Opinion

All good Berkeleyans know that police harass innocent minority people in places like Orange County or Texas, right? It doesn’t happen here in Northern California—well, maybe in Oakland or even San Francisco, but certainly not in Berkeley, right? We have a Police Review Commission. Our cops all went to college. They know better. Uh-huh. -more-

Next week’s Berkeley City Council agenda contains a proposal from City Manager Phil Kamlarz, generated at the City Council’s behest, for cost-cutting by cutting down on a large percentage of Berkeley’s commission meetings. For example, he recommends that the Commission on Disabilities should meet only quarterly, instead of monthly, and that the Public Works Commission should meet only every other month. If adopted, this proposal would cause a dramatic change in Berkeley’s long and proud tradition of citizen participation in government. -more-