Three teenage suspects have been charged as adults for the armed robbery, carjacking and kidnapping of a couple sitting in a car at an overlook in the Berkeley hills early on Thanksgiving morning, University of California at Berkeley police said today. -more-

University of California at Berkeley officials notified 1,600 people this week that their personal data might have been hacked. -more-

Large crowds are expected to attend two Berkeley City Council meetings tonight to speak out about recent anti-police protests and the city's response to them.

The meetings are scheduled for 5:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. at the Longfellow Middle School Auditorium at 1500 Derby St. in Berkeley.

The 5:30 p.m. session is a special meeting and the 7 p.m. session is a regular meeting.

Public comments on non-agenda items, such as the protests and the police response to them, will be allowed at both meetings. -more-

A coalition of clergy leaders staged a die-in and marched with university students through Berkeley today to respond to the deaths of unarmed black men at the hands of white police officers. -more-

A group of anonymous artists claimed responsibility for effigies of two black men and a woman hanging from nooses on the University of California at Berkeley campus on Saturday. -more-

Hundreds of protesters have made their way from Berkeley to a "Millions March" in Oakland this afternoon in which the group says they are calling attention to violence against communities of color. -more-

Police are investigating three cutout effigies of two black men and a woman hanging from nooses this morning on the University of California at Berkeley campus, police said. -more-

Two men have been charged with felonies for allegedly attacking police officers in Berkeley during separate protests on Wednesday, the Alameda County District Attorney's Office said today. -more-

Two men have been charged with felonies for allegedly attacking police officers in Berkeley during separate protests on Wednesday, the Alameda County District Attorney's Office said today. -more-

There is a march moving south in Berkeley near the Oakland border. It was on College where it crosses Ashby about 2 p.m. The Ashby-College intersection was blocked, forcing autos to detour around it. The Berkeley Police Department has issued this message via the Nixle applicantion: -more-

- A plain clothes California Highway Patrol officer who drew his gun and pointed it at protesters in Oakland on Wednesday is still on active duty and his supervisor said today there is no indication that he did anything wrong. -more-

A demonstration that started in Berkeley ended abruptly in Oakland Wednesday night when an undercover law enforcement officer pulled out a gun and pointed it at the crowd.

Only a few dozen protesters remained from a mass of between 150 and 200 people. Two officers, both dressed as civilians and wearing bandanas over their faces, were walking with the group when the demonstrators started pointing at them yelling, "Hey, they're undercover, they're cops!"

Oakland police Lt. Chris Bolton wrote on Twitter this morning that the officer was not an Oakland police officer. Bolton said Oakland police were the first to respond to the scene on a report from another agency.

Bolton wrote, "That outside agency has been notified to provide details and address concerns" regarding the officers' behavior at the protest.

[Update: Bolton indicated on Twitter this morning that the two undercover officers involved in this incident were from the CHP:

"Last night #OaklandPolice responded to a request for help during a California Highway Patrol arrest at Bay & Harrison St. (1/2)— Lt. Chris Bolton (@OPDChris) December 11, 2014"]

One Berkeley resident, Dylan, who declined to give his last name, said he pulled off the officer's bandana.

The two policemen started to walk away, but the protesters persisted, screaming at the two undercover cops. One of the officers pushed a protester aside. The man responded by pushing back and then the officer tackled him to the ground, handcuffing him.

The crowd, incensed, began to gather around them. The second officer pulled out his gun and pointed it at the crowd. More officers quickly arrived and dispersed the crowd.

"I'm a white man, and I pulled off (the [African-American] officer's) mask, but they punched a black man," Dylan said. "He got arrested." -more-

I came across El Sonar de las Mujeres de la Tierra y el Mar in San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico, in a store featuring memorabilia of the Zapatista rebellion: tee-shirts, posters, cards but also books, among them this one, pointed out to me by the man behind the counter, Tim Russo. -more-

Next week's Berkeley City Council meeting has been relocated to a larger venue after the mayor canceled Tuesday's meeting due to large anticipated crowds. -more-

NAM Editor’s Note: In Richmond, Calif., a city long equated with high rates of crime and poverty, the local police have taken steps in recent years to improve relations with the communities they serve. Highlighting those efforts, Richmond Chief of Police Chris Magnus turned out at a recent local rally against police brutality. The rally was one of many protests being staged in cities across the country in the wake of grand jury acquittals of white police officers in the killings of unarmed black men. He was interviewed by Richmond Pulse editor Malcolm Marshall.

