(Cross posted at Living in the O.)

Wednesday was a difficult day for the medical marijuana movement. In the morning, the DEA raided the longest standing medical cannabis dispensary in Sacramento. I wrote about that raid on the blog of the organization I work for, Americans for Safe Access, so I won’t dwell on it here.

Before noon though, I’d gotten word of another raid. The DEA was apparently raiding a facility operated by Tainted, Inc., a medical cannabis edible producer. I asked a coworker of mine to drive down to the site to confirm. As he was on his way, I got another call telling me that the DEA was raiding three Tainted facilities.

My coworker soon called me to confirm that it was a DEA raid (sometimes raids are misreported and we like to confirm by looking for the very noticeable DEA jackets). I told him about the other raids and asked him to talk to the agents to find out if anybody at any of the locations had been detained or arrested. After nudging the agents for a while, they finally told him that there were a dozen people being detained, but the DEA wouldn’t reveal whether anybody had or would be arrested. They simply told us to keep calling the Oakland courthouse to check if any arraignments were scheduled for the following day.

Let me back up a bit. You might have read the Chronicle’s or the Tribune’s articles about these raids, but surprise, surprise, neither of those stories give the full picture of what happened and what this means. The Trib’s headline refers to “drug-laced candies” while the Chron calles Tainted a “pot candy firm.” Both stories quote DEA agents extensively. Neither quotes a medical cannabis patient or advocate, despite the fact that ASA sent out a press release explaining the medical side of the story.

I know many of the people who were involved in Tainted quite well. They were doing this for all the right reasons and gave back to the community whenever they could. They spearheaded accurate labeling of medical marijuana edibles. All of their edibles are clearly marked with ingredient lists and warnings stating they are for medical use only. There’s also a clear warning on the back of their edibles -“Keep out of reach of children”:

Tens of thousands of Californians who use medical marijuana depend on these edibles. They either cannot or do not want to smoke for health reasons or edibles are more effective. While the healing effects of inhaled cannabis only last for a short time, the effects of ingested cannabis can last for several hours. Tainted was one of the most respected edible producers, and they supplied medical cannabis patients statewide.

Back to last Wednesday… throughout the day, we tried to gather more facts, but there was little more to find out. Tainted’s attorney didn’t even find out about the 10:00 a.m., Thursday arraignment of three alleged managers until the arraignment had already begun. Luckily, all three of them were released pending trial. They all face serious prison sentences if they are convicted.

Throughout the end of the week, I was in contact with Michael Martin, the owner of Tainted. The press stories have painted him as a fugitive, but the truth is that he just happened to be out of town when the raids occurred. He intends to turn himself in next week and fight the charges against him.

What struck me was Martin’s concern with his employees. He kept calling me to see if I had heard more about any arrests. He had his attorney attempt to intervene in the arraignments. He didn’t want to publicize anything until he knew that everyone was safe. He is certainly not what most people think of when they picture a drug manufacturer or drug dealer. And he doesn’t see himself that way either.

Needless to say, the medical cannabis community is pretty pissed off right now. These attacks on safe access need to end. In August, I told the inspiring story of a huge activist response to DEA raids in Los Angeles and asked, how far would Oakland go for medical marijuana? Now it’s time to find out. On Thursday, ASA is hosting a press conference and rally at the Oakland federal building to speak out against the DEA raids in Oakland.

I encourage everyone reading this post to join me on Thursday and to spread the word. We can only end these raids if we fight back.

Here are the details:

What: Press Conference Speaking Out Against Raids in Oakland
When: Thursday, October 4th at 9:00am
Where: Oakland Federal Building at 1301 Clay St.
What to Wear: Business Professional Attire

For more information, contact [email protected]

And if you’re not in the Bay Area, take a minute to send a message to Governor Schwarzenegger, calling on him to end the DEA raids on medical marijuana patients and providers.

(Cross-posted from The Courage Campaign also at dailyKos).

This past Saturday, 12,000 of my closest friends and I gathered in Oakland to see (or in some cases, just hear…) Barack Obama speak. It’s nice to see Senator Obama giving the public some face time while he swings through our state to do what we know every presidential candidate must: make a withdrawal from the ATM that is California.

