Will Lamb peered out from between two stalactites and grinned a six-year-old’s grin. 

He had struggled through a dark cave, but now there were other challenges to conquer. Soon, imitating a jellyfish in the swirls of the ocean deep, Lamb balanced on a wobbly platform. 

Meanwhile, all around him, kids were experiencing everything from life on the ocean floor to how a blind person plays ball. “A Night in the Dark,” a new children’s exhibit at the Lawrence Hall of Science, uses hands-on activities to show how different species adapt to darkness. 

“We don’t want people just standing around reading text,” said Steve Mullin, the museum’s operations manager.  

“We want to get you out of the museum and plunge you into the depths of the ocean and the earth.” 

A long line formed in front of a booth where kids could get a feel for blindness. Inside a pitch-black booth, they had to fit an object into the right slot. People in line could watch their frustration through a night-vision camera. 

Lamb’s mother, Alyssa, said she and her son will certainly return. “The activities here can be used for a wide age range,” she said. “I’m trying to figure some of these things out, myself.” 

The exhibit came to Lawrence Hall from the Cincinnati Museum Center and runs until January 15.

Tuesday, Oct. 10

Cal Alumni Singles 20th  

anniversary Dinner 

UC Faculty Club 

Dinner scheduled for Oct. 15 

For reservations call 527-2709 by Oct. 10 

Kenya, 40 Years Ago and  

Today 

1 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Call 644-6107 for more info  

Defense Against Genetically Engineered Food 

7 p.m.  

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. 

Author Ronnie Cummins, National Director of the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) will lecture on genetically engineered food, including organic food and farming.  

For info: 548-2220 x233 

Wednesday, Oct. 11

Are Domed Cities in the future? 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom  

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion based on UC Berkeley alumnus Tim Holt’s book, “On Higher Ground.” Set 50 years in the future, part of the book takes place in an East Bay enclosed by a climate-controlled dome.  

$3 admission  

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Tenant-Landlord Problems? 

12:30 - 2 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Bring your concerns about repairs, harassment and housing rights.  

Call 644-6107 

Learn to Birdwatch 

Oct. 16, 18, 23 & 25 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

UC Botanical Gardens 

200 Centennial Drive 

$50 for members; $65 for non-members 

Call for info or to enroll: 643-2755 

White Cane Day  

10:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m. 

Spenger’s Fish Grotto 

1919 Fourth St.  

Pyramid Alehouse 

901 Gilman Ave. 

Members of the West Berkeley Lions Club will be asking for donations of money or used eyeglasses for the sight impaired. The Lions will be out in front of Pyramid Alehouse from 4:30 - 8 p.m. only.  

Call Joe Saenz, 352-2093 

Homeless Commission 

7 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center  

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

644-8616 

Police Review Commission 

7:30 p.m.  

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis St.  

The commission will discuss their workplan/goals for the upcoming year.  

644-6716 

Board of Library Trustees 

7 p.m.  

South Branch  

1901 Russell 644-6095 

Waterfront Commission 

7 p.m. 

His Lordships Restaurant 

199 Seawall Dr. 644-6376 x234 

Planning Commission 

7 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

705-8137 

Commission on Disability 

6:30 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

655-3440 

Thursday, Oct. 12

East Timor: The Road to Independence 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave. 

A discussion of events leading up to the creation of the newest nation of the millennium and issues raised on the road to independence.  

$3 admission 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Bay Area: Transportation Nightmare 

Noon - 2 p.m. 

Albany Library 

Edith Stone Room  

1247 Marin Ave. 

Albany 

Stuart Cohen of the Bay Area Transportation and Land Use Coalition will speak on “What are the real choices in the Bay Area’s Transportation Crisis?” 

Call Janet Strothman, 841-3827 

Meeting Life Changes 

10 a.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

With John Hammerman.  

For info: 644-6107 

Sterling Trio 

Noon  

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

Members of the Berkeley Symphony performing a variety of chamber music. 

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Zoning Adjustments  

Commission 

7 p.m.  

Old City Hall  

2134 MLK Jr. Way 

705-8110 

Community Health Commission 

6:45 p.m.  

Mental Health Clinic 

2640 MLK Jr. Way 

665-6845 

APCO vs. Pacific Steel  

Casting Company 

10 a.m. 

Bay Area Air Quality Management District 

939 Ellis St., Seventh Floor Board Room 

San Francisco 

Call the clerk’s office, 749-4965 

Friday, Oct. 13

“The Evolution and Cost of Ethical Drugs” 

11:45 a.m.  

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Stanford D. Splitter, retired MD speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11 

Call for reservations: 848-3533 

— compiled by  

Chason Wainwright 

Saturday, Oct. 14 

Indigenous Peoples Day Powwow & Indian Market 

10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Grand Entry 1 p.m.  

Enjoy Native American foods, arts & crafts, drumming, singing and many types of native dancing. Sponsored by the City of Berkeley, this event is free.  

Civic Center Park 

Allston Way at MLK Jr. Way 

Info: 615-0603 

Traffic Calming Workshop 

1 - 4 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets.  

Free Spay and Neuter Vouchers 

2 - 4 p.m.  

Berkeley Animal Shelter 

2013 Second St. 

The City of Berkeley, along with Spay Neuter Your Pet (SNYP) is kicking off a City-funded program to reduce the number of animals euthanized. They are offering free spay and neuter vouchers to all Berkeley residents.  

Run Your Own Landscape Business: Part 1 

11 a.m. - 1 p.m. 

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. (at Blake) 

Local horticultural consultant and UC Master Gardener Jessie West will teach you how to plant, prune, control weeds, and more. The first of three classes. The others are scheduled for Oct. 21 & 28 in the same timeslot. 

$15 general; $10 for members; $5 materials fee 

Call 548-2220 x223 

Learn to Birdwatch 

Oct. 16, 18, 23 & 25 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

UC Botanical Gardens 

200 Centennial Drive 

$50 for members; $65 for non-members 

Call for info or to enroll: 643-2755 

Sunday, Oct. 15

A Taste of the Greenbelt 

1 - 4 p.m. 

Los Gatos Opera House 

Celebrate the Bay Area’s agricultural and culinary bounty. This benefit features a variety of musical groups, local artists and samples from over 40 local restaurants, farmers, wineries and microbreweries. Proceeds benefit Greenbelt Alliance’s ongoing efforts to protect Bay Area farmlands and open space.  

$45 per person; $80 for this event and the Oct. 22 event in SF 

1-800-543-GREEN, www.greenbelt.org 

A Muslim Approach to Life 

3 p.m. 

St. Johns Presbyterian Church 

2727 College Ave.  

A presentation on the Muslim spiritual life and culture which will focus on women’s lives and the uniqueness of women’s spiritual journeys. This is the first of four Sunday programs that will focus on this theme.  

Call 527-4496 

Time, Space, and Knowledge Vision 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Place 

Ken McKeon , teacher writer and TSK practitioner since 1980 speaks on “Time, Space, and Knowledge, Right from the Start.” Free. 

Call 843-6812 

1923 North Berkeley Fire Walking Tour 

10 a.m. - Noon 

Phil Gale leads this tour of the Sept. 18, 1923 fire site, identifying various changes wrought in buildings and landscape. The tour includes the Mayback chimney, around which a new home was constructed. Pre-paid reservations are required.  

$10 

Call for reservations, 848-0181 

Monday, Oct. 16

Private Elementary School Parent Information Panel 

7 - 9:30 p.m. 

Epworth United Methodist Church 

1953 Hopkins St.  

A panel of parents from six area private schools discuss the admission process and their experiences. Sponsored by the Neighborhood Parents Network 

Admission: free to members, $5 non-members 

Call 527-6667 

Learn to Birdwatch 

Oct. 16, 18, 23 & 25 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

UC Botanical Gardens 

200 Centennial Drive 

$50 for members; $65 for non-members 

Call for info or to enroll: 643-2755 

Tuesday, Oct. 17

Is the West Berkeley Shellmound a landmark? 

7 p.m.  

City Council Chambers 

2134 MLK Jr. Way, 2nd floor 

Continued and final public hearing on the appeals against landmark designation of the West Berkeley Shellmound. The City Council may possibly make it’s decision at this meeting. 

Landscape Archeology and Space-Age Technologies in Epirus, Greece 

8 p.m.  

370 Dwinelle Hall 

UC Berkeley 

Professor of Archeology, Art History and Classics Dr. James Wiseman presents a slide-illustrated lecture. 

Mario Savio Memorial Lecture 

7:30 p.m. 

Pauley Ballroom 

UC Berkeley 

Barbara Ehrenreich and Arlie Hochschild will speak on the theme “Forwards and Backwards - Women, globalization, and the new class structure.” Free.  

Help Out Some Orangutans 

7 p.m.  

Cafe Milanos 

2522 Bancroft Way 

Come help plan a day of action against Citibank, who allegedly plunders the environment for profit. Join the Rainforest Action Group and Ecopledge in protest.  

Is the Sky Falling? 

7 p.m.  

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. 

Tim Holt, author of “On Higher Ground” will present an array of post-ecotopian choices, one of which is domed cities. What does the future hold for California?  

Call 548-2220 x 233  

Wednesday, Oct. 18

Traffic Calming Workshop 

7 - 10 p.m. 

St. Clements Church 

2837 Clement Blvd.  

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets.  

“Women and Trafficking: Domestic & Global Concerns” 

6 - 9:30 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

The Berkeley Commission on the Status of Women invites the public to this forum which will include an expert panel discussion, and a movie on Women and trafficking. Free. 

Call 644-6107 for more info.  

Thursday, Oct. 19

The Promise and Perils of Transgenic Crops 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion with Dr. Peggy Lemaux, professor of Plant and Microbiology at UC Berekeley, of the scientific basis for biotechnology, it’s risks and benefits. 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Rafael Mariquez Free Solo Concert 

7:30 p.m. 

Berkeley Public Library, South Branch 

1901 Russell St. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This Chilean folksinger and guitarist presents his original settings of selections by Latin American poets. 

Contact: 644-6860; TDD 548-1240 

Vocal Sauce 

Noon 

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

The JazzSchool’s vocal jazz ensemble perform award-winning arrangements by Greg Murai.  

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Performance Poetica 

7:30 p.m. 

ATA Gallery 

992 Valencia St. 

San Francisco 

Video and verse by Illinois Arts Council/Hemingway Festival poet and filmmaker Rose Virgo, with special guest Judy Irwin.  

$3  

Pain - Ways to Make It Easier 

1 - 2:30 p.m. 

Alta Bates Summit Medical Center 

Ashby Campus, Dining Rooms A & B 

3001 Colby 

Maggie van Staveren, LCSW, CHT and Christine Bartlett, PT, CHT will demonstrate ways to let go of pain due to arthritis, injury and illness. RSVP requested. 

Call 869-6737  

Friday, Oct. 20

“The Ballot Issues” 

11:45 a.m. 

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Fran Packard of the League of Women Voters speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.  

Luncheon: $11 

Call 848-3533 

Human Nature 

8:30 p.m. 

New College Cultural Center 

766 Valencia 

San Francisco 

The X-plicit Players present this idyllic nude ritual. Watch or participate: Be led blindfolded through body tunnels, into body streams while sensing psychic/body qualities through touch. Also presented on Oct. 21.  

$12 admission 

Call 415-848-1985 

Saturday, Oct. 21

A Day on Mt. Tam 

9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. 

Come play and hike in San Francisco’s beloved playground. This outing is part of a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance. 

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

AHIMSA Eight Annual Conference 

9 a.m. - 5 p.m.  

International House, Great Hall 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

The AHIMSA is a nonprofit foundation whose goal is to encourage dialogues and public forums which bridge spiritual, scientific and social issues. This years conference is titled “Violence! Scientific and Spiritual Perspectives.”  

Admission is free 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market Fall Fruit Tastings 

10 a.m. - 3 p.m.  

Center St. at MLK Jr. Way 

Taste a whole farmers’ market’s bounty of fall fruit varieties. 

Free. 

Info: 548-3333 

Run Your Own Landscape Business: Part 2 

11 a.m. - 1 p.m. 

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. (at Blake) 

Local horticultural consultant and UC Master Gardener Jessie West will teach you how to plant, prune, control weeds, and more. The second of three classes. The last is scheduled for Oct. 28 during the same timeslot. 

$15 general; $10 for members; $5 materials fee 

Call 548-2220 x223 

Sunday, Oct. 22

A Taste of the Greenbelt 

1 - 4 p.m. 

Presidio’s Golden Gate Club 

Greenbelt Alliance brings the farm to the city in this celebration of the Bay Area’s agricultural and culinary bounty. Featured are samples from over 40 local restaurants, farmers, wineries, microbreweries. Also featured are live music and local artwork. The event benefits Greenbelt Alliance’s ongoing efforts to protect Bay Area farmlands and open space.  

$45 per person 

1-800-543-GREEN, www.greenbelt.org 

An Evening with Alice Walker 

7:30 p.m.  

King Middle School  

1781 Rose St. (at Grant) 

free parking 

Join internationally loved novelist, poet and essayist Alice Walker in celebrating her new book of autobiographical stories, “The Way Forward is With a Broken Heart.” Benefits Berkeley EcoHouse and KPFA Radio, 94.1 FM.  

Tickets: $10 advance, $13 door 

Tickets available at independent bookstores 

More info: 848-6767 x609 

Take a Trip to the Oakland Ballet 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This is an outing organized by the Senior Center to see “Glass Slippers.”  

Tickets: $6 each 

Call Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

A Buddhist Pilgramage in India 

6 p.m. 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Pl. 

June Rosenberg brings to life, through slides and lecture, her pilgrimages in India. Free. 

Call 843-6812 

Monday, Oct. 23

Berkeley Chinese Community Church Turns 100 

6 p.m. 

Nov. 4 

Silver Dragon Restaurant 

835 Webster St. 

Oakland 

Reservations: $30 per person 

More info: 548-5295 

Public Schools Parent Information Night 

7 - 9 p.m.  

Epworth United Methodist Church 

1953 Hopkins St. 

Parents, principals and other administrative staff from 11 elementary schools will speak about their schools. Sponsored by Neighborhood Parents Network.  

Admission: free to members, $5 non-members 

527-6667 

Tuesday, Oct. 24

Berkeley Farmers’ Market Fall Fruit Tastings 

2 p.m. - 7 p.m.  

Derby St. at MLK Jr. Way 

Come taste a bounty of fall fruit varieties for free. 

Info: 548-3333 

Thursday, Oct. 25

International Jewish Video Competition Winners 

7:30 p.m.  

Pacific Film Archive 

2575 Bancroft Way 

Screening of the four winners in the Museum’s seventh annual competition.  

Call 549-6950 

Thursday, Oct. 26

East Bay Science & Arts Middle School 

Noon  

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Middle school students perform dances of folk, swing, and Cuban rueda styles. Free.  

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Friday, Oct. 27

“Transporation: What’s in Store?” 

11:45 a.m. 

Berkeley City Club  

2315 Durant Ave.  

Larry Dahms, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Transportation Council speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon is served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11 

More info and reservations: 848-3533 

Saturday, Oct. 28

Pedaling the Green City 

11 a.m. -3:30 p.m.  

Take a leisurely bike ride along the future San Francisco Bay Trail. One in a series of free outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations  

Wild About Books? 

10:30 a.m. 

Berkeley Central Library 

2121 Allston Way 

Halloween for the little guys with (not so) scary stories, music, and more.  

Call 649-3943  

Run Your Own Landscape Business: Part 3 

11 a.m. - 1 p.m. 

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. (at Blake) 

Local horticultural consultant and UC Master Gardener Jessie West will teach you how to plant, prune, control weeds, and more. This is the final class in the series. 

$15 general; $10 for members; $5 materials fee 

Call 548-2220 x223 

Sunday, Oct. 29

“Gateway to Knowledge” 

6 p.m. 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Pl. 

Barr Rosenberg describes how to master new knowledge and take the power to shape our lives in wise and compassionate ways.  

843-6812 

Saturday, Nov. 4

Breathtaking Barnabe Peak 

10 a.m. - 4 p.m. 

Hike through Samuel P. Taylor State Park’s lush forests and climb to the heights of Barnabe Peak, overlooking Point Reyes. One in a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Wild About Books? 

10:30 a.m. 

Berkeley Central Library 

2121 Allston Way 

Dublin Library’s resident storyteller and featured teller at the 1998 National Storytelling Festival tell kids aged 3 to 7 her favorite tales.  

Call 649-3943  

Sunday, Nov. 5

Buddhist Psychology 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Pl.  

Buddhist teacher Sylvia Gretchen on “Beyond Therapy and Into the Heart of Buddhist Psychology.” Free. 

Call 843-6812  

Monday, Nov. 6

Airports vs. the Bay 

7 p.m. 

Albany Community Center 

1249 Marin St.  

Albany 

David Lewis, Executive Director of “Save the Bay” will speak on the airports’ plans to expand into the SF Bay and other challenges to Bay restoration.  

Contact: Friends of Five Creeks, 848-9358 

Thursday, Nov. 9

The Life and Art of Chiura Obata 

7:30 p.m.  

North Berkeley Public Library 

1170 Alameda (at Hopkins) 

A slide show and lecture presented by Obata’s granddaughter, Kimi Kodani Hill, celebrating Obata’s book, “Topaz Moon: Chiura Obata’s Art of the Internment,” and the retrospective exhibit of Obata’s work to appear this Fall at SFs De Young Museum. 

For details call 644-6850  

Saturday, Nov. 11

Moonlight on Mt. Diablo 

1 - 10:30 p.m.  

Hike up the Devil’s Mountain by daylight, catch a glorious sunset and hike back by the light of the moon. One in a series of free outing organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Sunday, Nov. 12

Views, Vines and Veggies 

9:15 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.  

Climb Bald Mountain in Sugarloaf State Park and peer down upon the Napa and Sonoma Valleys. Then please your palate at the Landmark Winery and visit Oak Hill organic vegetable and flower farm. One in a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

“Time Across Cultures” 

2 - 4 p.m. 

St. Clements Church 

2837 Claremont Ave.  

The annual Roselyn Yellin Memorial lecture with a slide-illustrated panel discussion. Also a tour of the “Telling Time” exhibit at the Judah L. Magnes Museum followed by a reception at the museum, 4 - 5 p.m.  

More info: 549-6950 

Buddhism & Compassion 

6 p.m. 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Place 

Psychiatrist and teacher Bobby Jones on “Healing through Compassion.” Free.  

843-6812 

Tuesday, Nov. 14

Take a Trip to the Steinbeck Museum and 

Mission San Juan Bautista 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This is an outing organzied by the Senior Center.  

$40 with lunch, $25 without  

Call Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

Thursday, Nov. 16

Reminiscing in Swingtime 

7:30 p.m.  

North Berkeley Library  

1170 Alameda (at Hopkins) 

George Yoshida, author and jazz drummer, presents a multi-media program recounting the big band experience in the Japanese American internment camps. The presentation will be capped with a set of live jazz by the George Yoshida Quartet. 

Call for more info: 644-6850 

Saturday, Nov. 18

S.F. Stairs and Peaks 

10 a.m. - 3 p.m.  

Begin the day with a visit to the farmer’s market, then meander up the stairways and streets of Telegraph Hill to Coit Tower. Then up Russian Hill, descending to Fisherman’s Wharf for a ride back on the new historic streetcar line. One in a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 

Berkeley Free Folk Festival 

11 a.m. - 1 a.m.  

Ashkenaz  

1317 San Pablo Ave. 

Fourteen hours of free concerts, workshops, jam sessions and to top it off a Saturday night dance. The fifth annual Folk Festival will feature Shay & Michael Black, Spectre Double Negative & the Equal Positive, Larry Hanks, Wake the Dead and many others. Sponsored by Charles Schwab and the City of Berkeley.  

More info or to volunteer: 525-5099 

Sunday, Nov. 19

Mt. Madonna & Wine  

10 a.m. - 2 p.m. 

Hike through evergreen forests and visit the remains of a 19th century estate, then finish the day with a visit to Kruse Winery. One of many free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: (415) 255-3233 for reservations 

Saturday, Dec. 2

Wild About Books? 

10:30 a.m. 

Berkeley Central Library 

2121 Allston Way 

Storyteller Kellmar draws from her African-American roots with stories that touch the heart and the funnybone. For childen aged 3-7. 

Call 649-3943  

ONGOING EVENTS 

Sundays 

Green Party Consensus Building Meeting 

6 p.m. 

2022 Blake St. 

This is part of an ongoing series of discussions for the Green Party of Alameda County, leading up to endorsements on measures and candidates on the November ballot. This week’s focus will be the countywide new Measure B transportation sales tax. The meeting is open to all, regardless of party affiliation. 

415-789-8418 

Mondays 

Baby Bounce and Toddler Time 

10:30 a.m. 

Oct. 16 - Dec. 11 

Berkeley Central Library 

2121 Allston Way 

For children ages 6 to 36 months. Get those babies off to a good start with songs, rhymes, lap bounces, and very simple books. 

649-3943  

Tuesdays 

Easy Tilden Trails 

9:30 a.m. 

Tilden Regional Park, in the parking lot that dead ends at the Little Farm 

Join a few seniors, the Tuesday Tilden Walkers, for a stroll around Jewel Lake and the Little Farm Area. Enjoy the beauty of the wildflowers, turtles, and warblers, and waterfowl. 

215-7672; members.home.com/teachme99/tilden/index.html 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market 

2-7 p.m. 

Derby Street between Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Milvia Street 

548-3333 

Berkeley Camera Club 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share your slides and prints with other photographers. Critiques by qualified judges. Monthly field trips. 

531-8664 

Computer literacy course 

6-8 p.m. 

James Kenney Recreation Center, 1720 Eighth St. 

This free course will cover topics such as running Windows, File Management, connecting to and surfing the web, using Email, creating Web pages, JavaScript and a simple overview of programming. The course is oriented for adults. 

644-8511 

Wednesdays  

10:30 a.m. 

Preschool Song and Story Time 

Berkeley Central Library 

2121 Allston Way 

Music and stories for ages 3-5.  

649-3943 

Thursdays 

The Disability Mural 

4-7 p.m. through September 

Integrated Arts 

933 Parker 

Drop-in Mural Studios will be held for community gatherings and tile-making sessions. This mural will be installed at Ed Roberts campus. 

841-1466 

Fridays 

Ralph Nader for President 

7 p.m.  

Video showings to continue until November. Campaign donations are requested. Admission is free.  

Contact Jack for directions at 524-1784. 

Saturdays 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market 

10 a.m.-3 p.m. 

Center Street between Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Milvia Street 

548-3333 

Poets Juan Sequeira and Wanna Thibideux Wright 

2nd and 4th Sunday 

Rhyme and Reason Open Mike Series 

2:30 p.m. 

UC Berkeley Art Museum, 2621 Durant Ave. 

The public and students are invited. Sign-ups for the open mike begin at 2 p.m. 

234-0727;642-5168 

Tuesday and Thursday 

Free computer class for seniors 

9:30-11:30 a.m. 

South Berkeley Senior Center, 2939 Ellis St. 

This free course offers basic instruction in keyboarding, Microsoft Word, Windows 95, Excel and Internet access. Space is limited; the class is offered Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. Call ahead for a reservation. 

644-6109 

Compiled by Chason Wainwright 

An executive pulls up to valet parking at a restaurant, late to a business lunch, and finds no one to take his car keys.  

Anxious and fuming, he spots a teen-ager running toward him in the rear-view mirror and yells, “Where the hell were you? I haven’t got all day.” 

He tosses the keys in the kid’s general direction and they fall to the pavement.  

Bending to pick them up, the boy says, “Sorry, sir. About how long do you expect to be? 

The executive hollers over his shoulder, “You’ll know when you see me, won’t you?”  

The valet winces, but bites his tongue.  

Postscript: The teenager goes home and bullies his kid brother. 

It’s easy to multiply examples like these: a customer demeans a waitress, a coach cows a player, a doctor disparages a nurse, a school principal insults a teacher, a teacher humiliates a student, students ostracize other students, a parent belittles a child, an officer abuses a suspect, a professor exploits a teaching assistant, a boss harasses an employee, a caretaker mistreats an invalid. 

Most such behaviors have nothing to do with racism or sexism.  

Yet the effect on the victims is no different from how it felt to be Jewish, black, or gay until things began to change for those groups.  

The perpetrators of these insults, like racists and sexists, select their targets with circumspection.  

In each of these examples, what triggers unequal treatment is rank – rank as measured on the somebody-nobody scale. 

“Somebodies” are sought after, given preference, lionized. “Nobodies” get insulted, dissed, exploited, ignored.  

Low rank functions exactly like race and gender – as an unjustifiable impediment to advancement.  

All forms of abuse, prejudice, and discrimination are actually predicated upon differences in rank.  

Rank-based discrimination deserves a name of its own to distinguish it from racism, sexism, and bad manners.  

By analogy, we shall call it rankism. Once you have a name for it you see it everywhere. 

Our society no longer condones abuse based on race or gender, but inequity based on rank is, for the most part, still overlooked.  

It might be supposed that if one overcomes tendencies to racism, sexism, ageism and other narrowly defined forms of prejudice, one would be purged of rankism as well.  

But rankism is not just another ism; it’s the mother of them all.  

The familiar kinds of discrimination are simply special cases of rankism.  

Color, gender, etc. are excuses for exploiting power differences, not the cause of the resulting injustices. 

Unlike race or gender, rank is mutable. You can be taken for a nobody one day and for a somebody the next.  

You can be a nobody at home and a somebody at work, or vice versa. “Nobody” is an epithet used to justify further denigration and inequity. “Nobody” is the N-word of our time. 

Much of what’s labeled social pathology arises from rankism.  

The indignity suffered by nobodies festers.  

It turns to indignation and sometimes erupts in violence.  

To “nobody” individuals, or a people, is not only to do them an injustice, it is to plant a time bomb in our own midst. 

The consequences range from school shootings to genocide. The 20th century has seen many demagogues who have promised to restore the pride and dignity of a people that felt “nobodied.”  

Hitler enjoyed the support of Germans humiliated by punitive measures in the aftermath of World War I. President Milosevic of Yugoslavia has traded on the wounded pride of the Serbs.  

People will become apologists for crimes they would otherwise condemn to get even with those they believe have nobodied them.  

Attacking the familiar isms, one at a time, is like lopping heads off the Hydra of discrimination and prejudice.  

Going after rankism, which underlies all forms of discrimination, would drive a stake through the Hydra’s heart. 

In targeting rankism, it is vital to recognize that there is nothing wrong with rank per se, any more than there is anything wrong with race or with gender. When it has been earned and signifies excellence, rank is generally accepted. 

But when rank is exercised beyond its appropriate domain, or when others are “nobodied,” that’s rankism. The democratic process provides a recourse to rankism in civic affairs, but in the workplace and in education we must often knuckle under or risk our position.  

Before the civil rights and women’s movements, blatant forms of race and gender-based discrimination were mostly condoned.  

Now, being labeled a “racist” or a “sexist,” a “bigot” or a “homophobe,” does not look good on your resume. 

In contrast, rankism, in both its interpersonal and institutional guises, still enjoys wide tacit support. Overcoming rankism – in the family, the schools, health care and the workplace – is democracy’s next step.

Well, at least nothing else can go wrong. 

After holding strong during three straight losses in which the offense and special teams took turns handing the opposition easy scores, Cal’s vaunted defense finally collapsed at Arizona State Saturday, giving up nine plays of over 25 yards on the way to a 30-10 loss. The Sun Devils’ long plays included three touchdown passes of at least 50 yards. 

The offense didn’t do the team any favors either, as quarterback Kyle Boller threw for just 127 yards and was so ineffective head coach Tom Holmoe pulled him for the first time this season. Joe Igber ran for 181 yards on only 15 carries, but managed to offset his great day with a lost fumble and an inexplicable collapse at the one-foot line on his longest run of the day. The Bears (1-4) managed just three drives into Arizona State territory for the game, and two of them ended in turnovers. 

But the Bears’ secondary was the scapegoat of the day. Despite good pressure by the defensive line and the Sun Devils starting their third-string quarterback, the Bears defensive backs gave up 420 yards in the air, constantly letting the Arizona State (4-1) receivers get behind them for big gains. Cornerback Lashaun Ward was particularly helpless, giving up four passes of at least 30 yards by Griffin Goodman, a senior walk-on who had thrown just 46 passes in two years coming into the game. 

The game started promisingly for the Bears, as Igber scampered for 20 yards, then took a screen pass 30 yards to the ASU 22-yard line. But on third down, Boller scrambled out of the grasp of two Sun Devils only to have defensive end Kurt Wallin knock the ball from his grasp. Arizona State’s Lee Suggs fell on the ball to kill the early scoring chance. 

The Bears’ next drive stalled before reaching midfield, but Holmoe daringly called for a fake punt. The Sun Devils were completely fooled, but punter Nick Harris’ pass was a floater and safety Deway Hale was forced to leap for it, crashing to the turf two yards short of the first down with nothing but open grass in front of him. 

The home team struck quickly on the ensuing drive. After a run produced no yardage, Goodman faked a handoff to tailback Mike Williams. Every Cal player bit on the fake, including safety Bert Watts, who was supposed to cover tight end Todd Heap. Goodman hit the wide-open Heap for a 50-yard touchdown, putting the Bears in a 6-0 hole. 

The next 15 minutes of the game were probably the ugliest spectacle most fans will see this year. The Bears next drive lost six yards, and Goodman answered back with three straight incompletions. After a Sun Devil punt, Igber fumbled the ball. Arizona State’s Adam Archuleta, who found a home for the afternoon in the Bear backfield, recovered the ball. Archuleta finished with seven tackles, including three for losses, and was in Boller’s face all game long. 

Following a Jacob Waasdorp sack, Williams coughed the ball up on a hit by defensive end Shaun Paga, who has proven to be an impact player for the Bears in his first year back after a two-year break from football. Paga has now caused two fumbles on the season to go with a safety, 15 tackles and a sack. 

Boller found tight end Keala Keanaaina on two play-action passes sandwiched around a scramble for 18 yards to get the Bears to the ASU 10, and Mark Jensen converted the 27-yard field goal to cut the deficit to three points. That was as close as Cal would get for the rest of the game. 

On a third-and-seven on the ensuing drive, Heap caught a short pass across the middle. Watts had a chance to stop the big tight end short of the first down, but Heap simply lowered his head and steamrolled over him, rumbling for another 50-yard gain. 

Cal’s defense stiffened again, and ASU kicker Mike Barth hit an impressive 41-yard field goal. But Cal’s Chidi Iwuoma was offside on the play, giving the Sun Devils a first down and prolonging the drive. The home team’s offensive line then committed two false starts and one holding penalty to back ASU out of field goal range.  

But as the Sun Devils attempted to shoot themselves in the foot, the Bear defense snatched the gun away and tried to blow its own leg off. On second-and-30, the Bears appeared to have an interception that could have turned the tide of the game. But the visitors were called for defensive holding, giving the ball back to the Sun Devils, then committed the same infraction on third-and-19 to put Arizona State right back into field goal range. Barth was good from 36, and the score stood 9-3. 

From that point, the Bears looked utterly clueless in most facets of the game. Goodman began to pick on Ward and Harold Pearson, and he connected on bomb after bomb to receivers Shaun McDonald, Ryan Dennard and Donnie O’Neal. The Sun Devils’ last drive of the first half covered 92 yards in just two passes, a 33-yarder to tailback Davaren Hightower and a post pattern to McDonald, who beat Pearson by three yards and strolled into the end zone untouched to give Arizona State a 16-3 halftime lead. 

Goodman shook off a Ward interception early in the second half, connecting with McDonald again for 54 yards to set up a seven-yard touchdown run by running back Tom Pace. Six minutes later, Goodman found O’Neal for another 50-yard score, finishing the Sun Devils’ scoring. Goodman sat down for the final quarter of the game, giving sophomore Matt Cooper some time at quarterback. Goodman completed just 11 of his 28 pass attempts, but made each completion count, racking up 394 yards and three touchdowns in his three quarters of work. 

All that was left for the Bears was their pride. Buried deep in their own half, Cal looked to have a bit of life left when Igber burst through the Arizona State defense and was 15 yards in the clear, headed towards the end zone. But he ran out of gas with 30 yards to go and eventually fell down untouched just short of the goal line. Cal’s frustration was complete when fullback Ryan Stanger fumbled the ball on the next play, and even a blocked punt by linebacker John Klotsche and a one-yard touchdown run by Joe Echema to set the final score couldn’t make up for a day full of disappointments.

Students at Oxford Elementary will soon be participating in a research project to see whether nutritious meals will improve their performance. 

Dr. Michael Murphy, a child nutrition researcher from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, will be tracking 100 students at Oxford. The Berkeley Unified School District and the Child Nutrition Advisory Committee are sponsoring the project. 

Murphy said he will set up a whole-grain breakfast bar and an organic salad bar and compare the students’ performances – academically and behaviorally – to their achievements from last year. Parental permission is required for a student to participate. 

“First, we’re going to see if the kids will eat a whole-grain breakfast if it’s provided,” he said. “If they do, we’ll see how it affects their performance.” 

Murphy conducted a similar study last year in Philadelphia involving 100 kids. The results, he said, showed that students who ate better breakfasts performed better in class. 

“It’s pretty well established that five to 30 percent of students (in the U.S.) experience hunger,” he said.  

“I’ve been involved in five years of research that questioned whether or  

not hunger does anything bad,  

performance wise, or are they just uncomfortable. And the answer is yes, it does hinder their performance.” 

Last year, the district implemented a “no student in Berkeley goes hungry” food service policy. The policy draws the “important connection between a healthy diet and a student’s ability effectively and achieve high standards in school.” 

Superintendent Jack McLaughlin said Murphy’s research will provide even better data about the link between nutrition and learning. 

The district has worked with the Child Nutrition Advisory Council – a collection of parents, teachers and students – for almost four years with the goal of bringing more nutritious breakfasts and lunches to Berkeley schools. 

Chairman Eric Weaver said the council has launched several programs, including a salad bar at Malcolm X and a universal breakfast at Rosa Parks. 

Teachers at Rosa Parks have reported a decline in tardiness, absenteeism and an improvement in behavior since the breakfast began last year. 

Suzanne Bernhard, the coordinator for the salad bar at Malcolm X, said her program began last May with student taste tests. She said the salad bar increased paid-participation by 46 percent. 

“Raising paid-participation is the key,” Weaver said. “It shows that you can increase the amount of customers that you have.” 

Chez Panisse owner and chef Alice Waters, who started an “edible school yard” program in the district, believes it’s only natural that the kids perform better if they eat better. 

“I hope this could be a natural curriculum,” she said. “When you grow good food and cook good food, there’s a likelihood that you’ll eat good food.”

Berkeley High claimed their first victory Friday night, besting rival De Anza 46-27. Berkeley relied upon a potent rushing attack, gaining 306 yards on the ground to De Anza’s 119. Senior running back Ramone Reed led the charge, rushing for two touchdowns and 142 yards on 18 carries, and throwing for one touchdown in the rout. 

The game began on an inauspicious note for the YellowJackets when quarterback Nitoto Muhammed threw an interception on its opening drive, one of the three Berkeley turnovers on the night. But the Dons couldn’t score, and the ‘Jackets regrouped quickly, marching 60 and 51 yards on consecutive drives behind powerful blocking to take a 14-0 lead. 

Reed and fellow running backs Joey Terry-Jones and Germey Baird led the Berkeley drives, barreling into, scampering around, and seeping through a porous De Anza defensive line. Terry-Jones rushed for a bruising 71 yards on nine carries, while Baird carried the ball 12 times for 58 yards. 

Senior wide receiver Chavallier Patterson praised the play of his running backs and offensive line after the game, saying, “They just couldn’t stop our running game. We ran well tonight, and it opened things up for the rest of us.” 

With 2:04 remaining in the first quarter, De Anza responded to the YellowJacket offensive. After a Berkeley kickoff left them with a first-and-10 on their own 37-yard line, quarterback Anthony Baisley lofted a pass 33 yards downfield to wide receiver Jonny Johnson. Reed (also a defensive back) leaped with Baisley to try to intercept the pass. The ball was tipped twice, and when it finally fell into Baisley’s hands he had an open field to the endzone. A few seconds later, the score was 14-7. 

Starting at their own 30-yard line, Berkeley began a four-minute, 10-play, 70-yard march to paydirt. Sticking with what had been successful, they ran the ball every down but one, relying upon the churning legs of Reed, Baird and Terry-Jones to carry them into the endzone. The strategy worked, and the brutal ‘Jacket rushing game ground the Dons deep into the their own territory, where Muhammed scored on a quarterback draw to give the ‘Jackets a 20-7 lead with 9:58 remaining in the half. 

The game remained in doubt until late in the third quarter, when Berkeley junior Anthony Lee Franklin broke it open. Leading 27-13 with 3:37 remaining in the third quarter, Franklin caught a De Anza punt at his own 37, eluded two tacklers, and sprinted up the right sideline. With a cutback to the middle of the field, Franklin scored, giving the ‘Jackets a commanding 33-19 lead.  

Although De Anza scored once more, Berkeley answered back with a touchdown, and the victory was never again in serious jeopardy.  

Reed iced the Berkeley victory with a final 28-yard sprint to the goal line, scoring his second touchdown of game and giving Berkeley a their first win of the season. 

Berkeley advances to 1-4 (1-0 ACCAL) and travels to Encinal Friday for a 7 p.m. game.

Suzanne Sininger woke up out of breath, dreaming she had a hole in her stomach left by her baby. The baby she put up for adoption 25 years before. 

Like Sininger, many birth mothers feel the need to reconnect with children they haven’t seen for years. The International Soundex Reunion Registry is one way to do that.  

The free service is also a resource for adoptees, like Sininger’s daughter, whose name is also Suzanne. Though on different sides of the country, they both registered on the database and found each other several years ago. 

“It feels that my life has come full circle,” said Sininger, a Bay Area artist. 

Since 1975, the Soundex Registry has helped make such reunions possible. It was originally created in Carson City, Nev., to help cancer-stricken Emma May Vilardi find her family’s medical history that was lost when her mother was adopted. 

On Saturday, workers from the Post Adoption Center for Education and Research asked people strolling near Cody’s Books on Fourth Street if they needed help finding a birth relative. 

The event was part of a national registration day designed to give Soundex more entrants on what is already the oldest and largest national reunion database. 

Although not many people stopped to look at the colored fliers filled with information about finding birth relatives, the organizers were satisfied. 

“If there’s only one who comes by and it’s a good story, we’re successful,” said Bob Crowe, president of PACER and a reunited adoptee.  

“The whole idea is to get the word out.” 

Adoption remains a difficult topic. People avoid talking about it and states are reluctant to open their adoption records.  

People who endeavor to find relatives can end up disappointed. 

“For every wonderful loving success story, there is also one that is totally dreadful,” said Crowe.  

Yet a survey conducted by the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute found that six out of 10 Americans have had a personal experience with adoption.  

And a study by the Maine Department of Human Resources Task Force on Adoption reported that 95 percent of birth parents and adoptees wanted to find their relatives. 

That’s why Soundex can be successful – people who register are giving consent that they want to find their relatives.  

The registry also gives information about support groups to people going through the difficult psychological process of finding a lost relative. 

“It was the first time someone was listening to me and validating my wishes,” Sininger said. “I was so surprised, I burst into tears.” 

For more information go to www.isrr.net. For support groups and birth relative search workshops, visit www.pacer-adoption.org.

SEATTLE, Wash. - The No. 7 California women’s soccer team lost to No. 9 Washington, 2-1, in the 88th minute Sunday at Husky Soccer Field. The loss was Cal’s first of the season and dropped the Bears record to 11-1-1 (1-1 Pac-10), while the Huskies improved to 11-1 (2-0 Pac-10).  

“We didn’t play very well in the first half,” said Cal coach Kevin Boyd. “It looked a lot like Friday night. In the second half, we played very well but just couldn’t get another goal. We had some good chances. They just weren’t as dangerous as they should have been.”  

Washington jumped out to a 1-0 lead with a goal in the 33rd minute off the foot of Malia Arrant, who received a pass from Suzanne Culpeper and scored from eight-yards out.  

Trailing 1-0 at the half, Cal wasted little time evening the score with an unassisted goal from sophomore All-America candidate Laura Schott on a 12-yard putback at 46:37. The goal was the forward’s team-best 17th of the season, tying her with Olympian Joy Fawcett for the second most goals in a season in Cal history. Schott now has 35 points on the year, which is the fourth best in school history.  

The game, which was very evenly played, appeared headed for overtime when Husky reserve Melissa Bennett tallied an eight-yard game-winning shot at 87:11.  

“It was a little disappointing to give one up late in the game like that,” said Boyd. “It was a very soft goal. We gave them an easy one. We haven’t given up a soft goal all year, so that’s something we’ll have to make sure doesn’t happen again.”  

This also was the first time all season Cal has given up more than one goal. UW held a slim 18-16 advantage on shots.  

Cal returns home next Sunday to host Stanford at noon, at Edwards Stadium.

The City Council is back, after a one week hiatus, and will address its usual eclectic mix of issues tomorrow night.  

At a closed session prior to the public portion of the evening, the council will discuss a legal strategy to challenge UC Berkeley’s plan to build a seismic replacement building at Oxford and Hearst Street.  

Also, Kahlil Jacobs-Fantauzzi’s case against the City of Berkeley could be resolved. Jacobs-Fantauzzi is suing the Berkeley Police Department and the city for more than $1 million over his arrest last year during a demonstration outside the KPFA studios on Martin Luther King Jr. Way. 

After that, the most weighty agenda item might be a plan to return number dispensers – the likes of which keep many a deli calm – to Berkeley post offices in time for the holiday mailing rush. 

“Without numbers the post office is just going to be pandemonium,” Councilmember Polly Armstrong told the Daily Planet. “If we don’t have number dispensers, people will have to just stand in line, and around the holidays, that could mean hours.” 

There are other issues as well. 

Skate’s Restaurant at the Marina is hoping for an exemption from the Living Wage Ordinance passed last month. 

Also, Councilmember Kriss Worthington is asking his colleagues to support a Proclamation for National Coming Out Day, October 11. 

“We’re going to do it a little bit differently this year,” he said. “In the past we’ve always had white gays come to our meeting, which makes the movement seem white, which it isn’t. So this year we’ll be having representatives from Cal Queer and Asian come for the proclamation.” 

The council may also authorize City Manager Weldon Rucker to accept a $500,000 grant from the California Endowment Communities First program to expand Berkeley’s breast feeding peer counselor program. 

“The program is a response to the health disparity here in Berkeley,” said Fred Medrano of the Health and Human Services Department.  

“We’ll be aggressive at targeting African-Americans, who have lower birth weights in our city. Breast feeding is a concrete step to improve health outcomes for babies and young children.” 

Councilmember Dona Spring has suggested that the council approve plans to allow the Peace and Justice commission to review all contracts, with some exceptions, between the University and the City which involve nuclear issues. 

Spring also said she liked the way council meetings have been run in the last weeks. 

“There has been a real improvement, with less in-fighting between members,” Spring said.  

“Even with all the very deep-seeded antagonisms between moderates and progressives, things are going well.” 

SEATTLE (AP) – The Washington Huskies found out first hand what second-year Oregon State coach Dennis Erickson has done to the once-downtrodden Beavers football program. 

The Huskies (No. 11 ESPN/USA Today, No. 13 AP) needed touchdowns on short runs by freshman Rich Alexis and quarterback Marques Tuiasosopo in the final quarter to hold off the No. 23 Beavers 33-30 on Saturday night. 

It wasn’t over until Oregon State’s Ryan Cesca missed a 46-yard field-goal attempt with 14 seconds left. Cesca had plenty of leg, but the kick was wide right. 

The crowd of 73,145 at Husky Stadium watched as Jonathan Smith drove Oregon State (4-1, 1-1 Pacific-10) from its 26 to the Washington 28 in the final 4:55 before Cesca’s miss. 

“We feel we’re a legitimate Rose Bowl contender,” Smith said. “So any time you lose, it’s a disappointment.” 

Oregon State lost its 13th straight to Washington (4-1, 1-1), but the game was a thriller compared to the Huskies’ 47-21 victory last year in Corvallis. 

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Arizona’s defense played like “Desert Swarm” again, and the Wildcats’ offense came up big. 

Evoking memories of the Wildcats’ dominant defenses during several seasons in the 1990s, Arizona held Southern California (No. 16 ESPN/USA Today, No. 18 AP) to 10 yards rushing, logged five sacks and forced five turnovers in a 31-15 victory Saturday. 

Ortege Jenkins and Clarence Farmer provided offensive spark for the Wildcats (4-1, 2-0 Pacific-10) against the bumbling Trojans (3-2, 0-2), who were booed by their own fans as the game went on. 

Jenkins ran for two scores and hooked up with Bobby Wade on a 75-yard touchdown pass, and Farmer – a quick, hard-running freshman – scored on an 80-yard run and finished with 134 yards on 22 carries. 

USC’s Carson Palmer threw three interceptions and lost a fumble. Palmer was 26-of-50 for 321 yards. 

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) – The option was back at Notre Dame. The Irish offense, however, didn’t show a lot of improvement. 

Freshman Matt LoVecchio guided the Irish 91 yards for a touchdown on their first possession, and a blocked punt and an interception set up two TDs as Notre Dame (No. 25 AP) beat Stanford 20-14 on Saturday. 

“Any time that you can win a big-time college football game, you need to enjoy it,” Notre Dame coach Bob Davie said. “I also think the football team, particularly the defensive side, didn’t play as well as we should.” 

Stanford (2-3) scored on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Chris Lewis to Darin Naatjes with 1:07 left to close within six points, but Jabari Holloway recovered the onside kick at the Stanford 45. 

The Irish (3-2), who entered the game with the 106th rated offense of 114 teams, managed just 266 yards total offense.  

Stanford had 384 yards total offense but was hurt by two turnovers, the blocked punt and a missed field goal. The Cardinal were led by Chris Lewis, who was 19-of-43 for 242 yards with one interception. 

PULLMAN, Wash. (AP) – Jason Gesser threw two touchdown passes and ran for a third score as Washington State beat Boise State 42-35 on Saturday in a game that featured nearly 900 yards. 

Washington State (3-2) won at home for the first time in a year, and rose above .500 for the first time since they were 3-2 in the 1998 season. 

Boise State (3-2) lost despite 335 passing yards and four touchdowns by Bart Hendricks. 

With the score tied at 35, Washington State took possession on Boise State’s 38 after an end zone punt and drove to the 1. Runs were stopped twice before Adam Hawkins bulled over for a touchdown that lifted WSU to a 42-35 lead with 1:15 left. 

Boise State’s final drive ended on a Hendricks’ fumble.

Early Saturday morning, some two dozen teenagers woke up early to host a day of festivities for Berkeley children. 

Gloomy gray clouds and low temperatures couldn’t keep them from celebrating the Annual Berkeley Harvest Fair with a “Jump for Fun” trampoline, face painting, karaoke, pumpkin carving, domino matches and free food. 

“It’s a chance for us to really engage the community,” said Jason Uribe, the garden coordinator for the Berkeley Youth Alternative’s Community Garden Patch. 

The fair, like all the work of BYA gardeners, was a community outreach program. It was also the group’s way of thanking Berkeley for turning a once barren lot on Bonar Street into a thriving fruit and vegetable garden. 

“There was a need for something to do for the youth,” said Uribe of the 25-year-old program. “They feel safe here. It’s not just a job, it’s like a rec center.” 

BYA provides participants with job opportunities while teaching them agricultural skills, assisting them with school assignments, and giving them a safe way to fill their after-school hours.  

Participants work 20 hours a week, Monday through Friday and sometimes on Saturdays. 

As a parent of four, Candie Leonard began volunteering at BYA almost three years ago.  

“It gives kids a place to come and also be educated. There’s always plenty of things to do to keep them off the streets,” Leonard said of the program. “My kids love to come here. It’s not just something where they sit around – they have to interact.” 

When not tending the garden or singing karaoke, the youth often plan programs to show off their creativity outside the garden. They are responsible for the fund-raising and planning of a cabaret play, as well as a Christmas in April program.  

“At first, I was shy – I didn’t like talking to people until I got here,” said Ebony Thomas, 18, as she painted a child’s face Saturday. “Now, I get to work with people. They help you with your homework and everything.” 

Dart Kaufman, 18, is a garden manager’s assistant who began working for BYA four months ago.  

“I was interested in community and urban gardening,” said Kaufman. “It’s very important to have places in the community where people are growing their own food.” 

Kaufman said his involvement with this program, and with a similar one in San Francisco, has led him to choose farming as a career.

CASTRO VALLEY — One might think that a town which plays host to diverse interests ranging from the Sequoians nudist camp to the Cavy World Guinea Pig Rescue organization would be open to just about anything. 

Anything, that is, except bad art. 

The resident critics of Castro Valley have discerning eyes set on two pieces of recently placed public art that are raising more hackles than cheers. At issue are a pair of sculptures gracing the median along well-traveled Redwood Road: a 2-foot-tall display earth-toned urn spilling out stone ‘beans’ and a collection of oversized bowls. 

“They’re an eyesore. They’re blah. They don’t serve any purpose,” one local merchant said. 

It might have gone unnoticed for a small town to second-guess the local art commission, but Castro Valley’s ad hoc artisans are making a habit of it. 

In 1997, the Alameda County Art Commission spent $152,000 for a sign bearing the town’s name that lasted a whole two months before citizen’s demanded its removal. A crowd gathered to applaud the removal of the sign which now gathers dust in the corner of a truck garage. 

“I didn’t get that one. It looked to me like a botched idea,” said Steve Talmadge, a commercial photographer and Castro Valley resident for the last 18 years. 

He admits his town is slow to adopt change, preferring to keep new adornments to the small unincorporated area at a minimum. The sign in 1997 and the bowls and beans, which he doesn’t think are quite as bad, just “pop up overnight.” 

