Hoping to implement  

a plan by fall 2003 

In a dramatic reversal, Superintendent Michele Lawrence and the Board of Education last night endorsed a move to small schools at Berkeley High in the fall of 2003. 

Earlier this year, Lawrence and four of the five school board members told a group of small schools advocates that, while they were interested in dividing the high school into compact learning communities, reform would have to wait until the district could work itself out of a financial mess and fix basic systems at the high school. 

“I’m elated,” said Terry Doran, the one board member who pushed for a rapid move to small schools earlier this year. “This is something I’ve been working on for 10 years.” 

In other developments, the board voted four to one to ask Berkeley voters for a raise from $875 to $1,500 per month and parent activist Cynthia Papermaster declared for the November school board race. 

Small schools 

Lawrence recommended that BHS divide into a series of “houses” in the fall of 2003. She did not suggest any themes for the houses, but said the handful of existing small schools at Berkeley High, which focus on environmental justice, communications and the arts and computer science, might compose one or more units of their own. 

The superintendent recommended that any other houses begin without a theme, possibly developing one “organically” over time. However, small schools advocate Kalima Rose, speaking to the board, suggested that a theme can be a strong unifier, creating “buy-in” among teachers and students. 

Lawrence also recommended implementation, by fall 2003, of two common small schools elements – common planning time for the teachers in each house and “advisories.” Ten to 15 students typically participate in an advisory, meeting regularly with an adult who helps to guide them through their high school experiences. 

The superintendent urged quick implementation of these basic, “non-controversial” elements to get the ball rolling on reform and said the high school could make adjustments thereafter.  

Lawrence moved toward rapid implementation after a one-week trip to small schools in Boston and New York City in late-April and early-May. 

The superintendent, who made the journey with BHS co-principal Mary Ann Valles, three teachers, a student, and a pair of small schools advocates, promised to arrange the trip at a stormy school board meeting Dec.19.  

Lawrence made the pledge after the board rejected a small schools policy written by the Coalition for Excellence and Equity, a parent activist group, effectively killing public debate on the issue for months. 

The coalition had argued that a shift to compact, themed learning communities would create a greater sense of community at the large school and help address the “achievement gap” separating white and Asian-American students from African-Americans and Latinos. 

The delegation presented its findings from the April-May trip Wednesday night. The team said the small schools were calmer and cleaner than Berkeley High, fostered community, involved parents and delivered improved special education programs. 

“I was extremely pleased with what I experienced,” said activist Gina Wooley, who made the trip, arguing that the school visits validated the research the coalition presented earlier this year in support of small schools. 

School board members looked favorably on the new reform push. 

“I feel very receptive to the ideas you are putting forth and the recommendations the superintendent has made,” said board President Shirley Issel, who was a strong opponent of rapid reform earlier this year. 

Pay raise 

The board voted four to one, with Issel in opposition, to request a pay raise from the voters in November. The City Council will have to approve the measure before it gets on the ballot. 

Board member John Selawsky, who made the proposal, argued that a board member needs to spend at least 30 hours per week on district business and that monthly pay, which has not risen since 1988, should reflect that reality. He also said board members could defer some of the increase to pay for a staff member who would conduct research and serve as a liaison to the public. 

But Issel argued that the request might appear unseemly given that the district faces a multi-million dollar deficit, even though school board salaries actually come out of city coffers. 

“We’re in a budget-cutting mode,” she said. “We’ve laid off employees. The impact on people’s lives – it’s devastating when people lose their jobs.” 

Proponents on the board acknowledged Issel’s argument, but said the matter should be left up to the voters. 

School board candidate 

Papermaster officially declared her candidacy for the November school board race late Wednesday night. She told the Planet she will call for greater fiscal responsibility on the board and a boost in teacher and parent participation in the district. 

Papermaster joins incumbents Issel and Doran and a field of four other declared candidates in a race for three slots on the board.  

Contact reporter at  

Scharfenberg@berkeleydailyplanet.net 

To the Editor: 

I would like to respond to David Sniper's letter of Wednesday June 12th concerning the proposed project at 2700 San Pablo Avenue. I am also a resident of Southwest Berkeley and want to see the area grow into a better and stronger business and residential community.  

Significant positive revitalization is slowly moving southward on San Pablo towards and into Southwest Berkeley. Many storefronts now house successful businesses and there is a growing pedestrian presence especially ay Dwight Way. Every Berkeley resident I know is encouraged and happy with the recent changes and wants to see more. Development at 2700 San Pablo represents a great opportunity to contribute to the revitalization of our local area. It is extremely important that this project is carefully considered in order to ensure that it truly contributes to its immediate neighborhood as well as to all of Berkeley. A cookie cutter approach will not do here- this project is too important - it's impact and the precedent it will make are too great. 

All of the "successful" new, large buildings Mr. Snipper compares the proposed project to are either in Downtown Berkeley (historically a dense part of the city, within 5-6 blocks of the University and a busy Bart station) or in Emeryville. The environment and context of downtown couldn't be much more different from San Pablo Avenue. As for the project in Emeryville, on San Pablo and 40th, that building has not contributed at all to pedestrian activity in any way- as anyone who drives by can see. If anything, it proves that putting a downtown sized building outside downtown, just gives you a really big building with lots of cars that need lots of parking. This proposed project will bring many cars with it and that will increase noise, traffic and congestion on an already overburdened street. 

This proposed project is too large. It appears to be 5 stories, because of the lofted fourth-floor apartments. Mr. Snipper is in incorrect in his statement that the uppermost floor has a setback. The final envelope of the building has no setback on the top floor and required additional height allowances from the ZAB in order to make the building even taller yet with an elevator utility tower rising above the roof deck. This looming wall of a building threatens a revolution of BIG buildings along San Pablo - which has many vacant and underutilized sites - altering radically the structural scale and character of the avenue. Consider the context - most of the properties directly behind the commercial buildings of San Pablo are small one and two-family dwellings ( as are behind 2700 S.P.). In addition, the avenue itself consists of almost all one and two-story buildings within Berkeley city limits. This project's 4 floors, which present a sheer face of 50 plus feet at streetside, is a very abrupt shift in scale. 

I welcome development 2700 S.P., but I and every person I have spoken with wants to see a project that conforms to the 1993 West Berkeley Plan, which foresaw "8 housing development sites with 152 units in three-story mixed use buildings on San Pablo." (This averages 19 units per development project.)  

Pamela Thomas 

Berkeley

“Cloud Nine” 

English dramatist Caryl Churchill’s hilarious 1979 radical feminist farce "Cloud Nine" was her breakthrough play in the United States. Churchill blithely tells one family’s story of incest, pedophilia, marital philandering, orgy and general sexual mayhem, drawing numerous links between nuclear family dysfunction and patriarchal imperialist politics. 

Filled with dirty puns, "Cloud Nine" is a comedic story about the sick world we live in, and an altogether enjoyable evening in the theater. On Wednesday, Berkeley Repertory Theater opened a funny and raunchy production of the play, doing justice to Churchill’s wacky vision. This is Monty Python on Quaaludes. 

"Cloud Nine" is also a lot about child rearing, and how adults pass violence and sadism on to the next generation. The play repeatedly examines a direct link between the abuse of women and children in the nuclear family, and the abuse of the third world by the first world. 

"Cloud Nine" divides into two halves. The first half is set in an expatriate British family compound in 1880 in colonial Africa. Here the family patriarch (a stiff upper-lipped Timothy Crowe) beats the locals while copulating with any woman who isn’t his wife. 

Former Shakespeare Santa Cruz artistic director Danny Scheie portrays frustrated wife Betty hilariously, turning much of "Cloud Nine’s" first act into an amusing drag show. 

But soon Betty turns her lust in the direction of explorer friend Harry (Hemingway look-alike Fred Sullivan, Jr.). Harry, for his part, directs his lust towards Betty’s young son. In this upstanding English family, there is plenty of sexual identity confusion to go around. 

The play’s second half follows the same people into a public garden in London in 1980 – a hundred years later historically, but through the magic of theater, only 25 years later in the lives of the family members. 

Here in modern times the marriages can dissolve, as everyone experiments sexually. Counterculture liberation makes for strange bedfellows, and weird triangles emerge. 

Further stirring the identity confusion soup, actors in the play’s second half swap characters and sometimes switch genders. There are many amusing performances. 

Scheie is wonderful as the dowdy, horny colonial wife. Her advice early on, "You don’t feel what you think you do," neatly sums up the emotional hall of mirrors this family lives in. 

Angela Brazil is terrific in act one as Betty’s lively son Edward, obsessed with his criminal crush on the much older explorer. 

Timothy Crowe, the randy patriarch of act one, morphs a hundred years later in London into an overgrown bratty girl with pigtails tended by her mother in the park. Crowe is a huge guy, and this is quite a funny change. 

Matthew Boston is the passive-aggressive African houseboy of act one, transforming in act two into a complex grown-up version of gay son Edward, now working as a park gardener. 

Director Tony Taccone makes it all work. Astutely, he allows the characters to have stretches of honest emotional struggle, particularly in act two, giving everyone a chance to breathe and connect.  

A touching love affair between two modern London women (Stacy Ross and Andrea Brazil) provides a foundation for much of the production’s feeling of rootedness. 

Since these characters are often trapped in delusional worlds, they have the potential to be merely cartoons in which sex or violence is the only form of connecting to others. 

The top half of a huge portrait frame emerges out of the ground, like an archeological artifact, at the back of scenic designer Loy Arcenas’ mostly bare stage – a reminder that with this family we’re getting only half the picture. 

"Cloud Nine" asks the question "What is normal?" After watching this production, which turns everything upside down, you realize the answer is not simple. 

What masquerades as love in families, and as justice in politics, often is not. And often it is love that human beings fear the most. 

Daily Planet theater reviewer John Angell Grant has written for "American Theatre," "Backstage West," "Callboard," and many other publications. Email him at jagplays@hotpop.com. 

riday, June 14

Democratic political activists 

Cafe de la Paz, 1600 Shattuck Ave. Berkeley 

A political party for aggressive progressives with Democrats.com 

events@democrats.com or www.democrats.com 

Judaism Workshop 

7 to 8:30 p.m.  

The Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave  

Earth Traditions: Judaism Rooted in the Earth... Healing the World in Jewish Thought and Practice 

(510) 548-3402 

$10 Ecology Center members, $15 others, no one turned 

away for lack of funds. 

Still Stronger Women 

1:15 to 3:15 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave 

Oprah's Book Club and showing of " The Color Purple" 

(510)232-1351 

"The Million Dollar Question" 

11:45 for lunch. Speaker begins 12:30 

Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. 

Robert Osserman, Ph.D. from the Mathematical Science Research Institute 

$11.00/$12.25, students free. 

Berkeley Women in Black 

Noon to 1 p.m. 

Telegraph and Bancroft 

A vigil for peace for Palestine and Israel 

(510) 548-6310, or www.wibberkeley.org 

Saturday, June 15

Berkeley Alliance of  

Neighborhood Associations (BANA)  

9:30 to ll:00 a.m. 

Fireside Room, Live Oak Park 

l30l Shattuck Ave. 

All welcome to network and 

share local information. 

(510) 849-46l9 or mtbrcb@pacbell.net 

Emergency Preparedness  

Classes in Berkeley 

9 to 11 a.m. 

997 Cedar Street  

Basic Personal Preparedness: Learn how to take care of yourself, your family and your home. 

981-5605 

Free 

The Great Rummage Sale 

10 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

Berkeley-East Bay Humane Society, 2700 Ninth Street 

Household items, glassware, clothing, furniture for sale. 

(510) 845-7735 

Chu Ko's Late Afternoon  

Adventure in International Art 

4 p.m. 

Berkeley Public Library Meeting Room, 2090 Kittredge 

Artist Chu Ko discusses his Chinese ink brush painting. 

(510) 981-6100 

Free 

Sierra Club Northern Alameda County  

Group Forum  

10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. a 

Berkeley Public Library 

Forum on the benefits and problems of urban density with Rachel Peterson, John 

Holtzclaw and Martha Nicoloff. 

Call Jonna Anderson at (510)848-0800 x312 to reserve space 

Free 

The Sierra Student Coalition  

A retreat and planning meeting at Point Reyes National Seashore for high school and college-age students working to address local environmental issues. Meet other student activists, exchange ideas, and become more involved. All East Bay students are welcome at this event. Space  

is limited.  

For Reservations, call Jonna Anderson at 510-848-0800 x312  

Sunday, June 16

Field Trip to Remnant East Shore Habitats 

Meet at 10 a.m. at El Cerrito BART, southwest corner of parking lot (towards Albany Hill), then carpool to various sites, returning mid-afternoon. 

Visit a selection of critically rare habitats in and adjacent to the new East Shore State Park 

(925) 372-0687, e-mail elainejx@mindspring.com 

Free 

Buddhism 

6 p.m. 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Place 

Lee Nichol on "Sacred Dimensions of Time and Space." 

843-6812 

Free 

Restoration Clinic 

9 a.m. to 7 p.m. 

1051 5th Ave. Studio C at E.11th St. 

Suigetsukan, a non-profit martial arts collective in Oakland, is raising funds for a new dojo. Massage 

therapists, chiropractors, acupuncturists, and other health professionals conduct yoga and stress management classes. 

(510) 452-3941 or www.suigetsukan.org. 

Food is the Earth's Way of Love 

Noon 

The Fellowship of Humanity, 390 27th St. Oakland 

Joy Moore, CoDirector of the Farm Fresh Choice program of Berkeley's Ecology Center 

(510) 451-5818 or HumanistHall@yahoo.com 

Monday, June 17

Multiple Sclerosis Support Group 

Rockridge Library 

Self-help support group. Meets the third Monday each month 

(510) 521-2436, or Rickpete99@yahoo.com 

"An Uncommon Friendship: From Opposite Sides of the Holocaust" 

7:30 to 8:45 p.m. 

Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center 

1414 Walnut Street 

Join Bernat Rosner, a Holocaust survivor as he reads from and discusses his counterpoint memoir co-authored with Fritz Tubach, the son of a German Army officer. 

848-0237 x127 

Free 

Lesbian, Gay, Bi- Sexual,  

Transgender National Day to  

Honor loved ones lost on 9/11  

The LGBT National Day of Honor, about creating a Day when all Lesbian,  

Gay, Bi- Sexual, Transgender, & questioning people and our supporters,  

can come together to help further our fight against continued second class  

citizen treatment in the United States.  

For more information, call 802.859.9604 

Poetry Express - Nance Wogan,  

followed by open mike 

7 to 9 p.m. 

A community open mike welcoming all artists 

Berkeley Bakery & Cafe 

1561 Solano Avenue 

Free 

Tuesday, June 18

Vigil Opposing the Sanctions  

Against the People of Iraq 

12 p.m. 

Oakland Federal Building,1301 Clay Street 

(510) 548-4141 

Carol Wagner: "Soul Survivors  

in Cambodia" 

7:30 p.m. 

Easy Going Travel and Bookshop,1385 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley 

510-843-6725 

Arthritis Rap Session 

Noon to 2 p.m. 

Alta Bates Medical Center 

Maffly Auditorium- Herrick Campus 

2001 Dwight Way 

for more info: 644-3273 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Wednesday, June 19

"Part-time Parenting? A Career Networks Forum on Flexible Work Arrangements." 

6:30 to 8:30 p.m.  

Thousand Oaks Elementary, 840 Colusa, Berkeley  

Neighborhood Parents Network. Adults only. 

RSVP required: Amy Knowlden at knowlden@earthlink.net or (510) 526-4044.  

$5 NPN Members and $10 for Non-Members.  

Berkeley Peace Walk and Vigil 

6:30 pm 

BART Station, Shattuck & Center 

Weekly candle-lit vigil and peace walk to raise 

awareness and gather support for opposition to the 'war on terrorism' 

vigil4peace@yahoo.com, (510) 528-9217 

Thursday, June 20

Robert Fisk 

7 p.m. 

First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way  

Middle East Correspondent of the London Independent, in a benefit to rebuild Jenin refugee camp  

510-548-0542.  

$20 at Codys, Black Oak, Walden Pond and Modern times, or at WWW.MECAFORPEACE.ORG. 

"Women in War" 

7 to 9 p.m. 

University of Creation Spirituality, 2141 Broadway, Oakland 

An evening with international women's rights activist Zainab Salbi 

(510) 835-4827 ext. 29 

Suggested Donation $10-$15 

Pride Mass 2002 

7 p.m. 

Newman Hall-Holy Spirit Parish, 2700 Dwight Way 

LGBT Catholics celebrate 10 years towards creating a more inclusive world. 

(510) 663-6302 

www.calnewman.org 

Free 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Simplicity Forum 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Claremont Branch Library, 2940 Benvenue Ave. 

Discussion on how to lead a more simple life 

(510) 549-3509, or www.simpleliving.net 

Free 

Senior Men's Afternoon 

Pacific Center 

2712 Telegraph Ave. 

Gay senior men discussion group, 2nd & 4th Thursdays. 

510-548-8283  

Free 

Freedom From Tobacco 

5:30-7:30 Thursday Evenings, June 6-July 18 

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis Street  

A quit smoking class 

(510) 981-5330 

QuitNow@ci.berkeley.ca.us 

Friday, June 21

Paramount Movie Classics  

The Mummy, with Boris Karloff, 1932 

Doors at 7, Mighty Wurlitzer at 7:30, Newsreel, Cartoon, Previews, and Prize give-away game Dec-O-Win and feature Film 

2025 Broadway 

Oakland  

$5 

"Understanding the Achievement  

Gap in the BUSD" 

11:45 for lunch. Speaker begins 12:30 

Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. 

Shirley Issel, MSW,  

president of the Berkeley Unified  

School District 

$11.00/$12.25, students free. 

Berkeley Women in Black 

Noon to 1 p.m. 

Telegraph and Bancroft 

A vigil for peace for Palestine and Israel 

(510) 548-6310, or www.wibberkeley.org 

Saturday, June 22

Celebration of Solidarity with the People of Afghanistan 

7:30 p.m. 

Trinity United Methodist Church, 2363 Bancroft Way 

Live music and slide presentation by Rona Popal. Benefits a widows project and orphanage in Afghanistan 

(510) 883-9252 

$10-$30 

Summer Solstice Celebration 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market, Center St. and MLK Way. 

Live music, crafts, and summer solstice ritual. 

(510) 548-3333 

Free 

Emergency Preparedness Classes in Berkeley 

Disaster Mental Health: Learn about disaster-related emotional reactions. 

9 a.m. to noon 

997 Cedar Street 

981-5605 

Free 

Town Hall Meeting 

9:30 a.m. to noon  

East Oakland Youth Development Center, 8200 International Boulevard 

Congresswoman Barbara Lee on affordable housing with housing specialists and bank representatives 

(510) 763-0370 for reservations 

Sunday, June 23

Debt Cancellation for  

Impoverished Countries 

Noon 

The Fellowship of Humanity, 390 27th St. Oakland 

Tony Littmann gives us a brief overview on the causes and effects of the Third World debt crisis 

(510) 451-5818 or HumanistHall@yahoo.com 

Triaxium West and Aaron Rosenblum 

8 p.m., ACME Observatory 

Acme Observatory's home at Tuva Space, 3192 Adeline  

Admission is $0 to $20, sliding scale 

Monday, June 24

Shakespeare Festival Auditions 

10 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Berkeley Rehearsal Hall, 701 Heinz Ave. 

California Shakespeare Festival is looking for people aged 14-18 to appear in The Winters Tale. 

(510) 548-3422 ext. 105, or www.calshakes.org 

Tuesday, June 25

Vigil Opposing the Sanctions  

Against the People of Iraq 

12 p.m. 

Oakland Federal Building,1301 Clay Street 

(510) 548-4141 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Magic School Bus Festival 

10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. 

Lawrence Hall of Science 

Video Adventures. Other events for kids take place every Wednesday through August 21. 

(510) 643-5961 

$8 for adults, $6 for ages 5-18, seniors and disabled, $4 for children 3-4, free for children under 3. 

Funky Fridays  

Conscious Dance Party  

Every Friday, with KPFA DJs Splif Skankin and Funky Man.  

10 p.m. 

Eli’s Mile High Club, 3629 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Oakland. 

655-6661 

$10 

Free Early Music Group 

Singers needed for small group of 15th and 16th century music every Friday 

10 a.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center, Hearst at MLK Way. 

Contact Ann at 665-8863 

Wednesday, June 19 

Turtle Island String  

Quartet Concert 

8 p.m. 

Crowden School Music Center, 1475 Rose St. 

559-6910 for reservations 

$15 general, $10 students 

Thursday, June 20 

Caitlin Cray,  

Garrison Star, Boxstep 

9:30 p.m. 

The Starry Plough,  

3101 Shattuck Ave. 

841-2082 

$8, 21 and up 

Carrier-Thompson Cajun  

Trio and the Hot Club of  

San Francisco 

5 p.m. 

City Square and the Zen Garden at 1111 Broadway 

Gypsy-swing quintet, and Canjun/Zydeco group, beginning a series of summer concerts 

www.oaklandcitycenter.com 

Free 

Saturday, June 22 

Global Funk Council, Vanessa Lowe and the Lowlifes,  

Barbezz 

9:30 p.m. 

The Starry Plough,  

3101 Shattuck Ave. 

841-2082 

$6, 21 and up 

Thursday, June 27 

Meeshe, Scott Miller 

9:30 p.m. 

The Starry Plough,  

3101 Shattuck Ave. 

841-2082 

$5, 21 and up 

From the Attic: Preserving  

and Sharing our Past 

Through July 26, Thursday-Saturday, 1 to 4 p.m. 

Veterans Memorial Building,  

1931 Center Street 

Exhibit shows the 'inside' of museum work 

848-0181 

Free 

Saturday, June 15th 

"Time Out" Reception 

Reception, 5 to 8 p.m. Display  

up today to July 13 

Ardency Gallery,  

709 Broadway, Oakland 

New works from Corie Humble and Amy Morrell 

836-0831 

www.ardencyart.com 

Focus on the Figure 

Until Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

A New Leaf Gallery, 

1286 Gilman Street 

An outdoor show of contemporary figurative sculpture 

525-7621 

Sunday, June 23 

"Red Rivers Run Through Us" Reception 

June 23 to August 11,  

Wednesday-Sunday,  

noon to 5 p.m. 

Berkeley Art Center,  

1275 Walnut St. 

Art and writing from Maxine Hong Kingston's veterans' writing group 

Reception, 2 to 4 p.m.  

644-6893 

Thursday, June 27 

"New Work: Part 1, The 2001 Kala Fellowship Exhibition" Opening Reception 

6 to 8 p.m. June 27 to July 31 

Kala Art Institute,  

1060 Heinz Ave. 

Featuring 8 Kala Fellowship winners, printmaking 

Reception, 

549-2977 

Thursday, July 11 

"New Visions: Introductions '02" Reception 

Works from emerging Californian artists 

Reception, 6 to 8 p.m. Display up from July 3 to August 10 

Pro Arts, 461 Ninth Street, Oakland 

763-4361 

Free 

Saturday, July 20 

"First Anniversary  

Group Show"  

13 local artists display work ranging from sculpture to mixed media 

July 18 to August 17 

Ardency Gallery, Aki Lot, 8th Street 

Reception, 5 to 8 p.m. 

836-0831 

Antony and Cleopatra 

Directed by Joy Meads 

June 15 to July 20,  

Thursday-Friday 8 p.m. 

La Vals Subterranean Theater, 1834 Euclid 

234-6046 for reservations 

$14 general, $10 student 

Abingdon Square  

Previews 16,18,19 at 8 p.m. Runs June 21 to July 6, Thursday to Saturday 8 p.m. Sundays 7 p.m.  

Julia Morgan Theater for the Arts, 2640 College Ave. 

The Shotgun Players,  

directed by Shana Cooper 

704-8210 www.shotgunplayers.org 

$18 regular, $12 students, previews and Mondays - pay what you can. Opening Night $25 

Midsummer Nights Dream 

June 21 to June 29,  

Fridays and Saturdays, 8 p.m. 

Magical Acts Ritual Theater, directed by Catherine Pennington 

The Black Box,  

1928 Telegraph Ave., Oakland 

653-6637 for reservations 

$15 - $25 

Don Pasquale Opera 

July 13, 15, 17, 19 at 8 p.m.  

July 21 at 2 p.m. 

Dean Lesher Regional Center for the Arts, Walnut Creek 

From the Festival Opera  

Association, a comedy by  

Gaetano Donizetti about an arranged marriage 

www.festivalopera.com 

Benefactors 

July 18 to Aug. 18, Wednesday-Saturday, 8 p.m. Sundays,  

2 and 7 p.m. 

Previews: July 12-14 and 17 

Michael Frayn's comedy of two neighboring couple's interactions 

Aurora Theatre Company,  

2081 Addison St. 

843-4822, www.auroratheater.org  

for reservations. $26 - $35  

The Shape of Things 

Sept. 13 to Oct. 20 

Aurora Theatre Company,  

2081 Addison St. 

Neil LaBute's love story  

about two students 

843-4822, www.auroratheater.org for reservations 

$26 - $35  

Alarms and Excursions 

Nov. 15 to Dec. 22 

Aurora Theatre Company,  

2081 Addison St. 

Michael Frayn's comedy about the irony of modern technology 

843-4822, www.auroratheater.org for reservations 

$26 - $35  

Poetry Diversified 

1st and 3rd Tuesdays,  

7:30 to 9 p.m. 

World Ground Cafe,  

3726 Mac Arthur Blvd., Oakland 

Open mic and featured readers 

Wednesday, July 3 

7:30 p.m. 

Cody's, 2454 Telegraph Ave. 

Boas Writing Group 

Stefani Barber, Jean Lieske  

and many more 

845-7852 

$2 

Wednesday, July 10 

Carmen Gimenez-Rosello,  

Dawn Trook 

7:30 p.m. 

Cody's, 2454 Telegraph Ave. 

845-7852 

$2 

Sunday, July 14 

M.L. Liebler and  

Country Joe McDonald 

Poetry and Music 

7:30 p.m. 

Cody's, 2454 Telegraph Ave. 

845-7852 

$2 

Wednesday, July 17 

Hannah Stein and Kevin Clark 

7:30 p.m. 

Cody's, 2454 Telegraph Ave. 

Authors of “Earthlight and In the Evening of No Warning.” 

845-7852 

$2 

Under-13 team heads to Utah to take on other state champions 

When the Bay Oaks under-13 girls’ soccer team heads to Utah this weekend to prepare for the U.S. Youth Soccer Association regionals, two recent additions will give the team some Berkeley flavor. 

Berkeley residents Kathleen O’Leary and Kate Berry-Millett joined a team that has been together for four years for the current season, and the Oaks have ascended to a national No. 4 ranking in winning the California Youth Soccer Association North State Cup in March. If they win the regional, which starts next weekend, they could reach the top of the national charts. Their head coach expects nothing less. 

“Our team has played in a lot of tournaments within the state, and we’ve won 99 percent of our games,” Noel Gallo said. “We’re used to competition and pressure. I’m sure we’re going to do well, and I predict that we’re going to win.” 

The core of the team started playing together at the under-9 level, and Gallo, whose daughter, Giana, plays on the team, started coaching the team four years ago. The Oaks are unusual in the realm of travel teams in that their coaching staff is all volunteer parents, unlike the paid coaches most high-level teams employ. Most of the team live in Oakland, but they also have players from Union City, Pinole and Fremont. Gallo said the family coaching has made his team unique. 

“We’re different from most other select teams. They have high-paid trainers and coaches, and their parents don’t have the connection to the team,” he said. “The parent participation is gone from 90 percent of the teams we play.” 

The Oaks have been one of the best teams in Northern California for the past three years, which is what attracted the Berkeley duo to come over from the Mavericks team. The team played for the State Cup for the two previous seasons, and won 10 tournaments with a 62-3-6 record this season. They dominated the State Cup, not allowing a single goal while scoring 29 times on the way to the championship, the organization’s third State Cup title. 

“There were a lot of reasons for Kathleen and I to come here,” said Berry-Millett, who is also part of an Olympic Development program. “We were looking for some new coaching, and we wanted to play on a team that was more competitive and serious.” 

As with any newcomer in an established organization, there was a period of adjustment for the new players. But Berry-Millett said the adjustment was most demanding on the field, as her new teammates were happy to get some new blood in uniform. 

“We play a pretty different style than the Mavericks, and it was strange at first,” she said. “But we caught on really fast.” 

Hillary Nakano is one of the team’s original members. She said Berry-Millett and O’Leary were quick to adjust to the team’s up-tempo, high-pressure style. 

“In the beginning they didn’t play like us, but they adjusted to our playing style pretty fast,” Nakano said. “It’s all good now.” 

Gallo said the two new players each brought something different to the Oaks. 

“Kathleen brings a great attitude to the field every day. She puts a smile on people’s faces,” Gallo said. “But if there’s a girl with a love for soccer, it’s Kate. She’s really blossomed to the next level, and she’s going to be a star.” 

Both Berkeley girls graduated from middle school on Thursday, Berry-Millett from Martin Luther King, Jr., and O’Leary from Black Pine Circle. Both will be freshmen at Berkeley High next year and should join the two-time defending ACCAL champion Yellowjackets. But first they have some unfinished business in East Jordan, Utah. 

“I’m really excited about going to Utah,” Berry-Millett said. “I think it’s going to be a lot more difficult and competitive.” 

The Oaks will face state champions from Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico in pool play. The final two teams will be named champions, as the under-13 level is the oldest without a national tournament. 

The Bay Oaks is a non-profit organization. For information about donations or sponsorship opportunities for the Bay Oaks, call team manager Dana Wren at (510) 452-3643.

The Berkeley Police Department this year will lose approximately 10 percent of its force to retirement when 12 officers – the largest group in recent memory – retire in July, and 10 more retire after that. 

The losses to the department, in part, stem from a statewide early retirement program made available with the January passage of SB90. Under the new law, public safety officers are eligible for retirement between the ages of 50 and 55 and can receive a pension of up to 90 percent of their pay.  

According to Berkeley Police Chief Dash Butler, who will be retiring from the force July 12, after 31 years of service, the new retirement program will provide officers a strong benefits program.  

“It’s a great package,” he said. “There’s no doubt it’s a great package.” 

While BPD has increased efforts to recruit and train new officers, the mass retirement will leave the department with a loss of experience and knowledge of the community.  

Currently195 officers are working at the BPD. 

Sgt. Patricia Delaluna, head of personnel training, says the retiring officers will take with them experience and respect that many younger officers have not yet achieved.  

“A lot of these officers have gained the respect of the community and people know they can count on them,” Delaluna said. “A veteran officer has gone through a lot in his or her day. They are working with the younger officers to train them for certain experiences but the real thing is hard to duplicate.” 

According to Delaluna, retiring officers take with them an understanding of how to respond to particularly difficult situations such as the 1990 hostage standoff at Henry’s Pub, when a mentally-ill suspect held 33 people hostage, killed one person and wounded an officer.  

Ten new officers will join the BPD after graduating from the Sacramento Police Department Academy on Friday. Ten more recruits have been selected for a July academy program and the department is selecting additional recruits for September training.  

According to Delaluna, the department chooses graduates from the Sacramento Academy because of its high level of training and professionalism.  

“We choose [Sacramento Academy graduates] because of the extreme professionalism,” Delaluna said. “We consider the Sacramento Academy to be the best in the state and feel that the officers come out at a much higher level than anywhere else. We have had a very happy relationship with them.” 

Officers at the Sacramento Academy receive 1,080 hours of training compared with 800 hours of training at the Contra Costa County Academy says Delaluna.  

City Manager Weldon Rucker says the department is in a constant state of recruitment. Currently, Berkeley is in direct competition with other cities while a statewide shortage of officers exists. According to Rucker, the department is selective, and is hoping to recruit officers that are both aware of and sensitive to the diverse and progressive population of Berkeley. 

Berkeley Mayor Shirley Dean said public safety departments throughout the state are feeling the effects of early retirement.  

“The state legislature opened the door for it, and now it’s a bargaining unit that every department in the state has picked up,” Dean said. 

Another explanation for the large number of retirements in July is that many were hired together about 30 years ago. Back then the department went on a hiring spree in response to protests and riots of the ‘60s. 

Many of the officers, in fact, served 30 years or more and are eligible for retirement under the previous program. 

Delaluna says her orders are to “hire, hire, hire.” 

But the department does not have plans to expand its staff past 205 officers. 

Increased efforts have been made to advertise openings for officer positions. Salaries for patrol officers range from $64,000 to $80,000.  

City officials say they’re confident the department will be able to train and recruit future officers, and that the retirements will not threaten public safety or diminish the services it already provides. But, officials say, the loss of experience still holds significance. 

Contact reporter at  

chris@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To the Editor: 

Some Americans believe that when government officials accuse, arrest, or detain a person that person must be guilty. This belief is a measure of the state of decay of our nation's educational system, mass media, and democracy. For in fact, throughout history, leaders of dictatorships and most democracies have resorted to false accusation as a tactic to bolster their rule and popularity. Accusation and guilt by association against citizens for political gain, made popular in the U.S. by Senator Joseph McCarthy, are inevitable, but the desire to believe the accusations without proof validates, and so amplifies the use of, this anti-democratic tactic.  

A month ago an American, born in New York, but with possible connections to Al Qaeda and possible interest in acts of sabotage was seized and is being held without charges. There are actually many hundreds of such secret detainees, but this one got offered up for lunch to the media based on the radioactive dirty bomb hook. Strikingly, Mr. Ashcroft admitted the man is not accused of planning anything, but of "intending" to plan. Motive, but no plan? Tell that to a judge.  

If there were no plans why did the government not use intensive surveillance to see if a plan was forthcoming? The only logical answer is that the case is more useful to them as a media event because there was scant evidence that he was likely to do anything. Given this logic, the man is detained and used in Mr. Bush and Mr. Ashcroft's campaign to further promote a police state. Even if he is associated with Al Qaeda, U.S. security agencies have all the tools to monitor his life and find accomplices.  

Americans who prefer this "pre-emptive" approach to security unwittingly endorse the appearance (not the reality) of a more secure nation and further totalitarian ends.  

Marc Sapir 

Berkeley

Berkeley filmmaker looks  

at everyday lives of Israeli and Palestinian children 

When Berkeley-based filmmaker Justine Shapiro asked her young Israeli cousins if they knew any Palestinian kids, in her cousin’s eyes, she became the crazy American. 

That was almost ten years ago, when Israelis and Palestinians were engaged in a hopeful peace process via the Oslo Accords, but peace was still far off. Shapiro didn’t realize how far. "I realized how naïve I was because I believed that because the New York Times said there was a peace process going on," said Shapiro. "What Israeli kids knew about the Palestinian kids was what they saw on TV … and what Palestinian kids knew about Israelis was the soldiers that they saw." 

Shapiro had been the host of a public television program called "Lonely Planet," now called "Globetrekker," and was keeping her eyes peeled for a rich documentary subject. The children of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict offered a unique window into the feverish border tension, whose chroniclers are often heavily biased or ineffectively neutral. 

"It wasn’t that they were victims of war," Shapiro explained about her child subjects. "They were spirited and funny and articulate. They would change their minds and they were mercurial. They were full-dimensional characters. There wasn’t anything out there that showed that." 

Shapiro found a hesitant partner for her production in B.Z. Goldberg, who was burned out on his previous job as a consultant for corporate conflict resolution. The Jerusalem-born Jew was reluctant to come on board. "Being so close to the subject would be too difficult, too painful. The conflict was too intransigent. I’d rather make a film about somebody else’s problems," said Goldberg, who had been considering documenting African conflicts. "Justine showed me that this topic was the topic that we had to make, right now." 

As luck would have it, "right now" was the only time to shoot "Promises," which would go on to be nominated for an Academy Award and the ultimate prize for any documentary – theatrical distribution, opening at the Shattuck Theater in Berkeley today. Shapiro and Goldberg shot a bulk of the film in 1997, 1998, and 2000, a period of relative calm between the signing of the Oslo Accords and the most recent and dishearteningly violent intifada. Now it is impossible for filmmakers to gain enough access to cross border checkpoints and freely enter Palestinian refugee camps.  

"When we were there, people were somewhat detached from the strong, passionate, vengeful emotion people are so overcome by at this time," Shapiro recalled. "It’s really hard to have a reasonable conversation with people living in the Middle East at the moment." 

Emotions may have been comparatively detached, but opinions regarding the people on the other side of the checkpoint – in some cases just down the street – were still sharp. Children who had brothers and friends "martyred" in the conflict, or have jailed parents speak very plainly of their discontent with other kids regarded as mortal enemies.  

Although the film takes great pains to walk a tightrope between the two warring factions, it is in love with the friendly and familiar relationships it creates with the children. It takes a few minutes to show a young Jewish girl explaining what she does on a holy day while struggling to separate two nested, plastic patio chairs stuck together. A cell-phone conversation takes place between an Israeli boy and a Palestinian boy over the merits of pizza versus humus. A chance playground meeting between an orthodox Jewish boy studying to be a rabbi and a Palestinian boy becomes a spontaneous belching contest. 

Through editing, deftly done by Shapiro’s husband Carlos Bolado (who worked on "Like Water For Chocolate" and "Amores Perros," and whose 1999 film "Baja California: The Limits of Time" garnered deserved praise at international film festivals), the film creates a sense of symmetry between the kids’ lives across borders: They like sports, they brush their teeth, they bicker with their parents, etc. 

But the images reveal a disparity of power. Middle-class twin boys take the bus to school from their house in Jerusalem while a Palestinian boy named Faraj 20 minutes away runs on the dirt streets of a refugee camp. "They’re growing up in a situation where there is a country with an enormous amount of power – Israel – and these people who are living in incredibly difficult conditions and really living a life of oppression," said Goldberg. 

It’s difficult to point a camera anywhere in the Middle East without capturing some sign of political tension. At a volleyball tournament in which the twins are playing, a man sits in the bleachers holding a semiautomatic rifle, and a track meet where Faraj sprints is overlooked by Israeli military helicopters. The three filmmakers massaged the material to give the children’s lives center spotlight – their hobbies and games and families – but reminders of the conflict are omnipresent. 

"The twins come in second in the volleyball championship, and Faraj comes in second in the race," said Goldberg. "For me this is such an incredible metaphor…" 

"…’Promises’ came in second at the Academy Awards," Shapiro interrupted. 

"Right. This is such an incredible metaphor for what’s going on in the Middle East. There was a feeling during the so-called peace process: we almost made it; we’re so close and we came in second; we didn’t get there, maybe next time."  

Goldberg became a part of the action in the film, albeit reluctantly. He interacted with the kids on camera to draw out their ideas and feelings, even challenging a young boy in the Muslim Quarter of Jerusalem how he can consider Goldberg a friend while hating the Jews of Jerusalem.  

"I went kicking and screaming," said Goldberg about going in front of the camera. "I felt like I was interfering; I didn’t want to get in the way of the kids." It was the wisdom of his co-director that pushed him into the spotlight. 

"Again, it was Justine’s vision and genius that the audience is going to need a way in. This is a very complex subject, and it’s been portrayed in such black and white terms in the mainstream media, what we wanted to do was go a lot deeper. … And the only way the audience could relate to what was going on was if they had someone who could take them in." 

The filmmakers were not practicing fly-on-the-wall documentary practices. They directly engaged with their subjects, and even changed the course of the children’s lives. The children would have never met if not for the filmmakers. 

In the film Goldberg tells Palestinian children about the Israeli kids, and vice versa, showing them Polaroids. While speaking with Faraj about the twins, suddenly Faraj wanted to speak with them via cell phone. After some technical wrangling to secure sound recording, two boys who should have never met began talking sports. 

"We wanted to make an accurate depiction of thee kids lives, and they don’t meet. They live 20 minutes apart and they never meet. So we decided the kids will not meet despite the fact that our funders said, ‘you’re going to make the kids meet, right? We’re going to have some hope at the end of this film. This is going to be an American film, like Hollywood. You know: hope? Happy ending?’ And we said no, these kids are not going to meet because they don’t meet." 

But the kids were determined to meet each other, and the filmmakers planned a day to bring the twins from Jerusalem into Faraj’s refugee camp to meet with other kids, play soccer, wrestle, eat, shoot slingshots, and talk. And as they talk about how they feel about each other Faraj starts to cry. It’s because Goldberg will soon leave, he explains, and then what will happen? 

As Shapiro and Goldberg insist, they let the kids lead the action and they followed to contain it, Goldberg finds another political message. "It’s in a way a metaphor for what’s happening in the Middle East. There hasn’t been a single development in the last 100 years that hasn’t been shepherded by a major power, and not a single development in the last 50 years that wasn’t shepherded by the United States." 

Shapiro said they didn’t want to make a social-issue film, nor a film that would conform to the filmmakers’ clashing political agendas. "The film answers the questions of three different people," said Shapiro. "As a Jewish American I had my approach to the conflict, which was unique to B.Z.’s who had grown up there, which was unique to Carlos’ who had come from a Mexican, third-world background and was more sensitive to the Palestinian political aspirations than B.Z. and I were." 

The editing alone took two years because of the constant discussion, negotiating, and arguing about the nuances of the film’s narrative and political angle in each scene. Goldberg said any one person could not have made "Promises." "We wanted to make a film that would be dynamic and stand up to "Spider Man." We used to say people had to leave the film saying, ‘I laughed, I cried, it was much better than Cats.’ 

"Also, it’s such a complex issue, and so much of what we see in the mainstream media is polarized. We managed, by the grace of God, to walk a very very fine line and keep going to different sides in the conflict. We relished the tension between us – especially in hindsight. At the time it was difficult." 

Keeping the streets safe for pint-size pedestrians is a lot of work and takes a considerable amount of preparation, the Bicycle Friendly Berkeley Coalition can attest to that. 

Staff, students, parents and teachers involved in the program designed to make the roadways safer for children going to and from school gathered this week to acknowledge the teamwork that goes into it. Four area schools were acknowledged at an award ceremony participating in the program — Malcolm X, Longfellow, Willard and Le Conte Elementary Schools. 

“We basically took the time to recognize everyone who has contributed in the project,” said Sarah Syed of the coalition. 

The Safe Routes program affiliated with the coalition began in the fall of 2000, working with approximately 10 local school. Since then the number of schools the program has worked with has narrowed. Syed said the coalition specifically began to target fewer schools to create more lasting impacts as opposed to having a less significant impact upon a larger number of people. 

Ciera Richard lives six blocks away from her school Macolm X Elementary School. Recently her mother has been allowing her to walk to school but not home in the evening.  

Richard recently spoke to City Council, attesting to what a positive experience she has had with Safe Routes. In fact, her class recently took part in a Science Project involving the walking patterns of children in the area. 

“We did a hypothesis of how many kids came to school by walking, by car or rode their bike,” Richard said. “And the answer was that most people are driven.” 

The answer to that hypothesis is perhaps the major concern of Safe Routes. They contend that the various thoroughfares that stand between the schools and the students’ residences as well as the unsafe driving patterns of parents to be the main reason for most pedestrian accidents. 

