At BA Plaza, 8:30 p.m. Saturday as more than 20 anti Wall Street protesters continue their "General Assembly" discussions. Police relations, and food are being discussed. Ten volunteered to spend the night
Ted Friedman
At BA Plaza, 8:30 p.m. Saturday as more than 20 anti Wall Street protesters continue their "General Assembly" discussions. Police relations, and food are being discussed. Ten volunteered to spend the night

Page One

New: Berkeley Dodges End of the World, Joins National Anti-Wall Street Revolution Saturday at Bank of America Plaza Downtown

By Ted Friedman
Saturday October 08, 2011 - 10:21:00 PM
Bo-Peter Laanen, 20, a Cal poly-sci major is second from left in foreground. His techniques moved the crowd from the planning stage to an all-night camp-in Saturday at Bank of America Plaza downtown

As Wall Street protests spread across America from Manhattan—to Boston, Hartford, Savannah, San Francisco, Seattle, Los Angeles, Huntsville, Birmingham, Mobile. Columbus, Ga., Chicago, San Diego, among others—Berkeley, which recently survived the end of the world while awaiting "the revolution," joined one Saturday afternoon at the Bank of America Plaza at Center and Shattuck. -more-



U.S. Prosecutors Announce Crackdown on Medical Marijuana Stores

By Julia Cheever (Bay City News Service)
Friday October 07, 2011 - 10:25:00 AM

Federal prosecutors in California announced a full-court-press crackdown on the state's commercial marijuana industry today, saying they will not allow large-scale, for-profit enterprises in the name of medical marijuana. -more-



Public Comment

New: Occupy Berkeley Report

By Steve Martinot
Sunday October 09, 2011 - 03:11:00 PM

The Berkeley occupation, joining some 900 other cities, has begun. Though the original call was for people to come to the B of A grounds at Center and Shattuck to plan an occupation, which would then begin on Saturday, Oct. 15, 100 people showed up, and the decision was made to begin right away. -more-


New: Hancock's Senate Bill 555 Release is Wrong: Berkeley's Solar Program Went Up in Flames

By Nigel Guest
Saturday October 08, 2011 - 10:43:00 PM

Loni Hancock's press release for this bill that you published is seriously flawed. I wrote [the following commentary about the Berkeley Solar Program]for the (Berkeley) Council of neighborhood Associations' August, 2011 newsletter.

The key problems are:

1) The Federal Housing Financing Authority has ruled that solar property tax liens cannot be accepted for properties with "conforming" mortgage loans.

2) The BerkeleyFirst solar financing scheme was not a success. It was a disaster. Only 13 people went through with it, and, after the FHFA ruling, the City abandoned it. -more-


A Nurse's Viewpoint

By Berit Block, RN
Friday October 07, 2011 - 08:12:00 AM

I have been a Registered Nurse at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center for over 29 years. I love my job. I started at age 24 when it was Merritt Hospital and have worked there through various mergers and labor disputes and strikes. We, as Registered Nurses, have worked very hard through the years for a contract that protects our patients and offers us fair working conditions and upholds our work as a profession. Our contract is upheld by nurses working in other facilities as a Gold Standard. What is happening now, as we are negotiating our contract is unprecedented. Never, in almost 30 years have I experienced what we are now going through. We are asking for language in the contract for better murse-patient staffing ratios and it should be noted that California is one of the only states that has a law that mandates nurse-patient ratios to protect the patients. These have already decreased the number of deaths and poor outcomes in the state. We, as CNA members, are only asking that our previous contract be upheld. We are not asking for anything new, not even a cost of living pay raise. We only want NO TAKEAWAYS. -more-


Editorial

"Occupy Wall Street" Comes to Berkeley

By Becky O'Malley
Wednesday October 05, 2011 - 12:26:00 PM

As Jimmy Durante used to say, ever’body wants tuh ged in tuh duh’act. (If you’re too young to remember him and/or don’t come from Brooklyn, Everybody Wants to Get into the Act.) After a frustratingly slow start, the Occupy Wall Street action finally has legs.

Over the weekend, it became front page news in the big national papers. They all ran approximately the same story, recounting how the previously invisible campers took to the road and were arrested in impressive numbers while trying to cross the Brooklyn Bridge in the auto lane. Most of the stories featured approximately identical quotes from various Poli Sci professors at second-tier institutions, ones easily located in the metropolitan areas where the newspapers were published, on the order of “If they want to accomplish anything, they’ll need a program and identified leaders.”

Well, no. The most useful analysis of what seems to be going on could be found on the front page of yesterday’s New York Times Science Section, in a fascinating article about slime molds. Here’s the basics: -more-


The Editor's Back Fence

This Is the Weekend Issue: Good until Monday

Sunday October 09, 2011 - 01:21:00 PM

We're trying this week to use the issue with Friday's date all through the weekend for consistency. If you have time, keep checking for updates. The issue with Monday's date will appear midday. -more-


Columns

It’s the Water, Stupid: The Perils of Clearcutting

By Bob Burnett
Friday October 07, 2011 - 08:47:00 AM

When you fly to the west coast, you usually pass over the Sierra Nevada mountain range. On a clear day you’ll notice the surrounding forests are irregular; they’ve been “checkerboarded.” Millions of acres have been logged and ”clearcut.” While problematic on many levels, clearcutting imperils the drinking water for 45 million Americans. -more-


