Clayton Trosclair Still Tellin’ It Like It Is
Artificial Blood: The Search for a Substitute
A drop of blood is 78% water. In the world of medicine, the other 22% might as well be magic. Researchers in a handful of laboratories across the country are trying to find a way to replicate blood. If they succeed, the discovery would mark one of the greatest feats in medical history.
Democrats Make Serious Move on Bono Mack
Reporting for Capitol Weekly / Steve Pougnet, the openly gay mayor of Palm Springs, says he is the Democratic party’s best hope at unseating Mary Bono Mack, a Republican who has represented California’s 45th congressional district since 1998.
Mission Bars: iPhone App Launching in April
San Francisco’s Mission district is home to dozens of bars, saloons, clubs and watering holes. Find the cheapest drinks, the darkest dives, the hottest date spots and the longest happy hours in town. Mission Bars: The Hip Guide to Getting Lit, is available on the Apple iTunes store in April.
California Campaign to Legalize Marijuana Begins
Reporting for Capitol Weekly / Taxing one of California’s biggest crops would give the state millions of dollars in new tax revenue, proponents of legal pot are now arguing.
Green Funeral Fair
Reporting for KALX-FM / More people are beginning to think about the environmental impact of their own death. A group of vendors gathered in Berkeley, Calif. recently for one of the country’s first green funeral fairs.
Nights at Daruma
Tokyo / Osamu Kouke has defined his life through hard work and family. He presides over an izakaya – a cheery bar where he and his family dispense food, liquor, music and joy. It’s a vital community center, where patrons and workers serenade each other with tales of everday triumph and woe – the kind of place that’s becoming extinct.
Japan’s Marriage Hunters
Tokyo / Japan’s mating game has changed dramatically as fewer young people choose to get married. Finding a partner has become a tricky proposition because of evolving views on family and career, with many well-educated women now choosing work over marriage. Those who are serious about finding a spouse can get help from thousands of companies in the “marriage hunting” business.
Revolving Door of Substitutes in Oakland Schools
The students in Ms. Scott’s fourth grade class at Prescott Elementary have yet to see her this year. Every morning for two months now, they’ve shown up to their West Oakland campus and wondered which substitute teacher will take her place that day.
Make A Joyful Noise
The East Bay Church of Religious Science, a non-denominational church in Oakland, competed in a national gospel choir competition on Oct. 10. Watch the choir perform before 15,000 people in the Oracle Arena.
Obamafied
In the days before the Nov. 4 election, some West Oakland residents announced their pick for president by wearing and selling homemade Barack Obama T-shirts and merchandise.
Proposition 8 Protests
The passage of California Proposition 8 sparked statewide protests, with tens of thousands of gay activists marching in dozens of cities. In San Francisco, an estimated 5,000 demonstrators marched from Civic Center to the Castro and Dolores Park.
Oakland Considers School Closures
Oakland’s network of tiny schools has become too expensive to maintain, according to administrators, who in recent weeks have begun considering the idea of closing or merging as many as 17 of 108 city schools. Parents now fear the gains made over the past eight years will disappear along with those campuses.