Posted Mon. Feb 18, 2008--An officer responding to reports of a domestic disturbance at a south Berkeley apartment building Saturday night used deadly force on a woman who allegedly confronted the officer with a knife, according to the Berkeley Police Department. 

The Alameda County coroner's bureau identified her on Sunday as 51-year-old Berkeley resident Anita Gay.  

Police first responded at about 6:40 p.m. to the apartment building in the 1700 block of Ward Street on a domestic disturbance call reporting that someone in the area was breaking windows, the Police Department reported. 

Police responded to the apartment building a second time at about 8 p.m., when a woman confronted an officer with a knife, the department reported. 

The officer fired his weapon in defense of another person and of himself, according to the Police Department. 

The woman died a short time later, police reported. 

The officer involved in the shooting is a five-year veteran and has been placed on administrative leave, according to the department, which did not officially release his name to the press. He has been identified in a news report quoting an unnamed police source as Rashawn Cummings, formerly with the Berkeley Police Department’s drug task force. 

An investigation into the incident is ongoing, police reported. 

Before she was shot and killed by a Berkeley police officer Saturday night, the 51-year-old woman raised a large kitchen-style knife at two of her daughters, endangering their lives, Berkeley police public information officer Sgt. Mary Kusmiss said on Monday. 

"One can close a gap in seconds with a knife," Kusmiss said. 

When the officer arrived for the second time, Kusmiss said, he found Anita Gay standing on a porch landing of the apartment holding a large kitchen-style knife. The officer brandished a gun and tried to convince Gay to drop the knife. 

Two of Gay's daughters came out of the apartment door onto the landing. That's when Gay allegedly turned her attention from the officer and raised her knife at her daughters, who were standing a "few feet away," Kusmiss said. 

The officer then discharged his firearm at least two times at Gay, according to Kusmiss. 

Gay died at the scene. 

Kusmiss said given the proximity of the suspect and her family members "the officer felt the two women's lives were imminently in danger." 

Police believe Gay was responsible for the broken windows, Kusmiss said, however it was not immediately clear what had prompted the domestic dispute. 

Family members told police Gay may have been under the influence of a controlled substance at the time of the incident. 

Neighbors, in an interview reported in the San Francisco Chronicle, said that they had witnessed the exchange and disputed the police account, saying that they did not believe the woman was threatening the officer when she was shot. 

Kusmiss said that Gay had spent time at the residence but could not confirm whether she lived in the apartment or her exact relation to the two women whom she allegedly threatened with the knife. 

"We think it's important to share that no officer wants to be in the position to use deadly force, and yet all officers are trained to," said Kusmiss. 

The last officer-involved shooting in Berkeley was in July 2003 when a Berkeley officer and a couple of Oakland officers shot and killed a bank robbery suspect at a Wells Fargo bank branch. 

The recent case remains under investigation by Berkeley police homicide detectives and the Alameda County District Attorney's Office. The officer has been placed on administrative leave. 

The porch where Gay was shot has been turned into a memorial shrine with candles, flowers and stuffed animals.

Posted Sun., Feb. 17—Representatives of Oakland’s Children’s Hospital and many of the hospital's North Oakland neighbors danced around each other at a North Oakland Senior Center community meeting for two hours last Wednesday night, with neither side seeming to be sure what music was being played, or even if the band had stopped altogether. 

Hospital officials had originally scheduled the meeting under the impression that they would win the February 5th $300 million Measure A parcel tax, and the meeting would bring reluctant neighbors into a hospital rebuilding that was set to move full-steam ahead into the City of Oakland planning process. 

Instead, Measure A was defeated by Alameda County voters about as decisively as such defeats go (the measure required two-thirds approval vote for passage; instead, it lost 41 percent to 59 percent), and hospital staff members were left facing a hostile crowd in a packed hall Wednesday night with little more to offer than an obsolete power point presentation with plans to build a 10 story new hospital on the existing Children’s property and $300 million short of the estimated $700 million to build it. 

At the same time neighbors of the 100 year old 52nd Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Way research and treatment facility were reluctant to enter a “community involvement” process with hospital officials who they claim broke an earlier promise not to expand north of 53rd Street and who, the neighbors said, “arrogantly” moved forward with the expansion plans despite widespread community opposition. 

State law requires Children’s to earthquake retrofit portions of its existing facility by 2013, and hospital officials have said the most economical way to meet that need is to build a new hospital on the site. Children’s has identified $173 million in state bond money and $150 in private donations to pay for the rebuilding project, and had hoped that the remainder would come from Alameda County taxpayers in the county bond measure. 

Neighbors, while supporting the existence of Children’s in their neighborhood and declaring it to be a necessary facility in Oakland, have complained that the planned expansion would eliminate many homes in the hospital’s vicinity and the planned 12 story tower would overshadow the rest. 

The Children’s bond measure also got off the a rocky start after Children’s clashed with Alameda County Supervisors last year over charges that Children’s had written and introduced the bond measure without prior consultation with county officials, even though the bond, if passed, would have impacted the county’s ability to meet state requirements to retrofit its own public medical facilities. 

Hospital officials had planned to reveal that as the result of a previous meeting held with neighbors prior to the Measure A vote, they had scaled down the 12 story tower to 10 stories. But with one neighbor holding up a hand-written cardboard sign reading “No Tower” throughout the meeting, in the end, Children’s officials scrapped most of a planned powerpoint presentation that included the tower compromise, and substituted an extensive question and answer session. The meeting ended with no resolution, no community liaison groups formed, and only a promise by Children’s Senior Vice President and building project director Mary Dean that she would deliver a request that neighbors be allowed to meet directly with Children’s board of directors. 

Hospital officials also agreed to community requests to set up a joint community-hospital committee to review alternate sites for the hospital rebuilding. 

Dean said the Children’s board was meeting at the end of this month and that while she believed the hospital expansion issue was going to be on the agenda, she did not think that the issue would be solved in one meeting and the hospital’s final plans and direction set. “I can assure you there won’t be a resolution in one month,” she said. 

Oakland City Councilmember Jane Brunner, who represents the North Oakland district where Children’s is located, told meeting participants that “we don’t want Children’s to leave Oakland, so the question is, how do we build the hospital so it fits in with everyone?” Brunner offered to help mediate the differences between the neighbors and the hospital. 

And Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson, who also represents the North Oakland district and who had been one of the supervisors who had severely criticized Children’s actions over the bond measure preparations last year, said that it was “extremely important to have a place in Oakland that continues to deliver care to infants and children.” Carson said he was “willing to put [past differences with the hospital over the bond measure] behind us.” 

Children’s-hired facilitator Surlene Grant began the meeting saying that the hospital officials wanted to “get public involvement” and “improve upon the public process” and that, following the February 5th vote, “we are back to square one, and everything is on the table,” and introduced a proposal in which residents would sign up for “working groups” in the area of infrastructure, exterior design, and community relations. 

And Dean added that “I really hope that we can start over and move on from today. I realize that we lost your trust.” 

But one resident, interrupting from the floor, said that “after hearing [Children’s Hospital President and CEO Frank] Tiedemann on the tube [following the February 5th election] saying we’re going to get our way anyway, what’s the need for this public process?” Another said that it was “audacious that Children’s thought you could steamroll over this community. Is this merely a way to co-opt the community or is the process going to be transparent and meaningful to us?” 

And after Dean said that she had gotten what amounted to contradictory instructions from the private hospital’s board of directors--saying that “the board has told us to move forward with the process [of building a new hospital on the existing site]” but adding that staff should “start at the beginning and look at all options,” including alternate sites--many of the residents balked at any community participation that began with expansion of the existing hospital. 

No new hospital-community meeting date was set, and many left the meeting unsure about where the process will go from here. 

Posted Sat., Feb. 16—Pools, police, pipes, fire prevention, youth services: fulfilling city needs will take new funding—perhaps $30 million. And that greatly surpasses the dollars flowing into Berkeley’s coffers. 

At a 5 p.m. work session on Tuesday, with pro- and anti-military recruiting station crowds chanting below the council chambers’ windows, the City Council delved into the issue of tax money the city might want to raise. The council has until July 8 to put the measures on the ballot for the November election. 

Deputy City Manager Lisa Caronna framed the discussion with a word of caution: If there are too many measures before the voters, they may reject all of them. 

In 2004, there were multiple ballot measures—a utility users tax increase, a youth services tax, a library tax increase and a paramedic tax increase. “All of the measures failed,” Caronna said. 

“We are entering the November 2008 election with national and statewide economic uncertainty,” says a cautionary staff report written by Caronna and Finance Director Bob Hicks. “We are in the middle of a stagnant and declining housing market and the threat of a recession.” 

Most members of the public who had come to address the council were at the meeting to advocate for rebuilding the therapeutic warm pool. “It is essential for good health” for the disabled community, Richard Moore said. 

“I’m able to stand here because of the warm pool,” Ann Marks told the council. 

The warm pool, currently located at Berkeley High, serves primarily disabled and elderly people. In 2000 voters approved a $3.25 million bond measure to rehabilitate the pool, but since that time, the school district decided to demolish the facility. A new pool would cost $15 to $16 million.  

Staff estimated the cost for the homeowner whose residence is assessed at $350,000 as $19 to $20 per year. (This would be funded through a general obligation bond; the tax is based on assessed value.) 

Others came to the council to advocate for the repair of the neighborhood swimming pools and to suggest that the council might want to float a larger bond that would encompass all of the city’s pools—or widening the scope even more to “multiple forms of recreation,” as one speaker suggested. 

Several residents wrote the City Council suggesting it would be more practical to build a swimming pool complex rather than rehabilitating all of the old pools. 

At the city’s Feb. 26 meeting the council will take a detailed look at raising taxes for police and fire. 

Staff estimates that with an increase in the annual police budget revenue of $3.6 million to $5 million, the city could hire 20 new officers and pay costs for regional compatibility for police radios. This would cost the average homeowner with a 1,900-square-foot lot $90 to $125 per year. (This tax and the ones described below are called “special taxes” and based on the home’s square footage.) 

Councilmember Kriss Worthington said he was disappointed that “community-involved police” (CIP) officers were not on the list of proposed new police hires. He said the unanimous council reiterated its support for CIP, described generally as policing where officers walk beats, know residents and merchants and communicate with them easily, and are proactive in stopping crime.  

“I also think whether we increase the funding for policing or not, we need to look at the structure of how we spend the money,” Worthington said. 

Worthington said he plans to bring CIP back to the council table today (Tuesday) at the Agenda Committee meeting (2:30 p.m. in the Redwood Room 2180 Milvia St.). 

Staff is proposing a fire-safety measure “to ensure minimum staffing on all fire suppression companies” to avoid rotating closures, enhance existing emergency medical services, fund disaster preparedness, add a rescue vehicle specialized for structure collapse and add personnel.  

The annual cost would be $3.3 million to $4.3 million; the homeowner with a 1,900 square-foot lot would be taxed $83 to $108 per year. 

A violence prevention ballot measure would raise a more modest $1.2 million annually and would cost the homeowner with a 1.900 square-foot house about $32.  

“I would like to see a bigger chunk of resources dedicated to youth,” Max Anderson told the Planet when reached on Thursday. However, given the mood of local taxpayers, he said it would be better to aim lower. 

Rehabilitation of the city’s aging storm water system would cost about $1.5 to $3 million annually and cost the average homeowner $38 to $75.  

Briefly: 

• The council voted 7-1-1 to refer to staff a request for the purchase of radio frequency measurement equipment and the question of establishing a moratorium on issuing further cell-phone antenna permits until the city’s cell-phone antenna ordinance has been revised. Councilmember Betty Olds abstained and Councilmember Gordon Wozniak voted in opposition. 

• The council unanimously approved going to bid for a number of services related to the Public Commons for Everyone Initiative, including a centralized homeless intake system, a program for youth of transitions (18-24-years-old) age, job training for maintenance of newly opened bathrooms, staff to provide services for permanent supportive housing and the “Berkeley host program,” which would provide people to be eyes and ears on the street, observing inappropriate behavior of individuals in shopping areas. 

• The council unanimously proclaimed February as Freedom to Marry Month “for equal access to marriage and all of its legal benefits and obligations by all persons, regardless of sex, gender identity or sexual orientation.” 

• As reported Friday, the council adopted new language with respect to the Marine Recruiting Station that differentiated between the city’s opposition to the war in Iraq and its respect for those serving in the armed forces and substituted new language into the section of a Jan. 29 council item that called the Marines “unwelcome.”  

The new language recognizes the right of the Marine Recruiting Center to locate in Berkeley. Councilmembers Betty Olds and Gordon Wozniak opposed the measure, because the council had turned down a previous motion to issue an apology to the Marines. Councilmembers Worthington, Capitelli, Olds and Wozniak voted in favor of the apology. 

Held over until Feb. 26 

The council held over until Feb. 26 a resolution sponsored by Worthington that condemned the construction of a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico and also held over a council item that would have staff write Canadian officials asking them to provide sanctuary for U.S. military service members living in Canada who are resisting fighting the Iraq War. 

They put off until Feb. 26 discussing the police chief’s quarterly report on crime and the Condominium Conversion Ordinance. 

After being called “idiots,” thanked profusely, having their manners upbraided, told alternatively during a three-hour public hearing that they were unpatriotic and true patriots, the Berkeley City Council softened rhetoric of a Jan. 29 council item that would have had staff write the Marines, saying their recruiters are “uninvited and unwelcome intruders” in Berkeley. 

After more than three hours of speakers that rotated in and out of the 130-seat Council Chambers and a council debate that extended past 1 a.m. Wednesday—as well as 24 hours of demonstrations that drew some 2,000 people—the City Council voted 7-2 to recognize publicly the right of recruiters to locate in Berkeley, while underscoring its opposition to the “illegal and unjust” Iraq war and differentiating between condemning the war and its warriors.  

Berkeley Hills-area Council-members Betty Olds and Gordon Wozniak voted against the item, having lost an earlier push for the council to issue a formal apology to the Marines.  

Councilmembers Worthington and Capitelli also supported an apology, but voted for the council item. 

Winter camp 

The council meeting came as the climax to the round-the-clock demonstrations that began Monday evening in celebratory style with a “peace-in” at the Maudelle Shirek Building that houses the Council Chambers on Martin Luther King Jr. Way.  

About 40 people from Code Pink, World Can’t Wait, Veteran’s Against the War and Courage to Resist spent the night on the lawn in 14 tents and under the stars, after an evening of spirited singing and salsa dancing, mixed with serious talk of war and peace. 

Dressed in army fatigues, former Marine Jeff Paterson of Courage to Resist, a group that helps military personnel who want to leave the armed forces, was preparing to spend the night out. A sign he propped up on a chair was directed to the Canadian government, where some 200 U.S. military men and women are seeking refuge. “Dear Canada,” the sign read, “Let U.S. war resisters stay.”  

“I’m out here to support people who are protesting military recruiting in our communities,” Paterson told the Planet Monday evening. “I believe if people are going to join the military, they should know the other side of the story. I wish somebody had told me the other side of the story before I joined.” 

Move America Forward 

The protests Monday night and throughout the day Tuesday were set in motion by the disdain of the conservative organization Move America Forward (MAF) for Berkeley City Council support for the Marine Recruiting Center protesters and the Jan. 29 council vote to tell the recruiters they are unwelcome in Berkeley.  

They sent out a call that brought hundreds to Civic Center Park, directly across the street from the Maudelle Shirek Building and the anti-war protest. At least one person drove in from as far as Colorado.  

Illuminated by the glare of TV lights, MAF began its protest at 5 a.m. Tuesday with about two dozen people, carrying American flags, pictures of young people serving in Iraq or those who died there, and placards reading: “Support victory—surrender is not an option” and “Stand Untied America: Support Our Troops.” 

Lisa Disbrow from Moraga was in the crowd. A Blue Star Mom and member of the Lafayette Flag Brigade, Disbrow told the Planet her son is an army officer “dedicated to peace.”  

“Our Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines are volunteers who willingly stand in defense of this nation and every living American, and we owe them the honor that the city of Berkeley has taken away,” she said. “The city of Berkeley is actually harassing the Marines in an effort to look as though they’re in support of peace. They’re not in support of peace. They’re actually in support of terrorists.” 

At around 5:30 a.m. or so, some two dozen people with U.S. Out of Iraq/ ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) placards walked across Martin Luther King Jr. Way from the peace camp and began squaring off with the pro-military group in heated verbal matches that would characterize the rest of the day and night. 

A dozen police also moved across the street from the Public Safety Building and took up posts on the park perimeter. 

By around 6:30 a.m., the crowd on the park side of the street had swelled to around 90 protesters, with three dozen from the pro-war contingent. The Planet caught up with KSFO Radio talk-show host Melanie Morgan, chair of Move America Forward, who explained why only a few dozen MAF supporters were there.  

“We weren’t even expecting anyone to turn out—this was a media opportunity,” she said. “We weren’t expecting anyone to turn up until later this afternoon for our full demonstration and rally that we were planning for 7 o’clock [p.m.].”  

(In fact, by late afternoon there were several hundred MAF supporters in Civic Center Park, bolstered by a contingent of some 60 motorcycle riders from various American Legion posts.) 

Morgan addressed why she is so strongly pro-military. “They are fighting for our interests,” she said. “They are fighting to establish a beachhead in Iraq for millions of Iraqi women who have been beheaded, stoned and raped as a result of tyrannies and dictatorships.” 

The Planet asked what Morgan meant by beachhead, but she said she had to go. 

As discussions heated up, the Code Pink women could be seen stepping between people shouting at one another, as was the case when Scott Conover, who had lost a loved one in Iraq began yelling at a World-Can’t-Wait demonstrator carrying the picture of a person who had been tortured in Iraq. Conover was shouting that the picture was an insult to the dead American fighters in Iraq.  

Nearby, Berkeley resident Andrea Prichett, who teaches high school students at B-Tech Academy, was debating a pro-military veteran: “How many of my students have gone off to war because they couldn’t get a job in this country?” she asked. “It’s either jail, unemployment or the war—that’s a pretty ugly choice and I don’t think it’s a choice you had to make back in your day.”  

Arrests 

Some of the protesters on both sides of the issue became agitated at different points during the day. Berkeley Police sent lines of officers into the fray from time to time to separate the two sides. 

Four people were arrested during the day and charged with misdemeanors, according to Sgt. Mary Kusmiss, police spokesperson. 

At about 1 p.m. a pro-military protester from Rockland, Calif., was arrested for brandishing a knife, booked into the Berkeley jail and released. Kusmiss said Code Pink members had draped a pink banner around the man, which caused him to pull out a knife and allegedly threaten to kill a demonstrator. 

The arrest of two young men, 13 and 15, at around 3:15 p.m., enraged the large number of young people who had joined the demonstration after school. The 3,000-student Berkeley High School is just south of the park. 

According to police, the young men in question were wearing orange bandanas, which made police believe they were “aligned” with World Can’t Wait. At noon, they had gotten into “heated verbal exchanges” with pro-military demonstrators at Civic Center Park, where they normally skateboard at lunchtime. 

“Both sides were admonished by Berkeley Police,” said Kusmiss, the Berkeley police spokesperson. The youth returned after school “and police saw two young men challenging the pro-military group to a fight,” Kusmiss said.  

Believing that the situation might escalate, the officers arrested both young men. Students at the demonstration told the Planet the police had been unnecessarily rough with their friends. Police did not confirm this. 

The arrests sparked anger among several hundred of the protesters, including 50 to 100 high school-age youth, who went across the street to the Public Safety Building, where the arrestees were taken, and attempted to sit on the Public Safety Building steps.  

Their refusal to move was met by about 25 police in riot gear who pushed the protesters back with their batons. 

One woman in the crowd was arrested who allegedly slapped an officer, according to Kusmiss. 

Speaking their truth 

In the evening, the City Council moved through its usual array of business—possible new taxes, zoning questions, air quality issues and more—and took up public comment at about 9:15 p.m., rotating people who wished to speak through the small Council Chambers. 

According to City Manager Phil Kamlarz, police and city management determined public safety could not be assured had the meeting been moved to a larger venue, such as the Berkeley Community Theater. 

Speakers were given a minute each to address the council, while outside a crowd of several hundred reacted with cheers or boos while listening to the meeting over a loud speaker. 

Debbie Lee stood before the council with a picture of her son, a Navy Seal killed in Iraq. “He gave up his life for freedom,” she said, adding that no army recruiter had lied to him. Lee asked the council for an apology. “You have offended us deeply,” she said. 

Debbie Parrish’s son is serving his second tour in Iraq. “My son is happy to be there,” she told the council. “He’s not going to come home in a body bag.” 

Several Berkeley residents told the council that its position on the recruiting center did not represent them. “It’s not right to imply you represent all Berkeley citizens,” Roselyn Tademy said. 

Michael Roberts, also of Berkeley, told the council he opposes the war. “You made a mistake,” he said, speaking of opposition to the recruiting center. “Young people have a right to choose” the military. 

Jeff Thompson was among several UC Berkeley students who are veterans and spoke to the council. “We need to recruit students into the military, he said. “We need educated people in the military.” 

San Ramon Assemblyman Guy Houston, who is calling for the state legislature to cut Berkeley’s state transportation funds as punishment for its anti-recruiter stance, told the council that it has “embarrassed the country.” (The council did not respond, but the mayor earlier in the week called the legislation “demagoguery.”) 

Dozens of speakers thanked the council for its support. Jean Stewart from El Sobrante was among them: “I want to express gratitude for your courageous and gutsy stand,” she said, noting that recruiters don’t tell young people they may come home maimed or in body bags. “It shocks me that more city councils haven’t done what you’ve done,” she added. 

Several Berkeley High students spoke out, including Rose Goldstein, 14, and Giovanni Jackson. Jackson told the council students had “braved police batons” earlier in the day. “There are a million Iraqis who are dead,” he said. “We’re determined to shut down the recruiting station.” 

Sharon Kufeldt, vice-president of Veterans for Peace, told the council that incidents of rape and abuse of potential recruits by recruiters has meant that when recruiters now interview women, they must do so in pairs. “I’m not anti-military,” said the veteran. “I’m not anti-Marine.” 

Former U.S. poet laureate Robert Hass, a UC Berkeley professor, was among the grateful Berkeley residents. “I’m proud to be part of Berkeley, to say thank you to you,” he said, noting that the council stance will be recorded as “one of the honorable chapters” in Berkeley history. 

Responding to threats by legislators to cut off state and federal funds, Jennifer Kidder of Berkeley said that instead of slashing funds, congress should be cutting off the flow of recruits to war. “I am so proud of you,” she told the council. 

“We love you,” Berkeley resident George Lippman told the council. “You represent the best in Berkeley—don’t turn back; don’t recant.” 

Berkeley resident Claire Greensfelder praised the council for the “unintended consequence—a dialog about the war on national TV.” 

Councilmember Dona Spring responded in kind later in the evening. “I’m so proud of those who came out to speak tonight,” she said. “We burn a light for the rest of the world.”

For a brief moment Tuesday, the warpaint and angry threats outside Maudelle Shirek Old City Hall gave way to sporadic bursts of festivity. 

Around 8 p.m.—an hour before the City Council would meet to discuss rescinding their statement regarding the Marine Recruiting Center—a group of young people from Youth and Student Answer Coalition and Students for Justice in Palestine took to the streets to dance to Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It.” 

Around 30 teenagers rebelled against the riot cops brought in from the Berkeley Police Department, the Oakland Police Department and the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department, when they were told to vacate the street in front of Martin Luther King Jr. Park, by dancing wildly in front of them.  

There was some hip-hop, some leaps and jumps, and even a few kung-fu moves. 

“Move,” ordered the police, pushing a group of young girls on the pavement with batons and plexiglass shields. 

“We’ve got the right to choose and there ain’t no way we’ll lose it,” sang the girls, pushing back. “This is our life, this is our song, we’ll fight the powers that be, just don’t pick our destiny, ’cause you don’t know us, you don’t belong.” 

Their lyrics pretty much summed up the mood for the evening, and sent out a clear message to the police officers. 

“We are dancing for peace,” said Mahaliya, a UC Berkeley student and a member of Students for Justice in Palestine. 

“We are trying to resist the recruiters ... The police have been hitting young people,” she said. “It’s been really violent. A student from Berkeley High was thrown to the ground. The cops have been completely protecting the right-wing people and ignoring the youth of color who are out here today.” 

Maya Nadjiela, a member of Student Answer Coalition, nodded in agreement. 

“I am out here to support my family, my community,” she said. “And this is how we are being treated.” 

The mood inside the City Hall grew tense when officers from the Oakland Police Department and the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department were spotted marching in front of the building around 9.30 p.m. 

“Why are they here?” asked one of the councilmember’s aides. “What do they think is going to happen?” Nobody knew the answer, but for a brief minute, people wondered if it had been a smart move to bring in so many riot police into the city. 

Homeless advocate Michael Diehl said the presence of the police officers had intimidated people the whole day. 

“The cops want to take back the streets,” he said. “And they are being very martial about it.” 

Diehl, who had been waiting to speak at the meeting since morning, said he was against the war. 

“I am already doing post-traumatic-stress therapy with my generation, the people who came back from the Vietnam war, and now we are doing it all over again,” he said. “I am not against having the Marine Recruiting Center in the city ... It’s a good way to revive the anti-war movement, but we should also be able to talk.” 

Once City Council started their discussion on the January 29 vote telling the Marines they were unwelcome in the city, only a handful stayed behind to listen to the live audio telecast outside. A pink “Women Still Say No to War” flag fluttered in the background, reminding people of how it all began five months ago outside a tiny, nondescript storefront on Shattuck Square.  

A woman ran across the police line waving a life-sized poster which read “Stop Bush’s War Pimps.” 

“I saw the police pushing people ... the pro-resolution people,” said Renay Davis, who was handing out fliers and other information at the Code Pink booth. “They were not being violent or anything, but putting their hands on people and telling them to move back. I don’t think people liked that very much.” 

Right before the council meeting started, anxious anti-war demonstrators came up to Davis and inquired about speaking at the meeting. 

“Is my name in there?” asked Charles Brown. “And my friend wants to speak too.” 

“There are 69 names on this list, but it’s only one of many lists,” said Davis, putting down Brown’s name. “It’s incredible how long people have waited to speak today.” 

Pro-war supporters—made up mainly of Move Forward America members—carried “God Bless Our Troops” placards and pictures of Marines with their mouth taped on the lawn throughout the evening.  

Deb Johns from Roseville carried a portrait of her son U.S. Marine officer Sgt. William Johns, who is currently doing his third tour of duty in Iraq. 

Debbie Lee spoke about her son Marc Allen Lee—the first U.S. Navy seal to be killed in Iraq—to cheers from those condemning the council’s resolution. 

“I wrote to the mayor but did not hear back,” she said. “I am appalled at what the City Council has done, and I will fight till my last breath to protect the Marines.”

The angry cries of several hundred Pacific Steel workers eclipsed the sound of bullhorns and jeers from the pro- and anti-war demonstrators outside the Old City Hall Tuesday to hear the Berkeley City Council rescind their resolution on the Marine Recruiting Center. 

The workers turned up with families, friends and local activists around 7 p.m. to protest Berkeley Councilmember Linda Maio’s proposal to declare the West Berkeley-based foundry a “public nuisance” and refer it to the city’s Zoning Adjustments Board for odor abatement. 

After an hour-long public hearing, the council voted unanimously to enter into an agreement with Pacific Steel to cut odor and emissions within a specific timeline. 

“We don’t support the war in Iraq and we don’t support the council’s effort to drive us out of the city,” said Union Local 164B Vice President Ignacio De La Fuente to roars of approval from his supporters. 

De La Fuente addressed the union members from the City Hall steps while officers from the Berkeley Police Department controlled the crowd clustered inside metal barricades. 

Only 20 people were allowed to address the council on the matter. The rest egged them on with applause and cheers as they heard the live telecast from the lawn. 

The group contended that if the city mandates conditions on the plant’s current permit, it might force the company to shut its Second Street site.  

Pacific Steel laid off around 30 workers on Friday, claiming that clients were canceling orders due to the uncertainty of the company’s future. De La Fuente had told the Planet last week that the plant had fired 60 workers (a figure that was confirmed by Pacific Steel’s spokesperson at the time), but he halved that figure on Tuesday (which was also confirmed as the accurate number by the company on Thursday).  

“One of our biggest clients, PAC Car, said they don’t want to do business with us anymore,” Joe Emmerichs, general manager of Pacific Steel, told the Planet Tuesday. 

“Many of our customers have been with us for decades. They are aware of the action the city is taking against the company. They submit their orders many months in advance of receiving castings and will not tolerate any interruption in supply.” Judy Maldonado told the council: “I, my mom, dad, husband and two brothers all work at Pacific Steel. My second baby is coming ... Pacific Steel is a safe place to work. We can take care of our babies because we have jobs at Pacific Steel ... Please work with the company and don’t destroy our lives.” 

“Move your business out of Berkeley, move to Sacramento,” a few community members called out from their seats. 

Christiana Chan, the company’s environmental engineer, said that a new carbon absorption system had been installed at Plant 3 in 2006. 

“A series of complaints were made when the company was not operating,” she said, referring to odor complaints made by community members to the air district. 

Maio said that she had introduced the item on the council agenda as odor complaints had increased over the last three or four years. 

“In spite of the absorption system at Plant 3 the complaints are still coming,” she said. “I have no intention of taking away anyone’s job but we need a balanced approach. The company has had some lay-offs but that is not what I intended.” 

“I am very angry that Pacific Steel said it lost 30 jobs because of this,” said Mayor Tom Bates. “That is so much B.S.” 

Councilmember Kriss Worthington called the council agenda item “fatally flawed.” 

“I do respect the intention and effort to get attention, but the report is not based on any facts,” he said. 

Bates criticized Worthington for his comment. 

“Mr. Worthington, you have two of the most outrageous things in agenda items 16 and 17,” he said, referring to Worthington’s proposal to proclaim February 2008 as Freedom to Marry month in Berkeley and a recommendation to send a letter to Canadian officials requesting sanctuary for U.S. war resistors respectively. 

“For you to say we cannot have this on the agenda is outrageous,” Bates said. 

Worthington condemned what he said was “very anti-neighborly” behavior on council’s part. 

“The hundreds who are here for the item are standing outside,” he said. “That is so disrespectful. This is not a way to treat the public.” 

Maio said that Pacific Steel had been informed Friday that the item would be pulled off the council agenda. 

“And they still showed up,” she said.  

“We should not blame the public for coming here,” Worthington said to applause from the workers. “This is what democracy looks like.” 

Pacific Steel recently submitted an odor- control plan to the air district which is currently awaiting approval. 

Ye Lian Li, who immigrated from Thailand to the United States 22 years ago, thanked Pacific Steel for taking care of its workers. 

“Pacific Steel gave me a chance to learn English,” she said. “My children went to college because of it. If I lose my job, I won’t be able to pay my mortgage. Pacific Steel is our life.” 

Workers in hard hats who worked directly with the foundry’s air system testified about the company’s efforts to improve the environment. 

Paul Cox, who lives down the street from Pacific Steel, testified that odor from the plant has reduced over the years. 

“It used to stink more before,” he said. “But it seldom does now ... We need to work hard to keep those blue-collar jobs in Berkeley.” 

LA Wood, who tested air samples taken near the foundry as part of the West Berkeley Community Monitoring Project last year, said that community did not want Pacific Steel to leave Berkeley. 

“This is not about driving the workers out,” he told the Council, “It’s about odor abatement.” 

At around 1:15 a.m. Wednesday, a weary council passed a motion 7-2 which effectively reversed the council’s vote to tell the Marines they are “unwelcome intruders.” They refused, however, to issue an apology to the Marines. 

The intent of the new council item, sponsored by Mayor Tom Bates and councilmembers Max Anderson, Linda Maio and Darryl Moore, was to “publicly differentiate between the city’s documented opposition to the unjust and illegal war in Iraq and our respect and support for those serving in the armed forces.” 

The item goes on to affirm “the recruiter’s right to locate in our city and the right of others to protest or support their presence” and reiterates “respect and support” for people in the armed forces, underscoring: “We strongly oppose the war and the continued recruitment of our young people into this war.” 

Councilmembers Betty Olds and Gordon Wozniak opposed the measure, principally because it did not include an apology to the military for what they said was offensive language contained in the Jan. 29 council item. 

Two weeks ago, the council approved two items relative to the Marine Recruiting Center. One accorded the anti-war organization Code Pink a parking space and sound permit from noon to 4 p.m. on Wednesdays. 

The other had three parts: One took aim at the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” rules, asking the city attorney to research whether the recruiting center must adhere to Berkeley’s anti-discrimination laws; the second and most controversial section asked the city manager to write the Marines, telling them they are “unwelcome intruders;” and the third part supports protesters’ efforts to impede recruitment. 

The vote Tuesday night cancels the Jan. 29 council direction to the city manager to write to the Marines, telling them they are unwelcome.  

“With the issuance of this statement, there is no need to send the letter to the Marine Corps that the City Council approved on January 29,” Tuesday’s council-approved item says. 

Much of the council discussion at the meeting Tuesday was an attempt to publicly clear up distortions of the Jan. 29 council action, which Anderson said were intentional right-wing mischaracterizations.  

The council addressed the issue of the parking space given to Code Pink as a street-event permit Wednesdays, noon-to-4 p.m. for six months. 

Reversing the opinion he had expressed by his vote Jan. 29 in favor of the parking space, Councilmember Laurie Capitelli told the council: “It is inappropriate for government to grant privileges to one group.” 

Bates, however, said such a space is available to other groups requesting such a permit.  

Councilmember Dona Spring pointed to a berth at the Marina, which was once given free to the Sea Scouts (revoked because of their affiliation with the Bay Scouts’ discrimination against gays and atheists), reminding the council that they accord privileges to various groups every day. 

Bates also addressed the question of separating opposition to the war from opposition to the military. 

“The recruiting is the problem for us because we don’t support the war,” he said. “When you’re recruiting, you’re taking our young people into a war that we don’t think is proper.” 

Berkeley even supports the troops financially by paying the difference in salary between the military and the city salaries and giving full benefits to employees in the military, Bates said. 

Councilmember Kriss Worthington introduced the question of issuing an apology for the Jan. 29 council item’s “inflammatory and outrageous language.”  

“I believe we owe an apology for having made a mistake,” he said.  

Councilmember Gordon Wozniak agreed. “We insulted the Marines,” he said, adding, “Individuals have the right to choose whether they volunteer for the Marines.” 

Wozniak went on to take aim at his council colleagues: “We’re embarrassed,” he said, “To err is human, but to really screw up takes the Berkeley City Council.” 

Olds agreed that an apology was in order, noting that her constituents disagreed with the council. The right thing to do is to put pressure on congress to end the war, she said. 

“Insulting the Marines won’t stop the war,” she said. 

Anderson, an ex-Marine, said he was firmly opposed to issuing an apology. “I don’t think we owe anyone an apology. We told truth to power and power reacted,” he said. “They organized a hateful letter-writing campaign. They cursed us on the phone. The right-wing bloggers and talk-show hosts that fed this frenzy knew quite well that as a city we don’t have the authority to evict the Marine Corps from their offices. We never called for their eviction. We asked them to leave voluntarily.” 

Councilmember Dona Spring said the problem had been hyped by the right-wing media and no apology was warranted. 

The call for an apology did not muster the five votes it needed to pass: only Capitelli, Olds, Worthington and Wozniak supported it.

One of the councilmembers most associated with the drive to increase affordable housing in Oakland believes that after more than a year, the council may be deadlocked on the issue and unable to make any changes. 

District One Councilmember Jane Brunner (North Oakland) made the remarks in an interview on the eve of a special Tuesday afternoon Council hearing dedicated exclusively to trying to come up with a compromise affordable-housing proposal. The meeting will be held at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 19, in council chambers at Oakland City Hall. 

While indicating that she had not completely given up hope, and would continue to work for a resolution, a somewhat dejected-sounding Brunner said last Wednesday night that “I don’t believe that we are going to be able to get anything passed even in the areas where we are in agreement. I think that both sides will want a complete package passed, or nothing. That’s the way it looks right now.” 

The eight-member council has been deadlocked for more than a year on proposals by Brunner and Councilmember Jean Quan (Glenview-Montclair) for an Oakland inclusionary zoning ordinance, and on a proposal by Councilmember Desley Brooks (East Oakland) for changes in the existing condominium conversion law. 

Failure of the Council to come to agreement on any of the issues would mean that the existing condominium conversion ordinance remains in place, untouched, while Oakland would not have an inclusionary zoning ordinance. 

Under inclusionary zoning, which is already in place in most East Bay cities, a city mandates that publicly funded residential development of certain sizes set aside a portion of their units to be “affordable” for low to moderate income renters. There are wide differences from proposal to proposal, and from city to city, on what is considered “affordable,” and how many units should be set aside for that purpose. 

Condominium conversion ordinances allow property owners to convert rental apartments to occupant-owner units. Brooks proposed changes to Oakland’s ordinance to make it easier for such conversions, which Brooks believes would lead to more home ownership by current low- to moderate-income Oakland residents. 

Critics of the Brunner-Quan inclusionary zoning ordinance said that the proposal would dry up new residential construction in Oakland. Critics of the Brooks condominium conversion proposal say that her suggested changes would so lower the number of existing rental units in Oakland that many low to moderate income renters would be driven out of the city. 

When Council deadlocked 4-4 on both issues in the waning days of the administration of Mayor Jerry Brown,councilmembers decided to let a special citizens’ Blue Ribbon Commission on Affordable Housing vet the proposals. After a year of public meetings around Oakland, the Blue Ribbon Commission could only agree on a watered-down version of inclusionary zoning, and could not agree on a condominium conversion proposal at all. That put the issue back in the hands of Council. 

Under Oakland’s strong mayor form of government, the mayor is authorized to vote to break a Council tie. But a tie on either the inclusionary zoning ordinance or condominium conversion changes is unlikely, since councilmembers long ago learned how to kill deadlocked proposals without the mayor’s intervention by strategic abstentions, avoiding tie votes. 

The Community and Economic Development Committee, which Brunner chairs, and through which the housing proposals go, had been reluctant to move forward with a discussion of the two issues before Mayor Ron Dellums delivered a promised comprehensive housing proposal. 

Last week, the mayor forwarded his proposals to the council, including specific recommendations on inclusionary zoning, condominium conversion, Oakland’s rent- adjustment program, foreclosed properties’ rehabilitation, homebuyer and homeowner rehab program changes, and expansion of affordable housing and homeless-relief funding sources. 

In a cover letter to the council, Dellums said he was calling for “adopting an inclusionary zoning ordinance to ensure that private development yields community benefits in the form of affordable housing,” “modifying the condo conversion ordinance to create opportunities for tenant purchase and affordable homeownership for moderate income households, with strong tenant assistance measures, while protecting the rental housing stock from conversion to condominiums that Oaklanders can’t afford,” “expanding funding for preservation and development of affordable housing for very low and low income households,” and “restricting the city’s housing development funding to assist households with incomes less than 60 percent of area median income and expand homeownership programs for purchase and rehabilitation to reach households up to 100 percent of median income.” 

But sorting out the differences between the various proposals now on the table can be a dizzying prospect for all but those who are housing policy experts or have followed the Oakland issue from the beginning. 

In a spreadsheet developed by Brunner and now expanded by Dellums’ office to include the mayor’s proposals, there are now four separate proposals on inclusionary zoning listed: one each by the Blue Ribbon Commission, the Oakland People’s Housing Coalition, Brunner, and Dellums. The condominium conversion proposals include two more: Oakland’s existing ordinance and the two minority reports submitted by the divided Blue Ribbon Commission. The differences between those various proposals—some major, some relatively minor—are expected to be the foundation of the debate and discussion at next Tuesday’s special City Council hearing. 

A sharp schism between city staff and veterans of the panel charged with formulating policies for a new city density bonus law revealed itself at the Planning Commission Wednesday night. 

The heart of the issue is just what the city can and cannot require of developers who say they can’t build their projects unless the city waives some of its restrictions on the size and shape of their projects. 

Only one developer attended the Wed-nesday night session, but Chris Hudson is one half of the team that created the project that sparked creation of the Joint Density Bonus Subcommittee. 

Hudson McDonald LLC is developing the “Trader Joe’s building” at 1885 University Ave., which has become the target of a lawsuit filed by neighbors, including Steve Wollmer, a Housing Advisory Commission (HAC) appointee to the density- bonus subcommittee. 

The two legal adversaries sat separated from each other by a single row of folding chairs. 

The Trader Joe’s project—called “The Old Grove” by its developers because it’s on the corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Way, formerly Grove Street—won a city permit to rise to its projected five stories—one more than current zoning allows—in part because city staff held that more size was needed to accommodate parking spaces for the popular grocery store the developers said they were bringing to the ground-floor commercial space. 

The subcommittee, originally created by the Zoning Adjustments Board (ZAB) and later expanded by the City Council to include members from HAC and the Planning Commission, made clear that they wanted the law to allow bonuses only in return for low- and very low-income tenant housing. 

“I would call for a density penalty,” said Hillegass Avenue resident George Oram during the public comment period. 

“I agree,” said Bruce Kaplan, the manager and part owner of Looking Glass Photo & Camera, a 34-year-old Telegraph Avenue business. 

While acting City Attorney Zach Cowan and acting Land Use Manager Debra Sanderson say the subcommittee’s recommendations go beyond what the law allows, subcommittee members point to similar or-dinances already in place in San Rafael, Santa Monica, Los Angeles and—closer to home—San Leandro, Albany and El Cerrito. 

Those governments use what subcommittee members have called a “two-menu approach,” one that places different requirements on developers, depending on the level of legal exemptions they seek. 

While a base menu allows exemptions for moderate exceptions for development standards, the second menu demands that developers submit financial evidence proving their projects aren’t feasible without significant deviations from zoning standards. 

Bob Allen, a ZAB member and architect who served on the subcommittee, urged commissioners “to keep your eye on the big picture because it’s such a messy and complex issue.” 

Allen said ZAB created the subcommittee initially “because we felt we didn’t have control over our own zoning” because the state density bonus law preempted city regulations absent a city density bonus ordinance. 

“We have to approve buildings 35 percent larger than anything” in the existing zoning code, “and neighbors there are really angry, and reasonably so,” Allen said. “They had no idea when they bought their homes that they would get projects this size” in the immediate neighborhood. 

