Poll: 73 percent in favor of simple majority vote for budget legislation

03.23.10 - 1:49 pm | sfbg |

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By Nima Maghame

A new poll by David Binder of DB-Research, conducted on behalf of Californians For Democracy, shows that 73 percent of California voters support a simple majority vote for revenue and budget legislation. Voters were asked to weigh this proposal: “All legislation on revenue and budget must be determined by a majority vote. Would you vote for it?” In response, 73 percent said yes, and 22 percent said no.

The findings are being hailed as a ringing endorsement for the California Democracy Act, a November 2010 ballot initiative authored by UC Berkeley Professor George Lakoff that would change the California Constitution from requiring a two-thirds vote of the Legislature to approve budget and tax proposals to a simple majority rule. Californians for Democracy is in the process of gathering signatures for the initiative.

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bruce

End the nightlife crackdown

03.23.10 - 1:31 pm | Guardian Staff Writers |

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Harassing parties and clubs shouldn't be a priority for a cash-strapped city's police department

EDITORIAL Police Chief George Gascón has asked for more authority to crack down on rogue cops, and has vowed to clean up the small handful of bad actors who are giving the department an ugly reputation for violence and abuse. But before San Franciscans are going to trust the chief, he's got to show some evidence that he's serious — and cleaning up the mess that is Southern Station's crackdown on nightlife would be a great place to start.Read more »

sexsf

Hot sex events this week: March 24-30

03.23.10 - 10:49 am | Caitlin Donohue |

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Spring is in the air -- how else to explain the uptick in the moods of our neighborhood flyboys and meter maids? Not to mention those high-waisted short-shorts the young people are sporting. I say, since May through July’s gonna be foggy anyways, let’s call it summer. So let’s get to lovin’ people, people. Here’s your sex events to-do list this week.

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noise

Mutaytor records album in iconic SF house

03.23.10 - 9:36 am | Steven T. Jones |

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Recently in San Francisco, a unique and iconic band recorded an album in a unique and iconic house, and the two entities seemed to resonate beautifully.

Mutaytor might be the ultimate Burning Man tribe, an eclectic group of Los Angeles-based performers who came together in the event’s Black Rock City more than a decade ago, forming into a band that’s like a traveling circus that evangelizes the burner ethos and culture everywhere they go, just by being who they are: sexy, scruffy, wild, warm, colorful denizens of the counterculture. Read more »

Burning Man

pixel_vision

Appetite: The shots heard (and tasted) 'round the world

03.22.10 - 4:52 pm | Virginia Miller |

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It's fast approaching: the 11th Annual Whiskies of the World -- happening on Sat/27 -- is a must for all whisk(e)y lovers. Four full hours in the Hotel Nikko (dress respectably: no T-shirts or shorts, in keeping with the level of fine imbibements) are dedicated to sampling as much fine whisky or whiskey, scotch, and bourbon as you can. Check out the vendor list and strategize ahead of time or you might find yourself adrift in this whiskey wonderland.

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politics

Cut administration, not schools

03.22.10 - 12:58 pm | Tim Redmond |

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I received an interesting opinion piece this week from a group of teachers and parents working on sfbudgetblog.com, which looks at the San Francisco School District budget. They make some valid points:

By T.R. Amsler
Just when you think you’ve reached bottom, California schools find another shovel. Next year, San Francisco school children face even deeper cuts as many lose summer school, face increased class sizes and witness the dismissal of beloved teachers.

In identifying Sacramento as the crux of the problem, San Francisco schools superintendent Carlos Garcia has advocated a lawsuit against the state of California for failing to provide adequate funding to educate all children.
While we wait for a lawsuit that has not been filed, his proposed a 2010-11 budget slashes funding to classrooms while protecting central office jobs. Read more »

politics

Is Obama's healthcare victory GOP's Waterloo?

