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This is from the Oakland Police Department.  According to my sources, the checkpoints will almost certainly be on or near Broadway, and not far from Luka's bar and restaurant and Sweets Lounge on Broadway -- the areas with the highest traffic on Friday night. Personally, I think the best solution for the grant money funding this program is to have a free late-night shuttle service that goes from specific points around Lake Merritt and to stop areas near each bar.  That would be a great alternative to driving.  But this excuse to arrest someone is not solving the problem at all.  As Willie Brown said in this video , "Drink.  Drink.  Drink.  Then drive drunk so I can represent you."  In fact, San Francisco doesn't have a checkpoint system; most people take cabs which are in abundance.  But also people do drive, some of them elected officials and wealthy people, and nothing ever happens to them in San Francisco.  Look at the case of Harry Denton! In Oakland, where

Run your company into the ground, get bailed out, and under McCain, get a tax break! read more | digg story

Welcome to EastOakland.net - A free site with information and commentary focused on East Oakland, California & Oakland International Airport, Mills College, McAfee Coliseum, the Oracle Arena, Maxwell Park And The Hills. read more | digg story

In a move that would impact the Port of Oakland, Alaska Governor and GOP VP Candidate Sarah Palin says the new fees for Long Beach, L.A. and Oakland ports would harm the economies of Alaska and California. read more | digg story

Oakland – In the aftermath of Chauncey Bailey’s murder, the first American journalist to be killed in the U.S. in 31 years while reporting on a story, an investigative team of Bay Area journalists have uncovered key facts about his murder and continued the investigation into possible criminal activities of the Your Black Muslim Bakery (YBMB). read more | digg story

I haven’t been to the zoo since I was a kid, which makes sense, because the zoo is really designed for kids. My wife heard through the grapevine that the Oakland Zoo is very nice, so, for our first visit, we took the kids to the Oakland Zoo and it was well worth it. read more | digg story

An SF Examiner article, Tony R. Rodriguez reports on a literary event created by the NCIBA. read more | digg story

According to TMZ, Oakland Raiders DT Tommy Kelly was arrested Sunday night in Oakland on a DUI charge. read more | digg story

So I read this article tonight, and I myself am starting to think they are passing officers through too quickly. The full story by SF Gate Below: Oakland officer hit with second wrongful-death lawsuit Henry K. Lee, Chronicle Staff Writer Monday, September 15, 2008 09-15) 18:39 PDT OAKLAND -- The family of an unarmed man who was shot and killed by two Oakland police officers on New Year's Eve 2007 filed a $10 million federal civil rights lawsuit against the city Monday. Officers Hector Jimenez, who shot another unarmed man to death this past July, and Jessica Borello killed 20-year-old Andrew Moppin-Buckskin at 47th Avenue and International Boulevard after he ran from his car following a traffic stop, police said. Moppin-Buckskin was not armed, but the officers believed he had been reaching for his waistband, police have said. The officers shot him numerous times "while he was unarmed and was not posing and threat of deadly force or serious bodily harm," said the wrongful-

In the past, Downtown Oakland was the true center of the city. But as business left Oakland, downtown became a ghost town. By the 1980s it was hard to build a structure without some form of government money involved. Not anymore. 1100 Broadway by SKS Investments is an entirely privately financed skyscraper office complex that will transform the middle of downtown Oakland into a landmark place to be.

This is what I remember about "9-11" -- the day that the World Trade Center was destroyed due to a terrorist attack by what we now know and call the Al Qiada terrorist group. I was living in Oakland, Ca at the time.

Oakland At Large Council candidate Rebecca Kaplan sat down with me to talk about her run for the position at Cafe Verbena on Tuesday of this week.   She's running against Kerry Hamill in the runoff election.

That's right!! According to the Oakland Tribune , it looks like original Rock n' Roll Band AC/DC may be coming to the Oracle Arena this December: Check out the full story: AC/DC tour to stop in Oakland By Jim Harrington Contra Costa Times Article Last Updated: 09/11/2008 02:43:15 PM PDT For those about to rock, AC/DC salutes you -- with the band's first world tour since 2001. The multi-platinum act is expected to officially announce dates for the 18-month trek in the near future. On a local front, however, sources indicate that the band has circled Dec. 2 to perform at Oracle Arena in Oakland. Confirmation of that date is hopefully right around the corner. The band will use the tour to promote the long-awaited new album, "Black Ice," due in stores Oct. 21. The set was produced by Brendan O'Brien (Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen) and it marks the group's first studio effort since 2000's "Stiff Upper Lip." The album's first single

