Morning News Round-Up -- 5.21.10: "NUMMI A's" no more...

Go Sharks! (Please win... pretty please?)

Well, we guess the Oakland A's won't be going to the former NUMMI plant after all... that's because Tesla and Toyota will move in to build electric cars. Of course, Tesla track record of sticking to its word is someone less-than-desirable, just ask San Jose, but we wish Fremont, Tesla, and Toyota well. (Here is a full run-down of the Tesla Chronicles...)

As a reminder, Watch Dog predicted the NUMMI/A's effort last August...

"...Fremont’s Nummi plant is packing the bags and heading to Texas leaving nearly 5,000 newly unemployed in its wake. Perhaps a Fremont ballpark can actually happen now?...

Maybe now Bud Selig can make a decision?...

The Mercury News Editorial Board continued to look at their ballots... and today they have made the 18th floor a very exciting place to be. They endorsed Don Rocha for San Jose City Council District 9 to replace Vice Mayor Judy Chirco. They say he has "...the potential to continue in the tradition of Chirco..." They also give some ink to Jim Cogan (too close to public safety unions) and Larry Pegram (too close to Jerry Falwell)...

The San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce put out a reward for clues leading to catching the culprits behind the hit pieces sent against Magdalena Carrasco... ironically, the place to call with your tip is Crime Stoppers -- whose President is the aforementioned Jim Cogan, running for City Council in a different District. Hypothetically, what if someone called with a tip that identified a Cogan supporter as the culprit? Just asking... (Mission City Lantern is on the fake-mailer case too...)

While we're in District 5, ProtectSanJose.com brought us a message from Xavier Campos...

A San Josean will head to the Senate... no, not Tom Campbell (yet)... but County Superior Court Judge Edward Davila has been tapped for the federal bench by the Obama administration...

This will be bad news piled on top of bad news... property assessments are down... way down... boooooooo...

Dear Gilroy Unified Voters... thank you for passing the school bond in 2008... we are over budget... so Christopher High School will have portables instead of a great new facility... will you trust again with your vote and your cash? Love, the Gilroy Unified School District.

Sunnyvale may lose its seat on VTA, and Sunnyvale Councilmember Chris Moylan is pissed about it: "...Based on population, the one city other than San Jose that should have a permanent seat on the board is Sunnyvale..." No word on dweeb.org yet on the issue...

Some folks in Silicon Valley will be voting on June 8th and June 22nd... the 22nd being the date that the Special Election to replace Senator-turned-Lt. Gov Abel Maldonado's seat will be voted on... and if no one gets 50 percent plus, a run-off will happen on August 17th. Expect an influx of Sam Blakeslee and John Laird visits in the coming weeks...

The Lame (Duck) Governor was at Google yesterday... no doubt in an effort to shift attention from Google's bad European news this week...

Morning News Round-Up -- 5.7.10: Giving up a touchdown to the Red Wings...

Well, the Sharks run of great games ended last night as they gave up a touch down to the Red Wings. They are still up 3-1 in the series..

Watch Dog predicted it... the Morgan Hill American flag t-shirt story has gone viral and national. Here's what we wrote yesterday:

This will be a controversial issue that will likely make Fox News, the Rush Limbaugh Show, and probably spark a Tea Party rally as well.

Speaking of Tea Party-lover (Pegram)...

San Jose's District 9 gets the write up today after Districts 1/3, 5, and 7 got some ink earlier in the week. Don Rocha - the handsome one, Jim Cogan - the Constant one, Larry Pegram - the right wing whacko one, Robert Cortese - the karaoki one, and Cueva, Greer, and Trout - the ones also running... Perhaps with all the City Council races going in, Terry Christensen gets his City Council Districts mixed up with this quote: "This is a lower-key and less-engaged district than some..." Of course, based on the amount of research Watch Dog does, which is very little, it seems more people vote in District 9 than in almost any other City Council District, but why let facts get in the way of a good quote Mr. Christensen...

Speaking of City Council races, the San Jose District 7 race gets a big write up in the Metro/San Jose Inside with Minh Duong as the central antagonist... Madison better watch out, Duong has a District map with push-pins in it...

Speaking of local races with a write up in the Metro, we also learn that Jeff Rosen and Dolores Carr can't even look at each other in the eye... and no, that isn't a short joke Mr. Rosen...

The Governor was in town yesterday for a Laurie Smith fundraiser... remember when it was a big deal with the Governor came to town?

We all know that the Governor's boyfriend Abel Maldonado is now the Lt. Governor... and that the Governor wants Maldo's seat filled with two special elections, one in June and one in August, but a new lawsuit may hold up those elections...

If Carly Fiorina hadn't already alienated every single in the Bay Area, she appears to be appealing to the most far-right of right... because Sarah Palin endorsed her. Well, from one unqualified candidate to another... It's like getting the old McCain band back together again... (There are many, many jokes to tell...)

Santa Clara's power plant on Robert Avenue is up and running again after being under Cal-OSHA's watchful eye for the past couple of months. Here is the exact right thing to say after you've been under investigation and closed down for several months by Cal-OSHA, "Our interactions with OSHA were positive and constructive." That's from Larry Owens from Silicon Valley Power. As if someone would say that their interactions with OSHA were negative and unconstructive...

While we're on utilities, the Merc's Editorial Board thought the Water District was righting its governance ship... but then the redistricting came out and now the Ed Board says that they "must reject gerrymandering"... the City of Gilroy agrees...

The City of Campbell has a plan to right its financial ship... and it includes cuts and "revenue enhancements" which are not nearly as robust as other kinds of enhancements...

Anti-High-Speed Rail folks have a new picture for the center of their dart board as a new CEO was named... Roelof van Ark... who will make $375,000, which seems low considering all the NIMBY meetings this guy is going to have to sit through up and down the Peninsula...

