Several events are being held in the Bay Area today in conjunction with a nationwide protest against the Trump Administration's immigration policies, particularly the separation of family members along the U.S. border. -more-
UPDATE, 3:26 pm, 6-14-18:
Latest figures confirm that Beckles will be the the November candidate.
A suspect has been arrested in connection with a shooting in Berkeley late this morning that seriously wounded a victim, police said. -more-
TO: Mayor Arreguin and Council Members Maio, Davila, Bartlett, Harrison, Hahn, Wengraf, Worthington and Droste
City Manager Dee Williams-Ridley
Director Timothy Burroughs, Planning and Development Department
FROM: Shirley Dean
SUBJECT: June 12 Council Meeting, Item 48
Landmarks Preservation Commission Notice of Decision
I am deeply disappointed to learn that City staff has placed this item on the Action Calendar of your June 12, 2018 Council Meeting. I have had a long history of experience with the Landmarks Preservation Ordinance: first working as a co-author of the Ordinance; then as a person who worked hard to gain approval from the Council in 1974; followed by being a Council Member for 19 years, and serving as Mayor for eight years. Today, after working since 2002 to turn back various attempts by the previous administration to weaken the Ordinance, the community once again faces yet another challenge to its provisions. In this instance, my concerns are twofold: 1) procedural; and 2) substance issues.
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UPDATE: June 11, 2018, 7:30 p.m.
Buffy Wicks (Dem)32,557 votes ,31.9%
Dan Kalb (Dem) 16,297 votes ,15.9%
Jovanka Beckles (Dem) 15,504 votes ,15.2%
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100.0% (341 of 341) precincts are reporting, but many are partial totals.
Buffy Wicks (Dem) 25,279 votes, 31.5 %
Jovanka Beckles (Dem) 12,135 votes,15.1 %
Dan Kalb (Dem) 11,851 votes, 14.8 %
The numbers are new for the State Web site but nothing new has been counted, the state has just caught up; the county totals are the same as they were at 8 p.m. Friday.
Because Contra Costa County (CC) turnout is now at 29.6%, while Alameda County (AC) turnout is at 25.1%, and because it’s reported that there are a lot more uncounted ballots countywide in AC than countywide in CC and because more AD-15 voters live in AC than in CC, I would expect Kalb to overtake Beckles when the rest of the vote is counted.
In AC, he’s at 19.4% to 13.9% for Beckles. This is an improvement for Beckles because it was at the end of election night 19.3% for Kalb and 13.2% for Beckles in AC, but it’s not a huge improvement.
In CC, it’s 13.9% for Beckles and 7.6% for Kalb, only a slightly bigger margin than in AC.
Of course, provisionals might favor Jovanka, so after Votes by Mail are counted the remaining provisionals might swing things back a bit for Beckles. For Beckles to win, I think the remaining AC votes have to be disproportionately from areas where she did well. Votes handed in at the polls are, I assume, counted after votes that were mailed in. If there's a late shift toward Beckles, maybe she’ll end up the winner. But if I had to bet, my money would be on Kalb.
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As of 6 p.m.Friday: Adding latest Contra Costa numbers to latest Alameda County numbers:
Wicks: 22,505
Beckles: 10,718
Kalb: 10,151
Appel: 7,906
Contra Costa County updated today; Alameda County did not (as of 6 p.m.) When AC updates again, there will probably be some shift toward Kalb and he may take the lead again. Turnout in AC is only at 21.62 so far while turnout in the latest update in Contra Costa County is at 29.61% suggesting that most remaining votes are in AC, which has favored Kalb over Beckles 19% to 13%. If these percentages hold, he could pick up 60 votes for every additional thousand counted in the AC part of AD 15, and the number of uncounted votes numbers in the thousands. It’s likely to be close.
AC: https://acgov.org/rovresults/235/1414.htm
CC: http://results.enr.clarityelections.com/CA/Contra_Costa/75371/Web02.195726/#/cid/740
CA Secy of State (behind county counts not up to date as of 6 p.m. ): https://vote.sos.ca.gov/returns/state-assembly/district/15http://http://results.enr.clarityelections.com/CA/Contra_Costa/75371/Web02.195726/#/cid/740
In San Francisco, Mark Leno is ahead of London Breed but only by 144 votes after today’s count.
