Public Comment

BRT TO KAISER 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I am responding to Steve Geller’s (July 13) desire for a letter from potential Bus Rapid Transit riders. I plan to use BRT for trips to Kaiser Oakland from Berkeley two or three times each year. Hope this helps. 

Robert C. Chioino 

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FAMILY VALUES 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

A Republican “family values” politician is caught playing hanky panky with a prostitute. Conservative pundit Sean Hannity is quick to dredge up the ghost of Bill Clinton’s past in an effort to deflect attention away from David Vitter’s transgressions. Vitter himself, trots out his wife in hopes of swaying the media and quelling the growing storm.  

The spectacle unfolding shows another holier-than-thou religious conservative talking the talk while at the same time getting caught with his pants down.  

Ron Lowe  

Grass Valley  

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FARM BILL 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

This summer, while you’re hopefully enjoying some much needed vacation time and hitting the pool or a BBQ with friends, Congress is considering the Farm Bill. I’m pretty sure we have the better deal. 

All kidding aside, the Farm Bill is an important piece of legislation and a big opportunity. Congress has the opportunity to significantly improve the livelihoods of small farmers around the world, including here in the United States, by instituting reform in the U.S. Farm Bill. 

Considered once every five years, the Farm Bill is in desperate need of change and this year is our time to act. 

The current Farm Bill encourages American farmers to overproduce and flood world markets with crops sold at artificially low prices, making it almost impossible for small farmers at home and abroad to sell their own crops. 

The current system does not even primarily benefit America’s small farmers. Reforms should also provide better support for U.S. farm families of modest means as well. 

As a member of the ONE Campaign, I urge Congress to make the necessary changes to the Farm Bill—smart trade reform helps everyone. Please visit www.one.org and learn more. 

Congress has the opportunity to significantly improve the livelihoods of small farmers around the world. 

Alicia Childs 

Hayward 

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PLANET’S OMISSIONS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I grew up in Boston, where I read the Boston Globe every day. I loved the paper’s liberal slant. Meanwhile, I held contempt for the very conservative Boston Herald which was known for flagrantly ignoring any story or news event that conflicted with their political philosophy. The Globe, on the other hand, continues to offer a balanced viewpoint today by including rabidly conservative columnists. I had hoped the Daily Planet would be more like the Globe, but your paper’s refusal to print any story about the recent revelation that the tree-sitters in the university’s oak grove have permanently damaged trees in order to make their sitting space more comfortable is upsetting. The protesters have admitted to the damage, and yet the Planet, who seemed to have no end to it’s desire to publish stories about the protest, has refused to print any stories about this vandalism. It’s sad to realize that the conservative Herald’s news repression and manipulation of public opinion is shared by the Daily Planet.  

Sherman Boyson 

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FOUR MORE YEARS! 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I was at the Oakland airport yesterday, waiting for a plane to take me off to an AIDS training course, when I saw a book that scared the [bodily waste] out of me! There it was. On the top shelf of Hudson News. In hardcover. The Next Bush.  

Poor Rudy Guliani, being, led down the garden path to think that he might actually be the next neo-con Republican to steal the White House—while all the time it is Jeb that is being primed. Holy Cow! I was hoping to take a break from blogging once George W. was safely in jail but now it looks like I’ll be spending the rest of my life trying to get Bushes into jail. Let’s see. There’s Melvin and the twins and Laura and.... 

Jane Stillwater 

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WHAT’VE YOU GOT? 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Here is a motto for your letters section: When Marlon Brando was asked in The Wild One, “What are you rebelling against?” he retorted: “What’ve you got?” 

Sam Craig 

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WARM POOL MISCONCEPTIONS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I just wanted to clear up some misconceptions in the recent article about the Berkeley Warm Pool Plan (“Warm Pool Plans Criticized For Parking Lack,”July 13) . Much of the criticism about the plan had to do with the lack of provisions for parking. But the architects who created the plan were never tasked to find parking for this project. They were tasked with coming up with a preliminary plan that would make use of the space designated by the BUSD for a warm pool as part of their Berkeley High School South of Bancroft master plan. Obviously, this space, which takes up approximately the northern third of the current parking lot (formerly tennis courts) bounded by Bancroft Way to the north, Milvia Street to the west, and Durant Avenue to the south, is not large enough both for a warm pool and parking. 

