Free Speech Problems Around the World - Locally and Internationally

It seems to be a global problem - the right to speak freely and against authority.

In Los Angeles County, at Cal Poly Pomona College, a student had to sue the university to enforce his right to leaflet. The authorities told him that leafleting was restricted to a Free Speech Zone. I don't think so. . . (By the way, I coincidentally know the student, whose mother tirelessly fights for the poor in the City of El Monte, neighboring local city and Baldwin Park's best friend - both of whom steal from the residents.)

Student Says Cal Poly Is Trying to Silence His Vegan Campaign

Cal Poly Pomona student Nicolas Tomas never thought handing out leaflets promoting a vegan diet would become so controversial.

But when college administrators moved to restrict his activities, Tomas sued the university. His case became a flashpoint in the debate over how far universities should go to promote tolerance and civility on their increasingly diverse campuses — and whether some of those policies unfairly restrict constitutionally protected free speech.

Although virtually all academics say they support freedom of speech, many also argue that campuses have good cause to be sensitive to activities that could provoke vulnerable young adults. Colleges are charged with protecting the personal safety of students and must juggle the interplay of sexual, racial and ethnic dynamics that could lead to charges of harassment or bullying and potential lawsuits.

Read more here: Cal Poly Tries to Silence Students

In another story, Islamic Extremists Kill a Blogger.

Why has Bangladesh become a killing ground for bloggers?

The slaying of a third secular blogger in as many months has set a chilling pattern in Bangladesh, a country long associated with a culture of moderation and free expression.

Machete-wielding assailants followed Ananta Bijoy Das on Tuesday morning when he left his house in the northeastern city of Sylhet and hacked him to death, police and friends said.

Das wrote for Mukto-Mona, the blog founded by Avijit Roy, a U.S. citizen who was killed in a similar attack outside a book fair in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, in February. Another writer who protested Roy's killing on social media, Washiqur Rahman, was struck down on a Dhaka street in March

Read more here: Bangladesh - a Killing Ground for Bloggers

It is important that we all remember that we have the right to speak freely and that we need to protect that right against our public officials, who want all of us to agree with them or just shut up and go away. Do we want our country to turn into Bagladesh?

Law Partnership of Tafoya and Garcia Submit Questionable Billing to the Central Basin Municipal Water District

Robert Nacionales-Tafoya (Left) and David A. Garcia (Right)

The law partnership of Tafoya and Garcia have submitted questionable billing to the Central Basin Municipal Water District. (Let's not forget, one of the partners, Robert Tafoya submitted a forged document in one of my cases.) Doesn't it seem fishy that Baldwin Park chose this law firm to represent the City?

A review of the bills have shown several problems:

1. Although no lawsuit had been filed yet, the firm charged over $91,000 for a period of 34 days.

2. The firm was billing an hours of a non-existent attorney named Aisha Adama.

3. Investigator, Michael Preece, submitted questionable block billing.

4. The billing was being justified in "anticipation" of a lawsuit, but no lawsuit was filed yet. The following article outlines the findings.

Law Firm Submits Questionable Billing in Central Basin Water Investigation of Former GM Tony Perez

By Brian Hews

A Hews Media Group-Community News investigation has, according to documents obtained from a public records request, revealed that the Los Angeles law firm of Tafoya and Garcia has billed Central Basin Municipal Water District (CB) over $91,000 in fees related to the investigation into alleged violations by former CB General Manager Tony Perez.

Massive billings were also submitted by private investigators working with the law firm on the Perez case. Total amount of the investigator billings has reached $36,000.

All billings have been generated in only 34 days.

The investigation is in “anticipation” of Perez suing CB for wrongful termination, a highly unusual move. Investigations and discovery usually occur after a lawsuit is filed, not before.

Perez was unceremoniously fired from his CB post in October 2014, with 3.5 years left on his contract. Immediately after his termination, CB Director Leticia Vasquez handed Perez over 100 alleged violations committed by him since April 2013.

A source close to Perez  at the time said, “if Director Vasquez had violations dating back to April 2013, why did she not bring them up then?”

At the next board meeting, CB inexplicably hired Tafoya and Garcia to investigate Perez and immediately gave the firm a $20,000 retainer.

