We thought Ed Jew's lawyer told him to zip it! But no! Despite the stern mandate the cash-accepting, alleged-bubble-tea-shaking-down Supervisor received from his counsel, Ed Jew's still chatting up the Chron.
His latest defense? That whole thing where his house didn't have water? Jew's response: "Ask yourself this: When it comes down to government run operations, do they ever make mistakes?" It is no good when the elected official's excuse is that government screws up.
Jew's other excuse? Sometimes his father (who pays the bills on the Sunset house) forgets to do things. What does his father forget? Jew replied, "Things." You can just see Ed Jew's lawyer slapping his forehead in despair, can't you?
The rest of the situation isn't looking much better for Jew: not only is he now under investigation by the ethics commission, but an anonymous employee of the Quickly bubble tea store that paid Jew the $40,000 in the first place is contradicting Jew's story that the whole money exchange was payment for a consultant -- the employee says that Jew came to them and said they had permit problems and would need to pay money for them to go away. The owner of the rival bubble tea shop in the Sunset (Wonderful) had no comment. Has it really come to this? The Sunset is having a bubble tea turf war? No wonder no one takes our city seriously.
As Chris Daly noted to the Chron, in the politician's "hierarchy of no-nos," not accepting sacks of money is the ironclad rule number two. (The first, Daly clarified, is "no disappearing interns.") Daly's rule number three is, of course, always dress up to interrupt meetings.
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If he had any class, he would resign now. Having said that I am enjoying the whole saga immensely, and click onto sfist and the chronicle first thing to see what the latest twist is. Should we call it quicklygate ? bubblegate? maybe wheretheheckdoyoulivegate?
I have it by good authority that Supe Daly was misquoted. What he said was "Disappearing cigars into interns -- you really don't want to do that."
Wonderful beats Quickly any hour of the day, any day of the week. Hell yes there's a tapioca milk tea turf war, and Quickly, the Walmart of Tapioca Milk Tea(TM), is going down. Bring it!
Oh wait, this post is about Ed Jew, isn't it? Like Dave said, he should probably just resign. But not yet. This story is too fun for it to end so quickly. No pun intended, of course.
Ed Jew, we barely knew thee.
"TapiocaGate" has some appeal. Unfortunately Watergate is taken. We could call him Tapioca Balls.
It used to be that one had to go to Asia to enjoy politics such as these.
Why didn't the Chron ask Ed Jew why is father pays for water bills where Ed "lives." ... ?
Campers,
I'm going to be house-sitting for Ed. Only thing he asks is that I let the water run 24 hours a day. What's up with that?
h.
dirty [COMMENT EDITED PER GOTHAMIST COMMENT POLICY --ed.]
hey h, are you going to hit on his daughter too? your type...
The Quickly on Taravel is disgustingly dirty and hasn't been taken care of at all -- broken chairs, posters taped to the dirty walls are falling down and greasy fluorescent lighting. $40,000.00 could probably really be used to spiff the place up.
Where is the bubble tea pride, people?
ummm...looks like Ed Jew has just left for China...
Now Tapioca Ed is heading for China, according to SFGate. This just keeps getting better.
Okay, let me get this straight.
First, Gavin pays Ruby $10,000.
Second, Ed gets $40,000.
Third, Peskin doesn't like the Wild Parrots and they made a movie for free.
mmmm...what is important Wild Birds getting a free handout or politicians handing out bills ?
All the while the city burns in violence, makes me wonder if San Francisco is a World Class City afterall.
He's gone to China on vacation with family members. an aide and his accountant? Interesting vacation...
I hope he's splashing out on first class for everyone.
Man, you guys are faster than I am! It takes me an awful lot of time to come up with these bad jokes about bubble tea.
New post about Ed's trip to China is up top (or will be, whenever our server gets around to updating.)
I wonder if there is any indication that the planning dept is involved. Ed Jew says so and suddenly a business needs new conditional use permit? Is the enforcement selective? And if you pay 40K Ed or his buddy chan get the permit for you? Interesting
Yes Rita, we scooped you on that one, but for $10,000, we can make that problem go away.