Mr. van Ark is coming on just in time for a new lawsuit from the duel NIMBY capitals of the Bay Area, Atherton and Menlo Park...

From fast trains to very, very slow trains... VTA is looking to make some lightrail trains express to drive ridership. Sounds like a pretty good idea to us, since we once beat a VTA train in a race and we were on foot.

Morning News Round-Up -- 3.11.10: Carr's Car Cost Constituents...

Just a quick note that the airport's spokesman David Vossbrink (like everyone else) reads Watch Dog. He posted this comment yesterday:

...By the way, we have some good news at the airport this week -- Alaska Airlines starts direct service to Maui tomorrow morning (Thursday) and to Kona on Friday morning -- and it starts its second daily flight to Austin (the nerd bird) on Sunday. This more than makes up for Frontier...

Thank you for reading... if only someone would pony up for a grand grand opening.

And if it is a new day, that means there is another Dolores Carr story. And today's daily story shows, once again, that she has no political instinct. This time, as promised, the Merc's Sco9tt Herhold looks into her fancy car (or car fancy). (We don't think he literally looked into her car, but perhaps he did...) A story like this makes writing a campaign hit piece almost too easy: Carr's car cost constituents... To add insult to injury, challenger Jeff Rosen drives an old, beat up, 15 year old piece of shit with 150,000 miles on it. Don't worry Jeff, there's a sweet Acura TL just waiting for you.

From the frivolous to the serious about the District Attorney's office... a ton of new information was uncovered about the medical examinations of sexual assault victims at VMC -- 3,000 videotaped medical exams, to be exact. Expect lots of new appeals to be filed and (hopefully) some wrongfully convicted folks to go free. The head of the DA's sex crimes unit had this to say: "...I really don't want this to happen again..." You and just about everyone else...

Pete Constant must be torn... His Chief of Staff is running to replace Judy Chirco on the City Council, but Pete Constant's "friend" (ahem...) is running against Cogan (and Don Rocha). Larry Pegram, the censorship-loving, gay-hating, fake-tan-wearing, Bible-thumping wacko has thrown his self-righteous, hypocritical, Sarah Palin-loving, Tea Party-esque hat into the ring. Mr. Pegram, please come out against the City's recent gambling measure on the ballot or risk losing any credibility you ever had...

It is interesting that the San Jose Police Officers' Association blog, Protect San Jose, goes 24 hours without commenting on the fact that the Police Chief seems to be packing is bags for the Big D. "The most profound statements are often said in silence..."

It was hard to miss the big fire in Santa Clara yesterday with the smoke billowing overhead. It was a 4-alarmer at a recycling plant.

Sheeeee's baaaack... the fake finger in chili lady. She's in San Jose, but not at Wendy's. Funny, if she did show up to Wendy's the employees there would actually like to give her the finger...

The Morgan Hill Unified School Board is finally going Hollywood... their meetings will now be broadcast. Just in time for folks to watch pink slips being handed out...

Morning News Round-Up -- 3.8.10: Full body scanner...

Is Steve Poizner now the most pathetic politician in California? He is trying to sell himself as another person with his initials: Sarah Palin. Can you imagine a conversation between the two?

Poizner: Governor Palin? It's Steve Poizner from California

Palin: Ah shucks Steve, we have the same darn initials, don't we.

Poizner: Yes ma'am, I guess we do, but I'm calling to see if you'd consider endorsing my candidacy?

Palin: Are you calling because we have the same initials?

Poizner: No ma'am, I am the true conservative in the race and I thought you'd like that.

Palin: SP endorses SP... that would be a cool headline. Do you like guns?

Poizner: I didn't use to, but I kind of do now.

Palin: Are you pro-life?

Poizner: I wasn't, but I can be if it helps.

Palin: Have you read my book?

Poizner: I did.

Palin: Did that ebay chick?

Poizner: I don't think so...

Even though they can't seem to pay for their grand opening, once SJC does open its new doors, there will be full body scanners greeting you.

Speaking of Councilmember Pierluigi Oliverio...

Councilmember Pierluigi Oliverio will get his day in the sunshine this week when his idea to get affordable housing developers to pay park fees, which they haven't had to do before in San Jose. They haven't done so because it was seen as a burden to pitch in for parks (or build parks) for affordable housing developers in the past, but money is money and parks are parks and Oliverio has been pit-bullish on this...

Perhaps affordable housing developers can also pay to keep The Rep afloat... because nothing else has seemed to work. This could be it for the theatre...

Is downtown Palo Alto the center of the (incredibly whacky) "open carry" movement? Before you write something edgy in response to this story online or on Facebook, remember what happened to the East Palo Alto Police Officer who did... We wonder if the open carry folks are smart enough to realize that Palo Alto is different than East Palo Alto...

Don't worry too much, because Palo Alto is also where Dr. Phil will be shooting... not guns, but a television show. But City officials are asking Dr. Phil not to focus too much on Palo Alto's string of teen suicides.

Voters in Los Gatos will be going to the ballot to vote on a $3.9 million school bond. $3.9 million? Isn't that the same as the average home price in Los Gatos?

Would you be surprised to know that Senator Joe Simitian scored a $3,183.20 trip to Boca Raton Florida from a special interest? We were. (Would you actually pay to spend time with Simitian?) The special interest group is the Soap and Detergent Association, which may seem squeeky clean, but I'm sure the good folks at the water treatment plants feel a little differently.

And Simitian's friends at the Soap and Detergent Association won't be able to text the Senator if a new bill passes the Legislature. Sort of a San Jose-like ordinance for Sacramento. To the bill, the Merc Ed Board says: OMG TY...

