How the "Go For Broke" Stamp Came to Be
By MAS HASHIMOTO
A new Forever Stamp titled “Go For Broke” was issued on June 3. The image on the stamp is of Hawaii’s Shiroku Yamamoto, nicknamed “Whitey,” and a member of the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team. This photo, right, of him was taken in 1944 in France during World War II. It represents all the Japanese Americans who served, including those men of the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) and other branches of the service, and of the women who served primarily in the Women’s Army Corps (WAC), Army Nurse Corps (ANC), Cadet Nurse Corps (CNC), and in the MIS. The motto of the Hawaiian unit, the 100th Battalion, was “Go For Broke” (or, while playing craps, “shoot the works”).
Sixteen years ago, three ladies, Fusa Takahashi, Aiko King, and the late Chiz Ohira,-- wives of Nisei veterans -- suggested a commemorative stamp for the men. Each year, the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee (CSAC) and the US Postal Service service receive tens of thousands of suggestions. Many are hand-written letters from children. All are carefully considered. Only about 15 are chosen annually. We are grateful to the CSAC and the Postal Service for this honor. 100th/442nd/MIS enlisted the help of Wayne Osato, a dedicated friend of the Nisei veterans and Watsonville and Santa Cruz’s Japanese American Citizens League supported this proposal with letters and resolutions.
At the first encounter, this stamp proposal was denied for according to the guidelines, no single military unit is to receive a stamp. Once denied, the proponents cannot present this suggestion for another three years.
Learning the reason behind the denial, our W-SC JACL then suggested a commemorative stamp for the National Japanese American Memorial to Patriotism monument/park in Washington, D. C. that was dedicated in Nov. 1999) with its tsuru (crane for peace). It would include not only the Nisei soldiers of WW II but the loyal incarcerees who gaman’d (endured and persevered against great odds) life in the ten major “camps”— Amache (Granada), Gila River, Heart Mountain, Jerome, Manzanar, Minidoka, Poston, Rohwer, Topaz, and Tule Lake.
Not to be “denied,” persistence with a new campaign --“Stamp Our Story”-- and with a change in guidelines and in the membership of the CSAC) of the US Postal Service, paid off. Hundreds of letters of support by citizens and organizations could not be “denied.”
The “Go For Broke” forever stamps are now available at your local post office, or you may order the stamps online at usps.com/shopstamps.
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By TARMO HANNULA
Greenbelt, housing and farming cohabitate in the Pajaro Valley. Note the Pajaro River running through the middle of this photo that separates the towns of Watsonville and Pajaro and Santa Cruz and Monterey counties.
Land use in the Pajaro Valley - Part 2
By AMY NEWELL
Measure U, establishing the Urban Limit Line (ULL) for the city of Watsonville, was ratified by a solid majority of Watsonville voters in 2002. The process of coming together to form Action Pajaro Valley and negotiating Measure U seemed to mark a turning point in the city’s attitude toward growth. Rather than viewing the Watsonville sloughs as an impediment to growth, the city embraced them, built walking trails with interpretive signs, and developed the Wetlands Nature Center at Ramsay Park where free guided tours of the slough system take place on many weekends. The City of Watsonville and Watsonville Wetlands Watch have also been sponsors of the annual Monterey Bay Birding Festival which is headquartered at the Watsonville Civic Plaza.
Then in 2013, we experienced an unwanted and unpleasant blast from the past. A group led by a member of the Watsonville City Council, and supported by a majority of City Council members, launched a campaign to amend Measure U. The amendment would have allowed the city to annex almost 100 acres of prime farmland at the intersection of Hwy. 1 and Hwy 129 for some kind of Big Box development in the name of sales tax revenue for the city and jobs for the youth of Watsonville. A signature-gathering effort was launched to get what became Measure T on the ballot. The Council voted 5 to 2 to schedule this for a special election (costing the city an extra $60K to $70K) to be held just 5 months after the signatures were submitted.
The same ad hoc coalition that had come together to defeat the Manabe-Ow annexation in 1999 came together once again. Donations arrived to fund the “Committee to Save Jobs & Farmland – No on Measure T.” Yard signs blanketed the city and No on T letters flooded the Letter to the Editor sections of the local newspapers. When the ballots were counted, No on Measure T had garnered 76% of the vote. Significantly, the measure was defeated in every City Council district. Productive farming continues to this day on that world-class farmland near Hwy. 1, and many jobs and housing units have been successfully developed within the ULL.
Now we are on the verge of Measure U expiring. Part of the ULL will expire in 2022 and the rest will expire in 2027. Once again, the ad hoc coalition has come together to work for a continuation of the entire ULL to 2040 – a 13-year extension on one side of the city and an 18-year extension on the other. We are the Committee for Planned Growth and Farmland Protection and we are composed of farmers, environmentalists, and open space advocates. We believe that the city can and should met its need for housing and economic development with infill projects and new development in existing vacant and underutilized sites within city limits and the Urban Limit Line.
The people of Watsonville agree with this position: an independent survey conducted for the city in 2021 found that 95.5% of city respondents believe the city should create additional jobs and housing near already-existing infrastructure to preserve natural and agricultural lands.
