I predicted in one of my many previous Activist’s Calendars that Mayor Arreguin wouldn't get the job done on July 26,and indeed council is meeting again this coming Wednesday morning, August 3, at 9 am. And not getting the job done meant that those of us dedicated to sit through until the end had a council marathon day, starting at 3 pm and running until 11 pm.

It is unknown just exactly when the mayor decided to stiff the 4 x 4 Committee of Council and Rent Board Members , but it most certainly happened well in advance of July 26th. Arreguin scheduled a special meeting on ballot measures for 3 pm on July 26th, but left the Rent Stabilization and Eviction for Good Cause Ordinance on the Council regular meeting agenda at 6 pm as the second to last item—a strategy to kill it.

Here is how the maneuver played out. -more-

For the last several years, the City rent board has made it a top priority to extend a rent control concept called “Just Cause” to certain owner-occupied homes, basically all those where State law does not preclude regulation.. I will seek in this op-ed to describe how “Just Cause” works, and the implications for owner occupied properties.

This year the rent board placed a draft ballot summary before City Council that somewhat mysteriously promises to “provide eviction protection.” While “eviction protection” sounds great, I oppose the proposed ballot measure's approach deeply, and wish to illustrate several potential unintended consequences. In short the measure proposes “lifetime leases” for certain owner-occupied properties. On balance I will argue this is bad for owners, bad for renters, bad for those currently unable to afford to rent or buy, and bad for future ADU or small time owned rental housing production. Imposing lifetime leases on owner occupants will fundamentally alter the incentives of such rentals, to the overall detriment of what’s now a vibrant source of interesting, inclusive, and diverse housing.

I have first-hand experience with how this affects homeowners. -more-

Part One: The Unacceptable

It is a sad day for progressives when Barbara Lee votes for a 40 billion dollar Ukrainian aid supplement to the military budget and Josh Hawley votes against it.

It is tempting to be moralistic about the war in Ukraine, to view one side as all evil and the other as all good. This is to ignore the complex history of the region, both long term (for example, Crimea was part of Russia for centuries, and only in 1954 had its administrative status changed from an independent soviet socialist republic to being assigned to the Ukrainian Socialist Republic by the Ukrainian Khrushchev, and ever since the 1991 breakup of the Soviet Union had been agitating for a referendum about its status) and short term since the 2014 US-supported overthrow of a legitimately elected Ukrainian government less than a year before scheduled elections.

If the US aim is to defend freedom and the US from dictators, we should be invading Saudi Arabia where the 9-11 bombers came from. Instead we have Biden asking for increased oil production from the Saudi prince who chopped up a journalist who dared to criticize him. Biden and Blinken talk about the absolute sovereignty of every country and its ability to act however it likes, independent of any other country, yet this is given the lie by our involvement in the Western Hemisphere, most recently in Venezuela, in Chile, in Iran-Contra events, in the invasion of Granada,in Haiti and in support of right wing rule in Central America that has led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands including the archbishop of El Salvador, Saint Oscar Romero. -more-

A Pox on Kiosks!

Berkeley's plan to install huge "tourist-friendly kiosks" on local sidewalks raised some hackles when Berkeleyans discovered the 8-foot-tall edifices not only broadcast commercial advertising on their huge screens but also (1) beamed WiFi EMFs, (2) were built to capture videos of passing pedestrians and (3) equipped to track neaby electronic devices. In response to complaints that surveillance cameras violated public privacy protections, the kiosk boosters promised the hidden cameras would be "turned off."

But now other concerns are cropping up. In addition to the physical, visual, and electromagnetic blight inherent in these hulking info-edifices, there's a new concern: pathogens!

With Covid variants and Monkeypox viruses infecting human populations around the world, these Kommercial Kiosks are now being seen as potential "super spreaders"—eye-catching gizmos designed to attract pedestrians and draw them within touching distance for extended periods of time.

The screens on the IKE company's kiosks are designed with virtual "buttons" that provide read-outs about local events and resources. Each of these screen patches needs to be activated by the touch of a human hand. The more popular these screens become, the more likely they are to become viral touchstones—vertical Petri dishes covered with collections of microbes, pathogens, and viruses.

This design flaw is a doozy. While the IKE kiosks come equipped with 24-7 cooling fans, none of them come with hand sanitizers.

Headlines from Abroad -more-

It is deeply disturbing to see the California CPUC choose to support profits for the investor-owned utilities PG&E, Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas & Electric, rather than the future of California. The CPUC support for PG&E's plan will drive up the cost of rooftop solar to make it unavailable for middle and working class residents and force them to pay ever-increasing bills for dirty energy. -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.

This is a Very Good Deal. Go for it! -more-

Amidst raging wildfires exacerbated by prolonged drought, and three-digit temperatures, too many Americans are treating the climate crisis with resignation bordering on acceptance. As our government seems unwilling or unable to solve this coming calamity to planet Earth, Americans have understandably moved to more immediate concerns that effect their daily lives: higher prices for groceries, housing and gasoline.

Meanwhile, we see the effects of climate change scientists predicted, such as the loss of sea ice, melting glaciers and ice sheets, sea level rise, and global temperature increases from human-made greenhouse gases. Some of the effects of climate change are already irreversible. As the second largest emitter of greenhouse gasses after China, the U.S. has an obligation to act now. -more-

Bayard Allmond, a behavioral pediatrician and family therapist, died of cancer on July 18, 2022, in the Berkeley home where he and his family began living in 1969. He was 87. Born and raised in Wilmington, Delaware, he attended public schools there which his family strongly believed in. He graduated from Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia.

He trained in general and behavioral pediatrics at the University of Rochester, joined the faculty there, and later the faculty at the University of California San Francisco. During a two-year stint with the US Public Health Service in the mid-‘60’s, Bayard moved the family to Atlanta and worked for the Center for Disease Control. The CDC was combating an outbreak of polio in gorillas at the Yerkes Primate Center, and Bayard was involved in researching whether they could be vaccinated for it - they could. He then went on to administer the vaccines to the gorillas. Although very different from the rest of his life’s path as a behavioral pediatrician, he loved this experience. -more-

Worth Noting:

City Council has one last meeting before summer recess Wednesday morning, August 3 at 9 am. The agenda which is not yet posted is expected to be two ballot initiatives, the General Obligation Bond of $600,000,000 to $650,000,000 and the Vacancy Tax. The Special Tax measure on Sidewalks, Traffic Improvements and 2050 Program Plan as a ballot measure is dead by unanimous council vote. Check the website on Monday (really daily) for the latest ballot measure versions and supplements. https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/city-council/city-council-agendas

Wednesday evening the Commission on Disability meets at 6 pm with the Pacific Center Presentation as item 5 after commission action items. The Disaster and Fire Safety Commission meets at 7 pm with a full agenda. This is wildfire season and wildfire is prominently on the agenda.

Thursday the Landmarks Commission meets at 7 pm with eight projects for review. It looks like too much to get through in one evening, but we shall see.

Tuesday, August 2, 2022 - NATIONAL NIGHT OUT

Wednesday, August 3, 2022

CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING at 9 am

Videoconference: not posted

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: not posted

AGENDA: not posted, keep checking.

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/city-council/city-council-agendas -more-