Jayson Williams former NBA star admits drunk driving by Suzannah B. Troy

News Flash from 1010 Wins:  Jayson Williams NBA star admits he was driving drunk and crashed his car in to a tree here in NYC.


Well here is my two cents: Jayson Williams descent in to ////edness sorry for a lack of better words is disturbing....His bio reads like a twilight zone from hell.  He also is another one of these athletes less than forth coming when it comes to owning up and taking responsibility.


Williams is already in jail for the accidental shooting of a limo driver Gus Christofi and than there was the too bizarre incident which was an alleged suicide attempt where the NYPD had to taser him....not self destructive and bizarre enough so he gets drunk and hits a tree here in NYC a week before sentencing for the accidental shooting of Gus Christofi.


Something is very wrong with this elite group of athletes that earn obscene amounts of money and have luxuries that people can only dream of -- if the even bother to dream and these guy in the most violent, thoughtless and stupid ways flush it all away leaving bullet wounds, broken marriages, crushed kids and more....






Why is that....?  Why so prevalent.   Having a great athletic ability doesn't make you above the law, accountability, etc. and it is very wrong to send a message that it does.  Why so little self respect for oneself and for others.  You can buy fancy cars but so what...what did a big fancy house and cars mean when you go to jail or break you family's heart?

Apple Mac IPhone 4 thoughts from Suzannah B. Troy

I converted to Apple at age 45 and I drank the kool-aid.  You know the early stages of sizzling love when your lover can do no wrong...well almost none...It is like that with Apple and yes I have had so many disappointments with  Apple but still crazy in love.

My senior citizen cat with severe arthritis and with just one eye feels compelled to walk on my my MacBook and leave a trail of fur so first vist Iskin.com which is what I plan to do when I get time and by a techno -skin my words for my MacBook to protect the board from fur, hair balls and me dropping pieces of chocolate all over it...  Iskin also has some cool protective covers for your Iphone 4 but I went with  big bulky ugly cover that I got at the AT&T store with a holder I can slide the cover in to that clips on to my pants.  You turn the cover to face outward to protect the glass.  When I get time I want to make a cool collage with paper, paint, color pencils and packing tape but hey that is me, Suzannah B. Troy artist....

Today I had a series of phone calls drop which was frustrating but I can't express in words how much I love Iphone 4; way better than the 3GS!    Check out more for tips for you Iphone4.
Apple Rules.  Apple is Radical.  I love Apple

Note:  I was at Apple 57th street and an Apple sales MAN treated me lower than pond scum just now and I believe it was gender bias but I still love Apple even if they have bad Apples.

Has Wolverine 2 Found It's Director By Reginald L Cochran

For the many people who shelled out bucks in anticipation for Wolverine, I hardly think any of them thought that the movie was a masterpiece. In fact horrible, sucked, piece of crap are the types of thoughts that a majority of people ( myself included ) have for the film.

Despite the public reaction that Wolverine has had Fox is going ahead with a sequel, and it may has found its director. David Slade whose resume includes Hard Candy, 30 Days of Night, and most recently The Twilight Saga: Eclipse may step into the directors chair.

The movie is being written by Christopher Mcquarrie ( The Usual Suspects ) and is based on arc written by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller, which has Wolverine traveling to Japan, and while I think the story is a good one i'm not to sure how they can adapt it and sell it as a blockbuster action movie.

Having seen Hard Candy and trying to block the crapfest that was Eclipse, I will admit that Slade has skills. If Slade and Mcquarrie can have full creative control without Fox mucking it up maybe just maybe it can erase the first movie and wipe the slate clean.

White Supremacists? Casslyn Welch and John McCluskey said to be

Escaped fugitives Casslyn Welch and John McCluskey, on the run for something like the entire month of August and the subject of a large "manhunt", which really should be called a "peoplehunt" because we're talking about a man and a woman, have been caught. What's interesting is they're both described as "White Supremacists."

