The Week

YOUNG VOLUNTEERS sell lemonade in front of Old City Hall to raise cash for Berkeley schools.
YOUNG VOLUNTEERS sell lemonade in front of Old City Hall to raise cash for Berkeley schools.
 

News

City’s New Interim Planning Director No Stranger to Complex Local Politics

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG
Tuesday August 05, 2003

When he took over as interim director of the Berkeley Planning Department Monday, Dan Marks knew he was tackling what may well be the city’s toughest job. -more-


Berkeley This Week

Tuesday August 05, 2003

TUESDAY, AUGUST 5 -more-


Letters to the Editor

Tuesday August 05, 2003

DAVIS’ DEFICIT -more-


Mulholland’s Drive Sparks This ‘Mother Courage’

By BETSY M. HUNTON Special to the Planet
Tuesday August 05, 2003

Trish Mulholland does a powerful job in the title role of Bertolt Brecht’s mind-boggling anti-war classic, “Mother Courage,” which opened Saturday at the theater in John Hinkle Park. This mesmerizing production is, wonderfully enough, a free performance: Shotgun Theater’s annual gift to the community. You can bet that some people will go back to see it more than once. -more-


Arts Calendar

Tuesday August 05, 2003

TUESDAY, AUGUST 5 -more-


Squeezing Lemonade For Berkeley Schools

By MEGAN GREENWELL
Tuesday August 05, 2003

In a new twist on an old summertime tradition, Berkeley children put up a lemonade stand on Saturday to raise money for their schools. -more-


A Message For Democrats

By ARIEL PARKINSON
Tuesday August 05, 2003

To the leaders of the Democratic Party: -more-


UC Economist Calls For Civil Disobedience

By RICHARD BRENNEMAN
Tuesday August 05, 2003

When George Akerlof talks, the world listens. Especially when he tosses barbs at the White House. -more-


A Soldier’s Father Calls To Bring The Troops Home Now

By STAN GOFF
Tuesday August 05, 2003

On July 23, my son, who is assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, was told along with the rest of his company at morning formation, to get his affairs in order. They are going to replace the 3rd Infantry Division in Iraq. -more-


A Soldier’s Father Calls To Bring The Troops Home Now

By STAN GOFF
Tuesday August 05, 2003

On July 23, my son, who is assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, was told along with the rest of his company at morning formation, to get his affairs in order. They are going to replace the 3rd Infantry Division in Iraq. -more-


Gala Benefit Celebrates City’s Newest Addition: The Ashby Arts District

By MEGAN GREENWELL
Tuesday August 05, 2003

As Berkeley artists and their patrons gathered for a Saturday night fundraiser, Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates bestowed official city recognition on the newly created Ashby Arts District. -more-


San Pablo Avenue Project Killed, Developer Cites City Constraints

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG
Tuesday August 05, 2003

Citing five years of neighborhood opposition and bigger fish to fry, leading Berkeley developer Panoramic Interests has pulled the plug on a proposed San Pablo Avenue housing and commercial project in southwest Berkeley. -more-


Police Blotter

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG
Tuesday August 05, 2003

Drive-by may be linked to border feud -more-


Stanford Art Exhibit Captures Gardening Through The Ages

By STEVEN FINACOM Special to the Planet
Tuesday August 05, 2003

“The Changing Garden: Four Centuries of European and American Art,” currently on exhibit at the Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University provides ample incentive for Berkeleyans to travel south for a day visit to our intellectual sister community on the Peninsula. -more-


Recruiter Offers Lethal Bargain: Education For the Risk of Death

By JIMMY BRESLIN
Tuesday August 05, 2003

Reprinted from Newsday, July 29 -more-


Bring the Troops Home, Repeal the Patriot Act, Says SF Labor Council

Tuesday August 05, 2003

Resolution of the San Francisco Labor Council -more-


Choice Talk and Good Food at Farmers’ Markets

By ALAN S. KAY Special to the Planet
Tuesday August 05, 2003

There is no more “Berkeley” topic of conversation than what, where and how we eat. Sure, the discussion may begin as a consideration of presidential candidate options or your feelings about Patrick Kennedy’s new building on University Avenue. But before long you’ll be discussing which Indian restaurant you like best, or Berkeley Bowl vs. Monterey Market, or gelato downtown. -more-


Summer Noon Concerts in Downtown Berkeley

Tuesday August 05, 2003

The Downtown Berkeley Association (DBA) presents Summer Noon Concerts 2003, a unique series of nine free concerts, Thursdays at noon in June & July, beginning June 5th. From Rhythm & Blues to Brazilian capoeira, these concerts at the Downtown Berkeley BART Plaza (Shattuck Ave. at Center St.) are a showcase of the culturally rich performing arts in Berkeley. This outdoor summer celebration of Berkeley-based musicians & dancers is just a small sampling of the performing arts happening nightly in clubs, cafes, schools, theaters and concert halls in Downtown Berkeley. -more-


UC Students Bear Brunt Of Local Budget Impact

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG
Friday August 01, 2003

UC Berkeley students will pay 30 percent more in fees, but local schools and government will escape relatively unscathed under a final budget approved by the State Assembly Tuesday, officials said. -more-


