San Diego Magazine / May 2000 / Eye on San Diego

 Email  Print  Feed

Eye on San Diego

(page 1 of 3)

Edited By Ron Donoho

“Tear Down This Wall?” Part II

On February 27, gunmen fired 100 bullets into the black Chevrolet Suburban of Tijuana Police Chief Alfredo de la Torre Marquez. It was the second assassination in six years of the city’s top cop. Two months into 2000, more than 70 people had been shot to death in Tijuana—more than one person a day.

What a way to start a millennium.

The death of de la Torre came on the heels of a San Diego Magazine series titled The Millennium Project (October-December 1999). The articles examined local socioeconomic problems, including border relations. In the report, an esteemed panel of experts suggested the physical dismantling of the San Diego–Tijuana border wall would better forge a binational economy.

Did they jump the gun, so to speak? Drug cartels and corruption have a death grip on Tijuana’s 1.3 million citizens. Negative publicity scares away tourism dollars. U.S. businesses are wary of setting up shop in Tijuana. Is this the kind of economic partner San Diego is seeking? Of course not.

“Tear Down This Wall?” was our October cover story. In light of the escalating violence, we’re asking again. Two cage-rattling ideas have since emerged.

A Marshall Plan. “The wall should come down, but within the next 20 years,” says Chuck Nathanson, executive director of San Diego Dialogue, which promotes cross-border cooperation.

Nathanson proposes a “Marshall Plan” for the border. “The Marshall Plan developed war-torn Europe to be a U.S. partner for trade and security,” he says. “The state and local governments on the border in Mexico don’t have the administrative competency to do the things we need in a partner. Be it low-interest loans or other means, we need to issue them credit to solve this.”

Adds Nathanson: “There is a feeling in San Diego that the only thing that will come from working with Tijuana is we’ll get caught up in the corruption and the problems. Yes, there is a real danger that the violence can come across the border. It could be that the more we try to help, the more likely they’ll be to try to assassinate our police chief. But I also believe we can get caught up in the problem if we don’t try to help.”

San Diego Police Chief David Bejarano—who had been scheduled to meet with his Tijuana counterpart the day after he was murdered—says he was “shocked” by the killing. He doesn’t foresee that kind of violence here. “From a law-enforcement point of view, I’d hope we could tear down the border wall,” he says. “But I don’t see that happening for 30, 40 years or more.”

Drug Legalization. Millennium Report authors Neal Peirce and Curtis Johnson still say leaving the wall up could spell economic disaster. They now add: “San Diego and Tijuana share a citistate—a shared environment, workforce, 21st-century economy. Their futures are inextricably interrelated. Keeping that future in mind, personal and professional San Diego–Tijuana contacts should be maintained. The people and businesses of Tijuana and Baja California should not be held responsible for the acts of criminal gangs.”

Peirce and Johnson direct blame at the United States’ failed war on drugs. “The dangerous environment in Tijuana is an inevitable consequence of a lethal combination—American drug users able and willing to pay high street prices for drugs, combined with U.S. public policy that persists in a futile attempt to suppress the narcotics supply. The border is too long, the smugglers are too tenacious, and officialdom is too vulnerable for total interdiction to work.

“We can advocate loudly for abstinence from drugs—and we ought to... [But] if we treated drugs like alcohol, holding people responsible for harmful and antisocial behavior, offering treatment for abusers, the lucrative illicit market would quickly dry up.

“The San Diego citistate—the San Diego and Tijuana sides alike—have a massive, vested interest in ending the war on drugs. The decision to end the drug war cannot be made by Mexico. It has to be made by the United States. San Diegans should be in the forefront of the struggle to end the fruitless drug war.”

10 Years of Mama’s Cooking

In 1990, Tony Kopas and a few volunteers at a San Diego food bank for AIDS victims noticed “Joe” wasn’t showing up for meals. They discovered his condition had overtaken his daily activities, stripping away his mobility. Working from home, they cooked meals for Joe and personally delivered them.

Soon enough, the numbers grew, a board of directors formed, and donations increased. Sidestepping the emotional details, this is the Mama’s Kitchen story. (There is no mama, per se, other than a figurative “mother” helping feed her children.) For 10 years, the nonprofit organization has catered to San Diego’s men, women and children with AIDS. The organization experienced a 15 percent growth in clientele last year. On average, a volunteer team delivers meals—which meet American Dietetic Association guidelines—to 380 people a day.

