There was a Magnitude 3.6 earthquake, 1 miles from Pleasant Hill, today at 11:18 AM, which was felt by Berkeley residents. -more-

All California residents 65 and older are now eligible to get the coronavirus vaccine as the state expanded its vaccination plan Wednesday following new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. -more-

An Oakland-based community college district may soon be forced to cede power to the state if its Board of Trustees can’t quell concerns about its ability to properly govern the district.

Intervening at the Peralta Community College District, home to four East Bay colleges serving almost 30,000 students, would be a drastic step. Only twice previously has the state chancellor’s office and the systemwide Board of Governors assumed power from a locally-elected governing board: At the City College of San Francisco in 2013 and at Compton College in 2004.

The colleges in Peralta, one of 73 districts in California’s vast 116 community college system, are Laney College and Merritt College in Oakland, Berkeley City College and the College of Alameda.

Eloy Ortiz Oakley, the state chancellor overseeing California’s 116 community colleges, is under increasing pressure to intervene, including from former Peralta chancellors, two of Peralta’s current and former trustees, Oakland’s NAACP chapter and the Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team (FCMAT), a state-funded agency that provides financial oversight of K-12 and community college districts.

Going Deeper

Across its four colleges, Peralta enrolled about 29,000 students as of spring 2020, the most recent data available. Peralta students complete college at slightly lower rates than the state average. As of 2017, 45.5% of students received a degree or certificate or intended to transfer within five years, compared to the state average of 48.2%. -more-

Prosecutors have charged an alleged robber who Berkeley police shot last Saturday after he apparently advanced on officers with a metal chain as they tried to arrest him for stealing about $13 in food from Walgreen's on Shattuck.

Vincent Bryant, 51, is in the hospital and is expected to live following the events Saturday night Jan. 2 that started at Walgreens at 2190 Shattuck Ave. Bryant has been charged with second degree robbery, assault on a police officer and resisting arrest.

Bryant had selected about $14 of goods from Walgreens Saturday night and allegedly gave the cashier only $1 before walking toward the exit, according to a probable cause statement by police Officer Christopher Bonaventure.

A store employee confronted Bryant and told him that he must pay more, but Bryant allegedly pulled out a metal chain and "threatened to break all the windows," Bonaventure wrote.

The employee left the store and called police. Bryant also allegedly left Walgreens and officers located him on Bancroft Way.

When they tried to detain him, Bryant walked into the courtyard of the Tang Center, at 2222 Bancroft Way, where he allegedly threatened officers with a chain, according to police.

An officer trained in negotiations with suspects tried to de-escalate the situation, but Bryant apparently continued to act erratically.

He allegedly advanced on officers when they tried to arrest him. Officers then shot Bryant with less-than-lethal weapons. One officer fired his gun at Bryant, striking him, police said.

Bryant was taken to a hospital and the officer who fired his weapon was placed on administrative leave. Police are not yet releasing the name of the officer who fired his gun.

Police will release body-camera video of the shooting on their YouTube page, Berkeley police spokesman Officer Byron White said. -more-

Are we better off today than we were four years ago? The answer is a definite “NO.” I am still trying, however, without much success, to understand why 74+ million Americans voted to re-elect Trump when for four years he has embarrassed himself and this nation with his ignorance, ineptness, and lack of human decency. -more-

A Farewell Poem for Donald Trump

(Assuming, of course, that he doesn't attack Iran, declare a national emergency and degree martial law so he can remain White America's Tweeter-in-chief.)

Jail to the Chief!

Donald says he wants a Wall

I say, "Give him four!"

With a bigly cot

And a chamber pot

And a padlock on the door. -more-

A man was arrested following a store robbery that led to an officer-involved shooting Saturday evening in Berkeley, police said.

Shortly after 8:20 p.m., officers responded to a robbery report at the Walgreens store at 2190 Shattuck Ave.

Officers found and attempted to detain the suspect, a 51-year-old man, walking on Bancroft Way after the robbery.

The suspect evaded officers and walked into the courtyard of the Tang Center at 2222 Bancroft Way, and threatened officers with a chain, according to police.

A negotiator-trained officer took steps to de-escalate the situation with the suspect, who continued to speak and act in an erratic manner, police said.

When the officers attempted to take the man into custody, he approached them, leading officers to deploy less-than-lethal ammunition, and one officer shot the suspect with a gun, according to police sources.

The suspect was injured and taken to a hospital, but is in stable condition.

The incident is being investigated by the Berkeley Police Department's Homicide Unit and its Internal Affairs Unit. Additionally, the District Attorney's Office will be notified of the investigations and the involved officer will be placed on administrative leave, police said. -more-

At least 43 emergency department workers at the Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center have tested positive for COVID-19 over the last week, a senior official said Saturday. -more-

Expanded summer school for K-12 students may be one positive outcome of the pandemic that has otherwise contributed to varying levels of learning loss among students across the state.

