Jun 19
The Alameda County Department of Public Health staged its third annual Emergency Preparedness Fair in the concourse of the Oakland Coliseum this morning. Many dozens of concerned folks from various parts of the county gathered to take workshops, check out the vendors, and network. I got the most out of a workshop on the use …
May 09
The Berkeley Post Office is on the auction block in one of the slimiest backroom deals in the sordid history of pol-fin clubbiness. This centrally located building is a 99-year old architectural and cultural landmark, but it’s not just a building. OK, it’s just another piece of real estate, another sales commission to the mega-broker …
Apr 28
The photo shows something we almost certainly WON’T see in a real emergency: the Berkeley Fire Department. Saturday (4/27) was the Citywide Emergency Drill, and I joined other neighbors from this block and the next in a dry run of the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) procedures. The neighbors a block away, who had been …
Nov 24
My favorite singing group Occupella was at it again on Black Friday, singing up a storm in support of Walmart workers at the retail giant’s store at the Hilltop Mall in Richmond. We had a healthy turnout of about 30 at the lower level side entrance. I took a side trip up to the main …
Nov 24
Sheila and I happened to be at an event in Oakland where the conversation turned to Ecuador and someone gave us a business card for something called the Pachamama Alliance. With the card came an invitation to the group’s luncheon. Neither of us had ever heard of the group and we were skeptical. Curiosity more …
Sep 29
Today the 16th Street train station in Oakland was open for a festival and walk-through, sponsored by Kaiser. Before WWII this station was the center of public transportation in the East Bay, with train, streetcar and ferry connections all in one hub. After the war, the auto companies took over parts of regional government and …
Sep 21
Bob Moses, the civil rights leader of the 1960s, is in town and I had the privilege of participating in an informal evening with him and about 30 others at the home of a friend in North Oakland. The event was billed as a fundraiser for Ron Bridgeforth — more about that later — but …
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