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Higher Education

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ASUC Auxiliary oversight to change By J.D. Morris | Staff jmorris@dailycal.org The business arm of the ASUC will soon report to a new campus office for stated reasons of aligning similar services and efficiency. Currently, the ASUC Auxiliary sits in the Office of Administration and Finance and reports to Ron Coley, associate vice chancellor of business and administrative services. But as of July 1, the auxiliary will exist under the campus Division of Student Affairs and report to Jonathan Poullard, assistant vice-chancellor for student affairs and dean of students. The move comes as the result of months of discussion within the administration, input from student leaders and a recommendation from the campus cost-cutting Operational Excellence initiative. “Initially, the entire unit is moving under the Dean of Students, but I think we should anticipate that there will be changes based on the most appropriate or effective alignment that student affairs thinks the ASUC would need to fit in appropriately with the other organizations that are part of student affairs,” said Auxiliary Director Nadesan Permaul. The auxiliary was formally incorporated on March 19, 1998, as part of the Commercial Activities Agreement between the ASUC and the UC Board of Regents. Its responsibilities include overseeing the financial activities of the ASUC as well as its commercial operations and administrative services. According to Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Harry Le Grande, the final decision to move the auxiliary was made on May 3 by himself and John Wilton, vice chancellor for administration and finance. Despite the significant shift, Le Grande said he does not anticipate any major changes to the auxiliary’s operations. “My first desire would be to really look at service level and service delivery and enhancing that part of it, said Le Grande. “I don’t know if there’s any money to save, because I don’t know enough about their operations. If there’s any synergy, I think we’re going to ex-

By Allie Bidwell | Senior Staff abidwell@dailycal.org

works on behalf of the defense, said similar cases have failed elsewhere due to a lack of legal standing. “The issue is still pending before lower courts in legal challenges in other states,” he said. “It’s gotten so

Nurses throughout the University of California voted last Thursday to ratify a multiyear labor agreement with the university — the first in nearly a decade. The 26-month pact is the first multiyear agreement in years with the California Nurses Association — which represents nearly 11,000 nurses systemwide, including over 30 nurses at UC Berkeley’s Tang Center — and includes pay increases that will average at least 11 percent over the next two years. Nurses and UC officials have before been at odds over salaries and retirement benefits. “This contract maintains competitive market wages and benefits for our nurses, recognizing both the difficult financial environment we are in and the unique nursing markets in which we operate,” said Gayle Saxton, UC director of labor relations, in a statement from the university. The contract affects the thousands of nurses represented at the university’s five medical centers — UCLA, UC San Francisco, UC San Diego, UC Irvine and UC Davis — as well as nurses at student health centers at other UC campuses, such as the Tang Center. Previous attempts to come to an agreement have faltered and resulted in strike threats in 2005 and 2010, both of which were blocked This conby court injunctions. In June 2010, San Francistract mainco Superior Court Judge Peter Busch ruled that tains competstriking at the five medical centers, as the union itive market had planned, would wages and have violated state labor laws because negotia- benefits for tions on a new contract our nurses, were still underway. Following the injunc- recognizing ... tion, officials from the the difficult association said they would begin bargain- financial ing another contract environment with the university. Negotiations for the we are in ... approved contract began in August 2010, and —Gayle Saxton the two sides reached a UC Director of tentative agreement on Labor Relations May 18. On May 26, the CNA informed the university that union members approved the tentative agreement. “UCLA nurses enthusiastically confirmed the multi-year contract,” Manny Punzalan, a registered nurse at UCLA, said in a statement. “That will ensure the recruitment and retention of qualified nurses to continue the critical work of bedside nursing for our high-acuity patients at UC medical centers.” Ultimately, the agreement was reached through “a very unified and firm” stance from the association, according to CNA spokesperson Liz Jacobs. “It’s always a question of waiting the other side out,” Jacobs said. “I think with enough of the other hospitals settling, it ends up being not worthwhile for the university to keep going through negotiations for the same thing — that’s expensive.” The contract states that the UC will continue its salary-based approach to health insurance whereby lower-paid employees pay lower monthly premiums than other employees and define meal and rest breaks for nurses working throughout the day. “Each unit shall have a mechanism for meal and break relief on each shift which shall be implemented consistent with professional

Lawsuit: PAGE 4

Contract: PAGE 2

Anna Vignet/Senior Staff

The ASUC Auxiliary will exist under the Division of Student Affairs in order to align similar services.

Check Online

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J.D. Morris comments on the commercial activities agreement and the creation of ASUC Auxililary.

plore that.” Graduate Assembly President Miguel Daal said the advantages of the auxiliary’s move have not been clearly communicated to students. He said he was concerned that the move is occurring over the summer, when many students are not on campus, and that he would rather it wait until Aug. 15 to allow for “necessary involvement for students in the change.” Furthermore, Daal called for a memorandum of understanding and a list of benefits that the change will bring to students. “From the student point of view, it hasn’t been made clear what the benefit to students will be in this change,” Daal said. “They say that we will receive higher-quality service from the auxiliary, but they haven’t been specific as to what that means.” But Le Grande said the change is beginning on July 1 because it will coincide with the start

of the university’s fiscal calendar. A mechanism for making such changes later in the fiscal year, he said, is not in place. Daal also cited concern that the move could make the student government susceptible to potential conflicts of interest that may arise due to the role of the student affairs office in matters of student discipline and student conduct. Le Grande, however, did not agree. He said the office does provide advice on such matters but that in the end, the decision rests solely with those to whom advice is given. With the auxiliary’s move now just short of one month away, Le Grande said it will allow his position to better function as a voice for students and assist in his efforts to “own the student experience.” “I’m actually looking forward to it,” he said in regard to the transition. “I think it’s going to be a good move, and I hope the students feel we’re not the people they need to fight.” J.D. Morris is an assistant news editor.

Higher Education

AB 540 lawsuit may go to Supreme Court By True Shields | Staff tshields@dailycal.org After nearly six years of petitions and appeals, a class action suit against the UC Board of Regents may advance to the U.S. Supreme Court by the end of June. A group of 42 former UC, California State University and California Community College students — all of whom are U.S. citizens — filed a formal request to take Martinez et al. v. UC Board of Regents et al. before the Supreme Court on Feb. 14. The court has yet to announce a decision regarding the petition, but the case has been tentatively scheduled for review at the June 2 conference. The plaintiffs’ original complaint — filed Dec. 14, 2005, in Yolo County Superior Court in Woodland, Calif. — took issue with California Assembly Bill 540, which was signed into law on Oct. 12, 2001. AB 540 allows students who complete at least three years of in-state high school, graduate from high school in California or complete a GED program and sign an affidavit to pay instate tuition for higher education, regardless of citizenship or residency.

