Lee Heidhues 9.27.2022

The “Resignation” letter uproar rolls along.

Still, what The Chronicle continues to ignore is how this story began. See attached.

https://leesperspective.com/2022/09/23/she-breed-would-need-my-help-to-change-leadership-at-the-police-dept/

Interesting.

The Standard published The City Attorney Memo re “Resignation” letters. There’s a bit of History here. In 2003 Willie Brown was Da Mayor (In an earlier gig Breed babysat for his kids).

FINAL_Enforceability-of-Letters-of-Resignation

Anyway, in 2003 Prop H was approved by the Voters. Until then The Mayor appointed ALL Police Commissioners. He/she could fire them at Will.

Prop H passed. Now the appointments are split 4/3 between the Mayor and the Supes.

The only way a Mayor can fire an incumbent Police Commissioner is with a Vote by the Board of Supervisors. I gotta believe Prop H was put on the Ballot as a reaction to Willie’s way of governance. Breed is just following her mentor’s path.

Excerpted from San Francisco Chronicle 9.27.2022

The San Francisco city attorney said Tuesday that commissioners should not be asked to sign undated letters of resignation, after revelations that Mayor London required the controversial practice of several appointees.

While the policy memo said the city’s charter doesn’t ban the practice, it’s “inconsistent with the purposes underlying the Charter’s removal provisions and could threaten the independence of appointed officials from undue influence by the Mayor, the Board, and other appointing authorities.”

The memo said that appointing authorities “should not require resignation letters before or as a condition of appointment.”

Critics jumped on the unsigned letters, first reported by the San Francisco Standard , arguing it showed inappropriate political micromanaging, causing Breed to reverse the policy Sunday. The mayor had asked one of her appointees to the police commission, Max Carter-Oberstone, to sign such a letter, with critics suggesting the letter could be used to oust him if he strayed from her policies. Breed’s office denies that insinuation, arguing it would have only be used if someone abandoned their duties or committed corruption.

Carter-Oberstone and Breed recently clashed over the commission’s choice of a new president.

https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Second-S-F-police-commissioner-said-she-signed-17470249.php

Lee Heidhues 9.26.2022

It’s easy today to condemn Edward Snowden for abdicating his American citizenship and becoming a Russian citizen.

Do I applaud his Decision?  NO.  Do I understand why he made it?  YES.

People have forgotten how it came to this point. Snowden, the one time National Security Agency (NSA) computer intelligence consultant, in 2013 leaked highly classified information exposing global surveillance programs of the American government.

Edward Snowden faced the prospect of spending the rest of his life in an American prison. Had Snowden gone to most any other nation the American government would have sought his immediate extradition.  Like Julian Assange, now incarcerated in a British prison and awaiting possible extradition, Edward Snowden faced a similar fate.

Snowden will now have to live with his Decision to become a citizen of Putin’s Russia.

Excerpted from The Guardian 9.26.2022

Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday granting Russian citizenship to the US whistleblower Edward Snowden.

Snowden, 39, a former US intelligence contractor, has been living in Russia since 2013 to escape prosecution in the US after leaking secret files, published by the Guardian, that revealed vast domestic and international surveillance operations carried out by the US National Security Agency.

In 2020, Snowden said that he and his then-pregnant wife were applying for Russian citizenship in order not to be separated from their future son in an era of pandemics and closed borders. Russia granted him permanent residency rights the same year, paving the way for him to obtain Russian citizenship.

The whistleblower largely keeps a low profile while living in Russia, occasionally posting photographs of his family in Moscow. He has said in 2019 that he was willing to return to the US if he’s guaranteed a fair trial.

Snowden, who has previously criticised Kremlin’s human rights record, has not commented in public about the country’s invasion of Ukraine. Prior to the war, he repeatedly voiced doubts that Russia would start a war, blaming the media for “pushing” the conflict.

“I’ve just lost any confidence I had that sharing my thinking on this particular topic continues to be useful because I called it wrong,” Snowden wrote on Twitter on 27 February, three days after Russia sent its troops to Ukraine.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/sep/26/putin-grants-russian-citizenship-to-us-whistleblower-edward-snowden

Wikipedia article on Edward Snowden

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Snowden

Lee Heidhues 9.25.2022

Our lives are inextricably tied to The Pink Floyd.

