"In what has become an annual tradition, at least 10,000 people gathered to smoke pot on Hippie Hill, despite the park’s smoking ban... revelers left behind 22,000 pounds of garbage... 'It’s a mess out here, and I have 40 people working out here this morning. This will cost the city $100,000. Probably by the time we’re done, this will cost my department $30,000 to $50,000 in staff time,' Ginsburg said. 'To put that in perspective, we can send one kid to summer camp for a week, for free, for about $300,' the Recreation and Park director went on to say..." - SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5)

The Berkeley City Council is slated to make Cesar Chavez Park a "designated location for cannabis events" at their meeting on Tuesday, March 12, an extreme hazard for those who don't wish to be or can't be exposed to smoke. They plan for the smoking to be in a "smoking tent"; SF's "hippie hill" (photo at left) helps us imagine how well that will work. Berkeley students, residents, and workers get exposed to both tobacco and marijuana all over Berkeley as it is. The California law decriminalizing marijuana specifically prohibits smoking in public.

Please help protect our smokefree parks. Write to, and encourage any group (you don't have to be from Berkeley) you work with to write to: council@cityofberkeley.info 

or call and leave a message saying you oppose cannabis events in any of our smokefree parks, especially Cesar Chavez, the most accessible in Berkeley:

Mayor Jesse Arreguin - (510) 981-7100
Councilmember Rashi Kesarwani - (510) 981-7110
Councilmember Cheryl Davila - (510) 981-7120
Councilmember Benjamin Bartlett - (510) 981-7130
Councilmember Kate Harrison - (510) 981-7140
Councilmember Sophie Hahn - (510) 981-7150
Councilmember Susan Wengraf - (510) 981-7160
Councilmember Rigel Robinson - (510) 981-7170
Councilmember Lori Droste - (510) 981-7180

Anti-homeless laws don't work; the last thirty years proves it. Anti-RV laws, such as Berkeley's vote for a prohibition on parking from 2-5 a.m. while creating a nightmarish two weeks-only permitting system has the same probability of being pointless. The Berkeley City Council probably knows this. But the majority just doesn't care.

Only a couple of them at the special meeting Thursday, February 28, 2019, had the common sense to note that the police were actively concentrating RVs in the west Berkeley. At least some of them know police often just make up the rules as they go. It makes those of us in the police's sights wonder why the Berkeley City Council majority even bothers pumping out more rules. The police do whatever they want whenever they want to the poor, rules be damned.

Here's why they do it; it makes the homeowners and business owners pressuring against the RV community feel like something was done. Even if pointless, even if useless, even if heartless, something happened. A crank turned. The City Manager's office will whir with authority and fluff the detail, the City Manager's office will try to craft an elegant evasion of Martin vs. Boise, and the City Council gets to pose next to their RV permit process like a proud hunter standing by a dead bear. 

There always comes a moment in a city council meeting to generate more anti-poor laws where a single supporter alludes to the people who would have attended, who might have spoken, who could have far outnumbered the poor and voices on behalf of the poor. They were just too afraid to come, to speak, to represent their own interests and opinions according to this single voice. This voice always argues that the room is skewed unfairly toward opposition to laws that target the poor despite the poor in great numbers managing to muster the courage to come. The poor plead for common sense and against ineffective, expensive laws which commonly dog and doom the those without property and means to tickets, fines, and jail for simply being unable to pay sky-high rents. 

And it works. Mayor Arreguin leans forward, just as Tom Bates and before him his wife, former Mayor Loni Hancock, use to do. The mayor assures the poor law supporters, usually property and business owners convinced that the view out their front windows of streets they don't own should not include the sight of an RV, that they're heard and that their concerns will be treated with respect. The Mayor assures them that there is scrambling behind the scenes to move heaven and earth to accommodate their issues. They may not own the public streets in front of their businesses and properties, but they're reassured that they will be treated as if they did. 

And then comes the turning of the big, fake crank that proves that the council did something for the property owners tired of being surrounded by poverty. Berkeley may be among the top ten cities nationally for its income disparity, but dang it, that doesn't mean the well-off should have any visible evidence of same. The fake crank turns. Those insistent that any poverty or income disparity be invisible then feel their council representatives have done something. Any residual difficulty is just evidence of the depth of the problem, not the idiocy of the council, few of whom are unaware that anti-poor laws are a waste of money and time. 

Criminalization of the poor is not just counter-productive, it is really, really expensive. Note that the $13 million dollars of the public's money which was just recently spent on renovating BART Plaza to make it less likely that poor people will hang out on benches (and deliberately toilet-free), divided by the $20,000 per year this writer has managed to live on for decades would have gotten at least 650 people off the street for a year. 

But extremely costly idiocy appears to be what citizens of Berkeley are willing to embrace. The proof is the decades they have spent doing exactly that, and spending those decades watching their own public dollars going straight down the drain of this convenient political facade. 

