Friday, August 3, 2012

City Council Meeting Tuesday Night

Fullerton City Council Meeting August 7, 2012 at 6:30PM at City Hall, 303 W. Commonwealth Ave

The Agenda has some big-ticket items that you should be aware of.  Among them is the massive issue of water rates and determining what costs should be appropriately charged to the Water Fund.  

There are a total of 27 items on the agenda and I hope to hear you speak about them.  Your voice matters so please speak up.


Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Concert in the Park - Tonight


Join me at the Fullerton Sports Complex on Wednesdays from 6:30 to 8:30PM.  This is a great family-friendly event with music, food, and fun.  I hope to see you there!
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The Fullerton Parks and Recreation Department’spopular outdoor summer concert series returns in July 2012. Bring your family and friends to enjoy a night of music under the stars! While food will be available for purchase, concert-goers are welcome to bring a picnic supper to enjoy, as well as lawn chairs or blankets for seating.
The Fullerton Museum Center leads a FREE family arts & crafts booth featuring a different craft each week. Call (714) 738-6545 for more information.

July 11 to August 15, 2012
Wednesdays, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Fullerton Sports Complex – 560 E. Silver Pine 
(off Bastanchury between Brea Blvd. and Harbor Blvd.)

Admission: Free
Parking: Free
Parking is available in the Sports Complex parking lot. Overflow parking is available at the EV Free Church parking structure (located at Brea Blvd and Bastanchury Rd). Shuttle service is provided between the Sports Complex and the EV Free parking structure from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Band Line-up for 2012
  • August 1 – The Ravelers (Variety)
  • August 8 – The Stoney B Blues Band (Southern Blues)
  • August 15 – Deke Dickerson and the Eccofonics (Rockabilly)
Sponsors:  Thank you to our Title Sponsor East Fullerton Dental Care
Further information about the concerts may be obtained by calling the Parks and Recreation Department’s Information Hotline at (714) 738-3167, or the Fullerton Museum Center at (714) 738-6545. Persons requiring special accommodations to attend the concerts are asked to notify the department staff prior to coming to the sports complex. Parking for the disabled will be available at the site.

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Fear Mongering, Part 2

I never thought my previous post on the title subject would lead to a second post on the issue but I think perhaps now would be a good time to do so.

If you recall, I mentioned that fear is used as a means of control.

As an elected council member my fear is limited to making a poor decision that has unforeseen and negative consequences.  I fear that I will wake up on a Wednesday morning to find out that the previous night's decision would have a drastic negative impact.  But decide, I must; that is what your elected officials must do.

So with each decision, with each blog post, with each public appearance, I run the risk of saying or doing something that will have a negative impact and that, to some degree, makes me fearful.

However, I must keep a level head and remind myself and those around me that I am human and inclined to act as such.  "Be humble" I say to myself.

And if I should say too much, stumble or miss a step, the press is there to remind me of who I represent.  While we can certainly argue the role of the press and the various biases that each media outlet may have, it is of the utmost importance that all of us remember the role of the press.  In my opinion and that of many, the press serves the people equally as much as government itself.  The modern press is able to tell the public that which government would rather not share.

Sometimes the government (an all encompassing term which could include public employees, elected and appointed officials, etc.) makes an embarrassing mistake, like when Fullerton police officers mistakenly raided the wrong house.  Sometimes government withholds information because of ongoing investigations, like when the Fullerton Police Department refused to release the video of police confronting Kelly Thomas on July 5th.  In these two examples the public by and large knew of the incidents' occurrence and even some details.  However, it takes a complete disclosure of the evidence to paint an accurate picture of the events.  Since former Fullerton Police officers have certain rights of appeal with respect to their employment, I will not comment further on that case.

In both cases, though, the press had a specific role to play in sharing information with the public.  While the press can request information all day every day, it takes the government (again a broad term) to provide the press with the information.  We have the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution that guarantees that the press can operate without interference from government.

But what about when a government has information which the public would take great interest in if the press knew of its existence and were to report it.  What if the government chose not to release it or even make its existence known?  This is where the importance of an elected representative can make all of the difference.  Having officials willing to open their doors to the press and the media and allow for complete, and sometimes even embarrassing, transparency is in my opinion the only way to ensure an honest government that places the citizens first.  Fear of the truth is power to some and terror to others.
"The basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter. But I should mean that every man should receive those papers and be capable of reading them." --Thomas Jefferson to Edward Carrington, 1787.

Greg Sebourn

The Beauty of a Storm

The Beauty of a Storm
Orange County, Ca.

My Grandma - A Eulogy

LET'S TALK ABOUT 1914 FOR A MOMENT.



FOR STARTERS, GRANDMA WAS BORN TUESDAY, DECEMBER 22, 1914 IN HER FAMILY'S ATWOOD RANCH HOUSE.



IT IS WORTH NOTING THOSE ALSO BORN IN 1914:

JACK LALANNE

JOE DIMAGGIO

DANNY THOMAS



AND WHO DIED IN 1914:

JOHN MUIR, THE FAMOUS NATURALIST FOR WHICH NUMEROUS ROADS, PARKS, HOTELS, AND NATURE RESERVES ARE NAMED.



