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On February 25 of last year, professional skydiver Alan (Buzz) Fink and his wife Kristina, who are not residents of San Diego, gave a total of $640 to Jan Goldsmith in his run for city attorney. On July 23, Fink, president of Jamul's Skydive San Diego, gave Goldsmith another $320.
Goldsmith won the election, and on January 8 he fired deputy city attorney John Serrano, who worked on real estate property. He is one of nine deputy city attorneys who have been fired by Goldsmith. Serrano is an experienced government lawyer, having served as a deputy city attorney in Los Angeles and assistant city attorney in Escondido, among many things.
But despite his undisputed professional credentials, Serrano was on a list of lawyers in the city attorney's office that Mayor Jerry Sanders told the pliant Goldsmith to fire. The city attorney's office denies that such a list exists, but we have interviewed many people who know about it, including one who was in a meeting in which a Goldsmith aide alluded to it. The mayor's office would not comment.
Fifteen months ago, Serrano was asked to approve a sublease of space on prime City land at Brown Field. He noted that Juan Escalante, a member of the City of San Diego Airports Advisory Committee, had a very favorable lease at Brown and wanted to retire and transfer it to two members of the Airports Advisory Committee, one of whom was Fink. But Serrano found out that when Escalante got the deal in 1998, he had promised to make major changes — "build hangars, put in showers for the pilots, put in a gate, those kinds of things," says Serrano. He checked satellite images and found those improvements had not been made.
He went to Mike Tussey, deputy director of airports. "He said, 'Don't worry. Just approve the sublease. These are good people. They are on the Airports Advisory Committee.' I said when someone promises to do $700,000 of public improvements and doesn't do them, it's like a theft. Fink sent a letter to the mayor, city attorney, council members that I was not being objective and interfering with a good deal." Serrano went to the council in closed session and explained the situation; in December of 2007, it authorized that the tenant be evicted. But Tussey refused to sign the notice of termination of tenancy for more than a year. "Tussey was backed up by the mayor on this thing."
After Goldsmith got into office, Serrano was told to see David Jarrell, deputy chief operating officer for public works. Serrano then ran into Phil Rath, the mayor's policy adviser. "As we were walking toward the meeting room, he said, 'Are you still working with the city attorney's office?' That was the first clue." Serrano explained the Brown Field situation to Rath, Tussey, and Jarrell. He also got to Goldsmith. "He said we had to do whatever the mayor's office wanted to do. I was not to substitute my personal judgment for anything the mayor wanted to do, as long as it was legal. We are to serve our client; if our client has a need, give the client the benefit of the doubt."
This cavalier attitude toward ethical caution was coming not long after the City had been sharply criticized by consultants and regulators for hiding critical information from bond documents and generally doing exactly what Goldsmith was instructing Serrano to do. Serrano doesn't say it, but Goldsmith was telling him to follow the letter of the law, not the spirit of the law, for the mayor's friends. As intelligent citizens know, Goldsmith is a toady for the mayor, who is in turn a toady for the downtown establishment, particularly real estate developers. "Goldsmith is going to let developers run the city," says still another deputy city attorney who was fired.
Escalante won't talk. "I'm talking with the City on it," he says.
Fink says he is no longer in the deal. "Originally I had looked toward doing something with Juan. The City said Juan Escalante was in default on the lease. It's not true. Serrano effectively screwed over Escalante," asserts Fink. "I sent a letter to the city attorney's office requesting an investigation of Serrano. I got nothing." Fink says, "Mike Tussey was in favor of doing something for Mr. Escalante," who purportedly had been told by an airport official that he didn't have to make the improvements until the City undergrounded the utilities there. Tussey deferred comment to a mayoral public relations person, who did not respond to a call. Fink claims he gave money to Goldsmith because he was unhappy that Aguirre had not replied to his letters. Serrano was shortly fired and replaced by a former Casey Gwinn employee, Debra Bevier, who had been fired by Goldsmith's predecessor, Mike Aguirre, for permitting allegedly questionable airport contracts to go forward. She sued Aguirre for alleged threatening behavior but dropped the suit. She did not return a phone call for comment.
Goldsmith has hired back seven attorneys from the disastrous Gwinn years, during which the City was pathetically outlawyered in the Chargers and Padres contracts, left out key negative information from bond prospectuses, and generally served to feather the nest of the establishment. The other six rehired from the Gwinn years are Mary Jo Lanzafame, Joan Dawson, Deborah Berger, David Miller (who Aguirre believed had let Sunroad go forward with its law-defying construction project), Elisa Cusato, and William (Wink) Donnell, who admitted that he had secretly intercepted a letter before it reached Aguirre.
Lanzafame recently advised her fellow attorneys to pay attention to "form and substance — but only a little bit of substance," according to several sources, including Kathryn Burton, former assistant city attorney who ran the administrative side of the office under Aguirre. Cusato, Bevier, and Donnell and his wife all contributed significant sums to Goldsmith's campaign.
The city attorney's office claims that the firings are a result of cost cutting. But this hardly makes sense when the office is busily hiring back Gwinn people.
Serrano believes that a second matter he handled contributed to his firing. He was in charge of the case in which the City successfully sued energy firm Kinder Morgan over the oil plume underneath Qualcomm Stadium property. "This has been to the 9th Circuit [Court of Appeals] and we won. The court has approved our pleadings," says Serrano. He was in a settlement conference with Kinder Morgan's law firm. "One of those lawyers laughingly told me, 'We will see if you still have a job once Goldsmith is in.' " Those lawyers might have been tipped off to the coming dismissal. Many San Diegans suspect Sanders still wants to make a gift to the Chargers for a new stadium at the Qualcomm site, despite the City's horrific financial condition. Anybody making a fat subsidy difficult could wind up on the guillotine list.
Another deputy city attorney who was on the mayor's hit list was Michael Calabrese, who worked in resource management and conservation and who also was fired once Goldsmith got in. Andrew Jones, a former member of Aguirre's staff who campaigned for Goldsmith and was awarded with a position as key aide, told Calabrese about the mayor's list. "It was very directly acknowledged to us that a list did exist, and I was told by several people that I was on it," says Calabrese. Like Serrano, Calabrese got in trouble because he was trying to steer the City out of ethical problems. He had raised questions over the Regents Road bridge over Rose Canyon. He had said that members of the parking board in La Jolla should file financial disclosure forms, a decision that the California Fair Political Practices Commission affirmed.
But the action that probably put him on the mayor's assassination list was his insistence that a contract awarded to a consulting firm as part of Sanders's sacrosanct managed-competition program should go to the council for approval. "That may have gotten me in the doghouse," he says.
Kimberly Urie is a longtime expert in complex white-collar crime cases. She was hired by Aguirre, who wanted to set up sophisticated fraud-sleuthing systems similar to those in Los Angeles and San Francisco. After Goldsmith came in, Urie got fired. "Jan Goldsmith intends that the criminal division scale back to handling only the simpler, traditional crimes such as DUIs, which of course are important, shoplifting, and minor drug possession," says Urie. "Apparently Goldsmith is not interested in investigating or prosecuting more complex offenses such as violations of the political reform act by appointed and elected officials or instances of government procurement fraud — say, where contract specs are purposely written so that only one vendor can win the competitive bidding. Handling complex cases does cost more than doing only the simpler cases, but residents need to realize that the abuses resulting from violations of trust by those in power are ultimately much more expensive."
But the San Diego establishment is not concerned about violations of trust, particularly since that establishment is responsible for so many of the violations. It does not want white-collar-crime enforcement in a city that is known nationwide as a haven for political corruption, Ponzi schemes, real estate swindles, up-front loan fee scams, affinity frauds, phony accounting by public companies, money laundering, and other fleece jobs.
Some of the top people in the office were shooed out by other methods. Consider Chris Morris, head of the criminal division, and Mia Severson, head of the civil division. "Goldsmith reached out to me during the campaign, but no direct communications were ever made," says Morris. "After he got elected he called me down for an interview. He made it sound like he was going to keep me around. But I got word through an intermediary that he wasn't going to keep me around. I resigned." Severson was demoted. She resigned instead and is now partner in a law firm with Aguirre and Morris.