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City workers in Berkeley voted to authorize a possible strike on Wednesday, though if or when a strike would happen remains undetermined. -more-
Ninety-nine percent of the hundreds of city workers who voted at Berkeley City Hall authorized their bargaining team to call for a strike. A strike date has not been set. -more-
Garbage truck horns blared, workers chanted, Aretha Franklin's "Respect" blasted and hundreds of city workers demonstrated for safer conditions and better pay outside Berkeley City Hall today. -more-
Under the aegis of The San Francisco Early Music Society, the biennial Berkeley Festival & Exhibition opened on Sunday, June 3, and runs through Sunday, June 10. This much-loved festival brings together musicians, scholars, instrument-makers, and just plain folks who cherish early music. As in past years, I plan to attend as many main-stage events as I can, beginning with the Monday evening concert I attended in St. Mark’s Church featuring soprano Christine Brandes and Baroque violinist Elizabeth Blumenstock. Rounding out the instrumental ensemble were Mary Springfels on viola da gamba and Katherine Heater on harpsichord. The program featured two French cantatas centered on notorious women who enacted violent retribution against their male counterparts. -more-
On June 1st at about 6:30 pm, BPD received several reports from the community about hearing gun fire in the area of Sacramento Street and Oregon Street. -more-
So I’ve been waiting to share my meditations on the electoral process until we got a final vote count for Assembly District 15, but I’m realizing that it could be a long time coming. If you want the latest version, possibly even the final, click here for the very competent web site which will tell you the latest numbers.
As I wait, I’m realizing that it really doesn’t matter much. The short answer is that well-endowed newbie candidate Buffy Wicks got a short third of the votes, less than 20,000 as the polls closed, and all the others, some of them very plausible, got all the rest. At the time of writing Dan Kalb and Jovanka Beckles, both well qualified in their own ways, were divying up another 19k or so, with a ~300 vote margin pointing to Kalb as Wicks’ November opponent, but that could change. Another short 20k was divided among candidates Katz, Bartlett, Appel and Pardue-Okimoto, all knowledgable East Bay officeholders, each with appeal to various segments of the progressive voter populations.
How many more votes are out there, still to be counted?
I posed this question to Berkeley voting statistics maven Rob Wrenn of the Berkeley Progressive Alliance. He opined that based on trends in Alameda and Contra Costa counties from 2014 to 2016, with only 20% of possible votes reported when the polls closed on Tuesday, there could easily be a third of the total still to be counted to get close to the 50% who voted in the 2016 presidential primary.
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We call to your attention the case of Ani Mauck, an 80-year-old American ordained Buddhist nun of the Tibetan Buddhist Karma Kagyu lineage, who received teachings and empowerments from the 16th Karmapa, KaluRinpoche, and Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, among others. Ani has been homeless in Berkeley for over 5 years and has been a member of the First They Came For The Homeless (FTCFTH) encampment community for the last year. Although she had fallen through the social services safety net, she was welcomed into that community. FTCFTH provided her shelter, and to the best of its ability, accommodations for her special dietary and physical needs. Ani not physically well. For quite some time she has been afflicted with severe diabetes, has suffered several small strokes, and recently broke her toe, which significantly exacerbated her mobility problems. Although she very much appreciates living with the FTCFTH community, she believes she will not survive another winter living on the street. -more-
Is Donald Trump losing it? It appears that there was complete agreement at the conclusion of the G7 meeting. Trump professed to be pleased, calling the summit wonderful and rating his relationships with other leaders as ten out of ten (the G6 members rated it as a zero). -more-
According to a recent Gallup poll President Trump achieved a 46 percent approval rating with regard to his role in making the United States (U.S.) prosperous. Although there is certainly disagreement about Trump's accomplishments, he nevertheless commands considerable support. A main reason for his high rating is his stance on immigration. Most of all, Trump has apparently convinced many Americans that he will work to improve the economy and provide good paying jobs primarily for American workers. Trump claims that he is not only unhappy about illegal immigration. He also wants to impose more restrictions on legal immigration as well. In his own words, "We will reform legal immigration to serve the best interests of America and its workers, the forgotten people. We're going to take care of our workers".
These proclamations are perspectives that American workers and their families like to hear. But it certainly doesn't reflect the views of Republicans who value the availability of cheap, compliant foreign labor. We would expect, then, that they would be unhappy with Trump's immigration agenda. Yet according to the polls, 84 percent of Republicans believe that Trump is doing a good job making America prosperous. How is that possible? That's an easy question to answer. The Republicans realize that Trump's message to the public is only propaganda. In fact, this characterizes the posturing of the Republicans generally. Let us take a look at the gap between Trump's rhetoric and what he is actually doing and not doing on behalf of working people.
