The Week

Richard Brenneman: Friends and family of slain Berkeley High School sophomore Alberto Salvador Villareal-Morales gathered outside St. Joseph the Worker Church after Friday’s funeral mass..
Richard Brenneman: Friends and family of slain Berkeley High School sophomore Alberto Salvador Villareal-Morales gathered outside St. Joseph the Worker Church after Friday’s funeral mass..
 

News

Berkeley Mourns Slain Teenager By RIO BAUCE Special to the Planet

Tuesday January 24, 2006

Hundreds of people gathered at St. Joseph the Worker Church on Friday to mourn the death of 15-year-old Berkeley High School sophomore Alberto Salvador Villareal-Morales. -more-


Legal Setback for Marin Ave. Change By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Tuesday January 24, 2006

A Hayward judge has handed down a mixed victory for Raymond Chamberlin’s lawsuit challenging the reduction of traffic lanes on Marin Avenue. -more-


KPFA Chief Steps Down After Troubled Reign By SUZANNE LA BARRE Special to the Planet

Tuesday January 24, 2006

Amid a flurry of controversy, KPFA-FM General Manager Roy Campanella II has stepped down. -more-


Lake Merritt Tree Supporters Unmoved By Public Works Tour By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

Tuesday January 24, 2006

If an Oakland Public Works Agency guided walk around the south end of Lake Merritt was designed to dampen criticism of the city’s plan to remove more than 200 trees, it didn’t exactly work. -more-


AC Transit Plan to Delete Stops Draws Riders’ Ire By DANIEL DeBOLT Special to the Planet

Tuesday January 24, 2006

AC transit’s plan to “delete” 44 bus stops in Berkeley, Alameda and Oakland next week to provide faster and more reliable service has angered many riders who depend on those stops. -more-


Peralta District Officials Delay Release of Report By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

Tuesday January 24, 2006

A much-anticipated Board of Trustees presentation on the Peralta Community College District International and Global Education Department has been postponed. -more-


Attorney General Signs Off on Point Molate Settlement By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Tuesday January 24, 2006

With the approval of state Attorney General Bill Lockyer, the lawsuit filed by environmentalists over the sale of Richmond’s Point Molate is history. -more-


Liquor Store Appeal, Brower Plaza Lead City Council Agenda By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Tuesday January 24, 2006

Berkeley city councilmembers will hear an appeal Tuesday by the owner of Dwight Way Liquor, who wants to overturn a Zoning Adjustments Board (ZAB) decision declaring the store a public nuisance. -more-


Density Bonuses, Creeks and Liquor Store on Land Use Meeting Agendas By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Tuesday January 24, 2006

Density bonuses, West Berkeley zoning changes and creeks are among the land use issues city officials will be considering this week. -more-


Golden Gate Fields Mall Opponents Hold Rally By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Tuesday January 24, 2006

Opponents of a plan to build a shopping mall in a Golden Gate Fields parking lot are holding a rally Thursday in the form of an old-fashioned ice cream social. -more-


Immigration Agents Hunt for 500,000 Absconders From the Filipino Reporter

Tuesday January 24, 2006

In an unprecedented crackdown on more than 500,000 absconders—illegal immigrants who have not followed deportation orders—U.S. authorities this year are nearly tripling the number of federal officers assigned to round up such fugitives. -more-


Police Blotter By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Tuesday January 24, 2006

Brandisher boogies -more-


News Analysis: Evo Morales and the Roots of Revolution By ROGER BURBACH Pacific News Service

Tuesday January 24, 2006

COCHABAMBA, Bolivia—The inauguration of Evo Morales as the first president of Bolivia of indigenous origins marks a watershed in the history of the Americas. The “caras,” whites and mestizos who have dominated Bolivia for centuries, are being replaced by an Indian who represents the country’s true majority. -more-


Neighbors Oppose Ashby BART Project By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Friday January 20, 2006

Nearly 400 neighbors of Ashby BART packed the South Berkeley Senior Center Tuesday night to voice their concerns about the transit village project proposed for the station’s western parking lot. -more-


Panel: What Makes a Great Downtown? By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Friday January 20, 2006

What makes a great downtown? -more-


Housing Authority Director Resigns Under Cloud of Suspicion By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

