Morning News Round-Up -- 5.10.10: Sports, then politics...

Sporting news first...

The Sharks are moving on to the Western Conference Finals. For those of you who know nothing about hockey, that means they are 8 wins away from hoisting the Cup... but a tough 8 wins.

And Dallas Braden, the Oakland A's newest arm pitched the 19th perfect game in MLB history... hopefully Mr. Braden will still be in the green and gold when the open in San Jose...

The Chronicle goes deep into the details about the 49er's campaign in Santa Clara...

It is May 10, which means ballots will actually go out to voters today... and the news reflects that timing...

Thanks to a South County Watch Dog, we actually looked at the political endorsements in the Gilroy Dispatch this weekend. They endorsed Teresa Alvarado for County Supervisor, which is important. But the hit mailers that was undoubtedly written this weekend and will be mailed this week will be full of this quote about Alvarado's opponent, Forrest Williams:

There is one candidate who is the poster perfect person for what Santa Clara County absolutely does not need. Forrest Williams panders to public employee unions, takes their money and is happy to do their bidding. A vote for him is a long-term sentence for financial disaster and assures an acrimonious battle at the county level as tough economic choices are made.

All evidence points to the fact that (incumbent, barely being challenged) Pete Constant is doing some opposition research on the folks running against him. We learn this from Sunday's Internal Affairs column in the Merc. It seems his two opponents have both been arrested, and Pete Constant knew enough about it to call on of his opponent's arrests a "wet reckless" which means challenger David Clancy was drinking when he got pulled over his car. We wonder where a former police officer could learn those things about his opponent... hmmm... Thinking about it further, however, Wet Reckless would be a good description of the old Club Wet nightclub downtown too...

Jeff Rosen went north and south for a pair endorsements for District Attorney, the Gilroy Dispatch and the Palo Alto Weekly get on the Rosen Train...

We thought Scott Herhold was done with writing about the District Attorney... but apparently not. He continues his anti-Dolores Carr effort, this time, mostly about how funny it is that she has two PR people on staff, while at the same time cut the cold-case unit. He goes into specifics about how having 2 PR people on board is actually the opposite of transparency, the reasoning Carr gives for having PR people in the first place. (Kathleen, feel free to defend Dolores Carr below...)

Three school bond measures get the Merc Editorial nod... A, E, and G...

Now, onto Morgan Hill, Arizona, and Tea Parties...

Arizona used to be so quaint... with the lack of Daylight Savings time and all. Now it is the hotbed of regressive anti-immigration policies... and the City of San Jose isn't going to stand idly by, they are going to ban travel and official city business with the Sun Devil state.

Scott Herhold chimes in on the Morgan Hill t-shirt flap. (He's been very busy...) He doesn't think the kids that were wearing the shirt are right... but he doesn't think they should have been kicked out of school either... We also learn that he "...loathes the simple dictums of the tea party movement..." Perhaps he should look into which local elected officials have been to the local Tea Party rallies...

And of course, the obligatory Tea Party rally happened in Morgan Hill over the weekend as Watch Dog predicted:

Also from Internal Affairs, we learn that former Alum Rock Union Superintendent, who got fired, is now going to be the Superintendent at the Greenfield Union School District. She was appointed by the State Board of Education... Internal Affairs filed this in the "what were they thinking" file...

That wasn't the only Alum Rock School District-related news thought, they might push a mandatory parent volunteer effort... good luck with that.

Remember the stranded singers from Mountain View who spent a week in Paris because of the volcano? Well, they are holding a benefit concert to pay down the debt from baguettes, onion soup, and cigarettes...

Speaking of Paris... is it a Gran Boulevard? Or is it El Camino Real...

Watch Dog got a chuckle from this little bit on the Merc website on Sunday evening... check out the really, really important "California News"...

Morning News Round-Up -- 1.20.10: Rubber Boots Wednesday...

It is going to rain really, really hard today... in case you've been living under a very wet rock.

San Jose Inside has some good "deep-throat" sources in the Merc's newsroom, and those sources are prepared to dish about how they are being kept in the dark about the Merc owner's bankruptcy. Kudos for San Jose Inside's Fly for covering this story even though the Merc isn't...

Speaking of the Merc newsroom...

The Merc's Patty Fisher gives us a little insight into some grassroots watchdogs (NIMBYs) doing work on High Speed Rail... we also learn that Fisher lives near the tracks, which should probably disqualify her from writing further on the subject...

Los Gatos is knocking down some buildings and building an affordable housing apartment complex near downtown. (You did not misread the previous sentence.) Now Supervisorial Candidate/ Los Gatos Councilmember Mike Wasserman can claim to be an affordable-housing advocate... even in his own backyard.

In other Los Gatos news, retiring City Councilmember Steve Glickman is not riding off quietly into the sunset... in fact, he is being a pain in the ass to his Council colleagues and upsetting folks all over town -- according to the Los Gatos Observer. He is criculating two ballot initiatives (one for term limits and one for stopping the library reconstruction). In his own words, Glickman is "...kind of cleaning up some unfinished business..."

