Channel 2 reporter Kraig Debro reported early Wednesday morning on McDonald's hold-up.
Greg Tomeoni
Channel 2 reporter Kraig Debro reported early Wednesday morning on McDonald's hold-up.

Extra

Flash: Six Activists and One Journalist Arrested
While Singing inside AIPAC Gala in Oakland
Bay Area Residents Say Tax Dollars to Jobs, not Military Aid to Israel

From Rae Abileah (Press Release)
Monday December 13, 2010 - 09:06:00 PM

On Monday, December 13, when the American Israel Public Affairs Committee held its annual dinner in Oakland, a group of activists performed a flashmob inside the Marriott hotel to the tune of Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall," addressing Israel's illegal occupation of Palestine. Six Activists and one reporter were arrested: -more-


Five Armed Robberies in North Berkeley Under Investigation

By Charlotte Perry-Houts
Friday December 10, 2010 - 04:10:00 PM

Berkeley Police are investigating a string of what detectives believe are connected armed robberies that have been occurring in North Berkeley since mid-November. In each of the five robberies, a suspect pointed a handgun at the victim and demanded their phones, wallets, and other valuable items, then fled on foot. All of the victims have described the suspect as a “black male, late teens to 30 years old with a thin build.” -more-


Violent Muggings of Students Riding AC Buses Increase in Holidays

By Yael Degany

(Reader Commentary)
Thursday December 09, 2010 - 10:43:00 PM

I witnessed a violent mugging this evening on the F line, on the bus that left SF at 6:10 pm. -more-


Berkeley City Council Votes for Meter Holidays,Postpones Iceland Hearing, Re-Hires Non-Union Planners for Measure R Project

By Charlotte Perry-Houts
Thursday December 09, 2010 - 10:14:00 PM

Parking, Iceland and city staffing were the main topics discussed at Tuesday's Berkeley City Council meeting, preceded by celebrations on behalf of returning councilmembers. -more-


Berkeley Council Worksession Discusses Reduced Schedules for Employees, Cuts to Berkeley Mental Health

By Charlotte Perry-Houts
Thursday December 09, 2010 - 10:30:00 PM

Berkeley City Council held a worksession this Tuesday night, hearing a budget update for the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2011 and an assessment and action plan of the Berkeley Mental Health Division. No action was taken by the Council. -more-



Page One

Flash: Armed Robbery at McDonald's on Berkeley-Albany Border

By Bay City News and Planet (UPDATED)
Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:24:00 AM

Police are investigating an early morning armed robbery of a fast-food restaurant near the Berkeley-Albany border, police said. Officers responded to a 5:24 a.m. report of a robbery at 1198 San Pablo Ave., police said, which is the location of a McDonald's restaurant. According to a business listing on Yelp.com, this outpost of the restaurant chain opens at 5 a.m. on weekdays. No suspects were in custody as of 6:15 a.m., police said, and information about possible injuries was not yet available. -more-



Point Molate EIR is Flawed, Probably Fatally (News Analysis)

By Richmond Councilmember Tom Butt
Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 12:40:00 PM

I want to put a little different twist than that of a CC Times article on the action taken by the City Council last night. I can’t speak for the rest of the Council, but the reason I voted to proceed to considering the Final EIR without additional alternatives is because the entire process of soliciting suggestions of alternatives from the public was fatally flawed. The sooner we put it to bed and move on, the better. -more-



The Planet Visits Saturn and Explores the Sustainable Business Alliance

By Gar Smith
Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 10:51:00 AM

The Berkeley-based Sustainable Business Alliance picked a stellar location for its December 3rd meet-and-greet — the Space Lounge of the Saturn Café, located at 2175 Allston Way — directly across the street from SBA’s home in the David Brower Center. More than 30 Bay Area green business leaders (and a couple of out-of-staters) assembled to swap stories and business cards while loading plates with mounds of organic salad, tasty entrees, slices of fruit and squares of desert bread. -more-



Granta Spotlights (Some) Spanish-Language Novelists

By Joanna Graham
Tuesday December 07, 2010 - 01:39:00 PM

Why would a Peruvian writer who has never been to Brazil set all his stories in Brazil? Is everyone in Chile a poet? And how could a journalist underground for six months in one of the worst sections of Medellín reject “poverty and violence” as a subject in favor of his neighbors’ and co-workers’ “happy life”?