It’s interesting to see a police chief in the middle of a protest against police brutality. What is your reason for being here today?

The police and the community share a common goal. We want peaceful protests to be something that people feel comfortable participating in and to understand that the police are guardians, because we should be protecting people’s constitutional rights.

But we also want to send a message that we care about everyone in the community. This needs to be a partnership between police and persons of color, black, brown, whatever. We need to be working together. -more-

Below is a video of the Berkeley Police beating and teargassing protesters on Telegraph on Saturday night. Following is the BPD's account of what they've been doing. -more-

Over the past few days, a series of demonstrations have happened in the City of Berkeley in response to recent incidents in Missouri and New York. With its rich history in the Free Speech movement, the City of Berkeley is and remains committed to ensuring the public’s right to peacefully assemble and protest. -more-

The Ashby BART station has been closed due to a protest march in Berkeley tonight, according to BART officials. -more-

Numerous Bay Area schools are closing Thursday because of a potentially dangerous wind and rainstorm moving into the area. -more-

A protest march through three East Bay cities devolved into a burglary and robbery spree in Emeryville Tuesday night after Berkeley police arrested six people and the California Highway Patrol arrested 13 people blocking a highway in Oakland, law enforcement officials said today. -more-

With heavy rains and strong winds expected to hit the Bay Area Thursday and Friday, the Department of Insurance is urging residents to review their insurance policies today. -more-

Hundreds of people have made their way into Oakland after walking through city streets in downtown Berkeley tonight to protest decisions to not indict white police officers in the deaths of unarmed black men. -more-

Numerous Bay Area schools are closing Thursday because of a potentially dangerous wind and rainstorm moving into the area. -more-

Richmond police Chief Chris Magnus and other police department brass stood shoulder to shoulder with other community members during a peaceful protest against police brutality in the East Bay city today. -more-

Thank you all for reaching out to me regarding the recent protests of the killings of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and police brutality in general.

I am personally outraged over these killings and strongly support overall goal of these protests which is to raise awareness of the inequities in our criminal justice system and to make it clear that black lives matter. I have participated in these protests over the last two days to show my solidarity for this movement. However, as the Councilmember for the Downtown, I am concerned over incidents of vandalism and violence by a small fringe segment of these protests whose goal is confrontation and damage not advancing the broader movement.

I understand that these protests have elicited a wide range of feelings on all sides, which is why even though the Mayor has cancelled tonight’s City Council meeting, Councilmember Kriss Worthington and I will be on the steps of Old City Hall (2134 MLK) tonight at 7 pm to hear from the protestors and from residents about their views. -more-

The Mayor’s office has just released this statement:

Dear members of the news media,

The regular Berkeley City Council meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight, December 9, has been postponed, as well as the special Work Session scheduled for 5:30 p.m. this evening. The Council Chambers can hold about 125 people, and we understand substantially more people are interested in attending the meeting due to recent events in Berkeley. We want to ensure that the community has as much access as possible to public meetings. The Agenda for the December 9 meeting will be rescheduled for a future date and public notice will be given prior to that meeting. A notice of meeting cancellation will be issued by the City Clerk and publicly posted. We apologize for any inconvenience. -more-

The Berkeley City Council has postponed its scheduled meeting for this evening because of planned disruptions by protesters, Mayor Tom Bates' office announced this afternoon. -more-

James Chang, aide to Berkeley Councilmember Jesse Arreguin, confirmed today that Mayor Tom Bates informed him that tonight's City Council meeting is being cancelled because there might be protesters in attendance, and the council chambers would be too small to hold them all. Chang said that Bates as the council's presiding officer under the city charter, has the power to cancel meetings at his sole discretion. Councilmember Kriss Worthington told the Planet that his aide, Alejandro Soto-Vigil, had been told the same thing, but he pointed out that the city of Berkeley could use some larger meeting rooms in buildings owned by the Berkeley Unified School District or Berkeley City College if the size of the council chambers in Berkeley's Maudelle Shirek Building (Old City Hall) is really the problem which Bates fears. A call to the Mayor's press aide, Charles Burress (who used to cover Berkeley for the San Francisco Chronicle) has not been returned. -more-

