• I don’t usually put a letter to the editor in my column but thought that this was important enough to respond to.
To the Governor
I am amazed at the monthly denial that your editorials have of the crime and homeless situation we have in Ventura. I myself was attacked and suffered a broken shoulder and a concussion in which I am still having complications with tremendous pain. If you would read your own paper the crimes that are committed consistently in this area are out of control. Why do we as a community continue to enable these individuals with stupid programs like needle exchange. Just the other day we called in the police to our complex for a homeless person sleeping in our laundry room and when the police arrived they stated they could not arrest him even though he was on probation and had a needle on him. They stated since he received the needle at the exchange it was legal. Why can’t we demand that our law enforcement force these people out of our community and in places like Fillmore who only have 7 on record. I’m sure in your reply you will still be in denial. Keep your denial in your rhetoric and see as you already do Ventura tourism suffer tremendously. Where is your pride??
James White
James:
Thanks for your comments, and I am sorry to hear that you were attacked, and hurt. I am not at all in denial regarding the homeless situation in Ventura. It is a huge problem for many reasons. Compassion for the homeless is in play, of course, but the negative effect it has on Ventura’s infrastructure/citizens and its impact on tourism are two other reasons.
Your comment, “Why can’t we demand that our law enforcement force these people out of our community” is easily answerable. Unless they are committing a crime the police really can’t do anything about the situation. Being homeless is not actually a crime.
Obviously I have a great pride for Ventura. Why else would I spend 7-days a week publishing a local paper that is marginally profitable?
Our City Council is very aware of the homeless issue and has tried to deal with it but it is a very complex problem that is not easily solved. They are many entities trying to find solutions. There are several non-profits in Ventura who are also assisting the homeless, many of whom are mentally ill.
Let’s keep working on the issue.
Sheldon
PS: I will contact Fillmore and find out if it is okay for our police to round up our homeless and leave them in Fillmore.
• Circus Vargas is coming soon (see their ad in this issue). We went to a show last year with younger grandkids and thoroughly enjoyed it. Well worth seeing.
• Good grief what a strange presidential election year this has been and will continue to be. The presumed Republican candidate Donald Trump is, in the words of Max Boot – a senior fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations and a lifelong Republican “there has never been a major party nominee in U.S. history as unqualified for the presidency as Donald Trump.” Who am I to argue with Max?
The Democrat candidate, Hillary Clinton, based upon her job history and experience, is one of the most qualified presidential candidates ever and she isn’t very well liked or trusted.
And the Republican Party is in complete disarray with internal fighting and disagreement.
Perhaps a third party will emerge from this political chaos.
• Lamborghini has manufactured a $2 million supercar. I thought that I would take the $10 million cash that I have on hand – because the VC Star wouldn’t sell to me – and buy 5 of them for the family but was disappointed to hear that they only made 40, and they are all already sold. Darn it.
• How upsetting that Cracker Jack no longer contain toys but now includes QR codes (a QR code consists of black modules arranged in a square grid on a white background, which can be read by an imaging device (such as a camera, phone, scanner, etc.). This QR allows kids to play 4 baseball games.
• Perhaps the strangest opening and closing of a Ventura business so far goes to Ragsdale Kitchen & Bar which was located on Main where Chicago for Ribs previously was. After a very long time and a huge amount of money remodeling, Ragsdale finally opened up about 6 months ago. Reviews weren’t too good but not awful.
After a few months they closed and a sign on the door read “Closed while we remodel kitchen and bar.” This was nonsense because both were brand new and the remodel, overall, was very well done. They re-opened for a few days then closed permanently. All of the booths have been removed, and I can only speculate that they were never paid for so the installation company removed them. Don’t know if we will ever find out what happened.
• What a great year 1935 was in Detroit. I was born, the Detroit Tigers won the baseball championship and the Detroit Lions won the football championship. My father must have been thrilled.
• Two of my favorite statements in TV ads are, “while supplies last’ and “If you call in the next 10 minutes”. I wonder if supplies ever run out, and if someone called after 10 minutes, would they not be able to buy the advertised product?
