Isla Vista’s Floatopia Fiasco

...hmmmm that picture of trash is not on the beach, but at the top of the Embarcadero Coastal Access path. Using the results of clean-up efforts to portray `Floatopia' is not very ethical, Independent. Now maybe there are pictures of trash like this on the beach, or in the surf zone. If you'd like to portray Floatopia as trashy, those photos would be more accurate than the results of a clean-up.

A nightmare for the County? No stabbing, gunfights, car chases... 69 MIP and 13 Drunk in Public out of 12,000 people? Granted that Olmstead is very responsible and can imagine the worst, that is his job and he does it well, but frankly it sounds like a solid day's work, not a `nightmare'.

Excellent points from the previous poster. The arrest rate seems low and the garbage seems to have made it off the beach. This is no reason for the public or the government to play "mom."

Horror of Horrors! Young people having fun and enjoying themselves in a sea-side university town. Quick! Call the anti-fun police before it starts to spread.

A seagull gave me a ride down to the beach below Embarcadero/Del Playa this morning... gosh, looks *awfully* clean, I can't verify:
``But the beaches remain in a trashed state of disarray."

Does the Independent bother to do any fact checking? Or has the News-Press lowered standards so far that the Indy feels it can get away with printing anything now? Randy Campbell, you are great about reading comments, why do you allow unchecked facts through?

Cardinale's quote about `egregious dumping' overlooks all of the times that sanitary facilities (thank heavens not around here) have simply overflowed and dumped millions of gallons of concentrated raw sewage into the ocean. For a Professor of Ecology his knowledge of the California Coast seems incommensurate with his position.

I was out there on Saturday and there were definitely a few things that should change.

First off, the police should focus less attention on writing 60+ MIP tickets, and more on catching the people throwing glass bottles and other objects at people below. I did see in the Nexus blotter that they did catch someone throwing a bike (an f'n bike!) off the cliff. Imagine if that had hit someone. It wouldn't be hard to do, have some cops watching on the beach, and radio to a team up top. My roomate was hit in the head by an empty Skky bottle, he was Ok, but it could have seriously injured him.

Second, find some way to make it illegal to climb the cliffs. I'm no legal expert but I'm sure you could find some law relating to damaging the cliffs, which should be left alone in the first place because of errosion. This could be enforced as well along with point number 1.

Third, ban glass on the beach! Broken glass + thousands of people walking around barefoot is not a good combination. Plus with all the urine and god knows what from the people floating who knows what kind of infections you could catch. Even if it's not a law, just a large sign at the beach entrance should help prevent at least some of it.

Also, a few lifeguards on the 3 or 4 busy Saturdays during spring quarter would probably be an excellent idea and would probably pay for itself allowing people to get help on site, rather than costly search and rescue crews. Not to mention try and prevent people from drowning.

Kudos to everyone helping clean up on Sunday morning. I helped out for a bit but I know some people were there all day. I'm shocked at how many cans were still around knowing how vigilant the IV can collectors are. Hopefully next time around people will be a little more educated about trashing the beach.

partying on the beach is oh-so-sweet, and i certainly love to see everyone having a good time. events like this offer a much-needed turning point in the academic cycle, and an opportunity to focus on the most beautiful things about our beautiful home. it's such a sad stupid shame that idiots can't be responsible about their celebration. there is simply no excuse for infantile bottle-/bike-throwing or careless beach-wrecking (and yes, there was a TON of litter out there).

thank god things weren't worse... imagine the difference in official response between "12,000 people had a good time responsibly" and "11,998 people partied but we had to shut it down due to a couple fools." what if one of those bottles had cracked a skull, or scalped a kid, or drowned a swimmer... all things considered, we got lucky that those few jackasses didn't ruin things more.

simple proposal: self-policing. if you see a fellow reveler endangering another, or hucking trash like it doesn't matter, make them stop (be creative; cops aren't exactlty gentle). if no one takes responsibility, the 95% of us who like to party responsibly will be criminalized or regulated off the beach. ugh...

I have no objection to having a good time, but this kind of thing is offensive and irresposible. Come on kids, did your parents teach you nothing? Have some consideration for the community and your fellow partiers; pick up after yourselves and don't throw stuff.

Surfed in their trash Monday and Tuesday. I can't even imagine the stuff that's half submerged and on the bottom.
Trip on LSD, lasts all day and into the night, it's cheaper and creates much less litter.

The funny thing is that the majority of the partygoers are self-proclaimed environmentalist w/ lasting concerns for the environment & everything to the left of that.
The garbage on the top of DP & Embarcadero was hauled up there by members of EAB as well as many other volunteers.
But hey, this is the disposable generation! Buy goods, show up, get wasted, leave your crap behind, some poor sucker will come & pick it up for you! YEAH! :) henry

The amount of trash left behind is ridiculous. My guess is that they are all environmentalist on paper and floattopia is the reality. But they live as they are shown so I do not expect anything diffrent especially as I watch local environmentalist drive their suv's to oppose oil drilling or salimander protection. They cry about pollution but I rarely see someone take a reusable bag to the store. Actions speak louder then words and that is what these kids are following. I am in no way an environmentalist but if we want to save our environment then we need to limit our reproduction. But the politician that starts that conversation will have short shelf life.