These questions and many others were addressed by three young writers—the Chilean Carlos Labbé, the Peruvian Carlos Yushimito, and the Colombian Andrés Felipe Solano—at a panel discussion moderated by Peruvian writer Daniel Alarcón at the University of California on Monday. -more-



Cell Phone Antennas: Why City Planning Standards Are Needed (Partisan Position)

By Guy Benveniste
Tuesday December 07, 2010 - 01:20:00 PM

Apparently , notwithstanding all the safeguards imposed by our city, cell phone companies like "T Mobile" can install antennas right smack in front of your living room without even a whimper of an objection. -more-



Sexing Up Mathematics Does Not Compute (News Analysis)

By Jonathan Farley
Monday December 06, 2010 - 11:16:00 AM

This week saw the North American premiere of Rites of Love and Math, the film by Berkeley mathematician Ed Frenkel. After receiving complaints about the trailer, which features both formulae and naked female flesh, Berkeley's mathematical sciences research institute decided to withdraw its support for the film. -more-



Press Release: Christian, Jewish, and Muslim Groups Sponsor BART Ads Calling for Ending U.S. Military Aid to Israel

From Jewish Voice for Peace
Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 12:23:00 PM

Ads calling for an end to U.S. military aid to Israel, for the sake of peace and justice for both Palestinian and Israeli peoples, went up this week at three high-traffic stations in Bay Area Rapid Transit system: 12th Street Oakland, Downtown Berkeley, and San Francisco Civic Center. The ads, which will run for four weeks, are the first step in what's expected to be a broader campaign to bring the message to Bay Area commuters in the coming year. -more-



Public Comment

Letters to the Editor

Tuesday December 07, 2010 - 01:38:00 PM

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell"; Lack of Free Speech at KPFA; Bob Burnett and "Real Men" -more-


In Defense of Wikileaks (from Baghdad to Berkeley)

By Nathan Pitts
Tuesday December 07, 2010 - 01:34:00 PM

Where would we be if RAND military analyst Daniel Ellsberg hadn't released the Pentagon Papers in 1971? What if in 1972 FBI Associate Director Mark Felt, aka Deep Throat, hadn't contacted Woodward and Bernstein? What would the current headlines be if, in 2009, US soldier Bradley Manning hadn't begun the process of downloading military and political secrets onto a re-writable cd marked “Lady Gaga”? Forty years past Nam and Nixon, we live in the Information Age. We can email, tweet, upload HD video, and collaborate on online databases using “cloud”-based platforms. As information become more easily distributed, those in positions of power want to tighten their control on public truth through secrecy, deception, and intimidation. According to the Information Security Oversight Office, the federal government suppresses over 100,000 newly classified secrets every year. In 2009, the federal government created over 183,000 new secrets. -more-


Update regarding KPFA Budget Crisis and Staff Reductions

By Arlene Engelhardt, Executive Director, Pacifica Radio
Monday December 06, 2010 - 04:59:00 PM

We know that many KPFA listeners and staff have had questions about the financial crisis facing KPFA. Over the past five years KPFA has suffered a 27% drop in annual income -- including a 30% decline of more than a $1.2 million in annual listener support. Since 2007 KPFA has lost almost $1.5 million overall. -more-


Suggestions for Saving KPFA and What's Wrong Now

By Mal Burnstein
Tuesday December 07, 2010 - 01:36:00 PM

I read your editorial on KPFA [last week]. Aside from your gratuitous swipe at Tom and us old lefties (of which Tom is not one), I thought it was an excellent picture of the confusion that the casual listener/supporter may have when hearing of the fighting and turmoil at KPFA. It is a valuable lesson for those of us wrapped up in the infighting! -more-


Statistics May Be the Answer to Dementia

By Gerta Farber
Tuesday December 07, 2010 - 01:38:00 PM

I am an 83 year old woman and a member of a genetic-Alzheimer's family. In my lifetime I am aware of nine family members who have been victims of AD, the last four in my generation. -more-


Editorial

President Obama: Just Say No

By Becky O'Malley
Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:48:00 AM

Liberal Negotiation. Only the best people do it. And the outcome inevitably is the worst.