“We just like the older nostalgic feeling ... things that would come in here and go against that, (citizens) are going to speak up,” Talmadge said. 

Now some locals have their sites set on the hill of beans, which some say isn’t worth one. The artist who sculpted the work, Washington, D.C.-based Robert Sneikus, knew the city had developed a reputation for being “very hostile to public art.” 

“People (in Castro Valley) are very sure of what they like and what they dislike,” Sneikus said. “We were very skeptical about taking on this project.” 

Castro Valley resident Diane Bland denied that her city was sour on art in general, but admitted she would rather have “more money in (her) check than in beans on Redwood Road.” 

Some say they would have preferred shrubs or trees planted at the sculpture location, but plants weren’t an option because the median was too narrow and too close to underground utili

DUBLIN — City officials are upset with federal agency’s proposal to designate the entire city as part of critical habitat for the California red-legged frog. 

The Dublin city council approved a letter which was sent to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service last week detailing its dismay that it was part of 5.4 million acres to be included in the proposed designation. 

That acreage would include a third of Alameda and Contra Costa counties as well as the entire city of Dublin. 

City officials say such a federal definition could delay development projects in the area. 

“This is an extremely broad definition of critical habitat,” said community development director Eddie Peabody. “It covers ... developed areas as well as not developed.” 

Critical habitats are defined by the Endangered Species Act as geographic areas essential for the conservation of a threatened or endangered species. 

The language of the proposal encompasses shopping malls, roads and other man-made features within the boundaries for critical habitat. They were only included because of difficulties mapping such minute features. 

The California red-legged frog was listed as threatened in 1996, under the Federal Endangered Species Act. 

The proposal is aimed at reducing threats to the frog population, restoring habitats and surveying and monitoring the frog’s population 

Such a habitat designation would mean that if government funds are involved in a development project, those agencies would have to consult with federal wildlife officials before ground could be broken.

A famous sculpture displayed outside a museum at the University of California at Berkeley will receive an environmental makeover that only Berkeley could appreciate 

“The Hawk for Peace” was commissioned by the UC Berkeley Art Museum and was donated by the sculptor, Alexander Calder. Calder finished the sculpture in 1976 and it now sits outside the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive. 

A special amount of attention is focused on striping the sculpture of its lead-based paint to ensure that none of the toxins are released into the ground.  

According to the university, when the sculpture was originally commissioned, it was painted with paint that had a lead content of two percent.  

Which was a level deemed unsafe by the government. New regulations currently allow new paints to contain only .006 percent lead paint, a level far below the old paint, but that isn't known for its durability. 

SACRAMENTO — Common Cause and the League of Women Voters call a campaign finance measure on next month’s ballot “dishonest and deceptive.” Supporters say Proposition 34 is the best California can do without changing the state constitution. 

The proposition was one of three debated Friday at a California Society of Association Executives event. 

Also discussed were measures that would let parents use taxpayer money to send their children to private schools and allow state and local government to use private contractors for public works projects. 

Proposition 34 would place limits on California’s now virtually unlimited campaign contributions. 

The measure would limit donations to political candidates in legislative elections to $3,000; put a $5,000 cap on statewide office elections; and would limit individual donations to gubernatorial candidates to $20,000. 

The proposal would repeal most of Proposition 208, a tougher 1996 voter-approved campaign finance initiative that has been blocked in federal court, said Jim Knox of California Common Cause. 

Proposition 34 is “the most dishonest and deceptive measure” before voters this November, Knox said. “This is a deliberate attempt to deceive voters.” 

The measure is presented as a good-government proposal, but would actually do little to eliminate special-interest influence, Knox said. 

And many voters probably do not realize that approving Proposition 34 would strike down the tougher 208, which is pending in court, he said. 

The measure, passed by the Legislature, is supported by both major political parties and was drafted by an attorney for the Democratic Party, Lance Olson. 

Olson defended the measure, saying that voters have approved campaign finance limits before, but they had been struck down by courts as unconstitutional. Proposition 208’s contribution limits have been ruled too strict to let candidates get their message out. 

Olson said he crafted Proposition 34 so it would withstand a court challenge. 

“The system in California is completely wide-open in terms of contributions,” Olson said. “There are no limits on what people can give candidates.” 

Also debated was Proposition 38, a constitutional amendment that would give parents $4,000 to send a child to a private school, regardless of family income. 

“We must break up the government monopoly of education,” said John Stoos, a legislative consultant representing the voucher campaign. 

The initiative is sponsored by Redwood City venture capitalist Tim Draper, who gave the campaign nearly $18.1 million in loans and stock as of the end of September, the latest reporting period. The “yes” campaign has spent at least $19.9 million so far. 

On the Net: 

Read the propositions at  

Don’t want to wait until Nov. 7 to cast your vote? Try Tuesday. That’s when “Convenience voting” comes to the city. 

Between Oct. 10 and Nov. 3, residents will be able to cast ballots from five electronic voting machines located at the City Clerk’s Office, at 1900 Addison St. 

They call it “in- person absentee balloting” and voters will be given the choice of casting their vote in one of three languages – English, Spanish or Chinese. 

“It’s time to get new machines,” said Bradley Clark, Alameda County Registrar of Voters, in Berkeley Friday to tout the new system. “California is the last state in the nation to replace its punch card ballots. These machines are over 35 years old, getting parts for them is impossible, and the new technology works, so why not use it?” he asked. 

Clark purchased 50 “touch screen voting technology” units at $3,300 dollars a pop and scattered them across Alameda County. 

“The ultimate goal is to add these machines to all polling places in Alameda County,” Clark said, adding that this would require the total purchase of 3,500 to 4,000 machines. Such a plan would slowly wean voters for their habit of paper ballots to the point that only a few ballots would be needed for elections. 

“It means we don’t have to cut down a forest just to have an election,” quipped Clark. “If they’re prepared, and know what they want to vote already, they can simply come to these voting booths, toggle their vote in and then cast their ballot.” 

To vote electronically, voters need only go to the clerk’s office, pick up an application to vote, receive a “smart card,” go to the PC’s linked up to the County server, insert the card and tally their vote. The machine would not note the voter’s name, so the ballot remains anonymous. 

Instead of dropping the ballot through a slot though, votes are tabulated on a hard drive and diskette. This diskette would be removed from the machine, and brought to a central computer in the Alameda county courthouse, where the vote would be tallied. 

Having more than one source for such numbers, says Clark, insures that there is security.  

“If one source gets lost for whatever reason, we have another. And if one comes up with a discrepancy, we can check it from another source.” 

If there is a power outage, the machines can save their data, using a backup battery. 

“This is also a great way for political analysts to look at absentee balloting,” said Clark.  

Such electronic voting began in Alameda County last year, when Piedmont ran a trial election using the system. That paved the way for the in-person-absentee voting machines, which could lead to the county-wide electronic voting that Clark envisions. 

The City Clerk’s Office is located at 1900 Addison Street, and is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. during which hours voters can access such machines.

Saturday, Oct. 7

Berkeley Grassroots Greening  

Tour 

Starts at 10:45 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. 

Celebrate Open Garden Day by joining this annual bicycle tour of local community and school gardens. Part of a series of free outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance. 

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Houses or Open Hills? 

10 a.m.  

Experience Black Diamond Mines Regional Park’s ghost towns, coal mines, spectacular views and open space on this hike by the proposed sites of 7,700 homes near Antioch. Cosponsored by Save Mount Diablo. One outing in a free series organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Open Garden Day 

11 a.m. - 4 p.m.  

The sixth annual Open Garden Day offers garden lovers an opportunity to peek into 34 local community and school gardens. The gardens offer fresh food, children’s activities, composting demonstrations, and more. Special electric bus tour and bicycle tours will be available. Maps and schedules are available in East Bay libraries, nurseries, and in the pages of this very newspaper.  

More info: BCGC, 883-9096  

Harwood Creek Cleanup 

9 a.m. - Noon 

John Muir School  

2955 Claremont Ave. 

Help clean up and restore the creek that runs through John Muir school. Volunteers are asked to bring gloves, chippers/shredders, tools and pick-up trucks. 

Voter Empowerment Town  

Hall Meeting 

1 - 4 p.m. 

West Bay Community Center 

1290 Fillmore St. 

San Francisco 

Sponsors include the Berkeley NAACP Youth Council. 

For additional info: 1-877-316-9071 

Women’s Evening At the  

Movies 

7:30 p.m. 

Pacific Center 

2712 Telegraph 

A monthly night at the movies for lesbian, bi and transexual women. This months featured film is “Fried Green Tomatoes.” 

$5 donation requested 

Call 548-8283  

Free Estate Planning Seminar 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

St. Ambrose Church 

1145 Gilman St. (at Cornell Ave.) 

Call Catholic Charities of the East Bay, 768-3109 

Berkeley Youth Alternatives  

Harvest Fair 

11 a.m. - 3 p.m. 

BYA Community Garden Patch 

1308 Bancroft Way (between Acton and Bonar) 

The seventh annual fair features pumpkin carving, face painting, music, Karaoke, crafts, and fresh produce grown right in the BYA garden. Kids of all ages are welcome.  

Call 845-9067 

Locate Long-lost Relatives 

10 a.m. - 2 p.m.  

Cody’s Books 

1730 Fourth St. 

If you are looking for a missing relative, the International Soundex Reunion Registry may be able to help. The ISRR is a free, nonprofit service.  

Call Bob Crowe, 835-1550 

Pearl Ubungren Dancers with Joey Ayala 

PUSOD 

1808 Fifth St.  

Also performing will be Kayumanggi and Bobby Banduria. Free.  

Call 883-1808 for additional info.  

Wild About Books? 

10:30 a.m. 

Berkeley Central Library 

2121 Allston Way 

Storyteller/musicians Nancy Schimmel and Claudia Morrow do their thing for kids aged 3 to 7.  

Call 649-3943  

Sunday, Oct. 8

Voter Registration Sunday 

11 a.m. service 

St. Paul’s AME Church 

2024 Ashby Ave. 

Sponsored by the Berkeley NAACP Youth and College division 

Call: 710-0238 

Surmounting Sunol Peaks  

9 a.m. - 4 p.m.  

Learn about local geology while enjoying the panoramic views from three Sunol peaks. One outing in a free series organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations  

Author and Minister Sarah  

York to Speak 

10:45 a.m.  

Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley 

1 Lawson Road 

Kensington 

York is the author of “Remembering Well: Rituals for Celebrating Life and Mourning Death.” 

More info: 525-0302 

Tibetan Cultural Preservation 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute  

1815 Highland Place 

Erin Clark and Sandy Olney speak on “Sustaining the Tibetan Tradition.” 

call 843-6812 

MesoAmerican Marketplace 

Noon - 4 p.m. (weekdays) 

10 a.m. - 4 p.m. (weekends) 

UC Botanical Garden 

200 Centennial Dr.  

Visit this colorful marketplace where food from all of the Americas are displayed and ready for the tasting. A special weekday tour program is available for school children. Call 642-3352 to reserve a tour.  

More info: 643-2755 

Tuesday, Oct. 10

Cal Alumni Singles 20th Anniversary Dinner 

UC Faculty Club 

Dinner scheduled for Oct. 15 

For reservations call 527-2709 by Oct. 10 

Kenya, 40 Years Ago and  

Today 

1 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Call 644-6107 for more info  

Defense Against Genetically Engineered Food 

7 p.m.  

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. 

Author Ronnie Cummins, National Director of the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) will lecture on genetically engineered food, including organic food and farming.  

For info: 548-2220 x233 

Wednesday, Oct. 11

Are Domed Cities in the future? 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom  

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion based on UC Berkeley alumnus Tim Holt’s book, “On Higher Ground.” Set 50 years in the future, part of the book takes place in an East Bay enclosed by a climate-controlled dome.  

$3 admission  

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

compiled by Chason Wrainwright

Voltaire’s Candide, having been kicked solidly and repeatedly on the backside by the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, learned in time what was important in life.  

“That’s true enough,” said Candide when reliving the improbable chain of events that led him from baronies to battlefields, through Eldorado and, finally, to a humble existence on an equally humble farm, “But we must go and work in the garden.” 

Candide’s catharsis in “cultivating one’s garden” is more than just a 242-year-old metaphor. Even today, legions of people young and old delight in getting their hands into the Earth and participating in the age-old cycle of nature – and the not quite as age-old act of community-building.  

“I tell you why I do this; I’ve been working on gardens like this for 40 years,” says Berkeley psychologist and landscape architect Karl Linn, honored within his lifetime by the naming of the Karl Linn Community Garden in North Berkeley. “In cities, often so many people live next to each other as strangers. Once they were able to meet in the street, a lot of social life took place in the street. But that’s no longer possible due to cars. One vacant lot a block makes it possible for neighbors to meet casually, become friends. It makes the neighborhood more secure, people feel much more at home, at ease. The gardens are very peaceful places.” 

These green, growing bases of community within the oft-impersonal world of the city pop up more frequently than one might think. No less than 34 school and community gardens are ready to put on an exhibition today from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Berkeley Community Gardening Collective’s sixth-annual Open Garden Day. (Frequent Daily Planet readers have probably already noticed the map of school and community gardens running in the paper over the past week.)  

“They couldn’t possibly go to even half of them. If they make six or seven, I’d be pleased,” laughs BCGC project director Beebo Turman, speaking of the 22 community gardens, 10 school gardens and two youth gardens on the tour. “Community gardens aren’t just about growing your own food on your own plot. The gardens bring people together. We have a really nice quote in our brochure: ‘People growing food growing people.’” 

People are different, communities are different, and therefore community gardens differ as well. But almost every garden shares at least one similarity – the space it is situated on is being utilized a lot more productively now than it was before. Today’s school and community gardens are yesterday’s filthy vacant lots, gravel pits and asphalt pitches.  

“This was under concrete for 100 years!” exclaims Malcom X School garden teacher and coordinator Rivka Mason, who suddenly found herself with a 4,000-square-foot ‘classroom’ after the school’s extensive remodeling project. “We dug some beds and planted massively in June. Now the kids are coming back in September and it’s still harvest time. We’ve got tomatoes, cucumbers, corn, sunflowers, birds, hummingbirds, butterflies; within four months we’ve got a flourishing garden and the kids and their parents did it all.” 

The up-from-asphalt theme is not uncommon among Berkeley school gardens. Over 200 tons of organic compost was required in 1994 to help jump-start King Middle School’s 1.5 acre “Edible Schoolyard” from a concrete spread into a lush garden, equal roughly to 209 feet by 209 feet.  

“Working in the garden creates a sense of wonder; the kids begin to see the relationship between themselves and the Earth,” says Edible Schoolyard Executive Director Mildred Howard. “It’s a safe place to learn and discover. And you begin to understand what food really tastes like.” 

Along with the big lessons, school gardens teach smaller ones as well. And one, rather obviously, is that eating vegetables doesn’t have to compare with a trip to the dentist or a fall from the monkey bars.  

“Kids learn to eat and cook. Our goal is to get them to eat five fruits and vegetables a day,” says Willard Greening Project co-founder Yolanda Huang. “Many children taste something just plucked out of the ground and can’t believe what it tastes like. They’ll eat a fresh potato raw, it’s so juicy and fresh. We give out carrots as an incentive for kids to help out in the garden, pick up some garbage, do a good deed. Since the school year began, we’ve given out 300 carrots!” 

Yet the “sense of wonder” one feels when surrounded by bees, hummingbirds and tall corn, lettuce et al. is not limited to the young. 

“A lot of senior citizens know so much, because when they were growing up, they had to grow and harvest in their own gardens,” says Kathi Kinney, garden coordinator and educator at the Strong Roots Gardens on Sacramento. “I think we have to get back to that. I just came back from Africa and people rally around the garden and the soil. It’s like an outdoor kitchen.” 

Many happy events are planned for today’s Open Garden Day. Demonstrations ranging from composting to nutrition to mosaic making will accompany guided tours and, of course, lunch – because while Candide sought meaning in working his garden, he certainly wouldn’t have protested too heartily over a little playing in it as well. 

UC needs good faith bargaining 

Well, it’s official. Chancellor Berdahl does not exist. 

This was the implication of the Coalition of University Employees’ 32nd consecutive “Bargaining Update” submitted to 18,000 clericals who are grinding toward their second Christmas season without a fair contract or holiday monies, which the non-existent Chancellor as good as promised in his “Speech to Berkeley Staff Assembly” of September 26.  

At that time a figure apparently impersonating the Chancellor, claimed “I really do ‘get it’,” and alluded to previous promises dating back over a year and most evident at last June’s State Assembly Higher Education Committee at which U.C. President Atkinson – another figment of our imagations – was raked over the coals by state legislators for heading the “worst public employer in California.” They in turn alluded to brave promises tendered by Atkinson at his christening more than two years back to inaugurate a brave new “change of course” in labor relations. Atkinson’s promises led to two years of stalled, bad-faith labor bargaining by U.C. A year later he was all but publicly called a liar by Sanator Richard Alarcon. 

Berdahl’s identical promulgation of a “change of course” (”I very much understand how URGENTLY we need to make changes,”) resulted in the U.C. bargaining team returning to the table without even having bothered to respond to CUE’s last wage proposal made 27 days ago! In addition, “UC prsented only two carelessly drafted proposals. If a clerical had produced such slipshod work, disciplinary action would have resulted.” In the context of the alledged Chancellor’s apparent promise of a “change of course,” such contempt for U.C.’s 18,000 increasingly exasperated staff can only be taken as an equal sign of public contempt for the Chancellor himself – if in fact the man really exists. 

It may be slightly premature to conclude that Berdahl is imaginary. Several possibilities suggest themselves: 

1. Berdahl does not exist and the figure speaking for U.C. is a cardboard cutout with a dummy bank account into which U.C. is funnelling hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. 

2. The man speaking for the Chancellor is an imposter and U.C.’s bargainers know it. 

3. UC bargainers are rogues who have hijacked the office of labor relations and, like pirates, are acting on their own. 

4. Though Chancellor Berdahl does indeed exist, his public statements, like Atkinson’s before him, in fact represent palliative purring intended to lull staff, students, and public back to sleep. 

Only further testing can determine which of these possibilities is in fact the case. Whatever the result, unless a fifth possibility miraculously appears – right-on, fair bargaining with CUE – the possibilities of a systemwide clerical strike are becoming more and more concrete. 

Jonathan Christian Petty 

Berkeley 

Member, Coalition of  

University Employees 

Owner deserves some blame 

Editor: 

The French Hotel protest makes a great Berkeley story. One of the things I love about Berkeley is that people still care enough to protest. However, I think it needs to be made clear that some of the responsibility for the crisis is on the shoulders of French Hotel. Concerns have been expressed from the disability community and others that many sidewalk cafes were not following the city's regulations to get a permit and to leave adequate room for safe travel. For three years, we asked the French Hotel to apply for a permit.  

We began a concerted enforcement effort to bring all cafes into compliance last year, however, French Hotel continued to ignore our request that they apply for a permit. A citation was finally issued as a way to get compliance. It should be noted that we allowed all other cafes to keep their tables and chairs while their permits were being processed and we would have done the same for French Hotel.  

The amount of time it takes to get a permit is another issue that I would like to address. We have 90 pending Administrative Use Permit applications; this is much higher than in previous years. To be fair to everyone, we process them in order. We are looking at options to process the straightforward applications faster; however, this will result in the other applications taking longer. We are doing the best we can. Maybe drinking more coffee will help. 

Wendy Cosin 

Acting Director 

Planning & Development Department 

Gaia stories 

Editor:  

Carrie Olson’s assertion regarding the Gaia building that “Ten stories are being allowed for an approved seven stories” is misinformed. So too is Olson’s claim that the Gaia building is 116 feet high.  

The Gaia building is seven stories high, with the roofline located at the council approved height of 87 feet. The Gaia project includes two mezzanines: one at the first level and one at the seventh. Mezzanines are not considered stories under the city’s zoning ordinance, and both mezzanines are inside the approved 87-foot height limit. 

The highest point of the Gaia building, at the top of its elevator tower, is 107 feet high, not 116 feet as claimed by Olson. This height is necessitated by the need to provide elevator access to the roof deck and management offices. 

The Gaia project locates 91 units of new housing near transit, the UC campus, and shopping. The project was approved by the City Council and permitted by the city building and safety division. All of the project’s dimensions were reviewed and approved by city departments more than a year ago, and have not changed since then. We would appreciate it if Olson would refrain from spreading misinformation about our project. 

Evan McDonald 

Gaia Building Project 

Manager 

You recently published a satire on Berkeley politics by Morlock Chaillot (Letters, Sept 29). The piece was somewhat amusing, but why did you run it as a Letter to the Editor? There is no Deep Ecologists’ Gaian Alliance as far as I know, and no real person named Morlock 

Chaillot. Why publish someone who doesn’t have the courage to stand up with their real name for what they supposedly believe in?  

But, there is was. And, in spite of all the twisted accusations and assumptions erupting from Mr. or Ms. (Mad Woman of Chaillot’s) clever pen in an attempt to portray ecological city planning as a farce, it didn’t pull off the desired effect. However, the letter did make room for the opportunity to shed some light on a few of the implications and assumptions.  

First of all, although some of the Berkeley elite love to portray Richard Register as a lone individual who champions pedestrian scale infrastructure against the wishes of everyone else in Berkeley, Ecocity Builders is not the only group on the planet advocating for ecological and pedestrian oriented urban planning. Surprise! Secondly, ecocity theory and planning is not an evil plot to convert your town into an ugly mass of high rises. Surprise again! Register did invented the term “ecocity” in 1978. His Ecocity Berkeley, Building Cities for a Healthy Future, has been well respected in eco-urban circles since it was first published in 1987. He is also the author of three other books, including Village Wisdom, Future Cities and the upcoming Ecocities.  

Far from building a gloomy “Gotham City” with “shadowy, phallic spires” as the Morlock Challiot letter maintains, Ecocity Builders is dedicated to returning healthy biodiversity to the heart of our cities. That means nature–-creeks, bike paths, gardens, and open space. (Does that sound like an evil plot to ruin us all? I think not.) Ecocity thinking is about creating whole cities based on human scale needs and transportation, rather than the current pattern of automobile driven excess, wasteful consumption and the destruction of the biosphere. 

(Again, I fail to see why working towards a goal like this would be considered not worthwhile, not important or unrealistic.) Guided by ecological design principles and by using common sense, we can cast aside our dependence on the automobile and recreate our human habitat in balance with natural systems. But it is up to us to start the process.  

Register’s thinking is not bizarre or fantastic or unreal. In fact, it makes complete sense. What is unreal, bizarre and fantastic is that more people don’t think through how we are currently creating our built habitat and realize that we need to shift the pattern away from auto sprawl and waste, and toward compact centers linked by transit. Everywhere, even in Berkeley. 

Kirstin Miller 

Berkeley 

Editor: 

In response to the letter (8/31) from Terry Powell: 

Terry Powell from Lawrence Berkeley National Lab’s (LBNL) public relations department, operated for the Department of Energy (DOE), is just doing her job when she promotes the lab’s official line on the continuous dumping of radioactive waste from their National Tritiu Labeling Facility (NTLF) and Melvin Calvin Lab on the UC campus. 

The Lab’s boosters endlessly repeat the mantra “tritium emissions below the U.S. EPA’s National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Pollutants (NESHAPS).” Never do they address the many credible criticisms of their absurdly low estimate for radioactive tritium exposure, including those in the report by IFEU, made by independent scientists hired at local taxpayers’ expense by the City of Berkeley. 

Dumping in short bursts and a short stack actually located below the Lawrence Hall of Science (LHS) are easily understandable reasons why exposure to LHS workers and visiting children could exceed the NESHAPS standard. Just because the flawed exposure estimates concocted by LBNL remain unchallenged by the perfumed suits at the EPA and the California Department of Toxic Substances is no reason for anyone to believe them.  

All the Lab’s arguments seem like such blather when one visits the site and sees the tritium stack just 30 feet from the LHS’s fence. Common sense tells one that whatever is coming out of the stack is all over whoever is near it. In this cases it’s most of the areas children. Triatiated vapor is extremely hazardous and has been identified as a cause of leukemia, cancer, infertility and other genetic defects.  

Ms. Powell is incorrect when she states that almost all their tritium is captured and recycled. As sloppy as their records are, they do indicate large quantities missing. Even when LBNl has admittedly dumped does not support her claim.  

Also contrary to what Ms. Powell claimed, LBNL’s treatability “study” was just a scam to unload years of backlogged mixed waste without obtaining the usual permits. Mixed waste, toxic chemicals contaminated with radioactive waste, is fed into an “oxidation cell” complete with igniter plugs and exhaust vents, and can run in excess of 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. Sure sounds like an incinerator to me.  

Playing games by reclassifying the NTLF as a “non-nuclear” facility and “delisting” their mixed waste does not alter the reality that large amounts of dangerous radioactive material are stored, used and dumped there. Neither the NTLF or Calvin Lab are appropriately sited in our community and should be closed and cleaned up.  

Mark McDonald 

Berkeley 

Editor:  

Is 2700 San Pablo in a high crime area? The developers and their supporters keep saying it is. But the facts say otherwise.  

The Berkeley police keep statistics on a beat by beat basis of major crimes. It is available to the public on their Web site.  

2700 San Pablo is in beat 15. Beat 14 is across the street from Derby north. These two beats have nearly half the crime as does the average beat in Berkeley. In fact, there is only one of the 19 beats with a lower crime rate.  

This make it clear that whatever development takes place on that site will unlikely result in less crime. Indeed, the site will look better, housing will be provided - hopefully for low income families and the disabled, and the developers will prosper. But less crime? No.  

We already have a safe neighborhood. It’s much safer than the Berkeley hills, for instance.  

Bob Kubik 

Berkeley 

Editor: 

Folks: 

You may find this piece of interest. Simply a brief sketch of then and 

now at UCB coupled with a few suggestions for softening up some of the 

problems discussed. Could be, should be, taken seriously but probably 

won't be. 

October 5, 2000 

Dear Deans, Chairs & Miscellaneous Titles: 

What follows—some notes I took in my head as I walked on the campus the 

other day—will, hopefully, be an abrupt departure from your usual 

reading fare. Originally my intent was only to write several of the 

Deans, but my concerns spread as I ambled about, so I've sent this off 

to others of you that that might find my remarks of interest, if not of 

use, including some of the local press. 

Occasionally I chance on Campus, to renew my library card, get a book 

out, or just to consider the happenings over the last 35 years since I 

was a student here. 

First the bicycles threading their way speedily through the crowds, 

making the less than agile 70 year old like myself wary and nervous. As 

a practicing curmudgeon, I've made note of this to a Dean’s office 

several times before. Always a nice letter ensues—”we're looking into 

the matter, enforcement will prevail, admonishments will be made” and 

the like. But it gets worse. Where are the bikers going now that they 

didn't have to go when bikes were kept off the pathways? 

And now there are cars to watch out for too! Gone are the dirt paths and 

wild areas that used to make the place and pace so attractive. Now paved 

over—I'm told that after The Free Speech Movement the police asked that 

this be done so they could move quickly to tamp down disquiet wherever 

it might appear—and the wild places are now planted with new buildings 

housing the urgencies of progress. The Campus used to be such a serene 

public place, quiet enough to think about the education you were 

receiving, even to ruminate on whether it was worthwhile having one, or 

to consider bailing out of the rat race and shucking the career racket. 

There were even dedicated non-achievers around called bohemians 

who—peculiar souls—thought an education was an end in itself. Gone! 

Canceled now by high rents, high fees that require a straight ahead, 

vocational demeanor, or, barring that, the prospect of homelessness. 

The new stacks in the library with shelf after empty shelf. Computers 

that have emptied those shelves, replaced the card catalogue with the 

hype of cyberspace, heady stuff, with its virtual of everywhere while 

you go nowhere. A plaque on the wall as you enter “The Information 

Gateway” to the Moffitt Library computer room reminds one that this 

largess is “Made possible by a grant from Pacific Bell and its 

Foundation.” Students, the eyes of the corporations are upon you! 

The ubiquitous security systems. Are we inside or outside? 

The students running around with knapsacks on their backs. Are there 

books inside, or the debt notices that accrue after years of borrowing 

money to pay for what used to be essentially a free education? 

I must enthuse about one improvement however, the relatively new 

quartering of the economics department (my former field of inquiry) in 

Evans Hall, a building with all the dreary monumentality—totalitarian 

concrete—of the dismal science itself. What must the current crop of 

economists think of the new Haas School of Business now crowning the 

departed space of Cowell Hospital where free medical care was once at 

the service of every student? A palace compared to their quarters and 

properly so, nothing but the lap of luxury for the elite biz whizzes, 

the better for them to trumpet the bottom line culture now so widely 

applauded. Instead of the good life, the commodity life, the corporate 

life. 

And I note the Free Speech Movement has earned some mementos, a cafe 

named after it, with pictures of Mario Savio prominently displayed, and 

a hole in the ground in Sproul Plaza encircled with words somehow adding 

up to a commemoration of what once passed there; but now more often 

stepped on than read. Everyone can still toot the horn of free speech, 

say anything. But what are they saying in these days of this lengthy and 

highly selective prosperity? So much is known about what is wrong, even 

more is denied. . . but so little is being said. 

Basically the points made here suggest that the University (almost all 

Universities for that matter) have contributed more to the serious 

problems of today's society than to their abatement, illumination, 

alleviation and so on. There is simply been an incredible change for the 

worse, with some extremely important exceptions, since I was an 

undergraduate at UCB. 

So as not to be purely on the negative side, some suggestions that might 

both quiet down the hurry-scurry on the campus as well as relieve some 

of the street traffic: 

Eliminate bicycles from the campus, period, since they will invariably 

violate the rules if allowed. Eliminate scooters, skateboards, and 

whatever else takes away the need and the pleasure of walking. And throw 

out cell phones too for that matter. Take a hard look at all the 

automobile traffic on campus and ban everything except the very very 

necessary trips. Ban incoming “freshfolks” (my PC designation here is 

probably not up to snuff) and sophomores from bringing their vehicles 

with them during the year. Not only will that reduce traffic on the 

streets, but will send many elsewhere with their dangerous polluting 

toys, thus easing the fall crunch and the housing shortage. 

There is absolutely nothing in the rule book that certifies all change 

as progress or which denies the possibility of change directed in more 

amenable directions. 

James L. Fairley, Class of ‘53 

Eliot Fairley  

To:  

Berkeley Daiy Planet  

The St. Mary’s Panthers came into Friday’s contest at Pinole Valley hoping to get ready for league play with their third win in five games. But on this night, the Panthers didn’t have it in them to knock off the undefeated Spartans, who scored 32 unanswered points en route to a 39-7 victory. 

Pinole Valley (5-0) looked completely different from a team that finished last season with just two regular season wins. A balanced scoring attack featured three touchdowns through the air, two scores on the ground, and an interception return for a touchdown. Junior quarterback Adrian Smith posted an amazing 30 yards per pass attempt by completing eight of 11 passes for 330 yards. A balanced rushing attack saw Anthony Jones and Manjera Newson each rush 12 times for 61 and 69 yards, respectively, while yards D’Andre McFarland carried 13 times for 94 yards and a score.  

The Spartans scored on their first four offensive possessions and racked up 545 total offensive yards. Early on, the story of the game was Pinole Valley’s potent passing attack. On the very first play from scrimmage, senior split end Marcus Maxwell transformed a short slant pattern into an 84-yard touchdown on a nice play-action pass from Smith. Suddenly, Pinole Valley conjured up memories of the 49er glory days, with Smith and Washington playing the roles of Joe Montana and Jerry Rice convincingly. 

Maxwell scored a 30-yard touchdown on the ensuing Spartan possession with 8:07 left in the first quarter for a 13-0 lead. The Panthers were forced to punt again, but appeared to have the Spartans right where they wanted them after a 67-yard punt by Chris Hutchinson was downed at the Spartan one-yard line. 

Yet when the Panthers made a good play, the Spartans responded with a great one. Smith rolled to his right and found the "other" wide receiver for the Spartans, Marcus Davis, open for a 95-yard touchdown jaunt. If Maxwell is Pinole Valley’s Jerry Rice, then Davis is their John Taylor, shedding defenders seemingly at will. While Maxwell finished with five receptions for 177 yards and two touchdowns, Davis was no slouch with three receptions for 127 yards and a score. 

As for the Panthers, they struggled on offense all game long. Quarterback Jason Washington finished eight of 16 for 155 yards, a remarkable performance when you consider several of his throws were dropped by his receivers. Omar Young, who normally lines up exclusively at the wideout position, finished with three receptions for 66 yards but had to fill in at the running back position due to Trestin George’s due to "school issues."  

Fullback Danny Wheeler stepped up his game with 11 rushes for a team-high 87 yards despite suffering an ankle injury in the first half.  

St. Mary’s defense clamped down in the second half and broke through for the team’s lone score in the fourth quarter when Phil Weatheroy scooped up a fumble and sprinted 53 yards for a touchdown. Pinole Valley scored just once in the second half, and that came with 32 seconds remaining in the contest. 

The Panthers open up league play on Saturday, October 14th, with a 1:30 P.M. home contest against the Kennedy Eagles.

Aaron and Venita Higginbotham couldn’t believe their ears when their fifth grader at John Muir Elementary School told them how she was punished for chewing gum on a Thursday in mid-September. 

The Higginbothams said that when their daughter was caught with a mouthful of chewing gum on the playground, her teacher, Stephen Rutherford, made her spit the gum out, then get in the middle of a circle formed by her classmates, do a push-up and pick the gum back up with her mouth. 

“I thought that maybe she was making it up,” Aaron Higginbotham said. “So we sent her back to school the next day and my wife called to see what happened.” 

She called Principal Nancy D. Waters on Sept. 15 to see if the incident had happened and the principal confirmed it, Higginbotham said. 

Aaron Higginbotham went to the school that afternoon and told Waters that he wanted his daughter placed in the other fifth-grade class. 

“She said it wasn’t possible because the other class was too crowded,” he said. 

But after the Higginbothams met with Waters the following Monday and said that they were going to change schools, Waters agreed to the switch, he said. Higginbotham said, however, that Waters had a condition to the class change. The administrator said she would agree if they wouldn’t pursue any punishment for the teacher. 

Higginbotham said he told Waters he would not agree to that and he would pursue the teacher’s suspension. 

“I want to take this as far as I can. This is something that should never happen,” he said. 

Higginbotham said that his daughter was switched to the other class and is currently seeing a counselor because of the incident. 

Principal Waters declined to comment on the issue, saying that it is an employee matter, and deferred to the district’s Public Information Officer, Karen Sarlo. 

“By law, we can’t comment on personnel cases,” Sarlo said. “These things are closed because we have to protect the rights of the teacher and the student. The parents get due process, and the teacher gets due process.” 

Sarlo explained that the grievance process is a “well-documented complaint procedure,” and that every parent receives the forms on the back of a packet they get at back-to-school night. Higginbotham said that they didn’t go to back-to-school night, and when they asked for a form from Waters after the Monday meeting, she said she didn’t have one. So the Higginbothams tried to get one from Superintendent Jack McLaughlin’s office. 

The receptionist at the office told the couple that they would have to get the form from Waters. 

It wasn’t until they got in touch with a PTA member from the school that the official grievance process got underway, Higginbotham said. 

Sarlo said that the complaint process is four-tiered. It begins with the school principal, and if the parents aren’t satisfied, it then goes to Associate Superintendent Chris Lim. From there, it goes to McLaughlin. If the parents are still not satisfied, the Board of Education will hear the matter. 

Higginbotham said Friday evening that since the meeting with Waters, they have met with Berkeley Federation of Teachers President Barry Fike and Associate Superintendent Lim. They still feel they hadn’t been given all the answers, Higginbotham said. 

Fike said that he was unable to respond to the Daily Planet about the discipline levied against the teacher because of a confidentiality agreement. 

“There are two sides to every story,” he said. “The district is in the midst of handling this through the formal complaint process bound by a confidentiality agreement that I thought was also agreed to by the parents of the child. 

“In my opinion, the discipline procedures being implemented by the district are appropriate for the infraction, whereas the ones being demanded by the parents go way beyond,” he said. The Higginbothams are still asking for the teacher’s suspension. 

Superintendent McLaughlin, who said Friday afternoon that he was unaware of the incident, told the Daily Planet that the teacher would be disciplined. 

“That is not something that would be allowed,” he said. 

When asked if it were grounds for suspension, McLaughlin said, “Not by itself.” 

Higginbotham said that he went to the press because he didn’t feel his complaint was being honored by Waters. He felt that she was trying to stifle the matter before it went to Lim. 

“She said that ‘we have a happy community at John Muir,’ and she didn’t want to tarnish it,” he said. 

Fike was also concerned about the Claremont Avenue campus’ image. 

“I am very concerned about the press trying to foster a witchhunt environment at John Muir,” he said. “I’m sure the new John Muir community will come together to prevent this from happening.” 

***** 

In May of 1999, parents of students in a John Muir kindergarten went on strike when teacher Cindy Vaias was reassigned to another school. 

Several parents later met with administration to criticize then-principal Barbara Lee’s alleged insensitivity to the multi-ethnic composition of the student body. 

Twenty staff members signed a letter stating that Lee’s administration had fostered an atmosphere of fear and that the parents had lost faith in the school administration. 

Many parents and teachers, however, rallied around Lee, but the school was polarized and Lee was reassigned. 

Enter Nancy D. Waters. The be-boppin’ scat-singer who, whenever possible, sings instead of talks, took over for Lee in November of 1999. 

“Nancy D. has done so much to bring that community together,” Sarlo said. “ She’s really an amazing woman.” 

Higginbotham, an African-American, doesn’t want to believe that his daughter’s race could have played a role in the incident. 

“I don’t think that race has anything to do with it,” he said. “I don’t want to think that, not after what happened there, and not in Berkeley.” 

The teacher in question is white. 

***** 

Higginbotham says that the teacher told him that he knew what he did was wrong when they met with Waters that Monday. 

“He said they were playing a ‘zany’ game and said he didn’t think she would go through with it,” he said. 

Part of his ire stems from the fact that the neither the teacher nor Waters bothered to call him or his wife afterwards. 

“My wife noticed that my daughter was acting strange that day,” he said. “That was how we found out.” 

Sarlo said the incident was isolated, and that she is not aware of any other complaints that have arisen at John Muir. 

She said that she’s confident that the matter will be handled justly. 

“You just have got to believe in the process, and that there will be justice for everyone,” she said.

Coming on strong after a tepid first game, Cal women’s volleyball team rallied to win the next three as the Bears defeated the University of Washington at RSF Fieldhouse Friday, 14-16, 15-9, 13-15 and 15-5. 

Digging themselves a deep hole in the first game, the Bears rattled off eight straight points on its way to a 14-11 lead. After a kill by Gabrielle Abernathy gave the Bears a side out, Washington strung together five points to close out the game and take a 1-0 lead in the match.  

“We came in knowing that they were a team close to our caliber of play,” said Cal senior Alicia Perry. “We definitely could have played better.” 

The Bears had a 7-4 lead in game two when Cal assist leader Candace McNamee twisted her ankle. McNamee hobbled off the court with trainer assistance and didn’t return to the lineup. On crutches after the match, she said her ankle was sprained and swollen, but she’s not thinking of it as a serious injury.  

“Not too many teams can lose a starter, come back in game three with a completely different lineup and play as well as we did,” said Cal coach Rich Feller. “It took us a while to get our momentum, but Caity (Noonan) responded well.” 

Several Cal players stepped up after Feller was forced to shuffle his lineup midway through the second game. Sophomore Reena Pardiwala connected on 14 kills and posted a match-high .565 hitting percentage. Abernathy’s match-high 29 kills were coupled with 10 digs. 

In addition to Perry’s 26 kills, she added 30 digs, two shy of a Cal school record. 

“We focused on our side of the net,” Perry said, “I think we really pulled together as a team tonight.” 

Still, the Bears started the third game in the same sluggish way that they began the first two. Falling behind 8-2, Cal once again rallied to win 13 of the next 18 points and defeated the Huskies on an Abernathy serve. 

“We just weren’t good at closing out tonight,” Feller said after watching his team blow numerous game points in the first three games of the match. “I got on them in our pre-game talk and told them they weren’t serious enough.” 

The Bears got serious in the fourth and final game. Cal never trailed, jumping out to a 7-3 lead and scoring seven of the game’s final nine points. 

Cal committed only two errors in the final game, compared to Washington’s 10. 

Cal improves to 7-6 overall and 3-4 in the Pac-10 while the Huskies fall to 4-9 overall and are 0-6 in conference play. 

Cal faces Washington State University Saturday at 7 p.m. at the RSF Fieldhouse. Feller said McNamee probably won’t play and that it will require more lineup shuffling. He added that last year against the Washington teams, Cal used Perry as a setter. 

“If we’re struggling, we might try that again,” he said. “It’s probably a better option for us not to change too many things, though.”

The first time that photographer Stephen Shames saw Black Panther Party co-founders Bobby Seale and Huey Newton, they were selling copies of “The Thoughts of Chairman Mao” at a San Francisco peace march in 1967. 

“I remember seeing Bobby Seale and being impressed with the forcefulness of his personality,” said Shames, 53, who was a budding photographer and student at UC Berkeley at the time. 

From that day on, Shames was hooked on taking photos of the Panthers at its rallies or at its first office in Berkeley. 

The photographs that chronicle the group’s early days are now on display at the Center for Photography gallery at UC Berkeley’s North Gate Hall. The exhibit opened Thursday night and is the largest collection of Black Panther Party pictures ever assembled, Shames said. The display continues until Jan. 19. 

Shames said a goal of the exhibit is to display images of the party and its activities that the public rarely sees. One picture shows a child in Oakland eating cereal at the free breakfasts hosted by the Black Panthers.  

The free breakfasts, along with free medical and legal services, were part of the organization’s “survival” programs that assisted poor people in the mid-60’s. 

Another picture captures a tender embrace between David Hilliard, former chief of staff of the Black Panther Party, and his wife. 

But the exhibit does not shy away from displaying the organization’s call for its members to arm themselves. One picture shows Huey Newton giving a speech as another Panther Party member stands nearby by with a shotgun in his hand. 

Another photo is a candid shot of some children playing in a bedroom. 

“(The Panthers) had a house for the kids. They got raided all the time by the police and they figured that the police weren’t going to raid the kids’ house. They never did,” said Shames. 

One image is from the funeral of George Jackson, a Panther Party member and black militant leader who was killed in San Quentin Prison in 1971. 

“Those were very depressing, very disturbing times. It was constant psychological purgatory,” said Hilliard, who spoke about Jackson and fellow Panther Party members who were killed. “These were my comrades and my friends. Those were not easy times,” said Hilliard, who ran unsuccessfully this year for an Oakland City Council seat. 

Shames said that the relationship between himself and the Panthers, particularly Seale and Hilliard, went beyond that of simply photographer and subject. 

“I really think of them as kind of fathers to me. Bobby, especially, saw some merit in my photography. I hung out with them a lot, and that was okay with them,” he said. 

Ronald Freeman, 54, a former Black Panther field secretary in Los Angeles was trying to see if there was a photograph of himself in the exhibit. 

“You couldn’t say I was camera-shy, but I was involved in a lot of different activities and I really didn’t need to have my picture on the six o’clock news,” he said. 

Freeman did not find himself in any of the photographs. But he said he was pleased with the show which brought back memories of a time when he thought the Black Panther Party could solve the problems of the world. 

“It’s not over yet. But you just can’t come at it from that position, as far as an armed struggle. You have to come at it from community organizing. But yeah, we thought we could do it,” said Freeman.

PULLMAN, Wash. - The California women’s soccer team opened the 2000 Pac-10 season with a 2-1 victory over Washington State Friday at the Cougar Soccer Field, as forward Laura Schott continued her blistering scoring pace with both goals for the Golden Bears. 

The seventh-ranked Golden Bears continued their undefeated season, improving to 11-0-1 (1-0 Pac-10), while the Cougars dropped to 8-3 overall and 0-1 in league play.  

“In the first half, we were a little flat,” Cal coach Kevin Boyd said after the match. “We were up 1-0, but we weren’t putting everything together. Two things we needed were better possession out of our central midfield and better communication. In the second half, we settled down and played like we normally do. At that point, we took control of the game. There were at least two or three other chances we should have scored on in the second half.”  

All-America candidate Schott continued to provide the offensive spark for Cal. The sophomore put the Bears up 1-0 with a goal in the 11th minute when she collected a ball midfielder Kim Stocklmeier had flicked on over the defense and slotted the ball past WSU goalkeeper Sara Leibowitz.  

Cal held a 1-0 advantage until WSU tied the game on a goal by forward Deka DeWitt against the run of play at 54:17.  

Schott put the Bears up for good at 72:18 when she found the back of the net from 15 yards out after receiving a pass from sophomore midfielder Brittany Kirk.  

Schott leads Cal with 33 points, surpassing her team-leading 30 points as a freshman with eight regular season games remaining. 

After being outshot 10-9 in the first half, Cal held a commanding 14-2 edge in the second period.  

Cal has a critical test at No. 9 Washington Sunday at noon at Husky Soccer Field in Seattle. The Huskies, who enter the weekend at 9-1, face Stanford at home Friday evening.

Hatem Bazian, an Islamic studies and Arabic teacher at UC Berkeley, lost his 14–year–old cousin to Israeli bullets last week. 

The boy was shot dead by Israeli soldiers during the clashes that have wracked Israel and the Palestinian territories for nine straight days, killing 76 Palestinians and wounding over 2,000 others. Some three Israelis have also died. 

Yesterday, Bazian led some 3,500 people in prayer and protest in San Francisco. The demonstration was one of dozens in North America, Europe, and the Arab and Muslim world, to protest Israel’s storming Al–Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. 

Friday’s demonstration was the fourth in the Bay Area this week, following protests in San Francisco, Berkeley and Sacramento. It began with prayer outside City Hall and ended with a rally outside the Israeli Consulate. 

“We will persevere and we will resist – because it is human to resist,” Bazian told the audience on the lawn at City Hall. 

“The tanks that move and rumble on the West Bank and Gaza Strip are made and paid for by the American taxpayer.” 

Men and women sat separately on tarps laid on the grass. Two children stood behind Bazian waving Palestinian flags and standing on Israeli ones. Bazian took his audience through 3,000 years of Palestinian history in an hour, then led the group in prayer. 

A handful of Bay Area mosques closed so that their members could attend the rally, and others directed their congregations to the protest after the Friday prayer. Muslims all over the world were summoned to demonstrate on the Muslim holy day, said Iman Farajallah, a chief organizer of the rally. 

“You cannot use rockets, live bullets and bombs to civilians,” said Farajallah, the director of American Muslims for Global Peace and Justice. 

After prayer, the crowd began its march, picking up people along the way. “No justice, no peace!” they called. Then the Arabic, “With our blood and our soul, we will liberate Palestine” echoed through Kearney Street. 

As the group neared the Israeli Consulate, the crowd broke into a run, waving Palestinian flags. “Arab Palestine!” people chanted, by now numbering at least 3,000, according to police estimates. 

The Israeli Consulate closed early for the Friday Jewish sabbath. A consular spokesperson did not return phone calls to comment on this article. 

The back of a rented U-Haul pickup truck on the street served as a stage outside the consulate. Christian and Jewish speakers, as well as Muslims called for an end to the Israeli occupation. 

Many at the protest were Palestinian. Ramzi Taha, 17, wearing a T–shirt hand–painted with Palestinian flags, has been in the United States just over a year. His uncle was killed at a protest this week. Taha said he talks on the phone with his relatives in the West Bank. “It’s in a fire. They cannot control it,” he said. 

“A few of my neighbors got killed,” said Bassim Elkarra, a member of the Arab Students Union at UC Berkeley. “I can’t even study – in the past week I’ve barely gone to class,” said Elkarra, whose father is currently visiting Gaza. 

“There must be no more blood in our name,” said Bazian.

In the lobby of the Pacific Film Archive’s George Gund Theater in the Berkeley Art Museum building there is a wall of photographs taken at demonstrations in cities around the world and collected by the Independent Media Center. The photomontage is a ten-month timeline of global activism starting with the demonstrations outside the World Trade Organization meetings in Seattle in November, 1999. 

The timeline has a blank space reserved for images from the protests around the National Association of Broadcasters convention in San Francisco two weeks ago, and from demonstrations in Prague. Dee Dee Halick is busy putting together pictures to fill out the wall. 

“The work of the Independent Media Center and the growth of this kind of collective work has kind of mushroomed since Seattle,” said Halick, co-founder of the Paper Tiger Television collective, now in residency at the Pacific Film Archive. Halick, who began the New York-based organization creating and distributing independent video work almost 20 years ago, says media activism this year has been inspired by the events in Seattle. 

Collaboration and coalition are perennial activist goals. Rick Rawley, co-director of “This is What Democracy Looks Like,” a film about the WTO demonstrations, said people have been talking about getting together for decades. “But it took the events of the week and the experience of being pulled through all that went down there to feel it, to actually make it happen.” 

“We didn’t want to make a film that argued about why we need to come together, to make those reasoned arguments. We wanted to make a people viscerally experience the coalition work of a decade condensed into a week.” And, to use another old activist catchphrase, the medium is the message. Rawley’s film is made up of images and sound collected from over 100 media activists, and gets it’s visceral power in large part from the ubiquitous perspective. 

“This is What Democracy Looks Like” will screen at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco Saturdays and Sundays at noon, beginning Oct. 14. They will continue weekend matinee shows for as long as audiences show up. 

If Seattle was a high-water mark for activists, what happens now? Paper Tiger Television is at the PFA to suggest some answers, and they don’t involve throwing bricks or dodging pepper spray. PTTV presents “Hands On! Youth, Media, and Activism after Seattle” at the PFA this weekend and next with video screenings and workshops to teach people everything from making a revolutionary computer games to walking on stilts. 

