There's something happening here ...

I learned long ago as a reporter a couple of things that have influenced my thought process for most of my life. First, when people are involved there are always multiple and often differing versions of a story. Second, what you see in pictures or on video provides only a limited glimpse of the scene in total. In other words, you only see what is going on in front of the camera ... not to its side, not to its back.

That being said, I am still having great difficulties accepting what I saw happen, and later hear what happened, at UC Davis on Friday. The cell phone video, which has now gone viral and has been shown on virtually all major and minor news outlets around the world, shows a group of protesters, sitting down, arms linked, non-violent, blocking a walkway, being nonchalantly pepper-sprayed at near point-blank range by a UC Davis police officer. The incident incited angry response first from those nearby who witnessed what was happening. The more the bystanders yelled, the more the police officer pelted the protesters with a powerful blast of pepper-spray. Click HERE to see the YouTube video.

Since then, some law enforcement has praised the UCD police action ("What I'm looking at is fairly standard police procedure," according to a Baltimore Police Lt who wrote rules regulating the use of force against protesters). It has also drawn the ire of those in academia ("We are outraged that the administrations of UC campuses are using police brutality to suppress dissent, free speech and peaceful assembly," says the Council of UC Faculty Associations). There is a call for UCD Chancellor Linda Katehi to resign. Referring to the video "chilling," she has requested an investigation.

Watching the video took me back nearly 40 years, to when I was a student at UC Santa Barbara. There were similar stand-offs back then, mostly over the wars in Vietnam and Cambodia and perceived injustice by the Nixon administration. While there were some violent clashes with police back then, several things were different. First of all, police were not as eager to engage a group of students who were peacefully protesting. Perhaps it was because they had their hands full with more violent demonstrations, but rarely did we see non-confrontational students at UCSB become the target of resistance from police. Second, there was little documentation of what actually transpired. Few carried still cameras, and video cameras had not yet been marketed (let alone cell phones, many of which now have video cameras built in). Atrocities of police and protesters were merely heresy. Not anymore. History is recorded and almost instantaneously distributed for all to see.

While the "Occupy" movement which the UCD protesters were supporting seems to have sputtered recently, largely because the original premise has been diluted by unsavory elements, the UCD incident could provide the impetus to change that. Whether the police were right or wrong (from what I have seen, they were wrong ... very wrong), the image of an officer repeatedly attacking peaceful protesters does not set well with Americans. When we see similar images from third world countries overseas, we cringe, and say thank God we don't live in a place like that. When it happens in the US, all to often, people say "Well, they must have had it coming." But if you read the comments on Facebook, if you read the letters to the editors, if you read the responses to stories on TV websites, overwhelmingly people are angry. And increasingly, they deserve to be angry and ought to be angry.

One UC Davis police officer may have thought that he was single-handedly suppressing a movement. In reality, he may have been spraying new life into an already edgy America that, like those of us in the 70s, is increasingly upset with the direction of the country ... including the erosion of basic rights granted in the Constitution for freedom of speech and peaceful dissent.

Living in a dangerous country

I often get the same question from friends and family, and sometimes total strangers who I have just met. When they learn where I live, they ask "But do you feel safe there with all that violence going on?" And in all honesty, I tell them, yes, for the most part I do feel safe.

It is true, the country where I have been living most recently has been racked with some of the worst violence known to mankind. Everyday ... every single day ... there are shootings, and muggings, and carjackings. We see it in the news every night. It seems that almost weekly now, we learn of another horrible incident where a gunman (or gunmen) enters a business or a night club or a school and opens fire killing and injuring dozens of people. It is usually to settle a score, to seek revenge with someone. But almost always, innocent people get caught in the gunfire. Just yesterday was the latest incident that happened not far from where I am living. Another lunatic entered a small beauty salon and murdered eight people. Eight innocent people whose day started off perfectly normal. Eight innocent people who never made it home last night to their children, their loved ones, their families. People just going about living their lives, only to have their lives taken from them by someone most of them did not even know.

At this point, you may be saying, "Yes, I've heard all that. That is the exact image that I have of Mexico. And that is the reason I will not go to Mexico. It is just too dangerous." But I am not talking about Mexico. For the past four months, I have been living back in the United States, and the violence I am seeing here is honestly worse than what I see when I live the rest of the year in Mexico. Mexico is not without its faults, and certainly the drug violence there has taken a tremendous toll with innocent people sometimes falling victim. But in Mexico, it is a war among gangs and armies fighting over territory. In the U.S., it is personal and hateful and based on anger toward fellow human beings. In two weeks, I will return to my Mexico home where indeed, I will feel safer.

You Are Andy Rooney's Successor

Everyone is a writer, everyone has something to say. It's just how well you write it or say it. In essence, that was the parting comment from Andy Rooney during what was his last regular appearance Sunday night on 60 Minutes. His words got me wondering. Who is going to replace Rooney with his weekly rants about everything from paper bags to light bulbs to 9/11?

