via Alejandro Garcia: Students march to Chancellor's house.
via Alejandro Garcia: Students march to Chancellor's house.

Extra

Flash: Head-On Crash Blocks 3 Lanes of Highway 80 in Berkeley

Monday May 17, 2010 - 04:03:00 PM

Three lanes of eastbound Interstate Highway 80 in Berkeley are blocked this afternoon by a head-on crash, according to the California Highway Patrol. -more-


Updated: Lamp Switch Started House Fire

Dan McMenamin, BCN
Friday May 14, 2010 - 05:22:00 PM

A three-alarm fire that destroyed a home and damaged two others in North Berkeley on Thursday afternoon was apparently caused by a faulty lamp switch, an assistant fire chief said today. -more-


Press Release: World Can't Wait Sparks anti-Yoo Protest on Friday Morning

From The World Can't Wait
Thursday May 13, 2010 - 06:10:00 PM

This year’s UC Berkeley Law (Boalt Hall) commencement ceremony will be the site of an anti-torture protest initiated by the national organization World Can’t Wait and other anti-torture organizations, lawyers, and activists. -more-


Hoeft-Edenfield Convicted of Second-Degree Murder for Stabbing UC Berkeley Student

Bay City News
Thursday May 13, 2010 - 04:13:00 PM

Jurors this morning convicted Andrew Hoeft-Edenfield of second-degree murder for the stabbing death of University of California at Berkeley senior Christopher Wootton near campus two years ago. -more-


Three-Alarm Fire Destroys North Berkeley Home, Damages Two Others, Dog Rescued

Bay City News
Thursday May 13, 2010 - 04:05:00 PM

A three-alarm fire that destroyed one home and damaged two others in North Berkeley this afternoon has been controlled, a deputy fire chief said. -more-


UC Berkeley Hunger Strike Ends with Meeting

By Bay City News
Thursday May 13, 2010 - 08:43:00 AM

Protesters ended a 10-day hunger strike yesterday on the University of California at Berkeley campus during a meeting with the university chancellor and top administrators that both sides called productive. -more-


Press Release: UC Berkeley Hunger Strike To Be Suspended

From "Hungry For Justice" site, posted May 12, dated May 13 (Thursday)
Wednesday May 12, 2010 - 09:18:00 PM

On March 3rd, 2010, over 20 students, the majority being Latinos, decided to go on a hunger strike to call attention issues that affect our community both here on campus and across the nation. This inspired many students, workers, and community members, evident in the solidarity, love, and support we witnessed since then. We say thank you to everyone for this. -more-


PG&E Apologizes for Smart Meter Problems, but Some Aren't Satisfied

By Bay City News
Wednesday May 12, 2010 - 03:55:00 PM

PG&E on Monday issued an apology along with 45 reports dating back to August 2006 detailing reviews, monitoring, testing, and corrections identified in the company's SmartMeter program. -more-


Hunger Strikers to Meet with UC Berkeley Chancellor

By Bay City News
Wednesday May 12, 2010 - 03:49:00 PM

Hunger strikers on the campus of University of California at Berkeley are scheduled to meet this afternoon with the university chancellor to negotiate their demands and possibly end the 10-day strike, a spokesman for the group said. -more-



Page One

Hunger Strike on UC Berkeley Campus Enters Second Week

By Bay City News, Riya Bhattacharjee and Online Sources
Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 11:14:00 AM

Hunger strikers at the University of California at Berkeley were still on campus as of Monday night. They marched with their supporters to the Chancellor's residence about 7 p.m. after campus police dislodged them from their previous locations. Strikers posted this video of the march on their Facebook page on Monday night. -more-



Landmarks Commission Takes Up Downtown Plan and Project Proposed Next to City Club

By Steven Finacom
Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 06:19:00 PM
 The development firm of Hudson McDonald showed the Landmarks Commission this image depicting a proposed new five story-over-garage residential infill building at the northeast corner of Durant and Ellsworth.   St. Mark’s Church is at the left, with the domed towers, and the Berkeley City Club is on the right.

