OB Rag — Grassroots and Progressive views on local, national and world news

5 Ways Donald Trump Could Rig the Mid-Terms

Sat, 08 Aug 2026 00:50:31 +0200

By Jacob Knutson / Democracy Docket / Aug. 6, 2026 For the past year and a half, President Donald Trump has been trying to take control of U.S. elections. He largely hasn’t succeeded. The reason is simple: The U.S. Constitution gives the president no lawful authority over how states run elections. And courts have said as much while knocking down many of his efforts. But with each loss, Trump has grown more desperate and his actions more brazen, raising the risk that he will try something even more lawless as he struggles to stave off a Republican loss in the midterms. With just under three months until Americans head to the polls, election officials across the country have been meeting privately to discuss how Trump may try to undermine a fair vote and to game out their responses to such attempts. While officials have largely been tight-lipped about what scenarios they are preparing for, it’s not difficult to identify — based on the statements and actions of Trump and his allies — several alarming ways the president could undermine Americans’ right to vote this year. Restricting mail voting Though he’s voted by mail several times, Trump has relentlessly attacked mail voting as a vehicle for election fraud, going back to his first run for president in 2016. “I am going to lead a movement to get rid of MAIL-IN BALLOTS,” Trump declared on social media last year.

Happenings Around the Peninsula — August 2026

Sat, 08 Aug 2026 00:25:47 +0200

2 Recent Reports on San Diego’s Bicycle Network Find Dangerous and Clogged Lanes, Key Gaps and Inadequate School Routes

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 20:15:40 +0200

Two recent reports out on San Diego’s bicycle network find troubling problems with the hundreds of miles of bike lanes, from difficult and dangerous corridors, gaps in the infrastructure and insufficient bike routes for school kids. One report from San Diego State University -- the “State of the Ride”-- published in May, " identifies corridors for improvement and highlights how biking could feel safer for more communities, as UT writer Maura Fox reported August 5. She wrote that "San Diego’s expansive bicycle network remains difficult and sometimes dangerous for cyclists to navigate and contains key gaps that prevent continuous riding." The report was done in conjunction with the group BikeSD, whose executive director quipped:

“It’s not the question of, how many miles did we build? It’s more like, can an average child or a 70-year-old woman actually ride there?”

The report highlighted these issues, looking at what it says is the nearly 700 miles of bike facilities :

Only about 75% of the 2013 bike master plan’s goal for bike infrastructure has been implemented;
The most common type of facility — which accounts for nearly 60% of the mileage — are class II bike lanes, which are designated specifically for cyclists.
bike infrastructure is not distributed evenly across the city.

When Old Town Was the Heart of San Diego

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 19:01:19 +0200

by Debbie L. Sklar / Times of San Diego / July 29, 2026 Visitors walking through Old Town San Diego today see adobe buildings, historic plazas, museums, restaurants and shops celebrating the city’s earliest chapters. But one of the most surprising facts about Old Town is that San Diego’s first major settlement and early city center was eventually the part of the city that people left behind. Before downtown San Diego’s skyline, before the waterfront became the region’s commercial center and before the city expanded into a modern metropolis, Old Town was where much of San Diego’s early history unfolded. Heart of the community Following the establishment of the Spanish presidio and Mission San Diego de Alcalá in 1769, the area around the presidio developed into the region’s first major civilian settlement. During the Mexican period and the early years of American rule, it served as San Diego’s civic, commercial, and social center.

Why SeaWorld Replaced Fireworks With Drone Shows: The Settlement and the Precedent

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 17:34:37 +0200

By Philip Hernandez / Seasonal Entertainment / July 31, 2026 SeaWorld San Diego has no fireworks scheduled on any night in 2026. The park’s nighttime calendar now runs on the 600-drone Ocean of Dreams show ..., a change that comes out of a Clean Water Act lawsuit: SeaWorld sought the drone pilot while the case was pending, and the settlement signed in May requires it to pursue drones as a permanent replacement for fireworks. Last summer’s Enchanted Wonders was the final fireworks season, closing a run local reporting puts at nearly six decades.

(Please go to the original for all the great links)

What the Settlement Requires San Diego Coastkeeper and the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation (CERF) sued SeaWorld in March 2025 over repeated noncompliance with the park’s Clean Water Act fireworks permit, documenting plastic, foil, sharp wiring, and toxic metal residues recovered from Fiesta Island and the Mission Bay seabed. The settlement, announced May 20, 2026, requires SeaWorld to pursue drones as a permanent replacement for fireworks in good faith and to run more robust pollution prevention and cleanup for any fireworks it still shoots.

