Bratton Online

PRO VIET NAM VIGIL SANTA CRUZ POST OFFICE November 27, 1965. Note the poster messages, “Quarantine those Pacifists!!! They all got yellow fever!!” and others state an appeal for Peace in Viet Nam. The tee-shirted gut on the left is smoking a cigarette…signs of the times!!

photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection.

Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE October 17, 2016

LATTE BREAKING NEWS

Truthful rumors have it that our ever faithful Santa Cruz Sentinel’s next big “news” story (They call it news) will be slamming Drew Glover. Wait for it!!! What’ll you bet that The Sentinel never does similar “news” stories on their Favorite Four city council candidates. In the meantime take a look at Martine Watkins 460 forms…4-5 $350 donations from Boardwalk bigwigs including Charlie Canfield and his bro…plus Canfield’s nephew or grand cousin Karl Rice who is the new CEO of the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk gave his share too. What’s that about? While you are checking the official records, look up Cynthia Mathews California Fair Practices form # 700. Why isn’t there any income reported from her rental properties?? Maybe she found a Trump clause and is too smart to pay, like everyone else does.

RAINBOWS…JUST RAINBOWS.

SHARK BITES BOAT IN CAPITOLA.

SHARKS IN SANTA CRUZ.

NO ON “D’ (WIDENING HIGHWAY ONE) NEWS. Robert Morgan and Steve Piercy hardworking citizens and part of www.wideningwontwork.org send these revelations…

We’re really facing a re-play of David and Goliath with financial giants raining big bucks down on all of us who know widening highways anywhere has never worked—The biggest news to share is the Fair Political Practice Commission contributor filings by the Yes on D folks as of October 11th. With three (3) more weeks until election…how much money will they invest in order to make even bigger profits for themselves??
We’ve only done a preliminary analysis, but so far we’ve seen $329,660 go into the YES campaign. A tentative, cursory calculation (more precision next submission) gives these highlights:

Out of County contributions: Over $150,000 from companies/unions based in these places–Sacramento, Rancho Cordova, Walnut Creek, San Ramon, Santa Clara, Santa Barbara, Milpitas, Emeryville and Oakland.
And the top contributors are…

State and Local Contractors, Contractor Unions/Political Advocacy: over $120,000
County Real Estate and Developers: $15,500
Land Trust SSC $10,000
Patty Quillin (wife of Netflix CEO Reed Hastings and LTSSC Board Trustee $10,000
Seaside Company $15,000
John (Bud) Colligan (Trail Now), founder of South Swell Ventures-he must be a surfer –$10,000
PAMF –$25,000
Physicians Medical Group–$5,000
Plantronics-$25,000
Santa Cruz Business Council–$5,000
Progressive Coalition of Santa Cruz–who ARE these guys?–$1,000

So, these are the construction companies, unions, developers, real estate folks and Progressive Coalition (?) and other interested parties who will benefit from our 30 year sales tax tithe. We should brace for lots of TV adds, because postcard mailings aren’t going to add up to the Yes war chest. Have these guys read the Environmental Impact Report on the Highway 1 project? What’s our grassroots Widening Won’t Work budget…$15,000!!! Please go to www.wideningwontwork.org and see for yourselves.

MORE STEALING OF “NO ON D” SIGNS. More No On D news from Robert Morgan and Steve Piercy I …

Sorry to report that a large 5′ x 10′ No on D canvas sign was stolen last night, Sunday 10/16 from the intersection of 17th and Soquel Frontage Rd. in Live Oak. It was put up two nights prior. A complaint has been recorded with the Sheriff’s Department and a criminal case number assigned. We also want to report that in Live Oak and Soquel the No On D signs previously stolen,were replaced and they have stayed put. The BIG problem now is San Lorenzo Valley and Highway 9 and the juncture of 9 and Graham Hill–Bruce McPherson country…yes the No on D signs are being taken from private business property. We’re having luck, though, calling owners (and their representatives) of for sale vacant lots to remove those BIG OL’ 5′ x 7′ Yes signs. Campaign Manager, Marc Adato, was seen by us in black gear (no ski mask) with helmet light at night–no kidding–attaching a large sign in Live Oak area. He and his volunteers may be putting signs up without permission. Two in the lot at Soquel and Cayuga were removed after the owners demanded they be gone”.

