Mourns Loss
I could cry when I read about the demise and ruination of places like the Kimball Sanitarium property and Indian Springs, both demolished for shopping centers. What were they thinking when they tore out magnificent sycamore trees and large avocados and pines? And imagine an 11 room Victorian mansion being replaced with Builders Emporium, the ’50s model of Home Depot? How could anyone approve of such an exchange for concrete, glass and asphalt. I’m sure they called it progress.

I spent some idyllic summer days at the pool in Indian Springs. The water was warmed by a natural spring. My girlfriends and I saw Vicky Draves practicing her diving there before her gold medal wins at the 1948 Olympics. The Sylvan Canyon with grass and shaded by old growth sycamores was the perfect place for our ninth grade promotion picnic from Toll Junior High School.

Wouldn’t these “parks” be a wonderful addition to our environment today?
Dorothy Sundbye
La Crescenta

Schiff Isn’t His Guy
Congressman Adam Schiff does indeed sound like a good person, and I commend him for all the good work he’s done, but after your article on him in the 20 September issue, I feel that some healthy criticism of Mr. Schiff’s policies is in order. Specifically, in regards to his stance on anti-piracy.

Adam Schiff co-sponsored a bill (which is now basically dead) called the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). This bill would, as the name suggests, enact measures to crack down on online piracy of copyrighted material. That in itself isn’t all that bad, but the problem is what the bill would have done in order to “stop online piracy.”

Sites like YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook, under the provisions of SOPA, could face shutdown (without due process!) if a single copyright infringement is found. These sites would have to strictly monitor user content, to the point that a single “tweet” on Twitter or a status update on Facebook could take an hour or more. Email providers may even have to censor people’s private emails.

A national “firewall” exactly like the ones in China and Iran would be created in order to block people from being able to visit foreign websites that offer copyrighted material for illegal download. Tools which can circumvent the national firewall, which are used by activists in countries with oppressive governments (like China and Iran), would be blocked as well. And finally, the provisions of the bill would create a “chilling” effect on innovation and new startups.

Even after the massive outcry that led to SOPA’s demise, Adam Schiff remained steadfast in his support of it. It is for this reason that I will not be voting for Adam Schiff. I will be voting for his opponent, Phil Jennerjahn, who has spoken out against SOPA.
Morgan Nrykkyyn
Glendale

Happy Third!
Happy belated birthday, CV Weekly!  You are now three years old. With the  “terrible 2s” left behind, we can look forward to many wonderful years ahead.

I often hear the paper referred to as “Robin’s paper.” But she would be the first to correct that miss-label. As she often, with gratitude, mentions she could not possibly put together this paper without the help of “all the wonderful talented people I have been blessed with.”

I came to Robin in the first days of the CV Weekly with my idea of a column. The primary topic would be local weather. Just about 100-200 words. Robin responded to me with interest, but was not quite ready to add one yet.

Six months later she contacted me.

“What do you have in mind, Sue? Can you send me a sample?” I had never written for a paper and weather-wise I am just an educated amateur. But, my roots in La Crescenta run deep as does my interests. Robin accepted my work!

I don’t know Robin well, but I consider her a friend. She is that kind of person – warm, friendly and compassionate (with a good sense of humor!). She always has time to answer a question or listen to a concern. It is not unusual for her to pick up a ringing phone at the CV Weekly office.

I just want to express my gratitude, Robin, for inviting me to be a part of the CV Weekly. And on a much grander scale, “Thank you for sharing your talents and giving the Crescenta Valley a newspaper we can call our own!”   Happy Birthday and many more…
Sue Kilpatrick
La Crescenta