By TINA ARNOPOLE DRISKILL

Sy Goldman, designer of the winning entry in the "Not In Our Town" art contest, believes "hate comes in all colors, places and shapes." He further contends "everybody has a personal experience with hate," whether involving looks, disabilities, race or religion. It was Goldman’s "hope to contribute something toward the fight against hate" that led him to enter the contest. Goldman’s extended family— grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins save one—were victims of the Nazi Holocaust. A graphic designer, Goldman and his wife recently moved to Modesto from Clovis.

Goldman's colored poster is available through both the Central California Art League and the Modesto Bee. A pamphlet explaining the "Not In Our Town" philosophy will feature it.

Approximately 40 elementary students and 50 high school and adult entries were submitted for the contest, which was sponsored by the Stanislaus-Modesto Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, City of Modesto, Modesto City Schools and the Modesto Bee.

Bruce Frohman, newly elected Councilman to Modesto City Council Chair 1, proved "one does not need to raise large amounts of money to be elected to office" by keeping his campaign promise to "limit donations to a maximum of $100." With only $1500 in campaign expenditures during a four month campaign period, Frohman defeated Pat Dobbs, who spent more than $30,000.

Having kept the spending limit promise, Frohman looks forward to helping create consensus on the council. A strong GOAL (Growth, Orderly, Affordable and Livable) supporter and member, he says, "the role of government should be to encourage and manage smart growth for the good of the community."

Frohman promotes the following positive actions to achieve this:

• Contract with Bay Area employers to set up local offices, so Modestans won’t have to commute.

• Establish a tax incentive Enterprise Zone to stimulate job growth. He believes lowering the unemployment rate will serve to lower crime.

• Work in partnership with Modesto Irrigation District to create an Electric Vehicle Enterprise Zone to make charging stations accessible city-wide.

• Synchronize traffic signals and establish more one-way streets.

• Revamp capital facilities fee to encourage wiser land use, including denser development and in-fill homes.

• Improve public transit by increasing service frequency, using smaller buses or vans in residential areas, posting schedules at bus stops, using debit cards to collect fares and providing free bus passes for students. The later would serve to fill low ridership buses, allow Modesto City Schools to run fewer busses and encourage young people to feel more comfortable and willing to use public transportation.

Frohman promises to work for the stabilization of city fees and taxes that reflect the actual cost of providing services, which he believes will encourage economic development. He notes fees levied by the city for water, sewer and garbage have risen over 80 percent the past eight years and feels the "present water and sewer overcharge is wrong." He seeks to establish published service delivery standards, which he believes have been overlooked or cut back over the last 10 years, while the council has borrowed large sums "to pay for public works projects that do not enhance service."

Frohman is emphatic that Modesto plan now to establish finite urban limit lines and carry out those plans in order to secure our food supply. He is a co-author of the FOOD Initiative, with Denny Jackman.

"Every citizen deserves quality city services, regardless of property location...," he says, and advocates district representation on the council. He will urge the council to renew Modesto’s agreement to build parks at all school sites. He is supportive of a performing arts center, and aligns himself with many who believe a larger complex is necessary to attract big name entertainment to the community. He further believes such a center should be built without diminishing essential services, and will help research alternative federal, state and private funding.

Frohman hopes to enlist the input of local citizens to help the council make a better community, and emphasizes his commitment to public safety through prioritizing adequate police staffing and continued fire department mandates for First Responder duties in medical emergencies.

Barbara Eniti, who helped organize the campaign but shies away from the title of campaign manager, considers Frohman to be a "kind, sympathetic, well organized person with a keen mind, who is concerned about the problems of governance, as well as being focused, open to others and not provincial." She points out that Green Party supporters came from as far away as Fresno and Berkeley to help with this campaign.

"The burden of proof is on those who insist that some fundamental conditions of repression, exploitation, or inequality are inescapable. To say merely that things have never been otherwise is not very convincing. On these grounds, one could have demonstrated, in the 18th Century, that capitalist democracy is an impossible dream."

- Noam Chomsky, "Equality"

This is reality:

I choose to call the man Kenneth. Kenneth coached the girls’ soccer team in his community. He was one of the leaders in his church, well respected as a father and husband. He was a respected businessman in the city. But no one knew the burden he carried within. He didn’t share his concerns with his father or his brothers or even his best friend.

His business was going bankrupt and he couldn’t stop it. He was a failure. Not because he was going bankrupt – that can be a very valuable learning experience. He was a failure because he did not see the many alternatives that were open to him.

Having seen the steepening spiral of debt, and still having some ready cash, Kenneth purchased a handgun. There was nothing wrong with that. He waited the mandatory waiting period. He had no police record, not even a parking ticket. He picked up his gun and went home.

At home, on his computer, Kenneth wrote his wife and daughter a letter explaining the straits he found himself in. Unable to finish it, he sent it to the "Recycle Bin."

At around 3:00 am, November 28th of this year, his 14 year old daughter was awakened by a loud noise. She put on her bathrobe and went down the hall to her parent’s bedroom. Her father had just shot her mother three times in the head as she lay sleeping. Kenneth turned toward his daughter, the gun still in his hand, and shot the girl with the two remaining bullets. He then reloaded the gun and fired five more shots into his daughter’s body, "so she wouldn’t suffer," he later told the police.

This is delusional:

In a letter to the editor of the Modesto Bee, dated October 5 of this year, a writer explained that guns’ danger was exaggerated. The writer came well equipped with statistics: 28,400 people died in their homes from accidents, 43,200 people died in car accidents, and 88,000 people died from pneumonia.

