1. law, govt and politics

Renewable energy —
taxpayers and ratepayers
pick up the bill
PAGE 4
Nevada’s gasoline prices
are third highest in
United States
PAGE 5
Volume 17, Issue 10
Court ruling gagging
judicial candidates a ploy
to stop electing judges
lasvegastribune.com
PAGE 5
May 13-19, 2015
Ward 5 Chamber of Commerce Member
Fox Guards the Chicken Coop
By Alexandra Cohen
Las Vegas Tribune
Clark County commissioners
acted with urgency this week implementing the guardian compliance
hotline. All persons damaged by
Clark County’s lack of oversight of
guardianship cases can report their
damages to 702-671-4614.
However, the alternative option
is recommended in order to provide
evidence for future guardianship
hearings. That is, email your complaint to guardianshipcompliance
@clarkcountycourts.us. Emailing
provides evidence of your complaint to Clark County courts not
afforded by calling in a complaint.
The emailed and phoned-in
complaints go to the attention of
Clark County Courts Assistant Administrator Tim Andrews. Attorney
Andrews’ position with the Clark
County courts is significant and
material to his oversight of any
cases, including guardianship, due
to his employment history.
Prior to becoming Assistant
Court Administrator, attorney
Andrews worked as a Deputy At-
My Point
of View
By Rolando Larraz
I guess I am not the only one
who believes that local news broadcasting is in need of a complete
overhaul because I have never had
such response to a column as I had
last week about that subject, including comments on my personal email
from police officers and longtime
residents, as well as well-known
entertainers that now call Las Vegas their home.
However, in order to be as fair
as I like to believe that I am, I have
taken the time to sacrifice and deprive myself of watching Channel
8 News Now and have turned the
channel to other local stations to
compare.
This weekend I turned my television to Channel 13 with Victoria
Spilabotte and Channel 3 with an
unknown news anchor because her
name does not appear anywhere on
their website; unfortunately, I did
not see much difference. In fact, I
noticed — with the help of the Las
Vegas Tribune’s own “Joan and
Melissa Rivers” — that Victoria
may go to work with comfortable
flat shoes and wear the feminine
high heels only to conduct an oncamera interview with guests, but
the high heels that she may keep in
her dressing room did not match
with the beautiful black dress she
was wearing Saturday morning.
I know I am not computer savvy
— I always explain to everyone that
when I went to school, computers
did not exist — but I manage to find
things when I need them, and I can
tell you that the most difficult
website is that of Channel 3 in Las
Vegas.
I believe they have all the states
on their website in which they have
their television stations, and when
one thinks that the information
found is information about Channel 3 Las Vegas, one is really reading Reno or California information.
By next week I will have a little
more knowledge of Channel 3 and
13 newscast programming and will
give out my personal opinion, always making it clear that I am a
news junkie and I may be a little
unfair — but it is just MY opinion,
my point of view, as this column is
named.
Later I will really sacrifice myself and review Channel 5 news in
the morning and I promise that I
will not be one-sided just because I
used to have my show on that station before any of those working
now were even born (1965), which
(See My Point of View, Page 2)
Clark County Court
Administrator Steve Grierson
torney General for the State of Nevada Office of the Attorney General. In this capacity, attorney
Andrews was housed in Las Vegas,
handling litigation in Clark County
courts. Attorney Andrews experienced firsthand knowledge of the
problems occurring in Clark
County courts.
One such problem occurring in
the Clark County courts was with
staff attorney Jillian Prieto. Attorney Prieto sat on a subcommittee
regarding handling of child abuse
evidence. In June 2010, as a member of the subcommittee, Attorney
Prieto heard public testimony of
Clark County courts destroying
child abuse evidence. By 2011,
LVMPD (Las Vegas Metropolitan
Police Department) investigated
attorney Prieto regarding the illegal destruction of evidence. In
LVMPD’s report, attorney Prieto
confesses she knows Clark County
courts destroy child abuse evidence.
Assistant Court Administrator
Andrews was responsible for attorney Prieto’s activities. Attorney
Andrews’ boss, Court Administrator Steve Grierson, refuses to disclose Clark County courts’ criminal activity because he is implicated
in the activity. Administrator
Grierson inserted into child abuse
case files, documents stating the
children’s abuse evidence is “illegible” rather than stating the evidence has been destroyed.
Regardless of his position with
Clark County or State of Nevada,
attorney Andrews is held to the
standard of all licensed attorneys in
Nevada as described in NRS 11.
NRS11.207Malpractice actions against attorneys and veterinarians.
2. This time limitation is tolled
for any period during which the attorney or veterinarian conceals any
act, error or omission upon which
the action is founded and which is
known or through the use of reasonable diligence should have been
known to the attorney or veterinarian.
Attorney Andrews is accountable for disclosing criminal activity of which he “knows or should
have known” in his employment.
However, attorney Andrews shows
a history of refusing to disclose
criminal activity. Six months into
his job as Assistant Court Administrator, attorney Andrews was
called to the witness stand to testify about the courts’ criminal activity. Attorney Andrews refused
testimony even though taking an
(See Chicken Coop, Page 4)
during the violence, but unharmed,
child endangerment can be explored.
The Clark County VIA office
initiates cases into the Clark County
District court system. EDCR 1
(Eighth Judicial District Court Rule
1) requires the Family Division Presiding Judge oversee hearings of
domestic violence. The VIA is not
overseeing the enforcement of
EDCR 1. In fact, the cases are assigned to various judges, judges pro
tem, hearing commissioners, and
commissioners pro tem. As a result,
a sporadic judiciary makes inconsistent decisions. Victims are re-victimized. The Eighth Judicial District Court does not follow its own
rules.
In 2011, LVMPD (Las Vegas
Metropolitan Police Department)
investigated VIA after receiving
numerous complaints. The police
report was released publicly after a
court ordered Clark County’s District Attorney release discovery. The
report contains the confession of
two Clark County employees ad(See Family Court, Page 4)
Civil Rights Violations
in Clark County Courts
By Alexandra Cohen
Las Vegas Tribune
Clark County District Court
Family Division is reporting increased cases in which parents are
fighting for their rights and their
children’s rights. The rights for parents to parent their children and the
rights of the children to be parented
by their biological parents is a right
as old as the United States itself.
Clark County courts are denying parents their rights due to procedural errors. So numerous are the
errors that, in 2009, the US DOJ
(United States Department of Justice) required the Clark County
courts quantify the procedural errors and report the number to the
US DOJ. The court errors are also
required to be reported to the Nevada Supreme Court.
In 1993, Clark County courts
staffed an office to assist with domestic violence cases. The office is
known as the VIA (Violence Intervention Agency). The office
handles cases where an act of violence occurs between members of
a household. If a child is present
Hillary Clinton sets immigration trap
Setting political traps is a time-honored Washington tradition, and Hillary Clinton is trying
to force Republican presidential candidates to take a hard-line position on immigration.
By Chuck McCutcheon
Christian Science Monitor
“Setting a trap.” A common
strategy in which a politician
adopts a position intended to force
rivals into taking the opposite – and
less defensible – stance.
Star Wars fans will recognize
Hillary Clinton’s latest tactics. Toward the end of “Return of the
Jedi,” as the climatic space battle
scene ramps up, Admiral Ackbar
offers his famous warning about the
Imperial defense around the
dreaded Death Star. “It’s a trap!”
bellows the Rebel Alliance commander – presciently, it turns out.
That’s what many are now saying about Mrs. Clinton’s recent
move on immigration. In Nevada
recently, she went further than
President Obama in calling for a
pathway to citizenship for millions
of immigrants living in the country
illegally. It was a not-very-transpar(See Hillary Clinton, Page 4)
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (right) takes part in a roundtable of young Nevadans discussing
immigration as she campaigns for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination at Rancho High School in
Las Vegas last week.
FROM THE DESK OF GORDON MARTINES
HOA Scandal produces 38 people to be sentenced
By Gordon Martines
Allegedly from 2003 to 2009,
thirty-eight thieves have been methodically planning, manufacturing
facts, and maliciously deceiving
innocent citizens that became victims and blindly believed in a false
and a corrupt real estate venture.
It is amazing that the Federal
Government had to step in and investigate and prosecute this massive
fraudulent HOA scheme that bilked
millions of dollars from unsuspecting homeowners. The big question
is, why couldn’t our state law enforcement officers handle such a
case? The answer, of course, is that
they too were involved in the commission of the crime.
If anyone actually believes that
38 people are the only ones that
were involved in such a scheme,
then they need to examine closely
the facts of the case a little more in
depth.
No truer words were ever spoken than that “Police corruption
cannot exist unless it is condoned
and tolerated by upper police management.” Remember that four
mid-level police managers were
also indicted for the HOA Scandal,
which strongly implies that it was
accomplished with the knowledge
or even direct participation of those
all the way up to the Sheriff. There
are no secrets in the Police Department.
Now let’s see who the Sheriff
was between 2003 and 2009: why,
that would be former Sheriff Bill
Young, and former Sheriff Douglas
Gillespie. And let us not forget all
their drone underlings, one of which
is now the current Sheriff of Clark
County. And the corruption continues on.
(See From the Desk, Page 8)
Page 2 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
Nanny feds extend meddling
even further into states’ affairs
By Thomas Mitchell
Federalism and Generalissimo
Francisco Franco are still dead.
The latest foray by the feds into
state sovereignty is the demand that
states create climate change prevention policies before they can receive
FEMA disaster relief funding. A
few Republicans are offering token
resistance.
Today the federal government
has its fingers, hands and arms up
the elbow in the running of states.
The state of Nevada gets 35 percent
of its state budget from the benevolent, meddling feds.
TRIBUNE
VOL. 17, NO. 10
FOUNDER
Rolando Larraz
PUBLISHER
AND
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Rolando Larraz
GENERAL MANAGER
Perly Viasmensky
MANAGING EDITOR
Maramis Choufani
PRODUCTION
Don Snook
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Colleen Lloyd
INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER
Kenneth A. Wegner
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Las Vegas Tribune
published weekly by the
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David A. Rifkin, Executive Vice President
Quote of the Week:
“Success is to be measured not
so much by the position that
one has reached in life...
as by the obstacles which
he has overcome while
trying to succeed.”
— Booker T. Washington
Amusingly, on the same day the
Las Vegas newspaper had an editorial complaining about the FEMA
demands, it had a news account reporting that the state is having to
spend millions on storm drainage
to comply with EPA requirements.
There have been ongoing stories
about what the state can get in funding if it will take nuclear waste and
bury it in Yucca Mountain. The
Supreme Court said Obama could
not coerce the states into expanding Medicaid coverage by denying
funding, but just about every other
incursion seems OK.
Congress set the drinking age
nationally by threatening to deny
funding to any state that did not
comply. Likewise the hated 55 mph
speed limit.
Education funding is threatened
if states don’t comply with No
Child Left Behind.
Of course, the feds control 87
percent of the land in Nevada.
(Continued from Page 1)
was before the late Johnny Carson
bought the station. That is a real
sacrifice because I personally don’t
like either of the anchors on that
station since my favorite, Heidi
Hayes, left the station to join the Las
Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority; I used to watch the Channel 5 morning news exclusively for
Heidi.
Monica was not too bad when
she was in Detroit, but after she got
here she had a 360-degree change
and not for the better; she got too
close to her male co-anchor, who
liked to make fun of everyone — if
someone got arrested, he laughed;
if someone died, he laughed; everything was a laugh for that Jason guy
and I think that is very unprofessional.
However, Channel 5 is the only
news station in Las Vegas that has
local news from 7 to 9 in the morning while every other station has national news / magazine shows, and
I am all for local news because if I
want to know what is going on anywhere else, I turn to Fox, CNN,
NBNBC or any other national news
organization.
I have lived in Las Vegas for
sixty-three years; I care for Las
Vegas and I believe that those of us
who lives here should care about
Las Vegas before any other city. I
had places in Detroit, Michigan;
Miami, Florida; Los Angeles and
San Francisco, California, but always have kept my official residence in Las Vegas, Nevada; and
the day that I am more interested in
what is going on in those places
instead of Las Vegas, I will move
permanently to those places.
I check the weather report in the
morning to see how I am going to
dress, and because I am going to
dress for Las Vegas weather I can
give a blip how the weather anywhere else is; that is why I get upset when the local weather person
stands in front of what the weather
is going to be today because I am
going out today, not tomorrow or
the next day.
Another thing that bothers me is
when the weather person starts talking about the weather in Summerlin,
Green Valley... etc.
I know that I am not the most
normal person on earth; I am not a
tourist type of person. People cannot believe that in all the years I
have been here I have never been
to Mt. Charleston or Lake Mead, the
most popular attractions in our city;
to me Las Vegas is from Lake Mead
Boulevard to Tropicana Avenue,
and from Boulder Highway to Rainbow Boulevard (Fort Apache is way
too far for me); that is why I have
never been able to understand how
lawyers can open offices on Fort
Apache or how the Social Security
Office can be that far outside the
Las Vegas city limits.
I don’t want to get too deep into
this issue because it may interfere
with an article that I am preparing
for a future publication, but that is
why I cannot understand why the
utility companies don’t have offices
in Las Vegas to serve the Las Vegas community.
I have said it a million times already; people come to Las Vegas
because they like what they see,
because they like what we have to
offer, and yet as soon as they settle
in our city they start changing our
city to what they have left behind.
Either you like our desert or you
don’t; if you do, welcome to our
city; but if you don’t, I will appreciate it if you don’t change anything
and I would be happy to waive
good-bye to you, but don’t call us a
“Valley” because this is the most
beautiful and wonderful piece of
desert anyone has seen.
My name is Rolando Larraz, and
as always, I approved this column.
*****
Rolando Larraz is Editor in
Chief of the Las Vegas Tribune. His
column appears weekly in this
newspaper. To contact Rolando
Larraz,
email
him
at:
Rlarraz@lasvegastribune.com or
at 702-868-NEWS (6397)
My Point of View
Face the Tribune Guest
David de Alba to appear on ‘Face
The Tribune’ Friday, May 15
David de Alba, a Cuban-born
performance artist with a flair for
bringing the image, wardrobe and
personality of Judy Garland to the
stage, will be the guest on Face
The Tribune on Friday, May 15,
from noon to one.
David will be discussing preand post-Castro Cuba, his unusual childhood, and what
brought him to take on the work
of keeping the spirit of Judy Garland alive in his theatrical career
and adventures.
David de Alba
Post
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This service for returning clients
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Please Note:
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wish to inform all those who
choose to submit their opinions
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CITY BEAT
May 13-19, 2015 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / Page 3
Great Scott! It’s Time to Go “Back to the Future” with Las
Vegas Car Stars at Fremont Street Experience May 15–16
“Back to the Future” actor Christopher Lloyd who played the legendary
Doc Brown, will make an appearance at Las Vegas Car Stars 2015 at
Fremont Street Experience.
The world’s greatest gathering
of TV and movie cars will takeover
Fremont Street Experience during
Las Vegas Car Stars 2015 on Friday, May 15 and Saturday, May 16
with a special 30 Year Anniversary
Celebration of Back to the Future.
The event will begin on Friday,
Meet Cinderella:
May 15 with a warm welcome from
Ten Years After The Ball
Clark County Commissioner
This exciting program is for
Lawrence Weekly, Clark County
Commissioner Tom Collins and families, adults and children above
LVCVA President/CEO Rossi 5 years old. (This is not a toddler
Ralenkotter at the Welcome to Las show.)
Parents must stay with their chilVegas Sign followed by a parade of
cars from hit shows and films. The dren throughout the show.
Enjoy 40 minutes of songs, stofestivities will continue at Fremont
Street Experience where visitors ries, ballroom steps, and balloon
can line up to see the legendary crowns for all on the way out!
Homemade Costumes encourcars. Mayor Carolyn Goodman and
Ralenkotter will kick off the Open- aged (but not required).
You may come as a mouse,
ing Ceremony at 5 p.m. on Fremont
Street Experience’s 3rd Street Cinderella, The Prince, the ballStage. The entertainment on Satur- room ladies, stepmother, or, step
day, May 16 will include tributes sisters!
Everyone is a part of the show!
to Back to the Future and feature
appearances by Christopher Lloyd, Free and open to the public and
Lea Thompson and other cast mem- sponsored by Clark County Parks
and Recreation.
bers.
It is located at the Community
Las Vegas Car Stars will pay
homage to original television and Center (on Quartz street next to
movies recognized worldwide and Peace Park) in Sandy Valley May
features cars from the following hit 19 at 5:00 p.m.
*****
shows and films: Back to the Fu“By Myself on a Lonely
ture DeLorean, Batman Batmobile,
Starsky & Hutch Movie Hero Cars, Stage, 2015: David de Alba’s
Tribute to Judy Garland”
The A-Team van, Herbie from The
David de Alba is a Cuban-born
Love Bug, Ghostbusters 1959
Cadillac and more. The event will performance artist with a natural
also host a special meet and greet flair and inclination for bringing the
with various celebrities including image, talent, wardrobe, and perChristopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, sonality of Judy Garland to the
Back to the Future writer Bob Gale, stage. His 25+ years performing as
Jaws cast member Susan Backlinie, a feature attraction at the world fafamed stuntman Bob Bralver and mous Finocchio Club in San Francisco gained him a loyal and appremore.
Las Vegas Car Stars and vintage, ciative following. When performhotrod and classic car owners par- ing Ms. Garland, David keeps
ticipating in the event will be rais- “Classic Judy” in mind, using the
ing money for the Children’s
Miracle Network, a nationally recognized charity that assists children
and their families in need.
The schedule of events is as follows:
Las Vegas Car Stars Press Conference — Friday, May 15
—5-6:30 p.m. — Press Conference (3rd Street Stage); Oscar
Goodman Proclamation, Las Vegas
Car Stars lined up along Fremont
Street Experience, Celebrity appearances.