Tens of thousands of taxpayers money spent to babysit drunken college kids? Like the county has money to burn? Responsibility falls at the feet of the UCSB Excursion Club. Why should the county foot the bill?

"A seagull gave me a ride down to the beach below Embarcadero/Del Playa this morning... gosh, looks *awfully* clean" - pardallchewinggumspot.

Probably because a week after the event, the tide swept most of the trash that was still left over out to sea genius.

Hey, I'm all for enjoying few beers at the beach, but once it turns into complete disregard for the environment, you've crossed the line. I call people out on that crap all the time, more then I would like to, or should have to.

I guess all the hype claiming that UCSB is some sort of eco-conscious mecca for environmentalism doesn't apply to it's student body, which is obvious to anyone who's been out to I.V. and witnessed the amount of trash that piles up all over the place, including the beach. It's like they've never heard of a trashcan, recycling bin or an ashtray before. Trust me, I've lived out there, and it ain't pretty.

It only took a few hundred idiots for the county to make drinking at Butterfly illegal, so I'm sure that you can look forward to getting another ordinance passed to make it illegal at I.V. beach as well, so good job Floatopia! Way to **** it up for those of us who can have a few beers at the beach and not leave our trash all over the place.

Thanks to the EAB and the rest of the volunteers who did what they could to clean up before the tide swept the rest out to sea. Better not wash up at Mesa Lane or I'll be at the next Floatopia "educating" these kids myself.

Mesamike: It is very obvious you don't know much about facebook or how it works. Creating an event is as easy as 1, 2, 3. From there it is all viral and "invites" can be sent by anyone. There is no way the Excursions Club knows and invited 12,000 people. As much as this reporter and yourself keep trying, there is nobody to point a finger at but the students themselves. We would all like a scapegoat, but a most likely broke college club isn't it. If that's all it takes, then who's responsible for the girl who got a black eye at the DP Pillow Fight that was organized on facebook? Certainly not the admins of that event. Yes, this is a small example compared to Floatopia, but I feel I have to break it down to show the relevance. Sadly, I have a feeling that this club is going to end up taking responsibility for 12,000 people at this annual event because somebody high up doesn't understand how facebook works.

Matt Kettmann... it is still unethical to use a picture of *cleaned up trash* at the top of the Embarcadero Access and imply that that is representative of the trash on the beach. In all this, there is not one photo of the actual trash on the beach, just a bunch of claims.

On the timing of the beach still being in disarray, it is standard practice to say `As of press time' but that was not in the article, so confusion was easy.

Mesamike, IV students pay loads of taxes, and IV is a gusher of money that subsidizes the rest of the County (mostly the rural areas). IV taxpaying students don't get back anything like they pay in.

If you knew the actual state of the beach: high tide is not right now washing over the sand, and the sand is very clean right now. The current cleanliness could not have been due to high tide.

Students worked really hard to do the cleanup. Way to go trashing their hard work... Mesamike, your last paragraph doesn't make up for the rant.

And Independent, way to go with an incredibly inflammatory and biased depiction of Floatopia. Sinking to Travis Armstrong like levels.

Okay pardallchewinggumspot, I see where you're coming from:

You want to rail against anyone denigrating I.V., and won't let any facts -- or what is actually written -- get in the way of your diatribe.

The article cites actual events witnessed by the writer, police, the organizers, and attendees; other officials are also consulted, student body officers, and faculty; it provides context and current background, and a chronology and exposition of the events; and there is a range of view points presented; and a number of other participants have gone to the trouble of leaving comments which support the report issued by Sara Tan -- and you still want to shoot the messenger ["way to go with an incredibly inflammatory and biased depiction of Floatopia."]

The obvious solution is to insure the next article written on I.V. quotes only from pardallchewinggumspot!

Bunk, binky. Look at the title of the article, calling Floatopia a `fiasco'... what range of viewpoints does that represent? The subtitle says `12,000 drunken, littering beach goers'.

Does the the Independent report on Solstice parade as consisting of 100's of LSD-addled nudists?

The facts are >99% of Floatopia attendees behaved entirely legally, and 99.9% avoided injury. The facts are that the Independent rarely reports on the costs of law enforcement (no estimate of the cost of the recent brown heroin raid, for example, is given in its news report).

And what justifies depicting trash on the beach with a photo of trash 100 meters away up on Del Playa, trash that had *been cleaned up off the beach??*.

Certainly there were many bad aspects to Floatopia, and a balanced article should discuss them. But a truly balanced article would also compare the rate of arrests and injuries to other events such as those at Fiesta and the July 4 fireworks... where some pretty scary gang activity has happend, BTW. I've seen the SB beach pretty trashed after July 4. And why doesn't the Indy discuss all the pollution of high explosives in the ocean after the detonation of July 4 fireworks? The effect of the noise on sea lions, seals, and dolphins?

This really is a badly written article, comparable to a News-Press piece on the Santa Barbara City Employees or on Mayor Blum.

think the caption under the picture stating "Twelve Thousand Drunks Litter Beaches at Isla Vista's Spring Break Party" is rediculous. I am pretty sure that not all 12,000 people who attended were drunk. I know I wasn't. This is a perfect example of the media spitting out random facts they made up in order to prove a point that cannot be backed up with good, hard evidence. Makes me sick.

