The military recruitment budget is $3 billion annually; 90 percent of the people killed in war are civilian noncombatants; 91 percent of Berkeley High students believe the war in Iraq is wrong and illegal; 65 percent of veterans never get their education benefits; 33 percent of homeless men are veterans…. -more-

More than two dozen tenants of a West Berkeley live-work warehouse that was declared “an extreme fire and life safety hazard” will be able to stay in their homes for two extra weeks under the protection of the Berkeley Fire Department, the city’s fire marshal announced Thursday. -more-

Aimee Allison has come a long way from the 17-year-old kid at Antioch High who joined the Army Reserves to get an education. The 35-year-old Stanford graduate and Green Party candidate for Oakland’s District 2 write-in election (to replace a councilmember who quit) spoke at Wednesday’s Berkeley High military recruitment teach-in, explaining how she joined the Army. -more-

Aimee Allison has come a long way from the 17-year-old kid at Antioch High who joined the Army Reserves to get an education. The 35-year-old Stanford graduate and Green Party candidate for Oakland’s District 2 write-in election (to replace a councilmember who quit) spoke at Wednesday’s Berkeley High military recruitment teach-in, explaining how she joined the Army. -more-

As Berkeley seeks to close an $8.9 million budget deficit, the City Council Tuesday voted to ensure that an unanticipated $3.4 million property tax windfall doesn’t bail out threatened programs. -more-

Opposition from Republican lawmakers has apparently halted a bid to name Berkeley’s main post office after the 93-year-old local civil rights icon Maudelle Shirek. -more-

Poitier McDaniel, 26, gets his daily exercise Thursday by lifting a chunk of old concrete on Ashby Avenue.. -more-

The 16-year-old girl charged with slashing the neck of a 75-year-old Berkeley woman will undergo a psychiatric evaluation and remain in custody, her attorney said Thursday. -more-

After two years of fierce debate, the parents, students and staff of Jefferson Elementary School will decide if they want their building to continue to bear the name of a slaveholder. -more-

The story sounds familiar. A teenager shoots five of his fellow high school students, his grandfather, his grandfather’s wife, a security guard, a teacher and himself. Newspapers report he wore a long black coat, and may have posted messages on neo-Nazi websites. It is said he was teased at school. -more-

NO BRAINS -more-

Click here to view the latest work by Planet cartoonist Justin DeFreitas› -more-

We have a break in the rain so I’m sitting out here in my backyard listening to my 10-year-old son and his buddy setting up GI Joes in preparation for war. That Jason even has such a vast army is somewhat startling to this middle-aged hippie who refused to buy him a single toy gun until a few years ago, when I broke down in the middle of an unusually hot summer and bought water pistols for both my son and daughter. Since then, I have been needled, harassed and otherwise tricked into purchasing numerous toy soldiers and their gear, all of which Jason insisted were just for display but I now see are being readied for serious battle. -more-

Cops Take a Blow -more-

Berkeley Fire Marshal David Orth has classified the Drayage building as an “extremely hazardous situation,” even though he knows of no fire incidents or injuries in the past 20 years connected to the residents living in this “situation.” Mr. Orth brushes off this strong history as “lucky.” -more-

Becky O’Malley’s latest editorial demonstrated a surprisingly shallow understanding of the current contract negotiations between teachers and the Berkeley Unified School District and the realities of teaching in Berkeley. -more-

The City Council’s decision to create a Creeks Task Force to review the Creeks Ordinance and to make recommendations back to the council provides the City of Berkeley with a great opportunity to protect creeks while at the same time being sensitive to private property interests and concerns. -more-

Well, maybe not driving six white horses, but Jeannette Rankin of Montana will be coming to Berkeley in a performance of the play, A Single Woman, based on the words and the writings of this unique, pioneering woman. Jeannette Rankin was the first woman to be elected to Congress in 1916, before universal women’s suffrage; she was a pacifist who voted against entry into World War I; then, gerrymandered out of office, she was re-elected in 1940, and was the lone vote against participation in World War II. She was much reviled for this, but she was a feisty woman and ably defended her decision. -more-

Under the tracery and flaring supports of the Eiffel Tower, there’s a dining room and a fainting couch on the Berkeley Rep Thrust Stage: Kent Dorsey’s design. -more-

Gideon Lazarus has a lot going on in his life, but discusses it calmly, with flashes of wry humor that make others laugh. -more-

FRIDAY, MARCH 25 -more-

Ah. Rugged mountains. Creamy porridge. Jagged peninsulas. Irish soda bread. Sparkling blue vistas. Guinness stout. Verdant glens. “Shorties” biscuits. Rolling hills. Potatoes, potatoes, potatoes. -more-

FRIDAY, MARCH 25 -more-