Don McGrath was a key Aguirre aide. One of those who worked for McGrath was Andrew Jones, now Goldsmith's aide-de-camp. Goldsmith "never talked with me," says McGrath. "He sends Andrew Jones up, and Andrew says, 'You are a campaign promise.' I was one year away from a city pension and brought $22 million into the city coffers" by handling monetary settlements with accounting firms, pension consultants, insurance companies, and other service providers the City had sued. So McGrath went to Aguirre, who eliminated McGrath's position so he wouldn't have to suffer the indignity.
Kathryn Burton, former assistant city attorney, also left before Goldsmith could swing the ax. "The deputy city attorneys were fired because they refused to be yes-men," she says. "Those that were fired were the best public interest lawyers in the office."
And that goes to the heart of it: the fired lawyers were working in the public interest. Goldsmith and Sanders are working for private interests.
More from SDReader
- More stories by Don Bauder
- More stories by Matt Potter
- Former lieutenant guns for Goldsmith — Feb. 1, 2017
- After the Goldsmith, his politics on trial — Jan. 5, 2017
- Damn, Jan, you're in a jam — March 19, 2015
- Mayor Faulconer said it was okay — July 7, 2014
- Anti-Aguirre Plans Hatched Over Breakfast — May 11, 2006
I am not surprised. When a Mayor and a City Attorney are close friends, or a YES MAN for the Mayor, then the city loses. That is why the city of San Diego needs an Independent Ethics Committee with the Power to Impeach a Mayor or anyone in Government of San Diego.
Response to post #1: Good luck on getting an INDEPENDENT ethics committee. Remember, this is San Diego. Best, Don Bauder
And now for the public service announcement...
Under older laws, individual ordinary California citizens could become "private attorneys general" to prosecute unfair competition claims against any firm that was using some sort of illegality, false advertising, or just being ornery in an unethical sense to get ahead of the competition.
This law is now changed, so that only individuals who were injured in fact and lost money or property can sue to enforce the unfair competition law, in addition to the standard roster of Attorney General, DAs, and city attorneys in the larger burgs.
As more of us with experience in public life reach retirement age and have the free time to loiter at the County Law Library, maybe more of us will have an interest in seeking out firms that behave in unethical manners for potential unfair competition issues. After all, if the system ain't aworkin', and there's little or no hope of seeing it fixed any time soon, why leave it to others what we can do ourselves for fun and profit?
BTW: the best firm candidates at which to find issues of unfair and ethical behavior just might be found on the short list of those that have already been found criminally guilty in a federal court recently... otherwise, have your eyes opened by some of Mr. Bauder's previously posted writings found not far from here...
Fascinating carousel of attorneys. John Serrano gone will be good for the aviation community, where we ran into many variations of creative ways to delay, obfuscate, and confuse. Yet, bringing back Debra Bevier returns an attorney associated with the disgraced former Airports Director Tracy Means. And adding David Miller will be an odd choice given his role in the Sunroad debacle, or perhaps his lack of role given that Sunroad proceeded when he failed to act. Fortunately, a few of the attorneys who stayed the course with issues affecting the airports are still on the job. Let's hope that they can keep things moving forward appropriately.
Response to post #3: I am unaware of that change in the law. When was it made? Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #4: Yes, Aguirre believed that Bevier gave legal assistance to Means, who got into trouble for her extracurricular business activities. Aguirre believes that Miller, when working in the city attorney's office, would have let the Sunroad deal go through and was cozy with the developers and the mayor's office. Aguirre smelled it out as a scam and Miller was gone. But now he is back, along with Bevier. Best, Don Bauder
He went to Mike Tussey, deputy director of airports. "He said, 'Don't worry. Just approve the sublease. These are good people. They are on the Airports Advisory Committee.' I said when someone promises to do $700,000 of public improvements and doesn't do them, it's like a theft.
Actually that is theft- a civil theft (and criminal also) because it is a breach of contract that has monetary liability.
They should have sued Escalante for breach, and then go forward with the lease transers contingent upon the improvements being made BEFORE transfer.
Under older laws, individual ordinary California citizens could become "private attorneys general" to prosecute unfair competition claims against any firm that was using some sort of illegality, false advertising, or just being ornery in an unethical sense to get ahead of the competition.
This law is now changed, so that only individuals who were injured in fact and lost money or property can sue to enforce the unfair competition law, in addition to the standard roster of Attorney General, DAs, and city attorneys in the larger burgs.
This was Business and Professions code 17200, and it has been revised after a trio of numbskulls named the Trevor Law Group filed tens of thousands of these lawsuits, bogusly, shaking down small businesses. This group caused a lot of harm to small business. They all got disbarred.
I think any citizen of San Diego could file what is known as a "dirivative" lawsuit, whereby as citizens and taxpayers of the city they have a legal right to enforce the law against any party that has a contract with the city. This is a shareholder type action used against corporations and done all the time in that context.
I was prepared to give Goldsmith the benefit of the doubt even after his inappropriate unprofessional juvenile remarks at the swearing in ceremony. However, one of the most honest ethical and knowledgeable city attorneys I know quietly resigned last week rather than continue to work for Goldsmith; someone who balanced his obligations to the city and the public in a serious way. Lack of water won't finish San Diego off , it will be the oligarchy of self-interests that don't understand the real meaning of public service.
Right on the money, Don. Having worked for the City during the 'forgettable' Casey Gwinn years, to be more than charitable, I find it incompetent at best and unconscionable at worst, that Goldsmith would hire back seven attorneys that worked under the Gwinn regime. I guess some attorneys, like bad pennies, keep coming back.
Response to post #7: San Diego authorities seldom do what they should do. Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #8: Why is it that lawyers are almost always the one abusing a good law? I assume they were labeled vexatious litigants. Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #9: Tell me about that public interest lawyer who resigned. As you know, you can reach me at [email protected] Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #10: It was bad enough that Gwinn walked off with a remunerative sinecure. Maybe he will be hired back to moonlight in the city attorney's office. Best, Don Bauder
Fascinating how the more things change, the more they stay the same. My guess would be, with the current financial meltdown, and San Diego's city council's penchant for crawling out from under a rock every time a free dollar floats by, they will be first in line, begging the feds for billions. Gosh, that's where I want my tax dollars going.
Response to post #16: I think you can bet on that. First, of course, there are numerous critical infrastructure needs in San Diego. The City deserves some of that money. Best, Don Bauder
On #5 & #8:
In 2004, we more or less got duped into passing Prop. 64 which limited those unfair competition suits from just anybody who saw something wrong going on (kinda like being a personal legal superhero when power used wisely) to only those who were actually damaged by the unfairness... and who happened to be clued in enough to know they were dealing with illegal/unethical firms.
Still, there are teeth in the new version. I'm no lawyer, but it would seem that any of the fire-damaged county homeowners threatened by the local power utility potentially counter-suing in the 2007 wildfire liability suits could amend their own complaints to allege unfair competition, borrowing the Sabotage Prevention Act provisions for the utility failing to maintain a defense preparedness activity (see definition in statute regarding public utilities towards end of Military & Veterans Code) where that failure resulted in injury or death in addition to damage or destruction of the defense preparedness activity: just more instances of unfair competition in time of war.
In fact, I do believe that under statute, a fire-damaged homeowner described above could claim unfair competition ON BEHALF OF ALL OTHERS similarly damaged/injured under the same fact pattern...
See? There's all kinds of fun&profit stuff in the County Law Library...
Response to post #17: I do not know the ins and outs of such litigation and defer to your expertise. Best, Don Bauder
On #18:
Well, just don't give me a soapbox!
Still, it would seem to be a good idea for anybody worried about power lines breaking in the future and burning down the house to mail (not phone) something to the local public utility (with copy mailed to self) that he or she saw something about the nearby power line that needed maintenance BEFORE the next wildfire... just in case.
Just call it a good personal business decision, like a form of self-insurance.
After all, when was the last time any of us saw an investor-owned public utility pass up a buck?
Manager to amateur boxer: "Protect yourself at all times!"
