ASSIGNMENT: SAFEWAY

My next boyfriend doesn’t have to be a genius. Speaking of which…

It doesn’t take a genius to understanding the value of having a supermarket in your neighborhood.

The supermarket, overflowing with every kind of food choice, in quantities that seem inexhaustable, is possibly THE strongest symbol of the American dream.

Choice, variety, freshness, and price, price, price. Oh, and did I mention… price.

It’s been understood, since I was a kid, that ghettos are underserved by the kinds of businesses that white middleclass people take for granted.

Without an accessible supermarket, mom and pop corner stores, with nothing fresh and sky high prices, or fast food, also expensive, are the only alternatives. Most nutritionists agree such diets tax not only the pocketbook, but reduce longevity and diminish actual quality of life.

So, the only surprise, to me at least, about a recent study reported in Fog City Journal, is that it was necessary in the first place. Read FCJ’s piece by Caitlin Cassady.

It starts:

A study released today shows that residents in San Francisco's Bayview Hunters Point neighborhood think access to fresh and health food is an urgent issue that needs to be addressed.

According to the study:

Over half of the residents surveyed say that they shop at Safeway stores in other neighborhoods.

What more do we need to know?

The rest of the report sounds like the biases of the Mayor’s office group that wrote the report, claiming the residents are willing to pay more for pesticide free food, or that they want some sort of neighborhood co-op market (or that they want a Birkenstock outlet?).

What they want is a goddamn Safeway. Pardon my gdmf French.

But it’s not either-or. BVHP needs a big old supermarket PLUS other food options, just like everybody else. While the report emphasizes dietary health, it’s an obvious issue of economic justice as well.

If Safeway can have all the indicated locations in San Francisco, why the heck can’t they have one in BVHP?

So, Mayor Newsom and Supervisor Maxwell, here is your assignment: get a Safeway opened in BVHP open by Jan 1, 2009. Also, as part of the deal, build a strip mall for alternative food stores (organic, specialty ethnic, etc.).

The benefit to the people of BVHP is obvious. So what’s in it for Newsom and Maxwell? How about the experience of a sense of decency?

If that’s not enough, Sophie, you need something, anything, to redeem the utter mediocrity that has been your tenure on the Board of Supervisors.

And Gavin, if you can get a Safeway built in BVHP, I’ll vote for your sorry white ass for governor.

Don’t wait. Get to work.

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SUDDENLY SINGLE

At age 19 or 20 when I finally figured out that I was gay I was gripped by a fear that created a strong motivation. My fear was that I would die without experiencing truly satisfying sex.

This was the mid-1960s, pre-Stonewall, the thought of healthy, satisfying gay relationships was almost non-existent in American culture.

My dad’s reaction when I told him I was gay wasn’t really judgmental. He was a devout Roman Catholic and fairly moralistic, but his reaction had nothing to do with sin or impropriety. He was afraid that I would have a less happy life than if I were straight.

My mom’s main concern was how I was going to support myself—we both knew what the answer would be: Not very well.

So my goal, pretty much in life, was to experience:

Mutual fulfillment of sexual object and act cathexes (MFOAC).

Object cathexis: The sex object is physically close enough to one’s ideal that he or she is way good enough and one feels lucky to have found a person with such physical attractiveness.

Act cathexis: The sex object engages in all of one’s favorite sex acts. All desired sex behaviors are mutually indulged.

Mutuality: Both people feel lucky to have found the other.

I achieved my goal.

But the relationship we tried to build around this MFOAC was problematic. A listing of my inadequacies would rival the Iliad’s “catalog of ships.” As for me I felt a lack of affection and a lack of emotional support.

It should have ended many years ago, but the tether, the connectedness created by MFOAC is hard to give up.

I ended it last week.

After thirty-four years, with diminishing sexual returns, I realized, sort of like realizing I was gay way back when, that I have a new “relationship” goal:

Mutual affection and emotional support that includes sex (MAESIS).

This is completely pathetic for a 59-year old. But it’s a lot better than waking up at my age desperate to experience MFOAC.

It’s sort of a belated mid-life crisis. I feel almost alive. But, as my mom knew would be the case, I can’t afford a little red sports car, not even a used one.

----- o -----

DEJA VIEW

This afternoon flipping channels I saw some live coverage of the Las Vegas preliminary hearing to determine if OJ Simpson should be tried for kajillion felonies

It was strange how un-strange it was to see OJ sitting at the defense table.

How long does an NFL running play take, from snap to whistle? Ten seconds? Twenty seconds?

I’m thinking OJ has spent more time at defense tables than he spent actually carrying the ball in the NFL.

He’s a pro.

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WANTED!

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ANYONE BUT CHICKEN

This shameful election morning Nevius column supports h. brown’s paranoia: that Chicken John is on the Newsom team.

Wannabe-eccentric John Rinaldi is being used by Newsom and his downtown backers to typify, and thus trivialize, the opposition to Newsom and his feed-the-rich regime.

Rinaldi’s platform IS his anti-conventional fashion statements. So amusing.

h. brown early in the race pegged Rinaldi as a Newsom “plant” and predicted that Rinaldi would be the recipient of Newsom-directed public funding of some sort—jobs, grants—as soon as the election is over.

Basically Nevius’ column says:

- Newsom is a shoo-in,
- His main opponent is a guy named “Chicken John.”
- Wouldn’t it be “so San Francisco” if Chicken John got a lot of votes!

Meanwhile, candidates such as brown, Sumchai, and Mecke who have raised serious questions which the Mayor refuses to address in open discussion, aren’t even named in the article.

The only other Newsom opponents Nevius mentions are “Grasshopper and the nude guy.”

Nevius refers to, or quotes others referring to, the field of opposition mayoral candidates as:

- offbeat
- midget
- fringes
- freaks
- ridiculous

At the downsizing Chronicle, Nevius must feel that it’s better to be a shill than to be unemployed. The janitor who empties C.W.’s wastebasket has, at least, an honest job.