[DELETED],
One more pedophile slur here or on either chat room and I'll out you.
h.
{COMMENT EDITED PER GOTHAMIST COMMENT POLICY]
Ed probably thinks that just because he's a republican, he can act like a Washington republican.
Sorry, Ed. Small town. If you lived here you'd know that.
If you want some really bizarre policy, sniff around Barbara Meskunas, his aide who's currently in charge of making excuses.
My sincere wish is that they all share a cell block with Julie Lee.
Rob B.
(19)
Ha. You are correct Sir: Meskunas!
Now that's one truly ethically-challenged individual!
Got a rap sheet as long as yer arm, that one does.
No scruples whatsoever.
What is the story on Meskunas?
When "Tapioca Ed" took office I'd read in the paper about how he'd made a such a shrewd choice in hiring her.
chard (21):
I didn't read about "shrewd choice."
I did read that Jew has something to be concerned about when the press concentrates more on his alarming staff hires and her loud and thoughtless opinions, than on Jew himself.
chard (21):
I used to talk quite often with some folks who used to have something to do with Meskunas... I have sent them a note to collect exact info on "Things," and how "shrewd" they think Meskunas is, but in the meantime:
Here's a piece from last year's SFBG, found on "Left in SF" re the Prop D/Laguna Honda fiasco, and the misinformation Meskunas and Comstock were spreading around at that time.
I have it that Antonini and Hall were there simply to watch the proceedings... that they are not associated with the organization Coalition of San Francisco Neighborhoods, as Tim Redmond indicates.
###############
From SF Bay Guardian, May 2006, by Tim Redmond:
Onward: much, much ado at the Coalition of San Francisco Neighborhoods meeting May 16. The agenda for a group that has too often been under the sway of Joe O’Donoughue included a proposal to rescind the coalition’s endorsement of Prop. D, the badly flawed Laguna Honda measure.
Joe and his ally, former CSFN president Barbara Meskunas, had pushed for (and won) an early endorsement of the measure, which would use zoning rules to ban certain types of patients from the hospital. Somehow, though, the Yes on D presentation wasn’t entirely complete: Most CSFN members who initially voted to back the plan didn’t realize that it had potentially much more sweeping impacts, and could legalize private development mon a lot of other city property.
As news about what Prop. D really meant began to get out, some coalition members demanded a new vote — and after a month’s parliamentary delay, they got one.
The debate, I’m told, was lively: At one point, Tony Hall, whom the mayor appointed to head the Treasure Island Development Authority, accused Debra Walker, a longtime progressive, of being a “stooge for the mayor.” Ultimately, though, the vote to rescind the endorsement won, 23–8, with Hall, Meskunas, and Newsom-appointed planning commissioner Michael Antonini in the minority.
Shortly afterward, the members voted on new officers, and a slate of candidates led by Meskunas was roundly defeated. At which point Meskunas stormed out of the room, later resigning from the organization.
“This was a battle for the soul of the coalition,” Tony Kelly of the Potrero Boosters told me. “It’s been brewing for a while.”
...
-Tim Redmond SFBG
###############
One Response:
1. victor pulgas Says:
May 25th, 2006 at 11:55 am
Barbara and Doug Comstock are both active in the “Yes on D”.
In the Spring of 1992 Barbara Meskunas and Doug Comstock brought the Coalition into chaos and a schism when they decided to manipulate the membership in their effort to fight the plan to build a baseball park just north of Potrero Hill. It wasn’t a question of the worthiness of their goal but the method they used: misinformation.
It took years for the wounds to heal and for the Coalition and the League for San Francisco Neighborhoods to put the past behind and regroup as a newly constituted Coalition. Josie Mooney actually served as the facilitator during that meeting. Neither Barbara nor Doug was active in the Coaltion at that time. They have since drifted in and out according to their interests.
But when Opportunity knocks they appear.
MORAL: People who want to maintain their credibility should avoid associating with people who don’t have any: Lay down with dogs, get up with fleas.
ADIEU, ED JEW
Thanks for the background.
