Page One

Ashby Transit Village Opponents Win Delay, By: Richard Brenneman

Friday February 10, 2006

In the face of angry neighborhood opposition, Berkeley City Councilmember Max Anderson Tuesday withdrew his motion to have his council colleagues reaffirm support of a state grant to plan development at the Ashby BART station. -more-



Council Spends Budget Surplus, By: Richard Brenneman

Friday February 10, 2006

City councilmembers voted Tuesday to spend the city’s full $1.23 million budget surplus, discussed proposed changes in city landmarks law and watched a tense confrontation between two of their colleagues over the issue of diversity in appointments, in addition to debating the proposed development project at the Ashby BART station. -more-



Public Library Workers Claim Retaliation for Speaking Out, By: Judith Scherr Workers Claim Retaliation for Speaking Out

Friday February 10, 2006

In a town where free speech is holy and libraries are sacred, library workers are claiming retaliation from management for speaking out about work-related issues. -more-



City Raises Red Flags on Transportation Fees, By: Richard Brenneman

Friday February 10, 2006

The Transportation Commission’s proposal to charge new developments and businesses a fee to offset the impacts of additional car traffic they cause has raised red flags with Community Economic Development Coordinator Dave Fogarty. -more-



Union, Alta Bates End Two-Year Dispute, By: Richard Brenneman

Friday February 10, 2006

The two-year-long labor dispute at the Alta Bates Summit Medical Center hospitals appears at an end, with both sides announcing a settlement Thursday. -more-



Features

Bates Praises City Focus on Housing, Environment, Youth, By: Judith Scherr

Friday February 10, 2006

Supporters filled the more than 200 seats in the City Council Chambers Tuesday evening for the annual State of the City address, applauding Mayor Tom Bates as he touted accomplishments over his three years in office and addressed the challenges of the coming year. -more-


Berkeley Firefighter Held for Child Porn to Face Molestation Charges, By: Richard Brenneman

Friday February 10, 2006

Nevada County Sheriff’s investigators are seeking child molestation charges against a Berkeley firefighter already jailed on charges of possession of child pornography in his locker and a city-owned computer. -more-


Creeks Task Force Divided, By: Richard Brenneman

Friday February 10, 2006

As it nears its deadline for recommending a new creeks ordinance to the City Council, a citizen task force remains deeply divided, Chair Helen Burke told the Planning Commission Wednesday night. -more-


Peralta Chancellor Report Clears International Office, By: J. Douglas Allen-Taylor

Friday February 10, 2006

A recently-released chancellor’s report on the Peralta Community College District Office of International Affairs concludes that the controversial office is not spending “lavishly” on foreign meals, accommodations, and travel, giving a sharp rebuke to charges made by Peralta Trustee Marcie Hodge. -more-


Former Vista President Presses Employment Termination Lawsuit, By: J. Douglas Allen-Taylor

Friday February 10, 2006

Allegations last quoted in a Berkeley Daily Planet story have now surfaced in an employment termination lawsuit filed against the Peralta Community College District by a former president of Vista College (now Berkeley City College). -more-


Kragen Auto Site Developers to Meet With Neighbors, By: Richard Brenneman

Friday February 10, 2006

The developers of a massive housing project that will feature a Trader’s Joe store at 1885 University Ave. will meet with neighbors Monday. -more-


Fire Department Log, By: Richard Brenneman

Friday February 10, 2006

False alarm, good drill -more-


‘The Vagina Monologues’ Comes to Berkeley High, By: Rio Bauce and Jacob Horn

Friday February 10, 2006

This Friday and Saturday, the Berkeley High School drama department will be performing Eve Ensler’s play The Vagina Monologues. -more-


The Images and Voices of the African Diaspora, By: Marta Yamamoto

Friday February 10, 2006

Since the beginning of time, people have been dispersed, by force or mutual consent, far from their homes. Through famine, political unrest, acts of nature and searches for a better life, many miles now separate groups from their ancestral habitations. With the belief that human life began in Africa, this continent is at the heart of the human spirit and the Museum of the African Diaspora (MOAD) has opened in San Francisco to give voice to this spirit. -more-


