A controversial revision to the city’s Landmarks Preservation Ordinance will be on the City Council agenda Tuesday. However, the city attorney’s office said Friday afternoon that it had the wrong landmarks ordinance revision posted on its website, but would have the revision posted late Friday. (It’s not likely to be identified differently than the one on the current website, according to a staff secretary.) The ordinance is available on the agenda site at http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/citycouncil/agendaindex.htm -more-

Yonas Mehari did not live to attend the second meeting of the Ethiopian Eritrean Students Union (EESU) he had helped established at Berkeley High, but his friends were there to carry on the dream he had left behind. -more-

University of California Regents are expected to approve Tuesday an environmental document authorizing 451,000 square feet of new construction at and around UC Berkeley’s Memorial Stadium. -more-

A rally to save oaks is not where you’d expect to find a guy who makes his living cutting down trees. -more-

Mayor Tom Bates vowed Thursday to do everything in his power to reverse the impending move of the city’s traffic and small claims courts to Oakland. -more-

One of the enduring legends of both Oakland and the Black Panther Party is that Oakland’s Merritt College was the birthplace of the party, and that it was formed in 1966 by two Merritt students—Huey Newton and Bobby Seale. -more-

Despite the community’s pleas asking the City Council to solicit new applications for the post, the City Council Tuesday night approved 8-1 Terry Powell’s bid for a second four-year term on the Board of Library Trustees, with only Councilmember Kriss Worthington voting in opposition. -more-

On Wednesday, Dale Rich was where he can often be found, crouched on a slope bordering the south side of People’s Park, wrestling the weeds away from the flowering plants; songbirds chatted noisily in a tree over the head of the volunteer gardener. -more-

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The future of historic buildings in downtown Berkeley is gradually taking shape as members of two city panels work to hammer out the details. -more-

The Zoning Adjustments Board continued the hearing for the Trader Joe’s building project on 1885 University Ave. until Dec. 14 because city staff requested more time to prepare the staff report, findings and conditions. -more-

Countless lives have been touched by Dr. Mike Alcalay who died Nov. 18 in Oakland from a rare and aggressive leukemia, after surviving AIDS for more than 20 years. -more-

In the global fight against the AIDS pandemic, Africa is the most high profile battleground. Southern Africa is particularly hard hit. -more-

Choked, punched -more-

The Bateman Mall Park has been restored, but drainage problems at the site continue. -more-

Berkeley’s traffic court is moving to Oakland as of Jan. 1, taking eight jobs and Court Commissioner Jon Rantzman along for the ride. -more-

The Berkeley Chamber of Commerce Political Action Committee may have violated local election laws, according to Councilmember Dona Spring who says she is preparing a formal complaint against Business for Better Government Berkeley Chamber of Commerce PAC. -more-

A recently released report on young men of color by a national commission chaired by the incoming Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums may provide a roadmap to priorities and policies in the city for the next four years. -more-

While its musical form, an arpeggio, consists of the notes of a chord played in rapid succession, the progress of the Berkeley Arpeggio has been anything but speedy. -more-

While the City Council passed an updated Creeks Ordinance in concept Nov 14, approval is back before the council tonight (Tuesday), so the body can vote on the formal ordinance, said City Councilmember Laurie Capitelli. -more-

Two city land use meetings are scheduled for Wednesday night, both at the same time—7 p.m.—and in the same building—the North Berkeley Senior Center. -more-

A forum to discuss how Berkeley public schools can be more welcoming toward lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender families in the community will be held at the Berkeley Technology Academy today (Tuesday). -more-

A family feud over a brother’s death likely led to the Thanksgiving Day shooting in an Oakland apartment complex that killed two women and one man and injured two more, Oakland Police Department spokesman Roland Holmgren said. -more-

A 19-year-old Oakland man was sentenced Monday to nine years in state prison for shooting to death a Berkeley man who was hosting a party for his three children and their friends in March. -more-

On a divided vote, Richmond city councilmembers last week approved a contract to provide services for a casino planned for unincorporated North Richmond. -more-

The Dijon mustard that was called for in the brussel sprouts recipe was in my garage. I couldn’t get to it because the cops posted outside my 53rd Street duplex had ordered me to “Stay inside, Lady.” Their drawn revolvers convinced me to obey. I did, for the next few hours on Thanksgiving Day, as a huge tragic drama unfolded across the street at the Keller Plaza apartments. -more-

The Planet’s not the only publication that gets letters from obsessive people. The big metro daily is more concerned than we are about filtering them out, but a few fanatics sneak into their letters columns too. Thursday they ran a letter from a guy down the peninsula who’s annoyed that Berkeley-based national columnist Robert Scheer continues to spotlight the lunacy of the national administration. His beef with Bob: -more-

