Hettie Lynne Hurtes

Top Universities

Tue, 17 Aug 2010 10:44:50 -0700

Caltech was ranked seventh among national universities by U.S. News and World Report, which today released its annual list of "Best Colleges." Caltech tied at seventh with traditional rival Massachusetts Institute of Technology. USC tied for 23rd place with Carnegie Mellon. UCLA tied for 25th with University of Virginia and Wake Forest.

Topping the list were Ivy Leaguers Harvard, Princeton and Yale.

http://www.usnews.com/sections/rankings/index.html

Home Sales Plummet

Tue, 17 Aug 2010 09:47:13 -0700

Southland home sales plummeted more than 21% last month from last July. It's their biggest drop in over two years. MDA DataQuick said today the drop from about 24-thousand homes last July to around 19-thousand last month came as federal tax credits that had been fueling sales expired.

The firm says last month was the slowest July since 2007 when just under 18-thousand homes sold.

Death of Columnist James J. Kilpatrick

Mon, 16 Aug 2010 10:29:30 -0700

James J. Kilpatrick, who rose from cub reporter to become one of the South's most prominent newspaper editors and the nation's most widely syndicated political columnist, died last night of congestive heart failure. He was 89.

TV watchers in the 70s knew Kilpatrick as the conservative half of the ``Point-Counterpoint'' segment of the CBS ``60 Minutes.'' His sparring with liberal commentator Shana Alexander was famously parodied on Saturday Night Live. Before retiring a couple of years ago, he worked for years for
Universal Press Syndicate. He also was the author of a dozen books and numerous magazine
articles. He wrote columns on the Supreme Court and The Writer's Art, on the use and abuse of the English language, which appeared in hundreds of newspapers.

Kilpatrick was for many years a vocal supporter of racial segregation. When the U.S. Supreme Court struck down separate but equal schools in its Brown vs. Board of Education decision in 1954,
he accused the court of repudiating the Constitution. His wife said he apologized over and over publicly and in print when he could about being on the wrong side of the segregation issue.

Kilpatrick, who received numerous journalism awards, was one of the few columnists ever honored as a fellow of the Society of Professional Journalists.

Zsa Zsa Back in the Hospital

Fri, 13 Aug 2010 13:32:14 -0700

Zsa Zsa Gabor is back to the UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center. Her publicist says she's returning to the hopsital because of complications in her recuperation from a broken hip.

The 93-year-old actress broke her hip July 17 and was sent home from UCLA Wednesday.

Judge Keeps Gay Marriage on Hold

Thu, 12 Aug 2010 12:53:49 -0700

A federal judge has ruled that gay marriages in California should remain on hold until at least August 18th. Judge Vaughn Walker set the deadline to give gay marriage opponents time to appeal to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

If the appeals court fails to act by 5 o'clock on the 18th then gay marriages can forward.

California Gets Critical Bucks to, in part, Pay Teacher Salaries

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:12:07 -0700

Taking a rare break from summer vacation, the House returned to Capitol Hill today and gave final approval to a huge $26 billion jobs bill that will send at least 2 1/2 billion dollars to California to help balance the state budget and pay the salaries of its schoolteachers.

The vote capped a months-long debate over a plan to aid the states by giving them more money for education and Medicaid. Critics said the package was merely a bailout to states, while backers called it a necessary response to emergency conditions.

Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who ordered members back to Washington for the emergency session, said the bill will save roughly 300,000 public sector jobs And said Congress needed to act to help stabilize state budgets as a way to avoid another deep recession.

Panel Selected to Oversee New MLK Hospital

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 13:49:13 -0700

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors today approved the appointment of seven people to a board that will oversee a new Martin Luther King Jr. Hospital in Willowbrook. The panelists were jointly nominated last week by county Chief executive Officer William Fujioka and Dr. John Stobo, University of California senior vice president for health sciences and services.

The old, full service county-run hospital at 120th and Wilmington was opened in the wake of the 1965 Watts riots. But it was eventually closed in 2007 after a series of lapses in patient care, some deadly,
that caused the federal government to withdraw funding.

The newly affirmed board members are:

Manuel Abascal, an attorney with Latham and Watkins specializing in government investigations, internal investigations and complex business litigation;

Dr. Elaine Batchlor, chief medical officer of L.A. Care Health Plan;

Linda Griego, president and CEO of Griego Enterprises, a business management company she founded in 1986;

Paul King, president and CEO of Children's Hospital of Los Angeles Medical Group;

Michael Madden, retired CEO of Providence Healthcare of Southern California;

Dr. Robert Margolis, managing partner and CEO of HealthCare Partners medical group; and

James Yoshioka, retired president and CEO of Citrus Valley Health Partners.