UC nurses’ association ratifies labor agreement

Persia Salehi/staff

Shields comments on Check True AB 240 and compares it to Online similar legislation in Arizona. www.dailycal.org

The plaintiffs — each of whom paid out-of-state tuition — contend the board owes them damages equal

to the difference between residential and nonresidential tuition and that AB 540 unconstitutionally affords illegal immigrants a financial edge over citizens, said Michael Brady, a lawyer who represents the plaintiffs. Ethan Schulman, a lawyer who

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Dailycal.org Man arrested for alleged aggravated battery tron sitting inside the cafe had just attempted to rob him at gunpoint and that he still had the gun on his person, according to UCPD spokesperson Lt. Alex Yao. Yao said UCPD officers as well as the Berkeley Police Department were called in to assist with the search of the individual Thomas claimed was in possession of the gun. ...

Battle of Bears: Cal faces Baylor to open NCAAs The Cal baseball team slumped its way to the end of the year, finishing its regular season by being swept at home by Stanford. Offensive troubles, pitching stumbles and defensive missteps plagued the Bears in turn — and sometimes simultaneously — as they fell to sixth in the year-end conference standings. But, thanks to Monday’s invitation to the NCAA tournament, Cal can rewrite a whole new ending to its roller coaster of a year. The Bears kick off their postseason Friday at noon at the Houston regional, hosted by eight-seed Rice. Cal plays Baylor first, followed by either

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Alcorn State or the Owls. The four teams in the region will play round robin-style until all but one team has two losses. The winner advances to the Super Regionals. ...

The debut album from Cults delights listeners Just when you think that you’ve heard all there is to hear in the realm of experimental music, newcomers Cults emerge on the scene. Captivating ears with their ragged blend of girlish vocals and action-packed backings, Cults deliver one of the year’s most promising listens with their self-titled debut. Their warm, fuzzy collection of tinkling hooks and lazy chords bring a much-needed freshness to a music scene that has grown tired and predictable. San Francisco natives Madeline Follin and Brian Oblivion are the minds behind this pop project and have already achieved fame long

before the release of their debut. After merely a few seconds into the album, it’s not hard to understand why. Exploring the universal themes of love and loss, the duo convey a sort of quiet pleasantry that still manages to excite. ...

Man arrested for alleged battery near People’s Park One man was arrested after allegedly shooting another man with a BB gun in People’s Park on Sunday afternoon. At about 2:16 p.m., UCPD received a call regarding a man who possibly had a gun in the park, according to UCPD Lt. Alex Yao. Yao said the victim had run to the park after he was approached and surrounded on the corner of Haste Street and Telegraph Avenue by the

Study: fund flexibility leads to program cuts By Tiffany Chiao and J.D. Morris newsdesk@dailycal.org

Online Exclusives A man was arrested Tuesday night for alleged aggravated battery of multiple individuals between People’s Park and Caffe Mediterraneum after he arrived at the cafe and falsely accused another man of possessing a handgun. At approximately 10:38 p.m., the suspect, 27-year-old Jerry Thomas, flagged down a UCPD officer on patrol outside the cafe and claimed that a pa-

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suspect — whom a UCPD crime alert identified as Michael-James Kifayat Ali, 22 — and two other juvenile suspects, who allegedly yelled a racial slur at the victim. As the victim ran toward the park, Ali shot at him with an imitation weapon, which was subsequently found to be a BB gun, Yao said. ...

On the blogs The Daily Clog GOURMET GLUTTON: Just when we thought the Gourmet Ghetto couldn’t get any more nom-tastic, we found out about Off the Grid — a veritable cornucopia of foodie fabulousness that will congregate on Northside every Wednesday from now until forever. Winning!

State deregulation of about $4.5 billion in funds for K-12 education has resulted in deep cuts to popular programs, as school districts have attempted to use the now-flexible money to balance their budgets, according to a study released last Thursday. Authored by researchers from the RAND Corporation and Policy Analysis for California Education, the study analyzed 10 districts from across California that were chosen based on fiscal health, centralization, size and geographic location, with equal representation for both sides of each criterion. In the study, the responses of individual districts to the greater flexibility in program funds were compared with one another to track whether there were similarities between the changes being made to categorical-aid programs. The categorical-aid programs — meaning the funding was intended for specific uses such as adult schools, arts and music and libraries — were gradually implemented over the last few decades in California until they numbered around 60. Increasing bureaucratic complications appeared as the programs expanded, and there was a call for deregulation to free up fund-

ing. Two years ago, the state government agreed to loosen restrictions on categorical aid for 40 K-12 programs with the intent of allowing local school districts to have more opportunities to fix their budgets in the face of continued cuts from the state. “We kind of talked about this deregulation as a double-edged sword,” Bruce Fuller, a UC Berkeley education professor and co-author of the study, said. “It gave local school boards more options as to how to balance their budget, but at the same time, it allowed them to severely cut popular programs.” According to the study, the cuts had a definite negative impact on lowachieving students because programs that were directed toward these students — such as tutoring and summer school programs as well as textbooks — were some of the programs being cut as a result of the funding flexibility. “There were some exceptions, but by and large, it particularly hammered programs for low-achieving kids,” said Fuller. According to Fuller, the study is the second of four reports on the topic. He said the first report, a much shorter statistical report released in January, tracked the formally tied-up money in the districts. “After doing that analysis, that was how we knew that, by and large, most of this $4.5 billion went to low-achiev-

Contract: Meal and rest breaks a key part of agreement From Front nursing judgment and patient care needs, in order to ensure that required staffing is maintained during meal and rest periods,” the contract states. Association officials have said staffing ratios were not enforced during break times, which caused nurses to often deny themselves meal breaks in order to care for patients because there is no one to take their place while away. UCSF nurses “were pleased with the

significant protections requiring break relief coverage maintaining safe staffing at all times for our patients ... and they solidly affirmed the agreement,” said Erin Carrera, a UCSF nurse, in a statement. According to Jacobs, provisions in the contract that define meal and rest breaks are of great importance to the association, as she said many nurses have said such breaks would improve their performance in the workplace.

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5/27/11

The Football Blog The hot seat: Rivals.com has released its run-down of college coaches who currently stand on pretty thin ice. Cal’s own Jeff Tedford clocks in at number ten. Fair? Jack Wang gives his two cents on the Football Blog.

Corrections Last Thursday’s article “Company buys historic house” incorrectly stated that the Education Realty Trust Inc. purchased Wesley House in November 2010. In fact, the company began managing Wesley House in November 2010. The article also incorrectly stated that Westminster House is the second housing complex at UC Berkeley that is owned by the company. In fact, it is the first. The Daily Californian regrets the errors.

“The meal and break rest issue is very a important patient safety issue,” she said. “You’ve got to be able to be on your toes. If you cant do that, if you’re working in an environment where you’re constantly running ... it’s physically as well as emotionally challenging because you’re watching, keeping on top of a lot of different patients whose status is constantly changing.” Allie Bidwell is the news editor.