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It started with a slightly salacious lyric that moved quickly through what any woman would recognize as the typical trajectory; he loves her, he kills her, he mutilates her body in an effort to humiliate her and/or cover his tracks. It elicited a couple of nervous laughs, but most of the audience quietly endured it. -more-
Since I am the unnamed 'song writer' referenced in this article, I am puzzled as to why Ms. Denney has chosen to "edit' reality. She has left out the real 'punch line' for some unknown personal reason. The truly remarkable thing about this encounter was that the women who called me out on my song was able to convince me to NEVER sing it again. -more-
Dear Editor,
I did not identify Mugg Muggles as the "mutilation song singer" in my essay "A Song and a Me Too Moment." But I'm glad he outed himself. He apparently thinks it's enough to retire one of his many racist, sexist songs while privately showering me, the one who tried to write about the damage such songs do, with insults and personal attacks, thus missing the point.
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Editor's Note: The latest issue of the Pepper Spray Times is now available.
You can view it absolutely free of charge by clicking here . You can print it out to give to your friends.
Grace Underpressure has been producing it for many years now, even before the Berkeley Daily Planet started distributing it, most of the time without being paid, and now we'd like you to show your appreciation by using the button below to send her money.
This is a Very Good Deal. Go for it!
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Acting like a mafia Don, President Trump has lied and bullied his way to the White House. He pursues a ‘take no prisoners’ approach which has generated a dangerous tribalism. In most of the world religions, most notably Sikhism, God is defined as TRUTH. At the core of Trump’s system of power is contempt of the truth and blatant embrace of falsehood. This is his prescription for political survival. President George Bush and his partner in crime, Vice-President Cheney perfected the art of the big lie falsely claiming Iraq’s existence of WMDs that dragged us into a costly war and plunging the Middle East into utter chaos. -more-
What would be the principled stance that progressives should take about the status of undocumented immigrants? To answer this question it is important to recognize that the concept "illegal immigrants" is a fiction created by the ruling circles in the United States (U.S). Just before the U.S. declared war against Mexico (1846-1848) wealthy citizens claimed that God supported the effort of the United States to expand its dominion and to spread capitalism. This doctrine, Manifest Destiny, served as the ideological basis for imperialistic expansion. In effect, the U.S. stole land from Mexico that would become the states of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Southwestern Colorado. and Southwestern Wyoming. Aside from annexing Texas, the U.S. obtained 55 percent of Mexico's territory. -more-
Can we stop racism and oppression? We do notice unjust treatment of minorities and people of color. I hear long talks about the mental illness of people who harm others, but we don’t address the real issue behind the causes of their harmful behavior. -more-
Why did it take so long for ABC to cancel its hit show, “Roseanne”? Bathing in the swamp of racism, satanic Roseanne recently tweeted, “Muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby=vj” which was a disgusting reference to Valerie Jarrett, longtime adviser to President Obama, who’s African-American. She’s made similar racist comments about Susan Rice, resembling her to an ape. -more-
When I was a technology developer, in Silicon Valley, I adopted the technique of "managing by walking around." Recently I've talked to two outstanding 2018 Democratic political candidates who've adopted this same technique in their campaigns. While it may not be obvious, "politics by walking around" addresses one of 2018's burning political questions: what does the Democratic Party stand for?
"Managing by walking around" was originally developed in the 1970's at Hewlett Packard. I adopted "managing by walking around" because I was working on a large IBM campus, in Santa Clara, and the engineers who were developing different aspects of my product were widely dispersed. While I could have relied upon emailed progress reports or formal meetings, I found it more informative to talk to them in person. (I also thought that engineers were likely to be more candid in a face-to-face conversation.)
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In American culture, and probably in most cultures, people are fond of saying "Life is hard..." And most people would agree. Even privileged people born into wealth sometimes feel sorry for themselves. So, is life in fact hard, or is this merely a perception? -more-
Judge Aaron Persky's recall should be celebrated. What is disturbing about his decision in the Brock Peters case is that this made every women less safe at colleges and universities because that description of Turner’s sexual assault fits most campus rape cases, which essentially takes campus rape from the category of crimes you can go to prison for and instead be awarded a lighter sentence. The recall is a victory for the #MeToo movement. -more-
Many with a schizophrenic-type illness, and many with some forms of bipolar, are vulnerable to developing "delusional systems." A delusional system is an erroneous belief system or system of thought produced by a brain malfunction. A delusional system is one way that the individual's thinking and perception of the world can become "split-off" from reality.