03.22.10 - 11:56 am | Sarah Phelan |

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With all the crazy misinformation and ugly rhetoric that preceeded last night's vote on healthcare reform, I was hoping to see some reasoned analysis of what the package's passage means for the Republican Party. And, so far, I think conservative journalist David Frum said it best, when he described the outcome as the GOP's Waterloo.

pixel_vision

Street Threads: Look of the Day

03.22.10 - 11:48 am | Ariel Soto-Suver |

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Today's Look: Cecilia, 24th Street and Noe

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politics

Jerry Brown's inner populist emerges

03.22.10 - 10:56 am | Tim Redmond |

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In the 1990s, when Jerry Brown ran for president against Bill Clinton, his whole persona had a populist streak. He crashed with supporters instead of staying in fancy hotels; he raised money with an 800 number (the precursor to netroots fundraising); he railed against big-money interests. He even once put the future president of the United States on hold while he took another phone call. (Clinton gave up after waiting about ten minutes and disconnected.) Read more »

bruce

Let the Eagle Fly!

03.22.10 - 10:26 am | Dick Meister |

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The long and dramatic struggle for basic labor and civil rights by the California farmworkers led by Cesar Chavez is wonderfully told in an exceptional new musical, "Let the Eagle Fly," that's now playing a limited engagement in San Jose, the city where Chavez began the organizing career that brought him worldwide acclaim.Read more »

noise

A blind date with Mama Lion

03.22.10 - 10:05 am | Amber Schadewald |

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Mama Lion had all the characteristics my ears had been searching for: a jaw full of sharp guitars, a soft, Patti Smith-like growl, and a wardrobe of psychedelic, ‘70s melodies. It took only a second, but after our first audio introduction on the ol’ Web, I knew I needed to hear her again. Typing up an email or two, I mustered up the courage and asked Mama Lion— who’ll be performing Mon/22 at El Rio and Tues/23 at Retox Lounge— out to dinner— all three of them.

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Local

noise

Bless up, Sebastopol!

03.22.10 - 8:49 am | Caitlin Donohue |

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Norris Man levitates during a guest appearance at Monday Night Edutainment. All photos by DJ Guacamole

DJ Guacamole and his love for the 1's and 2's

Turbulence gets down on a Monday Night Edutainment guest set

The Hopmonk Tavern’s dance floor is packed in front of the DJ tables onstage. Reggae beats, dub tracks -- the guy scratching gleefully up there even throws in a funk/soul number for good measure. Irie people groove, and couples grind to the sounds, which mingle with the smoke in the air. At the other end of the venue, the Hopmonk's home brewed ales are poured and there’s an entrance to an expansive patio, where greenery of all stripes sets the scene. This is Monday Night Edutainment with DJ Jacques and DJ Guacamole. And this is Sebastopol?

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politics

Utility PR 101: Glossy mailers galore!

03.19.10 - 2:32 pm | Rebecca Bowe |

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PG&E’s public-relations playbook (“Defending Your Shareholder-Owned Electric Company Against New Municipalization Threats, authored by San Francisco PR firm Solem & Associates), Tab IV, Section 17, instructs: “Design and implement a direct-mail program.” Read more »

pixel_vision

"Repo Men" not exactly full of tense situations

03.19.10 - 12:34 pm | sfbg |

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By Peter Galvin

If you are considering going to see Repo Men you’ll need to go ahead and turn off your brain first — the guy who wrote it sure did. The script is jam-packed with contrivances and tonal inconsistencies, which is a shame because the plot had potential.

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pixel_vision

Project One's mural community

03.19.10 - 12:04 pm | Caitlin Donohue |

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There’s a mural by my work I pass everyday that is visually astounding. It’s a super burner- a big, looping maze of letters, or maybe just design, that must represent in its whorls every color of the rainbow. It takes up the street side of a long building on a background of black-on-black fluer de lis design at Turk and Mason. Not to trivialize the sweet and sour roughness of ‘Loin life, but it gives the dope heads, the police cruisers and the general down-and-outery of the ‘hood an air of artistry.

You don’t see color like that just anywhere.

Which was why it was so nice to put a face to the piece during my trip down to Project One gallery to check out their current show “Four Squared,” a collaborative project between Chor Boogie, Apex One, Jet Martinez, and David Chong Lee. Apex One (who spray painted the mural in the Tenderloin) was there putting up a fresh new entryway sign for the gallery, and we got the chance to chat on how the group partnership came to be.

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