Pesky environmentalists gave the thumbs up to the Pacheco Pass route for the high-speed train that will whisk Californians from the Bay Area to Los Angeles in, like, five minutes. Or something like that. Wonderful news. An according to the California High Speed Rail Authority's recently released press release:

The Authority concluded that the Pacheco Pass alignment was the fastest and most environmentally responsible option for the high-speed train system, minimizing impacts on wetlands as well as the San Francisco Bay and eliminating the need for another San Francisco Bay crossing, bridge or tunnel. At the same time, the Authority also committed to boosting regional rail commuter service in partnership with local and regional agencies and transit providers such as ACE and BART trains, via the Altamont Pass between Sacramento/Northern San Joaquin Valley and Oakland/San Jose.

Awesome, yes? Yes. Anyway, Mayor Gavin Newsom evitas that the train as "a bold step for the future of California;" the choo choo will do wonders for getting to and from Southern California without being too invasive to SF's navel-gazing population; has Kamala Harris' number-one fan Quentin Kopp acting as Authority Chair, so you know shit will get done; and -- well, it's just going to be totally rad. It is. All we need now is a majority vote come November. And you will vote on the $9.9 billion bond measure to get it rolling, won't you? (Whatever. Just vote for it. We'll pay you back.) And if voters approve, according to CBS 5, the first stages of the line's construction could begin as early as 2010.

Gay men and uppers go together like peanut butter and chocolate. It's just the way God wanted it. But that hasn't stopped Joel Schumacher's "I Lost Me to Meth" campaign from saturating San Francisco, even though meth use is down as of last year, before the campaign began.

Addendums to the anti-drug campaign posters have reflected all kinds of sentiments to the most recent effort to get the homosexuals off the crazy crack. Here are just a few.

(Oh, and if you have any shots of altered Lost/Meth posters? Don't hesitate to send them our way. We'll add them to the pile.)

Update: Thanks for sending in more pics to the collection we've started. And keep 'em coming, dear readers. You all rock.

Much more succinct than the "Me, Not Meth" campaign.

Speaking of methamphetamines, the above campaign unleashed the typical brouhaha in the bent community: to chastise or not to chastise speed users? This most recent ad campaign--a four-month media blitz produced by the California Methamphetamine Initiative called "Me, Not Meth"--can been seen throughout the city, mainly in the queer-ish Castro and SOMA neighborhoods. And those ads you've seen on TV? Featuring men sitting at their desks, talking into webcams? Part of the same ad campaign, directed by Hollywood notable Joel Schumacher. How fancy. And expensive. (SF Aids Foundation has more info here.)

While we're not exactly elated about yet another attempt to get the boys off the crack, the latest ad campaign begs the question: will 'Me, Not Meth' make a gram of difference with SF meth use?

Obligatory get-help mention: visit Tweaker.org if you haven't slept in several days, can quit the junk, or need serious help. They have loads of resources if you need it.

Your weekend just got a little sleepier. Ten locations, including two in San Francisco, were busted today in connection with a methamphetamine distribution setup that went from San Francisco and the Bay Area all the way to Mexico. Federal, state, and local law enforcement. In total 13 people were arrested. According to KGO:

The raids started simultaneously at 6 a.m. Wednesday morning with 200 agents moving in on the ten locations. Law enforcement was in a hurry to execute their search warrants.

"We believe it's responsible for distribution on the streets of up to 20 pounds of methamphetamine per month," says Joseph Schadler, an FBI agent.

"How much is that in street value?" asks reporter.

"A quarter million dollars[ish]," says Schadler.

On the brighter side, those black helicopters will stop spying on you. And you can quit plucking your eyelashes; there really are no radio transmitters embedded inside of them. (...or are there?)

Also, will this affect cocaine distribution? We can't say. Any DEA-knowledgeable readers out there care to tell us what the overlap is with regard to meth and coke retail sales? Will this bust make a dent in powdery substance use here in the Bay Area?