Here is a guy who self admittedly shouldn't have been on TV ... only his words should have been there. And in fact, that is how it all started for him. Early on writing as a correspondent in WWII, then onto being a writer for Arthur Godfrey, newspapers, books, and eventually 60 Minutes. It was his writings, not his appearance, that made him what he is. It might be a bit of a stretch to say he was the conscience of America, but more often than not, his whiny words were able to ring true with many of the people who watched him regularly. While he apparently did not relish the notoriety that came with being on one of television's more enduring shows, he did love the words he wrote. He was a master at thought.

So, back to the question. Who replaces Andy Rooney? It won't be the blabber mouths on FOX or MSNBC whose whose incessant spewings qualify for little more than diarrhea of the mouth. It likely won't be any great newspaper columnists because, although I hate to admit it, the state of most newspapers today really doesn't allow for any great columnists anymore.

Perhaps I should refer back to what Rooney said last night. Basically, we are all people with thoughts, we are all people who can write. Maybe collectively, we should all take over for Andy Rooney. Take some time each week to write something that is on our minds. Put it on Facebook. Tweet it out. Send it to someone who you think might be interested. While writing sometimes can be a chore, it can also at times be rewarding, cathartic, revealing. I throw down the gauntlet. Write something, share your thoughts and observations, get people thinking and talking. Even if it's about a brown paper bag or a dead light bulb.

Remembering 9/11

The phone rang at 5:55AM waking me from a sound sleep in my small rented bungalow in Sacramento. It was my brother calling from his home in the rural Sierra Nevada town of Nevada City. He said, "Sorry to wake you, but you better turn on the TV, something is happening." I did, and immediately thought was a terrible accident. A few minutes later, the second plane hit. I took a quick shower and was able to make it to the station (KXTV, News10) before 7:00AM. The nightmare of 9/11 was fully underway.

Without even receiving a call to come in, already the newsroom was filling with reporters and photographers. Some were dispatched to the airport, some to the state Capitol, some to schools. I was sent to the Federal Building a few blocks away from the station. Federal marshalls were there turning people away. The fear was that perhaps Federal Buildings all across America had been targeted for attacks. After waiting there for a while, the station called and dispatched me and my photographer, Rich Kermickel, to a fire station, then to the Sacramento Army Depot, then to a staging area where the Sacramento Urban Search and Rescue Team was put on standby to be sent somewhere, exactly where they did not know.

We were out in the field and did not have access to television, except when we were at the fire station, and even then we were so busy we only caught glimpses of what was transpiring. So, throughout the day, we heard the almost unbelievable drama unfold on radio, listening to KCBS out of San Francisco. Very little of what we shot that day even made it on the air. What was happening in northern California was insignificant compared to what was happening elsewhere.

About 7:00 that night. The crews were called back to the station. There wasn't a lot more we could do. Local programming had been halted and only national broadcasts from the network in New York were being aired. A group of us went across the street to Jaimes Grill for a drink and a bite to eat and decompress. Few of us had seen much of the coverage.

That night, I went back to the bungalow, turned on the TV, sat there and finally saw what had happened. That's when the impact hit me. We will never forget.

An open letter to Rep. Mary Bono Mack (R-Palm Desert)

Dear Ms. Bono Mack:

Question ... why did we elect you? It's simple. We elected you to represent us, "the people."

Yet what has happened since you, and a awful lot of other members of the House arrived in Washington? You seemingly have forgotten about "the people" back home. As you bicker with Democrats on the other side of the aisle (and even bicker with some members of your own party) and bring government to a stand still, threaten to cutoff payments, and allow the credit rating of the US to fall from its triple A standing, you have ignored what is happening to the rest of us.

Being retired, much of my savings is in an IRA, which is linked to world wide markets. Your embarrassing obstructionist attitude this week has resulted in huge losses in my savings. Should you, and more accurately, the Tea Party Republican revolutionaries who appear to be bent on overthrowing the government, continue your ways, the resulting increase in interest rates from a US default, and the collapse of the stock market, would be tremendously more costly than any tax increase currently being proposed. And, it would be the middle class of America that would suffer the losses, something we cannot afford.

Yesterday in the Los Angeles Times, Rep. Richard Nugent was quoted as saying: "Not only do Republicans win if the bill passes. The bonus is, the president loses."

This is the mentality that is ruining this country. It's no longer about compromise or what's best for America. It's how best the parties can embarrass or degrade the other. It's time to get beyond that attitude and remember ... why did we elect you.

Raise the debt ceiling, not for a few months, but through 2013, then deal with the budget.

Dan Adams
Palm Springs, CA

Canada: Too dangerous to visit

It wasn't much of a hockey game, but wow ... the post game presentation proved those Canadians really know how to put on a show. As I have mentioned before, on our satellite here in Mexico, we get TV from both the US and Canada. After the seventh and deciding game of the Stanley Cup where Boston handed Vancouver a humiliating defeat, my brother called from the US. to say rioting had broken out. I turned on Channel 9 CTV Vancouver. And sure enough, there it was, a riot pretty much like what we have seen in many other places in the world when out-of-control-fans get ... well, they get out of control.

