Dec 16, 2021 Bike Bus (JFK to SOMA)

Join the bike Bus!!! 

Inspired by the Barcelona Bike Bus, we will meet 12/16 at 7:40am sharp at the intersection of 8th Ave and wonderful car free kid safe JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park. We'll bike east along JFK to Panhandle, Oak, Scott, Page, Market, 11th ending at Presidio Knolls School in SOMA by 8:20am. If you haven't had the opportunity to ride around SF in a group of 20+ folks it is not to be missed. There is a wonderful feeling of safety when riding in a group that size. 

Shoot me a quick message if you can join just so I can keep a quick headcount. pbelden at gmail. We'll play music while we ride too!

Peter 

Peter's November 2020 Voter Guide

I've made this one shorter, fewer links and explanations. But see the info at the bottom if you want to learn more. I often have consulted the Bike Coalition, Sierra Club, League of Conservation Voters, SF Chronicle and slates from a friend or two. 

STATE:

CA State Senator: Scott Weiner (great on transportation issues among others)
State Assembly (D17): David Chiu (among other things he's a great champion of bike infrastructure!)

Prop 14: Stem Cell Research Bonds: No (SF Chronicle also opposed)
Prop 15: Property Tax for Schools: YES (No brainer. Very important)
Prop 16: Allows Affirmative Action: YES (April can give you the full explanation on this one)
Prop 17: Right to Vote After Prison: YES (no brainer. They have completed their prison term. Taking away voting during parole is excessive punishment)
Prop 18: 17 Year Olds Vote In Primaries: Yes (already approved by legislature)
Prop 19: Prop Tax Rules: No (I like what the LA Times said, "Proposition 19, a cynical and unwelcome melding of good and bad tax proposals. Voters should reject it.")
Prop 20: Parole Restrictions: NO (This is the prison guards and police unions trying to increase incarceration) 
Prop 21: Local Jurisdiction for Rent Control: No (we need to increase the supply of housing)
Prop 22: Benefits Exemption for Uber/Lyft etc: NO (tricky but what got me is that if passed prop 22 can’t be changed without a (near-miracle) 7/8 super majority of both chambers of the State Assembly. 
Prop 23: State Requirements for Kidney Dialysis Clinics: No
Prop 24: Consumer Privacy Protections: No
Prop 25: Bail Reforms: Yes (Cash bail has always struck me as crazy unjust)

Prop A: Health and Recovery Bond: YES
Prop B: Department of Sanitation and Streets: YES
Prop C: Non-Citizen Voting for Boards and Commissions: YES
Prop D: Sheriff’s Dept Oversight: YES
Prop E: Abolish Minimum Police Staffing Requirement: YES
Prop F: Business Tax Overhaul: YES
Prop G: Youth Voting for Local Elections: YES
Prop H: Planning Code Reforms for Neighborhood Commercial: Yes
Prop I: Increase Transfer Tax: Yes
Prop J: Parcel Tax Update: Yes
Prop K: Authorize Affordable Housing: YES
Prop L: Disproportionate CEO Pay Tax: Yes
Prop RR: Rescue Caltrain: YES

State Senator District 11: Scott Wiener
State Assembly Member, District 17: David Chiu
Member Board of Education: Jenny Lam, Michelle Parker, Alida Fisher
Community College Board: 

Many thanks to Deep for his fantastic "Deep Slate" voter guide which is another great resource. 

