• Better Know a Candidate: Bridgette Moore

I want to state at the outset this edition of "Better Know a Candidate" that it will be different from others for two reasons. 

First, due to Covid19 (and my loathing of transcribing) this was done through email. Usually I sit down with the candidate and chat for an hour.

August Blog Regarding This Race

The second reason it'll be different is due to this little thing called "The Brown Act".

Since Bridgette Moore and I are already on city council, I can't ask her about specific items that could find their way to a city council agenda.

If endorsements matter, Bridgette Moore has been endorsed by Wildomar Rap.

 WR  How did you arrive in this area?
 BM  My husband and I were looking for a house to purchase and the last house our realtor took us to was our home in Wildomar. Because I moved a lot as a child and I wanted a place to call home and we have been able to put our roots down in Wildomar. Our son was only a year old when we moved to Wildomar in September 1998.

 WR  Having served for many years and knowing what responsibilities come with the seat, what are some aspects that many voters may not be aware of? The things you do in the name of the city outside of city council meetings?
 BM  Each councilmember represents the city on various regional boards. Since October 2019, I’ve been the Chairwoman for the Riverside Transit Agency (RTA). I’m the representative for the Southwest Communities Financing Authority (SCFA) for the Joint Powers Authority (JPA) for the animal shelter in Wildomar. 

I’m, also, on the LEUSD 2x2 committee where two councilmembers and two school board members meet to discuss mutual issues and concerns.

Bridgette hosting The State of the City event when she was Mayor in 2016.

 WR  You've been on council for 12 years now. Initially you were not going to run, what changed your mind? 

 BM  I started volunteering for our community in the year 2000 and after 20 years, I thought I would be ready to be done but then the pandemic hit. I felt this wasn’t a good time for a change in leadership. We need experienced leadership to guide our city, residents and businesses out of this pandemic safely.  I love serving our community. 

Bridgette, along with one of Dustin Nigg's daughters, placing a wreath at the Memorial Day event in the past. 

 WR  What is your day job?

 BM  I work in the treasury department for a mortgage lender. I’m at the end of the home buying process and my department wires the mortgage funds to the settlement agent. On a daily basis, I’m responsible for all cash management of the company, which is more that our entire city budget.

 WR  Wildomar has changed considerable since the freeway was built in the mid 80s, what is your approach to balancing the rural areas of Wildomar with the areas that aren't rural.

 BM  Our residents desire options for the type of housing that they want to live in and the city needs to balance these needs.  Last Saturday, I met with a local realtor and all her calls are for families that want larger lots and “breathing room.”  

Bridgette serving the campers after the 2019 campout in the park event.

We are rural and our community desires that lifestyle. However, we do need to provide amenities, shopping and restaurants and those types of developments shall be placed in the appropriate areas. District 4 has many ranches and large lots and my desire is for it to stay that way.

 WR  The topic of term limits comes up often, and for every level of elected office. What are your thoughts on the subject in general, and for Wildomar in particular?

 BM   For higher offices, I wouldn’t be opposed to term limits but not for local municipalities.  We do receive a stipend of $400.00 a month which basically covers your gasoline and expenses at various events. 

If the voters like the way they are being represented and want to reelect a resident, then that is democracy. It goes the same for voters that want a change and they elect a different person. Theoretically, we do have term limits because it is up to the voters to decide who they want to represent them.

As it's been said many times before, there is far more to the job of being on city council than city council meetings. Here you see Bridgette in her "ambassador of the city" role, donating her time at an event at Wildomar Elementary.

 WR  What are your top three concerns for Wildomar?

 BM  My top three priorities are: Roads. Wildomar has over 120 centerline miles of paved roads to maintain. We, also, have 50 centerline miles of dirt roads. Although, many of our dirt roads were not accepted for maintenance we need to figure out a solution that addresses these types of roads.  We just finished a paving maintenance project on 11 streets under the City Pavement Management Program. As soon as the project was finished, staff started working on the next batch of streets. As soon as the planning for the next batch is ready, I will get that information out to our citizens. And after that batch, will be the next batch and we won’t stop. 