The Morgan Hill Times reporter Natalie Everett got assigned a great story... one that she probably never imagined in journalism school. She tested how difficult (not very) it would be to get a doctor's note and get medical marijuana from one of the local dispensaries... Her next assignment, describe how delicious In-and-Out Burger is.

Mission City Lantern criticized us yesterday for using the word fuck. We are all grown-ups Mr. Rowen, but I will try to stay away from using it... unless I get really, really pissed.

Morning News Round-Up – 12.30.09: The busted edition…

The Governator continues to make his mark on the judicial scene in Santa Clara County. Schwarzenegger adds 6 new Superior Court judges bringing his appointments to nearly 2 dozen. Welcome to the bench Julia Emede, Maureen Folan, Ronald Toff, Daniel Nishigaya, Jesus Valencia Jr., and Theodore Zayner.

Misdemeanor + Broke = Guilty?

San Jose police were watching this week as the U.S. Court of Appeals restricted the use of Tasers. City Attorney Rick Doyle shrugged saying San Jose police already used Tasers only as a “reasonable” level of force under “some immediate threat.” The attorney for San Jose State student Phoung Ho disagreed.

Count on seeing more of the San Jose Conservation Corps, at least $160,000 more.

The Merc’s Editorial Board looked past the uproar over Alum Rocks closing of Pala Middle School to see new schools and opportunities. Editors send props to Superintendent Jose Manzo for accepting the charter school competition.

Life is filled with opportunity. For example, Gary “Mr. Roadshow” Richards knows before you got your first DUI you (probably) offered the police 87 other opportunities.

Busted. Frances Stewart is behind bars accused of stealing $100,000 from the Silicon Valley Community foundation flexible spending accounts. Translation, Stewart skimmed employee health care money.

San Jose police are looking for Jennifer Bautista as a “person of interest” in the brutal death of Alviso’s Norma Leticia Martinez. If you have information, call the San Jose police at (408)277-5283.

Protect San Jose gives themselves year-end props and wants to hear from you before making improvements. Reader suggestions to the Police Officer Association bloggers include a more active politicking along with advertising in the local paper.

San Jose Insider Danny Wool jumps into the Tech Museum fracas with a rehash of the Merc story.

Brian Darby gets a little (un)love from Mission City Lantern.

Morning News Round-Up – 12.29.09: Still time for your 2009 scandal...

The San Jose Conservation Corps also exits 2009 with an embarrassing story. Seems a city audit uncovered overcharges of nearly a half million. San Jose City Attorney Rick Doyle said it was due to “a lack of financial management” and “decentralizing” city departments would “get better results.”

San Jose police are investigating the brutal murder of Alviso’s Norma Leticia Martinez. While police don’t believe this is a hate crime, shopkeeper Jose Lujan said of the beating “that’s a lot of hate. Nobody deserves that.”

When San Jose High’s Matt Blea returned home from the hospital, the Merc’s Scott Herhold took pen to paper to call for reforms. Herhold calls on the California Interscholastic Federation to step in with “tough new protocols” preventing kids from getting back into the game after serious injury.

Also closing 2009 with reflections, the Merc’s Joe Rodriguez puts a gentle touch on some of the year’s traumas. With reflections from 90-year-old Quaker Ian Thiermann who went back to work after Bernie Madoff stole his life savings, muralist Frank Torres who suffered a gang beating for his art and Khmer Rouge survivor Sophany Bay whose interviews with other victims are used in court proceedings a world away, Rodriguez puts a hopeful close on 2009.

The Merc’s Editorial Board is pissed the wealthy in Silicon Valley aren’t stepping up to feed the hungry. Second Harvest Food Bank has seen donations drop 20% and demand rise nearly 40%. So, step it up, people.

Busted. Some good news for the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s REACT Task Force. Pascal Chaubard won’t be using Craigslist to scam discount seeking travelers for a while.

And just when you thought 2009 could end without another scandal… Seems nepotism remains alive and well in San Jose. Tech Museum President, Peter Friess, and the board. Hired Friess’ wife to “spruce up” the Tech’s image for a nice $400,000.

Protect San Jose has uncovered a “disturbing trend” from the Mercury News, reporters are digging around in court records. Incoming Police Officers’ Association President George Beattie suggests blog responses might not be worth his time.

Mission City Lantern uncovers a new spin for the anti-49ers team. Environmental racism.

Morning News Round-Up – 12.23.09:The failure edition...

Remember those videotapes District Attorney Dolores Carr hoped would disappear? They’re back in the news. Appellate attorney Dallas Sacher hopes his wrongly convicted client is declared factually innocent after review of his tape shows Dr. James Crawford disputing medical assertions. Looks like Carr has more ‘splaining to do…

There is no truth to the rumor that it was more of those nasty videotapes clogging the sewers in the Santa Clara County Government Center. And the stench was raw sewage not worn out pols.

The Merc’s Editorial Board sends out a reminder that less tax money in translates to fewer services on the streets. Maybe Santa will sweep the streets…

Megachurch Abundant Life Christian Fellowship is losing Paul Sheppard who announced he was resigning following a “moral failure.” Congregants suggest it was Sheppard's own hot toddy that brought him down...