Friday January 20, 2006

The surprise resignation of the manager of the Berkeley Housing Authority has left City Councilmembers puzzled and Housing Department officials scrambling to find a replacement by the end of the month. -more-


Regents Pass Employee Compensation Reform By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

Friday January 20, 2006

A month after announcing initial plans to regain public confidence over its handling of employee compensation, the University of California Board of Regents is considering several proposals to tighten controls over salaries of high-paid university officials and professors. -more-


City, Kennedy Lawyers Discuss Gaia Controversy By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Friday January 20, 2006

Attorneys for the city and developer Patrick Kennedy are meeting today (Friday) to reach what Kennedy hopes will be a final settlement on the use of the Gaia Cultural Center. -more-


City Attorney Narrowly Avoids State Supreme Court’s Wrath By MIKE McKEE San Francisco Recorder

Friday January 20, 2006

Berkeley City Attorney Manuela Albuquerque walked a dangerous line during oral arguments before the California Supreme Court in San Francisco a week ago—and probably didn’t even realize it. -more-


Council Rings in New Year With Unfinished BusinessBy SUZANNE LA BARRE Special to the Planet

Friday January 20, 2006

Three news items unresolved in 2005—outdoor dog care, cell phone tower radiation and a controversial homebuilding amendment—dominated discussion at the first Berkeley City Council meeting of the new year on Tuesday. -more-


Defeating Alito with Cookies and Milk

Friday January 20, 2006

Photo by Stephan Babuljak -more-


Correction

Friday January 20, 2006

The Daily Planet incorrectly reported that a meeting that will be held Monday evening focused on the Ashby BART transit village proposal. The meeting will focus on the Downtown Berkeley BART station. -more-


Elena Fernández Herr 1920-2006 By Richard Herr

Friday January 20, 2006

Elena Fernández Herr died in her apartment in Paris, France on Sunday Jan. 15. She was born in Madrid, Spain on Aug. 14, 1920, the daughter of a jewelry appraiser. Her primary and secondary education was at the liberal Instituto Escuela of Madrid, which moved with its students to Barcelona during the Spanish Civil War. -more-


Police Blotter By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Friday January 20, 2006

Car slasher -more-


Column: Dispatches From The Edge: Planning the Next War: White House Targets Iran By Conn Hallinan

Friday January 20, 2006

Iran has long been a target of the Bush administration’s rhetorical ire. The president called it “the world’s primary state sponsor of terrorism,” Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice characterized it as “something to be loathed.” But with the U.S. military under siege in Iraq, and polls running heavily against the Iraq war, it seemed just bluster and so much talk. -more-


Column: UnderCurrents: Punishing Politicians for Doing the Right Thing By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

Friday January 20, 2006

Last week’s column ended saying that Oakland needs some straight talk and some serious, adult conversation on this recent explosion of violence in our city, where it’s coming from, and where it may be leading. -more-


Editorial Cartoon By JUSTIN DEFREITAS

Friday January 20, 2006

To view Justin DeFreitas’ latest editorial cartoon, please visit -more-


Letters to the Editor

Friday January 20, 2006

RENT CONTROL -more-


Commentary: Two Halves Needed for a Whole Downtown By ALAN TOBEY

Friday January 20, 2006

Thanks to the city’s very helpful online NewsScan service, we recently saw two different visions of what makes for a successful downtown—and neither of them goes far enough. It’s instructive to figure out why. -more-


Commentary Parsing the Derby Street Proposals By MARK McDONALD

Friday January 20, 2006

I would like to help clarify the two competing plans on what type of sports field should be developed at the Derby Street field. One is labeled the Multi–Use—Don’t Close Derby Street plan. The other is the Regulation Baseball Ballfield—Close Derby Street plan. -more-


Commentary Exit Exam is Misguided Educational Policy By KEN STANTON

Friday January 20, 2006

Requiring students to pass the California High School Exit Examination in order to qualify for a high school diploma is a misguided educational policy. In his Jan. 6 letter to the state Board of Education, California Superintendent of Schools Jack O’Connell said, “Some schools pushed each and every student to succeed while others, wallowing in the status quo of low standards, handed out diplomas to any student who simply put in seat time.” According to O’Connell, the goal of requiring seniors to pass the exit exam is to “hold every school in California accountable for improving student achievement...” -more-


