Quan "Very Saddened" by Violence at Oakland Protest
Oakland Mayor Jean Quan said today that she's "very saddened" by "Occupy Oakland" protests Tuesday night that turned violent. -more-
Oakland Mayor Jean Quan said today that she's "very saddened" by "Occupy Oakland" protests Tuesday night that turned violent. -more-
The fences are coming down at Oakland's Frank Ogawa Plaza this evening while a general assembly meeting continues among "Occupy Oakland" protesters. -more-
Demonstrators at the "Occupy Oakland" general assembly meeting at Frank Ogawa Plaza tonight addressed the critical injury of Scott Olsen, a former Marine who served two tours in Iraq, which occurred during Tuesday night's demonstration. -more-
We have received several inquiries regarding the City of Berkeley's response to the City of Oakland's request for Mutual Aid assistance with recent events in and around Frank Ogawa Plaza. -more-
The Oakland Police Department (OPD) requested mutual aid through the Alameda County Mutual Aid Coordinator, who in turn requested mutual aid from various law enforcement agencies within the county. The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO) is the Operational Area Mutual Aid Coordinating entity. The basis of the request was that OPD was unable to address and manage the situation safely (and take care of the City of Oakland) with their internal resources. -more-
Occupy Oakland will reconvene tonight at 6:00 pm Pacific time to conduct its next General Assembly, at the corner of Broadway and 14th. We urge the public to join us tonight and help us build consensus. We are the 99%, and you are too. Please participate in true democracy. -more-
An Iraq War veteran was critically injured during "Occupy Oakland" protests Tuesday night when he was hit in the head with a police projectile, according to the group Iraq Veterans Against the War. -more-
Remarkable footage posted by several reporters on YouTube seems to show that some police in Oakland deliberately aimed projectiles at those aiding a wounded Occupy Oakland protester. The eviction was managed by Oakland police, but Berkeley police also took part in the assault on the Occupy protesters. Some of the videos can be seen below: -more-
Oakland police officers in riot gear used "less-than-lethal" munitions on about 300 protesters Tuesday night after a day of police raids and riots when "Occupy Oakland" campers were evicted from a city plaza, an Oakland police spokeswoman said.
During another protest Tuesday night many officers were assaulted, doused and hit with hazardous materials and hit with large rocks and bottles, police spokeswoman Cynthia Perkins said.
An Oakland police officer said officers in riot gear had bright blue paint thrown on them during the rallies Tuesday evening.
Perkins said this resulted in a declaration of an unlawful assembly and an order to disperse. To enforce dispersal officers used "less-than-lethal force tactics".
-more-
As a nearby resident of Civic Center Park, I've cast a wary eye on the "Occupy Berkeley" encampment since it metastasized away from the B of A circle. Dated signs ("No Taxes For Star Wars") reinforce my impression that Berkeley has never not been Occupied and this just becomes an excuse to put up tents in the park. I figured the ardor would cool come the rains. Friends who grew up here suggested the sprinklers would put an end to it (as they recalled some of their high-school evenings concluding). All saw a risk of People's Park West and wondered how it might conclude or how bad it might get in the meanwhile. -more-
The National Lawyers Guild San Francisco Bay Area Chapter (NLGSF) condemns Oakland Police excessive force against Occupy demonstrators and violations of OPD Crowd Control Policy. -more-
For all practical purposes I would be considered one of the 5% and yet I whole heartedly support the actions of the Occupy movement worldwide. My children are highly educated, underemployed and unlikely to ever own their own home unless I pass before becoming infirm or diagnosed with chronic disease. They are not alone. -more-
To:Tom Bates, Mayor; Laurie Capetelli, Council person; Michael K. Meehan, Chief of Police
Why were police from the City of Berkeley involved in the violence of and by the police of Oakland (and others) on the the people of Occupy Oakland?
I am a tax-paying Berkeley homeowner and am outraged that my tax dollars were used to destroy that encampment-or any others; the more so because an already reduced police force was further diminished to be pulled away from their jobs. But that is not the major issue; it is that of both provocative and violent police actions toward citizens protesting peacefully.
