Month: August 2020

By Ken Stone / Times of San Diego / August 8, 2020

As if casting out demons, dozens of people tossed pricey KN95 face masks into a fire pit Friday in Mission Bay Park.

The coverings were depicted as “tools of terror” being used to “turn neighbor against neighbor.” They were a “precursor to adult mandatory vaccination” and “getting everybody angry.”

Said one older man, wearing a “MAGA FIGHT CLUB” shirt: “I’m ready to die for this mission” but: “First of all, we need to get Trump re-elected.”

The discarded five-layer masks — fresh from their cellophane packaging — carried their own defiant messages into the Ski Beach flames at an event labeled “Burn Your Mask Bonfire.”

By Scott Stephens

Sunday, August 9 marked the 75th anniversary of the Nagasaki atomic bombing, which instantly wiped out 80,000 innocent civilians. We can debate whether or not this decision was warranted. However, most scholars feel the Nagasaki drop was unnecessary as Japan was close to surrendering following the bombing of Hiroshima and the Soviet Union joining the allies. But our debates won’t change history, and, likely, these disagreements may never be resolved.

But I think there is something we can all agree on: we should avoid war and look to diplomatic solutions whenever possible.

In a civilized world, victory shouldn’t be reserved just for the most powerful nations. Those of us who have lived most of our lives in the world’s most powerful, dominant country have grown accustomed to the chant of “let’s just bomb the shit out of them,” referring to whoever is our enemy at the time. But less powerful nations don’t have that luxury. The straightforward premise that right over wrong should carry more weight than who has the biggest bombs is hard to argue with.

The American Federation of Teachers Lays Out a Bold Vision of a Just Recovery as San Diego Green New Deal Alliance Launches

By Jim Miller

This summer I was proud to see that my national union, the American Federation of Teachers, was thinking big at its biennial convention in late July. Clearly, the activist spirit sweeping the country was in the (virtual) air.

Building on some of the work my brothers and sisters and I did here in San Diego along with others in our statewide union, the national AFT followed the lead of California and passed both a resolution endorsing the Green New Deal and a wide ranging call to move beyond the necessary but narrow bread and butter response we have seen from the national and local AFL-CIO to thinking comprehensively about how we should pivot and seize the opportunity that this crisis presents to build a better future.

The resolution in support of a Green New Deal calls on the 1.7 million members of the AFT

The San Diego Police officer who made the dramatic rescue of twin girls and their father on June 13 off Sunset Cliffs was just honored with a Day in Honor in San Diego, “Jonathan Wiese Day”. Wiese was presented with the proclamation Thursday night by San Diego City Councilmember Mark Kersey at the Rancho Bernardo Community Council Meeting via Zoom.

The father, Robert Brians, had intentionally driven his car off the cliffs with the girls inside. Upon his arrival, Wiese tied a leash around his body, giving the other end to officers and then rappelled down the cliff.

Once Wiese made it down the side of the cliffs, he could see the father in the ocean holding his two daughters, treading water and keep from drowning. According to 7SanDieog, Wiese said, “He had both girls. He was holding them and trying to tread water, but they were all going under. One was awake and crying the other one was pretty lifeless.”

See the video about COVID-19 in America that people from around the world watched and could not believe their eyes. Come inside.

By Colleen O’Connor

Recent behavior and Tweets have highlighted the unraveling of President Trump. Under pressure, he reverts to type. He can’t help himself.

The latest happened on Thursday where Trump accused his Catholic opponent, Joe Biden, of being against the Bible.

“He’s against the Bible. Essentially against religion. But against the Bible.”

“No religion, no anything. Hurt the Bible, hurt God. He’s against God,” Trump declared.

Perhaps this was an effort to erase Trump’s bible-holding photo-op (complete with tear gas fogged images) to announce his latest “law and order” campaign theme.

That attempt backfired.

Trump is compulsive in his need to dominate every news cycle, especially now as he is drowning in more than just bad poll numbers. He is losing his audience. His Tweet storms are not just being ignored, but actually removed.

by Ernie McCray

This is a kind of an ode
to my wild
and wiry hair
that’s ever so gray
that, particularly,
looked so beautiful to me
as I checked it out
in the mirror one day
because I happened to be thinking
how some old people like me
look at their gray hair
in utter despair
and turn it
into godawful colors
that hadn’t ever been seen
anywhere.

San Diego’s Fox5 News is reporting this morning, Friday, that a man suffering from a stab wound was found underneath the Ocean Beach Pier in the early hours, but he was expected to recover, police said.

The stabbing victim, a man in his 30s, was reportedly assaulted around 4:15 a.m. It’s not clear whether he was stabbed while under the pier or if that is where he went after being wounded.

On Sunday, August 2, the man – who vetted primary candidate Joe Biden for the nation and especially for African American Democratic primary voters – called Donald Trump, Benito Mussolini.

House Majority Whip James Clyburn of South Carolina likened President Donald Trump to Italian fascist Mussolini during an interview on CNN’s State of the Union, with host Dana Bash. Bash had asked Clyburn about a PBS interview he had done several days earlier in which he said:

“Trump thinks that the American people will be duped by him, like the people of Germany was duped by Adolf Hitler.”

Bash asked whether Clyburn really thought Trump “is comparable to Adolf Hitler,” the No. 3 House Democrat replied,

Wednesday night, August 5, at about 10 pm, San Diego police broke up the massive crowd that had gathered at Veteran’s Plaza in Ocean Beach. SDPD officers made announcements from their vehicles parked in the Lifeguard Station lot – and the announcements were met with boo’s. It’s not clear what happened afterwards.

Police were responding to complaints from the OB Town Council and residents about the irresponsible, out-of-control huge parties, the noise and trash. Hundreds of people have been gathering on the greens for a drum circle, dancing, unlicensed vendors – without wearing masks or employing social distancing.

CBS8 quoted one drum circle attendee, Phaux, as saying, “The pandemic to me is not realistic.”

Police, Councilwoman Campbell and County Supervisor Fletcher were all notified of the complaints. At the base of the complaints is the inadequate and insufficient response by local government to these gatherings after Wednesday’s OB Farmers Market, which have been going on for weeks.

By Pissed Off

I used to get a warm feeling seeing the drum circle and people juggling on the village green after the OB Farmers Market on Wednesday nights. It was quite a unique and friendly sight.

But now with the outrageous, irresponsible behavior of the crowds that gather during the Pandemic those nights – no masks, no social distancing – I find them stupid. And they’ll probably gather tonight, Wednesday, after the market and do it all again. Some guy has a DJ playing loud music and it’s a party-party-party.

So, here are three remedies for OBceans to take in dealing with the stupid crowds.

By Gary Warth, Morgan Cook / San Diego Union-Tribune / Aug. 4, 2020

The county is beefing up its enforcement of its health orders to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus and is putting more money toward child care and food services to help people struggling during the pandemic.

Under a plan approved by the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, the county will spend $1.8 million over the next six months for 22 staff members to respond to businesses violating the public health orders. The move is part of an effort for the county, rather than law enforcement, to take the lead in enforcing its health order.

The violators targeted in the new effort are separate from those considered egregious violators, defined as a willful and sustained disregard of the county health order, posing a significant risk of spreading the virus.