By David Magallanes/ Guest contributor Wikipedia, the online free (but very informative) encyclopedia, defines what I practice: Pescetarianism is the practice of a diet that includes seafood, and excludes other animals. In addition to fish and/or shellfish, a pescetarian diet typically…
Category: Opinion
Groups present redistricting workshop on June 18
In preparation for the California Redistricting Commission public hearing, a redistricting workshop will be held from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Saturday, June 18 at Driffill Elementary School, 910 So. E St., Oxnard. The commission has submitted an initial proposal that…
Commentary: Toes in the sand. Nose in a book
By Mona AlvaradoFrazier /Guest contributor This catchy headline is the title for Border’s summer book list. Now if we could just find the time to read the entire list and have the money to buy all the books. Since that’s…
Commentary: Das Williams says no to Ormond Beach project
Dear Friends, A proposed 1,500-unit housing project adjacent to Ormond Beach in South Oxnard will be before the City Council on Tuesday, June 14. I have strongly opposed this project and continue to do so, joining the Environmental Defense Center (EDC),…
Latino Links: Political Trends
The proposed redistricting for California is a “Worst-Case Scenario” for Latinos in California, according to a news report on June 11 by New American Media. The first batch of political maps by California’s new Citizens Redistricting Commission is having exactly the…
Public hearing set June 15 on Edison’s proposed $3.6 billion rate increase
The community is asked to voice its opposition to a proposed $3.6 billion rate increase by Southern California Edison at a California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) hearing from 2 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, June 15 at the Oxnard City Hall…
Commentary: The joys and challenges of living in the most beautiful city in the world
By Boyd Lemon / Guest columnist I lived in Paris for most of a year — from June 2010 to April 2011 — a dream I shared with many people for a long time. I found living in Paris full…
Commentary: The Kiss
By David Magallanes/ Guest columnist Walking into my home, you might suddenly get the feeling that you’d entered an art museum. Before you jump to any conclusions, I can’t draw or paint my way out of a paper bag. But my…
Commentary: SouthShore development deserves a yes vote from Oxnard Council
By Maria Elena Cruz / Member LULAC District Board In a few days the Oxnard City Council will make a crucial decision — whether to approve or deny an important new proposed community development in South Oxnard. Your involvement as…
Commentary: Summer reads for teens
By Mona AlvaradoFrazier /Guest contributor Secretary of Education Arne Duncan described summer learning loss as “devastating.” Researchers often refer to this loss as the “summer slide.” Studies show that students’, who read more, read better; they also write better, spell…
Community urged to call in to fight Oxnard redistricting
Oxnard residents are being urged to call the California Redistricting Commission to voice their opposition to a proposal that would split Oxnard into two Assembly District. Half of Oxnard’s residents, as well as Santa Paula and Fillmore, would be split and go…
Guest column: Getaway — The jewell of the Central Coast
By Boyd Lemon / Guest columnist Last week I suggested downtown Ventura as a getaway for my 805 amigos who need to get away for a couple of days, but didn’t want to get on an airplane or drive for…
Guest column: What do men want?
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist In 2000, Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt starred in the romantic comedy “What Women Want.” As the movie progresses toward its happy ending, Mel’s character, Nick Marshall, brings his Martian orbit closer to that of…
Review: Summer reads for children
By Mona AlvaradoFrazier / Guest contributor Studies show that children who read four or more books over the summer fare better on reading-comprehension tests in the fall than their peers who read one or no books. Here are some Américas…
Guest column: A perfect weekend in downtown Ventura
By Boyd Lemon / Guest columnist Sometimes after weeks or months of the weekly grind, you just need to get away from your everyday life — to recharge. If you live in the 805 outside downtown Ventura, the perfect weekend getaway…
Guest column: Unconditional support
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist If we stay tuned to the cosmos in which we’re immersed, we will occasionally punch through the veil that separates us from the essence of all that is real, in the truest sense of the…
BPA in baby products bill passes key Assembly vote
Assemblymember Das Williams (D-Santa Barbara) provided a key floor vote and co-authorship for proposed legislation that would restrict the use of Bispenol-A (BPA) in certain baby products, Williams reported Tuesday in a media release. “I am pleased to co-author this…
Review: ‘Folsom Lockdown’ – Book of Poetry
By Mona AlvaradoFrazier / Guest contributor A few days ago, I had the pleasure of hearing Melinda Palacios read several of her poems. She was a guest poet at the Carnegie Museum’s 2011 Arcade Poetry Series in Oxnard. I’m a…
Guest column: A path to non-retirement
My father retired, suffered from lack of purpose and, depressed, died four years later. He had even started drinking in his final days, though I had never known him to touch a drop of alcohol. He had to retire (company…
Guest column: Just asking for it
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist “Why me?” we must have said to ourselves at one point or another in our lives. Or maybe we always say that to ourselves. Think of the person in the parking lot driving the truck…
Guest column: Life on The Avenue
By Boyd Lemon / Guest columnist I agonized over what to write about in my first column for Amigos 805. There are so many serious issues facing us: Osama Bin Laden, the economy, immigration, health care. There’s no end. The…
Guest column: I’ll take that…
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist Would you like death or taxes with that? That’s how it feels sometimes as I write out quarterly checks for estimated taxes to the state and federal tax collection agencies. After going through this tasteless…
Guest column: My Dreams, My Advisors
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist In the past, I’ve made some pretty big life decisions based on my dreams. I consider my dreams to be my “advisors” who know me far beyond anything I can imagine. They know my inner…
Guest column: If I were a woman …
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist I’ve often wondered what life is like for women. It can’t be easy — not that it’s easy for men, either. But I don’t believe we men can ever fathom the universe in which women…
Author/columnist Lopez to speak April 25 in Thousand Oaks
Distinguished Speakers Series presents Steve Lopez, 8 p.m., Fred Kavli Theatre, Thousand Oaks Civic Arts, 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks. The award-winning journalist and author of “The Soloist” joined the staff of the Los Angeles Times in May 2001 after…
Guest column: Are we clinging to our jobs?
