The Planet's website has finally updated. They promise to start publishing biweekly in April.

Whew! We’ve done an enormous amount this month, but there’s still a bit to be done before re-launch. Current plans: We’ll begin in April with two editions a week, down from the previous six. We suspect that a semi-weekly schedule is actually better for advertisers -- papers will stay in homes longer, saved so readers can refer to the calendar, previews of weekend activities and other important advances

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The Daily Cal calls twice for an end to Berkeley's crippling rent control laws. Bravo! A board that sees the normal interaction of Landlords looking for high rents and Renters looking for low rents as somehow immoral has clearly entered that placid pool where moralistic fables trump economic law. Outlawing 'Predatory Practices' is based on an Economic analysis that sees declining rent prices as a good and higher prices as a bad, and any attempt to add flexibility to that market as an attempt to raise prices. Mr. Wilson is dead on when he notes that attempts to stop rent flexibility is tantamount to saying students are too stupid to realize their own costs.

This change is being done in the name of students, believe it or not. Rent board member Paul Hogarth said, "Student tenants are the most vulnerable" to receiving free rent "because they have the highest turnover" and "don't know their rights." He is wrong on both counts. Students can understand a signing bonus—can't you? And high turnover students are precisely the tenants who want bonuses the most.

The Daily Cal calls for a wholesale revision of Berkeley's Rent Board system, which has been effectively captured by moralistic activists. Not likely! As incumbents in a generally low-outrage business, it'll prove nearly impossible to oust them at the ballot box. The City Council has proven far more interested in development and long-term resident questions then the needs of high-turnover students. Email This Post!

Correction to the Correction time. It's still kinda confusing!

Yesterday's correction on "Student Groups Face Stricter Conduct Code" was unclear and problematic. The correction should have said that under the Code of Student Conduct, only individual students can currently face student conduct hearings, whereas student groups as a whole cannot face a conduct hearing.

So in the future, assuming these code revisions are made, the University could charge all of SJP and hold a hearing for every one of them at the same time. This instead of holding individual hearings.

I'm not familiar with the Code of Student Conduct.. I know Calstuff Readers are, so perhaps they could comment on this. This would certainly be a huge change. It'd also be massively controversial, and I just can't see the Academic Senate approving it. Not to mention students; just about every group who would fall under this new regulation is political. Who's in favor of allowing the Administration to hold mass 60+ person hearings when they botched a case against a single one? What does it mean to 'try a group?' That each person would receive a punishment according to what the group did? IE, 'we find the Berkeley College Republicans guilty and expel all of them?'

More likely a system like this would work like the current Fraternity regulations. Breaking the Fraternity Laws can lead to community service hours, suspension of partying privileges, and revoking University recognition as an extreme. That's controversial as it is without bringing in freedom of political expression into it.

I don't think the Daily Cal is out of the woods on this one yet. The article quotes a single unnamed source. No quotes from Academic Senate reps. Nothing from Student Judicial Affairs, or University Officials. The article doesn't even make clear what Committee is hypothetically spearheading these changes. The seemingly-collobarating (sic) quote from Mr. Falcone appears to be a miscommunication; he doesn't sound that concerned in person. Ms. Ahn was acting on the same information the Daily Cal was.

Time for a followup before the Retraction to the Clarification to the Correction appears. Email This Post!

I don't have a column today. Big midterm at 2.Email This Post!

Some embarassing corrections today, especially for that Conduct Committee Changes article that I praised to the skies a few days ago. (oops).

Tuesday's article "Student Groups Face Stricter Conduct Code" erroneously stated that the code addresses only individuals, not student groups. The article also falsely implied that the committee charged with revising the code has been finalized.

That looks kinda innocuous! But the entire thrust of the article was that the University would be-- secretly and dangerously-- changing the conduct code to deal with groups, rather then individuals. A 'source' was telling the Daily Cal the specifics of how the University would be changing the code. But a single call to anyone knowledgable with the Conduct Code could've dispelled that.

The university wants to make entire student groups subject to disciplinary action in order to avoid lengthy hearings for individuals, according to a source close to the administration.

The current code addresses only individuals, not groups. Group members could, however, still face charges individually after the expected revisions are made.

In addition, it doesn't look like the University was starting this Committee under cover of night. The conduct code was due to be looked at-- not even necessarily revised!-- and the University Bureaucracy was just now getting around to it. As Mr. Falcone said,

Hey Kevin:

It's not as if they've been doing this in secret. The committee on student affairs has been consulted on talk of changes since last semester, and I've spent a little time trying to look into it over the past week and a half. Typically they revise the code once every couple years.

The likely scenario is that the University is slow and beaurcratic, and very afraid of the press in regards to this issue.

If the issue ends up being interim suspension of student groups, right now the University has the power to temporarily suspend students from activities, for up to five days before a hearing is held. While you could argue that suspending a group seems to penalize students in the group with nothing to do with the matter, the basic idea is that a group that disrupts the University's the ability of students to learn, study, or even take tests should face some kind of restrictions until a hearing on the interim suspension, which would occur after five days. Such a change can be argued, but I don't think it's necessarily bad policy.

Whenever the Daily Cal quotes an unnamed 'source,' it's a 95% certainty there'll be a large correction in the next few days. Bad Kevin for accepting this story wholeheartedly. I should've known better!

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Well, campaign season just officially started. Student Action is flyering campus with various 'Hurrah for us' signs. Very aggressive, considering it's February.

They might've wanted to tell the interns some of the bylaws, tho. The Attorney General spent tonight taking pictures of flyers posted over ASUC Sponsored Student Groups, and will be filing charges.Email This Post!

Here's some fun pics of the BSTW protest yesterday.Email This Post!

Mr. Kashmiri and Mr. Katz are putting together a referendum to have Cal fund an additional lobbyist to go to Sacramento and lobby for lower student fees. The Daily Cal frames the debate as being over whether students will accept the increase, and whether an increase is a smart message to send to Sacramento.

The proposal could be a hard sell politically. Students face a tough economy, tight housing market and large student fee increases.

Kashmiri's undergraduate counterpart, ASUC External Affairs Vice President Jimmy Bryant, has mixed feelings about the proposed referendum.