So, this blogger elected to check and see if Casslyn Welch and John McCluskey actually were A-OK with White Supremacists. Interested to learn more, I checked the West Palm Beach, FL - based website for White Supremacists called StormFront. (I wonder what Mayor Lois J. Frankel, the current Mayor of West Palm Beach, thinks about her city being the offline headquarters for White Supremacists' key online home?)

There are 336 search results on the StormFront website for Casslyn Welch, but not the Casslyn Welch. There is, however, this one interesting forum post by DESERTFOX63, who has over 3,000 posts to his credit and must be 63 years old:

Attention Brothers and Sisters,
Three Prison escapes from Arizona are on the move, These men are to be concidered armed and dangerous. We WN's do not need to discredit our movement by aiding and abetting these men, they are fugitives from the law, they are White men but none the less they are criminals.

That's a surprising find! Since hate crimes are, well, crimes, and White Supremacists are known for committing hate crimes, it's heart-warming but weird to find someone who claims to be, as he puts it, "WN" but not wanting to be associated with a criminal.

Talk about making the head spin! A website where the largest search tag is for "race-mixing," meaning white guys moaning about white girls they can't get who are dating black, Latino, and Asian men (really, it's the black fellas that piss them off), and blaming everyone but themselves for their own problems, has a member who says he's concerned about discrediting "the movement" by helping "these men."

Nice.

Casslyn Welch and John McCulskey are caught By Nikky Raney

After escaping from prison the modern day Bonnie and Clyde - Casslyn Welch, 44 and John McCulskey, 45 - have been caught. Welch assisted McCulskey and other inmates escape from an Arizona state prison July 30, 2010, which led to a manhunt for two of the most wanted fugitives.

NY Daily News

Welch is McCulskey's cousin as well as lover. The two are suspected of killing a couple in New Mexico during their run from authorities; the bodies were found in a burned out camper earlier this month.

The two are said to have evaded authorities in at least three six states before being caught Thursday, August 19 at a campsite in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest in eastern Arizona.

U.S. marshal for Arizona, David Gonzales, says that Welch reached for a weapon until she realized she was outnumbered by the special weapons police team.

Gonzales tells CBS News:

"We want to tie them to as many crimes as we can. We want to ensure that the New Mexico murders are looked at carefully, working with those agencies. And if there are any more crimes that were committed while they were out, we want to make sure we tie those to them."

The two are said to be white supremacists that are extremely dangerous.

McCluskey was serving a 15-year sentence for attempted murder along with other charges. He had said that he wished he killed the forest ranger who tipped off authorities after seeing their stolen car.

The prison is being reviewed for its security since the inmates were able to escape. It is reported that the prison has a badly defective alarm system.

Media coverage of suicides By Nikky Raney

Originally posted at The Future of Journalism.


Media coverage of suicides

 By Nikky Raney

Suicide is a very sensitive and serious issue, and the last thing any family or friend wants to do is talk to the media after a loved one has committed suicide.

Generally news sources have specific ethics, and for the most part suicides are not covered except in circumstances where the suicide is a part of a bigger situation entirely.

When I blogged about the "Craigslist Killer" dying in jail I made sure not to include the word "suicide" within the title - in order to not feed into the sensationalism of some news sources. I think the family is upset enough over the fact that Philip Markoff is known as the "Craigslist Killer."

The reason why that suicide was covered is that it shines a light on the way inmates are treated and watched over in jails. After being placed under watch for potentially being suicidal it doesn't seem right that he was still able to successfully end his own life.

Life behind bars can certainly effect someone's mental health. The lack of communication with the outside world as well as the lack of freedom really takes a toll. The bigger picture behind the suicide being covered was the conditions that led to the suicide.

NPR covered this subject in November 2009 with a segment called "Media Should Tread Carefully in Covering Suicide." The transcript along with audio focuses on when an adolescent commits suicide and the media reports on it - this has happened quite a few times, and it all comes down to ethics. It's how a journalist chooses to go about covering the story - what angle to take. Sometimes the journalist is not given the option to not cover a suicide, because the editor may assign the story and all the reporter can do is figure out a way to cover the story by the deadline.