Let's be clear. It takes creativity, resourcefulness, focus, discipline, and attention to detail to work within the strictures already placed on RVs (recreational vehicles) in the City of Berkeley, let alone keep your job while living in a tent. And it is most likely true that just as with tent cities, human waste is dealt with in inadequate ways, since the closest pumping station right now according to this recent city council meeting is somewhere in Petaluma. 

But it is also true that repeated speakers warned against providing adequate pumping facilities in the City of Berkeley for fear that people, rather than renting at exorbitant rates, would abandon any hope of finding a rental unit and create an even larger RV community. Ahhhhhh! 

While the majority of the Berkeley City Council listened to the voices of the RV community with glazed expressions, a few councilmembers exhibited clarity, concern, and creative policy. Councilmembers Hahn, Harrison, and Davila illustrated how simple it would be to offer immediate space in vacant properties as a safe harbor, and how counterproductive it is to tighten rules on a community already under strain. Hahn, Harrison, and Davila questioned the report presented to the council as a foundation for the proposed legislation asking pointed questions, noting the absence of commissions and relevant committees in the process, and raised hope that at least a little common sense rattles around on City Hall's fifth floor. 

But in the meantime, between 2:00 am and the break of dawn, RV dwellers will have to endlessly drive around. Because thanks to the necessity of a political facade, common sense and compassion will just have to wait. 

Both President Trump and President Madura are facing off moving towards a cataclysmic showdown. Mr. Trump’s veiled threat to the Venezuelan military to abandon President Nicolás Maduro or “lose everything” can only be interpreted as a pretext for military intervention. 

Yes, the military should abandon Mr. Maduro, who has guided one of Latin America’s richest countries to total ruin with a valueless currency, hyperinflation driving up food, medicine and other commodity prices out of reach for the average citizen. But it should not be America’s role to impose its will on Venezuela. History is replete with failed US military adventures–Vietnam, Iraq, Libya, the 17 year quagmire in Afghanistan.  

The offer of humanitarian aid seems completely out of character given Mt Trump’s admiration for the world’s strong men like Putin, General Assisi, Duterte, President Erdogan, Xi Jinping and his latest love, Kim Jong-Un of North Korea. Vice President Pence tried to gain European support projecting the US as a beacon of light with his recent visit to the European Parliament but the tepid reaction he received made clear the Europeans don’t buy a sudden burst of altruism from the White House. It is telling The United Nations, the Red Cross and other relief organizations have refused to work with the U.S. on delivering aid to Venezuela, which they say is politically motivated. Finally, Mr. Trump has expressed a strong desire to gain access to Venezuela’s oil which he said would be a huge bonanza to American oil companies. 

Michael Cohen, Donald Trump’s long time attack dog drew back the curtains of his boss’s sordid business activities and private life. His riveting testimony validated what most of us have long suspected. 

By his own admission Cohen threatened more than 500 people or entities at Trump’s behest. 

Trump had an early history of gaming the system, Clearly embarrassed by his school grades and SAT scores he instructed Cohen to ensure they be hidden from the public. In mortal fear of being sent to the killing fields of Vietnam, he conjured up a fake bone spur story to escape the draft.  

Cohen looked a broken man, sacrificing his integrity for the proximity to power but nevertheless deserves credit for appearing before Congress with full knowledge that he would be vilified and treated like a human piñata by the Republicans on the House Oversight Committee. 

Armed with documents to bolster his case Cohen accused his former boss as “a racist, con man, and a cheat who is fundamentally disloyal and a threat to democracy.” We should pay close attention to Cohen’s warnings otherwise we may be subjected to a Trump second term when he will continue to do irreparable damage to our nation, alienate our allies while cozying up to Russia’s Putin. With his stubborn denial of the ticking time bomb of climate change, he is clear and present danger to the entire planet. Republicans and Trump supporters time to take your head out of the sand and pay attention. 

Donald Trump, with his many criminal machinations, kidnapping of migrant children and unrepentant hate speech, deserves to be in federal prison. Yet for all that, with his hopes to prove a foreign policy genius on Korea punctured, Trump becomes a tragic figure. Trump floated the idea of negotiating an end to the never ended Korean War (something both Koreas’ leaders want) in exchange for Kim Jong Un ending his nuclear weapons program. It might have worked. 

What happened instead? Unbeknownst to Trump his own men, Bolton and Pompeo, joined the national security state leaders in blocking such a peace plan. Why? US finance and military interests don’t want the Korean war ended, reunification or the removal of US troops from South Korea even if it meant ending dictatorship in the North. As a more independent capitalist powerhouse, a unified Korea, would likely loosen US imperialism’s grip throughout East Asia.