“We want to get some way that we’re actually in the driver’s seat of what goes on,” because “state law has obliterated the intent of our zoning law,” he said. 

The subcommittee proposals would grant developers a maximum 40 percent bonus, but only if they provided affordable housing and financial data to back their claims that the bonus was needed to make their buildings economically feasible. 

Wollmer said the staff memo challenging the legality of two-memo approach was “somewhat deficient,” and called Cowan’s legal opinion “the equivalent of a signing statement.” 

“We think we have provided enough op-tions for a developer to achieve their dens-ity bonus with the least detriment to neighbors,” he said. 

“I hope you take the subcommittee’s recommendations very seriously,” said HAC Chair and subcommittee member Jesse Arreguin, charging that currently city policy had hindered development of affordable housing in commercial projects, while market rate units had multiplied. 

He cited the 25 market rate units granted Hudson McDonald for commercial parking in the Trader Joe’s project. 

“I’m that pesky developer at 1885 University, and I got the density bonus to make the project viable—not for any particular element,” said Hudson, who said that “almost every project since 1997 has contained affordable units.” 

Without the bonus, he said, Berkeley probably wouldn’t be getting any new housing at all, while the subcommittee’s proposals “are really down-zoning.” 

Because of current economic conditions, he said, “the pace of applications is going to slow down dramatically. There’s no money, and there is a slowdown in demand,” making it a good time “for more holistic planning,” he said. 

Commissioner Gene Poschman challenged the developer, stating that Berkeley’s first density bonus project came in 2003, not 1997, under former Planning Manager Mark Rhoades. He said less that 14 percent of new units in commercial projects were reserved for low- and very low-income tenants.  

Sanderson disagreed, saying “there are some myths in Berkeley about what is being built and about the size of the units.” 

Commissioner Harry Pollack, a land-use attorney, said the tension boiled down to the conflict between the state density bonus law and ZAB’s desire to manage projects. 

“There’s a lot of tension here about this issue. I understand it, but I don’t think it’s helpful,” he said. 

Prop 90 concerns 

What makes the matter more urgent, said Commissioner and subcommittee member Gene Poschman, is the looming deadline mandated by Proposition 98 on the June state ballot. 

That measure is a revised version of Proposition 90, which was narrowly defeated in November 2006, and would end rent control and limit the ability of government to take private property by eminent domain. 

Proposition 90 allowed property owners to sue governments for any laws that reduced the maximum possible profits they could extract from their properties, which included zoning changes to restrict land use as well as outright eminent domain actions. 

Opponents argued that Proposition 90 would have effectively prevented California cities and counties from enacting any zoning law changes that restricted development. 

While proponents of the measure—the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association—claim the new version eliminates that most controversial provision of its predecessor, Proposition 98 would also end rent control in California—which would undoubtedly impact the ability of cities to offer affordable housing in commercial projects, say opponents. 

“I guess I’m shocked,” said Poschman when Principal Planner Alex Amoroso said that staff hadn’t made special provision to analyze the ballot measure’s impact in advance of the election. 

Prior to the November 2006 vote, the City Council rushed through temporary measures to have in place in the event Proposition 90 had passed—something the staff hadn’t considered for the coming vote. 

“I never agreed to put off development standards to March or April,” Poschman said. 

Commissioner Susan Wengraf, another subcommittee member, joined Poschman in asking for a staff analysis of Proposition 98 and its impact, a call echoed by Helen Burke. 

“Okay, we can do that,” Amoroso said.

Southside Berkeley residents came to the Planning Commission Wednesday to call for more parks and protest Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). 

And one, attorney Christopher Lien, came also to repeat his call for regular attendance at commission meeting by a City Council member—as mandated in the commission’s own enabling statue. 

Last month Lien presented the commission with a copy of the city ordinance establishing the commission, which in-cludes the requirement that a councilmember attend its meetings and serve as liaison. 

When Lien asked what actions had been taken to comply, Principal Planner Alex Amoroso replied, “I’m not sure there’s been any action.” 

Commissioner Susan Wengraf told Lien, “My understanding is that the city clerk is in the process of researching the question,” adding that the council has never designated a representative. 

“This is very troubling to us because it seems to us you are not taking your mission seriously,” Lien replied. 

But it was another city ordinance, Measure L, the 1986 initiative that mandates the city to acquire and maintain two acres of parkland for every thousand residents in each census tract, that drew the attorney’s attention to the commission’s review of the Southside Plan. 

Since the plan was enacted as a city priority ordinance “and after paying taxes for 22 years,” he said, Berkeley’s 11,000 Southside residents still don’t have a single acre of parkland, much less the 22 acres mandated by law. 

Michael Katz tied in another controversy to the plan, AC Transit’s proposal to install a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service down Telegraph Avenue from Bancroft Way to San Leandro. 

Katz says his earlier advocacy of the project had been based on a light-rail version of the system, and he has changed his stance. Instead of clean rail, he said, the transit service will run diesel-fueled buses, empty for much of the day, alongside the BART system “to take advantage of a federal subsidy.” 

Bruce Kaplan, manager and co-owner of Looking Glass Photo & Camera on Telegraph, said the elimination of parking along the heavily traveled street would be a disaster for Southside businesses. 

Scott Tolmie, a south Berkeley resident, said notices hadn’t been given to many residents and businesses, including Alta Bates Summit Medical Center. 

BRT, he said, would create havoc for car and truck traffic. 

Doug Buckwald tied together the plan, BRT, missing parks and another item on the agenda: UC Berkeley’s plan to build a three-story “infill” addition to its law school, replacing its southern park-like courtyard with a building to house classrooms, storage and a restaurant. Two underground floors would be topped with one floor above ground, capped by a planted roof. 

The project “violates the basic principles of the Southside Plan,” he said, and violates the spirit of Measure L by taking away a publicly accessible space of greenery. 

John English, another Southside resident, said he was saddened to see the loss of the courtyard. 

Michael Walensky, a Blake Street resident, faulted the plan’s partition of land- use zones, which he said could lead to major apartment projects being built adjacent to single family homes. 

“I’m calling on you to protect us,” he said. 

Linda Burden said the student population of the area had risen dramatically since the plan was first drafted, “and most of these students have cars.” She also urged commissioners to “Honor Measure L. Don’t permit more development until we have some of these parks we’ve been paying for for 20 years.” 

Bob Viener asked commissioners to modify zoning boundaries south of Telegraph. “We want less density, not more,” he said, adding that he agreed with the critics of BRT’s proposal. 

The plan’s original draft was created in 2000, three years after the joint city-UC Berkeley effort began. 

The Planning Commission draft was completed a year later, then amended in 2003. The project has since bogged down in the drafting of alternatives to be considered in the environmental impact report required by state law. 

Principal Planner Alex Amoroso said planning staff will conduct a more thorough review of the plan prior to the launch of the environmental review process. 

As for BRT, the proposal will be the subject of an April 9 joint session of the city’s planning and transportation commissions.

The longtime District One (North Oakland) representative on the Oakland Unified School District board confirmed that she is not running for re-election but denied rumors that she is running for the Oakland At-Large City Council seat. 

“I’m not saying this is ‘it’ for another political race,” Kerry Hamill said by telephone this week. “If a good opportunity presented itself, I would run for something else.”  

But as for At-Large Council, “I’m not considering it,” she said. 

The rumor about Hamill was one of many that have been circulating around Oakland for the last week, fueled by the fact that incumbent Henry Chang has not yet announced whether he is running for re-election. Another rumor involved current District Five Councilmember Jean Quan running for the position instead of Chang. 

Hamill said that eight years on the school board were “enough. It’s a huge drain of energy. I would like to spend my time as a volunteer at my kids’ schools rather than at school board meetings. I was a community-involved person before I was elected to the board, and that’s where I’m going to return.” 

Hamill has children at Oakland Technical High School and Claremont Middle School. She has endorsed Oakland parent-activist Jody London for her District One school board seat. Educational philanthropist Brian Rogers is also a candidate to replace Hamill. 

There were no surprises in the early list of filed City Council and OUSD school board candidates released this week by the Oakland City Clerk’s office. 

Incumbents Nancy Nadel (District Three), Ignacio De La Fuente (District Five), and Larry Reid (District Seven) have all filed for re-election, while AC Transit Board member Rebecca Kaplan and Oakland Residents for Peaceful Neighborhoods co-founder Charles Pine have both filed for the At-Large Council seat. 

In addition, the Oakland City Clerk’s office said that the following candidates—all of whom have been previously reported as running—had picked up candidate packets from the clerk’s office, the first step in the filing process: Patrick McCullough (Council District One), Greg Hodge (Council District Three), Mario Juarez (Council District Five) Clifford Gilmore (Council District Seven), Clinton Killian (Council At-Large) and Jumoke Hinton-Hodge (School Board District Three). 

Delays in making candidate filing lists public this week by the Alameda County Registrar of Voters office made it impossible to determine who has filed for the California State Senate and State Assembly seats. 

With Senate President Don Perata termed out of his District 9 senate seat, an anticipated battle has been set up between current District 14 Assemblymember Loni Hancock (D-Oakland) and former District 16 Assemblymember Wilma Chan of Oakland. In addition, former Assemblymember Johan Klehs of San Leandro has also indicated interest in the position. 

A crowded field is expected to announce for Hancock’s District 14 seat: Richmond Councilmember Tony Thurmond, Berkeley Councilmember Kriss Worthington, Berkeley resident Dr. Phil Polakoff, and East Bay Parks District member and former Berkeley City Councilmember Nancy Skinner. 

But despite the fact that filing for the two positions opened up on Monday, the Registrar of Voters office was unable to produce a list of filings by Thursday afternoon, despite several requests. Registrar of Voters staff members said they were compiling the list but could not explain the delay in making it public.

Rich Robbins of San Rafael-based Wareham Properties won one more victory at City Hall Tuesday, when the City Council voted 5-1-3 to demolish structures at Robbins’ property at 1050 Parker St. 

Councilmember Kriss Worthington voted in opposition; Councilmembers Linda Maio, Max Anderson and Dona Spring abstained. 

It wasn’t the demolition of the old structures on the property that concerned Rich Auerbach of the West Berkeley Artisans and Industrial Companies (WEBAIC). It was the fact that, along with the demolition, mandates for the property to be used for warehousing, production, distribution and repair also disappear—and with it, Auerbach says, the possibility for decent jobs for persons without advanced education. 

“All we ask is that protections be kept on the site [uses],” Auerbach told the council. 

The council debate focused on a disagreement between staff, which said the property had not been used for warehousing or manufacturing in the near past and therefore the city was without obligation to maintain those uses and WEBAIC, which says the property had been used for production between 1987 and 1991 by West Coast Awnings 

Auerbach said he could prove the use on the site by showing staff the business license. But Land Use Planning Manager Debra Sanderson said she was unable to establish that there had been industrial uses at the property.  

“We checked out the information but did not find records,” she said, noting that there was a business license that was “applied for but not finalized.” 

Auerbach pointed out the irony, given that the city had just released a report showing that the future was in “green collar” jobs, but indicating that industrial land for production was difficult to find. 

Auerbach told the Planet on Thursday that the council ruling was “pretty astonishing.” 

Despite the West Berkeley Plan’s protections, land use for production, distribution and repair is shrinking in West Berkeley, he said. “This is directly in contradiction to community goals,” Auerbach said. 

Wareham Properties also owns the former Fantasy Building at Tenth and Parker streets, and is negotiating to buy other parcels in the area, according to Wareham spokesperson Tim Gallen. Gallen said Wareham may create a large campus that would include businesses that are ancillary to the filmmakers at Fantasy, such as editing and audio production. Wareham also owns property used for laboratories in the part of southwest Berkeley near the railroad tracks and owns extensive properties in Emeryville. 

Gallen noted that, although headlines were made when Wareham raised rents at the Fantasy Building, only about 10 percent of the filmmakers left the building at the time. 

The Planet will report on other council decisions in its Tuesday edition.

A Molotov cocktail hurled at a UC Berkeley fraternity forced the evacuation of 50 residents from the Sigma Pi house during the predawn hours Saturday. 

Berkeley Police spokesperson Sgt. Mary Kusmiss said city police and firefighters learned of the blaze in a 4:43 a.m. call from a resident of the house at 2434 Warring St. 

They arrived to find a couch and a front window frame ablaze. 

The caller told the 911 dispatcher that he had been sitting by a front window smoking cigarette minutes earlier when he “heard a loud thud on the house deck.” 

Ten minutes later, after he fired up another smoke, he head another loud thud, and when he looked out the window, he saw two shadowy figures running southbound on Warring, Sgt. Kusmiss said. 

After they had vanished, he heard another sound—a door slamming—followed by the footsteps of another Sigma Pi running up the stairs and yelling for everyone to get out because there was a fire at the front of the house. 

“This man said he was about to walk out the front door when he saw flames shooting up in front of a large front window,” Sgt. Kusmiss said. 

The smoker called 911 to report the thuds and the flames, and a quick response by Berkeley firefighters confined the blaze to the couch and window frame and prevented further damage. 

Once the flames were out, firefighters spotted two bricks inside the window and the smoke-blackened bottle that had served as the body of the Molotov cocktail. 

Investigators deemed the fire an arson, said the sergeant, as well as vandalism. 

“Fortunately, no one was injured,” she said. 

UC Berkeley Police said one of their officers also spotted the flames at the same time as the student caller dialed 911, and had helped the students fight the flames with a fire extinguisher until Berkeley firefighters arrived to hose down the soda. 

Officers from both agencies search the area for suspects, but without results.

Posted Wed., Feb. 13—After being called “idiots,” thanked profusely, had their manners upbraided, told, during a three-hour public hearing they were unpatriotic and true patriots, the Berkeley City Council softened rhetoric of a Jan. 29 council item that would have had staff write the Marines, telling them their recruiters are “uninvited and unwelcome” in Berkeley. 

The council voted 7-2 to publicly recognize the right of recruiters to be in Berkeley, while underscoring opposition to the “illegal and unjust” Iraq war and differentiating between that opposition and those who are members of the military. Hills area Councilmembers Betty Olds and Gordon Wozniak voted in opposition. 

After debate that extended past 1 a.m. Wednesday, the council declined to issue a formal apology to the Marines or to back down on its support for legal protests at the downtown Marine Recruiting Center. 

The vote come after 24 hours of demonstrations that began in celebratory style with a camp-out that included spirited singing and salsa dancing as well as serious talk of war and peace among some 40 anti-war protesters, mostly from Code Pink, the World Can’t Wait, Veteran’s Against the War and Courage to Resist.  

Dressed in army fatigues, former Marine Jeff Paterson of Courage to Resist, a group that helps military personnel leave the armed forces, was preparing to spend the night out. A sign he propped up was directed to the Canadian government: “Dear Canada, Let U.S. war resistors stay.” 

“I’m out here to support people that are protesting military recruiting in our communities, Paterson told the Daily Planet. “I believe if people are going to join the military, they should know the other side of the story. I wish somebody had told me the other side of the story before I joined.” 

The protests Monday night and Tuesday had been sparked by conservative Move America Forward’s reaction to the Berkeley City Council support for protesters and their call for pro-military allies to descend on Berkeley on Tuesday. 

At 5 a.m. Tuesday, across the street from the camp-out at Civic Center Park, Move America Forward began its demonstration with about three-dozen pro-military individuals.  

Among them was Lisa Disbrow from Moraga, a Blue Star Mom and member of the Lafayette flag brigade. She told the Planet her son is an army officer “dedicated to peace.”  

“Our army, Navy, Air Force, Marines are volunteers who willingly stand in defense of this nation and every living American and we owe them the honor that the city of Berkeley has taken away,” she said. “The city of Berkeley is actually harassing the Marines in an effort to look as though they’re in support of peace. They’re not in support of peace. They’re actually in support of terrorists.” 

Move America Forward allies gave interviews and talked among themselves until, at around 5:45 a.m., some two dozen people affiliated with ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) squared off with verbal matches that would characterize the rest of the day and night. 

Soon people from the camp across the street joined those at Civic Center Park, with Code Pink allies often inserting themselves between individuals shouting at one another, as was the case when Scott Conover, who had lost a son in Iraq was screaming at a anti-war demonstrator carrying the picture of a person who had been tortured in Iraq. 

Police estimate that the crowd grew to around 2,000 at its height and reported misdemeanor arrests of four individuals: two juveniles and two adults.  

There were several scuffles between protesters and police during the day. One of the most notable came after the arrest of the two students from Berkeley High, age 13 and 15, who allegedly had been in an altercation – or threatened an altercation – with the pro-military forces. 

Several hundred people, including some 50 who appeared to be high school age, blocked the police station entry, demanding the release of the arrested. Some 25 police in riot gear reacted pushing back the protesters with their batons. 

What the council decided 

The measure passed by the City Council was intended to “publicly differentiate between the city’s documented opposition to the unjust and illegal war in Iraq and our respect and support for those serving in the armed forces.” 

The item says the city recognizes “the recruiter’s right to locate in our city and the right of others to protest or support their presence” and reiterates “respect and support” for people in the armed forces, underscoring “we strongly oppose the war and the continued recruitment of our young people into this war.” 

Without formally rescinding the request to the city manger to write a letter telling the Marines they are unwelcome in Berkeley, the council item concludes: “with the issuance of this statement, there is no need to send the letter to the Marine Corps that the City Council approved on January 29, 2008.”  

As many as 300 Native Americans and their supporters marched on Sproul Plaza Monday morning after a gathering at the Memorial Stadium Grove. 

The rally marked the start of a protest by tribal people that will carry them across the country in an environmental protest that also targets the treatment of native remains and sacred sites. 

In Berkeley, protesters addressed university building plans and the school’s collection of Native American remains. 

From the steps of Sproul Hall, veteran American Indian Movement (AIM) activist Dennis Banks called on UC Berkeley to return the boxed skeletons of thousands of American natives held at the school’s anthropology museum. 

“Thirty years ago I was here asking the same thing of the university,” he said. “Sad to say, today there are more dead Indians here at the university than there are live ones.” 

Calling the practice of collecting human remains a continuation of centuries of war against native people, Banks said that when he dies, he may have someone “pin a note on my back to say to the diggers and to say to the anthropologists and archaeologists, ‘Kiss my royal ass.’” 

The crowd responded with a cheer. 

Monday’s events began on Alcatraz Island earlier in the day, and marchers will follow two routes as they cross the country, meeting up again in the nation’s capital. The grove was the second stop, followed by the march to Sproul Plaza. 

The next stop for the march is Sacramento, where a rally will be held Tuesday noon at the State Capital building. 

The Longest Walk 2 follows 30 years after the original event, and Monday’s gathering featured two veterans of the original walk: Wounded Knee DeOcampo and Tawna Sanchez.  

Veteran Memorial Stadium Grove protesters Ayr and Marcella Sadlowski were joined by Zachary Running Wolf and other Native Americans at the grove earlier in the morning, and UC Berkeley officials opened the gates enclosing the grove to allow Longest Walk participants to make ceremonial tobacco offerings to the oldest trees at the site, dubbed Grandmother Oak. 

UC Berkeley wants to build a $125 million high tech gym and office complex at the site, but treesitters took to the branches in protest 437 days before Monday’s events, and they remain in the trees despite two fences UC built around the grove and frequent arrests of protesters. 

One arrestee last week was Sadlowski, a UC Berkeley student, who was taken into custody Thursday when she appeared at the campus police office to negotiate grove access for Monday’s marchers. 

Running Wolf is leading in the arrests category, with more than a dozen and several stays in Santa Rita Jail. 

UC Police maintained a low-key presence during Monday mornings actions. 

The greatest disruption came not from authorities, but from a Birthright Israel rock concert sponsored by the campus Hillel group. 

While Native Americans complained of the overpowering sound of the rock bands, David Azulay, a manager for the band Israelity, said he blamed campus officials for allowing two conflicting events at the same time.

Since voting Jan. 29 to support protests at the downtown Marine Recruiting Center and asking staff to write a letter telling the Marines they are “unwelcome intruders,” the Berkeley City Council has been skewered on-line and in print, excoriated in thousands of e-mails, and threatened by Republicans in Congress and state legislature with the loss of government funds.  

While several of the Jan. 29 council actions related to the Marine Recruiting Center have apparently been misconstrued, as evidenced in on-line and print publications, the council item in which lawmakers ask staff to write the Marines, telling them they are uninvited and unwelcome in Berkeley, was clearly understood. It enraged more than a few people and may be scrapped. 

In an item before the council tonight (Tuesday), councilmembers Laurie Capitelli and Betty Olds propose retracting “inflammatory” language telling the Marines they are unwelcome, underscoring support for the troops and restating council opposition to the war. 

Much of today’s action related to the year-old Marine Recruiting Center at 64 Shattuck Square, however, will precede the council meeting, with dueling pro-troop and pro-peace groups out in force. 

The pro-military group Move America Forward has called on its troops to be outside the Council Chambers at 5 a.m. to make their pitch to early-morning news crews. MAF spearheaded e-mail campaigns and petition drives berating the council and denouncing its actions.  

“Society for years has endured the freakish antics of Berkeley dwellers. Naked people streaking in the streets; smelly hippies begging for money as they sing drunken renditions of '60s anti-war songs; adults sitting in trees like a bad zoo exhibit,” says Melanie Morgan, radio talk host on KSFO and MAF chair, writing Feb. 8 on worldnetdaily.com.  

“But the Berkeley City Council and instigators from the extreme left have crossed the line this time,” she writes, calling “anti-American” the council’s “anti-military resolutions.” 

Not to be outdone, Code Pink and its anti-war allies began a 24-hour peace vigil outside the Council Chambers at 7 p.m. last night. 

In its call to people to attend the vigil, Code Pink states: “This struggle is not about the Marines: It’s about the occupation of Iraq. It’s about recruiting our youth to be those occupying forces in Iraq. It’s about the 1.2 million dead Iraqis, the 3,950 dead U.S. soldiers, the trillions of dollars of our taxpayer money. It’s about respecting the right of the people of Berkeley to say no to war!”  

Clarifying council actions 

Precisely what the two Jan. 29 council items actually said, who supported what and the question of a citizens’ ballot initiative restricting the location of future military recruiting stations has become muddled. 

The parking space issue is perhaps the one most misunderstood. 

What actually happened was that, in an 8-1 vote Jan. 29, with Councilmember Gordon Wozniak voting in opposition, the council designated one parking space for Code Pink demonstrations in front of the Marine Recruiting Center on Wednesdays from noon to 4 p.m. for six months and granted the group a sound permit for which the council waived the $36 fee. 

At the Jan. 29 meeting, Acting City Attorney Zach Cowan described the action as according a mundane Street Event Permit. “Anyone can ask for a Street Event Permit,” Cowan said.  

“Any group, whether pro- or anti- war, can obtain such a permit,” writes Mayor Tom Bates in a statement published on his city website.  

Catherine Moy, MAF executive director, quoted Feb. 2 on the MAF website, blasted the council: “We are looking at all options to stop Berkeley from issuing gifts of public funds, such as free parking spaces, and violating the constitution,” she said.  

And, promising to submit a bill to strip Berkeley of state transportation funds (something Mayor Tom Bates called “demagoguery”), Assemblymember Guy Houston, R-San Ramon, said in an audio broadcast posted on his website: “They have granted a private easement, a private right for a parking space right in front of a Marine recruiting station for Code Pink with the express purpose to harass and annoy the United States Marine Corps and their recruiting station.” 

Melanie Morgan goes further in her Feb. 8 worldnetdaily.com piece, blasting Councilmember Max Anderson, an ex-Marine, who, with Councilmember Linda Maio, sponsored the parking space council item. “Anderson has pushed the idea of giving special favors to Code Pink, which has done so much to cripple America's efforts to protect herself against radical Islamic jihadists,” she writes. 

And an unsigned San Francisco Chronicle editorial (that gets 16-year Councilmember Betty Olds’ name wrong) asks: “What is the Berkeley City Council doing by … reserving curb space for the convenience of weekly protesters?” 

The three-point measure 

The second item related to the recruiting center and supported by the council Jan. 29 had three distinct parts: The first asked the city attorney to investigate city options for enforcing statutes prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, with respect to the military recruiting office in Berkeley. The measure was aimed at the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy prohibiting “out” gays and lesbians in the military. The council approved this 7-2, with Olds and Wozniak opposing. 

The second—and most controversial part—directed the city manager to send letters to the local Marine Corps Recruiting Center and to the Marine Corps commander, advising them “that the Marine recruiting office is not welcome in our city, and if recruiters choose to stay, they do so as uninvited and unwelcome intruders.” The council approved this 6-3, with Olds, Wozniak and Councilmember Kriss Worthington opposing. 

Explaining his vote, Worthington said: “It is important that we encourage that part of the peace movement and make sure that we do not villainize people who are forced by economic circumstances to become part of the military. People who are veterans and people who are in the military are not our enemies. It is the stupidity of the people in Washington, D.C., that are causing these illegal activities using our military.” 

The third section “encourage(s) all people to avoid cooperation with the Marine Corps recruiting station, and applaud(s) residents and organizations such as Code Pink, that may volunteer to impede, passively or actively, by nonviolent means, the work of any military recruiting office located in the city of Berkeley.” This passed 7-2, with Wozniak and Olds opposing. 

What the council actually did, however, may not have been clear to some. For example, Rep. John Campbell, R-Newport Beach, announced his plan to cut federal funds in Berkeley saying: “Last week, the City Council of Berkeley voted to oust the Marine Corps Recruiting Station from their downtown office.”  

Most of the brouhaha was directed at the “unwelcome intruder” language, which the council may scrap tonight. Some writers, while shocked at the language, did not hesitate to respond in kind. 

In a Jan. 30 statement on the MAF website, Morgan called the “socialist” council “ungrateful and despicable people” for their vote and referred to Code Pink as “these beasts,” and “Code Stinkos.”  

Rezoning for recruiters 

A group of citizens that includes members of Code Pink are circulating an initiative to be placed on the November ballot if they get 5,000 valid signatures which says no public or private military recruiting organization can locate in Berkeley within 600 feet of a school, residential neighborhood, park, health facility or library. Before obtaining its permit, the recruiting organization would have to hold a public hearing. 

The initiative will not affect the downtown Marine Recruiting Center. 

In a Feb. 6 article distributed by Creators Syndicate Michelle Malkin says the zoning is a done deal: the council “preceded with zoning changes,” she wrote. 

And Melanie Morgan wrote Feb. 8: “To make matters worse, Code Pink has now kicked off a campaign for an initiative that would restrict recruiting centers in the same way cities contain pornography shops. Comparing our military to pornography peddlers is slanderous and outrageous.” 

Library Trustee Ying Lee, former city councilmember and former aide to Reps. Ron Dellums and Barbara Lee, is one of three sponsors of the rezoning initiative. 

“I just wrapped that interview [with Ying Lee] and I am stunned that leadership in a community that opposes the war believes it can deprive the rest of us from the safety and security offered by the brave men and women willing to sign up,” writes Jamie Colby Feb. 3 on Fox.com. 

The Planet didn’t catch the Colby interview, but recorded Lee, a septuagenarian, at the Jan. 29 council meeting asking the body to continue to support the protesters. 

“There is a close relationship between the military and the deaths of American soldiers and the deaths of up to a million Iraqis,” Lee said. “This is our money that is doing this. I personally feel the responsibility of what our tax monies do. I love working with Code Pink. They are not as ladylike as I like to be, but they are making the point that the Marines, who I cheered during World War II, are not doing an honorable job protecting our safety—they are attacking an innocent country.”  

While most eyes on tonight’s (Tuesday) City Council meeting will be on the council item that would rescind the Jan. 29 directive to staff to write the Marines and tell them they are unwelcome in Berkeley, the council has a full plate of other tasks before it. 

Beginning at 5 p.m., while the council chambers fill with protesters for the 7 p.m. meeting, there will be a workshop on proposed new taxes—police, fire, infrastructure, warm pool and more. 

At the regular council meeting, beginning at 7 p.m., the council will consider categorizing odors from the Pacific Steel plant as a nuisance, approving the staff’s going out to bid for services related to the Public Commons Initiative, reviewing an appeal on a zoning board decision to demolish buildings at 1050 Parker St., discussing the police chief’s report on crime, approving a condominium conversion ordinance and considering the purchase of radio-frequency measurement equipment to monitor radiation related to cell phone antennas. 

They will be asked to approve several advisory public policy issues, including opposition to building a wall between Mexico and the U.S. and requesting that Canada provide refuge to military personnel who oppose the war. February will also be declared freedom-to-marry month, which aims at creating marriage opportunities for gays and lesbians. 

1050 Parker 

The West Berkeley Artisans and Industrial Companies are appealing the Zoning Adjustment Board’s ruling that allows the new owners of 1050 Parker St., San Rafael-based Wareham Properties Group, to demolish the buildings and, at the same time, changes the permitted use of the property. 

Rick Auerbach of WBAIC says restricting the property to industrial uses—distribution, production and repair—goes to the heart of the protections provided by the West Berkeley Plan.  

City staff says the property was previously used for warehousing, which was ancillary to other uses and therefore the West Berkeley Plan protections do not apply.  

Auerbach says he has found proof that manufacturing took place on the site in recent years, which, he contends, means that the protected uses in the future will take precedence. 

Public Commons Initiative Services 

The public could miss the importance of the item vaguely titled, “Formal bid solicitation and Request for Proposal scheduled for possible issuance in the next 30 days,” which asks the City Council to allow staff to solicit bids to implement Public Commons for Everyone Initiative services. 

The PCEI is an initiative that calls on police to cite people for lying on the sidewalk, smoking and other quality-of-life infractions and to initiate services helping people whose behavior as exhibited in shopping areas is deemed inappropriate. 

Among the services for which they are seeking bids are a centralized homeless intake system ($60,000), a transition-aged youth program ($100,000), training to clean public bathrooms ($70,000), permanent housing with services ($100,000), and the Berkeley Host Program ($200,000). 

The housing program, aimed at finding permanent homes for 10 to 15 of the city’s hardest-to-serve residents, will be funded at the $350,000 originally outlined in the Nov. 27 PCEI report, according to Jim Hynes of the city manager’s office. Some of the money goes to city staff, who will administer the program and provide some of the services; the bulk of the funds will go to rental assistance. 

The program will house individuals in rental units scattered around the city. Landlords will be paid market rates and clients will contribute one-third of their income, to the extent that they have income. 

Part of the PCEI program—not listed as part of this council item because the Homeless Action Center has been designated the service provider—is to provide advocacy for persons who are likely to qualify for Social Security disability payments, mediCal or food stamps, but have not signed up for the programs 

The Berkeley Host program is intended to be eyes and ears on the street, aimed to “regulate specific objectionable behaviors” according to a Nov. 27 staff report. City staff has envisioned two teams, one on Telegraph Avenue and one downtown, that would work with business associations and police “helping to maintain compliance with laws by providing information and educational outreach, and assisting community members and merchants in dealing with low-level offenses.”  

Toilets, including port-a-potties don’t appear on the RFP list because, according to Hynes, the city has had a hard time finding a place acceptable to nearby businesses where they can place the toilets. As for the merchants opening their restrooms to the general public in exchange for $400-$500 per month, “No takers,” Hynes told the Planet. To date no new public bathrooms have opened up to the general public, though hours have been extended at Civic Center and at the Telegraph Avenue/Channing Way parking lot.  

The captain of the newly formed Oakland Police Department Area One told North Oakland residents on Saturday that the rash of recent shootings in their community is the result of a turf war between the Ghost Town gang and the Acorn Gang of the Lower Bottom, and he intends to “plant the flag” in the Ghost Town section as an immediate step to abate the problem. 

Captain Anthony Toribio spoke to a packed Peralta Elementary School audience at Councilmember Jane Brunner’s regular community advisory committee meeting. The meeting was specifically set aside for a panel discussion on crime issues, but with several contested City Council races on the June ballot—including Brunner’s own District One—there were considerable political remarks as well. 

The meeting came at a time when an escalating series of burglaries, muggings, and a number of high-profile shootings and murders have propelled crime and violence into one of the top concerns of North Oakland residents. Several residents said they had been kept up into late hours the night before the meeting by gunfire that accompanied a homicide at 58th Street and Shattuck Avenue. 

Toribio, who was recently picked to head up one of the three city geographical districts set up in OPD Chief Wayne Tucker’s police reorganization plan, outlined a strategy that sounded very much like the anti-terrorist war strategies in Iraq or Afghanistan, saying that Oakland police have “abated a lot of problems” in neighborhoods where law enforcement resources can be marshaled and targeted, but after the police focus turned elsewhere, “the problems were left smoldering, and when we leave, they reignite. We need to figure out a plan to take and maintain [neighborhoods] block by block so that they are ultimately safe and free from violence. We need to do more to hold on to what we have.” 

The Ghost Town neighborhood sits along the West Oakland-North Oakland divide and straddles Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard roughly between 29th and 40th streets. Lower Bottom is in the heart of West Oakland surrounding the area’s old Seventh Street business district. 

Among the “plant the flag” strategies Toribio said his department has employed or will shortly employ are what he called “quality of life” sweeps of “hot spot areas” of Ghost Town, doing increased probation and parole searches for individuals convicted of robbery or violent crimes, conducting school truancy sweeps aimed at getting potential juvenile criminals off the street, setting up a mobile command post in the community, increasing the time for problem solving officers to walk their beats from four hours a week to 10 hours a week, and conducting traffic ticketing sweeps "to give the message that we are out there.” 

Meanwhile, Chief Tucker and two City Council candidates sparred over how many police should be hired to handle Oakland’s crime problems. 

Oakland Residents For Peaceful Neighborhoods co-founder Charles Pine, a candidate for the Council At Large seat, and neighborhood public safety activist Patrick McCullough, a candidate for the District One seat currently held by Brunner, both repeated assertions that Oakland needs “at least” 1,100 police officers, 300 more than the currently authorized 803. 

But Tucker called the 1,100 goal "unrealistic," saying that it would cost the city $60 million a year to authorize and hire that many new officers. "We would have to close parks and libraries to do so." 

And saying that Oakland already spends 60 percent of the $500 million non-restricted portion of its $1 billion city budget on police and fire services, City Administrator Deborah Edgerly said that the $60 million figure for 300 new officers would eat up the entire discretionary portion of that budget. 

But Tucker said that if Oakland wanted to maintain a constant police force of 803 officers actually on the payroll, the number of authorized officers would have to be increased. The chief said that this was because a new police academy class is only authorized when the department is down 20 officers from full authorization, and it takes 10 months from the time of such authorization to actually get a new group of officers out on the street. 

To maintain an actual force of 803, Tucker said that the city would need to authorize a force of 875. 

Tucker also said he had submitted an augmented police recruitment program proposal to the Oakland City Council designed to meet Mayor Ron Dellums’ recent pledge to have 803 officers hired by the end of 2008. The City Council is scheduled to discuss the police recruitment plan--including a request to use $7.7 million in Oakland Measure Y Violence Prevention funds to finance the recruitment effort--at its Feb. 19 evening session. 

Meanwhile, Pine’s and McCullough’s 300 police increase proposal was popular with at least some of the meeting participants, and McCullough himself received a smattering of applause from the audience when he got up to speak in the public comment section of the meeting, the only speaker to get such a reception. 

And at least two residents—besides McCullough—said the area’s crime problem could be solved by first getting rid of Brunner from the council. 

But in a rare speech at the beginning of the community advisory meeting—where she usually lets residents and city representatives and other officials do most of the talking—Brunner defended her record on public safety, saying that it was she who originally discovered the post-Measure Y vacancy in the city’s police force ("buried in one of the chief’s reports”) and then requested $2 million to fund the city’s current police recruiting effort.  

She also said that she worked to get the police department’s juvenile desk reinstated after the department had shut down it down for a year (the desk concentrates on sorting out which juvenile accused offenders need jail time and which need other intervention strategies), and last year was one of the leaders in the City Council request for six more police investigators. 

But Brunner said that councilmembers’ hands are tied by the city’s non-interference clause from actually moving around police resources as constituent’s might wish. “I can’t direct police what to do," she said. "I can only ask.” 

And Brunner sided with several residents who have criticized police lack of response, revealing that the morning of the community meeting her own car had gotten broken into, and she hadn’t been satisfied with how it was handled.  

“I called the non-emergency number and wanted to give a report, but the operator told me that I couldn’t because the investigators only work from Monday through Wednesday," Brunner said. "They wanted me to go on the department’s website to file a report.”  

Noting that she didn’t identify herself as a councilmember, she said it made her wonder how many citizens were discouraged from filing police reports because investigators were only available to take them three days a week. 

An illegal demolition of a building on University Avenue has made local preservationists question Berkeley’s demolition ordinance yet again. 

The proposed project at 1811 University Ave.—scheduled to go before the zoning board Thursday for a demolition use permit and a variance from the University Avenue Strategic Plan—originally had an administrative use permit from the city which allowed a 1,408-square-foot addition 

But the constuction work for the addition has meant many of the walls and the entire roof are missing from the building. 

“That approval was not for a demolition,” said Steve Ross, secretary to the zoning board. “It was for an addition. In doing the addition, the contractor demolished more than 50 percent of the walls and all of the roof.” 

Dr. Barry Kami, who owns the property, received an administrative use permit to renovate his dental office and add 1,686 square feet on Nov. 5, 2005. He was granted a modification to the original permit in 2006 which decreased the floor space addition to 1,408 square feet. 

The building permit for the modified project was issued on June 8, 2007, and construction began in September.  

According to the city staff report, a building inspector from the city discovered that the contractors had exceeded the scope of work without informing the city or Dr. Kami in November. 

“We informed Dr. Kami about the illegal demolition and construction was stopped sometime between November and January,” Ross said. “The removal of an approximately 20 feet length of wall resulted in the removal of more than 50 percent of wall area which was defined as a demolition under the zoning ordinance. Since a technical demolition had occurred, the proposed construction was defined as a new project and will have to adhere to the development standards for new buildings in the University Avenue Strategic Plan.” 

According to the city’s demolition ordinance, a building is considered demolished when it is destroyed in whole or in part or is relocated from one lot to another. “Destroyed in part” means when 50 percent or more of the enclosing exterior walls and 50 percent or more of the roof are removed. 

In a letter to the zoning board, Dr. Kami stated that the partial demolition of the existing building by his contractor was unfortunate and mistaken, and carried out without his authorization. 

“The contractor stated he removed this 20-foot section because of its severe and extensive deterioration, as was later verified by a City of Berkeley building inspector,” his letter said. “I attribute this error by the contractor to the fact that neither he nor my current architect were involved in obtaining the administrative use permit.” 

Kami submitted an application on Jan. 4 for a variance from several development standards—including minimum height, ceiling clearance, street setbacks and street improvements—and a demolition permit in order to proceed with the proposed project. 

Kami, who has been practicing dentistry at 1811 University Ave. since 1982, stated in the letter that if the board denied him a variance, he would not be able to return to his office to practice because of his inability to fund a project from scratch. 

The property site—which has been in Kami’s family for three generations—is part of the city’s pre-WWII Japanese heritage. 

In 1942, Dr. Kami’s grandparents and their six children were forced into internment camps, and the property was managed by a realtor friend during their absence. In 1955, after completing military service in Germany and graduating from dental school, Dr. Kami’s father built the current dental office next to the family’s pre-WWII residence. 

When Dr. Kami’s grandparents moved to North Berkeley in 1962, the residence building was razed and he took over the property to practice dentistry there. 

After receiving the use permit from the city to remodel the office in 2006, Dr. Kami purchased the property from his father. 

“The fact whether the demolition is illegal or not is still up in the air,” he told the Planet Thursday. “I was told by the Planning Department that I would need a variance to move ahead with the project.” 

According to Ross, exceeding a project’s scope of work either intentionally or not becomes a major problem for the applicant. 

“They have to meet new requirements,” he said. “Penalties for illegal demolition include holding up a project and paying twice the amount for an application fee. ... We don’t get this kind of a situation very often, but when retroactive demolitions like this occur, the zoning board may go as far as not approving the project.” 

Carrie Olson, a Berkeley landmarks preservation commissioner and a former planning commissioner, said that that she feared that the zoning board would give the project a green light, something she said it has done for other “accidental demolitions” in the past.  

According to Olson, developers have used loopholes in the city’s demolition ordinance to get away with illegal demolitions for more than a decade. 

“The sad part is, the city is not really doing anything to prevent illegal demolitions,” she said. “The two I have been directly involved in ended up with zero consequences except a delay for the project. Mark Rhoades, the city’s former current planning manager, told me once that a delay was punishment enough. I so totally disagree, because it gives the applicant the potential for more of a project than the discretionary ZAB process might have allowed them to have.” 

Zoning Adjustments Board member Jesse Arreguin told the Planet that the city ought to take illegal demolitions seriously. 

“There have been situations in the past when the Zoning Adjustments Board has approved a demolition permit after the demolition occurred,” he said. “If the building has already been demolished, then there is no use permit. The only recourse ZAB has is if they deny a new permit or demolition permit.” 

Olson said that she runs across illegal demolitions every year.  

“Once I was on the phone with the planning department saying that I was watching a building being demolished illegally but they are never quick enough. It’s up to the neighborhood to keep a lookout,” she said. “I have never really known the city to actually punish anyone for an illegal demolition.” 

According to Olson, the city embarked on a project to redraft its zoning ordinance almost a year ago to give it more clarity. 

“The last person whose desk that sat on was Rhoades,” she said. “We still don’t have a revised ordinance. The planning commission should take upon themselves the responsibility to finish it.” 

Phone calls to Fatema Crane, project planner, and Dan Marks, the city’s planning director, for comment were not returned. 

Olson recently protested the removal of tall metal-sash windows from an unoccupied one-story World War II-era building at 1050 Parker St. even though no demolition permit had been issued by ZAB.  

By law, demolition permits for any building over 40-years-old in a commercial zone must first be reviewed by the Landmarks Preservation Commission to determine whether the structure has any historic significance. 

San Rafael-based Wareham Developers, who had purchased the property from Pastor Gordon W. Choyce’s Jubilee Restoration organization in June, said the windows had been removed as part of an asbestos abatement project. 

The Landmarks Preservation Commission had asked for the inclusion of the loss of character-defining features in the revised demolition ordinance. 

“If you strip everything beautiful off of a building,” Olson said, “it strips it of anything recognizable.”