-more-
The California Nurses Association/National Nurses United today condemned the early morning police raid on the peaceful Occupy Oakland encampment, and criticized Oakland Mayor Jean Quan for joining the list of mayors employing repression against the occupy movement. -more-
While no one’s paying much attention, a substantial part of the last remaining open space in flatlands Berkeley is being reconfigured by the Berkeley Unified School District in collusion with bureaucrats working for the City of Berkeley. There has been almost no meaningful public discussion either of the goals of planned lavish and well-funded building projects or of the schedule for carrying them out. -more-
Terrorism is not a statistic for us.”—Asif Ali Zardari, president of Pakistan
This is a Pakistani truism that few Americans understand. Since the U.S. invaded Afghanistan in October 2001, Pakistan has lost more than 35,000 people, the vast bulk of them civilians. While the U.S. has had slightly over 1800 soldiers killed in the past 10 years, Pakistan has lost over 5,000 soldiers and police. The number of suicide bombings in Pakistan has gone from one before 2001, to more than 335 since.
For most Americans, Pakistan is a two-faced “ally” playing a double game in Central Asia, all while siphoning off tens of billions of dollars in aid. For Pakistanis, the spillover from the Afghan war has cost Islamabad approximately of $100 billion. And this is in a country with a yearly GDP of around $175 billion, and whose resources have been deeply strained by two years of catastrophic flooding.
-more-
Berkeley Symphony, conducted by Joana Carneiro, opens the new season with music by Enrico Chapela, Brahms and Shostakovich, Thursday at 8, Zellerbach Auditorium. -more-
In his only West Coast appearance this season, former Berkeley Symphony music director and present emeritus conductor Kent Nagano will conduct the San Francisco Academy Orchestra at a gala concert to celebrate Alden Gilchrist's 60th anniversary as organist and music director at Calvary Presbyterian Church atop Pacific Heights in San Francisco, where Nagano has sung with the Chancel Choir, which will also perform, along with featured soloists, a jazz cycle by the Dave Scott Quartet and the Santa Rosa Children's Chorus, featuring music of Monteverdi, J. S. Bach, Mozart, Dvorak--and Gilchrist, Friday at 6 p. m, with a reception to follow. The community is invited, free of charge, but asked to RSVP: (415) 346-3832 x 60; gilchrist60@calvarypresbyterian.org -more-
The City Council and the School District Play Fast and Loose with Public Funds in Berkeley 10-24-2011
Opera Program Canned by NPR Because of Host's Occupy Participation 10-25-2011
Cartoon Page: Odd Bodkins: Jack Dan O'Neill 10-25-2011
Cartoon Page: BOUNCE: By Joseph Young 10-20-2011
New: Dealing Sensibly with Occupy Berkeley--Learning from Oakland's Mistakes John Vinopal,Resident, District 4 10-26-2011
Press Release: NLG Condemns Excessive Force Used by Oakland Police Against Occupy Demonstrators From Rachel Lederman, Bobbie Stein, Michael Flynn 10-26-2011
Supporting the Occupy Movement By Victoria Q. Legg 10-26-2011
Why Were Berkeley Police Involved in Evicting Occupy Oakland? By Barbara F Barbour 10-26-2011
Press Release: California Nurses Condemn Mayor Quan's Raid on Occupy Oakland 10-26-2011
Letters to the Editor 10-25-2011
Press Release: NLG Demands Immediate Release of Occupy Oakland Arrestees Contacts: Rachel Lederman 415-350-6496 Michael Flynn 510-866-4981 Carlos Villarreal 415-377-6961 10-25-2011
The Clown with the Broken Leg By Carol Denney 10-25-2011
Letters 10-22-2011
Possible New Council Chambers By Councilmembers Jesse Arreguin and Kriss Worthington 10-22-2011
Two Haiku for Yemen By Gar Smith 10-22-2011
Letter: Arreguin and Worthington Submit Agenda Item re Council Move to West Campus From Councilmember Jesse Arreguin 10-20-2011
Quan "Very Saddened" by Violence at Oakland Protest By Jeff Shuttleworth (BCN) 10-26-2011