To quickslver, do you think drunken people ever think they are drunk? What about people that drive DUI? Would it be safe to say that the majority of people there were drunk? YES. IV's reputation is well known, be deserved or not. If collectively they wish to change it events like this typically don't help. IV is what it is; attempting to sway other's opinion probably isn't going to work without time and lack of these types of parties that cause so much mess and problems for others.

Most people on this blog are attacking, or attempting to attack, very specific points addressed by the article and disregarding other facts, huge facts. Kudos to Matt Kettmann for responding, I don't think I have seen another article where an Indy writer has done so like Matt here, and I appreciate it and the style in how it was done. Too often people make comments without ever being armed with the intelligence or knowledge to have the slightest clue what they are talking about (and if this comment erks you then most likely you are one of those people).

Here is what I gathered in a nutshell from the article, pardallchewing, that you seem to lose focus on. There was an event on the beach in IV that has happened in the past. This year it was promoted on Facebook but lacked a real promoter and a lot more people showed up than had in years past. The cops were overwhelmed by the number of people that showed up and had to call in additional resources, costing the rest of the county to stretch resources in order to provide for IV. Numerous people were arrested and there was a whole lot of trash left behind. The county (AKA taxpayers) was left holding the tab for paying for the event.

Beyond that you are trying to split hairs and spin your own color on IV, something that IV zealots often do and judging by your selected screen name I can assume you are an IV protector. The great thing about the internet is the ability to share information and discussion. While you are lambasting the Indy for perceived wrongs you present no evidence of your own to the contrary. Do you have pictures proving your point about the cleanliness of the beach afterward? If so post them somewhere and provide a link here. Otherwise it would be in your best interest to stop making yourself seem any more foolish then you already have by trying the "Oh but look over there that is SOOOO much worse than this" argument. You really need to step back and get a grip.

Pardallgummy, one other thing, I would like you to prove this comment since you are all about "Unethical reporting".

"Mesamike, IV students pay loads of taxes, and IV is a gusher of money that subsidizes the rest of the County (mostly the rural areas). IV taxpaying students don't get back anything like they pay in."

Prove this point, because through the years I have always heard, seen, and experienced that IV has been way more of an expense than an asset. I would think a dose of your own "fact checking" should be in order, since you are dead wrong, but I welcome you to try and quantify this point of it being a "gusher of money". Surely you can prove your point since you would never do the same thing that you accuse the Indy of doing, or it this just part of your blind defense of IV?

InTheKnow: This is unrelated to the independent but I saw this comment posted on this Daily Nexus article that might answer one of your questions:
http://www.dailynexus.com/article.php...

"The top photo doesn't fit the caption, at all.

Take a look at the picture: People enjoying the beach, clean sand and a handful of guys hauling away a homemade float.

It definitely is not this: ':locals look through the massive amount of debris left on the beach in the days following Floatopia'...."

I believe this is an example that you were looking for.

Oh no you di' int.

I forgive you Matt cuz I love you man. Attacking anonymity after ther fact is uncalled for. For all we know Sara Tan is a grizzled old war vet in underwear shouting "get off my lawn".

This is a decidedly negative piece based on false moral outrage about some trash on the beach...A temporary problem at worst.

When you grow up you'll find that most of life sucks and then you die. Especially if you're married with kids (50% divorce rate, IRS, layoff, bankruptcy anyone?).

Sounds to me like Olmstead failed to anticipate, was embarassed and now wants to deflect blame. His subsequent calling in the calvary sounds like over-reactive wasteful spending to me.

We need these release valves. I loved being there and remembering all the other blowout parties I've been to. It's the stuff life's made of.

Next year they should empty juvy hall and have all the banger wanna-be's in their hot orange jump suits, stand by in shackles on the fringe to clean up after the party. On the bus back, they're told that if they finish high school, stay out of trouble, then they can party like this too...

Oh and always remember...

"Preserve Wildlife !"

sa1 (AKA..essay won)

Thanks for the facebook 101 lesson ucsbstudent...

Personally I don't really care how it works.

The point is there was 12,000 people on the beach and they trashed the beach and cost the county tens of thousands of dollars to babysit them.

"But unlike Halloween, a majority of the guests were actual Isla Vista residents."

Go Gauchos!

"Nonetheless, the author checked out the beach yesterday, and there was still trash." - Matt Kettman

"There are still thousands upon thousands upon thousands of beer cans for more than a mile," he said. "[Clean-up] efforts may have taken care of 20 to 30 percent of trash refuge but the other 70 percent is still out there." -Daily Nexus

Cleanliness? OK pardallchewinggumspot... I'll give you the benefit of the doubt about the tide, but like lordleadbetter said, he was surfing through the trash for a couple of days after the event. So how do you explain that? People were using the ocean to dump their trash? Ridiculous.

Trying to compare the event to solstice is just a sad attempt to deflect attention away from the issue. At least the organizers of solstice have enough forethought to have plans on how to deal with the amount of trash that their event generates. I've never seen anyone trashing Alameda park like the I.V. beach was.

"A temporary problem at worst." - sa1

Did you read the nexus article?

"I've traveled all over the world for my research, and I've only seen dumping like this in third world countries." :

Have a good time, party all you want, I'm all for it. But is it too much to ask of them to pick up their own trash? This is a pretty basic principle. How many of the 12,000 people that were at the event volunteered and helped clean up?