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This is a Very Good Deal. Go for it! 

f you have ever gone to Cesar Chavez Park the day after the Kite Festival you will find lots used toilet paper under bushes, behind trees and on the grass and yet we allow this to continue year after year. I can’t imagine that a gathering of cannabis users would be any more inconsiderate of public health than the attendees of this festival. My dog and I stayed away from the park when Frankie Graham took it over for his religious/political rally because it upsets me to hear that. Frank and his peeps had their day in the park and me and Shadow went somewhere else that day. It was not a big thing for us to go to a different park that day and let them do their thing.I would hope that the few folks who are affected by smoke would choose one of the many other Berkeley parks for one day and allow a few hundred like minded folks to do their thing.

When a psychiatric consumer becomes "noncompliant" they face massive forces going against them. The "system" is designed to funnel those who are uncooperative into conservatorship, or worse. 

We have many reasons why we are better off initially cooperating with the system, and then going farther than that--using the resources of the system to make things better for ourselves. 

When someone becomes medication noncompliant, a relapse is very likely. This seems universal. In the past thirty-plus years of exposure to fellow psych patients in the mental health treatment systems, I haven't seen any exceptions; going off meds will cause a relapse. I am uncertain about why--I would think a small percentage would be able to get by without medication. 

In some instances, a relapse of severe psychiatric symptoms will carry life-threatening consequences. 

The consequences of stopping medication against medical advice sometimes includes incarceration. You don't want that. In other instances, the relapse causes you to become gravely disabled. In the latter case, a rehospitalization follows, and this is followed, one hopes, with a gradual recovery. A quick recovery probably won't happen unless you're in your early twenties or younger. 

I've seen cops take away people who have "decompensated." The cops are not always nice about it. Not to knock law enforcement people--they have helped me numerous times. Yet, when dealing with a mentally ill person whose behavior may not make any sense, often police are at a loss concerning how to be compassionate. 

In modern times, mentally ill people frequently end up in prisons and jails. They may inadvertently commit minor offenses. It might seem more convenient to just lock people away, rather than trying to help them deal with and solve their problems, and then help them reintegrate into society. 

Often, those in charge of running society are tempted to seek the easiest and most convenient method of dealing with a psychotic, manic, or suicidal person. This is sometimes to incarcerate the person, and in other instances, to commit her or him into a long-term, locked facility. 

The above are reasons that a mentally ill person needs to be cooperative. After you have that learned, it is helpful to find yourself a niche in society. I suggest that you do something you love. It doesn't necessarily matter whether you are very good at it; if you love a type of work, you should do that. When you pursue that sort of goal, and if some level of success at it has a chance of being realistic, it will have numerous good ramifications to many areas of your life. 

In my twenties, my pursuit was that of repairing home electronics. I also worked at other jobs. In most of the jobs that I obtained, I ended up quitting in a manner that was unprofessional. This netted bad ramifications, and a lot of people criticized that behavior. However, there were some jobs that I stuck with, and at the time, this helped my life circumstances. 

Cooperating with psychiatric treatment is something you can do even as you defy the label being thrust on you. 

Defying the concept that your intelligence is below normal, is another thing that you can do in your partial defiance. If you take your medication and accept other treatment that the system is mandating, you nonetheless have the basic freedom to value yourself and act accordingly. 

Because in my twenties, I worked at jobs for more than ten years even after being labeled as schizophrenic, I have Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and not just Supplemental Security Income (SSI). This allows me to get Medicare, which in turn allows me to accept treatment for physical and mental ailments, at a wider variety of places and not just at county-run facilities. 

When I was in my thirties, I finally gave up on conventional employment. I'd been taking heavy antipsychotics for a long time and decided that it was getting too difficult to be employed while maintaining this and other forms of treatment. 

Yet, my experience at working jobs, and my attitude of cooperation yet defiance, are things that stay with me, and that continue to help my quality of life be better than it would be otherwise. 

The mental health treatment system in conjunction with other mechanisms in society, and a psychiatric condition that necessitates treatment, are things we probably can't change. But we continue to have power over our own attitudes and actions. We don't have to accept the role of mentally ill idiot. We can do better. Being mentally ill, or being diagnosed as such, does not have to define us. 

Cooperating with the system is the biggest thing we can do to fight the system. When we cooperate, we maintain our basic liberty and maintain our faculties, this allows us to stand up for ourselves. This is something we would not be able to do if we were noncompliant and re-hospitalized on a repetitive basis. 

On February 17, Michael Cohen, the ex-attorney and fixer for President Donald Trump, persuasively testified before the House Oversight and Reform Committee assailing Trump as a “racist,” “con man,” and “cheat." 

Republicans claimed that Cohen lacks credibility because he has been convicted of lying to Congress and faces jail time. Remember, however, that Cohen lied on behalf of Trump. Whereas, Trump has lied over 8,000 times and counting in his first two years in office and committed other egregious acts, and, as yet, faces no jail time or impeachment.  

Who is more credible, Cohen or the Congressional Republicans still in lockstep support of Trump? My money is on Cohen.

