OccupySF: The Week That Was, Or Wasn’t

December 06, 2011 | No Comments

It is in moments like these, and probably ONLY in moments like these, that experience with police riots comes in handy. The secret is to focus on small goals and try not to get hurt. I somehow inserted myself to the center of the struggling knot of humanity at the barrier, and I positioned myself at Hacker-Camper’s ear: “You can’t get arrested until you return my phone!” Hacker-Camper releases the barricade, hands me the phone, we trade the briefest of warm smiles, and he then dives headfirst back into the fray. I look down at my phone… he had somehow installed Ustream and I was recording live!

SF Bicycle Coalition Celebrates 40 Years,
Sells Humans for Good Cause

December 05, 2011 | No Comments

A crowd favorite was the live auction of a bike ride and lunch date with District 11 Supervisor John Avalos. Making the sound of a sheep, Supervisor Avalos announced his “BAAA” legislation: the Bike Access and Anti-theft Act, to be introduced in January. This Act will require commercial buildings to either provide space for parking bikes or to allow tenants to provide such space. The intent is to keep the sidewalks clear of bikes, and to keep bikes secure for their owners. (And, yes, there is a bike room in City Hall.)

SFSU Students Protest Fee Increases,
Commence OccupySFSU Encampment

December 02, 2011 | 1 Comment

The OccupySFSU students proclaimed solidarity with Occupy movements everywhere. In turn, several OccupySF activists participated in the students’ demonstration and helped set up the encampment at Malcolm X Plaza, which started its first night after the rally and march. Among the speakers was Sean Semans, who has been an OccupySF resident for weeks. He carries an 18-unit course load at SFSU. He explained that he cannot afford to miss any more school especially given the high cost of his education, so he is helping to set up the encampment at SFSU and will participate in the OccupySFSU General Assembly. Semans warned students there is a hidden cost associated with the fee increases: increases to the interest rate on unsubsidized student loans.

Is the American Psychiatric Association
in Bed with Big Pharma?

November 29, 2011 | 12 Comments

While I am sure research in mental disorders account for some of this increase, I cannot help but believe that there is a certain amount of disease-peddling going on. That is, instead of promoting drugs to treat diseases, diseases are promoted to fit the drugs. For example, shyness as a psychiatric illness made its debut as “social phobia” in DSM-III in 1980, but was said to be rare. By 1994, when DSM-IV was published, it had become “social anxiety disorder,” now said to be extremely common, thus, boosting sales of antidepressants. Now, social anxiety disorder is “a severe medical condition.” In 1999, the FDA approved a drug for social anxiety disorder. After a successful marketing campaign, the sales of Paxil soared.

Mic Check

November 28, 2011 | 9 Comments

We aren’t the folks with the guns. We aren’t criminalizing anyone or taking away their rights. We haven’t put thousands upon thousands of families out of their homes. We don’t evade our responsibility to care for seniors, veterans, disabled and sick people. We’ve never used the vast reaches of mainstream media to fan the flames of fear and hate.

Lives of Milk, Moscone Celebrated
on 33rd Anniversary of Assassinations

November 28, 2011 | No Comments

Former Supervisor Dan White, a Catholic conservative, gunned down Milk and Moscone in cold blood at City Hall when White learned he would not be reappointed to his seat following his resignation.

At his trial, an all-white jury was reportedly swayed by White’s taped confession and what became known as White’s “Twinkie defense.” The jury found White guilty of 2nd degree murder, a lesser charge that touched off a night of rioting dubbed the “White Night” riots following a serene candlelit vigil and march from The Castro to City Hall.

Tenderloin Tessie Holiday Dinners Needs Our Help

November 23, 2011 | No Comments

This amazing act of charity started with one person 37 years ago. Perry Spink was a bartender and drag queen performer in the Tenderloin. In 1974, someone gave Perry a bunch of turkeys and he decided to share them with his neediest neighbors. He donned his “Tessie” costume and played hostess along with several of his not-so-sober bar buddies and made Thanksgiving memorable for many down-and-out elderly in the Tenderloin. Tessie also started giving gift bags along with the meals, a tradition that lives on today. These bags contain donated items such as toiletries, socks, gloves and an assortment of non-perishable food.