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More at Inside Bay Area : “Jon Gruden will be on the sideline with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, with general manager Bruce Allen in a suite. Rich Gannon will be in the television booth, lending commnentary for CBS. Rumor has it that even Lane Kiffin may attend, with his dad Monte in his final home game as the defensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before joining his son at the University of Tennessee. The only thing missing when the Raiders visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium Sunday will be the man responsible for bringing them all to Oakland _ Al Davis. Davis, with leg and ankle problems, has heeded the warnings of his physicians, did not make the trip, and reconsidered the idea of taking a private plane Saturday, Raiders executive John Herrera confirmed. "The doctors told him it's probably not the best thing to spend 10 or 12 hours in the air," Herrera said, referring to the roundtrip from Oakland to Tampa.” -- Get well, Mr. Davis!

More at Inside Bay Area : “The resolutions are in, and it's shaping up as a lean, mean new year for the Port of Oakland, which also operates Oakland International Airport. Despite layoffs and other cost-cutting measures this year, the port's number crunchers say the predicted gross revenues of $298.7 million this fiscal year will fall $12.1 million short unless steps are taken to reduce costs or increase operating revenues before then. Given the global economy, the dire state of the airline industry, and the declining number of shipments coming in and going out of the port's marine terminals, the former seems a more likely solution, said Marilyn Sandifur, the port's public information officer.”

There's an idea out there that there are more male than female video-bloggers and an anecdotal scan would seem to confirm that. My video explains how we can change that by encouraging women to vlog, and protecting them from harm and harrasment online to the extent that's possible.

Something the media doesn't cover much at all: the happenings in the East Oakland culture. This a typical Sunday worship service.

This is one of those videos friend and Oakland City Attorney John Russo thought that would be never found, but it's a great view of him as a person without the suits and with his real priority: his kids.

In this YouTube video, Annalee Allen, the longtime Oakland historical expert, talks about the Anthony Holdsworth Painting in City Hall.

'Don't Let Me Drown' headed to Sundance : “When screenwriter and film producer Maria Topete, 34, was a senior at Oakland's Skyline High School, she and two friends decided to make a movie. They borrowed some equipment and set out to find subjects to interview on the topic of being biracial.” -- Congratulations!

More at Sports at - Inside Bay Area” : “OAKLAND — Swingman Stephen Jackson straggled from the shower and took a seat at his locker. Tape recorders and microphones descended upon him, looking to get his reaction to the Warriors' biggest win of the year. But his expression contradicted the atmosphere at Oracle Arena after he scored 15 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Warriors' to a 99-89 upset of the Boston Celtics on Friday. He slumped in his chair, spoke with a drag and didn't smile once.”

More at Inside Bay Area : “OAKLAND — Skeletal remains found Nov. 7 behind Skyline High School have been identified as those of an 18-year-old woman who was a former student at the school, authorities and relatives said Friday. But how Johnikka Jackson died has not yet been determined, and homicide Sgt. Lou Cruz said police are still "trying to determine if foul play was an element of her death." Her remains were found in a canyon behind the school by students who took some of the bones to the principal's office before police were called. The bones were found near a crude shelter made of wood and sheets. Personal items found at the scene and dental records led to Jackson's positive identification last week.”

I just got this email regarding this event at Rasselas Jazz Club on December 28th: Concerts for Change – Benefiting Homeless & Hunger Featuring some of the Best Jazz Funk Bands in the Bay Area: Messy Guest Quartet (jazz, funk)                                       Dec 28 th An up and coming high-energy band that will keep you dancing. Fil Lorenz Soul-Kestra, 14 piece soul-jazz-funk orchestra.    Jan 25 th A world-class band, impeccable, and limitless in its capabilities. Joe Bagale, with an 8-piece band and unstoppable grove.    Feb 22 nd These guys will make sure your booty is shakin' & souls are breaking. Free Ticket Raffle:  visit  Progressive-Alliance.org  to find out more. Ages:     All Ages until 10 pm , After 10 pm 21+ Only Cost:      Only $9 on line , and Only $12 at the door Dates:    Sundays Dec 28 th, Jan 25 th, Feb 22nd Time:     doors 7 pm, show 8pm Place:     Rasselas Jazz Club & Restaurant 1534 Fillmore Street  bet: Geary & O’Farrell Or