On Mental Illness: Smoking, Obesity and Type II Diabetes

By Jack Bragen
Sunday October 09, 2011 - 01:19:00 PM

Far too many persons with mental illness literally “drop dead” at too young an age. In many instances, our deaths are the result of preventable health issues that most un-afflicted people address by middle age. The mental health treatment system is failing to provide preventative maintenance to a population which is very vulnerable to premature illness and death through heart disease, type II diabetes, high blood pressure, and emphysema. If the assumption is that persons with mental illness have less competence compared to the mainstream population, then it becomes the responsibility of mental health caregivers to help regulate the diet, smoking and exercise level of their clientele. -more-


Back Stories

Opinion

Editorials

"Occupy Wall Street" Comes to Berkeley 10-05-2011

The Editor's Back Fence

This Is the Weekend Issue: Good until Monday 10-09-2011

Hancock Bill Extends Berkeley Solar Finance Scheme to State: Was it a Success or a Failure? 10-06-2011

UC Mines Our Brains for the Sake of Corporate Profit 10-04-2011

This is the Weekend Issue 10-01-2011

Cartoons

Cartoon Page: Odd Bodkins: The Happy Couple Dan O'Neill 10-04-2011

Public Comment

New: Occupy Berkeley Report By Steve Martinot 10-09-2011

New: Hancock's Senate Bill 555 Release is Wrong: Berkeley's Solar Program Went Up in Flames By Nigel Guest 10-08-2011

A Nurse's Viewpoint By Berit Block, RN 10-07-2011

Beware the Hurry to Build at Haste and Telegraph By Carol Denney 10-05-2011

How Berkeley Employee Costs Eat Up the Rest of the City's Budget By David M. Wilson, Berkeley Budget SOS 10-04-2011

Pepper Spray Times Grace Underpressure 10-04-2011

Official Statement from Occupy Wall Street Forwarded by Estelle Jelinek 10-05-2011

Who has the Right to Remove Benches At Bus Stops? A Bus Stop Bench Story By Lydia Gans 10-03-2011

Laura's Law Revisited: Response to Ralph Stone By Jack Bragen 10-01-2011

News

New: Berkeley Dodges End of the World, Joins National Anti-Wall Street Revolution Saturday at Bank of America Plaza Downtown By Ted Friedman 10-08-2011

U.S. Prosecutors Announce Crackdown on Medical Marijuana Stores By Julia Cheever (Bay City News Service) 10-07-2011

Berkeley's New Smart Boot System: The Potential for Abuse (News Analysis) By Thomas Lord 10-06-2011

Steve Jobs: Arab-American By Shirin Sadeghi (New America Meda) 10-06-2011

Parking Ticket Scofflaws Take Note! Berkeley's About to Boot Your Car By Thomas Lord 10-04-2011

Mumps Outbreak on UC Berkeley Campus Prompts Call for Vaccination Boosters By Patricia Decker (BCN) 10-05-2011

Charles Rawson Collier, 1935-2011 10-05-2011

Updated: Nobel Prize News Wakes Berkeley Professor By Jeff Shuttleworth(BCN 10-04-2011

Berkeley's Northbrae Neighborhood Called One of America's Great Places 10-04-2011

Updated: Daniels to be Interim Berkeley City Manager 10-04-2011

Press Release: UC Berkeley's Saul Perlmutter awarded 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics From Robert Sanders, UC Berkeley Media Relations 10-04-2011

Press Release: Public Meetings Planned for AC Transit Redistricting Process From Clarence Johnson, AC Transit Media Affairs Manager 10-03-2011

Does Signing a Petition Give Parents a Voice in Schools? By David Bacon 10-03-2011

Dr. Toy's Best Toys By Stevanne Auerbach, Ph.D. 10-03-2011

Columns

It’s the Water, Stupid: The Perils of Clearcutting By Bob Burnett 10-07-2011

On Mental Illness: Smoking, Obesity and Type II Diabetes By Jack Bragen 10-09-2011

Senior Power: The older the fiddler, the sweeter the tune. English proverb. By Helen Rippier Wheeler 10-06-2011

American Pie: A Cautionary Tale About Three Sixth Grade Misfits By Ruth Rosen 10-06-2011

Dispatches From The Edge: Why The Drone Wars Threaten Us All By Conn Hallinan 10-04-2011

My Commonplace Book (a diary of excerpts copied from printed books, with comments added by the reader.) By Dorothy Bryant 10-04-2011

On Mental Illness: The Expectation of Employment By Jack Bragen 10-03-2011

Arts & Events

Berkeley Arts Festival Continues By Bonnie Hughes 10-06-2011

American Teacher Has a Lesson: Superman Is a Myth; Teachers Are the Real Heroes Review by Gar Smith 10-04-2011

Theater Review: Patience Worth by Symmetry Theatre Company By Ken Bullock 10-05-2011

Friends of Negro Spirituals Heritage Day is Saturday By Ken Bullock 10-05-2011

Press Release: Afghanistan Peace Day: On the 10-year anniversary of the US war in Afghanistan, the Afghan and American people call for peace. From Adam Hudson and Fatima 10-04-2011

Eye From the Aisle: PHAEDRA at Shotgun Players—heart-rending, masterful drama By John A. McMullen II 10-04-2011

BAY AREA CHILDREN’S THEATRE brings MAGIC SCHOOL BUS to life at Freight and Salvage thru Oct 23 By John A. McMullen 10-02-2011

Don't Miss This in October By Dorothy Snodgrass 10-01-2011