Dan Brekke
@danbrekke.bsky.social
Transportation, history, transportation history, water, weather, water and weather, salmon and other interests of all sorts. Photography is pretty cool.
Signal: danbrekke.95
Signal: danbrekke.95
Police sergeant reported working average of 100 hours a week in 2024, with total compensation north of $800,000 once regular salary and benefits were added in. One question the story doesn’t address: Who in the city administration is responsible for signing off on such an outlandish level of OT?
One Oakland police officer made $490,000 in overtime. The city can’t find records detailing much of what he did
One OPD officer logged 5,242 total working hours, racking up $490,000 in overtime pay. If he worked more than half of the time in a calendar year, why can't the city tell us what he did?
oaklandside.org
February 7, 2026 at 8:47 AM
Police sergeant reported working average of 100 hours a week in 2024, with total compensation north of $800,000 once regular salary and benefits were added in. One question the story doesn’t address: Who in the city administration is responsible for signing off on such an outlandish level of OT?
"Before last week's fatal shooting in Minneapolis, ICE shootings involved moving vehicles at least 19 times & were connected to at least 10 deaths and six injuries. Task forces including ICE agents have shot at least three other US citizens."
Why ICE Can Kill With Impunity
Over the past decade, US immigration agents have shot and killed more than two dozen people. Not a single agent appears to have faced criminal charges.
www.wired.com
January 15, 2026 at 11:46 PM
"Before last week's fatal shooting in Minneapolis, ICE shootings involved moving vehicles at least 19 times & were connected to at least 10 deaths and six injuries. Task forces including ICE agents have shot at least three other US citizens."
'The secrecy has concealed ICE’s transformation into a parallel FBI, a DEA and an independent police force whose mission has crept well past the deportations that media tend to focus on.' #ICE #immigration
Exclusive: Secret ICE Programs Revealed
Leaked documents detail the dizzying scope of ICE operations
open.substack.com
January 14, 2026 at 8:58 PM
'The secrecy has concealed ICE’s transformation into a parallel FBI, a DEA and an independent police force whose mission has crept well past the deportations that media tend to focus on.' #ICE #immigration
“...Most field officers see a clear need for de-escalation. There is genuine fear that indeed ICE’s heavy handedness and the rhetoric from Washington is more creating a condition where the officers’ lives are in danger....” Via @kenklippenstein.bsky.social
Immigration Agents Terrified by ICE Backlash
Leaked documents show Border Patrol needs volunteers for Minneapolis surge
open.substack.com
January 13, 2026 at 1:40 AM
“...Most field officers see a clear need for de-escalation. There is genuine fear that indeed ICE’s heavy handedness and the rhetoric from Washington is more creating a condition where the officers’ lives are in danger....” Via @kenklippenstein.bsky.social
Two people have been killed in solo scooter crashes in #Berkeley over the last few weeks.
Man dies 1 month after scooter crash on UC Berkeley campus
The crash was previously unreported.
www.berkeleyscanner.com
January 6, 2026 at 9:44 PM
Two people have been killed in solo scooter crashes in #Berkeley over the last few weeks.
From NOAA's Climate Prediction Center: 'Major pattern change for the West Coast' after rainy period. #wx #cawx
Key Messages from the NOAA Climate Prediction CenterIssued January 2, 2026 and Updated January 6, 2026
www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov
January 6, 2026 at 9:38 PM
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has something to say about what the franchise calls itself. #OaklandA's
A's Running into Issue with 'Las Vegas Athletics' Trademark
The A's are running into a bit of an issue with their move to Las Vegas
www.si.com
January 6, 2026 at 7:15 PM
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has something to say about what the franchise calls itself. #OaklandA's
Trump Says the U.S. “Needs” Greenland—Europe Should Take Him at His Word
Trump Says the U.S. “Needs” Greenland—Europe Should Take Him at His Word
When a sitting U.S.
open.substack.com
January 5, 2026 at 3:10 AM
Trump Says the U.S. “Needs” Greenland—Europe Should Take Him at His Word
Here's an excellent explanation of the Postal Service's change in postmark practices and how it will affect the public. 1/2
Say goodbye to the same-day postmark - Save the Post Office
Due to changes in the transportation system, nearly half of single-piece First Class Mail may end up being postmarked a day (or more) after the mail was sent.
www.savethepostoffice.com
December 31, 2025 at 8:13 PM
Here's an excellent explanation of the Postal Service's change in postmark practices and how it will affect the public. 1/2
Impressive: Winds on Christmas morning were violent enough to rip out part of the multi-ton shutter on one of Lick Observatory's telescope domes. Repairs will take months.