Bryant, who is the UCSA's chief legislative lobbyist, said the referendum could be taken as a sign from legislators that students are willing to accept higher fees.

Interesting point! But here's another one: who will control the message and activities of these new lobbyists? Presumably UCSA, the UC system's already established advocacy group. But nearly all students have no idea how UCSA works, who controls it, and what sort of message it projects in Sacramento.
From what I know about UCSA, thanks to Mr. Katz for filling me in, is that its controlled by the External VPs at the UC Campuses, weighted by how much they fund the thing. If the ASUC is unhappy with what UCSA is doing, there's a funding pullout clause. UCSA also has a significant wacky side, thanks to the more odd UC campuses. (coughcouchSantaCruz.)

If the new lobbyist is going to go out there and advocate exclusively for fee cuts, that's one thing. But UCSA takes stands on other issues, including an ongoing campaign to stop the RPI initiative, so be advised that we'll also be funding that battle.


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Fun on Sproul today.

The Berkeley College Republicans (BCR) and the California Patriot publication will be sponsoring a bake sale on Sproul tomorrow (Wednesday). The bake sale will price items at different rates so that baked goods are cheaper for minority students and women than for white males. It is all a ridiculous display to show how the Republicans see affirmative action as unfair preferential treatment. The whole idea was carried out at UCLA a few weeks ago and drew attention there. Because of the late notice of the bake sale, Cal Dems is not planning an organized event in opposition, however we will be tabling on Sproul tomorrow and encourage our members to voice their opposition to the Republican’s display. The press should be there, so let’s make sure that the Republicans aren’t the only ones who have opinions on this campus.

As far as the time of the event goes, we are not sure whether it is going to be held at 12 or 2pm, so just drop by whenever you can.
Hope to see you there. - Cal Dems

The Patriot would like me to note that they did not sponsor the bake sale. It was a BCR only deal.

On a separate note, anyone with pictures of Ms. Holland facing off with Mr. Sexton and Mr. Barnett should e-mail me.Email This Post!

This attempt by the University to change the Student Conduct Code more or less on the sly is bullshit, which even the article manages to express. I had heard rumors that something was up, but Student Judicial Affairs hadn't even told the Student Advocate office that something was up (!). Ms. Rafeedie told me that not much was going on.

The main thrust, to make student groups culpable for actions, is an affront to American standards of justice. We don't try 'groups,' we try individuals. People commit student conduct violations. Groups make political statements. To hold a group responsible for what not 100% of the group is involved in will inevitably lead to miscarriages of justice.

Student groups that break university rules would be suspended from tabling on Sproul Plaza and within five days face disciplinary hearings under proposed revisions, the source said.

University officials declined to comment about possible changes to the code. But they have said last week's settlement will not influence the revisions.

Our student leaders are taking a combatative approach. Ms. Ahn, my ex-boss, is appointing SJP members to the committee.

Ahn said she found out the committee existed only after a student told her about it.

Ahn has since nominated two graduate students arrested in the April protest. Froehlich already sits on the committee, and English graduate student Hoang Phan's appointment is pending.

ASUC Academic Affairs Vice President Tony Falcone said Saturday no one had told him he could appoint an undergraduate student. He said he will now try to appoint one.

Mr. Falcone should appoint me! I'm experienced in Student Conduct issues, I'm well-placed to publicize any attempts to screw up student rights, and I'm politically neutral for the most part. Plus, he owes me one. Hurrah! My e-mail is above.

PS: I'm serious.Email This Post!

Rumor has it this'll be the slate, tho:

Pres: Kris Primm
AAVP: Gustavo Mata
EVP: Taina Gomez
External: CalPIRG person (Anu?)

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ProgCal had it first but,

PRESS RELEASE o PRESS RELEASE

Cal Students for Equal Rights and a Valid Education (Cal SERVE) announces ASUC Executive Slate

WHO: Speakers will include:
* Evan Holland, Cal Students for Equal Rights and a Valid Education (CalSERVE) signatory and former ASUC Senator
* Four Candidates for the ASUC Executive Positions: President, Executive Vice-President, External Vice-President, and Academic Vice-President
* Community leaders representing different students of color; campus political groups; the Women's community, the Lesbian Gay Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) community; environmental, social, and economic justice organizations; and community service organizations.

WHERE: Ethnic Studies Reading Room, Fifth Floor, Barrows Hall, UC Berkeley

WHEN: Tuesday, February 25, 2003, 9:00-9:45 AM

WHAT: In light of the recent increase in student fees and the downsizing of student services due to the statewide budget crisis, Cal Students for Equal Rights and a Valid Education (Cal SERVE) is announcing its Associated Students of the University of California (ASUC) Executive slate.

Cal SERVE was established in 1984 as a part of the movement to divest university funds from apartheid in South Africa. It continues today as a voice for positive change, fighting for access, representation, and racial justice, both locally and globally. With nearly twenty years of ASUC experience, Cal SERVE embraces a transcultural perspective on issues that collectively affect the UC Berkeley campus. Its mission as a proactive student coalition is to address contemporary issues of the campus community through the ASUC because Cal SERVE feels it is imperative to use the ASUC for positive social change.

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Elections Chair Sciortino was censured by the Graduate Assembly due to a 'miscommunication.' It sounds more like a part of the ongoing money struggle between the ASUC and Graduate Assembly, especially considering that Mr. Sciortino has attended more Graduate Assembly meetings then just about any other ASUC Official. Mr. Sciortino writes

I have been working closely with the GA since I was appointed to make sure that they have an equitable voice in this matter. My Publicity Coordinator has had a very successful meeting with the GA President, and I have not failed to attend a single GA delegates meeting or send my mass e-mails to the GA as well as the ASUC senate. The guidance of the GA has been invaluable in helping me achieve my goals for this election and it would be a disservice to the students if this help would be cut off over a misunderstanding.

The ASUC actually passed a bill to rip the money from the GA's carcass, but I'm unsure where that struggle is at right now. (I can't show you the bill since Bill Tracking on asuc.org hasn't worked since at least last week. asuc.org: Click It!)