Internal Affairs is really getting into the San Jose District 9 race... did you know that Jim Cogan and Don Rocha played on the same basketball team? It gets better: Jim thinks Don was a ball hog. At least the issues are getting a fully hearing in this race. Perhaps a one-on-one game would be in order? "You and me. One-on-one. The winner gets Judy's office..."

The good folks at the Morgan Hill Times take a look at the story after the story about the Hollister-born Pentagon shooter.

Morning News Round-Up -- 2.19:10: The State of the City is... like canned brocolli

You may have read or heard that the Mayor of San Jose gave his annual State of the City address yesterday morning. It isn't good. The speech included big cuts to the City budget and a big ask for employee concessions. Most disappointing, however, is that the Mayor never actually said, "The State of the City is ____..." But Lew Wolff introduced the Mayor... which was the highlight, according to Watch Dogs who were there...

The Merc Editorial Board said it was "...a plate of canned broccoli..." among other things... Dan Pulcrano (actually) wrote something about it too on San Jose Inside...

But in bigger political news than a bad City of San Jose budget has been announced: The San Jose Police Officers' Association is endorsing District Attorney Dolores Carr over challenger Jeff Rosen. That said, Rosen has lots of other public safety-types, like other police department unions and the Deputy Sheriffs, on his side...

That wasn't the only POA endorsement announced... but it was the only one in the Merc. Here are the rest, courtesy of Protect San Jose: Incumbents Mayor Chuck Reed, Councilmember Pete Constant, and Councilmember Madison Nguyen. For open seats, the POA is getting into bed with Xavier Campos for District 5, Jim Cogan for District 9, and JoAnne McCracken for Judge. If you don't see your favorite candidate in your favorite race, here's why: "In city or county races not listed here, the POA chose not to endorse a candidate." Which probably pisses off Forrest Williams to no end...

Either Rosen or Carr may get to bring charges in the 4th homocide of the year in San Jose which took place last night/ this morning at a restaurant on Berryessa Road and Capitol Avenue...

Our sister blog, Watch Dog San Mateo, has been pointing out what a big deal a "two-tier" retirement system for municipal employees is, as South San Francisco considers the idea... well, Gilroy has taken some preliminary (and ceremonial) action on the idea too... Guess what? Municipal employees don't like it...

Morning News Round-Up -- 2.1.10: Scary Legroom...

Before we do anything else, Watch Dog must welcome Sunnyvale Councilmember Otto Lee back from his one-year tour of duty in Iraq.

Sunday had the Merc's Internal Affairs center-stage on the political gossip front:

IA delved a bit into the departure of the once-considered Chris Constantin from the City Auditor's office to San Diego and what is likely to happen next in that office. IA also talked about San Jose City Council races that are taking shape -- District 9 (Judy Chirco's seat) and District 5 (Nora Campos' seat) are predicted to be battles.

• In District 5, we learn from IA that Magdalena Carrasco is slated to join the race. She has a high-placed ex-husband helping her out and we hear that former Supervisor Alvarado is also on the Carrasco train. Word on the street is that the Campos Camp is worried...
• In District 9, IA missed the entrant into the race that everyone is talking about and whose name rhymes with Scary Legroom... (Ironically, the aforementioned Chris Constantin was once rumored to be in the race...) Meanwhile in District 9, Don Rocha sent an email to supporters (and everyone else) to announce some key endorsements (Assemblymember Jim Beall and current District 9 Councilwoman Judy Chirco) and his fundraising total: $33,000. Everyone else's fundraising totals will be available today/tomorrow. We'll report on those numbers later.

In other political news... the Merc Editorial Board used Jeff Rosen's website to write an editorial against Dolores Carr... just kidding. But the Editorial Board was not shy in its criticism of the District Attorney, running through her ethical lapses and tone-deafness, from the De Anza rape case to the judge boycott... not missing a beat, Rosen has it up on his website with this url rosen4da.com/arrogance.html ...

Perhaps this DA, or the next, will get a chance to prosecute this: two young men beat a homeless man with a stick, and strangled him, in Gilroy last week. The Police are still investigating.

San Jose Family Camp, that family haven near Yosemite, may not open this coming summer because the dining hall is apparently unsafe and the drinking/ cooking water has E. Coli in it. San Jose, which owns and runs the Camp, is trying to figure out what to do and will have a meeting in late February or early March. Expect a big turnout for that meeting. On a someone separate note: Does anyone else find it ironic that there is tainted water at San Jose Family Camp? You could through a rock from that place and hit Hetch Hetchy...

Speaking of overdue repairs: the Merc did some digging and found that the expense to seismically retrofit homes could be too expensive for homeowners to actually do the work. And the cost varies greatly from city to city...

Scott Herhold takes a bunch of people to task for locking the doors of the Fairmont on the First Street side... he says they were always meant to be open, but the crowd is now "rougher"...

Oh no... "Sacramento to consider Little Siagon designation" Let the games begin...

Morning News Round-Up -- 11.16.09: Untrusted Trustees...

East Side Union High School District has a “line of troubles” and a “string of scandals” according to the Merc’s Editorial Board. They call on Trustees to do a national search for a “charismatic, ethical, reform-minded” Superintendent to replace their most recently disgraced leader. There’s also a hint of what incumbent Trustees 2010 election could look like with this Editorial pointing to the Board's own scandals. (Don't say we didn't warn everyone...)

Back in the news… Are kids committing adult crimes old enough to serve adult sentences? Santa Clara District Attorney Dolores Carr is staying out of the public eye while the Supreme Court weighs in on a case that could affect her chances to send teenagers to jail forever in the Halloween attack on children.