The NPR piece includes an interview with psychiatric epidemiologist Madelyn Gould at Columbia University in New York City where she says:

"We know from studies that have looked at the impact of the media that there is something called the 'dose-response association.' So the size of the increase in suicides following a suicide story is proportional to the amount, and the duration, and the prominence of the coverage."

The piece continues:

"There are ways that the media can cover a suicide that can actually help mitigate the risk of additional suicides, says psychiatrist Paula Clayton, medical director of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, who regularly advises the media on how to report on a suicide. For example, they should report on the many complex factors that may have led up to the suicide and emphasize that 90 percent of people who kill themselves have mental health problems."

Journalism Ethics' Stephen J. A. Ward did a piece on whether journalists exploit tragedies such as suicides. 

Ward does an amazing job at explaining what attracts journalists to covering these types of stories, and why journalists feel like it is a responsibility to cover these events. He writes:

"Take the case of suicides. To be blunt, suicides are frequently newsworthy – a public official in trouble commits suicide, a distraught military hero takes his life. But these cases are frequently more than newsworthy. They challenge journalists to explore the economic and social factors that may help to induce suicidal behavior. When we witness a string of suicides at a school or in an aboriginal community, suicide is no longer personal but social. It is the responsibility of journalists to explore the reasons for these disturbing patterns in the fabric of society. "

That really does sum it up quite nicely.  The problem arises when journalists forget about the sensitivity and emotion surrounding the matter and decide to take the sensational route that becomes more of an exploitation.

Some may wonder what counts as exploitation, Ward tells:

"What counts as exploitation? To exploit is to unfairly use people in a less powerful position to achieve your own ends — without a thought to their needs and interests. As Kant famously said, the basic principle of all ethics is: Do not treat other people only as a means to your ends….In journalism, Kant's principle works like this: In reporting on a person's tragedy I am, on one level, treating this event as a means to my end of getting the story. But on another level, I am not exploiting the situation if I treat the persons in question with respect and attempt to minimize harm. "

He continues:

"Ethical journalists still "get the story" but they do so in responsible ways that avoid callous harassment and crude exploitation."

The piece Ward writes is exactly what I believe, and it is good to know that there are journalists out there who share my belief on the ethics of journalism 

Yes, there are many ways to cover a suicide and have the most read or watched coverage - but what is more important is to cover the suicide with respect and sensitivity and get the story without causing more pain to those affected.

"Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do." - Potter Stewart

Michael Douglas has cancer: Tip sheet for managing new diagnoses. By Dr. Christina Villarreal

Hollywood actor Michael Douglas, now 65, is reported to have throat cancer, and will undergo 2 months of chemotherapy and radiation according to his spokesperson. For years, Mr. Douglas had admittedly engaged in drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes regularly. "That combination is, unfortunately, a recipe for development of a throat cancer," Dr. Kenneth Hu, co-director of the Head and Neck Institute at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York, told "Good Morning America" today. Spokesperson for the 2-time Oscar winning actor shares that his doctors expect him to make a full recovery.

Mr. Douglas has chosen to remain publicly composed thus far, stating "I am very optimistic" about his condition. Further, Twentieth Century Fox says his upcoming film release Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps will open as scheduled on Sept. 24, despite the actor's new cancer diagnosis, and that Michael Douglas plans to promote the film as scheduled.

Yet behind the scenes, it is likely that the actor is still grappling with frightening news of his new cancer diagnosis. For many, this can be one of the most terrifying moments in a person's life. Fear, anxiety, heightened psychological distress, anger and sadness are just some of the difficult feelings that people experience when facing a new cancer diagnosis. Being overwhelmed with such feelings can make it extremely hard to remain organized and well-informed about the treatment phase following a new diagnosis.

During my work in the Behavioral Medicine Dept. of Kaiser Permanente in Oakland, CA I regularly provided psychotherapy for patients coping with new cancer diagnoses, as well as during and after their treatment phase. It is not uncommon for people to continue to be confused and unsure of how to proceed throughout this difficult period of their lives. Below is a simple list of tips that can help alleviate some of the confusion and fear following a diagnosis of cancer.