The censure is over two issues. The first is that the Graduate Assembly claims that Mr. Sciortino claimed that he would support a bid to have the Graduate Assembly pay in proportion to their election participation. They currently pay one-third. Considering that about 500 Graduate Assembly people voted last year, this would be about 1/8th of total, so a substantial reduction in costs. BUT, Mr. Sciortino is not saying that he now opposes the proposition. Rather, he's saying that an Elections Chair should be neutral on fiscal issues. He writes:

As Elections Council Chair I am empowered to advocate for ASUC Elections By-laws reform: this purely fiscal matter is not an issue which falls in my jurisdiction.

It's unclear how the Graduate Assembly could've wanted otherwise: fiscal neutrality is the mark of a good Elections Chair. The issue was not helped by Mr. Sciortino's tendency to make nervous jokes at the podium.

The second issue, not covered in the article, is that the GA construed some of Mr. Sciortino's comments to say he would support the Graduate Assembly funding for previous year's funding. Naturally, the GA has no interest in paying even more for Elections Publicity. Especially since accusing the ASUC of mishandling Elections is a prime reason for their withholding serious money from the ASUC.

While we're on the topic, the ongoing ASUC/GA funding dispute is about to go to the Judicial Council. It's unclear to me how the Graduate Assembly thinks they'll win at that level, and what their strategy is if they lose. Email This Post!

The University has caved entirely vis a vis the Wheeler Protesters. The details of the settlement are confidential, but SJP is certainly grinning like a cat.

"None of us are going to have to take any forced absence from school," said Hoang Phan, a member of Students for Justice in Palestine. "We're all more than happy with this settlement."

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A large group of mostly-Berkeley High students protested Cal ROTC today, under the theme of 'military spending takes money away from Schools.'

As Calstuff Correspondant NR points out, this will cost the cash-strapped Berkeley School District $50,000 in attendance fees.
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My understanding is that Ms. Rafeedie has been telling people that my piece about her Administration was coordinated with Mr. Frankenstein to attack her. And, by extension, the entire controversy was probably manufactured by Student Action to make her look bad. Nope! Actually, one of the main reasons I was so interested in the story is that it appears no one in Student Action had any idea what was going on; it was entirely internal, as far as I could tell. I was the one to e-mail Mr. Frankenstein the Kipnis e-mail that started the whole controversy, in hopes that he had information one way or another. (He didn't.)

Where I'm at with the Kipnis accusations is this: I can't seem to prove any of them. I'll run down the list:

1. Declining Quality of casework. Very hard to prove no matter what. Some circumstantial evidence by disgruntled workers, but no one has come out to say they received horrible service from SAO. UNPROVEN.

2. Declining Quantity of casework. Marina's e-mail from December claiming plenty of casework is damning. Mr. Yang did implement a new tracking system this semester that Mr. Kipnis never had, with 11 new cases on it. PROBABLY NOT.

3. Declining Levels of Publicity. Hard to prove either way. I'm waiting to see the Operation STAR budget for this semester, which should prove it either way. Some evidence that there's been little tabling on Sproul. UNPROVEN.

4. Lack of Policy Work. The Police Review Board thing is the main one here. Salam did fire last year's workers, and contends that they were incompetent. I might have evidence against this, maybe not. UNPROVEN

5. Personal Absenteeism. Again, very hard to prove. President Gabriel has been in Denver, so haven't been able to talk to him. Lots of circumstantial evidence. UNPROVEN

6. Jewish students reluctant to seek help. I was never sure what Mr. Kipnis wanted Ms. Rafeedie to do about this one. PROBABLY NOT.

7. Low retention of Caseworkers. This is the most important accusation, by far, and the one that is closest to being proven. I've received numerous e-mails from current and former SAO members who truly hate Ms. Rafeedie and her administration. There's also lots of secondhand information that indicates many officeworkers just dislike her. In contrast, I've only received one letter of support. Mr. Yang claims 50% retention from last semester, but rosters from this year and last tends to argue against that.

However! It's not at all clear how much is due to A) normal attrition, B) disgust with the way the office is being run, and C) personal dislike of Ms. Rafeedie. Mr. Kipnis claims it's B. But a lot of the e-mails seem a lot more like 'personality conflicts' with C. Now, personality clashes leading to firings is a fairly serious charge. Doesn't exactly make Ms. Rafeedie look good, sort of thing. But an office can have these things and still be fairly effective! More to the point, a lot of people leaving due to B would be indirect proof that the rest of the charges had some basis in fact. C's are less important.

Don't read the above as necessarily that I've concluded that the charges against Salam are false. Not true! All the hearsay, all the secondhand evidence, points to something being wrong with the office. But there's not much evidence, and that's what I'll write on Thursday unless I find out otherwise.

Meanwhile, Ms. Rafeedie has written a letter in her own defense-- or rather, attacking Mr. Kipnis-- in the Daily Cal. It's pretty pissed, and attacks her former boss extensively, which is interesting, since as his Chief of Staff, she is somewhat culpable for all the decisions made in the office. If Mr. Kipnis's publicity, case tracking, and Students Rights handbooks were disasters, why didn't she do anything about it as Chief of Staff? Surely she was at least partly responsible?

Publicity under Kipnis' administration was in shambles. His Ice Cream for Students' Rights was an utter disaster of an event.

But regardless, there's only one claim that I'm pretty sure is not true.

I am extremely proud of the Student Advocate Office caseworkers this year. They have done a fabulous job representing and defending students. None of the caseworkers were fired, and those who left on their own free will did so because of the time commitment the office requires.

If she means 'this year' as Fall/Winter, that's probably true. But people were fired over the summer, which is usually considered part of a year.

UPDATE: Apparently they 'weren't rehired,' which is technically different from firing, but amounts to the same thing. Why quibble over the language? If they truly deserved to be let go, and they might've been, firing would be considered a good thing! Lord knows many other ASUC workers deserve a pink slip...Email This Post!

Here's the University's explanation of the new plans for Stanley Hall and the northeast quadrant of the University in general. The fountain next to Evans looks rather catchy. Not that any of us will see it until we're alumni, as it won't be finished until 2006.

Demolition is scheduled to begin in late March, with excavation following in May; construction of the new facility will get underway this fall and be competed in spring 2006.