But what about the other two thirds of that property? The whole lot presently is serving as parking for BUSD employees, and would remain parking after the warm pool is built on the northern third of the property, according to the south of Bancroft plan. Indeed, it will likely become multistory parking if the school district can fund such a project. I don’t recall any other use being suggested for this property in the south of Bancroft plan because, after all, the school district needs parking, too. Deputy City Manager Lisa Coronna was quoted out of context in the article when the reporter paraphrased her as saying school district parking could not be used. I believe her complete thought was that school district parking could not be used while school was in session, when it would be needed by school district employees. But that is no different from the situation that exists now at the existing warm pool, which is why public programs at the warm pool take place after 4:30 p.m., when school is closed. Why would we assume that this state of affairs would not continue at the new warm pool location? This preliminary plan deserves better than to be characterized as unrealistic and “illogical,” on the basis of fears and assumptions that have yet to be even examined in the development process. 

Mark Hendrix 

Warm Water Pool Task Force 

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SECOND FUNNIEST 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Maybe I can convince Sharon Hudson that I am not just the second funniest letter writer in the Planet (as she said in the July 17 Planet) by reminding her of the letter that everyone considers the funniest I ever wrote: When Ms. Hudson claimed that the Urban Land Institute recommended a height limit of 35 feet for new buildings, I wrote pointing out that their website featured an award to a 35-story building, and saying that she must have misread their recommended height limit of 35 stories. I like to use humor to show up the misrepresentations and distortions of Berkeley’s NIMBYs, and I was very glad that the author of “The NIMBY Manifesto” gave me this golden opportunity. 

Unfortunately, I find it hard to joke about this subject as much as I would like to. When I consider how much damage Ms. Hudson and her fellow NIMBYs across the nation are doing when they constantly oppose attempts to slow global warming by providing better public transportation and transit-oriented development, I can’t help thinking that the world we are leaving to our children and grandchildren will not be amusing. 

Charles Siegel 

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WHAT IF? 

Editors, Daily Planet: What if the over $600 million coming to Berkeley was spent on creating and implementing smart, efficient public transit. Two thirds of people enslaved to their car and insurance payments, repairs and check-ups, DMV lines, car seats etc., could give up their cars completely. We could use one lane of parking on every street as orchards or picnic areas. Berkeley would require new housing units to include a gardening instead of a parking space for each unit, so people could grow some of their food locally. Parking lots could become play areas. Asthma rates and stress would drop and real progress would be made toward the reduction of global warming. 

Tierra Dulce 

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WRIGHT’S GARAGE PROJECT 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I just returned from three weeks vacation and am dumbfounded to find that the behemoth nightclub project at the former Wright’s Garage location has been summarily rammed through the Zoning Board, with the full endorsement of our councilmember. I understand that a number of “neighbors” attended a recent City Council meeting to endorse the project. Puhleez, who could take these shills seriously? People who want this kind of “hip” development should move to Emeryville or Concord or just about Anywhere USA, not destroy the character of a neighborhood most of its residents chose for that very reason. No sane homeowner or renter who loves the Elmwood for its beauty and its link to history wants a 5,000-square-foot restaurant and a bar in our midst. When Mr. Wozniak asked for neighborhood “input” into usage of the space last year, was this really what the neighbors asked for? Where are the delivery trucks going to park...on Ashby? Where are the “patrons” going to park? This project and the approval process reek of corruption.  

Nancy Hair 

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RESTORE ROSE GARDEN VIEWS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I recently read the article about the Berkeley Rose Garden titled “New Deal Legacy Remains Visible and Vibrant in East Bay.” The Rose Garden is truly a New Deal wonder and beautiful asset to the City of Berkeley and residents of the Bay Area. A landmark, it is a must stop for visitors from out of the area and a showcase for seekers of beauty and nature.  