We need to gather 3,000 signatures by the end of 2021 to get this measure on the ballot in 2022. We have just launched the signature-gathering effort. Anyone wishing to help support this campaign can do so in two ways:
Help us gather signatures so this can be put on the ballot. Only registered voters in the city of Watsonville can sign the petition, but you do not have to live in Watsonville to gather signatures. Call me at 728-4922 and we will get you hooked up to the signature- gathering effort.
Make a donation to help fund the campaign: Make checks payable to Committee for Planned Growth & Farmland Protection (FPPC #1426413) and mail it to 447 Cloudview Drive, Watsonville, CA 95076. Thank you!
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
For years a family of ospreys have nested atop this pole that rises from the water of Struve Slough in Watsonville. Three fledglings are currently at the nest. To view them, take the Buena Vista exit from Highway 1 and head west toward the landfill. In less than a mile, take a left on Harkins Slough Road and wind around the back of the landfill. Follow that road until it winds down a hill through a forest of oaks. Park at the caved in metal gate that once blocked the road. Where the pavement disappears into the water of the slough you’ll see the pole with the nest in plain sight. You might have to wait a spell before there’s activity. You might also luck out and see American white pelicans, a green heron, great blue herons and other birds in the meantime.
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“This law of capitalistic society would sound absurd to savages, or even civilised colonists. It calls to mind the boundless reproduction of animals individually weak and constantly hunted down.”
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Santa Cruz County Covid-19 Report
By SARAH RINGLER
The Santa Cruz County Health Department regularly releases data on the current status of Covid-19 in the county. The number of cases on Thursday totaled 16,425, up 74 from last Thursday's 16,351. There were no new deaths and that number remains at 207. There were no big changes in all the categories.
Santa Cruz County issued a July 19th Press Release annoucing that they recommends wearing masks indoors in public places as "extra protection" against increases in current cases.
On the county's vaccination webpage, as of July 19, 65% of the county has had at least one dose and 56% have had two doses. These numbers are lower than last week's and I can't find out why. I assume it's a data adjustment. That webpage also has a link where you can get a digital copy of your vaccination record. Here are more details on the county's vaccination data.
The county's Effective Reproductive Number is staying below one. See chart below. Numbers above one show the spread of the virus is increasing. Below one means the spread is decreasing.
To get tested without a doctor’s request, call 1-888-634-1123 or go online at https://lhi.care/covidtesting. Other testing sites that may have restricted access can be found here.
Any Californian age 12 or up can get vaccinated for free. For information on getting vaccinated, click here.
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% deaths by ethnicity/% of population:
White - 55%/58%
Latinx - 36%/34%
Black - 0/1%
Asian - 7%/4%
American Native - 0.5%/not available
% deaths by gender/% of population:
Female - 51%/50%
Male - 49%/50%
Other - 0
Under Investigation - 0
Deaths by age/202:
30-39 - 2%
40-49 - 3%
50-59 - 2%
60-69 - 13%
70-79 - 21%
80-89 - 31%
90+ - 27%
Tested positive by region/% of population:
Mid-county - 21%/12%
North county - 20%/60%
South county - 58%/29%
Under investigation - 0%
Weekly increases in positive tests:
June 12-19 - 7%
June 19-26 - 23%
June 26 to July 3 - 22%
July 3-9 - 23%
July 9-16 - 40%
July 16-23 - 20%
July 23-30 - 27%
July 30-Aug. 6 - 13%
Aug. 6-13- 12%
Aug.14-20 - 16%
Aug.20-28 - 10%
Aug. 28-Sept. 3 - 10%
Sept. 3-10 - 6%
Sept. 10-17- 8%
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Sept. 17-24 - 7%
Sept. 25- Oct.1 - 5%
Oct. 1 - 9 - 4%
Oct. 9-15 - 4%
Oct. 15-22 - 5%
Oct. 23-29 - 4%
Oct. 30-Nov. 5 - 6%
Nov. 5-12 - 10%
Nov. 12-19 - 11%
Nov. 19-26 - holiday
Nov. 19-Dec. 3 - 29% 2 weeks of data for this week only
Dec. 3-10 - 16%
Dec. 10-17 - 17%
Dec. 17-24 - 14%
Dec. 24-31 - 19%
Jan. 1-7 - 13%
Jan. 7-14 - 14%
Jan. 15-21 - 11%
Jan. 21-28 - 5%
Jan. 28-Feb. 4 - 5%
Feb. 5-11 - 2%
Feb. 11-18 - 2%
Feb. 18-25 - 1%
Feb. 25-March 5 - 1%
March 5-11 - 1%
March 11-18 - 2%
March 18-25 - .5%
March 25 - Apr. 1 - .7%
Apr. 1-8 - 0.1%
Apr. 9-15 - 1%
Apr. 16-22 - 2%
Apr. 22-30 - 2%
Apr. 30 - May 6 - .3%
May 6-13 - 2%
May 13-20 - 0%
May 24 - Data readjustment by county means percentages cannot be calculated this week.
