OB Rag

Does the “Green OB” still have meaning in the OB of the 21st century? With only T-shirts bearing the “Green OB” nowadays, the verdant graphic with the letters “O” and “B” with the peace symbol being held up by a fist is more of a concept than a thing in Ocean Beach. But back in the 1970’s it had real meaning, and OBcians placed it in the windows of their homes.

What did it mean? What did it stand for?

The story of the “Green OB” goes back to the inception of the original OB People’s Rag, the hard copy predecessor from the seventies to this website.

Sage Francis is an anomaly – a heavyset, full-bearded, white, hip-hop artist in his mid-thirties. While he’s got a lot of interesting and timely things to say about the state of the modern ‘family,’ culture, and other contemporary topics, his political commentary stands out and is most pertinent to this venue. Here’s a little flow he put together while contemplating the immediate aftermath of 9/11 and the impact of mass media on the public psyche…

See full article for video…

Mayor vows not to veto compromise budget as Council finds $9 million

By Craig Gustafson / SignOnSanDiego / June 6, 2011

The deep cuts once proposed for San Diego parks and libraries won’t happen and the ongoing “brownouts” of city fire engines will stop July 1 — six months ahead of schedule — under a budget approved Monday by the City Council.

Using synthetic drugs such as spice will do more than just risk your military career — it could lead to serious and potentially long-term mental disorders.

That’s the initial observation by a Navy psychiatry resident who worked with sailors and Marines treated this past year at Naval Medical Center San Diego for using the popular-yet-banned drugs.

In a recent opinion piece in the New York Times, author Jonathan Franzen bemoans the pervasive tendency of more and more of us to get lost on Facebook or to drift away on a video game or some other enticing gadget. We are, he argues, substituting “liking” for love, screen surfing for life:

Let me toss out the idea that, as our markets discover and respond to what consumers most want, our technology has become extremely adept at creating products that correspond to our fantasy ideal of an erotic relationship, in which the beloved object asks for nothing and gives everything, instantly, and makes us feel all powerful, and doesn’t throw terrible scenes when it’s replaced by an even sexier object and is consigned to a drawer.

by Lucas O’Connor / Two Cathedrals/ June 3, 2011

Rapid transit received an angry NIMBY attack today over at the Reader, essentially complaining that transit is tied to density and that adding infrastructure actually takes space. It’s a lamentably familiar complaint that for things to change, things must actually change, and obscures the actual issues being faced as San Diego tries to improve transit, connect neighborhoods, and reclaim the budget from life-support.

Obama seems to be counting on the fact that the economy will recover on its own after the initial stimulus package. It’s starting to look like this was a bad bet. The Republicans of course have their job creation plan in place: lower taxes especially on the rich, less government spending and more deregulation or, in other words, the continuation of the transfer of wealth from the poor and middle class to the rich. However, this is precisely what has ruined the economy.

A San Diego judge said Friday [June 3, 2011] that a rope separating thousands of visitors from a colony of harbor seals on a La Jolla beach must come down for now. Superior Court Judge Lisa Foster said in a preliminary decision that she did not find evidence to support keeping up the rope at Children’s Pool beach beyond the seals’ pupping season, which goes from December to mid-May.

By Kit-Bacon Gressitt / Excuse Me, I’m Writing / June 6, 2011

My mother tried to make a sandwich with the TV remote control.

It might seem sadly funny, but there was some context for her pursuit: She was watching a cooking show from her hospital bed. Watching and processing in her own inimitable style, and she just didn’t like the way the celebrity chef was doing it. She didn’t know where she was, but she knew she could do better.

By Christopher Cadelago / SignOnSanDiego / June 3, 2011 – last update at 8:23 pm

The judge who sparked national interest in a debate that pits ecological protection against patriotic festivities temporarily suspended her ruling Friday that requires Fourth of July fireworks in La Jolla and other citywide events to undergo environmental review.

Ban on US Ground Troops Continues Under Boehner’s Resolution; Kucnich’s Resolution Fails

The Obama Administration’s war in Libya has been illegal under US law since May 20, but the House of Representatives decided to give him a 14 day extension anyhow, as a vote largely along party lines saw Rep. John Boehner’s (R – OH) tepid resolution on the conflict pass by a vote of 268-145.

I am so excited to learn that our fair city, albeit our “drunken city”, has been certified as “tsunami prepared.” I knew those signs going up on Newport Avenue meant something. I just wasn’t sure what it meant.