The victim of Saturday night’s murder in San Jose has been identified as Daniel Booker. San Jose police report observing an altercation and Bookers shooting before arresting Walter Hughes for San Jose’s 28th murder of 2009. Say what?

Protect San Jose’s Beat Cop sends a shout out for safety. Beat Cop forgot to mention, don’t bring that 45 when you head downtown for a Chai Hot Toddy…

Santa is getting a special request from someone too old to get those stockings stuffed by the big guy. San Jose Insider/Santa Clara County Board of Education member Joseph DiSalvo has one tiny request, send those “hundreds of billions of tax dollars to nation building at home and not abroad.”

Morning News Round-Up -- 12.17.09: Going Rogue?

We hate to make this the top story today for fear that we'll hear from Kathleen about it... but a San Jose Police Lieutenant is suing the SJPD and Chief Davis for alleged racial discrimination. This is probably just what Chief Davis wants to deal with right now. On the positive side, it allows City Attorney Rick Doyle to answer media inquiries, which provided this gem of a quote:

"I think San Jose has a very good record of not having any racial discrimination in employment..." You think San Jose has a very good record? You don't know? We'll probably find out in the course of this lawsuit which will almost certainly end in a settlement...

To baseball:

We found this from an NBC Sports blog "Circling the Bases" about how Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums wants to not only use Oakland Revedevelopment dollars to keep the A's in Oakland, he wants to use some of your Federal tax dollars (stimulus) too. I'm sure that project will go over big in D.C.

On the same topic, there was a meeting about the neighborhood/traffic impacts of a new stadium downtown last night. But the best part of today's story about that meeting is what the Mayor had to say about the San Jose Giants involvement in opposing the MLB plans downtown: "Did they [the San Jose Giants] not notice the million dollars we spent on Muni Stadium? It's kind of funny... But I don't expect people to be consistent when it gets to these political issues." If I read that right, it seems the Mayor used sarcasm and humor...

And on the topic of stadiums... the Merc Editorial Board supports baseball, but with a "limited public investment." Watch Dog likes any Editorial where "beer batter" is referenced...

It is obvious today that reporters/editors at the Merc rely on Watch Dog to read "out of town" newspapers for them. Yesterday morning we spotted a Matier & Ross piece on sfgate.com that talked about a pretty unfavorable audit of Valley Medical Center doctors' travel. Then last night, (after reading Watch Dog?) the Merc got on the story... (We also kind of joked about it yesterday with this: It is a good thing that we have a local newspaper to cover local topics...

The Fly/San Jose Inside "has heard" that the Chamber of Commerce may be Going Rogue at their annual Legends and Leaders event... Which begs the question, is Sarah Palin a legend or a leader?

Morning News Round-Up -- 11.12.09: Economic good news... and bad...

The good news is the economy just might be at the very beginning parts of a recovery... maybe. The bad news? Well, Silicon Valley companies are using this opportunity to keep cutting their workforce... the latest is Applied Materials. Adobe was last week. Sun and Electronic Arts the week before. Expect more folks spending the day at Starbucks and Peet's...

In other economic news... current tech giant HP is buying former tech giant (?) 3Com.

More details are coming out about the 25th homicide of the year in San Jose was a sophomore at Santa Teresa High School. He was stabbed to death in his own backyard. There don't seem to be a lot of details about what happened or who did it.

There is at least one really good job that will be opening up soon: The Chancellor at San Jose/Evergreen Community College District will step down at the end of the year. The official cause of the soon-to-be-vacancy? Health reasons. The unofficial/ unmentioned cause? Financial problems and union issues. Between the Mountain View-Whisman School District, the Los Altos School District, and the San Jose/ Evergreen Community College District -- there will be a lot of new faces in Silicon Valley education circles next year...

Scott Herhold gets in on the "Berlin Wall 20 years later" action. He has his own interesting twist about being approached to be a spy, but it does remind Watch Dog of this...

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Legends of the Wall
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

There is an Opinion piece in the Merc today about how prosecutorial misconduct costs taxpayers money and hurts credibility of law enforcement. Yup. At least the San Jose Police Department aren't mentioned in the story...

Speaking of prosecutors... the suspects accused of killing Mark Achilli in Los Gatos are going to be in court on Monday to possibly get their trial date. The prosecutor in this high-profile case? Jeff Rosen. Does that name sound familiar Dolores Carr?

Palo Alto Unified is looking to April 2010 to renew their tiny ($493) parcel tax... They must be encouraged by these results... and these...

Morning News Round-Up – 9.17.09: This website is too busy to show the webpage…

The Merc’s site is very popular today. Before the site got hit (an attack or just really popular?) we pulled a few tidbits from the Merc’s headlines. Hope this is not a sign of things to come...

Most of the gubernatorial hopefuls hit Silicon Valley for an (un)cheery discussion of California’s gloomy state of affairs along with their pitch to be the next leader.

“Our job here is not to go on strike,” according to Service Employees International Union representative Brian Ward as negotiations with the city of Palo Alto stretched long into the night. Councilmember Pat Burt called allegations of “hiding” money “silly” and said they were “red herrings” that were distracting negotiations.