IT IS ALSO WORTH NOTING THAT IN 1914 WOODROW WILSON SIGNS MOTHER'S DAY PROCLAMATION AND BABE RUTH MAKES HIS MAJOR LEAGUE DEBUT WITH THE RED SOX. MOTHER'S DAY AND BASEBALL- TWO OF MY FAVORITES!! (PERHAPS HER NICKNAME "BABE" CAME FROM BABE RUTH???)



GRANDMA WAS BORN INTO A PERIOD OF TIME FILLED WITH TURMOIL. IN JUNE OF 1914 ARCHDUKE FRANZS FERDINAND WAS ASSASSINATED. WITHIN ONE MONTH WORLD WAR I RAGED ACROSS EUROPE. TWO DAYS AFTER HER BIRTH HOWEVER, GERMAN AND BRITISH TROOPS INTERRUPTED WWI TO CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS. (PERHAPS THEY PAUSE KNOWING THAT A GREAT WOMAN WAS BORNE) WORLD WAR I CONTINUED UNTIL THE TREATY OF VERSAILLES IN 1919.



ALTHOUGH SHE WAS ONLY 5 YEARS OLD, SHE SAW THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS CREATED AND THE 19TH AMENDMENT WAS APPROVED BY THE U.S. CONGRESS GUARANTEEING THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN TO VOTE.



SHE LIVED THROUGH MANY NOTABLE EVENTS. LIKE THE 1933 LONG BEACH EARTHQUAKE OR WHEN ATWOOD FLOODED ALONG WITH MOST OF ORANGE COUNTY IN 1938 AND THE FLOOD-WATERS CLAIMED MORE THAN 50 PEOPLE, 43 OF WHICH WERE FROM ATWOOD! ALL OF THIS DURING A TIME THAT WE READ ABOUT IN SCHOOL AND KNOWN AS "THE GREAT DEPRESSION". SOMEWHERE IN ALL OF THAT SHE FOUND THE LOVE OF HER LIFE, GRANDPA LEO, GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL, GOT MARRIED, AND HAD KIDS!



THEN THERE WAS WORLD WAR II. FROM PEARL HARBOR TO HIROSHIMA, GRANDMA WAS RAISING MY UNCLE BOB AND MOM ARLINE. WITH AIR-RAID SIRENS AND BLACKOUTS SHE WAS A WIFE AND MOTHER. WHAT A TIME TO RAISE CHILDREN! I BET GRANDMA'S PARENTS WERE ABEL TO TELL HER A THING OR TWO ABOUT RAISING KIDS IN WARTIME.



GRANDMA WAS THERE WHEN THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA HELD THEIR 3RD ANNUAL NATIONAL JAMBOREE IN 1953. SHE SAW AIRBASES OPEN IN '42 AND CLOSE IN '99. SHE WATCHED WALTER KNOTT START UP HIS BERRY FARM AND WALT DISNEY TURN ORANGE GROVES AND STRAWBERRY PATCHES INTO DISNEYLAND!



SHE SAW THE HORSE AND CARRIAGE FADE AWAY INTO HISTORY AND SPACE TRAVEL EXPLODE BEFORE HER WITH THE FIRST LUNAR LANDING. JUST IMAGINE HOW MUCH TECHNOLOGY HAS CHANGED OVER THE LAST 100 YEARS. FROM TUBE RECTIFIERS TO SUPERCONDUCTORS; FROM TRANS-ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH CABLES TO SATELLITE TV.



SHE SAW MORE IN HER 93 YEARS THAN MOST OF US WILL EVER READ ABOUT, LET ALONE LIVE THROUGH!



OF THOSE 93 YEARS IT IS MY HONOR TO HAVE BEEN HER GRANDSON FOR 35 OF THEM. SHE WAS MY MOTHER WHEN MOM HAD TO WORK. SHE WIPED MY NOSE AND PUT FOOD IN MY MOUTH. SHE LET ME PLAY WITH GRANDPA EVEN THOUGH SHE NEEDED HIM TO TAKE HER TO THE STORE. SHE WAS MY GRANDMA AND I WILL MISS HER IMMENSELY.



JUST LOOK AROUND THIS ROOM; SHE DID THIS. SHE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR BRINGING SO MANY GOOD PEOPLE INTO THIS WORLD AND TOGETHER TODAY. THIS IS HER LEGACY.



A Dedication To My Loving Wife, Stacey. Thank you for all you do for me!

Brad Paisley - I Thought I Loved You Then


I remember trying not to stare the night that I first met you
You had me mesmerized
3 weeks later in the front porch light taking 45 min to kiss you goodnight
I hadn’t told you yet but I thought I loved you then

Chorus
Now you’re my whole life now you’re my whole world
I just can’t believe the way I feel about you girl
Like a river meets the sea
Stronger than it’s ever been
We’ve come so far since that day
And I thought I loved you then.

I remember taking you back to right where I first met you
You were so surprised
There were people around
But I didn’t care I got down on one knee right there
And once again I thought I loved you then

Chorus
Now you’re my whole life now you’re my whole world
I just can’t believe the way I feel about you girl
Like a river meets the sea
Stronger than it’s ever been
We’ve come so far since that day
And I thought I loved you then.

I can just see you with a baby on the way
I can just see you when your hair is turning gray
What I can’t see is how I’m ever gonna love you more
But I’ve said that before.

Now you’re my whole life now you’re my whole world
I just can’t believe the way I feel about you girl
Well look back some day at this moment that we’re in
And I'll look at you and say I thought I loved you then
And I thought I loved you then...