Old-style politics is alive and well in Berkeley, where the PAC-man wields a big stick and an even bigger wallet. -more-

When they first ran against each other in 2002, it was Berkeley’s epic political battle. Shirley Dean was the lightning-rod mayor and leader of the moderate-progressive political faction in a City Council and a city that were deeply divided along factional lines. Looking for a way to oust a political powerhouse, members of the opposing left-progressive faction recruited former state Assemblymember Tom Bates to run against Dean. -more-

Berkeley’s four mayoral candidates, two of them seeking write-in votes, made their pitches to a packed house at the West Berkeley Senior Center Monday night. -more-

Development-related contributions continue to pour into the coffers of candidates for next week’s Berkeley City Council election, with Mayor Tom Bates in the lead both in total and sector-related contributions. -more-

Berkeley developers were making a last-minute push last week to flood the coffers of Terry Doran as he battles to win the City Council seat representing downtown Berkeley. -more-

With a week to go before the Nov. 4 elections, candidates running for the Berkeley Board of Education turned the spotlight on the achievement gap at a debate organized by the Berkeley PTA Council at Willard Middle School on Monday. -more-

Shay Black is an Irish musician who lives in Oakland just a few blocks from the Planet office on Shattuck. He has led an Irish music session in the nearby Starry Plough every Sunday for the last thirteen years. Recently, he’s become a YouTube celebrity. Last month, a jolly video starring Shay was made at the Plough, and posted on YouTube, and it now has had 250,000 hits. It’s a cover of a song originally written in Ireland that reclaims Barack Obama’s Irish roots. -more-

Willard Middle School is interviewing some students who fire department officials said might have been involved in setting three small fires in a couple of trash cans in the school’s restrooms and an open garbage area in the garden during school hours last Wednesday. -more-

Measure LL Landmarks Preservation Commission -more-

Students at Berkeley’s Maybeck High School can move into new classrooms in St. John’s Presbyterian Church this spring, since the school received a relocation permit from city officials at a public meeting last week. -more-

On Oct. 15, Margaret Emmington died peacefully at Alta Bates Hospital at age 104, but not before she fulfilled her last wish: the day before she died, she was able to mark her absentee ballot for Barack Obama. Over the last year she had emphatically stated that it was her hope to live long enough (imagining, even, that she might live to see the inauguration) to cast her vote for the man who would change the mind of the country. -more-

Alameda County Superior Court Judge Morris Jacobson on Monday postponed the pretrial hearing for former Berkeley City College student Andrew Hoeft-Edenfield until Jan. 26, 2009. Hoeft-Edenfield is charged with murdering UC Berkeley nuclear engineering graduate Chris Wootton, -more-

If crime figures presented to the Berkeley City Council Tuesday by Berkeley Police Department Chief Doug Hambleton are anything to go by, property crime—which includes burglaries, car thefts and arson—in the city has declined since the 1970s. -more-

Starting in December, Berkeley’s homeless youth will be able to get off the streets every evening and spend some time looking for jobs, housing and peer support, according to a $100,000 contract approved by the Berkeley City Council Tuesday. -more-

A rifle in one hand -more-

The Oct. 23-29 story “Four Candidates Battle for District 4 Vacancy” incorrectly reported that Jesse Arrgeuin was running both for City Council and for re-election to the rent board. While Arreguin had taken out papers for both seats, he withdrew from the rent board race when he filed for council. -more-

NEXT TIME -more-

MEASURE GG -more-

MEASURE KK -more-

In general we resist financing public projects by sale of bonds. Paying them off is just a form of us the people borrowing, and paying high interest to hugely wealthy individuals, or to banks/bankers, to use funds that should've been reserved for our use by taxing where the money is ahead of needing to spend it for us. We don't even have to sharply tax people who get as much as half a million dollars a year... but get it from the really huge incomes from amazing sources including investments, that are just money making money. -more-

You might be a tenant who has discovered mold in her kitchen. Your landlord is being dismissive of this grave impact on your habitability. Whom can you turn to? Since you reside in this city, you call 510-981-RENT, get in touch with a case counselor, and, if this does not resolve the issue, take your case to the nine elected Rent Stabilization Board commissioners. The landlord complies, and your faith in the rule of law is restored. -more-