The Berkeley Neighborhood Antenna-Free Union (BNAFU) filed a lawsuit in the Alameda County Superior Court last week to stop the installation of 11 cell phone antennas on top of UC Storage at 2721 Shattuck Ave. 

According to BNAFU member Michael Barglow, the suit charges Patrick Kennedy—who owns the five-story UC Storage building—with violating the city’s zoning ordinance and the use permit process by eliminating parking spaces and breaking off-street parking rules, among other factors. 

The suit asks the court to order Kennedy, Verizon and Sprint to suspend work on the project immediately. 

BNAFU members rallied outside City Hall Friday afternoon, carrying “No Cell Phone Antennas” posters. 

“We will continue to make our presence known,” said Barglow, who has been protesting the antennas for the past two years and four months. 

“We have to put these antennas where they are not shining on people’s homes,” he said. “Our neighborhood believes that people, including many children in our neighborhood, have the right not to be used as guinea pigs exposed 24/7 to microwave frequency radiation, particularly when cell phone service in South Berkeley is excellent.”  

In the past, BNAFU has lobbied residents, picketed Mayor Tom Bates’ residence and rallied at Berkeley City Council meetings to protest the cell phone installations in their neighborhood. 

Verizon Wireless filed a lawsuit against the City of Berkeley in Federal Court in Oakland last August for allegedly being in violation of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, after the city’s Zoning Adjustments Board and the city council denied them permits to install antennas on top of UC Storage. 

The Telecommunications Act requires cities to grant cell phone companies a permit within a reasonable period of time and allows the carrier to sue for unnecessary delay.  

In November, the City Council decided to allow Verizon to install the antennas, stating that federal law prohibits cities from denying use permits to telecom companies based on health reasons. 

The council also recognized the neighborhood concerns about the placement of the cell phone towers and the inadequacies of the current ordinance. 

Fighting the lawsuit would have cost the city more than a million dollars in legal fees. 

“It’s total abuse of power by the city,” said Jim Hultman, a member of BNAFU.  

The lawsuit charges the city with “abusing its discretion and failing to act in the manner required by law in approving the permit for the project.” 

On Tuesday, Bates and councilmembers Dona Spring and Max Anderson will request the city manager to establish a moratorium on further antenna installations in Berkeley until the city has an ordinance which protects residential neighborhoods by monitoring microwave radiation emitted by cell phone antennas. 

If approved, the city would purchase RF radiation measurement equipment to measure radiation levels prior to the installation of the antennas and every six months thereafter. 

City staff would also be trained to operate the equipment.

Planning Commissioners will weigh in Wednesday on building size rules and get their first look at a three-story building UC Berkeley plans for the courtyard adjacent to its law school. 

Beth Piatnitza, associate director of the university’s capital projects planning staff, will present the plans that call for a building with two floors underground. Also included in the plans is an interior remodeling of some of the existing law school building once known as Boalt Hall. 

Commissioners will also take up once again the recommendations of the Joint Density Bonus Subcommittee, the same proposal taken up by the Housing Advisory Commission last week. 

The proposals govern the requirements for low-cost housing in new projects as well as the rules for creating bonus space that the city must grant in exchange for builders adding to the city’s affordable housing supply. 

The third item on the agenda is a staff report on the draft Southside Plan. 

Commissioner Larry Gurley has been pushing hard to revive the long-delayed plan, and Wednesday night’s presentation is the first since he began his drive to resurrect the plan. 

The proposed plan, a joint effort of the city and UC Berkeley, was handed to the commission eight years ago, but commissioners last dealt with the plan in 2003. 

Wednesday night’s meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the North Berkeley Senior Center, 1901 Hearst Ave. at Martin Luther King Jr. Way.  

—Richard Brenneman

There are several opportunities in Berkeley this week to engage with the peace process in Israel-Palestine. 

• On Wednesday, at 7 p.m. at King Middle School, 1781 Rose St., controversial historian Norman Finkelstein, recently denied tenure at DePaul University in Chicago, will speak at 7 p.m. on “A Farewell to Israel: The Coming Break-up of American Zionism.” Finkelstein is the author “Beyond Chutzpah: On the Misuse of Anti-Semitism & the Abuse of HIstory.” [At press-time on Monday the Planet was informed that a rumor had been circulating that Finkelstein would be unable to attend, but after checking the event organizers confirmed that his talk would go on as scheduled.] 

• On Saturday, at 4 p.m. on the fifth floor of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Student Union, the Israeli-Palestinian Confederation will host a debate on the possibility of resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through a confederation government. Speakers are to include Rabbi Michael Lerner, the editor in chief of Tikkun magazine and Dr. Khalil Barhoun of Stanford University, Mitchell Plitnick of Jewish Voice for Peace and others.  

According to IPC spokesperson Josef Avesar,“The Israeli-Palestinian Confederation has a novel idea. It proposes the establishment of an Israeli-Palestinian confederation within the broader context of the current Israeli and Palestinian nations. Both Israelis and Palestinians would still answer to their own governments. However, a third governing body (the confederation) set up by both Israelis and Palestinians would legislate issues that are unresolved by the separate governments.” 

• Also on Saturday, Aikido of Berkeley is hosting an all-day training seminar, aimed at raising funds for the non-profit Aiki Extensions Middle East Project. “All proceeds will be used to help bring Israelis and Palestinians together to practice aikido, the Japanese martial art of peace,” according to a press statement by Aikido of Berkeley. For details and registration call 776-4700

With at least two incumbent Oakland Unified School District board members choosing not to run for re-election this year, the OUSD board is guaranteed new faces just at the time it is regaining a measure of local control. 

District One board member Kerry Hamill (North Oakland) and District Three board member Greg Hodge (West Oakland/Downtown) have both indicated that they will not run for their district seats in the June 3 primary. Meanwhile, District Seven incumbent Alice Spearman (East Oakland) has said that she will be running. The fourth incumbent up for re-election this year, Noel Gallo (District Five, Fruitvale), could not be reached for comment for this story, and his plans are not known. 

The District One vacancy has already set up a race for Hamill's replacement, with two candidates, Chabot Elementary School parent Jody London and Brian Rogers, who describes himself as an "Oakland educational philanthropist," already announcing their intentions to run. 

London, the co-chair of the 2006 OUSD Measure B bond campaign and a member of the Measure B expenditure oversight advisory committee, has been endorsed by Hamill, and has set up a campaign web site at www.votejody.com. 

Rogers, the son of the founder of Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream, is the executive director of the multi-million dollar Rogers Family Foundation, which Rogers says is "dedicated to supporting education and youth development organizations in the city of Oakland." A portion of the family's money has also gone to support OUSD's Expect Success!, the operational reorganization that came in during the state takeover. 

In District Three, Hodge is giving up his school board seat to run for the Oakland City Council against incumbent Nancy Nadel. 

His wife, Jumoke Hinton Hodge, has announced plans to run for the school board in her husband's place. Hinton Hodge is a longtime educational activist, the founder of Stand Up West Oakland, an educational advocacy organization. 

OUSD Board members served without power or pay between 2003 and 2007 after the state seized control of the school district. The board won back control over community relations and governance last fall, and is currently negotiating memorandums of understanding with State Superintendent Jack O'Connell for return in several other areas as well.  

When it hires its first local superintendent since 2003 later this year, the district will operate under a bifurcated system in which the board will run the district in some areas through its superintendent, and the state superintendent’s office will run other areas--notably finance--through its appointed state administrator.

Housing Advisory Commissioners are weighing in on one of Berkeley’s hottest political potatoes, laws that grant developers bigger buildings in exchange for including affordable units. 

HAC members Thursday heard from one of their own members who is currently fighting a legal battle against one such project, the Trader Joe’s building—or the Old Grove as its developers call the project planned for the northwest corner of the intersection of University Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Way. 

Steve Wollmer, HAC member and Friends of Berkeley Way litigant, agreed with city staff that the city’s inclusionary and density bonus status needs reform, but he doesn’t agree with some of the policies he said staff take as givens. 

City staff, he said, are operating on 2002-2003 guidelines which they used to allow developers Chris Hudson and Evan McDonald to add to the mass of their five-story project. 

Jesse Arreguin, who was elected HAC chair for the coming year, said he disagreed with the staff’s position that the developers should be allowed 25 more housing units to make up for the costs of adding the additional parking they said was needed to make the popular grocery store a viable business at that location. 

“The city’s interpretation was inconsistent with the spirit of the state density bonus law and with the spirit of the city’s housing ordinance,” Arreguin said. 

By adding market rate housing, the staff interpretation—which was adopted by the Zoning Adjustment Board—didn’t lead to a gain in affordable housing, he said, which is the real reason for the density bonus. 

As one of her last acts as chair, Marie Bowman had sent a letter Thursday morning to City Manager Phil Kamlarz urging adoption of revisions soon, because of the resurrection of the state eminent domain initiative, narrowly rejected by California voters last year and scheduled for a return to the ballot in June. 

Passage of the initiative would impose heavy costs on state and local governments for enacting any land use law changes that could reduce the potential earning power of property. 

Inclusionary housing by definition reduces potential profits by requiring developers to rent or sell at below market rates to tenants and buyers who couldn’t otherwise afford them. 

Bowman’s letter also asked that members of the Joint Density Bonus Subcommittee, formed of appointees from HAC, ZAB and the Planning Commission, be granted the opportunity to weigh in on whatever proposals the city planning and legal staffs eventually bring to the City Council for adoption. 

The subcommittee met for more than a year until it was ended by the council last May, and all its recommendations were adopted by 9-0-1 votes, with only Planning Commissioner David Stoloff abstaining. 

Bowman said one important issue is student eligibility for low-cost housing, and the implementation of measures to ensure that it is only the genuinely needy students who receive it. Given that currently children of well-to-do parents can qualify because they themselves are full-time students and not generating income, one possible solution is a means test for applicants. 

“Upwards of seven-eighths of affordable housing produced in Berkeley is being rented by students,” said Wollmer. That conflicts with the city’s own policy of trying to bring more working class families into downtown housing, he said. 

“We really need to find an equitable way to house students who really need help, but it is not the city’s responsibility to house UC students,” Wollmer added. 

“It would be good if we could get legal opinion from the city attorney,” said Arreguin, who made the transition into community activism from his activism as a UC Berkeley student. 

Another issue is federally subsidized housing, where low income tenants pay a fraction of market rate rents, with the federal government picking up the difference. 

Bowman said that because landlords receive market rate or close to it for Section 8 tenants, those tenants should not be counted toward the current 20 percent requirement for inclusionary housing in new buildings of five or more units. 

Jill Dunner said she wanted assurance that by separating out Section 8 renters, it wouldn’t make it harder for these poor would-be renters to find housing in the city. Dunner also said she would like to hear from city planning staff at an upcoming meeting. 

Commissioner Vincent Casalaina said he didn’t see a problem with requiring a full 20 percent inclusionary requirement. “It’s really a way to have much more affordable housing without increasing the number of Section 8 vouchers,” he said. 

The subcommittee opted for a proposal that includes a pair of menus, one of waivers that could be granted projects without the need for a developer to show financial necessity for the changes and a second set that would require the developer to prove they impacted the proposal’s financial viability. 

Justification would be needed for increase in building heights of more than 10 percent of allowable levels, increase in stories beyond the maximums set for each zoning district, reductions in parking over 20 percent and cutbacks in open space of more than 35 percent, decreased setbacks along residential perimeters, increased floor-to-area ratios and any reductions in size, furnishings, bedrooms and locations of inclusionary apartments or condos. 

Chris Kavanagh has stepped down from his seat on the Rent Stabilization Board, resigning retroactive to Feb. 1. 

An elected member of the board since 2002, Kavanagh faces charges of seven possible felonies stemming from accusations that, while serving as an elected official in Berkeley and claiming to live in Berkeley, he actually lived in Oakland. 

“It is with a profound—and simultaneous—sense of joy and regret that I am announcing my departure from the Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board, effective this past Feb.1,” Kavanagh wrote in a mid-afternoon e-mail Monday to the Daily Planet, before making the termination official with the Rent Stabilization Board. 

Kavanagh’s e-mail touched on his legal situation. Most of the time since his election, he said, he had two residences, one in Berkeley and one in Oakland. But, he admitted, in part of 2006 and 2007 he lived only in Oakland. 

The e-mail said: “Like scores of Berkeley homeowners who own or rent second residences outside Berkeley, since 2002, I rented two separate living spaces: one in Berkeley and a second space in Oakland (located a block from Berkeley). 

“I lived in my Berkeley unit to comply with the city’s residency requirement to hold public office. I rented my Oakland unit because I did not wish to give up a beautiful living space that I had originally acquired through a friend before I was elected to the Rent Board in 2002.” 

Kavanagh went on to say in his letter that during parts of 2006 and 2007 he had to “involuntarily” vacate his Berkeley unit “and was unable to technically comply with Berkeley’s residency requirement. This latter period of time is the reason for the current legal allegations that have been filed against me.” 

Reached Monday afternoon, Kavanagh’s attorney, James Giller, said his client will be back in court Feb. 22 and declined to comment on the case. 

Rent Stabilization Board Executive Director Jay Kelekian said he has yet to receive a formal letter of resignation from Kavanagh, but was told to expect one. He said the board would vote at either its February or its March meeting to replace him. 

Under normal circumstances, in November there would be four rent board seats up for election, but in Nov. 2008, there will be five vacancies on the board if Kavanagh resigns. The candidate receiving the fifth-highest vote will complete Kavanagh’s term, which ends in 2010. The four higher vote getters will get four-year terms. 

In his e-mail, Kavanagh apologizes, saying, “In retrospect, I should have either resigned my commissioner seat or sought to rent a new Berkeley living space as quickly as possible. Ultimately, I was able to rent a new Berkeley space but I regret my delay in doing so. For this lapse, I apologize to my Berkeley constituents and colleagues.” 

It remains to be seen whether Kavanagh’s mea culpa will make the prosecution more sympathetic to his cause. Unconfirmed reports from behind-the-scenes sources say discussions between Kavanagh’s attorney and the district attorney are ongoing. 

The Berkeley City Council will decide whether the odors from Pacific Steel Casting should be considered a nuisance during a meeting at the Old City Hall, 2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, today (Tuesday). 

If so, it will refer the matter to the Zoning Adjustments Board for nuisance abatement. 

Last week, Pacific Steel workers rallied in front of the West Berkeley-based steel plant, denouncing what they said were efforts by the council to push them out of the city.  

More than 100 workers belonging to the GMP Local 164B took Wednesday off from work to protest councilmember Linda Maio’s request to the council to label odors from the plant a nuisance. 

The group contended that if the city mandates conditions on the plant’s current permit, it might force the company to shut its Second Street site. Pacific Steel laid off 60 workers, about 9 percent of its workforce, on Friday, claiming that clients were canceling orders due to the uncertainty of the company’s future. 

“Councilmember Linda Maio made a mistake by not dealing with Pacific Steel directly before she put the item on the agenda,” Ignacio de la Fuente, president of the GMP Local 164B and president of the Oakland City Council, told the Planet Friday. “The plant’s customers started reacting after she put the item on the agenda to declare it a public nuisance. They said they couldn’t trust the company to deliver their products anymore ... We lost 60 workers today. We are concerned about the loss of jobs we are going to suffer ... We are concerned that the city of Berkeley is even talking about any kind of a condition. This company pays more than a million dollars in taxes to the city. If you lower the hours and say you cannot cater to customers, then it will result in layoffs.” 

Maio said she was only interested in Pacific Steel’s outlining a definite plan and timeline to reduce odors. 

“The fact of the matter is the city has been on the sidelines while the air district acts with Pacific Steel,” she said. “I put it on the agenda so that the city can have some authority, a way of asserting itself. The definite evidence of continuous odor concerns even after installing a carbon absorption system in Plant 3 shows that not enough is being done.” 

Pacific Steel submitted an odor control plan to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District in November that has yet to be approved. 

“We all know we don’t want to shut the plant down and drive the workers to China,” Maio said. “They are worried about jobs and we are worried about odors. We need to find a middle ground.” 

“I am not saying everything is beautiful and great,” De la Fuente said. “But there are ways to improve the environment and reduce emissions. But you can’t do it by endangering the workers.” 

Odor complaints from residents resulted in the air district’s independent hearing board enforcing an unconditional odor abatement order on Pacific Steel in 1985. In 1999, the air district removed the abatement. 

“There were very few complaints about odor between 1985 and 1999,” said Karen Schkolnick, air district spokesperson. “PSC appealed to the hearing board for the order to be lifted, and since there was a better inspection record, it was. Since then the air district has continued to inspect and enforce odor nuisance complaints.” 

The air district has also sued Pacific Steel twice through the larger court system to address violations. 

“In the last seven years, Pacific Steel has increased its productions, emissions and odor,” said LA Wood, who tested air samples taken near the foundry as part of the West Berkeley Community Monitoring Project last year. 

According to the community air test results, high levels of manganese and nickel were found at the Duck’s Nest preschool site, located a block away from the foundry. 

Elizabeth Jewel, of Aroner, Jewel & Ellis Partners, the public relations firm representing Pacific Steel, told the Planet that it was impossible to tie the outcome of the test to one particular source. 

The project, funded by the Bay Area Air Quality Monitoring District, used a calibrated pump for more than six months to gather particles on filters which were tested for heavy metal pollutants such as lead, manganese, nickel and zinc by a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved laboratory. 

“We will be requesting a dedicated council meeting on the air monitoring and other concerns regarding Pacific Steel,” Wood said. “We will also ask the city to request further air district funding to continue our efforts for air monitoring West Berkeley.” 

Bradley Angel, executive director of Greenaction for Health and Environmental Justice, told the Planet that the test results indicated a threat to public health from Pacific Steel’s toxic emissions. 

“High levels of toxic metals were found in the air even after the date that Pacific Steel supposedly installed pollution control equipment,” he said in an e-mail. “This shows that Pacific Steel must do much more to reduce and prevent pollution.” 

One benefit of being a woman of (or even over) a certain age is that you can be invisible when you want to be. Women sometimes complain that after they pass 55 no one notices them, which is often true, but the good news is that this phenomenon allows you to assume a “cloak of invisibility” worth of a Harry-Potterish heroine when you’d like to know what people are up to. Wearing nondescript clothes and not too stylish glasses, you can go anywhere and overhear anyone. 

The vastly over-reported face-off between those supporting and those despising the Berkeley City Council’s recent stand(s) on having Marine recruiters downtown provided me with a good window on America circa 2008. What’s always been nice about Berkeley is that you don’t have to travel if you live here. If you wait long enough, the world will come to you.  

A part of the world we seldom see showed up at Martin Luther King Civic Center Park (known in the 1960s as Provo Park) on Tuesday. If you wandered around in the crowd at twilight that night, you could hear many excellent arguments between citizens vigorously and enthusiastically exercising their free speech rights, catnip for those of us who value the First Amendment above all others. What was most striking about the confrontations were the visuals: Unlike similar scenes 40 years ago during the Vietnam war, the two camps looked pretty similar to one another. 

Both groups had numerous grey-haired participants in baggy jeans and T-shirts, the men on both sides sporting a variety of exotic facial hair decorations intended to demonstrate that they were rugged individualists. The women were a bit more varied, with the out-of-towners leaning toward artificial shades of blonde and false eyelashes and the locals tending toward flaming henna if they rejected grey.  

In general, the visiting team kept to their side of the street, in the park, though the home team, assigned to the lawn of the Maudelle Shirek building (Old City Hall), made end runs around the police lines trying to confront the objectors. A fair number of Berkeleyites have also expressed annoyance with what they perceived as the council’s stance, but they’re not the type to join the kind of screaming-mob-in-training found on the park side of MLK Tuesday night. 

The younger people—and there were some—looked a lot alike too. Some had military-style crewcuts, the only difference being that this included some of the women on the anti-war pro-council side. The World Can’t Wait, the group whose members chained themselves to the recruiting office last week, were attractive multi-ethnic youths sporting dashing uniform orange shirts. Code Pink members, skewing older, wore pink, while their opposite numbers favored red, white and blue, with flags. 

There was also a sizable contingent of employees of Pacific Steel Casting, organized by their bosses and their union to complain to the City Council about what they’d been told was the city of Berkeley’s plan to shut down their plant. They made the other demonstration seem larger than it actually was. 

At first they merged with the crowd in the park, waving signs and shouting along with the rest. I asked a couple of them, who gave their names as Javier and Manuel, if that meant that they support the war, and they assured me that they do, but since my Spanish is even more rudimentary than their English I’m not sure we were communicating clearly. Later this group crossed the street and was herded over behind the city notice board away from the anti-war protesters. 

None of it came to much, though someone did set fire to the Peace Wall sign, accidentally incinerating a couple of bicycles. Contrary to enthusiastic predictions and wildly inaccurate reports in the major metropolitan daily, on television and from the Berkeley police, the crowds were small by ’60s standard, not more that 500 people total, both sides, at any given point in the peak time between 5 and 7:30 p.m. Reporters and photographers seemed almost to outnumber the activists.  

I mentioned to one writer friend there how much I’d been enjoying eavesdropping on arguments, and a tidily-dressed little woman who’d overheard what I said came up to me and asked me earnestly what kind of arguments I’d heard. Why do you want to know? I asked.  

Well, she said, I’m a journalist for Newsweek. I told her I was the editor of the local paper, and that perhaps there wasn’t much point in us interviewing each other. It was that kind of event. 

Obviously out of place on the park side of MLK was a young man, short, plump, hirsute and intense, who identified himself as Danny Gonzales. He was one of the few present wearing a coat and tie, oddly coupled with the de rigueur baggy pants tucked into combat boots. He wore glasses and carried a notebook just like a real reporter, probably because he plays one on the Internet. He identified himself as a blogger for Move America Forward, the jingoistic sponsors of the anti-council protest.  

Sampling the confrontations revealed echoes of scripts from wars past not really applicable to the current situation: 

“Take a bath!” from a sixtyish man with a five-o’clock shadow wearing a grimy outgrown T-shirt with a Budweiser logo, to an articulate, stylish (and cleaner) younger fellow who looked like a graduate student. The older guy opined that “the Taliban’s having its ass handed to them.” The younger one said we were losing both Iraq and Afghanistan, but that he had nothing against the troops, that he just thought they were getting the wrong leadership. His opponent couldn’t argue with that one. “Fuck Bush,” he said, “He’s just in it for himself.” 

Another lively dispute was between two African Americans, one a Berkeley High student and the other a bit older, an intellectual type often seen on campus making lengthy provocative statements in the question period following controversial lectures. The young man was arguing for his right to join the Marines if he felt like it, so there! And the other was trying to tell him what that choice would mean, having the usual success of older people talking to those young enough to know it all. Everyone present probably learned something in these exchanges.  

What was most striking about the parkside people was how pathetic they seemed, clearly life’s losers, tricked by a dishonest regime into sacrificing their beloved children, siblings and spouses for Halliburton’s profits. They claimed that the council’s statement that Marine recruiters aren’t welcome in Berkeley would hurt the Marines’ feelings, but no current Marines, a pretty tough bunch, showed up to say how bad they felt. There were some ex-Marines there, men who didn’t seem to have gained much from their tour of duty, more to be pitied than censured. 

The angry letters the Planet’s been getting match the picture: from people who haven’t gotten much in the way of spelling, grammar or history from the educational system, angry at everything, not sure whom to blame. We’ve put the cream of the crop in the paper or on the web, those correctly addressed “To the editor” and signed by real names. The misdirected ones we don’t run, those addressed to the city council or signed by anonymous swaggering pseudonyms, are even sadder.  

Apologizing is a tricky business, particularly when trying to do the right thing has had the wrong results. Ask the Australians, who’ve finally, after more than a decade’s debate, apologized (in their dialect “said sorry”) to their country’s aborigines, for causing a Lost Generation by taking aboriginal children away from their parents in a misbegotten attempt to help them.  

The Berkeley City Council, with the exception of clueless Councilmember Wozniak, had all the right reasons for wanting to tell Marine recruiters to stay away from our young people. Nevertheless, their action caused pain to those who desperately hope against all reason that the sacrifices they and their families have made were not for nothing. After the fact, the council reworded its statement to use more diplomatic language, but should councilmembers also have apologized for the original harsher version? It’s a subtle calculus, with no right answer. 

Comments at the council meeting from representatives of some Berkeley merchants were misguided, however. If the council’s original vote was wrong, it was wrong because it caused unnecessary pain, not because a few blusterers said that they’d never shop in Berkeley again. One Walnut Creek letter-writer announced that his weekly trips to the Berkeley Bowl and Fourth Street were toast. At our house, the reaction was enthusiastic—one less SUV in the Ashby Avenue traffic jam on Sunday afternoon. And I doubt that the angry writers from Salina, Kansas, or Golden Valley, Minnesota, have been keeping Berkeley businesses afloat.  

The sign held by one demonstrator was puzzling at first: “Castro Supports Berkeley.” Was it pro or con? Fidel hasn’t been much of a player in the protest scene of late. Then he moved his arm, and revealed that the sign actually said “Castro Valley Supports Berkeley.” Thanks, Castro Valley. Maybe you guys can take the place of any Walnut Creek shoppers we might have lost.  

Message to would-be politicians: watch out for e-mail. The time-hallowed practice of pitching part of your message to Interest Group A and another part to Interest Group B becomes very risky when just one Group A recipient who doesn’t like what your pitch letter promises can quickly forward it to all sorts of others who really don’t like it. 

That’s what seems to be happening to new Assembly candidate Nancy Skinner, whose number has come up because Loni Hancock is now officially termed out, thanks to the defeat of Proposition 93. She was (reportedly reluctantly) tapped by the Bates-Aroner-Hancock organization as Hancock’s replacement, jumping into a crowded field to join Councilmember Tony Thurmond of Richmond, Phil Polakoff of Berkeley (endorsed by ex-Mayor Shirley Dean and ex-sheriff Charlie Plummer) and Berkeley City Councilmember Kriss Worthington (full disclosure: endorsed by this space and many more.)  

A pitch letter signed by consultant Carole Selter Norris, identifying the writer as vice-president of the San Francisco consulting firm ICF International, is in wide circulation on the Net, and has been forwarded to me by several anonymous correspondents. Norris is a sincere person who’s been active in Berkeley politics for many moons, including an unsuccessful bid for a city council seat in the same historic era as Skinner’s council term, but presumably this letter, because it’s on her firm’s electronic letterhead, represents more than personal preference. Suggested donation: “up to $3,600.” 

It came to me complete with a list of first-tier recipients, all of whom we won’t identify here because they probably didn’t ask to be included. Hey You Guys: someone should show you how to do “bcc”, blind copying, to conceal the names of the addressees on your list. Let’s just say that number 2 addressee is Ali Kashani, the developer whose bid to replace Iceland with a condo complex sparked a fierce battle in the Berkeley City Council.  

The letter did sport a scary-sounding warning: “This message is for the designated recipient only and may contain privileged or confidential information. If you have received it in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the original. Any other use of this e-mail by you is prohibited.” Of course, it’s legally meaningless. Two words, for you intellectual property buffs out there: Fair Use. 

Much of the content is plain vanilla resume stuff and normal political PR, but a few bits are sure to catch the eye of anyone outside of the Bates-Skinner orbit. First, it says that she “organized the July 2006 Climate and Energy Roundtable with Gov. Schwarzenegger, Prime Minister Tony Blair, Assembly Speaker Nunez...” None of these are exactly names to conjure with around here, though the letter does claim that this ‘led to the governor’s signing of California’s groundbreaking global warming bill.” Time will tell if this was a real accomplishment or simply Advanced Greenwashing 101 . 

But the sentence that will generate too much excitement around Skinner’s candidacy in exactly the wrong circles in this district was this one: 

“Nancy ... worked with Berkeley ZAB members to organize support and approvals for a number of infill projects facing opposition including the Berkeley Bowl, several condo projects and the proposed mixed use project that includes Trader Joe’s.” 

One would hope that it’s just a drafting error: that the writer doesn’t actually intend to say that some ZAB members worked with Nancy to pass projects that came before them for decision, since that would be unethical. But even so, Skinner doesn’t seem to be aware that these two projects were and still are very controversial.  

Both of the supermarkets mentioned, though loved by some shoppers because they’re cheap (as is Wal-mart) have had serious problems with labor unions, whose support is needed by any candidate in this district. Berkeley Bowl reluctantly agreed to allow employees at their current store to organize after a long struggle, but made no such guarantee for their new development. Trader Joe’s is resolutely and proudly anti-union. 

And even more, there’s the growing anger of many residents of the urban East Bay, including but not only Berkeley, about the Big Ugly Boxes that have landed in their midst in the last few years. If Skinner really plans to run on a platform of “more condos coming to a neighborhood near you” she might be in trouble in some areas.  

The letter gets even worse, with an all-caps pitch aimed at those who know the code words: 

“NANCY UNDERSTANDS THE IMPORTANCE OF SUPPORTING URBAN INFILL DEVELOPMENT WHEN CHANGES TO THE STATE BUDGET, CEQA, THE GOVERNMENT CODE, REDEVELOPMENT LAW, AND OTHER STATE LAND USE AND DEVELOPMENT LEGISLATION IS [sic] INTRODUCED IN SACRAMENTO THAT MAKES [sic] URBAN INFILL PROJECTS MORE DIFFICULT. [all caps sic] 

Does this mean, as it seems to, that she’s hoping to join the ranks of the developer-funded legislators, Fabian Nunez among them, who’ve been working to get rid of the protections for urban areas in the California Environmental Quality Act? Does it mean, as it seems to, that she will work to expand the powers of the redevelopment laws, frequently exploited and often misused by development interests in Oakland, Berkeley, Richmond and elsewhere? This sentence looks like a message to the building industry that Nancy’s on their side, which works fine for a privately circulated fundraising letter, but which will galvanize some opponents when they read it as a forwarded e-mail. (Of course, it might also raise some Big Bucks from the Big Boys.) 

Sitting through the long and tedious proceedings of then-new-mayor Tom Bates’s Task Force on Permitting and Development, I became aware that Skinner, the mayor’s appointee to the committee, turned a tin ear to the pleas of city neighborhoods adversely impacted by poorly planned development, as does Bates himself. Subsequently on his watch it’s gotten worse instead of better, and Skinner, if this letter is accurate, has enthusiastically been part of the problem. 

But then, tin ears in the Bates camp seem to be the order of the day. Tonight (Tuesday) the council will be facing the wrath of those, both local and imported, who took exception to the Marines-Go-Home resolution passed a couple of weeks ago with the Mayor’s blessing. On the other hand, Kriss Worthington, who certainly agrees with the goals of the anti-war protestors, showed his usual good judgment in voting from the start against the unnecessary inflammatory language which has provoked the expensive circus the city’s been experiencing. It’s important to choose your battles carefully, but Bates et al. don’t seem to understand that. 

—Becky O’Malley

RETRACTION REQUESTED 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Regarding Gar Smith’s Feb. 12 commentary about Valentine’s Day roses, specifically the sentence which reads: “Organic Bouquet ... is currently suspected of engaging in poor labor practices ...”  

We have never heard of any such complaints or accusations and, in fact, the company stands for completely the opposite, working every day to promote environmentally and socially responsible practices, including the fact that every farm which supplies Organic Bouquet is certified by one or more: Veriflora, Organic, Fair Trade, Biodynamic. 

I ask Gar Smith and the Daily Planet to please either document and substantiate this accusation, or issue an immediate and full retraction.  

Michael Straus 

Organic Style Ltd and  

Organic Bouquet, Inc. 

EDITOR’S NOTE: After checking sources, the Daily Planet has found no evidence of any irregularities among Organic Bouquet’s suppliers, as alleged in the commentary submission. We regret the error. 

• 

TRAFFIC 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I am willing to agree that traffic circles slow everyone down. It certainly slows me down, as I can no longer determine the intentions of oncoming traffic. After two close calls I am trying to remember to simply wait until traffic has cleared the intersection. However, other people are not so cautious, and when you are on foot or bicycle, it can get pretty scary when a vehicle behind you swings wide to clear the circle. For real thrills I suggest turning left the recommended way around a circle (on your bike of course), just in time to discover that someone coming from the side is in a hurry and is going the wrong way to make the turn (in their tank, of course). 

Although traffic circles have made my life a lot more dangerous, I’m sure that it is safer for some other people. My real beef with traffic “calming” is that it is a higher priority than basic safety maintenance. We got a little questionnaire asking if we wanted traffic circles on our street. I voted no. A few months later I found out the result of the questionnaire when they tore up the intersection to put in the traffic circle. I am really impressed. It made me wonder if I was still in Berkeley. No public hearings or long drawn-out debates. An actual pro-active response. So did I miss the questionnaire where everyone voted to not do street maintenance? 

The weekend before last my daughter hit road debris from one of the multitudinous potholes northbound on Sacramento street between Ashby and Dwight. She lost control of her bike and slewed perpendicular to traffic into the middle lane, with a car putting on its brakes behind her. When she caught up with me she was sobbing, “Dad, I almost got killed.” Or how about southbound on Sacramento, which has essentially become a gravel road? How about the crack northbound on Seventh street north of Ashby? How about the abandoned railroad tracks off of Seventh street? How come we’re not pro-active on maintenance? It wasn’t that long ago that a person in a wheelchair was killed trying to avoid a broken sidewalk, so you’d think we would have gotten the message that maintenance is a safety issue. Or is the problem that we can no longer do maintenance on major arterials because traffic circles and barriers have made alternative routes almost impassable?  

Robert Clear 

• 

WAR ON POTHOLES? 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

After the Berkeley City Council has ended the war and brought everybody home, then could we fix some of the potholes? 

Dick Bagwell 

• 

HOUSING COMMISSION ARTICLE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Your Feb. 12 article, “Housing Commission Weighs in on Bonus Rules,” claims that “Inclusionary housing by definition reduces potential profits by requiring developers to rent or sell at below market rates to tenants and buyers who couldn’t otherwise afford them.” While this is indeed the common-sense definition, in Berkeley the local and state laws do not accomplish anything of the sort. 

Rents for “inclusionary” housing are based not on market rates for housing in the local community, but on a percentage of “Area Median Income” (AMI) as defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. For Berkeley, the relevant area is all of Alameda and Contra Costa counties, and the AMI for 2007 was $83,800 (updated figures for 2008 have not yet been released). The currently allowed rents for “inclusionary” studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments are $961, $1,160, and $1,375, respectively. A quick check of craigslist.org shows that all of these are in the current market range: today I found around 20 listings for cheaper apartments in each of those categories. Rents for three- and four-bedroom inclusionary units would be below market rate, if there were any, but most of the apartment buildings that received inclusionary-housing density bonuses in recent years don’t have any apartments that large. 

In other words, developers have been getting density bonuses putatively intended to promote affordable housing while building only market-rate apartments. I’m surprised that wasn’t the central topic of the Housing Commission’s discussion. 

Robert Lauriston 

• 

WHEN THE CIRCUS MOVES ON 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

While the band marches on with the circus in town, thanks for the reminder that there are other important items on the City Council agenda. 

Winston Burton 

• 

A COMPROMISE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I nominate City Hall as the site for the antennas. It is tall, doesn’t backup against any residential neighborhoods and has a central location where people come and go but do not linger. 

Constance Wiggins 

• 

NANCY SKINNER 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Thanks for Becky O’Malley’s recognition of my strong support for my good friend Nancy Skinner, who clearly is the strongest and best qualified of the candidates to succeed Loni Hancock in representing the 14th District in the California Assembly. As she correctly pointed out, my e-mail note was erroneously sent through my corporate rather than my personal e-mail account, an error for which I apologize. It was intended in no way as an endorsement of Nancy by ICF International, and I’ve e-mailed all the recipients of that note to clarify this. Personally, however, I do support Nancy, and invite anyone with questions about this race to get in touch with me or with her campaign at info@nancyskinnerforassembly.com. 

Carole Norris 

• 

PACIFIC STEEL 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Pacific Steel laid off 60 workers last week, claiming that clients were canceling orders because of concerns about the company’s future, and hinted that the crisis was caused at least partly caused by efforts by the City Council to push them out of Berkeley. 

Isn’t it possible that the major concern with Pacific Steel’s finances involves the eventual completion of the new span of the Bay Bridge? Bridge construction has given Pacific Steel a lot of business, and, once the bridge is finished (whenever that is), Pacific Steel is going to have to work hard to find a project or projects that big. If I were an investor or a client, I might be nervous, too. This, rather than any conflict with the city of Berkeley, may be the major reason for Pacific Steel’s pessimism. 

Dale Jensen 

• 

ISRAEL-PALESTINE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I was happy to see the article entitled “Opportunities to Engage With Israel-Palestine” in your Feb. 12 issue, but I was disappointed that it did not highlight one of the most important such opportunities for Berkeley residents this week: a presentation by Joel Kovel scheduled for this Friday, Feb. 15, at 7 p.m. at the Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists Hall, 1924 Cedar St. at Bonita, Berkeley. (The event was listed, less prominently in your “Berkeley This Week” calendar—thanks for that.) 

As mentioned in the calendar, Kovel is a longtime activist and a professor at Bard College. But he’s also a former psychiatrist and professor of psychiatry, a former Green Party candidate for the U.S. Senate from New York and for the Green nomination for the presidency, and the author of ten acclaimed books, covering issues from white racism to the environmental crises we face. At the BFUU he will be discussing his latest and most controversial publication, Overcoming Zionism, a profound critique not just of Israel’s policies, but of the moral, philosophical, and cultural foundations they rest on. The book is so powerful that the Zionist lobby launched a campaign to compel the University of Michigan Press to stop distributing it, and they came frighteningly close to succeeding. 

The event will be cosponsored by the International Solidarity Movement and the BFUU Social Justice Committee. Admission is free, but donations will be welcomed. 

Henry Norr 

• 

GENTRIFICATION 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Thanks to Zelda Bronstein for her Feb. 12 article on Danny Hoch’s Taking Over at Berkeley Rep (“Theater of Gentrification”). Bronstein writes that she was sitting on a $49 seat watching the play about gentrification in Brooklyn. Next door, at Aurora Theatre, I was sitting on a $50 seat watching Satellites, which is another play about gentrification in Brooklyn. 

Bronstein wondered why Hoch didn’t address “...the absence of accountable authority.” Similarly, Aurora’s production concerns itself with the lives of the characters but didn’t address responsibility of governmental authority in gentrification. 

The San Francisco Mime Troupe, which doesn’t charge for their shows, did a lively, politically charged show on gentrification a while back. The two pricey Addison Street shows skirted governmental politics. Does it make you wonder if there’s a connection between the high price of the ticket and what playwrights are willing to risk in the area of assigning public accountability? 

Joe Kempkes 

Oakland 

The Planet is only printing letters from locals regarding the ruling on the Marine Recruitment Station. Some of these letters were sent prior to the Feb. 12 City Council meeting and thus do not reflect the council’s most recent ruling.  

Signed letters from non-locals and letters addressed to third parties will be published on our website. Unsigned letters will not be published. 

RESCIND THE VOTE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I just read the Fox News report concerning the Marine Recruiters in Berkeley. Berkeley City Council, what where you thinking? I cannot believe the shame that you have brought upon the citizens of Berkeley with your recent vote to ostracize and disrespect the Marine Corps recruiters working in Berkeley. The personal feelings of the mayor and councilmembers should not enter into the business of running the city. You are representing the citizens of Berkeley and not your own personal interests. 

I was born in Oakland and lived most of my childhood in Albany, Berkeley, and Oakland. I left the Bay Area in 1960 to pursue a career in the Marine Corps and I have served with several very fine Marine Corps Officers that were UC Berkeley graduates. 

I find it hard to believe that the City Council of Berkeley does not understand the value of the Marine Corps and the other Armed Forces of the United States. The very fact that there is a City Council elected by the citizens of Berkeley is a result of the protection of our great country by the U.S. military. This includes free speech and the rights of the Code Pink organization to protest.  

Peaceful protests are a part of the American way and I have no problem with them, The protests should be in accordance with all the city’s ordinances including noise, littering, pollution, and obstruction of businesses. All organized protests should be required to have a permit and the city’s police department should enforce the limits of the permit. 

I recommend that the City Council rescind the vote to tell the Marine Corps Recruiters they are not welcome and treat them the same way you would treat recruiters from any major corporation such as General Motors, Proctor & Gamble, Macy’s, etc. I also recommend a proclamation from the City Council supporting the Armed Forces of the United States be issued. This would go a long way in repairing the damage you have done to the City of Berkeley’s reputation. 

Bob G. Willis CFO 

MGySgt USMC Retired 

Elizabeth City, North Carolina 

• 

TAKE A DEEP BREATH 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I stand with all of the writers to the Planet (and Gordon Wozniak) who feel that with respect to the Marines-Code Pink controversy neither side should get special treatment. As a previous writer mentioned, most of us would decry discrimination against, say, a family planning clinic. Equal treatment is just common sense. The prevailing political winds shouldn’t let us trample the First Amendment. 

This fracas highlights an aspect of our little town that has disturbed me for a long time. If one has the temerity to express an opinion in opposition to the prevailing orthodoxy, he or she is often shouted down, ridiculed, or simply ignored. A simple question such as “how much does this cost?” or “is this our top priority?” is met with boos or catcalls from the audience. City staff has to be a little more discreet and often employs procedure and process to stymie a questioner of city policy. 

We need to take a hard look in the mirror and ask ourselves whether we are truly progressive people or not. Are our minds open to new ideas? Are we really listening to each other? Or are we so arrogant, or intellectually lazy, that we resort to bullying and political procedure? 

Let’s use this controversy as an opportunity for a little self-examination. Let’s start by keeping our eyes and ears open and our mouths shut. We’ll all be the better for a little listening, reflection, and respectful dialogue. 