Next is Economic Development. The council just approved a study to be completed by Kosmont. This study is an assessment of our community and will identify which businesses would be a good fit here in our city and for the region. With the addition of Kimberly Davidson, our first economic development director, and this study, Wildomar is positioned to attract new businesses, which in turn creates local jobs and increases our tax base that can be used for more services for our residents.

The next issue is litter and illegal dumping. Through various organizations, I have picked up litter in our city for years but in July, it really turned into a concentrated effort.  This effort has turned into a movement with volunteers coming out to help in their community.  I want to take these efforts even further and create a Beautification Committee.  This new committee would encourage input from our residents and expand participation. I would love to add some “art” to our roadways and have the utility boxes wrapped. 

This Committee could organize community projects and seek sponsorships. Along this line, we are seeing an uptick in illegal dumps and we need patrols, cameras and prosecution to stop these dumps. Over the past few months our staff has been picking up 5 to 10 illegal dumps a week! This has to stop.

 WR  You have long been part of many groups in Wildomar, for those that don't know you, give us an idea of the things Bridgette Moore has been part of during your time here and how that's benefitted the community. 

 BM  I first started volunteering to bring parks back to Wildomar. When we moved here the parks were open and a year later they closed. Myself and many residents fought for 7 years and our parks reopened. Meanwhile there were annexation attempts and I joined the Wildomar Incorporation Now (WIN) committee. I volunteered for 5 years for WIN. Not many people can say they helped a city to incorporate. 

One of the best ways to see our residents doing great things in our community, is to volunteer or join our local nonprofits. My son was in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts and my husband volunteered as Cubmaster and Scoutmaster, we were a Scouting family. I have assisted with many Eagle Projects and Girl Scout Gold Award Projects.

I’ve been a member of the Elks Lodge for 13 years and I was awarded the 2019 Elks Distinguished Citizenship Award. 

Since my grandfather served in WWII, I’m egible to join the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Auxiliary. I’ve been a member for 8 years and I’m the current Auxiliary Treasurer.

Bridgette Moore and Jana Vicario, donating their time to wrap Christmas gifts for underprivileged families at the VFW.

Soon after Cityhood, our residents wanted a Rotary Club and I am an inaugural member and the current President for the Wildomar Rotary Club.

Because my father passed away from pancreatic cancer and my mom is a survivor, I volunteer for American Cancer Society Relay For Life. Also, I’m a member of the Friends of the Wildomar Library, advisory council for Dresses & Dreams and the Co-Secretary for Cops For Kids.

I support our businesses and attend Chamber events, mixers and actively promote our businesses.

In 2009, I was awarded Community Volunteer of the Year

In 2012, I was awarded Citizen of the year.

Over the years Bridgette has helped immeasurably with local youth.

 WR  Any last thoughts you'd like to get to the voters?

 BM  It has been my great honor to represent our residents in District 4 and all residents via regional boards. 

Whether it is a question or a complaint, I do assist residents from all over our great city and I think I’m tagged on Facebook just about every day! 

I’m easily accessible and post my cell phone and email address constantly so that residents can contact me to discuss their issue. I meet with residents in person or on zoom, whichever is more comfortable for them. I’ve known for being responsive to our residents. 

My city cell is 951-219-0951 and my personal cell is 951-440-6796 and city email bmoore@cityofwildomar.org or bridgette@mooreforwildomarcitycouncil.com

My passion is serving our community and I appreciate your support. 

Please vote Bridgette Moore for District 4.

At Marna O'Brien park with The Beatles tribute band. Oddly, I've actually heard some of her opponents supporters badmouth park events, and I haven't heard Kenny Mayes say a word about it. Is he going to be on stage like Bridgette at park events if he wins, or will he aim to curtail such events? 

Opinion Time: 

For those that have made it this far into the blog, I have also offered a similar blog to Kenny Mayes, but he politely declined without explanation. 

District 4, it's your time to choose who you want representing you.

If I take the same rationale that he used with skipping the Candidates Forum put on by the Murrieta/Wildomar Chamber of Commerce, that he thinks he won't get a fair shot. In this case because Wildomar Rap has already endorsed his opponent, so be it. 