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Sex on Tuesday Blog OPINIONS ON PORN: It may or may not strike you as surprising that there is a major generational gap when it comes to the question of porn’s morality. Just how major? Check out Sophie Lee’s musings thereon to find out.

ing kids,” he said. The third report will be composed of a survey of superintendents to see whether the pattern found in the second can be generalized, and the fourth will be a wrap-up summary report, said Fuller. Mark Coplan, spokesperson for the Berkeley Unified School District, said he did not find the results of the study completely applicable to the district because its funding is strengthened in part by the roughly $22 million it receives annually through a local parcel tax. “Berkeley is one of the few districts that is actually flourishing and surviving in this really critical situation around education,” Coplan said. Currently, the district is looking at its smallest cut in years in state funding after Gov. Jerry Brown’s May revision of the state budget provided $3 billion more in funding for K-12 than had been anticipated back in January. As a result, Coplan has said the district will likely see a cut of $700,000. According to Coplan, though the district has made efforts to avoid cuts to the classroom, it has been cutting in other areas — such as eliminating administrator, manager and supervisor positions — for the last five years. “We’ve been cutting positions and programs, but we haven’t been taking and shifting and shuffling dollars to fill holes,” Coplan said. “We’ve been making straightforward, honest cuts.”

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Thursday, June 2, 2011 - Sunday, June 5, 2011

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Crime & Courts

Look before you leap

Murder trial ends in guilty verdicts

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xhibit No. 1: LeBron James is drifting on the weak side of the court, wholly uninvolved in the last home game he will ever play in Cleveland. He throws the ball out of bounds and misses 11 of his 14 shots. “I spoil a lot of people with my play,” he explains afterward. This is LeBron, the coward who would abandon his city in a self-aggrandizing special on national television about a month later. Turns out his decision was wrong. Exhibit No. 2: LeBron James is nailing clutch three after clutch three, and you’re surprised when one draws iron. He hammers in an emphatic alley-oop, three wins away from his first title. This is LeBron, the greatest talent the league has ever seen, finally blossoming on its biggest stage. Maybe he made the right decision after all. The sports narrative is a curious thing. They’re largely formed on what the public wants to see and often come with sudden, rollercoaster turns, as Tiger Woods and Lance Armstrong know well. We want to find saviors, even if they always inevitably turn out to be human. The two scenes are only a year apart — less if you trace back to the public relations mess that was “The Decision.” And when LeBron scorned the Cavs last July, he was vilified in part because he betrayed the narrative of the underdog, the hometown hero lifting an entire, downtrodden town upon his broad shoulders, resurrecting a city on the brink of collapse. He’s not the only one who’s been stuck with a certain reputation. Dirk Nowitzki choked in 2006, the story goes. His Dallas Mavericks were six minutes away from a 3-0 finals lead over the Miami Heat — then Dwyane Wade happened, and the Mavs lost in six. When the MVP was blitzed by the upstart, eighth-seeded Warriors a year later, his reputation was cemented, and he played superlative, if relatively ignored, ball through the next few seasons. Now, finally back in the NBA Finals, he’s a sure-shot Hall of Famer — this generation’s Larry Bird, armed with a step-back jumper that might be basketball’s most unstoppable weapon since Kareem’s sky hook. The basketball gods saw fit to put LeBron — who else? — in his way, two one-of-a-kind players pushing back against their histories like Sisyphus nearing the hill’s peak. e slap these labels on because we’re quick to judge, and we’re quick to judge because we want to make some sense out of games that, for the most part, carry too many variables for the outcome to be shoved onto one man. Jordan had one Hall of Famer with him for his first three titles, and two for the latter three. But his Airness wasn’t charged with decades of sporting heartbreak, and his running mates weren’t announced on an ESPN special. Winning tends to override everything, fair or not. But as much as people like to use championships to define great players, the measure is woefully inaccurate.

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By Allie Bidwell | Senior Staff dailycal@dailycal.org

Jack Wang jwang@dailycal.org Few argue Bill Russell’s case as the greatest player of all time, but he has enough rings to fill up both hands, with one left over for show. Stockton, Malone, Barkley and Miller all had the misfortune of being born at the wrong time, but they should not be excluded them from greatness just because they are without rings.. It’s called confirmation bias, this tendency to pick and choose evidence that supports our preconceptions. Rarely do we temper our most irrational tendencies here, because it is here we can escape from the nuances of real life and indulge in a simple proxy for war. nd again, we have storylines here in the pinnacle of professional basketball, perhaps better than the actual series can hope to live up to. It’s a changing of the guard, the clear end of the post-Jordan era, the first NBA Finals since 1998 without either Kobe, Shaq or Tim Duncan. In the Mavs, you have a group of ringless veterans — many of whom have come tantalizingly close — coming together for one last run to the mountaintop. At stake for Dirk is a chance to keep Wade from forever haunting his career. The Heat are the Evil Empire, a conspicuously manufactured team that embodies the threat of major-market collusion, a case study of what’s wrong with today’s athletes. The narrative dictates that Dirk needs a ring to secure his place among the alltime greats, that LeBron must win to validate taking his talents to South Beach. Neither is true, exactly. Dirk is just as good a player with or without a championship, regardless of public opinion. LeBron and the Heat will be title favorites for the foreseeable future, so their chances of greatness cannot be tethered to this one championship. So as the rest of the playoffs roll on, remember that no one game can define a career. Remember that one postseason doesn’t make Russell Westbrook the next Starbury, that Pau Gasol hasn’t completely erased his championship contributions with his last two series, that missing late-game free throws isn’t always going to be Derrick Rose’s thing. Remember that Jerry Seinfeld once boiled down sports fandom to rooting for different shirts, seeing what we want to see. And remember that, regardless, it’s been one hell of a show.

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A jury announced Tuesday that it handed down guilty verdicts to two men in an Oakland triple-murder case — nearly four and a half years after the incident occurred. After deliberating for nearly a week, the jury found Asmerom Gebreselassie, 47, and Tewodros Gebreselassie, 43, guilty of all 14 charges filed against them, including killing three people, kidnapping their 2-year-old nephew Isaac and attempting to kill one other person. They now face life in prison without the possibility of parole. In 2006, former Berkeley High School student Yonas Mehari, then 17,

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The cause of death was not ultimately determined, and the Berkeley Police Department has not found any evidence to suggest that Tewolde’s death was a homicide. The Gebreselassie brothers testified in 2008 that they acted out of selfdefense, claiming the Mehari family attacked the two to prevent them from revealing to the community that Merhawi Mehari, one of Winta Mehari’s brothers, was gay. The defendants also claimed that Tewolde had revealed to them that Merhawi Mehari was molesting Tewolde and Winta Mehari’s son Isaac. The two men will be sentenced by Alameda County Superior Court Judge Vernon Nakahara on Aug. 2. Allie Bidwell is the news editor.

