Author: Steve Boren

We encourage you to use this opportunity to make sure you and your family are prepared.

If you don’t have one yet, make a disaster plan. Stock up on emergency supplies, including enough non-perishable food, water, batteries, medical supplies and cash to survive independently for at least 72 hours. If you already have disaster supplies, check on the freshness of your batteries and water – they do expire.

To learn more about getting prepared, visit http://www.skakeout.org.

Greig Smith’s Office NewsLetter

St. Baldrick’s has raised over $74 million, with 130,000 participants in 24 countries since 2000.

For this event, Los Angeles Firefighters and Police Officers will shave their heads in solidarity of children with cancer and to raise funds for research and treatment of childhood cancer. There will be a free IHOP breakfast, magicians, face painters, balloon artists, music and Fire and Police vehicles on display.

Saturday, March 20
8:00 am – 12:00 pm
Fire Station 81
14355 Arminta St.
Panorama City

To support Capt. Kane’s fundraising effort or for more information, visit http://www.stbaldricks.org/participants/mypage/participantid/393675.

I oppose the DWP’s proposed Energy Cost Adjustment Factor (ECAF) increase and the additional Carbon Surcharge.

My support for clean and renewable power remains unwavering. I have a strong and consistent record of supporting sustainable and clean alternative energy and green technology in Los Angeles, including solar power. I have even installed an extensive solar power system in my own home. I have consistently supported green technologies and renewable energy.

However, amidst this economic recession, while families are struggling to make ends meet, it is the wrong time for rate increases of any kind. Additionally, the DWP has yet to come forward with a substantive plan for achieving our renewable power objectives. When they do, it will face the strict, third-party review that all rate increases have been subject to since my legislation was passed in 2006 which required that analysis. To see the motion, click here.

I will continue my strong and consistent efforts of advocating for rate-payer transparency and accountability at DWP. In addition to the motion requiring independent review, I also introduced a motion in 2009 to create an Inspector General to serve as an independent watchdog and ratepayer’s advocate on DWP rates and oversight.

This ECAF proposal and rate increase is yet another example of why we need an Inspector General overseeing the DWP.

Greig Smith

The Sacramento Bee

"New Assembly Speaker John A. Perez gave his top aide an annual pay increase of nearly $65,000 – about $5,400 per month – upon becoming leader of the lower house, records show. Sara Ramirez, Perez’s chief of staff, was one of eight Capitol aides receiving pay hikes or promotions from the Los Angeles Democrat on March 1, the day he was sworn into office, according to documents obtained under open-records law."

Read more…

"The tactic — known as a "self-executing rule" or a "deem and pass" — has been commonly used, although never to pass legislation as momentous as the $875 billion health-care bill. It is one of three options that Pelosi said she is considering for a late-week House vote, but she added that she prefers it because it would politically protect lawmakers who are reluctant to publicly support the measure."
Read more…

I don’t need to tell you prescription prices are through the roof. But here’s what you might not know: Big Pharma is buying off the competition so they can keep their prices sky high.

It ought to be criminal — and if the Federal Trade Commission has anything to say about it — it soon will be.

Brand-name drugs have a set amount of time during which they have exclusive rights on a certain formula. After this time, it’s up for grabs. At that point, other drug companies are free to produce the same drug, but without the slick brand name. Generic pharmaceuticals are generally significantly cheaper than their brand-name counterparts.

But the brand-name makers do so well with their inflated profits that they can afford to pay other drug makers millions NOT to produce generic forms of the drugs — leaving you no choice but to pay an arm and a leg for certain medications.

According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), that alone is costing consumers an extra $3.5 billion a year. And since the government pays for about one third of all prescription drug costs, it costs Uncle Sam about 1.2 billion extra per year.

No wonder the government is stepping in to put a stop to these pay-for-delay deals.

Never delaying my opinion,

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

I’ve said for years that foods need to be eaten as close to raw as possible if you want to get the maximum amount of nutrients. The "closer to raw" rule doesn’t just apply to vegetables — but to meat and eggs as well.

But the key difference between overcooked veggies and overcooked meats is that over-doing veggies makes them flavorless and nutritionally bereft, while overcooking meat makes it flavorless… and dangerous. The possible carcinogenic effects of overcooking meat and eggs are fairly well documented.

Cooking eggs and meat at high temperatures produces a chemical compound called PhIP, which many believe can cause DNA changes, or can metabolize harmless bodily enzymes into carcinogens — especially those that cause breast cancer.

Now, a new report by researchers at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health and Masonic Cancer Center claims that regular consumption of well-done, charred meats could boost the risk of pancreatic cancer by a frightening 60 percent.

