Montebello E-News

June 28, 2007 

There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,
than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
From Hamlet, Act 1, Scene V, by William Shakespeare,
famous English poet and playwright, baptized 1564, died 1616

1.     The Blame Game

2.     My $90 Bill to the State of California

3.     From History to Hysteria, Part 4

4.     Announcements

5.     Fun Facts about Dolphins

6.     The Flashback Quarterback on Illegal Immigrants

7.     About Montebello E-News and “My Montebello” 

The Blame Game 

          Recently, “Lack of Art Venues Stifles Students in Montebello” appeared in The Wave, a local newspaper.  There were comments that Montebello did not provide sufficient opportunities for youth to express themselves through art.  In rebuttal, it was pointed out that Montebello did have art programs, but either a lack of interest, lack of venues or a lack of usefulness (cannot turn art into a paying career) was the obstacle. 

          A teacher pointed out that art was useful for self-expression.  An administrator said that the schools were doing their share. 

          Keeping youth occupied in a constructive activity, be it art or something else, is useful.  I do not know anyone who would disagree with that.  So why would there be a problem?  There is more than one culprit, so we all could share in the blame. 

          For one, available money is prioritized for an older, voting population in Montebello, that is, the priorities are paramedics and police.  Does that mean that we have intergenerational conflict?  No, but we do have different priorities.  (Even in a community, there are subcultures, identified by age, country of origin, immediate goals, primary language, abilities and disabilities.  Each subculture has its priorities, which might different from those of another subculture.  As a population grows, the number of subcultures in that population grows.  This is one way to explain the inevitability of diversity and the inevitability of different priorities.)  How does one overcome the squeeze on money?  The solution was mentioned in the December 13, 2006, E-News:  print money.  Other communities do it.  The only thing holding Montebello back is a lack of willpower on the part of residents and merchants. 

          Here is an example of a subculture with a different priority.  Youth who are going to school prioritize college or jobs.  They are not interested in the community and the community is not interested in them.  But if we think outside the box, can we bridge this gap?  For starters, imagine youth doing art, going to the Montebello Senior Center, making an informal introduction to seniors, and giving their work as presents.  Also, imagine youth being paid for their art from the money which Montebello prints. 

Another culprit is that youth and their parents do not know how to articulate their priorities.  This obstacle arises directly from the lack of interaction with the community, and the fault for this lack of interaction lies with the school curriculum, which is composed to meet the “a through g” requirements of the University of California and California State University.  Why?   Because the universities’ “a through g” requirements do not give sufficient value to interaction with the community, neither does the school curriculum, so youth and parents do not know how to enlist the community’s support for youth programs. 

“Ask not what your city can do for you;  ask what you can do for yourself.” 

If you answer the multiple-choice questions below and e-mail to lessonanswers@mymontebello.com with “Lesson answers” in the subject field, you will be credited toward a “certificate of recognition in community affairs” to be awarded in 2007 by a local nonprofit organization. 

1.  What keeps Montebello from giving art higher priority?

(a) Art is not as useful to the majority of residents as are other municipal services.

(b) The proponents of art do not know how to persuade their neighbors. 

2.  By thinking outside the box, we can provide solutions without asking our city to increase funding for art.  Which solutions?

(a) We can print our own money to support art activities in Montebello.

(b) We can find ways to make art relevant to different subcultures in Montebello.

 My $90 Bill to the State of California 

If what I did below to resolve a problem sounds strange to you, then I urge you to find a way to start thinking outside the box.  (Unfortunately, I know of no course in California, in a university, community college or high school, which teaches us to think outside the box.) 

Below is an excerpt from a letter mailed on June 12 to the Department of Motor Vehicles.  The subject is the export of a car to a relative in another country.  The reason for the bill is that Californians did a service to the Department of Motor Vehicles, by finding and reporting a flaw in DMV’s processing system .  How would you have handled this? 

