Berkeley Federation of Teachers President Barry Fike listens to Berkeley High School senior Will Henderson negotiate with students during Tuesday’s Collective Bargaining Program at the BHS library. Photograph by Riya Bhattacharjee.
Berkeley Federation of Teachers President Barry Fike listens to Berkeley High School senior Will Henderson negotiate with students during Tuesday’s Collective Bargaining Program at the BHS library. Photograph by Riya Bhattacharjee.

Page One

Berkeley High Students Learn Negotiation Skills

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Friday March 30, 2007

The union made some big wins at Berkeley High on Tuesday. Except that the students were acting as both management and labor and the cash was just play money. -more-



Fantasy Building Tenants Appeal to Council for Help

By Judith Scherr
Friday March 30, 2007

Rich Robbins of Wareham Development, Inc. has a vision for the seven-story West Berkeley building he recently bought for around $20 million. -more-



City Takes Charge of Greenhouse Gas Reduction

By Judith Scherr
Friday March 30, 2007

A $100,000 process to write a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, approved by the City Council in February, will be carried out inside city government—with staff hired for the purpose—and not outsourced to Sustain-able Berkeley, as the Council directed last month. -more-



School Board Eliminates Sixth Grade from Berkeley Arts Magnet

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Friday March 30, 2007

The Berkeley Board of Education voted to eliminate sixth grade from Berkeley Arts Magnet (BAM) Wednesday. BAM was the only elementary school in the Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD) that offered sixth grade to its students. -more-



School District Completes Kindergarten Assignments

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Friday March 30, 2007

Student assignments are in. Parents suffering from sleepless nights and frenzied nerves over their toddler’s kindergarten placement were finally able to rest in peace when the last of the 560 school assignment letters were mailed out from Berkeley Unified’s Office of Admissions and Attendance earlier this month. -more-



Features

Planners Ease Telegraph Ave. Quotas, Elect Chairperson

By Richard Brenneman
Friday March 30, 2007

Finally, the Berkeley Planning Commission has elected a new chair, though the last one still fumed that Wednesday’s election wasn’t needed. -more-


Council Supports Open Police Complaint Legislation

By Judith Scherr
Friday March 30, 2007

Over objections raised by the city’s police union, the City Council voted 8-0 at its meeting Tuesday to add its support to Assemblymember Mark Leno’s bill, AB1648, which would re-open police complaint procedures statewide. Councilmember Gordon Wozniak was absent. -more-


AC Transit Purchase of Van Hool Buses Still on Track

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Friday March 30, 2007

AC Transit bus riders and drivers seeking to halt the Transit District’s purchase of more Van Hool buses got a distinctly chillier reception this week from the Metropolitan Transit Commission than they did when they first brought the issue to the MTC earlier this month. -more-


Sideshow Car Confiscation Policy Reinstated

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Friday March 30, 2007

With no opposition and support from the Oakland Police Department and the offices of Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums and Oakland City Council Public Safety Chairperson Larry Reid, the California State Senate Public Safety Committee unanimously approved this week a bill that would reinstate the 30-day confiscation of cars who police say are involved in Oakland sideshows. -more-


Prominent Latino Organizations Silent on Gonzales

By Roberto Lovato, New America Media
Friday March 30, 2007

NEW YORK—The recent scandal involving the firing of eight U.S. attorneys by U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has yielded mostly silence from the country’s pre-eminent Latino organizations. -more-


First Person: Angels Among Us? Thoughts Before Passover and Easter

By Harry Weininger
Friday March 30, 2007

There is a special force that appears from time to time and steers imminent harm or danger away from me, like a proverbial guardian angel. I’ve never seen this force, and I cannot count on it coming, but it has happened too often for me to ignore it. -more-