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was fatally shot on Thanksgiving Day in his family’s North Oakland apartment on Telegraph Avenue, along with his mother, Regbe Bahrengasi, then 50, and his sister, Winta Mehari, then 28. Asmerom Gebreselassie — the brother-in-law of Winta Mehari — was accused of shooting the three victims, while his brother, Tewodros Gebreselassie, was accused of helping to plan the shooting. Prosecutors have said the shooting was an act of revenge in response to the death of Abraham Tewolde — the Gebreselassies’ brother and Winta Mehari’s husband — in March 2006 and that the brothers suspected Winta Mehari had killed Tewolde to acquire $500,000 from his life insurance policy.

ANOTHER BULLWINKEL SHOW

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News & marketplace

The Daily Californian

Thursday, June 2, 2011 - Sunday, June 5, 2011

housing

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Report: city high in renter satisfaction

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Affordable housing and convenient public transportation are among several stated attributes that made Berkeley the number one college town countrywide in terms of renter satisfaction, according to a report released by the website Apartment Ratings last Thursday. The site’s second annual report, which ranked cities across the country that are home to 100 four-year institutions, compiled results from apartment reviews submitted from January to December 2010 on the website — the largest user community review site for rental properties. With more than 178 reviews from 63 apartments, Berkeley takes the top spot from Davis, Calif., last year’s winner, but both are ranked above other popular college towns, including Buffalo, N.Y., and Ann Arbor, Mich. “People can go read about apartments, and there is a functionality for apartment owners to interact with vendors and people giving feedback,” said Ben Meyer, the director of content for Internet Brands, the parent company of Apartment Ratings. “This is not a sample survey — we took actual data from people living in apartments, and we averaged feedback from about 100 or so buildings per city.” The company was able to isolate the top 100 college cities with the most feedback for specific apartment complexes. This is Berkeley’s first year to be included in the report, since it had less than 10 apartment reviews on the site last year.

anna vignet/senior staff

Some say the Gaia Building Apartments are both ‘responsive and accessible.’ “It’s fascinating that in one neighborhood, one building can have so many positive reviews and another building can have so many negative reviews,” said City Councilmember Kriss Worthington. “It’s a testament to the openness of the site — it doesn’t delete anything negative to appease landlords.” The report also considered factors such as the pedestrian and bike-friendly nature of cities as well as accessibility to campus and cleanliness of apartments. Berkeley Housing Advisory Commission Chair Vincent Casalaina attributed

the city’s top ranking to its rent stabilization law, which provides tenants with increased protection against evictions and intends to provide affordable housing, though he said it lends to negative landlord practices. “I think that the rent stabilization law is the primary reason that Berkeley is more tenant-friendly,” Casalaina said. “But it works against good maintenance of buildings — there is really very little that a landlord has to do other than maintain the health and safety code, because there is no return on investment if they were going to upgrade windows or insulation to make those buildings more livable, more greener.” ASUC Executive Vice President Christopher Alabastro, who lives in the Gaia Building Apartments on Allston Way — a top-reviewed apartment complex in Berkeley — said his housing company is “responsive and accessible in service.” “Once, there was an issue with uninvited people entering the building,” Alabastro said. “When the tenant community brought the issue to the housing company, they installed security cameras and a security guard for the school year.” According to Casalaina, Berkeley’s dense concentration of students as well as the proximity of student housing to campus is the reason for its constantly changing housing environment, which can lead to a downward pressure on rent prices. “There is a big turnaround in the rental market — last year, there were vacant units in larger apartment buildings, and there was a fair amount of downward pressure on rent, which hasn’t happened in a long time,” said Casalaina.

Lawsuit: California Supreme Court upheld law in 2010 From Front far because our opponents are intent on pushing it that far, and they’ve made no secret of this.” Schulman added that his opponents for the case include Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, who helped draft Arizona’s SB 1070 — the state’s Senate bill that primarily sought to crack down on those harboring illegal immigrants — and is heavily involved in what Schulman calls the “anti-immigration movement.” On Oct. 4, 2006, the Yolo County Superior Court ruled in favor of the board. However, that decision was overturned unanimously on Sept. 15, 2008, through the California Court of Appeal’s 3rd District in Sacramento. In 2010, the case was brought to the California Supreme Court, where AB 540 was upheld as the court over-

turned the 2008 appellate decision. Not satisfied with the court’s decision, the plaintiffs filed a petition for writ of certiorari — an appeal to a higher court to take up a case — with the U.S. Supreme Court. Among the issues the plaintiffs find with AB 540 is the disparity between the law and the federal Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996. The act requires states to provide in-state tuition benefits to all U.S. citizens if such benefits are given to illegal immigrants. “When the state grants in-state tuition to illegal immigrants, it encourages them to come and stay here,” Brady said. “(AB 540) is directly promoting and incentivizing illegal immigration.” Distinctions and parallels between

the two bills abound as some state the government is entitled to intervene in the case, said UC Hastings School of Law professor David Levine. “If this is interpreted as an end-run around federal law, trying to box in people who don’t have all their papers, then arguably California does intrude into this area that it is uniquely Congress’s will to interpret,” he said. This contention might be part of the reason the petition for writ of certiorari might have “been sitting there for a while,” according to Andrea Gunn, a lawyer who represents the CSU system. According to Schulman, a minimum of four of nine federal Supreme Court justices are required to approve the writ, and a decision should be reached by the end of the month.

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FIND GREAT CHEAP STUFF The Berkeley Flea Market

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Thursday, June 2, 2011 - Sunday, June 5, 2011

The Daily Californian arts & entertainment

5

yeasayer: Led by frontman Chris Keating, the band added depth to their studio sound From Page 6 Chris Keating hit an emotional intensity unmarred by the band’s usual bevy of electronic beats. They were free, loose and relaxed. Keating, along with his band, were inspired and impetuous. He, doing his best Thom Yorke impression while strutting about the stage while bassist Ira Wolf Tuton traded some comedic sparring. But, this strippeddown manner which proved successful on their slower, more pop-driven tracks like “Tightrope” and “Madder Red” ended when they entered their more dance-heavy tracks off Odd Blood. Dense with synthesized effects and electronic beats, the tracks off of their second album sometimes near unlistenable territory. Songs like “Rome” and “Mondegreen” were far less engaging, leaving the audience agape with boredom instead of amazement. Though well-played and effectively arranged, Yeasayer seemed so entrenched in producing the same overly-produced quality of their album. The band seemed stale onstage as Keating danced between microphone and turntable like a bored ballerina. But, this is not to say that the concert was a failure. The truth was far from it. Their electronic material may have been too rehearsed, almost dry, but some of the new material they previewed was promising in its sonic variety. “Henrietta” broke the subdued tranquility of “Tightrope” with a refreshing combination of both new wave riffs and classic rock croons. Think Fleetwood Mac’s “Rhiannon” with the flair of Flock of Seagulls. However, the other two songs, “Demon Road” and “Devil and the Deed,” stumbled where “Henrietta” succeeded in merging Yeasayer’s beat-heavy bent with palatable pop. And, if there was one problem with Yeasayer’s live show, this would be it. On their albums, their work can be daunting in its impenetrable production. Live, the band seemed to relax and their unrefined demeanor resulted in new, intriguing depths. Like their inability to fuse genres, Yeasayer’s live show, while entertaining, was unable to unite their unedited spontaneity whilst retaining their studio refinement. Secretly Canadian/courtesy