The results of this Mayoral vote won’t make national news, UNLESS Chicken John comes in second. If this happens, right wing pundits will use the Chicken-vote to further trivialize and vilify San Francisco.

If you like Newsom, vote for Newsom.

If you dislike San Francisco, vote for Chicken John Rinaldi.

Elsewise, any other candidate will do.

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HARK THE HAROLD

I’m voting for h. brown for mayor because I want to encourage him to keep doing what he’s doing.

On a purely volunteer basis, h. brown works full time to monitor the policy-effluent from City Hall, and to alert us timely about the worst of its toxic discharges.

No other candidate provides such an essential service to the entire population of San Francisco.

Even if you’ve never heard of h. brown, everyone at City Hall knows him and fears him. Because h. is mostly disconnected from personal power/wealth mechanisms, he is likely to say damn near anything.

City Hall folks tolerate h. because his hard analytical work produces some really good ideas that the Mayor and Supervisors can rip off and call their own.

And h. doesn’t care if his ideas are ripped off as long as public policy is improved. He’s in it for us.

That’s why I’m voting for h. brown for Mayor of San Francisco. First Choice. No fucking around.

[Above pictures courtesy of sfmike’s Civic Center Blog. In the second photo, h. trades jibes with Newsom spokesperson, Nathan Ballard. Their exchange is recorded (at least h.’s side of it) in the first few minutes of this video of the 11th Candidates Collaborative Debate. Candidate h. presents as strong and confident.]

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THE LARRY CRAIG EFFECT

He’s only a former city commissioner and prominent realtor in Daytona Beach but news of his arrest in a Sears mensroom is spreading worldwide.

According this story in the Daytona Beach News Journal Online, poor Mike Shallow was dissed thus by the chief of police:

"It's scumbags like this that erode the quality of life that we have here," Chitwood said. "What scares me is that these are people that we trust to be political leaders, these are people that we trust with our children."

Note: the News Journal article includes mug shots of Shallow and eight other men including a school teacher arrested in the police sting operation. They take these things seriously in Florida. Chitwood sounds like he wants to cut the guy’s balls off.

Shallow is caught between two worlds: the heteros reject him because of the bathroom blowjob thing, fashion forward gays will reject him for associating homosexuality with the Sears brand.

Bloomingdales, Sax maybe. But Sears!

[PageOneQ, a news aggregator, included the above photo with its story/link. The file name is craig_terlet.jpg. Someone thought it appropriate for this story. Why not?]

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DIANE APPROVES TORTURE

I just heard the Friday-evening flash that Senator Diane Feinstein from supposedly liberal San Francisco will support Bush’s new torture apologist, Mukasey-something, for Attorney General.

This shows that Feinstein (who lives in a nice house) approves Alberto Gonzales’ policies and sees Mukasey as a pro who can implement them without scaring the horses.

At issue, Mukasey says that waterboarding is ok, maybe, sometimes.

If waterboarding is not torture, Ms Feinstein should have a go at it—there would be a doctor nearby, there would be no permanent damage.

Come to think of it, the willingness of legislators to undergo a particular “interrogation technique” is one way to judge if it’s torture. Electric shock to the genitals, for instance–most lawmakers would just agree to put that on the torture list without experiencing it themselves. If they have a question about waterboarding, they should try it.

Anyway, it has fallen to SFWILLIE’S BLOG to enunciate a consistent moral stance about waterboarding and other torture techniques:

Torture is always immoral. It may never be employed under any circumstances.

Regarding the what-if scenarios (nuke about to explode, etc,):

It is better that the entire planet explode than for one human to intentionally torture another. One moment of kindness is preferable to an eternity of torture.

Our current administration considers it ok to start a war, under the“do unto them before they do unto us” principle.

The Bush administration considers torture to be one of many legitimate weapons in its war against "enemies." The above photo shows an aggressive interrogation technique called “stress position.”

It seems that the majority of the government and punditry agree: aggression is ok, torture is ok.

This blog does not agree.

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MORE SF HICK

Recently City Powers announced that a few school playgrounds might be opened on weekends for neighborhood kids. They announced this at a remote press availability attended by the Mayor, the local Supervisor, the School Superintendent, the Head of Rec and Park and a few others with short to-do lists.

I commented that so much fanfare for such a pathetically small accomplishment showed how hick a town San Francisco really is.

I’m writing this after picking myself up off the floor where I had fallen after seeing this piece in Pat Murphy’s excellent San Francisco Sentinel about another gathering in my district.

According to the Sentinel, tomorrow’s dignitaries will include:

Senator Leland Y. Yee, Ph.D., San Francisco Supervisor Carmen Chu, Bijan Sartipi, Director, Caltrans District 4; Bon Yee, Director, San Francisco Department of Parking and Traffic; Dr. William Miller, 19th Avenue Pedestrian Safety Action Group (witnessed April 2007 fatal accident); and Manish Champsee, President, Walk San Francisco.

So, what’s the important event? Launching a battleship? Breaking ground on a new community center? No, and no.

They’re installing a traffic light. A goddamn traffic light!

It’s not even at a previously unprotected intersection. They’re just replacing one light with a newer model, or something. The Sentinel’s excellent story didn’t provide many excellent details.

I don’t mean to be too harsh—we don’t want our elected officials to work too hard or actually strain themselves.

But… a traffic light?

They're proud that they do anything.

See for yourself: 19th Avenue and Sloat Blvd., Thursday, November 1, 2007, 10:30am.

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SF PROPS: VOTE NO (MOSTLY)

When I think of this year’s line-up of local ballot measures, I see an image of Mayor Newsom and Aaron Peskin in a naked, passionate embrace.

Like, way yuck!

Anyway, here are sfwillie’s blog’s official recommendations on this ugly assembly of mostly putrid moves.