Since its conception PTTV has fostered young people to make videotapes as a way to instill critical media thinking, and the PFA will be screening a taste of these works. “Road to Mississippi: Reclaiming Our History” is a factual dismantling of the film “Mississippi Burning” and an attempt to repair the historical licenses taken by the producers of that film. Although the research and ardently pushed didactic are respectable, the style is a little stilted – equal parts aping network broadcast techniques and composing a high school paper. 

A more engaging tape, and a truer document of life, is “Homecoming Queens,” in which tenants of a gay/lesbian/transgender youth group home were given cameras to interview each other. “Why try to compete with NBC?” said Halick about PTTV’s work methods. “You’re never going to be NBC, so why not be honest about the way it’s being made? Why put a fake plant on the set?” 

The raw video style gets dolled up with preening narcissism and tips on how to make fake breasts out of water-filled condoms. But through the giggling dormitory hijinks the sober side of a group living is articulated by one house member who says, “this is not what I consider a home.” 

“Homecoming Queens” and “Road to Mississippi” will both screen at the Pacific Film Archive Sunday at 3 p.m. Halick’s own video “Gringo in Mananaland” (1995), a comic assemblage of Hollywood movie clips tracing the popular American imagining of Latin America, will screen on Tuesday, Oct.10. 

The collaborative spirit, which exploded in Seattle and causes ripples of activist momentum yet, is in evidence in the workshops at the PFA. Organizations and individuals will gather to demonstrate and instruct their own unique ways of activism. TILT (Teaching Intermedia Literacy Tool) will be on hand to show how they go into schools and clubs to teach kids how to deconstruct mass media products. Multimedia artist Patap Chaterjee will demonstrate computer games he designed to take pot shots at corporate culture by spoofing popular video games. Offline, Catherine Schucter will give tips on ‘zine production and the art of Xerocracy, and Luana Plunkett and Neil Morrison will show how to take a stand at the next demonstration in stilts. 

Workshops, open to anyone, are on Oct. 8 and 15 at 11 a.m., in the lobby of the Pacific Film Archive in the Berkeley Art Museum.

SAN FRANCISCO – A judge on Friday dramatically reduced the damages a jury awarded to 19 black workers who were discriminated against by their employer at a Wonder Bread plant. 

In all, a San Francisco Superior Court jury in August awarded the black employees $121 million in punitive damages and $11 million for lost wages and for pain and suffering. But Superior Court Judge Stuart R. Pollak said the awards were excessive, and ordered Interstate Bakeries Corp., the nation’s largest bakery wholesaler, to pay $27 million. 

“Even for a large corporation, these amounts are not insignificant and there is no reason to assume they will be taken lightly by the defendant or by the officers who are accountable for the financial results of the company,” Pollak’s order said. 

A week ago, Pollak said he would reduce the verdict. Such a high punitive damages award, which is to punish the company and to deter it from future discrimination, was simply not “necessary,” he said. 

“I’m not at all persuaded that anything like $121 million is necessary to make the point that the jury was trying to make here ... to deter such conduct in the future,” Pollak said from the bench during a three-hour hearing last week. 

After a two-month trial and nine days of deliberations, a jury found that the drivers, salesman and assemblyline workers at the San Francisco plant were passed over for promotions, subjected to racial slurs and suffered other indignities. 

Angela Alioto, one of the attorneys for the workers, said she was satisfied with the reduction and will urge her clients to accept Pollak’s decision. Pollak wrote that the plaintiffs could reject his ruling and seek a new trial. 

“I believe my best advice would be to accept this and move on with your life,” she said. 

The plaintiffs were not immediately available for comment. 

The bakery, based in Kansas City, Mo., produces Wonder Bread, Twinkies, Home Pride and Hostess Cupcakes. 

In a statement, the bakery said it was pleased with the judge’s decision but said it would appeal. 

“We continue to believe that the allegations are unsubstantiated,” the company said. 

The same jury also awarded 21 workers involved in the suit $11 million in actual damages to cover lost wages and for pain and suffering, but the judge reduced that to $3 million. 

“The evidence clearly was insufficient to justify the verdict,” Pollak wrote.

ANDERSON – Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt took his dam-busting tour to Northern California on Friday, starting the demolition of a nearly century-old structure to free miles of flowing water for spring-run salmon. 

Saeltzer Dam is a 20-foot high, 90-foot wide barrier across Deer Creek. Authorities said its removal, authorized by the state and federal organization called CalFed, will improve flow along a nine-mile stretch. 

“We are making water conservation history today,” Babbitt said. 

State Resources Secretary Mary Nichols agreed. 

“The dam was useless. It’s silted up, and it’s not fulfilling its purpose,” she said. 

About 12 miles of prime salmon spawning habitat lie behind the dam, which was built in 1903 about 150 miles north of Sacramento. Central Valley spring-run Chinook salmon were listed as a threatened species last year under the federal Endangered Species Act. 

The removal project will cost about $5.8 million. 

Since last year, some two dozen dams have been removed from Idaho to North Carolina, and at least 18 others are scheduled to go this year. 

Moments after Babbitt’s comments, a back hoe began pulling chunks of concrete from the dam face. Some restoration work has already been done. A creek channel was straightened and lined with fresh gravel. 

Environmentalists say hundreds of dams nationwide have outlived their usefulness and are causing environmental damage. 

The issue has fired particular debate in the Pacific Northwest, where environmentalists have called for the removal of four dams from the Snake River to protect salmon spawning grounds.

Some 500 people rallied at Sproul Plaza on the UC Berkeley campus Thursday, decrying the more than 50 deaths and over 1,000 injuries in the West Bank and Gaza strip resulting from the recent altercations between Israeli soldiers on the one hand and Palestinians and Arab Israelis on the other. 

“No justice no peace,” the crowd called out between speakers. 

Graduate student Hatem Bazian talked about 12-year-old Mohammed Jamal Aldura who died from an Israeli soldier’s bullet Saturday. The ambulance driver trying to get to the child was also killed. 

“That little child was killed point blank by the Israelis,” Bazian told the crowd. It now is being conceded that the child was in fact killed by the Israelis, although first reports said he was “caught in the crossfire,” Bazian said. 

Altercations broke out a week ago after Israeli opposition leader Ariel Sharon visited a holy site in Jerusalem, sacred to Jews and Muslims. The visit sparked an angry response from Palestinians, which reportedly included rock and Molotov cocktail throwing and a heavily armed response from the Israelis. 

Bazian said the U.S. Congress and press portrays the Palestinians as aggressors and the Israelis the victims, with the settlers seen as the John-Wayne type hero. But he said, in fact, it is the Palestinians who have been uprooted from their homes and forced to live as refugees. 

He said violence is more easily perpetrated by the Israelis because they dehumanize the Palestinians. “When will it be in the mind of the Israelis that the Palestinians will be human?” he asked, contending that most the shootings of Arab Israelis and Palestinians have been in the upper body, demonstrating an intention to kill. 

Bazian placed the blame on the American people. “Every bullet that hits a Palestinian is made and paid for courtesy of the U.S.,” he said.  

Among the mostly-student crowd was Daniel Boyarin, UC Berkeley professor of Jewish studies. Boyarin describes himself as an Orthodox Jew and anti-Zionist. Having lived in Israel for a decade, Boyarin, a former supporter of the state of Israel, said he learned from living there that the logical consequence of developing a country as a Jewish state is oppression towards those who would want to share state power. 

He described the recent events as “tragic,” but not something people should not have expected. It is “the necessary consequence of the existence of the Zionist state...a logical consequence of oppression,” he said. 

He said the oppression against the minority Arab and Palestinian populations goes on day to day and it is only the kind of violence recently perpetrated that brings people to the streets. 

After the rally, a group of Jewish students from Hillel and the Jewish Student Union sang songs and called on both Israelis and Palestinians to put an end to the violence. 

The Israeli consulate in San Francisco was called for comment but did not return Daily Planet calls.

Friday, Oct. 6

Opera: Marriage of Figaro  

& Schubert Songs 

1 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

More info contact Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

Circle Dancing 

7:45 p.m. - 10 p.m. 

Finnish Brotherhood Hall 

1970 Chestnut St. 

Beginners welcome; no partners needed.  

John Bear: 528-4253 

“Stocks, Bonds and the Future” 

11:45 a.m.  

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Dennis Quan, Account Executive at Morgan, Stanley, Dean Witter speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. Luncheon: $11  

848-3533 

Sustainable Business Alliance Networking Lunch 

Noon - 1:30 p.m. 

Saffron Caffe 

2813 Seventh St. 

The purpose of this lunch is to network with other businesses interested in sustainable business practices. The lunch is open to non-members.  

Call Terry O’Keefe, 451-4000 

Learn to Birdwatch 

Oct. 16, 18, 23 & 25 

9:30 a.m. - noon 

UC Botanical Gardens 

200 Centennial Drive 

$50 for members; $65 for non-members 

Call for info or to enroll: 643-2755 

Saturday, Oct. 7

Berkeley Grassroots  

Greening Tour 

Starts at 10:45 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. 

Celebrate Open Garden Day by joining this annual bicycle tour of local community and school gardens. Part of a series of free outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance. 

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Houses or Open Hills? 

10 a.m.  

Experience Black Diamond Mines Regional Park’s ghost towns, coal mines, spectacular views and open space on this hike by the proposed sites of 7,700 homes near Antioch. Cosponsored by Save Mount Diablo. One outing in a free series organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Open Garden Day 

11 a.m. - 4 p.m.  

The sixth annual Open Garden Day offers garden lovers an opportunity to peek into 34 local community and school gardens. The gardens offer fresh food, children’s activities, composting demonstrations, and more. Special electric bus tour and bicycle tours will be available. Maps and schedules are available in East Bay libraries, nurseries, and in the pages of this very newspaper.  

More info: BCGC, 883-9096  

Harwood Creek Cleanup 

9 a.m. - Noon 

John Muir School  

2955 Claremont Ave. 

Help clean up and restore the creek that runs through John Muir school. Volunteers are asked to bring gloves, chippers/shredders, tools and pick-up trucks. 

Voter Empowerment  

Town Hall Meeting 

1 - 4 p.m. 

West Bay Community Center 

1290 Fillmore St. 

San Francisco 

Sponsors include the Berkeley NAACP Youth Council. 

For additional info: 1-877-316-9071 

Women’s Evening At the Movies 

7:30 p.m. 

Pacific Center 

2712 Telegraph 

A monthly night at the movies for lesbian, bi and transexual women. This months featured film is “Fried Green Tomatoes.” 

$5 donation requested 

Call 548-8283  

Free Estate Planning Seminar 

9:30 a.m. - noon 

St. Ambrose Church 

1145 Gilman St. (at Cornell Ave.) 

Call Catholic Charities of the East Bay, 768-3109 

Berkeley Youth  

Alternatives Harvest Fair 

11 a.m. - 3 p.m. 

BYA Community Garden Patch 

1308 Bancroft Way (between Acton and Bonar) 

The seventh annual fair features pumpkin carving, face painting, music, Karaoke, crafts, and fresh produce grown right in the BYA garden. Kids of all ages are welcome.  

Call 845-9067 

Locate Long-lost Relatives 

10 a.m. - 2 p.m.  

Cody’s Books 

1730 Fourth St. 

If you are looking for a missing relative, the International Soundex Reunion Registry may be able to help. The ISRR is a free, nonprofit service.  

Call Bob Crowe, 835-1550 

Pearl Ubungren Dancers  

with Joey Ayala 

PUSOD 

1808 Fifth St.  

Also performing will be Kayumanggi and Bobby Banduria. Free.  

Call 883-1808 for additional info.  

Wild About Books? 

10:30 a.m. 

Berkeley Central Library 

2121 Allston Way 

Storyteller/musicians Nancy Schimmel and Claudia Morrow do their thing for kids aged 3 to 7.  

Call 649-3943  

Sunday, Oct. 8

Voter Registration Sunday 

11 a.m. service 

St. Paul’s AME Church 

2024 Ashby Ave. 

Sponsored by the Berkeley NAACP Youth and College division 

Call: 710-0238 

Surmounting Sunol Peaks  

9 a.m. - 4 p.m.  

Learn about local geology while enjoying the panoramic views from three Sunol peaks. One outing in a free series organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations  

Author and Minister  

Sarah York to Speak 

10:45 a.m.  

Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley 

1 Lawson Road 

Kensington 

York is the author of “Remembering Well: Rituals for Celebrating Life and Mourning Death.” 

More info: 525-0302 

Tibetan Cultural Preservation 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute  

1815 Highland Place 

Erin Clark and Sandy Olney speak on “Sustaining the Tibetan Tradition.” 

call 843-6812 

MesoAmerican Marketplace 

noon - 4 p.m. (weekdays) 

10 a.m. - 4 p.m. (weekends) 

UC Botanical Garden 

200 Centennial Dr.  

Visit this colorful marketplace where food from all of the Americas are displayed and ready for the tasting. A special weekday tour program is available for school children. Call 642-3352 to reserve a tour.  

Tuesday, Oct. 10 

Cal Alumni Singles  

20th Anniversary Dinner 

UC Faculty Club 

Dinner scheduled for Oct. 15 

For reservations call 527-2709 by Oct. 10 

—Compiled by  

Chason Wainwright 

Kenya, 40 Years Ago and Today 

1 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Call 644-6107 for more info  

Defense Against Genetically Engineered Food 

7 p.m.  

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. 

Author Ronnie Cummins, National Director of the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) will lecture on genetically engineered food, including organic food and farming.  

For info: 548-2220 x233 

Wednesday, Oct. 11

Are Domed Cities in the future? 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom  

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion based on UC Berkeley alumnus Tim Holt’s book, “On Higher Ground.” Set 50 years in the future, part of the book takes place in an East Bay enclosed by a climate-controlled dome.  

$3 admission  

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Tenant-Landlord Problems? 

12:30 - 2 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Bring your concerns about repairs, harrassment and housing rights.  

Call 644-6107 

Learn to Birdwatch 

Oct. 16, 18, 23 & 25 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

UC Botanical Gardens 

200 Centennial Drive 

$50 for members; $65 for non-members 

Call for info or to enroll: 643-2755 

White Cane Day  

10:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m. 

Spenger’s Fish Grotto 

1919 Fourth St.  

Pyramid Alehouse 

901 Gilman Ave. 

Members of the West Berkeley Lions Club will be asking for donations of money or used eyeglasses for the sight impaired. The Lions will be out in front of Pyramid Alehouse from 4:30 - 8 p.m. only.  

Call Joe Saenz, 352-2093 

Homeless Commission 

7 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center  

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

644-8616 

Police Review Commission 

7:30 p.m.  

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis St.  

The commission will discuss their workplan/goals for the upcoming year.  

644-6716 

Board of Library Trustees 

7 p.m.  

South Branch  

1901 Russell  

644-6095 

Waterfront Commission 

7 p.m. 

His Lordships Restaurant 

199 Seawall Dr.  

644-6376 x234 

Planning Commission 

7 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

705-8137 

Commission on Disability 

6:30 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

655-3440 

Thursday, Oct. 12

East Timor: The Road to Independence 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave. 

A discussion of events leading up to the creation of the newest nation of the millennium and issues raised on the road to independence.  

$3 admission 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Bay Area: Transportation Nightmare 

Noon - 2 p.m. 

Albany Library 

Edith Stone Room  

1247 Marin Ave. 

Albany 

Stuart Cohen of the Bay Area Transportation and Land Use Coalition will speak on “What are the real choices in the Bay Area’s Transportation Crisis?” 

Call Janet Strothman, 841-3827 

Meeting Life Changes 

10 a.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

With John Hammerman.  

For info: 644-6107 

Sterling Trio 

Noon  

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

Members of the Berkeley Symphony performing a variety of chamber music. 

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Zoning Adjustments Commission 

7 p.m.  

Old City Hall  

2134 MLK Jr. Way 

705-8110 

Community Health Commission 

6:45 p.m.  

Mental Health Clinic 

2640 MLK Jr. Way 

665-6845 

Friday, Oct. 13

“The Evolution and Cost of Ethical Drugs” 

11:45 a.m.  

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Stanford D. Splitter, retired MD speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11 

Call for reservations: 848-3533 

Saturday, Oct. 14

Indigenous Peoples Day Powwow & Indian Market 

10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Grand Entry 1 p.m.  

Enjoy Native American foods, arts & crafts, drumming, singing and many types of native dancing. Sponsored by the City of Berkeley, this event is free.  

Civic Center Park 

Allston Way at MLK Jr. Way 

Info: 615-0603 

Traffic Calming Workshop 

1 - 4 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets.  

Free Spay and Neuter Vouchers 

2 - 4 p.m.  

Berkeley Animal Shelter 

2013 Second St. 

The City of Berkeley, along with Spay Neuter Your Pet (SNYP) is kicking off a City-funded program to reduce the number of animals euthanized. They are offering free spay and neuter vouchers to all Berkeley residents.  

Run Your Own Landscape Business: Part 1 

11 a.m. - 1 p.m. 

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. (at Blake) 

Local horticultural consultant and UC Master Gardener Jessie West will teach you how to plant, prune, control weeds, and more. The first of three classes. The others are scheduled for Oct. 21 & 28 in the same timeslot. 

$15 general; $10 for members; $5 materials fee 

Call 548-2220 x223 

Learn to Birdwatch 

Oct. 16, 18, 23 & 25 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

UC Botanical Gardens 

200 Centennial Drive 

$50 for members; $65 for non-members 

Call for info or to enroll: 643-2755 

Sunday, Oct. 15

A Taste of the Greenbelt 

1 - 4 p.m. 

Los Gatos Opera House 

Celebrate the Bay Area’s agricultural and culinary bounty. This benefit features a variety of musical groups, local artists and samples from over 40 local restaurants, farmers, wineries and microbreweries. Proceeds benefit Greenbelt Alliance’s ongoing efforts to protect Bay Area farmlands and open space.  

$45 per person; $80 for this event and the Oct. 22 event in SF 

1-800-543-GREEN, www.greenbelt.org 

A Muslim Approach to Life 

3 p.m. 

St. Johns Presbyterian Church 

2727 College Ave.  

A presentation on the Muslim spiritual life and culture which will focus on women’s lives and the uniqueness of women’s spiritual journeys. This is the first of four Sunday programs that will focus on this theme.  

Call 527-4496 

Time, Space, and Knowledge Vision 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Place 

Ken McKeon , teacher writer and TSK practitioner since 1980 speaks on “Time, Space, and Knowledge, Right from the Start.” Free. 

Call 843-6812 

1923 North Berkeley Fire Walking Tour 

10 a.m. - Noon 

Phil Gale leads this tour of the Sept. 18, 1923 fire site, identifying various changes wrought in buildings and landscape. The tour includes the Mayback chimney, around which a new home was constructed. Pre-paid reservations are required.  

$10 

Call for reservations, 848-0181 

Monday, Oct. 16

Private Elementary School Parent Information Panel 

7 - 9:30 p.m. 

Epworth United Methodist Church 

1953 Hopkins St.  

A panel of parents from six area private schools discuss the admission process and their experiences. Sponsored by the Neighborhood Parents Network 

Admission: free to members, $5 non-members 

Call 527-6667 

Learn to Birdwatch 

Oct. 16, 18, 23 & 25 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

UC Botanical Gardens 

200 Centennial Drive 

$50 for members; $65 for non-members 

Call for info or to enroll: 643-2755 

Tuesday, Oct. 17

Is the West Berkeley Shellmound a landmark? 

7 p.m.  

City Council Chambers 

2134 MLK Jr. Way, 2nd floor 

Continued and final public hearing on the appeals against landmark designation of the West Berkeley Shellmound. The City Council may possibly make it’s decision at this meeting. 

Landscape Archeology and Space-Age Technologies in Epirus, Greece 

8 p.m.  

370 Dwinelle Hall 

UC Berkeley 

Professor of Archeology, Art History and Classics Dr. James Wiseman presents a slide-illustrated lecture. 

Mario Savio Memorial Lecture 

7:30 p.m. 

Pauley Ballroom 

UC Berkeley 

Barbara Ehrenreich and Arlie Hochschild will speak on the theme “Forwards and Backwards - Women, globalization, and the new class structure.” Free.  

Help Out Some Orangutans 

7 p.m.  

Cafe Milanos 

2522 Bancroft Way 

Come help plan a day of action against Citibank, who allegedly plunders the environment for profit. Join the Rainforest Action Group and Ecopledge in protest.  

Is the Sky Falling? 

7 p.m.  

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. 

Tim Holt, author of “On Higher Ground” will present an array of post-ecotopian choices, one of which is domed cities. What does the future hold for California?  

Call 548-2220 x 233  

Wednesday, Oct. 18

Traffic Calming Workshop 

7 - 10 p.m. 

St. Clements Church 

2837 Clement Blvd.  

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets.  

“Women and Trafficking: Domestic & Global Concerns” 

6 - 9:30 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

The Berkeley Commission on the Status of Women invites the public to this forum which will include an expert panel discussion, and a movie on Women and trafficking. Free. 

Call 644-6107 for more info.  

Thursday, Oct. 19

The Promise and Perils of Transgenic Crops 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion with Dr. Peggy Lemaux, professor of Plant and Microbiology at UC Berekeley, of the scientific basis for biotechnology, it’s risks and benefits. 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Rafael Mariquez Free Solo Concert 

7:30 p.m. 

Berkeley Public Library, South Branch 

1901 Russell St. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This Chilean folksinger and guitarist presents his original settings of selections by Latin American poets. 

Contact: 644-6860; TDD 548-1240 

Vocal Sauce 

Noon 

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

The JazzSchool’s vocal jazz ensemble perform award-winning arrangements by Greg Murai.  

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Performance Poetica 

7:30 p.m. 

ATA Gallery 

992 Valencia St. 

San Francisco 

Video and verse by Illionois Arts Council/Hemingway Festival poet and filmmaker Rose Virgo, with special guest Judy Irwin.  

$3  

Friday, Oct. 20

“The Ballot Issues” 

11:45 a.m. 

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Fran Packard of the League of Women Voters speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.  

Luncheon: $11 

Call 848-3533 

Human Nature 

8:30 p.m. 

New College Cultural Center 

766 Valencia 

San Francisco 

The X-plicit Players present this idyllic nude ritual. Watch or participate: Be led blindfolded through body tunnels, into body streams while sensing psychic/body qualities through touch. Also presented on Oct. 21.  

$12 admission 

Call 415-848-1985 

Saturday, Oct. 21

A Day on Mt. Tam 

9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. 

Come play and hike in San Francisco’s beloved playground. This outing is part of a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance. 

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

AHIMSA Eight Annual Conference 

9 a.m. - 5 p.m.  

International House, Great Hall 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

The AHIMSA is a nonprofit foundation whose goal is to encourage dialogues and public forums which bridge spiritual, scientific and social issues. This years conference is titled “Violence! Scientific and Spiritual Perspectives.”  

Admission is free 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market Fall Fruit Tastings 

10 a.m. - 3 p.m.  

Center St. at MLK Jr. Way 

Taste a whole farmers’ market’s bounty of fall fruit varieties. 

Free. 

Info: 548-3333 

Run Your Own Landscape Business: Part 2 

11 a.m. - 1 p.m. 

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. (at Blake) 

Local horticultural consultant and UC Master Gardener Jessie West will teach you how to plant, prune, control weeds, and more. The second of three classes. The last is scheduled for Oct. 28 during the same timeslot. 

$15 general; $10 for members; $5 materials fee 

Call 548-2220 x223 

Sunday, Oct. 22

A Taste of the Greenbelt 

1 - 4 p.m. 

Presidio’s Golden Gate Club 

Greenbelt Alliance brings the farm to the city in this celebration of the Bay Area’s agricultural and culinary bounty. Featured are samples from over 40 local restaurants, farmers, wineries, microbreweries. Also featured are live music and local artwork. The event benefits Greenbelt Alliance’s ongoing efforts to protect Bay Area farmlands and open space.  

$45 per person 

1-800-543-GREEN, www.greenbelt.org 

An Evening with Alice Walker 

7:30 p.m.  

King Middle School  

1781 Rose St. (at Grant) 

free parking 

Join internationally loved novelist, poet and essayist Alice Walker in celebrating her new book of autobiographical stories, “The Way Forward is With a Broken Heart.” Benefits Berkeley EcoHouse and KPFA Radio, 94.1 FM.  

Tickets: $10 advance, $13 door 

Tickets available at independent bookstores 

More info: 848-6767 x609 

Take a Trip to the Oakland Ballet 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This is an outing organized by the Senior Center to see “Glass Slippers.”  

Tickets: $6 each 

Call Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

A Buddhist Pilgramage in India 

6 p.m. 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Pl. 

June Rosenberg brings to life, through slides and lecture, her pilgrimages in India. Free. 

Call 843-6812 

Monday, Oct. 23

Berkeley Chinese Community Church Turns 100 

6 p.m. 

Nov. 4 

Silver Dragon Restaurant 

835 Webster St. 

Oakland 

Reservations: $30 per person 

More info: 548-5295 

Public Schools Parent Information Night 

7 - 9 p.m.  

Epworth United Methodist Church 

1953 Hopkins St. 

Parents, principals and other administrative staff from 11 elementary schools will speak about their schools. Sponsored by Neighborhood Parents Network.  

Admission: free to members, $5 non-members 

527-6667 

Tuesday, Oct. 24

Berkeley Farmers’ Market Fall Fruit Tastings 

2 p.m. - 7 p.m.  

Derby St. at MLK Jr. Way 

Come taste a bounty of fall fruit varieties for free. 

Info: 548-3333 

Thursday, Oct. 25

International Jewish Video Competition Winners 

7:30 p.m.  

Pacific Film Archive 

2575 Bancroft Way 

Screening of the four winners in the Museum’s seventh annual competition.  

Call 549-6950 

Thursday, Oct. 26

East Bay Science & Arts Middle School 

Noon  

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Middle school students perform dances of folk, swing, and Cuban rueda styles. Free.  

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Friday, Oct. 27

“Transporation: What’s in Store?” 

11:45 a.m. 

Berkeley City Club  

2315 Durant Ave.  

Larry Dahms, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Transportation Council speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon is served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11 

More info and reservations: 848-3533 

Saturday, Oct. 28

Pedaling the Green City 

11 a.m. -3:30 p.m.  

Take a leisurely bike ride along the future San Francisco Bay Trail. One in a series of free outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations  

Wild About Books? 

10:30 a.m. 

Berkeley Central Library 

2121 Allston Way 

Halloween for the little guys with (not so) scary stories, music, and more.  

Call 649-3943  

Run Your Own Landscape Business: Part 3 

11 a.m. - 1 p.m. 

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Ave. (at Blake) 

Local horticultural consultant and UC Master Gardener Jessie West will teach you how to plant, prune, control weeds, and more. This is the final class in the series. 

$15 general; $10 for members; $5 materials fee 

Call 548-2220 x223 

Sunday, Oct. 29

“Gateway to Knowledge” 

6 p.m. 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Pl. 

Barr Rosenberg describes how to master new knowledge and take the power to shape our lives in wise and compassionate ways.  

843-6812 

Saturday, Nov. 4

Breathtaking Barnabe Peak 

10 a.m. - 4 p.m. 

Hike through Samuel P. Taylor State Park’s lush forests and climb to the heights of Barnabe Peak, overlooking Point Reyes. One in a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Wild About Books? 

10:30 a.m. 

Berkeley Central Library 

2121 Allston Way 

Dublin Library’s resident storyteller and featured teller at the 1998 National Storytelling Festival tell kids aged 3 to 7 her favorite tales.  

Call 649-3943  

Sunday, Nov. 5

Buddhist Psychology 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Pl.  

Buddhist teacher Sylvia Gretchen on “Beyond Therapy and Into the Heart of Buddhist Psychology.” Free. 

Call 843-6812  

Monday, Nov. 6

Airports vs. the Bay 

7 p.m. 

Albany Community Center 

1249 Marin St.  

Albany 

David Lewis, Executive Director of “Save the Bay” will speak on the airports’ plans to expand into the SF Bay and other challenges to Bay restoration.  

Contact: Friends of Five Creeks, 848-9358 

Compiled by Chason Wainwright 

Pepples campaign sign removal issue lays with the city manager 

Editor: 

On October 3, the Berkeley Daily Planet printed a letter from Eleanor Pepples, candidate for City Council.  

Ms. Pepples complained about the removal of her campaign signs by an employee of the city’s Department of Public Works. She stated that this City employee “triumphantly presented them to the Berkeley City Clerk’s office, boasting that he had taken down a truckload…”  

These events may have happened as described, and there may or may not have been some legitimate reason for the sign removal. I myself have no idea what happened, but I am at a complete loss as to why Ms. Pepples brought me into this matter by describing the city employee as a “representative of the mayor’s administration”.  

Since Ms. Pepples is new to Berkeley, she may not know that Berkeley has a city manager/council form of government and that city employees work directly for the city manager. They neither report to nor take directions from the Mayor or any other elected official. Ms. Pepples may also not be familiar with the rules governing the posting of signs. 

If Ms. Pepples seeks clarification of the events she described in her letter, I would suggest that she contact the city manager directly. She might also clarify, with the city clerk, the rules regarding the posting of signs on telephone poles.  

In my experience, it is preferable to place campaign signs only in the windows and yards of supporters since sign placement on private property offers the greatest chance of sign survival and is much more persuasive with voters. 

Mayor Shirley Dean 

Gov. Bush wrong on  

measuring Head Start success by reading skills 

Editor:  

Gov. George W.Bush stated in Wednesday night’s debate that he would have pre-schoolers, in the Head Start programs, read. As if that’s the measure of success at that level of education!  

Since the 1960s Head Start teachers and administrators of these programs have found that art, music, dance, physical education, dramatics, having hands-on training with cooking, nature study, field trips, science experiments, gardening, story-telling, poetry read or acted out by peers/actors, will continue to activate and stimulate curious minds to have the readiness to learn to read all in  

due time.  

The finest educators, school psychologists, doctors who know the human brain, eye-hand coordination, test results from public-private schools from pre-school through post-doctorate degrees have shown that these very children cannot nor should not read before they are chronologically & developmentally ready.  

Bush’s information in this area is totally non-existent or he has been grossly misinformed.  

Bush came across as the man to whom we should trust all decisions: military, social security, health care, education.  

He continued to call Mr. Gore’s statistics: “fuzzy”. Mr. Gore’s intelligent comments were factual, to the point and well-delivered.  

The woman’s right to choose what is to be done with her body & vice-president Gore’s commitment to uphold Roe vs. Wade should give any unsure voters the reason to vote Democratic this election.  

I am both a retired elementary school teacher and school librarian for K-12.  

Sylvia P. Scherzer 

Emeryville

Young East Bay artists donated their mosaic art to Highland Hospital this week. 

Colorful mosaic planters and benches were designed and created by kids ages 8 - 13 who participated in a summer camp public art project organized by Brushstrokes Studio, the Berkeley-based ceramic art studio. This is the second year of the program. Last year, six mosaic planters were installed and have been enthusiastically received by hospital patients and staff who enjoy them on a daily basis. Jessica Abbott led the series of summer camps. She is the proprietor of Brushstrokes Studio and a professional artist whose public art projects include a nautical fountain for San Diego Children’s Hospital as well as six hand-built vessels for Highland Hospital, which were installed in 1998. 

She has recently been awarded a grant by The Swanson & Shevlin Charitable Foundation to set up an on-site studio at Highland Hospital for the purpose of creating works of art for the hospital in collaboration with the Highland community.

Berkeley’s Joanna Letz hits a serve during her match against Encinal High Thursday afternoon. The Yellowjackets won all five matches between the two schools.

It sounds like a paradox. Use bureaucrats to cut down on bureaucracy. City Manager Weldon Rucker thinks it’s possible. 

The city launched its Neighborhood Services Initiative, tapping four bureaucrats to cut through red tape. Formed to deliver more efficient city services to Berkeleyites, the new Neighborhood Liaisons will reach out to neighborhoods and implement collaborative, cross-department solutions to community problems. 

“Our Neighborhood Services Liaisons will mobilize results-oriented teams that cut bureaucratic red tape (and put) Public Works, Health and Human Services, Police, Fire, Finance and others, all in one room,” said Rucker. 

Literally in one room in the city manager’s office. 

Taj Johns, newly arrived from the Berkeley Police Department, can see the three others’ desks from her own. 

“We’re all in here together,” she said. Each will cover one “quadrant” of the city, not yet assigned, fielding calls and complaints from the quadrant residents, then form teams within those quadrants to tackle the area’s problem.  

In addition to Johns, Berkeley’s new Gang of 4 includes Michael Caplan and Thomas E. Myers from the Office of Economic Development, and Jennifer Yee from the Finance Department. 

The four will remain there, in that room, until city offices move back into the retrofitted Civic Center Building, which is supposed to happen in mid-December. In the interim, they will undergo a “rigorous” training program. 

According to Rucker, the first phase of this training will be “learning how the city functions, learning the intricacies of organization, and finding ways to coordinate services.” 

The need for such a coordinating team, said Rucker, stems from the “1950s, hierarchical, bureaucratic, self-serving type of city government” currently still in use. 

“Firewalls happen naturally in this model of government, and there are often situations where city services are working at cross purposes. These new liaisons will align city resources to come up with collaborative, good responses to city problems,” said Rucker. 

Hand picked by the city manager, the Gang of 4 will handle “complaints and concerns from the community” and will “work as an extension of the city manager’s office,” said Rucker. 

Saying he chose them based on a willingness to continue learning, good communication skills, an intense interest in working with people, and a passion to make change, Rucker lauded his appointees as “talented and hard working.” 

City Councilmember Polly Armstrong applauded the changes. 

“This is a city that is actually run by the city manager,” she said. “It’s easy to feel threatened, but it’s time to make a change. If it doesn’t work, there’s always the old way.” 

“The city needs to rise above one-district concerns,” she said, when asked how she felt about these newcomers taking responsibility for a larger portion of the city than the smaller areas which councilmembers represent. “This liaison team can help us do that. The council will have to let go of the feeling that the district is their little fiefdom and no one else can do anything there. We councilmembers have the tendency to overlook the big picture because we’re so busy solving little problems,” she said. 

“I think it has the potential to really work well,” she said. 

For now, things are moving slowly. 

On Thursday, the liaison members continued their tour of Berkeley, going to the fire stations and learning procedure and making contacts. 

“This is ‘get acquainted time’ for us and the city departments,” newly-appointed liaison Michael Caplan said. “It’s an exciting time because there is no blue print to make this work. There’s just a set of goals and a lot of good will,” he added.  

They will be supported by one staffer, but, said Caplan, “we’ll probably be out in the field most of the time anyway.” 

“So far I’m just sending them out to handle incrementally larger problems, but by the time we move into the new Civic Center, they’ll be ready to go,” said Rucker. 

They have quite a bit of incentive to do their jobs well. Myers will make $80,036 a year, while the others will make $72,060 annually. 

“It’s a promotion for all of us,” said Caplan, who is receiving an almost $8,000 raise, “but it’s also a risk. All of us are giving up tenured positions for this ‘at will’ position. We work for the city manager now.”  

A first assignment? Coming up with the best solution to the problems of racial tension and crime brewing on Russell and Oregon streets in south Berkeley. 

“I’ll focus their attention on that. They’ll definitely be over there,” said Rucker. 

The Gang of 4 will meet with community organizations in the area to get their input, then come up with solutions. 

“At that point, they will either have a team of folks from the bureaucracy - or assemble a team - to implement a solution. As long as they are working within the context of their work, they won’t have to come to me or the City Council. They are empowered to do their jobs,” said Rucker. 

As an extension of the City Manager’s Office, the new service is not designed to compete with the City Council, and will in fact work in collaboration with the council, Rucker said. In addition, their recommendations will carry the weight of the city manager’s office, which will aid in coordinating various city departments to work together. 

“Currently, there isn’t any coordinating group like it,” he said. 

Ebony Museum of Arts 

The museum specializes in the art and history of Africa.  

Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 6 p.m.  

30 Jack London Village, Suite 209. (510) 763-0745. 

Habitot Children’s Museum 

Kittredge Street and Shattuck Avenue 

“Back to the Farm.”  

Ongoing 

An interactive exhibit gives children the chance to wiggle through tunnels like an earthworm, look into a mirrored fish pond, don farm animal costumes, ride on a John Deere tractor and more.  

Cost: $4 adults; $6 children age 7 and under; $3 for each additional child age 7 and under.  

Monday and Wednesday, 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Tuesday and Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday, 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.  

647-1111 or www.habitot.org 

Judah L. Magnes Museum 

2911 Russell St.  

549-6950 

Free 

Sunday through Thursday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. 

“Telling Time: To Everything There Is A Season” 

Through May 2002.  

An exhibit structured around the seasons of the year and the seasons of life with objects ranging from the sacred and the secular, to the provocative and the whimsical. Highlights include treasures from Jewish ceremonial and folk art, rare books and manuscripts, contemporary and traditional fine art, video, photography and cultural kitsch. The exhibition will expand Nov 5, 2000, to encompass all four seasons and a collection of rare treasures from Jewish, Tibetan, Mexican-American, and other cultures. 

“Second Annual Richard Nagler Competition for Excellence i Jewish Photography” 

Nov. 5 - Feb. 2001. 

Featuring the work of Claudia Nierman, Jason Francisco, Fleming Lunsford, and others.  

UC Berkeley Art Museum 

2626 Bancroft Way, Berkeley 

Wednesday - Sunday, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m., Open Thursdays until 9 p.m.  

“Hans Hoffmann”  

An exhibit of paintings by Hoffmann which emphasizes two experimental methods the artist employed: the introduction of slabs or rectangles of highly saturated colors and the use of large areas of black paint juxtaposed with intense oranges, greens and yellows. 

Oct. 11 - Jan. 16, 2001: Amazons in the Drawing Room: The Art of Romaine Brooks.  

The Asian Galleries  

“Art of the Sung: Court and Monastery,” open-ended.  

A display of early Chinese works from the permanent collection.  

“Chinese Ceramics and Bronzes: The First 3,000 Years,” open-ended. 

“Works on Extended Loan from Warren King,” open-ended. 

“Three Towers of Han,” open-ended. 

$6 general; $4 seniors and students age 12 to 18; free children age 12 and under; free Thursday, 11 a.m. to noon and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday, Friday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. 

642-0808. 

UC Berkeley Museum of  

Paleontology 

Lobby, Valley Life Sciences Building, UC Berkeley 

“Tyrannosaurus Rex,” ongoing.  

A 20-foot tall, 40-foot long replica of the fearsome dinosaur. The replica is made from casts of bones of the most complete T. Rex skeleton yet excavated. When unearthed in Montana, the bones were all lying in place with only a small piece of the tailbone missing. 

“Pteranodon”  

A suspended skeleton of a flying reptile with a wingspan of 22 to 23 feet. The Pteranodon lived at the same time as the dinosaurs. 

California Fossils Exhibit, ongoing. An exhibit of some of the fossils which have been excavated in California. 

Free. Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. 

642-1821. 

UC Berkeley Phoebe Hearst  

Museum of Anthropology 

Kroeber Hall, Bancroft Way and College  

Avenue, Berkeley 

“Modern Treasures from Ancient Iran,” through Oct. 29.  

This exhibit explores nomadic and town life in ancient and modern Iran as illustrated in bronze and pottery vessels, and textiles.  

“Approaching a Century of Anthropology: The Phoebe Hearst Museum,” open-ended.  

This new permanent installation will introduce visitors to major topics in the museum’s history, including the role of Phoebe Apperson Hearst as the museum’s patron, as well as the relationship of anthropologists Alfred Kroeber and Robert Lowie to the museum. 

“Ishi and the Invention of Yahi Culture,” ongoing. 

This exhibit documents the culture of the Yahi Indians of California as described and demonstrated from 1911 to 1916 by Ishi, the last surviving member of the tribe. 

$2 general; $1 seniors; $.50 children age 17 and under; free on Thursdays. Wednesday, Friday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. 

643-7648 

Mills College Art Museum 

5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland 

“The 100 Languages of Children,” through October.  

An exhibit of art by children from Reggio Emilia, Italy. At Carnegie Building Bender Room. 

Free. Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. 

430-2164 

Lawrence Hall of Science 

“Math Rules!” Ongoing. A math exhibit of hands-on problem-solving stations, each with a different mathematical challenge. 

“Within the Human Brain” Ongoing. Visitors test their cranial nerves, play skeeball, master mazes, match musical tones and construct stories inside a simulated “rat cage” of learning  

experiments. 

“In the Dark,”through Jan. 15, 2001. Plunge into darkness and see amazing creatures that inhabit worlds without light.  

“Saturday Night Stargazing” First and third Saturdays each month. 8 - 10 p.m., LHS plaza.  

“Grossology,” LHSs Family Halloween Party, Oct. 28, 6:30 - 9 p.m. Featuring the creation of “gross” stuff with household products and ChemMystery, a hands-on crime lab for kids.  

$12 for adults; $10 for kids 12 and under.  

Call 643-5134 for tickets  

Open daily, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. 

$7 for adults; $5 for children 5-18; $3 for children 3-4 

642-5132 

Holt Planetarium  

Programs are recommended for age 8 and up; children under age 6 will not be admitted. $2 in addition to regular museum admission. 

“Moons of the Solar System,” through Dec. 10. Take a tour of the fascinating worlds that orbit Earth and other planets out to the edge of the Solar System.  

“Constellations Tonight” Ongoing. Using a simple star map, learn to identify the most prominent constellations for the season in the planetarium sky. Daily, 3:30 p.m. $7 general; $5 seniors, students, disabled, and youths age 7 to 18;  

$3 children age 3 to 5 ; free children age 2 and younger. Daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Centennial Drive, University of California,  

Berkeley. (510) 642-5132 or www.lhs.berkeley.edu 

The Oakland Museum of  

California 

1000 Oak St., Oakland 

“Helen Nestor: Personal and Political” Through Oct. 15.  

An exhibit of images documenting the Free Speech Movement, the 60s civil rights marches, and women’s issues. 

“Secret World of the Forbidden City” Oct. 14 - Jan. 24, 2001. A rare glimpse of over 350 objects which illustrate the opulence and heritage of the Chinese Imperial Court Under the Qing Dynasty, which ruled China from 1644 - 1911. For this exhibit, admission $13 general, $10 seniors and $5 for students with ID.  

$6 general; $4 seniors and students; free children age 5 and under; second Sundays are free to all. Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.; first Friday of the month, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. 

(888) OAK-MUSE or www.museumca.org. 

TRAX Gallery 

1306 3rd. St., Berkeley 

Mary Law “Altered Ceramic Pots”  

through Oct. 21 

For more information or to sign up for the workshop call 526-0279 or e-mail to cone5@aol.com 

Music 

Downtown Berkeley Association 

Lunchtime Concert Series 

Every Thursday through October 

noon - 1p.m. 

Downtown Berkeley BART Plaza 

1 hour free parking available in Center Street Garage 

Oct. 12: Members of the Berkeley Symphony performing chamber music 

Oct. 19: Jazzschool’s vocal jazz ensemble Vocal Sauce 

Oct. 26: East Bay Science & Arts Middle School will perform folk, swing and Cuban rueda dances 

924 Gilman 

Oct. 7, 8 p.m.: The Stitches, The Goons, Le Shok, Three Years Down, Deminar 

$5; $2 for a year membership 

525-9926 

Albatross Pub 

1822 San Pablo Ave.  

843-2473 

Oct. 10: Mad & eddie Duran Jazz Duo, 9 p.m. 

Oct. 12: Keni “El Lebrijano,” 9 p.m. 

Oct. 14: pick Pocket ensemble, 9 p.m. 

Ashkenaz 

1317 San Pablo Ave.  

525-5099 

For all ages 

www.ashkenaz.com 

Oct. 6, 9:30 p.m., Clan Dyken and Diane Patterson, Leonard Benalley, $9. 

Oct. 7, 9:30 p.m. ,West African Highlife Band, $11. 

Oct. 8, 9 p.m., Sekouba Bambino Diabate, $10. 

Cal Performances 

Hamza El Din (world music), Oct. 21, 8 p.m., $16 - $28.  

Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley (Bancroft at Telegraph) 

Ian Bostridge, Tenor, performs music of Schubert and Hugo Wolf, Oct. 29, 3 p.m., $28 - $48.  

Julia Fischer, Violinist, performs music of Tartini, Beethoven and Cesar Franck, Nov. 5, 3 p.m., $28 - $48.  

Hertz Hall, UC Berkeley (Bancroft at College) 

For tickets and info for these events call 642-9988 

Yoshi’s 

Through Oct. 8, An Evening with Branford Marsalis, $26 to $30 general; Sunday matinee: $5 children; $10 adult with one child. 

Oct. 23, An Evening with pianist Jon Jang to benefit the Asian Women’s Shelter of San Francisco. Call 415-751-7110 for tickets and additional information.  

Unless otherwise noted, music at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m.; Sunday 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. 510 Embarcadero West, Oakland. (510) 238-9200 or (510) 762-BASS. 

The Jazzschool 

2375 Shattuck Ave. 

Oct. 8, 1:30 - 3:30 p.m., Bobbe Norris and Larry Dunlap present a vocal workshop, “Making the Song Your Own.” The workshop is $30 for Jazzschool students and $40 for others. 4:30 p.m., Norris and Dunlap perform. 8:00 p.m., Peck Allmond Group featuring Kenny Wollesen CD release performance.  

Oct. 15, 4:30 p.m., Mark Levine and The Latin Tinge.  

$12; $10 students/seniors; $6 for Jazzschool students and children under 13 

Reservations: (510) 845-5373. 

Live Oak Concert Series 

Berkeley Art Center 

1275 Walnut St. 

Oct. 15, 7:30 p.m., Debra Golata, mezzo-soprano, and others perform Schoenberg, Bach, Schubert, and others.  

Oct. 22, 7:30 p.m., Donna Lerew, violin, Skye Atman, piano perform Mozart, Shubert, Korngold and others.  

Oct. 29, 7:30 p.m., The Horizon Wind Quintet 

$10; $8 for members; $9 for students and seniors; Children under 12 admitted free 

Central Works Theater Ensemble Benefit 

North Berkeley Community Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Oct. 16, 7 - 10 p.m. The Ken French Trio will perform with a special performance by jazz and soul vocalist Clairdee. The evening will also feature a public and silent auction hosted by Narsai David. Proceeds benefit the funding, development, and production of original plays for Bay Area audiences.  

$45 per person; includes food, wine, and beverages.  

Reservations: (510) 558-1381 

Deborah Voigt 

The Grammy award-winning soprano performs the music of Strauss, Wagner, Schoenberg and others. Voigt has appeared with leading opera companies including the San Francisco Opera and has sung opposite such artists as Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti.  

Oct. 15, 3 p.m.  

Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley campus, Bancroft Avenue at Telegraph.  

$28 - $48  

642-9988 

Eli’s Mile High Club 

3629 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Oakland 

(510) 655-6661 

Doors open at 8 p.m. 

Oct. 6, Henry Clement  

Oct. 13, Ron Hacker 

Films 

University of California,  

Berkeley Art Museum 

Pacific Film Archive 

2575 Bancroft Way 

642-1412 

“Neo-Eiga: New Japanese Cinema” 

Oct. 7, 7 p.m. : “Wildlife” (1997), directed by Shinji Aoyama, US premiere; 9 p.m. : “Timeless Melody” (1999), directed by hiroshi Okuhara, US premiere 

Oct. 14, 7 p.m. : “Nabbie’s Love (1999), directed by Yuji Nakae, West Coast premiere; 8:55 p.m. : “Gemini” (1999), directed by Shinya Tsukamoto, Bay Area premiere.  

Oct. 21, 7 p.m. : “Don’t Look Back (1999), directed by Akihiko Shiota, US premiere; 8:45 p.m. : “Sasayaki” (1999), directed by Akihiko Shiota (who will appear in person at the screening), US premiere. 

Oct. 25, 7:30 p.m. : Judah L. Magnes Museum Presents: 

International Jewish Video Awards Screening featuring “Shylock” by Pierre Lasry, “Brooklyn Trilogy” by Madeline Schwartzman, “Village of Idiots” by Eugene Fedorenko and Rose Newlove, and Arnie Lipsey’s “Almonds and Wine.”  

$7 for one film; $8.50 for double bills. UC Berkeley students are $4/$5.50. Seniors and children are $4.50/6.00  

Theater 

“Uttar-Priyadarshi (The Final Beatitude)” 

Oct. 7 and Oct. 8.  

The Chorus Repertory Theater presents an epic play exploring war, personal accountability, and public power using a mixture of text, music and elaborate theatrical design.  

$24 to $48.  

Saturday, 8 p.m.; Sunday, 3 p.m.  

Zellerbach Hall,  

University of California, Bancroft Way and Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley.  

(510) 642-9988. 

The Gate Theater of Dublin Present 

“Waiting for Godot” 

by Samuel Beckett 

Zellerbach Playhouse 

UC Berkeley 

Directed by Walter Asthmus 

Oct. 18 - 21, 8 p.m.; Oct.19 & 21, 2 p.m.; Oct. 22, 3 p.m. 

Post-performance discussions Oct. 20 & 22 

$34 - $48 

Call 642-9988 for tickets  

“The Green Bird”  

by Carlo Gozzi 

Berkeley Repertory Theatre 

2025 Addison St. 

Adapted by Theatre de la Jeune Lune and directed by Dominique Serrand.  

“The Green Bird” runs through Oct. 27. For tickets contact the box office at 845-4700 

“The Philanderer”  

by George Bernard Shaw 

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave. 

Performed by the Aurora Theatre company, “The Philanderer” takes on the challenging and often humorous exploration of gender roles and the separations that exist between the sexes. 

Tickets for preview showings are sold at $26. Showtimes run Wednesday through Saturday through October 15 at 8 p.m. and Sunday matinees show at 2 p.m., plus selected Sunday evenings at 7 p.m. Admission for regular performances is $30. Student discounts are available. For tickets and information call 843-4822 or visit www.auroratheatre.org. 

