But divert tax dollars from schools, police, fire

Governor Jerry Brown has announced his intention to abolish redevelopment agencies statewide which divert about $6 billion annually (12% of property taxes statewide) from public services such as schools, police and fire protection. Details will be forthcoming.

The goal of redevelopment law, approved by voters in 1952, was to eliminate blight, promote economic development and provide affordable housing. The way it works is that, when a property is designated as a redevelopment area, a base year property tax is established and from then on tax increments, which normally would have gone to cities, counties and vital public services (school districts taking the biggest hit), are diverted, going instead to payment of long term bonds issued by the agencies to finance projects.

The City of Antioch’s Development Agency (ADA) was formed in June 1974 for the purpose of renovating designated areas within the City limits.

(more…)

The popular lyrics, “Who let the dogs out?” once brought grins. Now, it”s more likely to solicit my grimace. After my dog, Sebastian, was attacked twice in the last month those words take on a darker meaning.

These incidents come on the heels of an Antioch friend witnessing their beloved pet mauled to death in front of their home by a pit bull a few months back. Add some chilling statistics: Nationally, reported dog attacks doubled in the last fifteen years, topping one million people yearly. Over one third, one thousand people daily, end up in emergency wards; half of them with face bites.

An estimated 27,000 dogs live in Antioch. About 40% of all households own one or more dogs. Here’s the tale of two; more precisely, of two Masters. It’s fascinating what you learn about human character and psychology from reaction to their dog attacking.

Exhibit #1: My wife was finishing her morning walk when a large pit bull bounded out of an open door. It chased her and our pooch down the street, bloodying our lasha apso’s legs, who resembles the mop-haired Benji.

Sadly, nobody came out of their house or waiting car to help. When I rang the owner’s doorbell minutes later nobody answered. Allegedly, he was in the shower. Sadly, a handful of times previously the dog was either unleashed or had lunged at my wife, myself or neighbors from an inappropriately long leash tethered to a tree. Habitually, the owners took a cavalier attitude.

Hence, I called Animal Control. The dog was impounded that day. Being the first inflicted injury, the dog was released. I understand, though, that a fine and warnings were levied.

Exhibit #2. A couple of weeks later Sebastian was attacked around the block by a small but unrelenting Snauzer. It took the owner minutes to come out and corral the dog, who was unfazed by a score of my kicks. Sebastian was uninjured but in a state of shock for nearly an hour.

I returned to talk to the owners and was pleasantly surprised. They apologized profusely saying that they had spent hundreds on training with no issues until their dog, too, had been attacked twice in the last month. They offered to pay any vet bills. That night they came by asking about our dog’s condition and delivering a restaurant gift card and doggie toy.

Two distressing incidents; two markedly different owner reactions.

Lessons learned:

I now document any and all incidents with phone calls (779-6989) and letters to Animal Control, copy furnished the owners. Be part of the solution or Antioch will go to the dogs.

I’ve learned strategy. An approaching slow gait is friendly, a steady-on run signals trouble; head down o.k, level -headed approach not. Of course, never run, panic, move or scream violently. Stand still and don’t confront. Dogs take staring as a threat, a sideways posture as a calming signal.

If you are trying to separate dogs, your safety is preeminent. If water is nearby, douse them. Also, lifting hind legs or tails disorients them.

We now carry protection. Consider a putter, umbrella, or expandable billy club. Dogs will take appendages as your extension. Distance matters. Mace, dog or pepper spray deter. Learn their use. They make this stuff for bears, so it works.

If you are jumped on, painful as it seems, don’t tear yourself away. Pulling only causes greater damage. If you have outerwear use it to extend. If needed, offer a leg or arm. Protect the fingers and face by making fists and covering your head. If knocked down, curl up in a fetal position protecting the head. Motionless is best. God willing, the attacker should quickly lose interest.

If you fight back, realize that a general head blow will, invariably, further infuriate. Instead, strategically aim for the nose or base of neck. Remember, too, dogs don’t wrestle. Turning them over and compressing your weight will cause them discomfort, if not broken bones. This is no time to be soft-hearted.

