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On the way to a fundraiser for Senator Barbara Boxer on Sunday (March 15th 2009), I walked into the Four Seasons Residences on Market Street and boarded an elevator that was already to be occupied by two women just eight steps ahead of me, with their backs to me.  When I boarded the elevator they both turned in conversation, the one closest to me was the person-of-the-hour, Senator Barbara Boxer. Always gracious, Senator Boxer shook my hand, then after a few seconds on the elevator I asked her if she was "going to get involved in keeping the A's in Oakland."  She immediate said "You know, I live in Oakland, and that's important to me."  Boxer stopped short of stating what her action would be, but that response was all I needed to know that it's on her radar screen, and it doesn't spell good news for Lew Wolff because the rest of our talk consisted of me calmly but in cold detail explaining to her how Wolff had treated Oakland with great disrespect, m

More at Inside Bay Area” : “OAKLAND — A rash of shootings struck the city over the weekend, leaving several injured and at least one person with life-threatening injuries, police said. Two people were shot around 2:15 a.m. Sunday in the 1700 block of Ninth Street. One victim suffered a minor wound to the hand, but the other took a gunshot wound to the back that police said is life-threatening. Police have three suspects in custody in connection with this shooting. The department's felony assault section has been called out to investigate the incident. At about the same time, a shooting in the 5800 block of International Boulevard left a victim with a gunshot wound to the face, though that injury does not appear life-threatening, police said.” -- And this will only get worse with the economy.

For about two years there has been talk of the formation of a Sports Task Force. I first sent an email asking for such a group to the staff of Mayor Ron Dellums during the first two months of his administration but did not receive feedback. Then I twice talked to the Mayor about brieking him regarding what happened to Oakland's Super Bowl Bid and the Oakland Sports Commission I established in 1998. The Mayor said he would get back to me on the matter, er, have his secretary call me, but never did that, so I had lost any faith in his interest in solving Oakland's long-standing sports industry problems. Then I was approached by Steve Lowe and Chris DeBenadetti, both who have been active in Oakland politics and sports journalism respectively. We talked about such a task force with a member of the Mayor's Staff over a year ago. Then we waited, but to Lowe's credit he pushed for it constantly. Now it's formed. The first meeting was Thursday of two week

More at Zennie62 : “The Obama administration is supporting legislation that, if passed, would allow judges to write down the principle and/or interest of mortgages when mortgage holders file for bankruptcy, and will be releasing new mortgage guidelines, which go into effect in 2 weeks that will standardize the mortgage loan process, including the appraisal process.”

More at Inside Bay Area : “OAKLAND — Help is on the way for East Bay school districts, local governments and small businesses through the economic recovery act that President Barack Obama signed into law Tuesday, Rep. Barbara Lee said Wednesday. Exactly how and when this help will arrive remains to be seen, she acknowledged. The White House estimates the $787 billion stimulus package will create or save 369,000 California jobs over the next two years. Lee, D-Oakland, said an estimated 7,300 of those would be in her 9th Congressional District, which includes Oakland, Berkeley, Albany, Piedmont, Castro Valley and various adjoining areas. Lee also said about 2.4 million Californians will get $100 more per month in unemployment benefits, and about 506,000 laid-off workers will see their benefits extended. And the Golden State stands to reap millions — $30 million for Oakland alone — to modernize its dilapidated public schools, she added.”

More at Inside Bay Area : “FREMONT — While the Oakland A's have put their move to Fremont on hold, stadium opponents say they still will show up by the hundreds at next week's City Council meeting. "It's not over. This is just another one of (A's co-owner) Lew Wolff's games," said Kathy McDonald, a founder of Fremont Citizens Network. Facing opposition to both of his proposed stadium sites, Wolff notified city officials Monday that he was taking a week to reconsider his options and canceling a scheduled appearance next week at the City Council meeting. As a result, the city has stopped work on an environmental impact report for the ballpark project. However, it is going ahead with a 30-day period for the public to submit comments, all of which must be addressed in the environmental report.”

More at Inside Bay Area : “FREMONT — The Oakland A's suddenly are reconsidering a move to Fremont in the face of vociferous opposition from residents who live near the newly proposed site in the city's Warm Springs district. The ballclub postponed indefinitely its planned presentations to the Fremont Chamber of Commerce and City Council scheduled for next Tuesday. The discussions were to have included comments from Bob DuPuy, president and CEO of Major League Baseball. "We didn't want to run into a lot of people screaming and yelling at the president of Major League Baseball," A's co-owner Lew Wolff said. Wolff said Tuesday that the team will review its Fremont stadium options with baseball officials during the next week, then determine how to proceed. "It's my decision what we do next," Wolff said. "I really want to have a little more time to think about our situation and discuss it with more people."” -- Look, the Trib headline was &q