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I read the news today, oh boy…

Pull up a chair and stayed tuned over the next few weeks as I walk you through the candidates and ballot proposals for 2010…

This should have been the easiest of all the propositions on this fall’s California ballot for me to write about, but it’s not turned out that way. It’s a very personal story, and I invite you to walk down this path with me as I explore my reasoning.

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4th Annual

Amnesty International Ocean Beach Benefit Concert
It’s becoming an OB Tradition!
Saturday, October 2nd, 2010
6 p.m. to close
Portugalia Restaurant and Pub
4839 Newport Avenue 92107

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San Diego Demonstrates in Solidarity
Thursday Sept 30th @ 5pm at the Federal Building

STOP the FBI Witch hunts & ‘Terrorism Warrants’ against Socialists, Solidarity and Peace Activists!

Last Friday, Sept. 24th the FBI raided the homes and offices of more than a dozen activists in 4 states and pursued others in at least 2 other states carting away in one case, 40 boxes of personal, computer and cell phone materials.

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Are we there yet? The long road to equality for women…..

September 29, 2010
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“Feminism is doomed to failure because it is based on an attempt to repeal and restructure human nature.” … “What I am defending is the real rights of women. A woman should have the right to be in the home as a wife and mother.” Phyllis Schlafly

“Schlafly’s discussion reveals a paradox. She was able to have it all: family and career. And she did it by fighting those who said they were trying to get it all for her.…” Pia de Solenni

When I walked into the unisex bathroom at the Livingroom coffeehouse, I deftly threw a kung fu kick, successfully lowering the toilet seat from its upright position with a soul satisfying BANG! accompanied by my hissed words “Here’s to you Phyllis Schlafly!”

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The Rolling Stone Interview of Barack Obama

September 29, 2010

The following is an article from the October 15, 2010 issue of Rolling Stone.

We arrived at the southwest gate of the white house a little after one o’clock on the afternoon of September 17th. It was a warm fall day, but the capital felt quiet and half-empty, as it does on Fridays at the end of summer, with Congress still in recess.

Rolling Stone had interviewed Barack Obama twice before, both times aboard his campaign plane — first in June 2008, a few days after he won the Democratic nomination, and again that October, a month before his election. This time executive editor Eric Bates and I sat down with the president in the Oval Office, flanked by busts of Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr. The conversation stretched on for nearly an hour and a quarter. The president began by complimenting my multi-colored striped socks. “If I wasn’t president,” he laughed, “I could wear socks like that.”

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Independent Steve Gronke could knock longtime County Supervisor Bill Horn off

September 28, 2010
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by Andy Cohen

Steve Gronke wants your vote, North County. The 10 year veteran of the Vista City Council has changed course and mounted a thus far successful challenge to 16 year incumbent, Bill Horn, for the 5th District seat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors. The once dark horse candidate surprised the experts in last June’s primary and forced a runoff for November 2.

But the race isn’t over yet. And Gronke hopes to finish the job and bring some new blood and ideas to the County government. Gronke is the rarest of political figures in today’s hyper-partisan environment.

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Third parties, cooperate with the Democrats, or leave them to their own devices.

September 28, 2010
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The Socialist Salon hosted a community forum on “left parties” and the possibility of working with the Democratic Party to create social change in our country that matches the ideals of the current “third parity’s” ideals. The event was held at the Joyce Beers Community Center on 9/19 with panelists from the Peace and Freedom Party, Green Party and PDA/Progressive Democrats of America.

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Anger mounts as a private company takes over libraries – including one in LA County

September 28, 2010
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SANTA CLARITA, Calif. — A private company in Maryland has taken over public libraries in ailing cities in California, Oregon, Tennessee and Texas, growing into the country’s fifth-largest library system.

Now the company, Library Systems & Services, has been hired for the first time to run a system in a relatively healthy city, setting off an intense and often acrimonious debate about the role of outsourcing in a ravaged economy.

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Census survey shows 100,000 more San Diegans have fallen into economic hardship

September 28, 2010
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By Center on Policy Initiatives / September 28, 2010

More than 100,000 San Diego County residents fell from the middle class into poverty or severe economic hardship over the past two years, while the wealthiest fifth of earners continued to receive almost half of all income generated in the County.

