A peek at the Carlsbad mayoral race

For the North County Times

With the retirement of a mayor who has been in office for a quarter of a century and two City Council seats up for grabs, Carlsbad voters will have their first opportunity in decades to make a substantial change in city leadership.

The incumbents have a lot going for them. The city's in better financial shape than its neighbors, and public opinion surveys show three out of four Carlsbadians have faith in their city government.

Here's a peek at the candidacies of two council members who say they want to be Carlsbad's next mayor, Matt Hall and Keith Blackburn.

Hall's website carries misinformation about a measure on the November ballot.

The 16-year council veteran urges passage of an "initiative calling for a two-tiered pension system for city employees." Unless he's busily gathering petition signatures, no such initiative exists.

The two-tiered system is already a done deal for police and firefighters, imposed on them in May at the same time council members voted to place a city charter amendment on the ballot. Replying to my request for clarification, the Hall campaign supplied me with the amendment's language. It would give the council the right to reduce pension benefits while requiring a vote of the people to increase them. It applies to public safety personnel only, not all city employees, as Hall's website claims.

Whether it was intentionally deceptive or not, the misinformation shows how politicians lose their credibility.

In April 2009, Hall voted against starting construction on the Alga Norte swim complex, despite an $11 million surplus in the construction budget.

As it turns out, the city wound up with a $5 million surplus, another $1 million bailout for the failing golf course, and a vacant lot waiting for a pool. Hall says he can't wait to build the pool now that a $1 million surplus has been forecast for next year's budget.

Blackburn voted with Ann Kulchin to begin construction of Alga Norte last year.

The council's rookie and the lady were the visionaries. Had their view prevailed, the city's return on its investment in Carlsbad's recreational health and safety would be a lot closer today to paying dividends.

When it comes to city employee benefits, Blackburn's primary concern is to keep them competitive with surrounding cities. He's not opposed to reductions in pension formulas. But lower benefits, he points out, could hinder the city's ability to compete for and retain the best employees, increasing training costs caused by higher employee turnover.

Those who claim Carlsbad's enviable quality of life will always attract the best people have apparently not heard about commuting.

Tune in next time for my take on other council contenders.

Teaching by skill level worth a try

For the North County Times

Mark Twain once complained that everybody talks about the weather but nobody does anything about it. The same could be said today of school reform.

This newspaper's call for a dialogue on how to improve schools has so far produced only a handful of editorials suggesting the key to better schools is to free them from obstacles created by unions and state regulations.

The community's response has been a collective yawn. Maybe that's because the call for reform has been mostly about cutting costs for what schools are already doing. Except for upgrades in technology and classroom furniture, students continue to trudge from one grade to the next in much the same way they have since the days of one-room schoolhouses.

Herded by age group through 12 years of schooling, all are expected to learn the same things in the same way at the same rate. Those who can't or won't conform to the norm lose interest. Accelerated and remedial classes are designed to individualize instruction, but the dominant one-size-fits-all culture causes students on both ends of the spectrum to either drop out or seek the path of least resistance through social promotion each year.

An example of actual reform can be found in the Kansas City, Mo., schools, where this fall 17,000 students will transition from being grouped by age to being grouped by competence in each subject. School districts in Maine and Alaska have already begun to move away from a system where students move ahead based on how much time they warm seats in a classroom.

A competency-based approach allows students of varying ages, assisted individually or in small groups by their teachers, to work at their own pace on projects matching their skill levels. The stigma of not fitting in with peers will be reduced, since students will see that learning depends more on varying skills and interest in subject matter than age.

Math and science whizzes may take longer to master the English and arts courses that are easily aced by those struggling with math. While some students may complete all the requirements necessary to graduate early from high school, those who need more time may take an extra year.

Meanwhile, here in North County, each time test scores are released, we're reminded that a school's academic ranking reflects the average family income of its students.