All of my adult life I’ve participated in what is commonly called politics: that is to say, the attempt, often futile, to influence or even control the government(s) that organize or control our lives. Politics sometimes involves compromise, it’s true, but timing is everything. -more-


The Editor's Back Fence

New: Preview the Berkeley City Council Wikileaks Controversy in the Next Issue

Tuesday December 14, 2010 - 11:39:00 AM

Here's the first cut at an editorial on the controversy at tonight's Berkeley City City Council meeting. -more-


Columns

Dispatches From The Edge: Ireland: The Great Hunger Returns

By Conn Hallinan
Monday December 06, 2010 - 04:02:00 PM

Two images came to mind as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Union began systematically dismantling what is left of the shattered Irish economy. One was a photo in the -more-


On the Road, With Butterflies

By Joe Eaton
Monday December 06, 2010 - 03:14:00 PM
Pipevine swallowtail in Briones Regional Park.

On the short list of Books That Ruined My Life, Wild America ranks high. Published in 1955, it’s the jointly written account of a birding trek by Roger Tory Peterson, of fame guide fame, and his colleague James Fisher around the perimeter of North America: from Newfoundland down the Atlantic Coast, down into the Mexican tropics, across the Southwest and up the Pacific Coast, fetching up in the Pribilof Islands. I got hold of it when I was about ten and trapped in Little Rock, and it struck a chord. -more-


The Public Eye: Who Should Pay to Fix the Economy?

By Bob Burnett
Monday December 06, 2010 - 05:30:00 PM

Imagine you live in the suburbs and the residence next door is sold. The new owners raze the old cottage, build a McMansion and party 24/7. The neighbors complain about the noise but nothing is done until the house is trashed. Then your city council declares the dwelling a hazard and demands that you and your neighbors clean it up. Unfair? Of course, but that’s what has happened in the US, where the rich and power had a decades-long party and trashed the economy. Now Republicans want average citizens to pay for the repairs. -more-


Eclectic Rant: Monsanto and India Farmer Suicides

By Ralph E. Stone
Monday December 06, 2010 - 03:12:00 PM

For generations the farmers of India have sown their seeds, putting aside enough seeds for next year's crop. The women are usually responsible for safeguarding these seeds. Then along came Monsanto. -more-


On Mental Illness: The Electroshock Controversy

By Jack Bragen
Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 04:46:00 PM

The movie “One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest” has shaped how mentally ill people are perceived by a generation of Americans. In one of that movie’s final scenes, the main character, played by Jack Nicholson, has received either a lobotomy, or else massive electroshock treatment (It is not clear which) and has become essentially a vegetable. The big, Native American character (who, for most of the movie pretended to be unable to speak) mercifully smothers the protagonist to death with a pillow, and then rips a fixture out of the floor, hurls it through a window—and then runs away, presumably to live as a “normal” person. -more-


Senior Power: Aging in place is growing older without having to move.

By Helen Rippier Wheeler
Monday December 06, 2010 - 05:19:00 PM

Aging in place is not having to move from one's present residence in order to secure necessary support services in response to changing needs. It is estimated that 70% of seniors spend the rest of their life in the place where they celebrated their 65th birthday. -more-


Cartoon Page: Odd Bodkins, BOUNCE

Tuesday December 07, 2010 - 04:14:00 PM

Arts & Events

Machine Anxiety: Metropolis and Modern Times on DVD

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 10:54:00 AM

The mechanical age and the anxiety of industrial soceity gets a close examination with two new DVD releases from Kino and Criterion. The latest incarnation of Fritz Lang's Metropolis may very well be the last, as the film is now essentially about 95 percent complete. Kino's previous release was still missing about 45 minutes of footage, nearly a quarter of the original film. But after a near-complete print was finally unearthed in a Buenos Aries film archive, the 1927 silent-era masterpiece can be fully appreciated; the plot finally makes sense. -more-