“MIMZABIM!” 

Climate Theatre & Subterranean Shakespeare 

La Vals Subterraniean  

1834 Euclid 

Through Oct. 14 

Thursday - Saturday, 8:00 p.m. 

$12, Students $8 

“Fanny at Chez Panisse” 

Julie Morgan Theatre 

2640 College Ave., Berkeley 

Musical based on the book with opening proceeds going to the Verde Partnership Garden in Richmond. 

Through Oct. 29 

Runs Wednesday - Sunday, 7 p.m.  

$26 - 34  

1-888-FANNY06 

“Moonlight”  

by Harold Pinter 

A Last Planet Theatre production 

Potrero Hill Playhouse 

953 De Haro 

San Francisco 

Pinter’s most recent play features a man named Andy who is dying and his wife, Bel, who can’t get their two sons to pay them a visit. A story of infidelity, sibling rivalry, marital combat and moonlight and memory.  

Runs Thursday - Saturday, Oct. 5 (preview) through Oct. 28. All shows at 8:30 p.m. No show Oct. 26.  

$20 opening night, $10-15 regular run, $5 preview 

More info and tickets: 845-2687 

“The Caucasian Chalk Circle” 

by Bertolt Brecht 

Zellerbach Playhouse 

UC Berkeley 

This musical version of the tale about how to behave well, act justly, and remain humane in a world where chaos reigns, features an original score by renowned Bay Area composer and guitarist John Schott. The production also features clarinetist Ben Goldberg of the New Klezmer Trio.  

Oct. 6, 7, 13, 14 at 8 p.m. and Oct. 8, 15 at 2 p.m.  

$12 general; $8 UC faculty/staff; $6 students/seniors 

Call 642-8268  

Berkeley Rep School of Theatre 

“Sundiata” 

Martin Luther King, Jr. High School 

1781 Rost St.  

The world of premiere of Edward Mast’s tale of Djata, a handicapped boy who discovers he is the lost son of the murdered king of the Mali Empire. As the empire’s last hope, he is called upon to reclaim his heritage as the Lion King.  

Nov, 4, Noon 

Free to the public, but reservations are encouraged. 

Call 647-2972  

Dance 

Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company  

“You Walk?” 

Oct. 27-28, 8 p.m. 

$20 - $42 

White Oak Dance Project  

“Past Forward”  

Nov. 1 - 4, 8 p.m.  

Mikhail Baryshnikov and company celebrating the influence of post-modern choreographers.  

$36 - $60  

Zellerbach Hall 

UC Berkeley 

Call for tickets, 642-9988 

Exhibits 

Traywick Gallery 

1316 Tenth St.  

527-1214 

Charles LaBelle 

Through Oct. 15 

LaBelle’s new series of large-scale color photographs highlight nighttime nature in Hollywood. He recreates trees at night using a hand-held spotlight and playing on the beam across the leaves and branches. The opening reception will be held on September 12 from 6 to 8 p.m.  

Blue Vinyl by Connie Walsh  

Through Oct. 15 

This multimedia project combines video, sound and printmaking to explore concepts of intimacy and its relation to private space.  

Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday 11-6 p.m. and Sundays 12-5 p.m. 

A.C.C.I. Gallery  

“Paperworks,” through Oct. 7.  

A group exhibit of works by Carol Brighton, Vannie Keightley, Jean Hearst. 

1652 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley. (510) 843-2527 

Berkeley Art Center 

“Ethnic Notions: Black Images in the White Mind,''  

Through Nov. 12. An exhibit by Janette Faulkner exploring racial stereotypes in commercial imagery. Free. Wednesday through Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Live Oak Park, 1275 Walnut St., Berkeley. (510) 644-6893 

California College of Arts and Crafts  

Free. Monday, Tuesday and Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Oliver Art Center, 5212 Broadway, Oakland. 594-3712 

!hey! Gallery 

Lori Now and Michael Pollice display recent paintings through Oct. 14. Reception Oct. 7, 7 - 9 p.m. with cellist Diane Pauson and vocalist Elisheva Herrera.  

Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. 4920-b, Telegraph, Oakland. Call Richelle Valenzuela at (510) 428-2349. 

Kala Gallery 

Kala Art Institute 1999 Fellowship Awards Exhibition Part II through Oct. 31. Features work by Margaret Kessler, Barbara Milman, Michele Muennig, and David Politzer.  

Tuesday through Friday, Noon - 5 p.m. or by appointment. 1060 Heinz Ave. Call 549-2977. 

Berkeley Historical Society  

“Berkeley’s Ethnic Heritage.” An overview of the rich cultural diversity of the city and the contribution of individuals and minority groups to it’s history and development.  

Thursday through Saturday, 1 - 4 p.m. Admission free.  

1931 Center St.  

Call 848-0181 

Lizabeth Oliveria Gallery 

Paintings by Timothy Buckwalter, Hilary Harkness, and Jerry W. King, Through Oct. 28. Artist reception Oct. 7, 7 - 9 p.m. 

Gallery hours: Tuesday - Saturday, 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.  

942 Clay St., Oakland. Call 625-1830 for more info. 

Pro Arts Gallery 

Early Bird Holiday Art Fest. Oct. 25 - Nov. 11. Shop early for unique gifts made by local artists. Free opening reception, Oct. 28, 1 - 4 p.m. featuring live music and artist demonstrations.  

Gallery hours: Wednesday - Saturday, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.  

461 Ninth St., Oakland. Call 763-9425  

Ames Gallery 

“Left Coast Legends: California Masters of Visionary, Self-taught, and Outsider Art,” featuring the work of Dwight Mackintosh, Alex Maldonado, A.G. Rizzoli, Jon Serl, and Barry Simons, Through Dec. 2.  

2661 Cedar St. Call for more info: 845-4949  

Readings 

Rhyme and Reason Poetry Series 

Berkeley Art Museum/Pacific Film Archive 

2621 Durant Ave. 

2nd and 4th Sundays of each month. 

Includes featured readers and open mike poetry. Free 

2 p.m. sign-up. Program runs from 2:30 - 4 p.m. 

Oct. 15: Professor Ron Loewinsohn (Morrison Room, UC Main Library) 

Oct. 29: Fernando Brito, Lara Dale 

234-0727 

Holloway Poetry Reading Series 

8p.m., Maude Fife Room, 315 Wheeler Hall 

For more information call 653-2439 

Oct. 10: Susan Stewart and Chris Chew, books include “The Hive” and “Yellow Stars”  

Nov. 1: John Yau and Garrett Caples, books include “Forbidden Entries” and “My Symptoms” 

Nov. 7: Marie Howe and Brian Glaser, “The Good Thief” and “What the Living Do” 

Cody’s Books  

2454 Telegraph Ave.  

845-7852 

Oct. 9, 7:30 p.m., Tariq Ali, “The Stone Woman.”  

Oct. 10, 7:30 p.m., Jennifer Baumgartner and Amy Richards, “Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future.”  

Poetry at Cody’s  

Oct. 11, 7:30 p.m., Mark Scott & Melissa Kwasny 

Eastwind Books of Berkeley 

2066 University Ave.  

548-2350 

Oct. 7, 7p.m., Kimi Kodani Hill presents with art slides from her grandfather. “Topaz Moon: Chiura Obata’s Art on Internment” 

Lunch Poems: A Noontime Poetry Reading Series 

Morrison Room, Doe Library 

UC Berkeley 

12:10 - 12:50 p.m.  

Call 642-0137 

Under the direction of Professor Robert Hass, this is a series of events on the first Thursday of each month. Free.  

Nov. 2: Goh Poh Seng  

Tours 

Lawrence Berkeley National  

Laboratory 

Scientists and engineers guide visitors through the research areas of the laboratory, demonstrating emerging technology and discussing the research’s current and potential applications. A Berkeley lab tour usually lasts two hours and includes visits to several research areas. Popular tour sites include the Advanced Light Source, The National Center for Electron Microscopy, the 88-Inch Cyclotron, The Advanced Lighting Laboratory, and The Human Genome Laboratory. Reservations required at least two weeks in advance of tour. 

Free. University of California, Berkeley. 

486-4387 

Bernard Maybeck Weekend 

Oct. 14 & 15 

Sponsored by the California Preservation Foundation celebrates the buildings of the renowned architect. Saturday features a slide lecture at Swedenborgian church with historian Gray Brechin and a private tour of the Palace of Fine Arts. Sunday will focus on Berkeley, where Maybeck built most of his homes and raised his family. The tour will include six private residences and the First Church of Christ, Scientist. The weekend will end with a reception at the Chick House in the Oakland hills.  

More info call California Preservation Foundation: 763-0972. 

Berkeley City Club Tours 

Guided tours through Berkeley’s City Club, a landmark building designed by architect Julia Morgan, designer of Hearst Castle. 

$2. The fourth Sunday of every month except December, between noon to 4 p.m.  

2315 Durant Ave., Berkeley. 

848-7800 

Golden Gate Live Steamers 

Small locomotives, meticulously scaled to size, run along a half mile of track in Tilden Regional Park. The small trains are owned and maintained by a non-profit group of railroad buffs who offer rides.  

Free. Trains run Sunday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Rides: Sunday, noon to 3 p.m., weather permitting. Grizzly Peak Boulevard and Lomas Cantadas Drive at the south end of Tilden Regional Park, Berkeley.  

486-0623  

Oakland Historic walking tours 

Runs through October.  

The tours cover downtown Oakland and its historic waterfront. All tours begin promptly at 10 a.m. and last between an hour and an hour and a half.  

Free. Call for reservations. Oakland. (510) 238-3234. 

University of California at Berkeley Botanical Garden 

The gardens have displays of exotic and native plants. 

Botanical Garden Tours, Saturday and Sunday, 1:30 p.m. Meet at the Tour Orientation Center for a free docent tour. $3 general; $2 seniors; $1 children; free on Thursday. Daily, 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Botanical Garden, Centennial Drive, behind Memorial Stadium, a mile below the Lawrence Hall of Science, Berkeley. (510) 643-2755 or www.mip.berkeley.edu/garden/ 

Berkeley Historical Society Walking Tours 

Oct. 15 - The 1923 North Berkeley Fire Line led by Phil Gale 

Oct. 22 - University Avenue Indian Business Community led by Kirpal & Neelum Khanna 

Nov. 5 - What’s Happening Downtown? led by Debbie Badhia 

More info call 848-0181 

Both the boys’ and girls’ Berkeley High water polo teams opened their league play with crucial victories against Pinole Valley, but the styles of the wins couldn’t have been more different. 

The boys’ team won a 13-8 shootout as Pinole Valley was missing three of its starters. According to coach Jim Ulversoy, his best player broke his ankle Wednesday and was unavailable, and two other starters got the match times mixed up and didn’t show up at the Willard Middle School pool until the fourth quarter. 

The shorthanded Spartans hung tough through the first half, and were down only two goals at halftime, but their short bench showed as the ‘Jackets pulled away in the second half. 

Even with their two starters back in the pool, Pinole Valley was unable to make up the difference and was outscored 4-3 in the final period. David Schooley paced the Yellowjackets with five goals, and Carl Wasman and Dominic Cathey chipped in two goals each as the home team peppered Spartan goalie Chase Wagner with shots throughout the game. Matt Wion scored four of Pinole Valley’s eight goals in the game. 

Ulversoy complimented the Yellowjacket counterattack, and Berkeley senior Joseph Ravera agreed. 

“We played pretty good defense, and our counterattack offense really got us going in the second half,” he said. “They played really well considering they were missing some guys.” 

Berkeley head coach Jim Graeber said he had his team concentrating on this match since Monday, even though they beat Grenada High on Tuesday. 

“We knew this would be a pivotal game in the league, and we started to focus on it on Monday,” Graeber said. “We were determined to counter their strengths, and I think we did that.” 

The girls’ match was much more defensive, as the Yellowjackets held on to win 4-1. Berkeley goalie Amy Degenkolb was the star of the game, making 10 saves and keeping Pinole Valley off of the scoreboard for the first half. 

Both teams struggled to score in the first quarter, with the lone goal coming on Sonja Graves’ penalty shot after a Spartan player fouled her right in front of the goal. The stingy defense continued in the second quarter, especially after Aurora McAllister put the Yellowjackets up 2-0 with a blind shot from in front of the goal. The home team was fortunate to not give up any goals in the period as two Spartan shots rang off Degenkolb’s posts. 

“We really focused on our defense, and that showed today,” Graeber said. “We knew this would be a tight match, and really one of the key matches of our league season.” 

The second half started quickly, with each team scoring a goal in the first two minutes. But the Yellowjackets clamped down on defense yet again, and the Spartans wouldn’t score for the rest of the game. Cody Keffer scored her second goal of the match with 1:02 left in the game to seal Berkeley’s victory.

A day after Vice President Al Gore and Gov. George W. Bush bored the country to sleep during their first debate, Berkeley’s City Council hopefuls tried to pump new life into democracy at a grassroots election forum Wednesday evening, taped live at the Berkeley Community Media studios and broadcast on TV-25. 

Titled the “Transportation, Housing and Environment Forum,” the tribunal was sponsored by the Bicycle Friendly Berkeley Coalition and other groups which focus on the environment and transportation issues. 

Candidates opened with a statement on their vision for Berkeley’s housing, transportation, jobs and environment.  

Each responded to the personal question asking for the “best and worst thing that you do for the environment.” 

Nearly every candidate said driving a car was the worst thing that they do that harms the environment. Councilmember Betty Olds sparked controversy by admitting that she uses her fireplace five or six times during the winter. 

“We’re very interested in letting the voters know how the candidates stand on this,” said organizer Jason Meggs of the Bicycle-Friendly Berkeley Coalition. “Livable city issues are very close to the heart of bicycle groups.” 

Jane Bergen of the League of Women Voters moderated the forum, which will be broadcast five more times before the election. 

The incumbents – Maudelle Shirek from District 3, Betty Olds from District 6 and Margaret Breland’s aide Calvin Fong, who spoke on Breland’s behalf – talked about their track records on the issues and the connection between transportation, housing and the environment. 

“Margaret’s advocacy on housing, health care and education are some of the reasons that the National Women’s Political Caucus and the John George Democratic Club endorsed her,” Fong said. “Truly addressing the interconnectedness of jobs, housing, transportation and the environment could allow us to be the first and most sustainable city in the world.” 

Fong said that Breland was unable to attend because she was resting after chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer. 

“Housing, jobs and education have been the cornerstone for progressive values for decades. In recent years, health care and the environment have joined them in the ranking of top issues,” Vice Mayor Shirek said. “Today we understand the importance of linking together where we live, where we work and where we go to school. Understanding these links today is a practical necessity as well as my moral and political vision for social justice.” 

Shirek, the only District 3 candidate at the forum, said she would actively support students for housing against “the corporation that is the UC,” and fight to provide affordable housing “come hell or high water.” . 

Olds, who along with Shirek, is supported by the Sierra Club, said that her hills district has needs that are very different from the flatlands.  

She talked about the need for better bus service in the hills “because not everyone can ride a bicycle.” Olds also said that she would have the courage to face neighborhoods which may not want to provide more housing, and said that she would like to develop housing with no parking. 

Norine Smith, Olds opponent, did not disagree, but added that AC Transit service stops too early in the hills. She also said that she would work for shuttles, such as alternatively powered cable cars, that could pick up residents and shoppers at the three BART stations.  

Smith also said she would ask UC Berkeley to turn the Underhill Parking lot into student housing. 

The other District 6 candidate in attendance, Eleanor Pepples, said that she would work collaboratively with other groups and cross party lines and cross districts to push for more housing and the repaving of roads in her district.  

District 2 candidate Gina Sasso, who said that this is her third time running for council, talked about the need to build more affordable housing. “It’s a right to sleep, not a privilege,” she said. 

Sasso said she wants to put an end to gentrification, and said she would work to build low-income housing in the South Shattuck and South San Pablo areas. 

District 5 candidate and AC Transit director Miriam Hawley said that, if elected, she would implement the city’s bike plan, make pedestrian and bicycle safety a top priority and “make it easier to ride the bus.” 

Hawley said that she would work to increase bus ridership by providing a bus pass similar to the UC Berkeley “class pass,” adding signage and redesigning bus stops. 

Landmark Preservation Commissioner and District 5 candidate Carrie Olson said she would push for public transit 24 hours a day. Moreover, she said that she would also work for a mode of alternative transportation that would run from the Rockridge or McArthur BART station to the university, then through downtown and down University Ave. to the Fourth Street train station. 

“This would pull commuters to UC out of their cars and reduce the need for parking around the campus and free up Underhill for housing,” she said. Olson also wanted a car-free overlay district as part of the new General Plan. 

District 5 candidate Tom Kelly said that streamlining the process that allows construction to take place, and getting that construction up to “green” standards, could alleviate the housing crisis and help revitalize the city. 

Kelly also thought shuttles from BART at peak times would be effective. He talked about attractive pedestrian zones that could be linked with transportation options that could reduce the number of cars coming into the city. 

Benjamin Rodefer, also a District 5 candidate, said he doesn’t believe that there is a housing shortage. He says the problem is pricing. 

“We have to make sure that there is low-income housing and protection for everyone,” he said. 

Rodefer also said that Berkeley’s revitalization should spread to south Shattuck, south San Pablo and along I-80.  

He also called for incentives for using hybrid and electric cars, such as free parking for those vehicles. 

“The small things can make a difference,” he said. 

The forum will air on B-TV the following dates: 

• 8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 23  

• 8 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24 

• 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 29 

• 1 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 1 

• 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 4  

The Cal Bears head into this weekend’s matchup in Tempe, Ariz. looking for a new identity. Following a loss to the weakest team in the Pac-10 last weekend, the Bears need to pull out of their offensive funk against a Sun Devil team that prides itself on playing tough defense. 

The Golden Bear defense should have a field day against an Arizona State offense that is missing its top two quarterbacks, along with its top two tailbacks. The offense will be in the hands of former walk-on Griffin Goodman, a senior who had attempted just 46 passes before this season. 

True freshman Mike Williams has filled in admirably at tailback after Delvon Flowers went down before the season and Devaren Hightower suffered a leg injury in the Sun Devils’ opener. Williams has gained 334 yards on 69 carries, including a 143-yard effort against Utah State, so look for the Bears to stack seven or eight men on the line of scrimmage to stop the running game. The Bear defense needs to come up with some big plays, as the offense has shown no signs of coming to life since the first game against Utah. 

“I wouldn’t say there’s a lot of pressure, but we know the hat’s on our head and we have to wear it,” said defensive end Andre Carter. “Every time we get on the field, we know we’ve got to find a way to make big plays, find a way to score, cause turnovers.” 

Defensive coordinator Lyle Setencich had success against the Washington State offense last week blitzing linebackers from the inside. Linebacker Chris Ball in particular has a good game, racking up a sack that drove the Cougars out of field goal range on one drive and making two other tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Setencich should be able to continue his attacking style of defense with the inexperience Griffin under center for the Sun Devils. 

“Our attitude is, we need to come out and shut teams out, because if they don’t score they can’t win and that’s the bottom line,” Ball said. 

Cal’s offense is another story. The Bears have gotten more conservative with each successive game, to the point where offensive coordinator Steve Hagen seemed hesistant to call long passing plays last week. Sophomore quarterback Kyle Boller has regressed to last year, when he completed just 36 percent of his passes. 

“I think if we can expand the yardage and the completions that we get with the pass game, then that will open up the offense,” Holmoe said. “We’ve got to expand now and open it up in the secondary, and if we can do that, it will complement the run game.” 

With the passing game in a funk, Hagen has turned to tailbacks Joe Igber, Joe Echema and Saleem Muhammed to move the ball and eat up the clock. The trio has responded well, racking up a season-high 149 yards on the ground last week. But with yet another injury on the offensive line, this time left tackle Langston Hughes, the Bears might have a rough time creating holes. Senior center Reed Diehl will have to work hard to keep the patchwork line together. 

“I look to my left and see brand new faces, and now we have Chris Chick who’s coming in at left tackle,” Diehl said. “We’ve got guys who can play, they just haven’t had the chance.” 

Diehl said that the depth on the offensive line is better than on most teams, and credited offensive line coach Ed White with keeping the backup players ready to go. 

“It could limit what we do if we didn’t have a coach who gives reps to second-string players during the year. They’ve been getting reps all season, they’ll just step it up,” he said. 

Boller should get a chance to throw the ball down the field, as Arizona State ranks last in the Pac-10 in passing defense. But if he can’t improve his accuracy, the Sun Devils will get more daring as the game goes on. They lead the conference in sacks with 17, including five by defensive end Terrell Suggs and three by linebacker Adam Archuleta. Hagen will have to establish both the run and the pass to be successful in Tempe. 

“You’ve got to be able to do both phases, to complete passes and run the football,” Hagen said. “We ran the ball decently last week, but you’ve got to be able to do it all.” 

If the Bears can avoid the special teams mistakes that have plagued them this season, they have a good chance to pull out a victory against a depleted Arizona State squad. It will probably be their best chance at a win before the Big Game against Stanford, as every one of the opponents in between is ranked in this week’s national polls.

While many drug treatment providers and elected officials support Proposition 36, the state initiative to give people convicted of non-violent drug possession drug rehabilitation instead of jail time, a number of them question its feasibility. 

Over 19,000 prisoners were in California jails last year for simple drug possession, according to a June 1999 report by the State Department of Corrections. Taxpayers pay $24,000 annually per inmate. 

“We are wasting a fortune putting a lot of young people in jail for a lot of marijuana cases,” City Councilmember Kriss Worthington said. “It’s important to stop criminalizing youth and provide other options.” 

Under Prop. 36, the 25,000 people charged solely with drug possession would be diverted from prison to drug treatment programs, said Daniel Abrahamson, the initiative’s co-author and director of the legal affairs office at the Lindesmith Center-Drug Policy Foundation.  

As a result, the state would save $100 to $150 million annually in prison operations, according to a legislative analyst’s report. Counties would save about $50 million due to fewer people in jail.  

Berkeley has only a small, acupuncture-based detoxification facility, Worthington said. Prop. 36 could help fund a full-fledged drug treatment center, he said.  

Another advantage of the proposition is that it would circumvent the racial biases of drug courts, which is another diversion program, said Abrahamson. These courts decide who gets drug treatment instead of incarceration for those who decide to plead guilty to possession charges. 

“The majority referred to treatment are white, while the majority of those arrested for possession are black and brown,” he said. 

Also, drug courts are only used for 3 to 5 percent of possession cases, said Dr. Peter Banys, president of the California Society of Addiction Medicine. They are of variable quality state-wide. 

Because Prop. 36 does not fund drug courts, many criminal justice groups oppose the proposition, he said. 

However, drug courts could accommodate those charged with possession along with other crimes, Banys said. 

Mayor Shirley Dean voted yes in June to a unanimously-approved City Council resolution supporting the proposed act. But after talking to doctors that work with drug courts, she said she changed her mind on the proposition. 

The new law would treat all offenders similarly, Dean said, arguing, however, that some ought to go to jail while others would best be served by treatment.  

“We need more treatment facilities,” she added. 

Initially, after the proposition’s enactment on July 1, 2001, $60 million would be appropriated to fund treatment centers. Then, beginning in Jan. 2002, $120 million would be appropriated annually until 2006. 

Some of the proponents, however, raised questions about whether the proposition could be made to work. 

Property for new drug treatment centers will be difficult to find, said Banys, explaining that residents fear that treatment centers attract addicts to their neighborhoods. 

“The biggest problem is the ‘not in my backyard’ mentality,” he said.  

The San Francisco VA Hospital was effectively blocked by the surrounding community from building a new treatment center on its own property, he said, although patients were already being treated at the hospital 75 yards away. 

“It’s impossible to open new residential treatment programs. We tried four times in the last year and failed,” said Brian Greenberg, vice president of Walden House, Inc., a state-wide drug treatment program that works closely with prisons. 

Even if new centers are built, healthcare workers are already in short supply at existing institutions, said Greenberg. In Walden House’s Central Valley location, there are 30 openings; in San Francisco, 60. 

“In the Central Valley, there is no one left to hire,” he said. 

Joan Zweben, executive director of the East Bay Community Recovery Project and the 14th Street Clinic, said staffing and real estate deficits would be difficult to conquer.  

“I don’t see a way around these problems,” she said. 

The initial $60 million could go toward attracting healthcare workers by providing higher salaries, said proposition spokesperson Scott Ehlers. 

“Salaries aren’t going to change,” said Greenberg. 

However, drug treatment providers see the proposition as a first step toward treating drug addiction as a medical problem, much like alcoholism. 

“It’s ridiculous to incarcerate people for what’s a treatable condition,” Zweben said. 

Due to advances in technology, Alameda County has initiated an “Early Voting” program for this November’s election.  

Starting Tuesday, Oct. 10 through Friday, Nov. 3, Alameda County registered voters may appear at the City Clerk Department in Berkeley and vote using electronic voting equipment. The City Clerk Department, located at 1900 Addison Street is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5p.m.  

City Clerk staff will verify the voter’s eligibility and provide the voter with a “smart card”.  

The City Clerk Department is wheelchair accessible.  

This equipment is also capable of providing audio information for those with visual impairments.  

Early voting will also be available in the cities of Alameda, Fremont and Livermore and at the Alameda County Registrar of Voters’ Office, 1225 Fallon Street, in Oakland.  

Anyone wishing to vote after November 3rd but prior to Election Day, 

Nov. 7, will be required to go in person to the Registrar’s Office.  

SAN FRANCISCO — The California Supreme Court handed employers a victory Thursday, ruling that nonunion workers can be terminated even if the company’s policy was only to fire for disciplinary reasons. 

The high court, voting 6-1, reversed a closely watched appeals court ruling that said a San Francisco man could sue his employer for wrongful termination even when his job was eliminated. The appellate court said John Guz could sue even though he was a non-contract, or so-called “at-will” employee at Bechtel National Inc. 

Employer groups had closely followed the case. In briefs submitted to the high court, they said if the court ruled in Guz’s favor, it would be nearly impossible to layoff workers to cut costs, which the San Francisco company said it did in this case. 

“If the court had ruled otherwise, every restructuring decision could be subject to the judicial process and thrown to a jury to decide,” said Steven Drapkin, a Los Angeles lawyer with the Employers Group, which represents 5,000 California businesses. The high court ruled that Bechtel could eliminate jobs “as it saw fit,” Justice Marvin R. Baxter wrote for the majority. 

Guz, a 23-year employee, lost his job at the engineering and construction firm in 1993 and sued, alleging he had an implied contract that he could only be fired for disciplinary reasons. Guz, 49 at the time, also claimed his layoff was based on age discrimination because younger workers were retained. 

The company said it terminated Guz because it eliminated several jobs, including the financial reports supervisor position he held, to cut costs.  

The court, however, kept alive a part of the suit that said Guz’s termination did not follow the company’s written layoff procedures.

SAN FRANCISCO — Dancers and artists pranced on the steps of City Hall to a driving drum tattoo, protesting rising rents and dwindling rehearsal space and demanding more from the city they’ve helped define. 

“Wake up San Francisco. No Art No Soul” read one protest sign as stiltwalkers teetered above a crowd of more than 200 performers Wednesday, vowing unrest until city leaders come up with a rescue plan. 

“The city needs us to keep it a vital city,” said Jo Kreiter, an acrobat who shimmied up 15-foot-tall pole for a slow, bird’s eye ballet of twists and turns. “They need us to thrive here. Not just scrap out a living.” 

The musical call-to-arms came in the midst of a political tug-of-war over spiraling office space rents, driven up by the dot-com companies that are creeping into nearly every nook in the city. 

Performance studios in San Francisco cost an average $12.70 per square foot. But the market rate for the same space is an estimated $55 per square foot. 

That leaves places like Dance Mission left out in the cold, no longer able to afford rising rents. The instructional group is scheduled to close its doors Nov. 1 after 30 years of samba, flamenco and tap dance lessons. 

“I’ve been here a year and half. In that time there are six main dances studios in San Francisco and four of them have closed,” said Tara Brandel, a community outreach worker for Dance Mission who moved here from London after learning of the city’s rich dance history and the storied careers of Anna Halprin and Isadora Duncan. 

After the rally, the Board of Supervisors’ Finance and Labor Committee began meeting inside City Hall to discuss the displacement of artists and nonprofit groups. 

Up for discussion was Mayor Willie Brown’s plans to offer $7 million in city grants to build space for performers and artists, $5 million going to capital improvements for non-profits and more than $1.5 million to arts and cultural non-profits through the city’s Art Commission and Grants for the Arts. 

“With a red-hot economy has come a red-hot real estate market, and our non-profits are getting burnt. We must intervene,” Brown said in a statement. 

Many of the artists losing their regular haunts are musicians from Downtown Rehearsal, the city’s largest rehearsal space, closed late last month in preparation for the building’s reported $14 million sale.  

The musicians, which include Chris Isaak, have taken the $750,000 offered by the building’s owner to find a new home. 

At Wednesday’s protest, Krissy Keefer grabbed a microphone and told the crowd that the show of unity would send a message that politicians could not ignore. Keefer said she wanted the city to buy buildings to house nonprofits, help artists pay for maintenance and the projects that emerge from the space. 

“We might be rabble rousers, but we are not isolated,” Keefer said.

PASADENA — NASA’s Cassini spacecraft, en route to a 2004 rendezvous with Saturn, snapped its first image of the giant planet Jupiter as engineers worked to understand a communications problem with a companion probe. 

The problem involves the European Space Agency’s Huygens probe, which will detach from Cassini and parachute to the Saturnian moon Titan in late 2004. The problem does not affect Cassini’s primary mission of orbiting Saturn. 

“We’re still investigating it,” said Bob Mitchell, Cassini’s program manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. “The probe relay doesn’t occur for another four years, so we have got a lot of time to work it.” 

Meanwhile, NASA released the first picture taken by Cassini of the gas planet Jupiter. 

The black-and-white image, shot from a distance of more than 52 million miles, shows the planet’s cloud bands and swirling Great Red Spot, which has been noted by astronomers since the first telescopes were aimed at the planet 300 years ago. 

Though the picture does not reveal anything new about the planet, it confirms the $3.4 billion mission’s imaging systems are working properly, Mitchell said. “It is very reassuring to see that the entire system is working just great,” he said. 

Cassini is expected to return a steady stream of Jovian images as it flies closer to the planet. Each will be taken with a different filter and they will be combined to produce full-color images. 

By the end of the probe’s flyby of Jupiter at the end of March 2001, controllers expect to have a collection of images that rival those taken by the Voyager spacecraft in 1979 even though Cassini will not fly as close. 

“We have a better, higher-quality, later-technology camera than Voyager,” Mitchell said. “Before we’re done, we should have some very spectacular images.” 

A tape recorder malfunction prevented similar pictures from being sent back by the Galileo spacecraft, which continues to orbit the planet. Three global pictures taken at the start of the mission remain stuck on the recorder. 

Since its 1997 launch, Cassini has flown by Earth once and Venus twice, each time using gravity to gain speed and change direction as it heads for Saturn. Its closest approach to Jupiter takes place Dec. 30. 

Cassini is scheduled to arrive at Saturn on July 1, 2004. 

——— 

On the Web: Cassini home page: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cassini 

LOS ANGELES — A lawsuit charges that Verizon, formerly GTE Corp., ripped off the elderly by charging $4 to $6 per month for the customers to rent their rotary telephones, listing the charge as rental equipment. 

The lawsuit, reported in Thursday’s Orange County Register, covers consumers that have been charged the rental fees in any of the past four years. 

Last year, records show Verizon charged as many as 116,000 Californians for renting phones. Another 19,763 customers last year found the charge and either returned the phone to the company or asked to have the charges stopped. 

The Superior Court lawsuit was filed by attorney Marc Coleman on behalf of customers such as Eva De Bruin, 58, of Los Alamitos. De Bruin was dismayed last month when she discovered the equipment rental charge on her bill. 

She contacted Verizon and the company offered her a $40, one-year refund because De Bruin could not prove she had returned the rotary phone. De Bruin believes she’s been paying a monthly charge for nearly three decades. 

Coleman sued Verizon for negligence and unjust business practices, claiming it collected at least $5 million annually since 1987. He said many of the jilted customers were elderly residents who rented rotary phones. 

A Verizon spokesman on Wednesday declined to discuss the case with the Orange County Register, citing a policy that restricts the company from commenting on pending litigation. 

Coleman also claimed Verizon unjustly enriching itself because consumers paid much more than the retail cost of the rotary phones, now worth about $20. The lawyer claims the company misled consumers by listing the charge as an equipment rental, rather than a household phone rental. 

The practice dates to the period before telephone deregulation in 1984, when it was common for consumers to rent phones from their local phone company. Pacific Bell, now a unit of SBC Communications, eliminated its rental equipment charges between 1985 and 1988. 

Kelly Boyd, a senior telecommunications analyst at the Office of Ratepayer Advocates, an arm of the state’s Public Utilities Commission, said Verizon recently formed a committee to examine its practice of charging customers to rent phones. Verizon offers phones customers can rent for $4.95 to $16.95 a month. It continuously collects the rental fees even after the consumer has paid for the retail cost of the phone. 

“I thought everyone had the charge on their bill,” said Jennifer Cundiff, of Long Beach, another plaintiff in Coleman’s case. “I assumed it was for equipment boxes or wiring or something.” 

The Associated Press 

LOS ANGELES — Refusal to remove a pea-sized, flesh-colored stud on her tongue cost Mary Haudenshield her job. Now her former employer must swallow the cost of a legal settlement. 

Haudenshield has accepted an offer of reinstatement in the apartment-leasing job, along with the equivalent of six weeks of paid vacation and a company turnabout on what may be considered appropriate in the workplace. 

“Everything has been made right. The most important thing was to get my job back,” the 29-year-old said Wednesday.  

She was fired Sept. 14, after showing the stud to some co-workers.  

The settlement offer came shortly after the lawsuit was filed last week. 

She will be paid from the date of the firing until she returns to work Nov. 1, said her lawyer, Gloria Allred, who receives attorney fees as part of the settlement.  

Haudenshield also gets to stay in a $1,380-a-month apartment owned by her employer of 61/2 years, paying the employee rate of less than half the normal rent. 

Haudenshield said her job performance, her outward appearance and her speech weren’t affected while wearing the stud, and it’s not visible unless she sticks out her tongue. 

But a memo from her supervisor at R&B Realty Group (a division of Oakwood Worldwide) provided by Haudenshield said:  

“Confirming our prior conversation, this memo is to confirm that a pierced tongue is not considered professional in appearance in accordance with Oakwood Worldwide dress code policy.  

“If you continue to choose not to remove it during working hours, your employment will be considered terminated immediately.” She was fired the same day. 

In a letter to Haudenshield after she filed suit, an Oakwood personnel official said: “Although we have policies that place a high degree of emphasis on professional demeanor, we must also recognize that individuals may have different and changing views about what is appropriate in the workplace.” 

“I feel good knowing that my experience may help other workers stand up for their rights when they have been violated,” Haudenshield said Wednesday. 

Haudenshield said she decided to wear a tongue stud because “it symbolized an important point in my life and was something important to me concerning my values and goals.”

SACRAMENTO — Local animal rights advocates thought they had the perfect spokesman for their new campaign to get pit bull owners to spay and neuter their pets. 

Then world champion boxer Tony Lopez announced he was going to breed his pit bull “the right way.” 

Organizers of the Sacramento Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said Wednesday that they were preparing to distribute hundreds of fliers featuring Lopez when the retired prizefighter made the announcement. 

“Here’s someone who is the poster boy for spay and neuter. It’s incredibly frustrating,” said Susanne Somers, a local SPCA board member. 

“There’s really no excuse for it. He’s just perpetuating the whole problem,” she added. 

Sterilizing pit bulls is important since the animals’ fearsome reputation often scares people away from adopting them. The Sacramento SPCA is starting a $20,000 campaign to pay people to get their pit bulls fixed. 

“Since he is a full-breed, red-nosed pit, I’ve got a lot of people who are interested in breeding him. If I do it, I’ll do it the right way,” Lopez said. 

SPCA officials say if they can’t persuade Lopez to change his mind, he will be dropped as the campaign spokesman. 

The Associated Press 

LOS ANGELES — A federal judge froze the assets of three businessmen and two companies accused by regulators of running a Ponzi scheme used to defraud elderly investors and others of at least $28.3 million. 

Regulators contend that TLC Entities promised to invest the money in distressed real estate, but used much of it to pay other investors, buy race horses or wired it overseas, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Thursday. 

Misuse of the money also included a $1 million donation that helped pay for a new football stadium at a high school attended by one defendant’s son, said Lisa Gok, assistant regional director in the SEC’s Los Angeles office. 

U.S. District Judge David O. Carter issued a temporary restraining order on Wednesday that froze TLC’s assets for 12 days pending a hearing. Carter also ordered TLC to make an accounting of its finances. 

“The pitch was that this was a great investment ... it was making 12 to 14 percent a year,” Gok said. In reality, she said, “this was never making any money. It was a Ponzi scheme.” 

A Ponzi scheme is a type of fraud in which early investors are paid off with money collected from subsequent investors. 

The judge’s order named Ernest F. Cossey and Gary W. Williams, both of Diamond Bar, and TLC as defendants. Thomas G. Cloud, of Atlanta, and his company, Cloud & Associates Consulting Inc., also were named. 

Calls to attorneys representing the defendants were not immediately returned. 

TLC raised $156 million from investors through solicitations that included recommendations made by Cloud in audio presentations posted on Christian-oriented Web sites, Gok said.  

Cloud claimed he was not paid to tout TLC investments, but in reality received more than $1 million in fees, Gok said. 

Cloud worked through his own Web site, Cloudassoc.com, which was linked to some Christian sites, Gok said.  

On Thursday a link connected Cloudassoc.com to Oneplace.com, a site featuring Christian audio programs, where Cloud was featured as a personal finance commentator. 

On a Oneplace.com page highlighting Cloud’s commentary, a written blurb urged visitors to combine their knowledge of scriptures with investing strategies. 

“You’ll ultimately learn how to shine brighter through biblically based financial stewardship,” it read. 

Cossey was accused by the SEC of misusing $1.55 million of investors’ funds by donating the money to Diamond Bar High School in Diamond Bar. 

About $1 million donated between 1998 and 1999 was used to build a new football stadium, Gok said. 

Carter’s order froze about $66 million in assets, including $2.2 million in cash, several race horses and real estate, Gok said. 

The SEC was seeking an order that would force the defendants to pay fines and give up any money gained as a result of fraud, she said.

STOCKTON — Hundreds of union members including farmworkers, carpenters and janitors rallied here Thursday to push for a $2.25 increase in California’s $5.75-an-hour minimum wage. 

The Industrial Welfare Commission, meeting here to hold the last of a series of hearings on the subject, is considering a $1 increase. 

The more than 300 union members demonstrating outside want it raised to $8 an hour. They say a dollar increase isn’t enough to support their families. 

“Five-seventy-five, we can’t survive,” they chanted. 

The five-member commission is expected to vote on an increase Oct. 23. Commissioners will not comment on the proposal until then, said Andy Baron, the panel’s executive officer. 

California last raised the minimum wage in March 1998. 

Business leaders contend an increase would mean lost jobs, higher insurance costs for employers and higher prices for consumers. 

Several farmers told the commission a $1 increase would hit them hard. 

“Anyone in production agriculture has no ability to raise the cost of their product. I can’t go asking for more money if you decide to do this,” Richard Dolezal, a Ripon cherry grower, testified. 

He estimated raising the minimum wage $1 would cost him $1,000 more a day during his peak season, when he has 100 workers out picking cherries. 

Commissioners are also considering whether to uphold several exemptions to the minimum wage. Shepherds, actors, some in-home health workers and some government employees are among workers not covered by it. 

Lodi sheep farmer Diego Olagaray told the commission he could not afford to pay his shepherds more. 

Shepherds’ lives are not as bad as they make them sound, said Olagaray, who raises 4,000 sheep and said he must also grow grapes to make a living. 

“They work four hours a day and we pay for board, for food, for insurance,” Olagaray said.  

“The $900 a month they make is all tax-free, take-home pay.” 

So many people crowded the hearing that the fire marshal and California Highway Patrol at one point restricted entry to the state building’s auditorium, which holds 185 people. Protesters used bullhorns to get their message inside. 

Lindsay farmworker Florencia Ramos, who speaks Spanish and testified through a translator, said she and her husband, who works for a chicken producer, are trying to support their young children on the minimum wage. 

“We came to this country to get a better life, but it’s even worse than in our own country,” said Ramos, who is from Mexico.

DANVILLE, Ky. — Democratic vice presidential candidate Joseph Lieberman charged in campaign debate Thursday night that Republicans want to “raid the Medicare trust fund to pay for their tax cuts.” But Republican Dick Cheney said there was more than enough money to go around, and it is “totally reasonable” to give relief to all taxpayers. 

The argument that “somehow ... all of it is going to tax cuts isn’t true,” Cheney said of the huge surpluses forecast over the next decade. 

The two men sparred – but politely – as they sat together for their only debate of the fall campaign. The atmosphere on a specially constructed stage at Centre College seemed more relaxed than Tuesday night when presidential candidates Al Gore and George W. Bush met in Boston for the first of their three scheduled encounters. 

Each man pledged to avoid personal attacks. Cheney took that one step further. “I promise not to bring up your singing,” he said to Lieberman, drawing laughter from his rival. 

“And I promise not to sing,” Lieberman quipped in rebuttal. 

The campaign understudies debated in a White House campaign as close as any in the past four decades. Bush and Gore are separated by only a point or two in most polls, pointing to a suspenseful final month of the campaign. 

The two men reprised comments made Tuesday night by the presidential candidates when the topic turned to RU-486, an abortion pill recently approved by the government for use in the United States. 

Cheney said the FDA had already acted, and the only issue was whether the drug was safe. He said he and Bush are “pro-life,” and the Texas governor would look for ways to “reach across the divide to reduce abortion.” 

Lieberman signaled his support for the FDA decision, and  

said there were fundamental differences between the two tickets  

on abortion. 

“Al Gore and I will respect a woman’s right to choose. And our opponents will not,” he said. 

Cheney, a former defense secretary, and Lieberman, a two-term Connecticut senator, arrived in Kentucky earlier in the day. 

Cheney, holding the hand of his granddaughter, 6-year-old Kate Perry, greeted well-wishers at an airport rally as he arrived in Lexington. 

He said of the debate, “It’s a great opportunity for Senator Lieberman and I to have a conversation, if you will, with the American people and to lay out what it is we hope to do for the country.” 

Lieberman said after Tuesday night’s presidential debate that it was a sign of desperation for Bush to question Gore’s character and dispute his credibility by alluding to President Clinton’s troubles. 

Cheney said, “Al Gore, once again, made up facts.” As long ago as the Republican National Convention, he was saying Gore was trying to shed Clinton baggage. 

Lieberman began his day with a jog around Lake Reba in Richmond with his wife Hadassah and son Matthew. “I want to talk about the issues. That’s what it’s all about,” Lieberman said afterward, wiping his sweaty brow. 

His T-shirt said “Fightin’ Joe Lieberman” on the front and, in big block letters on the back, “CHAMP.” Lifting his arms during his run, he pumped his fists like Sylvester Stallone in the movie “Rocky.” 

“Obviously, he has some nervousness in him ... but he feels confident,” Mrs. Lieberman told MSNBC. “The only advice I’ve given him is, ’Be yourself.”’ 

Lynne Cheney said her husband was feeling “pretty relaxed” and was looking forward to pointing out the differences between his boss, Texas Gov. Bush, and Vice President Gore. 

She took a swipe at Gore in an interview on ABC-TV, saying, “I think a very important theme tonight will be to point out that perhaps Al Gore is not the kind of leader, the kind of person who reaches across partisan lines and brings people together to effect change. Perhaps he’s not the kind of leader we need.” 

While boosting their presidential ticket leaders, the running mates also were given a chance in the national spotlight to show off their own qualifications, including the ability to step into the No. 1 spot if needed. 

Lieberman, experienced in Senate debate, is known as well for his sense of humor. 

Cheney served for a decade in Congress as the representative from Wyoming. He also was President Ford’s chief of staff and was defense secretary during the Persian Gulf War. 

In many ways, Lieberman and Cheney have been debating for weeks. 

For example, Lieberman said after Tuesday night’s presidential debate that it was a sign of desperation for Bush to question Gore’s character and dispute his credibility by alluding to President Clinton’s troubles. 

Cheney said, “Al Gore, once again, made up facts.” As long ago as the Republican National Convention, he was saying Gore was trying to shed Clinton baggage. 

An estimated 46.5 million people watched Tuesday’s Bush-Gore debate, according to Nielsen Media Research. Fewer viewers were expected to tune in for Cheney-Lieberman. 

Assorted protest groups tried their best to be heard by the candidates. Police allowed dozens of protesters onto the college campus after a standoff; they refused to be confined to a protest area away from the debate site and marched down Main Street toward the school. 

Much of the protests focused on the exclusion of third-party candidates from the debate. Other groups talked about Falun Gong, a religious sect banned by the Chinese government, human rights issues in Latin America and the U.S. embargo against Cuba. 

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — On the same Michigan battleground and in virtually the same words, Al Gore and George W. Bush dueled Thursday for the stressed-out-parent vote with ideas such as Bush’s TV family hour and Gore’s daycare tax credit. 

The presidential candidates promised to make government a tool for helping parents protect their children – from “cultural pollution,” in Gore’s words in Grand Rapids, or, as Bush put it in Royal Oak, from a “popular culture that is sometimes an enemy of their children’s innocence.” 

As their running mates met in Kentucky to debate, Bush and Gore mirrored each other’s messages and schedules, underscoring just how close their race for the White House is with 41/2 weeks to go. 

They chased each other from Ohio on Wednesday to Michigan on Thursday. 

Bush, who lost Michigan’s winter primary to Republican Sen. John McCain, joked to GOP Gov. John Engler, “Maybe one of these days I’ll win the state.” 

From here, Bush continued on to Wisconsin and Iowa. Gore and wife Tipper were settling in front of a TV in Orlando, Fla., to watch the night’s vice presidential faceoff between Democrat Joseph Lieberman and Republican Dick Cheney. 

Bush, campaigning at the Helen Keller Middle School in a solidly Republican suburb of Detroit, called on the television industry to voluntarily restore a nightly “family hour” between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m., and establish a new code system using the letter “v” to identify violent programs. 

The Texas governor, promising to “put government back on the side of parents,” also outlined steps to make workplace compensatory time easier to claim and to give parents flexibility to work from home. He said he would require libraries and schools that get federal funds to install Internet filters. 

In Grand Rapids’ Calder Plaza, where Gore drew a lunchtime crowd that the Secret Service counted at 11,000, the vice president said his proposals to crack down on entertainment marketing would help parents guard “against cultural pollution, including the kinds of inappropriate entertainment that young children are not ready to handle.” 

Gore was in the reliably Republican region, home town of former President Ford, advisers said, because internal surveys suggested that a slice of Kent County’s electorate was open to Gore and that cutting the margin of loss in western Michigan could tip the state’s 18 electoral votes his way. 

Nationally, Gore was up 51 percent to 40 percent in the latest CNN-USA Today-Gallup three-day tracking poll released Thursday. Gore and Bush were virtually even Tuesday in the tracking poll of likely voters which has an error margin of 4 percentage points. The new poll was taken Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, including some voters before and after the first presidential debate. 

Bush has proposed increasing the Child and Dependent Care tax credit and making it available to at-home parents, plus offering a new refundable credit for parents paying to put kids up to age 16 in after-school care. 

Thursday’s Bush-Gore rhetorical echo extended to the situation in Yugoslavia, huge crowds swarmed Belgrade to demand that Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic concede electoral defeat. 

“It is time for Mr. Milosevic to go,” said Bush. 

“He has to leave,” said Gore. 

Although they sounded for much of the day as if they were singing off the same page, each threw in a discordant note or two to try and make their differences clear. 

Gore focused on his $500-billion, 10-year package of targeted tax cuts versus Bush’s broader $1.3 trillion proposal. 

“I will cut taxes for middle-class families, for the people who most need tax cuts — middle-class families who are making car payments and mortgage payments and struggling to make ends meet and doing right by their kids,” said Gore. 

“I will not go along with any plan that squanders the surplus on a massive tax cut that gives most of the benefit to the wealthy.” 

Bush took a dig at Gore’s simultaneous celebrity fund raising and crusade against entertainment smut. On Wednesday night, Gore raised for the Democratic National Committee $850,000 with help from rockers Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora. 

Said Bush, “I’m not the kind of person during the day to scold Hollywood and then at night go out and say, ’Well, I really didn’t mean it. I’d like your contributions.”’ 

His proposal on “comp time” was a hit with business, but not with labor. 

“It is truly one of those win-win situations for employers and employees,” said Randel Johnson, vice president for labor and employee benefits policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. 

“Proposals that do away with overtime, like this one, are poor public policy,” said Brian Rainville, a spokesman for the Teamsters union. 

Vice President Al Gore announced to the world during the Tuesday night debate that he might not be the most exciting politician.  

George W. Bush was not that exciting either, said Bruce Cain, Director of UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies, speaking to the group of political science students gathered in the basement of Moses Hall on the UC campus to watch the first campaign debate. 

The students seemed to agree, with several in the audience characterizing the debates as “hard to pay attention to.” 

“Neither candidate stood out. I’d like to have seen Nader in these debates,” said Ryan Clark, a sophomore who registered for the Green Party a day earlier. “I know that Nader would have brought the death penalty and campaign finance reform issues to the table with him.” 

Sophomore Nirav Kamdar said the debate was too centered on issues that did not touch him, such as Social Security and Medicare. 

“It seems like it’s mostly their own agenda. Perhaps because I’m young, I don’t understand the details of these issues.” 

