OB Rag

In today’s San Diego Union-Tribune, columnist Michael Smolens acknowledged the principled stand taken by the OB Rag on the issue of Trumpist Carl DeMaio aligning with those forces opposed to Measure C, the removal of the height limit in the Midway on November’s ballot.

In “DeMaio becomes wild card in fight to keep sports arena-area height limit,” Smolen discusses how “Opponents of lifting 30-foot restriction in Midway District see potential promise and peril in radio talk-show host’s involvement.”

Smolens wrote:

Carl DeMaio, the radio talk-show host and former San Diego City Council member, suddenly has become a leading opponent to Measure C. He has joined three community advocates in signing the ballot argument against lifting the 50-year-old height limit.

By Mat Wahlstrom

I had resisted looking into the particulars of the mayor’s pet project to redevelop the Sports Arena site, released with so much fanfare last Monday, as I had dreaded that it would be as fubar as every other city real estate deal he’s been involved. But once I dug in, it was even worse than I imagined.

Beyond all the patter and glitter, the devil is *always* in the details.

“Midway Rising” is the mayor’s pet proposal to “lease surplus property” to redevelop the 48.5 acres of this city-owned site for token newer housing and a generic saddle-shape replacement, with 250,000 sq ft of commercial space and a 200-key hotel.

By Colleen Shalby, Robert J. Lopez / Los Angeles Times / Aug. 25, 2022

A civil lawsuit filed Thursday in state court accuses three past and present San Diego State University football players — including a top punter now in the NFL — of gang raping a 17-year-old girl last year at an off-campus party.

Matt Araiza, 22, whose powerful and precision kicking in college earned him the moniker “Punt God,” was accused of having sex with the minor outside the home and then bringing her inside to a room where she was repeatedly raped.

As we wind down the week of our annual summer fundraiser, we can proudly say we’ve now reached three-quarters of our goal of $2,000 — $1480 to be exact.

And to add more reasons for our readers and supporters to donate to keep us goin’, it’s the people, the writers for the Rag. Nowhere else can you find their writings, reportings, observations, poetry and photography.

Geoff Page

Through his reports on the goings-on at the 3 local community planning boards, Geoff keeps the Peninsula informed. His excellent research into the state of the OB – San Diego Pier is unrivaled, and he was the first to determine the pier needed to be replaced.

Ed Decker

Ed has joined the Rag with a monthly “advice” column. You can’t read his superb wit anywhere else.

The Rag was contacted by former OBcean, Davis Hayden, who had been involved in OB back in the 1970s, and informed that a piece he had written about the history of the OB People’s Food Store (People’s old name) was on Wikipedia. Davis had been instrumental in helping to form the store. We checked it out and here you go, from Wikipedia:

The Ocean Beach People’s Organic Food Market is a food cooperative located at 4765 Voltaire street in the Ocean Beach community of San Diego, California.

It was previously called the Ocean Beach People’s Food Store. People’s started as a retail store at 4859 Voltaire Street, selling natural foods and household products.

by Ernie McCray

A traitor
whines, and spins lies
about his “problems” with the FBI,
claiming they’re harassing him
when he had stolen from the government
boxes upon boxes of
classified information,
secrets about nuclear bombs, and shit,
serious gossip
about other governments,
and I just want to slap this fool
upside the head,
with all that complaining about harassment
when his real problem
should be arrestment,

By Colleen O’Connor

How did this all come together?  Hard to put in words.

First, the religion.  Then the politics.  Then the electorate.

House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, has been unceremoniously denied communion in her own hometown, by an Archbishop no less.

San Francisco’s Archbishop, Salvatore Cordileone, declared publicly that he would no longer allow House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to receive Communion because of her support for abortion rights.

This denial of a Sacrament, even among Catholics, is as controversial as the repeal of Roe v. Wade.

Now, however, Pelosi just garnered a powerful champion—a San Diego Bishop—to be elevated this weekend, as San Diego’s first Cardinal.  His name, Bishop Robert McElroy.

By Thomas Ultican / Tulican

The infamous John Deasy resigned his post as Superintendent of Stockton Unified School District (SUSD) on June 15th, 2020. That made his tenure two weeks more than two years which further exacerbated the longtime administrative instability at SUSD.

He apparently steered the district budgets toward deficit spending and left a decimated finance department in his wake while other administrative positions multiplied. Concurrent with his two years in Stockton, money and leaders from organizations bent on privatizing public education were bolstered and became more active.

Ed Maestas, a 63-year-old Ocean Beach resident, was knocked unconscious a week ago while bicycling down Ladera Street near Sunset Cliffs when he smashed into a car that turned right in front of him without warning. The car slowed, but then took off as it roared off on Cordova Street.

Surveillance video shows the moment as a car collided with a bike at a Point Loma intersection, just before the car took off.

“I can’t even believe I’m alive,” said Ed Maestas. Last Thursday morning he was about a half hour into his regular ride — a few miles from wrapping up — and headed down Ladera Street, going west. Ladera has a good sloop towards the Cliffs.

Judi Curry’s views continue to be her own and do not necessarily reflect those of the OB Rag.

By Judi Curry

It is difficult for me to sit back and watch the deterioration of the area known as “District 2.”  We purchased our house in 1966 and loved the neighborhood.  We moved here from Berkeley where my husband and I were attending school and where we were active in the Free Speech Movement and Mario Savio was in one of the first classes I attended.

The hippies were just moving into Ocean Beach, and San Diego was so conservative there was talk of “outlawing left-hand turns because they were subversive.”