November 14, 2008 – Daily Brief *

Suncal joins other builders in bankruptcy: The developer’s NorthLake housing project in Castaic and a project in Acton are both in bankruptcy, along with several other SunCal projects statewide, The Signal says. LA Times has more and gets a quote from an industry insider that explains it all: “With more than 2 million vacant homes in the U.S., we are overbuilt.”
Rabbi says anti-semitism an ‘ongoing problem’ at Saugus High: Jewish students at Saugus High have “talked of being harassed for their religious beliefs, being proselytized, and facing hostility toward Judaism,” according to Rabbi Mark Blazer, who appeared at a press conference yesterday following the discovery of a swastika and anti-gay slurs on twin Jewish students’ lockers. Yesterday’s Signal said the incident may or may not be investigated as a hate crime depending on the DA’s recommendation, but today’s Daily News says the Sheriff’s Station will investigate it that way. The two students were said to be frightened after they found the swastika on their locker. Daily News Also, The Signal has a good follow-up to its story yesterday that explores more of the ‘anti-semitisim is a big problem in the SCV angle.’
Strickland takes big lead in 19th Seat race: That’s according to KHTS, which reports that Strickland has a 1,560 vote lead as of Thursday. Jon Dell details what remains to be counted and says Strickland’s competitor, Hannah-Beth Jackson “may not have enough votes in [remaining areas] to close the gap.”
Red flag conditions today, this weekend: Same story as usual, though this one comes in mid November, which is a bit unusual. High temps + high winds + low humidity = OMG EXPLOSIVE FIRE DANGER!! I’m this close _____ to doing a rain dance. Link
Smyth’s School of Economic Philosophy: On the governor’s plan to raise the sales tax: “The governor needs to understand that for me, not raising taxes is what’s right. It’s more than a political ideology. It’s an economic philosophy. Most of my colleagues feel the same way,” he told the Burbank Leader.
More Prop 8 stuff: Big protests tomorrow are planned nationwide, an unconnected protest will be held right here in the SCV, Antonovich still says he’s “vehemently” opposed to challenging Prop 8 like the other Supes have, and the LA Times reports that boycotts of businesses that donated to Prop 8 are gaining steam.
Is it just me, or has The Signal been quite preachy lately? Whether the story is about a local church or some new pastor or a holy dancers or a commentary about marriage with quotes from Hebrews, The Signal has got that old time religion and it’s shouting it from the mountaintop Creekside. And it’s not like these stories are objective either; there’s actually faith messages embedded in the ‘reports’ which are published outside the usual Saturday religion section. Is this what we can expect from our new big-city publisher Ian Lamont?
I Heart #8 on why Mayo expansion should get axed: It’s the Medical Office Buildings, affectionately referred to in Mayo-devotee literature as “MOBs.” Link
Paul Strickland looks under rocks, in caves, and behind trees: This is a golden column by the Hart Board member and local GOPer: “Face it Republicans, we lost. Our wake-up call should be the fact that the only voter demographic we won overwhelmingly was the religious, white male, over 50 category,” he writes in a column titled “We must find more young Republicans.” He says the election results show that two-thirds of 18-29 year olds voted for Obama over McCain. Then he deviates into standard Republican talking points and like all the other Republicans nationwide, offers no solution for how to attract young people.
Finally, completely unrelated to SCV, but important nonetheless: Speaking of the bible, the guy in the video below deserves the title Prophet and Seer for his uncanny accuracy in predicting the current economic climate. Like all good Prophets, he was mocked when he was speaking truth to power too.