Inexplicable given the fact that months earlier, Tafoya and Garcia applied to become CB’s General Counsel, but was removed from consideration after the first round of interviews.

The vote was 3-2, with CB President Robert “Bob” Apodaca, Directors James Roybal and Vasquez voting yes. Directors Arturo “Art” Chacon and Phil Hawkins, vehemently opposed the hiring, voted no.

It was a well-know fact that Tafoya and Garcia were active supporters of Director Vasquez, giving her $1,500 for her 2012 CB campaign.

A review of the billing documents show that “DAG,” presumably David A. Garcia, and an attorney with the initials “ASA,” exclusively worked on the investigation.

The Tafoya and Garcia invoice submitted to CB contained the name “Aisha Adama.”

HMG-CN placed three calls into Tafoya and Garcia asking for Aisha Adama and three different employees, one identifying herself as “Mildred” said that, “there is no Ms. Adama that works here, I have never heard that name.”

Several sources at CB, who did not want to be identified, told HMG-CN that they have never talked to nor heard of an Aisha Adama.

A search on the California State Bar website, www.members.calbar.ca.gov, which lists all attorneys active or retired and licensed to practice law in California, reveals that Aisha Adama does not exist.

But, using the option “include similarly sounding names” on the website produced Aisha Adam a licensed attorney in Whittier.

When contacted by HMG-CN, Ms. Adam confirmed she had worked for Tafoya and Garcia, but would not elaborate further and would not confirm she had done any work on the Perez case.

Billing Documents

According to the billings, both attorneys earned a hefty $350 per hour.

October billings for Garcia totaled $10,785, while billings for “Adama” totaled $9,240.

November billings showed that in only 8 days of work, Garcia racked up $21,315 in fees and “Adama” totaled $13,510. That is 60.9 and 38.6 hours, respectively.

Included in the billings was $12,635 for 36 hours of work on Saturday Nov.1 and Sunday Nov. 2.

“Adama” worked 21.5 hours Nov. 1 and 2, charging $7,525 in fees.

See billing documents, click here.

All invoices from the investigators were surprisingly plain, containing only names and billing totals, absent was any company or website address, phone, or email.

First billing period

HMG-CN was told that when the investigation started, CB had 19 employees on payroll that worked the typical 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Yet invoices showed hourly billings well past 5 p.m., with investigators often not leaving CB offices until 11 p.m.

As of Nov. 10, total hours billed were at an astonishing 434.5 hours in only 34 days, averaging 12.77 hours per day.

The first billing period was from Oct. 2 to Wed. Oct 8, five working days.

Art Preece billed 55.5 hours and Michael Preece billed 79.5 hours for a total of $3,905 and $7,410 respectively.

Art Preece’s invoice, which was missing an invoice number, indicated he was at CB until at least 10 p.m. working an average of 10 hours per day.

Michael Preece’s invoices indicated he was at CB until at least 11 p.m. working an average of 16 hours per day. He also worked 12.5 hours on the weekend, Oct. 4 and 5, and charged for 130 miles.

Of interest is the fact that the IRS mileage reimbursement rate is .56 per mile. Every invoice submitted by the investigators charged .70 per mile. That equates to a 25% mark-up on the IRS reimbursement rate passed on directly to CB ratepayers.

Second billing period-Oct. 9-15

Art Preece was conspicuously missing from the billings during the week but an invoice from “AP Investigations” was submitted.

No investigator was named for payment on the AP Investigations invoice and once again it did not have an invoice number. The invoice charged 42.5 hours for a total of $2,708 including mileage reimbursement.

Michael Preece billed 46.5 hours for a total of $4,349.50.

Both investigators again reported working 9 hours on Sat, the 11th and 3 hours on Sun. the 12th.

Third billing period-Oct. 16-22

Only Michael Preece worked that week, totaling 50 hours or $4,727.50. He again worked 8.5 hours over the weekend and charged for 30 miles.

Fourth billing period-Oct. 23-29

Michael Preece worked 58.5 hours for a total of $5,405. He reported working 14 hours over the weekend.

Art Preece worked 20 hours, totaling $1,200. The invoice, once again, did not have an invoice number.

Fifth billing period-Oct. 30-Nov. 5

Michael Preece worked 70 hours, billing $6,485. He also worked 26 hours over the weekend, reporting that he worked until 11 p.m. Sun. Nov. 2.