Las Vegas Car Stars Day — Saturday, May 16
—10 a.m.†— Opening ceremony
—10 a.m.–4:30 p.m. — Celebrity cars on display, celebrity appearances and autographs (11 a.m.–
1 p.m.), Q & A session (1 p.m.–2
p.m.), Back to the Future tributes.
For more information on Las
Vegas
Car
Stars
visit
www.LasVegasCarStars.com. For
more information on other Fremont
Street Experience events, visit
www.vegasexperience.com.
*****
simple props of a mic stand, stool,
and a chair.
“Golden Era” music and performance enthusiasts and fans can go
to David’s website at david-dealba.com to see David’s preservation of the memory of the wellknown Finocchio Club of San Francisco in all its former glamor and
glory.
Anyone who is a true Judy Garland fan, or just someone who appreciates the art form of LIVE Female Impersonation, will not want
to miss his show.
WHEN: Sunday, June 21, at 2
p.m.
WHERE: The Onyx Theater
953 East Sahara Avenue
Phone: 702-732-7225
TICKET INFORMATION:
Show Tickets can be purchased
online anytime via the official Onyx
Theater’s
Website
(onyxtheater.com). Show geared to
audiences 21 and over.
COST: VIP Seats (first two
rows): $20.00; General Seating:
$18.00
*****
Aviation School Holding
National AMT Day
Celebration
Las Vegas is holding a special
celebration Wednesday, May 20, in
honor of National Aviation Maintenance Technician (AMT) Day.
The first set of festivities kicks off
at 11 a.m., ending at 2 p.m. and the
second goes from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.
This event is free and open to the
public.
The AMT Day celebration will
feature food and refreshments,
hands-on workshops and exciting
alumni speakers. Guests are also
invited to take a tour of the
campus’s airplane hangar and labs,
where AIM students train to be-
come future aviation maintenance
technicians.
Aviation Maintenance Technician Day is observed in the United
States on May 24, to recognize the
achievements of Charles E. Taylor.
Taylor was the maintenance technician responsible for building and
maintaining the engine used to
power the aircraft of the renowned
aviation pioneers, the Wright Brothers.
The AIM Las Vegas campus is
located at 5870 South Eastern Avenue. For more information on the
campus’s AMT Day event, please
call 702-798-5511 or visit the event
webpage at www.877jetjobs.com/.
*****
Las Vegas Lift-Off
Film Festival
Las Vegas Lift-Off is part of the
Lift-Off International Film Festivals, dedicated to the discovery and
development of independent artists
in an unbiased environment and
free from any commercial pressures. Student films are programmed alongside professional/
independent films and every film
that is submitted is treated equally
and voted on individual merit alone.
A large budget and glossy production value means nothing to the
folks at Lift-Off — the only focus
is great delivery of an honest story.
The motto is to “Look beyond the
gloss. Put talent before technology.”
Las Vegas Lift-Off Film Festival is one of six international LiftOff events and come directly after
the very successful Liverpool event
in the UK. Other Lift-Off events
take place in LA, Amsterdam, London and Tokyo. Las Vegas Lift-Off
Film Festival is free to attend, enabling submission fees to directly
donate to bringing more audience
to independent work. Lift-Off believe strongly in their filmmakers
getting value for their submission
fee and so every one is given extensive support and advice on topics such as marketing, crowd-funding and artistic development. LiftOff’s aim is to create a network of
creatives to one day become an industry of their own, where talent is
king and hard work rewarded.
The festival also offers an option
to receive extensive feedback and
grades on submitted works, regardless of selection — another factor
that makes Lift-Off unique from
other festivals. With 700+ overall
global entrants, the Las Vegas leg
of Lift-Off promises an array of
films from animations, live action
narrative and documentaries. As is
always the case with Lift-Off, winners are selected via audience
choice and will be awarded with
introductions to directorial agents
and booking managers, as well as
the chance to have their work reviewed by the national and international press. Lift-Off wish to bring
back the art of film-making and,
most importantly, to bring back the
talent behind it.
If any readers are filmmakers
and wish to benefit from a discount
to submit they may use the submission code LasVegasIndie for a 25
percent discount.
*****
City Beat is a compilation of
news and views of our editorial and
writing team, along with reader
submissions and topics. Readers
are invited to suggest a local topic
or any other items of interest.
Page 4 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
Renewable energy — taxpayers and
ratepayers pick up the bill coming and going
By Thomas Mitchell
Have you ever watched pigs
nudging each other out of the way
attempting to see which one can get
its snout deepest into the slop
trough?
We are seeing a sort of pork
scrum at the Legislature in Carson
City between the state’s biggest
monopoly electric utility and those
who install rooftop solar panels that
are only profitable due to ratepayer
subsidies and tax breaks and government handouts.
The taxpayers get left holding
the bag no matter who wins.
This past fall taxpayers shelled
out $1.2 million to entice billionaire Elon Musk to open an office
for his SolarCity company in Nevada. SolarCity is one of those firms
that installs rooftop solar panels.
Residences and businesses that
install solar panels contract with
billionaire Warren Buffett’s NV
Energy under a net metering program. Any excess power they generate goes onto the grid and each
kilowatt-hour uploaded is deducted
from that month’s bill at the retail
rate. But because solar is intermittent and makes it more difficult to
balance the grid, state law dictates
the total amount of net metering
cannot exceed 3 percent of the statewide peak load. That cap is expected to be reached this year,
which would shut down any new
rooftop installations.
There was a bill before the Leg-
islature to raise the cap to 10 percent, but when NV Energy objected
that provision went up in a puff of
smoke.
NV Energy, which in the previous Legislature convinced lawmakers to require the closure of all its
coal-fired plants and foist all of the
cost for doing so and building new
renewable and gas-fired generation
onto ratepayers, doesn’t like paying retail for power.
After paying SolarCity to open
here, will it have to close?
All of this was played out while
(Continued from Page 1)
mitting domestic violence, including child abuse, evidence is “shred”
by the VIA in domestic violence
cases. This shocking discovery is at
the heart of numerous lawsuits
against the City of Las Vegas, Clark
County and State of Nevada.
As a result of the VIA destroying evidence, parents’ legal matters
are increasingly expensive, lengthy
and unpredictable in outcome.
The parents turn to the Las Vegas Tribune to air their plight. They
cannot get a level playing field with
televised media. Channel 3 anchors
Dana and Kim Wagner are contracted with the Clark County
courts; therefore, they have a conflict of interest. Channel 8 anchor
Paula Francis is married to the
Channel 13 Station Manager. Paula
Francis gave the VIA an award in
2010. Channel 13 reporter Annette
Areola received a confession from
VIA assistant supervisor, Leah
Daniels, that a box of evidence in
domestic violence cases was destroyed.
The Las Vegas Tribune will continue tracking the cases incorrectly
ruled on due to the judicial errors.
Family Court
Hillary Clinton
(Continued from Page 1)
ent effort to goad her Republican
rivals into espousing hard-line immigration policies that play well
with their party’s conservative base,
but are objectionable to the increasingly diverse electorate.
“There’s this theory that Hillary
Clinton went to Nevada and set a
trap for the Republicans,” NPR’s
White House correspondent Tamara
Keith said on CNN’s “New Day.”
“She went to Nevada and talked
about immigration, went to the left
of President Obama and was essentially saying, ‘I dare you to say
something that will make Latino
voters not like you.’ ”
Steve McMahon, CEO and
founding partner of the communications firm Purple Strategies, explained on CNN’s “State of the
Union” that Clinton’s campaign is
trying to get the GOP field to define itself as conservative so that the
party’s eventual nominee has
trouble later courting moderates.
“The Clinton campaign is tactically
very smart; they are setting a trap,”
he said. “The Republicans will
overreach because they always do
and they’ll define themselves with
most voters in a way that is negative.”
But much of the Republican
field is wise to Clinton. Leading
candidates such as ex-Florida Gov.
Jeb Bush and his one-time protégé,
Sen. Marco Rubio, largely have
avoided talking about her policy
ideas. And the GOP candidates have
been mindful of potential mediabaited traps.
Supporters of Wisconsin Gov.
Scott Walker spotted one earlier this
year when he said in an interview
that he did not know whether Mr.
Obama is a Christian. A follow-up
New Yorker article, unsubtly titled
“The Dangerous Candidacy of
Scott Walker,” drew conservative
derision. The right-wing site
Breitbart.com called the piece “a
frustrated shriek through clenched
teeth about how that wascally
wabbit from Wisconsin slipped
through the ‘gotcha’ trap.”
Obama himself has been accused of trap-setting – often as he
has tried to make nice with opponents. And many Democrats
viewed House Speaker John
Boehner’s recent invitation of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu to address a joint session of Congress in March, right
before Mr. Netanyahu’s reelection,
as a trap. They accused Mr. Boehner
of wanting any Democrats who
boycotted Netanyahu’s speech to be
Solar panels being installed.
Sen. Harry Reid, one of the champions of renewable energy and its
subsidies, was telling a clean-energy luncheon crowd that renewable energy has been a boon to the
state’s economy and jobs.
He claimed the industry has invested $6 billion in the state and
created 20,000 jobs.
Of course, he did not bother to
note that historically for every renewable energy job created two to
four jobs are destroyed because of
the high cost of renewable power.
Also, every dollar “invested” in renewable energy, usually through tax
breaks and subsidies and higher
power prices, is a dollar not invested in some other industry.
He also took the time to lambaste
the few newspaper editorialists and
columnists in the state who dare to
disdain his crony capitalism by
writing “the most moronic editorials.” Reid was one of the champions of the state requiring a certain
percentage of its electricity come
from renewables — 25 percent by
2025, which should cause power
bills to increase 6 percent over the
next decade. He also pushed Senate Bill 123 that shut down coalfired power plants.
seen as insufficiently supportive of
Israel.
“I know one thing about politics:
When you know that your opponent
is setting a trap, avoid the trap,”
New York Democratic Rep. Steve
Israel – whose name seemingly
lends itself to a close association
with the Middle East ally – told
MSNBC. “I’m going to the speech.
I have been to Israel more times
than John Boehner has been to a
golf course, and I will not allow him
to define my relationship with Israel or the perception of my relationship with Israel.”
A recently released study by the
Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk
University for the Nevada Policy
Research Institute found SB123
will destroy 2,630 jobs by 2020 and
real disposable income will decline
by $226 million per year due to increased electricity cost. This pushes
up prices across the grid, whether
you are a customer of NV Energy
or not.
If the pigs at the trough allegory
doesn’t appeal to you, perhaps the
Bootleggers and Baptists Theory
will. This theory holds that moral
opposites will combine forces to
achieve an objective that serves
both.
For example, Baptists demanded
alcohol prohibition to protect
drunkards from themselves, while
bootleggers wanted prohibition to
block competition and keep prices
higher.
Now, one group claims to want
clean air to save the planet, while
the other doesn’t want to compete
in the free market for capital and
with competitive electrical rates.
NV Energy doesn’t mind building its own wind turbines and solar
farms, because it gets a return on
its equity of about 10 percent when
it builds stuff. The company doesn’t
like paying retail for subsidized/tax
break-driven rooftop solar panels.
Somehow, the renewable backers never calculate the cost associated with intermittent renewables
such as wind turbines and solar panels, which must be backed up kWh
per kWh by the capital and operating cost of maintaining a fossil fuelfired generator for when the wind
dies down or a cloud passes overhead.
They get us to pay the bill, coming and going. At least we can enjoy watching them squabble.
Chicken Coop
(Continued from Page 1)
oath to tell the whole truth.
By 2013, State of Nevada’s Attorney General memorialized on public
record the Office’s knowledge of Clark County courts’ criminal activity.
This knowledge “should have been known” to Deputy Attorney General
Andrews housed in Clark County as a state of Nevada litigator.
History may repeat itself where attorney Andrews is concerned regarding guardianship cases. As both a staff attorney general and assistant
court administrator, attorney Andrews contributes to the guardianship
problems by not disclosing the negligence in their oversight.
Guardianship cases are overseen by Clark County court employee Jon
Norheim. Mr. Norheim is housed at the Family Division of the Clark
County District Courts located at Bonanza and Pecos in Las Vegas. This
court is overseen by attorney Andrews. Mr. Norheim has been documented
a dozen times to have cancelled child abuse case proceedings. Recently,
Clark County Commissioners Chair Steve Sisolak and Vice Chair Larry
Brown have called for the investigation of Jon Norheim in guardianship
cases. Both commissioners have voiced the need for prosecution of Jon
Norheim if warranted.
If attorney Andrews continues in his nondisclosure of criminal activity, the damaged parties have recourse. The parties have already submitted numerous reports to the FBI Las Vegas field office, which has jurisdiction and authority over Tim Andrews. FBI agent Joseph Dickey has
memorialized his knowledge of Clark County courts’ criminal activity.
May 13-19, 2015 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / Page 5
Court ruling gagging judicial candidates
really a ploy to stop electing judges
By Thomas Mitchell
“I know no safe depositary of the
ultimate powers of the society but
the people themselves; and if we
think them not enlightened enough
to exercise their control with a
wholesome discretion, the remedy
is not to take it from them, but to
inform their discretion by education. This is the true corrective of
abuses of constitutional power.” —
Thomas Jefferson to William C.
Jarvis, 1820
No doubt about it, the recent
U.S. Supreme Court ruling that allows Florida to bar judicial candidates from personally soliciting
campaign funding is not just a blow
to free speech, but is another volley in the ongoing campaign to have
judges appointed by elite committees of lawyers and judges and not
voted into office by ignorant citizens who don’t know a judicial
canon from a howitzer.
The court ruled 5-4, with Chief
Justice John Roberts joining the
court’s liberal faction, against
Lanell Williams-Yulee, a 2009
county court judge candidate in
Tampa. The Florida’s Supreme
Court reprimanded her for a mailer
asking for donations.
Though the Florida Bar code
does not allow candidates to solicit
funds, they may set up committees
to seek funding, and the candidate
may send personal thank you notes
to donors, which seems to obviate
the whole concept of separating judicial candidates from the squalor
of being beholding to donors. It is
all a ruse.
The dissent in the case by Justice Antonin Scalia, joined by Justice Clarence Thomas, makes clear
the court’s ulterior motives.
Scalia wrote that the Florida
code “scope suggests that it has
nothing to do with the appearances
created by judges’ asking for
money, and everything to do with
hostility toward judicial campaigning. How else to explain the Florida
Supreme Court’s decision to ban all
personal appeals for campaign
Special to the Las Vegas Tribune
Nevada ranks among the top
three states in the nation registering the highest retail gas prices, according to AAA Nevada’s latest
monthly gas survey. Today’s gas
price is $3.22 on average for a gallon of unleaded gasoline — that’s
$0.44 more than prices since AAA
Nevada’s latest monthly gas survey
of April 14, 2015.
In all Nevada metro areas
tracked by AAA, Reno is registering the state’s highest pump price,
with drivers paying an average
price of $3.37 per gallon for unleaded regular gas. Elko registers
Nevada’s lowest price, at $3.07 a
gallon.
“Although regional refinery issues continue to push prices higher
for Western states,” said Cynthia
Harris, AAA Nevada spokesperson.
“Nationally, AAA predicts that gas
prices may not change significantly
by the holiday weekend. This relatively stable price would result in
the cheapest gas prices for Memorial Day travelers in at least five
years.”
The national average price of gas
has increased for 26 of the previous 28 days to $2.66 per gallon,
which is the highest average of the
year. Drivers are paying about four
cents more per gallon than one
week ago and 27 cents more per
gallon than one month ago. However, relatively low crude costs continue to translate to significant savings at the pump for consumers.
Today’s national average is about a
dollar less than a year ago and is at
the cheapest level for this date since
2009.
The price of crude has moved
higher since the middle of March
due to slowing U.S. production, a
weakening U.S. dollar and speculation of demand growth from
China. Despite the price increase,
many market watchers believe that
the recent rally may be nearing an
end due to oversupply continuing
to characterize the global market,
putting a ceiling on how high the
price can go. The global oil cartel
OPEC appears to be maintaining its
strategy of high production levels
The offending flier
funds (even when the solicitee
could never appear before the candidate), but to tolerate appeals for
other kinds of funds (even when the
solicitee will surely appear before
the candidate)? It should come as
no surprise that the ABA (American Bar Association),whose model
rules the Florida Supreme Court
followed when framing Canon
7C(1), opposes judicial elections —
preferring instead a system in which
(surprise!) a committee of lawyers
proposes candidates from among
whom the Governor must make his
selection.”
Thirty-nine states elect judges,
including Nevada. An effort in 2010
to have Nevada judges appointed
failed by a 58-42 margin, despite a
vigorous campaign on its behalf.
U.S. Supreme Court Justice
Sandra Day O’Connor, former Nevada Supreme Court Justice Bill
Maupin and former Arizona Supreme Court Justice Ruth
McGregor appeared at a Las Vegas
newspaper editorial board seeking
support for the ballot measure. The
newspaper editorially opposed it,
and I wrote a column against the
idea.
“I think Americans want and
expect to have one safe place in
government, and that’s the court,”
Justice O’Connor testified before
the assembled journalists, “where
somebody with a legal dispute can
and is scheduled to convene in June go and have somebody deciding the
to reassess supply quotas, but in the issue, based on the law, who is fair,
meantime all eyes remain on U.S. independent and qualified. And I
production levels based on its new think your best chance of getting
position as swing producer.
that is with this kind of a system.
Nevada’s gas prices are
third highest in nation
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And it doesn’t take away people’s
right to vote, it postpones it for
whatever time is set in the legislation, one or two years. And then the
voter can receive the information
about the judge, the performance
record, and cast a more intelligent
ballot. Do you want to keep the person on the bench? Yes or no.”
She was dismissive of my argument that it is harder to bribe a million voters than one governor, even
though I personally knew a governor who went to prison for that.
