Columnists

And thus Captain Ahab shouted as he clung to the side of the great white whale in the midst of the sea, stabbing at it over and over with his harpoon: ‘I turn my body from the sun. … Towards thee I roll, thou all-destroying but unconquering whale; to the last I grapple with thee; from hell’s heart I stab at thee; for hate’s sake I spit my last breath at thee. Sink all coffins and all hearses to one common pool! and since neither can be mine, let me then tow to pieces, while still chasing thee, though tied to thee, thou damned whale! THUS, I give up the spear!’ -more-

It’s one of those discussions that only Arts and Crafts people would have, because we’re weird. The basic question is, “What would Stickley do with a computer?” (Gustav Stickley, for those who don’t know, was a famous furniture designer and proponent of the Arts and Crafts movement during the first two decades of the 20th century.) There seem to be two points of view on the question: the “Oh, he’d just stick it out on a library table” camp and the “No, he would have designed a special piece of furniture for it” camp. -more-

Everybody up and at ‘em! Shop till you drop! It’s time for spring plant sales! -more-

The East Bay is a special place for so many reasons including architectural history. Now, I’m a technical guy (for a sensitive male) and the history that turns me on involves silly things like pipe threading and wire soldering. I love museums of mine shafts and light bulbs. I get no kick from champagne but a museum of science and industry makes my pulse race. In other words, I’m a geek. The one that all the girls moved away from at the junior high school dance and now, years later I can proudly come out of the closet, with my phaser held high and admit my affiliation with those who collect glass doorknobs and vacuum tube radios. -more-

Run to a safe place? -more-

When Mayor Bates ran for re-election last year, he said the protection of West Berkeley artists and artisans was one of his top priorities. But when confronted with appeals for help from real, beleaguered artists and artisans, the mayor and his allies, who make up the current council majority, merely wring their hands and shed copious crocodile tears, if that. In 2005 the city did nothing to halt the destruction of the live-work artists’ community at the Drayage, nor did it help the evicted tenants find new space. In 2006 the Bates council ignored the artists evicted from the now-defunct Nexus Institute. -more-

Thursday’s Senate vote on funding for Iraq sets the stage for an epic battle between Congress and President Bush; a struggle with the dramatic elements of a Shakespeare play: a headstrong emperor who claims God gave him absolute power battling a stalwart band of democratic solons. -more-

A couple of years ago (have I really been doing this for a couple of years?) I wrote about the sneaky reproductive tactics of the brown-headed cowbird, one of a handful of bird species that are brood parasites. Instead of building their own nests and raising their own young, they dump their eggs in the nest of a host and go away. Apart from the New World cowbirds, avian brood parasites include Old World cuckoos, some African finches, African and Asian honeyguides, and the South American black-headed duck. Opportunistic egg-dumping occurs among swallows, waterfowl, and others, but these guys are pros. -more-

EDITOR’S NOTE -more-