In districts where failing schools face state sanctions, board members, rather than tackling school reform, wrangle with teacher unions, seek off-the-shelf quick fixes for low test scores and decide whether to honor a former student for voicing her opinion about gay marriage as a contestant in a beauty pageant.

Dreyfuss an actor, not a school reformer

For the North County Times

Oscar-winning actor and Encinitas resident Richard Dreyfuss warns that if America's public schools do not adopt a national civics curriculum, our democratic republic is doomed. If kids aren't taught how to run the country, his Dreyfuss Initiative website proclaims in a burst of overblown rhetoric, "government by, for and of the people will have failed."

His proposed curriculum would include "the telling of glory tales and myths to the very young" and, "as the brain develops," include the teaching of reason, logic, clarity of thought and critical analysis. The final two years would focus on the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

Dreyfuss should check out the current standards for the history and social science curriculums of California schools. He'd discover that kindergartners learn about personal responsibility and patriotism from stories and folklore.

Fifth-graders gain an understanding of how a representative democracy works and the role and responsibilities of its citizens.

In the 11th grade, they learn about the significant events in the founding of our nation. They analyze the Declaration of Independence and the debates involved in drafting and ratifying the Constitution and Bill of Rights. Seniors are expected to evaluate and take positions on the scope and limits of their rights and responsibilities in a free and civil society.

That sounds like civics to me.

Dreyfuss's plea for a more reasoned and responsible political discourse is understandable, given the constant stream of angry invective erupting from the mouths of cable-TV talking heads. But implying that the absence of civics courses has caused the nasty discord shows an ignorance of what schools are teaching today, as well as the misguided notion that knowledge of civics assures civility.

The commendable skills Dreyfuss espouses ---- reason, logic, clarity of thought and critical analysis ---- are best taught by good teachers exemplifying them in the classroom, regardless of subject matter.

While a national civics curriculum is not the answer, Dreyfuss proposes several other public education projects more in keeping with the actor's considerable dramatic talents.

One is the production of a television special that brings together historians, comics, thinkers, artists and stars in a narrative of the life of our democracy as a Dickensian tale. Another is a multi-part series titled "Miracle at Philadelphia," a political thriller about the Founders. The most ambitious is experiential learning conducted on a train running from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C., via Gettysburg, carrying students and luminaries of the political left and right engaged in spirited discussions of the Civil War.

Richard Dreyfuss is a fine actor, but in this case it seems he's miscast himself as a school reformer.

Vote pits David vs. Goliath

For the North County Times

For those who take tea partiers seriously, the most surprising thing about last week's election results was the lack of surprises. It was pretty much business as usual at the polls.

The 36 percent turnout of San Diego County's 1.4 million registered voters fell short of the 37 percent turnout for the 2006 gubernatorial primary. All incumbents came out on top. The three candidates endorsed by local tea party sponsors, Stop Taxing Us, lost by large margins, despite the organization's frequent opinion pieces in this newspaper, regular interviews of its leaders on the local Fox News channel and the group's endorsements touted on its website.

The only real surprise came in the county Board of Supervisors' two races, where incumbents face November runoffs for the first time in more than a decade.

You have to wonder why Stop Taxing Us did not endorse Bill Horn, given his shameless pandering to its demands for lower taxes and smaller government.

In his spring newsletter, Horn boasted of attending a local tax day tea party.

He bashed legislators in Sacramento and Washington for "bailing out entire industries, damaging our free enterprise system, threatening to undermine the best health care system in the world, and worshiping at the altar of environmental extremism." Sound familiar? You'd think he'd borrowed the script from Oceanside's latest tea party rally.

On his county website, Horn sang the praises of San Diego Design Center's President Robert J. Basso, who wrote to the 5th District supervisor to explain why this country's manufacturers are rapidly disappearing. Basso recalls the good old days, specifically 1955, when he opened his small manufacturing business at a time when "burdensome and obstructive restrictions and regulations were mostly non-existent." Horn proudly posted Basso's letter on the 5th District website at http://www.sdcounty.ca.gov/cnty/bos/sup5/news/letter20100319.pdf.

