Other items in today’s column include:
*Joel Anderson wins 2nd District County Supervisor’s seat
*Psychiatric Pharmacist Ben Dishman of San Diego tells how pharmaceuticals affect brains of mentally ill patients
*Jewish Democratic Council of America releases ad supporting Rev. Raphael Warnock in Georgia race for U.S. Senate
*Rabbis under attack in New Jersey and Austria, Combat Anti-Semitism Movement Notes
*In Memoriam
SAN DIEGO — Ahead of the December 10th meeting that will determine whether San Diego City Councilmember Dr. Jennifer Campbell or Councilmember Monica Montgomery Steppe will become the next City Council President, Campbell scored a victory at the City Planning Commission, winning unanimous approval for her compromise plan to cut by 50 percent the number of short-term rental units in the city and to charge a license fee for those that remain.
The compromise was opposed by both sides of the contentious issue. Representatives of the short-term rental industry, which includes Airbnb, argued the Campbell plan was too restrictive, whereas it was deemed not restrictive enough by Save San Diego Neighborhoods, which opposes short-term rentals on the grounds that people who rent homes for brief periods can be destructive to neighborhoods.
“Thank you to all of the Planning Commissioners for your time, suggestions and support in approving these crucial new regulations, as well as city staff for all their hard work,” Campbell said in a news release issued following the Thursday vote. “San Diegans have been ready for a plan that puts housing stock back on the market, provides licensing, regulation and enforcement in the short term vacation rental space.”
Under the plan, Mission Beach, which has a history of short-term rentals, would be allocated the largest number of licenses. Elsewhere, short-term rentals would be allocated among the City Council’s nine districts. A minimum rental of two days would be required for all licensed properties, and the owners of the licenses would be required to provide their permanent addresses. Noise ordinances would be strictly enforced on vacationers using the short-term rentals.
Lori Weisberg, who covered the issue for The San Diego Union-Tribune, reported that “licenses would be granted via lottery, but the Planning Commission is asking in the interest of equity, that the City Council consider divvying up the allocation equally among the nine council districts. If approved by the council, the ordinance would go into effect Jan. 1, 2022.”
In an unsigned article, Voice of San Diego reported that when the proposed ordinance comes up for a vote will be decided by the next City Council President, who controls the docket. “If she wins, Campbell would decided when to put the compromise she negotiated up for a vote.”
Voice of San Diego also published an OpEd by Kip Eischen, secretary of the Point Loma/OB Democratic Club, in the heart of Campbell’s 2nd Council District, calling for the election of Montgomery Steppe as the council’s new president. In that column, Eischen said, “Campbell supported Measure E amid the loudest opposition from her own community; now the new heights of an impending building developer free-for-all loom over our neighboring Midway District. Campbell’s permissive approach to short-term rentals will harm San Diego’s working residents.”
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Joel Anderson wins 2nd District County Supervisor’s seat
In a very close race, former State Sen. Joel Anderson was certified as the winner of the 2nd District County Supervisor’s seat from which Supervisor Dianne Jacob was required to retire because of term limits.
As a legislator, Anderson said one of his his proudest legislative accomplishments was persuading the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) to divest billions of dollars from companies that do business with Iran, “a country that denies the Holocaust” and which threatens Israel.
With other members of the San Diego County delegation to the Legislature, Anderson co-authored in 2012 a resolution honoring Jenny and Julian Josephson for their local philanthropy and in recognition of Julian’s national presidency of the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF).
Anderson’s victory was by 282 votes over Poway Mayor Steve Vaus, another friend of the Jewish community, who rushed to the aid of Chabad of Poway immediately following the Passover 2019 attack by a gunman that killed Lori Gilbert Kaye and wounded three other people.
With the election of Anderson, a Republican, the 5-member board’s makeup will include three Democrats and two Republicans. The Democrats are Nora Vargas, Nathan Fletcher and Terra Lawson-Remer. The other Republican is Jim Desmond. Anderson and Fletcher previously served together in the state Legislature.
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Psychiatric Pharmacist Ben Dishman of San Diego tells how pharmaceuticals affect brains of mentally ill patients
Ben Dishman, a doctor of pharmacy who for many years treated veterans with mental illnesses at the VA Hospital in La Jolla, has recently authored I Can Treat That …Well Maybe, a book that both recounts some of his experiences and identifies and explains drug use in the treatment of mental illness.
Now retired, Dr. Dishman’s memoir is both amusing and educational when he discusses his own travails and educational barriers as he helps lay readers understand the chemical interactions in the brain that can either accelerate or slow down behavioral anomalies.