The reason Ciera Richard does not walk home from school is directly related to these traffic patterns. 

“I let her walk to school in the mornings but I drive her in the evenings,” said Yolanda Maker-Richard, Ciera’s mother. “She has to cross Sacramento. There’s a crossing guard there now. But in the evening, especially if I-80 gets backed up it is too dangerous.” 

The crossing guards are a recent addition. With the passage of SB10 -Soto last fall, approximately $70,000 capital projects will be made available over the next three years. In addition funds have been made available through the California Department of Health Services to provide planning and organizing for Safe Routes.  

Yolanda Maker-Richard has been living in the same home for 44 years. In fact, she attended Malcolm X when she was a child, only then it was named Lincoln and she says though Berkeley is better than many cities when it comes to pedestrian safety that something needs to be done. 

Syed agreed, blaming automobile-oriented city planning to the unsafe roadways. 

“More and more space is being stolen from pedestrians,” Syed said. “It’s a vicious circle.”  

Contact reporter at  

devona@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To the Editor: 

Scorching my rear bumper and tailpipes with their head lamps as they follow me at 25 along Hearst, Milvia, Ashby, Delaware, Hopkins Monterey, Dwight and the like... sometimes honking, or passing me, or just pressing me closely, they, my road brothers, seem to be trying to suggest that I should drive the way they do. Do these represent the sophisticates that work or live or study in Berkeley? They can be found during rush hours, at noon, midday, evening, or early morning. 

They're a gold mine just waiting to be unearthed, possible pockets of wealth to be tilted into the city coffers. They're late for an important date with the judge in traffic court. 

Drivers make mistakes like clockwork, all the time, according to studies reported in an article recently in the New Yorker; and of course, mistakes lead every so often to accidents, like clockwork. Misunderstandings may lead to mistakes; misperceptions may lead to misunderstandings; distractions, sleepiness, dreaming, and unawareness may lead to misperceptions; I saw an adult leap unlooking into the oncoming traffic flow recently, evidently believing the painted crosswalk and the law might save her from tons of metal flying at her. 

A news item recently noted a million dollar loss to meter tampering around campus. Here may be a chance to recoup. 

Regards, 

Tim Plume

A handful of residents in south Berkeley is making a stink about a posse of neighborhood cats and their redolent feces. 

According to Fairview Street resident Aran Kaufer, the city is illegally funding a refuge for stray cats in a yellow, one-story home in a residential section of town, turning nearby lawns into feline-friendly grounds for cat urination.  

Dozens of cats live or eat at 1408 Fairview St. and have little respect for property lines, neighbors say. 

Kaufer, with a petition signed by 10 of his neighbors, is asking the city to reconsider subsidies it provides to the animal rescue group Home at Last, which Kaufer says is masterminding the residential shelter. 

Although the owner of the 1408 Fairview St. property could not be reached for comment, volunteer staff of HAL say the Fairview cats have little to do with their nonprofit organization. 

The homeowner sits on the organization’s board of directors and adopts cats from animal shelters, according to HAL managing director Allan Katz, but the Fairview cats are her “personal animals” and aren’t related to the group’s operations. 

HAL’s mission is to remove animals from the city-run Berkeley Animal Shelter, where euthanization takes place, and find homes for the animals. The organization prides itself on having rescued 300 animals last year. 

The city gives $25,000 annually to HAL for their animal control efforts, and HAL volunteers have recently asked the city to boost that amount to $60,000 next year. 

Fairview Avenue residents want to make sure this doesn’t happen, fearing the money will make its way to 1408 Fairview St. to fund accommodations for more cats. 

“It’s people from the pound bringing the cats here... It used to be as many as 15 a day,” said Fairview Street resident Pat Lewis. “We don’t want this going on. It’s not the place for it.” 

The aptly-named Katz contended that cats have not been taken in at 1408 Fairview St. for more than a year. In fact, he said, HAL has helped the homeowner find new homes for 10 of her cats since December. 

“The neighbors’ allegations are unsubstantiated. They obviously have some other problem with her [the homeowner] or cats,” Katz said. 

City officials say there is no limit to the number of cats a homeowner can have in Berkeley and laws pertaining to the trespass of pets don’t apply to the situation on Fairview Street. The cats that live inside the Fairview Street home are legally registered, and wildcats going there to eat aren’t officially owned by the homeowner, explained Assistant City Manager Jim Hynes. 

Hynes said that city health and code enforcement officials have visited the site, but no blatant breaches of the law were observed. 

“The non-commercial nature of the [homeowner’s] activities means that the simple fact that a large number of cats are living at 1408 Fairview is not a formal violation of current city policy,” read a city memo. 

As for HAL’s recent funding request, Hynes said other factors beyond the 1408 Fairview property will be playing into the city’s monetary decision, namely the organization’s performance. 

“There might be other operations that need the additional funds,” said Hynes.  

A funding decision is expected early summer, officials said. 

Contact reporter at  

kurtis@berkeleydailyplanet.net 

In an ideal place you could eat Everett and Jones Barbecue, throw back a couple of cold ones, listen to live blues and enjoy sunshine all at the same time, any time. Unfortunately, that’s not an everyday kind of thing, but it will happen this Saturday from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. in Jack London Square. 

The 5th Annual Blues Alley Barbeque, Beer and Bluesfest is the brainchild of Dorothy King of Everett and Jones, D'Wayne Wiggins of Grass Roots Entertainment and Thomas Parker of Brother’s Brewing Company.  

Five years ago, they saw the occasion of Juneteenth (an unofficial holiday commemorating the emancipation of slaves in the United States) as the perfect opportunity to highlight the contributions made by African Americans to the culture of Oakland. All three companies are African-American-owned and Oakland originals. 

Berkeley locals might be familiar with Everett and Jones Barbecue on San Pablo if not from another East Bay location. They have been serving smokehouse-style barbecue in the East Bay since 1973. Brother's Brewing company is another Oakland-based company — the only African-American owned brewing company in North America.  

The four-block festival will feature singer/songwriter, Bobby Womack, Little Milton, Barbara Dane and Jess James among other performers.  

The Barbeque, Beer and Bluesfest averages about 3,000 people each year from Oakland, Berkeley and various other Bay Area cities.  

King anticipates twice that number this year. He says the event will be a “good family outing, but also supports a good cause.”  

Proceeds from the event will go to support the LoveLife Foundation. The LoveLife Foundation was founded in November of 1997 by Donald Lacy in memory of his daughter, LoEshe Adanma Lacy, who was senselessly murdered in a drive-by shooting at her high school. The LoveLife foundation aims to help youth discover positive and life-affirming alternatives to the destructive influences of drugs, gangs and the dangers of life on the streets.  

For the fifth consecutive year, the Blues Alley Barbeque, Beer and Bluesfest promises to be a great time in the sun, and a great way to support the local community.  

RS makes two big mistakes 

MARSHALL, Mo. — Getting a check from the IRS is usually a good thing. Diana Doss has learned to think otherwise. 

For the second year in a row, she’s been sent a refund for almost $200,000 — a surprise for a woman who juggles jobs at a rehabilitation center and a local Wal-Mart. 

After her first mistaken refund, Doss contacted the IRS and was told to write “VOID” across it and send it back. She did. 

On June 3, she got another check, this time for $188,368.44. 

“When I open the mail, I’m just devastated,” Doss said. “It’s a lot of stress on me to try to get this straightened out, and they’re not getting it straight.” 

Generally, when such mistakes are pointed out to the IRS, they’re corrected without a problem, said Kris Moore, an IRS spokeswoman. 

“If we didn’t fix the problem, I apologize for that,” Moore said. If Doss or someone else in a similar situation did cash the check, Moore said, the person would be responsible for repaying the amount plus interest to the IRS. 

Bucky, come home  

MADISON, Wis. — University of Wisconsin-Madison officials are wondering where a Bucky badger costume has burrowed. 

One of about four Bucky costumes was stolen from its off-duty location at Camp Randall Stadium some time between May 30 and June 4, UW-Madison Police Sgt. Pete Ystenes said Tuesday. 

“It’s not something you could stick under your shirt and sneak out easily,” Athletic Department spokesman Vince Sweeney said. 

The costume, valued around $4,000, should stand out in a crowd. 

Five-year-old is a bit short  

WILBRAHAM, Mass. — Benjamin Crevier recently got a personal invitation from Vice President Dick Cheney to a $2,500-a-plate dinner with President Bush. 

The only problem is, Ben is just 5 years old. 

It seems his name came to the attention of the dinner organizers as part of a magazine subscription list. Ben’s parents had filled out some subscriptions years ago in their son’s name as part of an airline deal. 

Ben’s father, David Crevier, said he’s a lifelong Democrat but registered Republican to vote for John McCain in 2000. He sent Cheney a thank-you note, signed by Ben, explaining that his son couldn’t make the dinner because he was a bit short on the $2,500 tab. 

“I currently have $11.97 ... in my piggy bank and about $200 in U.S. Savings Bonds and my dad has promised me an allowance beginning at age 8,” the note said. “Would you be willing to lend me the balance? I promise I am good for it.” 

No, that is not an embassy or a United Nation’s chapter on the southwest corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Parker Street. But the flags from around the world that hang above the sidewalk there could give that idea. 

Philip V. Hull is the man behind the rotating display. A couple of years ago Hull installed a flag pole at his residence to showcase some of the flags from his extensive collection. Deciding that one flag pole would not do justice to the 100 or so flags he has collected over the past 15 years, he installed 12 more along the outer fence of his yard.  

The result is a colorful tribute to the cultural richness and diversity of the people of Berkeley.  

Even the most knowledgeable world-traveler might be stumped by some of the featured banners. The current lineup includes the flags of Hawaii, New Zealand, Nepal, Papa New Guinea, Whales, Palestine, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Lebanon and the European Union.  

Hull, a psychology professor at John F. Kennedy University in Orinda, is a world-traveler, himself. His collection consists in largely of flags representing nations where he spent a significant amount of time because "the people were good to me." Hull has quite a few to choose from in this category. Former residencies include Jordan, Palestine, Iran, Afghanistan, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Fiji, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Australia, Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands.  

He flies the flags to draw awareness to oppressed people including East Timor, in the past, and is currently displaying the Palestinian flag. The latter has drawn the ire of some passers-by. Hull finds it surprising that "even in Berkeley it is dangerous to express solidarity with the Palestinian people.” But he will continue to do so. Recently Hull bought a Kwanzaa flag that he plans to fly next year during Kwanzaa’s holiday. 

Some of the flags he chose based purely on the artistry in the flag. He particularly likes the Welsh flag, the design of which features a dragon. He lists the flags of Papa New Guinea, Fiji and the Costa Rica as among his favorites.  

Hull credits Joseph Charles as inspiration for his efforts. Charles, who recently died, became well-known for waving at commuters during rush hour traffic while wearing his trademark bright yellow gloves. Charles’ death this March was lamented by the community, who came to know him as “Waving Man of Berkeley.” Hull hopes that now his display will ease commuters in a similar way.  

Flag day is approaching on June 14. It marks the anniversary of the day in 1777, when Congress formally adopted the Stars and Stripes as the national flag. An American flag is not among Hull’s current display. When asked if there will be one on Friday, Hull replied that he is undecided. You will have to drive by to find out.

ORTONA, Fla. — In a June 6 story, The Associated Press erroneously reported that archeologists in South Florida had discovered the oldest canals ever found in North America. 

The canals discovered in Ortona, Fla., were the oldest canals used for fishing and transportation purposes. Older canals, used for irrigation, have been unearthed in the southwestern United States. 

The transportation canals are about 1,700 years old. Some irrigation canals located near Tucson, Ariz., are about 3,000 years old. 

SACRAMENTO — One month after dramatically losing momentum at the doorstep of victory, environmentalists aiming to curb California auto emissions are remobilizing to gain a handful of votes for a showdown expected by Aug. 31. 

“Every major environmental group is on board and putting it as a priority,” says Elisa Lynch, global warming campaign director of the San Francisco-based Bluewater Network. “We all have big memberships and we’re letting folks know.” 

The coalition vows to regain a hard-won political edge secured with two successful votes to make California the nation’s first state to fight global warming by restricting auto exhaust. But a necessary third vote is stalemated after an auto industry campaign mobilized public opposition and scared off several legislative supporters. 

Says Bluewater’s Lynch, “We’re actually pretty confident we can get there in the end. It’s going to take a little more work than we thought.” 

Bluewater is targeting 10 Democratic Assembly members who abstained last January when the bill, AB1058, passed the Assembly by two votes. It’s also eyeing wavering initial supporters, including Democratic Assembly members John Dutra, who represents a Fremont auto-assembly plant owned by Toyota and General Motors, and Joe Canciamilla of Martinez, whose district includes oil refineries. 

A consortium of 13 global automakers and California’s 1,600 new car and truck dealerships remains equally determined after its last-ditch strategy to delay the Assembly from ratifying Senate changes to the bill proved successful. 

“If they want to take the fight through the 31st of August, we’ll stay with them through the 31st of August,” says Kris Kiser, vice president of state affairs at the Washington, D.C.-based Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. 

“We’ll stay on the air as long as it takes,” Kiser says. 

Within two weeks the alliance will roll out another television campaign featuring celebrity California car dealer Cal Worthington. The dealer’s May ads produced 100,000 letters, e-mails and phone calls to legislators and Gov. Gray Davis, says Bill George, vice president of Sacramento-based KPC Communications. 

The aim is to raise more public skepticism — and new calls and letters — over a bill that opponents call a “backdoor” attempt to limit sport utility vehicles, minivans and pickup trucks that make up half of new vehicle sales nationally. 

For both sides, eyeing the nation’s largest vehicle market, it’s become a war of attrition and focus while the 2002 legislative session rolls into its final 2 1/2 months. 

Introduced by Assemblywoman Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills, the bill gives automakers until at least 2009 to begin trimming carbon dioxide emissions from vehicle exhaust. Unlike previous state laws that regulate poisonous exhaust gases, carbon dioxide is a natural, nontoxic byproduct of fuel combustion.  

But many scientists consider it a “greenhouse gas” contributing to a gradual warming of the earth. 

NEW YORK — A Web browser project run primarily by volunteers and backed by America Online is making one last stab at challenging the dominance of Microsoft Corp. 

The group released its Mozilla 1.0 package this month — some four years after AOL’s Netscape unit launched the project. 

And while analysts aren’t sanguine about the browser’s prospects, there is excitement among those who believe Mozilla’s real strength lies in its versatility and potential for gadgets such as wireless devices where Microsoft is not yet dominant. 

“Internet technology is (being) transformed into a privatized world, developed and run for the benefit of a small number of vendors,” said Mitchell Baker, the project’s general manager. “Mozilla is a critical component of keeping the Web open and allowing innovation.” 

Microsoft’s Internet Explorer now has a global usage share among browsers of 93 percent, up from 87 percent last year and 67 percent in 1999, according to WebSideStory’s StatMarket. 

Netscape’s current share is less than 6 percent, with the remainder using Opera and other browsers. 

Mozilla may thrill some tech-savvy users, “but it’s not going to make a dent with the mainstream,” said WebSideStory’s Geoff Johnston, unless, that is, AOL Time Warner puts major marketing muscle behind it. 

AOL is using Mozilla in newer Netscape browsers, including the 7.0 version now available as a preview release. The company is also testing Gecko, the Mozilla component that displays content on a screen, for its flagship AOL service, which now runs on Internet Explorer. 

Microsoft declined comment on how much of a threat it considers Mozilla, saying it cannot speak on rival products. 

The Mozilla project began in 1998 when then-independent Netscape shifted its browser strategy to better compete with Microsoft. Netscape released its source code, or software blueprint, to the public and encouraged developers to offer improvements. 

Several months into the project, the Mozilla team decided to scrap the Netscape code and start from scratch to create a modern software platform on which to build many applications — not just browsers. 

In early 1999, AOL acquired Netscape. 

Now that Mozilla 1.0 is finally done, it’s available for download at www.mozilla.org. But there’s no Mozilla help desk for users. 

The focus instead will be on assisting developers, such as Netscape and Red Hat Inc., who can package and ship products and offer support to users. 

The power of Mozilla, which got its name from Netscape’s dinosaur-like mascot, is its open-source nature. Users who can’t get satisfaction from existing browsers can adapt Mozilla themselves. Versions are being developed for Internet kiosks, game consoles and cable television set-top boxes. 

Because of its modular build, Mozilla can be the ground floor for myriad unbrowserlike applications: games, desktop calculators, music-video players, word processors. 

“We really are building an Internet operating system at this point,” said Tim O’Reilly, a technical publisher and leading advocate of open-source software. “Components of Mozilla are useful parts of that framework.” 

Andrew Mutch helps develop and uses a version called K-Meleon in the Waterford Township, Mich., public library, where he is systems technician. 

He says other browsers don’t let him turn off features the way K-Meleon does, making them difficult to manage in multiple-user settings. 

WorldGate Communications Inc., which makes systems for interactive television, is customizing Mozilla for set-top devices, preferring it to proprietary software from potential competitors. 

“We need to be independent enough that we can set our own course and not be beholden to someone else’s priorities and schedules,” said Gerard Kunkel, WorldGate’s president. 

The Mozilla team officially makes versions for Macintosh and the open-source Linux, and volunteers translate it to several other systems. Versions are planned in at least 38 languages. 

In some respects, Mozilla will compete head-to-head with Opera, another popular browser within a niche, tech-savvy community. Both browsers, for example, share such features as a pop-up ad blocker. 

Opera chief executive Jon S. von Tetzchner isn’t worried about the competition. With 1 million new installations of Opera each month, both have room to grow, he says. 

Mozilla’s Baker insists the project’s success is critical to the Web’s future.

Building a tree house 

In the movie “Forrest Gump,” Forrest said he and his lifelong friend Jenny were so close growing up that they were like “peas and carrots.” That vegetable combination would be an apt descriptive term for children and tree houses. Kids love them. 

What is it about a tree house that can put a smile on a child’s face? Perhaps it’s that such a perch allows them to be high off the ground and see things that can’t be seen with little feet planted firmly on the ground. Maybe it has something to do with being enveloped by nature — wind, branches, leaves and birds and squirrels. Or it might be the independence that comes from having one’s own secret hiding place — a place from which to “spy” down upon others. Whatever the reasons, building a tree house can be an exciting parent-child experience; one that will be remembered long after the tree house is gone. 

A tree house is essentially a platform upon which there could be a roofed shelter and an open area, fenced around. There must be a small space for access by a ladder, but it should be otherwise enclosed to prevent falls. Unlike plans for a playhouse, those for a tree house are not feasible because no two trees are alike. Building a tree house is one of those design-and-build-as-you-go projects. 

There are basic design criteria that will ensure a safe and lasting tree house without jeopardizing the life of the tree. The process involves notching and cutting branches and nailing into the tree. Consult an arborist or tree surgeon for advice so as not to harm the tree. 

The biggest challenge to building a tree house is finding a tree that will serve as a foundation. The tree must have a rigid trunk and strong branches that will allow a suitable size at a convenient height. This can be asking a lot of one tree. Sometimes a tree house can be supported by two or more trees. For example, a tree house can be nestled into a grove of redwood trees. In contrast to the traditional single-tree, branch-supported tree house, the trunks support the floor system with this method. 

Since trees are alive and grow, the tree house must be designed to accommodate their changes. Connections to the tree should be made using nails or construction screws. Lag screws can be used for added stability and a more durable structure. Avoid lashing the connections with rope, cable or wire, as each can strangle the tree or limb as it grows. 

The first step is to locate a horizontal plane in the tree where a level floor or platform can be built. The size and shape of the platform will depend on the available space; however, a square or rectangular frame can maximize space and make construction easier. Begin the platform frame by fastening two reasonably parallel 2 by 4 beams to the tree branches. Next, install two parallel beams perpendicular to the first two beams. The trunk or sloping branches might need to be slightly notched to accommodate the platform frame. Notches also will offer added support for downward loads and will prevent slipping. Complete the platform framing by installing joist spaced at 16 inch to 24 inch centers. The joist can be hung from the frame using joist hangers or end-nailed using nails or construction screws. 

If the shape of the frame for the platform doesn’t look anything like a square or rectangle, consider installing the floor joist on top of the frame. This will allow greater design flexibility by permitting one or more tree branches to pass through the floor. 

Once the floor frame is complete, the floor material can be installed. Fence boards are a good choice. They are rustic looking, easy to install and, when properly spaced, will allow drainage that will prevent rot. Fasten the floorboards to the floor framing with nails or construction screws. 

If your tree house will have a roof or partial cover, uprights consisting of 4 by 4 posts should be installed before the floorboards are. Posts will also be needed as support for a rail that will surround the entire perimeter of the tree house. This is a safety requirement. All posts should be attached to the floor frame using nuts, bolts and washers. Use two bolts at each connection. 

The roof, which should have a slight pitch for watershed, can be supported in much the same fashion as the floor — rail frame and joist fill. Painted plywood makes for a good, watertight roof. Use brown or green acrylic latex paint that will blend in with the tree. 

While a roof can keep little ones dry, it is the rail that will keep them safe from a nasty fall. The rail consists of support posts, a bottom rail fastened to the floorboards, a top-cap rail fastened to the inside face of the support posts and the pickets. The rail can be solid or made of pickets from fence boards spaced no more than 4 inches apart. In either case, the material should be fastened from the interior so outward-thrusting movement cannot weaken the rail. 

The same holds true for siding at walls. Fasten plywood or fence boards from the interior to maintain strength and prevent falls. If you fasten from the outside, only the fastener takes the load, and it could be pushed out. 

Once the tree house is completed, you will need a means of getting in and out of it. One often-used means is boards nailed to the trunk. This method involves excessive nailing that can injure the tree. It also isn’t very safe. Safer alternatives are a wood frame ladder made of 2 by 4 rails and 1 by 4 rungs. Another more kid-popular option is a rope ladder, because it can be drawn up to prevent “unwanted intruders.” 

A rope ladder can be assembled using wooden closet pole dowels and half-inch rope. Cut the rungs to about 18 inches, and drill two parallel 5/8-inch holes — one inch in from each end. Thread the rope through holes, and place a knot every 16 inches. 

A tree house is for keeping “bad guys” out, “good guys” in and spying on the “enemy.” It enables a child to be the master of his own house and provides him with memories as indelible as the initials so carefully carved into its host tree. 

For more home improvement tips and information visit our Web site at www@onthehouse.com.

A professor from the University of California at Berkeley and a colleague today shared with NASA their discovery of a planetary system that reminds them a little of our own solar system.  

At a news conference at NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C. today, UC Berkeley astronomer Geoffrey Marcy and Carnegie Institution of Washington astronomer Paul Butler announced the discovery of a Jupiter-like planet orbiting a sun-like star at nearly the same distance that Jupiter orbits our sun. 

"This is the first near analog to our Jupiter,'' said Marcy, a professor of astronomy and director of UC Berkeley's Center for Integrative Planetary Science. 

"All other extrasolar planets discovered up to now orbit closer to the parent star, and most of them have elongated, eccentric orbits. This new planet orbits as far from its star as our own Jupiter orbits the sun.'' 

The star is 55 Cancri in the constellation Cancer. It was already known to have one planet, which was also discovered and announced by Marcy and Butler in 1996. That planet is a gas giant slightly smaller than the mass of Jupiter, and whips around the star in 14.6 days at a distance of only one-tenth that from the Earth to the sun. 

While the newly discovered planet is estimated to be between 3.5 and 5 times that of Jupiter, its slightly elongated orbit carries it around the star in about 13 years. Marcy and Butler say that is comparable to Jupiter's 11.86-year orbit. 

"We haven't yet found an exact solar system analog, with a planet in a circular orbit and a mass closer to that of Jupiter,'' Butler noted. 

"But this shows we are getting close, we are at the point of finding planets at distances greater than 4 AU from the host star. And we found this planet among the 107 stars we first targeted when we started looking for planets at Lick Observatory in 1987, so I think we will be finding more of them among the 1,200 stars we are now monitoring.'' 

UC Davis staffer named top teacher 

by The History Channel  

SACRAMENTO — The History Channel has named a University of California teaching consultant the nation’s top history teacher of the year. 

Myron Piper was presented with The History Channel Outstanding History Educator Award for 2002 at an award ceremony in Washington, D.C., Thursday. 

The ceremony marked the end of the annual National History Day Program, in which more than 700,000 students and 40,000 teachers across the country participated in programs to enhance history learning. 

Through a University of California, Davis, program, Piper works with at-risk children in the Sacramento and Elk Grove school districts. 

Piper, a former teacher at Norte Vista High School in Riverside County, won the award because of his efforts to bring the National History Day program into low-performing school districts around California. He also worked with students in South Africa and Brazil. The award carries a $5,000 prize. 

Libby O’Connell, The History Channel’s historian in residence, said the award recognizes teachers who get students excited about history. 

“In most cases, in most peoples’ lives, there is a wonderful teacher who has encouraged or influenced us in some way,” she said. “This recognizes that.” 

State Supreme Court again upholds  

uninsured motorist initiative 

SAN FRANCISCO — Interpreting Proposition 213 for the third time, the California Supreme Court ruled Thursday that private companies are immune from paying hefty damages to uninsured motorists injured by the companies’ negligence. 

Approved in 1996, the measure says uninsured motorists injured in an automobile accident cannot collect damages for pain and suffering, even if the accident was not their fault. Pain-and-suffering damages can run into the millions. 

But the dispute in Thursday’s case, and two others already decided, involves more than just a lawsuit between an insured motorist and an uninsured motorist.  

At least two high court justices said Thursday the law was only designed to resolve that type of dispute. 

In that scenario, an uninsured motorist could only recover medical expenses, lost wages and other out-of-pocket costs from an insured motorist who created an accident.  

No pain-and-suffering damages would be allowed because the law was designed to punish and encourage the uninsured to get auto insurance. 

Thursday’s case dealt with whether an uninsured motorist could collect pain-and-suffering damages from a private contractor who created a hazardous roadway while building a bus stop in Los Angeles County.

LOS ANGELES — The limousine that ferried Playboy founder Hugh Hefner from place to place can now be in your driveway. 

The black 1969 Mercedes-Benz Pullman, one of only 100 six-door limos built for royalty, heads of state and, in this case, Playboy’s pajama-clad patriarch, is on the auction block at this week’s Barrett-Jackson Auction at the Petersen Automotive Museum. 

“If it could only talk,” auction chief Craig Jackson said Tuesday, estimating the Hefner limo would fetch up to $60,000. It recently underwent a $25,000 mechanical restoration. 

Bidders get a chance at 200 collector and specialty cars, including the 1982 Mercedes-Benz once owned by “What’s New Pussycat?” singer Tom Jones and Fred Astaire’s 1981 Chrysler Imperial. 

Also on the auction block is one of the most sought after collectibles: A 1948 Tucker, serial No. 7. It was expected to fetch $250,000 to $300,000. 

“Very rarely a good Tucker ever comes up for sale. And this is a good one,” said Jackson, noting that less than 10 Tuckers are roadworthy.

DOES THE CONTROL ARM REALLY  

NEED TO BE REPLACED? 

I have a 1998 Audi A4 with 30,500 miles. I was recently told that the left front control arm has to be replaced and that the right front control arm will soon need replacing. I was told by the dealer’s service representative that this is normal wear and tear for a car after four years. I have a hard time buying that. What do you think? -- Tina 

RAY: Well, he would have been telling the truth if he had said it's normal wear and tear for THIS car, Tina.  

TOM: On most cars, it would be outrageous to have to replace your control arms after only 30,000 miles. Many last for the life of the car. But the control arms on this car are different. 

RAY: On this car, the control arm and the ball joint (a crucial piece that holds the wheel on) come as one piece. So when the ball joint wears out, you have no choice but to replace the entire control-arm assembly. And unfortunately, the ball joints on this car were seriously underdesigned (meaning they're cheap junk).  

TOM: We've been told that for the 2000 model year, Audi upgraded the design in the hopes that the ball joint would last for more than 30,000 miles. But unfortunately, that redesigned control arm won't fit on your '98. So essentially, you're stuck replacing these things, to the tune of 400 bucks each, plus labor, every 30,000 miles. 

RAY: You have no choice but to replace them now, Tina. But you might want to give serious consideration to trading in this A4 at about 59,000 miles.  

HANDS-FREE IS NOT THE WAY TO BE 

I really need your help. My husband drives many hours a day back and forth to work, as well as chauffeuring me and the kids around on the weekends to sporting events and other things. I believe that all of this driving has taken a toll on whatever brain cells he has left. When he is driving, he removes both hands from the wheel and does whatever he wants, such as reaching for something in the back seat or glove compartment, or using the cellphone, etc. He tells me this is OK because he is using his KNEE to steer the vehicle. I have begged him many times (OK, I've nagged him) to stop this practice, telling him how dangerous it can be, especially at 70 mph. I'm scared for myself and the kids. He won't listen to me. Maybe he will listen to you. Are there any kinds of statistics related to "handless driving"? -- Carole  

TOM: There are very few statistics for "hands-free" driving, Carole, for two reasons: Either the driver ends up dead -- in which case we never know -- or the driver survives but is too embarrassed to mention that he was unable to swerve and avoid the accident due to poor knee-eye coordination. 

RAY: It IS dangerous. While many cars with power steering can easily be kept moving in a relatively straight line using the pressure of a knee or thigh, sometimes you need to quickly change the direction of the vehicle. And you're not always given a lot of warning.  

TOM: Right. Accidents don't happen when everything is going just as you predicted. They happen when something unexpected occurs.  

RAY: He can also lose control if he ever has a blowout, or even if he hits a pothole large enough to move the wheels. TOM: So I think he's a candidate for behavioral conditioning. From your position in the passenger seat, rest your left arm on the back of the driver's seat. Then every time you see him take his hands off the wheel, administer a swift dope slap. Fwappp! Then ask him what he intended to reach for, and get it FOR him. 

RAY: Cars have gotten so good and so comfortable that it's easy to believe that driving requires no effort at all. And if driving requires no effort, then why not dial a phone, eat a bowl of soup or read a newspaper at the same time? But no matter how good cars have gotten, they still require two eyes on the road.

MILWAUKEE — The promoters of a concert meant to bring the surviving members of the Grateful Dead together on stage have been denied a permit by a county highway committee. 

The event, planned for Aug. 3-4 in East Troy, is expected to draw 200,000 fans, Walworth County Highway Committee Chairman Odell R. Gigante said.  

He said only 35,000 people are allowed in the Alpine Valley Music Theatre, about 30 miles southwest of Milwaukee. 

“You can imagine the amount of humanity that’s going to converge on little old East Troy in Walworth County,” Gigante said of Tuesday’s decision to turn down Clear Channel Entertainment’s permit request. 

“We only have 80 some sheriff deputies. Short of bringing in the National Guard we just couldn’t handle it.” 

The two-day concert, is dubbed “Terrapin Station.

ne death resulted  

from the Grizzly Peak  

Boulevard accident 

Oakland police said today that the 17-year-old driver of a car with four other teen-agers aboard that plunged off Grizzly Peak Boulevard in the Oakland hills has so far refused to speak with crash investigators.  

Traffic Operations Sgt. Russell Chew said the driver, identified only as a 17-year-old Oakland resident and student at McClymonds High School, has been arrested on suspicion of drunken driving and vehicular manslaughter. He was expected to attend a detention hearing today or Friday to decide whether he should remain in custody.  

Tuong Thien Ly, 17, of Oakland died in the crash at about 7:45 p.m. Tuesday near Grizzly Peak Boulevard and Fish Ranch Road. 

Chew said today that investigators believe the carload of teen-agers had been parked somewhere in the Oakland or Berkeley hills prior to the crash and that most or all of them, including the driver, had been drinking alcohol. Most of the teen-agers were students at McClymonds High School in Oakland, Chew said, and were in their last week of school. 

At some point, the group drove east on Grizzly Peak Boulevard, a windy mountain road, and about a half-mile before the intersection of Grizzly Peak Boulevard, Fish Ranch Road and Claremont Avenue, on a "severe curve'' to the left, the teens' car skidded straight and off the roadway, plunging about 400 feet down a hillside.  

Chew said the skid marks indicate that the driver reacted late in applying the brakes in response to the curve in the road. 

The car rolled over as it descended the hillside and some of the occupants were not wearing seat belts, Chew said. Chew said weather apparently did not play a role in the crash, as skies were clear and the roadway was dry at the time. The car was traveling at about 35 or 40 mph in an area with a speed limit of 25 mph. 

Investigators are still awaiting the results of blood-alcohol tests done on the driver, Chew said. 

"Because of the fact that the driver is under 21, it's zero tolerance,'' Chew said. A reading of ".08 percent is the legal limit, but if he had .01 or any trace of alcohol, he's in violation of the zero tolerance law.'' 

Three of the five occupants of the vehicle were able to make it back up the roadway after the crash and flag down a passing motorist. Two others, including the boy who died, were found at the bottom of the hill.  

A nursing supervisor at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek said this afternoon that one male crash victim brought the hospital is listed in serious condition with head injuries.  

A Highland Hospital nursing supervisor said two of the crash victims were treated and released at the hospital on Tuesday. A third patient is listed in good and stable condition and is said to be recuperating since being transferred out of the Intensive Care Unit.  

"The message which people need to get out of this is it doesn't matter if you're 16 or 17 or 56 or 57, drinking and driving is a deadly combination. This is a prime example of that.'' 

"You have a life cut short because of bad decision-making,'' Chew said. "It's really, really sad.'' 

Coincidentally, while investigators were at the scene Wednesday, another vehicle drove off the roadway in the same area. The driver suffered back injuries in the crash.

Trail to link city to miles of  

path along San Francisco Bay  

A segment of the San Francisco Bay Trail to connect Berkeley with hundreds of miles of vehicle-free roadway along the San Francisco Bay will likely be built by the end of summer, Berkeley officials said. 

Construction crews are finishing the layout of a 12-foot-wide strip of asphalt along the bay shore from Ashby Avenue to Virginia Avenue. At these endpoints, the Bay Trail runs north and south of Berkeley and allows bicyclists, skaters and pedestrians to travel outside the city, but leaves most of the Berkeley waterfront inaccessible. 

“This is a missing link,” said Deborah Chernin, senior planner for Berkeley’s Parks, Recreation and Waterfront Division. “Berkeley residents will soon be able to go to Emeryville and Richmond.” 

The new trail will offer an alternative to crossing Interstate 80 via Berkeley’s new pedestrian-bicycle overpass, which dumps eastbound traffic onto University Avenue. The new segment will meet the overpass trail and allow bicyclists and pedestrians to continue along the shoreline. 

“It’s been a mess there for years and very dangerous too,” said Hank Resnik, co-chairperson of Bicycle-Friendly Berkeley Coalition. “This is a blessing for bicyclists.”The California Department of Transportation is paying for the trail’s construction, part of a condition it agreed to when it widened I-80 last decade. The city of Berkeley hired Bauman Landscape, Inc. to do the job. 

Berkeley is one of 27 cities that has or is soon to have the Bay Trail pass through its borders. At present, 215 miles of the planned 400-mile trail have been built. Each city along the San Francisco and San Pablo bays has committed to building the trail within its boundaries, but in some of the communities funding is still being sought. 

Bay Trail Project manager Janet McBride expects the trail to be finished in 10 years. McBride works for the trail’s sponsor, Association of Bay Area Governements. 

“The trail offers not just the chance for recreation but for bicycle commuting, wildlife viewing and outdoor education,” she said. 

While city officials are hoping to see Berkeley’s Bay Trail segment completed in the next few months, they’re saying October at the latest. 

After finishing the stretch, Berkeley officials plan to start working on another stretch of nonvehicular trail. This one will run from the I-80 overpass to Berkeley Marina. 

“We’re phasing in pieces that will create a great bike network,” said city planner Chernin. 

Contact reporter at  

kurtis@berkeleydailyplanet.net.  

To the Editor: 

In his latest diatribe (Darling Flower Shop is structure of "demerit"), Hank Resnik again raises the tiresome "NIMBY" cry we've been hearing so often from Patrick Kennedy and his beneficiaries. 

It's no coincidence that the structure Resnik calls "one of Berkeley's most unattractive buildings" is scheduled for replacement by Kennedy. 

It's also no coincidence that Resnik's Bicycle Friendly Berkeley Coalition is the recipient of Kennedy's largesse, as reported in the BFBC's website. 

“We have gotten another $15,000 in grants —- including a $5,000 gift from Avi Nevo and $10,000 from Patrick Kennedy, $5,000 of which is a gift and $5,000 of which is a loan.” 

Kennedy knows where to spend his dollars, which assure him a vocal cohort of otherwise politically correct supporters willing to cry “NIMBY” on his behalf whether his cause merits it or not. 

Daniella Thompson 

Berkeley 

Wednesday, June 12

Natural Highs 

7:30 to 10:00 p.m.  

Sunrise Center, 45 San Clemente Drive, Suite C-200, Corte Madera  

Supplements, nutrition and mind/body techniques with Dr. Hyla Cass  

415-924-5483 orwww.sunrise-center.org 

$15 (Includes refreshments) 

Thursday, June 13

"Centering Prayer, An Introduction" 

7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. 

St. Mary Magdalen Parish, 2005 Berryman St.  

Brother Bryan Dolejsi, OP, speaks on Catholicism 

(510) 526-4811, ext. 19 

Free 

Jack Ball Retirement Party 

King Middle School PE teacher’s retirement 

7 p.m., at Tilden’s Brazil room 

Former students, friends, faculty invited 

Call Teri Gerritz (510) 644-6377 

$48 for dinner, $20 for desert 

Freedom From Tobacco 

A quit smoking class 

5:30-7:30 Thursday Evenings, June 6-July 18 

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis Street, (510) 981-5330 

QuitNow@ci.berkeley.ca.us 

Free 

Friday, June 14

Democratic political activists 

Cafe de la Paz, 1600 Shattuck Ave. Berkeley 

A political party for aggressive progressives with Democrats.com 

events@democrats.com or www.democrats.com 

Judaism Workshop 

7 to 8:30 p.m.  

The Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave  

Earth Traditions: Judaism Rooted in the Earth... Healing the World in Jewish Thought and Practice 

(510) 548-3402 

$10 Ecology Center members, $15 others, no one turned 

away for lack of funds. 

Still Stronger Women 

1:15 to 3:15 p.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

1901 Hearst Ave 

Oprah's Book Club and showing of " The Color Purple" 

(510)232-1351 

"The Million Dollar Question" 

11:45 for lunch. Speaker begins 12:30 

Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. 

Robert Osserman, Ph.D. from the Mathematical Science Research Institute 

$11.00/$12.25, students free. 

Berkeley Women in Black 

Noon to 1 p.m. 

Telegraph and Bancroft 

A vigil for peace for Palestine and Israel 

(510) 548-6310, or www.wibberkeley.org 

Saturday, June 15

Berkeley Alliance of  

Neighborhood Associations (BANA)  

9:30 to ll:00 a.m. 

Fireside Room, Live Oak Park 

l30l Shattuck Ave. 

All welcome to network and 

share local information. 

(510) 849-46l9 or mtbrcb@pacbell.net 

Emergency Preparedness  

Classes in Berkeley 

9 to 11 a.m. 

997 Cedar Street  

Basic Personal Preparedness: Learn how to take care of yourself, your family and your home. 

981-5605 

Free 

The Great Rummage Sale 

10 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

Berkeley-East Bay Humane Society, 2700 Ninth Street 

Household items, glassware, clothing, furniture for sale. 

(510) 845-7735 

Chu Ko's Late Afternoon  

Adventure in International Art 

4 p.m. 

Berkeley Public Library Meeting Room, 2090 Kittredge 

Artist Chu Ko discusses his Chinese ink brush painting. 

(510) 981-6100 

Free 

Sierra Club Northern Alameda County  

Group Forum  

10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. a 

Berkeley Public Library 

Forum on the benefits and problems of urban density with Rachel Peterson, John 

Holtzclaw and Martha Nicoloff. 

Call Jonna Anderson at (510)848-0800 x312 to reserve space 

Free 

The Sierra Student Coalition  

A retreat and planning meeting at Point Reyes National Seashore for high school and college-age students working to address local environmental issues. Meet other student activists, exchange ideas, and become more involved. All East Bay students are welcome at this event. Space  

is limited.  

For Reservations, call Jonna Anderson at 510-848-0800 x312  

Sunday, June 16

Field Trip to Remnant East Shore Habitats 

Meet at 10 a.m. at El Cerrito BART, southwest corner of parking lot (towards Albany Hill), then carpool to various sites, returning mid-afternoon. 

Visit a selection of critically rare habitats in and adjacent to the new East Shore State Park 

(925) 372-0687, e-mail elainejx@mindspring.com 

Free 

Buddhism 

6 p.m. 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Place 

Lee Nichol on "Sacred Dimensions of Time and Space." 

843-6812 

Free 

Restoration Clinic 

9 a.m. to 7 p.m. 

1051 5th Ave. Studio C at E.11th St. 

Suigetsukan, a non-profit martial arts collective in Oakland, is raising funds for a new dojo. Massage 

therapists, chiropractors, acupuncturists, and other health professionals conduct yoga and stress management classes. 

(510) 452-3941 or www.suigetsukan.org. 

Food is the Earth's Way of Love 

Noon 

The Fellowship of Humanity, 390 27th St. Oakland 

Joy Moore, CoDirector of the Farm Fresh Choice program of Berkeley's Ecology Center 

(510) 451-5818 or HumanistHall@yahoo.com 

Monday, June 17

Multiple Sclerosis Support Group 

Rockridge Library 

Self-help support group. Meets the third Monday each month 

(510) 521-2436, or Rickpete99@yahoo.com 

"An Uncommon Friendship: From Opposite Sides of the Holocaust" 

7:30 to 8:45 p.m. 

Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center 

1414 Walnut Street 

Join Bernat Rosner, a Holocaust survivor as he reads from and discusses his counterpoint memoir co-authored with Fritz Tubach, the son of a German Army officer. 

848-0237 x127 

Free 

Lesbian, Gay, Bi- Sexual,  

Transgender National Day to  

Honor loved ones lost on 9/11  

The LGBT National Day of Honor, about creating a Day when all Lesbian,  

Gay, Bi- Sexual, Transgender, & questioning people and our supporters,  

can come together to help further our fight against continued second class  

citizen treatment in the United States.  

For more information, call 802.859.9604 

Poetry Express - Nance Wogan,  

followed by open mike 

7 to 9 p.m. 

A community open mike welcoming all artists 

Berkeley Bakery & Cafe 

1561 Solano Avenue 

Free 

Tuesday, June 18

Vigil Opposing the Sanctions  

Against the People of Iraq 

12 p.m. 

Oakland Federal Building,1301 Clay Street 

(510) 548-4141 

Carol Wagner: "Soul Survivors  

in Cambodia" 

7:30 p.m. 

Easy Going Travel and Bookshop,1385 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley 

510-843-6725 

Arthritis Rap Session 

Noon to 2 p.m. 

Alta Bates Medical Center 

Maffly Auditorium- Herrick Campus 

2001 Dwight Way 

for more info: 644-3273 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Wednesday, June 19

"Part-time Parenting? A Career Networks Forum on Flexible Work Arrangements." 