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arts & entertainment & legals

The Daily Californian

Thursday, June 2, 2011 - Sunday, June 5, 2011

Concert

Yeasayer evoke a dynamic rawness with their live show

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off the beat

Beyond the sitcom schtick

Jessica Pena jpena@dailycal.org

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n the recent summer months, in between the gratuitous shots of vampire and werewolves (now, faeries?!) on “True Blood� and sciencefiction frenzy of “Doctor Who,� a curious thought trickled through my hazy brain: these shows are better than movies. Perhaps not better, but at least on par, and this struck me as something novel in the history of not only television but media in general. The evolution of the

TV show, from Lucy to Archie Bunker to “Alf � (a classic!) to “Friends� and on through the Liz Lemons and Donald Drapers of the modern television canon, has hit a high point with more variety and quality than ever before. That’s not to say that television has been abysmally awful until now. Of course, the odd eccentricity — a “Twin Peaks� here or “Freaks and Geeks� there — provides the exception to any theory that television was all precalculated laughter and multi-camera setup before the heydays of now. However, what has changed is the availability. No longer is HBO the hegemonic ruler of cinematic television, but this high quality pastiche has transferred into the networks which used to produce the now seemingly archaic work of an “Everybody Loves Raymond� or the oft-ignored (and rightfully so) “Becker.� The differences among format, style, and tone ranges in astronomical diversity on television, unprecedented in previous decades. This diversity, from the musicallyliberated high school halls of “Glee� to the Werewolf Bar-Mitzvahs of “30 Rock,� shows now have a voice besides that of the prerecorded audience laughter — a voice which is original and distinguishable. Probably in large part due to the creative risk that was “Arrested Development,� the cut flashes to strange, off-beat references, the sarcastic candor of Ron Howard’s narration and the sim-

ply un-sitcomy schtick which characterized the show’s bizarre qualities also enhanced it as being a truly original means of comedic expression. No longer was there the stultification of sitcom rules — the multiple cameras, the predictable jokes delivered to fake audiences, or the trite plots of “two dates to the prom, what to do?� or the “it’s not at all a plot contrivance that we’re trapped in this basement and have to talk to each other and/or make out.� Wow. That’s a long one. Even longer when one recognizes it’s been done more than eight times from “Charles in Charge� to “Diff-rent Strokes.� Take, for instance, the previously ubiquitous clip show. Used by nearly every sitcom from “The Golden Girls� to their modern, younger counterparts on “Sex and the City,� the clip show is king when it comes to television production. You’ve seen it before. You turn on your favorite show, expecting your favorite characters to indulge themselves in a fresh series of shenanigans and then, you see it. It’s just a half-hour filled with flashbacks from previous episodes, tenuously tied together with trite dialogue. Clip shows were, and still are, a costsaving tool for the tight budgets that sitcoms endure. Now, with more innovative and imaginative shows like NBC’s “Community,� the clip show is no longer a creative hindrance but an outlet. On their recent episode “Paradigms of

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Human Memory,� instead of flashbacks from old material, we witnessed new, never-before-seen scenes which not only added depth to the characters but also progressed the storyline. The format has changed. But, also the expectations. No doubt the variation of television and the abundance of creative approaches to old time slot formulas has arisen out of the need to satisfy an ever-decreasing audience size. Gone are the times when 76.3 million people carve time out of their day to view a “Seinfeld� finale. The transfer of media outlets to the Internet, On Demand, or TiVo have not only increased the accessibility of television shows but have opened up a demand for variation given the increased competition due to the diffuse proliferation of media. Not to say the familiar sitcom doesn’t still exist. But, even the recognizable formats of a “How I Met Your Mother� still produce moments of dynamic creative content, musical numbers about suits being one of them (thanks to Neil Patrick Harris), which extend beyond the confines of previous conventionality. So, when your friends tell you they don’t like television “because there doesn’t seem to be anything on,� please tell them they’re wrong. For the first time, it now contains more original and dynamic material than any other previous decade and all available at the touch of a button — remote, mouse, or phone.

You can earn money and do something you like doing. We'll help.

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Odd blood and period blood. This perverse potpourri is what the audience was treated to when Yeasayer stepped into the hallowed halls of San Francisco’s Fillmore last Thursday night. Touring in Ma^ =Zber <Zeb_hkgbZg ;460;B 2><82B ?DII;4B promotion of their latest record, Odd Blood, they entranced a full house with their enthusiastic alt-pop. But it was their first opener, Hush Hush, that stole the show with his sexually exuberance and unhinged charisma. With little more than fifty people in tow, the Berlin-based one-man show swaggered on stage like the strange offspring of Jack Sparrow and President James Garfield’s beard. Secretly Canadian/courtesy And, if that’s not enough to sway you, The Brooklyn-based experimental band amplified their studio sound at the Fillmore. Hush Hush’s bombastic stage presence and soul-driven beats were unexpect-

edly beguiling. Performing with no mental styles. With their debut album, instruments, just an iPod and his sexu- All Hour Cymbals, the Brooklyn-based ally-deviant self, Hush Hush’s shouts of group managed to meld intricate, elec“Sex Party� and “Bloody Sex� were ini- tronic orchestrations with surprisingly tially off-putting, to say the least. Lyrics catchy pop hooks. about menstrual cycles and “getting It was an exhilarating mixture of olddown on the floor� are hardly groovy, school Talking Heads funk with a more but that’s what Hush Hush was — a modern, synthesized vibe. However, funkalicious fiend. When not humping now touring on their second, more Mn^l]Zr% CZgnZkr ++% +))1 the stage or parading around in his mature album, Odd Blood, the band bejeweled cape, he would casually joke seems drawn between the two spheres with the audience: “Yeasayer wrote all of rambunctious pop and their more these songs. They’re below the stage esoteric, electronic compositions. And right now.� There was an irreverent on their albums, the seeming split spontaneity to Hush Hush’s show that between these disparate genres is ususet the mood for Yeasayer’s dynamic ally avoided with polished transitions. But, that’s on their albums. performance later. Yeasayer stepped on stage with a When playing live, the inhibitions of finely-tuned production were replaced confident command befitting their by a more raw, more intimate Yeasayer. already carefully controlled style. Like Released from the confines of the their fellow high school-mates, rock recording studio, the vocals of frontman band Animal Collective, Yeasayer is a group unafraid to indulge in experiyeasayer: PAGE 5

