The Buzz 06.07.18

WHO’S IN TOWN?

The on-again-off-again, topsy turvy relationship between President Donald Trump and North Korea leader Kim Jong-un is grabbing headlines at the moment, but one troubling foreign policy decision on the other side of the planet is still worthy of attention: Trump pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal. Peace activist and co-founder of CODEPINK, Medea Benjamin, is in town this week to discuss her new book, Inside Iran: The Real History and Politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Benjamin, who has traveled several times to the country will give her take on the complexities of its society and government, along with its role in the Middle East region.

7-9pm Mon June 11. Irvine Auditorium, Middlebury Institute of International Studies, 499 Pierce St., Monterey. Free or $5-$20/donation.peacecentral.wordpress.com.

FREE SPEECH

Among America’s great pastimes are football and exercising the First Amendment right to protest. When those two things intersect, it gets… complicated.

Some NFL players polarized fans with protesting by kneeling during the national anthem, bringing attention to social justice issues including police misconduct and disproportionately high arrests of black men. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced a new policy May 23 forbidding players from kneeling during the anthem, but giving them the option to stay inside in the locker room – a private form of protest, but not a public display. Constitutionally, the NFL appears to be within its rights to limit players’ speech. “The First Amendment only regulates the government’s actions,” saysDavid Snyder, executive director of the First Amendment Coalition. “It really doesn’t have anything to say about what private entities can do.” TheNFL Players Association announced they’re looking at the policy for any violations of their collective bargaining agreement.

GOOD WEEK / BAD WEEK

GOOD:

It’s been a long time coming, and Monterey-Salinas Transit is celebrating its new operations and maintenance facility this week with a ribbon-cutting and a party (at noon on Monday, June 11). The new 33,000-square-foot digs include a new tire-serving station, water-efficient bus-washing station, four additional maintenance bays and a new tire-servicing station. Expanded parking will allow up to 88 buses, up from 58 at the existing headquarters, and is expected to save time and fuel because MST won’t have to transport empty buses – without passengers – from Salinas. The $22 million facility also includes a second-floor communications center designed to give dispatchers a bird’s-eye view of the entire busyard.

BAD:

It has been a difficult few weeks for the city of Monterey and an employee, as officials await an update on his condition. On the morning of May 22, a parks employee was critically injured while working on a backhoe in Don Dahvee Park, near the Del Monte Center. The man, whose name the city is keeping confidential at this time, remains in the intensive care unit at Natividad in Salinas. While the cause of the accident remains under investigation, city spokesperson Laurie Huelga says the employee may have been hit by a tree branch while mowing weeds.