There is, however, one important part of the Rose Garden that the city has allowed to deteriorate and literally disappear. That asset is the glorious irreplaceable bay views that visitors to the Rose Garden used to have available to them. When my wife and I first moved to Berkeley in the early 1970s, one of our must stops on almost a daily basis was the top entry to the Rose Garden where we and many others would avail ourselves of the magical sunsets, the vistas of the bay, the topography of Marin County, the skyline of San Francisco, the view of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay Bridge. These were captivating views, always changing with the seasons, the lighting and the time of day or night. The sky and the clouds would literally shower the bay, the hills and the skyline with their beauty. The City of Berkeley has failed to maintain these wonderful public vistas. The city has allowed a grove of trees to grow to unacceptable heights on the property of the Rose Garden itself. The trees have destroyed the views.  

For those citizens who prefer to view trees, I would suggest they merely walk east across Euclid Avenue and partake of the thousands of trees available for appreciation in Codornices Park. To allow the city’s most wonderful public view to disappear is pure neglect. I can’t emphasize enough these are not views from a private home, but are in fact public views from a public treasure. We are not dealing with a private home owner’s enjoyment of view versus a neighbor’s enjoyment of a tree. The trees in the Rose Garden need to be either removed or scaled back to make the views and vistas once again a marvel to behold. This is after all a landmark. I must assume the original planners of the Rose Garden sited the garden in this location and built it the way they did to take advantage of the wondrous views. Per their plan, below the visitor was a dazzling garden of roses. Straight ahead were the most captivating public views in the bay area. Let’s restore the Rose Garden’s wondrous public views to their former majesty. The city is very protective of landmarks. It is time the city protects it’s own best landmark.  

Paul M. Schwartz 

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WOODFIN BOYCOTT 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The East Bay Labor and Community Coalition (formerly Berkeley Honda Labor and Community Coalition) wants Planet readers to know that we now have a bumper sticker urging people to boycott Woodfin Hotels, which you may order by contacting Judy Shelton at beactive@sbcglobal.net. You can pick it up from me, or I’ll mail it to you. If the latter, we ask that you reimburse the cost of postage; donations are optional. 

For those who don’t know, the Woodfin began retaliating against its workers when they asked management to conform with Emeryville’s new Living Wage Law. Management refused for nearly a year to comply with the law and meanwhile began questioning the validity of workers’ Social Security number. Employees whose names appeared on Social Security Admonition’s no-match list were threatened with dismissal, a threat the hotel eventually carried out. Management did finally start paying the living wage, but has refused to pay it retroactively. Now the City of Emeryville is making the renewal of the Woodfin’s business license contingent upon the reinstatement of these back wages, including those owed to the fired workers. 

This may be tied up in courts for some time, since the Woodfin is exploring every legal challenge they can at every step of the process. So we’re ratcheting up the pressure with our bumper stickers. Get one and show your support. And join us on the picket line, every Saturday from 7-11 a.m. and Tuesday from 3-7 p.m. at the Woodin, 5800 Shellmound, Emeryville. 

Judy Shelton 

Eastbay Labor and Community Coalition 

A venom-filled attack on Barry Bonds which appeared in the weekend edition of the Planet is gravely inaccurate.  

Mark Winokur’s letter stated, among other bits of disinformation, that “Bonds is almost universally despised by the fans, but racism is not the root of this justifiable contempt.” Winokur provides no data for his conclusion. Maybe he would be interested to learn that a recent ESPN poll found that black fans are more than twice as likely as white fans to want Bonds to break Hank Aaron’s home run record. Also, it would appear from the data the wild claim that Bonds is “almost universally despised by the fans,” didn’t consider the black fans. 

Barry Bonds is a black athlete in the mold of Jack Johnson and Muhammed Ali. He’s the best in his game, and he doesn’t kowtow. Black athletes learn very quickly that there are different rules for them and, if they won’t kowtow, they will be vilified by the mostly white sports media. This media continually demonizes Bonds for his “attitude.” However, it is well documented that Hall of Famer Ted Williams—like many white players--had a very nasty personality, but the media gave him a pass.  

Winokur states that Bonds had “an inordinate increase in offensive output at an age when exactly the opposite happens to virtually all major league hitters,” but fails to mention that sluggers like Carleton Fisk, Willie Stargell, and Aaron himself hit more homers per at bat when they were near the end of their careers. For example, when Aaron was 39, he hit 40 homers in 392 at bats. Bonds at 39 hit 45 homers in 373 at bats, virtually a statistical tie. 