2000 protesters surged onto the freeway and stopped traffic in both directions for hours in my neighborhood. They drove a vehicle onto the train tracks and stopped all the north-south train traffic. We figured they hated cars, but who knew they hated trains, one of my neighborhood's best features. -more-

Berkeley police have announced this morning they arrested nine people in a "relatively peaceful" protest Monday night. -more-

The California Highway Patrol has announced that it arrested more than 150 protesters in Monday's standoff that blocked traffic in both directions on Interstate Highway 80 in Berkeley for about 90 minutes. -more-

When I first read Linda Maio’s statement about the protests, what I wanted to say was this. If you don’t want violence to occur on these demostrations, all you have to do is send the police home. There will be peacefulness. But then someone convinced me that that wouldn’t be enough. What you, Linda, and the rest of the city council need to do is get out there with the demonstrators, make yourselves known, march with them, and offer some solidarity with their cry for justice. You do believe in justice, don’t you?

Do you know the difference between a police department and an occupying army? The role of a police department is to protect people's rights, especially their right to call for justice from their own government. The role of an army of occupation is to insure that people obey the rule of power, and that any disobedience be squelched. And that inherently implies violence.

But after the people took over interstate 80 and shut down the Bay Bridge I realized that you have a bigger job. In fact, the job you have is so big I don’t think you can even see it. It is, as they say, too big to see. -more-

Dear residents,

This message follows the City Manager’s statement I forwarded to you yesterday. This one is from me.

The injustice that came to national attention in Ferguson and then Staten Island has deep roots, characterized by racism and fear, and it is widespread. It cannot, must not, be tolerated any longer. The police from these communities report they are feared and hated. They have the weaponry, authority, and power. Like apartheid in South Africa, there are two different realities, one far more powerful than the other. The question before all of us, as a community and as a nation, is where do we go from here to advance meaningful change.

I respect and support the demonstrations’ intent, but the violence and vandalism cannot be tolerated. I am extremely dismayed by the level of destruction and loss visited upon our city and its merchants. A small group of people have wreaked havoc on our Downtown, the Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center, and businesses in other areas of our city. It is cowardly and senseless, accomplishing nothing but enmity toward the legitimate and peaceful protests, and their intent, which I support. -more-

Protesters continue to snarl traffic in Berkeley tonight on city streets, the freeway, public transit and train tracks.

They have blocked both directions of the Eastshore Highway near University Avenue twice tonight within an hour.

About a hundred protesters were seen entering eastbound lanes of the Eastshore Highway near University Avenue and some jumped over the center divide to westbound lanes around 8 p.m. CHP officers were able to quickly take the protesters off the freeway.

The off-ramps to University Avenue from the freeway where Interstate Highway 80 and Interstate Highway 580 intersect have been closed.

At about 8:45 p.m., protesters were seen walking on eastbound and westbound lanes of the freeway near University Avenue bringing cars to a halt.

The approaches to eastbound Highway 80 from Highway 580, Interstate Highway 880 and the Bay Bridge have been closed due to the protests, CHP officials said. -more-

-more-

Berkeley police are reporting this morning that the protest Sunday night and earlier this morning over the failure of a New York grand jury to indict a white officer in the death of an unarmed black man has ended. -more-

It appears the demonstration has concluded. We are sending our officers home. We would like to thank the many agencies that assisted us this. I wanted to provide you with a brief update, before I head home this morning. I will be in late tomorrow.

We made five arrests connected with the demonstration for various charges (I don’t have a specific list of charges at this time). One of the arrested individuals was also the responsible who damaged Trader Joes the previous night using his skateboard. Another individual was arrested, was responsible for throwing a heavy object on Saturday, injury one of our officers. They were arrested for those offenses as well as additional charges for last night’s demonstration. -more-

Follow on Twitter for live updates #Berkeleyprotests,

12:20 a. m. Demonstrators have continued to march south on Shattuck Avenue near Oregon Street.Vandalism reported at Any Mountain and Walgreens. (BPD via Nixle). For full details, view this message on the web.

12:31 a.m. Demonstrators are now in the area of Telegraph Avenue and Ashby Avenue. Receiving reports of vandalism and looting at Whole Foods Market on Telegraph. (BPD via Nixle).



