Car Privilege Hurts Bay Trail Detour

The San Francisco Bay Trail is an excellent facility for walkers and bicyclists. It takes them away from cars and next to the bay where they can enjoy bird watching and nature. However, car privilege and thoughtlessness can really screw it up.

For 2 weeks from July 24 to August 7, 2019 and then later for an 8 week period from August 21 to October 21, Sunnyvale has closed the Bay Trail section next to the Sunnyvale Smart Station and the Water Pollution Control Plant while some construction happens for the Water Plant.

Alas the detour that was put in place has major negative consequences for walkers or bicyclists. Cars are fine on Caribbean Drive so bicyclists and walkers should be fine too, right? Wrong!  Each of the following problems (and not choosing a better detour) is an example of car privilege -- prioritizing car convenience over safety for bicyclists and pedestrians.

For pedestrians:
1) the east bound detour routes walkers down very long sections of high speed Caribbean Drive where there are no sidewalks and no easy shoulder to walk on. WTF!
2) if walking on the road they are required to walk with traffic, not against it, contrary to standard pedestrian guidelines.
3) Caribbean has high speed traffic that is not at all a trail-like experience.

For cyclists:
1) a U turn across 6 lanes of Caribbean. This is very difficult to do even for an advanced bicyclist!
2) the bike lane has a number of stretches where there is a ridge along the gutter in the bike lane that could catch a tire and cause a fall.
3) Caribbean has high speed traffic that is not at all a trail-like experience.
4) this detour routes bicyclists who were expecting to be on a safe trail through the same unmodified section of road where a bicyclist was killed last year.

These serious issues put trail users at considerably greater risk and also expose the City of Sunnyvale to significant legal risk as well -- people tend to sue if they are hurt by poorly designed facilities.

People use the Bay Trail to avoid high speed streets like Caribbean. It is not acceptable to route trail users onto Caribbean without more accommodations for them.

There is a pretty easy solution if you put car privilege aside.

Since Caribbean is 3 lanes in both directions but due to traffic volumes only 2 lanes are needed, a thoughtful detour would block off one entire car lane on the bay side of Caribbean and turn it into a 15' wide temporary "popup" shared bicycle and pedestrian path completely separated from motor vehicles so bikes and pedestrians would have a substantially trail-like experience and just need to negotiate a single crossing at Borregas where the traffic is much slower to rejoin the Bay Trail rather than deal with multiple intersections across the much wider and faster Caribbean Drive. This option would provide an excellent trail-like detour and would also be a good test to see how well this works and possibly make it permanent from Borregas all the way down to Baylands Park. It is also advantageous for commuter cyclists using the existing bike lane on Caribbean as they get a bit of relief from cars speeding past their elbow -- a 15' wide multi-use path is easy for all bicyclists and pedestrians to share and pedestrians also have the option of using a super wide flat shoulder as well with one small exception (a sign fully blocking said shoulder) noted in the photos below.

This car lane closure option would significantly reduce risk to trail users and legal risk to the City of Sunnyvale.

Going forward, since Sunnyvale continues to have challenges in keeping bicyclists and pedestrians safe (3 motor vehicles recently hit 3 bicyclists in 3 different locations of Sunnyvale on July 23 and July 25), it would be good for the city to consult some bicycle and pedestrian experts before making willy nilly changes (even temporary ones) to bike and pedestrian facilities in the future. I've asked the Sunnyvale Public Works Department for an explanation of their current detour choice and am waiting for a reply.

Another good option to assess whether a facility is well designed is to have an 8 year old and an 80 year old navigate any new proposed bicycle or pedestrian facility to see if they are happy with it. If both an 8 year old and an 80 year old think it is great, it is likely great for all users. For more about this 8 & 80 city design principle, see https://www.880cities.org/

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Here is the closure announcement from the Sunnyvale City Manager:

Temporary Bay Trail Closures and Detour

As part of the Pump Station No. 1 Rehab Project, a temporary closure of the Bay Trail began on July 24. This closure is expected to be approximately two weeks in length. The trail will be temporarily reopened for two weeks following the sheet piling work and prior to the contractor excavating the levee that the Bay Trail runs on. A second closure is expected to last about eight weeks.


Bikes and pedestrians are being detoured onto Caribbean Drive during the closures. For more information, contact the Department of Public Works at 408-730-7605 or email

pubworks@sunnyvale.ca.gov.

See page 3 of 5 in the City Manager's July 25 update at https://sunnyvale.ca.gov/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?BlobID=26534

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Here are pictures of the challenges running from the western closure to the eastern one. Click on a picture to get a larger view.

Here is the initial signage showing the closed trail with informational signs.







This picture is from the other side of Caribbean where the detour directs pedestrians and cyclists.



Pedestrians don't have a sidewalk here but there is reasonably flat dirt.



The detour sign then points across Borregas and east on Caribbean.



So across Borregas we go.



Ooops, there is no sidewalk on this side for a pretty long stretch.



And the landscaping could be challenging to navigate as a pedestrian. Should pedestrians then walk with traffic in the road?



Detour continues east on Caribbean. At least the shoulder is grass at this corner but no marked cross walk for pedestrians and just landscaping on the other side.



This section does have a sidewalk, but bicyclists must watch out for the edge that can catch a tire between the concrete gutter pan on the right and the asphalt on the left. Hard to see but if it catches a tire, you are likely to fall. Current Sunnyvale Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission chair Richard Mehlingher was caught by such an edge on a street not far from here and fell and suffered a compound fracture.



Here at least is a sidewalk and a crosswalk, but no detour reminder signs.



Sidewalk disappeared but at least no landscaping in the way of walking.



Across the road, there is where we need to go but crossing here between intersections with high speed traffic is not recommended plus a bicyclist would need to hop the curb.



No sidewalk but at least level lawn to walk on. Bicyclist now needs to do U turn across 3 high speed traffic lanes to get to left turn lane.



