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The Local Publication You Actually Read July - 26 - August 8, 2013

By Paul Rosenberg, Senior Editor

hite America marks the start of the modern civil rights movement with the Montgomery Bus Boycott,

which began on Dec 1, 1955. For Black America, the spark came

a few months earlier with the murder of 14-year-old Emmett Till on Aug. 28, 1955 in Mississippi and his mother’s decision to have an open casket funeral.

His body was viewed by tens of thousands of mourners both in the mortuary and at his funeral in Chicago, with photographs and news reports spread around the world.

More than 500 African-Americans had been lynched or similarly killed in Mississippi alone since the 1870s, but Till’s murder, framed by his mother’s fearless and dignified response, proved to be unlike any other. A similar fate has met numerous young black men in recent years—Amadou Diallo, Sean Bell and Oscar Grant are among the handful whose deaths have drawn wide notice out of so many others. But now, the murder of Trayvon Martin, similarly framed by both his parents’ responses, just might, potentially, have an effect similar to Till’s, though it’s still too early to tell.

“Trayvon Martin will forever remain in the annals of history next to Medgar Evers and Emmett Till as symbols for the fight for equal justice for

all,” Martin family attorney Benjamin Crump said the evening after Martin’s killer was acquitted.

One week later, “Justice for Trayvon” rallies were held in over 100 cities

W

ILWU Hosts 2nd Annual Walk the Coast Event for Cancer p. 5

A New Civil Rights Movement? / to p. 22

Sybrina Fulton, Trayvon Martin’s mother speaks at a rally held in her son’s name.

Longshore Workers Fight PMA and Zenith to Pay Claims Quicker p. 7

Sean Lane Talks Authentic Blues p. 11

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The Local Publication You Actually Read July - 26 - August 8, 2013Community Announcements:

Harbor AreaCommitted to independent journalism in the Greater LA/LB Harbor Area for more than 30 years

HARBOR AREA

Historical Society Wine Tasting Fundraiser

Sample wines and enjoy hors d’oeuvres, from 3 to 6 p.m. July 27, on the Muller House patio and join in the fun of the silent auction. Tickets are $25.Details: (310) 519-3613; sanpedrobayhistoricalsociety.org Venue: Muller HouseLocation: 1542 S. Beacon St., San Pedro

Councilman Joe Buscaino Swearing in Ceremony

In recognition of the Year of Italian Culture in America, Councilman Joe Buscaino invites you to his swearing in ceremony, July 28, at the famous Watts Towers, built by Italian-American, Simon Rodia. The daylong festivities will include a Taste of Italy food fair, Italian-themed music and entertainment, kids activities and a bocce ball demonstrations. Everything is free.Venue: Watts Towers, WattsLocation: 1765 E 107th St, Los Angeles

Relay for Life CarsonConsider participating in the American

Cancer Society’s Relay for Life of Carson, starting at 3 p.m. Aug. 2 and 3, at the Home Depot Center.

The American Cancer Society Relay For Life is a life-changing event that helps the community celebrate the lives of people who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost, and fight back against the disease.Venue: Home Depot Center-Field 7Location: 18400 Avalon Blvd., Carson

School Supply Giveaway at CSU Dominguez

A school supply giveaway event is scheduled, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Aug. 3, at the Loker Student Union of Cal State Dominguez Hills.

Community resource booths, occupational therapy consultations will be available. There will also be arts and crafts, and gymnastic activities. Parking is available in Lot 3 for $4. Venue: Loker Student Union--Grand Ballroom at CSU DominguezLocation: 1000 E. Victoria St., Carson

Carson 45th Anniversary Seeks Volunteers

City staff invites Carson residents to help kick off the celebration for next year, at 6 p.m. Aug. 14, at Hall Ce of the Carson Community Center.Venue: Congresswoman Juanita Millender-McDonald Community CenterLocation: 801 E. Carson St., Carson

LA Harbor College Hall of Fame Dinner

Partake in the Hall of Fame dinner, Sept. 13, at Ports’ O Call Restaurant in San Pedro.

The committee is trying to find inductees, Richard Johnson and James Sims, two of the best football players ever at the college.

The following teams will be honored: • 1983 Baseball team (State runner-

up); • 1968 Women’s track and field team

who set several national records); • 1994-95 State Championship

Women’s basketball team. Details: (310) 233-4122Venue: Ports’ O Call Restaurant Location: 1199 Nagoya Way, Berth 77, San Pedro

Americans may still be shocked at the degree of spying the federal government is conducting on the general public, but when safety of their persons and property is on the line, a few cameras on the block is small price to pay for security.

On July 20, Coastal San Pedro residence hosted a barnraising-style cookout while installing a cameras on each other’s homes in response to six home burglaries and 11 car break ins in the past 18 months.

Michael Herzmark, 6-year neighborhood coastal San Pedro neighborhood resident, organized the first neighborhood meeting at the White Point Elementary School auditorium to address the issue. From then on the neighborhood ran with it, with many neighbors pitching in.

“We had six burglaries among 57 houses; that’s over 10 percent,” Herzmark said. “That’s pretty ridiculous. I know that statistically that means nothing but it started to feel like we were

Herzmark put up cameras after his home was broken into. Herzmark’s next door neighbor had already put up cameras and managed to capture a suspect on film during a break-in a few months earlier on Easter morning—a home five houses down from Herzmark’s was broken into.

The trouble was that the suspect was too far away to get a good description of him. During the meeting they posited that if at least every other home on the block had cameras, then there would be an uninterrupted view of the street so that if a break-in occurred, unfamiliar people that are on the block during the approximate time of the break in could be clearly caught on camera.

Herzmark noted that in five of six of the break ins the perpetrator broke in through the front. The neighborhood was hit with another burglary after this neighborhood meeting.

“There’s a big ridge over there where they could be watching us. The school is the biggest

problem are with parents waiting in their cars. There could be people watching the homes in plain sight without even being discovered,” Herzmark said.

The neighborhood held a second meeting after this break in, and began discussing seriously on putting up cameras on all the homes. Each home owner would have to buy their own camera and store their own footage.

The neighborhood conceived the launching of the camera installation as akin to an Amish barn raising where the neighborhood labor together toward a common goal and then enjoy a festive cookout together.

“Our theory is that if we can get our stuff and make it known what our neighbors are doing then the bad guys would go somewhere else,” Herzmark said.

Herzmark said there may have been one concern over privacy that was voiced, but noted

The ILWU has worked the Port of Los Angeles for many years; now, for the second year in the row, they’re walking it.

The 2nd annual Walk the Coast event takes place at 9:30 a.m. Aug. 10. at Warehouse 55, on 22nd Street and Harbor Boulevard. Walk the Coast was organized to help advance the work Alex’s Lemonade Stand was putting forth.

At four years old, Alexandra Scott was diagnosed with neuroblastoma cancer, a form of childhood cancer. Still, in high spirits, Alex embarked on a journey that found her subtly leading the fight against a monster yet to be defeated.

Alex opened a lemonade stand in order to raise money to help find a cure for cancer and save children the suffering she had to cope with. At the time of Alex’s death, four years later, she had raised $1 million for the fight.

ILWU members were touched by what Alex had accomplished. They decided to organize Walk the Coast, an annual event at the Port of Los Angeles, to honor Alex’s efforts and courage,

and make sure her works weren’t in vain. “Alex is our inspiration,” Dan Imbagliazzo, the

event’s organizer said. Statistics from the American Cancer Society

covering the year 2013, estimates 11,630 children below the age of 15 will be diagnosed with cancer. About 1,310 of the cases are expected to be fatal.

With nothing but her determination, Alex made significant progress. The ILWU on the other hand, is working with a few more tools in their shed.

“The ILWU decided that, because we are so fortunate enough to have a good job and we are a union with the ability to organize, we would work with the community and see if we could do something good for the community,” Dan said.

ILWU began hosting Walk the Coast in 2012, with hopes of transferring some of that good fortune they’ve earned to the community. These efforts began in San Pedro, but are now reaching ports across the nation.

“ILWU has a history of giving back,” Sidro Felix of Local 13 said. “ILWU Walk the Coast is

Community Hosts Camera Installing PartyPrivacy concerns a non-issueBy Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor

under assault.”Herzmark’s house was broken into through

the front in broad daylight in June 2013.“It was during the day, we were right

across the street from the school yard,” he said. “Everybody was out at recess and someone was breaking into a house across the street. It’s a safety issue.”

Herzmark gave Councilman Joe Buscaino’s office high praise for his assistance.

“Councilman Buscaino’s was terrific in hooking us up with lead officer, Eve Wright,” Herzmark said. “She came and we just talked about what can we do to minimize this kind of condition.

“We saw at least six burglaries in this area. And it was six too many. You had a couple of neighbors that said enough is enough, we don’t want to be victimized. Let’s come together and take a proactive approach and let the knuckleheads know they are not welcomed here.”

Buscaino, noted that property crime is down and that as a senior lead officer he worked very hard in forming the community relationships to encourage this kind of self-initiated action. As much as the Los Angeles Police Department wants to be on every street corner, it’s impossible.

Buscaino noted the tech and social media savviness of this effort could inspire other neighborhood watch groups.

Neighborhood Surveillance/ to p. 6

ILWU Walks the Coast By Joseph Baroud, Editorial Intern

Walking for Alex/ to p. 5

Coastal San Pedro residents posed for a picture during their July 21 camera installation block party. The neighbors rallied together to install the cameras after a series of home burglaries and car break ins in a period of 18 months. Photo: Branimir Kvartuc.

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Carson is participating in a veritable carousel of justice-seeking actions regarding a toxic site that was first identified in 2009.

Two years later, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board, a state agency, found Shell Oil responsible for not properly

Legal Action: An Endless Carousel of Justice RideBy Lyn Jensen, Carson Reporter

Map of the Carousel neighborhood in Carson and the location of the former Shell tank farms.

cleaning up a former tank farm, over which a modest suburban housing tract named Carousel was built. The board instructed Shell to clean up the contamination, setting off years of tests and other actions.

Now that Shell has presented the board with a site-specific cleanup goal report, the end of this administrative and legal merry-go-round may be foreseeable. On July 18, the city hosted a presentation to provide the public with information about what steps the regional board, Shell, and the city are taking. This follows a June 18 city council meeting, where action was taken to send a letter to the regional board, providing written public comment on Shell’s report. The presentation essentially covered the same information as contained in the report.

“[The board] is at a pivotal moment in the clean up on this site,” the council’s letter reads in part.

City planning officer Sheri Repp-Loadsman explained that the city has authorized a lawsuit against Shell to expedite the remediation of the property, and the firm of Girardi & Keese (made famous by the Erin Brockovich movie) is filing a first amended complaint regarding the matter.

“There’s still a lot of discussion about what can and should be done,” she said. “There’s still a lot of decisions to be made.”

She added the city is now waiting for the water board to develop an action plan on cleanup goals, which will then be presented for a second round of public comment. After that, a Remedial Action Plan and Environmental Impact Report will have to be developed. That will take at least another year.

Alan Caldwell, a Shell spokesman, said the city’s litigation is a separate issue.

“We’ll still have to comply with the water board order,” as an administrative matter, he said.

Carson’s public comments to the water board included statements from three independent experts, Lorne Everett, Jim Wells, and Paul Rosenfeld. Their reports separately came to essentially the same conclusion: that the cleanup criteria Shell is proposing falls short of compliance with applicable law.

Tom Girardi, who is representing the city and some of the Carousel residents, provided a separate written public comment to the water board. He also found fault with Shell’s cleanup goals.

“What Shell proposed is, everywhere there’s

exposed soil, surgically remove just the exposed soil on the property down 10 feet. That’s not what the California Code of Regulations says,” Girardi complained. “The oil down below [to 20 or more feet] is not going to stay put. It’s going to migrate right back into the clean foundation

of the homes.“There is no way in the world this mess

could ever be cleared up except by taking all the houses down and moving the contaminated soil,” he added.

“Each one of those homes should be purchased by Shell at market rate without the contamination factor,” Mayor Jim Dear said.

Girardi, along with Robert Bowcock, an independent water expert, discussed how Shell had tested several other remedies and all had failed. For example, even if enough of an oil-cutting chemical or bacterial agent could be dumped on the site, the process would require as much as 30 years to take effect.

Shell has argued it’s not liable because more than 10 years passed between the time the property was sold in 1968 and the contamination being discovered in 2009.

“Because they got away with selling this property so long ago, they say it’s not their problem, but it is,” Girardi responds. “No one but Shell put these chemicals in the soil. Shell concealed the problem.”

He estimates that, unless an out-of-court settlement is reached, the civil liability case will see a courtroom and a jury by the end of this year.

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The Local Publication You Actually Read July - 26 - August 8, 2013

unique and special in that it is a joint effort up and down the coast.”

This year, the Port of Seattle, Warehouses 19, 23 and 52 will host the event on behalf of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. The Columbia River will do the same, contributing to the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance. And to show how far Alex’s Lemonade Stand has evolved, not only will the Port of Los Angeles host the event on it’s behalf, the ports in San Francisco, Hueneme and San Diego will all do so as well.

The events are aimed at raising funds for research on ovarian, pancreatic and childhood cancers. Because of the partnership and proximity of Alex’s Lemonade Stand, the Walk the Coast effort in Los Angeles has taken the responsibility of raising funds for childhood cancer.

Even though the ILWU organized the event, citizens and businesses throughout the community have played an important role in allowing the event to take place and thrive.

“This is truly a community effort.” Sidro said. “The list is long. Everyone from the [Southern California Pensioners Group] and Local’s 13, 94 [and] 63. Some shipping and Stevedoring [companies] also pitch in.

