Feb. 1 Show
Guest: Janet Higgins, some local teachers, and people affected greatly by the cuts to education funding.
Recommended Stream: The Jeff Farias Show site.
Janet is one of the coordinators of the East Valley Chapter of Progressive Democrats of America, and is a former Chicago Public School Teacher, with a degree in Early Childhood Education from the University of Arizona. She has spent a great deal of time following the impact of the budget cuts planned by our state legislators. Our new Governor Jan Brewer, an enemy of education, is certainly going to hurt our state. We will have teachers and even a small business owner to discuss the direct blows this stupidity is going to cause them as well as our community. Many at large risk in our population will be hurt to the point they will be homeless, not to mention this will set the state of Arizona back in development of economic strength for decades.
We also will have reports and hopefully callers from Hancock County Mississippi to update the problems still facing them in that area after Katrina and the storms of the last hurricane season.
The show will be 3 hours, starting at 9AM Phoenix time and 10 AM central.
Jan. 24th Show
Guest: Sean Witcomb and Dennis Gilman
Sean Witcomb - He is one of the main founders and organizers of “Know Your Rights.” They are an organization that started last summer and has been very successful in educating communities on their rights. He is also one of the main founders and organizers of Phoenix Copwatch.
Dennis Gilman is an activist that has worked hard on the racial abuses of Arpaio and Thomas.
We will discuss racial issues with these guest and as always we will check in with the Katrina Area.
January 17 Show
Guest: Mayor Jack Hakim and Jon Fox
Jack Hakim of Bullhead City Arizona will be my guest to talk about the problems of budget in small towns and the tough cuts they are have to make. He recently came under fire over the eternal flame at the Veterans Memorial in his city which had a recent gas bill of over $900 which was beyond what the town could afford.
Jon Fox has a radio show on Head On Radio Network on Sunday evenings and lives in Australia. He is from the USA originally and is a musician as well. Jon has also helped me to tell the Katrina Debacle story and has a strong interest in environmental issues.
Nov. 10 Show
We will talk about the following article and veteran issues as well as continue on our Katrina discussion. The 17th the Mayor of Bullhead City will be my guest to talk about this and other issues that his town is facing. Below is the article:
BULLHEAD CITY - Officials in Bullhead City extinguished the eternal flame at the city’s new veterans memorial park after receiving a $961 gas bill, but quickly did an about face after protests by veterans groups.
The Medal of Honor Memorial at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Park alongside the Colorado River was lit on Veterans Day in November. When the bill arrived in late December, city officials were stunned.
“It caught us by surprise,” City Manager Tim Ernster said Thursday. “What we decided to do for the time being is to turn the flame on … for special events, for Veterans Day, Fourth of July, Memorial Day - those types of activities.”
The flame was extinguished on Monday. The local newspaper published a story in Friday’s edition quoting city officials and disgruntled veterans who had worked to pay for and build the memorial before turning it over to the city.
By midmorning Friday, the flame was back on. City spokesman Steve Johnson said it was re-lit after a meeting on Friday morning.
“What happened was really a miscommunication,” Johnson said. “The issue came up one day and it was never intended to be shut off.”
Johnson said the flame is impressive, but city parks officials are looking at ways to put a smaller burner in place and only use the larger one at special events.
“We’re looking at alternatives, because $1,000 a month in these economic times is certainly a consideration,” Johnson said.
Jan. 4th Show
Guest: Rebecca Schneider, Sgt. Davis Kring This show will re-air on WQRZ at 6 am central and went 3 hours. You can hear it on WQRZ.org Monday Jan. 5th. Also show blog is on the comments section.
To voice your interest in the Sgt. Davis Kring story called 228-467-4134. Be polite but let them know you are upset with this and want it changed immediately.
We will return to live shows with Rebecca Schneider who ran against Jeff Flake in the last elections. She will discuss with us Jeff Flake and his positions on issues since he was recently proclaimed by the Arizona Republic as the future face of the Arizona GOP. He is referred to in the article as a Maverick and we will show he is certainly no maverick.
