Month: August 2020

By Judi Curry

In talking to a friend the other day, he mentioned how much he missed going to Soup Plantation for his meals. He said that they had everything he wanted, be it for lunch or dinner.

That started me thinking about all of the various buffet restaurants we have or had in San Diego – so I thought I’d begin in our general area. This is what I found:

Fairouz Café – 3166 Midway Dr., San Diego, 92110 – 619-2250-0308

No longer has the buffet as we know it. However, they have daily specials and it is possible to order off the menu. They open at 11:30am and close at 7:30pm. They also do takeout and have tables outside the restaurant for “dine-in” dining.

Himalayan Palace Indian Restaurant – 3760 Sports Arena Blvd., San Diego, 92110 – 619-510-4966.

They are open but do not have the buffet as such. Their menu contains Kabobs, sizzlers, meat lovers specials, Naan, Appetizers, etc. They have outside dine-in and pick-up also.

It’s been said that the main person behind the recent “compromise” on short-term vacation rentals being offered by Councilwoman Jen Campbell was her chief of staff, Venus Molina.

And via a recent San Diego Community Newspaper Group virtual interview with Molina, we can catch a glimpse into her thinking on one of the most controversial initiatives that has come out of Campbell’s office since her election in 2018.

First, Molina said Campbell’s office was not surprised at all by the adverse reaction to the proposal. They knew people “felt very strongly about the issue,” and they also knew “they wanted us to wait until after the election.” But other people, Molina claims, wanted Campbell’s office “to step up and take this issue on, …”

They did meet with “folks who came into our office over the last year,” she said. They met with Save San Diego Neighborhoods and the OB Town Council –

by Ernie McCray

To feed my spirit
every now and then,
in moments,
nowadays,
I find myself,
singing “My Girl”
like I’m on stage
with the Temptations,
because “hey,”
like David Ruffin
and them,
I’ve got a woman who
makes me feel like
“I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day” too,

By Jim Miller

It’s hard to imagine a worse way to start a school year, from top to bottom. As with his dreams of a glorious economic “reopening,” President Trump’s authoritarian fantasy of forcing the nation’s return to school has backfired in a big way, with polls everywhere showing a majority of parents and students unhappy with the idea of being bullied into the classroom whether that be in K-12 or higher education.

Also, it turns out, that many local school districts have refused to play along, listening to public health experts rather than the go-back-to-work-and-die crowd. In places where schools have reopened, we were immediately greeted with outbreaks of COVID-19.

What is offensive to some may not be offensive to others

By Judi Curry

I realize that we cannot agree with everyone at any time. I realize that businesses must cater to their advertisers in order to stay in business. I also know that in my writings I frequently offend some while others are in total agreement with what I have to say. I also know that I do not have to read, listen to, or watch things that I disagree with, nor do you. But when I am “blind-sided” and put in a position that I object to, I react as I am reacting today.

Not too long ago I watched KUSI news all the time. I even did some reports with “Turko”. Then I discovered that the owners of KUSI and I do not agree politically, and I ceased watching their programs.

ABC 10News reviewed data from 211 and the more than 9,400 complaints about violations of the public health order, and found the five businesses with the most complaints. And four of the five are at the beach. And the County has only taken action against two of them, in the form of cease and desist or shutdown orders. The complaints were received from April 3 through July 29.

The businesses included 3 gyms, a restaurant, and a juice shop.

Here they are:

OB -Midway: Self Made Training Facility (4030 Sports Arena Boulevard)

The La Posta Band of Diegueno Mission Indians filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the Trump administration in an effort to block construction of the border wall section that the band says will desecrate their sacred burial sites. The tribe’s ancestral lands cross the US-Mexico border.

The suit asks for an injunction to halt – at least temporarily – the erection of a tall, metal wall until the tribe can protect its cultural sacred areas. The La Posta band – one of 12 bands of the Kumeyaay people – also wants to monitor the installation work and be able to interrupt it if human remains and cultural artifacts are found.

The lawsuit was filed against President Donald Trump, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, who oversaw military funds diverted for the border wall; acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf; and Lt. Gen. Todd Semonite, commanding general of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which is in charge of building the wall.

City is choosing from two rival developer proposals for massive entertainment district in Midway Area

By David Garrick / San Diego Union-Tribune / Aug. 11, 2020

One of two developers proposing massive entertainment districts on San Diego’s 48-acre sports arena site amended its plan Tuesday to include the possibility of a new arena. A development group led by Toll Brothers Housing initially proposed a $125 million renovation of the existing arena, but recent public feedback prompted the group to decide a new arena costing $300 million to $600 million is an option.

By Ellie Kaufman, Marshall Cohen, Jason Hoffman and Nicky Robertson / CNN / August 13, 2020

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he opposes much-needed funding for the United States Postal Service because he doesn’t want to see it used for mail-in voting this November.

By directly linking USPS funding to mail-in voting, Trump is fueling allegations that he is trying to manipulate the postal system for political gain. The pandemic has led to record-shattering levels of voting-by-mail, but Trump has tried to restrict the voting method because he says it will hurt his re-election and Republicans across the board.

Thanks to a couple of donations that came in this morning, the OB Rag has now hit our goal of $2,000 in our Summer Pandemic Fund Raising!

So, in less than three and a half days, 37 donors have pushed us

It was happening again Wednesday night, the 12th of August. The drum circle and crowds once again gathered and partied until roughly 10 pm when San Diego Police broke it all up. No one was cited by police for violating the County health ordinance.

Until 10 however, San Diego Police officers were not involved in dealing with the crowds. When this reporter visited the scene last night at 9 pm, there were an estimated 300 people in the grassy area, with over one hundred directly involved in the drum circle and dancing. I counted 3 police vehicles in the immediate vicinity and only 3 officers; 3 more police vehicles were spotted within a few blocks of the area.

It’s the Third Day of Our Summer Appeal for Donations During the Pandemic – Keep the OB Rag Going

The OB Rag has reached three-fourths of our Pandemic Summer Fundraiser! At this point, we’ve received $1250 in donations. That is very exciting.

Most of us are aware of the stakes involved, as trump threatens to not accept the results of the November election, hints that he’d like to postpone it – which he cannot – continues to call the press, “the enemy of the people” and bristles at every negative news story about his pathetic response to the COVID-19 response. But the people of OB and Point Loma (and the rest of San Diego as well) continue to need the OB Rag more than ever. It turns out, the OB Rag is one of the most progressive local news platforms in all of Southern California.