Apparently.
I’ll bet his name is Bruno, something like that:
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Now, is Equinox Fitness supposed to be tearing up the sidewalks of 301 Pine Street with their lead sled contraptions?
No, not at all.
Oh well.
First sidewalk bowling and now this.
I don’t care what they say on the Yelp.
What’s that, a bad billing department? Crummy elevators? Difficult street parking?
Points cheerfully conceded.
But, nevertheless, UCSF kicks ass.
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Don’t know why.
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You know, San Francisco is the most corrupt large city west of Chicago, probably, but you wouldn’t know it by solely looking at paramedic response in the 415. I’ve never seen dysfunction from this part of the “City Family.”
When you’re in trouble, the SFFD will care about you…
And please remember, “Use your key now 6/13/12″
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The newly-arrived Twitter people are already calling this place “Hotel Chasing the Dragon.”
“Chasing the dragon” (a slang phrase of Cantonese origin from Hong Kong, Traditional Chinese: 追龍, Simplified Chinese: 追龙, Cantonese Jyutping: zeoi1 lung4, pinyin: zhuī lóng) refers to inhaling the vapor from heated morphine, heroin, oxycodone or opium that has been placed on a piece of foil. The ‘chasing’ occurs as the user gingerly keeps the liquid moving in order to keep it from coalescing into a single, unmanageable mass.[1] Another more metaphorical use of the term “chasing the dragon” refers to the elusive pursuit of the ultimate high in the usage of some particular drug.”
Check it:
“Software Pioneer Leaves $10 Million Bequest To Five Leading Non-profits In Health And Drug Policy Reform
SANTA CRUZ, Calif., May 30, 2012 – This year, five leading non-profits at the forefront of health and drug policy reform will benefit from a generous bequest of approximately $10 million from the estate of software pioneer Ashawna (Shawn) Hailey. The gift will dramatically increase these organizations’ ability to reform government policies and public attitudes about health and drug policy.
Half of the total bequest–approximately $5 million–will benefit the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), a non-profit research and educational organization working with the FDA and international regulatory agencies to develop psychedelics and marijuana into prescription treatments for patients with unmet medical needs. The gift will be the largest that MAPS has ever received, and will support research into MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This treatment is currently in Phase 2 pilot studies and is showing very promising results.
MAPS is conducting an international series of Phase 2 pilot studies into MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These studies are laying the groundwork for two larger multi-site Phase 3 trials, required to show the FDA that MDMA is a safe and effective adjunct to psychotherapy for patients with PTSD.
The rest of Ashawna’s gift–about $1.25 million each–will support the efforts of the American Civil Liberties Union, the Drug Policy Alliance, the Marijuana Policy Project, and Second Harvest Food Bank.
Ashawna’s generous bequest is one of only a small number of such gifts to the ACLU. “Her bequest puts a spotlight on our nation’s punitive drug policies, which have failed to achieve public safety and health while putting unprecedented numbers of people behind bars and eroding constitutional rights,” said Vanita Gupta, Deputy Legal Director of the ACLU.
The Drug Policy Alliance will use Ashawna’s gift to strengthen its movement-building efforts. “Ashawna was generous to DPA in her lifetime and beyond because she wanted to build the strongest movement possible to end the drug war and replace it with policies that promote her values of freedom and compassion,” said Ethan Nadelmann, DPA’s executive director. “We’re honored by this bequest, and we will use it to sustain and strengthen the aspects of the movement that were important to her.”
“Our budget this year is only $5 million, so this bequest is turbocharging our efforts to end marijuana prohibition in the United States,” said Rob Kampia, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, D.C. “In fact, Ashawna will likely be our biggest donor this year, and we’ll be using half of her gift to pass the ballot initiative to regulate marijuana like alcohol in Colorado on November 6.”
“This transformative gift from Ashawna will help to ensure that everyone in our community who needs a meal can get one,” said Kathy Jackson, CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank. “She accomplished so much both in her professional life and through her philanthropy, and we are honored that she put her trust in Second Harvest Food Bank with this legacy gift.”
Hailey died on October 14, 2011, in her San Jose, Calif., home at the age of 62. She passed peacefully, and is survived by her children Neal and Nora, and by her twin brother Kim.