I too thank Matt for responding.

I frankly think a much catchier headline would have been `Fabulous Floatopia' with a byline of `Hundreds of Students Volunteer to Address Shortcomings', which is true, but a bit more surprising and eye-catching than the actual byline.

Sensational headlines are still sensationalism, and your headlines cater to dead-horse biases about IV.

Bad writing?

The distance from Devereux to Campus Points is nearly two miles, not 1/2 mile. Any checking of Olmstead's $ figure, or deep thought as to whether costs are usually reported for all events and incidents? ... `nightmare'... hardly... for the county, compared to any gang stabbing/shooting. Ashley Moore really knocked unconscious but not seeking medical help (after Natasha Richardson? obvious exaggeration).. Cardinale's comment is so over the top; raw sewage gets dumped into the ocean in urban areas in LA and SF during storm conditions.... 30-packs under one arm and holding a raft with the other for all roomates (obvious exaggeration)... although trash is in a photo at the top, that there were volunteers to clean up only is mentioned incidentally about 3/4 of the way through the article... and there were multiple cleanups planned! OK, I could go on and on.

This article reminds me of the news articles about the black area of town from my youth, where the white reporters (if they were ever allowed to make a report inside the `red line' on the dispatch map) were so biased they couldn't begin to imagine a neutral or fair article.

It is worse than agenda-driven... it is somnolent bias so deeply woven in the Indy cannot generate an accurate, fair article about an event like this. Wake up!

ITK... my intent is not to have a gutter-competition, but I would like to point out that the Indy omits more negatives in its coverage of things like July 4, Solstice, Fiesta, etc. The fraction of negatives is *way higher* in its IV reporting.

As for the money, go check the 2001 financial study for IV done in concert with Goleta Cityhood. IV generates a profit of about $1,000,000 a year for the County. Also remember that parents send money in truckloads from other Counties to their children in IV. Not a little of that money supports a whole real estate empire (of *very* high rents) in IV that employs an awful lot of people, who also pay taxes.

As for the trash, I looked myself yesterday, and at the Embarcadero access point, darned clean (except 10 older non-students, who one might call chronic inebriants, where having a nice beer-bash). Perhaps I should take some pictures. The beach is now darned clean.

I don't doubt there was a lot of trash on Saturday. There were pretty darned serious volunteer efforts to clean that up though, and I think that is the amazing and incredibly positive thing about IV (that was seriously downplayed by the Indy).

OK, OK... chill my babies

mesamike (and others ...not including profizzle cardinale)makes some good points too.

How about we agree to use this as a lesson learned?

When we went backpacking in the Sierra my father taught me to leave our camp spot cleaner than when we came. Yep, we packed out other people's trash...and felt good for doing so.

ucsbstudent can take the challenge and Facebook a cleanup party tomorrow. Show us you can be responsible adults. Next open invitation should include a request to leave it cleaner than when you came.

Peer pressure is a powerful tool. Don't let us down my babies.

Friends, It's already been done. Nearly 500 confirmed and this is an unorganized, unsponsored event.

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid...

You can argue all you want about reporting facts. This is a fact. Wondering what happens when the tide comes in and scoops up your floatopia trash and micro particles? Do you have any idea of moon, tide, currents at "your" beach?

Here is what's happening to the trash you don't see on the beach.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnUjTH...

How many of you attend the Bren school? I'm sending him information on how his money is being spent. I'm also thinking about implementing a UCSB graduate hiring boycott from 2009 to ? at my company, will other business join me? maybe that's what it will take.

As a native of SB, I've endured my house going up in flames, the oil spill, tragic deaths of family and friends. The one thing that has kept me sane, was being able to paddle out into the ocean, ride waves and purify myself.

In this day and time, the lack of respect for my "mother" has motivated my to fight back. No one f...s with my mom.

Pardallchewy

"As for the money, go check the 2001 financial study for IV done in concert with Goleta Cityhood. IV generates a profit of about $1,000,000 a year for the County. Also remember that parents send money in truckloads from other Counties to their children in IV. Not a little of that money supports a whole real estate empire (of *very* high rents) in IV that employs an awful lot of people, who also pay taxes."

Do you really think that even answers the question? Really you are so horribly NOT answering the question is isn't even funny. Nice even figure you throw in there...$1,000,000... really? What are you Dr Evil? SHOW ME! USE FACTS NOT YOUR OWN ASSUMPTIONS and your comments are not proof. Provide a web link in your comment. And yes they pay rent, congratulations, but isn't it true that most landowners have held their property for many years if not decades? The property tax is assessed only during a sale and hence is still relatively low in comparison to the surrounding area. Nice try but your thought process is bunk.

It is amazing you are blaming the Indy for one thing and then commit the same type of perceived error, really hypocritical of you...

Go to either the Goleta Library or the UCSB Government Pubs to get the EPS Financial Impact Study of various Goleta Cityhood options. The fact is those documents are in the libraries, and the fact is that they showed IV makes the County a substantial profit, of order $1,000,000 a year. The fact is that not all info is on the web.

Lots of properties have turned over in IV in the past 10 or so years... a whole County Redevelopment Agency has been funded by the increment in property taxes. Hey, they finally upgraded my very own sidewalk by the Varsity Bike Shop on Pardall. And, in fact, most of that money has been spent on staff salaries down in the County Building to `plan' the work in IV. Well, finally Pardall got redone, so a few dollars have actually been spend in IV.

