By Lisa Marguet
The Flying Sams landed in Ensenada
a little over a year ago, bringing a free clinic to a community
that, up to that time, had depended on home remedies and curanderos
to cure what ailed them.
Flying Sams, short for Flying Samaritans, is a voluntary group
of pre-med students out of the University of California, San Diego
(UCSD), who devised and organized the free clinic. "I was
stunned by the dramatic difference our group made," stated
Elizabeth Stephens, a UCSD student. "I gave this old man
his very first pair of glasses. To think that I was able to help
him see after all these years was very gratifying."
Opening the doors to the clinic took a great deal of work from students, including two years of negotiations with the Mexican government (with the support of the DIF - Mexico's welfare system), and the renovation of a rundown, concrete building into a fully stocked, functional clinic. All that was left was to recruit doctors to volunteer their weekends in Ensenada.
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Vietnam Specter Haunts Philippines As U.S. Troops
Settle In
By Maurice Malanes
MANILA, Philippines—Top Philippine officials are defending
the presence of hundreds of newly arrived U.S troops, but critics
from both the left and the right are raising legal and constitutional
questions and warn about local backlash. Some fear another Vietnam
in the making.
State Board of Education Takes Historic Action
to Integrate Instruction For California's 1.2 Million K-8
English Learners
Sacramento — For the first time in California history,
the State Board of Education has adopted regular classroom textbooks
that include strategies to meet the instructional needs of the
more than 1 million English learners in California's K-8 public
schools.
New Tuition Exemption Would Make UC More Affordable
For Some Students
As a measure to further expand access to a University
of California education, the UC Board of Regents today (Jan. 17)
conditionally approved by a 17-5 vote a new tuition exemption
program that will allow certain nonresident students to pay in-state
fees if they have attended at least three years at and graduated
from a California high school.
Small-Time Inventors Take Super Show By Storm
By Yvette tenBerge
Jean-Guy Raymond, a 70-year-old retired firefighter from Montreal,
Canada, stands next to a display that consists of a pumpkin-sized,
black ball fitted into a heavy, polished wood base. Although his
casual attire and stance project calm, his eyes are intent on
passersby who stop to watch a video playing on a monitor to his
right. Observers exchange puzzled looks as they view footage of
Mr. Raymond, or members of his family, partially lying on the
floor and rolling their stomachs over the Abdomax, an invention
that Mr. Raymond believes will take fitness-crazy America by storm.
N.A.C.H.: New Federal Medicaid Rules Threaten
State Health Coverage For Low-Income And Disabled
Children
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Ignoring state budget crises across
the country and bipartisan congressional opposition, the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today (January 17,
2002) announced new rules that will substantially cut federal
funding for state Medicaid programs, which finance the health
care of millions of children of low-income families as well as
children with disabilities, according to the National Association
of Children's Hospitals.
Paige Announces Historically Black Colleges and
Universities and Hispanic Serving Institutions to Get
More Than $350 Million
U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige announced that President
George W. Bush's budget request for the Education Department will
include more than $350 million for programs that will strengthen
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Historically
Black Graduate Institutions (HBGIs) and Hispanic-Serving Institutions
(HSIs)-an increase of more than $12 million over current funding
levels.
Researchers Question Reported Links Between
English Immersion Programs and Rise in English Learner
Test Scores
TEMPE, Ariz.—Claims that an overall rise in the Stanford-9
test scores of California's limited English proficient (LEP) students
is due largely to the implementation of English immersion programs
are not supported by the California Department of Education's
Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) data, according to an
article published Friday in the Education Policy Analysis Archives
(EPAA), an on-line peer-reviewed scholarly journal published by
the Education Policy Studies Laboratory at Arizona State University.
Bolstering the Public's Trust Begins with Offering
SmallPox Vaccinations
Doctors at Front Line Need Training, Can't Heal What They
Can't Diagnose
By Dr. Elen Rios
WASHINGTON - Just when Americans adjusted their lives to the
threat of anthrax, smallpox - a deadlier and more contagious bioterrorism
horror - looms heavily over the nation.
Para Aumentar La Confianza del Público
Debe Comenzarse por Ofrecer La Vacuna Contra La Viruela
Los Médicos en El Camp de Acción Necesitan
Entrenamiento, Ya Que No Pueden Curar Los Que No
Pueden Diagnosticar
Por Dra. Elena Ríos
WASHINGTON - Ahora que los estadounidenses han hecho cambios
en sus vidas ante la amenaza del ántrax, la viruela - una
amenaza bioterrorista más mortífera y contagiosa
- ha surgido en el país.