Now on other side heading west to get to detour there are 2 problems:
1) no sidewalk for pedestrians although there is a narrow trail of sorts where you duck under trees
2) another sketchy road edge in the bike lane that could catch a tire



Finally approaching the end of the detour, no shoulder to walk on, pedestrian is on the road walking with traffic



Turn right onto detour and notice the gate is closed!



On one side there is a narrow opening that barely fit my handlebars. Many bike handle bars would be too wide to make it through here.



The baskets on my bike jam on both sides when squeezing through but they do push through after some wiggling. If I was riding my touring bike which has wider panniers, I would have to take them off to get my bike through. If I was pulling a trailer (which I often do), I could not fit. The gates here really should be open so bicyclists can ride through and not get blocked.



Now heading west from the eastern closure, there is a wide shoulder to walk on without landscaping blocking it.



Further on there is some sidewalk.



Sidewalk goes away but the shoulder is still wide.



Wide shoulder but either crawl under the Sunnyvale signage or walk on the road a bit to get around the sign.



Now we are back at Borregas looking west. Pedestrians can use the cross walk. Bicyclists can take a right then a left to get back to the Bay Trail.  Regardless, Borregas and Carl Road here are relatively easy to deal with compared to biking or walking along Caribbean with no lane closures. West bound is better than east bound but it would be best for both bicyclists and pedestrians if the west bound section had a traffic lane blocked -- turning that lane into a fully separated bidirectional multi-use path.




The following map shows the detour problems and options for improvement:  https://drive.google.com/open?id=1aYXI1nYCIZxpU1Yk3ZWW1k3sSkcLArG6&usp=sharing
Click on each line to see notes about it.

At the Tuesday July 30, 2019 Sunnyvale City Council meeting, the Council approved the new Vision Zero Plan.  The goal of the Vision Zero Plan is to eliminate all deaths and major injuries due to traffic crashes. Vision Zero is all about prioritizing safety for people over convenience for machines. Implementing an excellent temporary detour rather than one riddled with issues would be a good example of the city pursuing Vision Zero rather than falling victim, yet again, to car privilege.

Please send your concerns and suggestions to the Sunnyvale City Council and the City Manager at https://sunnyvale.dynamics365portals.us/contact-us/?depid=845280000

Thanks!

Why this blog has been quiet...

Well, I'm not posting much on this blog at this time. For my current thoughts on the world, please see the public posts on my Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/timoey.

Also I'm currently posting status on my 2016 adventure to achieve zero waste at http://ecopractice.blogspot.com/.

Thanks!

Marriage Equality

The US is at a historic crossroads that will separate the bigots from those who truly believe:
1) "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,..." and
2) "No State shall make or enforce any law which shall ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

I will be ashamed of the US Supreme Court and our nation if we do not unequivocally support equality.

No one is harmed by marriage equality, but millions will benefit from it.

California 2012 November 6 Propositions

I hope all voters in California will read the propositions and vote!

Voting "no" on all of them because you don't believe in the proposition process is a cop out. These propositions are a valuable part of our democratic system in action and we all get to make direct choices ourselves that have real impact! (And not push it off to someone else to make a decision for us)

Please vote based on the merits of each and not based on prejudices.

Here is how I'm voting. I hope you'll support my positions :-)

YES!! -- Prop. 30, Increase in sales tax and higher earners' income tax to fund education -- a reasonable tax proposal that is needed to fund education.

Yes -- Prop. 31, Two-Year Budget Cycle -- not perfect but is moving in the right direction to fix CA budget process.

No -- Prop. 32, Ban on corporate and union contributions to state and local candidates -- deceptive.

NO -- Prop. 33, Change in auto insurance regulation -- a big insurance company is trying to fool voters again.

YES!!!! -- Prop. 34, Repeal death penalty -- too many mistakes, saves a lot of money, life with no parole is sufficient (and much less expensive).

Yes -- Prop. 35, Stronger law against human trafficking.

YES!! -- Prop. 36, Changes to three-strikes law -- saves money, reduces prison overcrowding and prevents nonsensical 3 strikes situations.

Yes -- Prop. 37, Labeling of GMO foods -- although mixed, this is a step in the right direction and we need to be more careful.

Yes -- Prop. 38, Increase in higher earners' income tax for education -- Prop 30 is better, but we are much better if at least one wins rather than neither. This is a change in my original position.

Yes -- Prop. 39, Sets one method of tax calculation for all businesses -- helps keep businesses in California.

YES!!! -- Prop. 40, Maintain citizens' redistricting -- no system is perfect but this system is more balanced than the alternatives. Plus a "No" vote changes the status quo whereas a "Yes" vote leaves things alone (this measure was engineered so that those who just always vote "No" on everything will be tricked into causing a change -- and a bad one in this case).


For additional information on the CA propopistions, see:
CA Official Voter Guide: http://voterguide.sos.ca.gov/propositions/
Ballotpedia.org: http://www.ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/California_2012_ballot_propositions
SJ Mercury News recommendations: http://www.mercurynews.com/recommendations
SF Chronical recommendations: http://www.sfgate.com/propositions/
KQED perspectives: http://blogs.kqed.org/election2012/category/ballot-measures/ 
CA Council of Churches: http://churchimpact.org/2012/08/29/november-ballot-proposition-recommendations/

[10/7/2012: Added links to KQED & CA Council of Churches]
[10/20/2012: Changed my position on 38 from no to yes]

Making the Best Better on the 4th

Holidays, especially the 4^th of July, are great opportunities to reflect on where we have been, where we are, and where we are going. Our great nation has accomplished much, yet still has far to go.

Here are the most important areas where I think we, as the United States of America, can improve so that our children and children’s children will have a better future.

Education – All should be able to get a good education regardless of their economic situation. Well-educated citizens are critical for a successful democracy. Education helps our nation make the most of its human resources. Public education and libraries helped build the foundation that made our country great.

