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No, NBC News, We Don’t Know That Bradley Manning “Stole” Diplomatic Cables & Military Documents

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By  / Firedoglake / The Dissenter

As the trial of Pfc. Bradley Manning is about to begin at Fort Meade, Maryland some US media outlets are rediscovering his case and posting “rundowns” so Americans can understand what will be happening at the trial.

NBC News’ “rundown” stated:

This much is undisputed: Manning, while serving in Iraq, stole U.S. diplomatic cables and other military documents. While on leave in Maryland in 2010, he began sending them to WikiLeaks.

That it is “undisputed” that he “stole” cables or military documents could not be more false. He has not pled guilty to any of the five specifications or counts he faces, which allege that he stole, purloined or knowingly converted the information.   [Read more…]

Politics Trumped History on Memorial Day in San Diego

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Press covers ceremony honoring death of paid mercenaries, traditional military sacrifice honors ignored

By Fran Zimmerman

Now that Memorial Day 2013  is over, let’s record how the red/blue politics of the day trumped history and tradition and every lemming newspaper in this Navy town went along.

Apparently the Los Angeles Times, U-T San Diego, San Diego Reader and La Jolla Light forgot that San Diego is home to Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, final resting place for more than 115,000 servicemembers and their families from all branches of the armed forces and site of the largest Memorial Day commemoration in the city.

Each of those newspapers carried stories with photographs, some prominent on Page One, of ceremonies in La Jolla at the “Mt. Soledad Veterans’ Memorial” underneath the controversial hilltop Christian cross. Not one journal mentioned that the Supreme Court has upheld the U.S. 9th District Court finding that this towering cross represents an illegal and unconstitutional expression of religion in a public place.

And not one mentioned that there is no consecrated ground there.
  [Read more…]

Downtown Doublecross Foiled– Mayor Filner Calls Out Hoteliers Attempt to Sabotage Tourism Deal -UPDATED

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‘The City of San Diego will not be held hostage”

By Doug Porter

Once again we’re seeing headlines proclaiming Mayor Filner to be responsible for causing the San Diego Tourism Authority to close down. 

We’re hearing about how people’s jobs will be affected by a “squabble”.

We’re being told via the Daily Fishwrap editorial about a “crippling blow to a major pillar of the San Diego economy.”

Hogwash.

Mayor Filner has demanded that the tourism agency live up to its end of a bargain struck back in April that, among other things, directed 5 percent of Tourism Marketing District (TMD) revenue to the upcoming celebration of Balboa Park’s centennial. That deal came after several months of very public and ugly struggle.

UPDATE: TMD agreed to fund Balboa Park celebration; Mayor agreed to release funds. I’m not sure whether Balboa Park got the funding they expected. TMD officials claimed revenue shortfall. (I predict a One Exclamation Point! press release from Filner shortly)   [Read more…]

Peace Breaks Out at City Hall as Filner, Employees Announce Contract Proposal

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By Doug Porter

More than a decade of demonizing public employees in San Diego appeared to be coming to close yesterday, with the announcement of a tentative deal between the City and six labor unions.

Previous administrations have exploited concerns over pension indebtedness and budgetary shortfalls caused by the great recession, using city employees as a public whipping boy for political gain.

One need look no further that former Mayor Jerry Sanders’ refusal to negotiate with the Police Officer’s Association during the Proposition B campaign to understand just how egregious these political games have been for everybody except a small group of politicians.

The proposed labor pacts will save taxpayers $60 million in pension plan payments in the first three years, according to Mayor Filner. You know it was a big deal because the press release coming from the Mayor’s office had three, count ‘em, three, exclamation points in the headline.

INSIDE: UT-San Diego Circles the Drain, WalMart’s Up to the Usual Crap   [Read more…]

Helping Homeless People Die Indoors

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By Christine Schanes

There is one certainty in life – we are all going to die. How and where we die are the only issues.

Will we die quickly or have a lingering death? We don’t know. However, most of us housed people are pretty sure we will die indoors in some health facility or in our own home. In fact, some of us buy insurance so that we are assured of the particular standard of care and facility we prefer in our last days.

However, what about unsheltered homeless people? They live outside and very likely will die outside.

How do I know this? Because over the past several years I have been involved in the end of life care for three homeless friends. I’ve written about Bobby Ojala who passed in late August 2012 and Susan Hunt who died twelve days later in early September. But, Karen Lee Creeden was the first homeless person I helped die indoors.   [Read more…]

The Six Month Mark: Three Ways Mayor Filner is Making a Difference in San Diego

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By Doug Porter

Three stories about San Diego Mayor Bob Filner lead off this morning’s review of the news. I’m not surprised that the first six months of Bob Filner’s tenure as the top elected official in America’s Finest City have been tumultuous.

After all, San Diegans elected a progressive Democrat after years of rule by mostly moderate Republicans. The local GOP leadership opted to back a more radical flavor of conservative in Carl DeMaio and, as a result, lost.