1. Make a list of your questions before each appointment. Some people keep a "running list" and write down new questions as they think of them. Make sure to have space on this list to write down the answers from your doctor or nurse. Print this 'Questions to ask your doctor about your cancer treatment' and bring it to your next appointment.
2. Bring a family member or trusted friend to your medical visits. This person can help you understand what the doctor or nurse says, and talk with you about it after the visit is over. Having source(s) of support is key. You should also ask your doctor about being connected to a medical social worker who can also be very helpful with managing the logistical details of your treatment.
3. Ask all your questions. There is no such thing as a stupid question. If you do not understand an answer, keep asking until you do. That is what your doctors and nurses are there to do, in addition to providing you with your treatment.
4. Take notes. You can write them down, or record them. Later, you can review your notes and remember what was said.
5. Ask for printed information about your specific type of cancer and associated chemotherapy and/or radiation.
6. Let your doctor or nurse know how much information you want to know, when you want to learn it, and when you have learned enough. Some people want to learn everything they can about cancer and its treatment. Others only want a little information, in different phases. The choice is yours.
7. Find out how to contact your doctor or nurse in an emergency. This includes who to call, and where to go.

This article was submitted by Dr. Christina Villarreal, Clinical Psychologist in Oakland, CA. For professional referrals and inquiries please contact her at christina.villarreal@gmail.com


SOURCE: National Cancer Institute, PEOPLE magazine

Roger Clemens you are not Naomi Campbell by Suzannah B. Troy

I wrote several powerful postings on Naomi Campbell and in them I humorously wrote super models do not go to jail. I am guessing that Roger Clemens thought the same thing about future Hall of Famers but he may be wrong.

I thought Naomi Campbell would go to jail for perjury but after allegedly lying she went and partying up a storm in Italy.

Roger Clemens may not be so lucky even though the USA makes celebrities in to demi-gods, not accountable and mostly above the law.

There are amazing articles written about Roger Clemens in the local New York papers and here are just a few links.

Clemens’ defiance started this dreary, never-ending saga
Trading his shot at Hall of Fame for Hall of Shame
Former New York Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens put himself in jam with Congress by testifyingThere are more great pieces by sports writers but I would be here all day.


Bottom line is this is a very sad fall from grace and a warning to celebrities as if they have not received enough -- you are not above the law, keep kidding yourself you are and you hopefully will be in for a rude awakening....

NBC a big liar? by Suzannah B. Troy

Queens Crap has a new post"  "Why is the media silent on challangers?" which shows the "Throw the Bums Out" YouTube  for  Doug Biviano who is challenging Joan Millman for NY State Assembly in Brooklyn's 52nd District but  can't get the press to cover his campaign challenge.  


In Mike Moore  like fashion Doug goes to the media reception desks  of the media here in NYC and asks to speak to the press.  Only NBC, and NBC claims it is their security guard and not them that is demanding the YouTube come down.  Read why this in my opinion stinks like a dead rat...

The YouTube that is set to come down in 24 hours because NBC is in my opinion a) proving the entire point of this YouTube which I believe is also by not covering opposing voices the media helps perpetuate cronyism and it is also a form of passive censorship allowing business as usual although often we hear "throw the bums up" we can't if the media won't cover opposition.

b) NBC wants us to believe that the security guard -- okay you see the word "security" either never saw the video camera that in Michael Moore fashion was plain to see and following Doug Biviano around -- and the camera man is a large fellow or perhaps the security guard had no problem until ready for this a mysterious friend alerted the security guard his face was on the video for 7 seconds and he perhaps the security guard should contact YouTube to have the video removed.

Question:  Is this friend of the security guard at NBC employed at NBC in perhaps a more senior position than the security guard?

NBC has the most pathetic local news channel ever to be seen in NYC's history.  Why do I say that?  Because NBC's local tv news show at 5:00PM resembles Entertainment tonight and not a news program.
Perhaps that is one example of why it is hard to throw the bums out because media giants like NBC want folks to watch entertainment light news rather than the serious issues that impact our daily lives like why we are living in a recession that more and more is resembling a depression unless you are rich.