This is a bill to the California Department of Motor Vehicles (“Department”) for $90 for a service to Department  provided by [Californians]… 

In October, 2006, Californians came to the Montebello office of Department to deliver signed export papers.  Upon handing said papers to a Department employee, [daughter] asked said Department employee whether there was anything else to do.  The answer was “no”.  After exiting the building, [daughter] returned and asked the same employee, wanting to ensure that [eighty-three year old father] had signed the export papers.  Said employee again assured that there was nothing more to do. 

In January, evidenced by the first attachment, a notice [of deficient  paperwork] came from Department.  Californians went in February to the aforementioned office of Department and spent an hour as an employee and supervisor decided what to do.  The decision was that a copy of title to the vehicle be obtained from Department;  the supervisor waived any applicable fee.  [Daughter] filed a complaint. 

After the copy of the title arrived, Californians went in March to the aforementioned office and spent an hour processing, as a Department employee and supervisor had to decide what to do.  [Father] signed the export papers at said office.  The employee then faxed the papers, presumably to Department in Sacramento. 

In June, evidenced by the second attachment, a notice [of deficient paperwork] came from Department. 

We assume, with this explanation, that everything would be in order and that Californians would not have to return to aforementioned office of Department.  We thank you for the opportunity to be of service and look forward to Department’s remittance or credit…. 

If you answer the multiple-choice questions below and e-mail to lessonanswers@mymontebello.com with “Lesson answers” in the subject field, you will be credited toward a “certificate of recognition in community affairs” to be awarded in 2007 by a local nonprofit organization. 

1.  Where did the problem lie in this transaction with the State of California?

(a) The Californians did not know what to do.

(b) Either the Sacramento or Montebello office of the Department of Motor Vehicles did not know what to do. 

2.  Why do you suppose that I did not write a complaint to the Department of Motor Vehicles?

(a) Department staffers are busy and something unusual is needed to draw their attention.

(b) Those who are paid, namely, state employees, should realize that those who are not paid, namely, Californians, still value their time.

(1) Skepticism, like chastity, should not be relinquished too readily.
(2) Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
George Santayana
Spanish-born philosopher, essayist, poet, and novelist, 1863 – 1952 

In part three of this essay, the conclusion was made that we discard the teaching of history—in fact, the teaching of a secular faith purporting to be history—in favor of a thorough and continual grounding, much more than is now done, in critical thinking, rhetoric, polemics, and the Socratic method of teaching.  We asked how the world would be different if we made that change. 

If we became skeptical by nature, different kinds of advertising would have to change:  political campaigns, White House and Congressional pronouncements, product and service promotions.  The thirty-second sound bite and the hit piece by mail—soon to come to a mailbox near you if you live in Montebello—would loose their potency. 

Negative political advertising would become a negative for those doing the advertising.  Endorsements and brag sheets would be less impressive because we the skeptical voters would give less credence.  Facts and statistics would take on greater significance, as would personal appearances and local endorsements.  Candidates more likely would use the Internet to communicate information, providing hyperlinks to impartial third-party Web sites.  Would candidates communicate directly with voters via e-mail and online discussion groups?  Maybe.  The problem there would be that the candidates might use paid consultants to do the talking for them. 

The White House and Congress, in order to gain support, would quote third-party sources more often and would make more government documents public.  (One imagines that this would apply to all government entities at all levels, except those which felt themselves impervious to the will of the populace.)  News conferences would have third-party speakers endorsing the White House or Congressional position.  We would give news from foreign sources more weight than we now do. 

As for commercial advertising, we might see less buffoonery—as entertaining as that is—and more reference to impartial third parties, like a consumer-protection agency, Consumer Union or a medical association. 

Since it is unlikely that enough of us would become skeptics to bring about what is explained above, what is the next best thing?  That is explored in the next part.           