Commentary: Jackson, King and the Business of Black Leadership By EARL OFARI HUTCHINSON Pacific News Service

Friday January 20, 2006

Jesse Jackson is peeved that Martin Luther King Jr.’s chronicler, Taylor Branch, revealed that King regarded Jackson as an egoist and opportunist. Branch made the charge in At Canaan’s Edge: America in the King Years, 1965-1968. He claimed that after a stormy meeting in Memphis shortly before his assassination, Dr. King shouted at Jackson that he wanted to carve out his own niche in society and was only interested in doing his own thing. -more-


China, Taiwan Crack Down on Korean Soap Operas By EUGENIA CHIEN Pacific News Service

Friday January 20, 2006

In the cramped space of AsiaStar Fantasy, a video store that specializes in Chinese cinema in a predominantly Chinese neighborhood, DVDs of flashy Korean soap operas like “Jewel in the Palace” and “Greatest Hits of Korean Drama” have been edging their way in. -more-


Correction

Friday January 20, 2006

The Pacific News Service article, “Arab Analysts Give Nod to Favored Oscar Contenders,” published in the Jan. 17 Daily Planet, stated that the film Munich had been banned in Israel. The film has not been banned there. Pacific News Service regrets the error. › -more-


Barn Owls in Berkeley? Learn How to Keep Them Here By JOE EATON Special to the Planet

Friday January 20, 2006

Barn owls are more common in urban areas, including Berkeley, than you might think. Most of the time they’re just ghostly apparitions in the night. But on Jan. 28, you can meet one of these nocturnal hunters face to face at a fundraiser for the Hungry Owl Project (HOP), sponsored by Keep Barn Owls in Berkeley, a recently launched owl-advocacy group. -more-


About the House: Yes, You Really Can Learn To Do It Yourself By MATT CANTOR

Friday January 20, 2006

I have known quite a few handymen and even a couple of handywomen over the years and there’s nothing especially distinctive about them as a group. Perhaps there is one thing and it might be worth taking note of. Each of them is willing to do something they’ve never done before…every day. -more-


Garden Variety No Need to Rush Those Gardening Decisions By RON SULLIVAN

Friday January 20, 2006

You’ve found it! You’ve signed on the line, committed a scary amount of money and time, got your own piece of ground, a roof of your own over your own head, no landlord to answer to and the freedom to garden as you please. Congratulations! -more-


Opinion

Editorials

Editorial: Speaking Truth, Getting Power By BECKY O'MALLEY

Tuesday January 24, 2006

Bernie Sanders has been in town this week, and he’s, to coin a phrase, a breath of fresh air. This is a man who seems never to hesitate to say and do exactly what he thinks is right, and it’s only been good for him. He was once the mayor of Burlington, Vermont, and for years he’s been the sole member of the U.S. House of Representatives from that small state. His biggest claim to fame is that he’s an independent, not a Democrat, in a state where Democrats and Republicans have traded off in political jobs most of the time. Now he’s running to replace retiring independent (formerly Republican) Senator James Jefferds, against someone he describes as “the richest person in Vermont,” a real Republican candidate who’s expected to spend as much as he wants of his own considerable fortune to beat Bernie. The Sanders camp thinks that they can hold their own, in a state where only about 600,000 souls live with three or four hundred thousand voting, for about $5 million. That’s a big number, but nothing like as big as expenditures in more populous states like California, where the war chest for a senate race is more like $15 million. So Bernie is touring the country unabashedly trying to raise what he needs to win, and judging by the enthusiasm with which he was received at the Berkeley function I attended, he’s well on his way. Turns out a lot of people still admire a person who speaks his mind. -more-


Editorial: Give Purple a Chance in Berkeley By BECKY O'MALLEY

Friday January 20, 2006

Every year about this time I start feeling my California confusion. Though I’ve lived here for most of my life, my imprinting on the proper rhythm of the seasons came in the years I spent as a child and again as a young adult in the East and Midwest, where January is cold and the trees are bare. But even though the holiday wreath of bay leaves on our front door is still fresh and green, the spring bulbs next to the door are coming up fast, and the pear tree next door is already covered with white blossoms. Spring is here already, though this year, with a long warm fall, winter lasted less than a month. -more-