“Donations from local momma, poppa restaurants, storefronts, health and wellness businesses, [San Pedro High School,] [Los Angeles Fire Department] and many others. There’s plenty of individual volunteers and donations to.”

The first hour will be dedicated to walking a mile for Alex. The festivities that will come subsequently include: A magician, snakes and dragons show, jump houses, car show, juggler presentation, workshop and games for kids, a silent auction and a helicopter landing. The Los Angeles Fire Department will conduct a water show and the Tiger Squadron will execute a six-plane flyover, to commemorate and signify the respect and significance of the event.

The San Pedro High School Marching Band will march in unison, paying homage to Alex. Local bands, The Riptides and The Topics will perform at the event, deferring their compensation to the fundraiser.

“For a family fun event, this is the place to be,” Sidro said. “Plus it’s free.”

Alex’s mother will be in attendance and will speak at the event.

“I can’t say enough about the work that she and her husband do.” Dan said. “They work in memory of their child and they’re doing great stuff.”

This is the second year the event has operated and already, ports across the nation are joining the cause. What started as a small lemonade stand, has evolved into a giant nationwide movement, with almost an unlimited margin to grow.

“We are a proud organization, raising money for proud organizations in a great community.” Dan said.

Alex collided with the disease and fought against it. Thanks to her efforts, other children, battling cancers, have greater hope. ILWU members say they are ready to help out with the struggles that come with fighting cancer.

“We are about doing things important, not easy,” Dan said.

Walking for Alexfrom p. 3

A year ago, ILWU members launched the first Walk the Coast event to raise funds for Alex’s Lemonade Stand, a nonprofit committed to raise money for childhood cancer.

This year, the classic car, carnival game and face-painting event is back to put earned dollars to good use. Yet, with almost 300 organizations seeking funds for research, understanding where the money goes after a cancer-fighting fundraiser can seem as mind-boggling as cancer itself.

In the first cycle of 2013, Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation awarded more than $7 million in new medical research grants to doctors and researchers seeking treatments and cures for children living with cancer. These 42 new grants are extended to 24 institutions and universities across 14 states. Since 2006 it has raised more than $60 million and awarded more than 300 grants at 78 institutions for childhood cancer

research.The foundation, named after its founder

Alexandra “Alex” Scott, focuses its efforts on pediatric oncology grants researching acute lymphoblastic leukemia, acute myeloid leukemia, brain tumors, Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine, glioblastoma, neuroblastoma, medulloblastoma, osteosarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, sarcoma and other cancers.

Alex’s Lemonade Stand funds mostly medical and nursing research. The foundation also provides travel funds to help families with expenses when they go far from their home to their child’s treatment. The foundation in the current grant cycle is awarding for three categories of grants: Innovation, Young Investigator and Epidemiology. The funds come from volunteer foundation events, individuals and corporate support.

“About 90 cents of every dollar is spent on research,” said spokeswoman Gillian Kocher, referencing an answer to a frequently-asked question about money raised in 2012 that will be spent in 2013 on research programs.

In 2012, the foundation’s administrative and fundraising expenses were about 15 percent. The Innovation grant awards $250,000 within two years for experienced investigators with promising approaches to finding causes and cures for childhood cancer.

Young Investigator awards $100,000 within two years for startup funds for new researchers to pursue promising ideas.

The Epidemiology grant awards $200,000 within two years to support the research of investigators who have a specific focus on epidemiology of childhood cancer, early detection and prevention of pediatric oncology.

Other grants include the ‘A’ Award Grant, which is a three-year grant of $375,000 designed for young scientist who want to jumpstart their pediatric oncology research career and bridge grants, which are $100,000 within one year that fund researchers whose projects are in jeopardy due to lack of funds from the National Institutes of Health. The Centers of Excellence program funds about $350,000 per year, renewable up to five years, for selected institutions with programs committed to early phase clinical trials for childhood cancer. Program Infrastructure Grants support personnel for hospitals. The Springboard Grant is helps jumpstart new projects while

other funding is sought with $100,000 for a year to be used for supplies, personnel or principal investigator salary.

Each of the foundation’s grants adheres to specific guidelines, which are reviewed by a board of scientists and consultants in its grant review board and approved by its board of directors.

The foundation’s extensive website lists every one of the awards it has granted www.alexslemonade.org.

With so many organizations raising money for cancer it still is a wonder to many people why scientists seem no closer to a cure than they were several years back. The answer is not that simple.

Finding the Cure

For some people, raising money for cancer just means that the money goes to some unknown laboratory where researchers are continuously working toward finding the one cure. But the thing is, it’s impossible to find a one-size-fits-all cure for a label that encompasses more than 200 types of malignant diseases.

“You really can’t compare all cancers,” said Katherine Row, a spokeswoman for the American Cancer Society. “The American Cancer Society funds basic cancer research upon which groundbreaking research is built.”

The American Cancer Society funds about 941 multi-year grants worth $473 million at 228

Stay current with news, announcements and community events at

http://tinyurl.com/rln-news-announcements

Cancer Research: Where the Fights Meets the DollarsBy Zamná Ávila, Assistant Editor

Stopping Cancer/ to p. 18

ILWU Dan Imbagliazzo and his wife Ester(Left). (Right) Liz Scott, mother of Alex Scott, founder of Alex’s Lemonade Stand. Photo: Terelle Jerricks.

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Overtly, nothing is happening. But that can be quite dangerous according

to University of California professor emeritus Robert Bea, who was dubbed “The Master of Disaster” in a February, 2013, Men’s Journal article for his decades-long research into engineering system failures of all sorts.

“Risk creep” is the term Bea used to describe the Rancho LPG facility, when Random Lengths asked him. It’s overtly innocuous, but potentially disastrous.

“When the system is put into place, it could start out…with acceptable risk,” Bea said. “But as time goes by, things begin to develop that first act to develop the likelihood of failure and then the consequences of failure.”

Likelihood and consequences constitute what Bea calls the “two very important parts” of risk, while the term “risk creep” implies that “it happens slowly over time.” But when it finally gets noticed, that tends to be the result of a catastrophic failure, and by then, it’s too late.

Nothing much seems to be happening in the way of oversight, either.

Despite multiple resolutions from Northwest San Pedro Neighborhood Council, Rancho still hasn’t divulged anything about its insurance coverage, leaving most to assume that there’s no protection at all for neighboring homes and businesses in the event of catastrophe. And when Random Lengths asked Councilman Buscaino about it—along with several other Rancho-related questions—the question was simply ignored.

There was a similar silence over the legislative analyst’s proposal for “an initiative to engage community stakeholders through a preparedness exercise.” We had hoped to write a story about progress in dealing with the threat Rancho poses to the community. But from Buscaino’s limited response, there seems to be nothing to report.

“We are frustrated by the lack of movement,” said Diana Nave, president of the Northwest San

“I’m going to have a look.”Bea still doesn’t have the kind of quantitative

data he needs for the sort of detailed analysis for which he is justly famous. But he does have enough information, combined with years of experience and study, to amplify and extend the concerns raised by local residents and reinforced retired oil industry consultant Connie Rutter.

Local residents initially focused on the slipshod manner in which the facility was first approved and built—not actually in that order, as it turned out. More recently, Rutter has focused on the physical properties of LPG, and the multiple mismatches between those properties and the assumptions built into the facilities safety procedures—such as they are. These have been the initial focal points that have been expanded on over time. But Bea’s approach argues that even if these concerns could be waved away, even if the risk was initially acceptable, that doesn’t mean the risk is acceptable today.

A key problem is that the risk profile as Bea describes it—increasing over time due to risk creep—is completely out of synch with the way that regulatory systems work. It’s all the more important to understand his approach as the failures of those systems become increasingly evident—and as politicians continue doing next to nothing.

In the wake of the Chevron refinery fire in Richmond this past year, a state task force was created, which recently released its draft findings. (See Connie Rutter’s Community Voices commentary on it on page 9.) The findings reflect a recognition that California’s existing regulatory practices are inadequate—a finding in parallel with the Sen. Barbara Boxer’s investigations into the West, Texas fertilizer fire.

How are these approaches inadequate? Put simply, from Bea’s perspective, they lack an integrated systematic approach.

“The word ‘system’ is particularly important,” Bea said. But it wasn’t really understood until the 1990s. “The word system means that it’s composed of multiple interactive, interdependent, interconnected parts,” he explained, which are best understood in terms of seven key parts.

“The first part are what we call operating teams,” Bea said, “people who have daily interactions associated with the system that we are concerned with.” Next are “the organizations that have responsibilities for the activities associated with the complex system.” The third part consists of “procedures, written, unwritten, formal, informal, we’ll call it ‘the way we do things.’” The fourth part consists of hardware, meaning “things like control equipment, and could be things like a railway—those things we use to describe the physical aspects of the system.” The fifth part, closely associated with hardware, is structures. “A structure in this particular case could be the LPG storage tanks,” Bea explained.

The sixth part is environments—both external and internal. Regarding the former, Bea said, “In this case what is actually a fairly complex external environment, it consists of adjacent systems. It consists of things like the Palos Verdes earthquake fault; it consists of storms that can bring about heavy rainfall. That, then leads to concerns about instability of foundation soils.”

These are all risk factors about which Rancho is still in denial and which Bea has yet to be able to quantify.

Then there is are the internal environments, including “things like lighting, air supply, life support,” but also “internal environmental things frequently referred to as cultures, influences that determine, frequently, why things are done or not done.”

Finally, the seventh key system component is the interfaces, “the connections between the previous parts,” Bea explained. “The interfaces are particularly important, because the understanding we build from past failures and disasters is frequently failures are triggered at the defects at the interfaces.”

“For example,” Bea continued, “An organization says, ‘This is what we want to do,’ but at the interface with the operating team ‘this is what we want to do’ is mediated by other influences like, ‘Yes, this is what we said we want to do, but what we really want to do is this’”.

That sort of wink-wink doublespeak is precisely the sort of defect at the interface that has so many San Pedrans worried. By laying out all the parts of the system involved, Bea has given us all a much clearer picture of just how many ways something can go wrong.

The Master of Disaster Eyes Rancho LPGBy Paul Rosenberg, Senior Editor

Pedro Neighborhood Council, in a brief email while on vacation.

“The spate of recent ‘accidents,’ all of which ‘would probably never happen,’ just underscores the urgency for our government representatives to make things happen and not just talk about what might be done,” added June Smith, past president of Coastal San Pedro Neighborhood Council.

The lack of progress locally combined with continuing accidents elsewhere lead Random Lengths to turn to Bea for further illumination.

The Men’s Journal article profiled Bea in depth, and discussed some of America’s major vulnerabilities as Bea sees them, including the California Delta Region, which Bea now sees as the weakest point of American flood defense, surpassing even New Orleans and Miami. But the article concluded with a brief mention of Bea’s latest concern:

San Pedro, near the Port of L.A., has bloomed into a major petrochemical complex. Residents, worried about a San Bruno—type explosion, have asked him to investigate.

“Worn-out, tired old bastards are the only ones with the time and patience to look at this thing seriously,” said Bea.

What does he see there? “It’s risky. Very risky,” he says, a gleam in his eye.

that there were only two meetings and both occurred right after a recent break in. These were accompanied by exchanges of emails between neighbors. Privacy concerns didn’t register high on the priority list.

“The privacy issues... somebody asked about that and said, ‘well we can’t just do that.’ But all we’re doing is taking pictures of the street,” Herzmark said.

“If you’re on the street, walking down a public street or sidewalk, you can have your picture taken. And the cool thing that we’re doing is that, it’s not like all the pictures are going into some central data bank. It’s going into the computers of individual homeowners, so there isn’t any giant NSA type of vacuuming up of information here.”

Herzmark noted that some cameras are set up for movement while others are set between the hours homeowners are not home, while others have continuous 24 hours surveillance. If the camera catches something strange, it shoots off an email to the homeowner.

Los Angeles Police Department Harbor Division Captain Nancy Lauer applauded the neighborhood’s effort.

“This [series of home burglaries] prompted the community to get together and work in partnership with the LAPD and form a very

cohesive neighborhood watch group,” Lauer said. “They decided to put up cameras at a number of locations in the area and we applaud this effort.”

Lauer anticipates the cameras will have a very positive impact in continuing to reduce crime in the area.

“The fact is, crime is down year to date already by 50 percent and burglaries, year to date, are also down 50 percent. So it is having an impact and it will increase safety even more,” Lauer said.

However, a suspect has not been caught in none of the six burglaries or 11 car break-ins.

This isn’t the first time the neighborhood rallied against crime in their neighborhood. Seventeen-year Coastal San Pedro resident, Amy Clark, recalled how in 2002 the neighborhood came together with then-Councilwoman Janice Hahn and a lead detective to force the drug dealing occupants from a house in the neighborhood.

“We held community meetings. Believe it or not, cops would be in our bedroom watching out,” she said.

The neighborhood received a lot of attention after getting the home labeled a nuisance and had the occupants evicted. With the latest security effort, they are breaking new ground while chipping away at what is now becoming a distant memory: Privacy.

Neighborhood Surveillancefrom p. 3

Professor emeritus at Univer-sity of California Berkeley, Dr. Robert Bea, above, dubbed “Master of Disaster,” analyzed the danger that the Rancho LPG tanks poses (pictured right).

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The Local Publication You Actually Read July - 26 - August 8, 2013

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The arbitration ruling in the ongoing dispute between the ILWU and Zenith American Solutions, more than an estimated $400 million in insurance claims, has yet to be decided after four days of intense hearings that started July 16 in San Francisco.

Representatives from ILWU locals from throughout the coast attended the hearings to grill Zenith executives about their progress in resolving claims. According to sources close to the hearings, Zenith officials were called to answer for why they had not fulfilled all of the promises they made to resolve the crisis several months ago.