US Census data released today reinforce the desperate need for good jobs that pay living wages, a CPI analysis shows. Almost half the adults living in extreme poverty in 2009 were working full- or part-time, and families with children were particularly hard hit.

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Still Pointers after all these years: PLHS class of 1950 reunites

September 27, 2010
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What makes someone in San Diego a local is sometimes debatable, but it’s hard to dispute the status of the folks who got together at the Bay View Restaurant at the Marine Corp Recruit Depot on Friday, Sept. 24. This was the 60th reunion of Point Loma High School’s class of 1950, a festive and feel-good gathering of folks who can out-local just about anybody on the Peninsula.

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Anti-War Activists in the Nation’s Heartland Under Attack!

September 27, 2010
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By Rocky Neptun

The sweeping assaults across the nation on peaceful anti-war activists Sept. 24th represent an ominous divergence for an administration which was elected to change the heavy-handed policies of the Bush regime. Like something straight out of the Ashcroft playbook, FBI agents, in cooperation with local authorities, raided homes and offices in Michigan, Illinois and Minnesota. Government thugs also showed up at the doors of progressives and human rights activists in North Carolina and San Jose, California.

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Memories and the OB Spaceman

September 27, 2010
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By Warren Patch

Ocean Beach has always been a colorful place. The Hippies seem to perpetually reinvent themselves there; long hair, short hair, dread hair, dirty hair, blue hair, no hair, it’s all cool. And tie-dye is still vogue. I buy mine at Sunshine Daydreams on Newport Avenue.

One of the all-time great characters of OB was Clint Carey, alias OB SPACEMAN. He used to sell plots of land on the moon. And he was the only OB’cean who had personally met the “Outer Space People” when they came visiting, and he alone was authorized to sell tickets for spaceship rides when they returned.

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US Drones patrol border as part of militarization of region

September 27, 2010
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As Mexicans celebrated the 200th anniversary of their independence from Spain last week, evoking a history of resistance against colonialism, a disturbing development unfolds on the country’s northern border: a fleet of US Predator B drones has been deployed on constant patrol.

Fireworks blasted and flags soared south of the Rio Grande in the most expensive festivities Mexico has ever seen, however the bicentennial is being over-shadowed by growing tensions with the country’s biggest trading partner and fiercest historical adversary.

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I was Like a Whale Swimming in the Middle of the Sea in OB

September 27, 2010
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Man, did I have a good time
in OB,
much like the time a whale
I saw in a watercolor
on a table
in the middle of the street
seemed to be having
to me -

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Obama Will Triumph — So Will America

September 26, 2010
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Editor: Despite the following being nine months old, we thought we’d share it.

By Frank Schaeffer

Before he’d served even one year President Obama lost the support of the easily distracted left and engendered the white hot rage of the hate-filled right. But some of us, from all walks of life and ideological backgrounds — including this white, straight, 57-year-old, former religious right wing agitator, now progressive writer and (given my background as the son of a famous evangelical leader) this unlikely Obama supporter — are sticking with our President.

Why?– because he is succeeding.

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Ocean Beach Skatepark Fence Saves Kids

September 26, 2010
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By Jim Grant

This car was speeding down interstate 8 yesterday at 4pm, he tried to make the green light at 8 and Sunset Cliffs he ran the red light, skidded around the corner, slid between a concrete barrier (set up to keep cars from crashing into the skate park) and a trio of 40 foot palm trees. If he had hit either of these two things no doubt the car would have split in two, he was doing at least 70 mph at this time. He continued down the sidewalk and landscaping leaving skid marks and a path of debris behind him. He plowed into the 8′ high fencing surrounding the Ocean Beach skate park which was FULL of kids. The fencing crumpled like an aluminum can….

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Part 1: Is There a Feminist in the House?

September 24, 2010
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fem·i·nism ( Merriam Webster Dictionary)

1: the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes

2: organized activity on behalf of women’s rights and interests
_________________
Feminism is a socialist, anti-family, political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians.” Pat Robertson

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The 2010 Fall Election Season – Part One: Dishonesty, Deceit and Deception

September 24, 2010
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In just a few short weeks, we’ll be offered the opportunity to vote in State and local elections. Most of us won’t vote. In the 2006 California mid-term election, nearly 60% of eligible voters declined to cast a ballot. While that statistic is lamentable, here’s the silver lining: a relatively small number of motivated voters can determine the tone and direction of San Diego and California. That could be you!

