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This is the widely circulating Barack Obama video I found over at Brightcove, the new video distribution site. It's on Barack's background and message. Also, he's going to be at a fund raiser for Senator Barbara Boxer on February 19th at the Westin St. Francis Hotel, Grand Ballroom, San Francisco.

I can count on one hand the number of times I've walked into the Burger King on the corner of 13th and Broadway, and one reason is the up-and-down pattern of clean in the facility. For anyone who wonders what happens when employees don't keep an eatery clean, read on. What caught my eye was this statement: "This is a common problem in restaurants that don't keep their systems clean" Wow. Grease fire sparks downtown blaze By Janis Mara, Staff Writer Article Last Updated: 02/12/2007 11:50:06 AM PST A firefighter climbs to the roop of a building at 13th and Broadway in Oakland. (Laura A. Oda - Staff) Commuters in downtown Oakland were put off their morning coffee and croissan'wichs Monday, when smoke poured from a building just after 9 a.m. at 13th and Broadway. The fire at the two-story Civic Center Market Place building started as a grease fire in the ground-floor Burger King's flue system, Oakland Fire Battalion Chief William Towner said. No one was in

I attended the annual Fox Sports Network Baseball Luncheon -- held the first Thursday after the Super Bowl -- last week. In attendance were Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums and sitting at the same table with Oakland A's Owners Lew Wolff and Jon Fisher, as well as San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, San Francisco Giants heads Peter McGowan and Larry Baer, and Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. After the event -- videos from it will be on various blogs in the SBS network including this one -- I asked Wolff how the Fremont efforrt was going. He gave me a sincerely tense look and said "We've got a long way to go." And he emphasized "long." I think Lew's going to discover that the wheels of goverment in the Bay Area turn slowly. This fact and Lew's frustration with Fremont could work in Oakland's favor -- if Oakland does something.

Ben and Nate, obviously not happy that the Oakland A's are attempting to move to Fremont, have produced this video. In it they declare that Oakland is home to important social movements, like The Black Panthers and the word "Hella". Then to complete their protest, they ghost ride their Volvo. Here's the video...

The Rockridge Community Planning Council is seeking new board members. You can apply for the April election; the application is due February 28th 2007. Here's the information from The Rockridge News. Looking for ways to improve the quality of life in Rockridge? Concerned about development issues in Rockridge, zoning, schools, traffic, or crime? Have ideas for improving the BART plaza? Expanding our parks? Greening our streets? Well, Rockridge needs people like you. Taking a seat on the Rockridge Community Planning Council board will enable you to further your ideas and make Rockridge a more thriving, dynamic community. RCPC is a nonprofit public benefit organization, founded in 1985 to preserve and enhance the unique character of the Rockridge neighborhood, promote the health, safety, and quality of life of its residents, furnish a forum for community involvement, and provide leadership and representation of neighborhood interests. RCPC will hold its annual election in April fo

Area journalist sets jail-time record Blogger resists subpoena 169 days By Josh Richman, STAFF WRITER - Oakland Tribune Article Last Updated: 02/07/2007 08:48:46 AM PST SAN FRANCISCO — Freelance videographer and blogger Josh Wolf became a full-fledged media martyr Tuesday, surpassing the U.S. record for most time spent in jail by a journalist who refused to comply with a subpoena. Tuesday was the 169th day that Wolf, 24, of San Francisco spent in a federal prison cell in Dublin after refusing to give a federal grand jury footage he shot of a 2005 political protest in San Francisco's Mission District. Journalists, civil libertarians and politicians gathered on the steps of City Hall to mark the occasion. "Josh Wolf is in jail for every one of you out there who's holding a camera ... a notepad ... a microphone," said David Greene, executive director of the Oakland-based First Amendment Project. "This is not a selfish act, he has nothing to gain personally by being

According to the Yahoo! Message Board Oakland District Two Councilmember Pat Kernighan has conducted a poll to gauge resident's views on Ex-Oakland Raider Chester McGlockton's proposal for a new Fatburger to be built at the current Kwik Way site at Lake Park near Lake Merritt. Surprisingly -- and in the face of Kernighan's support of the project -- 70 of 126 in poll voted "no." You can vote with a click on this sentence. Here's a photo of the vote tally as it stands right now. It could change. Here's the text that Kernighan wrote: The Recent History at the Site The Kwik Way property has been owned by the Hahn family for about the past seven years. Three years ago, they proposed leasing it to McDonald's. The community organized massive opposition to the McDonald's, primarily because of the increased traffic and litter it would bring to an already congested area. Over 500 people attended the Oakland Planning Commission to oppose the McDonald

Yep. I just returned from a week-long trip to Miami, Florida and to attend my fifth Super Bowl game, Super Bowl XLI. For more on my trip and videos, check out our NFL Super Bowl Game blog. More on Oakland soon. Frankly, I was glad to get away from all of the bad news around town. Geez. Now, I learn that San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom's bearing his sole for all to see. Maybe that's a good turning point and a good example for politicians in Oakland and all over the World. Full emotional disclosure.

