Rotary
Club of Santa Monica
"2002/2003"
Rota-Monica
ISSUE NO. 1 July
19, 2002
OUR 81st
YEAR
www.RotaryClubofSantaMonica.org
It’s All About Turf, Turf, Turf
“Where are you from?” screams the gang member before
pulling the trigger. That question is the verbal calling card of 32 different
gangs in East LA as they protect their turf against one another.
Because of the high rate of gun violence in the Hollenbeck
Division southeast of downtown, RAND analyst and Head of Public Safety Jack
Kotkin, explained how a study based on gun violence in Boston was applied to
East LA. The purpose of the study, which was funded by the Justice Department,
was to determine whether the positive results achieved in Boston could be
replicated in East LA. In the Boston study, after implementing the
recommendations, there were no teenage gunshot fatalities for 16 months. In
Hollenbeck, which is only a 10-square-mile district, there are 70 gunshot
fatalities for each 100,000 citizens. Comparatively, there are 30 gunshot
fatalities for each 100,000 citizens in all of Los Angeles.
RAND used the acronym SARA as the basis of the East LA
study. Scan for problems…Analyze sources of violence…Respond with appropriate
intervention…Assess the response. A multidisciplinary team of law enforcement,
clergy, educators, probation officers and others addressed each of these
components.
The problem was gang gun violence, but analysis revealed
that preconceived notions were wrong. Drugs were not the root cause, but rather
predatory violence of gangs to dominate their pocket of the neighborhood. The
response was to interrupt gang leadership, identify members and their roles and
instill collective accountability among gang members. Punishment included
issuing arrest warrants and increasing probation status checks.
Despite the dedication of scores of people, including some
gang members, the team’s resolutions were not successfully implemented. During
1999-2000, homicides increased by 30%. External forces were also responsible
for the outcome, such as the Ramparts police scandal and significant turnover in
law enforcement personnel. The simple fact that Boston and Los Angeles have
disparate cultures also played a role.
To the initial question whether a successful program in
Boston could be replicated in Los Angeles, RAND discovered the answer was,
regrettably, no.
Entrepreneurial Enlightenment:
Many of
you rejoiced last Friday when Dick Rice announced that Joey Perlmutter
volunteered to be our RotaMonica Editor. Editorship is an honorable station.
Several of us have done it twice! Or More. It is a great vehicle for new
members to rapidly become assimilated into our Club and its doings. Please help
Joey with early submissions of your announcements and news.
What Joey did was another example of Club Spirit and
Volunteerism.
The world needs more of this!
The happiest times in my career have come not so much from
the profit or success side, but from the giving back. Alfred Adler, father of
Adlerian psychology and a student of Freud pointed out the wisdom of thinking in
terms of logical consequences. The behaviors that we project are often logical
consequences of that which has been done before. If a child does not want to
dress for school, then they are taken to school in their PJ's. The logical
consequence of not dressing for school is going in nightclothes, etc. If the
child does not want to eat their lunch, then it is saved for them for their next
meal, and they eat their lunch food at dinner, and so on.
So it is for volunteerism. The logical consequence of
saying yes to a voluntary task is that one's community, religious organization
or service club benefits. Not to mention how much better one feels about what
they are doing for their group or enhancing their own feelings of self worth.
Joey said yes! She filled a need in our Club. She
volunteered. Now we have a news organ again that makes the club stronger and
gives us a sense of our involvement as it tells us of what is ahead. Dave Rimer
has some extra-ordinary speakers planned for us and I would hate for you to miss
one.
Now, with Joey's help, we will be able to see what
'Previews of Coming Attractions' are for our Fridays.
Plus all the news that is fit to print.
Thanks Joey and thank all of you for being people who give
back, the logical consequence is for you to feel better about yourselves, our
community and Rotary.
Make it a Great week!
Bill
Of Significance
Congratulations to Hal Quigley. He was presented with a
tribute from the Mazatlan Rotary on the occasion of its 75th anniversary, which
coincided with Santa Monica’s 80th.
Recognition as Assistant District Govenor was officially
pinned on John Lehne.
A good deed was shared by all when Karim Jaude presented a
check for $1,290 to Jay Goldringer, the founder of Food on Foot. This
all—volunteer organization feeds the homeless in Venice and Hollywood. The able
food recipients are put to work collecting trash and are paid with food. The
oldest recipient of Food on Foot is a remarkable 105 years old.
Condolences were expressed at the passing of Forrest Freed,
the vision behind establishing Rotary Sister Cities across the nation and the
world.
The Welcome Mat
Visiting Rotarians were Washington Byron, MD, from nearby
Century City; and Petra Haffler, from faraway Berlin North.
Guests of Rotarians were welcomed by all: Mark Dawson, Jay
Goldringer, Linda Tisherman, Mike Hyler, and Vivian Rivas.
Fine Time
Rosemary Regalbuto will shell out $105 because her husband
Joe had the gall to get his photo in the newspaper three times. One photo
snapped him performing in The Odd Couple, but another photo revealed him
standing with two other women. That’s probably what upped the fine.
“Celebrate America” was the reason why Susan Dawson and
Chris Lawson were each fined $50. Good deeds are priceless.
Herb Roney will be $175 short because of his lofty
ambitions. He’s running for a post on the Board of Trustees at Santa Monica
College. After buttonholing most of the lunch crowd, he did a little
grandstanding (quite literally) by getting on a chair to pitch his credentials
to the assembly.
$25 will be accepted from Harris Levy for his unauthorized
verbal performance of Home On The Range. On key, though.
On The Agenda
