Author: Frank Gormlie

U.S. Hits 81 Targets in Iran; Iran Attacks 85 U.S. “Assets”; Oil and Gas Prices Rise, Stocks Fall

Just when you thought you could settle into the summer, with gas prices coming down and some things appearing to get normal — BOOM! Trump’s war with Iran is back on and he says the MoU is over.

Ostensibly because Iranian forces attacked three tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, Trump’s military unleashed a barrage against 81 Iranian targets and in response, Iran attacked 85 targets considered U.S. “assets” within the region.

The Iranian foreign ministry stated that the U.S. attacks violated Article 1 of the MoU relating to the ceasefire, Article 5 – related to the management of the Strait of Hormuz, which says Iran is responsible for managing passage through the waterway – and Article 10, which pertains to a waiver on Iranian oil exports.

The impacts of all this was immediate. Oil prices rose and the Dow Jones initially fell 700 points this morning.

The tankers Iran struck were attempting to skirt the passage way that according to the MoU, Iran is responsible for managing.

Now Trump says the ceasefire deal with Iran is “over”, and that dealing with Tehran is a “waste of time”.

In the middle of the NATO summit in Turkey, Trump also threatened more attacks tonight, Wednesday. (He also ramped up his insane pressure to get Greenland.)

Everyone is urging calm and a return to the ceasefire and more negotiations.

Sixty years ago today — the Ocean Beach Pier first opened on July 2nd, 1966.

And OB photographer, Steve Rowell, was there to snap this famous photo of opening day.

“San Diego will start allowing lengthy group presentations by online participants at City Council meetings next Monday,” David Garrick at the UT reports. He surmises that it’s “a fundamental policy change that could make meetings significantly longer.”

But that’s not all the changes it would make. And it’s all supposed to boost “public participation.” The City Council approved it Monday, June 29.

Garrick states:

“The council was forced to change its policy for group presentations by a new state law – Senate Bill 707 – that seeks equal rights for people submitting testimony online versus in person. The goal is leveling the public participation playing field for working families, homebound residents, people traveling and others who can’t conveniently attend public meetings in person.”

We’re beginning an OB Rag writing contest today — Thursday, June 25th — given that we’re nearing the 250th anniversary of American independence.

The topic: “What the 250th anniversary means today … living under Trump.”

Send 500 to 1,000 word entries to us at our email: obragblog@gmail.com  (The best way is to simply paste the essay into the text of an email and send it to us.) All entries will be judged by a panel of citizen journalists and professional writers. The deadline is July 4th.

The winning essay writer will be awarded $100.00 to be delivered by the U.S. Postal Service.

This is an edited version of Voice of San Diego’s “Reining in E-Bikes”

The San Diego City Council passed new e-bike regulations on Tuesday. It joins Chula Vista, Coronado and Carlsbad, which have also passed regulations.

The new law will ban children younger than 12 from riding Class 1 and 2 e-bikes. (Class 1 and 2 bikes can not go faster than 20 miles per hour. Class 3 bikes are already limited in California to people 16 and older.) Children who break the law will be subject to fines.

A study at one trauma center in San Diego found that e-bike accidents involving children increased by more than 300 percent between 2019 and 2023, according to a report by city staff.

On Thursday, June 18, a woman’s body was found near the Ocean Beach Pier. Now, authorities have publicly identified her as Summer Nash, 34.

Nash was seen in the water near the western end of Newport Avenue that day, according to the San Diego County medical examiner’s office. Lifeguards pulled her to shore, where she was pronounced dead shortly before 3:30 p.m., the office reported.

A ruling on the cause of Nash’s death was pending completion of postmortem examinations.

A couple of days after the Rag posted about her unidentified body being found, someone named Avery left this comment to the article:

This woman was my daughter, Summer. She was beautiful, deeply empathetic, and an accomplished athlete. Over the past couple of years, she’s spent much of her time surfing beaches from Tourmaline to Mission. The loss is insurmountable.