In my opinion NBC has proven the very point of the YouTube expressed in the Michael Moore like video about the media's attempt to silence challangers.   In my opinion no wonder NBC has a local news  program at 5PM that does not report the news.

NBC how low can you go?   Can we have the name of the security guard's friend please?

I  made this comment posted below on Queens Crap in response to a commentor because he points out Alexander Hamilton was Zenger's lawyer.  To me there is even a greater irony here that The New York Post is not covering challengers and the creator of The New York Post -- is the super star lawyer that takes on the British Governor and wins his case freeing Zenger from jail for saying the governor's administration is corrupt.

Well at least The New York Post did not stoop to the petty level that media giant NBC
My comment on Queens Crap:
First of all "GeorgetheAtheist" I love you.
http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/zenger/zengeraccount.html

After reading your posting I read this...thanks and hugs.  Great way to start the morning.
Bravo to Queens Crap for posting this and rewind thanks to all of you that wrote YouTube Google when all my work was removed from YouTube before the election....Thanks and gratitude!
My tube when the story first broke...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45YEIwoAnyY





NBC how low can you go?   Can we give a media giant a lie detector test?


http://suzannahbtroy.blogspot.com/

Philip Treacy stars in Project Runway, but is there a race problem?

Philip Treacy 

Philip Treacy, arguably the UK's most famous hat maker, and who works are more like giant sculptures, took the spotlight in Project Runway Episode 4. Unfortunately, so did a race problem that some African American fans of the show pointed to after the elimination of a black competitor, Kristin Haskins Simms from Philadelphia.

But before we go a step further, Project Runway Season 8 is this according to its website:

Project Runway premiered on Thursday, July 29 at a new time, 9 pm et/pt, supersized as 90 - minute episodes. Hosted by supermodel and fashion maven Heidi Klum, the hit series provides 17 talented designers – the most in series history – with an opportunity to launch their careers in fashion, under the watchful eye of mentor and Liz Claiborne Chief Creative Officer Tim Gunn. Judges Michael Kors and Nina Garcia weigh in on the best and worst of the runway. Project Runway is 2010’s number one rated and most watched competitive reality program on ad-supported cable among Women 18-49, Women 25-54, Women 18+, Adults 18-49, Adults 18+ and Households.

Kristen Haskins Simms

Sunday night's episode featured Philip Treacy. The 17 designer were asked to come up with a design to go with one of Philip Treacy's famous hats. But in so doing, Philip Treacy's work was catapulted out of the New York / London Fashion Culture and into mainstream American homes. On Twitter, Project Runway fans tweeted their delight with what they saw:

_elizabethriley: New life goal: own a Philip Treacy hat. That man is fabulous. #projectrunway
about 3 hours ago via HootSuite

But the raves over Philip Treacy's hats were overshadowed online by complaints on the mamin Project Runway Fan Site that the show does not give black contestants a fair shot.

Over at The Original Project Runway Fan Blog, some of the the comments went this way:

I am not surprised that Kristen was elimnited, this sh-- happens every year with AA designers , there is no way in hell that Michael and Koto weren't great designers, season after season it is the same ### different season, what is it about this show ,they don't have the balls to select an AA to be the winner, April design looked like panties with a zipper, GMAB, this show is turning into a joke, why have AA contestants on the show at all? knowing they will not be the winner, there are a lot of designers in this season with crappy attitude, so don't single out Kristen, it's all a bunch of bull

Philip Treacy worked with Project Runway Judges Heidi Klum, Michael Kors and Nina Garcia to crit the runway, which saw competitors Mondo, Peach, Gretchen, Andy, AJ and Ivy advance to the next round, while Christopher, Michael C, Kristin, Michael D, April and Valerie fell into the top three and into the bottom three.

Now this blogger is not a frequent watcher of Project Runway, and so can't make a definitive judgement on the show's racial culture. It's does seem that Project Runway makes an effort to have black designers on its shows; that one person doesn't work out who happens to be black seems more like just the luck of the draw.