6:30 to 8:30 p.m.  

Thousand Oaks Elementary, 840 Colusa, Berkeley  

Neighborhood Parents Network. Adults only. 

RSVP required: Amy Knowlden at knowlden@earthlink.net or (510) 526-4044.  

$5 NPN Members and $10 for Non-Members.  

Berkeley Peace Walk and Vigil 

6:30 pm 

BART Station, Shattuck & Center 

Weekly candle-lit vigil and peace walk to raise 

awareness and gather support for opposition to the 'war on terrorism' 

vigil4peace@yahoo.com, (510) 528-9217 

Thursday, June 20

Robert Fisk 

7 p.m. 

First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way  

Middle East Correspondent of the London Independent, in a benefit to rebuild Jenin refugee camp  

510-548-0542.  

$20 at Codys, Black Oak, Walden Pond and Modern times, or at WWW.MECAFORPEACE.ORG. 

"Women in War" 

7 to 9 p.m. 

University of Creation Spirituality, 2141 Broadway, Oakland 

An evening with international women's rights activist Zainab Salbi 

(510) 835-4827 ext. 29 

Suggested Donation $10-$15 

Pride Mass 2002 

7 p.m. 

Newman Hall-Holy Spirit Parish, 2700 Dwight Way 

LGBT Catholics celebrate 10 years towards creating a more inclusive world. 

(510) 663-6302 

www.calnewman.org 

Free 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Simplicity Forum 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Claremont Branch Library, 2940 Benvenue Ave. 

Discussion on how to lead a more simple life 

(510) 549-3509, or www.simpleliving.net 

Free 

Senior Men's Afternoon 

Pacific Center 

2712 Telegraph Ave. 

Gay senior men discussion group, 2nd & 4th Thursdays. 

510-548-8283  

Free 

Freedom From Tobacco 

5:30-7:30 Thursday Evenings, June 6-July 18 

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis Street  

A quit smoking class 

(510) 981-5330 

QuitNow@ci.berkeley.ca.us 

Friday, June 21

Paramount Movie Classics  

The Mummy, with Boris Karloff, 1932 

Doors at 7, Mighty Wurlitzer at 7:30, Newsreel, Cartoon, Previews, and Prize give-away game Dec-O-Win and feature Film 

2025 Broadway 

Oakland  

$5 

"Understanding the Achievement  

Gap in the BUSD" 

11:45 for lunch. Speaker begins 12:30 

Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. 

Shirley Issel, MSW,  

president of the Berkeley Unified  

School District 

$11.00/$12.25, students free. 

Berkeley Women in Black 

Noon to 1 p.m. 

Telegraph and Bancroft 

A vigil for peace for Palestine and Israel 

(510) 548-6310, or www.wibberkeley.org 

Katsuura, Bice take third at national sculling competition in Cincinnati  

For most of the Berkeley High crew team, the 2002 season ended on May 12 at the Southwest Regional Junior Championships, where the ’Jackets claimed three medals. But that wasn’t enough for Yoshi Katsuura and Jordan Bice, who immediately threw themselves into training for the U.S. Rowing Youth Invitational. 

Not only did the pair keep training, they entered into the sculling competition for the Invitational, held in Cincinnati at Lake Harsha last weekend. Unlike crew races, where each rower controls one oar, scullers have two, making timing even more crucial to a fast race. 

Katsuura and Bice, despite never rowing in a sculling speed competition before, finished third in the final, going up against teams that practice solely for sculling competitions. They finished second in their qualifying heat, not good enough to make the final but good enough to enter the repachage, from which the top two boats would reach the final. The won that race by nearly two full seconds, giving them some additional practice before the championship race. 

Katsuura and Bice have been training for sculling since last year, but were unsure how they would match up against national competition. After leading the Berkeley High team to a dominating season, the pair were in for a much tougher time in Cincinnati. 

“The races were much more competitive than the high school races,” Katsuura said. “Everyone’s fast and the field is very tight. You have to be focused entire time. At regionals if you’re good you win easily, but at nationals you have to have best race of your life just to compete.” 

Katsuura and Bice started sculling just for fun, but as the top two rowers at Berkeley High, they soon found themselves putting up outstanding marks, which led to their berth at the Nationals. 

“We started training really hard in the last month and a half, and I knew we were getting some serious boat speed,” Bice said. “But we were definitely surprised at how well we did. We had success right off the bat, and we were able to follow our race plan.” 

With his high school career now officially over, Katsuura will focus on his college career. He’s headed to Cal, where he will join a team that has won four straight national championships. 

Bice, on the other hand, has a year left at Berkeley High. He plans to concentrate on training for the school crew team, as he is losing his sculling partner. Bice said he may continue to train for the two-oar sport by himself, but finding a new partner is unlikely. 

“I’ll probably practice over the summer and see whether I can be competitive,” he said. “But it takes a long time to mesh with somebody new, and I wouldn’t have a lot of time to practice it.”

A jury awarded $4.4 million to Earth First! activists Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney, environmentalists who sued the FBI and Oakland Police for false arrest, illegal search, slanderous statements and conspiracy. 

Lawyers for Bari and Cherney called the decision a huge success despite pending claims and a defeat on charges of conspiracy.  

“It’s really beyond our wildest dreams,” said Darlene Comingore, executive for the estate of Bari, who died of cancer in 1997. “The jury got the part that (the FBI and OPD) violated their First and Fourth Amendment rights. We hope all the people out there who think they can violate our civil rights will think again.”  

In May 1990 Cherney and Bari were injured when a bomb exploded in a car while they were driving in Oakland. 

Bari suffered a crushed pelvis.  

Hours later the two were arrested because investigators said the pair carried the bomb for use in an act of environmental sabotage.  

The jury Tuesday ruled that six of the seven defendants violated the First and Fourth amendment rights of Bari, including false arrest and unlawful search twice. However, the jury was undecided on the claim involving a violation of Cherney’s Fourth Amendment rights. The 10-member jury ruled that the defendants did not conspire to violate the First Amendment rights of either Bari or Cherney. 

The plaintiff and defendants have 10 days to appeal. An undecided verdict will likely generate an appeal, lawyers said. 

U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken read the 18-page verdict that included compensatory damages and punitive damages on all claims. Tuesday marked the end to 17 days of jury deliberation and more than 12 years since the ordeal started. 

“This sends a message to the FBI to the extent that the American public understands that the FBI is an agency that can’t be trusted,” said Cherney. “After 90 years of political oppression by the FBI and the fact that our hands were tied in this case makes this even more incredible.” 

Cherney argued that important evidence involving the FBI’s counterintelligence program was not allowed in court and that the jury was prevented from hearing evidence of a conspiracy by the FBI. He said the case serves as an example in current and future investigations into the FBI. 

According to Cherney, if the defendants appeal he could be forced to wait two to three years before collecting damages. Cherney said that Bari pledged before she died to have half of any money awarded given to the Redwood Justice Fund. Cherney plans to use his money to further protect the environment. 

“I plan to use these funds for environmental non-profit organizations and for causes I think will make this world a better place,” Cherney said. 

Lead counsel for the FBI Robert Sher wanted to learn more about the jury’s verdict and its unresolved claims before deciding whether to appeal. 

“I’ve got to see how it breaks down,” Sher said. 

According to Dennis Cunningham, lead counsel for Bari and Cherney, his clients have more on which to base an appeal than the defense. “I think we have more to appeal than they do,” he said.  

Cunningham criticized the FBI. 

“This sends a message that the FBI has got to change their view, that they’re doing exactly the wrong thing. They’re not about fighting terrorism, it’s about suppressing dissent,” said Cunningham. 

Lawyer for the plaintiff’s Tony Serra said the case represents an important victory for civil rights advocates. “This case was a case of FBI falsity and FBI cover-up,” Serra said. “That can’t be tolerated. Our civil rights are more significant than that.” 

Dozens of supporters and members of the media gathered outside of the Oakland Federal Courthouse to greet Cherney and attorneys for the plaintiffs Tuesday afternoon. 

For Earth First! supporter Leuren Moret, Tuesday’s verdict is all the more surprising given the current wave of patriotism.  

“It’s amazing that they got this following Sept. 11th and all of the support of law enforcement and the broadening of powers of the government,” Moret said. “It’s a miracle that they came to all these unanimous decisions but it just goes to show how powerful the jury system is and how citizens have protected the constitution.”  

The original seven defendants were FBI special agents Frank Doyle, John Reikes, Phil Sena and Stockton Buck and Oakland Police Department Officers Michael Sitterud and Robert Chenault and Lt. Mike Simms.  

Contact reporter at chris@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To the Editor: 

An article June 5 by Matt Artz covered the deliberations in the Landmarks Preservation Commission1s meeting on June 3 concerning Victor Touriel1s proposed development of his property at 2008 University Ave. Artz reported that in defence of the commission’s vote to designate the building as a Structure of Merit and thereby stop his project, Commissioner Malley said numerous alterations to the structure “added to the Victorian’s significance.” 

Malley said, “If you have a building that has changed over time, it in itself is part of the historical record.” 

Taking this statement to its logical conclusion, should we allow our historic buildings to be altered to enable them to acquire historical value over time?  

If Commissioner Malley’s statement represents the opinion of the commission, what does this policy mean for the future of historic preservation? 

Finally, if all the buildings 50 years and older having associations with the often mentioned names of their builders deserve to be recognized as Structures of Merit, will this action cheapen the currency of such designations to the point of making them valueless? These important questions deserve answers.  

Sally B. Woodbridge 

Berkeley

ALAMEDA – Darrell Russell’s lawyer says the woman who has accused the Oakland Raiders defensive tackle of videotaping her allegedly being raped by two of his friends actually consented to the act. 

Attorney Cristina C. Arguedas argued Tuesday in court that the woman, who testified she blacked out after being given a drink mixed by Russell, consented to the recorded sex. The 28-year-old woman gave her consent while riding to the house at which the alleged attack took place, Arguedas said. 

Russell, a former No. 2 overall selection in the NFL draft, is charged with 25 felonies as an accomplice. 

Arguedas’ arguments came on the second day of Russell’s preliminary hearing in Alameda County Court. At the conclusion of the hearing, Judge Jeffrey Allen will decide whether there is sufficient evidence for a trial. 

If she blacked out during the car ride, Arguedas asked the 28-year-old woman, “How do you know you didn’t give consent?” 

“To my knowledge, I did not give consent,” the woman responded. 

On Monday, Arguedas accused the woman of being a “groupie” out for money. She got the woman to acknowledge that she plans to file a civil suit against Russell. 

“They go clubbing, they drink, they have sex,” Arguedas said. 

Russell’s accuser testified Monday she blacked out after Russell mixed her a drink and vaguely remembers later looking up at a video camera with “somebody on top of me.” 

The woman, who said she was dating Russell at the time of the alleged rape, was sometimes tearful and always guarded. She testified Russell called her and they arranged to meet at a San Francisco club the night of Jan. 31. 

She said she had been at the club for about an hour, and drank two complimentary cocktails — a Hurricane and a Long Island ice tea — when she spotted Russell with friends at a table. 

She said she was not feeling tipsy until Russell took a bottle of alcohol from the table and mixed her a “pinkish ... fruity” drink. 

Prosecutors have said they have evidence Russell drugged the woman. 

“I did not watch his every move of making the drink, but I know he did make the drink,” she testified. “I don’t recall anything much after that.” 

Until, she said, the following afternoon, when after waking up from a nap at work she had “a vision” of someone videotaping her. 

“The red light, the camera, and somebody on top of me,” she said.

Club aims to protect public, patients and marijuana as medicine 

\The University Avenue medicinal marijuana club that was robbed last week for the third time in a year closed its doors permanently Tuesday. 

“We wanted to make sure that we weren’t putting patients at risk, and we wanted to keep neighbors safe,” said Berkeley Medical Herbs office manager Dorrit Geshuri. 

The club, which has attracted a spate of negative publicity with the robberies, was closed also because the club wanted to protect the medicinal marijuana movement and the other four pot clubs in town, Geshuri said. 

The financial losses incurred in the robberies did not play a role in the closure, she said. 

“I think it’s a responsible decision,” said City Councilmember Linda Maio, who had vowed to shut down Medical Herbs after last week’s robbery. 

The heist took place Wednesday afternoon when two Latino men said they knew owner Ken Estes then forced their way into the club, brandishing a gun and a knife.  

The robbers told everyone to lie on the ground and made off with about $1,500 in cash and over a pound of marijuana, valued at $3,500. 

After a December robbery, neighbors and city officials raised concerns about security on site and the safety of residents. The club responded by shortening its hours of operation, hiring a licensed security guard and installing cameras, among other measures. 

The club was considering additional measures, Geshuri said, when the June 5 robbery occurred. 

The Medical Herbs ownership announced the closure in a weekly meeting of the Alliance of Berkeley Patients, an umbrella group for the dispensaries in town. 

Don Duncan, who operates Berkeley Patients Group, another marijuana club, welcomed the decision. 

“I think in this instance, it’s for the best,” he said, noting that he would normally be upset with the move because there is “safety in numbers” for a movement under constant political pressure. 

Duncan said he is pleased that the Medical Herbs management is committed to putting patients in touch with other clubs. 

“The patients will be taken care of,” he said. “That’s great.” 

“I am so grateful that the management of that group has decided to shut its doors,” said City Councilmember Dona Spring. “Public safety comes first.”  

Spring argued that the decision will serve the medicinal marijuana movement in Berkeley. By pre-empting new robberies, she said, the closure will help prevent neighbors of other clubs from becoming overly concerned. 

“My reaction is one of relief,” added Mayor Shirley Dean. “I think it was a good decision on their part, a responsible decision.” 

Several neighbors made efforts to close down the club in the wake of the robberies. But Geshuri said most have been supportive. 

Stan Eby, who manages a number of apartments on University Avenue, said a drug store and meat market that used to be in the neighborhood were robbed far more often than the pot club. He said he was sad to see Medical Herbs go. 

“It’s a shame that it’s closing up,” he said. “We need clubs like that.” 

Geshuri said the management of Medical Herbs may re-open as a “juice bar and herbal medicine establishment.” The new store would not sell marijuana, she said.  

Contact reporter at  

scharfenber@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To th Editor: 

Thank you for reporting on the nationwide protest of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), as this agency has run amok and must be reigned in. The DEA's own Administrative Law Judge Francis Young ruled in 1988 that marijuana is 'the safest therapeutic medicinal substance known and should be made available to patients.  

The DEA overruled their own judge and continues the war on sick and dying people.  

If we as a nation are to solve the medical marijuana issue, which in nation wide polling show most (75 percent or more) Americans want, then the media must get more involved and report these important political actions. You have helped on this.  

These protest actions were carried out by sick, wheelchair bound, dying patients, giving their every ounce of energy to bring their need to the public's attention. 

Many were arrested, jailed and subjected to much distress.  

In Massachusetts our own medical marijuana research program cannot be implemented because the DEA refuses to provide the marijuana for research. But the head of the DEA, Asa Hutchinson, says marijuana needs more research. This is double talk, Catch 22 and pure politics at the expense of the sick and dying.  

Kim Hanna  

Worcester, MA

YOKOHAMA, Japan – No goals, no glory. No more World Cup for France. 

The defending champions needed to beat Denmark by two goals Tuesday to reach the World Cup’s second round. Instead, the Danes won 2-0 in Incheon, South Korea, and Les Bleus became the first champions to go scoreless through a first round. They’re also the first defending titlist to exit after the opening round since Brazil did so in 1966. 

“It’s the end of a beautiful story,” French striker David Trezeguet said. “That’s the law of soccer, you have to accept it. 

“We had lots of ambition and we wanted to do a lot better. It’s a real pity.” 

While the Danes won Group A, tournament newcomer Senegal rode three first-half goals into the next round. The Africans took a 3-0 lead and barely held on for a 3-3 tie against Uruguay in Suwon, South Korea. 

Denmark plays Saturday in Niigata, Japan against either England, Sweden or Argentina. Senegal plays Sunday in Oita, Japan against one of those teams. 

“I believe a small team can be big,” said Senegal’s El Hadji Diouf. “Today is a historic day for African countries.” 

Those two joined four-time winner Brazil, Spain, three-time winner Germany and Ireland in the round of 16. 

Germany, despite playing the final 50 minutes a man down when Carsten Ramelow was ejected at Shizuoka, Japan, knocked out Cameroon 2-0 on goals by Marco Bode and Miroslav Kohse, who now has five goals. The Germans will play Saturday at Seogwipo, South Korea against either Spain, South Africa or Paraguay. 

“We showed our dedication and commitment and deserved to win,” Christoph Metzelder said. “Our minimum target was to get to the final 16.” 

Ireland defeated already-eliminated Saudi Arabia 3-0 in Yokohama to finish second to Germany in Group E. The Irish, who had never scored more than one goal in a World Cup game, will oppose either Spain or South Africa in Suwon, South Korea on Sunday. 

The Irish went through even though their best player, Roy Keane, was sent home after a feud with coach Mick McCarthy before the tournament began. 

“We fight against doubters all the time, we fight against critics all the time,” coach Mick McCarthy said. We do it very well.” 

With 1998 World Cup hero Zinedine Zidane on the sideline with a thigh injury, France opened with a stunning 1-0 loss to Senegal and then tied Uruguay 0-0. Zidane returned for the Denmark game, but nothing helped the French, who saw two shots rebound off the crossbar. 

At the end, Zidane walked off the field with his head hanging down, followed by the rest of the French team. 

“I didn’t expect to go back home like that after the first round,” Zidane said. “We’re all very, very disappointed, but we won’t stop here. We will have to turn the page, turn over a new leaf.” 

Thousands of traveling Les Bleus fans fell silent, while Danish fans in the opposite corner of the stadium beat on drums and sang “Ole, Ole, Ole.” 

“We had a good day,” coach Morten Olsen said. “The team played with a lot of confidence and, especially, a lot of discipline.” 

Back in Paris, some reactions to the French loss were strong. 

“I’m disgusted. They are the defending champions, and for four years they bragged and did nothing,” said architect Alain Goust, 32, as he held a French flag — which he wasn’t waving. “When they arrive back at the Champs Elysees, they’re going to have tomatoes thrown at them.”

Berkeley police surrounded a suspect inside a south Berkeley home for several hours Tuesday after he allegedly robbed a nearby Church’s Chicken at gunpoint. No one was hurt.  

On Monday, blocks away from the San Pablo robbery, a couple walking were shot randomly at close range and taken to the hospital. 

Berkeley police are investigating the two incidents as unrelated crimes, but together they could indicate that a trend of violence is plaguing this usually quite, well-established neighborhood. 

At Church’s on Tuesday a suspect took an undisclosed amount of cash then fled to his home on Valley Street. Officers arrived to find the suspect released his grandmother – the only person believed to be home when the suspect arrived – from the home, but would not come out to face police.  

From about noon to 6:30 p.m. officers held their ground outside the house and barred public entrance to several blocks surrounding it. More than a dozen officers were on the scene, including Lt. Harris and Chief Dash Butler. A police negotiator tried several times to speak with the suspect. 

At approximately 4:30 p.m. the suspect’s mother, flanked by a police negotiator and two uniformed officers, was escorted toward the house to speak with her son. After several minutes the mother was escorted away from the home. 

The mother said she did not know why her son had locked himself inside the home but expressed some comfort that the suspect’s grandmother was OK. 

Neighbor Troy Floyd evacuated his home during the standoff. “My wife called me at work and told me what was going on, and I came home,” Floyd said.  

Floyd did not know the suspect by name but had seen him in the neighborhood. Nothing about the suspect seemed strange, Floyd said. 

Another neighbor, who asked to remain anonymous, said the recent, uncharacteristic violence has shaken some people. The area is predominately occupied by seniors and families. 

“I’ve lived here six years and haven’t seen anything like this,” the neighbor said. “There were some mugging a few weeks ago. Last night there was a shooting and now this. Things are getting to be pretty scary.” 

The neighbor had noticed more police patrolling the area lately, she said. 

The day before yesterday’s standoff ,about 10 p.m., a middle-age couple walking on Bancroft Way and Acton Street were shot at close range by an unidentified suspect. The shooting was not robbery-related and apparently was without a motive, according to police reports. The names of the victims — a married couple who live in the neighborhood — have not been released.  

“They were taking a neighborhood walk in the area, when the suspect faced them and shot them,” said Lt. Cynthia Harris. The female victim was treated and released from Highland Hospital. Her husband is listed in stable condition.  

Investigators are looking for a Latino male wearing dark-colored baggy clothing, about 5 feet 8 inches tall and approximately 18 years old. 

Employees at Church’s described the robbery suspect as 18 years old and of light complexion. He had a mustache and was wearing a beanie at the time of the robbery, witnesses said. 

Contact reporter at  

devona@berkeleydailyplanet.net  

To the Editor: 

Over the past several months, the proposed multi-use project at 2700 San Pablo Ave. has gone through the normal review processes required by the Zoning Ordinance. There has been substantial public input and as a long time neighbor (Ninth and Grayson Streets) and an on-going advocate for renewal of the southern end of San Pablo Avenue I would like to add my two cents. 

I have lived and raised a family in Berkeley for about forty years, fifteen of those at my present location in the southwest corner of town, two blocks west of San Pablo Avenue. I have witnessed with concern some urban decay but have been encouraged as well by the gradual revitalization of parts of San Pablo Avenue such as at Dwight Way. Now there is a chance to encourage that same kind of rebirth farther to the south with this proposed project of residential units over street level commercial space.  

The primary criticisms of the project have been that it's much too dense for the neighborhood, that it will bring increased traffic, will disrupt bay views and will overshadow nearby residences. These criticisms from local residents are largely misdirected and unwarranted. 

The proposed mixed-use is certainly denser than the current use as a long abandoned gas station. However, I believe this increased level of density is being proposed for precisely where it belongs, on a wide, major arterial like San Pablo rather than on a small neighborhood street. This project is not too dense but should in fact become the standard to emulate in the future for San Pablo Avenue's long ignored southern end.  

There will not be a canyon of apartment buildings created by a long string of similar developments as suggested by opponents because there simply isn't a long string of contiguous parcels available for purchase and development.  

The need for pedestrian traffic is clearly essential for the success of street level businesses and what better source than local residents. We all would welcome more, smaller independent stores in Berkeley rather than larger chain stores as has been expressed so often by so many citizens at all levels (private and official) and in all venues. The typical needs of a neighborhood like markets, bookstores, cafes, medical or dental offices, etc. end up appearing where there are people.  

In addition, the already existing local businesses will benefit from the increase in local population. 

The height of the building is roughly the same as similar, local projects, successfully built on University Avenue, Shattuck Avenue at Hearst and in nearby Emeryville opposite the Home Depot to name a few. Because those projects are on very wide avenues, as is San Pablo, there is no sense of over-shadowing and they are on relatively flat land with few, if any, views of the bay to be disrupted.  

The perceived height for this project has been reduced by moving the uppermost floor back away from the street facade of the building and by providing more space between the building and adjacent homes. 

Please consider the future of all of Berkeley by encouraging the start of some meaningful development at this end of San Pablo.  

David Snipper 

Berkeley 

Owner fined for  

registering dog to vote 

LAFAYETTE – A man who successfully signed up his poodle to vote as a Republican pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor fraud charge and paid a $250 fine. 

Donald Miller, 78, registered his poodle Barnabas three years ago to protest the voter registration process. 

“It could have been a lot worse,” Miller said Monday after his court appearance in Contra Costa County. “I didn’t want jail time.” 

Miller estimates thousands of ineligible California residents are registered voters. To test his theory, he filled out a voter registration card for Barnabas and waited to see what would happen. 

Contra Costa County soon confirmed the poodle was a registered Republican. But prosecutors were not amused. 

“He violated the law, and he openly admitted it,” said Jim Sepulveda, senior deputy district attorney for the county. 

Miller said he never cast a vote in the dog’s name, though the dog did get a jury summons in March. 

Miller returned the summons with a written explanation of Barnabas’ reticence to participate in the civic process: “I have a short attention span, I have to go to the bathroom quite often and besides, I’m a dog.” 

Super Papa still ticking  

TACOMA – Just four days shy of his 100th birthday, Cecil Hill completed the 5-kilometer Sound to Narrows course in the middle of the pack. 

His fitness is testimony to the effectiveness of the regimen he adopted after quadruple bypass surgery forced him to retire 10 years ago. 

“I did just fine,” Hill said with satisfaction after Saturday’s race. “I stopped only once and that was just to blow my nose.” 

“Congratulations, Super Papa,” yelled some of the two dozen relatives who walked with him over the hilly course near Point Defiance Park. 

Hill walks 5 kilometers — more than 3 miles — every day near his assisted-living home or in its halls. His son, Doyle, says he’s a natural athlete who never smoked, and ate and drank moderately. 

“He says he’s going to live to be at least 105, and I suspect the way he’s going, he’ll make it,” Doyle Hill said. 

The former farmer, salt miner and parking-lot manager was one of those tapped to carry the 1996 Olympic torch when it passed through the Puget Sound area. And the longtime Mariners fan threw out the first pitch in a game several years ago. 

Girl Scout troops break through military barrier  

MINNEAPOLIS – Raising nearly $32,000 worth of cookies for U.S. soldiers in South Korea was easy for a group of Girl Scouts. Much harder was getting the treats to the troops. 

The cookies were stuck in Minneapolis for more than a month because of military schedules, security rules and the volume of cookies. 

The Girl Scouts contacted state Sen. Mark Dayton to see if he could help them get the cookies shipped and distributed to about 28,000 troops. 

After some wrangling — Dayton’s office contacted the Defense Department, the Marines, the Air Force and the Minnesota Air National Guard — Northwest Airlines agreed to carry the shipment. 

Northwest spokeswoman Mary Beth Schubert said the airline was honored to “bring a little bit of home to our service members in Korea.” 

Dayton joined 12 Scouts at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport for Monday’s send-off. 

“The Girl Scouts not only had to raise thousands of dollars for the cookies, but then had to spend weeks working to cut through... barriers,” he said. “I applaud their efforts.”

Tonight the Board of Education will consider asking Berkeley residents for raises from $875 to $1,500 per month.  

Proponents say the boost is long overdue. But critics say that, while school board salaries come out of city coffers, the move could still appear unseemly given the district’s multimillion dollar deficit and the heavy staff and teacher layoffs on the horizon.  

School board stipends have not increased since 1988, when voters raised pay for board of education and city councilmembers from $300 to $875 per month. Since then, City Council pay has jumped to $1,800 per month but school board stipends have not moved. 

In order to raise pay the school board will have to approve the request tonight and the City Council must choose, at a later date, to place the matter on the November ballot. Berkeley voters would have the final say.  

Councilmember Dona Spring is also pushing a November ballot initiative that would raise City Council salaries by an as yet unspecified amount.  

School board member John Selawsky said a raise to $1,500 per month would help members, already forced to reduce hours at their “day jobs” to fully commit to the board. 

“We need people who can put the time in and are committed to the school community,” he said. “I see this as a full-time job.” 

School board President Shirley Issel is open to the idea, but is leaning against it. 

“I don’t think it ought to be a full-time undertaking,” Issel said, referring to the job of being a school board member. 

Issel was worried that full-time members might resort to micromanagement when a board should focus on setting policy and general direction. 

Board Vice-president Joaquin Rivera said he supports the concept of a raise, given the long hours that many members devote to the job. But he worries about the timing with the district’s deficit, which at last count stands at $2.5 million for next year. 

“I don’t know if people really understand that we get paid by the city, not by the district,” he said. 

“I think that’s a realistic concern,” said board member Terry Doran, who supports the raise. “But it’s been quite a few years (since the last increase).” 

Doran said he is hopeful that the increase would encourage people to run for the board who might not be able to afford it otherwise. 

But parent activist and school board candidate Nancy Riddle said she did not think the boost was enough to attract new people.  

Riddle said the attraction for her is a suggestion, by Selawsky, that board members could divert some of their increases to pay for a school board staffer who would return phone calls and conduct research for members. The board currently has no staff. 

Riddle said a staffer could allow the board to pursue issues that district headquarters may not have time to address. 

“The district has its priorities and time constraints and I think the school board members might have different interests that the district might not have the time to pursue,” she said. 

The City Council has mixed views on the school board pay hike.  

“I’m not adverse to it,” said Mayor Shirley Dean. But she said the city would have to see how the measure fits in with the city’s projected $3 million deficit. 

“We have to make cuts,” acknowledged Spring, who supports raises for both school board and councilmembers. “But one of the reasons we have a deficit is we try hard to pay our employees fair wages.” 

Spring said the City Council and school board work hard and should not be penalized simply because they are elected officials.  

Councilmember Betty Olds said she opposes raises for the council, but might support school board raises given that there is relatively little money involved – $37,500 over the course of a year. 

Dean added that she would like to learn more about salaries for school board members in neighboring cities before making a decision. An inquiry by the Planet revealed that Oakland board members make $750 per month. 

Contact reporter at scharfenberg@berkeleydailyplanet.net 

Critics concerned future tests will threaten health 

With the threat of a lawsuit looming, officials with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory announced Tuesday night that they have completed their controversial study of a waste treatment process which released radioactive tritium 500 feet from UC’s Lawrence Hall of Science. 

Tritium is used in testing pesticides and drugs. 

Critics of the federally-operated lab have long charged that tritium and other emissions are a health threat to the college and community. The grassroots Committee to Minimize Toxic Waste urged the city to fund a lawsuit to stop waste treatment until an environmental study of the lab is done. 

Berkeley’s City Council on Tuesday, in response to the lab’s announcement, decided not to consider supporting a $15,000 lawsuit.  

The lab’s unexpected announcement came just minutes into the council meeting. Robin Wendt, the lab’s environmental, health and safety division deputy, said the timing of the study’s completion while legal pressure is building is a coincidence. 

Wendt and other lab officials have long bucked environmental criticism, saying that emissions at their facilities are within federal standards. 

During the lab’s handling of the tritium, emissions of the radioactive tritium isotope and other potentially hazardous substances become airborne. 

The lab prepares the substance for use by product researches who test the effectiveness of pharmaceuticals and pesticides. 

Though critics were happy to hear that the lab’s treatment study was over, they questioned the lab’s motives. 

“They’re doing this now just to avoid a lawsuit,” said Elliot Cohen, an outspoken critic of the lab and member of the city’s Peace and Justice Commission. “When the publicity dies down, they might start doing it again.” 

Wendt told City Council that the lab, in addition to ending the current treatment study, canceled two other scheduled studies that were slated to test equally-contentious treatment technologies. 

However, Wendt would not say that waste treatment would be stopped entirely. 

“I can’t guarantee that we won’t do anymore treatability studies,” he said. 

Contact reporter at  

kurtis@berkeleydailyplanet.net

Contra Costa Times dropped to 50-cent Sunday edition 

SAN FRANCISCO – Four Knight Ridder newspapers, including the Contra Costa Times in Walnut Creek, have reduced their Sunday newsstand price during the past two months in a push to attract more readers and reverse a prolonged circulation slide at the nation’s second-largest newspaper company. 

The price cuts represent the most tangible evidence yet of San Jose-based Knight Ridder’s resolve to stop a slow but steady erosion in circulation that has occurred in recent years while management catered to investors by trimming expenses to boost profit margins. 

After engineering an 11 percent work force reduction that eliminated 2,200 jobs last year, Knight Ridder Chief Executive Tony Ridder made readership growth a top priority this year. 

To emphasize the point, Ridder tied a larger portion of management’s bonuses to circulation gains and last month appointed a new vice president of circulation, Arden Dickey. 

The papers that have lowered their Sunday prices by 25 cents to 50 cents since April are: the St. Paul Pioneer Press in Minnesota; the Contra Costa Times in Walnut Creek; the Akron Beacon Journal in Ohio; and the Kansas City Star. 

Although that’s only a handful of Knight Ridder’s 32 daily newspapers, industry analysts believe the discounts will become more widespread. 

Ridder “is 100 percent focused on getting circulation growing again,” said analyst Peter Appert of Deutsche Bank Securities. “It’s refreshing to see a top industry executive so aggressively focused on the topic.” 

Contacted Tuesday, a Knight Ridder official declined to comment on the company’s plans, citing competitive reasons. 

Ridder told shareholders at the company’s annual meeting in late April that the company intended to build circulation “through a combination of content improvement, increased promotion, more thoughtful pricing (and) discount strategies.” 

While declining readership has plagued the industry for decades, the problem has been more acute at Knight Ridder in recent years.

Free this month then 3 tiers of paid service available 

WALTHAM, Mass. – Internet portal Lycos announced plans Tuesday to launch a new paid subscription music service offering access to 10,000 albums with 150,000 songs. 

Lycos, a subsidiary of Spanish communications conglomerate Terra Networks SA, becomes the largest Internet partner of Listen.com, the San Francisco-based company that has agreements with four of the five major record labels to provide “streamed” CD-quality sound. 

The Lycos Rhapsody service will be offered free through this month. Then Lycos will offer three tiers of service: free radio service on 20 channels of FM-quality sound; access to more than 50 commercial-free radio stations with CD-quality sound for $4.95 per month; and unlimited streams of individual songs plus access to the 50 stations for $9.95 per month. 

Customers would not be allowed to save songs on their hard drives or record them on compact discs. 

Listen.com’s deals with BMG, Sony Music Entertainment, EMI Recorded Music and Warner Music Group would give Lycos users access to artists including Christina Aguilera, Jennifer Lopez, Jay-Z, Lauryn Hill, Bruce Springsteen and Simon and Garfunkel. 

Industry-sponsored sites MusicNet and PressPlay limit how many songs can be downloaded. 

Terra Lycos, which is trying to draw more users to subscription-based content, claims 115 million unique users per month. It has a presence in 43 countries.

LOS ANGELES – Worldwide sales of pirated music CDs nearly doubled last year to a record 950 million units, an industry trade group said Tuesday. 

Illegal shipments came from large manufacturing plants and small garage operations around the world, according to the International Federation of Phonographic Industries, which represents 1,400 record producers and distributors in 76 countries. 

Illegal recordings of music, meanwhile, which may have been put on CD or cassette, totaled nearly 2 billion in 2001, up just slightly from a year earlier. The figure means that two out of every five recordings sold worldwide in 2001 was an illegal copy. 

Illegal music sales outnumbered legal sales in 25 countries, compared with 21 countries a year earlier, the group said. 

China, Russia and Brazil led the world in piracy. Ninety percent of all music sold in China is pirated, according to the federation. 

Sales of pirated materials around the world amounted to $4.3 billion, up from $4.2 billion in 2000.

SAN FRANCISCO – Remnants of the atomic bomb dropped over Hiroshima were auctioned for $167,500 Tuesday — but the federal government says the sale is a breach of national security and wants to block the buyer from claiming his purchase. 

Pending the outcome of litigation by the Justice Department, Butterfields Auctioneers Inc. has agreed to hold onto the arming mechanisms of the bomb dropped from the Enola Gay. The B-29 bomber dropped the atomic bomb over Hiroshima, Japan, on Aug. 6, 1945, killing roughly 140,000 people. 

The Justice Department said in court papers Tuesday the internal configuration of the auctioned thumb-sized plugs — one of which was used to activate the real bomb — are classified. 

“Their design is classified as secret, restricted data, and has never been declassified,” said Steven Saltiel, a San Francisco federal prosecutor. 

The government is seeking a court order prohibiting a San Diego real estate developer from taking possession of the plugs. 

A federal judge has set a hearing for Friday and denied the government’s request on Tuesday to block the auction from Butterfields’ San Francisco office and over the Internet. 

Clay Perkins, who bought the two thumb-sized devices, said they have great personal and historical value. He said the idea of nuclear power inspired him to become a physicist. 

“They are arguably the most significant physical objects to come out of the 20th century,” said the 68-year-old real physicist-turned-real estate developer. “They are the only thing left of the first atomic bomb.” 

The government also said the so-called plugs are the government’s property, not that of Morris Jeppson, an Enola Gay crew member who put them up for auction. 

Jeppson, of Las Vegas, was unavailable for comment. 

A Butterfields spokesman, Levi Morgan, said the government’s case is “without merit.”

EUREKA – An Illinois railroad consultant has submitted a formal proposal to take over the North Coast Railroad and get it back in business within a year. 

Ted Niemeyer, a railroad engineering consultant with Niemeyer and Associates in Chicago, sent the proposal to the North Coast Railroad Authority, which requested it after hearing Niemayer’s offer earlier this year. 

Niemeyer wants to take over ownership, as well as the roughly $42 million restoration grant the authority has left from a state award two years ago. 

Niemeyer said he’ll have the entire northern end of the railroad up and running within one year, or would return ownership to the authority. 

North Coast officials said Monday they’re encouraged by the offer, but need answers to additional questions, including where he plans to get the rest of the money to restore the line. 

Some experts put the total cost at more than $100 million. 

It also isn’t yet clear whether the authority even has the right to sell the railroad. 

Niemeyer, a devout Christian, said his interest in buying the railroad came from a revelation he had earlier this year. 

“It’s worth exploring,” said Arcata City Manager Dan Hauser. “I think a lot of people have been afraid that someone would come in and liquidate it. Under this deal, that couldn’t happen.”

SACRAMENTO – After decades of largely unheralded state poets appointed by legislators, Gov. Gray Davis has named La Jolla poet Quincy Troupe, 62, as California’s first official poet laureate. 

Troupe, inheriting an honorary tradition dating to the English Middle Ages, will receive a $10,000 honorarium to make readings around the state and raise the profile of poetry, especially among school children. 

“Poetry is a very powerful, a beautiful and necessary and ancient art,” Troupe said. More than 15 poets and representatives of poetry associations applauded the moment and Troupe’s reading of “Flight,” a poem about flying above California’s coastline. 

Troupe, author of 13 books, including six books of poetry, is a professor of creative writing and American and Caribbean literature at the University of California, San Diego. Nominated for the post by San Diego’s Museum of Contemporary Art, his latest books are entitled “Choruses” and “Avalanche.” 

“Poetry humanizes people. It really humanized me,” explained Troupe, who said his mother read poetry to him as a child, and that he began writing while recovering from basketball injuries. Explaining how he writes, Troupe said, “Sometimes it doesn’t come. And sometimes it comes and it’s terrible. And sometimes it’s glorious. That’s what I live for.” 

California first lady Sharon Davis announced the selection Tuesday, citing Troupe’s “work as a writer and his accomplishments as an educator.” Gov. Davis picked Troupe among three finalists selected in March by a California Arts Council panel. 

Runners-up included poets Francisco X. Alarcon, 48, of Davis, and Diane DiPrima, 67, of San Francisco. 

Troupe is a New York City native and 11-year California resident. Touted by the arts council as California’s first official poet laureate, he succeeds five state poets appointed by the Legislature since 1915. The last was Fresno poet Gus Garrigus, who served from 1966 until his death in 2000. 

Troupe, accompanied by his wife, Margaret Porter Troupe, promised a “literacy through poetry” program for California schools. He also plans to bring poetry to corporations during lunch hours, to churches, community centers and the Legislature. 

“I intend to do a great job. I intend to bother people, seriously,” he said, referring to fund-raising to heighten poetry’s profile.

Agency says next wave  

of attacks could be divers blowing up ships 

SAN DIEGO — FBI agents have been contacting hundreds of dive shops around the country out of concern the next wave of terrorist attacks could be carried out by scuba divers. 

The FBI said it is looking into whether al-Qaida operatives have been taking scuba training in order to blow up ships at anchor, power plants, bridges, depots or other waterfront targets. 

Agents spent several days last week at Ocean Enterprises, one of the biggest dive shops in the country, checking customer files and sales of highly specialized scuba equipment, according to owner Werner Kurn. 

“They want to know if we have seen anything out of the ordinary,” said Kurn, whose shop is a few blocks away from an apartment complex where two of the Sept. 11 hijackers lived in 2000. “If you ask me where’s the best place to dive, that’s normal. If you ask me in a limited-visibility dive how do you maintain your bearings or how can I dive in the harbor, that’s not.” 

The possibility that members of Osama bin Laden’s terrorist network might have taken scuba training emerged from interrogations of people taken into custody in the U.S.-led effort to root out terrorism around the world, said John A. Sylvester, who heads the counterterrorism office in the FBI’s San Diego bureau. 

A warning of possible attacks by divers was issued by the government before Memorial Day. The Coast Guard also warned of the possibility last weekend, and security around ports and ships has been tightened as a result. 

Last week, the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, the world’s leading diving organization, gave the FBI a list of 2 million people the association has certified to dive over the past three years, Vice President Jeff Nadler said. 

Agents are contacting all U.S. dive shops to check the names of those who took scuba courses over the past three years, including those who dropped out without getting certified, Sylvester said. The United States has about 1,200 dive jobs, Nadler said. 

Also on the checklist are U.S. commercial dive schools that train students in underwater welding and repair. 

At Ocean Enterprises, agents have checked the infrequent sales of $5,000 rebreathers, devices that allow Navy SEALs to swim without producing a telltale trail of bubbles. Also of interest were sales of underwater propulsion vehicles that can tug a diver long distances and sell for as much as $8,000 each, Kurn said. 

In addition to California, dive shops in the Pacific Northwest, Florida and Ohio said they have been contacted. Dive shops in landlocked states, like Scuba One in Mandan, N.D., also are getting calls. 

The FBI said San Diego is a crucial part of the investigation. It is both a dive center and a major tourist destination. The area is home to a host of potential targets, from seaside nuclear plants to cruise ships and nuclear-powered Navy submarines and aircraft carriers. 

Some scuba experts said they are doubtful that a diver could do little more than make mischief underwater.

ETNA – Steep, rugged terrain near the Oregon border made it difficult for firefighters to combat a 600-acre wildfire that threatened homes and animals Tuesday, and officials said they don’t expect to contain the blaze until next week. 

Meanwhile, week-old blazes that have scorched nearly 45,000 acres of brush and forest land throughout the state are nearing containment. 

The blaze in rural Siskiyou County was burning about 30 miles south of the Oregon state line in treacherous mountain terrain that made it difficult to fight, said Tom Fields, a spokesman for the Oregon California Incident Management Team, which arrived Monday night to help fight the blaze. 

The fire started Sunday afternoon when a backyard debris fire burned out of control, said Penny Melum, a spokeswoman for the Klamath National Forest. Wildfire officials said containment is expected by next Monday. 

“It is human caused, and it just breaks my heart,” she said. 

About 500 firefighters worked in 80-degree heat Tuesday to battle the blaze, which was spread by high winds that pushed flames along 80-degree slopes. Calm winds on Tuesday were expected to help prevent the fire from spreading. 

The few homes in the area were not immediately threatened and no evacuations were ordered, but fire engines were stationed at each house. The fire did threaten the homes of bears, mountain lions, raccoons and rattlesnakes. 

To the south, a 1,100-acre wildfire that burned 60 miles northeast of Sacramento in Yuba County was contained Monday afternoon. It started Sunday when high winds knocked power lines into a tree, briefly prompting the evacuation of about 150 homes. 