San Jose Police busted two teens, 15 and 16, for the murder of Santa Teresa High sophomore Michael Russell. While the names of the kids are kept under wraps, students and parents figured it out and scoured their MySpace pages looking for clues to the senseless attack.

The Merc’s Scott Herhold shines a light on pressing reader questions over the return of medical services to downtown San Jose. Herhold’s guess as to the biggest risk “a suburban-style clinic with parking and fence” could do in chances for “an intelligent urban mix of homes and shops,” with a medical clinic.

Patience is a virtue and it pays well. Cargill Salt dickered with the IRS for 6 years over how big a tax break they should receive for sale of the salt flats. Pesky environmentalists aside, Cargill walks away with a cool $100 million tax break.

The Merc’s Internal Affairs reports District Attorney Dolores Carr couldn’t help getting chummy with pal/ contributor/ attorney Jim McManis. In spite of the recent hot water Carr got in over her relationship with McManis, Carr was sharing cocktails with chum him. We wonder which one of McManis' clients are going to get a deal this week...

IA also notes the 2010 races are heating up as Gilroy Councilmember Peter Arellano jumps into the crowded pool of contenders for Supervisor Don Gage’s (termed out) seat.

IA has the hots for opposing San Jose City Council aspirants, Don Rocha and Jim Cogan. IA calls this a “swoon-inducing contest.” Watch Dog has to wonder how folks would respond to such language if the two candidates were women...

The final Environmental Impact Report for the (proposed) 49ers Santa Clara stadium popped up late Friday afternoon, just in time for a little light weekend reading. According to Assistant City Manager Ronald Garratt, traffic and parking were – of course – the big issues. Garrett suggests you need an actual game day to see if the planning worked.

San Jose Unified School Districts chief nurse Melinda Landau is heading to downtown San Jose with a basket of swine flu shots for kids. San Jose Unified is the only District shooting for mass inoculation. According to District Superintendent Don Igelesia’s District-wide inoculation is Landau’s “mission.”

Los Gatos molester Del Colegrove is heading to jail – until 2063. Busted for molesting a 16 year old, Colegrove was also accused of molesting the girl’s older sister 20 years ago.

Editors at the Mountain View Voice wonder if their City Council considered the conflicting message sent when they ok'ed a freeway accessible shopping mall at the same time setting aggressive goals for greenhouse gas reductions. The Voice suggests a shopping mall might be a better idea downtown with a park and housing on their new found land next to the Stevens Creek Trail.

Morning News Round-Up -- 11.3.09: Nervousness Edition...

There will be several nervous folks tonight at 8:01 p.m. as poll results start coming for some local elections. Those nervous people include some City Council candidates in Sunnyvale, Cupertino, and Palo Alto, some School Districts looking for additional revenue from property owners, and folks who want to sit through endless School Board meetings for the next 4 years. In case you forgot, here's how the Merc Editorial Board will be voting...

All you nervous people who have been worrying about the San Jose Police Department: stop being nervous. All that bad stuff you've been reading about the San Jose Police Department -- the drunk arrests, the attitude arrests, the beatings, the Tasings, the secrecy. The San Jose Police Department has a plan -- to police themselves. Because police have such an awesome reputation for self-reflection and willingness to find fault with one another. The quote of the day goes to the ACLU San Jose honcho Skyler Porras, "Asking the police department to police themselves has been about as effective as asking a teenager to ground themselves after missing curfew..." There is something politically new in today's story and worth noting. The Mayor and the San Jose Police Officers' Association's Bobby Lopez seem to be turning against Police Chief Rob Davis. Check it out: The Mayor said he had, "...significant concerns about how and when force is used..." and Bobby Lopez, "...We have some of the finest officers around, but unless you properly monitor the officers with the right people any group of people can go astray. You need the right supervisors, the proper safeguards. In the past I have questioned if we have that..." (Watch Dog is certain that a post is being penned right now for Protect San Jose to push the Police Chief further under the bus...) The countdown to San Jose Police Chief's decision to "spend more time with family" and "fish more" is upon us... Rob Davis is nervous today...

And we are starting to see the results of this weakening position of the Police Chief and the increased scrutiny on the San Jose Police Department. Next week, San Jose's Rules and Open Government Committee (which the Mayor runs with an iron fist) will discuss releasing the 911 tapes in the Danial Pham case. And the Mayor (seemingly) wants to hear the tapes...

Glenn Beck is going to have a field day with this one: an Arabic-immersion public Charter School is looking to opening in Fremont.

Solar is about to get cheaper in Mountain View (if you own a commercial property)...

There was a gang fight at Live Oak high School in Morgan Hill. Ironically, the school's mascot is an acorn and the school's motto is "Go Nuts!!" Well, the students seem to have followed that motto pretty well...

This should help mellow everyone out... Councilmember Pierluigi Oliverio is pledging his support (on San Jose Inside) for the cultivation and dispensing of medical marijuana. PO is going for the 420 vote in Willow Glen. Wait for the first pot club to try to move on to Lincoln Avenue... PO will be one popular guy.

At the beginning of today's Round-Up, we talked about nervous people and elections... we will end the same way. Except, this nervous person is named Jim Cogan and the election is in 2010. (Ironically, he was recently made un-nervous by San Jose Unified School Board member Pam Foley dropping out of the race...) Cogan is running for District 9 City Council and he's re-nervous because Don Rocha, the Cambrian School Board member (and interim Chief of Staff to Councilmember Rose Herrera) officially threw his hat into the ring against Cogan. Expect a "tough on crime" piece on Protect San Jose from Cogan soon. In the meantime, let the race begin!

