One of the protesters at yesterday's "Occupy Cal" demonstration...
Steven Finacom
One of the protesters at yesterday's "Occupy Cal" demonstration...

Extra

Fatal Shooting Near Occupy Oakland Apparently Unconnected

By Bay City News
Thursday November 10, 2011 - 09:15:00 PM

A man in his early 20s was fatally shot near the "Occupy Oakland" encampment in downtown Oakland this evening, a police spokeswoman said. -more-



Page One

Updated: Thirty-Nine Protesters Arrested Yesterday at UC Berkeley--Meeting at 6pm Today

By Scott Harris (BCN)
Thursday November 10, 2011 - 04:52:00 PM

Protesters in the burgeoning "Occupy Cal" movement at the University of California at Berkeley are continuing to congregate outside Sproul Hall on campus today after demonstrations on Wednesday drew thousands and resulted in dozens of arrests. -more-



Press Release: City of Berkeley Police did not Participate in Campus Actions re Occupy Cal

From Sgt. Mary C. Kusmiss,BPD Public Information Officer
Thursday November 10, 2011 - 10:45:00 AM

We are writing this as we have received inquiries, calls and emails and wanted to offer accurate information to those who have questions or inquired.

There has been some widespread confusion as to the law enforcement entities that were involved in the Occupy Cal events of last evening. Members of the City of Berkeley Police Department (BPD) were not part of any mutual aid or assistance last evening/night. We have received calls and emails about our presence there. Out of respect and policy, we defer to UCPD to speak to their jurisdiction, activities and what assistance they sought.

City of Berkeley Police department (BPD) did manage the protest/demonstration during a part of the afternoon of November 9, 2011 when the group of several hundred marched onto City of Berkeley streets which are our jurisdiction. Groups have often done this when protesting or demonstrating in the past. BPD had bike officers, motor officers, parking enforcement officers and patrol officers to maintain community safety, the safety of participants, officer safety and to monitor the group for any unlawful activity. There was much verbal energy but no arrests were made. It went fairly smoothly. BPD managed the march until the group returned to UC campus. -more-



UC Berkeley Police Remove Tents, Protest Continues

By Erika Heidecker (BCN)
Wednesday November 09, 2011 - 11:46:00 PM

Police have dismantled an encampment at the University of California at Berkeley tonight and protesters continue to hold their ground. -more-



Flash: Video of UC Berkeley Police Beating Up "Occupy" Students

By Miles Matthews
Wednesday November 09, 2011 - 11:02:00 PM

< -more-



Scenes from a Protest

By Ted Friedman
Thursday November 10, 2011 - 12:55:00 AM
Tents, to right of Sproul Hall entrance in Sproul Plaza, U.C., are what's left of a larger encampment which was raided earlier today. The tents and the banners on Spruoul Hall, to right, are in violation of UCB restrictions, according to a UCPD spokesman. Later there was a clash with police.


“Occupy” Protests Come to UC Berkeley Campus

By Steven Finacom
Wednesday November 09, 2011 - 11:21:00 PM

A day designated to “Occupy Cal” included dawn to dusk protest activities on the UC Berkeley campus on Wednesday, including outdoor classes, a large noontime rally, a slightly smaller but still vigorous march to the Telegraph Avenue Bank of America, debate and establishment of a small tent occupation on campus, and a mid-afternoon confrontation with UC Police which resulted in removal of some of the tents and a few arrests.

As dusk fell and a full moon rose over the Berkeley Hills, three news helicopters thrummed above Sproul Plaza and hundreds milled about two tents set up after the afternoon occupation.

Most of the protest occurred quite close to my campus office so I was able to take a late lunch to watch part of the rally and march. Later, when shouting arose I stepped outside for a short mid-afternoon break to watch the tent confrontation, then returned after work to see what remained.

Two photo essays will be posted here, a combination of my pictures and other contributed pictures. The first essay traces the events of the day in roughly chronological sequence. The second shows the wide variety of protest signs that were hoisted during the demonstrations. -more-



Chronology of a Protest

By Steven Finacom
Thursday November 10, 2011 - 12:16:00 AM
In an especially Berkeley scene, UC Berkeley Police Prius patrol cars were lined up in the morning along Bancroft Way next to police vans and news vans.

A photo chronology of the November 9, 2011 “Occupy Cal” Day of Protest -more-



Creative Cal Tuition Protest Signs

By Steven Finacom
Wednesday November 09, 2011 - 11:55:00 PM
A simple “SOS” appeal against the backdrop of Sproul Hall and the Sather Campanile.

