The national Libertarian Party picked former Republican Rep. Bob Barr to be its presidential candidate at their national convention in Denver this weekend.

Taking six rounds, the former Georgia Congressman Bob Barr beat research scientist Mary Ruwart with a 324-276 vote. Barr had been a member of the GOP, but left the Republicans in 2006 over claims of bloated spending by the Bush administration.

Barr was one of the more conservative Republicans in Congress during his three terms. He was best known for his efforts for a complete federal prohibition of medical marijuana and anti-drug legislation which stemmed from his previous experience as Anti-Drug Coordinator for the Department of Justice.

In an effort to reduce the impact of transportation on global warming, several Canadian provinces have created incentives to encourage the purchase of bicycles.

British Columbia has already eliminated retail taxes on all bikes and bike accessories, and Alberta gives its citizens $300 toward the purchase of a new bike if they trade in their used cars.

Oh, Canada. We stand on our pedals for thee.

I don’t think it’s enough, but I do think it’s likely to be more effective than the big push for ethanol, which takes almost as much energy to produce as it yields, and is raising food prices.

A ship hit the Bar Bridge today and has leaked some oil into the Bay. Calitics’s Bob Brigham has pictures.

I don’t blog much about work as I try and keep it separate. But as most labor organizers can tell you, you sign up for the movement, not the job. Working long hours, going without a day off for weeks, is the fate of many labor organizers working on an intense campaign. You can end up in any part of the country at any time without an end in sight.

Economist Dean Baker, blogger at the indispensable Beat the Press, is reading from his excellent book The Conservative Nanny State: How the Wealthy Use the Government to Stay Rich and Get Richer tonight at Modern Times. His book (which is available free for download or purchasable in paperback) is an indictment of the way corporations and the rich manipulate government policy to their advantage. He is appearing at Modern Times, 888 Valencia, at 7:30 pm. I won’t be there, but if you’re in the area, I suggest you go.

Outgoing U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan gave his last major speech as the U.N. secretary-general at the Truman Presidential Museum & Library.

In his speech, he spoke how he came from Africa to attend a college in Minnesota. He then went to the United Nations where he was spent his entire 44-year career at the U.N.

In his last speech as Secretary General, Annan stated, “In today’s world, the security of every one of us is linked to that of everyone else…Against such threats as these, no nation can make itself secure by seeking supremacy over all others. We all share responsibility for each other’s security, and only by working to make each other secure can we hope to achieve lasting security for ourselves.”

I’m not one to take pleasure in other people’s misfortunes, but damn, I am not sorry to hear this.

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Gen. Augusto Pinochet, who overthrew Chile’s democratically elected Marxist president in a bloody coup and ruled this Andean nation for 17 years, died Sunday, dashing hopes of victims of his regime’s abuses that he would be brought to justice. He was 91.

…

Chile’s government says at least 3,197 people were killed for political reasons during his rule, but after leaving the presidency in 1990 Pinochet escaped hundreds of criminal complaints because of his declining physical and mental health. (my emphasis)

Note the careful use by the Times of the passive voice: “people were killed”.

I just finished watching The End of Suburbia: Middle-aged White Guys Talk About Oil (Actually, the subtitle is Oil Depletion and the Collapse of The American Dream, but every single person who speaks in the movie is an old white guy, except for the Iranian Minister of Oil, and he only has one line). I thought the film was a great example of how a mediocre film about a compelling topic can be pretty interesting.

I found a transcript of Chavez’s speech at the UN. A couple choice quotes:

The president of the United States, yesterday, said to us, right here, in this room, and I’m quoting, “Anywhere you look, you hear extremists telling you can escape from poverty and recover your dignity through violence, terror and martyrdom.”

Wherever he looks, he sees extremists. And you, my brother — he looks at your color, and he says, oh, there’s an extremist. Evo Morales, the worthy president of Bolivia, looks like an extremist to him.

1. AIM High’s request for charter was denied on a 6-1 vote (Sanchez voting against the District’s staff’s recommendation).
2. Project Labor Agreement has been sent to the Rules Committee for review.
3. Deborah Sims has been appointed as the new superintendent of Antioch Unified School District.
3. Jeanne Pon, formerly assistant superintendent of middle schools, is now in charge of School Operations and all of the assistant superintendents. Jeanne confirmed that this is a new position.
4. Cheryl Lee, formerly the principal of Lakeshore, is now the assistant superintendent of elementary schools.
5. Margaret Chiu, formerly the principal of Galileo, is now the assistant superintendent of high schools.
6. Joan Hepperly, formerly the principal of John O’Connell High School, is now the assistant superintendent of middle schools.
7. Gentle Blythe was introduced. She replaces Lorna Ho as the director of public engagement and community outreach.
8. Parents from the Mission YMCA’s afterschool program complained about getting an one week notice about the program ending in one week. Staff claimed that the program will continue, but parents had a letter from the California Dept. of Education.