Something that seems to have been missed in the University's careful planning is any thought for the poor new students using Hearst Mining as a lecture hall. The room facing Stanley, 310, not only has terrible ventilation but is RIGHT NEXT to JACKHAMMERING. It's a joke. I have two lectures there.
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TownHall has a fire-breathing column on the Patriot's article on bathroom Glory Holes vis a vis the Queer Alliance. It's mostly a rehash of the Patriot's article. Strike that, it's entirely a rehash, except for a bit at the end where the Patriot's less then enthusiastic reception is recorded.

Anyone who challenges this behavior is, naturally, labeled an intolerant homosexual-basher. The California Patriot was the target of an anonymous satirical "hit piece" snidely accusing the lead reporter on the bathroom story of being gay. Student Justin Wong of the "Queer Council" complained that the article was the result of a "witch hunt." And one news editor was told by a Berkeley administration official that Norman and Rudmann's article was "homophobic."

The article also claims that the Administration is doing nothing, where in reality it's well-known even on the message board that UC Police are actively searching for and plugging Glory Holes, even using the message board for tips. I'm not totally sure what else the Administration can do, since the ASUC provides most of the funding and space for QA. Trying to step in would be probably counterproductive, as the ASUC jealously guards its remaining territory from the Administration.

But the best part is the end, where Ms. Malkin claims we will be purified by the fire of god.

A deviant practice common at filthy truck stops has infected the hallowed ivory tower, and all the campus Left can do is blame the messenger and play the victim card? Welcome to Sodom and Gomorrah University: " . . . and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace." -- Genesis 19:28

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Here's the new Elections Council website. Email This Post!

Here's the webcast of Said's speech. This archive of webcasts is interesting in itself.Email This Post!

The great Big Game Fan hunt grimly marches on, with two more students appearing with great big 'Identifieds' plastered over their faces. One of the new ones is presumably former IFC President Dave Smith, one of many Cal high and mighty to bravely grasp the uprights of Leadership and let their fellow students carry them forth.Email This Post!

Columnist Anne Marinovich is out-- either resigned or fired.Email This Post!

While the University is right to trumpet recent Cal Alum Jigar Mehta for his Sundance award, they miss the crucial fact that he graduated from Foothill High School in Pleasanton. Other recent and notable Foothill Alums now attending Cal include Kenny Byerly, former Editor-in-Chief of the Heuristic Squelch, David Duman, Creative Editor of the Heuristic Squelch, and Anand Uphadye, former ASUC Senator. Email This Post!

Word on the street is that there was a stabbing near Top Dog last night around 2 AM. One person was grazed on the cheek. Would've been worse, but the knifewielder was being held back for three other people.Email This Post!

Edward Said-- noted Palestinian Intellectual-- will be speaking at Cal tonight at 5:30. (I would've posted sooner, but Blogger was down.) The event is sold out, so best bet to get to see is to go to the rebroadcast at 8 in Wheeler or to wait for it to be put on www.berkeley.eduEmail This Post!

From the Bear's Lair newsletter:

CELEBRITY BARTENDERS - the Berkeley College Republicans! -- at 9 pm. Love 'em or not, the Cal Republicans will be pouring beers to friend and foe alike tonight! Be part of the drinking debate!

Not to be missed!Email This Post!

Column. Front page!

I found out about the story on Thursday, when I intercepted two copies of the endorsement requests that Ms. Torres was looking for. I asked for Tuesday column time because I knew the Republicans had been e-mailed the same endorsement request and I feared that they or a Blogger would post on this.

Long story short, worked my butt off all weekend to pin the facts down. I'll be doing a followup once the facts become clearer to work out who's right and wrong. As stands, it's fairly evenhanded.Email This Post!

Want to bitch out Cal Faculty?

On behalf of the Deans of the College of Letters and Science and the Associated Students of the University of California, we invite you to join us at the next L&S Colloquium on Undergraduate Education on Thursday, February 20th from 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. in 370 Dwinelle Hall.

The colloquium will be on the topic of Faculty-Student Interaction. We have invited a panel of faculty and students from a variety of disciplines to speak to questions such as:

1. How can faculty enhance interaction in large lecture classes?
2. What can we do to enhance student/faculty interaction outside the classroom?
3. As a faculty member/student, what would you like students/faculty to know?
4. How can technology enhance interaction in the classroom?

This will be a great opportunity to hear a range of faculty and student perspectives. We are planning plenty of time for discussion so please bring your questions.

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Names changed to protect my grade.

Hi Professor XXXXXXX,

I'm Kevin Deenihan... I e-mailed you earlier about coming to your office hours. I'm enrolled in your XXXXXX class.

In a different class section last week I overheard a fellow XXXX student talking about how it was possible to find answers to the problem sets online by searching for a certain word string.

I did this, and found the class website you set up for XXXXX in Fall of 2000. While the website was taken down, the problem sets and answers remain in Google Cache. I notice that the problem sets we're using are extremely similar, as are the answer sets for the questions in the book we're using.

http://216.239.53.100/search?q=cache:d0FKjT3a0Z8C:XXXXXXXXXXxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxXXXXXXXXX147&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

http://216.239.51.100/search?sourceid=navclient-menuext&q=cacheXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I couldn't say how much of the class knows about this. Knowing how to use Google Cache is somewhat specialized knowledge. But from my vantage point at the Daily Cal, I know of several classes where cheating of this nature became so widespread that midterms had to be dropped from the grading entirely.

-Kevin
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The FBI has admitted that spying on UC during the 60's was 'undemocratic.'

Mueller's letter discussed the Security Index, a secret list of thousands of people whom the FBI considered potentially dangerous to national security during a crisis and would detain indefinitely without judicial warrant. In 1960, the FBI counted 72 UC students and staff on the list.

Oh, to have a look at that list.

Also in Berkeley History, an old Francis Drake plaque was revealed to be a hoax on a UC Berkeley professor.

And yet another book rehashes 60's Berkeley-centric history.

Sometimes I feel like all the news articles about this town should've been published four decades ago when people cared.Email This Post!

Column

I've been told I've won third place in the Society of Professional Journalist's college newspaper competition, Western division, Column Writing. I dunno. I know I should be pleased, but I feel like the second loser for some reason. More striving for perfection must occur!