Response to post #19: I would also send a copy of that letter to the Public Utilities Commission. It wouldn't do anything, but at least you would have a record that it had been alerted. Best, Don Bauder
So our only choices are a crazy overly litigious troublemaker, or an establishment sleazeball in the pockets of the monied elite? What's the solution?
So our only choices are a crazy overly litigious troublemaker, or an establishment sleazeball in the pockets of the monied elite? What's the solution?
By rickeysays 4:51 p.m
Ill go with the "crazy overly litigious troublemaker".
Where now are all those in-left-field-looking-for-a-clue 'Aguirre Haters For Goldsmith Because He Just Has To Be Better' that used to frequent this Reader website? He wasn't better was he!? For them and others of their ilk I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so. And in this very forum/venue. To offer the group a little wisdom: the ultimately inevitable demise of our civilization WILL NOT be at the hands of people like Mike Aguirre; but of the likes of Sanders and Goldsmith. The kind of people whose 'basis of character' is dependent on the wind and ALWAYS for sale. The 'public good' is not, nor will it magically become, Sanders' true cause. Not ever. For that matter, isn't that phony-self-indulgent-brain surgeon Casey Gwinn in jail or something YET? Cripes, he's not going huh!?
Response to post #21: I don't agree with the first characterization, but since San Diego is one of the nation's most corrupt cities, it sure doesn't need the second fellow. Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #22: See response above. Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #23: The lawyers in silk suits who get the thieves off the hook are society's biggest enemies. The politicians who take the money of these lawyers and their clients, and then do their bidding, are tied for that dubious honor. Best, Don Bauder
All in all, it's the fault of the voters. We're the ones who keep electing these crooks.
All in all, it's the fault of the voters. We're the ones who keep electing these crooks.
By realnews
I dont buy that. The good people cannot compete in our system today because it is built around money, and to get the money (if you're not independantly wealthy-a la H. Ross Perot) you have to take contributions, and then to stay in office you need to pay back those contributions. The public employee unions have nailed that method of operation down to the T with the Democrats ( of which I used to be a life long member). Until the big campaign cash is taken out of the system there is nothing the voters can do-big money will just buy legislatures and elections. We have 535 legislators in DC, and 42,000 lobbyists-what does that tell you.
A good example of this would be the 4 initatives Arnold ran in 2005 to basically fix the problems we are now faced with, and the public unions doubled and tripled their union dues to crush those modest changes to improve the state.
When you have public unions essentially running government through monetary means, then you have reached a point where we no longer have a democrocy.
The city, the county, the state-they're caving in from these abuses.
Response to post #27: The voters are apathetic. This is particularly true in San Diego, where so many of the residents are really permanent tourists. San Diego is wide open for pickpockets; they know the citizenry is willing to tolerate a sticky-fingered establishment lining the pockets of crooked pols as long as it doesn't interfere with their golf or beach outings. Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #28: Few could argue with your basic thesis: the system is based on money. The crooks' lobbyists pay off the pols who pay them back with favorable legislation. The media look the other way. Trouble is, I don't think legislation to take money out of politics will work. There are always offshore banks. In San Diego, there are bans on private giving up to a certain level. But groups have found ways to launder the funds and evade those laws. I hope you can come up with a foolproof way to get money out of politics, Johnny. Best, Don Bauder
Re apathetic voters:
Both sides of my family were here long enough to open Lemon Grove to tomato farming around WWII and grow avocadoes profitably in Encanto Heights around Ito Court, but stepping back, I think you've hit the nail on the head by describing most of us as "permanent tourists". Nothing else can explain how San Diegans have been able to keep the blinders on while developer-led professional politicians flushed the region's prosperity down a very expensive pension pay toilet.
I trust that there will be at least some of us who will take the news as you've given it to us, apply some of that flinty bottom-line thinking about the opportunities for personal enrichment that illegal/unethical business operations present, and be personally motivated to go for it "in the public interest".
As far as I'm concerned, a little civil action "in the public interest" goes a long way to forgiving a longer personal history of not voting at all.
As far as I'm concerned, a little civil action "in the public interest" goes a long way to forgiving a longer personal history of not voting at all.
By a2zresource
That's what Randall Harold "Duke" Cunningham said when he ran for Congress (1988??) and it came out he had never in his life voted.
Response to post #31: There are so few public employees actually working in the public interest. Donna Frye is one. Mike Aguirre was another, but he got walloped in the election, largely due to the smear campaign against him and the establishment money pouring into his opponent. Aguirre had several public interest lawyers on his staff; Goldsmith is getting rid of them. There is no one that cares a whit about public service in the Sanders administration office. There is no hope that San Diego will tackle its major cancer -- developers owning the politicians -- any time soon. Best, Don Bauder
You don't understand. By definition, there is no limit to arrogance; it is a true psychopathology. Criminality is considered "legal" as long as there is no law against it.
And who writes laws?
Response to post #34: Excellent points. It's not only who writes the laws. It's how they are written so that the bandits can find an avenue to avoid them, with the help of their lawyers, who pay the people who write the bills. Best, Don Bauder
No, "a little civil action 'in the public interest'" means go out and sue somebody... especially if that somebody happens to be a corporation gathering its million$ or billion$ through something provably illegal, unethical, and sufficiently morally offensive to get one's dander up.
I'm pretty sure Duke Cunningham never thought of that, since he was having too much fun on the other side of the law...
Look around. The Crash of 2008 leaves good pickings for clever citizens to set their sites on the corporations that have arrogantly flaunted the laws for so long, long enough to leave a trail of paperwork documenting their violations, even to the point of actually waking up federal investigators to what's been going on.
Think of it this way: if we aren't prepared to exhaust all of our legal remedies especially when the corporate directors have left the vault unguarded through their illegalities and ethical lapses, then maybe we're not all that bright if we don't sue and collect in the public interest?
Without at least trying this first, I'd feel kinda guilty about picking up a torch and pitchfork before storming the castle...
Response to post #36: Trouble is, since the Reagan years, the laws have been rewritten so that it's much harder to successfully sue corporations. Almost half are incorporated in Delaware, where the courts are notoriously fraud-tolerant. Companies incorporate and set up trusts in states like Nevada and Utah. Not only do they avoid or evade taxes, they find the judges are biased in their favor. Judges everywhere, particularly in metro areas like San Diego, are entirely too cozy with the local establishment. Best, Don Bauder
Trouble is, since the Reagan years, the laws have been rewritten so that it's much harder to successfully sue corporations. Almost half are incorporated in Delaware, where the courts are notoriously fraud-tolerant.
So true.
The banking industry WROTE the 2005 BK revisions. When you have private industry actually writing the laws to be implemented (in their favor of course) then you have killed/defeated democrocy, you just have a system based on fraud. And that unfortunately is where we are today.
Big Business and public unions have raped the middle class out of their net worth-now there is nothing left. Teachers are making 6 figure compensation packages working just 37 weeks per year, cops and ff's are making even more with just a GED starting at age 21 (where does a 21 year old with a GED make 6 figures in the real world??).
Arnold (Dems) is asking for tax hikes, but what he does not understand is there is no money left. A sales tax increase???? When no one buys anything you don't collect any money. I am already buying the majority of my needs off the web, out of state, to avoid a 10% sales tax.
I am so ashamed of where the democratic party has gone to today. They used to stand up for the average working person, now they are killing the average working person by taxing them to death for the benfit of the public unions. Pathetic.
Response to post #38: That rewriting of the bankruptcy laws was one of the reasons for our current morass. The laws were recast to favor the banks, who wrote the laws. Debtors got screwed at the expense of creditors. This exacerbated the situation when the ARMs and exotic mortgages pushed up individuals' mortgage rates. This law worsened the subprime mess. And you're right. The big corporations and big financial institutions kept milking the middle class until one day they woke up and realized they had no markets left. It was both stupid and criminal. Best, Don Bauder
Sounds like the crooktocracy is back up and running like normal.
Response to post #40: I prefer the word "kleptocracy," but "crooktocracy" is mighty good and descriptive. Best, Don Bauder
"Serrano doesn't say it, but Goldsmith was telling him to follow the letter of the law, not the spirit of the law, for the mayor's friends. As intelligent citizens know, Goldsmith is a toady for the mayor, who is in turn a toady for the downtown establishment, particularly real estate developers."
