Red Line (July 1)
All comments are edited for length and content. Due to content or space limitations some comments may not be published. Please limit your calls to two minutes or less.
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“The Madera Police Department is still doing nothing about the traffic backing up in the major intersection by Carl’s Jr. and Madera Avenue,” began a man’s call. “It is the illegal left turners trying to make their way into Carl’s Jr. There is no left turn there and no left turn lane, but people insist at 5 o’clock in the afternoon trying to make a left turn and backing traffic all the way up in that intersection at Olive and Madera Avenue. Nobody is doing anything about it.”
Another man called about traffic going the opposite direction “on Madera Avenue, coming into town.” He comes to work everyday and “waits two or three lights to get through the Olive intersection. Everyday, people abuse the right turn lane on Madera Avenue that you are supposed to use to turn on the freeway and instead go straight across trying to cut into traffic. There is clearly right turn only signs posted. Why don’t the CHP do something about this ever increasing problem?”
An online visitor, self-identified as “Irma Morales,” writes, “Why does (the) Madera PD feel they can harrass residents of this city? … Just the other day my son was pulled over for having a tail light out — so the police said. When he asked which one was out and tried to get out and check, the police didn’t let him do so. They checked his paperwork, asked him about drugs and weapons, and then let him go. After pulling away he checked his lights and what do you know? Not one of them was out.”
“Concerning the Fourth of July and all the fireworks,” said a man. “It is beautiful and I have two grandchildren who just love it. But with all the dryness and fires, this should be the year we stop it. It is just too dry.”
A man suggested to save water, “water your lawn less. Flush the toilet less.” He mentioned a slogan from Marin County 10 years ago, “when it’s yellow, let it mellow. When it’s brown flush it down.”
Several calls were received about our series on teenage pregnancy. “Enough with glorifying teenage marriages,” said one woman.
A man and a woman had similar statements: “One has to know, despite the fact you said these girls were supported by their parents or the father of their child, you know they are on food stamps, Medi-Cal or some type of public assistance.”
Another woman said “the articles were probably cut out and saved by the teenagers and bragged about. I think the paper made a big mistake running that on the front page everyday. I came real close to canceling my subscription.”
A man “hoped all the people in the United States realizes that every commodity we buy, everything, seems to be made in China. We are living at the mercy of China thanks to the manufacturers in this country. I hope everybody enjoys living under the direction of the Chinese. Maybe it is time we brought some of our manufacturing back into the United States of America where it belongs.”
A man advised, “these TV converter boxes that a lot of people are having to buy, there are big differences in prices.” He mentioned a $30 difference between (two chain retail outlets in Madera). People make sure you shop around.”
A lady called “with a complaint.” She was “watching the news where 6,500 fans came to welcome the Bulldog (baseball) team home. What happened to the people who welcome our military people home? There is never anyone there other than the family to welcome our military people home.”
A woman who read about Madera’s downtown shopping district in Monday’s newspaper said, “Tijuana row, how accurate that is. You can really go back to the early 70s and the city fathers, like John Wells, that let this happen.”
An Internet visitor, self-identified as “Ramona Ackerman,” pointed out a mispelled word in a front page headline in the June 14th issue of The Madera Tribune. Then she writes, “Language is the tool of your trade — surely you have greater regard for it than this headline indicates. Consider that clear communication, which is your primary goal in journalism, is the only way we have to solve problems. If a person has a solution to air pollution, for example, and is unable to properly use language to communicate the solution then it is as if the person had no solution at all.”
An online guest, “Steve High,” commented on the “peripheral and immediate benefits” to restoring the San Joaquin River. He writes, “Increasing the flow even a little bit would 1) decrease the (stagnant) areas … where mosquitos are currently breeding… 2) increase the habitat of the indigenous trout, bass, catfish, crappie, blue gill and carp … 3) allow greater opportunities for boating… 4) … (drive) dirty, over-salinated water back out of the delta and toward the bay and ocean 5) (and create) jobs … repairing and shoring up the old levies in the delta area!”
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Thank you for your calls. Remember, the Red Line is open for your messages 24-hours a day by calling 674-4478, or by visiting www.maderatribuneredline.com.
