San Diego Free Press

Grassroots News & Progressive Views

Mayor Filner: DO NOT RESIGN

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By Frank Gormlie

For the last twenty-four hour news cycle, San Diegans have watched stunned as three Democrats have stepped forward and publicly called for Mayor Bob Filner to resign. Donna Frye, Cory Briggs and Marco Gonzalez all sent letters to Filner – and the media – in the last couple of days calling on the Mayor – who has been in office all of seven months – to step down.

Briggs and Gonzalez are both attorneys involved in litigation against the City of San Diego. Donna Frye, of course, is the former City Councilmember and the ‘woman who should have been mayor’. Frye actually won a three-way race a few years ago for mayor in her write-in campaign, but was not sworn in due to the ballots being questionable.

Frye and Gonzalez alleged sexual harassment charges in their letters – although no details were given – whereas Briggs cited other issues, mainly around the latest Sunroad controversy.

The three are holding a press conference, today, Thursday, at 10 a.m. to outline more details it is assumed. The San Diego Free Press will have a reporter present who, hopefully, will be writing up a report later this morning.

In the meantime, thoughtful Democrats and progressives have had their worst nightmare materialize. Their darling – the most liberal mayor of San Diego in history – is on the ropes. Will he resign? Can he weather this crisis?

At this point – we urge Mayor Filner NOT TO RESIGN.   [Read more…]

MemeMedia: Channel 10 and Filner

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Tea Partying at Ch. 10

By Bob Dorn

For a cool $212 million, E.W.Scripps picked up Channel 10 KGTV from McGraw-Hill in October 2011. Ever since then the station’s news operations has been just another kennel for the right wing’s dogs of war.

The purchase by the Scripps chain automatically put Clear Channel Communications into management of Channel 10s news operation, because that Texas-based mega-corporation (1200 radio stations) also manages Scripps’ 10 television stations. Clear Channel, of course, is most famous for carrying the radio caca-phony of Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, and the master of patriotic hate, Rush Limbaugh.

Of course, a television station in mellow San Diego can’t be expected to put flamethrowers like Limbaugh, Beck and Hannity on video news, particularly not when its present and immediate past is and was decorated by the likeables Kimberly Hunt and Michael Tuck and the fools, Regis Philban! and Harold Greene!! , the latter made famous by Will Ferrell’s deadly embodiment named Ron Burgundy, in Anchorman.   [Read more…]

San Diego Congressional Race Begins Anew, Just Eight Months Removed from the Last One

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Democrat Scott Peters is forced to begin defense of his Congressional seat against Tea Party challenger, 17 months away from the next election.

It’s July 2013, seven months removed from our last federal election, 17 months away from the next one, and already the cycle is starting all over again. It’s madness. Democrat Scott Peters was sworn in as the Congressional representative for the 52nd District just six months ago, and already he’s being forced to begin campaigning to defend his seat.

On May 30, failed Republican mayoral candidate and former San Diego City Councilmember Carl DeMaio announced his bid to challenge Peters. County Republicans have begun to fall all over themselves to endorse him, perhaps symbolizing their desperation to regain credibility after losing the mayor’s race for the first time in over 20 years and losing their county Congressional majority with Peters’ defeat of incumbent Brian Bilbray.

This is sure to be one of the most expensive Congressional races in California history, following a 2012 race that was one of the most expensive in the country. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, there was more than $15.6 million spent on the 2012 race between Peters and Bilbray ($8.5 million by outside groups). It’s only been a month since DeMaio declared his candidacy, and already he has reportedly raised nearly $500,000 for his campaign.   [Read more…]

Caught Between a Rock and a Hard Place, Congressman Scott Peters Faces a Tough Reelection Battle

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By Doug Porter

It’s hard to imagine why anybody would want the job of Congressman these days, let alone mount an early balls-to-the wall campaign for the job, but Republican Carl DeMaio is taking no chances. After all, the legislative body is less popular than cockroaches, having passed a mere 15 pieces of legislation so far this year.

This week the former City Councilman and failed Mayoral candidate spent a day trumpeting the fact he’d raised nearly half a million dollars for his campaign in one month.   [Read more…]

A Mindful Walk Down Sunroad Lane

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By Norma Damashek

To tell you the truth, these mindful walks can give me a headache…notice and let it go… notice… let go…

When I started these walks it looked like letting it go would be the hard part.  Turns out the noticing part is worse — because what I’ve been noticing is really screwy.  In fact, it stinks.

I notice that while Republican voters no longer dominate San Diego elections, the city’s entrenched wheeler-dealers (still predominantly Republican) persist in manipulating, controlling, and subverting city government, the news media, and public opinion.   [Read more…]

Why Republicans Want to Tax Students and Not Polluters

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By Robert Reich

A basic economic principle is government ought to tax what we want to discourage, and not tax what we want to encourage.

For example, if we want less carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, we should tax carbon polluters. On the other hand, if we want more students from lower-income families to be able to afford college, we shouldn’t put a tax on student loans.

Sounds pretty simple, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, congressional Republicans are intent on doing exactly the opposite.