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By Jessica Pena | Staff jpena@dailycal.org

jobboard.dailycal.org

E>@:E GHMB<>L Ihlm rhnk :eZf^]Z <hngmr E^`Zel pbma nl' FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE NO. 450533-34 The name of the businesses: (1) Sugar Mama Bakery and (2) Sugarmama Bakery, street address 4847 Hopyard Rd. Suite 4-109, Pleasanton, CA 94588, mailing address 4847 Hopyard Rd. Suite 4-109, Pleasanton, CA 94588 is hereby registered by the following owners: Thomason Investments, LLC, 4847 Hopyard Rd., Suite 4-109, Pleasanton, CA 94588. This business is conducted by a Limited liability company. The registrant began to transact business under the fictitious business name(s) listed above on 4/14/2011. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Alameda County on April 14, 2011. Sugar Mama Bakery Sugarmama Bakery Publish: 5/26, 6/2, 6/9, 6/16/11 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE'S SALE TSG No.: 09 8 433952 TS No.: 20099077400542 FHA/VA/PMI No.: APN:056 1968 007 YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST, DATED 06/07/07. UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. On June 16, 2011 at 12:00 PM, First American Trustee Servicing Solutions, LLC, as duly appointed Trustee under and pursuant to Deed of Trust recorded 06/13/07, as Instrument No. 2007220312, in book , page , of Official Records in the Office of the County Recorder of ALAMEDA County, State of California. Executed

by: TARANEH NOURIAN,. WILL SELL AT PUBLIC AUCTION TO HIGHEST BIDDER FOR CASH, CASHIER'S CHECK/CASH EQUIVALENT or other form of payment authorized by 2924h(b), (Payable at time of sale in lawful money of the United States) At the Fallon Street emergency exit to the Alameda County Courthouse, 1225 Fallon St., Oakland, CA. All right, title and interest conveyed to and now held by it under said Deed of Trust in the property situated in said County and State described as: AS MORE FULLY DESCRIBED IN THE ABOVE MENTIONED DEED OF TRUST APN# 056 1968 007. The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 2112 8TH STREET, BERKELEY, CA 94710. The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein. Said sale will be made, but without covenant or warranty, expressed or implied, regarding title, possession, or encumbrances, to pay the remaining principal sum of the note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust, with interest thereon, as provided in said note(s), advances, under the terms of said Deed of Trust, fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaid balance of the obligation secured by the property to be sold and reasonable estimated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of the Notice of Sale is $532,535.78. The beneficiary under said Deed of Trust heretofore executed and delivered to the undersigned a written Declaration of Default and Demand for Sale, and a

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written Notice of Default and Election to Sell. The undersigned caused said Notice of Default and Election to Sell to be recorded in the County where the real property is located. If the sale is set aside for any reason, the Purchaser at the sale shall be entitled only to a return of the deposit paid. The Purchaser shall have no further recourse against the Mortgagor, the Mortgagee or the Mortgagee's Trustee. The beneficiary or servicing agent declares that it has obtained from the Commissioner of Corporations a final or temporary order of exemption pursuant to California Civil Code Section 2923.53 that is current and valid on the date the Notice of Sale is filed and/or The timeframe for giving Notice of Sale specified in subdivision(s) of California Civil Code Section 2923.52 applies and has been provided or the loan is exempt from the requirements. Date: 05/19/11, First American Trustee Servicing Solutions, LLC 6 Campus Circle, 2nd Floor Westlake, TX 76262 Original document signed by Authorized Agent, Chet Sconyers -FOR TRUSTEE'S SALE INFORMATION PLEASE CALL (916) 939-0772. First American Trustee Servicing Solutions, LLC May be Acting as a Debt Collector Attempting to Collect a Debt. Any Information obtained may be used for that purpose. NPP0181723 05/26/11, 06/02/11, 06/9/11 NOTICE OF BULK SALE Escrow No. 8120117-LC To Whom it May Concern: Notice is hereby given to the Creditors of: Pizzavore West Berkeley, LLC, Seller(s), whose business address(es) is: 2124 Center Street, City of Berkeley, County of Alameda, State of

California, 94704, that a bulk transfer is about to be made to: Macrobiotic Restaurant Management, LLC, Buyer(s), whose business(es) address is: 2124 Center Street, City of Berkeley, County of Alameda, State of California, 94704 The property to be transferred is located at: 2124 Center Street, City of Berkeley, County of Alameda, State of California, 94704 Said property is described in general as: All stock in trade, fixtures, equipment, goodwill and other property of that Restaurant business known as Pizzavore, and located at: 2124 Center Street, City of Berkeley, County of Alameda, State of California, 94704 The bulk transfer will be consummated on or after the 20 day of June, 2011. This bulk transfer is subject to Section 6106.2 of the California Commercial Code. If Section 6106.2 applies, claims may be filed at Fidelity National Title Company, Escrow Division, Escrow #8120117-LC, 601 California Street, Suite 1501, San Francisco, County of San Francisco, State of California, 94108. This bulk transfer does NOT include a liquor license transfer. All claims must be received at this address by the 17 day of June, 2011. So far as known to the Buyer(s), all business names and addresses used by the Seller(s) for the three years last past, if different from the above, are: Pie In the Sky Dated: April 14, 2011 Fidelity National Title Company as Escrow Agent for the herein buyer and seller Fidelity National Title Company as Escrow Agent for the herein Seller and Buyer By: /s/ LISA M. DECKER

6/2/11 CNS-2109281# DAILY CALIFORNIAN NOTICE OF BULK SALE Escrow No. 8119941-LC To Whom it May Concern: Notice is hereby given to the Creditors of: DIG'S BISTRO, LLC, Seller(s), whose business address(es) is: 1453 Dwight Way, City of Berkeley, County of Alameda, State of California, 94702, that a bulk transfer is about to be made to: Ta Krai Hom, Inc., Buyer(s), whose business(es) address is: 1453 Dwight Way, City of Berkeley, County of Alameda, State of California, 94702. The property to be transferred is located at: 1453 Dwight Way, City of Berkeley, County of Alameda, State of California, 94702. Said property is described in general as: All stock in trade, fixtures, equipment, goodwill and other property of that RESTAURANT business known as DIG'S BISTRO, and located at: 1453 Dwight Way, City of Berkeley, County of Alameda, State of California, 94702. The bulk transfer will be consummated on or after the 20 day of June, 2011. This bulk transfer is subject to Section 6106.2 of the California Commercial Code. If Section 6106.2 applies, claims may be filed at Fidelity National Title Company, Escrow Division, Escrow #8119941-LC, 601 California Street, Suite 1501, San Francisco, County of San Francisco, State of California, 94108. This bulk transfer includes a liquor license transfer. All claims must be received prior to the date on which the Notice of Transfer of the liquor license is received by Escrow Agent from the Department of Alcoholic