I had the pleasure of sharing my iReport story with CNN's anchor Richard Lui who's a fellow Cal=Berkeley graduate like myself. The original video on CNN is below and I told my story live today at CNN Headquarters. Thanks to the CNN iReport team and to the  producers at CNN.  Original video:

I just read the East Bay Express' Chris Thompson's blog about the fact that Mayor Ron Dellums still has not named a City Administrator.  That's because the one person Dellums wants -- former City Manager Robert Bobb -- reportedly asked for $350,000  !  That's too much for the cash-strapped City of Oakland to stomach.  

More at San Francisco Business Times: : “Moody's Investors Services on Thursday rated MediaNews Group Inc. -- owner of 29 newspapers in Northern California -- as being in “substantial risk” of default on its debt. Denver-based MediaNews owns the Oakland Tribune, the Contra Costa Times, the Argus in Fremont, and the San Jose Mercury News, among other local papers. The ratings service downgraded its “corporate family rating” of the privately held media company to Caa3 from B3 on $962 million in debt. It also lowered its “probability of default” rating to Caa3 from Caa1.” -- And the Trib's plan to charge money to online readers for content access is not going to stop this slide.

More at Editor and Publisher : “CHICAGO David Cohen founded the newspaper group in California that became Silicon Valley Community Newspapers (SVCN), and became its principal owner and CEO when it was spun off as a separate group. It grew from six to 11 weeklies. When Cohen sold SVCN to Knight Ridder, he stayed on as group publisher and retained the position when the weeklies ended up with MediaNews Group as part of its acquisition of the San Jose Mercury News. But now Cohen joins the large ranks of newspaper veterans laid off by the brutal industry economy. In a literal exit interview with his newspaper, the publisher told reporter Dale Bryant he understood the move. ”

More at SFGate.com : “(12-25) 16:54 PST -- It's difficult to say what is more remarkable about the hallucinogenic interior of the Fox Oakland Theater: the Moorish details that flood the ceilings and walls, or the fact it survived decades of neglect. "It's a wonderful glimpse of the past," said Kurt Schindler, a principal of the Berkeley architecture firm ELS. "These picture palaces were about glitz. They were designed to take you into another era, offering fantasy and escape." Schindler's firm is one of many consultants that had a hand in bringing the Fox back to life. It reopens Feb. 5 - a little more than 80 years after its premiere and 43 years after the theater last was used with any sort of regularity.”

I've actually heard a lot about the Hot Toddies, but never seen them. So here they are at the Uptown Night Club on Telegraph Avenue. Wonder when they'll be back?

I love this kind of video and considering that we're all traveling it's appropriate for this time of year. A Southwest plane coming in for landing in Oakland and where one can see East Oakland below.

More from The Oakland Post : “The young people based their findings, which they presented to board members Nov. 18, on a survey they conducted of 1,000 youth in West Oakland, Sobrante Park, Cherryland and Ashland. In West Oakland, 91 percent said drugs were a problem, and 8 percent said violence was a problem. In Sobrante Park, 73 percent said violence and drugs were a problem. When asked how violence can be stopped, the majority of young people said they needed more jobs, sports and dance groups, and a recreation center,” -- Old news at the Post, but needs to see the light of day.

More at Inside Bay Area : “OAKLAND — City officials will be swimming in red ink once again when they return to business after the New Year. Mayor Ron Dellums released a budget report this week projecting a general fund deficit of $50 million for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2009, and $58 million the year after that. The bleak projections are due to an economy in recession and expected increases in spending on children's programs and employee benefits and pension obligations, among other things, Dellums' report said. The mayor will meet with the City Council on Jan. 12 to begin hammering out a spending plan for the two-year period beginning July 1 and to take stock of the city's fiscal picture over the next five years. "Most public agencies nationwide, as well as private businesses large and small, local and global, face a daunting financial future," Dellums said in a statement. "The city of Oakland is no exception. The economic downturn that we face is u

The sight of our President-Elect Barack Obama shirtless in Hawaii has some in a tizzy. But look, many brothers have hairless, sculpted chests, like me! My chest is better than President Obamas!