Today as I was passing by City Hall, I saw a familar face pass by at a distance and rushing toward the 14th Street side entrance of Oakland's City Hall. Bill Claggett. For those of you who don't know the name, Claggett was hired by Elihu Harris when Harris was Mayor Of Oakland and as one of three economic consultants, including myself. I stayed on as Harris' Economic Advisor while Glaggett moved on, but then returned as Economic Development head after the departure of Kofi Bonner. Currently, Bill's listed as a "Management Consulting Consultant and Contractor" according to his Linkedin listing. Glaggett remained under Mayor Jerry Brown, and was considered as the one person who pushed through the Mayor's 10K program and his casino idea, as well. Eventually, he and his deputy Bob Lyons were let go by Jerry Brown. Glaggett was replaced by Dan VanderPriem, who departed last year. The news was unpopular with not a few community political operatives, some o

This area continues to be plagued by night-time crime. While District Two and District Three councilmembers plan a town hall meeting on high rises around the Lake, people are planning to hold up, mug, rape, and in some cases murder other residents around the Lake. This is ridiculous. To me, the answer is simply for people to be nosy. To get to know each other. To ask questions. To be watchful. I mean look at the chatter from the Yahoo! Message Board: I am just amazed by all of the stories...it is never ending. Lighting will help, driving around and surveying your area will help, but ultimately they have the power and are our own breed of terrorists - people's livelihoods are being ruined. Have there been any arrests ever? I never hear of any! -----Original Message----- From: 15X_NCPC@yahoogroup s.com <15X_NCPC@yahoogroup s.com> To: 15X_NCPC@yahoogroup s.com <15X_NCPC@yahoogroup s.com> Sent: Fri Jan 19 08:03:19 2007 Subject: RE: [15X_NCPC] Another car break in A man

Assembly bill seeks to limit state oversight by Kerry Hamill, North Oakland School Board Member - Rockridge News, January Oakland’s new state Assembly member, Sandre Swanson, will likely spark some long overdue discussions in Sacramento this year about the future governance of Oakland public schools. On Swanson’s first day as a member of the Oakland delegation, he introduced a bill which would put the school board back in control and protect the district’s students from any risky financial decisions by keeping budget veto power in the hands of a state-designated trustee. If passed, the bill would allow the school board to resume power in 2008 and select a new superintendent. To that end, current state administrator Kimberly Statham will likely be on a short list of possible candidates. She continues to earn high marks in the school community for her ability to listen, accept good advice and embrace changes that have worked well for students. Central to any discussion about restoring lo

Well, the Oakland Robbery Problem is everywhere. It even struck Oracle Arena, where the Golden State Warriors play. In this case, the heist was well-planned and only took 17 minutes. Security firm fired after theft at Oracle ABC Security will take over for WSB and Associates By Paul T. Rosynsky, STAFF WRITER Article Last Updated: 01/19/2007 02:55:45 AM PST OAKLAND — A private security firm that patrolled the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum complex the night plasma televisions and ATMs were stolen has been fired. WSB and Associates, a San Francisco-based firm that has patrolled the complex the past five years, will be replaced by ABC Security, an Oakland-based firm with deep political connections at City Hall. ABC Security will take over patrols at the complex Monday, said Mark Kauffman, an SMG employee and general manager for the complex. The decision to fire WSB and Associates was made by SMG, a firm hired to manage the complex. Kauffman said the Jan. 4 robbery played a role in th

I found this article in "The Black Commentator" and posted it because given Oakland's population mix and the racial hostilities that were present at last week's inauguration, it seemed timely. It's time to take not only a look at this problem, but steps to eliminate the problem of bad Latino / Black relations. Roots Of Lation / Black Anger - Long Time Prejudices, Not Economic Rivalry, Fuel Tensions - Tanya K. Hernandez The acrimonious relationship between Latinos and African Americans in Los Angeles is growing hard to ignore. Although the New Year weekend's Black-versus-Latino race riot at Chino state prison is unfortunately not an aberration, the Dec.15 murder in the Harbor Gateway neighborhood of Cheryl Green, a 14-year-old African American, allegedly by members of a Latino gang, was shocking. Yet there was nothing really new about it. Rather, the murder was a manifestation of an increasingly common trend: Latino ethnic cleansing of African Americans from m

