OB Rag

The 1968 attack on rallying protesters remains a potent symbol

By Leigh Thelmadatter / Mexico News Daily / October 2, 2021

They say that Mexicans have long memories. I am reminded of this idea at this time of year because that’s when the historic center, only a couple of kilometers from my apartment, becomes something of a fortress.

Today is October 2. For us foreigners, this is just another day, but for Mexicans, at least in Mexico City, it is emotional; this is the anniversary of the Tlatelolco Massacre. In 1968, Mexico was getting ready to host the Olympics.

By Joni Halpern

Marshall McLuhan was right. “The medium is the message.” That was the popularized theme of McLuhan’s book Understanding Media – the most incomprehensible book I have ever read –and it is quite possible that what I think I understood is worlds away from what he meant.

If I am right, however, that thematic summary helps explain why so many of us Americans cannot find common ground. It’s not our fault we don’t get along. We’re not even the same human beings anymore.

It is ironic that today, we live in the most interconnected world we have ever known.

Last weekend’s Saturday Night Live captured the OB “Whistling Guy”, played by comedian Bowen Yang. The “Whistling Guy” – you may recall – showed up at the San Diego County Board of Supervisors back in August and created quite a scene.

From SOHO

Save Our Heritage Organization (SOHO) and San Diegans across the county have grave concerns over the Navy’s impactful proposal named the Old Town Campus Revitalization Project, unveiled this past May.

Detailed within the Environment Impact Statement (EIS) are abundant environmental issues including visual resources, air quality, historic and cultural resources, transportation, land use, socioeconomics, noise, environmental justice, public services, infrastructure, geology, and biological resources.

Five alternatives are included;

By Mat Wahlstrom

By now most of you know about “the video“. (If you don’t, see the link to a capture of it that includes the subtitles so you can watch it without sound. Trust me, you’ll want to hit mute.)

Created for the amusement of those attending the $445-a-head “ToddTalk” fundraiser for the Downtown Partnership on September 22 but only made public by accident last week, it is a perfect distillation of the collegial corruption and smug entitlement exercised by the Establishment.

Nuclear Shutdown News chronicles the decline and fall of the nuclear industry in the US and beyond, and highlights the efforts of those who are working to bring about a nuclear free world.

The fear of nuclear annihilation after WWII spread around the world along with radioactive fallout from nuclear bomb tests. Scientists began to document the presence of this radioactivity in humans.

One particular radioactive chemical, Strontium 90 (Sr- 90), received particular attention. As with other fallout, it does not exist in nature. Like its non- radioactive cousin calcium, if it enters our bodies, it concentrates in our bones and teeth, and can emit radiation there for about 200 years, potentially causing cancer and other dread diseases.

All events are online and free unless stated otherwise.

* Every Saturday 10:15 am. Climate Mobilization Coalition Zoom Meeting. October 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd,and 30th
* October 5th Tuesday 7 pm – 8:15 pm San Diego’s Insects and Their Dependence on Native Plants Event by California Native Plant Society
* October 6th Wednesday 2 pm – 3:30 pm Network Webinar: Urban Heat & Resilience
* October 7th Thursday 11 am – 12 pm Understanding Violence and Prevention During a Pandemic
* October 7th Thursday 5 pm – 7:30 pm Gather 2021 Event by Climate Action Campaign
* October 8th Friday 7 pm Vaccinated Backyard movie night.
* October 9th Saturday 9 am – 3 pm California Native Plant Festival
* October 9th Saturday 10 am – 1 pm SD Fixit Clinic
* October 10th Sunday 9 am – 1 pm Walk for the Wild – San Diego Bay
* October 10th Sunday 2 pm – 4 pm Solar Power and Quality Jobs

An estimated 500 people took part in the annual OB Pier Paddle Out for clean water on Sunday, October 3 — just days after one of the largest oil spills in recent California history erupted off the coast of Orange County.

Meanwhile, Southern California residents, business owners and environmentalists are raising questions on why it took authorities so long in reacting to contain the over 130,000 gallon spill, that spans nearly 6 nautical miles.

According to reports from people who live and work in the area, they noticed an oil sheen and a heavy petroleum smell Friday evening. Yet, it wasn’t until Saturday morning after 9 am that the Coast Guard first reported it. It wasn’t until Saturday afternoon that a unified command was established to respond. And it took until Saturday night for the company that operates the pipeline believed responsible for the leak to shut down operations.

It wasn’t until Sunday that booms were deployed on the ocean surface to try to contain the oil.

The public learned this week that a “brownout” closed the Point Loma fire station on Catalina Boulevard last weekend. On Wednesday, Fire Chief Colin Stowell said staffing shortages forced the department to close the fire engine and also three specialty firefighting units. The department hasn’t had to resort to “brownouts” in over a decade. Stowell said:

“Brownouts are totally our last resort and I can’t remember the last time this happened, so I would not expect this is going to be a regular occurrence. The many factors and complexities creating these challenges will slowly subside over time.”

Those other factors included the pandemic and Northern Cal wildfires.

There’s been a change in how the City of San Diego responds to encampments of the houseless. No longer will police officers respond to reports or complaints of camps, but instead they will be directed to a group partnered with the city, PATH (People Assisting the Homeless). PATH then will have up to four days to make contact with people in the camp to begin resolving problems.

All this was explained by writer Steven Mihailovich in the latest Point Loma Monthly magazine.

This is the current state of complaints of encampments through San Diego’s Get It Done app. Long-time Community Relations Officer David Surwilo