But statistics are like a bikini: what they reveal is fascinating, what they conceal is vital.

The writer made the case that of the 15,551 people killed by firearms in this country, only 1,500 killings were accidental. Which means that 90 percent of the deaths caused by firearms were intentional.

This somehow does not compare with automobiles or pneumonia. Intentional pneumonia? People can and do die in automobile accidents, but the fact is that automobiles were not designed to be lethal weapons. Guns were not designed to transport us from the dentist to the post office. If only 1,500 people were killed by firearms, and if these deaths were solely the result of accidental discharge, the letter-writer’s argument would make sense. But to agree with the writer that guns are safe, we must ignore Kenneth’s 14 year old daughter lying dead in the hallway of her own home.

As I hear all of the arguments being put forward in defense of handguns, I still haven’t heard any pro-gun advocate suggest how we might slow the slaughter. I have yet to hear any pro-gun advocate even recognize the issue. In reading the statements made by these people, I find a common trait. Being kind and generous, it might best be described as the connivery of a 6 year old. Were we to be less than generous, we would be forced to consider that these people truly believe what they are saying, suggesting that they are in possession of an intellect rivaling that of a tree stump.

"It is not necessary to use force to constrain the convict to good behavior, the madman to calm, the worker to work, the schoolboy to application, the patient to the observation of regulations. He who is subjected to a field of visibility ... inscribes in himself the power relation in which he simultaneously plays both roles; he becomes the principle of his own subjection."

- Michel Foucault, Discipline and Punish

A concert of 20th century flute music in celebration of the century close and millennium commencement will benefit INTERFAITH MINISTRIES Friday, February 4, 2000, 7:30 p.m. at College Avenue Congregational Church, College and Orangeburg Avenues, and feature Elise Osner, flautist, Blythe Osner Sawyer, soprano, Heather Carroll, flautist, and Cameron Hoffman, pianist.

"I have found myself, both as a teacher and performer, drawn to the music of this century," says Osner. "A few years ago my son started a doctoral program in music history, specializing in the 20th century. My immediate reaction was dismay at hearing my life called 'history,' to which Gabriel pointed out that nearly 100 years had gone by in the century! This provides us with a wide variety of music to study, play, and hear, much of which is just beginning to enter the lexicon of commonly played music."

The concert is conceived as a gift to the community and ranges from the poetry of Debussy, the energy of Muczynski, and the meditative insight of Bloch to the whimsy of early Hindemith and a visit to the dawning horror of the Nazi era, as Hindemith perceived in the early 1930’s. "I offer music of this century, with its many voices and messages," Osner invites.

ACTION: The open concert is free. Donations to Interfaith Ministries will be accepted at the door February 4, 7:30 PM, College Avenue Congregational Church, College and Orangeburg Avenues.

When fog shrouds the Valley and the bright heat of summer is only a memory, it’s time to take a trip to beat those winter blues. Popular destinations like San Francisco, Monterey and Yosemite are great, but there are some quieter, less crowded alternatives. Call ahead to confirm open day/times and fees.

Families with young children may enjoy the interactive features of the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose. Hands-on are the words that describe this amazing place where kids explore real-world science and make their own 3-D art creations from recycled industrial materials. Prepare to spend several hours there. You may want to wear earplugs; the roar of happy children fills the place by early afternoon. 180 Woz Way, San Jose. 408-298-5437. Admission fee. Ages 2 - 12. Tu - Sat 10 - 5, Sun 12 - 5.

The Great Valley Museum of Natural History, 435 College Ave, Modesto, is another place to takes kids for a hand-on museum experience. Explore the native habitats of Stanislaus County, view native fauna, and spend some time in the bookstore. 209-575-6196.

If art or California history appeal to you, try the Haggin Museum in Stockton (1201 N. Pershing Ave, near I-5), the McHenry Museum of Arts and History (1402 I Street, Modesto) or the McHenry Mansion (906 - 15th Street, Modesto). The Haggin (209-940-6300, Tu - Sun 1:30 - 5 pm) features American and European painting of the late 19th century, including spectacular California landscapes, decorative arts, turn-of-the-century storefronts of early Stockton life, California Native American exhibits and artifacts from ancient civilizations. Closer to home is the McHenry Museum (209-577-5366, Tu - Sun 12 - 4 pm) and its neighbor the McHenry Mansion (209-577-5341). The Museum also houses the Central California Art Leagues Art Center, a gallery where you can view work by local artists (209-529-3369).

If you are inclined to an outdoor adventure, try Leland High Sierra Snow Play at Leland Meadows, 39 miles east of Sonora on Hwy. 108. You can enjoy free parking and use of the lodge and picnic tables; for a fee you rent tubes, saucers or sleds to play on the groomed slopes. (209-965-4719)

Some of my favorite state parks are close to Modesto. In our own backyard is Caswell Memorial State Park, 6 miles south of Ripon on Austin Road. Explore the riparian habitat, hike the Oak Forest Nature Trail, fish and picnic. Day use fee.

Calaveras Big Trees State Park features breath-taking old redwood groves and many hiking trails. Call for snow conditions if you want to bring your cross country skis. Hwy. 4, five miles east of Arnold. 209-795-2334.

Indian Grinding Rocks State Historic Park has a regional Native American Museum, reconstructed Miwok village, picnic areas and hiking trails. There is a day-use fee. Twelve miles east of Jackson on the Pine Grove-Volcano Road. 209-296-7488.

For those of you who like to surf, the net that is, try www.sfgate.com for listings of activities, exhibits and events throughout the Bay Area. We welcome further suggestions and will have a future article with more local travel tips.