Opinion

Editorials

The Persistent Myth of the Impartial Press, in the Nation and Even in Berkeley

By Becky O'Malley
Wednesday July 27, 2011 - 01:14:00 PM

In his blog today, Paul Krugman tackles a virus which has almost taken over the body politic, insidious creeping centrism. The whole piece is well worth reading, but here’s the money quote:

“We have a crisis in which the right is making insane demands, while the president and Democrats in Congress are bending over backward to be accommodating — offering plans that are all spending cuts and no taxes, plans that are far to the right of public opinion.

“So what do most news reports say? They portray it as a situation in which both sides are equally partisan, equally intransigent — because news reports always do that. And we have influential pundits calling out for a new centrist party, a new centrist president, to get us away from the evils of partisanship.”


Professor Krugman, now almost the only intelligent voice allowed to be heard in the corporate press, spent most of his early career in academic economics, so it’s no wonder that he’s shocked at what’s going on in national politics and how the situation is being covered in the press. But sad to say, militant centrism is not all that new. It’s just gotten much, much worse lately. -more-


The Editor's Back Fence

New: Try a Bit of Bach Today

Saturday July 30, 2011 - 06:45:00 PM

A tasty little treat provided by Berkeley's Magnatunes for our enjoyment.

-more-


Cartoons

Cartoon Page: Odd Bodkins, BOUNCE

Wednesday July 27, 2011 - 02:04:00 PM

Public Comment

Letters to the Editor

Wednesday July 27, 2011 - 03:05:00 PM

Budget Deficit; Debt Ceiling; Tea Party = Republican Suicide -more-


Berkeley Iceland--There Are Better Alternatives than Sports Basement

By Tom Killilea / Save Berkeley Iceland
Wednesday July 27, 2011 - 02:52:00 PM

The preservation of Berkeley Iceland, a major goal of Save Berkeley Iceland, was solidified in the Summer of 2010 when the California State Historical Resources Commission found the building eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. At the same time the rink was listed on the State Register of Historical Resources. This reaffirms the 2007 landmark designation by the Berkeley Landmark Preservation Commission. While the preservation of the building is secure, the future of Berkeley Iceland as a community asset is still threatened. -more-


Chase Logo Foreshadows a Berkeley Skyline of Advertising

By Steven Finacom
Wednesday July 27, 2011 - 01:43:00 PM

Is there anyone in Berkeley who wants the skyline of the city to be defined, night and day, by blatant commercial advertising?

It’s hard to imagine there is—other than, perhaps, a few libertarians who don’t like any sort of governmental regulation on principle, or some property owners who always put profit above community.

However, the City of Berkeley has now allowed commercial signage to prominently mark the tallest building in Downtown Berkeley, and the door is open for anyone else to do the same. -more-


Our Homes--Obama's Gift to Wall Street

by Daniel Borgström
Wednesday July 27, 2011 - 02:13:00 PM

I turn 70 this summer, and I've been fearing that President Obama was about to make a deal cutting Social Security and Medicare. But a few days ago on KPFA I heard of something just as bad--a possibility I hadn't even thought of. Obama is considering a deal to close tax loopholes which would eliminate the "home mortgage interest write-off." It's part of the Gang of Six Plan to reduce the deficit. -more-


Translating Code: Deciphering the Real Republican Agenda

By The Occasional Curmudgeon
Wednesday July 27, 2011 - 02:01:00 PM

First, we are a civilized people. We are, after all, Berkeleyans. We abhor violence and have institutionalized and elevated the pursuit of peace to the level of religion. We led the resistance to Bush’s invasion of Iraq, and our Congressional district’s representative—herself a resident of Our Fair City—was the only one of more than 400 House members to vote against U.S. action in Afghanistan immediately after 9/11. So we would never raise a hand against another human being, not even in self defense. We are, after all, Berkeleyans…. -more-


The Emaciated Middle Class and a Cream-Top Economy

By Rizwan A. Rahmani
Wednesday July 27, 2011 - 10:11:00 AM

Despite the very nature and raison d’etre of Congress as a forum to discuss and negotiate solutions to the nation’s needs, we are knee-deep in “my-way-or-the-highway” season. Eric Canter, the glum and sophomoric Virginian, and Minority Whip Jon Kyl (of “wasn’t meant to be a factual statement” when talking about the Planned Parenthood budget fame) walked out of debt ceiling talks, and John Boehner too walked out and said “I have decided to end discussions with the White House and begin conversations with the leaders of the Senate in an effort to find a path forward." (beholden to his Tea Party contingency), vowing to leave taxes as they are but cut spending by several trillion dollars over ten year. Really? This is a transparently ideological maneuver manifested by a total lack of understanding of the intricacies of our political process: a single-minded posturing to promote a single-strategy approach, cutting spending a la Grover Norquist. -more-