Pallas' Blog

Powerless Protests?

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 05:03:06 GMT

Fifty-two students were willing to be arrested at UC Davis yesterday. They were charged with misdemeanors for trespassing as they protested the latest tuition hike - just approved at 32%.

Today, University officials met with some of the same impassioned students to try and make clear the dire position the University is in. But that didn't last long - some of the students left in exasperation, feeling beaten down by the bureaucratic budget answers they got to their desperate questions.

Bottom line, it's exasperating for both sides. There are no satisfactory solutions. Demonstrations give good visuals - showing just how strongly students object to raising the cost yet again of what is supposed to be an education accessible to all. But these days protests often don't go beyond theatrics. Even the protesters who lived so long in those tall trees in Berkeley lost their battle to fight new construction...their trees were cut down anyway.

I'm not saying stop fighting. Instead, use some of that passion to find and/or support solutions to the budget shortfall. For example, there's a proposal to tax oil companies in California 9.9% for the oil and natural gas they extract. The bill would raise a billion dollars to be split by the CSU system, The UC system, and community colleges. If you're not opposed to tax hikes, and think this might be the solution, then go ahead and rally behind it. Make lots of noise and camp out in lawmakers' offices. Don't like tax hikes? Then take the challenge to learn the bureaucratic budget talk and find real numbers to crunch for savings. I'm talking about more than just cutting salaries at the top - as so many signs I saw this week trumpeted. They're just a drop in the bucket. Time to think bigger than that and take on the real challenge.

Sarah, Sarah, Sarah...

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:24:07 GMT

She's back! And I'm loving it... Sarah Palin is so entertaining, I couldn't wait for her book tour to start. It did with a BANG today in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Women camped out just for a chance to hear her speak - no guarantee - some were even sporting "Palin Power" buttons. I scanned pictures of the crowd for a friend of mine who lives there. She's a huge fan. No sighting. I have other friends who can't help but curl their lips at the mere mention of the former Governor of Alaska. She is a polarizing figure but that's part of why she's so fascinating.

Because of her newly published book "Going Rogue", people are debating again the McCain camp's choice of Palin as a Vice Presidential running mate. I said in a conversation just yesterday that I still think it was an inspired choice. John McCain had to take a gamble - be bold: "go big or go home", as they say. He went home, but Palin was catapulted to stardom. So it did pay off - just not for him.

I don't care how she came across in interviews or how much criticism she faced...Sarah Palin scored supporters instantly. Look at the crowd in Grand Rapids - and you'll find them. Women who embrace her apparent focus on family, her values and her feistiness. One woman said she'd be willing to vote for her in a heartbeat if Sarah Palin ran for President.

I'm not holding my breath. As Palin said in her interview this week with Oprah, she doesn't need a title to have an impact. It must be far more gratifying to preach to the choir - than face a constant chorus of political criticism. It just doesn't matter what the critics say if all you're doing is selling a book, not vying for votes.

Christmas Crush

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 00:06:54 GMT

You can't say you haven't noticed - Christmas is in the air - but I feel like I'm being hit over the head with it. This is different from stories we've done about Christmas decorations being sold before Halloween. One week after Halloween, I walked into Target and found holiday decorations dangling over my head! Decorations don't bother you? Well what about the Christmas cookies I saw there too - ready to eat & ready to sell?

And it's not just in the stores, it's the ads I see and hear: IHOP hawking holiday pancakes, early Black Friday sales at places like Sears...I could go on but I know you've seen them too. I feel like I need to watch my pocket or some little elf is going to have his hand in it before I even notice. Is he greedy or desperate? I sense desperation.

Retailers are hoping people will react like me. This past weekend, I hurriedly did some holiday shopping, telling myself "it's time to go ahead and spend!". The most recent Commerce Department report showed we are spending - a little. Retail sales went up 1.4% in September, but when you exclude cars it really boils down to a weak .2% increase - far below the .9% projected by Wall Street. Some stores are doing better than others, like Kohl's, but as the past few years have proven, there's no such thing as really being secure.

My early spending - along with everyone else feeling the pressure - may help pump up numbers for November, but I hope they don't expect to push me past my budget. No, I'll snap my wallet shut before that little elfin hand gets a good grip on any big bills. With unemployment at double digits across the nation, and the housing market still on shaky ground, I don't think many will fall victim to this festive sales pitch...