Art Preece worked  8 hours, totaling $480.

All tolled, Michael Preece worked all 34 days, earning $27,405. He billed for a total of 304.5 hours, averaging nearly 9 hours per day, including weekends.

Art Preece and AP Investigations earned $7,800.

In addition, upon closer inspection of  the Michael Preece invoices, there is a conflict of invoice numbers. Preece invoiced on Oct. 31, invoice number 100214. Another invoice dated four days earlier, Oct. 27, was numbered 100914. Invoicing systems always use ascending numbers, so the Oct. 27 invoice number should have been lower than the Oct. 31 invoice number, meaning one or both invoices was altered.

See billing documents, click here.

CB Director Art Chacon told HMG-CN, “there is absolutely no justification for paying Tafoya & Garcia and this investigation a single dime to handle a situation that doesn’t exist at this point. If and when Tony Perez decides to sue Central Basin for what everyone sees as an obvious case of wrongful termination, then the matter should be referred to insurance to be evaluated. Money spent now is nothing more than a gift of public funds and something the District Attorney should be investigating.”

Sources at CB have told HMG-CN that Tafoya and Garcia recently asked for an additional $100,000 for the investigation.

When told of the law firm billings, Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe told HMG-CN, “If further investigation supports this story, it’s the same old stuff, filling the pockets of friends! I am sure that the State Audit will reflect that as well. If their case was as strong as they said, they wouldn’t need $200,000 of legal fees!”

City of Baldwin Park Votes to Burn $36,500 on Fireworks With Questionable Funding

It's been alleged that the business improvement funds are a state grant only meant to be used for developing businesses in Baldwin Park. Well, now the City Council have voted to burn it, literally, with fireworks. And the vendor wants to charge Baldwin Park with a $10,000 surcharge. Sounds fishy to me. And guess who's behind this: that's right our friend, the Parks and Recreation Director, Manuel Carrillo Jr., the money launderer. Something is rotten in Baldwin Park and it starts with Manny Carrillo.

There was no bidding process that went out for these fireworks. I would seriously question this surcharge and ask how these council members and mayor are getting a benefit from voting on these fireworks. Always remember, consider the source. Let's not forget, this is the same Parks and Recs Director and Council Members who said that a 40 cent raise for a boxing coach who worked for 17 years was good enough. But hey, burning a year's worth of salary for 10 minutes of pleasure is worth it.

In the words of One Republic, "Take that money. Watch it burn."

Baldwin Park OKs Fourth of July fireworks show amid funding questions

by Melissa Masatani (San Gabriel Valley Tribune)

BALDWIN PARK >> After a two-year hiatus, Baldwin Park will celebrate the Fourth of July with a fireworks show, but questions are being raised about how the city will pay the $36,500 price tag.

The City Council on Wednesday voted 3-2 to pay for the show out of the city’s Business Improvement District fund instead of the general fund. Mayor Pro Tem Cruz Baca and Councilwoman Susan Rubio objected, questioning the legality of using the district fund to pay for a community event.

“(Promoting businesses) has to be a big component (of the event) to be able to use that funding,” Rubio said. “I just would be a little bit careful because it has to be part of the businesses.”

The district raised more than $60,000 last year by taxing city businesses and ended the fiscal year with about $250,000 in the bank. Cities are restricted by state law in how they can use the money, though.

The show will cost about $25,000 for the fireworks and $11,000 for other entertainment and staff overtime costs, Recreation and Community Services Director Manuel Carrillo said.

The city will be paying more for the show because it is so close to the holiday, he said.

The council could have chosen to have the show on Friday July 3, which would have cost $27,500, but Councilwoman Monica Garcia objected, saying the show was an important part of the city’s tradition that should be on July 4.

“Clearly there are events that are important to us,” Garcia said. “I think this is a staple event and we should absolutely bring it back.”

In discussions, Councilman Ricardo Pacheco mentioned using the business district funds as an alternative to the general fund and offering to have the city’s businesses set up vendor booths for free. Baca objected saying most businesses would be closed and many owners already are looking forward to the return of Concerts in the Park and the Street Fair, which bring residents downtown on a regular basis.

