HEAT: Oakland Hip Hop dance show August 14th at Oakland Metro

New Style Motherlode Dance Studio, the creation of Skyline High School graduate Corey Action and Teela Shine-Ross, produces this must-see Hip Hop dance event on August 14th at 6:30 PM at Oakland Metro, 630 3rd Street, Oakland, CA.

It's called HEAT, and the show raises money for the kids dance programs at the New Style Motherlode Dance Studio at 5451 College Ave (between Kales Ave & Taft Ave).

Amy Larson, a Skyline High classmate of this blogger, talks about the upcoming New Style Motherlode show:

New Style Motherlode Dance Studio has received great reviews on Yelp. Here's a sample of them:

Stephanie H. - I've known Corey and Teela since way back when they taught at the then Alice Arts Center and they've really created an amazing dance studio and following! Pretty much every single class is taught by a kick ass instructor that really has the chops to teach. There is nothing worse then going to a dance class feeling like you know more then the teacher. On the flip side, most classes unless otherwise noted are mixed level and very welcoming to beginners.

George R. - Great for Hip-Hop

Mel H. - Cardio hip hop is pure, undeniable fun; whether you've never taken a dance class before or confess to hours of imitating music videos back in the day, you'll love the classes at New Style Motherlode. You will SWEAT. You will ENJOY yourself. You will both dread and thrill as Corey or Jennifer speeds up the music to get your heart rate up (except for JJ Fad's "Supersonic"...that's already fast...).

And here's a video from one of New Style Motherlode's past shows:



Catch HEAT, Oakland Hip Hop dance show August 14th at Oakland Metro, 630 3rd Street, Oakland, CA. Admission is $15 advance or $20 at the door, general admission, and it's tax deductible. For more information, call 510 597 1056.

Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums makes history in avoiding reelection run

Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums brought a sad and historic end to his four years as Mayor of Oakland yesterday. Not just because he elected to avoid running for reelection as Mayor, but the way he did it.  This blogger predicted he would run and this blogger was way wrong.

Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums became the first mayor in Oakland's history to not seek a second four-year term. And word of this travelled fast, as this blogger received several text messages and emails on Wednesday (my birthday), including a really nasty one from a person who was told to avoid contact with this blogger. (And if he persists, you will read about him in this space.)

But yes, you read that correctly: Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums became the first mayor in Oakland's history to not seek a second four-year term.

Since 1953, when Oakland's Mayor began serving a four-year term, every Oakland mayor has held the office longer than four years, except Ron Dellums:

John C. Houlihan - 1961-1966 (Resigned over a salary issue, then was arrested for embezzlement of funds from the estate of an elderly widow.)

John H. Reading - 1966 - 1977 (Served three terms)

Lionel J. Wilson - 1977 - 1991 (Served three terms)

Elihu M. Harris - 1991 - 1999 (My boss served two terms, then resigned to run for the State Assembly, losing to Audie Bock.)

Jerry Brown - 1999 - 2007 - Could have had a third term as Oakland Mayor, but created Measure X, which limited his own term to two.

Ronald V. Dellums - 2007 - 2010 (First one-term mayor in Oakland's four-year mayoral term history)

Mayor Ron Dellums also did not go our in a way this space can defend. I am surprised that Dellums, even with all of the issues he had to deal with in his personal life that would have became a focus of the campaign if he decided to run, failed to fight on. Now, Dellums will be considered a failure as Oakland's Mayor and a person who really didn't care about Oakland.

Is that right? No. But it's the image he's crafted for himself. Dellums should have stuck to his original plan and gave a Friday press conference, standing tall before all, and using that podium as the place to give his time as Mayor of Oakland a new life.

All that is but a dream.

Instead, we have Mayor Ron Dellums going bunker and basically stiff-arming SF Chronicle Staff Writer Matthai Kuruvila, who should learn to use a video camera. Instead, we have Mayor Ron Dellums holding a private function, with just the Oakland Post invited. Good for Oakland Post publisher Paul Cobb, but bad for Ron Dellums.

Bad because when it looked like Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums was about to become LeBron James, with the special media-friendly announcement and all that, he reverses field and sticks his head in the sand, and says "Don't bother me, brother" to the press...un, except Paul Cobb.

To his credit, Dellums has never said that to me. It's too bad and really sad to see a man I've admired over my life go out this way.

One thing's for sure, it's a wide-open Oakland Mayor's race. But I do wish Mayor Dellums would have picked another way to end his term.

