Isn’t this refreshing?
Thys is the fyrst tyme Y’ve seen a Lyft taxy dryver alone in his/her ryde NOT surfying the web and dryving symultaneously:
All the other times, the drivers have been illegally driving while texting or talking
Hey, isn’t that behavior illygal or something?
In California, anyway…
Looks as if we got our weekly Tuesday Noon Siren Test in early when some of San Francisco’s emergency sirens went off today at 3:45PM to … mark the end of Sunday Streets Chinatown?
Take a look:
“The siren signified the end of Sunday Streets this week in Chinatown. We apologize for any concern.”
So more than just the one siren went off and that was the mistake?
Why should our City Family be horsing around with the emergency sirens in the first place?
So we should call them San Francisco’s Emergency/End of Sunday Streets sirens?
Anyway, it sounded like this:
Here’s an update from Tom Prete of Ocean Beach Bulletin:
“A siren from San Francisco’s Outdoor Public Warning System sounded at about 3:45 p.m. Sunday, but a City Twitter account stated that the siren was activated accidentally.”
And here comes Johnny-come-lately AlertSF.org:
“The sirens were activated citywide inadvertently this afternoon. There is no emergency in San Francisco.
Thank you,
Alert SF”
Old Mercedes diesels* might be really slow, and they might emit more particulates than a fleet of new cars, and they might get converted to run on french fry grease, but…
The most cartoonish cloud of smoke coming from a car exhaust I’ve ever seen:
Click to expand
…they will never die.
And here’s the thing – old diesels are exempt from California’s annual smog check program.
That’s a giant loophole big enough that you could drive a big old honking Mercedes Benz diesel through.
Hurray!
“I’ve only been a Benz owner for less than a year now. However, I’m beginning to think that stamping out smoke on these 616s is like trying to rid your yard comletely of dandelions – it’s a fool’s errand.
I’ve had my IP rebuilt, rolled in a new timing chain, and had the valve seals replaced all within the last 6 months. Injectors are also new and the valves were adjusted when the seals were replaced. Fuel filters and fuel lines are also new and all fluids are fresh. The only differences between mine and yours are that I have lower compression and I use perhaps a 1/2 quart of oil in 2,000 miles.
Despite this, I still have some smoke. There’s a hint of whitish smoke on cold idle at start up and a bit of black smoke when I get on the throttle or climb steep hills.
I have another set of injectors that I had rebuilt and will install them in due course. I’ll also rebuild the vacuum pump as a preventative measure. But after that, this game of “whack a mole” has to end.
There is one good thing to come from all this work, however. My engine sounds silky smooth. No knocking, no nailing, and no hicccups. The only underhood sounds you hear are the clickity click of fuel injectors popping and the combustion inside the engine. So long as this continues to be the case and my oil consumption doesn’t increase, I should consider everything else to be inconsequential.”
*Pray that this particular old Mercedes is a diesel. ‘Cause otherwise this rig prolly needs to get oil added on a daily basis…
Say what you will about our corporate overlords at Morgan Chase, you can’t deny that they can tell which way the winds are blowing these days.
Proof of that is this announcement, below.
My favorite Chase Bank is the one on Oak and Divisadero. Isn’t it kewl?
Click to expand
That’s right, it’s hella cool.
On a somewhat serious note, thanks for Chase Community Giving, Chase. That’s better than spending your money on a Super Bowl commercial or whathaveyou.
(But don’t get on my bad side, Chase, else it will be smashy smashy like what happened to your nearby competitor on Fell a couple Halloweens back.)
Anyway, you all can join the boycott,* I don’t care. As long as the Chase customers can have their bank branch on Oak, that’s fine.
Or take your money to a credit union, I don’t care.
And, oh, goran nasai, Amerika no Ginkoo. Mite, mite:
“Chase Announces it Won’t Charge Customers a Debit Card Fee - Consumers Union Calls On Bank of America to Drop its Plan to Charge a $5 Fee for Debit Card Purchases
SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 28, 2011 — JP Morgan Chase announced today that it will not charge its customers a $3 monthly debit card fee after testing the charge in Wisconsin and Georgia. The bank announced that it would drop the idea following negative reaction from its customers.
Consumers Union, the nonprofit advocacy arm of Consumer Reports, today commended Chase for its decision and reiterated its call on Bank of America to end its plan to charge a $5 debit card fee beginning in 2012.
“Consumers Union has heard from thousands of consumers across the country who are outraged that Bank of America is instituting the $5 monthly debit card fee,” said Norma Garcia, manager of Consumers Union’s financial services program. ”It’s time for Bank of America to listen to its customers who are saying loud and clear: drop the fee or we’ll drop you. All banks that are considering debit card fees should ditch those plans.”
SunTrust has also started rolling out a similar debit card fee and Wells Fargo has been testing one in select markets. Earlier this month, Consumers Union called on Chase, Bank of America and these other banks to abandon plans to charge customers a fee for debit card purchases.
