San Diego Free Press

Grassroots News & Progressive Views

You are here: Home / Archives for Columns

The Starting Line – California Republicans to Push Voter ID Measure in Quest to Completely Marginalize Party

by

Just shoot me, please… On the heels of a New York Times article describing the California Republican Party as “caught in a cycle of relentless decline, and appears in danger of shrinking to the rank of a minor party”, the State GOP has announced plans for sponsorship of a Voter Identification initiative for the next election cycle. To kick off that effort the party has invited conservative columnist John Fund, co-author of the forthcoming book “Who’s Counting? How Fraudsters and Bureaucrats Put Your Vote at Risk.” to its August convention in Burbank.

The move to enact a Voter ID law is sure to alienate minority voters, who are poised to become a majority of the electorate in California in the near future. Attorney General  Eric Holder characterized Voter ID laws as a new poll tax at the recent NAACP convention. Two new reports — released by the Brennan Center of Justice at the NYU School of Law and the University of Delaware’s Center for Political Communication, respectively – have further undermined the GOP’s discredited claims that voter ID laws do not have a discriminatory impact on persons of color and are not intended to be discriminatory on the basis of race.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – San Diego’s LGBT Parade Called ‘Historic’; DeMaio Draws Boos

by

Gay Pride Weekend Recap… The historic significance of San Diego’s 38th annual LGBT Parade of Saturday garnered press from around the country over the past couple of days as military personal received official permission to participate in the procession.

Mayoral candidate Carl DeMaio’s participation in LGBT events over the weekend drew a decidedly mixed response. Some spectators participated in an Facebook organized protest and turned their backs as the controversial candidate passed by; polite applause was mixed with boos throughout the parade route. This video gives a good sense of the reception he received.   [Read more…]

I Love the Smell of Baseball in the Morning – Protesting the Padres TV Blackout

by

Matthew Hall, reporter turned columnist for UT-San Diego, had an idea that tapped into a deep well of frustration for baseball fans in San Diego. In a July 14th column Hall called upon Padres fans to step up to the plate and do something about a situation that is as unfair as it is indicative of the avarice surrounding virtually all things having to do with professional sports in this day and age. Half the population of our fair city can’t watch Padres baseball on TV, due to a dispute between Fox Sports San Diego and a couple of local cable providers. Needless to say, since the Padres are pulling down a cool $800 million for the broadcast rights, fans feel like they ought to be able to watch games from home.

So the deal was that fans were going to meet up outside the Padres Petco Park at10amon a Sunday morning in the middle of July to make a little noise, maybe make those corporate suits notice that their little game was a big deal for a lot of little people. I wasn’t sure just how much response Hall was going to get. There’s a wide chasm between ranting and raving from the safety of one’s Facebook page, and actually showing up to physically do something.   [Read more…]

Field of View: San Diego’s Gay Pride Parade 2012

by

Tens of thousands gathered in Hillcrest on Saturday as this year’s gay pride parade traveled along University and Sixth avenues and beyond. The two-hour parade showcased more than 200 floats, and is currently the largest in nation.

This year marks the first that active duty military have participated, while the anti-gay group―standing stone-faced and dressed in black on the sidelines at one minute section of the parade line―continues to shrink in size.   [Read more…]

Lemon Grove Is Booming

by

Combination of Public and Private Funds Fueling Construction Boom in East County City

You can’t go from one end of Lemon Grove to another without seeing the telltale signs of a virtual construction boom. There are so many construction projects going on right now in this East County city of 25,000, just 10 miles east of downtown San Diego, that you’d think the recession was over and things were … well, rosier than they are.

Yet in Lemon Grove, there are half a dozen construction projects in process, exhibiting the fact that both public and private money are at work here. And on top of that, city officials broke ground yesterday at a ceremony welcoming yet another project – the promenade and park centered around the city’s primary trolley station, just next to Main Street and Broadway.

Let’s take a quick look at all these projects.

Another Pharmacy

At the southwest corner of the very busy Massachusetts and Broadway intersection, Walgreen Pharmacy is financing a new facility. I spoke briefly to superintendent Andy Dipalma of Savant Construction while inside his trailer. Being somewhat distrusting of strangers wandering through his site, Andy told me that the new pharmacy should be completed in September of this year. He estimated that the project employed about 45 people – bringing jobs to this sector of the economy.   [Read more…]

Starting Line – The Spirit of Stonewall – Along with Some Actual Protests – to Highlight San Diego LGBT Pride Weekend

by

In case you haven’t heard, this is LGBT Pride weekend in San Diego. It’s a really big deal. The biggest event will be the Pride parade, attracting a projected 250,000 spectators along its route, and lasting two hours. Starting off at the intersection of Normal & University (11am) it will proceed west on University to Sixth Avenue, turning south to Balboa Park. Literally hundred of groups will be participating in this year’s parade, and we’d like to bring your attention to two contingents in particular. Gay pride events around the country started out as acts of defiance and protests against discrimination, and this year’s event in San Diego has revived some of that original spirit, along with the social events and pageantry that are commonplace in modern day celebrations.

Marching under the banner of ‘Join the Struggle, Not the Wars’, the San Diego coalition for Peace and Justice will join the San Diego Alliance for Marriage Equality(SAME) and Canvass For A Cause(CFAC) at this year’s LGBT Pride Parade. Joining them will be the San Diego Green Party, UniteHere Local 30, the Peace Resource Center, the International Socialist Organization, and others . They are marching as an open contingent (#113) this year, and are inviting like minded folks and organizations to march with them. More info on Facebook.