Plastic bags are on their way out the door in Palo Alto. While most of the environmentally conscious town’s markets gave up the bits of flotsam before being asked a few will end use tomorrow. The American Chemistry Council could be heard grumbling as they toted off with their reusable bag filled with goodies from Piazza’s.

Gilroy’s City Council is sending police and planning staff to investigate the joys of medical marijuana.

Gilroy schools received an uneven report card. All but two schools were inside the 700 range. Mount Madonna and (former) charter school El Portal Leadership Academy stumbled along in the 500’s. El Portal is best remembered as the site of stolen teacher funds as the Mexican American Community Services Agency (MACSA) “borrowed” money…

Here’s some (un)cheerful news to read at breakfast – if you’re stuck on the railroad tracks with a train hurtling towards you, jump out and run in the direction of the train at an angle. This after Santa Clara County employee Chuck Issacson was killed when his car was pinned between cars.

Mission City Lantern offers up a new name for the lobbyist firm of Saggau and DeRollo, bada bing… And, pokes fun at Watch Dog for a tardy post, thanks for the kind words in spite of the late posting, James.

Protect San Jose’s Beat Cop offers that annoying helicopter hovering over your home should be heard as the swooping of the hawk looking for prey, while keeping you safe from rodents.

Morning News Round-Up -- 9.2.09: Illegal Fiscal Practices + Misappropriation of Funds = Get a Good Lawyer

The Mexican American Community Services Agency’s (MACSA) theft of teacher retirement funds has former teacher/ union leader Marty Herrmann really pissed. Who can blame him. A State investigator’s report gave the news to the Santa Clara Office of Education that MACSA was engaged in “illegal fiscal practices” and “misappropriation of funds.” District Attorney Dolores Carr is still trying to figure out whether to launch a criminal investigation (still?). And we would guess some folks are hiring lawyers...

Caltrain CEO Mike Scanlon is still apologizing for the loud tweeting and tooting pissing off residents as the commuter rail rumbles past bedrooms. Yes, they are trying to figure out how to comply with Federal regulations and soften the racket. The good news is that the horns are quieter than they have been.

The lucky Hal Plotkin-replacement on the Foothill-DeAnza Community College Board will be Joan Barram who did her time supporting Foothill-DeAnza since 1980 on various boards. Barram is no stranger to school boards having served on the Cupertino Union School District Board for a dozen years.

The Merc’s Sal Pizarro hung out with creative geniuses at the San Jose Tech Museum playing with everything from wind-up radios to solar powered commuter ferries. Pizarro suggests a visit to the Tech’s new upstairs is good for the imagination.

Palo Alto Unified School District got a whopper of a tax credit – (up to) $25 million. Chief Business Official Bob Golton deadpanned “it’s good to be lucky.” The rich get richer, so to speak...

San Jose Insider/Santa Clara County Board of Education Trustee Joseph DiSalvo ponders a battle brewing in Sacramento over test data and teacher performance. At stake, millions of Federal dollars.

Mission City Lantern sends kudos to State Senator Elaine Alquist and celebrates Alquists 49ers Senate bill.

Protect San Jose’s data wonk, Ed Rast, does a walk through the cost of doing business comparing San Jose to other Silicon Valley communities. No response from City administrators being smacked by Rast.

A recap of Merc’s Government Watch for your viewing pleasure…

• The County Board of Supervisors Public Safety and Justice Committee talks about a new program to keep kids out of crime...
• San Jose’s City Council wants to land some of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act dollars at the airport for “taxable short-term debt” conversion. Also on tap discussion of that pesky Grand Jury report smacking San Jose’s Los Lagos golf course for mega-cost overruns.
• The Santa Clara County Office of Education noodles over how to get students on the Board.
• Budget woes and Grand Jury reports are on tap for the Los Altos School District.
• After seeing those STAR reports the Los Gatos Union School District talks test results.
• In Sunnyvale, the Fremont Union High School District gets more depressing news about state budget updates.
• Furloughs for Board Members (seriously?), managers, and confidential employees is in the works at the Campbell Union School District.
• Developers in the Mountain View-Whisman School District will be on hand for a discussion of increased developer fees. That should be a fun conversation...

Morning News Round-Up -- 8.26.09: Any-Excuse-to-Use-Funny-Photo Edition...

The Merc’s Sal Pizarro gives a rundown of San Jose’s latest accolades: 3rd best place for kids (think skate parks), 12th best public university in the west (tied with Humboldt, Fresno, and Texas State), and, drumroll please, top water pollution control plant from the US Environmental Protection Agency (for power generation). Yay us -- 12th best in the west!

Santa Clara Supervisor Ken Yeager hopes to find a way to keep Henry Coe State Park open while colleague/ Supervisor/(soon-to-be Mayor?) Don Gage says close that puppy. The list of closing parks is expected right after your Labor Day hike, so enjoy it.

Gilroy Mayor Al Pinheiro’s biggest hater, Mark Zappa, is waiting until the Mayor returns from Portugal before filing the recall paperwork and looking to a June 2010 recall election, to save the City money. That's pretty thoughtful... For the record, Gilroy’s future Mayor?/ Supervisor Don Gage made no appearance in the story...

