During the hoopla surrounding the death of Henry Kissinger, we must not forget his dark side. He was an amoral practitioner of the art of realpolitik. His role in the overthrow of Salvador Allende, the democratically elected president of Chile, is an excellent example. In 1970, Salvador Allende, a socialist politician, won the 1970 Chilean presidential election. Allende said he was committed to democracy but was supported by the Communist Party. Fearing his election would push Chile toward communism, Kissinger became "the architect of U.S. efforts to destabilize” Allende’s government that ultimately ended up In a 1973, military coup led by Augusto Pinochet. -more-

The last meeting of Thanksgiving week ended at 12:02 pm Tuesday.

After calls for a cease-fire brought the November 14 council meeting to an abrupt end

the entire consent and action calendar from the November 14, 2023 city council meeting was moved to 9 am on November 21. Most people missed the rescheduling announcement (it was in the Activist’s Calendar), but not a group calling for a cease-fire that showed up at the unusual meeting hour.

The calls for action on a cease-fire began within minutes of the start of the meeting and could be heard in the background while Mayor Arreguin ran through the early votes. Russell Bates was the loudest. Arreguin responded stating disruption would not be tolerated, disruptive persons would be removed and council would reconvene at another location, and he gaveled for a ten-minute recess.

Unlike the demonstration that ended the November 14th council meeting, this time a camera was turned into the room and Bates was loud enough to be heard on ZOOM. Arreguin attempted to resume the meeting in the BUSD Boardroom. When the public calls for action continued, Arreguin announced that due to the disruption the council meeting would be continued without the public present in another room.

When the meeting resumed in a smaller room the main agenda item, rezoning the Southside was up for discussion and vote. The Southside rezoning is a major overhaul, with bigger and taller buildings covering lots with little or no space between them. As with all zoning changes the path to approval goes through the Planning Commission first and then on to City Council. -more-

Elections are now taking place for the Executive Committees of the Sierra Club’s Bay Chapter and Northern Alameda County Group. Ballots are due December 13.

This year the ballots for the Bay Chapter and Northern Alameda County Group Ex Coms includes a lot of Yimby-aligned candidates, who are not identified as such.

The Club’s endorsements of candidates for public office carry weight with voters who care about the environment, so who’s running its governing boards is critical.

A local Sierra Club controlled by Yimbys would endorse candidates for public office who push an aggressive pro-growth agenda at odds with the organization’s environmental legacy.

It’s too late to join the Club to vote in this election.

If you’re currently a paid-up Sierra Club member, please vote for the following candidates:

Bay Chapter Ex Com:

Chance Cutrano

Becky Evans

Kelly Hammargren

Martha Kreeger

Paul Seger



Northern Alameda County Group Ex Com:

Sophie Hahn

Kelly Hammargren

Melinda Howard-Herrarte

Andy Katz -more-

Suffixing Our Online Domains

The World Wide Web is expanding its online domain-branding options beyond the familiar choices:.com, .org, .info, and .net.

Dreamhost offering new website suffixes including ".io, .inc, .cloud, .help, and .love."

How about .me, .ai, .inc, .etc, .spam, .yes and .nope?

Putting It All on the Line
Recently we replaced the old, sagging closeline in the backyard. At the time, didn't realize that this humdrum activity was putting our lives and health at risk. It was only after the new line was installed that I chanced to read the microscopic type on the product label. It contained the following warnings: "Cancer and reproductive harm: www/P65Warnings.ca.gov. Not recommended for use where personal safety or loss of property is involved. Knots decrease working loads by 50%. When a rope under tension is released or breaks, the rope and its attachments may snap back in unpredictable directions with great force, which could result in injury or death to persons in its path."