Public Comment

Letters to the Editor

Friday March 30, 2007

GROCERY BAGS -more-


Commentary: Sustainable Development = Loss of Freedom

By Marilynne L. Mellander
Friday March 30, 2007

Recent Daily Planet stories on Association of Bay Area Governments housing quotas, transit-oriented developments, so-called “affordable housing,” “inclusionary housing,” and, most egregious of all, “Sustainable Berkeley” are all just local manifestations of the Agenda 21 policy document. Agenda 21 was adopted at the U.N. Conference on Environment and Development, by more than 170 nations in 1992. President Clinton implemented this document in the United States by executive order with no congressional debate or involvement. Since the adoption of this policy, all across the country’s local councils, “visioning councils,” “working groups,” “charrettes,” et al have been set up with no voter input and have been given the power to transform communities using “smart growth,” transit-oriented developments (TOD), “transit villages,” “urban growth boundaries,” “traffic calming,” and “pack ‘em and stack ‘em” government housing projects which are built by private developers who get preferential development agreements with local government subsidized by your tax dollars. -more-


Commentary: More on the Berkeley Ferry

By Paul Kamen
Friday March 30, 2007

In response to the March 23 letter from Shirley Douglas of the Water Transit Authority: It is very encouraging to read that the two new 25-knot 149-passenger ferries on order for the Water Transit Authority (at $8 million each) are not intended for the Berkeley/Albany route. These vessels are unnecessarily fast, high-powered and expensive for the 5.6 mile distance from the Berkeley Marina to San Francisco. It is also good to learn that WTA has reversed its early decision to comply with the IMO High Speed code, and instead is going to stay with the much more appropriate 46 CFR Subchapter T regulations. -more-


Commentary: An Open Letter to Senator Boxer

By Jane Eisley
Friday March 30, 2007

Dear Senator Boxer, -more-


Commentary: Words of Advice For the University

By Merrilie Mitchell
Friday March 30, 2007

Regarding the draft environmental impact report for UC Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and its Long-Range Development Plan: The plans are not right or honest in presenting the whole of your intentions and impacts. -more-


Editorial

Editorial: Trying to Blow Down Walls With Words

By Becky O’Malley
Friday March 30, 2007

Well, it’s “whither journalism” time again. Straws in the wind: Thursday’s Chronicle, with the top story, over the fold, complete with big picture, about our friend Jane Stillwater, whose comments sometimes appear in these pages. Jane’s off to Iraq, trying to get herself embedded in an army unit, and her saga will undoubtedly be reported in exquisite detail on her blog, as are other events in her never-dull daily life. The jump headline says it all: “64-YEAR-OLD BERKELEY BLOGGER OFF FOR IRAQ.” This story has everything: “elderly party still full of beans,” “beloved-tho-quirky Berzerkly hasn’t changed,” “elderly newspaper HAS changed: now it reads blogs” and “foreign news is OK if it has a local angle.” More power to Jane for capturing the zeitgeist, perhaps finally getting the attention of anyone who doesn’t already know that there’s a mess over there. Maybe a 64-year-old Berkeley blogger can clean it all up. Or if not, at least it makes entertaining copy for the Comical. -more-


Columns

Column: Dispatches from the Edge: Into Africa: The Militarization of U.S. Foreign Policy

By Conn Hallinan
Friday March 30, 2007

When the Bush administration recently unveiled its new African military command—AFRICOM— Deputy Assistant Sec. of Defense Teresa Whalen said that the initiative was aimed at “promoting security, to build African capacity to build their own environments and not be subject to the instability that has toppled governments and caused so much pain on the continent.” -more-


Column: Undercurrents: Wading Through the Mess Left Behind by Oakland’s Mad Hatter

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Friday March 30, 2007

“There was a table set out under a tree in front of the house,” Lewis Carroll writes in Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland, “and the March Hare and the Hatter were having tea in it; a Dormouse was sitting between them… The table was a large one, but the three were all crowded together at one corner of it. … Alice … sat down in a large arm-chair at one end of the table. … ‘I want a clean cup,’ interrupted the Hatter [after they had eaten for a while]: ‘let’s all move one place on.’ He moved on as he spoke, and the Dormouse followed him: the March Hare moved into the Dormouse’s place, and Alice rather unwillingly took the place of the March Hare. The Hatter was the only one who got any advantage from the change; and Alice was a good deal worse off than before, as the March Hare had just upset the milk-jug into his plate.” -more-