A Man We Owe Our Lives To

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 17:15:39 +0200

by Ernie McCray Regarding all that’s being said about Anthony Fauci’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, what he did or didn’t do to keep us safe, we, as a nation, have to come to understand that science, inherently, is a mixture of failures wherein an approach to a problem put into use one day might require dismissal the very next day based on new data that has come into play, something I noticed without a real grasp of the situation as a child at play when people in charge of public health deployed all kinds of do’s and don’ts that had me asking my mom an array of questions about why the pool was closed

Why Even (Really) Big Money Couldn’t Save Josh Coyne

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 00:02:00 +0200

Council Candidate Went Down to Defeat Because He Was Out-of-Touch With District 2 Voters Despite Spending $80 Per Vote

By Paul Krueger / Special to OB Rag Josh Coyne and his supporters raised more than $450,000 in his run for the San Diego District 2 City Council seat. That money was not well spent. Coyne finished a very distant third in the June primary, with just 5,622 votes. First place finisher Richard Bailey got 14,800 votes; Nicole Crosby was second with 14,325. Bailey is a Republican-turned-Independent who raised and spent less than Coyne. He was also the target of $148,000 in negative ads sponsored by labor unions. But the former Coronado mayor still beat Coyne by more than 9,000 votes. Democrat Crosby’s cost-per-vote total was even more impressive. She and her supporters raised $153,000 -- one-third of Coyne’s war chest --- but she beat him by almost 9,000 votes. The starkest comparison is Coyne versus fourth-place finisher Mandy Havik, who raised just $45,000, or one-tenth of the money raised and spent on Coyne’s behalf. Havlik is a long-time Democrat stalwart and beach-area activist who campaigned on limiting ADU and highrise development and empowering neighborhood planning groups. She captured 4,750 votes, at about $10 per vote, compared to Coyne’s $80 per vote.

More Than a Century of Making Waves: 10 Things Behind Ocean Beach’s Woman’s Club

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 21:40:56 +0200

By Debbie L. Sklar / Special to the OB Rag (All photos courtesy of the Ocean Beach Woman’s Club) The Ocean Beach Woman’s Club is a familiar landmark to many OB residents — a historic building at the corner of Bacon Street and Muir Avenue that has hosted meetings, fundraisers, celebrations and community gatherings for generations. But the story of the club is about more than a century-old building. It is about the women who kept it alive through changing times, shifting generations and the challenges faced by many longtime civic organizations. Founded in 1924, the Ocean Beach Woman’s Club recently celebrated its 100th anniversary and continues its mission of community service, friendship and philanthropy with members ranging from their 20s to their 90s. Some of the most interesting chapters in the club’s story are found in the details — the unexpected turns, personal connections and challenges that shaped the organization over the decades. Here are 10 things behind the Ocean Beach Woman’s Club. 1. The club’s first “home” was a disappearing landmark When the Ocean Beach Woman’s Club was founded in 1924, members did not have a permanent clubhouse. Early meetings were held in rented locations, including Ocean Beach’s Flatiron Building at Abbott Street and Newport Avenue.

The Resistance Against Flock Surveillance Cameras

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 20:11:09 +0200

By Michael Hernandez You probably know there are programs out there intercepting electronic data to harvest global emails, chats, and browsing histories. And there are governments and agencies collecting our metadata for information including the durations of our calls, communication time stamps, and precise geolocation records. There are facial recognition networks scanning anyone and everyone in public spaces, transit hubs, and protests to match faces against immense biometric databases. In our world -- one that is increasingly resembling the totalitarian superstate of Oceania in George Orwell’s 1984 -- these are just a few of the tools being used in the modern day to spy on everyday Americans. Among them in the mass-surveillance toolbox are Automatic License Plate Readers, or ALPRs. ALPRs are cameras set up along roadways, traffic lights, or mounted on police cars that capture images of license plates in real-time, convert them into text and run the images against vehicle databases to find a match. One of the major providers of ALPR technology is Flock Safety, an American public safety tech and private-police surveillance company. Founded in 2017 by three alumni from the Georgia Institute of Technology with a stated mission of “shaping the future of safety”, Flock began as a side-project which saw the three co-founders build their first video surveillance cameras by hand around one of the trio’s dining room tables. The trio allegedly began to focus on the project after a Dekalb County detective told one of them their product had assisted police in solving a home break-in. Then that member supposedly called the other two co-founders and told them it was time to quit their jobs. As of 2026 Flock Safety ALPRs are reportedly being used by over 5,000 law enforcement agencies in 6,000 communities across the U.S. It is estimated flock safety cameras scan more than 20 billion cars nationwide every month. According to Flock itself, roughly 10 percent of reported crimes in the country are solved using their technology, amounting to more than a purported 700,000 crimes a year. Flock Safety’s network is made up of cameras, image recognition, and AI machine learning which then shares information with police departments. While advocates tout the technology as an important tool for law enforcement, ALPRs have drawn a heavy amount of backlash from the public, elected officials, and civil liberty groups citing privacy concerns.

