Oakland Focus News | Oakland News Online Blog

Apparently Arab-Israeli aggressions are heating to boiling point in Berkeley.  The Daily Cal reports a Thursday night fight police may call a hate crime: A fight that broke out last Thursday in Eshleman Hall may be classified as a hate crime pending further investigation by police. Police said racial remarks were made during the altercation-a result of Palestinian flags that were hung from a second-floor balcony overlooking a pro-Israel concert-that may cause investigators to classify the fight as a hate crime. "We're looking into the possibility of it being a hate crime, based on the statements (made to police by) Palestinian students," said UCPD Assistant Chief Mitch Celaya. "Clearly these two groups have some conflict."

In what has to be the most unfortunate case of temporary insanity, Jing Hua Wu, who went berserk and shot three co-workers at the radio chip maker Si Port, is going to be arraigned in San Jose this Wednesday.  I certainly hope this is the only case of it's kind for a long as there's a poor economy.  Wu killed his fellow employees,  Marilyn Lewis, 67, of San Jose, the company's head of human resources; Brian Pugh, 47, of Los Altos, vice president for operations; and Sid Agrawal, 56, of Fremont, the company's co-founder and chief executive, after he learned he was going to be fired.    I don't understand why this father of three would do that, but as TechCrunch put it  , it's a sad day in Silicon Valley.  

This video of the Saturday, November 15th No on 8 Rally at Oakland City Hall was created by YouTuber marymactavish. I believe the speaker is At-Large Councilmember-Elect Rebecca Kaplan. (I was and still am out of town.) The passage of Prop 8 has caused a number of protests in California and around the country. Hopefully the initiative will be repealed in the courts.

I saw what is an interesting take on Blogging and how it's like an election campaign, and since we just experienced and participated in one, I thought it was appropriate. I found it at Problogger and it's by "Trish" of "Ideas for Women." I disagree that a Blogger should take a break, not that Bloggers should not, but one has to make sure there's a constant churn of information -- posts -- daily. I read somewhere -- I think here at Technorati -- that the most successful blogs had between four and 30 posts a day. That's work. Here's an excerpt: I followed this year’s U.S. presidential election pretty closely on T.V. and also volunteered for one of the candidates. Over I time I began to notice some parallels between running a successful campaign and a successful blog. I don’t plan to ever run for president - but I would like to have a more successful blog. I would also like to share what I learned and hope that it will be helpful to

THE OAKLAND SCHOOL district should fire the chief of its small police force for his abusive behavior caught on tape as he inappropriately detained an Oakland Tribune journalist during a student protest against immigration raids after striking her with his car. read more | digg story

  Regular visitors to our blog are undoubtedly saying "What?!" but I've not forgotten the basics of Sports Business Simulations: our sim games.  But I've spent so much time developing the video-blogs, online marketing and online reputation management aspect of the business, that I had to delay the introduction of my third classroom sim: Buffi The Gym Girl. What's Buffi The Gym Girl? BUFFI THE GYM GIRL BETA is a simulation of a very real, daily activity: going to the gym and the reasons why we pick a gym or leave one. Since some consider gyms as great places to meet people, and to date, it comes as no suprise that people change gyms based on clientele. Enter Buffi, expertly played by actress Cynthia Lee (with her sister Mary Lee playing "Buffi's Sister".)  (With the help of the staff of the Oakland Gold's Gym on Grand Avenue - thanks!!) Buffi is a beautiful, intelligent girl-next-door, approachable, talkative, and totaly hot and famous st

In an interview with Matt Lauer, Sarah Palin said, “if there is a door open in 2012 or four yeas later…then I’ll plow through that door.” If Palin tries to run for president against Barack Obama in 2012, she’ll get plowed over. She likely wouldn't even make it out of the GOP primary. Palin-watchers can pick from a plethora of reasons as to why. read more | digg story