The store fronts were being demolished, cars overturned and set ablaze, large fires burning without any effort by the fire department to extinguish them, bottles thrown, looting, many injuries, downtown Vancouver under siege. I've been in the middle of riots like this before (covering them for TV news, not participating), and this one was pretty much your standard riot.

This morning, watching the AM Shows from Canada and reading papers like the Vancouver Sun online, the typical Monday morning quarterbacking is taking place. Why weren't the police better prepared, particularly since the last time Vancouver was in the Stanley Cup, the same type of thing happened? Why didn't peace loving residents of Vancouver step in to stop it (yeah, right)? What will this do to the image of Vancouver (and Canada)? As one commentator said, while physical damage will exceed one million dollars, the public relations impact will cost billions. The riot was broadcast live worldwide on CNN. Perhaps he is right.

This summer, we had planned on visiting Vancouver and Whistler for two and a half weeks, then driving to Canadian national parks, and onto Edmonton to visit friends. We visited Canada last year, and really enjoyed it. But now, I am afraid we may have to cancel our trip.

Obviously, Canada has become a very dangerous place. Apparently, it is particularly bad in border towns like Vancouver where no one is safe. But as you know, what happens in border towns is indicative of what happens everywhere in that country. So, if you visit Vancouver (and thus, apparently Canada), you likely will be attacked with rocks and bottles, large throngs of zombies will converge on your car, overturn it, and set fire to it. Police will stand by and merely watch as screaming visitors caught in the crossfire run for mere survival. A once beautiful and inviting country has now become a dangerous hell hole where, if you visit, you take your life in your hands. Why would anyone visit a place like that?

I'm sure many of you, after reading this, will agree. You can't go to Canada and be safe anymore. Now, the problem is, you have a vacation planned, and have to cancel because Canada has been taken over by roving gangs. Where do you go?

For us, perhaps we'll just stay where we are. We have never seen anything like what happened in Canada occur in our town where we live. There have been no riots, looting, no bottles thrown, no buildings burned, no cars overturned. We feel very safe in our little Mexican beach town.

OK, that's it, we are not venturing into a country as scary as Canada. Too bad, though. That Canada sure is a beautiful place, and the people we know there are all so nice. I hope they do something about getting their problems under control. Yeah, it may just be happening at one or two places there (those damn border towns), but I am just not comfortable going anywhere in that country because of the violence. I do wish I could go to California for vacation, but I had to cancel my trip there as well. I read this morning that a bicyclist in Stockton was shot and killed yesterday. Again, the whole state apparently is too unsafe to visit.

(all photos courtesy of CTV BC)

Weiner's rise and fall

Politics has almost always been a breeding ground for the bizarre, unusual, unbelievable. Ask yourself, how many times have you heard something an elected official say and questioned where this moron came from, let alone how he or she was elected. That being said, the absurdity surrounding their often off-center thoughts and beliefs is dwarfed by the mischievous sexual energy that apparently is a prerequisite to run for office in so many races these days.

From Bill Clinton, his cigar, and the infamous blue dress to, most recently, Anthony Weiner’s titillating tweets, America seems obsessed with lurid sexual activities in which our chosen leaders chose to participate. It would be easy to write a litany of off-colored, perhaps even humorous remarks or clichés about what is transpiring. After all, just search the Internet and there are many stories about “Weiner’s weiner” and “The battle of Weiner’s bulge.” I will refrain. But I do wonder why all of a sudden is it happening now? My thoughts are, it isn’t, at least not all of a sudden. It's been going on since Paul Revere warned the British that they weren't going to be taking away our arms by ringing those bells and, um, making sure as he's riding his horse through town to send those warning shots and bells that, uh, we were going to be secure and we were going to be free.

I believe there are three basic reasons that the sex-capades of politicians seem to dominate the news these days. First, with the Internet, online match-making, Facebook, Twitter, etc, it is easier than ever to be drawn into the “dark” side of sexual exploration, conquest, or apparently game playing. A lot of people do it, including politicians. Second, 24 hour news channels and racy websites thrive on (and make a lot of money from) exposing the latest misfortune of whatever poor sap gets sucked into their abyss of exploitation. And third, Americans, yes people like you and me eat it up and demand more raunchy details. The more lurid, the better. We have become a society of gawkers, everyone slowing down (and stopping) to see the gruesome car wreck. Or, as in the most recent cases, slowing down to see who takes their pants down.

