Perhaps an explanation for unused golf tickets
July 6 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Once again, controversy surrounds the San Diego City Council and its cavalier attitude toward the free tickets it receives to taxpayer-subsidized sports events.
Last month, the council took 384 tickets to the U.S. Open, reportedly so they could be distributed (and I confess to loving this phrase) “to children and others in the community.”
More Gerry Braun Columns
July 2 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Fair gets a dressing down for icon's outfit: An old editor of mine telephoned last month with one last assignment. “Go check out the statue,” Gary Mortenson told me. “See if they haven't dressed it up again.”
June 22 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Take down campaign signs, you scofflaws: I'm worried about Garry Haehnle, who was just elected to the Superior Court bench. My fear is that, come January, once Haehnle is sworn in, he'll be assigned a big case – say, a murder trial – and won't be able to seat a jury.
June 18 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Fisherman goes up the food chain for answer: Growing up in Ukraine, back when it was a part of the Soviet Union, Valeriy Vernik learned to dread his encounters with obstinate bureaucracies.
June 15 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
18 holes (miniature ones) with the mayor: A tourist from Arizona stopped me as I left the golf course last week, wanting to know who I'd been playing against.
June 11 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Aguirre's chances of winning? Let's count: Nobody wants to be a party pooper, but hear me out, folks: It's way too early to be dancing on the grave of City Attorney Michael Aguirre.
June 8 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
The lows and highs of latest election: I watched the ads, I read the mail, I stayed awake through the debates (most of them anyway) and, undeterred, I voted.
June 4 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Election's conclusion deserves big sign-off: “What do we do now?” The terrific election movie “The Candidate” closes on that question from Robert Redford, playing a novice politician who's just won a U.S. Senate race. He and his campaign manager are in a hotel room, with a pack of journalists waiting outside.
June 1 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Starbucks' early logo has critic piping hot: For the record, I very much doubt that a Satanic cabal is plotting world domination. (Though I may reconsider if gas hits $6.66 a gallon.)
May 28 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Candidate wouldn't go along with the script: Of all the boneheaded campaign stunts. What in the world possessed Jerry Sanders' campaign manager to think he could play ventriloquist to a revolutionary?
May 25 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Probation in gun crime no reason to throw party: People who know James Kevin Tillory say he's someone they can count on in tough times. They say there isn't a machine he can't fix, or a home repair he hasn't mastered, or a favor he won't do for a friend.
May 21 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Her pluck is a lesson in facing adversity: So how has 2008 been working out for you? Gas prices making you angry? The Padres got you bummed? Tired of listening to people complain about the housing market?
May 18 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Vanishing breed loses another to retirement: His name, Blue Fogg, easily conjures up images of a pirate captain or a Wild West saloonkeeper or a disc jockey from the '60s.
May 14 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
As fugitive shows, life can change at any time: Two weeks after her arrest, I still can't get Susan LeFevre out of my mind. Not because she was a fugitive, though I do retain my youthful fascination with Dr. Richard Kimble.
May 11 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
It's nearing sink or swim time for city and its kids: Children grow up so quickly these days. One minute they're out on the front lawn, selling lemonade to neighbors. The next, they're off at San Diego State, selling drugs to undercover agents.
May 7 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Wonkish aspect of Peace on display: Why does Steve Peace do the things he does? It's an intriguing question, one worthy of a symposium someday, with scholars analyzing everything from his cult-classic “Killer Tomatoes” movies to his far-less-celebrated energy deregulation plan.
May 4 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Local GOP can't seem to settle on a bedfellow: The last time Steve Francis and Jerry Sanders ran for mayor, the county Republican Party was right in the thick of things.
April 27 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Sanders' profanity a result of frustration: Mayor Jerry Sanders, our friendly father figure, is fed up. He's fed up with fresh-faced Steve Francis.
April 23 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
DA should remember fate of those before her: In politics, you need to keep an eye on your friends as much as your enemies – sometimes more so.
April 20 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Yet another cleanup set for Chollas Creek area: Today is Earth Day, which San Diego traditionally celebrates with a monster traffic jam around Balboa Park, but also by reflecting on the environmentalist credo “Think Globally, Act Locally.”
April 16 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Integrity is on trial, in an odd sort of way: I don't know Chula Vista Councilman Steve Castaneda. But whenever a politician is accused of corruption, I want to be there for him – in body, if not in spirit.
April 13 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Thankfully not coming to a theater near you: In Hollywood and elsewhere, the bigger the blockbuster the more plentiful the sequels – even if they rarely get the accolades of the original.
April 9 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Students focus on the grimier side of science: What's on the minds of our young people? It's a timeless question, and I have a partial answer: bacteria, energy drinks and the opposite sex, though probably not in that order.
April 6 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Hartley's accusers add irony to situation: The chief irony of City Council candidate John Hartley's arrest last month while canvassing for votes in Kensington is revealed by the identities of his accusers.
April 2 (UNION-TRIBUNE)
Outside Petco, life's not all fun and game: Monday was Opening Day for Jake Peavy and Khalil Greene, but also for Jose Cariman. Like the others, Cariman arrived at Petco Park on time and in uniform. Seeing me approach, he rolled down a window so we could talk.
