One thing that surprises me is how little engagement there is in what is happening in our local politics until something bumps up next door like the Willard Park Community Center (appeal to be heard on July 24), or the 10-story project at 3000 Shattuck (appeal date September 26) or the 8-story project at 1598 University (appeal date of October 3).

I probably shouldn’t be surprised since I largely ignored the actions of the City of Berkeley for 24 years until November 12, 2014 when Erin Diehm saw the anti-fracking sign on my gate, knocked on my door and asked me to go to a City meeting the next evening. That was to save the Shattuck Cinemas and it has been downhill or uphill depending on the day’s view ever since.

The Albany Theater is closing. That leaves the Elmwood and Pacific Film Archives in Berkeley and trips to Oakland, Emeryville or places more distant for film. Watching movies on a handheld device or even a large TV screen just isn’t the same as the immersion that comes with the “big” screen. There are still great films being made, they just won’t be shown in Berkeley.

Mark Rhoades presented the proposed Berkeley Forge development in West Berkeley to Berkeley Design Advocates on Thursday. Rhodes called out to me that the project would have bird safe glass and 100% native plants. (Erin Diehm is the real expert on native plants). The project is a lovely redo turning the site into a bustling research and development center. According to Rhoades the application for the project is months away. There are still many steps to walk through including the challenges of sea level rise, rising ground water and toxics in the soil at the site. -more-

At 8:30 am, June 23, 1995, a loud knock rattled the door of my home in Berkeley, California. One look at the two dour faces and four highly polished shoes tipped me that it wasn't the Jehovah's Witnesses. "FBI!" both men announced, simultaneously flashing badges: "We've received a tip that you may be the Unabomber. We'd like to ask you some questions." There is a sign on our door that reads: "Please remove shoes before entering house." I invited the agents to come inside—after shucking their shoes. As I expected, the agents elected keep their laces tied. They sat on the porch ledge; I pulled out a chair. "Have you ever lived and or worked in Utah or Illinois?" they asked. "Are you good working with wood? With plumbing? Can we see your workshop?" I confessed that I had no workshop and had been losing a weeklong battle with a leaky kitchen faucet. While we spoke, my eight-year-old poked his head out the door, ready to come to my defense, if needed. -more-

Berkeley holds a special place, deserved or not, as a city of liberal / progressive ideas and politics.

I’ve read every letter/email sent to the Berkeley City Council before its June 6 meeting that I could find (total 193) in “records online” and only two out of that stack were in opposition to the draft of the Bird Safe Ordinance as passed by the Berkeley Planning Commission with a revision submitted by Councilmember Harrison.

On May 19, 2023, when the draft of the Bird Safe Ordinance still included residential buildings on a phase-in schedule, and before Councilmembers Kesarwani and Wengraf submitted their alternate proposal as Supplemental 2 to exempt residential properties and glass under 12 square feet in area, Dr. Scott Loss, author of the scientific paper referenced and quoted by the Planning Department, and later in the alternate ordinance from Kesarwani and Wengraf, wrote: -more-

The California Supreme Court has recently agreed to hear the case on People’s Park. This objective review by the judicial branch of the win by People’s Park supporters in the Court of Appeal calls into question the motivations of both the executive and legislative branches of state government to obscure the issues of the case. -more-

The maliciousness of the elite demanding its colonialist rights to the land is off the charts. We say that because Berkeley makes a point (at the beginning of every City Council meeting) of referring to the land as having once been the residence of the Ohlone, yet this city also aids in a malicious seizure of the land. In Atlanta, it is the elite’s desire for a militarized police training center (nicknamed Cop City) built on the land of a forest that still houses indigenous and poor working class people. In Berkeley, it is People's Park, which has become the residence of those without rights, that the elite of this city desires to take over for its own purposes. Today, in this city, there is a glut of market rate housing, an excess capacity for the city, but with hardly enough to meet the needs of low income people. [Cf. Steve Martinot, “People's Park and Cop City,” Daily Planet, March 23, 2023, for background. -more-

The "placebo effect" is classically known among most doctors to potentially make an ill patient well. The placebo effect is not fully understood. It might consist of a sugar pill, a completely inert pill, given as though a medicine; yet it can and often does make many patients feel better! -more-

I am very concerned by two omissions in the Donald Trump indictment document.

First, the indictment narrates that some boxes of U.S. documents were transported to trump's golf-residence in Bedminster, NJ. Indeed, it relates how trump waived a Top Secret map around in front of PAC associates there, trying to impress them. Has the FBI searched the Bedminster facility for more incriminating documents?

