Archive for May, 2010
A Day for Sober Reflection on Journalistic Valor
As the Alameda Daily Noose and I have pointed out many times before, today is a day to not only honor the memory of those who have given their lives in defense of Alameda, but also to recognize the valor of the journalists who risk life and limb to bring the stories of those conflicts back to the folks behind the lines.
You might think that reporting all through the battle to stop Alamedageddon, as we did, would risk enough limbs to last anyone a lifetime, but it turns out that retirement is not easy for those who feel the thrill of journalistic integrity pounding in their veins at the mere mention of Squirrels or Bagpipes threatening our Treasured Island. Perhaps, in the end, the Alameda Daily Noose and I will have to be carried from the field of journalistic valor, as others have been before us. If so, it would be a worthy end to our selflessly noble career.
We have heard rumors that, in a lesser-traveled corner of the interwebs, there still stands a monument to a journalist whose Right-Thinking may have rivaled our own. It brings a tear to our eye to think that one day, the Alameda Daily Noose and I might also have our passing marked by a simple masthead, glowing eternally in the darkness. Meanwhile, our city still needs us, and like those brave men and women in uniform, we are ready to report for duty.
Today is Memorial Day
Hope you’re having a good day off with friends and family. In the meantime, if you’re looking for something to read, check out our Measure E series that ran last week. And stay tuned for more news on Tuesday.
Alameda Coffeehouse Hosting Concerts, BBQ
After featuring an Irish band last night, High Street Station coffeehouse (at High Street and Encinal Avenue) is hosting a dinner and classical quintet later today.
The barbeque includes hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, potato salad, and garlic bread for $8.95, and 10 percent of proceeds will go to Meals on Wheels.
The music, played by “Time Out Quintet,” starts at 7 [...]
Pete Stark Opposes Wasteful Defense Spending, DADT
Our congressman, Pete Stark, is the bee’s knees. He voted against the wasteful defense spending bill. Of course, bills tend to package in a mixed bag of pieces, and he wanted to make sure that he was in favor of repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” This is his statement, which I think is worth reading.
MR. STARK: Madam Speaker, I rise to oppose out of control war and defense spending. This bill (H.R. 5136) would authorize a record $726 billion for defense. Congress refuses to find money to maintain COBRA premium assistance for jobless workers, but somehow we can afford yet another increase to our already bloated defense budget.We should recognize that this legislation would fix a long-standing injustice by creating a path for the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” I was proud to vote for the Murphy Amendment and I look forward to the day when LGBT Americans enjoy equal rights in all facets of society, including marriage. Although I strongly support the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” I cannot vote for this legislation.The waste in this bill is shameful. It includes $361.6 million more than the Pentagon wants for a missile defense program that doesn’t work, and $485 million in funding for another engine for a fighter jet that already has a working engine. I offered an amendment that would have cut the extra funding for missile defense, but it was not allowed to come to the floor for a vote. An amendment to strike money for a duplicative engine that the Pentagon doesn’t want or need was also defeated.Congress needs to get our priorities in order. We should be working to create jobs and assisting those impacted by the recession, not continue runaway defense spending. I urge all of my colleagues to oppose this wasteful bill.
West End principal speaks out
Despite efforts of the opponents to Measure E to pit East End families against West End families, the principal of Ruby Bridges Elementary on the West End submits this letter to the editor in response to the Chronicle article which sets up a false choice between supporting schools and…
West End theatre – West End – History – Technology – Literature
A Tour of USCG Waesche (or “Blogger Visits Big Boat!”)
Oh score, score, score !
Regular readers know I like to write about the Coast Guard (you can see my post on the Coast Guard’s new cutter here and my post on its new commander here ). So you can imagine my delight when my son’s soccer coach — who is a Lieutenant Commander over on Coast Guard…
Coast Guard – United States Coast Guard – United States – Military – Government
How many consultants does it take to brand a city?
Taking a break from Measure E stuff for today. So someone pointed me to the fact that the City’s Alameda Point/SunCal updates website was designed and created by Graphtek, the same company that was selected to the tune of nearly $75K to brand the City of Alameda with a new identity and logo similar [...]
Green Living by Janet Marchant: Enhancing Your Green Guy’s Environmental Energy
This column is especially for all of my green sisters out there, so anybody reading this who doesn’t have at least two X chromosomes might want to stop reading and go put some gas in the hybrid SUV or something. Now, I’m not one to make broad generalizations, but let’s face it: men are just not as environmentally conscious as women. You know what I mean, ladies. So often, your husband or boyfriend just can’t quite keep up with you when it comes to living greenly. My own husband means well, bless his heart, but he sometimes can’t work up quite as much enthusiasm for saving endangered species as I can. And then, or course, there’s the little matter of getting the recyclables into the right bin, and remembering to close the lid afterwards.
Those are the kinds of little problems that can happen to any guy who’s trying to live in harmony with the planet, and in harmony with a woman who loves the planet almost as much as she loves him. That’s why I was so excited to discover that there is now a way to naturally enhance a man’s green living prowess! It all started when I got an e-mail message from someone I don’t exactly remember meeting (maybe it was at the beach clean-up last year), saying that her spouse had gotten fantastic results with a new “green male enhancement” supplement. As far as I can tell, this product is an all-natural herbal capsule that strengthens a green male’s commitment to the environment in kind of the same way that ginkgo enhances memory.
Wow! It’s yet another good idea from that green product powerhouse, China! By following the link in the message, I was able to order a sample pack of the supplement to try on my own “green male”. I plan to secretly mix the contents of a capsule into his organic 50-grain muesli tomorrow morning. I’ll let you know if the stuff really works for bringing out the planet-saving tiger that I married, and that I know is still in there somewhere. Don’t tell him anything about this, though, because I want to avoid the placebo effect. I’m not sure exactly what that is, but I know it has something to do with getting your money’s worth out of herbal supplements. And you know me—I like to save some green as much as I like being green!
MEASURE E: Pro/Con
Alameda voters are being asked to decide whether to approve a replacement parcel tax that could bring as much as $14 million year into the Alameda Unified School District’s coffers for each of the next eight years. If it is approved by voters, Measure E would replace the district’s existing parcel tax measures A and [...]
Beware the “Voter Information Guide” scam
Back in 2008, I pointed out a suspicious flyer that looked like it held the Democratic Party endorsements, but didn’t. Well, it’s back! Take your pick: Democrat or Independent, you probably got a flyer this week that looks like a very handy voter guide.