A sampling of the creative signs at the November 9, 2011, “Occupy Cal” Protest. Captions provide the text of the signs. -more-



Public Comment

About Ted's Position

By Thomas Lord
Wednesday November 09, 2011 - 11:38:00 PM

I was thinking about Ted's "occupy yourself!" rant. I'd seen some people take offense at it and at some of Ted's other takes on Occupy. I was thinking about what to say to those people. It's this:

Ted's bent here is just run of the mill cynical nihilism. There's a lot of that around here, particularly among people of a certain generation. They think: Grass roots revolutionary change is impossible, wrong-headed, and pitiful -- don't you know? Anything that smells vaguely like ideology is almost certainly meaningless. Uncle Ted will share his views on the absurdities and vacuousness of the whole affair... he's seen it all unfold before.

Which is a perfectly reasonable position for Ted to take, even if he's wrong. -more-


"Some things never change": Student Protests at UC Berkeley

By Jane Stillwater
Wednesday November 09, 2011 - 11:33:00 PM

On tonight's news, they featured various segments covering protests at Occupy Oakland, Occupy Los Angeles, Occupy Denver, Occupy Seattle, Occupy New York, Occupy Austin, Occupy Chicago, etc. And tonight I was also a part of "Occupy Cal". And the university police charged into a mass of student demonstrators like they were going after bank robbers or bad guys instead of just students protesting HUGE tuition hikes. And the students stood their ground on Sproul Plaza against great odds. -more-


Student Non-Violence Succeeds in Berkeley

By Gar Smith (Free Speech Movement Veteran)
Thursday November 10, 2011 - 10:42:00 AM

I have just finished watching some of the videos of the police attacking unarmed students on the UC Berkeley campus. The beatings are appalling. And the reappearance of "non-lethal" shotguns on campus inexcusable. (Question: Was the office who shot a demonstrator with a beanbag blast during the last campus incursion ever identified and held accountable?) But, in addition to seeing more evidence of deplorable police behavior, I also saw something new, remarkable and inspiring -- it was expressed in the decorum of the students. -more-


Call Yudof and Brown re Occupy Cal

By Mary Rose Kaczorowski
Thursday November 10, 2011 - 09:19:00 AM

CALL President Yudof and Gov. Jerry Brown—keep calling and emailing.

Tell them you are a resident of California (and where you live) and a taxpayer!
Tell them the beatings yesterday of peaceful Cal students gathered at Sproul Hall, the Home of the Free Speech Movement is immoral and that is not how we want our tax dollars to be used.
Tell them you will not support any Cal events or sporting events until the University supports students in their quest for an affordable education and stop the expansion of a corporate based privatized University that serves Corporations.
-more-


Editorial

Berkeley's Booting Scheme Creates Maximum Problems, Minimum Revenue

By Becky O'Malley
Wednesday November 09, 2011 - 09:48:00 AM

Back to Berkeley, after the excitement in Oakland seems to have settled into a long slog, this week we have an example of the unintended consequences of the city management’s latest attempt to squeeze more moolah out of the citizenry.

You may remember that The Management, rubberstamped as usual by a complaisant group of electeds, has been sold Smart Boot, a computerized scheme for rapid collection of outstanding traffic tickets. Like many innovations which glom on to “Smart” branding, it’s a dumb idea which is looking dumber and dumber all the time. -more-


The Editor's Back Fence

Blogging Occupy Cal

Thursday November 10, 2011 - 09:54:00 AM

For an account of what happened late last night and lots of pictures, see Steve Leibel's blog post with overview of events & a little editorializing ...

-more-


Back Stories

Opinion

Editorials

Berkeley's Booting Scheme Creates Maximum Problems, Minimum Revenue 11-09-2011

The Editor's Back Fence

Blogging Occupy Cal 11-10-2011

New: Thoughts on Oakland 11-06-2011

Cartoons

Cartoon Page: BOUNCE By Joseph Young 11-09-2011

Cartoon Page: Odd Bodkins By Dan O'Neill 11-09-2011

Public Comment

About Ted's Position By Thomas Lord 11-09-2011

"Some things never change": Student Protests at UC Berkeley By Jane Stillwater 11-09-2011

Student Non-Violence Succeeds in Berkeley By Gar Smith (Free Speech Movement Veteran) 11-10-2011

Call Yudof and Brown re Occupy Cal By Mary Rose Kaczorowski 11-10-2011

Letters 11-10-2011

Occupy America By Michael Parenti 11-09-2011

KPFA, A Year Later – A Reflection By Akio Tanaka 11-09-2011

Occupy Yourself! By Ted Friedman 11-09-2011

New: The Berkeley Bowl Parking Lot Saga By M. Sarah Klise 11-06-2011

New: They Can Take
poem for Occupy
by Carol Denney 11-06-2011

General Strike in Oakland: The Past Seeds the Present By Judy Gumbo Albert / The Rag Blog 11-04-2011

