Olague to be Sworn In as D5 Supe

January 09, 2012 | 2 Comments

Olague, who co-chaired the controversial “Run, Ed, Run” campaign, will serve out the remainder of Sheriff-elect and former Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi’s term on the Board of Supervisors.

Overheard in Fog City: Mar Douses Re-Election Rumor,
Elsbernd Early Endorses in D7?

January 07, 2012 | No Comments

As chair of the Ethics Commission in 2004, Garcia was instrumental in fast-tracking Elsbernd’s appointment to the Board of Supervisors by then Mayor Gavin Newsom following Newsom’s appointment of former Supervisor Tony Hall to head the Treasure Island Development Authority.

Obama’s Broken Promise on Gitmo’s Tenth Anniversary

January 07, 2012 | 1 Comment

After the US Department of Justice advised that Guantanamo prison could be considered outside US legal jurisdiction, the first twenty captives arrived at Guantanamo on January 11, 2002. Guantanamo has become a place of prisoner mistreatment, torture and indefinite detention. It is an international embarrassment.

Immigrant High School Dropout Inaugurated as DA of “Greatest City in the World”

January 06, 2012 | 5 Comments

Gascón’s presenters comprised the political elite. Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom, who appointed Gascón following former DA Kamala Harris’ election to California Attorney General, introduced Mistress of Ceremonies, US Senator Dianne Feinstein. DiFi acknowledged over 30 elected officials and judges from Los Angeles to Sonoma County including Senator Mark Leno, Mayor Ed Lee and Police Chief Greg Suhr. Harris introduced Spoken Word poet, Brandon Santiago. Each politico paid homage to former Mayor Willie Brown who introduced retired California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno, who administered the oath of office. Gascon’s wife, Fabiola, held the Bible when Gascón took oath.

Trust But Verify

January 04, 2012 | 2 Comments

Shortly before she died, the results came back. To no one’s surprise, they showed that her tumor was resistant to the chemo she was given, and was resistant to the next round of chemo her doctor recommended but my sister refused. To make matters unspeakably worse, there were some chemo combinations that would have proven effective, but with days left to live, the results were moot.

Getting the Blues Flying the Blue Skies

December 31, 2011 | 4 Comments

What prompted this sentimental journey back in time when all of these freedoms were taken for granted was a twenty-something guy standing in line behind me who appeared to be taking all of these indignities in stride. At first I admired his good-natured acquiescence to all that we have lost in our precipitous slide into a quasi police state.

But it also made me sad that he has no idea, no memories, and no chance of ever knowing all the freedoms he and his generation have lost.

A Fitting Tribute to Warren Hellman,
“The Prince of Humanity”

December 22, 2011 | 7 Comments

Guests in attendance included Rep. Nancy Pelosi; Mayor Ed Lee; Supervisors Sean Elsbernd, Mark Farrell, Malia Cohen and Carmen Chu; labor leader Tim Paulson; Chamber of Commerce director, Jim Lazarus; Police Chief Greg Suhr; United Way CEO Anne Wilson; conductor Michael Tilson Thomas; City Attorney Dennis Herrera; District Attorney George Gascon; Giants president, Larry Baer; and a huge contingent of musicians from all over the country. Filmmaker George Lucas was spotted in the upper side balcony.