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Economy

What if you were rich?

11.15.11 - 3:55 pm | Tim Redmond |
(14)

There seem to be more and more millionaires coming out of the nicely paneled woodwork to tell us that they should pay higher taxes.  I heard one of these folks on NPR yesterday and she was talking about what made her happy in life. Read more »

Powerful, mostly peaceful Oakland action ends badly

11.03.11 - 3:43 pm | Steven T. Jones |
(19)
Protesters block Citibank in the morning. The window was smashed by mid-afternoon.
A crowd of thousands filled the streets around Oakland City Hall.
A peaceful protesters weighs in against the smashing of this Chase Bank window.
Occupy Oakland showed a remarkable level of organization to pull together a general strike.
Large banner were strung across 14th and Broadway and other intersections.
Police watch marchers head toward the Port, standing down until late at night.
A large and diverse group of people marched from downtown
Thousands of protesters fill the bridge headed to shut down the Port.

After a long day of mostly peaceful demonstrations by thousands of protesters who joined OccupyOakland's General Strike and Day of Action yesterday, it's still unclear why the Oakland Police – which had stood down the entire day, leaving the movement to self-police – massed in riot gear around midnight and used tear gas and other projectiles to clear the streets and make a reported 80 arrests.Read more »

Lee benefits from vetoing health care reform

11.01.11 - 4:33 pm | Steven T. Jones |
(25)

Downtown groups that pressured Mayor Ed Lee to veto legislation that would have prevented businesses from raiding their employees' health savings accounts have been funneling big bucks into independent expenditure campaigns formed to keep Lee in the Mayor's Office.Read more »

The left and jobs

11.01.11 - 12:32 pm | Tim Redmond |
(17)

Wow, there's a new coalition in town! It's called "The Bay Guardian Left." And it's so influential -- and so misguided -- that it's destroyed progressive hope of winning the mayor's office. This from Randy Shaw at BeyondChron, who is sounding more and more like someone who thinks the private sector is going to pull us out of this recession:Read more »

Sean Parker: "I am paying far too little in taxes"

10.26.11 - 1:53 pm | Rebecca Bowe |
(14)

Billionaire tech investor Sean Parker responded to an article that appeared in last week's issue of the Guardian, writing in an email that he is not "some conservative a*hole." Read more »

24 hours of occupation

Oakland activists transform a city square and wrestle with organizing a movement
10.25.11 - 7:55 pm | Rebecca Bowe |
(1)

rebeccab@sfbg.com

No sooner had I arrived at downtown Oakland's Frank H. Ogawa Plaza — christened Oscar Grant Plaza by the activists who have established the Occupy Oakland encampment there –than the police showed up.Read more »

Oakland is hella occupied

10.17.11 - 4:20 pm | Rebecca Bowe |
(0)
Signs have been placed throughout Frank Ogawa plaza for the Occupy Oakland encampment. One says, "Welcome to Oscar Grant Plaza."
This artistic structure provides a perch where protesters can look out over the tent city in the heart of Oakland.
Tents are staked close together, but activists reported that few fights have broken out despite the close quarters.
Hip-hop artist Queen Deelah delivered a spoken word performance at an Oct. 15 rally.
"We have to remake it. We have to transform it. We have to be here tomorrow, the next day, and the day after." -Danny Glover
"There's always money for wars, and no money for our social programs," noted Henry Clark of the West County Toxics Coalition.
Occupy Oakland has an arts and craft area, and the entire square is adorned with banners bearing art and political slogans.
The first aid tent is stocked, and medics are on hand.
Will the Occupy Oakland encampment give activists a seat at the table?

The Occupy Oakland encampment at Frank Ogawa Plaza is about 150 strong at any given time, and with a march, rally, and live musical performances on Oct. 15, the protest zone in the heart of Oakland was buzzing with energy.Read more »

OccupySF protesters shut down Wells Fargo HQ

10.12.11 - 4:14 pm | Yael Chanoff |
(30)
Photo by Lydia Daniller
Photo by Lydia Daniller
Photo by Lydia Daniller
Author Naomi Klein addresses the crowd. Photo by Brooke Anderson

At 7 a.m. this morning (Wed/12), protesters against corporate greed were poised for one of the most impactful actions since OccupySF began.

About 50 people associated with the Foreclose Wall Street coalition were seated in front of all the entrances to the Wells Fargo corporate headquarters on California and Montgomery streets. Back at the site of the OccupySF camp in front of the Federal Reserve Bank on Market Street, protesters gathered. They held a rally there that included a speech from Sup. John Avalos, the only mayoral candidate to actively support the movement.

Read more »

Why are Harris, Newsom, and other pols silent on the federal pot crackdown?

10.12.11 - 3:19 pm | Steven T. Jones |
(24)

UPDATED BELOW As I worked on this week's story about the federal crackdown on California's marijuana industry, I tried to get a statement from California Attorney General Kamala Harris. After all, it's her job to defend California's medical marijuana laws, which she was fairly supportive of as our district attorney. And she was an early Barack Obama backer who could probably get him or U.S. Read more »

On the streets with Occupy San Francisco

09.30.11 - 3:23 pm | Steven T. Jones |
(31)
Protesters rally outside Charles Schwab.
SF Labor Council director Tim Paulson was among the marchers.
John Avalos was the only mayoral candidate at the rally and march.
Erin Kramer (left) and Robin Kralique send their messages.
Protesters occupied the Chase Bank on Market.
Brenda Reed acknowledges the crowd as she's led away by police.
City workers with SEIU Local 1021 helped guide the march.

The messages sounded yesterday on the streets of San Francisco – delivered in speeches, chants, signs, songs, interviews, and the petition handed to Chase Bank officials by a half-dozen protesters before their arrest – should resonate with most Americans. After all, while rich corporations and individuals have been accruing ever more wealth, the vast majority of us have been falling behind.Read more »