Break out the kayak!

Friends,
Good article about legislation helping create a new & beautiful way to see the bay.

Bill will boost access to the Bay for boaters
By Denis Cuff of the Contra Costa Times
California is blazing a new path to recreation on San Francisco Bay.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed legislation that will create the San Francisco Bay water trail, a network of launching, landing and camping spots for kayakers, canoers and others in small, nonmotorized boats.

Read the rest of the article by clicking here Contra Costa Times

Governor, Recall the National Guard!

Friends,

The national disaster of Hurricane Katrina cannot be measured. The lack of a response by the federal government compounded the problem risking the lives of thousands of Americans. This is unacceptable! In addition, the relief effort required necessitates substantial public infrastructure investment to levees, ports, roads and the rebuilding of homes. This effort requires all the resources at the federal and state government's disposal. To this end, I introduced an Assembly Resolution to request the Governor to recall the California National Guard from Iraq. Once home, they can act and function in the manner they were originally designed for, namely, domestic security and serving in relief efforts during national emergencies. Please read the following article about this important resolution.

http://www.pww.org/article/articleview/7713/1/286

With your help... we will keep winning!

Friends,
The fight isn't over... This article is from the San Francisco Chronicle...

Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley, asked state Attorney General Bill Lockyer on Monday to investigate the new video bingo machines at Casino San Pablo, charging that they were nearly identical to slot machines.

Hancock, whose district includes Casino San Pablo, said the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians had taken advantage of a loophole in state law when it added 500 video bingo machines in August.

"Technology has blurred the lines between traditional slot machines and bingo," she said Monday. "These electronic bingo machines are exactly like slot machines, and therefore I'm asking the attorney general to investigate it. If we don't do something, we're totally vulnerable to casinos' taking advantage of this loophole."

Bingo and card games are legal across California, and, with state permission, Indian tribes may install slot machines on federally recognized sovereign land.

California's Legislature last year rejected the Lytton Band's plan to install 5,000 slot machines at Casino San Pablo, based on its location in an urban area.

"Bingo is supposed to be a communal game. But with these, who do you play against? I don't know, and the player doesn't know either," said Hancock aide Armando Viramontes. "The whole experience -- the spinning reels, bars and cherries, lights and sounds -- is like a slot machine. Not bingo."

View the rest of the article here: San Francisco Chronicle

Investors, Lawyers, Lobbyists... oh my!

Friends,
Here is a great article in Gambling Magazine that shows the slow evolutionary process of how investors, lawyers, and lobbyists use their collective influence to build casinos.  This is what we have witnessed in the Bay Area, in California and throughout the nation. It is because of these abuses of federal law, that has prompted investigative hearings in Congress and legislation by Senator Diane Feinstein and Richard Pombo. Read the article by clicking here.