Morning News Round-Up -- 8.25.09: #5 (plastic) #6 (water)

"Number 5: Divert 100 percent of the waste from our landfill and convert waste to energy." Does that sound familiar to you? It is from the San Jose Green Vision, which was passed unanimously by the City Council. Now, San Jose is moving forward on Number 5 as it inches closer to eliminating its share of the 19,000,000,000 plastic bags floating through your yard, down the creek, or across the street. Councilmember Sam Liccardo takes a bold stance in the face of a (possible) lawsuit from the American Chemistry Council, “We can’t be afraid of what the plastics industry and its lawyers might do.” Predictably, Councilmember Constant takes the other view. This story is getting some wide coverage, including our friends to the north and the Associated Press.

To Number 6...

San Jose resident Gene Kohara is confused, and a little pissed. Kohara questions those funky water misters at City Hall while he’s being asked to cut water usage... in the 3rd year of a drought. San Jose’s public art misters help to cool visitors to the (giant concrete) plaza. Others wonder if trees might do the trick. Number 6 in the Green Vision does say, "Number 6: Recycle or beneficially reuse 100 percent of our wastewater (100 million gallons per day)"...

We missed this from the weekend because you'd need to be a detective to find it on the Merc.'s website... from Internal Affairs: Council candidate Jim Cogan says he wasn’t offended, really, when opponent Pam Foley offered her district needed an “ethical” representative. Perhaps he should have been...

The Merc’s Editorial Board wants to see you at City Hall this week as pension reform is under discussion. (If you have second, check out the first comment on the Merc's website following this Editorial...)

Gilroy Councilmembers are pissed off. Someone is dishing the secret details from behind closed doors. Threats of Grand Jury investigations could be heard from Mayor Al Pinheiro and Councilmember Craig Gartman after tales were told about proposed employee raises. We understand why Pinheiro and Gartman are mad... but are the also politically tone-deaf? Employee raises?

Gilroy Unified Schools transportation supervisor ditched his gig over the weekend. Emil Frates was accused of contract violations and Superintendent Deborah Flores said they’d been trying to “fix” the mess but they continued “to be in turmoil.” Perhaps Mr. Frates learned that City employees in Gilroy were getting raises and scooted across town...

Psychiatrist David Arredondo is calling for “…less blame and more understanding of what's really going on in the culture of these high schools...” as he looks into why teens are killing themselves.

The Merc’s Mr. Roadshow dishes Top Secret details from the California Highway Patrol High Command, smuggled out by daring men on horseback. Not really, but Watch Dog bets today’s dish from the Highway Patrol gets a few readers pissed off about the warning: Put Your Cellphone Down.

Dude, the skate park’s “...not a magnet for bad behavior...” really. The Morgan Hill skate park has had its share of naughtiness, but parents and police hope that’s a thing of the past as bad behavior (seems) to be going away. (Don't tell Los Gatos about this...)

San Jose Councilmember/Insider Pierluigi Oliverio notes he’s meeting with City Planners to help a constituent who didn’t “take responsibility” for figuring out what he could do with land he wanted to buy before he bought it. We thought the folks in Willow Glen were the smartest folks in town...

Speaking of Jim Cogan, or at least we were near the beginning of today's Round-Up... Cogan chimes in on today's Protect San Jose site and tries to be funny, but sneaks in a litte (ok, a lot) of self-promotion.

Morning News Round-Up -- 8.11.09: Hey Great America, the 49ers are on the phone...

Someone’s mental health day went awry when Great America’s Invertigo trapped 24 coaster crazies for more than 4 hours. Mission City Lantern dishes Great America battled Santa Clara for a year to get the overly tall rollercoaster approved. Today seems like a very good day for the City of Santa Clara and the 49ers to call the Great America folks and make peace...

(Former) Santa Clara County prosecutor/ Labor Chief of Staff Ben Field filed (anagram) an appeal to the “miscarriage of justice” that derailed his career. Field hopes (?) to ditch labor and return to the golden path that ends in a judges robes, instead of in front of the judge.

Speaking of court... Libraries should be fun places to learn new things, like anagrams. We’re betting San Jose’s City Council didn’t intend the learning to include defense preparation. Last week's entertaining Council Education Park Library do-over has Building and Trades Council CEO (Councilmember Nora Campos’ Husband) Neil Struthers promising a day in court.

Gary “Mr. Roadshow” Richards sends a reminder that today police around the Bay are looking for cell phone using scofflaws on the road. Thank you for the (hands free) heads up...

The Merc’s Scott Herhold dishes his dark side includes stealing crackers when he meets his Mom for dinner at Whole Foods. Herhold laments the economic downturn delaying San Jose’s first Whole Foods opening.

“…like falling off a cliff...” was how Santa Clara County Tax Assessor Larry Stone described this year's devastating housing value crash. Stone wants you to know you have a little time left to get your property value officially lowered. That is definately boo-worthy news...

Oops… Palo Alto’s Lytton Park facelift was yanked at the 11th hour, literally, when a resident complaint arrived 1 hour before groundbreaking. A sheepish City Manager Jim Keene said he didn’t know how one of the City’s legal requirements had been missed. You have got to love Palo Alto...

The search for a new Morgan Hill Union School District Superintendent includes a brochure calling for a collaborative leader/ team builder interested in transparency and inclusiveness with a talent for data driven curriculum. Putting together the brochure included removing discussion of “adjusted school boundaries” as too scary for prospects.

Over in Gilroy, the School District is also facing changes. Following the brouhaha over financial swindling at the hands of the Mexican American Community Services Agency, the Gilroy Unified School District hired former El Portal Principal Graciela Vallardares to help students transition from the charter school to public school. (Watch Dog can only assume she didn't have anything to do with the embezzlement...)

Morgan Hill and Gilroy City employees are facing the same fears as private employees with the crashing economy and cities facing layoffs. City Manager Ed Tewes sent an email to the Morgan Hill Times saying “employees understand the necessity of living within our means.” We can only assume that Mr. Tewes's job isn't on the chopping block...)