At its May 6, 2010 regular monthly meeting the Berkeley Landmarks Preservation Commission grappled with landmark issues related to the new, proposed, Downtown Area Plan, continued review of renovation plans for the North Berkeley Public Library, roundly criticized the design of a proposed project adjacent to the historic Berkeley City Club, and made its first landmark designation of 2010. -more-



Richmond and Chevron Reach Agreement

From the Richmond Progressive Association, via Councilmember Tom Butt (Partisan Position)
Monday May 10, 2010 - 09:25:00 PM

Negotiators for the city of Richmond and Chevron have reached an unprecedented agreement that settles several major tax issues. Chevron has agreed to pay millions of additional dollars to the city if the city will drop its appeal of Measure T and proposed changes in the Utility Users Tax. (See below for details.).The settlement goes to the city council next Tuesday where the Richmond Progressive Alliance expects and supports its adoption. -more-



UC Berkeley Football Team Will Play 2011 Games at AT&T Park

By Bay City News
Monday May 10, 2010 - 09:19:00 PM

The University of California at Berkeley has reached an agreement with the San Francisco Giants for Cal's football team to play their home games in 2011 at AT&T Park in San Francisco while its own stadium is being retrofitted and renovated. -more-



UC Berkeley's Rowdy Fraternities On TV

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:14:00 PM

CBS's Inside Edition reported May 7 on a class action lawsuit filed in January by Southside neighbors seeking respite from UC Berkeley's rowdy fraternities. -more-



Features

Press Release: Bart Police Ask for Public's Help in Investigating Suspicious Death

Monday May 10, 2010 - 09:26:00 PM

OAKLAND, CA – The BART Police Department is investigating a suspicious death in which a 22-year-old white male from Berkeley, Konstantin Tomashevsky, was found at the UN Plaza entrance of the Civic Center BART Station on May 5, 2010. -more-


Public Comment

Letters to the Editor

Monday May 10, 2010 - 09:17:00 PM

NEW: Zionist -more-


Berkeley: Transit-Free Zone

By Charles Siegel
Monday May 10, 2010 - 09:28:00 PM

The city council has killed BRT in Berkeley. It is time for the city to update the "Nuclear-Free Zone" signs at its border by adding "Transit-Free Zone." -more-


The Grim Reaper of Greenhouse Gases

By Craig Collins
Monday May 10, 2010 - 09:58:00 PM

We hear a lot of talk about carbon dioxide as the most dangerous climate culprit. And we should. So far, loading the atmosphere with CO2 is the single biggest cause of climate disruption. But, in the final analysis, methane may prove to be the most deadly of all greenhouse gases. -more-


Failed Leadership and Predatory Fees

By Carol Gesbeck DeWitt
Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:50:00 PM

I’ve lived at the same Oakland address for 41 years. I rented for 9 years and have owned my home since 1978. I am a childless widow. I used to like where I lived. Now, I wish I could move my home out of Oakland. I have no desire to move. I just want to remove my life from the reaches of the egregious oppression of Oakland governance. Oakland has some of the highest paid city employees in the entire country. Clearly a city with this much poverty and serious needs cannot afford to compensate Oakland employees and politicians at the level they have managed to achieve and demand and still viably function and maintain needed services. -more-


Editorial

For Whom This Bell Tolls

By Becky O'Malley
Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 11:22:00 AM

Anyone who’s interested in the truth had better read the latest discharge from the seemingly bottomless sewer which calls itself FLAME ( “Facts and Logic About the Middle East”). Prudence would suggest that we should just ignore this garbage, but the serious accusations that the author makes which sully the good name of the Jewish community of the Bay Area can’t go unchallenged. -more-


The Editor's Back Fence

New: New Operating Instructions for This Publication! Please Read Before Tuesday.