May 27 - June 3 - 0%
June 3-10 - 0%
June 11-17 - .25%
June 18-24 - 0%
June 25-July 1 - 0%
July 2-8 - .3%
July 9-15 - .2%
July 10-22 - .5%
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
Fashion Street -
Driving down Main Street in Watsonville, this stylishly fixed up vehicle also performs calisthenic-like moves with musical back up.
By SARAH RINGLER
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Labor History Calendar for July 23-29:
July 23, 1934: Police arrest 22 farmworkers in Sacramento.
July 24, 1903: Mother Jones delivers famed "The Wail of the Children" speech during March of the Mill Children, a three week trek from Philadelphia to New York by adults and children protest child labor.
July 24, 2019: General strike and protests topple Puerto Rico's governor.
July 25, 1867: "Das Kapital" published.
July 25, 1890: New York garment workers win closed shop and firing of scabs after 7 month strike.
July 25, 1978: Firings break US postal strike.
July 26, 1877: 30 workers killed at the "Battle of the Viaduct" by Federal troops in Chicago.
July 26, 1912: Battle of Mucklow, West Virginia, in coal strike.
July 27, 1913: 20,000 Barcelona textile workers, mostly women and children, strike for shorter hours and win 60 hour work week in September.
July 27, 1918: Goon shoots Mine Mill (former WFM), union organizer Ginger Goodwin, Cumberland BC.
July 28, 1869: Women shoemakers in Lynn, Massachusettes, demand equal pay.
July 29, 1970: United Farm Workers force grape growers to sign contract after 5 year strike.
July 29, 2010: Jail blockade forces sheriff to postpone immigrant raids in Phoeniz, Arizona.
July 29, 2013: Fast food workers strike for living wage in seven US cities.
July 29, 2019: Unpaid Kentucky miners blockade train lauling their coal.
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
Bibingka - Sweets from the Philippines
By SARAH RINGLER
I’m dazzled by all the flours that have come on to the markets these days. As well as the usual wheat, rye, buckwheat, barley and corn, varieties I have never heard of like spelt, teff, amaranth, oat, flaxseed, and almond flours are available, not only in baked goods, but as bulk flours. I suspect it might be because of the gluten free movement. It seems like just about anything can be milled or ground into flour so brace for further surprises. The cultures of our world are so rich and the environments so diverse, it can be a history lesson and a culinary adventure just to eat.
One of the most beautiful flours that looks and feels like pearl dust, and comes in the cutest box, is Blue Star Mochiko, a sweet rice flour, made by Koda Farms, a California product made with rice grown and milled by the Koda family since 1940. And, it can be used to make bibingka, a sweet and gooey Filipino dessert. It can also be used to make Japanese mochi, Chinese dim sum and various Korean and Indonesian dishes.
Blue Star Mochiko is milled from a glutinous rice, native to East Asia, and is unique in that the small opaque grains become sticky when cooked. It has been grown in China for over 2,000 years and was discovered in a mutated rice plant, then propagated, and grown for its unique sticky characteristic that also makes it more digestible than regular rice. Note that this rice contains no gluten. Glutinous just means sticky, and this bibingka is gooey and sticky. You could imagine that it might taste like baked jello, if jello could be baked.
This easy to make recipe is from Jo Anne Sugimoto of www.justapinch.com. Note that like a cake, the flour and liquid mixtures are added in stages, not all at once. A more traditional Filipino recipe uses glutinous rice fermented with palm wine and then ground into a thick paste, a lengthy ritual made and eaten around Christmas.
Blue Star Mochiko is available at the Oriental Store and Food to Go in Watsonville at 205 East Lake. They also carry take-out Filipino goodies and groceries.
On a sad note, Yamashita Market at 114 Union St., where I used to buy this flour, is closing at the end of July after 93 years in business and 73 years in the same location. The community is very sad as am I.
2 cups mochiko flour
1 teaspoons baking powder
6 ounces canned coconut milk
1 ½. cup milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup butter - softened
1 ½ cup sugar
2 eggs
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8-inch square pan. In a small bowl, whisk together mochiko and baking powder.
In another small bowl, combine coconut milk, fresh cow’s milk and vanilla extract.
In a medium size bowl, cream softened butter and sugar together until very smooth. Add one egg at a time beating well. To this mixture, add half of the mochiko flour mixture and blend until smooth. Then add half of the milk mixture and blend in again. Add the rest of the mochiko flour and blend in. Finally add the rest of the milk mixture and mix until smooth.
Pour mixture into the greased pan and bake for one hour. Cool before cutting into squares.
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Welcome to Serf City Times Over time, our county has grown more stratified and divided with many people feeling left out. Housing affordability, racism and low wages are the most obvious factors. However, many groups and individuals in Santa Cruz County work tirelessly to make our county a better place for everyone. These people work on the environment, housing, economic justice, health, criminal justice, disability rights, immigrant rights, racial justice, transportation, workers’ rights, education reform, gender issues, equity issues, electoral politics and more. Often, one group doesn’t know what another is doing. The Serf City Times is dedicated to serving as a clearinghouse for those issues by letting you know what is going on, what actions you can take and how you can support these groups.This is a self-funded enterprise and all work is volunteer.
Copyright © 2021 Sarah Ringler - All rights reserved
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