This new research indicated that overcooking also created heterocyclic amines (H.A.s), which contribute to increased risk of pancreatic cancer, an especially lethal cancer. H.A.s are generated by the high-temperature immolation of amino acids.

The researchers suggested maintaining low heat while grilling, frying or barbecuing in order to cut down on "excess burning or charring of the meat." Doing so will help cut down on the cancer risk, since the burned portions have the highest HA concentrations.

This is something you should keep in mind before you fire up the backyard barbeque. But by all means, don’t let it stop you from eating meat. You just need to think twice about how long you cook it.

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

Long Beach Press-Telegram

Pretty streaks of green peek out from slices of white cake topped with hot fudge sauce and creamy whipped topping.
Prep Time: 20 min
Total Time: 1 hour 55 min
Makes: 15 servings

1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® white cake mix
1 1/4 cups water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons mint extract
3 egg whites
12 drops green food color
2 jars (16 oz each) hot fudge topping
1 container (8 oz) frozen whipped topping, thawed
5 drops yellow food colorThin rectangular crème de menthe chocolate candies, unwrapped and cut into pieces, if desired

1.Heat oven to 350°F for shiny metal or glass pan (or 325°F for dark or nonstick pan).
Spray bottom only of 13×9-inch pan with baking spray with flour.
2.Make cake mix as directed on box, using water, oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the mint extract and the egg whites.
Reserve 1 cup batter. Stir 3 drops of the green food color into reserved batter; set aside. Pour remaining batter into pan.
3.Drop green batter by generous tablespoonfuls randomly in 12 to 14 mounds onto batter in pan. Cut through batters with metal spatula or knife in S-shaped curves in one continuous motion. Turn pan 1/4 turn; repeat cutting for swirled design.
4.Bake 28 to 33 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Run knife around side of pan to loosen cake. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
5.Carefully spread fudge topping evenly over cake. In medium bowl, stir whipped topping, remaining 1/2 teaspoon extract, remaining 9 drops green food color and the yellow food color until blended. Spread whipped topping mixture evenly over fudge. Garnish with candy pieces. Store covered in refrigerator.

High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): No change.

Make the Most of This Recipe With Tips From The Betty Crocker® Kitchens

Kitchen TipsWarm the foil-wrapped mints in your hands for a minute or two to make cutting them easier.

Nutrition Information:

1 Serving: Calories 440 (Calories from Fat 150); Total Fat 16g (Saturated Fat 6g, Trans Fat 1g); Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 450mg; Total Carbohydrate 68g (Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 46g); Protein 5g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 0%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 10%; Iron 8% Exchanges: 1 1/2 Starch; 3 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 3 Fat Carbohydrate Choices: 4 1/2
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Politico

Computerworld

Rye bread for constipation? Researchers say it can outperform laxatives, but don’t load up on a loaf just yet. It might make for a good headline, but the research itself is less than impressive.

European researchers loaded some clogged-up Finns with one of several non-remedies: laxatives, buttermilk with some probiotics, white wheat bread, and enough rye bread to stuff a turkey. A fifth group got both the rye and the probiotics.

The researchers found the rye bread eaters improved "intestinal transit time" by 23 percent over the white wheat bread group and 41 percent over the laxative group, according to some bathroom reading I found in the Journal of Nutrition. The probiotics, meanwhile, did nothing at all — but that says more about the bacteria they chose than probiotics in general.

That might sound encouraging until you realize that these bread-eaters had to choke down around 240 grams of the stuff a day to increase their output — that’s around 7 slices, or more than half a pound of bread.

You could make sky-high Dagwood sandwiches all day long with all that bread. Too bad you won’t have any room left for the kinds of food that would really solve your intestinal traffic jam.

Rye bread is rich in the insoluble fiber the mainstream loves to push as a cure-all to digestion problems — but the fact that the cramped patients in this study had to eat loaves of this stuff to make it work should tell you they’re on the wrong digestive tract.

So skip the rye, insoluble fiber supplements, laxatives, enemas and everything else they throw your way. Instead, get some more soluble fiber in your diet from natural sources like barley, oatmeal and lentils.

If you still have problems when you’re sitting on porcelain throne, take a psyllium supplement. You can get it in nearly any form you want — pills, powders, wafers, etc. This stuff absorbs water like a sponge, so drink more when you take it.

Then feel free to smoke a good cigar and enjoy a stiff drink after supper — both of these aid digestion.

And for more tips on healthy digestion, take a look at the February issue of the Douglass Report, where I give you the lowdown on the kind of digestion protection that will give you a stomach of steel. Click here to sign up now.

As regular as clockwork,

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

I know it might sound crazy, but the best approach to prostate cancer is often to do nothing at all.