The mayor pro tem also said she had been in talks with two businesses to possibly sponsor an event in 2016, tying the Fourth of July celebration into the city’s 50th anniversary.

“I just feel that now we’re running to try to get something done at the last minute and paying the price for it,” Baca said.

Did the Mayor Lie to Us Again About His Political Campaign Contribution?

Mayor Manuel Lozano

Mayor Manuel Lozano appears to be getting caught in his own tangled web of lies, but hey, he was the one who first practiced to deceive. In my last post about the Mayor, we talked about how the Mayor didn't file his disclosure forms and why its such an unethical practice. Manuel Lozano Lies to Us Again

First, it turns out that the Mayor actually didn't file his forms for not just one year, but three. After the Tribune reported on this and the the Director of the Fair Political Process Commission announced it was investigating him, Lozano turned in the fillings.

The filings show a number of discrepancies, which I interpret as deception. For instance, his political consultant Natalie Rodgers, who gave him money, he renamed "Natalie Roders." If this was done intentionally, it suggests that Mayor Lozano doesn't want someone to trace the amount of money Natalie Rodgers gave him. In general, people don't intentionally mis-spell names, unless they are trying to deceive people. In this case, the deception appears financially motivated because he doesn't want people to know how much money Rodgers probably gave him.

Other suspicious activities include that he received $9,121.96 in political campaign contributions that were $100 or less. I mean, is he seriously telling us that he received 91 instances or more of $100 campaign contributions? What it it appears he's trying to do is not disclose the sources of his campaign contribution because larger amounts require disclosing the sources.

The Tribune also caught him failing to disclose that he received funds from Congresswoman Napolitano. The Tribune story can be read here: Baldwin Park mayor files long overdue campaign finance records (published today).

It's also important to note that political campaign contributions can become a sophisticated form of kickbacks. Lozano figures out a way to pay a consultant with city monies. That consultant returns the money back to him in the form of political campaign contributions. Although the law limits the amount a politician can receive, you can get around these rules by having a politicians list out that he received $9,121.96 in $100 increments - without disclosing the source.

The deception never ends with these politicians. Really, it's an attack on the people's right to self-governance. The right to vote includes the right to know. People can only cast their right to vote if they know who they're voting for and abstaining from. When the power of the vote is at its ideal, the people can remove public officials from office; thus, holding them accountable when they commit misconduct.

Here, we can't do so; therefore, the people are losing the power of accountability. Remember, it's this power alone that prevents our democracy from becoming a dictatorship. I am convinced, in this moment in history, local government is facing a democratic crisis. Unless, things change, these public officials, who view us as the dumb masses, will enact the right (whether its official or not) to take from us, in order to enrich themselves.

Mayor Lozano Lies Again to Us - Hey, Who's Giving Him Money?

Manuel Lozano - Sued for Filing Useless Lawsuits Against Protesters

Mayor Manuel Lozano lies to us again. This time, Lozano refused to file his campaign disclosure forms. He's doing this because he doesn't want to tell us about his finances.

In America, and perhaps other Western Countries, the political theory is that the public should know who elected officials are getting their money from and how their spending it. The public wants to know what players are influencing the decision maker's decisions.

Here's why it's important. Remember, Lance Armstrong? If you don't, he was the American cyclist - who had testicular cancer. His story was one of the American Dream - in which he won the Tour de France, while having this cancer. He told everyone he was the American Dream, but he turned out to be a fraud. He was doping.

Did you know that the prosecutors didn't file charges? It was the Anti-Doping Agency who caught Armstrong. And Armstrong tried to give his agency a quarter of a million dollars - with the unspoken expectations of dropping the investigation. You see? At the end of the day, money talks, and all else walks.

So, it's important for us to know who Mr. Lozano is getting money from - so we see how it influences his crooked voting decisions. Take for instance that almost all of Lozano's votes goes to redevelopment. One only needs to look at the Centinela School District, who followed the same pattern, to know that Lozano is using his voting power to get money back to himself.

So, this year, he decided not to file a disclosure of his finances. In fact, this isn't the first time he's done this. In 2007, the Mayor didn't mention that a Chinese bank gave him a free trip to Shanghai.

Some French guys I met were telling me how corrupt Mexico was. I told him, "Look, it's the same where we live; it's just more covert where we live."