Pissed off about a series of low rent criminals cruising local retailers, the Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce is training business owners to fight back. Chamber Executive Director Ronee Nassi is hoping it will end the days when shopkeepers chase shoplifters down the toney streets of Los Gatos.

The Valley Transit Authority is using their Federal stimulus dollars to buy hybrid buses. Should make waiting behind the bus less unpleasant. The VTA kicked off a series of meetings for pissed off commuters last night in Campbell, more meetings to follow.

Doobies and Senator Barbara Boxer share the limelight under the gentle penmanship of the Merc’s Sal Pizarro today. Santa Clara County Tax Assessor Larry Stone claims it isn’t the smoke that makes him think San Jose’s own rockers, the Doobie Brothers, will do for San Jose what the Beatles do for Liverpool.

Three teenagers were satisfying that midnight need for In-N-Out when a party pooper stole their ride right out from under them – with a gun in hand. If you have news to share you are encouraged to call Mountain View Police at 650-903-6344.

An evening commuter Caltrain hit and killed a pedestrian. No word on whether suicide was involved.

Mission City Lantern calls out San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed for picking on Councilmember Ash Kalra’s Chief of Staff, suggestion the Mayor beat up his own staff before sharing the love.

San Jose Insider/San Jose Councilmember Pierluigi Oliverio uses his bully pulpit for a (yawning) description of musical chairs (jobs) before coming to his (un)surprising conclusion that it’s hard to let go of civil servants.

Protect San Jose blogger/Council wannabe Jim Cogan shares his observation that National Night Out was a success because a Police Officer could be overhead saying “now that I know about it…” and neighbors started a neighborhood watch group. Thank you Jim.

Morning News Round-Up -- 4.20.09: Porn on 420...a perfect day?

Where to begin today's Round-Up? That is the question. Let's go with porn...

If you missed it, a pissed-off library patron shot Watch Dog a copy of a flier that "Values" Advocacy Council folks were handing out San Jose libraries this weekend. Please notice that none of these folks bothered to enter the library and take a look through the Chicago Manual of Style...or an 8th Grade English text book.

While we are on it, the Merc’s Editorial Board chimes in on Internet filters and advocates common sense and spending money where it helps over fear-mongering. “The long-expected showdown over censorship at San Jose's public libraries has fizzled into a squabble over money. And that is a very good thing.” Watch Dog will have more on this subject as today (and tomorrow) roll on.

Now, onto the San Jose and another controversy about police and police oversight...not as sexy as pornography, but...

The new Independent Police Auditor may have a tiny conflict of interest. Ok, probably a bit larger than tiny. It seems seems Chris Constantin’s brother is a San Jose homicide detective. Mayor Chuck Reed and the City Council were aware but no one bothered to mention it during the press roll-out. (Check out the Mayor's press release here. See if you can find mention of Chris Constantin's brother...) Downtown Association President Scott Knies called for Constantin’s resignation. San Jose Revealed offered up the news as well…

District Attorney Dolores Carr has yet another prosecutorial mishap on her hands. This time David Tomkin’s identified his status as prosecutor in a letter to the Santa Cruz Planning Commission. The husband and wife duo of Cheryl and Thad Poland called it inappropriate and so does the State Bar code.

In an obvious sign that there are a lot of folks who are willing to work for free and do tedious work...San Jose Revealed has a new Friday feature – “Next Week’s Agenda.” This week Revealed is excited to see:

• Retiree Healthcare
• Porn-For-All
• No Free Parks
• Drunk Latino Task Force Squabbles
• Who Hangs in Downtown San Jose

Retired San Jose firefighter James Carter collected a cool quarter million for unused sick days. Apparently not getting his talking points from Jack Salois, even Mr. Carter thinks it was over the top. When told the amount he’d collected a surprised “Holy Cow” popped out of his mouth.

Baseball neighborhood NIMBY’s get their Easter cocktails at Patty’s Inn with Baseball San Jose fans according to bartender Ken Tonelli. Neighbor Bobby Menbari is worried about drunk baseball fans ambling through the neighborhood. Neighborhood President Helen Chapman says the new ballpark should be built “…really, really well.” As opposed to what, Ms. Chapman?

Roll out the bike – it’s a Spare the Air Day – no free transit though on this record breaking hot day.

San Jose Insider/Councilmember Pierluigi Oliverio confesses that, although a San Jose native, safety concerns kept him out of East San Jose. The Campos combo of Councilmember Nora Campos and Planning Commissioner Xavier Campos took Oliverio touring to dispel his childhood bias. It must have worked, Oliverio becomes a pitchman for Council wannabe Xavier Campos.

The Metro/Inside Fly got a giggle when Council candidate Pam Foley received a plug (and dinner) from San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce CEO Pat Dando. The irony is, Foley’s opponent in the race, Ball Gag’s Chief of Staff Jim Cogan, once worked for Dando. Cogan was a no show at the Chamber event. The following night Foley was the guest of Silicon Valley Assemblyman Jim Beall at the annual Santa Clara County Democratic Party dinner. Watch Dog spies tell us Cogan did make the Democratic Dinner which featured Gubernatorial wannabes John Garamendi and Gavin Newsom.

Speaking of Pat Dando..."Run, Patsy, Run!" Is the word from the Merc’s Internal Affairs about Chamber CEO Pat Dando’s toying with a shot at County Supervisor next year. Dando says she’s interested in balancing the views on the Board, not that she’s politically ambitious. Good thing the political reporters at the Merc. read the Metro a few weeks ago or they would have missed this one...

