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An unnamed source told me that Oakland Council President worked to steer a $500,000 contract toward an IT company and for work that the City of Oakland didn't need done in 2004. This same person -- a three-decade employee -- told me that De La Fuente made a specific call to the department head screaming at him to "say the right words" to have the contract pass Oakland City Council vote. Why? Because -- again from my source -- Ignacio said "My daughter works for that firm." More soon. Stay tuned.

These people must be caught. Also, people in the neighborhood must not be afraid to get involved. We used to, but lately too many people seem almost anti-social. This is the result as people who think to commit these crimes in our area are more likely to do it if they feel no one will be nosy enough to intervene. Get involved. Dog's abduction, apparent strangulation lead to outpouring of sympathy, calls to help By Susan McDonough, STAFF WRITER OAKLAND TRIBUNE OAKLAND -- An outraged public has responded strongly to the story of pet owner Lea Dunn, who put up a fierce struggle last week to save her dog, Princess, from two men who scooped up the tiny Yorkshire terrier at her feet and fled. Princess had been strangled by the time Dunn, a 25-year-old Oakland woman, found the discarded dog, police said. One investigator said police were inundated with calls Wednesday after a story about Dunn and her dog ran in the Oakland Tribune, and the newspaper received numerous messages from con...

Amid heated calls to stem violence with more officers, mayor and chief pitch task force to snuff out hot spots By Heather MacDonald, STAFF WRITER OAKLAND TRIBUNE OAKLAND — The woman began shaking and crying as soon as she started recounting how she and her friends had been robbed, pistol-whipped and assaulted. She shook as she recalled being put on hold by a 9-1-1 operator as she frantically tried to get to her car and away from the young teenagers threatening to open fire. Her question is similar to one people all over Oakland have been asking themselves and elected officials with increasing frequency in recent weeks: "Why shouldn't we sell and move?" On Wednesday, Mayor Jerry Brown and police Chief Wayne Tucker tried to provide an answer by announcing a new task force ofcops will be formed immediately to squelch hot spots before they erupt into full-blown crime waves. "We will let people know Oakland has an aggressive police force and the streets are not a playgrou...

Oakland-based Robert G. Schock, my friend and one of the Bay Area's best malpractice lawyers, has a new website. Visit it with a click here: www.robertgschocklaw.com

I just read Jerry Brown's new website "Jerry Brown for Attorney General" with its slick flash intro, basic color scheme, and telling text. Of the 1,245 words, only 206 -- or 16.5 percent -- concern his tenure as Mayor of Oakland. By contrast, many of his other highlights -- meeting with Cezar Chavez, for example, occured while he was Governor of California or running for President, and thus scoring 614 words of space. The remainder covers his marriage to Ann Gust, his first political campaign, his time at Seminary and his current Attorney General endorsements. I've said it before and I'll say it again: Oakland was just a vehicle for the reformation of Jerry Brown's political image. He didn't care about Oakland except from that perspective. He did this to achieve another objective, but not because he cared about Oakland. It's too bad for Oakland and for Jerry. The public -- which insists on being stupid -- is blinded by a polyanic view of a Jerr...

This is another terrible article from Paul T. Rosynsky. He never does his homework. If he did, he'd have mentioned that one can get tickets through SBS by just clicking on the title of this post. But instead he goes and talks to SMG's Mark Kaufmann, who makes the ridicious statement that "this is more popular than the Super Bowl." Right Mark. That's only because you couldn't go to the Super Bowl. That's SMG for you, always out to keep the Coliseum Authority in medocrity. ....Super Bowl tickets were going for almost $3,000 in the open market, versus have that for the NCAA March games. March Madness is sold out The only way to see popular college basketball tournament at Oakland Arena is on television (BS - Zennie) By Paul T. Rosynsky, STAFF WRITER, Oakland Tribune OAKLAND — March Madness is coming to the Oakland Arena next month but the only way to see the popular mens' college basketball tournament is to watch it on the television. The event, wh...

I attended an interesting political function at The Parkway Theater. Oakland City Attorney John Russo and former San Francisco Supervisor Matt Gonsalez hosted a presentation of the famous movie "Inherit The Wind." Prior to the movie, the two staged a kind of town hall meeting. Overall the event was a success and the movie was remarkable, even if it's not a true rendition of the events surrounding the "Scopes Trial." I have found that events with a twist like this one work to get people to political functions. It seems that people in Oakland -- this new group -- aren't as interested in politics as the Oaklanders of 13 years ago, when I was writing for the Montclarion. I don't know why this is, but my guess is it's a combination of the Internet, and the need to work more than one job just to make ends meet.