If this remotely passes for journalism in The Reader, my worst fears have been realized. Rumor, inuendo, and unsubstantiated hearsay appear to be the primary sources for Bauder's hitpiece. Case in point: - "Serrano believes that a second matter he handled contributed to his firing." - "But I got word through an (un-named) intermediary that he wasn't going to keep me around. I resigned." - " 'It was very directly acknowledged to us that a list did exist, and I was told by several (un-named) people that I was on it,' says Calabrese."
And then there's Kim Urie's self-serving statement: "Those that were fired were the best public interest lawyers in the office."
Says who? and what makes these additionally un-named lawyers the "best" at anything? Let me guess. They were the best by defalt because over 125 out of 135 lawyers were fired, removed or left Aguirre's employment.
Citing Aguirre chronies like Urie, Burton, and McGrath as martyrs would be laughable if it weren't so transparent. Declaring a "cavalier attitude toward ethical caution" in the Goldsmith administration might raise some legitimate eyebrows if Bauder had ever written a similar "expose" on Aguirre's ethical transgressions - such as offering criminal immunity for favorable testimony in Aguirre's civil lawsuit against Sunroad. As it stands, this just seems like a basket of sour grapes.
Response to post #42: The people quoted in that column had every right to state their opinions, just as you have every right to attempt to refute those opinions. Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #43: I agree the people quoted have every right to their opinion, regardless of how wrong or misguided or unsubstantiated they may be. But the tone of the column seemed to give those particular opinions express approval and support as if they were fact. It simply read as rumor and inuendo passing for evidence and fact gathering. If all this is nothing more than the musings of a few disgruntled former employees, then so be it.
But consider the countless ethical allegations about Aguirre that surfaced during his tenure in office, such as the judicially recognized bribing of people with criminal immunity in exchange for favorable testimony in his civil case against Sunroad. I did a search on this website and could not find any similar piece by you digging into this (or any other) questionable ethical conduct by Aguirre. I appreciate your rabble-rousing style, and have for some time. But when it seems so selectively applied in the City Attorney context, one simply has to ask why.
Response to post #44: Your answer is that I thought Aguirre was smeared by lawyers in his office (mostly Gwinn holdovers), the Union-Tribune, some other media, and the establishment, which surreptitiously picked up the tab for many of the smear expenses. The establishment knew he was out to end many decades of corporate welfare theft, and they put the dogs on him. He made plenty of mistakes, true, but he was trying to bring reform. I fear other reformers will not surface for many years. What the mainstream media should have done is weigh his mistakes against his accomplishments -- say, the 30-plus investigative reports, which are generally excellent. Now San Diego is doomed to having the real estate developers continue to run the politicians when the City needs no more residential construction. It needs infrastructure and restoration of basic services. It needs sanity in City employee pay and benefits. But your friends belittled Aguirre's efforts to control the pension liability. Bankruptcy probably looms. Best, Don Bauder
Don, I share your desire for reform at City Hall, but I cannot agree with your assessment of how Aguirre was treated by the media and others. Those of us who saw Aguirre work from the inside wondered why the media was holding back, why was it pulling its punches? Aguirre abused his power and authority to go after his political enemies. Don't just ask the "Gwinn Holdovers", but those Aguirre brought in himself, like Rupert Linley. I really don't doubt Aguirre wanted to reform City Hall for the better, but that intent alone cannot make up for his own ethical violations. And as for Aguirre's efforts to control the pension liablity goes - Aguirre lost every court battle he initiated, and even incurred a $20,000 sanction at one point for shoddy legal work. Whomever may have "belittled" Aguirre on this effort had nothing to do with the lack of legal merit his case had.
On balance, I'll give him credit for sincerely wanting to change business as usual at City Hall. But I haven't seen enough positive accomplishments to overcome his fatal ethical violations and abuse of power. He's personally a nice guy, and I don't wish him any personal ill will. But also don't know how he still has his bar card. And I don't understand how you seem to gloss over these profound flaws so easily.
But I still respect you and your opinion, sincerely.
Response to post #46: I am the first to admit that Aguirre made mistakes. He alienated people who could have helped him. He did many things impulsively. But the media were hardly "holding back." They concentrated on his personality and avoided reporting fairly on the forces that were leading the city over the edge. I hope we will see an intensive study of how the Aguirre smear machine worked: from Mayor Sanders's office, to the U-T's editorial department, and thence to the U-T's news department. You couldn't distinguish U-T editorials from its so-called news coverage. All focused on these personality weaknesses and there was pathetically inadequate coverage of the real substance: the pension system's horrible financial shape, the city's liabilities, the possibility of bankruptcy, the fact that City Hall was (and still is) led around by the nose by real estate developers. And there is more. It may all come out in the wash. Best, Don Bauder
Don, I understand your frustration with the media not paying enough attention to the City's financial crisis. But I also think it's a disservice to refer to Aguirre's blatent ethical violations as mere "personality" issues. I know many people who left the office or were fired because they refused to go after Aguirre's political enemies using the power of the office - and then were afraid to go public for fear of what Aguirre would do to them. It is undisputed he offered criminal immunity to criminal defendents in exchange for their favorable testimony in his civil lawsuit. He was also reemed by the bench for is intentiol failure to comply with public records act requests of his office. These are not mere impulse or personality issues, but just a few of the unethical (and potentially criminal) acts of his while in office. If there is a smear campaign, can it really reach so far as the many judges that found Aguirre to be unethical or seriously lacking in legal judgement? Such far-reaching conspiracies are expected from Aguirre himself, but you seem far to rational to go there.
Response to post #48: I am not impressed that San Diego judges thought Aguirre lacked ethics. What about San Diego judges? Now there are some people who need really serious ethical training. Best, Don Bauder
Don, here's a refresher on the Tom Story prosecution from the Court's ruling:
"It is also uncontested that Mr. Aguirre himself took on the investigation of the cases, personally interviewing witnesses and personally offering them immunity for their testimony (in support of the civil case)."
It was uncontested Aguirre used his role as a criminal prosecutor to gain advantage in his civil case. This is not part of some unethical judicial conspiracy. This conduct alone could cost Aguirre his bar card. As for the $20k sanction for shoddy legal work on the pension case, Aguirre didn't fight it, but paid it personally - a tacit admission from someone who seems to fight every allegation made against him. And Aguirre's office admitted to non-compliance with the PRA requests of his office for dubious reasons. That judge noted:
"the City Attorney has casually reversed the burden in § 6255(a), stating "it does not appear" the public interest in disclosing the records outweighs the public interest in withholding them. It is the other way around: The City Attorney must justify withholding documents by a showing the public interest in not disclosing the records "clearly outweighs" the public interest in disclosing them, referring to the facts of that particular case. The error is compounded by arguing the balance tips further toward nondisclosure, "especially since you have indicated that these records of for personal use." The "personal use" exemption is repeated in the City Attorney's brief at p.18:24-25: "the balance favors nondisclosure because no public interest in disclosure is apparent."
"Access to public records is a "fundamental and necessary right of every person in this state" (§ 6250), not something to be brushed aside because a citizen seeks only to inform himself. More to the point, § 6257.5 prohibits limiting access based on the purpose for which the records are sought. These careless misstatements of law in the City Attorney's October 18, 2007, letter are alarming, but this court will not assume misconduct when a lack of scholarship adequately explains the result."
As you can see, Aguirre did not want to release public information about his own office and used "legal" justification for doing so that even a first year municipal lawyer would know is B.S., the hipocrisy of "transparent government" notwithstanding.
I seriously cannot see how anyone can gloss over all this as no big deal. I recognize others in public service may have their own ethical issues, but that is irrelevant to these and many other facts about Aguirre. He may have been well intentioned for the City, and others may have been out for him as much as he was out for them. But his conduct while in office must be judged on its own merits, and so far I have not seen reason to excuse it.