Were Anthony Weiner’s missteps wrong? On one level, yes. He got caught and then he lied about it. Big mistake. Own up to the cauldron you create. And never lie to the media. It ALWAYS comes back to bite you in the butt. But was the whole thing with him texting sexy woman also off limits? A lot of people probably say yes. But then, as I found when I was a reporter, the loudest of the critics are usually those with the most skeletons in their closets. You know them, the holier than thou group who often times end up being the sleazier than thou group.

From what I have read, Weiner seems to be a good representative, and again, in this 24 hour news cycle, he will be forgotten in a few days. Assuming he doesn’t resign, and I don’t think he should, we’ll see if the voters have a longer recollection.

Summer in The Pit

"The pit" would not exist today. For a couple of reasons. First, there is no need for it any longer. Second, it would be environmentally illegal.

The pit was a metal box, four feet by four feet by four feet. It was enclosed on all but one side. It stood on four legs waist high. On the top there was a fan. It needed a fan to get rid of some of the toxic chemical fumes that were produced in the pit. On the bottom there was a hole. Attached to the hole was a hose that drained into a bucket. It needed a drain so the toxic sludge also produced in the pit had somewhere to go.

For four summers during my high school years, I worked at the pit. From 8AM to 5PM, Monday through Friday, mid-June through mid-September I stood there, wearing goggles, but no mask, no gloves, a t-shirt, jeans, and tennies. I believe I got paid a dollar an hour.

The pit, in case you were wondering, is where manual typewriters ... the old Royals, Smith-Coronas, Underwoods, Olympias ... would be brought for their annual cleaning and refurbishing. It was a big job. Back then, every high school in the Santa Clara Valley (long before it was Silicon Valley), had typing classes. Some had two or three classes. And from September until June, all those typewriters were battered and beaten and abused by thousands of students learning how to type.

So, when summer rolled around and the schools closed for a few months, a large truck would go to each school, load up hundreds and hundreds of typewriters, bring them back to the shop that my dad owned (Modern Office Machines Company in San Jose). There I, along with several other workers, had to put them back into working order in time for the first school bell in the fall.

Some workers in the shop replaced broken keys, and polished the rollers. Others tightened screws and straightened broken links that allowed the print head to accurately hit the paper in the roller when the keys were depressed. And one person, that would be me, would stand there at the pit and with a high pressure air gun (think early version of a power washer). I would inject each stripped down machine with a powerful spray of oil and cleaning solvent, dislodging nine months of eraser shavings, gum wrappers, and hairpins and at the same time lubricating the mechanical parts.

My lungs would fill with the oil/solvent fog, my face and clothes would be covered with grease and oil and tid-bits of the rotted gems the students left behind in the mechanical typing machines. My ears would ring from the air gun compressor which was right next to me. To compensate for it, I set up a speaker inside the pit and cranked it as loud as I could, listening to the same top 40 hits played every two hours on KLIV and KFRC. I got to know radio during those summers. That's when I realized I wanted to go into broadcasting ... and not into a pit.

It sounds like a crappy job. And you know what? It really was. But I was a high school kid, looking to make some money, and it was easy and mindless. And so far, I haven't contracted any horrible diseases that I know of after breathing the carcinogenic mist.

I recall my summers of working in the pit after an article that I read today. It was in the Des Moines Register from May 21. (As I had written in a previous blog, one of our neighbors here who lives in Des Moines graciously brings me the paper to read, knowing that I miss having a daily delivered here.) The article was entitled "More Than A Summer Job." Click HERE for the link to it. It's about the invaluable experience high school students can get by working summer jobs. In this story, the jobs were at a local Des Moines grocery store, and it followed the lives of several people, some current students and some store managers who started at the Hy-Vee Market when they were kids. It was a fun read, and again, bestowed the virtues of summer work. The problem is, however, there just aren't that many summer jobs available for high school students anymore. The unemployment rate for teens ages 16-19 now stands at 24.5 percent.

Getting a summer job apparently requires much more than it used it. And sometimes it requires jobs that pay very little ... or nothing at all. My nephew, a really bright kid who goes to Chico State and is studying engineering, is heading out this summer with his church group to Seattle to do volunteer work with the homeless and inmates in prison. It might be a bit much for a high schooler, but the experience will likely be life-changing. Still, it doesn't pay.

There is a website the US Department of Labor has established to help students find summer jobs. It is www.dol.gov/summerjobs. I checked it out, and it is a good place to start.

But, it leaves me wondering. What will high school kids do now to get jobs in the summer of 2011? Maybe working in a grocery store? Maybe an ice cream place? Maybe at a car wash? Or, do they just ask mom and dad for a handout? It will likely not be easy. One thing I'm fairly sure of. None of them will be working in the pit.

PV Road Trip #1

Puerto Vallarta is a resort town. People come here from all over the world for vacation. We live here. We escape PV when we go on vacation. That’s not to say it isn’t a great place to live … because it is. But like many resort towns, it’s easy to get “island fever” here. And sometimes, you just need to get away for a while. Fortunately, there are lots of very appealing places near here that make for easy one or two day trips.