To the commenter that made the “Tiajuana Row” comment…
“you can really go back to the early 70s and the city fathers, like John Wells, that let this happen”
What is wrong with the buildings (outside of being old and poorly maintained)? I’d imagine your problems are because of the occupants more than the color of the buildings, and that’s sad.
Another thing, I know the valley leans conservative politically, but for the person talking about what kind of reception the troops coming home are getting versus a valley team ascending to the pinnacle of their sport…that’s truly an apples to pencils type of comparison.
The war in Iraq is an extremely unpopular war. Not really much of an argument going against that, and the family really should be the only ones there for a soldier returning. Respect the service, respect the dedication, but returning alive from a warzone is something that a family should share in and leave the large crowds out of it.
No Child Left Behind
I am the proud mother of an almost 4 year old that desperately wants to attend pre-school. In September she will turn 4 and beings that she constantly talks about going to school and wants to ride the big yellow school bus, I felt that now would be good time to enroll her in pre-school.
Me and my husband both work full time to provide for our family. We are not rich, but we are able to provide our children with the necessities and without any assistance from county, state or federal government. I contacted my other children’s school and inquired about pre-school. I was given a contact number for the pre-school division with the instructions that currently the school wasn’t offering pre-school at that location but I could inquire about other locations.
Upon contacting the number that I was instructed to call, I was told that we would have to qualify before my daughter could go to pre-school. I was told that it would require a TB test of one parent within the past year (what happens if the other parent has TB?), TB test of the child within the past year, shot record of the child, recent physical of the child, check stubs from both parents, and birth certificates of every child living in the household.
In addition to all this information I was also told that if my family gross income was more that the predetermined amount, we would not qualify and “that is it, you wont qualify for any of our services, because we are state funded.”
Feeling a little shocked, I replied, “So your telling me that my child can’t attend public pre-school because me and her father make too much money (in gross income, don’t they know that people don’t get to live on the gross amount?), but in a year when she is five, she will be able to attend state and federal funded public kindergarten?” I was shortly told yes, and thank you for calling.
It really frustrates me to hear the president of the United States preach about how no child is left behind. I think he means no child is left behind if they are five, because there is a whole bunch of little four year olds being left behind from attending a state funded pre-school because their parents work to provide and cannot afford private pre-school. If any of the readers are wondering what private pre-school cost, well when I called a local one its $155.00 a week unless you qualify for a program assistance, in which I don’t.
Maybe just maybe our legislature should recognize that NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND, actually means no child left behind. Every child should be allowed to attend a state-funded preschool regardless of their families gross income. Aren’t we suppose to encourage learning so our children can succeed in life? I have watched commercials that firmly state that a child that attends preschool has a higher probability to attending college and acquiring a degree, (this is the same agency that politely told me that our family gross income is to high and we don’t qualify.) I want that for my four year old, unfortunately, we don’t qualify for the state-funded preschool, and if I was to pay for private preschool, it would take half of my income and then why work. I work to show my children that the only way that your going to get ahead in life is by getting an education, setting goals, and work.
So my four year old will not be riding the big yellow bus in August and will not be attending preschool. She keeps asking me if she is going to school this year and my reply to her is this: “not this year sweetie, the government has left you behind, but next year when you turn five you will get to go to the state-funded kindergarten because then it’s a law that you go and mommy and daddy won’t have to qualify based on our gross income.”
Sincerely,
Gina Alcott
Madera
Madera High School is NOT Madera North, North High, or North Campus. It is Madera High School. Madera South High School is NOT Madera High School - south, South High, South Madera, or South Campus. It is Madera South High School. Get it right.
I grew up in Madera and left it about 18 years ago. I recently returned to visit family and took advantage of my time there to go around town and to see how much it had changed.
WOW! “Tijuana Row” isn’t the half of it. Madera has become so dirty and run down over the entire city. It is not the city I grew up in and I now feel ashamed to say that I grew up there.
As I walked around and rode my bike in Madera, I felt like I was in a third world country. I was looking for the mud huts and the dirt floor markets.
I remember “C” Street and how run down that place was. Madera is now one BIG “C” Street, a place with no value, dirty and run down.
My question is, where did all of the people who valued Madera go? I left for career reasons with hopes of returning later in life. But not now, I’m gone for good. If I want to visit a third world county, I’ll visit Kosovo where the pay is much better for me.
I feel sorry for the normal people who live in Madera. Good Luck.