Occupied Hayes Valley site cleared by police, seven held

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"#GeziGardens, occupied permaculture farm in SF is being raided by 100's of riot cops right now!" read the Gezi Gardens Twitter at about 2am last night.

The site, formerly known as Hayes Valley Farm, has been occupied since June 1 by a group calling themselves "Free the Land" or "Liberate the Land" after Hayes Valley Farm moved out quietly on May 31, as part of a conditional use deal with the city that allowed the farm to operate until the city-owned site is developed into condos (including 40 units for low-income residents).  

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Projection

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One of the more hilarious aspects of the back and forth in "Mr Redmond's Cyber Playpen" is the inevitable scream from Redmond's adversaries of "envy" every time Redmond posts anything critical of SF's moneyed class. Imputing motive into why someone says something as a way of derailing a discussion is old hat as is. Who cares why something is written, it's there, debate its merits. But the automatic assumption that Redmond's bitterness over his failure in business leads him to muck-rake isn't even asinine, it's borderline demented.Read more »

Campos: "Tamale Lady will not go down!" Options proposed

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She's been slinging her steamy goodness to famished drunkards out of a trash bag in a cooler strapped to a wagon for years with no problem (other than some grumbles about a recent, tiny price hike). But it looks like the the health department -- or threat of the health department -- may have finally caught up with the beloved Tamale Lady, aka Virginia Ramos.

Today, SF's Internet melted with news that she had been asked to not sell her tamales at Zeitgeist. That bar posted a message to its Facebook:

We are sad to announce that the Tamale Lady may no longer sell her tamales at Zeitgeist. This is forced on us by SF city codes and regulations.

The SF Department of Public Health has been making efforts recently to reign in unlicensed food vendors, which may have sparked the Zeitgeist reaction -- although the origins of the Zeitgeist decision remain hazy.

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Everyone but Mayor Lee sees SF's worsening "housing affordability crisis"

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There was a clear theme that ran through yesterday’s Board of Supervisors meeting from beginning to end, something understood equally by renters, homeowners, and politicians from across the political spectrum: San Francisco has a crisis of housing affordability that is forcing people from the city.Read more »

Behind the scenes with Magic Fight and the Music Video Race

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All photos by Chris Stevens

By now you’ve read all about the second annual Music Video Race. No? Well get on that. And then check out these additional photos, all shot on location at the SUB-Mission space by Chris Stevens. Read more »

Before Outside Lands: death and train-tripping with Wavves

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As we collectively await Outside Lands 2013 (August 9-11, Golden Gate Park) and attempt to enjoy summer -- the sun’s actually here, in the city! -- I decided to get productive. This year’s lineup for the festival is again a juxtaposition of big names like Paul McCartney, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Vampire Weekend and kick-ass local artists like the Easy Leaves and Midi Matilda. Oh yeah, and there are, of course, tons more acts in between, which you can check out here.

Wanting to check in on bands during the pre-festival festivities, I’m kicking off this series with a quick and dirty email interview with San Diego-based garage rock group, Wavves. Given the indie band's track record with journalists, it seems I was pretty lucky to have received a reply. Frontperson Nathan Williams talks practical jokes and dying while bassist Stephen Pope recounts a horrific mushrooms experience (never trip on a train) and explains why he doesn't mess with people. Read more »

David Chiu's flextime

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I'm not surprised that the folks at the Chamber of Commerce are all agitated about Sup. David Chiu's proposal to expand family-friendly scheduling at local businesses. The Chamber's Jim Lazarus is typically out of control:Read more »

Explaining Osama and 9/11

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My oldest son just graduated elemetary school and so my wife and I gave him an IPad as gift. He loves the thing. Unlike his gadget n geegaw loathing father, he takes to that stuff with a vengeance.Read more »

Hot sexy events: Pride-perfect gear

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Deep in the bowels of Stevenson Street, there lies a company that could. Could surf the waves of an ever-changing Internet, could accurately predict media consumption trends, could start the tech tsunami engulfing the Mid-Market neighborhood. GameLink could do it -- and as in so many cases, porn was the vehicle to this success. Read more about my recent trip to the company's HQ in this week's print edition of the good 'ol Bay Guardian, and read on for VP of Business Development Jeff Dillon's top sex toy picks for Pride season. (Because what better way to spend your Hump Day than shopping for lube from your cubicle?) Read more »

The Mission 'douchebags'

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Okay, you have to read this. When a 1990s tech-startup guy who admits he was part of the last generation of gentrification is now so fed up with the new arrival of high-paid techies that he's ready to leave, it's pretty serious.

Chris Tacy makes an excellent point: When you move into the Mission, you need to understand that there are already other people living there, some of whom have been there a long time, and that it isn't just you're rich-kids playground:Read more »