EDITOR NOTE…The most obvious conclusion is that there are huge amounts of money to be made if Measure D should pass. Ask yourself just how deep and how wide do the profits from this $100,000,000 30 year tax really go?

NO ON D BIG PARTY. It’s called Spirit of the Dinosaurs and it’s a Benefit to Stop Highway Widening. It happens Sunday, October 30. 2:00 PM Social Hour- 3:00 PM Program. It’s at the Sorrento Oaks Clubhouse 800 Brommer Street (near 7th Avenue) Santa Cruz, CA
Map and Directions Bike parking at the clubhouse, car parking on Brommer Street, or take Metro #66. Contribution: $20 and up. Fun features…. Gail Swain sings with heart as big as a dinosaur and a voice to match. Michael Levy performing songs from his forthcoming album, Great Big Love. Rus Brutsché singer and songwriter with roots in folks, rock, and jazz. Eric Schneider and John Malkin, “bringing Rumi to life”.

THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM

I attended the UC Santa Cruz forum on the Affordable Housing Crisis held at the MAH last Thursday ( 10/13) . The focus was on the rental crisis as it affects lower income renters. The first stage of this 3-part research project and the subject of the evening’s presentation focused on Beach Flats and lower Ocean St. where 54 students coordinated by UCSC sociology professors Miriam Greenberg from the Critical Sustainability Project and Steve McKay from the Center for Labor Studies conducted 435 surveys of renters over a 7- week period as well as 29 in-depth interviews. The results were not surprising. Renters at the lower end of the economic spectrum are hurting. Although all lower income renters are impacted, Latino renters, comprising just below 50% of Beach Flats residents are disproportionally impacted by ever-increasing rents due to their preponderance in lower paying jobs. Eighty per cent pay more than 30% of gross income in rent with an even greater burden for the lowest paid workers and those with families. Half of renters experience crowding and close to half have experienced a forced move or eviction. Their white counterparts are similarly suffering although proportionally less. In a town where 57% are renters, with the median rent at just under $3000 a month (double the fair market rent for a 2 bedroom apartment) up 6% from a year ago and expected to rise another 6% in the coming year, the crisis is obvious: the solutions less so.

I have nothing but compassion for the angst of those who work two jobs to pay rent and keep food on the table. Some are close friends. I don’t have much concern for those people who moved here within the past decade and bought a house since they are by definition, well off. It is primarily a rent crisis not a housing crisis. And many landlords and developers are getting mighty rich off the ever-increasing rents, which is in their hands to control.

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“Sustainability without affordability is not sustainable” was a theme threaded throughout the evening, reflecting the growing trend of environmental groups such as the Sierra Club to include social justice issues into their environmental activism. This is a good thing but such a marriage does not come without tension. Those of us critical of the Neary Lagoon Housing complex built in the 1980’s on the wetland at that site, requiring millions of cubic feet of fill and an expensive pump and piping system to control water flow to the outlet at Cowell Beach that has presented problems ever since, were not against low income housing per se but against that particular site as being too sensitive a habitat. We were labeled and dismissed as environmental racists. Pitting each “side” against each other works to the benefit of the developers but is not a blueprint for the future.

There are a total of 1643 assisted housing units in the city. Many more are obviously needed and one could ask, why aren’t they all affordable? Just how this will be achieved is not clear. Federal funds for housing have been curtailed under a Republican Congress and construction costs have skyrocketed. Meanwhile, the influx of new residents are largely well-off white professionals, students, many of whom are subsidized by parents in LA, or lower income Latino workers in the service and construction industries. It is the last group that is the most impacted by the rental housing crisis while the middle group, students, due to their numbers, largely the cause of the rental housing shortage.

Listening to the moving testimonies of local low-income residents in Beach Flats, read to us by the students, I wondered if their professors will ever cop to the fact that UCSC growth with its 9,000 off-campus students plus staff and faculty who rent in this town of 64,000 is a major driver of rent increases? It felt as though the messenger, the wolf, was telling us the sheep were in danger. Or to mix animals, that there was an elephant in the room.

Dr. Greenberg was asked by a council candidate where affordable housing could be built in Santa Cruz? Her reply, “along transit corridors which could be a bit higher and denser.” I noted the word “bit” and noted its omission in the Sentinel article. Those of us critical of the Corridors Plan and the Downtown Plan would welcome a “bit” of increase but not the gargantuan increases proposed in both Plans.