After graduating from Texas Tech University in 1970, Shawn designed the launch sequencer for the Sprint Antiballistic Missile System for the Martin Marietta Corporation and in 1974 designed the 9080 microprocessor for AMD. Shawn and Kim co-founded Meta-Software Corp. in 1979 and their HSPICE program remains the gold standard circuit simulator for the electronic design industry.”
And that’s your news from Santa Cruz.
Look closer, you’ll see it.
You think it’s just a coincidence that the old 420 rolls through the Upper Haight?
I don’t.*
We’re on our way to The Vapor Room!**
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And hey, speaking of bud and Giants baseball, back in the 1990′s, people, just regular people, not just baseball players, would hang out in the crib of star pitcher William Joseph Van Landingham and smoke weed all day. So much so that other Giants called him Van Bongingham. I’m srsly.
All right, GO GIANTS!
*Check out what’s on the side of area fire trucks, for example.
**Indeed. 607A Haight is about ten blocks down the road, in the Lower Haight.
If you want, you can compare what the SFFD has said about last year’s disaster with what independent federal investigators have recently said:
“A Career Lieutenant and Fire Fighter/Paramedic Die in a Hillside Residential House Fire – California“
During this incident, the E26 officer knew the fire was below him but he was unaware of just how many floors. If an adequate size-up had been conducted, or had the E26 officer obtained more intelligence information from the resident of the home that he spoke to briefly upon arrival, it may have facilitated a more rapid determination of the location of the fire floor.
In this incident, if an effective size-up would have been conducted several factors may have changed the first arriving companies’ tactics. The B side door would have been an option for initial entry. If the small window below the front door would have been noticed perhaps the fire could have been seen on the basement floor; or if more intelligence information would have been gathered from the occupant initially they could have identified that the fire was on the basement floor and how to access the floor.
During this incident, E32 was originally assigned as RIC then re-assigned fire fighting duties to back up E11. E20 was dispatched as RIC but did not arrived on scene until after the victims were recovered.
In this incident, BC6 and the IC tried to radio E26 with no response and it was assumed they were with BC9 or that BC9 knew what they were doing. An additional supporting component to fireground accountability is frequent progress reporting. When the IC fails to get a response after 3 attempts, or he receives a garbled response, action must be taken to determine the crew’s status. A worst case scenario must be assumed until their status can be confirmed.
At this incident, the officer on E26 realized that they had a fire somewhere in the structure, probably underneath them. The victims from E26 had deployed a 1¾” hoseline to the ground floor of the structure attempting to locate the fire. BC9 came into the structure and met them during their investigation of the ground floor. Victim #1 advised BC9 that the fire was underneath them. BC9 agreed to this and decided to take a crew down side B and attack the fire through the exterior doorway on side B at the basement level. BC9 and the IC discussed and agreed on this tactic. E26 did not receive any further instructions and did not leave the structure but attempted to go to the basement via the interior stairs. E26 did not provide any radio reports to the fire attack group supervisor (BC9) or the IC of their location or actions.
When an incident transitions from an investigation mode to an offensive fire attack mode, the IC should ensure that all companies have and understand their assignments, and are accounted for in the Personnel Accountability System. This information should be collected on a tactical worksheet to ensure that all companies have an assignment and are accounted for.
In this incident, a chief’s aide may have helped the IC to establish and manage the tactical worksheet early in the incident, track the deployment location of the E26 crew, and monitor transmissions on the fireground channels.
In this incident, for the size of the fire department and responsible coverage area, there is an insufficient number of incident safety officers (ISO) and/or qualified personnel (certified to NFPA 1521) to act as an ISO within the fire department. The ISO should be of a rank worthy of the significant responsibility.”
Hey look, it’s free!
And no co-payment neither.
Here’s the crew who’ll be waiting for you, or at least this was the crew at one of UCSF’s recent screenings in Chinatown:
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Free Skin Cancer Screening at UCSF
WHAT: In honor of National Skin Cancer Awareness Month, the UCSF Department of Dermatology is offering free skin cancer screenings. The event is co-sponsored by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano. No appointment is necessary and no insurance is required.