After reading this business owner's long list of government restrictions, condemning regulations covering discrimination, sexual harassment, the disabled, worksite safety, hazardous materials, funded vacations, retirement plans and unions, it became apparent Horn's hero believes these regulations destroyed a business climate ideal for sweatshops managed by able-bodied white males.

Horn told this newspaper he's confident he'll defeat Steve Gronke in the runoff, calling him a stooge for the unions. Political pundits say the odds are heavily stacked against Gronke growing his 20 percent primary vote into a majority.

But with Horn seen as the stooge for wealthy developers, his "let 'em eat cake" eagerness to slash social services budgets to preserve the county's $707 million reserve, the 70 percent of San Diegans voting for supervisor term limits, and his failed courtship of kindred-spirit conservatives, many are rooting for David to slay Goliath at the polls in November.

Carlsbad burns firefighters

For the North County Times

At the close of the Carlsbad City Council's May 18 meeting, Councilman Matt Hall observed, "History keeps repeating itself. When this issue first came before us in 2001, the mayor and I both voted against it."

He was referring to an increase in retirement benefits approved nine years ago on a 3-2 vote. This time he joined the mayor on the winning side of a 4-1 vote to roll back those benefits.

Hall's parting shot was self-serving and unnecessary, unless, of course, you're running for mayor as the incumbent's clone.

The new contract reduces benefits for new hires, requires current employees to increase their contribution to the state's pension fund from 1 percent to 9 percent of annual salary and rejects a request for a 5 percent salary increase to partially offset that pay cut.

The council has been praised for saving the city from bankruptcy and showing leadership for other cities to emulate. But a closer look suggests city officials were motivated more by payback than prudence.

The city's negotiator claimed costs would continue to be driven up by guaranteed benefits, the stock market crash causing dwindling returns on state retirement system investments and longer retiree life spans.

A case can be made for raising the retirement age for future employees. But CalPERS and the Legislature are addressing the recent spike in costs for the state's pension program, and Wall Street has begun its recovery from the recession. Given those developments and the city's enviable financial position, there was no need for Carlsbad to take urgent action.

Are firefighters overpaid? The city says the average gross salary of paramedic/firefighters exceeds $97,000. But $20,000 of that is in overtime pay not included in pension calculations. The base salary ranges from $63,000 to $77,000.

Mayor Bud Lewis claimed the average salary of the city's "male breadwinners" ranges from $75,000 to $80,000, although city staff in attendance had no idea where those numbers came from. SANDAG reports the city's median household income exceeds $101,000.

Regardless of his antiquated view of the primacy of male breadwinners, you have to wonder if the mayor really believes those we entrust with saving our lives and property should be paid no more than the average adult male Carlsbad resident.

One week after the council stiffed the firefighters, the mayor announced a tentative contract with the police union: 2 percent pay hikes this year and next and a phased-in increase in the amount they must pay into the pension system.

In contrast, firefighters agreed to reduced pensions for new employees and an immediate increase in their retirement contribution. In return, they got a one-year contract with no pay raise.

Looks questionable to me.

Arizona law claims and facts

For the North County Times

Before Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer issued her executive order requiring law enforcement officers to be trained to avoid racial profiling, Rep. Brian Bilbray, R-Solana Beach, explained in a nationally televised interview how police could enforce Arizona's new immigration law without such training.

"They will look at the kind of dress you wear," he told Chris Mathews, "There's different type of attire, right down to the shoes."

North County Times political cartoon freelancer John Webster depicted our 50th District representative in oversized clown shoes, asking a cop writing him a ticket how he could tell he was a congressman.

Bilbray has yet to disavow shoe-style profiling, but in an apparent attempt to gain gravitas after his interview went viral on YouTube, Bilbray wrote an opinion piece for this newspaper ("Arizona law result of federal failures," May 9).