After the rally the senator headed off to the Mark Hopkins Hotel in SF for a fundraiser but not before wowing the crowd in Oakland. As one would expect, Obama gave a variation on his stump speech in which he rails against cynicism and offers something different, what he calls the politics of hope. And judging by the crowd’s reaction, at least those who were close enough to see the senator, hope is much more than just a buzzword…the optimism in the air was palpable. It felt almost celebratory. As Frank wrote HERE, this phenomenon is real.

Over the flip, my take with video of most of his speech and some photos. I think I can safely say that Saturday will go down as my most memorable St. Patrick’s Day ever.

Here’s a picture of the folks in the bleachers behind the stage. I know they look relatively calm but don’t be fooled…it was merely the calm before the storm.

And now witness the storm:

As you can see, he was greeted like a rock star. Talk about energy. It was incredible.

After some small talk about his family, Senator Obama got into the meat of his speech and immediately framed his candidacy as something larger than himself:

We are here today because the country calls us. We are here today because history beckons us.

He uses the first person plural to especially good effect to communicate, essentially, “we are in this together.” He speaks mostly about the domestic challenges we face — listen to how the crowd reacts when he talks about the economy and who is benefitting most — but then ends the section strongly with criticism of the war. I think it’s interesting who his first target of criticism is:

We are in the midst of a war that should have never been authorized!

Message: unlike my opponents, I never would have authorized it.

It really is a pleasure to listen to Obama’s speeches. In this next section, witness how he skillfully segues from the war to a meeting with a wounded veteran and his family to a discussion of how Washington has lost its way and, by extension, why he’s running for president:

Politics is not a game. The decisions that are made in Washington are not sport. And the reason that we have not been able to meet the challenges that we face….is because at some level we have been so consumed by cynicism and pettyness in Washington that we no longer recognize what’s at stake, we no longer understand what’s going on in the lives of that veteran…

This time, the “we” he’s referring to seems to be his colleagues in Washington.

In the next section, he continues to rail against cynicism and offers his prescription:

It is time for us to step up and meet these challenges and create the sort of politics that’s not based on division, that’s not based on hatred, that’s not based on fear, but that’s based on hope. And that’s the sort of politics that we expect to create in this election. If we change our politics, then we will change the nation.

He goes on to address the matter of his experience. Here he brilliantly turns his supposed lack of experience into an asset, not a liability. Watch the whole thing, it’s great.

The highlight of this next section for me is when Senator Obama talks at length about healthcare and makes a promise. Listen to the crowd on this one.

We can…make sure that every single American has basic healthcare in fact I want to be held accountable for that!We can have universal healthcare by the end of the next president’s first term. By the end of MY FIRST TERM!

He moves on to the topic of energy, during which he gives it up for California. Notice his continued use of “we” with the repeated (to nice effect) refrain: “We know what to do.”

We know what to do. We know what to do with energy. And if we set up a system like California has boldly decided it’s gonna set up, so we are capping the emission of greenhouse gases, it can actually generate jobs and industry. There’s no reason why we can’t create entire new sectors of the economy.

As he prepares to wrap up, he brings his speech back around to Iraq and reminds us all where he stood when it counted.

I am proud of the fact that I opposed this war from the start and I stood up in 2002 and said that this is a bad idea, that this will cost us billions of dollars and thousands of lives and we don’t have a strategy for getting out.

Again, he runs against his opponents without overtly running against them.

Message: it’s about judgment, stupid.

He is perhaps at his best, though, when he talks about the troops and the responsibility we have to them when they come home. As passionate as his speech has been up to now, he reveals new heights of intensity when he says:

Don’t stand next to a flag and say you believe in supporting the troops when you forget them when they come home!

Nice.

He opens this final stretch of the speech with a statement that seems to crystallize the very essence of Obama’s candidacy:

We can do all of these things. But let me tell you this. I can’t do it on my own

He goes on to catalog the history of American progress, from the fight against British tyranny to the fight against slavery, to the fight to allow women to vote, to the fight for civil rights and for workers to unionize. It never happened from the top down, he says, rather the change has always come from the bottom up.

