“Slow Food for All?” Food & Drink, 10/1
The Price of Food Justice
Yes, Americans’ disconnect with where their food comes from does merit the need for slowing down and reestablishing that connection. The Slow Food movement does a good job of making people aware of the implications and consequences of their food choices. But the point I think the author and the panelists are trying to make is that this effort should not be limited to just those with privilege who can afford to pay a premium price for what is real, natural, and fair food. Instead, the Slow Food movement will only increase the gap between the rich and the poor if they do not strive to include the nation’s, and the world’s, underserved population and address the issues of food justice. The root of the problem is not in the way Americans eat. It’s in government subsidies, unequal distribution of resources, and structural inequality. When people can’t afford the price of rice or can’t get a fresh tomato from their local store, any food movement should take on those challenges as a central goal.
Diana Abellera, Berkeley
Polenta vs. Grits
I really enjoyed the article about Slow Food in your Taste section. However, I wonder why so many influential people seem to be relying on Slow Food to do the work of food justice. Slow Food is by and for the elites, and it has become part of the greater phenomenon of personality cult around food celebrities who use it for their personal gain and of their friends and associates. Unfortunately, the mainstream media will always care more about polenta with sugo and those consuming it than grits with ham hocks.
Peter Jackson, Berkeley
“Gluten-Free Glutton,” Food & Drink, 10/1
Enjoyed Every Bite
My family and I recently ordered a gluten-free pizza from Amici’s in Dublin and we all thought it tasted delicious. Even those of us in the group who are not gluten-intolerant enjoyed every bite. We ordered it with tomatoes, green pepper, garlic, and olives, which I think is a great combination of flavors. Amici’s typically does not put a lot of sauce on their pizza, but the cheese and toppings are also adding to the overall flavor. Every pizzeria is different and knowing what topping go best with their sauce and cooking style is a huge part of it.
Sharrie Bettencourt, Pleasanton
We’re Grateful
There are eleven restaurants in the Bay Area now offering Still Riding Pizza. Amici’s alone is selling hundreds of gluten-free pizzas per week. I’ve shared this pizza with the most discriminating chefs and received nothing but high praise.
Kathleen, I’m completely shocked at your review. Everyday I open several e-mails from grateful celiacs who rave about our gluten-free pizza and the restaurants who so graciously serve them. Food servers tell me it makes their day when they see kids happily chowing down on their yummy pizzas.
And as a highly sensitive celiac myself, I have not experienced one bad reaction.Cheers to all the Bay Area pizzerias who recognize the needs of celiacs!
LaRae Bates, Concord
“Blame the System,” Raising the Bar, 10/1
Not a Crime, But a Mistake
I hate to burst your bubble, but a contract is between two parties and it is understood that risk is to be roughly evenly apportioned. This is the core of contract law. Also, these contracts are civil issues. It only becomes criminal if it’s fraud — i.e., someone makes knowing misrepresentations.
While the little guy might have practiced some tragically bad financial thinking, it’s not criminal — it’s civil. At least, it is unless they claimed to be making more money than they were — which the vast majority of them didn’t. So, if anyone in the mix is a criminal, it’s either the people who made the loans or the people who made the rules.
You hit the nail on the head — this was binge lending. It takes two to tango. The only reason that this is having this impact is because the rules changed and allowed these loans to be sold as low-risk “securities” when they were wildly overvalued.
Should we mark down the values of these properties? Yes. Should we adjust the rules to keep lending from going amok? Yes. Should we kick around these homeowners? No. They were offered something, let into a contract, perhaps let into other refinancing contracts, and — in the end — couldn’t uphold their end of a contract. This is business as usual and should be treated as such.
The crime was tying them to the core of value in our economy — banks, pensions, money market funds, etc. The crime was overvaluing these properties. The crime was building a market that was 100 percent leveraged, 100 percent of the time. The tragedy was that there really was no crime. We are living in a country where financial “rape” was effectively LEGAL! This wasn’t a crime, this was a mistake — and it was a big one — and it was by our government.
The only way to fix this is to vote in such a way as to effect real change. I don’t know how to make that happen — but as a citizen, I have to take responsibility for it. No one else will, apparently. Least of all Joe Blow Voter.
Jayson Vantuyl, San Francisco
“Housing Projects Go Private,” Seven Days, 10/1
Preserving Affordable Housing
Thank you for covering the recent news from the Oakland Housing Authority. The OHA commissioners and staff have been working hard to protect, preserve, and improve affordable housing for low-income families in Oakland.
It’s a fact that monies to support public housing are in decline from the federal government. OHA has been underfunded by HUD for more than fourteen years! Thus, we struggle every day to maintain a decaying housing stock of scattered sites throughout Oakland. We don’t foresee a change in the actions of the federal government. It is very unlikely that the city or the state will step in and solve our very challenging and costly problems.
After a lot of study, OHA has devised an innovative plan to protect and preserve affordable housing in Oakland. Last week the OHA commissioners voted to apply to HUD to create a public/nonprofit partnership to save, renovate, or replace housing in Oakland. We will partner with a nonprofit organization, affiliated with the housing authority, and utilize an alternate source of tax credit investment for OHA properties. This new nonprofit will manage and maintain the properties. The new sources of funding will increase operating revenue and will also leverage other funds to permit OHA to develop new affordable housing.