When psychiatrists say that psychosis is "split personality," it is important not to confuse this with multiple personality disorder. The actual meaning is that the person's personality is split off from reality.
There are numerous ways that this can happen, and a brain malfunction is one of them. Another example is where a person joins a cult group, in which the person could be kidnapped, and their environment is controlled by the group's attempt to brainwash the new member.
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The Trump Administration is so dreadful they've made the George W. Bush Administration seem almost acceptable in comparison. Dubya surrounded himself with qualified staff. Trump has surrounded himself with syncophants. One of the most influential is the new Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo.
Unlike many of those in the Trump inner circle, Pompeo had an impressive career before entering politics. After graduating from West Point -- number one in his class -- Pompeo served five years in the Army. Then he went to Harvard Law School and briefly worked for a Washington law firm. In 1996, he moved to Wichita, Kansas, and helped form Thayer Aerospace -- with funding from the Koch brothers. In 2006, he was elected to the House of Representatives -- once again with help from the Koch brothers.
In Congress, Pompeo aligned with conservative Republicans such as the Tea Party and the Congressional Constitution Caucus. He's socially conservative, a climate change denier, and, as a member of the House Select Committee on Benghazi, an ardent critic of Hillary Clinton.
On January 23, 2017, Mike Pompeo became Trump's Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Notably, Pompeo personally delivered Trump's daily intelligence briefing at the White House; as a result, the two men have a close relationship.
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On May 25, 2018, Israel’s Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said he would seek approval to fast-track construction of 2,500 new West Bank settlement homes in 2018. Besides the 2,500, he said he will advance another 1,400 units that are in preliminary stages.
There are already 121 Israeli settlements and approximately 102 Israeli outposts built illegally on Palestinian land occupied militarily by Israel since 1967 (West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights).
Lieberman’s announcement came two days after the Palestinians urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands, to open an investigation into Israeli policies in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, including settlement construction, accusing Israel of systematic crimes, including apartheid in the occupied territories.
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Save the Murals
Thanks to the Streets Alive! Utility Box Project, many of Berkeley's street corners are enlivened by painted utility boxes. Many celebrate Berkeley celebrities—from Bobby Seale to Andy Samberg and the Lonely Planet. So it was a shock to see one of these local tributes—a prominent downtown box located alongside Berkeley High—defaced.
A utility box with a portrait of former Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh was recently spray-painted by an anonymous vandal who obliterated the artwork and added the word "Dead" at the bottom. Motive unknown. Lesh is still alive and thriving at 78 grateful years.
One long block away, another Berkeley celebrity box has suffered a different indignity. Near City Hall, a Streets Alive! box celebrating outdoorsman David Brower, depicts the former Sierra Club leader and founder of Friends of the Earth and Earth Island Institute, climbing a mountain. At least it did. The portrait now lies buried beneath a smaller metal utility box that's been bolted on top of the artwork. Ironically, Streets Alive! is a project of Brower's Earth Island Institute.
Brower deserves better. Free Dave!