“It’s unfair for banks to stick consumers with a monthly fee just to use their own money,” said Garcia. ”The banks that charge debit card fees risk losing customers who are fed up with financial institutions that got bailed out that are now turning around and hiking fees.”
Consumers Union has published a set of tips for consumers who want to switch banks.
Saturday, November 5, has been dubbed Bank Transfer Day by grassroots activists upset with rising bank fees, including the new $5 debit card fee that Bank of America will start charging its customers in 2012. Consumers are being encouraged by Bank Transfer Day organizers to switch their accounts to credit unions or community banks on that day.
SOURCE Consumers Union”
Oh, there’s an updated version of this release. See it after the jump.
*Facebook, really? Heh. Home of the ephemeral…
Apparently, PG&E has been testing these Mitsubishi i-MiEV‘s (“Mitsubishi In-wheel motor Electric Vehicle” or “Mitsubishi innovative Electric Vehicle”) for a while, but this is my first time seeing one. PG&E fleet-tests all sorts of electric vehicles all the time, of course.
Isn’t that a wonderful contribution from a great local corporation? They’re a great company that gets it.
[What, what did I just say? What? Oh, why'd I say that? Mmmm. Now, is PG&E the outfit that lies about how they killed people or are they my number one booster?* Both, maybe? I'm conflicted. Note to self: Hire fashionable spokesmodel to clean up this mess. Get money from PG&E people to hire said spokesmodel. That's using the old bean! Bingo-bango.]
Now, where was I? Oh, the electric motors are in the wheels – this is the approach Mitsu is taking. So that’s a little more advanced than what other companies (like Tesla Motors and (heh) CODA Automotive) are doing. Is that a good idea? We’ll see.
Click to expand
Those stalk things are your manual mirror adjustment controls – old school!
All the deets:
“ALL-NEW, 100% ELECTRIC.
Welcome to a whole new era of fleet efficiency. The result of more than four decades of dedicated EV engineering, the 100% electric Mitsubishi i offers a host of advantages over traditional gas-powered fleet vehicles.
The Mitsubishi i has less moving parts than its gas-powered counterparts which can translate to reduced maintenance requirements and less downtime for repairs.
Volatile, rising fuel costs make it difficult to project expenses. Charging with electricity can stabilize that variability and help keep you in control of your budget.
With a low acquisition fee of under $30,000 and an operating cost of just $.03 per mile*, the Mitsubishi i is remarkably cost-effective.
Of course, the Mitsubishi i isn’t just about improving your bottom line. Featuring world-class performance, a targeted range of 85 miles,† comfortable seating for four and zero on-road emissions, this EV is equipped to handle a wide variety of tasks—and demonstrate your company’s commitment to the environment.
* Estimate based on 5.3 miles per kWh at .15 cents per kWh.
† Targeted LA4 EPA city cycle. Actual range will vary depending on driving / charging habits, speed, conditions, weather, temperature and battery age.”
You’ll be able to buy one for yourself next year. Maybe they’ll be calling it the Mitsubishi i by that point.
In other news, the big anti-PG&E protest will be tomorrow at noon
“Jail the PG&E Corporate Criminals For Murder-Public Power Now
NO MORE SAN BRUNOS!
Rally Friday, Sept. 9 at Noon
1st Anniversary of the
CRIMINAL SAN BRUNO BLAST
Protest PG&E
for its Arrogance,
Incompetence &
Criminal Negligence!
Public Power Now!
PG&E Headquarters
77 Beale Street, SF
Sponsored by Terry Joan Baum for Mayor 2011
email: staff(at)terryjoanbaum.com
phone: 415-553-8847″
See you there!
*Actually, I was in the Presidio one time, IRL, I’m srsly, and while I was there a PG&E employee came up and told me, twice, that “it would be in your interest” for me to pull my post about PG&E hiring people from Nevada to canvas for some proposition in the Mission. And then, when I was huffing up Arguello to get home later that evening, she offered me a ride in her car! I didn’t get in. (“Never get in the van.” – that’s the lesson I learned from Three Days of the Condor)
Joubert: It will happen this way. You may be walking. Maybe the first sunny day of the spring. And a car will slow beside you, and a door will open, and someone you know, maybe even trust, will get out of the car. And he will smile, a becoming smile…
We’ve had more U.S.S. Independences than you can shake a stick at over the centuries, but this one is the one we had during the bulk of WWII. She came straight out of Joisey in ’42 and survived The Pacific War only to get blowed up with atomic bombs during testing at South Pacific locales like Bikini Atoll in 1946.
Before:
Then after, after the big atomic kaboom at Bikini. Ouch:
Anyway, instead of sinking, the Independence kept on floating so the Navy towed her right to Hunters Point in south San Francisco. Now, let’s let Lisa Davis(?) of SF Weekly take over – here’s her bit from all the way back in aught-one.
So there you go. Most likely, this old-school baby aircraft carrier is down there resting with a cargo of nuclear waste not too far from our Farallon Islands, radiating away.
Oh well.