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Another Stupid Law: ‘No Mail Slots Allowed’

September 24, 2010
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by Judi Curry

Who are these stupid people that make up these stupid laws? It is inconceivable to me that a majority of our elected officials are so stupid that they can all agree on this one.

Here is the scenario: I have an external mailbox, attached to the stucco of my house, near the front door. Yesterday I saw a person distributing flyers look through my mail before he left me his own flyer – in the mailbox, by the way, which is also against the law.

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Reader Rant: Ice cream’s strangest flavor: bovine growth hormone

September 24, 2010
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Reader Rant by Anonymous Health Nut

This is why when I see all those pink ribbons on the ads that are geared towards “the cure’ for breast cancer, I go ballistic! We do not need another drug to fight a disease that kills and disfigures a person’s body and life. We need to clean up the crap in our air, water and food supply. Bottom line is greed is causing breast cancer; the greed of corporations who have no consciousness regarding clean food air and water.

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Early OB Rag – ‘underground newspaper’ for OB – where the surf meets the hip

September 20, 2010
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(Originally posted Sept 29, 2009)

1968: The Rowdy College-Surf Town Morphs Into Hippie Haven
________________________
OB was already well-known for its rowdy and irreverent culture of beach, surf & beer; but by 1968, it began its transformation into something more.

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Getting to Know the Ocean Beach Mainstreet Association, Part 1: The Founders and the Power of Idealism

August 23, 2010
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I dropped by the Ocean Beach MainStreet Association (OBMA) the other day to learn more about the group that organizes my favorite event of the year, the OB Street Fair & Chili Cook-Off. It turns out that this active organization is not only a rich source of news about their own activities but have some great stories to tell from the past.

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Savin’ Lives and Takin’ Names – the Lifeguards of Ocean Beach

August 20, 2010
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by Annie Lane / August 20, 2010

Meet Jacob Magness, a native San Diegan who’s spent the last 13 years saving lives in Ocean Beach.
As one of OB’s permanent lifeguards, Magness, 32, is no stranger to the ocean or making rescues. In fact, he’s been in or near the water for the last 24 years.

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The Hip School – a poem by Ernie McCray

September 9, 2010
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At the hip school
they aren’t aware
and they don’t even care
about what their
test scores might be
because they’re much too busy
rolling up their sleeves
trying to keep up with the boys and girls
with their stash of electronic accessories,

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“Terriers” – Well? Did you like it? Post your review here …

September 9, 2010
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Some of us from the OB Rag were at the Harp last night watching the premier of “Terriers”. I counted about 120 souls about the bar and restaurant, a noisy place until the show came on. Hosted by Ted and Kathy of the Old Town Restaurant – where 6 or 7 scenes were shot – the crowd at the screening cheered every time a scene of Ocean Beach appeared on the big screen.

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California pot legalization ‘could end Mexican drug war’

September 9, 2010
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The Mexican drug war that has taken the lives of 28,000 people over the past four years could conceivably come to an end if California votes to legalize marijuana, say prominent American and Mexican policy makers.

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The Strand Theater-Part 1: the Year the Porno Theater Was Stopped

September 10, 2010
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It was a gaggle of people moving back and forth – many with signs – in front of a Newport Avenue business. There was about twenty of them, many women, some children, and they began chanting:

“Get the smut out of OB! Get the smut out of OB!”

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The Strand Theater of Ocean Beach – Part 2 – Memories from the Seventies

September 14, 2010
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Mention the Strand Theater to an OB “old-timer” and a smile instantly embraces their face. And probably a laugh too. Now I don’t mean “old-timer” in the classic sense (the stooped-over scraggly white-haired old guy) – I mean somebody who experienced the Strand in its heydays of the Seventies. The Strand does brings back good memories to them. Funny memories. Incredible memories.

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Reader Rant: McDonalds Goes Robotic (finally)

September 10, 2010
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by JEC

It’s happened.

McDonalds has followed through on their threat to turn every store into a robotic extension of a central hub located somewhere in – well – India I think.

