Almost lost in the clamor of recalls and crime is the problem of encampments in Oakland, including single-person sites that can be the dirtiest of all.

Now that the Price recall has been approved by the Registrar of Voters, the people will be able to vote on it. I hope…there’s speculation out there that she’ll come up with some legal technicality to challenge it. But assuming it goes on the ballot in the next few months, what if she wins?

You’ve probably heard about Oakland paying voters money they can then donate to candidates of their choice. The program, colloquially called Democracy Dollars (cute!) but formally known as the “Oakland Fair Elections Act,” was approved overwhelmingly by voters in 2022 as Measure W.

I wrote last week about a ranting, cursing shoplifter at Whole Foods whom I saw leaving with her arms full of pilfered food, and how a store manager told me the same woman stole from the store every single day, but they were unable to do anything about it, for a bunch of reasons.

Dear Voter: I’m sure you consider yourself a good human being. You are fair-minded and don’t judge people on their skin color or sexual orientation. You support abortion and science, and would never vote for a Republican. You’re an idealist. You think that Black people have had a raw deal in America and it’s time for some reparative justice. You agree with Bobby Kennedy: “Some people see things as they are and say, 'why?' I dream things that never were and say, 'why not?' "