George Beier 

• 

LIES AND OMISSIONS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Big lies, writ small. Delete a word, add a phrase to cause a firestorm of protest, justify an invasion, an occupation, and terrible war crimes. It’s how we got into Iraq, Vietnam, Nicaragua, Cuba in 1898. Thus the San Francisco Chronicle (who Rightists call “Liberal Media”) left off one word (“recruiters”) from the sub headline in its front page article about Berkeley on Feb. 13 to twist the truth. Berkeley isn’t the only city that doesn’t want military recruiters who lie to our kids to get them to sign up, to send them to ruin and be ruined in an unjust war. And thousands of vets also support this position. The Chronicle’s article subverted our city government’s opposition to the war recruiters by transforming it into opposition to those who serve, knowing full well that there are veterans on the City Council. This subversion of the truth to caricature and ridicule the City of Berkeley is intimidation against all Americans who abhor what the government is doing in their name in Iraq. The Pentagon is spending 11 billion in taxpayer dollars for marketing this year. We don’t want their marketing machine in Berkeley. All citizens have to act to end the occupation of Iraq. Opposing recruitment of our youth for Bush’s war is imperative. I urge the Chronicle to end its implicit support for that war. Slanting our news to stir up animosity is not acceptable.  

Marc Sapir 

• 

MARINE RECRUITMENT FRENZY 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

For all my 19 years I’ve lived and grown up here in Berkeley, and I know it as a quiet, pleasant, comfortable place to live, far removed from whatever pop culture says it was back in the 1960s. I couldn’t care less about the war in Iraq, but what the City Council has done only helps draw ire and reinforce negative stereotypes about Berkeleyans. We are not all long-haired, pot-smoking hippies. Some of us just want to be left in peace. Please, City Council, just focus in on local issues and let Berkeley become the sleepy liberal college town it deserves to be. 

Anh-vu Doan 

• 

ACCEPTING RESPONSIBILITY? 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I would like to address an argument made by a number of folks in the media and made last night at the Berkeley City Council Meeting. The argument goes: “Support the troops because it is the government’s responsibility for the unjust war.” I think this denial of troop responsibility is a denial of their conscience, and thus, their dignity. They exercise this conscience when they generate the habits that create the kind of person they become, when they chose to enter the military, and when they continuously chose to sustain their participation in an immoral and unjust war. The troops as persons are responsible. We might say they have less responsibility then government leaders, but they still have a level of responsibility, which is sufficient to be judged for participating in immoral and unjust activity, such as Iraq. 

The devaluing or denial of troop responsibility manifested itself last night at the Berkeley City Council. There was general consensus that the war is unjust and they did a better job articulating the depth of the injustice. Yet, they were unwilling to hold the Marine institution and the individual troops sufficiently responsible. In turn, they buckled somewhat to the “support the troops” mantra and affirmed a right of the Marines to recruit in Berkeley. I respect the troops as persons and acknowledge the kind of courage it takes to risk one’s life, but I think we fail them and ourselves when we insist on “supporting” their immoral and unjust choices. This failure is implied when we insist on “supporting the troops” while they fight an immoral and unjust war. 

I wonder how many of those who deny the personal responsibility of troops tend to simplify poverty and argue the poor are personally responsible for their situation? There’s much more which could be said, but I will leave it here for now. 

Eli S. McCarthy 

• 

MERCURY NEWS EDITORIAL 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

In America’s climate of political correctness disagreeing with the status quo is now the definition of intolerance. Craig Lazzeretti’s Feb. 13 editorial in the San Jose Mercury News (“Berkeley Becomes Home to Intolerance”) is misleading. The Berkeley protesters didn’t shoot or kill anyone. Would that more like them would speak out. Where are the voices of dissent? Why is Bush (Cheney, actually) still president? Why are the policies of the Patriot Act and wire tapping still under enforcement? Where are the voices of dissent? 

For me there are not enough of them and with the current crisis in the media coverage, the voices of dissent that do exist are heard from so scantly. Unless reported with an angle such as Craig Lazzeretti’s.  

Karen Clark 

Sonoma County, CA 

• 

PLEASED TO BE BERZERK 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I am quite pleased to be a citizen of Berkeley these days. The City Council and the fun-loving ladies of Code Pink are raising hell and attracting the ire of Righties like Melanie Morgan—who apparently is a bit off her meds. Neurological imbalance seems to be a requirement for conservative talk show hosts.  

Take a chill pill Melanie, and I’ll explain it to you. See, B-Town banned massage parlors some years ago for moral reasons. (I will not get into details as they are rather sticky.) Now, the Marines train people to kill other people. Did you know that? That’s what soldiers do. They don’t defend people, they are used as offensive weapons. The police defend people; they’re trained in peaceful conflict resolution and only use force as a last resort. The military resolves conflicts with high explosives. So you see, Melanie, a lot of us are kind of against Marine enlistment centers because they recruit young men to commit heinous acts in order to further the goals of some very bad people in our government. Recruitment centers are basically kill parlors. And you, Melanie, a moral Pro-Lifer, are surely against Kill Parlors! Of course you are. There, you can go home now. You’re welcome. Bye.  

And for those of you who are embarrassed by your City Council’s resolution: Face it, people, Planet Berzerkeley is permanently fixed in the consciousness of most of the world as the place where tofu-slurping, yoga-bending wackos gather to annoy normal people. Celebrate the vision! After all, how does one find the “happy medium” without experiencing the extremes? Berkeley has a noble legacy of demonstrating the leftward end. If we give up now, we will let a lot of people down. I know you’re with me on this, Melanie. Kisses. 

Chuck Heinrichs 

• 

UN-AMERICAN 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

It is interesting that you are not printing any letters against the mayor and City Council regarding their disgusting edict to the military. I am not a “local,” however my money is spent in Berkeley. I always take out-of-town guests to Berkeley. I spend a lot of money in Berkeley. No more! 

I am disgusted that in this time of war and time of daily deaths happening to our young men and women in the military that this city would take such a stance. 

The military is protecting your rights and this is how they are treated? Your city representatives make me sick to my stomach. I have written to Sacramento in hopes that my one voice added to many will help stop Berkeley from receiving any money from the state for any of your projects. The City of Berkeley should be ashamed of itself. I will never step foot in this un-American, military-bashing city of fools. 

Sandy Dawson 

San Lorenzo 

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Daily Planet has published and continues to published letters from all sides of the issue. Our definition of “local” letters includes the greater Bay Area. Signed letters from non-locals—again, from all sides of the debate—are published on our website. 

• 

HOPING FOR RETRACTION 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I am writing to express my deep concern with the Berkeley City Council’s moves to eject the Marines from our city. While I strongly oppose the war in Iraq, and am sickened by the death and destruction wrought there, I do not believe that blaming the Marines is the solution. As a group, the Marines are not blood-thirsty monsters. They are professionals who are trained to perform an extraordinarily difficult—and sometimes misguided—job. While I may not agree with many of the Marines’ traditions and practices—including their questionable recruiting practices targeting vulnerable populations—it is undeniable that their organization offers a viable career path to young people who may have few other educational or professional opportunities open to them. 

It is the country’s leaders who are the war mongers, and who should be held accountable for their misguided zealotry and deceit. Rather than attacking the Marines—and putting Berkeley at risk of losing federal funds at a time when California faces a fiscal crisis—the Berkeley City Council should be supporting our troops. We should all be doing everything possible to ensure the election of politicians who will end the war and end the misuse of our brave soldiers. 

I sincerely hope that the City Council will retract its demonizing attacks on the Marines, and go back to serving as the moral conscience for the nation. 

Gwyneth Galbraith 

• 

DISGRACEFUL ACT 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

As supporters of the pro-troop organization Move America Forward, our family was shocked to learn of Berkeley’s attack on the Marines. We have contacted the Berkeley City Council, notifying them we are boycotting the city and are calling upon Congress to cease all federal funding of special projects in Berkeley until the city reverses their misguided “resolutions.” 

If it weren’t for the brave people like the Marines fighting for freedom overseas, we would be fighting the terrorists on our own soil. 

One of our relatives interned on U.S. soil during World War II simply because he was an American citizen of Japanese ancestry nonetheless fought bravely for the U.S. and earned a Purple Heart while serving in the Japanese-American 442nd team of the U.S. Army, the most decorated unit in American military history. Our family knows first-hand the commitment and sacrifice of our brave soldiers. 

The Berkeley City Council’s disgraceful acts against the Marines are nothing short of treason, and they need to be taught a valuable lesson that their unconscionable actions will have consequences. 

Esao, Cheryl and Brian Tada 

Mill Valley 

• 

THE POWER OF LOCAL  

GOVERNMENT 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The considerable local and national attention paid to the Berkeley City Council’s resolution to eject the Marine recruiters is thoroughly warranted—but not for the reasons so far discussed. The council’s actions should not be evaluated in terms of the war in Iraq, or in terms of freedom of speech or assembly. There is a more fundamental issue involved: the power of local government to oppose the raising of the U.S. military.  

This issue is described in a national petition that has quickly garnered broad support. The petition was drafted by Marine veteran Nicholas Provenzo. As he points out, no local government can oppose the national government in its task of building a military. Article I, Section VII of the Constitution charges Congress with the responsibility of raising and supporting an army. Running the recruiters out of town would hinder a legitimate function of the national government and thwart a mandate of the U.S. Constitution. This is no small matter. 

By its nature, the military as such is a non-political entity. It is charged with upholding the Constitution and the laws passed by Congress – whatever laws those may be. To point out the obvious, as a national organ of defense, the military continually protects and defends of all areas of the United States, in wartime and in peacetime, regardless of residents’ political views. Additionally, recruiters cannot recruit for specific wars or missions per se, and few if any military personnel are assigned to only one mission in the course of their service. The council’s actions are therefore short-sighted in the extreme, if not selectively blind. Such actions, whether concrete or symbolic, suggest that the Council and its supporters wish to have their cake and eat it too. 

When different levels of government disagree, the proper place to resolve it is in the courts. Political opinions, no matter how strongly held, cannot trump the proper organization and delimitation of duties among levels of government. To do so willfully would be an act of lawlessness and subversion. After two weeks of passionate disagreement, one can only hope that all parties will remember that “reason is the life of the law”—at all levels of government. 

Katherine Brakora 

• 

A PUBLIC STAND 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Our mayor and City Council made public statements that the Marines are unwelcome in Berkeley. Because of these statements, a previously obscure Republican senator from South Carolina proposed that all federal funds should be taken from Berkeley. Today (Tuesday, Feb. 12), there is talk of the City Council rescinding their statements. I see this as about the current war in Iraq. Many cities in this land are against this war, although the congress has not been able to defund it. In the city council’s statements against the Marines, the Berkeley City Council is publicly taking a stand against the war in Iraq. Other cities could take such a stand, this would not look good, our nation’s people actually stating an opinion against a nation’s war, so Berkeley has been threatened with withdrawal of funds for their stand against this war. I suspect no other cities will dare to take a stand against the war publicly. I hope the rest of the world knows that once again people of the United States have been intimidated. 

Ardys DeLu 

• 

BERKELEY CITIZEN ACTION 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

This letter is written on behalf of the Steering Committee of Berkeley Citizens Action (BCA); we were not able to conduct a vote of our membership given our short time frame. 

BCA supports the original resolution passed by City Council and we urge you not to back away from principled position of that statement. 

In BCA’s 30-plus years of existence as an organization, we have seen the United States engage in unjust, costly and illegal military operations. We are approaching the five-year anniversary of our presence in Iraq, five years that have brought death to both Americans and Iraqis and what may turn out to be irreparable destruction and disruption of that country. 

We know that the economic and other pressures which propel young people into the armed services often occur before they fully understand what their role will be or what actions they’ve committed themselves to undertake. We know that military recruiters have quotas to fill and are not beyond appealing to young people with patriotic propaganda and tempting claims of job training, college, etc. 

The location of the Marine Recruiting Office in downtown Berkeley is strategically placed in proximity to students at Berkeley High, Berkeley City College and UC. Our City should not be a site for recruiting for war but rather for educating our youth to understand and practice peaceful alternatives. Recruiters should not be free to appeal to youth who are sometimes not yet even old enough to vote! 

We strongly disagree with those who say the original resolution showed lack of support for our troops. Our Steering Committee supports the safety of our troops by demanding that they be brought home immediately. Nor were there incorrect or disrespectful statements in the resolution; unfortunately, the “offensive” statements are true. 

Mayor and City Council, you are our elected representatives. You represent the positions and opinions of our citizens which have consistently opposed this and other wars. We urge you to stand strong behind your original resolution. The Marines should know that Berkeley is one community that stands for peace and against feeding the war machine. 

Linda Olivenbaum 

Berkeley Citizens Action 

Steering Committee 

• 

THE WAR ON KIDS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I am a 16-year-old sophomore at Berkeley High School writing about the events of today’s demonstration. First off, I want to say that the demonstration today turned into an anti-war vs. a pro-war protest. In addition to the fact that this demonstration was held right next to our school, there were out-of-state and out-of-town people protesting the war, apparently oblivious to the facts that started this—that is the Berkeley City Council’s actions against the Marine Corps Recruiting Station. Also, for those out-of-towners, it is clear that this was basically a hate on Berkeley opportunity, and that, in a totally cowardly manner, they chose to vent their anger and hatred towards Berkeley at its minor citizens, that is, Berkeley High School students.  

Everyday, before school, at lunch, and after school, students pass thought the park. Plus the city recently built two sets of double skateboard ledges in the park, where all during the day students go and skate. Thus we have come to take this part of the park as a safe and peaceful area to spend our time. But when we have the city of Berkeley allowing and setting up a demonstration in our “peaceful” area, it tends to aggravate the students who spend their minimum amount of free time there. As the pro-war protesters spent their time in the park they continuously harassed the students who were there. During the day it gradually enraged the skaters that as the anti-war protesters were asked politely to move from a four-foot section (out of a total of 60 feet of ledges), the anti-war protester would not obliged the skaters’ requests. Plus they went to greater lengths to further enrage the skaters by verbally abusing them and calling more protesters to come to sit on the ledges. 

After school I went over to the park with my friends to skate, like we always do. My friends asked if a few middle-aged men would please move away from a small section of the ledges so that they could skate. The men, in response, verbally abused them. We had been, throughout the day, harassed by this same group of non-Berkeley residents. They called us maggots! They refused to leave and my friends finally were so enraged that there was a series of verbal exchanges. Between the middle age men and young high school skaters. Then the police came over and separated the two groups but the middle-aged men continued to harass the students from behind the cops. As I witnessed my friends circle around to the back side of the police to continue I saw my friends get pushed and then hit by these men, although I saw none of my friends hit anyone, and they say they did not as well. In response to these BHS students getting beaten by out-of-town middle-aged men who were twice the size of my friends, Berkeley police, about 10 of them, came over and stared hitting any students they could see with their night sticks. I was hit twice and while I was pushed away. I watched as one of my friends was hit by one of the middle age men and as another two of my friends where arrested. 

I want to know why the City of Berkeley was not able to predict this outcome, and why they think the are free to pursue such frivolous and meaningless gestures without thinking about the consequences. Why, also did the police focus 100 percent of their aggression and brutality towards the Berkeley High School students and not towards the ones who where attacking us? Why did the city endorse the police actions which did not protect Berkeley kids, but turned on them when they were being harassed and attacked by adults. The Berkeley High Students were innocent by-standers in the whole circus which was prompted by an irresponsible, self-indulgent City Council. The Berkeley High School students had no place else to be, and no place else they should have been at 3:15 in the afternoon. They had just been released from school. That they had to exit school into this, and then be the targets of out of town harassment and police aggression is really amazing and wrong. Why, in fact, does the City of Berkeley use Berkeley tax money to pursue ineffective gestures when there are many unsolved and unaddressed problems which are real issues to which they should focus their attention. Unlike a “symbolic” but arbitrary parking space, BHS is in need of books, supplies, and classrooms. Unlike these anti-war non-efforts of the city, a large percentage of BHS students are most likely going to be in the war in the next few years, and yet, the city’s finest turned its clubs on us.  

Conrad Petraborg 

• 

SHOCK AND DISGUST 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

As one who was raised in Berkeley, attended Berkeley Public Schools, and later served honorably in the Marines for two decades (active and reserve), I received word of the Berkeley City Council’s condemnation of the Marine Officer Selection Office with both shock and disgust. Statements made by the mayor and councilmembers during the Jan. 29 council meeting were offensive and inflammatory. These statements indicated a hatred of all Marines, and not just a protest against this country’s involvement in Iraq. I am therefore compelled to write to you urging you to apologize for, and retract, your derogatory comments, and rescind your resolutions against the Marines. 

The United States Marine Corps has a proud history dating back to Nov. 10, 1775. when it was originally formed by an act of the Continental Congress. The Marine Corps has served with particular distinction in every American armed conflict, including the Revolutionary War. It is true that Marines are proud of their combat history—they should be. But there is one important fact about the Marines that you have either overlooked, or purposefully ignored in your revilement of all things military. In any given year, U.S. troops—including the Marines—undertake humanitarian projects and missions in nearly 100 countries. I’ll wager that the Marine Corps has participated in more humanitarian missions and projects than combat missions over their 232-year history. 

To Marines, rendering aid is not the same as sitting back in the comfort of your Berkeley Hills home in front of your computer and sending a check to charitable organizations. It is being outside in the sweltering heat or bitter cold, ensuring that the victims of man-made or natural disasters have life-saving food, water, shelter and medical treatment. It is traveling to impoverished communities to build medical clinics and schools. Marines are just as proud as the assistance they give to others as their combat record. Listing all of the humanitarian missions and civilian evacuations undertaken by the U.S. Marines in their history would fill an encyclopedia. Here are just a few examples. 

In January 200,1 Marines deployed to East Timor to work on orphanages, schools, medical clinics and other structures to improve the quality of lives for hundreds of East Timorese. In November 2001, Marines deployed to Djibouti where they assisted in the treatment of approximately 1,700 medical and dental patients, installed generators, solar panels and sanitation systems. In March 2004 Marines deployed to Haiti to provide medical assistance, distribute water, and clear trash from city streets. In June 2004 Marines traveled to Guatemala to construct clinics, a schoolhouse and other projects. Marines participated in the humanitarian aid efforts in New Orleans and the surrounding areas following Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. In May and June of 2006, at the request of the Indonesian government, Marines provided emergency aid to the Indonesian people suffering from the effect of the devastating 6.3 magnitude earthquake. After a massive earthquake struck Pakistan in October 2007, Marines played a role in the massive relief effort to provide medical and humanitarian aid. Marines recently completed a humanitarian assistance operation in Bangladesh. The aid was requested by the government of Bangladesh following the death and destruction caused by Tropical Cyclone Sidr in November 2007. Marines have been involved in getting U.S. citizens out of danger since its creation. Most recently, Marines helped evacuate people from Indonesia after the tsunami in 2005, from Liberia in 2004 and 1993, and from Tanzania and Kenya in 1998. 

To whine that Marines are the president’s gangsters and trained killers, and use those comments as justification to excoriate the Marines who are serving this country is insulting and intentionally misleading. You say the Marines aren’t welcome in your city. The call to arms you passed in the form of the measure encouraging people and organizations to actively impede the work of the Marine recruiters is arguably illegal, and violates the rights of young men and women who wish to visit the recruiting office. Instead of subjecting the young men and women serving at the Marine recruiting office to escalating protests, with the increasing risk of violence, you should go there and meet with them personally—get to know them. They are not faceless robots. They are American citizens who deserve as much protection from you in your city as anyone else does. If you do meet with them, and get to know them, you will find they have much in common with you and your own grown children. They just want to serve their country. Is that really so bad? 

Ralph Kasarda, Jr. 

Sacramento, California 

Back in 1972, near the end of the Vietnam war, I was living in San Francisco, and my close friend, ex-Sgt. Van Dale Todd, a combat veteran of the 101st Airborne, lived next door in the same building, a Victorian on 29th Street. Sometimes Van would take a notion to hit the wall which separated our apartments with his fist and shout, “Who the fuck would join the Marine Corps?” I’d yell back, “Airborne sucks!” “The Marine Corps sucks!” Van’d shout. “Only two things come out of the sky,” I’d yell back again, “Bird shit and fools!” That was how we said good morning to each other. It was our ritualized greeting. 

We didn’t set out to live next door to each other; it just happened. One day I discovered that someone had moved into the adjacent apartment and had pasted a peace sign on his door. 

The next day I encountered him on the landing. He was a tall, powerful-looking guy, about 22 years old, with shoulder-length hair and wearing a combat fatigue jacket, similar to mine. He introduced himself as “Van.” In the course of the conversation we found that we were both ex-GIs and also, coincidentally, members of the same veterans’ anti-war organization. 

Van glanced at my door. “You need a peace sign there,” he observed. He produced one from his pack and pasted it up. “There,” he said, “We’re going to be a peace family here in this building.” 

During the weeks that followed, we saw each other almost every day. We attended antiwar rallies together and once even got arrested together. 

Van told me about his experiences in “Nam,” the killing he’d seen and participated in, of the stress and the widespread drug use among GIs. “I got this medal for killing two people,” he told me, showing me his bronze star, “and when I did it I was high on opium.” 

Although I’d spent four years in the USMC, I was never in Vietnam. I was both fascinated and also slightly horrified at Van’s experiences. That was before I ever heard the term PTSD, but it was clear that Van had brought some of that violence back with him. 

One day he got in a fight with his cat. I intervened, telling him that if he wasn’t going to be kind to his pet, I’d take the animal away from him. It was a plea rather than a threat. Van was a big man who could easily have broken me in half, but he relented, took the kitty gently in his arms and said, “I love my cat.” 

On the corner was a small grocery run by a guy who seemed to go out of his way to be rude to his customers. Nevertheless, Van sometimes went in there. On one occasion, I heard later, the shopkeeper threatened Van with a baseball bat. Van responded, “You put that thing away or I’ll wrap it around your neck!” Fortunately, the shopkeeper put the bat away. 

Usually Van was gentle. He hated violence, having seen so much of it in Vietnam. “I killed seven people in Vietnam,” he said. “I killed a mother who was crying because her children were all dead.” 

Van had once believed in the war, and he was a guy who’d fight for what he believed in. He’d enlisted in the Army, volunteered for the paratroopers, asked to be assigned to Vietnam. He spent seventeen months in combat with the 101st Airborne in 1969 and 1970. After returning from Vietnam, however, he had second thoughts and joined the Vietnam Veterans Against the War. 

Nevertheless, Van wasn’t much given to analysis. Instead of looking at how he’d been exploited on behalf of corrupt corporations, he blamed himself for what he’d done, and tormented himself for having “enjoyed” it. “I loved combat,” he used to say, shaking his head remorsefully. “I was so sick I loved to kill.” 

“I don’t want my little brother Sam, or anybody’s little brother, to see what I saw or do what I did,” he said, and spoke out against the war. On April 17, 1972, Van and I were part of a group of sixteen ex-GIs who occupied an Air Force recruiting office to protest the war. We were arrested and bailed out the next day. 

On April 21, we went to court for a preliminary appearance and got our first look at Judge Lloyd Burke. Judge Burke sat there, just leaning on his elbow and looking bored, like an old railroad engineer gazing at the scenery along the spur he’s been chugging up and down for the last twenty years. The charge was “disorderly conduct,” and the judge refused us a trial by jury. When our attorney pointed out that trial by jury was a Constitutional right, stated in the Sixth, Seventh and Fourteenth Amendments, Judge Burke just said, “Overruled,” without even lifting his chin off his elbow, and he set our trial dates. 

To Van, it was a heavy shock. About all he could say when we got home was, “The Man [Judge Burke] just doesn’t give a shit about us!” Van just sat there for a long time with a vacant look in his eyes. 

I think Van did expect the judge to care about us. Van still believed very deeply in something he called “America.” In Van’s “America,” there was still something left of that mythical age when you could walk into the White House and talk with the President. Van saw public officials as people who listen—which sometimes they do, but not as often as Van seemed to think. 

We went on trial a week later in the courtroom of Judge Robert Schnacke, who reaffirmed reaffirm the decision to deny us our Constitutional right to trial by jury, and then, at the end of a two-hour session, found us all guilty. 

The irony was that trial by jury is one of the most fundamental American rights which Van had supposedly fought to defend. It’s an ancient principle which goes back to the Magna Carta. 

Before sentencing we were each allowed to say a few words. Van, wearing all his medals on his fatigue jacket, stood up and began: “I was a machine gunner . . .” He told of the horrors he’d seen and of his buddies he’d seen die. The war had to stop. Judge Schnacke nodded as though listening. But he sentenced each of us to 30 days and fined us each $50. (We eventually paid the $50 but didn’t go to jail.) 

Judges Burke and Schnacke were both former prosecutors. As judges they did their job as functionaries of the same system that sends American GIs abroad to kill or be killed in defense of U.S. corporate strategy. But to Van there was no such thing as a “system”—just America. These judges represented the America he believed in, and the experience of being denied his rights devastated him. From then on, he acted like a person utterly lost. He became so lonely that he dropped by my apartment five or ten times a day, sometimes even at one or two in the morning. 

One night he came to my place and pounded on the door. “I want to show you something!” he shouted. When I opened the door I could see he was terribly upset, apparently in a violent mood. Van was not a person I cared to argue with when he was that angry; I was frightened. 

“I killed seven people in Nam,” Van was saying as we entered his apartment. “I can’t live with it any more!” He went to a drawer, took out a bottle of bright red pills, swallowed them and passed out almost immediately. 

In a diary we found after his death, he’d written: “Vietnam left me so alone. Why or how could I take the life of a human? Why was killing humans fun? Can God forgive me?” 

We gave him a veteran’s antiwar funeral, burying him in his combat uniform with his service medals and also with his VVAW button. While five veterans and a woman carried out the coffin, everybody lined up in two rows and gave Van a final clenched-fist salute. 

On returning home, I went into the vacant apartment where Van had lived until so recently. “Airborne sucks!” I called out. Van’s things were gone; the place was empty now. It was an emptiness that left room for my voice to echo back and forth between the walls. I tried again, louder than before, “Only two things come out of the sky!” Again, there was an echo, a louder echo, but still only of my own voice. It was followed by the creaking of wooden floorboards under my feet in that old Victorian house. 

Daniel Borgström is an ex-Marine against the war and a member of Lake Merritt Neighbors Organized for Peace. www.danielborgstrom.com. 

EDITOR’S NOTE: Letters regarding the City Council resolution against the Marine Recruiting Station start on Page Eight. 

JUSTICE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

It is not surprising that the Prevaricator-in-Chief and his Dark Lord would deny that waterboarding is torture, and now further assert that they have a legal right to order such practices. Neither Pol Pot, Slobodan Milosevic, Idi Amin, Agusto Pinochet, nor the rulers of Nazi Germany admitted that their actions were illegal torture. But it was not for them to say. The International Criminal Court has that authority, and obligation. Someday, the human rights abusers currently running our country will be taken to the bar of justice as well. Soon, I pray, very soon.  

Bruce Joffe 

Piedmont 

• 

IN SUPPORT OF OBAMA 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

While I must give the benefit of the doubt to those women, Latinos, Asians, and poor people who say they cannot vote for Obama because of his lack of experience, I wonder if it has occurred to them that more than anything else, we need to patch up the world view of us. Let Congress fumble and mumble with our economy, immigration, health care etc.—they will anyway, if we continue to perpetuate acrimony with the rest of the world, we are in danger of losing everything. Put yourselves in the place of an angry third world person who views the United States with its aggressive and selfish attitude as an arrogant place run by arrogant white people. Think what a biracial, multicultural, liberally educated young man might do for them. Already I’ve read of hopeful incredulousness from Middle Easteners just at the thought of a U.S. president whose middle name is Hussein. It is looked on as a huge sea change and a ray of hope. Give it a thought.  

Madeline Smith Moore 

Oakland 

• 

WATERBOARDING 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I am both outraged and frustrated at President Bush’s brazen announcement on Feb. 6 that waterboarding is not torture and therefore legal. I also note that the CIA admitted using waterboarding on three suspects in 2002 and 2003; the White House stated that the CIA could use the technique in the future. Waterboarding is clearly prohibited by the Convention Against Torture and the Geneva Convention. Thus, President Bush has declared the United States above international law. We are now in the same company as such vile regimes as the Khymer Rouge, the North Vietnamese, and the North Koreans, who used waterboarding to elicit (usually false) confessions, not useful intelligence. Thus, our president would sacrifice our moral values for little or no purpose whatsoever. 

I am frustrated because this president will not be held accountable during his presidency. Representative Pelosi has taken impeachment off the table. And remember, Sen. Feinstein in casting a decisive vote to confirm Michael Mukasey for attorney general, brushed aside Mr. Mukasey’s refusal to show his independence from the President by categorically declaring “waterboarding” illegal. Remember also that Rudolph Guiliani, Mitt Romney, and Fred Thompson, three of the leading Republican presidential candidates at the time, refused to condemn the use of “waterboarding.” Where is the outrage? 

As Walt Kelly’s Pogo observed: “We have met the enemy, and they are us.” 

Ralph E. Stone 

San Francisco 

• 

CRANKS, LUDDITES  

AND LUNATICS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

After living here in beautiful Berkeley for eight months now, I have had plenty of time to speak to a never-ending cadre of cranks, luddites, scientifically illiterate conspiracy theorists, loud-mouthed complainers, and professional contrarians. I have come to the conclusion that self-righteous bitching about minutiae is the most popular city pastime. In keeping with this spirit I would like to inform the people of Berkeley that unregulated electromagnetic radiation is a danger to all and must be brought under control. Yes I am talking about the insidious dangers of Sunny Day Radiation. While sunny days may be beautiful and inspiring they are also silent killers giving rise to cancer and killing thousands every year. Mother Nature has not submitted an environmental impact report, detailing all the possible implications of this unregulated radiation emission. Effects of sunny days are not fully known. In addition Sunny Day Radiation affects minorities and those of darker skin color differently than whites violating Berkeley’s anti-discrimination ordinance. Mother Nature illegally irradiates local crops with ionizing radiation violating the Nuclear Free Berkeley Act. I propose a giant dome be placed above Berkeley to shield us from this radiation until Mother Nature complies with the proper regulations. We will be holding a demonstration against this electromagnetic radiation in People’s Park on Wednesday Feb. 20 between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m., by staring directly at the sun for an hour and demonstrating our resistance to this photonic tyranny. 

Michael Bakeman 

• 

OBAMA HASN’T PEAKED YET 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

So, Barack Obama wins a Grammy award for his voice recording of the book he penned, The Audacity of Hope—not to mention sweeping all the latest Democratic primaries and caucuses—and Hillary Clinton fires her campaign manager. These are just the latest signposts of what’s been going on under the surface for weeks now. Obama’s soaring popularity is a subliminal consciousness phenomenon, electric and unifying. What’s behind it? For one thing, Obama is a clean slate on which we can all write our own hopes and dreams, while Clinton is a cluttered canvas on which we perceive many of our compromised ideals and failed efforts. It’s human nature—none of us likes to remember the pain of past betrayals. 

But it’s more than that. The Clinton campaign’s choice to highlight her “experience” was particularly unfortunate—as it constantly draws our attention to her past. The problem is, most of Clinton’s claim to having experience comes from her having been in the vicinity, rather than in charge. The distinction is not lost on the electorate. But most important, experience is largely an intellectual issue. Idealism always trumps experience emotionally, and that’s where she is losing big. Look at the faces of the people who attend Obama’s campaign events, and you see clear resemblances to the faces in the crowds that flocked to hear John Kennedy and Robert Kennedy speak. There is real political energy here, and Clinton’s strategists with their poll experts and donor lists completely failed to understand its importance. 

Obama hasn’t peaked yet. When he does, it will be clear to everybody that he will be the Democratic nominee for president of the United States. And I think he’ll win in November. 

Doug Buckwald 

• 

BUSH AND McCAIN 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Let’s cut to the chase. Did you see the picture of George Bush embracing John McCain? If you want four more years of Bush policy, vote McCain in November. 

The NRA must be at its wits end to come up with more phony excuses to explain away the continuing wave of gun violence. 

The anti-immigration movement continues to use patriotism, the flag and security to justify the 700-mile fence along the southern border. What about the 3,000 miles of Canadian border that remains wide open? Is it that Canadians don’t have brown skin? 

The Republicans tried to impeach President Clinton for lies. The Bush, Cheney, Republican conundrum has subjected America to seven years of lies 

Is everybody in denial or just braindead? Taser guns cause death. Two hundred and fifty people didn’t die being arrested before tasers became the weapon of choice. 

Ron Lowe 

Grass Valley 

• 

BERKELEY HAZARDS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

As a recently new resident of Berkeley, I have noticed a disturbing safety hazard on our streets. An inordinate number of cars are operating with headlights out throughout the greater Berkeley area. Seemingly every time I walk or drive at night, I see at least one or two cars being driven with only one headlight. Driving with one headlight not only reduces your visibility, but also makes it more difficult for other drivers to judge how far away your car is. I would urge the Berkeley police as well as citizens to be vigilant in identifying and correcting this hazard. 

On a related note, I have lived in several college towns in the past and am dismayed at the lack of police presence in Berkeley, especially at night. Unfortunately, I have several friends and acquaintances that have been mugged, threatened, or robbed while living in this otherwise charming city. Many of these incidents occurred within blocks of the university. Other college towns I have lived in have a noticeable police presence that I can only assume deters this behavior. Having enough police on the streets driving through our neighborhoods not only prevents crime, but also creates jobs and boosts our local economy by allowing residents to feel safe enough walk alone at night to restaurants and shops. The police men and women in Berkeley with whom I have interacted have always exemplified the qualities of professionalism and judgment that make great police forces. I simply wish their ranks were larger to allow them to do even more good for long-time residents and students alike. 

I urge the City Council and UC Berkeley to consider equally the general safety of its residents in addition to the issues that have made this city so famous, such as its environmental leadership and history of promoting free speech. 

Zachery Jacobson 

• 

BERKELEY HIGH CLASSROOMS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I am underwhelmed by the excuses Mr. Wicinas offers in his Feb. 8 commentary “Why BHS Classroom Construction Has Stalled” for the classroom fiasco at Berkeley High School.  

First he blames the lack of classrooms on a new superintendent whose “attention was aimed at budget issues judged more urgent than the commencement of new building projects.” Huh? BUSD promised to build classrooms at BHS when it sent the 2000 Measure AA Bond to voters for approval. End of story. Except that we have fewer classrooms now, after a $116 million bond measure. 

Then he suggests there was a significant drop in the student population. I find that hard to believe—there were 3,200 students in 2003 and that number has not varied significantly. Certainly BUSD blamed over-enrollment on all the problems my older son experienced with lack of textbooks and over 40 students in some classes through 2005. So figure it out, BUSD. Are you going to blame lower enrollment or higher enrollment for your failure to live up to your promises (and legal commitments)? And please, don’t refer to anger over lack of textbooks and desks as a “perception of overcrowding.” At any rate, this is completely irrelevant to the commitment BUSD made to construct classrooms at BHS. 

He also claims “the public lost interest in the overcrowding issue.” What does he base this on? Most of us in Berkeley assumed we’d have classrooms built within eight years of the bond measure passing. Does the public really need to storm the barricades at School Board meetings to ensure promises are kept? 

Finally, he blames the preservationists. Guess what? Those people didn’t get going until recently. Too bad the BUSD didn’t have the classrooms built by now, isn’t it?  

Now BUSD can blame the long delay (they created) as the reason for no classrooms—there simply won’t be enough money to build those classrooms because now it’s too expensive. Will we hear whatever happened to the $10 million contingency for unforeseen conditions and the $18.9 million earmarked for inflation that was part of Measure AA? 

The only explanation for the lack of classrooms at Berkeley High is either gross mismanagement of bond monies or criminal malfeasance. Take your pick. Either way we lose. No way should the BUSD or the City of Berkeley attempt to float another bond issue until they give us the classrooms they promised and we paid for eight long years ago. 

Peter Kuhn 

Richard Brenneman’s Feb. 1 article on the Reagan-era Savings and Loan crisis details his 1980s research into the failure of a California S&L that made Stockton, in his words, “Ground Zero” of that financial collapse. He compares this to a recent “60 Minutes” piece focusing on Stockton as a present-day epicenter of the current real estate crisis. 

This is all a useful reminder of the financial scandals and instabilities that seem to regularly blossom under Republican administrations which are otherwise tirelessly touted for their alleged business acumen. 

But should Stockton really command the spotlight when our own Berkeley might have a better claim to being the place where both of these financial catastrophes, although certainly not of our local doing, nonetheless first became publicly manifest? 

In the early 1980s I had a bank account at Fidelity Savings and Loan, a statewide S&L then headquartered in San Francisco, but historically a Berkeley institution, founded here in the 1920s as a vehicle for financing local housing development and homeownership.  

As a depositor, I received a letter noting that Fidelity was in financial difficulties and Federal regulators had arranged for its sale to Citicorp to stave off possible insolvency.  

Soon after, on Reagan’s watch, the S&L crisis exploded and hundreds of financial institutions across the country collapsed or had to be propped up at a cost of tens of billions to taxpayers. 

Fast forward to the era of Mr. Bush and 2007 when, as a small depositor in the Cal State 9 Credit Union, based in Berkeley, I received a letter stating that it had been taken into conservatorship by the National Credit Union Administration, apparently because of trouble with real estate loans. 

I don’t know for certain if Fidelity was the first S&L to start to fall apart in the 1980s, or if Cal State 9 is the first or one of the first financial institutions to border on insolvency in the current crisis. Perhaps someone with an expertise in financial history could research and establish the relevant dates and details. 

If they were indeed the first in their respective eras, then Berkeley, not Stockton, might well be the best symbolic “Ground Zero” for these two important events in banking history. 

This is an exciting prospect since Berkeley has a long history of “firsts” and a somewhat shorter, but still distinguished, legacy of being treated badly by right-wing presidents.  

We even have a spot where this legacy could be publicly commemorated. The original Fidelity building on Shattuck Avenue, a Walter Ratcliff, Jr. masterpiece, fortunately survived the dissolution of the institution. It still stands, and is now scheduled to become a restaurant. 

A modest historic plaque there—or near the Cal State 9 branch a few blocks north on Shattuck—could permanently remind Berkeley residents and visitors that once again, it all started here, and also serve as cautionary reminder of what a previous local paper—the Berkeley Daily Gazette—warned its readers about in early 1933, after the financial debacle of the Hoover era had fully unfolded. 

"In the rich years, investors, officials and public examiners alike became careless in these matters...It would be a fine thing if we could learn from this depression’s failures not to lean so heavily on the profits of speculation hereafter, or to trust to luck that such fires will go out of themselves.” 

Steven Finacom is a local history buff.

The campaign by Children’s Hospital to access tax revenues to finance a major construction project, along with the manner in which it was run, was a disservice to the employees and physicians of the hospital, its patients, the hospital’s neighborhood, and the city of Oakland at large. While the campaign’s defeat may itself have marred the reputation of this distinguished hospital, the disservice lies in the fact the campaign was rife with prevarications and inaccuracies. 

We read various statements and comments such as: 

1. The hospital will close if this measure does not pass. 

2. The hospital does not meet the state’s seismic requirements. 

3. To retrofit the current facility at Children’s would require closing the hospital for three years. 

4. The hospital will consider the use of eminent domain to acquire neighborhood residences 

The first three statements are simply wrong: 

1. The hospital will not close, except as a result of malfeasance or neglect by senior management and the governing board. The hospital may need to reduce its reliance on consultants and lobbyists, but the commitment of the medical staff and the employees to the care of children will not allow for a cavalier decision to close the doors because of budgetary constraints. 

2. The only parts of the hospital which are not in compliance with the State’s structural standards are the old (circa 1941) A and B wings. One is completely used for offices and administrative personnel, and the other for select outpatient services. The prominent five-story inpatient tower is in structural compliance. Other areas require limited upgrades, but the hospital board’s building committee, at least until recently, has exercised exemplary due diligence to insure the adequacy of hospital facilities. 

3. To retrofit the hospital will not require closing its closure. Staging and temporary relocation of services are not unknown in hospitals. The hospital’s statement, if not intentionally false, reflects a lack of understanding of hospital construction. 

4. The use of condemnation to acquire neighborhood residences requires little discussion. Senior management will discover soon enough that a not-for-profit hospital in California will have extreme difficulty in justifying the use of eminent domain for this purpose. And the enmity this effort will generate among its neighbors and the Oakland community, as the popular commercial says so well, is priceless.  

While it is easy for Children’s senior management to suggest its mission to care for sick children supersedes its obligation to its neighbors, the fact remains that Children’s Hospital is located in an urban residential neighborhood. Its ability to grow and expand depends in part on the good will of its neighbors. 

In my 22 years as chief executive officer we endeavored continuously to maintain a cordial relationship with the neighboring community. I would not declare that effort a complete success. But we did attempt to address the concerns as they arose. For example, the helicopter landing was placed on an elevated pad behind the hospital instead of on top of the patient tower to alleviate potential noise pollution for the neighbors. Arguably, the location is not ideal for patient care, but after a series of “dry runs,” Emergency Department physicians, trauma surgeons and the FAA agreed it was an acceptable compromise. In our planning for a new hospital we worked to maintain height levels which did not exceed that of existing buildings, again in an effort to coexist as good neighbors 

Work was begun in early 2001 to develop a comprehensive plan for a new hospital. An architectural firm was retained and began innumerable meetings and discussions with physicians and managers in individual specialties and services to determine and achieve consensus on new and appropriate facilities. This process covered a period of about 24 months and cost nearly $2.5 million We were successful in retaining the entire facility on the south side of 52nd Street, where the main hospital is now. These plans included all private patient rooms and family sleeping facilities. During the period of construction, the current hospital would remain open. The hospital’s neighbors might ask management at future community meetings what became of those plans. 

Children’s campaign was not successful in accessing tax revenues, but it did succeed in alienating Alameda County’s Board of Supervisors, other local politicians--all of whom Children’s depends on for ongoing support -- and the hospital’s neighbors. Members of the community who have historically supported the hospital should now ask what became of the hospital’s endowment, which was in the past so rigorously protected for use as initial funding for a new hospital.  

We hope that the board of directors of Children’s Hospital will now return its attention to the hospital’s mission, to the hospital’s obligation to its neighbors as a member of the community, and to its primary responsibility for major fundraising. 

(I have been away from the state of California for the past seven months and unable to respond to the campaign any earlier.) 

Tony Paap is president and chief executive officer (retired) of Children’s Hospital and Research Center, Oakland.

MARINE RECRUITING 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Did you know you have to be a college graduate to sign up to be a Marine at the Berkeley Marine Recruiting Center? A high school student or even a college undergraduate cannot get recruited there. This recruiting of the college graduate is to train them as future officers. One must remember that the college graduate has a degree, a driver’s license, voting rights, can get married and can even legally drink, so I am sure he is quite capable of choosing a future career without the demonstrators Code Pink blocking his way. I am sure that these people are attempting to do good, but I feel their energy and time could be better serve by tutoring in the schools. And the Berkeley City Council should take a more liberal rather than a fascist view by supporting free speech in its home town. 