Thumbs-Up/Thumbs-Down

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 02:57:16 GMT

An odd thumbs-up today: I say "okay I get it" to the group that hacked into Facebook this week. It's called Control Your Info and it apparently took over "groups" on Facebook, not individual accounts. The group claims its point was to show that anyone can step into the position of administrator of a group and then get into people's personal Facebook accounts. I say it does serve as an important heads-up about how much we post online and how safe it really is. Nothing posted online is sacrosanct and we can't be reminded enough to consider that before you do it. Now, if Control Your Info steps beyond this line they've drawn, my thumbs-up is null and void.

As for my thumbs-down, it picks up where my last one left off and expands to vandals in general. Today we learned a Jewish temple in Carmichael was the target of a graffiti attack, with swastikas and specific references to painful crimes against the Jewish community. In South Sacramento, kids apparently used a man's fence as a backdrop to spew gang graffiti - experts say it was a warning to another gang and mentioned murder. And I have lost count of the number of playground fires we've now reported on - but Sac Metro Fire says there's a rash of these crimes and the fires are getting bigger and bolder. There's hate behind all of these crimes.

What is going on with our society? Is it the bad economy, as some are saying? Is financial pain pushing some people past the line of sanity? Or do they feel the need to spread their pain? Not that there's any excuse. As the homeowner (confined to a wheelchair - and there's more to this story) who had to clean the gang graffiti off of his fence put it so eloquently "they are cowards because they strike in the middle of the night" and "they must be tremendously insecure if they think this is the only mark they can make on the world." I'll add to insecure - empty... That's a tragedy both for them and for our society.

Thumbs-Up/Thumbs-Down

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:51:56 GMT

Thumbs-up to rain...you know I always like to see it. Thumbs-up to Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson too: he's engaged! That's always a reason to celebrate.

Thumbs-down to yet another symbol of hate being directed against a local student. A high school student in Amador County first faced an anti-Semitic threat carved into his locker: "Burn Jew Burn", to be specific. His parents have filed a civil suit against the school, which apparently left it there in public view. Then, just this week that same student snapped a picture to show where he says someone carved a swastika: on his desk. This student says he's been a target of Nazi salutes and people have even urinated on his clothing....need I say more? It just proves we cannot seem to move past hate in any society, no matter how civilized we are supposed to be.

Demystifying Domestic Violence

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:46:58 GMT

It floors me that some people still don't understand how victims of domestic violence end up trapped in abusive relationships. When people ask "why don't they just leave?", it betrays an ignorance that's hard to get past. Well this may help: this week, we profiled a woman who claims she was victimized by her 91 year old husband. Her story helps explain the dilemma many alleged victims face.

This 78 year old says this attack wasn't the first, but there were only a few other instances of violence. That's why she believes it was hard to recognize what was really happening. She may not have had another chance. Investigators say this last incident could have been deadly.

Still, even though the Roseville woman says her husband held a knife to her throat and threatened to kill her, she feels guilty...finding it hard to believe she put her own husband in jail. We took her story to Beth Hassett, the Executive Director of WEAVE, who told us that kind of guilt is not uncommon.

From stories I've done too, I've learned victims often question their own actions, asking "what did I do to trigger the violence?". They try to change their behavior and then when they continue to be attacked (even though they may realize it's not their fault) they feel trapped. They're dependent financially, and believe they have nowhere to turn or no one to turn to - and so they stay. For elderly victims, Beth Hassett says, these concerns are frequently more extreme. Seniors often live on fixed incomes, and are sometimes dependent on abusive partners for care-giving they feel they can't ask younger relatives to shoulder. In the Roseville woman's case, a stroke left her partially immobilized. She suspects taking care of her might have pushed her husband over the edge.

Until now she was too embarrassed to talk..but no longer. More than anything she wants to spread the word to others before it's too late: violence is inexcusable and you're never too old to be victimized or to ask for help.

Fad or Revolution?

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:49:09 GMT

I saw this link posted by one of my Facebook friends and then felt compelled to share it with as many people as I could. It uses stark statistics to show how popular social media is and then challenges the viewer to answer the question: Is social media a fad or a revolution? I believe it's a revolution. Having helped get CBS13 on Facebook, I get some satisfaction seeing the number of fans approach 1000. It's a good start. We give viewers a place to weigh in on the stories of the day and then debate among themselves the pros and cons of their opinions or the topic. I find that a lot more productive than just shouting back at the television....admit it, you do that sometimes don't you? I do!