Prop A -- NO Fake Muni Reform
They tied this nonsense with a green ribbon—non-polluting buses. The problem with Muni is not pollution, it’s reliability. As to reforming Muni—Prop A was concocted by the same people who brought us the T-Third meltdown, then threw a party to celebrate. Vote no on fake reform. Vote no on incompetence. Vote NO on A.


Prop B -- YES Appoint/Re-appoint Commission Members Timely
I’m guessing a mayor-appointed commissioner who serves past the appointed term does so at the mayor’s pleasure, and can be removed without cause. Commissioners during their appointed terms are more difficult to remove. Makes sense. Vote YES on B.


Prop C -- NO Favoring private ballot initiatives
Requires supervisors putting initiatives on the ballot to “show their hand” many weeks before the election. This allows private (read downtown) interests to put countering propositions on the ballot at the last minute, sight-unseen by anyone but themselves. This is important. Vote NO on C.


Prop D -- NO Reduces Library Hours, Promotes Capital Boondoggles
Voters established a property tax set-aside to fund library operations. The effort was a failure. Now they want to extend the arrangement for another 15 years, and allow the property tax money to be used to pay off bond debt (read crony-contracts). If you want your libraries open more hours, vote No on Prop D.


Prop E -- YES “Question Time for Mayor”
This is stupid inside politics, spurred by short-term jostling. But, it might provide some fun political theater. For some reasons we the public don’t know, this is our current mayor’s biggest nightmare. Vote YES on E, maybe we’ll find out.


Prop F -- NO More benefits for cops
SF has many problems. Fringe benefits for public employees ain’t one of them. This is a simple giveaway. Vote NO on F.


Prop G -- YES Money for horse stables in Golden Gate Park
This is probably a ripoff, but it might give SF kids more of a chance to see horsies. YES on G.


Prop H -- NO More cars in downtown SF
This one is simple. If you are a Republican, vote yes. Otherwise, vote NO on H.


Prop I -- NO NO NO More crony appointments
Assist small business? This should be part of the mission statement of every City department. Creating a new “Office” is an admission of management failure. Make current departments do their jobs. Vote NO on I.


Prop J -- NO Public/private internet ripoff
This is one evil offspring of Board President Peskin’s and Mayor Newsom’s perverse acts as political bed partners. This is such a joke even the Chronicle agrees: vote NO on J.


Prop K -- YES Less advertising
Advertising as a public revenue source is pathetic. Vote YES on K.

With the uncontested races for city offices, voter turnout could be very low. If you care about anything on this ballot, your vote could actually mean something.

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DEBATE VENUES DOUBLE

The brilliant questions I wrote yesterday could have but one responder. Per his latest missive, h. brown might be the only candidate “under Gavin’s balcony” from 5:00 – 6:30pm this evening.

According to h.:

Except for me, tomorrow’s opposition candidates for the office of mayor this great City and county will be showing their wares at the MUNI station intersection in the Castro. 5-6:30pm. I’m told that since I won’t be there that Chicken John and Quintin Mecke who are both scared shitless of me will attend.

Fog City Journal’s story, written by candidate Josh Wolf, doesn’t mention h. brown at all. Candidate h. claims he was not consulted about the venue change.

The fact that article doesn’t even credit h. as in impetus for the Collaborative, per se, shows that Josh understands political ambition—you gotta step on people.

So h. is on the outs with Luke at FCJ, and Josh is flirting with Ted Strawser, founder of Party Party, who will be moderating the Castro Station group. [In addition to the written word, Party Party employs satirical art, as above, to get its points across.]

SF politics is so, interesting!

Fog City Journal, without h., is getting kind of sfist-y.

h. says he’ll keep his commitment to 12 Friday debates, “under Gavin’s balcony,” and vows to be there this evening 5:00 – 6:30pm.

Mayor Newsom, if h. really is the only candidate present, could say a big fuck-you to lots of people by coming out and exchanging a few jabs with the lovable/hate-able curmudgeon. Newsom would appear very manly in doing so.

The Wolf-Strawser hijacking of the Candidates Collaborative demonstrates why this blog endorses h. brown for mayor. We want clean, transparant government.

H. BROWN FOR MAYOR!

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MAYORAL HOPEFULS: READ THIS

Good old Sfmike has agreed to moderate tomorrow’s weekly Mayoral candidates debate “under Gavin’s balcony.”

I know this because he asked me to help, mostly just my muscle due to iffy security. I have a prior commitment, so I had to decline.

I’m pretending to help by supplying some questions.

So, in case there’s a pause in the interruptions/arrests—

QUESTIONS FOR CANDIDATES COLLABORATIVE DEBATE
San Francisco Mayor’s Race, October 26, 2007


1. What is the most important issue for the residents of District ____?
[After picking a number, from 1 to 11, from a hat.]

2. What will you do to solve the murder of SFPD Officer Lester Garnier?

3. Muni was more reliable in 1957 than it is 2007. Why, do you think, this is the case?

4. What programs will you implement to give SF’s rich people something useful to do?

5. What area of study are you currently trying to learn more about?

6. If we could hire someone to nag you, what should he or she nag you about?

7. Do you condemn the Catholic Church for its anti-women and anti-gay bigotry?

8. How will you raise the morale of rank-and-file city workers?

9. How will you reduce user fees and other regressive taxes, and make the city’s revenue sources more progressive?

10. Should SFPD ever cite bicyclists for any traffic violations? If so, what kind of violations?

11. Should bicyclists be required to carry liability insurance, similar to motorists?

12. Should corporate advertising (including logos of event sponsors) be forbidden in S.F. public parks?

The debate is Friday, October 26, 2007, from 5:00 – 6:30pm in the park across Polk Street from City Hall.

[Note: SFWILLIE’S BLOG has endorsed h. brown for mayor.]

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GOOD KIDS

Sometimes a manly-man acquaintance will surprise me with unexpected sensitivity to the feelings of others. It’s one of the warmest emotions I get.