Music Review: BCCO Maintains A High Standard

By Dorothy Snodgrass
Tuesday December 07, 2010 - 04:26:00 PM

Dedicated music lovers are clearly not deterred from attending concerts despite heavy winds and torrential rain. This accounts for the several hundred people who braved the elements last Sunday afternoon to fill the beautiful St. Joseph the Worker Church for a program of magnificent music presented by the Berkeley Community Chorus and Orchestra. -more-


Last Performance of John Brown's Truth Sunday at 3:30 in Berkeley

Tuesday December 07, 2010 - 04:00:00 PM

This Sunday at 3:30 is your last chance to see John Brown’s Truth, a production with a new art form, the improvisational opera. -more-


Eye from the Aisle: Berkeley Rep’s LEMONY SNICKET-- a Series of Unfortunate Occurrences

By John A. McMullen II
Monday December 06, 2010 - 04:12:00 PM
Geoff Hoyle in an orchestra of marionettes

The tone of the Lemony Snicket novels is cynical, expectant of the impending catastrophe, snide, rude, and hilarious. Children revel in it, I hear. -more-


Film Review: The Legend of Pale Male

By Gar Smith
Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 10:18:00 AM

San Francisco has the Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill and now the Big Apple has its own Big-screen Birdtacular — about the red-tailed hawks of Central Park West. The film’s titular predator is Pale Male (so-dubbed owing to his atypically light-colored plumage) and his story is told by Belgian-émigré-turned-NY shopkeeper-turned-filmmaker Frederic Lilien, who narrates the film with cornball sentimentality (“This is the story of a bird and a young man seeking their destiny in the greatest city on Earth.”) -more-


Eye from the Aisle: Becoming Julia at City Club--a good PBS special

By John A. McMullen II
Monday December 06, 2010 - 04:07:00 PM
Dave Garrett, Sally Clawson Janis Steven.

Becoming Julia is an extraordinarily well-acted biopic of Julia Morgan’s life and accomplishments played in the perfect setting of her “Little Castle” as -more-


Press Release: PEN Oakland Awards

From Kim McMillion
Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 10:09:00 AM

The 20th Annual PEN Oakland-Josephine Miles National Literary Awards will take place on Saturday, December 11, 2010, at the Oakland Public Library, Rockridge Branch, 5366 College Avenue from 2 to 5 p.m. The ceremony, which will be followed by a reception and book signings, is free and open to the public. Former state Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata will be the keynote speaker. PEN Oakland, founded in 1989, is a chapter of PEN International, founded in 1921. Dubbed "the blue collar PEN" by the New York Times, PEN Oakland annually sponsors the PEN Oakland-Josephine Miles Book Awards, named for the late poet and faculty member of U.C. Berkeley's English Department. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the awards. 
 Each year PEN Oakland presents an award to outstanding book titles published in the previous year. -more-


Arts Listings

Stage-San Francisco Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:59:00 AM

Stage-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:58:00 AM

Professional Dance-San Francisco Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:57:00 AM

Readings-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:57:00 AM

Galleries-San Francisco Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:52:00 AM

Classical Music-San Francisco Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:49:00 AM

Classical Music-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:48:00 AM

Popmusic-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:56:00 AM

Events Listings

Museums-San Francisco Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:55:00 AM

Outdoors-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:55:00 AM

Kids-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:54:00 AM

Museums-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:54:00 AM

Highlights-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:53:00 AM

General-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:52:00 AM

Exhibits-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:51:00 AM

Exhibits-San Francisco Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:51:00 AM

Dance-East Bay Through December 19

Wednesday December 08, 2010 - 09:50:00 AM

Back Stories

Opinion

Editorials

President Obama: Just Say No 12-08-2010

The Editor's Back Fence

New: Preview the Berkeley City Council Wikileaks Controversy in the Next Issue 12-14-2010