The Merc’s Joe Rodriguez shares the life of San Jose’s Yosimar Reyes and asks “Poor, brown and gay: Poetry makes his day, but does it pay?” MACLA leader Tamara Alvarado said slam poets tend to fade quickly but “Yosi” is a natural writer. With friends like Carlos Santana and Harry Belafonte, the poet is headed for good rhythms.

Internal Affairs also reports a squabble is brewing between GOP gubernatorial wannabe/neighbors Meg Whitman and Steve Poizner. Poizner is calling Whitman’s handling of eBay finances “disastrous. Easy for Poizner to say, he sold his company at the peak of the original tech boom and didn't have to manage it through any busts...

Finally, Internal Affairs calls out San Jose’s Mayor Chuck Reed for “stupidest statement of the year.” His Mayoralness apparently thinks Silicon Valley families earning $250,000 can’t buy a house and created the up and coming “upper working class.” Really, Chuck?

Morning News Round-Up -- 4.9.09: Could you be San Jose's next Chief of Police?

In case you missed it, Watch Dog posted a little ditty about Pete Constant and his BFF Larry Pegram yesterday. Our call to 18th Floor Spies has paid off...we heard the Rules Committee meeting yesterday where the item was discussed was less-than-smooth. As usual, Councilmember Constant wasn't there so things got a little off track from what Constant probably wanted. The Rules Committee saw the Rove-like name for Constant's proposal and want to change it. Also, Constant hasn't really developed his proposal yet, much to the dismay of some Rules Committee members. More to come...

Also, yesterday we posted a bit about the Metro's story about San Jose Police Chief Rob Davis. Well, only the edited version was posted on San Jose Inside. The real (extremely in-depth version) is now online here. This is a doozy. Davis's days seem to be numbered...the armor is cracking. Most stunning, Bobby Lopez, the head of the Police Officers Association takes shots at the Chief...so does Councilmember Liccardo, the La Raza Roundtable, the former NAACP head, the ACLU, the Downtown Association CEO, and a lot of other people. Chief Davis, we can help with your resume...

Jude Barry is back...as a CalBuzz contributor...What do you say now Revealed?

Head’s up, the phone lines are down for thousands in Silicon Valley as well as San Benito and Santa Cruz Counties. The lines went down early this morning and there’s no timeline for getting everyone back online. So if you are lucky enough to have Internet service today, welcome to Watch Dog Silicon Valley. Just don't have any real emergencies -- no 911 service. We are squeezing in Watch Dog while our connection is sound...

The fireworks went off when defense attorney Al Lopez claimed there was proof the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s office withheld videotaped evidence in sexual assault cases. DA David Tomkins denies any conspiracy...the DA saga continues...

Former Mayor/Lobbyist Tom McEnery (now) wants San Jose’s Elections Commission to look into the complaints against him. But, he can’t be happy to see Councilmember Liccardo’s Sharks tickets have been added to the complaints...

The Merc’s Man About Town, Sal Pizzaro hooked up with Baseball San Jose boosters for a pre-City Council tail-gate party at Billy Berks on Tuesday night. Pizzaro notes San Jose movers and shakers included Pro Baseball San Jose’s Michael Mulcahy, County Assessor Larry Stone and Councilmember Ash Kalra – along with Baseball San Jose’s blogger Jacquie Heffner. Who has a better job than Sal?

The Merc’s Editorial Board urges a speedy sale of City lands to Earthquakes/A’s owner Lew Wolff and a quick groundbreaking to get the proposed Quakes stadium underway.

On the one hand, Mountain View doesn't like outsiders: Mountain View’s senior citizens center is so popular that folks from around Silicon Valley meet there to shoot pool with friends and enjoy themselves. Sounds good, right? The Senior Advisory Task Force reports a small number of Mountain View’s own are pissed off by the out-of-Mountain View influx. Mountain View Mayor Margaret Abe-Koga wants to make sure her constituents receive the highest priority.

On the other hand, Mountain View loves outsiders: Mountain View’s City Council wants the Robert Green Company to build their first “four diamond” hotel. Ellis Berns, Mountain Views Economic Eevelopment Manager, calls the fancy hotel an amenity “we’re missing.” Councilmember Jac Siegel gushed calling it a “creative source” of dollars flowing into Mountain View. Colleague John Inks voted against the hotel saying he was worried about the money Mountain View would have to cough up to make the deal work. Perhaps once they have the hotel, they won't mind outsiders visiting their senior center...

West Valley College President Phil Hartley is stepping down after five successful years, leaving a big hole at a very tough time. Add that to Martha Kanter's departure from DeAnza, and we have some gaping community college holes locally...

Pete Constant and Larry Pegram...BFF

Well, censorship is finally coming back to the San Jose City Council (after 18+ months.) Councilmember Pete Constant and the "Values" Advocacy Council's Larry Pegram want to dictate what you can view on computers in San Jose's public libraries.

In a Rove-worthy move, the Constant/Pegram BFFs named the proposal going before the City Council the "Library Safety and Child Protection Policy"...

So the guy that brought you the gloriously inappropriate photo (below) now wants to prevent you from seeing it at San Jose's Libraries. The irony is truly rich...

Constant announced his plans in this letter. (Thank you tipster...) He writes to constituents that he is trying to protect kids, but really Constant and Pegram want to decide what is best for you and your kids. (Which is scary, considering the discretion Constant used with the ball-gag...)

Which leads Watch Dog to these thoughts:

- Pete Constant is the only Republican on the City Council. The Labor Council claims to be the "progressive" part of the Democratic Party. Will they stand up to Pete Constant, Larry Pegram, and the Republican Party and give their Council allies some room to oppose this Culture War issue? Or will they roll over? (Watch Dog is betting on rolling over...)