Second, the indictment omits identifying trump's motive. Why did he obstruct returning the documents so fiercely? Was it just his insecure need to boast and show-off? Or was he using (or planning to use) the documents for some self-serving transaction? Those military secrets could garner him a high price from our enemies, and his threat to reveal them could extort our friends.

The investigation must continue. -more-

I write to express my deep concern regarding the recent revelation that former U.S. national security adviser and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger was responsible for a far greater number of civilian deaths in Cambodia during the U.S. war than previously acknowledged. As Henry Kissinger celebrates his 100th birthday, it is imperative that we do not overlook his violent legacy.

The bombshell investigation by The Intercept sheds light on Kissinger's involvement in brutal military interventions across Latin America and Southeast Asia. His actions were aimed at suppressing communist movements and expanding U.S. influence, but they came at a high cost of innocent lives. The survivors and families affected by these campaigns continue to bear the pain and loss, while Kissinger remains unaccountable.

This revelation adds to an already extensive list of killings and crimes attributed to Henry Kissinger. As Nick Turse, author of the investigation, aptly points out, even at this late stage of his life, Kissinger should be held accountable for his actions. The passage of time should not shield him from answering for the pain and suffering he caused.

It is crucial that we recognize the significance of these revelations and engage in a broader conversation about the role of individuals in positions of power. The actions of our leaders should not be forgotten or glossed over. True justice demands that those responsible for atrocities face consequences, regardless of their age or achievements.

As we mark this milestone in Henry Kissinger's life, let us not allow it to overshadow the victims and their families. Instead, let us remember the innocent lives lost and strive for a world where such violence is not repeated. -more-

In his book A Song of Love and Death: The Meaning of Opera, Peter Conrad writes, “Strauss tries to outwit history by being both Mozart and Wagner at once….Die Frau ohne Schatten (1919) began as Strauss;s Zauberflõte, an ingenuous fairy tale, but ended as something more like his Ring, a top-heavy treatise on cosmic biology.” As I sat in the audience on June 10 during San Francisco Opera’s current revival of Richard Strauss’s Die Frau ohne Schatten (The Woman Without A Shadow), which has a libretto by Hugo von Hofmannstahl, I often perceived similarities between this Strauss opera and both Mozart’s Die Zauberflõte and Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen. -more-

On Friday, June 16, San Francisco Opera did itself proud by producing a one-night only Centennial Concert featuring the Opera’s Orchestra and Chorus, three top-notch conductors, and fifteen leading vocal soloists. The company founded in 1923 by Neapolitan Gaetano Merola looked back over its 100-year history, offering projected still images of many of the singers and productions that made this company a major force in the world of opera. Yet there was also a look forward to the years to come, as President Joe Biden noted in the closing words of the congratulatory letter he sent to the company, which letter was read aloud onstage by the current General Director Matthew Shilvock. -more-

Worth Noting:

Check the City website for late announcements and meetings posted on short notice at: https://berkeleyca.gov/

SUNDAY – Juneteenth Festival 11 am – 7 pm

MONDAY – Berkeley City Juneteenth Holiday

TUESDAY

• 10 am Public Safety Committee meets in hybrid format
• 2 pm Civic Arts Commission Policy Committee meets online
• 4 pm City Council meets in closed session in the hybrid format
• 6 pm City Council Special Meeting in hybrid format on Economic Dashboard and Climate Action Plan

WEDNESDAY

• 1:30 Commission on Aging meets in person.
• 2 pm FITES meets in the hybrid format on GHG limits, the Climate Action Plan and 51 Bus Rapid Transit
• 6 pm Civic Arts Commission meets in person
• 6 pm Environment and Climate Commission meets in person
• 6:30 pm Human Welfare and Community Action Commission meets in person
• 6:30 pm Police Accountability Board meets in the hybrid format
• 7 pm Parks, Recreation and Waterfront Commission meets at 7 pm

THURSDAY

• 9 am Budget & Finance Committee meets in the hybrid format and will finalize the 2024 budget recommendations for the June 27 full council vote.
• 6:30 pm Community Health Commission meets in person
• 7 pm ZAB meets in the hybrid format. All projects are alterations to existing dwellings

KPFA – To vote for the local Board of Directors later this summer, if you have not already contributed $25 the deadline is June 30. The local board in turn will select four Directors to serve on the National Board.

June 27, 2023 City Council Regular Meeting agenda is available for comment and follows list of meetings.

Directions with links to ZOOM support for activating Closed Captioning and Save Transcript are at the bottom of this calendar.

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BERKELEY PUBLIC MEETINGS AND CIVIC EVENTS

Sunday, June 18, 2023

Juneteenth Festival from 11 am – 7 pm

https://berkeleyjuneteenth.org/

Monday, June 19, 2023 – Juneteenth City Holiday -more-