Why give a trip to Shanghai? Because it's too easy to trace cash. So, lucrative gifts are a good substitute. No wonder why Red Flex - the red light camera company - gives free trips across the country to police officers.

So, Lozano got fined a measly $200 for not reporting his Shanghai trip. This certainly isn't enough to deter his future lying. Lozano failed to file again in 2012. And for another $200 fine, he did it again this year!

Another factor I don't get about disclosing campaign forms is that it's all on the honor system. That means, we have to trust our politicians to be honest with the information they put down. Right? Like that's going to happen.

If your'e the Mayor, would you rather pay a $200 fine or risk prosecution for taking bribes from developers? Obviously, you'd lie and pay the $200 fine.

I've concluded the entire system of politics is broken and corrupt in local government. The City of Baldwin Park is built on a lie because everyone running it, lies to themselves, and to us. We need change.

City Clerk, Kristi Russell Lies to Me

City Clerk, Kristi Russell, lied to me today. After coming back from Mexico, I got a new software program. I asked her what time my public records act viewing was this week. At 9:48, she sends me an email that I have 12 minutes to go to City Hall to view my records.

She lied to me. It wasn't for today. My viewing was for tomorrow.

I thought, Hey - wait up, there's no way I'd book a viewing right after coming home.

Notice, she only gave me about 10 minutes to get to City Hall to put pressure on me. If this was an honest mistake, she should've at least told me first thing in the morning. But nope - this is how dirty this City is.

So, I look up the email and it says, "Thank You, I will let staff know that [May 5 - which is tomorrow] is good for you."

What Kristi Russell was trying to do was take advantage of the fact that I lost this email, which wasn't the case. Then, by me missing my appointment - she would've said that I'm wasting Baldwin Park's time with records viewing. The City Attorney did this to me once.

I asked for an explanation and of course, Russell lied again and said that she had made a mistake.

I wrote to her: "I remind you there is a God in Heaven and he sees everything you say and do. Listen to your conscience first."

She wrote back, "Do not get personal with me."

My response, "If it was an honest mistake, you wouldn't be upset. But your reaction shows me you lied."

This is so old and tiring. This City is always trying to take advantage of people by lying. I'd like to remind the readers that this is our local government. This City has lost all trust with its people.

On Friendship

On my last night in Mexico, I took a ride down with the Canadians. We stopped to eat some food at a seafood stand. I ordered raw clams and raw oysters and a taco with a deep fried oyster inside.

It was a perfect day - the kind where the sun was out but it wasn't too hot. The wind blew a sweet sea breeze at us and it felt fresh.

The Canadians and I were both leaving the day after. We both didn't want to.

But then, when I thought about it, I said, "You know, it might be alright. I miss so many of my friends and family. My father wants to see me. My mother will make me my fresh coffee - Kona or Blue Mountain of course. Then, there's my kitty Jehpi (short for Jeh Pan - Trial in Korean). And I have my crazy brother. And then there's my Russian friend." I thought about them and smiled.

They look at me blankly.

"You don't want to see people back home?"

The guy said, "Not really."

The girl said, "Nope."

Hmmm, How odd? I thought.

When we back to the hostel, I made a call to my Russian friend. I told him about everything that was happening and my ups and my downs. I told him about my world and shared the moments I experienced.

After the call, I felt good and at peace and happy.

The hostel volunteer was sitting at the patio and I said, "I feel so happy."

And she said, "Why?"

"Because I talked to one of my best friends, and he was there for me. And there's no feeling like that in the world."

She looked sad and said, "I don't have anyone like that in my life. I tell my problems to my psychologists, but it doesn't seem to help."

Her eyes looked sadder than a puppy dog. I didn't know what to tell her.

We chatted some more, as the night deepened into darkness and the moon beamed brighter.

My flight was ok. I watched the Fast and the Furious on the plane. The first one. I never seen it before. And I thought it was the worst film I've ever seen. I guess a blockbuster these days are fast cars, girls, gangsters, bombs, shootings, fights, and lesbians kissing. Bread and circus, the Romans used to say.

When I got out of the plane, there were already problems: other people's problems, arguments, phone calls, and more stress.

Now you really know you're home, I thought.

When people say the grass isn't greener on the other side, that's not true. Some times it is.