I've only gotten three letters so far this semester for all my columns.. makes me sad.Email This Post!

The Patriot runs an ASUC Editorial by Mr. McFadden, disappointed that Senator LaFata has been rejected by Student Action and urging him to consider a run for Executive VP.

The message was clear: they want our votes, but not our voice. The decision was disappointing and insulting – but predictable. As political organizations whose sole objective is reelection, campus parties like Student Action understandably behave to maximize their own political benefits. But after an excruciatingly close ASUC presidential election last year--when Student Action candidate Jesse Gabriel beat the independent Kris Cuaresma-Primm by a mere 80 votes—this is hardly the ideal time for Student Action to risk alienating conservatives on campus.

If conservatives aren’t included on an executive slate during such a competitive year, then it is unlikely that they will ever get the recognition they deserve. Therefore, it’s time for conservatives to stop going along to get along. It’s time to take matters into our own hands. It’s time to draft BCR Senator Paul La Fata for Executive Vice President.

It seems unusual that Mr. McFadden would ask Senator LaFata through the Cal Patriot, instead of just, you know, asking him on Sproul or something. The race for EVP-- dominated by Mr. Kevin Deenihan so far, because he's the only one who's announced his candidacy-- is heating up!

Indication from this Editorial is that Republicans will be going it alone again this election, which usually nets them one-two Senate seats.Email This Post!

It looks like Senator Ro is the fourth candidate for ASUC Office, possibly running for EVP. (Against me!) She made an announcement for some Asian Political thingie in Poli Sci 179, which is as good as telling everyone in the Daily Cal, the Berkeley Blogs, and half the Poli Sci major. Interestingly, she did the announcement with Senator Costa in tow. Senator Lee is also doing announcements, which is confusing: five people are doing announcements in classes.

Anyhoo, the Calstuff Rumors Network places these four as the Student Action Slate: It's very tentative, since it's not sure who's running for what spot.

Presidente: Daniel Frankenstein
EVP: Jenn Ro? Frank Lee?
External: Taz Patel?
AAVP: Grace Chen (BTW, she's also in a Pre-Law Fraternity and is in AXO Sorority)

Unresolved questions: Is SA running anyone for Student Advocate? Wouldn't be surprised.

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Telemundo 48, the Spanish network in the area, is looking for students to interview. Students with an oppinion on:

1. Affirmative action
2. War on Iraq
3. The state of Cal tuition and financial aid
4. The role of Race in education

and can say it in Spanish should contact Lupita Figueiredo. Her email is lxfigueiredo@telemundo.com

Tell her CalStuff sent you. Email This Post!

Patriot EIC Sexton vows to avoid CNN and stay on friendlier channels from here on.

I hadn’t watched CNN in a long time before I went on “CNN Saturday” to talk about the Patriot and the growing conservative movement here at Cal. I should have--because I may have seen a report like Bruce Morton’s the following day and it would have confirmed what I now know: Conservatives should stick to Fox News Channel and MSNBC, or at least expect an ambush when they appear on CNN.

Meanwhile, the embarassingly bad 'ACLU' Editorial is still on the website, uncorrected despite massive factual errors. Email This Post!

Word on the street is that a Grace Chen is running for AAVP with Student Action. Does anyone know anything about her? Google turns up nothing.

Additional gossip is that Mr. Primm has heard from CalSERVE, one way or another. Not sure which way, probably 'no.'Email This Post!

Apparently this Blogger has been trashing the Patriot since September, and I only found about it through my hits log. Huh.Email This Post!

Senator Primm has announced his candidacy for the ASUC Presidency. The timing is weird: he clearly hasn't heard back from the major parties that he wants to run with.

No party has endorsed Cuaresma-Primm yet, although there have been suggestions that Cal-SERVE, Goatmilk, or APPLE may put him on their slate, said Jamie Liu, who managed Cuaresma-Primm's election campaign last year.

'Suggestions?' If you want to be slated by CalSERVE, you have to be interviewed by them, and you've had to been interviewed by them by now. Same with APPLE and presumably Goatmilk. Assuming the Daily Cal got it right, Primm has approached all these parties, hasn't heard back yet, and yet has announced anyway. If I was CalSERVE, I'd be pissed that this johnny-progressive-lately is forcing my hand.

Anthony Paganini also pointed out that the word 'Primm' occurs 12 times in the article, whereas the word 'Frankenstein' occurs 13 times. One of the great mysteries of the ASUC is why the Daily Cal has such a hardon for Frankenstein coverage.

I'm also baffled by the blizzard of lies that Student Action is producing. Either everything everyone in the ASUC has known is wrong, and Student Action has embarked on massive sudden mid-stream slating changes, or they've decided to start tossing out big lies in unison. Probably the latter. This adds an element of comedy to their chorus of 'We don't know if we're running this 'Frankenstein' fellow.. is that his name?... but if we did, we'd back him and he'd win.'

"We've talked about the possibility of (supporting Frankenstein)," said Josh Fryday, Student Action member and former ASUC executive vice president for external affairs. "He would be someone that Student Action would be very proud to serve as fifth Student Action president in a row."

Gabriel said if given the choice between Cuaresma-Primm and Frankenstein, he would choose the latter.

Five years of running the Presidency and Student Action still has no idea how to handle the media.

UPDATE: Devora of the Puddle attended the Frankenstein maybe-Campaign meeting. Quoted in full because it interests me!

Today was the much discussed "gathering" of Frankenstein's friends, effectively the kick-off event for his run towards the ASUC presidency.

The turn out was significantly less than anticipated; yet the room was full with students. Among the attendees: former BCR president Bret Manley, former Patriot editor/ASUC senator James Gallagher, current ASUC president Jesse Gabriel and others who yield power from within and not necessarily from job descriptions. Notably missing was Wally Adeyemo, head of Student Action. Unclear why. I’ll ask around and update.

Frankenstein shared his first exposure to Berkeley. It was little Danny’s first day of school, and the yellow school bus took the route over the Golden Gate Bridge. With exceptionally good eyesight, miniature Frankenstein saw the campanile amongst the East Bay landscape. Later that day, his mom explained that the tower was located in Berkeley, and he set his mind towards coming here one day. I find it hard to believe that Mr. And Mrs. Frankenstein never took their son over the GG, or even to Berkeley itself.