Living in Europe Liz and I saw The Pink Floyd in Saarbrucken, Germany in November 1970 and a few months later in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.  Eventually returning to San Francisco we saw the group at Winterland.  

Our music collection contains most of the group’s LPs and CDs.

Roger Waters may be a controversial figure in 2022 with his views about Ukraine, The Israelis, Facebook and his environmental advocacy.

In our minds Roger Waters will always and forever be the stand out musician of Pink Floyd and beyond.

Attached to this Post is the 23 minute piece Echoes from The Pink Floyd 1971 LP Meddle.

“So it’s a missive from Mark Zuckerberg to me… with an offer of a huge, huge amount of money and the answer is, ‘Fuck you! No fucking way!”

The musician explained his opposition to Zuckerberg and Facebook.

Deustche Welle 9.25.2022

Concerts by Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters have been canceled by a venue in the Polish city of Krakow, organizers said on Sunday after the artist’s comments on the war in Ukraine sparked a storm of criticism. “Live Nation Polska and Tauron Arena Krakow have canceled Roger Waters’ concert,” organizers said in a statement on the venue’s website. However, they did not elaborate on the reason for the cancellation.

In a social media post, Waters denied that he or his management had canceled the concerts and criticized Krakow councillor Lukasz Wantuch, accusing him of “draconian censoring of my work.”

On Saturday, state news agency PAP reported that a spokesman for Tauron Arena said Waters’ management had canceled the concert without giving a reason.

‘Persona not grata’ in Krakow

The Krakow city council is scheduled to debate a motion on Wednesday that would declare Waters “persona non grata.” One of the councillors, Lukasz Wantuch, had urged city residents to boycott the Waters concerts.

“Roger Waters, an open supporter of Putin, wants to play in Krakow … It would be shameful for our city,” Wantuch said earlier on social media. “Let him sing in Moscow.”

Waters says he only wants ‘negotiated peace’

“Lukasz Wantuch seems to know nothing of my history of working, all my life, at some personal cost, in the service of human rights,” Waters said.

Paraphrasing the words of his hit single “Another Brick in the Wall”, Waters also wrote: “Hey! Lukasz Wantuch! ‘Leave them Kids Alone!'”.

He said he had only wanted to urge the countries involved “to work towards a negotiated peace rather than escalate matters towards a bitter end.”

Wantuch said in a Facebook post on Sunday morning that he was in Ukraine and would respond to Waters’ statement in the evening.

https://www.dw.com/en/roger-waters-concerts-canceled-in-poland-because-of-his-ukraine-comments/a-63232688

Top photo – Pink Floyd group photo from LP Meddle – 1971

L-R:  Roger Waters, Nick Mason, David Gilmour, Rick Wright

Lee Heidhues 9.24.2022

This is sad.

 I worked in the neighborhood for 10 years where the Double Play is located. First at an import company, which now houses the San Francisco animal shelter, and later at the Best Foods Mayonnaise production plant at Bryant and Mariposa streets.

Down the street from the Double Play was the Oroweat Bakery store which I shopped at regularly.

Back then it was a working class neighborhood  with rail cars and big rigs delivering and picking up at both the import company and the mayonnaise factory.

Those days are long gone but the Double Play remained. Until today.

The San Francisco Chronicle 9.24.2022

The Double Play Bar & Grill, a beloved watering hole in San Francisco’s Mission District that first opened in 1909, was destroyed by a fire Saturday morning.

Jonathan Baxter, a spokesperson for the San Francisco Fire Department, said the blaze at the landmark establishment on the corner of 16th and Bryant streets started shortly after 5 a.m. Saturday.

The fire resulted in “a total loss” of the three-story building’s ground floor, which housed the Double Play, Baxter said. Video footage from the fire department showed the building’s first floor in flames as firefighters tried to extinguish the fire.

No one was hurt or displaced in the incident, Baxter said, and firefighters put out the blaze before it could spread to the apartments in the building’s two upper floors or adjacent buildings. A photo shared by San Francisco Fire Fighters Local 798 showed the fire caused exterior damage to at least two apartment units on the second floor.

Firefighters are investigating the fire’s cause.

https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/A-total-loss-Fire-destroys-S-F-Mission-17465003.php

Lee Heidhues 9.23.2022

Now this is serious political reporting with an edge. 