The enormous power of ordinary people…People have had the audacity, the boldness, to believe that something better is right around the bend, that something better is out on the horizon. That is how this country was built.

Which he then brings back, to rousing effect, to what he hopes to accomplish with his candidacy:

And so let me just say this today, Oakland, California, I can’t do this on my own. This campaign is a vehicle for you. It is a vehicle for your hopes, it’s a vehicle for your dreams. When a million voices join together, they can not be stopped!

Cue rapturous applause.

The thing about Obama and the reason he does seem to transcend party, race, religion, everything, is that he connects on a level that we’re not used to Democrats connecting on. Bill Clinton got you in the gut of course, but more recently we’re so used to getting laundry lists from candidates, it’s so refreshing to have a politician who appeals to something deeper in us and who gets that voting is not about making a rational decision based on facts, it’s about making a judgment call based on gut instinct. Obama is running on the idea that we should all vote for someone and something, not just against someone. And he’s also reminding us about the stakes of this election: the future of our country. It’s optimistic and yes it is audacious. But more than anything else, on some level it’s exactly what we need. I think the enormous crowds he gets wherever he goes are a testament to that, Oakland’s 12,000 strong not the least among them.

Once the speech was over, he worked the crowd a bit. Here are a few photos.

( – promoted by Brian Leubitz)

Barack Obama is coming back to the Bay Area, and this time it’s on behalf of himself as he seeks votes in the City of Oakland. According to an email just sent to me:

Senator Barack Obama will be in Oakland next Saturday, March 17 for his very first presidential campaign rally in the Bay Area. It’s a rally we hope will build on the tremendous grassroots strength we’ve seen during the course of this young campaign. Senator Obama was met by thousands of supporters from Los Angeles to New Hampshire and we’re expecting similar results in Oakland. That is why we need your help as a volunteer to organize this historic event.

When: Saturday March 17 — Gates open at 3:00 PM

Where: Oakland City Hall Plaza, One Frank Ogawa Plaza, Oakland, California

How: The event is free and open to the public.  Please RSVP below to obtain your ticket.

Please join us at one of two organizational meetings for the Oakland Rally.

Oakland Obama Organizational Meeting
Sunday, March 11 – 12:30 PM

Oakland Marriott Hotel
Calvin Simmons Room
1001 Broadway
Oakland, CA
Cross street: 10th and 11th Street
Note: 11th/12th Street Bart Station is closest

http://my.barackobam…

San Francisco Obama Organizational Meeting
Sunday, March 11 – 4:00 PM

Delancey Street Foundation
Town Hall
600 Embarcadero Street
San Francisco, CA
Cross street: Brannon

http://my.barackobam…

In announcing his candidacy, Senator Obama said this campaign can’t only be about him. He said, “It must be about us – it must be about what we can do together.” That is why we’re asking you to take this campaign into your own hands and help make the upcoming Oakland rally a memorable one.

Hope to see you there!

Obama for America

This is what moving the California Primary to Feb. 5 is all about!

I figured this might be a nice thing to share, since a lot of people don’t know some of the downticket races and props so much… again these are my views, and not that of Calitics.

Hi everybody, so I filled out my absentee ballot and already sent it in, it’s the only way to fly in Oakland since our know nothing Elections Supervisor bought a bunch of Sequoia systems fraud machines despite popular outcry… anyway here’s how I voted:

Partisan Offices – statewide
—-
Governor – Phil Angelides
Lt. Governor – John Garamendi
Secretary of State – Debra Bowen
State Controller – John Chiang
State Treasurer – Bill Lockyer
Attorney General – Jerry Brown
Insurance Commisioner – Cruz Bustamente (with waffling)
United States Senate – (blank) or Diane Feinstein (see below)
United States Representative – Barbara Lee
State Assembley – Sandre Swanson
Judges – re-elect
Statewide propositions.
Proposition 1A-NO!
Propositions 1B-1E Yes.
Proposition 83 – NO!!
Proposition 84 – Yes
Proposition 85 – FUCK NO!!!
Proposition 86 – Yes
Proposition 87 – HELL YES!
Proposition 88 – No
Proposition 89 – YES YES YES! HELL YES!!
Proposition 90 – NO!
—
City of Oakland
—
Measure M – yes
Measure N – YES!
Measure O – YES YES YES!