All that tells me is that's how he conducts his business. That he cannot separate his personal choices from his professional duties/obligations. It's called projecting.

I also had a resident that thought I should hold onto petty political garbage and support Kenny because Bridgette didn't endorse me in 2018, and that Bridgette and I had a (somewhat) rocky year and a half after I took the oath of office.

Sorry, but this election is not about Joseph Morabito's feelings, it's about who is the best to represent the residents of Wildomar. Bridgette is far and away the superior choice for the city and District 4 even if she and I don't vote the same on many agenda items.

It'll be up to the voters of District 4 and who they would rather be answering their questions and demands through phone calls, email and social media. 

•                •                •

Measure twice, cut once.

– Cheshire Proverb of the 19th century.

The measure of Wildomar Rap can't be determined by a mass produced device from Stanley.

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• City Council Nomination Period Is Now Closed

The die is cast for this year's city council elections. 

District 2 will have Dustin Nigg getting his second term unopposed, and District 4 will have two names on the ballot: Bridgette Moore v Kenny Mayes.

Bonus points for knowing the year of this baseball card design.

Commence history lesson

A little bit of back story when it comes to electing city council members by district instead of at large in Wildomar.

This is from memory, so try not to shoot the messenger if you have more detailed information than I present here... but your comments are welcomed both here and on facebook if you'd like to add to the story.

When we voted to become a city there were two options on the ballot. 

One was to elect city council members "at large" which means the entire city could vote for all five council members.

The second option, which won originally, was to create districts.

From what I've been told, the original desire of the city founders was to have the elections be city-wide/at large. It was felt that the ballot language had been misleading and that's why the districts option was voted for.

One of the first things the new city council did was put the option of At Large v Districts on the ballot. The voters then reversed themselves and chose At Large..

Here is the write up from Ballotopia.org

How City Council Members are Chosen in Wildomar, Measures I, J and K (November 2009)  

Three ballot measures (Measure I, J and K) were on the November 3, 2009 ballot for voters in the City of Wildomar in Riverside County, each having to do with how city council members should be chosen.

The City of Wildomar was a recently incorporated city at the time of the vote. The outcome of the votes on Measures I, J and K determined how residents of the city would choose members of the city council. In 2008, voters chose by 57% the method whereby a voter would vote for one council member from the district where that voter lives. The election on November 3, 2009 on Measures I, J and K amounted to a re-consideration of that vote.[1]

The choices were:

• At-large. This was Measure I, which was approved. Under Measure I, there are no districts. All city council representatives are elected "at-large."
• By-district. This was Measure J, which was defeated. This was the system that voters approved in 2008. Under this system, residents would have only been able to vote on the candidates running in the district in which the resident lives.
• From-district. This is Measure K, which was defeated. It would have meant that a voter anywhere in the city could vote for any candidate for city council, but the candidates must come from and represent a specific district.

  

  As you can see, the measures that would have supported going with districts were soundly defeated.
  

That vote would have put an end to it, but like with many things in our society the next step was the courts. I'm not going to get into the details, but the court case(s) dragged on for years and just when it looked like the final judgement had been delivered in the city's favor a new wrinkle came up.

An enterprising attorney from LA County started threatening lawsuits against most towns that didn't have districts based on his interpretation of the Voters Rights Act of 2001.

This had been percolating for a time and the track record was always against cities. There were accounts of cities that fought this, won, and STILL were told they had to pay the exorbitant legal fees of the plaintiff.

So even if a city were to win in court, they were going to be out several hundred thousand dollars, or far more. 

Read about how Palmdale paid out $4.5M and still was forced to choose district based city council seats

In December of 2015, during the Christmas break no less, the city got a letter from this law firm telling them to switch to districts or else. 

Though the city council had been fighting this for more than half a decade, they could see the handwriting on the wall and quickly took the steps to switch over to districts. That process took many months, with several public meetings, but in the end it gave us our five district map.

Use this link to access the city's interactive map.

Why have I given this short history lesson? 