After helping to get us up on Facebook, I do admit that I had to be cajoled into "tweeting". I do about a tweet or two a day now. I still haven't perfected the art of sending great content in just 140 characters, but I look at it as a challenge. You can follow me @cbs13pallas and let me know what you want to see me tweet about. I figure I'm a novice at this...I'm open to ideas. I know our industry has to get up to speed fast.

Bucking Banks

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:40:51 GMT

Banks are bucking being regulated...and starting to bite back. They're making a desperate money grab - at our expense.

With lawmakers cracking down on them arbitrarily upping fees on credit card balances, Bank of America and Citigroup found ways to fight back: charging fees even if people are responsible and pay off their balances or if they dare to be frugal and don't use their credit cards a lot. How's that for a big fat thank you to all of us for bailing them out. By the way they haven't paid us all back.

Instead of extending credit to help out small businesses and the little guy who wants to buy a house or big ticket item, banks have prevented our stimulating the economy by hogging the cash. We've reported their record earnings and big bonuses across the board.

So who's fighting back and how? People who are pulling their money out of big banks and choosing corner banks and credit unions instead. Some people are calling the big banks about their bogus practices and bargaining them down. Then there's the woman who tried that tactic but when it failed took a stand on YouTube. We aired a story about Ann Minch's one woman revolt against Bank of America. Remember her saying they should stick her credit card debt in their "bailout pipe and smoke it" Well it turns out, she attracted enough attention to get them to change their tune and charges. Can you hear the cheers?!

Afghanistan A-ha Moment

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 03:01:43 GMT

I will remember the name Matthew Hoh. The former Marine is now a former diplomat, after resigning from his position as Foreign Service officer in Afghanistan because of his opposition to the U.S. involvement in the quagmire there. The Christian Science monitor has nicknamed him "the poster boy for...every American who looks at a troop surge in Afghanistan with deep skepticism."

In his 4 page letter explaining why he was stepping down, Hoh explained that he believes the mission in Afghanistan is unwinnable, summing it up this way: "I fail to see the value or the worth in continued US casualties or expenditures of resources in support of the Afghan government in what is, truly, a 35-year-old civil war."

Hoh succinctly states what many likely believe but have not dared say. I suspect at least some of Hoh's concerns are shared by President Obama who has been reluctant to commit more troops even when military experts there say it's the only way forward.

Clearly, reluctance in this situation is deadly. This month has been the deadliest since we first got involved (this time around). If you don't know how just dangerous this country can be, consider its rough terrain and corrupt political structure and fractured patchwork of communities torn apart by the warring of the the last several decades.

If this war truly is unwinnable, then we need to pull our troops out now. No doubt, the price would be a proclaimed a victory by fundamentalist Muslim extremists and likely creation of many more enemies. However at current levels, our troops are not properly protected and do not have a reasonable chance of success. If President Obama doesn't agree with Hoh then he needs to move forward...weigh the repercussions of that victory fueling terrorism, against sacrificing countless more American lives in a uniquely challenging war. If he indeed decides we need to stay, then no more talk, it's time for clear and steadfast action.

Online Overload

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 03:29:56 GMT

I just finished reading my latest string of e-mails regarding my 3rd grader's upcoming Cub Scout activities. I'm wondering how we ever managed all the scheduling back when I was a kid. My son is new to the den...having finally been convinced to join by some of his friends. I was so excited when he made his decision. My older son tried scouting but didn't get hooked, so he opted out. I saw this as my last chance to share a special memory with at least one of them. I loved my experience with the Girl Scouts and hoped at least one of my children would get the benefit of doing community projects and learning camping and survival skills.

I didn't expect, though, that my son's scouting experience would involve so much online coordination from me. For example, we were supposed to take part in last Saturday's march to the Capitol. I received 15 emails about that outing alone. Then, when I signed up online, the page froze at the final step. I realized too late that I paid twice for us to go. A series of phone calls was required to get the credit card charge removed. Finally, in the end, it was all for nothing, because my son got sick and we couldn't go.

So now it's back to the emails...about the next scouting experience. Thank heavens for the volunteers who organize everything. I should be thankful all I have to do is stay on top of the emails. I have to, or my account will back up fast. My only question is - what does all this have to do with learning survival skills? If I survive the online onslaught, I'll let you know!