A more pertinent question would be not where can affordable housing be built, but how do you guarantee it will be affordable and for how long? How do you prevent such development from driving out local businesses due to the attendant lease increases for their buildings and how do you preserve the small town character of the current neighborhoods beyond lip service? The professor’s research has all been done in large cities. What mechanisms are available to city government to control landlord and developer greed? What political actions are available to convince the Regents that UCSC growth is hurting the low- income local renters of Santa Cruz, particularly working Latinos?

Unless these issues are addressed upfront then more housing is just more density, neither sustainable nor widely affordable”.

~Gillian Greensite is a long time local activist, a member of Save Our Big Trees and the Santa Cruz chapter of IDA, International Dark Sky Association http://darksky.org Plus she’s an avid ocean swimmer, hiker and lover of all things wild).

(new Bonline columnist Becky Steinbruner wasn’t aware of our Monday noon deadline or the very flexible days Bonline gets online when she wrote this).

APTOS VILLAGE MANEUVERING.

This Tuesday, October 18, at 10am County Public Works staff will host a public meeting on site at Trout Gulch Road and Soquel Drive intersection in Aptos Village to explain the proposed Aptos Village Phase I Improvements currently out for bid. This is the second round of bidding. The first round yielded only one bid from Graniterock and was nearly $900,000 over the County engineers estimate of $1.2 million.

According to Public Works staff report to the County Board of Supervisors, the specifications for the work have been changed but the list of proposed improvements has not. This includes; a new traffic signal at Trout Gulch Road/Soquel Drive intersection, two new turn lanes on Soquel Drive dedicated to the Bay Federal shopping center (owned by Joe Appenrodt, who is also an Aptos Village Project developer), new crosswalks and ADA sidewalks in the area. It also includes new rail crossing arms, a new 26′ tall rail crossing signal post with flashing light, replacing 200′ of railroad track with excavation to 32″ depth (mostly in front of Caroline’s Thrift Store and Aptos Street BBQ), new bike lane striping on Trout Gulch (NO official bike lanes on Soquel Drive, though). More than that, it includes drainage along the tracks in front of Trout Gulch Crossing (Printsmith area) and relocating the westbound bus stop. The County engineers estimate has been increased by about $300,000.

The money, according to the report, is coming from various county sources, but I have not as yet seen any information regarding how much the Aptos Village Project developers are contributing to all this work, despite a request of the Board of Supervisors.

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Lots of work on the railroad for not having working train service, don’t you think? Why is the bus stop being moved? This piece of the project alone will cost taxpayers a bundle because it involves excavation along Soquel Drive near the railroad tracks and building a retaining wall to create a pullout lane in the narrow two-lane roadway near the underpass. Where will riders park their vehicles when there is insufficient parking for businesses on nearby streets?

The only reason this is being done is to accommodate/subsidize Barry Swenson Builder and the other Aptos Village Project developers by clearing the area of Soquel Drive for the proposed new Parade Street that will serve as the primary entrance to the development. The Regional Transportation Commission is currently applying for a grant to pay for the Parade Street railroad crossing, yet another Swenson subsidy.

The permission to create this new private railroad crossing was granted by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in May, 2015 with the condition that the existing private railroad crossing in front of the Bayview Hotel be closed (and also one that serves residents of Davenport’s New Town area). Keep in mind that all the application work to make that happen was DONATED by County Public Works staff and County Counsel at taxpayer expense. What’s more, it is illegal to close the Bayview Hotel’s main ingress/egress at this crossing because of a deed restriction established in 1876 by Mr. Jose Arano, the land owner, that this crossing be forever kept open and passable. Further, the CPUC itself made the ruling in 1970 that the County could not close the crossing. The County has not offered Bayview Hotel owner, Ms. Cristina Locke, any remuneration for the taking of her land either. She is pursuing legal action.