I'm sorry, the Indy using a photograph of trash that had been cleaned up from the beach and moved up to Del Playa to somehow indicate that a beach was *left trashed* is in a whole different league of sensationalism. Saying that only 1/2 mile separates Devereux and Campus Point when 2 miles separates them, and implying that the beach was packed for the entire distance from Devereux to Campus Point is a whole different league of misrepresentation.

The Indy really scewed this one up, and the particularly insulted the hundreds of people who worked very hard to clean up the mess.

Is that what Randy Campbell and Matt Kettman really mean to do? Trash through sensational unethical reporting the hard work of the 100's of volunteers who worked like crazy to clean the beach after this event?

pardallchewinggumspot, keep chasing your tail and you'll get butter.

"Is that what Randy Campbell and Matt Kettman really mean to do? Trash through sensational unethical reporting the hard work of the 100's of volunteers who worked like crazy to clean the beach after this event?"

The clean up wasn't until many days after and one is planned for Sunday May 10th (see the facebook link above), maybe you should tell them to cancel it since, according to you, the beach is all clean. And how many of the "100' of volunteers" were probably motivated by the Indy or someone reading the Indy and hearing about the problem?

BTW you still haven't back up your claim that IV actually contributes more to the County then what it sucks out of it, the 2001 number would be outdated anyhow. And if I recall correctly wasn't the County trying to get rid of IV but Goleta didn't want them when Goleta formed? Hmmm kind of debunks your theory that IV is worth something.

ITK, horsepeaches. Lots of cleanups were planned during, right after, and the Sunday after the event. A huge number of UCSB and SBCC students actually care deeply about keeping the beaches clean, and you, the Indy, Matt Kettman, Randy Campbell, Marianne Partridge, etc, have really trashed those caring, hardworking students. Way to go; next time perhaps they'll let you get out and clean the beaches. Perhaps you'd enjoy this article:

http://www.dailynexus.com/article.php...

I have referred you to the EPS report commissioned by LAFCO that justifies my statement that IV is a net source of income for the County. Feel free to go to the Goleta Public Library or the UCSB Governmental Documents Library and read it. BTW, EPS used to keep it on their website; so did LAFCO, but they took it down... perhaps too inflammatory to the propaganda the County likes to maintain.

You are very confused about the LAFCO process... LAFCO is sort of a state agency with appointees from local jursidictions and the County. In 2001 LAFCO could have easily voted to make the Goleta vote include IV... it was not up to Goleta advocates to decide, but up to LAFCO to decide. They (including Supe. Marshall) voted to keep IV in the County jurisdiction... pretty obviously because it is a gusher of money. Oh, that was the 7th time since 1973 that LAFCO has voted to *hold on to IV*. Many times IV begged to become its own city and govern its own finances...

Now, praytell, why does LAFCO repeatedly vote to keep IV in the County for 36 years if IV is a money loser? I myself have heard Mike Brown (County CEO) say directly that areas like IV must be kept unincorporated so the County can keep the money.

No costs have gone beyond inflation since 2008. In fact, the Real Estate bubble and turnover like that induced by Conquest housing have made IV a bigger gusher of $. BTW, the deputies *love* Halloween... they have a wonderful barbecue, and clearly enjoy arresting drunk, nearly naked young women.

Just to back up Pardall solely on the cleanup, (I don't know anything about IV cash ins and outs) ITK did some poor research on the clean up set for May 10th. That date is set because Floatopia 2 is going to be the previous day. It would be completely silly to have a clean up intended for last weeks Floatopia that far away. I'm not sure how you missed this, but once again, it highlights people's inability to use and understand facebook.

Yes, Mr. Kettmann, the discussion is wearying, in the usual way... I don't think you've noticed that actually, I took your points quite seriously. Sorry about missing one silent consonant at the end of your name.

Explicitly, once again, I certainly don't think that the Independent has any agenda here... your response (3) above is simply irrelevant. However, a variety of forces has caused the Indy to fall into a subconscious grossly prejudiced attitude toward Isla Vista.

And your employees who live in IV want good recommendations and relationships with you, so they bend their will toward your deeply seated prejudiced.

We'll never get any deep reporting in the Indy on all the environmental destruction caused by the tourist industry in Santa Barbara... the vast carbon footprint of folks driving up from LA, the vast trash going to Tajiguas. Or the tragedies of the low-wage workers who clean for 12 or 15 hours a day. The tourist industry leans back quite heavily... the Indy wants ad revenue and good relationships with movers and shakers who profit.

The Indy is darned thin on the environmental catastrophe known as Montecito, that vast sink of our water supply. Don't want to upset the rich and influential.

Maybe in the 1970's the predecessor of the Indy might have told it like it is, when the janitor made the same as the publisher.

But now, the Indy gives a pass to the PC rich.

** Shorter Isla Vista's Floatopia Fiesta **
By Pardall Chewinggumspot

>> Some 12,000 tax-imbuing righteous residents of the great metropolis of Isla Vista had a darn fine time last Saturday, in the two mile stretch between Devereux and Campus Point.