State Senator Weber Pierson to Host ‘Community Conversation’ on Midway Rising at Pechanga Arena — Sunday, August 9

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 18:49:33 +0200

Concerns Mount with Midway Rising and NAVWAR Redevelopments: Additional 50K Residents, Building 25-Story Buildings on Former Swampland

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 18:38:18 +0200

by: Dan Plante / Fox5SanDiego / Aug 5, 2026 If the city of San Diego and their chosen developer have their way, the old Midway District will be transformed into a shiny new village with 25-story apartment buildings and dozens of new businesses. No one is arguing that the area needs a serious facelift. But from the beginning, the city and the developers have at times seemed to sidestep the environmental impacts and the voice of the people.

“We are here today to say we are not backing down. We’re here today to tell San Diego what’s really happening in our city”, says Patty Ducey-Brooks of the Old Town Planning Board.

In this case, what’s happening is a potential building boom. Not only Midway Rising, with proposed 25-story apartment towers in a 30-foot height limit zone. But down the street at the old Naval Warfare building, plans are underway to build a row of 30-story apartment buildings. Both projects would be exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act if state lawmakers approve SB 958.

“We’re talking about the potential for 50,000 new people in less than one square mile. That would double the population of Point Loma and add approximately 20,000 new cars to the road”, says Eric Law of the Peninsula Planning Board in Point Loma.

Less People Getting Food Stamps, More People Getting in Food Lines

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 20:26:48 +0200

'We haven't seen anything like this for 30 years.'

by Jake Kincaid / inewsource / August 2, 2026 Why this matters: The number of San Diego County residents using food stamps has plummeted. Experts say new rules and longstanding fears are behind the decline. A line of umbrellas stretched around the corner and down the street as dozens of people sheltered themselves from the baking sun while they waited for cardboard boxes full of fresh produce and protein at a San Diego Food Bank distribution in San Ysidro Tuesday. “The lines are getting longer,” Maria Lewis said. “People are worried now.” Lewis, an outreach coordinator, walked up and down the line, trying to sign people up for the federal aid program known as food stamps, called CalFresh in California. Some were reluctant. People in need have been pushed increasingly into food lines and away from federal aid by a combination of new policies limiting program eligibility, increasingly difficult and frequent applications to receive benefits and rising fears that the government will use identifying data to deport people getting food stamps or to take away their permanent resident status. The changes to the program are part of President Donald Trump’s signature spending bill, which he signed into law a year ago, to help eliminate fraud, abuse and waste in the program. The bill also cut off benefits to some immigrants such as asylum seekers, human trafficking victims and refugees starting in April in California. In June, people were given three months to meet new work requirements. The new eligibility requirements have been hitting states at different times. They took effect in California in April and June, but there has seen a steady drop in participation for the past year.

Port’s Own EIR on TopGolf at Harbor Island Raises Substantive Concerns Over Its Negative Impacts on Environment

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 20:04:04 +0200

Public Comment on This Use of Public Land Closes After August 24

by Andi Ruiz / Times of San Diego / Aug. 4, 2026 Lights, poles and nets at a proposed waterfront golf and entertainment center could have a negative impact on habitats and native species, according to an environmental analysis of the project. The concerns are addressed in a draft environmental impact report (EIR) on the redevelopment of East Harbor Island being sought by the Port of San Diego, which would include a Topgolf complex and waterfront park, each covering about 10 acres. The report cites light pollution and height of the Topgolf poles and nets as notable impacts. Bright light, according to the analysis, could disrupt the behavior of birds and attract them to nets in the structure, leaving them entangled. A proposed alternative would limit the Topgolf to one story, as compared to the currently proposed three stories. The planned 108 hitting bays would drop to 34 and the height of the netting poles would fall from 170 feet to 140 feet with the shift to a one-story structure.