President Evelynne Davis-Curran says the future of Mama’s Kitchen relies on maintaining a budget (currently $4 million) that “can keep feeding clients every day and eventually provide meals for their dependents.” Clients—most of whom live at or below poverty level—now receive three meals a day, seven days a week, up from the previous two meals a day Monday through Friday.

A Mama’s Day 2000 celebration is being held May 12 at the Hyatt Regency La Jolla. Tickets are $85. For more information, call 619-233-MAMA. —Camille Tuomi

The Dirty Dozen

Banker–turned–political candidate Peter Q. Davis spent more than a million dollars of his own money running for mayor. He finished third in the primary and won’t be in the November runoff election. In our opinion, here are the top 12 mistakes of his campaign:
• Co-hosted media pizza party on Rick Rockwell’s front lawn
• That Ruth Buzzi endorsement
• Wore “Chicks Dig Bankers” T-shirt to big NOW rally
• Proposed San Diego Stingrays ticket guarantee
• Policy advisers spent way too much time doing shooters and watching MTV
• The infamous 20-minute air-guitar solo before the Union-Tribune editorial board
• Blew 500 grand on hit piece targeting candidate/magician Loch David Crane
• Gave brand-new Cadillac to bodyguard “Red,” but nothing to “Sonny”
• Heavy Aqua Velva odor a huge voter turnoff
• Public crying jag over Kathie Lee Gifford’s retirement speech
• Trickle-down theory jokes at Lawrence Welk Village backfired big-time
• Hinted to reporters that he was really Batman
—Bill Owens

MD’s Strong, Young Advocates

SAN DIEGO IS HOME to a pair of national Muscular Dystrophy Association spokespersons. Eight-year-old Lauren Carter and 19-year-old Mandy Van Benthuysen play roles in raising awareness about a muscular disorder that affects a million Americans.

Carter and Van Benthuysen have slightly different jobs. Carter’s is to thank people for helping the MDA; Van Benthuysen works to keep young people volunteering.

When she was 4, doctors diagnosed Van Benthuysen with limb-girdle muscular dystrophy. One of 40 types of neuromuscular disorders, hers is a genetic disease involving a progressive weakening and deterioration of muscles.

Traveling the country to give speeches at conventions isn’t a typical activity for a 19-year-old. But aside from that—and gracing the cover of Parade magazine—Van Benthuysen is a typical teen. A sophomore at Arizona State University, she juggles a full school schedule and sorority life with her fourth stint as an MDA youth ambassador. Asked what her primary message is at events, Van Benthuysen says, “I tell high school and college kids to volunteer and help other people. It makes you a better person all around.”

Not many 8-year-olds have their own business cards, but Carter does. MDA’s newest goodwill ambassador has spinal muscular atrophy. Despite weakness in her arms, legs and torso, this young Oceanside resident often attends national MDA conventions.

Not incidentally, the number of local MDA spokesfolk jumps to three if you include part-time resident Jerry “Hey, lady!” Lewis.
—Michelle Marsili

The Fountain Dance

The Mortenson Fountain is downtown at Fifth and L streets, in a small city-operated space called Gaslamp Park. Synchronized jets of water shoot 20 feet into the air. It’s purty. We spent some time there. Hoping to ask others their thoughts on the dancing waters, we waited. And waited.

Finally, German tourists Peter and Martina Vogel stopped by. “In Europe we do not have ground-level fountains such as this, because it is too cold, and the fountains would freeze and crack,” says Peter. “The fountain is just one more thing you can have in San Diego, where the weather is always beautiful and sunny.”

Isn’t that precious? The fountain, also known to locals—especially the housing impaired—as the “Bloopie Fountain” and “The Dancing Waters” was built in 1995. It’s a nifty little $1.5 million project.

Ol’ Bloopie is the only fountain in San Diego that operates at ground level (without any enclosure to collect falling water). This unique aspect makes the Blooper especially popular with neighborhood dogs. Unfortunately, a few barking dogs—and the mellow Vogels—are part of a small minority who have heard of or seen the thing.

Cost of impressing German tourists and hosing downtown’s canine community: $15,000 a year.
—Ben Chapman