Today grabing a snack wrap and coke, after suffering the delay of the predetory sales pitch – this time to buy a 400 calorie smoothie made with 10% fruit juice – a male voice asks for my order.

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What Happened to Marisco’s Taco Truck?

September 11, 2010
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By Terrie Leigh Relf / Special to the OB Rag

Marisco’s German Taco Truck was a neighborhood presence from mid-March to mid-August of this year. Parked next to the Pirate Cove café in the Apple Tree Market’s parking lot on Cable and Santa Monica, they offered a delicious variety of Mexican-style seafood. Their $1.00 fish tacos and samples of spicy seafood soup were quite enticing, and nearly every time I passed by, there was a line of dedicated patrons.

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Terriers Series Premiere Review: Season Pilot – Great On-Screen Chemistry

September 11, 2010

C’mon, what else are we going to do, cure cancer?”

Terriers is not a spin-off of Best in Show. In fact it’s the furthest thing from a show about dogs, unless the title is a play on the makeup of its lead characters—dynamic, tough and fearless. Terriers is the latest brainchild from Ted Griffin (Ocean’s Eleven) and Shawn Ryan (The Shield).

Donal Logue (Grounded for Life, Damages) stars in this surf and turf crime series as Hank Dolworth, a former cop turned unlicensed investigator.

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OB Jazz Festival

September 12, 2010
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We ventured down to Newport Avenue on Saturday to check out the Jazz 88 OB Music & Art Festival. The sounds of jazz filled the air, and the crowds, while not as big as the Street Fair/Chili Cook Off, were decent. With 7 stages, 26 bands and 70 artists participating, there was certainly something for everybody, even if you didn’t have the thirty bucks to buy access to the paid stages. Newport Avenue was closed off between Bacon and Cable for the Artist booths. There were also numerous “craft” booths scattered about.

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‘Back To School Special’ Part 3— Why Reforms Don’t Work

September 13, 2010
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Coming soon to a theater near you will be Davis Guggenheim’s (Director of An Inconvenient Truth) latest documentary entitled Waiting for Superman. The picture, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, is a moving and compelling account (I viewed a copy over the internet) of a handful of kids and their parents who simply want to go to a decent school.

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Education Reform Part 4: The San Diego Education Reform Plan – Keeping It Local and Working Together

September 15, 2010
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In previous installments of this series, we’ve discussed the history of education reform, examined school testing, looked at a high performing system in Finland and examined the latest federal plans for reforming our schools. This time around we’ll take a look at what’s on the boards for students in the San Diego Unified School District and tell you about ways you can become involved in this process. As much of this plan exists only on the drawing boards, it’s hard to make any judgments at this point. The plan is, on its face, very different from what we hear coming out of Washington DC, so it’s bound to be getting national scrutiny in the coming years.

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OB FLASHES: News, Calendar, and Whatever — September 16th, 2010

September 16, 2010
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ALL DETAILS AND LINKS INSIDE:
_______________
Liberty Station Pledge Up In Smoke (and mirrors)?
_______________
OB Kindergarten In News
_______________
Party benefit for Walk for the Cure at noon designs – Sept 22nd
_______________
Celebrate the Cabrillo Festival – Sept 25-26
_______________
Community-based School Reform – Town Meeting at PLHS – Oct 6th

AND MORE …..

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Is this the beginning of the end for Ron Roberts?

September 15, 2010
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by Blue San Diego

With November being just two months away, the Ron Roberts saga began its last whimper. I figured County Supervisor Roberts would try to salvage his campaign and ditch his “smoke and mirrors” approach to try to claw back on top to stay in office another four years.

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Whitehouse (finally) appoints Elizabeth Warren as special consumer advisor.

September 15, 2010
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The White House has tapped Elizabeth Warren as a special adviser to help set up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, affirming its support for a tough new agency charged with protecting consumers from abusive lenders.

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Las Vegas Drone Trial Makes History

September 15, 2010
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Fourteen anti-war activists may have made history today in a Las Vegas courtroom when they turned a misdemeanor trespassing trial into a possible referendum on America’s new-found taste for remote-controlled warfare.

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The “bums” are us! One out of 7 Americans living in poverty.