Martha Jones 

• 

UNCONSTITUTIONAL 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

It has been reported that the City Council is considering a watered down version of last week’s Code Pink resolutions. Essentially, they would come up with face-saving language affirming the city’s support for the troops, while repeating its opposition to the war. However the underlying resolution would stay in place: Code Pink would be exempted from the city’s usual fees It would also have a reserved parking space in front of the recruiting office from which to launch its protests, 

Nothing short of a full retraction will undo the harm done by the council’s caving to the demands of this raucous minority. Consider the following: 

1. The resolutions are clearly unconstitutional. A city may generally regulate the time place and manner for political speech. But it must be neutral and may not directly subsidize a particular political opinion in preference to others. Here in one resolution the council has waived fees for Code Pink, and reserved free space for it in the location most likely to disrupt the activities of the recruiting office. In a parallel resolution the council “applaud individuals and organizations such as code Pink [which] actively or passively by non-violent means the work of any military recruiter in the City of Berkeley.” On the face of it, the council has endorsed the content of Code Pink’s protest and materially aided it. They would not do this for others. What if a right-to-life group wanted to stage a protest in front of a Planned Parenthood office? The whole process has been tainted and there is no way to cover it up without a full rescission of both resolutions 

2. As an anti-war tactic, the resolutions are counter-productive. From the very beginning I was against the Vietnam war (as I am against the Iraq boondoggle today), but like many I had no choice but to go. I will never forget my feelings on coming back to the Oakland Army Base: As soon as we hit the ground, we tore off our uniforms, hid them in our bags, and walked out the door disguised as civilians. This was not because we were ashamed of what we had done, but rather because of the violent, unreasoning hatred we were sure to meet on so many East Bay streets. When will they ever learn? Unreasoning, self-righteous attacks on the people who really bear the burden of war do nothing to convert them; on the contrary, they create a level of bitterness which never goes away. 

3. The City Council needs to figure out how they got us into this mess. Time and again, the council majority votes for or against things, based not their merits but on the loud cries of a a few people who feel that they only need to shout a few code words (“racism,” “gentrification,” “discrimination”) to end all rational discussion. With a bit more courage, the councilmembers might have caught their breath, and asked the acting city attorney whether the resolutions were even legal. With a little more courage he would have told them the truth. There is also a tendency among those on the council who know better to compromise or abstain on important issues when you don’t think you can muster a majority. Sometimes, you’ve got to stand up for what you know is right, political consequences be damned. 

Nothing is more courageous than for a politician to admit that s/he might be wrong. I ask the City Council to please reverse themselves on Code Pink. 

David M. Wilson 

• 

EFFECTS ON BUSINESS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The City Council resolution concerning Code Pink and the Marine Recruiting Station has had a negative effect on the nearby merchants along Shattuck and University Avenue. This council action is yet another instance where the concerns of the business community have been ignored. 

The council apparently not only failed to consider how this controversy adversely impacts small businesses on a day-to-day basis, but also failed to consider the potential long-term consequences. 

I suggest that among those long-term effects are a reduction in number of consumers willing to shop in the downtown; increasing difficulty in filling already empty storefronts; possible failure of some currently viable retail businesses; and reluctance of developers to undertake the very projects (hotels, museums, cultural venues) which we all hope will contribute to the further revival of the downtown. 

I strongly urge the City Council reconsider their vote and resist taking sides in this disruptive protest in the heart of our downtown. There are many other ways in which the Council, or its individual members, can forcefully and effectively state their opposition to the war. Not all, however, need to impose such a high price on the very community the Council has been elected to nourish and protect. 

Mark McLeod 

• 

NO TOM, THE OTHER ENEMY 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

My friend Mugg Muggles says it well: “If Tom Bates wants to go after an evil organization, he should leave the Marines alone and go after the University of California.” 

Carol Denney 

• 

THANKS TO CODE PINK 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Marine recruiting in order to defend our country is like calling fire in a crowded theater, knowing there’s no fire. Both are against the law. Worse, Marines lie to convince vulnerable, diseducated people that there are benefits to enlisting. They are breaking the law and they need to be stopped. Hooray for Berkeley, again! And to Code Pink over and over. 

Norma J F Harrison 

• 

AN IMPORTANT VOTE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I want to thank the mayor and City Council for their vitally important vote to tell the Marines that, as much as we may love them as our sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, uncles and aunts, we don’t need recruiters here trying to fool our kids into joining up and becoming either invaders or war casualties. Come back after McCain’s hundred-year war is done and maybe we’ll reconsider. Please hold that line, City Council, and don’t betray us under the rightist duress that is growing. Hold that line, Tom, no matter their bullying threats.  

When a fellow—labelling himself a liberal in these pages—argues that council urging the Marine recruiters to leave our city is an infringement of their free speech we have entered the world of the sublime (satire, that is). Obviously, the Marine recruiters don’t get paid to argue politics, but to use material incentives to entice our youth into becoming fodder for the war machine. Equally important, free speech, in the First Amendment to the Constitution, was specifically granted to the people, not to government or corporations. Why? To protect the right to dissent without fear of government retribution, not to protect government’s right to recruit hired hands for the death and destruction machine of expansive imperialism nor even to protect other types of more legitimate job recruiting. The Bill of Rights contains the important rights granted to the common people (excluding slaves and Indians) by the nation’s founders.  

Meanwhile, rightists on the radio and in Congress hope to launch their rockets at Berkeley’s educational funding on the premise that we’ve become too smart for our britches and need to be dumbed down a bit more than the average dumbing down they’re presiding over. That’s the open threat to free speech, right there. We’ve good reason to fear these Dr. Strangelove clowns every day, not just when they rattle their rockets at us. They aren’t just a once in a while threat. Just listen to the Republican debates, my God, and the legitimization of torture. But to quote the other side of the aisle for a change: we better not cut and run from this fight, or we’ll be fighting in our own back yards in no time.  

There are too many hints that Congress and even the next President may not be able to scale back US aggression worldwide. No candidate dares to stand up to Israel or AIPAC. None talk of peace and partnership with Cuba. The US political class didn’t learn from their famous partnerships with our Shah, Suharto, Batista, Trujillo, Musharef etc. ad nauseum that selling tyrany and exploitation as democracy can appear to work at a distance via our magnificent Media machine but you never know who will pick up the pieces and rally the commoners at the other end of the big stick. More U.S. government allies, from Kenya to Mexico are now also into stealing elections, and how long can that go on without anti-American revolutions breaking out here and there. If we let this government have our kids this will never end until they’re all dead or broken. On the other hand, if we stand firmly against recruitment it might eventually “break the cycle of violence.”  

Marc Sapir 

• 

PEACE YES, MARINES NO 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Steven Donaldson wrote “many of the protesters are not from Berkeley.” What bearing does that have on the issue of Marine recruiting in Berkeley? The war affects all of us. 

I’m incredulous at the negativity toward the patriotic actions of Code Pink and others who object to the Marines in our community. As if giving the peace activists one parking space once a week is a bigger deal than the death and torture the Marines are selling at 64 Shattuck Square. As if we should do nothing to prevent our young people from being lied to and turned into warriors to carry out the Administrations’ illegal occupation and destruction of a defenseless people. As if the actions of right-wing Congress members to punish our community financially for its courageous stand against the violent war machine are valid. As if the right-wing false patriots coming from outside of Berkeley, who spew hatred and jingoism and attack our City Council and peaceful Berkeley values should be dictating how Berkeleyans should act and think. 

Don’t buy the mistaken argument that this is a free speech issue. Think about this: if we don’t stop the Bush Administration in its mad rush to destroy our Constitution in the service of this endless war, we can kiss our free speech rights goodbye. 

The Marines are free to speak and no one should interfere with that right. But the Marines aren’t just speaking; they’re conducting a business. We prohibit objectionable businesses in Berkeley. And we’re going to amend zoning regulations so military recruiters can’t locate their business near churches, schools, libraries, homes. 

Hundreds of people pass us each day and honk or give us the peace sign to show their support. Veterans walk by and tell us we’re right. Berkeley’s standing in the country and the world is being enhanced by our activism. We’re leading the way for people all over the country and giving people hope and courage. People have always said Berkeley is a crazy place. So what? We who live here can handle that silliness. We can hold our heads up with pride for taking a principled stand against the war machine. We can be proud of our City Council and Mayor for taking a risk and doing the right thing. We thank them for their strong stand on the side of peace and ending this war. Please thank them too—they represent the best of Berkeley. 

Cynthia Papermaster 

Code Pink 

• 

RESPECT FOR VETERANS? 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The fact that the elected City of Berkeley officials claim to care about and respect veterans is rendered moot when they allow the Veterans Building to be turned into a urinal by the street people. 

David Krasnor 

• 

HIPPIES WITH NO SOLUTIONS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

When I accepted an offer to study at UC Berkeley from San Diego, I was constantly warned by my conservative brethren to watch out for those “long-haired hippies.” I never really thought they knew what they were talking about until I got here and saw for myself what a “rebellious” (relative to the rest of the country) place this was. However, I was disappointed to see that most of this disobedient ruckus was filled with anger but void of solutions. Such is the case with the newly created marine recruiting station on Shattuck. When I initially heard about the controversy, I immediately sided with the Marines, well aware of how naive some protesters can be. However, a more detailed investigation proceeded to change my mind on the issue. 

While I believe that living in a peaceful utopia is a lofty ideal, I side with the city of Berkeley that recruiting stations are terrible ideas, especially right next to a high school. I was appalled yesterday to walk by the Cal vs. Oregon basketball game and find an ARMY painted humvee advertising military service to curious young children. While I have a few friends in the marines and have the utmost respect for their courage, service and discipline, I think that it is morally wrong to use propaganda tactics to sell an ideal to impressionable youth. 

Sometimes you need to fight a war. But in those cases, we should not be spending government money to capture the young, innocent bystanders and then send them off to do the dirty work for us. If we go to war, it is something that our whole country needs to be behind, something that everyone is willing to fight for. In instances like this, I believe that just as in World War II, our countrymen and women will volunteer out of a sense of ethical imperative, not out of financial or emotional incentives. 

Tei Newman 

• 

SHORTSIGHTED VIEWS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Something seems to have been left out of the debate on the City Council/Code Pink/Marine Corps fiasco. Code Pink and a majority of the council are concerned about our invasion of Iraq and the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy on gay servicemen and women Nothing wrong with that—except that there’s an inevitability about conservative views in the military, given the preponderance of officers and enlisted personnel hailing from the most conservative parts of the country.  

Yet Code Pink and our council see nothing wrong in discouraging young people from more liberal backgrounds—especially UC Berkeley graduates at whom the Marines are aiming—from joining (or even, for god’s sake, inquiring about) our armed forces. 

Shortsightedness over free speech, combined with dimwittedness over the need to broaden the intake to the military, didn’t make for a series of council decisions anyone can be proud of. But it’s the kind of thing that is bound to happen when councilmembers grandstand on foreign or national matters they weren’t elected to deal with.  

What they need to do now (with heads down and tails between legs) is to concentrate on the matters they were elected to deal with, and hope that by November all will be forgiven.  

Revan Tranter 

• 

A SOLUTION 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I may have a solution to the issue of free speech for military recruiters. This issue if far from simple and straightforward. In fact, speech is limited and regulated in all sorts of ways, both for private citizens and when it is performed by representatives of particular interests.  

In the case of military recruiters, the right to express their opinions as private citizens differs from their rights to act on behalf of a particular government agency. In this case, it seems to me, we are not regulating their free speech rights, but the activities of an agency. 

Lenders and sellers find their speech constrained in all sorts of ways. Thanks to years of consumer struggles, and over their rigorous protests, they are no longer free to lie and hoodwink people, or at least not as free as they once were. All sorts of disclosure statements must be provided and their speech is strictly regulated. 

Drug companies are not free to make false or unsubstantiated claims about their products. This is not the same as constraining an individual from singing the praises of a particular drug, and telling friends it cured his warts, baldness, sex drive, and so on. If it turns out this individual is on the payroll of the company, however, it becomes a different matter. Physicians and researchers are required to disclose any financial ties they might have to a drug company when they make recommendations or report research results. Scientific researchers are required to disclose financial ties to corporate interest. 

The freedom to express opinions enjoyed by a cop, social worker or any other public service employee, as a private citizen, is often regulated and constrained when this same person is on the job. The activities of government agencies and their employees are regulated in thousands of ways. Even private citizens have their speech regulated in some ways when there is a consensus that this is in the interest of the community. 

Here is a possible solution for the issue of military recruiters. They should be allowed to continue their recruitment activities but be required to offer full disclosure, in writing, of the following: personal liabilities - the incidence of death, maiming, mental disorders and any other potential negative consequences of signing up; interests—who is backing and benefiting from the war; how much money is being made by what corporations and individuals; social liabilities—how much the war is costing and will cost future generations of citizens. 

Carl Shames 

• 

CODE PINK’S GOT IT WRONG 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Regarding Marine recruiting in Berkeley, Code Pink is way off-base. A different approach would be more fun. Start a social action group, Code Green, supporting “Logic-free, Free Speech” zones. Start with the Marines. Wave people into the recruiting office. Hand out official Marine recruiting literature along with green donuts. Use a Marine recording of “Halls of Montezuma,” the last verse of which goes: 

If the Army and the Navy 

Ever look on Heaven’s scenes 

They will find the streets are guarded 

By United States Marines. 

There’s a lot of logic-free material to work with when it comes to solving disputes with violence, whether it’s official or unofficial. 

Robert Gable 

• 

CLOSE ALL THE  

RECRUITING CENTERS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

As a member of Veterans for Peace, I was asked to join Code Pink at their demonstration against the Marine Recruiting Station in Berkeley. I did so because I supported what they are doing, and, in spite of all criticism, I continue to support these colorful women. 

I enlisted in the Marines in 1957 at a Marine recruiting office on Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley, as I recall. It was a spur of the moment sort of thing, and if there hadn’t been a recruiting station there, I might never have enlisted. So, if the Code Pink action keeps one young person from joining the Marines, I think it is worthwhile. 

Personally, I have no complaints against the Marines. I did a dumb- ass thing, served my time, and got out with my mind and body relatively intact. But that was after Korea and before Vietnam. Not so with young people today who are almost certain to be sent to Iraq or Afghanistan where they will quite likely be required to kill other human beings and where they themselves will be put in danger of being killed or maimed for life. In 1957, I thought this was OK. It took the intellectual and moral ferment surrounding the resistance to the Vietnam War to make me realize that this is not true. It is not OK to kill other people, even if the President and his friends say it is. This is not simply my personal opinion. It was affirmed by the Nuremburg judgment: 

“War is essentially an evil thing. Its consequences are not confined to the belligerent states alone, but affect the whole world. To initiate a war of aggression, therefore, is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.” 

Supporters of the war frequently claim that the troops are protecting our right to protest. Not so. Here’s what Marine Corp General Smedley D. Butler had to say in 1933: 

“I spent 33 years and four months in active military service as a member of this country’s most agile military force, the Marine Corps. I served in all commissioned ranks from Second Lieutenant to Major-General. And during that period, I spent most of my time being a high class muscle- man for Big Business, for Wall Street and for the Bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism. 

I suspected I was just part of a racket at the time. Now I am sure of it. Like all the members of the military profession, I never had a thought of my own until I left the service. My mental faculties remained in suspended animation while I obeyed the orders of higher-ups. This is typical with everyone in the military service. 

I helped make Mexico, especially Tampico, safe for American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefits of Wall Street. The record of racketeering is long. I helped purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers in 1909-1912 (where have I heard that name before?). I brought light to the Dominican Republic for American sugar interests in 1916. In China I helped to see to it that Standard Oil went its way unmolested. 

During those years, I had, as the boys in the back room would say, a swell racket. Looking back on it, I feel that I could have given Al Capone a few hints. The best he could do was to operate his racket in three districts. I operated on three continents.” 

General Butler’s words remain true. The Marine Corps and the rest of the military industrial complex have managed to protect American capitalism, but this has not contributed to the freedom and well being of working class Americans. To the contrary, we are less free, less secure, and less well off because of their activities. 

Closing the Marine recruiting office in Berkeley is but one step. We need to close down all the military recruiting stations in the country, bring our troops home from Iraq, Afghanistan, and everywhere else, and honor the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty, in which the United States agreed “to pursue negotiations in good faith on effective measures relating to cessation of the nuclear arms race at an early date and to nuclear disarmament, and on a treaty on general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control.” 

Gene Ruyle 

Peace and Freedom candidate,  

10th Congressional District  

(El Cerrito, Walnut Creek, etc) 

• 

AN ANTI-WAR VIETNAM VET  

URGES RESTRAINT 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The official and ungracious Berkeley City Council opposition to the Marine recruiting office in a business district has brought back unwelcome memories of 40 years standing. 

In 1968 I returned to my university as a law student, after four years of active duty as a destroyer officer in the Tonkin Gulf and intelligence officer on shore, convinced by personal experience that the Vietnam War was grounded in falsehood and false hopes. The immediate antiwar plea of that moment was to remove ROTC from university campuses. I recall conversations with my classmates: my security clearance prevents me from telling you how completely right you are to oppose this war, but how wrong you are in your form of opposition. Often in my naval service the voices of chauvinism were overcome by the Navy captain or Air Force colonel, a graduate of my or a similar university, who imposed restraint, discipline, and historical perspective. We needed then, and need now, the best diversity within the ranks of a citizen-military. 

Many unfortunate adjectives can be used to describe the implications of the City Council’s efforts to kick the Marine captain out of Berkeley. In our aspirations to bring an end to the present war, and have Berkeley stand in the forefront of that campaign, the City Council has at best scored an embarrassing own goal. The council majority owe their constituents and the nation not merely rescission, not merely apology, but call to protect each adult’s choice of a military career free of verbal and physical intimidation. 

Members of the Council should look a few short years down the line, when the next Commander in Chief will need the best military available to carry out his or her directives to provide humanitarian aid, stand in the way of ethnic cleansing, or finally bring Osama Bin Laden to justice. As a citizen and veteran I will feel more secure knowing that the next President’s military includes a handful of graduates of Berkeley High and of our Berkeley campus, bringing to their ranks the best of Berkeley values. 

Antonio Rossmann 

• 

HOW TO DO YOUR JOB 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

As a long-time resident of this city, thank you to the City Council for once again embarrassing me. Why is it so difficult for you digressive, not progressive people to focus on what we, the citizens of Berkeley, need? Leave the military alone! 

Your job which you are so oblivious to perform is the following: 

• Finish repaving Gilman between San Pablo Avenue to the I-80 entrance 

• Making sure pot-holes are filled, especially on Gilman near I-80 entrance 

• Making sure pot-holes are filled on University between San Pablo and Sacramento Street. 

• Stop creating those stupid intersection circles. 

• Stop creating those parking planters which take up parking spaces on University Avenue between Milvia and Shattuck Avenue. 

• Stop allowing able-bodied people, especially young people sit around like they’re helpless throughout the city. 

• Investigate as to why black Americans of African descent are being forced out of Berkeley. 

• Investigate as to why the percentage of Americans of African descent who were property owners has dwindled to less than 9 percent of the population. 

• Investigate why Berkeley has now become the home of the privileged. 

• Investigate why Berkeley has not maintained a working-class citizenry. 

• Investigate why only the elitist, the entitled, the white privileged are over 70 percent of the population. 

• Investigate as to why the Berkeley Police Department has done a Back-to-the-Future change by hiring predominately white police department employees; sworn specifically when Black officers and employees retire. 

• Investigate as to why long-time black sworn officers of great character and experience are being overlooked for staff positions. 

• Investigate as to why Ross was allowed to close. 

• Investigate as to why traditional American type businesses like Ross, Target, Red Lobster, Payless Shoe Source, International House of Pancakes are either being kicked out or not encouraged to open/stay in Berkeley. 

• Investigate as to why smaller cities like Emeryville and El Cerrito are truly diverse and expanding their business base, but not Berkeley. 

• Investigate as to why the BUSD continues to promotes white-based education where a large percentage of children of color to 12th grade attend Berkeley schools. 

• Investigate as to why there is a very small percentage of Latino and black American teachers in BUSD. 

• Stop idiot people from crossing the streets against the red light with no penalty of citation giving to them. 

Should I keep going?........ 

• Investigate as to why there is a decline of black businesses in Berkeley. 

• Investigate as to why there is such a dramatic influx of non-American businesses. 

• Investigate as to why when black and white men stand on same corner as Latino men on Fourth Street area, no one approaches them for work. 

• Investigate why you continue to make city employees rob people of their hard earned money when the parking meters do not work properly. 

• Investigate as to why the public is allowed to spit, expose of gum, cigarettes, defecate and liter on the sidewalks and other public areas and not be cited/jailed. 

• Investigate as to why black men are being allowed to loiter, be a threat to the safety of others especially when obvious drug dealing occurs next to the BPD Substation. 

• Stop the thieves (fancy financiers) from taking homes of the elderly, especially of black Americans of African descent. 

Stop promoting perverted activities. 

• Start promoting those activities that are good, right and healthy. 

• Repave Gilman between San Pablo Avenue to the I-80 entrance on both sides! 

Represent the citizens! Code Pink doesn’t represent me nor the rest of the citizens! 

Recall Bates and Spring! 

Leave the military alone!  

Robin Haizlit

The eyes of the world are on Berkeley due to recent actions by courageous demonstrators at the Marine recruiting office and the equally courageous actions of the Berkeley City Council which voted to tell the U.S. Marines that its Shattuck Square recruiting station "is not welcome in the city, and if recruiters choose to stay, they do so as uninvited and unwelcome intruders."  

Support for the actions of the Berkeley City Council has grown and other cities are contemplating following the actions of the council. But at the same time, the right-wing talk show hosts have been filling the airwaves with verbal assaults on Berkeley and a number of right-wing Senators are attempting to cut-off federal funding for the city to punish resistance to the federal government’s military machine.  

Some are calling for the City Council to rescind their previous actions. But it is critical that the Council stand by its correct actions and continue to set an example for the rest of the world. Demonstrations against the recruiting station should continue until the Marines pull out of Berkeley altogether. (There will be further actions Feb. 15.) All criminal charges against protestors should also be dropped and Berkeley should not cooperate with their prosecution. 

Protesters from World Can't Wait! Drive out the Bush Regime! were arrested after chaining themselves to the door of the recruiting station and refusing to leave in an act of non-violent civil resistance. Code Pink was also active in the resistance. There is a long tradition of such civil resistance in this area. Berkeley police officers in riot formation blocked and violently cleared the street before arresting the orange jumpsuited protesters. The protestors were in jumpsuits to symbolize the role of the Bush regime in imprisoning and torturing prisoners around the world. 

The Marine recruiting station is an outpost of the U.S. military in Berkeley. Its role is to recruit officers for the Marines. Without such officers, the Bush regime would not be able to launch its aggressive wars throughout the world. 

For this reason it is right and just to demand the recruiting office’s ouster. The Marines are a large component of the U.S. military forces occupying Iraq. And despite the Bush regime claims that it invaded Iraq to bring freedom to the Iraqi people, the Marines are doing what they have always done for U.S. imperialism—killing people. 

Just one example is what happened in Haditha, Iraq on November 19, 2005. US marines killed two dozen Iraqi civilians, including 11 women and children in a massacre there. In case readers think this is an aberration, listen to the words of Marine Lieutenant General James N. Mattis, who was in charge of developing Marine war-fighting doctrine and tactics. In answer to a question about fighting insurgents he stated, “Actually, it’s a lot of fun to fight. You know, it’s a hell of a hoot. It’s fun to shoot some people. I’ll be right up front with you, I like brawling.” “Mad Dog Mattis” led the 1st Marine Division during the initial invasions of both Afghanistan and Iraq. He also led the initial attack on Fallujah, Iraq in April 2004. 

As far back as1933, Marine Major General Smedley Butler in a speech clarified the role of the Marine Corp. “War is just a racket…It is conducted for the benefit of the very few at the expense of the masses…” 

“I spent 33 years and four months in active military service as a member of this country's most agile military force, the Marine Corps…In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism...I helped make Mexico, especially Tampico, safe for American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefits of Wall Street. The record of racketeering is long. I helped purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers in 1909-1912…I brought light to the Dominican Republic for American sugar interests in 1916. In China I helped to see to it that Standard Oil went its way unmolested.” 

Today the Marine Corp continues its tradition of acting as gangsters, but now it is serving the Bush regime in Iraq and Afghanistan. Each day in Iraq and Afghanistan it kills people or rounds them up and places them in prisons where torture and death are routine. Thousands of Iraqis and citizens of Afghanistan are rotting in these prisons while millions of others suffer at the hands of the U.S. occupiers. 

The issue of free speech is not being debated in Berkeley. The issue is how far we need to go to stop the death and destruction that the Bush regime carries on daily in our name. The first amendment guarantees that the government will not interfere with free speech. The Marines are a component of the government. The Bush regime’s “free speech” is not in danger. Yes, some of those who may wish to join the Marines are being inconvenienced. I hope so, as the role of the Marines is not in the interest of the people. 

Whatever it takes to stop the Bush regime and drive it from power is justified. I do not mind preventing the recruitment of Marines any more than I would have minded stopping the recruitment of soldiers for the Nazis during World War II. If the Bush wars are immoral, it is moral to do what we can to stop them by acts of civil resistance.  

The City Council should be proud of its actions in opposing the Marine recruiting office and those of us in the Bay Area should support their courage. We should keep up the political opposition until the Marines leave this community. 

Kenneth J. Theisen is a resident of Oakland and is an organizer with The World Can’t Wait! Drive out the Bush regime!

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Planet is only printing letters from locals regarding the ruling on the Marine Recruitment Station. Signed letters from non-locals and letters addressed to third parties will be published on our website. Unsigned letters will not be published. 

Open Letter to Captain Lund of the Berkeley Marine Recruiting Station 

Thank you for taking the time to talk with me a couple of months ago. I wanted to get your email address because I knew I would think of more things to say after we parted. Also, I believe we have a common goal: defending the United States of America and its Constitution. Therefore I think it's important to include you and other members of our military in our discussions. 

Our country was founded on the principles of giving equal rights to all citizens, and of the rights of all citizens to take part in governing. This right to take part in governing carries with it the responsibility of understanding the principles upon which our Constitution is based and knowing what our government is doing so that we can correct injustice and work to create positive and necessary change. 

In fact, our Constitution was specifically designed so that our laws could be changed and upgraded through legal and peaceful means, rather than revolution. Our founders knew that the laws of their time weren't perfect. For instance, they knew that slavery was unjust, but at the time the political will did not exist to end it. (Though it took nearly 100 years and a war to end slavery, the Constitution did include the means to end it peacefully.) 

You correctly pointed out when we spoke that the appropriate recourse against the crimes of the Bush administration is impeachment, and this is mentioned in the Constitution four times. You may be wondering why I am bringing up the Constitution. I am bringing it up because as American citizens, it is our responsibility, yours and mine, to defend the Constitution. In fact, I believe you have pledged to give your life, if necessary, to defend the Constitution and our country. 

However, defending one's country can never simply be a matter of following someone else's orders, especially in a democracy, and especially in light of clear evidence of criminal behavior on the part of your Commander in Chief (e.g. lying to Congress about reasons for invading Iraq, illegal wiretapping, and torture). 

In fact, as a member of the military, you probably have standard instructions on what to do if you are given what you believe to be an illegal order. I would guess (and hope) that you are not supposed to follow it. There is a very real possibility that you could be given an order to water board a prisoner. Have you figured out what you are going to do in such an instance? Your Commander in Chief has rather forcibly created a legal framework to support such actions, but the legal arguments of his staff are not legally defensible, and water boarding is a clear violation of the Geneva Convention. I hope that you would refuse such an order. 

There are some cases of very heroic members of the US military who have refused orders to send nuclear missiles to the Middle East in preparation for a possible attack against Iran (let me know if you want me to send you the story), as well as several generals serving in Iraq who have publicly stated that they would refuse orders to attack Iran. There were also many high ranking military officers who publicly advised against attacking Iraq before that war started. 

Ordinarily it may be counterproductive, inappropriate and unpatriotic for military personnel to speak out against their leadership, but these are not ordinary times. I believe that after two stolen elections and the other criminal activity we have witnessed, our country is facing the worst threat to its democracy and constitution since it began (though my knowledge of history isn't that complete, admittedly). Our criminally incompetent foreign policy has also created instability in already volatile parts of the world, including countries that have nuclear capability. 

In short, the most serious threat to this country is from within. As a sworn defender of the USA, I am asking you to at least think about at what point you would stop taking orders from criminals and start fighting against the real threat to our country, which is within its borders. This is not a radical viewpoint - a recent poll from the American Research Group shows that 55% of Americans believe that Bush has committed impeachable offenses. (By the way, I'm not implying that your commanders are criminals. In fact, I'm counting on you do to the right thing if the situation becomes really dire - orders to attack Iran, or refusal by Bush to leave office when his term is up.) 

I also mentioned to you in our conversation that I'm glad we have a strong military because I'm concerned by the privatization of the military, as is evidenced by companies such as Halliburton and Blackwater. I'm concerned that these companies will become private mercenary organizations for international corporations that have no love or allegiance to the United States. Without a strong military we would become just another third world nation enslaved to corporate power (even more than we are now). 

Therefore it may seem strange that I am working on shutting down your recruiting station. As I said to you, though, anyone who signs up for the Marines now will most likely be shipped off to fight in an illegal and immoral war led by a Commander in Chief who stole two elections and is a war criminal. A majority of Iraqis want us to leave their country alone, and we are irrevocably poisoning their land and people with the debris of depleted uranium weapons which is impossible to clean up and is known to cause cancer. I also feel that we are damaging our own national security by our actions and creating more potential enemies and terrorists than we would have ever had if we had stayed out of Iraq. Therefore, I and many other Berkeley citizens have chosen by legal and peaceful means to block this war effort in our town. 

However, I want to let you know that I appreciate the sacrifice that you and all members of our military are making by offering to give your lives in defense of our country. We in CODE PINK are also working and fighting to defend our country (though hopefully not dying for it). I'm asking you to please remember that patriotism, especially in a democracy, is rarely as simple as following orders. Please remember that when you fight to defend our country, your are not just defending territory, you are defending our Constitution and our system of justice. 

Thank you once again for talking and listening to me, and for your sacrifice in defense of our nation. I hope we can work together to rebuild a peaceful, just and prosperous country. 

Sincerely, 

Sara Frucht 

CODE PINK activist 

People of Berkeley, CA , if you can read ( doubtful ) hug a teacher. If you can read in English, instead of Japanese, Hug a United States Marine . 

It is my hope that the entire city council will be replaced with patriotic veterans of our great country's military services.  

George Dersheimer 

Major USAF, Retired, Galveston, Texas 

As I watched this evenings news I was shock to hear that the city of Berkeley had told the Marines that they were not welcomed in their city. My first thought was that it was the usual anti-war protesters holding a rally. But to my DISGUST I heard that actual elected city officials passing resolutions calling for the Marines to leave. Now I've never been one to believe everything I hear on TV and started searching the web to dig up more information about this story. What I found was a lot more than the story reported. Not only did these elected officials make such a statement but also are supporting the harassment of this recruiting office. Or as they put it, "residents and organizations such as Code Pink that may volunteer to impede, passively or actively, by nonviolent means, the work of any military recruiting office located in the city of Berkeley." Now I'm now lawyer, but I do think that such actions are against federal law not that I think any of these people care about that. Watching the Youtube videos of the council meetings I found myself so mad I was yelling at my computer. To hear these people speak so proudly about the heritage of Berkeley's free-speech past while in almost the same breath preparing to trample on the rights's of a group that in their words, "don't belong there". Now it's that one passage that really stuck in my mind as it was said over and over and over again. I remember my Granny once telling me about how when she moved her family into a middle class neighborhood how they were told to get out and leave because they were black and they "didn't belong there". I also remember her telling me how lucky I was that it was a long time ago and that such things don't happen like that any more. Yeah really lucky. 

James Lucas 

Milwaukee, Wisconsin  

How on earth can you say that your just against the war but not against our soldiers? That is like saying i have my cake, but i ate it also. Since it appears you made this rash decision to spout your anti-military beliefs due to deaths of American soldiers, we should look at how many were murdered in California .Latest info shows 2485 in 2006, FBI numbers. We should move to Iraq and abandon California, its too dangerous a place to live! 

George Pearson 

Lone Grove , Oklahoma 

The people of Berkeley, Ca. are not welcome in the United States of American. Your socialist/communist leanings make you enemies of the United States. I am a retired United States Marine and as such, I have taken an oath to protect the United States from all enemies domestic and abroad. Taking into account your Anti-American sentiments and beliefs, you can be considered enemies. You live in the country of Berkeley and as a citizen of that country you are a foreign enemy and will be treated as such if you are found outside the boarders of your country. 

Does this sound extreme to you? Citizens of the United States Of America, exercising their rights under the constitution to express their opinions. A right that the men and women you are excoriating and persecuting are sworn to defend, with their lives. That by the way is a right I also have. The only difference between the people of Berkeley and me is that I have earned that right as well as being born to it. Aside from being born in the United States, how have the people of Berkeley, Ca. earned the rights of Americans under the constitution? There is a difference you know. 

Remember I said I am a retired U. S. Marine. Well, I am a retired U. S. Marine from the Vietnam era. I fought in Vietnam and am proud of my service to my country and the world. When I returned I was spit on by a person wearing a UC Berkeley shirt. Under the law, that is assault. In an attempt to make a citizen's arrest, I chased that brave individual for several miles. He was a good runner...I never caught him...the last time I saw him he was trying to outrun a Greyhound bus down the interstate. My point is, I found the people of Berkeley to be laughable then, extremely offensive but laughable. My fellow Marines and I used to sit around and laugh at the antics of the people of Berkeley. You were a bright spot of comedy in an otherwise stressful environment. I can assure you, Marines are still laughing at your antics. So, even in your attempt to excoriate and persecute, you are supporting the American military with your constant stand up comedy routines. Thank you and keep up the good work. 

C. L. Stewart 

GySgt USMC (retired)  

I too, am entirely against this war and in fact, I changed parties because I disagree with this administration on just about every issue imaginable. I voted in the primary for Barack Obama and am volunteering to help him get elected. You can hardly call me a right-wing nut, or a right-wing anything.  

But I also served proudly in the United States Marine Corps for six years. And in case you are as obtuse as you are mean-spirited, let me remind you that the Marines go where our nation's civilian government tells them to go, and they execute the missions given them by that same civilian government - which includes a lot of Democrats and self-proclaimed liberals. If you don't like that, then get off your rear ends and make a difference by helping elect a different government, or requiring this one to change policies. 

But don't blame the Marines.  

Instead you should be eternally grateful that my USMC (and US Army) brothers are willing to make sacrifices that you are surely unwilling to make, no matter the cause. 

Your lackey Medea Benjamin is quoted as saying: "We are the defenders of democracy, the upholders of the Constitution. If it weren't for people like the people in Berkeley standing up for what they believe, we'd be living under Hitler." 

Is she, and are you, KIDDING? Standing up for what you "believe?" Have you read a history book? It is precisely the Marines (and the US Army, Navy and Air Corps) that stood up to Hitler, Mussolini, and the Japanese Empire - and is them we have to thank for that fact that we're NOT living under Hitler. 

Your ignorance and ingratitude is remarkable in a place that prides itself on learning and academic accomplishment. 

Shame on you all, except Mr. Wozniak, the lone person among you with any moral center or courage. I now fully understand why many people revile "liberals." You all make me too ill to describe.  

God bless America, and my beloved Marine brothers. And may God help you. 

David Gaier 

Metuchen New Jersey 

Mr. Mayor 

What an abomination your city council is! You should chastise them for an anti-democratic declaration. You and all the folks that live in your city should be embarrassed by their actions. Without the fine folks of the United States Marine Corps to defend us, we would not be enjoying our right to express our viewpoints and freedoms.. 

SHAME ON YOUR CITY 

Dale Goshorn 

USMC 1983-1987 

I find the actions of the Berkeley City Council reprehensible. How dare you tell the Marine Corps they are "unwelcome" in your city? I wonder if your feelings would be the same if we were invaded and the Marines were the only thing between you and a prison camp or death? I completely respect your citizens rights to protest the current military actions the United States is involved in (coincidentally another right the U.S. Military protects). I think your protests are misguided. Marines don't make policy; they follow orders. If you want to protest, maybe you should go to your state house or Washington and March in front of the Pentagon.  

Granting Code Pink special access to protest in front of the recruiting station is akin to Stalinism. Granting one group a voice while trying to stifle another is information control/manipulation. I am certain that the Marines will not even dignify your actions with a response and will simply continue on in their duty with dignity. 

Finally, have any of you in Berkeley, residents and politicians alike, stopped for one second to consider the GOOD things the U.S. military does? How many tens of thousands have they saved? How about the hundreds of thousands of former military personnel that have gone on to lead productive lives? What about the thousands who have made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of this great country? You should be outside that station THANKING them, not protesting them. I never served in the military but I'm PROUD of them every day for the sacrifices they make for US. 

SHAME ON YOU ALL! 

Joseph Castelli 

New Jersey 

Being a retired member of the United States Army that twice was put down for being on the streets of California in uniform. I would pray that the United States Military would place the city of Berkley 'OFF LIMITS' to all personnel. 

I would further pray that any veterans that live in and around Berkley would take their business someplace else to the extent possible. 

I further pray that the Senate can do something about withholding earmarks from you for some of your pet projects. 

I fought so you could have freedom of speech. You must also remember that you, and you alone are responsible for placing your foot in your mouth. 

James Batchelor 

U. S. Army Retired 

Colville, Washington 

This is a little too much. The whole country is watching your town make a mockery of activism and free speech. You make "political correctness" seem politically correct. I sincerely hope the bill introduced to pull all federal funds from your little hamlet there on the left coast succeeds until someone in your group of "public servants" understands what service is. Your "council" owes an apology to the Marines, the entire Armed Forces of this great land, the state of California, but most of all to the families who have made the ultimate sacrifice. I'll bet no one in your group has ever served our nation's highest cause, because your actions certainly don't demonstrate that you have one clue about what true sacrifice is. To me, that is the chronic dysfunction of bleeding heart liberalism. Self-centerdness as opposed to self-sacrifice. Shame on you. 

Semper Fidelis, 

Shawn Kiley 

Matthews, North Carolina 

I was appalled to learn about the comments made by Berkley City leaders regarding ousting marine recruiters in your area. I would like to remind these folks that they are sitting on that platform and behind their nameplate because men and women had fought so that people have the freedom to vote. There’s a country song with a line that says “What was I thinking?” I want to ask you, Berkley leaders, Mayor Bates, and some residents…What were YOU thinking? 

John Evers 

Mount Airy, North Carolina  

Dear Mr. Mayor and City Council members: 

I am deeply disappointed in your actions in wanting to force the Marine recruiting office to move from Berkeley. To be against the war is one thing. To be against those soldiers fighting and dying is too much. The irony is that they are fighting and dying to maintain freedom to wage your battle against them. In addition, you have spat in the face of the soldiers whose prior service and sacrifices have purchased the freedoms you now enjoy and misuse. As a Disabled Veteran and former 82nd Airborne Division paratrooper, I am appalled and angered by what you have done. By your decisions and actions and statements, you have insulted me and my service. I am ashamed to have to admit that you are fellow citizens in this great country. 

By allowing the Code Pink protesters to deface government property (the recruiting offices), you have become accomplices to their guilt, and have lost the moral right to govern your community. The police are there to protect people and property from damage. Tell us honestly: if a group of protesters were to vandalize and deface your City Council offices, would those same Police Officers "try and remain neutral"? We both know the answer to that question, don't we? The Police would immediately intervene. So now you have admitted to discriminatory actions on the part of the Police Department and also on the part of the people who gave them their orders. You have also admitted complicity to negligence for not disciplining the Police Department for dereliction of duty (not doing their job, which was to protect people and property). 

I hope the U.S. Senate is successful in their efforts to have earmarks taken from your city. I also hope and pray that businesses who deal with or support the military or its members see what you have done and either boycott or relocate away from Berkeley. I hope the Marine Corps sues the City of Berkeley for what has happened to their property and also for punitive and civil rights damages because of the Police Department's lack of action. I further hope that the damages awarded are of such an amount that the City Government feels true pain at having to live with the penalties. I hope Governor Schwarzenegger adds any appropriate state-level censures and penalties as well. I am sure that I will be not be the only person looking for opportunities to inform his office of your actions. 

As stated before I am a former 82nd Airborne paratrooper. I am not a Marine. But I have served with them from time to time during my service, and I can assure you that when threatened or attacked in any way, no service member stays territorial about which exact branch of service they belong to. You have angered and upset far more people than just the Marine Corps. 

Charles Sullivan 

Longview, Texas 

Disabled Veteran 

Former Paratrooper, 82nd Airborne Division 

Salutations; 

Mayor, people of Berkeley: 

I hope you or one of your staff will actually have time to read this. 

Your councils attack on the marines and poor choice of words has angered a number of people. Yet you have a chance to really get out a real message and to show and mobilize a number of groups to benifit your citizens and people of berkeley. 

First I would ask the council apologize and really back on what comes across as an attack on american service members. Second stop treating code pink as a special interest group and showing a favorotism that hurts the ideals your city says it stands for. ( Will you be giving a parking spot to anti abortion groups in front of clinics?). 

Third ask supporters to start fund raising for your lunch programs and the fallen soldier fund split down the middle. This will allow healing and a good outcome. ( Also gives you aback up plan if federal dollars get held up) 

Point out and ask code pink to do a carefully worded and polite apology that will ge there message on national media and yet make those on the right feel victory in defending their marines. 

You and council where incorrect in your choice of words and actions, I believe you have a wonderfull oppurtunity to dialogue on the war and veterans and alternative peoples in the military. An real apology will cost nothing and get much done please live by the ideas your city says it promotes. 