East Bay Then and Now: The Evolution of a Downtown Corner

By Daniella Thompson
Friday March 30, 2007

On February 23, 1924, the weekly newspaper The Courier announced that the rapidly expanding American Bank, headquartered at 16th Street and San Pablo Avenue in Oakland, had purchased the College National Bank of Berkeley. American Bank was headed by Phillip E. Bowles, a University of California alumnus and regent from 1911 to 1922. Bowles Hall, UC’s first student residence hall, would be endowed by his widow in his name. -more-


Garden Variety: The Best Catalogues Keep Their Feet on the Ground

By Ron Sullivan
Friday March 30, 2007

Having had the unhappy occasion to take an airline flight recently, I got to feast my jaded eyes on something called “Skymall.” This is a catalogue one finds stuffed along with the airline’s house magazine and a leftover napkin into the pocket of the seat ahead, pressing on one’s sore knees even if one is, as I am, built like a fireplug. -more-


About the House: Things to Consider When Converting That Attic

By Matt Cantor
Friday March 30, 2007

I recently visited Tokyo. What a wonderful experience in so many ways. Too many to touch on in a single article, but one thing that did strike me again and again was the use of and respect for space. Japanese people tend to live in much smaller spaces than we take for granted and they endeavor to use each space as efficiently and richly as possible. It alters the aesthetic. Also, there’s no shame in packing things in to these tight spaces. On the contrary, I think that the Japanese view a waste of space or living in unnecessarily large quarters as egregious misconduct. -more-


Arts Listings

Arts Calendar

Friday March 30, 2007


The Theater: Ten Red Hen Presents ‘Clown Bible’

By Ken Bullock, Special to the Planet
Friday March 30, 2007

Moving Pictures:Truth and Past Collide in ‘Grbavica’

By Justin DeFreitas
Friday March 30, 2007

Moving Pictures: Turner Releases Pre-Code Classics

By Justin DeFreitas
Friday March 30, 2007

Events Listings

Berkeley This Week

Friday March 30, 2007

Back Stories

Opinion

Editorials

Editorial: Trying to Blow Down Walls With Words 03-30-2007

ZAB Passes Big West Berkeley Project on Brennan’s Site 03-27-2007

Public Comment

Letters to the Editor 03-30-2007

Commentary: Sustainable Development = Loss of Freedom By Marilynne L. Mellander 03-30-2007

Commentary: More on the Berkeley Ferry By Paul Kamen 03-30-2007

Commentary: An Open Letter to Senator Boxer By Jane Eisley 03-30-2007

Commentary: Words of Advice For the University By Merrilie Mitchell 03-30-2007

Letters to the Editor 03-27-2007

Commentary: Community Courage By Winston Burton 03-27-2007

Commentary: Saving Sixth Grade and the Arts at Berkeley Arts Magnet By Diane Douglas and others 03-27-2007

Commentary: Blaming the Poor — It Costs, But Oh, How It Pays By Carol Denney 03-27-2007

Commentary: Fantasy Building Rent Hikes Threaten a Valuable Community By Rick Goldsmith 03-27-2007

News

Berkeley High Students Learn Negotiation Skills By Riya Bhattacharjee 03-30-2007

Fantasy Building Tenants Appeal to Council for Help By Judith Scherr 03-30-2007

City Takes Charge of Greenhouse Gas Reduction By Judith Scherr 03-30-2007

School Board Eliminates Sixth Grade from Berkeley Arts Magnet By Riya Bhattacharjee 03-30-2007

School District Completes Kindergarten Assignments By Riya Bhattacharjee 03-30-2007

Planners Ease Telegraph Ave. Quotas, Elect Chairperson By Richard Brenneman 03-30-2007

Council Supports Open Police Complaint Legislation By Judith Scherr 03-30-2007

AC Transit Purchase of Van Hool Buses Still on Track By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor 03-30-2007