In Southern California, a wildfire that burned 23,407 acres of brush in the Angeles National Forest destroyed nine homes and chased away more than 1,000 residents. It was 90 percent contained on Tuesday. 

Full containment was expected Tuesday evening, U.S. Forest Service spokesman Martin Esparza said. 

In Ventura County, a blaze that burned across 21,278 acres in the Los Padres National Forest north of Ojai was 65 percent contained Tuesday.

SAN DIEGO – The man accused of killing Danielle van Dam appeared nervous when he met with a police investigator two days after the 7-year-old girl vanished from her bedroom, the detective said Tuesday. 

“I noticed that he was sweating profusely from under his arms,” San Diego police Detective Johnny Keene testified in the trial of David Westerfield. 

Keene described the interview on Westerfield’s front porch, two doors from the van Dam home, on a cool Monday morning in early February. 

Westerfield told the investigator about his brief encounter with Danielle’s mother, Brenda van Dam, at a neighborhood bar on Feb. 1, the night of the girl’s disappearance. 

Westerfield, 50, is charged with murder, kidnapping and possession of child pornography. He could face the death penalty if he’s convicted.

BOSTON – A judge Tuesday threw out one of nine charges against a man accused of trying to blow up a jetliner with explosives in his shoes, ruling that an airplane is not a vehicle under a new anti-terrorism law. 

The charge — attempting to wreck a mass transportation vehicle — was filed under the USA Patriot Act, which was passed by Congress after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. 

U.S. District Judge William Young said that although an airplane was engaged in mass transportation it is not a vehicle as defined by the new law. 

Richard C. Reid still faces eight charges, including attempted murder and attempted destruction of an aircraft. He allegedly tried to light the explosives hidden in his shoes while aboard American Airlines Flight 63 from Paris to Miami three days before Christmas. 

Samantha Martin, a spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan, declined to comment on the ruling. She said no decision had been made on whether to appeal. 

Reid’s lawyer, Owen Walker, did not immediately return a call for comment. 

The judge said he looked to a legal definition of vehicle drafted by Congress in an earlier law known as the Dictionary Act. That defines a vehicle as something used as a means of transportation on land. 

The USA Patriot Act was signed into law Oct. 26, giving the government broad powers to fight terrorism. Among other things, it expands the FBI’s wiretapping and electronic surveillance authority and gives police wide-ranging powers to search people’s homes and business records.

Supreme Court blocks 

Texas execution  

HUNTSVILLE, Texas – A convicted murderer whose lawyers say is mentally retarded won a reprieve from the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, 3 1/2 hours before he was scheduled to be executed. 

Last month, the nation’s highest court halted two other executions after lawyers made similar claims. The court has been reviewing a Virginia case that challenges the constitutionality of executing the mentally retarded; a decision is expected at any time. 

Willie Modden, 54, was sentenced to die for stabbing to death a convenience store employee, 27-year-old Deborah Davenport, during a robbery. 

Modden’s first conviction was overturned because jurors were not allowed to consider his claims of mental retardation when they decided his sentence. 

He was tried again in 1992, convicted and condemned. At that trial, jurors were told his IQ was 64; an IQ of 70 is considered the threshold for retardation. 

NYPD rejects proposal  

for armed citizen patrols  

NEW YORK – The police commissioner says New York doesn’t need armed bands of citizens to protect its neighborhoods, flatly rejecting a proposal by a Jewish group to begin patrols next week. 

“The department will not tolerate anyone brandishing weapons under the guise of protecting others,” Commissioner Ray Kelly said Monday. “Anyone attempting to patrol the streets armed with weapons will be arrested.” 

On Sunday, Rabbi Yakove Lloyd, president of the right-wing Jewish Defense Group, proposed armed patrols, citing comments a suspected terrorist made on CBS’ ”60 Minutes” about targeting certain Jewish neighborhoods. 

“Any move in this direction is counterproductive,” Kelly said. “The tenor of this is wrong. We don’t need this.” 

Lloyd said the patrols would go ahead. 

“What the police commissioner does not understand is that no matter what he says ... those who have the legal right to carry firearms can carry firearms,” he said. 

Government seizure upheld  

in fight over Islamic charity assets  

CHICAGO – A federal judge on Tuesday upheld the government’s seizure of money and records from an Islamic charity federal officials say is suspected of ties to terrorism. 

Attorneys for the charity, Global Relief Foundation, had argued that the order that froze its bank accounts was unconstitutional. 

But U.S. District Judge Wayne Andersen wrote in a 48-page opinion that the government had “established probable cause to believe that Global Relief and its executive director were agents of a foreign power.” 

Global Relief attorney Roger Simmons said he would appeal to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. 

Global Relief, based in the Chicago suburb of Bridgeview, was raided by Treasury Department agents on Dec. 14 and its assets were frozen as part of the government’s post-Sept. 11 terrorism investigation. 

In preparation for his ruling, Andersen viewed secret evidence provided by the government but not shown to Global Relief attorneys. 

“We have reviewed materials furnished by the FBI to us and have concluded that they are relevant to the ongoing investigation and that their disclosure to Global Relief, while the investigation is pending, could undermine this investigation and others of national significance,” he said. 

Wildfire slows near Denver  

DENVER – Shifting wind and cooler temperatures slowed the advance of a wildfire bearing down on Denver on Tuesday, but yellow smoke still blanketed the area and officials asked 13,000 people to leave their homes south of the city. 

It was still too dangerous to allow firefighters in the path of the 77,000-acre blaze that started in the Pike National Forest, officials said. 

“There is such a tremendous amount of heat that you can’t put firefighters on the ground in front of it,” said fire information officer Tony Diffenbaugh. 

The change of wind direction had turned the fire back onto itself late Monday, but officials feared the wind would return on Tuesday, with gusts to 30 mph, and intensify the blaze again, said Diffenbaugh. 

Investigators were looking for the owner of a pickup truck seen leaving the area where the blaze was started by an illegal campfire Saturday about 60 miles south of Denver. Campfires had been banned in the area because of the drought. 

It was one of at least eight fires in Colorado, including a 10,000-acre blaze that destroyed 24 homes and sent residents fleeing in Glenwood Springs, near Storm King Mountain in western Colorado. 

In Glenwood Springs, most of the 3,000 residents forced to leave their homes were allowed to return Monday night. That fire was started Saturday by a long-smoldering underground coal fire. 

Gay-rights advocates infiltrate  

Southern Baptist meeting  

ST. LOUIS – The head of the Southern Baptists condemned homosexuality from the podium Tuesday as gay rights protesters shouting slog and marched through the convention hall and into the arms of police. 

Twelve protesters were arrested inside the hall, and 38 more were taken into custody outside, where riot police stood near the main doorway. 

The dozen protesters who infiltrated the annual meeting of the nation’s largest Protestant denomination were charged with ethnic intimidation and trespassing. 

“Stop killing us! Stop the spiritual violence!” one man shouted as police dragged him behind the curtains at America’s Center. A woman from the group Soulforce, which claims Southern Baptist teachings lead to violence against gays, shouted: “God loves his gay children!” 

“You need Jesus!” shouted back the Rev. Robert Smith, a pastor from Cedar Bluff, Ala. Others hissed as protesters were led away. 

Spacewalking astronauts bolt down  

work platform for robot arm  

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Two spacewalking astronauts wired up and bolted down a work platform Tuesday that will allow the international space station’s 58-foot robot arm to roam across the orbiting outpost. 

Franklin Chang-Diaz and Philippe Perrin, visiting from space shuttle Endeavour, connected eight power, data and video cables. Then, working 240 miles above Earth, they drove four bolts to secure the platform and installed a TV camera. 

Earlier this spring, 44 feet of track and a rail car were installed on the international space station for use in the later stages of construction. Tuesday’s work involved the bolting of a $254 million platform on the rail car. 

The platform will enable the robot arm and pieces of the space station to ride from one end of the space station to the other. A series of tests must be conducted over the next few weeks before the robot arm is commanded to climb onto the platform for a ride. 

Police: Investigation in case of missing Utah girl being refocused  

SALT LAKE CITY – The city’s police chief said Tuesday detectives are refocusing their investigation into the disappearance of Elizabeth Smart on those who know the 14-year-old girl, and vowed to the unidentified suspect: “We are going to get you.” 

“If you’ve got Elizabeth, you’d better release her now,” Chief Rick Dinse told reporters on the seventh day of the investigation. 

Despite checking out hundreds of tips, police have not been able to focus on any particular suspect, he said. 

“We believe that it is possible that we have already talked to, or will soon talk to, the suspect that is responsible for this crime,” he said. “My caution to this suspect, if he is listening, is, ’We are going to get you.”’ 

Investigators spent several hours in the Smart home early Tuesday, searching for clues to the girl’s June 5 disappearance. 

Investigators are now focusing on someone who had access to the neighborhood or the house, although not necessarily a family member, Dinse said. 

“We don’t have an identified suspect, but we do have some analysis of what this suspect is like,” he said. “While we have not located Elizabeth or identified a clear suspect, we have made progress.” 

Police said they have ruled out the possibility that the girl staged her own abduction and was a runaway. 

So far, police have received 6,000 leads, of which 600 were worthy of followup.

Jesse Silverman, a junior at Berkeley High School, says he won’t be so quick to cast blame on urban designers for a misplaced parking lot anymore. 

Silverman is one of 176 students in the high school’s Advanced Placement Economics and American Government course who is finishing a model urban planning program. 

The program was designed by UC Berkeley’s Fischer Center for Real Estate and Urban Economics and the San Francisco District Council of the Urban Land Institute, a nationwide non-profit focused on land use issues.  

High school students in Alameda and San Rafael went through the “urban plan” earlier this year. 

“We have more of an idea of how difficult it is to plan a city,” said Silverman. 

Berkeley High students worked in teams of five for three weeks creating development plans for Nahas Heights, a rundown part of town in the fictional city of Yorkville. 

Playing with a Lego model of the neighborhood and crunching numbers on laptop computers, students worked to balance a host of real-life, competing goals.  

Removing blight, generating tax revenue, preserving historic buildings, providing a mix of market-rate and affordable housing, and taking into account a mish-mash of neighborhood demands all come into play.  

Monday morning, several of the teams presented final plans to mock city councils at Berkeley High and district headquarters. The remaining teams are scheduled to present today. Each of the councils will pick a winning design. 

The council at district headquarters, composed of professional architects and economists who volunteered, peppered Silverman’s team with questions about the placement of a public park, the amount of affordable housing in their plan and the location of a series of parking lots. 

The team, which calls itself the Revitilization and Beautification Commission, said the questioning was tough. But members said they learned something from the project. 

“It puts some purpose into what we’ve been learning,” said Powell DeGange, a junior, discussing the role of politics and economics in urban planning. 

“I don’t understand anything that happens in Berkeley,” he continued with a chuckle, referring to the city’s unusual political culture. But DeGange said the project gave him some sense for how a development project might unfold in a typical American town. 

Steven Teal, an A.P. Government teacher who teamed up with A.P. Economics teacher Doug Powers to lead the program at Berkeley High, said students have learned lessons about bargaining and public speaking that they do not necessarily pick up in the lecture format. 

Teal said they have also learned some of the basics terms of urban planning – such as the “footprint” of a building. 

“Three weeks ago, they though it was something that Nike made,” he said. 

Paula Blasier, director of special projects for the Fischer Center, said the program has given students a taste for the competing interests in a city and is hoping it will make them better citizens. 

“We’re not trying to turn them into little developers,” she said. “We’re trying to turn them into citizens who understand the complexities of their environments.” 

Students said some kinks are still left to be worked out. Elise McNamara, a junior on the Revitilization and Beautification team, said the group needed more time to work on its project. Silverman said the format did not allow as much creativity as he would have liked. 

UC Berkeley and the Urban Land Institute will gather the student and teacher feedback and make revisions as they seek to go national. 

Blasier said she has received interested calls from Harvard, Stanford and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

- Contact reporter at 

scharfenberg@berkeleydailyplanet.net

Name that chirp 

TRENTON, N.J. – Some unlikely tunes are leaping up the charts in New Jersey. 

A new CD featuring frogs croaking is selling so fast that state wildlife officials are having trouble keeping it in stock. 

“It’s pretty amazing,” Linda Tesauro, executive director of the Conserve Wildlife Foundation, said last week. “We never expected these to be as popular as they are.” 

Performers include the indigenous Pine Barrens Treefrog, the chirping Northern Spring Peeper, and the Carpenter Frog. 

Frog fans also are buying the accompanying book “Field Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles of New Jersey.” 

Initial runs of 1,000 copies for each item sold out in 10 weeks — a record for the state Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Endangered and Non-game Species Program. A second run of 2,000 is expected within days. 

The frog sounds were recorded in the woods and streams of the Garden State. The CD is meant to teach listeners to identify the calls and chirps of the tiny amphibians. 

The CD and book sell for $10 each or $18 for the set. 

Hello kitty 

CANON CITY, Colo. – Bill and Shirley Smith lost their cat in last week’s destructive wildfires here. Lucky for one lost kitty, they’re not too heartbroken to open their home again. 

The Smiths plan to adopt a frail and burned kitten found in the ashes. 

The wildfire, one of the worst in Colorado history, destroyed 88 homes, including the Smiths’, about 100 miles southwest of Denver. The Smiths saved their three dogs before fleeing but couldn’t find the cat, R.C. 

Tuesday night, Bill Smith’s daughter and son-in-Law, Linda and Jon Marsh, found the kitten while searching for R.C. 

“It wasn’t what we were looking for, but we saved something that was living and breathing,” Linda Marsh said. 

The dehydrated kitten had second-degree burns on its paws, ears and nose. A veterinarian at the Fremont Veterinary Hospital in Canon City bandaged its paws and administered antibiotics. 

It was expected to fully recover. 

Thief returns goods 

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. – A man’s plan to steal his neighbor’s car was foiled when the car broke down and he was caught pushing it back into the driveway. 

Michael Peterson allegedly broke into John Dailey’s home, took a set of car keys, helped himself to soft drinks from the refrigerator and stole a 1985 Honda Civic parked in the driveway, police said. 

Peterson and a male juvenile accomplice knew Dailey would be out of town, said state Trooper G.S. Petsko. 

As they fled, the car “began to malfunction and stopped in the roadway,” Petsko said. “Disgruntled, they pushed the vehicle back to the residence.” 

Dailey’s nephew spotted the men and eventually called police. 

Peterson, 23, was arraigned Wednesday on charges of burglary, destruction of property, receiving a stolen vehicle, larceny and unauthorized use of a vehicle. He was released on $5,000 bond. 

Peterson faces up to 22 years in prison if convicted. 

Petsko said the 16-year-old juvenile accomplice would face similar charges.

To the Editor: 

When a crime is committed, it is important to not blame the victim.  

Yet blame is exactly what seems to be happening to Medical Herbs, the medical marijuana dispensary that was robbed last Thursday and was then referred to as a “public nuisance.”  

As a marijuana activist and employee of Medical Herbs, I am dismayed that the voices of very few neighbors who cry “not in my backyard” are being put forth over the immense support we have in our community. We have collected numerous signatures from the people living around our facility saying that they “would like to see this establishment remain in our community as a resource to qualified patients.” 

This is not a game to us. We are here, knowing the risks involved, because we have a commitment to the patients that rely on us.  

Every day we serve dozens of patients with ailments varying from AIDS, cancer, epilepsy, anorexia, asthma and countless other life-threatening or debilitating illnesses.  

It says a great deal about the commitment of the employees at Medical Herbs that even after three robberies, we are only stronger in our desire to create a safe haven for qualified individuals to have affordable access to the medication they need. 

By some strange coincidence Medical Herb employees had just met on the morning before the robbery to discuss how to increase security above and beyond the procedures we worked on with the city earlier this year. The following are the improvements we decided on and will be taking place as soon as possible: 

• Installing higher quality surveillance monitors 

• Installing a “panic button” that will silently notify the police in case of problems 

• Installing a metal screen door that locks automatically and can be opened by a buzzer inside 

• Provide the security guard with communication equipment 

Our situation is tenuous enough with the Federal government attempting to overrule California’s Proposition 215 — which legitimizes dispensing marijuana to qualified patients.  

At this critical time, we ask the people of Berkeley to stand behind the brave caregivers who are risking their safety to serve the sick and dying in our community. 

Dorrit Geshuri 

Marijuana Activist 

Project Director, Medical Herbs 

Tuesday, June 11

Art for the Earth!  

6 to 8 p.m. special guests: Literacy for Environmental Justice 

The Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave 

A celebration of Eco-Art opening and slide show with Julianne Skai Arbor, Julia Weaver and Mike Floyd 

(510) 548-2220 x233. 

Free 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Grizzly Peak Flyfishers 

7 p.m. for dinner, 7:30 for meeting  

Kensington Community Center, 59 Arlington Ave.  

Beginners and 'wannabes' welcome to monthly meeting 

(510) 524-0428 

$4.00 for dinner, meeting free. 

Adopt A Special Kid (AASK) 

7 p.m. to 9 p.m. 

7700 Edgewater Drive, suite 320, Oakland 

A workshop for singles or couples, gay and lesbian, experienced or older parents, interested in adoption. 

(510) 533-1747, ext. 12, or www.adoptaspecialkid.org 

Free 

Wednesday, June 12

Natural Highs: 

7:30 to 10:00 p.m.  

Sunrise Center, 45 San Clemente Drive, Suite C-200, Corte Madera  

Supplements, nutrition and mind/body techniques with Dr. Hyla Cass  

415-924-5483 orwww.sunrise-center.org 

$15 (Includes refreshments) 

Thursday, June 13

"Centering Prayer, An Introduction" 

7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. 

St. Mary Magdalen Parish, 2005 Berryman St.  

Brother Bryan Dolejsi, OP, speaks on Catholicism 

(510) 526-4811, ext. 19 

Free 

Jack Ball Retirement Party 

King Middle School PE teacher’s retirement 

7 p.m., at Tilden’s Brazil room 

Former students, friends, faculty invited 

Call Teri Gerritz (510) 644-6377 

$48 for dinner, $20 for desert 

Freedom From Tobacco 

A quit smoking class 

5:30-7:30 Thursday Evenings, June 6-July 18 

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis Street, (510) 981-5330 

QuitNow@ci.berkeley.ca.us 

Free 

Friday, June 14

Judaism Workshop 

7 to 8:30 p.m.  

The Ecology Center, 2530 SanPablo Ave  

Earth Traditions: Judaism Rooted in the Earth... Healing the World in Jewish Thought and Practice 

(510) 548-3402 

$10 Ecology Center members, $15 others, no one turned 

away for lack of funds. 

“The Million Dollar Question” 

11:45 for lunch. Speaker begins 12:30 

Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. 

Robert Osserman, Ph.D. from the Mathematical Science Research Institute 

$11.00/$12.25, students free. 

Berkeley Women in Black 

Noon to 1 p.m. 

Telegraph and Bancroft 

A vigil for peace for Palestine and Israel 

(510) 548-6310, or www.wibberkeley.org 

Saturday, June 15

Emergency Preparedness Classes in Berkeley 

9 to 11 a.m. 

997 Cedar Street  

Basic Personal Preparedness: Learn how to take care of yourself, your family and your home. 

981-5605 

Free 

The Great Rummage Sale 

10 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

Berkeley-East Bay Humane Society, 2700 Ninth Street 

Household items, glassware, clothing, furniture for sale. 

(510) 845-7735 

Chu Ko's Late Afternoon Adventure in International Art 

4 p.m. 

Berkeley Public Library Meeting Room, 2090 Kittredge 

Artist Chu Ko discusses his Chinese ink brush painting. 

(510) 981-6100 

Free 

Sierra Club Northern Alameda County Group Forum  

10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. a 

Berkeley Public Library 

Forum on the benefits and problems of urban density with Rachel Peterson, John 

Holtzclaw and Martha Nicoloff. 

Call Jonna Anderson at (510)848-0800 x312 to reserve space 

Free 

The Sierra Student Coalition  

A retreat and planning meeting at Point Reyes National Seashore for high school and college-age students working to address local environmental issues. Meet other student activists, exchange ideas, and become more involved. All East Bay students are welcome at this event. Space  

is limited.  

For Reservations, call Jonna Anderson at 510-848-0800 x312  

Sunday, June 16

Field Trip to Remnant East Shore Habitats 

Visit a selection of critically rare habitats in and adjacent to the new East Shore State Park 

Meet at 10 a.m. at El Cerrito BART, southwest corner of parking lot (towards Albany Hill), then carpool to various sites, returning mid-afternoon. 

(925) 372-0687, e-mail elainejx@mindspring.com 

Free 

Buddhism 

Lee Nichol on "Sacred Dimensions of Time and Space." 

6 p.m. 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Place 

843-6812 

Free 

Restoration Clinic 

9 a.m. to 7 p.m. 

1051 5th Ave. Studio C at E.11th St. 

Suigetsukan, a non-profit martial arts collective in Oakland, is raising funds for a new dojo. Massage 

therapists, chiropractors, acupuncturists, and other health professionals conduct yoga and stress management classes. 

(510) 452-3941 or www.suigetsukan.org. 

Food is the Earth's Way of Love 

Noon 

The Fellowship of Humanity, 390 27th St. Oakland 

Joy Moore, CoDirector of the Farm Fresh Choice program of Berkeley's Ecology Center 

(510) 451-5818 or HumanistHall@yahoo.com 

Monday, June 17th

Multiple Sclerosis Support Group 

Rockridge Library 

Self-help support group. Meets the third Monday each month 

(510) 521-2436, or Rickpete99@yahoo.com 

“An Uncommon Friendship: From Opposite Sides of the Holocaust” 

Join Bernat Rosner, a Holocaust survivor as he reads from and discusses his counterpoint memoir co-authored with Fritz Tubach, the son of a German Army officer. 

7:30 to 8:45 p.m. 

Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center 

1414 Walnut Street 

848-0237 x127 

Free 

Lesbian, Gay, Bi- Sexual, Transgender National Day to Honor loved ones lost on 9/11  

The LGBT National Day of Honor, about creating a Day when all Lesbian,  

Gay, Bi- Sexual, Transgender, & questioning people and our supporters,  

can come together to help further our fight against continued second class  

citizen treatment in the United States.  

For more information, call 802.859.9604 

Poetry Express - Nance Wogan, followed by open mike 

7 to 9 p.m. 

A community open mike welcoming all artists 

Berkeley Bakery & Cafe 

1561 Solano Avenue 

Free 

Tuesday, June 18

Arthritis Rap Session 

12 to 2 p.m. 

Alta Bates Medical Center 

Maffly Auditorium- Herrick Campus 

2001 Dwight Way 

for more info: 644-3273 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Wednesday, June 19

"Part-time Parenting? A Career Networks Forum on Flexible Work Arrangements." 

6:30 to 8:30 p.m.  

Thousand Oaks Elementary, 840 Colusa, Berkeley  

Neighborhood Parents Network. Adults only. 

RSVP required: Amy Knowlden at knowlden@earthlink.net or (510) 526-4044.  

$5 NPN Members and $10 for Non-Members.  

Thursday, June 20

Pride Mass 2002 

7 p.m. 

Newman Hall-Holy Spirit Parish, 2700 Dwight Way 

LGBT Catholics celebrate 10 years towards creating a more inclusive world. 

ALAMEDA — The woman who accused Oakland Raiders defensive tackle Darrell Russell of videotaping her being raped by two of his friends testified Monday that she blacked out after Russell mixed her a drink. 

The 27-year-old woman, who was dating Russell when she said the NFL player raped her on Jan. 31, also said she vaguely remembered looking up at a working video camera. 

The testimony came on the first day of a preliminary hearing. Russell is charged with 25 felonies as an accomplice in the attack. 

The woman said she arranged to meet Russell at a San Francisco club. She testified that she was at the club for about an hour and had two drinks before she spotted Russell and his friends sitting across the room. 

She said she was feeling fine until Russell took a bottle of alcohol from the table at which he was sitting and mixed a “pinkish, fruity” drink for her. 

“I did not watch his every move of making the drink, but I know he did make the drink,” she testified. 

“I don’t recall anything much after that,” she said. But she added that when she woke up from a nap at work the next day, she had visions of someone videotaping her the previous night. 

“All I could see was a red light,” she said. 

Police said they seized a videotape of the incident during a search of the Alameda house where Russell’s teammate, safety Eric Johnson, lived. 

Russell’s lawyer, Cristina C. Arguedas, tried to characterize the woman as someone who is out for money. Under cross-examination, the woman, who went out with Russell about six times, said she plans to file a civil suit against Russell, the former No. 2 overall selection in the NFL draft. 

Arguedas also said that it was reasonable for Russell to think the woman was consenting to the act because she admitted to drinking and having sex separately with Russell and Johnson in the same night two weeks before the incident 

“They go clubbing, they drink, they have sex,” Arguedas said.

The newly-formed Hate Crime Emergency Response Team is getting impatient with the city’s handling of hate crimes and plans to funnel its frustrations at a rally on the steps of old City Hall today. 

“The city has not done anything,” said Osama Qasem, a member of the young coalition of ethnic groups, which was formed to urge the city to response to what Qasem calls a “rash” of post-Sept. 11 hate crimes in Berkeley. 

A number of proposals, ranging from $5,000 rewards for hate crime information to creating a police hate crime unit, were put forth at a heavily-attended City Council meeting last month. But wanting more information, council voted 5-3 to seek advice from the city manager before implementing the measures. 

Today’s 6 p.m. rally is dubbed the “6-11 Plan,” named for today’s date – nine months after the 2001 terrorist attacks. In a written statement organizers said that their effort “seeks to repair the fabric of the community torn apart by the drastic increase in hate crimes and fear since 9-11.” 

But members of the council majority who voted to study the measures are calling today’s rally a political ploy. They claim that their council colleagues are misrepresenting as opposition to hate crime policy their wish for more information. 

“Do you want to make headlines or do you want to solve problems,” asked Councilmember Polly Armstrong, saying that the manner in which the city should respond to hate crimes is now in the hands of the city manager, where it should be, and out of politics. 

“Dealing with people who have rallies and scream the loudest is not the way to address this issue,” she added. 

To the dismay of Armstrong – as well as Mayor Shirley Dean and councilmembers Betty Olds, Polly Armstrong, Miriam Hawley and Maudelle Shirek who also voted to pass matters to the city manager – Councilmember Kriss Worthington has put forth another set of hate crimes measures for City Council to consider. These items are scheduled for discussion at tonight’s City Council meeting. 

Worthington’s proposal includes two ideas: holding a town hall meeting on hate crime and endorsing a federal hate crimes bill. The proposal includes two other proposals considered last month but were sent to the city manager for further consideration. The ideas were to offer money as a reward for hate crime information and to provide a diversity of hate training for police. 

“These are things we can do immediately. They don’t take time to study,” said Worthington, noting that council needs to act now and show the community that it takes hate crime seriously. 

“It’s been nine weeks since hate crime measures have been proposed and City Council has still not acted on anything,” he said. 

Councilmember Armstrong disagreed, claiming that city staff is working hard on the issue. He said that Worthington’s proposal means little. 

“Even though he’s been defeated, he’s bringing it back again,” she said in disbelief. 

Among the recent crimes that council is hoping to respond to include a March incident in which a brick was thrown through a glass door of the Berkeley Hillel, an April hoax in which phony anthrax letters were sent to members of the Hispanic community, and bomb threats made to each of the city’s Jewish temples. 

Contact reporter at kurtis@berkeleydailyplanet.net

Today is Tuesday, June 11, the 162nd day of 2002. There are 203 days left in the year. 

Today’s highlight in history: 

On June 11, 1776, the Continental Congress formed a committee to draft a Declaration of Independence from Britain. 

On this date: 

In 1509, England’s King Henry VIII married Catherine of Aragon. 

In 1919, Sir Barton won the Belmont Stakes, becoming horse racing’s first Triple Crown winner. 

In 1942, the United States and the Soviet Union signed a lend-lease agreement to aid the Soviet war effort in World War II. 

In 1963, Buddhist monk Quang Duc immolated himself on a Saigon street to protest the government of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem. 

In 1970, the United States presence in Libya came to an end as the last detachment left Wheelus Air Base. 

In 1977, a 20-day hostage drama in the Netherlands ended as Dutch marines stormed a train and a school held by South Moluccan extremists. Six gunmen and two hostages on the train were killed. 

In 1977, Seattle Slew won the Belmont Stakes, capturing the Triple Crown. 

In 1978, Joseph Freeman Jr. became the first black priest ordained in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 

In 1979, actor John Wayne died at age 72. 

In 1985, Karen Ann Quinlan, the comatose patient whose case prompted a historic right-to-die court decision, died in Morris Plains, N.J., at age 31. 

Ten years ago: President George H.W. Bush’s stopover in Panama en route to the Earth Summit in Brazil was disrupted when riot police fired tear gas at protesters, preventing Bush from speaking at a rally praising the revival of democracy in Panama. 

Five years ago: The parents of Timothy McVeigh pleaded for their son’s life during the penalty phase of the Oklahoma City bombing trial. 

One year ago: Timothy McVeigh was executed by injection at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Ind., for the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 people. 

Today’s Birthdays: Opera singer Rise Stevens is 89. Actor-producer Richard Todd is 83. Author William Styron is 77. Actor Gene Wilder is 67. Actor Chad Everett is 65. Comedian Johnny Brown is 65. Former auto racer Sir Jackie Stewart is 63. Country singer Wilma Burgess is 63. Singer Joey Dee is 62. Actress Adrienne Barbeau is 57. Rock musician Frank Beard (ZZ Top) is 53. Rock singer Donnie Van Zant (.38 Special) is 50. Actor Peter Bergman is 49. Football Hall of Famer Joe Montana is 46. Actor Hugh Laurie is 43. Country singer-songwriter Bruce Robison is 36. Country musician Smilin’ Jay McDowell (BR5-49) is 33. Rock musician Dan Lavery (Tonic) is 33. Actor Joshua Jackson is 24. 

Thought for Today: “Neither in the life of the individual nor in that of mankind is it desirable to know the future.” — Jakob Burckhardt, Swiss historian (1818-1897).

To the Editor: 

As an organization dedicated to the advocacy of sustainable, attractive, safe, and equitable transportation choices, Berkeley Ecological and Safe Transportation Coalition (BEST) must oppose the Berkeley Height Initiative. You may have seen people gathering signatures to get this initiative on the ballot in November. 

If passed, this initiative would stop smart growth and limit height and growth in Berkeley, thereby forcing new development into the outlying areas of the Bay Area, such as Tracy, Fairfield, and Castro Valley. Essentially, the initiative would significantly change the recently adopted 

General Plan, which represents a hard-won compromise that took years to achieve.  

The Height Initiative is a regressive measure that would put Berkeley in the forefront of NIMBY-ism. In doing so, it would encourage sprawl and guarantee the introduction of even more single occupancy automobiles onto already crowded streets and highways, including our own. 

The Height Initiative would worsen the job/housing imbalance and create even more traffic congestion, as new Bay Area residents would have no other option but to live in outlying areas and pollute their way through Berkeley neighborhoods on their way to work and school. 

Wouldn't it be better to allow growth to occur near jobs and existing public transit, such as the bus lines and BART? Wouldn1t it be better to allow the appropriate densities necessary to support public transportation and retail and job centers so as to make Berkeley a truly "walkable" city?  

To both questions the BEST Coalition answers emphatically "yes." The Height Initiative is a big step in the wrong direction. 

Marcy Greenhut  

BEST

For many local children, the start of summer is a time to relax and be carefree. However, for many other local kids the start of summer means an end to free meal programs at local schools.  

For the past 25 summers Berkeley has fed local children in need through its Summer Food Service. According to Madalyn Law, recreation program administrator for the service, the summer months mean a shortage of food for many local children. 

The Service, originated by the federal government, is coordinated through the city’s Parks, Recreation and Waterfront Department. Trained staff provides lunch for children at 12 locations throughout Berkeley every day. 

“They came to the realization that once schools shut down for the summer there was still a need for food. Kids still need nourishment during the summer,” Law said. 

There is no application process for the kids or their parents. Children simply show up to a site and are given a free meal.  

The only requirement, says Law, is that the children stay on-site while eating.  

Berkeley’s Black Repertory Theatre, a program participant, provides youth from low-income families a chance to eat a free meal, and to check out a play.  

“There are two things you need to do,” said Vaughn Scott, executive director of the theater. “Feed them and expose them to the arts.” 

About 75 kids show up at the Theater each day for lunch during the summer. “This gives them a meal and a chance to find out if they like the arts. A lot of times there’s no where else to go for them,” Vaughn Scott said. 

The Theater’s performance is “The Whiz,” July 8 until Aug. 24. 

Though the program serves an important need, the government-issued lunches have been criticized. Some say the lunch contents could be more nutritious. Berkeley Mayor Shirley Dean says the program ought to promote healthy eating habits, not just provide food.  

“I’m going to purchase one of these meals myself,” Dean said. “I want to experience it because I have the feeling it’s not very nutritious. We need to begin to change the focus and see if we can provide things like fresh fruits and vegetables with these meals.”  

Despite these concerns, the service hands out more than 1,300 lunches each day throughout the summer, said Lisa Corona, director of the Department of Parks, Recreation and Waterfront. 

Locations such as the Youth Services Center on Martin Luther King, Jr. Way, are chosen because they are near schools with more than 50 percent of students receiving free meal programs during the schoolyear. 

Law says that each site serves 100 to 150 lunches a day, and that no child younger than 19 is turned away. 

During the schoolyear, the Berkeley Unified School District provides both free breakfasts and free or reduced-price lunches to all income-eligible students. 

According to Lawrence Lee, executive vice principal at Berkeley High School, BHS provides applications for the program at its cafeteria.  

BHS, however, does not provide a meal program during the summer, even though many students attend summer classes. Lee is hoping the district will soon consider adding a summer program. 

According to Marian Magid, spokesperson for the Berkeley Unified School District, the city applied for a grant for school meal programs that “would be a major infusion of funds and programs related to school meals.”  

Many other local food programs offer children and adults free meals throughout the year. According to Steve Simms, chairman of the Outreach Committee at All Souls Episcopal Church, volunteers try to make those in need feel at home.  

“We think of people as our guests. Our objective is to make them feel at home, to play the piano and have buffet style meals,” Simms said. 

The food program at All Souls rotates its service with other churches and serves more than 100 people at each meal. 

“The volunteers really like to create a friendly and hospitable atmosphere. We have a lot of regulars,” said Simms. 

Other local food programs include the Berkeley Food Pantry, 2220 Cedar St., which distributes groceries to residents, and the Berkeley Emergency Food and Housing Project, 2362 Bancroft Way. 

Contact reporter at chris@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To the Editor: 

For the past ten years I have walked the North Berkeley streets every morning. I have jokingly told my adult children that I expect to die as a pedestrian. With inattentive drivers failing to stop at stop signs, plowing through red lights, and inching up on those walking in cross-walks, it is only a matter of time. What could change if the speed limit was lowered to 20 mph? 

Hey, I have an idea. How about ticketing the present law breakers? The only thing a new law will do is increase scoff-laws. Laws are worthless if the police do not enforce them. White flags for pedestrians-- don’t they mean surrender? I'm not ready yet! 

Donna Cummings

LOS ANGELES – Bugs is coming back, doc. 

Warner Bros. announced plans Monday to produce a new feature film starring Bugs Bunny and fellow Looney Tunes cohorts Daffy Duck, Tweety Bird and the scenery-chewing Tasmanian Devil. 

“Looney Tunes: Back in Action” will combine those animated characters and others with live-action backgrounds and performers, much like the 1988 Disney comedy “Who Framed Roger Rabbit.” 

It’s the first feature film for Bugs and the gang since 1996’s “Space Jam” with basketball star Michael Jordan. 

Brendan Fraser, best known for “The Mummy” and its sequel, will star in the new film as a man who encounters the cartoon creatures in Hollywood, Las Vegas and Africa while searching for his missing father and an ancient treasure. 

“Gremlins” filmmaker Joe Dante has signed to direct the comedy. 

In addition, several new Looney Tunes cartoon shorts will be created to run before other feature movies, said Lorenzo di Bonaventura, president of worldwide production for Warner Bros. 

The studio started in the animated-short business in 1930, when it released the first Looney Tunes short, a parody of Disney’s Silly Symphonies titles, but in recent years the cartoons have been limited mainly to television.

Another day of warm weather and high winds elevated fire danger to its highest point of the year Monday — a level experts say is unusual for the month of June. 

“Unless the weather turns around quickly, we’re going to be in trouble early,” said Berkeley’s Assistant Fire Chief David Orth, noting that by August, East Bay residents could see wildfires more typical of September and October. This means a longer and potentially more dangerous fire season, he said. 

A state-issued Red Flag Warning went into effect for Alameda County Monday. This was the second high-danger warning of the year following Friday’s designation. 

Fire officials responded by shutting down several acres of park land in the East Bay Hills, where the threat was greatest.  

The backcountry of Berkeley’s Tilden Park was included in the closure. 

“And we can expect high fire danger for another couple of days,” said Ned MacKay of the East Bay Regional Parks District. Forecasts call for weakening winds and low humidity.  

Berkeley’s fire concerns are fueled by a rash of wildfires burning across the state and the nation. On the southwestern edge of Denver, a 61,000-acre blaze forced the evacuation of 40,000 people yesterday, and in California, thousands of residents fled homes because of fires from Yuba County to the outskirts of Los Angeles. 

“Activity in Colorado means less resources here should we have a local fire break out,” Chief Orth said. 

Two helicopters from the East Bay Regional Parks District hovered over the East Bay hills yesterday, keeping an eye out for flames. The Berkeley Fire Department called additional staff to conduct engine patrols. On the UC Berkeley campus, student groups policed wildlands. 

“The students can detect an ignition early,” said director of emergency planning with the UC Police Department Tom Klatt. “We depend on them.” 

East Bay fire officials say they are prepared for the hazards that a bad fire season presents – at least more prepared than they were in 1991 when the Oakland hills fire raged, killing 25 people and burning 3,000 buildings. 

“If there’s an ignition, 20 to 30 fire engines start rolling,” Orth said. “(Before) 1991, it was one.”  

The Hills Emergency Forum was born out of the 1991 disaster – adding tools to East Bay fire caches, standardizing equipment among agencies, and coordinating response protocols – promises greater security in the event of future fire, officials said. 

Contact reporter at 

kurtis@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To the Editor: 

I'm appalled at Kurtis Alexander's use of “touts itself as a Jewish civil rights group” in describing the Anti-Defamation League, a prestigious organization which is a civil rights group, and not only a Jewish one.  

“Touts itself” is demeaning and shows that your writer hasn't done his homework. 

Renata Polt 

Berkeley

PHILADELPHIA – Feverishly ill and hallucinating, Frederic Chopin was staying on the island of Majorca in 1839 with his mistress, writer George Sand. It was raining, and he was trying to finish his preludes — 24 in all, one in each key. 

The Romantic piano composer tried in E-flat minor to convey his fraught state of mind by using a continuous trill in the left hand. He later abandoned that effort in favor of a different prelude in that key — but he saved his notes. 

Now, by transcribing Chopin’s shorthand, University of Pennsylvania music history professor Jeffrey Kallberg has resurrected the piece. 

It is not a perfect piece of music, Kallberg said, but it provides new insight into Chopin’s musical ideas and work process. 

“He had this vision of a kind of experimental prelude,” said Kallberg, 47. “He wanted to write it down as quickly as he could, so he used a kind of shorthand.” 

Directly translated, Kallberg said, the music makes little sense. Chopin didn’t mark clefs, so sometimes the positions of notes have to be adjusted. He also didn’t write in every note, so Kallberg had to fill in blanks. 

The result is a frantic 33 measures. Kallberg has nicknamed the piece “The Devil’s Trill” for its similarities to “The Devils Trill” Violin Sonata by Tartini, a likely influence on Chopin. 

The trill in the left hand is paired with rocking triplets in the right. It lasts for just 43 seconds in the version on Kallberg’s Web site, played by Jonathan Bellman, chairman of the music history department at the University of Northern Colorado. 

The piece is dark, turbulent and not at all typical of the composer. 

It “shows a degree of experimentalism we hadn’t known before,” Kallberg said. “At the same time, that’s why it doesn’t work. You’ve got the experimentalism in sound, but the chord progression isn’t that strange.” 

Bellman added, “This is another side to (Chopin) we didn’t know was there. Is this going to change anybody’s view of him in the larger sense? No. But for people who study him, you want to understand.”

UC Berkeley has announced new incentives for staff and faculty to carpool and take public transportation to work. In addition, the university has expressed interest in joining with other large Berkeley employers to obtain bus passes for its workers. 

The new developments mark a break in the ongoing feud between UC Berkeley and a group of employee activists over the university’s commitment to alternative transportation. But activists say they are not satisfied yet. 

“This is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Norah Foster, a union activist and chair of the Improve Transit/Parking Coalition. 

The new incentives, scheduled to take effect July 1, include: 

• free, reserved parking spaces for cars transporting three or more people, marking a reduction $8 to $10 the monthly fees previously required of each car-pooler. 

• reduced payments for two-person carpools. 

• an expansion of a program providing tax-free public transit options. 

• a pilot plan, currently in development, that would provide bicycle lockers and showers at the university’s Recreational Sports Facility for people who bike to campus and want to clean up before work. 

“This campus has a commitment to encouraging people to consider options to driving alone,” said UC Berkeley Director of Transportation Nadesan Permaul, noting that only 51 percent of staff and faculty currently drive alone to campus. 

Foster said the new measures are helpful, but argued that the university will not make real progress until it secures transit passes for all its employees. 

“We feel those options are important, but not as significant (as passes) in reducing the number of cars coming to campus,” she said. 

Activists have pushed for AC Transit bus passes all year, staging a series of protests and press conferences to push the issue. They say the passes would provide low-income staff with an important economic benefit, and serve the environment by taking cars off the road. 

BART, which provides train service, has resisted calls for employer-based pass programs. 

Providing annual bus passes for 14,000 faculty and staff would be expensive, said Permaul. Berkeley pays $60 per pass for its employee program. 

Permaul also argued that most university employees who use public transportation ride BART rather than AC Transit. He said a “commuter check” program which would reimburse employees for any transit passes they purchase, no matter what the agency involved, would make more sense. But again, he said, the heavy costs for the university could get in the way.  

Despite his preference for the “commuter check” option, Permaul expressed interest in a proposal by City Councilmember Kriss Worthington to bring together some of the largest employers in Berkeley and work on obtaining AC Transit passes for all their employees. 

“We want to commend the City Councilmember for his proposal,” said Permaul, in a notable gesture to Worthington, who has sided with the employee activists in what has often been a bitter fight. 

Worthington warned Permaul not to frame as an “either-or” proposition the commuter check and the AC Transit Pass, noting that the city provides both. 

“What the city of Berkeley is doing is more logical,” he said. “We see them as quite consistent with each other.” 

Elisabeth Jewel, district director for Rep. Dion Aroner, D-Berkeley, offered to take Worthington’s proposal and convene the employers in the coming weeks.  

Worthington said Bayer, Alta Bates and the Berkeley Unified School District are among the employers who will gather and push for seed money for the passes from the Alameda County Congestion Management Agency or the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. 