R.I.P.: Noted in Passing

One of Berkeley's oldest residents died in a tragic fall during last week's storms. A towering eucalyptus tree in the middle of the King Park and Pool playground lost its footing in the rain-soaked soil and tumbled to the ground with a crash and a thud that woke nearby residents.

Fortunately, the gigantic tree toppled during the night. Had it fallen during the day, the results could have been tragic because it came crashing down right on top of the adjacent children's playground, mangling several swings, ripping holes in the spongy groundcover, and crushing the surrounding metal fence.

The tree once stood more than 100 feet tall but Friday morning saw it sprawled across the play area, its massive base uprooted and work crews busily sawing the enormous trunk into refrigerator-sized chunks. The toppled tree was so huge that the sections of sawed trunk scattered on the ground rose over the heads of the clean-up crew working to clear the site.

By the time students began arriving at MLK Jr., the cleanup was already well underway.

The tree will be missed. But, given the odds that it could have rumbled down on a playground filled with children, let's give thanks that it missed.

 

Grumpy Trump Walks Away, Very Hanoied 

Poor Donald. The stage was set, the agreements confirmed, the papers already printed and waiting to be signed, and he winds up turning his massive back on Kim Jong-un's pudgy front, and walking away from a potentially history-making Deal. 

Pundits immediate went to work trying to suss out what went wrong. Trump's focus was fractured, for one thing. The Donald admitted he had taken some "executive time" during the intense meet-up with Kim—abandoning the nuclear negotiations so he could watch the live broadcast of Michael Cohen's House intelligence committee testimony. 

This might have left Trump unable to concentrate of the business-at-hand. Surely watching his former right-hand-man calling him a "racist, a conman, and a cheat" may have left Trump feeling a bit imperiled. 

I just heard Willie Brown on the radio and realized we both shared the same theory to explain Trump's sudden departure from Hanoi. Here it is: 

After watching Cohen's testimony, Trump approached the North Korean leader to ask for a favor and flew off in a huff when Kim refused to offer him political asylum. 

In Related News 

On February 26, KCBS afternoon newsperson Melissa Culross went on air to inform the Bay Area that: "Donald Trump is now on his way back to Russia." Quickly adding: "Excuse me . . . . The US." 

Send Trump a Billion Dollar Bill 

Donald Trump claimed he was "proud" to "take the mantle " for shutting down the government. This unprecedented, authoritarian act caused crushing economic chaos—especially for 800,000 federal workers. Since Trump has claimed "ownership" of the shutdown, he should be held liable for the consequences, including reimbursement of the $3 billion in "unrecoverable losses" he inflicted on the country. This could become a precedent to prevent any future presidential actions that would result in clearly predictable economic damage to the nation. 

MoveOn Petition: Make Trump Pay for $3 Billion Loss 

To be delivered to The United States House of Representatives, The United States Senate 

Donald Trump said he was "proud to shut down the government" but the Congressional Budget Office reports that Trump's 35-day shutdown left the US Treasury with an "unrecoverable" loss of $3 billion. Ask Congress to enact legislation calling for Trump, a self-styled-billionaire, to reimburse the Treasury in full for the $3 billion loss.  

To sign the petition, CLICK HERE or cut and paste the following link: 

https://petitions.moveon.org/sign/make-trump-pay-for-3?source=c.fwd&r_by=5667819 

A Swab for the Dubs? 

Kaiser Permanente's elevators currently sport an ad alerting riders that "Early Detection Saves Lives." But the following text had me doing a double-take. It read: 

"Win Warriors Tickets! Get your cervical cancer screening test during the months of February and March and be entered into a raffle for a chance to win Golden State Warriors tickets." 

I pulled a puzzled expression and pointed to the sign to see if any other passengers thought it strange. 

A young woman just laughed and replied: "A pap smear for the Dubs? Sounds like a good deal to me!" 

Another Strange Commercial Transaction 

During a layover in Panama City en route to Colombia, I popped open my laptop inside Tocumen International Airport and attempted to connect to the Internet. The promise of "free wi-fi" came with conditions. There were two ways to link in. Travelers could (1) register with a local wi-fi provider or (2) donate blood to a local blood bank. 

A notice explained that the offer was limited to passengers 18 and older. Sorry kids, no online Vampire videogames for you on this trip. 

Bible Libel 

It's no secret that the Holy Bible is filled with unholy acts and bizarre behaviors but hard-core evangelists might be flustered to discover that King James of England—the fellow behind the translation, editing, and revision process that produced the King James Bible—was openly gay. Several years ago, I happened upon a portrait of King James that raised my curiousity and a Google search left me google-eyed. 

Turns out it was well-known at the time. The monarch's subjects openly shared a common joke that proclaimed: "Elizabeth was King: now James is Queen." 