Response to post #50: OK, which would rather have: a Mike Aguirre who may overstep his bounds in his zealousness to reform a corrupt city, or a Casey Gwinn who stood by as official corruption was rampant. Gwinn stretched no legal rules because he looked the other way -- letting the hiding of false information from bond prospectuses happen on his watch; letting the Padres and Chargers completely outlawyer the City, and hence costing the City hundreds of millions, etc. etc. Gwinn ran a law firm for City officials, defending them whether they were right or wrong. Goldsmith has openly adopted that philosophy again. Yes, the establishment loves it. It can go back to siphoning money out of the public till. But under which regime was the City headed in the right direction? I think you and your ilk can't see the forest for the trees. Best, Don Bauder
Don, you are presenting the false dichotemy of it must be one or the other. I am saying we must judge people on their own merits, not "what would you rather have." I make no apologies for Gwinn, but your objections to Gwinn are abosulutely irrelevant to Aguirre's own conduct. While Aguirre is clearly not part of the corrupt establishment of City Hall, that does not mean he is not corrupt in his own right! Perhaps my "ilk" are too close to the reality of Aguirre to give his abuse of power and corruption a pass just because there are other problems in the public square.
Rock-the Tom Story case is NOT one you want to use to prove your point. It is very clear that Story was dirty-and the DA and PD Chief screwed the whole case up.
Story got lucky, plain and simple-so don't even think for a second story would not have been convicted if that case went to trial.
Response to post #52: Speaking as a journalist who has been raising hell against entrenched establishments for 45 years, I can attest that finding a lawyer or journalists aggressive and fearless enough to tackle the big money, yet pure enough to pass your tests, is difficult, if not impossible. Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #54: I agree. I spent a lot of time with those emails Story wrote to people in City Hall who had once worked for him. There was no doubt that he was doing what the rules forbade him from doing during this time frame. But he got help from the establishment-dominated, so-called ethics commission. The chief of police should have gone to prison for his role in that matter. Actions of the DA and sheriff, and others, smelled to high heaven. Best, Don Bauder
Response to #53 & #55: I am not defending Tom Story one bit, but this is not an evaluation of comparative corruption and ethics. What Aguirre did in that case was an unethical abuse of his power, not a mere slip of an over-zealous personality. Maybe you get one pass for that as a new attorney, but not a seasoned lawyer like Aguirre. If Story is a crook, if Murphy is a crook, if McGrory is crook, fine. But this effort to keep pointing fingers at others to somehow ignore Aguirre's many ethical and legal transgressions is curious indeed. If the goal is to bring light to corruption and abuse of power, then why not shine the light everywhere, rather than just where we want to look?
I harbor no personal ill will towards Aguirre. He's generally a pretty nice guy. But I also saw him in action first hand, behind closed doors. I have dozens of friends and collegues who have, too. The image of the martyred reformer falsely accused of wrongdoing betrays reality. And you don't have to rely on those who know from the inside to see this; the facts available to the public speak for themselves. It's just a matter of honestly judging the actions of each person individually on the merits. I really don't understand all the resistance to this.
I harbor no personal ill will towards Aguirre. He's generally a pretty nice guy. But I also saw him in action first hand, behind closed doors. I have dozens of friends and collegues who have, too. The image of the martyred reformer falsely accused of wrongdoing betrays reality.
Rock- you have stated this before and stand behind it. I know that.
The thing is if someone is not in the position you were in, first hand evidence, where you claim these actions went on (and I'm not saying they did or didn't) there is no way the public can determine the truth. They have to make their choice on what is public and facts we think we can trust.
Aguirre was the sole person in SD government trying to right this upside down boat-that is all I know. That means a lot to me.
But make no mistake about it-I do not condone abuse of power. I myself have gone to war with the gov on numerous occassions because of my beliefs and my sense of right and wrong.
Was that you suing the city of Poway, Johnny? Um, I mean Surf Puppy, um, I mean Billy Bob Henry...
Response to post #56: What do you mean, "all the resistance to this"? Aguirre lost the election by 20 percent. The voters turned against him decisively. He is hardly a martyr now. Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #57: Aguirre wasn't the only elected official fighting entrenched corruption. Donna Frye was, and is, in that category, too. Best, Don Bauder
Response to post #58: I know nothing about a suit against Poway. Best, Don Bauder
JF, what on earth are you talking about now?
Aguirre wasn't the only elected official fighting entrenched corruption. Donna Frye was, and is, in that category, too.
Opps, forgot about Donna.
Adding Donna that makes 2 who were going to bat for taxpayers and hundreds against.
Response to post #63: Donna deserves credit for many pro-taxpayer initiatives. Best, Don Bauder


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Messenger, shown in this artist's concept, became the first spacecraft to orbit Mercury with its safe arrival at the planet on the night of March 17. Engineers will evaluate the spacecraft's health over the next few days before it snaps its first images in late March. [NASA]
You are here
Messenger at Mercury II
Mercury is the bowling ball of planets. It's the densest planet of all, and it has the largest metallic core. In fact, the core probably accounts for about 75 percent of the planet's diameter -- more than twice the ratio of Earth's core.
Planetary scientists aren't sure why that's the case, but they hope to find out soon. A spacecraft called Messenger is scheduled to enter orbit around Mercury on Friday. Its instruments will map the planet's entire surface. They'll also measure Mercury's magnetic field, and chart the composition of its surface -- and that's the key to understanding the planet's structure.
There are three leading ideas to explain the unusual heft of Mercury's core. One says it was born that way. Another says that Mercury was born with thicker outer layers of lightweight rock, but they were boiled away by the hot Sun. And a third says the rock layers were blasted away by a collision with a giant asteroid.
Each of these explanations would leave its own unique chemical fingerprint in the rocks at Mercury's surface. So by measuring the composition of those rocks, Messenger should go a long way toward explaining the birth and evolution of this heavy, dense little planet.
Look for Mercury quite low in the west shortly after sunset. It looks like a fairly bright star. It's to the upper right of much brighter Jupiter, so it's pretty easy to pluck from the fading evening twilight.
Script by Damond Benningfield, Copyright 2011
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subset: commoncrawl


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Lily's making a landmark new friend on "Modern Family."
Eight year-old transgender actor Jackson Millarker will guest star in this week's episode of "Modern Family" as Lily's (Aubrey Anderson-Emmons) new friend, ABC confirms.
According to the official episode description, Cam (Eric Stonestreet) and Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) think they overhear Lily insulting her new pal, and have to take a "quick look in the mirror" before they teach her a lesson about acceptance.
"So proud to have directed this amazing kid," the episode's director, Ryan Case, tweeted. She also posted a photo of herself with Millarker on Instagram.
Remember These LGBT Firsts on TV?
"This is Jackson Millarker," she wrote. "He's 8 years old, from Atlanta, and just happens to be transgender. He plays Lily's friend Tom in this week's Modern Family and he's wonderful. One of the many reasons I love being part of this show."
NewNowNext was the first to report the news.
Just last week, "Transparent" star Jeffrey Tambor used his Emmy acceptance speech for best actor in a comedy series to urge Hollywood to hire more transgender actors.
"I would not be unhappy were I the last cisgender male to play a female transgender on television," he said. "We have work to do."
U.S. & World
"Modern Family" airs Wednesday at 9 p.m. on ABC.


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Orioles place Hammel, two other starters on ALDS roster
Baltimore, MD – Starting pitchers Jason Hammel, Wei-Yin Chen and Miguel Gonzalez were added to the 25-man roster as the Baltimore Orioles ready for their showdown with the rival New York Yankees in their American League Division Series.
None of the three were active for Baltimore's 5-1 victory at Texas in Friday's wild-card game, but each is set to start one of the first three matchups in this series.
Hammel, who has pitched just twice since mid-July due to a knee problem that required surgery, will take the ball for the Orioles in Sunday's Game 1. Chen will start Game 2, scheduled for Monday at Camden Yards, with Gonzalez tabbed to pitch when the set shifts to New York for Wednesday's Game 3.
Chris Tillman, a candidate to start if the series goes to a Game 4, was also put on the ALDS roster after being left off for the Texas game.
To make room for the four starting pitchers, the Orioles removed hurlers Jake Arrieta, Zach Britton and Steve Johnson as well as infielder Omar Quintanilla.