Winokur’s concern about the sanctity of baseball’s statistics is sadly misplaced. Major league ball parks have never had equal dimensions, the pitcher’s mound has been raised and lowered, strike zones have been changed, and the ball was “juiced” after the 1994 strike to facilitate an additional 1,000-plus homeruns a year.  

However, the biggest obscenity regarding these stats is that many of the best players available during the era when these records were established were not allowed to play because they were black. Records from apartheid baseball remain bogus because Babe Ruth never faced Satchel Paige, Bruce Petway was never given the opportunity to throw out Ty Cobb, and Josh Gibson never came to the plate.  

The real tragedy of the whole Barry Bonds affair is that so many white fans have allowed themselves to be led into this sea of hatred by the bigoted pied pipers of the white sports media. 

Don Santina 

Oakland 

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MOCKINGBIRD 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The phantom bird-song CD. It was dusk; the sun had just settled into the evening’s perennial fogbank in the western sky. I had finally finished a long dinner and I was absentmindedly watching an Oakland Athletics game on television, when I thought that I heard some bird calls coming from the stands. I checked to make sure that my American Bird Songs CD was not playing; no, that wasn’t it. Then I hypothesized that my increasingly senile elderly mind was playing a neat trick on me by converting baseball fan noises (with horns and whistles and whatever) into some background bird calls. 

The half-inning over, I switched the television to the Hawai’ian music channel. However, the bird calls continued. Hmm, now they’re Hawai’ian bird calls? Finally I realized that these calls were coming thorough the open bedroom window. It was the local male mockingbird, perched up on the old rooftop TV antenna, performing one of his evening midsummer serenades, which included a variety of different calls. As we weave our increasingly impenetrable technological cocoons around ourselves, it is reassuring that Mother Nature can still occasionally break in and say hello now and then. 

A couple of weeks ago, this same mockingbird had performed what I thought was a rather odd and cheeky maneuver. For the first time in several months, I drove back home with a gold Oldsmobile sedan, instead of the usual red Pontiac sedan. After I had parked the Oldsmobile in the front yard parking spot, I sat inside for a few seconds of woolgathering, and suddenly the mockingbird flew down and hopped onto the engine hood and carefully eyed me. After a few seconds, his curiosity apparently being satisfied, he flew back up to his perch on the telephone pole wires. It’s like he was thinking: What’s your problem, buster? Showing off your new (old) car? Maybe I should be thankful for having a watch-mockingbird who carefully checks out possible intruders in his territory (and my yard). 

James K. Sayre 

Oakland 

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2507 MCGEE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Every Berkeley property owner, and many tenants, should know of and be alarmed by plans for the building at 2507 McGee Ave., where other senior citizens and I work and live. Soon-to-resign Berkeley Planning and Zoning Director Mark Rhoades seems bent on destroying everything we have here, including a nondenominational temple.  

In 1991, the city encouraged this building’s owner, Dr. Rash B. Ghosh (a great landlord) to buy and fix the building when it was in poor shape, even a declared “public nuisance.” Telling him that the city works with owners who conserve rental stock, Planning and Zoning accepted Ghosh’s plans and fees, and issued permits; he followed those exactly.  

But a year and a half after he completed work that city inspectors approved (Dr. Ghosh has copies of their signed inspections), at a City Council hearing when every member and Mr. Rhoades knew Dr. Ghosh couldn’t be present, Rhoades urged the council to declare the property a current “public nuisance,” although the building is vastly improved, with a new roof, foundation, and more.  

Even now, Mr. Rhoades continues to claim that the owner—who began a small but important non-profit conservation Institute that serves people on three continents—is careless of city requirements. If anyone is doing that, this property’s owner is not.  

Why does Mr. Rhoades insist that the property will go into receivership? Why has Mr. Rhoades named as receiver a developer he works closely with—Ali Kashani—rather than the non-profit Institute, the second mortgage-holder? Why will the city give Mr. Kashani unlimited funds to change the property in ways that benefit only him, but will not help Dr. Ghosh in any way to provide for his tenants? Why do City Councilmembers ignore Dr. Ghosh’s signed inspection reports? Why do Mark Rhoades and company offer the “option” to demolish the building, now that it is sound and livable, but the building’s former owner couldn’t get such a permit, when the building was in unsafe, blighted condition? (City staff said Berkeley shouldn’t lose rental stock in 1991, a need that remains.) 