The race to replace Hal Plotkin by appointment to the Foothill-DeAnza Community College Distict is in the final interview stage. Foothill-DeAnza Trustees want to talk with Joan Barram (Cupertino Union School District Trustee), Richard Bernhardt (Business and student lobbyist), Jeannie Conner (Senator Joe Simitian’s political director), and Anita Manwani-Bhagat (business leader at NASA/HP/Agilent).

Congressmember Anna Eshoo’s 2nd “telephone” town hall got her props from the more than 7,000 participants. Eshoo told participants she’s doing a face-to-face on healthcare next week and testily pointed out she’s done more face-to-face town halls than any of her colleagues.

Kathleen Blanchard, the Mother of one of Gunn High Schools suicide victims spoke out at the Palo Alto Unified School Board meeting. Without pointing fingers, she gently urged change in how adults work with students and called for “attitude adjustments and philosophical adjustments” in working with kids. The Merc’s Patty Fisher digs into other teen suicides in Silicon Valley and the news is not good…

NASA Ames is ready to build “Sustainability Base,” architect Kevin Burke loves the “combination of high tech and low tech.” Meaning the building will close itself at night and use the same “technology” as historic California Adobe homes to cool off or warm up. With a little luck, there won’t be a “toxic” siding battle on this green house.

Latest perv alerts heading your way…

• Dentist/(mock) breast health worker Benva Oshana Lazar has added another complaint to his patient list – bringing his total to 8 (so far) patients pissed to learn breast exams are not part of dental practice.
• Teacher/ perv Edward Riley Slate III was busted for a 6 month sexual relationship with a student at Santa Clara’s Wilcox High.

(shy) Erotica enthusiasts/ burglars hit Gilroy’s Simply Romance for a third time taking off with leather wrist bands, cash, and owner Hank Provost’s new pipe, among other goodies. The increased attention from thieves doesn’t deter Provost, “if anything, I’m more determined to stick around.” Perhaps we now know where the ball gag came from...

San Jose Insider/ Santa Clara County Board of Education Trustee Joseph DiSalvo (could he have a longer title?) has endorsed former Franklin-McKinley Superintendent Larry Aceves as his favorite for State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

San Jose Inside’s Fly celebrates a (temporary?) reprieve for the (Fly hangout) “dingy, punky, (puky?)” Caravan Bar over an (un)watered down White Russian. (apparently) The Merc’s Internal Affairs story pissed off bartenders who “scribbled down letters” (on napkins) demanding an apology. Fly's piece also proves that Metro writers are probably a lot more fun to hang out with than Merc writers...

Morning News Round-Up – 8.4.09: Wanna great deal on a plasma...

It’s the time of year to turn on your porch lights and head outdoors, it’s National Night Out. All around the Valley neighbors will meet each other, it helps when you see someone sneaking around late at night.

Santa Clara County Tax Assessor Larry Stone has “reluctantly concluded” California needs a constitutional convention.

First, Chamber head-honcho Pat Dando writes an OpEd calling for a San Jose City Council decision about the bids for a library be reconsidered... the obvious retort was in today’s paper: Robert Baldini, President of the Building and Construction Trades Council fires back. The Merc weighs in (again) on this issue as they discuss the City of San Jose's massive budget problem... Even San Jose Inside’s Fly is buzzing around this smelly mess...

Pointing to a desire for transparency, Morgan Hill School District Trustees invited local unions to join them during interviews of Superintendent replacements. Search firm Cosca Group is a little pissed saying they earned their creds on confidentiality.

Gilroy’s City Council moves a little closer to allowing the County’s first medical marijuana clinic. Councilmember Bob Dillon called marijuana an unethical med and worries the feds will be here to bust up the party.


From our Sister blog, Watch Dog San Mateo we learn more about Palo Alto finances (and problems)…

• “Huge” is the word the Palo Alto Weekly uses to describe the cost of Palo Alto public employees' health benefits. Perhaps it is a good time for some on the Palo Alto City Council to step aside and let new folks deal with the problem they helped create...
• Then again, maybe burgeoning health care costs aren't hurting the City of Palo Alto that bad. They are spending $70K because they don't trust the California High Speed Rail Authority. Really.

The Merc’s Scott Herhold reports on more fallout from San Jose’s unceremonious dismissal of Independent Police Auditor Barbara Attard. Local digs for Attard included a city loan, and is now part of the great underwater real estate disaster. Here’s an idea for San Jose, keep the condo, rent it to the new IPA until you fire them. Last years numbers from the IPA receive full council review this month.

A big ol’ “infomercial for Psycho Donuts” was how Brian Miller, Executive Director for the local National Alliance on Mental Illness, described last weeks “debate” between head (donut) psycho Kipp Berdiansky and Oscar Wright, CEO United Advocates for Children and Families.

Former soccer coach/accused perv Thomas Anderson’s Pastor Erik Swanson showed up in court to proclaim Andersons innocence. If you have an alternative view, Santa Clara Police detective Sgt. Daniel Moreno wants to hear from you 408-615-4813.

