Columnists

On the eve of Halloween while teaching a Berkeley class of second graders, the discussion naturally turned to the costumes the kids planned to wear on Halloween day. One of the boys grinned, with arms crossed and head tilted to the side. -more-

Some time ago, maybe more than once, I wrote in this column that in his campaign for California attorney general, Mayor Jerry Brown was going to use his Oakland track record in a different way than most politicians usually do. Politicians generally spotlight their positive achievements in office, and in his race against State Senator Chuck Poochigian, Mr. Brown has certainly done that. But in areas where Mr. Brown has failed in Oakland—and there were many such failures—he has excused those failures by putting the blame on Oakland. In effect, he’s been telling California voters that Oakland was so bad, nobody could fix it, and he wants voters to give him points for even giving it a good try. -more-

Some time ago, maybe more than once, I wrote in this column that in his campaign for California attorney general, Mayor Jerry Brown was going to use his Oakland track record in a different way than most politicians usually do. Politicians generally spotlight their positive achievements in office, and in his race against State Senator Chuck Poochigian, Mr. Brown has certainly done that. But in areas where Mr. Brown has failed in Oakland—and there were many such failures—he has excused those failures by putting the blame on Oakland. In effect, he’s been telling California voters that Oakland was so bad, nobody could fix it, and he wants voters to give him points for even giving it a good try. -more-

During the first 75 years of the 20th century, West Berkeley was the location of many manufacturing plants that produced diverse products from vegetable oil to ink, and from huge hydraulic pumps to tanned hides. -more-

I was working with a couple of young volunteers from UC’s redoubtable Habitat for Humanity group last weekend when one of them exclaimed, “Yuck! I found a worm.” -more-

There’s an old saying ... “Da Nile ain’t just a river in Egypt.” No, denial is alive and well right here in the Bay Area. -more-

The construction world is in love with novelty. Every year, trade shows display the latest inventions and materials with promises of low cost, easy installation and life-long service. Of course, these things never turn out to be as true as presented and the buyer must always beware. -more-

When we go to the polls on Nov. 7, many of us will be voting against George Bush and a subservient Republican Congress. The majority of the electorate is outraged by Bush’s war in Iraq and the failure of his Administration to protect America. In many parts of America voters will also be protesting specific Bush policies that have depressed local economies, raised gasoline prices, and degraded the environment. Indeed, Americans have ample reasons to vote against George Bush and the GOP. Yet, it’s always healthier to cast a positive vote: to be for something. So, what are we voting for? -more-

I went to the Wells Fargo branch closest to my home in order to close Ralph’s checking account. I could have emptied it by using his ATM card, but our mortgage is automatically withdrawn from this account on a monthly basis. I needed to officially close it and get the automatic payments stopped. -more-

One fair day in mid-October, near dusk, Joe and I were strolling the first mile of the Mitchell Canyon trail on the east side of Mount Diablo. The sun was low; the shadows, long; only the west-facing ridgetops were glowing in the red-gold sunset, and we’d just about decided to turn back, when Joe whispered: “Coyote!” -more-