Home Ownership Gets a Little Easier
Partnership Between County, Local Cities Helps Renters
Buy Their Own Homes
A new program sponsored by the County of San Diego and
15 local cities will help families make the jump from renting
to home ownership, even if they are short on cash for a down payment
or have less than stellar credit.
26 Housing and Community Development Groups
Form Community Homeownership Credit Coalition
WASHINGTON — Twenty-six housing and community development
groups have come together to form the Community Homeownership
Credit Coalition to push for the enactment of a homeownership
tax credit proposed by the Bush administration that would help
increase the supply of affordable homes for sale.
Water Authority's New Insurance Program Aids
Small Businesses
The San Diego County Water Authority is offering a new
insurance program that will open the door for more small businesses
to participate in contracted work. The service was designed to
make it easier for contractors to meet the insurance requirements
of the Water Authority by providing a cost-saving alternative
to the rates offered by most insurance companies.
LA
COLUMNA VERTEBRAL
Por Diego Alvarez
No convierta el sueño de tener vivienda
en una pesadilla
Para la mayoría de hispanos, adquirir una casa
propia es un sueño hecho realidad a base de esfuerzos,
ahorros durante toda una vida y mucha paciencia. La felicidad
y sobre todo, la tranquilidad que produce llegar a tu propia casa,
es algo que sólo se vive una vez.
Commentary...
New York The Capital of the World and the
Final Destination
By R.M. Medina
AFTER the horrible tragedy of September 11 in New York, the
city is getting back to normal life...
Cox Kids donates $10,000 to SMMS
The Cox communications Kids Foundation provided a grant
to the San Marcos Middle School (SMMS) and the Palomar College
GEAR UP program for $10,000. The grant was part of a competitive
process sought by middle schools from around San Diego County.
The SMMS proposal, titled "School-wide Literacy Through Accelerated
Reader", is to support a computerized student self-guided
reading progress program. The software, already installed on school
computers, is called Accelerated Reader.
"Do You Know Mr. California? Or Friends of
Carrillo (Leo) Ranch
Carlsbad Hi-Noon Rotarian, Tom Freese, Community Director,
presented a check to Gene Chartier, board member of the Friends
of (Leo) Carrillo Ranch, for $1,000.00. The money will help them
in their innovative teaching of "Art & California
History," to all the students in Carlsbad's fourth grades.
Bronze Triangle CDC Teams Up With Members of
the San Diego Police Department and Owner of Lew's
Market to Improve Their Community
For many years now, school children and neighbors who
passed by Lew's Market on the corner of 33rd and Imperial
saw vivid images of drugs and gangs depicted in a life-size mural
painted on the side of the market. Created from ideas generated
by students at a neighborhood elementary school in the early 1990's,
the fifteen-foot high and fifty-foot long mural portrayed a vision
of how the students saw their community - as a struggle between
good and evil. One of the most notable images depicted was a person
injecting himself with an over-sized hypodermic needle.
Martina Peinado Named Southwestern College Employee
of the Quarter
Martina Peinado says, "I was hatched here,"
as a way to illustrate the scope of her connection to Southwestern
College. Each year since 1997, in her capacity as CalWORKS program
technician, Martina has assisted more than 700 CalWORKS students
transition from welfare to work. However, her Southwestern College
history began in 1986 when she became a student worker assigned
to the Division of Engineering and Technical Studies. Later, as
an hourly worker, she worked for Business and Operations, Admissions,
ROP, Customized Training, and the Women's Resource Center. Along
the way she has worked in almost every area of the campus. Among
her most rewarding accomplishments was setting up "well-oiled"
systems for new start-up programs such as the Border Environmental
Commerce Resource Center, and CalWORKS.
South Bay Forum To Hold Candidate's Forum
Chula Vista Mayoral & Council Seat Candidates Invited
Chula Vista — South Bay Forum, a non-partisan
political action committee, invites Chula Vista voters to attend
a Candidate Forum on Thursday, January 31, 2002. The forum, for
Mayoral and Council Seat candidates, will be held at the Chula
Vista Public Library Auditorium, 4th & F St., at 6:00 p.m.
Community Notes:
Grant Funds Available for Performing & Visual Arts
Application forms are now available from the Chula Vista Office
of Cultural Arts for Performing & Visual Arts Fund grants.
Eligible projects may include dance, design arts, media arts,
music, photography, theatre, traditional/folk arts and visual
arts, or interdisciplinary expressions involving more than one
of these fields.
Openings on the Law Library Board of Trustees
The San Diego County Public Law Library has two openings
for an attorney member of its Board of Trustees. The Law Library
Board consists of three attorneys and four judges.
