David Chiu's fake vision

Gee, David Chiu sends a letter (below in italics) to little old me. My response:

David:

I've already made a contribution to the discussion on my blog with an open letter addressed to you with questions about the Bicycle Plan, Congestion Pricing, and Critical Mass. Since the people of San Francisco have never had a chance to vote on these issues, your responses would initiate a discussion of traffic policy that city voters would find very useful. I'll post your answers verbatim on my blog.

Regards,
Rob Anderson

Chiu has a talent for understatement: "I want you to add your voice to the discussion, because I know that the best ideas don't always come out of City Hall."

That's putting it mildly, since mostly bad ideas have been coming out of City Hall---the anti-car bicycle fantasy, the aggressively pro-development approach the Planning Dept. covers with a fig leaf of pseudo-intellectual crap about "transit corridors" and "smart growth," to mention only two awful ideas to come out of City Hall in the last ten years.

But David is eager to start: "I do not want to wait until then[January 4] to get started...It starts now, and it starts with you." Yes, carpe the old diem, David. Today is the first day of the rest of your political life, etc. 

But the ball is now in your court, since I'm still waiting for your answers to questions like this: Do you support Congestion Pricing? Have you ever taken part in Critical Mass? Do you think City Attorney Dennis Herrera, one of your opponents in the campaign, handled the Bicycle Plan litigation properly?

"Being Mayor is about more than just having a position on the issues; it's about having a vision for the future and the ability to lead us there."

You can't have a political vision that doesn't deal with the specifics of the issues. You could start with those I mention above: the city's anti-car, pro-bike traffic policies that are both a massive inconvenience to the many residents who have to drive and if continued will damage our economy. 

And the city's neighborhood-destroying development policies. You're already known as a bike guy, but what about development? Are you a "smart growth" guy? Do you think 40-story residential highrises---in the Market/Octavia Plan---are a good idea for Market and Van Ness? Do you think UC's proposal---supported by City Hall---to trash that state and federal landmark with a massive housing development on lower Haight Street is a good project?

"I believe that together we can build an even better San Francisco than the one we already love."

Why fiddle with something that you claim to love? Why not just leave the city alone? (After paving the streets, that is.) If we continue the present traffic and development policies, we can surely make the city worse. You may find it hard to believe, but San Francisco was pretty nice city long before you got here a few years ago, not that we don't appreciate your bringing your Harvard degree out here to give us a hand in governing ourselves. 

And your "Community Voices" approach looks like you're putting your finger in the air to see which way the wind is blowing. I hope you're going to share your vision with us, David, and not wait for us to provide it for you, though, on second thought, the latter approach may be better for the city.

Rob,

I have two dates marked on my calendar. The first is November 8, 2011---the day that San Franciscans will go to the polls to choose our next Mayor. But the second---January 4, 2012---is perhaps even more important. That is the day that our new Mayor will take the oath of office and get to work on behalf of the people of our city.

I do not want to wait until then to get started. As President of the Board of Supervisors, I'm working every day to find innovative and practical solutions to our city's challenges. In March, our campaign held Community Launch Events in each of San Francisco’s eleven districts. In April, my campaign will host seven Community Voices Policy Meetings to get your input on the some of the most important issues facing San Francisco. I want you to add your voice to the discussion, because I know that the best ideas don't always come out of City Hall. Join me for a Community Voices Policy Meeting by clicking here.

I am not running for Mayor just for the honor---I'm running because I want to do the job right by San Francisco.

Being Mayor is about more than just having a position on the issues; it's about having a vision for the future and the ability to lead us there.

I believe that together we can build an even better San Francisco than the one we already love. A city in which all who want to live here have the opportunity to do so. A city that welcomes and nurtures the jobs of the future. A city that lives within its means but provides critical services for the most vulnerable among us. A city in which government works alongside residents, merchants, and nonprofits to build and protect our neighborhoods.

Together, we can find the best way to make that vision a reality. Starting with these Community Voices Policy Meetings, that's exactly what we're going to do. We're going to harness the creativity, expertise, and passion of San Franciscans to build a policy platform on which this better San Francisco will be built.

It starts now, and it starts with you. Be a part of a Community Voices Policy Meeting by clicking here.

Let's get to work,

David

FBI opposes tests to show who bombed Judi Bari

FBI Continues to Fight DNA Testing to Identify Who Bombed Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney

On April 5, 2011, the FBI filed a motion in Federal Court (attached) to overturn a court order directing the FBI to hand over evidence in the May 24, 1990, car bombing of Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney to an independent lab for forensic testing.

"The FBI has no shame," said Cherney. "Obama's FBI is as intent on thwarting the investigation into who bombed Judi and me as President Bush Sr.’s FBI. While this new delay tactic is a grave disappointment, I feel confident that ultimately we will be allowed to conduct forensic analysis, including the DNA testing of bomb materials, that the FBI never conducted. The FBI’s obstructionism must mean they have something to hide, as if they know who bombed us and don't want the truth to come out.”

Judi Bari once said, "The FBI should find the bomber and fire him." Added Cherney, "Given the FBI's desperate attempt to suppress the evidence that could solve this crime, Judi’s statement may be true to the mark."

Last month, Federal Magistrate James Larson ordered that the two bombs be turned over to a laboratory of Cherney's choosing and approved by the court so that components could be tested 21 long years after the explosion that nearly killed and maimed for life Earth First! activist and redwood forest defender Judi Bari.

Bari died from cancer in 1997. Cherney suffered lesser injuries in the blast. The evidence includes not only remnants of the car bomb, but a nearly intact bomb that failed to detonate completely two weeks earlier outside the office of a Louisiana Pacific sawmill in Cloverdale, CA. The self-described “Lord’s Avenger” claimed credit for building both bombs in a letter to the Santa Rosa Press Democrat a few days after the car bombing.

"In 1990, bombers didn't know to cover their DNA tracks like they do today," says Cherney’s attorney Ben Rosenfeld. "There is every reason to believe that duct tape on the Cloverdale bomb may contain DNA evidence that will enable us finally to answer the question, 'who bombed Judi Bari.'

The FBI not only set out to frame the victims in this case by falsely accusing them of bombing themselves, but the FBI is determined to thwart any real investigation. If they don’t want to test the evidence, we will.”

Background information on the bombing.