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Oscar Grant / Johannes Mehserle verdict: Oakland cab driver on riot fears

Oscar Grant  As Oakland, the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, California, and much of the United States await the jury verdict in the Oscar Grant / Johannes Mehserle murder trial, Oakland braces for what's widely feared to be an outbreak of riots should the jury decision not go in a way that is an obvious punishment for former BART Police Officer Johannes Mehserle. If you want to find out what's happening on the streets of Oakland around the rioting fears, there are few better people to talk to than Oakland cab drivers. On Saturday night, one cab driver (who did not want to be identified by cab service provider or name), did agree to this video above as we talked about what he heard people saying as they rode his cab . "Everybody's talking about it," he said. "I don't know. Some people are saying that a lot of people left town. You know this guy was saying 'I knew a lot of cool white people that's left town. They're not ra

Fourth of July Weekend in San Francisco features Pier 39 events!

Just got an email from Pier 39 (Pier 39 Beach Street & The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94133 (415) 705-5500) about their many upcoming events for the Fourth of July. Here's what it reads: Fourth of July Waterfront Celebration! PIER 39 celebrates Independence Day with a star-spangled day filled with fun and excitement for the whole family! Beginning at 3 pm, enjoy free live band performances in the PIER 39 Entrance Plaza. From 3 – 5 pm, listen to the soft rock explosion of Mustache Harbor. Then get ready to rock out to your favorite 80's hits with Tainted Love from 6 – 9:30 pm. Be sure to check out our street performers on the Crystal Geyser ALPINE SPRING WATER Stage throughout the day. After the concert at approximately 9:30 pm, look up to the sky over the Bay for The City of San Francisco's annual fireworks display. PIER 39's Fourth of July activities are proudly sponsored by Coca-Cola, Crystal Geyser ALPINE SPRING WATER, Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream, t

AC Transit in Oakland facing possible driver strike after impasse

Berkeley AC Transit Bus Rapid Transit Oakland, CA-based AC Transit has declared that contract talks between the Alameda - Contra Costa District Transit Company and the Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 192, (ATU) have reached an impasse. AC Transit is working to close an estimated $56 million budget deficit due in large part to reductions in revenue from property taxes. AC Transit is working to reduce labor costs by 8 percent at least; far better than cutting jobs but the ATU fails to see it that way. AC Transit has been forced to increase fares and decrease service to make up for the revenue shortfall. ATU made an offer but it reportedly wasn't enough to help close the gap: AC Transit seeks $15 million in savings. What the ATU does not understand is AC Transit's budget problems, like those of the City of Oakland itself, are due to massive reductions in sales and property tax revenue . AC Transit receives a percentage of each dollar of property tax collected in wha

Oakland Mayor's Race: Rebecca Kaplan announces run for Mayor

Today, Wednesday, Oakland At-Large Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan made official what many of her supporters were waiting for: that she's officially running for Mayor. She did this 49 minutes ago at the Joyce Gordon Gallery at 406 14th St. It was just two years ago in September 2008 that now-Councilmember Kaplan talked with this blogger about running for the At-Large Oakland City Council Seat: Now, less than two years later, and having successfully been elected as At-Large Oakland Councilmember,  Rebecca Kaplan announces she's running for Mayor of Oakland. What was true then in 2008 is true now, Oakland's in terrible fiscal shape and its worse today. But let's go a step further: Oakland's got a giant unemployment and underemployment problem that could sack many of the new restaurants that have opened over the past two years. Is Kaplan the person to fix all of this? Well, she just got into Oakland City Hall. Mayor Dellums?  What's up? While I don&#

Oscar Grant, Johannes Mehserle case graffiti at Oakland Lake Merritt removed

On Sunday, this space reported the existence of 11 examples of graffiti at various points around Oakland's Lake Merritt from Grand Avenue to Lakeshore Avenue. All of the taggings were done using red spray paint and all were messages related to the Oscar Grant, Johannes Mehserle murder case. Some of the graffiti messages seemed to wish harm to Johannes Mehserle, the former BART Police Officer who shot and killed Oscar Grant. Here's the video showing the problem: Today, all of the messages have been removed by the City of Oakland. The shores of Lake Merritt are back to their unmarked and clean look as the photo above shows.   I did not check the AC Transit Bus Stop on Grand Avenue, but since the video pointed to all of the places, and all of those points are clean, the bus shelter should be as well.  Unless, of course, the City of Oakland's not in the mood to help AC Transit.