Mexico: La Pelota Prehispánica Sobrevive
Por Diego Cevallos
MEXICO (IPS) - Arqueólogos de México hallaron
en la capital y en los estados de Chiapas y Durango nuevas canchas
prehispánicas en las que se practicaba un juego de pelota
cuyo significado aún se discute.
Editorial
Padres' Owner Becomes Switch Hitter and Strikes
Out
Whatever else they may be, PADRES fans are not stupid.
Mexicans, Latinos, Hispanics and African Americans recognize a
switch when they see it. John Moores is the owner of the San Diego
Padres who spent a lot of money and time getting the Mexicans,
Latinos, Hispanics and African Americans into the ball park, but
he has switched teams in the middle of the game.
Commentary
Governor Davis Balances State Budget On
Our Backs
James Santiago Grisolía, MD
Our economic recession is anticipated to cause over 12 billion
dollars in shortfall in the California state budget. Governor
Davis proposes a budget that tries to close the gap with smoke
and mirrors, hoping to avoid responsibility for more obvious cuts
or tax increases that would damage his chances for re-election.
Chismes
de mi gallinero:
A Glance Backwards at a Very Strange 2001
By Julio C. Calderón
SACRAMENTO - We just got back from a week of recharging batteries
in El Valle del Yaqui, the Sonora Desert, at the foot of the Superstition
Mountain in Arizona. The desert is mystical on its own, no need
for magic mushrooms. Of course, there is no need for enhancements
either to recognize the fact that we have gone through a very
strange year.
Se Rinde Homenaje a los Caídos el 11 de
Septiembre Con un Corrido
Por Paco Zavala
No hay una explicación creíble ni humana que
justifique hechos muy lamentables, esto ha ocurrido a través
del tiempo, la historia narra desde antes de los tiempos bíblicos
si hemos de hacer referencia a algún dato, creo que este
se ha perdido en el transcurso de la vida, la cual está
plagada y llena de estos hechos, nada más que el ser humano
parece tener muy mala memoria.
Se Buscan Músicos Tradicionalístas
Mexicanos
Por: Paco Zavala
México, es un país en el que la música
es un ingrediente de vital importancia para desarrollar sus actividades
en todos sus contornos y vertientes. México, es un país
de una naturaleza romántica por excelencia, con esta se
mezcla fervientemente adherida la música en todas sus concepciones,
el trabajo no es la excepción. En México, hasta
en el rincón más pequeñito poblacional se
manifiesta en sus costumbres, leyendas y tradiciones la necesidad
de amenizar con música sus celebraciones, en fin, en todo
siempre está presente la corriente musical.
Mosaico...
de Actividades Culturales en Tijuana
Por Paco Zavala
La veleidosa vida nada perdona y dentro de sus vaivenes intrépidos
y dsconcertantes encontramos que incluye tanto los valores que
corresponden únicamente al género humano, también
lo que al mismo incumbe desarrollar y encontrar por medio de su
desarrollo su derrotero definido y sensibilizarlo de tal manera
que se convierta en un vrdadero ser humano, como una efigie deidificada,
poseedor de esas formas y definiciones que no sean desvirtuadas
nunca, por nada ni por nadie.
Showtime to Premiere "Fidel," First
Film to Primarily Explore Life of Fidel Castro
Two-Part Miniseries Chronicles Life and rise to Power of
Cuba's Leader
The controversial life and rise to power of Fidel Castro
are the subjects of the Show-time Original Miniseries FIDEL. The
first film to primarily explore the life of Fidel Castro, FIDEL,
premieres exclusively on Sunday, January 27 at 8:00 p.m. (ET/PT)
and Monday, January 28 at 8:00 p.m.
Calendar of Events...
by Berenice Cisneros
Tall Ships Arriving
The exotic square riggers Lady Washington and Hawaiian
Chieftain returns to San Diego January 24 as their final stop
of their West Coast educational tour. They will call at 16 ports
between San Francisco and here docking at the Maritime Museum
January 24 thru February 3.
The Official Word On Vargas-De La Hoya Press
Scuffle - And Who Really Got Hurt
The Golden Boy, when he finished his photo shoot Thursday
in Los Angeles, did some quick shadow-boxing, flashed his left
jab and told his handlers "....I know exactly right where
to hit Vargas, right on his glass chin."
Chacon Rallies to Retain, Tapia Returns with
a Knockout
By Dave Hicks
With rumors abounding that Johnny Tapia's final fight with
Showtime would come earlier this evening, and that then the four-time
world champion would jump ship to HBO in order to set up a mega-payday
against Prince Naseem Hamed, Showtime did have one bargaining
chip. While they couldn't produce someone with the crossover appeal
of the Prince, they could provide Tapia with the WBO featherweight
champion, who also fought tonight from London, England, giving
him a shot to gain that fifth world title he craves.
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