Anyhow, Jesse got to up speak, and told us how he is 3rd generation of Berkeley students; his 2 grandfathers both of his parents and now him. Jesse also informed us how he and Daniel became friends. They were political opponents who ended up on the same ASUC committee. All they knew about each other was that he liked talking a lot (pause for audience chuckle).

After all this, Daniel asked students to fill out interest forms, the first batch of thousands planned to be handed out this week. Basically it asked students what groups they are affiliated with and what concerns they have regarding the school. Interesting approach to take. I don’t plan on following his campaign, but little tidbits regarding the election are sure to make their way to the page.

Does this mean campaigning in the classrooms? Man, I hate that. I remember last year when 'ASUC Surveys' were handed out in my class, only to disappear and never be seen again. The Student Action Candidate involved would write their name in big letters on the board, too, and rumor has it have plants in the audience to applaud.

If any of this occurs in one of my classes by any party, I'm throwing the guy/girl out. I'm in Econ 115, 136, 182, and Legal Studies 147. Don't try me.Email This Post!

The promised Berkeley Newscenter is up. It seems to be a collection of all the various news sources on campus into one spot, which is useful. On the other hand, no indication that they'll be including mainstream coverage like the LA Time's Shingabi article, but they semester is young.

UPDATE: They do have it up! Sorry for being a doubting Kevin.Email This Post!

Mr. Katz's column on Crime/Parking Fees/Dining Commons has this remark:

There needs to be increased flexibility in the system. Blogger CalWatch suggested eliminating the two-week designation and expanding the cap on one-days to 35. It would also be good to see some of this increased revenue specifically earmarked for neighborhood aesthetic improvements.

This makes myself and ProgCal the only two major Cal Bloggers not mentioned in the Daily Cal in one way or another.Email This Post!

Here's the transcript of Patriot Editor-in-Chief Sexton's appearance on CNN yesterday. Word from the Patriot's camp is that CNN ambushed them. My initial reaction was that the Patriot was used to fawning O'Reilly coverage, so I'd bet hard questions would be unexpected. But it is a bit of an ambush, in the sense that CNN is using the oddest, smallest parts of the Patriot cast in the worst possible light. CNN tried to latch onto a humor piece-- the tongue-in-cheek Valentine's Day Economics piece that few really read deeply-- as an example of sexism.

LIN: Well, let me ask you this. There is -- I don't know if he's a columnist or just one of the contributors, Seth Norman, who in the February edition here, writes about Valentine's Day Econ 101. I wouldn't say it's exactly the most politically correct article, but he states, for example, when he talks about "diminishing marginal return," he actually goes through the effort to draw out this graph, and basically saying the law of diminishing marginal returns states that increasing the amount of one's input will ultimately lead to lower marginal returns and the expanding input. OK, more simply put, he says, "you start out spending X number of hours a week with your lady, catch a movie, et cetera. She starts demanding your input and for more time into the relationship, and before you know it, you're helping her pick out drapes, letting her know that she doesn't look fat and carrying her shopping bags through the mall." And his theory is the less time you spend with the girl, the more you're going to get in return. I mean, what kind of a message is that?

SEXTON: Well, I mean, that's a satire piece, and part of what we do is we do humor and satire, and Seth writes that column on a monthly basis, and a lot of it is kind of tongue-in-cheek humor. And it's not really representative what we're trying to do at UC Berkeley. It's just -- you know, we don't censor our writers. So it's not politically correct, but we don't try to be politically correct.

Out of the blistering response from Berkeley Bloggers, none cared about the Valentine's Day piece. That's because it's a humor piece. Do your homework, CNN. They also spin Bruce Cain's 'chip on their shoulder' remarks as a condemnation of the Patriot, which is silly. That infers that there's something wrong with being proud about being a Republican. Professor Cain clearly meant it as an observation of how unusual it is for Republicans to be acting like an inflammatory minority group, not as an attack.

The insuiation that Mr. Sexton shouldn't attend Berkeley if he disagrees with its politics is also fairly revealing, both about media bias and popular views of Berkeley. There's such an assumption that campus politics, Berkeley in particular, are inseparable from academic instruction. But except for a few departments, they mostly are. Even if that were true, CNN is assuming you'd be better off in a University where the majority automatically agree with you.

LIN: But you know, you knew the reputation that Berkeley had before you even applied. So why did you even decide to go to school there?

SEXTON: Because it has a reputation of being a very good school academically, and that was really the sole decision or the sole reasoning behind my decision.

I think I'm mostly disappointed because it would be interesting to see some hard-hitting questions about the Patriot and its role on campus. Does it aspire to be as respected as the Daily Cal? What's the long-term plan for Republicans? How can you maintain the fire of 'minority group' when you've made strides to becoming part of the establishment? How about the National plan for winning back the Campus? Or at least criticize the substantive editorials and articles, not this claptrap.

Kudos to Mr. Sexton for holding his own under odd fire.Email This Post!

The LA Times has a typically clueless article on the anti-war movement at Berkeley and Mr. Shingavi in particular. The gist is that most students are politically apathetic but a small group of idealistic pacifists are keeping the faith.

His name was Snehal Shingabi. A 27-year-old graduate student and a member of the Berkeley Stop the War Coalition, he would spend the bulk of the afternoon trying to coax students into armbands. He was unfailingly polite and would bounce with enthusiasm toward every extended arm.

"This is the easiest thing I have ever done," he gushed at one point.

Still, most of the students would scurry by -- heads down, eyes averted, veering away -- displaying avoidance skills that must come in handy navigating the panhandlers who work the Berkeley streets.

For Christ's sakes, it's Shingavi. He was in the news all last year and lots of this one for the SJP protests, for the class description problem, and he's been on cable TV several times. I know that the Times has at least one reporter who graduated from Berkeley recently; don't they talk to each other down there? This might also explain why the reporter shows the ignorance of Mr. Shingavi that, say, searching Google would make up for.

He joined the campus antiwar group when it formed shortly after Sept. 11, 2001. His view is that the loss of the World Trade Center, however tragic, was manipulated almost from the start by an administration bent on war and empire-building in the Middle East.