The “why’s” are below the cut.

Partisan Offices – statewide
Governor –
Phil Angelides

It’s an easy decision really, Arnold has been playing the part of a moderate ever since he got his ass handed to him in the last “special election”. Phil Angelides, has the brains, the know how, and the plan to lead this great state, and it’s the rare case where the establishment backed candidate is actually the best one of the bunch. It breaks my heart that his idiot campaign manager is such a fool and might blow it.

Let’s be clear, no Democrat or Independent should vote for Arnold… Period.

oh and Pete Camejo used to be cool, but is kind of a dick now.
I voted for him over Gray Davis, and would gladly do so again, but the Democratic Nominee is a Pragmatic progressive, what the hell is Pete doing in this race anyway?

I really hope Phil can pull it off, but rather then just hope, i’m going to canvass and call for him this weekend.

Lt. Governor –
John Garamendi
Tom McClintock is an asshole. One of the biggest assholes in CA.
Garadmendi is kind of “eh.” but has his moments. I’m not his biggest supporter like some folks, but he’s good… I like Phil a hell of a lot better personally. He’s big on stem cell research… so am I, ’nuff said.

Secretary of State –
Debra Bowen
uh… Verified Voting activist/superstar vs. Arnold’s Diebold loving appointee?
no fracking contest. I am totally all about Debra Bowen, and you should be too.

State Controller –
John Chiang
He’s a good dude.

State Treasurer –
Bill Lockyer
I could make a statement about the statewide office “revolving door”, but i’ll save that for my buddy Cruz.
Lockyer has done a decent enough job as AG, why not let him handle the money?
Sure.

Attorney General –
Jerry Brown
I had my issues with him as mayor of my city, and it bugs me that he’s so adamant on the very Draconian Death Penalty, but Poochigian is far worse and has way more of a douchebaggy name. ha ha! I guess Jerry’s plan is to hold every office in the state before he dies…

Insurance Commisioner –
Cruz Bustamente
I literally felt dirty in the recall after I voted “NO” (esp. since Gray Davis was an ass and I wanted him gone, just not that way), and then voted for Bustamente, even though I really wanted to vote for Arianna. I have rarely felt “dirty” after voting except for when I voted for that useless waste of flesh. The ONLY thing I can think of that he did that I liked was the lawsuit against Enron after the rolling blackmail… which was admittedly heroic and kind of awesome. Otherwise… he’s a jackass! And… it seems like you see the same 6 or 7 names every cycle as they all play this game of musical chairs changing positions. Totally lame. Ugh, a tactical vote at best… but at least i get to vote FOR Phil and Debra this cycle.

United States Senate –
Oh DiFi! DiFi, DiFi, DiFi… you bum me out, i’m glad this will be your last Senate term, as you are a constant source of elitism and frustration. I hate that you are so beholden to big business, you’re most “reliable” when it comes time for the one liberal boilerplate issue I am most mushy on… gun control. I hate that you embolden torturers, and need to have crushing amounts of public outrage before opposing real a-holes like John Roberts confirmation. There are a few things you are ok on, but overall, the only reason to vote for you is because Democrats need to take control of the Senate to keep checks and balances and such around. I may vote for you, I may not… I wrote myself in for the primary, because quite frankly, I could do a hell of a lot better job. If I do vote for you, it’s because Dick Mountjoy, while a wonderful pr0nstar name would be a absolutely horrid Senator, not because you are worth a damn at all.

United States Representative-
Barbara Lee
One of my top 10 politicians ever, and my representative, if half of the congresspeople out there had even a quarter of her integrity and guts we’d be a lot better off.

State Assembley-
Sandre Swanson
Seems like a good dude, smart progressive type, and Babs likes him. Besides what am I going to do, vote “Peace and Freedom”? It’s Oakland baby!

Judges
re-elect all… got caught with my pants down on this one, but since I don’t have any beefs rightn ow, i’ll just be ready next time.

