Here is the most thorough reporting on the Assembly District 15 race which has appeared anywhere. Here's how it starts:

"The battles within the Democratic Party have played out in high-profile races this year, largely featuring well-heeled establishment figures with years of elected experience challenged by left-wing outsiders running with the support of a national grassroots movement.

"Amid this fight, there has been a strenuous effort from party centrists to drain the question of any ideological content. Party leaders are not pushing any particular agenda, goes the argument, but are merely pragmatists maximizing the chances of winning a general election. Elaine Kamarck, a Brookings Institute scholar and political consultant, put it succinctly. “Party leaders have the job of winning nationally; Democrats are painfully aware that not all congressional districts are Berkeley, Calif.,” she wrote in defense of those party leaders.

"Party leaders, however, seem to have missed that memo when it comes to the non-metaphorical Berkeley. Thanks to the state’s jungle primary law, two Democrats will face off in November in Assembly District 15, a state legislative seat that includes North Oakland, Berkeley, and Richmond.

"Here, it is Jovanka Beckles, the candidate endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America and Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has the governing experience and the support of leading local elected officials, and it’s the upstart, Buffy Wicks, who has never held office. Wicks is running as a business-backed Democratic operative pushing to disrupt a seat long-held by the progressive left."

It is great to see DailyCal endorsements with clear explanations supporting their choices.

DailyCal on Kate Harrison District 4

DailyCal on Igor Tregub District 1

DailyCal on Rigel Robinson District 7

DailyCal on Mary Kay Lacey District 8

In all Districts the top endorsement is absolutely clear. Only in District 1 would I make a different choice for 2nd place in Rank Choice Voting. Having watched City Council by attending meetings steadily for almost 4 years (missed 3 meetings) Margo Schueler would bring a missing component - deep knowledge of infrastructure. There are others on Council now who have knowledge and experience in budgets. Kate is right there on top of that too. If we see these four, Igor, Kate, Rigel, and Mary Kay elected and with Kate's continuous push for accountability and transparency, Berkeley will be solidly on the right track. -more-

Got democracy?

On Tuesday, October 30, 2018, we went shopping for some at City Council. They didn’t have any in stock. We went down to the corner store looking for some. But they were fresh out as well. There ain’t none left.

And here we have election day coming up. Yet all we have is a vote and the naivete to think that this machinic act is the real thing. What do we become when technology gets substituted for dealing with issues?

There were two issues on the Council agenda that day. Both had been the subject of huge special meetings in the recent past. They were serious controversial issues – you know, people against institutions. One was about abating fire danger in the hills. The other was about police bias and racial profiling.

On that Tuesday, the first issue was railroaded through by a show of council’s autocratic power. It was put on the Consent Calendar, as if controversy didn’t exist, and the people’s voice was smothered under procedure and a corrupt unanimity.

The second issue was blown off by the Berkeley PD by simply failing to provide a promised report on how they were dealing with their racism. The Police Chief, however, did exhibit some racial profiling, right there in the council meeting, for the edification of all present. Let’s look at that one first. -more-

Please cast a NO vote on Measure FF. A NO on Measure FF will stop funding of millions of dollars to clear-cut hundreds of thousands of healthy trees and turn these fire-abating trees into dried, flammable kindling in the East Bay Hills. David Maloney, Fire Prevention Chief, Oakland Army Base, “Dried grass provides the most flammable ground fuel,” and, “There‘s no if’s, and’s, or but’s… every single tree is a wildfire mitigation factor…. Trees block wind, drip fog onto grasses, and block sun so grasses stay moist.” -more-

In response to 12 years of a Mayor and majority City Council actively seeking to undermine the protective West Berkeley Plan policies and zoning that make possible West Berkeley’s local, sustainable, industrial maker & artisan/arts economy and culture, in 2016 WEBAIC endorsed Mayor and City Council candidates for the first time. Five of six WEBAIC-endorsed candidates won, resulting in a much more supportive and collaborative environment for WEBAIC and its constituency of approximately 320 PDRR (Production, Distribution, Repair, Recycling) companies, their 7000+ good jobs, and the 250 existing art/music/dance studios with 1000+ working artists.

