The Shadow Goes Into Thanksgiving Hiatus

The Shadow is about to disappear into the darkness for the Thanksgiving holiday. But there are a few things that I need to mention first.

The Shadow still has yet to post his adventures at another ArtWorkSF artists reception. This will be done next week -- The Shadow has been behind while preparing for his holiday hiatus.

To the poster who left the comment to The Shadow concerning his tirade on Bill O'Reilly -- it is not appreciated. The Shadow, as a resident of San Francisco, did not like the fact that Mr. O'Reilly (and The Shadow uses that term loosely) put this city in danger. And The Shadow would have reacted this way had it been any other U.S. city as well. The Shadow's point here was that it was irresponsible journalism. An apology is still in order to the government and people of San Francisco.

The Shadow wishes all of you a safe and happy holiday. As one wise man once said, "Don't eat too much but do eat enough"!

The Shadow Respond to Bill O'Reilly

I know the evil that lurks in the hearts of men.

You have heard The Shadow say this many times. And it is The Shadow's job to expose that evil and defeat it. That is the purpose of this entry today.

Two days ago, voters in San Francisco had 2 propositions on their ballot:

• Proposition H -- This initiative would ban the sale and manufacture of guns in San Francisco. It would also prohibit residents of San Francisco from owning a handgun.
• Proposition I -- This was a non-binding policy statement from the people of San Francisco to ban military recruiters from San Francisco public schools.

Talk show host Bill O'Reilly -- with whom The Shadow has never seen eye to eye with -- decided to criticize San Francisco voters on their decision to pass both Proposition H & I (The Shadow should note that there is currently a lawsuit filed to prevent Proposition H from taking effect on January 1, 2006). O'Reilly said the following on his radio talk show yesterday:

You know, if I'm the president of the United States, I walk right into Union Square, I set up my little presidential podium and I say, "Listen, citizens of San Francisco, if you vote against military recruiting, you're not going to get another nickel in federal funds."

The Shadow respects the views of Mr. O'Reilly and if this is all that he had to say on the matter, The Shadow would just dismiss it as right-wing criticism of this city. But he went further:

Fine. You want to be your own country? Go right ahead. And if al Qaeda comes in here and blows you up, we're not going to do anything about it. We're going to say, look, every other place in America is off limits to you except San Francisco. You want to blow up the Coit Tower? Go ahead.

The Shadow sees no humor in this whatsoever. This is irresponsible journalism at its best.

HOW DARE YOU, BILL O'REILLY, MAKE AN OPEN INVITATION TO A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION TO DESTROY SAN FRANCISCO!!!

To imply that San Francisco residents are not patriotic is crazy. We in the San Francisco area love the United States and are loyal to this country as any other city in this country. We may not agree with the rest of the country on certain issues (medical marijuana comes to mind), but we are not disloyal to this country. The Shadow is deeply insulted by this.

The Shadow calls for Bill O'Reilly to issue a public apology to the people of San Francisco for this irresponsible piece of crap that O'Reilly calls journalism. While The Shadow believes in the freedoms provided in the First Amendement to the Constitution, this just crosses the line!!!

The Shadow will be watching you Mr. O'Reilly!

The Shadow's Message to the Governor of California

As many of you are aware, The Shadow is a resident of San Francisco, California. As such, The Shadow had the opportunity yesterday to vote in the special election that was called by the governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger.

On the state ballot (The Shadow will not get into the measures in San Francisco just yet), were eight ballot initiatives -- some of which were proposed amendments to the California Constitution. The initiatives were:

• Proposition 73 - This initiative would have required a physician to notify the parents of a female 17 or under of her decision to have an abortion 48 hours before the procedure. There was language written in the law which would have allowed for a judicial waiver of this requirement.
• Proposition 74 - This initiative would have extended the probationary time for teachers to obtain tenure from 2 years to 5 years.
• Proposition 75 - This initiative would have prevented unions from using union dues for political purposes without the written consent of each member of the union.
• Proposition 76 - This initiative would have changed the spending formula in California and would have given the governor additional powers to cut spending mid-budget.
• Proposition 77 - This initiative would have changed the way electorial districts are drawn in California. Under this plan, a panel of 3 retired judges would draw the districts, the plan being subject to final approval by the voters in a special election.
• Propositions 78 & 79 - These were identical initiatives that would have brought down the cost of prescription drugs in California, but using different formulas. Proposition 78 was supported by the drug companies; Proposition 79 was supported by consumer groups.
• Proposition 80 - This initiative would have, among other things, made it harder for consumers to change energy companies from a public to private provider.

The Shadow is pleased to announce that all 8 initiatives went down to defeat.

This special election cost the people of California $50 million dollars. Money that surely could have been used elsewhere. It was crazy to subject the people of California to this election when we elect people to represent us in Sacramento to do this for us.

The Shadow now urges the governor and the California General Assembly to come together and work together for the good of all California residents. Do not bring another elections to us like this again!!

A House for Sale with a Special Extra

The Shadow knows how difficult it is to find a mate. And, living in the Bay Area, he also knows how difficult it is to find the perfect (affordable??) home. But The Shadow has found something of interest to single men.

Deborah Hale, a 48-year-old woman in Denver, has put up E-Bay an unusual item. For $600,000 -- providing that you are between 40-60 -- you can purchase a house in an affluent Denver neighborhood. The extra -- Deborah comes with the house.

Deborah Hale
(photo courtesy housewithbride.com)
Deborah is not only looking for a buyer for her house, but also a compatable man for her.

Deborah's house
(photo courtesy housewithbride.com)

Deborah has already received about 60 responses. You still have time to bid -- the auction closes on February 14, 2006.

If you would like more information on this, you can check out her special web page for more details. And, yes, this is a serious offer.

The Shadow will report the results of the auction when the winner is declared.