I’m back, folks.
Some of you may remember me as a wide-eyed, grub-consuming freshman columnist from two and a half years ago. If you don’t remember me, don’t worry about it.
Since my freshman year, I have put on the obligatory few pounds, stopped riding a Razor scooter to class and traveled across the country. My stint as blog editor last summer and a fall semester in Washington, D.C., have resulted in an unhealthy obsession with nine-person councils, especially the U.S. Supreme Court. SCOTUS is 3,000 miles away, though. For the pleasure of us Bears and fellow council-watchers, we have the endlessly entertaining Berkeley City Council.
And so, dear reader, my column this time around will not be an assortment of miscellaneous reflections on life at UC Berkeley but rather an examination of perhaps the most amusing and intriguing facet this city has to offer.
My analysis is based solely on observations from regular attendance at Berkeley City Council meetings. This column will distill the mad from the sane, percolate the significant through the inane and expound on all matters of city council eccentricity.
So why should you care about these nine and what they do? Because the city and the campus are inextricably linked — decisions made concerning the city will affect the campus and vice versa. True, the city and the campus have always had a rocky relationship, but it’s a relationship in which one cannot survive without the other. Both parts contribute substantially to making the other a better place to live and a better place to learn. But first, let me introduce you to our cast of characters.
Mayor Tom Bates: Often referred to by council meeting attendees as “Master Bates,” “Adolf Bates” or “Fascist!,” Bates has been Berkeley’s mayor for more than a decade. Whether he’s actually an evil dictator instituting an iron-fisted tyranny over Berkeley residents is a hotly debated topic among council meeting regulars.
District 1, Linda Maio: Mrs. Politically Correct is one of the longest-serving council members, known for making neutral quips such as, “There is no easy answer,” or, “We must find a solution to this problem.”
District 2, Darryl Moore: … (That’s the amount of noise he usually makes at council meetings.)
District 3, Max Anderson: Have you ever met that person who’s super theatrical, says, “I’ll be brief,” but then launches into never-ending tirades and is extremely loud and passionate and outspoken about everything? Oh, don’t know someone like that? Well now you do.
District 4, Jesse Arreguin: A UC Berkeley grad, the youngest member on Berkeley City Council and the first Latino elected to the position, Arreguin is astute and sharp. Compared to the other characters on the council, Arreguin is relatively tame.
District 5, Laurie Capitelli: After Mayor Bates, Capitelli draws the most “boos” from the crowd for taking unpopular, albeit logical, stances on big issues. This is usually because he points out the logical fallacies in people’s arguments, and no one ever likes that guy.
District 6, Susan Wengraf: The only impressions I have of Mrs. Wengraf are that 1) she once almost fell asleep at a raucous sit-lie meeting where people were on their feet screaming at the mayor, and 2) she likes talking about cats. A lot.
District 7, Kriss Worthington: I refer to Worthington as “Princess Worthington,” for he, like Princess Di, is the “People’s Princess.” Often donning a blue shirt or tie that brings out his stark blue eyes, the Princess is the most popular council member at meetings, especially because he calls out the mayor on any dubious procedural maneuvers the Master attempts to pull.
District 8, Gordon Wozniak: “Professor Wozniak” can often retreat into a pedantic shell where he condescends to the crowd and begins lecturing us poor plebeians in attendance. However, I have seen him sport a smile when the crowd breaks out into song (as they are wont to do), proving that a human resides underneath his erudite facade.
Let’s not forget that while these nine make up the core of our cast, the most important actor is The Crowd — the regular council meeting attendees who are electric with energy, angry with government inefficiency and only questionably sane. Their behavior is what prompts the council members’ quirky reactions.
At times you may be frustrated with these members for their incompetence; at others, you may be ecstatic with the members’ progressive, forward-thinking spirit. You may protest their actions or perhaps fight for their causes. You may choose to agree with verve, disagree out of disgust or turn an ambivalent eye.
But rest assured, you won’t be bored.
Contact Lynn Yu at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter: @lynnqyu.