Kamdar also said he felt that both candidates moved quickly to the political middle, making it difficult for him to differentiate between the two. 

“Voting without much sense of their differences is like a blind draw,” he said. 

As the debates began, Cain warned students to watch for references to the 12 citizens invited to put a human face on the candidates’ debate rhetoric.  

“They brought 12 people from swing (vote) areas. Watch how Bush and Gore use their stories. It’s always a question of whether they’ll get the stories right,” said Cain, adding that the Bush Web site would have fact checkers posting responses to everything that Gore said in his speech. 

The more than 100 students roared with laughter when these characters appeared in the candidates’ narration, particularly at the end of the debate when Gore referred to a Winnebago-driving, poodle-walking 79-year-old woman in his final statement as an example of the middle class people his health care policy would help. 

Other stock phrases, like “fuzzy math,” “a lockbox on social security” and “the wealthiest 1 percent” drew laughter as students tried to predict when the soundbytes would be used again. 

Both candidates touched on education issues. This was a particular sore point for Veronica Terriquez, who graduated last year with a Masters degree in Education. 

“Standardized testing was proposed by both of them, and without programs like teacher training, those tests just serve to tell the same story - that rural and poor urban areas don’t perform as well on standardized tests. Then, because these schools don’t perform as well, which we already knew, they get penalized by not getting funding, and the situation gets worse,” said Terriquez. 

She singled out Bush’s plan to implement school vouchers as particularly odious. 

“Vouchers take money from the public schools, which are already short of funds, and lets middle class kids go to private schools. This means that the gap between poor kids and the rest of the nation will widen,” she said, adding that in California this would perpetuate an unequal achievement between youth of color and white kids. 

“There are schools here that don’t even have adequate textbooks,” she said. “How will standardized tests measure that?” 

While debating Gore on which sectors of American society would receive tax breaks from the government, Bush drew the loudest laugh of the night when he said “(It’s) not the role of a president to decide right and wrong,” . 

Professor Raymond Wolfinger, the Heller Professor of political science at UC Berkeley, said the comment was “ironic when considering the Republicans’ stance on moral issues” during the Lewinsky scandals. 

“Republicans have discussed moral issues throughout Clinton’s presidency. 

“To say that the president does not decide what is right and wrong at this point....” he said, letting his voice trail off to make his point. 

Wolfinger also noted the “Nader effect” on the debate. Saying that Bush “muffled” policy contrasts with Gore to “not be blown away,” in the debates, Wolfinger felt that Gore pointed out those differences clearly. 

“I think Gore explicitly pointing out his differences with Bush was an implicit response to Nader’s point that there is no distinction between the parties,” said Wolfinger, a Democrat. “The differences were made clear. Even though I was battling sleep, I got that much from the debates.” 

Others felt that Nader and the political climate created by mass protests in Seattle, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles pushed Gore more to the left than he’d have been otherwise. 

“I think Nader and the protests were on Gore’s mind. It’s good to hear a politician say that special interests had too much power in Washington,” said Charlene Lee, a junior English major. 

Overall, however, the debates and the debaters were considered duds by most in Moses Library. 

“There was no winner, no one really stood out. Bush seemed more human than Gore, but Gore seemed more well versed in the issues,” continued Lee, adding candidly, “I’d like to have switched channels and watched some of the A’s game.”

Thursday, Oct. 5

Candidate meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church 

941 The Alameda (at Los Angeles) 

The NorthEast Berkeley Association sponsors a meeting featuring candidates for the Districts 5 and 6 City Council seats, plus discussion of Berkeley ballot measures. 

3rd annual Berkeley Black Police Officers’ Association Golf Tournament 

Tilden Park Golf Course 

Shotgun Start at 7:30 a.m. Entry Fee includes cart range balls and Award Luncheon. Proceeds benefit Berkeley Black Police Officers’ Scholarship Fund. 

$99 Entry Fee 

644-6554 

New Role for the U.N.  

in the New Century 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

2299 Piedmont Ave. 

A discussion with Rosemary van der Laan, President of the Board of Directors of the UN Association of the United States, about globalization and it’s impacts on the economic, social and political lives of the world.  

$3 admission  

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Capoeira Arts Cafe  

& Company Perform  

Noon 

BART plaza, Downtown  

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

A Brazilian extravaganza of Samba, Capoeira and more. Free. 

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Community Environmental Advisory Commission 

7 p.m. 

2118 Milvia St., Second Floor 

Conference Room 

Discussion of the West Berkeley Air Monitoring Project.  

Contact Nabil Al-Hadithy, 705-8155 

Public Works Commission 

7:30 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) Discussions will include the status report on the Pedestrian Safety Awareness Campaign.  

665-3440 

Housing Advisory Commission 

7:30 p.m. 

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis St. 

Topics will include a discussion on the adoption of a housing code amendment to ensure the proper functioning of gas appliances in residential units.  

Contact Oscar Sung, 665-3469 

Friday, Oct. 6

Opera: Marriage of Figaro & Schubert Songs 

1 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

More info contact Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

Circle Dancing 

7:45 p.m. - 10 p.m. 

Finnish Brotherhood Hall 

1970 Chestnut St. 

Beginners welcome; no partners needed.  

John Bear: 528-4253 

“Stocks, Bonds, and the Future” 

11:45 a.m.  

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Dennis Quan, Account Executive at Morgan, Stanley, Dean Witter speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11  

For info and reservations, 848-3533 

Sustainable Business Alliance Networking Lunch 

Noon - 1:30 p.m. 

Saffron Caffe 

2813 Seventh St. 

The purpose of this lunch is to network with other businesses interested in sustainable business practices. The lunch is open to non-members.  

Call Terry O’Keefe, 451-4000 

Learn to Birdwatch 

Oct. 16, 18, 23 & 25 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

UC Botanical Gardens 

200 Centennial Drive 

$50 for members; $65 for non-members 

Call for info or to enroll: 643-2733 

Saturday, Oct. 7

Berkeley Grassroots Greening Tour 

Starts at 10:45 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. 

Celebrate Open Garden Day by joining this annual bicycle tour of local community and school gardens. Part of a series of free outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance. 

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Houses or Open Hills? 

10 a.m.  

Experience Black Diamond Mines Regional Park’s ghost towns, coal mines, spectacular views and open space on this hike by the proposed sites of 7,700 homes near Antioch. Cosponsored by Save Mount Diablo. One outing in a free series organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Open Garden Day 

11 a.m. - 4 p.m.  

The sixth annual Open Garden Day offers garden lovers an opportunity to peek into 34 local community and school gardens. The gardens offer fresh food, children’s activities, composting demonstrations, and more. Special electric bus tour and bicycle tours will be available. Maps and schedules are available in East Bay libraries, nurseries, and in the pages of this very newspaper.  

More info: BCGC, 883-9096  

Harwood Creek Cleanup 

9 a.m. - Noon 

John Muir School  

2955 Claremont Ave. 

Help clean up and restore the creek that runs through John Muir school. Volunteers are asked to bring gloves, chippers/shredders, tools and pick-up trucks. 

Voter Empowerment Town Hall Meeting 

1 - 4 p.m. 

West Bay Community Center 

1290 Fillmore St. 

San Francisco 

Sponsors include the Berkeley NAACP Youth Council. 

For additional info: 1-877-316-9071 

Women’s Evening At the Movies 

7:30 p.m. 

Pacific Center 

2712 Telegraph 

A monthly night at the movies for lesbian, bi and transexual women. This months featured film is “Fried Green Tomatoes.” 

$5 donation requested 

Call 548-8283  

Free Estate Planning Seminar 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

St. Ambrose Church 

1145 Gilman St. (at Cornell Ave.) 

Call Catholic Charities of the East Bay, 768-3109 

Berkeley Youth Alternatives Harvest Fair 

11 a.m. - 3 p.m. 

BYA Community Garden Patch 

1308 Bancroft Way (between Acton and Bonar) 

The seventh annual fair features pumpkin carving, face painting, music, Karaoke, crafts, and fresh produce grown right in the BYA garden. Kids of all ages are welcome. Call 845-9067 

Locate Long-lost Relatives 

10 a.m. - 2 p.m.  

Cody’s Books 

1730 Fourth St. 

If you are looking for a missing relative, the International Soundex Reunion Registry may be able to help. The ISRR is a free, nonprofit service.  

Call Bob Crowe, 835-1550 

Pearl Ubungren Dancers with Joey Ayala 

PUSOD 

1808 Fifth St.  

Also performing will be Kayumanggi and Bobby Banduria. Free.  

Call 883-1808 for additional info.  

Sunday, Oct. 8

Voter Registration Sunday 

11 a.m. service 

St. Paul’s AME Church 

2024 Ashby Ave. 

Sponsored by the Berkeley NAACP Youth and College division 

Call: 710-0238 

—Compiled by  

Chason Wainwright 

Author and Minister Sarah York to Speak 

10:45 a.m.  

Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley 

1 Lawson Road 

Kensington 

York is the author of “Remembering Well: Rituals for Celebrating Life and Mourning Death.” 

More info: 525-0302 

Tibetan Cultural Preservation 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute  

1815 Highland Place 

Erin Clark and Sandy Olney speak on “Sustaining the Tibetan Tradition.” 

call 843-6812 

Tuesday, Oct. 10

Cal Alumni Singles 20th Anniversary Dinner 

UC Faculty Club 

Dinner scheduled for Oct. 15 

For reservations call 527-2709 by Oct. 10 

Kenya, 40 Years Ago and Today 

1 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Call 644-6107 for more info  

Wednesday, Oct. 11 

Are Domed Cities in the future? 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom  

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion based on UC Berkeley alumnus Tim Holt’s book, “On Higher Ground.” Set 50 years in the future, part of the book takes place in an East Bay enclosed by a climate-controlled dome.  

$3 admission  

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Tenant-Landlord Problems? 

12:30 - 2 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Bring your concerns about repairs, harrassment and housing rights.  

Call 644-6107 

Homeless Commission 

7 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center  

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

644-8616 

Police Review Commission 

7:30 p.m.  

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis St.  

The commission will discuss their workplan/goals for the upcoming year.  

644-6716 

Board of Library Trustees 

7 p.m.  

South Branch  

1901 Russell  

644-6095 

Waterfront Commission 

7 p.m. 

His Lordships Restaurant 

199 Seawall Dr.  

644-6376 x234 

Planning Commission 

7 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

705-8137 

Commission on Disability 

6:30 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

655-3440 

Thursday, Oct. 12

East Timor: The Road to Independence 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave. 

A discussion of events leading up to the creation of the newest nation of the millennium and issues raised on the road to independence.  

$3 admission 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Meeting Life Changes 

10 a.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

With John Hammerman.  

For info: 644-6107 

Sterling Trio 

Noon  

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

Members of the Berkeley Symphony performing a variety of chamber music. 

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Zoning Adjustments Commission 

7 p.m.  

Old City Hall  

2134 MLK Jr. Way 

705-8110 

Community Health Commission 

6:45 p.m.  

Mental Health Clinic 

2640 MLK Jr. Way 

665-6845 

Friday, Oct. 13

“The Evolution and Cost of Ethical Drugs” 

11:45 a.m.  

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Stanford D. Splitter, retired MD speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11 

Call for reservations: 848-3533 

Saturday, Oct. 14

Indigenous Peoples Day Powwow & Indian Market 

10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Grand Entry 1 p.m.  

Enjoy Native American foods, arts & crafts, drumming, singing and many types of native dancing. Sponsored by the City of Berkeley, this event is free.  

Civic Center Park 

Allston Way at MLK Jr. Way 

Info: 615-0603 

Traffic Calming Workshop 

1 - 4 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets.  

Sunday, Oct. 15

A Taste of the Greenbelt 

1 - 4 p.m. 

Los Gatos Opera House 

Celebrate the Bay Area’s agricultural and culinary bounty. This benefit features a variety of musical groups, local artists and samples from over 40 local restaurants, farmers, wineries and microbreweries. Proceeds benefit Greenbelt Alliance’s ongoing efforts to protect Bay Area farmlands and open space.  

$45 per person; $80 for this event and the Oct. 22 event in SF 

1-800-543-GREEN, www.greenbelt.org 

A Muslim Approach to Life 

3 p.m. 

St. Johns Presbyterian Church 

2727 College Ave.  

A presentation on the Muslim spiritual life and culture which will focus on women’s lives and the uniqueness of women’s spiritual journeys. This is the first of four Sunday programs that will focus on this theme.  

Call 527-4496 

Time, Space, and Knowledge Vision 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Place 

Ken McKeon speaks on “Time, Space, and Knowledge, Right from the Start.” 

Call 843-6812 

1923 North Berkeley Fire Walking Tour 

10 a.m. - Noon 

Phil Gale leads this tour of the Sept. 18, 1923 fire site, identifying various changes wrought in buildings and landscape. The tour includes the Mayback chimney, around which a new home was constructed. Pre-paid reservations are required.  

$10 

Call for reservations, 848-0181 

Monday, Oct. 16

Private Elementary School Parent Information Panel 

7 - 9:30 p.m. 

Epworth United Methodist Church 

1953 Hopkins St.  

A panel of parents from six area private schools discuss the admission process and their experiences. Sponsored by the Neighborhood Parents Network 

Admission: free to members, $5 non-members 

Call 527-6667 

Tuesday, Oct. 17

Is the West Berkeley Shellmound a landmark? 

7 p.m.  

City Council Chambers 

2134 MLK Jr. Way, 2nd floor 

Continued and final public hearing on the appeals against landmark designation of the West Berkeley Shellmound. The City Council may possibly make it’s decision at this meeting. 

Landscape Archeology and Space-Age Technologies in Epirus, Greece 

8 p.m.  

370 Dwinelle Hall 

UC Berkeley 

Professor of Archeology, Art History and Classics Dr. James Wiseman presents a slide-illustrated lecture. 

Mario Savio Memorial Lecture 

7:30 p.m. 

Pauley Ballroom 

UC Berkeley 

Barbara Ehrenreich and Arlie Hochschild will speak on the theme “Forwards and Backwards - Women, globalization, and the new class structure.” Free.  

Wednesday, Oct. 18

Traffic Calming Workshop 

7 - 10 p.m. 

St. Clements Church 

2837 Clement Blvd.  

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets.  

“Women and Trafficking: Domestic & Global Concerns” 

6 - 9:30 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

The Berkeley Commission on the Status of Women invites the public to this forum which will include an expert panel discussion, and a movie on Women and trafficking. Free. 

Call 644-6107 for more info.  

Thursday, Oct. 19

The Promise and Perils of Transgenic Crops 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion with Dr. Peggy Lemaux, professor of Plant and Microbiology at UC Berekeley, of the scientific basis for biotechnology, it’s risks and benefits. 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Rafael Mariquez Free Solo Concert 

7:30 p.m. 

Berkeley Public Library, South Branch 

1901 Russell St. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This Chilean folksinger and guitarist presents his original settings of selections by Latin American poets. 

Contact: 644-6860; TDD 548-1240 

Vocal Sauce 

Noon 

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

The JazzSchool’s vocal jazz ensemble perform award-winning arrangements by Greg Murai.  

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Friday, Oct. 20

“The Ballot Issues” 

11:45 a.m. 

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Fran Packard of the League of Women Voters speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.  

Luncheon: $11 

Call 848-3533 

Human Nature 

8:30 p.m. 

New College Cultural Center 

766 Valencia 

San Francisco 

The X-plicit Players present this idyllic nude ritual. Watch or participate: Be led blindfolded through body tunnels, into body streams while sensing psychic/body qualities through touch. Also presented on Oct. 21.  

$12 admission 

Call 415-848-1985 

Saturday, Oct. 21

A Day on Mt. Tam 

9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. 

Come play and hike in San Francisco’s beloved playground. This outing is part of a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance. 

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

AHIMSA Eight Annual Conference 

9 a.m. - 5 p.m.  

International House, Great Hall 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

The AHIMSA is a nonprofit foundation whose goal is to encourage dialogues and public forums which bridge spiritual, scientific and social issues. This years conference is titled “Violence! Scientific and Spiritual Perspectives.”  

Admission is free 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market Fall Fruit Tastings 

10 a.m. - 3 p.m.  

Center St. at MLK Jr. Way 

Taste a whole farmers’ market’s bounty of fall fruit varieties. 

Free. 

Info: 548-3333 

Sunday, Oct. 22

A Taste of the Greenbelt 

1 - 4 p.m. 

Presidio’s Golden Gate Club 

Greenbelt Alliance brings the farm to the city in this celebration of the Bay Area’s agricultural and culinary bounty. Featured are samples from over 40 local restaurants, farmers, wineries, microbreweries. Also featured are live music and local artwork. The event benefits Greenbelt Alliance’s ongoing efforts to protect Bay Area farmlands and open space.  

$45 per person 

1-800-543-GREEN, www.greenbelt.org 

An Evening with Alice Walker 

7:30 p.m.  

King Middle School  

1781 Rose St. (at Grant) 

free parking 

Join internationally loved novelist, poet and essayist Alice Walker in celebrating her new book of autobiographical stories, “The Way Forward is With a Broken Heart.” Benefits Berkeley EcoHouse and KPFA Radio, 94.1 FM.  

Tickets: $10 advance, $13 door 

Tickets available at independent bookstores 

More info: 848-6767 x609 

Take a Trip to the Oakland Ballet 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This is an outing organized by the Senior Center to see “Glass Slippers.”  

Tickets: $6 each 

Call Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

Monday, Oct. 23

Berkeley Chinese Community Church Turns 100 

6 p.m. 

Nov. 4 

Silver Dragon Restaurant 

835 Webster St. 

Oakland 

Reservations: $30 per person 

More info: 548-5295 

Public Schools Parent Information Night 

7 - 9 p.m.  

Epworth United Methodist Church 

1953 Hopkins St. 

Parents, principals and other administrative staff from 11 elementary schools will speak about their schools. Sponsored by Neighborhood Parents Network.  

Admission: free to members, $5 non-members 

527-6667 

Tuesday, Oct. 24

Berkeley Farmers’ Market Fall Fruit Tastings 

2 p.m. - 7 p.m.  

Derby St. at MLK Jr. Way 

Come taste a bounty of fall fruit varieties for free. 

Info: 548-3333 

Thursday, Oct. 25

International Jewish Video Competition Winners 

7:30 p.m.  

Pacific Film Archive 

2575 Bancroft Way 

Screening of the four winners in the Museum’s seventh annual competition.  

Call 549-6950 

Thursday, Oct. 26

East Bay Science & Arts Middle School 

Noon  

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Middle school students perform dances of folk, swing, and Cuban rueda styles. Free.  

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Friday, Oct. 27

“Transporation: What’s in Store?” 

11:45 a.m. 

Berkeley City Club  

2315 Durant Ave.  

Larry Dahms, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Transportation Council speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon is served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11 

More info and reservations: 848-3533 

Saturday, Oct. 28

Pedaling the Green City 

11 a.m. -3:30 p.m.  

Take a leisurely bike ride along the future San Francisco Bay Trail. One in a series of free outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations  

Saturday, Nov. 4

Breathtaking Barnabe Peak 

10 a.m. - 4 p.m. 

Hike through Samuel P. Taylor State Park’s lush forests and climb to the heights of Barnabe Peak, overlooking Point Reyes. One in a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Monday, Nov. 6

Airports vs. the Bay 

7 p.m. 

Albany Community Center 

1249 Marin St.  

Albany 

David Lewis, Executive Director of “Save the Bay” will speak on the airports’ plans to expand into the SF Bay and other challenges to Bay restoration.  

Contact: Friends of Five Creeks, 848-9358 

Thursday, Nov. 9

The Life and Art of Chiura Obata 

7:30 p.m.  

North Berkeley Public Library 

1170 Alameda (at Hopkins) 

A slide show and lecture presented by Obata’s granddaughter, Kimi Kodani Hill, celebrating Obata’s book, “Topaz Moon: Chiura Obata’s Art of the Internment,” and the retrospective exhibit of Obata’s work to appear this Fall at SFs De Young Museum. 

For details call 644-6850  

Saturday, Nov. 11

Moonlight on Mt. Diablo 

1 - 10:30 p.m.  

Hike up the Devil’s Mountain by daylight, catch a glorious sunset and hike back by the light of the moon. One in a series of free outing organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Sunday, Nov. 12

Views, Vines and Veggies 

9:15 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.  

Climb Bald Mountain in Sugarloaf State Park and peer down upon the Napa and Sonoma Valleys. Then please your palate at the Landmark Winery and visit Oak Hill organic vegetable and flower farm. One in a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

“Time Across Cultures” 

2 - 4 p.m. 

St. Clements Church 

2837 Claremont Ave.  

The annual Roselyn Yellin Memorial lecture with a slide-illustrated panel discussion. Also a tour of the “Telling Time” exhibit at the Judah L. Magnes Museum followed by a reception at the museum, 4 - 5 p.m.  

More info: 549-6950 

Tuesday, Nov. 14

Take a Trip to the Steinbeck Museum and 

Mission San Juan Bautista 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This is an outing organzied by the Senior Center.  

$40 with lunch, $25 without  

Call Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

Thursday, Nov. 16

Reminiscing in Swingtime 

7:30 p.m.  

North Berkeley Library  

1170 Alameda (at Hopkins) 

George Yoshida, author and jazz drummer, presents a multi-media program recounting the big band experience in the Japanese American internment camps. The presentation will be capped with a set of live jazz by the George Yoshida Quartet. 

Call for more info: 644-6850 

Saturday, Nov. 18

S.F. Stairs and Peaks 

10 a.m. - 3 p.m.  

Begin the day with a visit to the farmer’s market, then meander up the stairways and streets of Telegraph Hill to Coit Tower. Then up Russian Hill, descending to Fisherman’s Wharf for a ride back on the new historic streetcar line. One in a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 

Berkeley Free Folk Festival 

11 a.m. - 1 a.m.  

Ashkenaz  

1317 San Pablo Ave. 

Fourteen hours of free concerts, workshops, jam sessions and to top it off a Saturday night dance. The fifth annual Folk Festival will feature Shay & Michael Black, Spectre Double Negative & the Equal Positive, Larry Hanks, Wake the Dead and many others. Sponsored by Charles Schwab and the City of Berkeley.  

More info or to volunteer: 525-5099 

Sunday, Nov. 19

Mt. Madonna & Wine  

10 a.m. - 2 p.m. 

Hike through evergreen forests and visit the remains of a 19th century estate, then finish the day with a visit to Kruse Winery. One of many free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: (415) 255-3233 for reservations 

ONGOING EVENTS 

Sundays 

Green Party Consensus Building Meeting 

6 p.m. 

2022 Blake St. 

This is part of an ongoing series of discussions for the Green Party of Alameda County, leading up to endorsements on measures and candidates on the November ballot. This week’s focus will be the countywide new Measure B transportation sales tax. The meeting is open to all, regardless of party affiliation. 

415-789-8418 

Tuesdays 

Easy Tilden Trails 

9:30 a.m. 

Tilden Regional Park, in the parking lot that dead ends at the Little Farm 

Join a few seniors, the Tuesday Tilden Walkers, for a stroll around Jewel Lake and the Little Farm Area. Enjoy the beauty of the wildflowers, turtles, and warblers, and waterfowl. 

215-7672; members.home.com/teachme99/tilden/index.html 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market 

2-7 p.m. 

Derby Street between Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Milvia Street 

548-3333 

Berkeley Camera Club 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share your slides and prints with other photographers. Critiques by qualified judges. Monthly field trips. 

531-8664 

Computer literacy course 

6-8 p.m. 

James Kenney Recreation Center, 1720 Eighth St. 

This free course will cover topics such as running Windows, File Management, connecting to and surfing the web, using Email, creating Web pages, JavaScript and a simple overview of programming. The course is oriented for adults. 

644-8511 

Saturdays 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market 

10 a.m.-3 p.m. 

Center Street between Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Milvia Street 

548-3333 

Poets Juan Sequeira and Wanna Thibideux Wright 

Thursdays 

The Disability Mural 

4-7 p.m. through September 

Integrated Arts 

933 Parker 

Drop-in Mural Studios will be held for community gatherings and tile-making sessions. This mural will be installed at Ed Roberts campus. 

841-1466 

Fridays 

Ralph Nader for President 

7 p.m.  

Video showings to continue until November. Campaign donations are requested. Admission is free.  

Contact Jack for directions at 524-1784. 

2nd and 4th Sunday 

Rhyme and Reason Open Mike Series 

2:30 p.m. 

UC Berkeley Art Museum, 2621 Durant Ave. 

The public and students are invited. Sign-ups for the open mike begin at 2 p.m. 

234-0727;642-5168 

Tuesday and Thursday 

Free computer class for seniors 

9:30-11:30 a.m. 

South Berkeley Senior Center, 2939 Ellis St. 

This free course offers basic instruction in keyboarding, Microsoft Word, Windows 95, Excel and Internet access. Space is limited; the class is offered Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. Call ahead for a reservation. 

644-6109 

Compiled by Chason Wainwright 

Al Gore – No Clinton, but probably my choice 

By Russell Morse 

“Al Gore is for the people.” I swear, when I heard those words, I was shocked. Did anybody really believe that? The speaker was a young kid who grew up in the projects and now lives in a detention center for juveniles. Fitting in a filthy denim suit, with bits of straw in his hair from working outdoors, he wants Al Gore for president. 

And maybe now, after the debates, so do I. 

I like Al Gore. I never did before. I bet my roommate $100 that G-Dub would be our next president way back when he was butting heads with John McCain. I’d been rooting for W – a reflection of my cynicism. I alsobelieved that no politician, particularly one from either corner of the partisan ring, could escape corporate control, look out for average folks and be anything more than a puppet. 

I heard Gore speak at the Democratic Convention which I covered as a reporter. However, he was drowned out by protesters who reminded me that “Gore” rhymed with “corporate whore.” Everything he said sounded forced and it was painful to hear. 

The primary reason I wasn’t able to get into Al Gore was that he wasn’t Bill Clinton. He’s not suave. He can’t crack a joke. And he’s not a backwoods redneck who climbed his way to the top. Sadly, no one but Bill Clinton can be Bill Clinton. Clinton’s whole thing was that you could identify with him. He was Everyman. Gore’s just fighting for Everyman. 

But what Gore does have is honest eyes and intellect. Watching the debate and seeing the Vice President tackle difficult issues like foreign policy and abortion in stride, I began to develop a sort of admiration for him. He’s articulate (honestly, I might only think that because his opponent stumbles over words and resorts to insults) and he knows what concerns middle class Americans. He’s more or less in touch. 

What I kept waiting to hear was a question about the growing prison population or the death penalty. If Gore is touting himself as a champion of the working class, shouldn’t he acknowledge that the prison system is “Everyone’s” social problem? 

And what about poor folks? If Bush wants tax breaks for the rich and Gore is fighting for the middle class, where does that leave everyone else (namely, those whom Clinton referred to as “the ones serving us our hot dogs and soda” at the DNC)? 

I’m not exactly content. But I believe Gore’s heart is in the right place. He’ll never be Clinton, but he could be my president. 

Russell Morse, 19, is a sophomore at San Francisco State University  

Those dudes are scary 

By Swan Gant 

Last night was the first time I sat down and actually took time to listen to what George W. and Al had to say, and as I listened, I realized just how little I felt them. 

At first, they argued about senior medical benefits so I wasn’t too interested. Then they debated on women’s rights, the new abortion pill, education and tax cuts. That’s when I realized I was scared. 

They are scary because I don’t think I have anything in common with them. 

They are making decisions that are going to affect me, but at 16 years of age there’s nothing I can do. 

George W. didn’t approve of the new Abortion Pill saying he didn’t see a need for it. He fears that if this drug becomes too widespread, abortions will become more and more common. 

Al made it quite clear that if he was elected he would make sure women got to chose for themselves. Gore gets props for this one, although the pill doesn’t sound that safe to me. 

On education, both Bush and Gore support safer schools, of course. Bush wants more schools with higher expectations, I agree with that. He wants reading programs where students get cash for books they read. 

Gore said that he wanted to test new teachers and make tests mandatory. Gore believes you should shut down failing schools. Gore also proposed that college tuition be tax deductible. I do plan to go to college, and a tax write-off for tuition is cool. But I like Bush’s plan more because everyone needs to know how to read. 

On taxes Bush wants to give tax cuts to everyone, not just the middle class, and that sounded good – too good to be true. 

Gore focused more on middle class families. I am not middle class. Middle class people don’t need as much attention as poor people – folks who struggle to put food on the table like the ones I come from. 

Still, in the end I didn’t feel them. If I saw either candidate walking down the street I wouldn’t notice. And they wouldn’t notice me or anyone else who’s poor or powerless. That’s scary. 

Swan Gant is 16 and a high school senior 

Too Busy to Watch 

By Charles Jones 

I missed the debate last night. 

I really wanted to catch it, but I had priorities. My son had to be picked up from daycare by 6 p.m. and my daughter needed diapers after that. Plus, I had to pick up dinner for the family. I didn’t get home until 8 p.m., well after the debate are over on the West Coast. With me constantly juggling my political affiliations, I was upset that I missed it. So when a co-worker brought in a tape of the debate, I jumped at the op to see George W. Bush break out of his public speaking slump. 

Anticipation proved better than the debate itself, with its weak moderation and unintelligent, emotionally charged outbursts. The West Texan (for some reason, it matters) couldn’t understand the “fuzzy Washington math” that Gore used in his examples of their respective differences in policy. Al was (for the most part) calm and collected, loaded his guns and shot straight. There were rude interruptions, disregard for time restrictions, and constant blinking from Bush. 

I turned off before the end, not yet convinced by either candidate and knowing I’ll (better yet they’ll) have another chance, provided I can get home before they are finished. 

Charles Jones, 23, writes for YO! Youth Outlook and is the father of a 6-month-old and a 3-year-old. 

“Things change every year in high school water polo. That’s why you have to be wary of every opponent.” 

That statement, made by Berkeley High water polo coach Bill Gaebler after Tuesday’s matches against Grenada High School, applied to both the boys’ and girls’ matches. After beating Grenada 21-5 last season, the boys managed to pull out a tight 6-3 victory after being tied at halftime. And the girls, who took three overtimes to beat Grenada a year ago, jumped out to a 9-0 first-half lead and won by a final of 12-3 on Tuesday. 

The boys’ match was tightly contested throughout, with both teams struggling to penetrate the opponent’s defense for good shots. The teams were tied 2-2 at the half, but the Yellowjackets showed better stamina in the second half, pulling away for the three-point victory. Joe Ravera and David Schooley led the ‘Jackets with two goals apiece, and goalie Chris May made several crucial second-half saves to preserve the win. 

The girls’ match that followed was much less competitive. Berkeley jumped out of the gate with four first-quarter goals, including two by Carrie Guilfoyle in the last 1:30 of the period, while not allowing any shots by the opposition. The second quarter was more of the same, with the ‘Jackets tallying five more goals to open their lead to 9-0 at halftime. Six different girls scored for the home team in the first half, and goalie Amy Degenkolb carried a light load with just one save before halftime. 

Berkeley appeared to let up a bit to start the second half, and Granada’s Mary Moruza took advantage of their lax defense to score the only two goals of the third quarter.  

“We worked on some things we didn’t get to work on in the first half, and that gave them some scoring opportunities,” Gaebler said. “That’s the way the game goes sometimes.” 

But Berkeley quickly shut the door on any comeback hopes for the visiting team, scoring two goals in less than a minute to begin the final period. Moruza pulled one goal back to complete her hat trick for the game, but Grenada was unable to put any more scores on the board, and Aurora McAllister’s goal with three minutes remaining in the game set the final score at 12-3 in favor of the Yellowjackets.

No one smashed a magnum of champagne across the prow of the four-ton pickle Wednesday morning at Old City Hall.  

Instead, AC Transit officials opted for a ribbon cutting to dedicate a big, green low-emission bus – dubbed the “pickle” – to the people of Berkeley in celebration of the ongoing partnership between the city and AC Transit. 

Emblazoned with the city’s logo, the low-floor, cleaner-burning diesel bus is one of latest additions to the AC Transit fleet that currently serves the San Pablo corridor. Berkeley’s official bus will soon be rotated into normal service. 

Attended by AC Transit directors and staff, along with city officials and a catchy little two-piece jazz band, the ceremony, titled “A Partnership in Motion,” hailed the bus as one of the first of a new breed of low-emission buses that will serve the first “Bus Rapid Transit” program, which is in its infancy along the San Pablo corridor. 

AC Transit Director Miriam Hawley – Hawley’s also a City Council candidate – presented the mayor with a plaque “dedicated to the people,” she said, for their support of the bus system. 

“There is no city more appropriate to receive this award,” she said. “Berkeley is a leader in the region, and is a proud transit-first city.” 

The rallying cry of the ceremony was the passage of Measure B, a half-cent sales tax dedicated to transportation programs. A measure to extend the tax, due to expire in 2002, will be on the November ballot. 

“Our first step is to pass Measure B,” Dean said. “You can’t have a first class city without a first class transit system.” 

Dean also talked of adding a light rail on Telegraph Avenue to serve the UC Berkeley campus and a city-wide transit pass modeled after the university “class pass.” 

UC Berkeley Director of Parking and Transportation Nadesan Permaul said that since the “class pass” went into effect two years ago, 22,000 students have begun to use the buses. He said that just 2,000 were using the bus regularly before the pass. 

Councilmember Kriss Worthington said that in the interest of reducing car trips and therefore traffic, the bus system “needs to be appealing to everyone,” he said.  

“Traffic is either first or second in the number of complaints that we hear from our constituents,” he said. 

Councilmember Linda Maio lauded the work of the system on searching for and implementing environmentally-friendly technology. 

“Our generation’s challenge is to fight for a safe environment,” she said. “(Automobile) emissions are the largest contributor to greenhouse gas.” 

Maio also said that many of her constituents have said that they have been using the bus, something that she said “she didn’t hear 10 years ago.” 

Jim Gleich, Deputy General Manager for AC Transit, said that by the end of next year he hopes to have “zero-emission vehicles.” 

In 1999, AC Transit successfully road tested a battery-powered hybrid electric bus with a clean-burning, propane auxiliary generator, and they recently received an $8 million grant from the state to continue fuel-cell engine development. 

The Berkeley bus was built by North American Bus Industries in Alabama and purchased by AC Transit to help meet California’s tough emission standards, said agency spokesman Mike Mills. 

State-of-the-art electronics enhances the performance by controlling firing, the transmission and other functions, which also makes it more reliable, he said. 

The low-floor ramp folds down and greatly improves wheelchair accessibility. 

The emerald-green bus will be operate along San Pablo Ave. as part of the Bus Rapid Transit program. AC Transit joined with Berkeley, Oakland, Albany, El Cerrito. Emeryville, Richmond and San Pablo to introduce transportation and streetscape improvement, Hawley said. 

She said that the changes are aimed at easing traffic congestion, improving pedestrian safety and increasing transit use. 

If Measure B is approved, only by a two-thirds vote, the project would receive a $20 million allocation.

Want more from Andrew Lam 

Editor: 

Thank you for running Vietnamese-born Andrew Lam’s lovely piece on his grandmother today (Oct 2nd). Some months ago I saw, in a San Francisco paper, another moving article by him about leaving his country. He is truly a talented writer of fine prose. Let’s have more. 

Beatriz Coda  

Rainforest protests explained 

Editor: 

I am a member of a campus coalition of the Rainforest Action Group and Ecopledge.com, a coalition working to stop Citibank from funding environmentally destructive projects all over the world. 

The destruction of some Citibank property last week has moved me to write a letter explaining what the Citi campaign is about. 

Last Tuesday, Sept. 26th, after the Reclaim the Streets rally in downtown Berkeley, someone smashed the windows of the local Citibank branch. First of all, I would like to set the record straight: this crime was not committed by our members, nor do we condone it. We do not advocate the destruction of property. 

Nonetheless, I would like to say that the Citi campaign is extremely urgent. Rainforest Action Group is boycotting Citigroup and its subsidiaries because of its direct financial involvement in a number of environmentally and culturally destructive projects. Citigroup has funded mining in the Amazon, oil pipelines in African rainforests, clearing Headwaters forest here in California, and more. All of these projects destroy habitats, threaten endangered species, and displace Native peoples from their homes.  

Rainforest Action Group and Ecopledge believe that Citigroup should be held accountable for its actions, particularly when those actions degrade the overall health of our planet. A part of the funding Citigroup uses for its destruction comes from customer assets (i.e. clients’ money). For these reasons, we are urging students and citizens to boycott Citigroup.  

For anyone who would like more information on how to get involved with RAG or Ecopledge, you may contact adinah@hotmail.com or dfcamazonia@yahoo.com. An International Day of Action against Citibank is coming up on Tuesday, Oct. 17, in front of Citibanks across the U.S., and we urge Berkeley students to come out with us on that day to stand up and be heard! 

Adinah Curtis 

UC Berkeley student 

Mill Valley 

Date:  

Wed, 04 Oct 2000 07:54:52 -0700 

From:  

"Kirstin L. Miller"  

To:  

opinion@berkeleydailyplanet.com 

10/4/00 

Letter to the Editor 

submitted by Kirstin Miller 

day phone: 510 644-1600 

eve phone: 51- 465-0226  

You recently published a satire on Berkeley politics by Morlock Chaillot (Letters, Sept 29). The piece was somewhat amusing, but why did 

you run it as a Letter to the Editor? There is no Deep Ecologists' Gaian Alliance as far as I know, and no real person named Morlock 

Chaillot. Why publish someone who doesn't have the courage to stand up with their real name for what they supposedly believe in?  

But, there is was. And, in spite of all the twisted accusations and assumptions erupting from Mr. or Ms. (Mad Woman of Chaillot's) clever 

pen in an attempt to portray ecological city planning as a farce, it didn't pull off the desired effect. However, the letter did make room for the 

opportunity to shed some light on a few of the implications and assumptions.  

First of all, although some of the Berkeley elite love to portray Richard Register as a lone individual who champions pedestrian scale 

infrastructure against the wishes of everyone else in Berkeley, Ecocity Builders is not the only group on the planet advocating for ecological 

and pedestrian oriented urban planning. Surprise! Secondly, ecocity theory and planning is not an evil plot to convert your town into an ugly 

mass of high rises. Surprise again! Register did invented the term "ecocity" in 1978. His Ecocity Berkeley, Building Cities for a Healthy 

Future, has been well respected in eco-urban circles since it was first published in 1987. He is also the author of three other books, including 

Village Wisdom, Future Cities and the upcoming Ecocities.  

Far from building a gloomy "Gotham City" with "shadowy, phallic spires" as the Morlock Challiot letter maintains, Ecocity Builders is 

dedicated to returning healthy biodiversity to the heart of our cities. That means nature---creeks, bike paths, gardens, and open space. (Does 

that sound like an evil plot to ruin us all? I think not.) Ecocity thinking is about creating whole cities based on human scale needs and 

transportation, rather than the current pattern of automobile driven excess, wasteful consumption and the destruction of the biosphere. 

(Again, I fail to see why working towards a goal like this would be considered not worthwhile, not important or unrealistic.) Guided by 

ecological design principles and by using common sense, we can cast aside our dependence on the automobile and recreate our human 

habitat in balance with natural systems. But it is up to us to start the process.  

Register's thinking is not bizarre or fantastic or unreal. In fact, it makes complete sense. What is unreal, bizarre and fantastic is that more 

people don't think through how we are currently creating our built habitat and realize that we need to shift the pattern away from auto sprawl 

and waste, and toward compact centers linked by transit. Everywhere, even in Berkeley. 

Kirstin Miller 

Berkeley 

Subject:  

Fw: U.C. SNAILS TO RESPOND -- AGAIN 

Date:  

Wed, 4 Oct 2000 07:24:50 -0700 

From:  

"Jonathan Petty"  

To:  

U.C. SNAILS TO RESPOND -- AGAIN 

Well, it's official. Chancellor Berdahl does not exist. 

This was the implication of the Coalition of University Employees' 32nd consecutive "Bargaining Update" submitted to 18,000 clericals who are grinding toward their 

second Christmas season without a fair contract or holiday monies, which the non-existent Chancellor as good as promised in his "Speech to Berkeley Staff Assembly" of 

September 26.  

At that time a figure apparently impersonating the Chancellor, claimed "I really do 'get it'," and alluded to previous promises dating back over a year and most evident at 

last June's State Assembly Higher Education Committee at which U.C. President Atkinson -- another figment of our imagations -- was raked over the coals by state legislators for 

heading the "worst public employer in California." They in turn alluded to brave promises tendered by Atkinson at his christening more than two years back to inaugurate a 

brave new "change of course" in labor relations. Atkinson's promises led to two years of stalled, bad-faith labor bargaining by U.C. A year later he was all but publicly called a 

liar by Sanator Richard Alarcon. 

Berdahl's identical promulgation of a "change of course" ("I very much understand how URGENTLY we need to make changes", italics his), resulted in the U.C. bargaining 

team returning to the table without even having bothered to respond to CUE's last wage proposal made 27 days ago! In addition, "UC prsented only two carelessly drafted 

proposals. If a clerical had produced such slipshod work, disciplinary action would have resulted." In the context of the alledged Chancellor's apparent promise of a "change of 

course", such contempt for U.C.'s 18,000 increasingly exasperated staff can only be taken as an equal sign of public contempt for the Chancellor himself -- if in fact the man 

really exists. 

It may be slightly premature to conclude that Berdahl is imaginary. Several possibilities suggest themselves and must be eliminated before we can achieve certainty: 

1. Berdahl does not exist and the figure speaking for U.C. is a cardboard cutout with a dummy bank account into which U.C. is funnelling hundreds of thousands of dollars 

annually. 

2. The man speaking for the Chancellor is an imposter and U.C.'s bargainers know it. 

3. U.C. bargainers are rogues who have hijacked the office of labor relations and, like pirates, are acting on their own. 

4. Though Chancellor Berdahl does indeed exist, his public statements, like Atkinson's before him, in fact represent palliative purring intended to lull staff, students, and 

public back to sleep. 

Only further testing can determine which of these possibilities is in fact the case. Whatever the result, unless a fifth possibility miraculously appears -- right-on, fair 

bargaining with CUE -- the possibilities of a systemwide clerical strike are becoming more and more concrete. 

Jonathan Christian Petty 

Coalition of University Employees 

Subject:  

Letters to the Editor 

Date:  

Tue, 3 Oct 2000 22:26:39 -0700 

From:  

Sylvia Scherzer  

To:  

judith@berkeleydailyplanet.net 

Please feel to edit my comments re presidental-debate of last night:  

Dear Editor:  

Presidential Debate - Tues. Oct. 3, 2000  

Gov. G.W.Bush stated in the debate that he would have pre-schoolers, in the Head Start programs, read. As if 

that's the measure of success at that level of education!  

Since the 1960's head start teachers & administrators of these programs have found that art, music, dance, 

physical education, dramatics, having hands-on training with cooking, nature study, field trips, science 

experiments, gardening, story-telling, poetry read or acted out by peers/actors, etc. will continue to 

activate/stimulate curious minds to have the readiness to learn to read all in due time.  

The finest educators, school psychologists, doctors who know the human brain, eye-hand coordination, test 

results from public-private schools from pre-school through post-doctorate degrees have shown that these very 

children cannot nor should not read before they are chronologically & developmentally ready. G.W.Bush's 

information in this area is totally non-existant or he has been grossly misinformed.  

Mr. Bush came across as the man to whom we should trust all  

decisions: military, social security, health care, education. He continued to call Mr. Gore's statistics: "fuzzy". 

Mr. Gore's intelligent comments were factual, to the point & well-delivered.  

The woman's right to choose what is to be done with her body & vice-president Gore's committment to uphold 

Roe v. Wade should give any unsure voters the reason to vote Democratic this election. I am both a retired 

elementary school teacher & school librarian for K-12.  

Sincerely, Sylvia P. Scherzer - Emeryville CA  

2 Anchor Dr. #376 - (510) 923-9658  

Editor: 

In response to the letter (8/31) from Terry Powell: 

Terry Powell from Lawrence Berkeley National Lab’s (LBNL) public relations department, operated for the Department of Energy (DOE), is just doing her job when she promotes the lab’s official line on the continuous dumping of radioactive waste from their National Tritiu Labeling Facility (NTLF) and Melvin Calvin Lab on the UC campus. 

The Lab’s boosters endlessly repeat the mantra “tritium emissions below the U.S. EPA’s National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Pollutants (NESHAPS).” Never do they address the many credible criticisms of their absurdly low estimate for radioactive tritium exposure, including those in the report by IFEU, made by independent scientists hired at local taxpayers’ expense by the City of Berkeley. 

Dumping in short bursts and a short stack actually located below the Lawrence Hall of Science (LHS) are easily understandable reasons why exposure to LHS workers and visiting children could exceed the NESHAPS standard. Just because the flawed exposure estimates concocted by LBNL remain unchallenged by the perfumed suits at the EPA and the California Department of Toxic Substances is no reason for anyone to believe them.  

All the Lab’s arguments seem like such blather when one visits the site and sees the tritium stack just 30 feet from the LHS’s fence. Common sense tells one that whatever is coming out of the stack is all over whoever is near it. In this cases it’s most of the areas children. Triatiated vapor is extremely hazardous and has been identified as a cause of leukemia, cancer, infertility and other genetic defects.  

Ms. Powell is incorrect when she states that almost all their tritium is captured and recycled. As sloppy as their records are, they do indicate large quantities missing. Even when LBNl has admittedly dumped does not support her claim.  

Also contrary to what Ms. Powell claimed, LBNL’s treatability “study” was just a scam to unload years of backlogged mixed waste without obtaining the usual permits. Mixed waste, toxic chemicals contaminated with radioactive waste, is fed into an “oxidation cell” complete with igniter plugs and exhaust vents, and can run in excess of 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. Sure sounds like an incinerator to me.  

Playing games by reclassifying the NTLF as a “non-nuclear” facility and “delisting” their mixed waste does not alter the reality that large amounts of dangerous radioactive material are stored, used and dumped there. Neither the NTLF or Calvin Lab are appropriately sited in our community and should be closed and cleaned up.  

Mark McDonald 

Berkeley 

Editor: 

Cal sophomore forward Laura Schott has been named the Pac-10 Women’s Soccer Player of the Week for Sept. 26-Oct. 2, Commissioner Tom Hansen announced Tuesday.  

Schott, from Wilsonville, Ore., tallied four goals in two games to lead Cal to the Golden Gate Classic Title. Schott leads the Bears with 29 points (14 goals, one assist). Six of Schott’s 14 goals have been game-winners. She has already moved into a tie for fourth on Cal’s all-time career goals (25) list and into fifth with 59 career points. Schott also ranks among the nation’s leaders this season. She ranks second nationally in goals per game at 1.27 and ninth nationally for points per game at 2.64.  

California senior defender Tami Pivnick has been named to the Soccer America Team of the Week for her outstanding play in the Bears victories over Colorado College and San Diego. Pivnick also was selected to Soccer America’s Team of the Week for Sept. 11-17 for her efforts in helping the Bears win the Nike/Wake Forest Invitational.

Be wary of trench coats on warm days. That’s the advice given by Sergeant Powell, Head of the Crime Prevention Unit at UC Berkeley. 

After a brief stakeout last week his unit got its man: a bolt-cutter-wielding bike thief who went to the well one too many times at Worcester Hall on campus. “We caught a career criminal,” says Powell. 

Even if the thief goes to jail, don’t be surprised if the number of bike thefts does not drop as the school year progresses. Since the start of university classes, Aug. 28 through Sept. 21, over 55 bikes worth over $21,000 have been stolen on campus according to UC Police records. 

That’s an average of over two bikes per day although some days show as many as five bikes being stolen. Last year 300 bikes worth almost $100,000 were reported stolen on campus during the entire year, an increase in incidence over the previous year of 44 percent, according to the FBI Crime Index. Only three of those, or 1 percent, were recovered. 

Bike theft is one of the biggest headaches for the campus police department. After general larceny, it is the most frequent property crime on campus. 

Sergeant Powell is not too worried yet.  

“If we get a series going up,” he says he will respond with a “sting” involving a particularly attractive bike. But for the time being, “one a day is not going to set any records,” he said. 

Most of the bikes will appear at the Berkeley Flea Market, according to Powell. 

Speed is the key for a successful bike thief. Even cheap bolt cutters, available from any hardware store, can make quick work of a chain or cable lock and even some “U”-locks, and they do not take much room to operate.  

”You can use bolt cutters while they are in a duffle bag or even up your sleeve,” says Matt Thomas, manager of Summit Bicycles on Gilman Street.  

It’s easy to steal a bike because “if you’re crouched over a bike, they just assume it’s yours,” he says. 

To handle the more stubborn U-locks, some thieves have abandoned bolt cutters for small car jacks that fit inside the U and wrench the locks apart from the inside out. Check. 

Riders have responded with commercially available steel plates that slide over the U-lock to prevent the jack from fitting inside the space meant for the bicycle. Check mate? Doubtful. 

Senior Samantha Clarendon had the steel-reinforced U-lock on her bike last year when she entered Moffitt Library. When she came out, there was no sign of her bike or the lock. “I was amazed,” she says. 

Even so, Sergeant Powell recommends the reinforced U-locks that should affix the front tire to the back tire and the entire carriage to a solid object.  

He tells of hapless riders locking bikes to removable street signs with predictable outcomes. 

Powell credits licensing and registration, mandatory by law, in helping reduce bike theft and return found bikes to their owners.  

Riders like Thomas, however, feel differently. “They say it deters bike theft, but I don’t believe it,” 

Thomas points out that not all bike theft occurs to stationary bikes.  

He describes “bike checks” where groups, usually made up of kids, stop riders to steal their bikes by crowding them. 

“‘Strong arming’ is also very popular,” he says referring to simply throwing an arm across someone’s chest as he rides in order to knock him off the bike. “Stealing a bike that isn’t locked down is much easier,” he explains.