That aside, there's a real concern among not a few African American fans of the show that there's a problem. It's not enough as a counter to say "Well, Heidi Klum's married to Seal and he's black." Heidi's but one producer and one judge on the show; if in total the culture's unfriendly to black designers, that's a problem.

But it's also something best determined by the shows fans.

Oakland Mayor's Race: Sierra Club Opens Forum To All Candidates

This is a quick supplemental and update to this blogger's last Oakland Mayor's Race blog post on Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan's call to the Oakland Sierra Club Chapter's Volunteer Chairman Kent Lewandowski, asking if he and the organization would open the scheduled Wednesday, August 25th Oakland Green Mayoral Forum (from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM) at East Bay Community Foundation 353 Frank Ogawa Plaza Oakland, CA) to all candidates.

Well, after all of that, The Sierra Club cleaned it's own air and made it fresh-smelling again , well, to everyone except the Oakland Climate Action Coalition. (Geez, how many non-profits do we have!?)

A email was just received from Kent Lewandowski, which reads as follows:

Zennie,

We are proceeding with the forum and are inviting all the candidates.

I have the following candidates listed on the registrar of voters
filing report (see page 22):

1. ARNOLD FIELDS
2. DON MACLEAY
3. DON PERATA
4. GREG HARLAND
5. JEAN QUAN
6. JOE TUMAN
7. LARRY LIONEL "LL" YOUNG JR.
8. MARCIE HODGE
9. REBECCA KAPLAN
10. TERENCE CANDELL

Please see the attached report.

If you know this is incorrect information, please let me know.

Thanks,

Kent

Kaplan Scores!

This email officially clears what would have been a really bad error on the part of The Sierra Club, and really shows that the League of Women Voters was correct in telling the Oakland Chamber of Commerce that Oaklanders would protest over an exclusionary mayoral forum.

And kudos to Councilmember Kaplan, who cared enough to make a call on behalf of all of the candidates and ask for the process to be opened-up. It was.

And in case you're wondering, Kent did apologize to the candidates for his first email, although I still hold that Terrance Candell came down on Kent too hard. At any rate, both are good people; I think they're going to be fine. Here's the email that Kent sent to the candidates:

Subject: Green Oakland Mayoral Forum - Aug. 25th
From: Kent
Date: Thu, August 19, 2010 9:58 pm
To: candell1@yahoo.com, candidate@macleay4mayor.org,
info@harland4mayor.com, mhodge@peralta.edu, LL.Young@prurealty.com,
dave@perata4mayor.com, sgpiper@sbcglobal.net, j@jonathanbair.com

Dear Candidates & Campaign Managers,

After consideration and listening to community voices, the Sierra Club
have decided to open our "Green Mayoral" forum on August 25th to all
registered candidates for mayor (as of August 16, 2010). Please see
the attached document from the Registrar of Voters listing all
candidates who filed by August 16th, 2010 (starting page 22). There
are 10 registered candidates listed there. If there are other
candidates that have registered (in other words, if our information is
not correct and somebody is missing from the list), and it can be
verified, those candidates will also be invited.

We are going to modify the format of this forum to have fewer
questions so that we can hear from all the candidates. A moderator
will be appointed and we will attempt to stick to a limited time per
speaker and question. The event takes place next Wednesday, August
25th from 5:30 - 7:30 at the East Bay Community Foundation, 353 Frank
Ogawa Plaza, next to City Hall. Please be there no later than 5:15.
Doors open at 5.

Please rsvp with an email to me (kentlewan@gmail.com). We need your
rsvp so that we can develop a program for the event and get some
biographical information from all the participants. If you could
develop a *brief* statement / bio (no more than 3-4 sentences), we
appreciate it. We will have a very simple program and try to squeeze
some information about each participating candidate on it.

We appreciate your coming and participating in a discussion about
issues concerning the environment, affecting all the people of
Oakland. Please ask your supporters to attend, as well.

We look forward to an informative and enlightening discussion,
hopefully the first of a series on green issues.