Something you don’t normally see in San Francisco where everyone tries to be nice while they are stabbing you in the back.

It’s must reading for all who are concerned about how Mayor London Breed expects total loyalty from her political appointees and the consequences for failure to toe the line.

Excerpted from San Francisco Standard 9.23.2022

The Fate of the Police Chief

Police Commissioner Max Carter-Oberstone said the mayor indicated to him on two occasions that she was considering making a leadership change at SFPD.

Carter-Oberstone said the mayor initially raised the issue in an April 19 meeting when he joined Breed to discuss his reappointment. He was in the process of finishing out the tail end of his predecessor’s term.

When the mayor first told him she needed his support to change leadership at the department, he interpreted that to mean that he should not back a vote by the Police Commission to fire the chief without checking in with her office.

But Carter-Oberstone said the mayor corrected him.

“No, no, that’s not what I’m saying,” Breed said, according to Carter-Oberstone. “I’m saying I might need to remove the chief—and if that happens, I’m going to need your help in doing that.”

The issue came up again last Wednesday when Carter-Oberstone called the Mayor’s Office to let them know he was supporting Cindy Elias as Police Commission president, he said.

First Sean Elsbernd, the mayor’s chief of staff, brought it up and said electing Elias would obstruct their plans, according to Carter-Oberstone.

Then the mayor herself called, he said.

“She was very upset,” Carter-Oberstone said. “The first thing she went to was that she had told me that she would need my help to change leadership at the department and how this would not be possible with Cindy in place.”

When Breed asked him to not support Elias, Carter-Oberstone says he declined.

That conversation apparently spurred Breed to blast Carter-Oberstone at a Chinese press event later in the week, where she also accused the commission of focusing on reform at the expense of public safety.

That message troubled Carter-Oberstone.

“The mayor is pushing this narrative: we can either protect the Asian community from hate-based crime or we can do police reform,” he told The Standard. “Those things are not in tension.”

Jeff Cretan, Breed’s spokesperson, confirmed that both Breed and Elsbernd raised the issue of SFPD leadership with Carter-Oberstone.

But Cretan said the mayor is not considering firing Scott.

“What they both said was that if they ever did need to make a leadership change, which of course can happen, they would need his help,” Cretan said. “But again, that’s not under consideration.”

https://sfstandard.com/politics/whats-really-behind-the-mayors-spat-with-her-appointee-influence-over-sfpds-future-leadership/

Top photo – The Mayor with  a smiling (for now) SFPD Chief Bill Scott.

Lee Heidhues 9.23.2022

It appears the water pipe work is done at the site of the beautiful New Zealand Christmas tree adjacent to the Lincoln Park Golf Course.

The work crew has laid an 8″ pipe which will bring recycled water to accommodate an entitled class of golfers.

The work was delayed after a City worker willfully disregarded a San Francisco Public Utilities Final Decision (SFPUC) and destroyed a major root on the tree.

WD-2852_Decision_on_appeal_Tree_Removal_lyman

The July 2022 Final Decision in our favor was apparently the first time that the SFPUC has upheld an Appeal to stop the destruction of a tree under its jurisdiction.

Our great victory has been cast aside.

Despite lodging numerous complaints with the San Francisco PUC, the Department of Public Works, the Bureau of Urban Forestry and the Recreation and Parks Departments we have received not one piece of correspondence detailing how and why the City blatantly ignored its own Final Decision to preserve the tree.

All our complaints are just a lot of hot air.

The damage is already done.  Hopefully the New Zealand Christmas Tree will survive.

Lee Heidhues 9.23.2022

Heather Knight, San Francisco Chronicle columnist,  published a column on September 22, 2022 headlined.

‘He’s back’: Alleged stalker returns to S.F. after judge dismisses case, sparking new complaints from women

https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/bayarea/heatherknight/article/S-F-women-frightened-by-return-of-alleged-17461002.php

Heather and I  engaged in the following colloquy.

9.22.2022

Heather

Mercifully for Chesa’s  Peace of Mind he is not available for you to troll.

Otherwise, I’m sure Chesa would have received Heather Knight lede type Nightcrawler coverage holding him liable.

It stands out that the 153K Volunteer Puppet DA is not mentioned in this op ed.

She’s now the flavor of the month.