Without providing details, Gov. Gavin Newsom indicated that he will be including funds in the budget he will present to the Legislature in January that might allow schools to effectively extend the school year into the summer, as a crucial way to help make up for the learning loss that many students have suffered during the pandemic. -more-

Through a Daughter’s Eyes...

My dad was the one who taught me to write. And re-write. And re-write. He has been writing his whole life and always told me that he’s not a good writer, but an excellent re-writer. He used to mark up my drafts with his red pen over and over which I certainly resented at the time when I just wanted to get out of the house to be with my friends. But now I see it for the gift it was. For him writing was more important than any sport or instrument I might learn. Because writing for him was an extension of living. And so much of living for him was about trying to impact a country he saw as deeply unjust.

My dad believed before all else in utter truth. No flowers, no protecting feelings, just calling it like you see it. He always attributed it to his working class upbringing in Coney Island by two immigrant parents. He said his house was full of the noise of people saying exactly what they thought at whatever volume the situation warranted. Following the bigger fights, he said he’d know if his parents were still mad because his feisty mom, 4’9” Ida, would sleep with her feet at the top of the bed and head at the bottom so as not to have to look at his father Nathan. But in the morning, they would get up and move on.

For me, growing up, he treated me as he would an adult, bringing me with him to whatever outing he and my mom went on, expecting me to engage in adult political conversations with his friends, holding signs on picket lines alongside him, and telling me exactly what he thought without holding back. That wasn’t always easy for me, but I knew what I was getting from him was always real. He loved to tell the story about me coming home crying after my first dance when I was 11 when no one had asked me to dance and he told me that I was going to have many other problems in life but boys wasn’t going to be one of them. And he tells how it made me feel better, which it did, in a way that it never would have if it was from my sweet sweet mother. She would have said anything to make me feel better. I knew whatever he said was nothing but raw truth.

So while his truth was sometimes warm and sometimes hard to take growing up, he gave me a view of the world that most children don’t get. He talked with me about race and class and his biggest passion, unfair working conditions. He believed in organizing together alongside workers, and going after what is right until it was achieved. He saw people as people, something that I have found to be quite unusual in this world. He didn’t give additional deference to someone because of holding a higher position, he believed in the good of hard working people and valuing that core of people above all else. While he would have said he was the most cynical person alive, always assuming the worst, I think in some ways he was the most hopeful. He worked for goals believing they could be achieved, as if there were no barriers. And he achieved so much because of the way he connected with people and organized in partnership.

I am in his backyard now where he loved to sit, drink coffee, and write. Although if I’m being honest, he would far rather be at a coffee shop around people, but quarantine led to him enjoying this space too. He and I and sometimes his grandchildren would sit out here three times a week, talking about life. I am sitting across from his empty chair and his empty coffee cup and his folded newspaper knowing he will never sit across from me again. But he is still here with me. With all of us. With the changes he made in the world during his 91 years, with the words he wrote that were published in different papers, forming connections with people that changed us all a little. He will not be able to submit another article or attend another rally, but his influence and his spirit will carry on in each of us. So, for him, for you, for our world, let’s look at the world in a raw way, the way my dad did, and keep on fighting for what you know is right.



*Harry Brill, born 7/25/1929, died 12/28/2020 at age 91. -more-

In case you happen to be a teacher or a parent, saving press accounts, photos and videos from last week in D.C. will provide you with excellent illustrative teaching aids for some important topics. The first insight leaped from the screen on Wednesday into our phone calls with friends and family.

Those in the Eastern time zone were first aware of what was up. Three of them called me early, within an hour of each other: an African-American woman friend with major Democratic political experience in the Midwest, a White woman raised as a Southern Baptist who’s now back in the new South, a Catholic cousin in the D.C. area active in social justice movements. All four of us had the same observation: we were seeing White Privilege in action. All of us knew that if that surly mob of rioters had been Black they’d be dead.

This insight turned out to be commonplace among my friends and in the media we tend to frequent. Seeing something you believe to be true illustrated so graphically though appallingly is oddly reassuring, but watchng White Privilege on the rampage is also outrageous. I’m starting to suffer from disgust fatigue.

But I found another fresh source of outrage in the day’s events. I’m from Missouri, born in St. Louis and lived there into high school. I have about 15 first cousins, many still there, as well as innumerable second and third cousins both in Missouri and at various removes. Just about all of the Missourians in our family, I’d venture to say, are disgusted by the behavior of Missouri Senator Josh Hawley, a smug and smarmy 40ish newbie elected in 2018.