>> As usual, trash and other waste was properly disposed of, leaving the sands crystalline and pure. 'Our putrid neighbors on the South Coast should take note,' said one Pardall observer, 'in that those folks drink without excess, enhance the tax base, and show uncommon courtesy and respect by adhering faithfully to the tenets of zero environmental impact.'

>> Local community leaders delivered further benedictions upon the glorious procession, as a Supervisor declared, 'Thank God we've got IV in our portfolio!' and a Sheriffs Deputy added 'I almost wish they could spice things up by mis-behaving, or littering. Almost.'

>> And this humble scribe can only state the obvious: It can't be long before popular sentiment ratifies Isla Vista's proper standing on this Earth by renaming it 'Valhalla.' <<

Pardellchewinggumspot,
Please do just a little research before taking a dump like this: "The Indy is darned thin on the environmental catastrophe known as Montecito, that vast sink of our water supply. Don't want to upset the rich and influential."

Montecito has its own water company with it's own sources, independent of Cachuma or state water. So no they are not taking your water. They also have an award winning sanitary district that out performs those in Santa Barbara or Goleta. They have their own school districts and fire department. They do all this while also pumping serious money into the County's coffers. The 10,000 residents of Montecito have one County Sheriff patrolling their community, while the 18,000 solid citizens of IV have dozens of deputies to keep the peace on a Friday or Saturday night. The current crop of IV residents does a horrinble job of keeping their town clean and now you take pride in the massive trashfest that is Floatopia. Get back to me when there is a "festival" in Montecito that involves 12,000 "adults" trashing a beautiful beach / ocean with garbage and human excrement.

Very nice Binky... well said

Pardallchewy,

LAFCO is not a "sort of state agency", every county has one run at a county level, it was formed by State law. It seems your knowledge of LAFCO is limited. Their reports are online; you simply refuse to back your statements with them. From their Dec 7, 2000 staff report
"In recognition of the close relationship between Isla Vista and UCSB, if the Commission does not ultimately include Module B in the city, the staff feels that there should be a local governmental structure accommodating both Isla Vista and the University. It may be appropriate to consider in conjunction with the County, UCSB and Isla Vista Recreation and Park District, an alternative governance structure. It is recommended the staff be authorized to consult with these agencies."

Many people would have not voted for the incorporation of Goleta if IV was included, it is a simple drain on resources and does little to contribute to the economic well being of the region.

On a funny note, saw this morning's issue of the UCSB Daily Nexus w/ coverage of I.V.'s Earth Day festival this past weekend. How much you wanna bet that many of those in attendance @ this "environmetally aware event" were also present @ Floatopia & left a mess behind?
See, environmentalism for many of Isla Vista's residents works on the following tenet: Do as we say, not as we do.
It's what I refer to as "Earthy out of convenience" & the way it works is you act all environmental to score a bongload, hook up w/ the hot chick in the tie dye or get a free beer.
Everybody needs a crutch, schtick or gimmick & this 1 works great! The betting window is now open! :) henry

Some pretty good comments, H_G. However, doesn't Montecito draw water from the same Santa Ynez river or tributary watersheds (albeit not Cachuma)? Whatever the origin, the per capita water usage in Montecito is off scale by other local measures. The Goleta West San ain't bad either, BTW; their infrastructure reviews are glowing, and they have a $30 million reserve. They started as the IV San. I'm pretty sure a lot more safety officers were in Montecito during the Tea fire... and although the Montecito Inn is actually in Santa Barbara, its had its lurid incidents, like married men leaving young women dead in the room OD'd on cocaine.

IV simply does not have `dozens of deputies' on Fridays and Saturdays. On Halloween, yes, but most Fridays or Saturdays it is less than one dozen. IV does not have 18,000 residents, although the mistaken Census Designated Place might fool you into thinking so: that includes Storke Ranch and UCSB (which, BTW, has its own police force). IV itself has 13,500 residents. One thing we know from the 2001 EPS financial impact study: IV pays for its law enforcement, Montecito doesn't pay for IV.

I agree that Montecito contributes more in property taxes than it receives, to a far greater degree than IV. Such is the nature of County government; the money flows from both relatively wealthy areas to the interior, rural-type areas. Don't point a finger at IV as a resource consumer; that is just numerically false, although Montecito contributes a lot more than IV; both are net sources of revenue for the County.

You are woefully misinformed about the cleaning of IV; huge numbers of volunteers clean the streets, and you are really wrong to overlook that. Of course, in Montecito you just pay the immigrant labor $6/hour to clean up... you don't volunteer for actual manual labor.

H_G, you have not one whit of evidence that any human excrement went into the ocean at Floatopia, although I don't doubt some did; the volume may not exceed that of a few months of $6/hour workers in Montecito relieving themselves in creeks that flow to the ocean

ITK, sorry, LAFCO is not a County agency; ask the County sometime; they take no responsibility for the reports and procedures. It is an agency formed by State law, and that is `sort of a state agency'.

You are quoting a staff report but the staff doesn't ultimately decide, it is LAFCO itself, with its many appointees from from cities, a few at-large appointees, and some County supervisors. The EPS financial study is simply not online anymore; it was deleted.

There is only one way to know whether a combined IV/Goleta city would have passed: at the ballot box. Everything else was and is speculation. What is not speculation is that 7 times since 1973 LAFCO could have pushed IV out of the County and chosen not to do so... if IV is such a financial drag, why not?