To improve our educational system we should greatly increase teacher salaries, reward teachers based on performance, measure performance in ways beyond just standardized tests, and remove tenure for elementary, middle school, and high school teachers.

Prisons – We should minimize the number of people that must go to prison by ensuring they are educated and prepared to get whatever job they are best suited to do. Prisons should work on reforming and educating criminals to become productive citizens rather than be warehouses for punishment that foster criminals teaching crime to other criminals.

Housing large numbers of prisoners is expensive and a drain on society when those people could be productive citizens. The prison system should be rewarded based on reducing criminals and maximizing good citizens rather than locking them up indefinitely. We cannot afford this. Some resort to crime because there are no other good alternatives.  Better education is a good place to prevent criminal behavior. Reform and education must be emphasized for those who slip thru while indefinite lockup is reserved for those that cannot be reformed. The death penalty should be abolished because it is far too expensive as well as error prone with no recourse.

Health Care – Everyone should be covered by basic healthcare so valuable human resources are kept healthier (in better working condition) and are treated through less expensive preventative or timely curative treatments rather than expensive and last ditch emergency care. A stitch in time saves nine.

The Affordable Health Care Act was a step in the right direction. Encouraging Health Maintenance Organizations over traditional health insurance is even more cost effective and efficient.

Taxation – Taxes are not evil. They are investments in our government and our shared infrastructure so we can enjoy a more stable, safe, and productive community and society. We must embrace reasonable taxes and not keep dodging them at all costs. Endless tax cutting ends up hurting all of us. The wealthy have automatic advantages over the poor and also benefit immensely from a stable society that consumes their goods and services. It is a good thing for the wealthy to pay proportionately more in taxes than the poor.

To better use tax revenue, we need to balance our budget and put performance metrics in place so our government is naturally rewarded for effectiveness and efficiency. Legislation should focus more on outcomes rather than the hows. Let government professionals figure out how to maximize results just as we let the free market economy figure out how to best satisfy demand.  The City of Sunnyvale is a good example of performance metrics as well as a balanced budget in action. Please also note that the vast majority of government workers are middle class and few if any are wealthy. Tax dollars directly employ a larger number of people in government than concentrating wealth in the hands of a few.

Civil Rights – Everyone is entitled to equal rights and equal protection under the law. We are close to achieving this beautiful vision as embodied in the Declaration of Independence and our Constitution.

Yes, any two consenting adults should be entitled to marry and enjoy the economic, legal, family, and child rearing benefits of such a union.

Democracy – This is the most sustainable form of government yet invented. A “government of the people, by the people, for the people” is the only practical way to govern people as they do it through their own choices rather than being told what to do by others.

We need to have positive policies to foster democracy abroad as well as encourage our populace to participate actively in our own democracy. The legal system that supports our democracy is the best defense we have against corruption.

Sustainability – Our resources are not unlimited. Resources include energy, materials, space, and time. We all must strive to budget ourselves so we make the best use of the limited resources we have and hold ourselves accountable before nature itself forces us to be accountable.  Reduce, reuse, recycle.

Our government is in the best position to put checks and balances in place to ensure we do not overly abuse our environment. Protecting our environment is extremely important yet too long term an objective to be otherwise factored into our free market economy.

Poverty – This is really the bottom line. Better managing all of the above will help reduce poverty and the inequitable distribution of wealth. When none of us want for basic needs, there will be less war and less crime. Having wealth widely distributed benefits us all. It only stands to reason. No one should want for adequate food, clothing, shelter, or health care.

Security alert: Email accounts under attack

Here is an article I wrote for AYSO, but it applies to everyone. Since many close friends and family have been hacked recently, I'm posting it again here. Yahoo email accounts (and thus Pacbell and ATT too) seem particularly vulnerable. I think there is some fundamental flaw in Yahoo email security that has yet to be discovered and fixed by Yahoo.

Please read and take action!

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Email account hacking is an epidemic that is effecting just about everyone. If you haven't been hacked yet, review your security measures to make sure your account is hacker proof.

If your email account is broken into, your account will be used to send dangerous or misleading spam emails to all your friends. Your email archives and address books may be deleted. Your stored emails may reveal sensitive information about you as well as others that can be used to break into other accounts owned by you and your friends. All of your other accounts and your friends accounts will be attacked using the information in your email archives

From interviewing many of the people whose accounts were hacked, the most common theme is passwords that were less than 10 characters long -- often just 8 characters. It is also possible their computers were infected but most had up-to-date virus software. Some have had old operating systems or browsers.

All AYSO volunteers should do their part to keep AYSO information safe and secure by using strong passwords for their email and AYSO accounts and ensuring their computers are secured and kept safe. This will protect your own personal information as well!!

Some key tips:
1) Keep your computer(s) malware-free by using good virus protection software and only installing software from safe sources.
2) Keep your operating system and web browsers current with the latest releases that have had security holes patched.
3) Do NOT click on links to suspicious sites. Those sites may be able to attack your computer simply by visiting them.
4) Never have your web browser save your passwords. This stores passwords in insecure locations where malware can get them.
5) Use different strong passwords for every account you have.

What is a strong password?

Strong passwords:
1) are long -- ideally 16 characters or more (sentences can be memorable strong passwords);
2) use many different characters -- upper and lower case letters, numbers, and even punctuation or other special characters;
3) are unique – use a different password for each account (so if one account is compromised that password cannot be used to break into other accounts);
4) are hard to guess -- not something that is easily discovered about you like your dog's name or your mother's maiden name – which also means you should treat your security questions just like passwords (!);
5) are changed periodically.

If you have more than 2-3 passwords, doing the above and remembering them is challenging.

Many of us have a dozen or more online accounts between email, AYSO, banks, credit cards, Facebook, and more. How can you remember many different strong passwords for each of these accounts?  You could write them down on a piece of paper, but if you do please store it securely and make a copy (backup) in case you lose it. A better solution is to use a password manager to handle your strong passwords so you just need to remember one password -- for the password manager itself. One of the best password managers is LastPass (https://LastPass.com).

