OAKLAND – The Oakland Athletics extended their lease at the Coliseum through 2007 on Tuesday, securing the team’s short-term future and likely pushing it further down the list of candidates for contraction. -more-

One late night on Virginia Street in 1966 may have been one of the most influential moments of Maudelle Shirek’s life. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

LOS ANGELES — Responding to the rampant spread of unauthorized music swapping on the Internet, Universal Music Group plans to put a large chunk of its vast music library online through a subscription service beginning Tuesday. -more-

MILWAUKEE – In Bud’s backyard, even the All-Star Game ended with fans booing baseball. -more-

Berkeley leaders appeared uncomfortable about a law that would impose strict height limits on apartment buildings, offices, and shopping centers within city limits. But at last night’s City Council meeting, state election rules outweighed city sentiments and forced councilmembers to approve a height limit ordinance for the November ballot. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

Annoying parrot on the loose -more-

For Shawne Jones, growing up in Berkeley wasn't always easy. The 19-year-old says she certainly could have chosen the wrong path in life. -more-

Utility supply, air quality are at risk -more-

LOS ANGELES — A man who attempted to cash a $161,000 tax refund check payable to Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss was sentenced to two years in federal prison. -more-

SANTA CLARITA — Firefighters patrolled for hot spots Tuesday after a wildfire burned 250 acres of brush, burned down one home, damaged two and blistered others before firefighters contained it. -more-

HOUSTON — The nation’s oldest black civil rights organization voted Tuesday to oppose a ballot initiative that would bar the state of California from classifying residents by race. -more-

LOS ANGELES — The health care industry, tired of playing the bad guy in movies such as “John Q” and television shows, has hired an agent to help get better roles. -more-

President has called for
longer prison terms for
executives guilty of fraud -more-

Mattel wins licensing rights to Batman -more-

FRESNO — Two of the state agriculture department’s most heralded programs stand to lose the most in cuts aimed at reducing the state’s $23.6 billion deficit. -more-

Driver charged with vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated -more-

RIVERSIDE — Mexican immigrants in Riverside and San Bernardino counties are working to get voting rights in their homeland. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Opening another front against Gov. Gray Davis, Republican candidate for governor Bill Simon said Monday the California National Guard’s readiness to respond to a major terrorist attack has deteriorated under the Davis administration. -more-

Teen-ager now at a
drug rehab center -more-

SAN DIEGO — Two clerks at a busy immigration office have admitted to issuing bogus work permits to at least 100 illegal immigrants. -more-

NEW YORK — After weighing an offer to jump to ABC, David Letterman said he ultimately felt his comfort with working at CBS was more important than the challenge of someplace new. -more-

Jan Marinissen, an active resident of Berkeley since 1962, died of natural causes Thursday. He was 74. -more-

Bay Area mothers want to break -more-

Perspective -more-

Ad is among earliest -more-

Tuesday, July 9

OAKLAND — After closing the first half of the regular season with seven straight one-run games, the Oakland Athletics could use a few days off before they attempt to duplicate their second-half heroics of last season. -more-

Arts center says organizer broke contract -more-

To the Editor: -more-

‘Me Without You’ -more-

SAN DIEGO — A soccer goalie had a piece of his finger bitten off when a brawl erupted during a recreational match between two adult teams, police said. -more-

When Vic Touriel’s father bought the Darling Flower Shop 65 years ago, neither son nor father had an inkling the property would one day be deemed a historic landmark. Thirty four years ago Touriel took over the downtown business when his father retired. Today, he wants to sell the shop because its time for him to retire. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

SAN JOSE — Due to the recent merger between high-tech firms Hewlett-Packard Co. and Compaq Computer Corp., the San Jose Sharks will have their home arena renamed for the second time in two years. -more-

The U.S. Department of Energy will listen to public feedback as it writes the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s environmental impact statement. -more-

Krauses are -more-

Police said fight was about a parking space -more-

DAVIS — The University of California, Davis, has been rated one of the most interesting colleges in America. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Doctors at an Oakland hospital jabbed decades-old smallpox vaccine into the arm of a volunteer Monday, the first of 50 people they hope to soon inoculate as part of government-sponsored human experiments nationwide. -more-

IRVINE — Days after a shooting at the El Al Israel Airlines ticket counter at Los Angeles International Airport left three dead, the biggest question facing investigators was — Why? -more-

NEW YORK — After five years of high flying, the dollar has begun weakening. That’s not necessarily bad news for the U.S. economy. -more-

HAVANA — Inside modern towers that are a pride of Fidel Castro, scientists peer through huge microscopes at tiny proteins they hope to tailor to treat such major killers as AIDS, heart disease and cancer. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Supermarket giant Safeway Inc. on Monday reported its first quarterly sales decline in more than nine years, prodding the grocer to lower its prices to lure back bargain-hunting shoppers and fend off increasingly popular discount merchants. -more-

LOS ANGELES — State Justice Department officials arrested more than 70 people in the last three months in a probe of a fraud ring that allegedly infiltrated the state’s nursing assistant testing system and issued assistant certificates to unqualified people. -more-

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE — A kayaker from the San Francisco Bay area was in serious condition Monday after a collision with a ski boat at Lake Tahoe, authorities said. -more-

