Above: Click to view the Bob Filner interview

Bob Filner is consistently proud of being a civil rights advocate.  He is always willing to reminisce about being thrown in jail in the deep South of the 1960’s.  As the story goes, he and a group of other young men from the New York area boarded a bus for Alabama to join a protest demonstration against Jim Crow laws. He was appalled by local regulations that segregated blacks in schools, housing, transportation, and even outlawing them from drinking from public water fountains where whites quenched their thirst.

Once there, he found a tough police environment not sympathetic to the protesters.  In short, some rough stuff resulted and Filner was taken into custody.  Now, almost half a century later, after years as a San Diego State University history professor, an elected school board member, a San Diego City Councilmember and a Congressman, Filner sees the ultimate satisfaction at hand.  His support of Barack Obama goes deep, as deep as that Southern town where he was arrested.

But what happens if Obama loses?  I didn’t ask that question during my sneak-away-to-an-empty room interview with Filner at the Democratic National Convention.  But KPBS Production Manager Kurt Kohnen who was holding the microphone did.  The question and the answer were the most telling part of our conversation.

Above: A Flickr slideshow of DNC Protest Art. Joe Spurr/KPBS | [Pop-out the slideshow]

As promised, yesterday I took some photos of some protest signage/art.

Above: 22-year-old San Diegan Delegate Dave Carlson. Interview by Joe Spurr.

This was our first live, UStreamed interview with a local delegate, and we very much had to set up the stream on the fly, running on batteries and using my computer's built-in camera. I was a little frazzled heading into it because of that, and I also hadn't yet met Dave, so I wasn't as familiar with his background as some other young delegates.

That said, I enjoyed the chat and was impressed with Dave's knowledge and on-the-spot speaking ability.  I'll let the video speak for itself, but your feedback is welcome and we can continue the conversation in the comments section below.

I've been tweeting more and more as our production processes have smoothed out, so feel free to interact with us there as well -- and in that respect please consider yourself in Denver with us!

Above: From the DNC in Denver -- KPBS correspondent Gloria Penner talks with Jess Durfee, Chair of San Diego County Democrats.

Note: We had some last-second technical difficulties and went without a tripod for this one.  All forthcoming videos will be steadier.

KPBS Web Developer and Producer Joe Spurr and I were sitting at our table on Radio Row at the DNC last night, working on our separate projects when a very dapper Dennis Kucinich walked past.

I was deeply engrossed in some writing, but Joe challenged me to interview the former contender for the Democratic nomination.  His campaign in the Democratic primary had failed, but apparently his spirit wasn't diminished. He looked triumphant, almost as though this convention would come to its senses and give him the nomination.  His very attractive wife was busily smoothing his hair and straightening his tie and collar.

I couldn't resist Joe's challenge so we grabbed an audio kit and a microphone, walked half the length of our table and there I was conducting this extremely impromptu interview.  He responded enthusiastically and gave us a clear and thoughtful discussion of his views on the economy and foreign policy.  I wonder if he'll run again.

Wow!  There goes Senator Biden -- maybe another unplanned interview is waiting.

Three weeks ago, Political Fix alerted you to the planned KPBS presence at the DNC and RNC with staffers Joe Spurr and Kurt Kohnen joining me in both Denver and the Twin Cities. 

The time has arrived.  On Sunday, we three fly to the mile-high city prepared to cover the Democrats' events from a San Diego perspective.  Six days later, it's on to the Twin Cities for the Republican activities.  We'll be using both KPBS Radio and the kpbs.org web site as our media outlets.

Above: Watch video of the debate

On Monday, August 11th, I hosted a conversation with San Diego's city attorney, Michael Aguirre, and his re-election challenger, Superior Court Judge Jan Goldsmith. Thank you for your questions and feel free to continue the conversation in the comments section below.

San Diego County's deadline for submitting initiatives for the November 4^th ballot is Friday, August 8^th, so there's a mad scramble for getting local measures approved in time or wait until 2010. Two of them deserve our attention since they just made it before the cut-off date and even those who voted to put those propositions on the ballot, don't seem overly pleased with what they did.

Let's start with the unanimous decision by the County Board of Supervisors to have voters decide whether to fund a new regional fire agency, some local fire districts, and an assortment of reserve fire engines, water bombers and other regional equipment. As we approach fire season -- with San Diego's devastating wildfires in recent years a vivid reminder of our county's lack of adequate fire prevention and fire protection -- this would seem to be a popular measure.

But even most of the supervisors and other supporters doubt its passage because of the two-thirds majority vote requirement since a tax is involved. The much-needed funding would come from a $52 parcel tax paid by most of the county's land owners. That amounts to $1 a week. It doesn't seem like much, especially as the summer temperatures soar, the humidity drops, and the Santa Ana blows. But in this economic environment where folks are struggling to fill their gas tanks, put food on the table, pay for prescription drugs and medical care, any tax can be difficult to swallow.

In just a bit more than three weeks, I'll be on a flight to Denver to cover the Democratic Convention where Senator Barack Obama is expected to be that party's nominee for president of the United States. This journalist is getting very excited. Then a week later, I'll fly from Denver to Minneapolis to report on the Republican Convention and Senator John McCain's official acknowledgment as the GOP contender for the highest office in the land. My excitement grows and here are the reasons:

Although no convention since 1952 has gone past the first ballot to agree on a nominee, I recall the excitement of the 1960 Democratic Convention at the Los Angeles Sports Arena when an opening day demonstration in favor of Adlai Stevenson was so wildly exuberant that my skirt was torn by an out-of-control Stevenson enthusiast. I was covering that convention (as a novice assistant producer) for NBC's Today Show and I still can call up memories of the event and the glamour provided by the Kennedy clan, Frank Sinatra and the rest of the rat pack. Eleanor Roosevelt had proposed a Stevenson-Kennedy ticket. But the Kennedy youth and charisma won the day. Might Obama face a challenge on that first ballot?

Congressman Brian Bilbray was an avid surfer and lifeguard when he was elected to the Imperial Beach City Council at age 24. A few years later, then Mayor Bilbray made news and established his credentials as an environmentalist when at the controls of a skip loader, he diverted raw sewage from flowing into the U.S. from Mexico. The photograph of his exploits was widely circulated and his reputation as an ocean lover was enhanced.

Now, Congressman Bilbray represents San Diego County's northern coast, an area whose residents vigorously protect the neighboring ocean and its shoreline. The idea of offshore oil drilling is abhorrent to coastal dwellers who remember the destruction caused by a massive oil spill off Santa Barbara in 1969. But as gasoline prices rise, that opposition could moderate.

In fact, a recent national poll shows that public opinion has generally shifted to favoring an expansion of offshore oil exploration.