Notably, since last election’s turnover of the Mayor/Council majority, the City of Berkeley abandoned its large-scale rezoning efforts that would have resulted in widespread displacement of industrial and artisan companies providing important City revenue, goods and services, and thousands of family wage jobs for those needing them the most. Moving in the opposite, positive direction, the City has now joined with 28 other Bay cities in the Bay Area Urban Manufacturing Initiative to facilitate an interconnected regional manufacturing ecosystem.

Through hard experience, WEBAIC has come to understand the necessity of having a Mayor and Council that value the contributions our vibrant and robust industrial maker & arts sectors bring to Berkeley’s economy and culture, including their critical role in the City’s efforts to achieve and maintain broad-based equity, ethnic and economic diversity, and environmental sustainability.

In light of this experience, WEBAIC undertook an endorsement process to identify who we believe are the 2018 City Council candidates that best understand and support West Berkeley’s sustainable industrial & arts economy and culture. WEBAIC’s 2018 endorsements: -more-

PUPP (People United to Protect Parks) is a group of individuals who oppose East Bay Regional Park District’s Measure FF parcel TAX because it will help fund ill-advised changes EBRPD wants to make in the parks that we love. Among those changes are removal of tall shade trees, “restoration” of native plants and trees (even where they never grew before), and increased use of toxic chemicals to keep weeds and other “undesirable” vegetation from thriving in unshaded areas where trees are cut down. -more-

As many readers may know, "Public Comment" is those portions of City Council meetings when Council members are able to take a few minutes to catch up on emails and texts, chat among themselves, visit the restroom, and enjoy the fine snacks laid out in the private antechamber. Of course, some of the more hardy council members use this opportunity to pretend to listen to the regular citizens who line up to speak. For their part, the speakers return the favor by pretending that what they say to Council might make a damn bit of difference. -more-

The recent caravan heading for the U.S. border is like manna from heaven for Trump and the Republican candidates for Congress. Now they can sow fear, loathing, and lies about these poor migrants escaping poverty and terror in their countries and seeking a better life in this country. Trump provided no support for his claim that the caravan includes criminals and Middle East terrorists. In response to this fictional threat, In response to this fictional threat, Trump plans to send 800 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border ahead of the caravan in an attempt to rally Republican midterm voters — an “October surprise.” -more-

Building housing near transit has one glaring flaw. It can't reduce Berkeley's carbon footprint because it doesn't do anything about the people who already live here.

It can limit how much bigger Berkeley's carbon footprint gets, but it can't fix climate change by itself.

DOOR-TO-DOOR TRANSIT

The recent "IPCC Special Report on Global Warming" from the United Nations gives the world 12 years to reduce carbon emissions, not limit how fast they increase. The report predicts dire consequences if we fail to accomplish this goal.

Fortunately, there is an approach that can greatly reduce Berkeley's carbon footprint by getting people out of their fossil-fueled cars and into a combination of Neighborhood Electric Vehicles for short trips and BART trains for longer trips.

I call this approach door-to-door transit, because it finally solves the centuries-old "last mile" problem of moving people between their homes or jobs and the nearest transit stations. -more-

In a desperate attempt to malign the Democrats before the mid-term elections, the divider-in-chief, President Trump has reached down into his oversize bag of “dirty tricks’ and used the desperate plight of Honduran migrants to stoke fear and galvanize his base. Fearful of a blue wave, the president and the GOP are moving audaciously far from the truth and deep into the gutter. -more-

Wellstone didn’t recommend on state insurance commissioner, perhaps fooled by technical nonpartisan status. Poizner, a Republican (claims to be now “independent”), is leading on name recognition. Lara is clearly the progressive choice. -more-