So, does this whole picture make sense? Not to me. I urge all curious and/or incensed citizens to attend the public meeting Tuesday, October 18 at 10am and ask some questions. Why are taxpayers subsidizing Barry Swenson Builder when developers need to be responsible for impacts of their developments on the public? Will adding a traffic light really fix the gridlocked Aptos Village traffic now, let alone with the addition of 3,000+ vehicle trips per day projected by Swenson’s analysts? How will people trying to get their kids to Valencia and Orchard Schools do that when all the eastbound traffic from Aptos Creek Road and Granite Way gets forced onto Trout Gulch Road? What will this area’s traffic look like in the event of a fire evacuation in the canyons beyond the development?

Maybe the biggest question to ask is why is the Aptos Village Project being built at the ridiculous three-story density that has been pushed through? Hmmmm…inquiring minds want to know. Meanwhile, still no work on the new Soquel Creek Water District’s Granite Way well. Attend their Board meeting Tuesday, October 18 at 6pm in the Capitola City Council Chambers and ask. Next week…what is happening with the Rancho del Mar Center? Cheers, Becky Steinbruner”.

~(Becky Steinbruner is a 30+ year resident of Aptos. She has fought for water, fire, emergency preparedness, and for road repair. She ran for Second District County Supervisor in 2016 on a shoestring and got nearly 20% of the votes).

PATTON’S PROGRAM. From Gary’s Two Worlds website…

#292 SLATES IN THE CITY

Voters in the City of Santa Cruz, who will be voting for a new City Council this November, are being presented with two different “slates.” One of them is the “Brand New Council” slate (Chris Krohn, Steve Schnaar, Drew Glover, and Sandy Brown). That is the more “liberal” or “progressive” of the two slates, and is associated with the ongoing efforts of Bernie Sanders’ supporters to bring a Sanders’ style of progressive politics to electoral issues at the local level. A recent Opinion Editorial by Michael Urban, an emeritus politics professor at UCSC, outlines the case for the Brand New Council.

The other slate is supported by the Santa Cruz Sentinel and by The Democratic Women’s Club (see the picture below). Just to be clear about the Democrats, The People’s Democratic Club, the more liberal of the two local Democratic clubs, is supporting the “Brand New Council” candidates.

The “Sentinel/DWC slate” is more or less the “establishment” slate. It is headed up by well-respected and longtime Mayor Cynthia Mathews, and includes a former Sentinel reporter, J.M. Brown. Click the link for the Sentinel’s editorial, which makes the case for its four chosen candidates.

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On last Friday evening, October 14th, I attended an “East Of The River Santa Cruz City Council Forum, to see the candidates in person. The forum was extremely well run, and was sponsored by the Branciforte Business Association and the Branciforte Action Committee. The forum started at dinnertime, 5:00 p.m., and the day was rainy. Frankly, I wasn’t expecting much of a turnout, but I was surprised. There was a huge crowd, with I think close to 300 persons in attendance. That told me that voters “East Of The River” are taking the upcoming election very seriously. All the members of the audience were obviously quite engaged with and familiar with the issues, and audience members were both polite and attentive. Unfortunately, Martine Watkins from the Sentinel slate was not in attendance, and neither was Drew Glover, from the Brand New Council slate, whose mother had just passed away a day or two before the forum.

A discussion of crime and public safety started off the forum, but the real debate focused on land use and planning issues. The City’s current plans are steering the City towards a future that is distinctly different from the City’s past and present. Specifically, the current City Council is moving plans along that will result in huge high-rise buildings on Pacific Avenue (up to 95-feet high), with high-rise development planned for Front Street, too. Current proposals are for a high-rise reconstruction of our historic Wharf, and the City’s proposed “Corridors Plan” is aiming for dense, high-rise development on all of the City’s major transportation corridors, including Mission Street, Water Street, Ocean Street, and Soquel Avenue.

On the Eastside, particularly, the impacts of the City’s current planning policies are already obvious. They are already being implemented. The current policies facilitate development over preservation, and place a low priority on maintaining the integrity and character of our existing neighborhoods. Check the photos below for a couple of examples (the high-rise hotel approved on residentially-zoned land on Broadway, where the traffic is already at gridlock, and a large development next door to modest single family homes on Seabright Avenue):

I served on the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors from 1975 to 1995, and when I ran for office, which I did five times, the key issues were always about growth and development. It seems to me that we are now at a time when those issues are, again, the most critical ones for the local community.

