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Latino Voters Could Determine the Future … If We Vote

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By Andrea Guerrero

A couple of weeks ago my nine-year-old son and I got into a friendly argument about who should be the next mayor of San Diego. He seemed to get the same thrill out of talking about his favorite candidate as he gets out of talking about his favorite superhero. If you have a child, you may have been asked a thousand (or maybe a million) times what your favorite this or that is and then told why it should be something else.

In our conversation, my son reminded me that he could not vote, but that I could and should vote (for his favorite candidate, of course). It made me think of others who cannot vote, like friends and family whose immigration status prevents them from voting, and why I can and must vote in every election for the candidate or the ballot measure that will move my family and my community forward.   [Read more…]

San Diego District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis, City Attorney Jan Goldsmith Get Some Much Needed Scrutiny

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By Doug Porter

The people’s prosecutors.

They’re chosen by voters in both San Diego City and County and charged with the responsibility of protecting our interests. Today we’ll look at recent news accounts suggesting there’s much to be desired in assessing the job performance of County DA Bonnie Dumanis and City Attorney Jan Goldsmith.

I’ll also recap developments in the mayoral race (new poll results!) including a young union organizer reading Nathan Fletcher the riot act, a high profile endorsement of David Alvarez that compares him to Jackie Robinson, and a gaggle of of young Republicans from around the state taking to the streets for “super candidate” Kevin Faulconer…   [Read more…]

Heartless for the Holidays

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Why do rich and powerful people engage in callous behavior?

By Sam Pizzigati / Otherwords

Scrooge has come early this year. He’s already kicking our Tiny Tims. This holiday season, kids in America’s poorest families will have less to eat.

November 1 brought $5 billion in new cuts to the nation’s food stamp program, now officially known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

Poor families are losing on average 7 percent of their food aid, calculates the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. A mother with two kids will lose $319 over the rest of the current federal fiscal year. The cuts could cost some families a week’s worth of meals a month, says the chief of America’s largest food bank.

More cuts are looming. A House of Representatives majority is demanding an additional $39 billion in “savings.” Ohio and other states, in the meantime, are moving to limit food stamp eligibility.   [Read more…]

Nearly 1,000 Flood NFL Stadium Demanding ‘Horrendous’ Redskins Name Must Go

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‘We’re raising up and saying anybody who denigrates any class of people like that needs to be stopped.’

via Common Dreams

Calling for the Washington Redskins to retire their “inherently racist” name once and for all, nearly 1,000 protesters came out against the controversial NFL team on Thursday night, flooding the streets outside the Minneapolis Metrodome Stadium where they were set to face off against the hometown Minnesota Vikings.

“[The name] conveys the murdered scalps of indigenous people — men, women and children,” Alan Yelsey, who identified himself as an organizer for the American Indian Movement, told the Washington Post. “And that name is just a horrendous name for all of these people and for anybody of color… we’re raising up and saying anybody who denigrates any class of people like that needs to be stopped.”

The demonstration, described by Yelsey as a ‘consciousness-raising walk,’ is part of an upsurge of protest demanding the Redskins change their name.   [Read more…]

All Major Mayoral Candidates to Appear at KNSJ / Cal Western Law School Forum

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San Diego Free Press reporter Andy Cohen is slated to be among the panelists on Monday, November 11th at a mayoral forum slated for the Cal Western School of Law starting at 6:30pm.

Sponsored in part by listener sponsored progressive radio station KNSJ (89.1FM), the panelist will also include other members of the local non-mainstream press including San Diego City Beat, La Prensa and Voice of San Diego.   [Read more…]

Face Up to It, San Diego is a Beta Project for All-Seeing Law Enforcement

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By Doug Porter

Facial recognition technology developed for battlefield use in Afghanistan and Iraq is getting its first major domestic field test right here in San Diego County.  A report by the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR), based on documents obtained by the Electronic Freedom Foundation (EFF) through a California Public Records Act request, spells out the parameters of this endeavor.

The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is coordinating a program involving twenty five local state and federal agencies in the region using a vast data sharing program called the Automated Regional Justice Information System. Participants include U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, San Diego State University and the San Diego Unified School District Police.