In short, be knowledgeable and document.

The attack tips are unnerving but, hopefully, sharing them can, perhaps, save somebody serious injury.

My wish for you, though, is that you never need this advice because most of your neighborhood dogs have the temperment of Lassie. For those that don’t, may their owners have the sense to act accordingly.

Happy t(r)ails!

Walter Ruehlig

CORRECTION – The standoff continues. Regrettably, a few hours after the posting of my first Watchdog column, I received an e-mail from Antioch City Manager Jim Jakel informing me that, unlike police management, the Antioch Police Officers Association (APOA) has NOT yet agreed to contribute to any part of their generous 3% at age 50 retirement package. The City of Antioch continues to pay the WHOLE tab, although APOA does have a reduced Medical after Retirement benefit for new hires. Nor has there been final agreement in regard to pay deferrals. Other employee groups, however, have a second lower tier.

Later this month the Antioch City Council will receive an update from City Manager Jim Jakel in regard to the need for an additional $737,000 cut in the budget. Negotiations, however, with the Antioch Police Officers Association are proving successful.

Police managers, who currently pay nothing into their retirement account, have now agreed to pay a 9% share, which will be phased in over the next few years. Additionally, the six officers given a layoff notice last month will be retained, paid for with non-city funds, including a $100,000 contribution by Auto Center owner Tom Nokes.

Understandably, the police officers union continues to have issues with the current understaffing and employee compensation. APOA didn’t receive a raise last year and has deferred the raise they were due to receive in January. Regrettably, their displeasure lead to the posting of an angry YouTube video and distribution of flyers giving out email addresses and phone numbers of council.

(more…)

Looking Forward to a Better One for Antioch

Many things occurred in Antioch this past year, some good, some not so good, and some bad.

We’ll start with The Bad – 12 murders. Five in December. Not a way to end off the year. Of course, I believe there’s a direct correlation to the 22 vacancies for sworn police officers, as well as the 23 Community Service Officers who were all laid off, in addition to the six officers recently given layoff notices, but who for now still have their jobs.

City revenues continued to decline. More budget cuts had to be made and more staff members laid off.

More people lost their homes to foreclosure, and more people were in need of food and clothing in Antioch.

Then there was The Not So Good. There was no 4th of July celebration or fireworks due to the lack of city funds. So the Council canceled them before seeking private funds. By the time a private group starting raising the funds and pursuing the effort, many of the police officers who would normally be in town that day and night had made other plans to be out of town. So it wasn’t to be this year.

(more…)

I want to thank everyone who voted in our last election. As a first-time candidate, I was impressed by the turnout. We all need to remember that voting is essential for our freedoms. Even if you didn’t support me with your vote, you supported our basic freedom to choose.

The school board has a task set before it that we all need to keep watch on. It is never enough to vote someone into office, but we must watch and question when those ideals we voted for are not put into practice.

Thank you, Antioch, for keeping freedom alive.

Jack Yeager

The signs of UC Berkeley’s relative decline are clear: Cal tumbles from 2nd best in the world. In 2004, for example, the London-based Times Higher Education ranked UC Berkeley the second leading research university in the world, just behind Harvard; in 2009 that ranking had tumbled to 39th place.

When UC Berkeley announced its elimination of baseball, men’s and women’s gymnastics, and women’s lacrosse teams and its defunding of the national-champion men’s rugby team, the chancellor sighed, “Sorry, but this was necessary!”

But was it? Yes, the university is in dire financial straits. Yet $3 million was somehow found to pay the Bain consulting firm to uncover waste and inefficiencies in UC Berkeley, despite the fact that a prominent East Coast university was doing the same thing without consultants.

Essentially, the process requires collecting and analyzing information from faculty and staff. Apparently, senior administrators at UC Berkeley believe that the faculty and staff of their world-class university lack the cognitive ability, integrity, and motivation to identify millions in savings. If consultants are necessary, the reason is clear: the chancellor, provost, and president have lost credibility with the people who provided the information to the consultants. Chancellor Robert J Birgeneau has reigned for eight years, during which time the inefficiencies proliferated. Even as Bain’s recommendations are implemented (“They told me to do it”, Birgeneau), credibility and trust problems remain.