“Affordable housing” issues, of overwhelming importance, are directly related to the kind of growth and development that Santa Cruz is experiencing. The City Council makes the final decision on all significant new development proposals, and the developments currently being approved are NOT designed to serve the working families already living in our community. Thinking that the “market” will solve our affordable housing crisis, and that we can “build our way out” of the current crisis, is a common mistake. Increasing “supplies” will not, in fact, lead to lower prices. New “supplies” of housing, if prices are set by the “market,” follow the “Golden Rule” of politics: “those with the gold make the rules, and “those with the gold get the goods.” The kind of housing currently being built in Santa Cruz, and the kind of housing currently planned, will definitely not fill the genuine “demand” in our community for housing that can be afforded by an average or below average income person.

I never had to run on a “slate,” and I’m glad I didn’t. Voters either voted for me, or my opponent, and the choices were clear. The current election for the Santa Cruz City Council, though, is different. Each voter can vote for up to “four” candidates, and they can “pick and choose.” That “pick and choose” strategy will work for voters if they are generally happy with the direction that the City is taking, since the current Council has seven members, and three of them are going to be continuing. Four members of a seven-person Council is a majority, so even if only one of the “establishment” slate wins, voters should expect that not much will change. If voters want to change the City’s direction, it’s probably true that a “Brand New Council” is needed. My advice to the voters? Figure out if you are, or are not, basically satisfied with the current planning and development policies of the City. Then, vote accordingly!

The stakes are at least as high as those 95-foot high buildings that are being proposed for Pacific Avenue downtown.

EDITOR NOTE…Gary reprinted DeCinzo’s cartoon from last week’s Bonline.

~(Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmental issues. The opinions expressed are Mr. Patton’s. Gary has his own website, Two Worlds at www.gapatton.net

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. Remember De-Sal and our City Council??? DeCinzo does…. scroll below and think about it!!!

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. See Eagan’s “Entangling Alliances” down a few pages. As always, at TimEagan.com you will find his most recent Deep Cover, and big plus….the latest installment from the archives of Subconscious Comics, and the ever entertaining Eaganblog.

SIDEREAL THEATER COMPANY’S PRODUCTION OF NEIL LABUTE’S “bash latterday plays”. It’s rare in Santa Cruz to see live plays with as much intensity and as perfectly acted as this production. As long time readers know I see most of the live plays in town and do not review, critique, or mention them if they don’t work. This “bash latterday plays does indeed work. Three separate stories told in three scenes, and you won’t forget a minute of them long after you leave the theatre. They are playing now through October 29 at the Broadway Playhouse where the Lord’s Last Supper used to be. If you like live theatre and deep, thoughtful drama do not miss this experience.

MUNCHING WITH MOZART & FRIENDS CONCERT. On Thursday, October 20th from 12:10 – 12:50p.m. at the Santa Cruz Public Library (Downtown Branch – Upstairs Meeting Room). Daniel Lewin plays unaccompanied violin. He’ll play Franz Schubert (1797-1828) Ave Maria, and Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)Sonata #2 in a minor-Grave-Fuga-Andante-Alegro.

December 15: Celebrate Piano Ensemble. The Munching Concerts happen every third Thursday of the month. Coming Soon to the library series…November 17: Brian Johnston, violin and Ben Dorfan, piano. For more information about the series, to make a reservation for your class or other large group, or to inquire about performing, contact: Carol Panofsky • 831-426-3238 • panofsky@cruzio.com

LISA JENSEN LINKS. Lisa writes: “Okay, I’d rather blog about movies, book news, and other fun stuff, but the clown show that is the Donald Trump presidential campaign is so surreal, so much like a bad movie, it just screams for commentary. How did we get to this point? Read my theory on why Trump is like the Toxic Avenger, the goo that rises up out of this muck to overwhelm the mad scientist (or party) that created him, this week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com).” Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

AMERICAN HONEY. If you watch this film as an almost three (3) hour documentary it’ll be more understandable. One poor girl makes herself homeless and joins a group of other teens driving and moteling through the Southern USA selling magazines. It’s probably generational but the music, the motivation, the point of the film and their lives and their choices left me bored. I don’t care that much about what a teenager’s lifestyle is like…not that lifestyle. Do note that Krystal, the leader of the group is Riley Keough, who is Elvis’s granddaughter.