Not too long ago the Planet received a letter from a reader asserting that E.Y. Harburg, the author of “Happy Days are Here Again,” was once a Republican. The writer is a frequent and cordial correspondent, and we didn’t want him to embarrass himself in public, so instead of running the letter we wrote back respectfully and said that we were positive that Yip Harburg, whose son we had known, was never a Republican. We didn’t cite sources, since we didn’t have any on hand, but we urged the writer to check his. After a bit of back and forth, he discovered that the author of the Democratic fight song “Happy Days” was indeed a Republican, but that Yip Harburg (a noted leftist) didn’t write it. Case closed. -more-

DOWNTOWN PLANNING -more-

I was at a book party not long ago when Randy Cohen, who writes the New York Times Magazine’s “Ethicist” column, walked up to New York Governor George Pataki and said, “Please, Governor, where’s New York City’s school aid program? You’ve got to fund that!” Pataki, upon learning of Cohen’s place of employ, said something like, “Yes, the Times would complain about school funding,” and walked away. End of conversation. -more-

The proponents of North Shattuck Plaza (NSP) seem to think there’s something wrong with the idea that “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” in relation to Shattuck Avenue between Vine and Rose streets (Daily Planet, Nov. 24). They view the area as “ugly and wasteful.” -more-

I love the Big Game, even though I haven’t gone to one since Cal won “The Play.” I figure that even Stanford will keep their band under control to forestall such a disaster again. I love the Big Game because I am an alumnus of both schools, so no matter who wins I can cheer. I love watching the old Stanford alums in their red pants and little kids in their blue and gold caps and T-shirts walking by my house on the way to Memorial Stadium. But I think the idea of spending $110 million to renovate the stadium is an appalling idea. -more-

I was shocked and disturbed by an article I read in the Nov. 28 issue of the Berkeley Daily Planet. In this issue I read that Councilmember Dona Spring was planning to file a complaint against the Business for Better Government Berkeley Chamber of Commerce PAC. I know that Ms. Spring has every right to file a complaint against the PAC and she feels that her personal reputation and integrity was put at risk by the mailers sent out during the last week of the election. What I was disappointed to see is Ms. Spring’s allegations against me in the paper. -more-

The University of California’s SCIP project—the new stadium, training center, business conference center, 911 car parking garage and the Boalt Hall hotel project, all on the Hayward fault zone—is a serious and permanent threat to the safety and livability of the whole city. The city has developed a very strong lawsuit to stop this massive development. To defend itself, Berkeley has no alternative but to follow through with this lawsuit. Secret negotiations like were done over the LRDP to get a few concessions in exchange for dropping that suit would be wrong on all counts. This suit is the only chance to defend the city now and for the next twenty years. -more-

Dubberly Garcia Associates brought the library director search to Berkeley’s public the week before Thanksgiving, complete with what appeared to be carefully-rehearsed performing library administrators and happy-talk statements that were short on verifiable facts such as positions held where and when. Subsequent research showed the candidates’ experience as library directors is brief to none. -more-

TRADER JOE’S -more-

During the next 15 years, southeast Berkeley will be radically transformed by the realization of the 2020 Long Range Development Plan (2020 LRDP), the Southeast Campus Integrated Projects (SCIP), the Underhill Parking Lot, and the proposed development at and near Bowles Hall. The long range plan and parking lot are already approved; SCIP approval which includes another parking lot is imminent, while the Bowles Hall expansion and reuse proposal is a cumulative impact and inevitable byproduct of all that precedes it. -more-

The November election results represented an important political breakthrough for the Green Party of California. Nationally, including California, the Green Party fielded 375 candidates for 66 different elected offices in 38 states. Prior to the November general election, the party held at least 223 local, municipal, county and state elected offices nationwide. -more-

Now we’re told (Daily Planet, Nov. 24) that the misleading Chamber PAC mailer violated state and local election laws by omitting the identity of the groups who got it out to Berkeley voters just days before the election. Three of the potential four perpetrators have weighed in with denials: the Berkeley Chamber of Commerce (we’re not the PAC); the Chamber PAC (we outsourced the work and didn’t proofread prior to mailing); and the printer/mailer company (we just print and mail the stuff we’re given). That leaves the company that supplied the content and artwork, Brand Guidance/Design Intelligence, and its chief hooter Mr. Steven Donaldson. -more-

The outgoing administration of Jerry Brown-its time left in office now measured in days rather than years or months—continues to recede into the background of Oakland’s consciousness as the city and the region focuses on the excitement of the incoming new mayor. -more-

Few Berkeley landmarks are as repeatedly and unjustly maligned as the Hillside Club Street Improvements in the Daley’s Scenic Park Tract. Designated in 1983, this system of public improvements forms a continuous line that stretches over at least six blocks of Berkeley’s Northside. -more-

Joe found an interesting book over at the Mechanics’ Institute Library: a Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s “All-Region Guide,” Native Alternatives to Invasive Plants by C. Colston Burrell. The BBG puts out lots of informative short books; this one is a double-sized volume, with lots of color photographs. -more-