Related Searches: #oaklandprotest, berkeleyside, berkeley, #berkeleyprotests tonight, #berkeleyprotests livestream -more-

Entered 4 minutes ago: Demonstrators now at Allston and MLK. Berkeley Police Department -more-

Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates this afternoon released the following statement about the recent protests in Berkeley: -more-

(Saturday, December 6, 2014) -- It has just turned 10 o'clock. The sound of helicopters continues to rattle the night sky over North Berkeley. It's been like this for hours. -more-

From: Northern California Society of Professional Journalists Freedom of Information Committee Sent: Sunday, December 07, 2014 04:50 PM To: Berkeley Mayor's Office; Meehan, Michael Subject: Urgent - Police assault journalists in Berkeley

Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates

Berkeley Police Chief Michael K. Meehan

By Email

Dear Mayor Bates and Chief Meehan:

The Northern California chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists condemns, in the strongest terms possible, the outrageous conduct of law enforcement officers who assaulted members of the media during last night’s (Saturday, Dec. 6, 2014) demonstrations in Berkeley, California. You have an obligation to ensure that all officers, including those providing mutual aid, respect the constitutional rights of the press.

SPJ has been in touch with a number of working journalists who say they were struck with police batons while working and clearly displaying press credentials. In one incident, a journalist who was on assignment tells SPJ that he was holding out press credentials and telling an officer he was a news photographer when struck. This same journalist also reported seeing a colleague take “serious blows” from police who “hit him with impunity,” despite the fact that the colleague was “obviously press.” Other reporters also described witnessing or experiencing similar assaults. -more-

Currently, the demonstrators are in the area of Shattuck Avenue and Center Street. Several businesses are being damaged and looted. As a safety precaution please avoid the area. -more-

(Saturday, December 6, 2014) -- It has just turned 10 o'clock. The sound of helicopters continues to rattle the night sky over North Berkeley. It's been like this for hours. -more-

Demonstrations in Berkeley against police brutality have moved into Oakland this evening and breached state Highway 24 at 51 Street, according to police and protesters.

A California Highway Patrol officer said eastbound Highway 24 was closed due to police activity. Reports and photos on Twitter showed protestors on the freeway blocking traffic.

Demonstrator Alessandro Tiberio said the protest began at Bancroft and Telegraph avenues around 5 p.m. with only 50 people. Soon, the crowd swelled to 500 or more, according to Tiberio and police.

Tiberio said the march started with "very positive energy." He came to the demonstration to support black people who are protesting, he said.

"I'm an ally," Tiberio said. "It's important to stay focused on the fact that black lives matter. It's not that all lives don't matter but I'm here to support especially the black people who are most often the ones victimized by the police."

Berkeley police Officer Jennifer Coats said at least one demonstrator sustained minor injuries when he tried to prevent a business's windows from being broken by someone at the demonstration. -more-

We live on Regent St. and were at home when we started having burning eyes, skin and lungs. It seems that the police had started firing tear gas at the demonstrators on Telegraph Avenue. This is the most densely populated area in the city and the result of this police action had a direct impact on the residents living up here. When I called the 911 number and reported the problem and asked them to stop the tear gassing, the dispatcher said it was the protestors who had used tear gas and missiles against the police. They did not seem to care that the police action of gassing Telegraph Avenue was harming residents. Shades of the 1960s and James Rector. -more-

Protesters tried to set fire to my apartment building last night, white people in masks who were stopped by my young Latino neighbors. The protesters brought a tank of gas with them to the march. We had to rescue a recycling bin, which they wanted to use as a barricade or perhaps burn. All this does is hemorrhage overtime pay into police pockets and frighten people away from joining marches.

We have children in this building. We have dozens of residents who stood in front of our apartments astonished at being targeted, watching the circling helicopters in the moonlit sky. We have everything in common with people who oppose police brutality and support police accountability. We are old and young, we are black, white, latino, asian, and pacific islanders. We are a rainbow community with stories of our own about police misconduct.

What do you masked protesters prove with broken windows? What message do you send by smashing into a grocery store, a yarn store, or even the local Wells Fargo branch, which is right under my neighbors' apartment homes?