September 16, 2010
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WASHINGTON — The number of people living in poverty has climbed to 14.3 percent of Americans, with the ranks of working-age poor reaching the highest level since at least 1965.

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Mexican Independence Day : Viva Mexico! 200 Years Since War of Independence from Spain

September 16, 2010
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Editor: Many gringos and gringas think Cinco de Mayo is THE Mexican Day of Independence. But of course it is not. It’s today – September 16th – and it’s the 200th anniversary of the beginning of the war against imperial Spain. It’s September 16 and it’s that time of year when all Mexicans from around the world are celebrating Mexican Independence Day. This year marks a special occasion: it’s 200 years of independence, …

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Poetic Justice “Off the Hook”

September 17, 2010
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I just received an email regarding an Ex-con play, an original musical drama, Off the Hook, featuring a 15 member cast of formerly incarcerated people, which will be performed this Saturday, September 18th, at 2:00 PM at Queen Bee’s Art & Cultural Center at 3925 Ohio Street.

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Blackwater’s Black Ops

September 17, 2010
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by Jeremy Scachill / The Nation / (current issue – October 4, 2010)

Over the past several years, entities closely linked to the private security firm Blackwater have provided intelligence, training and security services to US and foreign governments as well as several multinational corporations, including Monsanto, Chevron, the Walt Disney Company, …

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The Ocean Beach Pizza Port wins silver medal for its Skidmark Brown.

September 19, 2010
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Some things in life are a given, and right up there with death and taxes is the fact that San Diego’s talented stable of brewers will bring home the hardware at Denver’s Great American Beer Festival (GABF). The largest annual beer competition in the U.S., …

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San Diego’s homeless population is a complex mix

September 19, 2010

By Michael Stetz / Union-Tribune / September 18, 2010

Not every homeless person pushes a shopping cart full of clothes, blankets and second-hand possessions. Not all are haggard, drunk and smelly. Not everyone is an adult, and some choose to stay on the streets.

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Affordable Housing is a Human Right!

September 20, 2010
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By Rocky Neptune

Every human right has had to be fought for against powerful interests who profit from the subjugation and misuse of their fellow persons. The right to vote was opposed by kings and emperors and is still occasionally nullified by millionaire judges, …

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Bradley Manning: An American Hero

September 20, 2010
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By Marjorie Cohn / Huffington Post / September 19, 2010

Army Pfc. Bradley Manning is accused of leaking military secrets to the public. This week, his supporters are holding rallies in 21 cities, seeking Manning’s release from military custody. Manning is in the brig for allegedly disclosing a classified video depicting U.S. troops shooting civilians from an Apache helicopter in Iraq in July 2007.

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The Great Bumper Sticker ‘Wars’ Over the Years

September 22, 2010
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The recent sticker “wars” in Ocean Beach have reminded me of just how much a student of bumper stickers I really am – and one of my favorites was circa 1969. Highlighting the political tension in America back in the late Sixties and early Seventies, this one was quite famous: “America: Love it or leave it.” It had the flag either in the background or on the side.

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New City benches along Sunset Cliffs cool … illegal dumping by city workers not so cool.

September 21, 2010
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by Jim Grant

Ocean Beach is known for being Ocean friendly and aware of the community and environment. And the association between the two. Surf Rider Paddle Out’s…Beach Clean Up’s and the like are very common in Ocean Beach. People come from all over San Diego to watch the sunset ……From Dog Beach to Ladera Street, the Cliffs and Beach is packed with people coming to enjoy the sunset.

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Stewart and Colbert’s political ‘joke’ – both plan “dueling rallies” in DC

September 21, 2010
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Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert have cast their faux dueling Washington rallies as a kind of grand satire of the current state of media and politics.

“It’s just like everything they do – it’s really for the joke,” said one person familiar with the planning of the October 30 event, who asked – in the spirit of the “Daily Show” – to be described as a “senior administration official.”

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William Shatner – up to his neck in “$#*!” – stars in new TV comedy inspired by Point Loman’s twitter

September 22, 2010
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Editor: “Terriers” is not the only new TV series that has an uber-local connection. There’s a new CBS series that starts Thursday, September 23rd, based on the twitters of a young man from Point Loma – Justin Halpern – who wrote down the spicy and witty sayings uttered by his cranky 74 year old father, a retired doctor. And William Shatner is playing the dad.

