Nov 9, 2011
University of California Berkeley Students began an occupation in Upper Sproul Plaza today. This video shows Vice Chancellor Harry LeGrande addressing the assembly.

Partial Excerpt of Vice Chancellor Harry LeGrande’s Statement:
“I think we’re all fighting for the same causes.” [not shown in this video. See this video]

“We appreciate your concerns about the economy and inequality in our country. We understand you seek places to discuss and strategize about the issues. You may gather 24/7 over the next week on Upper Sproul [Plaza]. Our policy though: no encampments which means, no tents, no sleeping bags, no fires for cooking, no sleeping. Amplified sound is allowable from noon to one p.m. From five to seven p.m. Other hours may be arranged by exception. ”

“If there are encampments they will be removed. We hope that you will work with one another and us to maintain these guidelines. If infamous weather arrives. We will allow tarps to be placed in protection.”

“In the event that we have to, we will give you a ten minute warning before the police come in, so that if any student does not want to be arrested if that is what is going to occur, they will have time to remove themselves.”

Report by James George

November 2, 2011 Oakland, California

Over ten thousand demonstrators participating in the Occupy Oakland General Strike marched through the city and closed the Oakland ports. The protests were predominantly peaceful and festive amidst a very small and subdued police presence. A few isolated demonstrators broke windows at banks along the afternoon march route but were urged to stop by the larger group who repeatedly chanted “peaceful protest”. A wide variety of groups participated in the rally, including labor unions and students. One large banner shown in the video read “Tax the Rich”. Also of note was the participation of the “General Strike Children’s Brigade” (at 3:05). Late reports are coming in that the Oakland police have now moved against remaining demonstrators with tear gas after midnight.

Occupy Oakland General Strike Demonstrators marching to shutdown the port of Oakland

Protestors atop shipping crates at the Oakland Port at sunset

‘It took only a dozen years for humanity to add another billion people to the planet, reaching the milestone of 7 billion Monday — give or take a few months.’

via World population hits 7 billion on Oct. 31, or thereabouts – latimes.com.

‘In an attempt to take note of a historic milestone over which it has about as much control as world peace, the United Nations declared Monday, Oct. 31, the day that the world’s population officially surpasses 7 billion.’

via 7 billion and counting: Earth’s population odometer turns over Monday – San Jose Mercury News.

‘The Obama administration moved closer to adopting a 20-year ban on new mining claims on 1 million acres of land around the Grand Canyon by issuing the final environmental impact statement analyzing potential consequences of the prohibition.’

via Grand Canyon mining ban moves forward – latimes.com.

‘…According to the lawsuit, Balance and AquaMantra plastic water bottles, marketed by ENSO Plastics in Mesa, Ariz., falsely claim the bottles are both biodegradable and recyclable. The labeling states the bottles contain a microbial additive that helps them break down in less than five years. The lawsuit says the microbial additive doesn’t accelerate the breakdown process and also compromises the bottles’ recyclability because the microbial additive is considered a “destructive contaminant” by the Assn. of Post Consumer Plastic Recyclers.’

via Plastic water bottle-makers sued by California over green claims – latimes.com.

‘Scientists consider Sacramento — which sits at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers and near the delta — the most flood-prone city in the nation. Experts warn that there are two events that could destroy the levees and set off a megaflood. One is an earthquake; the second is a violent Pacific superstorm, like the one called the Pineapple Express, which sweeps water off the ocean around Hawaii and dumps it on the mainland with firehose intensity while battering the coast with high wind and waves. A megaflood would not arrive as gradual seepage; it would be a rapid submerging of hundreds of square miles.’

via Sacramento Levees Pose Risk to California and the Country – NYTimes.com.

‘(Reuters) – Thousands of demonstrators formed a human chain outside France’s oldest nuclear power plant on Sunday to demand the site be closed as the government mulls whether to extend its life by a decade.’

via Protesters demand French nuclear plant closure | Reuters.

April 27, 2011 San Francisco

California Senator Dianne Feinstein, speaking at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco on a variety of topics, called the Ryan roadmap for Social Security and Medicare unfair and warned that unfairness can lead to class animosity.

Greg Dalton: “Paul Ryan is a republican from Wisconsin who’s put forward a roadmap for the upcoming budget battle that preserves medicare for people over fifty-five and preserves social security for people over fifty-five. what do you think of the Ryan roadmap?”

Senator Feinstein: “It’s basically unfair, that’s what I think of it. Because it makes the cuts, basically in programs that the poor and the lower income of our nation are dependent on. And it does this to avoid having to put taxes back up where they were for the very wealthy”

“I think everybody in this room has watched the recession, and we know who gained, and who did well, and who didn’t do well. I think that’s a huge mistake. I don’t think you can solve the problem without revenue increases, and it should be a fair share. When I was mayor [San Francisco] and I had to make some changes in the revenue structure, we did it in a fair way that everybody does their fair share. You can’t leave the very wealthy out of this problem”

Greg Dalton: “So is your basic position … is to let the Bush tax cuts expire which President Obama extended for a couple of years and basically go back to the Clinton era taxes?”

Senator Feinstein: “That’s correct. It’s about 3%. It’s about 40 Billion dollars over a period of 10 years. It’s important funding, and I think it’s necessary, because where we’re going to go, is into real class animosity if we don’t maintain fairness. It’s estimated – I think Martin Glinder wrote this in a column – that some 72% of his cuts are taken just so the wealthy can maintain the 36% instead of going up to 39%. And it’s just not right”

‘GENEVA – A new study suggests that more than 40 fish species in the Mediterranean could vanish in the next few years.’

via Study: 40 Mediterranean fish species could vanish – Yahoo! News.