It turns out the familiar nursery school rhyme, "Georgie, Porgie," was a veiled reference to King James's young consort, George Villiers, the 1^st Duke of Buckingham. 

There were even passionate letters twixt King-and-Duke. In one, King James wrote: "I naturally so love your person, and adore all your other parts . . . ." And appealed to: "my sweet child and wife [to] grant that ye may ever be a comfort to your dear dad and husband." 

Villiers penned similar notes, including the following: "I cannot now think of giving thanks for friend, wife, or child; my thoughts are only bent on having my dear Dad and Master's legs soon in my arms." And the monarch once dispatched a letter to the young Duke that declared: "Whether you loved me now . . . better than at the time I shall never forget at Farnham, where the bed's head could not be found between the master and his dog." 

So repent, thou gay-bashing preachers of intolerance! 

Stop Using the Word "Growth" 

In 1988, Edward Abbey famously observed: "Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell." 

Ann Pettifor, a fellow of London's New Economics Foundation, has an even stronger position on the term. "Please, never use the word 'growth,'" Pettifor pleads: "It was a word that was invented as recently as 1967 by a man called Samuel Britain and the OECD [Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development]. It wasn't in use before that." Every time you use that word, Pettifor scolds, "you're buying into a neoliberal concept, which is dangerous." 

According to Pettifor, economists used to express concern about the "level" of employment or the "level" of productivity. But the OECD came up with the idea that the economy should "grow by 4 percent" – i.e., to grow beyond its capacity. This path lead to debt and inflation, "for which the unions were blamed." 

It's fine to talk about "more employment," "more productivity" or "higher incomes," Pettifor says: just "don't use the word growth. 

So It's Time to Grow Our Vocabulary 

Progress has been made in the search for "growth-free" conversations—if economists would only adopt them. Here are two: 

In 1968, the Club of Rome came up with the concept of "degrowth." 

In 2009, Earth Island Journal minted a new term to counter neoliberal gtowth-based economics. The word was: "Shrinkth." 

Recent years have seen a flowering of catchphrases and popular movements all crafted to nudge us toward a less cataclysmic end. Among them: Small Is Beautiful. Power Down. Simple Living. Global Footprint. Carrying Capacity. Less and Local. Locavore. Green New Deal. 

And, of course, there's still that golden oldie: Zero Population Growth. 

Double-duty Words 

Speaking of the English language, did you know there are a few rare words that have exactly opposite meanings? An example? Take the word "sanction." Depending on the usage, the word can mean either "permission" or "denial." You can sanction someone for bad behavior. You can also sanction someone to do whatever they please. 

Such words are called "contronyms" (also known as "contranyms," "auto-antonyms," "antagonyms," "enantiodromes," "self-antonyms," "antilogies" and "Janus words"). 

"Oversight" can mean "supervise" or "overlook." 

"Left" can mean "left for somewhere else" or "left behind." 

"Dust," as a verb, can mean to cover with dust or to remove dust. 

According to the website MentalFloss, there are 14 such words, including: seed, stone, trim, cleave, resign, fast, off, weather, screen, and help. 

Well, I think I've found a 15th word: "Forge." 

"Forge" can mean to build something honorable —i.e., to "forge a respectable career"—but it can also describe an act of deceit—to "forge a document." 

Anyone have any other antagonyms? 

Trump Pays to Pop Up on the Mainstream Media 

It wasn't the kind of pop-up ad you would expect to see while tuning into the NBC Nightly News, but there it was—a fund-raising appeal from the Trump/Pence 2020 presidential campaign. 

A photo of Trump (with two thumbs raised) was paired with a donation square listing suggested contributions ranging from $35 to $2,700 to "Other." 

"The Fake News Media is out to get us," the ad proclaimed. And, to make it's point, the "Certified Website of Donald J. Trump" invited visitors to take a Mainstream Media Accountability Survey. It was clearly not intended to be an unbiased, scientific survey. Here are some of the 25 questions: 

Do you trust MSNBC to fairly report on our presidency? 

Do you believe that the mainstream media actually cares about working Americans? 

Do you trust the mainstream media to tell the truth about the Republican Party's position and actions?  

On which issues does the mainstream media do the worst job of representing Republicans (Select as many as apply): Immigration. Economics. Pro-life values. Religion. Individual liberty. Conservatism. Foreign policy. Second Amendment rights. 

Do you believe that people of faith have been unfairly characterized by the media? 

Do you believe that the media wrongly attributes gun violence to Second Amendment rights? 

Do you believe that the media has been far too quick to spread false stories about our movement? 

Do you believe that the media uses slurs rather than facts to attack conservative stances on issues like border control, religious liberties, and ObamaCare? 

Do you believe that the media purposely tries to pit Republicans against each other in order to help elect Democrats? 

Do you believe the media is engaged in a witch hunt to take down President Trump? 

Do you believe that our Party should spend more time and resources holding the mainstream media accountable? 