This arbitration hearing came a week after a dramatic demonstration in front of the Pacific Maritime Association in downtown Long Beach. Hundreds of picketers carried signs that read, “PMA is robbing pensioners of their healthcare” and “PMA is robbing widows and children of negotiated benefits.”

Coincidentally, not far from the courthouse where Zenith was in court on workers compensation issue, unrelated to the demonstrations.

The union’s actions led the Pacific Maritime Association to call for an arbitrator to help handle the dispute, given the number of workers who did not report to work in various locations around the ports. The arbitrator ordered workers to immediately return to their jobs.

In April, Random Lengths reported on the complaints of local care providers being forced into long wait times on the phone before being told that either their claim has been rejected or that the claim was not in the computer. The local care provider community have continued to hurt ever since.

Anecdotal evidence from local care providers maintains that, Zenith, as standard operating procedure, would repeatedly make policyholders fill out lengthy information forms, demanded in the name of ensuring that the policyholder only gets the benefits to which they are entitled.

PMA spokesman Wade Gates, denies that

The details of a July 3 back alley fight are sketchy at best, recounted in whispers and private places out of earshot–not to mention on the Internet.

One thing’s for certain: this was a fistfight waiting to happen.

Official reports broke into the media two weeks after an altercation between ILWU Local 13 President Chris Viramontes and Eric Aldape. The altercation began as a heated discussion between Viramontes and Aldape at the Local 13 offices on Centre Street. Aldape had just returned from Oregon after working at a non-Pacific Maritime Association rail facility for the past 6 months, when he paid the Local 13 offices a visit.

It’s not clear why he went or what the heated discussion between himself and Viramontes was about. Aldape didn’t reply to email request through his website for comment on the story. But there is consensus that Viramontes invited Aldape to step outside to continue their discussion, which ended in a nearby alley.

Aldape or Aldape’s allies set up a website to support the activist in his long fight with the union, including unattributed narratives written in the third person. But when it makes personal digs at Aldape’s presumed opponents, it gives the impression that he is the author.

The apparent turmoil within Local 13 has been boiling for at least two years, when Viramontes was still the secretary-treasurer of Local 13 and Aldape first began advocating

against a leadership he believed was selling out the membership.

One of the issues Aldape was active on was the equalization issue between crane operators and “steady men,” crane operators who report directly to the shipping company. The steady men came into being with the establishment of the first Mechanization and Modernization Agreement in the 1960s, with section 9.43, dubbed the “steady man” clause. This clause allowed employers to hire crane operators on a steady, permanent basis. The union fought this clause in 1971 that resulted in a strike that lasted 130 days. To the rank and file, this clause was contrary to the union’s core values--that all jobs were rotated among members through the jointly administered hiring hall.

The steady men were still members of the union, but they were, in effect, employees of the shipping companies. And while their jobs are among the highest paid on the docks, those jobs were not available to others. The strike failed to end the practice of using “steady men,” but rules, crafted originally by labor leader Harry Bridges, were written to equalize the amount of hours given to hall dispatched crane operators and steady men in 1976.

Aldape argued that the equalization clause got balanced against the hall crane operators after a 1986 revision of the clause, initiated by Dan Imbagliazzo and Charles Brady. Aldape points to minutes of that meeting in a pdf document hosted on his website to bolster his point.

In 2012, Aldape supported a slate of

candidates called “New Change” producing scathing fliers targeting Viramontes in particular. Aldape insinuated that Viramontes was using his position to enrich companies in which he was financially connected. In Aldape’s words, his activism resulted in, “360 days off-work, 180 days suspended, two assault charges, three conduct unbecoming complaints, and was removed from his elected position on the executive board without due process.”

Aldape furnished no proof to support those allegations and was subsequently hit with a complaint by Viramontes for libel and slander through a grievance procedure through the Pacific Coast Longshore Contract—a contract between the union and the PMA, rather than through internal union procedures related to the union’s election.

In an appeal of the verdict, Aldape accuses Viramontes of using his position as the secretary-treasurer to make sure an arbitrator with whom Aldape had a contentious history was assigned to the case.

According to the ruling that was handed down in November 2012, Aldape’s appeal was rejected and he was severely penalized and prohibited from working on the docks for six months and Viramontes was elected president of Local 13.

According to the narrative on the pro-Aldape

Zenith denies or delays claims to avoid paying legitimate claims.

“Zenith follows prescribed procedures in reviewing claims, and those claims for covered services at customary fees, and with proper

documentation and accurate patient information, are processed promptly,” he said in an emailed response.

In public statements, Gates has been vigorously defending the Longshore health benefits plan, saying that ILWU members continue to fully receive employer paid health care with no premiums and 100 percent coverage of basic in-network hospital, medical and surgical benefits and prescription drugs—something, which is rare in these days of declining health care coverage.

Gates touted the addition of TC3, a plan administrator, that has been specifically monitoring fraud and abuse claims since January.

Gates noted that the fraud administrator has identified tens of millions of dollars in potential abuses by doctors and other providers, but gave no indication of what proportion those claims make of the total. It has been reported that only 1 to 2 percent of the claims have been found to be faulty, which is within industry norms.

In reply to a question about Zenith’s inability to quickly catch up on outstanding claims, Gates said the ILWU and PMA Welfare Plan Trustees recognized that certain challenges would remain when Zenith assumed administration of the Plan on January 1.

“That includ[es] a backlog of 100,000 claims

ILWU, Zenith Duke it Out in Million Dollar ArbitrationLocal Health Providers Await the OutcomeBy Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor

Local 13 President in Back Alley FightBy Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor

website, Aldape had not been in town longer than a month before his heated discussion with Viramontes July 3. There was a hearing July 19, but no one from the Local 13 returned calls regarding the outcome.

Health Benefits/ to p. 18

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“A newspaper is not just for reporting the news as it is, but to make people mad enough to do some-

thing about it.”

Columnists/ReportersLyn Jensen CarsonB. Noel Barr Music DudeJohn Farrell Curtain CallLori Lyna Hirsch-Stokoe Food WriterAndrea Serna Arts WriterMalina Paris Culture WriterCalendar 14days@randomlengthsnews.com

Publisher/Executive EditorJames Preston Allenjames@randomlengthsnews.comAssoc. Publisher/Production CoordinatorSuzanne Matsumiyainfo@graphictouchdesigns.com

Managing EditorTerelle Jerrickseditor@randomlengthsnews.comAssistant EditorZamná Ávilazamna@randomlengthsnews.com

Senior Editor Paul Rosenberg

PhotographersTerelle Jerricks, Diana Lejins, Betty Guevara, Jerrick Romero,Slobodan Dimitrov

Contributors Danny Simon, Connie Rutter, Justin Elliott

CartoonistsAnn Cleaves, Andy Singer, Matt Wuerker

Random Lengths News editorial office is located at 1300 S. Pacific Ave., San Pedro, CA 90731, (310) 519-1016. Address correspondence regarding news items and news tips only to Random Lengths News, P.O. Box 731, San Pedro, CA 90733-0731, or email to editor @randomlengthsnews.com.Send Letters to the Editor or requests for subscription information to james @randomlengthsnews.com. To be considered for publication, all Letters to the Editor should be typewritten, must be signed, with address and phone number included (these will not be published, but for verification only) and be kept to about 250 words. To submit advertising copy email adv@randomelengthsnews.com or reads@randomlengthsnews.com.Extra copies and back issues are available by mail for $3 per copy while supplies last. Subscriptions are available for $35 per year for 27 issues.Random Lengths News presents issues from an alternative perspective. We wel-come articles and opinions from all people in the Harbor Area. While we may not agree with the opinions of contributing writers, we respect and support their 1st Amendment right to express those opinions. Random Lengths News is a member of Standard Rates and Data Reporting Services and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. (ISN #0891-6627). All contents Copyright 2013 Random Lengths News. All rights reserved.

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—Mark TwainVol. XXXIV : No. 15

Published every two weeks for the Harbor Area communi-ties of San Pedro, RPV, Lomita, Harbor City, Wilmington, Carson and Long Beach. Distributed at over 350 locations throughout the seven cities of the Harbor Area.www.randomlengthsnews.com

continued on following page

In response to the fire at the Chevron Refinery in Richmond last year, Gov. Brown formed the Interagency Working Group on Refinery Safety, to improve public and worker safety at oil refineries. This group has just issued its first draft report. The Draft Report suggests, among other things, including the public in emergency planning. As an informed part of the public (I worked at refineries for about 10 years and did environmental consulting for other refineries for 20 additional years), I strongly endorse this suggestion.

This suggestion about involving the public was also part of the Legislative Analyst’s recommendation to Councilman Joe Buscaino in February about Rancho LLC on North Gaffey, as well as that Rancho should run a drill of their emergency response. At that time I suggested to the Councilman, that I could put together a team of people knowledgeable on refinery safety and environmental matters to help in choosing the scenario and making sure that the appropriate agencies take part. I felt qualified to make such an offer, because I had run two drills at the two refineries at which I worked, Douglas Oil in Downey and Fletcher in Carson. This was not a legal requirement, but it made sense, since one can learn a lot from a drill, if it is conducted properly. I involved the local schools, Fire Departments and

Police Departments, and had simulated injuries to match the types of releases we were drilling. That involved meeting with school personnel first, so that they understood the danger from any facility which handles hazardous substances. Councilman Buscaino has not accepted that offer, nor has he, to my knowledge, spoken to Rancho about a possible drill.

I recently met with part of his staff to re-explain the dangers posed by an LPG facility. It forms an explosive vapor cloud, which hugs the ground, and will ignite if it finds a source of ignition. There are five sources of ignition on the Rancho site. The impound basin is required as a deterrent, but once the liquid evaporates, the basin will hold only ½ percent, 0.5 percent, of the contents of one tank! An LPG fire is inextinguishable—water and foam will increase the rate of vaporization—and official sources suggest letting it ‘burn itself out.’

One of the staff asked, “But how likely is that?” I said, “I’ll get back to you on that.” I calculated the probability of a release from refrigerated tanks (butane) and from pressurized tanks (propane), based on data published by the Oil and Gas Producers in England. The statistical probability is 1.7 percent. The facts that Rancho’s staff is small, that it is confused about whether

Securing Ourselves from Hazardous ReleasesBy Connie Rutter

I find it enlightening that the above quote is most often recognized among my friends of color. That quote was the starting point in the preface of civil rights lawyer Connie Rice’s book, Power Concedes Nothing—One Woman’s Quest for Social Justice in America. To say the least, I was quite moved by her story, the tragedies and challenges, and then the amazing resolution. I doubt that I can do justice to this book here in so few words, except that I highly recommend it to anyone trying to make sense out of the recent verdict and the murder of Trayvon Martin in Florida.

What I can tell you is that Ms. Rice, the cousin of former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Bush administration, has spent many years in Los Angeles courtrooms, suing the Los Angeles Police Department and others over discrimination, police misconduct and violations of civil rights laws.

You might surmise that such a person would be persona non grata inside the fortress of Parker Center or that her perspectives would be routinely dismissed by those leading the “thin blue line” of Los Angeles policing. What we have seen instead, however, is an amazing about face in the racist Los Angeles Police Department culture that once guarded the “safe neighborhoods” of the city while suppressing the “dangerous ones” following the Los Angeles riots following the not guilty verdicts of the officers involved in the Rodney King videoed beating in 1992.

still not been fulfilled, nor will it be until every child has the right to safety in their schools and neighborhoods. And this safety is from both the gangs and the cops.

She writes, “We must rekindle the hope of the hopeless—dismantle the new Jim Crow and remove the threat posed to us all by the deadly conditions festering in the hot zones. We must invest the cost of achieving our greatest credo, E Pluribus Unum, or pay the price of losing the greatest democracy ever created.”

Rice was eventually invited inside of the LAPD police union to investigate and report on the Rampart division scandal, where afterward she surmised that the system was

just “stuck on stupid.” Here investigation resulted in a report entitled: “Rampart Reconsidered: The Search for Real Reform Seven Years Later.” In the report, she noted that the entrenched police department’s culture was resistant against change to a better policing model. She took special note, however, of then-Capt. Charlie Beck who made a 180 degree turn-around that changed (and saved) the Rampart division.

Beck (now Chief of the LAPD) realized mid-career that the traditional “suppression” or hammer model of their CRASH units was not winning the fight against gang wars that were raging in Los Angeles at the time.

There is a greater cautionary tale to be understood from her story of the LAPD’s changing trajectory. And that is, we are plagued by the “bollix of bureaucracy” on many levels and that the stuck on stupid mind set is often at the core of the resistance to change. Better the devil you know than the one you don’t, is the cliché that comes to mind. It’s true, institutions don’t like to change. They resist change. And on the rare occasion they do change, it is only when it is faced with an institutional crisis, a court order or a political uprising demanding that power concedes. However, real change only comes when those on the inside, like LAPD Chief Beck, come to the epiphany and embrace change.

It is said that you can’t legislate morality. But as current events show, “power concedes nothing, without a demand.” And as a citizen of this country and this city, we must learn to effectively demand concessions and not to be complacent with stupid.

www.powerconcedesnothing.com

Stuck On Stupid“Power concedes nothing without a demand.

It never did, and it never will.”—Fredrick Douglas, address on West India Emancipation, 1857

By James Preston Allen, Publisher

If you’ve lived in this country for any time over the past 40 years, you’d recognize “safe neighborhoods” as a euphemism for white middle class areas and the“dangerous ones” as black and brown ghettos, to speak plainly about it.