Oakland Mayor's Race: Rebecca Kaplan to make "special announcement"

City of Oakland At-Large Councilmember and would-be Oakland Mayor's Race participant has announced she's going to make a "special announcement" and reports that it "Will be an eventful speech solidifying her position in the Mayoral race." It will be held Wednesday at 11 a.m at the Joyce Gordon Gallery 406 14th St. In other words, after meetings, events, talks, and the parking issue, Councilmember Kaplan's going to officially run for Mayor of Oakland. And why not? The Oakland Mayor's Race is wide open race and anything can happen between now and November, when the election for the next Mayor of Oakland is held. What I hear from Oaklander after Oaklander is that not one of the candidates is exciting to them. That may be because they haven't seen all of them. The Joyce Gordon Gallery is located on 14th Street between Broadway and Franklin Streets in downtown Oakland.

New York Times v. Google, Twitter in TheFlyonTheWall.com "hot news" case

Google and Twitter taking on the NYTimes While Arthur O. Sulzberger, Chairman and Publisher of The New York Times , holds that Google is the NYTimes "friend" and they have a good working relationship - even to the point of hounding SFGate.com regarding this blogger's claims to the contrary - a recent Amici  or "friend of the court" brief filed by the New York Times and other large news organizations openly attacks the work of online news aggregators like Google News. If the New York Times likes Google so much, why would it attach itself to the friend of the court brief? The backstory is the Barclay's Capital v. TheFlyOnTheWall.com case. In that case, New Jersey-based TheFlyOnTheWall.com was accused of taking information on bank upgrades and downgrades of stocks that was originally produced by Barclays and the other banks involved in the copyright infringement lawsuit lawsuit. Barclays holds that TheFlyOnTheWall.com website “systematically and

Gen. Stanley McChrystal's aide gets off Gay-bomb in Rolling Stone

Gen. Stanley McChrystal  The Runaway General , the Rolling Stone Magazine article that cost Gen. Stanley McChrystal his job as commander of Allied Forces in Afghanistan, and exposed a culture of McChrysal's aides that were hostile to civilian military officers, is out on newsstands and online, and it opens with the now famous blast against NATO allies slated to attend a dinner he was assigned to go to. While Gen. McChrystal's comment that there was no one in the room who could beat him up, or: "I'd rather have my ass kicked by a roomful of people than go out to this dinner. Unfortunately, no one in this room could do it." ..made the press, there's more that didn't, until now. This is what else McChrystal's aide said after the writer Michael Hastings asked "Who's he going to dinner with?" The McChrystal aide says "Some French minister. It's fucking gay." Hastings says McChrystal's staff consists of "a

Oakland parking problem: another one for Rebecca Kaplan

Oakland Parking is STILL a problem Yes. Another Oakland Parking problem. This space continues to receive tips and emails from Oaklanders and people visiting Oakland who have horrible parking stories they want to share with the World. Since Oakland's At-Large Councilmember and would-be mayoral candidate Rebecca Kaplan thinks it's OK for Oakland to use parking fees to balance its budget, even at the expense of the poor from what was yelled to this blogger earlier this year, and without provocation or apology from Councilmember Kaplan (and not bloggers who support her run for Mayor), this space will continue to present each Oakland Parking problem to her. The last one was from Nick Mitchell, who complained of the ugly DMV and Oakland system that works to cause late payment of parking fines . This one is from an Oaklander, Terese Tatum, who shared a letter sent to Oakland Parking Head Noel Pinto: Dear Mr. Arnold and Mr. Pinto, I have spent hours on the phone and left

World Cup Soccer 2010: Brazil vs. Portugal, Germany vs England

Koman's off the hook, sort of While it's a bit harder for this space to be excited about FIFA World Cup 2010 after the USA was eliminated by Ghana 2-1 on Saturday, the fire for World Cup still burns. After all you have to love a sports event where Soccer fans Mick Jagger and Bill Clinton have a better chance of scoring than some of the teams. Take Brazil vs. Portugal, and England in it's match against Germany. In the Brazil vs. Portugal match, neither team scored; it ended in a 0-0 draw and both advanced to the second round. Brazil won Group G play, while Portugal was two points behind them. Now, Brazil will play Chile in the second round, with Portugal vs. Spain. Portugal needed a draw and so played like they did, much to the frustration of Brazil. "It's really boring when we have to play against an opponent with 11 players on the back, only trying to draw," Brazil's striker Luis Fabiano said according to The LA Times . England and the Disa