California is close to setting a record in voter registration this year, with a week to go before the deadline for signing up to cast ballots. 

The state had 15.1 million registered voters as of early September, the most recent figures available from the secretary of state’s office. 

Although California reached a new high with 15.6 million registered before the 1996 presidential election, that figure included about 1 million people who had moved out of California or died, Secretary of State Bill Jones said Wednesday. 

Those names have been taken off the roles, he said. 

That makes California’s current figures the true record, Jones said, adding that he would not be surprised if the state surpassed 15.6 million over the next week. 

Jones is holding get-out-the-vote activities around the state this week for Voter Registration week. Tuesday is the registration deadline for those who want to vote in next month’s election. At least 20 county election offices plan to stay open until midnight that day to accept last-minute registrations. 

Hundreds of supermarkets have put up voter registration forms near checkouts at the request of state election officials. 

At Raley’s Supermarket in West Sacramento, Josephine Certo picked up some groceries and a form for her husband. 

“It’s a good thing they have these here,” Certo said. “I registered when we moved a few weeks ago but he never did. He’s never registered before.” 

Registration data shows 494,457 new people registered to vote between Feb. 7 and Sept. 8. Most of those gains were in the Democrats’ favor, with an additional 203,000 Democrats turning in forms, compared to 146,000 Republicans. A significant number – 119,087 – declined to state party affiliation. 

Analysts credit the increase in registration to everything from the presidential race to simply an increase in the number of Californians. Republicans and Democrats expect thousands of volunteers to register voters this weekend, the last before the registration deadline. 

“Since March 1999 we have been actively registering people for this election,” state GOP spokesman Stuart DeVeaux said. 

“It’s been our No. 1 focus and goal. We believe that Democrats actually turn out to vote less than Republicans so the real key to the election will be turnout,” he said. Democratic Party spokesman Bob Mulholland credited new laws with making registration more accessible to residents. This is the first presidential election where residents were able to register at Department of Motor Vehicle sites. 

SAN FRANCISCO — Pacific Gas and Electric Co., losing $1 million an hour from skyrocketing wholesale energy costs, sought permission Wednesday to eventually pass $2.2 billion in losses onto their customers. 

Southern California Edison Co. prepared a similar filing for the Public Utilities Commission. 

The moves were among an array of actions Wednesday by public and private utilities grappling with the changes in California’s deregulated electrical power market. 

The power woes started this summer with skyrocketing power prices in the San Diego area, served by San Diego Gas and Electric. That prompted the larger northern utilities to take steps to fend off similar spikes. 

PG&E, which serves 4.5 million people from Bakersfield to Oregon, told the PUC that its petition was prompted by the “extraordinary and unforeseen crisis in wholesale retail power markets in California.” 

Unless the PUC acts, the utility “and its customers face a deepening regulatory and financial crisis over the rapidly growing mountain of debt PG&E is incurring to buy power in wholesale markets in order to serve its customers,” the company said in its petition. 

SoCal Edison, which serves about 4.3 million customers, planned a similar request as early as Thursday, said a company executive who spoke on condition of anonymity. The company is absorbing losses slightly lower than PG&E’s. 

PG&E also prepared a request for the Independent System Operator – the Folsom-based board that manages most of California’s power grid under the state’s 1996 deregulation law – to authorize a $100 cap on some wholesale power purchases. Earlier, the cap was lowered from $750 to $500, and then two months ago to $250. 

SoCal Edison also sought wholesale price curbs, although in a different form than PG&E’s. 

The two huge utilities, bound by rate freezes, are not able to pass their energy costs onto their customers, and they have been absorbing hundreds of millions of dollars in costs monthly. 

Under the deregulation scheme, investor-owned utilities must operate with a rate freeze until they sell off their assets as required by the 1996 law. 

A six-alarm fire decimated an abandoned building near Downtown Oakland this morning, and burning embers carried in the wind started another fire, damaging two occupied buildings across the street. 

No one was injured in the fires, although some of the occupied apartments were damaged and the Red Cross is offering assistance to some of the 50 people who were evacuated. 

Oakland fire Capt. Vicky Evans-Robinson said the fire was first reported at 4:01 a.m. by someone who smelled smoke in the Telegraph Avenue area but could not see any flames. 

An engine was sent to investigate the report and firefighters found a full-blown blaze tearing through the basement of the building located at 2421 Telegraph Ave., she said. 

As the fire escalated, the firefighters backed out and called for help. A first alarm was called at 4:09 a.m. with successive alarms called up until the sixth at 4:57 a.m. Some 125 firefighters and almost two dozen engines and seven trucks were called to the scene to engage the flames. The Alameda County Fire Department also provided personnel. 

The brown brick building, owned by Telegraph Gateway Apartment Inc., has been vacant since the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake, Evans-Robinson said. Like many of the buildings in the area, it consists of a first floor of commercial space with several floors of housing stacked on top. 

At 7:30 a.m., flames could still be seen burning steadily from behind the window openings. All of the windows were boarded before the fire, but flames consumed the wooden coverings. Through the smoke-tainted openings, bystanders could see the charred remains of the floors of the top three stories that had caved in, and the gray morning sky where the ceiling once stood. 

Evans-Robinson said that wood within the building fed the fire and helped the flames ravage the structure, while the brick exterior nestled the heat like an oven. 

Oakland building officials, concerned that the building would collapse, deemed it unsafe for entry. From two ladder trucks, firefighters doused the building with water to keep the flames at bay. 

The fire was under control at 6:37 a.m., Evans-Robinson said.  

Damage at that building is estimated at $1.5 million. 

The fire, which witnesses said created flames that were more than 10 feet high, spewed bits of burning embers. Some of those embers flew north diagonally, across the street and lodged between two buildings, located at 2404 and 2414 Telegraph Ave. 

That started a second fire at 5:27 a.m. By the time it was controlled at 6:15, Evans-Robinson said, some 50 residents had been evacuated and the damage was estimated at $300,000. All of the 15 apartment units within the buildings sustained water damage, she said, and top floors were damaged by fire. 

Treba Barrett, who lives above an adult video store and arcade at 2404 Telegraph Ave., said that her family, her husband and two children woke up when family members who also live in the building knocked on the door to tell them about the fire across the street. 

Barrett, who turned 25 today, said the residents began to douse the roof of their buildings with water. She said she knew something bad was going to happen when she saw the embers, about the size of charcoal bricks, flying through the air. 

She believes firefighters could have done more to prevent the fire from spreading to her building. 

“They just let it be,” she said, “until the roof caught on fire, and once it caught on fire they evacuated the building.  

“I think the whole thing would have been prevented if they would have wet the roof down.” 

Evans-Robinson said that additional firefighters were called to the scene due to concern about the flying embers. They kept watch from nearby rooftops for burning debris, she said. But before the fire spread, she said, there was no need to evacuate nearby residents. 

The cause of the original fire is still under investigation. Evans- Robinson said she did not know if anyone was squatting in the abandoned building, but Barrett said that drug users “go in and out” of the it all the time.

SACRAMENTO — More than two-thirds of California public schools, including some of last year’s lowest-scoring rural schools, improved enough to share in $677 million in state rewards, test score rankings released Wednesday show. 

The state Department of Education released the 2000 Academic Performance Index numbers for 6,209 schools and calculated how much they rose since 1999. 

State Superintendent of Schools Delaine Eastin said Wednesday that the department expected about 60 percent of schools to improve and she was thrilled that the percentage was above that mark. 

“I’m here to tell you we’re doing very well,” she said at a press conference at Bannon Creek Elementary School in Sacramento. “This is a long process. We haven’t fixed everything in public education in the last few years. But we have made very fine progress.” 

The number that improved their scores enough to claim rewards as high as $25,000 per teacher surprised even Gov. Gray Davis, who made the incentives part of his school-improvement crusade. 

“I frankly did not expect 70 percent of schools to rise and meet the challenge, but that’s what happened,” he said Tuesday in a telephone conference with reporters. “I could not be happier.” 

The department said 4,180 schools are eligible for the reward system created by Davis and the Legislature to boost test scores that lagged behind the nation in nearly all grades and subjects. 

The department will further check their eligibility between now and January, when checks are expected to go out. 

The Academic Performance Index or API is based on a school’s Standardized Testing and Reporting exam scores. It ranges from a low of 200 to a high of 1000. Davis wants all schools to hit at least 800. 

The 1999 API was the baseline for measuring growth. Each school’s goal was 5 percent of the difference between its 1999 API and 800. Those already over 800 had to increase at least one point. 

All schools that met their growth targets will share in $577 million in rewards. The schools will get more than $150 per student to be used as the school site committee determines; all staff at the school will also get an estimated $800 per employee. 

The state will dedicate $100 million for the biggest individual bonuses, $5,000 to $25,000 for about 12,250 teachers and principals in schools in the bottom half of the state whose APIs went up the most. 

Elementary schools had the greatest growth, with 131 of them increasing their APIs by 100 points or more, according to a computer-assisted analysis by The Associated Press. 

At the top of the list is Lincoln Elementary, a kindergarten-through-second-grade school in the Exeter Union District in rural Tulare County, which went up 189 points from 504 to 693. 

The school’s three-dozen teachers are cautiously excited about the possibility of getting the top bonuses of $25,000 each, said principal Miriam Smith. 

The school would use its share to buy additional computer programs, Smith said. 

The new scores are particularly sweet for the second top-improving school, Saul Martinez Elementary in Mecca, a small farming community of migrant workers in the Coachella Valley Unified School District south of Indio. 

Last year, Martinez had the state’s lowest API at 302. This year, it went up 188 points to 490. 

“I’m so thrilled for my community and my kids,” said Martinez Principal Paula Thayer. “It was devastating for us last year to be labeled the lowest-performing school in California.” 

One reason for the improvement was the decision by parents of half the students eligible for testing in the kindergarten-through-third-grade school to not have their Spanish-speaking children take the test, said Martha Tureen, assistant superintendent for Coachella Valley. 

The school would still be eligible for awards, because the state Board of Education decided that test waivers by parents would not count against the required test participation rate of 95 percent. 

The top-improving high school was rural Tulare Union High School, where the API rose 90 points to 644. 

“I feel great,” said Gerald Benton, superintendent of the Tulare Joint Union High School District. 

The 2000 APIs range from a low of 346 for Verde Elementary in West Contra Costa Unified School District in Richmond to a high of 969 for Gretchen Whitney High School in the ABC Unified School District in Cerritos in Los Angeles County, which was also the highest for 1999. The median of the scores released Wednesday was 667. 

The entire range of scores rose this year. In 1999, Whitney’s high score was 966, while Martinez was the lowest at 302. The 1999 median was 627. 

However, not all schools increased their APIs. The 936 schools in the bottom half of the state that did not meet goals can apply to be in Davis’ second three-year school improvement program. 

With an estimated 60 million viewers expected to bask in the blue light of the televised presidential debates Tuesday night, a group of students at UC Berkeley voiced their frustration with a process that left Green Party candidate Ralph Nader out of the national limelight. 

“Without Nader, the debates are a big advertisement for two corporate-sponsored candidates,” said freshman Abe Gardner, standing in the noonday sun at Sather Gate on the UC Berkeley campus surrounded by 20 other activists and Green Party members.  

Chanting “Let Ralph debate!,” and carrying signs denouncing a “two party duopoly,” the advocates criticized recent regulations drawn up by the Commission on Presidential Debates that require third party candidates to poll at 15 percent of the vote to be included in the presidential debates. 

“If the 15 percent rule had applied in 1992, Perot wouldn’t have been allowed to debate,” said Jacob Sprunck, who painted his pectorals in red and white “blushes for democracy” for the demonstration. “We need to bring it back to the ’92 standards and allow credible third parties to be in the debates.” 

The Commission on Presidential Debates was launched in 1987 by then-national chairs of the Republican and Democratic parties Frank Fahrenkopf and Paul Kirk. Formerly sponsored by the League of Women Voters, the presidential debates, and consequently the CPD, fell into Democrat and Republican hands in 1988. At that time, the New York Times reportedly quoted Kirk as saying, “As a party chairman, it’s my responsibility to strengthen the two-party system.” 

The commission, still governed by Fahrenkopf and Kirk today, then raised the bar for third party perception in the debates to 15 percent of the vote.  

Today, with the Green Party on the ballot in 46 states, the Gallup polls show Nader holding a steady four percent of the national vote. So Nader falls well short of the CPD requirements. 

Participation in the debates, claim Nader supporters, will open the possibility of increasing support for the Green Party candidate, whom they call a veteran debater. 

“This guy comes at you like a lawyer. He’d tear into Bush and be more than a match for Gore. But these guys are afraid of him, and would never let him into the debates,” said Gardner. 

Snehal Shingavi, a graduate student in English agreed. “Major party candidates assume that business as usual works, and Nader has the ability to open the debate to a wider field of issues. We only hear the opinions of one corporate monster with two heads.” 

Protesters also directed their anger at debate sponsor Anheuser-Busch and poured cans of Budweiser down a public drain. 

“It shows the corporate nature of these debates,” said Gardner, “It’s not democracy, it’s capitalism. In fact, when you have big money influencing politics, it’s more like corporate feudalism. No one but Nader is willing to talk about the corporate nature of these debates.” 

At stake in the upcoming elections is a critical 1 percent of the voting public, say Nader advocates. Nader needs 5 percent of the national vote to qualify the Green Party for $13 million in governmental campaign funds in 2004. 

Rallies like Tuesday’s are part of a national movement to get that final percentage point, Gardener says. 

“With California considered a “safe” state for Gore, where Democrats could possibly win by over 10 percent,” said Gardner. “People shouldn’t worry about ‘throwing their vote away.’ The winner here will get all of the state’s votes, regardless of whether Gore wins by 1 percent or ten. But that margin can add up to 1 percent nationally for Nader, and put the Green Party over 5 percent nationally. So a vote for Nader is not a vote against Gore. It means that there will a credible Third Party in 2004,” Gardner said. 

Councilmember Kriss Worthington, a Gore supporter, showed up at the rally to fuel the civic process. “Most people in Berkeley have more in common with Nader than either of the two party candidates,” he told the crowd, speaking through a bullhorn under the shadow of Sather Gate. 

Worthington offered this explanation to the Daily Planet for seeming to cross party lines. 

“Nader will inspire more people to vote, and even if that works against Gore, it will help in other areas – governor races, congressional races - most of those votes will be for Democratic candidates and 1 percent of the vote could put Democrats back in power in the House,” he said. 

Third Party candidates could increase interest in the elections. According to Jeff Cohen, the founder of New York-based media watchdog group Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, the 1992 debates, which included Ross Perot, attracted a record breaking 90 million viewers. In 1996, however, the post-CPD debates which excluded Perot on the 15 percent rule, averaged only 41 million viewers. 

“I’m not going to watch the debates.” said Gardener. “There will be no surprises in the presidential debates,” he said. “People’ll hear that Gore is a good debater and Bush has a bunch of one-liners. If Nader were there, I’d watch. There would be something to look forward to.” 

Wednesday, Oct. 4

“An Evening With Jane Goodall” 

7 p.m. A slide show and lecture by the world-renowned chimpanzee research scientist, conservationist and humanitarian.$16 general; $12 students. Zellerbach Hall, University of California, Berkeley. (925) 935-1978 or www.wildlife-museum.org 

Prayer Gathering 

6:30 p.m. 

East Bay Community Church - Berkeley 

1798 Scenic Ave. 

849-8280 

Board of Education Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Old City Hall, Council Chambers 

Second Floor 

2134 MLK Jr. Way 

Contact Dr. Jack McLaughlin, 644-6147 

Citizens Budget  

Review Commission 

7 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Contact Phil Kamalarz, 644-6480 

Task Force on  

Telecommunications 

7 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Discussion will focus on planning for the next Task Force Foum on “The Future of Telecommunications in the Bay Area.”  

Contact Phil Kamalarz, 644-6480 

Fire Safety Board Commission 

7:30 p.m.  

Fire Training Division 

997 Cedar St.  

A scheduled question and answer session on the proposed auxiliary water delivery system for fire fighting purposes.  

644-6665 

Commission on the Status of Women 

7:45 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Discussions will include planning for the Commission’s Oct. 18 public forum on “Women and Trafficking: Domestic and Global Concerns.”  

Contact: Ruby Primus, 665-6923 

Thursday, Oct. 5

3rd annual Berkeley Black Police Officers’ Association Golf Tournament 

Tilden Park Golf Course 

Shotgun Start at 7:30 a.m. Entry Fee includes cart range balls and Award Luncheon. Proceeds benefit Berkeley Black Police Officers’ Scholarship Fund. 

$99 Entry Fee 

644-6554 

New Role for the UN  

in the New Century 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

2299 Piedmont Ave. 

A discussion with Rosemary van der Laan, President of the Board of Directors of the UN Association of the United States, about globalization and it’s impacts on the economic, social and political lives of the world.  

$3 admission  

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Capoeira Arts Cafe  

& Company Perform  

Noon 

BART plaza, Downtown  

A Brazilian extravaganza of Samba, Capoeira and more. Free. 

Contact Carrie Ridgeway,  

549-2230 

Community Environmental Advisory Commission 

7 p.m. 

2118 Milvia St., Second Floor 

Conference Room 

Discussion of the West Berkeley Air Monitoring Project.  

Contact Nabil Al-Hadithy, 705-8155 

Public Works Commission 

7:30 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Discussions will include the status report on the Pedestrian Safety Awareness Campaign.  

665-3440 

Housing Advisory Commission 

7:30 p.m. 

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis St. 

Topics will include a discussion on the adoption of a housing code amendment to ensure the proper functioning of gas appliances in residential units.  

Contact Oscar Sung, 665-3469 

Planning & Development  

Meeting 

Second Floor Conference Room 

2118 Milvia St.  

Topics will include the West Berkeley Air Monitoring Project.  

Friday, Oct. 6

Opera: Marriage of Figaro & Schubert Songs 

1 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

More info contact Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

Circle Dancing 

7:45 p.m. - 10 p.m. 

Finnish Brotherhood Hall 

1970 Chestnut St. 

Beginners welcome; no partners needed.  

Call John Bear, 528-4253 

– compiled by Chason  

Wainwright 

“Stocks, Bonds, and the Future” 

11:45 a.m.  

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Dennis Quan, Account Executive at Morgan, Stanley, Dean Witter speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11  

For info and reservations, 848-3533 

Sustainable Business Alliance Networking Lunch 

Noon - 1:30 p.m. 

Saffron Caffe 

2813 Seventh St. 

The purpose of this lunch is to network with other businesses interested in sustainable business practices. The lunch is open to non-members.  

Call Terry O’Keefe, 451-4000 

Learn to Birdwatch 

Oct. 16, 18, 23 & 25 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

UC Botanical Gardens 

200 Centennial Drive 

$50 for members; $65 for non-members 

Call for info or to enroll: 643-2733 

Saturday, Oct. 7

Berkeley Grassroots Greening Tour 

Starts at 10:45 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. 

Celebrate Open Garden Day by joining this annual bicycle tour of local community and school gardens. Part of a series of free outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance. 

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Houses or Open Hills? 

10 a.m.  

Experience Black Diamond Mines Regional Park’s ghost towns, coal mines, spectacular views and open space on this hike by the proposed sites of 7,700 homes near Antioch. Cosponsored by Save Mount Diablo. One outing in a free series organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Open Garden Day 

11 a.m. - 4 p.m.  

The sixth annual Open Garden Day offers garden lovers an opportunity to peek into 34 local community and school gardens. The gardens offer fresh food, children’s activities, composting demonstrations, and more. Special electric bus tour and bicycle tours will be available. Maps and schedules are available in East Bay libraries, nurseries, and in the pages of this very newspaper.  

More info: BCGC, 883-9096  

“Redesigning Retirement”  

9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.  

UC Berkeley (call for exact location) 

The UC Berkeley Retirement Center and the Academic Geriatric Resource Program will present retirement as a time of great potential. Participants will take part in interactive workshops dealing with the impact of technology on retirement; community involvement of older adults, among other topics. Prominent experts in the field of aging and retirement will take part in “ask the experts” sessions.  

$25. No on-site registration. Register by September 25. 

Contact: Shelly Glazer at 642-5461 

Harwood Creek Cleanup 

9 a.m. - Noon 

John Muir School  

2955 Claremont Ave. 

Help clean up and restore the creek that runs through John Muir school. Volunteers are asked to bring gloves, chippers/shredders, tools and pick-up trucks. 

Voter Empowerment Town Hall Meeting 

1 - 4 p.m. 

West Bay Community Center 

1290 Fillmore St. 

San Francisco 

Partially sponsored by the Berkeley NAACP Youth Council. 

For additional info: 1-877-316-9071 

Women’s Evening At the Movies 

7:30 p.m. 

Pacific Center 

2712 Telegraph 

A monthly night at the movies for lesbian, bi and transexual women. This months featured film is “Fried Green Tomatoes.” 

$5 donation requested 

Call 548-8283  

Free Estate Planning Seminar 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

St. Ambrose Church 

1145 Gilman St. (at Cornell Ave.) 

Call Catholic Charities of the East Bay, 768-3109 

Berkeley Youth Alternatives Harvest Fair 

11 a.m. - 3 p.m. 

BYA Community Garden Patch 

1308 Bancroft Way (between Acton and Bonar) 

The seventh annual fair features pumpkin carving, face painting, music, Karaoke, crafts, and fresh produce grown right in the BYA garden. Kids of all ages are welcome.  

Call 845-9067 

Locate Long-lost Relatives 

10 a.m. - 2 p.m.  

Cody’s Books 

1730 Fourth St. 

If you are looking for a missing relative, the International Soundex Reunion Registry may be able to help. The ISRR is a free, nonprofit service.  

Call Bob Crowe, 835-1550 

Pearl Ubungren Dancers with Joey Ayala 

PUSOD 

1808 Fifth St.  

Also performing will be Kayumanggi and Bobby Banduria. Free.  

Call 883-1808 for additional info.  

Sunday, Oct. 8

Surmounting Sunol Peaks  

9 a.m. - 4 p.m.  

Learn about local geology while enjoying the panoramic views from three Sunol peaks. One outing in a free series organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations  

Author and Minister Sarah York to Speak 

10:45 a.m.  

Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley 

1 Lawson Road 

Kensington 

York is the author of “Remembering Well: Rituals for Celebrating Life and Mourning Death.” 

More info: 525-0302 

Tibetan Cultural Preservation 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute  

1815 Highland Place 

Erin Clark and Sandy Olney speak on “Sustaining the Tibetan Tradition.” 

call 843-6812 

Tuesday, Oct. 10

Cal Alumni Singles 20th Anniversary Dinner 

UC Faculty Club 

Dinner scheduled for Oct. 15 

For reservations call 527-2709 by Oct. 10 

Kenya, 40 Years Ago and Today 

1 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Call 644-6107 for more info  

Wednesday, Oct. 11

Are Domed Cities in the future? 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom  

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion based on UC Berkeley alumnus Tim Holt’s book, “On Higher Ground.” Set 50 years in the future, part of the book takes place in an East Bay enclosed by a climate-controlled dome.  

$3 admission  

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Tenant-Landlord Problems? 

12:30 - 2 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Bring your concerns about repairs, harrassment and housing rights.  

Call 644-6107 

Homeless Commission 

7 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center  

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

644-8616 

Police Review Commission 

7:30 p.m.  

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis St.  

The commission will discuss their workplan/goals for the upcoming year.  

644-6716 

Board of Library Trustees 

7 p.m.  

South Branch  

1901 Russell  

644-6095 

Waterfront Commission 

7 p.m. 

His Lordships Restaurant 

199 Seawall Dr.  

644-6376 x234 

Planning Commission 

7 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

705-8137 

Commission on Disability 

6:30 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

655-3440 

Thursday, Oct. 12

East Timor: The Road to Independence 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave. 

A discussion of events leading up to the creation of the newest nation of the millennium and issues raised on the road to independence.  

$3 admission 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Meeting Life Changes 

10 a.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

With John Hammerman.  

For info: 644-6107 

Sterling Trio 

Noon  

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

Members of the Berkeley Symphony performing a variety of chamber music. 

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Zoning Adjustments Commission 

7 p.m.  

Old City Hall  

2134 MLK Jr. Way 

705-8110 

Community Health Commission 

6:45 p.m.  

Mental Health Clinic 

2640 MLK Jr. Way 

665-6845 

Friday, Oct. 13

“The Evolution and Cost of Ethical Drugs” 

11:45 a.m.  

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Stanford D. Splitter, retired MD speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11 

Call for reservations: 848-3533 

Saturday, Oct. 14

Indigenous Peoples Day Powwow & Indian Market 

10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Grand Entry 1 p.m.  

Enjoy Native American foods, arts & crafts, drumming, singing and many types of native dancing. Sponsored by the City of Berkeley, this event is free.  

Civic Center Park 

Allston Way at MLK Jr. Way 

Info: 615-0603 

Traffic Calming Workshop 

1 - 4 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets.  

Sunday, Oct. 15

A Taste of the Greenbelt 

1 - 4 p.m. 

Los Gatos Opera House 

Celebrate the Bay Area’s agricultural and culinary bounty. This benefit features a variety of musical groups, local artists and samples from over 40 local restaurants, farmers, wineries and microbreweries. Proceeds benefit Greenbelt Alliance’s ongoing efforts to protect Bay Area farmlands and open space.  

$45 per person; $80 for this event and the Oct. 22 event in SF 

1-800-543-GREEN, www.greenbelt.org 

A Muslim Approach to Life 

3 p.m. 

St. Johns Presbyterian Church 

2727 College Ave.  

A presentation on the Muslim spiritual life and culture which will focus on women’s lives and the uniqueness of women’s spiritual journeys. This is the first of four Sunday programs that will focus on this theme.  

Call 527-4496 

Time, Space, and Knowledge Vision 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Place 

Ken McKeon speaks on “Time, Space, and Knowledge, Right from the Start.” 

Call 843-6812 

1923 North Berkeley Fire Walking Tour 

10 a.m. - Noon 

Phil Gale leads this tour of the Sept. 18, 1923 fire site, identifying various changes wrought in buildings and landscape. The tour includes the Mayback chimney, around which a new home was constructed. Pre-paid reservations are required.  

$10 

Call for reservations, 848-0181 

Monday, Oct. 16

Private Elementary School Parent Information Panel 

7 - 9:30 p.m. 

Epworth United Methodist Church 

1953 Hopkins St.  

A panel of parents from six area private schools discuss the admission process and their experiences. Sponsored by the Neighborhood Parents Network 

Admission: free to members, $5 non-members 

Call 527-6667 

Tuesday, Oct. 17

Is the West Berkeley Shellmound a landmark? 

7 p.m.  

City Council Chambers 

2134 MLK Jr. Way, 2nd floor 

Continued and final public hearing on the appeals against landmark designation of the West Berkeley Shellmound. The City Council may possibly make it’s decision at this meeting. 

Landscape Archeology and Space-Age Technologies in Epirus, Greece 

8 p.m.  

370 Dwinelle Hall 

UC Berkeley 

Professor of Archeology, Art History and Classics Dr. James Wiseman presents a slide-illustrated lecture. 

Mario Savio Memorial Lecture 

7:30 p.m. 

Pauley Ballroom 

UC Berkeley 

Barbara Ehrenreich and Arlie Hochschild will speak on the theme “Forwards and Backwards - Women, globalization, and the new class structure.” Free.  

Wednesday, Oct. 18

Traffic Calming Workshop 

7 - 10 p.m. 

St. Clements Church 

2837 Clement Blvd.  

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets.  

“Women and Trafficking: Domestic & Global Concerns” 

6 - 9:30 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

The Berkeley Commission on the Status of Women invites the public to this forum which will include an expert panel discussion, and a movie on Women and trafficking. Free. 

Call 644-6107 for more info.  

Thursday, Oct. 19

The Promise and Perils of Transgenic Crops 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion with Dr. Peggy Lemaux, professor of Plant and Microbiology at UC Berekeley, of the scientific basis for biotechnology, it’s risks and benefits. 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Rafael Mariquez Free Solo Concert 

7:30 p.m. 

Berkeley Public Library, South Branch 

1901 Russell St. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This Chilean folksinger and guitarist presents his original settings of selections by Latin American poets. 

Contact: 644-6860; TDD 548-1240 

Vocal Sauce 

Noon 

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

The JazzSchool’s vocal jazz ensemble perform award-winning arrangements by Greg Murai.  

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Friday, Oct. 20

“The Ballot Issues” 

11:45 a.m. 

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Fran Packard of the League of Women Voters speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.  

Luncheon: $11 

Call 848-3533 

Human Nature 

8:30 p.m. 

New College Cultural Center 

766 Valencia 

San Francisco 

The X-plicit Players present this idyllic nude ritual. Watch or participate: Be led blindfolded through body tunnels, into body streams while sensing psychic/body qualities through touch. Also presented on Oct. 21.  

$12 admission 

Call 415-848-1985 

Saturday, Oct. 21

A Day on Mt. Tam 

9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. 

Come play and hike in San Francisco’s beloved playground. This outing is part of a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance. 

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

AHIMSA Eight Annual Conference 

9 a.m. - 5 p.m.  

International House, Great Hall 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

The AHIMSA is a nonprofit foundation whose goal is to encourage dialogues and public forums which bridge spiritual, scientific and social issues. This years conference is titled “Violence! Scientific and Spiritual Perspectives.”  

Admission is free 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market Fall Fruit Tastings 

10 a.m. - 3 p.m.  

Center St. at MLK Jr. Way 

Taste a whole farmers’ market’s bounty of fall fruit varieties. 

Free. 

Info: 548-3333 

Sunday, Oct. 22

A Taste of the Greenbelt 

1 - 4 p.m. 

Presidio’s Golden Gate Club 

Greenbelt Alliance brings the farm to the city in this celebration of the Bay Area’s agricultural and culinary bounty. Featured are samples from over 40 local restaurants, farmers, wineries, microbreweries. Also featured are live music and local artwork. The event benefits Greenbelt Alliance’s ongoing efforts to protect Bay Area farmlands and open space.  

$45 per person 

1-800-543-GREEN, www.greenbelt.org 

An Evening with Alice Walker 

7:30 p.m.  

King Middle School  

1781 Rose St. (at Grant) 

free parking 

Join internationally loved novelist, poet and essayist Alice Walker in celebrating her new book of autobiographical stories, “The Way Forward is With a Broken Heart.” Benefits Berkeley EcoHouse and KPFA Radio, 94.1 FM.  

Tickets: $10 advance, $13 door 

Tickets available at independent bookstores 

More info: 848-6767 x609 

Take a Trip to the Oakland Ballet 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This is an outing organized by the Senior Center to see “Glass Slippers.”  

Tickets: $6 each 

Call Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

Monday, Oct. 23

Berkeley Chinese Community Church Turns 100 

6 p.m. 

Nov. 4 

Silver Dragon Restaurant 

835 Webster St. 

Oakland 

Reservations: $30 per person 

More info: 548-5295 

Public Schools Parent Information Night 

7 - 9 p.m.  

Epworth United Methodist Church 

1953 Hopkins St. 

Parents, principals and other administrative staff from 11 elementary schools will speak about their schools. Sponsored by Neighborhood Parents Network.  

Admission: free to members, $5 non-members 

527-6667 

Tuesday, Oct. 24

Berkeley Farmers’ Market Fall Fruit Tastings 

2 p.m. - 7 p.m.  

Derby St. at MLK Jr. Way 

Come taste a bounty of fall fruit varieties for free. 

Info: 548-3333 

Thursday, Oct. 25

International Jewish Video Competition Winners 

7:30 p.m.  

Pacific Film Archive 

2575 Bancroft Way 

Screening of the four winners in the Museum’s seventh annual competition.  

Call 549-6950 

Thursday, Oct. 26

East Bay Science & Arts Middle School 

Noon  

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Middle school students perform dances of folk, swing, and Cuban rueda styles. Free.  

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Friday, Oct. 27

“Transporation: What’s in Store?” 

11:45 a.m. 

Berkeley City Club  

2315 Durant Ave.  

Larry Dahms, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Transportation Council speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon is served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11 

More info and reservations: 848-3533 

Saturday, Oct. 28

Pedaling the Green City 

11 a.m. -3:30 p.m.  

Take a leisurely bike ride along the future San Francisco Bay Trail. One in a series of free outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations  

Compiled by Chason Wainwright 

Council should have looked first 

Editor: 

I would venture to say that not a single one of the eight council members who voted to designate 1525 Shattuck Avenue a ‘structure of merit’ have ever gone within 10 feet of these buildings  

When I first listed this property over 30 years ago, it had already declined into a “chopped-up” rabbits’ warren of offices and a couple of residential units. If one looked very hard and long they would find a couple of “fish fin” side shingles that gave some clue to it once being an attractive structure.  

Thanks to Harvey Sherback, a real endangered species from the ‘60s, hundreds of signatures were gathered in protest of removing this eyesore. Harvey is the only resident of this property and did not want to relocate. He did an excellent job of obtaining signatures of people who never, ever saw this property.  

He frightened a few businesses on North Shattuck Avenue, that this quality upgrade motel would cause them to lose a few parking spaces. The projected motel would have 25 parking spaces, five to ten more than they needed and which they were willing to share with some of the adjoining businesses.  

I remember over 25 years ago when Alice Waters and her four partners wanted to transform an ugly single family house into the present Chez Panisse restaurant. Here again, if you scraped off the terrible stucco and aluminum paint of that existing old house, one might have found a “landmark” property and then there would not have been a wonderful Chez Panisse that glorifies our North Shattuck Village. 

The proposed project would enhance our North Shattuck neighborhood. It would not be another “Motel Six” or “Holiday Inn,” but a charming Mediterranean facility that would be a “landmark” and a “structure of merit” from our present generation.  

I have signatures from neighboring businesses and merchants who have approved this venture, once they were shown the plan.  

I have no financial or agency interest in this project. I just feel that it would be a valuable addition to our neighborhood. 

Aubrey Lee Broudy 

Berkeley 

Kennedy tenant happy as a bunny 

Editor: 

I am not a rabbit either! I am just a student, one of thousands, looking for a place to live. Luckily, I am a resident of the Berkeleyan apartment building at 1910 Oxford St., one of Patrick Kennedy’s developments. 

What this building has afforded me is the opportunity to live close to campus (unheard of these days) and to live in a new, clean and very well-kept apartment building (an even greater rarity).  

What I cannot fathom is the inability of some of Berkeley’s residents, who are non-students of course, to understand that students need housing. And enough housing will never be attained through the construction of one or two story sites. Do the math! 

So why don’t we all face the fact that something must be done for the sake of students, low-income people, and the elderly. Let us not misdirect our attacks onto those who are willing to take action to solve these very real problems; let us instead applaud them. And to the rest of them, “stop the rhetoric!” 

Gemilyn Diwa 

Berkeley 

Notes from the underground 

Editor, 

The Morlochs in H.G. Wells’ story live underground and feed off the Eloi as if they were no better than rabbits. Morloch Chaillot of the Deep Ecologists’ Gaian Alliance (Letters, Sept. 29) affirms that the future lies underground, and states that someday we shall all be rabbits.  

Morloch also castigates Richard Register for being a front for out of town developers. I confess, I am confused. Is it sarcasm? Is the alternative to 15 story buildings a subterranean class that feeds on the thoughtless creatures above (City Council candidate Carrie Olson and her supporters?), or is Mr. Register really a crook, and the Deep Ecologists as out of touch with reality as they sound? 

Why is five stories a magic number? Thirty years ago I lived in the Unit 3 dorm. It was, and still is, eight stories high. Should we demolish the top three floors? 

I did not, and do not, consider the dorms a disaster area. The problem is one of context. The dorms have open space on the ground, and are adjacent to commercial areas or take an entire block, and therefore do not create the disaster scenarios that have been described in previous opinion pieces.  

You don’t have to be offered money to support high-rise (or at least higher-rise) building in downtown. One merely has to look at the Los Angeles basin to see what happens when everybody gets their dream of a low-rise environment. Sorry Morloch, Mr. Register does have a constituency in Berkeley. 

Robert Clear 

Berkeley 

Editor: 

Thank you for running Vietnamese-born Andrew Lam’s lovely piece on his  

grandmother today (Oct 2nd). Some months ago I saw, in a San Francisco  

paper, another moving article by him about leaving his country. He is truly  

a talented writer of fine prose. Let’s have more. 

Beatriz Coda  

Editor: 

I am a member of a campus coalition of the Rainforest Action Group and Ecopledge.com, a coalition working to stop Citibank from funding environmentally destructive projects all over the world. The destruction of some Citibank property last week has moved me to write a letter explaining what the Citi campaign is about. 

Last Tuesday, Sept. 26th, after the Reclaim the Streets rally in downtown Berkeley, someone smashed the windows of the local Citibank branch. First of all, I would like to set the record straight: this crime was not committed by our members, nor do we condone it. We do not advocate the destruction of property. 

Nonetheless, I would like to say that the Citi campaign is extremely urgent. Rainforest Action Group is boycotting Citigroup and its subsidiaries because  

of its direct financial involvement in a number of environmentally and culturally destructive projects. Citigroup has funded mining in the Amazon, oil pipelines in African rainforests, clearing Headwaters forest here in California, and more. All of these projects destroy habitats, threaten endangered species, and displace Native peoples from their homes.  

Rainforest Action Group and Ecopledge believe 

that Citigroup should be held accountable for its actions, particularly when those actions degrade the overall health of our planet. A part of the funding Citigroup uses for its destruction comes from customer assets (i.e. 

clients’ money). For these reasons, we are urging students and citizens to boycott Citigroup.  

For anyone who would like more information on how to get involved with RAG or Ecopledge, you may contact adinah@hotmail.com or dfcamazonia@yahoo.com. An International Day of Action against Citibank is coming up on Tuesday, Oct. 17, in front of Citibanks across the U.S., and we urge Berkeley students to come out with us on that day to stand up and be heard! 

Adinah Curtis 

UC Berkeley student, living in Mill Valley 

Editor: 

In response to the letter (8/31) from Terry Powell: 

Terry Powell from Lawrence Berkeley National Lab’s (LBNL) public relations department, operated for the Department of Energy (DOE), is just doing her job when she promotes the lab’s official line on the continuous dumping of radioactive waste from their National Tritiu Labeling Facility (NTLF) and Melvin Calvin Lab on the UC campus. 

The Lab’s boosters endlessly repeat the mantra “tritium emissions below the U.S. EPA’s National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Pollutants (NESHAPS).” Never do they address the many credible criticisms of their absurdly low estimate for radioactive tritium exposure, including those in the report by IFEU, made by independent scientists hired at local taxpayers’ expense by the City of Berkeley. 

Dumping in short bursts and a short stack actually located below the Lawrence Hall of Science (LHS) are easily understandable reasons why exposure to LHS workers and visiting children could exceed the NESHAPS standard. Just because the flawed exposure estimates concocted by LBNL remain unchallenged by the perfumed suits at the EPA and the California Department of Toxic Substances is no reason for anyone to believe them.  

All the Lab’s arguments seem like such blather when one visits the site and sees the tritium stack just 30 feet from the LHS’s fence. Common sense tells one that whatever is coming out of the stack is all over whoever is near it. In this cases it’s most of the areas children. Triatiated vapor is extremely hazardous and has been identified as a cause of leukemia, cancer, infertility and other genetic defects.  

Ms. Powell is incorrect when she states that almost all their tritium is captured and recycled. As sloppy as their records are, they do indicate large quantities missing. Even when LBNl has admittedly dumped does not support her claim.  

Also contrary to what Ms. Powell claimed, LBNL’s treatability “study” was just a scam to unload years of backlogged mixed waste without obtaining the usual permits. Mixed waste, toxic chemicals contaminated with radioactive waste, is fed into an “oxidation cell” complete with igniter plugs and exhaust vents, and can run in excess of 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. Sure sounds like an incinerator to me.  

Playing games by reclassifying the NTLF as a “non-nuclear” facility and “delisting” their mixed waste does not alter the reality that large amounts of dangerous radioactive material are stored, used and dumped there. Neither the NTLF or Calvin Lab are appropriately sited in our community and should be closed and cleaned up.  

Mark McDonald 

Berkeley 

Editor: 

It was a sit in, of sorts.  

Long-time patrons of the French Hotel Cafe on Shattuck Avenue decided to drag their own tables and chairs from home to the sidewalk in front of the cafe Tuesday afternoon.  

The establishment stopped putting chairs and tables on the sidewalk at the end of May, when the owner was cited for not having an administrative permit to do so. 

“Some of us have been coming here for 20 years,” said Leonard Pitt. “And then one day we were told we couldn’t sit out here.” 

Owner Sandy Boyd applied for the permit in August, but was told that it would take 30 days for it to be processed. 

“The timeline now is two to four months,” said manager Nathan Arata. “It’s out of our hands now.” 

The cafe gave out a free cup of coffee to each person who showed up to protest.  

“Some of the people protesting have been coming here for years and are valued customers,” he said. “We want to support them.” 

Several of the protesters, including City Council District 5 candidate Carrie Olson, say they are not only protesting the fact that the cafe needs an administrative use permit, they’re making the point that it takes too long to get a permit.  

“It’s an impediment to the business and an inconvenience for customers,” she said.  

Olson said that the patrons checked with police to find out if it was legal to bring their own tables and chairs beforehand. 

“They said it’s legal to bring your own tables and chairs as long as you don’t obstruct the sidewalk,” she said.

City Council candidates from Districts 5 and 3 dined on salmon then stepped to the podium to respond to questions from Chamber of Commerce members at the City Club Tuesday. 

Questions from the audience of about 65 business people stuck to issues such as economic development and the November bond measures. 

While most questions from the group were general and posed to the entire panel of candidates, developer Patrick Kennedy took the opportunity to go after District 5 candidate Carrie Olson. 

Kennedy attacked Olson’s opposition to the General Plan, and mocked a decision of the Landmark Preservation Commission – of which she is an active member – to landmark the Hot Dip Galvanizing structure at Gilman and Fourth streets, the corrugated metal building its detractors called a “tin shed.” 

The building’s Landmark status was eventually overturned by the City Council. 

“I’m glad I get to respond to this finally,” Olson said, explaining she was absent when the commission voted on the structure. If she had been there, she would have voted against it, she said. 

Olson then went on to take on Kennedy’s “Gaia” building, under construction on Allston Way. The council hopeful said she opposes the “process, not the project.” 

“Ten stories are being allowed for an approved seven stories,” she said. 

She argued that the project has grown from the City Council-approved 87 feet, or seven stories to 10 stories because of lofts, office spaces and an elevator tower that will make it a total of 116 feet. The project has been granted a building permit, however. 

Vice Mayor and District 3 incumbent Maudelle Shirek took the opportunity to maintain that she is pro-business. “If you look at the records,” the 89-year-old vice mayor said. “You’ll see my clear, strong support for jobs and my fight to save industry in Berkeley.” 

Her opponent, James Peterson, brushed lightly over his widely-reported admission of taking campaign money from an applicant before the Zoning Adjustments Board of which he is a member. Peterson recused himself from voting on the applicant’s project at last week’s ZAB meeting. 

He went on to say he would offer “a new vision, and a new voice for a new Berkeley.” 

Peterson called Measure Y, which Shirek supports, a “poorly written, ill-conceived ordinance that uses the elderly and handicapped to enforce rent control.” 

Measure Y restricts owner move-in evictions. 

Marcella Crump-Williams, also a District 3 candidate, opposed the measure as well. She said that it “could be devastating to a lot of people.” 

The District 5 candidates; Olson, Miriam Hawley, Tom Kelley and Mark Fowler – candidate Benjamin Rodefer attended but had to leave early before the measure was discussed – all gave their support to the measure.  

Before he left, Rodefer asked business leaders to get involved and prevent Berkeley from becoming “another Walnut Creek or Fresno.” 

“We’re in danger of being co-opted,” he said. 

District 5 candidate Mark Fowler had the most unique idea on how to help the council handle its business more efficiently. Give the council vitamin therapy and a catering service, he said. 

Hawley, a member of the AC Transit Board, suggested holding a series of meetings within District 5 to deal with traffic something she believes to be a big problem in the district. 

“We’ve looked at it by the street and that doesn’t work,” she said. “We need to deal with it in a more holistic way. We need to look at the neighborhood as a whole.” 

“Berkeley is really coming together in many ways,” said Tom Kelley, a member of the Green Party. Kelley asked the business leaders to help put an end the “us versus them” division between business owners and neighborhood residents. 

Next week, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case that could abruptly limit the rights of disabled employees at the University of California and other state institutions, activists said Tuesday. 

If the Court rules as expected, the decision could bar employees from suing the University and other state entities for discrimination under the Americans With Disabilities Act, said speakers at a panel discussion held on the UC Berkeley campus 

The case, University of Alabama vs. Garrett, challenges the constitutionality of the decade-old disability rights law, known as the ADA. Oral arguments will be heard in the case  

Oct. Tuesday’s event, held at the UC Berkeley student union was timed to coincide with demonstrations in Washington D.C. calling attention to next week’s oral arguments before the Supreme Court. 

“If the Supreme Court finds against Garrett a large part of the ADA would be deemed unconstitutional,” Daniel Davis, a student speaker who heads the Disabled Students’ Union, told audience members Tuesday. “What is at stake is whether state sovereignty or civil rights will prevail,” he said. 

Davis, along with a panel of seven activists and disability rights lawyers who convened the afternoon “teach in” yesterday, view the pending case as a crucial test of the future of the ADA, and indeed of federal civil rights laws in general. 

“The implications are enormous,” attorney Linda Kilb told an audience of 60 people, many in wheelchairs. “We are talking about a situation where the (Supreme) Court is broadly directing the authority of Congress to pass civil rights laws and to determine within those laws the types of prohibitions and standards that will be a part of federal policy,” she said.  

At issue in the case, say legal experts, is a complex constitutional power struggle that pits the states against the federal government and the U.S. Congress against the Supreme Court. In recent cases, Kilb said yesterday, the Court has sharply curtailed the application of federal civil rights laws to state entities. The ADA will likely receive similarly unkind treatment, she and other panelists predicted.  

The Garrett case originated in Alabama and wound its way to the nation’s highest court in Washington D.C. It is being closely watched by Bay Area disability rights activists who say that an adverse decision would reverberate across the country, rendering the ADA inapplicable to state entities that have discriminated against disabled persons. Under the 11th Amendment, states are immune from lawsuits brought against them in federal court unless Congress specifically “abrogated” that immunity to enforce civil rights laws passed pursuant to the 14th Amendment.  

“Every entity that can claim it is a state entity would be immune,” said Guy Wallace, a disability rights lawyer in San Francisco who has filed a brief in the Garrett case and was a featured speaker Tuesday. Wallace predicted that a vast array of state-associated entities from public schools to parks to museums, virtually any organization funded with state money, would be affected. 

Left unsaid at Tuesday’s clearly partisan gathering, though, was that California already has in place state civil rights laws prohibiting discrimination against disabled persons in public accommodations and elsewhere. These laws, passed as part of California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act and other legislation, would 

not be affected by the Garrett decision, said Davis, who heads the Disabled Student Union. 

Attorney Kilb, who directs the Berkeley-based Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, did caution against taking a too alarmist view of the Garrett case. “We have to remember that the ADA will not be completely dead if we lose Garrett,” she said, because the ADA would still apply to private parties. “States do a great many things in our society but they are not the be-all and end-all of (discriminatory) action,” Kilb counseled. 

Indeed, the ADA was recently applied in a federal lawsuit against actor Clint Eastwood, who owns a hotel in Carmel that was allegedly inaccessible to wheelchair users. Eastwood won the case last week after a jury found in his favor. 

Still, speakers at yesterday’s meeting viewed the threat posed by the Garrett case in broad terms.  

“What we have accomplished has provoked a backlash,” said Paul Longmore, a history professor at San Francisco State University who is himself disabled. “Some people just don’t want people with disabilities to be around,” he said. “They want us to go back to being invisible, shut away, excluded. But we are not going away, we’re not going to be hidden again,” he said to loud applause. 

The Garrett case takes place against the backdrop of a presidential election whose outcome could well determine the direction of future Supreme Court civil rights jurisprudence.  

Panelists at yesterday’s forum said they were alarmed by the possibility that the next president will have a chance to appoint as many as three new Supreme Court justices. Those appointments could tip the balance of the Court decisively where federal civil rights laws are concerned. By narrow 5-4 majorities the court recently struck down portions of one law barring age discrimination in employment and another allowing rape victims to sue their attackers.  

Participants at the forum said these decisions indicated that the ADA and other civil rights laws were in imminent peril as well. 

Misdemeanor charges were filed Tuesday against executives from five companies accused of marketing products for diabetes patients that either contained potentially harmful drugs or failed to accurately measure blood-sugar levels. 

Operators of three of the companies were accused of selling food supplements spiked with prescription drugs used to treat diabetes, including Phenformin, which was banned in the United States because of potential side effects. 

Two other executives and their companies, Los Angeles-based Breen Laboratories and Irenda Corp., were charged in connection with the manufacture of beverages that doctors give to patients in glucose tolerance tests. Prosecutors contend that true blood-sugar levels were masked because the drinks did not have enough glucose in them. 

The defendants were charged in five separate misdemeanor complaints. They include: 

l Henry Chuan Hsue, 46, president of Sino-American Health Products Inc. of Torrance. Hsue and his company each were charged with one count of making false and misleading statements and offering an unadulterated drug for sale. 

Hsue said that his company recalled the product, Zhen Qi Herbal Extract, in February after being notified by authorities that it was spiked with a prescription drug.  

l Clive Stevens, 66, of Blaine, Wash., owner of Chinese Angel Health Products Inc., a company also known as Chinese Herbal Health Products. Stevens, a former partner with Hsue, was charged with two counts each of offering a misbranded drug for sale. 

l Dinh Minh Ta, 43, of Temple City, identified as the operator of Alhambra-based health food distributor Diabetic Capital LLC. Ta was charged with one count each of offering for sale a misbranded drug, offering an adulterated drug, false advertising, offering for sale a falsely advertised good or drug, manufacturing a drug without a license and unlawfully misbranding a drug. 