Sfmike’s posts regarding the demise of Junior ROTC in San Francisco’s public high schools are such an instance. [Photos here from Civic Center Blog.]

In San Francisco, being in the military is not cool. Many SFers thing that the US military, per se, is part of the problem, like organized crime, and must be eliminated.

In most high schools, being in ROTC is not cool. Like, what kind of geek wants to wear stupid uniforms and march around, and, like, obey orders?

So, at a time of frustration of the US’ immoral war on Iraq, and some b.s. about don't ask don't tell, it was easy for SF’s Board of Education to ban JROTC from city schools—a good slap at the Bush administration.

What the BoE fools didn’t consider was that JROTC, like any after school activity can be, was the primary peer-support resource for many of the participants. High school is tough enough. To eliminate existing resources on a whim of political correctness is callous.

The board’s symbolic slap represented a real loss for the kids.

When this was brought to the Board’s attention they said, no problem we’ll develop an equivalent alternate program to fill the gap.

A year later, no alternate program. [SFGate story.]

I guess there’s a lesson here: it’s easier to ban something than to replace it.

Pathetic.

The good news is that JROTC will continue indefinitely. Sfmike tells me that two Board members who pushed for the ban have since departed and the issue is likely to remain dormant.

Whew!

AMERICAN GOTHIC

The Matt Lauer interview with choirboy Larry Craig and his grandmotherly wife was white-knuckles all the way, but the Craigs came through just fine.

Matt failed to attack the gaping hole in “Mensroom Larry’s” argument. Craig's position:

1. I’m was an innocent traveler, naïve regarding any mensroom sex happenings, and I entered the airport mensroom simply to use the toilet.

2. I was using the toilet normally when I was arrested. I had no idea why I was being arrested.

3. I made a big mistake by not consulting a lawyer, keeping it secret, and pleading guilty.

4. The reason I made this big mistake was because I was deeply embarrassed by the event and hoped it would “go away,” and I wouldn’t have to tell my wife and kids and the public.

If #1 and #2 are true, then there is no reason for any “embarrassment.” Outrage would be the appropriate response. I’d demand a lie detector test.

Getting arrested is no embarrassment, it’s what you get arrested for that’s embarrassing.

Then, making your spouse face the music with you?

Has any man in America ever inadvertently “touched shoes” with the man in the next stall? Except as part of a sex-advance?

Larry Craig said in the police interview: “I looked down and saw that our shoes were close, but I don’t recall them touching.”

Almost sounds like “quivering lips.”

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NEWSOM SHINES: DEFENDS SISTERS

Mayor Gavin Newsom came to the defense of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, per this SFGate story. Responding to criticism by Bill O’Reilly:

"This debate really is about San Francisco values. The Bill O'Reillys of the world are threatened by San Francisco because we value diversity, universal health care and civil rights for all. They will exploit any controversy to attack our values."

Good for you, Gavin!

Meanwhile, the Archbishop is apologizing for giving communion to two SPI’s.

A USF Jesuit says the Archbishop is obligated to give communion to all who ask for it unless there is some specific reason not to. Such specific reasons do NOT include unusual dress or heavy makeup.

I wonder what Niederauer was expecting. MHR has been a gay church for decades.

----- o -----

TWO POLICEMEN KISSING

I thought this was a nice picture.

There’s controversy attached—it was banned from some exhibit in Russia, I guess because of the gay thing.

Thanks to Guardian Unlimited for treating us to this story.

Shot among the birch trees and snow of a Siberian forest, two policemen kiss each other passionately on the lips. They hold and - this is not entirely clear - possibly caress each other's buttocks.

My guess is they're warming each other’s hip-flasks.

There are important art-historical issues involved.

Mr Shaburov said that he and fellow artist Viacheslav Mizin had created Kissing Policemen as a homage to the celebrated British graffiti artist Banksy. "We were inspired by Banksy's iconic image of two constables kissing. We wanted to do the same but in Russia," Mr Shaburov said.

The Banksy:

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TITLE IX AND PARK RESTROOMS

I played gay softball for twenty years, seventeen of them in San Francisco. During that time the SF Gay Softball League went from ten to forty or fifty teams.

At first there were only a few women playing, and those on mostly men’s teams. The league now includes two women’s division.

At some point, maybe in the early 1990’s we began to hear complaints from the women players about locked or substandard restrooms at the public parks where the league played.

When I first heard this, I scoffed. “These gals must be from out of town,” I figured, “no San Franciscan expects adequate public restrooms in the parks. How silly.

“They’ll learn.”

But they didn’t. They spoke at every meeting about working with city Supervisors and with Rec and Park to get the restrooms opened. The even wanted toilet paper!

Our softball playing lesbians were the first generation to be raised under Title IX, a 1972 federal provision mandating equal resources for male and female students, with the major focus becoming athletics.

So our women grew up thinking their lockerrooms should be as good as those provided for male athletes.

While Rec & Park did provide equal restrooms for men and women (i.e. none) the women nonetheless demands facilities for themselves.

A few months ago Newsom was so irked about the toilets at Portsmouth Square that he made Rec and Park and the PUC actually clean them. Those two agencies made the bureaucratic overhead so burdensome that Newsom would never spasm like that in their direction again, but the issue was engaged.

So, now we have a bond issue on the ballot (which sfwillie’s blog opposes) that includes $11M for new park restooms. That aspect of the bond has made San Francisco an international laughing-stock—but that’s another rant.

Anyway, I find it interesting that San Francisco’s restroom issue has been advanced by Title Nine-inspired lesbian athletes. Good for us!

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CIRCUS COMING TO TOWN

Mayor Newsom’s decision to employ the City Charter to oust criminally accused, but not yet convicted, Supervisor Ed Jew could set the stage for some entertaining political theater.