While politicians of all stripes are part of the annual Pride Parade, Mayoral candidate/City Councilman Carl DeMaio’s participation (#81) has sparked plans for a protest and counter-protest.   [Read more…]

Field of View: A San Diego Birding Tour

by

To celebrate my mom’s 70th birthday, my family took her out on birding tour extraordinaire―complete with personal guide Claude Edwards, co-founder of the San Diego Bird Festival and bird expert for the past 40 years. His knowledge was only surpassed by his enthusiasm.

I had no idea what to expect, and was mostly just looking forward to my mom’s reaction given her recent passion for bird watching. The adventure that unfolded opened my eyes to a completely different world. We saw more than 20 different types of birds―from a Red-shouldered Hawk and Black-crowned Night Heron to a Great-tailed Grackle and a Red-winged Blackbird. And a whole host of others.   [Read more…]

Sex in San Diego: Adult Toys for Girls and Boys

by

By A feleségül

Here’s the scenario:

Horny person; No lover; Playboy or Playgirl magazines; Sex talk on line; Porn available on paid television; Libido going wild.

What’s a nice person to do? (Or…what’s a “not- so-nice” person to do?) What is acceptable in today’s society? How does one relieve the tensions building up in the body? What “aids” are available for the average person? How would you feel if you went into an adult store and saw your neighbor there? Would it matter if your neighbor was a woman or a man? Would you be embarrassed?
  [Read more…]

The Starting Line— It Just Might be Raining on Carl DeMaio’s Parade Come Saturday

by

A group of activists have announced plans to protest City Councilman and mayoral candidate Carl DeMaio’s plans to march (entry #81) in Saturday’s Gay Pride parade. A Facebook page entitled “Turn Your Back on Carl DeMaio” has attracted nearly 300  commitments to join in the event as of 6 am today.  The announcement says:

Carl DeMaio has turned his back on the LGBT community; it’s our turn to Turn Our Backs on him. This Saturday as Carl’s contingent passes by, Turn Your Back to him. Let’s give photographers, videographers, and the media something to talk about: The fact that we won’t support someone who won’t support us!

Large Poster Sign graphics and flyers are currently being made. Final renditions will be put up for a vote for favorite(s) to be printed. If you would like to donate to get these materials printed and ready for the Pride Parade this Saturday or have Slogan Ideas, contact Jase at activistj@gmail.com. We love community support! Thank You!

  [Read more…]

The Starting Line: Mayor Predicts Doom and Gloom for San Diego Unless Rich People Get a Tax Break

by

July 18, 2012 – Local news media are falling all over themselves to report impending doom for San Diego’s economy should the automatic 10%, across-the-board budget reductions in the military budget mandated by the “sequestration” process that Congress created as a solution to the budget standoff last summer. Mayor Jerry Sanders was in Washington Tuesday to plead our city’s case. Never mind that the Office of Management and Budget has not yet released guidance about how the automatic cuts would be implemented or that it’s widely assumed that President Obama will exercise a legal option to exempt military personnel funding from the cuts.

The UT-SD’s contribution to the manufactured hysteria was the proposed headline in an early morning version (I’m sure it’s fixed now) of an online story (warning: paywall ahead!) about the potential reductions that read:

AEROSPACE XX XXXXX XXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXX

XXXXXXX XXXX CUTS WOULD HIT S.D., STATE HARD

Report forecasts effects of federal spending reductions

 
more inside…   [Read more…]

The GOP: The Party that Doesn’t Care

by

Republicans profess an unmatched love of country, but what they have is an unmatched disdain for the people who inhabit it.

Maybe Republicans do love America. Or at least hey love the property they own. They love the money they can make. They love the power they can accumulate. They love the rules they can flaunt. What they so clearly hate, as Bening’s character said so succinctly, are Americans. As in the American people.

Think about it in terms of the policies they support. Prime example: Health care. The Affordable Care Act that was recently upheld by the Supreme Court provides for a dramatic expansion of Medicaid that will expand coverage to millions of Americans who earn up to 133% of the poverty level. Until the health law kicks in, Medicaid is only available to the extremely poor with families or the disabled. Now it will be available to anyone who otherwise would have no access to basic health care. The kicker? The federal government will pay for 100% of said expansion for the first four years, tapering down to 90% of all costs by 2020.   [Read more…]

Still Only a Halfpipe Dream – Skate Parks for City Heights

by

“I am here to reiterate to you the importance of investing in our youth, who are our future. Youth in the Mid-City area face many challenges of public safety, broken infrastructure, and inadequate services. They should not have to deal with cars, pedestrians, and cyclists when they are out skateboarding. They should be provided with a skate park to be active freely and safely. This is a commitment to them as individuals and citizens of our fair city. Recreation facilities and services need to be a priority and skate parks need to be made a reality for our communities…” Mark Tran, Mid-City CAN Youth Council, addressing the City City Council budget meeting 5/14/12

Mark Tran and the other speakers from Mid-City CAN left an impression on the council members. They also left an impression on those of us in the audience from all over the city who were advocating for the restoration of meaningful public services that have been cut over the past six years. The issue of a skate park immediately went onto my “worth fighting for and doable list.”   [Read more…]

©2010-2017 SanDiegoFreePress.org

Code is Poetry