The American people are systematically being locked out of our democracy. This is being done by means of voter suppression and other tactics to rig our elections, in combination with a skewed Supreme Court. -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-

The PUPP writer is woefully uninformed and misunderstands basic forestry and fire hazard management. What does the PUPP writer even mean by the statement, ““restoration” of native plants and trees (even where they never grew before)” ??? How can native plants and trees never have grown where they are to be restored? Implicit in the definition of restoration is the removal of nonnative plants so that native plants can be restored to their natural habitat. Restoration fosters the resiliency of ecosystems and helps reduce the risk of fuel loads associated with non-native vegetation. -more-

Fans of Dan O'Neill's Odd Bodkins cartoons will be delighted to learn that he's sent the Planet two strips that we are pleased to offer you for downloading. First, there's Back to 1969, all too relevant for the current political situation. Click here to download this one.

Then there's one that spotlights today's climate crisis. Click here to download it. -more-

People have been asking how to find the Planet's endorsements. Just click here for the editorial in which they appeared, long ago: ENDORSEMENTS, , . Two additions: NO on State Proposition 3 and on Measure FF. -more-

The news that the Americans recently held face-to-face talks with the Taliban suggests that longest war in US history may have reached a turning point, although the road to such a peace is long, rocky and plagued with as many improvised explosive devices as the highway from Kandahar to Kabul.

That the 17-year old war has reached a tipping point seems clear. The Taliban now controls more territory than they have since the American invasion in 2001. Causalities among Afghan forces are at an all time high, while recruitment is rapidly drying up. In spite of last year’s mini-surge of US troops and airpower by the Trump administration, the situation on the ground is worse now than in was in 2017. If any one statement sums up the hopelessness—and cluelessness—of the whole endeavor, it was former Secretary of State’s challenge to the Taliban: “You will not win a battlefield victory. We may not win one, but neither will you.”

Of course, like any successful insurgency, the Taliban never intended to “win a battlefield victory,” only not to lose, thus forcing a stalemate that would eventually exhaust their opponents. Clearly the lessons of the Vietnam War are not part of the standard curriculum at Foggy Bottom.

Why things have gone from bad to worse for the US/NATO occupation and the Kabul government has less to do with the war itself than a sea change in strategy by the Taliban, a course shift that Washington has either missed or ignored. According to Ashley Jackson of the Overseas Development Institute, the Taliban shifted gears in 2015, instituting a program of winning hearts and minds. -more-

Because I have suffered severe psychosis numerous times, and with mild psychosis for all my adult life, by necessity, I am familiar with processes by which I can overcome more than half of my delusional thoughts. It involves questioning my own thinking as to whether it is accurate. It also involves the realization that thoughts are merely thoughts--they are a representation, but they should not be accepted as "reality," at least until proven by means of the five physical senses, or by means of checking out the thoughts with other reliable sources. -more-

If you are reading this, it's very likely that you are going to vote. The purpose of this column is not to convince you to vote but rather to urge you to convince every eligible voter you know to cast their vote. This is a crucial election. Let's consider what Democrats are fighting for and why it's so important that we turn out every eligible voter we can reach. -more-

Candidates Unleashed

There is a wealth of work experience among the ten candidates running for Berkeley Council seats in the November 6 election but several stand out as examples of our changing lifestyles. In addition to "a small business owner" and an "attorney," our candidates include an "elder nutrition manager," a "sustainable policy analyst," a "green transportation designer," and Aidan Hill who lists his occupation as "Berkeley Dog Walker."