One very cool quick and easy adventure from PV (either one day, or overnight trip if you want to do it like we did), is a journey that takes you to the southern part of Jalisco state … to the small towns of El Tuito, Mayto, and Tehuamixtle. While you can get to El Tuito by bus, you’ll probably want to go by car, especially if you plan on including Mayto and Tehuamixtle.

After traveling south on Highway 200 for about an hour, first along the coast then inland over the mountains, you’ll find the old farming town of El Tuito. It is a throw back to the way many Mexican towns used to be. Dating back to the 1500s, the population has now grown to about 3000.

The center of activity here is based around the large town square. Here, you will find numerous shops and restaurants, and specialty stores that sell local cheese and raicilla, which is moonshine tequila that will knock you on your butt. Here, it helps to know basic Spanish, because unlike Puerto Vallarta, English is not widely spoken. That being said, the locals are used to gringos invading their small town, and they are both welcoming and accommodating.

If you want to stay here, there is a great little B&B called Jardin del Tuito. Operated by a couple of escapees from Paris, rooms are large and the pool/garden/patio is relaxing.

But for us, El Tuito was just a stop along the way. From there, we headed west on a well maintained dirt road (though we were in our SUV, it would be no problem making it in a regular compact car). And nearly an hour later, you reach the Pacific coast at Mayto. There is very little in Mayto, mainly because it is out of the way … way out of the way. But that is part of the appeal of Mayto.

What Mayto lacks in most amenities, it makes up for in accommodations. Because here, set on one of the most beautiful untouched white sand beaches that stretches on for miles, is the Hotel Mayto. It is clean, has a pool, small restaurant, TV, Internet (when it is working). There is also an area for beach camping here. It reminds you of what most of Mexico was probably like 50 years ago before sleepy villages were converted into mega-resorts. They charge per person here … about 500 pesos each, which depending on the exchange rate will get you a room for about $80US for two.

But the real appeal for us on this part of the coast is what you find about five miles south of Mayto. It's the equally small fishing village of Tehuamixtle, famous (and I do mean famous) for their fresh oysters. There are two restaurants on the cove and both serve up oysters pretty much any way you want them … on the half shell, pan fried, you name it. And when you order them, they don’t come out of a refrigerator. They come out of the ocean. Yes, they are that fresh. We always go to Restaurant Liz Adriana. Owned (and staffed) by the same family for more than 20 years, it is right above the small bay. It’s a friendly place where the beers are cold is and the food excellent.

It can be a bit intimidating at times to venture out on your own here, especially if you are unsure about the language and where you are going. But we have never had any problems, and look at each trek as a new adventure.

And such was our getaway from Puerto Vallarta for this day. To view the video of this trip, click HERE. And if you have any questions, drop me a line. I’ll fill you in. Happy travels.

The final whale performace of the season

This has been a truly amazing season for whales in Puerto Vallarta. In fact, it has been the best season since we moved here. Even the whale watching experts agree.

From late November until early March, almost daily we could spot them in Banderas Bay from our balcony. That is in stark contrast to last year when we saw only one or two. Perhaps the difference this year was that the water temperature of the bay was much cooler than it has been for several years.

The big surprise came yesterday, long after the “season” is over. In fact, we have not seen a single whale here for several weeks. But yesterday afternoon, a mom and her calf put on the most spectacular show we have seen, perhaps since we moved to PV. And it all happened in the bay right in front of us. Their show lasted more than 10 minutes. So, I grabbed the camera and rolled. Click here for a link to the YouTube video (edited down to about three minutes).

It’s almost like they are the last ones out of town, waving “adios” before heading north for the summer.

The hardest workers in the world

I saw the story on the NBC Nightly News last night. And while it was a bit of a surprise to me that it made the national news, I guess it should not have been. The report, which is now in several newspapers, found that Mexicans work the most hours each day compared to any other of the 29 industrialized nations. They also work later in life than those in most other countries.

A story in The News today, an English language newspaper from Mexico City, said the report runs counter to stereotypes and perceptions of the outside world, particularly opinions held by some citizens of the U.S. Indeed, when I was a child raised in San Jose, CA where there was a fairly large population of Mexican-Americans, it would not be unusual to hear that they were lazy, always taking siestas, and basically were not hard workers. I never understood that perception because the Latinos that I knew were quite the opposite. Not only were they hard working, but they were studious and devoted to getting the job done. My observations were reinforced throughout my career, working with some of the most devoted and talented photographers, who happened to also be Mexican Americans.

Now that I have lived pretty much full time in Mexico for three years, I have seen the Mexican work ethic up close. Most start work at 7:00 or 7:30 in the morning and work until 6:00 in the evening. The work week is Monday through Saturday. Though they often do not have the tools or resources that are available in other countries, they take pride in working hard to get the job done, even if it means improvising. For example, we had a new coffee maker that went out a couple of years ago. In the U.S., you would throw it away and buy a new one. Since imported items like high end coffee makers are extremely expensive here, we took our broken one to a repair shop. It took a couple of months, and they had to send the coffee maker to Guadalajara where they finally found the circuit board it needed. They fixed it (and they charged us nothing because the coffee maker was so new, they said it never should have failed!). And, they do it all with a smile.