Davis Kring is an Iraq War Veteran from the Mississippi National Guard who is having problems with FEMA on his MEMA Cottage. They want to move his cottage to a commerical property off his private property. Kring was awarded Congressional Recognition for his work after Katrina.
Here is an article from the Sea Coast Echo newspaper:
Waveland Board of Aldermen: Iraq veteran must move
By Dwayne Bremer
Dec 19, 2008, 18:55
For the past three years, Waveland resident Cheryl Kring and her family have tried to get their lives back in order after losing everything during Hurricane Katrina. For a good portion of those three years, her husband U.S. Army Sgt. Davis Kring has spent his time serving his country in Iraq.
Today, Sgt. Kring and his family are facing more unexpected challenges which have nothing to do with insurgents and roadside bombs.
U.S. Army Sgt. Davis Kring, his wife Cheryl, and son Andrew are trying to make the most of Christmas this year. Sgt. Kring has recently returned home from Iraq, but now faces an uncertain future as city leaders have refused to let him keep his Mississippi Cottage.
The Krings are one of dozens of families still living in Mississippi Cottages, and soon, they may have to leave their property and find another home as the deadline for the cottages is just three months away.
“I love my country,” Sgt. Kring said Thursday. “But I am really starting to not like government. It seems like the more we try to follow the rules, the further we fall behind.”
Prior to Katrina, the Krings were renting a home in Shoreline Park. That home was destroyed and since they did not own the residence, they were not eligible for any grants.
Additionally, several attempts to get a church or volunteer group to assist them in building a home have fallen through, Cheryl said.
After spending more than a year at the Scenic Trails trailer park in north Hancock County, Davis was deployed to Iraq in 2007.
While he was in Iraq, the Krings were approved for a Mississippi cottage, which they put on Cheryl’s family property on Bourgeois St.
The pressure of trying to rebuild their lives and being separated took a toll on both Cheryl and Davis.
Cheryl suffered a stroke last year and Davis suffered a stress condition in Iraq.
“I just broke down,” he said. “The stress of being over there and not being with my family was almost too much. We have just been in a state of limbo ever since the storm.”
After 14 months in Iraq, Davis returned home late this summer. He now works in Gulfport at the Army’s CRTC 1108 AVCRAD division.
On Tuesday, Sgt. Kring made a passionate plea to the Waveland Board of Aldermen. He asked the board to show some compassion to the people who are still struggling and want to stay in Waveland.
The Waveland Board of Aldermen have previously voted to allow the cottages to stay in commercial parks only. Twice, the board has refused to even consider a motion to allow them to stay in residential areas.
“I’ve have never heard from the board itself what their objections to the cottages are,” he said. “There is nothing wrong with these cottages. This decision is putting a lot of people in tough situations. There is no way we could afford an apartment, the rent is outrageous.”
Kring said he does not buy several of the arguments for removing the cottages.
“They say it will bring property values down,” he said. “Look around, there are hardly any properties in this area.”
There is only one house on the same street as Kring’s cottage, and very few in the Bourgeois St. area.
“They are constantly saying they want people to come back to Waveland, but they are pushing people out,” Cheryl said.
The idea of having to leave the place where she grew up and moving to a trailer park or public housing does not make sense to Cheryl.
“It makes me angry,” she said. “It makes no sense. I have lived here all my live. I went to school and grew up with everyone and now they are telling me I have to move to the projects.”
Other Waveland residents came to the Krings’ defense at Tuesday’s meeting.
“It is all some people have,” Connie West said. “They will be on the street and in the grass if we throw them out. I am lucky to have a house, but I feel really bad for these people.”
The Krings said they are currently weighing their legal options, but they are still trying to make the most of the Christmas season.
Their cottage is decorated with lights and ornaments and their cottage is filled with Christmas spirit.
“It’s all we can do right now,” Cheryl said. “We love Waveland and like others who have lived here for decades, we just want a chance to stay.”
Sea Coast Echo Story