Becky O'Malley
Friday May 14, 2010 - 03:58:00 PM

Regular readers (now more than 20,000 visitors a week, with almost 600 subscribers) will find this week’s Planet particularly confusing. We’re in a new phase of our experimental process, so please read this carefully and then bear with us during the transition.

From now on, the only “issue date” will be on Tuesdays. That’s the day we have complete events lists ready to post, which will give would-be audience members ten full days of arts and events listing, starting on Wednesday and going through the next two weekends.

We’ll “publish” the week’s issue that day. What this means is that when readers type in berkeleydailyplanet.com they’ll get the “current” issue, the one “published” on the most recent Tuesday. Then we’ll start adding stories to the “next” issue as they come in. Any time readers want to read these new stories, they can just click on the “next issue” button on the front page of the “current issue”. (Try it now.) To get back to square one, click on "current issue".

If a story is fast breaking and changing fast(the recent student hunger strike, for example), we might also add it to the “current issue” front page, above the original headline and under the red “Extra” heading on the right hand side. As there are new developments, we’ll just add these at the top, while not removing earlier versions.

A summary or final version of stories like this will then be posted in the next Tuesday issue.

The Tuesday issue will also be converted to PDFs (graphic pages) which will be posted on the site . These can easily be printed on home printers and will be available in print from Copy Central at Solano and Peralta for a small charge to cover the printing costs. We’re not going to create a printable version on Fridays any more, but each printable Tuesday issue will have the whole preceding week's content, updated as needed.

I’ll still be sending email updates twice a week to subscribers, with links to especially interesting stories.

If you’d like a free subscription, just click on “subscribe” at the right hand side of this page. And there’s also an “unsubscribe” button there if you want it.

-more-


In the Next Issue Now

Friday May 14, 2010 - 04:21:00 PM

Berkeley Police Seek Four Suspects in Connection With Recent Robberies;PG&E Apologizes for Smart Meter Problems, but Some Aren't Satisfied;;Life and Death on the Arizona Border; Open Letter to UC President Yudof Re: UC Statement on Divestment; Flashmob Invades Westin Hotel - Video Goes Viral;Watch the Youtube video that has already been seen over 100,000 times and is -more-;The Boy Scouts: A Pact With the Devil;Response to Prof. Kondolf on BRT;First Person: Lifestyles of the Mentally Ill;Ghosts of the Alaka’i; Reader's Recommendation: Anzu Restaurant ; -more-


Columns

Dispatches From the Edge:Mid-East Tensions/Venezuela & the Media

By Conn Hallinan
Monday May 10, 2010 - 05:53:00 PM

Israeli charges that Syria has transferred Scud missiles to Lebanon’s Hezbollah, coupled with a sharp criticism of the Shiite organization’s arsenal by U.S. Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, have measurably increased tensions in the Middle East. According to the Israeli daily, Haaretz Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed About Gheit said the Lebanese government was in a “complete panic” over the possibility of an attack by Tel Aviv. -more-


Odd Bodkins -- Sprung

By Dan O'Neill
Monday May 10, 2010 - 07:05:00 PM

Arts & Events

This Week at the Berkeley Arts Festival

By Bonnie Hughes
Thursday May 13, 2010 - 11:32:00 PM

May 14, and every Friday at noon: catch pianist Jerry Kuderna’s Friday Lunch Concerts, -more-


Hot-Button Topic Dramatized at City Club

By John A. McMullen II
Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:20:00 PM
Kate Jepson and Sarah Rose Butler in TERRORiSTKA playing through May 16 at Berkeley City Club

Last Thursday night I came home from TERRORiSTKA[sic], a play about Chechen terrorists by Rebecca Bella at the Berkeley City Club. Before I started to write this review, I clicked on the front page of the New York Times online. The Pakistan Taliban fumbles the bomb in Times Square and in Red Square US GI’s march in the May Day Parade. The play I saw was about striking back at the Russian Empire that maltreats the Chechens; the US is killing civilians with drones in Afghanistan; now the two Empires march together. I just shook my head at this variation on George Lucas’s vision…and at the timeliness of this play. -more-