It is all part of the Mexican experience that we truly enjoy. And we truly appreciate the work the Mexicans here do. Now, finally, they have received the recognition they deserve as being among the hardest working people on earth.

Goodbye America, Goodbye Mexico

Living in a foreign country, I have little opportunity to read a newspaper from the U.S. anymore, and I miss that. Usually a day after they are printed, some newspapers including USA Today, The New York Times, Dallas Morning News, L.A. Times and San Francisco Chronicle are available at a few stores. But they can cost up to $4.00 for a weekday edition, and close to $10 for a weekend edition … all for news that is 24-48 hours old. So, online reading has become my “newspaper” of choice these days.

However, occasionally, someone from the U.S. will come down to visit somewhere here in Mexico and sometimes they will bring the local newspaper that they picked up at the airport from wherever their flight originated. They don’t know the newspaper, which they forgot the throw in the garbage can or leave on the plane, is like gold down here. The first lucky recipient will read it, pass it on to another ex-pat, who passes it on to someone else. And eventually, usually a week after it was printed, the old tattered stale piece of news is finally tossed. It’s just another one of those obscure tidbits of life here. Which brings me to this story.

Last Friday, some owners here (who live most of the year in Iowa) had friends arrive from Des Moines, and they brought the Des Moines Register with them. Today, the three day old paper was gratefully passed on to me. I read it pretty much cover to cover. I have never been there but Des Moines seems like a pretty presentable city.

While most of the news from last Friday’s Register had passed its “use by” date, there was one article that was news to me, and it caught my attention. It was about the final day at the Electrolux factory in Webster City, IA. After 72 years of making washers and dryers, the plant shut down on Thursday. 850 people were out of work. Click HERE for a link to the story.

Electrolux is not getting out of the business of making washers and dryers. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Electrolux is terminating the jobs of 850 people in Iowa and is opening a brand new factory … in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. It’s the same Ciudad Juarez that is now considered the most dangerous city in the world.

When I was still working, I went to Ciudad Juarez to do a couple of stories. It was back in the early 2000’s and Juarez was a bustling (and crime ridden) city. Despite its many drawbacks, it had several outstanding assets that were too good to be true for U.S. companies who cared more about profits than they did about people. First, it was on the border, just over the Rio Grande from El Paso. Second, NAFTA had just made commerce between the U.S. and Mexico much easier. And third, U.S. companies soon discovered that the employees in the U.S. who were making $15 an hour plus benefits could be replaced by Mexicans who jumped at jobs paying $15 a day, even though they provided few if any benefits. As a result, RCA, Philips, General Motors, General Electric, Krupp’s, and many more companies, abandoned US factories and workers, fled over the border, and set up shop in Mexico.

The cost of producing TVs and toasters and tiddlywinks suddenly dropped, and profits on those products, shipped back to the U.S. soared. CEOs were elated, shareholders were ecstatic, and the Mexican workers were happy to have jobs. In fact, they were so happy, there was an exodus from smaller towns across Mexico to Ciudad Juarez where the factories couldn’t hire enough workers (at $15 a day). The only losers, the American work force left in the unemployment lines.

What surprised me a bit about the story I read in the Register regarding Electrolux moving to Juarez was that from what I understand, the rush to Juarez is pretty much over. Turned off by crime, many companies are reluctant to move to Juarez. And many of those that were already there, have done to their Mexican workers what they did to their former U.S. workers. They have shuttered their plants and are relocating … not back to the U.S. but to China. Like it was in U.S. cities where manufacturing was the backbone of the local economy, the impact has been devastating in Juarez. Thousands of Mexicans who fled poverty elsewhere in the country with the promise of “good paying” jobs from U.S. companies in Juarez have been abandoned. Even when we were there nearly a decade ago, the luster of Juarez was starting to wear off as acre after acre of once bustling factories and distribution centers were empty. America’s loss, became Mexico’s loss … and China’s gain.

There are still obvious advantages to locating in Juarez for major corporations. Shipping costs to the U.S. are low, and the employment costs are cheap. And the companies argue that had they not tapped into a lower cost production model, they would not be able to compete in a global market where China continues to undercut many competitors. It would be nice to be able to say that you are proud to buy products made in the U.S. But increasingly, the challenge is to find one.

Lessons on living from a dying friend

Most of you never met Alan Wood. It’s really too bad. What happened to Alan is also a downright shame. I remember vividly to this day the phone call we received from Alan on a Friday night in January, 2007. At age 57, he was in great shape, ran regularly, and went to the gym, not one ounce of fat on him. Yet, despite all of those good things, he had not been feeling quite right for a while. He had some tests done. He called that January night to tell us the tests had come back. He had pancreatic cancer. His doctors gave him six months to live. He lasted only five and a half.

