Social services organizations and welfare recipients from around Alameda County helped pack the Alameda County Board of Supervisors Monday morning meeting to protest proposed budget cuts that might leave almost 1,500 people cut off from their General Assistance (GA) welfare benefits for nine months out of the year. -more-

Berkeley Police homicide investigators dispute an Alameda County deputy district attorney who said they lacked sufficient evidence to charge two sisters as accessories to the 1970 murder of a Berkeley policeman. -more-

With battles raging over how much and in what form city workers will contribute to erasing Berkeley’s $10.3 million budget shortfall, the City Council will consider adoption of the city manager’s Budget Reduction Plan for fiscal years 2005 and 2006 at tonight’s (Tuesday, June 22) regular meeting. -more-

A plea to save a home built the year Berkeley became a city goes before the City Council tonight (Tuesday, June 22), more than two months after the Zoning Adjustments Board (ZAB) voted to permit demolition of the Amos Cottage at 2211 Fifth St. -more-

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia—Paul Johnson’s beheading sent a shiver of disgust throughout the world. Except the Arab world, that is. -more-

Berkeley firefighters summoned to 1275 San Pablo Ave. early Monday morning found a laundry room ablaze behind the recently opened Meal Ticket restaurant. -more-

Strongarm Bandits Create Wednesday Woes -more-

Last week I was playing Scrabble with my three friends, the Scrabblettes. At 52-years-old I was the youngster in the room by over two decades. Louise, Pearl and Rose lived through the tail-end of the Depression, World War II, the Korean Conflict, Vietnam, the Gulf War, and the terms of 13 United States presidents. Rose’s family was interned during World War II, taken from their farm in the California Central Valley and sent to a camp for Japanese-Americans in Arkansas in 1942. Louise’s family moved from Louisiana to Berkeley at around the same time period, a part of the great migration of southern blacks seeking work on the West Coast. Pearl recently returned to the Bay Area after a two-year stint with the Peace Corps in Uzbekistan. -more-

As a Jew who is critical of Israeli policy, I am no stranger to confrontation. Despite the strain I’ve placed on my personal relationships, despite having to stand alone in political debates, I have always been vocal in my defense of the cause of Palestine. A few weeks ago, however, I began to feel as though I was fighting a losing battle. It began to seem natural that everyone sticks by their group, right or wrong, as a simple matter of survival. Who was I to defy this basic law of human relations? This feeling nagged me until June 2, when I picked up an article entitled “Hooray for Bill Cosby.” -more-

Editors, Daily Planet: -more-

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DEDICATION -more-

What began as a seemingly simple request to city planning staff turned the June 12 Zoning Adjustment Board meeting into a spirited debate about the future of Berkeley’s Elmwood Commercial District. It ended with a sharply-divided ZAB unable to reach a conclusion on what direction Elmwood should take. -more-

TUESDAY, JUNE 22 -more-

We’ve almost missed the jacaranda show in Berkeley, especially with a few recent windy days that knocked down a lot of flowers. We have only a token representation of the species anyway, with a short row on Gilman a few blocks east of Westbrae Nursery, a few scattered on other streets and in private yards. They’re hard to miss right now; just look for a mass of grape-sherbet color. -more-

TUESDAY, JUNE 22 -more-