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Montebello E-News

  August 15, 2009

 The first principle of a civilized state is that the power is legitimate only when it is under contract.

Walter Lippman

 (But when the state breaches a contract or reinterprets it, where does the public have recourse, as the judiciary is part of the state and, therefore, presumably biased?)

1. Announcements

2. Remember “LOCO”?

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

That was a wash.  As in “washed out by moonlight”.  Getting up and going outside at 3:30 a.m. last Tuesday, I found that the waning, but still bright, moon was where the Perseid meteor showers should be.  Fifteen minutes later, I came inside without a single sighting.

Help for homebuyers.  Looking for some down payment funding? How does $46,490,368 work for you? That’s how much is available today for qualified first-time homebuyers who take advantage of the California Homebuyer’s Downpayment Assistance Program, CHDAP. Montebello Housing Development Corporation’s certified and trained counselors can assist first-time homebuyers with their secondary financing needs.  CalHFA’s CHDAP can cover up to 3% of the home sales price for a first-time buyer’s down payment or closing costs. And, best of all, this junior loan does not need to be repaid until the home is sold, refinanced or paid in full.  CHDAP details are available on the CalHFA web site, www.calhfa.ca.gov or by calling Montebello Housing Development Corporation at 323-722-3955 and ask to speak to a first time homebuyer counselor to get started today! Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.  Act now and call today! ...

RSVP now for hundred-year bash.  Welcome, Montebello Alumni and Friends.  Come to a Reunion and Alumni Homecoming Party, Friday, Nov 6, 2009 from 9:00 pm - 2:00 am.  DoubleTree Hotel in Rosemead . Very casual, only $20.00 per person includes one drink and light hors d'oeuvres.  DJ, Karaoke, dancing music from the 60's & 70's, restaurant, lounge, bar and quiet areas for visiting or just hanging out with friends from the classes of 69, 70, 71, 72 & 73.  Pre-sale tickets will be available from Denise Manookian Hagopian '72, montebelloreunions@msn.com, at Heavenly Choice, 534 N. Montebello Blvd., 323 728-2728.  All credit cards, debit, check, money order.  Alternatively, Julie Milan '71, 323 359-7598, bigjulz@aol.com, or Kristine Algori '71, 909 599-8969, kalgori@aol.com, by check, money order, cash.  Limited to 200 tickets, so buy yours now.

The hills are alive with the sound of?  [To understand the significance of what is said below, we have to know what the SCAQMD is.]  We should not let third parties do the thinking for us;  at the same time, when a third party like the SCAQMD says something, we should pause to think.  The SCAQMD is concerned that residents and other sensitive receptors in the proposed residential development would be exposed to borderline significant levels of cancer risk and significant operational NOx emissions from the active oil field operations that will continue to operate 24 hours per day, seven days per week within the proposed development. The lead agency has estimated that sensitive receptors would be exposed to a cancer risk level of 9.9 in one million compared with the SCAQMD threshold of 10 in one million (1.0 x 10-5) and would also be exposed to 459 pounds per day of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) from future ongoing oil field operations, which exceeds the SCAQMD’s recommended regional daily significance threshold for NOx of 55 pounds per day by approximately eightfold. Therefore, the SCAQMD is concerned about the incompatibility of the proposed project with the adjacent ongoing oil field operations where residents would be exposed to elevated air toxic emissions and significant criteria pollutant emissions. ...  Excerpt from a letter to the City of Montebello .  http://srvwww.aqmd.gov/CEQA/igr/2009/June/DEIRmontebello.pdf .

Save the world, win a prize.  …We run global water prize competitions to guide innovation toward need, and provide a rigorous business incubator to ensure that our prize-winners can successfully take their ideas to market. Our impact is direct - new solutions to key water problems, and systemic – developing the Silicon Valley for water, an ecosystem of stakeholders to the next great water innovations. ...

Total prizes given in 2009-10 will be $50,000. Winners will receive cash, in-depth business incubation including introductions to financiers, potential beta customers and go-to-market partners, as well as a reduced rate or free office space. Winners will also receive the opportunity to present at a showcase event for water innovation. ...  For more information, www.imagineh2o.org.

First, 1-800-Dentist.  Now…  we have a similar service for building contractors.  Information can be found at http://www.yourlocalcontractornetwork.com/ .  The mission statement:

Our Mission:  To provide each one of our clients with an exceptional remodeling experience. We understand how important trust is in a contractor / client relationship. Our clients rely on us to serve on their behalf, ethically and responsibly. Our success isn’t measured by the quantity or the dollar value of the projects completed, but by the level of client satisfaction. Our goal is to provide excellent service, high quality and great value to each and every one our clients. Of course, our Network Contractors do beautiful work, too! ...

How true is this service to its mission statement?  It is worth checking out this service before using it.

Bookmark this.  Our city now has an excellent calendar of city meetings and events.  www.cityofmontebello.com/cals/default.asp.  One thing missing is for our community organizations to come together, obtain the calendar design from the city, and agree among themselves to faithfully maintain, for the public, a separate master community calendar on the Internet.

We have an essay, “Is Everyone ‘LOCO’?”, archived in Montebello E-News, http://www.mymontebello.com/life_tc_iel1.htm.  LOCO says that there is a limit on making good decisions, in part because we are overwhelmed, in part because of the accuracy and sufficiency of the information reaching us.  Here is a striking example of trying to do good and, perhaps, making things worse.

From UN Wire, 8.7.09

Growing U.S. sex-offender registries pose problems

While U.S. laws are tough on sex offenders, the broad definition of the term makes it difficult to distinguish between the most dangerous offenders and everyone else. At least 13 states commit the names of people convicted of urinating in public to sex-crimes registries, while 29 states require registration for teens who have consensual sex with other teens. The explosion of the ranks of sex-offender registries has made it more difficult for authorities to track authentically dangerous sex offenders. The Economist (8/6)