Author: Patty Jones

UPDATE: Today, August 23rd, 60 more people arrested, including Canadian actors Margot Kidder and a Tantoo Cardinal, bring the total to more than 220.

As of today over 160 people, including 350.org co-founder Bill McKibben, have been arrested at the White House. Others arrested include co-founder of Natural Resources Defense Council and former White House official Gus Speth, gay rights activist Lt. Dan Choi, author and activist Mike Tidwell, Firedoglake founder Jane Hamsher. For the past three days, large groups of Americans have joined a non-violent civil disobedience action at the White House. The goal is to send President Obama a simple message: “Stop the Keystone XL Tar Sands Pipeline.” These protests will continue over the next two weeks.

It seems that we’ve started a new tradition! We had so much fun last year (see Rollicking Ragsters Ride the Rails) when we all hopped on the Green Line trolley to the east county and back, that we decided to do it again. This time we took the Blue Line heading south to the San Ysidro.

Frank and I, Anna and her beloved Rich, Andy, Brittany, Annie, Brenda and Larry gathered at the Old Town trolley station Sunday morning for our adventure to the border. We hadn’t known when planning this trip that this week marks the 125th anniversary of San Diego Public Transit. San Diego MTS has even restored an 80 year old street car that will be running on the downtown loop sometime in the near future.

Read Larry and Annie’s take on our trip!

Dan Rottenberg
A few days before hundreds of people took to the streets for the event SlutWalk San Diego, Dan Rottenberg, editor of the Broad Street Review, posted a column titled “Male sex abuse and female naiveté“. In the lead-in to the column he advises us,

“Earth to liberated women: When you display legs, thighs or cleavage, some liberated men will see it as a sign that you feel good about yourself and your sexuality. But most men will see it as a sign that you want to get laid. Forewarned is forearmed.”

In our coverage of SlutWalk San Diego we’ve noted the number of young people involved in this event. I want to give a more formal introduction to two of the young women that were involved in organizing this the movement in San Diego.

Saturday, June 11 2011, SlutWalk San Diego held its first rally as a large group gathered in the middle of Civic Center Plaza. By 1:30 pm, there was a crowd of about 150. People were assembling in the shade of the large trees in the Plaza. According to Frank’s headcount, by 2:00 it was up to 350 with people still streaming into the plaza.

SlutWalk!

Ocean Beach Community Garage Sale!

UPDATE: See coverage of the event HERE

San Diego event to be held Saturday, June 11 at City Hall

There is a movement storming the country, and the world, whose purpose is to end placing the blame of rape on the victim. This includes dispelling the myth that the way someone acts or dresses determines the likelihood that they will be raped, or that they somehow deserve what they get.

It was ignited in January by a comment made by Toronto policeman Constable Michael Sanguinetti while addressing students and staff at Osgoode Hall Law School, when he recommended that women not dress like “sluts” in order to avoid sexual assault.

Tomorrow morning I will be attending a webinar. Well, my brain will be attending, the rest of me will be where it always is in the morning, right here in my desk chair. The webinar has to do with “Search Engine Optimization” or SEO. Wikipedia says SEO is the process of improving the visibility of a website or a web page in search engines via the “natural” or un-paid (“organic” or “algorithmic”) search results.

The webinar, or site clinic as they are calling it, will be hosted by some respected web ninjas. Among them is Chris Pearson, the founder of DIYThemes.com and the geek responsible for the Thesis Theme, the basis for the overall look of the OB Rag.

Yesterday, a bright, sunny Sunday, I hopped on the trolley to 25th and Commercial and made my way to Chicano Park to join the festivities celebrating International Workers Day in San Diego. I was greeted by the sound of music from the awesome mariachi band who were entertaining the crowd from the stage. I’m sorry to say that my spanish is lousy, but as a middle-aged gringa who has lived her whole life in San Diego, mariachi has long been a favorite music style for me.

There were several hundred people in Chicano Park (I later heard an estimate of about 400, and I agree on that count), where people gathered for games, face painting, music and the playground equipment was packed with kids.

Show your love of OB and your support for the OB Rag

With the help of a benevolent benefactor, we’ve just had a brand new batch of T-shirts – “The Green OB” – printed up by the James Gang, in a whole new style! These shirts have the OB Rag logo on the front and a big, Green OB on the back. We have new colors and also some in a more tailored cut for our uppity women friends!

We still have the “Classic OB Rag” style, with a plain back and the front proudly announcing our affinity for freaks and politicos, too.

Sometimes you’ve just gotta, gotta, gotta to get away…

We’d been meaning to get to the desert to see the flowers and both our schedules and the weather cooperated nicely today. After a light breakfast and our morning work on the Rag, we piled our provisions in the car and headed east. We took I-8 through the mountains and into the desert and under a sky peppered with high clouds we headed north on S-2.

See the full article for photos and video

Here are some photos and video from tonight’s gathering. Frank did a head count early in the rally and counted about 350. The group grew larger as the evening progressed and at its peak he estimates around 500 people. The Labor council passed out about 450 candles. Tune in later for a full account!