My friend Lisa seems to be the Maven Plus Grande de Berkeley. Everybody’s query-girl (although she’s happily married to a fella). She even gets calls about contractors, which she confesses isn’t exactly her area of greatest expertise. So we’re hanging out and she plays me a message from her friend (We’ll call her Mildred) and it goes something like this: -more-

It’s time to submit your essays, poems, stories and photographs for the Daily Planet’s annual holiday reader contribution issue, which will be published on Dec. 29. Send your submissions, up to 1,000 words, to holiday@berkeleydailyplanet.com. The deadline is 5 p.m. on Dec. 20. -more-

On the heels of the GOP’s resounding defeat in the mid-term elections came news that only 31 percent of Americans approve of President Bush’s handling of Iraq. This will increase pressure on the new Congress to do something about Iraq. -more-

I have received a lot of advice since Ralph passed away. It has been given with good intention and compassionate concern. -more-

I’m stretching the boundaries of “East Bay” because I just like this odd tree. I first encountered it a few years back, along a dirt road east of Fairfield, where we look for mountain plovers. I spotted a number of unlikely objects on the grassy shoulder: Osage oranges, hedgeballs, Indiana brains, Maclura pomifera fruit. They were strewn along the roadside for yards, under a row of little deciduous trees. -more-

FRIDAY, DEC. 1 -more-

THE STORY OF A HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST -more-

Anselm Kiefer was born in Germany in 1945, a few months before the end of World War II. The horror of the Nazi regime and the divided nation in which he grew up find stronger response in his work than it has in many of his contemporaries. In fact, it is the most powerful work to come out of Germany, Kiefer delves into history and mythology—Greek, Nordic and especially the Bible and the Kabbala. He is well versed in modern poetry as well as art and its history. -more-

Pacific Film Archive will present a series of seven samurai films beginning today and running through Dec. 17. -more-

Two new documentaries opening today at Shattuck Cinemas depict complementary aspects of America’s social conscience. The first, Wrestling With Angels, examines the artistic side of social and political engagement in the person of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tony Kushner. The second, Beyond the Call, tracks a more grounded, more blue-collar form of humanitarianism by tracking the exploits of a man named Ed Artis who, along with two comrades, stages his own missions to war-torn nations, providing food and supplies to the needy. -more-

A pair of derbies sit alone in the light on stage at Berkeley Rep, visually out of line, but syncopated. After a pause, they skitter off under, it seems, their own power, and a movie projection begins on the white screen upstage from where the hats so coyly posed ... -more-

A reader wrote in to complain about what he perceptively referred to as “crossed wires” in the Nov. 28 preview of holiday concerts. -more-

Few Berkeley landmarks are as repeatedly and unjustly maligned as the Hillside Club Street Improvements in the Daley’s Scenic Park Tract. Designated in 1983, this system of public improvements forms a continuous line that stretches over at least six blocks of Berkeley’s Northside. -more-

Joe found an interesting book over at the Mechanics’ Institute Library: a Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s “All-Region Guide,” Native Alternatives to Invasive Plants by C. Colston Burrell. The BBG puts out lots of informative short books; this one is a double-sized volume, with lots of color photographs. -more-

My friend Lisa seems to be the Maven Plus Grande de Berkeley. Everybody’s query-girl (although she’s happily married to a fella). She even gets calls about contractors, which she confesses isn’t exactly her area of greatest expertise. So we’re hanging out and she plays me a message from her friend (We’ll call her Mildred) and it goes something like this: -more-

It’s time to submit your essays, poems, stories and photographs for the Daily Planet’s annual holiday reader contribution issue, which will be published on Dec. 29. Send your submissions, up to 1,000 words, to holiday@berkeleydailyplanet.com. The deadline is 5 p.m. on Dec. 20. -more-

FRIDAY, DEC. 1 -more-

TUESDAY, NOV. 28 -more-

MUSIC FROM THREE GREAT COMPOSERS -more-

As the holidays begin, so do the special performances that feature the kinds of song associated with the season, and other musical events that accent its profundity. This coming Sunday, Dec. 3, is Advent Sunday; many concerts are scheduled, some spilling over into the following week. All are an antidote to the canned Christmas music that provides a soundtrack to the rounds of shopping. -more-

PEN Oakland’s 16th Annual Josephine Miles Literary Awards and 10th Annual Literary Censorship Award will be presented this Sunday at the Oakland Public Library. -more-

I’m stretching the boundaries of “East Bay” because I just like this odd tree. I first encountered it a few years back, along a dirt road east of Fairfield, where we look for mountain plovers. I spotted a number of unlikely objects on the grassy shoulder: Osage oranges, hedgeballs, Indiana brains, Maclura pomifera fruit. They were strewn along the roadside for yards, under a row of little deciduous trees. -more-

TUESDAY, NOV. 28 -more-