Here's a fact check:

Claim: Growing threats to its economic security and public safety forced Arizona to take action.

Fact: The year before the law was enacted Homeland Security and the FBI reported an 18 percent decline in the state's illegal immigrants, a 9 percent drop in violent crime and 6 percent fewer burglaries. That suggests the new law is more about politics than public well-being.

Claim: Arizona is simply enforcing federal law.

Fact: A half-truth. Section 287g of the Immigration and Nationality Act authorizes Homeland Security to sign agreements with state law enforcement agencies to enforce immigration laws only if designated officers are trained and supervised by federal immigration and customs officers.

Placing training and supervision in the hands of local law enforcement agencies gives the green light to rogue sheriffs such as Maricopa County's Joe Arpaio, who has come under federal investigation for alleged civil rights violations.

Claim: Requiring employers to use E-verify will stop the hiring of illegal workers.

Fact: A recent study by a research company hired by Homeland Security to evaluate the program showed E-verify failed to catch more than half of the unauthorized workers it checks.

Claim: Immigration reform has been hindered by "radical, pro-amnesty partisan lawmakers."

Fact: Requiring illegal immigrants to pay a fine, undergo criminal background checks, learn English and go to the back of the line to apply for permanent residency is not amnesty. The only president favoring amnesty in the last 25 years was Ronald Reagan, signing the 1986 law that allowed border crashers who had lived in the U.S. continuously up until 1982 to be legal residents with no financial penalty and few questions asked.

Our previous 50th District representative is in prison. The incumbent's bizarre national interview, attracting more than 44,000 YouTube views and counting, may have his constituents wondering if, as Webster's cartoon suggests, they've exchanged a crook for a clown.

California's "broken" public schools

For the North County Times: May 7, 2010

There's no shortage of complaints about our "broken" public schools or suggestions about how to fix them. But if success is measured by student test scores alone, only a handful of schools in North County are in urgent need of repair.

Each time test results are released, we're reminded that schools with the best scores are attended by students from the wealthiest families. That doesn't necessarily mean those schools have the best teachers. Students from affluent families don't have to lean so heavily on teachers to succeed. In fact, a case could be made that teachers with the greatest influence on student learning can be found in schools with the lowest test scores.

So how do you mend a broken school? For starters, we could fix a school financing system that punishes the poor while rewarding the wealthy.

Here's how it works in North County. The test score gap between Vista schools and San Dieguito schools in Encinitas, Del Mar and Solana Beach matches the $45,000 difference in median family income separating the two districts. While Vista faces sanctions for low academic performance, the award-winning San Dieguito district boasts on its website of being "one of the nation's finest."

In her March 25 budget message, Vista Superintendent Joyce Bales noted enrollment had plunged by 3,000 students during the last decade. Since funding is based on daily attendance, budget cuts have resulted in "more than a $50 million decrease for three consecutive years." That means fewer teachers and larger classes, hardly a recipe for fixing broken schools.

Meanwhile, San Dieguito Superintendent Ken Noah announced his district is now getting more revenue from property taxes than from state funding. Unlike Vista, when enrollment falls, San Dieguito schools prosper. As a result, the district faces a manageable $8 million cut in state funding for special programs during the next two years. That will require belt tightening and turning away transfer students from other districts. But there's no talk of larger classes or teacher layoffs in North County's wealthiest school district.

Some say unions are to blame for our broken schools. But if that is so, why don't they have the same effect everywhere? The district and faculty union collaborate for the good of their students in San Dieguito.

But in Vista, where a multimillion-dollar commercial reading program, imposed by a divisive superintendent, has shown questionable evidence of success, and where the primary concerns of two recent school board members have been to oppose unions and gay marriage, the teachers aren't happy.

This tale of two districts suggests irrational school funding, combined with dysfunctional leadership, are more to blame for our broken schools.