Thank you 

Mike Donnelly 

Seattle 

Regarding berkley's stupidity shown by demanding the United States Marine Corps Recruiters leave the city, based on some drug infested dream that the Marines are bad & berkley nut-cases are the only ones in America with a brain. A fence should be built around your town & tickets sold, partly so real Americans can come look through the fence to see what drugs & lack of leadership can do to a city... The real reason though, is so your idiotic neighbors can't get out and possibly breed with real humans.  

Yes, it would be appropriate for the USMC should be positioned as guards around the fence to ensure no one gets out & no drugs get in. 

God bless the USMC. Please God, do something else with the berkleyites... 

Bob Holdman (US Navy Retired) 

Bonaire, Georgia 

I see nothing has changed in Berkeley. You were treating our military like garbage when I came back from Vietnam, both in 1967 and again in 1969. You're still treating tem like garbage today. How you can sit there and slander, abuse, and disrespect the very people who have given their lives for your freedom is beyond me. You sit and act like idiots pushing your anti American agenda. The backpeddeling, the well what we said isn't what we ment is hogwash. You said it, you ment it, and now you're just doing damage control . . . To late! When the next big earthquake drops Berkeley in to the bay where it belongs, I'm sure you will not be requesting or accepting ANY help provided by the National Guard, Reserves, or the military. 

Hallett Newman 

Ratcliff, Arizona 

I read a news article regarding the council in Berkeley publicily announcing their distate for the Marines by telling the reqruiters; you are unwelcome in Berkeley. 

God bless America and it's freedoms for your right to make this announcment. Had you made such an announcment regarding the armed forces of many despotic and totalitarian societies in this world you might be amoung the missing by now. Luckily you could grandly announce your distaste for a service branch of The United States Of America and so toast each other on how daring and honest you are, because you are in Berkeley, California, USA. Every Marine who ever wore the uniform stood for your right to say what you did. 

I was not a Marine, I served in the Navy. Perhaps you have some problem with the Navy also. Frankly, I would not be surprised, since the Navy is an organisation which might go to war and so hurt somebody. 

My question for all of you in Berkeley who might read this is; if an aggresive army was coming up your main street, would you fight them, would you be a colaborator (to save you own life), would you gladly become a slave or would you wish for just one Marine to stand between you and the ones, who would take away every freedom you took so lightly in your life? 

Posting here requires my identity so here it is: 

Hugh McGuigan 

Pensacola, Florida 

The reason you don't want to print letters from outside Berkley, concerning the Marines, is that you don't want your readers to see how the rest of the nation sees Berkley. You people are nothing but a bunch of south ends of north bound KY mules--wait I am sorry I did not mean to insult such a fine animal. 

Bob Tanguay  

Brandenburg Kentucky 

You and your city council (excluding the couple of patriots who voted like Americans) and the Code Pinkos have got it wrong. You all say that the Marines are not welcome and that they should go. Actually, it the city of Berkeley and your newspaper who should go. You do not belong here in the US and you are not welcome here. How does it feel to be tied with San Francisco as the nations cesspool? Ah, it feels so good to exercise my freedom of speech!!! 

Hank Sierakowski 

Boynton Beach, Florida 

Ah!!!!!! I think I understand your decision. Not all that surprising since one of America's best centers Liberal centers of learning is there and producing very smart people and I assumed at least a measure of common sense. The Berkeley City Council wants to do away with the unwelcome intrusion of Marine recruiters in your community because you believe they will enlist your son's and daughters to serve their country to protect against terrorism bent on our destruction and you want to protect the health and safety of your youth. You must want to exchange the Marines for and welcome into your community radical terrorists who are sworn to eliminate every aspect of your current way of life that you obviously take for granted and who also assure the total destruction of your children and the rest of America. About 9 people did not receive a liberal measure of com mon sense. 

Lee Southard 

Florida 

It’s February 14 and you’ve just handed your sweetie a gorgeous bouquet of roses. Tears spring to her eyes and her cheeks begin to flush bright red. But wait: Is this love or just an allergic reaction? 

Valentine’s Day is a time for flowers, chocolates and the occasional diamond. But each of these love-gifts can come with curses. Chocolates can involve child labor, smuggled gems can support rebel armies (proof that diamonds truly are a guerilla’s best friend), and flowers can arrive perfumed with pesticides. 

According to the Society of American Florists, more that 175 million roses will be planted, reared, sheared, and shipped thousands of miles to feed the Valentine’s Day market in the US alone. But be careful when you chose your spray of roses because there’s a better-than-even chance that those roses have been sprayed—with herbicides and pesticides. 

“All of these cut flowers and plants are heavily treated with pesticides,” University of Florida Anthropologist Elizabeth Guillette, Ph.D. recently advised The Green Guide. “It’s important to avoid touching the blossoms and to handle them as little as possible, and then be sure to wash your hands.” Guillette is not over-reacting. She spent time in Mexico charting elevated instances of stillbirths and early infant deaths among female flower workers who were exposed to organophosphate pesticides. 

Flowers: A Blooming Global Business 

According to the US Census Bureau, Americans spent more than $400 million on flowers in 2004—$40 million just on roses. The US consumed nearly 1.5 billion roses in 2005. More than 93 percent of America’s flowers are imported, mostly from Colombia and Ecuador. 

If your flowers came from Colombia, the International Labor Rights Fund (ILRF) wants you to know that they were probably genetically engineered, showered with pesticides and raised inside a gigantic factory farm owned by Dole Foods, which presides over Colombia’s largest flower plantation. (Last year, Dole fired 200 employees after they staged a protest over working conditions.) ILRF Program Coordinator Nora Ferm reports that Latin America’s flower workers “have daily contact with toxic chemicals but are not given sufficient protective equipment” so it’s no surprise that they suffer “skin rashes, asthma, miscarriages, respiratory problems and neurological problems.” 

The ILRF claims that two-thirds of the region’s poverty-waged, over-worked, floricultural laborers suffer significant health problems due to pesticides. The International Labor Organization reports that more than 70 percent of the flower-workers in Ecuador and Colombia are women. In Ecuador, 20 percent of the workers are young girls. These workers are particularly at risk in the days leading up to St. Valentine’s Day, when they can be forced to work 20-hour shifts. 

Poisoned Workers Demand Justice 

In December 2003, hundreds of Colombian workers were poisoned when a single container of chemicals spilled on the ground at a flower factory. The Association of Flower Exporters reported that only “a few” workers were hospitalized but a Pesticide Action Network investigation revealed that 384 workers had been treated for symptoms including “fainting, strong headaches, nausea, swelling, rashes, diarrhea, and sores inside and around the mouth.” 

A Colombian Ministry of Health investigation discovered that nine different pesticides were being used in the flower factory including Dursban and Lorsban (both formulations of chlorpyrifos, a highly toxic organophosphate insecticide produced by Dow Agrosciences). 

The ILRF has inaugurated a Fairness in Flowers Campaign that encourages shoppers to demand that retailers only deal with suppliers who respect worker rights. The campaign’s main targets: Albertsons, Costco, Dole Food Company, FTD, Safeway, and Wal-Mart. 

Shopping for an Alternative 

The neighborhood florist has long since taken a backseat to the mall and supermarket when it comes to the flower trade. Today florists account for around 22 percent of sales while supermarkets have captured 49 percent of the market. (Although there are fewer florists, they do manage to snag nearly half of the money Americans spend on flowers. The supermarkets claim slightly more that a quarter of all the bucks spent on blossoms and buds.) 

“The $6 billion American cut-flower industry has been slow to embrace the idea of an eco-label for cut flowers,” Stewart notes. Meanwhile, “such programs have been popular in Europe for years.” 

Fortunately you can still play Cupid without being stupid. California Organic Flowers (https://californiaorganicflowers.com) ships organic roses by the dozen. As does Akagourmet (www.akagourmet.com) and Manic Organics (www.ManicOrganicsFlowers.com). Diamond Organics (www.diamondorganics.com) specializes in organic tulips and California Organic Flowers (www.californiaorganicflowers.com) proffers pesticide-free proteas. Organic Bouquet (www.organicbouquet.com) sells chemical-free flowers grown in Ecuador. You can also order fair-trade flowers from Transfair USA (http://transfairusa.org) and FairTrade (www.fairtrade.net/flowers). If you can’t find a local supplier of organic Valentine’s Day roses (or fair-trade chocolate), the Pesticide Action Network website will link you to a host of Special Offers. (A portion of each purchase goes to support PAN’s work.) 

The Local Harvest website (www.localharvest.org) will guide you to your nearest certified organic grower (for fruits and veggies as well as flowers) as well as local greenhouses and dried flower purveyors. Or you could surprise your loved ones with a gift membership in a Community Supported Agriculture cohort. One local CSA, Full Belly Farm (www.fullbellyfarm.com) will deliver flowers to your doorstep as part of the deal. 

A Valentine for Flower Workers 

Corporación Cactus, a Colombian social justice organization, has called on shoppers to honor February 14th as International Flower-workers’ Day. Corporación Cactus is asking the world to pay tribute thousands of workers who are “more important than thousands of flowers.” On February 14, the workers simply ask that, when you buy an imported flower, you understand that you are “buying the sweat of many workers.” 

Valentine’s Day is, at heart, all about caring for someone else. So enjoy Valentine’s Day by making sure your red roses are local/fair-trade and “green.” Remember: when you buy organic and embrace your partner, you will also be embracing justice. 

Gar Smith is editor emeritus of Earth Island Journal and editor at Pesticide Action Network North America. He also edits the environmental website The-Edge.org.

One of the more interesting phenomena to emerge from the U.S. debacle in Iraq is the demise of the unipolar world that rose from the ashes of the Cold War. A short decade ago the U.S. was the most powerful political, economic and military force on the planet. Today its army is straining under the weight of an unpopular occupation, its economy is careening toward recession, and the only “allies” it can absolutely depend on in the United Nations are Israel, Palau, and the Marshall Islands. 

Rather than the “American Century” the Bush Administration neo-conservatives predicted, it is increasingly a world where regional alliances and trade associations in Europe and South America have risen to challenge Washington’s once undisputed domination. 

When Argentina thumbed its nose at the U.S.-dominated World Bank and International Monetary Fund, it had the powerful Mercosur trade association to back it up. When the U.S. tried to muscle Europe into ending agricultural subsidies (while keeping its own), the European Union refused to back down. 

And now India, China and Russia are drifting toward a partnership—alliance is too strong a word—that could transform global relations and shift the power axis from Washington to New Delhi, Beijing, and Moscow. 

It is a consortium of convenience, as the interests of the three countries hardly coincide on all things.  

In security matters, for instance, the Chinese look east toward Taiwan, the Indians north to Pakistan, and the Russians west at an encroaching North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). There are still tensions between China and India over their 1962 border war, and bad feelings between Russia and China go all the way back to the Vietnam War. 

But growing trade, security issues and an almost insatiable hunger for energy have brought the three together in what Russian President Vladimir Putin calls a “trilateral” relationship.  

The initial glue was a common interest in the gas and oil supplies of Central Asia. 

In 2001, China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan formed the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) to challenge U.S. moves to corner Central Asia’s gas and oil reserves and to counter the growing presence of NATO in the Pacific Basin. SCO has since added India and given observer status to Iran, Pakistan, Mongolia and Afghanistan.  

Access to energy is almost an existential issue for China and India. China imports half its oil, and energy shortages could derail the high-flying Chinese economy. India imports 70 percent of its oil, and, unlike China, it has no strategic reserves.  

Both nations have made energy a foreign policy cornerstone. China is pumping billions of dollars into developing Caspian Sea oil and gas fields and building pipelines, while India is busy negotiating a pipeline deal with Iran.  

The India-Iran deal has come under considerable pressure from Washington. Nicholas Burns, U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, told the Financial Times that Washington hoped “very much that India will not conclude any long-term oil and gas agreements with Iran.” 

However, Indian Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram says, “We should do it—Iran has the gas and we need the gas.” India is estimated to have up to $40 billion in gas and oil interests in Iran, and the pipeline is projected to cost $10 billion. 

To much unhappiness in Washington, China just inked a $2 billion deal to develop Iran’s Yadavaran gas and oil field. 

The International Energy Agency predicts that energy needs will be 50 percent higher in 2030 than they are today, and that developing countries will soak up 74 percent of that rise. China and India will account for 45 percent of those energy needs, and by sometime after 2010, China will be the largest energy user in the world. 

This past October, the nations which border the Caspian Sea—Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan—jointly declared that they “will not allow other countries to use their territories for acts of aggression or other military operations against any party.” The declaration was seen as directly aimed at U.S. bases in Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan. 

There are also growing trade ties among China, India and Russia. 

Trade between India and China was $24 billion in 2007, the same as trade between India and the U.S., and is projected to jump to $40 billion by 2010. Both nations have agreed to reopen an overland route through the Himalayas that has been closed for 44 years. 

In 1992 India launched its “Look East” policy, and Asia now constitutes 45 percent of India’s trade. India is the third largest economy in the region, followed by China and Japan. 

India desperately needs up to $500 billion in investments to upgrade its infrastructure. South Korea and Singapore are already major investors, and the Russians have shown interest as well. India would love a piece of Russia’s $1 trillion foreign exchange reserves. 

There are growing security ties as well, some of which have a decided downside.  

China is relying on Russia for many of its new weapons, including the high performance SU-33 fighter, which can be adapted for use on aircraft carriers. The Chinese say they plan to build several carriers, which would allow them to challenge the current U.S. domination of the Taiwan Straits. 

India has just concluded an agreement to buy and jointly assemble Russia’s new fighter, the SU-30, which in recent war games outmaneuvered and outfought the U.S. F-16. New Delhi will buy Russia’s fifth-generation fighter, the Future Tactical Aviation Concept, rather than the U.S. F-22 or the European F-35. The Russians are also modernizing India’s Vikramaditya aircraft carrier and have agreed to a joint production agreement to build Russia’s new tank, the T-90. 

While none of the three countries’ military budgets approach U.S. military spending, nevertheless, tens of billions of dollars are being funneled into armaments at a time of growing economic inequity in all three nations. 

According to the United Nations Development Report, inequality in India has grown faster in the last 15 years than it did in the preceding 50. Mortality for children under the age of five is three times that of China, and greater than Bangladesh and Nepal. Some 46.7 percent of India’s children are underweight, and 44.9 percent are stunted in growth.  

Those figures for China are 10 percent and 14.2 percent respectively.  

While India’s poor were getting poorer, India’s 311 billionaires saw their collective wealth jump 71 percent in 2006.  

China and Russia do not have the same inequity gulf as India, but there is widening economic disparity in both countries that military spending certainly makes more difficult to address.  

Another troubling side to this increasing trilateral cooperation is that the three countries have agreed to support one another on the issue of “terrorism” and “separatism.” In practice, that may give China a free hand in its largely Muslim Xingjian Province and in Tibet. It might mute criticism of Moscow’s war in Chechnya and give cover for India to step up its military actions against Maoist “Naxilites,” as well as put the clamps on restive minorities on its northwest border. 

The relationship among the three countries can hardly be called an “alliance.” The Indian military regularly takes part in joint military maneuvers with the U.S. and, so far, military cooperation between India, China and Russia is low-level. But all have common interests in securing energy resources and, if not confronting the U.S., at least not letting Washington dictate to them on international and internal issues.  

The U.S. is still the big dog on the block, but it can no longer just bark to get its way.

We have come to an odd turn in Oakland’s Police and Crime and Politics novel, as if a master storyteller—Arthur Conan Doyle or Scott Turow, perhaps—has suddenly introduced an unexpected twist that makes the reader have to throw out many earlier assumptions, and even go back and revisit some of the first few chapters to see exactly how this spot was reached. We are in the middle of the story, now, so it is difficult to sort out all the narrative threads. I will do my best and if I err, forgive me, as this is being done as things are still developing, and new information is coming forth. 

Oakland’s struggles to overcome its entrenched crime problems long ago divided it into two opposing political camps, one camp believing that the emphasis ought to be on cracking down on criminals and shoring up police resources, another that crime should be nipped earlier by violence prevention interventions. Most of the proponents on either side believed that Oakland ought to have some of both solutions—the division was over which solution ought to predominate and get the most attention and resources. 

These battles revolved around various Oakland ballot measures that tilted between one side or the other—former Mayor Jerry Brown’s 2002 hire-100-more-police Measure FF and its related tax increase fundings, all of which lost, Councilmember Nancy Nadel’s 2004 Measure R parcel tax to raise money for violence prevention exclusively, which also lost, and, finally, Measure Y, which funded the hiring of 63 new police officers as well as various violence prevention programs. 

Two of the Oakland councilmembers who have been most vocal about the need for more police have been Council President Ignacio De La Fuente and District 7 Councilmember Larry Reid, who chairs the Council’s Public Safety Committee. De La Fuente signed the ballot argument against Nadel’s Measure R, saying in the argument, in part, that “The likely result [of the measure] is a grab bag of ‘pork-barrel’ projects, each spending money on its separate administration with no coordination among them.” And while Reid supported the violence prevention measure, he told the Tribune in February of 2004 that Measure R “doesn’t get us to where we need to be” in regard to increased police to combat Oakland’s crime. 

Measure Y passed in November of 2004 and the city began collecting the authorized additional parcel tax money shortly afterwards. But while the measure authorized an increase of Oakland police strength to 803, the force has never come up to that full strength. Police staffing currently runs roughly 75 short, a fact that has led to increasing discontent among some Oakland residents during the current spike in city crime. 

There are logistical difficulties in meeting that 803 full-strength target, among them that police retirements are outstripping recruitment, among others, and a plan was needed to close Oakland’s “blue gap.” Increased recruiting is not enough. But if the two Oakland councilmembers most identified with increasing the numbers of police-Council President De La Fuente and Public Safety Chair Larry Reid-developed and advanced such a plan between 2005 and today, I haven’t seen it. If they did develop such a plan, I hope someone sends it to me. I don’t want to misrepresent. 

Meanwhile, Oakland residents elected a new mayor in 2006, Ron Dellums. And increasingly, during his first year of office in 2007, Mr. Dellums has come under public criticism for not reducing Oakland’s crime rate. When some of those critics have not been painting Mr. Dellums with a broad “do-nothing mayor” brush, they have specifically charged that he is soft on crime, too philosophically addicted to violence prevention to take the tough-on-criminals stance that these critics feel Oakland needs. 

But now come the twists in the narrative, which show that the lines on this issue are not as clear-cut as some critics—and many of my colleagues in the press—are representing. 

In September of 2007, at a Town Hall citizens meeting at DeFremery Park in West Oakland, Mr. Dellums said he would like to reorganize how the Measure Y violence prevention money was being allocated, saying that parceling it out to various organizations “was like going in 100 directions all at once.” Asked if that meant he was going to embrace the existing Measure Y violence prevention funding or set his own priorities, Mr. Dellums responded that “a lot of the money is going to different agencies that are not properly coordinated. We should not just be funding programs. We need to fund a violence prevention strategy.” 

That sounded remarkably like the “each spending money on its separate administration with no coordination among them” criticism Mr. De La Fuente endorsed three years before in the anti-Measure Y ballot argument. 

So does that mean Mr. Dellums and Mr. De La Fuente have come to a meeting of minds concerning combating crime in Oakland? Hardly. In fact, recent events seem to indicate that they have flown right past each other to the opposite sides of the argument. 

At his State of the City address last month, Mr. Dellums made a surprise announcement-a pledge to end the Oakland police “blue gap” and bring the department up to full 803 strength by the end of the year. Many-myself included-criticized that pledge, not because we did not want to fully staff the Oakland police at authorized strength, but because we did not see, given the logistical problems, how that was going to be possible in the 11 months remaining in the year. 

During his Oakland Convention Center speech, Mr. Dellums outlined a brief laundry list of what he called eight “approaches” to closing the “blue gap.” This week, the mayor and Police Chief Wayne Tucker fleshed out that list with a 21-page Augmented Police Recruitment Proposal, requesting that the council authorize the transfer of $7.7 million in Measure Y money to fund an accelerated police recruitment program. The mayor and chief appear to be requesting that the money come from the police services fund balance portion of Measure Y-which has been steadily growing as new taxes are collected and the promised new police officers have not been hired-and not from the violence prevention programs portion. In its semiannual February report, the Measure Y Oversight Committee has estimated that unspent police services carryover money at $8.6 million and growing, more than enough to cover the $7.7 million recruiting proposal request. Council is scheduled to take their first formal look at the augmented recruitment proposal at their February 19th meeting. 

You would think that such a proposal would have tickled to death the two Councilmembers who have, in the past, been most vocal in support of increasing the numbers of police on Oakland streets. But both Council President De La Fuente and Council Public Safety Chair Reid seemed, strangely, underwhelmed and disconcerted. 

In an article in Thursday’s Oakland Tribune entitled “Police Funding Request Draws Ire,” Mr. De La Fuente and Mr. Reid appeared to focus on process rather than substance. The augmented police recruitment proposal bypasses vetting in the Council Public Safety Committee, which Mr. Reid chairs, and is scheduled without full input from the Measure Y Oversight Committee, which canceled two meetings in a row because it fumbled its public notice requirements. 

“The latest proposal from Mayor Dellums regarding Measure Y funds gives us more reason than ever to have the committee meeting and doing analysis,” the Tribune quoted Mr. De La Fuente in response. And saying that the police recruitment proposal should be vetted by the public safety and Measure Y oversight committees before it goes to full council, the Tribune quoted Mr. Reid as saying, “It may upset the mayor, but I think there’s a process we’ve got to follow. Certainly, I don’t want to circumvent that process.” 

In response, Dellums Chief of Staff David Chai was quoted as saying that the vetting process “takes time,” and that “every day we can’t utilize our efforts to recruit (more officers) is a day lost. The clock is ticking. We have an ambitious goal that the mayor laid out and we’re going to make that goal.” 

Let’s try to sort some of this out, with the handicap that we can only work on the information currently available. 

Mr. Chai’s remarks appear ill-considered, and ought to be amended if not outright withdrawn. If Oakland had suffered a massive earthquake and Council was blocking emergency teams getting out to injured citizens, Council would need a public kick in the ass, and the mayoral chief of staff’s comments would be entirely appropriate. 

However, although Oaklanders are dying and getting mugged in the city’s streets, nothing in the augmented recruitment proposal would have an immediate effect on those problems. The proposal’s own four stated goals say are to “increase the pool of applicants and the number of new Police Officer Trainees entering the academy in 2008, increase the success rate of [trainees] in the academy, field more fully trained and qualified police officers on the streets of Oakland, and grow Oakland’s own pool of qualified applicants for the future.” 

Given that it might take only an extra two weeks to a month for a full Council Public Safety Committee and Measure Y Oversight Committee vetting, and given the fact that the Public Safety Committee is full of Councilmembers who have long commitments to increasing the number of Oakland police, and given the fact that the first recommendation in the oversight committee’s February semiannual report is to “immediately hire all 63 officers mandated by Measure Y,” it is difficult to see how the Public Safety and Measure Y Oversight committees will be a roadblock to the mayor and police chief’s recruitment proposals. And if the two committees are dissatisfied with the proposals, it is more likely that their dissatisfaction would lead to the full Council rejecting the proposals if the two committees don’t get their chance, first, to air out their concerns. 

On the other hand, there may be no small measure of politics in the somewhat tepid initial response of Mr. De La Fuente and Mr. Reid. As we said, Council, after all, came up with no adequate plan on its own to close the “blue gap” between the time the gap became apparent sometime in early 2006 and today. For the supposed “soft-on-crime” mayor to advance such a plan over more “law-and-order” Councilmembers may be something of a political embarrassment to those Councilmembers. And so the squabble over process, rather than policy substance. 

The truth is, it was Mr. Dellums himself who boxed his administration in a political corner by pledging the full 803 by the end of the year. But it’s a hollow box. If, at the end of the year, the augmented recruitment proposal is in place and there is substantial progress at closing the “blue gap,” only the most anal-retentive, or those who have a political interest in Mr. Dellums’ failure on any and all issues, will notice that the pledge was not met on time. The rest of Oakland will say that it’s about time, and won’t care about the rest of the rhetoric. 

O’Donnell’s Fairfax Nursery is an old favorite of mine, though I pass it maybe 20 times for every time I go in to visit. It’s right on one of our two usual routes to Point Reyes, though over the last five years or so it’s the route we take coming back and they’re often closed by that hour. Besides, on the way out we’re generally in a big fat hurry to go see some birds; on the way back, we’re tired and grouchy and unfit for civilized company.  

It’s worth a left turn on Sir Frances Drake when we time it right, though. The nursery’s in a sort of winter lull this month but there’s still temptation there. Here’s the deal: Paul O’Donnell is a devout (and practicing) restorationist, and he grows California native plants for that purpose and Just Because, and he grows them organically. He’s one of very few people who do that. 

O’Donnell uses a down-to-earth method to test for deer resistance, too: the fence around most of the nursery isn’t tall enough to keep deer out. “I decided to keep just that four-foot fence by the sidewalk. Deer hop it every night. So when people ask, ‘What’s a California native that deer won’t destroy, maybe just take a little nibble?’ I say, ‘Take a look! The deer are not prohibited from this property; they meander through here all the time.’ So yeah, I do have a sort of deer laboratory right here.” He points out that native deer have a symbiotic relationship with even deer-resistant native plants: “Stop fighting it!” 

Joe and I can attest to the presence of deer in downtown Fairfax. Some years ago, driving back at about 8:30 at night from the Point Reyes Christmas Bird Count, I saw a big brown nose and big brown knees on the right and then, Oomph! Something thumped into the passenger-side door of the pickup.  

Joe had dozed off in the passenger seat and came awake with an exclamation. I pulled over at the first parking space … Yes, parking space. It was only in literal hindsight that I realized the nose and knees belonged not to a dog as I’d supposed but to a four-point buck who’d come across a street and a parking lot and out from between parked cars to leave a couple of impressive dents in the truck’s right door.  

What I saw in the mirror was the deer bouncing up from his knees, glaring indignantly at us, and bounding off between buildings, evidently unhurt except maybe for skinned knees. He didn’t even seem panicked, just annoyed.  

O’Donnell has fruit trees (citrus, pears including Seckel, apples, figs the day we dropped in last week) and veggies, herbs, and the like in a corner with higher fencing, along with seed for natives, edibles, and erosion-control/bank-stabilizing plants. Organic-worthy amendments and bug traps and a tool or ten, too.  

Stop in any time you’re going out to play on the Point, or make it an excuse for a field trip.  

Just watch out for impulsive deer. 

O’Donnell’s Fairfax Nursery 

1700 Sir Francis Drake Blvd.,Fairfax. 

(415) 453-0372. 

Winter hours: 10 a.m.–4:30 p.m. weekdays; 9 a.m.–5:30 p.m. weekends. 

“If there’s a three-hour downpour, we just close up and go home. Call first!” 

Spring and summer: 9 a.m.–5:30 p.m. daily. 

After Alameda County voters resoundingly rejected Measures A and B—the $300 million parcel tax to fund Children’s Hospital Oakland’s (CHO) dream tower—my neighbors and I figured we’d have some time to relax. Or at the very least catch up on the Hillary-Obama race.  

We weren’t naïve enough to think that CHO execs would actually give up. But we thought they might give us a break. Yasmin got her hair cut, Katina went snowboarding, Sharon returned to her studio, Jeannie attended PTA meetings and soccer games. I spent some time in front of the mirror ignoring new wrinkles and admiring my suddenly svelte (from stress) body. 

We reflected on the past hectic five months, including a bizarre encounter in the city of Piedmont after Katina debated CHO senior vice president Mary Dean at a meeting hosted by the League of Women Voters. As we were leaving the quaint Piedmont City Hall, a little man followed us with his yellow notepad and critiqued Katina’s performance. When Yasmin asked who he was, he called her “Missy” and told her not to get her panties in a bunch. We were in his “hood” now. We virtually had to hold Yasmin back from decking him. We jumped into our car and raced down the hill to the safety of the flats at 54th and Dover streets. 

I thought about all the odd and beautiful things I saw and experienced while delivering hundreds of flyers around the neighborhood. How I met Linda Reed and Carrie Lee Burchell, two women who have lived on 53rd Street for decades. Linda told me she was born 60 years ago in a house that was bulldozed by Children’s to make way for the parking lot between 52nd and 53rd streets. She moved across 53rd and has lived there ever since. When I asked Carrie Lee if I could put a “No on Measure A” sign up in her front yard, she said, “Honey, please do.” 

While leafleting I learned some neighborhood family secrets, found out who was related to whom at Mr. Cole’s house, saw someone’s cleaning lady kiss a stranger before pulling him through the front door. 

My friends and I had a good chuckle over the use of the CHO shuttle bus to transport neighbors (who shall remain anonymous) to and from the McArthur BART station in order to distribute anti-Measure A flyers to commuters. We could finally laugh about the early morning KPFA radio debate I had with CHO’s head of Trauma Services, Dr. Jim Betts. I had arrived at the studio in my lucky Mrs. Scott sweater; he wore his scrubs. 

But before I popped open the champagne to celebrate the defeat of Measures A and B, I decided to check in with a few local politicians. I didn’t expect anyone to return my call. After all, no one had been in a hurry to answer my questions before the election. But surprisingly, Oakland city council members Jane Brunner and Nancy Nadel got back to me almost immediately. What Jane Brunner told me suggests the hospital plans to move forward as though the election never happened.  

“How?” I asked. “They didn’t get the $300 million from taxpayers to finance the project.” 

“I don’t know,” she answered. 

I guess we’ll find out tomorrow (Wednesday) night at CHO’s community meeting at the North Oakland Senior Center. If you’ve got the time, drop by and hear what they have to say. I’ll be there listening for clues as to how they expect to build their dream tower. That sure was one short-lived election victory. 

Danny Hoch’s new solo, Taking Over, is having its world premiere at the Berkeley Rep. I saw the show in January, my interest piqued by the rave review in the Chronicle. But what got me to buy a $49 ticket was curiosity about the play’s treatment of gentrification. I knew that Hoch’s latest piece dramatized the recent, wrenching transformation of his Brooklyn neighborhood of Williamsburg.  

Having participated in Berkeley’s own gentrification wars for a good decade, I wanted see how Hoch’s play framed the Brooklyn experience. I wondered, too, whether local struggles would be illuminated by his show. That the piece had been commissioned by the Rep and directed by the company’s artistic director, Tony Taccone, made its potential relevance all the more intriguing. 

To a casual observer, the differences between Brooklyn and Berkeley may seem so great as to make it unlikely that the one place could shed any light on the other, at least before Brooklyn was invaded by the new gentry. Such an observer might well equate gentrification with Berkeley-ization, as manifest in the cultural posturing, political pretension, therapeutic entrepreneurship and “progressive” consumerism that confront the Williamsburg natives in Taking Over. Indeed, in one scene a manic Jewish developer holds forth to a reporter while being coached in tai chi and yoga by a Berkeley woman for $350 an hour.  

The multi-tasking developer is one of seven closely observed characters (eight, if you count Hoch’s out-of-character cameo) who contribute to the show’s complex portrait of a place in uneasy transition. On the positive side, the crackheads are gone, and with them, the area’s once-notorious crime and violence. The Hispanic ex-con who comes upon a low-budget movie being filmed on his block recalls that not long ago he and his neighbors routinely witnessed a different sort of shooting. Seductive shopping options, especially for food, drink and clothing, suddenly abound. The fifty-something African-American social worker who keeps the peace from her front stoop is drawn to a trendy café by the shop’s delectable almond croissants. The area’s building stock is being swiftly upgraded through rehabilitation or outright demolition and new construction. “This is a resurgent neighborhood,” says the developer, who has 3,000 apartments on the market.  

But the longtime Williamsburgers also resent the changes that make them feel, as one of them says, “like a fucking tourist in my own neighborhood.” The turbaned social worker finds herself virtually invisible at the trendy café. The unemployed ex-con approaches the film crew in hopes of getting a little work and thereby impressing his mother, who’s watching from the window of their nearby home—only to be brushed off. These offenses are mild, however, compared to the physical displacement experienced by those forced out of their homes by the speculative real estate market. “Times change,” says the developer, whose units are selling for $2 million. “Some old-time families have to leave.” 

In short, Taking Over depicts a place that’s changing for better and for worse. At the same time, the show makes it clear that gentrification’s benefits and liabilities are not evenly distributed, and that the newcomers’ aggrandizement comes largely at the detriment of the existing residents.  

It was disconcerting, then, was to find the show acquiescing in the injustice. Which is to say that Taking Over lacks a viable local politics. A group called “Artists Against Gentrification” protests the loss of affordable space to pricey development. That demonstration, the closest thing to political action in the play, elicits the scorn of the neighborhood’s old-timers, who see artists themselves as gentrification’s “advance troops.” But the neighbors’ scorn also reflects their own alienation and impotence. Their legitimate anger at their plight can be expressed only through rage or surreptitious defiance. The slighted ex-con gets in the face of the indie film crew, shouting “Look at me!” The social worker walks off unnoticed with a few croissants (“Nobody said a word, because I don’t exist”).  

The corollary to the neighbors’ disfranchisement is the absence of accountable authority. Though every one of the thousands of Williamsburg’s new condos presumably had to be approved by some duly constituted body, Taking Over contains but a single reference to a public official: In the middle of his workout-cum-interview, the developer gets a call from a nameless councilmember about a zoning change. In a gesture that indicates where the real power lies, he declines the call.  

As Hoch tells it, he and his neighbors are helpless to resist the appropriation of their home place. Their suffering likely evokes theatergoers’ pity. But that pity may well be mixed with disdain. I want to be clear: I don’t think the playwright has contempt for his fellow Williamsburgers, nor do I think he intends his show to evoke contempt for them. But in presenting the dispossessed as helpless victims, he invites the audience’s condescension toward the characters he wishes to champion. The pathos of their situation is undercut by Hoch’s nervy wit and intense delivery. As the Rep’s website states, Taking Over has “compassionate and hilarious results.” But the audience’s sympathetic laughter palliates a deeper recognition of the play’s harrowing premise: Nothing can be done to abate gentrification and its wrongs.  

The real Brooklyn tells a different story, one that features the vigorous activism of numerous homegrown organizations. Three of many possible examples: Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn, whose 5,000 members are fighting developer Bruce Ratner’s monstrous Atlantic Yards project, equated on the DDDB’s website with “instant gentrification”; the Greenpoint Manufacturing and Design Center, which turns old factory and warehouse buildings into affordable space for light industry and artisans; and the Pratt Center for Community Development, which uses policy research and leadership training to empower neighborhoods and foster broadly shared prosperity.  

What makes these groups and others like them political, in the best sense of the word, is that they assume that ordinary people are capable of coming together to act in their common interest and demanding accountability from those charged with protecting the general welfare, and that such action can bring about the exercise of power in behalf of the whole community, and not just its privileged members. 

Compelling political theater fleshes out these assumptions. It doesn’t hector or proselytize. Instead, it shows how the character of a place reflects the political competence of its citizens. Accordingly, it implicates citizens who may be in the audience. By citizens, I mean theatergoers who inhabit a world akin to the one represented onstage. 

Cue the matter of Taking Over’s relevance to Berkeley. Though it might not be evident to that casual observer mentioned at the outset, in Berkeley as in Williamsburg, gentrification threatens to transform a place of social, cultural and economic diversity into a homogeneous enclave of wealth. The pressures of the speculative real estate market can be felt all over town, but they weigh most heavily in West Berkeley. That’s also the area that’s most like Brooklyn, in that it’s where hundreds of industrial firms—almost all of the light variety—and in recent decades, hundreds of artists and artisans, ply their trades. In both places, it’s industry’s presence that’s held down land values. Accordingly, it’s the conversion of industrial lands to other uses—above all, residential (read: high-end condos)—that has facilitated gentrification. 

Given these commonalities, what’s striking is how remote Hoch’s Williamsburg appears from West Berkeley. That remoteness is partly explained by the fact that Brooklyn’s industrial character is imperceptible in Taking Over. But the dissimilarity is also due to the play’s elision of Brooklyn’s grass-roots politics.  

For a quarter of a century, Berkeley’s industrial community—led by resident artists and artisans, no less—has fought to maintain the zoning that protects businesses engaged in production, distribution and repair. Until Tom Bates became mayor in 2002, those tireless efforts had largely succeeded in keeping gentrification at bay. Bates, fronting for the big developers in town and pushing the counterfactual claim that the city’s manufacturing is dead, has made the de-industrialization and corresponding Emeryville-ization of West Berkeley one of his top priorities. The ensuing land use battles have been fierce; the ones on this year’s horizon promise to be the fiercest yet, and perhaps decisive. This struggle has no counterpart in Hoch’s depoliticized portrait of gentrifying Brooklyn. 

Nor is the controversy over West Berkeley’s future evident in the publicity or cultural events that accompany Taking Over. The Rep’s website features a book about gentrification in New York and links viewers to “the San Francisco Chronicle’s story on gentrification of San Francisco’s Bayview district.”Not a word about Berkeley. The playbill is scarcely more instructive. Hoch’s show, says director Taccone in his “Prologue,” is “a portrait of what is happening…in every major city in America….Welcome to Brooklyn. Welcome to Berkeley.” Is Taccone saying that Berkeley is one of those gentrifying major American cities? Impossible to tell. Benjamin Grant’s essay “What is gentrification?,” also in the playbill, contains only one place name: America.  

Worse yet, Grant implies that gentrification cannot be resisted. “Gentrification,” he submits, “works by accretion—gathering momentum like a snowball.” In fact, unlike snowballs and other natural phenomena, gentrification is the outcome of human agency. What drives out longtime residents and established businesses is not just impersonal forces—the “rising rents or shifting sensibilities” cited by Grant—but, at bottom, the failure of democratic governance. He mentions successful community campaigns for city policies “that protect [existing residents] from rapid change and broaden the benefits of economic development” but gives no indication of what such policies might be—and if gentrification’s changes are, as he writes, “inevitable,” what difference would policies make?  

There are plenty of smart people in town who could fill in the blanks, as was evident from last November’s symposium on industrial land use in the Bay Area, sponsored by UC’s Center for Community Innovation. I’ll bet some of them would be happy to take part in a panel discussion at the Rep. If it’s too late for that—Taking Over closes on Feb. 24—the Rep’s website could could still direct its viewers to the most incisive coverage of local gentrification, the coverage provided by the independent press. For my part, I invite Danny Hoch to tour West Berkeley and meet some of the locals who have been fighting the good fight. Maybe he can be persuaded to put some of that fight into his next play.

It may be cold outside, but it’s already spring to the Anna’s hummingbird, and courtship and nesting are well under way. 

Last week two hummers, a male and a female, got into our living room, were trapped inside when a gust of wind blew the front door shut, and became entangled in the curtains. Matt the Cat spotted them (he doesn’t so much hunt things as point), and Ron, who moves faster than I do in these situations, retrieved them and released them on the front porch, apparently none the worse for wear. 

I didn’t refer to this distracted twosome as a pair, because hummingbirds don’t form pairs. Mating is promiscuous, and males don’t involve themselves in the tedious business of nest construction and childcare. 

You may have noticed the dive display of the male Anna’s. As described in the authoritative Birds of North America series: “The male sings 1–2 sets of buzzy notes while hovering 2–4 meters over the object of the display for 1–2 second, then climbs in a wavering fashion nearly vertically for 7–8 seconds to a height of 20–40 meters, plummets in a near-vertical dive for 2 seconds, ending the dive with a loud Dive Noise within 0.5–1 meter of object, finally returning in a continuous circular arc … to the beginning point over the object ... The object may be a female Anna’s Hummingbird, another hummingbird, another bird species, or occasionally a human; the sight of any perched hummingbird in its core area may initiate a Dive Display.” 

The exact nature of the Dive Noise, or dive chirp, has been much debated among ornithologists. The late Luis Baptista, former curator of birds at the California Academy of Sciences, thought it was vocal, since the frequency of the chirp was similar to that of the hummer’s vocalization. (It was Baptista who established that Anna’s hummingbirds, like more conventional songbirds such as the white-crowned sparrow, have local song dialects.) 

Recent work by UC Berkeley graduate student Christopher Clark and recent graduate Teresa Feo makes a compelling case that the noise is mechanical in origin, created by specialized tail feathers. 

Their investigations involved a high-speed video camera and a wind tunnel. 

Clark and Feo took the camera, with a 500 shot-per-second capability, to the Albany Bulb, where they alternately wired a stuffed female hummingbird to a bush or staked out a live female in a cage. Males responded to both variants. The camera captured a 60-millisecond spreading of the displaying male’s tail feathers at the bottom of the dive, coincident with the chirp.  

Having observed that Anna’s hummingbirds had, as Clark puts it, “funny tail feathers with tapered or narrow tips,” the researchers then captured several male hummers and customized their tails—either removing the outer pair of tail feathers or trimming their inner vanes. Modified males still performed dive displays, but failed to produce the dive noise. 

The final piece fell into place at Stanford’s Hopkins Marine Station in Pacific Grove, where Clark and Feo exposed outer tail feathers to wind speeds equivalent to a male’s dive speed of 50 miles per hour. The chirp was reproduced in the wind tunnel when the inner vane of the feather fluttered at a frequency of 3.3 to 4.7 kiloherz, four octaves above middle C. Tiny linking barbules kept the barbs of the inner vane stiff enough to vibrate like the reed in a clarinet.  

The dive chirp is actually louder than the hummer’s vocalization. Clark and Feo suggest that this may be an evolutionary response to the constraints posed by the small size of the bird’s syrinx, or song box (the avian equivalent of the larynx). They suspect that close relatives of the Anna’s hummingbird, like the desert-dwelling Costa’s, may produce their chirps in a similar fashion. 

Mechanical sound production in birds is unusual, but not unknown. 

The “winnowing” noise of the Wilson’s snipe is apparently produced by its tail feathers, although no one has worked out the mechanism. Common nighthawks make a rude sound with their wing feathers, and I’m convinced that the bizarre rustling-grating-creaking sounds emitted by a displaying male great-tailed grackle can’t be entirely vocal. The club-winged manakin of Ecuador has specialized wing feathers that operate like a zydeco musician’s rubboard: a scraper feather hitting the ridged vane of another feather. 

It’s good to have the riddle of the dive chirp resolved—and to be reminded that there’s still much to be discovered about even the most familiar of birds.  

FRIDAY, FEB. 15 

CHILDREN 

Comedy Juggling with Owen Baker Flynn at 4 p.m. at the South Branch Library, 1901 Russell Street, near Ashby BART. Free. 981-6260. 