Nichele Ayers, senior marketing representative for AC Transit, said the bus line was interested in sitting down with the employers. 

“Our most important priority is to increase ridership,” she said. But Ayers suggested that the fare reductions that come with large-scale pass programs can hurt the bus line’s bottom line, especially when increased ridership brings a need for increased bus service. 

Ayers said AC Transit normally charges $90 per month for a bus pass. The city of Berkeley is paying just $60 a year for each employee. 

- Contact reporter at 

scharfenberg@berkeleydailyplanet.net

LOS ANGELES – Members of the television industry, expressing concern about the impact of media consolidation on programming quality and diversity, has asked for a federal study of the issue. 

In a letter to FCC chairman Michael K. Powell, TV creators called popular culture among “our great national treasures” and one that is under assault. 

“The harm comes about as a direct result of the growing concentration of ownership. The consequences of this new factor in our industry are — and this is no exaggeration — potentially catastrophic,” the Caucus for Television Producers, Writers & Directors said in its June 7 letter. 

While new technology has increased the number of radio and TV channels available “there has also been an alarming increase in the number of corporate entities which own and control these systems,” the caucus wrote. 

“We believe the FCC needs to consider these implications and the results deregulation has had upon the public interest,” the letter said. 

A call seeking FCC comment was not immediately returned Monday. 

The approximately 150-member caucus bills itself as the “creative conscience” of the TV industry and the only group to represent the writers, directors and producers guilds. 

Caucus members include Fay Kanin, former president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, writer Lionel Chetwynd (“Kissinger and Nixon”) and producer Norman Lear (“All in the Family”).

On Friday morning a UC Berkeley maintenance crew accidentally discharged soapy water into Strawberry Creek, which runs through the campus. 

An employee of the university’s Office of Environment, Health & Safety found the spill. Using storm drain maps, officials traced it to the Spieker Aquatics Complex. 

Steve Maranzana, environmental specialist for the office, said maintenance crew members believed they were pouring soapy water into a sanitary sewer drain, not Strawberry Creek.  

Maranzana said the fish in the creek appeared unharmed. He urged anyone who discovers a creek spill in the future to call his office at 642-3073. 

“The more eyes we have on the lookout, the faster we can respond and minimize the environmental impact,” Maranzana said.

LOS ANGELES – The moon slowly passed in front of the sun Monday in a partial eclipse that dimmed skies in the western United States, Mexico, Canada and Asia. 

A howl went up from a crowd of 300 people on the lawn of Griffith Observatory above Hollywood when the eclipse reached its maximum in Los Angeles at 6:22 p.m. PDT. 

“It looks like someone took a bite out of it,” said George Baltakian, 10, of Burbank. 

“The drama that leads up to it is the thing,” said Paul Jose, 51, of Culver City, a construction worker and eclipse aficionado who photographed the event. 

“The temperature changes and the light changes, and I always enjoy it when I can take off my sunglasses. That’s when you know something is happening,” he said. 

In California, where San Diego offered the best view in the United States, the eclipse began about 5:15 p.m. PDT. At its maximum, three-fourths of the sun was eclipsed in San Diego. 

Edgar Moreno, 36, brought his family to Griffith Observatory to celebrate a sort of cosmic birthday. 

“My son was born in 1994 when this eclipse happened and now it’s happening again,” said Moreno. 

“It’s cool,” said his son, Edgar Jr. 

Danielle Ouwendijk, 25, drove from Camarillo with a friend to view the eclipse at the observatory. 

“It’s just something that’s rare,” she said. “It’s not like every day you can see it.” 

The eclipse came during Southern California’s “June gloom” season, but the overcast that pushes ashore daily from the Pacific burned off early in the day and stayed away as the event unfolded. 

“We’ve got great skies,” said John Downs, president of the Oceanside Photo and Telescope Astronomical Society, which drew a small crowd to an eclipse-watching party in Oceanside on the north San Diego County coast. 

“If you knew how rare they were you’d savor every one,” Downs said. 

The Exploratorium used the Internet to show the eclipse to computer users via its Web site. Skies were cloudless around San Francisco Bay. 

Astronomers said viewers in locations to the east and north would see less of the sun blocked. The Eastern Seaboard had no chance of seeing the event because the timing placed it after sunset there.

LOS ANGELES – Gov. Gray Davis launched a scathing attack ad against his Republican opponent Bill Simon on Monday, the first of what will likely be an onslaught of negative commercials in the five months until election day. 

The ad comes on the heels of two positive television ads the Democratic governor began airing Wednesday. Simon, a political newcomer whose fund-raising is dwarfed by Davis’ more than $30 million campaign treasury, has yet to run television commercials — considered key to reaching voters in sprawling California. 

Davis’ 30-second ad, seen in Los Angeles, Sacramento and the Central Valley, focuses on Western Federal Savings and Loan, a Simon family investment seized by the government in 1993 at a cost to taxpayers of more than $90 million. 

“Bill Simon inherited a fortune. But how has he managed on his own? When he directed a savings and loan, the thrift made bad loans, went belly up and was seized by the federal government. ... If he can’t run an S&L, how can he run California?” the ad asks.”

SAN FRANCISCO – After escaping serious damage in the early stages of the high-tech wreck, venture capitalists suffered even deeper financial wounds than stock market investors last year, according to industry figures released Monday. 

Venture capital funds plunged by an average of 27.8 percent in 2001, a gruesome about-face from the prior year when the average fund gained 28.6 percent, according to statistics complied by Thomson Financial/Venture Economics for the National Venture Capital Association, an industry trade group. 

It marked the industry’s first calendar-year loss since the trade group began tracking fund returns in 1980. Before 2001, venture capitalists’ worst single-year performance came in 1984 when the average fund inched up by 1.3 percent. 

The venture capital community’s setback was even more severe than the Nasdaq composite index, the most popular benchmark for measuring the performance of publicly held tech stocks. The Nasdaq index fell by 21 percent during 2001, coming off a 39 percent loss in 2000. 

The Nasdaq’s prolonged funk has contributed to the dramatic deterioration in venture capital portfolios. 

With the stock market discounting the shares of technology industry giants such as Cisco Systems and Sun Microsystems, venture capitalists are being forced to face up to the grim conditions and mark down the value of their holdings in industry startups. 

Some venture capitalists say they already have made most, if not all, of the painful adjustments to their portfolios. Many other venture capitalists, though, still haven’t fully recognized their losses on their books, something they likely will have to do soon unless the industry stages a surprising turnaround. 

That means venture capitalists likely will be showing losses through at least the end of next year and maybe even beyond, according to industry analysts and professionals. 

“The next two to four years are going to be tough sledding,” said San Francisco venture capitalist Chip Adams, a principal at Rosewood Capital. 

Last year ended with the industry’s fifth consecutive quarterly loss, dating back to late 2000. 

The average decline of 3.9 percent during the final three months of 2001 marked an improvement from a third quarter loss of 10 percent, but “that should not be seen as a sign of recovery,” warned Jeanne Metzger, a spokeswoman for the industry trade group. “We are not out of the woods yet.” 

The recent losses represent a sobering comedown for venture capitalists after registering a mind-boggling 167 percent gain in 1999, near the height of the dot-com boom. By comparison, the Nasdaq index surged by 86 percent in 1999. 

With the losses from the dot-com bust now piling up, some institutional investors want to cash out of struggling venture capital funds. But most venture capitalists say their investors are sitting tight and betting that the funds will deliver better long-term returns than the stock or bond markets. 

Despite the deep losses of 2001, venture capital funds posted an average gain of 49.3 percent over the past three years and an average increase of 35.9 percent over the past five years, according to Venture Economics. 

“Most institutional investors are used to weathering a storm like this,” said Philip Sanderson, general partner of WaldenVC. “If you think in terms of ’buy low, sell high,’ there has never been a better time to be investing venture capital.” 

LOS ANGELES – A jury awarded the City of Hope medical research center $300.1 million in compensatory damages Monday after finding that Genentech Inc. broke its promise to pay royalties on drugs based on City of Hope research. 

By a vote of 10-2 the Los Angeles County Superior Court jury also found that Genentech, a biotechnology giant, acted with malice or fraud. 

The jury reached its verdict after more than three weeks of deliberation. The panel will reconvene next week to determine punitive damages. 

“We’re going to ask for substantial punitive damages,” said Glenn Krinsky, in-house counsel for City of Hope. 

It was the second trial of the case. The first trial in the civil lawsuit ended in a mistrial last October when the jury failed to reach a verdict after eight days of deliberation. 

“We never lost our confidence,” Krinksy said. “We are elated and feel very vindicated.” 

Genentech, based in South San Francisco, was preparing a statement Monday afternoon. 

City of Hope sued Genentech in 1999, claiming the company concealed licensed sales of protein products such as hepatitis vaccines over a 15-year period that were worth about $16.7 billion. 

The Duarte, Calif.-based research center, which made the protein manufacturing discovery, contended it is owed 2 percent royalties on those sales, plus interest, or $457 million dollars, based on an agreement it signed with Genentech in 1976. 

Genentech claimed that the disputed sales by licensed third parties never qualified for royalty payments under the terms of the agreement. The company said it never concealed deals and paid the hospital everything it was due.

SACRAMENTO – An energy company could lose its permit to build a power plant if it didn’t start construction within two years under a bill approved Monday by the state Senate. 

Supporters said the bill would help the state plan its energy needs and discourage companies from holding on to permits to sell them when a shortage of electricity boosts their value. 

“There is no way we can have any certainty without putting a time limit on things,” said Sen. Debra Bowen, D-Marina del Rey. 

But opponents said the measure would discourage power plant development. 

“Why on earth would anyone want to build a power plant in the state of California with all the rules, with all the regulations?” asked Sen. Bill Morrow, R-Oceanside. “We make it next to impossible.” 

The bill, by Sen. Steve Peace, D-El Cajon, would require a company to begin construction of a power plant within a year after the getting a state permit. 

The company could get another year by agreeing to reimburse the state Energy Commission for the cost of licensing the project. 

The commission could revoke the license or impose fines if the builder couldn’t show good reasons for failing to meet construction milestones, and the state Power Authority could take over the project. 

State regulators could impose up to $150,000 in fines for failure to comply with conditions attached to a permit, up from the current $75,000.

SACRAMENTO – California could be the first state to allow workers to take paid leaves from their jobs to care for a seriously ill family member or a new child under a bill approved Monday by the Senate. 

The measure, by Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Santa Monica, was sent to the Assembly by a 21-15 vote. 

California currently allows workers to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to care for themselves, a seriously ill parent, child or spouse or because of the birth or adoption of a child. 

But Kuehl said most workers can’t afford to take advantage of the program. 

Her bill would allow about 12 million workers to take up to 12 weeks of paid leave to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent or domestic partner or to care for a new child. 

Workers taking part in the program would receive 55 percent of their wages, up to a maximum of $490 a week. The maximum payment would increase each year based on an inflation factor. 

Employers and employees would split the cost of the program, which is estimated to be about $42 a year per worker. Using that figure, an employer with 10 employees would pay $210 annually and each of the 10 employees would pay $21 into the leave fund. 

A doctor would have to verify that there was a seriously illness or a new child before an employee could take a leave. 

Nesty Firestein, director of the Labor Project for Working Families, a nonprofit group based in Berkeley, said no state has paid leaves, although legislation has been introduced in more than 20 states to implement such programs. 

She predicted it would save employers money by helping them retain employees. 

Sen. Ray Haynes, R-Riverside, complained that lawmakers were assured when they approved the unpaid leave program several years ago that it would never be turned into a paid program. 

“I hope this is a lesson for the next Republican governor or next Republican president before they sign this kind of bill,” he said. “Once Democrats control everything they are going to start raising taxes and raising benefits to pay for these screwball ideas. 

“A tax on a job eliminates jobs; this is a tax on a job.” 

But Sen. Mike Machado, D-Linden, said fewer and fewer families can afford to have one spouse work.

ETNA – A 600-acre fire raced through wilderness near the Oregon border on Monday, while week-old blazes that consumed nearly 45,000 acres throughout the state were finally on the way to being contained. 

The blaze in rural Siskiyou County started Sunday afternoon when a backyard debris fire got out of control, said Penny Melum, a spokeswoman for the Klamath National Forest. 

“It is human-caused, and it just breaks my heart,” Melum said. 

The fire was burning 30 miles south of the border in steep, treacherous mountain terrain that made it hard to fight, Melum said. 

High winds spread the flames along 80-degree slopes. 

About 350 firefighters worked in 80-degree heat. The few homes in the area were not immediately threatened and no evacuations were ordered, but fire engines were stationed at each house. 

The fire did threaten the homes of bears, mountain lions, raccoons and rattlesnakes. 

A little farther south, a 1,100-acre wildfire was contained Monday afternoon. No homes were damaged and no injuries were reported. The fire 60 miles northeast of Sacramento in Yuba County started Sunday when high winds knocked power lines into a tree. It briefly prompted the evacuation of about 150 homes. 

In Southern California, a wildfire that scorched 23,407 acres of brush in the Angeles National Forest, destroyed nine homes and chased away more than 1,000 residents was 90 percent contained Monday afternoon.

OAKLAND – A 4-year-old girl who suffered head injuries when she fell from a ride at Six Flags Marine World in Vallejo has been upgraded to fair condition. 

The girl, whom authorities would not identify, initially was placed in the intensive care unit of Children’s Hospital Oakland after the accident Saturday. By Monday, she was out of intensive care and doing well, said Susan Martinez, a spokeswoman for the hospital. 

The girl was the second person to fall off the whirling Starfish ride in two years. A 41-year-old woman had minor injuries after falling from the ride last May, prompting park officials to add a second lap bar restraint.

Betty Grey may be the latest victim of what many merchants are calling the “gentrification” of south Berkeley. 

In the historically struggling section of town centered at Adeline Street and Alcatraz Avenue, the 53-year-old owner of Alice's Relaxing Baths shop was served a 30-day-eviction notice last week. Neighbors surmise the eviction is part of the landlord's plan to remove tenants and sell the property to a high-paying commercial investor. 

Owners of the building could not be reached for comment, but South Berkeley's Merchant Association President Sam Dyke said local property owners were increasingly cashing in real estate and noted that a building void of tenants was worth much more than a rented building. 

While Adeline Street may not be the fertile investment ground that has marked the revitalized Fourth Street area of Berkeley and the newly redeveloped downtown, the south Berkeley neighborhood has similarly benefited from city cash influxes, going toward the creation of a more palatable climate for business. 

Elegant streetlights line the sidewalks, planting boxes and pedestrian benches add aristocratic charm, and storefronts have been tastefully upgraded as part of a city-subsidized maintenance program. 

Just last month, city banners were hung along Adeline Street celebrating the additions. The banners plug the neighborhood as a center of shopping, dining, and the arts and demarcate the area as the “Lorin Historic District.” Lorin was the self-governing city that existed in the 1880s, before Berkeley's annexation of the community. 

“We're really trying to help the business community here,” said Roger Asterino, Berkeley's community development project coordinator. The latest help, Asterino noted, came in the form of a $1.2 million federal grant which continues to fund upgrades to streets and sidewalks along Adeline Street. 

Some retail stores like music shop Univibe have taken well to the neighborhood changes, earning a steady clientele over the past few years. And eateries like Vault Café and La Bayou have succeeded in becoming anchors for a slowly-growing dining scene. 

See ADELINE/Page 6 

ADELINE/From Page 1 

Dyke, who runs an antique furniture store at 3258 Adeline in addition to heading the local merchants group, says recent changes are mostly beneficial but do have negative repercussions. 

“We're on our way to becoming a better place,” he said, noting the recent “gentrification.” “But once the gates [of economic development] are let open there's not much we can do… We're going to see mom and pop shops make way to bigger businesses.” 

And that's what Grey says is about to happen to her. Having run her small bath accessory business for 15 years, she pays $800 a month in rent for her 3228 Adeline Street space but knows it’s worth more. 

“It's a nightmare,” she said of her pending eviction. Grey noted that her shop relocated from nearby Alcatraz Avenue just two years ago and doesn't know if her business can survive another costly move. 

Her bath shop, which offers a wide array of bath salts and essential oils under the steady glow of an incense stick, began as a government-subsidized business program, aimed at promoting low-income entrepreneurs in the 1980s. This month, though, marks her eighth year of financial self-sufficiency. 

Grey says she is not about to give up her bath shop without a fight and points out terms in her lease which guarantee her the option of staying for another five years. Grey admits, though, that she may have trouble exercising that option because her ability to pay for a lawyer and advocate her rights is limited. 

Last Thursday afternoon, officers with the Berkeley Police Department showed up at Grey's shop responding to a complaint Grey had registered that morning. According to Grey, a real estate agent bringing potential buyers to her building had verbally harassed her because she was late in opening her store. Police took a report. 

Grey's next-door neighbor who runs a shop called Earl's Beauty Supplies, the second of the two retail tenants at the 3228 Adeline St. property, said that he had not received an eviction notice. He didn't want to comment further for fear of jeopardizing his tenancy. 

City officials, who know Grey as an active leader in the south Berkeley community, regret the pending eviction. 

“The loss of tenants is not a good thing,” said Asterino. The city wants to create better infrastructure for local businesses but in doing so risks losing tenants who can't compete in the changing marketplace, he explained. 

One city official said that efforts had been made to find financial aid to help Grey relocate but they hadn't been successful. Aid programs exist to help nonprofit groups, the official added, but since Grey's business is for-profit, little outside funding is available. 

While Grey might not be in business long enough to benefit from the Adeline corridor improvements, others seem to be relishing the perks. 

“The new trees are nice,” said Odell Lightner, who enjoyed an afternoon walk. However, Lightner who has lived in the community for 20 years doesn’t like all the changes, saying that he has missed some of the old shrubs and landscaping. 

Much of the brush that once existed along Adeline Street has been cleared in an attempt to eliminate turf for drug sales, said Merchant Association President Dyke. 

Recalling the neighborhood’s history of crime, Dyke hopes recent improvements will help curtail such incidents. 

“It seems to be removing a lot of the drug dealers because of the bright lights,” said Dyke. He is optomistic that the trend will continue so long as revitalization continues.

To the Editor 

The May 7 Berkeley City Council hearing on the proposed four-story building on Sacramento, near Dwight Way (formerly Outback clothing store), revealed inclinations which I find somewhat disturbing. The constant conflict between the need for additional housing in Berkeley, especially for low-income seniors, and the rights of current Berkeley residents to maintain a reasonable living environment is not new. My neighbors and I are especially aware of this because a five-story building has been approved for the corner of University Avenue and Acton, in the midst of primarily one-story houses one very short block away on Addison Street and Berkeley Way. The tendency to demonize as callous and uncaring residents who don't want their homes to be in shadow or to be unable to find a nearby parking place when they return home late in the evening is also not new, but appears to be increasingly mean. 

At last month’s hearing, David Stoloff, President of the Board of Affordable Housing Associates, stated, "While it is true there are no other buildings of this scale in the immediate vicinity, precedents like these are needed to encourage other appropriately scaled development along Berkeley’s avenues." This statement reveals two of my concerns: 1.) Apparently Mr. Stoloff considers a four-story building in a neighborhood of primarily one-story homes "appropriately scaled," and 2.) His "foot-in-the-door" strategy interferes with the City Council's intent to minimize the impact of new development on neighborhoods. Those of us near the Acton Courtyard are greatly concerned that it may be only the first of many tall buildings with inadequate parking on the University corridor, despite the residential neighborhoods on both sides of University. Additional tall buildings in our neighborhood will be no more appropriately scaled to our homes than the first one. 

The other concern came with the statement of Claude Harvey, who protested "undermining the over-extensive ZAB (Zoning Adjustments Board) and neighborhood-involved process, the General Plan, the zoning and the professional staff's assessment..." by having a public hearing. Was he really objecting to the opportunity for neighbors of the proposed four-story building to express their concerns to the elected governing body of their city? Does he really believe that the council and affected citizens should just accept without question the decisions of ZAB and the city staff? If having council members hear concerns of their constituency is causing some developers to "flee" Berkeley, as he says, then perhaps they shouldn't be developing projects in Berkeley. 

I was encouraged by the granting of a public hearing on the project, especially broadcast on Channel 78. A well-informed citizenry is crucial to the maintenance of the quality of life in Berkeley. We need to be constantly vigilant in the effort and I appreciate the existence of the Daily Planet and its contribution. 

-Honor Thompson 

Berkeley

Monday, June 10

Partial Solar Eclipse 

Begins at 5:06 p.m., reaches its maximum at 6:16 p.m. and will be over at 7:10 p.m.  

Lawrence Hall of Science plaza 

LHS astronomers will be on hand to explain the eclipse and help the public with safe viewing techniques. Sun spotter telescopes provided and special viewing glasses for sale  

(510) 643-8980; lindas@uclink.berkeley.edu 

First 100 people will receive an energy efficient fluorescent light bulb - free 

Poetry Express - All Open Mike Night 

7 to 9 p.m. 

A community open mike welcoming all artists 

Berkeley Bakery & Cafe 

1561 Solano Avenue 

Free 

"All Grown Up: Living Happily Ever With Your Adult Children" 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center, 1414 Walnut Street 

Author Roberta Maisel leads the mid-life parent through a series of thoughtful steps inherent in the process of learning how to let go. 

(510) 848-0237 x127 

Free 

Berkeley Parkinson's Group 

10 a.m. 

Berkeley Senior Center, MLK and Hearst 

Speakers, exercise advice, good fellowship 

Caregivers and relatives invited 

Free 

Tuesday, June 11

Art for the Earth!  

6 to 8 p.m. special guests: Literacy for Environmental Justice 

The Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave 

A celebration of Eco-Art opening and slide show with Julianne Skai Arbor, Julia Weaver and Mike Floyd 

(510) 548-2220 x233. 

Free 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Grizzly Peak Flyfishers 

7 p.m. for dinner, 7:30 for meeting  

Kensington Community Center, 59 Arlington Ave.  

Beginners and 'wannabes' welcome to monthly meeting 

(510) 524-0428 

$4.00 for dinner, meeting free. 

Adopt A Special Kid (AASK) 

7 p.m. to 9 p.m. 

7700 Edgewater Drive, suite 320, Oakland 

A workshop for singles or couples, gay and lesbian, experienced or older parents, interested in adoption. 

(510) 533-1747, ext. 12, or www.adoptaspecialkid.org 

Free 

Wednesday, June 12

Natural Highs: 

7:30 to 10:00 p.m.  

Sunrise Center, 45 San Clemente Drive, Suite C-200, Corte Madera  

Supplements, nutrition and mind/body techniques with Dr. Hyla Cass  

415-924-5483 orwww.sunrise-center.org 

$15 (Includes refreshments) 

Thursday, June 13

"Centering Prayer, An Introduction" 

7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. 

St. Mary Magdalen Parish, 2005 Berryman St.  

Brother Bryan Dolejsi, OP, speaks on Catholicism 

(510) 526-4811, ext. 19 

Free 

Jack Ball Retirement Party 

King Middle School PE teacher’s retirement 

7 p.m., at Tilden’s Brazil room 

Former students, friends, faculty invited 

Call Teri Gerritz (510) 644-6377 

$48 for dinner, $20 for desert 

Freedom From Tobacco 

A quit smoking class 

5:30-7:30 Thursday Evenings, June 6-July 18 

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis Street, (510) 981-5330 

QuitNow@ci.berkeley.ca.us 

Free 

Costa Rica-Turkey tie puts Brazil into next round without playing 

YOKOHAMA, Japan – Japan’s victory over Russia set off jubilant celebrations in the co-host nation of the World Cup. It also set off the worst kind of reaction in Moscow. 

Russian fans angered by the 1-0 loss Sunday went on a rampage, overturning cars and setting them on fire in the center of the city. At least one man was killed, and the Interfax news agency said five music students from Japan were beaten. 

An Associated Press photographer saw a mutilated corpse lying on the street during the chaos, which erupted across a square from the Kremlin walls and lasted for more than an hour. 

Officials said 27 people were hospitalized. 

The scene was vastly different in the streets of Yokohoma, where the Japanese won a World Cup game for the first time. They were 0-3 in their debut four years ago. Drivers honked horns and pedestrians chanted “Nippon, Nippon,” waving flags and jerseys. 

Japan was cheered on at the site of the June 30 championship game by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. 

“I think we’ve changed the view people have of Japanese soccer with this victory,” said Junichi Inamoto, who scored the goal. “But we still have to advance to the next round.” 

That could come Friday if they tie or beat Tunisia. The Tunisians played Belgium on Monday at Oita, Japan. 

Spanish players partied, waiting for the rest of the World Cup to catch up with them. Spain was the first team to qualify for the second round. 

Brazil matched that Sunday and it didn’t even play — Costa Rica’s 1-1 tie with Turkey ensured its advance and eliminated China. 

When Mexico beat Ecuador 2-1 and Costa Rica tied, it improved CONCACAF’s record to 4-0-1. Long considered one of the weakest regions in FIFA, its spotless mark was on the line Monday when the United States played host South Korea in Daegu. 

South Korea President Kim Dae-jung was not scheduled to attend the game. FIFA spokesman Walter Gagg, in charge of stadiums and security, said security would be “much tougher than all the matches before. They will not be afraid, but they will be very, very careful.” 

Aside from possible terrorism, authorities want to head off protests against the United States. U.S. military bases in the country cause some friction, and Koreans still are upset over the Olympic short track speedskating race where a South Korean disqualification let American Apolo Anton Ohno win gold. 

South Korean organizers said Sunday they planned to sell 7,028 tickets for the U.S.-South Korea match to fans at the stadium hours before the game. About 3,600 tickets were leftovers allotted for fans outside the co-host nation. The rest were seats with obstructed views. 

Also Monday, Portugal played Poland in Jeonju, South Korea. 

Mexico won its second straight for the first time in a World Cup on Gerardo Torrado’s 57th-minute goal. But to reach the second round, it needs at least a draw with Italy, or help from Ecuador against Croatia on Thursday. 

” We are still hopeful we can win the final match against Italy and go on to the next round,” midfielder Joahan Rodriguez said. 

Costa Rica’s tie came on Winston Parks’ nifty left-footed shot in the 86th minute. 

“I was ready and just wanted to show why everyone has put so much confidence in me,” Parks said. “My family and girlfriend told me I’d have a chance and I’d take advantage.” 

Against Mexico, Ecuador’s Agustin Delgado headed home a cross from Ulises De la Cruz in the fifth minute, scoring newcomer Ecuador’s first goal in the World Cup. Mexico’s Jared Borgetti tied it in the 28th minute. 

“We’re just happy that our chances of advancing now depend on us,” said Mexico coach Javier Aguirre. “This was an even match and either team could have won.”

Weekend rally urges affordable units 

Affordable housing advocates and the arts community joined forces this weekend to celebrate a planned affordable housing development and to make a plea to the Berkeley community to continue providing housing, particularly for the city’s artists. 

Saturday's event was part of Affordable Housing and Open Studio Week which began May 31. The event was held on a sun-baked vacant lot at 1725 University Avenue, the future site of 27 family apartments for families with children with disabilities. The project is one of three developments of the nonprofit Affordable Housing Associates slated for Berkeley. There are six on the drawing board for Oakland. 

"This week we're celebrating the convergence of affordable housing and artists' communities," said Ali Kashani, executive director of the Berkeley-based AHA. Kashani noted that between 1997 and 2000, housing prices in Berkeley increased 40 percent, while there has been no significant rise in the city's medium income. "Nobody's income, especially low income people, has risen by that percentage amount. So there is a disproportionate ratio in the rise of housing costs and their income," she explained. 

This has left untold numbers of artists and low-income workers fleeing Berkeley and seeking refuge in nearby Oakland or cities outside the Bay Area. 

In an attempt to counter the exodus, Saturday’s event highlighted housing hopes on the horizon, and sought to redefine the public's bad associations with affordable housing. 

With AHA's recent purchase of a lot at 9th Street and Ashby Avenue, artists are scheduled to receive a much needed respite. The new site will include approximately 40 affordable artisan lofts and breaks ground this fall, to be completed sometime in late 2004. The city allocated $500,000 for this project, leaving AHA to come up with the rest. 

Poet and jeweler Anna Mae Stanely knows first-hand about what affordable housing means to artists. For more than 11 years she and her son have lived in the University Avenue Cooperative Homes. With subsidized rent, the pressure of making rent has subsided, she has been able to raise her son in a stable home environment, and she has improved the overall quality of her life, using time to produce art rather than rent. 

Affordable housing has allowed Stanley to stay in Berkeley, and therefore let Berkeley bare the fruits of Stanely's artistic passions. When time has passed, said Stanley, maybe hundreds of years from now, society will understand itself through its artwork. If there is no artwork, she said, what will people see? If the only people left here were middle and upper class – all with similar backgrounds – we wouldn't have a realistic picture of what the world is like as a whole, she added. 

In an effort to reverse the popular misconception surrounding affordable housing, East Bay Housing Organizations’ Executive Director Sean Heron, hoped Saturday’s event would re-shape the public's image of affordable housing. 

"People have misconceptions and think people who live in affordable housing might bring crime or drugs and lower property values," said Heron. “The affordable housing we're concerned about is built by nonprofit developers with the highest design standards and community and city involvement. When the buildings are done they're beautiful and people forget their misconceptions." 

If people's image of affordable housing can be changed, that leaves the acquisition of land and subsidies as the two major obstacles for affordable housing- obstacles voters can help eliminate this November when they have the option to vote for a $2 billion statewide housing bond. Half of the bond's funds will be allocated to help house low income and disabled individuals and families— the remaining funds will be spread over various programs including home ownership and farm worker housing programs. 

Affordable housing advocates are calling the bond the most exciting thing to happen in California housing in 20 years. Also in attendance at Saturday's event was Joyce Jenkins, editor and publisher of Poetry Flash, a popular poetry review and literary calendar. With Berkeley as its home for more than 30 years, Poetry Flash is bound to the city's literary history and institutions, Jenkins says, but despite deep ties, it has become bitterly difficult to stay in Berkeley. 

The rent for Poetry Flash’s live/work space was recently increased $750 a month with no foreseeable increase in their ability to pay. Jenkins hopes the community will rally to support affordable housing, to help house artists, and therefore help Berkeley remain a creative, meaningful place to live creative and meaningful lives. 

"We stay here in Berkeley because of our deep historical ties to the city and area, because this is where our core audience is," she said.

To the Editor: 

"The prospect of domination of the nation's scholars by Federal employment, project allocations, and the power of money is ever present and is gravely to be regarded. Yet, in holding scientific research and discovery in respect, as we should, we must also be alert to the equal and opposite danger that public policy could itself become the captive of a scientific technological elite. In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex." -- Former U.S. General and Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower's farewell address, 1961.  

Eisenhower's now-famous "Military-Industrial Complex" speech is relevant to two of the items due to resurface at the Berkeley City Council meeting Tuesday night: tritium, a form of ionizing radiation found at Lawrence Berkeley, and microwaves, or non-ionizing radiation that emanates from the new Public Safety Tower. 

Both are an integral part of the "complex" that Eisenhower warned us about. One of tritium's uses is to make nuclear bombs. Are the "scientific technological elite" serving the citizens of Berkeley in exposing them to tritium radiation (and to terrorists), or are they, wittingly or otherwise, bowing to the god of the "military-industrial complex"? Microwaves are also used in weapons research.  

Although the Macro Corporation reported no biohazards in its study of our 'Safety' Tower, the tower hadn't yet been turned on, and worldwide research findings contradict this assessment. The city paid $50,000 for this report, and now Macro wants another $43,000 to study 'field strengths.' Where did the $50,000 go? Why did our council, save two, vote to turn on the controversial (put up without city permits) tower? It would seem a crisis situation had been created--backup generators didn't work, right before a council vote--and the council fell for it. Are our older towers worn out, or were the dropped calls reported by the police, which justified turning on the new tower, really a result of radio frequency interference from Berkeley's many other microwave sources? Telecom and public service providers do share the same waveband, causing dead zones. Read: "Sounds of Silence: Cell Phone Towers Are a Police Radio Nightmare," in the March l5, 200l issue of Law Enforcement News. 

Sattelites offer a safer and more reliable alternative to the Tower. They are less affected by weather and large-scale disasters, like earthquakes. In theory there are no dropped calls. Unfortunately, microwaves from satellites as well as ground-based transmitters, through a process called PLHR, are potentially a threat to the earth's magnetosphere, which protects us from the sun (Parrot and Zaslavski: "Physical Mechanisms of Man-Made Influences on the Magnetosphere," Surveys in Geophysics l7: 67-l00, l996). 

Eisenhower counseled that "we must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together."  

Let us, the citizens of Berkeley, become, once again, that "alert and knowledgeable citizenry." Voice your concerns about tritium and the tower (distance is no guarantee of immunity) to the mayor and your City Council representative. Call your congresspersons and ask them to support the Jeffords-Leahy Microwave Bill in Washington.  

-Kate Bernier 

Berkeley

Natalie Coughlin, a 19-year-old sophomore swimmer at Cal, is one of five nominees for an ESPY Award as the Best Female College Athlete.  

Coughlin, who earlier this year was a finalist for the AAU James E. Sullivan Award as the nation’s top amateur athlete, is an ESPY finalist along with UConn basketball player Sue Bird, Arizona softball player Jennie Finch, UCLA softball player Stacey Nuveman and Southwest Missouri State basketball player Jackie Stiles.  

The 10th Annual ESPY Awards will be held Wednesday, July 10 at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, the new home of the Academy Awards. Actor Samuel L. Jackson will be hosting the show and Coughlin will be along side some of the biggest names in sports, including Tiger Woods, Barry Bonds, Jennifer Capriati and Annika Sorenstam. There are 35 different categories of ESPY Awards, ranging from Best Male Athlete to the Best Record-Breaking Performance.  

At the 2002 NCAA championships March 21-23 in Austin, Texas, Coughlin was spectacular in earning NCAA Swimmer of the Year honors for the second year in a row. She won three individual national titles, breaking NCAA, American and U.S. Open records in all three events. Coughlin won the 100 backstroke (49.97, first woman to swim under 50 seconds), the 200 backstroke (1:49.52) and the 100 butterfly (50.01). She also broke the NCAA, American and U.S. Open record in the 100 freestyle, swimming a time of 47.47 as the lead-off leg of the Bears’ 400 freestyle relay.  

In her brief career, Coughlin has now set two world records, 24 American records, is a two-time NCAA Swimmer of the Year, has won six individual NCAA titles and was named the recipient of the 2001-02 Honda Sport Award Winner for swimming April 3.

SAN FRANCISCO — The FBI, working covertly with the CIA and then-Gov. Ronald Reagan, spent years unlawfully trying to quash the voices and careers of students and faculty deemed subversive at the University of California, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Saturday. 

After a 17-year legal battle to unearth FBI records, the Chronicle reported in a special section on its Web site and Sunday paper that documents show that during the 1950s and 1960s, the FBI schemed to kill the career of UC President Clark Kerr while aiding Reagan’s political career. 

Thousands of pages of documents were obtained by The Chronicle through the Freedom of Information Act only after federal judges repeatedly ruled that the FBI had drifted unlawfully from intelligence gathering into politics. 

Experts said the FBI and CIA’s past activities involving the University of California provide a cautionary tale about potential dangers to academic freedom and civil liberties as President Bush commits more resources to domestic intelligence activities. 

“This ... raises a topic that we should be concerned about today: the balance between security and liberty,” said Elizabeth Rindskopf Parker, the CIA’s general counsel from 1990 to 1995 and current dean of the University of the Pacific’s McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento. 

“We learned some painful lessons,” said Rindskopf Parker. “We certainly don’t want to see ourselves rolling back to this time.” 

FBI spokesman Bill Carter refused to comment on the bureau’s campus files. In its unsuccessful battle to keep them secret, the agency said its actions had been proper — that it had merely tried to protect civil order and national security during a time when the nation feared Communism and waged war in Vietnam. 

“Things are done a lot differently today,” Carter told the Chronicle. “The files speak for themselves.” 

The broad outlines of the illegal FBI campaigns became public in the 1970s as Congress held hearings that showed the FBI and CIA had monitored law-abiding citizens and organizations that engaged in legitimate dissent. The documents obtained by the Chronicle show just how extensive these activities were in California, how Kerr and others were targeted, and how eagerly Reagan worked to quash protests. 

Gov. Reagan’s administration intended to mount a “psychological warfare campaign” against subversives, bring tax evasion and building code violation cases against them, and to do anything else it could to restore moral order, Herbert Ellingwood, Reagan’s legal affairs secretary, told the FBI in a request for confidential information about people on campus. 

The records show FBI director J. Edgar Hoover agreed to provide such information from the agency’s files. 

“This has been done in the past,” the director said, “and has worked quite successfully.” 

The documents show that Hoover was incensed after the University of California included this essay question on its 1959 English aptitude test for high school applicants that read: “What are the dangers to a democracy of a national police organization, like the FBI, which operates secretly and is unresponsive to public criticism?” 

Hoover ordered a campaign to embarrass the university and force it to retract the question. He also ordered agents to dig up dirt on the 6,000 faculty members and top administrators. The resulting report in 1960 listed the professor’s political activities, and said many had engaged in “illicit love affairs, homosexuality, sexual perversion, excessive drinking or other instances of conduct reflecting mental instability.” 

Records show CIA Director John McCone also was involved, meeting with Hoover in January 1965 after the Free Speech Movement held its first sit-ins. The documents describe their plans to leak information to conservative UC Regent Edwin Pauley, who would “use his influence to curtail, harass and at times eliminate” liberal faculty members. Pauley had hoped to fire Kerr. 

The documents also show that the FBI blamed the liberal Kerr for allowing the campus protests to grow, and that Hoover himself wanted a crackdown at Berkeley before student protests grew nationwide. 

“If agitational activity at Berkeley can be effectively curtailed, this could set up a chain reaction which will result in the curtailment of such activities on other campuses throughout the United States,” Hoover said in a memo to his aides. 

When, to Hoover’s dismay, President Lyndon Johnson picked Kerr to become his secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, the FBI background check included damaging information the agency knew to be false, and Johnson withdrew the nomination, the documents show. 

Reagan was elected California’s governor in 1966 after repeatedly consulting with the FBI while campaigning against “campus malcontents and filthy speech advocates” at Berkeley. One of his first moves was to fire Kerr, who never received another White House appointment. 

Kerr, whose own FOIA request was denied by the FBI, said he was unaware of the plots against him documented in the agency’s files. “Maybe I was too naive, but I never assumed they were taking efforts to get rid of me,” he told The Chronicle.

After 41 years of teaching in Berkeley schools, Barbara Hopkins has seen the children change, the district change, and parents change. But when she retires this week, there is one thing she will say has remained the same– her love for her students and how those students have appreciated her class. 

Nearly 150 faculty and alumni of Hopkins' kindergarten and first grade classes gathered in the Jefferson School auditorium Friday night to celebrate her almost half-century of teaching in the Berkeley Unified School District. A slide-show of her life, gifts and honors and even a serenade from parents ended in a standing ovation for Hopkins as she was awarded with the creation of “Barbara Hopkins” day, to be forever celebrated on June 7. 

“Mrs. Hopkins showed me just how much love children need and how you can't give too much praise and encouragement,” said Marguerite Hughes, another teacher at Jefferson. “She also showed me just how much love and support and encouragement parents need.”  

Using phrases like “get your cute little self over here” and “wonderful, wonderful,” Hopkins was able to be authoritative but kind, her alumni said. 

“She has that mothering approach and caters to every child,” said Belinda McDaniel, who was a kindergarten student of Hopkins in 1975. “And even though kids have changed over the years, she maintained that same style.” 

McDaniel experienced Hopkins class all over again when she sent her daughter to Jefferson in 1999. 

“The most surprising thing was that Mrs. Hopkins was exactly the same type of person, sweet and caring,” McDaniel said. 

In Hopkins own reflections, she has noticed striking differences between her first day in front of the class and her last, and can name the reasons why she stuck with the BUSD for so many years. 

“A lot of parents believe and participate in the public school system here,” Hopkins said. “Even if they have the income to go to private [school], they will still send their children to public schools.”  

Hopkins began her teaching career in 1961 with the intent to include parents in the classroom as much as possible. Since then, Hopkins has seen the families in Berkeley change from the nuclear setting to more diverse arrangements. 

Though more complex familiy lives have affected the children, Hopkins said she accommodated this by adhering to the same philosophy she had when she began teaching: To treat each child differently according to their individual needs.  

Hughes, Hopkins colleage, recalled an example of this teaching style when Hopkins told her about how she disciplines some of her students. 

“'This one,' she said, 'I have to look straight in the eye and say no. This one I have to count down for. This one I just gently suggest he stop, because otherwise he'll cry,'” Hughes remembered. 

Morris Norrisse, a director of an after-school program at Jefferson, noted how Hopkins individual attention extended to parents. He had been upset with his son who was struggling in school, “But,” Norrisse said, “Mrs. Hopkins said 'let me talk to him' and he's been as good as gold ever since.” 

Norrisse said Hopkins didn't stop there, and after she gave a talk to his son, she gave another talk to Norrisse, and taught him how to do what she did. 

Hopkins also lauded the Berkeley School District for its focus on teacher training. With the help of UC Berkeley, the district brings in experts to teach new and experienced teachers up-to-date methods, research and theories in education.  

“It is crucial for a teacher to learn different methods and then adapt them to make them work for you,” Hopkins said. 

Seeing Hopkins off on Friday, longtime friend Phyllis Goldston acknowledged Hopkins abilities to make children interested in school and her love for her profession. 

“I'm sure that Barbara in retirement will still be working on things that will make children the best they can be,” Goldston said.

REDWOOD CITY — This time, for a mother facing first-degree murder charges for the killing of her son, there was no mention of a mysterious child pornography ring, or a conspiracy by others to commandeer her defense strategy. 

Rather than blurt out her previous theories to the court, as she had done in past tumultuous hearings, Donna Anderson softly said one word that brought Friday’s court hearing to a swift close. 

When asked for a plea, she replied “Guilty.” 

The Minnesota doctor charged with stabbing her teenage son to death represented herself in court and pleaded guilty to first degree murder and attempted murder. 

Anderson, 49, spoke directly to San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Mark Forcum in Redwood City. Earlier in the week he ruled she was entitled to represent herself in court. 

Anderson was accused of fatally stabbing her 13-year-old son, Stephen Burns, on Feb. 24 while he was visiting his father. She also was accused of stabbing her ex-husband, Frank Burns, in the leg as he tried to restrain her. She pleaded guilty to both counts and was scheduled to be sentenced July 5. 

Anderson, an obstetrician at Regions Hospital in St. Paul, Minn., explained to the judge Friday the series of events that day that led to the grisly stabbings. 

“I bought a knife at Albertson’s. I brought the knife into the house. I thought about some choices,” Anderson told the court. “But then I killed my son by stabbing him multiple times in the abdomen and he died. I used a knife to do that. I inflicted great bodily harm on him when I did that.” 

The prosecution has wrestled with the peculiar case from the beginning. Anderson had previously claimed a child pornography ring may have targeted her son and funding her defense against her will. 