He turns out to be the ringleader in the nefarious group of senators and congresspersons who have been pretending to doubt that President-elect Joe Biden was elected fair and square. Why do I say pretending? -more-

As some might have noticed, I'm slipping farther and farther from the traditional Friday issue dates. Things are happening so fast these days that there's still a lot to come on Fridays. And then there was last week.... So from now on I'll be aiming for a Sunday New Issue instead of a Friday one. And I'll be posting more tomorrow, Monday, since I've been glued to the internet since Wednesday last. -more-

The focus of the Activist’s Diary is local politics and what happens at our public City meetings. Even in a light week it’s impossible to attend them all. Most of the commission meetings are =not recorded and reading through the minutes of too many is a worthless endeavor.

Councilmember Lori Droste as the author and Rigel Robinson and Rashi Kesarwani as co-sponsors are proposing a Commission Reorganization for Post COVID-19 Budget Recovery. Mayor Arreguin, the leader who is responsible for the expanding the number of commissions in his tenure, seems to have acquired some enthusiasm for the reorganizing. Droste stated last Monday that there was no real basis for choosing to reduce the number of commissions to twenty from thirty-eight. The premise is that reducing the number of commissions will have significant positive impact on the city’s budget.

Given that going through the agendas of the boards and commissions has ruined my Friday evenings for years and deprived me of a good night’s sleep, I can’t think of anyone who would be happier than me to wipe a number of these off the slate, starting with the Animal Care Commission that spent three years as I recall voting and then revisiting, voting and revisiting, voting and revisiting how many dogs professional dog walkers could walk at once (4, 6, or 8 dogs.) This particular commission is listed under the City Manager and maybe she ought to take a look at it.

It is unfortunate that so many of the commissions have been shut down during the pandemic. It would have been a good time for councilmembers to join zoom and see their appointees in action. Then maybe those commissioners who really just warm a seat or at worst obstruct could be replaced. Shutting down the Disaster and Fire Safety Commission at 9 pm because the chair wants to stop is not a reason to quit when there is work to be done. -more-

Remember during the first presidential debate, Trump told the Proud Boys, a white supremacist group, to “stand back and stand by?” -more-

When people in a big aggregation all believe the same lie, it starts to become more passable as truth. Yet it doesn't matter how many believe in a lie; it continues to be a lie. The Republican Party in the U.S. wants to deny the results of the 2020 election. They have no evidence whatsoever to substantiate the bogus claims that the election results were rigged. They assert it is so because they say so. -more-

The 2020 election is almost over; it will end when Joe Biden is inaugurated on January 20th. The election process took 19 months: beginning with the first Democratic debate and ending with the November 3rd election, January 6th counting of the electoral votes, and the inauguration. We all have good reason to feel drained. -more-

Stand By While We Adjust our Government

David Swanson, the executive director of World BEYOND War and author of several books (including "War Is a Lie"), has just shared a new PowerPoint presentation on "The Need to Abolish War."

The first slide begins with the following, timely alert:

"Global Technical Difficulties

Due to travel restrictions, the United States will now be staging coups only in its own capital. Worldwide services will resume shortly."

Karmic Strips

The December 25 edition of the Chronicle ran its usual 22 comic strips. Thirteen of them celebrated Christmas, mostly with depictions of Xmas gifts. Dan Piraro and Wayne Honath's Bizarro panel was a Donner downer: It depicted two desolate-looking reindeer at a coffee bar with one sadly complaining: "It's been years since I've shouted out with glee." -more-

I have said this before and now I am saying it again: The mental health treatment system infantilizes mental health consumers. This is only part of the problem. The second part is that our lives aren't considered worth anything. When a mental health consumer dies prematurely, because of [effects on the internal organs of] psychiatric medication, poor diet, smoking, lack of exercise, and not having medical issues addressed, no big deal is made of it. Our deaths are barely worthy of note. -more-

Worth Noting:

With Council still on Winter Recess until January 19, 2021, the first City Council meeting of 2021 the week looks fairly quiet. The January 19 agenda is available for comment and is posted after the daily list of meetings. The January 21 Council land use hearings are not posted yet, but they are 0 (2435) San Pablo (group living) ZAB and 1915 Berryman (Payson House) LPC.



Monday – Agenda Committee at 2:30 pm The discussion on reorganizing and reducing the number of commissions will continue. Youth Commission at 5 pm

Wednesday – Rent Control Webinar 10 am (pre-register), Drawing for Independent Redistricting Commission at 4 pm, Police Review Commission at 7 pm -more-

Worth Noting:

City meetings resume. Council is on Winter Recess thru January 18, 2021.

Monday – Agenda committee 2:30 pm planning for January 19 City Council regular meeting. Note the documents for Reimagining Public Safety Task Force is not a quick read.

Wednesday – Planning Commission 7 pm considers 2628 Shattuck as a condo project

Thursday – Community for Cultural Civic Center meets at 12 noon. Public Works meets at 7 pm and considers paving policy.

Sunday, January 3, 2021

No City meetings or events found -more-