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist In a recent Beetle Bailey cartoon1 in my local newspaper, General Halftrack walks into headquarters and sees his two female secretaries in full party mode. He asks, “Champagne? Party hats? Decorations? What day is this?!”…
Guest column: World War II fathers
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist A few weeks ago I was meeting with two of my literary friends. One of the writers was telling us about the contentious relationship she had had with her father, who had since died, but…
Commentary: Americans’ investment sentiment revealed
Americans believe technology and gold will be top-performing investments in 2011 As Americans move past the economic downturn and begin considering plans for investing in the coming year, many believe that technology stocks and gold will set the pace for…
Movie review: To love or hate “The Adjustment Bureau”
By Mariana Llamas-Cendon / Amigos805.com I recently read the opinions of critics about “The Adjustment Bureau” and I found them a bit unbalanced and in fact, quite uncertain. “The Adjustment Bureau” stars Matt Damon and Emily Blunt and is based…
Guest column: Keys and souls
By David Magallanes / guest columnist Some of my best ideas occur to me as I run. I’ve been an avid runner since my teen years. As long as I can keep enough focus on running while I’m thinking to…
Guest column: Just who do we think we are?
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist I’m fascinated by the whole topic of personal uniqueness. We’re all somewhat aware of it. Certainly, everyone in our home or in our office or in our classroom is different. In fact, very different,…
Guest column: Roses for a daughter
On the day before Valentine’s Day last month, I took roses to my married daughter. I buy her flowers every Valentine’s Day because I want to show her that I honor her, and that I will always love her, more…
Guest column: Cosmic laws
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist I’ll admit, I was not a normal adolescent. As a teenager growing up in a Los Angeles suburb, I would spend hours underneath the night sky. Or at least as “night” as it would get…
Guest column: Why did he paint?
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist I was at home one day this past week, immersed in tasks (I tend to dive—headfirst—right into them) that I was knocking off my to-do list when my cousin Phil called. Phil and I grew…
Guest column: Poverty and language
By David Magallanes / Guest Columnist I’ve lived around both English and Spanish all my life. I can’t help but feel that the Spanish language is much more conscious of poverty than is English. I believe that poverty is wired…
Lois Capps: House budget bad for California’s security
Cuts to port and border security endanger safety and hurt economy The seven month spending bill passed by the House last month would weaken California’s security by reducing funding for critical security grant programs, Rep. Lois Capps, D-Santa Barbara, stated…
Guest column: The Mexican Experience of an American
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist Tonight I attended a rosary for the father of some friends that I have known for many years. These friends make up a large American family of Mexican origins with an honorable reputation in the…
Guest column: The craft of wishing
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist I’ve always enjoyed walking through a bookstore, perusing the books on the shelves, just as I used to do as a child when my father would take me with him to the Los Angeles…
Latino Links: Digital Media Trends
By Frank X. Moraga / Amigos805.com The power of Latinos on the Internet is being debated in couple of reports released recently. Latinos are less likely than whites to access the Internet, have a home broadband connection or own a…
Guest column: Putting out fires, or lighting up our world?
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist In his book, “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,” Stephen Covey challenges his readers to consider using his “Time Management Matrix,” which consists of four quadrants. We can occupy our time performing tasks…
Commentary: The ebb and flow of immigration to the U.S.
By Frank X. Moraga / Amigos805.com The number of undocumented immigrants coming the U.S. remained virtually unchanged in 2010 (11.2 million) over the prior year, according to new estimates by the Pew Hispanic Center. While the report focused on the…
Guest Column: Our thoughts, our money, our life
By David Magallanes / Guest columnist According to the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, lifestyle is defined as “A way of life or style of living that reflects the attitudes and values of a person or group.” A…
Commentary: Community advocate shared her strong spirit on a number of causes
Memorial service set for Feb. 5 for Avie Guerra By Frank X. Moraga / Amigos805 It was with much sadness that we learned this week of the passing of Marie Avelina Guerra. “Avie,” as we all knew her, was a strong…
Commentary: Community deserves freedom to choose medical providers
In a very short time, thousands of residents in the County of Ventura will be enrolled in a new Medi-Cal managed care program called the Gold Coast Health Plan. Many patients will be assigned to a doctor not necessarily of…
Commentary: Looking forward to a more prosperous year
Giving thanks for gift of friends, family By Frank X. Moraga / Amigos805 As we come to the end of 2010, we look back on a very challenging year for all of us. Many business owners and 805 residents kept…
Commentary: Getting a Mexican passport, the painful and complicated way
By Mariana Llamas-Cendon / Amigos805 Thinking about going to Mexico for the Holidays? If you are a Mexican citizen, whether by naturalization or birth, I recommend you first check to see when your Mexican passport expires. Otherwise, based on my…
Commentary: Time for Latino voters to get motivated
By Frank X. Moraga / Amigos805 Mid-term elections are usually pretty dull affairs compared to national presidential campaigns. Most voters tend to believe that it’s politics as usual, their vote will really not make a difference and they would rather…