Comic-Con has arrived and it’s a glorious place where many feel free to let their geek flag fly. But critics have recently dogged the con with concerns it doesn’t have strong enough policies in place to discourage sexual harassment among attendees and volunteers. Sara Libby interviewed a team of women, known collectively as Geeks for CONsent, who explained that not everyone feels so safe.
Men attending comic book conventions sometimes tell the group, “‘This is the only place we’re accepted – stop making it look bad,’” said Rochelle Keyhan. “And it’s like, ‘Wait, it’s the only place you’re accepted, but you’re still excluding me.’”
Why are women in exquisitely-crafted costumes so commonly objectified at the con? Fox 5 San Diego skipped that topic in favor of “Babes of Comic-Con 2014.”
• U-T San Diego kept their Day 1 photo gallery much classier.
• The LA Times had their own take on the history of misogyny and harassment at Comic Con.
• Mayor Faulconer and Council President Gloria teamed up to zip-line their way over the con on opening day. (NBC 7)
Are We Friendly Enough?
We recently kicked off a new quest to figure out what the reality is for businesses in San Diego, some of whom are considering taking their operations — and jobs — elsewhere. San Diegans responded passionately with great suggestions on what to look into. Now Lisa Halverstadt has set the table with a list of important reading on the topic, which touches on how hard it can be to come by solid answers to even basic questions. For instance, states don’t track state-to-state business moves, Halverstadt found.
Public Transit Is Speechless
If you’ve got an opinion that you want to stage a protest or demonstration over, you had better save it for when you’re away from public transit. That was the message sent by the Metropolitan Transit System last week when they codified their policy restricting so-called “first amendment activities” on trolleys, buses and at their stations. We’ve got a map showing you a few lines where first amendment activities can still happen, if you’ve got a permit.
More Water Use Mandates
Water reduction recommendations are now water reduction mandates after Thursday’s meeting of the San Diego County Water Authority. The county authority is just one of dozens of agencies that will have to adopt rules. “The city of San Diego, for example, says the restrictions it currently has in place will suffice,” reported UT San Diego.
• Meanwhile, the city’s water mains continue to deteriorate and flood streets as they burst. Think of it as a very wet (and expensive) game of whack-a-mole.
News Nibbles
• A program run by UC San Diego students that has provided free books to prisoners since 2001 is getting evicted from their space. (Citybeat)
• The San Diego Port Commission is expected to vote today whether to discipline their CEO after the U-T surfaced an email in which he asked port tenants to help his son get a job. (KPBS)
• The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department is the first police agency in California to start carrying an overdose antidote, called Naloxone, that can save the life of drug overdose victims. The antidote’s first use by the department this week was successful.
• Rising temperatures around the county have already claimed the life of one young hiker.
• Former City Council candidate Dwayne Crenshaw’s lawsuit against Councilor Myrtle Cole over statements Cole distributed via mailers during her campaign was tentatively dismissed on Thursday. (UT)
• A new database posted online claims to show the names and salaries of every teacher in California.
Paws Off My Human
If you’re feeling a little jealous of all those people on a four-day binge celebration of pop culture at Comic Con, you might take comfort in knowing that jealousy is a primordial feeling that is experienced even by dogs. UC San Diego researchers constructed an experiment that confirmed dogs engage in jealous-like behaviors when they catch their humans petting other canines. “It looks as though they were motivated to protect an important social relationship,” one researcher told Healthline.
Seth Hall is a local writer and technologist. You can email him at voice@s3th.com or follow him on Twitter: @loteck.