Statewide propositions.
Proposition 1A
NO!
I already have to do the legislatures job a couple times a year because so many props like this have the budget locked down.
fuggit. Transportation funding is vital, but mandatory amounts are dumb, and i’m sick of it, and having to research these stupid things.

NO!

Propositions 1B-1E
Yes.
I’m still pissed that this somehow has turned into “Arnold’s issue” when he had to be dragged kicking and screaming into it just in time for election season. But whaever… infrastructure is important.

Now again, don’t we elect a fracking legislature for this crapola???
STOP BOTHERING ME!!!

Proposition 83
NO!!
A Blatant sop to get out the religious types that are always concerned about “focusing on the family” as well as authoritarian a-holes. Look, I think sex offenders are horrible too, but this is Draconian! GPS monitoring for life?
That’s a slippery damn slope. All of the empty posturing that goes over sex offenders sickens me almost as much as the offending itself. Ok, not really… but still… come now. The standards are fine now.

Proposition 84
Yes
Bond measure make me curl up my lip like Billy Idol, because the mantra seems to be “borrow, borrow, borrow”, but this is about water safety and flood control. Every week in rainy times when I drive to Roseville and I see the Delta swelling, I get images of the levees and New Orleans.

no thanks.
It’s a begrudging yes, but a yes, nonetheless.

Proposition 85
FUCK NO!!!
Yet again another winger “base turner outter”, a “waiting period and parental notification before termination of a minor’s pregnancy”. Right, because it’s far too easy to have this horrible operation performed now right? I am for personal freedom, and that includes a woman’s right to have dominion of her own body, including minors.
I cannot emphasize FUCK NO, enough.

Proposition 86
Yes (with some waffling)
Sorry smokers! Try to see beyond the pocketbook on this one.
I’m all for everybodies personal freedom to fuck up their lungs and give themselves cancer, but we still don’t have real education about the drug that is tobacco and we need that.

a few concerns have been raised by some friends of mine on this… mainly that it goes to private hospitals and adds stuff into the constitution, which bums me out… but still, i’m a soft yes.

Proposition 87
HELL YES!
Reduce dependence on foreign oil? Reduce air pollution?
Wait, why would anybody be against this again?
Oh yeah… the oil companies.
Screw them!

Proposition 88
No
It sounds good on first read, property tax to pay for more funding for schools right?
It creates a bad amount of bureaucracy, and who decides what are “academically successful” schools anyway?
lame!
no.

Proposition 89
YES YES YES! HELL YES!!
This is the public financing of elections, if you are going to vote for only two things this year… well… then you are being silly, but the key is to vote for Phil Angelides and this. Because god damn… I mean GOD DAMN… this will fix soooo many of our problems. Not the least of which is that you need to be an eccentric billionaire to win a statewide race in this damn Nationstate of ours called CA.

Proposition 90
NO!
Uh… dude? Why are NY Libertiarians writing propositions for California?
Eminant domain is BS, but so is this:
From speakout:

This measure has so much to dislike that it brings together in opposition one of the most unusual alliances imaginable. Joining virtually every environmental group in the state in opposition are taxpayers rights groups, the California Chamber of Commerce, consumer groups, scientists and public health agencies and even the California Farm Bureau.

That a-hole Tom McClintock likes it too, so that should be reason enough to vote no. A good rule of thumb is if the left and right both agree on something, there’s probably something significant happening.

Pretty much everybody agrees this one is BS.
NO!

—

City of Oakland

Measure M
yes
Whatever. Some BS about the polce and fire retirement board… just reading about it made my attention wander, there’s no argument against, no penalty. If it wasn’t about peoples retirement I wouldn’t have voted either way at all.

Measure N
YES!
Kick ass new library at Henry J. Kaiser center?!
HELL YEAH!

edit: and also more funding for critical library infrastructure and other things my librarian friends can tell you more about.

Measure O
YES YES YES!
If you are against this Measure you are truly against Democracy… come on… ranked choice voting! Who loses? We’d be looking at city council member Aimee Allison if this already went through!
besides less elections = better in my book.