FOR EVERYONE.  Free summer concerts.   Thursdays from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the Montebello City Park band shell.  The following bands will perform:

July 5:          Hard Days Night

July 12:        Cold Duck

July 19:        Yare More

July 26:        Chico

August 2:     (To Be Announced)

August 9:     (To Be Announced)

August 16:   Montebello Wise Guys

August 23:   Mariachis Divas

August 30:   Ace 

For more information, contact the Montebello City Department of Parks and Recreation at 323.887.4540. 

FOR YOUTH.  Job at library.  Volunteer opportunities for high-school and college students at the Montebello library, 1550 West Beverly Boulevard.  A responsible volunteer might be hired as a paid page.  For more information, call 323.722.6551 and ask for Steve or Mary of the Friends of the Library. 

FOR YOUTH AND THEIR TEACHERS.  Available money.  Disney Minnie Grants for 2007, second round.  The Walt Disney Company and Youth Service America are pleased to announce grants of up to $500 to support youth-led service projects.  These grants support youth ages five through fourteen in planning and implementing service projects in their community. Teachers, older youth aged fifteen to twenty-five, youth-leaders, and youth-serving organizations are also eligible to apply, provided that they engage younger youth ages five through fourteen in planning and implementing the service. Service can take place between October 1 and November 26, 2007.  Projects can address themes such as the environment, disaster relief, public health and awareness, community education, hunger, literacy, or any issue that youth identify as a community need.  Go to www.YSA.org/awards for more information.  Questions?  Email MinnieGrant@ysa.org. Receipt deadline: August 30, 2007.  (Note:  if youth do not have a teacher to help them, contact Van Ajemian at project_teacher@mymontebello.com .  Put “I am interested in Disney grant” in the subject field.)  Be sure to download the correct application and review all application materials before submitting.  This message is from Youth Service America. 

About dolphins, from http://library.thinkquest.org/J002260F/DolphinsFun%20Facts.htm . 

They can jump up to twenty feet above water.

Their brain is bigger than a monkey’s.

They have one hundred teeth.

Some kinds of dolphins can hold their breath for thirty minutes.

The Boto is the largest dolphin.

The dolphin may eat up to thirty pounds of fish a day.

The baby dolphin can stay with his mother for two to three years.

The dolphin can live to be fifty years old. 

Recently, a petition circulated by e-mail, asking Congress to ensure that illegal immigrants not receive Social Security.  That petition concerned me because so many people had signed without verifying the claim that illegals took from Social Security. 

E-News essays have said much about checking facts before making decisions, more so when the consequences are large.  As for illegals and Social Security, here is an opposite claim: 

“Illegal Immigrants Are Bolstering Social Security with Billions”

By Eduardo Porter, The New York Times, April 5, 2005 

Since illegally crossing the Mexican border into the United States six years ago, Ángel Martínez has done backbreaking work, harvesting asparagus, pruning grapevines and picking the ripe fruit. More recently, he has also washed trucks, often working as much as 70 hours a week, earning $8.50 to $12.75 an hour.  

Not surprisingly, Mr. Martínez, 28, has not given much thought to Social Security's long-term financial problems. But Mr. Martínez - who comes from the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico and hiked for two days through the desert to enter the United States near Tecate, some 20 miles east of Tijuana – contributes more than most Americans to the solvency of the nation's public retirement system.  

Last year, Mr. Martínez paid about $2,000 toward Social Security and $450 for Medicare through payroll taxes withheld from his wages. Yet unlike most Americans, who will receive some form of a public pension in retirement and will be eligible for Medicare as soon as they turn 65, Mr. Martínez is not entitled to benefits. 

He belongs to a big club. As the debate over Social Security heats up, the estimated seven million or so illegal immigrant workers in the United States are now providing the system with a subsidy of as much as $7 billion a year. … 

To learn about this newsletter, Montebello E-News, and the accompanying, growing Web site, “My Montebello”, visit www.mymontebello.com.  Also, you will find instructions and contact information for submitting announcements for publication in this newsletter.