Since the bygone days of California red-lining and racial covenants in certain areas, we have this belief here in the Golden State that we are well on the path to racial equality and the end of discrimination, but that there is much that you just can’t legislate. Furthermore, the path out of poverty in this country is fraught with domestic landmines, like the 60 percent incarceration rate of young black males compared to their corresponding graduation rates from inner city schools. As Rice writes so movingly in her book, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream has

9

The Local Publication You Actually Read July - 26 - August 8, 2013

Community AlertWater Purification, Demolition Public Notice

The Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners is hosting a public hearing to consider a coastal development permit for the Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation, at 8:30 a.m. Aug. 8, at the Port of Los Angeles Board Room in San Pedro.

The permit is related to Phase 2 of the advanced water purification facility at the Terminal Island Water Reclamation Plant at 445 Ferry St.

The board also will consider a coastal development permit for Kinder Morgan Tank Storage Terminals, relating the demolition and remediation at Berth 119 and 120. Details: (310) 732-3850Venue: Port of Los Angeles Board RoomLocation: 425 S. Palos Verdes St., San Pedro

RANDOMLettersJustice Removed

Dear Senator Lieu: I believe the San Pedro and

Avalon courthouses should remain open, and that more of the fees collected by local courts should be used to operate and maintain these courts.

This is a poor way to administer justice in our community and our State.

Sincerely, John Barbieri

San Pedro

San Pedro and the Spanish American War

I am delighted that you published (July 12-25 issue) the views of Rachel Bruhnke and what could be the connection between San Pedro and the people of Cuba. She is entitled to her opinions (which were well expressed), but not to her facts, which were woefully inadequate and came close to insulting the intelligence of the readers of Random Lengths. In particular:

a. Cuban independence was a stated aim of the US government before, during and after the Spanish-American War. It was a war of imperialism elsewhere, but not in Cuba. And the US did not renege on that promise.

b. There had been a war for independence raging in Cuba for many years before the Maine was destroyed (for whatever reason) in the harbor of La Habana, which precipitated the war. US military operations were centered on Western Cuba to be able to support the Cuban insurgents in their war against Spanish domination. Even in 1898 the Sierra Maestra was the center of insurgent activity; Fidel Castro knew his Cuban history well. In the same way as France intervened in the American Revolution to ensure the success of our independence movement, the US intervened in an ongoing (and very bloody and inhumane) war for Cuban independence in order to ensure the success of those Cubans fighting for independence.

c. Santiago de Cuba was the center of Spanish power outside of La Habana, and given the realities of transportation, the two cities were linked only by sea.` Which meant that the US Navy had to disrupt those communications by sea in order to prevent a reinforcement of Spanish garrisons in western Cuba. This is where Guantanamo comes into the picture. The US did not take Guantanamo Bay “within a few years.” The very first US military operation in Cuba were to create a supply base at Guantanamo Bay, because it was totally isolated from the rest of Cuba and had no Spanish garrison nor any civilian population. Guantanamera is my favorite song, but the town and people to which it refers exist only because of the US naval base.

Kim StevensSan Pedro

it should evacuate or fight the fire, that it lacks an on-site maintenance team, would all increase that probability.

These facts all make Councilman Buscaino’s claim about increasing safety in our District look ineffectual. I’m grateful for the changes that he has made to promote safety for skate-boarders, but now it’s time to make all of San Pedro safer. Rancho’s own Risk Management Plan puts the number of people who would be harmed by a release of one tank at 770. At the very least, Buscaino should demand that the city and the company should provide a meaningful drill, so that the public and emergency response personnel could pre-plan to keep the fatalities and injuries to a minimum.

Connie Rutter is a retired oil industry manager and consultant who also served on the Advisory Council for the AQMD, and headed up the environmental section of the Harbor Assoc. of Industry and Commerce.

Read more on this letter at www.randomlengthsnews.com/san-pedro-and- the-spanish-american-war/

Letter from a Proud Progressive

It is way past time for the Progressives of California to rid this State of the oppressive, Non-Judicial Foreclosure Laws [ California Civil Code §§ 2924 et seq,, et al] that allow Banksters to take away your home-sweet home without first going before a Judge (or conceivably, a Jury) to prove their ‘right’ do so.

Because of California’s Non-Judicial Foreclosure Laws, Banksters need only mail and post notices of their ‘election’ to foreclose before their ‘Judge’, the Foreclosure Trustee Auctioneer, gives away your home-sweet home to the highest Bidder—or more likely, back to the Banksters, but now free and clear of your Title.

Such ‘progressive’ States as Florida and Ohio don’t allow Banksters such easy pickings. In those—and indeed, many other States, Banks, Mortgage Lenders, and their Assignees must first seek the judicial remedy of foreclosure by filing a lawsuit and providing—( guess what? )—the homeowner a proper Due Process opportunity to be ‘heard’ by the Judge (or conceivably, a Jury) why these Banksters should not have such a Draconian Right to take your home and throw you out on the street.

May I suggest a direct action

solution? Seize the INITIATIVE ! Let’s begin circulating now, An Initiative Petition to place on the 2014 Statewide General Primary Election, a California Constitutional Amendment outlawing the use of the Non-Judicial Foreclosure Process for homeowner-occupied real properties, i.e., your home-sweet home. [ Commercial property and all those single family and townhouses owned “absentee” by the house-flipper crowd would not get the benefit of this homeowner protection provision.]

You say: “The Courts are clogged up already and can’t afford to dispense any more justice?” Well, that’s exactly the idea behind this progressive proposal.

It will be up to the Banksters to file their lawsuits, to pay their filing fees, to beg for their day in the crowded courts, and ultimately, to prove their bono fides---without ‘robo-signatures’ by pretend-to-be bank officers who pretend to have personal knowledge about your mortgage. As Snoopy (of “Peanuts”) once observed to Lucy: “A case like that could drag on for years!”

Bill RobersonSan Pedro

We Are All In This Together

What does being a Progressive Democrat mean?

It means striving for peace, justice, and equality.

It means striving to beat swords into ploughshares.

It means striving to shelter the homeless, feed the hungry and heal the sick.

It means we’re all in this together.

Since I’ve been in Congress, you’ve been there for me, every step of the way. You were there when I won my election in 2008. You were there when I was swept out by the Tea Party wave in 2010. You were when I won my 2012

election by the largest comeback margin in House history.

You’ll be there for me in 2014, when I am seeking reelection to the House, and when Democrats at large will try to take the House back from the Republicans.

You have done petition campaigns in favor of expanding health care, and against cutting Social Security. You have pushed our collective attempts to end warfare; and stop spying on every American.

You know what it means when I say, again, “We’re all in this together.”

It’s why I’m proud to be associated with the Progressive Democrats of America. Being in

PDA means you have a full heart, a good conscience, a firm backbone, and a keen mind. It means getting things done.

I go to your monthly Congressional roundtables hosted by your peerless leader Tim Carpenter. At these meetings, we build our “inside/outside” coordinating strategy in Congress and at the grassroots level. There’s nothing else like it. And your work matters.

In particular, your organizing on Social Security has helped save millions of elderly Americans from poverty. Because of your petition drops, we got 43 Members of Congress to pledge a “no” vote on any legislation that cuts Medicare,

Medicaid, or Social Security benefits. This was smart work, work that shows that you have a conscience, work that shows that you are unafraid, and work that shows you respect principles above personalities or parties.

Courage,Rep. Alan Grayson

(D-Orlando, FL)Progressive Democrats of

America

Of Ray from ValThe death of Raymond

Rodriguez, former columnist for the Long Beach Press-Telegram and educator with the Long Beach

from previous page

Security

More Letters/ to p. 18

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Advent Resources, Inc. was established in 1988 and is the

leading provider of thoughtful and high-value software

solutions for the automotive retail environment.

Our offices are located in the heart of the vibrant,

historic Arts District of San Pedro, housed in two

architecturally unique loft buildings.

We are proud to be a part of the rich, diverse and

thriving San Pedro waterfront.

235 West 7th StreetSan Pedro, CA 90731310.241.1500www.adventresources.com

Happy 125th Anniversary

July 26 – August 8, 2013ACE: Arts •

Cuisine • Entertainm

ent

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July 26 – August 8, 2013Support Your Com

munity. Shop Local.

11

continued on page 16.

iving on the road, traveling from city to city, from juke joint to juke joint, has served as a coming of age process for itinerant blues musicians.

Truthfully, blues music is a calling and your only response is to surrender to that call. As most who work in music would tell you, it is not an easy life.

I was reminded of this during a conversation about authenticity in the blues with local blues man Sean Lane. I spoke with Sean while taking a break between sets at Godmothers Saloon, where he’s been playing some of his best music I’ve heard him play in a long while.

Lyrically, Sean is able to turn a metaphor inside out with the best of them in his lyrics, using his natural tim-bre in his voice and guitar sound to pull out just the right amount of emotion. Some of his music is Dylan-esque. Sometimes it is like the poet T.S. Eliot, but it is all Sean Lane, despite the influences.

However, the bones of Sean’s music are descended from the early great bluesmen. His music seems to conjure the blues of Charley Patton & Son House right out their graves, yet remains completely urban in content, Sean’s music is all about his life in the present.

As a philosophy student in college, Sean enjoyed searching for the answers to weighty questions and read-ing the works of great poets. Somehow, Sean managed to wrap all of himself into his music while maintaining his “authenticity” and “realness.”

I asked Sean how he reconciled being a white boy play-ing the blues? History is full of stories of black musicians being denied their due for songs they wrote and produced. Sean prefaced his remarks by saying, “When you love a certain style of music, you can’t really help it. And there are a lot of white and other people around the world who got into the blues.”

Sean’s parents are native Louisianans who moved to California, but returned home every summer. He explained that when he started getting to the old delta blues, he wanted to sing it and play it authentically, but he didn’t want to sound like somebody he wasn’t.

“That is a trap for a lot of people,” Sean explained. “They sing with a fake voice. They try to grit their voice out, you know. And sing with a growl that’s not really them. I just didn’t want to be one of those guys.”

by: Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor and B. Noel Barr Music Writer

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Blue Grotto Salad • Caesar Salad • Endives Salad • Wild Mushroom Risotto Caprese Heirloom • Chop Chop Salad • Pate and Charcuterie

Cheese Platter • Mediterranean Steak Salad • Fresh Spinach Shrimp Salad Calamari Salad • Grilled Chicken Salad • Salad & Soup

Farmer’s Market Omelet • Chicken Caesar Wrap • Sandwich du JourBeef Koobideh • Chicken Koobideh • Filet Mignon Pita

Gheimeh Stew • Ghormeh Sabzi Stew • Angel Hair ScampiLinguini and Clams • Rigatoni • Spaghetti BolognaiseChicken Curry • Chicken Marsala • Pesto Primavera

Spaghetti Provençale • Beef Koobideh • Chicken KoobidehBlue Grotto Burger (Must See It To Believe It) • Grilled Salmon

Flame Grilled Breast of Chicken • Fish & Chips • Steak Frites

Paul Aghilipour –Manager

Frank Ravalli –Proprietor

July 26 – August 8, 2013ACE: Arts •

Cuisine • Entertainm

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The Loft GalleryThe Medium is the Messsage: Carolyn Applegate, Hiroko, Stevie Love, Da Aie Park, Bret Price and Kenzi Shiokava. Open Studios: Candice Gawne, Carol Hungerford, Sam Arno, Daniel Porras, Murial Olguin, Jan Govaerts, Anne Marie Rawlinson, & Nancy Towne Schultz. • Open First Thursday 6–9 p.m. Open Saturdays & Sundays 2-5 p.m.401 S. Mesa St. • 310.831.5757

Gallery 345Works on paper, canvas, and board as well as small works, jewelry, hand knit scarves from France, and other mixt media exhibited at Gallery 345. Artists include Gloria D Lee and Pat Woolley as well as a guest artist.345 W. 7th Street, San Pedro CA 90731310 545 0832 or 310 374 8055 for appointmentsOpen 1st Thursday 6-9 p. m.

Transvagrant and Warschaw GalleryPhilippa Blair, Labyrinth of LinesTransVagrant and Warschaw Gallery are pleased to present Labyrinth of Lines, Recent Paintings by Philippa Blair. Organized by Ron Linden, Labyrinth of Lines runs through August 10. Gallery hours are Monday through Saturday, 11 AM - 6 PM. This exhibition sponsored in part by the San Pedro Arts, Culture and Entertainment District and the San Pedro Chamber of Commerce.(310) 600-4873 • 600 S. Pacific Ave. San Pedro

San Pedro’S original artWalk— Fine dining • live MuSic SPecial PerForManceS • Food truckS!

Richard Lopez StudioDisplaying acrylic works on canvas, including florals that expose rich, vibrant color as well as Cosmic Abstracts, using sanding, glazing and energetic celestial imagery. Currently showing a new 72 x 84 Cosmic Abstract work in progress that explores the link between the inner and outer realms of existence and the quest to find peace by bringing these into harmony. Presently, there are three existing openings of art classes for intermediate and advanced students. Richardlopezart@gmail.com 372 7th St. • 562.370.7883 • Ralopezart.com

Michael Stearns Studio 347Hosting the opening of powerful marine photographs from native artist, Joel Gitelson appropriately titled, “Local Waters”. As a Los Angeles County Lifeguard and Paramedic, Joel has spent many moments on the Pacific Ocean. His passion for the sea has been instilled through his large format photographs, and by viewing these pieces up close, you will be able to experience what is incredible about our local aquatic environment. Please join us for the First Thursday Artwalk on August 1st from 6:00pm to 9:00pm, and an Artist’s Reception on Saturday, August 3rd from 4:00pm to 6:00pm. Michael Stearns Studio 347 is located at 347 W. 7th Street, San Pedro, CA 90731. For further information, please visit www.michaelstearnsstudio.com or call (562) 400-0544.