Trump's "America First" to Planet Earth: "Drop Dead"

Donald Trump has announced he's a "nationalist," not a "globalist." Why worry about the planet, when your focus is on America uber Alles? This raises the obvious question: "What planet does Trump think he lives on?" -more-

While much of the country is reacting in horror to the massacre of 11 Jews in a Pittsburgh synagogue there is virtually no international outrage over the daily killing of Palestinians in Gaza. Israel has announced it is implementing a “zero tolerance” policy toward peaceful protesters in Gaza, who have been staging weekly Friday protests since March 30. Since then, Israeli forces have killed at least 170 Palestinians, including more than 30 children, and injured at least 18,000. The Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem representative HAGAI EL-AD addressed the United Nations: “The Gaza Strip, with a population of nearly 2 million, has essentially become an open-air prison. Its inmates have been staging protests for the past six months, after suffering for more than a decade under an Israeli-imposed blockade that has led to economic collapse, soaring unemployment rates, polluted drinking water, dwindling power supplies and, ultimately, to deep despair”.While we shed tears for our Jewish brothers and sisters who died we should save a few tears for the ongoing slaughter of Palestinians with the assistance of $billions of support from the US. Humanity should always triumph political and religious ideology. -more-

Worth Noting

Holiday Food Drive, 8:30 am – 6:00 pm everyday month of November, hours vary by location. Call 981-6656 for information

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/CalendarEventMain.aspx?calendarEventID=15587

Berkeley City Council, Tues Nov 13 available for comment, Agenda: 1. IKE Kiosks, 17. Appeal 3000 Shattuck, 18. Shower Services Homeless, 19. Sanctuary City Contracting Ordinance, 20. Minimum Wage, 21. City Manager request to reduce in-lieu mitigation fee to $0 for 2597 Telegraph, 22. Cannabis, 23. Ohlone Greenway, 24. Budget Referral Increasing Safety at San Pablo Park

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/City_Council__Agenda_Index.aspx -more-

Make no mistake about it. In spite of a well-balanced program of three major works, opening with Claude Debussy’s Prélude à L’Après midi d’un Faune followed by Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini for Piano and Orchestra, it was Gustav Mahler’s Fifth Symphony, which the composer called a “raging sea of sound,” that was the centerpiece of the Mariinsky Orchestra’s Monday night concert, October 22, at Davies Hall. Under the leadership of their Music Director, Valery Gergiev, the Mariinsky Orchestra of St. Petersburg offered a powerful rendition of Mahler’s groundbreaking Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp Minor. Power was indeed preeminent in Gergiev’s interpretation of this huge, sprawling symphony; and only the lilting simplicity of the famous Adagietto offered a welcome moment of respite from the onslaught of powerful musical ideas issuing from Mahler’s tumultuous score. -more-

In 1933, twenty-three years after the 1910 premiere of Der Rosenkavalier in Dresden, Richard Strauss premiered Arabella in Dresden. Their Dresden beginnings notwithstanding, Der Rosenkavalier and Arabella are quintessentially Viennese operas. Both are set in Vienna, Der Rosenkavalier in the reign of Empress Maria Theresa, and Arabella, at least in its original conception, in the 1860s, though for this San Francisco Opera production Director Tim Albery has updated Arabella to 1910, shortly before the outbreak of World War I. Both operas examine Viennese society with a jaundiced, though affectionate, eye. -more-

The fiendishly difficult Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin by Johann Sebastian Bach have always been a part of Hilary Hahn’s musical life. Ms. Hahn began her musical studies with her first teacher, Klara Berkovich, and at age 10 was admitted to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia to study with Jascha Brodsky, who devoted a part of each lesson to solo Bach. At age 17, Hilary Hahn recorded her first CD, entitled Hilary Hahn Plays Bach, which featured her performances of Bach’s Sonata No. 1 in G minor, Partita No. 1 in B minor, and Partita No. 2 in D minor. Now, at age 38, Hilary Hahn revisited exactly these same works in a recital at Davies Hall, Sunday, November 4, under the aegis of San Francisco Symphony’s Great Performer Series. Hilary Hahn performs on an 1864 copy by Vuillaume of the Guarneri “Il Cannone” played by Paganini. -more-