DAN KALB’s RECOMMENDATIONS – NOVEMBER 2006 BALLOT

Governor – PHIL ANGELIDES
  California is a blue state that deserves a real Democratic Governor.  Mr. Angelides will enact progressive reforms in health care, provide more funding for public education, and ensure strong protections for our environment. 

Lt. Governor – JOHN GARAMENDI – The Republican candidate in this race is the most right-wing state legislator in office today.  Mr. Garamendi will use this office to promote Democratic values and help protect consumers and the environment.  We must stop McClintock from getting elected to this position, which is only a heart-beat away from the Governor’s office.  www.garamendi.org

Secretary of State – DEBRA BOWEN – Ms. Bowen will make sure our voting systems are free from corruption.  She is a strong, no-nonsense person who will stand up to local election officials who, all too often, don’t seem to be terribly concerned about having the best voting equipment available.  The appointed incumbent is a nice enough guy, but this job requires someone tougher.  Vote Bowen.  www.debrabowen.com

State Controller – JOHN CHIANG – Mr. Chiang is probably the most qualified person to run for this office in my lifetime.  He is an elected member of the State Board of Equalization and a former tax law specialist with degrees in finance and law.  He has worked for Democratic elected officials in the past and will be a hard-working Controller.  www.chiangforcalifornia.com

State Treasurer – BILL LOCKYER – Mr. Lockyer, our current Attorney General, will win this office rather easily.  That’s fine, since he would be much better than his Republican opponent. 

Attorney General – JERRY BROWN – The office of Attorney General is the second most important office in the state.  Whatever you may think of Jerry Brown, he will no doubt be a much stronger Attorney General than his Republican opponent when it comes to protecting consumers and the environment.  We can’t afford another right-wing attorney general in our state.  Vote for Jerry.  www.jerrybrown.org

Insurance Commissioner – CRUZ BUSTAMANTE – This race is a disappointment with two rather mediocre candidates for an important statewide office.  The Republican candidate, STEVE POIZNER, is a multi-millionaire with no relevant experience in this area.  The Democratic candidate, Bustamante, has been a lackluster Lt. Governor.  Nevertheless, I choose Cruz, although I there are folks I respect who will be voting for Poizner. 

United States Senator – DIANNE FEINSTEIN

Member, Bd. of Equalization –
  Seat #1 – BETTY T. YEE
  Seat #4 – JUDY CHU

State Senate
  2nd S.D. – PAT WIGGINS
  6th S.D. – DARRELL STEINBERG (Excellent!)
  8th S.D. – LELAND YEE
  10th S.D. – ELLEN CORBETT
  12th S.D. – WILEY NICKEL
  26th S.D. – MARK RIDLEY-THOMAS

State Assembly
  6th A.D. – JARED HUFFMAN (strong enviro!)
  11th A.D. – MARK DESAULNIER
  12th A.D. – FIONA MA
  13th A.D. – MARK LENO
  14th A.D. – LONI HANCOCK
  16th A.D. – SANDRÉ SWANSON
  18th A.D. – MARY HAYASHI
  79th A.D. – MARY SALAS

Member of Congress
  8th C.D. – NANCY PELOSI – Future Speaker of-the-House
  9th C.D. – BARBARA LEE
  11th C.D. – JERRY MCNERNEY – This is our best chance in California to pick up a seat in the House.  The incumbent, Mr. Pombo, is one of the most anti-environmental and pro-Bush members of Congress in the country.  Go to www.jerrymcnerney.org to see how you can help get Jerry elected. 
  12th C.D. – TOM LANTOS
  27th C.D. – BRAD SHERMAN 

STATE PROPOSITIONS:

1A – NO – Transportation Funding Constitutional Amendment.  This Amendment would prohibit the state from using the sales tax revenue on motor fuels for any purpose other than transportation funding as specified in the previously approved Proposition 42.  This is too restrictive.  Prop 42 was a mistake; this amendment would just make it worse by reducing much-needed flexibility in tough economic times.  It deserves a ‘NO’ vote. 