Here’s the process:

1. Mayor suspends Supervisor Jew and names his own employee, Carmen Chu, as “interim” replacement.

2. San Francisco Ethics Commission holds a hearing and otherwise investigates Newsom’s allegations against Jew.

3. The Ethics Commission concludes either that Jew should be permanently removed or not, and communicates their opinion to the Board of Supervisors.

4. The Board of Supervisors considers the recommendation of the Ethics Commission (and conducts its own hearings and investigations?).

5. The Board of Supervisors votes on permanently removing Ed Jew.

NOTE: There are eleven supervisors, one of whom, Jew’s replacement Carmen Chu, will not be allowed to vote. The City Charter requires nine votes for Jew to be removed. So Ed Jew needs the votes of only two supervisors to keep his seat.

Also NOTE: This City Charter provision has never before been utilized. Procedures are ill defined—nobody knows what they’re doing. Surprise? Newsom?

Ed Jew is fighting the mayor. Ed has a smart lawyer, Steveen Gruel, who’s going to make things tough for the Mayor. (Photo from SF Sentinel.)

This could get interesting.

Steven Gruel has issued two requests that Newsom can’t possible like:

First: Gruel demanded that the members of the Ethics Commission to immediately cease any ex parte communications regarding this case with the Mayor’s Office and its reps and likewise cease any ex parte communication with the Board of Supervisors and its reps. (Fog City Journal story here.)

As Gruel explains:

A basic precept of due process, of course, is that adverse parties and fact finders do not communicate about an active case in the absence of all interested parties. I see no reason why this simple rule ensuring fundamental fairness should not be followed here.

At least some of the Mayor’s critics see an unwholesome relationship between the mayor and the Ethics Commission.

The second Gruel letters really pissed off the City Attorney’s office (FCJ story here).

Gruel requests copies of all documents and communications used by or in possession of the City Attorney that were used as basis for his (actually the Mayor’s) charges against Jew.

Gruel’s letter might have sounded kind of hardass, quote:

Finally, I expect that your response will be complete, truthful and in full accordance with the law. Not only will your response, or the lack thereof, possibly serve as an exhibit in any future federal or state lawsuit, but anything less than strict adherence to your lawful obligations and duties could provide clear grounds for removal proceedings under San Francisco Charter Section 15.105.

City Attorney Dennis Herrera was so pissed he had his press secretary issue a statement that is simply nasty (forwarded by h. brown).

In it Matt Dorsey says:

Apart from running up his client's legal bill, I don't understand the rationale for Mr. Gruel's continued theatrics.

and:

At this point, I think Mr. Gruel would better serve his client to focus on Mr. Jew's numerous legal problems than to engage in this ongoing publicity campaign.

These statements sound political rather than truth-seeking. Our tax dollars pay Mr Dorsey to fire off this crap. The pretense of concern for the accused is cheap rhetoric. I think Ed Jew and Steven Gruel is beyond taking advice from Dennis Herrera or Matt Dorsey.

The Ethics Commission, isn’t quite ready to proceed. They have scheduled a meeting later in October, not to hear the case, but to discuss how to go about hearing the case.

I hope the hearings are on TV (Comcast cable channel 26).

Now Gruel wants certain supervisors to recuse themselves from voting on Jew’s ouster, if and when the case reaches the Board (SFGate story). Gruel says some supervisors have made public statements that show prejudice against Jew. Gruel threatens a federal lawsuit. SFGate story here.

Gruel’s strategy is to treat the Ethics Commission/Board of Supervisors proceedings like any other legal case in which all of the defendant’s civil and procedural rights are protected. This seems an impossibly high standard for the Ethics Commission.

There's no telling what will happen next.

I guess Mayor Newsom thought it was a good idea at the time.

----- o -----

H. BROWN FOR MAYOR

Of all the candidates for San Francisco Mayor this year, political analyst h. brown has done the most to improve the quality of my life as a San Franciscan.

His columns are fun, informative, and well written. He names names.

h. has also created his Salon, a spontaneous, grassroots, community institution that costs the price of a burrito to attend, (plus I think you’re supposed to buy h. a beer).

h.’s greatest failing is possibly excessive passion for good government.

His last couple of columns in Fog City Journal have convinced me it’s time to endorse.

The first of these columns is his “Vision for the City.” In it he states his position on the sale of surplus city property:

The City should never sell land as surplus because, as Will Rogers said: "It's the only thing they aren't building more of."

I thought I was the only one to believe this. Now it’s me and h.

The second column contains h. brown’s answers to an SF Chronicle Candidates Questionairre. Some samples:

On streamlining City government:

Answer: Move all the pretty girls to the front of the room. Well, that didn't work out too well for Gavin, did it? Now that he's surrounding himself with ugly women, he's doing much better. I plan to hire pretty young gay boys and bull dykes. With no distractions I'll be able to concentrate better.

And on Ethics:

Answer: Always give a receipt for your bribes and keep a copy for yourself. Don't screw the staff and if you do, never admit it. Be presidential.

Just as in matters of religion the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence pretty much speak for me, so, in matters of local politics, h. brown speaks to me.

Another good one, on “paying more attention to detail”:

Answer: Is there something of value I haven't already given to Don Fisher?

sfwillie’s blog endorses h. brown to be the next Mayor of San Francisco. He is dedicated to the well being of all San Franciscans.

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CLIMBING THE FENCE

When I started playing tennis eight years ago I had access to a great “bang wall,” as Irishman Desmond calls it, aka a “hitting wall” in the play yard of Ulloa School, my alma mater if you count half a year of kindergarten.

It’s a fifteen foot high concrete retaining wall that runs maybe 250 feet and forms the eastern boundary of the school’s grounds.

I’d go there on weekends and after work for an hour at a time. Hitting against a wall is a way to get a lot of strokes in a short time, and it’s a good workout. To be realistic, a person doesn’t really belong on a tennis court until they can sustain a twelve or twenty stroke rally with a wall.

Sometimes teachers leaving late, at 5:30pm or so would look at me warily, but the yard was so big, with almost no kids around, and I must have looked non-threatening.

