Author: Source

Editor: Verrrry interesting. Britain wants to dismantle its surveillance camera systems while the City of San Diego wants to install them, including a camera on the OB Pier.

By John F Burns/ The New York Times / May 19, 2010

LONDON — Defying those who said it might be paralyzed by internal divisions, Britain’s new coalition government of Conservatives and Liberal Democrats on Wednesday unveiled the most ambitious plan in decades for upending the highly centralized and often intrusive way the country is governed.

The plan, as laid out by the deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, would roll back a proliferation of “nanny state” laws, non-elected administrative bodies and surveillance systems —

Originally posted February 23, 2010

“Die-In” Planned for Today May 19th (see inside for details)

by Carol Jahnkow & Nancy Mancias

San Diego is home to defense contractors General Atomics Aeronautical Systems and Northrop Grumman, the world’s largest and leading manufacturers of drones. General Atomics builds the Predator and Reaper drones. Northrop Grumman provides the software for a similar aircraft, the Global Hawk spy drone.

These remotely controlled vehicles come with a hefty price tag — Predator and Reaper’s range between $4-$12 million and the Global Hawk’s cost about $35 million. With their high tech sophistication, drones have become the weapon of choice in fighting the U.S. occupations. More than 7000 drones are ready to prowl the skies over Afghanistan and Iraq.

Everyone complains about the homeless. OB merchants, local residents, … you name the group and there is grumbling galore about those without a home who dot our beachside community.

One person is doing something about it. Lupe Haley is a cancer survivor and believes deeply in Jesus Christ. She has been answering his call to feed the needy for the past 22 years. Every Monday for all those years, Lupe comes down to Saratoga Park and sets up a food line where she literally dishes out food for the dozens of homeless people who show up.

In April FOX News Channel 5 did a story about her work. The very next Monday, Lupe showed up as usual – but this time there was a different ending. She was stopped by police who threatened to cite and even arrest her for not having the proper permits.

by Dr. Tawny Lanos

The decision by the City of San Diego Planning Commission yesterday to approve the environmental document for the Department of Stormwater’s Program Maintenance plan should be no surprise to people who follow politics in San Diego. The entire scene played out exactly the way the directors wrote the script – and the players performed exceptionally. But the real tragedy is yet to unfold —

by Katie Drummond / wired / May 11,2010

More than 30 years after it was written, the Pentagon has released a memorandum detailing its involvement in the CIA’s infamous Cold War mind-control experiments.

But a warning to conspiracy theorists on the lookout for new fodder: This isn’t quite Men Who Stare at Goats II.

The 17-page document (.pdf), “Experimentation Programs conducted by the Department of Defense That Had CIA Sponsorship or Participation and That Involved the Administration to Human Subjects of Drugs Intended for Mind-Control or Behavior-Modification Purposes,” was prepared in 1977 by the General Counsel of the Department of Defense and released on May 6 after a Freedom of Information Act request.

Three problems in the US today that have to be solved.

1. New economy must be created as the prior economy of borrow and no production has failed. Must create an economy based on production.

2. Cheap energy bubble has popped …

by Carl Manaster / Special to the OB Rag / May 12, 2010

Van Jones spoke to a nearly full house last night at UCSD’s Price Center. The crowd was diverse – old and young, multiracial, male and female, and most notably right and left.

Supporters – from the left – made up the bulk of the crowd, but probably five percent were from the other side, holding signs that accuse Jones of having an “evil” agenda, calling him a “radical communist”, and calling his green jobs “snake oil”.

There’s a community in Virginia that was torn apart by the issues of immigration and racial profiling. It’s far from the border, but this small city in northeast Virginia became a battleground for issues that are dividing Americans all across the country.

Some documentary makers went there and filmed how the city dealt with the racial schisms. They have just completed the film, called “9500 Liberty” and have allowed local Coffee Party activists to show it at a small venue in North Park.

by Michael Chen/ Channel 10 News

The five cameras were installed in response to a street robbery and vicious sexual assault case in 2006 that left city and community leaders outraged. It cost $100,000 to install the cameras, which are put up at Belmont Park and South Mission Beach.

But after several years of watching, police have stopped monitoring those cameras.

by Pat Flannery

I went to a strong-mayor forum (Prop D) last night at the San Diego County Health Complex sponsored by Common Cause and Empower San Diego, with guest speakers Donna Frye and Carl DeMaio. It was well attended, informal, with lots of great comments and questions. Carl and Donna are a great double act and the crowd loved it.

For me, what emerged was a pointed reminder of the continuous struggle between a secretive privileged elite and the rest of us. Carl DeMaio, who by temperament should identify with the forgotten masses, seems to yearn for acceptance by San Diego’s ruling elite. It will never happen. Those of us who have lived here long enough know that San Diego is an elitist closed shop.

by David Helvarg

Less than six months ago environmentalists were celebrating President Obama’s commitment to our public seas as they went to work in support of his proposed National Ocean Policy.

Of course that was before the president endorsed offshore-oil drilling.

His call for expanded fossil-fuel development on the Outer Continental Shelf at the end of March came less than a month before the catastrophic explosion of a deepwater oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico leased to BP. That April 20 Deepwater Horizon disaster left 11 oil workers missing and presumed dead and 17 injured, then burned for two days before sinking in almost mile-deep water, setting off what turns out to be something like a 200,000-gallon-a-day oil leak that’s quickly covered a large part of the gulf and is affecting the Louisiana coastline.

Global Marijuana March-San Diego
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Time:
11:00am – 2:00pm
Location:
Crystal Pier in Pacific Beach
Description
We will meet at the Crystal Pier at 11AM on 5-1-10