The Wall Street Journal pointed
out at the time, “States using this
so-called merit selection method
have had their judicial selections
manipulated by lawyers and bar
associations that nominate guild
favorites. In most cases this has
pushed courts to the activist left.”
Yes, there is a problem with voters not being well enough informed
about judicial candidates, but that
is partly the fault of the legal community, which sets itself up as some
bastion of virtuous objectivity, prohibited from sullying its robes in the
mud wrestle that is electioneering.
The current ruling in a Florida
case runs counter to a Supreme
Court ruling in the case of Republican Party of Minnesota v. White,
in which the court said judicial canons limiting judges’ ability to address legal and political issues violates the First Amendment. Asking
for money is also a free speech
right.
If selection panels are needed to
help a governor appoint and evaluation panels are needed to give voters information about whether or
not to retain a judge, why not create them informally and present the
information directly to the voters?
I asked at the time.
Scalia also noted that the Florida
ruling “banning candidates from
asking for money personally ‘favors some candidates over others —
incumbent judges (who benefit
from their current status) over nonjudicial candidates, the well-to-do
(who may not need to raise any
money at all) over lower-income
candidates, and the well-connected
(who have an army of potential
fundraisers) over outsiders.’ ...This
danger of legislated (or judicially
imposed) favoritism is the very reason the First Amendment exists.”
The court majority danced
around so many precedents in law
— using speculative phrases like
“possible temptation,” “might lead”
and “even unknowingly” — that
Scalia at one point exclaimed: “This
is not strict scrutiny; it is sleight of
hand.”
Page 6 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
Four years after: On the whims,
happenstances and vicissitudes, dude
By Thomas Mitchell
I used to stand on the upper
floors of the parking garage at
McCarran when I flew in or out of
town, gaze over the city and think:
This is my town. I’m a part of it. I
can make things happen. Or at least
stir the pot.
I knew casino owners, council
members, commissioners, lawmakers, government executives of every stripe.
I conducted newspaper editorial
boards with billionaires, governors,
congressmen, senators, heads of
federal agencies, a former U.S. Supreme Court justice and more than
a few gadflies and crackpots. I had
one billionaire call me stupid to my
face in front of my boss. After another meeting, he held onto my arm
as I escorted him down a hallway
he could not see to where his driver
waited.
I was one of those bastards on
Bonanza, as one former mayor
called us.
On this day four years ago, I
walked unceremoniously and unlamented out of the offices of the Las
Vegas Review-Journal and have
never returned. That was after
nearly 23 years as managing editor
and editor — in charge of the news
and opinion pages, along with a
multimillion-dollar budget and
nearly 150 reporters, editors, artists,
photographers and more. I was also
a column writer with the self-appointed role of standing up for free
speech and press, access to public
records and open meetings, as well
as being the ombudsman heralding
the paper’s successes and explaining why we did things the way we
did when controversy arose.
When I interviewed for the job,
I was asked about my politics.
Though I had written columns over
the years, I was not steeped in politics. I said I was a liberal, but a fiscal conservative. It took me a
couple of years to discover the label for my politics all along was libertarian.
Over the years I had come up
with policies for newsroom staff,
such as no comps. A reviewer could
accept a ticket for a show being reviewed but no other. I spelled out
when anonymous sources could be
Las Vegas as seen from the McCarran parking garage
used and why. I insisted a supervi- umns, but with a different tack, as office to learn that the newspaper’s
sor approve and must know the well as editorials and opinion pieces longtime publisher and CEO of the
source’s name and reason for ano- on topics of the day at the bidding parent media company had been
nymity.
of the new publisher.
replaced with a new publisher and
For my last few months I had the
The beginning of the end came a separate person as CEO and that
title — and it was title only — of about a week after Harry Reid was I had the choice of leaving with a
senior opinion editor. I wrote col- re-elected. I was called into a front modest severance package or stay
on with a new job. It took me awhile
to realize I had made a mistake by
staying, for more reasons than I care
to explain.
I asked repeatedly why I was
being ousted, what I had done to
deserve this treatment after decades
of loyal service and incredibly long
hours. I got no answer, just some
mumbling about change. Not
change for the better, just change. I
later learned that the room I was in
was like the end of the chute at the
slaughterhouse. A half a dozen other
longtime executives in departments
across the building were being
shown the door that very day. So
my suspicions about the re-election
of Reid — who the paper had editorially strongly opposed with the
support and encouragement of the
owners — being the cause of the
coup were placed into question,
though not completely dismissed.
Nevada is an at-will state. Unless you have a contract, you can
be terminated for cause, no cause
or whim.
It is no consolation that both the
new publisher and new CEO have
both since been terminated. And it
is with considerable chagrin that I
(See Mitchell, Page 7)
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May 13-19, 2015 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / Page 7
Will Harriet Tubman grace $20 bills?
Why some groups don’t want that.
A group wants to replace Andrew Jackson’s portrait with the image of Harriet Tubman. Would this
be a recognition of African-American achievement or ‘hush money’ papering over a lack of progress?
Harriet Tubman,
circa 1885
By Husna Haq
Christian Science Monitor
If a group of pro-women campaigners has its way, by 2020, when
Americans withdraw cash from an
ATM, it will be Harriet Tubman’s
portrait gracing the $20 bill, not
Andrew Jackson’s.
Women On 20s, a group that
wants to boot Jackson from the bill,
has tallied the online votes and declared Tubman the successor. But
while advocates hail the choice as
a move forward for women and for
African-Americans, the campaign
has, unexpectedly, come under fire
by critics who call the move superficial rather than substantive.
Replacing Jackson with Tubman
isn’t progress, said The Root writer
Kirsten West Savali in an article
entitled “Why we should keep
Harriet Tubman and Rosa Parks off
the $20 bill,” “It’s hush money.”
Tubman, an abolitionist best
known for freeing hundreds of
slaves through her role as a “conductor” for the Underground Railroad, beat out three other candidates: former first lady Eleanor
Roosevelt, civil rights activist Rosa
Parks, and the first woman elected
chief of a Native American tribe,
Wilma Mankiller.
“We believe this simple, symbolic, and long-overdue change
could be an important stepping
stone for other initiatives promoting gender equality,” the group says
on its website. “Our money does
say something about us, about what
we value.”
Jackson, the nation’s seventh
president, has come under scrutiny
in recent years. Once celebrated for
his role in the Battle of Orleans,
Jackson is perhaps now better
known for his crushing policy toward Native Americans and his
ownership of slaves. His Indian
Removal Act of 1830 relocated several Native American tribes.
“Thousands died as they were
forced from their homes and
marched across the country in a brutal series of events that came to be
known as The Trail of Tears,” The
Christian Science Monitor reported.
Advocates, including President
Obama, say replacing Jackson’s
portrait with a woman’s signals a
significant step forward for women.
“Last week, a young girl wrote
to me to ask why aren’t there any
women on our currency,” President
Obama said in a July speech in
Kansas City, according to the Washington Post. “And then she gave me
a long list of possible women to put
on our dollar bills and quarters and
stuff – which I thought was a pretty
good idea.”
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D) of New
Hampshire, who has introduced a
bill asking the Treasury Department
to consider the issue of putting a
woman’s face on American currency, has been a major advocate
of the campaign.
“I think there are, going back to
the revolution, lots of women
whose contributions have been significant and have not gotten the
same kind of attention,” Senator
Shaheen told the Washington Post.
Even TV talk show host Ellen
DeGeneres has weighed in, saying
“It’s about darn time.”
But the campaign has sparked a
vigorous counter-campaign, with
petitions to keep Andrew Jackson
on the currency, editorials defending Jackson’s contribution to history and his place on the bill, even
opposition from black news and
culture site The Root.
“Specifically, there is something
both distasteful and ironic about
putting a black woman’s face on the
most frequently counterfeited and
most commonly traded dollar bill
in this country,” writes Savali for
The Root. “Haven’t we been
commodified and trafficked
enough? Slapping a black female
face, one of our radical icons, on a
$20 bill as if it’s some attainment
of the American dream would be
adding insult to injury.”
She pointed out that AfricanAmerican women earn on average
64 cents for every dollar paid to
(Continued from Page 6)
contemplate the several dozen top
editors and reporters who were let
go in what was doubtless a bid to
improve the bottom line and facilitate the recent sale of the entire
newspaper chain to another soulless
chain.
There is not a day goes by that I
don’t think about those people
whose lives were upended without
the courtesy of an explanation. A
few familiar bylines remain, but not
many. Some have landed on their
feet, others on hard times. To the
bosses they were just nameless,
faceless pieces on the game board.
I miss them and the hustle of daily
journalism and being an integral
part of the community.
When I now look out from that
parking garage, it is just a city of
meandering people trying to do
their jobs and live their lives with
dignity, never knowing when or
why the wrecking ball will fall.
Mitchell
white, non-Hispanic men and that
nearly half of all single AfricanAmerican women have zero or
negative wealth, and their median
wealth is $100 – compared with just
over $41,000 for single white
American women.
Putting Harriet Tubman on a $20
bill doesn’t solve anything, Savali
argued.
But Women On 20s Executive
Director Susan Ades Stone told the
Washington Post the move would
elevate a notable African-American
woman’s achievements.
“Our paper bills are like pocket
monuments to great figures in our
history.”
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Page 8 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
From The Desk
(Continued from Page 1)
It would be safe to say that the
corruption in Clark County, if not
in the entire state of Nevada, is so
touched by and entrenched in the
ensuing rot that it encompasses every avenue of our daily lives one
way or another. One example is that
of officers not responding to minor
traffic accidents — the lawyers love
that one; it makes them more
money.
But getting back to the Feds having to investigate and prosecute the
HOA thieves: if you recall, even the
Nevada U.S. Attorney’s Office was
stripped of its responsibility to honorably investigate and prosecute
this case because of allegations of
misconduct. The Justice Department in Washington D.C. had to
take over to allegedly properly investigate and prosecute this case.
How embarrassing is that? It seems
that whatever touches the State of
Nevada becomes instantly tainted,
corrupted and stinks to high heaven.
Thirty-eight people responsible
for this massive HOA fraud? The
numbers just don’t add up. It would
seem that the true number should
be around 100 or more. I understand
the concept of needing to plea-bargain with crooks in order to get to
the upper crust, as it were, but I just
don’t see any former Sheriffs, Assistant Sheriffs, Deputy Chiefs, District Attorneys, Assemblymen,
Judges, Lawyers, County Commissioners, or City Counsel Members
on the list. Hopefully, when they
publish the entire list of thieves for
all to see, some of those names will
appear out of the shadows, all in an
effort to be more transparent
(laugh).
For those who believe justice in
this case has been fully met, let me
throw in another wrinkle for all to
ponder: The 2006 submitted, but
still unaddressed, complaint to the
Washoe County District Court
whereby then-Attorney General
Brian Sandoval, now Governor
Brian Sandoval, and then-Governor
Kenny Guinn, both conspired with
others to illegally transfer ONE
BILLION DOLLARS of Nevada
taxpayer monies into the private
bank accounts of Employees Insurance Company of Nevada
(EICON). The complaint was submitted by Deputy Attorney General
David Otto, Esq, against EICON,
and was never addressed by the
Washoe County District Court. It
appears that the Feds in Washington once again need to intervene
and properly address this complaint
because obviously the State of Nevada will not and cannot handle
such a massive criminal fraud because they are all involved. (See
Internet, Google, pdf, EICON, disclosure statement by Attorney
David Otto, Esq.)
I might add that the 2007 still
unsolved murder of LVMPD Officer Kevin Scott Dailey, whereby
the LVMPD, Henderson P.D., and
Clark County Coroner’s Office
have all concurred that this death is
to be ruled “Undetermined,” are all
allegedly complicit in the commission and cover-up of this grisly beheading murder, which is more than
likely associated with the HOA
Scandal in its entirety. I do hope that
certain members of the Russian
Mafia are also named in this “38person” sentencing for the HOA
Scandal, as they should be.
I personally don’t see the entrenched corruption in our community disappearing any time soon, but
I do believe that chipping away the
phony facade now and again will
slow the infection down a bit, so
that we can all live better lives.
Remember to keep the faith, keep
your gun, and they can keep the
change.
IN GOD WE TRUST
*****
Gordon Martines is a former
LVMPD detective who has served
in many capacities over his 39-year
career in law enforcement. He was
a candidate for sheriff in 2002,
2006, 2010 and 2014, with the intention of bringing integrity and accountability back to the department,
and filed a federal lawsuit against
LVMPD in 2011. Martines has appeared on “Face The Tribune” radio show several times and is currently the host of “Open Mic” on
Tuesdays and Thursday at 11:00
a.m. He contributes his opinions
and ideas to the Las Vegas Tribune
to keep the public informed and
help improve policing in Las Vegas.
RadioTribune Lineup
Open Mic
Every Tuesday and Thursday at 11:00 a.m., Gordon Martines hosts
“Open Mic,” a popular RadioTribune.com show. The Anti-Corruption
Coalition of Nevada is the basis for and theme of “Open Mic.”
Gordon Martines was a career police officer with 39 years of on-thejob Law Enforcement experience. Past cases involving Kevin Daley,
Trayvon Cole and a variety of other covered-up criminal cases, and a
billion dollars worth of missing taxpayer money, are discussed in depth
and at length on the show.
Martines spent four years as police officer with the Hermosa Beach
Police Department before moving here and resuming his police career in
Las Vegas as a Detective in the Robbery/Homicide Bureau, retiring from
the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department after 36 years of police
service.
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decision to contest the good ol’ boy’s club and run for Clark County Sheriff three times against what he knew were almost insurmountable odds.
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EDITORIALS
May 13-19, 2015 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / Page 9
A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have. — Thomas Jefferson
Our Point of View
What’s behind the
Blue Ribbon Panel?
The month of May saw the establishment of the Clark
County Blue Ribbon Panel Commission on Guardianships
in Nevada. The Commission was formed upon testimony
from Clark County District Courts’ Chief Judge David
Barker to the Clark County Commissioners.
The Las Vegas Tribune reported the panel is the precursor to numerous lawsuits against the State of Nevada
and Clark County. Chief Judge Barker knows of these
lawsuits in his capacity as overseer of Eighth Judicial
District Courts Divisional monthly meetings. The three
divisional monthly meetings take place with the Eighth
Judicial Criminal, Civil and Family Divisions.
Chief Judge David Barker Administrative Duties
Over the Criminal, Civil and Family Divisions
When elected chief judge by his peers, David Barker
became overseer of court administrative duties. In this
capacity, Chief Judge Barker hears reports of court errors in each division of the Eighth Judicial District. Chief
Judge Barker is responsible for reporting to the Nevada
Supreme Court the court’s errors and how he addresses
the errors. Chief Judge Barker has discretion as overseer
of the Court Administrator as to how to address these
court errors.
Each of the divisional meetings have written agendas.
The Court Administrator is responsible for placing the
court’s errors on the agenda. The divisional meetings result in meeting minutes. The meetings are not open to
the public; however, the meetings’ minutes are court-ordered released and continue to be withheld by Clark
County District Attorney Wolfson.
DA Wolfson withholds the quantified errors reported
by Eighth Judicial District Court Administrator Steve
Grierson. The last public report of errors stated 3 percent
of court filings contain errors. One must remember that
Court Administrator Grierson reports errors made by him
and his staff.
This reporting cannot be relied upon because the report is not generated by an independent audit.
Additional Administrative Duties
of Chief Judge David Barker
In his capacity as Chief Judge, David Barker oversees
the duties of the appointed presiding judges of each division and the court administrator. Court Administrator
(over all three divisions), Steve Grierson, is required by
the United States Department of Justice to quantify and
report court errors. The former Family Division administrator, Brandi Wardel, testified on the witness stand the
errors are “numerous.”
Litigants in cases containing court errors have sought
remedy. However, the Nevada Supreme Court upheld
Mack-Manley v. Manley and sent the erring court orders
to re-hear cases. Family Division Presiding Judges have
chosen not to deviate from their original decisions.
Litigants then moved to another division within the
Eighth Judicial District. Still receiving no remedy, the
litigants are moving to new venues. The Tribune is tracking these cases which are moved to functioning, transparent judiciaries.
Chief Judge Barker Oversees Family Division
Presiding Judge Charles “Chuck” Hoskin
Family Division Presiding Judge Charles Hoskin oversees guardianship lawsuits. These include lawsuits against
protected citizens — minors and elders. One need only
read social media (i.e. blogs) to learn of the errors of Judge
Hoskin. A review of Judge Hoskin’s history might explain his errant discretion in guardianship cases.
Attorney Charles Hoskin teamed with attorney Robert
Graham running a family law business. Their secretary
was named Teri. After dissolution of the law firm, attorney Robert Graham reported his former law partner,
“Chuck” Hoskin, left his wife and three children, one a
baby, for his secretary, Teri. The two formed a new law
firm. Mrs. Teri Hoskin was now the office manager. When
$1,000 went missing from the newly-formed law firm,
Teri Hoskin filed an affidavit in court contradicting a receipt signed by the law firm’s employee that the law firm
received the $1,000.
The troubles afflicting attorney Hoskin’s firm continued when he staffed an employee named McLaughlin.
The Nevada Supreme Court case of McLaughlin v. Primmer resulted in the fact finding by the Nevada Supreme
Court that procedural errors occur in the Eighth Judicial
District Court Family Division. Presiding Judge Hoskin
is now overseeing cases in his administrative capacity in
which he was a part of the problem as attorney Hoskin.
Transparency and truthfulness by Chief Judge David
Barker will be key in plaintiffs’ proceedings against Clark
County and State of Nevada in their new venues.
Lawmakers should leave Nevada’s
strong anti-SLAPP law alone
By Thomas Mitchell
as Nevada’s.
