Author: Source

Why Homelessness Is Becoming an Occupy Wall Street Issue

By Barbara Ehrenreich / TomDispatch.com

As anyone knows who has ever had to set up a military encampment or build a village from the ground up, occupations pose staggering logistical problems. Large numbers of people must be fed and kept reasonably warm and dry. Trash has to be removed; medical care and rudimentary security provided — to which ends a dozen or more committees may toil night and day. But for the individual occupier, one problem often overshadows everything else, including job loss, the destruction of the middle class, and the reign of the 1%. And that is the single question: Where am I going to pee?

The original OB Rag and other underground newspapers had their vending machines “plucked off the streets” by U-T vendors on orders from high-up

By Frank Green / CounterPunch.org

Print media’s decline in the United States can be tracked in microcosm in San Diego, longtime home to one of the country’s most conservative, reactionary dailies.

Local progressives have been watching in bemusement for several years as The San Diego Union-Tribune – once Richard Nixon’s favorite news source – radically chops staff, loses circulation and, more importantly, sees its once-dominant and domineering position as a right-wing political and cultural force in the area fade.

By Jonathan Benson / Natural News / October 17, 2011

Marketed as a simple and convenient way to carry identification, make payments, and furnish quick and easy access to medical records in the event of an emergency — all with one single bracelet. But the VITAband also has the potential to become a serious invasion of privacy as it allows third parties to access personal data and other information, all of which is linked to a users individual ID tag.

By Jen Lebron Kuhney / SignOnSanDiego / October 19, 2011

Protesters took to the streets Tuesday to oppose a federal crackdown on medical marijuana dispensaries. Later in the day the city announced a Superior Court judge issued a ruling on Monday that the stores are prohibited by the municipal code in San Diego — a ruling similar to one he made last week.

Approximately 250 protesters marched from City Hall to the federal courthouse to voice their opposition to recent actions by U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy.

Welcomes “Healthcare is a Human Right” Leader from Vermont

Inspired by moves toward guaranteed healthcare for all in Vermont and Montana, advocates of Medicare-for-all, single-payer-style reform in California have formed a new coalition, the Campaign for a Healthy California (CHC), and are stepping up activity this coming week by hosting a California tour with a Vermont healthcare activist.

By Bob Dorn

The actions of police on October 14, so clearly visible on YouTube, and presumably around the world, is the sort of official mayhem that brings down governments in other parts of the world.

That skin-headed cop with a mace can who wrapped his arms around throats and threw several people to the ground so that their heads crashed into the pavement committed a criminal act. He can easily be identified, and so can others at Civic Plaza on Oct 14 who can be seen provoking people and abusing them.

By Sandra Dibble / SignOnSanDiego / October 18, 2011

TIJUANA — Some two dozen protesters in Tijuana affiliated with the Occupy Wall Street movement were arrested early today by police forces for sleeping in a public right-of-way. The detentions occurred at 2:15 a.m. near a traffic circle in Tijuana’s Rio Zone, according to Heriberto Garcia, Baja California’s human rights ombudsman.

See inside for contact information for Mayor and Council

By Mike Chek / Special to the OB Rag

Occupy San Diego has lots of friends and supporters. Over this past two week period, they’ve come out with donations and statements of support. This has been great!

But right now – Occupy San Diego NEEDS HELP!

If you support us – then we need you to get on the phone immediately. We need you to call the Mayor of San Diego and the City Council immediately. We need you to tell them – tell them – not ask – to get the police off the backs of the activists of Occupy San Diego!

by Phillip Smith / StopTheDrugWar.org

California’s largest doctors’ group is calling for marijuana legalization. The trustees of the California Medical Association (CMA) adopted the position at their annual meeting in Anaheim Friday. The call came after the group last year decided to study the issue and make recommendations.

The group, which represents more than 35,000 physicians statewide, called for legalization even as it acknowledged health risks and questioned the medical value of pot.

Statement of Support

by Josh Pechthalt, the president of California, AFT

The California Federation of Teachers endorses the “Occupy Wall Street” movement. Occupy Wall Street, and its local variations, represent the legitimate response of the 99% of us adversely affected by growing wealth and income inequality in America. The richest one percent of the population has doubled its share of the nation’s income over the past twenty years. Yet during this time the wealthy received massive tax cuts, a major cause of public budget shortfalls that hurt students, make our streets less safe, and harm the health of children and seniors.

By Mike Chek / Special to the OB Rag

During yesterday’s pepper-spraying and roughing-up of Occupy San Diego demonstrators by San Diego Police, one officer stood out in his duties. Officer “Blondie” (we don’t know his true identify) clearly was The Hammer as officers cleared out tents at the Civic Center Plaza.

The SDPD had ordered all tents to be removed from the Plaza and at 8 am Friday, October 14th, dozens of officers had arrived to enforce that order. And through some minor jostling of non-violent demonstrators who had circled the half dozen tents, the officers did remove the tents.

by Christopher Cadelago / SignOnSanDiego / Oct 14, 2011

A judge this week ruled that the city of San Diego can restrict the location of medical marijuana dispensaries based on its zoning laws. San Diego County Superior Court Judge Ronald Prager wrote that state law regarding medical marijuana addresses the cultivation and possession for medicinal purposes, but not zoning and business licensing. …

Meanwhile, City Attorney Jan Goldsmith announced more lawsuits against another 16 collectives for allegedly violating local zoning code. … Under the decision, Ocean Beach Wellness Center at 4851 Newport Ave. was ordered to shutter its operation Thursday. The collective was part of an initial batch of 12 lawsuits brought by the city last month against businesses believed to be operating within 600 feet of schools, a violation of state law.