Earlier this year the Republican-led House passed a bill pegging student-loan interest rates to the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, plus 2.5 percentage points. “I have very little tolerance for people who tell me that they graduate with $200,000 of debt or even $80,000 of debt because there’s no reason for that,” Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC), the co-sponsor of the GOP bill, said.   [Read more…]

Stayin’ Alive

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dornlogoBy Bob Dorn

More people name FOX News as their avenue to the truth than any other network, according to Gallup, which released its study yesterday (July 08).  Of course, most people simply told Gallup that they watch television in general for their news (55%) but FOX was specifically named by 8 percent, without prompting.   Perhaps surprisingly, CNN was volunteered by 7%.

FOX News viewers are almost twice as likely as CNN viewers to be 50 or older, and 94% of them say they are — or lean toward being — Republican.  And, gasp, the venerable polling organization actually says in its findings that FOX fans are  “much more likely to be white, Protestant, attend church weekly, and to earn $75,000 or more per year.”

(for more, gallup.com)   [Read more…]

Another Zombie Voter Story Bites the Dust

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By Doug Porter

One of the central themes of right wing activism since 2008 has been responding to allegations of voter fraud with increasingly difficult “voter id laws”.  Actual voter fraud cases are hard to come by, so allegations are used instead to drum up concern.

One of the most outrageous claims during the 2012 election cycle was made by Kevin Schwedo, the director of South Carolina’s Department of Motor Vehicles, who said on January 11, 2012, that more than 950 residents were recorded as having cast a vote after their reported death date.

Republican Rep. Alan Clemmons was quoted during a legislative hearing on the matter, saying, “We must have certainty in South Carolina that zombies aren’t voting.”  And that’s all it took for the zombie voter meme to take off with the right wing media.

INSIDE: FILIBUSTER FIGHT? FILNER’s FIRST LADY IS NO MORE, BROTHER, CAN YOU SPARE A FIRE ENGINE?   [Read more…]

Readers Write: Growing Up Golden

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by Lucesita Gomez

Situated south of Balboa Park lies the neighborhood of Golden Hills. This neighborhood was where I spent my childhood. I lived with my parents and my mothers’ parents in the 19th Street apartments, the ones next to the East 94 Martin Luther King, Jr. freeway sign.

I have very fond memories. Each morning I’d smell the coffee my Abuelita would make for herself and my mother, while I would have mine with milk and animal crackers. My Abuelita used wooden plates, and I always loved to hear my Lucky Charms hit the bowl.

After breakfast, I’d go exploring. Since we lived in the first house, I’d go walking along the path over to the last house. I remember there being a garden in the backyard, and I would sometimes sit and play in the dirt, or I would play in the bushes or with the flowers. In our front yard I’d sometimes go and sit on the grass, just watching people pass by, or I would sit and watch the cars go by.   [Read more…]

Basking in a Baby’s Smile

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By Ernie McCray

I was a bit out of tune the other day from just dealing with whatever tiny bits of frazzle-dazzle life had laid in my path that day and as I’m mumbling to myself over my little “First World Problem”, my cell phone vibrates in my levis pocket and I turn it on and there’s a picture of the dude, my main man, the leader of the band: Lyric. Flashing a smile that says in its very cuteness “Hey, dude, let all that minutiae go, bro.”

And so I did, like the sun melting snow. I just let it slide off my hide. I do that anyway, via my DNA, but my grandson’s smile made me not only stop but pause. Any rose near my nose was going to be smelled.

I sat down at my desk in my refreshed frame of mind and my little black book of “what day it is and where I need to be” just happened to be open and at a glance I could see examples of just how good life is being to me.   [Read more…]

Readers Write: A Sneak Peek at GOP’s 2016 Platform

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By Tom Hunter

I have just received a first draft of the Republican Platform for 2016.

1. All women of child bearing age must report to their doctor weekly for a vaginal probe ultrasound. If the doctor is not on the list the probe must be held by an official of the Republican Party. Every sperm is sacred and condom prices will be increased to $10 per unit.

2. Key portions of the Old Testament must be memorized or you will not be eligible to vote.

3. Guns must be carried about the body fully loaded and ready for action, or on the nightstand in the evening.

4. People determined to be “having too much fun” will be sent away to be rehabilitated.

5. Those wishing to get off the grid by not working for corporate America will not be eligible for unemployment or food stamps. Those found helping these unfortunates will be severely disciplined.   [Read more…]

If the Story Was “Mayor Walks on Water”, the UT-San Diego Headline Would be “Filner Can’t Swim”

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The Watchdog Yips at the New Public Library

By Doug Porter

It really is true that no stone can be left unturned in UT-San Diego’s quest to denigrate Mayor Bob Filner. This week’s “Watchdog” example involves a reporter with a questionable background, a moving company and an abysmal level of ignorance on the subject of libraries.

For those of you who haven’t been keeping up with such things, the main branch of San Diego’s Public Library is moving into a new building. Not only are collections and reference materials long-buried in the bowels of the old building being cleaned up and rediscovered, additional genealogy collections from archives throughout the region are being merged into the new facility.

Moving the contents of the old location into the new digs is a huge task, and it shouldn’t be surprising to learn that a company specializing in such tasks was retained to handle the job.  After all, you wouldn’t want two guys and a moving van moving a collection that includes thousands of rare resource materials, many of them unique to the region.   [Read more…]

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