The survey is an ingenious—and disingenuous—propaganda tool. It pretends to be interested in people's opinions but its line-up of leading questions is actually designed to instruct the participants what to think—about the media, about the Party, and about its fact-challenged leader's Reign of Error. 

Join the Movement to Impeach Trump

When: Thursday, March 7: 5 pm PT. 

Note: There's only space for 10,000 callers, so you'll have to RSVP by clicking here to get an email with notes about how to call in and a recording of the call after it's over. 

And please: Don't everyone talk at once. 

I’m not easily given to nominating anyone for Best in the World. But I have to admit that the thought crosses my mind that the Takács Quartet may well be the best string quartet we have today. I can recall, however, the great Budapest Quartet of the 1950s, the wonderful American quartets of the same period like the Fine Arts Quartet and the Juilliard. But when it comes to today, especially among string quartets we get to hear regularly in the Bay Area, I find the Takács Quartet almost unrivaled, at least since the beloved Cypress String Quartet suddenly disbanded a year or so ago. Lately, the Takács Quartet has given us ample proof of their mastery in two weekend concerts at Berkeley’s Hertz Hall. In last week’s edition of these pages, I reviewed their February 24 concert. Now I’m reviewing their March 3 concert, the last in a series of two. 

For this concert the program consisted of Haydn’s String Quartet in G Major, Opus 76, No 1, Bartők’s String Quartet No. 6, and Mendelssohn’s String Quartet No. 6 in F minor, Op. 80. What these quartets have in common is, above all, that they are late works in the lives of their composers. Thus, they offer us a chance to hear what a lifetime of experience had taught these composers about writing string quartets. 

In this respect, Franz Joseph Haydn is a particularly revealing case in point. Haydn wrote his Opus 76, No. 1 quartet very late in life, at a time, in fact, when he was also composing his very last work, the ambitious oratorio The Creation. His final symphony, No. 104, was already two years old when he began composing his Opus. 76, No. 1 string quartet. What we find, therefore, in this work is a distillation of everything Haydn had learned both from his own earlier string quartets and from those of Mozart, who died five years before Haydn’s six Opus 76 quartets of 1796.  

Haydn’s Op. 76, No. 1 quartet opens with three chords, after which the cello, here magisterially played by András Fejér, introduces a theme immediately taken up by the other instrumentalists. What ensues is a spirited Allegro full of brio. The second movement, a lovely Adagio, opens with cello and first violin trading lyrical themes. Here the umber tone of András Fejér’s cello is contrasted to the bright, clear tone of Edward Dusinberre’s violin. The third movement is a Menuetto, at least in name, though Haydn turns it into a Scherzo that anticipates much of what Beethoven would later write in the way of assertive, even aggressive scherzos. And in the middle of this Scherzo, Haydn offers us a surprisingly clunky country dance tune. The Finale begins in a minor key but gradually modulates to a major key as it offers a beguiling song. Then the music speeds up, pauses for pizzicato moments, then rushes onward to the finish.  

Next on the program was Béla Bartők’s String Quartet No. 6. This, the last of Bartők’s string quartets, was begun in 1939 at a time when Hitler’s extra-territorial ambitions threatened all of Europe, including Bartők’s native Hungary. To make matters worse, Bartők’s beloved mother was gravely ill. Thus, it is no surprise that this final string quartet by Bartők is full of anguish and pain. (His mother died just as he completed this work, and about the same time Bartők made the decision to leave Hungary for the USA.)  

The quartet opens with a solo lament by viola, here gorgeously played by Geraldine Walther. Then all join in as the music turns agitated and obsessive. By the end of this first movement, a lyrical high point is reached, followed by a peaceful close. The second movement, marked mesto (sad, in Italian), like all four movements, opens with a cello solo, beautifully performed here by András Fejér. Then the music launches into an ironic march and a parodied military tune. Here a central section features pizzicato from the viola, while the cello offers a wild folk-inspired tune. As the march returns, we note a kinship with Mahler’s sardonic march tunes. The third movement opoens with another lament, followed by a burlesque of the march theme. The final movement opens with a dirge-like lament, then delves into deep recesses of pain, marked suddenly by two piercing outcries by the first violin. Then there is a return to the lament that opened the work, and this quartet closes with pizzicato from Geraldine Walther’s viola and Harumi Rhodes’ second violin, ending in a reflective mood.  

After intermission, the Takács Quartet returned to the stage to perform Felix Mendelssohn’s String Quartet No. 6 in F minor, Op. 80. As program notes remark, this late work by Mendelssohn may surprise the casual listener, for whom Mendelssohn is known as a gifted composer of light music lacking in emotional depth. Here, to the contrary, the work is full of pain and disillusionment. Mendelssohn’s beloved sister, Fanny, herself a gifted composer and pianist, had suddenly died of a stroke at age 41. Felix himself died prematurely within the same year. Is it any wonder, then, that the music of Mendelssohn’s last string quartet is full of anguish and pain?  

