First Reaction Archive

May 13, 2009

What next?

Another day, another Oakland atrocity.

May 09, 2009

Thanks, Berkeley

I think this is a fairly powerful argument for tighter security over personal data retained by the university. I especially appreciate the fact that Cal disclosed the database breach two days after the UC Regents approved a massive student fee increase.

Berkeley, yours is a gift that keeps on giving.

-FH

May 06, 2009

Uh Oh, Oakland

Times are tough, but they’re about to get a lot tougher for Oakland. Surely there’s a better way to slash the city deficit than this…

Apr 28, 2009

Fremont, like California, needs structural changes

The city of Fremont is staring down the barrel of an estimated $12.7 million deficit this fiscal year. Naturally, cuts to city personnel and services are on the way. The recession has hit most municipalities hard, but cities like Fremont — where property and sales taxes account for fully 2/3rds of city income — are more vulnerable to economic vicissitudes than most. California, with its binge-and-purge revenue and spending cycles, suffers from many of these same problems on a broader scale. It’s something cosmetic surgery — a cut here and a tuck there — won’t fix.

Apr 27, 2009

Swine flu, ever closer

We haven’t reached mass hysteria yet, but we’re getting there. Fears of a swine flu pandemic are now starting to touch the Bay Area after a Sacramento seventh-grader became California’s eighth confirmed case. The W.H.O. has said that the world is better prepared than ever to confront pandemic flu. But what about the Bay Area?

Apr 24, 2009

Congrats, Tony

The Bay Area’s own Tony West is headed back to Washington as an assistant Attorney General. West, who played a major part in the Obama campaiagn last year, was confirmed following an 82-4 confirmation vote in the Senate. The only senators to vote against him? Sen. Bunning (R-KY), Sen. Chambliss (R-GA), Sen. Isakson (R-GA), and Sen. Shelby (R-AL).

Apr 22, 2009

Ready, Set, Compete!

Kudos to the Obama Justice Department, which in testimony before the House Judiciary Committee came out against relaxing anti-trust laws to allow newspaper consolidation. “We do not believe any new exemptions for newspapers are necessary,” said Carl Shapiro, an assistant attorney general for economics and anti-trust matters.

Shapiro’s testimony was notable in its reference to lost innovation resulting from monopolized regional media. “Anti-trust is critical to ensure that the public obtains the full benefits of competition,” Shapiro noted. “This is especially true in industries experiencing technological change, where competition spurs innovation, including innovative business strategies and business models.”

Shapiro’s testimony is a resounding wake up call to Hearst executives who have eyed collaboration with Bay Area rival MediaNews Group as a cost-cutting strategy. Now that the prospect of a Chronicle bailout has dimmed, the paper should gear up to innovate, and yes, compete.

Apr 16, 2009

Oakland’s Continued Descent

Oakland consistently ranks among the top five most violent cities in America, but ignominious rankings are often lost on the city’s residents. Most just shrug and say, “That’s just Oakland; it’s not all bad.”  It sure looks bad though, especially over the past year or so. The Chauncey Bailey murder was the big story of 2007, a year that drew to a close with the carjacking of Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata. Last year saw the Deborah Edgerly scandal, unrest and upheaval in the OPD, Christopher Rodriguez paralyzed by an errant gunshot during a piano lesson, a spate of restaurant takeover robberies that froze the city in fear, and the continued dysfunction of city government – all against the backdrop of 124 homicides. 2009 began with the shooting of Oscar Grant by a BART policeman. Riots followed. The city’s murder tally climbed inexorably upward even before four OPD officers were gunned down by Lovelle Mixon. What next?

Apr 16, 2009

Bye, John Madden

The Bay Area’s own John Madden is hanging up the mic after 30 years as America’s foremost football commentator. We love you John, but it’s about time. Someone else will have to point out the glaringly obvious (“See, what LaDanian Tomlinson did there was, well, he’s a running back, and it was a running play, so he just took that ball and ran with it right up here.  And that’s what you gotta do as a running back.  To be good, you gotta run.”). Someone else will have to opine and analyze the brat-boiling procedures of Lambeau tailgaters (“Now, these fellas here, they’re gonna boil their brats in PBR, which is nice, but I generally prefer the High Life…”).

Apr 16, 2009

You lost. Pay up.

The saga between the SF Guardian and its mortal enemy, the SF Weekly has reached a level of hysteria befitting an MMA title fight. In short, the Guardian is owed $15.9 million in damages from the Weekly from a lawsuit over predatory pricing. The Weekly refuses to pay. Name calling has reached a fever pitch. How about an appeal bond?