Our primary goal is to protect and improve 1,615 units at 254 sites that currently serve as homes to some of the poorest families in Oakland. If this plan is approved by HUD, those living in public housing will be provided with Section 8 vouchers. We know this will be a long process and we also want to make it very, very clear that, as a result of this strategy, no one will be displaced and required to move if they don’t want to move.
For those who want to learn more about OHA and this plan, visit our web site and read Frequently Asked Questions regarding the Planned Disposition of Public Housing Scattered Sites at OakHA.org or call 510-847-1512 for more information.
Jon Gresley, Executive Director, Oakland Housing Authority
“Temblors,” Museums & Galleries, 8/20
Writing With Love
I just wanted to let you know how pleased I was with your review. The write-up is one of the best that I have ever received. People e-mailed mewith the love of what you wrote. I just wanted to make sure I took the time to thank you for your time. Much Light, AK.
Aunia Kahn, Shiloh, IL
Miscellaneous Letters
Please Help
Everyone green-minded in Berkeley, California and in Bengal Basin knows of a small, but vibrant nonprofit in two buildings at Dwight and McGee, the International Institute for the Bengal Basin, which cleans and preserves water resources and wilderness in California and Asia. IIBB works primarily on environmental and cultural change through its many activities to improve the natural and social worlds in a unique, systematic way by bringing meaningful global citizenship to people individually and in groups. IIBB has already proved its credentials both in the United States and in other countries in Asia — India and Bangladesh.
Unprecedented and illegal and retaliatory action taken against the property owner of IIBB (International Institute of Bengal basin), a civil right activist, unselfish scientist (Dr. Rash B. Ghosh), by the City of Berkeley. After taking charge of three buildings at Dwight and McGee in 1991, Dr. Ghosh has, out his constant effort, to improve it according to the city’s direction. This was built in 1992 with a separate building permit approved by the inspector, Mr. Robert Kandel. His plans were approved by city zoning and building for construction, which was duly executed. Construction was completed in March 1998, and under the dubious guidance of Mark Rhoades, the approval for the construction was arbitrarily reversed in a meeting where Dr. Ghosh was unable to attend. The City of Berkeley continues with its plans to give the building to the developer, Ali Kashani, Mr. Rhoades’ future employer — the City of Berkeley’s misguided requirements to make expensive structural changes and to coerce the owner of the building at 2507 McGee Ave. In a March 4 e-mail, Bill Coburn, the architect for the project since 2000, writes, “During the time I have worked on this project all effort has been put onto the third floor excluding the eastern portion of the third floor.” Now Assistant City Attorney Zach Cowan wants to remove the eastern portion of the roof which is in existence for the last fifteen years!
For this action of City of Berkeley, many IIBB scholars are homeless and even their work is in doubt. Founder Dr. Ghosh himself could not be at his home for safety and security reason. Instead of concentrating to contribute to the nation, environment, and society, IIBB is facing extra work and delays, and local changes and sometimes even to a total stop that is keeping small organizations and nonprofits at a political disadvantage in city policy decisions. Injusticely former Planning and Development Director, Mark Rhoades persuaded the city council to declare the property of a nonprofit organization that is strongly supported and advised by three Nobel Laureates, Linus Pauling, Glenn T. Seaborg, and Charles Townes, “a public nuisance.” It’s victim to officials and politicians claiming its buildings are non-compliant. The mayor says: “IIBB property will go to a [developer]!” Officials ignore proof of IIBB’s compliance, and inhumanely and unjustly “handle” IIBB’s minor issues in ways that could destroy IIBB, its historic property, work, which would irreparably harm the environment.
All these actions by the City of Berkeley again prove the homes, businesses, nonprofit welfare organizations, and churches are not safe in the United States. All levels of government find no shame of exploiting, plundering, and taking by force from hard-working citizens. These behaviors are primitive and flaunting violence and blatantly expose greed are behaviors of self-centeredness, contrary to the United States constitution, and social contract. It does not matter how many years someone have invested in the community because profit is the city’s victory opposed to traits of virtue such as loyalty and dedication and good motive.
Everybody is welcome to contribute in IIBB’s legal, grassroots actions to its problems, so let’s unifiedly fight to end our struggle for independence to recover the right to utilize our own resource.
Atasi Maiti, Berkeley
Editor’s Note
From this week forward, the Express is being forced to suspend several regular features: Your Words Here, our guest column; Apprehension, our weekly crime column; and Ideopolis, our profiles of East Bay residents with interesting ideas. We’re also no longer publishing the cartoons Bad Habits and Partially Clips. And we will no longer publish a monthly books section, although we will continue to provide our weekly books section, Lectures & Lit. These cuts are due to budgetary considerations. We hope at some point to bring some of these features back.
— Stephen Buel
Correction
In our October 29 review of Camino Restaurant, we ran an old caption to describe the dish we photographed. The dish in question was wood-oven-roasted chanterelle mushrooms and Jerusalem artichokes with garlic toast.
In our October 29 news story about Measure WW, we incorrectly spelled the name of the East Bay Regional Park District.
