As Bozo the Clown might Say, I approve this message- Camino Real Playhouse Graduation Ceremony

Posted by CotoBlogzz

Rancho Santa Margarita, CA – During the past six weeks, comedy newbies have learned everything from basic joke writing skills and stage technique to minimizing stage fright and how to turn life experiences into usable comedy material, at the Camino Real Playhouse.  Now in just that short time, five stand-up comedians will be taking the stage at the Camino Real Playhouse Saturday, September 22 at 8:00 PM, to show Orange County just how funny they are.

Graduating performers in the September 22nd show are first timers Wendy Gallo, Barry Gorelick, and Judy Mastracchio, plus intermediate students Nancy Pirozzi, and Walt Stevens.  The class is taught by veteran stand-up comedian and Orange County resident Tom Riehl. “If this evening is anything like the ones in the past, and I know it will be, everyone in the audience will be blown away at how much has been accomplished in this very short time”, says Riehl.

In addition to the students, Riehl will be the evening’s emcee along with professional headliner Danny Villalpando to close out the evening.

Riehl, who began his comedy career 18 years ago, feels its time to give something back after all these years.  “When I see these people walk into class for the first time, I immediately remember how I felt when I first started. They really deserve a lot of credit for sticking it out and doing something most people would never even consider.” A longtime south Orange County resident, Riehl has worked with the likes of Bob Saget, Paula Poundstone, Alonzo Bodden, Shawn Wayans, and James P. Connolly as well as musical acts Berlin, Three Dog Night and David Pack of Ambrosia. He was also a winner on ABC’s America’s Funniest People” and host of the cooking show “Food Rules”. Recently he was named “Best Clean Comedian” at the Eagle Rock Comedy Festival and has been co-producing a monthly comedy show at the Camino Real Playhouse for the past three years.

Admission is $10 and certain to fill up quick. Go to www.studentsofstandup.com  and reserve your seat TODAY!

Prepare for an emergency: Join National Emergency Preparedness Notification System

Posted By CotoBlogzz

Rancho Santa Margarita – More than two million Orange County residents will receive a call on September 20, at 10:00 a.m. to test the County’s regional mass notification system known as AlertOC.  The AlertOC system designed is to keep Orange County residents and businesses informed of emergencies and certain community events. By

registering with AlertOC, time-sensitive voice messages from the County or City in which you live or work may be sent to your home, cell or business phone. Text messages may also be sent to cell phones, e-mail accounts and hearing impaired receiving devices.

The City of Rancho Santa Margarita will be participating in the regional test by sending its own message to RSM residents via AlertOC. This is the third annual regional test of the system and will include 24 participating cities and the County’s unincorporated areas.

Residents are encouraged to self-register their cell phone numbers and other alternate numbers to be a part of the regional test. 

A key feature of AlertOC is the ability for residents to register more than one contact method at a specific address. Registrations of cell phone and alternate numbers increase the potential of reaching the greatest number of community members as rapidly as possible. This enables landlines, cell phones and e-mail addresses to be incorporated into a single notification system.

YOUR AD GOES HERE

The regional test will be held in conjunction with National Emergency Preparedness Month. The AlertOC drill on September 20 will replicate a large scale, multi-jurisdictional emergency requiring thousands of numbers to be called simultaneously across Orange County’s entire region. The phone message will urge all residents to prepare for real-life emergencies by registering their cell numbers, text numbers and e-mail addresses at www.AlertOC.com for the best chance to receive vital, timely information when away from home. 

Emergencies can happen at any time. A wildfire could spread or a flood could close the roads to a neighborhood while residents are away from home. In these instances, AlertOC is a critical link for residents to immediately learn of any required actions. 

For more information or to register alternate phone numbers, visit www.AlertOC.com. Commuters are reminded to be safe and use hands-free devices when talking on the phone and driving.

Orange County's Dirty Public Safety Secret- Hate Crimes

Posted by CotoBlogzz

 It never ceases to amazes us how politicians always flock to get associated with the "safest city" nominations and or awards.  For example, the Orange County Sheriff's Department's blog will usually proudly post a press release announcing how happy the department is because a city like Mission Viejo is one the safest cities. 

Then there is the  Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) 2009 Uniform Crime Report indicates that the City of Rancho Santa Margarita is  the safest city in the State for cities with a population greater than 20,000 residents, marking the ninth consecutive year that the City of Rancho Santa Margarita has been identified as one of the safest communities in Orange County and the State.

Or what about Irvine being named the Safest City in Southern California.

Now, we continue to assert that whether a city is the safest city in the county -  the state or the nation -  or not is primarily a function of residents and local governance, not law enforcement. Take for instance the leadership demonstrated by the cities of Lake Forest and Mission Viejo: Lake Forest's ordinance issuing a 45-day moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries in the city or the Mission Viejo City Council  pioneering work with underage drinking, being the county's first to pass the Social Host ordinance.  Certainly these two cases illustrate a more cost-efficient and proactive approach to public safety than say theAVOID program final 2009 Holiday results  which required three law enforcement agents  for every  arrest.  

What about the other 11 cities or the unincorporated areas?  What about Coto de Caza with the highest crime rate in history in early 2010.  After all, only common denominator is that the OCSD is the law enforcement agency.  What does the OCSD do differently in the safest city, as opposed to the least safe city under its watch?  The answer?  Nothing, Zilch, Nada, Nicht!