Utilizing tablet and android cell phone technologies, law enforcement officers are snapping photographs of individuals they encounter and running them through databases that include 32 million driver’s license photos.  The system can quickly match images with the 1.4 million arrest mug shots in the San Diego County system.   [Read more…]

Four California Congressmen Focus of Immigration Reform Campaign – Me Too! Me Too! Says Issa

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By Doug Porter

Now that the off-year elections are behind for most of the country advocates are working hard to insure that immigration reform measures already passed by the Senate get considered in the House of Representatives.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) is non-committal on the subject, saying the issue deserves consideration while not pushing for committee and floor votes. My guess is he’s waiting to see which way the political winds are blowing.  If the right wing of the party can keep Obamacare and Benghazi in the headlines, the speaker won’t act.

Advocates of reform legislation today announced a coordinated effort, joining the financial and political power of the AFL-CIO and SEIU labor unions with smaller advocacy groups, including America’s Voice, PICO National Network, Mi Familia Vota and CASA in Action, to target nine House GOP lawmakers who support establishing a way for eligible immigrants to apply for U.S. citizenship. Four of those targeted are from California.   [Read more…]

Homelessness: Does A Dollar Make A Difference?

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By Christine Schanes

Every day many of us see a homeless person holding a sign or a cup begging for money. The kind-hearted people among us often give spare change or a dollar to this homeless person. However, we may ask ourselves, “Will a dollar make a difference in the life we’ve just touched?”

Yes, a financial gift of any amount does make a difference – a number of differences, in fact. With our contribution, the homeless person will be able to accumulate enough money to purchase the basic necessities of life – food, clothing and shelter. Further, by reaching out to the homeless person, we show that we care, which uplifts his/her spirits. And our generosity expands our own feelings of compassion which science has shown positively affects our immune system.   [Read more…]

North Park Mayoral Debate Tosses the Rulebook: Intelligent Questions Evoke More Informative Answers

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By Doug Porter

I’ve listened to and watched a bunch of mayoral debates this year. Usually I come away from those things feeling like I’d wasted my time.

No other face-off featuring the major players even came close to what occurred last night at the North Park Theater.

I came away with a much better understanding of who the candidates are and what they stand for. Which is what’s supposed to happen.

A broad range of issues were covered. There were no opening statements, no mandated time for each candidate to rebut. Questions were submitted from the general public via electronic media and thoughtfully shaped by Voice of San Diego’s Scott Lewis.  There were no mouth-breather questions about traffic tickets, favorite colors or unicorns.  No candidate promised free ponies for everybody if they were elected.   [Read more…]

Time to Give Voice Through a Choice- AKA Get Out the Vote

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By Ernie McCray

With the mayoral election coming up on Tuesday, November 19th, it’s time for one of those “Get Out the Vote” kinds of appeals and I’m up for the deal because voting is what being an American means to me.

But there are folks who don’t vote which I see as an insult against the very notion of a democracy. They cry “What’s the use?” claiming that special interests rule the day and our representatives don’t care about us. Well, there sure is a lot of truth in that but I can’t think of any better reason to vote than to take on such abuses of power.

Voting is at the core of our nation’s soul. The big cats know that well. That’s why they buy folks who’ll heed their will.   [Read more…]

Kevin Faulconer’s Republican Problem

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By Doug Porter

The race for mayor of San Diego is technically non-partisan, but don’t tell that to the various political action committees and “social welfare” groups around town.

While media speculation has focused on the foibles of newly minted Democrat Nathan Fletcher, and David Alvarez’s unabashed support from organized labor, Kevin Faulconer’s campaign has been conducting a master class in how avoid the “R” word.

I hadn’t given it much thought until yesterday, when the email from Faulconer spokesman Tony Manolatos to reporter Clare Trageser surfaced, complaining about her KPBS feature, saying that the account focused on “Kevin being a Republican and a tool for big business”.

That’s right. A Republican mayoral candidate’s spokesman is mad because a news story called him a Republican.   [Read more…]

Carl DeMaio Launches “Free to Be” (Poor) College Tour

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By Doug Porter

Failed mayoral candidate and wannabe Congressman Carl DeMaio is taking his message of “opportunity” to college students in the San Diego area this week, hoping that a smiling face and a pocketful of libertarian promises will woo the youth vote into the Republican fold.

Like the witch in Hansel and Gretel he’s hoping to lure young votes with the lure of sweet success: he’s the “new” Republican. Students are supposed to forget about all those nasty old white men waving their transvaginal wands to ward off people of color and other likely Democrats from voting booths around the country.

“I’m taking on the Republican Party and trying to get them off those divisive social issues — let individuals decide these kinds of issues for themselves,” the 39-year-old DeMaio told UT-San Diego. “The whole tone and tenor and culture has to change.”   [Read more…]

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