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| Bryan Parker |
OAKLAND | MAYOR | Bryan Parker’s demeanor is typically business-like. He wears nice suits and often shows polite empathy. But there was a more agitated Bryan Parker on display last Thursday night at the first major Oakland mayoral forum.
The packed house at Temple Sinai was forewarned. During his opening statement Parker alluded to the possibility he might be a lot more animated than usual. The reason for the outrage exuded by Parker may have been due to the subject matter. Thursday’s forum was dedicated solely to public safety. On a personal level, Parker’s sister was murdered by an assailant in 1998.
“I’ve got a city of people like my sister,” Parker said after the nearly three-hour forum. “I see them every day on my walks and it’s not getting any better.” The perception of rising crime in Oakland is seen as Mayor Jean Quan’s Achilles Heel and nearly every other challenger’s strategy is to use it to trip her up this fall.
But, when asked about the stark change in tone, Parker added he had coffee with an Oakland resident last week, who he says, was robbed by four people last month, with one pointing a gun at her head. “She can’t sleep. She says she can’t return to work,” he said. “People are getting robbed everyday and people are dying, if we’re not urgent about that, if people don’t see we share the pain, we will continue to have no confidence in the city.”
ebcitizen.com 
Smart of him to throw in the story about the coffee and girl. I'm sure that touched the audience on an emotional level.
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Bryan Parker's doing a good job so far. As long as he keeps his head on straight he can maybe have a big impact on the crime rate.
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They should start looking more into law enforcement for sure. Hire more police and set up better security.
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I've never been in Oakland, but I'm sure that the crime isn't any worse than it is anywhere else these days. Crime has risen everywhere.
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Oakland is a beautiful place, but it's a shame that crime is ruining it's reputation. Hopefully they get this under control.
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Interesting. I've never seen him agitated but at least he's taking action.
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There is a lot going on there but I'm sure that over time the crime will slow down and return to normal.
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Parker has the right mindset. It's good that he's acknowledging that something needs to be done.
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That's very sad about his sister. I lived in Oakland most of my life but ended up moving because there was so much crime going on.
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Crime is definitely becoming more and more of a problem there. It's not a place I'd want to live. They should invest more in law enforcement.
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Here is an article about Parker anyone will find interesting:
http://www.eastbayexpress.com/oakland/who-is-bryan-parker/Content?oid=3868243
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9:48, Could you please elaborate? Very vague comment.
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Parker is full of shit and a small percentage will buy it and eat it too
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It's called a typo, fool. Google “typo” and read about something known to actual readers as “typographical error.” It's okay to read aloud to yourself–often this makes understanding easier.
Rewritten for the fool who cannot decypher a typo: High quality or low quality or are they the same to you, fool.
That means that when you use the word “quality” without specifying the character of “quality” you say nothing.
You've said nothing, fool. And you've proven that reading is something you've yet to learn. First reading, then, maybe, writing.
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11:57 “or are the same to you”
Are you a product of the Oakland school system?
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8:12 High quality or low quality or are the same to you, fool.
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7:34 Quality commentary, clown.
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“What do you propose?”
You go back to your spelling bee.
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Anonymous 8:57
I find your language odd. You say Oaklanders are traumatized by “unceasing violence” or by a “hostile urban environment.” Why are you distancing yourself from the root problem ? Oaklanders are not traumatized by violence, they're traumatized by violent people. Oaklanders are not traumatized by a hostile urban environment, they're traumatized by hostile people. If you want to fix Oakland, you'll have to fix the people who live there. What do you propose?
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Bryan Parker's personal story when it comes to crime is touching, and I'm sure he is motivated by his experience. That's obviously a good thing, but what I think he brings to the table is real world management experience that Oakland has been lacking. I wouldn't mind Oakland being ruled by someone that's somewhat of an outsider. Clearly Oakland's track record of being led by politicians hasn't worked out, and I'm up for something new.
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The Oakland resident Parker had coffee with was traumatized. By violent crime. Since she is likely a reasonably normal adult, she will no doubt work through it and return to living competently. On the other hand the many thousands of very young Oaklanders who have been traumatized over the years by unceasing violence will mostly never develop full competent lives as adults. They fail in school; their dysfunction affects Oakland as a whole; their neglect by city hall is itself criminal and is the prime reason so many Oaklanders remain prisoners of a hostile urban environment.
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