Frank Shamrock retires from American mixed martial arts (MMA) fighting

Frank Shamrock (Frank Alisio Juarez III) announced he's retiring from American mixed martial arts (MMA) fighting at at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum Saturday at HP Pavilion. Frank Shamrock is the four-time defending, undefeated MMA champion and a 7th degree black belt in something called "Submission Fighting," which is a type of wrestling sport. Shamrock's four time title defense included some memorably brutal battles, like the one against Igor Zinoviev in 1998 that ended in a knockout. It was called the most violent slam in Ultimate Fighting Championship history. (Warning, the video is violent .) Shamrock stopped UFC fighting in 1999 after what's considered to be the one of the greatest fights in UFC history against Tito Ortiz. After that fight, Frank Shamrock was considered the greatest ultimate fighter in history. After a brief stint as an actor, Shamrock returned to fighting in 2001 and had a number of memorable bouts through 2009, when he was

USA vs Ghana World Cup 2010: Oakland watches Golden Goal

USA vs Ghana World Cup 2010: Oakland watches Gyan's Golden Goal : USA loses 2-1 in OT And so another nail-biting FIFA World Cup Soccer game ends for the USA, this time the wrong way. The USA lost 2-1 in overtime as this blogger returned to the Era Art Bar on Grand and Broadway in Downtown Oakland, CA for the anticipated single elimination Saturday match. But in the process, Soccer's importance to Americans grew by fantastic proportions, and in no place was this more evident than Oakland, California. The USA loss was a sad end to a great run by a USA team that wasn't really picked to go far in World Cup competition. But the hustling team paced by USA Soccer star Landon Donovan tied England 1-1 to start match play, then tied Slovenia 2-2 in a controversial match that the USA really won 3-2 but for a mistakenly discounted goal by FIFA referee Koman Coulibaly. Finally the USA won a match, beating Algeria 1-0. All that set up today's exciting overtime win. The

Oprah Winfrey Network's show contest: vote for Aimee Allison!

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Sidebar Oakland Cocktail Competition Monday June 28th, 7:30 PM

Sidebar Oakland Sidebar Oakland, the bar and restaurant at 542 Grand Avenue in Oakland, CA, is hosting a No. 209 Gin Competition featuring some of the best bartenders in Oakland. What's cool about this event is it's a showcase for Oakland's new food scene, as in the past you had to go over to San Francisco to get a great drink. Not any more. The list of bartenders competing is a who's who of Oakland mix-a-lots: Matt B from Sidebar, Brian M also from Sidebar, Marjon B from Era Art Bar, Josh P from Pican, Alex S from Marzano, Matt from The Wood Tavern, Brian M from Lavende East, Jon C from The Grand Tavern, and Eric from Adesso. The best bartender will win a great prize, I'm told, and the winner will be selected by a professional panel of judges. Come on down to Lake Merritt, where Sidebar is located, this Monday.

Brazil vs Portugal World Cup 2010 | USA v. Ghana Saturday

The Brazil vs Portugal World Cup 2010 match ended in a tie Friday. The long-anticipated match pitted the Number one Brazil team against the number three ranked Portugal team, so while you'd expect an epic battle, the actual result was described as "lackluster". Brazil, playing without three it its stars, performed at a lower level with their replacements. Julio Batista, Dani Alves, and Nilmar put in a good effort, but it wasn't enough to win. Portugal, which obliterated North Korea 7-0 earlier in the week, showed none of the form expected after such an amazing performance. Instead, what we got was sloppy play by both sides. There were seven yellow card cautions, four for Portugal and three for Brazil, and that was in the first half. There were a total of 29 fouls. USA v. Ghana Saturday The USA Soccer team takes on the Ghana Black Stars in a single elimination, do-or-die match Saturday at 11:30 AM PDT / 2:30 PM EDT. President Barack Obama paid a cal