When your only tool is a hammer,
Langberg made a point of noting
every problem is a nail.
that the Nevada Constitution guarWith lawyers, the solution to evantees freedom of speech but also
ery problem is a lawsuit.
says people are responsible for the
A bill to drastically alter Nevada’s
abuse of that right.
strong anti-SLAPP law (Strategic
Article 1, Section 9 says: “Every
Lawsuit Against Public Participation)
citizen may freely speak, write and
breezed through the state Senate,
publish his sentiments on all subjects
where never was heard a disparagbeing responsible for the abuse of
ing word. The only testimony in the
that right; and no law shall be passed
Senate Judiciary Committee was
to restrain or abridge the liberty of
from a California attorney who
speech or of the press. In all crimihelped draft the bill on behalf of
nal prosecutions and civil actions for
THOMAS MITCHELL
Wynn Resorts, whose owner over the
libels, the truth may be given in eviyears has filed a few defamation suits against those dence to the Jury; and if it shall appear to the Jury that
who commented about him in a manner he did not the matter charged as libelous is true and was published
like.
with good motives and for justifiable ends, the party
The Assembly recently heard nearly three hours of shall be acquitted or exonerated.”
testimony for and against Senate Bill 444.
Truth is a defense, but SB444 deletes a section of
California attorney Mitchell Langberg and Senate the current law that declares immune from litigation a
Judiciary Chair Greg Brower said the bill restores communication “which is truthful or is made without
balance to the state anti-SLAPP law because a 2013 knowledge of its falsehood.”
revision went too far in favor of defendants. They arBoth Trevor Hayes, a former newspaper business
gued that those who have been defamed now face too writer and now an attorney representing the Nevada
great a burden to prove their case. Under the current Press Association, and John L. Smith, a longtime Las
law a plaintiff must show clear and convincing evi- Vegas columnist and biographer, both testified the prodence of their claims. SB444 lowers the standard of posed change to the anti-SLAPP law could have a chillproof to prima facia evidence and repeals a provision ing effect on reporting and commentary across all methat awards $10,000 to successful defendants.
dia. Hayes noted that newspapers today are far less
Langberg at one point seemed to imply that the only profitable and a major consideration before publishrecourse for a person who had been falsely accused ing a story would be whether it could cost the paper
— in an Internet business review for example — was hundreds of thousands of dollars in litigation.
vindication by a jury. Can’t people effectively counter
Before Nevada passed its anti-SLAPP law that
false speech with truthful speech?
awards court costs and attorney fees to successful deLangberg recently had a defamation case brought fendants, Smith and his publisher were sued over an
by Steve Wynn in California dismissed because of advertisement for a book about Wynn. The Nevada
(See Mitchell, Page 12)
that state’s anti-SLAPP law, which is not as strong
ON A PERSONAL NOTE
Forgiveness: The antidote to
a whole mess of problems
By Maramis
tightly to their back, pulling on their
Not that we need a special month,
shoulders, and making it impossible
week or day in order for us to examto feel the lightness and freedom that
ine Forgiveness, but if we can have
comes with letting it all go and reMuseum Day, Coeliac Awareness
placing it with the genuine feelings
Week and Hamburger Month, we
of brotherly — if not familial —
can certainly have a period of time
love!
in which to reflect on the concept of
Forgiveness is a funny thing:
forgiveness.
when we give it to another, we are
Maybe, in order to keep it manactually giving it to ourselves. Unageable and make it seem even more
like actual tangible gifts — with or
significant by its brevity, we can
without the wrapping paper — forhave a Forgiveness Hour, or even a
giveness cannot be given back or reMARAMIS CHOUFANI
Forgiveness Minute. Knowing it is
fused because it is not in that realm;
coming (I’d be happy to remind people who can then it is in the realm of love, and no one can stop our love
remind other people, and so on), people can collect from “breaking through” any amount of rejection, since
their thoughts in that direction and start listing the it is rejection-proof. Forgiveness is in a world of its
people in their life against whom they may have some own, and is under our own control (so to speak), since
if we choose to forgive, that heavy burden is taken
grudge or towards whom they carry some ill will.
It was brought to my attention this past week that right off our own heart.
We’ve heard that love has to be a two-way street,
there are some people unknowingly carrying around
the heavy burden of ill will towards others from even and so it is assumed, I assume, that people think anytwenty or more years ago and they might not ever thing originating with one person (love or forgiveness)
know it until or unless it comes to light in some ordi- has to be accepted by the other person for it to have
validity, meaning, or life. Based on that premise, if
nary or unexpected way!
I was having a conversation with this very intelli- someone loves you and you don’t love them back,
gent and articulate woman the other day, and when apparently there is no love going on. And, accordingly,
the subject somehow got around to Christmas gifts, if you forgive someone for something they did and
all the old feelings she’s been carrying around all these they reject your forgiveness, there can then be no foryears — regarding the fact that her particular gifts to giveness taking place.
Wrong!
someone in her family were not only not liked, but
No “love” is ever wasted, whether accepted and
actually rejected — came to the forefront of her mind
and her emotions. She could hardly tell me about how reciprocated or not, because the act of loving is good
horrible it made her feel to be so rejected — since the for the lover. In that same way, forgiveness is never
rejecting of her gifts seemed to be the rejecting of her, wasted, even if rejected, since the act of forgiving enas well. She to this day believes that person hated her riches the forgiver, and lightens the heart as it removes
(or strongly disliked her then and probably still does), the burden of carrying around that ill will toward another.
and used that as her way of showing it.
How many times have any of us been having a conShe spoke to me about it with extreme emotion,
and realized that all the old original bad feelings she versation with someone when all of a sudden a name
felt then — about 28 years ago — were still weighing from the past pops up, or a situation comes back to
heavily on her shoulders and mind in the present day. mind (as happened with that woman mentioned above)
After we spoke, I just knew that she was not the and all the unhappy, bitter, or even hateful feelings
only person who didn’t even know they had that old, attached to that person or situation come flooding right
(See Maramis, Page 13)
ugly, useless, and extremely heavy burden strapped
VIEW POINTS
Page 10 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
Editors note: The views expressed are entirely those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Las Vegas Tribune.
Time for Nevada to join the rest
of the world and legalize Uber
regulations on the private
By Chuck Muth
affairs of a private memA very successful rebership club – let alone
tired businessman and
socking those members
former high-ranking govwith a new tax to pay for
ernment official in the
the construction of a new
Bush administration sent
medical school at UNLV!
an email to some friends
Are these people inon Sunday letting us know
sane?
he was in Singapore using
We haven’t seen extorUber — the worldwide
tion such as this since the
ride-sharing membership
mob was run out of town
club.
by corporate bean
“Yet I couldn’t use it in
CHUCK MUTH
counters on the Strip.
Reno to get to the airport
to fly here. Or in Las Vegas last week inBut back to that list.
stead of renting a car.”
If Uber is good enough to operate in
One of this gentlemen’s friends replied these places...
to the email...
North America
“And I am in London using it now, havAkron, Albuquerque, Amarillo, Ann Aring traveled from the apartment to San Fran- bor, Asheville NC, Athens, Atlanta, Auburn
cisco airport using Uber as well.”
AL, Augusta, Austin, Bakersfield, BaltiIndeed, the author of the original email more, Baton Rouge, Bloomington-Normal,
linked to a global list of where Uber’s ser- Boise, Boston, Broward and Palm Beach,
vice is available.
Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Central Atlan“Look at this list of U.S. cities and coun- tic Coast FL, Champaign, Charleston SC,
tries around the globe where Uber operates Charlotte, Charlottesville VA, Chattanooga,
and tell me Las Vegas is not setting itself Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, College
up to be regarded as third world.”
Station, Columbia MO, Columbia SC, CoIndeed!
lumbus, Connecticut, Corpus Christi, DalAs the Nevada Legislature continues to las, Dayton, Denver, Des Moines, Detroit,
botch what should be the simple task of sim- Edmonton, El Paso, Erie, Fayetteville AR,
ply declaring that – contrary to a highly- Fayetteville NC, Flagstaff, Flint, Florida
suspect judicial opinion of one court- Keys, Fort Myers-Naples, Fort Wayne,
shopped judge in Reno – it is legal in a pri- Fresno, Gainesville, Grand Rapids, Greater
vate transaction for one consenting adult to Maryland, Green Bay, Greenville SC,
provide a ride to the grocery store to an- Guadalajara, Halifax, Hampton Roads,
other consenting adult at a mutually agreed Hamptons, Harrisburg, Honolulu, Houston,
upon fee.
Indianapolis, Inland Empire, Jackson, JackIn addition, that declaration of legality sonville, Kalamazoo, Kansas City, Knoxneed not include imposing ridiculous, un- ville, Lafayette LA, Lancaster PA, Lansing,
necessary and unwarranted government
(See Chuck Muth, Page 13)
BEHIND THE MIKE
Is the Mike On?
By Michael A. Aun
call him Jim Shorts.
My daughter-in-law
One of the little girls
Jessica Aun is a doctor in
who used to babysit my
the same Emergency Room
twin sons when they were
as my son Christopher,
growing up was named
prompting people to sing
Candy. I ran across a Dr.
the popular lyrics to the
Apple. Her first name
tune “On and On as Aun
was Kandi!
and Aun...”
And if your name is
Of all the professions,
Lance Boyle or Lily
the medical business seems
Ponde, you have to find
to be populated the most
a way to change somewith unusual names that
thing.
raise an eyebrow or cause
One of my good
MICHAEL A. AUN
a chuckle.
friends in the speaking
Years ago, I recall getting a physical profession is Lisa Ford, CSP, CPAE
from Dr. Hirt. I always chuckled at the name Speaker Hall of Fame. I never gave much
and embarked on a lifelong journey of col- thought to it until I ran across a doctor
lecting funny doctor’s names. And lo and named Lisa Honda, MD. Really?
behold, they’re everywhere.
That’s almost as bad as Luke Warm or
When you’re in the insurance business, the dentist named Les Plak or good ole Dr.
one of the common questions on every life Stitch. And why would Dr. Richard Head
insurance form is the full name and address allow the nickname of “Dick”? How would
of the client’s doctor.
you like to be named Dr. Harry Beaver?
One client in south Florida went to the
I was once on a program with Dr. Rocco
medical firm of Conda and Plummer, PA., Bottums, who went by the nickname Rock.
Anna Conda and Anita Plummer. You can’t That’s as bad as being named Seth Poole
make this stuff up folks!
and pronouncing it with a lisp. And if your
And then there’s Dr. Charles Munk, who last name is Butts, why in the world would
actually uses the nickname “Chip.” I can’t you name your son Harry? And if your last
even believe he didn’t do that on purpose. name is Pepper, really, why would you purWhat’s he thinking?
sue medicine?
One of my own doctors I visit for a quarThe co-author one of my nine books
terly shot is Dr. Hatue (pronounced hate). “The Toastmasters International Guide to
He tells me he once had a partner named Successful Speaking” is Jeff Slutsky. You
Jennifer Love, MD. You can guess the name can imagine the jokes he hears surroundof their medical practice. It’s not as bad as ing that name.
the urologist named Dr. Richard Head. FigAn attorney friend of mine in South
ure it out.
Carolina was John Cheatham. I used to jokMy own doctor growing up in the town ingly call him part of the law firm of
of Lexington, SC was J.S. Liverman. No, I Hookem, Crookem and Cheatham.
didn’t go to him for liver problems. He acThere’s a race car driver in Formula One
tually delivered me into this world along named Will Power. That’s a great racing
with most of my ten brothers and sisters.
name. There’s a NASCAR driver now reOne insurance client went to Dr. Croak. tired by the name of Dick Trickle. Don’t
Another went to Dr. Slaughter. I admit, I’m go there Mike.
sure I would have considered changing
My wife actually once had a doctor by
those names as well as Dr. Payne.
the name of Dr. Weiner. The good news was
Some of my best friends growing up his first name wasn’t Harry. Could be
were the Looney boys. I never gave their worse, I suppose.
name much thought until I came across a
One of my clients went to an OBGYN
psychiatrist named Dr. Looney. I couldn’t named Dr. Wiwi. The actual name of a
stop laughing and then I met another shrink noted urologist in St. Petersburg, FL is Dr.
by the name of Dr. Nutt.
Cockburn.
I recently had hand surgery thanks to
When your name is Michael Aun, you
getting rear-ended in an auto accident. I really don’t have much room to make fun
couldn’t stop laughing when the anesthesi- of other people with odd monikers. If I’ve
ologist came over and introduced herself heard it once, I’ve heard it a thousand
as Dr. Good. Her first initial on her badge times... “Is the mike on?”
was the letter “F” which prompted me to
Michael Aun is a syndicated columnist
nickname her Dr. Feelgood!
and writes a weekly column for this newsAnd then there is the doctor in Utah paper. To contact Michael Aun, email him
named James Shorts. You guessed it, they at maun@lasvegastribune.com.
N.S.A. Phone Data Collection Is
Illegal, Appeals Court Rules
By Mace Yampolsky
tucky, the majority leader.
As reported in the NY
Mr. McConnell has resoTimes, a federal appeals
lutely pressed to maintain
court in New York on
the N.S.A.’s existing proThursday, May 7, 2015
gram against bipartisan
ruled that the once-secret
pressure to scale it back,
National Security Agency
and has proposed simply
program that is systematiextending the statute. But
cally collecting Amerithe court’s ruling calls into
cans’ phone records in
question whether that statbulk is illegal. The deciute can still be used to ission comes as a fight in
sue fresh orders to phone
Congress is intensifying
companies requiring them
MACE YAMPOLSKY
over whether to end and
to turn over their customreplace the program, or to extend it with- ers’ records.
out changes.
Thursday’s ruling is the first time a
In a 97-page ruling, a three-judge panel higher-level court in the regular judicial
for the United States Court of Appeals for system has reviewed the N.S.A. phone
the Second Circuit held that a provision of records program. It did not come with any
the U.S.A. Patriot Act, known as Section injunction ordering the program to cease,
215, cannot be legitimately interpreted to and it is not clear that anything else will
allow the bulk collection of domestic call- happen in the judicial system before Coning records.
gress has to make a decision about the exThe ruling was certain to increase the piring law.
tension that has been building in Congress
The data collection had repeatedly been
as the provision of the act that has been cited approved in secret by judges serving on the
to justify the bulk data collection program Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court,
nears a June 1 expiration. It also comes known as the FISA court, which oversees
amid a global uptick in controversy over national security surveillance. Those
electronic surveillance, including a push in judges, who hear arguments only from the
France to increase domestic spying and a government, were willing to accept an indecision by Germany to reduce coopera- terpretation of Section 215 that the appeals
tion on surveillance with the United States. court rejected on Thursday.
The ruling ratchets up pressure on SenaThe court, in a unanimous ruling writtor Mitch McConnell, Republican of Ken(See Mace, Page 12)
Why Do The Good
Ones Leave?
By Doug Dickerson
clear vision for the future
If your actions inspire
there is no future to be
others to dream more, learn
had by staying.
more, do more and become
The good ones
more, you are a leader. —
leave because of
John Quincy Adams
leaders with no skin
How is the organizain the game
tional culture where you
It will be hard to comwork? How is morale? Demand the respect of your
pending on the day and
people if you have no
when asked, the answers
skin in the game as it recan run the gambit of relates to your organization
sponses and emotions.
and its mission. You can’t
A document was discovexpect a buy-in from your
ered in the ruins of a LonDOUG DICKERSON
people if you are not fully
don office building. It was dated 1852. Here invested yourself. The good ones seek to
are a few of the notices that were posted be with leaders who are as passionately infor a group of employees: 1) This firm has vested as they are.
reduced the hours of work, and clerical staff
The good ones leave because
will only have to be present between the
of leaders who place limits
hours of 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. weekdays, 2)
on their potential
Now that the hours of business have been
The good ones will thrive in a culture
drastically reduced, the partaking of food of excellence where their hard work and
is allowed between 11:30 and noon, but talents are put to best use. The good ones
work will not on any account cease, 3) No will not sit idly by while the leader plays
talking is allowed during business hours, politics or favorites and be denied the opand 4) The craving for tobacco, wine, or portunity to advance professionally.
spirits is a human weakness, and as such is
The good ones leave because of
forbidden to all members of the clerical
leaders with no accountability
staff.
The good ones fundamentally underWould you like to reconsider your an- stand that accountability and transparency
swer about morale in your organization are the cornerstones of success. When a
now?
leader no longer feels the need to be transHere’s what we do know from polling parent or be accountable for his or her acand surveys, like this one from Gallup that tions, then the good ones will not stay. Trust
reports employees are just not as engaged is like glue for the leader, is there is none,
as they once were.
people won’t stick.
It’s been said that people don’t quit orThe good ones leave because of
ganizations, they quit leaders. It’s a sad but
leaders with no boundaries
true commentary on the lack of leadership
Ultimately, the leader is responsible for
skills that are so desperately needed in the the culture of the organization. If proper
workplace.
boundaries are not being observed and inThere are consequences to poor leader- appropriate behaviors are being tolerated
ship and where it’s not present, people will — such as bullying, then the good ones will
leave to find it. Inevitably it’s the good not stay in that environment.
employees who leave. Left behind is a
The good ones leave because of
weakened and demoralized team forced to
leaders with no integrity
pick up the pieces.
At the end of the day it all comes down
But why do the good ones leave? What to the integrity of the leader. The good ones
is the tipping point in which a good em- want their leader to be a person of integployee will cash in the chips and bolt? The rity and one they can trust. If integrity is
specifics vary, of course, but typically the lacking in the leader then integrity will be
good ones leave for these reasons.
lacking in the culture. The good ones will
The good ones leave because of
leave to avoid the connection.
leaders with no backbone
Many personal factors contribute to the
This type of leader plays to the crowd reasons why the good ones tend to leave
and will say whatever he or she thinks you and move on. I’ve discovered that it’s not
want to hear. The good ones had rather hear always for the money or a promotion. The
the uncomfortable truth than the pleasant good ones understand the wisdom of the
sounds of an appeaser. The good ones want words of John Maxwell who once said,
a leader who is not afraid to make the diffi- “Everything rises and falls on leadership.”
cult decisions.