THEATER 

Actors Ensemble of Berkeley “Barefoot in the Park” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m. at Live Oak Theater, 1301 Shattuck Ave. at Berryman, through Feb. 16. Tickets are $10-$12. 649-5999. www.aeofberkeley.org 

Altarena Playhouse “Wait Until Dark” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2 p.m. at Altarena Playhouse, 1409 High St., Alameda, through Feb. 16. Tickets are $17-$20. 523-1553. www.altarena.org 

Aurora Theatre “Satellites” at 8 p.m. at 2081 Addison St. through March 2. Tickets are $40-$42. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

Berkeley Rep “”Wishful Drinking” with Carrie Fisher, at the Roda Theater, 2015 Addison St., through March 30. Tickets are $33-$69. 647-2949. 

Black Repertory Group Theatre “A Raisin In The Sun” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2:30 p.m. at 3201 Adeline St. Tickets are $5-$25. 652-2120.  

Contra Costa Civic Theatre “The Cocoanuts” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m., some Sun. matinees at 2 p.m., at 951 Pomona Ave., at Moeser, El Cerrito, through March 2. Tickets are $15-$24. 524-9132. www.ccct.org 

foolsFURY Theater “Monster in the Dark” Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m. and Sun. at 5 p.m., through Feb. 17, at the Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. Tickets are $12-$30. 800-838-3006. www.brownpapertickets.com 

Impact Theatre “Jukebox Stories: The Case of the Creamy Foam” Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m. at La Val’s Subterranean, 1834 Euclid Ave., through March 22. Tickets are $10-$15. 464-4468. http://impacttheatre.com 

Masquers Playhouse “Angel Street” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2:30 p.m. through Feb. 23 at 105 Park Place, Point Richmond. Tickets are $18. 232-4031. www.masquers.org 

FILM 

Jean-Pierre Léaud “Weekend” at 7 pm. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Stephen Gamboa, harpsichord, at noon at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Free. 642-4864. http://music.berkeley.edu 

India Cooke-Bill Crossman Duo at 8 p.m. Berkeley Arts Festival, 2213 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5-$10. www.berkeleyartsfestival.com 

Project Opera “Pagliacci” at 8 p.m. at the Hillside CLub, 2286 Cedar St. Tickets are $15-$20.  

Nina Ananiashvili and The State Ballet of Georgia at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $34-$90. 642-9988. www.calperformances.net 

History and Harmony Black History Concert Series with Kevin Monroe, Jono, Angelou Luster, Stabe Wilson and Roland Gresham at 7:30 p.m. at Allen Temple Baptist Church, 8501 Internationl Blvd., Oakland. Tickets are $5-$10. 544-8924. 

La Familia Son at 9 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $12. 849-2568.  

Muse Academy Students, from Tokyo, at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Free. 845-5373. www.jazzschool.com 

Carla Zilbersmith & her Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $14. 841-JAZZ.  

Frankie Manning with Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers Lecture and films at 7:30 p.m., show at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $15. 525-5054. 

Jenny Kerr at 8 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Henry Clement & the Gumbo Band at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761.  

Anthony Blea Trio, Latin percussion, at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

Sarah Williams, Ashling Cole, R&B, at 9 p.m. at Maxwell’s Lounge, 341 13th St., Oakland. Cost is $10-$15. 839-6169 

The Landing, Abel Mouton at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344.  

The Mother Hips, Lee Bob Watson at 9 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $15. 841-2082.  

Parasites Go, Skull Stomp, Rukkus at 7:30 p.m. at 924 Gilman St., an all-ages, member-run, no alcohol, no drugs, no violence club. Cost is $6. 525-9926. 

Rainmaker at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 843-8277. 

SATURDAY, FEB. 16 

CHILDREN  

Los Amiguitos de La Peña with Bonnie Lockhart and Fran Avni at 10:30 a.m. at La Peña. Cost is $5 for adults, $4 for children. 849-2568.  

Antoinette Portis introduces her new picture book “Not a Stick” and will demonstrate her illustrations at 4 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

“Buki the Clown” magic show Sat. and Sun. at 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. at Children’s Fairyland, 699 Bellvue Ave., Oakland.  

EXHIBITIONS 

Huey P. Newton Photography Exhibit Celebrating the achievements and influence of the founder of the co-founder of the Black Panther Party. Reception at 1 p.m. at the West Oakland Branch of the Oakland Public Libray, 1801 Adeline St. 238-7352.  

“Lines, Patterns and Textures” Group show in a variety of media. Artist reception at 6 p.m. at Expressions Gallery, 2035 Ashby Ave. 849-3111.  

“Pods” Paintings by Kim Thoman opens at 1 p.m. at Oakopolis, 447 25th St., Oakland, and runs through March 22. 663-6920. 

FILM 

The Medieval Remake “Faust” at 6:30 p.m. and “the Flowers of St. Francis” at 8:40 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Sarah O”Neal Rush, great grand-daughter and biographer of Booker T. Washington, will read at 2 p.m. at the African American Museum and Library, 659 14th St., Oakland. 637-0200. 

The Danzón Cuban Music lecture and demonstration with the John Santos Quintet at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $10. 845-5373.  

“Gumby” Comic Book Creators in a presentation of the green, pliable, good-natured cartoon character and toy figure that’s been around since the 1950s, from 1 to 6 p.m. at Dr Comics and Mr Games, 4014 Piedmont Ave., Oakland. 601-7800. 

Susan Bono, editor in chief of “Tiny Lights: A Journal of Personal Narrative” at 10 a.m. at Barnes and Noble, Jack London Square. 272-0120. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Theresa Wong, improvisations on cello, bicycle, piano and voice at 8 p.m. at Berkeley Arts Festival, 2213 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5-$10. www.berkeleyartsfestival.com 

Project Opera “Pagliacci” at 8 p.m. at the Hillside CLub, 2286 Cedar St. Tickets are $15-$20.  

Hesperion XXI & La Capella Reial de Catalunya at 8 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley. Durant at Dana. Tickets are $52. 642-9988.  

Donna Lerew, solo violin, at 8 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $8-$12. 549-3864. www.trinitychamberconcerts.com 

Nina Ananiashvili and The State Ballet of Georgia at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $34-$90. 642-9988.  

Ellen Robinson & her Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $14. 841-JAZZ.  

De Rompe y Raja, Afro-Peruvian, at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $12-$15. 525-5054.  

The Courtney Janes, KC Turner at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

Eliza Gilkyson at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $20.50-$21.50. 548-1761.  

The Jazz Fourtet at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Charles Wheal and the Excellorators, blues, at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

The Wayward Sway at 10 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790.  

The Mother Hips, Okie Rosette at 9 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $15. 841-2082.  

Lazima Modern Jazz Group with pianist Alex Specht, at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 843-8277. 

Cedar Walton Sextet at 8 and 10 p.m., through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $16-$22. 238-9200.  

SUNDAY, FEB. 17 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Cultural Connections: The Art of Living Black” Conversations with the artists at 6:30 p.m., music at 5 p.m. at the Atrium, State of CA Office Bldg., 1515 Clay St., Oakland. 622-8190.  

“Photography of Aaron Cole” Reception at 5 p.m. at Schmidt’s Pub, 1492 Solano Ave.  

FILM 

African Film Festival “The Forgotten Man” at 5:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Lonny Shavelson on “Trading Traditions: California’s New Cultures” at 1 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak, Oakland. Cost is $5-$8. 238-2002. 

Parker Palmer on “The Courage to Teach” and “Leading From Within” at 7:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. Cost is $5-$10. 559-9500. 

“Memory Deficiency in Recent Israeli Art” with Sarah Breitberg-Semel at 2 p.m. at Judah L. Magnes Museum, 2911 Russell St. Reservations recommended. 549-6950. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Nina Ananiashvili and The State Ballet of Georgia at 3 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $34-$90. 642-9988.  

Live Oak Concert Different Strokes, inoovative jazz duo, at 7:30 p.m. at Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. Tickets are $10-$12. 644-6893.  

Jacqui Naylor at 2 p.m. at Chapel of the Chimes, 4499 Piedmont Ave. Oakland. Tickets at the door $10-$15, includes reception. Children under 12 free. 228-3218. 

Tokyo String Quartet at 3 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $46. 642-9988.  

Pappa Gianni and the North Beach Band at 2 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Annual Gospel Concert with Bobby Hall & Friends at 5 p.m. at First United Methodist Church, 201 Martina Ave., Point Richmond. 236-0527.  

Hope Briggs and Friends “A Musical Valentine” at 3 p.m. at HErbst Theater, 401 Van Ness Ave., S.F. Tickets are $25-$50. 415-392-4400. 

La Gran Noche de la Canción Boricua with José Saavedra and Meli Rivera at 8 p.m. at La Peña. Cost is $8. 849-2568.  

Mads Tolling Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $12. 841-JAZZ.  

Erik Yates & Friends, Americana, rock, at 8 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $12-$15. 525-5054. 

John Santos Quintet at 4:30 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $10. 845-5373.  

Glen Phillips at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $21.50-$22.50. 548-1761.  

MONDAY, FEB. 18 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Aurora Theatre “Sick” reading followed by discussion at 7:30 p.m. at 2081 Addison St. Free. 843-4822.  

Toby Barlow introduces his new novel “Sharp Teeth” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books. 559-9500. 

Andrew Demcak and Kaya Oakes at 7:30 p.m. at Moe’s Books, 2476 Telegraph Ave. 849-2087. 

Poetry Express with Paradise at 7 p.m. at Priya Restaurant, 2072 San Pablo Ave. 644-3977. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Berkeley Arts Festival Jerry Kuderna Piano Concert from noon to 1 p.m. at 2213 Shattuck Ave. Free. www.berkeleyartsfestival.com 

Don Coffin and Paul Ellis at 7 p.m. at Le Bateau Ivre, 2629 Telegraph Ave. 849-1100. www.lebateauivre.net 

Trovatore, traditional Italian music, at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Martyn Joseph at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage Coffee House. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761 www.freightandsalvage.org 

Rhonda Benin at 8 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$16. 238-9200.  

TUESDAY, FEB. 19 

CHILDREN 

Clown Unique Derique performs for ages 3 and up at 6:30 p.m. at Kensington Library, 61 Arlington Ave. 524-3043. 

EXHIBITIONS 

“@60.art.israel.world” A survey of recent work by over 20 contemporary Israeli artists opens at the Judah L. Magnes Museum, 2911 Russell St. 549-6950. 

FILM 

Experimental Documentaries “Paper Tiger Reds Paper Tiger Television” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Freight and Salvage Open Mic at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $4.50-$5.50. 548-1761.  

Neeli Cherkovski, Kelly Lydick at 7:30 p.m. at Moe's Books, 2476 Telegraph Ave. 849-2087. 

David Roche, humorist, actor, and speaker, discusses “The Church of 80% Sincerity” at 1 p.m. at Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge. 981-6107.  

Kevin Danaher discusses “Building the Green Economy: Success Stories from the Grassroots” with co-authors Shannon Biggs and Jason Mark at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books. 559-9500. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Tom Rigney & Flambeau at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cajun dance lesson at 8 p.m. Cost is $9. 525-5054.  

Singers’ Open Mic with Ellen Hoffman at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $5. 841-JAZZ.  

Andrew Sammons at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Diablo Valley College Night Jazz Ensemble at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $8-$12. 238-9200.  

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 20 

FILM 

History of Cinema “Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans” at 3 p.m. and “The Terrence Davies Trilogy” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Dagoberto Gilb reads from his new novel “The Flowers” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

Maude Barlow on “Blue Covenant: The Global Water Crisis and the Coming Battle for the Right to Water” at 7:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. Tickets are $10-$13, available from Cody’s or www.kpfa.org 

Peace Symbol 50th Anniversary with Arnie Passman’s Peace Symbol history, Stoney Burke’s autobiography, folksingers Carol Denney, Hali Hammer, Brook Schoenfeld, Gary LaPow, at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Arts Festival Gallery, 2213 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5. 845-5481. 

Cafe Poetry hosted by Paradise at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. 849-2568.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Music for the Spirit Celebrating Black History Month with music by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and Florence Price at 12:15 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church of Oakland, 2619 Broadway. 444-3555. 

Wednesday Noon Concert Brazilian Jazz at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Free. 642-4864.  

Kaspar/Sherman Quartet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island. Cost is $6. 841-JAZZ.  

Whiskey Brothers at 9 p.m. at Albatross, 1822 San Pablo Ave. 843-2473.  

Ezra Gale Trio at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 843-8277. 

The Duhks at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Martin Luther Experience at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$16. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

THURSDAY, FEB. 21 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Casual Labor” Sculpture and photography by Alex Clausen, Zachery Royer Scholz and Kirk Stoller. Opening reception at 6 p.m. at Kala Art Institute, 1060 Heinz Ave. 549-2977. 

“Opening Doors” An exhibit celebrating the contributions of African American surgeons to medicine and medical education opens at the African American Museum and Library, 659 14th St., Oakland. 637-0200. 

FILM 

Terence Davies “Distant Voices, Still Lives” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Poetry for the People with Tyehimba Jess, Def Poet Rafael Casal at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $7-$15. 849-2568. 

Cultural Connections: The Art of Living Black Conversations with the artists at 5 p.m. at the Craft & Cultural Arts Gallery, State of CA Office Building, 1515 Clay St., Oakland. 622-8190. 

Anne Elizabeth Moore reads from “Unmarketable: Brandalism, Copyfighting, Mocketing, and the Erosion of Integrity” at 7 p.m. at Pegasus Books, 2349 Shattuck Ave. 913-2447. 

Greil Marcus Examines Nathan Zuckerman, the protagonist in Philip Roth’s novels, at 7:30 p.m. at JCC of the East Bay, 1414 Walnut St. Tickets are $10-$12. 848-0237. 

“Insurgent Citizenship: Disjunctions of Democracy and Modernity in Brazil” with author Ian Duncan, in coversation with Paul Rabinow and Peter Evans at 5:30 p.m. at University Press Books, 2430 Bancroft Way. 548-0585. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Berkeley Symphony, Hugh Wolff, conductor, at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $20-$60. 841-2800.  

Anthony Smith’s Trunk Fulla Funk at 9 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $10. 525-5054.  

Gyan Riley at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Steve Carter Group with Kenneth Nash at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island. Cost is $12. 841-JAZZ.  

Tracy Sirota at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Ross Hammonds Teakayo Misson, Singularity, jazz, at 9 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $67 841-2082. 

Adrian Gormley Jazz Ensemble at 10 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790.  

Natasha Miller at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $12-$16. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

Savage Arts, a solo piece written and performed by Berkeley playwright Sharon Eberhardt, which concerns an actual murder and trial that focused on witchcraft and Native American beliefs in 1930 Buffalo, N.Y., will have its final performances 8 p.m. tonight (Friday) and tomorrow night (Saturday) at The Marsh in San Francisco’s Mission District. 

“Two Seneca women were accused of murdering a Frenchwoman whom they thought was a witch,” said Eberhardt. “The murdered woman’s husband was an artist from France who was painting dioramas in science museums on the East Coast. I felt foreign to the main characters and was concerned about how images, particularly of Native Americans, get manipulated, so I play a blue-collar neighbor, keeping her point of view, going back over the story, the information as she learns it. And things become more and more convoluted the more she finds out. It becomes a transforming experience for her; her impressions and prejudices change. I also become the other characters as it goes along.” 

The trial was recorded in the local papers every day, earning a story in Time magazine. The Bureau of Indian Affairs even appealed to Herbert Hoover’s Vice President Charles Curtis (himself part Native American) to send U.S. district attorneys to investigate, but “the federal government backed off when the New York prosecutors objected.” 

It was a time when “the Native Americans in that part of the country had ongoing direct contact with Europeans since the late 1600s. The reservations were established right after the Civil War; they seemed pretty deracinated by the 20th century. I think it was something of a shock to discover that some were still practicing their religion by the time of the 1930s. There were about a thousand Seneca speakers. It seemed to be a dying culture.” 

Eberhardt was also concerned with the impression mainstream American society had—and has—of Native Americans.  

“We know how to drive a car, but maybe not how to hunt,” she said. “With industrialization, society started romanticizing, revaluing what were thought to be Native American secrets. The Boy Scouts learned Native American tracking; the Campfire Girls, weaving. There was a sense, too, of primitive sensuality, passions we can’t feel every day—and that we can tap into those primitive passions. In the play, it comes up how we use these ideas, and plays with all this—the narrator, following the trial, is amazed by the passions.” 

Eberhardt—whose one-acts have won awards and whose full-length Becca and Heidi, a female twist on the Jekyll-Hyde story was produced by The Shee Theatre Co. in San Francisco a few years back, commented on performing her own work.  

“Stephanie Weissman, The Marsh’s founder, knew of my plays and that they’d gotten good reviews, and got me involved,” she said. “People responded to the characters in the workshops I went to. I worked in a class with David Ford. I used to be amazed at what actors did with the things I wrote. Now I realize I unconsciously knew more when I wrote my plays; I have to act them to know what they’re about.” 

There are plans for the future for Savage Arts.  

“We’ve approached a small theater in Santa Rosa about putting it on,” said Eberhardt, “and in the fall, I’m working to take it to Buffalo, have a workshop in a school there—and connect with the Seneca community. I look forward to developing the characters. maybe write some new scenes.” 

Eberhardt, who’s from Buffalo, has an M.F.A. in playwriting from Columbia. Her husband, Perrin Meyer, introduced her to his friend, Malcolm Margolin, author of The Ohlone Way.  

“Buffalo was a declining industrial area when I grew up there,” she said. “Then I lived in New York for years. It took awhile when I came here to appreciate living in beauty. But I’d never move to Florida! In the Bay Area, it’s not just beauty, but how we’re encouraged to go beyond tribalism, group prejudices ... There’s more of that on the East Coast. It’s something in the play—I’m encouraged that we’ve gotten a little bit better in some areas. I hope we can move on.” 

SAVAGE ARTS 

Through Feb. 16 at The Marsh,  

1062 Valencia St., San Francisco. 

(415) 826-5750.

Celebrated soprano Hope Briggs will return to the Bay Area for an intimate musical afternoon following rave reviews for starring roles in opera houses and recital halls throughout the U.S. and Europe. “A Musical Valentine” takes place on Sunday, Feb. 17, at 3 p.m. at San Francisco’s Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Ave. Tickets are $50, $40 and $25. Call City Box Office at (415)392-4400 or visit www.cityboxoffice.com. 

For this special benefit performance, Briggs will be joined by Holly Stell, a 15-year-old Bay Area resident, for the “flower duet” from De-libes’ Lakme. 

Dawn Harms, well-known local violinist, will also make a guest ap-pearance.  

Then Jamie Davis, acclaimed baritone jazz vocalist, takes the stage with his quartet, and Hope sits in for some classic jazz including the duet “My Romance.”  

The afternoon also features spirituals by vocalists from UC Berkeley’s Young Musicians Program for talented, low-income youth, and Ms. Briggs will also sing select spirituals. The concert is dedicated to the memory of two gifted African American classical artists, contralto Marian Anderson, the first black soloist to sing at the Metropolitan Opera, and Maestro Calvin Simmons, the first African American to conduct a major U.S. orchestra. Proceeds from the performance benefit two local non-profit organizations, Kids First in San Francisco and the education programs of the Oakland East Bay Symphony. 

Briggs grew up in South San Francisco as part of a musical family and has sung lead roles with the San Francisco Opera, Houston Opera and Opera Frankfurt among others. She is also one of 18 African American classical artists selected to be a Marian Anderson Historical Society Scholar. 

O’Donnell’s Fairfax Nursery is an old favorite of mine, though I pass it maybe 20 times for every time I go in to visit. It’s right on one of our two usual routes to Point Reyes, though over the last five years or so it’s the route we take coming back and they’re often closed by that hour. Besides, on the way out we’re generally in a big fat hurry to go see some birds; on the way back, we’re tired and grouchy and unfit for civilized company.  

It’s worth a left turn on Sir Frances Drake when we time it right, though. The nursery’s in a sort of winter lull this month but there’s still temptation there. Here’s the deal: Paul O’Donnell is a devout (and practicing) restorationist, and he grows California native plants for that purpose and Just Because, and he grows them organically. He’s one of very few people who do that. 

O’Donnell uses a down-to-earth method to test for deer resistance, too: the fence around most of the nursery isn’t tall enough to keep deer out. “I decided to keep just that four-foot fence by the sidewalk. Deer hop it every night. So when people ask, ‘What’s a California native that deer won’t destroy, maybe just take a little nibble?’ I say, ‘Take a look! The deer are not prohibited from this property; they meander through here all the time.’ So yeah, I do have a sort of deer laboratory right here.” He points out that native deer have a symbiotic relationship with even deer-resistant native plants: “Stop fighting it!” 

Joe and I can attest to the presence of deer in downtown Fairfax. Some years ago, driving back at about 8:30 at night from the Point Reyes Christmas Bird Count, I saw a big brown nose and big brown knees on the right and then, Oomph! Something thumped into the passenger-side door of the pickup.  

Joe had dozed off in the passenger seat and came awake with an exclamation. I pulled over at the first parking space … Yes, parking space. It was only in literal hindsight that I realized the nose and knees belonged not to a dog as I’d supposed but to a four-point buck who’d come across a street and a parking lot and out from between parked cars to leave a couple of impressive dents in the truck’s right door.  

What I saw in the mirror was the deer bouncing up from his knees, glaring indignantly at us, and bounding off between buildings, evidently unhurt except maybe for skinned knees. He didn’t even seem panicked, just annoyed.  

O’Donnell has fruit trees (citrus, pears including Seckel, apples, figs the day we dropped in last week) and veggies, herbs, and the like in a corner with higher fencing, along with seed for natives, edibles, and erosion-control/bank-stabilizing plants. Organic-worthy amendments and bug traps and a tool or ten, too.  

Stop in any time you’re going out to play on the Point, or make it an excuse for a field trip.  

Just watch out for impulsive deer. 

O’Donnell’s Fairfax Nursery 

1700 Sir Francis Drake Blvd.,Fairfax. 

(415) 453-0372. 

Winter hours: 10 a.m.–4:30 p.m. weekdays; 9 a.m.–5:30 p.m. weekends. 

“If there’s a three-hour downpour, we just close up and go home. Call first!” 

Spring and summer: 9 a.m.–5:30 p.m. daily. 

FRIDAY, FEB. 15 

City Commons Club Noon Luncheon with The Hon. Julian Evans, British Consul General, SF, on “Afghanistan and Pakistan: For Better or Worse.” Luncheon at 11:45 a.m. for $14.50, speech at 12:30 p.m., at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant St. For information and reservations call 526-2925.  

“Overcoming Zionism” Joel Kovel, longtime activist, professor at Bard College, will read from and discuss his most recent and most controversial book, “Overcoming Zionism” at 7 p.m. BFUU Hall, 1924 Cedar St. at Bonita. Cosponsored by the Northern California Support Group of the International Solidarity Movement and the Social Justice Committee of the Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian-Universalists. 

Berkeley Women in Black weekly vigil from noon to 1 p.m. at Bancroft and Telegraph. Our focus is human rights in Palestine. 548-6310. 

Circle Dancing, simple folk dancing with instruction at 7:30 p.m. at Finnish Brotherhood Hall, 1970 Chestnut St at University. Donation of $5 requested. 528-4253. www.circledancing.com 

SATURDAY, FEB. 16 

Mud, Slugs and Newts An exploration of the advantages of being slimy! Rain or shine from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

Walking Tour of Old Oakland in Celebration of Black History Month “New Era/New Politics” highlights African-American leaders who have made their mark on Oakland. Meet at 10 a.m. and the African American Museum and Library at 659 14th St. 238-3234. www.oaklandnet.com/walkingtours 

“African Americans: Champions of Democracy” with Cassie Lopez, community activist, on the role of African Americans today and through history, at 4 p.m. at Niebyl-Proctor Library, 6501 Telegraph, at 65th St., Oakland. Donations accepted. 251-1120. 

Planetarium Showings of “Follow the Drinking Gourd” from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Chabot Space and Science Center, 10000 Skyline Blvd., Oakland. Cost is $9-$13. 336-7373.  

“Can a Confederation Help Solve the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?” with Dr. Jhalil Barhoum of Stanford Univ., Francesca Giovannini, former U.N. employee and current lecturer in International and Area Studies, Peace and Conflict Studies Group Major, U.C. Berkeley, Rabbi Michael Lerner of Tikkun Magazine and Mitchell Plitnick former Policy Director at Jewish Voice for Peace and others at 4 p.m. at Martin Luther King Student Union, 5th flr, UC Campus.  

“Planning Your Bay Area Edible Garden” at 10 a.m. at UC Botanical Garden. Cost is $20-$25. Registration required. 643-2755, ext. 03. http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu 

“California Chronicles of Medical Marijuana” The screening of a Claire Burch film at 5 p.m. at the Regent Press Gallery, 4770 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. Free. 849-0153. 

California Writers Club with Susan Bono, editor in chief of “Tiny Lights: A Journal of Personal Narrative” at 10 a.m. at Barnes and Noble, Jack London Square. 272-0120. 

“Awakening the Dreamer, Changing the Dream” Videos from philosophers, scientists and community leaders, including Paul Hawken, Julia Butterfly Hill, Lynn Twist, Van Jones, Matthew Fox, Thomas Berry and more, from 1 to 6 p.m. at Hillside Community Church, 1422 Navellier St., El Cerrito. Sponsored by Pachamama Alliance. 665-6066. bohnert@sonic.net 

Akido for Peace: Training Across Borders Middle East peace fundraiser from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Aikido of Berkeley with instructor Hiroshi Ikeda, shihan. Suggested $75 donation; all proceeds go to Aiki Extensions’ Middle East Aikido Project. www.aikidoofberkeley.com  

Red Cross Blood Services Volunteer Orientation from 6 to 8 p.m. at 6230 Claremont Ave., Oakland. Registration required. 594-5165. 

“Meditation as Relationship, Relationship as Meditation” A workshop from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Urban Peace, 2584 Martin Luther King, Jr. Way. Cost is $35-$50, no one turned away. Please bring a bag lunch. Reservations required. 866-732-2320, ext. 1. 

Preschool Storytime, for ages 3-5, at 11 a.m. at Albany Library, 1247 Marin Ave. 526-3720, ext. 17. 

Free Garden Tours at Regional Parks Botanic Garden Sat. and Sun. at 2 pm. Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Tilden Park. Call to confirm. 841-8732. www.nativeplants.org 

Around the World Tour of Plants at 1:30 p.m., Thurs., Sat. and Sun. at UC Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Drive. 643-2755. http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu 

The Berkeley Lawn Bowling Club provides free instruction every Wed. and Sat. at 10:30 a.m. at 2270 Acton St. 841-2174.  

Oakland Artisans Marketplace Sat. from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sun. from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Jack London Square. 238-4948. 

SUNDAY, FEB. 17 

Winter Wildlife Hike Join us as we look for winter birds, slimy newts and slippery banana slugs along the muddy trails, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

Basics of Gardening Plan what to do in your garden for the rest of the year. We will cover the basics of what is appropriate for each season in Bay Area gardens. You will learn when to prune, look out for weeds, put down mulch, propagate, plant, and much more. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Botanic Garden, Tilden Park. Bring lunch. Cost is $40-$48. Registration required. 841-8732. www.nativeplants.org 

“The Afro-Caribbean and Black Native American Presence in California” with Lonny Shavelson at 2 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak, Oakland. Cost is $5-$8. 238-2002. 

East Bay Atheists Berkeley meets at 1:30 p.m. in the Berkeley Main Library, 3rd Floor Meeting Room, 2090 Kittredge St. Fred Glynn will discuss his book, “Authors of the Bible,” which describes the men and women who wrote the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. 222-7580. eastbayatheists.org 

“Women Philosophers by H. D. Moe” on Martha C. Nussbaum at 11 a.m. at the Humanist Fellowship Hall, 390 27th St., Oakland. Free. 451-5818. 

Gut Health is Great Health! From 3 to 4 p.m. at Elephant Pharmacy, 1607 Shattuck Ave. 549-9200.  

Kensington Farmers’ Market from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 303 Arlington Ave. at Amherst, Kensington. 525-6155. 

Free Garden Tours at Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park Sat. and Sun. at 2 p.m. Call to confirm. 841-8732. www.nativeplants.org 

Lake Merritt Neighbors Organized for Peace Peace walk around the lake every Sun. Meet at 3 p.m. at the colonnade at the NE end of the lake. 763-8712. lmno4p.org 

Berkeley Chess Club meets every Sun. at 7 p.m. at the Hillside School, 1581 Le Roy Ave. 843-0150. 

Tibetan Buddhism with Santosh Philip on “Increasing Awareness in the Dream State” at 6 p.m. at the Tibetan Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Pl. 809-1000 www.nyingmainstitute.com 

Sew Your Own Open Studio Come learn to use our industrial and domestic machines, or work on your own projects, from 5 to 9 p.m. at 84 Bolivar Dr., Aquatic Park. Cost is $3 per hour. 644-2577. www.watersideworkshops.org  

MONDAY, FEB. 18 

Golden Gate Audubon Society Bike Trip “Eastshore State Park and Aquatic Park” Meet at 8:30 a.m. at the southernmost pond of Aquatic Park, Bay and Potter Sts. Bring lunch and bike helmet. 843-2222. 

“Tillie Olsen: A Heart in Action” A new film by Ann Hershey at 7:30 p.m. at the California Theater, on Kittredge btwn Shattuck and Fulton. Q&A follows. Tickets are $10. annhersh@aol.com 

Berkeley Green Mondays “US Coverage of the Muslim World: Ignorance, Malice or Greed?” with Lisette B. Poole, CSU, at 7:30 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Open ot all. www.berkeleygreens.org 

Berkeley CopWatch organizational meeting at 8 p.m. at 2022 Blake St. Join us to work on current issues around police misconduct. Volunteers needed. For information call 548-0425. 

Dragonboating Year round classes at the Berkeley Marina, Dock M. Meets Mon, Wed., Thurs. at 6 p.m. Sat. at 10:30 a.m. For details see www.dragonmax.org 

Free Boatbuilding Classes for Youth Mon.-Wed. from 3 to 7 p.m. at Berkeley Boathouse, 84 Bolivar Dr., Aquatic Park. Classes cover woodworking, boatbuilding, and boat repair. 644-2577. www.watersideworkshops.org 

TUESDAY, FEB. 19 

Tuesdays for the Birds Tranquil bird walks in local parklands, led by Bethany Facendini, from 7 to 9:30 a.m. Today we will visit Tilden Botanic GArden. Call for meeting place and if you need to borrow binoculars. 525-2233. 

“Hiking New Zealand” with Peter Potterfield at 7 p.m. at REI, 1338 San Pablo Ave. 527-4140. 

Berkeley Garden Club “Why Would You Want Bugs? Integrated Pest Management in the Home Garden” with Martha Berthelsen, Public Programs Manager, The Watershed Project, at 1:45 p.m. at Epworth United Methodist Church,1953 Hopkins St. Bring a plant to exchange. 845-4482. www.berkeleygardenclub.org  

BAY-Peace Youth Workshop: The Military: It’s Not Just a Game A free event for youth from 4 to 6 p.m. at Oakland Public Library, Cesar Chavez Branch, 3301 E. 12th St., Ste. 271, Oakland. 809-7416. www.baypeace.org 

“Sacred Music, Sacred Space, Sacred Arts” Tea and talk with Don Frew and Jack Lundin at 7:30 p.m. at Berkeley Buddhist Monastery, 2304 McKinley Ave. 848-3440. 

Board Game Days at the Albany Library. Play Monopoly, Blokus, Connect 4, checkers, chess and much more from 1 to 4 p.m., Tues.-Thurs. at the Albany Library, 1247 Marin Ave. For 4th through 8th graders. 526-3720, ext. 17. 

Berkeley PC Users Group meets at 7 p.m. at 1145 Walnut St., near Eunice. MelDancing@aol.com 

Business Training for Women Immigrants and Families offered by AnewAmerica. For information call 540-7786. www.anewamerica.org 

Tuesday Tilden Walkers Join a few slowpoke seniors at 9:30 a.m. in the parking lot near the Little Farm for an hour or two walk. 215-7672, 524-9992. 

End the Occupation Vigil every Tues. at noon at Oakland Federal Bldg., 1301 Clay St. www.epicalc.org 

Street Level Cycles Community Bike Program Come use our tools as well as receive help with performing repairs free of charge. Youth classes available. Tues., Thurs., and Sat. from 2 to 6 p.m. at at 84 Bolivar Dr., Aquatic Park. 644-2577. www.watersideworkshops.org 

Fresh Produce Stand at San Pablo Park from 3 to 6 p.m. in the Frances Albrier Community Center. Sponsored by the Ecology Center’s Farm Fresh Choice. 848-1704.  

Berkeley Camera Club meets at 7:30 p.m., at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda. Share your digital images, slides and prints and learn what other photographers are doing. Monthly field trips. 548-3991.  

St. John’s Prime Timers meets at 9:30 a.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. We always welcome new members over 50. 845-6830. 

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 20 

“Blue Covenant: The Global Water Crisis and the Coming Battle for the Right to Water” with Maude Barlow at 7:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. Tickets are $10-$13, available from Cody’s or www.kpfa.org 

“Amongst White Clouds” A documentary on the Buddhist Hermit Masters of China’s Zhongnan Mountains at 7:30 p.m. at Humanist Hall, 390 27th S., Oakland, between Telegraph and Broadway, below Pill Hill. Suggested donation $5. www.HumanistHall.org  

Cycling Lecture with Jobst Brandt on “Cycling in the Alps” at 7 p.m. at Velo Sport Bicycles, 1615 University Ave., enter at 1989 California St. RSVP to 849-0437. 

Watch the Lunar Eclipse from 6 to 9 p.m. at Lawrence Hall of Science, Centennial Drive, below Grizzly Peak. Free. 642-5132. www.lawrencehallofscience.org 

Total Lunar Eclipse “Red Moon Rising” a guided hike of about 3 miles roundtrip, from 5 to 8 p.m. at Chabot Space and Science Center, 10000 Skyline Blvd., Oakland. Cost is $8-$10, advance purchase recommended. 336-7373.  

Writer Coach Connection Volunteers needed to help Berkeley students improve their writing and critical thinking skills from noon to 3 p.m. To register call 524-2319. www.writercoachconnection.org  

Jericho Deliverance Fellowship Open House Wed.-Fri, at Fresh Manna Christian Center, 3201 Shattuck Ave. 459-5559.  

Walk Berkeley for Seniors meets every Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. at the Sea Breeze Market, just west of the I-80 overpass. Everyone is welcome, wear comfortable shoes and a warm hat. Heavy rain cancels. 548-9840. 

Berkeley Peace Walk and Vigil at 6 p.m. at the Berkeley BART Station, corner of Shattuck and Center. www.geocities.com/vigil4peace/vigil 

Teen Chess Club from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the North Branch Library, 1170 The Alameda at Hopkins. 981-6133. 

Morning Meditation Every Mon., Wed., and Fri. at 7:45 a.m. at Rudramandir, 830 Bancroft Way at 6th. 486-8700. 

After-School Program Homework help, drama and music for children ages 8 to 18, every Wed. from 4 to 7:15 p.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. Cost is $5 per week. 845-6830. 

Stitch ‘n Bitch at 6:30 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

THURSDAY, FEB. 21 

Tilden Tots Join a nature adventure program for 3 and 4 year olds, each accompanied by an adult (grandparents welcome)! We’ll learn about animal defenses, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Cost is $6-$8. Registration required. 1-888-EBPARKS. 

“The California Serengeti: A Tour of the Bay Area, 15,000 BCE” with Breck Parkman, senior state archeologist, California State Parks at 12:30 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak, Oakland. Cost is $5-$8. 238-2002. 

Academy Awards Preview Night with Harry Chotiner at 7 p.m. at the College Preparatory School, 6100 Broadway, Oakland. Tickets are $12.50- $15, $5 for students. http://loiivetalk-chotiner.eventbrite.com 

“Rebuilding with Straw Bale in Earthquake Affected Pakistan” with Berkeley architect Martin Hammer who recently returned from Pakistan where he has been working to bring straw bale and other sustainable building practices to the mountainous region devastated by the 2005 earthquake, at 7 p.m. at the Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave., near Dwight Way. 548-2220, ext. 233. 

Berkeley School Volunteers Orientation from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. at 1835 Allston Way. Come learn about volunteer opportunities. 644-8833. 

Berkeley Stop the War Coalition meets at 7 p.m. at 258 Dwinelle, UC Campus. All are welcome. 

“Remedies to Reduce Depression: The Role of Vitamins, Hormones, Toxicity, and Acupuncture” at 7 p.m. at Piedmont Adult School, Oakland. Cost is $25. Sponsored by Foundation for Wellness Professionals. to register call 849-1176. 

Holistic Menopause & Intimacy at 7 p.m. at Elephant Pharmacy, 1607 Shattuck Ave. 549-9200. 

Fitness Class for 55+ at 9:15 a.m. at Jewish Community Center, 1414 Walnut St. 848-0237. 

World of Plants Tours Thurs., Sat. and Sun. at 1:30 p.m. at the UC Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Drive. Cost is $5. 643-2755. http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu 

Avatar Metaphysical Toastmasters Club meets at 6:45 p.m. at Spud’s Pizza, 3290 Adeline at Alcatraz. Free, all are welcome. namaste@avatar.freetoasthost.info  

CITY MEETINGS 

Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board meets Mon., Feb. 18, at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers. 981-7368.  

Council Agenda Committee meets Tues. Feb. 19, at 2:30 p.m., at 2180 Milvia St. 981-6900. 

Citizens Humane Commission meets Wed., Feb. 20, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-6601. 

Design Review Committee meets Thurs., Feb. 21, at 7:30 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-7415.  

ONGOING 

E-Waste Recycling St. Vincent de Paul of Alameda County accepts electronic waste including computers, dvd players, cell phones, fax machines and many other ewaste products for disposal free of charge at many of its locations throughout Alameda County. Free bulk pick-up available. 638-7600. www.svdp-alameda.org 

Help a Newt Cross the Road Every year newts migrate across Hillside Drive to reach their breeding pools in Castro Creek. Volunteers prevent many of these creatures from being crushed by cars. We need volunteers every evening during January and February in El Sobrante. The newts are most active on rainy nights. annabelle11_3@yahoo.com 

Free Tax Help If your 2007 household income was less than $42,000, you are eligible for free tax preparation from United Way's Earn it! Keep It! Save It! Sites are open now through April 15 in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. To find a site near you, call 800-358-8832. www.EarnItKeepItSaveIt.org 

Donate the Excess Fruit from Your Fruit Trees I’ll gladly pick and deliver your fruit to community programs that feed school kids, the elderly, and the hungry. The fruit trees should be located in Berkeley and organic (no pesticides). This is a free volunteer/ 

grassroots thing so join in!! To scehdule and appointment call or email 812-3369. northberkeleyharvest@gmail.com

I am known by family and friends for my love of cooking. So it didn’t come as a huge surprise that I received as a Christmas gift this year a new kitchen gadget. This one was a handheld blender—sort of a “blender on a stick”—with which you can puree your soup by simply immersing the business end of the device into the soup pot. No more need to transfer the soup back and forth to a countertop blender! 

My initial thought was hey, this is pretty cool … and I guess I’m going to have to start making a lot more soup! Or to imagine other uses for the device. According to the manual you can also—somehow—use it to make smoothies. 

The more I thought about my “blender-on-a-stick,” though, the more it seemed like a solution in search of a problem. Why? Well, to begin with, our 20-year old Osterizer blender has always worked just fine for pureeing soups, and it does many other things well too. Yes, you do have to transfer the soup to the blender, and then back to the pot. But I never realized I was being inconvenienced until presented with this new gadget. 

And thinking more deeply, it seemed to me that in “solving” a problem I didn’t know I had, my “blender-on-a-stick” actually created several new ones: 

• It has a built-in battery that requires it to live on a charger, which in turn wants to live on the counter. But with a mixer and toaster oven, we don’t need any more “counter clutter.”  

• Assuming it’s kept plugged in, the charger will be a constant power drain. Maybe it’s not a lot of juice, but as “always on” devices like these proliferate they are starting to add up to a significant amount of power consumption in the U.S. 

• The battery isn’t replaceable. Instead, the manual instructs me to mail the device to some far-off “service center” to replace it. Will it last two years? Five? My experience with other rechargeable built-in batteries tells me I probably shouldn’t count on more than two or three.  

• What’ll I do if my blender has a bigger problem, like a burned out motor or a mechanical problem? Again, experience has taught me that getting appliances like this fixed tends to be as or more costly than replacing them. Many such products are really designed to wear out or become obsolete quickly—so you’ll buy another one sooner.  

• Where will it go when it dies? I’ve been thinking a lot about this question since reading a sobering article about “e-waste” in January’s National Geographic. Assuming I don’t just send the gadget to the landfill but try to act responsibly and find an e-waste recycler, it still has a pretty good chance of winding up in China or Africa. There, people living in extreme poverty are exposed to deadly toxins trying to extract a few pounds of valuable stuff (copper, silver, etc.) from American e-waste. Reading this, I realized that maybe the best time to think about where our electronic devices will go when we are done with them is before we acquire them.  

Reflecting on where my blender will go when it dies also made me wonder where it was born. “Made in China,” it said on the box. No surprise—it seems practically everything electronic is made there nowadays! My memory drifted back to the summer of 2005, when my family and I went on a two-week tour of China that included the industrial heartland cities of Wuhan and Chong Quing. The pollution was just horrible—made me feel sick, both physically and at heart. The air was like L.A. on a really bad day and nasty looking junk floated down the rivers. To top off the experience, I picked up a stomach bug that took me three weeks to get over (it turns out even the bottled water is often impure). So I am sadly not very surprised whenever I read another report about environmental conditions in China or people there getting cancer in their 30s and 40s. Experiencing first hand the huge cities and factories where products like my blender come from has left an indelible impression whenever I see those three words, “Made in China.”  

And as I reflected on the seemingly simple questions “Where did this come from? and where will it go?” I realized that we live on an increasingly small planet where there really is no “away.”  

