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I can only hope Kids First passes in November because the City's budget problems are so potentially bad that this "zero-sum" choice was presented: pay for more youth programs, and cut jobs, or don't and wait to see if the Kids First Initiative passes in November, and save City jobs. Here's the Trib story, in part.. OAKLAND — The City Council rejected the idea of a compromise ballot measure Tuesday that would have increased funding for youth programs, but not as dramatically as a separate initiative expected to qualify for the November ballot. A majority of council members worried a ballot-measure compromise could seriously dent the rest of Oakland's budget. The meeting came on the heels of another blow to the city's finances: The council voted unanimously early Tuesday not to collect $12 million in increased Landscaping and Lighting Assessment District fees after officials faced questions about whether the new rates would have held up in court. The decisio

In what Oakland Residents For Peaceful Neighborhoods (ORPN) calls a "victory for the people" the Oakland City Council voted last night not to collect the increase in the tax for the Landscape Lighting and Assessment District (LLAD) after the Alameda County Superior Court upheld the tax. ORPN reports on this : City Backs Off LLAD Tax Hike At a special July 22, 2008 meeting, the Oakland city council voted not to collect the Landscape and Lighting Assessment (LLAD) tax increase that it previously declared voters had approved. The decision is a $12 million victory for Oakland residents, who expressed broad outrage at the blatant ballot-box stuffing in a mail-in vote that City Hall conducted in April and May. However, no councilmember admitted that she condoned and participated in the vote rigging. Instead, the council took cover under a state supreme court ruling on assessment districts in general issued last week. Before the vote, one resident told the council, "If the pr

Ignacio De La Fuente, the Oakland District Five Councilmember and President of the Oakland City Council and whom was endorsed by this blog and blogger in his campaign run against a worthy challenger in Mario Juarez, won the votes to not only remain in office, but in getting over 50 percent of the vote, avoided a run-off against Juarez. Still, De La Fuente was not able to be there at "Guadalahara" restaurant in the Fruitvale area to celebrate the victory last night. As it was told to me -- I was there -- his uncle was very ill so Ignacio went to Mexico to be with him. My prayers go out to him.

Patrick McCullough is an Oakland hero. In 2005, he stood up to attack by drug dealers -- a gang that he reported to Oakland police, but who were still at large at the time. In defending himself against the gang, Pat shot and wounded one of the gang members. Mr. McCullough was found to have been acting to defend himself, and thus the D.A. did not press charges. Pat is one who was and is trying to take back his neighborhood. The ultimate action is the one he's taking today: running for Oakland City Council. This blog post in an endorsement of an Oaklander who can and has made a difference. It's not a matter of being against the incumbent Jane Brunner, but for a remarkable and remarkably brave person in Pat McCullough. A person with a resolve and will to stay in Oakland and help make it better. Oakland Residents For Peaceful Neighborhoods tells McCullough's story: Patrick McCullough: Triumph of a Hero Patrick McCullough, the north Oakland resident who stood up

Burma Resolution @ Oakland City Council , originally uploaded by jeffluger . I know this room intimately from working as former Mayor Elihu Harris' economic advisor. It's located within the Oakland City Council Chambers and is used by the various councilmembers for meetings. This meeting, featuring Oakland District Two City Councilmember Pat Kernighan, was held in April of this year and on the Burma Resolution matter, the city would take up the matter of expressing its concern for the Burmese impacted by the recent disaster there.

I'm not sure I got the value of East Bay Express and Former Oakland Tribune Writer Robert Gammon's recent works on Oakland Council candidates Mario Juarez and Clinton Killian , except that both gossip works added nothing to the campaign race. Gammon spilled the beans on Juarez problems with the Boy Scouts as a youth and on Killian's financial issues, but to read it was like fingers against a blackboard. Annoying. I think everyone deserves a second chance and why that's not true for either Juarez or Killian is not clear to me, nor, I'll bet, can Gammon explain it. That written, Robert's still one hell of a researcher, that's for sure.

This is the second part of a two-video movie on the debate between incumbent Councilmember Nancy Nadel, and challengers Greg Hodge, and Sean Sullivan