This just in from the Prop 73 folks…In case you didn’t already know what their real goal is, read the following about a Prop 73 legislative hearing on the meaure:

During that hearing Assembly Health Committee Chair Wilma Chan questioned Proposition 73’s chief supporter Paul Laubacher if he, or any of the other Proposition 73 supporters present, were involved in placing an advertisement in the current issue of San Francisco Faith newspaper which read Proposition 73 “is our first opportunity since Roe v. Wade to pass a baby-saving law in California — a constitutional amendment that the courts cannot overturn!”

To the Members of the California State Assembly:

I am returning Assembly Bill 849 without my signature because I do
not believe the Legislature can reverse an initiative approved by the
people of California.

I am proud California is a leader in recognizing and respecting
domestic partnerships and the equal rights of domestic partners. I
believe that lesbian and gay couples are entitled to full protection
under the law and should not be discriminated against based upon
their relationships. I support current domestic partnership rights
and will continue to vigorously defend and enforce these rights and
as such will not support any rollback.

Lest it get lost in the righteous fury over Arnold’s veto of the gay marriage bill, I would like to point out that he also vetoed raising the minimum wage. Not content to pander to the religious conservatives, Schwarzenegger also needed to pay off his donors.

“Wealthy companies set new records in political contributions to buy this veto,” said Art Pulaski, executive secretary-treasurer of the California Labor Federation. “Schwarzenegger bends whichever the way the corporate winds blow. Just a few weeks ago, the Restaurant Association, a major opponent of the bill, hosted a fund-raiser for Schwarzenegger in Los Angeles. Coincidence? I don’t think so.”

I came home today and Bernal Heights was on fire.

Unfortunately, I only had a crappy cellphone camera.

SFFD had it under control in like 45 minutes.

As Robert wrote below, Schwarzenegger has vetoed the same sex marriage bill. What’s interesting to me is that he is citing exclusively procedural grounds.

“This bill simply adds confusion to a constitutional issue,” the Republican governor said in a veto message. “If the ban of same-sex marriage is unconstitutional this bill is not necessary. If the ban is constitutional this bill is ineffective.”

In San Francisco, there will be a march in protest. Friday, 5 pm at Market and Castro (Harvey Milk Plaza).

Arnold vetoed Leno’s Marriage Bill this afternoon. Folks are gathering for a rally tomorrow at 5 PM at Harvey Milk Plaza on Market and Castro according to Leno’s office and Equality California. We will then march to the LGBT Center.

If you are eager to break the United Healthcare Workers’ picket line at the Sutter Health hospitals, you might want to think twice, given the priorities of the scabspeople working there:

Three hospital workers hired to replace striking service employees at Sutter Health-owned hospitals were detained by the police for allegedly stealing Viagra.

According to a police report, on Sept. 24 a security guard at California Pacific Medical Center’s Davies campus watched three housekeeping employees, one male and two females, as they removed packages containing more than a dozen Viagra pills from an open cabinet. The male hid the pills on his body and the women threw the packaging into one of their garbage bags. Once caught, the male and one of the females confessed to the crime.

From a Rodgers and Hart song:

You don’t know that I felt good
When we up and parted

Tom DeLay was indicted. And under the House of Representatives’ rules, he had to step down (as least temporarily) as House Majority Leader. He is the first House leader to be indicted in more than a century.

It appears that Mr. DeLay had created a group called “Texans to Elect Republicans.” Keep it simple and focus on the message. In Texas, it is illegal for candidates to accept corporation money.

Something that we in California could learn from our brothers and sisters in Texas.

We have recently been hit by upward of 100 spam comments a day. Although we have managed to keep them from actually appearing on the blog, it has meant a huge amount of overhead for me to deal with.

In order to eliminate the problem, I have been forced to add an annoying hoop to jump through before you can place comments. When you go to post a comment, you will now have to type the number that appears on top of the image.

Please let me know if there are problems with this.

Councilwoman Maudelle Shirek addressing a crowd at UC Berkeley

In today’s Chronicle, there is an article that quotes a Republican Congressman from Iowa chastising Congresswoman Barbara Lee for not reading her history books and understanding that Joe McCarthy was a national hero. Joe McCarthy. Jesus.

Congresswoman Barbara Lee had planned to name a Post Office after longtime Berkeley Councilwoman Maudelle Shirek, an African American Civil Rights leader. House Republicans started a whisper campaign, typically the most effective strategy for sabotaging an issue. But when Congresswoman Barbara Lee exposed their whisper campaign and lamblasted them, they reverted to the tried and true method of lying ala Karl Rove. Take the truth, invert it, and say it as loudly and as many times as possible until that narrative becomes the truth.