MLK Hospital is expected to open in 2013, with 120 beds and an emergency room. County officials said it would have the capacity to accommodate more than 30,000 annual patient visits, 10,000 annual outpatient visits and follow- up care.

Levi Johnston Next Mayor of Wasilla?

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 09:13:53 -0700

Levi Johnston may be following in Sarah Palin's footsteps. Johnston's manager has confirmed a report on Variety's website that Johnston is planning to run for city office in his hometown of Wasilla, Alaska, as part of a reality TV show. Wasilla is where Palin got her start, moving up from City Council to mayor before winning election as Alaska's governor in 2006.

The 20-year old Johnston is the father of Palin's grandson, and the recently off-again flame to her daughter Bristol.

Sushi Pop Tarts????

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 13:44:40 -0700

What took em so long? Pop-Tart World comes to New York's Time Square featuring more than 3,000 square feet dedicated to those popular toaster pastries.

Customers will be able to eat Pop-Tart "sushi," order a customized pastry or create a custom box filled with a mix of their favorite flavors. At the store, opening tomorrow, they can suggest new types of Pop-Tarts, select a Pop-Tart T-shirt made by specialty artists or get "frosted" and "wrapped in foil" by a light show.

It's the first store for Kellogg has focused on one product to cash in on its dedicated following, and the company hopes to make it a fixture in Times Square, where two candy makers already have stand-alone stores: the Hershey store and Mars M&M's World.

Bell Officials' Records Subpoenaed

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 10:45:19 -0700

Attorney General Jerry Brown today subpoenaed personal financial records of past and present officials involved in the City of Bell salary scandal. He also ordered them to appear for depositions within two weeks.

Brown announced his office has set up a toll free hotline to report allegations of possible illegal election conduct: (866) 625-4400.

The investigation is aimed at determining whether criminal or civil action should be taken following reports of exhorbitant salaries paid to the City Manager, Assistant City Manager and Police Chief. The three have since resigned.

White Supremacist Runs for School Board

Fri, 06 Aug 2010 11:27:58 -0700

A white supremacist is running for a school board seat in San Bernardino County. Dan Schruender, a past president of the California chapter of Aryan Nations, filed nomination papers this week to run for one of two open seats on the Rialto Unified School District. The 27,500-student district is nearly 76 percent Hispanic and nearly 16 percent black.

Schruender announced his campaign on an Aryan Nations blog. He says the group is not behind his candidacy, and he will not allow his ideology to affect his decisions if elected on Nov. 2.

Appeal Filed in Prop 8 Ruling

Thu, 05 Aug 2010 10:55:20 -0700

Supporters of California's gay marriage ban have filed an appeal of a federal judge's ruling that struck down the law yesterday. The appeal to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals was expected, as lawyers on both sides of the legal battle repeatedly vowed to carry the fight to a higher court if they lost.

District Judge Vaughn Walker ruled that Prop 8 violates federal equal protections and due process laws.

The outcome in the appeals court could force the U.S. Supreme Court to confront the question of whether gays have a constitutional right to wed.

Postal Woes

Thu, 05 Aug 2010 10:01:02 -0700

The Postal Service was $3 1/2 billion in the red for the third quarter and they say they may not be able to make a required payment for future retiree health benefits. Losses for April through June were $1.1 billion more than the post office lost in the same period a year ago.

To stem the losses, postal officials have proposed raising rates, cutting out Saturday mail delivery and eliminating advance payments for retiree health benefits.

Palin/Johnston Call It Quits....Again

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 13:57:24 -0700

Bristol Palin and Levi Johnston have called off their second engagement after he told her he may havefathered a baby with another girl. The other girl was not identified, but a pregnant ex-girlfriendof Johnston has publicly denied he is the father.

The 19-year-old daughter of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin told People magazine the final straw was when Johnston told her he was going to Hollywood to see a hunting show, but actually went there to star in a music video mocking her family.

Death of Mitch Miller

Mon, 02 Aug 2010 11:15:02 -0700

Mitch Miller, the goateed orchestra leader who asked Americans to ``Sing Along With Mitch'' on TV has died at age 99. Miller was a key record executive at Columbia Records in the pre-rock 'n' roll era, making hits with singers Rosemary Clooney, Patti Page, Johnny Mathis and Tony Bennett.

As a producer and arranger, Miller had misses along with his hits, famously striking out on projects with Frank Sinatra and a young Aretha Franklin.