Advertise Here for As Low As

$35 per Month!

(310) 519-1442

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Calendar to page 16.

Entertainment

This August, San Pedro will celebrate its 125th birthday in grand fashion: a two-day street festival that will take place Aug. 3 and 4.

Kicking off the celebration will be the usual First Thursday celebration, Aug. 1, which will include a guided tour of the art galleries in downtown San Pedro.

The following night, Aug. 2, the Warner Grand Theatre will showcase a Tribute to Motown Concert. Hosted by Robert Gordy, Jr., nephew of the famed Motown founder Berry Gordy Jr. The show will include performances by The 5 Tempting Men, a Temptations tribute who have the moves and the voices to pay proper homage, and the 3 Diamonds, a Supremes tribute that will be sure to get you off your feet. Gordy also plans to share stories of what life was like with his uncle during the Motown days. Doors will open at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $35 to $55. Details: (310) 832-7272.

Featuring live music, food, rides, games, arts and crafts, and a beer tasting garden, San Pedro’s two-day street fest will be on 6th Street, between Centre Street and Pacific Avenue

Many bands will take part in the celebration on one of the two stages throughout Aug. 3, including Vaud and the Villains, a 19-piece 1930s New Orleans Jazz and Cabaret band and the Taikoproject, a group of taiko-style drummers whose performances have been described as “drum nirvana.” Other bands that will perform that day include, the Zydeco Party Band, the Damselles, The MVP’s, and the Satin Dollz. Saturday’s events will take place from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Cover bands are taking the main stage Sunday. Organizers were contacted, but none of them responded.

Cover bands are taking the mainstage Sunday. Sunday’s festivities will take place from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

San Pedro Turns 125by: Cory Hooker, Editorial Intern

Photo by: Jessica Verma Photgraphy

July 26In ContemptIn Contempt is performing at Godmothers Saloon, 9 to 10 p.m. July 26.details: (310) 833-1589; www.godmotherssaloon.comVenue: Godmothers Saloonlocation: 302 W. 7th St., San Pedro

All-Star ComedyThe Laugh Factory presents All-Star Comedy, 8 and 10 p.m. July 26. It’s all in the name. Tickets are $20 at the door, with a 2-drink minimum purchase required. details: (562) 495-2844; www.laughfactory.comVenue: Laugh Factorylocation: 151 S. Pine Ave., Long Beach

Josh Smith Concert and Morgan Amps EventJosh Smith is giving guitar lessons at Alvas Showroom, 6:30 p.m. July 26. The lessons are free. Following the lessons there will be a concert at 8 p.m. The cover charge for the concert is $10. details: (800) 403-3447; www.alvasshowroom.comVenue: Alvas Showroomlocation: 1417 W. 8th St., San Pedro

The Sassy MinxxHarvelles is hosting The Sassy Minxx, 9:30 p.m. July 26. This is a cabaret show with a two-drink minimum purchase required. Nobody under the age of 21 is allowed. Admission is $10.details: (562) 239-3700; www.longbeach.harvelles.comVenue: Harvelleslocation: 201 E. Broadway, Long Beach

live reggaeThe San Pedro Brewing Company will be host to live reggae music, 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. July 26. The cover charge is $3.details: (310) 831-5663; www.sanpedrobrewing.comVenue: San Pedro Brewing Companylocation: 331 W. 6th St., San Pedro

July 26 – August 8, 2013ACE: Arts •

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Popularity of this nutrient-rich “pseudo cereal” has exploded in recent years.

Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) is called the ancient grain super food, having been cultivated in the Andes mountain regions of South America for five millennia. Along with maize, quinoa was the main food source of the Incas.

Gluten-free, high in protein, with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory qualities and a good source of fiber alas, it is not a grain at all, but a seed. It is called a pseudo cereal because it is a broadleaf plant that is grown for grain, unlike most cereals, which come from grassy plants. Its scientific name is Chenopodium quinoa. Chenopods are herbaceous flowering plants known as the goosefoots, which also include spinach and beets. There are more than 200 hundred varieties of quinoa that have adapted to diverse growing conditions -high altitudes, thin air, cool nights, dry weather. Peru and Bolivia are the largest commercial producers.

Now that the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations has declared the year 2013, “The International Year of Quinoa.” It’s time to give this versatile, easy-to-prepare super food a try.

Seeds can be black, red, pink, orange, yellow, or white in color. Quinoa is prepared in a method similar to rice. Simply bring one part rinsed quinoa and two parts water to a boil, then simmer, covered, until cooked, about 15 minutes. When the quinoa is ready, the germ, appearing as a translucent white spiral will be evident in each seed. Cooked quinoa is fluffy like couscous, creamy like rice, slightly crunchy with a nutty taste reminiscent of sesame seeds. Enjoy it for breakfast, tossed in a salad, stirred into soup. Serve it as a substitute for noodles or rice. Add cooked quinoa to ground beef to increase fiber and nutrients in burgers or let quinoa shine on its own, as a bright side dish or a vegetarian main course.

My “Sweet Sour Spicy Quinoa” makes a terrific side dish for grilled meat, chicken and fish.

IngredIents:1 cup uncooked white quinoa3 tablespoons olive oil2 tablespoon lime juicezest from 1 lime1 garlic clove, minced1 teaspoon ginger, minced1 teaspoon sugar3/4 teaspoon salt2 Serrano peppers, finely sliced1/2 cup scallion, thinly sliced1/2 cup pineapple, small dice1/4 cup papaya, small dice1/3 cup pomegranate arils10 basil leaves, cut into thin ribbons1/4 cup slivered almonds

recIpe:Cook quinoa according to package instructions.

Meanwhile combine olive oil, lime juice, lime zest, garlic, ginger, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add Serrano, scallion, pineapple, papaya, and pomegranate arils. Let fruit mixture sit to

meld flavors while quinoa comes to room temperature. Combine quinoa with the fruit mixture. Taste and adjust salt, olive oil, or lime juice as needed. Just before serving, toss in the basil and almonds. Super food!

Lori Lynn Hirsch Stokoe blogs about food, wine, and entertaining at Taste With The Eyes http://www.tastewiththeeyes.com and tweets as Tasteblog at https://twitter.com/tasteblog.

QuInoa:the ancient grain superfood

by: Lori Lynn Hirsch Stokoe, Contributing Writer

S U S H I B A R

Japanese RestaurantSushi Bar

380 W. 6th St. • 832-5585

478 W. 6th St. • Historic Downtown San Pedro310.548.2493

GIrlS’ NIGHT OuT: Les Miserables (2012)AuGuST 9 | 8pMHugh Jackman, Russell Crowe and Anne Hathaway star in this Oscar-winning, ground breaking musical drama about the fight for dreams, hope and love.$4 online at Miserables.brownpapertickets.com.Door - $6 cash.

A TrIBuTE TO MOTOWNAuGuST 2 | 7:30pMThe 5 Tempting Men Temptations Revue, 3 Diamonds Tribute to the Supremes and special guest MC Robert Gordy, Jr. (Motown Records) in an evening of greatest hits from two of the most successful acts in music history. VIP ticket incl artists’ reception. Tickets before July 4: $25 - $45 / after July 4: $35 - $55. Purchase online – sanpedrochamber.com or call 310.832.7272.

THE FABulOuS ESQuIrES IN CONCErTAuGuST 24 | 8pMLike that Big Band sound? Like Swing? Then you will LOVE the Fab Esq’s – a swingin’ 14 piece dance orchestra with special guest vocalists and period dancers to delight and amaze you!Tickets (before 8/10: $15 & $20 / after 8/10: $20 & $25) at Esquires.brownpapertickets.com.

GIrlS’ NIGHT OuT: The Devil Wears Prada (2006)SEpTEMBEr 6 | 8pMAndrea “Andy” Sachs (Anne Hathaway) is an aspiring journalist fresh out of college. Despite ridiculing the shallowness of the fashion industry, she lands the job “a million girls would kill for:” junior personal assistant to Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep), the icy editor-in-chief of Runway fashion magazine. Purchase tickets online for $4 - Devil.brownpapertickets.com tickets at the door $6 cash only.

Free!!!plEASE prESENT THIS COupON AT CONCESSIONS FOr ONE FrEE rEGulAr SIzE SOFT drINk Or BOTTlEd WATEr.

Exp. 09/02/13RLn

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The Warner Grand Theatre is a facility of the City of Los Angeles, operated by the Department of Cultural Affairs. For Information and Tickets, Please Visit WarnerGrand.org, GrandVision.org or ExperienceSP.com

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Instead of trying to project a manufactured authentic blues identity, he focused on projecting his own authentic self through the blues by con-centrating on using his own hardwired Southern dialect rather than trying to sound “black.”

Sean has been a serious student of the blues since at least the age of 15, digging deeply into the liner notes of artists such as ZZ Top, Jimi Hendrix, Stephen Ray Vaughn, and Led Zeppelin.

“When I heard ZZ Top playing Le Grange, I said that is the kind of music I want to play,” Sean said. “When I heard Led Zeppelin, it was all their blues covers that were my favorite tunes ... and the same thing with Jimi Hendrix.”

As a child, he would buy the notation tablets of his favorite artists and search out the cover songs and practice playing the guitar to them. It was at this age that he came to the conclusion that the blues was in him.

“I really didn’t have a choice in the matter,” Sean said. “It was just my taste.”

Sean described a period in his life where he strove to just be “a stone cold blues guy.” He was playing at the Blue Cafe, Harvelles, Cafe Booga-loo and others. He described himself as being a purist with a very limited musical palate when it came to the blues and solely focused on mastering those styles. He said that after using up every blues cliché he could use and had done everything he could do with open tunings and slide-guitars, he noted at the time, he had hit a wall creatively.

So, in 2001, he journeyed to Mississippi for the first time in his life. He knew Louisiana like the back of his hand. But Mississippi was a new experience. He only took with him a backpack with a single change of clothes, his national steel guitar, survival supplies and some CDs to sell to hit the road like his delta blues heroes did… He got to Mississippi, he hit up all of the historical blues landmarks as he traveled down Highway 61.

Sean then hopped on a train to Memphis and played on street corners until he was invited to play on BB King’s stage.

“It started out great, I traveled down Highway 61 visiting Tunica County Mississippi where Son House is from. Then I went down to Clarksdale and onto Tutwiler where Sonny Boy Williamson is buried. I had real chance to see the history of the blues”

The north-south terminus known as Highway 61 was an important thoroughfare for Southern-ers and particularly blues artist making their way from New Orleans, Louisiana to Minnesota, generally following the path of the Mississippi River. Highway 61 is the subject of many a legend, song and story. Among them being the junction of Highways 61 and 49 in Clarksdale, designated as the famous crossroads where, Robert Johnson supposedly sold his soul to the devil in exchange for mastery of the blues.

Sean traveled through Greenville, Greenwood and Cleveland, Miss. During the course of Sean’s discussion about the towns and hamlets he visited

along Highway 61, he went on a tangent and spoke on Cleveland, Miss.’s title as the birthplace of delta blues.

“There’s a Highway 8 right off Highway 61 in Cleveland, Miss.,” Sean explained. “That is where the Dockery Plantation is where Charley Patton started the whole blues thing. That’s where it really began and that’s where the real crossroads is at.”

So, Sean was making a tour through these significant blues sites, playing music all the way

through until he got to New Orleans. By the end of the journey, he felt something was wrong. Everybody liked his music, but no one was connecting to it. He came to the realization that he was playing a music form created by these people’s musical ancestors and no one remembered.

“It was almost as if everyone was saying, ‘that is really nice and interesting that you can play delta blues like the old guys,’ but nobody knew about the old guys anymore. So they didn’t real-ize I was playing Robert Johnson, note for note. Or, that I was playing an obscure Charley Patton song, because they had never heard it. And so they had nothing to compare it to. And they just thought it was interesting. But everybody was just waiting for the band to go on after my set so that they could dance.”

Sean felt he needed to be able to show that he connected with the audience on that level too, that he too could grab an electric guitar and rip it up. By the end of his trip, he came to the realization that something was missing from his identity as a blues artist.

“There was a part of my identity that was not coming through the music,” Sean said. “I was so concerned about proving to everybody that I could play like the old bluesmen, that I was ignoring the other influences, like the Led Zeppelin and the Jimi Hendrix, influence that were there when I was younger.”

After he finished his tour, Sean found himself in Hammond, La. While there, a television special on British blues-rock guitarists caught his atten-tion. Cream, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers were just rocking out and doing their thing. And, it was at that mo-ment Sean knew what he was doing wrong. He realized he wasn’t adding his musical identity to the blues, an identity that included being a young white, urban American.

To correct this, Sean went back to the roots of where he started as a musician, which coinci-dentally meant going electric just like the delta bluesman (Muddy Waters) he idolized. For Sean, that meant digging up the T.S. Eliot books and the Dylan, Hendrix, and ZZ Top records that inspired him in the first place and carving a new way forward-- a way that created a highly infectious North Mississippian (R.L. Burnside) delta groove that makes you get up and dance, or you can lay back and take a journey in the blues.

Catch Sean Lane at Godmothers Saloon on Wednesday nights while you can.

Sean has been a serious student of the blues since at least the age of 15, digging deeply into the liner notes of artists such as ZZ Top, Jimi Hendrix, Stephen Ray Vaughn, and Led Zeppelin.