UC San Diego Is Cutting Ties to the Border Patrol After Student Outcry

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 19:39:24 +0200

by Phoebe Huss / Cal-Matters / July 31, 2026 Summary: Following a CalMatters investigation, students and faculty at UC San Diego protested against campus police for collaborating with Border Patrol through a federal grant program. The university will stop participating in the program and aiding patrols, sources and internal documents confirm. A California public university cut ties with a federal program that paid for campus police to aid Border Patrol, within weeks of CalMatters revealing the decade-long partnership. Operation Stonegarden, a grant managed by the Department of Homeland Security, allocates an average of $11 million each year for California law enforcement agencies to work with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and its subagency Border Patrol on border security missions. Dozens of police forces throughout the state receive the grant, including campus police at UC San Diego, a recipient since around 2012. On Feb. 10, a CalMatters article explained how UC San Diego police used the grant to patrol sections of the coastline near campus, which quickly set off an uproar among students who felt it placed undocumented and international students at risk. By Feb. 26, after students emailed complaints and threatened to hold a public rally, student Aryan Dixit said the campus police chief, Lamine Secka, agreed to leave the grant program in a one-on-one meeting.

Major oil companies reap massive profits during U.S. and Iran fighting

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 19:22:57 +0200

By Cathy Bussewitz / Associated Press PBS News / July 31, 2026 American oil and gas giants raked in massive spring profits while fighting between Iran and the U.S. impeded petroleum shipments and consumers around the world paid more for fuel and confronted shortages. The conflict, now in its sixth month, halted most shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that previously served as a delivery route for a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas. With global supplies constrained, prices for Brent crude, the international standard, soared from about $70 to above $100 a barrel for much of March, April and May, and at one point reached $126. The money that oil companies accrued between the beginning of April and the end of June could receive extra scrutiny this year. Gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices climbed sharply during that period, increasing costs for drivers and airline passengers. Supplies ran low in some countries, leading to sporadic fuel rationing in Australia and government office closures in Nepal and Sri Lanka. Exxon Mobil on Friday reported that its second quarter profits doubled to $14.53 billion, boosted by record diesel production. The oil giant, based in Spring, Texas, brought in $116.02 billion in revenue, up 42%. Chevron, based in Houston, nearly quadrupled its profits to $12.07 billion and revenue jumped 56% to $70.06 billion. Six of Europe's largest oil companies posted combined first-quarter profits of $22 billion, more than 40% higher than last year.

Cops Crack Down at Cliffs

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 19:12:26 +0200

San Diego Police Have Recently Issued 18 Misdemeanor Citations and 300 Warnings at Sunset Cliffs

By Omari Fleming / 7SanDiego / August 4, 2026 A cascade of cliff-jumpers continues to catapult themselves off Sunset Cliffs, a week and a half after two high-profile rescues. One case involved a 17-year-old who jumped and crashed on the cliffs. The other involved a man who fell trying to climb the cliffs. Law enforcement has made it abundantly clear — cliff jumping is illegal. San Diego police and lifeguards said they have increased patrols in light of the recent issues. NBC San Diego crews witnessed lifeguards in boats using bullhorns to try and get jumpers off the cliffs on Tuesday, Aug. 4. A crew was also stationed in one of their trucks, parked off the cliffs, trying to dissuade illegal activity. San Diego police said they handed out over 300 warnings and 18 misdemeanor citations to would-be jumpers. But people who take the plunge say that won’t do the trick.

Raised in OB, Singer Stacy Antonel Blends Country, Jazz and Surf Rock in Performances Across the Country

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 18:23:23 +0200

By Staff at River Cities' Reader / August 2026 With Americana Highways praising the artist for delivering a "sweet, steamy pot of serious country music and lyrics." singer/songwriter Stacy Antonel headlines an August 18 concert at Davenport's Raccoon Motel, her debut album Always the Outsider hailed by Saving Country Music as "quite an exquisite collection of songs that gives Antonel a unique role in the country landscape." As stated at StacyAntonel.com: "Imagine Tammy Wynette crossed with the Ventures and you’ll have an idea of the sonic world of Americana artist Stacy Antonel’s forthcoming EP, The Seahorses: Volume 1. Always a genre-defying artist, Antonel blends her passion for classic country, jazz and surf rock with this collection of songs, and the result is a fresh hybrid of musical styles that feels both vintage and hyper-modern. Recorded at Nashville’s Fitting Room Studio, the band includes heavy hitters Ethan Ballinger (Miranda Lambert), Joe Reed (Merle Haggard), Paul Sgroi (Josh Hedley) and San Diego jazz phenom Tony Econom. "Antonel grew up in a seaside San Diego town called Ocean Beach, listening to pop and R&B hits and studying classical piano until she was eighteen. "

