Secondly, as you'll notice when you get to the letters to the editor section below, I seem to have offended some readers by my comments in the welcome section last week, in which I failed to mention the fact that Memorial Day is a day to honor not only the men who have died for our country, but the women as well. My apologies to those of you who contacted me and to anyone else I may have offended.

On a lighter note, Jen (girlfriend), Stella (dog), and I discovered on Saturday yet another amazing element of San Francisco: Fort Funston. This breathtaking ocean-front park is a haven for dogs and a slice of this city's incredible beauty. Next time you're in The City -- and especially if you have your dog along -- swing by this natural wonder in the southwest corner of San Francisco. You'll enjoy panoramic ocean views, the peaceful wind, and even colorful hang gliders that brighten the sky.

-Gabe

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Not so.

Reapportionment is bitter, contentious and purely political. It is, in fact, perhaps the most purely political exercise in which politicians engage. It involves collapsing districts that pit members of the same party against one another. It involves ethnic infighting. It involves political power and control of the Legislature and Congress. It is a quiet process that rarely engages the public's attention, but it entails fierce battles in an odd venue dominated by census numbers and geography.

The law says that the Legislature must redraw political districts every 10 years based on the latest census figures. In reality, this means that the party in power -- currrently the Democrats -- decide the political landscape for at least 52 members of Congress and 120 members of the Legislature. Not only do Democrats control the Legislature, they also control the governor's office. That means that reapportionment bills, which contain the new maps, are certain to favor Democrats by maximizing Democratic voter registration, which in turn gives a leg up to Democratic candidates and incumben ts.

In 1990, when Republican Pete Wilson was elected governor, a crucial reason he was persuaded to run was to ensure that a Republican would be able to veto any Democratic gerrymander. He did exactly that, sending reapportionment into the courts. The result is that the ultimate maps were fairer, from the Republicans' standpoint, than they would have been. That was a far cry from a decade before, when the late Rep. Phil Burton, among others, drew maps that blatantly damaged Republicans and all but assured a Democratic stranglehold for 10 years.

Now, the battle is under way again.

The latest census figures will serve as the basis for a new Democratic-engineered reapportionment that will take effect with the elections in 2002. Quietly, far below the public's awareness, the political pros are scaling up their reapportionment plans. Sometime before the end of the year, perhaps later, those draft plans will find their way into print in the form of legislation, and they will become the subject of intense politicking in the Capitol. The basic dispute will be between the Democrats' attempt to draw districts that concentrate Republicans into as few disrtricts as possible, and the Republicans' efforts to block them. Given their minority status in the Legislature, the Republicans' ultimate weapon is to look to the courts for fairness, so a legal fight is all but inevitable.

Reapportionment is not the kind of politics that dominates headlines.

But to the political insiders, reapportionment is crucial, indeed.

--Larry B. Stammer in the Los Angeles Times, who reported: "When it comes to moral crusades, religious leaders have long enlisted in the 'war on drugs.' The cost of illicit narcotics trafficking in ruined lives, deterioration of neighborhoods, drug-related crime and impact on law enforcement and prisons are all inherently moral issues that thunder from pulpits. But 30 years after the Nixon administration declared war on drugs in the late 1960s -- a war pressed by each succeeding administration -- growing numbers of religious leaders are breaking ranks. Not only are they questioning the war's effectiveness and its burgeoning costs -- they also charge that its execution violates biblical imperatives of justice and mercy." June 3.
http://www.latimes.com/news/state/20000603/t000052468.html

--Gordon Smith in the San Diego Union-Tribune, who reported that "The recent allegation that four sheriff's deputies and their accomplices used stolen credit cards to scam cash from automated teller machines adds a layer to this city's growing pile of dirty laundry -- a pile that's liable to be displayed prominently in the media during the upcoming Democratic National Convention. Traditionally, cities look to strut their best stuff during political conventions, in part to generate tourism. And officially, Los Angeles' convention host committee, LA Convention 2000, hopes to use the event to communicate that the city is back from the riots, earthquake, recession and fires that it suffered during the 1990s. But Los Angeles has shaken off these disasters only to find itself plagued by a series of high-profile scandals involving local law enforcement, the school district and other agencies." June 2.
http://www.uniontrib.com/news/uniontrib/fri/news/news_1n2image.html