Kent Lewandowski
Chair, Northern Alameda County Group
Sierra Club, S.F. Bay Chapter

p.s. I apologize for any bitterness my previous email caused. I am a
volunteer and not skilled at public relations.

Now Senator Don Perata, who had said he would not participate in any forum that excluded candidates, can participate in his first Oakland Mayor's Race Forum.

But, as written, this will be without the Oakland Climate Action Coalition as of this writing. They backed out because of the exclusionary nature of the original forum plan and announced they were going to do their own mayoral forum in September.

Perhaps they will want back in?

Stay tuned.

Oakland Mayor's Race: Kaplan calls Sierra Club, Oakland Chamber bullies LWV

As this blogger has written, The (yeah, capital "T") Oakland Mayor's Race is going to get even more interesting and today, Thursday, is proof. Pay attention to this blog post if you enjoy laughter and guffaws, and you know you do.

First, Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan phoned to say she called Kent Lewandowski, volunteer Chairperson for the Northern Alameda County Group of the Sierra Club, San Francisco Bay Chapter, and the author of what's still the most awful email in Oakland Politics ever seen by this blogger, to ask him to include all of the candidates.

I must admit, this is funny

If you're just getting wind of this fart the Sierra Club broke, Kent Lewandowski sent an email to almost every candidate in the Oakland Mayor's Race (except Arnie Fields), to inform them and by "cc" this blogger that because they were not "viable" candidates, they would not be part of the Wednesday, August 25th "Oakland Green Mayoral Forum."

That meant the only participants in the "Oakland Green Mayoral Forum" would be Former State Senator Don Perata, and Oakland Councilmembers Rebecca Kaplan and Jean Quan.

But that didn't last long because Perata's Campaign Manager emailed to inform this blogger that Senator Perata would not be involved in any Forum that did not include every candidate running for Mayor (presumably, including Arnie Fields).

By that, we can say Perata means all forums that exclude candidates for booyah-boogie reasons, which includes the Oakland Chamber of Commerce event with the League of Women Voters.

So with the Sierra Club "Oakland Green Mayoral Forum" down to just two candidates, Kaplan and Quan, Councilmember Kaplan called Kent Lewandowski to ask the Sierra Club to open the Forum to all candidates. According to Councilmember Kaplan, Kent said he had to take the issue to "some people" but would "consider" doing that.

My response to Rebecca was that she should just drop out of the Forum, if only to teach the Sierra Club a lesson. But after further consideration, I think Councilmember Kaplan should be insulted that the Sierra Club would not just go-ahead and open the Wednesday Forum because she made the call. Why give the Sierra Club such power? I don't get it.

Rebecca Kaplan

And on the matter of giving power to Oakland groups who don't deserve it in the Oakland Mayor's Race, we have the League of Women Voters (LVW) essentially getting its Forum-production marching orders from The Oakland Chamber of Commerce and The Bay Area Business Roundtable, but wanting to back away from them.

Pay attention.

Oakland Chamber bullies LWV

According to sources that will not be named, it was the Oakland Chamber of Commerce and The Bay Area Business Roundtable that approached the League of Women Voters with a desire to form what is a totally laugh-producing, belly-hurting set of criteria for their Oakland Mayor's Race Forum on September 23rd at Kaiser Center, 7 PM.

The basic criteria for the Oakland Chamber / League of Women Voters Forum are reasonable. First one has to be on the ballot. Second, they have to have what the Oakland Chamber / League of Women Voters defines to be a "viable campaign:"

1. Made a public announcement of an intention to run

2. Legally registered campaign committee with the California Secretary of State

3. Have filed appropriate financial reports with the City of Oakland and the California FPPC

4. Publicly accessible campaign headquarters

5. Telephone number, other than a personal or home number, listed under the campaign’s name

6. Campaign website and/or other campaign material with articulated views on issues

7. Campaign bank account and campaign treasurer

Ok, all of that is fine. But what's really hilarious comes next:

In addition, the candidate must meet at least one of the following criteria:

1. The candidate has received 5 percent or more of the vote, tested in a trial heat in a professionally conducted independent public opinion survey conducted by an experienced political pollster based on a scientific sample of the entire electorate with a margin of error of less than 5 percent (at a 95 percent level of confidence), if such a public opinion survey is available.