She was able to convince the San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Mark Forcum to let her represent herself, a move that befuddled prosecutor Steve Wagstaffe, chief deputy district attorney. 

“It has never happened in San Mateo County that a defendant has represented himself, or herself, and pleaded guilty to first-degree murder,” Wagstaffe said.

MOONEY FLAT — About 150 homes were evacuated in Northern California on Sunday as winds fanned a 1,000-acre wildfire closer to structures. 

The Yuba County fire started about 3 a.m. after high winds knocked power lines into a tree, said JoAnn Cartoscelli, spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry. 

Winds were pushing the so-called Field Fire southeast in the direction of Mooney Flat, about 60 miles northeast of Sacramento, where the evacuation was ordered, she said. The fire was 30 percent contained Sunday evening, and about 100 structures were threatened. A shelter was set up at the Nevada Union High School in Grass Valley. 

A voluntary evacuation also was in effect for the Smartville area. The blaze was about a mile and a half away from that town Sunday evening. 

No injuries were reported from the 273 firefighters battling the blaze. Seven air tankers and a helicopter were called to drop water on the fire, Cartoscelli said. 

Meanwhile, a 2,000-acre fire in Butte County was 100 percent contained Sunday morning. No injuries or burned structures occurred during that fire located about five miles east of Chico. 

In Southern California, a wildfire that scorched 23,500 acres of brush in the Angeles National Forest and chased more than 1,000 residents from their homes was 80 percent contained Sunday evening. 

A weekend of cooler temperatures helped firefighters subdue the blaze, and full containment was expected by 6 p.m. Monday, said Kurt Schaefer, a spokesman with the Los Angeles County Fire Department. 

“Things went very smoothly. We had some pretty heavy cloud cover here in Santa Clarita, which had the temperatures down,” Schaefer said. “We got quite a bit of work done today.” 

Meanwhile, to the west in Ventura County, firefighters were still working to extinguish a blaze that burned 20,850 acres in the Los Padres National Forest north of Ojai. 

That fire was 40 percent contained Sunday evening, but U.S. Forest Service spokesman Barry Peckham said firefighters were “cautiously optimistic” they would soon contain the wilderness blaze. It began June 1, but has not damaged homes or forced evacuations. 

Fire officials have not released an estimate for full containment. Some 1,600 firefighters were on the line. 

In the Angeles National Forest, about 300 firefighters were called off the so-called Copper Fire on Sunday, and 1,287 remained to finish the job.

Chevron gets go-ahead 

on new oil tanks 

RICHMOND — ChevronTexaco can build two new 30,000-gallon liquefied petroleum storage tanks without the extensive review sought by environmental groups, the City Council agreed. 

However, the council added a condition to a previous permit that requires the company to stop storing gasoline additives on rail cars at the site. 

That is “consistent with what we believe will occur with the new tanks,” company spokesman Dean O’Hair said. 

Environmental groups said they will now consider suing to block the project. 

Surveillance cameras to 

monitor graffiti sites  

SAN JOSE — Police are going high-tech in the fight against graffiti. 

Motion-detecting devices installed at graffiti-plagued sites flash a warning light, then play a tape recording that warns: “Stop. You’re trespassing. Your photo has been taken and will be used to prosecute you. Leave now.” 

The devices then quickly snap three photos. The city began installing the devices a year ago, and moves them according to need. Six are installed and four more are pending. 

Los Angeles and San Francisco also are using the cameras, San Jose police Sgt. Paul Spagnoli said. 

East Bay shooting  

OAKLAND — Two spectators at an Oakland “sideshow” were wounded by gunfire. 

The women, ages 19 and 21, were shot in the legs at about 1:45 p.m. Saturday but their injuries weren’t considered life-threatening. 

Police say they have found nothing to lead them to believe the women were the targets. 

Oakland police and other police departments have been trying to crack down on “sideshows,” in which drivers skid wildly around an area and some spectators let the cars narrowly miss them. 

Senator’s son leads rally 

for organic food  

SANTA ROSA — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. urged consumers Saturday to buy organically grown and raised food to promote clean water and support family farms. 

Kennedy, president of the Waterkeeper Alliance, launched the Pure Farms-Pure Water campaign at the Health & Harmony Festival, along with George Siemon of Organic Valley, a national organic brand owned by a number of organic farmers across the country. 

Kennedy said many small family farms are turning to organic farming to stay alive. 

“The American landscape is now being transformed with a few large multinational corporations that are taking over produce production,” he said. 

Kennedy, an environmental attorney and son of the slain senator, said pesticides and fertilizers used by the corporations are finding their way into the country’s waterways. He hoped the campaign would encourage consumers to spend their money on organic food. 

To carry carry the “USDA Organic” label, food now must meet certain standards set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. 

The standards were to be implemented over 18 months beginning in February, 2001. They ban pesticides, genetic engineering, growth hormones and irradiation of organic foods, and require dairy cattle to have access to pasture. They replace a hodgepodge of state rules and private certification standards.

Somewhere between chuckling at Wavy Gravy's clown-nose antics and Karl Schroen's hand-forged knives, visitors to the 32nd Annual Live Oak Park Fair found time to peruse more than 112 artist booths, munch on Tibetan food, and just sit by the stream and enjoy the Saturday shade. 

Word on the street, and from the worldly jester and master of ceremonies Wavy Gravy, is that Gravy’s Ben and Jerry ice cream flavor has been taken out of production. Consequently, the $30,000 to $40,000 annual commission that Gravy made from his ice cream is gone, leaving less funds to run his popular youth camp. 

His commissions provided scholarships for economically-challenged kids to attend Camp Winnarainbow, and to make up for this shortfall, a portion of the fair's vendor's fee went toward the Camp Winnarainbow scholarship fund. 

"My flavor has been retired. It's the most complicated flavor in humankind [and] the oldest next to Cherry Garcia and chocolate and vanilla,” said Gravy. 

Even with the fair revenues, Gravy fell short of the scholarship goal. Still, his smile never once faltered as he introduced numerous entertainment acts such as the Jean Paul Valjean Comedian Contortionist, Baguette Quartette and Urban Harmony Chorus. 

The performers also gave out free smiles to the shoulder-to-shoulder audience as the young performers vaulted, juggled, tumbled and clowned around. 

Kathy Fagan, of Oakland, watched her daughter perform a comical acrobatic rendition of the fox trot with her troupe Splash Circus. Fagan's daughter, Alexis, began her performance career in gymnastics and took her skills to the next level at Camp Winnarainbow. “Camp let her wings spread and dry. It's a way to let her go away,” said Fagan. 

According to fair organizer Jan Etre, the goal of the Live Oak Fair is for artists to support themselves through their original work. Of the 112 booths, a handful were run by Berkeley natives. The rest of the vendors came from Sebastapol, to Napa, Arizona and Santa Fe. 

It was Karl Schroen's fourth year at the fair, an event where he proudly knives. Schroen learned his trade from his Grandfather, a blacksmith who sparked Schroen’s interest after taking him to San Francisco’s DeYoung Museum to see an exhibit on armor, swords and knives. Schroen and his grandfather subsequently made a knife together, hooking the younger Schroen for life. 

"A knife is a tool, and tools change over time. They evolve, and generally I try to make it simple," said Schroen. 

With similar elements and a different palette, Chanin Cook of Napa was enjoying her tenth year at the fair. Cook’s furniture, like Schroen's knives, exhibit an overwhelming precise unification. The simplicity of clean lines where the fossil of a Diplomystus fish, salvaged by one of Cook's friends along Wyoming's Green River, merges without a hint of division with its wood frame. The fossilized fish, replete with inlaid skeletal bones is framed by the silky smooth wood and snugly embedded in its iron base. 

"The specimen will dictate how the piece plays out. I like clean and simple lines so the materials speak for themselves,” said Cook. “They're always evolving from a design standpoint. We're keen observers of the world around us,” she added, pointing to a table inspired by watching a giraffe on the nature channel. 

Lisa Souza, of Lafayette, has sold her knitwear and dyeworks at the fair for 15 years. She has been knitting since childhood, perhaps one reason why she could hold a conversation while operating a pedal-operated portable, wooden loom. 

Souza's dyed blue Merino Wool slipped from its carted form onto the rapidly spinning bobbin. Souza is no longer what she calls a knitting purist. She has stopped raising her Angora rabbits for their coats and works for the joy of it– a sentiment reflected in the finely knitted dark colored sweaters, and home-spun yarn sitting in wicker baskets. 

Souza said that after the September 11 terrorist attacks she worried about how business would fare. Her worries subsided on September 12, after she received an order for a sweater from a woman in Manhattan. 

“Life goes on, and if [people in New York] were going to do it, the rest of us have to snap out of it and get busy,” she said.

LOS ANGELES – Last week at the box office, “Undercover Brother” struck a blow for truth, justice and the once prevalent notion that short animated shows created on the Internet could migrate successfully to a bigger screen. 

The movie, which began its life as an animated show on the Web, brought in $12 million in movie ticket sales and, in doing so, perhaps breathed new life into the notion that the Internet can be a proving ground for major TV and movie projects. 

Several years ago, a number of ambitious Web sites with names like DEN, Pop and MediaTrip hoped to create episodic entertainment that would draw people to the Web the way they are drawn to their favorite television programs. 

Those sites failed in part because of the slow rollout of high-speed Internet access, necessary for the smooth transmission of most video content. Some also aimed too high too fast and ran out of money around the time Internet stocks crashed and venture capital dried up. 

Some Web sites then retrenched, embracing the idea of using the Web as an incubator for ideas that might later become television shows or motion pictures. 

That strategy seemed to be paying off when, in 2000, Showtime licensed an animated show on Icebox.com, “Starship Regulars,” and planned to make it a live-action series for its 2001 season. Other properties were licensed or optioned for TV and movies, including “Lil’ Pimp” and a show on urbanentertainment.com called “Undercover Brother.” 

“We were going to pitch it, but we held off because we didn’t know if we had a story,” said John Ridley, the show’s creator and a producer of the “Undercover Brother” movie. “By that time, people had heard about it. People started putting in offers before they knew what it was.” 

The frenzy that resulted in several high profile deals cooled once the dot-com boom fizzled, however. 

“Starship Regulars,” created by Rob LaZebnik, a co-producer of “The Simpsons,” has stalled at Showtime, while LaZebnik has moved on to create a series called “Greetings from Tucson,” on the WB this fall. 

“Lil’ Pimp” was scheduled to be released last year by Revolution Studios. The animated film is in post production, a Revolution spokeswoman said, and is still scheduled to include the voices of William Shatner, Carmen Electra and others. 

The success of “Undercover Brother,” meanwhile, may prompt other studios to dust off projects acquired during the Internet gold rush. 

But the source of the material is of less consequence than its commercial appeal, according to industry observers. 

“I don’t think the studios will say, ’Undercover Brother’ is a hit, let’s go back and see what else we might have missed on the Web,”’ said Kevin Wendle, chief executive officer at IFilm, an Internet film site. 

But, Wendle said, the idea of creating compelling shows on the Web and developing an audience that will support a larger release has more possibility now as more homes have access to high-speed Internet connections. 

“I do believe the idea of Web series has a future and has a large future,” he said. “Those Web series will again give birth to big motion pictures and big television shows. This is the first taste of it.”

SUNNYVALE, Calif. – Yahoo! Inc. is showing off a new look beginning Monday, with a redesigned home page and refinements on the shopping and e-mail sections as well. 

The new home page includes a “personal assistant” that informs registered users of new e-mails, and lists selected products available at Yahoo Shopping. The shopping page itself now makes featured brands more prominent, changes how products are grouped and informs users of the five most popular items in certain categories. 

With new colors, a cleaner appearance and drop-down menus, the e-mail page is getting its first significant makeover since it debuted in 1997, Yahoo spokeswoman Diana Lee said. Yahoo hopes the redesign makes the free service much easier to use. 

Yahoo claims to have more than 237 million registered users around the world. Many users won’t see the redesigned pages for several weeks.

OAKLAND – A four-year-old girl suffered head injuries after falling from a whirling ride at Vallejo’s Six Flags Marine World — the second parkgoer to tumble from the “Starfish” in as many years. The accident comes at a time when lawmakers are calling for tougher restrictions on amusement park rides. 

The girl, whom authorities would not identify, was in serious condition Sunday and was undergoing treatment at Children’s Hospital Oakland, said Vanya Rainova, a hospital spokeswoman. Jeff Jouett, a spokesman for the park, said all safety equipment was working properly. 

Recent deaths and mishaps around the country have prompted parents, lawmakers and federal officials to call for improved safety in the $9.6 billion amusement park industry. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission statistics show the number of amusement park-related injuries treated in emergency rooms steadily climbed from about 7,000 in 1993 to roughly 10,500 in 2000. 

Industry analysts say consumers are demanding faster, more exciting rides, which operators increasingly outfit with computerized safety restraints. Despite high-rise drops and roller coasters that top 100 mph, The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, a trade group, claims on its Web site that amusement rides remain among the safest recreational activities and disputes that rides have caused brain injuries. 

“Visiting a theme park today is far safer than bicycling, swimming, skiing, playing soccer and dozens of other recreational activities,” a statement said. 

All safety equipment was working Saturday, said Jeff Jouett, the park’s spokesman. The injured girl fell despite a pair of locked lap bars, and her mother still was locked in the ride after her daughter’s fall, he said. The girl exceeded the ride’s height requirement, posted at the entrance. And the ride is electronically programmed — as are many around the country — to stop if any restraints come unlocked. 

“We just don’t know at this point how the child got out of the ride,” Jouett said, adding the ride will be closed awaiting a safety inspection by the state Occupational Safety and Health Administration. 

The incident was not the first at the Starfish, which Jouett described as a “moderate” ride that reaches heights of 12 feet and is frequented by families. A 41-year-old woman received minor injuries after falling from the ride last May, which prompted the park to add a second lap bar restraint, Jouett said. The woman has sued the park and the ride’s manufacturer, Chance Rides, Inc. of Kansas, he said. 

Last September, a 42-year-old woman died of a brain hemorrhage after riding the park’s spinning tea cup attraction. However, no autopsy was performed and state officials said there was no medical evidence to show the ride contributed to her death. Also five roller coaster riders sued the park last year after a ride malfunctioned, leaving them stuck nearly upside down for four hours in triple digit heat. 

The park has defended its safety record, saying it is among the nation’s best.

ST. HELENA – Sparkling wine flowed and “Hey, Big Spender,” belted out over the loudspeakers as 26 magnums of Napa Valley’s finest went to the high bidder of $320,000 in the celebrity-studded annual wine auction Saturday. 

“I really wanted the lot,” winner David Doyle said, a glass in his hand and a smile on his face as the software entrepreneur shook hands with people, including valley patriarch Robert Mondavi, who crowded around his table with congratulations. 

Saturday was the 22nd Napa Valley Wine Auction, billed as the world’s largest charity event. And although individual bids were a bit below the high-flying days of the Internet boom, the money was rolling in. 

Doyle’s lot had been one of the most closely watched because it contained a number of highly prized wines including bottles of the almost impossible-to-get Harlan Estate and Screaming Eagle. 

The auction was spread over four days, starting Thursday, but the big event came Saturday afternoon when people bid on bottles donated by members of the Napa Valley Vintner’s Association, the event’s sponsor. 

Celebrities in the audience included actor Rob Schneider and former San Francisco 49er Joe Montana. But the money was the real star. 

“Forty-five-fifty-five-sixty-five-seventy,” auctioneer Fritz Hatton whipped out, barely drawing breath as the bidding on Doyle’s lot jumped $30,000 in about 30 seconds. Seated at tables crowded under a big white tent, the smell of bruised grass mixing with wine, bidders held up yellow paddles to signify their intentions. Whistles blew to make sure they had Hatton’s attention. 

When the bid got up to $310,000, Doyle, from Newport Beach, “thought about it for 10 seconds. I looked at her (his girlfriend) and said, ’What do you think?”’ 

She nodded, which means they’re the owners of 26, 1.5 liter bottles of wine from various wineries in Napa Valley’s prime Oakville region along with tours, tastings, lunches, brunches and a plane ride. 

“One of the reasons the wine auction gets such incredible bids — it’s not just because of the wine, it’s because of the personal relationships that people have developed,” said Tom Fuller, of the vintner’s association which has been putting on the auction for 22 years. “You’re bidding on your friendship more than just wine in a bottle.”

SAN FRANCISCO – The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is celebrating its 150th anniversary, and now has plans to expand its chocolate empire. 

Founded in 1852 by Domenico Ghirardelli, an Italian immigrant, the chocolate company is one of the country’s oldest chocolate manufacturers. 

Ghirardelli started to make the chocolate that is now a household name after he failed to make it as a gold prospector during California’s Gold Rush. 

The company’s store at the waterfront has been a magnet for tourists visiting the city’s Fisherman’s Wharf for 60 years. 

The company was bought by the Golden Grain Macaroni Co. in 1963, and then by the Quaker Oats Co. in 1986. Since 1998, it has been owned by Lindt & Sprungli, a global high-end chocolate company based in Switzerland. 

Ghirardelli’s management says it want a bigger share of the country’s $1 billion premium chocolate market, and CEO Kamillo Kitzmantel said the company plans to double the its domestic business in five years. 

The company wants to convince Americans that they don’t eat enough chocolate — about 12 pounds a year compared with Central Europeans’ consumption of about 25 pounds a year, Kitzmantel said. 

The company plans to add to its soda fountains and chocolate shops, develop more premium products and increase advertising.

Authorities worried about amphibious attack after reports of Taliban scuba training 

SAN DIEGO – The FBI is checking to see whether Werner Kurn’s dive shop and hundreds like it across the country hold the key to unraveling the next possible terrorist attack against the United States. 

Agents spent several days last week at Ocean Enterprises, one of the biggest dive shops in the country, checking customer files and sales of special equipment. 

“They want to know if we have seen anything out of the ordinary,” Kurn said. “If you ask me where’s the best place to dive, that’s normal. If you ask me in a limited visibility dive how do you maintain your bearings or how can I dive in the harbor, that’s not.” 

The inquiry stems from debriefings of detainees that found potential members of Osama bin Laden’s terrorist network might have taken scuba training, said John A. Sylvester, who heads the counterterrorism office in the FBI’s San Diego bureau. 

Last week, the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, the world’s leading diving organization, gave the FBI a list of 2 million people the Rancho Santa Margarita-based association has certified to dive over the past three years, Vice President Jeff Nadler said. 

Agents also have contacted 1,200 dive shops nationwide to check the names of those who took scuba courses over the past three years, including those who dropped out without getting certified. 

In addition to California, dive shops in the Pacific Northwest, Florida and Ohio say they have been contacted. Dive shops in landlocked states, like Scuba One in Mandan, N.D., also are getting calls. 

“They must have FBI agents around the country calling up little scuba guys like me,” said owner Randy Kraft, who offers trips to the Caribbean for the 50 to 100 customers he certifies each year. 

Also on the checklist are U.S. commercial dive schools that train students in underwater welding and repair work. 

“What we’re looking for is people who just took scuba for scuba’s sake — people who bounce from school to school to school and don’t finish the course,” Sylvester said. 

He said agents also are checking for large sales of highly specialized scuba equipment. 

At Ocean Enterprises, agents are checking the infrequent sales of $5,000 rebreathers, devices that allow Navy SEALs to swim without notice because they don’t produce a trail of bubbles. 

A recent customer, Kurn said, was a wealthy man from Utah who wanted to watch whales without disturbing them. The FBI also has been checking with companies that manufacture the devices. 

Also of interest are sales of underwater propulsion vehicles that can tug a diver long distances and sell for as much as $8,000 each, Kurn said. 

The FBI said San Diego is a crucial part of the investigation. It’s both a dive center and a major tourist destination. The area is home to a host of potential targets, from seaside nuclear power plants to cruise ships and nuclear-powered Navy submarines and aircraft carriers. 

The scuba warning, issued before Memorial Day, was part of a list of alerts about possible suicide bombers, subway and railroad attacks, suicide attacks using small planes, the use of weapons of mass destruction and assaults on nuclear plants and landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty. 

While an underwater terrorist attack might sound more like a James Bond plot than reality, Sylvester said the FBI is taking the threat seriously. 

“Before Sept. 11, flying planes into buildings was far-fetched also,” he said. 

Still, scuba experts are doubtful that a determined diver could do little more than make mischief underwater. 

“Is it feasible? It sure it is,” Nadler said. “Is it likely? It’d be kind of tough.” 

Blowing things up underwater requires far more skill than it does above ground. Navy SEALs, who have the most training of any U.S. special warfare group, must prepare for years before they are certified as combat swimmers skilled in the complexities of underwater demolition. 

“It’s well beyond the skill level of a scuba diver,” said Master Chief William Guild of the Naval Special Warfare Center in Coronado, near San Diego. 

Scuba schools train people to dive in clear conditions with good visibility. But the water around bridges and ports — the location of many potential targets — is turbulent and cloudy. 

Underwater explosives are developed for military use. The Navy trains its SEALs to use limpet mines, which attach to a ship’s hull with powerful magnets and can blast a hole through a 3/4-inch thick steel plate, according to Jane’s Underwater Warfare Systems. 

To use such explosives, a terrorist would likely have to transport several a considerable distance underwater to avoid detection and without sinking. 

Still, San Diego’s scuba shops are happy to help the FBI. 

“I told my staff ‘Whatever we can do, we have to do it,”’ said Kurn, whose shop is only a few blocks away from an apartment complex where two Sept. 11 hijackers lived in 2000.

VACAVILLE – Tougher sentences are causing an unusual problem in state prisons – a steep and costly rise in elderly inmates. 

The number of inmates 55 and older has nearly tripled in a dozen years to 5,800, comprising 4 percent of the prison population. 

Prisoners are aging as the state reduces parole and increases sentences, notably through the “three strikes” law that makes repeat offenders eligible for terms of 25 years to life. 

Studies show older inmates are less violent and dangerous, while housing them may cost three times as much as the price of housing younger inmates. 

Health care is a major cost. Last year, the state spent $676 million on inmate medical care, nearly twice the figure of seven years ago. Officials can’t say how much of that went for elderly patients but conceded they are more likely to require expensive care for problems such as cancer and dementia. 

Ernest Pendergrass, 79, serving a life sentence at the Vacaville prison, has survived four types of cancer and a stroke. His daughter, a pharmacist, estimated that his 12 daily pills run $1,800 a month. 

Although California has the nation’s largest and most expensive penal system, with 33 lockups, it does not have a general rule for the handling of elderly inmates, who are mixed in with the regular prison population. 

It has not followed other states such as Louisiana, North Carolina and Ohio in providing special units or entire prisons for the elderly. 

The state did pioneer the concept in 1954 but that prison was later closed. 

Youth and Adult Correctional Secretary Robert Presley said change is “overdue” in how to handle the geriatric population. He told the Los Angeles Times for a story Sunday that he wants to put old inmates in one prison. 

“We’re not talking about mollycoddling prisoners,” said Jonathan Turley, law professor and founder of the Project for Older Prisoners, a national advocacy group that has advised the New York and Illinois penal systems, among others. “It’s a matter of realizing your population is not homogenous and taking steps that can save a lot of money.” 

In addition to being costlier, elderly prisoners can be victims of younger, more aggressive cons, he argued. 

“We all know grandparents who complain they’re afraid to walk at night because of crime,” Turley said. “Imagine being a geriatric in a neighborhood where everyone is certifiably violent.” 

Another option, freeing old inmates, repeatedly has failed to win support. 

Assemblyman John Longville, D-Rialto, sponsored a 1999 bill to shift some inmates over 60 to nursing centers or home detention. It died in the Assembly. 

“A lot of people around here have no interest in letting anybody out of prison,” Longville said. “It’s almost a religious thing. It’s certainly not a pragmatic approach.” 

Assemblyman Rod Pacheco, R-Riverside, opposed the measure. He argued that it might have allowed leniency for convicts such as Sirhan Sirhan, 58, serving a life term for assassinating Sen. Robert F. Kennedy. 

“The thought that when someone reaches a certain age it excuses their previous criminal conduct is anathema to me,” Pacheco said. “It’s wrong morally.” 

National studies show that only about 2 percent of men paroled after 55 return to prison. 

“So the costs of imprisonment go way up at the same time the benefits of imprisonment, in terms of public safety, go way down,” said Franklin Zimring, a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, law school. 

Keeping old cons locked up, he argued, “shouldn’t make us sleep any better at night.”

MONTEREY – Scientists with the world-renowned Monterey Bay Aquarium hope to reel in a baby great white shark and become the first institution to successfully exhibit the ocean’s most-feared predator. 

The aquarium launched the three-year, $1.1 million effort last month, with four boats trolling the waters off California’s coast from Santa Barbara to San Diego. 

Biologists say great whites never have survived more than three weeks in captivity, largely because they won’t eat. Researchers hope to reserve the trend by making capture less stressful, by focusing on sharks younger than 1 year and by giving the shark a suitable home — a million-gallon, 90-foot-long, 35-foot-deep tank. 

“If it was easy, our researchers could have done it years ago,” John O’Sullivan, the aquarium’s curator of field operations, told the Los Angeles Times. 

Scientists plan to return next year during the animals’ birthing season to try again after an unsuccessful outing. Unusually cold and murky water kept sharks away from 8,000 mackerel-baited hooks, he said. 

Having a great white in captivity would help scientists pad meager knowledge of the shark’s habits and give aquarium-goers an up-close look at an animal that can reach 21 feet in length, weigh 7,000 pounds and have up to 3,000 teeth, each 3 inches long. 

“It would be a wonderful spokesman for the aquarium,” O’Sullivan said, adding the aquarium would tag and release the shark if it showed any signs of distress. 

Exhibiting a great white also could help the sharks overcome their reputation as vicious beasts with a taste for swimmers. Scientists now believe the sharks attack people when they mistake them for sea lions. 

There have been 82 great white shark attacks in California waters since 1950, eight of them fatal, McCosker said. 

“If Monterey succeeds, they won’t exactly humanize these creatures, but they will make people understand that they are not the rogue killers we knew from ‘Jaws,”’ said John McCosker, former director of San Francisco’s Steinhart Aquarium and currently chairman of aquatic biology at the California Academy of Sciences.

A Berkeley teenager was charged in court yesterday with shooting a bullet into the shoulder of another teenager Sunday morning in south Berkeley. 

Melvin Davis, 19, was arrested in Oakland Thursday. 

Berkeley police said that Davis was charged with firing several shots at Ryan Arceneaux, 19, as he and three others sat in a parked car at the 1500 block of Alcatraz Avenue. No one else was injured. 

Berkeley police Lt. Cynthia Harris said no weapons were found at the scene or on Davis on Thursday. Harris had no criminal history record for the suspect. The investigation is ongoing. 

Sunday’s shooting plus the arrest of 20 people last week in south and west Berkeley on charges related to the sale of narcotics and for probation violations is fueling fears that violence and drug activity in the south and west are on the rise. 

According to Berkeley Mayor Shirley Dean, residents have complained that the drug activity that had been on the decline is back. 

“Neighbors have been extremely upset about the increase in drug activity,” Dean said. 

Last week’s sweep was the result of several months of surveillance by BPD’s Special Enforcement Unit formed in large part to slow increased drug activity in south and west Berkeley. 

Dean hopes that efforts such as last week’s sweep will show that the city is committed to fighting crime. “This was an important show by the city that we take this seriously. There was an extremely bad drug situation in the ‘80s and early ‘90s here but with increased effort that activity went down. Recently it’s again risen to a level of real notice and real concern,” said Dean. 

Officers, city officials and residents agree that more communication between the community and the police is needed to mitigate violence and drug activity.  

Dean notes that community watchgroups have in the past made strong efforts to share information with the police in an attempt to reduce crime. “We’ve got to make that communication once again a priority and make it stronger and better than it was even then,” said Dean. 

Meetings such as west Berkeley’s community forum at Rosa Parks Elementary School last week give residents a chance to express their concerns to the police and city officials. 

According to Dean, the Berkeley police will lose a number of officers in July due to retirement and as a result will lose valuable resources in the fight against crime. 

Dean says that with the retirements, the department will lose not only bodies, but experience, knowledge and understanding of the history of criminal activity in Berkeley. 

“A lot of the drug activity is located in certain city pockets. With these retirements we’re going to lose that information and that knowledge, the street information and experience,” said Dean. 

Upcoming budget cuts will also challenge the city’s ability to fight crime, according to the mayor. The cuts will eliminate funding for a number of neighborhood youth programs that are cited as important deterrents to drug activity among minors. 

According to Dean, the Healthy Schools Program, which provides money for a variety of extracurricular, counseling and athletic programs will soon lose funding. 

Dean says that the city needs to come together in protest of these cuts. 

According to Harris, efforts to track drug dealers and prevent crime will have to constantly change and evolve as criminals become more and more adept. “We have to always be flexible with our efforts. Drug dealers are always changing their patterns too,” said Harris. 

Harris says that patrols have increased in both south and west Berkeley and that the city and the BPD both plan to announce future community based programs in the coming days. 

- Contact reporter at 

Chris@berkeleydailyplanet.net

For many years the once impressive Art Deco styled Howard Automobile Company Building languished mostly unused and slowly deteriorating.  

Over the years there were several plans to use the large site at Durant and Fulton streets, but they did not include restoring the building. But a developer did come forth and has just completed a beautiful rehabilitation of the building. On May 23rd the Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association presented awards to Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc., owner, Greg Bunton and Associates, architects, and Rossi Builders, at its Annual Preservation Award Ceremonies.  

The building, which is a City of Berkeley Landmark, was designed by architect Frederick Reimers (1889-1961) in 1930. It is an example of the types of impressive showrooms built for the newly affluent and glamorous automobile industry. The one-story reinforced-concrete garage and showroom building is remarkable for its Art Deco style facade. Large display windows are separated by tall, cast-concrete pylons, tinted light brown. Each pylon is composed of three vertical geometric ribs which rise above the cornice and end in a three-part scroll design. Between the pylons the walls are infilled with a brick and concrete zig-zag belt-course pattern. Transoms above the showcase windows are divided into narrow vertical panes by metal mullions which have a scroll design on the bottom. All of this detailing has been carefully restored.  

The story of how this building is connected with Laura Hillenbrand's best selling book Seabiscuit begins in San Francisco in 1903. That is the year Charles Howard, who would later become the owner of the racehorse Seabiscuit, arrived in the city and opened a bicycle-repair shop where he also worked on automobiles. In1905, at the age of twenty-eight, Howard had convinced the owner of the Buick company (later to become General Motors) to give him the Buick franchise for San Francisco. Howard was ambitious, colorful and very successful.  

Howard had dealerships in many cities, and this building was constructed after he had made his fortune. From the late 1960s until the 1980s it was used by the Maggini Chevrolet dealership. For a brief period in the late 1980s baseball player Reggie Jackson operated a Chevrolet dealership here.  

The restoration and reuse of this building not only preserves an excellent example of an early twentieth century automobile showroom in the Art Deco style, it also perpetuates, in a tangible form, the rags to riches story of Charles Howard. On an other level it also contributes to environmentally responsible building practices (or "green architecture") by retaining and reusing the materials and embodied energy that was used to build the building initially.  

Susan Cerny is author of Berkeley Landmarks and writes this in conjunction with the Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association.  

To the Editor: 

I can't help but feel that the recent measure passed by the Berkeley City Council banning overnight parking on University Avenue west of the freeway is out of step with the hospitable ethos and liberal spirit of Berkeley.  

Certainly, as one who loves the Environment, I can appreciate the concerns of the Council members regarding the aesthetic impact of trucks parked near a future park area. But shouldn't we also consider that this is not pristine wilderness; the area is adjacent to a 10-lane interstate? 

Even supporters of the ordinance note that overnight parking by the freeway is not a problem, they only fear it might become one.  

May I remind them that travelers have been parking in the area for the past 25 years without it becoming a problem. And this is a nighttime use of the area, and so conflicts only minimally with the daytime recreational use of the park by bikers, walkers, sailors and others.  

Only a few early risers are even aware that travelers sometimes park in the area. 

Most importantly, the criminalization of overnight parking near the freeway inconveniences and endangers two segments of the population. One is a vital segment of the work force: the truckers who bring us our food, clothes, bicycles, furniture and just about everything we purchase.  

Now our thanks to them is to say get out of town!  

The second segment is travelers who are too poor to afford a motel or too tired to find one. Since the Frontage Road is now closed to parking, can't we offer these people some other easily accessible place to park. 

Searle Whitney 

Berkeley

African Peace and Justice Tour 

7 p.m. 

Allen Temple Baptist Church, 8501 International Blvd., Oakland. 

A discussion of issues concerning Africa, with speakers including Dr. Molefe Samuel Tsele 

Call (415) 565-0201, ext. 15 

Free 

Saturday & Sunday, June 8-9

Live Oak Park Fair 

11 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Live Oak Park Shattuck & Berryman 

Crafts & art, food, live entertainment with M.C. Wavy Gravy. Benefit for Camp Winnarainbow. 

(510) 898-3282 

Free 

History Workshop 

3 p.m.  

Berkeley Historical Society, 1931 Center St. 

Learn how to preserve and catalogue our history. 

(510) 848-0181 

Free 

Permaculture Principals, Hands-on 

10 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Christopher's Garder, 463 61st Street 

Fundamentals for creating sustainable human environments. 

(510) 548-2220, ext. 233 

$10 members, $15 non-members 

unday, June 9

Authors Susan Griffin and Margot Duxler converse 

3 to 5 p.m. 

Montclair Women's Cultural Arts Club,1650 Mountain Blvd. Oakland  

Susan Griffin "The Book of the Courtesans: A  

Catalogue of Their Virtues" in conversation with Margot Duxler "Seduction:  

A Portrait of Anais Nin". Join in with your questions and thoughts. 

Free 

The Deep Politics of 9/11 

Noon 

The Fellowship of Humanity, 390 27th St. Oakland 

Edward Rippy leads a discussion of the role of engineered attacks in maintaining a permanent 

state of war.  

(510) 451-5818 or HumanistHall@yahoo.com 

Matthew Fox Lecture 

11 a.m. 

New Spirit Community Church Pacific School of Religion chapel, 1798 Scenic Ave.  

Spiritual innovator, theologian, author and founder of 

University Creation Spirituality 

(510) 849-8280 

admin@newspiritchurch.org. 

Free 

"Creativity and Emotion" 

6 p.m.  

Tibetan Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Place 

Psychology, Buddhism, Creativity, with speakers Erika Rosenberg and Abbe Blum 

510-843-6812. 

Free 

"Listening to Her Voice" 

1 to 5 p.m. 

Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center, 1414 Walnut Street  

Join Miki Raver in Sacred Circle to study Scripture, pray, dance, meditate and write for the soul's delight, and to connect with your foremothers and the feminine divine within. 

848-0237 x127 

$30/public, $25 BRJCC and members of co-sponsoring organizations 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute  

Open House Introduction to  

Tibetan Buddhist Culture 

3 to 5 p.m. 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute,1815 Highland Place 

Erika Rosenberg and Abbe Blum on "Creativity and Emotion" 

6 p.m. to 7 p.m. 

(510) 843-6812 

Free 

Traditional Persian Music Concert  

Hossein Alizadeh and Madjid Khaladj 

Julia Morgan Theatre, 2640 College Avenue, Berkeley 

7:30 PM 

925-798-1300, www.theatrebayarea.org. 

$22 

"Creating Peace through  

Non-Violence and Meditation" 

5 p.m. 

St. John's Church, 2727 College Ave. 

William Scotti's discussion on meditation on the inner Light and Sound. 

(707) 226-7703 

Free 

Monday, June 10

Partial Solar Eclipse 

Begins at 5:06 p.m., reaches its maximum at 6:16 p.m. and will be over at 7:10 p.m.  

Lawrence Hall of Science plaza 

LHS astronomers will be on hand to explain the eclipse and help the public with safe viewing techniques. Sun spotter telescopes provided and special viewing glasses for sale  

(510) 643-8980; lindas@uclink.berkeley.edu 

First 100 people will receive an energy efficient fluorescent light bulb - free 

Poetry Express -  

All Open Mike Night 

7 to 9 p.m. 

A community open mike welcoming all artists 

Berkeley Bakery & Cafe 

1561 Solano Avenue 

Free 

"All Grown Up: Living Happily Ever With Your Adult Children" 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center, 1414 Walnut Street 

Author Roberta Maisel leads the mid-life parent through a series of thoughtful steps inherent in the process of learning how to let go. 

(510) 848-0237 x127 

Free 

Berkeley Parkinson's Group 

10 a.m. 

Berkeley Senior Center, MLK and Hearst 

Speakers, exercise advice, good fellowship 

Caregivers and relatives invited 

Free 

Tuesday, June 11

Art for the Earth!  

6 to 8 p.m. special guests: Literacy for Environmental Justice 

The Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave 

A celebration of Eco-Art opening and slide show with Julianne Skai Arbor, Julia Weaver and Mike Floyd 

(510) 548-2220 x233. 

Free 

Berkeley Camera Club  

Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Grizzly Peak Flyfishers 

7 p.m. for dinner, 7:30 for meeting  

Kensington Community Center, 59 Arlington Ave.  

Beginners and 'wannabes' welcome to monthly meeting 

(510) 524-0428 

$4.00 for dinner, meeting free. 

Adopt A Special Kid (AASK) 

7 p.m. to 9 p.m. 

7700 Edgewater Drive, suite 320, Oakland 

A workshop for singles or couples, gay and lesbian, experienced or older parents, interested in adoption. 

(510) 533-1747, ext. 12, or www.adoptaspecialkid.org 

Free 

Wednesday, June 12

Natural Highs: 

7:30 to 10:00 p.m.  

Sunrise Center, 45 San Clemente Drive, Suite C-200, Corte Madera  

Supplements, nutrition and mind/body techniques with Dr. Hyla Cass  

415-924-5483 orwww.sunrise-center.org 

$15 (Includes refreshments) 

Thursday, June 13

"Centering Prayer, An Introduction" 

7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. 

St. Mary Magdalen Parish, 2005 Berryman St.  

Brother Bryan Dolejsi, OP, speaks on Catholicism 

(510) 526-4811, ext. 19 

Free 

Jack Ball Retirement Party 

King Middle School PE teacher’s retirement 

7 p.m., at Tilden’s Brazil room 

Former students, friends, faculty invited 

Call Teri Gerritz (510) 644-6377 

$48 for dinner, $20 for desert 

Freedom From Tobacco 

A quit smoking class 

5:30-7:30 Thursday Evenings, June 6-July 18 

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis Street, (510) 981-5330 

QuitNow@ci.berkeley.ca.us 

Free 

Friday, June 14

Judaism Workshop 

7 to 8:30 p.m.  

The Ecology Center, 2530 SanPablo Ave  

Earth Traditions: Judaism Rooted in the Earth... Healing the World in Jewish Thought and Practice 

(510) 548-3402 

$10 Ecology Center members, $15 others, no one turned 

away for lack of funds. 

"The Million Dollar Question" 

11:45 for lunch. Speaker begins 12:30 

Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. 

Robert Osserman, Ph.D. from the Mathematical Science Research Institute 

$11.00/$12.25, students free. 

Berkeley Women in Black 

Noon to 1 p.m. 

Telegraph and Bancroft 

A vigil for peace for Palestine and Israel 

(510) 548-6310, or www.wibberkeley.org 

Saturday, June 15

Emergency Preparedness  

Classes in Berkeley 

9 to 11 a.m. 

997 Cedar Street  

Basic Personal Preparedness: Learn how to take care of yourself, your family and your home. 

981-5605 

Free 

The Great Rummage Sale 

10 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

Berkeley-East Bay Humane Society, 2700 Ninth Street 

Household items, glassware, clothing, furniture for sale. 

(510) 845-7735 

Chu Ko's Late Afternoon  

Adventure in International Art 

4 p.m. 

Berkeley Public Library Meeting Room, 2090 Kittredge 

Artist Chu Ko discusses his Chinese ink brush painting. 

(510) 981-6100 

Free 

Sierra Club Northern  

Alameda County Group Forum  

10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. a 

Berkeley Public Library 

Forum on the benefits and problems of urban density with Rachel Peterson, John 

Holtzclaw and Martha Nicoloff. 

Call Jonna Anderson at (510)848-0800 x312 to reserve space 

Free 

The Sierra Student Coalition  

A retreat and planning meeting at Point Reyes National Seashore for high school and college-age students working to address local environmental issues. Meet other student activists, exchange ideas, and become more involved. All East Bay students are welcome at this event. Space  

is limited.  

For Reservations, call Jonna Anderson at 510-848-0800 x312  

Sunday, June 16

Field Trip to Remnant East Shore Habitats 

Visit a selection of critically rare habitats in and adjacent to the new East Shore State Park 

Meet at 10 a.m. at El Cerrito BART, southwest corner of parking lot (towards Albany Hill), then carpool to various sites, returning mid-afternoon. 

(925) 372-0687, e-mail elainejx@mindspring.com 

Free 

Buddhism 

Lee Nichol on "Sacred Dimensions of Time and Space." 

6 p.m. 

Tibetan Nyingma Institute 

1815 Highland Place 

843-6812 

Free 

Restoration Clinic 

9 a.m. to 7 p.m. 

1051 5th Ave. Studio C at E.11th St. 

Suigetsukan, a non-profit martial arts collective in Oakland, is raising funds for a new dojo. Massage 

therapists, chiropractors, acupuncturists, and other health professionals conduct yoga and stress management classes. 

(510) 452-3941 or www.suigetsukan.org. 

Food is the Earth's Way of Love 

Noon 

The Fellowship of Humanity, 390 27th St. Oakland 

Joy Moore, CoDirector of the Farm Fresh Choice program of Berkeley's Ecology Center 

(510) 451-5818 or HumanistHall@yahoo.com 

Monday, June 17th

Multiple Sclerosis  

Support Group 

Rockridge Library 

Self-help support group. Meets the third Monday each month 

(510) 521-2436, or Rickpete99@yahoo.com 

"An Uncommon Friendship: From Opposite Sides of the Holocaust" 

Join Bernat Rosner, a Holocaust survivor as he reads from and discusses his counterpoint memoir co-authored with Fritz Tubach, the son of a German Army officer. 

7:30 to 8:45 p.m. 

Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center 

1414 Walnut Street 

848-0237 x127 

Free 

Lesbian, Gay, Bi- Sexual,  

Transgender National Day to Honor loved ones lost on 9/11  

The LGBT National Day of Honor, about creating a Day when all Lesbian,  

Gay, Bi- Sexual, Transgender, & questioning people and our supporters,  

can come together to help further our fight against continued second class  

citizen treatment in the United States.  

For more information, call 802.859.9604 

Poetry Express - Nance Wogan, followed by open mike 

7 to 9 p.m. 

A community open mike welcoming all artists 

Berkeley Bakery & Cafe 

1561 Solano Avenue 

Free 

Tuesday, June 18

Arthritis Rap Session 

12 to 2 p.m. 