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10 Terrible Things Republicans Will Try to Do If They Take Over in November

September 22, 2010
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Democrats are in trouble come November. If current polling is any indication, Republicans have a good chance of reclaiming a majority in the House of Representatives and perhaps even the Senate (though the Senate is a less likely prospect). That’s not because people are wildly excited about Republicans. In fact, a recent poll shows that registered voters rate the GOP’s performance as worse than the Democrats’. But the enthusiasm gap between the parties gives the GOP an advantage; a nine-point advantage among likely voters, according to the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll .

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California Marijuana Legalization Opposed by Beer Industry – duh!

September 22, 2010
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The California Beer & Beverage Distributors is spending money in the state to oppose a marijuana legalization proposition on the ballot in November, according to records filed with the California Secretary of State. The beer sellers are the first competitors of marijuana to officially enter the debate; backers of the initiative are closely watching liquor and wine dealers and the pharmaceutical industry to see if they enter the debate in the remaining weeks.

The opposition to pot among beer makers, however, is not unanimous among the CBBD’s membership. …

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Ranger talks about his job of guarding seals at Children’s Pool

September 22, 2010
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Controversy has surrounded potential management plans for the Children’s Pool at Casa Beach since seals formed a rookery on its shores more than a decade ago. One of the most recent attempts at regulating interactions between humans and seals has been hiring a park ranger using private funds secured by District 1 City Councilwoman Sherri Lightner’s office.

Randy Hawley, who became the city of San Diego’s first park ranger in 1989, interrupted his retirement to supervise the area as a provisional employee while the city searches for a full-time ranger.

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Jon Stewart’s ‘Rally to Restore Sanity’ could draw tens of thousands

September 23, 2010

‘The Daily Show’ event is planned as a comical response to Glenn Beck’s recent rally — but politically minded fans are taking it, and Stephen Colbert’s ‘March to Keep Fear Alive,’ seriously. The moment Shawna Riley heard Jon Stewart lay out his plans to hold a “Rally to Restore Sanity” on Oct. 30 on the National Mall, she raced to get online and book her hotel and airline tickets. The 41-year-old owner of an advertising firm, who lives in Marble Falls, Texas, described the event as “one of those we-got-to-be-there moments.”

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Retired Florida Man Bicycling From OB to East Coast to Aid Gulf Coast Oil Spill Victims.

September 23, 2010
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A Gulf Breeze couple is riding across America in support of the families who are victims of the Gulf Coast Oil Spill. Feeling an obligation to help, Roger and Vicki Grooters of Gulf Breeze embarked Friday, Sept. 10 on a cross-country ride. Roger is riding his bicycle from Ocean Beach in San Diego, Calif., to Jacksonville – a distance of approximately 3,200 miles.

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Long-term unemployed aim to become a political force

September 23, 2010

People who have exhausted their jobless benefits are pressing policymakers for more aid and joining together to call attention to their cause.

After his wife of 23 years pulls out of the driveway every morning to head to college, Scott Mathewson sits down at the computer in his apartment and talks to his unemployment group.

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Faulconer to unveil new Sunset Cliffs Park benches – Friday Sept 24th

September 23, 2010
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The OB Rag has received word that Councilman Kevin Faulconer is hosting a news conference tomorrow morning – September 24th – at Sunset Cliffs to unveil the new, City-installed wooden benches. The conference/ unveiling is at 11:45 a.m. on Sunset Cliffs Boulevard between Froude and Guizot streets.

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Sarah Palin’s Top 10 Tea Party Mamma Grizzlies (from DC Douglas)

September 24, 2010
Thumbnail image for Sarah Palin’s Top 10 Tea Party Mamma Grizzlies (from DC Douglas)

D.C. Douglas, a veteran character actor and voice over artist, has produced another in a series of comedic political videos. “Sarah Palin’s Top 10 Tea Party Mamma Grizzlies” is a 4 minute voter’s guide to Sarah Palin’s mid-term Tea Party congress candidate picks.

“I find it best to put all your crazy tea bags into one pot so you can get a real taste of Sarah Palin’s political acumen,” says Mr. Douglas.

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