Nov 2019 voter guide

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Nov 2019 voter guide

San Francisco City and County Propositions:

A: Yes - Housing bonds
B: Yes - Renaming an agency and earmarking three seats
C: No - Would overturn citizen passed Vape law. Prop C was written by JUUL and is opposed by nearly everyone including now JUUL which just withdrew its support under a new CEO.
D: Yes - Tiny tax on Uber and Lyft to reduce traffic and improve public transit - Supported by the SF Bike Coalition, Sierra Club, Mayor Breed, all 11 Supervisors, Walk San Francisco and SF Transit Riders. I think this small tax is a useful first step worth taking.
E: No - Affordable housing for teachers built on public land and open space - Additional affordable housing for teacher would be great, but this measure will open up public lands zoned as "open space" to development. Along with the SF Green Party I don't want new development on SF's already limited public open space.
F: Yes - Sunlight on some Dark Money

City Attorney, City of San Francisco - Dennis Herrera - No other candidates
Public Defender, City of San Francisco - Manohar "mano" Raju - No other candidatesBoard of Education, City of San Francisco - Jenny Lam
Sheriff, City of San Francisco - Paul Miyamoto - No other candidatesMember, Community College Board, City of San Francisco - Ivy Lee - No other candidatesDistrict Attorney - City of San Francisco - In her five years on the Police Commission, Suzy Loftus fought for and won commitments to Vision Zero to reduce bias in traffic enforcement. As candidate for District Attorney, she has distinguished herself by being the first to develop a robust platform for street safety that promises real justice for victims of traffic violence. She's also endoursed by the SF Chronicle and the SF Bicycle Coalition.Mayor - City of San Francisco - London Breed
Treasurer - City of San Francisco - Jose Cisneros - No other candidates
District 5 Supervisor - Vallie Brown - because of her great climate related positions

Nov 2016 voter guide

President: Hillary Clinton
Senate: Kamala Harris
House of Representatives: Nancy Pelosi
State Senate: Scott Weiner

San Francisco City and County Propositions:

A. Yes - bonds to repair schools.
B. Yes - continue parcel tax for City College of SF
C. Yes - SF Gate endorsement
D. No - SF Gate endorsement. Why should an interim appointee be prohibited from running? That doesn't make sense.
E. Yes - Sierra Club and League of Conservation Voters.
F. No - SF Gate and age 16 is too young.
G. Yes - SF Gate endorsement and Police Officers Assoc isn't opposing it.
H. No - SF Gate endorsement and bad to have this person as a shadow mayor.
I. No
J. Yes
K. Yes
L. No
M. No
N. Yes
O. Yes
P. No
Q. Yes
R. Yes
S. No
T. Yes
U. No
V. Yes
W. Yes
X. No

RR. Yes

California State Propositions:

51. Yes
52. Yes
53. No
54. Yes
55. Yes
56. Yes
57. Yes - SF Gate and League of Women Voters endorsed
58. Yes
59. No
60. No - Opposed by CA Dems and Repubs and all the State's Major Newspapers
61. No
62. Yes
63. yes
64. Yes
65. No - This is a trick measure put on the ballot by the plastic bag companies.
66. No
67. Yes

Nov 2014 voter guide

Statewide Ballot Measures

1 Yes. League of Conservation Voters says yes.

2 Yes. It takes an important step toward fiscal discipline in our state government. League of Women Voters

45 No. Could undermine the ACA. Chronicle

46 No. Both the Chronicle and Planned Parenthood say no.

47 Yes. League of Women Voters says that prop 47 will ensure that prison spending is focused on violent and serious offenses and will maximize alternatives for non-serious, nonviolent crimes.

48 No. The Chronicle makes a compelling case for a no. Indian gaming.

San Francisco School Board: Hydra Mendoza. We hosted a small event for her at our house.

San Francisco Board of Supervisors: Malia Cohen

State Assembly: David Chiu

Superintendent for Public Instruction: Marshall Tuck. April has known him for a decade and says he is the clear choice. The Chronicle endorsed Tuck as well saying he is more willing to challenge the status quo.

San Francisco Ballot Measures

A Yes. These investments will help improve public transportation. Source: Sierra Club

B Yes. This changes the City Charter to increase the amount of transportation funding allocated, without adding taxes, based on population increases. Source: Sierra Club

C Yes. Chronicle says yes while the League of Women Voters is neutral.

D Yes. This is a small legal fix that needs voter approval. It’s a proposal to put several dozen former employees of the phased-out Redevelopment Agency in the city’s pension system.

