The San Francisco Citizen

So you’re doing a good deed in the Mission District of San Francisco, and then when you come back to your very-well-made, made-in-China ride, you see that somebody has taped a handbill to your bike. Then you see it says:

“HELICOPTERS COULD SOON BE FLYING OVER OR NEAR YOUR HOME AT ALL HOURS OF BOTH DAY AND NIGHT!”

And then you think, wow, somebody has finally bought off all those NOT IN MY BACK YARD Nimby people who were standing in the way of Progress, and San Francisco will no longer have the only Level One Trauma Center in the country to lack a helipad or access to a heliport.

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But then you read on and see that the handbill is from the Nimby’s themselves. Disappointed. They think a helipad is a bad idea for them.

Read on to see the fruits of the labors of the Stop the Helipad people:

“A head-on collision on the Golden Gate Bridge in Maythrew the evening commute into chaos and drew immediate cries for new safety measures. Lost in the flurry of traffic reports and debate about possible barriers, however, was the aftermath of the crash for the most seriously hurt victim. Dr. Grace M. Dammann had to be transported by helicopter about 25 miles to John Muir Hospital in Walnut Creek because San Francisco General Hospital lacks a helipad for its acclaimed Level 1 Trauma Center.”

Mmmm. According to an American College of Surgeons Consultation Survey of San Francisco General Hospital’s Trauma Program:

“The lack of a helipad and helicopter service is a major deficiency in providing optimal trauma care for San Francisco General Hospital and San Francisco. It is difficult to understand why a city the size of San Francisco does not have any medical air transport. The congested roads and bridges with the surrounding water make helicopter service an essential medical support service.”

Will the YES HELIPAD people win this one?

Eventually…

There’s less than a month left until the big 2008 election in San Francisco, so it’s not too early to think about the Supervisor race in District One, aka The Richmond. Here are the candidates to replace Supervisor Jake McGoldrick:

Nicholas Belloni - Independent Film & TV Producer
Sherman D’Silva
George Flamik
Fidel Gakuba
Jason Jungreis
Brian J. Larkin
Sue Lee - Planning Commissioner
Eric Mar - School Board Member
Alicia Wang - Teacher

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This was the scene inside Star of the Sea Church at tonight’s debate hosted by the somewhat religulous San Francisco Organizing Project (SFOP). For some reason, the front runners were all grouped stage left. They are Sue Lee, Eric Mar, and dark horse Alicia “Free Hugs” Wang - take your pick:

There was a good turnout of 150 souls or so, complete with a Saguaro cactus from candidate Brian Larkin.

Some say that district elections favor one candidate or another. Oh well.

What’s that - you want to hear what everybody has to say? You want to meet the candidates? Here you go.

Enjoy.

This was the scene a few days back in San Francisco’s Richmond District, where Eric Mar invited his supporters, some as young as eight years old, to a Bicycle Ride Through the Richmond District.

Eric’s got endorsements from the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, Supervisor Jake McGoldrick, Senators Leland Yee and Carole Migden, plus more than a few others.

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Mr. Mar,  your campaign seems to have the momentum of a runaway freight train.  Why are you so popular?

San Francisco Unified School District Commissioner Eric Mar soundly won the sole endorsement of the San Francisco Democratic Party to replace Supervisor Jake McGoldrick this week, and now it’s his birthday. So he had a party at the Toy Boat Dessert Café on Clement in the Richmond District today.   

Alicia Wang and Sue Lee are the other major candidates in the race

This is Eric’s platform and this is his schedule for the week:

5:30 PM: Monday Night Phonebanking

7PM: The Peaceniks Benefit Concert for Eric Mar

5:30 PM: Wednesday Night Phonebanking

10AM: Coffee with Eric 3:30 PM: Meeting of the Select Committee of the Board of Supervisors and Board of Education

6PM: Young Voters for Eric

6PM: San Francisco Board of Education Meeting

5PM: “I ACCEPT” OBAMA SPEECH WATCHING PARTY

In the left corner we have One Rincon Hill, South Tower, standing 641 feet tall. Compare that with the “New Sheriff’s Facility” jail (the “glamour slammer“) on the right.

Which building is better?

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“I–my idea, when we started out was to have a, you know, rising up, in the form of an undulating, ovulating ground that you don’t get so much nowadays.”