Here is some commentary about her time at San Diego State U by GoAztec (2010–2012):
PERSONAL
Summer Montana Nash was born May 18, 1992, in Bozeman, Mont. … Daughter of Avery Ash … Interests include philosophy, nutrition and the outdoors … Enjoys arts and crafts, longboarding and activities with friends … Favorite athlete is Swedish track and field athlete Carolina Kluft … Majoring in environmental studies. …

An’s Gelato Named No.2 in America; Free Scoops Offered on July 1 at Ocean Beach Shop

San Diego’s An’s Gelato company has been named the No. 2 independently owned ice cream shop in America in USA Today’s 10Best Reader’s Choice Awards, which were announced Wednesday. It’s the fourth year the local company has been ranked in the USA Today contest. An’s ranked No. 1 in 2025 and 2024, and No. 2 in 2023.

An’s operates four shops in San Diego County, including Ocean Beach where in 2025, they opened An’s Electronic Repair in a former phone repair shop. A fifth is set to open soon in Oceanside’s iconic Top Gun House. The judges praised An’s for its scratch-made gelato and unique flavors, like brown butter, brookies (brownies and cookies), watermelon and mint sorbet. The judges also noted An’s  generous sampling policy, where employees encourage visitors to taste all seven flavors of the day before they buy.

To celebrate the latest 10Best honor, An’s scoop shops in OB, Normal Heights, and Del Mar will give away one free small gelato cup or cone per customer from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 1, while supplies last. Then the shops will close for the rest of that day to give employees the evening off.

San Diego Gas & Electric has just formally requested an 8.6% rate increase with the California Public Utilities Commission. SDG&E wants it to begin in 2028.

The utility seeks approximately $3.8 billion for 2028, including about $2.9 billion for electric operations and $900 million for natural gas service. If the CPUC approves their request, “SDG&E estimates the increase would add roughly $14.03 per month to the average residential electric bill and $8.45 per month to the average residential gas bill compared to 2027 rates,” reports CBS8. That’s a combined $22.48 to the average monthly bill, reports the OB Rag.

The filing by San Diego’s for-profit utility, launches “what is expected to be an 18-month review process before state regulators determine whether to approve, modify or reject the proposal,” says CBS8/

Meanwhile, the San Diego City Council on Tuesday, June 16th, voted to endorse 10 bills in the state legislature aimed at lowering electricity rates and making investor-owned utilities more accountable to ratepayers, reports KPBS.

The U-T this morning announced that the City of San Diego has “quietly” pushed back its decision on Midway Rising, the massive 50-acre redevelopment project slated for the Sports Arena area until “an unknown date later in the year.”

As UT reporter Jenifer van Grove mused, the project has been “promised for May and then June,” and now pushed back even more. She wrote:

The City Council’s Land Use & Housing Committee is not slated to hear the item before the council’s summer legislative recess, Councilmember Kent Lee, who chairs the committee, told the Union-Tribune.

Last week, we posted an article about anti-short term rentals stickers being plastered around north OB.

Now, we find residents of Clairemont have done one better against the ADUs that have clobbered their community over the last couple of years. (See above)

Go here to see the photos of the small professionally made and anonymous signs that have popped up in the Clairemont Mesa area.:

Entire List From Across City Included

Here are the results from the latest — and last — round of San Diego city budget cuts in terms of hours at Ocean Beach and Point Loma libraries and rec centers.

Point Loma

The Point Loma branch library, along with 5 others, will have its hours reduced. PL will deal with its cuts by opening only for half days on Saturdays. That will bring its operating 51 hours a week down to 47 hours.

And the Cabrillo rec center will be reduced to 40 operating hours a week, but its cuts will be smaller, because it already had less than 60 operating hours per week.

Ocean Beach

The OB library is currently operating 5 days a week, with Sunday and Monday closed. But it will soon close on a more permanent basis as its expansion gathers steam.