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Christmas on Earth? Try Buying Nothing

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Here we go again: the day after Black Friday was filled with the now all-too-familiar news of shopping mayhem.

There was the man who threatened to stab his fellow shoppers for pushing his kids outside a Sacramento K-mart, the melee of frenzied Georgia shoppers mauling each other to get at a stack of cell phones in a Walmart, the trampling that followed after a man brandished a gun in a line outside a Sears in Texas, the gang fight in a Michigan mall, arrests of hysterical consumers in Florida, the vicious brawling over lingerie, etc. etc.

This ritual has come to define us as much or more than Thanksgiving.   [Read more…]

The Sun Peeking through the Clouds

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I’m still riding high as a result of the elections. It was so great seeing so many propositions that I like pass, so satisfying having the president remain where he is, so refreshing having a mayor who is a friend. I mean, hey, I’ve been voting since 1959 and this has been a real new experience for people of my voting kind.

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Border Patrol Story About Chula Vista Shooting Death Unraveling

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A new witness has come forward in the shooting death of 32-year-old Munique Tachiquin. According to accounts by Border Patrol officers, the mother of five was shot after she attempted to run over a plain clothes agent attempting to serve a warrant.
Prince Watson, a former Marine and Iraqi War veteran who lives nearby, told TV10/ABC News that he was reluctant to come forward, but said his sense of civic responsibility compelled him   [Read more…]

Combine and Conquer: SDSU’s Department that Produces Multi-Cultural and Bilingual Special Educators Is on the Chopping Block

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By Remigia (Remy) Bermúdez/Special to the SDFP

Last semester at San Diego State University there was a big brouhaha within the College of Education (CoE) about consolidating the Special Education Department (SPED) and the Department of Policy Studies in Language and Cross-Cultural Education (PLC). A united front resulted in both departments remaining autonomous from each other and in full force on their own within the CoE.

Six months later, however, the future of the PLC department is again at risk and appears to be on the chopping block. This reversal is indicative of SDSU’s lack of commitment to the largest populations it serves and a total disconnect from the community and societal needs in this binational border region.   [Read more…]

Sex In San Diego: Inside the New Hipster Megachurch that Tells Modern Women to Submit

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In the nation’s fastest-growing megachurch, Mars Hill Church, faith and feminism don’t mix.

By Alison Sargent / Bitch Magazine via Alternet

When Jess came to the University of Washington as a freshman, she was a feminist economics major whose postcollege goal was to land a position at an organization dedicated to social entrepreneurship. Now in her early 20s and just a few years out of college, she is married, looking forward to a life as a homemaker, and involved full-time at the Seattle-based Mars Hill Church, one of the hippest, fastest-growing, and most conservative evangelical churches in the nation.   [Read more…]

The Elections are Over. Will City Heights Get “Stuff” with their Pizza?

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Last Tuesday I walked the four blocks from my house to Euclid Elementary School in City Heights to vote. The election notices were in five different languages and the citizens lined up in the hallway were conversing in those languages. Young people had small children in tow and pushed baby carriages. Elderly people moved slowly using canes and walkers. The poll workers were all young and ethnically and racially diverse; the voting process went smoothly and quickly. Despite all of my anxieties regarding the electoral outcomes, I felt that “rush of democracy” Megan Burks described so well in her Speak City Heights article about election day in City Heights.   [Read more…]

Field of View: Flowers at the Balboa Park Botanical Garden

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The Balboa Park Botanical Garden is a delicious reprieve from politics. There are more than 2,100 permanent plants on display, so this is really just a snippet. I focused on the orchids this trip because I find their complexity fascinating from an evolutionary standpoint. The Garden, which is open Friday through Wednesday and is free to the public, also features cycads, ferns, tropical plants and palms, among other varieties.

All photos by Annie Lane.   [Read more…]

Don’t Expect the Hundreds You Spend on an iPhone to Buy You Customer Service – At Least Not Without a Fight

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I’ve been a loyal iPhone customer since the first one came out in 2007. That is to say I have spent what amounts to thousands of dollars when you consider the cost of the phone and various paraphernalia, too – the chargers, a Bose stereo, protective cases, apps, songs, ringtones, etc.

Since purchasing the iPhone 5, I can only say I’ve never been more disappointed in the Apple company, product or customer service than I am now.   [Read more…]

Statehood for Puerto Rico? 3.7 Million American Citizens Vote for Democracy – Will They Be Heard?

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The most significant result of the 2012 election may not be the re-election of President Obama, nor any of the other highly publicized races decided on November 6, 2012. If pursued to conclusion, the vote of the residents of Puerto Rico to pursue statehood will likely have the largest impact on the United States.

A two-part ballot question first asked voters if they favor the current status of Puerto Rico as a territory of the United States. Second, voters were asked what type of status they preferred: full statehood, independence, or “sovereign free association”, a semi-autonomous status.   [Read more…]

The Day After the Election Was Just Another Day in Barrio Logan

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Desde la Logan: The Day After …

By Brent E. Beltrán

Sometimes we get caught up in it all, including myself. I voted for Barack Obama again. The only times I voted Democrat for president was for this man. In previous elections I voted third party, either Green or Peace and Freedom. I think the re-election of President Obama was a good thing. Not a great thing (I have a buttload of issues with his presidency, far too many to go into here). The alternative though, electing corporate stooge Mitt Romney, would have been terrible for nonwhites, the poor and working class, women, and gays and lesbians. Unfortunately, the status quo remains. Fortunately, it didn’t get worse. In Barrio Logan, the song remains the same.

In my neighborhood, the day after the election was the same as the day before the election. And the day before that and the day before that. And tomorrow it will be the same. Nothing changed. Most of my neighbors went back to work at low paying service jobs. Back to watching other people’s children or back to cleaning other people’s homes. Some didn’t even go back to work because there is no work to go back to. The youth went back to inferior schools. Adults took the trolley or the bus to wherever they needed to go because they can not afford a car. Or they can’t get a license because of their immigration status.
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The Dawning of the New Progressive Era in San Diego

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The Most Liberal Administration in San Diego History About to Take Its Seat

With the election of Congressman Bob Filner to fill San Diego’s mayoral seat, coupled with a now 5 to 4 Democratic majority on the city’s Council as Sheri Lightner has defeated Ray Ellis – we can now claim the dawning of San Diego’s New Progressive Era.

Filner’s victory reflects President Obama’s re-election on the national level, perhaps a new dawn of a similar era across the country. Indeed, San Diego voters across the County went for President Obama over Mitt Romney, 51% to 47%.

At least in San Diego, Tuesdays election results reflect changes in our local demographics and subsequent changes in local politics.

These changes and the voter turnout have ushered in the most liberal administration in San Diego’s history, the first Democratic mayor in over 30 years …   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Progressives in San Diego Won. So Now What?

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Okay, I know. Everybody’s sick of the politics already. The TV ads, the drama, the hyperbole. Ugh. But sooner or later that itch will come back and need to be scratched. And I feel the need to get up on my soapbox today.

I have been involved in/watching/hating politics ever since becoming a “Clean for Gene (McCarthy)” volunteer way back in the days (1968) before MTV and Comic-Con. And mostly I’ve been disappointed. This year’s election was different. “We” came close to running the table. The future, politically speaking, could very well be a progressive one.

But it ain’t over ‘till it’s over. This year’s elections were a shift in a good direction. History shows us that the reactionaries – those who would roll back the wheels of progress – are going to respond with fury and ferociousness. So I’m making my pitch today. Take a break, catch a deep breath and get ready to work even harder.   [Read more…]

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