely unfathomable until he also explained that the election had one of the lowest voter turnouts in the state’s history–especially amongst young adults who typically vote more liberally anyway. No one really thought that their votes meant anything so no one really voted. To repeal it now would be akin to saying, “Even if your vote does accomplish something the government can always overturn it with an Assembly Bill.”

I’m not at all saying that we should just let things be. After all, I completely support gay and lesbian marriage. Everyone has a Constitutional right to be happy. However, I don’t think that this is the right way to go about it. Supporters of gay and lesbian rights need to make the public aware that their actions are only designed to help the homosexual community–not to hinder or harm the heterosexual one. To do so, they need to bring the issues back into the public light and have everything out in the open for examination. It is the only way to keep people from being suspicious of some secret nefarious agenda. This sadly cannot be accomplished by waving a magic wand and passing an Assembly Bill behind people’s backs. It has to happen by bringing the matter back up for the public to decide on. Officials have to admit that it was a mistake to draft the legislation in the first place and the public has to admit that it was a mistake to pass it. Since the problem was created by giving the issue over to public scrutiny, it can only justly be ammended by allowing the public the chance to rectify it.

Furthermore, I think that this is the reason behind the Governor’s reluctance to pass Assembly Bill 43. He is likely to veto it because he knows that it cannot be solved by slipping it in so nonchalantly. In addition, I think it is disgusting that people are trying to bully him into signing it when he has already done so much for the gay and lesbian community here in California. Over the past few years, he has expanded civil rights protection in the employment and housing industries. He has also extended various domestic partnership rights to the community, including the ability to check the “married” box on state tax forms. It made me sad to see pictures of signs calling him a coward for trying to help the community as much as he is legally able to. In my opinion, he is doing everything that he is capable of doing. This is not a case of rallying Republican support or playing the political field, it is merely an instance of doing what is legal and just. That doesn’t mean that anyone has to like it–it NEEDS to be opposed. People just need to be aware of the right arena to oppose it in. Instead of protesting the Governor’s decision to DO HIS JOB by supporting state voters, they should instead be focusing on educating those voters so that the problem can be solved where it was created. For now, all I can say is that Governor Schwarzenegger is completely justified in saying, “It would be wrong for the people to vote for something, and for me to then overturn it…I don’t do that, I will not do it. And so they can send that bill down as many times as they want, I won’t do it.” And frankly, we shouldn’t want or expect him to do otherwise…

Sacramento, California State Legislation, Assembly Bill 43, California Law, California Family Code, gay marriage, gay rights, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Governor Schwarzenegger, Republican Party, politics, religious freedom, civil marriage, Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act, Mark Leno, California State Constitution, Proposition 22, voter turnout, youth voter turnout, California Supreme Court, discrimination, civil rights, interracial marriage, Perez v. Sharp, Equality California, equality, Geoff Kors, special interest groups

So, I just thought I’d give everyone a quick heads up. I’m in the process of moving so I won’t be able to update as regularly as I normally do this week. Everything should be back to normal by Monday though. Hope everyone is having a good week…

Okay, so call me crazy but I’ve always really liked Whoopi Goldberg. I looked up to her as a little girl because she is such a strong and independent woman. However, her public defense of Michael Vick on The View has left me so disgusted with her that I can’t even think straight. How dare she defend him and pass off his dogfighting as no big deal?! How dare she give him an excuse that some clever defense lawyer will be quick to jump on in court?! So what if “‘where he comes from in the south’” dogfighting isn’t that unusual.” So what if “there are certain things that are indicative to certain parts of the country.” The fact of the matter remains that they are still wrong regardless of how you look at them. I found it particularly disturbing that an African-American woman would make those comments as well. After all, there are certain other things that are also indicative of the south. By her own logic, she has just made racism and hate crimes acceptable because “they aren’t that unsual.”

Justice is not gray; there is a strict line that cannot be crossed. It doesn’t matter if you know better or not. It doesn’t matter if you are raised to think that something is acceptable. If you are breaking the law, then you should be punished. Furthermore, this goes double for celebrities and sports stars. They are automatically in a position to be idolized by children everywhere. Thus, by the very nature of their careers it is their responsibility to be model citizens. When they break the law they MUST be punished for it because otherwise it sends a terrible message to America’s children that they are either above the law or the law itself is somehow unjust. Society cannot continue if it is continually undermining itself by letting celebrities off the hook. Those who advocate leniency are effectively also advocating anarchy. Thus, I urge you to boycott The View until such a time as they either remove Whoopi from her post or she makes a formal and sincere apology for her insensitive and illogical remarks!

Frankly, I am completely appalled by ALL of the people who seem to think that what he did was acceptable. If you go on any website there are countless people who seem to think that what he has done is somehow excusable. There is even a site dedicated to saving Michael Vick! It is a vile and underhanded attempt to undermine all of the good that has recently been accomplished by animal rescue groups and the ASPCA. Sadly, they have been very successful at making pit bulls look evil and worthless in civilized society. In fact, many humane shelters will no longer keep pit bulls–or even dogs that may have pit bull blood. These shelters automatically euthanize them.

Thankfully, the Sacramento SPCA is not one of these. Their refusal to discrimintae against a dog solely based on breed makes me proud to live in Sacramento. They currently have seven different “bullies” available for adoption. If you are considering bringing a furry friend into your family I urge you to consider adopting one of these dogs. They are highly personable and wonderful with children. Plus, since they are rescue dogs you know that they are going to be very loving because they aren’t used to being treated with affection. My family has a rescued pit bull who has become the delight of the family over the last seven years. He sleeps with the kids, lets the babies play with his ears, shares his food with stray cats, and even lets the parrots beat him up without even batting an eye. He’s our 95 pound angel and we wouldn’t give him up for anything!…

ASPCA, Whoopi Goldberg, Michael Vick, celebrity scandals, dogfighting, pit bulls, animal abuse, animal cruelty, The View, animal rescues, racism, justice, Sacramento animal shelter