--Yomi S. Wronge in the San Jose Mercury News, who reported: "The technology revolution has changed the face of childhood in Silicon Valley. As their parents prosper in the industry, some children here enjoy a quality of life that includes top public schools, exclusive neighborhoods and $500 scooters. But the gap is widening between children who benefit from the robust economy and those who don't, says a report released Thursday on the status of children living in Santa Clara County. The county gets a C- when it comes to providing the basic needs of many of its children, the child advocacy group Kids in Common says in its report, Silicon Valley Children's Report Card 2000. The valley gets a D in providing children access to technology." June 2.
http://www.sjmercury.com/premium/local/docs/children02s.htm

--Marla Cone in the Los Angeles Times, who reported that "California's new plan for limiting toxic pollutants in rivers, bays and other waterways has 'gaping loopholes' and should be rescinded, a coalition of environmental groups charged in a lawsuit filed against the state water board. The long-awaited plan, adopted two months ago, provides instructions for how the state will regulate industries and public sewage-treatment plants that discharge 126 toxic compounds, including mercury, dioxins and pesticides. The safety of some of California's most important waters, including San Francisco Bay, Malibu Creek and San Diego Bay, is at issue." June 1.
http://www.latimes.com/news/state/20000601/t000051900.html

Thanks for the information [regarding SB1899 in last week's Capitol Action]. I read two news papers each day, and this was the first I had heard of this.

- Pat Bluett
Marysville, Calif.

To the Editor,

Do you really believe that Memorial Day honors only the brave men who have fought and died for this country? If you do, you need to read a great deal more about both American history and current events. Shame on you for your ignorance.

- Marilyn Riley
San Diego, Calif.

To the Editor,

No offense, but while you are honoring the "brave men," how about the "brave women"?

- Cathy Mitchell

2000 POCKET DIRECTORY OF THE STATE LEGISLATURE ---------------------------------------------- 27th Edition of "the little red book" is now available! Current contact information on each legislator, including photos, committee assignments, Capitol and district office addresses, phone numbers and staff. Separate listings of all Senate and Assembly standing, select, special research, joint and sub committees, with members, staff, phone and room numbers. Don't be without this indispensable directory!

2000 LEGISLATIVE UPDATES VIA EMAIL ---------------------------------- Receive late-breaking changes to the Pocket Directory monthly throughout the year -- via email. To keep your directory up to date, you will be provided with any "information changes" that occur after the February publishing date. In addition to "changes," the updates will include profiles of new members, alerts to new committees and other legislative news items. Easy way to keep your directory current!

2000 U.S. CONGRESS DIRECTORY ---------------------------- Convenient 4" x 9" spiral-bound directory includes photos, key staff members and committee memberships of the 100 U.S. Senators and 435 U.S. Representatives. Separate listings of Senate and House committee and subcommittee memberships, the President's cabinet with key staff members, the State governors with addresses and phone numbers, and the Supreme Court members with phone numbers.

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1999-2000 WHO'S WHO IN THE CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE ------------------------------------------------- 8" x 11" loose-leaf binder of political and personal biographies of all 120 legislators, including each legislator's photo, education, career, campaign issues, legislative interests and accomplishments. Each district information page has exclusively created easy-to-read district and "locator" maps. The Who's Who makes a wonderful legislative yearbook keepsake.

1999-2000 CALIFORNIA STATE AGENCY DIRECTORY ------------------------------------------- Information on the governor's appointments! This handy 4" x 9" directory lists all agency and department-level organizations and most division and branch-level offices. Includes names and titles of state officials, with addresses, phone and fax numbers. Where a vacancy exists, the position is listed without a name. The next more complete edition will be published in the Fall of 2000.

COMING LATER THIS YEAR

Open & Public III ----------------- Open & Public II is no longer available -- it is being updated now and will be available in September 2000. For a current guide to public meetings and the Ralph Brown Act, see The Legal Notebook.

OTHER PUBLICATIONS NOW AVAILABLE

* The Legal Notebook * Navigating the Legislative Process * Conflict of Interest Laws for Local Government Officials * Paper Trails: A Guide to Public Records in California * California Election District Zip Code Directory * Election District Diskette * Mailing Labels on Diskette * Senate, Assembly & Congress District Wall Maps

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