Ching “Christina” Sun doesn’t consider herself a developer: she would rather do without the label’s implied power, without the antipathy it often evokes. -more-
It’s a deadly disease that could be heading to California, and it isn’t SARS. -more-
The following letters were exchanged between Aran Kaufer and Planet Executive Editor Becky O’Malley: -more-
The Romare Bearden mural that has served for nearly 30 years as a backdrop to the drama of Berkeley city politics is going on a two-year tour with the National Gallery of Art as the centerpiece of a Bearden retrospective. -more-
For anyone living in Berkeley in the fifties and sixties, the “ticky tackys” of that time today seem luxurious apartments when compared to the cramped, high-density living quarters built by developers of late. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — In barrios, inner-city communities and immigrant enclaves nationwide, ethnic media reporters cover stories often ignored by mainstream newsrooms. Now, with a media deregulation plan being formulated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), critics fear that ethnic media’s civic role may be undermined. -more-
Berkeley’s Mayor Tom Bates needs to brush up on the history of the city of Berkeley’s and community members’ relationship with Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL) as well as the democratic process known as Roberts’ Rules of Order. -more-
In one universe, George W. Bush is soaring from victory to victory. His wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, waged with solid domestic support, each ousted unsavory regimes at a cost of relatively few U.S. casualties. He has prodded a historic series of tax cuts through Congress. -more-
America’s college graduates are entering the worst job market in 20 years. With few good jobs on the horizon, many graduating seniors think it is time to get an advanced degree. They should think again. -more-
I took a flight into Kennedy International Airport, got myself through security, grabbed a shuttle into Manhattan, made my way to the Port Authority, bought a bus ticket for Atlantic City and called my parents in New Jersey from a pay phone to say I’d be arriving in three hours. -more-
The following is an excerpt of an article on the 10-year anniversary of Berkeley’s first municipal elections, 125 years ago this month, published in the Berkeley Advocate on April 18, 1888: -more-
The short version of this review is that the Shotgun Players’ new production, Dylan Thomas’ “Under Milk Wood,” is terrific. If you have any interest or response or even curiosity about the famed Welch poet, his poetry or maybe just 20th-century literature, go get a ticket. -more-
The following is adapted from a Clemens Lecture presented in April for the Mark Twain House in Hartford, Conn. -more-
Two documentary filmmakers held an impromptu showing of their award-winning film, “Bums’ Paradise” Sunday night in a Berkeley pub courtyard after the East Bay Regional Park Police shut down an unofficial showing at the Albany Landfill the previous night. -more-
The Downtown Berkeley Association (DBA) presents Summer Noon Concerts 2003, a unique series of nine free concerts, Thursdays at noon in June & July, beginning June 5th. From Rhythm & Blues to Brazilian capoeira, these concerts at the Downtown Berkeley BART Plaza (Shattuck Ave. at Center St.) are a showcase of the culturally rich performing arts in Berkeley. This outdoor summer celebration of Berkeley-based musicians & dancers is just a small sampling of the performing arts happening nightly in clubs, cafes, schools, theaters and concert halls in Downtown Berkeley. -more-
In the latest departure of high-level administrators from Berkeley’s school system, Berkeley High School co-principals Mary Ann Valles and Laura Leventer announced Wednesday that they would resign at the end of the school year. -more-
Marcia Donahue’s Our Own Stuff Gallery Garden exists on the line between passion and obsession. Even for Berkeley, land of the boldly and proudly iconoclastic, artists Donahue and her life-partner Mark Bulwinkle have created something rare, a garden and gallery that smashes all conceptions of what gardens or galleries should be. -more-
BART is raising its rates, again. -more-
The following letter was addressed to Mayor Tom Bates: -more-
Emeryville’s 12-year economic expansion has exacerbated its housing problems and displaced many of its low-income residents, according to a new study by the East Bay Alliance for Sustainable Economy (EBASE). -more-
As an environmentalist and a neighborhood resident for over 20 years, I support the smart-growth project proposed to replace the strip mall at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way and University Ave. -more-
Several nonprofits protested the city manager’s proposed budget cuts Tuesday night, citing crippling reductions in services and potential program cessation. Among them was the Family Violence Law Center, whose executive director forecast that the 10 percent cut could contribute to the loss of two vital positions. -more-
We were walking in opposite directions on University Avenue in mid-April, and we started grinning as soon as we saw each other, part of Berkeley’s family of mutual notoriety. -more-
The body that was discovered between two houses in South Berkeley has been identified by police as that of 20-year-old Mario Deshawn Mills. -more-
Along with his label of being the Teflon Don (that is, a politician who manages to get out of public view on an issue just before things fall apart and folks start looking around for a politician to blame), California state Sen. Don Perata also has a reputation for eating his young (that is, gathering an impressive group of young and loyal up-and-coming politicians around him, getting their hopes up about his support for their political futures, and then turning and rolling over them like a tank if their political futures happen to get in the way of his). -more-
Catholic priest William O’Donnell recently returned to Berkeley after six months in federal prison. -more-
After 23 years, the Center For the Education of the Infant Deaf (CEID) will finally have a space of its own. -more-
Some people are just easy to talk to. -more-
Log federal forests in order to save them? That’s what the House voted to do Tuesday. Invoking the ghost of George Orwell, the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 encourages federal land managers to “conduct hazardous fuel reduction projects.” In a 256 to 170 tally, the House would allow what environmentalists say will lead to logging 190 million acres the Bush administration claims are “at risk” of forest fire. It also limits citizen participation and authorizes another $125 million in industry subsidies. The Senate plans to take it up in summer. -more-
The Downtown Berkeley Association (DBA) presents Summer Noon Concerts 2003, a unique series of nine free concerts, Thursdays at noon in June & July, beginning June 5th. From Rhythm & Blues to Brazilian capoeira, these concerts at the Downtown Berkeley BART Plaza (Shattuck Ave. at Center St.) are a showcase of the culturally rich performing arts in Berkeley. This outdoor summer celebration of Berkeley-based musicians & dancers is just a small sampling of the performing arts happening nightly in clubs, cafes, schools, theaters and concert halls in Downtown Berkeley. -more-
It was the kind of mail I usually throw away without opening: a form letter with the return address “Yale Class of 1968 Thirty-Fifth Reunion.” No thanks, I thought. “Bright College Years” (“for God, for country and for Yale”) hasn’t been my song for a long time. -more-
In a bid to expand Berkeley’s rental housing inspection program, the City Council on Tuesday narrowly approved a controversial new fee for rental property owners. The council vote came after a heated public hearing during which property owners said they are already overburdened with taxes and fees. They called the program flawed and the new fee unfair. -more-