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For me, at least, and perhaps for many others as well, the final two days of the 2018 Berkeley Festival presented under the aegis of the San Francisco Early Music Society were dominated by the towering figure of Johann Sebastian Bach. For me, it all started with a 1:00 PM concert on Saturday, June 9, at St. Mark’s Church featuring an ensemble called Cantata Collective and featuring the amazing soprano Sherezade Panthaki. This was an all J.S. Bach concert featuring local instrument-alists who joined together just this year to form Cantata Collective dedicated to the cantatas of J.S. Bach. The members of Cantata Collective will be familiar to Bay Area audiences for their involvement in many prestigious local chamber music groups. Marc Schachman played oboe; violinists were Kati Kyme and Lisa Weiss; violist was Anthony Martin; cellist was William Skeen; Kristin Zoenig played bass; and Avi Stein played organ and harpsichord. In the works where they teamed up with soprano Sherezade Panthaki, this was J.S. Bach at his best. -more-
On Thursday, June 7, I attended two concerts of the ongoing Berkeley Festival & Exhibition presented by The San Francisco Early Music Society. The 4:00 concert at St. Mark’s Church featured Philharmonia Baroque Chamber Players performing works known as the Paris Quartets by Georg Philipp Telemann. The 7:30 concert at First Congregational Church featured Voices of Music performing a semi-staged version of Henry Purcell’s opera Dido and Aeneas with the San Francisco Girls Chorus. -more-
When a conductor puts together a program that is bold and wide-ranging, including works that are relatively unfamiliar to the audience, and succeeds in making each work stand out clearly and forcefully, that is a sure sign of greatness. Finnish conductor Susanna Mälkki returned to Davies Hall this weekend to lead the San Francisco Symphony in just such a bold and wide-ranging program, and Ms. Mälkki showed once again her greatness as a conductor. For my money, Susanna Mälkki ought to be considered the front-runner to succeed Michael Tilson Thomas when he retires in 2010 as the San Francisco Symphony’s Music Director. -more-
Worth Noting:
On Thursday, June 7, I attended two concerts of the ongoing Berkeley Festival & Exhibition presented by The San Francisco Early Music Society. The 4:00 concert at St. Mark’s Church featured Philharmonia Baroque Chamber Players performing works known as the Paris Quartets by Georg Philipp Telemann. The 7:30 concert at First Congregational Church featured Voices of Music performing a semi-staged version of Henry Purcell’s opera Dido and Aeneas with the San Francisco Girls Chorus. -more-
Conductor David Robertson, currently in his valedictory season as Music Director of Saint Louis Symphony and his fifth season as Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of Sydney Symphony Orchestra, returned to Davies Hall to lead the San Francisco Symphony in two concerts, Thursday, May 24, and Saturday, May 26. The program featured pianist Kiril Gerstein in Brahms’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, Haydn’s Symphony No. 102 in B-flat Major, and Engelsflügel by Brett Dean. -more-
Worth Noting
The City Council Subcommittee on Urban Shield meets Monday afternoon (follow the link for details). 1900 Fourth Street – the Project proposed for the Ohlone Shellmound is on the action calendar for the Landmarks Preservation Commission on Thursday.
The June 12 City Council agenda is posted. It is very unlikely that the City Council will get through the June 12 agenda. The Proposed Police Commission Charter Amendments are item 47. a. & b.
June 12 City Council Agenda. To comment: email council@cityofberkeley.info,
Agenda: Consent 18. Shelter Plus Care Renewal, 19. Extend and amend MOU Between Alameda Co Behavioral Health and Berkeley to fund Mental Health Wellness Center, 22. FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant, 23. Residential Solar and Zero-Emission Vehicle Program, 24. Develop Long-Range Sustainable Infrastructure Plan, 25. UN Master Leasing Student Housing, 26. Armored Van Use Policy, 29. Auto Sales South Berkeley, 30. Fossil Fuel Free Berkeley, 32. Support Public Sector Unions post Janus v. AFSCME Supreme Court Decision, 33. ADU ordinance, 34. Standards for Views, 37. Budget Traffic Calming, 38. Fund CEQA review for More Student Housing Now Resolution, 42. Local adoption of Emergency Housing Building Code, 43. ZAB appeal 1449 University @ Sacramento – hotel, 44. Ballot initiative community survey, 45. Budget update, 46. Defer impact fees – Center St Hotel 2129 Shattuck, 47 a & b. Proposed Police Commission Charter Amendment, 48. Certify LPC NOD 2301 Bancroft Way Campanile Way, 49. Declaration of Climate Emergency, 50. City Sponsored Emergency Preparedness Training, 51. New City Limit Signs, 52. Updated Commissioner’s Manual, 53. Amend Municipal Code Vacant Residential or Commercial Buildings as unlawful nuisance.
https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/2018/06_June/City_Council__06-12-2018_-_Regular_Meeting_Agenda.aspx
June 14 Zoning Adjustment Board Agenda is available for comment. Email ZAB@CityofBerkeley.info, Agenda: Consent 1140 Wildcat Canyon Road, 2851 Buena Vista Way, 2145 Grant, Discussion 1110 University, Action 2633 Marin Ave,
https://www.cityofberkeley.info/zoningadjustmentsboard/
The meeting list is also posted on the Sustainable Berkeley Coalition website.
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