Because the thought behind the lawsuits that forced so many small cities to adopt the districts method of choosing council members was hoped to be more inclusive and give more opportunities to minority communities that had been "deprived" of having a representative of their choice.

Sorry, but that's just hogwash. In any event, that's our reality and it's based on bogus claims of racism, but what's new?

After three election cycles, how has that worked out for Wildomar?

In 2016 there were two seats on the ballot, in 2018 there were three seats, and this year there are two more. 

That's a total of seven contests and of the seven ONLY two even were with more than one candidate, and you, instead of having the opportunity to vote for ALL seven, have only had the option for one (Districts 1, 3 and 5) or after this November, two seats (Districts 2 and 4). Most of the contests (5 of the 7) ended with the "winner" just walking in unopposed. 

So much for getting more people involved. 

History lesson over

Now back to 2020's contests... which there is only one, District 4 will have longtime city watchdog Kenny Mayes looking to take the seat away from one of the last two remaining original city council members starting in 2008 Bridgette Moore... she was also one of the key factors behind the push for cityhood.

Earlier in the year, it was understood by many that Mayor Pro-tem Bridgette Moore was NOT going to seek another term. I asked her about the change of heart and it came back to her dedication and loyalty to the city. 

Before Covid19 she felt good about the financial position the city was in up to then, and that she would be able to hand the baton to the next person without worries.

With the dramatic changes seen accompanying the responses to Covid19 and the deleterious affects it's having on the city budget, she felt a duty to run for another term. 

She asked if I would endorse her, and without hesitation I said, "of course."

Let's break this down a bit

Before she embarked on her 4th term, I was ready to sing the praises of Kenny Mayes for that seat. So what changed?

Not much really, but here's my thought process on it.

Bridgette Moore has put her heart and soul into her leadership position in Wildomar (which means countless hours per week for your benefit), and that extends many years before cityhood. 

If this were baseball (and everything can be compared to baseball) she's akin to a hall of fame first basemen, fan favorite, never goes on the disabled list, that chooses to play another season instead of retiring from the game s/he loves.

At the same time there's a triple-A player that has been burning up the minor leagues (Kenny Mayes) and his thought was he'd be taking over for the retiring hall of famer... or maybe just ousting her instead of waiting, I don't know you'll have to ask him for those kinds of details. (Allow me some poetic license here)

Do I think Kenny Mayes can do the job? Absolutely he can.

Do I think he'll do a better job than Bridgette Moore as a city council member for District 4? Sorry, but no. 

Most people will readily stipulate that he does put more time than anyone else into city council and planning commission meeting prep. 

He's done so for much longer than I've been paying attention to Wildomar city issues. He's also willing to do exhaustive research on issues that most of the rest of us either won't or can't get a foothold on in the first place. (Where does he come up with some of that minutia?)

The job of city council member is far broader than city council meetings.

To best represent the city, a council member needs to be ready to take on (at least) a couple of outside board/commission positions.

Personally I represent Wildomar at RCA (Western Riverside County Regional Conservation Authority), RCHCA (Riverside County Habitat Conservation Agency), alternate for RTA and RCTC. Those are monthly obligations with meetings (usually in Riverside) and agendas that have to be gone over.

From memory, Mayor Pro-tem Moore represents Wildomar at RTA (this year she is the chair of that board), Southwest Communities Finance Authority (SCFA - Animal Friends of the Valleys), and is part of a 2 by 2 with LEUSD.

That doesn't count all the other things, non city administration related but community related, that she is constantly occupied with. You don't have to like her to know that she is Wildomar. 

Reminds me of when I was a kid and I irrationally hated Pete Rose.

Second worst haircut of all time.
 Runner up to Sideshow Bob.

Just because I couldn't stand him or his team, his lame haircut or his hunched over batting stance, didn't mean I was blind to the fact that he was a living legend. Don't be a player hater.

Do I agree with her all the time? 

No, in fact I've disagreed with many of her votes. If you're looking for a candidate that is your political clone, good luck. 

True, it's not like she's been there to say "yes" when I've suggested a future agenda item... usually she's not for my items, but this isn't simply about her or me or any individual, it's about what will benefit Wildomar's residents and businesses the most.

