It’s amazing what a little public pressure can accomplish. All it takes – usually – is someone asking a question which raises the general anger level. Phone are picked up, politicians are called, e-mailed and generally grilled on subjects they most likely know little about. They find themselves in a spotlight which is not to their liking or control and they want it to end. So they act. It really can work. There were a couple of excellent examples in the region this week. And there was a third that you may feel like tackling.

First, there was the revelation by the San Francisco Chronicle that the City of San Francisco was shielding under-age drug dealing illegal immigrants from Federal authorities. These thugs were either housed in unlocked youth facilities – at a cost of some seven-Thousand dollars each month - or flown  at taxpayer expense with an escort to their home country. The outcry was immediate and clear – Even those who back San Francisco’s “sanctuary city” policy thought it was out of line to protect felons. Mayor Newsom’s initial response on Tuesday – that it was, basically, everyone’s fault but his – didn’t go over well, either. That’s why on Wednesday Newsom announced that – effective immediately - the drug dealing illegals would be turned over to the Feds.

Score one for voters.

In Sacramento the taxpayer ire was triggered by that city’s plans to fine a couple $746 because they let their lawn die. When Governor Schwarzenegger declared last month that the state was in a drought, these folks used common sense. Why, they figured, water the lawn if there is a water shortage? So they stopped. And their lawn did what lawns without water tend to do – it got very, very brown. It didn’t take long before they received a notice that they were being fined. Seems Sacramento has a code which requires a well maintained yard AND irrigation. Which also negates using any of that nifty, new fake lawn material. Technically, even mulch would be illegal. As a matter of fact, the lawn in question had been covered with mulch, so forget the “technically” part. When the story hit the Sacramento Bee and moved on to the wire services, Sacramento’s politicians were inundated. While the verbiage was varied, the overall emphasis was the same : What kind of an idiot are you to allow this? The politicians got the idea. The fine was canceled and promises were made that Sacramento’s outdated code would be modernized.

Score a second win for the voters.

Now we come to case number three. This is your homework. There are serious accidents all too frequently on Bay Area highways. Often the investigation and clean up pulls CalTrans workers and law enforcement away from other duties. Sometimes it triggers overtime. Occasionally damage is done to highway surfaces, requiring repairs. That certainly was the case last year when a tanker truck accident and fire caused the collapse of the 580 flyover in the Maze.

It was also the case – on a smaller scale – last week when a section of the Nimitz had to be repaved and repaired in San Leandro. Some lanes wound up being closed nearly 12 hours as crews hustled to do those repairs. The hours spent dealing with that unexpected situation, the amount of funds needed to make those repairs had to be staggering. Who pays? Police reports will determine if there is any specific individual at fault, or if the fault is shared. Vehicles will be repaired or replaced via insurance policies. At least partially so. What about the road repairs? What about the cost of personnel pulled away from other functions to deal with this? Do insurance polices help pick up that tab? Maybe. Or it may simply be another draw from the taxpayer’s supposedly bottomless wallet.

Wait, you say – YOU’RE the news guy. You should be checking this out. Why? YOU, dear reader, are the one getting screwed if you are having to pay for it all. YOU are the one who should be outraged. You should be the one to ask the questions.

If, that is, it really matters to you. Does it? If so make a few calls to your various elected officials. Perhaps the state does pursue reimbursement from insurance companies. In which case, score a third win for voters. But if you find that the state lets things like that slide, what will you do next? It is, after all your money and it’s supposed to be your government.

So the Supreme Court has ruled that the Second Amendment does protect the individual right to bear arms. There will now be a rash of suits filed to overturn ordinances similar to the Washington, D. C. law which was a full ban of gun ownership. There will, of course, be some suits over less restrictive ordinances – those which require specific licensing or restrict guns in places like schools and government buildings. Or against other laws which prohibit the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill. But those all are most likely going to survive the challenges.
 

There is already an outcry from gun opponents that crime will balloon because of this Supreme Court ruling. A prime example is the shrill whining of Chicago’s Mayor. But everyone needs to take a deep breath and think carefully before making this something larger than it need be in this election year. There are any number of topics that can quickly become a ‘third-rail’ with power to turn a logical debate into a mishmash that keeps the White House in the red column for another four years. This is one of them.
 

We don’t care for guns. Don’t own one, don’t want one. That doesn’t make us feel any less safe. But neither do we begrudge someone who is qualified to own a gun and wants to do so.
 

How this subject is handled by Barack Obama and other Democratic candidates will help determine whether or not that party controls Congress and the White House.
 

The Supreme Court has ruled. Like it or not, that is now the law. Granted, there are any number of fine points to be worked out, but the campaign is not the place. Each point will be worked out gradually, over time through the courts. Some of these may not reach the Supreme Court for years. By that time the makeup of the court may very well have changed with some justices retiring and others dying. Who replaces those departing justices becomes all the more important. Those replacements will be named by the next White House occupant. And they will be approved, or denied, by those elected to the Senate.
 

Try to fight a meaningless battle now and the decisions could very likely be made by Republicans.

Welcome To San Francisco!....Now Go Home!
 

Apparently we are not very friendly. Tourism officials are considering sending us all to charm school because foreign travelers think America is inhospitable. But it may take more than the average American smiling more and making nice - That’s because the negative impression seems to begin even before they arrive on our shores, ready to consume the finest in American cuisine and entertainment. Increasingly since 9-11, the U-S has had a negative image around the world. In some countries, three of every four asked dislike the U-S. Something to do with foreign policy. Many of those who overcome those pre-visit jitters, find themselves subjected to increasing difficulty in getting a visa. Again, in the wake of 9-11. For the percentage who succeed in clearing the hurdles, many are stunned by the attitude they get from clerks, wait-people and the population in general. There is the surly attitude, the ‘Can’t You See I Have Better things To Do” attitude, and - to be fair - a good number of honestly friendly folk who DO make strangers feel welcome. But let’s be honest - You’ve been to the restaurants and stores, and the friendly help isn’t there as often as it should be.

So, what’s the solution? Even a change in foreign policy won’t help if visitors don’t feel welcome when they arrive. But it will certainly help if all of us go the extra step to welcome visitors from anywhere. It isn’t that hard to be nice - How many times have you seen a tourist struggling with a map and trying to figure out where they are? Step up and ask if you can help. Think of how you would like to be treated in a foreign country. And then, act accordingly.