But he joined it from a long-standing membership in the International Socialists, and it's hardly a secret that the anti-war movement is part of building a larger hardline Socialist movement. September 11th was not a call to action.. it was a redirection in purpose.

In the last few months, he said, awareness about the potential for war -- along with wariness -- has grown among students. More than 1,000 names, he said, have been added to the e-mail list -- and that's even before the first bomb has fallen.

It's actually 862 names, which includes a fair number of campus administrators and interested Republicans. Perhaps more tellingly, the BSTWC meeting I witnessed attracted no more then 30 attendees, although I suppose they could've been the officers.

Mr. Shingavi could be entirely right in his premise that bombs dropping will be the jumpstart for the anti-war movement. But the real question is: if a campus mass-movement starts to oppose the war, will they sign on with the International Socialists or start an anti-war movement free of overly ideological taint? I'd bet the latter.

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It's a big Berkeley weekend down at the Chronicle, with no less then four Berkeley related stories. (Three by the same author, Charles Burress.)

First is a Berkeley anti-war couple running one of the larger anti-war websites, financial and otherwise. Interesting tidbit:

Mindful of their broad appeal, the couple shy away from identifying their Berkeley connection, calling themselves "Silicon Valley entrepreneurs" on their Web site and press statements.

"Berkeley has been typecast," Blades explained.

They said the city is perceived as "fringey," a word that cannot be applied to their own politics.

When the anti-war activists are calling Berkeley 'fringey,' you know it has an image problem.

Second, a Berkeley grandmother walked to DC (mostly) for peace.

Third, former Chancellor Kerr's second volume of memoirs hasbeen released, the juicy ones. The synopsis makes him look like a brilliant administrator and academician who was never able to get a handle on students and politics.

And finally, the Bears beat Oregon! Alright!
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Thanks to the one of the Commenters for pointing out this interview with EIC Sexton in the German magazine Spiegel. (Anyone know how high its circulation is?). The Google Translation is wonderful.

Sexton: We try to provoke, by arguing approximately for a strong US military - peace by strength, how it would call Reagan.

And

Into the corner also the Macher of the largest student newspaper on the Campus, the "DAILY Californian" belongs. That is a hopelessly left cheese sheet. Also the university line does not spread gladly wrong things over us, about that we are only a small InterNet side, a printed magazine. Those have fear of our influence.

And

Sexton: So far we lived only on donations. We have sponsors in the whole country. Helps naturally the notorious call of Berkeley as left germ cell.

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This year's Senior Gift proposals are up. I'm kind of favoring the campus beautification one, as it's fun to see what you paid for. Although it's entirely possible that the two scholarship proposals will help more people.

Keep Cal Beautiful:
With its natural majesty and eclectic architecture, the beauty of the campus sets UC Berkeley apart from its peers. Our gift would restore the historic fountain in front of Kroeber Hall, which was the 50th anniversary gift of the Class of 1914.

Class of 2003 Scholarship:
The gift that keeps on giving! This option would create an endowment for undergraduate scholarships to ensure that Cal remains accessible to all students. Yearly scholarships will be awarded from the interest on the endowment.

’03 Grads for Undergrad Research:
Give undergraduates the opportunity to engage in summer research with Cal’s top faculty. Students in the Undergraduate Research Apprentice Program are awarded $2,000 grants to do research with professors in departments university-wide. The number of students we sponsor depends on the amount we raise

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The Berkeley Mic has an article up on the SJP/Rally Comm mess. It's mostly a summary of SJP's position on the University's treatment of the mess, along with a comparison with Rally Comm. Minor note: the announcement that Rally Comm was being investigated was made to myself during an interview with Dean Kenney mostly about other things. I don't think she anticipated the imbroglio over the definition over 'investigation' and the legal weight it carries.

Here's something that surprised me: the Mic writes that the name of the student on the Conduct Panel is Colin Sueyres. His name was long kept secret for reasons I was never entirely sure of.

Colin Sueyres, the one student who sat on the panel, later wrote that sitting on the conduct committee "terrified me in a way I haven't really felt before... like, a feeling of hopelessness and a faceless fear."

Here's the odd thing: Mr. Sueyres is not only a former Daily Cal writer, he wrote about SJP/IAC clashes.

On the same day as the Israeli prime minster election, a coalition of Palestinian supporters gathered under Sather Gate yesterday to protest the checkpoints that dot Israel and the West Bank's landscape.

Echoing similar unrest thousands of miles away, a group of approximately 75 people sat directly under the gate, blocking the main entrance to campus and clashing with Israeli students and supporters of Israel.

Did the University know about this connection? If so, did they care?Email This Post!

Cat's out of the bag vis a vis Daniel Frankenstein's run for the Presidency. Probably the worst-kept secret in the ASUC, everyone's known that he's running for months. People with no connection to the ASUC know he's running. But for some reason, Mr. Frankenstein continues to deny his candidacy.

Frankenstein said he has yet to decide whether he will seek the presidency.

He said the Sunday party has nothing to do with elections.

"I'm having some friends over," Frankenstein said. "But (it's) nothing political."

I can only assume that Student Action is still insisting on official secrecy.

The article goes on to speculate about Mr. Primm's intentions, which I've been trying to discover for over a month. The best I've been able to do is find that it's unlikely that he's running with CalSERVE. Otherwise, it's widely assumed that Senator Patel will be running for External. Senator Ro is almost definitely running for something, either EVP or Academic. I've also heard that Senator Lee is running for Academic, all of these with Student Action. But I'm not sure on almost all of those. (I'm much more out of the ASUC loop these days).

The other question besides Primm's intentions is what CalSERVE is up to this semester. My dream race would be Senator Hammon from CalSERVE vs. Senator Primm vs. Mr. Frankenstein, if only because the 'Everyone's a Frat Boy' part would be fun. (Hammond is in Pi Kapp, Primm in Chi Phi, Frankenstein in ZBT.)

The Squelch! Party, returned to original ownership after some unpleasantness, will be seriously gunning for Senate seats this semester, unlike the previous two.