Beverage Control. So far as known to the Buyer(s), all business names and addresses used by the Seller(s) for the three years last past, if different from the above, are: None Dated: May 12, 2011 Fidelity National Title Company as Escrow Agent for the herein seller and buyer By: /s/ LISA M. DECKER 6/2/11 CNS-2110099# DAILY CALIFORNIAN ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME No. RG11578171 In the Matter of the Application of Norma Leticia Caldera for Change of Name. TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: Petitioner Norma Leticia Caldera filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows: Norma Leticia Caldera to Norma Letizia Palmero. THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. NOTICE OF HEARING: 7/22/11, at 11:00 AM in Dept. #31, at US Post Office, 201 13th Street, 2nd Floor, Oakland, CA 94612. A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published at least once a week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition in the following newspaper of general circulation, printed, in this county: The Daily Californian in Berkeley, California. Dated: May 31, 2011 Jon R. Rolefson Judge of the Superior Court Publish: 6/2, 6/9, 6/16, 6/23/11

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The Daily Californian arts & entertainment

Thursday, June 2, 2011 - Sunday, June 5, 2011

ALBUM reviews

Off the beat

Dumpster diving and consumerism

imperfections. Banished to the oblivion a feedback cycle of supposed needs and of the Dumpster, these objects go to actual money spent. I navigate advertisements and coupons and come out waste simply by being called waste. But the mass disposal of these the other end with my bags full of objects has its advantages: the so-called stuff, furnishing my consumer perso“Dumpster diving." Known as the will- na. But in the Dumpster, there is no ful reclaiming of disposed objects, surveillance, and I am not tracked — dumpster diving is a conservationist iberated from materiality! and creative practice of reuse — a Now it’s easy to talk up dumpster direct challenge to consumer material diving’s benefits, but as a practice, culture. Scanning the Dumpsters in there are of course risks. For one, Death Cab for Cutie Buxter Hoot’n South Berkeley’s student housing areas, hygiene: diving for food requires more Mankl]Zr% FZr ,% +))0 3D<<H Ma^ =Zber <Zeb_hkgbZg CODES AND KEYS BUXTER HOOT’N I found materials to furnish my entire stringent strategies for collection. But the discerning diver who skims, and [Atlantic] [Buxter Hoot’n] future existence: dresser drawers, a wok, office supplies, a desk chair. My pays attention, has a good chance of he sweet, almost angelic ith their self-titled album, acquisitions were aligned with anoth- staying out of the salmonella zone. warbles of Ben Gibbard’s the oddly-named Buxter er’s abandon, mediated through a Timing and packaging are of course voice have become a source Hoot’n have burst out of also important determiners of safety, gigantic metal box. of consistency and comfort over the the finger-pluckin’ country-esque minimizing festering time and maxi These Dumpsters are not only holdyears. With their soft, polite pop and mold and have matured into a muling tanks of possibility but also provide mizing protection. easygoing accessibility, Gibbard and tifaceted style. Combining sensual Strategies of waste reclamation are for new models of consumer profiling. his band, Death Cab for Cutie, have melodies, screeching electric guitar not without collateral damage. Not Usually our consumption is monitored warmed their way into the cockles solos, twangy harmonica and everyonly is dumpster foraging an ultimateto develop and predict commercial (yes, cockles) of our hearts like a hot thing in between, the San Francisco ly unsustainable mode of sustenance, trends, but I could sidestep that cuscup of cocoa on a winter’s eve since group have evolved their sound to but may also infringe upon the resourctomer documentation by diving into their debut in 1997. Unfortunately, include electric swells and slowes of people who live without that dumpster. Literally immersing homes,and rely on discarded food there’s only so much hot chocolate building ballads while still adhering myself in other people’s garbage put me entirely. Regardless of legal precedent, ataylor@dailycal.org a person can take before the sugar to their Southern roots. in the position of the commercial taste- diving may be considered stealing, high wears down and you tire out. Buxter Hoot’n have in no way makers, auditing people’s waste to whether out of the bin or from the And this is the predicament that changed their rustic Americana style determine what they value or desire. Death Cab find themselves in with hands of others. in an extravagant way. The bangin’ t the end of each spring semes So instead of voting with the So limiting the goals to non-foodtheir seventh studio release, Codes banjos, bluesy violins and old-west ter, the city of Berkeley stations almighty dollar, I was abstaining stuffs simplifies matters and becomes and Keys. vocals are all present and accounted gigantic Dumpsters next to stuthrough adoption, snagging up prod- a more discriminating practice. It should be clarified that there’s for. The only difference now is that dent housing units for move-out. Over ucts for free with a little strategy and a nothing particularly wrong about the Bay Area band has explored the course of the a week, the garbage lot of patience. The practice of Digging through the incredible volCodes and Keys. All 11 tracks are tolmore aspects that expand their level in these vessels rises, sloshing Dumpster diving aims to subvert a ume of perfectly usable materials, it’s erable enough. They have a polished range beyond gritty folk twangs. The with anything from discarded furniture person’s social, political and individual hard not to be the dog-lover at the and subtle sound that doesn’t offend crisp, sometimes funky riffs that to electronics to clothing. A quick sift profiles based on consumerism and pound: you just want to take everywith overly-wrought electronic eleguitarist Ben Andrews throws down through any one of these Dumpsters is instead render that person’s status thing home. But I learned very quickly ments or unwanted, instrumental to defend against my hoarding instincts on electric guitar flow smoothly an audit on student consumerism and through rigorous reuse and community experimentation. Unlike their eightby only taking what I could immediwith the group’s aforementioned material priorities, exposing a remark- sharing. While dragging my freshly minute long opus “I Will Possess ately justify using. The urge to not Southern vibes. The vocals of Vince ably dismissive take on utility and excavated dresser home, I realized I waste can easily end up in gluttony, Your Heartâ€? on 2008’s Narrow Stairs, Dewald and Melissa Merrill work value. had become invisible to capitalistic and it’s easy to end up with a whole lot which at least attempted to integrate well on their own, but their har Despite exhaustive efforts to adver- marketing, and I started grinning of junk. a heavier, guitar-oriented sound, monies stand out as they sing their tise sustainability initiatives and energy uncontrollably. Death Cab doesn’t bother with such ANSWER TO #1071 But where there’s lots of waste, ACROSS soulful lines. Tracks like “Marielâ€? conservation, the UC Berkeley student When online purchasing becomes there’s lots of choice. And standing 9. __ ThĂŠrèse of Lisieux unorthodox behavior on this album. in 1. the Mexican all of dormitories are still producing an easier and more efficient, consumerdish In fact, save for the songs “Doors Unthe orca-sized cavity of 10. a Dumpster A G T and S “Blue L ONightâ€? T asshowcase L O C from A L Zodiac symbol these new styles they build insane amount of material waste. is never the only beneficiary: 5. Edward Everett and Alan as marlocked and Openâ€? and “Unobstructed made visible a cross-section of a cerH D 11. Rent A G O I V E A O E quiet croons to powerful refrains. R R Waste, the garbage of lost possibility, is kets become more accessible, so do we, meal Views,â€? no track extends beyond the tain student consumerism, an amaz10. One-dish # 14 Just when the album lullsLyouE S 12. Diminutive suffix a performed label more than a substan- as demographics. Notwithstanding ingly dismissive one. These O M E O O N W A five-minute mark. And even those objects P R 14. President Arthur!s into a bluesy groove, the group temtive one: these discarded objects are surveillance through email or search tossed into material oblivion songs that do break that time were25 Across 13. See R T H T RconU S Tporarily W O retreats Yto its O A T back country middleofname prematurely aborted, often retaining engines, my identity as a purchaser ripe for the picking, and I have outfitstraint proffer the same, mid-tempo 19. 1 of 150 in the Bible roots. The simple melodies and I S A seem T R E E E P S my future apartment. being In developed in ted salvageable qualities despite superficial goods is constantly 15. mumblings that the bandScan’t __ of way; rather bring the album down from 21. Mid-monthordate don’t want, to escape. Olyrics A B S R I S E N 16. Animal shelter R the high points of the opening tracks 24. Mr. Guthrie Instead of experimentation or 17. Wander T R O S E A I T E R N Efurther A to a melancholy droll. Going 25. Manhandleexploration with different styles, the record, however, Buxter 18. Items stocked by what Codes and Keys gives usAis aPdullT into D U L T C A T U N E 26. __ one!s time; Hoot’n continue to experiment with rehashing of old material. The pena mechanic I R E B A M M T new styles. Andrews’Cviolin A evokes E aL be patientultimate track, “St. Peter’sOCathedral,â€? 20. Beverage tune R E S A Lforeign, E almost S N Middle-Eastern A P 27. Venerate drifts along on a sea of melancholy 21. Article the guitar strums elegantly away piano and eccentric mutterings like N S E L C R Aas E D A M 28. Fastener in the background. This musical a carbon copy of the 2003 track, 22. Weather condition A F E A S 29. Final battle O S O M L A N C E exploration justifies Buxter Hoot’n “Transatlanticism.â€? However unlike 23. Burdened as more than just a local country their 2003 album of the same name, 30. Name for a First Lady D A M P L M A P L E S A A 25. With 13 Down, band. While not every track exudes are no stand-out hits on Codes 32. Toward thethere bow I N E T R N A G A D I A O originality, the S.F. five-piece’s latest Diamond Lil!s portrayer and Keys. What remains is only a set 33. Miner!s discovery stellar, album of mediocre, cookie-cutterRcroons E L E Teffort isRa E HARD # 14 T Srefreshing N E T 26. Empty 35. Refuses towhich are, like Gibbard’s voice, sweet to go along with summer adventures 28. Fir variety substantial. to the backwoods. 37. Daybreak, but to hardly a poet 48. from Ringtheofbay light 31. Poetic works: var. ­â€” Jessica Pena ­â€” Ian Birnam