At the recent New York Comedy Festival, the writers of The Daily Show participated in a panel discussion and addressed the annoying and baseless notion that TDS's brand of satire can't thrive in an Obama administration. read more | digg story

Thanksgiving is a great time to go green. The season of Thanksgiving is about celebrating the earth and what it has to offer us, so respecting the environment is a great way to send the planet an eco-friendly thank-you. read more | digg story

With Gmail's recently launched video chat, Google is pushing a plugin to provide the browser with multimedia and interactive capabilities, paving the way for their own competitor to Adobe Flash and Microsoft Silverlight. read more | digg story

Adrienne Bailon is a Disney Cheetah Girl who claimed nude photos of her were stolen, then put on the Internet. Well, it's all a hoax set up by her friend who's a Hollywood publicist.  Watch my video to learn why.  

  If the American Auto Industry is allowed to collapse, the US will lose 7.8 million jobs, an economic impact of $349 billion and, increase an already high unemployment rate by another six percent. We can't let that happen. In this video I explain why.  

Oakland artist Rocky Rische-Baird was commissioned to create a giant mural on the side of what will be the 1100 Broadway Building.  The skyscraper, developed by SKS Investments, is proposed to be built and finished in 4 years.   The historic Key System building will remain at the site, with the new structure surrounding it.  This press conference in the video was held to present the mural concept, it's creator, Rocky Rische-Baird, and Paul Stein, who is also featured in another video on 1100 Broadway on Oakland Focus. 

Remember our blog post featuring a chilling video showing how Oakland Unified School District Police Chief Art Michel verbally abused and detained Oakland Tribune photographer Jane Tyska? To refresh, Chief Michel claims that Tyska hit his police cruiser with her camera, where Tyska says she did not and indeed, the video shows that she was making a video of a protest. Michel used his claim to launch a verbally abusive tirade against Tyska, an event that he's reportedly very remorseful about.   (If you've not seen the video, it's here: Well, I just talked with a good friend of mine who will not be revealed, and who reports that this episode was not the first time Tyska has had a "run-in" -- as my friend put it -- with Art Michel. My source is not clear regarding the reasons for Michel's dislike for Tyska, but it's clear he's got something against her. My source also personally has known Police Chief Michel for some time but has n

I visited Tony West of Obama for America and the law firm Morrison and Forrester on Monday of this week to talk about the campaign and why it worked so well and West's future. West is well known in the San Francisco Bay Area as an excellent plaintiff's lawyer.   But West is also known as a friend of President-Elect Barack Obama. West met Obama in 2004 and offered to help him should he elect to run for President. When Obama did, he called West and thus began West's role as Chair of the fundraising committee for Northern California. It also started a round of basketball between the two that's gone well enough for Obama to give West a pair of his shoes to wear for games.   Since Obama's election win, West's name has been floated for Mayor of Oakland, a position in some capacity for Obama, and Alameda County District Attorney. West himself says his future may include remaining with Morrison and Forrester as a lawyer. West's wife Mia was just recently

Below is the agenda for the latest meeting on the over-sized proposal for the Safeway on College Avenue.  The meetings tonight; I'm traveling.  But for those who attend and want a recap of the first meeting held June 19, 2008, here's my video from that 300-strong event: Rockridge Safeway Stakeholder Meeting #5 Agenda November 12, 2008 Section I. Introduction/Context 7:00-7:15 Welcome, introduction, agenda review Review overall project objective and today’s objectives Review of Groundrules Review process for tonight’s meeting Section II. Reflection of ideas generated during Meetings 1-4 7:15-7:30 Review areas of agreement and open items Interior Exterior Landscaping Contiguous Neighbor buffer Parking Traffic Section III. Open dialogue with David Blair (architect) 7:30-8:45 Todd Paradis – opening and purpose David Blair presents a couple of ideas for each program element – a sampling of some of the important aspects related to landscaping, buffer, exterior, parking, etc.