"He is an odd-looking man," New York Times critic Brooks Atkinson wrote in 1962. "His sharp beard, twinkling eyes, wrinkled forehead and mechanical beat make him look like a little puppet as he peers hopefully into the camera. By now most of us are more familiar with his tonsils than with those of our families." Atkinson went on to say that as a musician, Miller was "first rate," praising "the clean tone of the singing, the clarity of the lyrics, the aptness of the tempos, the variety and the occasional delicacy of the instrumental accompaniment."

An accomplished oboist, Miller played in a number of orchestras early in his career, including one put together in 1934 by George Gershwin.

The years of Miller's biggest successes were also the early years of rock 'n' roll, and many fans saw his old-fashioned arrangements of standards and folk favorites as an antidote to the noisy stuff the teens adored. As an executive at Columbia, Miller would be widely ridiculed for trying to turn a young Aretha Franklin into a showbiz diva in the tradition of Sophie Tucker.

In recent years, Miller returned to his classical roots, appearing frequently as a guest conductor with symphony orchestras. In 2000, he won a special Grammy Award for lifetime achievement.

Top Party Schools (In Case You Didn't Know)

Mon, 02 Aug 2010 09:45:18 -0700

Here are the nation's top party schools, according to Princeton Review's 2010 survey:

1. University of Georgia, Athens, Ga.
2. Ohio University, Athens, Ohio
3. Penn State University, University Park, Pa.
4. West Virginia University, Morgantown, W.Va.
5. University of Mississippi, Oxford, Miss.
6. University of Texas, Austin, Texas
7. University of Florida, Gainesville, Fla.
8. University of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara
9. University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
10. DePauw University, Greencastle, Ind.

Last Day to be Counted

Fri, 30 Jul 2010 14:10:14 -0700

Today is the last day to be counted in the 2010 Census, and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa urged all Angelenos to sign up before time runs out. He said it was critical to have an accurate accounting of the city's population so that Angelenos can get their fair share from the federal government.

The census determines the amount of federal funding directed to local governments, and the number of representatives that each state sends to Washington. Villaraigosa urged Angelenos to spread the word about the census to everyone they know.

People who need to a census form may get it by calling the Census Bureau at (866) 872-6868. Lines are open until 9 tonight. The forms are available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Russian.

Arrests During Local Anti-Illegal Immigration Law Protest

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 14:26:13 -0700

Los Angeles police have begun arresting about a dozen people who blocked an intersection to protest Arizona's new immigration law. About 200 protesters gathered at a busy intersection west of downtown at about 10 this morning. Police in riot gear stood by for about 3 hours before declaring an unlawful assembly.

Police say most of the demonstrators left peacefully. But about a dozen, linked together with plastic pipes and chains, lay in the street in a circle as an act of civil disobedience. Officer Bruce Borihanh says police are cutting their chains and carrying them away to be booked for failure to disperse.

The same organizers staged a similar demonstration in May that resulted in several arrests.

Schwarzenegger To Bring Back Furloughs

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 12:44:55 -0700

Gov. Schwarzenegger says he'll bring back furloughs for thousands of state workers until California passes a budget. Schwarzenegger released a new executive order today that requires state workers to take three unpaid days off per month starting next month. Schwarzenegger says he's trying to conserve cash as the state faces a $19 billion deficit.

State Controller John Chiang has warned he'll start issuing IOUs in August or September if the budget stalemate drags on in the Legislature.

The new order exempts employees who work for departments that collect revenue, including the Franchise Tax Board. It also exempts about 37,000 workers in six unions that recently reached tentative
labor agreements with the administration.

Judge Blocks Controversial Sections of Arizona Immigration Law

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 10:45:39 -0700

A federal judge today blocked the most controversial parts of Arizona's immigration law from taking
effect, delivering a last-minute victory to opponents of the crackdown. The overall law will still take effect tomorrow, but without the provisions that angered opponents including sections that required officers to check a person's immigration status while enforcing other laws. The judge also put on hold parts of the law that required immigrants to carry their papers at all times, and made it illegal for undocumented workers to solicit employment in public places.

District Judge Susan Bolton ruled that those sections should be put on hold until the courts resolve the issues. Other provisions of the law, many of them procedural and slight revisions to existing Arizona immigraiton statute, will go into effect after midnight.

Don't forget AIR TALK will be broadcasting live from Arizona starting at 10 tomorrow morning, along with reporter Adolfo Guzman Lopez and KPCC blogger Leslie Berestein Rojas.