SQUID FRY 09.03.15: Log Jam…

LOG JAM… Squid’s no fan of Big Brother, in part because when Squid was but a Squidlet, Squid grew up with an actual big brother, who would soil Squid’s shrimp popcorn with surreptitious squirts of ink. It’s the other Big Brother Squid worries about now, although sometimes surveillance can lead to interesting discoveries.

Some residents who live near La Sala’s Bi-Rite Market in Monterey recently made such a discovery. They were distressed over delivery trucks trundling down Portola Avenue and blocking a lane of traffic when parked and generally making their lives miserable. Thinking that was illegal, they installed a security camera on a nearby roof to gather evidence. They also shared their concerns with city officials.

Those officials later said they had checked it out, and sent them a log entry from code compliance coordinator David Wright. The entry said he was at the store around 10am Aug. 21 for 20 minutes and saw no trucks. No problem! Thing is, the neighbors’ camera took a time-stamped photo at 10:06am of an 18-wheeler on the street for more than 30 minutes.

Wright maintains he didn’t see the truck. Squid, having seen both the photo and the log entry, is confused. Does Big Brother take breaks on duty? Like, grab a sandwich and chillax on the beach?

NEW DO… With all the fuss over Big Blue Live, Squid went searching for a stunning display of splashing and thrashing and flapping in Squid’s favorite habitat, local politics. And, yes, Squid found it with embattled Salinas City Councilman Jose Castañeda. His lawyer, Anthony Prince, started an announcement they were suing the city of Salinas in federal court by picking on members of the media at a press conference Sept. 1, to which they had invited, yes, the press.

Prince warned reporters not to speak to his clients – telling the media they are not allowed, by law, to interview his clients without checking with him. Prince announced Castañeda is again the victim of a vast conspiracy to make him powerless.

Monterey Herald reporter Claudia Meléndez Salinas asked a reasonable question: Why didn’t that happen with his predecessor? Instead of answering, Castañeda accused her of being part of the oppressor class keeping him down. His gripe concerns an organization Meléndez launched quietly six years ago to provide free computer literacy services to Spanish speakers. One of the nonprofit board members is Erica Padilla-Chavez, wife of Alejandro Chavez, chief aide to County Supervisor Fernando Armenta, Castañeda’s sworn enemy. That makes sense: Shame her for doing the work of angels. But it’s no surprise to Squid: As reliably as whales will spout, Castañeda will shame the media when they’re doing their job.