Terry Doran, currently on the Zoning Adjustments Board, is running for Dona Spring's seat on the City Council. As a member of the Zoning Adjustments Board, Terry voted against the positions of Dona Spring, Jesse Areguin, the Le Conte Neighborhood Association, and the Elmwood Neighborhood Association. -more-

California voters are rarely given the chance to vote for an initiative that addresses a problem that many thought was unsolvable. Proposition 5, the Nonviolent Offender Rehabilitation Act, provides the opportunity for voters to bring change to the state's crumbling and bankrupt criminal justice system in a manner that cannot be achieved within the special-interest-dominated world of Sacramento. -more-

Editor -- -more-

It took the collapse of a heavily trafficked bridge in Minnesota to alert significant numbers of Americans to the price to be paid for neglecting the nation’s physical infrastructure. But despite the equally dramatic descent of our political life in recent decades, few notice the cost of neglecting the nation’s cultural infrastructure that—along with so many of our bridges, dams, and watermains—was largely created by FDR’s New Deal. -more-

In general we resist financing public projects by sale of bonds. Paying them off is just a form of us the people borrowing, and paying high interest to hugely wealthy individuals, or to banks/bankers, to use funds that should've been reserved for our use by taxing where the money is ahead of needing to spend it for us. We don't even have to sharply tax people who get as much as $1/2m a year...but get it from the really huge incomes from amazing sources, including investments, that are just money making money. -more-

I decided to run for Mayor because I strongly believe that our city needs new, authentic leadership that is in touch with all citizens. Historically, our mayors have catered only to specific communities. This has resulted in a city divided, with stark inequities in housing, education, safety, and opportunities. My mission as mayor will be to bring the city together as a community and to improve living conditions for all residents, to support ecologically sustainable improvements, and to reclaim the ideals of our city. -more-

I am endorsing Shirley Dean for Mayor of Berkeley; I firmly believe that her program of 50 solutions to the current crisis and problems of the City of Berkeley will benefit the entire population of the city, especially those of us who are disabled and with special needs. I lived in Berkeley during Mrs. Dean’s first term as Mayor and know that disability services were much better funded and more extensive then. -more-

Hard issues that include local development come up on a project-by-project basis but never rise as a top-level campaign issue. Political campaigns are remarkably free of pro- or anti-development dialogues. Even UC Berkeley, the big bully in town, has hardly been mentioned by the candidates in their mailers and websites. -more-

Measure JJ will ensure that medical cannabis continues to be safely available to Berkeley’s patients and that the needs and rights of neighbors are respected. -more-

It’s hard to understand why the mayor and certain council members don’t run on a pro-development platform. They should just come out and say, ‘I want growth, including big buildings, higher density, less parking and more noise.” They could also say, “I’ll take all the money developers can bundle for my campaign.” And of course the most important thing, “I’ll vote for every big development project put forward, even if it goes against the will of our neighborhoods.” -more-

I have just read the horrific West County/ Contra Costa Times editor’s endorsement of Norman LaForce. Clearly someone did not do a full background check. LaForce is not only “a thorn in the side of park officials,” he is fiercely aggressive and known for vengeful acts. The CC Times editor omits that the citizens of El Cerrito launched a recall to rid themselves of their thorny city council member. Nobody did a quick LexisNexis search on LaForce’s name. No reporter examined the revealing transcript of public testimony when the East Bay Regional Parks board had to appoint Jean Siri’s successor after she died. Jean would roll in her grave if she knew any newspaper had endorsed this man. -more-

Once again the City is asking to tap further into our wallets instead of making the effort to manage its huge budget. Together with many of you, Berkeleyans Against Soaring Taxes (BASTA!), Berkeley Property Owners Association (BPOA), Telegraph Business Improvement District (TBID) and neighborhood groups are committed to responsible fiscal management. We urge “no” votes on ballot measures FF, GG & HH. -more-

Sharon Hudson’s previous two commentaries on Berkeley elections appeared in the Oct. 6 and 16 issues of the Berkeley Daily Planet. -more-

At the Oct. 21 council meeting, misleading information on Berkeley property values and foreclosures was publicly stated by City Manager Kamlarz, Councilmember Capitelli, and Economic Development Director Caplan. The City should investigate, correct, and update this information. -more-

Several people have asked my opinion regarding some Berkeley candidates and ballot measures. For what it's worth, here are my preferences. -more-

Opponents of AC Transit’s planned Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service have proposed an alternative that they call “Rapid Bus Plus” (RB+). But their half-baked proposal doesn’t stand up to close scrutiny; it’s a minor variation on existing inadequate 1R service rather than a real alternative. -more-