1B – Yes – Highway Construction and Repair, Transit Expansion, and Air Quality Bond Act.  This bond proposal will fund improvements and repairs to highways and local roads, as well as seismic upgrades of bridges.  Also provides funds for public transit and air quality mitigation near ports.  There are many things to not like in this bond proposal, but there are also some good things.  Additionally, we need to get this type of bond out of the way, so we can focus on High Speed Rail in 2008. 

1C – YES – Housing and Emergency Shelter Trust Fund Bond Act.  This bond proposal will fund important shelters for battered women and their children, as well as new housing for low-income senior citizens.  Also provides home ownership financial assistance for disabled residents and accessibility upgrades in apartment buildings. 

1D – YES – K-12 and University Facilities Bond Act.  This bond proposal will fund much-needed construction and renovation of public school facilities to relieve over-crowding, improve seismic safety, repair deteriorating school buildings, and fund vocational education facilities throughout the state.  Includes higher education facilities as well. 

1E – YES – Flood Disaster Prevention Bond Act.  This bond proposal will fund repairs and renovations to existing flood control structures, including levees along the delta. 

83 – NO – Sex Offenders Punishment, Restrictions and Monitoring.  This is a costly and mostly unnecessary initiative that will let every city and town expand residency restrictions for all sex offenders, even misdemeanor violators who served their time decades ago.  It would also require an expensive and unproven lifetime GPS tracking system that could take law enforcement resources away from going after truly violent predators.  See www.cacj.org for more info. 

84 – YES – Water Quality, Parks and Natural Resource Conservation Bonds.  This bond initiative authorizes $5.4 billion in bonds for improvements in water management and drinking water quality, protection of rivers, natural lakes and coastal fisheries, improvements in flood control projects, acquisition and enhancement of local, regional and state parks, protection of coastal watersheds and wildlife habitats.  More info at www.Yeson84.com. 

85 – NO – Parental Notification and Mandatory Waiting Period for Abortions by Minors.  This Constitutional Amendment would mandate that doctors deny an abortion to teenagers until the parent is notified and a waiting period has gone by. This measure creates onerous procedures for minors, including those in troubled families, to ob-tain a lawful abortion.  More info at www.NOon85.com. 

86 – YES – Increase in Cigarette Tax to Fund Health Programs and Emergency Room Expenses.  This initiative adds an additional 13¢ tax per cigarette to fund hospital emergency services, nurse training programs, nonprofit clinics, children’s health care coverage, heart disease, stroke and cervical cancer programs, and tobacco control research, among other health-related programs.  More info at www.Yesprop86.com.

87 – YES – Alternative Energy Funded by Oil Extraction Fee on In-state Oil Producers.  This initiative creates 10-year oil severance tax to fund much-needed clean energy and alternative fuel incentives, research and development.  All other oil-producing states currently have an oil severance tax except California.  Endorsed by Bill Clinton, Al Gore, and the Union of Concerned Scientists.  More info at www.Yeson87.com.

88 – YES – $50 Property Parcel Tax to Fund Public Education needs.  This initiative creates a modest $50 per parcel state property tax earmarked for much-needed public education expenses.  This is supported by Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell. 

89 – YES – Public Financing of Political Campaigns and Campaign Spending Limits.  Known as the California Clean Money initiative, this proposition creates a system of public financing of state political campaigns funded by a minor increase in the corporate tax rate.  This will likely reduce the influence of private corporate contributors.  Supported by CA Common Cause, League of Women Voters, and the Alameda County Democratic Party.  More info at www.Yeson89.org.

90 – NO – Regulation of Private Property and Limits on Government’s Ability to Adopt Certain Laws.  This Constitutional Amendment is an extreme proposal that would cost taxpayers and local governments millions of dollars and make it much more difficult to enact new land use, housing, and consumer and environmental protection laws.  This is not merely about eminent domain—it’s about private interests versus the public interest.  Please vote NO!  More info at www.NoProp90.com.

Selected local races/measures below…

Non-partisan City Offices, Special Districts, and Judicial Races (Dan’s recommendations, cont.)