Alta Bates Medical Center 

Maffly Auditorium- Herrick Campus 

2001 Dwight Way 

for more info: 644-3273 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

"Part-time Parenting? A Career Networks Forum on Flexible Work Arrangements." 

6:30 to 8:30 p.m.  

Thousand Oaks Elementary, 840 Colusa, Berkeley  

Neighborhood Parents Network. Adults only. 

RSVP required: Amy Knowlden at knowlden@earthlink.net or (510) 526-4044.  

$5 NPN Members and $10 for Non-Members.  

Pride Mass 2002 

7 p.m. 

Newman Hall-Holy Spirit Parish, 2700 Dwight Way 

LGBT Catholics celebrate 10 years towards creating a more inclusive world. 

(510) 663-6302 

www.calnewman.org 

Free 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Simplicity Forum 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Claremont Branch Library, 2940 Benvenue Ave. 

Discussion on how to lead a more simple life 

(510) 549-3509, or www.simpleliving.net 

Free 

Senior Men's Afternoon 

Gay senior men discussion group, 2nd & 4th Thursdays. 

Pacific Center 

2712 Telegraph Ave. 

510-548-8283  

Free 

Freedom From Tobacco 

A quit smoking class 

5:30-7:30 Thursday Evenings, June 6-July 18 

South Berkeley Senior Center 

2939 Ellis Street, (510) 981-5330 

QuitNow@ci.berkeley.ca.us 

Friday, June 21 

Paramount Movie Classics-  

The Mummy, with Boris Karloff, 1932 

Doors at 7, Mighty Wurlitzer at 7:30, Newsreel, Cartoon, Previews, and Prize give-away game Dec-O-Win and feature Film 

2025 Broadway 

Oakland  

$5 

"Understanding the Achievement Gap in the BUSD" 

11:45 for lunch. Speaker begins 12:30 

Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. 

Shirley Issel, MSW, president of the Berkeley Unified School District 

$11.00/$12.25, students free. 

Saturday, June 22

Celebration of Solidarity with the People of Afghanistan 

7:30 p.m. 

Trinity United Methodist Church, 2363 Bancroft Way 

Live music and slide presentation by Rona Popal. Benefits a widows project and orphanage in Afghanistan 

(510) 883-9252 

$10-$30 

Summer Solstice Celebration 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market, Center St. and MLK Way. 

Live music, crafts, and summer solstice ritual. 

(510) 548-3333 

Free 

Emergency Preparedness Classes in Berkeley 

Disaster Mental Health: Learn about disaster-related emotional reactions. 

9 a.m. to noon 

997 Cedar Street 

981-5605 

Free 

Town Hall Meeting 

9:30 a.m. to noon  

East Oakland Youth Development Center, 8200 International Boulevard 

Congresswoman Barbara Lee on affordable housing with housing specialists and bank representatives 

(510) 763-0370 for reservations 

Sunday, June 23

Debt Cancellation for Impoverished Countries 

Noon 

The Fellowship of Humanity, 390 27th St. Oakland 

Tony Littmann gives us a brief overview on the causes and effects of the Third World debt crisis 

(510) 451-5818 or HumanistHall@yahoo.com 

Monday, June 24

Shakespeare Festival Auditions 

10 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Berkeley Rehearsal Hall, 701 Heinz Ave. 

California Shakespeare Festival is looking for people aged 14-18 to appear in The Winters Tale. 

(510) 548-3422 ext. 105, or www.calshakes.org 

Tuesday, June 25

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Magic School Bus Festival 

10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. 

Lawrence Hall of Science 

Video Adventures. Other events for kids take place every Wednesday through August 21. 

(510) 643-5961 

$8 for adults, $6 for ages 5-18, seniors and disabled, $4 for children 3-4, free for children under 3. 

Thursday, June 27

The Lost Spacecraft: Liberty Bell 7 Recovered 

10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 

Chabot Space and Science Center, 10000 Skyline Blvd. Oakland 

Preview new exhibit of resurrected 1961 spacecraft 

RSVP June 20, (415) 864-6397 or news@davidperry.com 

Friday, June 28

Paramount Movie Classics-  

The General (1927), starring Buster Keaton, a silent film with live Wurlitzer organ accompaniment by Jim Riggs, playing his original score. 

Doors at 7, Mighty Wurlitzer at 7:30, Newsreel, Cartoon, Previews, and Prize give-away game Dec-O-Win and feature Film 

2025 Broadway 

Oakland  

$5 

Politics in Sacramento 

11:45 for lunch. Speaker begins 12:30 

Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. 

Dion Aroner, Assemblywoman 

$11.00/$12.25, students free. 

Saturday, June 29

Emergency Preparedness Classes in Berkeley 

Disaster First Aid: Learn to apply basic first aid techniques. 

9 a.m. to noon 

997 Cedar Street 

981-5605 

David Brower Day 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

Stanford Jazz Festival, June 29-August 10

Early Bird jazz for kids and families with Jim Nadel & Friends 

10:30 a.m. kids 7 & under, 11:30 a.m. kids 8-12 

Campbell Recital Hall, Stanford Campus  

Free 

July 2

Adopt A Special Kid (AASK) 

7 p.m. to 9 p.m. 

7700 Edgewater Drive, suite 320, Oakland 

A workshop for singles or couples, gay and lesbian, experienced or older parents, interested in adoption. 

(510) 533-1747, ext. 12, or www.adoptaspecialkid.org 

Free 

Saturday, July 13

Peach / Stone Fruit Tasting 

Tasting & cooking demonstrations 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

15th Anniversary Derby Street Farmers Market 

Live music and & stone-fruit and peach tasting 

Tasting & cooking demonstrations. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Derby Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way  

Free 

Sunday, July 14

Family Health Day 

11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

4th and University Ave. 

Explore health concerns in a family oriented environment 

Free 

Tuesday, July 16

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Saturday, July 20

Emergency Preparedness Classes in Berkeley 

Earthquake Retrofitting: Learn how to strengthen your wood frame home. 

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

812 Page Street 

981-5605 

Free 

Saturday, August 10

Tomato Tastings 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Tastings and cooking demonstrations  

Free 

Sunday, August 11

West Berkeley arts Festival 

11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

4th and University Ave. 

Explore the many resident artists located in Berkeley 

Free. 

Tuesday, August 13

Tomato Tasting 

Tasting & cooking demonstrations 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Derby Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way  

Free 

Berkeley Camera Club Weekly Meeting 

7:30 p.m. 

Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda 

Share slides, prints with other photographers 

(510) 525-3565 

Free 

Saturday, August 24

Cajun & More 

Four Live Bands, crafts fair, Cajun food, dance lessons, micro-brewery beer & dance floor. 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

Saturday, September 8 

Watershed Environmental Poetry Festival 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

Sunday, September 15

Heritage Day 

11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

4th and University Ave. 

International BBQ and beer festival 

Free 

Saturday, October 12

Indigenous People's Day Pow Wow, Indian Market & Fall Fruit Tasting 

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

Tuesday, October 15

Fall Fruit Tasting 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Derby Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way  

Free 

Saturday, October 26

Pumpkin Carving & Costume Making 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

Sunday, October 27

Spirit Day 

11 a.m. and 5 p.m. 

4th and University 

Construct altars in a day of reflection 

Free 

Saturday December 7, 14, 21 

Holiday Crafts Fair

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

Saturday December 14

Holiday Crafts Fair 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

Saturday December 21

Holiday Crafts Fair 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

It would be an understatement to call Lewis Suzuki’s paintings of flowers, the San Francisco Bay, San Francisco’s Chinatown or the Manila slums known as Smokey Mountain watercolor meanderings.  

No. To get a greater sense of the 81-year-old artists work and to fully appreciate the vivid sensations he presents mainly through watercolors you have to let your mind wander over the multiple shades of color and let them draw you in. You have to let his watercolors move your mind from peace to anger with the stroke of a brush. Only then will you reach the core of Suzuki’s beautiful works. 

The public can see his work Saturday and Sunday at the ProArts East Bay Open Studios, in which artists from Berkeley and Oakland open their studios to the public. 

Suzuki, who was born in Los Angeles, studied art in Japan and at three schools in the United States including the Otis Institute of Los Angles, the Art Students League of New York and the College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland. Museums at which his art and exhibitions have hung include the De Young Museum in San Francisco and the American Watercolor Society Annual Exhibition in New York. He has been at his current studio, which is attached to his home, since 1968. These days he concentrates on one painting at a time.  

Mixing gentle strokes reminiscent of Japanese calligraphy with vibrant hues, Suzuki transforms beautiful locales into extraordinary studies in human nature. For instance, his painting of a place in Manila called "Smokey Mountain" depicts throngs of people living in squalor and rummaging through a massive garbage heap. He and his wife, Mary, visited Smokey Mountain years ago. The painting shows both the horror and humanity of the people working to survive.  

Two other works that delve into the human condition are posters addressing the effects of the World War II bombing of Hiroshima. In one poaster an orange dove in the shape of an Origami cutout is framed by a tan outline. 

Superimposed over the dove is the quote "No more Hiroshimas/Repose Ye in Peace/For the Error Shall Never Be Repeated," which is from the inscription of the memorial tomb in Hiroshima. The second poster has the same quote, but at the bottom is the slogan "No More War" with the "O" replacing the peace symbol. These posters and the Smokey Mountain painting are his strongest political statements.  

Other painted locales include the "Seven Cranes," an ancient Guilin mountains of China that tower over the Li-Chang River. It’s a masterful work that evokes serenity. Other paintings not to be missed center around San Francisco’s Chinatown and the city in general. 

The works are for sale. Prices range from prints at $20, to lithographs for $200, to the original Smokey Mountain painting for $12,000, which took him 10 months to paint, he says.  

The studios will be open 11a.m. to 6 p.m. Suzuki’s studio is at 2240 Grant St., Berkeley. Call 510-849-1427 for details.  

Wednesday, June 12 

Norma Cole and Robin Caton 

Authors read from their poetry and prose 

7:30 p.m. 

Cody's Books 

2454 Telegraph Avenue 

845-7852 

$2 donation 

Saturday and Sunday, June 8 & 9 

Artists C.P. Fairburn &  

Donna Montgomery 

Painting & Jewelry 

2315 San Jose Avenue, #1 

Alameda 

814-9017 

ProArts East Bay Open Studios 

497 artists will open their studios to the public for this 20th annual self-guided tour 

11 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

West Berkeley Senior Center 

1900 6th Street (b/w University and Hearst) 

705-8183 

Tuesday, June 11 

Art for the Earth! 

A celebration of Eco-Art opening and slide show 

6 to 8 p.m. 

Ecology Center 

2530 San Pablo Avenue 

548-2220 x233, www.ecologycenter.org 

Free 

Ongoing until July 14 

Focus on the Figure 

An outdoor show of contemporary figurative sculpture 

Wednesday - Friday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday & Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

A New Leaf Gallery  

1286 Gilman Street 

525-7621 

Thursday, June 6 

Our Spanish Heritage 

Music, History and Literature of the Middle Ages & Renaissance 

Presented by His Majestie's Musicians 

5 p.m. 

International House Auditorium, UC Berkeley 

Bancroft Way and Piedmont 

Reserve tickets at 528-1725 

$12 general, $10 SFEMS members, children free 

Friday, June 7 

Tropical Vibrations and  

Shabang with Harry Best 

A multi-cultural quintet playing a mix of Caribbean styles 

Doors at 8:30 p.m.; Show at 9 p.m. 

Ashkenaz Music & Dance Community Center 

1317 San Pablo at Gilman 

Wheelchair accessible, All ages all the time. 

$11 

Funky Fridays Conscious Dance Party  

Every Friday, with KPFA DJs Splif Skankin and Funky Man.  

10 p.m. 

Eli’s Mile High Club  

3629 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Oakland. 

655-6661 

$10 

Free Early Music Group 

Singers needed for small group of 15th and 16th century music every Friday 

10 a.m. 

North Berkeley Senior Center 

Hearst at MLK Way. 

Contact Ann at 665-8863 

Saturday, June 8 

Kotoja 

Bay Area's leader in the World Beat and Afro-beat scene 

Doors at 8:30 p.m.; Show at 9:30 p.m. 

Dance lesson with Comfort Mensah at 9 p.m. 

Ashkenaz Music & Dance Community Center 

1317 San Pablo at Gilman 

Wheelchair accessible, All ages all the time. 

$12 

Sunday, June 9 

Band Works 

Student recital featuring members who range in age from 12 to 50 

Doors at 4:30 p.m.; Show at 5 to 10 p.m. 

Ashkenaz Music & Dance Community Center 

1317 San Pablo at Gilman 

Wheelchair accessible, All ages. 

$3 

Saturday, June 8 

West Coast Live 

Radio Show marks Oakland's 150th Anniversary 

10 a.m. to Noon 

91.7 KALW San Francisco, 91.1 KRCB Sonoma 

Wednesday, June 12 

Cloud Nine 

Caryl Churchill's play about race, class, history and sex set in 19th century colonial Africa 

8 p.m. 

The Rhoda Theatre 

Berkeley Repertory Theatre 

2015 Addison Street 

RSVP by Friday, June 7 

647-2917 

Ongoing until June 9 

Lisa Dillman's comedy about four  

30-something city dwellers 

Thursday, Friday,  

and Saturday at 8 p.m.,  

Sunday at 7 p.m. 

Transparent Theater 

1901 Ashby Avenue 

883-0305 

www.transparenttheater.org 

St. Mary’s College High has been fertile ground for college recruiters looking to fill holes on their track & field teams for more than a decade. But this year’s senior class has broken out of that niche to place student-athletes from six different sports on Division I college campuses next fall. In all, an amazing 14 of the school’s 147 seniors earned athletic scholarships. 

Of course, track & field still led the way for the Class of 2002, with seven members of the St. Mary’s program headed for NCAA competition next season. A quartet of senior girls are leaving St. Mary’s with the school’s first North Coast Section championship as well as an undefeated record in dual meets in their four years. Kamaiya Warren, Tiffany Johnson, Bridget Duffy and Danielle Stokes each have numerous highlights to put on their respective resumés as they disperse across the country. 

Likewise, a trio of male hoopsters took the Panthers to uncharted territory during their four years together. DeShawn Freeman, John Sharper and Chase Moore were starters on St. Mary’s first state-champion basketball team in 2001, as well as the 2002 version that moved up to Division I to play with the big boys and lost in the NorCal semifinals to eventual state champ Oakland Tech. Freeman and Sharper were the consensus “best backcourt in California,” while Moore showed off his terrific athleticism on the football and baseball fields as well, earning All-BSAL honors in both sports and being drafted this week by the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

Two of Moore’s gridiron teammates, Trestin George and Courtney Brown, will don the pads once again this fall. George finished his career as the school’s all-time leading rusher, while Brown will parlay his speed into a dual role as a reciever and sprinter at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. 

Two athletes from outside the spotlight managed to draw attention all by themselves. Mikka Vrankovich has been pitching since she was 9 years old, and her years of work paid off with three MVP awards and a scholarship to St. Francis College in New York. Brian Haller started playing his chosen sport, golf, as a freshman at St. Mary’s, and his rapid ascent to NCS champion belied his meager experience. He’ll be heading down Highway 24 to Moraga as a St. Mary’s College Gael. 

Solomon Welch won the award for least-suspenseful, most-drawn-out signing process. He gained early acceptance to Stanford in the fall, but put off the official signing until the school year was almost out. He erased any lingering doubts by beating his best triple jump effort by nearly a foot at the last Northern California meet and is now officially a Cardinal. 

Chris Dunbar battled hamstring injuries all year and never really gained top form, but UCLA saw enough of his blazing speed in the 400-meter to offer him a scholarship. He will join Warren on the powerhouse Bruin squad. 

Rudy Vazquez is a three-time BSAL cross country champion and will soon be an Anteater. He signed with UC Irvine and will run track as well as cross country.

A case that began April 9 with the dramatic arrest of 79 pro-Palestinian protesters at UC Berkeley’s Wheeler Hall ended quietly Friday morning with a brief court appearance, $2,900 in court fees and all charges dropped. 

“It’s a huge victory,” said Seth Chazin, lawyer for the defendants. 

“It’s a vindication of our First Amendment rights and an indication that the university shouldn’t have filed charges in the first place,” added Linda Sherif, another lawyer for the “Wheeler 79.” 

One of the 79 Wheeler Hall protesters was never arraigned, but the other 78 faced charges of obstructing or intimidating an employee of a public agency, which falls under the trespassing code. Seven also faced charges of resisting arrest and one, 23 year-old student Roberto Hernandez, was accused of misdemeanor assault and battery for allegedly biting a UC Berkeley police officer. 

Yitzhak Santis, director of Middle Eastern Affairs for the San Francisco-based Jewish Community Relations Council, defended the university’s actions, saying it followed procedure. 

“We feel very strongly about the right to free speech,” he said. “At the same time, we also believe in following the rules of the university and remaining in compliance with the law.” 

Hoang Phan, a leader of Students for Justice in Palestine, the campus group that spearheaded this year’s Wheeler Hall takeover, said SJP is considering a lawsuit against the university for harassment.  

“They defend the right to free speech... but not for certain political positions and not for certain political groups,” Phan said. 

The April 9 takeover capped a day of protests against Israeli occupation of Palesinian territories and the University of California’s investment in Israel.  

Activists occupied the foyer of the Benjamin Ide Wheeler Hall on campus, demanding to meet about divestment with UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Berdahl and the UC Board of Regents. 

The event commemorated the April 9, 1948 massacre, by Israeli paramilitaries, of Palestinian townspeople in the village of Deir Yassin. 

Last year, police arrested 32 pro-Palestinian protesters, including 19 students, who occupied Wheeler Hall and made similar demands. 

Deputy district attorney Stuart Hing said his office made the right decision late in May when it offered to drop all charges and find each defendant innocent. 

“I don’t think it was worth going to trial on,” said Hing. “Something had to be done, but going all the way was not something that either side wanted.” 

Hing said the court fees – $25 for each defendant facing trespassing charges, $50 for those charged with resisting arrest, and $750 for Hernandez – are punishment enough. 

Earlier this week, lawyers for the defendants argued that the fees were administrative and should not be construed as fines. Chazin said Friday that the fees cannot be considered fines since the charges were dropped, but acknowledged that they were meted out in accordance with the charges each defendant faced. 

Shaffy Moeel, an SJP member, said she was pleased with the outcome. Moeel said the resolution is “in keeping with the Berkeley tradition” of respecting free speech. She said she hoped the case has helped to raise awareness among taxpayers that their dollars are funding the Israeli military in the conflict with Palestinians. 

Forty-one of the protesters arrested were UC Berkeley students and they all face possible disciplinary action from the university, ranging up to a year-long suspension. 

Chazin said he hoped the outcome of the legal proceedings would discourage the university from moving forward with student discipline. 

“A DA’s case is separate and apart from the student conduct cases,” replied UC Berkeley spokesperson Janet Gilmore. “We’re proceeding as we have been.”  

Gilmore said letters informing protesters of the student conduct charges they face would go out Friday or early next week. Students will then have the opportunity to settle the matter in an informal meeting with staff or go to a full hearing. 

Gilmore declined to comment on the District Attorney’s decision to drop the criminal charges. 

- Contact reporter: scharfenberg@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To the Editor: 

If the Affordable Housing Association's proposed Outback Senior Housing Project has 10 market rate units and is receiving 27 project based Section 8 vouchers, just what part of it can be called “affordable?” 

Project-based Section 8 allows landlords to set their rents as high as 120% of fair market rate but, with the current administration's cutbacks on services for people with low-income and special needs, there are no guarantees that this program will continue.  

If Section 8 is no longer provided will AHA be required to lower its rents to 30% of a tenant's income, and what is the city of Berkeley doing to ensure this continuing affordability?  

Berkeley is investing or guaranteeing over $3 million in this property which is valued at $650,000, and the City should do everything in its power to categorically secure the permanent affordability of these housing units.  

To protect its investments, Berkeley should also closely monitor AHA's performance in the maintenance and upkeep of this project. 

As a self certifying nonprofit organization, AHA's properties are not subject to annual inspection by the Housing Department.  

I live in a home that has been managed by AHA for well over a year, but because it is owned by the Redevelopment Agency, it has been inspected by the Housing Authority.  

Although the Agency has budgeted over $25,000 for property management, AHA has steadfastly refused to conduct any of the repairs needed to correct numerous violations of the HQS in these properties, despite repeated notices from the Housing Authority.  

Some of these violations are serious hazards and are causing structural decay. They have also refused to meet with the tenants as promised by the City nearly a year and a half ago.  

Our contracts with the Agency allow us to speak out about these violations, a freedom not granted the tenants of a self certifying management with project based Section 8. 

Those tenants risk not only eviction but loss of their housing subsidy, which stays with the property, if they complain about their living conditions or needed repairs. 

Perhaps one reason that few developers are willing to build new housing in Berkeley is the lack of incentives. With just a couple of organizations receiving multiple funding opportunities, the profits of a few are ensured, leaving little to entice others. This project alone guarantees AHA at least $35,000 a month in rent (not counting the commercial space) with no property taxes to pay.  

Nonprofit is not the same as not-for-profit, and these organizations, like any bureaucracy, exist in order to raise increasingly more money to keep themselves going. HTF loans are long-term and low-interest and are often soon forgiven or forgotten.  

As one of Berkeley's two self-certifying organizations, AHA can put off maintenance allowing their property to decay which guarantees the future approval of additional HTF funds for repairs. The project-based subsidies ensure that their tenants, face converted to limited equity coops so that tenants become owners with a stake in the upkeep of their homes and a shot at the American Dream.  

Give the community the same breaks that you give those who are supposed to serve them. 

Rhiannon 

Berkekely 

LOWDEN, Wash. – The best advice wine grape grower Patricia Gelles ever got on spitting was: “Practice in the shower.” 

Cellarmaster Robert Chowanietz offered this tried-and-true contribution: “Stay close and try not to splash.” 

Once the province of snoose-chewing loggers and major league ballplayers, spitting has joined swirling, sniffing and sipping as a smart part of tasting wine. 

“Otherwise, you get drunk, if you’ve got lots to taste,” said Gelles, a general partner at Klipsun Vineyards on Red Mountain, west of Richland. 

Still, if you were raised anyplace other than a barn, chances are spitting in full view of others or — heaven forbid — indoors, just doesn’t come naturally. 

“It sort of goes against the grain,” said winemaker Kay Simon, who owns Chinook Winery in Prosser. “You don’t taste food and spit it out.” 

Simon keeps on hand a collection of attractive ceramic crocks, which can serve as discreet individual spittoons. 

“Glass containers are sort of gross,” she said. “Opaque containers are good.” 

A lot of people are more comfortable spitting into a handheld cup than aiming for a communal bucket, and those sloppy distance shots rarely make friends anyway. 

“It’s probably a little more genteel to pick the spittoon up and spit into it, rather than standing back two or three feet and hope you make it,” said Terry Flanagan, who owns Ryan Patrick Vineyards in Rock Island. 

The pros almost always spit, even into clean drains or gutters on winery room floors, which can be hosed down. 

“They do make convenient spitting areas,” Flanagan said. “I know I’ve done it many a time myself.” 

At Woodward Canyon Winery in Lowden, west of Walla Walla, Chowanietz might taste 30 times in a single day, usually in the morning on an empty stomach, so there’s no flavor interference with his palate. 

“There’s no drinking involved at all,” he said. “You can’t do your job without spitting.” 

For those who don’t know spit about spitting, the wine world is awash with suggestions. 

Try it in the tub or the kitchen sink. Don’t be shy, and don’t drool. Purse your lips to avoid splatter, aim for the center of the spittoon and put some power behind it. But if the bucket’s full, watch out for splashback. For those iffy early attempts, wear a dark shirt. 

If you’re a musician, think about employing that embouchure, the method of applying the lips and the tongue to the mouthpiece of a wind instrument. 

Even genetics might play a role in successful spitting. 

“It’s all in the tongue shape,” Gelles said. “If it’s wide enough, you can make a sort of little valley.” 

Chowanietz has designed stylish spittoons with stainless steel sinks in old wine barrels to try to encourage the reluctant to give it a try. 

“We were getting kind of concerned about the big open-house weekends right along the highway (U.S. 12), and we were suggesting that people spit when they taste,” he said. 

Jeff Cutter, a prosecutor for the city of Yakima, which calls itself the gateway to Washington wine country, likes the idea of sober tastings. 

“I would just as soon not see those folks in here,” he said. 

If a spittoon isn’t readily apparent in a winery’s tasting room, don’t hestitate to ask, Simon said. 

Jamie Peha, the marketing and promotions director for the Washington Wine Commission, coordinates the state’s biggest wine and food event, Taste Washington, and knows all the ins and outs of accommodating sippers and spitters. 

“People want to taste the wines and keep a clear head while doing it,” she said. “A lot of people are educated that spitting is part of tasting.” 

With 110 wineries pouring for more than 2,500 people, Peha ordered 200-plus plastic spit buckets — which were actually pretty pastel wastebaskets — for the April charity event in Seattle. 

“They’re huge, with two handles on the side, which makes it easy to quickly exchange and empty them,” she said. 

Of course, there are those who contend that spitting is an unfortunate waste of good wine, in which case, a designated driver should probably be part of their tasting plans. 

xYOKOHAMA, Japan – David Beckham is back and carrying England’s World Cup hopes forward. 

After nearly two months recovering from a broken left foot — and four years remembering the sorry end to his last world championship tournament — Beckham’s penalty kick gave England a 1-0 victory over archrival Argentina on Friday. 

In the most-hyped game of the first round, Beckham fortified England’s hopes and dimmed Argentina’s. 

“We’re buzzing,” Beckham said. “As a footballing nation we’ve waited for this for so long.” 

Spain also has waited a long time to prove itself. Trying to shake its image as an underachiever, the country became the first team to reach the second round. Substitute Fernando Morientes scored two second-half goals in a 3-1 victory over Paraguay. 

In the day’s other match, Sweden beat Nigeria 2-1, eliminating the Africans. That left Sweden and England tied at four points each atop Group F. 

Argentina, among the favorites to win the World Cup, has three points and almost certainly must beat Sweden on Wednesday to advance. 

England and Sweden need ties. 

Because of his broken foot, Beckham’s availability was in doubt for the tournament. After the long layoff, he lasted just 60 minutes in England’s 1-1 tie with Sweden on Sunday, when his corner kick led to a goal. 

With his 44th-minute penalty kick, he gained a measure of revenge for 1998. That year, he was sent off in a game won on penalty kicks as Argentina advanced to the quarterfinals. 

After Michael Owen was brought down inside the penalty area, Beckham said the Argentines tried to rattle him before his shot. He ignored them. 

“You know we battled really hard, it’s a team game. That’s what it’s about,” he said. “The team has been brilliant, really for the whole 92 minutes.” 

England’s red and white colors filled at least two-thirds of the 42,500-capacity Sapporo Dome. Small pockets of Argentina fans banged their drums and waved their blue and white scarves. 

Thousands of police braced for trouble, but arrests reported before the game were not connected with hooligan behavior. Police said eight English supporters and one Argentine were arrested on charges such as theft and fraud, while one Briton found on a list of potential hooligans was handed over to immigration authorities. 

England erupted in wild celebrations over its first tournament victory against Argentina since 1966.

What do a former army captain, a marketing executive, a construction worker, and an executive search firm owner have in common?  

They’re all part of Open Studios 2002. 

This weekend and last, artists from across the East Bay open their doors to the public. And while the art is sure to impress, often the most fascinating things on display are the artists themselves. 

Open Studios is presented by ProArts, an organization that promotes and supports East Bay visual artists. Now in it’s 20th year, Open Studios 2002 will showcase the work of nearly 500 local artists.  

For artists, Open Studios offers an opportunity to expose their work and make sales in the East Bay’s crowded, competitive art market. The public gets something even more valuable – a chance not only to see and buy original art, but to talk intimately with the artist in a comfortable and casual setting. 

“There is this whole mystique about art, and gallerys are more into that end of things,” said Berkeley artist Jeanne V. Diller, who along with 17 other artists are sharing exhibition space in the West Berkeley Senior Center.  

“This is a lot less intimidating. At open studios its more my neighbor down the street who’s never been to a gallery.” 

Open Studios demystifies art by demystifying the artist behind the work. When talking to the artists they are not unapproachable or aloof, but interesting and multifaceted people who put their passion and experiences into their work. 

One such artist is Karla Stevens Wilson of Oakland. After undergoing a mastectomy in 1997, Wilson, a recently retired marketing executive, began making art to battle depression. “My mother said get out of the fetal position. Here’s a brush. You need a project.”  

For the past five years Wilson’s main project has been refinishing wood. She buys or sometimes makes wooden furniture and then uses resin, foil, and paint, among other items, to create ornate coatings on the flat wooden surfaces. 

Wilson’s battle with breast cancer invariably finds its way into her work, most prominently in her sketches.  

The sketches document Wilson’s own experience after her surgery. One sketch depicts a woman in a swimming pool with a prosthetic floating beside her. “When you dive into a pool, its easy to lose your prosthetics. I remember when it happened thinking, ‘Oh my god, that must be mine’,” Wilson joked. “I try to do it to honor breast cancer victims and make other women more comfortable and see that there is life after breasts.” 

A few booths over from Wilson sits Lila Wahrhaftig. Having gone to art school later in life, Wahrhaftig has made a career as a professional etcher and paper maker. She says her work is inspired by Judaism and nature, but anyone gazing at her art notices there are an inordinate number of chickens.  

“I grew up across the road from a chicken farm,” said Wahrhaftig. “We used to make bombs out of chickens and saw dust.”  

One picture features several chickens and roosters in various poses and postures. It turns out that each fowl represents a person close to the artist. “Chickens have a lot of personality, people do too, so they make good chickens,” Wahrhaftig said. 

The hospitality evident at the senior center can be found at studios throughout the East Bay. 

At the Wild West Berkeley Studios, which is artist Joyce Shon’s basement, the participating artists offer guests insights into their art, and tidbits about their lives that give added depth and meaning to their work.  

Shon was born and raised in Berkeley. She spent much of her career working for the city as a public works construction site operator. A ceramics artist who had dabbled in making Eskimo and Aleutian shamonistic masks, she now focuses primarily on this work because it offers her insight into her ordeal with cancer. The masks traditionally have small mouth and eye holes, which often conjure a look of surprise or fear. 

“The masks are amazing by what the reveal,” Shon said. “The mask was telling me what was wrong with me. Some part of me knew what was happening.” 

Among those sharing Shon’s studio are Julie Wong, a freelance graphic designer, who makes sterling silver and crystal jewelry, and Marca Lemore, a Berkeley-born painter who was raised overseas but returned after serving seven years as an Army Captain. 

Basement studios, like Wild West, are not uncommon in Berkeley. In a city with so many artists in a tight real estate market, sharing limited space has become the norm. So has fighting for limited gallery space.  

According to Shon, doing public relations work helps her and the other Wild West artists get into galleries. For these artists and many in the East Bay, Open Studios is a rare opportunity to introduce their work to the public. And artists such as Lemore are more than happy to show guests around. “There is a very loving feeling here,” she said. 

NEW YORK – Running a city is not particularly glamorous work. 

ABC News, wisely, doesn’t try to pretend otherwise in “Boston 24/7,” its six-episode series that premieres Tuesday at 10 p.m. It can still inform and entertain television viewers, though. 

“Boston 24/7” is one of three nonfiction series the network is airing this summer, all of which use a narrative style. 

“We’re trying to experiment with formats and take them as far as we can,” ABC News President David Westin said. 

Each one, to a certain extent, is an outgrowth of the successful “Hopkins 24/7” series two years ago that followed doctors and patients at a Baltimore hospital over the course of several months. 

Later in June, the network will air “State v.,” another five-episode series that shows real-life criminal trials in Phoenix. The news drama includes footage of juries deliberating the fate of defendants. 

The third series, set for August, documents human stories at the Arkansas Children’s Hospital. 

Boston was chosen as a series setting primarily because its mayor, Thomas Menino, offered the unfettered access that other cities under consideration — Baltimore, Washington and Chicago — would not. Menino agreed to have cameras trail him virtually everywhere for three months. 

Besides giving an inside view of what Menino’s job is like, the series trails his press secretary, a homicide detective, two prosecutors, a reporter and a principal at a tough city high school. 

“The legal folks said I shouldn’t do it,” Menino said. “Friends of mine in the media said, ‘Are you crazy?’ I thought it was important because it was about the people who make the city work.” 

ABC’s cameras watch the mayor and his staff as they prepare for a major snowstorm and strategize privately on how to deal with the media. His press secretary, Carole Brennan, goes toe to toe over the phone with a reporter and the screen shows the exasperated faces on both sides. 

The segments on police detective Danny Coleman are ugly. Cameras show the body of a drug overdose victim (obscuring the face) sprawled on the floor of a fast-food restaurant bathroom, and the bloody body of a store owner as paramedics try unsuccessfully to save him after he was shot. 

In another story weaved throughout the hour, prosecutor Kelly Downes works to raise the bail of an alleged sexual assaulter who sliced the body of his victim with a sword. 

Despite the gruesome aspect of their work, it’s depicted as just that — work. It’s more mundane than gripping, even if ABC keeps the viewer in mild suspense about how the cases play out. 

Menino seemed to enjoy the surveillance by a network news team — certainly more than the local reporters who cover his administration every day — even though he hasn’t seen ABC’s final product. 

“Some days they were a real pain in the neck,” said the mayor, who visited ABC’s New York offices recently to see a few video clips of the special. “I wanted to kill them. But other days we had real fun together.” 

With the three series, along with regular episodes of “Primetime Thursday” and ”20/20,” ABC is depending on its news division more than ever this summer for prime-time entertainment. The network is doing so poorly there aren’t many other options. 

But summer has become the best time of year for broadcast network news divisions to showcase long-form programming. In a sea of reruns and faux reality, newsmagazines and other news shows offer fresh, first-run alternatives.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Mike Tyson returns to the ring Saturday night for his biggest fight since he bit Evander Holyfield’s ears. As unstable as ever and just as unpredictable, he’s also just one big punch away from being the heavyweight champion again. 

The undisputed star of a spectacle that is more theater than boxing, Tyson fights Lennox Lewis in this city of Elvis and barbecue in a bout that could become the richest ever. 

For the first time in his career, Tyson is an underdog against a champion who outweighs him, can out-jab him and will tower over him. But Lewis also has a suspect chin, giving the fight an aura of uncertainty. 

“I’m just ready to get it on and crush this guy’s skull,” Tyson said. “I want to show them who the real world champion is — the best fighter in the era.” 

The fight will take place under extraordinary circumstances, in a city that won it almost by default. The two fighters won’t touch gloves and will have to pay the other $3 million if they commit a bad foul that ends the fight. 

For the 35-year-old Tyson, the bout is a chance to get out of a reported $15 million in debt and re-establish himself as a force. 

If his declining skills are exposed in a loss, though, it could be the end of multimillion-dollar paydays for a boxer who has fought sporadically against a collection of second-rate opponents since losing to Holyfield five years ago. 

Between those fights, Tyson served time in jail for punching two motorists after a fender-bender, punched out a promoter in London, bit Lewis at a news conference and was accused of raping three more women. 

“I’m scared of some things he does,” Tyson adviser Shelly Finkel said. “I worry about him after boxing.” 

Lewis is determined to make that time come soon, ready to secure his legacy in the sport that embraces him reluctantly as the heavyweight champion. 

Overshadowed by Tyson, Lewis (39-2-1, 30 knockouts) has tried to define the fight as a classic battle of good vs. evil — with plenty of help from Tyson every time he opened his mouth. He’s a 36-year-old three-time champion and chess player who wanted the fight so badly he stayed in it even after the melee at the news conference in New York City. 

“It’s very important for historians and my legacy, getting rid of the last misfit in boxing,” Lewis said. 

In Las Vegas, where boxing regulators rejected the fight, oddsmakers made Lewis a 2-1 favorite in the scheduled 12-round fight at the Pyramid Arena. The fight, which will be televised on pay-per-view, is expected to begin about 11:15 p.m. EDT. 

It could end soon after that, if both fighters stick to their game plans. Tyson (49-3-2, 43 knockouts) always comes rushing out at the opening bell determined to wreak havoc, while Lewis has studied the styles of the two fighters who beat Tyson and is determined to make him back up. 

“This fight has the ability to be a slugfest early or go into the late rounds,” said Lewis’ trainer, Emanuel Steward. “Mike has trouble with tall fighters and Lennox might have trouble finding Mike with his bob-and-weave style.” 

The fight, a joint promotion of the HBO and Showtime cable networks, could gross $100 million if the pay-per-view sales live up to expectations. But tickets were still available for the arena itself the day before the fight, in almost all price ranges up to $2,400 at ringside. 

“The top price may have been too high for this market,” Finkel conceded. 

Tyson had to agree to pay Lewis $335,000 out of his purse for biting him at the news conference, and if either fighter commits an “onerous foul” they have to forfeit $3 million. 

“Every possible outcome has been anticipated,” said Mark Taffet of HBO. 

Lewis, who stands 6-foot-5 and weighed 249 1/4 pounds at Thursday’s weigh-in, will be fighting in his 13th consecutive title fight since stopping Oliver McCall to win the WBC crown in 1997. 

He lost one, on a fluke punch by Hasim Rahman, and got a disputed draw against Holyfield. But he won the rest, although critics complain he fights too cautiously and is a reluctant combatant. 

“This is a fight that is important for this era of boxing,” Lewis said. “It would be disappointing to me if I didn’t box the best boxers of this era.”

Kid named after Red Wings arena 

DETROIT – The newest addition to the Arena family — and the Red Wings’ fan base — is a living legacy to the ice hockey team’s frosty home. 

Joe Louis Arena, 9 pounds, 7 ounces, was born at 3:44 a.m. Thursday at St. Luke’s Hospital in Maumee, to Sarah and Nick Arena. 

The happy parents said they had the name picked out five months ago, when they learned that their baby would be a boy. 

“Our first baby was a girl, so we didn’t get a chance then,” said Nick Arena.  

“Nick’s a big (Red Wings) fan, and he got me into it and it’s Red Wings all the way,” Sarah Arena said. “I like the name Joey.” 

The couple had plans to watch Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals — played, naturally, in Joe Louis Arena — from their hospital room Thursday night. 

Wireless sleuth  

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich – A wireless phone salesman became a high-tech sleuth when a friend’s car was stolen with his cell phone still inside. 

When musician and Web designer Eddie Kim had his car swiped in Chicago on Friday night, he called his friend Matthew Carney to help him cancel his phone service. 

Carney, who works for Sprint PCS in Traverse City, persuaded Kim to keep the phone activated so that he could monitor the calls and possibly locate the car. 

“I told him it may be the best tool he’s got working for him if he ever wants to see his car again,” Carney said. “It was just kind of a lucky break that the guy was dumb enough to keep using the car and keep using the phone.” 

Carney determined on Saturday morning that several calls had been made to a number in South Bend, Ind., by connecting it to a signal tower there. 

Kim went to a South Bend address he found by entering the phone number on a reverse telephone look-up Web site. 

Kim managed to persuade an off-duty police officer to help him just as he spotted his car driving away. A police chase involving a dozen patrol cars ensued and police eventually arrested an 18-year-old Chicago man. 

Kim’s car was recovered Saturday night. 

Cemetery plots for sale  

PASCO, Wash. – Leaders of the Franklin County Historical Society have an unusual problem — selling 84 cemetery plots that were donated to the Franklin County Museum. 

The plots at Desert Lawn Memorial Park in nearby Kennewick were given three years ago by a Connell woman who belongs to the society and asked not to be identified, said Jacque Sonderman, a society consultant. 

So far 11 have been sold, including six this year, through advertisements in the group’s newsletter and a free shopper called the Giant Nickel. 

“I haven’t been able to get the word out.”

Program was “on hold” earlier this week 

By David Scharfenberg 

Daily Planet staff 

The University of California, which put its fall 2002 study abroad program in India on hold earlier this week, has canceled it on the heels of a new strongly-worded travel advisory from the State Department. 

The university temporarily suspended the program Monday after the State Department issued a May 31 advisory warning of growing tensions between India and Pakistan over the disputed state of Kashmir. At the time, UC officials said they might reinstate the program if the situation improved. 

But after the State Department ratcheted up its advisory Wednesday, warning that “tensions have risen to serious levels,” the university officially canceled its fall program. 

“The State Department issued a stepped-up warning,” said UC spokesman Hanan Eisenman. “In the wake of that we just though the safest thing to do was to go ahead and suspend the program.” 

The university will keep staff and insfrastructure in place at its two locations, Delhi and Hyderabad, to prepare for the eventual return of students. 

There are currently no students in India, but 15 were planning to travel to that country later this summer, including five from UC Berkeley. 

Eisenman said the university will allow the 15 students to take part in another study abroad program next semester or return to their own campuses. 

The State Department’s Wednesday advisory warned that “conditions along India’s border with Pakistan and in the state of Jammu & Kashmir have deteriorated” and strongly recommended that American citizens leave the country. 

“Tensions have risen to serious levels, and the risk of intensified military hostilities between India and Pakistan cannot be ruled out,” it continued, adding that terrorist groups with links to al-Qaida are also operating in the area. 

“The safety situation is deteriorating,” said Eisenman.”I think (suspending the program) was a prudent thing.” 

UC suspended its study abroad program in Israel earlier this semester in the face of a growing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 

In the past the university suspended study abroad programs in China after the Tiananmen Square uprisings, in the Middle East during the Gulf War and in Indonesia during the civil unrest of 1999. 

- Contact reporter at 

scharfenberg@berkeleydailyplanet.net

SANTA ROSA – Bankrupt Advanced TelCom Group spurned a $13.8 million bid to sell most of its West Coast telephone service to Integra Telecom and instead will try to work out a deal with other suitors vying for the company’s remaining assets. 

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Alan Jaroslovsky on Thursday reopened the auction for the Santa Rosa-based company’s assets in parts of California, Oregon, Nevada and Washington at the request of ATG, which filed for bankruptcy early last month. 

ATG is trying to sell pieces of its business without disrupting service to its 35,000 customers. 

Beaverton, Ore.-based Integra had submitted the highest bid to acquire the operations serving 22,000 of those customers, but couldn’t work out a deal acceptable to ATG, despite negotiations that lasted beyond a Tuesday deadline for closing the sale. 

“We ran out of time,” said Dudley Slater, Integra’s chief executive officer. “We were going hot and heavy, and we believed we delivered the offer we agreed upon.” Integra won’t submit another bid, Slater said. 

ATG is interested in meeting with five other bidders, said Michael Aherns, the company’s attorney. He didn’t identify the interested parties. 

CyberGate Nevada LLC had made the second highest bid in the initial auction, although terms of its offer weren’t disclosed in court documents. 

In a separate deal approved by Jaroslovsky earlier this week approved ATG’s sale of its operations in San Rafael and Concord for $500,000 to TelePacific of Los Angeles. The sale covered 1,100 ATG customers. 

Founded in 1998, privately held ATG burned through more than $500 million in venture capital and loans before landing in bankruptcy court. 

LOS ANGELES – Five customers of a digital video recorder sued the big TV networks and studios, arguing that consumer rights must be part of the unfolding battle between Hollywood and the Silicon Valley. 