Opening with repeated tremolos, followed by three stabbing chords, this work aannounces its pain right from the outset. Moreover, at the close of this movement Edward Dusinberre’s first violin reiterates the stabbing chords as the rhythm accelerates and the music veers at the brink of chaos. The second movement features a brooding, obsessive motif that seems to run headlong toward disaster, though leavened by a quiet, unsettled central section. The third movement, an Adagio, offers profoundly beautiful music that could be interpreted either as a lament or, conversely, a song of gratitude and affirmation. But the final movement could never be taken for anything but an outcry of anguish and pain. The music is often angry, and towards the end the first violin, here performed in virtuoso fashion by Edward Dusinberre, shrieks its pain while the others join in dwelling on their collective grief. This was the Takács Quartet at their best, brimming with intensity yet ever precise in their musical cohesion.  

Worth Noting:

The new/restructuring of Berkeley City Council Policy Committees is starting to fill the daytime hours. If the first Land Use Committee is an example of the future, the City staff attendees will vastly outnumber citizens.

Four meetings stand out as worth attending for important issues, Wednesday - Planning Commission, Thursday - Council Land Use in the morning , Council Infrastructure which includes Climate in the afternoon and Housing Advisory Commission in the evening. Agenda Highlights for the March 12 , 2019 City Council meeting are posted at the end. 

Sunday, March 3, 2019 

No city meetings or events found 

Monday, March 4, 2019  

City Council Public Safety Committee (Policing, Fire, Dispatch, Disaster Preparedness ) 10:30 a, at 2180 Milvia, 1^st Floor, Cypress Room, First meeting of new committee, (Bartlett, Wengraf , Robinson), 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Home/Policy_Committee__Public_Safety.aspx 

4x4 Committee, 4 p, at 2001 Center, Law Library, 2^nd Floor, Agenda: #5. Rental Housing Safety Program – proposed Fee Increases, #6. Universal rent registry, #7. Short-term Rental Ordinance, #8. Demolition Ordinance, #9. BMC 19.50.050, inoperable elevator and alternative housing for persons unable to access or egress unit via stairs due to disability, medical condition, (Council –Arreguin, Davila, Harrison, Robinson, Rent Board -Laverde, Simon-Weisberg, Alpert, Tregub), 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Home/4x4_Committee_Homepage.aspx 

Ad Hoc subcommittee on Paid Family Leave, 1:00 p, at 2180 Milvia, 1^st Floor, Cypress Room, C. Bartlett Proposal, D. Harrison Proposal, (Bartlett, Davila, Hahn, Harrison) 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/paidfamilyleavesubcommittee/ 

Peace and Justice Commission, 7 pm at 2180 Milvia, 1^st Floor Cypress Room, Agenda: #12. Justice for Mr. Leonard Powell, #13. Disaster Preparedness and social justice lens 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Commissions/Commissions__Peace_and_Justice_Commission_Homepage.aspx 

Personnel Board, 7 – 9 pm, 2180 Milvia, 6^th Floor Redwood Conference Room, listed on community calendar, no meeting notice posted, call 981-6800 LaTanya Bellow before going 

Tax the Rich Rally, Mon, 4 pm – 5 pm, Top of Solano in front of the closed Oaks theater (soon to be a climbing gym), Rain Cancels 

Tuesday, March 5, 2019 

No City meetings or events found 

Wednesday, March 6, 2019 

Board of Library Trustees, 6:30 pm at 1901 Russell St, Tarea Hall Pittman South Branch Library, Agenda: B. Apply for and accept grant funds for STEM programming 

https://www.berkeleypubliclibrary.org/about/board-library-trustees 

Commission on Disability, 6:30 – 9 pm at 2939 Ellis, South Berkeley Senior Center, Agenda: #1. Presentation Paratransit, #2. IKE Kiosks, #3. Zero Waste, #5. San Pablo Ave. Plan, #6. Navigable Cities, 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Commissions/Commissions__Commission_on_Disability_Homepage.aspx 

Planning Commission, 7 – 10 pm at 1947 Center Street, Agenda: #9. Form Adeline Corridor Plan, #10. Local Preference for Affordable Housing Case Studies, #11. Housing and Community Benefits Ideas for Adeline Corridor, #12. Formation Affordable Housing Mitigation Fee Subcommittee 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Commissions/Commissions__Planning_Commission_Homepage.aspx 

Live Oak Community Center renovation Project Community Meeting, 6:30 p – 8:30 p at Live Oak Community Center , 1301 Shattuck, Seismic Update and Renovation 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/CalendarEventMain.aspx?calendarEventID=16025 