The product in question, Dianolyn Capsules, were manufactured in China and imported for resale in the United States. 

l Ireneo Dancel Daliva, 54, president of Irenda Corp. Daliva and his company were charged with one count each of offering for sale a misbranded drug and offering for sale an adulterated drug. He also was charged with making false statements. The company’s attorney did not immediately return a call seeking comment. 

l James E. Stewart, 59, of Lomita, owner of Breen Laboratories. Stewart and his company were charged with two counts each of offering for sale both a misbranded drug and an adulterated drug and manufacturing a drug without a license. 

OAKLAND — The Oakland Unified School District announced today it is looking into allegations that standardized testing results were fudged in three classrooms. 

According the district's Office of Public Information, “irregularities” have been alleged at Horace Mann, Toler Heights, and Carl B. Munck elementary schools. The implication is that teachers or other staff there exaggerated SAT/9 test scores to boost student ratings at the schools. 

Allegations against the first two schools were reported to the district by the state, and allegations against Carl B. Munck Elementary School came from within the district, according to a school district news release. 

“If we find that any of these irregularities were created by  

someone on our staff trying to inflate test scores, there will be swift discipline, up to and including termination,” Oakland schools Superintendent Dennis Chaconas said in the news release. Chaconas has called a news conference for 2:30 p.m. today to discuss the allegations.

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gray Davis is standing behind a California law that imposes some of the nation’s toughest rules on press access to inmates, blocking those reporters who do land face-to-face interviews from taking in cameras or writing materials. 

Davis last week vetoed a bill that would have eased the policy, telling lawmakers he wants to avoid turning convicts into celebrities. 

Critics contend Davis rejected the measure because he fears reporters will unearth what really goes on behind prison walls. 

A reporter who wants to interview a specific inmate in person must apply to the corrections department to get on the inmate’s visitor list, a process that usually takes at least a month, and can only interview the inmate during normal visiting hours. 

Reporters who get permission for a face-to-face interview cannot use cameras or recording devices or take in their own writing materials.  

They must ask prison officials for paper and pencil to take notes. 

State lawmakers voted three consecutive years to ease the restrictions.  

This year’s legislation would have made it easier to arrange interviews, allowing reporters to submit a blanket application covering a year rather than apply for each interview, and use cameras, tape recorders and writing materials. 

Davis, a first-term Democratic governor who campaigned as tough on crime, has now vetoed the bill twice, following the lead of his Republican predecessor, Pete Wilson. 

Inmate interviews are particularly important during the current debate over whether innocent people are being sent to death row, said Peter Sussman, a former San Francisco Chronicle editor. 

Journalists “are the court of last resort if they’re cutting off appeals,” said Sussman, who wrote a 1993 book on the subject, “Committing Journalism.”  

“Any attempt to restrict press access to prisoners has the appearance of aiding a cover-up, even if that’s not the governor’s intent.” 

The American Civil Liberties Union accused Davis of vetoing the bill because “he is afraid the truth will come out.” 

Davis spokeswoman Hilary McLean denied that. 

“This bill is inconsistent with the national trend to reduce, not expand, rights of prisoners,” Davis wrote in his veto message last week, referring to prohibitions on inmates profiting from their crimes by selling book, TV or movie rights. 

“The purpose of incarceration is punishment and deterrence; it is not to provide additional celebrity to convicts, many of whose criminal acts were brutal and violent, thereby causing further pain to the victims and their loved ones,” Davis wrote lawmakers. 

The trend was largely started by California. 

“It is just about the most restrictive state in the country,” said Lucy Dalglish, executive director of The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. “California has really put the issue on the front burner.” 

Dalglish took issue with the argument that media access brings celebrity to inmates. Taxpayers need to know how prisons are run, she said. 

“The inmates who are celebrities were celebrities before they went to prison,” Dalglish said. 

Only Mississippi has a more restrictive policy, barring face-to-face and telephone interviews, according to the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ). In California, inmates can telephone reporters collect; the calls can be monitored. 

Four other states — Arizona, Idaho, Indiana and Kansas — also block face-to-face inmate interviews, most of them imitating California, said SPJ President Kyle Niederpruem, an assistant city editor at the Indianapolis Star. 

California’s prisons cost taxpayers $4.6 billion a year, and the public needs to do know what is going on in them, she said. 

“You have some of the most expensive and most populous prisons in the nation ... and they’re just keeping it hidden away,” Niederprum said. 

Corrections spokeswoman Terry Thornton said reporters have plenty of access. They can go on prison tours virtually any day they wish, and interview inmates they randomly meet on those tours, she said. 

“If they want to do some expose on the prison system, there’s absolutely nothing to prevent them from doing that,” Thornton said. 

She and Davis noted that journalists can accept collect phone calls from inmates, and inmates can mail them letters — though the letters are subject to censorship. 

The department had a more open policy before 1971, when Black Panther George Jackson was interviewed at San Quentin 66 times in six months. He subsequently was involved in an escape attempt and riot in which two inmates and three guards were killed — the subject of a book, “The Road to Hell.” 

The department’s interview ban was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1974, but overturned the same year when state lawmakers passed an “Inmate Bill of Rights.” It was reimposed in 1994 when the pendulum swung back to the view that inmates should have no more rights than the basic rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, Thornton said. 

——— 

On the Net: 

Read the bill, AB2101 by Assemblywoman Carole Migden, D-San Francisco, at http://www.assembly.ca.gov 

Society of Professional Journalists Web site with links to states’ inmate access policies, www.spj.org 

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gray Davis has demanded that federal authorities move quickly to reduce electricity rates, but has failed to appoint a director of the one state agency set up to help power customers, a newspaper reported Tuesday. 

The Democratic governor has not named a chief to the Office of Ratepayer Advocates, which is part of the Public Utility Commission, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported. 

The watchdog office was created after deregulation of California’s electrical power industry began four years ago. 

The office was set up to help consumers fight for lower electricity, natural gas, telephone and water bills. 

Consumer advocates say the absence of a director may have prevented the governor from getting an early warning about the price spikes that have tripled some utility bills in San Diego. 

And the continuing vacancy has hurt the office’s ability to work to lower prices, they say. 

“He didn’t appoint one of the key people who could have sounded the alarm about energy deregulation,” said Bob Fellmuth, director of the Center for Public Interest Law at the University of San Diego. “It’s a terrible failure on his part.” 

Davis spokesman Roger Salazar said the governor hopes to fill the ratepayer position quickly, and that the governor wants the best person possible. 

Nettie Hoge, a consumer advocate and director of the Utility Reform Network, said the absence of a watchdog director affects the ability of the office to perform its duties. 

“There’s some good people there, but there’s no coordination, no one to set priorities,” Hoge said. 

COVINA — Students got an unusual assignment from their English teacher: Pick out a victim, come up with a recipe for assassination and devise a successful getaway formula. 

The Covina High School teacher no longer works for the school district. 

“I was outraged,” parent Joyce Jarvis said after learning of teacher Andrew Phillips’ classroom assignment. “It went through my mind, ‘How dare he give an assignment like this in the first place?’ ” 

Phillips instructed students to write the assignment as a journal entry in conjunction with the reading of Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Pit and the Pendulum.” 

He told them to choose someone to kill, give reasons why and detail how to keep it secret. According to his students, the only requirement was that the person to be assassinated could not be anyone at Covina High School. 

“And the first thing that hit me was Columbine and what if he has a loose end in the classroom that wants to make a name for himself and the teacher is supporting this type of action? It could be (my son) that’s shot or bombed or whatever,” Jarvis said. 

Michael Miller , superintendent of the Covina-Valley Unified School District, said without elaboration Monday: “I can tell you the teacher associated with this assignment is no longer with the school.” 

The teacher offered the class an alternative assignment for those who did not want to plot the assassination: describing eight to 10 motives for killing another human being. 

“Why should any child be forced to think about committing a murder?” said the student’s mother, who also spoke with the newspaper on condition of anonymity. 

Although district officials would not say whether Phillips was fired or quit, district assistant superintendent of personnel Louis Pappas said as far as the district was concerned, the case was closed. 

“There’s no appeal process in this particular instance for the employee, and it’s basically a done issue,” he said. 

CHICAGO — Flu vaccines could help day-care children and their school-aged siblings stay well and reduce the use of over-prescribed antibiotics, a new study suggests. 

But while the vaccine could also help keep adults under age 65 healthy and reduce missed work days, a cost-analysis conducted in another study found no savings in giving the flu shots to those adults. 

The day-care study, led by Dr. Eugene S. Hurwitz of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, appears along with the cost-analysis, done by another CDC researcher, in Wednesday’s Journal of the American Medical Association. 

The studies follow a CDC recommendation earlier this year for people to take annual flu shots as of age 50, rather than 65. Data have suggested that many people 50 to 65 have chronic conditions that put them at risk for hospitalization or even death if they get the flu. 

With a lag in vaccine production this year, federal health officials said last month that the ill and elderly should be given first priority this season. 

But researchers who examined youngsters under age 5 said the benefits of their vaccination extends beyond their health. 

The authors noted that 70 percent of children under 5 spend several hours weekly in day care. Such children are considered high-risk for flu, with as many as half contracting it in a single season. 

HHe focused on the vaccination’s impact on family members. The most notable effect – an 80 percent reduction in potential flu cases – occurred among the vaccinated children’s school-aged family members. 

But also reduced among the family members, by more than 70 percent, were: absences from school, absences from work to care for sick children, doctor visits, earaches and antibiotics prescribed. 

In JAMA’s accompanying cost-analysis, researchers charted 1,184 healthy employees at Ford Motor Co. in Dearborn, Mich., in 1997-98 and 1,191 the next flu season. Half the subjects, ages 18-64, received the vaccine. 

While the vaccine wasn’t effective in preventing the flu strain in the first season, its efficacy rate in the second season was 86 percent. It also reduced doctors’ visits and work absences, but the net cost still was $11 per person. 

A previous study suggested that flu shots make sense for working adults. But the high cost savings found in that study were calculated with flu rates of at least 35 percent, “which are very high and not typically seen in healthy working-age adults,” said Dr. Carolyn Buxton Bridges of the CDC’s influenza branch. Bridges led the JAMA cost-analysis. 

——— 

On the Net: 

CDC: http://www.cdc.gov 

JAMA: http://jama.ama-assn.org 

WASHINGTON — High-tech companies could bring in nearly 600,000 new skilled foreign workers over the next three years and also hire thousands more foreign students from U.S. graduate schools under a bill the Senate passed Tuesday. 

The 96-1 vote reflected broad election-year support for the technology industry that is increasingly flexing its political muscle through lobbying and campaign donations to both parties. 

With U.S. unemployment rates holding steady near a 30-year low, companies in Silicon Valley and along other burgeoning high-tech corridors say they need the additional workers with six-year H-1B visas to fuel their continuing rapid growth. 

“The short-term problem is how to fill the key positions immediately so that we don’t lose opportunities to foreign competitors or so that we don’t force American businesses to move offshore to where skilled workers might live,” said Sen. Spencer Abraham, R-Mich. 

Despite the overwhelming Senate vote, obstacles remain in the House, where Republican leaders have differed over measures aimed at assuring that the skilled immigrants don’t displace American workers. 

A bill from Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, that was approved by the Judiciary Committee would require companies using visas to increase the median pay of their U.S. workers in addition to establishing job projections for them. The industry opposes Smith’s bill. 

The House Rules Committee chairman, Rep. David Dreier, R-Calif., who cosponsored another visa bill, called the Senate version “dynamite” and said House leaders would find a way to get it passed. 

Industry advocates – including Microsoft and Sun Microsystems, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers – praised the Senate vote and called for the House to follow suit. 

Computer software and other high-tech companies contend that 300,000 jobs are going unfilled for a lack of qualified workers. Labor unions, however, argue that that the companies want more immigrants to put keep down wages of Americans holding the same jobs. 

Sen. Ernest F. Hollings, D-S.C., cast the lone vote against the bill. Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.; Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., and Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., did not vote. 

Under present law, the government issued 115,000 H-1B visas during the fiscal year that ended Saturday. With no new legislation the ceiling would fall to 107,500 this year and to 65,000 next year. 

Democrats in both chambers said last week they will try to put other immigration measures, which had slowed consideration of the visa bill, on one of the spending bills that Congress must pass before adjourning for the year, under threat of a presidential veto. 

The measures include granting amnesty to illegal immigrants who arrived in the United States before 1987 and offering permanent residency to more political refugees from Central America and Haiti. ——— 

The bills are S.2045, H.R. 3183 and H.R. 4227. 

On the Net: 

Search for bills at: http://thomas.loc.gov 

BOSTON — Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader, shunned by the presidential debate commission, scored a ticket to Tuesday night’s debate but was turned away at the door. 

“It’s already been decided that whether or not you have a ticket you are not welcome in the debate,” John Bezeris, a representative of the debate commission, told Nader. The commission had excluded all but Democratic and Republican candidates. 

“I didn’t expect they would be so crude and so stupid,” Nader said after being turned away. “This is the kind of creeping tyranny that has turned away so many voters from the electoral process.” 

Nader, who took the subway to the debate site, had received the ticket as a gift from Todd Tavares, a 21-year-old Northeastern University student who said he got it from a roommate. 

When he arrived at the site of the debate at the University of Massachusetts-Boston, Bezeris, surrounded by several police officers, told Nader he could not enter because he was not an invited guest. 

Nader was among a trio of third-party candidates who did their best Tuesday to keep the Republican and Democratic nominees from stealing the show. 

Hours before the debate, a judge threw out a court challenge filed earlier in the day by Massachusetts Libertarians to try to force organizers to include their candidate, Harry Browne. 

“The plaintiffs have slept on their rights by waiting until the last minute to seek relief,” Suffolk Superior Court Judge Gordon Doerfer ruled. He said intervening in the debates would deprive the public of information it needs about the candidates. 

The lawsuit claimed Browne should be included because Massachusetts, which officially recognizes the party, spent $900,000 to help pay for the debate. 

Nader also criticized the commission’s decision to limit the debate to candidates with more than 15 percent support in national polls. Only the Democrat, Vice President Al Gore, and the Republican, Texas Gov. George W. Bush, qualified to participate. 

“They have the keys. This debate commission is a private company created by the two parties,” Nader told about 1,000 supporters. “The thing is why do we as a society let them control the gateway? Why don’t we have many gateways, many debates?” 

As he concluded his remarks some students chanted “Let Ralph debate! Let Ralph debate!” 

Reform Party candidate Pat Buchanan, meeting reporters in his Boston hotel, said it was unfair to keep his party out. He and Nader were appearing separately on Fox News Channel after the debate. 

“I feel like Slippery Rock State Teachers and we made the Final Four of the NCAAs and they won’t even let us in the gymnasium,” Buchanan said. “They won’t even let us on the gym floor to show what we can do.” 

Buchanan, who has more than $12 million in federal campaign funds to spend, outlined plans to launch an advertising campaign next week in states he says have been abandoned by Republicans, including California, New Jersey and most of New England. 

He is aiming for 5 percent of the popular vote in the Nov. 7 election to guarantee that the Reform Party gets federal matching funds again in 2004. Buchanan said the ads would run mainly on Christian radio stations and would highlight local concerns, such as immigration in California and Arizona. 

BOSTON — Vice President Al Gore and Texas Gov. George W. Bush clashed over tax cuts, prescription drug assistance under Medicare and abortion Tuesday night in their first campaign debate of the fall, pivot point in the closest White House contest in a generation. 

Combative from the outset, Gore charged that his rival’s tax plan would “spend more money on tax cuts for the wealthiest one percent than all of the new spending he proposes for education, health care, prescription drugs and national defense all combined.” 

But Bush, standing a few feet away on a debate stage at the University of Massachusetts, said Gore’s economic plan would offer relief only to the middle class. “Everybody who pays taxes ought to get relief,” he said. At the same time, he said, it would produce “dramatically” bigger government with 200 “new or expanded programs” and 20,000 new bureaucrats. 

“It empowers Washington,” added the governor, who hastened to tell a national viewing audience he was from West Texas – not the nation’s capital. Over and over, he accused Gore of “fuzzy math.” 

Gore and Bush met for the first of three presidential debates over the next two weeks, each man seeking advantage in a race so close that poll after poll shows them within a point or two of one another. Their vice presidential candidates, Democrat Joseph Lieberman and Republican Dick Cheney, debate Thursday in Kentucky. 

Jim Lehrer of PBS was moderator, operating under strict rules negotiated in advance by the Gore and Bush camps. It was, he said at the outset, the first of three 90-minute debates between the two major party rivals – a format that excluded Ralph Nader and Pat Buchanan, running as minor party candidates. 

In a reprise of his acceptance speech at this summer’s Democratic National Convention, Gore said it was important to stand up to the special interests, pharmaceutical companies among them. “Big drug companies support Governor Bush’s prescription drug proposal,” he said. “They oppose mine.” 

Bush made a sour face when he heard that, and in his next breath offered a swift rebuttal. 

“I’ve been standing up to Big Hollywood and Big Trial Lawyers,” he shot back, mentioning two groups that have lavished campaign donations on Gore and Democrats. 

The two men argued at length over prescription drugs for Medicare recipients, a key issue, particularly in the key battleground states of the Midwest. Bush blamed Washington for failing to pass legislation, and touted his own plan to have states offer benefits. “You’ve had your chance, Mr. Vice President,” the governor said. 

But Gore, who favors a prescription drug benefit available to all Medicare recipients, said that under Bush’s plan only low-income seniors would receive immediate help. Everyone else would have to wait up to four years, he said. In addition, he added, seniors could be forced into HMOs to get a prescription drug benefit. 

“I cannot let this go by, the old-style Washington politics, trying to scare you with phony numbers,” Bush swiftly replied. He accused Gore of “Medi-scare.” 

“This is a man who has great numbers,” he said of the vice president. “I’m beginning to think not only did he invent the Internet, he invented the calculator.” 

Asked about a recent FDA decision approving the use of the abortion pill RU-486, Bush said, “I don’t think a president can” overturn such a decision. He then restated his willingness to sign legislation banning so-called “partial birth abortions,” and said Gore wouldn’t. 

Gore said he would ban such late-term procedures, but only if it included exemptions to protect the life or health of the woman, the position Clinton has taken in vetoing two bills on the subject from the Republican-controlled Congress. 

Eager to regain the offensive on a volatile issue, Gore said Bush would appoint justices to the Supreme Court who would overturn a 1973 ruling that legalized a right to abortion. “I support a woman’s right to choose. My opponent does not.” 

Bush said he was “pro-life,” but disputed any suggestion that he would use the issue as a litmus test for appointments to the high court. 

Gore sighed audibly when Bush said that, as if to register disbelief. 

On the first foreign policy issue to come up, Gore and Bush agreed they would not use force to try and remove Slobodan Milosevic from power in Yugoslavia, even though they agreed he had been defeated in recent elections and should give up power. 

Asked about energy policy, Gore attacked Bush for proposing oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Area. 

Bush said such domestic oil exploration was preferable to continuing to import a million barrels of oil a day from Iraq’s Saddam Hussein. 

To keep the candidates cool, university officials turned the thermostat inside the Clark Athletic Center gym well below 65 degrees. That’s the show-time temperature, once the lights were flipped on and seats filled, that was required under contract by the Commission on Presidential Debates. 

The bipartisan group is sponsoring all four debates with the idea that they will be shown on as many TV networks as possible. Most were carrying the first one, but NBC gave its affiliates a choice between the baseball playoffs and the debate, while FOX went with its series premiere of “Dark Angel.” 

Home to Grove Street Park, the South Berkeley Library, the Ashby BART Station and a struggling shopping area, District 3 sits roughly between Ellsworth and Sacramento streets and Dwight Way and the Oakland border. According to the 1990 census, the area had a median income lower than the city’s as a whole and home values were also below the rest of the city. The area is home to a little less than half the city’s African American population, a reminder of the times when African Americans were unable to live east of Martin Luther King Jr. Way. 

The District 3 elections have been rocked by questions around candidate James Peterson, a member of the Zoning Adjustments Board, who accepted funds for his campaign from an applicant whose project was coming before the board. Peterson does not deny receiving the funds and recused himself from the vote on the project, as the city attorney recommended. The Daily Planet interviewed the three District 3 candidates before this news was revealed. These interviews follow. 

Maudelle Shirek 

Vice Mayor Maudelle Shirek is still fighting the good fight, standing up for the little guy, demanding decent affordable housing, living wages, job training, advocating for the rights of children, youth, seniors and others whose voice might get lost in city politics.  

Why would an 89-year-old eight-time councilmember - the oldest elected public official in California - want to keep up the day-in-day-out battle, when she could settle into an easy chair and admire the work she’s done as councilmember since 1984? 

“I guess I’m just stubborn,” Shirek said with a grin, then, becoming more serious, says, “I still have something else to do, to say, something else to accomplish.” 

What are some of the incumbent’s more recent achievements? She reels them off: getting the council to fund job training, helping to relocate Berkeley Bowl to the old Safeway store site at Shattuck Avenue and Oregon Street, getting money into the city’s affordable housing fund, getting $1 million in federal dollars to upgrade the Ashby-Adeline avenues corridor. 

When asked if she is anti business, as her opponent James Peterson has charged, the vice mayor smiles.  

“I don’t think because I advocate social and economic justice, I am anti business, I think that’s pro-business” she said, explaining that the more people who have jobs – including homeless people – the more money they have to spend, enhancing the overall local economy. “As long as they’re jobless, what do they have to spend?” 

She further points to her support of the Bayer Corporation, because of the local jobs and job training it has brought. Another pro-business activity Shirek points to is her support for the revolving loan fund which small South Berkeley businesses have used. Then she talks about her support for the South Berkeley Neighborhood Development Corporation which has brought housing projects with retail on the ground floor to the district. 

She is also a strong supporter of the Ed Roberts campus at the Ashby BART station, the complex that will house offices for a variety of disabled support services. It will help revitalize the area, she said. 

Among the challenges ahead for Shirek are getting positive changes at the Berkeley Black Repertory Theater. She’s been one of the strongest critics on the council the nonprofit’s current management practices.  

Shirek and Peterson appear to agree on this subject, saying it is critical for the governing board to broaden. 

“It needs a good community board, instead of it being owned by one family,” Shirek said. 

When asked why the African American community in South Berkeley is not a visible force at City Council meetings, Shirek said people in her community organize more on the neighborhood level, with block and neighborhood associations. “People haven’t had an opportunity to fulfill their dreams as they should,” she said. “We’re still having repercussions from slavery.” 

When Shirek came to Berkeley in the 40s there was only one black school teacher in Berkeley, one in Oakland and one in San Francisco – “all women”, she said. 

Nevertheless, she added, “When the council does not listen, they come out.” 

As for crime, Shirek pointed out that she has voted to hire more police. However, she said she thinks a more fundamental response to crime in Berkeley is to provide more job training and open a 24-hour center for young people. The schools are not doing their part, Shirek added.. They’ve eliminated courses for students who don’t plan to go to college, such as auto mechanics, and they need more counselors. The idea of one counselor for 700 students is appalling, she says.. 

As for what can be done about disparity between the health of the South and west Berkeley African American population and the Caucasian hills population, Shirek points to the $200,000 the progressive faction put into the budget for the city’s health department, funds that the vice mayor and Councilmember Margaret Breland pushed for, to use to fight the high rate of low birthrate babies. The community is meeting to determine how best to spend the funds, Shirek said. 

Unlike Peterson, Shirek supports Measure Y, the eviction protection ballot measure. She said she knows several older people who have been put out of their homes, which Measure Y would shelter if it passes in November. 

Shirek has long been outspoken on the need for affordable housing. “We have to advocate for the central government to do more. The federal government is cutting down on the number of Section 8 (low income) vouchers,” she said. 

Even though she’s running hard along the campaign trail, Shirek is modest when it comes to her accomplishments. “People have helped me do it. I couldn’t do it by myself.” 

Marcella Crump-Williams 

District 3 residents might see Marcella Crump-Williams riding her bicycle around the neighborhood or know her in her capacity as block captain. 

The City Council candidate for District 3 has little experience in formal city government. Instead, her heart has led her into the political arena.  

Crump-Williams, who lost her employment at the Oakland Army base when it shut down, saw the suffering of a 95-year-old neighbor and decided to go into politics to remedy the wrong this woman and many other elderly people face. 

The woman got sick and ended up, temporarily, in a nursing home. “I saw she was distraught,” Crump-Williams said. “I thought there would have been some way for a caregiver to come into her home so she didn’t have to be moved.” 

The city should play a role in providing bonded, in-home care, she said. “When you take people out of their homes, it kills their spirit,” she said. 

There’s another problem that Crump-Williams would take on, if elected to the City Council. In fact, it’s a problem she’s already begun to tackle on a neighborhood level. It’s the lack of true integration in her neighborhood. 

“There’s a large number of Hispanics moving into Berkeley,” she said. She’s noted that the African American children and Hispanic children do not play together. “They live on the same block,” she said. 

To help remedy the situation, Crump-Williams set up a block party and invited Brazilian dancers. They had the participants all stand in a circle and hold hands, Crump-Williams said. The result was that neighbors were holding hands with neighbors they did not know. 

She said, she’s noted the divisions are more than skin deep. The Hispanics who are homeowners in her neighborhood do not associate with those living in apartments.  

She’s learned even more since she got on the campaign trail. “I didn’t see a black face at the Berkeley Democratic Club,” she said. 

Crump-Williams said she would address the issues that divide people in Berkeley, if elected to the council. 

As for the question of the Black Repertory Theater, Crump-Williams said that she recalled the time “a long time ago” when there were more shows and more opportunities for children. She said she hopes to help the theater initiate new programs. 

There are some new stores on the Alcatraz/Adeline avenue corridor, Crump-WIlliams said. But to help the business district along, she says “We need to have a refacing of the area,” she said. “It needs to look cosmetically up to date.” 

Asked about the Ed Roberts Campus, Crump-Williams said she thought the buildings might be too big and block the sun from those nearby. 

It could cause more people to come to the area so that the BART station might start charging fees for parking, she said. The project “seems experimental,” she said. 

As for affordable housing, Williams said she is “for (affordable housing) for working people. The emphasis is on working,” she said.  

As for crime, Crump-WIlliams says there should be a stricter curfew on young people loitering about. “They should be off the streets by 9 p.m.,” she said. 

Crump-Williams said she would like people to know what’s going on at the City Council. She’s thinking of organizing people to rotate attending the meetings, one person from 7 to 8 p.m., another from 9 to 10 p.m. and so on, she said. Then people would get together and discuss the issues that relevant to them and see what their options were. 

Crump-WIlliams says she is running on her own merits. “I’m not running against so and so,” she said. She’s hired a campaign advisor from San Francisco and said she wants to raise $5,000 for campaign materials, which she plans to have in both English and Spanish. 

James Peterson 

One sweltering day a couple of weeks ago, James Peterson, City Council candidate for District 3, insisted on wearing a suit jacket for a photograph. It wasn’t about ego. For Peterson, the image he portrays – especially to youth – says everything. 

“If they see a James Peterson walking down the street with an Armani suit and a beautiful tie, they’re going to say, ‘I wonder what that guy does. Let’s talk to him. Maybe he can show us something different.’”  

Peterson says he’s from the “old school” of good manners and decorum. He’d use these qualities on the council. 

“I can help restore dignity and respect (to the City “Council),” he said, adding that he believes he can work with all factions involved in city politics. “I listen carefully,” he said. “I’m not an ideologue.” 

It turns out that Peterson cut his teeth working for former Rep. Ron Dellums, D-Berkeley, with whom Shirek has a long association. Shirek appointed Peterson to the Zoning Adjustments Board.  

Peterson currently works as a consultant on low-income housing tax credits. He’s working with Volunteers of America, arranging financing for the purchase of a building for a correctional facility for women and their children in east Oakland. 

How does Peterson differ from the vice mayor?. “I may be more pro-business than Maudelle,” he said. “I’m not afraid for Berkeley to develop the city in terms of retail business and affordable housing.” 

He’s all for bringing “dot-coms” to the city. “I am comfortable with e-commerce as a way of doing business,” he said. He does not support adding a sales tax for those doing Internet sales, and suggested that local independent booksellers get together and create their own web sale sites. 

The Berkeley Black Repertory Theater, in District 3, has been soundly criticized in a city auditor’s report for poor management and for being run by one sole family. 

“It clearly needs to expand its board,” Peterson said. “The board should include those capable of raising a substantial amount of funds.” 

To this, the theater needs to reach out to the public, including the business community, he said. 

“I want to see (the theater) on equal footing with the Berkeley Repertory Theater,” Peterson added. 

Peterson blames the lack of development along the Adeline/Alcatraz corridor on the “lack of sophisticated leadership from the person who represents that area.” In contrast, Peterson says, “I personally know a lot about high finance.”  

He supports the Ed Roberts campus, which he says could be a major source of revitalization of the south Berkeley business district. It is a proposed complex of offices at the Ashby BART Station to include offices for nine organizations that support people with disabilities. 

“I propose to spend a great deal of time to put South Berkeley on an equal footing with the other parts of the city, including downtown and Fourth Street.” 

As for the problem of crime in the District 3 area, the focus should be on children.  

“We can clearly save the children,” he said. “Whether or not we have the capacity to save those who have chosen to solve their differences with guns is a monumental problem that’s clearly much larger than my existence.” 

One solution may be a military-type school for youth who get in trouble, such as proposed by Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown, “a camp-like program in which we can direct the young people in to teach the young people how to live, how to handle problems.” Berkeley should not create its own school, but hook up with Oakland’s. 

Another part of the solution is opening children’s eyes to the world around them. 

“We must make certain they are taken to the museum, to art galleries. They will be so impressed,” he said. “It will give their minds a new thought pattern and a new way to look at life.” 

Shirek and Peterson take opposing views on Measure Y, which would restrict owner move-in evictions. “It is ill-conceived and poorly written,” Peterson said. “It will adversely and detrimentally impact small black property owners. It’s wrong to create a measure in response to one or two problem (landlords).” 

As for the health disparity study that showed the great gap between the health of whites who live in the hills and blacks who live in the flatlands, Peterson asked the question: “How did we let it go so long?” 

The answer, he said, is a nurse practitioner program, where nurses would go into the homes to address prevention and intervention. 

Peterson has opened an office at 2471 Shattuck Ave. and said he has put $10,000 of his personal funds into the campaign, but does not know how much he will raise. 

Tuesday, Oct. 3

Taxi Scrip  

Community Meeting 

1 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Info: 644-6107 

“Comfort Baking for Brunch and Breakfast” 

6:30 p.m.  

Sur La Table 

1806 Fourth St.  

Pastry chef Letty Halloran Flatt will present favorite recipes from her book “Chocolate Snowball and other Fabulous Pastries from Deer Valley Bakery.” 

$40  

Call Michael O’Neill at Sur La Table, 849-2252 

Defending the Americans 

with Disabilities Act 

Noon - 1:30 p.m. 

Pauley Ballroom West 

Third Floor 

MLK Jr. Student Union 

UC Berkeley 

Coinciding with the March for Justice in Washington, D.C., to defend the Americans with Disabilities Act against constitutional challenges posed in the Trustees of the University of Alabama vs. Garrett case. Free, but seating is limited to 500 attendees.  

664-3216 

Traffic Calming Workshop 

7 - 10 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets. 

Wednesday, Oct. 4 

“An Evening With Jane Goodall” 

7 p.m. A slide show and lecture by the world-renowned chimpanzee research scientist, conservationist and humanitarian.$16 general; $12 students. Zellerbach Hall, University of California, Berkeley. (925) 935-1978 or www.wildlife-museum.org 

Prayer Gathering 

6:30 p.m. 

East Bay Community Church - Berkeley 

1798 Scenic Ave. 

849-8280 

Board of Education Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Old City Hall, Council Chambers 

Second Floor 

2134 MLK Jr. Way 

Contact Dr. Jack McLaughlin, 644-6147 

Citizens Budget  

Review Commission 

7 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Contact Phil Kamalarz, 644-6480 

Task Force on  

Telecommunications 

7 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Contact Phil Kamalarz, 644-6480 

Fire Safety Board Commission 

7:30 p.m.  

Fire Training Division 

997 Cedar St.  

644-6665 

Thursday, Oct. 5

3rd annual Berkeley Black Police Officers’ Association Golf Tournament 

Tilden Park Golf Course 

Shotgun Start at 7:30 a.m. Entry Fee includes cart range balls and Award Luncheon. Proceeds benefit Berkeley Black Police Officers’ Scholarship Fund. 

$99 Entry Fee 

644-6554 

New Role for the UN in the New Century 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

2299 Piedmont Ave. 

A discussion with Rosemary van der Laan, President of the Board of Directors of the UN Association of the United States, about globalization and it’s impacts on the economic, social and political lives of the world.  

$3 admission  

Contact Maribel Guillermo  

642-9460 

Capoeira Arts Cafe  

& Company Perform  

Noon 

BART plaza, Downtown  

Shattuck Avenue at Center Street 

A Brazilian extravaganza of Samba, Capoeira and more. Free. 

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Community Environmental Advisory Commission 

7 p.m. 

2118 Milvia St., Second Floor 

Conference Room 

Contact Nabil Al-Hadithy, 705-8155 

Public Works Commission 

7:30 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

665-3440 

Housing Advisory Commission 

7:30 p.m. 

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis St. 

Contact Oscar Sung, 665-3469 

Friday, Oct. 6

Opera: Marriage of Figaro & Schubert Songs 

1 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

644-6107 

— Compiled by Chason  

Wainwright 

Circle Dancing 

7:45 p.m. - 10 p.m. 

Finnish Brotherhood Hall 

1970 Chestnut St. 

Beginners welcome; no partners needed.  

Call John Bear, 528-4253 

“Stocks, Bonds, and the Future” 

11:45 a.m.  

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Dennis Quan, Account Executive at Morgan, Stanley, Dean Witter speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11  

For info and reservations, 848-3533 

Sustainable Business Alliance Networking Lunch 

Noon - 1:30 p.m. 

Saffron Caffe 

2813 Seventh St. 

The purpose of this lunch is to network with other businesses interested in sustainable business practices. The lunch is open to non-members.  

Call Terry O’Keefe, 451-4000 

Saturday, Oct. 7

Berkeley Grassroots Greening Tour 

Starts at 10:45 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. 

Celebrate Open Garden Day by joining this annual bicycle tour of local community and school gardens. Part of a series of free outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance. 

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Houses or Open Hills? 

10 a.m.  

Experience Black Diamond Mines Regional Park’s ghost towns, coal mines, spectacular views and open space on this hike by the proposed sites of 7,700 homes near Antioch. Cosponsored by Save Mount Diablo. One outing in a free series organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

“Redesigning Retirement”  

9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.  

UC Berkeley (call for exact location) 

The UC Berkeley Retirement Center and the Academic Geriatric Resource Program will present retirement as a time of great potential. Participants will take part in interactive workshops dealing with the impact of technology on retirement; community involvement of older adults, among other topics. Prominent experts in the field of aging and retirement will take part in “ask the experts” sessions.  

$25. No on-site registration. Register by September 25. 

Contact: Shelly Glazer at 642-5461 

Harwood Creek Cleanup 

9 a.m. - Noon 

John Muir School  

2955 Claremont Ave. 

Help clean up and restore the creek that runs through John Muir school. Volunteers are asked to bring gloves, chippers/shredders, tools and pick-up trucks. 

Women’s Evening At the Movies 

7:30 p.m. 

Pacific Center 

2712 Telegraph 

A monthly night at the movies for lesbian, bi and transexual women. This months featured film is “Fried Green Tomatoes.” 

$5 donation requested 

Call 548-8283  

Free Estate Planning Seminar 

9:30 a.m. - Noon 

St. Ambrose Church 

1145 Gilman St. (at Cornell Ave.) 

Call Catholic Charities of the East Bay, 768-3109 

Sunday, Oct. 8

Surmounting Sunol Peaks  

9 a.m. - 4 p.m.  

Learn about local geology while enjoying the panoramic views from three Sunol peaks. One outing in a free series organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations  

Tuesday, Oct. 10

Cal Alumni Singles 20th Anniversary Dinner 

UC Faculty Club 

Dinner scheduled for Oct. 15 

For reservations call 527-2709 by Oct. 10 

Kenya, 40 Years Ago and Today 

1 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Call 644-6107 for more info  

Wednesday, Oct. 11

Are Domed Cities in the future? 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom  

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion based on UC Berkeley alumnus Tim Holt’s book, “On Higher Ground.” Set 50 years in the future, part of the book takes place in an East Bay enclosed by a climate-controlled dome.  

$3 admission  

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Tenant-Landlord Problems? 

12:30 - 2 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Bring your concerns about repairs, harrassment and housing rights.  

Call 644-6107 

Thursday, Oct. 12

East Timor: The Road to Independence 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave. 

A discussion of events leading up to the creation of the newest nation of the millennium and issues raised on the road to independence.  

$3 admission 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Meeting Life Changes 

10 a.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

With John Hammerman.  

For info: 644-6107 

Sterling Trio 

Noon  

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

Members of the Berkeley Symphony performing a variety of chamber music. 

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Friday, Oct. 13

“The Evolution and Cost of Ethical Drugs” 

11:45 a.m.  

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Stanford D. Splitter, retired MD speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11 

Call for reservations: 848-3533 

Saturday, Oct. 14

Indigenous Peoples Day Powwow & Indian Market 

10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Grand Entry 1 p.m.  

Enjoy Native American foods, arts & crafts, drumming, singing and many types of native dancing. Sponsored by the City of Berkeley, this event is free.  

Civic Center Park 

Allston Way at MLK Jr. Way 

Info: 615-0603 

Traffic Calming Workshop 

1 - 4 p.m.  

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets.  

Sunday, Oct. 15

A Taste of the Greenbelt 

1 - 4 p.m. 

Los Gatos Opera House 

Celebrate the Bay Area’s agricultural and culinary bounty. This benefit features a variety of musical groups, local artists and samples from over 40 local restaurants, farmers, wineries and microbreweries. Proceeds benefit Greenbelt Alliance’s ongoing efforts to protect Bay Area farmlands and open space.  

$45 per person; $80 for this event and the Oct. 22 event in SF 

1-800-543-GREEN, www.greenbelt.org 

Monday, Oct. 16

Private Elementary School Parent Information Panel 

7 - 9:30 p.m. 

Epworth United Methodist Church 

1953 Hopkins St.  

A panel of parents from six area private schools discuss the admission process and their experiences. Sponsored by the Neighborhood Parents Network 

Admission: free to members, $5 non-members 

Call 527-6667 

Tuesday, Oct. 17

Is the West Berkeley Shellmound a landmark? 

7 p.m.  

City Council Chambers 

2134 MLK Jr. Way, 2nd floor 

Continued and final public hearing on the appeals against landmark designation of the West Berkeley Shellmound. The City Council may possibly make it’s decision at this meeting. 

Landscape Archeology and Space-Age Technologies in Epirus, Greece 

8 p.m.  

370 Dwinelle Hall 

UC Berkeley 

Professor of Archeology, Art History and Classics Dr. James Wiseman presents a slide-illustrated lecture. 

Wednesday, Oct. 18

Traffic Calming Workshop 

7 - 10 p.m. 

St. Clements Church 

2837 Clement Blvd.  

Help to achieve reasonable traffic speeds and volume on local streets.  

Thursday, Oct. 19

The Promise and Perils of Transgenic Crops 

7:30 - 9 p.m.  

International House, Homeroom 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

A discussion with Dr. Peggy Lemaux, professor of Plant and Microbiology at UC Berekeley, of the scientific basis for biotechnology, it’s risks and benefits. 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Rafael Mariquez Free Solo Concert 

7:30 p.m. 

Berkeley Public Library, South Branch 

1901 Russell St. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This Chilean folksinger and guitarist presents his original settings of selections by Latin American poets. 

Contact: 644-6860; TDD 548-1240 

Vocal Sauce 

Noon 

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Shattuck Ave. at Center St. 

The JazzSchool’s vocal jazz ensemble perform award-winning arrangements by Greg Murai.  

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Friday, Oct. 20

“The Ballot Issues” 

11:45 a.m. 

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave.  

Fran Packard of the League of Women Voters speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.  

Luncheon: $11 

Call 848-3533 

Saturday, Oct. 21

A Day on Mt. Tam 

9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. 

Come play and hike in San Francisco’s beloved playground. This outing is part of a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance. 

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

AHIMSA Eight Annual Conference 

9 a.m. - 5 p.m.  

International House, Great Hall 

UC Berkeley 

2299 Piedmont Ave.  

The AHIMSA is a nonprofit foundation whose goal is to encourage dialogues and public forums which bridge spiritual, scientific and social issues. This years conference is titled “Science, Spirituality and Nonviolence.”  

Admission is free 

Contact Maribel Guillermo, 642-9460 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market Fall Fruit Tastings 

10 a.m. - 3 p.m.  

Center St. at MLK Jr. Way 

Taste a whole farmers’ market’s bounty of fall fruit varieties. 

Free. 

Info: 548-3333 

Sunday, Oct. 22

A Taste of the Greenbelt 

1 - 4 p.m. 

Presidio’s Golden Gate Club 

Greenbelt Alliance brings the farm to the city in this celebration of the Bay Area’s agricultural and culinary bounty. Featured are samples from over 40 local restaurants, farmers, wineries, microbreweries. Also featured are live music and local artwork. The event benefits Greenbelt Alliance’s ongoing efforts to protect Bay Area farmlands and open space.  

$45 per person 

1-800-543-GREEN, www.greenbelt.org 

An Evening with Alice Walker 

7:30 p.m.  

King Middle School  

1781 Rose St. (at Grant) 

free parking 

Join internationally loved novelist, poet and essayist Alice Walker in celebrating her new book of autobiographical stories, “The Way Forward is With a Broken Heart.” Benefits Berkeley EcoHouse and KPFA Radio, 94.1 FM.  

Tickets: $10 advance, $13 door 

Tickets available at independent bookstores 

More info: 848-6767 x609 

Take a Trip to the Oakland Ballet 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This is an outing organized by the Senior Center to see “Glass Slippers.”  

Tickets: $6 each 

Call Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

Monday, Oct. 23

Berkeley Chinese Community Church Turns 100 

6 p.m. 

Nov. 4 

Silver Dragon Restaurant 

835 Webster St. 

Oakland 

Reservations: $30 per person 

More info: 548-5295 

Public Schools Parent Information Night 

7 - 9 p.m.  

Epworth United Methodist Church 

1953 Hopkins St. 

Parents, principals and other administrative staff from 11 elementary schools will speak about their schools. Sponsored by Neighborhood Parents Network.  

Admission: free to members, $5 non-members 

527-6667 

Tuesday, Oct. 24

Berkeley Farmers’ Market Fall Fruit Tastings 

2 p.m. - 7 p.m.  

Derby St. at MLK Jr. Way 

Come taste a bounty of fall fruit varieties for free. 

Info: 548-3333 

Thursday, Oct. 26

East Bay Science & Arts Middle School 

Noon  

BART Plaza, Downtown 

Middle school students perform dances of folk, swing, and Cuban rueda styles. Free.  

Contact Carrie Ridgeway, 549-2230 

Friday, Oct. 27

“Transporation: What’s in Store?” 

11:45 a.m. 

Berkeley City Club  

2315 Durant Ave.  

Larry Dahms, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Transportation Council speaks at 12:30 p.m. Luncheon is served at 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. 

Luncheon: $11 

More info and reservations: 848-3533 

Saturday, Oct. 28

Pedaling the Green City 

11 a.m. -3:30 p.m.  

Take a leisurely bike ride along the future San Francisco Bay Trail. One in a series of free outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations  

Saturday, Nov. 4

Breathtaking Barnabe Peak 

10 a.m. - 4 p.m. 

Hike through Samuel P. Taylor State Park’s lush forests and climb to the heights of Barnabe Peak, overlooking Point Reyes. One in a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Thursday, Nov. 9

The Life and Art of Chiura Obata 

7:30 p.m.  

North Berkeley Public Library 

1170 Alameda (at Hopkins) 

A slide show and lecture presented by Obata’s granddaughter, Kimi Kodani Hill, celebrating Obata’s book, “Topaz Moon: Chiura Obata’s Art of the Internment,” and the retrospective exhibit of Obata’s work to appear this Fall at SFs De Young Museum. 

For details call 644-6850  

Saturday, Nov. 11

Moonlight on Mt. Diablo 

1 - 10:30 p.m.  

Hike up the Devil’s Mountain by daylight, catch a glorious sunset and hike back by the light of the moon. One in a series of free outing organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Sunday, Nov. 12

Views, Vines and Veggies 

9:15 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.  

Climb Bald Mountain in Sugarloaf State Park and peer down upon the Napa and Sonoma Valleys. Then please your palate at the Landmark Winery and visit Oak Hill organic vegetable and flower farm. One in a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 for reservations 

Tuesday, Nov. 14

Take a Trip to the Steinbeck Museum and 

Mission San Juan Bautista 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave. (at MLK Jr. Way) 

This is an outing organzied by the Senior Center.  

$40 with lunch, $25 without  

Call Maggie or Suzanne, 644-6107 

Thursday, Nov. 16

Reminiscing in Swingtime 

7:30 p.m.  

North Berkeley Library  

1170 Alameda (at Hopkins) 

George Yoshida, author and jazz drummer, presents a multi-media program recounting the big band experience in the Japanese American internment camps. The presentation will be capped with a set of live jazz by the George Yoshida Quartet. 

Call for more info: 644-6850 

Saturday, Nov. 18

S.F. Stairs and Peaks 

10 a.m. - 3 p.m.  

Begin the day with a visit to the farmer’s market, then meander up the stairways and streets of Telegraph Hill to Coit Tower. Then up Russian Hill, descending to Fisherman’s Wharf for a ride back on the new historic streetcar line. One in a series of free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: 415-255-3233 

Berkeley Free Folk Festival 

11 a.m. - 1 a.m.  

Ashkenaz  

1317 San Pablo Ave. 

Fourteen hours of free concerts, workshops, jam sessions and to top it off a Saturday night dance. The fifth annual Folk Festival will feature Shay & Michael Black, Spectre Double Negative & the Equal Positive, Larry Hanks, Wake the Dead and many others. Sponsored by Charles Schwab and the City of Berkeley.  

More info or to volunteer: 525-5099 

Sunday, Nov. 19

Mt. Madonna & Wine  

10 a.m. - 2 p.m. 

Hike through evergreen forests and visit the remains of a 19th century estate, then finish the day with a visit to Kruse Winery. One of many free fall outings organized by Greenbelt Alliance.  

Call: (415) 255-3233 for reservations 

ONGOING EVENTS 

Sundays 

Green Party Consensus Building Meeting 

6 p.m. 

2022 Blake St. 

This is part of an ongoing series of discussions for the Green Party of Alameda County, leading up to endorsements on measures and candidates on the November ballot. This week’s focus will be the countywide new Measure B transportation sales tax. The meeting is open to all, regardless of party affiliation. 

415-789-8418 

Tuesdays 

Easy Tilden Trails 

9:30 a.m. 

Tilden Regional Park, in the parking lot that dead ends at the Little Farm 

Join a few seniors, the Tuesday Tilden Walkers, for a stroll around Jewel Lake and the Little Farm Area. Enjoy the beauty of the wildflowers, turtles, and warblers, and waterfowl. 

215-7672; members.home.com/teachme99/tilden/index.html 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market 

2-7 p.m. 

Derby Street between Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Milvia Street 

548-3333 

Berkeley Camera Club 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share your slides and prints with other photographers. Critiques by qualified judges. Monthly field trips. 

531-8664 

Computer literacy course 

6-8 p.m. 

James Kenney Recreation Center, 1720 Eighth St. 

This free course will cover topics such as running Windows, File Management, connecting to and surfing the web, using Email, creating Web pages, JavaScript and a simple overview of programming. The course is oriented for adults. 

644-8511 

Saturdays 

Berkeley Farmers’ Market 

10 a.m.-3 p.m. 

Center Street between Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Milvia Street 

548-3333 

Poets Juan Sequeira and Wanna Thibideux Wright 

Thursdays 

The Disability Mural 

4-7 p.m. through September 

Integrated Arts 

933 Parker 

Drop-in Mural Studios will be held for community gatherings and tile-making sessions. This mural will be installed at Ed Roberts campus. 

841-1466 

Fridays 

Ralph Nader for President 

7 p.m.  

Video showings to continue until November. Campaign donations are requested. Admission is free.  

Contact Jack for directions at 524-1784. 

2nd and 4th Sunday 

Rhyme and Reason Open Mike Series 

2:30 p.m. 

UC Berkeley Art Museum, 2621 Durant Ave. 

The public and students are invited. Sign-ups for the open mike begin at 2 p.m. 

234-0727;642-5168 

Tuesday and Thursday 

Free computer class for seniors 

9:30-11:30 a.m. 

South Berkeley Senior Center, 2939 Ellis St. 

This free course offers basic instruction in keyboarding, Microsoft Word, Windows 95, Excel and Internet access. Space is limited; the class is offered Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. Call ahead for a reservation. 

644-6109 

Compiled by Chason Wainwright 

School bond numbers are misleading 

Editor: 

On Saturday, Sept. 23, “School Board Details Bond Measure” stated, “The schools have yet to spend $60 million from that bond,” referring to “unspent” funds of the 1992 school bond. This statement is highly misleading. 

There is “money in the bank” from the ’92 bond. But there are two enormous projects “in the pipeline” which have not begun to bill BUSD and total about $50 million. They are the classroom building renovation at King ($20 million), and the new library/ multipurpose/ cafeteria building at BHS (about $30 million). These projects are already 2 1/2 years along their trajectories and will require another 1 1/2 years to complete. Other projects already in use, like Thousand Oaks, have not submitted their last invoices. In other words, the $60 million is committed money. 