I got to know a female custodian who would alert me when she was about to lock the last gate. Usually I’d tell her “thanks, I’ll just hop the fence when I’m through.”

After a year of this I went to the schoolyard on a summer weekday and jumped the fence but was quickly and nervously shooed away by a guy who, I gathered later, was running some sort of summer program for kids. Small and private, he wanted me out of the facility he had rented with good money.

A week later signs appeared on the fences at the easy climbing spots warning against illegal entry. Very unfriendly.

I wasn’t the only one climbing the fence. Teenagers would play baseball-oriented games. Moms and dads would lift there kids over the low part of the fence and play in the little kids’ section. For a while there was a guy doing very disciplined footwork exercises, I think he was a boxer.

By the time the signs went up I was a good enough tennis player that access to the hitting wall was not that big a deal. But without it, I doubt if I would have gotten good enough fast enough to want to keep playing.

Community access to schoolyards for recreational purposes has just been in the news. Pat Murphy over at the Sentinel covers it thoroughly in this story. Mayor Newsom is proposing a trial program that would open fourteen schoolyards to the community on weekends.

The fact that this is a big deal tells you what a hick town San Francisco really is, and what a can’t-do spirit our civil servants have.

Anyway, Newsom is allowing his newly appointed interim Supervisor Carmen Chu to introduce the legislation.

I guess it’s nice of the mayor to give her a readymade resume item so warm and fluffy.

I don’t think that Ulloa School, with it’s great hitting wall is included in the pilot program.

After my tennis session this morning, I stopped by Ulloa School to photograph one of the nasty do-not-climb signs on the fence near the kindergarten classrooms where I debuted academically.

I hoped the kids would be in class but the playground was full. I worried I’d look like a creepy old man taking pictures of kids in a schoolyard, but I was greeted enthusiastically.

“Hey mister! Could you get us our ball?”

It had come over the fence and rolled down the street a little.

At first I didn’t see it. The kids told me it was a “Batman ball.” Then I spottedit, a smallish rubbery kickball thing clearly marked “Batman,” under a red sports car, and threw it back. One of their teachers came over to thank me.

The sign I found was different from the ones they originally put up—not quite as nasty, but still not too friendly.

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ST PAUL RETURNS

I’ve always had the New York Times in my favorites. Not that I expect truth, or high mindedness.

I imagine the Soviets used to read Pravda and Isvestia the same way I read the Times: see an official version of the story in order to compare it to other versions.

Also, I used to enjoy Paul Krugman who is smart enough to communicate to the likes of me, and who aims at conveying truth high-mindedly.

Krugman had become a liberal star and NYT tried to cash in with their “Times Select” pay-to-view service. They included Krugman’s op-ed pieces in their paid-only section.

Considering the low level of the rest of their offerings I didn’t pay and so missed Paul Krugman.

Now Paul Krugman is available again, for free. Here’s his latest piece, which compares Countrywide Financial’s CEO’s behavior with that of Ken Lay.

Countrywide, he says, made bad real estate loans, then re-sold the loans as securities but continued to “service” the loans and collect servicing fees.

Countrywide seems peculiarly unwilling to work out deals that might let borrowers hold on to their homes — even when such a deal, by avoiding the costs of foreclosure, would actually work to the benefit of both sides.

Why block mutually beneficial deals? As the article points out, Countrywide can make money from the fees it charges on foreclosures, while the losses from mortgages that could have been saved, but weren’t, are borne by others.

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SF SCRAMBLE

The struggle for possession of Bond’s 756th home run ball occupied only a few seconds of air time but it was as stomach-turning to watch as any of that awful cage-fighting proliferating in cabledom.

There were multiple crimes of violence (probably misdemeanor battery mostly) as well as multiple attempted grand thefts committed in the scramble.

Of course it’s embarrassing. It’s also an instructive metaphor for what we have become.

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BAD CHU-JEW

Mayor Newsom’s ouster of District 4 Supervisor Ed Jew and appointment of “interim” replacement Carmen Chu was a slap at District 4 residents.

At 29 years old and having lived in San Francisco just three years, Chu admitted in her first public statement that she knew little about the district she is now sworn to represent.

Newsom touts her as a policy person, not a political person—she’s fresh to politics.

These two attributes—ignorance about her constituents and political inexperience—do not promise well for District 4, but they’re the sort of thing that make Mayor Newsom lick his chops. Like, soooo innocent.

Despite this admission, Ms Chu was able to cast votes on all issues before the Board meeting just a few hours after her appointment.

I’ve requested that Supervisor Chu tell us how she decided which way to vote on those complicated issues. Maybe she’s a real quick study. Maybe she just voted Gavin’s way.

It’s interesting to note that Ms Chu’s email address as District 4 Supervisor is unchanged from the address she used as an employee of the Mayor’s office. Will she still answer Mayor’s office mail? Will she still work on a few Mayor’s office odds and ends? Or will she be a full time supervisor?

I’m pessimistic. A smart person in Ms Chu’s position would have turned down the offer.

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LENNAR FIGHT MOVES TO BOE

According to the blog Educational Justice, Tuesday evening’s regular SF Board of Education meeting will consider a resolution supporting the stoppage of work at Lennar’s redevelopment site in Bay View Hunters Point.

Educational Justice is written by a team that includes Eric Mar and Kim-Shree Maufas, two Board of Education members who are sponsoring the resolution.

Their blog post, which includes the full text of the Stop-Lennar resolution, includes a link to BVHP commenter and activist, Francisco DaCosta. Mr DaCosta is extremely outspoken in his opposition to Lennar. I’m impressed that elected officials such as Mar and Maufas would align with him.