  Oakland City Auditor – COURTNEY RUBY

  Oakland City Council (District #2) – AIMEE ALLISON – This is a tough choice.  There are two quality candidates running for this seat.  On balance, I’ll go with the one who supported Ron Dellums for Mayor and appears more willing to push the envelope. 

  Berkeley Mayor – TOM BATES

  Berkeley City Council (#7) – KRISS WORTHINGTON

Judge, Superior Court (#21) – DENNIS HAYASHI

A.C. Transit District (#3) – ELSA ORTIZ
A.C. Transit District (#4) – ROCKY FERNANDEZ
A.C. Transit District (a.l.) – REBECCA KAPLAN

BART Board (#4) – CAROLE WARD ALLEN
BART Board (#8) – EMILY D. DRENNEN

East Bay Municipal Utility District (#4) – ANDY KATZ

East Bay Regional Park District (#1) – NANCY SKINNER

Peralta Community College District (#3) – LINDA HANDY

Peralta Community College District (#5) – WILLIAM RILEY

Peralta Community College District (#7) – ABEL GUILLEN (qualified new voice for this district!)

El Cerrito City Council – JANET ABELSON, SANDI POTTER

Richmond City Council – JIM ROGERS, MARIA VIRAMONTES

San Francisco Supervisors –
  District #2 – MICHELA ALIOTO-PIER
  District #4 – This is a rather disappointing field of candidates for the Sunset district.  I urge you to vote for HOUSTON ZHENG as your 1st choice, then JAYNRY MAK as your choice #2.  Mr. Zheng will not win, but voting for him could be a way to protest the mediocre field of candidates available to you.  Of the leading candidates, I give the edge to Ms. Mak. 
  District #6 – CHRIS DALY (strong progressive who deserves re-election!)
  District #8 – ALIX ROSENTHAL – Mr. Dufty has served this district reasonably well and has done a better job overall than some had suspected; however, Ms. Rosenthal is a bright, energetic attorney who is endorsed by the S.F. League of Conservation Voters and the local Sierra Club group.  On balance, she gets my recommendation. 
  District #10 – SOPHIE MAXWELL (excellent incumbent who deserves re-election)

San Francisco Assessor – PHIL TING

San Francisco Public Defender – JEFF ADACHI

San Francisco Community College Board of Trustees – JOHN RIZZO, LAWRENCE WONG

San Francisco Board of Education – There are more than three good candidates running for S.F. School Board this year.  Worthy candidates include (in alphabetical order) Bayard Fong, Dan Kelly, Kim Knox, Kim-Shree Maufas, and Robert Twomey.  Maybe others as well. Vote for 3 only. 

Justices of the State Supreme Court –
  JOYCE L. KENNARD – Retain – YES
  CAROL A. CORRIGAN – Retain – YES

LOCAL Ballot Measures…

Oakland City Ballot Measures:

  Measure M – ? – Police and Fire Retirement Invest-ments.  Removes certain investment restrictions for the old Police/Fire Retirement System (PFRS).  Could lead to some risky investment decisions. 

  Measure N – YES – Library Bond Measure.  Library improvement and expansion bond to construct new Main Library and renovate selected branches.  Needs 2/3 vote. 

  Measure O – YES – Ranked Choice Voting.  Creates an Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) system for local elections that allows voters to rank their choices for a given office.  Saves money by avoiding costly runoff elections and will likely reduce negative campaigning. Please Vote YES!

San Francisco Ballot Measures

  Measure A – YES
  Measure B –  ? (no recommendation)
  Measure C –  ? (no recommendation)
  Measure D – YES
  Measure E – YES
  Measure F – YES
  Measure G – YES
  Measure H – YES
  Measure I – YES
  Measure J – YES
  Measure K – YES

Other Jurisdiction Local Ballot Measures

  Berkeley Measure G – YES – Greenhouse Gas Emissions
  Berkeley Measure I – NO – Condo Conversions

  Fremont Measure K – YES – Open Space Protection

  Los Angeles Measure H – YES – Affordable Housing

  Santa Clara County Measure A – YES – Conservation of Hillsides, Watersheds, and Agricultural Lands

  Sacramento County Measure L – YES – Public Power
  Yolo County Measures H & I – YES – Public Power