I remember Alan today because April 1 is his birthday. He would have been 61 today. But I also remember Alan today for another reason. It is because of Alan that I am here, living a pretty relaxed life, on the beach, in a cool resort town in Mexico, doing what I want to do, when I want to do it. It’s called living the good life. And three years ago, it replaced the daily grind and pressures of going to work, answering to bosses, meeting deadlines, commuting, and having a few scant hours to do the things I really wanted to do.

In his final five months of life, Alan was really too sick to enjoy much of anything. He still would come, on occasion, to the country home we shared with him in Guerneville, along the Russian River north of San Francisco, but as his health deteriorated, those trips became less frequent. However, during those times, we had a lot of opportunities to talk. His sole message: “Whatever you do, don’t let what happened to me happen to you.”

Like most of us, Alan worked, and worked hard, during his life. He bought a home in San Francisco back in the 1970s and was able to pay it off. He was half owner of the home we shared in Guerneville and it was nearly paid off. He had a new car. He paid for it with cash. He usually planned a couple of good vacations every year. And he really wanted to leave work. His accountant told him he could, and he could retire comfortably at an early age. But Alan figured he’d work longer, into his sixties, to assure that he would have more than he really needed as he grew old. If only he had known. If only any of us had known.

One weekend as his health was failing, Alan said he wanted to talk with us. That’s when he asked us to use him as an example of what not to do … remember “Don’t let what happened to me happen to you.” He told us to realistically look at our finances, and consider what life would be like if we quit work right now. If it means not being able to buy a new car every two or three years, that’s OK. If it means not spending hundreds of dollars every couple of months for new clothes, you won’t need them anyway. Maybe you won’t go out for dinner twice a week, but you’ll have the time to make some pretty great meals at home and have a fun time doing it. And imagine, just imagine, not waking up to an alarm clock, not commuting, not doing reports. It would be almost like being on vacation for the rest of your life.

It was all welcome advice. And as we researched what Alan was telling us, we discovered that with some minor adjustments, we could do it. So we did. Within a year, we both quit work, sold the big home in the Bay Area, moved to a smaller place in Mexico, and never… not even once .. never looked back.

So today on his birthday, I remember Alan with fondness, and with great thanks for his words and wisdom that changed my life. And while you likely never had the opportunity to meet him, it would make Alan happy if he knew others still now hear his advice … and achieve what he never did, before it is too late.

A Foxy Move

First off, I wish to acknowledge that some of the finest journalists I know work for Fox News. I’m serious. People that I have had the privilege to work with over the years including, but not limited to Adam Housley, Claudia Cowan, Tom Whitaker, are honest, fair and aggressive journalists who work their butts off in the field to deliver compelling and well balanced stories (in fact, as I write this, Tom is on his way now to Libya, and Adam has spent a good deal of time recently in Japan). I greatly admire them and want to make it clear, these are not the people this blog is about.

No, instead it is about Fox News in general. The so called “news” network that continues to amaze me and continues to bamboozle Americans into thinking the U.S. is speeding along the road to ruin and it is all because we elected Barack Obama President. The latest shining example of Fox’s penchant to unduly influence the American psyche comes directly from the managing editor of Fox News’ Washington, DC Bureau. Today, it was revealed that Bill Sammon has admitted that during the 2008 campaign, he repeatedly told viewers that Barack Obama believed in socialism, even though he knew such claims were “rather far fetched.”

The revelations came forth today in an article by respected journalist Howard Kurtz. His complete article can be found here.

Coming from Fox News, it is not surprising. Nonetheless, here is my dilemma. Millions of well intentioned, tough perhaps misguided viewers each day turn to Fox News to receive “the news.” And when they see reports of some of my former colleagues mentioned above, they actually do get “the news.” But what happens when Adam Housley signs off from Tokyo, or Tom Whitaker files his report from Tripoli, and moments later on the same “news” station, you have reporters knowingly spreading false information? It not only unfairly influences public opinion, it denigrates legitimate news programs. And it unfairly creates a contentious atmosphere in America where, as we have seen in recent years, there is so much name calling and so much animosity, little gets accomplished.

Historically, we have known the difference between fact and opinion in broadcast. It was clearly labeled as such, just as the editorial page is separated in newspapers. But with the demise of the Fairness Doctrine, which marked the end of an era where broadcasters actually were required to be “fair and balanced,” the lines between fact and opinion have mostly dissolved. As a result, viewers will see a report from Japan on the latest disaster recovery efforts in one minute, and the next minute they will be told that Obama is a socialist (or doesn’t have a US birth certificate, or is a Muslim, or ….).

I am not for more government regulation, but even I wonder how far can American society go without some sort of mandate that requires honesty in journalism. Opinion is fine, but it should be labeled as such. Any attempt by a so-called “news” organization to misrepresent opinion as fact to sway the public’s perception is … well, it’s worse than socialism.