The economic meltdown (possibly) coupled with email enthusiasm is contributing to pain at the United States Postal Service. Slated for closure, post offices in San Jose’s Oakridge Mall and Colonnade.

Sal Pizarro says you have no excuse for adding your 2 cents to San Jose’s “Envision San Jose 2040,” heck you can even do it in your bathrobe and slippers. Pizarro also dished Team San Jose CEO Dan Fenton now heads the Destination Marketing Association International board – does this make San Jose a destination dream?

Also thinking about San Jose’s future. Neighbors are getting together with planners to think about the connection between San Jose’s Diridon Station, (possible) major league baseball, high-speed rail, BART and residents. Party pooper/Councilmember Pierluigi Oliverio said ideas are great but the State’s money theft makes dreams unlikely.

Speaking of State thievery… Campbell is looking at a loss of more than $3 million according to city manager Dan Rich who called the theft an “illegal, irrational sham.”

Darryl Williams and Vernon Green visited San Jose to sell “gag” gifts. The joke was on the purchaser when the gift turned out to be a fake plasma TV or broken computer. Don’t be shy, if you had these new age door-to-door salesmen show up call detective Kristin Anderson at 408-808-4500.

San Jose Insider Joseph DiSalvo continues his support for charter schools.

Morning News Round-Up -- 5.13.09: Things Stink Edition (the Merc, spoiled food, and sewage...)

The San Jose City Council “enthusiastically” approved the principles needed to bring A’s baseball to San Jose. Among them: the City ain’t paying for the stadium. Mayor Chuck Reed is calling for a Good Neighbor Committee to address the stadium process and other plans for the area including BART and High-Speed Rail. Baseball takes another step forward...

In other A's news, the hometeam's starting pitcher at tonight's A's/Royals game in Oakland is a guy named Outman. Seriously, a pitcher named Outman. Could you think of a better name for a starting pitcher?

The Merc’s parent company, Media News, plans to start charging for online content. Calling free online content “...an injustice to our print subscribers...” Media News CEO Dean Singleton also plans to gear online content to young people who rely on the internet for news. Good luck media news, the cliff that you are going over is near... this plan stinks...

So does this...

San Jose Fire’s Hazmat Team made a visit to AT&T with 50 firefighters. 325 employees were evacuated, 28 were checked out by paramedics, and 7 landed in the hospital. Why? Someone forgot to toss their old lunch out before it turned noxious. Captain Barry Stallard said when another employee sprayed a cleaner to cover the noxious odor “...that’s when the party started...”

And this...

San Jose’s aging (waste) water treatment plant is headed for an overhaul – and they want you to help plan what comes next. The rebuilt facility is expected to run $1 billion, ideas from energy generation to marshland habitat are all on the table. Perhaps a name like the water treatment plant in San Francisco is in order...

Mr. Roadshow, Gary Richards, stepped out of the car to ask cyclists what would really motivate them to pedal to work. Turns out it’s a hot shower closely followed by safe bike storage. (Sometimes bike-sweaty) San Jose Councilmember Sam Liccardo said it’s helpful when employers don’t require a three piece suit. Mr. Roadshow also dishes on bike etiquette.

The Merc’s Editorial Board calls on San Jose’s Mayor and City Council to have an open discussion about government Sunshine. The Editorial Board worries that without Sunshine Task Force discussion the City could move deeper into the darkness. A good first step would be to figure out who knew what when about the Independent Police Auditor...

Arizona developer DMB Associates ditched their South County project but not so their plans to build in the Cargill salt ponds. John Bruno says if the project doesn’t land in the salt ponds it will be built in the Central Valley. Save the Bay’s David Lewis calls it a “ridiculous false choice.” Watch Dog San Mateo has the salt ponds/Redwood City updates for DMB's 12,000 units. (That's not a typo, they really want to build 12,000 units...)

Mountain View’s City Council ended the uproar over the Day Worker Center by ignoring the Judicial Watch bigots and NIMBYs with approval of the Center. Councilmember John Inks got a little misty eyed saying “...in my heart, I got to say you have to allow people to improve their condition...”

And it was a busy day for the Palo Alto Police Department's Dan Ryan...

Police Agent Dan Ryan reports a mountain lion was spotted using the San Francisquito creek as a pathway, not unusual according the calm agent. Visitors near University Ave. should be on the look out for large cats. (And large cats should be on the lookout for SUVs and Priuses.)

It isn’t often someone celebrates a computer glitch. Palo Alto Police Detective Jason Jenkins took advantage of a computer foul-up to retrieve $4,800 on its way to a scam artist in Canada. The 99 year old who got her money back was delighted, Police Agent Dan Ryan said the grandmother wants to bake cookies for Jenkins.

The City of Cupertino is warning home owners associations about questionable and aggressive tactics of cable/phone providers. Not technically illegal, the tactics for locking up customers could tread on the edge of violating FCC regulations. Not to mention being in bad form…

Santa Clara University has $50 million in “shovel ready” projects with only one hitch – no money. An anonymous private donor has $7 million on the table while SCU waits on the results of the May 19 ballot measures. If 1A and 1B pass, the University’s Vice President James Purcell hopes SCU will be in the State's priority list.