Lee Heidhues

9.23.2022

Perhaps you don’t understand how the criminal justice system works. I wrote about the West Portal case involving the teenage girl last year when it occurred while Chesa Boudin was the DA – didn’t blame him then, blamed the judge. No arrests have been made since Hobbs returned to San Francisco so there’s no case yet for Brooke Jenkins to handle.

I’m more concerned about the fact that women are being harassed and followed on the streets of San Francisco and will continue to write about that.

Sincerely,

Heather Knight

Columnist

Heather

9.23.2022

Thanks for your response to my email

We have a long torturous history of communication 

I totally concur with the 2nd graph in your email that shining a light on abuse of women is something you will always report

My point is now and will be forever that the MSM spent 2 1/2 years destroying Chesa

And abetted by 9MM (the final total) in MAGA money appealing to the most paranoid psyche of San Francisco the political lynching of Chesa worked.

Were Chesa still DA every crime in San Francisco, abetted by the MSM, would be tossed at Chesa’s doorstep 

Your piece of 9.22 included.

I did note buried deep in the story is the fact Chesa charged this guy with a misdemeanor. I appreciate that inclusion 

Chesa is very honest ethical intelligent Man

The disgraceful Coupd’etat in which the MSM was complicit will rank with the worst moments in San Francisco history 

Lee Heidhues

Top photo – Artwork accompanying @simbagirrl Tweet 9,23.2022

Says it all about the current State of Play in San Francisco politics.

Lee Heidhues 9.22.2022

It won’t be a pretty picture in 2023 if, as most pundits and polls predict, Republicans take control of the House of Repesentatives.

What Trump didn’t accomplish on January 6, 2021with his attempted Coup d’etat will take place under the guise of the representatives of the People.

Excerpted from New York Intelligencer – 9.22.2022

Next year, if Republicans have the majority again, they will enter office with far more fury and star power than whatever the tea party brought to bear.

The new class of Republicans will be overwhelmingly loyal to Donald Trump, with many of them elected in primaries that have become, more than anything else, tests of how slavishly devoted a politician can be to the MAGA brand.

It’s Trump’s party in every way, even if he’s indicted, even if Ron DeSantis runs for president. Many of these House Republicans tout all of his conspiracies and fever dreams. They are devoted to the Big Lie of 2020, that Trump somehow didn’t lose an election to Biden.

Unlike the Senate Republican contenders, who have been forced to moderate themselves to appeal to statewide electorates, House Republicans face almost no such pressure, especially in gerrymandered districts. They can be as unhinged as they want to be.

The new class of MAGA Republicans will be far more formidable, in terms of their mass followings and messaging, than any of the kingmakers of the tea-party period.

The 2010s version of the Freedom Caucus never had anyone like Marjorie Taylor Greene, who — with her more than 1 million Twitter followers — possesses all of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s media savvy and will probably be able to mount a presidential bid someday.

Greene, like AOC, has found alternative channels to burnish her brand, growing into a right-wing social-media star almost overnight. Greene’s ascension to the majority will, at the minimum, catalyze all of her pet causes, like declaring the United States a Christian nation, railing against transgender surgery for minors, and QAnon.

Greene will have acolytes and rivals, those with their enormous fanbases in the new majority. Lauren Boebert, the Colorado congresswoman who gained fame for touting her love of assault weapons, is younger than Greene and has even more followers on Twitter.

Twitter isn’t real life, but with a weak speakership, personalities will matter. The two are not exactly friendly, but will be united in their hatred of Biden and the Democrats — or at least in their enthusiasm for impeachment. More young stars of the MAGA movement may be on their way. All of them will be positioned to deny the outcome of the 2024 election too, if Biden or another Democrat manages to triumph.

Presiding over all of this will probably be Kevin McCarthy, the Republican minority leader from California who is not known for his legislative prowess or ability to manage a caucus. He will be a weaker speaker than John Boehner or Paul Ryan, and will probably bow to whatever cause the far right wants to push in a particular month.

He will not be in charge of the House in any real sense, but rather captive to the conspiratorial currents online that fuel Greene, Boebert, and their ideological allies. As his resurrection of Trump after January 6 shows, he will, if necessary, subvert democracy to stay in power.

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2022/09/the-maga-house-will-make-the-tea-party-look-tame.html