July 27Allen Hinds GroupThe Allen Hinds Group is showcasing at Alvas Showroom, 8 p.m. July 27. The four-membered group plays the keys, bass, drums and guitar. The cover charge is $20. details: (800) 403-3447; www.alvasshowroom.comVenue: Alvas Showroomlocation: 1417 W. 8th St., San Pedro

Bourbon JonesBourbon Jones is performing at Harvelles, 9 p.m. July 27. This is a blues show and has a two-drink minimum purchase requirement. Nobody under the age of 21 is allowed. Admission ranges between $10 and $25.details: (562) 239-3700; www.longbeach.harvelles.comVenue: Harvelleslocation: 201 E. Broadway, Long Beach

doug Miller duoThe Doug Miller Duo is performing at Crafted, 2 to 5:30 p.m. July 27.details: (310) 732-1270; www.craftedportla.comVenue: Crafted, Port of Los Angeleslocation: 112 E. 22nd St., San Pedro

MuscleheadMusclehead is playing rock music at the San Pedro Brewing Company, 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. July 27. The cover charge is $3.details: (310) 831-5663; www.sanpedrobrewing.comVenue: San Pedro Brewing Companylocation: 331 W. 6th St., San Pedro

July 28AWOlAWOL is performing at Godmothers Saloon, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. July 28.details: (310) 833-1589; www.godmotherssaloon.comVenue: Godmothers Saloonlocation: 302 W. 7th St., San Pedro

July 29Shaun BrazellShaun Brazell and The Supa Lowery Brothers are performing at Harvelles, 8:30 p.m. July 29. Admission is $5.details: (562) 239-3700; www.longbeach.harvelles.comVenue: Harvelleslocation: 201 E. Broadway, Long Beach

July 30Comedy NightComedy Night at Godmother’s from 9 to 10 p.m. details: (310) 833-1589; www.godmotherssaloon.comVenue: Godmothers Saloonlocation: 302 W. 7th St., San Pedro

AuGuST 3dirk k TrioThe Dirk K Trio is performing at Alvas Showroom 8 p.m. Aug. 3. The band consists of four members who are playing the guitar, bass and drums. Special guest artists from Norway, Silje Nordehaug, will join them. The cover charge for the event is $20. details: (800) 403-3447; www.alvasshowroom.comVenue: Alvas Showroomlocation: 1417 W. 8th St., San Pedro

July 27Beach Animals reading with kidsThe San Pedro Library is hosting Beach Animals Reading with Kids, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. July 27. Practice your reading skills by reading aloud to Ruff, Tull and Gidget from BARK. details: (310) 548-7779; www.lapl.orgVenue: San Pedro Librarylocation: 931 S. Gaffey St., San Pedro

Shark SleuthsCome to the Aquarium from 10 to 11:30 a.m., July 27 to introduce your preschool student to marine life. This event is targeted for children age four through six. A parent or guardian is required, and the cost of the parent and child combination is $40. Please call the number below to RSVP a spot.details: (562) 951-1630; www.aquariumofpacific.orgVenue: Aquarium of the Pacificlocation: 100 Aquarium Way, Long Beach

July 28Glass Fusing ClassCrafted is hosting a glass fusing class at their Creation Station, 1 to 4 p.m. July 28. To register, email brmflyr144@yahoo.com details: (310) 732-1270; www.craftedportla.comVenue: Crafted, Port of Los Angeleslocation: 112 E. 22nd St., San Pedro

Jewelry Making ClassCrafted is hosting a jewelry making class, 12 to 2 p.m. July 28. This event requires you to RSVP two days in advanced. Admission is $20.details: (310) 732-1270; www.craftedportla.comVenue: Crafted, Port of Los Angeleslocation: 112 E. 22nd St., San Pedro

July 31Job Shadow: MammalogistThe Aquarium of the Pacific is hosting its Job Shadow: Mammalogist, 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. July 31. Do you need to shadow a marine biologist for a school assignment or are you just interested in what a job in the field of animal care is like? This event is intended for students in the 7th to 9th grade. Admission is $35 a student.details: (562) 951-1630; www.aquariumofpacific.orgVenue: Aquarium of the Pacificlocation: 100 Aquarium Way, Long Beach

AuGuST 117th Tafesilafa’i FestivalSong and Dances of the Pacific Island await you at the 17th Tafesilafa’i Festival, Aug. 1 through 4 at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. The festival is an effort by the Samoan faith community to provide a platform for the Pacific Islanders to share their heritage, culture, customs, language, dances, motifs and rhetoric under its slogan of “Culture Informed by Theology.” Tafesilafa’i (tah-feh-see-lah-fah-ee) in Samoan means meeting face to face. details: www.tafesilafai.org Venue: Aquarium of the Pacificlocation: 100 Aquarium Way, Long Beach

AuGuST 3Head Band Weaving ClassCrafted is hosting a head band weaving class, 12 to 2 p.m. Aug. 3. Admission is $20 in addition to a $20 earring kit fee. To register for the class, RSVP abeadthing@earthlink.netdetails: (310) 732-1270; www.craftedportla.comVenue: Crafted, Port of Los Angeleslocation: 112 E. 22nd St., San Pedro

AuGuST 4Color Theory for Jewelry designCrafted is hosting a color theory for jewelry design class, 12 to 2 p.m. Aug. 4. Admission is $20, plus a $5 fee for the class kit. To RSVP for the event, email abeadthing@earthlink.netdetails: (310) 732-1270; www.craftedportla.comVenue: Crafted, Port of Los Angeleslocation: 112 E. 22nd St., San Pedro

July 26Hairspray: The MusicalThe Warner Grand will be showing Hairspray: The Musical, at 7:30 July 26. You can’t stop the beat when Encore takes the stage in this rousing, award-winning tribute to the musical, social changes and the hairdos of the 60s. Tickets to the event are ranging from $17 to $22. This showing also runs July 28, at 6:30 p.m. details: (310) 548-2493; www.grandvision.orgVenue: Warner Grand Theatrelocation: 478 W. 6th St., San Pedro

Mary and the Fairy/My Cousin CurleyThe Long Beach Shakespeare Company presents Mary and the Fairy/My Cousin Curley, 8 p.m. July 26 and July 27. These are tales of horror, mystery and magic. Classic radio with live sound effects performed by actors. The admission is $10.details: (562) 997-1494; www.lbshakespeare.orgVenue: Long Beach Shakespeare Companylocation: 4250 Atlantic Ave., Long Beach

A Midsummer Night’s Gay DreamThe Long Beach Playhouse Theatre is hosting A Midsummer Night’s Gay Dream, 8 p.m. July 26. This new adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic comedy comes with a twist: Athenian law does not permit gay marriage. But with the help of the King and Queen of Fairies, the mischievous Puck and a band of plucky amateur thespians, the fates of two pairs of same-sex lovers embark on a hilarious course. The preview night will be on July 26 and tickets will be $12. Opening night is July 27 and tickets will cost $27, but with the chance to meet the cast. The next showing will be Aug.

Community/Family

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Art

Todd Simon is a connoisseur of coffee from regions around the world and has a particular interest in mixing blends. In fact, it was this interest that inspired the Ethiopian jazz ensemble--Ethio Cali (the connecting of Ethiopia and Cali, Colombia). Ethio Cali and University of Gnawa will performing at the Grand Performances on July 26.

Random Lengths conducted a phone interview with the trumpeter, arranger, composer, and bandleader of Ethio Cali, Simon. During the course of the interview, he shared his insights on the challenges of bridging the gaps between the world’s cultures with music.

“I think of it as this trickle down effect,” he contemplates. “That there’s something way more in the music than these funny organ sounds and funky guitar and the beats.”

Ethio Cali plays Ethiopian jazz music from what Simon calls the golden age of Ethiopian music in the 1960s and 70s. Ethio Cali infuses sounds from Sudan, Somalia, Ghana and Columbia into its jazz. Yet, as Simon explains, it is also something uniquely Los Angeles.

Simon grew up in the huge melting pot of different cultures that is Venice Beach. He says that we take it for granted here but most places outside of here are very homogenous, people aren’t open because they just don’t know. Simon offers that there is a social awareness to the music and music is his tool for spreading that openness.

Simon teamed up with Dexter Story, the mastermind behind the Nina Simon: Young Black and Gifted tribute that took place at the Grand Performances on July 5.

Story is accomplished on both the business and creative side of the music business. He has worked as a marketing director, managed artists and is a multi-instrumentalist to name just a few of his talents.

Simon recounts running into Story in New York in 2000.

“I was getting out of the subway to go home and I ran into Dex,” he said. “It was really special that we connected again in New York. He was working for Def Jam, I was playing with Antibalas and Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings. We met up a couple times but we were in totally different parallel worlds.”

The pair had remained in touch ever since.Simon’s way of coming up with the name Ethio

Cali illustrates his appreciation of integration. Part of this mix is porro, a style of music from the Caribbean region of Colombia combining cumbia rhythms with Ethiopian melodies

Simon’s website, ethiocali.com, features a video of artist Chicano Batman on accordion with Ethio Cali. Simon revealed that the accordion has a deep history in Ethiopian music.

“In a way, we are bringing the Ethiopian accordion style but with his background we’re getting this cumbia-East Los Angeles approach to it as well,” he continued.

Ethio Cali brings their own unique twist to traditional Ethiopian jazz.

Unconventionally, the band prominently features steel drums in their ensemble. Simon mentions that the artist Mulatu Astatke is considered the father of Ethio-Jazz. He is known for playing vibraphone, which is the typical sound you would expect in classic Ethiopian jazz.

“I thought we could flip it because we’re filling in these tropical sounds and rhythms,” he said. “So we have the steel drum player instead of the vibraphone and it works out real cool.”

Ethio Cali’s featured guest vocalist is Ethiopian–born Dereb the Ambassadore. He has a devout following — kind of the pop singer of his generation. He goes back to the roots of this music, combining Ethiopian folk music traditions with Western Jazz.

Reared in a musical family, Dereb’s vocal talent was noticed early on. He began singing at the age of four. As a teenager, he drew crowds wherever he performed in Ethiopia. His hit single, “Wollo” from his first solo album, Korkorow Yalew, in 2003 made number one on Ethiopian charts. His singing talent is recognized as powerfully capturing an array of emotions at one time.

“One reason he has become so popular,” Simon says, “is because over the years Ethiopian music has become very pop [oriented] in a way. They’re using auto tune and drum machines and Dereb wanted to bring focus back to the golden age of the music and highlight it. Everybody’s really responded to it. He was the one vocalist that we really wanted to work with.”

Ethio Cali also has a horn section. Simon noted the important role of the trumpet in Ethiopian music.

“The history of the trumpet is the calling to alert people to get their attention that someone important is coming to town, the messenger. One of the earliest forms of one is called the shofar. In the classical age it carried the melodies, but it wasn’t meant to stand out front.”

Simon says, “That’s why Louis Armstrong is so powerful, he took all the core elements of the trumpet and applied the blues and jazz to it. Most trumpet players are kind of related to Louis Armstrong in a way. In Los Angeles when you’re looking at jazz, trumpeters have evolved to focus on being flashier on their instrument, not more about what you’re saying, (as Armstrong did).”

Simon describes himself as a risk-taker an unconventional when it comes to the melody and the expression of music.

“The Ethiopian genre is a great palate and very open for me define this foreign form of approaching the trumpet.”

On sharing the stage that night with University of Gnawa, Simon explains he is a huge fan of Gnawan music.

“I think it’s going to be a great night because it’s all about transcending into that spiritual state,” he said. “We’re opening the night and after the audience experiences us, they are going to be really open to this (Gnawan) music, which is going to uplift them even more.”

Simon explains a core foundation of this band and music is the great idea that you can take a hybrid of cultures and meld them together creating a whole other new music.

“To me that’s the greatest form of unity and social harmony,” he said. “I always hope that somehow, subliminally, by us playing music of combining cultures, it sticks with the listener. Then they can go and spread this brotherly love of community and openness to new ways of thinking.”

Following the Grand Performance event you can catch Ethio Cali at the Blue Whale on July 28.

“The Blue Whale is one of the true venues that are doing it for the music and is so supportive to musicians,” Simon said. “It’s really something that the Los Angeles jazz community can look at with pride.”Details: http://ethiocali.com

2 at 8 p.m. and admission will be the regular $24. All showings listed begin at 8 p.m. details: (562) 494-1014; www.lbplayhouse.orgVenue: Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatrelocation: 5021 E. Anaheim St., Long Beach

July 28Rikki Tikki TaviThe Long Beach Shakespeare Company presents Rikki Tikki Tavi, 2 p.m. July 28. Thrilling stories of fantasy and adventure read live and in costume. Designed for children and enjoyed by all ages. The admission is $10.details: (562) 997-1494; www.lbshakespeare.orgVenue: Long Beach Shakespeare Companylocation: 4250 Atlantic Ave., Long Beach

AuGuST 2Ravens and Writing DesksThe Garage Theatre is showing Ravens and Writing Desks, 8 p.m. Aug. 2. Join the Post Mortem Movement Theatre’s adventure with Alice. We’re sure you won’t mind that we’ve taken some liberties with the source material to make it more appropriate for adults. Will Alice fall in love, break down and get back up again? See her grow and grow. Admission for this event is $20 because it is the first one. The show is running Aug. 2 through Aug. 31, on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. Admissions is normally $18, except for the last night when it is $20 again.details: (562) 818-7364; www.thegaragetheatre.orgVenue: The Garage Theatrelocation: 251 E. 7th St., Long Beach

The Kitchen WitchesThe Little Fish Theatre is hosting The Kitchen Witches, 8 p.m. Aug. 2. Two cable access cooking show mavens, who have hated each other since one of them stole the other’s husband, are brought together on one program. The studio audience is in for a treat as on-air theatrics give way to off-air drama and more than hash is flung around the set. Tickets start at $22. The show runs throughout August. details: (310) 512-6030; www.littlefishtheatre.orgVenue: The Little Fish Theatrelocation: 777 Centre St., San Pedro

local Waters, photography by Joel GitelsonPhotographer Joel Gitelson captures marine life and the surrounding scenery. This exhibition will open during San Pedro First Thursday Art Walk.details: www.facebook.com/michael.stearns.50, 562.400.0544Venue: Michael Stearns Gallery 347location: 347 W. 7th St., San Pedro Murals under the StarsGregorio Luke returns with a series including a new lecture on Mexican cinema. The three–week series will also include lectures on Diego Rivera and Dávid Alfaro Siqueiros. Images are projected life-size on a 1,800-square-foot outdoor wall. The event takes place on three consecutive Saturday’s: July 27, Aug. 3 and Aug. 10 at 8 p.m.details: (562) 437-1689; molaa.org Venue: Museum of Latin American Artlocation: 628 Alamitos Ave., Long Beach Abhorrence and ObsessionFor more than 20 years Bartalos has broken new ground and created constantly evolving characters and sets—part set design, part art installation—that tie the psychology of emotional responses to the visual effects of the moving image. Gabe Bartalos is a prosthetic effects artist who specializes in character effects and explicit gore. details: http://www.csulb.edu/org/uamVenue: University Art Museum, Cal State Long Beachlocation: 1250 Bellflower Blvd, Long Beach

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Ethio Cali: thE VoiCE of BrothErly loVE

by: Melina Paris, Music Columnist

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from the previous administrator and the transition to an electronic claims-processing system. Zenith continues to make good progress in addressing these legacy issues,” Gates explained. “Further, customer-service call centers and other resources are available to individuals who have questions about their claims, and an appeal and arbitration process exists to ensure that all claims are resolved appropriately.”