After retiring, starting for the Lions for one-game, getting cut, Daunte Culpepper returns for a tryout with the Raiders Tuesday. read more | digg story

Matt Holliday has been traded to Oakland, pending completion of physicals, for Huston Street, Carlos Gonzalez, and Greg Smith. read more | digg story

According to the Oakland Tribune, Eastbay Lawmakers have set up call-in numbers and email lists for those looking for inauguration tickets.  Here's their report, in part: The East Bay congressional delegation is compiling first-come, first-serve waiting lists of those who want free — and hard to get — tickets to the Jan. 20 presidential inaugural ceremony in Washington, D.C. But federal lawmakers are warning the hundreds of constituents who have called or sent e-mail requests for tickets that a spot on the list offers no guarantees. Members do not know how many of the estimated 250,000 tickets their offices will receive from the Joint Congressional Inaugural Committee. Ticket-holders will have access to the outdoor viewing area on the west front of the Capitol. Lawmakers' phones started ringing months ago, but the volume ramped up after the historic Nov. 4 election of Barack Obama, who is poised to become the nation's first African-American president. It's unclea

Donald Lacy is a name that came into Oakland and the nation's view after the 1997 murder of Lacy's daughter who was an innocent bystander just leaving McClymond's High School in Oakland. As part of his on-going effort to combat the problems that caused that event, Lacy started The Lovelife Foundation, which is "promoting life and saving lives through community revitalization, leadership and development." ( http://lovelifefoundation.org)  . I saw Lacy at the San Francisco Democratic Party event on Election Night and got his views on the Election and President-Elect Obama's victory.

Sean Sullivan's a new name and face in Oakland politics. Observers may remember Sean's run for Oakland's District Three Council Seat, where he lost to the incumbent Nancy Nadel. But Sean pressed on. He's worked at Covenant House and serves on the board of several non-profits in Oakland and the Bay Area. You can learn more at his website: http://www.seansullivan.org At the Westin on Election Night, Sean stopped to talk about the election and now President-Elect Obama and the then-progress of the No On Prop 8 campaign.

The rash of protests over the passage of Proposition Hate, ah, Proposition 8 is spreading.  This one was near the Mormon Temple in Oakland.  Here's the Oakland Tribune 's account: OAKLAND — Hundreds of protesters angry about last week's voter passage of a ban on same-sex marriages in California gathered on the streets and sidewalks in front of the Mormon Temple, prompting officials to shut down nearby freeway off-ramps for 3½ hours. "The time has come to take it out there to the people who voted for this awful thing," said San Francisco Supervisor Bevan Dufty. "The Mormon church has had to rely on our tolerance in the past, to be able to express their beliefs "... This is a huge mistake for them. It looks like they've forgotten some lessons." The protest was one of several anti-Proposition 8 gatherings throughout the state. Hundreds of protesters rallied outside an Orange County megachurch whose popular pastor brought Barack Obama and John M

This video will be misunderstood by some just for its title. I ask you to listen to what I say. I'm am against California Proposition 8. I've made videos to show the World how stupid and hateful the people who back the initiative can be. But what does bother me is the discovery that of all groups, African Americans voted more for it than against it. Why? I think one reason is that the message those who were against Prop 8 put out was off-putting to many who are Black. While I agree that gay marriage is a civil rights issue, one can't then make the cognitive leap and say that Blacks and Gays share the same path and past. The reason is simple: if I walk down the street you already have made up your mind how you're going to adress me because of my skin color. That's not true if the person's Gay -- you can't tell by looking. The bottom line is civil rights for all -- but the message that's sent by "No on 8" seems to say that

This video will be misunderstood by some just for its title. I ask you to listen to what I say. I'm am against California Proposition 8. I've made videos to show the World how stupid and hateful the people who back the initiative can be. But what does bother me is the discovery that of all groups, African Americans voted more for it than against it. Why? I think one reason is that the message those who were against Prop 8 put out was off-putting to many who are Black. While I agree that gay marriage is a civil rights issue, one can't then make the cognitive leap and say that Blacks and Gays share the same path and past. The reason is simple: if I walk down the street you already have made up your mind how you're going to adress me because of my skin color. That's not true if the person's Gay -- you can't tell by looking. The bottom line is civil rights for all -- but the message that's sent by "No on 8" seems to say that

