The consultant who will help improve People’s Park in the coming months will be selected from a list of three finalists at a closed panel interview session on Friday (today). -more-
From here it looks like a triumph of “Framing”—that’s the name given by my old friend George Lakoff to a political technique which is part of what we used to call “marketing” in the software industry. I’m referring to the iconic image of the new speaker of the House on the podium surrounded by small children. There were a few cynical cluck-clucks in the Planet newsroom, but in the living rooms of parents and grandparents across the country it brought tears to not a few eyes. An early version of same was Ronald Reagan shown against a background of American flags, but the framing of Nancy Pelosi was much better: dynamic and heartwarming, all at the same time. -more-
Councilmember Wozniak recently removed his appointee, Dean Metzger, from the Zoning Adjustments Board (ZAB). Since Mr. Wozniak has not publicly thanked Mr. Metzger for his ZAB service, I would like to do so—on behalf of many. In addition, Mr. Metzger has served his community on the Transportation Commission and through his neighborhood association (CENA), Berkeley Alliance of Neighborhood Associations (BANA), and Berkeleyans for a Livable University Environment (BLUE), among others. All these organizations and the city have profited greatly from his intelligence, integrity, and hard work. -more-
When the Democrats obtained a congressional majority in November’s midterm elections, it sent a message to the White House, and to all of America, that people are ready for change. Change in Iraq, change in the power of the presidency, change in foreign policy, and change in the way citizens are treated at home. But, in the throws of such a heated election, at least one important issue was left largely unaddressed—what America’s role should be in quelling the genocide in Darfur. -more-
As I move toward the conclusion of my first year as president of the Downtown Berkeley Association Board, I can look back with satisfaction on a number of partnerships we have formed in recent months which I think have made DBA increasingly influential as a molder of public policy in the downtown. One of the most important, I believe, has been the relationship we have crafted between the DBA and the group known as Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE)—an innovative economic development organization.” -more-
After recently going through my first election cycle as chair of government affairs, I wanted to offer a few thoughts on the Great ’06 Berkeley Political Struggle. I recently finished reading 1776 and John Adams by David McCullough and Founding Brother’s: The Revolutionary Generation by Joseph Ellis, and so was able to experience this election cycle in the context of political history. Then, as now, the political bickering and posturing began before and lasted long after the actual votes were counted. There is a major difference however, the bullhorns are much larger today. -more-
The mayor’s new “Landmarks Preservation Ordinance,” which is more like a Demolition Ordinance, is deeply flawed and should be repealed by the referendum process. -more-
Jimmy Carter’s Palestine Peace Not Apartheid paints a disturbing picture: of a state, Israel, that has consistently violated international law in its pursuit of territorial expansion at the expense of an indigenous population. A life-long friend of the Israeli people and the mediator of Israel’s peace agreement with Egypt, Carter is like a wise elder statesman who performs an intervention and tells an alcoholic in no uncertain terms, “It’s time to end this addiction, for your own benefit as well as for your family and friends.” Only in this case, the addiction is not to alcohol, but to colonization. -more-
(and please support Grace Underpressure with a donation :-)
