This was a very difficult week with more mass shootings and the terrible beating and death of Tyre Nichols at the hands of Memphis Police

The special unit Scorpion, which stands for Street Crimes Operations to Restore Peace In Our Neighborhoods, is disbanded now, but I expect it was built on the myth that Black men, Black boys and Black neighborhoods require tougher policing than White, high resource (wealthy) neighborhoods, the kind of policing that grew stop-and-frisk and exercises in power, intimidation, harassment, fear and violence. It is all justified as stopping crime. It is ugly, described over and over in books on systemic racism and disparate treatment like White Space Black Hood: Opportunity Hoarding and Segregation in the Age of Inequality by Sheryll Cashin, A Colony in a Nation by Chris Hayes, Walking with the Devil: The Police Code of Silence 3^rd Edition by Michael W. Quinn and The Rage of Innocence: How America Criminalizes Black Youth by Kristin Henning.

Taking police away from traffic stops for minor infractions is in the talk show discussions again, along with how body cameras were supposed to stop police violence. Body cameras just give the public a record when and if they are released.

In the beating of Tyre Nichols, the police gave 71 confusing and conflicting commands in 13 minutes like yelling “on the ground” when Nichols was already pinned down on the ground, all apparently to create the narrative that Nichols was the aggressor and the police victims. It is sickening.

Berkeley Mayor Arreguin generated the concept of BerkDOT back in 2020. BerkDOT stands for a new Berkeley Department of Transportation, with the purpose of removing minor traffic violations away from policing as a method of addressingl biased policing. Months of meetings were devoted to creating BerkDOT, and then it stopped. California State law prevents implementation of BerkDOT, but that may change. -more-

One Child's Magnetic Words

After two years of pandemic cloistering, we left the country for a Caribbean holiday visit with extended family in Trinidad. After over-indulging on Indian delicacies (dhal puri, aloo pie, pholourie, callaloo, roti, and doubles), we shared precious time with some lively and precocious Trini kids.

We gave 7-year-old Ethan a Christmas gift — a puzzle box containing more than 200 words printed on small, magnetized metal chips. He immediately went to work, separating them all for display on a dining table. Then he raced to the nearest refrigerator and began assembling his first two statements on the fridge's metal flank.

When he returned to the table to start assembling another string of words, I strolled over to the kitchen and was astonished to read what he had posted. His messages read:

"Kind things innovate you more than harder times. They improvise sweet."

And: "She can only have my joyful beautiful heart."

All the News That's Fit to Drip

During December's storm-fest of atmospheric rivers, the plastic bags intended to keep our morning Chronicles dry failed big-time. You could tell how intense each storm was by counting the number of wet pages inside.

When we returned, it was clear that one of the dampest days had been December 31. That day's edition of the Chron was so waterlogged that we had to hang the paper's saggy sheets on a clothesline to dry. Which lead to another surprise: it turns out that the ink in our "journal of record" is water-soluble! Details in a front-page story about Trump's tax troubles were lost to the ages: the ink had simply vanished, washed-away by the deluge. -more-

Harry Brill once said he wasn’t much interested in local politics, it was just about real estate. He was correct. Much of local politics is about real estate. And real estate is about so much more: where we live, yearn to live, can’t afford to live, racism, classism, profit, greed and poverty.

Developers and the real estate industry are significant contributors to election campaigns, either directly or indirectly through PACs (Political Action Committees) often called dark money. For small direct and PAC investments in local elections, the public can be influenced into electing industry friendly city councils, mayors and other officials and voting for or against ballot measures. Industry friendly mayors and council members can be swayed into industry friendly legislation, discounts and exemptions. And this background makes local, state and national politics so very interesting.

There is a lot to cover and a great number of council actions were not good news, so buckle up. -more-

Pick Your Topic – here are the answers to what is:

• RHNA,
• Nexus Study,
• AMI
• In Lieu Fees
• Inclusionary Housing Requirements
• the Palmer Fix,
• Density Bonus,
• SB 330,
• Chart of Income Categories and Affordable Rents
• and
• where to go to stay current with pending California Housing Legislation.

  ---

  Regional Housing Need Allocation (RHNA) (pronounced ree na)
  
  Since 1969, California has required that all local governments plan to meet the housing needs of everyone in the community regardless of income. The state required process for determining how many housing units by levels of affordability, each community must plan to accommodate during the RHNA cycle is multi-layered.
  
