Six Reasons to Be Outraged:

1.    UC Fees to Rise 10%

UC students will likely face fee increase of almost 10% and employees may be laid off; however, UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau has said that he’s unwilling to take a pay cut himself. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the chancellor

currently makes $436,800 a year, plus “a generous package of benefits.” The chancellor told the Chronicle, “Obviously [salary reductions for top administrators] is one of the things that we have considered. Further reductions of senior administrators’ salaries would make us less able to compete with other universities … seriously damaging our ability to attract outstanding people.” Not all administrators are so selfish. Frank Yeary, a vice chancellor, has opted to forgo his $200,000-a-year salary. The fee increase has been designed with the Communist slogan “from each according to his abilities” in mind. Families earning more than $100,000 would see fees rise by 9.3%. Families earning from $60,000 to $100,000 would face an increase of 4.65 percent, while those earning less than $60,000 would not be subject to any increase. The UC regents have approved the increased fees for the summer secession, and are expected to vote in May to extend the increase to the 2009-2010 academic year.

2.    UC Officials: What Recession?

Chancellor Birgeneau isn’t the only UC official making big bucks during the recession. Despite the economic crisis, in March the UC regents added more senior administrators to the university’s already bloated bureaucracy, hiring two executives with salaries greater than $350,000 a year. At the same time the regents authorized two former chancellors to take paid administrative leaves; according to the San Francisco Chronicle, one will receive $315,000 a year while the other makes off with a whopping $402,200 annually! Over the past several months, the regents have given pay raises of up to 22.3 percent to a half dozen senior administrators, the Chronicle reported. Paul Schwartz, a spokesman for the UC Office of the President, said the sky rocketing salaries should be viewed in the context of “a pay freeze for existing senior staff, restrictions on travel, and a host of other cost-cutting measures here and on every UC campus.” Anyone who’s been in a crumbling, overcrowded campus building knows there certainly are cost-cutting measures in place. The university’s statement is loud and clear: students should pay up while UC fat cats make off like Somali pirates.

3.    State Sales Tax Spikes

Many Californians felt like fools on April 1st, when they learned that state sales tax had increased by one percent; however, the higher tax rate is no joke. California state sales tax is now six cents on the dollar, although local sales taxes mean that the average Californian pays 8.95 percent on most purchases. In the Bay Area, sales tax rates are even higher and, if Oakland officials have their way, the regional will continue to be the tax leader in the state. In what we can only assume is an attempt to make Oakland the worst place to live in California, Oakland City Councilwoman Jean Quan proposed asking voters to raise the sales tax to 10.25 percent. Currently, sales tax in Oakland is a whopping 9.75 percent; Berkeley residents pay the same sky-high rate. If the proposed sales tax increase is approved, Oakland would tie for the highest sales tax rates in the state. If rampant violence wasn’t enough of a reason for shoppers to avoid Oakland, a higher tax should do the trick and kill of any businesses left in the city.

4.    Terrorists Strike Berkeley Marine Recruiting Center

On the eve of the six-year anniversary of the Iraq war, the windows of the Marine Recruiting Center in Berkeley were broken and splattered with red paint (or pink, depending on the lighting). Although the perpetrators have yet to be brought to justice, the Iraq war anniversary was celebrated the next day by antiwar activists Code Pink and World Can’t Wait. We can’t help but wonder why the anti-military forces aren’t targeting the one man who has authority to stop the war—Commander in Chief Barack Obama. In the past Code Pink never hesitated to call out President Bush, even as they misdirected their anger at the Marine Recruiting Center which has no power to shape defense policy. If these vandals and criminals care about ending the war, they should direct their protest at the president using slightly more legal avenues to express their opinions. If instead they choose to intimidate the Marines with acts of violence, they should be treated as the terrorists that they are.

5.    Barbara Lee Chills with Castro

Oakland is in crisis. Recently four police officers and a UC student were slain on its violence-plagued streets (see the news section for our coverage of these horrific events). In the midst of these tragedies, one might ask what are Oakland’s elected officials doing to bring an end to the bloodshed. Oakland’s Democratic Representative Barbara Lee was soaking up the sun on an exclusive Caribbean island—Cuba. That’s right, Rep. Lee violated the embargo to travel to Communist Cuba and was hosted by none other than Fidel Castro himself. The Oakland liberal came away impressed with the Communist country: “There were no barricades, but beautiful plants and trees,” Lee told the San Francisco Chronicle. We’re glad Rep. Lee enjoyed her trip—we only wish she could have stayed longer. Since this Commie-loving liberal isn’t doing anything to end the violence in her own city, she might as well retire to the worker’s paradise that is Cuba. Of course, maybe we’re just mad that she didn’t bring us back any Cuban cigars.

6.    ASUC on the Brink of Bankruptcy

The ASUC recently rejected a proposal that would have allowed fast-food chain Panda Express to open a restaurant on campus in a move that may do more than just deprive Cal students of cheap, tasty food. According to ASUC Auxiliary Director Nadesan Permaul the deal with Panda Express is necessary to keep the auxiliary fiscally afloat. The auxiliary is currently facing a $200,000 deficit, according The Daily Californian. According to Jan Crowder, director of student affairs, the ASUC is itself on the brink of insolvency and the deal with Panda Express would have been a way for the organization to regain financial stability. “I am extremely concerned about the possibility of falling prey again to the circumstances that led the ASUC to a $6 million deficit and near bankruptcy in 1998,” Crowder told The Daily Cal. “If ASUC does not enter into a contract with Panda Express, it will not have other options available to stay afloat.” This is just the latest example of the ASUC taking an ideological stance instead of deciding in the best interests of the students. On second thought, maybe this item doesn’t belong on this list—would it really be so bad for the ASUC to go bankrupt?

Popularity: 72%