Thanks to Assemblyman Todd Spitzer–Where is Senator Dick Ackerman?

“Public safety is job one” for any elected official from the local city council to the president of this country. We have endured four days of wild fires across the state including Santiago Canyon in Orange County.

As a resident of Mission Viejo we are represented in SAC by Assemblyman Todd Spitzer in the 71st AD and Senator Dick Ackerman in the 33rd SD.

Having received several calls from Mission Viejo residents regarding word from our city officials and state representatives on the fires let me share the following.
Todd Spitzer has earned the respect from many of my neighbors who called telling me of his quick action in this natural disaster including his appearance on KFI radio this morning.

In the meantime I have waited to hear from our state senator Dick Ackerman. Earlier today I received his latest newsletter which one would have expected to include an update on the fires and what actions the state government was doing in the way of dealing with this tragic event. Following is the first few paragraphs.

Subj: Daily Briefing for October 24, 2007
Date: 10/24/2007 10:52:38 AM Pacific Daylight Time
From: senator.ackerman@senate.ca.gov
To: subscribers@sen.ca.gov
Sent from the Internet (Details)

Daily Briefing for October 24, 2007

STEVE LOPEZ COLUMN
He won’t say ‘I told you so . . .’
http://www.latimes.com/news/columnists/la-me-lopez24oct24,1,5880052.column?coll=la-news-columns
Former San Diego fire Chief Jeff Bowman, who repeatedly warned that his city wasn’t prepared to handle major fires, is out back of his house near Escondido at 7 a.m., watching the smoke come over a ridge and wondering if he’ll lose everything he’s got. “I think I’m OK,” Bowman says, pointing out how he cleared the brush, picked rocky surroundings and built his hilltop ranch house with very little exposed wood.

PETER SCHRAG COLUMN
Educate them, then deport them: This is nuts
http://www.sacbee.com/schrag/story/450067.html
A bipartisan group in Congress has been struggling for years to pass the federal Dream Act, which would allow an estimated 360,000 young illegal immigrants who are recent graduates of U.S. high schools – many are now in college – to get on the track toward legal residency. An estimated 45,000 live in California.

MATIER & ROSS COLUMN
Southern California blazes add to global warming
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/10/24/BADISUPJ6.DTL&type=politics
When it comes to greenhouse gases, Mother Nature and her forest fires like the ones raging through Southern California can be some of the biggest polluters out there. According to the California Air Resources Board, the blazes raging from Malibu to the Mexican border will send some 2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, plus 200,000 tons of methane and nitrous oxide.

WILDFIRES
Governor visits fire-ravaged Lake Arrowhead
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/politics/cal/la-me-arrowhead24oct24,1,5509922.story?coll=la-news-politics-california&ctrack=5&cset=true
As twin blazes continued raging through the Lake Arrowhead region, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger visited one of its fire-ravaged neighborhoods today to view the damage.
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What did Dick have to say to those of us on his distribution? Zilch, NADA. Only clippings from various newspapers around the state.

Last night I stood on a friends balcony in Mission Viejo and watched the flames around five miles away over Saddleback Church where there are no roads for the fire trucks to approach the subject area. So at noon today I called Dick Ackerman’s district office to ask where has he been for the past four days. The response. “He is out with the governor.” The media reports that even president Bush is coming to see the damaged area first hand. He might even get on the scene before our local Republican leader.

I have left a thank you note for Todd on his cell phone.

Therefore, for this week I tip my hat to Todd and express my disappointment in our senator for his delay/failure in trying to show his efforts to fight the fires and calm our fears. While this may not be 9-11 there are those who have lost their homes and could use some moral support at this time! Juice Readers. Did any of you hear from Senator Ackerman?

About Larry Gilbert