Search Results

Web Result with Site LinkWestern Riverside County Regional Conservation Authority

Over the first 20 months I've been on the dais with her there may have been half a dozen votes that we haven't agreed on. Some of them pretty big, but it takes 3 votes to pass anything, and several times I've been the lone nay vote. 

Such is life. Once the vote is over, you shake hands, and move onto other issues in town.

All one has to do is look at Bridgette Moore's service time that she has put in year after year, for closing in on two decades, and I can't see the point in giving the first base job to anyone else.

Let's loop back to the history lesson this blog started with.

'Districts' is going to keep Kenny Mayes from making it to the city council this go round. A job that I believe he's well qualified for, but there is an even more qualified person already there. If we had At Large voting, he probably would have been elected in 2018. C'est la vie.

I've extended a "better know a candidate" blog offer to each candidate, and both have shown interest. I'm also willing to help both make videos if they'd like. 

Last I'll say on this topic here is that I'd like to see a Meet The Candidates event, and hopefully it'll be livestreamed on facebook. The moderator needs to be someone neutral, and in 2018 the Murrieta/Wildomar Chamber of Commerce hosted it at city hall. 

One thing, I DON'T want to see our distinguished mayor Dustin Nigg being at such an event... or shall I say, part of the event. He's not in a contest, and having a third wheel be part of it will only distract from the two that are competing.

Back in 2018 the event had the incumbent, me and then someone from an uncontested district. If you were to watch the videos of it, it was like a tag team against me. I don't want to see any candidates forum watered down by more than the two principles. Even in our Covid19 times, this should still happen.

•                •                •

Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.

– Harriet Tubman

Wildomar Rap is pretty much over great dreams these days, but isn't looking to interfere with yours.

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• RSO Volunteer Meeting Recap

It was a very well attended volunteer meeting at the Lake Elsinore Station (home of Wildomar Police), I'd say about 50 were there. 
 

Link to past blog encouraging participation in this program

It was standing room only, with a few late comers peering in from outside.
Photo courtesy of Natasha Johnson.

It was asked how many were from Lake Elsinore, Wildomar and the county areas. All were represented with about a dozen coming from Wildomar. 

We heard from Captain Lujan, Lieutenant Kent, Deputy Salcido and volunteer coordinator David Vawter  as they explained the volunteer program in greater detail.

Captain Mike Lujan, who serves as both Wildomar's and Lake Elsinore's police chief, answers questions. Deputy Salcedo looks on (left side of photo) as does David Vawter.

Though there was a volunteer program in the past for Lake Elsinore, this is essentially a new program for the station, and a first in Wildomar.

From the RSO website: LINK

Citizen Volunteers

• Citizen volunteers do not require the special law enforcement training of a Reserve Deputy Sheriff.

• Volunteers do not carry a weapon or make arrests. They do act as essential "eyes and ears" in service to the community while working with Sheriff's staff.

• Volunteers may work in a myriad of assignments including within their own neighborhood, at a correctional facility, in patrol operations, clerical support, investigations, accounting, computer entry and many more.

There are two levels of volunteers

Level 2 clearance isn't enough for patrolling, but is enough for work around the station, including helping with paperwork.

Level 1, where volunteers will be allowed to drive around in pairs, comes only after a thorough background check, and 40 hours in a volunteers academy (five consecutive Saturdays of eight hour classes). 

Both levels are expected to put in a minimum of 12 volunteer hours a month. 

Link to Lake Elsinore Station facebook page.

There are 29 questions in the pre-investigation questionnaire. Suffice to say, RSO isn't interested in having the criminal element in the volunteer program.

First question(s) in the initial application
1. Have you ever committed any of the following acts?
a. Arson, b. Burglary, c. Robbery, d. Homicide, e. Forgery, g. Kidnapping, h. Extortion, i. Embezzlement, j. Rape, k. Any other forcible sex act, l. Any violent assault, m. Wife beating.

They get easier from there, but after those, I'd sure hope that'd be the case. ☺

There was a bit of confusion among some of the attendees when it came to the point of the program. Yes, the volunteers can "patrol" their own neighborhoods, but many seemed to have no interest in any other duties.

