Thread: Arizona car plate...in California...don't think so...

I would not drive in California with an Arizona plate. Think about it and your family before you vacation there. You have a bulls eye on your car. Call it what you want...I call it being carful.


SB 1070 uproar keeping some Arizonans from California vacations
315 commentsby Randy Cordova - Jun. 5, 2010 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic .

Almost every year, Malcolm Matheson and his wife take a monthlong vacation in San Diego.

This year, however, the Surprise couple are turning their backs on California. And their decision is political rather than personal.

"After everything started going on, I thought, 'Maybe California was not the place to be,' " Matheson said.

The couple decided they would not spend money in a state in which cities had condemned Arizona's controversial new immigration law.

In the weeks since Gov. Jan Brewer signed SB 1070, city councils in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Columbus, Ohio, as well as Los Angeles County, have approved economic boycotts of Arizona.

And as other cities declare Arizona off-limits, some local residents are opting for a little boycott payback.

In Matheson's case, he was unsure how Californians would react to seeing the Arizona license plate on his car.

He also felt San Diego's condemnation of Arizona was unnecessary, even if the city did not vote to boycott the state. "With all that is going on in regards to 1070, we just thought, 'Let's forget about it.' "

People are changing vacation plans, even as Valley temperatures are hitting 110 degrees.

For some, it's not just about the bill, it's about supporting their state.

Susan Solliday and her family discussed spending their annual vacation in San Diego or San Francisco.

Then, SB 1070 happened.

The law, which takes effect July 29, makes it a state crime to be in the country illegally.

It states that an officer engaged in a lawful stop, detention or arrest shall, when practicable, ask about a person's legal status when reasonable suspicion exists that the person is in the U.S. illegally.

Nationwide criticism followed.

"I kept reading how different cities were starting to boycott Arizona, and it upset me," said Solliday, an interior designer who lives in Phoenix. "I know there is opposition to 1070, but this is hurting people at a time when everyone is really hurting financially."

Solliday decided the family would stay in Arizona. They will visit Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon.

Solliday's family - husband Robert, an adult child and three kids younger than 17 - approved of the move.

"The younger ones are at that age where video games are the most important things," she said. "Everyone was OK with it."

Kimber Lanning, director of Local First Arizona, a non-profit group that supports local businesses, said people such as the Sollidays will have a positive effect on Arizona businesses.

"It's a shame it takes a crisis to get people to realize how important it is to support Arizona businesses," Lanning said. "If we shift our behavior toward an Arizona focus, it can be highly impactful."

It's simple, she said: If you do business with Arizona firms, the money and jobs stay here as well.

The thought of Arizonans staying home in droves is a real fear in San Diego.

According to Joe Terzi, president and CEO for the San Diego Convention and Visitors Bureau, 2 million Arizonans visit the coastal city each year.

Arizona residents make up the second-largest group of tourists in the beach city, behind Californians.

"Anything that might have a negative impact on people's decisions to travel is always disconcerting," Terzi said. "There is not necessarily panic, but there is concern."

He said that San Diego hotels have not seen any spike in cancellations from Arizona residents and that most hotels report normal occupancy for this time of year.

However, Terzi has received hundreds of e-mails and calls from people saying they will be avoiding the city.

"It's a very emotional issue," he said. "And emotions have kind of taken over."

Making things more difficult was San Diego City Council's vote to condemn the Arizona law.

That was misconstrued as a vote to boycott the state, so San Diego was targeted for a "reverse boycott" by Gilbert resident Brett Scott, who started the website azfightsback.com.

San Diego has since been removed from Scott's boycott list.

"It's such a tough subject, and when bad information gets out there, it can be hard to fight," Terzi said, adding that the city spends nearly $1 million annually advertising in Arizona. "The big challenge is, when people make these decisions based on emotions, they're hurting all these people that rely on the tourism industry."

Donald Sailors of Marana and his wife normally visit San Diego every year, but this time, they will be staying away from the city.

"We won't be going this year," he said. "If the majority of people didn't go there, they'll feel it financially."

Debbie Johnson, president and CEO of the Arizona Hotel & Lodging Association, is clear about where her organization stands on the issue.

The group does not support any boycotts or reverse boycotts; however, people staying in Arizona will help the state.

"Regardless of how you feel about this issue, the fact is we want to support our state," Johnson said.

"The tourism workers are being hurt by the consequences of all this. Tourism people, like you and I, are just trying to support their families and to make a living."

That's how Solliday feels. For her, it has nothing to do with revenge. It simply has to do with what she feels is right.

"A lot of people we know are having hard times, losing their jobs and losing their homes," she said. "If we don't get traffic here, people are being hurt, and you can't hurt people like that. It's just dirty."

Reach the reporter at randy.cordova@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8849.

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepubli ... z0q0uRdWOY

Good for them! I won't be spending any tourist dollars here either - cause we will be in Arizona!

Originally Posted by SicNTiredInSoCal

Good for them! I won't be spending any tourist dollars here either - cause we will be in Arizona!

Nothing personal...but there is a bit of bigotry in Arizona toward the califony people but nothing like it is for Arizonies in Cali. But I think that is pretty much all over the country. But it goes mostly unnoticed because very few people will say anything here in AZ to torrists and snow birds. We tend to be just a bit cold...but then the arrogance of most people from califony... it simply flies over their heads unnoticed...

States fighting against each other? Sounds like what went on before the civil war does it not? All because a federal government refuses to enforce the laws. The Reagan amnesty was supposed to end illegal immigration remember? When was that again? 86 or 87?

Originally Posted by alipacguy123

States fighting against each other? Sounds like what went on before the civil war does it not? All because a federal government refuses to enforce the laws. The Reagan amnesty was supposed to end illegal immigration remember? When was that again? 86 or 87?

It didn't work...

It was 86.

Usually see a lot of zonie license plates here during the summer....we'll see.

Added to Homepage:
http://www.alipac.us/article-5332--0-0.html

In the weeks since Gov. Jan Brewer signed SB 1070, city councils in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Columbus, Ohio, as well as Los Angeles County, have approved economic boycotts of Arizona.


I live in Columbus OH. I'd like to boycott my own city! lol

The feds are now a monarchy... subjects of British common law.

Originally Posted by hardlineconstitutionalist

I would not drive in California with an Arizona plate. Think about it and your family before you vacation there. You have a bulls eye on your car. Call it what you want...I call it being carful.

Just buy and paste a few of viva la raza stickers and Mexican flags on your car. If you're in certain barrios in California, they will leave your car alone.
Wear a sombrero to the beach and buy some mariachi cds. When in Mexico, do as the Mexicans do. It works.