The long duration of major projects – as much as four years from planning to completion – is one of the potent reasons why voters are asked to approve another bond now rather than later. The article also omitted a vital fact. The ’92 bond was preceded by distribution of the “Green Book,” the detailed presentation of its goals and spending plan. The ’92 bond building program is not yet over; the ’92 Green Book is still “on the job.” The School Board is obliged to list on its agenda and to publicly discuss every item of spending over $15,000. When the board alters bond spending it is still apt to be reminded by those who have stayed tuned about the Green Book, though its figures are showing their age. If not for this yardstick for measuring the track record of the 1992 bond I would not be on board this campaign and would have no basis for faith in another bond. 

The school board approved detailed plans for AA and BB. Though available on request, these plans were not widely circulated until inclusion in a more comprehensive, user friendly orange document. This work has now been carefully done. The “book” was approved by the board on September 20 and is now being dispersed. For a copy call BUSD Public Information, 644-6320. Like the Green Book, it contains a framework for insuring that execution of each measure fulfills its goal. 

Bruce Wicinas, 

Berkeley Citizens for Safe and Sound Schools Co-chair 

Right imbalance, build more housing 

Editor, 

Why is there is a housing and transportation crisis in Berkeley? Perhaps it’s because the city added 10,500 new jobs since 1980, while it lost 55 housing units (source: Berkeley General Plan). 

This jobs-housing imbalance continues today, and is exacerbated by the actions of the city’s residents. For example, at a recent zoning board meeting, not a single resident complained about the development of a new office building for 200 workers (and their cars) at Fourth and Cedar streets. However, they argued vociferously against 48 units of new housing at 2700 San Pablo Avenue that might allow some of those employees to live within 2 miles of their work place. 

Berkeley’s parking, transportation and housing crisis will not be addressed unless the city approves more housing along its commercial corridors. In the spirit of compromise, the developer of the 2700 San Pablo Avenue project has offered to reduce the height of the proposed project from five stories to four stories. The resulting plan supports public transit, helps to revitalize vacant storefronts, and addresses the city’s housing crisis. Despite the complaints of neighborhood NIMBYs, the Zoning Adjustments Board should demonstrate leadership and approve this reasonable and responsible project. 

Christopher Hudson 

Berkeley 

Enough landmarks already 

Editor: 

In the name of fairness, the Landmarks Preservation Commission should issue a short roster of the buildings, parking lots, and tool sheds which, under its exceedingly generous definitions, the commission considers neither landmarks nor structures of merit. Since there are so few of them and because Berkeley is easily America’s Sinea, it might be simpler to declare the entire city a landmark district and freeze it forever in legislative amber. 

The problem is that “landmark” no longer has any meaning in Berkeley. 

Gray Brechin 

Berkeley  

Suppression of Free Speech in Berkeley  

Editor: 

My name is Eleanor Pepples and I reside in the Berkeley Hills of California. 

I am a candidate for City Council in Berkeley’s District 6. 

Recently, my free speech rights were violated. In my race, supporters known around town as the “People for Pepples” and I have posted signs in places like the Monterey Market, the Marin Circle, on Vine Street near Peet’s, on Shattuck near The Cheese Board and The Flower Shop, on Hearst Street near Zellerbach Hall, by the City Clerk’s Office on Addison Street, by City Buildings on Cedar Street and by the Old City Hall on Martin Luther King, Jr. Way. These signs have my photograph surrounded by the words People for Pepples, they list the name of the office I am seeking: Berkeley City Council, and they list as contact information, the website: 

www.peopleforpepples.com. The goal of these signs is to spread the word about our campaign’s ideas and ideals. My campaign wants to share with the citizens of Berkeley thoughts on how we might make our City Council more efficient, why we want a fiscally accountable government, and why our city would benefit from having a leader and not a follower from District 6 on the Council. Someone who would work across party lines and across districts to get the job done; someone who would listen to the people and act effectively to resolve issues of importance to individuals choosing to live or work in Berkeley. 

On Friday, September 29th at least one representative of the current city government, an employee in the Department of Public Works, removed a large number of these signs. Apparently, after this representative of the Mayor’s administration tore down the signs, he triumphantly presented them to the Berkeley City Clerk’s office boasting that he had taken down a “truckload of them”. My supporters responded quickly by posting signs the very next day in the same areas and in new locations. By Sunday, October 1st, many of the signs were removed again. These signs listed not only the website but also listed a telephone number to make it easier for citizen’s to reach my campaign office. The signs comply in every way with the spirit and in the letter of laws governing what types of signs can be posted in an election. 

The signs were removed without just cause. I ask for your support in declaiming this type of illegal action, not only because it restricts my First Amendment right to freedom of expression, but also because it deprives the public of your chance to learn about a candidate’s honest effort to inform the voters in an election year that they have a choice to vote for a new voice and a new vision for our City Council. 

I ask for your support in protesting against this action, and for your vigilance in ensuring that no more signs are removed. We must not tolerate this type of activity in our democracy. 

Eleanor Pepples 

Berkeley 

Eco city design jumps into the debate 

Editor: 

Taking out the ad for an Ecocity Amendment to the General Plan and against Planning Commissioner Gene Poschman’s opposition to ecological innovation has brought ecological city design right into the center of public debate, so it’s working. That’s what it means when we get 20 phone calls, 50 percent condemning us and 50 percent congratulating us for bringing these issues out into the open. 

To Morlock Chaillot, hiding under a nom de plum and fictitious organization, let’s be clear that Berkeley’s “well-thought-out zoning” has in fact left us with a gigantic housing problem. Higher density in centers, not scattered throughout town, is a known solution around the world and the use of ecological features like rooftop gardens and solar greenhouses, pedestrian streets and bridges between buildings, far from being fantasies, exist in many places but are so small in number they are overwhelmed by a car-swamped way of building cities.  

Though Berkeley is better than most cities in this regard it has not a single pedestrian street nor real public plaza. Rooftop gardens exist in a few hidden places. Are bridge buildings a ridiculous fantasy? Check out Stephens Hall directly south of the Campanile on campus. It’s a really magnificent bridge building seven stories tall, nestled into the redwoods and up against beautiful Strawberry Creek. If such features were common instead of rare we’d have an extraordinarily lively city with room for both people and the creeks now buried. 

Let’s be clear about “attacking” people too. Is pointing out the real meaning of Carrie Olson’s use of the term “rabbit warren” an attack on her personally? Though she seems to be quite a decent person, she should take responsibility for use of such terms. The fact is, small places serve low-income people and calling them “rabbit warrens” is genuinely unhelpful.  

Meantime Carol Denney’s presumably non-personal attack on me saying I attack others, I don’t work for transit and I’m all about greed suggestions she should learn something about her subject. I organized support for AC Transit’s 52 line when my neighbors were about to shoot it down years ago, and I’ve been exploring ecological cities for 3 decades and am as broke as ever. Either there is something about me that is definitely not greedy or I’m an incredibly slow learner. 

Bottom line: we need more specific, clear content in addressing these very real problems, not generalizations, inaccuracies and sarcasm. 

Richard Register 

Berkeley 

Subject:  

Letter 

Date:  

Sun, 1 Oct 00 19:31:24 -0700 

From:  

To:  

“Berkeley Daily Planet”  

Editor 

The Berkeley Daily Planet 

2076 University Ave. 

Berkeley, CA 94704 

opinion@berkeleydailyplanet.com 

Editor, 

The Morlochs in H.G. Wells’ story live underground and feed off the Eloi  

as if they were no better than rabbits. Morloch Chaillot of the Deep  

Ecologists’ Gaian Alliance (Letters, Sept. 29) affirms that the future  

lies underground, and states that someday we shall all be rabbits.  

Morloch also castigates Richard Register for being a front for out of  

town developers. I confess, I am confused. Is it sarcasm? Is the  

alternative to 15 story buildings a subterranean class that feeds on the  

thoughtless creatures above (Carrie Olson and her supporters?), or is Mr.  

Register really a crook, and the Deep Ecologists as out of touch with  

reality as they sound? 

Why is 5 stories a magic number? Thirty years ago I lived in the unit  

three dorm. It was, and still is, 8 stories high. Should we demolish  

the top three floors? 

I did not, and do not, consider the dorms a disaster area. The problem  

is one of context. The dorms have open space on the ground, and are  

adjacent to commercial areas or take an entire block, and therefore do  

not create the disaster scenarios that have been described in previous  

opinion pieces.  

You don’t have to be offered money to support high-rise (or at least  

higher-rise) building in downtown. One merely has to look at the Los  

Angeles basin to see what happens when everybody gets their dream of a  

low-rise environment. Sorry Morloch, Mr. Register does have a  

constituency in Berkeley. 

Robert Clear 

3134 California 

Berkeley, CA 94703 

843-1868 

ubject:  

andrew lam 

Date:  

Mon, 2 Oct 2000 20:31:36 EDT 

From:  

BESCODA@aol.com 

To:  

opinion@berkeleydailyplanet.com 

Dear Editor: 

Thank you for running Vietnamese-born Andrew Lam’s lovely piece on his  

grandmother today (Oct 2nd). Some months ago I saw, in a San Francisco  

paper, another moving article by him about leaving his country. He is truly  

a talented writer of fine prose. Let’s have more -- Beatriz Coda  

Editor: 

In response to the letter (8/31) from Terry Powell: 

Terry Powell from Lawrence Berkeley National Lab’s (LBNL) public relations department, operated for the Department of Energy (DOE), is just doing her job when she promotes the lab’s official line on the continuous dumping of radioactive waste from their National Tritiu Labeling Facility (NTLF) and Melvin Calvin Lab on the UC campus. 

The Lab’s boosters endlessly repeat the mantra “tritium emissions below the U.S. EPA’s National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Pollutants (NESHAPS).” Never do they address the many credible criticisms of their absurdly low estimate for radioactive tritium exposure, including those in the report by IFEU, made by independent scientists hired at local taxpayers’ expense by the City of Berkeley. 

Dumping in short bursts and a short stack actually located below the Lawrence Hall of Science (LHS) are easily understandable reasons why exposure to LHS workers and visiting children could exceed the NESHAPS standard. Just because the flawed exposure estimates concocted by LBNL remain unchallenged by the perfumed suits at the EPA and the California Department of Toxic Substances is no reason for anyone to believe them.  

All the Lab’s arguments seem like such blather when one visits the site and sees the tritium stack just 30 feet from the LHS’s fence. Common sense tells one that whatever is coming out of the stack is all over whoever is near it. In this cases it’s most of the areas children. Triatiated vapor is extremely hazardous and has been identified as a cause of leukemia, cancer, infertility and other genetic defects.  

Ms. Powell is incorrect when she states that almost all their tritium is captured and recycled. As sloppy as their records are, they do indicate large quantities missing. Even when LBNl has admittedly dumped does not support her claim.  

Also contrary to what Ms. Powell claimed, LBNL’s treatability “study” was just a scam to unload years of backlogged mixed waste without obtaining the usual permits. Mixed waste, toxic chemicals contaminated with radioactive waste, is fed into an “oxidation cell” complete with igniter plugs and exhaust vents, and can run in excess of 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. Sure sounds like an incinerator to me.  

Playing games by reclassifying the NTLF as a “non-nuclear” facility and “delisting” their mixed waste does not alter the reality that large amounts of dangerous radioactive material are stored, used and dumped there. Neither the NTLF or Calvin Lab are appropriately sited in our community and should be closed and cleaned up.  

Mark McDonald 

Berkeley 

Editor: 

Ebony Museum of Arts 

The museum specializes in the art and history of Africa.  

Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 6 p.m.  

30 Jack London Village, Suite 209. (510) 763-0745. 

Habitot Children’s Museum 

Kittredge Street and Shattuck Avenue 

“Back to the Farm.”  

Ongoing 

An interactive exhibit gives children the chance to wiggle through tunnels like an earthworm, look into a mirrored fish pond, don farm animal costumes, ride on a John Deere tractor and more.  

Cost: $4 adults; $6 children age 7 and under; $3 for each additional child age 7 and under.  

Monday and Wednesday, 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Tuesday and Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday, 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.  

647-1111 or www.habitot.org 

Judah L. Magnes Museum 

2911 Russell St.  

549-6950 

Free 

Sunday through Thursday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. 

“Telling Time: To Everything There Is A Season” 

Through May 2002.  

An exhibit structured around the seasons of the year and the seasons of life with objects ranging from the sacred and the secular, to the provocative and the whimsical. Highlights include treasures from Jewish ceremonial and folk art, rare books and manuscripts, contemporary and traditional fine art, video, photography and cultural kitsch. 

“Spring and Summer.”  

Through Nov. 4. 

UC Berkeley Art Museum 

2626 Bancroft Way, Berkeley 

Wednesday - Sunday, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m., Open Thursdays til 9 p.m.  

“Hans Hoffmann”  

An exhibit of paintings by Hoffmann which emphasizes two experimental methods the artist employed: the introduction of slabs or rectangles of highly saturated colors and the use of large areas of black paint juxtaposed with intense oranges, greens and yellows. 

Oct. 11 - Jan. 16, 2001: Amazons in the Drawing Room: The Art of Romaine Brooks.  

The Asian Galleries  

“Art of the Sung: Court and Monastery,” open-ended.  

A display of early Chinese works from the permanent collection.  

“Chinese Ceramics and Bronzes: The First 3,000 Years,” open-ended. 

“Works on Extended Loan from Warren King,” open-ended. 

“Three Towers of Han,” open-ended. 

$6 general; $4 seniors and students age 12 to 18; free children age 12 and under; free Thursday, 11 a.m. to noon and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday, Friday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. 

642-0808. 

UC Berkeley Museum  

of Paleontology 

Lobby, Valley Life Sciences Building, UC Berkeley 

“Tyrannosaurus Rex,” ongoing.  

A 20-foot tall, 40-foot long replica of the fearsome dinosaur. 

“Pteranodon” A suspended skeleton of a flying reptile with a wingspan of 22 to 23 feet.  

Free. Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. 

642-1821. 

Mills College Art Museum 

5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland 

“The 100 Languages of Children,” through October.  

An exhibit of art by children from Reggio Emilia, Italy. At Carnegie Building Bender Room. 

Free. Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. 

430-2164 

TRAX Gallery 

1306 3rd. St., Berkeley 

Mary Law “Altered Ceramic Pots”  

through Oct. 21 

For more information or to sign up for the workshop call 526-0279 or e-mail to cone5@aol.com 

Downtown Berkeley Association 

Lunchtime Concert Series 

Every Thursday through October 

noon - 1p.m. 

Downtown Berkeley BART Plaza 

1 hour free parking available in Center Street Garage 

Oct. 5: Brazilian music players Capoeira Arts Cafe & Company 

Oct. 12: Members of the Berkeley Symphony performing chamber music 

Oct. 19: Jazzschool’s vocal jazz ensemble Vocal Sauce 

Oct. 26: East Bay Science & Arts Middle School will perform folk, swing and Cuban rueda dances 

Albatross Pub 

1822 San Pablo Ave.  

843-2473 

Oct. 4: Whiskey Brothers, 9 p.m. 

Oct. 5: Keni “El Lebrijano,” 9 p.m. 

Oct. 10: Mad & eddie Duran Jazz Duo, 9 p.m. 

Oct. 12: Keni “El Lebrijano,” 9 p.m. 

Oct. 14: pick Pocket ensemble, 9 p.m. 

Ashkenaz 

1317 San Pablo Ave.  

525-5099 

For all ages 

www.ashkenaz.com 

Oct. 3, 9 p.m., Dan, Tom and Mary, $8. 

Oct. 4, 8 p.m., Nigerian Bros. and DJ Henri-Pierre Koubaka, $10. 

Oct. 5, 7:30 p.m., Laura Allan Band, $5. 

Oct. 6, 9:30 p.m., Clan Dyken and Diane Patterson, Leonard Benalley, $9. 

Oct. 7, 9:30 p.m. ,West African Highlife Band, $11. 

Oct. 8, 9 p.m. ,Sekouba Bambino Diabate, $10. 

Yoshi’s 

Oct. 2. Christian McBride Band, $16. 

Oct. 3 through Oct. 8, An Evening with Branford Marsalis, $26 to $30 general; Sunday matinee: $5 children; $10 adult with one child. 

Unless otherwise noted, music at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m.; Sunday 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. 510 Embarcadero West, Oakland. (510) 238-9200 or  

(510) 762-BASS. 

The Jazzschool 

2375 Shattuck Ave. 

Oct. 8, 1:30 - 3:30 p.m., Bobbe Norris and Larry Dunlap present a vocal workshop, “Making the Song Your Own.” The workshop is $30 for Jazzschool students and $40 for others. 4:30 p.m., Norris and Dunlap perform. 8:00 p.m., Peck Allmond Group featuring Kenny Wollesen CD release performance.  

Oct. 15, 4:30 p.m., Mark Levine and The Latin Tinge.  

$12; $10 students/seniors; $6 for Jazzschool students and children under 13 

Reservations: (510) 845-5373. 

Deborah Voigt 

The Grammy award-winning soprano performs the music of Strauss, Wagner, Schoenberg and others. Voigt has appeared with leading opera companies including the San Francisco Opera and has sung opposite such artists as Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti.  

Oct. 15, 3 p.m.  

Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley campus, Bancroft Avenue at Telegraph.  

$28 - $48  

642-9988 

Eli’s Mile High Club 

3629 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Oakland 

(510) 655-6661 

Doors open at 8 p.m. 

Oct. 6, Henry Clement  

University of California,  

Berkeley Art Museum 

Pacific Film Archive 

2575 Bancroft Way 

642-1412 

“Treasures from the George Eastman House” 

Various programs and a 16-film salute to little-known actresses. 

“Neo-Eiga: New Japanese Cinema” 

Oct. 7, 7 p.m. : “Wildlife” (1997), directed by Shinji Aoyama, US premiere; 9 p.m. : “Timeless Melody” (1999), directed by hiroshi Okuhara, US premiere 

Oct. 14, 7 p.m. : “Nabbie’s Love (1999), directed by Yuji Nakae, West Coast premiere; 8:55 p.m. : “Gemini” (1999), directed by Shinya Tsukamoto, Bay Area premiere.  

$7 for one film; $8.50 for double bills. UC Berkeley students are $4/$5.50. Seniors and children are $4.50/6.00  

Theater 

“Uttar-Priyadarshi (The Final Beatitude)” 

Oct. 7 and Oct. 8.  

The Chorus Repertory Theater presents an epic play exploring war, personal accountability, and public power using a mixture of text, music and elaborate theatrical design.  

$24 to $48.  

Saturday, 8 p.m.; Sunday, 3 p.m.  

Zellerbach Hall,  

University of California, Bancroft Way and Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley.  

(510) 642-9988. 

“The Green Bird”  

by Carlo Gozzi 

Berkeley Repertory Theatre 

2025 Addison St. 

Adapted by Theatre de la Jeune Lune and directed by Dominique Serrand.  

“The Green Bird” runs through Oct. 27. For tickets contact the box office at 845-4700 

“The Philanderer”  

by George Bernard Shaw 

Berkeley City Club 

2315 Durant Ave. 

Performed by the Aurora Theatre company, “The Philanderer” takes on the challenging and often humorous exploration of gender roles and the separations that exist between the sexes. 

Tickets for preview showings are sold at $26. Showtimes run Wednesday through Saturday through October 15 at 8 p.m. and Sunday matinees show at 2 p.m., plus selected Sunday evenings at 7 p.m. Admission for regular performances is $30. Student discounts are available. For tickets and information call 843-4822 or visit www.auroratheatre.org. 

“MIMZABIM!” 

Climate Theatre & Subterranean Shakespeare 

La Vals Subterraniean  

1834 Euclid 

Through Oct. 14 

Thursday - Saturday, 8:00 p.m. 

$12, Students $8 

“Fanny at Chez Panisse” 

Julie Morgan Theatre 

2640 College Ave., Berkeley 

Musical based on the book with opening proceeds going to the Verde Partnership Garden in Richmond. 

Through Oct. 29 

Runs Wednesday - Sunday, 7 p.m.  

$26 - 34  

1-888-FANNY06 

“Moonlight”  

by Harold Pinter 

A Last Planet Theatre production 

Potrero Hill Playhouse 

953 De Haro 

San Francisco 

Pinter’s most recent play features a man named Andy who is dying and his wife, Bel, who can’t get their two sons to pay them a visit. A story of infidelity, sibling rivalry, marital combat and moonlight and memory.  

Runs Thursday - Saturday, Oct. 5 (preview) through Oct. 28. All shows at 8:30 p.m. No show Oct. 26.  

$20 opening night, $10-15 regular run, $5 preview 

More info and tickets: 845-2687 

Exhibits 

Traywick Gallery 

1316 Tenth St.  

527-1214 

Charles LaBelle 

Through Oct. 15 

LaBelle’s new series of large-scale color photographs highlight nighttime nature in Hollywood. He recreates trees at night using a hand-held spotlight and playing on the beam across the leaves and branches. The opening reception will be held on September 12 from 6 to 8 p.m.  

Blue Vinyl by Connie Walsh  

Through Oct. 15 

This multimedia project combines video, sound and printmaking to explore concepts of intimacy and its relation to private space.  

Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday 11-6 p.m. and Sundays 12-5 p.m. 

A.C.C.I. Gallery  

“Paperworks,” through Oct. 7.  

A group exhibit of works by Carol Brighton, Vannie Keightley, Jean Hearst. 

1652 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley. (510) 843-2527 

Berkeley Art Center 

“Ethnic Notions: Black Images in the White Mind,''  

Through Nov. 12. An exhibit by Janette Faulkner exploring racial stereotypes in commercial imagery. Free. Wednesday through Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Live Oak Park, 1275 Walnut St., Berkeley. (510) 644-6893 

California College of Arts and Crafts  

Free. Monday, Tuesday and Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Oliver Art Center, 5212 Broadway, Oakland. 594-3712 

!hey! Gallery 

Lori Now and Michael Pollice display recent paintings through Oct. 14. Reception Oct. 7, 7 - 9 p.m. with cellist Diane Pauson and vocalist Elisheva Herrera.  

Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. 4920-b, Telegraph, Oakland. Call Richelle Valenzuela at (510) 428-2349. 

Berkeley Historical Society  

“Berkeley’s Ethnic Heritage.” An overview of the rich cultural diversity of the city and the contribution of individuals and minority groups to it’s history and development.  

Thursday through Saturday, 1 - 4 p.m. Admission free.  

1931 Center St.  

Call 848-0181 

Lizabeth Oliveria Gallery 

Paintings by Timothy Buckwalter, Hilary Harkness, and Jerry W. King, Through Oct. 28. Artist reception Oct. 7, 7 - 9 p.m. 

Gallery hours: Tuesday - Saturday, 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.  

942 Clay St., Oakland. Call 625-1830 for more info.  

Readings 

Rhyme & Reason Poetry Series 

Berkeley Art Museum, 2621 Durant 

Second and fourth Sundays of each month. For open reading following featured readers, sign up at 2 p.m., readings begin at 2:30 p.m. 

Rhyme and Reason Poetry Series 

Berkeley Art Museum/Pacific Film Archive 

2621 Durant Ave. 

2nd and 4th Sundays of each month. 

Includes featured readers and open mike poetry. Free 

2 p.m. sign-up. Program runs from 2:30 - 4 p.m. 

Oct. 15: Professor Ron Loewinsohn (Morrison Room, UC Main Library) 

Oct. 29: Fernando Brito, Lara Dale 

234-0727 

Holloway Poetry Reading Series 

8p.m., Maude Fife Room, 315 Wheeler Hall 

For more information call 653-2439 

Oct. 10: Susan Stewart and Chris Chew, books include “The Hive” and “Yellow Stars”  

Nov. 1: John Yau and Garrett Caples, books include “Forbidden Entries” and “My Symptoms” 

Nov. 7: Marie Howe and Brian Glaser, “The Good Thief” and “What the Living Do” 

Eastwind Books of Berkeley 

2066 University Ave.  

548-2350 

Oct. 7, 7p.m., Kimi Kodani Hill presents with art slides from her grandfather. “Topaz Moon: Chiura Obata’s Art on Internment” 

Lunch Poems: A Noontime Poetry Reading Series 

Morrison Room, Doe Library 

UC Berkeley 

12:10 - 12:50 p.m.  

Call 642-0137 

Under the direction of Professor Robert Hass, this is a series of events on the first Thursday of each month. Free.  

Oct. 5: Elizabeth Alexander, Nov. 2: Goh Poh Seng  

Tours 

Lawrence Berkeley National  

Laboratory 

Scientists and engineers guide visitors through the research areas of the laboratory, demonstrating emerging technology and discussing the research’s current and potential applications. A Berkeley lab tour usually lasts two hours and includes visits to several research areas. Popular tour sites include the Advanced Light Source, The National Center for Electron Microscopy, the 88-Inch Cyclotron, The Advanced Lighting Laboratory, and The Human Genome Laboratory. Reservations required at least two weeks in advance of tour. 

Free. University of California, Berkeley. 

486-4387 

Bernard Maybeck Weekend 

Oct. 14 & 15 

Sponsored by the California Preservation Foundation celebrates the buildings of the renowned architect. Saturday features a slide lecture at Swedenborgian church with historian Gray Brechin and a private tour of the Palace of Fine Arts. Sunday will focus on Berkeley, where Maybeck built most of his homes and raised his family. The tour will include six private residences and the First Church of Christ, Scientist. The weekend will end with a reception at the Chick House in the Oakland hills.  

More info call California Preservation Foundation: 763-0972. 

Berkeley City Club Tours 

Guided tours through Berkeley’s City Club, a landmark building designed by architect Julia Morgan, designer of Hearst Castle. 

$2. The fourth Sunday of every month except December, between noon to 4 p.m.  

2315 Durant Ave., Berkeley. 

848-7800 

Golden Gate Live Steamers 

Small locomotives, meticulously scaled to size, run along a half mile of track in Tilden Regional Park. The small trains are owned and maintained by a non-profit group of railroad buffs who offer rides.  

Free. Trains run Sunday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Rides: Sunday, noon to 3 p.m., weather permitting. Grizzly Peak Boulevard and Lomas Cantadas Drive at the south end of Tilden Regional Park, Berkeley.  

486-0623  

Oakland Historic walking tours 

Runs through October.  

The tours cover downtown Oakland and its historic waterfront. All tours begin promptly at 10 a.m. and last between an hour and an hour and a half.  

Free. Call for reservations. Oakland. (510) 238-3234. 

University of California at Berkeley Botanical Garden 

The gardens have displays of exotic and native plants. 

Botanical Garden Tours, Saturday and Sunday, 1:30 p.m. Meet at the Tour Orientation Center for a free docent tour. $3 general; $2 seniors; $1 children; free on Thursday. Daily, 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Botanical Garden, Centennial Drive, behind Memorial Stadium, a mile below the Lawrence Hall of Science, Berkeley. (510) 643-2755 or www.mip.berkeley.edu/garden/ 

Berkeley Historical Society Walking Tours 

Oct. 15 - The 1923 North Berkeley Fire Line led by Phil Gale 

Oct. 22 - University Avenue Indian Business Community led by Kirpal & Neelum Khanna 

Nov. 5 - What’s Happening Downtown? led by Debbie Badhia 

More info call 848-0181 

Seven members of Berkeley’s “Bike the Bridge Coalition” were arrested and charged with felony conspiracy after they tried to bike across the Bay Bridge Monday morning in the middle of rush hour traffic. They were protesting a range of bike issues including Gov. Gray Davis’ veto of Senate Bill 1629, the “Good Roads Bill.” 

Sgt. Steve Dutra of the San Francisco division of the California Highway Patrol said that the bicyclists have been charged with conspiracy, fleeing, failure to yield and bicycling on a freeway. 

“They are being charged with conspiracy because this was an ongoing event,” Dutra said. “This was planned well in advance. They were trying to get as many people on the bridge to try to disrupt traffic.” 

Dutra said that about 8:50 a.m., a vehicle carrying the seven bicyclists dropped them off beyond the toll plaza and they began to bike west across the bridge. Two were stopped shortly afterward and taken to the Oakland city jail, two were diverted off the freeway at the Fremont Street ramp in San Francisco and three others were followed farther before they were stopped, promptly arrested and taken to the San Francisco city jail. 

“The ones that didn’t stop (in Oakland) have been additionally charged with failure to yield,” he said. 

Jason Meggs, spokesperson for the coalition, spoke to the Daily Planet from the San Francisco Jail. 

“We had no intention of blocking traffic and what we did didn’t hurt anyone” he said. “In fact, bicycles are traffic and everyday bicyclists are being blocked from travel even as we suffer for and subsidize single-occupancy motor vehicles. This is how we’ve expressed our outrage. The Bay Bridge should be open for bicycles; it’s better than most streets in San Francisco, the view is gorgeous and traffic went smoothly this morning. It went about 35 to 45 miles per hour.” 

Meggs said some of the bicyclists were tackled off of their bikes, and the police kept them in handcuffs for nearly four hours. 

Dutra said he was unaware of this because he was not on duty at the time of the arrests.  

Meggs said the ride was an emergency protest to Gov. Davis’ Sept. 29 veto of Senate Bill 1629, a bill that called for provisions for non-motorized traffic, such as the building of bike lanes, sidewalks and paths on all major highways in the state. 

The coalition is also protesting Davis’ veto of SB 1809, which would have allowed more trails to be built, as well as several other issues, including motorcar and oil dependency, the building of motorcar only structures such as the Bay Bridge and the discrimination against bicyclists and pedestrians by the police, motorists, government officials and city planners. 

Meggs said the last major bridge ride was Sept. 10, 1998. He said the CHP blocked the transbay terminal and Fremont off-ramps causing a major back-up, “in violation of their own law,” he said.  

Jesse Palmer, spokesperson for the Bike the Bridge coalition, said Meggs and another bicyclist were still in jail at 7 p.m. Monday. He believed that the others had been released.

Residents near Grove Street Park don’t want convicted drug offenders hanging out in their neighborhoods. So neighborhood activists went with Mayor Shirley Dean, Vice Mayor Maudelle Shirek and Councilmember Kriss Worthington to meet with the District Attorney. 

In response, Alameda County District Attorney Tom Orloff pledged he would issue more “stay away orders” to individuals charged with drug-related crimes around the south Berkeley park.  

Blaming liberal Berkeley judges, Orloff backed away from Dean’s request to prosecute “wobbler” laws to the fullest extent possible. “Wobblers” are charges which can be prosecuted as either a felony or a misdemeanor.  

Felonies carry sentences that can lead to five years in state prison, while a misdemeanor carries a one-year maximum sentence in a county facility. 

At last week’s meeting, during which stricter prosecution of domestic violence cases was also raised, the group expressed frustration with a host of enforcement issues in south Berkeley. Residents of the Oregon-Russell Street neighborhood believe a lack of prosecutorial toughness toward convicted drug dealers perpetuates a crime problem on their streets, Dean said. 

“They believe that a felony anywhere else is a misdemeanor on Oregon Street,” Dean said. 

In the last month, shootings on Russell Street and continued daily suspected drug activities prompted residents to call for an enhanced police presence in the area. The Berkeley police complied and overt drug dealing seems to have subsided. But residents worry that when police pull back, the problems will return. 

“There is concern that criminals charged with certain crimes related to drug dealing are not being charged to the highest manner. I asked that the DA look into charging “wobblers” as felonies, rather than misdemeanors. We want him to lean toward felonies,” Dean said.  

“Can we find ways to keep people involved in drug trafficking from coming back to the areas? We haven’t found that yet. We have seen problems in this area for over 30 years,” Dean said. 

John Adams, the branch chief of the Berkeley-Albany DA’s office, said that such “stay away orders” are a simple, effective means to curb drug dealing in certain areas. “Stay away orders are easy to enforce. You see a guy who’s not supposed to be in People’s Park for instance and you arrest him. That’s a slam dunk.”  

Charging people with felonies rather than misdemeanors, however, would do little to curb the drug dealing around Russell and Oregon streets, he said. 

“Most of the arrests for drug charges are already felonies,” he added. “The only wobbler for drug related crimes is possession of methamphetamines,” said Adams, mentioning that this is not a big percentage of drug-related arrests in Berkeley. 

The two neighborhood residents who attended the meeting, could not be reached for comment, but Adams and Dean said that the residents asked specifically about a “crack house” on Oregon Street that they claimed was the center of drug activities in their area. Residents also singled out individuals they felt were ringleaders of such activities, and asked the DA to target them for prosecution. 

“I ran a check on that guy right there, and there wasn’t a single drug-related offense,” Adams said. But he added that lack of evidence to prosecute the owners of the Oregon Street house or the individuals in the nearby park doesn’t mean such activities don’t exist. It means that drug dealing in Berkeley is more sophisticated than in neighboring cities, he said. 

“Berkeley is unique in that dealers here don’t sell except to their selected clientele. In Oakland, a person can just walk up the street and buy from a stranger. That makes it much more difficult to track activities here in Berkeley,” he said.  

In the meeting, the DA’s office recommended other means the city could pursue to lower crime in the neighborhood. Orloff cited an Oakland ordinance to impound cars involved in drug-related crimes. Adams also suggested “selling out the property from underneath” the suspects via “civic abatement” ordinances already in city books. 

“If citizens can show that the home is a ‘nuisance’ - anything that tends to affect the quality of life - they could begin a process of removing the people from the house,” he said. 

“The law is in the books, you just have to use it,” Adams added. 

City Attorney Manuela Albuquerque could not be reached for comment. 

Worthington, however, saw the meeting as much about specific solutions to the Grove Park issues as a means of expressing frustration with the way the District Attorney was running things at a local level. 

“We have community policing,” said Worthington, “and now we want community District Attorneying. We want the DA to reflect Berkeley values, and to take issues like domestic violence seriously.”  

“It wasn’t surprising that they blamed liberal judges, and a liberal City Council for Berkeley’s problems,” he added. 

Significantly, the DA did commit to a broader meeting, and Worthington said that the issues of domestic violence will be brought up then.  

Mayor Dean however, plans on taking the DA’s recommendation to meet with local judges first. 

“After that, we’ll go back to the table with the DA,” she said. 

The next meeting is not yet scheduled.

Forgive ninth-grader Craig Long for having to have his mother bring him up to speed on the academic achievement gap issue. He stays pretty busy in his advanced placement classes, especially geometry, he said. 

Long, fellow freshman Bradley Johnson, sophomores Nathan Simmons and Mercedes Ruiz, and junior Sarah Rivera are making a trip to Cleveland Heights, Ohio, for a three-day national conference beginning Oct. 4 on the “academic achievement gap,” a conference where minority students from 15 high schools across the nation will look at why minority students – even those coming from affluent homes – do less well academically than their white and Asian counterparts. 

The five students were chosen for their strong GPA’s, their high test scores, their participation in numerous extracurricular activities and because they are minorities.  

These high achievers make up a minority within the minority, because they have achieved a high level of academic success, which others have not. 

The five students will represent Berkeley High School at the national conference in Ohio held by The National Task Force on Minority Achievement. 

As part of their participation, the students will shadow other high achieving, black and Latino students at Cleveland Heights High School and Shaker Heights High School in Cleveland. 

But the most important information is what the students already know: How they have achieved academic success while many of their peers have not. They will be asked to share that information. 

“The focus is supporting them and creating a culture of high achievement,” said School Board Director Shirley Issel. “Then they can teach us what they’ve learned.” 

The students will give a report to the school board at its Oct. 14 meeting, and share their experiences with their peers and with a panel of experts at the conference. 

Berkeley Unified is one of 15 districts that participates in the National Task Force on Minority Achievement, a task force that is studying the chronic shortage of African–American, Latino and Native American students who achieve at high levels academically. 

“It doesn’t make sense, common sense,” Issel said. “(The participating communities) have a very highly-educated, wealthy minority community, and the students are still underperforming their Asian and Caucasian counterparts.” 

There is a sharp divide between the wealth of the Caucasian community and Berkeley’s black and Latino communities which may be less substantial in the other communities represented at the conference, including Chapel Hill, N.C., Amherst, Mass., Evanston, Ill., and Madison, Wisc. 

At the conference the students will be looking at the premise in Christopher Jencks’ and Meredith Phillips’ book “The Black-White Test Score Gap,” which says that traditional explanations, such as racial segregation and inadequate funding of black schools, have not stood the test of time.  

They say that the average black student now attends a school in a district that spends as much per pupil as the average white child’s district, and class sizes in predominately black schools are the same in predominately white schools.  

But predominately white schools seem to attract more skilled teachers than black schools, they say, and the benefit that black students who attend predominately white schools receive from having better teachers seems to be “offset by the social costs (i.e., racism) of being in an overwhelmingly white environment,” they say. 

Once a taboo subject, discussion of the racial gap in test scores has gained steam among many black and Latino academics, like Dr. Ronald Ferguson – an African-American researcher at Harvard and keynote speaker at the conference – who says that teachers’ low expectations for black and Latino students hinder their performance. 

Researchers like Ferguson are trying to find places and cases – like Johnson, Long, Ruiz, Rivera, and Simmons – that buck the trend, and to learn from their success. 

Ferguson and others have written a comprehensive survey that the BUSD will administer to students in the 8th, 9th and 11th grade in hopes of identifying some of the causes for the gap. 

A teenage girl was attacked and raped Friday about 7:30 p.m. near the Ohlone park baseball diamond at Delaware and Sacramento streets. 

Berkeley Police Lt. Russell Lopes said the girl was walking to the north Berkeley BART station when she was attacked by three boys. One of them then allegedly raped her. 

The rape suspect is described as an Asian male, 16 to 18 years-old, 5 feet 7 inches wearing a red baseball cap, a white T-shirt, and blue jeans. Lopes said that the suspect’s hair was described as shaved on the sides in a “fade,” and he had a bad case of acne. 

The other two suspects were described as Asian males between 16 and 18 years old. There are no suspects.

On a chilly Sunday night, Nigerians of all ages came out to the Independence Day celebration in El Cerrito to watch ancestral dances, eat home-cooked spicy soup, and strut their stuff in the colorful traditional costumes of their nation in transition. 

“This is the first time in a long time that we are celebrating self-rule and nationhood after a full year of civil democracy,” said Chike Nwoffiah, who has been living in California 13 years.  

“Nigerians across the world are reflecting on how rough it’s been, and hoping that on Independence Day next year we will still have a true democracy.” 

More than 10,000 Nigerian immigrants live in the Bay Area, according to Nwoffiah, and a large number live in Berkeley and Oakland. In the past two years, they have cautiously watched their homeland transition from a devastating 15-year military dictatorship under Sani Abacha to current President Olusegun Obasanjo’s fledgling democracy. 

“You all know the old adage: He who is a fool at 40 is a fool forever,” Nwoffiah warned the crowd, and many answered back with a hearty “amen.” Nigeria is celebrating 40 years of independence. 

But people said that in spite of Nigeria’s uncertain future, they have been partying all week. The evening started out with the national anthem set to a slow rhythm on skin-covered drums, and escalated into a series of jubilant dances from Nigeria and other African nations.  

It was not long before many in the crowd were on their feet and throwing dollar bills on the sweating dancers to show their appreciation. 

Sylvester Uadiale said he and his wife came from San Leandro with their three children, all who were born in the United States, to educate them about Nigerian ways.” 

I want my kids to see how we behave so that when they go back home to visit they will know what the culture is about,” Uadiale said.” That way they will grow up and be able to make sense out of their history in this country and over there.” 

Wearing an intricately patterned headscarf and sarong, Eromomen Esoimeme, 10, said that she’s been dancing as long as she can remember. 

“It’s fun and it’s my heritage,” she said before performing with Masquerade, an Oakland-based dance troupe.  

“If someone talks bad about you and you’re thinking about your heritage, nothing can hurt you. Anyway, they’re probably just jealous because their parents don’t teach them about their own history.” 

The audience cheered enthusiastically as dancers wearing face masks and with bells on their fingers invoked the spirits of their ancestors, all against a painted backdrop of clay huts and  

dense foliage. 

James Esoimeme helped organize the event with Friday and Beverly Jumbo, who teach Nigerian culture and dance at Berkeley Youth Alternatives and Malcolm X Elementary school. 

He said Nigerians in the Bay Area share a strong commitment to preserving their culture and fostering unity among the more than 250 different ethnic groups in Nigeria. 

“We are all here tonight to thank God that we are free at last from our oppressors – it’s taken us a long time, but if all Africans can work together and plan our future together, we’ll stay strong.” 

A few non-Nigerians also came out to join in the festivities. Pauline Vanderpalm of Oakland, said that she came out to watch the celebration because she loves Nigerian music and is intrigued by the culture. 

“It is such a mysterious country,” she said. 

Yvette Hochberg, who is visiting Berkeley after living and working in development in Senegal for the past five years, said that she has participated in many Independence Day events-both here and in Africa.  

“These people have a lot of pride, aside from all the problems in Nigeria,” she said.  

“Incredible people have come out of there.” 

The Nigerian immigrant community in the Bay Area, which has established networks of business professionals, scientists, artists and teachers, is the fruit of what President Obasanjo referred to as his country’s “brain drain” in a televised Independence Day speech. 

“We have forged amazing unity abroad,” Nwoffiah said as he watched Senegalese dancers shake the floorboards during an enactment of a harvest ritual. “The Bay Area has attracted Nigerians with an extremely high level of intellectual resources.” 

Hochberg said that the Nigerians she knows have come to Berkeley because of the area’s open embrace of different cultures. “It is a lot more integrated here than in other places,” she said, as she sat next to another American woman wearing a brightly-colored African robe. 

For most immigrants who have re-settled here, community celebrations are a way of maintaining a close connection to  

their homeland, Nwoffiah said. 

“The concept of exile doesn’t exist in our psyche. We Nigerians may have fled persecution, but wherever we go there is some fundamental thing inside us that says ‘I will return.’” 

Those interested in learning more about West African traditional music and dance can contact Beverly Jumbo at Performing Arts Media, 568-7909.

Pacific Bell Park isn’t the only stadium in town with a Bay view.  

From the third tier bleachers in the outfield of the Network Associates Coliseum, Oakland A’s fans can marvel at the evening sun glinting off the water and the shadowy lines of the San Mateo Bridge in the distance.  

The only thing not visible from up here is the outfield.  

But that matters little to fans who, for the bargain price of $10, gained admittance to the second playoff game of their beloved hometown baseball team.  

Overshadowed by the hype around San Francisco’s new stadium and the pre-season posturing of the Raiders, the A’s have quietly helped baseball remain a sport for the masses.  

Carol Lind, a 78-year-old Lafayette resident, has been coming to A’s games since 1969.  

“Why not?” she said. “Just get on BART and come early.”  

Back when she first started coming, a seat cost $2 or $3 and BART wasn’t yet running.  

Higher up from where Lind sits, a group of men pound out an inspiring rhythm on two drums.  

Little boys in shiny A’s jackets shake their booties to the beat.  

Although their enthusiasm wanes with the A’s fortunes, the drummers remain optimistic. “Of course they are going to win,” said Luiz Ruiz, a backhoe operator from Oakland. 

“I bet $20 on them.” 

The only people not welcome up here are fans of the opponent du jour – the New York Yankees. With so many empty seats, they’re easy to spot.  

“It looks like we gotta big house,” Deedee Baldwin screamed at Yankees fans cheering for their team’s three-run inning, “but we ain’t got room for you here.”  

Baldwin is a Giants fan, normally, but can’t get tickets across the Bay. So she came to root against the Yankees more than anything else. 

“I’m tired of them winning,” she said.  

At $10 a pop, A’s playoff seats are the best deal going.  

They were still on sale for Wednesday night’s game well after the first pitch had been thrown, despite an official sell-out crowd.  

On the other hand, bargain basement tickets to see the Giants face off with the Mets might have been available for $15, but not once the scalpers bought them up.  

During regular season the A’s charge $5 each for the stadium’s seemingly unlimited bleacher seats, compared with $8.50 for a Giants game.  

By comparison, the a bleacher seat at a Raider game runs a cool $41.  

But there is a catch to the cheap A’s tickets: draft beer costs $7 a glass during the playoffs, and for that price, you don’t even get a commemora

LIVERMORE – Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory officials got some good news from Congress this week as funding for the lab’s troubled superlaser was boosted to offset cost overruns. 

The agreement to increase funding for the National Ignition Facility next year to $199 million came despite opposition from several members of Congress who are angry over delays, technical troubles and poor management. 

The superlaser is designed to focus 192 beams on a single tiny target in the hope of igniting fusion, allowing scientists to experiment with the forces in a thermonuclear explosion. It is a key part of the effort to maintain the aging nuclear stockpile. 

A federal audit found the project was more than $1 billion over budget, faced long delays and might never work. 

However, an independent technical review panel found last month that the powerful laser should run into no technical show-stoppers under a revised plan. The $2 billion laser is expected to be completed by 2008. 

The newly appropriated money is part of an energy and water bill that awaits President Clinton’s approval. 

Part of the money, $69 million, will be withheld until the Energy Department shows Congress that the program can be completed on time and on budget. At least $25 million is to be diverted from other nuclear weapons work at the lab. 

Meanwhile, Energy Department officials on Friday cited Lawrence Livermore for nuclear safety violations. 

The problems didn’t involve release of radiation, officials said. They centered on workers’ failure to follow the lab’s “authorization basis,” a system of documents, work requirements and planning processes designed to ensure nuclear safety.

The capoeiristas flipped and twisted their way into downtown Thursday as part of the Berkeley downtown merchant-supported Fall for the Arts series. 

Known as Mestre Acordeon, Ubirajara Almeida, who has been teaching martial art/dance for over 40 years, led his company through several different jogo, or games, of capoeira before a dazzled crowd at the downtown BART station at noon.  

Almeida played the musical bow, or berimbau. The berimbau, which is the central symbol and instrument of capoeira, along with the pandeiro (tambourine), the atabaque (single-headed standing drum), and the agog (double bell) provide the accompaniment for the dancing. 

According to the Capoeira Arts Cafe Web site, www.capoeiraarts.com, the dancers, usually in a pair, exchange movements of attack and defense as if fighting and they both attempt to control the dance space by confusing their opponents.  

Mestra Sue Ellen Einarsen, who has been doing capoeira for 17 years, said Thursday that nobody knows the exact origins of capoeira. It was developed by descendants of African slaves brought to Brazil by Portugal, Einarsen said, adding that the singing that accompanies the music is usually about Brazilian life.  

Almeida said capoeira has taught him tolerance of himself and others, respecting his own weaknesses as well as his strengths. 

The Capoeira Arts Cafe is located at 2026 Addison and has class every weekday.

SAN FRANCISCO — Dancers and artists pranced on the steps of City Hall on Wednesday to a driving drum tattoo, protesting rising rents and dwindling rehearsal space and demanding more from the city they’ve helped define. 

“Wake up San Francisco. No Art No Soul” read one protest sign as stiltwalkers teetered above a crowd of more than 3,200 performers, vowing unrest until city leaders come up with a concert plan to address their concerns. 

“The city need us to keep it a vital city,” said Jo Kreiter, an acrobat who shimmied up 15-foot-tall pole for a slow, bird’s  

eye ballet of twists and turns. “They need us to thrive here. Not just scrap out a living.” 

The musical call-to-arms came in the midst of a political tug-of-war over spiraling office space rents, driven up by the dot-com companies that are creeping into nearly every nook in the city. 

Performance studios in San Francisco pay on average $12.70 per square foot. But the market rate for the same space is $55 per square foot. 

After the rally, the Board of Supervisors’ Finance and Labor Committee began meeting inside City Hall to discuss the displacement of artists and nonprofit groups. 

One of the issues up for discussion was Mayor Willie Brown’s plans to offer $7 million in city grants to build space for performers and artists. The proposal, announced Tuesday, includes the development of a waterfront location for creative types some 150,000 square feet of office space for non-profits. 

Many of the artists losing their regular haunts are musicians from Downtown Rehearsal, the city’s largest rehearsal space, closed late last month in preparation for the building’s reported $14 million sale. 

The musicians, which include Chris Isaak, have taken the $750,000 offered by the building’s owner to find a new home. 

But they didn’t go quietly either, as dozens of bands throughout the city plugged in their amplifiers and played for about an hour. 

At Wednesday’s protest, Krissy Keefer grabbed a microphone and told the crowd that the show of unity would send a message that politicians could not ignore. 

Keefer said she wanted the city to buy buildings to house nonprofits, help artists pay for maintenance and the projects that emerge from the space. 

“We might be rabble rousers, but we are not isolated,” Keefer said. 

EMERYVILLE — The beleaguered Emery Unified School District has accepted the resignation of Superintendent J.L. Handy after alleging that he charged $68,000 in “questionable” expenses to official accounts. 

At a Monday night meeting, the board accepted Handy’s resignation by voice vote.  

It then approved the appointment of Laura Alvarenga as an interim superintendent. 

Alvarenga has worked as a high-level administrator at the Alameda County Office of Education, which took partial control of the financially distressed district as a condition of a $650,000 loan this summer. 

A district review of Handy’s reimbursements and credit card statements revealed $68,000 of the $132,000 he claimed either didn’t have receipts or were for items including personal meals, cellular phone calls as well as pet supplies and “numerous car washes.” 

The investigation dated to Handy’s 1993 arrival in Emeryville.  

He was fired as superintendent of Compton schools after similar charges of funds mismanagement arose in 1992. 

Councilmember Kriss Worthington walked with other breast cancer prevention advocates from Old City Hall to the City Clerk’s office Monday to place a resolution on cancer prevention on the Oct. 10 City Council agenda. Claiming that current breast cancer programs target early detection, not prevention, advocates want the city to “reduce or eliminate its toxic practices by enacting changes such s banning the use of PVC plastic in new construction an working with public facilities and institutions to switch to safer alternative products and methods.”