Cleanup is continuing in the Santa Cruz harbor, while officials have revised the toll of damages resulting from the tsunami. Originally estimated at $17 million, damages are now believed to be $22.5 million to the docks and $4 million to the boats. A more precise assessment of the damages will be made today, after FEMA representatives tour the site.
Articles by Danny Wool
Anti-Semitism At UCSC?
The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights has launched an extensive investigation into allegations of anti-Semitism on the UCSC campus. The investigation comes in the wake of a 2009 complaint by lecturer Tammi Rossman-Benjamin. Rossman-Benjamin, who teaches Hebrew on campus, has also published a paper titled “Anti-Zionism and the Abuse of Academic Freedom: A Case Study at the University of California, Santa Cruz.” According to her, no other group on campus has been subjected to “such hostile and demonizing criticism” as Jewish students.
Cleanup Underway at Santa Cruz Harbor
Cleanup is underway in the wake of the tsunami that hit the Santa Cruz Yacht Harbor on Friday. According to the Coast Guard, 18 boats sank during the surge, and the harbor suffered about $17 million in damages. As a result of the damage, no vessels are allowed entry into the harbor without the explicit permission of the Coast Guard. There is, as yet, no estimate as to when the harbor will be open to normal traffic. Crews are expected to remain on site through the end of the week.
Tsunami Warning: Roads to Santa Cruz Beach Flats Closed
Several waterside roads in Santa Cruz have been closed due to tsunami warnings. Roads closed include Beach Street near the Wharf, Riverside Avenue and Laurel Street near Third Street and Pacific Avenue near Center Street. The Boardwalk and Wharf have also been closed.
A Surfer First for Santa Cruz
Plenty of people do it on their skateboards, but no one has ever done it on a surfboard, at least until yesterday. Zoltan Torkos of Santa Cruz performed the first ever kick flip recorded on film.
Silicon Valley Preservation Push Includes Santa Cruz
While the city of San Jose hasn’t hit a million people yet, the population around San Francisco Bay is growing fairly steadily. New developments, whether homes or businesses, are gobbling up available land at a pace that could increase frenetically if the recession ever ends. Silicon Valley seems to be focused more on the Silicon and less on the Valley. Now, a coalition of foundations and environmental groups are hoping to rein in development.
Maybe I’m Amazed
First, a confession. Wings Over America is one of those rare albums that I have owned at various points in my life on vinyl, cassette and even on 8-track. Today, I own it on CD and have selected songs from it on my iPad. One of those songs is “Maybe I’m Amazed.” The live version is so much better than the studio version on Paul’s eponymous breakout album, McCartney.
County Population Figures Released
The census results are out for California, and there are some surprises. The population has increased by only 10 percent over the last decade, the smallest percentage ever in the state’s history. As a result, this will be the first time since reaching statehood in 1850 that California will not gain a congressional seat as a result of the census. The census also showed that the ethnic makeup of California is changing. In the last census, whites made up 47 percent of the state’s population, but their number has dropped to just 40 percent. The fastest growing group is Hispanics.
UCSC Lays off Vice Chancellor
UCSC is taking some radical steps to cut another $19 million from its budget. The latest casualty of the statewide university budget wars is Vice Chancellor of Communications and Public Affairs Barry Schiller, who was informed that he will be laid off, effective Thursday. Schiller, whose base salary is $140,000, was responsible for media relations, marketing, and publications, as well as for the college’s web presence. He has served in the position for three years.
Breakfast Is Served in County Schools
Once upon a time, students were discouraged—or even punished—for eating in class. Mrs. McKinley, my eighth grade English teacher, could smell an orange from ten desks away, much to the chagrin of many of my classmates. But times have changed since then. As my classmates and I predicted, one day we will live in an age, when eating in class is not a crime deserving of detention or death. It’s already happening in the Pajaro Valley Unified School District.