I'm not someone who has not marched, sat in, gone to jail. But I will not provide cover for cowards who exploit a peaceful effort to join the national voice against police corruption at a crucial moment. Broken windows might catch a photographer's or reporter's attention momentarily, but whatever ambiguous message vandalism sends is not nearly as powerful as numbers, which masked vandals never seem to master. Peaceful, nonviolent tactics don't just sound nice; they are the practical path to change. -more-

Police this morning said six people were arrested during an overnight protest that turned violent in Berkeley. -more-

Hundreds of protesters marched from the UC campus down to west Berkeley and stopped traffic briefly at the corner of University and San Pablo Avenue Friday night. Protesters smashed glass and vandalized property at the intersection's largest building which has several commercial properties as well as 26 residential apartment units, some housing families with children, which are part of a low-income housing co-op. They tagged the front wall of the building with the traditional anarchist symbol of the letter A in a circle. The protesters attempted to set the building on fire until two young Latino tenants of the building, physically stopped them. -more-

In Berkeley about midnight tonight a line of unmarked white vans, SUVs and large sedan equipped with flashing red and blue lights moved across Bowditch adjacent to the First Church of Christ Scientist and People's Park, turning down Channing to park in the block between Bowditch and Telegraph.

At about 12:30 a group of demonstrators was contained on Telegraph at Channing between two lines of police in riot gear, with additional police lines a block away in either direction.

It seems very likely that mass arrests are imminent, and these vehicles have been assembled to transport arrested persons. -more-

A protest in Berkeley turned violent Saturday night when a small group of protestors began hurling bricks, pipes, smoke grenades and missiles at officers, police said. -more-

A standoff with police and protesters in Berkeley Saturday evening continued with police firing teargas and smoke at protesters to disperse them, police said. -more-

FERKELEY-- This evening, a peaceful protest turned violent when several splinter groups broke off and began hurling bricks, pipe, smoke grenades, and other missiles at officers. -more-

Protestors in Berkeley block an Amtrak train and then face off against police in a demonstration to protest the murders of Black men by police around the country, and the impunity of police who commit these crimes. -more-

In the news in the last few weeks: multiple incidents where citizens have been killed by police officers for reasons that seem trivial or non-existent. They range in gravity from a policeman shooting a guy in Missouri who might or might not have pinched a few cigars all the way down to a twelve-year-old kid in Cleveland gunned down for flashing a toy gun in the wrong place at the wrong time. The common thread: all were African-Americans, and all had done nothing to merit summary execution. And none of the uniformed killers have been held to account. -more-

Rage in Jerusalem -more-

Three good reads on recent events:

Ali Winston summarizes in the East Bay Express.

Richard Brenneman dissects a financier on his blog.

Winston's Diary continues to analyse the semiotics and politics of looting. -more-

Because so much happened this week, we've started the new issue a day early. But if you'd like to follow the action from earlier in the week, just click the "Previous Issue" button above to see it all. There will be a new editorial eventually--just keep checking. -more-

We've gotten so much news and opinion that our columns have gotten too long. We're starting this week's issue tomorrow, a day early. You can see it as it's posted by clicking on "Next Issue", and when that issue is complete it will be "published" so that it's the first thing you see when you go to berkeleydailyplanet.com. You can always go back to the "Previous Issue" if you've missed anything, -more-

Winston's Diary , from "a young American who has been independently reporting from the very front-lines of the Berkeley/Oakland protests for the last week. " -more-

We've just learned from our colleagues at berkeleyside.com that Mayor Bates has dissed us all again:

Breaking: City of Berkeley calls ‘invite-only’ press conference just for TV news

Since the council meeting has been called off, perhaps the Martin Luther King Civic Center Building (New City Hall) would be a good place to exercise "the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." It's open during the day most days. -more-

The proposed ordinance, called the Building Energy Saving Ordinance, is unconstitutional

I would like to suggest and argue that the Building Energy Saving Ordinance (#7,387 – NS) is unconstitutional on three grounds. It is a violation of due process. It levies a tax mistakenly named a fee in the ordinance. And it subjects each property owner to a requirement that is too general and overly broad. -more-