Historic Lick Observatory closes to public following significant wind damage
Early on Thursday, Dec. 25, severe winds gusting up to 114 miles per hour tore loose half of the shutter on the 140-year old 36-inch Great Refractor dome. No one was injured.
news.ucsc.edu
December 27, 2025 at 11:04 PM
Impressive: Winds on Christmas morning were violent enough to rip out part of the multi-ton shutter on one of Lick Observatory's telescope domes. Repairs will take months.
The detail that gets me is cutting down trees on neighbors’ properties. The guy sounds like Trump with a chainsaw.
Property owner on leafy Claremont Avenue faces nearly $1M fine for ‘most egregious’ tree removal
Oakland alleges that a property owner cut down 38 trees without permits across his land, on city property and on his neighbors’ lots. The owner is also battling his neighbors in court.
www.sfchronicle.com
December 22, 2025 at 12:05 AM
The detail that gets me is cutting down trees on neighbors’ properties. The guy sounds like Trump with a chainsaw.
Disgraceful:
"PG&E didn't immediately respond to multiple requests about the blackouts. Its first public response was posted to X at 4 p.m.: "We are working with first responders & city officials on an outage affecting 130,000 customers. We will share more information as it becomes available."
"PG&E didn't immediately respond to multiple requests about the blackouts. Its first public response was posted to X at 4 p.m.: "We are working with first responders & city officials on an outage affecting 130,000 customers. We will share more information as it becomes available."
PG&E outages in S.F. leave 130,000 without power, knock out street lights, disrupt BART, Muni
Nearly 130,000 San Francisco households and businesses lost power due to unexpected PG&E blackouts that brought a massive portion of the city to a halt — darkening homes and causing traffic...
www.sfchronicle.com
December 21, 2025 at 12:35 AM
Disgraceful:
"PG&E didn't immediately respond to multiple requests about the blackouts. Its first public response was posted to X at 4 p.m.: "We are working with first responders & city officials on an outage affecting 130,000 customers. We will share more information as it becomes available."
"PG&E didn't immediately respond to multiple requests about the blackouts. Its first public response was posted to X at 4 p.m.: "We are working with first responders & city officials on an outage affecting 130,000 customers. We will share more information as it becomes available."
Reposted by Dan Brekke
Rain will be just one aspect of this active pattern. Wind gusts Sunday will reach the 30-40mph range, not strong enough for any significant or widespread damage. However, gusts Tuesday evening and overnight could easily exceed 50-60mph, leading to tree damage, power outages, and flight delays. 4/6
December 19, 2025 at 11:32 PM
Rain will be just one aspect of this active pattern. Wind gusts Sunday will reach the 30-40mph range, not strong enough for any significant or widespread damage. However, gusts Tuesday evening and overnight could easily exceed 50-60mph, leading to tree damage, power outages, and flight delays. 4/6
Precipitation forecast thru Xmas morning via Calif.-Nev. River Forecast Center (www.cnrfc.noaa.gov). Forecast rainfall ranges from 4 to 5 in. in E. Bay valleys up to a foot for parts of the N.Bay. The forecast total for where I am in #Berkeley: 8 in., or more than 1/3 our average annual total. #cawx
December 20, 2025 at 1:26 AM
Precipitation forecast thru Xmas morning via Calif.-Nev. River Forecast Center (www.cnrfc.noaa.gov). Forecast rainfall ranges from 4 to 5 in. in E. Bay valleys up to a foot for parts of the N.Bay. The forecast total for where I am in #Berkeley: 8 in., or more than 1/3 our average annual total. #cawx
Reposted by Dan Brekke
One key point is that the initial days of this CA pattern shift will involve a very anomalously warm airmass--and there will be essentially no snow at all even in the higher mountains until Tue/Wed next week. Record low snowpack will persist, or become even lower, in meantime.
December 18, 2025 at 8:12 PM
One key point is that the initial days of this CA pattern shift will involve a very anomalously warm airmass--and there will be essentially no snow at all even in the higher mountains until Tue/Wed next week. Record low snowpack will persist, or become even lower, in meantime.