Bain is interviewing faculty, staff, senior management and the academic senate leaders for $150 million in inefficiencies, most of which could have been found internally. One easy-to-identify problem, for example, was wasteful procurement practices such as failing to secure bulk discounts on printers. But Birgeneau apparently has no concept of savings: even in procuring a consulting firm, he failed to receive proposals from other firms.

Students, staff, faculty, and California legislators are the victims of his incompetence. Now that sports teams are feeling the pinch, perhaps the California Alumni Association, benefactors and donators, and the UC Board of Regents will demand to know why Birgeneau is raking in $500,000 a year despite the abdication of his responsibilities.

The author, who has 35 years’ consulting experience, has taught at University of California Berkeley, where he was able to observe the culture and the way the senior management operates.

Milan Moravec
Chief Executive Officer
Moravec and Associates
http://www.Moravecglobal.com

Walnut Creek PD Sgt Tom Cashion’s 5 year old daughter is fighting cancer. She has already had surgery at Kaiser and is now taking chemotherapy. She has been referred to Stanford Medical Center for follow up.

The out of pocket expenses for the family have reached crisis stages not to mention that they have 4 kids and only one income. We have put together an event to assist the family with those expenses. Could you please help us pass the word?

Also if you want to participate the family would greatly appreciate it. To purchase tickets or make a tax deductable donation please go to: http://www.ismcnorcal.com/ISMC/Events.html. Some businesses and POA’s are purchasing an entire 9 seat table for the event. We really need to sell this out, the family really needs our help.

Mike Schneider
mcschneider@comcast.net

Has political correctness run amok? Consider the secular battle cry over Yuletide expressions; ‘Christmas tree’ or ‘holiday tree’; robust ‘merry Christmas’ or neutered ‘happy holidays’? Folks are cussing, not kissing, under the mistletoe over nomenclature, caught in a wintry cultural war swirling around innocent holiday semantics.

Call this a tyranny of the minority as, tellingly, 84% of Americans are Christian and 96% celebrate Christmas. Mr. Retailer, freely call your trees whatever. That’s your merchandising right. It’s also my consumer right to take my business to a vendor unembarrassed by the word Christmas. Pointedly, what elitist would likely drag a pine to the top of their ivory tower? Heaven forbid, the act might interrupt their incessant whining and cause a dreaded momentary spell of light heartedness.

As for calling out happy holidays, Hannukah, Kwanza or Ramadan, be my guest; indulge me my ‘merry Christmas!’ I’m also continuing with ‘happy New Year.’ Following the Roman tradition isn’t affronting the Babylonian, Baha’i, Balinese, Chinese, Coptic, Islamic, Mayan, Persian or, for that matter, Sports Illustrated calendar. Graciously, then, spare the sanctimonious indignation. My cultural links, family roots, and even plain common sense, scream bah humbug! to toasting an emotionally productive, disease free, economically advantageous, environmentally conscious, gender, race, religion and ethnicity neutral passing of the winter solstice.

Amidst shrill secularism, we forget Harry Truman’s words to Pope Pius XII in 1947; “this is a Christian nation”. America was, in truth, founded on Biblical principles. The genesis of the Bill of Rights is found in the teachings inspired by Exodus, Saint Matthew, Isaaha and Saint Paul. The Ten Commandments still rest on the wall behind the sitting Supreme Court Justices. Our coins still display the motto, “In God we trust”. The President still swears his oath of office on a Bible. Congress is still convened with prayer.

Though nobody is imposing a public religion, that doesn’t exclude faith from our resplendent national tapestry.

Friends, appropriate parting sentiments from Charles Dickens ‘Christmas Carol’; “I don’t know what to do! cried Scrooge, laughing and crying in the same breath. I am as light as a feather. I am happy as an angel. I am as merry as a school boy. A merry Christmas to every-body! A happy New Year to all the world.”

Walter Ruehlig