Do Berkeley City permits have any value? We who live and work at this address worry for other city property-owners with permits, and for their tenants. And we know Mr. Rhoades’ plans for our building will harm us and the city, and are based upon a faulty city order that Rhoades helped engineer. We want the city to allow us to go forward with the condo-conversion the city approved, that Dr. Ghosh paid fees for and got architect’s plans for, and that would remedy every possible “code violation” the city claims.  

Dr. Kenneth H. Thompson 

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PLAY FAIR 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I wonder how many of you have by now been surprised with a $36 ticket on your vehicle, payable immediately, because your residential parking permit sticker expired June 30. However, upon checking your records, you find you never received the traditional renewal notice in the mail, and now you must hotdog it down to 1947 Center Street at 9 a.m. to get that 2008 sticker, or anticipate additional tickets on your wheels. That was the situation of at least a dozen citizens of his fair city Wednesday morning July 18, whose company and grumbling I shared while waiting nearly an hour in line to reach a station to issue the 2008 sticker. 

It is still a mystery whether the lapse in notice by mail was partial or total, whether a new policy, or just a screw-up. There appeared to no geographical pattern to it. And no explanations were forthcoming. However, those who brought their ticket in and who were only ticketed once received dismissal of the ticket. 

No compensation for their time and anxiety expended in the scramble to avoid future interactions with meter maid/men and the City of Berkeley’s ravenous Finance Department. 

I realize that Mayor Bates believes the source of all future unearmarked revenue derives from increasing meters, increasing tickets and increasing parking fees. But hey, let’s play a little fair about it! 

Marilyn Talcott 

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THE IMPORTANCE OF VIEWS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

After recently seeing one massive development project after another approved for the flatland areas of Berkeley, I have one small question: Why is it that the views of people who live in the hills are so critically important that lawsuits are filed over fences that are a couple feet too high or trees that are not pruned back, while the views of people who live down below are apparently not worth anything at all? It is a shameful double standard, and we should not allow it to continue. Everyone has a need for access to sunlight and air and greenery, and it can be argued that this need is even greater in the flats because these environmental amenities exert a moderating influence on the congestion and noise that exist there. Let’s not allow Berkeley to become a city of natural views for the privileged only. 

Doug Buckwald  

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WE THE PEOPLE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The question of what to do about Iraq is attracting tsunami waves of responses from Congress, Bush, cabinet officers, military top brass and numerous “expert” advisors. Conflicting, contradictory and overlapping answers spread into every available media space and, irrespective of political or professional source, most voices begin with the first person plural pronoun, “we”:  

We must stay, we must win, we must withdraw, we must not give up, we must accept, we must force/help their government, we must allow more time, we must change course, we this …we that. 

By definition “we” functions as a place holder, in this case for an unspecified group and yet none of the many voices take the time to identify the referent when they use it to answer the question. Why? 

“We” often refers to an assembly of family, friends, professional associates, political colleagues and such, but not in this instance because the question concerns national interest and the speakers are governmental leaders and policy makers.  

Given the context of the question, “we” can only stands for “We, the people of the United States.” That’s what Republicans, Democrats, Bush and his top advisors want us to believe. But they’re wrong.  

“We,” meaning our legislative and executive representatives, invaded Iraq on false claims, followed inept planning that has left our mighty military stuck like br’er fox to the Iraq tar-baby.  

“We,” meaning an estimated seven citizens out of ten want to detach our soldiers. We, the people recognize the folly and mendacity of our leaders. We, the people can foresee more carnage in the trap the wily al Qaeda rabbit has sprung.  

We, the people want the troops home. The sooner, the better. 

Marvin Chachere 

San Pablo 

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FAMILY VALUES 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

A Republican “family values” politician is caught playing hanky panky with a prostitute. Conservative pundit Sean Hannity is quick to dredge up the ghost of Bill Clinton’s past in an effort to deflect attention away from David Vitter’s transgressions. Vitter himself, trots out his wife in hopes of swaying the media and quelling the growing storm.  

The spectacle unfolding shows another holier-than-thou religious conservative talking the talk while at the same time getting caught with his pants down.  

Ron Lowe  

Grass Valley