Oakland Fences Down Tonight By Scott Morris(BCN) 10-26-2011
Protesters Speak about Injured Veteran, Call for Citywide Strike By Scott Morris (BCN) 10-26-2011
Memo Re How Berkeley Police Aided Oakland in Evicting Occupy Oakland From the Office of the City Manager 10-26-2011
Press Release: The City of Berkeley Police Department’s (BPD) Involvement in Occupy Oakland Dispersal From Sergeant Mary C. Kusmiss, BPD Public Information Officer 10-26-2011
Press Release: OCCUPY OAKLAND Regroups at 6:00 Tonight From Kevin Seal 10-26-2011
Iraq War Veteran Critically Injured by Police Projectile During "Occupy Oakland" Protests By Scott Morris (BCN) 10-26-2011
Police Brutality in Oakland-- Berkeley Police Present 10-26-2011
Oakland Occupy Teargassed, Evicted By Sasha Lekach (BCN) 10-26-2011
Using Police In Oakland to Clear Out Occupy Was a Mistake (Commentary) By Don Macleay 10-25-2011
Flash: Protesters Back at Oakland Plaza; Ordered to Disperse for Third Time By ScottMorris/JeffShuttleworth (BCN) 10-25-2011
Police Arrest at Least 75 Protesters During "Occupy Oakland" Raid By Jeff Shuttleworth (BCN) 10-25-2011
Oakland 12th Street BART Re-Opens By Sasha Lekach (BCN) 10-25-2011
Downtown Oakland Workers Asked to Come Late By Sasha Lekach (BCN) 10-25-2011
Oakland Police Shut Down Occupy Oakland By Sasha Lekach (BCN) 10-25-2011
Occupy Berkeley's Growing Tent City Occupied Saturday at Civic Center by Peaceful Bay Area Teachers; But How Long Will Peaceful Vibes Last? by Ted Friedman 10-24-2011
1991 Firestorm Remembered At 20th Anniversary Ceremony By Steven Finacom 10-23-2011
Press Release: Raid on Occupy Oakland "Highly Probable" Tonight From Kevin Seal 10-24-2011
Press Release: Teachers at Berkeley's Realm Charter Schools Join Union From Cathy Campbell 10-24-2011
More Aftershocks Today By Sasha Lekach (Bay City News Service) 10-22-2011
Updated: Second Earthquake Strikes Berkeley Tonight: 3.8 By Bay City News Service 10-20-2011
Updated: Earthquake in Berkeley Now Estimated to be 3.9 Magnitude 10-20-2011
Berkeley City and BUSD Consider Moving Meetings to West Berkeley, Abandoning Old City Hall By Steven Finacom 10-20-2011
New: Occupy Berkeley Deliberates Reviving "How Berkeley Can You Be" Oct. 30; Calls for "Grade-in" and Lawn Watering Saturday--in Lieu of a March by Ted Friedman 10-21-2011
Berkeley City College Student Wins Norman Mailer Writing Award 10-20-2011
Earthquake Advice By Dorothy Snodgrass 10-20-2011
Press Release: Village Movement Takes Root among UC Berkeley’s Dynamic Elders By Yasmin Anwar | UCB Media Relations 10-20-2011
Dispatches From The Edge: Pakistan: Reversing The Lens By Conn Hallinan 10-26-2011
Wild Neighbors:The Curse of Drosophila By Joe Eaton 10-25-2011
My Commonplace Book (a diary of excerpts copied from printed books, with comments added by the reader.) By Dorothy Bryant 10-25-2011
Eclectic Rant: Visiting Auschwitz By Ralph E. Stone & Judi Iranyi 10-25-2011
The New American Revolution: Occupy Wall Street By Bob Burnett 10-22-2011
On Mental Illness: Children on Medication By Jack Bragen 10-22-2011
My Commonplace Book (a diary of excerpts copied from printed books, with comments added by the reader.) By Dorothy Bryant 10-20-2011
Senior Power… “Always my best day of the week.” Part 1. By Helen Rippier Wheeler 10-20-2011
Berkeley Symphony Opens On Thursday With Music By Chapela, Brahms, Shostakovich By Ken Bullock 10-26-2011
Around & About Music: Kent Nagano Conducts at Gala Celebrating Alden Gilchrist's 60th Anniversary at Calvary Presbyterian By Ken Bullock 10-26-2011
Brain Raves: Exposing The Power of Subliminal Messaging Reviewed by Gar Smith 10-25-2011
No Sugar-Coating for This Realistic ANNIE at Berkeley Playhouse By John A. McMullen II 10-25-2011
Don't Miss This Around Halloween By Dorothy Snodgrass 10-24-2011
Around & About Theater: Central Works Premieres Brian Thorstenson's 'Embassy: A Domestic Diplomatic Comedy' By Ken Bullock 10-20-2011