Events

Mayan Textile Exhibit and Sale at BCC on Monday

By Charlene Woodcock
Sunday May 16, 2010 - 10:55:00 PM

Berkeley City College will host a visit by the president of the Jolom Mayaetik Mayan weavers' cooperative from San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico on Monday May 17. From noon to 2:30 in the BCC atrium, Celia Santiz Ruiz will exhibit and sell textiles created on the traditional backstrap loom by members of the 250-strong cooperative who live in small communities in the highlands of Chiapas. The collection includes traditional tapestries and huipiles as well as examples of the cooperative's new designs—pillows, scarves, kitchen towels, tablecloths. In the afternoon she will speak to a BCC class about the work of the cooperative and the daily lives of its members. The weavers of the cooperative are proudly carrying on the weaving tradition and ancient designs learned from their mothers and grandmothers and also working to extend the reach of their art by visiting communities in the US and exhibiting their work and speaking about the goals of their cooperative. -more-


Point Molate Conservation Hike – May 16th

By Tom Butt
Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 10:25:00 AM

Please meet us at 10am on the 16th of May for a field trip co-lead by David Amme and Lech Naumovich on the grasslands of Point Molate. -more-


Arts Listings

Readings-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:27:00 PM

Stage-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:27:00 PM

Popmusic-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:17:00 PM

Classical Music-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:07:00 PM

Professional Dance-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:23:00 PM

Galleries-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:15:00 PM

Classical Music-San Francisco Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:12:00 PM

Stage-San Francisco Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:28:00 PM

Dance-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:14:00 PM

Events Listings

Highlights-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:35:00 PM

Museums-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:32:00 PM

General-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:34:00 PM

Exhibits-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:29:00 PM

Outdoors-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:38:00 PM

Kids-East Bay Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:36:00 PM

Museums-San Francisco Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:37:00 PM

General-San Francisco Through May 23

Tuesday May 11, 2010 - 12:34:00 PM

Back Stories

Opinion

Editorials

For Whom This Bell Tolls 05-11-2010

Making Transit Work for People: Why BRT is Doomed to Fail 05-07-2010

The Editor's Back Fence

New: New Operating Instructions for This Publication! Please Read Before Tuesday. 05-14-2010

In the Next Issue Now 05-14-2010

Blips on the Screen: BP's a Threat in Berkeley Too; Raging Deer in Thousand Oaks; McMansion Marches On 05-07-2010

Cartoons

Odd Bodkins -- Sprung By Dan O'Neill 05-10-2010

BP By Marian Kamensky 05-07-2010

Odd Bodkins -- The Miracle By Dan O'Neill 05-07-2010

Public Comment

Letters to the Editor 05-10-2010

Berkeley: Transit-Free Zone By Charles Siegel 05-10-2010

The Grim Reaper of Greenhouse Gases By Craig Collins 05-10-2010

Failed Leadership and Predatory Fees By Carol Gesbeck DeWitt 05-11-2010

Letters to the Editor 05-07-2010

Updated: Of Polar Bears and Concrete Islands in Telegraph Avenue By Matt Kondolf, with an addendum by Robert Lauriston 05-07-2010

Berkeley Budget Mess? Fix the Public Servant Cartel By Victoria Peirotes 05-07-2010

Imploding By R.G. Davis 05-07-2010

News

Flash: Head-On Crash Blocks 3 Lanes of Highway 80 in Berkeley 05-17-2010

Updated: Lamp Switch Started House Fire Dan McMenamin, BCN 05-14-2010

Press Release: World Can't Wait Sparks anti-Yoo Protest on Friday Morning From The World Can't Wait 05-13-2010

Hoeft-Edenfield Convicted of Second-Degree Murder for Stabbing UC Berkeley Student Bay City News 05-13-2010

Three-Alarm Fire Destroys North Berkeley Home, Damages Two Others, Dog Rescued Bay City News 05-13-2010