Wildomar's "police station" is better known as the Lake Elsinore Station... since that's where it's at.

Lake Elsinore City Councilwoman Natasha Johnson was in attendance and she responded to those that were only interested in their own neighborhoods. 

She mentioned that one of the biggest concerns that she hears from her constituents is police response times. She tried to make the point that if a volunteer is available to help with traffic control at an accident site, for example, that frees up a sworn officer that can then respond to calls... possibly in the neighborhood of the volunteer.

I got the point, but there were a few that seemed only interested in cruising around their neighborhoods in a volunteer patrol car... which currently, there is only one for the entire service area. 

They really were just interested in an amplified version of Neighborhood Watch. This program is for those that would like to volunteer to assist our local police. Which does allow for patrols in your own neighborhood, but how long would that really take?

About two-thirds through the meeting, Wildomar resident Kenny Mayes asked a pretty important question: paraphrasing "If I were to sign up, would I have to get a haircut?"

The group had a good laugh at that, but the answer came back that all volunteers would have to comply with the department's grooming standards... which would ace me out too since I have a beard.

If you have interest in citizen volunteer patrols, or helping at the station, please call the non emergency phone number and ask for more information. (951) 245-3300

•                •                •

The less we know, the more we suspect. 
– Josh Billings, American Humorist

Wildomar Rap suspects none of us actually knows all that much.

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• A Bit of Real News and a Bit of FaceBook Drama

Let's start with something real.

Earlier in the week I bumped into Ken Mayes at Windsong Park. I had just driven by Marna O'Brien Park and seen that the Freedom Swing (the wheelchair swing) was not up. So I asked him about it. For those that don't know, Ken spends a vast amount of time researching things regarding our parks and I respect the effort, and his interest, even though we often don't agree on things.

He forwarded me a copy of a playground equipment report from an October 19th inspection.

October 19, 2014   

City of Wildomar 

Attn: Les Chapman 

23873 Clinton Keith Road Suite 201 Wildomar CA  92595 

Re: Playground Inspection of Wheelchair Swing  

Dear Mr. Chapman,  I wanted to thank you for the opportunity to provide inspection services to your City.   Enclosed you will find the playground inspection reports for the wheelchair swing at Marna O’Brien Park.   

Today, Mr. Dante Jackson and I looked at installation of a wheelchair swing to determine if the swing itself meet playgrounds standards.  The details of the inspection are located in the attached checklist report.  Unfortunately, it appears that during installation the swing structure was installed too close to the existing swing structure.  This has created an intrusion into the existing swing structure’s use zone.  The use zones are identified with green string which was measured out today during the inspection and is viewable in the attached reports images.    

Of major concern is the surfacing protection material.  The material appears to be located directly on a concrete pad and does not appear to be of sufficient depth.  A surfacing impact attenuation (head drop) test should be performed in the event that this material is going to be kept.    

At this time, the wheelchair swing does NOT meet playground safety standards and will require some repairs, relocation and surfacing impact testing prior to being utilized.  As Mr. Jackson and I departed today, one of your staff members was on site to remove the structure.    

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at 310.947.9348 or via email at steve@wilmes.co   

Sincerely,    

Steven C. Wilmes, PHR, CPSI, RSSP, ARM-P CEO

(The entire report is 13 pages and filled with pictures. Those interested in it, need to request a copy from the city.)

I'm a big "credit where credit is due" guy and Ken Mayes expressed concerns, over many issues with the swing, including the material under it, at various city meetings.

At this point, I want to point out the obvious. No one is trying to discredit Ashley Fox's idea for the swing or her tremendous efforts in raising the money for it. If you've read Wildomar Rap this year, you've seen that I'm a big supporter of hers. She did great. 

Also, it must be noted that the swing has been repeatedly vandalized, something I had been concerned with and had written about it after it was installed.

I asked Assistant City Manager, Dan York, what should I make of the report. He told me that part of the issue is that, though the swing meets requirements in the state that it was produced in (Ohio I believe) our California safety laws are different. There are a few adjustments to it that he has on the drawing board, and until they get it sorted out, the swing had to be taken down.