A Hip Hop dance party went awry late Saturday night when gunfire erupted at a South Berkeley arts center where more than 1,000 party-goers crammed performance space scheduled for 300 people, according to the Berkeley Police Department. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

Monday, July 8

OAKLAND – The Oakland Athletics hope Ted Lilly can turn their Big Three into a formidable quartet. -more-

Unbeknownst to many residents, Berkeley has a reputation among music lovers as a hub of accordion music. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

WIMBLEDON, England – Lleyton Hewitt made certain this Wimbledon of upsets wouldn’t end with one. The No. 1-ranked player kept his temper in check, his strokes on the lines, and wasn’t fazed by rain delays or a streaker’s show. -more-

A new Longs Drug Store and a handful of living units will soon appear on the lot at 1941 San Pablo Ave. between University and Hearst avenues, according to David Fogarty, a community development project coordinator with the city. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

Kicks and punches spilled into the streets Saturday, as hundreds of onlookers circled around a pair of smiling capoeira dancers, known as capoeiristas. The crowd cheered as the two gracefully ducked their opponent’s offensive and countered with closed fists and elbows, never making contact and always moving to the rhythm of the live musical accompaniment called the roda. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

Capoeira originated in Brazil approximately 400 years ago as a way for slaves to practice self-defense without alerting their masters to the true intentions of the art. Capoeira training, disguised as ritualistic dance, helped unite the diverse slave populations stolen from Africa and shipped to Brazil. -more-

An easy target -more-

A 37-year-old Fremont man was arrested today for driving the wrong way down the Dumbarton Bridge with his headlights off and causing a head-on collision that killed two adults and critically injured two children out of Redwood City. -more-

RENO — Organizers have secured a permit to stage the annual Burning Man counterculture festival on the Nevada desert, but won’t be able to dodge higher federal fees. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Mutant, drug-resistant strains of HIV are growing among San Francisco’s newly infected gay men, a new study suggests. -more-

With national economy in tatters, island nation’s
Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Center
generates about $100 million per year -more-

Secretive “Intel-killer” has been plagued by delays, slow acceptance -more-

NEW YORK – In a sign that the Internet sector may be nearing the end of its brutal shakeout, the number of shutdowns and bankruptcies by dot-com companies in the first half of this year fell 73 percent from the same period last year, a new report from Webmergers.com shows. -more-

LOS ANGELES – A man allegedly knocked an officer down and drove off in his squad car, then fought with several other officers on a freeway before police fatally shot him, authorities said Sunday. -more-

Popular river rafting locale could be bottled up by proposed dam that would hold in 228 billion gallons of water -more-

Fourth of July weekend rally draws hordes of bikers and police after April rally in Nevada left three dead -more-

SACRAMENTO – Smoother-rolling tires, quick-shifting transmissions and even credits for telecommuting. These are ways California may curb carbon dioxide emissions if Gov. Gray Davis targets the nation’s largest vehicle fleet to fight global warming. -more-

LOS ANGELES – A 47-year-old man sued a former Roman Catholic bishop, who was forced to resign in a 1999 sex scandal, for alleged sex abuse that began when he was an altar boy in 1968 and continued for nearly two decades, it was reported Saturday. -more-

California’s budding geniuses can attend community college without going through high school -more-

LOS ANGELES – The government had started deportation proceedings in 1996 against the Egyptian immigrant who gunned down two people at Los Angeles International Airport. But the following year, he gained U.S. residency because of his wife, officials said Saturday. -more-

NEW YORK — Multiplatinum singer Michael Jackson, already feuding with his record company, charged Saturday that the recording industry was a racist conspiracy that turns profits at the expense of performers — particularly minority artists. -more-

Berkeley will see more of those bright purple Bicycle Boulevard signs soon if a resolution is passed by the City Council Tuesday night. -more-

Berkeley, unlike newer cities, was designed during the heyday of the electric streetcar, before going places meant driving a car. Berkeley's hilly residential subdivisions were designed during the first decade of the 20th century when the convenience of nearby streetcar service was an important amenity. In these hillside locations the standard grid pattern of blocks and streets was abandoned for winding roads that complimented and enhanced the undulating hillsides. To make a trip to the streetcar lines more direct, a network of pedestrian pathways, some with stairs, was created. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

Simple software tools can
create fine art images -more-

-more-

Saturday, July 6

Last .400 hitter dies after long battle with
strokes and congestive heart failure -more-

Rule is in response to Cal OSHA citations given to city food program -more-

To the Editor: -more-

‘Berzerkeley’ Slam -more-

On the strength of an NCAA championship in softball, Cal placed 20th in the final Sears Director’s Cup standings - the Golden Bears’ third consecutive finish in the Top 20. -more-

After 19 years as executive director of Berkeley’s Public Education Foundation, Mary Friedman is calling it quits. Friedman will retire Aug. 1 and pass the reins to Trina Ostrander, the foundation’s current associate director. Ostrander will now guide the organization that started with $4,000 in donations in 1983 and distributed $700,000 throughout Berkeley public schools last year. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

At least one council race in the November election will likely be amicable. Current City Councilmember Dona Spring, District 4, and environmental activist LA Wood are espousing nothing but words of admiration for each other. -more-

Mister Softee beats up man -more-