Two more robberies in Oakland: Residents stabbed, pistol-whipped in Oakland home invasion robberies By William Brand and Angela Hart Oakland Tribune Article Last Updated: 09/11/2008 06:45:31 PM PDT OAKLAND — Police are investigating two apparently unrelated violent home invasion robberies Wednesday in Oakland's Dimond district. One of the incidents occurred about 10:15 p.m. in the 3600 block of Laguna Avenue, where a man, 35, and a woman, 24, were stabbed. Residents of the house told police three men wearing masks confronted them. It was unclear how they entered the house, but the victims tried to resist and were overpowered. At least one resident was tied up. The bandits escaped with $2,000 in cash, a video game and a cell phone. They fled in a white vehicle, possibly an SUV, police said. The stabbing victims were taken to a local hospital, where they were in stable condition, police said. The man was stabbed in the back and pistol-whipped. The woman was stabbed in the leg. The ot

In mid August, Ann Haley, who for six years was the head of the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority staff, elected to step down.  My sources -- and there are several -- tell me that she was actually fired. There was no good reason for her dismissal, but it's well-known that Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority Board Chairperson and Oakland City Council President Ignacio De La Fuente was not happy with her performance. But in fairness to Haley, the Authority's structure and placement of many matters in the hands of SMG, the stadium management organization that still remains un-supervised, gave her little real power.  Plus, it placeed her in the role of dealing with the whims and requests of the elected officials that seem to insist on maintaining a system that is unprofessional in it's operation in the view of this observer.   But to add insult to injury, many insiders are asking the question why would the Authority have -- of all people -- long-time Deborah

  On September 6, 2008 Alaska Governor Sarah Palin said that the taxpayers were paying too much for Freddie Mac and Fanny Mae, the mortgage loan companies bailed out by the Feds. Problem: taxpayers never did that.

I have it from a good unnamed source that the Oakland Raiders -- rumored by some to leave after the current lease expires in five years -- plan to remain in Oakland through 2016, when the original Raider bonds expire. The news comes as welcome on the day that Oakland opens a sold-out Coliseum and hosts the hated Denver Broncos. But the obvious question of if the Raiders retention will mean a new stadium is not settled. As the current Coliseum is vastly behind schedule for an upgrade and a mostly-privately-owned stadium could bring big bucks to the "Coliseum Redevelopment Area" surrounding the Complex, combined with corporate sponsorship, the targer appears to be an ungrade of the stadium. It's also clear that what I told GAP Founder and Oakland A's owned Don Fisher two years ago is coming to pass: the Fremont A's deal is a loser because of its design based on land-sales performance. While that scheme works in a great economy, it becomes more and more te

'A Soul Food Experience' is the name of the new restaurant that just opened in East Oakland. The area to which the restaurant opened is known to be somewhat drab . With a renovation plan of the neighborhood staring next year, it looks like A Soul Food Experience is getting a head start on bringing change and new flavor to the community. I found this article from the Oakland Tribune, you can read the full story below. Soul food the new flavor in East Oakland By Kamika Dunlap Oakland Tribune Article Last Updated: 09/07/2008 05:30:44 PM PDT OAKLAND — Rubie Daniels is looking to add a new flavor to East Oakland with the old delights of Southern-style African-American cuisine. Daniels is the owner of the recently opened A Soul Food Experience, which serves rib and chicken dinners, black-eyed peas, peach cobbler and other recipes that capture the culture and spirit of the black tradition. "This place is one of a kind," said Daniel, 68. "We're the bright spot in

This video was created at a rally for Barack Obama in Berkeley Thursday that drew 1,000 people. I asked Obama supporters why they backed Obama and what they thought about the GOP VP Candidate Sarah Palin.

You can read the original story here . But this is a very disturbing story for me. I found a follow up on the Oakland Tribune. Here's the follow up I read about tonight: Councilman to meet with officials about MacArthur hot spot By Kamika DunlapOakland Tribune Article Launched: 09/02/2008 04:54:24 PM PDT OAKLAND — The fatal shooting of 18-year-old Kennah Wilson and her unborn child Friday night in East Oakland has left many residents searching for answers. Councilmember Larry Reid (Elmhurst-East Oakland) plans to meet Thursday with officials from code enforcement, the city attorney's office, the Oakland Police Department and the redevelopment agency to address problems emanating from the 82nd Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard hot spot, where Wilson and her baby were killed. "We are trying to understand all this insanity going on," Reid said. "People want answers and they want to see something done." On Friday night, Reid went to the crime scene to talk with Wil