  January 1, 2023 – December 31, 2031, is the sixth and current cycle. https://www.hcd.ca.gov/planning-and-community-development/regional-housing-needs-allocation -more-

We have been looking at the meaning of having people in uniform patrolling city streets with military weaponry. It is not a joke. It has led us to describe three levels of social violence, each one linked to police desires for a soldier’s attitude toward the people.

First, there is the violence that the insecurity of common ordinary life forces on people. Not all people, and not even many, but some, enough for the cops to use as propaganda about a “crime wave” by which to gain access to military weapons. They claim that, because there are so many weapons “out there” in people’s hands, they need fire-power equal to that. We hear about robberies, or beatings, or mass shootings by some guy who has lost it. And we have police brutality to serve as a role model for those people.

Second, there is the violence and the brutality of the police themselves. It emerges from their arrogance, and the power they have through their Command and Obedience Paradigm, which they use to set certain people up for execution. The Command and Obedience Paradigm brings a military style of presence into the middle of civilian life by making each cop a commanding officer, thereby providing every person with the threat of being charged with “disobedience.” It is a technique by which a cop can pick on someone, give them a humiliating command, and when the person refuses to obey, get violent with him or her. -more-

Harry Brill once said he wasn’t much interested in local politics, it was just about real estate. He was correct. Much of local politics is about real estate. And real estate is about so much more: where we live, yearn to live, can’t afford to live, racism, classism, profit, greed and poverty.

Developers and the real estate industry are significant contributors to election campaigns, either directly or indirectly through PACs (Political Action Committees) often called dark money. For small direct and PAC investments in local elections, the public can be influenced into electing industry friendly city councils, mayors and other officials and voting for or against ballot measures. Industry friendly mayors and council members can be swayed into industry friendly legislation, discounts and exemptions. And this background makes local, state and national politics so very interesting.

There is a lot to cover and a great number of council actions were not good news, so buckle up. -more-

When I left high school, I was saddened to discover that the group of sorry individuals who harassed, defamed, and bullied me in public school were still around, wanted more, and couldn't give it a rest. Much of the time, it seems as though bullies never relent, and often are quite tenacious. It isn't good enough that they humiliated me for years when I was in that prison system that we call public school; they needed more.

To this day it seems as though there are some who cannot handle the concept that I could become a success in life. To stop these boneheads from continuing to defame me and find other ways to disrupt my progress, at some point I will need to invent a deterrent. I'm thinking about it. Partly, I need a way of pinpointing the responsible individual(s). It seems as though many of the problems are delivered with anonymous methods. I won't be specific. You'll just have to take my word for it, or not. -more-

Dr. Khalidi is a professor of modern Middle Eastern history at Columbia University. He has warned the Biden administration is in serious danger of violating International Law affirming former President Trump’s reckless decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. This decision is a break from 70 years of established US policy. Biden should reverse Trump’s decision to build a new US embassy on stolen Palestinian land. Khalidi was able to prove that his family and other Palestinians had title to the land which was rented to the British prior to the creation of Israel in 1948. It is time to state the obvious, Israel has never been a democracy. It has become a far-right theocratic society. The current fragile coalition has no intention of reaching an amiable accord with the indigenous Palestinians but has every intention of expropriating more land in the Occupied West Bank. To any doubting Thomases, I would like to remind them, “occupied” denotes Palestinians are prisoners on their own land, and a two-state solution is just a cruel joke. Our tax dollars should not be used to prop up an apartheid, racist, society. -more-

Last, night (January 25) , the Disaster and Fire Safety Commission, a commission of great importance that rarely gets much public attention, voted five yes (with two abstentions) to send a letter to City Council that originated with this statement read by Commissioner and former mayor Shirley Dean:

I move that the Disaster and Fire Safety Commission (DFSC) inform the City Manager and City Council that in consideration of major street changes to streets which have an existing designation as an Emergency Access and/or as an Evacuation Route or is in the process of being considered for such a designation be subject to analysis prior to commencing any planning process to implementing proposed major changes. Further, that major changes be defined as changes that would result in narrowing all or part of a street or other changes that go beyond ordinary repair and maintenance that would lessen the street’s functioning as an Emergency Access or Evacuation would be denied and an alternative to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety without lessening the Emergency Access and Evacuation Route designation be pursued.

You can read the full the full statement from Commissioner Dean with the references to the California Code of Regulations, Title 19, Division 1 in the Disaster and Fire Safety packet pages 9 – 11. -more-

Brittany Spears, bipolar and an incredible performer, is formerly under conservatorship by her family. She was a great breadwinner for them until she was able to get out of conservatorship. She is one of the few exceptions to the guideline I'm about to offer.