- Jim Cogan is running for San Jose City Council (see Watch Dog's Political Predictions) in 2010. Will this issue hurt him? He is, after all, Constant's Chief of Staff, and did "rhetorical backflips" when trying to describe his own thoughts on this issue. He is trying to get this thing passed on Constant's behalf (according to City Hall spies). This issue shines the light on the fact that Cogan is a Democrat, but works for a conservative Republican...Cogan moves Constant's legislation -- it is that simple.

- So you'll know a little more about Larry Pegram. He is coming off his "victory" over Proposition 8, he doesn't think gays should have equal rights. Oh, he also thinks that abortion should be banned and blocking the entrance to clinics is ok. Finally, Pegram thinks that we are living at the End of Days. (Which brings up the obvious question: if these are the End of Days, what does it matter what folks view on computers in the library?) Libraries are Pegram's first foray back into local politics...what's next?

- Why didn't the Mayor shut this issue down? He controls the agenda so why does he want to have this cultural issue coming before the City Council? He is a socially conservative guy that is running (and running for re-election in) a pretty socially progressive City. Why would he want to stand with the right-wing on this issue which is contrary to most San Jose voters? Does he think Larry Pegram shoved him that many votes in 2006?

- Larry Pegram (and presumably Pete Constant and certainly Ted Bundy) believe that pornography can turn your kids into serial killers. Seriously, check out the VAC website. Under a heading titled: Dire Warnings About Pornography, the VAC blames pornography for Ted Bundy the serial killer. VAC wants you to believe that pornography will make your kids serial killers. Seriously? Any group that is using an interview with Ted Bundy to make their case doesn't deserve to be taken seriously. Imagine relying on Jack the Ripper to make your case for speed bumps. It makes your head spin.

Take it from Watch Dog, Councilmember Constant and Mr. Pegram -- pornography doesn't make you a serial killer, but it might make you snarky blogger. (Or give you knowledge of how to properly wear a ball-gag...)

Watch Dog will be providing updates between now and April 21st when this issue comes before the City Council. If any of you 18th Floor tipsters want to send Watch Dog updates, shoot them from your Gmail/Yahoo/Hotmail accounts (from your home computer) to me here. I'm waiting...

(For a review of a previous post on this issue, read this: Pete Constant meet Thomas Bowdler...)

Morning News Round-Up – 12.04.08

Locate a ballpark near a rail station? The Merc. Editorial board thinks it might be a good idea while Lew Wolff, owner of both the A’s and the Earthquakes, is hoping to make it real. The recent passage of Measure B may be having positive economic benefits already, Wolff looks for a 2014 opening. "We're happy to sit down with them," said BART spokesman Linton Johnson, who noted team officials approached the transit agency about a week ago. "We'll see what they have to say."

Watch out - Watch Dogs (and potential employers) are sniffing around the Facebook, the Metro’s Fly this week highlights dissension in the ranks. In a move contrary to the time honored tradition of holding ones tongue, Councilmember Pete Constant’s Chief of Staff Jim Cogan declared his support for Measure B even while his boss blasted Measure B fan Carl Guardino at a fundraiser for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Could this explain Constants attitude problem on the dais?

The Metro also looks into Madison Nguyen's recall campaign and catches her admitting that she didn't foresee the ability of her foes to qualify a recall measure...oops...

Women’s sports also make the news – Brandi Chastain is confident the new soccer team FC Gold Pride will be knocking on her door. The Merc.’s Ann Killion, herself a trailblazer, hopes it’s true.

In a move that might signal support for “small schools,” the Alum Rock School Board voted 3-1 to allow Superintendent Norma Martinez to end her stormy relationship with nearly $300,000 in walk-away money. Trustee Tanya Fruedenberger missed the meeting and was “outraged” the Board was so generous. (Perhaps she could have shown up to vote and turned her outrage into action...) Then, in a confusing statement, Trustee Frank Chavez indicated he thought they saved money in the move while Trustee Gustavo Gonzalez voted against the generous package. Watch Dog notes that the hurried move took place before two new Trustees were seated.

San Jose City Council refers to it as the “Peralta Action Plan,” hoping to bring an open air version of the Pike Place Market to downtown San Jose. Others call it the Tom McEnery retirement package. Councilmembers Nora Campos and Forest Williams insisted this summer an economic analysis be part of the request for $5 million. Watch Dog thinks it sounds cool and hopes it’s more Pike Place than San Jose Pavilion. Any Watch Dog insiders who watch this at next weeks Council meeting are invited to dish.

In a sign of the times, the three towers on the Guadalupe River, affectionately known as Adobe, will see fewer folks as Adobe lets go 600 people. "The global economic crisis significantly impacted our revenue during the fourth quarter," said Chief Executive Shantanu Narayen.

Following the European tradition of B.Y.O., Los Gatos is hoping to make shoppers pay for bags if they’ve forgotten their own. County Recycling and Waste Reduction Commissioner Steve Glickman says plastic bags are the biggest concern.

Not keeping up with collecting money owed has cost the City of Gilroy and is now going to cost residents. Gilroy City Council decided this week to raise rates for drinking water and toilet flushes. Embarrassed Councilmember Perry Woodward said, "If you were doing a better job collecting what you're owed, you wouldn't need 5 percent more from residents," referring to the City’s forgetfulness in collecting more than $20 million from businesses that have not paid up. The largest debtor is West Coast Linens, they recently ditched employees and Gilroy so it’s not likely any payments will come from that quarter.

Mountain View will allow the ubiquitous big city cool toy on park trails but not sidewalks. Earlier this year Segway commuter Richard Roeder complained to Mayor Tom Means that he wasn’t being allowed to get to work and wanted changes. The Council agreed but doesn’t want them roaming around town.