Stay tuned.

Oakland City Council: Jennifer Pae in District 2 race gains 36K and new website

Jenn Pae

District 2 Oakland City Councilperson Pat Kernighan officially has a competitor in the race for her Oakland City Council District 2 seat: Jennifer Pae. The 28-year-old Korean American has amassed over $36,000 in donations from 300 people as of this writing.

Jennifer Pae's also launched a new website at JenniferPae.com, but who's Jenn Pae?

This blogger personally knows Jenn Pae. She's person who has been heavily involved in various Oakland political and community efforts, and is a member of the Oakland Community Policing Advisory Board.

Jennifer is one of those new Oakland young women who, like Frieda Edgette of the East Bay Young Democrats, is very popular and has pockets of friends and associates in disparate groups that she can call on for support and direction.

"We need to invest in Oakland by bringing fresh solutions, a bold vision, and new leadership into City Hall," says Pae in her press release. "We need to make fiscally and socially responsible investments in Oakland neighborhoods, jobs, and residents. Now is the time to make local government work effectively to improve the quality of life for all Oaklanders."

Ron Dellums prediction: Oakland Mayor will run for reelection

On Friday, Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums will announce his intentions regarding running for a second term as Mayor of Oakland. Will he or won't he?

Frankly, the simple fact he's waited until the last possible day says that he's going to run for reelection. That's the solid prediction here.

Moreover, the Joe Tuman for Mayor Campaign seems to know this, as they're working to make sure you know Joe's your other choice for Oakland's next mayor.

I conducted two interviews with Tuman, but one of them, the long one, was done on a new HD camera I'm having tech issues with, and so there's the delay.

Fortunately, I'm camcorder-rich now, but it's the high dollar ones that always give you the headache. A bigger headache is the Oakland Mayor's race. The Tuman campaign wants me to post that interview - a good one - on Friday, and just to let you know Joe's out there.  Problem is the video won't be ready by then.    But Oaklanders know Joe's out there, and he's got company. Still Tuman was the favorite in the last public forum:



Of course, there are a number of people to select from as of this writing (I expect news that someone's going to drop out this week): Greg Harland, Terraance Candell, Orlando Johnson, Rebecca Kaplan, Jean Quan, Don Macleay, and Don Perata, in addition to Joe and Ron. A lot of not just good, but great candidates, the best selection Oakland's ever seen, at least in my time here.

Dellums adding to this race will make it even better. I never counted him out.

Strategically, the reason Ron Dellums will run again in the Oakland Mayor's Race is he's now been able to see the field of candidates. Waiting until the last day of filing to run for Mayor of Oakland was politically smart.

Now, Dellums doesn't have to worry about a surprise new entry into the Oakland Mayor's Race. Plus, he's seen the field. Dellums also knows that Don Perata has not debated any one of the candidates because Dellums did not announce his intentions.

Ron Dellums has been knocked down, picked on, made fun of, and disrespected.  I've said Dellums should not run for reelection, but that's just my opinion. For all of his mistakes, Ron Dellums is a fighter. Mayor Dellums will not just go away. Mayor Dellums will not go quietly into the night. Ron Dellums will battle and claw and because he has something to prove.

Dellums will ask for time to finish the work he started. He will also remind you he's the only experienced candidate for Mayor of Oakland.

Ron Dellums will run for reelection as Mayor of Oakland.

Ron Dellums prediction: Oakland Mayor will run for reelection

On Friday, Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums will announce his intentions regarding running for a second term as Mayor of Oakland. Will he or won't he.

Frankly, the simple fact he's waited until the last possible day says that he's going to run for reelection. That's the solid prediction here.

Moreover, the Joe Tuman for Mayor Campaign seems to know this, as they're working to make sure you know Joe's your other choice for Oakland's next mayor.

I conducted two interviews with Tuman, but one of them, the long one, was done on a new HD camera I'm having tech issues with, and so there's the delay.

Fortunately, I'm camcorder-rich now, but it's the high dollar ones that always give you the headache. A bigger headache is the Oakland Mayor's race. The Tuman campaign wants me to post that interview - a good one - on Friday, and just to let you know Joe's out there.  Problem is the video won't be ready by then.    But Oaklanders know Joe's out there, and he's got company. Still Tuman was the favorite in the last public forum:



Of course, there are a number of people to select from as of this writing (I expect news that someone's going to drop out this week): Greg Harland, Terraance Candell, Orlando Johnson, Rebecca Kaplan, Jean Quan, Don Macleay, and Don Perata, in addition to Joe and Ron. A lot of not just good, but great candidates, the best selection Oakland's ever seen, at least in my time here.

