The push to lock gig drivers in independent contractor status has drawn more spending than any ballot initiative in California history. The companies financing it–Uber, Lyft, Doordash, Instacart, and Postmates–are also using their own apps to advertise, arm-twist, and cajole. Ariel Boone has a report looking at how they’re re-writing the playbook for turning cash … Continued
Unlearning the illusion of hyper-individuation is easier said than done for those of us in deeply capitalist contexts like the settler colonial US. Alas, atomization is as American as apple pie. Hyper-individualism is a result of having been divided and conquered. As a matter of fact, that mentality dovetails nicely with a common military strategy. … Continued
In the wake of the uprisings over the police killing of George Floyd, cities and counties across California are putting policing reforms to a vote. We’ll take you through a roundup, starting with San Francisco’s Proposition E — which asks voters if they’d like to take minimum police staffing requirements out of the city’s charter. … Continued
Voters in San Francisco are about to vote on whether to create California’s first tax on inequality. Prop L would raise the gross receipts tax on every business in the city that pays its top manager at least 100x more than its median employee. PRO: Supervisor Matt Haney represents San Francisco’s District 6; he sponsored … Continued
Prop 15 would let property taxes rise with property values, but only for large owners of commercial and industrial real estate. The argument from the no campaign is that prop 15 would hurt some small businesses, too. They couldn’t actually give us an example when they came on to debate it–so we had our reporter … Continued
Richard A. Lupoff, former co-host of “Probabilities” and “Cover to Cover” died on October 22, 2020 at the age of 85. This podcast is dedicated to his memory and features a live radio program recorded in July, 1992 in which he, Richard Wolinsky and mystery author Shelley Singer review various books they’d read in the previous month.
Bill Irwin, creator and performer of “On Beckett,” which was performed at A.C.T.’s Strand Theatre through January 22, 2017, is interviewed by Richard Wolinsky.
Bill Irwin won the Tony Award for his portrayal of George opposite Kathleen Turner’s Martha in “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf.” on Broadway. He has played in Beckett’s Waiting for Godot and Endgame. Most recently, since 2017, he was a featured player in the TV series “Legion,” and appears regularly on “Law & Order: SVU.”
What is lunacy? How does the label lunatic gets weaponized and mis-used? Learning from postcolonial psychology & activist traditions, let’s talk about it. Lunacy is one of the most potent counters to the limitations of respectability politics that’s available to us. Respectability politics pressures us to ceaselessly pander to oppressive audiences. Oppression sets the terms … Continued
Oakland’s District 3 is mostly West Oakland. That’s a historically Black neighborhood, an epicenter of the 2008 foreclosure crisis, now rapidly gentrifying. Last year, it was also the site of an action that drew national attention: “Moms 4 Housing.” A group of unhoused Black mothers took over an empty home owned by a private equity … Continued
First: Wayne Hsiung is mounting a left-flank challenge to incumbent Berkeley mayor Jesse Arreguin that is quite well-financed and -organized for someone who’s never held office. Hsiung’s also a hardcore animal rights activist, leading a group some ex-members describe as cult-like, who co-authored a strategy document calling for supporters to move to one city, take … Continued