Reposted by Dan Brekke
In NorCal, a prolonged period of light to moderate (and occasionally heavy, in the mountains) rain will occur over next few days as a very persistent & warm atmospheric river stalls overhead. Snow levels will generally be above 7k-8k feet, so even Sierra passes will see rain.
December 18, 2025 at 8:12 PM
In NorCal, a prolonged period of light to moderate (and occasionally heavy, in the mountains) rain will occur over next few days as a very persistent & warm atmospheric river stalls overhead. Snow levels will generally be above 7k-8k feet, so even Sierra passes will see rain.
Reposted by Dan Brekke
A woman en route to a UCSF medical center gave birth inside a Waymo robotaxi, marking one of the most unusual incidents yet in San Francisco’s closely watched driverless experiment.
Woman delivers baby in Waymo robotaxi en route to San Francisco hospital
A woman en route to a UCSF medical center gave birth inside a Waymo robotaxi, marking one of the most unusual incidents yet in San Francisco’s closely watched driverless experiment.
bit.ly
December 10, 2025 at 6:40 PM
A woman en route to a UCSF medical center gave birth inside a Waymo robotaxi, marking one of the most unusual incidents yet in San Francisco’s closely watched driverless experiment.
For a transit agency depending on voters to rescue it from a catastrophic budget deficit, #BART disruptions are happening at the worst possible time. #transit
For a transit agency on the brink, BART disruptions hit at perilous time
“When I look at this and all the incidents happening so close in time, I get a little worried,” said one BART board member.
www.mercurynews.com
December 10, 2025 at 6:59 PM
Reposted by Dan Brekke
AP finds federal and state authorities in Louisiana are monitoring the online activities of ICE critics. Chilling. apnews.com/article/immi...
Records reviewed by AP detail online monitoring, arrests in New Orleans immigration crackdown
State and federal authorities are monitoring online criticism and protests against the immigration crackdown in New Orleans.
apnews.com
December 7, 2025 at 10:06 PM
AP finds federal and state authorities in Louisiana are monitoring the online activities of ICE critics. Chilling. apnews.com/article/immi...
Reposted by Dan Brekke
In a process completed in September, engineers opened up the massive main cables that support the bridge’s double-deck roadway between Yerba Buena Island and San Francisco’s Rincon Hill to check on conditions inside. The results from that exam are due by early next year. From @danbrekke.bsky.social
December 3, 2025 at 8:15 PM
In a process completed in September, engineers opened up the massive main cables that support the bridge’s double-deck roadway between Yerba Buena Island and San Francisco’s Rincon Hill to check on conditions inside. The results from that exam are due by early next year. From @danbrekke.bsky.social
An interview with @carmitage: "You don't get out of tyranny without things getting rough. We will suffer more if we don't show courage now. That is the deal."
Interview With My Favorite Substack Dude
Christopher Armitage, just a guy with an analytical mind and interesting ideas, has built a considerable following.
open.substack.com
December 7, 2025 at 8:17 PM
An interview with @carmitage: "You don't get out of tyranny without things getting rough. We will suffer more if we don't show courage now. That is the deal."
Senator Elissa Slotkin’s response to the president’s deranged threats to political opponents.
Jon Brooks (@theweimarrepublic)
Speak up now like Sen. Slotkin every and any way you can.
substack.com
November 21, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Senator Elissa Slotkin’s response to the president’s deranged threats to political opponents.
From a friend: "The Loony Left may criticize me for saying this, but I think white supremacy has a multiculturalism problem."
Opinion: White Supremacy Has Become Too Woke
The multicultural ethos of today's white supremacists is a stain on what could otherwise be a Golden Age of white supremacy.
open.substack.com
November 15, 2025 at 10:41 PM
From a friend: "The Loony Left may criticize me for saying this, but I think white supremacy has a multiculturalism problem."
Firefighters had complained that the ground was still smoking in places and rocks remained hot to the touch when they were ordered to pack up their hoses and leave the area.
LAFD knew of firefighter complaints about Lachman mop-up and said nothing
At least one LAFD official knew that a battalion chief had directed firefighters to leave the scene of the Lachman fire Jan. 2, even though they complained the ground was still smoking in places and r...
www.latimes.com
November 11, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Firefighters had complained that the ground was still smoking in places and rocks remained hot to the touch when they were ordered to pack up their hoses and leave the area.