THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM… Here’s something that Squid really admires about some Monterey County officials: their superhuman powers of denial. One day it’s: VOTING RIGHT ACT lawsuit Padilla v. Lever does apply to Monterey County’s GENERAL PLAN INITIATIVE and BUTTERFLY VILLAGE referendum—keep ‘em off the ballot. And then, months later, when a federal court rehears Padilla and reverses its earlier decisions, it’s: >>Padilla no longer applies to the two local ballot measures. No special election. Keep fighting those pesky activists in court.

The reason Squid’s thinking about these things is an upcoming meeting. On Thursday, Oct. 12, from 6-8pm, the Board of Supervisors VOTING RIGHTS COMMITTEE will hold a “special community meeting” in the Supervisors’ Chamber, 168 W. Alisal St. in Salinas. Two days before the meeting, Squid got the meeting agenda, and scanned it for something indicating that the Supes had finally come to their senses and decided to call a special election to—finally—let voters weigh in on the General Plan Initiative and Butterfly Village referendum. And…nothing. No mention of either—or Padilla, for that matter. Denial does seem to work well.

SUPERSTITION AND PARANOIA… Trolling the Internet, Squid hooked a furious petition demanding a stop to the instruction of qigong at the INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF MONTEREY, a local public charter school.

Squid had very little idea what the hell qigong is—turns out it’s an aspect of Chinese medicine involving the coordination of breathing with physical postures. Sounds like Chinese yoga to Squid.

According to the petition, the school has had two “doctors of medical qigong” instruct its students. “This was done without parental consent or notification,” the petition reads. “These ‘doctors’ are not licensed by the State of California. In fact, to become a doctor of medical qigong, one has to learn how to project energy balls, how to treat Spirit or Demon Possession, how to use incantations to paralyze spirit entities…”

Squid doesn’t know about you, but Squid’d be stoked if Squid Junior came home shooting energy balls from his fingers and muttering incantations at all our demon-possessed neighbors.

Anyway, according to the petition, the school has stopped teaching qigong, but has “refused to inform parents that their children were exposed to these pseudoscientific and occult beliefs.”

Fortunately it seems most people ignored this wingnut petition and focused on the rest of the school’s wonderful, innovative curriculum, because its charter was renewed not long after this petition hit the Web. And just like that, another demon explodes in a ball of ensorcelled energy.