So I took my “blender-on-a-stick” back to Williams Sonoma. The store clerk cheerfully gave me full retail credit for it—a hundred bucks. After browsing a while, I decided to buy a rather humble and low-tech, but very good quality, stainless steel skillet. Here are some of the positive aspects of my “new” Christmas gift: 

• My new skillet was—amazingly—made in the U.S. It seems to me a good idea to buy U.S.-made goods whenever possible—both because I’ve been to China and seen a little bit of how things are made there and because I believe it’s important that we retain the ability to make real things in our country. After all, the oil we’re using to transport things all over the globe will eventually run out, and maybe sooner than we think. 

• My stainless steel skillet is durable. In fact it’s probably about as close to a “forever” kitchen utensil as you can get. Our “nonstick” skillet is on its last legs now and it’s our third one in ten years—another foresaken promise of technology? Meanwhile, the stainless steel Revere Ware saucepans we got as a wedding gift 20 years ago are just as good today—less some tarnish—as they were when we started using them.  

• My “new” Christmas gift is a really useful everyday product that will remind me regularly of the family member who “gave” it to me.  

• Finally, I feel I’m making a small gift of my own—to my children’s children, whose generation will surely thank ours for not leaving them more problems to deal with than we already have. 

It occurs to me maybe my assessment of the blender is overly harsh. Maybe I should just accept what is given to me and try to be grateful for its positive attributes. Maybe it was a sign I need to start making a lot more soup!  

But I can’t hide from what I know. And what I know is that there’s seemingly no limit to the creativity of companies out to make a buck. I know this because I work for one of them! I also know that our economic system produces amazing innovations and occasionally, some useful new products. And I know that with a little more awareness and education, and informed consumer choice, the companies that invent and market these “solutions” will be more careful not to create new problems. 

TUESDAY, FEB. 12 

FILM 

Experimental Documentaries “Here Is Always Somewhere Else” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Garrison Keillor at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $34-$62. 642-9988. www.calperformances.net 

Peggy Orenstein reads from “Waiting for Daisy: A Tale of Two Continents, Three Religions, FIve Fertiltiy Doctors, An Oscar, An Atomic Bomb, A romantic Night, and One Woman’s Quest to Become a Mother” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

‘Round Midnight Marathon at Berkeley Arts Festival with John Schott in an eight-hour tribute to Thelonious Monk from 2 to 10 p.m. at 2213 Shattuck Ave. 665-9496.  

“Sweet Soul Music: Rare Soul Music Performance Clips from the 1960s and Early 1970s” with Rickie Unterberger at 6:30 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6100. 

Jeffrey Broussard and the Creole Cowboys at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cajun dance lesson at 8 p.m. Cost is $10. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Singers’ Open Mic with Kelly Park at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island. Cost is $5. 841-JAZZ.  

Solo Bach Night with Lara St. John, Sam Bass, Dave Grossman, and others at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Kaspar/Sherman Jazz Quartet at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave. 548-5198.  

Sierra Leone’s Refugee Allstars at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $14-$20. 238-9200.  

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 13 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Enrique Chagoya: Borderlandia” A twenty-five year survey of works opens at the Berkeley Art Museum, and runs through May 18. 642-0808.  

FILM 

History of Cinema “Battleship Potemkin” at 3 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

African Film Festival “Young Rebels: New Visions from Africa” at 6:30 p.m. and “Life on Earth” at 8:10 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Russell Banks reads from “The Reserve” a suspense novel set at the begining of WWII, at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books. 559-9500. 

Daniel Alarcorn reads from “Lost City Radio” at 7:30 p.m. at Moe's Books, 2476 Telegraph Ave. 849-2087. 

“Cancer in Other Words” prose, poetry, at 11 a.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Music for the Spirit Celebrating Black History Month with music by J. Roalnd Braithwaite, Bongai Ndodana and Fela Sowande at 12:15 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church of Oakland, 2619 Broadway. 444-3555. 

Wednesday Noon Concert, with students from the Young Musicians Program at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Free. 642-4864. http://music.berkeley.edu 

Rebecca Griffin & her Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island. Cost is $7. 841-JAZZ.  

Tamsen Donner Blues Band at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. West Coast swing dance lesson at 7:30 p.m. Cost is $7. 525-5054. 

Mysterioso at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 843-8277. 

Jenna Mammina and guests at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$14. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

THURSDAY, FEB. 14 

FILM 

A Theater Near You: “Let’s Get Lost” at 6:30 p.m. and Jean-Pierre Léaud “Masculine-Feminie” at 8:50 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Charles Wollenberg introduces “Berkeley: A City in History” at 6 p.m. at University Press Books, 2430 Bancroft Way. 548-0585. 

“California Tile: The Golden Era 1910-1940” with Riley Doty tile expert and collector at 7:30 p.m. at Chapel of the Chimes, 4499 Piedmont Ave., Oakland. Sponsored by Oakland Heritage Alliance. Cost is $8-$10. 763-9218.  

Lonny Shavelson and Fred Setterberg discuss “Trading Traditions: California’s New Cultures” at 1 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak, Oakland. Cost is $5-$8. 238-2002. 

Nancy Polikoff describes “Beyond(Straight and Gay) Marriage: Valuing All Families Under the Law” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books. 559-9500. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

African American Cultural Celebration with African drumming, the music of Thelonious Monk and vocalist Melanie DeMore at 7 p.m. at the First Congregational Church, 2501 Harrison S., Oakland. Free. 285-9628. 

Nina Ananiashvili and The State Ballet of Georgia at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $34-$90. 642-9988.  

Maeve Donnelly with Tony McManus at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Karina Denike & her Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island. Cost is $8. 841-JAZZ.  

Melvin Seals & JGB, R&B, rock, funk, at 9 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $17-$20. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Flamenco, Candlelight and Roses dinner shows Thurs.-Sat. at Cafe de la Paz, 1600 Shattuck Ave. Tickets are $75-$115.  

Bekah Barnett & Joni Davis at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave. 548-5198.  

Antioquia, Locura, Night Train at 9 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $7. 841-2082. 

Valentine’s Celebration with Aya de Leon at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $12-$14. 849-2568.  

Diablo’s Dust at 10 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790.  

Cedar Walton Sextet at 8 and 10 p.m., through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $16-$22. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

FRIDAY, FEB. 15 

CHILDREN 

Comedy Juggling with Owen Baker Flynn at 4 p.m. at the South Branch Library, 1901 Russell Street, near Ashby BART. Free. 981-6260. 

THEATER 

Actors Ensemble of Berkeley “Barefoot in the Park” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m. at Live Oak Theater, 1301 Shattuck Ave. at Berryman, through Feb. 16. Tickets are $10-$12. 649-5999. www.aeofberkeley.org 

Altarena Playhouse “Wait Until Dark” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2 p.m. at Altarena Playhouse, 1409 High St., Alameda, through Feb. 16. Tickets are $17-$20. 523-1553. www.altarena.org 

Aurora Theatre “Satellites” at 8 p.m. at 2081 Addison St. through March 2. Tickets are $40-$42. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

Berkeley Rep “”Wishful Drinking” with Carrie Fisher, at the Roda Theater, 2015 Addison St., through March 30. Tickets are $33-$69. 647-2949. 

Black Repertory Group Theatre “A Raisin In The Sun” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2:30 p.m. at 3201 Adeline St. Tickets are $5-$25. 652-2120.  

Contra Costa Civic Theatre “The Cocoanuts” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m., some Sun. matinees at 2 p.m., at 951 Pomona Ave., at Moeser, El Cerrito, through March 2. Tickets are $15-$24. 524-9132. www.ccct.org 

foolsFURY Theater “Monster in the Dark” Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m. and Sun. at 5 p.m., through Feb. 17, at the Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. Tickets are $12-$30. 800-838-3006. www.brownpapertickets.com 

Impact Theatre “Jukebox Stories: The Case of the Creamy Foam” Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m. at La Val’s Subterranean, 1834 Euclid Ave., through March 22. Tickets are $10-$15. 464-4468. http://impacttheatre.com 

Masquers Playhouse “Angel Street” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2:30 p.m. through Feb. 23 at 105 Park Place, Point Richmond. Tickets are $18. 232-4031. www.masquers.org 

FILM 

Jean-Pierre Léaud “Weekend” at 7 pm. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Stephen Gamboa, harpsichord, at noon at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Free. 642-4864. http://music.berkeley.edu 

India Cooke-Bill Crossman Duo at 8 p.m. Berkeley Arts Festival, 2213 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5-$10. www.berkeleyartsfestival.com 

Project Opera “Pagliacci” at 8 p.m. at the Hillside CLub, 2286 Cedar St. Tickets are $15-$20.  

Nina Ananiashvili and The State Ballet of Georgia at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $34-$90. 642-9988. www.calperformances.net 

History and Harmony Black History Concert Series with Kevin Monroe, Jono, Angelou Luster, Stabe Wilson and Roland Gresham at 7:30 p.m. at Allen Temple Baptist Church, 8501 Internationl Blvd., Oakland. Tickets are $5-$10. 544-8924. 

La Familia Son at 9 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $12. 849-2568.  

Muse Academy Students, from Tokyo, at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Free. 845-5373. www.jazzschool.com 

Carla Zilbersmith & her Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $14. 841-JAZZ.  

Frankie Manning with Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers Lecture and films at 7:30 p.m., show at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $15. 525-5054. 

Jenny Kerr at 8 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Henry Clement & the Gumbo Band at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761.  

Anthony Blea Trio, Latin percussion, at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

Sarah Williams, Ashling Cole, R&B, at 9 p.m. at Maxwell’s Lounge, 341 13th St., Oakland. Cost is $10-$15. 839-6169 

The Landing, Abel Mouton at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344.  

The Mother Hips, Lee Bob Watson at 9 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $15. 841-2082.  

Parasites Go, Skull Stomp, Rukkus at 7:30 p.m. at 924 Gilman St., an all-ages, member-run, no alcohol, no drugs, no violence club. Cost is $6. 525-9926. 

Rainmaker at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 843-8277. 

SATURDAY, FEB. 16 

CHILDREN  

Los Amiguitos de La Peña with Bonnie Lockhart and Fran Avni at 10:30 a.m. at La Peña. Cost is $5 for adults, $4 for children. 849-2568.  

Antoinette Portis introduces her new picture book “Not a Stick” and will demonstrate her illustrations at 4 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

“Buki the Clown” magic show Sat. and Sun. at 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. at Children’s Fairyland, 699 Bellvue Ave., Oakland.  

EXHIBITIONS 

Huey P. Newton Photography Exhibit Celebrating the achievements and influence of the founder of the co-founder of the Black Panther Party. Reception at 1 p.m. at the West Oakland Branch of the Oakland Public Libray, 1801 Adeline St. 238-7352.  

“Lines, Patterns and Textures” Group show in a variety of media. Artist reception at 6 p.m. at Expressions Gallery, 2035 Ashby Ave. 849-3111.  

“Pods” Paintings by Kim Thoman opens at 1 p.m. at Oakopolis, 447 25th St., Oakland, and runs through March 22. 663-6920. 

FILM 

The Medieval Remake “Faust” at 6:30 p.m. and “the Flowers of St. Francis” at 8:40 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Sarah O”Neal Rush, great grand-daughter and biographer of Booker T. Washington, will read at 2 p.m. at the African American Museum and Library, 659 14th St., Oakland. 637-0200. 

The Danzón Cuban Music lecture and demonstration with the John Santos Quintet at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $10. 845-5373.  

“Gumby” Comic Book Creators in a presentation of the green, pliable, good-natured cartoon character and toy figure that’s been around since the 1950s, from 1 to 6 p.m. at Dr Comics and Mr Games, 4014 Piedmont Ave., Oakland. 601-7800. 

Susan Bono, editor in chief of “Tiny Lights: A Journal of Personal Narrative” at 10 a.m. at Barnes and Noble, Jack London Square. 272-0120. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Theresa Wong, improvisations on cello, bicycle, piano and voice at 8 p.m. at Berkeley Arts Festival, 2213 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5-$10. www.berkeleyartsfestival.com 

Project Opera “Pagliacci” at 8 p.m. at the Hillside CLub, 2286 Cedar St. Tickets are $15-$20.  

Hesperion XXI & La Capella Reial de Catalunya at 8 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley. Durant at Dana. Tickets are $52. 642-9988.  

Donna Lerew, solo violin, at 8 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $8-$12. 549-3864. www.trinitychamberconcerts.com 

Nina Ananiashvili and The State Ballet of Georgia at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $34-$90. 642-9988.  

Ellen Robinson & her Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $14. 841-JAZZ.  

De Rompe y Raja, Afro-Peruvian, at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $12-$15. 525-5054.  

The Courtney Janes, KC Turner at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

Eliza Gilkyson at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $20.50-$21.50. 548-1761.  

The Jazz Fourtet at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Charles Wheal and the Excellorators, blues, at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

The Wayward Sway at 10 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790.  

The Mother Hips, Okie Rosette at 9 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $15. 841-2082.  

Lazima Modern Jazz Group with pianist Alex Specht, at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 843-8277. 

Cedar Walton Sextet at 8 and 10 p.m., through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $16-$22. 238-9200.  

SUNDAY, FEB. 17 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Cultural Connections: The Art of Living Black” Conversations with the artists at 6:30 p.m., music at 5 p.m. at the Atrium, State of CA Office Bldg., 1515 Clay St., Oakland. 622-8190.  

“Photography of Aaron Cole” Reception at 5 p.m. at Schmidt’s Pub, 1492 Solano Ave.  

FILM 

African Film Festival “The Forgotten Man” at 5:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $5.50-$9.50. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Lonny Shavelson on “Trading Traditions: California’s New Cultures” at 1 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak, Oakland. Cost is $5-$8. 238-2002. 

Parker Palmer on “The Courage to Teach” and “Leading From Within” at 7:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. Cost is $5-$10. 559-9500. 

“Memory Deficiency in Recent Israeli Art” with Sarah Breitberg-Semel at 2 p.m. at Judah L. Magnes Museum, 2911 Russell St. Reservations recommended. 549-6950. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Nina Ananiashvili and The State Ballet of Georgia at 3 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $34-$90. 642-9988.  

Live Oak Concert Different Strokes, inoovative jazz duo, at 7:30 p.m. at Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. Tickets are $10-$12. 644-6893.  

Jacqui Naylor at 2 p.m. at Chapel of the Chimes, 4499 Piedmont Ave. Oakland. Tickets at the door $10-$15, includes reception. Children under 12 free. 228-3218. 

Tokyo String Quartet at 3 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $46. 642-9988.  

Pappa Gianni and the North Beach Band at 2 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Annual Gospel Concert with Bobby Hall & Friends at 5 p.m. at First United Methodist Church, 201 Martina Ave., Point Richmond. 236-0527.  

Hope Briggs and Friends “A Musical Valentine” at 3 p.m. at HErbst Theater, 401 Van Ness Ave., S.F. Tickets are $25-$50. 415-392-4400. 

La Gran Noche de la Canción Boricua with José Saavedra and Meli Rivera at 8 p.m. at La Peña. Cost is $8. 849-2568.  

Mads Tolling Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $12. 841-JAZZ.  

Erik Yates & Friends, Americana, rock, at 8 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $12-$15. 525-5054. 

John Santos Quintet at 4:30 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $10. 845-5373.  

Glen Phillips at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $21.50-$22.50. 548-1761.  

MONDAY, FEB. 18 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Aurora Theatre “Sick” reading followed by discussion at 7:30 p.m. at 2081 Addison St. Free. 843-4822.  

Toby Barlow introduces his new novel “Sharp Teeth” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books. 559-9500. 

Andrew Demcak and Kaya Oakes at 7:30 p.m. at Moe’s Books, 2476 Telegraph Ave. 849-2087. 

Poetry Express with Paradise at 7 p.m. at Priya Restaurant, 2072 San Pablo Ave. 644-3977. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Berkeley Arts Festival Jerry Kuderna Piano Concert from noon to 1 p.m. at 2213 Shattuck Ave. Free. www.berkeleyartsfestival.com 

Don Coffin and Paul Ellis at 7 p.m. at Le Bateau Ivre, 2629 Telegraph Ave. 849-1100. www.lebateauivre.net 

Trovatore, traditional Italian music, at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Martyn Joseph at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage Coffee House. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761 www.freightandsalvage.org 

Pagliacci, Leoncavallo’s “gritty realism” classic of verismo opera, the tale of the fatal crossover between stage and real life in a troupe of carnival performers, will be performed by Project Opera, founded by musical director-conductor Robert Ashens, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday nights at the Hillside Club, on Cedar near Spruce, a venue associated with the beginnings and early years of Berkeley Opera—and one which has recently seen a diverse renaissance of concert programming. 

Featuring Todd Donovan as Tonio, Mark Narins as Canio, Eliza O’Malley as Nedda, Ross Halper as Beppe and Anders Froehlich as Silvio, with orchestra and chorus of local musicians and singers, Pagliacci’s fame has been so great that, according to Ashens, “it’s often been featured in pop culture, such as the movie The Untouchables, and lampooned on “Seinfeld” and “The Simpsons.” 

“My concentration with this particular project has been to return to a former approach in opera preparation,” said Ashens, who is also an opera coach, “continuous and intensive coachings prior to actual rehearsal. Rather than dictating to the singers what interpretation I want, the coaching sessions are highly collaborative, making it quite organic ... When that’s accomplished, stage director Ross Halper will give the movements shape and reasoning ...” 

The performance will begin with a brief talk and demonstration by Ashens, leading into the opera. 

The Hillside Club serves as concert venue for more than opera. At a recent show featuring “Hemispheres” (Paul McCandless of “Oregon” and the original “Paul Winter Consort” and Sheldon Brown on woodwinds, Frank Martin on piano, Bill Douglass on bass and woodwinds and Ian Dogole on percussion), a lively audience of about 80 was rapt by the often piquant tonality of the batteries of reed instruments in the frontline, offset by weaving rhythms—and, in the second set, the Kurdish and Persian verses (one by Rumi) sung by guest vocalist Hossein Massoudi. A profound blend of jazz, world and new musics, the audience’s delight was mirrored by the enthusiasm of the band in their first appearance at the club. 

Bruce Koball, who ran the electronics and served as M.C., later pointed out, “What you saw the other night has only been happening recently. The Hillside Club has been coming back after a near-death experience. Four or five years ago, the place was dark maybe 250 nights a year. Membership was under 70. But thanks to the foresight of a few members, after Jeff Ubois moved into the neighborhood and stopped in to see what was here—and within a year was president—the long history of the club as a center for arts and culture was reactivated. The old and new guards came together.” 

Ubois brought in Koball and drummer Brian Bowman, whose series of house concerts had just come to an untimely end. Since that time, the club has produced “75 or 76 shows,” according to Koball, “in an all-volunteer effort, with no guarantees for the performers, but the club only taking a little slice of the gate to pay the bills. Musicians love it—we have more requests now than we could possibly handle—the warmth and the beautiful acoustics of the club. But it’s also about getting an audience here, and we’ve been successful in all but a very few instances.” 

Koball cited Paulina Borssok, who serves as house manager, and Bill Woodcock as the two other members who are the “partners in crime ... in this labor of love.” He also gives credit to former club president John Govers “who saw the value” of a new concert series. 

The club was founded by three Berkeley women, hill-dwellers, appalled by the development already swamping what they loved about Berkeley in the later days of the 19th century. Architect Bernard Maybeck was president in 1910 and designed an earlier clubhouse, which burned in the disastrous Berkeley fire of 1923. “Talking in terms of continuity,” said Koball, “we have a member, now aged 102 or 103, who helped put out that fire. I’m proud of what the club’s become—and hope we can keep it alive another hundred years.”

Items on Display at Berkeley Main Library 

The Berkeley Historical Society recently opened a sealed chest found in the Veterans Memorial Building, which was placed there in 1939 for safekeeping by the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) Post 88.  

Post 88 was established in Berkeley on Nov. 14, 1885. After the war between the states ended, the veterans returned to their homes or established new homes throughout the U.S. Civil War veterans groups that were established all over the country, including 102 of them in California alone.  

The chapters or “posts” held regular meetings, collected dues, and went to “encampments,” a sort of campout-convention-get-together, where they exchanged stories and ideas. Quite a few were held in the Bay Area. Each post selected a name for their group in addition to the number and region in which it was located. Many of them chose the name of a famous battlefield or important location in the war. Berkeley chose Lookout Mountain in honor of the battle that took place there in Tennessee.  

The Lookout Mountain Post first met in the Odd Fellows Hall in Berkeley and later in the Veterans Memorial Building when it was completed in 1928. Post 88 had 221 members, who served in many Northern troop branches, including the U.S. Navy, Calvary, Infantry, Sharpshooters and Artillery. The post existed for 54 years. Many of the veterans were buried in Sunset Cemetery in El Cerrito or Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland.  

The last two members were Thomas H. Gilbert and Erie A. May, who both died at age 92. When the last member in a post died, the records of the group were packaged and entrusted to a civic group or location. The Berkeley records were packed in a handmade chest and placed in the Veterans Memorial Building for safekeeping.  

A note inside says, “This chest was prepared and disposal of contents placed by Erie A. May, the last Commander of the post, May, 1939.” The contents included: a framed charter dated 1885, assorted banners and flags, a photo of Lookout Mountain, a photograph of the group signed by Julia Dent Grant, Tent No. 32 (Daughter of General Grant), several veterans’ discharge papers, membership records, dues account books, rules and bylaws, copies of official rituals, day books, and printed reports of many encampments.  

The final encampment of the GAR in the United States was held in Indianapolis, Ind., in 1949. It was decided that the installed officers remaining would stay in office for the life of each organization. The last GAR member was Albert Woolson, who died in 1956 at the age of 109. The spirit of the GAR is carried on in many California chapters of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War.  

Berkeleyans are urged to visit the Berkeley Public Library Main Branch showcases to see the records of these veterans who served in the battle between the states. The display will run through March 3. 

John Aronovici is co-president of the Berkeley Historical Society.

It may be cold outside, but it’s already spring to the Anna’s hummingbird, and courtship and nesting are well under way. 

Last week two hummers, a male and a female, got into our living room, were trapped inside when a gust of wind blew the front door shut, and became entangled in the curtains. Matt the Cat spotted them (he doesn’t so much hunt things as point), and Ron, who moves faster than I do in these situations, retrieved them and released them on the front porch, apparently none the worse for wear. 

I didn’t refer to this distracted twosome as a pair, because hummingbirds don’t form pairs. Mating is promiscuous, and males don’t involve themselves in the tedious business of nest construction and childcare. 

You may have noticed the dive display of the male Anna’s. As described in the authoritative Birds of North America series: “The male sings 1–2 sets of buzzy notes while hovering 2–4 meters over the object of the display for 1–2 second, then climbs in a wavering fashion nearly vertically for 7–8 seconds to a height of 20–40 meters, plummets in a near-vertical dive for 2 seconds, ending the dive with a loud Dive Noise within 0.5–1 meter of object, finally returning in a continuous circular arc … to the beginning point over the object ... The object may be a female Anna’s Hummingbird, another hummingbird, another bird species, or occasionally a human; the sight of any perched hummingbird in its core area may initiate a Dive Display.” 

The exact nature of the Dive Noise, or dive chirp, has been much debated among ornithologists. The late Luis Baptista, former curator of birds at the California Academy of Sciences, thought it was vocal, since the frequency of the chirp was similar to that of the hummer’s vocalization. (It was Baptista who established that Anna’s hummingbirds, like more conventional songbirds such as the white-crowned sparrow, have local song dialects.) 

Recent work by UC Berkeley graduate student Christopher Clark and recent graduate Teresa Feo makes a compelling case that the noise is mechanical in origin, created by specialized tail feathers. 

Their investigations involved a high-speed video camera and a wind tunnel. 

Clark and Feo took the camera, with a 500 shot-per-second capability, to the Albany Bulb, where they alternately wired a stuffed female hummingbird to a bush or staked out a live female in a cage. Males responded to both variants. The camera captured a 60-millisecond spreading of the displaying male’s tail feathers at the bottom of the dive, coincident with the chirp.  

Having observed that Anna’s hummingbirds had, as Clark puts it, “funny tail feathers with tapered or narrow tips,” the researchers then captured several male hummers and customized their tails—either removing the outer pair of tail feathers or trimming their inner vanes. Modified males still performed dive displays, but failed to produce the dive noise. 

The final piece fell into place at Stanford’s Hopkins Marine Station in Pacific Grove, where Clark and Feo exposed outer tail feathers to wind speeds equivalent to a male’s dive speed of 50 miles per hour. The chirp was reproduced in the wind tunnel when the inner vane of the feather fluttered at a frequency of 3.3 to 4.7 kiloherz, four octaves above middle C. Tiny linking barbules kept the barbs of the inner vane stiff enough to vibrate like the reed in a clarinet.  

The dive chirp is actually louder than the hummer’s vocalization. Clark and Feo suggest that this may be an evolutionary response to the constraints posed by the small size of the bird’s syrinx, or song box (the avian equivalent of the larynx). They suspect that close relatives of the Anna’s hummingbird, like the desert-dwelling Costa’s, may produce their chirps in a similar fashion. 

Mechanical sound production in birds is unusual, but not unknown. 

The “winnowing” noise of the Wilson’s snipe is apparently produced by its tail feathers, although no one has worked out the mechanism. Common nighthawks make a rude sound with their wing feathers, and I’m convinced that the bizarre rustling-grating-creaking sounds emitted by a displaying male great-tailed grackle can’t be entirely vocal. The club-winged manakin of Ecuador has specialized wing feathers that operate like a zydeco musician’s rubboard: a scraper feather hitting the ridged vane of another feather. 

It’s good to have the riddle of the dive chirp resolved—and to be reminded that there’s still much to be discovered about even the most familiar of birds.  

TUESDAY, FEB. 12 

Tuesdays for the Birds Tranquil bird walks in local parklands, led by Bethany Facendini, from 7 to 9:30 a.m. Today we will visit Wildcat Canyon Regional Park. Call for meeting place and if you need to borrow binoculars. 525-2233. 

“Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial” Documentary screening in celebration of Darwin Day at 7 p.m. at Revolution Books, 2425 Channing Way. 848-1196. 

“Is the U.S. Provoking an Arms Race in Space?” A talk by Mike Moore, author of “Twilight War: The Folly of U.S. Space Dominance” at 6:30 p.m. at The Independent Institute, 100 Swan Way, Oakland. Cost is $10-$15. RSVP to 632-1366. 

The California Colloquium on Water A Look at the Sonoma County North American Climate Initiative with Randy Poole, General Manager/Chief Engineer, Sonoma County Water Agency at 5:30 p.m. at 250 Goldman School of Public Policy, 2607 Hearst Ave. at LeRoy. 642-2666. 

“Love at First Sight: America’s Love Affair with the Rose” A documentary about people who grow roses for sale and competition at 6 p.m. at UC Botanical Garden. Registration required. 643-2755, ext. 03. Cost is $9-$12. http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu 

“First Ever Yo-yo Hike of the Continental Divide Trail: Mexico to Canada and Back” with Francis Tapon at 7 p.m. at REI, 1338 San Pablo Ave. 527-4140. 

Berkeley School Volunteers Orientation from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at 1835 Allston Way. Come learn about volunteer opportunities. 644-8833. 

Teen Playreaders meets to read and discuss Hamlet and related plays at 4:30 p.m. at Claremont Branch Library, 2940 Benvenue. 981-6121. 

Tuesday Tilden Walkers Join a few slowpoke seniors at 9:30 a.m. in the parking lot near the Little Farm for an hour or two walk. 215-7672, 524-9992. 

End the Occupation Vigil every Tues. at noon at Oakland Federal Bldg., 1301 Clay St. www.epicalc.org 

Family Storytime at 7 p.m. at Kensington Library, 61 Arlington Ave. 524-3043.  

Street Level Cycles Community Bike Program Come use our tools as well as receive help with performing repairs free of charge. Youth classes available. Tues., Thurs., and Sat. from 2 to 6 p.m. at at 84 Bolivar Dr., Aquatic Park. 644-2577.  

Berkeley Camera Club meets at 7:30 p.m., at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda. Share your digital images, slides and prints and learn what other photographers are doing. Monthly field trips. 548-3991. www.berkeleycameraclub.org 

St. John’s Prime Timers meets at 9:30 a.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. We offer ongoing classes in exercise and creative arts, and always welcome new members over 50. 845-6830. 

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 13 

Berkeley Public Library Master Plan for Branch Libraries will be discussed at the Board of Library Trustees meeting at 7 p.m. in the Community Meeting Room 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6107. 

Celebrate Darwin Day with a talk by David Seaborg on “Principle of Evolution Today” at 7 p.m. at Berkeley City College Auditorium, 2050 Center St. www.defendscience.org 

East Bay Science Cafe “Celebrating Darwin” on Darwin’s 199th Birthday with Kevin Padian, UC Museum of Palentology at 7 p.m. at Au Coquelet Cafe, 2000 University Ave. http://bnhm.berkeley.edu 

“A Farewell to Israel: The Coming Break-Up of American Zionism” with Dr. Norman Finkelstein at 7 p.m. at King Middle School, 1781 Rose St. Benefit for Middle East Children’s Alliance. Cost is $15. 548-0542. ww.mecaforpeace.org 

“Compassion in Exile” A film about the 14th Dalai Lama at 7:30 p.m. at Humanist Hall, 390 27th St., Oakland. Donation $5. www.Humanist Hall.org 

“Encounter Point” A documentary featuring a Palestinian, Israeli, North and South American team from Just Vision profiling everyday leaders from all sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict who have suffered catastrophic losses and choose to seek common ground instead of revenge, at 7:30 p.m. at Congregation Beth El, 1301 Oxford St.  

The Inaugural Neil Gotanda Lecture in Asian American Jurisprudence with Prof. Neil Gotanda on his work on Critical Race Theory and Asian American Jurisprudence at 4 p.m. in the Goldberg Room, UC Berkeley School of Law, Bancroft at Piedmont. 415-290-0688. lisa_chin@berkeley.edu 

“The Concept of Race: Science or Social Construct?” with Dr. Martinez Hewlett, Prof. Emeritus of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Univ. of Arizona, at 9 a.m. at the Chapel of the Cross, Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, 2770 Marin Ave. Free. 559-2731. 

Writer Coach Connection Volunteers needed to help Berkeley students improve their writing and critical thinking skills from noon to 3 p.m. or from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. To register call 524-2319. www.writercoachconnection.org  

Cycling Lecture with Jacquie Phelan, womens cycling advocate at 7 p.m. and Ted Kirkbride at 8:30 p.m. at Velo Sport Bicycles, 1615 University Ave., enter at 1989 California. RSVP to 849-0437. 

Teen Chess Club from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the North Branch Library, 1170 The Alameda at Hopkins. 981-6133. 

After-School Program Homework help, drama and music for children ages 8 to 18, every Wed. from 4 to 7:15 p.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. Cost is $5 per week. 845-6830. 

Walk Berkeley for Seniors meets every Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. at the Sea Breeze Market, just west of the I-80 overpass. Everyone is welcome, wear comfortable shoes and a warm hat. Heavy rain cancels. 548-9840. 

Morning Meditation Every Mon., Wed., and Fri. at 7:45 a.m. at Rudramandir, 830 Bancroft Way at 6th. 486-8700. 

THURSDAY, FEB. 14 

Shoreline Nature Exploration for the Deaf or Hearing Impaired from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Eastshore State Park, Berkeley Meadow. For information call 525-2233. 

African American Cultural Celebration with African drumming, the music of Thelonious Monk and vocalist Melanie DeMore at 7 p.m. at the First Congregational Church, 2501 Harrison S., Oakland. The celebration is free of charge and the public is invited. Sponsored by St. Paul's Episcopal School. 285-9628. 

“Love of Humanity” Valetine’s Day Tea with Dr. Dacher Keltner on the biological and social origins of love at 3 p.m. at International House, Piedmont Ave. at Bancroft. Cost is $10. RSVP to 642-4128. http://ihouse.berkeley.edu 

“Forbidden Landscapes: Negotiating Sacred Space at Tateyama” with Prof. Caroline Hirasawa, Dept. of History, Univ. of British Columbia, at 5 p.m. at Jodo Shinshu Center, 2140 Durant Ave. 809-1444. events@shin-ibs.edu 

Teen Book Club meets to discuss love stories at 4 p.m. at Claremont Branch Library, 2940 Benvenue. 981-6121. 

Fitness Class for 55+ at 9:15 a.m. at Jewish Community Center, 1414 Walnut St. 848-0237. 

FRIDAY, FEB. 15 

City Commons Club Noon Luncheon with The Hon. Julian Evans, British Consul General, SF, on “Afghanistan and Pakistan: For Better or Worse.” Luncheon at 11:45 a.m. for $14.50, speech at 12:30 p.m., at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant St. For information and reservations call 526-2925.  

“Overcoming Zionism” Joel Kovel, longtime activist, professor at Bard College, will read from and discuss his most recent and most controversial book, “Overcoming Zionism” at 7 p.m. BFUU Hall, 1924 Cedar St. at Bonita. Cosponsored by the Northern California Support Group of the International Solidarity Movement and the Social Justice Committee of the Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian-Universalists. 

Berkeley Women in Black weekly vigil from noon to 1 p.m. at Bancroft and Telegraph. Our focus is human rights in Palestine. 548-6310. 

Circle Dancing, simple folk dancing with instruction at 7:30 p.m. at Finnish Brotherhood Hall, 1970 Chestnut St at University. Donation of $5 requested. 528-4253. www.circledancing.com 

SATURDAY, FEB. 16 

Mud, Slugs and Newts An exploration of the advantages of being slimy! Rain or shine from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

Walking Tour of Old Oakland in Celebration of Black History Month “New Era/New Politics” highlights African-American leaders who have made their mark on Oakland. Meet at 10 a.m. and the African American Museum and Library at 659 14th St. 238-3234. www.oaklandnet.com/walkingtours 

“African Americans: Champions of Democracy” with Cassie Lopez, community activist, on the role of African Americans today and through history, at 4 p.m. at Niebyl-Proctor Library, 6501 Telegraph, at 65th St., Oakland. Donations accepted. 251-1120. 

Planetarium Showings of “Follow the Drinking Gourd” from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Chabot Space and Science Center, 10000 Skyline Blvd., Oakland. Cost is $9-$13. 336-7373.  

“Can a Confederation Help Solve the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?” with Dr. Jhalil Barhoum of Stanford Univ., Francesca Giovannini, former U.N. employee and current lecturer in International and Area Studies, Peace and Conflict Studies Group Major, U.C. Berkeley, Rabbi Michael Lerner of Tikkun Magazine and Mitchell Plitnick former Policy Director at Jewish Voice for Peace and others at 4 p.m. at Martin Luther King Student Union, 5th flr, UC Campus.  

“Planning Your Bay Area Edible Garden” at 10 a.m. at UC Botanical Garden. Cost is $20-$25. Registration required. 643-2755, ext. 03. http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu 

“California Chronicles of Medical Marijuana” The screening of a Claire Burch film at 5 p.m. at the Regent Press Gallery, 4770 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. Free. 849-0153. 

California Writers Club with Susan Bono, editor in chief of “Tiny Lights: A Journal of Personal Narrative” at 10 a.m. at Barnes and Noble, Jack London Square. 272-0120. 

“Awakening the Dreamer, Changing the Dream” Videos from philosophers, scientists and community leaders, including Paul Hawken, Julia Butterfly Hill, Lynn Twist, Van Jones, Matthew Fox, Thomas Berry and more, from 1 to 6 p.m. at Hillside Community Church, 1422 Navellier St., El Cerrito. Sponsored by Pachamama Alliance. 665-6066. bohnert@sonic.net 

Akido for Peace: Training Across Borders Middle East peace fundraiser from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Aikido of Berkeley with instructor Hiroshi Ikeda, shihan. Suggested $75 donation; all proceeds go to Aiki Extensions’ Middle East Aikido Project. www.aikidoofberkeley.com  

Red Cross Blood Services Volunteer Orientation from 6 to 8 p.m. at 6230 Claremont Ave., Oakland. Registration required. 594-5165. 

“Meditation as Relationship, Relationship as Meditation” A workshop from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Urban Peace, 2584 Martin Luther King, Jr. Way. Cost is $35-$50, no one turned away. Please bring a bag lunch. Reservations required. 866-732-2320, ext. 1. 

Preschool Storytime, for ages 3-5, at 11 a.m. at Albany Library, 1247 Marin Ave. 526-3720, ext. 17. 

Free Garden Tours at Regional Parks Botanic Garden Sat. and Sun. at 2 pm. Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Tilden Park. Call to confirm. 841-8732. www.nativeplants.org 

Around the World Tour of Plants at 1:30 p.m., Thurs., Sat. and Sun. at UC Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Drive. 643-2755. http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu 

The Berkeley Lawn Bowling Club provides free instruction every Wed. and Sat. at 10:30 a.m. at 2270 Acton St. 841-2174.  

Oakland Artisans Marketplace Sat. from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sun. from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Jack London Square. 238-4948. 

SUNDAY, FEB. 17 

Winter Wildlife Hike Join us as we look for winter birds, slimy newts and slippery banana slugs along the muddy trails, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

Basics of Gardening Plan what to do in your garden for the rest of the year. We will cover the basics of what is appropriate for each season in Bay Area gardens. You will learn when to prune, look out for weeds, put down mulch, propagate, plant, and much more. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Botanic Garden, Tilden Park. Bring lunch. Cost is $40-$48. Registration required. 841-8732. www.nativeplants.org 

“The Afro-Caribbean and Black Native American Presence in California” with Lonny Shavelson at 2 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak, Oakland. Cost is $5-$8. 238-2002. 

“Women Philosophers by H. D. Moe” on Martha C. Nussbaum at 11 a.m. at the Humanist Fellowship Hall, 390 27th St., Oakland. Free. 451-5818. 

East Bay Atheists Berkeley meets at 1:30 p.m. in the Berkeley Main Library, 3rd Floor Meeting Room, 2090 Kittredge St. Fred Glynn will discuss his book, “Authors of the Bible,” which describes the men and women who wrote the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. 222-7580. eastbayatheists.org 

Gut Health is Great Health! From 3 to 4 p.m. at Elephant Pharmacy, 1607 Shattuck Ave. 549-9200.  

Kensington Farmers’ Market from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 303 Arlington Ave. at Amherst, Kensington. 525-6155. 

Free Garden Tours at Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park Sat. and Sun. at 2 p.m. Call to confirm. 841-8732. www.nativeplants.org 

Lake Merritt Neighbors Organized for Peace Peace walk around the lake every Sun. Meet at 3 p.m. at the colonnade at the NE end of the lake. 763-8712. lmno4p.org 

Berkeley Chess Club meets every Sun. at 7 p.m. at the Hillside School, 1581 Le Roy Ave. 843-0150. 

Tibetan Buddhism with Santosh Philip on “Increasing Awareness in the Dream State” at 6 p.m. at the Tibetan Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Pl. 809-1000 www.nyingmainstitute.com 

Sew Your Own Open Studio Come learn to use our industrial and domestic machines, or work on your own projects, from 5 to 9 p.m. at 84 Bolivar Dr., Aquatic Park. Cost is $3 per hour. 644-2577. www.watersideworkshops.org  

MONDAY, FEB. 18 

Golden Gate Audubon Society Bike Trip “Eastshore State Park and Aquatic Park” Meet at 8:30 a.m. at the southernmost pond of Aquatic Park, Bay and Potter Sts. Bring lunch and bike helmet. 843-2222. 

“Tillie Olsen: A Heart in Action” A new film by Ann Hershey at 7:30 p.m. at the California Theater, on Kittredge btwn Shattuck and Fulton. Q&A follows. Tickets are $10. annhersh@aol.com 

Berkeley Green Mondays “US Coverage of the Muslim World: Ignorance, Malice or Greed?” with Lisette B. Poole, CSU, at 7:30 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Open ot all. www.berkeleygreens.org 

Berkeley CopWatch organizational meeting at 8 p.m. at 2022 Blake St. Join us to work on current issues around police misconduct. Volunteers needed. For information call 548-0425. 

Dragonboating Year round classes at the Berkeley Marina, Dock M. Meets Mon, Wed., Thurs. at 6 p.m. Sat. at 10:30 a.m. For details see www.dragonmax.org 

Free Boatbuilding Classes for Youth Mon.-Wed. from 3 to 7 p.m. at Berkeley Boathouse, 84 Bolivar Dr., Aquatic Park. Classes cover woodworking, boatbuilding, and boat repair. 644-2577. www.watersideworkshops.org 

CITY MEETINGS 

City Council meets Tues., Feb. 12, at 7 p.m in City Council Chambers. 981-6900. www.ci. 

berkeley.ca.us/citycouncil 

Commission on Disability meets Wed., Feb. 13, at 6:30 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-6346. TDD: 981-6345.  

Homeless Commission meets Wed., Feb. 13, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-5426.  

Library Board of Trustees meets Wed., Feb. 13, at 7 p.m. at the Main Library, 2090 Kittredge St.. 981-6195.  

Planning Commission meets Wed., Feb. 13, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-7484.  

Police Review Commission meets Wed., Feb. 13 , at the South Berkeley Senior Center. 981-4950.  

Waterfront Commission meets Wed., Feb. 13, at 7 p.m., at 201 University Ave. 981-6740.  

ONGOING 

E-Waste Recycling St. Vincent de Paul of Alameda County accepts electronic waste including computers, dvd players, cell phones, fax machines and many other ewaste products for disposal free of charge at many of its locations throughout Alameda County. Free bulk pick-up available. 638-7600. www.svdp-alameda.org 

Help a Newt Cross the Road Every year newts migrate across Hillside Drive to reach their breeding pools in Castro Creek. Volunteers prevent many of these creatures from being crushed by cars. We need volunteers every evening during January and February in El Sobrante. The newts are most active on rainy nights. annabelle11_3@yahoo.com 

Free Tax Help If your 2007 household income was less than $42,000, you are eligible for free tax preparation from United Way's Earn it! Keep It! Save It! Sites are open now through April 15 in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. To find a site near you, call 800-358-8832. www.EarnItKeepItSaveIt.org 

Donate the Excess Fruit from Your Fruit Trees I’ll gladly pick and deliver your fruit to community programs that feed school kids, the elderly, and the hungry. The fruit trees should be located in Berkeley and organic (no pesticides). This is a free volunteer/ 

grassroots thing so join in!! To scehdule and appointment call or email 812-3369. northberkeleyharvest@gmail.com