San Francisco Diary--Journal Of An Exile

The City has had a fairly dull week--by San Francisco standards. In fact, over the past ten days, it may have lost its preeminent position to Berkeley. But don't despair. The Phoenix is the symbol of The City, rising regularly from the ashes to assume its number one position as craziest city west of Shangri-La.

NOTE: Let's start with spending the taxpayers' money on litigation while the crime rate continues to rise, and the streets continue to sink. In a 49 page rambling brief, Chief Deputy City Attorney Therese Stewart joined in the suits attempting to overturn Proposition 8 (the "anti gay marriage" initiative). Not satisfied with joining the Boies and Olson arguments previously filed, The City felt it necessary to embellish a bit. In words that even law students know are irrelevant surplusage in a formal court document, the brief went far beyond the actual argument of denial of equal protection of the laws. Stewart said Prop 8's "real aim was harming gays and lesbians and expressing moral disapproval of them." Guessing what the "real aim" was is fine for the political arena, but it's not a valid legal or constitutional argument. If she had simply said "it harms gays and lesbians" she would have been making a naked allegation, but those appear in briefs all the time (even though they shouldn't).

City Attorney Dennis Herrera made sure the pleading included a further "motivation" argument: "Proposition 8 was motivated by hatred of gays and lesbians and violates their constitutional right to be free of discrimination." "Motive" is not even an element of a crime, let alone a constitutional appeal, but that doesn't stop City lawyers who oppose the measure. Most gay rights groups oppose the filings in federal court because of the likelihood of a major constitutional setback if the Supreme Court finds that marriage is not a basic constitutional right which can be addressed by the federal courts.

The groups had already made major gains at the ballot boxes, and once the State Supreme Court had ruled on California's law, they were satisfied to take it back to the voters again. The suits change the whole dynamic, they believe. But logic, legal improbability, and the wishes of the very group most affected will never stand in the way of an ambitious, politically-correct City government. So far, the only gay and lesbian group that has even considered joining in the suit is the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and they have expressed their serious doubts. It is still to be established if the Center for Lesbian Rights discriminates against gay men.

NOTE: After a surprising citizen vote to restore Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps in reaction to a City School Board antiwar agenda, the school board showed its good faith by reinstating JROTC in San Francisco schools. Well, no, actually the board didn't. One of the advantages of the program is rigorous physical training. Before the school board kicked JROTC out of the schools, the program had been allowed as a substitute for the physical education requirement. By reinstating JROTC, but denying the PE credit, the board has created a situation where many working-class students will not be able to fit an extra class into their schedules.

The board suggested that the physical training cadets get in JROTC is vastly inferior to the regular PE courses. Board member Mark Sanchez essentially described the program as "gym for dummies." So before the program was banned, 1600 students were enrolled in JROTC. After reinstatement of the program but denial of credit for PE, enrollment is down to less that 500 students. And it's all because The City states it doesn't like the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy. In truth, they simply don't like the idea of citizens voluntarily serving their country in the military, period. It's still unclear if the Obama Youth Corps will have sufficiently tough PE standards to satisfy the board.

NOTE: SF Gate (online Chronicle and Examiner) reporter C. W. Nevius ran an article decrying the horrors of denying work to illegal immigrants. It's the usual "work that others won't do" argument, with some frosting. Unlike legitimate locals, he says, illegals fit the description of local merchant Michael Gardner: "They come in here with great personalities; they're on time, ready to go. They say, 'If you need me to work until 8 on a Friday night, I'll do it.'" No word on exactly how many illegals Gardner has been hiring. One of Gardner's most renowned products is custom zoot suits (look that up in your Funk & Wagnall's).

Gardner says he "estimates" that he pays $25,000 to $30,000 per year, plus benefits. Not bad, unless you know that a household income in that range in San Francisco will get you a studio apartment in a high-crime neighborhood, and a few shelves in the kitchen stocked with generic everything. But Gardner's not too worried, he has the support of County Supervisor David Campos, himself a former illegal immigrant. I guess if you can't get a job selling zoot suits, you can always run for public office in The City by the Bay.

NOTE: A fatal stabbing occurred at Kezar Stadium (the original home of the 49ers football team) on Thursday night or early Friday morning. Comments on the SF Gate online article included "And that's all we're going to get with SFPD on the case--the ID of the murdered victim and a statement that there are no current suspects. Doesn't matter, anyway, District Attorney Kamala Harris won't prosecute if they are part of her voter demographic." Surprisingly for San Francisco, that comment got 38 thumbs-up to 5 down. But another commenter said "No known address? More than likely a bridge dwelling dumpster diver" the comments were 36 favorable to 34 unfavorable. Murder is bad, but murdering a homeless person is really bad.