The federal lawsuit filed Thursday contends that the entertainment industry is violating rights to free expression and privacy by trying to kill ReplayTV. 

The action follows a lawsuit filed by 28 entertainment companies last year against the ReplayTV recorder and its manufacturer, SONICblue. That suit alleged that the recorder contributes to copyright infringement by allowing users to store and trade large libraries of recorded TV shows without commercials. 

“We want the court to hear from consumers before they make a decision,” said Robin Gross, a lawyer with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the civil rights group representing the five consumers. 

For more than 20 years, consumers have been allowed to record programming, build personal libraries and skip commercials using a VCR, she said. 

“Just because products are now digital now does not mean our rights should be curtailed,” she said. 

“These Hollywood guys want to stop me from using my digital video recorder like I use my VCR,” plaintiff Craig Newmark said. “I want to give my nephews and nieces a break from the rampant consumerism on TV by using ReplayTV’s commercial skipping feature,” he said. 

“This complaint mischaracterizes the nature of the case against SONICblue and ReplayTV,” the Motion Picture Association of America said in a statement. “We have never indicated any desire or intent to bring legal action against individual consumers for use of this device.” 

Digital video recorders store TV programming on a hard drive instead of video tape. SONICblue’s ReplayTV 4000 series also connects to the Internet and allows users to send files ranging from personal photos to full-length copyrighted movies over the web.

VERNON – A company recalled 4,000 pounds of undercooked chicken used in salads sold in California, Nevada and Arizona. 

Undercooked chicken carries the potential for illnesses that can cause serious health problems or death. 

Huxtable’s, doing business as Huxtable’s Kitchen Inc., voluntarily agreed to recall the chicken products, which were produced on or before Thursday. 

They were distributed to stores throughout Southern California, in Arizona’s Pima and Maricopa counties and in Nevada’s Clark County. 

The recalled products are: 

—9.5-ounce trays of “Fresh Foods, chicken Cobb salad, with bacon,” bearing a use-by date code of ”61002” or lower. 

—9-ounce trays of “Trader Giotto’s caesar salad with chicken,” including a container of dressing and bearing a use-by date code of ”61102” or lower. 

Each package also bears “P-11079” inside the USDA seal of inspection.

BEVERLY HILLS – Actors Esai Morales, Penelope Cruz and Andy Garcia were named as winners of the annual Imagen Awards, which recognize positive Hispanic portrayals in the media. 

Morales, who stars in ABC’s “NYPD Blue,” PBS’ “American Family” and “Resurrection Blvd.” on Showtime, was named 2002 male entertainer of the year. Cruz, featured in the films “Vanilla Sky” and “Blow,” was leading female entertainer. 

The awards were to be presented Thursday night. 

Garcia, whose films include “Ocean’s Eleven,” received the creative achievement award. The lifetime achievement award went to journalist and talk show host Cristina Saralegui. 

The honors were given by the Imagen Foundation, which works to increase Hispanic representation by the entertainment industry. Here are the winners for the 17th annual Imagen (Spanish for “image”) Awards. 

Female entertainer of the year: Penelope Cruz. 

Male entertainer of the year: Esai Morales. 

Creative achievement award: Andy Garcia. 

Lifetime achievement award: Cristina Saralegui.

Placed under federal  

Homeland Security 

Faster than a nuclear chain reaction, word spread through Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory that President Bush is planning to yank the center from the Department of Energy and place it under the auspices of a new Department of Homeland Security. 

“We just heard about this. It’s hard to imagine how this could be done completely, because the nuclear weapons role would have to remain within the Energy Department,” said Phil Duffy, a chemist who researches global warming in the California lab’s Atmospheric Science Division. 

Duffy said Friday that Livermore fits well in the Energy Department because teams like his can take advantage of its high-end computing facilities needed for nuclear research. 

Bush’s secretly developed plan to create a Department of Homeland Security, which he announced Thursday, shuffles dozen of federal agencies. By Friday morning, turf battles were already shaping up in Congress. 

But it was the fine print that sent reverberations through San Francisco’s East Bay on Friday. In the third paragraph of the fourth chapter of the White House’s proposal, came this: “The Department would incorporate and focus the intellectual energy and extensive capacity of several important scientific institutions, including Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.” A much smaller agricultural research laboratory was also mentioned. 

Former Livermore director Michael May was dubious. 

“Are you sure?” he asked. “I find this difficult to believe.” 

May, a professor emeritus at Stanford University, said he paid close attention to Bush’s commentary about the new office on Thursday, as well as Congressional reaction, and was quite confused. 

“Livermore does quite a bit of homeland security and wants to do as muc h as it can, obviously, but the major projects there are Department of Energy projects,” he said. 

Founded 50 years ago, Livermore started as a second nuclear weapons design laboratory — after Los Alamos National Laboratory — to find ways to design and stockpile nuclear weapons. Livermore’s research mission has since spread to include energy, biomedicine, and environmental science. 

The lab, which operates on about $1.5 billion a year, is managed by University of California, as are Los Alamos and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, which does non-weapons, unclassified research. 

The Los Alamos and Berkeley labs aren’t mentioned in the Bush plan, and an Energy Department spokeswoman said she doesn’t believe the other labs will be involved in the reorganization. 

A spokesman at Los Alamos, which works closely with Livermore on maintaining the nation’s nuclear stockpile, said he couldn’t comment. 

UC spokesman Michael Reese said they were not consulted by the White House about the shift, but that they have a contract to run the lab and will wait for details about the proposed changes. 

Retiring lab director C. Bruce Tarter, who learned about Bush’s plans for Livermore from The Associated Press, said Friday that he hadn’t received any “official details” yet. 

“Over the past few years, our Lab and our sister NNSA laboratories have played important roles in the war on terrorism and we look forward to enhancing our future contributions to this cause,” he said. 

Elsewhere in the lab, researchers were also grappling with the news. 

Livermore chemist Philip F. Pagoria, who works in Livermore’s Energetic Materials Section, said he only heard about the proposed shift on Friday morning and hadn’t had time to think about it. 

“There’s always ways we can contribute to homeland security,” he said, “but I’m going to have to take some time to consider what this might mean.”

SACRAMENTO – The largest Catholic hospital system in the Western states has settled allegations that 13 of its hospitals made false Medicare claims. It agreed to pay the federal government $8.5 million to settle the whistle blower lawsuit, officials said Friday. 

It’s the second set of similar allegations against San Francisco-based Catholic Healthcare West and its affiliate Mercy Healthcare Sacramento, and the second settlement in little more than a year. 

Each time, the system admitted no wrongdoing. 

The hospital system agreed to pay $10.25 million a year ago to settle a whistle blower complaint that it inflated reimbursement claims at two clinics, Woodland Clinic Medical Group and MedClinic of Sacramento. 

Friday’s settlement concerns allegations that the system and its hospitals knowingly defrauded Medicare and other federal health insurance programs by filing false cost reports to obtain millions of dollars for costs which were inflated or not allowable. 

The hospitals kept two sets of books, federal prosecutors alleged: one for government auditors, and a second hidden set that showed the inflated and unallowable costs. The hospitals set up hidden reserve funds to repay the government if the overpayments were discovered, prosecutors said. 

William J. Hunt, the system’s vice president for operations, blamed the dispute on “complicated matters of accounting and reimbursement.” 

He said the cost reports “are governed by thousands of pages of highly technical, often confusing and ever-changing regulations. We believe we interpreted those regulations fairly and reasonably...and any errors were inadvertent.” 

He said the system cooperated in the investigation, is satisfied with the settlement, and is “pleased to put this matter behind us.” 

The federal government intervened in complaints involving four hospitals in the Sacramento area: Mercy General, Mercy San Juan, Mercy American River, and Mercy Hospital of Folsom. 

Friday’s settlement also ends claims by whistle blower Joseph A. Kimball involving nine other Mercy hospitals: Mercy Medical Center Redding; Mercy Hospital of Mount Shasta; St. Mary’s Medical Center in San Francisco; Dominican Hospital Santa Cruz; Mercy Hospital Bakersfield; St. John’s Regional Medical Center in Oxnard; Saint Rose Dominican Hospital in Henderson, Nev.; St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix, Ariz.; Mercy Hospital and Medical Center in San Diego. 

Kimball worked for Mercy Healthcare Sacramento as an accountant since 1984. He received more than $1.9 million under the settlement. The whistle blower in the first case, George Baca, also received nearly $2 million. 

Besides the repayments, the system entered into a “corporate integrity agreement” with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ inspector general, designed to prevent future fraud. 

SAN FRANCISCO – A Minnesota doctor charged with stabbing her teen-age son to death represented herself in court Friday and pleaded guilty to first degree murder and attempted murder. 

Donna Anderson, 49, spoke directly to San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Mark Forcum in Redwood City. Earlier in the week he ruled she was entitled to represent herself in court. 

Anderson was accused of fatally stabbing her 13-year-old son, Stephen Burns, on Feb. 24 while he was visiting his father. She also was accused of stabbing her ex-husband, Frank Burns, in the leg as he tried to restrain her. She pleaded guilty to both counts and was scheduled to be sentenced July 5. 

Anderson, an obstetrician at Regions Hospital in St. Paul, Minn., explained to the judge Friday the series of events that day that led to the grisly stabbings. 

“I bought a knife at Albertson’s. I brought the knife into the house. I thought about some choices,” Anderson told the court. “But then I killed my son by stabbing him multiple times in the abdomen and he died. I used a knife to do that. I inflicted great bodily harm on him when I did that.” 

When the judge asked for her plea, Anderson replied calmly, “Guilty.” 

The prosecution has wrestled with the peculiar case from the beginning. Anderson had previously claimed a child pornography ring may have targeting her son and funding her defense against her will. 

She was able to convince the San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Mark Forcum to let her represent herself, a move that befuddled prosecutor Steve Wagstaffe, chief deputy district attorney. 

“It has never happened in San Mateo County that a defendant has represented himself, or herself, and pleaded guilty to first-degree murder,” Wagstaffe said

GREEN VALLEY – Thousands of firefighters struggled Friday to contain a 23,500-acre wildfire that forced 1,500 people to evacuate rural communities north of Los Angeles and burned nine homes. 

Clouds of dark smoke blew through town as the fire crackled through thick, old brush and firefighters set controlled burns to clear out vegetation. Some 2,000 firefighters were on the lines, and 14 airplanes and six helicopters attacked the flames from the air. 

To the west in Ventura County, the state’s other huge blaze had burned 20,800 acres in Los Padres National Forest north of Ojai. 

Despite a swath of blackened hills nearby, most of Green Valley was still green after an overnight onslaught of flames that forced evacuation of some northern Los Angeles County communities in the Angeles National Forest. 

“The fire gods smile proudly on this place,” said resident Darryl Haddock, 39. 

The so-called Copper Fire was accidentally ignited Wednesday by a grinding tool and became California’s most dangerous wildfire Thursday evening when it suddenly quadrupled in size. Eight homes destroyed were lost during the expansion. 

Late Friday night it was 15 percent contained. 

The Ojai fire was 25 percent contained Friday night, and other smaller fires that had been burning since last week were either contained or under control.

ARE GAS-ELECTRIC HYBRIDS  

DANGEROUS TO TOW? 

I am an environmental regulator who lives and works in a semi-rural area in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. I have been really interested in getting one of the hybrid gas-electric Ford Escapes that are supposed to come out next year. Some other people I work with are in the same boat. We are all attracted to the idea of a rugged vehicle with enough ground clearance to handle local gravel roads, and that still gets really good gas mileage and has low emissions. But I heard somebody say that nobody wants to tow hybrid vehicles that have been in a crash or have broken down. Is this true? Are tow-truck drivers actually having problems with hydrogen emissions? Sparks? Shorts? -- Tom 

RAY: Well, my brother has had problems with shorts. But it's usually after I give him an atomic wedgie. 

TOM: The answer to your question is, we don't really know. There is obviously some danger. Gasoline-powered cars can be dangerous when they crash. And hybrids have both a gasoline engine AND a high-voltage electric motor.  

RAY: But from what we've been able to learn, and from what the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration tells us, the danger appears to be minimal. 

RAY: For example, the Toyota Prius has a 274-volt electric motor in addition to a small gasoline engine. But in order to get a shock from the electric motor, you'd have to strip the casing off of both the positive and the negative wires and touch both of them at the same time. And since they run through an enclosed tunnel in the center of the car's floor and are both encased in bright orange, that's not something an emergency worker is going to do by accident. 

TOM: And if the accident were severe enough to expose those wires, what are the chances that the electric motor would still be in a condition to be "on" and working? Probably low. So electrocution seems to be an unlikely scenario.  

RAY: The other reason the wires are buried in a tunnel in the floor is so that if someone were using a Jaws of Life on a door or on the roof, he or she would be nowhere near any live wires.  

TOM: As far as towing, there's really no danger at all to road-service folks. In the case of the Prius, the instructions for towing are the same as for any other front-wheel-drive car. And I suspect that will be true of the Ford Escape hybrid -- the same as for all-wheel-drive vehicles, in that case. 

RAY: Jump-starting also poses no additional risks, as far as we know -- unless you count having a burly tow-truck driver snicker at you for being a Birkenstock-wearing tree-hugger. The Prius has a separate, standard 12-volt car battery that's used to start the gasoline engine, and that's the one you'd use to get a jump-start. Road-service folks would have no contact with the larger battery pack at all.  

TOM: We know that Toyota makes these details available to emergency-response workers, and I'm sure Ford will, too. Chances are, there will be some folks who are nervous about working with these vehicles, but it'll probably be due more to unfamiliarity than to real danger.  

RAY: But it's a good question, Tom. And if we hear of any problems that DO come up, we'll certainly let everybody know.  

IS HER WATER PUMP REALLY WORN OUT? 

I am 87 years old. I need to use my car every day to visit my husband at the nursing home. I know nothing about cars. My dealer takes pretty good care of me, because he knows my situation. He said I need to have my water pump replaced. He said this the last time I was in, and he said "sometime in the next six months." How can I know if I really need a new water pump? I have a 1996 Toyota Camry with less than 30,000 miles. It is silver, since I know you guys ask the color of people's cars to stall for time. What symptoms should I have if I truly need a water pump, or is it one of those maintenance things I should do before I get symptoms? -- Carmella 

RAY: Well, you probably wouldn't notice the symptoms of a bad water pump, Carmella. There might be a humming noise or a slight leak, but it's not easy for the average person to detect.  

TOM: The question is whether your mechanic has noticed that something's wrong, or whether he's just basing his recommendation on the age of your car -- which is 6 years. 

RAY: So if I were you, I would just ask him about it again. You seem to have a decent relationship with the guy. Pretend you're old and you don't remember. If you need any tips on acting the part, ask my brother. 

TOM: Ask your mechanic to tell you again why he thinks you need a new water pump. If he says he noticed that it was noisy, or was leaking coolant from the weep hole, then, since you trust him, I'd take his word for it and let him change it. 

RAY: But if he says "It's just time," or something that implies that he's doing it based on a calendar, I'd tell him you'd rather wait. Even though your car is 6 years old, it only has 30,000 miles on it. And personally, I've never seen a Toyota water pump go bad at 30,000 miles. We routinely change them at 120,000 miles. 

TOM: So, based on our experience, your water pump might not need to be replaced until 2020, Carmella. Bring it to us then. We'll do it for free, and we'll buy you a coffee! 

FOR PETE'S SAKE,  

SECURE YOUR WEIGHTS 

I want to comment on a column you recently wrote about putting sandbags in the back of a pickup truck. Where I live in upstate New York, I've seen sandbags added to the beds of pickup trucks in winter -- as well as cast iron, concrete blocks and other creative alternatives. Please remind your faithful followers that any such weights should be secured to the bed of the truck -- and by something more substantial than a bungee cord. In the event of an accident or other sudden stop, that thin piece of glass behind your head will not prevent the old anvil from joining you in the cab. The gun rack might slow it down, but not by much. -- Rick 

TOM: You're absolutely right, Rick. We should have mentioned that any cargo in the bed of a pickup truck should be securely tied down. We didn't, and you were one of about 50 people who wrote to remind us (not all of them did it as politely as you did, Rick!). 

RAY: Whether you use sandbags or mothers-in-law, make sure they're secured to the bed with enough rope, cable or chain to keep them securely in place if you hit something -- and that's not very easy. An even better option would be to install one of those permanent tool/cargo boxes that bolt to the bed, and then put the additional weight in there. 

TOM: And if you think we're just being overly cautious, here's another reader's letter that might help convince you otherwise. 

Got a question about cars? Write to Click and Clack in care of this newspaper, or e-mail them by visiting the Car Talk section of cars.com on the World Wide Web.

SACRAMENTO – As California lawmakers scrape to fill a gaping $23.6 billion budget hole, critics are calling for Gov. Gray Davis to kill one of his pet projects. 

The Turning Point Academy in San Luis Obispo is a military-style reform school intended for teen-agers caught bringing guns to school. Davis has spent $12 million to develop it, and it costs $3 million a year to operate. But the halls, dorms and classrooms are mostly vacant, with only 25 students enrolled so far. 

Shuttering the academy is one of several suggestions offered Friday as legislative budget negotiators try to revive the state’s ailing fiscal health. 

Other possibilities by lawmakers and the Legislative Analyst ranged from paroling elderly prison inmates to eliminating the state’s embattled Department of Information Technology. 

Critics of the Turning Point Academy, who include one of Davis’ own appointees to the program’s advisory board, call it a good place to start. 

“Arguably, these few graduates are the most expensive students ever in the history of the state,” Davis appointee Julian Crocker, San Luis Obispo’s school superintendent and an advisory board member appointed by Davis. 

The cost averages $1 million for each of the academy’s 10 graduates, or nearly $500,000 for each of participants so far. 

“Admitting that a program does not work is a lot better than trying to put Band-Aids on an internal hemorrhage,” Crocker wrote in a memo reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. 

Davis will fight to keep the $2.9 million he budgeted for the academy, said spokeswoman Hilary McLean.

xA debate between Peter Singer and Nigel M. de S. Cameron titled “What Does It Mean to Be Human” promised to touch upon on its implications on a number of topics including human cloning, embryonic stem-cell research, euthanasia and abortion.  

Singer believes that society should have the choice to determine whether people with certain handicaps should live. 

However, the focus of the debate and the theater of the evening revolved Singer’s proposition in his opening comments that the subject of the debate was more accurately described by the title “What does it mean to be one of us.”  

This came as no surprise to those in attendance who were familiar with Singer, many of whom were there to protest the event, based on views the professor of bioethics at the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University has expressed in the past. Singer favors, among other things, embryo experimentation and the allocation of heath care resources. Groups representing the rights of people with cognitive disabilities and pro-life stances were among those outside the Calvin J. Simmons Theater carrying signs and chanting to make sure they were included somewhere in the “us” Singer spoke of.  

Carrie Lucas, representing We Are not Dead Yet, a national grassroots disability rights group, was among those who felt that the quality of life for people like her son, who has a cognitive disability, would be greatly compromised if Singer’s opinions affect decision-making in the arena of health care.  

“One of Singer’s points of view is that people with cognitive disabilities are not people. My kid is definitely a person. There’s no doubt about it,” said Lucas, whose child was with her to protest. 

Twice the debate was interrupted. Singer handled both incidents calmly and with poise. The second time, he replied to the disruption that he was not there to win votes but to make sure the audience was thinking critically about the subject.  

Singer’s debate opponent was Nigel M. de S. Cameron, a board member of “The Center for Bioethics and Culture” who along with the “Life Legal Defense Foundation” presented the event. The crowd heavily favored the less controversial viewpoint that Cameron defended. His condemnation of legal euthenasia in Netherlands and in the state of Oregon was met with applause. 

At the end of the debate, the floor opened for questions from the audience. One came from a man with cerebral pulsy who asked Mr. Singer to look him in the eye and tell him that he should not be alive. That stare-down marked the impass that was this debate.  

Oakland car bomb case jurors ask 

judge for verdict forms that allow choosing “undecided” for some counts 

OAKLAND – A jury completed the third week of deliberations without reaching a verdict Friday in the federal case of two Earth First! activists who accuse Oakland police and FBI agents of planting a bomb in their car. 

The jury did request of presiding Judge Claudia Wilken new revised jury verdict forms which would include an additional line for jurors to choose “undecided” for some counts. 

On Tuesday, the jurors apparently had concerns over their instructions and posed at least three hypothetical scenarios to the judge. 

The judge told lawyers for both sides that she did not have to answer the hypotheticals the jury posed and stressed that their job was to “try to reach verdicts and not try to predict what the outcome of those verdicts will be.” 

Wilken, nonetheless, said she would revise the verdict form and would provide it to the jury if they requested it. On Friday, they did. 

Darryl Cherney and Judi Bari were injured when a bomb exploded in their car while they were driving in Oakland in May 1990. Bari, who was at the wheel, suffered a crushed pelvis and Cherney received cuts from the blast. 

The two were arrested within hours, but no one was ever charged. 

Cherney and Bari sued investigators, alleging false arrest, illegal search, slanderous statements and conspiracy. Bari died in 1997.

LONG BEACH – A gunman may have staged a deadly grocery store rampage out of fear that someone was about to find his parents’ mummified bodies in his home, police said Friday. 

Antonio Pineiro, a 48-year-old schizophrenic who lived behind the market, detailed his plans in rambling journal entries that were found after he was shot to death by police last month. 

The mummified bodies of Maria Llufrio, 69, and Pineiro’s stepfather Antonio Llufrio, 68, were found on a bed, police spokeswoman Nancy Tabing said. 

A bloodstained carpenter’s hammer was found next to the bed and apparently had been used to kill them two years ago, police said in a statement. 

Investigators also found several Polaroid photographs of the decomposed bodies, dated April 2001, Lt. Bill Blair said. 

“The word ’macabre’ doesn’t do it justice,” Blair said 

Pineiro went to the Top Valu market on May 31 and opened fire with two handguns, killing a clerk and an 8-year-old girl and wounding four others before officers killed him in a shootout. 

In the journal, Pineiro indicated he planned to kill people at the market. Handwritten and typewritten notes stated: “The last day before the shooting, May 2002” and “The day of the shooting May 30, 2002, Top Valu.” 

He also used the term “balacera,” a Spanish term that loosely translates to “many shots,” the police statement said. 

Investigators believe Pineiro’s attack plans may have been “accelerated” by a pending fumigation of his building, the statement added. 

The fumigation had been planned for this week. 

“Each unit would have been inspected and would have resulted in the discovery of the bodies” of his parents, Tabing said.

Perot Corp. designed the computer system, accused  

of peddling information 

SACRAMENTO – A San Diego Gas and Electric Co. employee complained to state grid managers in 1997 that Perot Systems Corp. was peddling “insider information” about California’s energy market — a market for which Perot designed the computer system, a state senator said Friday. 

A computerized presentation by Perot Systems was found among documents turned over by Reliant Energy to the Senate Select Committee to Investigate Price Manipulation of the Wholesale Energy Market. 

Sen. Joe Dunn, D-Santa Ana, the committee chairman, said Friday the presentation by the Plano, Texas-based firm went “far beyond the ethical line” by showing energy generators how to exploit “holes” in the state’s market. 

Perot Systems helped create the computer system for the California Independent System Operator, which manages the state’s power grid and real-time energy market. The software company was founded by former presidential contender H. Ross Perot, who is the company’s chairman. 

The 44-page presentation describes the California energy market and includes strategies that Dunn called a blueprint on how to game the energy market through the ISO and the California Power Exchange, the now-bankrupt day-ahead energy trading floor. 

“Perot Systems discovered a ’hole’ in the ISO’s protocols for buying, selling and pricing imbalance energy,” the presentation said, which “allowed strategies that would destabilize the market.” 

Some of the strategies outlined by Perot System mirror those in a recently disclosed Enron Corp. memo with names such as Fat Boy and Deathstar, Dunn said. He has asked several energy trade associations and Perot System to retain any documents relating to the presentation. 

Perot Systems didn’t immediately return a call seeking comment, but has strongly denied any wrongdoing. 

On Thursday, Perot Systems filed two versions of the presentation with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Those copies were “substantially” different than the one found in Reliant’s documents, Dunn said. 

Dunn said he believes that one version was the presentation that the former SDG&E executive, who was also an ISO and Power Exchange board member, complained of to the ISO. He said the second version was likely revised after the ISO objected. 

Dunn said he was most concerned about the pages found only in the document Reliant turned over, “particularly the example they show in the latter pages on how to game the system or how to exploit the weaknesses of the system.” 

Perot officials said the presentation to Reliant was based on publicly available information and merely explained California’s market. 

That may be true, said ISO general counsel Charles Robinson, but “we don’t know what was said during the slide presentation. 

“Were I management at the time, I would have been quite concerned that a prior vendor of mine was going outside to the market to show how to game my market rules,” Robinson said. 

On Thursday, Ross Perot denied a conflict of interest, saying his company had the written approval of California’s ISO to share information about the market with others. 

Dunn and ISO officials said that was not true. 

“Contrary to any impression that Perot Systems may have tried to make yesterday that ISO ’approved’ any version of the Perot Systems presentation — they did not,” Dunn said. 

Robinson said he was trying to find the ISO’s former CEO who complained to Perot in 1997 to determine if he had verbally approved the presentation, but hadn’t found any letters that had approved it. 

Perot told stock analysts Thursday that the company would cooperate fully with California officials. The state attorney general has subpoenaed Perot Systems for additional information about its services to energy companies accused of manipulating the state’s power market to boost profits. 

Gov. Gray Davis asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to investigate Perot Systems’ role in California’s energy crisis, saying it appeared that the company offered “a seminar on how market participants could game the ISO and the PX.” 

NORWALK, Conn. – Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel was convicted Friday of beating Greenwich neighbor Martha Moxley to death in 1975 when they were 15 — a crime that went unsolved for nearly a generation and raised suspicions his family connections had protected him. 

Prosecutors offered no eyewitnesses and no direct physical evidence connecting Skakel to the slaying. Instead, the case was based almost entirely on testimony from people who said they had heard him confess over the years. 

The 41-year-old Skakel, a nephew of Robert F. Kennedy’s widow, Ethel, was handcuffed and led off immediately to jail. He faces from 10 years to life in prison at sentencing July 19. 

Skakel’s lawyer promised a quick appeal. 

“This is certainly the most upsetting verdict I’ve ever had — or will ever have — in my life,” defense attorney Michael Sherman said. “But I will tell you, as long as there’s a breath in my body, this case is not over.” 

The Moxley family wept at what her mother called “Martha’s day,” which finally came more than a quarter-century after her death. 

Martha’s battered body was discovered under a tree on her family’s estate in the wealthy community of Greenwich. She had been bludgeoned and stabbed with a golf club, later traced to a set owned by Skakel’s mother. 

Prosecutors contended Skakel had a crush on Martha and was upset because she seemed more interested in his older brother, Thomas. 

The prosecution’s case rested almost entirely on about a dozen people who said they had heard Skakel confess or make incriminating statements over the years. Several were former classmates from the Elan School, a drug and alcohol rehab center for rich kids in Maine. 

The defense argued that the Elan School witnesses were of dubious credibility. And family members all backed up Skakel’s alibi: that he was at a cousin’s home around the time of the slaying. His lawyers also sought to cast suspicion on a former family tutor, and pointed out that the tutor and Thomas Skakel were both early suspects in the investigation. 

Skakel did not take the stand. In a tape-recorded 1997 interview with an author that was played for the jury, Skakel said he went to the Moxley home, threw rocks at Martha’s window to try to get her attention, then masturbated in a tree and ran home. 

The jury deliberated for more than three days.

DENVER – The families of several Columbine shooting victims have settled lawsuits with the school district and sheriff’s department, with one attorney saying the time has come to “bring this to a close.” 

The lawsuits accused officials of failing to do enough to prevent the 1999 slayings at Columbine High School and botching the response afterward. 

The school district will pay an average $15,000 apiece to the families of seven students, said Bill Kowalski, the school district’s attorney. 

“Our view is that it is simply time to bring this to a close,” Kowalski, the school district’s attorney, said Friday. “The plaintiffs expressed the same desire and so it was one of the situations where both sides wanted the same thing.” 

The insurance company for the Jefferson County sheriff’s office also offered $15,000 to the families of 11 victims. Six have accepted and the other five were expected to, county attorney spokeswoman Jennifer Watson said. 

The two settlements leave no more lawsuits related to injuries or death from the shooting against the school district. Two cases are still pending against the sheriff’s office. 

Seniors Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed 13 people and wounded about two dozen more before taking their own lives. 

Families of victims have said the money was mostly symbolic. 

“We wanted answers, we wanted full disclosure of what the school district and the sheriff did that day and prior to that,” said Randy Graves, the father of Sean Graves, who was wounded and left partially paralyzed. “I think we accomplished that.” 

Graves said the $30,000 his son would receive — $15,000 from the school district and the same amount from the sheriff’s office — probably won’t cover the future costs of his injuries. 

“I’m not sure what his future needs are going to be and that’s what I feel my responsibility is — to help him for the future,” Graves said. 

As part of the settlements, the school district and sheriff’s office agreed to drop their demand for legal fees. The settlements will likely be entered in court next week, officials said. 

WASHINGTON – In a matter of hours, two private investigators with a rake found a foot-long bone believed to be Chandra Levy’s in an area scoured for a week by dozens of Washington police with high-tech equipment. 

That the investigators, employed by Levy’s parents, were in the company of a newspaper reporter only added to police embarrassment in a case that has been notable for investigative miscues. 

“The finding of a piece of evidence like this by private investigators who are former (Washington) police homicide detectives is a really ironic and sad development. It’s pathetic,” Joseph di Genova, the former U.S. attorney in Washington, said Friday. 

Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey said detractors have the benefit of hindsight. But, he added, “I offer no excuses for the fact that some parts were not found.” 

Levy’s remains were found May 22 by a man walking his dog in Rock Creek Park, which police said had been searched thoroughly a year earlier. The find prompted what Ramsey described as a “typical grid search” using cadaver dogs, crime technicians, police cadets and a computer to draw a precise map of the search area. 

Searchers found about 85 percent of Levy’s skeleton, Ramsey said, and Dr. Jonathan Arden, Washington’s medical examiner, called the effort “a very thorough job of recovery.” 

Arden said he was not surprised searchers did not find every bone, considering the abundant animal life in the park and the many months during which Levy’s body apparently lay there. The bone found Thursday by the investigators showed “animal damage,” Arden said. 

Critics of the investigation said police have missed several opportunities that could have helped them solve the case. 

The most glaring problem was the failure to find Levy’s body when police searched the park shortly after she disappeared in May 2001, di Genova said. After saying they had scoured much of the park’s 1,754 acres, police admitted that they had not gone over the general area where Levy’s remains were found. 

“It’s a mistake from which you do not recover in an investigation,” di Genova said. 

Ramsey did not dispute that his investigators would have been helped by the prompt discovery of Levy’s body, but still he bristled at the criticism. “All of these critics — none of them knew where the body was,” he said. 

When Arden received Levy’s bones more than a year after she died, he could find no evidence about how she was killed. The bone found Thursday, probably Levy’s left shinbone, did not get him any closer to a determination, Arden said. Some hip and leg bones still are missing, Ramsey said. 

A twisted wire also found by the investigators will be analyzed to see if it might have been used in Levy’s death, Ramsey said. 

Among other lapses cited by critics, police failed to ask for videotapes from a security camera in Levy’s apartment building before the tapes had been used again.

Nevada sues, again, to stop  

Yucca Mountain project 

WASHINGTON – The federal government violated environmental and nuclear policy laws in selecting a Nevada desert mountain ridge as the burial site for the nation’s nuclear waste, Nevada alleges in a lawsuit filed Thursday. 

With Congress likely to endorse President Bush’s recommendation of the Yucca Mountain as early as next month, state officials are increasingly focusing on the courts to try to stop the repository from being built 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. 

The new lawsuit, filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington by Nevada Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa, is the state’s second this year against the Yucca Mountain proposal. 

It challenges the validity of the Energy Department’s final environmental impact statement, issued just a day before Bush’s decision in February. 

Energy Department officials have said they expected legal challenges from Nevada and defended the selection of the site. 

The state is alleging that the environmental study is flawed because it lacks such important details as the design of the storage facility, the specifications of the containers that will hold radioactive waste and a transportation plan. 

The lawsuit says the study violates the National Environmental Policy Act and the Nuclear Waste Policy Act, the law Congress wrote to guide the selection of a site and the construction of the facility. 

In a legal challenge filed with the same court in February, the state argued Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham’s recommendation of the site and Bush’s decision were based on flawed guidelines. That lawsuit is still pending. 

The state filed earlier lawsuits over Yucca Mountain water rights, radioactivity standards and the criteria on which Abraham made his decision. 

Archaeologists: Okeechobee-area canals oldest in North America  

ORTONA, Fla. – Archaeologists said Thursday they have discovered the longest and oldest canals ever found in North America, a sophisticated system of channels dug by Indians with wood and shell tools 1,800 years ago. 

The ancient canal system was discovered along with a sacred pond in this rural community near Lake Okeechobee in southern Florida. 

The two canals, seven miles in length altogether, represent the longest and oldest canals in North America and show evidence of greater complexity in native American society than previously suspected, said Robert S. Carr of the Archaeological and Historical Conservancy. 

The canals were used for fishing and for transportation around rapids that used to exist in the Caloosahatchee River, which runs from the lake to the Gulf of Mexico at Fort Myers in southwestern Florida, archaeologists said. 

Carr estimated that hundreds of Indians lived in this area and used tools of wood and shell to dig out millions of yards of sand and soil. 

“This suggests one level of technological achievement that really has never been honored before,” Carr said. 

Previously archaeologists believed the canals were hundreds of years more recent. 

Man in jail in legal dispute  

over Web postings  

SEATTLE – A 70-year-old man has been in jail for more than three months for refusing to delete from his Web site addresses and other personal data of employees at the retirement home that evicted him. 

The jailing of Paul Trummel, a native of England who moved to the United States in 1985, has drawn fire from national and international writers groups that support his First Amendment claims. 

“Our concern is that he’s being punished for speech on the Internet that should be protected,” said Lucy Dalglish, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press in Washington, D.C. 

Other groups that have questioned the jailing include the National Union of Journalists in London and Reporters Sans Frontieres of France. 

Trummel was jailed indefinitely on Feb. 27 for violating an anti-harassment order by King County Superior Court Judge James A. Doerty. Doerty ruled in April 2001 that Trummel had been abusive and stalked residents and administrators at Council House, a low-income retirement home in Seattle. 

Doerty ordered Trummel to remove from his Web site the home phone numbers, addresses and other personal data on employees at Council House, and imposed fines of $100 a day for failing to comply.

On June 14, 1777, 225 years ago, the Continental Congress in Philadelphia adopted the Stars and Stripes as the national flag. 

On this date: 

In 1775, the United States Army was founded. 

In 1841, the first Canadian parliament opened in Kingston. 

In 1846, a group of U.S. settlers in Sonoma proclaimed the Republic of California. 

In 1922, Warren G. Harding became the first president heard on radio, as Baltimore station WEAR broadcast his speech dedicating the Francis Scott Key memorial at Fort McHenry. 

In 1940, German troops entered Paris during World War II. 

In 1940, in German-occupied Poland, the Nazis opened their concentration camp at Auschwitz. 

In 1943, the Supreme Court ruled schoolchildren could not be compelled to salute the flag of the United States if doing so conflicted with their religious beliefs. 

In 1954, President Eisenhower signed an order adding the words “under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance. 

In 1982, Argentine forces surrendered to British troops on the disputed Falkland Islands. 

In 1985, the 17-day hijack ordeal of TWA Flight 847 began as a pair of Lebanese Shiite Muslim extremists seized the jetliner shortly after takeoff from Athens, Greece. 

Ten years ago: The Earth Summit concluded in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Chicago Bulls won the NBA championship, beating the Portland Trail Blazers in game six, 97-93. Mona Van Duyn became the first woman to be named the nation’s poet laureate by the Library of Congress. 

Five years ago: President Clinton opened a yearlong campaign against racism with a commencement address at the University of California, San Diego, in which he defended affirmative action and pleaded with Americans to confront and erase their most deeply held prejudices. A 1939 comic book featuring the first appearance by Batman was auctioned off for $68,500 at Sotheby’s in New York. 

One year ago: The Bush administration announced the Navy would end its bombing exercises on Vieques Island off the coast of Puerto Rico by May 2003. President Bush sparred with European leaders in Sweden over climate change, unwavering in his opposition to a global warming treaty. Mike Gartner, Jari Kurri, Vyacheslav Fetisov and Dale Hawerchuk were elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame. 

Today’s Birthdays: Actor Gene Barry is 79. Former White House news secretary Pierre Salinger is 77. Actress Marla Gibbs is 71. Actor Jack Bannon is 62. Rock singer Rod Argent (The Zombies; Argent) is 57. Real estate developer Donald Trump is 56. Singer Janet Lennon (The Lennon Sisters) is 56. Rock musician Alan White (Yes) is 53. Actor Eddie Mekka is 50. Actor Will Patton is 48. Olympic gold-medal speed skater Eric Heiden is 44. Singer Boy George is 41. Rock musician Chris DeGarmo (Queensryche) is 39. Actress Yasmine Bleeth is 34. Tennis player Steffi Graf is 33. Actress Traylor Howard is 31. Actor Daryl Sabara is 10.

Today is Wednesday, June 12, the 163rd day of 2002. There are 202 days left in the year. 

Today’s Highlight in History: 

On June 12, 1939, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum was dedicated in Cooperstown, N.Y. 

On this date: 

In 1776, Virginia’s colonial legislature became the first to adopt a Bill of Rights. 

In 1838, the Iowa Territory was organized. 

In 1898, Philippine nationalists declared independence from Spain. 

In 1963, civil rights leader Medgar Evers was fatally shot in front of his home in Jackson, Miss. 

In 1967, the Supreme Court struck down state laws prohibiting interracial marriages. 

In 1971, Tricia Nixon and Edward F. Cox were married in the White House Rose Garden. 

In 1979, 26-year-old cyclist Bryan Allen flew the manpowered Gossamer Albatross across the English Channel. 

In 1981, major league baseball players began a 49-day strike over the issue of free-agent compensation. (The season did not resume until Aug. 10.) 

In 1987, President Reagan, during a visit to the divided German city of Berlin, publicly challenged Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev to “tear down this wall.” 

In 1991, Russians went to the polls to elect Boris N. Yeltsin president of their republic. 

Ten years ago: President George H.W. Bush, addressing the Earth Summit in Brazil, declared America’s environmental record “second to none.” In a letter to U.S. senators, Russian President Boris N. Yeltsin said the Soviet Union had shot down nine U.S. planes in the early 1950s and held 12 American survivors. 

Five years ago: The Treasury Department unveiled a new $50 bill meant to be more counterfeit-resistant. Baseball began interleague play, ending a 126-year tradition of separating the major leagues until the World Series. 

One year ago: President Bush arrived in Madrid, Spain, on his first official trip to Europe. A federal court in New York sentenced Mohamed Rashed Daoud Al-’Owhali, a Saudi Arabian follower of Osama bin Laden, to life in prison without parole for his role in the deadly bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Kenya. 

Today’s Birthdays: Banker David Rockefeller is 87. Actress Uta Hagen is 83. Former President George Bush is 78. Singer Vic Damone is 74. Actor-singer Jim Nabors is 72. Jazz musician Chick Corea is 61. Sportscaster Marv Albert is 61. Rock musician Bun E. Carlos (Cheap Trick) is 51. Country singer-musician Junior Brown is 50.  

Thought for Today: “What intellectual snobs we have become! Virtue is now in the number of degrees you have — not in the kind of person you are or what you can accomplish in real-life situations.” — Eda J. LeShan, American educator.

Jurors on Monday reached a partial verdict in the Bari vs. FBI and Oakland Police Department trial and could reach a final judgment today.  

The 10-member jury in the case accusing the FBI and OPD of framing and violating the civil rights of environmental activists Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney, delivered the verdict to Judge Claudia Wilken who instructed jurors to try to agree on some unresolved issues. 

For 16 days the jury has tried to reach unanimous verdicts on the more than 160 questions. 

Wilken indicated that she would keep the jurors no later than 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday unless Wilken decides that additional time would allow the jury to reach a unanimous decision on the remaining issues.  

If no additional time is given, the verdict is expected to be read some time between 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.  

Supporters of Bari and Cherney expect a large turnout for the verdict reading. A verdict today could mark the end of more than 12 years of events and controversy surrounding the 1990 car bombing of Bari and Cherney.

SANTA ANA — Orange County authorities are seeking out potential victims of abuse by priests rather than waiting for people to file police reports. 

Investigators have been digging through civil court cases, following up media reports and working with church officials to identify possible victims. 

Assistant District Attorney Rosanne Froeberg requested the increased efforts after numerous priest abuse claims were made in the media but never showed up as police reports. 

The concern is that some people may not understand that “filing a civil suit or reporting to the diocese does not automatically assure the police are going to be involved in their case,” she said Friday. 

Froeberg said four priests were under criminal investigation and at least five victims had been identified in the ongoing clergy sex scandal. 

Orange County sheriff’s spokesman Jon Fleischman said the Diocese of Orange has been cooperating with investigators. 

Across the country, prosecuting agencies have stepped up probes of potential priestly abuse cases. 

In Los Angeles County, the district attorney’s office has threatened to call Cardinal Roger Mahony before a grand jury hearing unless the Los Angeles Archdiocese turns over records of priests accused of sexual abuse. 

The Los Angeles Police Department has 43 investigations involving about 34 priests, including some who are dead, according to the Los Angeles Times’ Saturday editions. Only one or two of the investigations involve recent sex abuse allegations. Many of the cases involve priests whose names were reported to law enforcement by the archdiocese earlier this year. 

To avoid problems with the statute of limitations, police must prove that an old case involved multiple victims and that there was substantial sexual contact, among other things, the Times reported. 

Archdiocese officials have said they are cooperating with authorities. 

Meanwhile, a Pomona priest has pleaded innocent to charges of molesting two girls.

CHICO – An autopsy Friday could not determine for certain if the body of a young girl found buried in rural Butte County is the missing daughter of a man believed to have killed himself last week. 

The Butte County sheriff-coroner’s office said it will probably take a DNA test to show if the body found Wednesday is that of 11-year-old Jeanene Bonner of Altadena. 

Blood samples from the body and from Jeanene’s parents have been sent to the California Department of Justice for DNA comparison, with expedited results expected in about two weeks, the coroner’s office said. 

Dental records were inconclusive because Jeanene’s teeth had no notable cavities or fillings, and her most recent x-rays are about three years old. 

The autopsy found nothing to indicate the body is not that of the missing girl, the coroner’s office said. Authorities previously said the body matches Jeanene’s description. 

The girl apparently died of a single gunshot wound to the head, and there were no other notable injuries, the autopsy showed. 

Jeanene was reported missing May 27 to the Los Angeles County sheriff’s office, after her father, Joaquin Garcia, picked her up at school a week earlier.