Cartoons

Cartoon Page: Odd Bodkins, BOUNCE 12-07-2010

Public Comment

Letters to the Editor 12-07-2010

In Defense of Wikileaks (from Baghdad to Berkeley) By Nathan Pitts 12-07-2010

Update regarding KPFA Budget Crisis and Staff Reductions By Arlene Engelhardt, Executive Director, Pacifica Radio 12-06-2010

Suggestions for Saving KPFA and What's Wrong Now By Mal Burnstein 12-07-2010

Statistics May Be the Answer to Dementia By Gerta Farber 12-07-2010

News

Flash: Six Activists and One Journalist Arrested
While Singing inside AIPAC Gala in Oakland
Bay Area Residents Say Tax Dollars to Jobs, not Military Aid to Israel
From Rae Abileah (Press Release) 12-13-2010

Five Armed Robberies in North Berkeley Under Investigation By Charlotte Perry-Houts 12-10-2010

Violent Muggings of Students Riding AC Buses Increase in Holidays

By Yael Degany

(Reader Commentary) 12-09-2010

Berkeley City Council Votes for Meter Holidays,Postpones Iceland Hearing, Re-Hires Non-Union Planners for Measure R Project By Charlotte Perry-Houts 12-09-2010

Berkeley Council Worksession Discusses Reduced Schedules for Employees, Cuts to Berkeley Mental Health By Charlotte Perry-Houts 12-09-2010

Flash: Armed Robbery at McDonald's on Berkeley-Albany Border By Bay City News and Planet (UPDATED) 12-08-2010

Point Molate EIR is Flawed, Probably Fatally (News Analysis) By Richmond Councilmember Tom Butt 12-08-2010

The Planet Visits Saturn and Explores the Sustainable Business Alliance By Gar Smith 12-08-2010

Granta Spotlights (Some) Spanish-Language Novelists By Joanna Graham 12-07-2010

Cell Phone Antennas: Why City Planning Standards Are Needed (Partisan Position) By Guy Benveniste 12-07-2010

Sexing Up Mathematics Does Not Compute (News Analysis) By Jonathan Farley 12-06-2010

Press Release: Christian, Jewish, and Muslim Groups Sponsor BART Ads Calling for Ending U.S. Military Aid to Israel From Jewish Voice for Peace 12-08-2010

Columns

Dispatches From The Edge: Ireland: The Great Hunger Returns By Conn Hallinan 12-06-2010

On the Road, With Butterflies By Joe Eaton 12-06-2010

The Public Eye: Who Should Pay to Fix the Economy? By Bob Burnett 12-06-2010

Eclectic Rant: Monsanto and India Farmer Suicides By Ralph E. Stone 12-06-2010

On Mental Illness: The Electroshock Controversy By Jack Bragen 12-08-2010

Senior Power: Aging in place is growing older without having to move. By Helen Rippier Wheeler 12-06-2010

Arts & Events

Stage-San Francisco Through December 19 12-08-2010

Stage-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010

Professional Dance-San Francisco Through December 19 12-08-2010

Readings-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010

Galleries-San Francisco Through December 19 12-08-2010

Classical Music-San Francisco Through December 19 12-08-2010

Classical Music-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010

Popmusic-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010

Machine Anxiety: Metropolis and Modern Times on DVD 12-08-2010

Music Review: BCCO Maintains A High Standard By Dorothy Snodgrass 12-07-2010

Last Performance of John Brown's Truth Sunday at 3:30 in Berkeley 12-07-2010

Eye from the Aisle: Berkeley Rep’s LEMONY SNICKET-- a Series of Unfortunate Occurrences By John A. McMullen II 12-06-2010

Film Review: The Legend of Pale Male By Gar Smith 12-08-2010

Eye from the Aisle: Becoming Julia at City Club--a good PBS special By John A. McMullen II 12-06-2010

Press Release: PEN Oakland Awards From Kim McMillion 12-08-2010

Museums-San Francisco Through December 19 12-08-2010

Outdoors-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010

Kids-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010

Museums-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010

Highlights-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010

General-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010

Exhibits-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010

Exhibits-San Francisco Through December 19 12-08-2010

Dance-East Bay Through December 19 12-08-2010