Look at all the yokels photographing this Daktronics SFgo traffic sign from the SFMTA.
What a bunch of loosers, huh?
Click to expand
TEST*TEST*TEST*TEST*TEST*TEST*TEST*TEST*TEST…
City Attorney Dennis J. Herrera can’t abide companies that don’t prove their claims. So today he’s going after Intelligender LLC because of its “in-home fetal gender prediction product“ that you can get at Walgreens. For the record:
“IntelliGender, the Plano, Texas, creator of the “Boy or Girl Gender Prediction Test,” says scientists isolated certain hormones that when combined with a “proprietary mix of chemicals” react differently if a woman is carrying a boy or a girl. It claims that within 10 minutes of taking the urine test, a woman will be able to tell her baby’s gender. The specimen will turn green if it’s a boy, and orange if it’s a girl.”
The question is about accuracy, primarily.
San Francisco’s Happy Warrior:
As always, follow the action on the Twitter.
SAN FRANCISCO (March 10, 2010) — City Attorney Dennis Herrera today invoked his legal authority under California’s Unfair Competition Law to demand substantiation for advertising claims by Intelligender LLC that its in-home fetal gender prediction product, which is sold and marketed in San Francisco, is “totally safe” and over 90 percent accurate.
“California law empowers public sector attorneys to seek proof for marketing claims for products sold to the consumers they’re responsible to protect,” said Herrera. “Intelligender is a product that came to our attention in which some of the advertised claims are dubious, and for which supporting evidence is notably unavailable to potential customers. Women and families interested in purchasing products like this are entitled to see the evidence that will enable them to be better informed consumers.”
According to Herrera’s letter to the Plano, Tex.-based manufacturer:
“The IntelliGender Test purports to accurately identify the gender of a fetus as early as 10 weeks after pregnancy, and well before ultrasound confirmation of fetal gender is available to expectant mothers. However, according to online reviews of your product, it appears that your advertising claim that the IntelliGender Test is ‘over 90% accurate’ is questionable. Additionally, as your product packaging does not identify the contents of the IntelliGender Test, there are concerns about the safety and proper means of disposal of the Test.
“The San Francisco City Attorney hereby requests that you provide evidence of the facts supporting the advertising claims of IntelliGender listed below, pursuant to California Business and Professions Code §17508, which empowers city attorneys to request substantiation of purportedly fact-based advertising claims. For all claims listed below indicating that scientific methods were utilized, please include full reports of experiments, methods, results, and outcomes, in addition to the CVs and biographies of the clinicians retained to perform these trials and tests.”
Herrera asked that Intelligender provide documentation responsive to his request by the end of the month, noting that we would consider seeking “an immediate termination or modification of the claim,” as state law provides, if the information were not forthcoming.
All the deets after the jump.
The phrase of the day is “qui tam.” It’s Latin for “million dollar payday,” assuming of course you are a False Claims Act whistleblower and you win, the way this federal case worked out.
California State Attorney General Jerry Brownannounced this morning news of a case in San Mateo concerning fraud and kickbacks and hundreds of millions of dollars. It’s a doozy. Read all about it in his words, below.
Brown Sues to Recover Hundreds of Millions of Dollars Illegally Diverted from Medi-Cal
LOS ANGELES – Responding to a whistleblower’s allegation of “massive Medi-Cal fraud and kickbacks,” Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. joined legal action against seven private laboratories to recover hundreds of millions of dollars in illegal overcharges to the state’s medical program for the poor.
“In the face of declining state revenues, these medical laboratories have siphoned off hundreds of millions of dollars from programs intended for the most vulnerable California families.” Attorney General Brown said. “Such a pattern of massive Medi-Cal fraud and kickbacks cannot be tolerated, and I will take every action the law allows to recover what is owed,” Brown added.
According to whistleblower Chris Riedel, the CEO of Hunter Laboratories, “I confirmed with the California Department of Health Care Services that these practices were illegal. We then had a choice–either join the other labs in violating the law or be unable to compete for business. We choose to suffer the financial consequence, and follow the law.”
The lawsuit, which is pending in San Mateo Superior Court, contends that the 7 medical labs systematically overcharged the Medi-Cal program over the past 15 years.
Read more, after the jump:
Back in the day, one puff of the Mary Jane could be enough to disqualify you from ever serving the State of California as a member of the CHP. But the times, they’re a changing:
Experimental use of marijuana or other drugs may not be a disqualifying factor. The recency, frequency, and specific circumstances will be evaluated to determine your level of qualification.
Best of all, they’re hiring!
The pitch people saw in Summer of 2008 along I-80, America’s major east-west Interstate. Click to expand:
You ought to give it a try. See you at the Academy in South Sacramento. Don’t bring your drugs, but DO bring your bathing suit and ”dusting supplies,” such as Lemon Pledge.
Srsly, you’ve got bring along some canisters of Pledge to keep things tidy. Then soon you’ll be making six figures doing the toughest job you’ll ever love.
See you there!