However, according to sources close to the arbitration hearings, the arbitration officer chided Zenith officials for holding up $30 claims when their investigation has only uncovered 1 to 2 percent claims have been uncovered as fraudulent.

The arbitrator’s ruling is expected to come back in three to four weeks.

Health Benefitsfrom p. 7

institutions —$19 million in Los Angeles County — thanks to fundraisers such as Relay for Life. In 2011, the society awarded $107,962,923 in new grants nationally. Since 1913, the society has awarded grants to 46 Nobel laureates.

About 25 percent of the money the society raises goes to fundraising and administrative costs; about 14 percent goes to early detection programs; about 26 percent goes to free patient support; 18 percent goes to prevention programs; and 15 percent goes to research. Research grants are awarded to institutions based on peer reviews.

For some types of cancer, research has made treatment a stepping stone for a cure for some patients.

“Colon cancer, for example, is now easy to prevent,” Row said. “If people get regular recommended screenings, precancerous cells can be detected and removed before they become cancerous.”

According to the American Cancer Society, about 147,000 breast cancer deaths have been prevented thanks to research and prevention treatments since 1991 thanks to research and improved prevention, early detection and treatment. In 1998, Dr. Bernard Fisher reported that tamoxifen reduces the incidence of breast cancer by 49 percent in high-risk women. In 2001, tamoxifen was found to prevent the recurrence of breast cancer in patients with the human tumor suppressor gene BRCA2.

Another example of how prior research has helped new discoveries is the case of an inhibitor called crizotinib. Thanks in large part to the Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn have advanced the treatment of certain forms of neuroblastoma, a childhood cancer of the peripheral nervous system.

By studying the biology of the tumor, they found that because growth receptors are compromised in cancer to work as signaling machines, there are certain crizotinib can be used to stop the proliferation of cells. In neuroblastoma,

about 10 percent of patients have mutations in the anaplastic lymphoma kinase gene, the gene carrying a receptor with the same name.

The use of crizotinib in adults showed tumors sometimes developed resistance to the drug. However, the research found promising results in some children, especially with a particular type of mutation. Unlike chemotherapy, which attacks cancerous and non-cancerous cells, this treatment has fewer side effects. The drug has also shown to be effective in treating an uncommon, but aggressive form of lymphoma, a type of blood cancer, eradicating the cancer in early trials.

Beyond fundraising, these organizations also need volunteers and participants for studies related to cancer and cancer prevention, especially in medically underserved communities. The Cancer Prevention Study-3 is inviting men and women between the ages of 30 and 65 years who have no personal history of cancer to join. The goal is to enroll at least 300,000 adults from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. Details: http://www.cancer.org/research/researchtopreventcancer/participate-cancer-prevention-3

Stopping Cancerfrom p. 5

Among the snooping revelations of recent weeks, there have been tantalizing bits of evidence that the NSA is tapping fiber-optic cables that carry nearly all international phone and Internet data.

The idea that the NSA is sweeping up vast data streams via cables and other infrastructure—often described as the “backbone of the Internet”—is not new. In late 2005, the New York Times first described the tapping, which began after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. More details emerged in early 2006 when an AT&T whistleblower came forward.

But like other aspects of NSA surveillance, virtually everything about this kind of NSA surveillance is highly secret and we’re left with far from a full picture.

Is the NSA really sucking up everything?It’s not clear.The most detailed, though now dated,

information on the topic comes from Mark Klein. He’s the former AT&T technician who went public in 2006 describing the installation in 2002-03 of a secret room in an AT&T building in San Francisco. The equipment, detailed in technical documents, allowed the NSA to conduct what Klein described as “vacuum-cleaner surveillance of all the data crossing the internet—whether that be peoples’ e-mail, web surfing or any other data.”

an AT&T building was capable of collecting information “not only for communications to overseas locations, but for purely domestic communications as well.”

On the other hand, the 2009 NSA inspector general report refers specifically to collecting “foreign-to-foreign communications” that are “transiting the United States through fiber-optic cables, gateway switches, and data networks”

But even if the NSA is tapping only international fiber optic cables, it could still pick up communications between Americans in the U.S.

That’s because data flowing over the Internet does not always take the most efficient geographic route to its destination.

Instead, says Tim Stronge of the telecom consulting firm TeleGeography, data takes “the least congested route that is available to their providers.”

“If you’re sending an email from New York to Washington, it could go over international links,” Stronge says, “but it’s pretty unlikely.”

That’s because the United States has a robust domestic network. (That’s not true for some other areas of the world, which can have their in-country Internet traffic routed through another country’s more robust network.)

But there are other scenarios under which Americans’ purely domestic communication

Does the NSA Tap That?What We Still Don’t Know About the Agency’s Internet SurveillanceBy Justin Elliott,

NSA Internet Tapping/ to p. 21

Unified School District and his family history with the illegal deportation of Mexican Americans in the 1930’s rekindles memories in our family. Our dad was left a widow with 5 children. (Our mother died giving birth to the last 2, (twins) on Christmas eve,

from p. 9

Klein said he was told there was similar equipment installed at AT&T facilities in San Diego, Seattle, and San Jose.

There is also evidence that the vacuuming has continued in some form right up to the present.

A draft NSA inspector’s general report from 2009, recently published by the Washington Post, refers to access via two companies “to large volumes of foreign-to-foreign communications transiting the United States through fiber-optic cables, gateway switches, and data networks.”

Recent stories by the Associated Press and the Washington Post also described the NSA’s cable-tapping, but neither included details on the scope of this surveillance.

Upstream slide (Washington Post)A recently published NSA slide, dated April 2013, refers to so-called “Upstream” “collection” of “communications on fiber cables and infrastructure as data flows past.”

These cables carry vast quantities of information, including 99 percent of international phone and Internet data, according to research firm TeleGeography.

This upstream surveillance is in contrast to another method of NSA snooping, Prism, in which the NSA isn’t tapping anything. Instead, the agency gets users’ data with the cooperation of tech companies like Facebook and Google.

Other documents leaked by Edward Snowden to the Guardian provide much more detail about the upstream surveillance by the British Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), the NSA’s U.K. counterpart.

GCHQ taps cables where they land in the United Kingdom carrying Internet and, phone data. According to the Guardian, unnamed companies serve as “intercept partners” in the effort.

The NSA is listening in on those taps too. By May 2012, 250 NSA analysts along with 300 GCHQ analysts were sifting through the data from the British taps.

Is purely domestic communication being swept up in the NSA’s upstream surveillance?

It’s not at all clear.Going back to the revelations of former AT&T

technician Mark Klein—which, again, date back a decade—a detailed expert analysis concluded that the secret NSA equipment installed at

1931). He fought the government’s attempt to place us in foster homes.

Then came the attempt to deport the family to Mexico. We missed the date of repatriation. The 5 of us came down with the mumps! Dad was told there would be another date. He was told to wait. We waited and waited and waited. We never heard again. (We are still waiting).

The 4 boys served in the military. 1 at the end of World War 2. (He had quit high school at the end of the 10th grade at the age 16) and served on occupation duty in Austria. The other 3 served during the Korean War. 2 with U.S. Marines in some of the major battles. “Iron Triangle,” “Heartbreak Ridge,” “Punch Bowl,” and “The Hook.”

The WW2 vet received a bachelor’s in history at CSULA in 1957. HE taught at Banning High School, Wilmington for 30 years and now 24 years as a substitute. His sons graduated from Millikan High School. Bother were captains of their debating teams. One at Humboldt State the other at CSULB and attended Harvard Law School. His grandfather was a combat veteran in the Mexican Revolution with the forces of Pancho Villa and immigrated to the U.S. in 1917. The family never asked him if he entered legally.

After 10 years as a professor of Law at Boalt Hall, University of California, he was appointed Dean of the Law School, University of San Diego. In 2012 he was appointed dean of the Law School, University of North Western.

Val RodriguezSignal Hill

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FICTITIOUS BUSINESS FILINGSson Ave., San Pedro, CA, 90731. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) Bilko Inc, 3320 S. Denison Ave., San Pedro, CA, 90731. This business is conducted by a corpo-ration. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above in 10/27/08. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ V. Anne Kohl, CEO. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on June 6, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Busi-ness Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdivision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 06/27/13, 07/11/13, 07/25/13, 08/08/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013111398The following person(s) is (are) do-ing business as: Built Strong Con-struction, 1249 W. 14th Street, San Pedro, CA 90731. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) Brian Armstrong, 1249 W. 14th Street, San Pedro, CA 90731. This business is conducted by an indi-vidual. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ Brian Armstrong, Owner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los An-geles on May 30, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Busi-ness Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdivision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 06/27/13, 07/11/13, 07/25/13, 08/08/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013116707The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: land’s end properties, 2515 S. Wstern Ave., Suite 15. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) R. Clinton Miller, 1373 W. 7th Street, San Pedro, CA 90732. This business is conducted by an individual. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious busi-ness name or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ R. Clinton Miller, Owner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on June 6, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Business Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it

was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdi-vision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 06/27/13, 07/11/13, 07/25/13, 08/08/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013135287The following person(s) is (are) do-ing business as: original Concrete Stone, 363 W. 12th St., San Pedo Ca 90731. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) Kasey Alex-ander Diaz, 791 W. 6th Strert, Apt #2, San Pedro, Ca 90731. This business is conducted by an indi-vidual. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ Kasey Alexander Diaz. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on June 28, 2013. Notice- In ac-cordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Busi-ness Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdivision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 07/11/13,

07/25/13, 08/08/13,08/22/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013123135The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: rain gut-ter Service, 1310 W. D St. #1, Wilmington, CA, 90744. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) Francisco Lopez, 1310 W. D St. #1, Wilmington, CA, 90744. This business is conducted by an indi-vidual. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who de-clares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ Francisco Lopez. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on June 13, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Business Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdi-vision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 07/11/13, 07/25/13, 08/08/13,08/22/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013123855The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: point Fermin marine, 2275 W. 25th Street #58, San Pedro, CA, 90732. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) Daniel Mead Fees Jr., 2275 W. 25th Street #58, San Pedro, CA, 90732. This business is conducted by an individual. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A

registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ Daniel Mead Fees Jr.,. This state-ment was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on June 14, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Business Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdi-vision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 07/11/13, 07/25/13, 08/08/13,08/22/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013134123The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: Fantasy Spa mobile pet grooming, 2671 S. Cabrillo Avenue, San Pedro, CA 90732. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) Adrian Garcia, 2671 S. Cabrillo Avenue, San Pe-dro, CA 90732. Erica Garcia, 2671 S. Cabrillo Avenue, San Pedro, CA 90732. This business is conducted by a married couple. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ Adrian Garcia. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on June 27, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Busi-ness Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdivision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013092642The following person(s) is (are) do-ing business as: San pedro Vapes, 447 W. 6th Street, San Pedro, CA 90731. County of Los Angeles. Mailing Address: 22806 Sierra Dr., Carson, CA 90746. Registered owner(s): Anthony Camu, 1331 ½ Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, CA 90802. Daniel Sandoval, 22806 Sierra Dr., Carson, CA 90746. This business is conducted by a general partnership. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ Anthony Camu, Partner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on May 6, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Business Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdi-vision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 06/13/13, 06/27/13, 07/11/13, 07/25/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013107913The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: gabbag.com, 8406 W 3rd Street, Los Angeles, CA 90048. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) Jack Kupelian, 4722 W. 163 Street, Lawndale CA 90260. This business is conducted by an individual. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name

or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ Jack Kupelian, President. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on May 24, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Ficti-tious Business Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdivision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 06/13/13, 06/27/13, 07/11/13, 07/25/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013116702The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: AK Accounting, 3320 S. Deni-

40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 07/11/13, 07/25/13, 08/08/13,08/22/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013135288The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: Affordable pC repair, 961 W. 21st Street, San Pedro, CA 90732. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) James Frances Sandor, 961 W. 21st Street, San Pedro, CA 90732. This business is conducted by an individual. The registrant com-menced to transact business un-der the fictitious business name or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ James Frances Sandor. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on June 28, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Business Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdi-vision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 07/11/13, 07/25/13, 08/08/13,08/22/13