That’s why the good ones leave — to be
The good ones leave because of
with good leaders.
leaders with no vision
What do you say?
The good ones long for and thrive in an
Doug Dickerson is a syndicated columenvironment where the leader has a vision nist. He writes a weekly column for this
for the future, can articulate it, and sets a newspaper. To contact Doug Dickerson,
course of action that will take them there. email
him
at
ddickerson@
The good ones understand that without a lasvegastribune.com.
COMMENTARIES
May 13-19, 2015 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / Page 11
Editors note: The views expressed are entirely those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Las Vegas Tribune.
De-policing: Just Plain Dumb?
By Norman Jahn
Individual police officers are
starting to face more serious consequences for their actions — perhaps more than at any time in the
history of policing. This is due, in
part, to the availability of video
from in-car cameras and body cameras. This is also due to citizens
having cameras or cell phones to
capture a version of the events and
share it through social media. Video
delivered to Internal Affairs or the
local news makes it a little more
difficult to ‘tamp down’ the story.
Police agencies (and those individual officers) don’t much like this
increased scrutiny and are getting
defensive. Too many are in serious
DENIAL. Instead of correcting
problems (this includes firing officers at times) agencies and associations and individuals now want
sympathy. Of course, they deserve
sympathy and support after officers are killed, but also scrutiny after major incidents and an analysis
of how they could possibly have
been avoided.
Few agencies have publicly acknowledged their screw-ups (as if
officers never screw up) but they
want to deflect and complain about
any focus on legitimate issues. Numerous recent articles address a response by the police known as DEPOLICING. De-policing is when
the police intentionally provide
only minimal services.
Will police across America
‘slow down’ in response to the
charges against officers in Baltimore? Will police across America
stay out of tough neighborhoods
because they are afraid they will get
in trouble? De-policing is a disservice to those who are in most desperate need in the inner city. This
would devastate poor neighborhoods and give criminals and thugs
the green light to do just what they
want to do.
The threat of de-policing (and
any suggestion that this ‘should’
happen so that citizens learn to ‘appreciate’ their police) is disgusting
to me. I also think it is just plain
DUMB!
The public is no longer willing
to ‘defer’ to the police when so
many questionable shootings (fre-
NORMAN JAHN
quently involving unarmed individuals) have occurred across the
country! It is pathetic that there
aren’t even accurate statistics on
officer-involved shootings on a national level. We don’t even know
how many people (armed or unarmed) the police have killed in
large cities, in each state, and nationally!
Several years ago, a NativeAmerican woodcarver was shot and
killed in Seattle. Car video showed
part of the incident and audio captured the entire incident. The young
officer was fired for what his
agency determined was a ‘bad’
shoot. Civil lawsuits are frequently
settled (i.e., paid for by the taxpayers) and it is rare that the ‘shooting’
officer pays a dime out of his
pocket. At least some of these
shootings involve egregious violations of policy, although they may
not be in violation of the law.
I’m afraid that the general public is just ignorant of the concepts
of self-defense and how our justice
system works. A sign with the pictures of the six Baltimore officers
with the words, “Convictions Matter” is an example of ignorance and
bias! Too many people lack even a
basic knowledge of how our system works. A poor education can’t
be blamed on the police. I’m afraid
that immigrants taking ‘citizenship
classes’ are much more informed
about being responsible citizens
than the anarchists.
Seattle was one officer and one
agency, but scrutiny of the incident
was necessary and we better learn
to accept this in the future in cities
across the country. There was depolicing in Seattle, but there were
also opportunities for improvement
of the police department. Cops
pouted about one of their own being held accountable, but it is impossible to ignore some of these
problems! The video is still available on the Internet and so are many
others.
When the police think that they
should be given the benefit of the
doubt in ALL of these shootings (or
in-custody deaths such as in Baltimore) and they can withdraw services, they are damaging their credibility. Has everyone already forgotten the recent ‘accidental’ shooting
by a rookie Asian officer in New
York? He killed a black man in a
stairwell by firing a round that ricocheted and struck the man. Commissioner Bratton explained it,
apologized, and will pay out a fat
check to the family of the dead man.
How many individual officers
across the country spent a moment
discussing this death and consequences of these types of incidents
where the police were responsible?
When I worked the housing
projects in Las Vegas (Gerson ParkSherman Gardens) and supervised
officers as part of the Neighborhood
Police Team, I experienced a sad
reality. There are many decent
people trying to parent children in
these ‘projects’ and inner city areas
such as Baltimore. They have few,
if any, options because they are
trapped in their own homes because
of their economic status. They
watch crime and violence occur
right outside their doors.
If the police decide to ‘back-off’
and crime increases, this is a denial
of equal protection to the people
that are most desperate for protection. How do you try to control (and
set an example for your kids) when
they see drug dealers who are no
longer getting arrested because the
police don’t like what happened in
Baltimore and they have morale
problems? I would argue, C’mon
folks — Police the best you can in
your own community and don’t
worry about what others need to
deal with! Nationwide de-policing
would be a disgrace. It is time to
accept the fact that there are police
problems that need to be fixed and
move forward. Police are not PERFECT!
Too often (and for far too long)
individual officers were protected
and they didn’t get disciplined, they
didn’t get prosecuted, and they
didn’t pay out of their own pockets
for the civil suits. There was a paradigm (if you are a cop) that you
shouldn’t judge another officer’s
actions unless you were there. That
is just idiotic. Everyone is judged
in our system of justice (initial contact by police, decision to arrest,
probable cause review by prosecutors, preliminary hearings, trials,
and sentencing). Decisions are
made every day even though all ‘jurors’ are not on the scene to observe
crimes taking place. They evaluate
the evidence, the testimony, and
apply the law — there is no immunity for police officers BUT
THERE ARE ALSO NO DIMINISHED RIGHTS JUST BECAUSE
YOU ARE A POLICE OFFICER.
Some lessons are about to be
learned in Baltimore! Is the
LVMPD learning anything from all
of this?
Norm Jahn is a former LVMPD
lieutenant, who has also served as
a police chief in Shawano, Wisconsin, and has nearly 25 years of police experience. Jahn now contributes his opinions and ideas to help
improve policing in general, and in
Las Vegas in particular, through his
weekly column in the Las Vegas
Tribune.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
National Dog Bite Prevention Week
In light of National Dog Bite Prevention Week (May 17-23), here are
some ways that each of us can help protect ourselves and our loved ones
from being bitten.
Have your dog spayed or neutered. It reduces aggression and territoriality that can lead to biting — unaltered dogs are three times more likely
to bite. Let dogs live indoors and treat them as family members. Chained
dogs are nearly three times more likely to attack, because they are often
unsocialized and they have no way to retreat from people who encroach
on their tiny patch of dirt. Children are often their victims.
Always supervise animals and children when they are together. Both
can be unpredictable, and even the most docile dog may bite if a child
pulls the animal’s tail or startles a sleeping dog. And always report known
or suspected cruelty to animals immediately. Dogfighters and people who
use dogs as “guard dogs” often beat, starve, and taunt them to make them
aggressive and more likely to attack.
For more ways to have a happy, healthy, friendly dog, visit
www.PETA.org.
Lindsay Pollard-Post, The PETA Foundation
lasvegasprintingcenter@gmail.com
Page 12 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
Mitchell
(Continued from Page 9)
Supreme Court eventually dismissed the suit, but not before the
publisher went bankrupt. Smith was
denied any costs and attorney fees.
Attorney Marc Randazza, who
helped draft the current law, said he
would have no problem acting as
an attorney for a person who believes he or she has been defamed,
despite Nevada’s strong antiSLAPP law, because he does his
homework and makes sure he has
the evidence.
“Frankly, I do get calls, frequently, from people who ask me,
‘Won’t you just file it? I know we
don’t have much chance of winning, but we’ll drag these guys into
discovery and they don’t want
that,’” Randazza said. “When that
happens I do hear the cash register
ringing in my ears. And I think I
could keep this case going for 18
months or so. I don’t use my law
license that way. I won’t do it, because I believe in freedom of expression and I don’t believe in bullying people with lawsuits designed
to suppress their First Amendment
rights.”
The Assembly should bury this
misbegotten and mischievous attempt to weaken Nevada’s law on
free speech.
*****
Thomas Mitchell is a former
newspaper editor who now writes
conservative/libertarian columns
for weekly papers in Nevada.
(Continued from Page 10)
ten by Judge Gerard E. Lynch, held
that Section 215 “cannot bear the
weight the government asks us to
assign to it, and that it does not authorize the telephone metadata program.” It declared the program illegal, saying, “We do so comfortably in the full understanding that
if Congress chooses to authorize
such a far-reaching and unprecedented program, it has every opportunity to do so, and to do so unambiguously.”
The House appears ready to pass
a bill next week that would end the
government’s bulk collection of
phone records. That bill, known as
the U.S.A. Freedom Act, would replace it with a new program that
would preserve the N.S.A.’s ability to analyze links between callers
to hunt for terrorists, but keep the
bulk records in the hands of phone
companies, which would be free to
dispose of them after 18 months.
The N.S.A. keeps them for five
years.
But the appeals court ruling
raises the question of whether Section 215, extended or not, has ever
legitimately authorized the program. The statute on its face permits only the collection of records
deemed “relevant” to a national security case. The government secretly decided, with the FISA
court’s secret approval, that this
could be interpreted to mean collection of all records, so long as
only those that later turn out to be
relevant are scrutinized by analysts.
However, Judge Lynch wrote:
“Such expansive development of
government repositories of formerly private records would be an
unprecedented contraction of the
privacy expectations of all Americans. Perhaps such a contraction is
required by national security needs
in the face of the dangers of contemporary domestic and international terrorism. But we would expect such a momentous decision to
be preceded by substantial debate,
and expressed in unmistakable language.”
Judge Lynch was appointed by
President Obama. He was joined in
the decision by Judge Robert D.
Sack, a Clinton appointee, and
Judge Vernon S. Broderick, another
Obama appointee. Judge Broderick
usually hears Federal District Court
cases but was sitting on the appeals
court for this case as a visiting
judge.
The appeals court sent the matter back to a Federal District Court
judge to decide what to do next. The
government could also appeal the
ruling to the full appeals court, or
to the Supreme Court. Parallel cases
are pending before two other appeals courts that have not yet ruled.
Alexander Abdo, who argued
the case for the American Civil Liberties Union, praised the ruling as
a “victory for the rule of law that
should spur Congress into action.”
Several lawmakers who helped
draft the U.S.A. Freedom Act seized
on it as justification for enacting
their bill. Among them, Senators
Patrick J. Leahy, Democrat of Vermont, and Mike Lee, Republican of
Utah, said in a joint statement:
“Congress should not reauthorize a
bulk collection program that the
court has found to violate the law.
We will not consent to any extension of this program.”
Mr. McConnell and another supporter of the existing program,
Senator Richard M. Burr of North
Carolina, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, took to
the Senate floor on Thursday and
gave no ground. Mr. McConnell
blasted the House bill as “an untested, untried and more cumbersome system” that would neither
“keep us safe or protect our privacy.” I guess he likes Big Brother.
Section 215 helps us find a needle
in the haystack,” he said. “But under the U.S.A. Freedom Act, there
might not be a haystack at all.”
But Senator Charles E. Grassley
of Iowa, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said both sides
now have to come to the table because it was not clear that either
option — the U.S.A. Freedom Act
or extending the existing program
— has the 60-vote support necessary to overcome a filibuster.
Mr. McConnell has the power to
decide which bills get brought up
for a vote. To create more time for
debate, Democrats might permit an
extension of the existing statute for
a month, said a person familiar with
the negotiations who spoke on the
condition of anonymity to discuss
their progress. The Democrats
would do that in exchange for a
promise by Mr. McConnell to allow a vote on the House bill in June.
Still, even if there were votes in
Congress for a short-term extension
of the existing statute, Thursday’s
ruling would create potential political and legal difficulties for keeping the program going in the interim.
To bridge any gap between the
existing program and a new one, the
Obama administration would have
to ask the FISA court to reauthorize the program and a FISA judge
would have to agree to do so, notwithstanding the Second Circuit’s
ruling that Section 215 cannot authorize such an order.
(The FISA court is not directly
subject to the Second Circuit’s authority because it has its own appeals court.)
In a statement, Edward Price, a
spokesman for the National Security Council, said the administration
was still evaluating the ruling but
reiterated that President Obama’s
support for legislation that would
transform the program is in line
with the U.S.A. Freedom Act.
The bulk phone records program
traces back to October 2001. After
the Sept. 11 attacks, President
George W. Bush secretly authorized
the N.S.A. to begin a group of surveillance and data-collection programs, without obeying statutory
limits on government spying, for
the purpose of hunting for hidden
terrorist cells.
Over time, the legal basis for
each component of that program,
known as Stellarwind, evolved. In
2006, the administration persuaded
a FISA court judge to issue an order approving the bulk phone
records component, based on the
idea that Section 215 could be interpreted as authorizing bulk collection.
Many other judges serving on
the FISA court have subsequently
renewed the program at roughly 90day intervals. It came to light in
June 2013 as part of the leaks by
the intelligence contractor Edward
J. Snowden.
The revelation led to a series of
lawsuits challenging the program.
Different district court judges
reached opposing conclusions
about its legality. Thursday’s ruling
did not address the A.C.L.U.’s separate argument that bulk collection
of records about Americans — regardless of the claimed statutory
basis — is unconstitutional.
Also, if the NSA phone program
is illegal, should Edward Snowden
still be subject to arrest after alerting American Citizens to the NSA’s
intrusive tactic and wholesale indiscriminate spying on U.S. citizens?
*****
Mace J. Yampolsky is a Board
Certified Criminal Law Specialist,
625 South Sixth St., Las Vegas, NV
89101; He can be reached at:
Phone 702-385-9777 or fax 702385-300. His website is located at:
www.macelaw.com.
Mace
Maramis
May 13-19, 2015 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / Page 13
(Continued from Page 9)
back along with that memory? If
that’s ever happened, the one feeling those feelings needs to apply
some healing forgiveness to the
open wound. That is really the only
balm that one needs to soothe the
rawness of such resurrected pain.
Usually someone will say something like, “But you don’t know
what so-and-so did! how it not only
hurt me, but ruined my reputation/
finances/marriage/life!” To which I
say, perhaps in my own
“Daisyworld” kind of way, “It’s not
about that person. Forgiveness is
about YOU. Forgiveness may or
may not change the one forgiven —
and may or may not even be “deserved” by the one who may still
be out there hurting others — but it
WILL change you. It will dissolve
the hate or anger or ill will that
you’ve been carrying around all this
time, keeping you chained to that
person or event in some way, which
in essence allows that person or
event to go on hurting you for the
rest of your life, if you let it.
Having been hurt at the time is
enough. It’s over. Let it go. Cut the
chains of attachment to it and free
yourself from that burden, remembering that you are forgiving because it’s a good thing to do for
yourself; and maybe...just
maybe...it can be an impetus for the
so-called offender to start down a
better path — but you needn’t put
any stock in that. That is up to the
one so forgiven. It is actually not
your concern or “job” to see that
there are any changes made on his
or her side of the fence. You simply forgive and move on to loving
that person as we are advised to
love all our neighbors, as ourself.
In short, check yourself out: are
there any persons toward which
you hold hateful, revengeful feelings? Is there anyone that the mere
thought of brings tightness to the
chest, heaviness to the heart, or
malice to the mind? Consider loving yourself more and freeing yourself from such thoughts and feelings by forgiveness. Besides being
a balm for your spirit and soul, it
will confuse the heck out of your
“enemy” or adversary. And heaven
only knows how it will be the very
antidote for a whole mess of problems in your life.
*****
Maramis Choufani is the Managing Editor of the Las Vegas Tribune. She writes a weekly column
in this newspaper. To contact
Maramis,
email
her
at
maramis@lasvegastribune.com.
(Continued from Page 10)
Las Cruces, Lawrence, Lehigh Valley, Lexington, Lincoln, Little
Rock, Los Angeles, Louisville,
Lubbock, Madison, Manhattan,
Maui, Memphis, Mexico City, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis,
Modesto, Monterrey, Montreal,
Myrtle Beach, NW Indiana, Nashville, New Hampshire, New Jersey,
New Jersey (Shore), New Orleans,
New York City, Ocala FL, Oklahoma City. Omaha, Orange County,
Orlando, Ottawa, Oxford, Palm
Springs, Panama City FL,
Pensacola FL, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Piedmont Triad NC, Pittsburgh, Portland, Portland ME,
Providence, Quebec City, RaleighDurham, Reading PA, Richmond,
Roanoke-Blacksburg, Rockford,
Sacramento, Salem, Salt Lake City,
San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Fe, Sarasota, SavannahHilton Head, Seattle, South Bend,
Spokane, Springfield IL, St Louis,
State College, Stillwater, Tacoma,
Tallahassee, Tampa Bay, Tijuana,
Toledo, Topeka, Toronto, Tucson,
Tulsa, Tuscaloosa, Vancouver WA,
Ventura, Waco, Washington D.C.,
Western MA, Wichita, WilkesBarre Scranton, Wilmington NC
and Worcester
Central & South America
Barranquilla, Belo Horizonte,
Bogot·, Brasilia, Cali— Colombia,
Lima, Medellin, Panama, Panama,
Rio de Janeiro, Santiago and Sáo
Paulo
Europe, Middle East & Africa
Abu
Dhabi.