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View the photo gallery: San Diego Birds
The altered regional landscape has proved beneficial to some bird species. Artificial water sources like reservoirs and golf courses are a boon to ducks and geese, while lush gardens and planted trees have created habitat and expanded the range for escaped exotics like red-crowned parrots and the ubiquitous American crow.
Decades of development have significantly reduced the habitat — and thus the viability — of species like the burrowing owl, greater roadrunner and yellow-billed cuckoo. The brown creeper is a mountain forest bird. The firestorms of this decade reduced much of its living space to ashes.
Some birds are adapting to their new surroundings. The Cooper's hawk and red-shouldered hawk nest in nonnative eucalyptus trees and don't require lots of open space for hunting. Black phoebes are often found around people — and water, natural or artificial. Nuttall's woodpecker favors trees people like to plant, such as liquidambar and birch. The house finch, a consummate generalist, is the most common breeding bird in the county.
Among its assorted accolades, San Diego can claim to be among the "birdiest" regions in the country, at least according to an annual contest sponsored by the American Birding Association.
Last year, for example, San Diego placed second among Pacific coast counties with 260 bird species observed during the three-day competition period, trailing only Los Angeles County with 264 sighted species. The city of San Diego, meanwhile, was listed as the second birdiest coastal metropolis with 198 species, behind only Corpus Christi, Texas, with 217 species. Top three finishes for the county and city are routine.
Of course, winning the title of "birdiest" involves a bit of luck and a lot of field observers, but this region has long enjoyed remarkable and indisputable avian diversity. More than 500 bird species have been sighted and recorded here: natives, migrants and exotics. It's said no county in the continental United States is home — or at least stopping place — to more kinds of birds.
But that is changing — and mostly for the worse.
"People see the kinds and numbers of birds here and they are amazed," said Jim Peugh, conservation chairman for the San Diego chapter of the Audubon Society, "but it's the phenomenon of shifting baselines. They don't realize what has been lost."
In the 19th century, for example, California condors (Gymnogyps californianus) still glided in numbers through local skies. In the winter of 1886, according to one news report, hundreds of condors descended upon Warner's Ranch near Palomar Mountain to feast upon 3,000 lambs frozen to death in a snowstorm. In 1915, a colony of at least 1,000 California least terns (Sternula antillarum browni) could be seen nesting on Mission Bay.
Now, the condors are gone from the county and the least terns are on the federal endangered species list. Five other species that once nested regularly in the region no longer do so: the fulvous whistling duck (Dendrocygna bicolor), Swainson's hawk (Buteo swainsoni), black rail (Laterallus jamaicensis), yellow-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) and bank swallow (Riparia riparia)
The decline of these species and others broadly correlates with the growth and development of the county, particular after World War II, said Peugh. "Back in the 1950s, you could take a trolley to the end of the line in what is now North Park and it would be wilderness."
The county attracts and houses myriad bird species because it is also spatially and ecologically diverse, with wetlands, coastal scrub, riparian woodlands, oak forests and mountains, the last creating different kinds of habitats depending upon altitude and rainfall. The loss of much of this area to development and urbanization has been detrimental to the majority of local bird species, said Phil Unitt, curator of birds at the San Diego Natural History Museum and author of the San Diego Bird Atlas.
"Less habitat obviously means fewer birds," said Unitt.
Alone on the range
At least 70 species in the county — 15 percent of the region's bird list — have experienced decreased or contracted ranges in recorded history. For some, it happened long ago, such as the short-tailed albatross (Phoebastria albatrus). For others, the decline has been more recent and perhaps more devastating. The burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia) and greater roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus) are all in sharp, local decline, in part because birds that live and nest near or on the ground are especially vulnerable to disturbance and destruction. Higher elevation species like the brown creeper (Certhia americana) may simply find themselves with no place to retreat. Some of these birds are on the verge of local extirpation.
"In the short to mid-term, I definitely worry most about continued habitat destruction," said Walter Jetz, a professor of evolutionary biology at Yale University who has conducted bird studies in San Diego and is an adjunct associate professor at the University of California San Diego. "Despite the recent slowdown in housing developments, the next boom may be just around the corner, and it better be more controlled than the previous one. The tricky thing is that the strongest impacts may not even be direct and easily attributable but come from the broader changes that we have made to the region. Think erosion and fire frequency."
The increased frequency and intensity of wildfires in the region are partly the result of human suppression of natural fire cycles, experts say, and partly due to more troubling changes in climate. For one thing, winters are warmer. Since 1914, the average January minimum temperature at Lindbergh Field has increased at an average annual rate of 0.041 degrees Fahrenheit, or 3.67 degrees total from 1914 to 2002. The change has been even more dramatic in the mountains, said Unitt, though historical records date back only to 1940.
The last decade or so has been drier, too. The region has experienced multiple years of below-average rainfall and repeated periods of drought.
Hotter weather and less water have hit native forests and scrub hard, rendering them more vulnerable to pests and to wildfire.
Birds like the Cactus wren (Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus) and California thrasher (Toxostoma redivivum) suffer the consequences. They require specific kinds of habitat to feed, breed and nest.
Extended droughts eliminate species at the margins of their ranges. Briefer wet spells mean less time to repopulate, which results in permanent range contraction. In 2002, the county received just under 3.5 inches of rain at Lindbergh Field, 32 percent of the normal annual average. A subsequent study by Dartmouth University researchers documented the consequences.
"That was the year birds basically didn't breed," said Unitt. "Imagine what would happen if we got only 2 or 3 inches of rain per year for 10 or 15 years, which is beyond the lifespan of most small birds. Huge areas would be almost depopulated of birds, much as we already see in the Anza-Borrego Desert after a succession of dry years."
Climate change, of course, is not limited to San Diego County. It is a regional, continental and global phenomenon. The deleterious impact upon birds is national and worldwide. In last year's first-ever "State of the Birds," a collaboration of scientists and conservationists in the United States reported that global warming and habitat destruction were wreaking surprising havoc upon the nation's 800 indigenous bird species. Sixty-seven species were listed as endangered or threatened; 184 more were of conservation concern.
In a 2007 paper published in the journal Public Library of Science, Jetz and colleagues took a larger and even gloomier view. They predicted that climate change and habitat loss will cause significant bird declines and extinctions in this century: at least 400 species becoming endangered or extinct under the best scenarios; up to 1,800 species under the worst.
At the moment, there are an estimated 8,750 bird species in the world.
The actions of bird-loving San Diegans to positively affect climate change are clearly just part of what must be a larger, global effort. But there are other threats to the county's bird diversity that are more localized. Invasive species can be problematic. For example, the brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) is a brood parasite. It lays its eggs in the nests of a wide range of songbirds. The cowbird chicks are then fed by the host parents at the expense of their own young. Cowbirds are not native to San Diego — first arriving here in 1911 — but they are now ubiquitous and have been linked to population crashes of several riparian bird species, such as the willow flycatcher (Empidonax traillii), yellow warbler (Dendroica petechia) and Bell's vireo (Vireo bellii). Non-native plants and predators can alter habitats and ecosystems to the point that indigenous bird species can no longer survive in them.
Homes away from home
The changes in climate and habitat have not all been negative. Some bird species have actually benefited. Warmer weather has increased the winter range of species like the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica). The products of human development — lush gardens, trees where no trees grew before and reservoirs — have created habitat that has attracted or sustained flocks of species that prefer or require abundant greenery, fruits and flowers and water, such as red-crowned parrots (Amazona viridigenalis), western tanagers (Piranga ludoviciana), Anna's hummingbird (Calypte anna) and wood ducks (Aix sponsa). Another beneficiary are American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos), which prefer to nest in densely foliaged trees and dramatically expanded their range and numbers in the county in the early 1990s.
These species thrive because there are abundant, if artificial, sources of water and sustenance. Their overall fate depends upon it.
"Better efficiency in domestic water use and a change in landscaping toward different plants will affect these birds because they exploit imported water and urban runoff," said Unitt. "If all water, even local runoff, is devoted to human uses and none is left for wildlife, the effect will be severe."