Here’s the agenda item description:

In Opposition to Lennar Corporation’s Hunters Point Naval Shipyard Development and In Support of the Community’s Demand for a Temporary Stoppage and an Independent Health and Safety Assessment to Protect Our Students and Their Families
- Commissioners Eric Mar and Kim-Shree Maufas
(Per Board Policy 120, Section 9.4, the Board may suspend its Rules in order to consider action to this resolution at First Reading)

The meeting is open to the public.

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2007 6:00 P.M.
555 FRANKLIN STREET, FIRST FLOOR

The meeting will be shown live on cable channel 78, and can also be viewed via live webcast.

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REMEMBERING WILLIE

Not sfwillie. Mayor Willie.

Remember when Brown ran for mayor and he said he would “fix Muni” in his first 100 days?

Remember how he left office eight years later and Muni was (is) still fucked up?

Here’s my favorite part:

Remember, after it was clear that he had no clue how to fix Muni, he proposed buying the Muni drivers new, snappier uniforms.

Brown hypothesized that their drab brown uniforms were at the root of the drivers’ low morale.

Mayor Brown, a noted clotheshorse, must have “put himself in the drivers’ shoes,” as it were, and found them hideous.

It’s all a big laugh to Willie.

[Note: click on pictures for sources.]

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DESIGNER DONATES, AGAIN

Business must be slow in the high-end interior design industry. Designers are so available that they’re donating their services to worthy causes.

Back in August we mentioned a high-end re-do of Benefit Magazine offices.

Now the Sentinel covers the “high-end” redecoration, this time of a homeless family shelter.

Raphael House, for 35-years a residential provider to homeless families, celebrated its new ambience with rising San Francisco personality Sophie Azouaou and Executive Director Father David Lowell joining Mayor Gavin Newsom to cut a red ribbon of renewal.

There are lots of great photos. The article says Sophie has some connection to Benefit Magazine.

The writer, Pat Murphy, purveys a very dry irony. He is a master of deadpan, as in his lead:

San Francisco philanthropy shone this week as privately funded Raphael House received a high-end makeover from some of the classiest design mavens in town.

Oops! My fact checkers tell me Sophie IS Sophisticate Interiors, the “high end” design firm that redecorated Benefit Magazine’s offices.

I’ll have to spend more time at SFLUXE.

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JEW: "I'M STUPID, NOT EVIL."

I can’t stand the way high paid officials plead stupidity when malfeasance is revealed.

-Ken Lay got paid millions a year but had no idea what was happening at Enron.
-Our former Attorney General can’t remember which hand he wipes with.
-No one in Gavin Newsom’s office knew the timesheet policy (there wasn’t one).

Now we have disgraced Supervisor Ed Jew claiming naiveté in handling cash bribes, forty large.

The feds finally busted him for shaking down a Tapioca joint.

In the Chron story Ed explains:

The consultant, Jew said, had agreed to take only half the $40,000 fee and leave the other $20,000 with the supervisor as a charitable donation to a Sunset district park development project.

"That was an unorthodox way of paying," Jew told The Chronicle in May. "I don't know if it violates the law. I know now not to venture into these waters."

So, Ed, this constituent agrees—you ARE a dumbfuck. You’re way too stupid to be a Supervisor.

[Photo from ebar.]

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BYRD DISSES PATREUS

During this week’s congressional hearings on General Patreus’ Iraq status report, Senator Robert Bird delivered this zinger (quoted from recollection.)

Speaking to Patreus, Byrd said:

You have told us, General, at one point, that reconciliation in Iraq depends on security. Elsewhere you’ve told us that security in Iraq depends on reconciliation.

This circular dilemma resembles a dog chasing its tail, and any reputable breeder will tell you, “Don’t pick that puppy.”

Long live old coots!

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ROSS DISSES JUSTIN HERMAN

Much tribute was paid at this week’s Board of Supervisor’s meeting to the recently deceased Bill Sorro.

Sorro gained local fame and admiration in the I-Hotel fight, a 1960’s-‘70’s anti-displacement effort.

Ross Mirkarimi , when his turn came, suggested changing the name of Justin Herman Plaza to Bill Sorro Plaza.

Redevelopment (negro removal) continues in San Francisco with the same, some would say, rapacious spirit attributed to Justin Herman.

If Ross can get Justin Herman’s name removed, we’ll send Ross to Washington to get J Edgar Hoover’s name removed from the FBI building.

An exhibit, A Serving of Love: the Passion of Bill Sorro, runs through October 6, 2007

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MAXWELL: BRING BACK THE #15

Inauguration of the T-Third light rail line caused a meltdown of the San Francisco’s entire light rail system.

At the time, this blog advocated a return to the status quo anti—essentially reinstating the 15-Third Street diesel bus line, which the light rail T-Third was supposed to replace.

The construction of the T-Third line is another example of capital expenditure boondoggles touted as helping poor folk.

This morning Sophie Maxwell, the supervisor representing southeast SF, requested a hearing before the Transit Authority board on T-Third ridership versus the 15-Third Street diesel bus statistics.

Maxwell said she’s been hearing requests from her constituents to bring back the 15-Third Street busses.

In other words, the new rail line doesn’t work, and can’t be made to work in any reasonable amount of time.

Why did they build the T-Third light rail line?

The only explanation I can think of is the personal benefit of the Mayor and his cronies.

Capital expenditures are a great opportunity for kickbacks. The awarding of contracts is a great way to pay off political debts.

Nowhere in the planning was there a believable statement of benefits to the residents of Maxwell’s district.

San Francisco’s idea of light rail is one set of tracks in each direction.

The googlemap below shows six lanes of traffic on Third Street.

You can easily see the asphalt lanes, two northbound and two southbound. In the middle are two sets of light rail tracks, one heading south, one heading north.

When a diesel bus on Third Street breaks down, or has a medical emergency or is delayed for some reason, the bus coming behind it can get by and continue its route. Even if Third Street is completely blocked, diesel busses can detour on side streets.

With SF’s one track per direction policy, when a streetcar (light rail vehicle) breaks down, or something blocks the tracks, streetcars coming from behind are also blocked.