Amman
Amsterdam, Athens—GR, Baku,
Barcelona, Basel, Beirut, Berlin,
Birmingham, Bordeaux, Brussels,
Bucharest, Budapest, Cairo, Cape
Town, Copenhagen, Doha, Dubai,
Dublin, Durban, Dusseldorf. Eastern Province—KSA, Frankfurt,
Gdansk,
Geneva,
Genoa,
Gothenburg, Hamburg, Helsinki,
Istanbul, Jeddah, Johannesburg,
Krakow, Lagos, Lausanne, Leeds,
Lille, Lisbon, London, Lyon,
Madrid, Manama, Manchester,
Milan, Moscow, Munich, Nairobi,
Newcastle, Nice, Oslo, Padua,
Paris, Porto, Prague, Riyadh,
Rome, Rotterdam, Saint Petersburg, Sofia, Stockholm, Tel Aviv,
Toulouse, Turin, Valencia, Vienna,
Warsaw and Zurich.
Asia Pacific
Adelaide,
Ahmedabad,
Auckland, Bali, Bangalore,
Bangkok, Beijing, Brisbane,
Chandigarh, Chengdu, Chennai,
Chongqing, Fukuoka, Geelong,
Gold
Coast,
Guangzhou,
Hangzhou, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh
City, Hong Kong, Hyderabad,
Jaipur, Jakarta, Johor Bahru, Kochi,
Kolkata, Kuala Lumpur, Manila,
Melbourne, Mornington Peninsula,
Mumbai, New Delhi, Penang,
Perth, Pune, Seoul, Shanghai,
Shenzhen, Singapore, Sydney,
Taipei, Tianjin, Tokyo, Wellington
and Wuhan.
...why isn’t it good enough to
operate in Las Vegas, Reno, Carson
City, Elko and Lake Tahoe?
Republicans control both houses
of the Nevada Legislature, as well
as the Governor’s office.
So not a single Democrat vote
is needed to legalize ride-sharing in
Nevada as long as Republicans give
up this non-Republican/anti-free
market notion of regulating the life
out of Uber and others, as well as
the absurd attempt to build a medical school on the backs of ride-sharing customers.
It’s an embarrassment that legislative Republicans haven’t legalized Uber yet.
It’s long past time to “git ‘er
done.”
Just do it already.
Sheesh.
*****
Chuck Muth is president of Citizen Outreach, a non-profit public
policy grassroots advocacy organization. He may be reached by email
at cmuth@lasvegastribune.com.
Chuck Muth
CENEGENICS MEDICAL INSTITUE
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ENTERTAINMENT
Page 14 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
Master Magician Lance Burton with an adaptive bicycle, a special type of tricycle, for a child with autism.
Variety — The Children’s Charity
By Sandy Zimmerman
Las Vegas Tribune
Photos by Variety except the
photo of Ms. Thompson by
Sandy Zimmerman
We discuss the Academy
Awards films, the stars and everything about the event. An important
aspect of the Academy Awards, this
is one of the events responsible for
raising money for Variety — the
Children’s Charity.
Lauri Thompson, Chairman of
the Board for Variety — the
Children’s Hospital of Southern
Nevada, feels, “Oscar Night is for
them.
“Variety — the Children’s Charity of Southern Nevada has been in
Las Vegas for over 60 years helping children with special needs. Las
Vegas Variety was first started by
most of the casino owners in the
1950’s who build three schools. We
have the Variety School, now
known as the Miller School, and the
Variety Early Learning Center.
“As we celebrate the Oscars at
the Academy, we are raising money
for a compassion fund. This is a
wonderful compassion fund, it provides emergency assistance to any
children and their families who
have a special need for a medical
bill or a hotel they need if something happened.
Social workers can see them
immediately and provide assistance.
“The Oscar Night is a big night
but Variety — the Children’s Char-
Lauri Thompson, Chairman of the Board of Variety,
the Children’s Charity, Las Vegas.
ity arranges fundraising events all
year to continue helping the children.
“Variety gives money to provide
for children with special needs. We
try to raise money for the Variety
School for bicycles, games and
other equipment.
“We just gave an adaptive bicycle, a special type of tricycle, for
a child with autism. There is a type
of handle behind it for the parent to
steer and push as well. The child
can actually pedal.
That gets the child active playing and having fun. He can do
things a normal child would do.
“We also brought three swings
from Australia which are wheel
chairs. The wheel chair loads up
into the swing giving the child the
experience of swinging.
“These are new applications for
special needs children. It is all with
the help of the community. We are
supported by the community and
people who come to the Variety
events.”
Variety also provides specially
equipped passenger vans to local
nonprofit organizations for transport of children with physical limitations to and from medical facilities, schools and community enrichment programs.
Variety — The Children’s Charity is an enthusiastic group of business leaders who donate their time,
resources and energy to positively
impact the lives of children in their
own communities and around the
world.
VARIETY Southern Nevada has
served more than 20,000 children
and raised and distributed more
than $7,000,000 in grants and specialized equipment in our community.
For information about Variety
— The Children’s Charity events
during the year, contact Variety of
Southern Nevada, at 3401 Sirius
Ave., Suite 1, Las Vegas. Tel: (702)383-8466;
Email:
admin@varietysn.org; Websites:
http://onalv.org/
and
www.varietysn.org.
*****
Award
winning
Sandy
Zimmerman is a syndicated columnist featuring Show and Dining reviews, travel, health, spas, luxury
and more. Sandy is talk show host
of the Las Vegas Today Show programs and Discover the Ultimate
Vacation travel specials. If you
want to suggest topics for articles,
for information or to ask any questions about Sandy’s articles, call
702-735-5974.
May 13-19, 2015 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / Page 15
Journey with “Open Arms” nineshow residency at Hard Rock Hotel
This Week
in Las Vegas
By Mike Kermani
In honor of JOURNEY’s first-ever, nine-show residency at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Clark
County declared April 29, 2015 as Journey Las Vegas Day. Pictured left to right are: Ross Valory, Jonathan
Cain, Arnel Pineda, Neal Schon and Deen Castronovo.
—Photo credit: Erik Kabik /www.KabikPhotoGroup.com.
By Mike Kermani
Deck is Downtown Las Vegas’ big*****
Las Vegas Tribune
gest pool with more than 35,000
GATEWAY ARTS
Journey performs a nine-show square feet of lounge seating and FOUNDATION & CIRQUE DU
residency at The Joint at Hard Rock cabanas, as well as a walk up bar
SOLEIL SUMMER YOUTH
Hotel & Casino April 29–May 16. and outdoor gaming tables. Situated
MUSICAL WORKSHOP
In honor of Journey’s first-ever, on the rooftop, The Pool Deck inIN LAS VEGAS
nine-show residency at The Joint at cludes an infinity pool and showThe Gateway Arts Foundation
Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Clark cases panoramic views of the city. announced plans for this year’s
County declares today (Wednesday,
The Best Big Pool Package is Summer Youth Multicultural MuApril 29, 2015) as Journey Las Ve- available now through October 1, sical Performance Workshop progas Day. The residency, produced 2015. Restrictions may apply. For duction July 6–31. This year the
exclusively by AEG Live Las Ve- more information or to book your Workshop will be staging a youth
gas, kicks off Wednesday, April 29 summer getaway call 855-384- version of “Into The Woods” by
and continues through Saturday, 5170. or go to website http:// Stephen Sondheim at Baobob
May 16.
www.downtowngrand.com/pack- Square in Town Square in Las VeFor more information visit the ages/the-best-big-pool-package.
gas with a final performance open
websites:
www.axs.com/
*****
to the public on July 31.
journeylasvegas and http://
The Workshop gives local youth
journeymusic.com.
an opportunity to perform in a ma*****
jor musical production while working alongside professional performers. “The great advantage of being
a young musician or actor in Las
Vegas is you can rub shoulders with
some of the best performers in the
world. This year we are pleased to
have artists from the famed Cirque
Du Soleil among our guest instructors,” said Donald J. Leonard, Jr
who is directing the production.
NASHVILLE UNPLUGGED —
Gateway Arts Foundation is now
COUNTRY MUSIC AT
accepting applications from stuSUNSET STATION
dents for this exciting and educaNashville Unplugged will fea- tional workshop experience. Thirty
ture Chris Cavanaugh with guest will be chosen. The cost for particico-host Michael Peterson, Friday pants is $1,000 for the four week
May 15 at 8 p.m., $10 cover at the session. The fee includes costumes,
door.
all instruction, and tickets for two
CHLOE CRAWFORD/
Boarding Pass card members to the final production.
SAWCHUCK APPEARS ON
receive a $5 entry discount Artist
Ages 9 through 17 are eligible,
BRITIAN’S GOT TALENT
Info: Singer/songwriter Aaron
Chloe Crawford aka Chloe Benward, who has written numerSawChuck will be appearing on ous ACM and CMA-nominated
Britain’s Got Talent all in her own songs, as well as the recent hit
right as a MAGICIAN! Yes you “Who I Am,” which was featured
heard that correct... not as an assis- on ABC’s hit television show
tant as she has done with her hus- “Nashville,” and special guest host
band for the last 7 years but she is Travis Howard, whose credits ingoing on, on her own as a performer clude Miranda Lambert’s “Famous
doing her own illusions and from In a Small Town,” “Bring Me
what the press says... did quiet well! Down” and “Heart Like Mine,”
Murray SawChuck her husband present “Nashville Unplugged: The
states, “I am thrilled for my wife as Story Behind the Song.” In addishe has always LOVED Magic and tion to these two talented musicians,
right now there is a huge void for they host well-known songwriters
strong female magicians. I think she to create a fun and unique experiis doing to kick ass!” ence, akin to Nashville’s Bluebird
www.chloelouisecrawford.com
Café.
*****
Chris Cavanaugh picked up the
DOWNTOWN GRAND
guitar when he was 12 years old and
HOTEL INVITES GUESTS TO hasn’t set it down since. Not long
SOAK UP THE SUN WITH
after he started playing, with just a
POOL PACKAGE
few chords and a song, Chris perAs the temperatures rise, Down- formed in the talent show at his
town Grand Las Vegas Hotel & middle school. When the song was
Casino invites guests to roll out over, everybody rose to their feet,
their swim towels with the Best Big and from that point on Chris knew
Pool Package. Rates start at just $44 what he wanted to do for the rest of
and include accommodations, two his life. Chris has opened shows for
complimentary beverages at The a long list of artists, including Josh
Pool Deck daily and a “Grand” Bag Thompson, Chris Young, Jake
filled with summertime goodies and Owen, The Randy Rogers Band and
coupons.
Justin Moore, among others. Must
Open daily at 9 a.m., The Pool be 21 years or older
and they will attend classes Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to
4 p.m. Instructors teach all the essential skills required in musical
theater including dialogue, voice,
performance dance, and limited acrobatics.
Director Donald J. Leonard, Jr
is being joined by choreographer
Wassa Coulibaly and music director John C. Hughes. Leonard and
Hughes also teach in the Clark
County School District.
For information on the workshop and performance call 702255-0695 or 702-369-6649 or visit
http://MORMediaGroup.us10.list*****
TIGER WOODS
FOUNDATION ROCKS
LAS VEGAS WITH NEW
EXPERIENCES
The Tiger Woods Foundation
announced the 17th-annual Tiger
Jam will take its ultimate Vegas
weekend to MGM Grand, May 1516. The two-day charity event
hosted by Tiger Woods entertains
world-class golf, high-stakes poker,
gourmet cuisine and exclusive VIP
experiences in a star-studded weekend benefitting the Tiger Woods
Foundation’s college-access programs.
New to the 2015 event, the Tiger Jam golf outings will be contested at Shadow Creek, a bucket
list course among avid golf fans and
players. Tiger Jam guests, staying
at host site MGM Grand, will take
their skills to the Tom Fazio-design
for two unforgettable rounds and an
exhibition with Tiger Woods.
“Tiger Jam is bringing so much
more to the event model this year,
allowing my guests to personalize
their experiences,” Woods said.
“My foundation is always a great
host to our guests and supporters,
and with moments like the private
concert with Ed Sheeran and golf
at Shadow Creek, it will be a weekend to remember.”
Tiger Jam will kick off Friday,
May 15 when poker legend Phil
Hellmuth teams up with Woods to
host Poker Night presented by the
World Poker Tour at MGM Grand’s
Poker Room. For a $10,000 buyin, participants will join Woods,
Hellmuth and other prestigious
players for an exclusive night. Tournament prizes include unique golf
experiences, Pro-Am playing spots
in premier PGA TOUR events and
other exclusive items.
Prior to Saturday evening’s private concert, guests can participate
in a morning golf outing at Shadow
Creek before attending the VIP reception at MGM Grand. This exclusive pre-concert party will feature gourmet food and spirits as
well as live and silent auctions filled
with luxury items. Following a private performance from Ed Sheeran,
the night will conclude with a postconcert party at Hakkasan Nightclub, new to the Tiger Jam lineup.
A variety of VIP packages are
available for guests to create their
one-of-a-kind Vegas event. Packages include golf, deluxe hospitality, invitations to private parties,
premier tickets to the concert and
seats in the poker tournament, all
leading to an amazing Vegas experience.
For more information on 2015
Tiger Jam opportunities or to attend
the dinner and auction, please call
Jason Andrea at (949) 725-3003 or
jandrea@tigerwoodsfoundation.org.
*****
Mike Kermani is an entertainment writer for the Las Vegas Tribune newspaper. He writes a weekly
column in this newspaper. To contact Mike Kermani, email
mkermani@ lasvegas tribune.com
Page 16 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
M Resort presents ‘Hotel California,’
the original Eagles tribute
By Jerry Fink
Las Vegas Tribune
On Saturday, May 23, Hotel
California, the original Eagles tribute, will take the stage at M Resort’s
2,300-seat M Pavilion, recreating
the remarkable hits of one of the
best-selling bands of all time.
Doors will open at 6 p.m. and
the concert will begin at 7 p.m.
Tickets can be purchased at the M
Resort Box Office, by phone at 800745-3000 or at Ticketmaster.com.
Acclaimed for having a sound
closest to Don Henley, Hotel California has toured the world, sharing the stage with legendary rock
artists including the Doobie Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, REO
Speedwagon, STYX and Gretchen
Wilson.
*****
“KICKIN’ IT” AT RON
DECAR’S EVENT CENTER
‘Kickin It’ is a versatile rhythm
based dance show premiering at
Ron Decar’s Event Center at 7 p.m.
May 23. The Coppola Dance Ensemble will present routines with
varied rhythms in tap: From Latin
to Hula, Burlesque to R&B, ‘Kickin
It’ guarantees something for everyone.
Guest vocalist Chadwick
Johnson will present his singing talents and will serve as emcee for this
very special performance.
LV show producer/writer,
Jeanne Bavaro, has been collaborating and consulting with the show
for the past year and is proud to associate-produce this event. Executive Producer, Drew Vamosi, is a
seasoned Broadway performer,
owner of Leap, national dance competition and an astute business man.
He will be in Las Vegas to celebrate
this exciting presentation. Mr.
Vamosi has been a constant supporter of the show’s creator, Tony
Coppola, for many years.
Coppola has the long-standing
national recognition of a tap dance
virtuoso, and conceived, choreographed, and developed ‘Kickin It’.
He is an All-American gymnast,
master dance teacher and professional percussionist. Tony’s television choreographic credits include
commercials for McDonalds,
Aramis Cologne, and Autolite auto
parts, as well as the Superstars of
Gymnastics for the USA TV network, John Tesh Live at Redrocks
for PBS, The Mystery and Magic
of Nadia Comaneci for ABC TV,
and The World Gold Gymnastics
Tour starring Nadia Comaneci, Bart
Conner, Keri Strug and a cast of
Olympic Gymnasts.
Featured for his solo tap dancing on various TV shows and in Las
Vegas, Coppola can also be seen in
many dance magazines for his authoritative articles on jazz and tap,
and ads promoting Capezio’s
Coppola Tap Shoes, introduced in
1990.
‘Kickin It’, 7 p.m., Saturday,
May 23, Ron Decar’s Event Center, 1201 Las Vegas Blvd. S. For
further information call Jeanne
Bavaro at 702-336-8471 and for
reservations or tickets call, 702384-0772.
*****
BOULDER BLUES
FEATURING
GUITAR SHORTY
Guitar Shorty will perform at
The Railhead’s Boulder Blues concert May 21. Doors open 6 p.m., $5
cover at the door.
Guitar Shorty, aka David
Kearney, began playing guitar at an
early age. When other kids were in
high school, Shorty was a student
by day and a working musician by
night. Right out of high school,
Shorty joined Ray Charles and his
band for a year. Shorty recorded his
first single “You Don’t Treat Me
Right” in 1957 under the direction
of Willie Dixon. He eventually
moved to New Orleans and joined
Slim’s band. While in New Orleans,
Shorty fronted his own group,
which became the house band at the
legendary Dew Drop Inn. There, he
played with such greats as T. Bone
Walker, Big Joe Turner and Little
Richard. He released his first album
On the Rampage in 1985 and has
since released 12 studio albums,
including 2010’s Bare Knuckle .
Must be 21 years or older
*****
SUZANNE SOMERS
RETURNS WITH HER
CABARET SHOW AT
“SUZANNE SIZZLES”
RESIDENCY SET TO
BEGIN MAY 23
Suzanne Somers, one of
America’s most popular and beloved personalities, and for years a
top-selling Las Vegas headliner, is
stepping back onstage to launch a
‘Kickin It’ premiering at Ron Decar’s Event Center
sophisticated nightclub act at the
Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino.
Scheduled to debut May 23,
2015, “Suzanne Sizzles” will entertain for a total of 28 weeks through
May 2016 in the newly named
cabaret venue, “SUZANNE’S” at
the Westgate.
“I’m thrilled to be back in Las
Vegas with my new show,” said
Suzanne. “I’m excited to perform
songs I love to sing, in such an intimate setting where I can interact
with the audience, and create a very
special evening.”
