OB Rag

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.

by Shane Finneran / Exclusive to OB Rag /

About 75 demonstrators calling for the legalization of marijuana marched on the Pacific Beach boardwalk between Crystal Pier and Belmont Park on May 1. Participants spoke on a megaphone and carried signs with messages such as “Respect State Law,” “Prohibition Empowers Drug Lords,” and “Marijuana Is Better Than Alcohol.”

The two-hour march, which began at 11am, was organized by the Southern California chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) and a San Diego marijuana dispensary. SoCal NORML director Craig Beresh led the group in chants encouraging the legalization and taxation of marijuana.

I have technically been a Phish fan since my early teens, when a dreadlocked summer camp counselor played the song “Fee” each morning to rouse a cadre of young adolescents from their slumber and get them ready for the day.

My devotion grew over the years, and by now I consider myself a Phish “head”. At this stage in my fan arc, I wholeheartedly believe that what keeps me coming back for more is the community built between the band and it’s fans.

On Friday night (April 30th) at the Hazard Center Ultrastar Theatre, there was a love fest going …

Three thousand marchers descended on the Federal Building in downtown San Diego, today, May 1st, in protest of the new immigration law passed by the State of Arizona. They had at first rallied in Chicano Park, and then paraded over to the other side of downtown.

Already in front of the Federal Building was an estimated 150 counter-demonstrators, waving anti-immigrant signs,and making noise. About another hundred folks, supportive of the marchers, were on the opposite side of the street.

At 12:30pm today, Saturday, May 1, there will be a half hour discussion of OB’s and San Diego’s fire rings and pits. Go to AM 600 to listen.

It is a discussion between Frank Gormlie of the “Adopt-a-Fire-Pit” Project, Hans Baumgartner of Save San Diego Fire Pits, and Phyllis Pfieffer of the La Jolla Light.

If you missed it at 12:30 or wish to listen to it early …. (LINKS INSIDE)

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

MAY 1st –
May Day in San Diego!
Primero de Mayo en San Diego
– call to action –
Llamada a la acción
LEGALIZATION FOR ALL – WITHOUT CONDITIONS
Legalización para todos, sin condiciones
JOBS, HOUSING & LIVABLE WAGES FOR ALL
Empleos y salarios decentes para todos
FUND EDUCATION & SOCIAL SERVICES – NOT WAR
Dinero para educación y servicios sociales, no para guerra
IMMIGRATION RIGHTS FOR LGBT PARTNERS
Ningún ser humano es ilegal, ningún amor es ilegal
——————
11:00 Rally at Chicano Park
12:00 Human Chain and March to Federal Building
1:00 Rally at Federal Building
Downtown San Diego
880 Front ST

Nearly a dozen residents who support keeping OB’s fire rings showed up at the Town Council’s regular meeting, Wednesday night, April 28th, and about half of them spoke up at the Masonic Temple meet before the very attentive Council on maintaining the community’s icons.

And even though the Town Council did not take a vote during the meeting, those members of the Council who spoke on the issue gave strong indications the Council would vote during their next meeting in support of the fire rings. About two years, the Council had passed a similar proposal in support of the pits.

In response to the State of Arizona’s new immigration law, California volunteers have begun construction of a new border fence along the Colorado River.

Show the OB Town Council – and everybody else (like the Mayor) – that you want to save the fire rings of Ocean Beach. They’re on the agenda tonight, April 28th, of the Town Council.

They meet at 7 pm at the Masonic Temple, corner of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard and Santa Moncia Ave.

Mayor Sanders is threatening to begin removing all 185 of San Diego’s fire rings, including the remaining eight here in OB, beginning July 1. (We used to have 16 during the summer months.)

The City says the is no more funds to maintain them, that it costs $120,ooo to clean all the pits every week.

Rep. Duncan Hunter backs deporting U.S.-born children of undocumented immigrants

At a recent Tea Party meeting in Ramona, Rep Duncan Hunter stated that he supported the deportation of children born in the US to undocumented migrants. Is he racist or maybe he just doesn’t know what the Constitution states.

Section 1, Clause 1 of the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution, states:

“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”

Dozens of people made it downtown on Monday, April 26th, to rally and parade in front of the Federal Building, to protest Arizona’s new immigration laws. Several OBceans made it to the rally in support.

These photos were taken by Michael Gomel for our viewing pleasure.