It seems the whole city is under attack by the likes of Bates and his team of developers. As I walk around town I notice more and more businesses gone like the smog place on Addison I used to use—one day there—next day just a large empty space as well as several other businesses that used to call that area home. Then the corner of Shattuck and Dwight Way—one day a furniture store on the corner—next time I looked half the block demolished. Slow Restaurant on University near Milvia—great food, gone—as well as other shops, service centers and on and on. And I have not even addressed the possible loss of our 10 Landmark Shattuck theaters upon whom we depend for our fix of films that feed our minds, hearts and souls as well as being accessible to all kinds of people like me and others. We are losing what we called Berkeley for the likes of rotten tall expensive structures for the upper classes all at the expense of our commons and our sense of place. Wake up folks—it will all be gone before you know it. Plutocracy in all its ugliness. -more-

You, in your skinny black jeans, designer black hoodie and face hidden behind a fashionably folded scarf probably thought it's real cool to drag those construction barricades from the 39th street BART project into Telegraph avenue with your little clique and STICK IT TO THE MAN.

Me, I thought you were fucking with the purpose of the marching, so I blocked your path with my bicycle. You sucker punched me in the face. WTF?

I know you're tough guy, dressed for anarchy, testosterone streaming, girls watching and all that, your black bloc fashion show allows you to sucker punch an old guy, a veteran of the struggle. But if you really have some cajones, go assault a cop one on one and see how you come out of that. -more-

There is a popular set of expectations regarding protest that goes something like this:

1. Protesters must share a common political aim.

2. The political aim must be reducible to a few simple "talking points".

3. The purpose of the protest must be to build popular support for the political aim.

4. Achieving popular support requires that protests must respect property and not be significantly disruptive.

5. Protests must have leaders and organizers who plot the conduct of the protest.

Public discussion in the Berkeley Daily Planet and on Berkeleyside has largely concerned the ways in which recent protests in Berkeley fail to live up to these expectations. Many Berkeleyans have expressed anger, rhetorically stamping their feet over violations of these expectations of protest.

Others try to minimize the thwarted expectations by attributing transgressions to "splinter groups" and "small minorities" who supposedly "hijack" otherwise legitimate protests.

Such self-congratulatory expressions of indignation and anger are as powerless as they are detached from reality.

Let's examine protest without such preconceptions: -more-

A new replacement energy saving ordinance is about to be enacted in our city of Berkeley, Building Energy Saving Ordinance (BESO). The current system requires upgrades only when buildings are remodeled or resold. If passed, all homeowners and building owners in Berkeley will be mandated to have an outside auditor inspect their home or building every 5 to 10 years. The law would require all building owners to hire a private firm from a city approved list to conduct the assessments. Audits will cost from $200 to $600 for a single family home, up to $10,000 for a large commercial building. A filing fee of $79 -$240, depending on building size will go to the city of Berkeley. -more-

A new replacement energy saving ordinance is about to be enacted in our city of Berkeley, Building Energy Saving Ordinance (BESO). The current system requires upgrades only when buildings are remodeled or resold. If passed, all homeowners and building owners in Berkeley will be mandated to have an outside auditor inspect their home or building every 5 to 10 years. The law would require all building owners to hire a private firm from a city approved list to conduct the assessments. Audits will cost from $200 to $600 for a single family home, up to $10,000 for a large commercial building. A filing fee of $79 -$240, depending on building size will go to the city of Berkeley. -more-

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me

—Pastor Martin Niemoller, speaking about Nazi Germany

First, they’ve come for the people of color.

America’s police forces increasingly serve as a a private corporate army, beyond the reach of the law.

But our nation is distracted by race. And millions of white Americans are under the illusion that what was done to Michael Brown and Eric Garner can’t happen to them. -more-

Dear Pope Francis,

As a Muslim I thank you for your message of compassion and peace delivered during your recent visit to Turkey. This visit and your address symbolize the need for a stronger interfaith relation between Christians and Muslims to promote world peace. I thank you for disassociating Islam from violence and that particular statement was parallel to the teaching in the Quran which states “Surely, Allah loves not the transgressors" (2:190). And when you said ISIS is persecuting the Christian in the Middle East, the Quran also condemned this barbaric action as it states, "And if Allah did not repel some men by means of others, there would surely have destroyed cloisters and churches and synagogues and mosques, wherein the name of Allah is oft commemorated" (22:41). -more-

Editor's Note: The latest issue of the Pepper Spray Times is now available.