“Suzanne Sizzles,” a 70-minute
show, will be performed at 7 p.m.
five days a week, dark Sundays and
Mondays. On sale now, general admission tickets; VIP and meet-andgreet tickets are also available.
Tickets can be purchased by calling the Westgate Las Vegas Resort
& Casino Box Office at (800) 2225361
or
online
at
www.westgatevegas.com. For more
information or to book accommodations, call (800) 732-7117.
Each show night, Somers will
prepare in the dressing room she designed, using materials that are
hypoallergenic and green. A pioneering health and wellness advocate, Somers, a #1 New York Times
bestselling author, has written a new
book, TOX- SICK: From Toxic to
Not Sick , an exposÈ on the immediate and long-term dangers of living in a world that has become increasingly toxic to our health. TOXSICK will be published by Harmony Books in April 2015.
Suzanne has also been hitting the
dance floor with ABC-TV’s “Dancing with the Stars” 10th anniversary
season, airing now.
*****
TRIO OF COMEDIANS AT
LAUGH FACTORY
A vigorous trio of comedians
will take over the stage inside the
Laugh Factory Monday through
Sunday (May 11-May 17), at the
New Tropicana Hotel, with comedy
star Basile headlining what is sure
to be a great week of zingers. Holding down the featured position will
be Spencer James, with Traci Skene
hosting. Show times are 8:30 p.m.
and 10:30 p.m.
Basile is one of the most diverse
and sought after entertainers in the
world today. He has entertained
millions of comedy fans in the
United States, Canada, Europe,
Australia and Africa with his unique
blend of material and improvisation.
Currently, he is touring North
America with his show “A Pinch of
Basile.”
He also stars in the critically acclaimed comedy series “Growing
Up Greek in America,” which is
spoken in Greek and English, and
has sold over a million copies
worldwide.
Spencer James’ comedy career
started very early on, namely as an
11-year-old over-weight kid getting
picked on by school bullies, while
also being ignored by seemingly
every girl within his vicinity. James
has gritted his comedy teeth on bars
and comedy clubs across America,
including performances for the fisherman of Dutch Harbor, AK, which
has been made famous by the hit
TV show “Deadliest Catch.”
Writer and professional stand-up
comedian Traci Skene has been
called the “funniest woman in
Philadelphia.” Not only has she
performed in all 50 states, but she
has also appeared on VH1’s “Fools
for Love,” VH1’s “Stand-Up Spotlight,” A&E’s “Comedy on the
Road,” and was featured on Season
7 of NBC’s “Last Comic Standing.”
Skene also co-wrote “The Comedy
Bible: The Complete Resource for
Aspiring Comedians” with Brian
McKim, which made its debut in
2011.
For further information call 702739-2411 or 800-829-9034.
*****
THE IMPROV AT HARRAH’S:
MAY 12-17
The world-famous Improv at
Harrah’s Las Vegas is the longestrunning comedy club on the Las
Vegas Strip. The Improv’s ability to
showcase young comedians, as well
as bring in big names, has attributed to its longevity and success.
Each week, The Improv showcases some of the funniest and
freshest faces in comedy, creating
a show that is always unique and
definitely funny. The comedians
who will perform May 12-17 are:
Tommy Savitt: Multi-award
winning comedian, Tommy Savitt,
unorthodox comedy routine envelops his audience and teleports them
into a domain of hilarity and pure
craftsmanship. Savitt has been seen
on WGN’s “The Bob & Tom
Show,” SI Tv’s “Funny is Funny,”
Comcast On Demand’s “Man up,
Stand-Up” on mav.tv and on
JLTV’s “James and Sunda.”
Tommy has dedicated this past decade to performing for our troops
here and abroad and has brought
laughter to those that sacrifice for
our country has taken him to air
force, army, and naval bases in Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay, Japan,
South Korea, Bahrain, the United
Kingdom, Germany, Belgium, the
Netherlands, Curacao, Honduras,
and Ecuador.
Jesus Trejo: Stand-up comedian
Jesus Trejo’s high-energy performance is a fusion of characters,
storytelling and physical comedy,
which paints a picture of his childhood.. His work ethic has earned
him spots opening for the likes of
Steve Trevino, Pauly Shore, Steve
Byrne and Russell Peters. Trejo recently landed a reoccurring role as
“Javier” on the new TBS sitcom
titled “Sullivan & Son.”
Andy Ostroff: Growing up in
Natick, Massachusetts, Andy
Ostroff was pulled between two
choices: follow his father’s footsteps and go to law school or move
to Los Angeles and pursue a career
in entertainment. Since then he has
filled his résumé with many leading film roles, television guest appearances and theatre work as a
sketch comedy participant. Ostroff
is best known for his work in
“Roommate,” “Chicks Who Click”
and “Panman.”
Shows are at 8:30 p.m. and 10
p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Special VIP tickets include special seating, an Improv T-shirt and postshow meet-and-greet with the comics. Special two-for-one tickets are
also available for locals for the 10
p.m. show. Tickets and ticket prices
are available at Harrah’s Box Office 702-369-5223 and online at
www.harrahslasvegas.com.
*****
Jerry Fink is an entertainment
columnist for the Las Vegas Tribune
newspaper and writes a weekly column. To contact Jerry Fink, email
him at jfink@ lasvegastribune.com.
‘Oliver Twist’ rings true
at Sandy Valley School
Partial cast stirring a pot of “gruel”
By Marianne Donnelly
pieces) for a full-house in the multi-purpose room
Las Vegas Tribune
(gymnasium acoustics!).
Charles Dickens left school at 11 to work in a facMakeup, costumes, set and direction evoked essentory when his father was incarcerated in debtors’ tial themes of this pertinent book.
prison. This harsh experience is the root of “Oliver
The cast ranged from 6- to 17-year-olds and was
Twist,” a most enduring excoriation of the (still) uniformly enthusiastic in all parts. Oliver was perfectly
clueless upper-class to conditions of working-poor in cast and played, as were all other characters.
industrial Victorian England (or even today).
It is reassuring to see great classics revered in
Despite his lack of formal education, Dickens wrote schools. Valiantly mounted school productions (no
15 novels, and campaigned vigorously for children’s budget and challenging physical spaces) ring truest of
rights, education, and other social reforms. His novels all with earnest young actors discovering and displayare lauded for their impact on social reform and law. ing their understanding of this classic play’s purpose.
In Sandy Valley (50 miles south of Las Vegas) the
Bravo and brava to these “Sidewinders” (school
local K-12 school produced a heartfelt rendition of this mascot) for a fabulous evening of theatre just after their
timeless classic (key moments recreated with large set fantastic annual PTO Carnival.
&
HEALTH LIFESTYLES
May 13-19, 2015 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / Page 17
The Exciting Sneak- Peak Technique
By Sandy Zimmerman
Las Vegas Tribune
Photos shot during the operation
by Sandy Zimmerman
A revolutionary new hair transplanting technique removes all of
the doubts and fears of how a patient will look afterward the transplant. He/ she see the results immediately with Dr. Craig Ziering’s
Sneak- Peak Technique or Long
Hair Transplant.
Internationally known and a
leader in the hair transplant field,
Dr. Ziering is the first surgeon to
use this Sneak Peak Technique in
the United States.
With the traditional technique,
the patient usually has to wait 5-10
months for the hair to grow out. Dr
Ziering described the process, “We
usually shave the donor hair very,
very short on the back of their head
and transplant it.
With this improved Sneak-Peak
Technique, the hair is kept at the
same length as the donor’s hair. In
both types of transplants, the hairs
begin to fall out in 1-4 weeks and
new follicles take their place in the
same position, angle, direction, and
location that the graphs were transplanted.”
The Sneak Peak Technique operations are more difficult. This
technique requires more skill from
both the physician and surgical
staff. “We are dissecting these
graphs under the microscope dealing with longer hair and with the
tissues. When we transplant them,
the longer hairs are attached and
could get in the way as we are preparing the design.
It requires greater skill and demands from the physician to be up
on the artistry because both the patient and physician are going to see
the results of the surgery immediately. The patient sees if you do really nice work as far as design,
angle, direction and orientation are
concerned.”
I like to create a hair line that
matches with these facial features
and gives the patient the greatest
aesthetic look including not only
the frontal hairline but the whorl in
the back of the head as well as the
temporal peaks.”
This technique is interactive,
with both the patient and the physician giving feedback. As Dr.
Ziering places the graphs, the patient can see the balance that is necessary between the area that he is
trying to cover as well as the desired density. Dr. Ziering can keep
adding graphs to a zone in the frontal part of the head until he achieves
the desired density the patient wants
before moving further back.
Patients are involved in the decision making process.
One of the exciting results of this
procedure, patients do not like the
crusting and scabbing that occurs
Dr. Craig Ziering
the first week with the traditional Ziering’s delicate work close up.
method, but now the long hairs
Award-winning
Sandy
camouflage the area allowing pa- Zimmerman is a syndicated columtients to return to work the next day. nist featuring Show and Dining reThere are multiple benefits with this views, travel, health, spas, luxury
procedure. In hair transplants, the and more. Sandy is talk show host
hairs are so small with thousands of the Las Vegas Today Show proto fill a small space or the whole grams and Discover the Ultimate
head.
Vacation travel specials. If you wish
For information about Dr. Craig information, have questions about
Ziering, founder of Ziering Medi- any of Sandy’s articles, call (702)
cal call (877)-ZM4-HAIR, (964- 735-5974. SUGGESTIONS: Do
4247) or visit the website you have a favorite restaurant in
www.zieringmedical.com.
Las Vegas or around the world?
The patient is awake for both the Please let us know and you may win
traditional method and Sneak Peak free show tickets or other prizes.
Technique, I saw him eating lunch, Send the name of the restaurant, the
watching television, and talking to reasons for your choice and your
us. It was exciting taking photos telephone number. Information is
during the operation, seeing Dr. listed above.
Five photos directly above are of hair transplant operation
Page 18 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
What You
Need To
Know
By Dr Nina Radcliff
Your nails are the
windows to your health
By Nina Radcliff, MD
It’s all fun and games until someone breaks a nail. Correction. It’s all
fun and games until someone’s nails become yellow, pit, club, or spoon.
In addition to helping us scratch and protect our fingertips, nails have
also been described as a window to the entire body. In other words, they
can yield a tremendous amount of information about your overall health
— including warning signs about malnutrition, infection, and serious disease. And it’s all right at your fingertips.
What exactly are nails?
The short answer is, they are composed of layers of keratin, a protein
that’s also found in our skin and hair. The deeper understanding is that the
nail is made up of six parts. The nail plate is the hard, protective piece
that we see, cut, and polish. The nail fold is the skin around the plate and
the site of pesky and painful hangnails. The nail bed is the skin underneath the transparent nail plate. The nail base is the whitish crescent moon
at the nail base. The cuticle is the tissue overlapping the nail at the base.
The matrix is the area under the protective cuticle at the base of the nail
bed and the place where nail growth begins.
Speed of growth
Fingernails take six months to grow and toenails take a full year. As a
result, they can tell a story of how long you have been ill. FUN FACT:
They grow faster in the summer months, in men, and in the dominant
hand.
Yellow nail syndrome
Nails thicken and growth slows. This causes a yellowish discoloration
of the nail plate. The nail plate may also detach from the bed and the
cuticle may disappear. Yellow nail syndrome is often a sign of respiratory
disease such as chronic bronchitis. If your nails are yellow but growing
normally, this may be a sign of diabetes. Glucose attaches to collagen
proteins in the nails giving them the yellowish appearance.
Nail pitting
Small depressions in the nails. It is most common in people who have
psoriasis (a condition characterized by scaly patches on the skin), but can
also be seen in connective tissue disorders.
Nail clubbing
The nails soften, bulge at the tips, and curve around the fingertips.
They appear to float over the nail bed instead of being firmly attached.
This can indicate chronic low levels of oxygen typically from lung disease or inflammatory bowel disease, heart disease, or liver disease.
Spoon nails (koilonychia)
Nails become soft and concave (scooped away from the finger). The
curvature becomes large enough to hold a drop of liquid. This can be
related to an iron deficiency anemia, hypothyroidism, or liver disease.
Terry’s nails
The tip of each nail has a dark band. In some cases, this can be the
result of aging. However, it may indicate liver disease, congestive heart
failure, or diabetes. A single dark line or spot should also be investigated
as soon as possible as it may be caused by melanoma, the most dangerous
type of skin cancer.
Beau’s lines
Indentations that run across the nails. They result when growth under
the cuticle is interrupted by injury or severe illness such as uncontrolled
diabetes, peripheral vascular disease, high fever, or pneumonia.
Leukonychia
Most of the above conditions are, fortunately, rare. However, leukonychia, white spots in your nails, are relatively common. They do not represent calcium deficiency, but are most likely the result of a past injury to
the nail plate or matrix (similar to folding or denting clear plastic). In
some cases the white spots can result from an allergic reaction to nail
polish or a mild infection.
It is a code of silence that what happens at the nail salon stays at the
nail salon. But if your nails appear to indent, club, or pit this is something
that you should share with your doctor to rule out more serious illness.
Nails serve as a window to our overall health. So make sure you look
inside to see what is going on!
*****
Dr. Nina Radcliff is dedicated to her profession, her patients and her
community, at large. She is passionate about sharing truths for healthy,
balanced living as well as wise preventive health measures. She completed medical school and residency training at UCLA and has served on
the medical faculty at The University of Pennsylvania. She is a Board
Certified Anesthesiologist and a member of the American Society of Anesthesiologists where she serves on committees for Young Physicians and
Communications. Author of more than 200 textbook chapters, research
articles, medical opinions and reviews; she is often called upon by media
to speak on medical, fitness, nutrition, and healthy lifestyle topics impacting our lives, today.
May 13-19, 2015 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / Page 19
SOCIAL SECURITY AWARENESS
The Best Way to Reform Social Security
Eliminating the payroll
tax is the key. Yes, really.
By Dean Clancy
The best way to reform Social
Security is to eliminate the payroll
tax. Seriously.
Social Security is going bankrupt, but official Washington can’t
agree on how to fix it. Payroll tax
receipts are insufficient to pay
promised benefits. For decades, the
trustees of the Social Security program have annually warned that the
trust fund is out of balance and,
absent reforms, will go broke. Current projections show the fund will
be exhausted by the early 2030s (15
to 20 years from now).
At that point, there will be only
enough tax revenue coming in to
fund about 75 percent of promised
benefits. The options will be unpleasant. Either everyone’s monthly
Social Security check will have to
be reduced by 25 percent, or payroll receipts will have to be increased by 25 percent, or millions
of retirees will have to be dropped
from the rolls. Realistically, politicians will balk.
Acting sooner makes reform
somewhat easier, but there are still
only three ways to remedy this
problem: a) cut benefits, b) increase
receipts or c) both.
Cutting benefits is unpopular, so
politicians never embrace benefit
cuts, except to the extent they only
affect future generations not yet old
enough to vote. Increasing taxes is
also bad politics, but a bit more
politically acceptable, because
there’s less pain per person: it’s
spread over a larger population.
There are about 59 million retirees,
but 144 million workers.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan has
called Social Security’s bankruptcy
the “most predictable” crisis in history. All can see it coming, yet none
takes evasive action. Why? Because
conservatives and progressives
can’t agree on the remedy, and don’t
trust each other enough to compromise. And voters don’t seem to like
any of the proposed remedies. So
the default position is to do nothing.
Progressives want to raise the
payroll tax. Conservatives are opposed. Conservatives want to reduce benefits. Progressives are opposed. Conservatives want to create personal accounts. Progressives
are opposed. Progressives want to
increase benefits. Conservatives are
opposed.
Progressives probably have the
upper hand with their preferred
remedy of increasing the payroll tax
that currently funds Social Security.
But that doesn’t make it a good idea.
It’s a bad idea, because the tax is
already too high (15.3 percent of
wages, including the employer
share), and destroys jobs and hurts
workers, especially those with the
lowest incomes. Some progressives
want to increase the tax only on
upper-income earners, who are currently exempted from it on wage
income above $118,500 a year. That
would help restore balance, but only
partly.
Conservatives have a basically
sound idea with their proposal to
invest some or all of Social
Security’s receipts in the stock market via personal accounts. Doing so
would fetch higher returns than the
government can provide. But it’s
also risky. Crashes happen. Either
retirees would lose money or taxpayers would be forced to provide
bailouts. At any rate, the idea is
going nowhere, because Democrats
strongly oppose it, and so, quietly,
do many Republicans. President
George W. Bush’s 2005 personal
accounts proposal never came to a
vote in either house of Congress,
even though Republican controlled
both. Voters love the security part
of Social Security, and that means
avoiding risk.
The most practical, and in my
view, the best way to restore system balance would be to simply
supplement the payroll tax from
other revenue sources, and in particular from the general fund (i.e.,
income taxes). That would make the
program solvent forever. Presto! No
more bankruptcy threat.
Which leads to a further idea:
Why not supplant the payroll tax
altogether, and as soon as possible?
The payroll tax is the biggest tax
most Americans pay, and regressive. It falls hardest on low-wage
workers. Eliminating it would provide meaningful relief to every
American wage-earner, with the
greatest relief going to those who
need the the help the most. Abolishing it would be economically
beneficial and politically popular.
To avoid increasing the deficit, we
could raise or impose other taxes
that are less regressive — although,
to be honest, I’m not sure we really
need to. If anything, America’s lessthan-stellar economy could stand a
tax cut right now, and what better
kind of tax cut than one that reduces
burdens on job creation?
The conventional wisdom says
we’ll eventually meet in the middle
by swallowing a mixture of tax
hikes, benefit cuts and a higher retirement age. Don’t believe it. No
such “grand bargain” will materialize until demanded by voters.