Public Comment

Editorial Cartoon, By: J. DeFreitas

Friday February 10, 2006

www.jfdefreitas.com -more-


Commentary: Letters To The Editor

Friday February 10, 2006

ASK A UNION MECHANIC -more-


Commentary: Church’s BART Site Plan Was In the Works for Years, By: Kenoli Oleari

Friday February 10, 2006

After last Tuesday’s meeting, I can tell that most of you City Council members would like to pull some irons out of this Caltrans proposal fire. I’m sure that your motives are good: wanting something good to develop on the Adeline strip in South Berkeley. You all seem very sorry that Max didn’t do better outreach in bringing this proposal to the community. -more-


Editorial

Editorial: Civics Lessons, By: Becky O'Malley

Friday February 10, 2006

The cliché, surely quoted at some time previously in this space, is that anyone who loves law or sausages should not watch either being made. As someone who loves the law with all its defects, I’ve tried to follow that warning in recent years, but occasionally I can’t avoid seeing what goes on in government. The last month has been particularly bad at the federal level, what with the always excruciatingly embarrassing State of the Union speech, followed by the attorney general’s mealy-mouthed performance before the Senate Judiciary Committee. But what’s been going on in Berkeley is even more embarrassing. -more-


Columns

Column: The Public Eye: Domestic Eavesdropping: Why Do We Care?, By: Bob Burnett

Friday February 10, 2006

In December, the New York Times revealed that the Bush administration has been eavesdropping on our phone calls, by means of National Security Agency computer systems, without a court order. Although the exact nature of the surveillance is highly classified, it appears that the White House has gone on a massive “fishing trip”—one that invades the privacy of thousands of ordinary Americans. This article considers the pragmatics of Administration eavesdropping—why we should care about it. -more-


Column: UnderCurrents: Progressives Need to Bone Up on Defense Policy, By: J. Douglas Allen-Taylor

Friday February 10, 2006

As expected—or feared, depending on your point of view—Pennsylvania Congressmember John Murtha is rapidly becoming one of the Democratic Party’s de facto spokespersons on defense policy. That may be a good thing for centrist Democrats who don’t want to get beat by our Republican friends with the “soft on defense” stick in another election. But where does it leave progressives? -more-


Thornhill Nursery Offers Wide Variety of Trees and Plants, By: Ron Sullivan

Friday February 10, 2006

Thornhill Nursery is a bit out of the way, not so much in distance from Berkeley, but tucked away on Thornhill Drive in the Oakland Hills. It’s most easily accessible from the freeway, if you don’t mind a little daring on- and off-ramp dodge’em game. Take the Thornhill Drive exit, drive on past the entrance to the Foothill business district and through a tiny patch of school and mini-mall on Thornhill. Keep it slow—you ought to anyway; the sidewalks are narrow and foot traffic can be a tad chaotic and full of rompity schoolkids. The nursery’s not hard to see once you get to its block, and the parking area, though small, is handy on the right. -more-


Heating Your House in the Space Age, By: Matt Cantor

Friday February 10, 2006

It has often occurred to me how primitive our houses are for a people who can look to the edges of the universe and plumb the living paths of bozons and muons. They’re not exactly mud huts but they are so simple that you’d think we were still fighting wars with guns and killing each other with bombs. Oh wait. Sorry. Anyway, if you look at the way in which our houses are built, you might think that we’d missed the U-boat altogether. -more-


Arts Listings

Arts Calendar

Friday February 10, 2006


Events Listings

Berkeley This Week

Friday February 10, 2006

Back Stories

Opinion

Editorials

Editorial: Civics Lessons, By: Becky O'Malley 02-10-2006

Editorial: They’re Everywhere, the Stupids! By BECKY O'MALLEY 02-07-2006

Public Comment

Editorial Cartoon, By: J. DeFreitas 02-10-2006

Commentary: Letters To The Editor 02-10-2006

Commentary: Church’s BART Site Plan Was In the Works for Years, By: Kenoli Oleari 02-10-2006

Editorial CArtoon By JUSTIN DEFREITAS 02-07-2006

Letters to the Editor 02-07-2006

Commentary: Pull Grant Application, Start Over with Public Participation By SHIRLEY DEAN 02-07-2006

Commentary: Mayor Bates’s LPO Changes Would Harm Flats Most By MICHAEL KATZ 02-07-2006