That’s been a bitter pill for them to swallow, and you could hardly characterize them as gracious losers. And, in a way, you can hardly blame them. Losing the election has cost their supporters the kind of insider access needed to assure that their financial interests take priority over public concerns.   [Read more…]

The Cost of Staying Beautiful

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By Judi Curry

People that know me know that the only make-up I wear is mascara and eyeshadow. I probably wouldn’t wear that if my eyelashes weren’t blond – or is it gray now – and I like to highlight my blue eyes.  But recently I have started dating – bad word – “going out with” – younger men and after changing the lights in my bathroom have discovered wrinkles I never knew I had. (Of course, having cataract surgery has helped (?) my vision.)

About the time I discovered a “road map” on my face, I attended a women’s conference where I was given free samples of “remove the wrinkles” cream; had my eyebrows “plucked” using thread (?); had a facial that made my dry skin feel vibrant, etc.  Even though I am a creature of habit, I never used any of the samples daily because I, quite simply,  forgot.  I’m one of those people that apply lipstick by rote. If I were to look in a mirror while applying it I would find it all over my face.

I shouldn’t tell you, but, of course you know I will, that I failed “How to teach Art to Elementary School Students” twice. Yes. TWICE!   [Read more…]

San Diego Monsanto Protest Draws Big Crowd to Balboa Park

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By Doug Porter

I wasn’t too surprised by the lack of coverage of San Diego’s demonstration against Monsanto this past Saturday. If you read Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States, you’ll realize that successful protest movements rarely get proper credit or acclaim for their influence.

Our local daily fishwrap, aka UT-San Diego, couldn’t be bothered to send an actual reporter to Balboa Park on Saturday. They relied instead on an Associated Press account in Sunday’s paper that mentioned Los Angeles and perhaps there were some other protests…yada, yada, yada… The Los Angeles Times coverage at least mentioned that there was a protest in San Diego.

Come inside for more San Diego coverage and photos from around the world   [Read more…]

The First Step Toward a Balanced Budget is Getting Republicans Out of Office

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By Doug Porter

Welcome to the Memorial Day Edition of the Starting Line.  Our lead story in today’s review of the news comes from Sunday’s New York Times, focusing on California’s budget problems.

Over the past decade or so this kind of reporting would have focused on state budget deficits and spending cuts and the internecine warfare going on in our State, which would inevitably include forecasts of bankruptcy, economic chaos and predictions that these problems were destined to spread to other states.

This time the story was different.    [Read more…]

Welcome to Golden Park Heights: “A Journey of 1000 Miles Begins with a Single Step”

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By Kelly Mayhew and Jim Miller

For those who know progressive politics in San Diego, Carlos and Linda LeGerrette are local legends. Starting with their roles in founding MEChA at Mesa College in the sixties and flowing through their deep involvement with Cesar Chavez and the farmworkers movement to their local community activism and fine work with the Cesar Chavez Service Clubs in our schools, the Legrettes’ great hearts and regard for their neighbors is boundless.

No one has done more for their community than Carlos and Linda LeGerrette, and they are greatly loved and respected by all those who they have touched over the years. It was our absolute pleasure to interview them on their lives, work, and deep roots in a place they jokingly call “Golden Park Heights.”   [Read more…]

Medea Benjamin: Why I Spoke Out at Obama’s Foreign Policy Speech

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On why Obama’s policies themselves, not those who speak out against them, are rude

By Medea Benjamin / Common Dreams

Having worked for years on the issues of drones and Guantanamo, I was delighted to get a pass (the source will remain anonymous) to attend President Obama’s speech at the National Defense University. I had read many press reports anticipating what the President might say. There was much talk about major policy shifts that would include transparency with the public, new guidelines for the use of drones, taking lethal drones out of the purview of the CIA, and in the case of Guantanamo, invoking the “waiver system” to begin the transfer of prisoners already cleared for release.

Sitting at the back of the auditorium, I hung on every word the President said. I kept waiting to hear an announcement about changes that would represent a significant shift in policy. Unfortunately, I heard nice words, not the resetting of failed policies.

  [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Driven to Despair: Are San Diego’s Taxis Like a Bangladesh Clothing Factory on Wheels?

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By Doug Porter

A survey released yesterday leaves little room for doubt that conditions in the local taxi industry pose a very real threat to the safety of passengers, drivers and the general public in San Diego.

Conducted over a two month period by San Diego State University and the Center for Policy Initiatives (CPI), the study interviewed 331 local cab drivers, asking about earnings, expenses, hours, health care, vehicle safety and industry practices.

What emerges from the data is a picture of nearly serf-like conditions, where workers are obliged to perform in unsafe vehicles for long stretches of time with low pay under an ever-present threat of being blackballed should they dare to complain about conditions.   [Read more…]

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