Opinion

It’s tax time again. The cover of the New Yorker depicts IRS forms folded into the shapes of missiles, warplanes and tanks, in case anyone has any doubts about where most of their taxes are being wasted. On the inside, another cartoon: Robin Hood sitting in the office of his accountant, who says “You have to declare what you rob from the rich, but you can deduct what you give to the poor.” -more-

The law, in its majestic equality, forbids the rich as well as the poor to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal bread. -more-

KPFA -more-

There has been much discussion recently on the merits of the proposed development of the Oak-to-Ninth waterfront. -more-

Marc Sapir’s April 6 commentary is an amalgam of factual inaccuracies, crisis-mongering, and unprincipled attacks on my character. That Sapir has launched an ad hominem attack on me is no surprise, given his track record of lashing out at KPFA staff for the past several years. But I was surprised that he chose to both agent-bait and red-bait me (and, bizarrely, my parents), in an attempt to discredit my work as KPFA’s interim program director. -more-

As a University of California Berkeley student and an avid supporter of the Cal Football team, I support the plan to construct a new training center for our student-athletes and to seismically upgrade Memorial Stadium. I believe that the successful completion of this project will benefit the school and the city. A highly successful athletic program brings in more money to the university, and the subsequent development of the area can help the city by potentially increasing the tax base. -more-

Do we need fewer oaks and more jocks? UC Berkeley seems to believe that we do. There is a plan to tear down a woodland grove of coast live oaks and several redwoods only to build a new sports training facility. Although these oaks are protected under the City of Berkeley’s Live Oak Protection Ordinance, the university claims that because it is a state institution they are “not obliged to obey local environmental laws.” A grassroots citizens’ campaign has sprung made up of various leaders, students, and community members to pressure the university to reconsider, look for other sites to build the facility, and save the oaks! -more-

“You’re Never Too Old to Camp.” Ha! In response to Marta Yamamoto’s article in the March 13 edition, I have to say that I was already too old in my 20s to go camping. No one I grew up with in Atlanta in the 1930s and 1940s had gone camping or intended to go camping ever. In the early 1950s, when I was a college student, I had a brief experience as a counselor at a summer camp for children, and one night I camped on the ground with a group of children. -more-

We hear news every day about the “greening” of our world. Architects are designing with green materials, contractors are installing recycled floors, and appliances are put into kitchen and laundry rooms that use less energy. People buy products (from light bulbs to clothing) that show that we care for our environment. Some days it seems overwhelming! “What can I do about it?” can seem daunting. -more-

Where is all of this green stuff taking us? Who is in charge? Is this a Green Revolution? I’m waist deep in this sustainability muck and I haven’t a clue. Many say that time is short. The problems are huge—that there are more problems to fix than Gore’s climate challenge. Some suggest that drastic measures to control the planet’s population are required stop the destruction of our natural resource base. The list of problems is endless. -more-

CITY RECEIVES ACCESS AWARD -more-

Looking upon his alma mater from his place in the heavens, Mario Savio would likely be filled with a mixture of confusion and disappointment. If he was lucky enough to peer onto the UC Berkeley campus on one of the few days each semester that students demonstrate, he would witness a small band of outspoken, ostracized activists struggling to be heard amid throngs of passing iPod enthusiasts, its message drowned out by cell phone conversations. -more-

I share Steve Geller’s vision of prioritized bus rapid transit that moves faster than the cars on our major arterials. But the extent to which this will replace personal vehicles is an open issue, and I believe Steve is applying more wishful thinking than science when he asserts that “people will flock to ride it instead of drive.” -more-

Nancy Keiler writes (Letters, March 27) castigating KPFA for not covering Barbara Lee-Ron Dellums-Sean Penn at Grand Lake Theater on Mar. 24. I sympathize with Kieler. The current lethargy in coverage of events—government hearings and such—by KPFA results from the tenacious battle that has been going on inside KPFA and Pacifica since listeners and staff defeated the self-perpetuating Pacifica National Board attempted coup under the infamous Civil Rights Commissioner Mary Frances Berry. Berry had every intention of moving the network away from its radical populist roots. Ironically she might still get her way, as the following memo attacking advocacy journalism reveals: -more-

Good grief! Iraq is just brimming with news. I don’t even know where to begin. At 4 am this morning, a huge armored vehicle moved us from the Baghdad airport to the Green Zone in a convoy composed of vehicles that looked like they had just came out of a Toys R Us catalog. -more-