Other birds are simply adapting to living shoulder-to-wing with so many people. Generalists like the house finch (Carpodacus mexicanus) and northern mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) have long done well in a variety of habitats, including backyards and gardens. White-throated swifts (Aeronautes saxatalis) and black phoebes (Sayornis nigricans) naturally populate rock faces, but can now be found on buildings and bridges. Imported eucalyptus trees are prime nesting sites for birds of prey like the red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus) and Cooper's hawk (Accipiter cooperii), neither of which requires wide-open spaces for hunting. The Nuttall's woodpecker (Picoides nuttallii) began adapting to the region in the late 1980s with the widespread planting of woodpecker-friendly trees like liquidambar, birch and alder.
Even backyard birdhouses have helped, said Unitt. "That's something of a surprise. I didn't think you would see many species using them, but they do."
Birds bring color, noise and life to a place. Having them in abundance and diversity provides both tangible and intangible benefits to humanity. A 2009 study, for example, found that in areas with highly diverse bird populations, there were lower incidences of West Nile virus infections in people.
But preserving San Diego's acclaimed avian diversity may be more difficult perhaps than in other places, said Kevin Burns, a professor of biology at San Diego State University and curator of birds for the university's Museum of Biodiversity.
"The challenge we have that others do not is that we have such a high diversity, both of birds and habitat. We have to preserve both to save both. In places that are more homogeneous, you can lose some habitat and not lose diversity. Here, if you lose a little, you may lose a lot."


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1,000th SKF S2M magnetic bearing put into operation in oil and gas
2014 July 18, 14:00 CEST
SKF has commissioned its 1,000th S2M magnetic bearing system, integrated in a stand-alone compressor for a natural gas transport application
Gothenburg, Sweden, 18 July 2014: SKF has commissioned its 1,000th SKF S2M active magnetic bearing (AMB), a milestone that underlines how the innovation is bringing enhanced reliability to an ever-increasing number of oil and gas customers. The frictionless, oil-free, low maintenance operation of the SKF S2M magnetic bearings has proved a powerful solution by bringing the benefits of high efficiency, long service life and low maintenance to critical oil and gas applications.
The 1,000th large turbomachinery installation brings the additional benefits of several advanced features. The bearing's more robust internal design increases resistance to harsh gas environments and also increases the range of possible applications. The magnetic bearing control system has remote monitoring and diagnostics possibilities that measure the machine's critical parameters, such as rotation speed, vibrations and temperatures. The mechanical parts of the AMB system are based on a field-proven design with mechanical interfaces adapted to particularities of an OEM's machine. The control cabinet employed is an industry standard digital E300Volt/30Amp system, a true workhorse in oil & gas applications that have accumulated over tens of millions of hours of operational experience. The AMB controller has been customized by taking into account all aspects of complex rotor dynamics of the machine. Also, a formalised collaboration process between customer and SKF local service teams has been developed. These were key factors that enabled the local service engineer to carry out commissioning of the 1,000th SKF S2M in a short period of time.
Success in this application depends on having the right people in the right places. SKF has more than 30 years of experience in magnetic bearings for oil & gas industry and a broad global presence with specialist AMB branches operating in France, Canada, the United States, Russia, China, Japan and the Middle East. This provides an experienced engineering staff that speaks the native language and understands local culture. The result is a rapid and efficient service in applications where time is critical.
For customers that need to increase the reliability and availability of their machines, SKF has many documented cases where 99-100% reliability is the standard. Many users have reported that the machine has operated for 100,000 hours without any fault related to magnetic bearings. Typically, MTBF (Mean Time Between Failures) is more than 40,000 hours.
High reliability such as this has a direct benefit to process throughput and operational efficiencies. When combined with the elimination of other drive train elements, such as the lubrication system and gearbox, an SKF S2M bearing creates major savings in operational expenditures (OPEX) along with a favourable return on investment of the original capital expenditure (CAPEX).
As a result of their robustness, SKF S2M magnetic bearings widen the operating range of machines. This allows rotation at higher-speeds and the capability to withstanding higher operation loads, providing the customer with much greater operating flexibility. This is why SKF S2M magnetic bearings have become an industry standard and a preferred customer choice for most oil and gas applications.
The world's first magnetic bearings pipeline compressor was commissioned in 1985 in Canada. This was followed by the world's first oil-free turbo-expander for an off-shore site in Norway. It was the French company S2M (then an SKF subsidiary) who pioneered the technology. It is remarkable that some of the early installations are still operating without failure after more than 25 years.
The expanding application range now includes gas storage compressors, polyethylene compressors, high-speed electric motor drives, ethylene turbo-expanders, power generation turbogenerators and many others. These machines are used by all oil and gas majors worldwide, from the African coast offshore to Siberian fields above the Arctic Circle, to petrochemical plants in North America.
SKF S2M's magnetic bearings were selected to equip the compressors and high speed motors for sub-sea gas application. The first world's subsea gas compression station with SKF S2M magnetic bearings is scheduled to be installed in the Åsgard field offshore Norway for 2015. The system was designed to prolong the operating life of the gas field and improve recovery rates.
With more than 130,000 units in operation, SKF has unparalleled experience in active magnetic bearings covering a diverse range of application areas: from small industrial machines to heavy-duty oil and gas turbo-machines.
Aktiebolaget SKF
For further information, please contact:
Press Relations: Monique Turner, +1 267 436 6836; +1215 801 8722; email@example.com
SKF is a leading global supplier of bearings, seals, mechatronics, lubrication systems, and services which include technical support, maintenance and reliability services, engineering consulting and training. SKF is represented in more than 130 countries and has around 15,000 distributor locations worldwide. Annual sales in 2013 were SEK 63,597 million and the number of employees was 48,401. www.skf.com
® SKF is a registered trademark of the SKF Group.
™ BeyondZero is a trademark of the SKF Group.
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- SKF S2M Magnetic Bearing (2.7 MB) preview


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LOVELAND — Chef Clay Caldwell, who has been displaying his culinary expertise for a month at the new mo' Betta Gumbo restaurant downtown, is getting ready to unveil his theatrical side.
Caldwell is aiming for a late spring or early summer opening of a new concept in ice cream that will feature fog, flashing lights, employees in mad scientist garb.
And made-to order ice cream created with fresh ingredients.
The ice cream shop – which has a name that Caldwell won't divulge yet – will sell ice cream that's frozen on the spot with liquid nitrogen while the customer waits.
"It has a twist to it, a lot of pizazz," Caldwell said. "There's nothing like it around here.
"We're going to have everybody in lab coats, black glasses and pocket protectors and play up the geek aspect," he said.
Fine restaurants have used liquid nitrogen in the kitchen for a long time, Caldwell said, but the freeze-it-while-you-wait ice cream concept is fairly new around the country.
The shop will go in at 202 E. Fourth St. in the former Tenfold Collective space – diagonally across the intersection of Fourth Street and Cleveland Avenue from mo' Betta.
Customers will choose their ingredients, starting with a base that can be heavy cream, nonfat milk, soy milk, almond milk or some other option. They'll add fresh fruit, caramel, chocolate or whatever flavoring strikes them.
Then comes the fun part. Caldwell said employees will spurt a controlled amount of liquid nitrogen (at 321 degrees below zero) into the bowl and mix it. In 60 seconds, it's ice cream.
The beauty of the model is that Caldwell doesn't need an ice cream machine or freezers to store ice cream, just coolers to hold the fresh ingredients.
He said the liquid nitrogen dispenser will reduce the danger to employees who might have been burned by splashing nitrogen when hand-pouring it.
And because it's made fresh, the ice cream won't need the stabilizers and other additives usually included to keep the product from separating. That makes it a "concept that I could live with from a culinary standpoint," Caldwell said.
The shop also will serve made-to-order crepes to go with the ice cream.
The space on the southeast corner of Fourth and Cleveland has become a bit of a landmark because of the 29 brightly colored doors decorating the wall of windows. Caldwell said he will leave some doors in the windows on the west side, where he'll add roll-up doors opening onto patio seating along Cleveland.
The rest of the doors might be used elsewhere in the décor, he said.
He also plans to add a spiral staircase to a basement party room and event space that could feature science experiments for children.
"Ice cream is ice cream is ice cream," he said. "It's how you present it."