TransForm (formally the Transportation and Land Use Coalition) recognized very early on that Measure KK is really about process and not whether or not voters agree with the concept of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). If approved it would further delay an already exhaustive public process in Berkeley, and we encourage Daily Planet readers to vote “no” on KK. -more-

We are writing in re-sponse to LA Wood’s candidate statement in the Daily Planet, to explain our endorsement decision in his race, and to address the charges that our process was “back room” and “slate politics at its worst.” -more-

The arguments that have appeared against Measure KK (Berkeley’s initiative to give you a vote on future street conversions) do not hold up. -more-

As the election draws close, the debate concerning KK is coming to a close. KK has been a success. Regardless of the final outcome, KK began a real city wide public discussion of BRT. The Transportation Commission won’t do it, The City Council won’t do it, and AC Transit won’t do it—KK has. -more-

In a commentary in last week’s Planet about Albany’s City Council election, which pits a Sierra Club slate against three other candidates, Nan Wishner wrote of the three slate candidates, “I have heard an objection that electing Lieber, Panian, and Toomey will create an all-progressive council. I don’t have a problem with a council committed to the progressive values of environmental stewardship and social justice that I believe most Albany residents share.” I am a progressive environmentalist committed to social justice, and I have a big problem with the assumption that electing the straight Sierra Club slate is consistent with progressive values. -more-

Every Berkeley resident concerned about the city’s future should vote “no” on Measure GG. Why? Consider a conversation I recently had with Mayor Tom Bates. -more-

The Indo-American relationship has never been so high and as good as it has been during last three years. -more-

Patrick Kennedy outdid himself Saturday night, Oct. 24, at the Gaia Building. He rented the theater to Hip Hop party promoters, with no notice to the Police Department. The “party” became a melee in the street. I operate Anna’s Jazz Island, a music venue sharing the entrance lobby with the Gaia theater which is routinely rented out for huge private parties in clear violation of its Use Permit. -more-

This political season has seen many deceptive local campaign mailers, with several attributing a sense of absolute power to San Francisco progressives that they only wish they had. But the most ridiculous and politically counter-productive mailer appeared in Berkeley, and was endorsed by one of my favorite groups, the Sierra Club. As the accompanying photo shows, the Sierra Club wants Berkeley voters to believe that a ballot initiative (Measure KK) that would require voter approval when parking is removed for bus lanes endangers our efforts to combat global warming. The Club also wants voters to believe that defeating Measure KK will help save polar bears, while a yes vote heads them toward extinction. Identifying supporters of Measure KK as joining Sarah Palin in opposing polar bears is not a sound strategy for building a movement, and almost mocks the importance of local climate change efforts by linking Measure KK to the polar bear’s plight. -more-

Last week, inspired by some recent mantid encounters, I wrote about the dilemma of the male mantid. Female mantids are hungry little beasts, and a male may become a meal as well as a mate. All that is undisputed. What’s controversial is whether the male is complicit in his own demise—whether he behaves so as to increase the likelihood of being eaten—and what the evolutionary roots of such behavior might be. -more-

Our Landmarks Preservation Ordinance, which Tom Bates and his pro-development backers are so eager to emasculate via Measure LL, was enacted in 1974 as a direct response to the rampant wave of demolitions that overtook Berkeley in the 1960s. -more-

A client called me this evening to talk about a house he was in contract to buy and we became engaged in a rather long, intricate and complex conversation involving all the things that he and his wife were now facing that had formerly been a foggy and insubstantial tissue of details beyond their attention. The house was exciting and new a week ago and no thought of the finer issues had intruded into their reverie of the Dream Home. The inspection was fun and exiting and we chatted happily for hours about all the things that might be done and some harsh realities about what should be done. A water heater from the 1930’s (yes, no joke) was long overdue for replacement and genuinely unsafe. Some foundation issues were demanding attention and the need for seismic work also loomed harshly. -more-

With an unusual—and unusually good—idea for a community theater Halloween show, Actors Ensemble of Berkeley’s staging a lively production of Christopher Marlowe’s Elizabethan masterpiece, Doctor Faustus, in a cranked up, vaudevillized version, directed by Jeremy Cole and produced by Jennifer Rice at Live Oak Theatre, that plays like ‘Faustus, Hellzapoppin’. -more-