You can view it absolutely free of charge by clicking here . You can print it out to give to your friends.

Grace Underpressure has been producing it for many years now, even before the Berkeley Daily Planet started distributing it, most of the time without being paid, and now we'd like you to show your appreciation by using the button below to send her money. -more-

Call me sentimental that I wanted Kathleen Turner to look the way she did back in the day last night when I went to see the play Red Hot Patriot at the Berkeley Rep (read Body Heat). My disbelief was not suspended this time - but that she is a forceful talent cannot be denied. What struck me the most however, was the bad manners of the intellectual yet sartorially sloppy audience. In the first few minutes of the play there was hissing when a picture of George W. Bush was displayed onscreen. When crass comments were made about other politicians there was whooping. Note to Berkeley audience - it's ok to be smart - AND - pretty - inside and out. Do not be afraid my fellow theatre enthusiasts. I ask you to consider the perfect storm if the care and pride of intellect is also applied to good manners and perhaps a stylish outfit. And maybe some blush. Studied unstudiedness is not a look. Cat calling is déclassé. Do better. Be better. Just sayin. -more-

I don't like the way protesters are showing support for Michael Brown. The right to speak out and show disapproval of the grand jury's verdict is fine. But what connection is there between the grand jury's bad judgment and destruction of public buildings? -more-

It’s convenient to blame Democratic leaders for the Party’s disastrous 2014 midterm elections. But which leaders? Who runs the Democratic Party? -more-

A trap that some psychiatrists might get us into, really an unintentional error, is to try to relieve our suffering from side effects by reducing our dosage of antipsychotic or other medication. I call it a trap because it can be a "slippery slope," to reduce medication, one in which the slippage could cause a relapse. -more-

We are dealing with a nationwide crisis in the misuse of power by police officers and by a corrupt court system. I can in no way belittle the crime that was perpetrated upon Michael Brown. It was one of a series of wrongful deaths in which non-Caucasian people have been killed by police and in which there has been little or no retribution by the courts. My sympathy goes to Michael Brown's family, and I believe that any reasonable person should be outraged by this corruption and by this tragedy. -more-

In the aftermath of the disastrous 2014 midterm election, former Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean observed, “You’ve got to stand for something if you want to win.” Before 2016, Democrats must figure out what they stand for and develop coherent messages. Here are four suggestions. -more-

A while back, my eye was caught by the title of a small volume on the library’s New Books shelves — The Chicken Chronicles. Turkeys have been much in recent news. Dogs, cats, lambs all appeal, but chickens!? I’m not now referring to the sometimes vernacular chicks or hens … Keeping Up Appearances’s Onslow refers to a broody woman. Perish forbid. -more-

Opens December 12 at the Landmark in Berkeley

On Sunday, December 7, I attended a concert at Zellerbach Hall by the Takács Quartet, a Hungarian-English-American string quartet. This concert was mistakenly listed in the Datebook section of the San Francisco Chronicle as taking place in Zellerbach Playhouse, which struck me as an appropriately intimate venue for a concert of chamber music t. However, when Cal Performances Press Information office confirmed my request for a press ticket, they informed me that this event would take place in Zellerbach Hall. This was my first disappointment with this concert. -more-

"But I think I know what you mean. There are some things you remember that never happened."

Nothing much out of the ordinary ... A visit to a couple living in the country from the old roommate of the wife, someone out of the past, not seen in years ... But even before the visit itself, in the first words of Harold Pinter's 'Old Times,' the implications, the allusions of everything and anything that may--or may not--be said loom out of the shadows quite casually in the most banal speech:

"Was she your best friend?"

"What does that mean?"

--and by the end of the play, there's been something of a catharsis for the three "Old-Timers," whether seen as lost in uncertain memories, manipulators of those memories in themselves and each other, or strangers to each other and themselves, run aground on memory and speech ... -more-

On Sunday, November 30, I journeyed to Hayward’s Douglas Morrisson Theatre for a performance of Leonard Bernstein’s opera Candide. Somehow, this 1956 opera had thus far eluded me, so I jumped at the chance to hear it. My effort was rewarded by a robust performance of Candide featuring a huge cast of soloists, chorus members, and a 14-piece orchestra conducted by David Möschler. -more-