Craig Young can be reached at 635-3634 or email@example.com. Follow him on Twitter: @CraigYoungRH.


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Download of the Day: Trillian Astra 126.96.36.199
Chat everywhere.
Our Download of the Day today is Trillian Astra 184.108.40.206.
Trillian is a fully featured, stand-alone, skinnable chat client that supports AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo Messenger, and IRC. It provides capabilities not possible with original network clients, while supporting standard features such as audio chat, file transfers, group chats, chat rooms, buddy icons, multiple simultaneous connections to the same network, server-side contact importing, typing notification, direct connection (AIM), proxy support, encrypted messaging (AIM/ICQ), SMS support, and privacy settings.
Without stealing your home page and with no other included software, pop-ups, or spyware, Trillian provides unique functionality such as:
contact message history,
a powerful skinning language,
tabbed messaging,
global status changes (set all networks away at once),
Instant Lookup (automatic Wikipedia integration),
contact alerts,
an advanced automation system to trigger events based on anything happening in the client,
hundreds of emoticons,
shell extensions for file transfers, and
systray notifications.
The latest version includes the following changes:
Changes in Version 220.127.116.11
* FIXED [Contact List] The event button is themed when it shouldn't be
* FIXED [Message Windows] Don't download wiki.dat unless the preference is on
* FIXED [Preferences] Flag older skins as outdated
* FIXED [Preferences] Mac icon does not appear in devices screen after newer mac updates
* FIXED [Wizard] Back button appears disabled on single wizard screens
* FIXED [Wizard] Increase password requirement to 8+ chars
* FIXED [Wizard] Remove basic information step from history
* FIXED [Wizard] Remove the old Pro checkbox from wizard
* FIXED [HISTORY] Trillian never syncs activity history that happened while it was running offline.
* FIXED [TWITTER] Authorize Trillian to Use Twitter account fails due to javascript error.
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The holiday of love is just around the corner, and the most popular presents are bouquets of tulips, roses, and other cut flowers. Throw in a bottle of Champagne or a lovely dinner, and the evening will be yours. Remember, too, that both women and men appreciate a beautiful bouquet!
To give the perfect Valentine's Day bouquet, select the freshest flowers, protect them from the cold when transporting, and provide proper care.
Whether you purchase your flowers from a florist, winter farmer's market, garden center or grocery store, look for bouquets with lots of buds that are just starting to open. These will continue to open over time extending the beauty of the bouquet.
Avoid flowers that are fully opened or with loose pollen. This indicates they are past their prime.
Tall varieties of lisianthus (Eustoma spp.) can sometimes be purchased at florists or bucket shops, or you can grow them in the garden. Look for seeds from online retailers.
Flowers from shops
Make sure to wrap the purchase before leaving the store. A plastic or paper wrapper will protect the flowers from cold weather.
Once home, remove any of the foliage on the bottom of the stems. Submerged greenery decays and rots, releasing fungi and bacteria in the water. This plugs the vascular system of the cut flowers, preventing them from absorbing needed water.
Remove the bottom inch or two of the stem just prior to placing in the water. Cut the stems at a 45-degree angle with a sharp knife. Cutting on an angle prevents the stems from sitting flat on the bottom of the vase, providing maximum exposure of the water absorbing vessels.
Place freshly cut flowers in a clean vase with warm, about 100 F, water that contains floral preservative. The warm water speeds the uptake of water by the flowers while the floral preservative feeds the flowers and prevents fungi and bacteria from forming.
Keep the vase filled with the preservative and water mix. Recut stems every few days to keep the flowers fresh. Remove faded flowers and rearrange the remaining blossoms to maximize enjoyment.
Further extend the life of Valentine bouquets by displaying them in a cool location away from direct sunlight, hot spots, and drafts inside the home.
Make a fresh cut on the stems of roses before arranging them in a vase.
Droopy roses
Roses, especially red, are a favorite Valentine's flower. There is nothing more disappointing than when the stem just below the blossom bends, ruining the bouquet. Fortunately there is an easy cure. Remove the roses from their vase. Recut the stems and submerge the whole rose – stem, leaves, flowers, and all – in a sink or tub of warm water. Leave the roses submerged for 20 to 60 minutes until they revive.
In the meantime clean and refill the vase with fresh water and floral preservative. Recut the stems on a slant, under water if possible and arrange the roses back in the vase. The now perky roses will last for a week or more.
Coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea) are easy to grow and are appreciated in the garden by bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. We humans enjoy them as cut flowers indoors.
Grow your own annuals
Don't limit cut flowers to special holidays. Consider growing a few of your own to enjoy fresh throughout the growing season and in dried arrangements year-round.
Select a variety of annuals and perennials that bloom at different times. The choices are many and you may be surprised to find you already have many candidates already growing in your landscape. Here are just a few to consider.
Annuals are an easy group of flowers to start with. They bloom all season long providing an ongoing source of flowers to enjoy. Zinnias are heat and drought tolerant and look great in the garden or vase. Select disease resistant ones for maximum beauty and minimal care.
Grow a few dwarf sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) from seed for late summer and fall bouquets. Consider pollen-free varieties, such as 'Chocolate Cheery', 'Pro-Cut', and 'Sunrich', which are less messy and last longer as cut flowers.
Include cockscomb (Celosia spp.) varieties with crested, plumed, or wheat-type flowers. They are heat and drought tolerant. Just be sure to rinse away any insects that may be hiding in the blossoms before moving them indoors.
Increase the wow factor in bouquets with lisianthus (Eustoma spp.) also known as prairie gentian. It may be hard to find in the garden center but are commonplace in the florist's cooler. The delicate flowers are one of the longest lasting cuts you can grow in the garden. Grow in full sun with consistently moist soil. Taller varieties will need staking in the garden but the extra work will be rewarded with beautiful bouquets. Look for seeds for tall varieties at online retailers.
There's nothing quite as fragrant as a bouquet of fresh-cut peonies (Paeonia spp.). Many florists will have these in season, or grow your own for years of pleasure.
Grow your own perennials
Add a few perennials to the list. Include spring, summer, and fall bloomers for months of enjoyment. Peonies (Paeonia spp.) have long been grown for their spring blossoms in the garden and for the flower vase. Many varieties are fragrant, adding to their appeal. Grow these long-lived plants in a sunny location with moist, well-drained soil.
Irises come in a rainbow of colors and make great additions to spring bouquets. Purchase plants in spring or rhizomes in late summer. Follow planting directions on the tag for best results.
Harvest a few roses (Rosa spp.) to display in a vase or combine with annual or perennial flowers. Harvest a few of the rose hips for winter arrangements and displays.
Plant a few coneflowers (Echinacea spp.) for the bees and butterflies to enjoy and to use as cut flowers. And once the petals fade the remaining seed head, cone, looks great in dried arrangements.
Liatris, also known as gayfeather, is a popular perennial with florists and gardeners. The spikes of white or purple flowers are long lasting. Use these for a bit of vertical interest in the garden and arrangements.
Grow a few hardy mums (Chrysanthemum spp.) for fall bouquets. This last splash of color makes the perfect fall bouquet. Select from the many flower sizes, shapes and colors for the season finale.
And don't overlook bulbs and herbs. The early blossoms of spring flowering bulbs provide a bit of winter relief. The fragrant flowers and foliage of herbs make them nice fillers in bouquets. And harvest a few evergreen sprigs, hosta leaves and lady's mantle (Alchemilla spp.) for greenery. Force a few flowering shrub branches to add form and color to your spring bouquets.
Flowers from the garden
Extend the beauty of cut flowers from the garden with proper harvesting and conditioning. Harvest the flowers early in the morning when the plants are crisp and full of water. Use sharp shears to make the cut.
Collect flowers with buds that are just starting to open. When back in the house remove the bottom leaves, cut the stem and place in warm water for several hours or better yet overnight. Recut the stems before creating the arrangement.
Bottom line, if it is blooming in the garden it is worth trying a in a vase. You just might be surprised.
A version of this article appeared in a January/February 2017 print edition of State-by-State Gardening.
Photography courtesy of Pixabay.com, assy/Pixabay.com, Nile/Pixabay.com, Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp, elm98/canstockphoto.com.