Nice, Hank, don't forget a lot of students did the hard work of cleaning up Floatopia...

I get it now, floatopia is the new Earth Day for the me gen.

"ITK, sorry, LAFCO is not a County agency..." when did I say it was? Hmmm seems you are wrong again, I merely said every county has one but you apparently misunderstood a simple statement. And they are a commission, not an agency.

Your posts are full of speculation and hyperbole, but are thin on fact.

Whatever LAFCO is, it has never tried to get rid of IV because IV is a drain of funds on the County. In fact, LAFCO has kept IV out of any sort of municipality since at least 1973, which is quite a fact-rich observation.

Of course, you can beat me in a contest to minimize facts anyday, ITNo.

I mean, you know, whatever.

I, myself, am an overzealous piece of trash who is grossly threatened by the intelligence of others to the point that I am too afraid to go out into the light of day and expose my hideous face, or my real name for that matter. Sorry guys, I'm going to go clean up a beach now and then I think I'll run for office in one of those states like Kansas that will appreciate my hypocritical and asinine comments so long as I say it like I know what I'm actually talking about.

Pardallchewinggumspot: "Nice, Hank, don't forget a lot of students did the hard work of cleaning up Floatopia..."
You're absolutely 1,000% correct on that. They were also the 1's that organized the Earth Day Festival.
Props to them, they truly represent what they believe by actually practicing it.
The "many of those in attendance" whom I was referring to was the attendees that just show up for the sake of the party.
They'll never learn anything about true environmentalism because that's not what they're there for, it is a fact.
Those that made the effort to clean the beach after Fiascotopia are truly practitioners of their discipline. HOWEVER, they also became the garbagemen for the self-entitled me generation, not what the intent of environmentalism is :) henry

"Whatever LAFCO is, it has never tried to get rid of IV because IV is a drain of funds on the County. In fact, LAFCO has kept IV out of any sort of municipality since at least 1973, which is quite a fact-rich observation."

The rest of Goleta would have never voted for incorporation if IV was included, well known fact and was printed over and over again in stories during that time. To have a "conspiracy" theory that the County wanted to hang on to their golden hen is a bit fiction don't you think?

Well, ITK, perhaps you can give evidence that supports your `well known fact' about Goleta's voting habits. Don't bother to include Noleta in your evidence.

And IV usually wanted to become its own City... that was denied by LAFCO too. IV would have more population than 100's of cities in California.

You are elevating my observation into a `Conspiracy Theory'. Whenever IV had tried to get out of the County, LAFCO looks at one number, and votes No. That number is the profit IV contributes to the County. Hardly a conspiracy.

Hank, for sure, enviros are trash pickers for the careless. That is true of just about every generation since, well, 1776? When has America not been dominated by me-generations? The Gilded Age? The Civil War? The Roaring 20's? Listen to some of Studs Terkel's oral histories about greed and selfishness during the 1930's Depression.

pardallchewinggumspot,
Once again I encourage you to do just some basic research before taking another dump like this:
"Of course, in Montecito you just pay the immigrant labor $6/hour to clean up... you don't volunteer for actual manual labor."

First of all, trash is not a huge issue in Montecito like IV because it is not home to thousands of transient, self absorbed twentysomething party animals, most of whom treat their community like a huge catbox. However, the Montecito Association has an annual Montecito Beautification Day in the fall which attracts hundreds of civic minded VOLUNTEERS that comb the streets for trash. The M.A., which is staffed by VOLUNTEERS, even has a beautification committee. Thank you for the correction on the population of IV. The fact that there are 12,000 residents rather than 18,000 that need constant babysitting from the Foot Patrol only improves the point I made. Your most amusing point: "H_G, you have not one whit of evidence that any human excrement went into the ocean at Floatopia", is so absurd that I am still lol. Were there porta potties? Did the 12,000 beer guzzling partiers hold it in? Get a grip gum guy/gal you really need to get out of IV now and again.

C'mon, you're both wrong. The reason IV wasn't included is because us ex and near ex hippies didn't want our sparkling new city council stuffed with enviro-wako's that would make the city fund community parties and parades and turn all the open space into pot farms for revenue...That railroad track/airport open space has been saved for hundreds of years for this perfect storm of skyrocketing realestate that has made millionaires out of everyone who owns even a square foot of it.

Er, can we redo that vote thing??

ho hum, more silly exaggerations about IV. H_G, your ignorance of IV is truly vast, and malicious.

There were signs leading to bathrooms. Surprisingly, people with apartments on DP are pretty generous with their bathroom facilities. Actually, public bathrooms on DP have been opposed for years by the County because that might encourage people to come, like all those high school students from Montecito. They come to IV anyway to escape the crypt of Montecito.

And if bathrooms had been built, H_G couldn't complain about polluting the ocean.

50 people volunteer *each week* for several hours to clean up IV; in terms of person hours, IV's volunteerism dwarf's the 2 hour clean-up Montecito does on its Beatification day. That's not including all the time student groups devote to volunteerism. Or course, in Montecito, they can just write a check and go back to collecting fees for channeling investments to the next Bernie Madoff.