Berkeley This Week

Friday August 01, 2003

FRIDAY, AUGUST 1 -more-


The Best Laid Plans

Becky O’Malley
Friday August 01, 2003

Sometimes a picture really is worth 1,000 words. The picture below confirms the worst fears of Berkeley’s small but vigorous group of urban design watchers, who think that the recent spate of Big Ugly Buildings is the product of a sinister cabal composed of the City of Berkeley’s Planning Department staff, private developers, and UC’s planning staff. And here they all are, in a photo taken in May at UC’s Faculty Club, at the banquet of the Northern California chapter of the American Planning Association, celebrating an award to the city of Berkeley for its infill housing program. -more-


Arts Calendar

Friday August 01, 2003

FRIDAY, AUGUST 1 -more-


Berkeley Schools Unsafe, Mismanaged, Says State

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG
Friday August 01, 2003

The Berkeley schools are unsafe, poorly managed, and fail to address the needs of minority and special education students, according to a sweeping new state study. -more-


Letters to the Editor

Friday August 01, 2003

GREEN RESPONSE -more-


City Manager Asks District To Halt Franklin School Plan

By RICHARD BRENNEMAN
Friday August 01, 2003

Is the Berkeley School District trying to pull a fast one on City Hall? -more-


Voting and Democracy: The Challenge Ahead

By DON HAZEN AlterNet
Friday August 01, 2003

The trustworthiness of our nation’s voting system is the essential link to hopes for fairness, social justice and the future of our country. If Americans are excluded from voting or feel their votes don’t or won’t be counted, their investment in their communities and society is dramatically eroded. With corruption in our elections, the country can be dominated by an unrepresentative minority and our aspirations for a healthy democracy thwarted. -more-


Good Shepherd Church, Berkeley’s Oldest, Turns 125

By MEGAN GREENWELL
Friday August 01, 2003

In 1877 a women’s sewing society began collecting funds to build an Episcopal church in West Berkeley. Today, the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd remains in its original building at 1823 Ninth St. It is the oldest continually occupied church in Berkeley. -more-


Vancouver to Cuba: Council on Vacation

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG
Friday August 01, 2003

It’s Tuesday night. Do you know where your City Council is? -more-


Police Arrest Suspect in Easiley Murder

Friday August 01, 2003

Berkeley police arrested a man in Concord Wednesday whom they suspect was responsible for the shooting death of 19-year-old Ronald Easiley Jr. -more-


The Theft of Your Vote is Merely a Microchip Away

By THOM HARTMANN AlterNet
Friday August 01, 2003

Are computerized voting machines a wide-open back door to massive voting fraud? The discussion has moved from the Internet to CNN, to UK newspapers, and the pages of The New York Times. People are cautiously beginning to connect the dots, and the picture that seems to be emerging is troubling. -more-


Where Hollywood Stars Live Compound Lives

From Susan Parker
Friday August 01, 2003

The headline in today’s East Hampton Star screams out at me. Renee Zellweger’s $2.15 million house in East Hampton may be haunted! But further down in the article it says that Renee isn’t worried. She never stays there anyway. -more-


Berkeley Veterinarian Retires, Gives Up Poodles for Paddles

By MEGAN GREENWELL
Friday August 01, 2003

For 34 years, Dr. Charlie Berger has been taking care of Berkeley pets—4,600 of them, to be precise. -more-


That Old Brown Magic: Word Games

J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR
Friday August 01, 2003

Intellectuals usually make poor politicians because they are prone to muse publicly about the political process, revealing far too much about its true inner workings and, too often, their contempt for both the process and the general population. -more-


Berkeley Artists’ Exhibition Captures Visions on Paper

By PAUL KILDUFF Special to the Planet
Friday August 01, 2003

How does an artist confront the challenges of capturing reality on the most ephemeral of media? The Berkeley Art Center answers that question next week when it unveils a national juried exhibition, “Works on Paper.” -more-


Berkeley Art Briefs

Friday August 01, 2003

Ashby Arts District Fundraiser -more-


Summer Noon Concerts in Downtown Berkeley

Friday August 01, 2003

The Downtown Berkeley Association (DBA) presents Summer Noon Concerts 2003, a unique series of nine free concerts, Thursdays at noon in June & July, beginning June 5th. From Rhythm & Blues to Brazilian capoeira, these concerts at the Downtown Berkeley BART Plaza (Shattuck Ave. at Center St.) are a showcase of the culturally rich performing arts in Berkeley. This outdoor summer celebration of Berkeley-based musicians & dancers is just a small sampling of the performing arts happening nightly in clubs, cafes, schools, theaters and concert halls in Downtown Berkeley. -more-


Opinion

Editorials

Berkeley Briefs

Tuesday August 05, 2003

Berkeley Leads Bay Area Cities In Number of ‘Green Businesses’

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG
Friday August 01, 2003

According to the latest figures from the Bay Area Green Business Program, Berkeley leads the region by a long shot in certified environmentally-friendly businesses. -more-