LastPass can remember all of your passwords and it also:
1) enters web usernames and passwords automatically so you don't have to type them (saves you significant typing and mistyping);
2) generates strong passwords of any length;
3) backs itself up automatically to a secure location so your passwords are available to you (and only you) on as many computers as you wish (even if your computer is stolen);
4) prevents phishing/spoof attacks by distinguishing valid websites (where it is safe to enter passwords) from invalid ones;
5) is your safe deposit box in the sky for other critical but sensitive bits of information (account numbers, PINs, combinations, etc);
6) is itself very secure (reviewed by many independent security experts and companies); and
7) is free and easy to use!!

For additional password managers and safe computing practices, please read:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/208113/best_password_managers_top_4_reviewed.html
and
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/2012/01/hack-proof-your-passwords/index.htm

Thanks for doing your part to protect yourself and your AYSO team!

Crystal Cox, yes she's a scammer...

The proof is in the pudding and people tend to hoist themselves by their own petard.

Crystal Cox, who claimed to be a blogger-journalist, has shown through her own actions that she is not one, but really a scammer and extortionist.

Please see the smear campaign she is attempting against the 3 year old daughter of a friend of mine:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/04/02/ugly-new-reputation-smearing-tactic-going-after-a-toddlers-internet-footprint/

Please also read:

http://phillylawblog.wordpress.com/2012/03/30/crystal-cox-investigative-blogger-no-more-like-a-scammer-and-extortionist/

and:

http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/04/02/judge-clarifies-that-bloggers-can-be-journalists-just-not-one-in-particular/

Even if she were a journalist, that does not protect false speech:

http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/top-stories/155809/debate-about-crystal-cox-blogging-case-misses-a-key-legal-point/

Despite the online harassment, Marc Randazza is a man of principal and noted today on Facebook:

“It is extortion. But... ...I am trying to "Walk the walk" when it comes to the First Amendment. The typical response would be criminal charges or civil complaints. I want to show that we can cure bad speech with good speech. Let lies and smears fade in the sunlight of truth. I've preached it my whole life. I need to stay on the path now more than ever.”

Thankfully the light of truth and justice is shining very brightly on Crystal Cox now.

Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman

This is a tragedy for all sides that highlights many current issues.

1) Racial prejudices are not just black and white. Minorities are not automatically immune from prejudice. Race, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, physical appearance and even what you say may result in unjust prejudice.

2) Guns kill. Easily. If neither George nor Trayvon had a gun, someone may have gotten bruised but likely no one would have been killed. Our current society has evolved beyond everyone needing a gun. Do we all really need guns for our own personal version of mutually assured destruction? The US Constitution needs to be updated to match current needs, not ones from 200 years ago. We are no longer the wild west. However, many are blinded by their irrational fears, leading to irrational consequences.

3) Florida has a law that allows you to commit murder legally. In Florida, get a gun, pick your target, follow them, challenge them so they "threaten" you, then stand your ground and shoot to kill so you can claim self defense. The Stand Your Ground law, while it sounds good in theory, is a pretty bad one in practice.

4) If you see a possible crime, report it to the police and follow their advice! Don't take matters into your own hands unless there is clear imminent danger to someone and there is no time to wait for professionals. It takes considerable presence of mind to do the right thing at the right time.

From what I know of this case, I think perhaps George had good intentions but his prejudices overly influenced him. Plus having a gun lead to the disastrous result of an innocent young boy losing his life. This is likely a case of a do-gooder getting carried away and doing evil instead.

It can be difficult and costly to get to the truth of a situation. Science as well as our legal system may move slowly and be expensive, but generally they result in the best truth we are capable of in their respective domains -- if not corrupted by money or power. Yes that is a big IF.

"Perhaps it is better to be un-sane and happy, than sane and un-happy. But it is the best of all to be sane and happy. Whether our descendants can achieve that goal will be the greatest challenge of the future. Indeed, it may well decide whether we have any future."
- Arthur C. Clarke

Sincerely,
Tim

Employers requiring your Facebook password?

That's just plain wrong.

It's like asking you in a job interview if your are married, who you are married to, do you have kids, what is your sexual orientation, how is your sex life, do you have any medical issues, may I look up your skirt, etc. These are all no-no's to ask in an interview -- part of Management 101 in the United States. Here are some more illegal questions to ask:
http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10things/steer-clear-of-these-10-illegal-job-interview-questions/229

Asking for your password requires you to break a contract -- notably Facebook's terms of service. Should employers ask you to deliberately violate someone else's contract? Does that mean it is ok to violate their's?

Finally it is a major invasion of privacy and a security breach.

Work is work and what we do outside of work is entitled to be kept private if we choose to keep it private.

For more, please see:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/03/20/BUAG1NNHQ2.DTL&type=business

http://www.employmentlawdaily.com/index.php/news/expert-says-policy-requiring-employee-to-give-employer-facebook-password-is-bad-idea/

http://news.yahoo.com/employers-wrong-demanding-facebook-passwords-220500743.html

http://fox8.com/2012/03/20/companies-requiring-facebook-password-during-interview/

Expelling a third-grader for having a pocketknife?

Do you think zero tolerance often goes too far? For real firearms, fine, I think that is a good thing and was the original intent of the federal law. But for water pistols, pictures of guns on paper, and pocket knives, I think zero tolerance is carried too far and is, frankly, stupid. Our society has become far too intolerant and nitpicking.

See below for a case in point.

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From: http://www.mercurynews.com/sunnyvale/ci_20032777 -- Letters to Sunnyvale Sun 2/24/2012

Standing up for expelled third-grader

I thought you'd like to know how zero tolerance is being applied in our local schools. My daughter's third-grade friend brought his pocket knife to school on accident. It was just in his pants pocket from the weekend.