Free Speech Must Be for All, Even Panhandlers By Richard Salzman 11-04-2011

Press Release: Berkeley Copwatch Demands No Berkeley Mutual Aid to Shut Down Oakland Protests! From Berkeley Copwatch 11-06-2011

A Modest Proposal for the 1% By Wendy Schlesinger 11-04-2011

News

Fatal Shooting Near Occupy Oakland Apparently Unconnected By Bay City News 11-10-2011

Updated: Thirty-Nine Protesters Arrested Yesterday at UC Berkeley--Meeting at 6pm Today By Scott Harris (BCN) 11-10-2011

Press Release: City of Berkeley Police did not Participate in Campus Actions re Occupy Cal From Sgt. Mary C. Kusmiss,BPD Public Information Officer 11-10-2011

UC Berkeley Police Remove Tents, Protest Continues By Erika Heidecker (BCN) 11-09-2011

Flash: Video of UC Berkeley Police Beating Up "Occupy" Students By Miles Matthews 11-09-2011

Scenes from a Protest By Ted Friedman 11-10-2011

“Occupy” Protests Come to UC Berkeley Campus By Steven Finacom 11-09-2011

Chronology of a Protest By Steven Finacom 11-10-2011

Creative Cal Tuition Protest Signs By Steven Finacom 11-09-2011

Open Letter to Chancellor Birgenau and Chief Celaya re Free Speech on Berkeley Campus By Councimember Kriss Worthington 11-09-2011

Flash: UC Berkeley Police in Riot Gear Pull Down "Occupy Cal" Tents By Scott Morris 11-09-2011

Updated: UC Berkeley Students, Employees "Occupy Cal" By Scott Morris BCN) 11-09-2011

Berkeley's Solar Calendar Rocks By Gar Smith 11-09-2011

From Port to Plaza and Back Again (First Person) by Daniel Borgström 11-09-2011

Another Earthquake Near Berkeley on Saturday Afternoon From usgs.gov 11-05-2011

After Closing Port of Oakland, Occupy Berkeley Faces Problems Back Home (News Analysis) By Ted Friedman 11-04-2011

Hundreds Pack Emotional Oakland Council Meeting on Occupy Oakland By Melissa McRobbie (BCN) 11-04-2011

Meet the Diablo Canyon PeaceWalkers in Berkeley Today By Gar Smith 11-04-2011

Columns

Wild Neighbors: The Incredible Non-shrinking Birds By Joe Eaton 11-09-2011

Dispatches From the Edge: Playing With Fire In Korea By Conn Hallinan 11-09-2011

Eclectic Rant: Time for the Super Committee to Bite the Bullet By Ralph E. Stone 11-09-2011

New: My Commonplace Book (a diary of excerpts copied from printed books, with comments added by the reader.) By Dorothy Bryant 11-06-2011

Senior Power… In the loop By Helen Rippier Wheeler 11-04-2011

The Public Eye: A New Declaration of Independence By Bob Burnett 11-04-2011

On Mental Illness: The Causes By Jack Bragen 11-04-2011

Arts & Events

Around & About Music: Opera Lab's reading of Massenet's 'Sapho'; Greenlief, Kjaerkgaard, Perkis--and Empty cage--at Berkeley Arts Festival; Dazzling Divas at Bateau Ivre By Ken Bullock 11-09-2011

Reviews: The Residents' Randy Rose at the Marsh; 'The Internationalist': Just Theater at Ashby Stage By Ken Bullock 11-09-2011

Around & About Theater: "Cracked Clown'--David A.Moss at the East Bay Media Center; 'Shoot O'Malley Twice'--Virago Theater; Gesture Vocabularies, lecture & video on mudras in Indian ritual & traditional theater at UCB By Ken Bullock 11-09-2011

Fred Frith at the Berkeley Arts Festival on Friday: 11.11.11 Cosmic Portal Transit Date! 11-09-2011

A Slew of Reviews: Plays Around & About Over the Past Couple of Weeks By Ken Bullock 11-06-2011

Around & About Music: Berkeley Chamber Concerts presents SF Guitar Quartet By Ken Bullock 11-04-2011

Around & About Theater & Fine Art: Exhibit & Auction of Paintings of Noh Theater to Benefit Japanes Performing Arts, Earthquake-Tsunami Victims By Ken Bullock 11-04-2011