UPDATE: NEWSOM AND DELLUMS DIFFER ON FATES OF PRO SPORTS TEAMS 01/17/07 4:10 PST SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums expressed contrasting opinions today about their ability to keep professional sports teams from leaving their cities. Speaking at an annual business forum sponsored by the San Francisco Business Times, Newsom said the San Francisco 49ers' plans to move to Santa Clara "are by no means a done deal.'' Newsom said, "I don't know how the math works out'' to make the proposal to move to Santa Clara successful. Newsom said he believes "it's in the best interests of the San Francisco 49ers to stay in San Francisco, where they've prospered for 60 years.'' He said he believes his recent proposal to build a new stadium in the Hunters Point area along with affordable housing and community projects is a good one. "I hope the 49ers participate,'' he said. Newsom noted t

This is terrible news that must be reported. What are medical institutions doing with the money made from record health care costs? It's not being spent on safe buildings at all. I hope more people spread this story. Half of hospitals won't meet seismic deadline Report warns of possible medical building closures, earthquake risk By Rebecca Vesely, STAFF WRITER Article Last Updated: 01/18/2007 02:51:27 AM PST Half of California's hospitals requiring seismic retrofitting won't meet a 2013 state deadline, which could lead to hospital closures or put patients at risk if a large earthquake hits, according to a report issued today. The problem is especially great in the population-dense Bay Area and Los Angeles, where 80 percent of the hospitals needing retrofits are located, according to the study by the California HealthCare Foundation and the RAND Corporation. The biggest issue is cost of compliance, expected to reach a staggering $110 billion, according to the report.

Councilmembers Nancy Nadel and Pat Kernighan are hosting a Lake Merritt Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, January 31st at 666 Bellevue in the Lakeside Park Garden Center, 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm. This notice was posted on the Yahoo Message Board system and seems to have appeared without commentary of any kind. There may be a reason for this, and it may be that the group members are just being nice, but the town hall meeting is out of touch with what's happening around the Lake. The topics will be on zoning and high-rise issues around the Lake, which is interesting. In fact, their notice states the meeting will focus on: o Blocked view corridors - for pedestrians, autos, and residents o Creation of wind corridors o Light/glare o Shadows on open space and the lake o Adverse impacts to existing visual/neighborhood character o Community input on height standards/alternatives But I really think they need to focus on the crime problem and right now. With

Police report robbery spree through Oakland From Staff Reports - Oakland Tribune Article Last Updated: 01/16/2007 01:04:09 PM PST OAKLAND _ Three men took a car at gunpoint Monday night and then used the vehicle to commit at least four robberies and possibly more, police said Tuesday morning. The carjacking and four confirmed robberies by the same suspects were among 13 robberies across the city between 6 p.m. and midnight. Investigators were still waiting for reports Tuesday and details were sketchy. The carjacking happened at 5:48 p.m. in the 3000 block of Capp Street when the three men took a Toyota Camry at gunpoint from the owner. In the next two hours or so the men used the car to rob people on the street in East Oakland. Those robberies occurred in the 1900 block of 69th Avenue, the 1600 block of 80th Avenue, the 4000 block of Foothill Boulevard and the 2300 block of 86th Avenue. Each of the victims lost personal items, police said. Other East Oakland robberies happened in the 4

Occasionally we get and allow comments from "Anonymous" poster. Well, as of today, we're not allowing them any more. Not at all. The reason for this is about 82 percent of the time, the posters write something insulting or nasty..or racist. That happens a lot and comes from so-called Oaklanders. What a joke they are. The very act of this is cowardly to me. I've come to the belief that the people who do this have nothing better to do than to waste time. Thus, the party is over. If one wants to make a comment, they'll have to identify themselves.

Renowned barber college still stylin' in new location Moler transplanted to Telegraph Avenue By Cecily Burt, STAFF WRITER - OAKLAND TRIBUNE OAKLAND — The spacious Moler Barber College salon on Telegraph Avenue was crowded with would-be barbers and stylists giving shaves and facials early one recent morning. Despite being a normally talkative bunch, no one uttered a peep. For a full hour, the students silently honed their straight-razor shaving techniques, folded hot towels in the precise way and perfected the art of rejuvenating facial massages — all in preparation for rigorous practical state board exams in March. That this scene happened at all is amazing, because it wasn't so long ago that Oakland's 95-year-old barberschool — one of the few in the Bay Area — was in danger of closing for good. Kaiser Permanente Medical Center, which is expanding its North Oakland campus, had purchased the storefront building on Broadway, where Moler students had shampooed, shaped and styl

Click here to read my post on this over at SBS NFL Business Blog.