To match the last month of summer, this month's Meetup deals with a pair of hot button issues.

Is capital punishment a useful deterrent to criminality or a sign of societal barbarism? Utah's recent prisoner execution by firing squad has returned national attention to reconsidering the value of the death penalty. Talking about current developments on the death penalty front is Stefanie L. Faucher, Associate Director of the S.F. office of the national organization Death Penalty Focus. The presentation will present a national overview with special emphases on the Utah incident and the current situation in California.

What is Jeff Adachi's SMART ballot measure: a good attempt at dealing with the ballooning costs of public employee pensions or a backhanded attempt at crippling the economic well-being of unionized public employees? SF4D will hold a debate sure to bring its share of controversy. Creator of the SMART initiative and S.F. Public Defender Jeff Adachi will speak in favor of his measure. Opposing the measure will be Floyd K. Rollins II, director of S.F. Firefighters Union Local 798. Come hear the arguments for both sides and get ready to ask your own questions about the Adachi measure.

August may be the month of dog days, but political controversy never takes a vacation. Come on by, get out of the heat, and maybe meet a new best friend or two at this Meetup.