Catching up on my medical board work and other items

Ah, the weekend. Started this am up in North Long Beach at Holly and Dan Pressberg's house which is a historical landmark. The food was great and quite a crowd of candidates and electeds.

Got to chat with first district candidate Jana Shields (whom I had not met before) and said hello to Gabrielle Holt who is circulating a petition to make the state legislature part-time. (No, I didn't sign but I always enjoy talking with her. She's a very smart person.)

Also on the scene as Mr.Wielenga --formerly known as Dave Wielenga of the now defunct District Weekly. Bill Pearl of LBReport.com. Art Levine from Straight Talk (still haven't been invited to talk on his show cause I get you really have to be straight...)

City Attorney Bob Shannon, James Johnson and Jack Smith. Not to mention several people who want to take Laura Richardson out...of Congress.

Back home and then to Long Beach City College to talk to students who were attending a Habitat for Humanity workshop. Drive around Lakewood Village dropping off campaign signs then back home to the computer.

Numerous cases on line to review as a member of the Medical Board of California. As the regulatory board we have to review proposed discipline when it is appealed by the physician. We also actually hear cases in person (just went to Sacramento two weeks ago to hear a case.)Although I am the only (and first Registered Nurse) to be appointed to a Medical Board in the US, I am serving as a public (non physician member)... so I represent the public. I take this work very seriously because we are deciding on whether or not a physician should retain his or her license to practice or to be placed on probation with a list of conditions. And I get paid the grand sum of $100 when I attend a medical board meeting.

PS I have convinced the medical board to finally hold a meeting in Long Beach which they will do in November.

Check Out Code Enforcement Cases In Long Beach

You can click on this link http://www.longbeach.gov/cd/neighborhood_services/code/current_open_cases.asp and find out how many code enforcement cases are currently open in the city -- the addresses and what has been done to date.

Often constituents turn in an address to code enforcement and then complain that "nothing is done." Due process and notice is required and the offending address is allowed to fix the problem without being cited...as long as they fix it.

Checking this list will tell you exactly what is going on.

City Council Votes to Regulate Medical Marijuana Collectives

The Council on a 5-4 vote approved the first reading of an ordinance that will strongly regulate when and where a medical marijuana collective can locate in Long Beach. At my urging, the Council agreed to expand the buffer zone between these collectives and schools to 1,000 feet and 1,500 feet for high schools (at the urging of Councilman O'Donnell).

Additionally, at the advice of our City Attorney and our Chief of Police (as well as the District Attorney) the council requires these collectives to actually grow marijuana on site in order to operate. This keeps drugs from being transported in by drug cartels and it follows the Attorney General's guidelines.

Some of my colleagues were upset about the requirement to grow at the collective? Really, folks. Where do you think these places were getting their supplies if they weren't growing it as a collective???? They were getting marijuana from drug dealers.

The voters of California approved law that allows a collective of "patients" needing medical marijuana to grow and distribute medical marijuana for the use of only those members of that collective. By requiring that they do so, Long Beach is following the state law and making certain that the phony "collectives" go out of business. The ordinance also gives our law enforcement the tools they need to make certain the law is followed.

Councilman Andrews' Heart is in the right place

Ok. So constituents have contacted me about Councilman Dee Andrews' plan to offer job training and other services to soon to be released prisoners. I do honestly believe that Dee's heart is in the right place and he understands that if we don't train those returning from incarceration they are more than likely to return to crime and be imprisoned at the taxpayers' expense.

Nevertheless. This isn't a good idea for Long Beach. Not right now. Not when 14.5% of our population in unemployed and I suspect many more underemployed. The City doesn't have the money nor the resources, nor should this be on our list of things to do.

The City should explore whether or not to sue the State of California and/or the County of Los Angeles if either level of government prematurely releases prisoners into our City. It's bad enough that the State had raided our coffers and continues to dump parolees into communities, but to let prisoners get out early when the governor and legislature refuses to do their jobs is unthinkable.

To use City resources to provide services for the prisoners isn't appropriate. Let's spend what resources we have on preventing our youth from committing the crimes that is putting their elders in prison.

Need I say more???

Excuse me -- Can I just say -----

There were probably many, many times this year
when I may have disturbed you, troubled you,
pestered you, irritated you, bugged you, or got on
your nerves with all the e-mails I send.

So today, I just wanted to tell you...









Suck it up, "Cupcake!"

'Cause there are NO changes planned for 2010 !!!

Tea with Rosie

The Historical Society of Long Beach was packed yesterday with women and men eager to listen to re-enactments of the oral histories of women who worked on the home front during World War II.

Tea with Rosie was the creation of the wonderful staff and volunteers at the Historical Society as one of several events to draw the public to see the Smithsonian exhibit: Produce for Victory. The exhibit is a joint project with The Long Beach Rosie the Riveter Foundation and will be at the Historical Society until April 4th.

The closing of the exhibit will be celebrated with a USO style dance and entertainment from the Swing Dolls.