Thursday, March 7, 2019 

City Council Policy Committee Land Use, Housing & Economic Development, 10:30 a, at 2180 Milvia, 1^st Floor Cypress Room, #2. Analysis Site Capacity for Housing Development at West Berkeley Service Center, 1900 6^th Street, existing zoning, potential max height 6-story, RFIfor senior hour, services, maximizing number of affordable units, refer to Planning Commission modifications underlying MUR zoning, #3. Open Doors Initiative: First Time Homebuyer, incentivize creation of affordable starter homes through renovation of properties to become multi-family condominiums (missing middle) in R1, R1A, #4. Tie Affordable Housing Mitigation fee to floor area (currently tied to number of units) 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Home/Policy_Committee__Land_Use,_Housing___Economic_Development.aspx 

City Council Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation, Environment & Sustainability Committee, 2:00 p, at 1947 Center St, Multi-purpose Room Basement, Agenda: 2. Green Stormwater Infrastructure from a. CEAC and b. City Manager, 3. Adopt Ordinance to Prohibit Natural Gas in new buildings 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Home/Policy_Committee__Facilities,_Infrastructure,_Transportation,_Environment,___Sustainability.aspx 

Cannabis Commission, 2 – 4 pm, at 2180 Milvia St, 6^th Floor, Agenda: B. 3/12/19 Council item Cannabis ordinance, C. Cooperative/collectives, 

http://www.cityofberkeley.info/MedicalCannabis/ 

Housing Advisory Commission, 7 – 9 pm at 2939 Ellis St, South Berkeley Senior Center, Agenda: #6. CDBG Subcommittee Recommendations, #8. Presentation Theo Ferguson – 1642 Milvia St Condominium Assoc, #9. a. 1281 University b. Housing trust Fund, #11. Revise Code Enforcement, #12. Update Bi-Annual Housing Policy, #13. Urban Development relative to IPCC Special report, #14. Teacher Housing and Housing Discrimination, #15. a. Inclusionary Housing and Mitigation Fee, b. Missing Middle, e. Measure O & P m f. 2001 Ashby Predevelopment loan 

http://www.cityofberkeley.info/Housing_Advisory_Commission/ 

Landmarks Preservation Commission, 7 – 11:30 pm at 1947 Center St, Multipurpose Room, Basement, Agenda: 6. B. Grant Application, C. UC Upper Hearst – CEQA notice 

1835 San Pablo – Demolition Referral 

2352 Shattuck – Demolition Referral 

2300 Shattuck – Structural Alteration 

http://www.cityofberkeley.info/landmarkspreservationcommission/ 

Public Works Commission, 7 – 10 pm at 1326 Allston Way, Willow Room, City of Berkeley Corporation Yard, No Agenda posted check before going 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Commissions/Commissions__Public_Works_Commission_Homepage.aspx 

Friday, March 8, 2019 

No city meetings or events found 

Saturday March 9, 2019 

Youth Sports, 11 a – 2 p, San Pablo Park, https://www.cityofberkeley.info/CalendarEventMain.aspx?calendarEventID=15738 

Sunday, March 10, 2019 

No city meetings or events found 

_____________________ 

City Council March 12 meeting agenda available for comment, Consent: #4. Contract $2.4 mil mental health transport, #5. Update Everyone Home Plan to end Homelessness, #6. Contract CA Homeless Aid Program, #7. Amend Contract to Operate Pathways, #8. Shelter Plus Care Renewal Grants, #9. MOU Planning for Ferry Service $250,000, #10. $50,000 rewards for criminal investigations, #12. Measure ) oversight, Measure P panel of experts, #13. Housing Innovations from HAC, #15. Letter to MOC Lee on 5G infrastructure, #17. Gender Neutral Language, #18. Support for Tibet, Action: #19. Density Bonus Ordinance, #20. ZAB appeal 2701 Shattuck, #21. Cannabis Ordinance Revisions, #22. Janitorial Contract, 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/2019/03_Mar/City_Council__03-12-2019_-_Regular_Meeting_Agenda.aspx 

Email comments to council@cityofberkeley.info, 

Public Hearings Scheduled – Land Use Appeals 

2701 Shattuck – 5-story mixed use – 3-12-2019 

1722 Walnut – ninth dwelling - 3-26-2019 

1050 Parker – Parker – Medical Office Building - 4-30-2019 

2700 Tenth – Pardee Parking Lot - 4-30-2017 

1444 Fifth St – 4 single family dwellings - 5-14-2019 

_____________________ 

To Check For Regional Meetings with Berkeley Council Appointees 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/City_Council__Committee_and_Regional_Body_Appointees.aspx 

_____________________ 

The meeting list is also posted on the Sustainable Berkeley Coalition website. 

http://www.sustainableberkeleycoalition.com/whats-ahead.html 

When notices of meetings are found that are posted after Friday 5:00 pm they are added to the website schedule https://www.sustainableberkeleycoalition.com/whats-ahead.html and preceded by LATE ENTRY