An hour after school was dismissed, he and his friends were still playing on campus and he showed his knife to them. One of them was a girl and because the blade was pointing in her direction, she decided he was "brandishing it" and went to tell her mom, who told the office, who told the district, who told the cops, one of whom said if he saw him with a knife again he could shoot him. That's right: preserve and protect; bully the 8-year-old.

He's being expelled from Cumberland Elementary because California's zero tolerance rule requires that the principal issue a mandatory recommendation for expulsion with complete disregard for age, circumstance or intent.

The California penal code defines brandishing very clearly. According to Penal Code 417, simply drawing or exhibiting a weapon isn't enough to justify a conviction. In order for prosecutors to convict you of brandishing a weapon or firearm, you must do so in a rude, angry or threatening manner.

This means that if you are merely joking, "showing off" or even educating another person about your weapon, you aren't guilty of brandishing a weapon.

Our principal requested that the family not discuss this incident with anyone. This is alarming, because it takes away the only recourse the family has to exonerate their child--raising awareness and drawing support. It also puts all power squarely in the hands of the administrators and district officials.

I am shocked and saddened that there are few other parents rising in his defense. I think we are all too scared that our own kids' education will be sabotaged if we speak up against current policy.

I am hopeful that by raising awareness, parents will be less fearful of applying pressure to our lawmakers to amend the zero tolerance rule. Even adults in our criminal justice system are not punished with the same heavy-handed blind sentencing that zero tolerance mandates for kids.

Julie Colwell

Sunnyvale

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Here is some further recommended reading:

http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ss/se/zerotolerance.asp

-- note that automatic expulsion does not seem to be required, a principal can use their own discretion. Personal observation: unfortunately many principals lack the ability to use reasonable discretion.

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=edc&group=48001-49000&file=48900-48927

-- this is the actual CA Educational Code that applies

-- see 48915 in particular where it states:

"Except as provided in subdivisions (c) and (e), the principal or the superintendent of schools shall recommend the expulsion of a pupil for any of the following acts committed at school or at a school activity off school grounds, unless the principal or superintendent finds that expulsion is inappropriate, due to the particular circumstance:..."

and

"(g) As used in this section, "knife" means any dirk, dagger, or other weapon with a fixed, sharpened blade fitted primarily for stabbing, a weapon with a blade fitted primarily for stabbing, a weapon with a blade longer than 3 1/2 inches, a folding knife with a blade that locks into place, or a razor with an unguarded blade."

Note that most pocket knife blades are 3" or shorter and do not lock into place.

http://www.sesd.org/education/components/docmgr/default.php?sectiondetailid=10119&fileitem=3858&catfilter=858

-- this is the Sunnyvale School District Parent-Student Handbook that is referenced from the Cumberland one (see "Looking for the Parent Handbook?" at the bottom of http://www.sesd.org/education/components/scrapbook/default.php?sectiondetailid=965&)

-- see page 12 where it says

"Stress that pocketknives on school campuses are considered weapons, not tools."

I think that classifying pocketknives as weapons instead of tools is silly. I've always carried a pocket knife since I was in second grade. I grew up in the country and use my pocket knife to open packages, cut fruit, whittle wood, sharpen pencils, cut string, cut paper to make origami, etc. It has always been an essential tool for me. We should teach our kids to use tools properly, not be scared silly of everyday things.

Finally if a kid forgot a pocket knife in their pocket after a weekend activity? That is a trifling offense.

BTW, If people really wanted to save lives, they would ban private automobiles as they have killed 30 to 40 thousand people every year since 1946 (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_in_U.S._by_year )

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So what do you all think?

To discuss you may wish to join http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SunnyvalePolitics/message/2231

Eat More Kale! Eat Less Chick-fil-A!

Used properly, trademarks are a good thing. They help us identify the source of goods and services so that we can rely on brand and reputation when we buy products. McDonald's is known for being cheap, easy, and fast. The Ritz is known for being expensive and luxurious. This is beneficial for both the producer and the consumer.

However grasping for too much of a good thing results in an evil outcome. Many corporations use their considerable money power to do the wrong thing with trademarks and try to control too much. Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Luckily trademarks are dependent on people power (as well as trademark law) and people power can be used as a check and balance against corporate money power by decreasing its ability to earn money. If a company does wrong, its trademark can then be associated with its misdeeds, and those associations can then cause the producer to lose business rather than gain business. Think Enron.

It behooves corporations to use their power wisely or suffer natural consequences.

Chick-fil-A has done wrong and has become a corporation that deserves some natural consequences. Chick-fil-A supports discrimination when it funds anti-gay groups (see http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/01/Chick-fil-A-donated-anti-gay-groups-2009_n_1069429.html). and it is trying to control too much when it tries to block others from using the phrase "Eat More..." (see http://www.csmonitor.com/Business/Latest-News-Wires/2011/1128/Eat-more-kale-A-David-vs.-Golaith-fight-with-Chick-fil-A).

Here is what you can do to correct these wrongs. Ask everyone to "Eat More Kale! Eat Less Chick-fil-A!"

Email it. Twitter it. Facebook it. Paper-mail it. Leave it behind at Chick-fil-A restaurants. Just do it. It's easy. Hopefully Chick-fil-A and others will get the point and change their position when their business loses millions of dollars now and in the future because they made these bad business decisions. Eating more kale and less Chick-fil-A will make our world a healthier and happier place.

Eat More Kale! Eat Less Chick-fil-A!

Hate cannot drive out hate...

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction....The chain reaction of evil--hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars--must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation."

Martin Luther King, Jr., Strength To Love, 1963.
Source: http://www.mlkonline.net/quotes.html

Fixing the US Education System

In the article Our Broken Escalator (New York Times, July 16, 2011) Nicholas Kristof makes the point that "education is one of the cheapest and most effective ways to build a country." He laments that we are not spending enough on education in the US while we spend a tremendous amount of money on our military.