UC Berkeley Hunger Strike Ends with Meeting By Bay City News 05-13-2010

Press Release: UC Berkeley Hunger Strike To Be Suspended From "Hungry For Justice" site, posted May 12, dated May 13 (Thursday) 05-12-2010

PG&E Apologizes for Smart Meter Problems, but Some Aren't Satisfied By Bay City News 05-12-2010

Hunger Strikers to Meet with UC Berkeley Chancellor By Bay City News 05-12-2010

Hunger Strike on UC Berkeley Campus Enters Second Week By Bay City News, Riya Bhattacharjee and Online Sources 05-11-2010

Landmarks Commission Takes Up Downtown Plan and Project Proposed Next to City Club By Steven Finacom 05-11-2010

Richmond and Chevron Reach Agreement From the Richmond Progressive Association, via Councilmember Tom Butt (Partisan Position) 05-10-2010

UC Berkeley Football Team Will Play 2011 Games at AT&T Park By Bay City News 05-10-2010

UC Berkeley's Rowdy Fraternities On TV By Riya Bhattacharjee 05-11-2010

Press Release: Bart Police Ask for Public's Help in Investigating Suspicious Death 05-10-2010

05-14-2010

New: UC Berkeley Strikers Still On Campus By Bay City News and Online Sources 05-10-2010

New: UC Berkeley Football Team Will Play 2011 Games at AT&T Park By Bay City News Service 05-10-2010

New: Richmond and Chevron Reach Agreement From the Richmond Progressive Association, via Councilmember Tom Butt (Partisan Position) 05-10-2010

Flash: Police Roust UC Berkeley Hunger Strikers From a press release. 05-10-2010

Press Release: Bart Police Ask for Public's Help in Investigating Suspicious Death 05-08-2010

Updated: UC Berkeley Hunger Strike against Arizona Law Continues By Riya Bhattacharjee 05-07-2010

Rabbi Lerner Asks for Media's Help to Publicize Vandalism By Riya Bhattacharjee 05-07-2010

Berkeley This Week By Riya Bhattacharjee 05-07-2010

Skyline High Students Visit Their Representatives in Sacramento Raymond Barglow, Ph.D. www.berkeleytutors.net 05-07-2010

UC Workers Join Student Hunger Strike: Say UC must realign its priorities to put students, workers first From AFSCME 3299 Press Release 05-06-2010

San Pablo Citizens Win Four Year Moratorium on Eminent Domain By Marilynne L. Mellander (Partisan Position) 05-07-2010

Columns

Dispatches From the Edge:Mid-East Tensions/Venezuela & the Media By Conn Hallinan 05-10-2010

The Public Eye:Budrus: Good News from the West Bank By Bob Burnett 05-07-2010

Wild Neighbors: The Dog That Runs in the Rough Water Joe Eaton 05-07-2010

Arts & Events

Readings-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Stage-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Popmusic-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Classical Music-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Professional Dance-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Galleries-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Classical Music-San Francisco Through May 23 05-11-2010

Stage-San Francisco Through May 23 05-11-2010

Dance-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

This Week at the Berkeley Arts Festival By Bonnie Hughes 05-13-2010

Hot-Button Topic Dramatized at City Club By John A. McMullen II 05-11-2010

Highlights-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Museums-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

General-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Exhibits-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Outdoors-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Kids-East Bay Through May 23 05-11-2010

Museums-San Francisco Through May 23 05-11-2010

General-San Francisco Through May 23 05-11-2010

Mayan Textile Exhibit and Sale at BCC on Monday By Charlene Woodcock 05-16-2010

Point Molate Conservation Hike – May 16th By Tom Butt 05-11-2010

Friday Through Tuesday 05-07-2010

At the Berkeley Arts Festival This Weekend By Bonnie Hughes 05-07-2010

Wild Neighbors: The Dog That Runs in the Rough Water Joe Eaton 05-07-2010

Friday Through Tuesday 05-07-2010