E Yes. Increases tax on sugary drinks.

F Yes. Enables redevelopment of Pier 70 in the Dogpatch. Source: Sierra Club and the local neighborhood groups support it as well.

G No. Would put a huge new tax on sale of certain apartment building. The Chronicle opposes it and the League of Women Voters is Neutral.

H Yes. Would block 150,000 Watts of new stadium lighting and artificial turf by Ocean Beach. It also blocks the new grandstands and roads. We have fake grass at our house and love it. However I agree with the Sierra Club that near Ocean Beach is not right place for stadium lighting, grandstands and new roads. Source: Sierra Club

I No. This is just the reverse of Prop H. See prop H.

J Yes. The Chronicle and the Sierra Club both support this, the latter because higher wages might enable more workers to live closer to their work, thus reducing traffic.

K No. This does nothing. It's a non-binding policy resolution. Why are we wasting time voting on this?

L No. This is basically about promoting cars instead of public transit. Crazy crazy.

November 4, 2008 California Voter Guide

Here are my recommendations. For propositions it's Yes on 1A, 2, 3, 5, 11 and 12. No on all the rest, particularly no on 4. And vote for Kimberly Wicoff for San Francisco School board.

Prop 1A - Yes - High speed rail would be good mass transit. Supported by League of Women Voters, League of Conservation Voters and the Sierra Club among others. SF Chronicle endorsement.
Prop 2 - Yes - The measure, promoted by the Humane Society, would prohibit the confinement of a farm animal for a majority of the day in a way that prevented it from "lying down, standing up and fully extending his or her limbs" and "turning around freely." http://www.yesonprop2.com/ It's also endorsed by the SJ Merc, Nick Kristof, and the Sierra Club.
Prop 3 - Yes - Hospital bond.
Prop 4 - No - If you are even remotely considering vote yes ont his call me ASAP. This is bad bad bad. http://www.noonprop4.org/
aclunc.org has info on 5 6 9 too.
Prop 5 - Yes - This is one where I think it's harder to make the decision. The measure would allocate $460 million to improve and expand treatment programs for Californians convicted of drug offenses or nonviolent crimes that may be related to an addiction. Good list of endorsments.
Prop 6 - No - One of the reasons that California has a multibillion-dollar structural deficit is that voters keep approving spending mandates without providing a way to pay for them. Prop 6 proposes spending with no revenues to pay for it - forcing cuts in healthcare, schools, fire protection and other vital programs. Our prisons are already overcrowded and the focus should be on prevention. More info.
Prop 7 - No - This is opposed by all the major environmental groups.
Prop 8 - No - They are trying to ban gay marriage.
Prop 9 - No - This would end some early-release programs for non-violent offenders to relieve overcrowding and the fiscal impact on the state would be large in a year we can't afford it.
Prop 10 - No - This is opposed by all the major environmental groups.
Prop 11 - Yes - 99 percent of state legislators and members of Congress were re-elected in the past decade in part because they are able to re-draw their own districts. Prop 11 would end this and take the politics out of redistricting.
Prop 12 - Yes - home loans for veterans

San Francisco School Board - Kimberly Wicoff - She has the endorsements from SF's right (mayor) and left (SF Guardian) plus the current school board chair. And I know her well and she'll be a great school board member.

President - Barack Obama - He's the better candidate on the environment, he's the only pro-choice candidate, and for many other reasons.

United States Representative; District 12 - Jackie Speier

San Francisco Local Measures:

A - Yes
B - No
C - No
D - Yes
E - Yes
F - No
G - Yes
H - Yes
I - No
J - No
K - No
L - Yes
M - No
N - Yes
O - Yes
P - Yes
Q - Yes
R - No
S - Yes
T - Yes
U - No
V - No

San Francisco Judge - Thomas Mellon - His opponent, Sandoval, was rated "not qualified" by the San Francisco Bar Assoc.