One UCSC alumni swears that pictures can solve any problem—including health care reform

Dan Roam’s career path wasn’t anything he could have planned for or expected. Somehow, he started college with the intention of becoming a doctor and ended up drawing on the backs of napkins for a living—and making quite a name for himself doing it.

“I blame it all on Santa Cruz,” he says.

The consultant, author and professional doodler is giving a presentation at the Santa Cruz Dream Inn on Nov. 12, at which he will attempt to break down the seemingly complex issue of American health care reform using simple drawings. The project, “American Health Care: A Four Napkin Series,” is his latest in a long line of attempts to solve big problems on—you guessed it—the backs of napkins.

How will the Truth in Trials Act, which you introduced on Oct. 27, reinforce that medical marijuana laws be enforced at the state rather than federal level?

We have a major disconnect in this country between state and federal marijuana laws, and it’s resulting in innocent people being sent to prison.

An individual arrested for marijuana use and tried in federal court is currently barred from telling the jury that the marijuana grown, distributed or used was for legal, state-sanctioned purposes. It’s unconscionable that we limit a very legitimate defense inside federal courthouses.

Reactions to fee hikes and recent occupations divide UCSC community

On Nov. 17 at UC Los Angeles, the University of California Board of Regents will vote on a proposed measure that would raise student fees by 32 percent next year. If approved, student tuitions will have risen by a total of 109 percent since the start of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s tenure. Speaking to an audience of more than 100 students at a forum on the budget crisis on Oct. 29 at UC Santa Cruz, Stanton Glantz, professor of medicine at UC San Francisco and an outspoken critic of the UC system’s administrative and financial practices, accused the governor of trying to create “a radical right-wing free market model” of education, and told students, “Basically, Schwarzenegger is the king of sticking it to you guys.”

Recently passed Sustainable Seafood Bill seeks to inform consumers and reward environmentally friendly fishers

While the declining state of fisheries in California threatens to put us all in Homer Simpson's shoes during a Treehouse of Horror moment ("Oh, I wish I wish I hadn't killed that fish!"), Assemblyman Bill Monning's recently passed Sustainable Seafood Bill is a good start in the other direction.

What difference will the new water treatment facility in Davenport, which is officially underway, make for the community?

First, the good news. The new water treatment plant improvements will provide a number of important benefits to the Davenport community:

1. The facility will meet the latest state water quality standards, thus assuring a high level of safe water to drink.

2. An enlarged water tank will be constructed, enhancing the level of fire protection in the community.

3. Due to the increased federal funding for the project's construction, the impact on the community's water rates for the $1.5 million plus project will be significantly less than expected.

How a local nonprofit plans to put an end to stress

Whether it’s taking a test, preparing for work or dealing with relationships, stress is a dominant emotion in today’s busy society. Unfortunately, the tools for managing these ever-present stressors are not taught in school and are not often readily available at home—but one local nonprofit is on a mission to change this.

The Institute of HeartMath (IHM) has been researching the physiological implications of stress since its inception in 1991. With the help of its researchers, IHM has been able to connect stress to the heartbeat and brain activity, creating tools and techniques that assist in minimizing stress.

Community addresses recent crimes, struggles to cope

On the evening of Wednesday, Oct. 21, Santa Cruz Police Department officers addressed a packed auditorium at Santa Cruz High School. The meeting, filled mainly with Santa Cruz High parents and their children, was intended to educate the public about gangs in the wake of the death of Tyler Tenorio, 16, who was stabbed on Oct. 16 on Laurel Street near Chestnut Street, during an apparent argument between the boy and his friends and a group of gang members. On Oct. 19, Daniel Onesto, 19, was taken into custody and charged with murder, gang enhancement, and assault with a deadly weapon; police have also issued an arrest warrant for Paulo Luna, 23, and are seeking one for a third man, whose name was not publicly available at the time of print. The incident followed the rape and beating of a 69-year-old woman in her home on the Westside the Wednesday before. The last two months have also seen four reports of sexual battery in the downtown area. All of these sexual assault cases remain unsolved.

Land Trust of Santa Cruz County goes forward with 20-year conservation plan

Stephen Slade can remember a time just three decades ago when Campbell was a tiny rural community, reachable only by rough dirt roads. Terry Corwin grew up in Southern California, surrounded by orange groves that have almost entirely vanished.

“Most people that are growing up in California,” Slade says, “will have a memory of a landscape that is going to be completely altered. I grew up in Modesto and when I go back there now it’s like, ‘Where am I?’ The Central Valley is rapidly changing.”

There were 700 bills awaiting Gov. Schwarzenegger’s signature or veto by Sunday, Oct, 11.  Were there any vetoed bills that you believe should have been upheld, or bills passed that you believe should not have been?  Why?

I was disappointed to learn that the Governor vetoed:  Senate Bill (SB) 14, which would have made programmatic changes to implement an increase in California’s Renewable Portfolio Standard’s goal to 33 percent by 2020; SB 14, along with Assembly Bill (AB) 21 and AB 64, would have combined to provide a clear and enforceable timeframe for investing in new renewable energy resources in order to meet the greenhouse gas emission reductions mandated under AB 32, the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006.

AB 1401 would have enacted the California Transition to Organics Act of 2009 and would have established the Transition to Organics Fund (TTOF) with federal, industry and private citizen funding.  TTOF monies would have provided financial assistance to individuals who transition their uncertified farms to certified organic farms.