Commentary: Ashby Transit Village? No Thanks. By KENOLI OLEARI 02-07-2006

News

Ashby Transit Village Opponents Win Delay, By: Richard Brenneman 02-10-2006

Council Spends Budget Surplus, By: Richard Brenneman 02-10-2006

Public Library Workers Claim Retaliation for Speaking Out, By: Judith Scherr Workers Claim Retaliation for Speaking Out 02-10-2006

City Raises Red Flags on Transportation Fees, By: Richard Brenneman 02-10-2006

Union, Alta Bates End Two-Year Dispute, By: Richard Brenneman 02-10-2006

Bates Praises City Focus on Housing, Environment, Youth, By: Judith Scherr 02-10-2006

Berkeley Firefighter Held for Child Porn to Face Molestation Charges, By: Richard Brenneman 02-10-2006

Creeks Task Force Divided, By: Richard Brenneman 02-10-2006

Peralta Chancellor Report Clears International Office, By: J. Douglas Allen-Taylor 02-10-2006

Former Vista President Presses Employment Termination Lawsuit, By: J. Douglas Allen-Taylor 02-10-2006

Kragen Auto Site Developers to Meet With Neighbors, By: Richard Brenneman 02-10-2006

Fire Department Log, By: Richard Brenneman 02-10-2006

‘The Vagina Monologues’ Comes to Berkeley High, By: Rio Bauce and Jacob Horn 02-10-2006

The Images and Voices of the African Diaspora, By: Marta Yamamoto 02-10-2006

South Berkeley Residents Gather In Honor of Berkeley Pioneer By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR 02-07-2006

Ashby Transit Village, Landmark Ordinance Top Council Agenda By RICHARD BRENNEMAN 02-07-2006

Brower Center Could Break Ground in Fall By RICHARD BRENNEMAN 02-07-2006

ACLU Considers Legal Action Over Spy Document Request By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR 02-07-2006

Landmarks Commission Pans Prince Hall Project By RICHARD BRENNEMAN 02-07-2006

DA: Firefighter Had Child Porn Stash By RICHARD BRENNEMAN 02-07-2006

Police Probe Two Sunday Shootings By RICHARD BRENNEMAN 02-07-2006

Police Blotter By RICHARD BRENNEMAN 02-07-2006

Fire Department Log By RICHARD BRENNEMAN 02-07-2006

Planners Tackle Car Sites; ZAB Takes on Black & White Issue By RICHARD BRENNEMAN 02-07-2006

Columns

Column: The Public Eye: Domestic Eavesdropping: Why Do We Care?, By: Bob Burnett 02-10-2006

Column: UnderCurrents: Progressives Need to Bone Up on Defense Policy, By: J. Douglas Allen-Taylor 02-10-2006

Thornhill Nursery Offers Wide Variety of Trees and Plants, By: Ron Sullivan 02-10-2006

Heating Your House in the Space Age, By: Matt Cantor 02-10-2006

Column: The View From Here: Black History Month Celebrates ‘Brokeback’ . . . or Not By P.M. Price 02-07-2006

Column: The Public Eye: Is Berkeley on the Verge of a Civic Identity Crisis? By Zelda Bronstein 02-07-2006

Column: Getting High in Jamaica By Susan Parker 02-07-2006

Even Dead Trees Provide Many Uses By RON SULLIVAN Special to the Planet 02-07-2006

Arts & Events

Arts Calendar 02-10-2006

Family Dilemmas and Ties At Masquers Playhouse, By: Ken Bullock 02-10-2006

Thornhill Nursery Offers Wide Variety of Trees and Plants, By: Ron Sullivan 02-10-2006

Heating Your House in the Space Age, By: Matt Cantor 02-10-2006

Berkeley This Week 02-10-2006

Arts Calendar 02-07-2006

Arts: Aurora Unfurls Designs Of ‘The Master Builder’ By KEN BULLOCK Special to the Planet 02-07-2006

Arts: UC Berkeley’s Bancroft Library Stages Centennial Exhibit By STEVEN FINACOM Special to the Planet 02-07-2006

Even Dead Trees Provide Many Uses By RON SULLIVAN Special to the Planet 02-07-2006

Berkeley This Week 02-07-2006