The last of the ballots has been counted, Cupertino Union School District voters passed their parcel tax by 70%. Phil Quon, District Superintendent, said the campaign was the biggest community effort he’d ever worked on.

The Foothill-DeAnza Community College District is looking for the next Martha Kanter – and wants you to help. Kanter is headed to D.C. as Undersecretary of Education, her replacement has big shoes to fill but terrible budget times to fill them...

San Jose Insider/County Board of Education Trustee Joseph DiSalvo hopes to remind us of the power and value of the arts. Calling the arts the “one component of a quality public” education that gets “pummeled” in the drive to teach to tests, DiSalvo makes a good case for the arts and Watch Dog has the macaroni sculpture to prove it… You go Joe!

Watch Dog loves a good story about friends… Los Gatos’ Amy Shever watched with sadness as the pets of 9/11 victims were killed or lost in New York. She learned half a million pets are put down annually when their owners die or become disabled. 2nd Chance 4 Pets was born to give critters new families.

Morning News Round-Up -- 4.16.09: Police Chief Watch (Dog)...the countdown begins

San Jose Police Chief Rob Davis is all over the news these days, and not in a good way. Here’s a rundown on local commentary…

From this story in the Merc. titled "Rumors swirling around San Jose police chief Davis, but job appears secure":

• San Jose councilmember Nora Campos thinks the Chief “...is being looked at a little closer...”
• From Police Officers Association President Bobby Lopez, the Chief’s position is precarious...
• Rev. Jeff Moore II, head of the local NAACP, wants to know if “...a zebra can change his stripes...”
• Perhaps the most telling is this: "City Manager Debra Figone, who has the power to fire Davis, has made no public indication either way." No public comment either way, that's one way to not stand behind your Police Chief...

From Scott Herhold's column titled "San Jose Police Chief Rob Davis's heartburn":

• A Silicon Valley De-Bug round table saw the Chief interrupt a storyteller to tell him “...Spanish is the language of the angels...” That doesn't seem to be gaining the Chief any friends in San Jose's Latino community...
  
• Herhold picks up where the Metro left off last week and describes the troubles facing Chief Davis, and they aren't good.

From the Metro:

• Erin Sherbert digs deeper into the mounting problems facing the Chief.
• Interestingly, Councilmember Madison Nguyen refuses to talk on the record. Rather, she punts until Chief Davis rolls out some "short-term reforms." Those reforms better be good...
  

The latest San Jose Independent Police Auditor Chris Constantin landed in San Jose Inside with a bare bones review. Thanks to Watch Dog tipsters we know Constantin is hitting the bricks and meeting with anyone who slows down long enough to talk to him. The dude doesn’t start work until next month and is showing up at community and stakeholder meetings.

The tanking economy hasn’t hit San Jose’s casinos. The gambling business is good and casinos want to hire. Garden City Casino is filing (another) lawsuit complaining San Jose isn’t helping with hiring. City Attorney Rick Doyle calls it “needless lawyering.” Coming from a lawyer, that is really saying something...

The Merc.’s Action Line guy, Dennis Rockstroh, reports San Jose City’s budget cutting has hit landscaping. The Cty’s Greg Schultz says high maintenance shrubs and ground cover are the targets of this landscaping scale-back.

Bigots imported from Washington, D.C. to fight a Day Worker center in Mountain View are making claims of “soft racism” accusing Americans’ desire for cheap labor of creating the problem. Mountain View Mayor Margaret Abe-Koga said the immigration issue that brought Judicial Watch to Mountain View is a federal issue she’s not sure what they expect from the Council.

The Merc’s Editorial Board supports school district parcel tax measures A & B, with their “well thought out” spending plans and protection of the elderly and disabled. Moreland and Cupertino School Districts have a challenging race ahead, but they have to be happy to have the Merc’s support.

Super Soakers and nametags are the latest tools for gang members looking to leave their intimidating mark on San Jose. Tagging is on the rise and San Jose’s increasing deficit isn’t helping. Mayor Chuck Reed says “we’re losing ground” and the City needs to “be more stubborn than the taggers.” If you’re interested in being one of the stubborn, call 408-277-3208 or e-mail: antigraffiti@sanjoseca.gov.

Sal Pizzaro, the Merc’s Man About Town, dishes gubernatorial wanna be/former eBay CEO Meg Whitman will be at tonight’s San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce Women in Leadership dinner. Pizzaro adds Whitman should provide insight on the State’s financial woes.

Palo Alto’s Midtown parents will see big changes (hint: Big parental beefs are brewing) as school boundaries are redrawn and the old/new Garland School is re-opened.

A former Reporter/Editor of several (Peninsula and Palo Alto) local papers was arrested (again) on drug charges. Brian Bothun was picked up on April 5th in Palo Alto. This just proves that Reporters/Editors love writing about Reporters/Editors. Hell hath no fury like former newspaper rivals...