Statement of Abandoment of use of Fictitious Business

nameFile no. 2012220894 Date Filed 11/05/2012

Seaside Healing Arts, 615 W. 9th Street, San Pedro, CA 90731Registered Owner(s): Body Shop Day Spa, Inc., 4001 Inglewood Ave., 101-639, Redondo each, Ca 90278. Business was conducted by a corporation. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. ( A registant who de-clares as true informaiton which he or she knows tobe falseis guilty of a crime.) Body DS/ Beth Hurewitz, President. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Ange-les County on July 11, 2013.07/25/13, 08/08/13, 08/22/13, 09/03/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013143691The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: Housewife on Wheels, 3470 S. Leland St., San Pedo Ca 90731. County of Los An-geles. Registered owner(s) Diane Taylor Carbone, 3470 S. Leland St., San Pedo Ca 90731. This business is conducted by an individual. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious busi-ness name or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ Diane Taylor Carbone. This state-ment was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on July 11, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Business Statement generally expires at the end of five

years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdi-vision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 07/25/13, 08/08/13, 08/22/13, 09/03/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013143692The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: Victory prop-erty investments, 100 Aquarium Way, #2, Long Beach, CA 90802. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) Luz Victoria Osuna, 723 N. Leland Ave., San Pedro, CA 90732. This business is conducted by an individual. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ Luz Victoria Osuna. This state-ment was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on July 11, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Business Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdi-vision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 07/25/13, 08/08/13, 08/22/13, 09/03/13

Fictitious Business name Statement

File no. 2013139431The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: Soulera, 510 Shepard St., San Pedro, CA 90731. County of Los Angeles. Registered owner(s) Andrew Jonathan Soto, 510 Shepard St., San Pedro, CA 90731. This business is conducted by an individual. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above in N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information, which he or she knows to be false, is guilty of a crime.). S/ Andrew Jonathan Soto. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on July 5, 2013. Notice- In accordance with Subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Business Statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the County Clerk, except as provided in Subdi-vision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence ad-dress of a registered owner. A New Fictitious Business Statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a Fictitious Business Name in violation of the rights of another under Federal, State, or common law (See Section 14411 et. Seq., Business and Professions Code). Amended (New Filing): 07/25/13, 08/08/13, 08/22/13, 09/03/13

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The Local Publication You Actually Read July - 26 - August 8, 2013

might pass over the international cables. Google, for example, maintains a network of data centers around the world.

Google spokeswoman Nadja Blagojevic told ProPublica that, “Rather than storing each user’s data on a single machine or set of machines, we distribute all data—including our own—across many computers in different locations.”

We asked Blagojevic whether Google stores copies of Americans’ data abroad, for example users’ Gmail accounts. She declined to answer.

Are companies still cooperating with the NSA’s Internet tapping?

We don’t know.The Washington Post had a story

earlier this month about agreements the government has struck with telecoms, but lots of details are still unclear, including what the government is getting, and how many companies are cooperating.

The Post pointed to a 2003 “Network Security Agreement” between the U.S. government and the fiber optic network operator Global Crossing, which at the time was being sold to a foreign firm.

That agreement, which the Post says became a model for similar deals with other companies, did not authorize surveillance. Rather, the newspaper reported, citing unnamed sources, it ensured “that when U.S. government agencies seek access to the massive amounts of data flowing through their networks, the companies have systems in place to provide it securely.”

Global Crossing was later sold to Colorado-based Level 3 Communications, which owns many international fiber optic cables, and the 2003 agreement was replaced in 2011.

Level 3 released a statement in response to the Post story saying that neither agreement requires Level 3 “to cooperate in unauthorized surveillance on U.S. or foreign soil.”

The agreement does, however, explicitly require the company to cooperate with “lawful” surveillance.

More evidence, though somewhat dated, of corporate cooperation with NSA upstream surveillance comes from the 2009 inspector general report.

“Two of the most productive [signals intelligence] collection partnerships that NSA has with the private sector are with COMPANY A and COMPANY B,” the report says.

“These two relationships enable NSA to access large volumes of foreign-to-foreign communications transiting the United States through fiber-optic cables, gateway switches, and data networks.”

There’s circumstantial evidence that those companies may be AT&T and Verizon.

It’s also worth noting that the NSA

might not need corporate cooperation in all cases. In 2005, the AP reported on the outfitting of the submarine Jimmy Carter to place taps on undersea fiber-optic cables in case “stations that receive and transmit the communications along the lines are on foreign soil or otherwise inaccessible.”

What legal authority is the NSA using for upstream surveillance?

It’s unclear, though it may be a 2008 law that expanded the government’s surveillance powers.

The only evidence that speaks directly to this issue is the leaked slide on upstream surveillance, and in particular the document’s heading: “FAA702 Operations.” That’s a reference to Section 702 of the 2008 FISA Amendments Act. That legislation amended the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, the 1970s law that governs government surveillance in the United States.

Under Section 702, the attorney general and director of national intelligence issue one-year blanket authorizations for surveillance of non-citizens who are “reasonably believed” to be outside the U.S. These authorizations don’t have to name individuals, but rather allow for targeting of broad categories of people.

The government has so-called minimization procedures that are supposed to limit the surveillance of American citizens or people in the U.S. Those procedures are subject to review by the FISA court.

Despite the procedures, there is evidence that in practice American

from p. 18

NSA Internet Tapping

Surveillance/ to p. 23

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across the country, most notably calling for federal civil rights charges to be brought against Zimmerman, and for the repeal of so-called “stand your ground laws,” which eliminate the traditional “duty to retreat”—to avoid violent confrontation if at all safely possible.

“We are trying to change laws so that this never, ever happens again,” the Rev. Al Sharpton, whose National Action Network organized the rallies, told the crowd in New York City.

Although Zimmerman’s lawyers did not formally invoke a “stand your ground” defense, the law—first passed in Florida in 2005, and

for a different standard of guilt for Zimmerman’s actions in the trial, and for substantially different jury instructions than would have been given before the law changed.

“If the Trayvon Martin killing was tried prior to the Stand Your Ground law being passed, the jury would have been told that self-defense was not available to Zimmerman unless he had used every reasonable means to avoid the danger,” U.S. Attorney and former Florida State Sen. Dan Gelber explained on his blog, the day after the verdict.

Finally, “stand your ground” was specifically mentioned by juror b37 in her CNN interview, describing the jury’s deliberations. Its presence permeated the case.

The law has come in for a great deal of criticism over the years, but it’s never had the sort of high-profile attention that its gotten in wake of the Trayvon Martin’s killing. If activists can sustain the pressure over time, there are countless horror stories to be told about how horribly wrong

the law has gone. Because it’s mostly been adopted by deep Red states, some pundits have concluded the protests will have no effect. Governors in Florida, Georgia and Arizona have already re-stated their unwavering support. But police chiefs and prosecutors

DESIGNS

They were right. Within two years, according to a 5-year review in the Tampa Bay Times, Florida’s rate of justifiable homicides roughly tripled, from around 33 in the decade until then, up to 102 in 2007, 93 in 2008 and 105 in 2009. These “justifiable homicides” even included gangland shootings, the article reported: “In 2008, two gangs in Tallahassee got into a shoot-out. A 15-year-old boy was killed. A judge dismissed charges against the shooters, citing ‘stand your ground’.”

More broadly, researchers at Texas A&M analyzed the impact of “stand your ground” laws nationally in the past decade. They found no deterrent effect on burglary, robbery or aggravated assault. But there was an 8 percent increase in murders and non-negligent homicides—an additional 600 intentional homicides per year.

The NRA promoted “stand your ground” as a way to protect innocent law-abiding citizens. But that’s not how it’s turned out. A just-reported Tampa Bay Times analysis of more than 100 fatal “stand your ground” cases showed that:

• Almost 60 percent had been arrested at least once before the day they killed someone. Forty percent had three or more arrests.

• More than 30 defendants, about one in three, had been accused of violent crimes, including

assault, battery or robbery.• More than a third had previously been in

trouble for threatening someone with a gun or illegally carrying a weapon.

But even though gangsters have used the law successfully, others have not. The most notorious example is that of Marissa Alexander, sentenced to 20 years for discharging a warning shot when threatened by her abusive husband. Unlike her

since spread to 24 other states—played a key role in letting Zimmerman walk. It was responsible for Zimmerman not being charged or investigated until six weeks after the fact, following a national outcry raised in response to his parents’ early advocacy. This delay substantially hindered the prosecution in building its case.

“Stand your ground” was also responsible

from p. 1

A New Civil Rights Movement?

have opposed the law from the beginning, so unexpected alliances may emerge to produce unforeseen results.

The law was pushed by the National Rifle Association in 2005, over the objections of Florida prosecutors and police including the National District Attorneys’ Association, the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys’ Association, and police chiefs from major cities like Miami and St. Petersburg—who warned that the law would produce more violence and death, rather than the increased safety and security that the National Rifle Association promised.

continued on following page

Jahvaris and Sybrina Fulton, brother and mother of Trayvon Martin at a rally.

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The Local Publication You Actually Read July - 26 - August 8, 2013

husband, she had no previous criminal record. But she was black. And race matters enormously in such cases.

Analyzing data between 2005 and 2010, John Roman of the Urban Institute found that just one percent of homicides with a black shooter and a white victim were ruled justified, compared to 11 percent when the shooter was white and the victim was black—a number that rose to almost 17 percent (one in six cases) in “stand your ground” states.

In short, the facts are overwhelmingly against “stand your ground” laws. They do not empower law-abiding citizens to effectively deter crime. They do encourage potentially lethal recklessness, and they empower violent criminals to kill. They produce hundreds of additional homicide victims every year. On top of all that, they produce decidedly racist outcomes, regardless of individuals’ conscious intent.

But none of those facts will matter in a vacuum, and that’s where the impact of Trayvon Martin comes in. It took eight long years of struggle from Emmett Till’s funeral in Chicago to the March on Washington—a march whose 50th anniversary will be commemorated next month with marches all across the country.

While the black community stood at the heart of that struggle, there was a significant white presence, most notably from students, labor unions, mainline Protestant churches, and others on the religious left and center-left. While the labor unions and mainline Protestant churches are mere shadows of the influential institutions they once were, white support now comes from a much broader range of sources, including the very suburbs which were created in part by white flight and redlining—suburbs like Newtown, Conn.

“I hope that more people get mobilized,” said

Newtowner Katherine Morosky, who attended the rally in New York and was interviewed by the New Yorker magazine. Five of her first-grade daughter’s friends were murdered at Sandy Hook.

“It’s a personal issue for me, a white woman in the suburbs, now,” Morosky said. “Because it’s all about kids. I’m a mom and I’m a teacher, too. And, you know, it’s about keeping kids safe. Kids aren’t safe in an affluent New England town, kids aren’t safe in South Florida. They’re not safe anymore because people are walking around with guns. Stand your ground—find a reason for it, that’s just ridiculous.”

Morosky was there because she saw Trayvon Martin as a kid—because she saw him through a mother’s eyes, just as the jurors who acquitted George Zimmerman had failed to do. This simple contrast reminds us that, like the Civil Rights Movement of the 50s and 60s before it, the current resurgence has mutual humanization at its core. It started with Emmett Till in 1955. It starts with Trayvon Martin today.

communications are swept up by surveillance under this section.

In the case of Prism, for example, which is authorized under the same part of the law, the Washington Post reported that the NSA uses a standard of “51 percent confidence” in a target’s foreignness.

And, according to minimization procedures dating from 2009 published by The Guardian, there are also exceptions when it comes to holding on to American communications. For example, encrypted communications—which, given the routine use of digital encryption, might include vast amounts of material—can be kept indefinitely.

The government also has the authority to order communications companies to assist in the surveillance, and to do so in secret.

How much Internet traffic is the NSA storing?

We don’t know, but experts speculate it’s a lot.“I think that there’s evidence that they’re

starting to move toward a model where they just store everything,” says Dan Auerbach, a staff technologist at the Electronic Frontier

Foundation. “The Utah data center is a big indicator of this because the sheer storage capacity has just rocketed up.”

We know more details about how the GCHQ operates in Britain, again thanks to the Guardian’s reporting. A breakthrough in 2011 allowed GCHQ to store metadata from its cable taps for 30 days and content for three days. The paper reported on how the spy agency—with some input from the NSA—then filters what it’s getting:

The processing centres apply a series of sophisticated computer programmes in order to filter the material through what is known as MVR—massive volume reduction. The first filter immediately rejects high-volume, low-value traffic, such as peer-to-peer downloads, which reduces the volume by about 30 percent. Others pull out packets of information relating to “selectors”—search terms including subjects,

Surveillancefrom p. 21

phone numbers and email addresses of interest. Some 40,000 of these were chosen by GCHQ and 31,000 by the NSA.

How does the NSA do filtering of the data it gets off cables in the United States?

“I think that’s the trillion dollar question that I’m sure the NSA is working really hard at all the time,” Auerbach, the EFF expert. “I think it’s an incredibly difficult problem.”

Trayvon Martin rallies sprouted up from coast to coast following the George Zimmerman “Not Guilty” verdict. There was a rally at Comic Con in San Di-ego, rallies in downtown Houston, Texas, a rally that crossed the Brooklyn Bridge in New york, and in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Below, a teen held by a LAPD officer following violence after a candlelight vigil in Leimert Park on July 16.

Former olympic boxer Henry Tillman, far left, Carson Mayor Jim Dear, councilmen Albert Robles and Elito Santarina. Carson civic leaders joined olympic boxer Henry Tillman on July 11 for the grand opening of his new boxing club on Avalon Boulevard. More than 30 local dignitaries joined boxing celebrities and other pro athletes for the ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Henry Tillman Championship Boxing Club. Photo: Kelvin Brown.

Olympic Boxer Henry Tillman Opens Boxing Gym in Carson

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