It’s not unusual to see a broken down streetcar with six or eight streetcars backed up behind it.

This is bad enough on an individual line like the T-Third, but there is a section of the underground where five lines all use one track in each direction. One set of stuck brakes and thousands of people are late.

The T-Third infrastructure—tracks, platforms, control systems have provided no public benefit.

The least City Powers can do for Sophie Maxwell’s folks is give them back their funky but reliable diesel busses.

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UN-NEWSOM: HOPE AND DESPAIR

DESPAIR

This blog was shocked when Tony Hall removed his name from the ballot in the upcoming San Francisco mayoral election.

Historically, former Supervisor Hall was snookered by Mayor Gavin Newsom to give up his elected job for an appointed one, from which Hall was almost immediately fired.

This allowed the mayor to appoint sadsack amateur golfer Sean Elsbernd to fill Hall’s empty seat, and to run for the seat as an incumbent.

Tony has plenty of personal motivation to run against Newsom.

Hall said he had to drop out because Newsom’s crew threatened Tony’s potential moneybags donors with City Hall reprisals.

This explains why Hall can’t mount the kind of campaign that costs money.

But there was no need for Hall to spend money. Hall had a firm hold the secondary position. All he had to do was hang around and wait for an airliner to drop a hunk of frozen shit on the frontrunner.

So why did Hall ask to have his name removed from the ballot?

It must be one of the “B’s.” Bribery, blackmail, or buttheadedness.

There are some ethics charges pending against Tony Hall, with a hint of potentially more to come. Could that have scared him off the ballot? Will Newsom’s cronies now go easy on Hall?

No doubt Newsom’s investors have looked at the shit-from-the-sky scenario and have decided that chaos is preferable to a Tony Hall mayoralty. So they got his ass off the ballot.

I’ve been seeing a Hoogasian flowers commercial on cable TV recently urging listeners to patronize a San Francisco family business employing San Franciscans blah blah blah.

Of the challengers remaining on the ballot, Harold Hoogasian probably has the highest name recognition, but of the same quality as Harold Stassen, also a Republican.

It’s like, Harold Hoogasian? –he’s the guy that always runs for office and will never be elected to anything.

On his webpage Hoogasian promises to enforce ALL laws. Does he mean indiscriminately? It looks like Harold should probably stay in the flower business.

The rest of the candidates have close to zero name recognition.

So, there is no new un-Newsom. It’s Newsom or chaos.

Problem is, this is supposed to be a democracy.

Dictatorships and other totalitarian regimes are noted for sham elections, in which there is only one candidate for the top office. The explanation offered is that the dictator is doing such a good job that there’s no reason to consider someone else—there simply are no other candidates.

Such, apparently, is San Francisco.

Newsom will be re-elected, assuming Zeus doesn’t crap on him.

This is terrible! This is no fun!

[End despair.]


HOPE

sfwillie's blog implores Cindy Sheehan to come to San Francisco and become a write-in candidate for mayor.

Not that she would be elected, but

-It would be good practice for her run against Nancy Pelosi.

-It would give non-Newsom supporters a meaningful voting opportunity.

-It would focus national attention on the disconnect between Pelosi’s positions and those of her constituents.

-A high vote for Cindy Sheehan might nudge Pelosi a little toward the left.

-Even Gavin supporters might be tempted to vote for Sheehan, figuring Gavin has it wrapped up.

-It would be a lot more fun than not.

Fifty thousand people gathered recently in Golden Gate Park for the fortieth anniversary of the Summer of Love.

Please come to San Francisco, Cindy Sheehan. Put some flowers in your hair. We’re ready for some more good lovin’.

[End hope not.]

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AMERICAN STANDARD

Just as the name Ford is associated with automobiles, Carnegie with steel, and Rockefeller with oil, so, at least in the state of Idaho, the surname Craig will forever be associated with furtive mensroom sex.

Senator Larry Craig in recent public appearances has shown himself to be a moron—it’s ill advised to ever say “I’m not gay,” but it’s utterly moronic to say, “I never have been gay.”

Not that we expect much from Idaho. Heck, even the great state of California has sent the likes of Murphy, Hayakawa, and Feinstein to the Senate.



But you’d think that somewhere, even in a state famous for potatoes, a criminal defendant could find a decent lawyer.

This fool Larry Craig actually pleaded guilty!

He couldn’t have been sane!

There are a host of reasons why Larry Craig could be completely innocent.

But when Craig foolishly gave a recorded statement to the Minneapolis policeman who caught him, his options were narrowed.

If Craig had said, “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” all defenses would have remained on the table, but Craig went with the “wide stance” explanation.

Craig claims he wasn’t signaling for sex when his foot went under the partition into the adjoining stall, he was just wide-stancing.

This is basically an Americans with Disabilities Act defense: the design of the toilet stalls in that airport mensroom discriminates against men who have wide stances.

We’ve seen the pictures of the toilet stall in question. It’s so narrow that any man with a wide stance could get busted for gay sex.

The only question would be one of fact: does Larry Craig really have a wide stance? The guys pictured here definitely have wide stances.


I’d advise all of them to be careful changing planes in Minneapolis.

Eventually the ADA will someday be amended to protect men with wide stances.

Senator Larry (wipe that stuff off your lips) Craig his determined to hang around, drawing a Senate salary for another month. Since his party has stripped him of his committee assignments, maybe he could occupy his time advocating for a wide stance amendment to the ADA.

Discredited now, yes even humiliated, the butt (he’s definitely not into that) of everyone’s jokes, Larry Craig would be revered by future generations of wide-stanced men.

Nixon’s secretary (pictured below), Rosemary Woods, wrenched her back while erasing the worst eighteen minutes of her boss' recorded conspirings. This focused national attention on office ergonomics.

So, too, Larry Craig’s ordeal could spotlight the need for forensically neutral mensroom architecture.

Be a hero, Larry.

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