San Jose Revealed made Watch Dog’s head spin using complicated baseball statistics to figure out how San Jose’s Councilmembers stack up in terms of gathering team support. The big losers, Councilmembers Pierluigi Oliverio and Pete Constant. As Revealed points out, it reflects badly on the Councilmember if they can’t garner support from their colleagues…

Peter Lawrence might be the happiest guy in Silicon Valley, he retired at 44 from a great job at HP, authored a book, and contemplates quiet mornings with a view of redwoods. While Lawrence doesn’t consider himself frugal the rest of us might, he has no furniture (or bed), two pairs of pants, and watches TV on his laptop. In these tough times it could pay to emulate at least some of Lawrence’s lifestyle, just don’t take Watch Dog's bed away.

Tesla Chronicles: We Told You So Edition...UPDATED AT 8:46 PM

The rest of the world is catching up to Watch Dog...slowly...

You'll remember the full complement of Watch Dog's Tesla Chronicles previously posted on this site here, here, here, here, and here. And finally, on January 15th, Watch Dog broke the story that Tesla would not be coming to San Jose.

Well, it officially hit the old-school news outlets today. The SiliconValley/San Jose Business Journal, the Merc., and KCBS are reporting on the "news" that Tesla may not be able to move to San Jose. I guess the Business Journal, the Merc., and KCBS should check us out more often to see what is really happening...

Sorry Chuck (Reed). Sorry Harry (Mavrogenes). Sorry Paul (Krutko). This one isn't your fault...

UPDATE:

Two tidbits by way of update...

1. In an updated story from the mercurynews.com, a Tesla spokeswoman said that Tesla "...has not abandoned San Jose..." It seems that Tesla is responding directly to a previous Watch Dog post titled: Tesla Chronicles: Tesla Plans "Abandoned" in San Jose

2. The Mayor's spokesperson, Michelle McGurk, says that the the City is scurrying to find other sites for Tesla in San Jose. If Ms. McGurk had just read Watch Dog earlier, she would have known the Tesla deal was in trouble and the City wouldn't have to scurry so much...

Metro versus Merc: Yesterday's Coverage...

In the news business, speed is important. Reporters, Editors, and newspapers fall all over themselves to be first with a scoop...

Yesterday, sad news broke about about Councilmember Judy Chirco and her being diagnosed with breast cancer. Our best wishes go out to her, her family, and her staff.

But the news roll-out of this story was interesting to watch unfold yesterday:

4:19 p.m.
Erin Sherbert with the Metro posts the story on San Jose Inside

5:47 p.m.
John Woolfolk with the Mercury News posts the story on the Mercury News website

Woolfolk has an office in City Hall, has all the sources in the world in City Hall, and works for the local "paper of record." He got scooped by an hour and a half on this story...that's pretty weak.

Sherbert works for the Metro outside of City Hall and some folks inside City Hall won't even talk to the Metro. Her scooping Woolfolk is pretty cool.

Is this just another sign of the Mercury News' downfall? Or perhaps is Woolfolk at fault? We know how Revealed feels about him...

Or perhaps the Weekly + Blog model just opens up new scoops for the Metro/Inside family of publications...

Again, this is not to undermine the seriousness of Chirco's health -- rather, a summary of the news surrounding the news...

Morning News Round-Up – 11.28.08: Planning for more failed start-ups?

The pre-dawn hours saw eager Silicon Valley shoppers filling the malls in hopes of getting a good deal.

Groucho Marx once said, “Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.” Hicklebee’s, a San Jose landmark, is hoping this is true this year as they offer pre-holiday sales for the first time in 20 years. Britt Beemer, retail industry analyst for nearly 30 years says, “The guys who have done the best job building customer relations will win.”

In Morgan Hill, Tony Eulo recommends green gift giving. Suggestions include Watch Dog’s favorite, the newspaper, as gift wrap. They should start with the Morgan Hill Times…just kidding.

If you receive a Blackberry or iPhone this year, best double check it wasn’t stolen from the AT&T store in Gilroy – creative thieves broke down a few walls and took nearly $50,000 in phones.

While road rage seems to be all the rage as shoppers and revelers rush hither and yon the Merc’s Gary Richards celebrates the tales of those who help others.

Emerging fields such as green technology where profitable startups are, "on the ledge, ready to fly," is where to focus according to San Jose’s Mayor Chuck Reed. (Like this one, I guess…) Reed has asked for a re-write of the Redevelopment Agency’s five year plan, "The Mayor wants to focus on the two most certain years," said Harry Mavrogenes, Redevelopment's (highly paid) Executive Director. "The further out you go, the fuzzier things are." Yeah, because betting on start-ups haven’t burned San Jose in the past. Perhaps the Mayor and Harry should focus on keeping the businesses already here afloat…or at least make sure the companies they help out will be around in two years – and aren’t burning through CEOs…

The annual Turkey Trot saw more runners than last year including Army Sgt. Angela Hernandez who said, "I did this for myself, and my family." Silicon Valley Leadership Group CEO Carl Guardino said donations to food banks were down by 50%, "The irony is when economic times are tough, the need is higher. It's also when giving is lowest." Watch Dog isn’t sure if that is irony or Econ 101…

Time off did not affect Mission City Lantern’s James Rowen, as feisty as ever he suggests failed Santa Clara Council candidate Mary Emerson head south.