Other small-type-of-interest was the store's guarantee, which read: "If the Ace product, when used for its intended purpose, fails to give you complete satisfaction, return the item to the store where you purchased [it] for free replacement of the same or similar item." -more-

There is a formula that might just succeed in bringing about a two-state solution in Israel-Palestine. First, the current extreme right-wing coalition led by Bibi Netanyahu must be toppled. Benny Gantz of the National Unity Party may be the man to break out of the coalition, forcing a new election or possibly being asked to form a new coalition government with Israel Resilience Party and New Hope, plus the Palestinian citizens of Israel and their political parties. Second, perhaps in return for Hamas releasing some or all of the female soldiers held hostage in Gaza, a Gantz coalition should release from prison Marwan Barghouti, who is by far the most popular and highly respected Palestinian political figure, holding a huge lead in polls over both the PLO’s 88 year-old Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas’ Ismail Haniyeh. Barghouti, who has been likened to South Africa’s Nelson Mandela, has renounced political violence and advocates a two-state solution with Israel and Palestine living peacefully side-by-side. -more-

In my past, within the last fifteen years it seems, I have functioned largely by strong impulses. Some of the impulses were problematic. There is the impulse where I think I need a cigarette; this is substance abuse. There is the impulse of fear that leads to inaccurate and illusory thinking, in turn leading to badly chosen actions. There is the impulse in which I thought I had to get out of a situation because it was too much. I didn't have much room in my head space and body space to just "be". -more-

b Worth Noting:

The Rent Board is meeting the hybrid format on Monday, December 4, 2023 at 6 pm in the BUSD Boardroom and will vote on agenda item 6.b. a ceasefire resolution.



There are only two (December 5th and 12th) more scheduled City Council regular 6 pm meetings and one special meeting at 3 pm on December 12th before Winter Recess (December 13, 2023 – January 15, 2024). The agendas for all three meetings are posted at the bottom of this email. The 3 pm special meeting is on the North Berkeley BART Station Housing Objective Standards.

The goto meeting is City Council on Tuesday. Attending by ZOOM is the best choice. In response to demonstrators, Council left the board room for a conference room at the last two meetings. Zoom participants were able to watch and comment. Demonstrators and attendees in the board room were locked out.

• Monday:
  • At 10 am the Land Use Committee meets in the hybrid format.
  • At 6 pm the Rent is holding a special meeting in the hybrid format with a call for an immediate ceasefire in Palestine and Israel on the agenda.
  • At 7 pm the Personnel Board in person.
• Tuesday:
  • At 9:30 am the Budget Committee meets in the hybrid format on AAO
  • At 6 pm the City Council meets in the hybrid format item A. Deconstruction and Construction regulations, item 12. $900,000 on street calming budget referral and item 13. report on reimaging public safety.
  • At 7 pm the Rent Stabilization Board meets in closed session.

• Wednesday:
  • At 5:30 pm the Planning Commission meets in person on the demolition ordinance.
  • At 6 pm the Civic Arts Commission meets in person.
  • At 6:30 pm the Police Accountability Board meets in the Hybrid format.
  • At 7 pm the Disaster and Fire Safety Commission meets in person
• Thursday:
  • At 7 pm the Landmarks Preservation Commission meets in person.
  • At 1 pm WETA meets in the hybrid format.
• Friday:
  • From 6 – 9 pm there is a dance for teens, pre-registration is required.
  • From 8 – 10 pm there is a city sponsored comedy show tickets $20.
• Saturday:
  • From 10 am – 1 pm on winter weather preparedness, sandbags, storm drains.
  • Berkeley Neighborhoods Council meets the 2nd Saturday of the month, check later.

Survey of adults 55 and older from the County of Alameda Area Agency on Aging to plan county services to assist older adults to age in place. https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/CABERKE/bulletins/37d724c

Free Yoga Classes every Tuesday and Wednesday from 4:30 – 5:30 pm at the West Berkeley Family Wellness Center, 1900 Sixth Street, Register by phone 510-981-5350.

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



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BERKELEY PUBLIC MEETINGS AND CIVIC EVENTS -more-