Realistically, that will only happen
when the crisis is upon us, by which
point, it will be too late. The closer
we get to bankruptcy, the less effective, and less politically viable,
each of the traditional remedies becomes. It’s a game of chicken, and
seems destined to end badly, absent
some creative thinking.
But wait. Isn’t a “grand bargain”
exactly what happened back in
1983, when the trust fund was on
the brink of exhaustion and a
Democratic Congress and President
Ronald Reagan reluctantly came
together to enact the Greenspan
Commission’s proposed compromise of payroll tax hikes and a
higher retirement age?
Yes, that did happen. But this is
not 1983. The problem is much bigger now, thanks to the baby-boom
generation, which began retiring in
2010 and is now joining the rolls at
the rate of 10,000 seniors a day.
Back in 1983, there were 3.2 workers for every retiree. By 2030, there
will be only about 2 workers for
every retiree. The Greenspan age
hike was phased in slowly, over 40
years. (In fact, it’s still being phased
in.) Any large, last-minute age hike
would be politically unacceptable
to those near-retirees directly affected by it. And while the
Greenspan tax hike amounted to a
63 percent increase, that was from
a smaller base. It went from 9.35
percent of wages in 1983 to 15.3
percent in 1990 and thereafter. A
solvency-restoring tax hike in 2030
would take us from 15.3 percent to
at least 19 percent. It’s hard to imagine voters going along with that
high a rate.
The best time to reform Social
Security was four or five decades
ago. The next best time is today. But
lacking a consensus, we procrastinate. And the more we procrastinate, the more politically impractical our options become — and the
further a second Greenspan “grand
bargain” recedes into the mists of
fantasy-land.
I can predict with near-100 per-
cent certainty what will actually
happen. Barring the miraculous,
Congress will bail out the Social
Security trust fund from the general
fund, supplementing payroll tax
receipts with other kinds. It’s the
path of least resistance, and therefore the path most likely to be taken.
So the real question is not
whether to tap the general fund, but
when? And if we’re going to move
away from reliance on the payroll
tax, why not eliminate it altogether?
Question: Won’t abolishing the
payroll tax hurt Social Security politically? Voters view the tax as a
contribution for insurance, as funding for a “pension.” Won’t ending
the tax make Social Security look
like welfare and thus expose it to
deficit-reduction efforts?
Response: That won’t happen.
What actually protects Social Security benefits is their tremendous
popularity with voters. And that
popularity will not diminish when
we change how they’re funded,
something we will inevitably be
forced to do. Believe me, seniors
will still cherish and defend their
monthly checks, and politicians will
(See Social Security, Page 20)
Page 20 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
How to Avoid Running Out of Money in Retirement
These strategies will help you prevent
outliving your retirement savings.
By Emily Brandon
One of the most common retirement concerns is spending down
your savings too quickly and having to cut your standard of living in
the later part of retirement. But
there are a variety of ways to ensure that your nest egg will last for
the rest of your life, no matter how
long that is. Here are some strategies to make sure your retirement
savings will provide you with
enough income throughout retirement.
Maximize Social Security
Your first line of defense against
running out of money is Social Security. Social Security payments are
guaranteed to continue for the rest
of your life, no matter how long you
live, and are adjusted for inflation
each year. However, it’s a good idea
to take steps to maximize your payments by carefully deciding when
to sign up for benefits and coordinating claiming decisions with your
spouse. “Every year that you delay
taking Social Security, you get an
8 percent increase in the benefits
that you take,” says Cathy Pareto,
a certified financial planner and
president of Cathy Pareto and Associates in Coral Gables, Florida.
Spouses can claim as much as half
of the higher earner’s benefit, and
widows and widowers can inherit
a spouse’s benefit payments if they
are larger than their own.
Plan to live until old age
While a 65-year-old man in 2015
has an average life expectancy of
84, and a woman the same age has
a life expectancy of 87, there’s certainly a significant possibility that
you will live longer than average.
Many financial advisers recommend that you plan as if you will
live into your 90s or even until age
100 in case you do. “We generally
fall somewhere between ages 90
and 105,” says Bo Hanson, a certified financial planner for Preston &
Cleveland Wealth Management in
Franklin, Tennessee. “We make that
determination based off of what
their family history and health issues are.” It’s better to save up for
too many years of retirement and
leave the excess wealth to relatives
than to prepare for too few years
and end up depending completely
on Social Security.
Protect yourself
from inflation
Inflation can erode the purchasing power of your retirement savings. But you can allocate some of
your money to investments that are
guaranteed to keep up with inflation. Your Social Security payments
and some types of government
bonds automatically keep pace with
inflation. “There’s a government
bond that is adjusted for inflation,
Treasury inflation-protected securities, so we can build a ladder of
those that mature each year in your
retirement,” says Joel Shaps, a certified financial planner for Bedrock
Capital Management in Los Altos,
California. “Then they know that
bond is going to mature when they
need the money.” You could also
keep a portion of your portfolio in
investments that have historically
kept pace with inflation such as
equities, commodities or real estate.
Consider an
immediate annuity
If you’re willing to hand over a
chunk of money to an insurance
company, you can purchase an immediate annuity that will provide a
guaranteed stream of payments that
will continue for the rest of your
life. “Some people want to
annuitize a part of their retirement
savings to produce enough income
that covers their fixed expenses,”
Hanson says. “You essentially guarantee that no matter what happens
with the financial market, you know
that your mortgage payment is covered by the annuity.” The downside
is that your heirs won’t receive the
money you have annuitized, and
some annuities have high fees and
complicated mechanics. It’s also
important not to invest all of your
wealth in an annuity because you
might need funds available to cope
with emergencies.
Withdraw 4 percent
or less each year
You should take only small distributions from your portfolio every year if you want the money to
last the rest of your life. If you withdraw 4 percent annually from a
portfolio invested in 35 percent
U.S. stocks and 65 percent corporate bonds, there’s an 89 percent
chance that the money will last 35
or more years, according to Congressional Research Service calculations. And if you withdraw less
money in years when your portfolio performs poorly, it can help your
investments recover faster. “When
you get into retirement, if you really want to make sure that you
don’t outlive your assets, you need
to control your withdrawal rate,”
Hanson says. “Somewhere around
a 4 to 5 percent withdrawal rate of
your assets is probably the most you
can do. If you can make sure your
lifestyle stays at or below that number, you are setting yourself up for
success.”
Emily Brandon is the senior editor for Retirement at U.S. News. You
can contact her on Twitter
@aiming2retire, circle her on
Google+ or email her at
ebrandon@usnews.com.
(Continued from Page 19)
still be scared to death of touching
them, regardless of the funding
source. The fact is, legally speaking, the payroll tax is not a contribution for insurance, it’s just another tax. The Supreme Court has
repeatedly affirmed this. The benefits and the tax are technically unrelated. They have to be, for the
courts to view them as constitutional. In fact, Congress could abolish all Social Security benefits this
afternoon, and no court in the land
could restore them. Likewise, if
Congress were to repeal the tax, the
benefits would go on being calculated and paid according to law, as
they have since 1935. The payroll
tax is ornamental, not essential.
Question: Without the payroll
tax, how would we calculate each
person’s benefit amount?
Response: The same way we do
today, by tracking workers’ wages.
Question: How would we fund
Medicare Part A, which also relies
on the tax?
Response: The same way we’d
fund Social Security: from general
revenue.
Question: Why now? Why not
wait till “the crisis is upon us”?
We’ve got 15 to 20 years, after all.
Response: Actually, we’ve got
fewer than 15 years. Social
Security’s disability fund, which is
separate from its retirement fund,
is projected to go bankrupt next
year. Most likely, Congress will bail
it out by diverting money from the
retirement fund, and thus accelerate the latter’s exhaustion. If, alternatively, Congress taps the general
fund, well, I rest my case.
Think of the upsides. With this
one simple reform, we’d not only
make Social Security permanently
solvent, we’d also increase workers’ paychecks, make taxes less regressive and create more jobs. Admittedly, absent other reforms, we’d
also increase the deficit. But that’s
a problem we need to tackle, no
matter what. The benefits of this
Social Security reform would outweigh the downsides. And I suspect
voters would love it.
The best way to reform Social
Security is to eliminate the payroll
tax.
Dean F. Clancy, a former senior
official in the White House and
Congress, writes on U.S. budget
and constitutional issues. Follow
him on Twitter: @DeanClancy.
Social Security
These tips can help to ensure your savings will last through retirement.
EarthTalk is written and edited by Roddy Scheer and Doug Moss
and is a registered trademark of E - The Environmental Magazine (www.emagazine.com). Send questions to:
earthtalk@emagazine.com. Subscribe: www.emagazine.com/
subscribe; Free Trial Issue: www.emagazine.com/trial.
Dear EarthTalk: What is the
Great Green Wall of China? —
Jacob Williston, Tempe, AZ
Unlike the Great Wall of China,
a 5,000-mile fortification dating
back to the 7th century BC that
separates northern China from the
Mongolian steppe, the Great Green
Wall of China — otherwise known
as the Three-North Shelter Forest
Program — is the biggest tree planting project on the planet. Its goal is
to create a 2,800-mile long green
belt to hold back the quickly expanding Gobi Desert and sequester
millions of tons of carbon dioxide
in the process. If all goes according to plan, the completion of the
Green Wall by 2050 will increase
forest cover across China from five
to 15 percent overall.
The Chinese government first
conceived of the Green Wall project
in the late 1970s to combat desertification along the country’s vast
northwest rim. Soon thereafter,
China’s top legislative body passed
a resolution requiring every citizen
over the age of 11 to plant at least
three Poplar, Eucalyptus, Larch and
other saplings every year to reinforce official reforestation efforts.
But despite progress — according to the United Nations’ most recent Global Forest Resources Assessment, China increased its overall forest cover by 11,500 square
miles (an area the size of Massachusetts) between 2000 and 2010,
with ordinary citizens alone plant-
ing upwards of 60 billion trees —
the situation is only getting worse.
Analysts think China loses just as
many square miles of grasslands
and farms to desertification every
year, so reforestation has proven to
be an uphill battle. The encroaching Gobi has swallowed up entire
villages and small cities and continues to cause air pollution problems in Beijing and elsewhere
while racking up some $50 billion
a year in economic losses. And tens
of millions of environmental refugees are looking for new homes in
other parts of China and beyond in
what makes America’s Dust Bowl
of the 1930s look trivial in comparison.
“The desertification of north and
western China is arguably the most
under-reported environmental crisis facing China today and is little
understood outside the circles of
NGOs [non-governmental organizations] and groups of scientists
who are desperately fighting against
it,” reports Sean Gallagher, an activist with Greenpeace. While climate change is certainly a big factor, Gallagher adds that overgrazing, water mismanagement, outdated agricultural methods and the
swelling of human populations are
also contributing to this wholesale
conversion of the region’s once arable and habitable landscapes into
sand dunes. “In China, approximately 20 percent of land is now
classified as desert or arid, and desertification is adversely affecting
the lives of over 400 million people
in China alone.”
More recently, the Green Wall
project has taken on additional importance for its potential as a “car-
Dust storms in the Gobi Desert (as seen from space) highlight the need for China’s Great Green Wall.
May 13-19, 2015 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / Page 21
Amory Lovins of the Colorado-based sustainability
think-tank Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI).
bon sink” to store greenhouse gases is the challenge. According to
that would otherwise find their way Lovins, we already have the techinto the atmosphere and exacerbate nologies to help foster a rapid evoglobal warming. But critics point lution of our electricity system, but
out that it’s hard to quantify just we still need the political and instihow much carbon the Green Wall tutional will to make it happen.
can store, and that plantations of RMI has begun a dialogue with
fast-growing non-native trees going utilities and other entities to align
in as part of the project don’t store incentives and create more opporas much carbon as more diverse, tunities for electricity users to connaturally occurring native forests.
tribute clean power to the grid
Regardless, the Chinese govern- themselves through technologies
ment is already talking up the Great like rooftop solar power.
Green Wall as key weapon in its
One key feature of RMI’s plan
arsenal to fight global warming and is rate structures that reflect the true
as proof to the rest of the world that benefits and costs of moving to
China is taking strong steps to miti- more distributed (small scale/degate carbon emissions. With centralized) energy resources. The
completion of the Great Green Wall group is working with utilities to
still 35 years out, only time will tell launch six “Electricity Innovation
how effective it will be as a solu- Labs” nationally as well as a “Sotion for some of China’s (and the lar Development Excellence Cenworld’s) most vexing environmen- ter” to highlight the feasibility of
tal problems.
distributed renewables.
*****
RMI also wants to simplify comDear EarthTalk: How does the mercial photovoltaic financing, inRocky Mountain Institute think we corporate renewables into real escan get off of oil and coal by 2050 tate finance and make solar financand save money in the process? — ing affordable to underserved marJames Greenville, Redding, CT
kets. RMI also wants to make large
Colorado-based sustainability buildings much more energy effithink-tank Rocky Mountain Insti- cient, and aims to make a billion
tute (RMI) was founded in 1982 by square feet of commercial space 35
American physicist and environ- percent more efficient by 2025
mentalist Amory Lovins to research through so-called “deep energy”
and promote market-based solu- retrofits, including the adoption of
tions to our energy crisis without more renewables. RMI is targeting
breaking the bank. The group is fo- four of the largest, most influential
cusing efforts on transforming do- segments of the buildings market—
mestic and eventually global energy major companies, the General Seruse to create a clean, prosperous and vices Administration, the Departsecure energy future by mid-cen- ment of Defense and “activist” cittury.
ies (those already on the green cut“We can eliminate our addiction ting edge)—for major energy retto oil and coal by 2050 and use one- rofits, and is working to persuade
third less natural gas while switch- private investors to consider overing to efficient use and renewable all impact and long-term costs, not
supply,” says Lovins, adding that just short term gains.
doing so could actually cost less and
Another major part of RMI’s
support a more robust economy plan is to work with large metro
than continuing with business-as- regions with upwards of 10 million
usual: “Moreover, this transition residents, and with university camneeds no new inventions and no acts puses, to make major efficiency
of Congress and no new federal gains. Other keys to getting us off
taxes, mandate subsidies or laws...” oil and coal by 2050 include transTo get there, Lovins acknowl- forming how we design and use
edges that we have to start thinking vehicles, and getting Fortune 500
differently now. RMI is advocating corporations to rejigger their energy
cutting U.S. electricity consump- supply chains to facilitate procuretion by 18 percent over the next 10 ment of more renewable energy.
years while almost doubling renew- Beyond the U.S., RMI is working
able energy’s share of generation along similar lines with China and
from 16 to 30 percent.
other large developing countries to
Few would argue with the cost help them avoid some of the energy
savings and environmental benefits development missteps undertaken
of such a plan — implementation here at home.
PLACES TO GO
Page 22 / LAS VEGAS TRIBUNE / May 13-19, 2015
QUICK GETAWAYS
Beyond Paradise, the Riviera Maya
Paradise is Forever
By Sandy Zimmerman
Las Vegas Tribune
Photos by Sandy Zimmerman
The Riviera Maya is so exciting,
I was amazed to find the region is
very different from what most
people know Mexico has to offer.
As Javier Aranda, the General
Director of the Riviera Maya Tourism Board expressed his feelings,
“We have the motto “Paradise is
Forever.” Once you have seen the
Riviera Maya, you will understand
what we mean, with the sun, the
beach, jungle, nature, eco-adventures, history, and culture, you have
everything!
It is that combination which
Las Vegas Tribune columnist Mike Kermani with a dolphin
makes us the Riviera Maya a completely different destination compared to the rest of Mexico.
We are privileged first, to be a
part of the Quintana Roo state, the
only state in Mexico that neighbors
the Caribbean Ocean, which gives
us a completely different experience compared to being near the
Pacific Ocean or the Gulf of
Mexico.
The Riviera Maya is where the
Mayan civilization created amazing
construction and villages thousands
of years ago.”
If anyone wants to do business,
which may be difficult in this beautiful setting and with so many diversions, the Riviera Maya has
many possibilities for meetings,
conventions, incentive, and other
types of groups.
Aranda explained, “In the
Riviera Maya, we have around 350
hotels with 37,000 rooms offering
European or all-inclusive plans.
“Most of these hotels are
equipped for groups. Visitors will
find a diverse selection from
beachside cabanas, inns, small two
star hotels, boutique hotels, fishing
lodges, apartments, to luxury resorts.
“Playa del Carman has a population of 100,000 and Tulum, not
only an ancient archaeological site
but a city with 20,000 people. You
can come with your friend, couples,
families, or seniors, the hotels can
suit everybody’s needs.
“I am sure if people come one
time, they will want to return. There
are so many flights from the United
Indian craftsman
States and such ease to travel here;
you will find paradise as fast as you
want, in just a few hours.”
The stunning colors of the water which you seldom see anywhere
else, meeting the friendly Mayan
people and seeing how they live, all
add to your experience.
Yes, I agree, “Paradise is Forever” is a perfect motto for the
Riviera Maya. Whether you want
to build sandcastles on the beach,
go fishing, disco all night, play golf,
indulge in a spa treatment, or do
nothing, you can do it all so well at
the Riviera Maya.
Mexico’s average temperatures
range from 77-86 degrees F, the hottest time of the year is from May to
September, especially on the coasts,
and it gets cooler from October to
April. For information, call (800)44-MEXICO. The Mexican Tourism Board can advise about settings
for weddings, theme and other
tours, restaurants, accommodations,
eco-adventures, business meetings,
attractions, and will be happy to
answer your questions about
Mexico. For more information visit
the website www.rivieramaya.com
Award
winning
Sandy
Zimmerman is a syndicated columnist featuring Show and Dining reviews, travel, health, spas, luxury
and more. Sandy is talk show host
of the Las Vegas Today Show programs and Discover the Ultimate
Vacation travel specials. If you want
to suggest topics for articles, for
information or to ask any questions
about Sandy’s articles, call 702735-5974.