Public Comment

Letters to the Editor

Tuesday January 24, 2006

CORRECTION -more-


Editorial Cartoon By JUSTIN DEFREITAS

Tuesday January 24, 2006

To view Justin DeFreitas’ latest editorial cartoon, please visit -more-


Commentary: Pension Fund Problems Behind Berkeley Honda Dispute By JIM DOTEN

Tuesday January 24, 2006

First of all, I want to say that despite all the turmoil that has occurred since I sold my Honda dealership, I have been pleased at so many positive references to how Jim Doten Honda was viewed by the Berkeley community. That is very important to me. I want to assure all the citizens of Berkeley that I sold the franchise to a group in whom I have the utmost confidence. I believe that they are committed to being good corporate citizens and have the talent, dedication and wherewithal to grow the business to new levels, providing many more jobs and sales tax revenues to the community that I have served for 31 years. -more-


Commentary: Cultural Space Not for Private Parties By ANNA DE LEON

Tuesday January 24, 2006

Thank you for this community forum to discuss issues that affect the whole community. I feel compelled to respond to the letter written by Gloria Atherstone, owner of Glass Onion Catering Company, also the tenant who rents the performance space and mezzanine at the Gaia Building. She signs her letter as Gaia Arts Management, Inc. She asserts that the private party-turned-melee on Jan. 7 was “not facilitated in any way by Glass Onion Catering, Gaia Arts Management or Panoramic Interests.” The party was held in a building owned by Panoramic Interests, in a space rented and managed by Ms. Atherstone. Yet no one takes responsibility for this private party that attracted hundreds, kept my customers away and had to be shut down by the police. -more-


Commentary: Berkeley Needs More Density on BART Site By Jonathan Stephens

Tuesday January 24, 2006

The reason that I moved to South Berkeley a few years ago was to become part of a community that shared my vision for an inclusive society that valued diversity and compassion above all other things. While I still feel deeply committed to a world that is centered more on the common good of its citizens than petty economic pursuits, I do feel that there needs to be a little flexibility and open mindedness when it comes to the growing need for high-density housing options here in Berkeley. -more-


Commentary: Line Rage By WINSTON BURTON

Tuesday January 24, 2006

Before you read this article, take a five count. Slowly inhale through your nose for five seconds, hold your breath for five seconds and then slowly exhale through your mouth counting to five. -more-



Arts Calendar

Friday January 20, 2006

FRIDAY, JAN. 20 -more-


Columns


Column: Late December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night) By SUSAN PARKER

Tuesday January 24, 2006

My New York friends took me to see the musical Jersey Boys at the August Wilson Theatre on 52nd Street in Manhattan. They thought that because I grew up in the Garden State I would identify with, at the very least, the title. And in some ways I did. Jersey Boys, the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, was familiar because, like almost everyone from the ‘burbs in the early ‘60s, I grew up with their music. -more-


Trees Manage Water to the Benefit of the Atmosphere By RON SULLIVAN Special to the Planet

Tuesday January 24, 2006

It’s only on my worst, most misanthropic days that I suspect most of my fellow humans of not noticing that the trees around us are more than overdecorated hatracks. We all know they’re alive, right? And we all know, or ought to, that they’re in motion, growing, moving (though at a pace we’re ill-equipped to see), performing, building the massive edifices of themselves with light and carbon and air. -more-


Arts & Events

Arts Calendar

Tuesday January 24, 2006

TUESDAY, JAN. 24 -more-


Arts: Ragged Wing Is a Welcome Addition to Local Theater By KEN BULLOCK Special to the Planet

Tuesday January 24, 2006

“When we reach the end, we shall know more than we know now. Once upon a time...” -more-


Trees Manage Water to the Benefit of the Atmosphere By RON SULLIVAN Special to the Planet

Tuesday January 24, 2006

It’s only on my worst, most misanthropic days that I suspect most of my fellow humans of not noticing that the trees around us are more than overdecorated hatracks. We all know they’re alive, right? And we all know, or ought to, that they’re in motion, growing, moving (though at a pace we’re ill-equipped to see), performing, building the massive edifices of themselves with light and carbon and air. -more-


Berkeley This Week

Tuesday January 24, 2006

TUESDAY, JAN. 24 -more-


Berkeley This Week

Friday January 20, 2006

FRIDAY, JAN. 20 -more-