They also need to reorder a few pieces from it that have been stolen.

You can see where the padding has been stripped away in places.

It's a shame that we live in a world where people have to destroy things that benefit the community, but that is our reality, and we are going to have to make the swing safe for operation and from vandals when it's not in use. Dan York is the right man for the job. He'll find the best answer, and we'll see the fix soon.

•    •    •

Now time for the FaceBook drama.

First, let me say, that without the first version of the Wildomar FaceBook page, I probably wouldn't have gotten involved in the city. I also wouldn't have met many of my neighbors and others in the city either. 

That said, those of you that stay away from the Wildomar FaceBook pages (there are more than you can count these days), or facebook in general, are doing yourself a huge favor.

The Wildomar facebook pages are often filled with: things for sale; inane topics like "Why did KFC close"; or idle gossip and child level name calling. 

Imagine the dog head tilt look I gave a few people in the lobby of City Hall before the last City Council meeting, when I was asked something like... "Did you bring your gloves with you?" Followed by chuckles.

Ummm... errrr... what?

Contrary to popular opinion, I don't live on the internet, and since early Summer, I've left the various Wildomar group pages, since I find they are about a 90% waste of time (No Offense Sheila, Michelle or Kevin).

Check out the screenshot that my wife took of part of the conversation in question.

Hey Michelle, when it's in written form it's libel. When it's spoken, that's when it's slander.

Apparently, the accusation is that someone took down some of Gary Andre's campaign signs, then after the election put them back up. I guess to make it appear that he didn't take them down or something. 

Imagine my delight in reading my name associated with criminal activity. At least they didn't accuse me of child molestation or bank robbery... yet!

This topic had a thread of nearly 100 posts before it got deleted... still not nearly as many as the KFC thread or the Walmart thread. I am not part of that group so I didn't even know it existed. My wife is part of the FaceBook group in question, and did take a ton of screenshots with her Samsung Note II —I just didn't care enough to read through that dreck. 

Suffice to say, that having some failed local politician calling me out by name was the highlight of my day. I can't imagine how depraved a person would have to be, to blithely cast out such erroneous and libelous accusations. 

NO WONDER WHY YOU LOST YOUR RE-ELECTION BID IN 2010. 

The only "sick bunch of people" are the ones that LOST yet again. They have nothing of value going on in their lives, and instead of looking for ways to help the community, they look for ways to sue and divide it. Nice life.

As I told a few people. I can't imagine even thinking of such a stupid caper, much less actually doing such a thing. I then said, "If I had been 14, then I might have done it". When I was 14, it was 1979 and there were no CCTV's around. But I'm not a teenager, I'm a grown man with functioning reasoning skills.

Even if, EVEN IF... I thought of something as daft as that, I know the laws and have NOT forgotten the trouble that former DA Zellerbach got into for similar actions. For the longest time, I've assumed that there is a camera on every corner, and there is NO way I'd risk my good name on something so dumb. 

I'm sure I'll be getting a formal apology from Sheryl Ade any moment now. 

Hardy Har Har... I kill me sometimes.

It would take class to apologize... but someone with class wouldn't have made such an inane remark in the first place. As I was telling someone, that kind of comment was no surprise. It's what she does.

If, however, she would have posted something like: "Just wanted to congratulate the three top vote getters for a well run campaign. The electorate has spoken and even if Gary Andre and Israel Leija's votes had been combined... they still would have come in 4th. Best wishes." That would have been a surprise.

Thankfully she didn't post that kind of reasoned comment.  The utter shock from reading such a thing would have been enough to stop my heart mid beat.

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If people choose to comment. Stay away from personal attacks... especially the agent orange or draft dodger card, or the concubine card (including any variation thereof). The air in Hemet tends to thin the skin of people. So show some respect or I'll delete your comment. 

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If at first you don't succeed... just pretend that you did succeed and slander all those that tell you otherwise.

Wildomar Rap  has never dined on sour grapes, though he hears they are a delicacy in Hemet.