Sideshow Car Confiscation Policy Reinstated By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor 03-30-2007

Prominent Latino Organizations Silent on Gonzales By Roberto Lovato, New America Media 03-30-2007

First Person: Angels Among Us? Thoughts Before Passover and Easter By Harry Weininger 03-30-2007

BUSD Youth Arts Festival Showcases Student Creativity By Riya Bhattacharjee 03-27-2007

Chevron Access Needed for Richmond Bay Trail Link By Geneviève Duboscq, Special to the Planet 03-27-2007

100 Condos Planned for Corner of Ashby And San Pablo By Richard Brenneman 03-27-2007

Oakland Zoning Proposal Reversal Reflects Long-Term Community Lobbying By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor 03-27-2007

Commission Election Voided, Attorney Orders New Votes By Richard Brenneman 03-27-2007

Peace Notes: Code Pink at Camp Pelosi, Arrests at SF Federal Building By Judith Scherr 03-27-2007

School Board Votes on Pre-K Centers, Arts Magnet Schedule By Riya Bhattacharjee 03-27-2007

News Analysis: Searching for Sunshine in Berkeley By Judith Scherr 03-27-2007

Council Addresses Filmmaker Tenancy, Police Complaint Process By Judith Scherr 03-27-2007

Berkeley High Beat: BHS Students Celebrate Service Week By Rio Bauce 03-27-2007

News Analysis: Japanese Prime Minister’s Apology for Sex Slaves: What Next? By Aruna Lee, New America Media 03-27-2007

Virgina Silber, 1943-2007 By Lorie Brillinger 03-27-2007

Truckers Can’t Stop the Pollution Their Trucks Cause By Viji Sundaram, New America Media 03-27-2007

Words of Advice for Those Who Grow Their Own By Shirley Barker, Special to the Planet 03-27-2007

Police Blotter By Richard Brenneman 03-27-2007

Columns

Column: Dispatches from the Edge: Into Africa: The Militarization of U.S. Foreign Policy By Conn Hallinan 03-30-2007

Column: Undercurrents: Wading Through the Mess Left Behind by Oakland’s Mad Hatter By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor 03-30-2007

East Bay Then and Now: The Evolution of a Downtown Corner By Daniella Thompson 03-30-2007

Garden Variety: The Best Catalogues Keep Their Feet on the Ground By Ron Sullivan 03-30-2007

About the House: Things to Consider When Converting That Attic By Matt Cantor 03-30-2007

Column: Music Teacher for a Day By Susan Parker 03-27-2007

Green Neighbors: Spring is the Time to Buy And Plant Native Redbuds By Ron Sullivan 03-27-2007

Arts & Events

Arts Calendar 03-30-2007

Arts and Entertainment Around the East Bay 03-30-2007

The Theater: Ten Red Hen Presents ‘Clown Bible’ By Ken Bullock, Special to the Planet 03-30-2007

Moving Pictures:Truth and Past Collide in ‘Grbavica’ By Justin DeFreitas 03-30-2007

Moving Pictures: Turner Releases Pre-Code Classics By Justin DeFreitas 03-30-2007

East Bay Then and Now: The Evolution of a Downtown Corner By Daniella Thompson 03-30-2007

Garden Variety: The Best Catalogues Keep Their Feet on the Ground By Ron Sullivan 03-30-2007

About the House: Things to Consider When Converting That Attic By Matt Cantor 03-30-2007

Berkeley This Week 03-30-2007

Arts Calendar 03-27-2007

Arts and Entertainment Around the East Bay 03-27-2007

Henry Wessel: Photographing the Physical World By Michael Howerton 03-27-2007

New Books About Berkeley are Both Handsome and Informative By Steven Finacom, Special to the Planet 03-27-2007

The Theater: African-American Shakespeare Co.’s ‘Lysistrata’ By Ken Bullock, Special to the Planet 03-27-2007

Green Neighbors: Spring is the Time to Buy And Plant Native Redbuds By Ron Sullivan 03-27-2007

Berkeley This Week 03-27-2007