The Berkeley Public Library is facing a budget deficit that could result in reduced hours of service, staffing cuts and outdated library resources. -more-
For those of us who have a less than impressive background in mathematics, Aurora Theater Company’s world premier of Ira Hauptman’s “Partition” may seem a bizarre selection — perhaps even off-putting. Wrong. Very wrong indeed. This is one terrific theater evening. Despite the odd title (it’s a mathematical concept) and a plot based on the true story of a couple of early 20th century mathematical geniuses, it’s a play which grabs you from the beginning and takes you through an often funny, but moving and deeply human experience. -more-
Berkeley ferry service moved one step closer to reality last week when state Sen. Don Perata (D-Oakland) released his long-awaited plan to fund a host of local transit projects with a $1 toll hike on seven Bay Area bridges, including the Bay Bridge. -more-
If U.S. leaders wish to avoid making a costly mess of their adventure in Iraq, they should do two things right away: First, ignore the intellectual pay-per-view service from prominent Anglo-American Orientalist scholars, and second, get to know a Middle Eastern port. -more-
The death rate for Alameda County residents is declining, but disparities in health based on race persist, with African-Americans ailing and dying at significantly higher rates than the rest of the population, according to a recently released report discussed Monday by Alameda County health officials and community group representatives. -more-
While our news is flooded with discussion of war, dangerous attacks on our safeguards for clean air, clean water and public lands are under way and receiving unacceptably scarce news coverage. Let it be known that the environment is being threatened by the current administration. We are in a state of orange alert on the environment. -more-
The nearly 20-year battle over the identity of West Berkeley likely will flare up again Wednesday night when the Planning Commission considers setting a public hearing on zoning protections for light manufacturing, artist studios and artisan work shops. -more-
The Headlands Center for the Arts in Marin County will host an open house on Sunday, April 27, from noon to 5 p.m. Susan Parker, writer-in-residence at the center in 2001, offers a preview of the event. -more-
The Berkeley High School Jazz Ensemble has earned international recognition over the past few summers touring European music festivals. -more-
For the last two years I’ve been watching the woman across the street plant and replant her garden every couple of months. It’s about 50 feet long and eight feet wide and has gone through so many iterations — from Japanese to xeriscape to tasty herbs — that she now has to truck in fresh soil every time she changes her mind. -more-
It was almost 11 a.m. on Wednesday and Tony Lacayo, seated in a van on Hearst Avenue, hadn’t received a single call from someone needing workers. -more-
More than a hundred adults and uncountable children braved the elements to attend the 11th Annual Youth Arts Festival at the Berkeley Arts Center at 1275 Walnut St. in north Berkeley Wednesday evening. -more-
Under pressure from activists this week, Emeryville pulled out of a high-profile legal fight pitting over 200 American cities against disability rights advocates in a battle over sidewalk accessibility. -more-
Former news director at the old Jive 95 radio station, KSAN, and later at KFOG, Wes “Scoop” Nisker, will speak at Cody’s Books on Telegraph Avenue Monday evening to discuss his new book, “Big Bang, The Buddha and The Baby Boom: The Spiritual Experiments of My Generation.” -more-
The stated purpose of the war in Iraq was to defend the United States from Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction. Thus far no weapons have been found. Moreover, according to United Nations weapons inspector Hans Blix and two top Iraqi scientists who have given themselves up, there are none of any significance to be found. -more-
Despite stiff warnings from the Department of State, and increasingly hostile rhetoric from the Bush Administration, a group of city employees and a former city council member leave for Iran today to deliver 1,200 badly needed wheelchairs. -more-
As individuals struggle with personal finances and businesses ponder their bottom lines, state and local governments face budget deficits of historic proportions. Over seven million Californians, about one in five, have no health insurance whatsoever. Many others are underinsured. Hospitals and health plans are closing and merging, making access to health care more difficult. The cost of health care continues to explode. -more-
For most of her life Alanna Baeks, a junior at Berkeley High School, has been told all she needed to do to get her diploma is accumulate the necessary course credits and eke out a C-minus average. Now she isn’t sure she’ll graduate, even though she’s taking the required classes and making reasonable grades. -more-
Write a letter of support to State Senator Sheila Kuhl for SB 921—Health Care for All Californians Act, scheduled for a hearing before the Senate Insurance Committee, at 9 AM on April 30. The more letters of support she receives, the better the chances of the bill passing. Local co-sponsors are Don Perata, Wilma Chen and Loni Hancock. -more-
Local scholars met this week to discuss the antiquities looting in Iraq, calling it a devastating blow to the world’s cultural heritage. -more-
If there’s a favorite city program you want to save from next year’s looming budget cuts, the best way to do it is to start making noise, and lots of it, according to the League of Women Voters. -more-
The Wheelchair Foundation was established in 2000 by Bay Area philanthropist Kenneth E. Behring. The goal of the organization is to provide wheelchairs to as many of the estimated 130 million people who need them worldwide. -more-
My editor suggests that a subtext of desperation in my previous columns might be getting a tad repetitious; that any dwelling on our parlous circumstances (War! Coup! Aging!) is perhaps a trifle tiresome. -more-
Due to concerns about severe acute respiratory syndrome, the University of California has suspended education abroad programs to Beijing, China, and ordered students already there to return home immediately. -more-
I was on my way home from school (fourth grade?) when this treeful of dapper little birds stopped me in my tracks. I’d never seen anything like them: backswept crests, black masks, subtly colored brown and yellow plumage with vivid red markings on their wings. They were carrying on in high-pitched sibilant voices, ignoring me completely. -more-
Since 1966, Essex Street in south Berkeley has been home to Bruce Arnold and his phantasmagoric, multicultural front yard sculptures. -more-
Women in Black Vigil, held every Friday from noon to 1 p.m. at UC Berkeley, Bancroft at Telegraph. -more-
During the 19th and early 20th centuries public transportation was built by private entrepreneurs with the anticipation of future development and population growth. -more-
A few weeks after 9/11, I hung an American flag in the upstairs bedroom window of our home. It stayed there for almost 16 months, fading in the sunlight that faces Dover Street. -more-