THE ACCOUNTANT. Ben Affleck plays an autistic criminal bookeeper who is also a ruthless killer, and yes, that makes as little sense as does 98 % of this murder filled mess of a movie. Anna Kendrick, J.K. Simmons, Jeffrey Tambor and even John Lithgow all do what they can in such a miscast cast that makes you feel like you’re watching an audition session, that nobody cares if they get the parts or not. You won’t believe the plot, or the acting, or the fact that you paid money to see this flick.

KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS. I thought this would be another classic Japanese animation achievement like Miyazaki’s creations. Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke and many others. Nope, this is an all american production with voices and influences by Charlize Theron, Matthew McConaughey and Ralph Fiennes. The animation is from Laika the animation studio located in Oregon. They’ve created some genuine excellent stop action films such as Coraline, ParaNorman and The Box Trolls. Kubo just forced me to think of over done, heavy handed, super cute, cloying Disney stuff, with no charm, no subtlety. Go see it, you might like it.

SNOWDEN. A genuine Oliver Stone film. If you think you know everything about the Edward Snowden Wikileaks international extravaganza you’ll learn even more watching this film. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Tom Wilkinson, Rhys Ifans, Shailene Woodley, Melissa Leo, and even a tubby Nicolas Cage in a bit part make this into a tight thriller . We don’t know the ending yet, and won’t until Snowden leaves Russia or Obama changes his ethics and morals and guarantees this true patriot some semblence of freedom. I think Edward Snowden should be given medals, trophys, and a place in our national security system.

HELL OR HIGH WATER. Jeff Bridges, Ben Foster and Chris Pine make this one wonderful, exciting, involving, and well acted film. Go see it ASAP. Cops and bank robbers in Texas, internal conflicts, evil bank laws and practices, and ethics and morals are all integrated. It’s hard t o believe that “Hollywood” could still make a film this good after all these years of junk.

DEEP WATER HORIZON. A big cast with Mark Wahlberg, Kate Hudson, John Malkovich, and an extra grizzly Kurt Russell. It’s about the 2010 oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico and how greedy, cruel, and devious the BP (British Petroleum) corporation was/is?? about sacrificing human life for the big buck. Lots of technical oil terms, plenty of time to think about our local ocean frontage (and fracking) then comes the explosion…it’s great, it’s exciting, it’s long, it’s tense and it’s done just perfectly. Wahlberg is believable, go see it.

CAPTAIN FANTASTIC. Viggo Mortensen, the lead in this family saga, has never been better, and he’s always excellent. The older you are the more you’ll appreciate this extension of our 1950 & 60’s belief system. A film that has Noam Chomsky’s philosophy as a driver, Jesse Jackson, Joy of Sex book, Lolita, Glen Gould’s Bach Variations and some non-christian beliefs added, has to take you back just a bit. And in a good way. Viggo raises his family in the total wilds and later they have to face modern life and society. It’s as much fun as it is moving, sensitive , and well made. Frank Langella and Steve Zahn add to this hit film. Go for/to it!!

SULLY. Tom Hanks, Laura Linney and Aaron Eckhardt do their dependable, professional jobs in this formulac Hollywood treu life drama. Plenty of tension, a great true story that we knew most of already. It’s how airplane Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger landed that passenger plane in the Hudson river and saved everybody’s lives. Speaking of airplanes, you might t hink about right wing director of the film Clint Eastwood and that the executive producer of Suicide Squad and Sully is Steven Mnuchin who is Donald Trump’s finance director, if it matters who you give money to!

BIRTH OF A NATION. Using D.W. Griffith’s famous title this film is almost as bad and as inaccurate, unfeeling, a depiction of slavery and of Nat Turner as the original. Nat Turner’s very real role in fighting slavery is in this New Yorker article…

http://w ww.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/10/10/the-birth-of-a-nation-isnt-worth-defending The film shows no depth, no humaness, no deep comcept of what both white and black americans were going through at the time. It’s shallow, condescending, and too simple. This country was literally born with a black and white problem that we still haven’t solved. This movie doesn’t help much.

GIRL ON A TRAIN. Emily Blunt stars in this heavily adapted book to film release. You’ll figure it all out about three-quarters of the way through the flash back-fast forward sections. What’s also a problem is that (on purpose) some of the women lok like each other! Ex-wives, murder, drinking, cliches galore. I think you’d be better off reading the book. I’ll bet most of your friends have.