Newsflash:  Whether a city is the safest city in the county or not is primarily a function of residents and local governance, not law enforcement

Does anyone care that hate crimes in Orange County jumped 14 percent in 2011, according to the 20th annual report from OC Human Relations, released yesterday? According to Rusty Kennedy, executive director of OC Human Relations, last year, there were 64 documented hate crimes reported, up from 56 in 2010

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In 2009, 77 hate crimes were logged. There were 82 in 2008 and 101 in 2007.

Hate crimes involving religious bigotry were also up, according to the report. Eight of the 15 religious hate crimes targeted the Jewish community, seven were against Muslims and the rest involved Roman Catholics and Mormons.

However African American residents have been the main target of OC hate crimes going back to 2003. Although only 2 percent of Orange County residents are black, 30 percent of hate crimes last year targeted African Americans.  Just last week, vandals painted a swastika on the porch of a black family in Ladera Ranch, Kennedy said.

There were seven incidents involving Latinos, Kennedy said, adding that the commission believes Latino hate  crimes are under reported

"The Human Relations Commission has been issuing this report for 20 years, and I think for us, we want to say the county does not accept this type of hate," Kennedy said. "In this time of partisan politics there are the kinds of things that divide us, but one thing that brings us together is our stand against hate crimes."

Bridges,'' Kennedy said. ``Really, at its core, it's to fight hate and bigotry.

Our question is, where are the politicians taking credit for low crime rate in Southern California?  Where is Sheriff Hutchens?  Is hate crime against African American and Latinos a necessary evil?

Is Rancho Santa Margarita’s Water District (SMWD) Cadiz Project Orange County’s California Bullet Brain?

Posted By CotoBlogzz

Rancho Santa margarita, CA. – As public opposition to the SMWD’s  Cadiz Water Project grows, the district’s response has been to attempt to influence public opinion using television advertising.

Critics of the project. including the Citizens for Responsible Water Policies’ are concerned that this project will raise water rates by as much as 35 percent, and harm the environment.

While many of the same critics  were planning to attend the District’s  Board meeting scheduled to take place on Wednesday, June 27, 2012, the Board of Directors, cancelled the meeting.

The cancelled meeting did not seat well with Citizens for Responsible Water Policies’ John McClendon, who states in the group’s website:   “It’s outrageous that our elected Water Board would rather cancel its monthly meeting than hear ratepayers voice concerns and opposition to the Cadiz project.  Actions like this only add to the district’s growing reputation for backroom deals. The Board is already accused of meeting in secret to consider the project in violation of the state’s open meeting laws and failing to take into account the full costs of purchasing water from Cadiz. Now that we ratepayers are paying attention to this failed process the Board goes and creates even more secrecy. As the elected directors of a public utility, they need to remember that they answer to the ratepayers of South Orange County and not the owners of a private water company in San Bernardino County.” 

The Citizens for Responsible Water Policies web site includes a brief history of the project highlighting several issues, including:

• Cadiz intends to withdraw more water every year than nature puts back in the ground, lowering the groundwater table and depleting aquifers.
• There are a number of questions surrounding alleged back room deals between Cadiz, the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors and the Santa Margarita Water District.
• SMWD is one of several water districts under investigation for engaging in as many as 30 secret meetings to advance the Cadiz proposal. And, SMWD voted to approve a letter of intent to negotiate with Cadiz a full year before the first public discussion of the project. The San Bernardino County board of supervisors also voted to give Cadiz an exemption from the county’s desert groundwater ordinance.
• The newly proposed water project by Cadiz is a terribly flawed proposal that will be catastrophic to not only the Mojave National Preserve, but also to South Orange County residents who will have to foot an enormous bill.

Given that the Southern California real estate market is under water, perhaps it behooves Orange County residents to take a deep breath and take a closer looks at the Cadiz Project to make sure it does not turn into Orange County’sCalifornia Bullet Brain?

We have tried to contact representatives from the SMWD to respond to the allegations contained in the Citizens for Responsible Water Policies web site and will report our findings.

RELATED STORIES
The common purse: Posas/ Cadiz

http://chanceofrain.com/2012/05/the-common-purse-las-posas-cadiz/

A previous post, Rancho Santa Margarita, Meet Calleguas, hit a hornet’s nest. The decision to write it was little more than an instinct. “Poke there.”  The post referred to something called the “Las Posas Basin Aquifer Storage and Recovery Project,” described by the Los Angeles Times during the project’s inception in the 1990s as “the largest reservoir in Ventura County, ensuring a reliable water supply in cities from Simi Valley to Oxnard in the event of drought or earthquake.”


What the Cadiz Water Plan is and Why it Needs to be Stopped

http://www.kcet.org/updaily/socal_focus/commentary/opposition-mounts-to-cadiz-water-plan.html

by Chris Clarke
on June 28, 2012 12:10 PM


Cadiz water project in dispute

http://www.desertdispatch.com/articles/county-13094-cadiz-water.html
Mining company sues county
San Bernardino County faces litigation over its preliminary approval of a controversial water project in the Fenner Valley, about 100 miles east of Barstow.







COMMENTS


Cadiz facts
Submitted by Anonymous on Mon, 2012-07-16 10:21.
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Coto residents should seek the facts on this project, not what's presented here. Buzz is parroting the messages of a Texas oil service company that mines fracking compounds near the Cadiz property, not the facts. I suggest you read the materials at SMWD.com or the Cadiz site, Water4SoCal.com for accurate info. For starters, the project would stabilize rates, not cause them to increase, and the only entity "investigating" SMWD for secret meetings is a left-wing blog/newspaper. Also, as is prominently noted on the TV ad, Cadiz is paying for the ad, not SMWD.
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