A person who suffers from a chronic psychiatric condition should not rely on a job to be able to survive. You need Social Security to cover you in the inevitable times that you can't work. Your income and housing should be provided by the government on the basis that you may not at always be able to earn a living. Do not take this as an insult. Do not take this as shooting down your ambitions/and/or aspirations. A psychiatric illness is a factual circumstance, and it is not something that someone merely imagined.

A psychiatric condition, while it may not always make you unable to work, can put you at risk. Partly you must face discrimination. Many employers could be uninformed concerning people with a mental disability. You also face the slowing down effect of many psychiatric medications, and this could impede your work. There is not a reliable method of getting around this. Antipsychotics are designed to slow the brain, and that's how they work to alleviate symptoms. It is the equivalent of using a sledgehammer to kill a bug. But that's where neuroscience currently is. If you drink a bunch of caffeinated beverages to counter the antipsychotic, you're at risk of nullifying the effects of your medication and this is an unwise risk. -more-

The Hopkins Corridor Plan promoted by biking extremists who have captured key City officials, departments, and politicians has caused a huge increase in the civic awareness of many normally placid residents who usually don't pay much attention to City politics and ordinarily defer to the “progressive” municipal agenda. Many of these placid, law-abiding, taxpaying, well-meaning residents live near and/or love the Hopkins commercial area and its surrounding neighborhood. Hopkins is an organic thriving local gem in a city beset by neighborhood and commercial decline and large lifeless development projects. -more-

Worth Noting:

Busy week ahead

• Sunday: Equity Summit at 6 pm
• Monday: The Public Safety Committee at 10:30 am reviews BPD extra duty (overtime) policy. THE GO TO MEETING is the Agenda Committee at 2:30 pm with two Droste measures on the agenda for review. Item-10 BERIPE limits legislative submissions from the mayor and councilmembers and item-11 limits public comments at City Council meetings by combining consent and action items into one public comment. From 6 – 7 pm Speaking Up For Point Molate will host a (ZOOM) presentation on the River Otter Ecology Project.
• Tuesday: City Council starts at 4 pm with the T1 funding shortage followed by the regular City Council meeting at 6 pm. Agenda item-21 at the regular Council meeting is the appeal of 2065 Kittredge. The appeal is in regard to detrimental impacts to workforce and failure to provide community benefits. Also, the Police Accountability (PAB) Board meets at 6:30 pm.
• Wednesday: The 4 x 4 Task Force meets at 3 pm with the demolition and evictions ordinances on the agenda. The Board of Library Trustees (BOLT) meets at 6 pm followed with a special meeting at 6:30 pm on long term goals. The Disability Commission meets at 6 pm with a disaster registry and IKE Kiosks on the agenda. The Homeless Services Panel of Experts meets at 7 pm with recommendations for Measure P funding of multiple homeless programs/services. The Planning Commission meets at 7 pm and will conduct a public hearing on the demolition ordinance and provide a scoping session for the Pacific Steel Casting site EIR.
• Thursday: The Housing Advisory Commission (HAC) and the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) both meetings are at 7 pm. The LPC will consider three demolition requests

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

BERKELEY PUBLIC MEETINGS AND SPECIAL EVENTS

Sunday, January 29, 2023 -more-

Worth Noting:

After last week we could use a break and it looks like we will get it with a light meeting schedule for the coming week and nothing until Tuesday.

• Tuesday: The Zero Waste Commission meets at 6 pm and will hear an update and presentation on the Zero Waste Strategic Plan
• Wednesday: The Disaster and Fire Safety Commission at 7 pm is the go to meeting of the week. On the agenda are the emergency access evacuation routes, the engineering study for the dispatch center and the fire department master plan. The Commission on Labor meets at 7 pm and will hear a presentation on the City Workforce Agreement.
• Thursday: The Mental Health Commission meeting schedule is the fourth Thursday of the month. No meeting is posted yet. Check after Monday.

The January 31, 2023 City Council Regular Meeting is available for public comment. Use the link and choose the html option or see the agenda listed at the end of the calendar. A special council meeting on T1 funding is anticipated for 4 pm on January 31, but that meeting is not yet confirmed or posted.

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

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

BERKELEY PUBLIC MEETINGS AND SPECIAL EVENTS -more-