If you leave it alone, chances are you’ll never have a problem with your prostate — and the latest study shows that vitamin B6 could help keep it that way.

Swedish researchers studied 525 prostate cancer patients who got different amounts of this great nutrient. Those at the low end had between 1.3 and 1.9 milligrams daily, which is right around the recommended amount.

But some in the study received between 2.2 and 2.9 milligrams each day. And when you’re done reading this, you’ll probably want that amount too — because the researchers found that the extra B6 boost improved prostate cancer survival by 29 percent.

If that can help even one man skip the scalpel, I’ll celebrate.

Ever since surgeons and hospitals discovered they could make a quick buck by slicing and dicing prostates all day, the "early diagnosis, early treatment" mantra has been repeated so often that everyone just assumes it’s true.

They’re even willing to overlook the side effects such as incontinence and impotence, thinking it’s a small price to pay when you’ve just been "saved."

Sorry, pal — I feel for you, but you weren’t saved. You were had. Prostate cancer is one of the most over-treated conditions out there. On its own, its often survivable with nothing at all — not even that vitamin B6.

It’s time we stop buying into the Great Prostate Swindle, the biggest scam in modern medicine — and if B6 can help you do that, then I’m all for it.

You can get this great nutrient from many meats, fish, beans and peanut butter, and it’s entirely possible to get up to 2.9 milligrams daily from food alone. But doing so might be a chore — if you want the make sure you’re getting enough each day, choose a multivitamin with some extra B6 or work in a supplement.

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

LA CONFIDENTIAL
By Jack Humphreville

Red flags are flying as the City’s short term borrowings have increased from $150 million to $650 million over a four-year period according to the Controller’s March 1 Report. And needless to say, this amount is going to increase next year as the City attempts to close a budget deficit of close to $500 million.

The question: Is the City’s budget really balanced as required by the City Charter? And are the Tax and Revenue and Anticipation Notes (the “Notes”) a worthwhile investment? Read more…

One of the opportunities the Charter bestows on neighborhood councils is the right to present the Mayor with budget advice. Among the NC Charter mandates, this involvement with the budget process has generated the least enthusiasm. Until this year of city financial crisis that is.

Read more…

SCHOOL SHOCKER
By David Coffin

The rubber has finally hit road.

Despite all their posturing, Money does matter more than your child’s educational opportunities in the Los Angeles Unified School District and there is no more stunning example of that than the school board vote last month that quietly authorized the policy change behind our backs. Read more…
CityWatch

LA WATCHDOG
By Jack Humphreville

On Monday afternoon, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced a proposal for a Carbon Reduction Surcharge to finance Energy Efficiency and Feed-In-Tariffs for solar energy. This surcharge, which would increase rates by less than $2.50 for the “average” ratepayer, is expected to generate 18,000 jobs over the next ten years. Read more…

End of the Road for the LADOT!
BOX SOAP

By Stephen Box

As the City of Los Angeles grapples with the impact of the largest budget crisis since the Great Depression, it is imperative that departmental redundancies be eliminated. The place to start is LA’s Department of Transportation.

Established in 1979 by City Council ordinance, the LADOT was originally charged with “coordinating the City ‘s various ground transportation and related activities.” Along the way it has evolved and grown, picking up a gravitational force of its own, resulting in inter-departmental tensions and a city-family competitiveness at the expense of the community.

Read more…

LAPPL Blog

If your kid likes to throw a fit when he doesn’t get what he wants, he’s probably just an ordinary run-of-the-mill brat… but not according to the psychiatric industry. They want you to believe he’s mentally ill — and they want to pump him full of meds.

Shrinks are in the middle of updating the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual. That’s their list of ordinary character traits and flaws wrapped up in fancy names to make them sound like diseases.

One of the proposed new conditions is "temper dysregulation with dysphoria." Symptoms: "severe, recurrent outbursts of temper" that are "grossly out of proportion to the situation" several times a week in kids under 10.

Sound familiar? Of course it does — it describes just about every kid who ever existed. A parent’s job is to teach them, over time, how to behave like human beings.

But that doesn’t make much money, does it?

Shrinks want you to believe these kids are mentally damaged monsters… and they’re ready to give your child an early lesson in drug addiction instead of the firm, guiding hand they need.

But what did you expect from this shady industry?

They’re also looking to turn laziness ("cognitive tempo disorder") and anger ("intermittent explosive disorder") into full-blown adult mental illnesses. They’re even looking to reclassify teen "irritability" as a new psychiatric disorder.

Forget the shrinks — these new "disorders" are simply part of growing up. If you do suspect a real problem in your child’s brain, visit a neurologist.

And for Pete’s sake, keep your kid far away from the local psychiatrist.

Intermittently explosive,

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.