THE DRESSMAKER. Kate Winslet leads the cast which includes Liam Hemsworth and a snarly, memorable, mugging Judy Davis.I don’t know if it’s supposed to be a comedy or tragedy set in an Australian cowboy town. It’s foolsh, non-sensical, and has no reason to exist. Stay home instead.

MAGNIFICENT SEVEN (take # 3). This movie should be sued for using the same title as the earlier classics starring in 1960 Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, James Colburn, Robert Vaughn and of course Eli Wallich. Then there’s the genuine Akira Kurosawa classic “Seven Samurai” from 1956 (which both of above films ripped off), that starred Toshiro Mifune. The new one has Denzel Washington as the big honcho and he’s about as impressive a leader as Pee Wee Herman would be, but he’s not as funny. Don’t go.

MRS PEREGRINE’S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN. Tim Burton who was born in Burbank in 1958 has made cinema greatness by directing Beetlejuice, Pee Wee Herman, Edward Scissorhands, James and The Giant Peach. Miss Peregrine is a mess, and unfathomable, confusing, pointless. And even sad and painful..DO NOT TAKE OR SEND CHILDREN…it is not a children’s movie, or yours either. Besides all that, the film is heavily critized for having one very evil character in it…played by the one Black actor in the cast Samuel L. Jackson.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or archived for two weeks… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. The bi-annual KZSC Pledge Drive continues while April Bennett talks about The Sidereal Theatre on Oct. 18, she’s followed by former County Supervisor Neal Coonerty talking about the new Bookshop Santa Cruz Book. On October 25 Santa Cruz County Superior Court Judge Paul Burdick returns to discuss the workings of the court system. Then Jinx Deruisa and Polly Malan talk about The Santa Cruz Chamber Players new season. November 1 has Georgia Johnson and Connor Jang Editors-in-Chief of City on a Hill Press talking about their newspaper after which gardening expert Tom Karwin discusses Arboretum issues. Voting Night Nov.8 we have former Mayor Celia Scott discussing politics and elections. Then former Santa Cruz County Supervisor Gary Patton also talks about local and national elections, issues, and politics. Nov. 15 has Deborah Muth talking about her new book on Scotts Valley history. Then Attorney Bob Taren returns that same November 15 to share views on that election. Christina Waters guests November 22 talking about her new book. After Christina , Sean Michael Conley discusses genealogy and their local chapter functions. Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome, so tune in, and keep listening. Email me always (and only) at bratton@cruzio.com

The rainbow video up top reminded me of an old time favorite…

NEW UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVE FEATURE. Stuff changes at KZSC a lot. If you missed either of the last two weeks of Universal Grapevine broadcasts go here… http://www.radiofreeamerica.com/dj/bruce-bratton You have to listen to about 4 minutes of that week’s KPFA news first, then Grapevine happens.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 9 years here’s a chronological list of some past broadcasts. Such a wide range of folks such as Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, UCSC Chancellor George Blumenthal, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011.

QUOTES. “STORMS”

“Storms and darkness scared me, but somehow it encouraged me to learn about nature and I think nothing’s dark, dark is beautiful too”, Bai Ling

“Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass…It’s about learning to dance in the rain“, Vivian Greene

“They sicken of the calm who know the storm“, Dorothy Parker

“I
think that the
world should be full of cats and full of rain, that’s all, just
cats and
rain, rain and cats, very nice, good
night.”
Charles Bukowski,

COLUMN COMMUNICATIONS. Subscriptions: Click and enter the box in the upper right hand corner of each Column. You’ll get a weekly email notice the instant the column goes online. (Anywhere from Monday afternoon through Thursday or sometimes as late as Friday!) Always free and confidential. Even I don’t know who subscribes!!

Snail Mail: Bratton Online
82 Blackburn Street, Suite 216
Santa Cruz, CA 95060

Direct email: Bratton@Cruzio.com
Direct phone: 831 423-2468
All Technical & Web details: Gunilla Leavitt @ godmoma@gmail.com

BEST OF VINTAGE STEVEN DeCINZO.

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Deep Cover by Tim Eagan.

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Blog Archives

October 17 – 23, 2016

BEST OF VINTAGE STEVEN DeCINZO.

Deep Cover by Tim Eagan.