Dellums adding to this race will make it even better. I never counted him out.

Strategically, the reason Ron Dellums will run again in the Oakland Mayor's Race is he's now been able to see the field of candidates. Waiting until the last day of filing to run for Mayor of Oakland was politically smart.

Now, Dellums doesn't have to worry about a surprise new entry into the Oakland Mayor's Race. Plus, he's seen the field. Dellums also knows that Don Perata has not debated any one of the candidates because Dellums did not announce his intentions.

Ron Dellums has been knocked down, picked on, made fun of, and disrespected.  I've said Dellums should not run for reelection, but that's just my opinion. For all of his mistakes, Ron Dellums is a fighter. Mayor Dellums will not just go away. Mayor Dellums will not go quietly into the night. Ron Dellums will battle and claw and because he has something to prove.

Dellums will ask for time to finish the work he started. He will also remind you he's the only experienced candidate for Mayor of Oakland.

Ron Dellums will run for reelection as Mayor of Oakland.

Hartford Distributors Manchester, Connecticut shooting deaths at 9

According to The Hartford Courant in Hartford, Connecticut, Omar Thornton, who faced disciplinary action at Hartford Distributors, Inc., opened fire and killed what is now said to be nine people in Manchester, Connecticut, then was shot by police.

Earlier reports were that Omar Thornton shot himself; he did not. It was called a "cop shooting" because Omar Thornton did not put his gun down, so police opened fire.

According to Fox CT News video on the Hartford Courant page, and via the mother of a woman, Kristi Hannah, who dated him for eight months, the shooter, 34-year old Omar Thornton, who's African American, complained of racism to his employers, but they did nothing.

John Hollis, a Teamsters Union official said that Omar Thornton, who was a driver with Hartford Distributors, was a "discipline problem" and the union was bringing Thornton in to "remedy" the problem.

Thornton shot a number of people, and as of this writing, it's not known how many because what once stood at seven killed just rose to nine killed, so we don't know how many were injured in some kind of way. Here's the exact quote from the Hartford Courant regarding Omar Thornton's possible motive for the shooting at Hartford Distributors:

Joanne Hannah, who lives in the Enfield neighborhood where Thornton lived until about a month ago, said her daughter Kristi had dated Thornton for eight years. Thornton, who is black, had complained about being racially harassed at work. Thornton brought his complaints to his superiors, who did nothing about it, she said her daughter told her.

A New Trend: blacks who kill over racism

It seems there's a new and to this blogger, disturbing "small" trend of late where black men are as likely to commit workplace shootings as any white male.

Stephen Hill

The last person that comes to mind was was porn star Stephen Hill in Van Nuys, California, who, in June, went off and killed one person and stabbed another at the Ultima DVD office. Hill was black, and like Thornton, was about to be fired from his job. In Hill's case, he was called a "wacky guy" and no one mentioned racism. But then, no one who was close to him was interviewed at the time.

This is disturbing because I and my generation (I turn 48 tomorrow) was raised to be hardened and to expect racism, to point it out, but to not react violently to it.

Because racism is a mental illness, people who are racist are to be treated with pity and avoided.  That's the way I'm conditioned to think.

Frankly, you just didn't hear of someone black who would open fire and kill anyone over racism. We were instructed that it was a sickness that's "just part of the deal" and something you needed to overcome to be successful.

This small trend says nothing good about the overall mental strength of the next generation of black men. If one who's black and make expects to be successful in America, reacting violently to racism can't be considered an option.

Stay tuned.

Meg Whitman Oakland Office "surveillance" signs taken down

On Saturday, this space reported that the Oakland Lakeshore / Lake Park campaign office for Meg Whitman, the former eBay Chairman and CEO running for California Governor against Jerry Brown, had a warning sign "surveillance" sign in not one but three places on the front window, and that the word "surveillance" was misspelled.

It looked like Meg Whitman was expressing how afraid she was of Oakland.

Here's the Meg Whitman Oakland Office video:



Well, as of Sunday, the Meg Whitman campaign reps came in and took down the signs. However the action doesn't erase the fact that they did it.

The office has to go beyond just taking down the signs, they have to embrace the Oakland neighborhood they're in. That means being more open and not just hiding behind a card table.

Stay tuned.