2. The candidate has reported in legal documents filed with state or city government entities the receipt, during the election campaign, of at least one campaign contribution per 1,000 residents of the constituency (based on the total number of persons enumerated in the last U.S. census), excluding contributions from the candidate himself or herself, the candidate’s spouse, or the candidate’s natural or adopted children. Contributions do not have to be residents of the constituency to be counted.

3. The candidate previously had been elected to or held, the office that he or she is seeking.

4. The candidate sought the same office during the previous eight years and received at least 20 percent of the vote in the general election.

Now, if you think about it and know Oakland Politics, the above criteria leaves the Oakland Chamber / League of Women Voters Forum with just one candidate: Arnie Fields.

First, there's no public survey done to fit #1, so that's out. And that's really a stupid idea because it doesn't say that every candidate has to be in the poll, thus, the poll could be rigged to help certain candidates.

Second, for the second criteria to be met, the candidate would need 401 donations. While there's an effort to help presumably all of the candidates get to that number, it's not widespread or perfect, and because of that it will fall short. Maybe two or three candidates fall into this area, but that's it.

Third, not one of the candidates falls into criteria number three.

Fourth, the only person who falls into criteria number four is Arnie Fields, who ran in 2006. Seriously.

Here's Arnie stating his support to keep the A's in Oakland in 2006 during an Oakland Mayoral Forum called "Choose or Loose The A's:"



It's Arnie Fields and Who Else?

So, the only one of the candidates out right should be at the Oakland Chamber / League of Women Voters September 23rd Forum is Arnie Fields.

In other words, it's a coin flip that the other candidates meet the donation criteria, so it's Arnie Field's show. Especially since Senator Don Perata's not going to be there.

So you could have Fields, Kaplan, and Quan at the September 23rd Forum. But how did this happen?

The Oakland Chamber and BANG vs The League of Women Voters

According to sources, members of the Bay Area Business Roundtable, Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, and the Bay Area News Group (which calls itself "BANG" and publishes The Oakland Tribune) approached the League of Women Voters with the idea of doing the September 23rd Forum, but with some form of criteria.

The LWV objected to the idea of having criteria to exclude certain candidates because it would "lead to protests," but the Oakland Chamber persisted.

Now, what we have is a place where the League is refusing to rubber-stamp a system it did not want to start with, but is in place. In other words, the LWV was bullied by the Oakland Business Community, and the publishers of The Oakland Tribune. (Which is shameful for BANG, which appears to be involved in trying to BANG, if not rig, the Oakland election process.)

Sad and for almost everyone involved...except Arnie Fields.

The League of Women Voters Partners with BABJA

Preferring to discount that error of a Forum, the League of Women Voters points to its new partnership with Bay Area Black Journalists Association, or BABJA, for a "different kind" of forum to be held on October 21st at Holly Names in Oakland, and presented by a "strong moderator."

Meanwhile, the candidates are "inundated" as one put it, with forum invitations. There's the John George Democratic Club Endorsement Forum at 920 Peralta Street from 10 AM to 2 PM this Saturday. The Sierrs Club Green Forum is to be held Wednesday, August 25th, but let's see about that one.

And we have the "Black Women Organized for Political Action Forum on Jobs" set for September 2nd at 6:30 PM at Beebe Memorial Cathedral, 3900 Telegraph Ave. After that, there's the "Arnie Field Memorial Forum" by the League of Women Voters of Oakland, Bay Area Business Roundtable, Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, and BANG on September 23rd.

Then, the one forum the LWV wants you to think about when you think of them, its forum with BABJA at Holy Names, comes up on October 21st.

It's really sad that some Oaklanders feel they have to try and "control" the political process. As I told Councilmember Kaplan, there's a small group of people in this town who think they have more control than they really do.  It's funny to watch them in action, and gratifying to see their plans fail.  No candidate running for Mayor of Oakland should be excluded for any reason outside of the law.