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CROSSWORD PUZZLE

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6 2 1 Keep Berkeley Shop Locally. 3 6 Unique: 9 Supporting locally-owned, independently operated 1 keeps 7 creates more jobs, 1 businesses 3 our city5unique,

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A&E

“

Listen to me carefully, my friend! Killing will not bring you peace.” — Professor Charles Xavier

Thursday, June 2, 2011 - Sunday, June 5, 2011

film

By Ian Birnam | Staff ibirnam@dailycal.org

S

uperhero origin stories can have a way of refreshingly rebooting a franchise, no matter how squandered the series was before. Similar to how “Batman Begins” brought a new light (or lack thereof) to the laughable Clooney trilogy, Mathew Vaughn’s prequel “X-Men: First Class” has revived the film franchise with a magnetizing start that will please mutant-lovers and newcomers alike. Set in the 1960s, “First Class” depicts the origins of the epic battles between Professor X and Magneto by initially showing how the young men Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik Lehnsherr (Michael Fassbender) started out as friends. After meeting through individual attempts at taking down Nazi-turned-mutant Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon) — who plans on a nuclear Armageddon leaving an apocalyptic Earth run by mutants — Charles convinces Erik that they’re going to need the their own army to fight mutant fire with fire. With some help from CIA agent Moira MacTaggert (Rose Byrne) and the Man In Black (Oliver Platt), the duo creates a team of mutants ranging from veteran Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) to newcomers like Banshee (Caleb Landry Jones). After an attack from Shaw and his Hellfire Club, which results in the death of one mutant and the betrayal of another, the first class of X-Men hones their powers and prevents Shaw from sending off nukes in Cuba, thus implementing a global nuclear war. That’s right. The X-Men helped end the Cold War and absolve the Cuban Missile Crisis. While that may seem unrealistic, it actually helps ground the film into some sort of reality along the flying humans and blue-skinned heroes. The post-World War II connections also shape the evolving relationship between Charles and Erik. Charles believes in the good nature of humans and dreams of a society where humans and mutants peacefully coexist. Due to his experience in the Holocaust, Erik believes that humans will reject the mutant minority and attempt to exterminate it because of its differences. These differing viewpoints establish a firm rift between the two friends that will never be resolved, causing them to form separate mutant leagues.

Centered around the dynamics between Charles, Erik and the other mutants, the film slowly builds from gathering the team together and culminates in a colossal confrontation with Shaw and his crew. The pacing never feels slow or over the top with CGI effects. Each scene builds upon the next, drawing the viewers further into the character development. The tenuous bond that forms between Charles and Erik is shown in the strong performances by both McAvoy and Fassbender. McAvoy captures both the playful bachelor and respected professor personas of Charles. Although he begins by throwing back beers and fraternizing as a Ph.D. grad, McAvoy never fails to add at least a hint of scholarly wisdom in all of Charles’ actions. The character grows into the adorned teacher as he gives each mutant lessons in harnessing and controlling their powers. By the end of the film, it’s easy to see how the young professor becomes the honorable leader that Patrick Stewart portrayed in the previous films. As we see McAvoy’s character grow, Fassbender delves into the ever-darkening world of Erik. Haunted by gruesome memories of a genocideridden past, Erik seeks only vengeance on those that took everything away from him, fueling his lack of faith in mankind’s tolerance of mutants. Fassbender’s cold, brutal demeanor characterizes Erik as a dangerous man who, although, is introduced as an antihero, eventually embraces the ideas of the men who he and Charles are fighting against, blindly becoming the villain he fought to defeat. Erik’s descent into evil also creates a leader figure in him, as Fassbender steadily becomes more assertive, convincing mutants to join him in his ruthless conquest. However, the movie is not perfect. For those who actually know the comic-book lowre of the X-Men, most of the characters in “First Class” — as with the past films — are strewn together from vastly different timelines in the comics (Cyclops’ little brother becomes an A-Man before Cyclops does?). Also, the dialogue at times comes off cheesy, as the one-liners, catchphrases and attempted romances become quite tiresome by the time the second hour rolls around, as does Charles’ hackneyed telekinetic stance, which becomes slightly laughable after the tenth time he puts two fingers to his forehead. Regardless of these minor issues, “First Class” wipes the slate clean for the X-Men movies as Vaughn paves the road for a new trilogy of uncanny heroes.

nikk i da nce /sta ff

The latest film in the X-Men franchise brings an unexpected freshness to the series, giving us an action-packed look into the origins of the beloved superheros.

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