“Many people today — an estimated 25 percent of the population deal with mental diseases and if you consider family members and the community at large the number of people impacted by mental illness probably approaches 90 %. The general population is affected either because they themselves are patients or because members of their families or close friends struggles with mental illness,” Dishman said. “I wrote this book because the better informed people are about mental illness, the better able they are to recognize its symptoms and to help patients deal with their issues.”
Dishman, who stands 6’4” enjoys brisk walks around Lake Murray, RV trips, and working on home improvements with his wife Robin, who is a nurse. He received his bachelor’s degree in pharmaceutical studies in 1979 from the University of Oklahoma and his doctorate in pharmacy (Pharm.D) degree in 1982 from the University of Southern California. Since 1990, he has specialized in the field of psychiatric pharmacy. He served as an assistant clinical professor in the Department of Psychiatry at UC San Diego’s School of Medicine and has held teaching positions at the University of Southern California and UC San Francisco. He was a founding member of the College of Neurologic and Psychiatric Pharmacy.
Dishman is an active member of Tifereth Israel Synagogue, where fellow congregants suggest his operatic voice could qualify him to serve as a substitute cantor.
Copies of I Can Treat That … Well Maybe can be obtained via Amazon.
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Jewish Democratic Council of America releases ad supporting Rev. Raphael Warnock in Georgia race for U.S. Senate
U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler, one of two Republican incumbents in the crucial Jan. 5 contests in Georgia that will determine which party is in control of the upper house of Congress, has been accusing her Democratic challenger Rev. Raphael Warnock of being opposed to Israel. In response, the Jewish Democratic Council of America, has released a television commercial touting Warnock’s ties to the Jewish community. Additionally, the organization is sponsoring an online conversation on Tuesday, December 8, at noon PST with Warnock and Jon Ossoff, who is opposing GOP incumbent Senator David Perdue. To watch it, RSVP via this website.
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Rabbis under attack in New Jersey and Austria, Combat Anti-Semitism Movement Notes
The Combat Anti-Semitism Movement noted, “This week, a dead pig was left outside a New Jersey Rabbi’s home, and an Austrian Rabbi was threatened by a knife-wielding attacker on the street. Around the world, visibly-Jewish people face increased threats to their physical safety. Our movement continues to urge leaders and institutions to adopt the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism to combat all forms of contemporary Jew-hatred. CAM board member and UK Anti-Semitism Advisor Lord John Mann recently inspired the entire English Premier Football league to adopt the IHRA definition. Meanwhile, a student-led campaign at Northeastern University in Boston saw the IHRA definition adopted by the student government – one of the first adoptions at a private U.S. university.”
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In Memoriam
Harvey Bruce Olsan, 82, died Sunday, Nov. 29, and will have an online memorial service on Sunday, Dec. 6. Am Israel Mortuary provided the following obituary notice: Husband, father, brother, son, friend, Eagle Scout, adventurer, businessman, community supporter. So many words aptly describe the long, full life of Harvey B. Olsan. But perhaps the word that suited Harvey best was “mensch.” From the time he was born on December 10, 1937 in Riverside, CA, to the moment he died on November 29, 2020, in Carlsbad, CA, Harvey’s bright spirit, sweet smile and deep kindness were blessings to everyone he encountered. Harvey was the second son of Irving and Edna Olsan, and the lively younger brother of David Olsan. Growing up in Riverside, he helped out at the family’s furniture store, followed both his father and brother in Scouting (where he made lifelong friends and became an Eagle Scout), was involved in the Jewish community, and graduated from Poly High School. Harvey graduated UCLA with a degree in business administration, and served as an officer in the US Army and later in the U.S. Army Reserve. He returned to Riverside to help run Olsan’s Furniture, which was growing quickly as the Inland Empire expanded. Harvey was the proud and dear father of three sons with wife Raleigh Newman: Jeremy, Joshua and Matthew. In 1974, Harvey married Liane Fohrman, and became the loving stepdad of Cheryl, Adam and Jonathan. In 1991, with their six children grown, Harvey and Liane closed Olsan’s Furniture, and moved to Orcas Island, WA. Harvey’s “retirement” was short-lived, as he immersed himself in island life, becoming a real estate broker and serving on the fire district board. Harvey and Liane’s home was always a warm, welcoming gathering spot for their many island friends, and was a mecca for their children, 15 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. In 2018, Harvey and Liane moved closer to family in Carlsbad, CA. They were just settling into their lovely new home near the beach when Harvey was diagnosed with lung cancer in March 2020. He volunteered to participate in a pioneering treatment study, but ultimately succumbed to the cancer peacefully, at home, with Liane and family by his side. An online memorial service will be held on Sunday, December 6 at 6 p.m. Contact family for information. Donations in Harvey’s memory may be made to Doctors Without Borders, Habitat for Humanity or to a charity of your choice. May his memory be for blessing.
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Donald H. Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com