I agree that education is a critical investment and well worth the money. And that we spend too much money on our military. However, simply spending more on education without a good plan won't work. Plus there are stats that show we are spending more per year on education in inflation adjusted dollars now than we spent per year in each of the last 40 years.

The following are two excellent research reports which have better information on what makes an excellent educational system and how to improve it than any other research I've yet been able to find (if you find better, please let me know):

How the world's best-performing school systems come out on top (2007)
http://www.mckinsey.com/clientservice/social_sector/our_practices/education/knowledge_highlights/best_performing_school.aspx

How the world's most improved school systems keep getting better (2010)
http://www.mckinsey.com/clientservice/Social_Sector/our_practices/Education/Knowledge_Highlights/How%20School%20Systems%20Get%20Better.aspx

Root Causes of the Arab Spring

It is marvelous and reassuring that many Arab nations have taken significant steps toward democracy. Why did this happen now? Here are my thoughts:

1. Dictatorships are fundamentally unsustainable. Democracy is simply a better system of government. People want to control their own destiny and govern themselves. The ongoing dictatorships built up much unrest in many Arab countries for a very long time and it has just been waiting for the right trigger.
   
   
2. The rise of the Internet allowed those in Arab nations to learn more about how the rest of the world operated -- both historically and in real time. Knowledge is power. An event in Tunisia proved to be the trigger that sparked its revolution and this in turn sparked others (Egypt, Bahrain, Syria, etc).
   
   
3. Cell phones (in addition to the internet) allowed groups of people to coordinate their efforts. Knowledge is power.
   
   
4. Al Jazeera provided an independent, successful and very visible free press run by Arabs with reasonably balanced viewpoints on Arab news. Many other press organizations in Arab countries have been strongly controlled by governments, but not so with Al Jazeera. A free press is necessary for democracy.
   
   
5. The election of Obama demonstrated to the world that the system of democracy in the United States did not keep the US locked into an imperialist model -- the people can speak and elect someone from a minority who has a more balanced view of how the US can work with the world (rather than abuse its power). The policies of George W Bush (particularly invading Iraq) wreaked havoc on the US's public image world wide and particularly in the Arab world. Where as Obama's Presidency has restored faith that the US system of government (and thereby democracy in general) can self correct to choose better courses of action.

Here are some lessons to take away from the Arab Spring phenomenon:

1. Nation building by force (like Iraq) is a very, very costly and wasteful proposition.
   
   
2. Providing a fertile setting and letting nature take its course is much more cost effective and sustainable (Tunisia, Egypt, etc).

Strangely but not surprisingly, the US and England shot themselves in the foot in regards to spreading democracy when they interfered with a budding democracy in Iran in the 1950s -- choosing instead to clandestinely engineer the return to power of the Shah of Iran -- in order to achieve some short term gains. This proved disastrous in the long run with Iran later turning violently anti-US. Imagine how the Arab world might have turned out had democracy succeeded in Iran in those early days and if we had helped a democratic ally rather than undermining it. Iran might have then had 50-60 years of democracy for it to stabilize and hopefully spread to others in the region. This may or may not have been how it would have played out, but it could have. I think it is important for the US to have a cordial and supportive relationship with all other democracies -- even if they choose policies that are not what the US might want . If the country in question is a democracy than it is what the people of that country wanted. It is important for the US to honor the sovereignty of other countries so that they in turn are more likely to respect us.

These same dynamics along with growing wealth and a growing middle class will eventually lead to change even in China despite the considerable success China's government has had in perpetuating itself. It will take time but it is inevitable. The will of the people shall rule in the long term.

Earthquake info & Information Literacy 101

Below is a simple case study in information literacy that is worth reading. Since this is an email thread, read from the bottom up.

-------------------------------------------
Hi All,

This is a great information literacy learning opportunity: how does one determine which information is truly accurate?

A) The email from a friend that cites an expert and tells a good personal story?
B) An article that discusses pros and cons and cites a long list of corroborating references?

Many pick option A because people trust friends more than strangers and like a good personal story. Also people naturally want simple easy answers and don't like weighing pros and cons, dealing with probabilities, or having to critically evaluate what they read. Also, such emails just show up in inboxes with no effort needed to do some research (so many never even even get to option B).

However option B, while more work to digest, is more likely to be accurate because it took significant work to do the analysis, it recognizes both pros and cons, it is published by a site that itself has been evaluated by many others (snopes.com), and it has many cross references to well known and respected groups that likewise did real research and have many experts (not just 1) to cross check each other.

The Doug Copp email is an example of a social engineering chain letter that keeps getting passed from one person to the next forever. These often have partial truths and always tempt people to forward because people like helping people and this seems to be something helpful. These emails are actually a type of virus that uses both email and human fingers as transmission agents. Some are benign (like humorous feel good emails) while others spread misinformation.

Whenever you receive a forwarded email, please evaluate it critically and cross check it for accuracy before believing it or forwarding to anyone else. You'll be doing all of your friends a favor.

This may be a good educational opportunity for your kids (even though this sort of email is pretty boring for most kids :-). Misinformation/urban legends also spread by word-of-mouth, Facebook, Twitter, texting, etc. It's important for our kids to learn how to know what is most likely true and what is not.

Sorry for being a bit pedantic, it's just that I care passionately for truth, accuracy, and a really good education.

Cheers,
Tim Oey

-----------------in reply to--------------------------
On Mar 25, 2011, at 8:21 AM, mara wrote:

Carol,
It is interesting information. I checked it out on snopes.com and they shared some interesting information on the man discussed in the article. http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/household/triangle.asp I don't know what to believe.

Mara



-----------------in reply to--------------------------
From: "Carol"
To: WVS-discuss@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Friday, March 25, 2011 6:55:00 AM
Subject: [WVS-discuss] Fwd: Where to Go During an Earthquake

I thought people might be interested in this.

