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…]
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…]
By Judi Curry
I am tired of men – and stupid women – telling me what I can do – or not do – with my body. In the readings I have done I have never come across anything telling me that the legislature – or the Supreme Court for that matter – were appointed GOD (s) and until they can prove to me that they are the Superior Being, it is time that we women exert our own power to ban the very cause of fetuses – namely the ERECTION.
This is what I propose: Every time a man has an erection not for the purpose of conceiving a child, that penis be cut off. (The conception of a child must be agreed to by the female partner.) The removal must be done by a female mid-wife, female nurse practitioner, or the female receptionist at the front desk. If none of these are available, then it is permissible for the woman that caused the erection to remove it any way she sees fit. This does not have to be done in a licensed hospital; in fact, a back-street alley is preferable. I don’t think that a hanger would work to well, so maybe a dull knife that has not been sterilized would be the weapon of choice. [Read more…]
Corporate foes of a genetic labeling measure outspent grassroots supporters by a 3-1 margin.
By Jill Richardson/ Otherwords
When you look at the numbers, how could Washington State’s ballot initiative to require the labeling of foods made with genetically engineered ingredients ever stand a chance?
I’m not talking about poll numbers. I’m talking about money. [Read more…]
Activists, Artists and Residents Meet to Discuss Actions
By Brent E. Beltrán
On a beautiful Tuesday evening a dozen individuals involved with the Barrio Logan community gathered at Bread & Salt in Logan Heights to plot out a strategy to take on polluting maritime industry’s anti-resident referendums.
Having not gotten their way during a five year Barrio Logan community plan update process maritime industry and their suppliers and surrogates have decided to take this local neighborhood issue out of the hands of Barrio Logan and put it to a citywide vote even though the San Diego City Council twice voted 5-4 to approve the community plan. [Read more…]
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…]
By John Lawrence
This article is based on an excellent book by Tom Rand: “Kick the Fossil Fuel Habit – 10 Clean Technologies to Save Our World.” It contains great information at a reading level that even an elementary school child can comprehend. And there are many superb pictures too. It is a wonderful resource in the numerous technologies that are in the process of ridding the world of fossil fuels – some of them hardly known to the literate public. At least I wasn’t aware of them, and I consider myself somewhat knowledgeable about global warming and what we can do about it. He identifies ten different technologies. We will devote an article to each of them. Part 1 will deal with solar.
Most everyone is aware of solar panels. The sun provides the earth with an enormous amount of energy which we are learning how to convert into energy to power our cars and our homes. A square yard of desert absorbs as much energy over a year as you can get out of a barrel of oil. In fact a barrel of oil contains energy from the sun that was absorbed millenia ago and stored as fossils. An area of desert the size of the state of Connecticut absorbs enough energy to replace the entire oil output of the OPEC countries. The technology to convert this energy to power output useful to humans is available today. [Read more…]
By Jessica Bartholow/Labor’s Edge Blog
Next week, America will take a day to honor the commitment of men and women who have served our country. In California, this day is significant because it is home to more returning veterans than any other state in the Nation.
But for too many veterans, the November 11th holiday is nothing more than a gateway to a stressful holiday season filled with cold months, high utility bills and empty plates. I know this because my dad is a disabled Veteran who suffered for years with untreated and debilitating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We were never invited to a Veteran’s Day parade or a pancake breakfast, just left to find our own way, many times our basic needs going unmet.
While poverty among veterans is half that of the general public, there are 1.5 million young veterans, some with families, who live with incomes below the poverty line. Some of these veterans are disabled and have applied for help through the U.S. Department Veterans Administration (VA), where they will wait an average of 320 days for the VA to process their disability claims. [Read more…]
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…]
By SDFP Staff
Earlier this month we published an eight part virtual mayoral forum, and invited each of the mayoral candidates to answer one question each day with the promise of no editorial intervention on our part. You can view that series by going to our 2013 special election coverage, here.
Part 2 of our virtual forum asked the candidates their position on revising the Municipal Code in order to accommodate the now defunct Jacobs plan for Balboa Park’s Plaza de Panama. Mike Aguirre provided the most in depth response, while Nathan Fletcher and David Alvarez’ responses were somewhat concerning. Kevin Faulconer did not participate. Click through to see our analysis of the candidate responses. [Read more…]
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…]
By James Elmendorf/Frying Pan News
Yesterday’s Los Angeles Times brought a behind the scenes account of the genius of San Diego City Attorney Jan Goldsmith and his brilliant maneuvers to oust former Mayor Bob Filner.
I’m not sure what led to the piece, but in it we learn that Goldsmith—a former legislator best known for his campaign to legalize ferrets and the resulting Willie Brown quip about his toupee—was single-handedly responsible for Filner’s resignation.
The key: “Goldsmith persuaded the City Council to refuse to defend Filner in the [Irene] Jackson lawsuit and instead force him to hire private attorneys.”
Why so critical? “Goldsmith’s investigators examined Filner’s finances and concluded he could not afford lawyers to fight the lawsuit.” [Read more…]
