OB Rag

By Center on Policy Initiatives / September 28, 2010

More than 100,000 San Diego County residents fell from the middle class into poverty or severe economic hardship over the past two years, while the wealthiest fifth of earners continued to receive almost half of all income generated in the County.

US Census data released today reinforce the desperate need for good jobs that pay living wages, a CPI analysis shows. Almost half the adults living in extreme poverty in 2009 were working full- or part-time, and families with children were particularly hard hit.

What makes someone in San Diego a local is sometimes debatable, but it’s hard to dispute the status of the folks who got together at the Bay View Restaurant at the Marine Corp Recruit Depot on Friday, Sept. 24. This was the 60th reunion of Point Loma High School’s class of 1950, a festive and feel-good gathering of folks who can out-local just about anybody on the Peninsula.

By Rocky Neptun

The sweeping assaults across the nation on peaceful anti-war activists Sept. 24th represent an ominous divergence for an administration which was elected to change the heavy-handed policies of the Bush regime. Like something straight out of the Ashcroft playbook, FBI agents, in cooperation with local authorities, raided homes and offices in Michigan, Illinois and Minnesota. Government thugs also showed up at the doors of progressives and human rights activists in North Carolina and San Jose, California.

By Warren Patch

Ocean Beach has always been a colorful place. The Hippies seem to perpetually reinvent themselves there; long hair, short hair, dread hair, dirty hair, blue hair, no hair, it’s all cool. And tie-dye is still vogue. I buy mine at Sunshine Daydreams on Newport Avenue.

One of the all-time great characters of OB was Clint Carey, alias OB SPACEMAN. He used to sell plots of land on the moon. And he was the only OB’cean who had personally met the “Outer Space People” when they came visiting, and he alone was authorized to sell tickets for spaceship rides when they returned.

As Mexicans celebrated the 200th anniversary of their independence from Spain last week, evoking a history of resistance against colonialism, a disturbing development unfolds on the country’s northern border: a fleet of US Predator B drones has been deployed on constant patrol.

Man, did I have a good time
in OB,
much like the time a whale
I saw in a watercolor
on a table
in the middle of the street
seemed to be having
to me –

Editor: Despite the following being nine months old, we thought we’d share it.

By Frank Schaeffer

Before he’d served even one year President Obama lost the support of the easily distracted left and engendered the white hot rage of the hate-filled right. But some of us, from all walks of life and ideological backgrounds — including this white, straight, 57-year-old, former religious right wing agitator, now progressive writer and (given my background as the son of a famous evangelical leader) this unlikely Obama supporter — are sticking with our President.

Why?– because he is succeeding.

By Jim Grant

This car was speeding down interstate 8 yesterday at 4pm, he tried to make the green light at 8 and Sunset Cliffs he ran the red light, skidded around the corner, slid between a concrete barrier (set up to keep cars from crashing into the skate park) and a trio of 40 foot palm trees. If he had hit either of these two things no doubt the car would have split in two, he was doing at least 70 mph at this time. He continued down the sidewalk and landscaping leaving skid marks and a path of debris behind him. He plowed into the 8′ high fencing surrounding the Ocean Beach skate park which was FULL of kids. The fencing crumpled like an aluminum can….

fem·i·nism ( Merriam Webster Dictionary)

1: the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes

2: organized activity on behalf of women’s rights and interests
_________________
Feminism is a socialist, anti-family, political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians.” Pat Robertson

by Judi Curry

Who are these stupid people that make up these stupid laws? It is inconceivable to me that a majority of our elected officials are so stupid that they can all agree on this one.

Here is the scenario: I have an external mailbox, attached to the stucco of my house, near the front door. Yesterday I saw a person distributing flyers look through my mail before he left me his own flyer – in the mailbox, by the way, which is also against the law.

Reader Rant by Anonymous Health Nut

This is why when I see all those pink ribbons on the ads that are geared towards “the cure’ for breast cancer, I go ballistic! We do not need another drug to fight a disease that kills and disfigures a person’s body and life. We need to clean up the crap in our air, water and food supply. Bottom line is greed is causing breast cancer; the greed of corporations who have no consciousness regarding clean food air and water.

D.C. Douglas, a veteran character actor and voice over artist, has produced another in a series of comedic political videos. “Sarah Palin’s Top 10 Tea Party Mamma Grizzlies” is a 4 minute voter’s guide to Sarah Palin’s mid-term Tea Party congress candidate picks.

“I find it best to put all your crazy tea bags into one pot so you can get a real taste of Sarah Palin’s political acumen,” says Mr. Douglas.