Archive for February, 2009
THE CHRONICLE BEFITS SAN FRANCISCO
28 February 2009The 144-year-old Chronicle is a ‘quirky’ newspaper
for a ‘quirky’ City
BY JAMES RAINEY
When a newspaper goes belly up, journalists tend to talk about the loss of a government watchdog, declining civic engagement and the threat to our democracy.
So when those sober words came flowing out of Denver last week over the collapse of the Rocky Mountain [...]
WILL OBAMA END SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP WITH BRITAIN
28 February 2009When Gordon Brown enters the Oval Office, he will be the first European leader
to meet Barack Obama since he became president
BY TIM SHIPMAN
In the marbled halls of the British ambassador’s residence in Washington, there is modest satisfaction that the prime minister has beaten his European counterparts - Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, and Angela [...]
BRUCE WILLIS SUED FOR QUITTING MOVIE
28 February 2009Acting stars Bruce Willis, left, Ashton Kutcher
and Demi Moore in California
Hollywood star Bruce Willis and his production company are being sued in Los Angeles for $4 million for breach of contract.
A lawsuit alleges Willis Brother Films agreed on a contract with three companies to produce the feature film Three Stories About Joan.
The actor was set [...]
EVEN WARREN BUFFETT SINGING THE BLUES - ECONOMY IN SHAMBLES, BUFFETT NODS
28 February 2009
Warren Buffett
BY JONATHAN STEMPEL
NEW YORK - Berkshire Hathaway Inc, Warren Buffett’s insurance and investment company, barely broke even in the fourth quarter because of losses on derivatives contracts tied to the stock market.
Profit fell 96 percent, the fifth straight quarterly decline, and Berkshire’s net worth tumbled $10.9 billion in the year’s final three months. [...]
PARABLES OF A ZEN MASTER NEXT DOOR
28 February 2009Order Now
Edward Kardos
Today we are accustomed to a busy and hectic life balancing family, job and pleasures. Our spiritual life may be overlooked or may be wedged in with little thought. These parables remind us to think about what we find important. Comfortable and non-threatening, each story takes on meaning regardless of our own faith [...]
THE RETURN OF HOOVERVILLE - CAR AND TENT CITIES ON THE RISE IN SAN FRANCISCO
28 February 2009BY THEA CHROMAN
San Francisco’s per capita homeless rate has long been the highest in the country. But in the past year, it shot up 40 percent, by some measures. The increase came as foreclosures put pressure on the rental market, the budget crisis slowed aid, and the job market tightened up.
The face of the homeless [...]
CHINESE POLICE SHOOT TIBETAN MONK WHO SET HIMSELF ON FIRE
28 February 2009A young Tibetan monk was shot by Chinese police after he set himself on fire Friday, the third day of the Tibetan New Year, at a market in Sichuan province’s Aba prefecture, said Tibetan activist groups, citing eyewitnesses.
Many Tibetans this year are avoiding celebrating the New Year or are instead using the 15-day holiday [...]
SAN FRANCISCO SHOOTINGS DU JOUR - TWO SHOTS IN BROAD DAYLIGHT 100 BLOCK COMMER COURT
28 February 2009San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom sulks
when alleged to lack leadership on public safety.
July 2007 meeting of the Polk Street Merchants Association.
Photo by Bill Wilson © 2007-2009
Two men were shot this afternoon in San Francisco’s Bayview District, a police sergeant said.
At about 12:10 p.m., police received a call about a shooting in the 100 block of [...]
CAN THIS YEAR’S FEEL-GOOD MOVIE SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE ALSO DO GOOD
28 February 2009
BY RICHARD CHIN
For the millions of children who live in the world’s poorest communities, like Slumdog Millionaire’s Jamal Malik, just making it to adulthood is a real challenge.
As it makes its victory rounds, the real test of Slumdog Millionaire is whether this year’s undisputed feel-good movie is able to move hearts and [...]
ROADMAP FOR MARRIAGE EQUALITY PROPONENTS IN WAKE OF PROP 8
28 February 2009SAN FRANCISCO - “It is time to implement the collective wisdom gathered from across the state, harness the renewed passion and creativity of grassroots power and chart our course towards securing marriage equality that is wiser and stronger than ever before,” said Molly McKay, Marriage Equality USA Media Director.
“Our third and final report [...]
DOYLE DRIVE RECONSTRUCTION EXPEDITED - MAYOR NEWSOM, SPEAKER PELOSI ANNOUNCE
28 February 2009Today Mayor Gavin Newsom and Speaker Nancy Pelosi joined regional leaders in announcing that construction to replace Doyle Drive, the main southern approach to the Golden Gate Bridge, will be expedited by Caltrans and save taxpayers $90 million dollars.
Mayor Gavin Newsom speaking with, seated from left, Will Kempton,
Caltrain Executive Diretor; Speaker Pelosi, and [...]
OBAMA DEFENDS BUDGET - CASTS HIMSELF POPULIST CRUSADER AGAINST SPECIAL INTERESTS
28 February 2009Democrats who donned populist mantle
BY PETER BAKER
WASHINGTON — President Obama described his expansive budget proposal on Saturday as “a threat to the status quo in Washington” and cast himself as a populist crusader willing to do battle with special interests to expand health care, curb pollution and improve education.
“I didn’t come here to do the [...]