Montecito residents hold all the world records for self-absorption. One of my friends runs a mobile in-home colon cleaning service, complete with vitamin enhancements. Makes a good living in Montecito with his rectal absorption techniques. Indeed, that is the only way many Montecitans get anything external absorbed.

pardallchewinggumspot,
Perhaps if you did not drop so much acid back in the day, you would see the perversity of your statements. I attended UCSB and lived for five years in IV both during and after graduation. I had to move out after one of the many Rugby Weekend riots. I had enough with cars being overturned, flaming dumpsters, police swinging clubs leading snarling dogs, and most importantly the thousands of drunk fools roaming the streets every weekend. The reason that there is so much activity cleaning up IV is that there is so much trash left by irresponsible residents that care little about their environment. People in Montecito (no I do not live there) care more about their community, so cleaning it up is a far less difficult task. You were the jackass that brought the good people of Montecito into this discussion about the Floatopia disaster. The self-absorption of the Montecitans is no match for that of some burned out hippie like yourself that insists in multiple posts on polishing the turd that is Isla Vista.

Take it from a 22 year resident of Isla Vista (1987-2009 & still going), we got more problems than any other enclave in SB county.
The only thing that Santa Barbara beats I.V. @ is gang problems, but w/ all the little G13 wannabes roaming the 6600 block of Picasso & parts of the 6600 & 6700 blocks of Abrego, we ain't far behind.
I see the mess the me generation makes every weekend. My wife & me have to clean up after our neighbor's friends who show up & mess things up because it ain't their problem. Of course, it don't help if your neighbors are tools.
What we do is pick up their crap & kindly deposit said crap on their doorway. If they want ghetto, they can have ghetto, just keep it on your side of the complex :) henry

Well, Herschel, thanks for getting down to it... your concerns are in no-way fact based, and come from a deep river of unresolved emotions.

I disagree, hank; I think numerous neighborhoods have more problems than IV, and those neighborhoods can't get to the beach in 3 minutes or a lecture by a Nobel Laureate in 5.

For sure I've seen your apartment neighbors be real trashy, and it is a big problem. I just don't think its been any different since, well, 1492 or 1776 or whatever time period you want to pick. And I had a nice neighbor who had 50 customers per night in a complex outside of IV... the noise and trash were offscale.

I actually think IV is way, way calmer since I arrived in the 1970's. A lot less speed and heroin now. Goodness sakes, kids walking their little dogs now like they're in domestic bliss; less bikers; everything seems so suburban now.

The nicest thing is the complete ignorance of guys like H_G about the 99% of the great things in IV; he just focuses on the 1% awful stuff. Hope you aren't losing your perspective, henry.

"The funny thing is that the majority of the partygoers are self-proclaimed environmentalist w/ lasting concerns for the environment & everything to the left of that.
But hey, this is the disposable generation! Buy goods, show up, get wasted, leave your crap behind, some poor sucker will come & pick it up for you! YEAH! :) henry"

To add to Henry/Hank's comment: I also notice that for being so Left-wing and eco-concious, many of these people drive big SUV's and pickup trucks.

"And this humble scribe can only state the obvious: It can't be long before popular sentiment ratifies Isla Vista's proper standing on this Earth by renaming it 'Valhalla' " -Binky-

Binky: The honor of naming a place "Valhalla" would only go to Solvang, where people sharpen their broadaxes in their Runic world of Viking myth and lore.

Just a comment about the supposed origins and history of Floatopia... it was definitely alive and well in the springs of 2002 and 2003, when I can vouch for several participants. Maybe fewer in number, the event actually consisted of floating from Coal Oil Point to Campus Point with rafts tied together to form long chains. What a great way to get to know a few people. I think the attire of choice was a tuxedo/suit or evening gown over a wetsuit? Really it seems like this year's event had less floating than the name suggests.

This may be lost in the chatter about trash and journalism, but I appreciated the story and the mention of this longstanding tradition. Isla Vista life stays with you long after you've moved on, sometimes with a bit of eye-rolling lore. For those of you who live there, enjoy the bubble for what it is, but don't expect the rest of us to think all your antics are cute - just some of them. You will know us by the glow of reminiscence on our faces and the appetite for Freeb!rds.

Look, can't we all agree that leaving beercans on a beach, no matter how few or many, is wrong?
They destroy the ocean environment-meaning that we will be destroyed in turn.
So, before Floattopia begins, have every student at UCSB take a required day-long seminar on how the ocean is being ravaged by us.
And how throwing beercans etc around is ILLEGAL and IMMORAL.
It hurts someone whose name you may not know, but nevertheless hurts. And sooner or later, such acts will hurt you.

We can't wait to come to Floatopia2. We're gonna mess stuff up. You think hucking bottles from the cliff is bad - wait until you see what we've got in store! Your pain is our pleasure. Gonna film it and post it on Live Leak so the whole world can laugh. Got some stuff planned for you ladies as well... Think we're are kidding? Think again. We ruined Poly Royal up at SLO and now we've got our sights set on you!!

See you soon,

The out-of-towners

Here's a video of the trash, so judge for yourselves:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Be_AdD...

To all those who minimize the situation:
Denial is not a river in Egypt
Never underestimate the human minds capacity to underestimate its responsibility for its actions.

Beer and a pop tart.

"To add to Henry/Hank's comment: I also notice that for being so Left-wing and eco-concious, many of these people drive big SUV's and pickup trucks."

Sure, let's add one lie to another lie.