Carol




Folks---
we all were taught wrong when we were taught how to protect ourselves from earthquakes!!! I hope you all read this and remember it. We never know when the next one will hit... . ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Where to Go During an Earthquake

Remember that stuff about hiding under a table or standing in a doorway? Well, forget it! This is a real eye opener. It could save your life someday.

EXTRACT FROM DOUG COPP'S ARTICLE ON 'THE TRIANGLE OF LIFE'

My name is Doug Copp I am the Rescue Chief and Disaster Manager of the American Rescue Team International (ARTI ), the world's most experienced rescue team. The information in this article will save lives in an earthquake.

I have crawled inside 875 collapsed buildings, worked with rescue teams from 60 countries, founded rescue teams in several countries, and I am a member of many rescue teams from many countries. I was the United Nations expert in Disaster Mitigation for two years, and have worked at every major disaster in the world since 1985, except for simultaneous disasters.

The first building I ever crawled inside of was a school in Mexico City during the 1985 earthquake. Every child was under its desk. Every child was crushed to the thickness of their bones. They could have survived by lying down next to their desks in the aisles. It was obscene -- unnecessary.

Simply stated, when buildings collapse, the weight of the ceilings falling upon the objects or furniture inside crushes these objects, leaving a space or void next to them - NOT under them. This space is what I call the 'triangle of life'. The larger the object, the stronger, the less it will compact. The less the object compacts, the larger the void, the greater the probability that the person who is using this void for safety will not be injured. The next time you watch collapsed buildings, on television, count the 'triangles' you see formed. They are everywhere. It is the most common shape, you will see, in a collapsed building.

TIPS FOR EARTHQUAKE SAFETY

1) Most everyone who simply 'ducks and covers' when building collapse are crushed to death. People who get under objects, like desks or cars, are crushed.

2) Cats, dogs and babies often naturally curl up in the fetal position. You should too in an earthquake. It is a natural safety/survival instinct. You can survive in a smaller void. Get next to an object, next to a sofa, next to a bed, next to a large bulky object that will compress slightly but leave a void next to it.

3) Wooden buildings are the safest type of construction to be in during an earthquake. Wood is flexible and moves with the force of the earthquake. If the wooden building does collapse, large survival voids are created. Also, the wooden building has less concentrated, crushing weight. Brick buildings will break into individual bricks. Bricks will cause many injuries but less squashed bodies than concrete slabs.

4) If you are in bed during the night and an earthquake occurs, simply roll off the bed. A safe void will exist around the bed. Hotels can achieve a much greater survival rate in earthquakes, simply by posting a sign on the back of the door of every room telling occupants to lie down on the floor, next to the bottom of the bed during an earthquake.

5) If an earthquake happens and you cannot easily escape by getting out the door or window, then lie down and curl up in the fetal position next to a sofa, or large chair.

6) Most everyone who gets under a doorway when buildings collapse is killed. How? If you stand under a doorway and the doorjamb falls forward or backward you will be crushed by the ceiling above. If the door jam falls sideways you will be cut in half by the doorway. In either case, you will be killed!

7) Never go to the stairs. The stairs have a different 'moment of frequency' (they swing separately from the main part of the building). The stairs and remainder of the building continuously bump into each other until structural failure of the stairs takes place. The people who get on stairs before they fail are chopped up by the stair treads - horribly mutilated. Even if the building doesn't collapse, stay away from the stairs. The stairs are a likely part of the building to be damaged. Even if the stairs are not collapsed by the earthquake, they may collapse later when overloaded by fleeing people. They should always be checked for safety, even when the rest of the building is not damaged.

8) Get near the outer walls of buildings or outside of them if possible - It is much better to be near the outside of the building rather than the interior. The farther inside you are from the outside perimeter of the building the greater the probability that your escape route will be blocked.

9) People inside of their vehicles are crushed when the road above falls in an earthquake and crushes their vehicles; which is exactly what happened with the slabs between the decks of the Nimitz Freeway. The victims of the San Francisco earthquake all stayed inside of their vehicles. They were all killed. They could have easily survived by getting out and sitting or lying next to their vehicles. Everyone killed would have survived if they had been able to get out of their cars and sit or lie next to them. All the crushed cars had voids 3 feet high next to them, except for the cars that had columns fall directly across them.

10) I discovered, while crawling inside of collapsed newspaper offices and other offices with a lot of paper, that paper does not compact. Large voids are found surrounding stacks of paper.

Spread the word and save someone's life...

The entire world is experiencing natural calamities, so be prepared!

'We are but angels with one wing, it takes two to fly'

In 1996 we made a film, which proved my survival methodology to be correct. The Turkish Federal Government, City of Istanbul, University of Istanbul Case Productions and ARTI cooperated to film this practical, scientific test. We collapsed a school and a home with 20 mannequins inside. Ten mannequins did 'duck and cover,' and ten mannequins I used in my 'triangle of life' survival method. After the simulated earthquake collapse we crawled through the rubble and entered the building to film and document the results. The film, in which I practiced my survival techniques under directly observable, scientific conditions , relevant to building collapse, showed there would have been zero percent survival for those doing duck and cover.

There would likely have been 100 percent survivability for people using my method of the 'triangle of life.' This film has been seen by millions of viewers on television in Turkey and the rest of Europe, and it was seen in the USA , Canada and Latin America on the TV program Real TV.

Subject: Save your life with "The Triangle of Life"


"Triangle of Life":

Without listening or reading, simply by looking at the following self-explanatory photos, you can learn more than in a thousand words about how to protect yourself during a major earthquake...









If you are inside a vehicle, come out and sit or lie down next to it. If something falls on the vehicle, it will leave an empty space along the sides. See below:














Source: http://www.amerrescue.org/

American Rescue Team International ART said to be the World's most experienced rescue team and disaster management-mitigation organization.

Truth

Getting to the real truth of a matter can take a HUGE amount of work. Both science and our legal system endeavor to do this in a methodical fashion.

Here is a recounting of a 5 year legal adventure I undertook to defend truth, justice, and the American Way -- and protect some innocents and free speech:

History -- Freecycle Forever

In the beginning, what are the “right” boundaries?

