The Opinion Pages

On your left! Slow Food, coming up fast. A movement once associated with European elites will be convening in San Francisco over Labor Day weekend, bringing an advertised 50,000 devotees along to celebrate the virtues of thinking globally but eating locally. -more-

As reported in the Berkeley Daily Planet, no city official will disclose which members of the Berkeley City Council supported or opposed the possible appeal of what may be the city’s most controversial court loss this year. -more-

BROWN ACT -more-

AC Transit began displaying a proto-type Van Hool 40-foot, two-door, low-aisle bus in June. After a few mechanical fixes, it is now ready for the rubber to hit the road. And they have prepared a survey for riders. -more-

Although the focus in the court room and the press has been on the significance of a beautiful stand of coastal live oaks west of Memorial Stadium, lawsuits filed by the City of Berkeley and the Panoramic Hill Association have, from day one, also been directed toward public safety and quality of life (traffic) impacts from the entirety of projects officially named the Southeast Campus Integrated Projects (SCIP). -more-

Two three years from now, looking back at this upcoming election, with an Obama or McCain in the White House, how might we tell if their promise of change has, or is being, fulfilled? Yes, here during the summer of 2008, awaiting election day, we have been promised change, and change we do desire. But what that change might consist of remains elusive, vague. What we do have, and in abundance, is rhetoric, the promise of change. Of course, we know for certain, come Jan. 20, one kind of change that we will surely get is the departure of President Bush. But if that is all, if nothing else, noting substantial changes, then will we still be content to say that change indeed has occurred? -more-

On July 30 I witnessed the Planning Commission’s session regarding the Downtown Area Plan. The meeting was distressingly chaotic and it seems that at times some participants got confused. -more-

It is not widely known that a new, updated seismic hazard evaluation method has been adopted by UC Berkeley as their new standard for review of their construction projects. This state-of-the-art evaluation methodology, developed by URS (a major engineering and consulting firm based in San Francisco), is detailed in the firm’s report, “Updated Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Evaluation and Development of Seismic Design Ground Motions.” It uses the latest data and research about fault hazards to predict building motions and possible damage during any major earthquake. -more-

Recent revelations about Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) support the reservations expressed by critics. The extent of the harm this entrepreneurial free-for-all threatens to do to our community goes beyond the imaginings of early naysayers. Ever since David Stoloff’s hand was stayed from surreptitiously giving the Ashby BART parking lot to his developer pals there have been continuous attempts upon Berkeley’s buildings and rights of way: Laurie Capitelli’s recent assault on North Berkeley at Shattuck and Rose, stymied for now by people who live and work there; the Southside plan—a monumental script for inconvenience and pedestrian and bicycle un-safety. But that won’t happen for some time if at all. -more-