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The Patriot also has an editorial on the Hernandez case. First, bravo to the brilliant Monopoly graphic at the top. The rest of the (unsigned) Editorial is a triumph of factually inaccurate blinders-on writing. My column on the case was partially designed to woo Republicans by convincing them that unforced legal and procedural mistakes on the part of the Administration made a victory by them a cheapening of the triumph of Law. Conservatives love the impartial rule of Law, right? Unfortunately, it appears they love repeating the word 'ACLU' as a curseword more.

University lawyers faced-off against Hernandez’s high-priced ACLU thugs in proceedings more reminiscent of murder trials than internal fact-finding hearings.

ACLU thugs? Hernandez's lawyers were from the National Lawyers Guild. The ACLU wrote a brief supporting their efforts, but that was largely the extent of their involvement. And yet the word ACLU is used 11 times and National Lawyers Guild never mentioned.

And what's with the unchecked claim that this is a triumph of Latino Conspiracy?

The university has fallen victim to what UC Regent Ward Connerly calls “Latino politics.” Pressured by Vice Chancellor Genaro Padilla, and probably the state Latino caucus, the Administration has again rolled over in the face of adversity. When will the university live up to its mission and send a message once and for all that it will not bow to political whims?

I've never seen any news article that demonstrates that 'Latinos' were even partially concerned with all this. If the Patriot has a news story on this they're holding back I'd like to see it.

UPDATE: Did I say 'brief?' I meant 'letter sent to Berdahl.' Oopsie. Bolsters my case that the ACLU wasn't directly involved at all. Not only that, but the letter was objecting to the trial procedure, not to the merits of Hernandez's case.Email This Post!

The new Patriot has an explosive article claiming that UC Berkeley bathrooms are used for anonymous gay sex-- and that the encounters are organized on the Cal Queer Alliance message board. (Go to 'Personals' and look around for 'Glory Holes.')

there is a map to the holes - e mail me for the facts -- i just have to make sure you are NOT a 40 yo and please be a Cal student..
The maps to the Cal Holes are the best map you can get this term. Full of fun and yum yum and good time.. we have the best holes in the UC system.!!

That particular message has 10 replies asking for the map.

The Patriot is trying to build a case that promoting not-incredibly-dangerous sex is supposed to be part of QA's mission. But the QA member who's quoted doesn't seem very concerned by the Glory Hole stuff.

But John Mendoza, co-chair of the UC Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender and Intersex Association, described the Web site as “a great place for people to express themselves.”

“It’s a great portal to campus events,” he said. “As for the glory holes, it’s the person’s interest. It’s someone else’s thing, not mine.”

The disclaimer for the 'Personals' board states

Reminder - We do not promote or sanction any of the activities described within, any posts reflect the ideals of the individual who posts them.

To what extent are they responsible? Message Board liability is a tricky one, but generally speaking if a Moderator is aware of illegal activity they can be considered liable. Would something really bad-- for example, if one of the maybe-mythical 'HIV Chasers' posted a want ad-- would that be censured? Shouldn't QA at least disapprove of this sort of thing on sexual safety grounds? Anonymous sex in bathrooms is incredibly dangerous, leaving aside the Patriot's own moral problems with it. QA is apparently knowingly balancing the freedom of an unmoderated message board against campus bathrooms being used to spread HIV. Not a great trade. If that's the extent of QA's concern for stopping the spread of STDs, appalling.

The Patriot continues more or less with this line of reasoning, listing the various funding sources that are using QA to promote safe sex.

The Patriot also implies that the Administration is behind the ball on this one, but the message board makes it seem like UCPD is both aware of the message board and using it for glory hole prevention.

the update on the map to the HOLES goes like this:
Campus security has done their job going under cover on this web site.. using fake e mail address to get the maps and closing most of the holes

So the maps stop being sent out due to the fact that most of the people asking for the maps were campus security -

I know most of the campus cops just want a suck .. but still those boys now have a map or two to all the holes at CAL.. so if you are waiting for a dot in the eye by the next guy you are sucking in the Cal restroom.. look close that it may be one of the cute campus cops -- getting off from a cute freshman boy from LA or Boston.

Beware of the holes they have been infected by the feds

I'm sure the vast majority of QA is neither aware nor proud of any of this. Hopefully they'll realize it vastly undermines any leadership role they think they have in ending the HIV epidemic.



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The Berkeley News site is derided as 'Boring Administration Announcements' on my sidebar, but that really isn't fair. It collects everything about Berkeley, even the Emma Goldman-esque stuff that's not entirely complimentary. That plus the faculty change announcements, scientific breakthroughs, etc. And now there's supposed to be a major upgrade into a 'Newscenter.' next week

Starting next week, you'll find a new way to keep abreast of everything that's happening at UC Berkeley with the debut of a daily online NewsCenter. This news portal will feature research news, campus developments, student newsmakers, the latest sports headlines, a Critic's Choice of campus events for the coming week, multimedia features and lots more, updated each day to keep you up-to-date. Bookmark it at NewsCenter.berkeley.edu, and come back next week for all the news that's fit to post.

Sounds interesting, and potentially controversial. Student newsmakers? Does that include politics? I'm sure we can all agree that Mr. Shingavi is a newsmaker, whatever other opinion you might have. Critic's Choice? Does that include rallies? And most importantly, will they give the Cal Blogs a passing nod?

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At least someone read last week's column.Email This Post!

Mr. Katz's column today mentions how Representative Lee took a shot at the Patriot for calling Ms. Lee a bunch of things. Mr. Katz responds

Not that the California Patriot could not have learned that when its magazines were stolen or when they faced censures from the ASUC Senate. It's pretty clear that the conservative point of view is starkly in the minority here in Berkeley, but it still helps liberals understand how this country is headed in the wrong direction instead of the left direction.

Typos in that first part. What does it mean?

If you want to see Ms. Lee for yourself, go here and flip ahead to 2:25:26.

UPDATE: Mr. Davis raises the point that it doesn't seem like the Patriot ever faced censures in the ASUC Senate. The closest thing would be when some Senators bitched about their handling of the Ribbons incident around September 11th, but no bills were ever authored or censures threatened. (Not surprising, since the Patriot has no ASUC affiliation.) I can't find any bills on it that related to the Mecha incident of last year, either. What am I not seeing?Email This Post!