WHEN: Saturday, April 21, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The screenings will take approximately 30 minutes.
WHERE: 1701 Divisadero Street, third floor, San Francisco.
WHY: Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer, with more than three million skin cancers diagnosed annually in some two million people in the United States. More new cases of skin cancer are diagnosed each year than the combined totals of breast, prostate, lung and colon cancers. Melanoma is the most common form of cancer for young adults 25 to 29 years old. Anyone can develop skin cancer, regardless of skin color or general health. Many can be easily treated when detected early.
About UCSF Medical Center
UCSF Medical Center consistently ranks as one of the top 10 hospitals in the United States. Recognized for innovative treatments, advanced technology, collaboration among health care professionals and scientists, and a highly compassionate patient care team, UCSF Medical Center serves as the academic medical center of the University of California, San Francisco. The medical center’s nationally preeminent programs include children’s health, the brain and nervous system, organ transplantation, women’s health and cancer. It operates as a self-supporting enterprise within UCSF and generates its own revenues to cover the operating costs of providing patient care.
Follow UCSF Medical Center on www.facebook.com/UCSFMedicalCenter or on Twitter @UCSFHospitals.
I still don’t know if pedestrian Sutchi Hui had the right of way when he stepped out on the crosswalk at Castro near Market on March 29th. (Cyclist Chris Bucchere’s story isn’t adding up so far and he’s got a lawyer already and the police are investigating, so you make the call on that one.)
But if he is found responsible for that death, how does that match up with the deaths caused by car, MUNI bus, shuttle bus, and truck drivers in San Francisco County so far in 2012?
We’ve had at least two jaywalkers (one on Hayes, one of Lombard) violate right of way and die so far in 2012 And there was a young man who fell off a skateboard and got hit by a truck and died. And there was some hit-and-run(?) by a MUNI bus driver but I don’t think the person who was hit died. And then there was an older driver who went around another car (which was waiting for a pedestrian) and hit said pedestrian, but that pedestrian didn’t die.
Now I’m sure San Francisco’s horrible drivers will catch up to cyclists in the pedestrian death responsibility count by the end of 2012, but I don’t think they’ll catch up to the pedestrians themselves. What can we do to educate pedestrians?
Here’s the mantra:
“Pedestrians Always Have the Right of Way.”
This is incorrect for at least two reasons.
1. Jaywalkers don’t have the right of way. That’s why they’re held at fault for their own deaths when they die, with regularity, on the streets of San Francisco. Now, does a driver have the right to aim for jaywalking peds and then say, “Well, he was jaywalking so it’s his fault.” No. Drivers need to be on the lookout for errant peds at all times. But if a pedestrian pops out into the street in the middle of a block and gets hit, the ped has committed a right of way violation and, generally speaking, the ped is at fault.
2. Pedestrians need to wait for intersections to clear even though they have a green light and they are at a crosswalk. Most San Franciscans don’t understand this. If you’re a ped you need to look before you enter a crosswalk, especially if your light has just turned green. (What peds in San Francisco tend to do at certain intersection is to actually jump the light, oh well.)
If you don’t like this situation, you could lobby to have the law changed to give peds the right to jaywalk with impunity and the right to start crossing as soon as their lights turn green. Then, pedestrians would actually “Always Have the Right of Way” in real life.
Would that be good?
I don’t think so.
It certainly would clarify who’s at fault for what, but more peds would die.
Why don’t we change the mantra to this:
You should drive* AS IF Pedestrians Always Have the Right of Way.
And to the peds we should say this:
Pedestrians DON’T Always Have the Right of Way
Is that too complicated?
If you want to prevent pedestrian deaths, your primary solution is getting inside the head of the ped to figure out what’s going wrong. Your primary solution isn’t going to be more bulb-outs and wider sidewalks.
Do you want to punish drivers more when they do bad things? Well, be my guest, but that’s a tough row to hoe…
*Your MUNI bus, your shuttle bus, your big truck, your bike, your private car, whatever
Your District Five Blog has the deets on today’s events for the victims of the big fire in the Western Addition on December 22, 2011.
One fundraiser is being hosted by London Breed and the other by The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.