Mariner’s Cove Tenants Say Affordable Units Are Being Overlooked

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 20:23:36 +0200

By Jillian Butler Residents of Mariner's Cove Apartments in eastern Ocean Beach say years of deferred maintenance have left some affordable housing units with mold, deteriorating cabinetry, broken stairways and other unresolved problems, raising concerns about whether tenants in subsidized units are receiving the same level of maintenance as market-rate residents. As the cost of living soars, many people turn to government programs in order to find a place to live. Being the ninth most expensive city in America, San Diego is no exception to this. In fact, there are approximately 80,300 people in San Diego County living in government subsidized housing. However, some landlords give preferential treatment to those not in subsidized housing, creating two separate classes of people. Several sources have reached out to the OB Rag, citing negligence towards those in rent controlled units at the Mariner’s Cove Apartment complex. Issues range from mold to the landlord illegally painting over fire lanes. Mariner’s Cove is a two story apartment complex with 500 units. Of those 500 units, 300 are considered “affordable”, with 100 being low income. Many such residents are elderly, have disabilities, or both. One resident I spoke with recounts:

“For years, I have expressed serious concerns regarding the lack of ventilation and potential mold in my unit, as well as the deteriorating plywood and peeling veneer in my kitchen. These issues pose legitimate safety and health risks rather than cosmetic concerns. Although management acknowledges the poor bathroom ventilation and has previously patched a water-damaged wall, they have refused to test for mold. Furthermore, the deteriorating wood in my kitchen cabinets sheds debris onto my dishes every time the drawers are opened.

OB’s Down to Earth Nature School: Cultivating Community and Nurturing Young Minds

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 19:59:51 +0200

By Gabriella Rubio We're in Ocean Beach, California, where the grey sky looming overhead begins to burn away, the air is well… earthy, and our eclectic bubble fills with vacationers. This time we zoom back into the beloved Template coffeehouse on Niagara, a cornerstone and home for many in the community. This summer, this colorful portal hosted a few small, silly and playful creatures in its back garden, looked after them and took them on wild adventures in the great outdoors of OB. This was all by the enchanting and mythical guardian, Miss Chula, accompanied by her magic bus, Rover. Chula, or more fondly known as ChuChu to the lively kids attending her camps, is the sole founder of Down to Earth Nature School. At the heart of it all is what she calls "Kids Empowered" --- a school where radical self-expression is a core value, a place kids feel safe to be their pure, authentic selves and applaud others for doing the same. Where "Odd-Ball" behavior is welcomed, embraced and encouraged, while learning environmental impact and the importance of taking care of the planet. Speaking with her about her vision, you can see the passion bubbling up from within, which makes learning from her all the more fun. To understand where this vision comes from, let's go back in time a bit, to Chula's past. She grew up nannying and being around kids her whole life, surrounded by the support of her parents and sisters. Along the way, she gained entrepreneurial influence from her dad. This led her to San Francisco State, where she earned her Bachelor's degree in Communication Studies with a complimentary degree in Holistic Studies. She went on to earn her teaching credential in 2025.

Will Closed Mission Bay Restrooms Open the Door to City Hall Reforms?

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 00:54:31 +0200

By Paul Krueger July has slipped away, and with it, the best chance we had to force City Hall to reopen the 13 Mission Bay restrooms closed in pursuit of so-called “fiscal responsibility.” We now have little more than a month until the traditional end of summer to find a solution to this civic embarrassment. And I’m not optimistic. The city council is on vacation until mid-August, so we can’t organize a protest outside city hall and try to shame council members during non-agenda public comment for their lack of unified response to this actual threat to public health. Mayor Todd Gloria is only seen in public at pre-scripted ceremonies where he cuts ribbons and fills potholes. So there’s no opportunity to confront him about his false narrative that City Hall can’t spare the $550,000 needed to reopen the restroom doors. And the council member who should be speaking loudest about the need to protect public health has been regrettably - though predictably -- silent on the issue. Jen Campbell, whose District 2 includes Mission Bay, is a family physician. She knows public health is at risk when people can’t find a restroom.