Safe Computing

If you're like me, backing up your computer is one of those things that you keep putting off. It's a hassle, it can be time consuming, and it's really not something that is top of mind. But it should be.

Last year, the hard drive on my six month old HP laptop crashed (yes, six months old ... it will be my last HP computer, but that's another story). There was that terrible feeling that I had lost important documents and financial data that I truly needed. Fortunately, I had subscribed to Moxy's online backup system, and was able to retrieve information that otherwise would have been lost. And relatively quickly, I accessed the data and downloaded it to an auxiliary computer.

Mozy is an excellent program, particularly at $55 per year for unlimited off-site data storage. However, it is not such a bargain when that annual fee jumps to nearly $120 for unlimited storage, and that is exactly what Moxy did last week. It boosted it basic fees and no longer provides unlimited back-ups for one set price. The sudden rate hike sent me searching for another way to keep my data safe and keep my wallet from bleeding.

After receiving the notification from Mozy that my fees would be increasing in just two days, I backed up my computer onto an external hard drive that I have then cancelled my Mozy subscription. I then started looking for a new off site back-up provider.

Reading reviews, I decided to try CrashPlan. Nearly everyone said it was a solid program, reliable, user friendly, and inexpensive. Plus, they were offering a discount to former Mozy users who were migrating to a lower cost alternative. It started off great, but CrashPlan soon became a disappointment. Constantly, their site would dump me. I would have to reset the upload only to have it disconnect again within 10 or 15 minutes. And when it was actually backing up my data, it was so painfully slow that it it would have taken more than a month to backup everything. When I contacted customer service, they were quick to respond with suggestions, but nothing worked. I eventually cancelled, and received a refund.

Now, I'm trying Carbonite. Though the reviews for Carnbonite were not altogether positive (funky user interface and inability to back up all material without jumping through some electronic hoops), it is a company that advertises on Howard Stern, who regular readers know I listen to daily. The price is the same as Mozy before Mozy's rates skyrocketed. Plus, you get a two week trial period before you pay anything just to see how it works. And, with the promotion code "Howard100" you get two months free. My initial take on it is positive. The user interface isn't that complicated (in fact, it's rather basic), they do explain what to do to add more files to their basic backup, and since I installed it and began running the program a few hours ago, it is moving right along rapidly. In fact, it seems to back up files faster than Mozy did even with my relatively slow "high speed" connection through the local Mexican Internet provider (Telmex: 2mbs download, .2mbs upload). Unless something crashes or changes, I'll likely fork over the $55 annual fee to Carbonite after the trial period ends in a couple of weeks.

In the end, it doesn't matter really who you go with or what you do to protect your data (though I find the thought of backing up on DVD's or CD's a bit antiquated). Just do it ... to avoid the inevitable time when 1) someone steals your lap top, 2) your hard drive crashes, or 3) you are far away from your computer and you need to download important documents or files.

Reality versus perception

I have written about this before, the reality of life in most parts of Mexico versus the perception that this is a war torn drug infested country. The issue came to the forefront again the past several days as several major cruise lines, including Carnival and Royal Caribbean, announced they are curtailing their west coast Mexican Riviera cruises.

While the threats of drug violence were listed as one of the reasons for cruise lines' departure from Mexico, other sources say that the itineraries had run their course over the years. Most cruisers had sailed on the Mexico run at least once, if not several times. And they had already experienced the shore excursions, which are a major revenue source for the cruise lines. As a result, a friend of mine who works for the cruise lines told me that passengers on the Mexican cruises simply weren't spending as much money once on board as they used to.

Nonetheless, the recent cruise ship announcements to leave Mexico simply bolster the belief that setting foot on Mexican soil is tantamount to a death wish. Yet, those of us who live in Puerto Vallarta, and those who have visited here on vacation, know that is simply not the case.

My good friend, George Warren, who is an Emmy Award winning TV reporter with more than 30 years experience covering major stories around the world was visiting us here in Puerto Vallarta this past weekend when the cruise lines made their announcement. Seeing first hand the reality versus perception, he went into reporter mode during his vacation and shot a story which aired this week on ABC in Northern California. HERE is the link to his story. Click on the "Play Video" link on the right side of the page to see the broadcast report.

http://www.news10.net/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=118151

George is a straight shooter, and he admitted before he came down here he had a few reservations. After his four day stay, he said he can't wait to come back, and next time will come with his wife and 9 year old daughter.

We continue to enjoy a peaceful, happy, and exciting life here. But remain frustrated with the persistent question, "How could you stand living in such a dangerous place." As I wrote in the comments section of George's story, responding to one such ill-informed reader, "Saying you don't want to visit a predominantly safe resort town because of violence 1500 miles away is like saying you'd never go to Yosemite because a gunman killed a bunch of people at a Safeway in Tucson."