STATES RAISING TAXES STILL MAY FALL SHORT IN REVENUES - EVEN HIGH NET INCOMES DOWN PRECIPITOUSLY
28 February 2009California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signs the 2009-10 state budget
at the State Capitol in Sacramento, California February 20, 2009
BY JOAN GRALLA
Analysis
NEW YORK - U.S. states, already battered by the financial crisis, risk suffering a further hit to their coffers when individuals file their income tax returns in April.
Falling income tax receipts from wealthy individuals could further [...]
MORE THAN 260 SAN FRANCISCO CITY WORKERS RECEIVE LAYOFF NOTICES
27 February 2009More than 260 San Francisco city employees were handed layoff notices today, according to a spokesman for Mayor Gavin Newsom.
Effective May 1, the city will be laying off 262 employees from a variety of departments, and will also get rid of 57 vacant positions, spokesman Joe Arellano said.
The cuts are expected to save the city [...]
OBAMA HEALTHCARE PLAN RAISES HOPES, WORRIES
27 February 2009BY JULIE STEENHUYSEN
CHICAGO - Many Americans are crossing their fingers that President Barack Obama’s ambitious $634 billion plan to reform the U.S. healthcare system — funded by a mix of tax increases and Medicare spending cuts — will succeed, but they are worried, too.
“I think it’s a major first step. Other than when Hillary Clinton [...]
SAN FRANCISCO BAY TO BREAKERS REVISED POLICIES ANNOUNCED
27 February 2009HEAT ADVISORY MAY 17 2009
Following meetings with City of San Francisco city agencies, including the Office of Mayor, the Interdepartmental Staff Committee on Traffic and Transportation (ISCOTT) and Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, AEG, race organizer for the ING Bay to Breakers today announced revised policies to improve the safety and enjoyment of the race for runners, [...]
TOP DEMOCRATS QUESTION OBAMA IRAQ TROOP WITHDRAWAL PLAN
27 February 2009House Speaker Nancy Pelosi earlier this week questioned
the need to keep 50,000 troops in Iraq until 2011
Top Democrats have expressed concern over President Obama’s plan to draw down nearly two-thirds of U.S. forces in Iraq by August 2010, while some key Republicans are offering praise.
At issue: Obama plans to leave between 35,000 to 50,000 residual [...]
GOVERNOR SCHWARZENEGGER APPOINTMENTS - FEBRUARY 27 2009
27 February 2009Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today announced the following appointments.
Sophia Angelis, 17, of Lake Arrowhead, has been appointed to the State Board of Education. She is an honor student in her senior year at Rim of the World High School. Angelis has been an assistant at Wildflowers since 2004 and was formerly a math tutor for bilingual [...]
SAN FRANCISCO MAYOR GAVIN NEWSOM PURSUES OCEAN POWER
27 February 2009
San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom speaking on ocean power
before the Golden Gate Bridge June 25 2007
Photos by Bill Wilson © 2007-2009
BY TOM ZELLER JR.
Following up on last week’s unveiling of electric vehicle charging stations in front of San Francisco City Hall, Mayor Gavin Newsom is apparently turning his attention to ocean power.
San Francisco Mayor [...]
ECONOMY CONTRACTION WORST IN 25 YEARS
27 February 2009BY ANNYS SHIN
The U.S. economy shrank by a larger-than-expected annualized rate of 6.2 percent during the final three months of 2008, the worst showing in about 25 years, according to a revised government estimate out today.
The new estimate of the fourth-quarter gross domestic product from the Commerce Department is far worse than the initial [...]
CALIFORNIA UNEMPLOYMENT RATE REACHES 10.1%
27 February 2009With more than 1 in 10 workers unemployed in January,
the state registers its highest jobless rate since June 1983,
not far below the record of 11%
BY MARC LIFSHER
More than 1 in 10 California workers were unemployed in January, the largest percentage in nearly 26 years, the state reported today.
The 10.1% jobless rate is the highest [...]
COMMUNITY CELEBRATION OF NEW PORTOLA LIBRARY SATURDAY
27 February 2009The Portola neighborhood will come together to celebrate the new Portola Branch Library February 28
Replacing a leased facility on San Bruno Avenue, the brand-new library at 380 Bacon St. will feature more books and materials, a dedicated teen space, an expanded children’s area, plus a program room accessible after hours for community meetings.
Children’s Area
Photos [...]
UNITED STATES TO WITHDRAW MOST TROOPS FROM IRAQ BY END OF 2010
27 February 2009President Obama talks about his Iraq War withdrawal plan
at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, on Friday
President Obama said Friday he plans to withdraw most U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of August 2010.
Between 35,000 to 50,000 troops will remain in Iraq, he said. They would be withdrawn gradually until all U.S. forces are out of [...]
JENNIFER SIEBEL NEWSOM’S RACY THREESOME FLICK HITS SILVER SCREEN TODAY
27 February 2009Jennifer Siebel Newson, the actress who married San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom, is about to be on the big screen in a movie called “The Trouble with Love,” which includes a racy threesome sex scene. It is getting a limited release today.
On her personal website Siebel wrote, “The Trouble with Romance will be released [...]
THE DRAGON’S GIFT – The Sacred Arts of Bhutan
27 February 2009At the Asian Art Museum through May 10th
A rare opportunity to view the Buddhist arts of the mystical kingdom of Bhutan –
“The Last Shangri-La”
Now at the ASIAN ART MUSEUM until Sunday, May 10th – THE DRAGON’S GIFT: The Sacred Arts of Bhutan. Located in the Himalayas to the east of Mount Everest and Nepal, Bhutan [...]