“Berlin,” Goethe said in the 18th century about the great city (where however he never lived), “is home to such an audacious set of men that you have to be a tough customer and a little rough around the edges now and then just to keep your head above water.”

I took a long walk along Telegraph Avenue yesterday, from my neighborhood up to Temescal, and along the way saw two big signs in store windows. One said “Abolition is the presence of housing, healthcare, education, & life free from state violence.” The other, at a gallery, said “Queer art for abolition. No cops! No cages!”

So I heard about this guy, Isaac Abid, whom I don’t know. He’s a developer, and has come up with a plan for a new Oakland neighborhood he calls “Northlake.” I found this website, Northlake-Oakland, but it contains no information or links, just a nice overhead photo of the area.

The idea of “reparations” has been thoroughly rejected by voters, who have followed the curious concept since it popped up several years ago. They’ve decided, by overwhelming majorities, that it’s a bad idea.

The sobering thing to realize about our electeds is that they have no intention of doing anything about encampments, despite the fact that (a) a majority of citizens want encampments removed and (b) it is now entirely legal to compel campers to dispel, thanks to the Supreme Court’s Grants Pass decision.