Berkeley city offices will be closed on Monday in observance of Juneteenth.

Federal recognition of the holiday was approved by Congress and signed into law on Thursday by President Joe Biden. Berkeley city officials made the announcement on Friday.

City officials said most city services will close, but others including garbage, compost and recycling services will continue as scheduled.

The closures will also include all city recreation programs and facilities including pools, youth programs and camps.

Juneteenth falls on June 19 but may be observed on a different day. -more-

On May 16, my ears nearly melted in disbelief when I heard KCBS broadcast an ad for Mammoth Nation over my car radio.

In the ad, Mammoth Nation presents itself as a buyer's coop for savings-seeking average Americans—i.e., "Stay informed on hot discounts, new products, and membership perks." But what startled me was the part of the ad that attacked "liberals."

Mein Gott! As if there's not enough partisan division in the country these days! I was flummoxed. I didn't expect to hear such a derisive slam popping out in the middle of a radio ad for cut-rate online shopping.

I went online in search of more information on Mammoth Nation. Here's what I found. -more-

The sordid secret is out. While most Americans “pay taxes as they earn” the ultra-rich have successfully gamed the system paying little or no taxes for the rest of their lives. The scam is easy to understand – never sell your enormous stock holdings which will trigger huge capital gains. Far better to borrow against your stock holdings at relative low interest rates to finance your lavish lifestyle, trips to faraway places or even a yacht to serve as a landing pad for your other yacht standing by. -more-

₌It was back in 2014 when it all started, a small group of DSA members asked to help canvass for Tony Thurmond. I would meet them for coffee. “The sanity café” would socialize, talk politics and discuss canvassing.

How I ended up as a campaign canvass lead with not one drop of political campaign experience is a much longer story. One day I floated the idea of starting a political book club. I realized I wasn’t reading and thought starting a book club would give me the push I neededl plus this was a group that had been politically engaged for decades. Little did I know how starting this book club would change my life in so many ways.

I was listening to The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together by Heather McGhee, February 2021 as I cleaned up the kitchen before sitting back down at the computer to reflect on the last week and finish this column. Chapter 4 was playing on the 1933 Home Owners Loan Corporation, redlining, FHA loans facilitating White home ownership while preventing Blacks from the same privileges and subprime mortgages. I kept hitting the pause as I stopped to make notes in my reading journal to record quotes like, “What is racism without greed?” I mention this as it is the lead into what happened this last week.

When the mail arrived on Tuesday there were two “I want to buy your house” postcards promising no commission, no costs, AS-IS, and cash offer. Later the book Dry Spring the Coming Water Crisis of North America by Chris Wood arrived. This was all before the back to back special and regular city council meetings.

The supposed value of the house my nephew called “two bedroom no bath” (the bathroom is 5’3” by 9’) and the neighborhood my sister called “funky,” is off the charts ridiculous. My house sits in the formerly redlined district of Berkeley. I didn’t know this when I bought the house in 1990, but when I called the agent who had handled my car insurance and the house I sold in Sacramento, he told me Farmers didn’t insure this zip code, 94703. I was so naïve that it was years before I put this all together. -more-

In 1859 Charles Dickens wrote: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.” Hmm. Dickens was writing about the French Revolution but his words are relevant today.

The United States is teetering on the edge of revolution. -more-

Necessarily, a person who perpetrates a mass shooting is mentally disturbed. Those with a known history of psychiatric issues are not permitted into law enforcement jobs. -more-

Say "Hello" to Mr. Mopps

At the beginning of June, the display windows of the Mr. Mopp's store on MLK debuted a new selection of books with titles reflecting the seeming return of post-pandemic normalcy. The array of books had one thing in common—the word "hello" in their titles. The ranks of welcoming titles included: Hello Farm, Hello Bear, Hello Lighthouse, Hello Rain!, Hello Moon, Hello World, Hello Universe, Hello Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle, Say Hello, and Hola Cangrejito (that's "Hello Crab" in English).

With the store's doors reopened in accordance with gubernatorial decree, it was finally possible to casually walk into the longtime-and-still-standing landmark and meet the book-lover in charge of choosing which books to put on display. The window wizard is Mopps' staffer Clare Doornbos and she has already rolled out a new selection of titles to engage the eyes of passing pedestrians. The current theme celebrates the world of "young artists." Trot on over with your junior Picassos and Kahlos and give it a look. -more-

Worth Noting:

The week starts on Sunday evening with a roundtable on TOPA (Tenants Opportunity to Purchase Act at 7 pm and ends with the Community Advisory Group meeting on BART housing projects from 2 – 5 pm on Saturday. In between, the evenings are filled with multiple commission meetings running simultaneously and council budget meetings Tuesday and Thursday morning. As usual key agenda items are listed.

The June 29^th council meeting is available for comment. It follows the daily list of meetings and precedes the list of zoning applications with the end of the appeal period. Council agenda items from councilmembers and commissions are listed with the author(s) first followed with co-sponsors. The vote on the FY2022 Budget is June 29.

Sunday, June 20, 2021 - Summer Solstice – Father’s Day

Berkeley Equity Summit Series 4: The Truth about TOPA, The Tenants Opportunity to Purchase Act at 7 pm -more-