Not wanting to obsess, but, I didn't read of Meskunas in the paper, but on BeyondChron. R. Shaw praised her and Jew for hiring her.
It was a while ago and I forgot.
It was on Dec. 7.
It is worth a read.
I won't debate that she's clever, because she is (although you wouldn't know it by some of the trash she's talking).
But I think Victor Pulgas got it right when he commented on her after the Redmond piece reprinted in "Left in SF" (#23, above).
Victor Pulgas wrote:
"... when Opportunity knocks they appear.
"MORAL: People who want to maintain their credibility should avoid associating with people who don’t have any: Lay down with dogs, get up with fleas."
God, I love this! It's like all the rightish narciscistic politicos and wannabes are locked in a big room desperately switching articles of clothing. Gavinator, Joey-0, Mess-kunas, Dougy C, Tapioca Ed, Tony Haul, Louise Rennet. I'm sure the Anderson Valley mob Rob Dishpanderson and "Merry" Miles are in there too.
I particularly like it when someone "Storms out of the room!" I propose that we start a SOOTR list:
Who else?
rob b (28):
Who is Joey Zero?
I got who all the others are (at least I think I do), which I find kind of amazing.
How's about adding the Gruel-guy to the list? Although maybe not the storms-out-of-the-room list...
Also, is Dougy C such a righty? His association with Mess-kunas is really a difficult relationship to assess, but it can probably be boiled down to: everything's fair game in the pursuit of power. I have him down as a knee-jerk party-line-spouting leftist.
A fun little letter from Barbara "stormed out of the room" Meskunas from the ProSF.org list.
No mention of Jew's teensy little republican problems, or even a wager on whether he'll return from China at all!
I predict that the sun will soon set on his short, profitable stay at City Hall. Perhaps he'll end up in a westward facing cell so he can enjoy it!
Meanwhile, Barbara is bitter bitter bitter! So full of Vitriol for CSFN, which, of course they deserve. Or maybe they deserve it a little less now that someone "stormed out of the room!"
FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS...
" Re: Ed Jew & Barbara Meskunas & Laguna Honda & CSFN & SF5 Together & G Newsom...
Three patients have died unnatural deaths at Laguna Honda since Prop D was defeated. Dan Noyes at Ch. 7 covered two of them. Ed Jew called for hearings on Laguna Honda because patients were dying, and because he has stayed in contact with doctors and patient advocates at the hospital and knows it is being turned into a homeless facility. It is of little surprise that the rats at the hospital are crawling out of the woodwork to join in the lynch mob.
CSFN should be very proud, indeed, of defeating what they were led to believe was a land use issue - it will be difficult, indeed, to remove the blood from its hands. But that is what happens when compromised opportunists lacking leadership abilities are elected to lead an organization.
CSFN's public standing increased substantially under the leadership of Joan Girardot, then Doug Comstock, then myself - the polling proves it.
Berkowitz and Company have done absolutely nothing except kiss Newsom's ass. What did they get for their trouble? Appointments? Nothing at all, except a low public regard for having sold out the neighborhoods for a pat on the head from Room 200. At least the labor unions got a hefty raise last year for peddling the Prop D conspiracy theory to witless goofs driven more by hatred than logic.
It is my sincere hope that CSFN survives this rudderless time in its history, as it has done in the past. Many of its current members have come to me, asking when we will return and revive its independence and re-energize its agenda. But I've heard that people are actually chastised by Berkowitz for failing to vote the way she wants them to, and if the membership tolerates that, then it deserves what it's getting.
Barbara Meskunas"
MEEEEEOOOOW!
Joey 0? Joey O'Donahue, of course.
Yowza! Boy are you ever right: bittah!
Where did that come from? I mean I see you note it came from that list, but from what deep well of irrational all-consuming hatred!?
I wonder if anyone cares about any of this. I mean besides her. How long ago was this? A year? More? Is her conniption fit from back whenever, or is it recent, I wonder.
Man I'd hate to get on her bad side! Although it might be perversely fun. Really really perverse, though.
Well, she really can't comment on her boss, now can she? So in a pique of anger she lashes out at whatever target is near.