Tupac Shakur, Bill Cosby, REM work called "Culturally Significant"

Years after his death, the sprint of Rapper Tupac Shakur continues to live with us via his music. A series of works so powerful that one of them, Dear Mama , was called "culturally significant" by the Library of Congress. Tupac Shakur joins Bill Cosby, REM, Willie Nelson, Little Richard, Mississippi John Hurt, Patti Smith, and others in the honor. Tupac Shakur was killed in Las Vegas in 1996 and during a feud with rival rappers that really should not have happened at all. Tupac Shakur was a major music figure in the San Francisco Bay Area, having moved here and to Marin City in 1988. That Tupac Shakur's music has reached this lofty status should be a sign to urban economic development officials (if they're paying attention and most don't) that investing in the people who create music in a city can not only help them but give the city itself incredible visibility. That's certainly true for cities like Oakland, California, which has a rich rap music

USA v Algeria World Cup: Oakland cheers Landon Donovan goal

It could be said that the USA's win over Algeria in this morning's World Cup Soccer match caused the Toronto Earthquake. Indeed, you would be excused if you thought that the Toronto Earthquake happened because of USA Soccer Star Landon Donovan's monsterous goal. While Donovan's goal didn't start an earthquake, it did send America into hysterics, and that was certainly evident in Oakland, California. Pure Joy in Oakland The Era Art Bar on Grand Avenue and Broadway was the crowded scene, with people cheering for the USA and for Algeria. In fact, there was a health contingent of Algerian fans lined along one wall of The Era Art Bar. It was a friendly place to be, though, as people stood and sat with eyes glued to the TV sets at the bar. The game went back and forth, and it looked like the USA and Algeria would both be eliminated as neither scored a goal for most the contest. Plus, again, the USA had a goal taken away from them for an offsides call that

Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums aide Paul Rose leaves for San Francisco

Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums The San Francisco Chronicle 's lead story in the newspaper edition has the not-good-SEO title, "Just before budget deadline, Dellums weighs in," and has Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums looking every bit like the leader he wants you to think he is. One photo features Mayor Dellums giving a "you lookin' at me" stare at someone. Another photo has Mayor Dellums with his hands clasped together as if he's the all-knowing seer-in-charge. All of that's great PR for Mayor Dellums, that is until he speaks: I'm the master strategist," Dellums said according to Matthai Kuruvila at SFGate.com . "My job is to establish strategy, to establish the policy framework within which those negotiations would take place. And I have assiduously and diligently and coherently done just that." Really, that comments' OK. A mayor's supposed to be a cheerleader for his own actions. But then Dellums gets a little weird. &

Blogger News: Oakland Bloggers for Libby Party at Era Art Bar

Relax at Era  This Wednesday, June 23rd, a group of Oakland friends, boosters, and bloggers (and some combinations of all three) are gathering at Era Art Bar and Lounge for Libby Schaaf. The event starts at 5:30 PM, in Oakland's Uptown District. The Era Art Bar and Lounge is a new venue, growing in popularity due to it's warm, inviting, large interior and fun atmosphere. And if that reads like a commercial, well, it is. But really, come on down. You don't have to be an Oakland blogger or a blogger for that matter to join us. But we do ask that you donate $30 to Libby's campaign for the Oakland District 4 City Council Seat. So, see you Wednesday, June 23rd at 5:30 PM, at 19 Grand Avenue, Oakland, CA‎, (510) 832-4400, and near the intersection of Grand Avenue and Broadway in Downtown Oakland. ‎

Summer Solstice 2010: first day of summer roundup

Today is Summer Solstice 2010, the first day of summer. According to Wikipedia, Summer Solstice, or the "first day of summer," is "when the Earth's axial tilt is most inclined towards the sun at its maximum of 23° 26'." It's the longest day of the year, with the shortest night, and thus the best reason to have a round up of what's happening. So, picking through the national and local issues and trends... Oakland, CA Oakland Police, who have gone without a cost-of-living adjustment for four years, are bracing for job cuts as the Oakland City Council sends signals that it is considering eliminating up to 200 jobs. Some officers say that they've given quite enough in adjustments and feel like they're being used as political footballs while the Oakland City Council tries to look like it can make tough decisions. The best move for the Oakland City Council is to cut pay temporarily rather than jobs, as many officers would rather have a