Oakland Tribune photographer Jane Tyska was just doing her job when an Oakland Police Officer named Art Michel alledgedly hit Tyska as she was filming.  It's too bad Jane didn't get a shot of the car as it went by -- I'd have done that right off.  But it's clear the Oakland Police are developing a kind of track record of hostility to the press.  First there's the matter of Chauncey Bailey, then there's this issue of the way Jane was treated and detained. Police should consider journalists as off-limits to their treatment.  To treat someone the way Michel handled Jane, who I know, is not only terrible, it should be grounds for dismissal.  I view it as interfering with a journalist's job, just as a police officer has the right to charge a person who keeps them from doing their job.  It's obvious Officer Michel was being unnecessarily harsh with Tyska.  He should be forced to at the very least apologize to Jane.  Michel was out of line.  He

This kind of thing is always in the back of my mind when I drive through the Oakland Hills. Eamon Kelly was one of two passengers in the car. They are lucky to have survived this terrible accident. You can read the full story here...

Like everywhere in America, horns blowing and people out celebrating in downtown Oakland.

This is by sunao999  on YouTube and is from last night's election party at the Oakland Convention Center.  I was at my client's event in San Francisco (Yes on H).   

NP - H.E. Christian (Chris) Peeples 171355 63.88 NP - Joyce Roy 94697 35.30 Write-in 2202 0.82 Data from Alameda County Registrar of Voters.  

Yes 57024 52.99 No 50587 47.01 Data from the Alameda County Registrar of Voters.  This is the results for Measure OO in Oakland, a  proposal that more than doubles the amount of money Oakland must budget for non-public programming for kids. More on this later. 

Yes 59933 54.95 No 49145 45.05

Rebecca Kaplan 61431 61.95 Kerry Hamill 36845 37.16 Rebecca Kaplan finally scored a victory she's worked hard to get for years; she deserves it.  More on her victory later. 

Yes 66828 61.46 No 41903 38.54 Data from the Alameda County Registrar of Voters.. Measure N increases teacher pay in Oakland to attract and retain instructors.  

DEM - Loni Hancock 183253 76.59 REP - Claudia Bermúdez 37376 15.62 PF - Marsha Feinland 18075 7.55

 Dennis Hayashi 222457 61.36  Phil Daly 136806 37.74 According to the registrar of voters, here's the results of the race for Alameda County Superior Court Judge.  Dennis Hayashi, whom I endorsed, won. 

According to the Alameda County Registrar of Voters  , Alameda County had 803, 009 registered voters, and 448, 597 cast ballots.  That's over 55 percent, 55.86 percent to be exact, and a record turnout.  That means just over 1 of every two people registered in the county, voted.  

Looking for an election party in Oakland or the East Bay?  Thanks to " The O-Scene  " there's a full list.  Look below: Everett and Jones Election Block Party They’ll be dancing in the streets or crying in their barbecue around Jack London Square. The street in front of Everett and Jones will be closed off for music and dancing, and various elected officials are scheduled to address the crowd. “American Idol” singer LaToya London, R&B singers Avant and D’Wayne Wiggins and hip-hop reggae artist Trinidad headline the event. Free 6pm-1am Everett and Jones 126 Broadway, Oakland West Oakland Election Party So you live in West Oakland and think there’s nothing going on Election Night? Think again! Watch the elections on two big screens, music by DJ Reggie and Bruno Zaire of the Full Moon DJ Crew, catered by Popo’s Pizza, featuring specialty pizzas & mouth watering barbecue. Volunteers welcome. Free 5:30-11pm Continental Club 1658 12th St, Oakland 510.444