Right to Lifers believe that the rights of an embryo/fetus always take precedent over the rights of the woman carrying it.

Pro Choicers believe that a woman has some rights that supersede those of the embryo/fetus for some portion of time between conception and birth.

The US Supreme Court in Roe v Wade (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roe_v._Wade) concurred with the Pro Choicers -- deciding that there is a period between conception and birth where a woman's rights supersede those of the embryo (and state).

In my view, the US Supreme Court decision was proper and fair. There is no good clean dividing line between non-existence and life and a reasonable choice by reasonable people is the best we can do. In this case the woman herself is in the best position to make that decision, as it is her body and her life.

We (mankind) have empowered ourselves to make decisions for ourselves rather than letting nature dictate -- by using knowledge and tools to change the world around us. Yes we chose to bite into the Apple of Knowledge and now we have the right and responsibility to choose our own destiny. For better or worse, this is the path that God (or whoever) has let us pursue.

We have enough people already in the world. It is not a requirement we have more and in fact we should even reduce our population. Mistakes are easy to make at conception. Nature itself causes "abortion" to happen if it determines that the embryo/fetus is not viable. For a portion of time, people should likewise have that option to choose for medical, economic, and life reasons. Not all women or families want or are capable of raising a child (or an additional one) -- or be willing to give it away for adoption. None of us have unlimited resources. We all must make hard choices at times. We cannot have unlimited life. In fact cancer is an example of unlimited life with no control.

The foundation of the US is based upon a balance between the rights of the many and the rights of the few. We cannot dictate one religious view on others.

Thus not only is pro choice correct for moral reasons, it is also correct for many practical reasons as well. There is not a simple black and white choice in this case. We have the power, we have the responsibility, we have the right for each of us to make our own choices and choose our own destinies.

The birth of each human has huge consequences for our world and deserves to be weighed carefully by those who are most responsible for that new life -- the parents and particularly the woman who is bearing the child. Roe v Wade is a reasonable compromise.

The Long March for Equal Rights

It's been a long, long march toward equal rights:
- Blacks no longer slaves
- Blacks can vote
- Women can vote
- Races can intermarry
- No longer "illegal" to be homosexual
- Homosexuals can marry in some states
- Homosexuals can serve openly in the military

At one time each of these were blocked by those who thought others were inferior, others did not deserve equal rights, their own religious or moral beliefs trumped other people's equal rights. Thankfully reason and justice prevailed.

The United States is a beacon of democracy, liberty, and the freedom to pursue happiness. Let's keep up the good work, continue to pursue justice, and be a good role model for other nations.

Copyright & Email Replies

It's interesting that freecycling has ended up becoming quite a learning adventure into the proper application of intellectual property laws and rights.

Many get easily confused about what trademarks vs patents vs copyrights are really about. Used properly these are all good things that allow our economy and society to function better. That's why they were invented. But misused or misunderstood, they can lead to much pain and abuse and injustice.

In general trademarks, patents, and copyright are all intended to protect "profits" in use in commerce and should never be used to control free speech -- although some misguided corporations and individuals keep trying to do this.

On the trademark front we've proven this a couple of times thanks to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. See http://freecycleforever.org/history/ to read more on the trademark front.

On the copyright front we have not had any lawsuits (and I hope we won't), but here is an important point for all:

When replying to an email it is OK (in terms of copyright) to include the entire previous email (and even email chain) that is relevant to your reply.

It may not be good etiquette because this may make the email rather large and clog the digest version of an email list. It may also confuse your audience because people may not know exactly what point you are replying to. However from a legal standpoint it should be just fine because you are engaged in free speech -- debate with give and take. The discussion is enabled by including prior emails for reference.

I know that others have raised "copyright" as a reason that entire emails should not be included in reply emails, but this is not correct in so far as I've been able to determine as long as the intent is to enable discussion and not to reproduce a work to deny someone else from getting compensation for that work.

Including entire previous emails in replies is:
1) common -- billions of people do it daily.
2) easy -- most email programs do this automatically and it takes work to prevent.
3) appropriate -- so that the points and counter points can all be read in context to see if they are really logical or not.
4) expected -- so that debates are not just one sided, you need multiple points of view to understand the different points -- there are multiple sides to every discussion.

This is all protected by the "fair use" doctrine in addition to not being commercial speech but rather free speech. By commercial speech I mean communication that is intended to earn money in some direct way -- like in advertising or publishing. Even in commercial speech "fair use" can protect someone that is quoting another.

In contrast, if you use someone else's material in a way that harms the commercial value of the work -- for instance republishing large sections of material that someone would otherwise have to buy. This is most likely a copyright violation that is not protected by the "fair use" doctrine. The original author was generally paid money to create the work and thus it is in turn sold to recoup this cost as well as make a profit on it so the author and others involved can make a living.

Law can be a tricky and complicated area but hopefully this explanation makes sense to most people.

Please note that I am not a lawyer and I'm not giving you professional legal advice. However this does not block me from discussing such situations or you from coming to reasonable conclusions based on the information presented.

For references, please see:
1) "My posting was just fair use!" at http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html
2) http://w2.eff.org/IP/eff_fair_use_faq.php
3) http://randazza.wordpress.com/2010/12/26/perfect-10-thinks-that-dmca-takedown-demands-should-be-protected-by-copyright/

TSA - Terribly Stupid Agency

The TSA is developing a reputation as the Terribly Stupid Agency (Touching Sensitive Areas, etc). It is wasting billions on expensive, time consuming, annoying, invasive, and ineffective security measures that assume everyone is a terrorist when almost no one is. The terrorists have won if we all suspect everyone and each other.

Where is the check and balance on this 1984ish bureaucracy? Some rational and intelligent people need to step in and reduce the waste in this prime example of out-of-control government spending. These dollars could be greatly reduced and more effectively spent.

"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin