The city’s youth soccer teams began practices Tuesday. But league officials said that Berkeley kids who dream of being the next Pele or Mia Ham barely have room to stretch. 

The problem, they say, is overcrowded sports fields. As has become customary in Berkeley, multiple teams are crowding onto a single field for practice because a shortage of sports fields is cheating neighborhood kids out of the chance to play team sports, field advocates say. 

“We have a waiting list for kids trying to get into the league,” said Alan Fong, President of the Albany-Berkeley Soccer League (ABSL), which organizes 1,000 kids into 63 teams. 

At least 10 kids who wanted to join the league have not been admitted. 

Bearing the brunt of the field shortage, league officials say, are minority kids. 

During the mid-1990s the ABSL tried to recruit more black and Latino youth into its ranks. However, now that space is so restricted, that effort has slowed, said Tim Perry, former president of the ABSL. 

“It’s impossible to do outreach if there is no place for more kids to play,” he explained. 

Berkeley operates 14 sports fields. According to city officials, Berkeley’s field space is only one-fifth the amount of most similarly sized cities. During the busy spring and fall seasons, soccer, softball, baseball, football, lacrosse, rugby and ultimate Frisbee clubs all compete for precious turf. 

Everybody in the sports field tug-of-war ends up a loser, said Perry. “We could have 250 to 500 more kids in the league if we had the fields for them to play on,” he added. 

The main reason for the shortage of play space is the soaring popularity of girls’ athletics, said Doug Fielding of the Association of Sports Field Users. Since 1990, the number of Berkeley girls playing soccer and softball has risen from about 40 to 750, but the city has added only four new fields, he said. 

The problem, added Perry, is the dangerous practice of mixing different teams on the same practice field. “One year, we had a 10-year-old soccer team sharing a field with two adult rugby teams. It was an interesting and slightly scary contrast.” 

The field shortage is even worse in the spring, when baseball and softball leagues operate. According to Perry the 1,000-member fall soccer league shrinks to 600 in the spring because there are fewer available fields. Practices are also cut in half, from three to one-and-a-half hours a week because of overcrowding. 

The dearth of sports fields affects more than youth soccer, Perry said. Adult leagues often have to schedule games late at night to accommodate children playing during the evening, and pick-up games are stymied because fields are always in use.  

Berkeley public schools are also in a bind. The Berkeley High School baseball team plays its home games at San Pablo Park, about a mile from the school, because it lacks a suitable facility on campus. 

The periodic skirmishes between teams sharing space pale in comparison to the political clashes under way to build more fields. 

In 1999 the city opened Harrison Park at Fifth and Gilman streets. The park added four fields to Berkeley’s collection, but sport field advocates say that at least nine more are needed to meet the growing demand. 

Several years ago a plan to build a baseball diamond and permanent farmer’s market at Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Derby Street was shot down by neighbors. Mayor Shirley Dean recently called for the project to be reconsidered. 

This year, a proposal by park planners to build five fields at the Albany Plateau in Eastshore State Park has angered environmentalists. According to Robert Cheasty of Citizens for an Eastshore State Park, the chosen site is better suited for informal recreation, and young children could disturb migratory birds that nest on the mudflats just north of the proposed fields. 

Cheasty and a majority of Berkeley City Council members propose that Berkeley join with nearby cities to purchase land owned by the Golden Gate Fields racetrack adjacent to Gilman Street and convert the land into athletic fields. But field advocates say there is no guarantee that the race track land will be purchased and converted into fields. 

“Every time we try to build fields, a group forms and says ‘No, not here,’ ” said Fielding, defending the inclusion of fields at the state park. “If they don’t get built at the state park, they may not get built at all.” 

Contact reporter at matt@berkerleydailyplanet.net 

To the Editor: 

I can understand why City Council members insist on building playing fields in Eastshore State Park even if the parks will destroy irreplaceable habitat. 

After all, the red wing blackbirds and Canada geese aren't a voting bloc and they don't spend money in Berkeley. Suggestion: Current usage of the Cesar Chavez dog park doesn't warrant its acreage. Dog owners seem to prefer less sterile environs like the Berkeley Meadow. Why not designate some of the dog park acreage for playing fields? They'd be just as windy as the ones proposed for the North Basin area but the habitat would be preserved. If not overturned now, the Eastshore State Park plan to destroy the small area left of the natural world at the western edge of Berkeley will be an extremely myopic decision, not to say tragic for the myriad species who live there now.  

Maris Arnold, 

Berkeley 

Monday, September 2 

Labor Day Potluck Picnic and Poetry Reading 

Hosted by Bay Area Poets Coalition 

Noon to 4 p.m. 

Live Oak Park, Walnut and Rose St. 

527-9905, poetalk@aol.com 

National Organization for Women Oakland/East Bay Chapter  

6:30 p.m.  

Mama Bears Bookstore and Coffeehouse, 6536 Telegraph Ave. 

Chapter’s monthly meeting. Speaker: Multicultural historian, Lucia Chiavola Birnbaum, received 

the prestigious Valitutti Award for non-fiction.  

549-2970 

Free 

Tuesday, September 3 

The Listening Post 

11 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Wesley Student Center on Bancroft Way near Dana Dr. 

The Listening Post is a safe, non-judgmental, non-denominational place for students to talk about whatever may be on their minds, or weighing on their hearts. 

549-1244 

Free 

Opening of Classes 

Berkeley City Ballet 

1800 Dwight Way  

First day of classes at BCB. Classes Monday through Friday for children 5 and up. Student performers are invited to audition annual Nutcracker performance.  

841-8913 

Wednesday, September 4 

Green Party Meeting 

6:30 p.m. 

Grassroots House, 2022 Blake St. 

Discussion of the Berkeley races and measures as part of the Green Party of Alameda County endorsement process. All Greens are welcome regardless of Berkeley residency. 

http://cagreens.org/alameda/county  

Lecture: Hitching a Lame Horse to a Broken Wagon 

7 p.m. 

126, Barrows Hall, UC Berkeley Campus 

lecture on the the government’s attempt to link the drug war to the war on terror—featuring Sanho Tree from the Institute of Policy Studies. 

stopdrugwarnow@cs.com 

Free 

Thursday, September 5 

Nutrition Career Open House 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Institute of Educational Therapy , 706 Gilman St. 

Learn how to become a nutrition educator or consultant. 

558-1711 

Free 

Friday, September 6 

'The Winona LaDuke Reader'  

Lecture and Reception 

Presented by the American Indian Graduate Program 

5 p.m. Reception, 7 p.m. Lecture 

Native American environmental and Indigenous Rights activist and author of several books and articles, Winona LaDuke, will discuss the topics of her new book 'The Winona LaDuke Reader' as well as other current work. 

atalay@sscl.berkeley.edu 

Free 

Saturday, September 7 

Watershed Environmental  

Poetry Festival 

Noon to 5 p.m. 

Martin Luther King Jr. Park 

A day of poetry, music and environmental activism. Exhibits. Open poetry readings.  

Strawberry Creek Walk starts at 10 a.m. at Oxford and Center streets. 

526-9105 or www.poetryflash.org 

Free 

Sick Plant Clinic 

9 a.m. to noon 

University of California Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Dr. 

UC plant pathology and entomology experts will diagnose what ails your plant.  

643-2755 

Free 

Travel Careers Seminar 

8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. 

Vista Community College  

2020 Milvia St., Room 306 

The day’s program will include travel industry speakers covering a variety of career possibilities: Cruise specialists, tour leaders, tour operators, adventure operators, home-based travel agents and more.  

981-2931 

$5.50 for California residents 

Sunday, September 8 

Lifelong Medical Care First Annual 5K Fun Run/Walk Fundraiser 

9 a.m. to noon 

West Berkeley 

Individual and team participation. Event includes a health fair, food, prizes, live music and free insurance eligibility screening. 

704-6010 

28th Annual Solano Avenue Stroll 

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Solano Avenue 

A mile-long block part featuring “Journey of a Thousand Cranes’ Parade” at 11 a.m.  

527-5358 or www.solanostroll.org 

Free 

Watershed Environmental  

Poetry Festival 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

Prostate Cancer Lecture 

2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. 

Maffly Auditorium, Herrick Campus 

2001 Dwight Way 

Understand the risk of prostate cancer and how to detect early symptoms from a survivor. 

869-6737 

Free 

Tuesday, September 9 

Arts Education Network 

6 to 8 p.m. 

James Irvine Foundation Conference Ctr., 353 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza 

208-0842 

Berkeley Gray Panthers Home Owners Meeting 

3 p.m. 

1403 Addison St. 

All welcome. 

548-9696 

Free 

Tuesday, September 10 

Brown Bag Career Talk 

Noon to 1 p.m. 

YWCA Turning Point Career Center, 2600 Bancroft Way 

Cynthia Weekly, Senior Recruiter with UC Berkeley Office of Human Resources will provide information on the process of seeking temporary and permanent employment at UC Berkeley. 

848-6370 

Free 

Michael Newdow: Lecture 

8 p.m. 

2050 Valley Life Sciences Building, UC Berkeley Campus 

Michael Newdow is a Sacramento physician with a law degree whose case against the common procedure of reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools fueled national uproar last summer.  

USE-SANE, sane@ocf.berkeley.edu, http://www.BerkeleySANE.org 

Free 

Wednesday, September 11 

One Year Later, a  

Peace Vigil and Meditation 

6 to 7:30 p.m. 

West entrance of UC Berkeley Campus near the corner of University Ave. and Oxford St. 

The Buddhist Peach Fellowship invites people of all traditions to bear witness to the continued suffering related to Sept. 11, 2002. 

223-0683, www.bpf.org 

Thursday, September 12 

The 14th Small Business  

Development Trade Fair 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

The Pauley Ballroom in the Martin Luther King Jr. Student Union, near Telegraph Ave. and Bancroft Way, UC Berkeley 

The event will introduce small businesses to the UC Berkeley community and give campus departments a glimpse of the services and products small businesses have to offer.  

Caterina Rando discusses her new book Learn to Power Think: A Practical Guide to Positive and Effective Decision Making 

Boadecia’s Books, 398 Colusa Ave. 

559-9184, www.bookpride.com 

Friday, September 13 

Lecture by Dr. Paul Farmer 

7:30 p.m. 

St. Joseph the Worker Church, 2640 Addison St. 

Dr. Farmer will speak on Health Care and Human Rights: Solidarity with the Haitian People. Benefit for Partners in Health. Music by Vukani Mawethu Choir. 

558-0371 

$5 to $15 donation 

Triumph is a feeling the current crop of Cal football players haven’t had in a while, and they savored it over the weekend following their 70-22 thrashing of Baylor to open the 2002 season. But by practice time on Monday afternoon, it was back to business. 

The Bears face New Mexico State on Saturday, a team that took 18th-ranked South Carolina to the fourth quarter before falling, 34-24. Although the Aggies aren’t a powerhouse, they should be a much more formidable opponent than hapless Baylor. 

“Everyone has realized that we should have won that game,” senior linebacker Matt Nixon said Tuesday. “Not to degrade our win, but we know this week will be a totally different ballgame.” 

Head coach Jeff Tedford got a huge win in his first game as the leader of a college program, but he has emphasized preparation for the next game rather than basking in the glow of victory. Even immediately after the game Tedford was subdued, complimenting his players and coaching staff and avoiding questions about his own role. 

Of course, winning is nothing new for Tedford, who helped turn Oregon into a national power before coming to Berkeley. His players, on the other hand, may need training in how to react to a dominating win, and that’s where Tedford has the greatest influence. 

“Football is a roller coaster,” Tedford said. “You have to keep on an even keel, you don’t want to get too high or too low.” 

The new head coach clearly wants to avoid the pitfalls of last year’s 1-10 debacle, when early lowlights led to complete collapses in nearly every game. He has stressed positive reinforcement since his first meetings with players and coaches. 

“We talked about that a long time ago, starting with spring practice,” Tedford said. “It was very evident that anytime they made a mistake their heads would go down. They lost a lot of self-esteem last year, which is to be expected when you have a season like that.” 

Tedford’s attitude has rubbed off on the majority of his players. Almost to a man, they say the new head man makes them want to play hard and believe in themselves. 

Nixon said the team’s new attitude would help even more in tough situations than in a game like the Baylor blowout. After all, it’s not too hard to keep your head up when everything’s bouncing your way. The true test will come when an opponent takes a lead on the Bears. 

“I think we’ve developed a sense of confidence,” Nixon said. “If [the Aggies] do get up early on us, we’re not going to lay down and let things pile up.” 

The Bears reflected their coach’s philosophy about on-field celebrations as well despite ample opportunities to play to the crowd. Freshmen Chris Mandarino, David Gray and Marcus O’Keith all scored their first collegiate touchdowns against Baylor, and cornerback Jemeel Powell and Nixon each returned an interception for a touchdown. But none spent much time hamming it up in the endzone, instead choosing to celebrate with teammates in the bench area. Of course, Nixon was probably happy just to make it back to the bench without falling over after his 102-yard return. 

“We discussed winning with class, not downgrading the opponent,” Tedford said. “It’s all about celebrating with your teammates. There’s no need to single yourself out just because you scored.” 

Mandarino, who made a seemingly impossible catch under a defender’s arm for his touchdown, said he nearly went full-on Terrell Owens before reining himself in. 

“I was pretty excited, and I almost went crazy,” he said. “It was my first game and my first touchdown, just an unbelievable moment.” 

While Tedford and the players were saying all the right things about moving past the Baylor game, there was an undeniable bounce in the players’ steps as they walked into Tuesday’s press conference. Senior quarterback Kyle Boller had a grin on his face the entire time he was in the room, a complete turnaround from his weary demeanor as last season wore down. 

“I’m excited. I wish we were playing tomorrow,” he said. “I’m just fired up, and it’s been a long time since I felt this way.”

The state Legislature passed a bill last week that would forgive a $1.16 million state fine that the financially-strapped Berkeley Unified School District owes for being late with paperwork. 

The legislation, sponsored by state Assemblywoman Dion Aroner, D-Berkeley, directs Berkeley Unified to spend the $1.16 million on consulting services and reform efforts within the school district. 

The bill now awaits the signature of Gov. Gray Davis, who vetoed similar legislation two years ago, arguing that it would set a dangerous precedent. But Aroner’s office negotiated the new legislation with the governor’s Department of Finance and expects Davis to sign it into law. 

“My presumption is, since the Department of Finance signed off on the bill... the governor will sign the bill,” Aroner said. 

The state fined the district $1.16 million after it failed to file a staff development form documenting several teacher training sessions by the state’s Oct. 31, 1999 deadline. The state required the form to reimburse school districts for the teacher development days. 

Berkeley Unified officials have acknowledged that the district’s staff was negligent when it failed to meet the deadline, but have long argued that late paperwork should not result in such a hefty fine. 

The Aroner bill, which passed the state Senate 22-10 Wednesday and the Assembly 60-18 Friday, assists school districts other than Berkeley Unified. It also forgives more than $700,000 in fines owed by the neighboring Emery Unified School District for its employment of two improperly certified teachers. 

The bill, AB 2859, also reduces the fines for any districts that in the future make the same mistake that Emery made. 

“The formula was way out of whack,” said Aroner. “Now the punishment fits the crime.” 

Aroner’s legislative director Hans Hemann said the Davis Administration’s recognition of the larger problems with the state’s formula for fines, laid bare by the Emery situation, contributed to its recent support for the bill. 

Previous attempts to deal with the Berkeley fine in isolation were not as compelling for the administration, he said. 

The Department of Finance did not return calls for comment. 

Berkeley Unified has already shelled out $580,000 in fine payments over the course of two years and is scheduled to pay the remaining $580,000 in the next two years. 

But if the Aroner bill becomes law, roughly $700,000 of the $1.16 million, including the money already paid to the state, would be redirected to the Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team, a state-sponsored fiscal adviser that has been working with the Berkeley Unified School District since last fall. 

FCMAT would use the $700,000 to develop a five-year district improvement plan by July 2003 covering several areas: instruction, financial management, facilities management, personnel management and community relations. 

The district would use the remaining $460,000 to implement reforms, with FCMAT providing a report on implementation by June 2005. 

The district, despite millions of dollars in cuts, still needs to make about $3 million in reductions to balance the 2002-2003 budget. Because it is still in the process of tightening its belt, Superintendent Michele Lawrence said the district plans to keep FCMAT in place at least through the end of the year.  

If the Aroner legislation passes, Lawrence said the district could use funds previously allocated for fine payments to cover its FCMAT bill, improving the district’s overall budget picture.  

Ultimately, Lawrence said, a better budget picture will benefit students. 

“It is in the best interests of the children of Berkeley and the state for [Davis] to sign this bill,” Lawrence said. “Penalizing children for the failure of adults makes no sense.” 

Neither Lawrence nor FCMAT officials said they could provide an accurate estimate of how much money the district has spent on FCMAT services and how much might be saved if the Aroner legislation passes. 

Davis has until Sept. 30 to sign or veto the bill. 

Contact reporter at  

scharfenberg@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To the Editor: 

I am compelled to answer a response to my Aug. 21 letter “Be careful to classify a hate crime.” Mark Schickman's letter on Aug. 29 was particularly vitriolic. 

Mr. Schickman described me as a “veteran anti-Semite” who “takes a page from Nazi Germany.” 

I accept Mr. Schickman's right to an opinion, but he overstepped the bounds of reasonable public debate by publishing falsehoods that do nothing for the discussion and only serve to smear me. 

What incurred these remarks? I wrote that there should be standards for calling something a “hate crime” in order to maintain the term's integrity. Mr. Schickman's reaction, in the end, cheapens anti-Semitism and the horrors of the Nazi genocides. 

This is indicative of my original point. Mr. Schickman demonstrated why terms such as hate crime or anti-Semitic must be used cautiously. His loose use already diminished the significance of these terms. He compared me and my letter to the editor with Hitler's industrial killing machine. 

His words are not only a profound insult to myself, but to my many Jewish friends who themselves or whose family members have been victims of real anti-Semitism, not the kind tossed at those who disagree or criticize Israel. 

If he values truth he will publish an official apology to myself and those victims of real anti-Semitism for cheapening it. Or, he should try to substantiate his reckless and irresponsible claims. For the sake of those Jews who I have worked, studied, and lived with, I demand it.  

Will Youmans, 

Berkeley 

The worst fear of city planners, whose affordable housing plan was rejected by the state earlier this summer, may come true. 

A developer, who says the city’s rejected Housing Element doesn’t have to be followed, is threatening to use the courts to prove her point. The challenge could open the door for other developers to skirt Berkeley’s zoning rules. 

Lynda Hart and her mother are threatening the suit. They say that without a valid Housing Element the city must accept their proposed three-story, 16-unit apartment complex at 1155 Hearst Ave. Four of the planned units would be zoned for Section 8 affordable housing. 

In July, the Zoning Adjustment Board denied Hart’s plan.  

The board ruled that the street had been rezoned that year to prohibit new buildings taller than two-stories. Instead of redesigning the development, Hart and her attorney, Rena Rickles, say they will sue the city on grounds that California housing law forbids Berkeley’s zoning regulations to stop affordable housing. 

Hart said the city’s rezoning of her block after she submitted her plan amounted to an illegal constraint because a smaller development would have yielded fewer affordable units. 

Paul Shain, who lives behind Hart’s property, disagreed. He said rezoning the block corrected an anomaly that if not rectified would have encouraged more large apartment complexes, destroying the character of the neighborhood. 

Zoning officials also rejected Hart’s argument, asserting that the California law was designed only for cities that opposed affordable housing. 

Because Berkeley had laws requiring projects to include affordable housing and had produced more than its share of affordable units, the city did not have to approve Hart’s project, ZAB members said. 

But three weeks later, the California Department of Housing and Community Development rejected Berkeley’s housing element plan that aimed to meet the state-mandated goal of 1,269 affordable housing units, saying the plan contained too many development restrictions. 

Hart says the rejection of the plan will help her case. 

“Since they don’t have an approved housing element they don’t have a leg to stand on,” said Hart. 

Although Berkeley officials don’t agree with Hart’s interpretation of state law, Alexander Amoroso, senior planner with the Association of Bay Area Governments, said that without a valid housing element Berkeley is vulnerable to such lawsuits and has the burden of proving that it is meeting its quota. 

If a suit is filed, it will be the first challenge to city zoning regulations based on state housing law. A victory by Hart could usher in more lawsuits, but local developer Patrick Kennedy questioned the suits potential for an impact. 

“We do a lot developments so it’s never been productive to sue the city,” he said. 

Contact reporter at matt@berkeleydailyplanet.net 

To the Editor: 

Chris Kavanaugh's rebuttal to my letter regarding the city's housing policies admirably recited the Housing Trust Fund (HTF) doctrine, but the HTF is only one of several funding opportunities offered. In fact it's hard to tell how much the city receives in housing funds and where the money is going. Reading through the Housing Element, CAPERS and Redevelopment statements I see that two nonprofit housing corporations have been certified as self-monitoring and self-inspecting, and they receive the lion's share of city housing funds. Project-based Section 8 limits tenants' freedom to contact codes and inspections or other agencies regarding repairs since tenants who complain risk homelessness. Without the protection of the Good Cause Eviction Ordinance and an annual inspection program there is nothing to compel corporate landlords to maintain city funded properties. 

As a member of Redevelopment's PAC, my concern about the city's housing funds began when I noticed that the city's official housing reports mentioned only the Redevelopment Agency's 20 percent set-aside contribution, ignoring over $6.5 million in additional agency subsidies. One project with a final value of less than $403,000 received $411,207 in agency funds – more than the total required for the project. Agency contributions are credited to the HTF while others are simply omitted, such as $2.5 million-plus for the Rumford Plaza project and $650,000 for the UA Hotel. City- and agency-owned properties are listed “in danger of conversion to market rate” (a criteria for more funding) while a “covenant of affordability” was recorded on a three-foot parking easement. The HTF made a questionable “loan” to the Redevelopment Agency in 1997, which stayed with the HTF to administer. Though this $1 million has been repaid twice, it's still carried as agency long-term debt with more than $950,000 in added interest. The housing funds have more irregularities than space exists to print them. The PAC has repeatedly requested accounting for these funds over the last several years with no results. 

I stand by my original statements. Projects funded by the city need to be evaluated and monitored by an agency that doesn't have a financial interest in the properties. 

Rhiannon, 

Berkeley 

Former Alameda County Board of Education member Jerome Wiggins filed suit against Alameda County Superintendent Sheila Jordan and her husband, Larry Cooperman, alleging slander and libel in Alameda County Superior Court last week. 

Wiggins, who represented Berkeley and the surrounding areas before losing a re-election bid in March, claims that Jordan and Cooperman made a number of false statements that damaged his reputation. 

Wiggins, who told the Daily Planet three weeks ago that he planned to file suit, said one of his chief concerns is an Oakland Tribune guest column written by Cooperman last year. The July 2001 piece stated that Wiggins had a “previous arrest” in connection with a November 1988 scuffle with two opposition campaign workers. 

Wiggins acknowledged that the campaign workers made a citizens’ arrest after the 1998 incident, but says that it did not amount to a true arrest by the police department. 

Jordan said she had not yet been served with the lawsuit and declined to discuss any specifics but said that Wiggins’ claims are baseless.” I believe there’s no merit to his case,” she said. “His accusations I consider to be slander.” 

By filing suit Wiggins “opens the door to an investigation into his own background” that could prove damaging, Jordan said. But she declined to elaborate on what the investigation might reveal. 

Wiggins, who also names Alameda County and the county board of education in the suit, has not yet specified the amount of money that he will pursue in damages. But the suit states that he will seek compensation for damage to his reputation, “severe” mental pain and anguish, emotional distress, attorneys’ fees and loss of the pay and benefits he would have received had he continued as a member of the board. Wiggins contends that Jordan’s alleged slander contributed to his defeat. 

Wiggins’ lawyer, Steven Anthony of the Oakland firm of Anthony & Carlson, said it could be six months before a trial date is set. 

Jordan and Wiggins are bitter enemies. The pair engaged in a high-profile budget battle two years ago that was often personal, and this year Jordan contributed $10,000 to the campaign of Jacki Fox Ruby, who defeated Wiggins in March. 

Jordan and Cooperman, in campaign literature, newspaper columns and public statements, have argued repeatedly that Wiggins is a violent, dangerous figure. 

In the July 2001 Oakland Tribune column, entitled “Take situation seriously,” Cooperman wrote that Wiggins had threatened his wife and had “a previous arrest for politically motivated violence,” making reference to the November 1988 scuffle, which occurred when Wiggins served on the AC Transit board. 

Wiggins notified Jordan and Cooperman after the column ran, saying that the Berkeley Police Department had not arrested him in connection with the incident. But Jordan subsequently put out a piece of campaign literature just before the March 2002 Wiggins-Fox Ruby election that included a November 1988 headline from the UC Berkeley student newspaper: “Candidate held after early morning scuffle.” 

Wiggins said that Jordan implied in the piece that he was arrested, even though she knew he had not been. 

“They knew it wasn’t true and they chose not to deal with it,” Wiggins said. 

But UC Berkeley law professor Stephen Barnett, an expert in slander and libel, said Wiggins does not appear to have a strong argument. 

According to Barnett, Wiggins must show that the defendants made false statements with “knowing or reckless malice.” Barnett said Cooperman could make a strong argument that he did not make a false statement in the Tribune since there was a citizen’s arrest involved. 

Barnett added that the word “held,” which appeared in the campaign literature, does not necessarily imply arrest. Therefore, he said, it would be difficult to prove that Jordan and Cooperman made a knowingly false assertion about Wiggins’ arrest record. 

“I think the word ‘held’ is vague enough,” he explained. 

Wiggins also makes reference in the lawsuit to Jordan’s public assertions that his behavior bears “the mark of a domestic abuser.” Wiggins said those statements are clearly defamatory. 

“When you start making reference to criminal activity and domestic abuse, those are serious allegations,” said Wiggins, arguing that his reputation has been damaged. 

Jordan, dismissing the claims, said Wiggins’ suit is a politically motivated attempt to detract from her work as county superintendent. 

“Doing her job is her responsibility,” Wiggins responded, arguing that the suit is really about a public official using her stature to defame a long-time “public servant.” 

The Alameda County Office of Education has jurisdiction over 18 local school districts, including Berkeley Unified School District, and is directly responsible for six county education programs for “at-risk” students. 

The office is currently weighing Berkeley Unified’s 2002-2003 budget and has the power to approve it or send it back for revisions. 

Contact reporter at  

scharfenberg@berkeleydailyplanet.net 

80 is a fine age at which  

to jump from an airplane 

PITTSFIELD, Maine — To celebrate her 80th birthday, Irma DeTour wanted to do something fun. Why not jump out of a plane? After all, her husband had done it only a year earlier. 

DeTour, of Bangor, said her first parachute jump on Sunday was easier than she thought it would be. Most of her nine children, 28 grandchildren and 32 great-grandchildren were on the ground to watch her take the 10,000-foot leap. 

As she jumped out of the plane, instructor Dan Dyer wrapped his arms around DeTour so he could control the chute’s speed and rate of descent. They went into a 42-second free fall at about 120 mph before the chute popped open at 3,800 feet and slowed to about 20 mph. 

“I didn’t hear a peep out of her until the chute opened,” said Dyer. “Then she shouted, ‘I can’t believe I did that.’ ” 

DeTour and Dyer executed a perfect standing landing in front of her cheering family. 

How about stealing a car for a highway trip at age 8? 

AKRON, Ohio — An 8-year-old foster child clad only in pajamas stole a pickup truck and went on a 20-mile drive to visit his family, police said. 

The boy, whose name was withheld, was finally stopped Sunday by a motorist who could barely see the youngster over the dashboard. She flashed her headlights and pursued him at up to 80 mph to get him to stop. 

“At first, I thought it was a drunk driver, and as I got closer, I said, ’Either it’s a midget or I’m crazy and that’s a little boy,”’ said Debbie Turner. 

Turner said she got the boy to slow down by positioning her car in front of the pickup. 

The boy told his aunt that he missed his family and wanted to leave his foster home in Twinsburg. 

Why not climb  

Mount Rainier at 77? 

ASHFORD, Wash.— A 77-year-old has become the oldest woman to climb Mount Rainier. And she made the trip in only 19 hours — round-trip. 

“I just never thought I could do it,” Bronka Sundstrom said. “I’m an old lady.” 

Accompanied by two guides, Sundstrom set out from Paradise, elevation 5,420 feet, shortly after 9 a.m. Saturday. She reached 10,080-foot Camp Muir in three hours, 15 minutes. 

She took a short break, then four hours, 40 minutes later, she was at the peak’s 14,411-foot summit. 

Most climbers take six to eight hours to reach the summit from Muir. 

“What she did was incredible, and that’s what I wrote in the summit register,” said one of her guides.  

Sundstrom said she might well climb Rainier again next year. 

“It was just fun to see something that I never saw before,” she said. 

By Jennifer Coleman 

The Associated Press 

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gray Davis said Tuesday he would cut more than the $750 million he’s supposed to cut from a $99 billion budget that many are calling a stopgap measure. 

At a campaign stop in Los Angeles, Davis said he would “veto some additional money” from the budget approved by the Legislature Sunday after a two-month standoff over proposed tax increases. 

Davis declined to specify how much he would cut and where the cuts would come from, saying he would work with his budget advisers Tuesday afternoon. 

“We will reduce the budget by a significant amount, we have a $24 billion shortfall that we are closing and we also have to think about the problems next year and the year after,” Davis said. 

Senate President John Burton, the Senate’s top Democrat, joined a chorus of critics, mostly Republican, of what they call a dangerous lack of permanent cuts to help stabilize the state’s budget in future years. 

Burton, of San Francisco, said Tuesday the long-overdue budget passed this weekend was only a “get-out-alive deal” and will result in a more difficult budget battle next year. 

But Davis, who plans to sign the budget Thursday, defended the budget, saying the spending plan was “the best we could do under extremely difficult circumstances.” 

Lawmakers approved the budget early Sunday morning, after they had battled over $9 billion in cuts. It calls for Davis to make $750 million in cuts from state agencies and departments rather than programs. 

Under the plan, another $285 million could be saved by offering longtime state employees an incentive to retire early. About $2.4 billion will be raised through new revenue, but not through vehicle or tobacco taxes, as previously proposed. 

“The average family is not going to see their taxes increase, either through the vehicle license fee or if they happen to smoke, they won’t be paying a whole lot for their cigarettes either,” added Davis spokeswoman Hilary McLean. 

As part of the budget agreement reached in the Assembly, Speaker Herb Wesson will create a committee of lawmakers to study ways to improve the budget process. 

Burton has proposed a commission of “outsiders, non-politicians to deal with this problem,” he said. 

This year’s budget didn’t include a permanent tax hike, such as the proposed tobacco tax increase, or a two-year fee increase, such as the temporary increase in vehicle license fees. Because of that, the future budget will have no new source of money and spending will have been trimmed to the bone to meet this year’s limits, Burton said. 

“The funding for the budget is only going to give us bigger problem next year. The only good news about that is that it may well force us to deal with a structural change in the budget,” Burton said. “Nothing’s going to help next year short of a miracle.”

SAN FRANCISCO — A Delaware bankruptcy judge has blocked the sale of Napster’s remaining assets to the song-swap company’s chief investor, Bertelsmann AG, marking the death of a deal that might have revived the service as a legitimate music-sharing network. 

Judge Peter Walsh made the ruling Tuesday, according to spokeswomen for Bertelsmann and Napster. Walsh cited conflicting loyalties by Napster’s top executive as the reason for killing the deal. 

Bertelsmann had sought to purchase the remains of the defunct Napster network for an additional $8 million after having already sunk $85 million into the Redwood City-based company to keep it afloat. Napster has been off line for more than a year. 

Suits by several record labels destroyed Napster. Those record companies also filed motions in the bankruptcy case, vigorously objecting to the sale of the company to Bertelsmann. 

Napster CEO Konrad Hilbers, a Bertelsmann veteran, said the judge’s decision likely will force Napster to change its reorganization effort into a Chapter 7 liquidation.

The exclusive Claremont Resort and Spa agreed last week to provide back pay to four employees it suspended earlier this year for distributing union literature at the hotel, according to union officials. 

The agreement was part of a larger legal settlement between the resort and the federal government’s National Labor Relations Board, which has the power to judicate labor disputes between private employers and unions. 

The resort is locked in a yearlong contract dispute with its food and beverage workers over wages, benefits and the unionization of 140 nonunion spa workers. It also agreed to not threaten or suspend employees for lawful, pro-union activity in the future. 

The National Labor Relations Board’s Oakland office was closed for the Labor Day holiday and could not confirm the specifics of the agreement. Both the hotel and the employee’s union, Local 2850 of the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union, said that the NLRB agreement was the outcome of union charges of “unfair labor practices” against the hotel.  

Some charges, including a Local 2850 accusation that managers tried to bribe employees into stopping union activities, are not addressed in the agreement. The NLRB is expected to rule on the outstanding issues within a few months. 

Stephanie Ruby, secretary-treasurer for Local 2850, called the settlement “an important legal victory for the workers.”  

But Claremont spokesperson Denise Chapman downplayed the deal. She said it is illegal to threaten an employee for supporting the union and argued that the hotel has never engaged in the practice. Chapman said the hotel had no qualms about shunning a tactic that it never used. 

“It’s like asking a licensed driver not to run any red lights,” she said. 

But union members, who picketed outside the resort Monday in a Labor Day protest, said the hotel has intimidated employees – asking them to move when they are distributing union literature in lawful areas and confronting them when they speak to the press about contract negotiations. 

Chapman said the hotel is eager to ink a contract for food and beverage employees. She said the union has delayed the process by refusing to meet frequently with hotel negotiators. 

“We would like to see [the union] come to the table more regularly to get this resolved,” Chapman said. 

A NLRB finding issued in August supports Chapman’s claim. NLRB found that the union “failed and refused to meet at reasonable dates and times” with the hotel to negotiate a contract. The national board set a Nov. 13 hearing date to decide how it will act upon the finding. 

But Ruby said the union will fight the charges. She said the union has rejected Claremont requests for back-to-back negotiating sessions because it needs a day off after each session to consult with its membership about the latest developments. 

Ruby also said the hotel could eliminate the need for future sessions by sweetening its contract offer.  

“We find it laughable that the Claremont is complaining about this because we all know that it is in their power to settle this,” she said. 

At the last bargaining session, on Aug. 27, the hotel offered raises of 20 cents an hour each year during the three-year contract. The resort, which pays for union members’ health insurance plans, offered to continue its current health care payments and pay for any increases in health care costs of up to 6 percent per year. Employees would have to pay the rest. 

The union rejected the proposal. 

Though Chapman said the offer is a “reasonable” one during “tough economic times,” union officials said the 20-cent annual raise is not in line with other Bay Area hotels, which are offering 40-cent raises each year. They also said that requiring employees to cover excess health care costs would wipe out any proposed raise. 

Another issue is a Local 2850 effort to unionize 140 nonunion spa workers including massage therapists, nail technicians, hair dressers, and estheticians, who provide facials. 

The union wants to utilize a “card check” method, which would allow spa workers to join Local 2850 by signing authorization cards distributed by the union. The hotel wants an election by secret ballot. 

Union officials say the secret ballot method would allow the Claremont to intimidate spa workers and could drag out the process if the union was victorious and the hotel were to appeal the results. The hotel argued that the union can strong-arm the anti-union spa workers during the “card check” process. 

In June, City Council passed a resolution endorsing a union-led boycott of the hotel, and Vice Mayor Maudelle Shirek was among some 50 protesters arrested during a march on the hotel.  

Contact reporter at  

scharfenberg@berkeleydailyplanet.net 

To the Editor: 

Mr. Worthington's verse moved me to respond in kind... 

The Poet-Politician (with due apologies to Edward Lear) 

The Poet-Politician went to see 

The City Council of Berklee. 

He had a petition, outlining his position, 

That ‘twas published in the local Dailee. 

The Poet-Pol looked to the mayor above 

And sang when yielded the floor: 

“O lovely Mayor, O Mayor my love, 

Let us not, against Iraq, go to war, 

To war, 

To war! 

Let us not, against Iraq, go to war!” 

The Mayor said to the Pol-Poet, “Its true, I know it, 

How charmingly sweet you sing: 

‘Bring sanity back, don't attack Iraq!’ 

But how can you stop this thing?” 

So he sailed away, for a year and a day, 

To the land where foreign policy is decreed 

And there in a bog, the land of backlog, 

He found Washington, D.C. 

D.C. 

D.C. 

He found Washington, D.C. 

“Dear Mr. Rumsfield,” he said, “your plans must be repealed.” 

Said Rummy, “Of course I agree.” 

Hip hip hooray! He had carried the day, the Poet-Pol from Berklee! 

Here ends our fantasee, for foreign policy, you see, comes not from lyrical City Councilmen. 

They should focus, be clear, on problems 'round here 

Like finding us places to park, 

To park, 

To park, 

Like finding us places to park!  

Nathan Jones, 

Berkeley

Monday, September 2 

Labor Day Potluck Picnic and Poetry Reading 

Hosted by Bay Area Poets Coalition 

Noon to 4 p.m. 

Live Oak Park, Walnut and Rose St. 

527-9905, poetalk@aol.com 

National Organization for Women Oakland/East Bay Chapter  

6:30 p.m.  

Mama Bears Bookstore and Coffeehouse, 6536 Telegraph Ave. 

Chapter’s monthly meeting. Speaker: Multicultural historian, Lucia Chiavola Birnbaum, received 

the prestigious Valitutti Award for non-fiction.  

549-2970 

Free 

Tuesday, September 3 

The Listening Post 

11 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Wesley Student Center on Bancroft Way near Dana Dr. 

The Listening Post is a safe, non-judgmental, non-denominational place for students to talk about whatever may be on their minds, or weighing on their hearts. 

549-1244 

Free 

Opening of Classes, Berkeley City Ballet 

1800 Dwight Way  

First day of classes at BCB. Classes Monday through Friday for children 5 and up. Student performers are invited to audition annual Nutcracker performance.  

841-8913 

Wednesday, September 4 

Green Party Meeting 

6:30 p.m. 

Grassroots House, 2022 Blake St. 

Discussion of the Berkeley races and measures as part of the Green Party of Alameda County endorsement process. All Greens are welcome regardless of Berkeley residency. 

http://cagreens.org/alameda/county  

Free 

Lecture: Hitching a Lame Horse to a Broken Wagon 

7 p.m. 

126, Barrows Hall, UC Berkeley Campus 

lecture on the the government’s attempt to link the drug war to the war on terror—featuring Sanho Tree from the Institute of Policy Studies. 

stopdrugwarnow@cs.com 

Free 

Thursday, September 5 

Nutrition Career Open House 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Institute of Educational Therapy , 706 Gilman St. 

Learn how to become a nutrition educator or consultant. 

558-1711 

Free 

Friday, September 6 

'The Winona LaDuke Reader' Lecture and Reception 

Presented by the American Indian Graduate Program 

5 p.m. Reception, 7 p.m. Lecture 

Native American environmental and Indigenous Rights activist and author of several books and articles, Winona LaDuke, will discuss the topics of her new book 'The Winona LaDuke Reader' as well as other current work. 

atalay@sscl.berkeley.edu 

Saturday, September 7 

Sick Plant Clinic 

9 a.m. to noon 

University of California Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Dr. 

UC plant pathology and entomology experts will diagnose what ails your plant.  

643-2755 

Free 

Travel Careers Seminar 

8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. 

Vista Community College  

2020 Milvia St., Room 306 

The day’s program will include travel industry speakers covering a variety of career possibilities: Cruise specialists, tour leaders, tour operators, adventure operators, home-based travel agents and more.  

981-2931 

$5.50 for California residents 

Sunday, September 8 

Lifelong Medical Care First Annual 5K Fun Run/Walk Fundraiser 

9 a.m. to noon 

West Berkeley 

Individual and team participation. Event includes a health fair, food, prizes, live music and free insurance eligibility screening. 

704-6010 

28th Annual Solano Avenue Stroll 

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Solano Avenue 

A mile-long block part featuring “Journey of a Thousand Cranes’ Parade” at 11 a.m.  

527-5358 or www.solanostroll.org 

Free 

Watershed Environmental Poetry Festival 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

Prostate Cancer Lecture 

2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. 

Maffly Auditorium, Herrick Campus 

2001 Dwight Way 

Understand the risk of prostate cancer and how to detect early symptoms from a survivor. 

869-6737 

Free 

Tuesday, September 9 

Arts Education Network 

6 to 8 p.m. 

James Irvine Foundation Conference Ctr., 353 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza 

208-0842 

Free 

Berkeley Gray Panthers Home Owners Meeting 

3 p.m. 

1403 Addison St. 

All welcome. 

548-9696 

Free 

Tuesday, September 10 

Brown Bag Career Talk 

Noon to 1 p.m. 

YWCA Turning Point Career Center, 2600 Bancroft Way 

Cynthia Weekly, Senior Recruiter with UC Berkeley Office of Human Resources will provide information on the process of seeking temporary and permanent employment at UC Berkeley. 

848-6370 

Free 

Michael Newdow: Lecture 

8 p.m. 

2050 Valley Life Sciences Building, UC Berkeley Campus 

Michael Newdow is a Sacramento physician with a law degree whose case against the common procedure of reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools fueled national uproar last summer.  

USE-SANE, sane@ocf.berkeley.edu, http://www.BerkeleySANE.org 

Wednesday, September 11 

One Year Later, a Peace Vigil and Meditation 

6 to 7:30 p.m. 

West entrance of UC Berkeley Campus near the corner of University Ave. and Oxford St. 

The Buddhist Peach Fellowship invites people of all traditions to bear witness to the continued suffering related to Sept. 11, 2002. 

223-0683, www.bpf.org 

Thursday, September 12 

The 14th Small Business  

Development Trade Fair 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

The Pauley Ballroom in the Martin Luther King Jr. Student Union, near Telegraph Ave. and Bancroft Way, UC Berkeley 

The event will introduce small businesses to the UC Berkeley community and give campus departments a glimpse of the services and products small businesses have to offer.  

Caterina Rando discusses her new book Learn to Power Think: A Practical Guide to Positive and Effective Decision Making 

Boadecia’s Books, 398 Colusa Ave. 

559-9184, www.bookpride.com 

Friday, September 13 

Lecture by Dr. Paul Farmer 

7:30 p.m. 

St. Joseph the Worker Church, 2640 Addison St. 

Dr. Farmer will speak on Health Care and Human Rights: Solidarity with the Haitian People. Benefit for Partners in Health. Music by Vukani Mawethu Choir. 

558-0371 

$5 to $15 donation 

Saturday, September 14 

Basic Personal Preparedness 

9 to 11 a.m. 

Fire Department Training Center, 997 Cedar St. 

Learn five critical steps to take care of yourself, your family and your home. Classes open to those 18 or older who live or work in Berkeley. 

981-5605, www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/fire/oes.html 

Free 

Congressman Dennis Kuchinich Appearance 

7 p.m. 

Wheeler Auditorium, UC Berkeley Campus, near University Ave. 

Chair of the House Progressive Caucus will speak. Keith Carson, Country Joe McDonald and performance artist Shelly Glaser will also be on hand. 

http://www.bfuu.org/rscongress 

$10 in advance, $12 door 

Heritage Day 

11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

4th and University Ave. 

International BBQ and beer festival 

Free 

Spin for the Stars Fund-raiser 

9 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

Spieker Aquatics Complex, Recreational Sports Facility on UC Berkeley campus 

Noncompetitive swimming and stationary cycling event. Proceeds will help Cal STAR enhance its facilities and programs for the disabled. 

$20 registration fee, $35 for biathlon challenge  

West Berkeley Open Air Market 

11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

University Avenue between 3rd and 4th St. 

West Berkeley celebrates Neighborhood Heritage Day with crafts, food, live music, art and family entertainment. 

841-8562 or sfbayshellmounds@yahoo.com 

Free 

OAKLAND — Miguel Tejada and the Oakland Athletics simply refuse to lose — even when the degree of difficulty gets higher and higher. 

Tejada got his second straight game-ending hit as the A’s matched the longest winning streak in AL history with their 19th straight victory Monday, beating the Kansas City Royals 7-6. 

David Justice homered and drove in four runs as Oakland overcame a 5-0 deficit and a terrible start by ace Barry Zito to equal the 19 straight wins recorded by the 1906 White Sox and matched by the 1947 Yankees. 

With their second straight victory in their final at-bat, the A’s recorded the fifth-longest streak in major league history and the third longest since 1900. 

With the bases loaded and the score tied at 6 in the ninth, Tejada drove a sharp one-out single through five drawn-in infielders. The hit sparked a replay of the raucous Coliseum celebration on Sunday, when Tejada’s dramatic three-run homer beat Minnesota. 

For the third straight day, the A’s streak seemed to be in serious jeopardy. In the fifth inning, Oakland trailed 5-0 and hadn’t managed a hit against Kansas City starter Runelvys Hernandez, while Zito had been battered by the Royals’ light-hitting lineup. 

But Oakland rallied with Justice’s two-run homer in the fifth and four more runs in the sixth, capped by Justice’s two-run single that put Oakland up 6-5. 

Kansas City tied it in the eighth and loaded the bases in the ninth, but Tejada turned Neifi Perez’s grounder into an inning-ending double play. 

With the pulsating Coliseum sensing another victory, Terrence Long led off the ninth with a triple to left against Jason Grimsley (3-5). The Royals intentionally walked Greg Myers and Ray Durham to load the bases. 

With five infielders stacked behind Grimsley, Kansas City got Long at home plate on Scott Hatteberg’s grounder — but Tejada, whose dramatic three-run homer won Sunday’s game, singled up the middle on Grimsley’s first pitch. 

A’s closer Billy Koch (8-2), appearing for the fourth straight day, got his second straight victory despite pitching into big trouble in the ninth. 

Zito wasted a chance to become the AL’s first 20-game winner with one of the worst starts of his outstanding career. He yielded 10 hits and five runs, leaving the mound in the sixth with his head hung low. 

Perez had four hits for the Royals, who had 14 hits and plenty of chances to put away the A’s. 

Zito’s troubles began with a bizarre play. Perez led off the third with a line drive into the left-field corner. Justice sprinted after the ball and leaped at the wall to catch it — but the ball hit the bottom of Justice’s glove and ricocheted over the fence, turning a probable double into a homer. 

Zito gave up a long homer to A.J. Hinch on his very next pitch. 

Carlos Beltran had a two-run single in a three-run fourth, keyed by an error by Tejada, as Kansas City took a 5-0 lead. 

Hernandez retired 12 of Oakland’s first 13 hitters and cruised into the fifth, when he appeared to throw a pitch at Jermaine Dye’s head. Dye glared at Hernandez, and on the next pitch, he beat out an infield single for the first hit. Justice followed with his 11th homer of the season. 

In the sixth, Hatteberg had an RBI double before Eric Chavez and Justice got run-scoring singles. 

Kansas City tied it in the eighth when Perez scored on Luis Ordaz’s double-play grounder. 

Notes: The Royals recalled OF Dee Brown from Triple-A Omaha. Brown, who made Kansas City’s opening day roster in 2001, had spent the entire season in Omaha, hitting .278 with 17 homers and 75 RBIs. ... A’s reliever Jim Mecir began serving his three-game suspension for hitting Chicago’s Royce Clayton two weeks ago. ... Mike Sweeney, who’s neck-and-neck with Bernie Williams for the AL batting lead, pinch-hit in the seventh with two runners on and two outs. He flied out to center. 

Fans of adult-oriented public access television may not have to adjust their bed times after all. 

A City Council proposal that would permit sexually-explicit programming on the city’s two community TV stations to air only after midnight is unconstitutional and must be dropped, said the American Civil Liberties Union in a letter to the city last week. 

Adult programming is permitted to air between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. as is recommended by the Federal Communications Commission and followed by nearly every public access station in the country. 

Berkeley’s proposal, which would move shows later and provide screening of programming, violates the First Amendment, wrote ACLU attorney Ann Brick.  

In trying to protect children, the law would deny adults access to constitutionally protected programs, she said. 

Instead of moving the shows to a later time, Brink wrote, Berkeley should encourage parents to request that cable operators block the stations or provide parents with a device that allows them to block offensive shows. 

Complaints from residents about some public access shows led council to vote 5-3 in support of stricter restrictions. The ordinance will go into effect after a second affirmative vote scheduled for Sept. 10. 

The two shows most criticized are “Frank Moore’s Unlimited Possibilities” and “The Dr. Susan Block Show.” Susan Block is shown at 10:30 p.m. Fridays and features a lingerie-clad sex therapist whose guests have included women masturbating and provocatively touching one another.  

The ordinance would direct the station’s operator, Berkeley Community Media, to install a commission to judge the decency of programming when a viewer complains. 

Shows deemed to provide no literary, artistic or political merit and that appeal only to sexual interest and offer offensive depictions of sex would be banned until midnight. Council must approve the framework devised by BCM for grading its programming before it can take effect. 

Brink wrote that placing the burden on BCM to determine the value of its programs would put undue pressure on the media group to curtail artistic expression. 

“This aspect of the ordinance is almost sure to chill First Amendment expression, thereby frustrating the very purposes for which BTV was established,” she wrote. 

Brian Scott, BCM Media Director, said he would be uncomfortable as the final arbiter of “indecency.” 

“As soon as we make that decision we lose the trust of the community and people call us censors,” he said, adding that if the ordinance passed, he would ask City Council to form a commission to rule on complaints. 

Scott said only two residents have complained to him, but Councilmember Betty Olds defended the ordinance, saying that she had received eight to 10 complaints in the past six months about the Susan Block show. 

“When they bring a camera close to a women’s crotch and try to insert a disabled man’s penis into a vagina – if you don’t call that bad taste, I don’t know what is,” she said. “[The ordinance] isn’t just [to protect] children. Other people want to view public television and they don’t want to see it there.” 

But Councilmember Kriss Worthington, who opposes the ordinance, said that if Berkeley implements the most restrictive censorship policy in the state its passage would send a message to other cities to do the same. If council passes the ordinance, the sexually explicit shows could remain on air until council approves a committee to judge the programming. 

But an attempt to move the shows to after midnight only could embroil the city in a lawsuit. 

Frank Moore, a performance artist who includes nudity in some of his shows said his show was not “indecent” and that if the committee found otherwise, he would sue the city. 

The ACLU has sued the city previously. In the most recent instance, the organization was successful in making Berkeley repeal Measure O, a 1994 ballot initiative that prevented homeless from lying on sidewalks. 

Contact reporter at  

matt@berkeleydailyplanet.net 

To the Editor: 

Dan Krauss's article “New school principal tackles old problems” (Aug. 31) incorrectly blames difficulties at Longfellow last year on “rampant staff infighting” and problems with “controlling the staff.” The teaching staff as a whole behaved with professionalism and was part of the solution, asking for help from the district to prepare for this year's schedule changes, not the problem. 

As a parent volunteer at Longfellow for the past three years, I greatly respect the school's dedicated, highly-skilled teaching staff. They have worked long and hard to bring the benefits of an arts and technology magnet school to all of Longfellow's students. I would like to thank them for providing my son with a sound, enriched education as he starts high school this year. 

Meanwhile, the Arts Magnet grant “sunsetted” at the end of my son's second year. Budgets were further slashed for this year. Longfellow administrators were constantly “putting out fires” – floods in the supply rooms of the newly remodeled building and in the new gym; no substitute teachers available to teach classes when teachers were absent; inadequate staffing to supervise yards and halls; and many more.  

I am encouraged by the reports of positive teacher response to principal Cheung's efforts so far. I hope the district central administration will help her to provide an organized, supportive environment where teachers can continue to teach, without the distractions of a continous crisis. 

Sue Dickey, 

Berkeley

To the Editor: 

Dan Krauss's article “New school principal tackles old problems” (Aug. 31) incorrectly blames difficulties at Longfellow last year on “rampant staff infighting” and problems with “controlling the staff.” The teaching staff as a whole behaved with professionalism and was part of the solution, asking for help from the district to prepare for this year's schedule changes, not the problem. 

As a parent volunteer at Longfellow for the past three years, I greatly respect the school's dedicated, highly-skilled teaching staff. They have worked long and hard to bring the benefits of an arts and technology magnet school to all of Longfellow's students. I would like to thank them for providing my son with a sound, enriched education as he starts high school this year. 

Meanwhile, the Arts Magnet grant “sunsetted” at the end of my son's second year. Budgets were further slashed for this year. Longfellow administrators were constantly “putting out fires” – floods in the supply rooms of the newly remodeled building and in the new gym; no substitute teachers available to teach classes when teachers were absent; inadequate staffing to supervise yards and halls; and many more.  

I am encouraged by the reports of positive teacher response to principal Cheung's efforts so far. I hope the district central administration will help her to provide an organized, supportive environment where teachers can continue to teach, without the distractions of a continous crisis. 

Sue Dickey, 

Berkeley

SAN FRANCISCO — There’s a beautiful sound emanating from the San Francisco 49ers’ locker room as a new season approaches. It’s the sound of silence, of Steve Mariucci and Terrell Owens getting along. 

Nobody knows how long this tune will play in San Francisco, where the 49ers’ coach and their All-Pro receiver have spent the past two seasons in a rocky, adversarial relationship that’s been one of the few blemishes on one of the NFL’s more remarkable revivals. 

Owens’ outbursts against the team on issues ranging from celebrations to passes to basketball — and Mariucci’s inability to defuse a situation faced by coaches in every sport from time to time — were a distraction for the young, deep, powerful team built by Mariucci, Bill Walsh and general manager Terry Donahue. 

But a new season has brought a well-publicized detente. Both Mariucci and Owens are focused on pushing the 49ers past the St. Louis Rams in the NFC West — and perhaps to their sixth Super Bowl. 

“We had to put those things aside if we want to win a championship,” said Owens, who caught 93 passes for 1,412 yards and an NFL-best 16 touchdowns last seasons. “It was a big deal, but I think it’s over now.” 

After two seasons in the bottomless pit of salary-cap purgatory, the 49ers leaped back to the league’s upper echelon last season, going 12-4 with a rebuilt roster. Of San Francisco’s 22 starters last season, 20 returned this summer. The 49ers signed safety Tony Parrish and Pro Bowl guard Ron Stone to replace the two who were dropped. 

“We thought that when we kept our own players in the offseason, and when T.O. and Steve were able to bridge that gap, we thought we had a chance to be a pretty solid team,” Donahue said. “That’s always been our plan — to build well, and then retain what we built.” 

They’ve come a long way from last January’s season-ending playoff loss at Green Bay. After that game, Pro Bowl center Jeremy Newberry reportedly was involved in a confrontation with Owens that had the receiver on the phone to his agent, demanding to get out of San Francisco. 

Emotions have cooled considerably since then — and the 49ers finally have realized they’ve got much more to gain by sticking together. A murderous five-game preseason schedule, including a trip to Japan and a stretch of three games in 10 days, also seems to have improved the team concept. 

“I like the chemistry on this team,” Mariucci said. “I like the talent level we have. We’re a more confident team than we were at this point last year. We’ve really expected a lot from a young team.” 

With silly personality conflicts finally in the background, the 49ers can get down to the serious business of catching up with the Rams both on the field and in the standings. 

A year of experience and togetherness should help the entire roster, which was a patchwork collection in each of the past three seasons. Some of the question marks from 2001 — Garrison Hearst, Dana Stubblefield, Zack Bronson — are expected to be key factors in San Francisco’s success. 

Hearst and Kevan Barlow should make for a powerful ground tandem for a team that’s usually among the NFL’s rushing leaders. Owens and Jeff Garcia didn’t get much time to work on their games during the preseason, but both expect to be ready for the opener on Thursday night at the New York Giants. 

“We think we know what we have in this offense,” said Garcia, coming off his second straight Pro Bowl season. “We’re comfortable being together out there, because we’ve been together mostly for three years now.” 

On defense, San Francisco’s rapidly improving unit hopes to build on its remarkable late-season run in 2001, when it posted three shutouts in the final six games. 

The additions are Parrish, a capable replacement for Lance Schulters, and two rookies who will be backups. The 49ers drafted CB Mike Rumph in the first round, adding another set of fleet feet to compete with the Rams’ potent attack, and linebacker Saleem Rasheed has impressed coaches. 

The 49ers largely stayed pat in the offseason, a luxury not recently enjoyed on a roster that was churned up in the last five years. San Francisco hopes experience, not addition, is the secret to improvement from a 12-4 campaign that had its fans dreaming of a return to postseason glory. 

“This team has to be better than last year’s team to have any sort of a similar record,” Mariucci said. “We have a tougher schedule. We have to be better in order to be a contender.” 

Members of public radio station KPFA fear that delays in their mother network’s return to Berkeley are ominous signs that another power struggle is emerging on the radio network’s governing board. 

That struggle, some members say, will play out as the Pacifica Foundation board writes new bylaws for the tattered, five-station network. 

"The question is ‘Is power going to be in local boards or is it going to be centralized?’ " said Curt Gray, KPFA advisory member and an advocate for stronger local control. 

Gray and others are concerned that a new alliance of interim executive board members will secure central control of the network. On Friday the alliance pushed through a vote to keep the Pacifica headquarters in Washington D.C. It says further cost-analysis must be done in spite of a March decision to move to Berkeley by the end of the year.  

Meanwhile, some local members are worried that the alliance will try to broaden its power in the new bylaws. 

The need for new bylaws stems from a court settlement last December that ended a destructive two-year feud between two factions on the Pacifica board. The court ordered the formation of a 14-member interim board, drawing from both factions, to create new bylaws to govern the operation and organization of the network.  

In addition to KPFA, Pacifica holds licenses for stations in New York, Los Angeles, Houston and Washington D.C. 

KPFA members speculate that if the board had enough votes to keep the headquarters in Washington, D.C., it may also vote to maintain power at the national level instead of shifting control to the local level. 

“If the coalition that derailed the move back to Berkeley holds and they write the new bylaws, that is more worrisome,” Gray said.  

If central control is established, Gray said KPFA could lose say in its programming and be forced to take on a more moderate political tone. The station’s sovereignty was at the heart of the 1999 controversy. 

From 1999 to 2001 the Pacifica board of directors was engulfed in a bitter fight that nearly drove the network to bankruptcy. The board’s attempt to seize programming control from station managers resulted in mass protests and lawsuits in Berkeley. Successful litigation by dissident board members ultimately led to the dissolution of the board. 

KPFA supporters hoped the interim board would quickly return Pacifica to Berkeley after it fled to Washington D.C., amid protests in January 2000. They also wanted the interim board to implement reforms to curb the executive board’s power over its stations. 

Several members of the interim board, however, don’t share KPFA’s positions. 

Board member Roy Robinson is calling for a strong executive board, to be directly elected by foundation members and to have power over local advisory boards at each station. Robinson’s executive board would consist of two representatives to be elected by members of each of the five stations, as well as five “at-large” board members to be elected by a two-thirds board majority. 

On the contrary, board member Carol Spooner, who led the drive to return Pacifica to Berkeley, seeks to decentralize power by giving authority to the five local advisory boards and eliminating a single executive board. The local boards would consist of 18 representatives – six to be elected by the stations’ staff and 12 to be elected by station members – the same system currently in place at local station KPFA. The local boards would set up three executive board committees to oversee programming, budgeting and general affairs. 

Some KPFA supporters fear that Robinson’s plan is too similar to the former bylaws that they say encouraged abuse in past years. For example, Robinson’s proposal to include five “at-large” members on the executive board, as was the practice under the previous bylaws troubled many KPFA supporters. 

“The big problem with it [the last board] was that people in authority were insulated and didn’t have a clue,” said Gray, adding that the “at-large” members did not even have to reside in a city served by a Pacifica station. 

The board is scheduled to further discuss the bylaws at its next interim board meeting Sept. 20.  

Contact reporter at  

matt@berkeleydailyplanet.net 

To the Editor: 

No proof has been provided that Iraq has nuclear weapons mounted on launchers aimed at the United States or troops massed on its borders or has developed deliverable weapons of mass destruction. No case can be made that a war against Iraq is justified for the self-defense of the United States. The question of weapons inspection non-compliance should be a matter for the United Nations. 

A pre-emptive war represents a major and dangerous change in U.S. foreign policy. It also sets a terrible precedent for other nations. Pre-emptive war cannot become a universalized principle lest disaster and chaos result. There are questions yet to be asked and answered about many matters including the potential loss of life on all sides, the financial cost of a war and its aftermath, and consequences for the future of Iraq.  

Presumably, Baghdad, a huge city filled with innocent civilians, must be a major objective of attack. Accidentally or not, we have seen the deaths of too many noncombatants in Afghanistan in recent months as the result of poor targeting and decision-making. How many more civilians will die? What is the reasonable chance of success in this war? How long would it take to rebuild destroyed areas? Can the United States effectively carry out regime change? 

A war against Iraq would be illegal, immoral, and wrong. I urge the editors to work to bring these questions and the voices of those opposed to the war to the American people so that they may know more than the line being promoted by certain elements in the administration. 

Carolyn Scarr, 

Berkeley 

Gay Berkeleyans say they have it pretty good. They live in a progressive town and have access to a mecca of gay life – San Francisco. Yet many say that the geographic and demographic advantages create a problem: a lack of a one cohesive community. 

“There are lots of gay people here, but it’s not as social as I thought it would be,” said Sarah Weinberg who moved from Sacramento to Berkeley seven years ago expecting to find more social outlets for gays. 

Some gay residents, though, are trying to create closer ties. 

On Monday gay advocate group Rainbow Berkeley hosted its fourth annual Berkeley Brunch, a celebration of Berkeley’s gay community. Billed as the grand finale of East Bay Pride Week and held the last week of August, the brunch has swelled from a few dozen participants in 1998 to more than 200 this year. The event was held at the Berkeley Marina. 

“This [brunch] is a great way to bring people together,” said Paul Nelson of Berkeley. He explained that because Berkeley is so close to San Francisco and has a large gay population there hasn’t been much need for gay residents to consolidate as a single community. 

“There is no set community here,” he said, contrasting Berkeley to his native St. Louis, where he said gays were better organized and more cohesive. 

Nelson noted that if gays wanted to get together in Berkeley there is only one establishment that caters to them –The Pacific Center, a gay community center. But when it comes to cafes or bars, the nearest options are in Oakland or San Francisco, he added. 

To remedy the lack of social options, Ted Gartner of Rainbow Berkeley has formed a Berkeley gay social club called Gspring, which holds potluck dinners. “We’re trying to get people in Berkeley aware of it,” he said. “The goal is to let people know we have a community here.” 

Vernon Theiss, a Berkeley artist said that getting more bars and cafes was not as important as events like Monday’s brunch, which cut across social circles within Berkeley’s gay community. 

Pointing to a table full of gay seniors, he said, “What we need more than anything is to combine generations to come together and open their hearts to the community.” 

Contact reporter at  

matt@berkeleydailyplanet.net

Cat has more toes than  

any other cat 

OAKLAND, Maine — Mooch the cat has nine lives and 28 toes. 

Bob and Becky Duval say the large, yellow feline has more toes than any other cat in the world. The Duvals have submitted evidence they hope will earn Mooch a place in the Guinness Book of Records. 

“This is your 15 minutes — suck it up,” Bob DuVal said to Mooch as the feline struggled out of Becky Duval’s lap. 

At the couple’s home, a nervous Mooch padded defensively across the kitchen floor, avoiding visitors and the clicking camera. 

Those who manage to catch a glimpse of the cat before he dashes off are stunned when they see his toes. 

“Usually, their first remark is, ’Oh, my God, look at that cat’s feet — what’s wrong with him?”’ Becky DuVal said. 

DuVal said he was listening to the radio last week and heard about the world record for most toes on a cat, currently held by Paddles, a black cat in Ennismore, Ontario, who has 27. 

“Mooch has 28 claws,” Becky DuVal said Friday. “He has 28 pads, but two of the pads are partially fused.” 

Mooch’s big feet have an advantage in Maine. 

“They’re good snowshoes,” Bob DuVal said.

Gates donates $28 million  

for diaphragm study 

SAN FRANCISCO–The University of California at San Francisco announced this week that the world's wealthiest man and his wife have given the school $28 million to study whether a diaphragm can prevent HIV. 

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is providing the money to UCSF's Women's Global Health Imperative so it can conduct a randomized trial with 4,500 women in South Africa and Zimbabwe, where one-third of the population is infected with HIV. 

Study director Nancy Padian said, "[The women’s] enthusiasm to use a product that did not require negotiating with their male partner was overwhelming.'' 

Diaphragms are a form of birth control that cover a woman's cervix, which is considered a “hot spot'' in terms of susceptibility to HIV infections and other sexually transmitted diseases, according to Padian.  

Although there is no proof that using a diaphragm will prevent HIV, she said the study is promising because it could give women a chance to protect themselves with something other than a condom. 

Three Salinas men killed  

in apparent gang shooting 

SALINAS — Three Salinas teenagers were killed outside an apartment complex in what police said appeared to be a gang-related shooting. 

Police have no suspects in the Sunday evening shooting, Salinas Lt. Henry Yoneyama said. He identified the victims as Alexis Ramirez, 17, and Andres Garcia, 17; the identity of an 18-year-old man was withheld pending notification of relatives. 

The teenagers were hanging out in a driveway when someone began firing — police say they have some witnesses but need others to clarify what happened. 

“We believe that the incident is gang related and we’re investigating it from that perspective,” Yoneyama said. 

Wine auction raises money  

for children of vineyard workers 

SONOMA — The Sonoma Valley Harvest Wine Auction, a little brother to the better-known Napa Valley Wine Auction, raised $586,000 for a variety of charities. 

The take was just off last year’s $592,000. 

The 10th annual auction at the Sonoma Mission Inn and Spa drew about 650 people Sunday to bid on some of wine country’s finest products. 

Of the total haul, $60,700 will help finance health care policies for uninsured Sonoma Valley children. 

“Many of the poorest people in the valley are the children of those who work in our vineyards,” said Mike Nugent, former chairman of the Sonoma Valley Community Health Center. “It’s a nightmare for undocumented children.” 

Organizers said the auction has raised about $3 million since it began in 1993. The Napa Valley Wine Auction raised $6 million in June. 

Davis campaigns across state, Simon says he’s ready 

Thirty six hours after the Legislature handed him a two-months-late state budget, Gov. Gray Davis switched into campaign mode Monday and toured California with labor leaders, seeking to paint challenger Bill Simon as a threat to workers. 

“The race really begins now,” Davis said as he winged from Burbank to Livermore on a private jet chartered by the same unions that have helped bankroll his re-election bid. 

Simon also spent the day stumping across the state, telling audiences Davis was a bust as governor. 

“We’re going to talk the truth about Gray Davis’ record and we’re going to talk the truth about Bill Simon’s vision for California,” Simon said at a Labor Day picnic at the Richard Nixon Library in Yorba Linda. “We are going to talk about how Gov. Davis has failed as a governor.” 

Davis seized on a tradition of kicking off political campaigns on Labor Day, leading other Democratic candidates for statewide office on his first campaign-style tour since the day after Simon won the GOP nomination in March. 

He addressed charged-up gatherings of hundreds of painters, teachers, hotel workers and others, warning that Simon would siphon off some of the rights Davis has helped them gain since he took office in 1999. 

“Mr. Simon wants to undo four years of progress,” Davis said in Los Angeles at the opening of a new University of California, Los Angeles labor center. “Let’s send a memo to Mr. Simon: ’Mr. Simon, you are not going to rollback anything.”’ 

Labor unions — including police and fire organizations — have contributed more than $10 million to Davis since he took office, according to spokesman Roger Salazar. 

Smokey Bear revamps message  

to fit new policy 

PORTLAND, Ore. — Smokey Bear, the lovable World War II-era icon of forest fire prevention, is back on the scene with a new Web site, a new message, and a Gen X competitor. 

The Forest Service mascot, who turned 58 on Aug. 9, has become more serious — and scarier. His new message, “Only you can prevent wildfires” — as opposed to “forest fires” — reflects the rising dangers faced by homeowners living closer than before to areas that are vulnerable to flames. 

The creators of the original poster bear, the Forest Service and the Ad Council of America, decided to revamp Smokey’s kid-friendly message after studies found average adults didn’t think they would ever start a wildfire. Most also believed wildfires occur hundreds of miles from population centers, although the movement of people toward the wild has changed that.

LOS ANGELES — With labor unrest looming at West Coast ports, the Rev. Jesse Jackson told thousands of union workers Monday to “stand your ground.” 

President Bush, who has been considering possible federal intervention in case of a walkout, “wants to make an example of you,” Jackson said during a Labor Day picnic in a Wilmington park a few miles from the Port of Los Angeles. 

Mayor James Hahn sent the president a letter Monday urging him to stay out of the conflict between 10,500 members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents shippers. 

“Federal intervention at this critical juncture is not needed and may well exacerbate the dispute,” Hahn wrote. 

The contract for workers who handle trade at 29 major West Coast ports expired July 1. Both sides had kept goods flowing with short-term extensions but the latest extension expired Sunday. 

Without a deal, dockworkers could stage work slowdowns as early as Tuesday. Shipping lines that employ the dockworkers have threatened a lockout. 

The ports handle more than $300 billion in trade annually, and a work stoppage would ripple through an already fragile American economy. 

Talk of a strike or a lockout was the main topic as union workers ranging from dockworkers to pipefitters to schoolteachers joined in the solidarity rally. 

“If there is no contract, there will be no business as usual at California’s ports,” said Jerry Acosta, a spokesman for the AFL-CIO. 

On average, a full-time longshoreman earned $80,000 last year and a full-time foreman averaged $167,000, according to maritime association records. 

The sticking points for a new contract are arbitration, new technology that could costs jobs and health benefits. 

When workers in New York declared the first Labor Day in 1882, they dedicated it to the economic and social achievements of American workers and celebrated it with parades and speeches. But today, for many retail and restaurant workers, Labor Day will be just another business day. 

“People love to shop on Labor Day, so we’ll be pretty slammed,” said Amy Stephens as she pawed through a pile of vintage clothing Friday at Buffalo Exchange on Telegraph Avenue.  

Stephens, manager of the vintage clothing store, said the shop would keep its normal Monday hours and has even scheduled extra staff for the expected crowds. 

At the Crepevine on College Avenue it’s a similar story. The restaurant is doubling its wait staff to accommodate an anticipated extra demand. Saku Densmaa, a waitress, said that she didn’t really want to work on the holiday but has to. 

“I don’t get any extra pay, but it will be busier, so I’ll get more tips,” Densmaa said. Asked whether the day holds any significance for her, she wrinkled her nose and thought. “Not really,” she said. “Usually it’s just a day off.” 

At Cody’s bookstore, the registers will also be ringing. Store employee Tataya Goto said Labor Day is quite different from celebrations in his native Japan. There, he said, workers still parade and rally in the streets during their labor holiday. Goto, though, is working today. 

Some are happy to be at work. Vick ‘Sonny’ Sing, a shift manager at a 7-11 store on Telegraph Avenue has decided to stay behind the counter today, even though the store’s manager told him he could knock off with vacation pay. 

“I get time and a half, a bonus and a free lunch,” Sing said, smiling. “People who live around here will be out. On Telegraph, almost everything is open.” 

Proprietors who are closing shop today say it’s because of a lack of traffic. 

Sophie Mahdavi, who runs Euclid Flower Shop, a block north of the UC campus, said her business is greatly affected when the university is not in session. 

“Food and drink business is different,” she said. “People need to eat. They come out and get their coffee, but they rarely buy things. Flowers last only two days. I can lose a lot of money.” 

Across Euclid, Hummingbird Café is also closed. 

“We’ve tried to stay open on Labor Day in the past, but it wasn’t worth it,” Jamal Fafes, Hummingbird’s owner, said Friday. “Nobody is around. Nothing. We don’t even get 20 percent of our normal business.” 

Fafes’s decision to close on Labor Day isn’t purely economic, however. It’s a chance to take a rare vacation, he said. 

“The kids don’t want to work anyway, and I have a newborn child at home and would rather spend the day with him,” he said. 

At Brennan’s on Fourth Street, Kim Kenny was busy Saturday evening pouring pints for thirsty customers at the restaurant. “They’ve always been closed for Labor Day,” she said. “We’re union, but I don’t think that matters. It’s just standard policy.” 

A union member, Kenny stated pointedly that the holiday was created to honor workers. But she said, “it really doesn’t mean much to me. I don’t mind working. Our customers … really take care of us.” 

On the door of novelty houseware store Maison d’Etre in Rockridge, a sign advises passersby to “take a day off from Labor.”  

Fred Womack, the owner, has personal reasons for closing his store. 

“I take my holidays when I can. This store is open seven days a week, and I’m usually here at least five or six days,” he said. 

“If I stayed open I could probably make some money,” he added. 

But the statement came with a shrug, and Womack is opting instead to follow the advice on his sign.

To the Editor: 

Thank you for your articles on pedestrian events. My family has been very concerned about how dangerous our streets have become for everyone. People are driving more recklessly in city streets. Two pedestrians were killed by cars in our neighborhood in the past year. 

We look forward to voting for the pedestrian safety measure on Berkeley’s ballot in November – even though we will have to pay additional taxes of $25 annually for 10 years. This is a small amount to pay to make walking safer for everyone including seniors citizens, children and pets. 

Deborah Green, 

Berkeley

Monday, September 2 

Labor Day Potluck Picnic and Poetry Reading 

Hosted by Bay Area Poets Coalition 

Noon to 4 p.m. 

Live Oak Park, Walnut and Rose St. 

527-9905, poetalk@aol.com 

National Organization for Women Oakland/East Bay Chapter  

6:30 PM.  

Mama Bears Bookstore and Coffeehouse, 6536 Telegraph Ave. 

Chapter’s monthly meeting. Speaker: Multicultural historian, Lucia Chiavola Birnbaum, received 

the prestigious Valitutti Award for non-fiction.  

549-2970 

Free 

Tuesday, September 3 

The Listening Post 

11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. 

Wesley Student Center on Bancroft Way near Dana Dr. 

The Listening Post is a safe, non-judgmental, non-denominational place for students to talk about whatever may be on their minds, or weighing on their hearts. 

549-1244 

Free 

Opening of Classes, Berkeley City Ballet 

1800 Dwight Way  

First day of classes at BCB. Classes Monday through Friday for children 5 and up. Student performers are invited to audition annual Nutcracker performance.  

841-8913 

Thursday, September 5 

Nutrition Career Open House 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Institute of Educational Therapy, 706 Gilman St. 

Learn how to become a nutrition educator or consultant. 

558-1711 

Free 

Discussion: “Why We Call  

Ourselves Butch?” 

7 p.m. 

Boadecia’s Books, 398 Colusa Ave. 

This group is for self-identified butch women. New members are welcome. 

559-9184 

Free 

Friday, September 6 

'The Winona LaDuke Reader'  

Lecture and Reception 

Presented by the American Indian Graduate Program 

5 p.m. Reception, 7 p.m. Lecture 

Native American environmental and Indigenous Rights activist and author of several books and articles, Winona LaDuke, will discuss the topics of her new book 'The Winona LaDuke Reader' as well as other current work. 

atalay@sscl.berkeleyl.edu 

Free 

Saturday, September 7 

Sick Plant Clinic 

9 a.m. to noon 

University of California Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Dr. 

UC plant pathology and entomology experts will diagnose what ails your plant.  

643-2755 

Free 

Travel Careers Seminar 

8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. 

Vista Community College, 2020 Milvia St., Room 306 

The day’s program will include travel industry speakers covering a variety of career possibilities: Cruise specialists, tour leaders, tour operators, adventure operators, home-based travel agents and more.  

981-2931 

$5.50 for California residents 

Sunday, September 8 

Lifelong Medical Care First Annual 5K Fun Run/Walk Fundraiser 

9 a.m. to noon 

West Berkeley 

Individual and team participation. Event includes a health fair, food, prizes, live music and free insurance eligibility screening. 

704-6010 

28th Annual Solano Avenue Stroll 

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Solano Avenue 

A mile-long block part featuring “Journey of a Thousand Cranes’ Parade” at 11 a.m.  

Free

Big plays and the breaks. Two things the Cal football team hasn’t gotten much of in the past few seasons. But on Saturday against Baylor, the Golden Bears got both in spades. 

Cal pulled off a trick play for a score on the game’s first play and scored back-to-back defensive touchdowns on the way to a 70-22 win over Baylor at Memorial Stadium, kicking off the Jeff Tedford era with the second-most points in school history. 

In a game filled with Cal highlights, none were more spectacular than senior linebacker Matt Nixon’s 102-yard interception return for the Bears’ fourth touchdown of the game. Baylor drove down to the Cal five-yard line, but when Baylor tight end Shane Williams got open on a crossing pattern near the goal line he bumped into an official just as quarterback Greg Cicero released a pass for him. Williams got his hands up late, and the ball bounced right into Nixon’s hands in the end zone. 

Nixon took off down the right sideline with fellow linebacker Calvin Hosey paving the way with a block on Cicero. Nixon was untouched until Baylor wide receiver Reggie Newhouse caught him 65 yards down the field. Newhouse dove in front of Nixon, who pulled off a hesitation move that left the speedy wideout grasping at air. After getting started again, Nixon rumbled the remaining yards with no one near him. 

“Linebackers aren’t supposed to run that far,” Nixon said after the game. “I was so tired, I just wanted to lay down and let the offense get back on the field.” 

But the Cal offense wouldn’t get onto the field for another few minutes, thanks to another interception return for a score by cornerback Jemeel Powell. He broke hard on Cicero’s next pass and took it out of receiver J.T. Thompson’s hands, then juked past Cicero for a 26-yard touchdown. That made the score 35-0, the most points ever by a Bears team in a single quarter and more points than the Bears mustered in a game last season. Cal tacked on two more touchdowns in the second quarter and took a 49-7 lead into the locker room. 

“To have 49 points in the first half is remarkable in any college game,” said Cal quarterback Kyle Boller, who threw for 213 yards and three touchdowns. “It’s like a high school score.” 

Baylor didn’t look much better than a high school team, stumbling through the contest with sloppy turnovers and poor execution. Cicero threw three interceptions in nine pass attempts before being yanked after Powell’s score, and replacement Aaron Karas wasn’t much better, throwing a pick and fumbling three times. The Bears looked like a team that had just met each other as confusion reigned on both offense and defense. But 10 touchdowns is nothing to scoff at, no matter who the opposition, and Cal wasn’t apologizing for their demolition of their Waco namesakes. 

“Nobody felt sorry for us last year. They just came out there to cut our throats,” Powell said of the 1-10 fiasco in 2001. “It feels good to be on the other side of that.” 

Tedford managed a compliment for Baylor, saying they were “well-coached,” but later admitted the lopsided win didn’t tell him a whole lot about the quality of his own team. 

“We’re going to play a lot tougher teams in the Pac-10, which I think is the most competitive conference in college football,” he said. “We’ve got a long, hard road ahead of us.” 

Tedford made an instant impression on the crowd of 27,185 with a trick play to start the game. On the first play from scrimmage, tailback Terrell Williams went in motion to the right, settling in behind two receivers. Boller threw an overhand lateral to the sophomore, who proceeded to heave the ball downfield to a wide-open David Gray, a true freshman wide receiver who lined up at tight end for the play. Gray was at midfield without a player within 25 yards and spun around to catch the ball. He nearly lost his balance making the catch, then stumbled while getting started toward the end zone. Last season, any Cal player in that situation undoubtedly would have fallen down, but not on Saturday. Gray recovered and went in for a 71-yard touchdown on his first college play. 

“I was like, ‘if I fall, I’m going to hang myself,’” Gray said. 

Tedford said the opening gambit was more than just a simple play-call. 

“We wanted to start things off with a bang and get the fans into it,” he said. “We’ve been planning that play for the last two weeks.” 

Tedford was certainly successful in winning the hearts of the Golden Bear faithful. Chants of “We love Tedford!” rang through the student section late in the game, along with “We want 70!” as their team drove toward its final score. True freshman Marcus O’Keith gave them what they wanted with a 2-yard run with four minutes remaining in the game.

The Pacifica Foundation radio network, slated to return to Berkeley this year after fleeing amid controversy two and a half years ago, may not be coming home as soon as thought. 

The foundation’s board of directors voted 7-4 by conference call Friday to postpone its return from Washington D.C. until the board can study how much the move will cost. Saturday’s decision overrides a March decision in which the board voted 7-2 in favor of returning to Berkeley. The board has 14 active members but several have missed recent votes. 

Berkeley was home to Pacifica, the operator of Berkeley-based radio station KPFA, for more than 50 years. However, in January 2000 the foundation moved to Washington when local listeners and staff became enraged about the board sacking popular KPFA employees and trying to moderate the station’s political views. 

In addition to KPFA, Pacifica also holds licenses of community stations in New York, Los Angeles, Houston and Washington. 

Although Saturday’s vote only delays the planned move to Berkeley until further discussion at the board’s next meeting Sept. 20, Berkeley activists worry that more is at stake. 

“I think some of them want to stop the move entirely,” said Robbie Osman, the host of a KPFA music show and member of Friends of Free Speech Radio, which has offered to help pay moving expenses for Pacifica’s return to Berkeley. 

Carol Spooner, the interim Pacifica board secretary, and a leader in the drive to relocate Pacifica to Berkeley, said the effort is hindered because the 14-member interim board has a disproportionate number of members from Washington. 

Six board members are from Washington, she said, and five of those members are on record opposing this year’s relocation to Berkeley. Board members from Los Angeles and Berkeley support returning Pacifica to its former home, but the Houston and New York delegations are undecided, she noted. 

The preponderance of Washington representatives stems from a court settlement reached last December that ended more than two years of infighting between two competing factions on the previous board. Both factions selected five members to the new board, and the five local stations each selected one member. The five board members selected by the previous board’s majority faction, which long battled KPFA, are all from Washington. 

Pacifica’s return to Berkeley appeared certain after the March vote. But two weeks ago, six board members asked for a conference call to suspend the move until further discussions regarding cost. 

KPFA/From Page 1 

Jabri Zakiya, the interim board treasurer and Washington-based board member, estimated that returning to Berkeley could cost Pacifica several hundred thousand dollars. Pacifica is presently about $1.1 million in debt, and some board members have questioned whether the foundation has sufficient funds to switch headquarters this year. 

But, Spooner said Zakiya’s estimates were “reckless and irresponsible.” She noted that he listed packing and moving expenses somewhere between $50,000 and $100,000, but that estimates from two shipping companies were both under $5,000.  

The issue of returning Pacifica to Berkeley may be opening a rift on the interim board. 

In addition to opposing the move on financial grounds, Washington-based board member Rob Robertson alleged that two supporters of relocation, Leslie Cagan and Pete Bramson, support the move to Berkeley because they are indebted to Berkeley-based Friends of Free Speech Radio (FFSR) for funding their lawsuits against the former board. 

Robinson also likened FFSR’s offer to raise money to pay for the move to a corporate donation to politicians. 

Spooner said debate about Pacifica’s future home threatens to damage the foundation. 

“We desperately need a chief financial officer, but we don’t know if the position will be for Berkeley or Washington,” she said. 

Councilmember Kriss Worthington fears that keeping Pacifica in Washington, could limit the influence of Berkeley listeners. He noted that the legal victory that led to the dissolution of the prior board and the insertion of the interim board were based in California corporate law, which is kinder to worker-initiated lawsuits. 

Had Pacifica been licensed in Washington, Worthington said, it may have won the legal battles and proceeded with its plan to moderate KPFA. 

Contact reporter at matt@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To the Editor: 

It was very encouraging to read letters by Mayor Shirley Dean in support of playing fields (Forum, Aug. 28) and by windsurfer/kayaker Jim McGrath (Forum, Aug. 30) in support of water access. Finally, some voices of reason are being heard. 

But there is an interesting intersection of the sentiments expressed in the two letters that may not be immediately apparent: Water-borne recreation fulfills many of the same goals as playing fields, and can often do it more economically while serving a broader range of participants. Consider the cost of a single playing field: $2.2 million per field to develop and many tens of thousands every year to maintain. Compare to the cost of a dragon boat: $16,000 for a top-of-the-line model, and only a few thousand per year to maintain the support equipment. The surface of the water requires no grading, mowing, fencing or pest control. Both the field and the boat serve about 20 kids at a time. Similar economic advantages can be demonstrated to varying degrees for youth programs based on kayaks, windsurfers, rowing shells, small sailboats and outrigger canoes. 

Perhaps more important, water-based recreation offers new opportunities for the kind of young person who is not attracted to the culture of field sports. These kids are being bypassed by traditional school athletics programs, but their recreational needs are at least as acute. Boating in its various forms can open a new world of outdoor physical activity and team competition. 

Also lost on many park advocates is the relationship between non-motorized boating and environmental advocacy. These activities are a breeding ground for the future stewards of the Bay, and our shoreline will be in much better hands if we encourage, not limit, the ability of people to float on the waters of the Eastshore State Park rather than just look at them. This implies some structures, some docks, and some parking near the shoreline in various places – but it does not mean that the open space value or the natural setting of the park has to be significantly compromised. 

The Eastshore State Park is an urban waterfront, not a wilderness upland, and water access should be the defining theme. Let's not paint it with the wrong brush. 

Paul Kamen, 

Chairperson, Berkeley 

Waterfront Commission

What might sound like every student’s dream – a school day with fewer classes – turned out to be less than exciting to returning Berkeley High School students last week. The familiar seven-period schedule has been reduced to six, but the school day is no shorter. In fact, for some it’s longer. 

In addition to six new periods of 56 minutes, replacing seven 45-minute periods, many electives, like drama, art and journalism, are now offered only after and before school. 

“Kids are at school longer now, sometimes until 4:00 p.m.,” said Arose, a senior. 

The so-called “enhancement period” courses, taking place before and after the required “core” classes, are optional and open by student choice. 

“We call it a six-period day, but, in reality, it’s an eight-period day,” said Berkeley Parent-Teacher Association President Derick Miller. 

Instructional time in the new six-period day is roughly equivalent to that in the old seven period day, noted School Board Director Terry Doran. 

The schedule change at the high school is part of the school district’s plan to balance a $6 million deficit for the coming fiscal year. Superintendent Michele Lawrence announced last year that the school district faced a possible takeover by the state if it was unable to reduce costs.  

Lawrence said the schedule change will save the district $800,000. 

Students had mixed reactions to the change during their first three days of school. Some were less than thrilled about the schedule, which for some, made the day drag on. 

“They’ve made up a bunch of new rules, and the school day lasts longer,” said Danielle, a senior. 

Other students said they encountered scheduling problems in the first days of school, but did not think the switch to a six-period system was to blame. 

“This year is especially bad because they cut a bunch of classes and restructured the schedule,” said senior Rachel Most. “But it still feels pretty normal. I think there are problems like this every year.” 

Even though the new system went into effect without any unforeseen problems, some were not convinced it made for a better learning environment. 

“It’s more difficult to provide options if you’re restricted,” said Miller. “Having all the general classes in periods one through six and all the extra classes in periods zero and seven spreads everything out in an unnatural way.” 

School Board President Shirley Issel mentioned the elimination of “gaps,” periods in which a student does not have any scheduled classes, as one of the benefits of the new six-period system. Berkeley High School recently adopted a formal policy against schedule “gaps,” for security reasons, according to Doran. 

“There’s a requirement that students fill all gaps in their schedules first,” said Miller. “So if a student wants to take orchestra and AP science, which are offered in zero and seventh periods, he would have to fill all the gaps in between first.” 

In contrast, Issel pointed out that the system was beneficial in that it enhanced the amount of time teachers spend in front of students. 

“This allows us to put more emphasis on a common core, classes like English, history, science, and art,” said Issel. “There might be fewer classes but those that are offered will be better for all kids. It’s sort of a ‘less is more’ principle.” 

Doran said that 30 different “enhancement period” sections were available, with space for 900 students to enroll. Since many sections had not met their enrollment capacity, Doran believed that all students got the classes they wanted. 

“Most students were only taking classes for six of the seven periods, anyway,” he said. “Overall, the impact of the change was pretty minimal.”

To the Editor: 

I have worked with LA Wood for more than a year and a half on CEAC (Community Environmental Advisory Commission) both during his term as vice-chair and my own, and can speak with some experience to Mr. Wood's experience and qualifications to run for City Council in the 4th District. LA is a concerned, informed citizen. He shows a great deal of tenacity, care, and attention to detail in his dedication to community issues. He is an honest man, one who is willing to stand up for his beliefs, and who is committed to the citizens of Berkeley. When I heard that he was running for City Council, I was thrilled. LA has tackled social issues ranging the gambit of Berkeley politics, and I can whole-heartedly endorse him as an excellent choice for City Council. Members of the 4th District have the rare chance to vote for a person who displays both compassion and dedication when they cast their votes. If only every city in the nation were so lucky to have individuals who bring such a wide range of interests as well as unparalleled commitment, combined with a relentless desire to see the common good of every citizen brought to the table, this country would be a wealthier place. 

LA Wood represents the finest choice available to the vote for City Council in his district, and without a doubt I endorse his candidacy for this position. 

James Bianco,  

Berkeley

After handing out a proverbial carrot to student riders this August – in the form of lower bus rates for youth – AC Transit swung its stick at the rest of its estimated 235,000 patrons. 

System-wide fare hikes, including the 12 bus lines that traverse Berkeley, went into effect Sunday to help offset the transit agency’s $17.6 million budget deficit. The price of an adult fare, for ages 18 to 64, increased 15 cents to $1.50. Fares for seniors went up from 65 cents to 75 cents.  

The new rates make AC Transit buses some of the most expensive in the state. The national average adult rate for a one-way city bus trip is $1.09, according to the American Public Transit Association. 

“I knew it was changing today,” said Maria who was waiting for a bus on San Pablo Avenue. “I’m not happy about it, but at least I won’t be dropping any more dimes.” 

Subscribers to AC Transit’s 10-ride book and 31-day pass will experience less severe fare hikes. The price of a 10-ride book, now an electronic pass, will increase from $11.50 to $13. 

The discount rate will go up from $5.50 to $6.50. The 31-day pass for adults will increase just a dollar, from $49 to $50, while the same pass for seniors and the disabled will go up two dollars to $15. 

Commuters taking the bus across the bay are the most adversely affected. A single transbay ticket now costs $3, up from $2.50 and more expensive than a comparable BART ride which ranges from $2.50 to $2.70. The new 10-ride transbay pass is set at $26 for adults, while the 31-day pass costs $85. 

In addition, AC Transit rolled out its new one-day pass Sunday. Priced at $5 for adults and $2.50 for youth and seniors, the pass provides unlimited rides for any one day and is good from the time of purchase until 3 a.m. the following morning. 

Students, ages 5 to 17, who make up approximately a quarter of AC Transit riders are the big winners in the recent fare changes. A single student fare dropped from $1.35 to 75 cents Sunday. 

In August, AC Transit reduced the price of the student 31-day pass from $27 to $15. In addition, after months of pressure from student advocates, the agency offered free passes to the roughly 33,000 disadvantaged students who qualify for free lunch programs in Berkeley and other cities served by the transit agency. About 2,000 Berkeley students are expected to qualify for the two-year pilot program.  

The student fare reductions are a gamble for the agency in the throes of a budget crisis. Transit officials hope the reduced student monthly pass will entice 8,900 new riders, increasing revenues and subsidizing the free passes provided to disadvantaged students. 

A combination of declining sales tax revenues, state funding and fare returns during the recent economic downturn has landed the agency in a $17.6 million budget shortfall. 

To offset the deficit, AC Transit has also initiated a November ballot measure, which if passed, will net approximately $7.5 million for the agency by slapping a $24 tax on property holders from Richmond to Hayward. The ballot initiative must be approved by two-thirds of the electorate to take effect. 

If the ballot measure fails, transit officials warn that a service reduction is likely. The agency will cover its budget for the current fiscal year but “beyond that we’re in serious trouble financially,” said Jim Gleich, deputy general manager of AC Transit during an earlier interview. 

In 2000, voters passed Measure B, a sales tax hike to help fund the agency, but according to transit officials the expected $304 million in increased funding hasn’t materialized. 

“The economy, being stalled as it is, has caused sales tax revenues to be lower than what was projected a year or two ago,” said AC Transit spokesperson Mike Mills last July.

Doctor loses custody of hippo 

ESCONDIDO – A doctor who kept a rare pygmy hippopotamus in his back yard for a decade before it was seized by authorities defended his treatment of the animal and claimed critics were spreading lies about him. 

Arthur Stehly, 63, said he always kept a variety of unusual animals, including emus, ostriches, deer, goats, tortoises, pheasants and camels, while his 10 children were growing up. 

He said the hippo, which had a skin condition that caused it to bleed, was well-fed and happy. But the hippo did not like to use its 3-foot-deep pond in the winter, Stehly said Friday. 

“Then she would get scaly skin,” he said. “She would scratch it on the side and bleed a little, but it wasn’t bad.” 

No charges were filed against Stehly for keeping the animal. The hippo was seized eight months ago, but Stehly has not spoken about the incident until now. 

The 500-pound hippo, which has been kept at an animal rehabilitation center in Escondido, is being moved to Black Beauty Ranch, a refuge in Texas where it will have grass, shade trees and a large pool. 

Trip ends short 

SANTA CRUZ – A 67-year-old Montara man has given up his quest to float across the Pacific Ocean in his homemade raft – at least for now. 

Andrew Urbanczyk and his redwood raft were hauled into Santa Cruz Harbor on Friday. 

He was headed to Japan or Hawaii or wherever the winds would take him. He traveled with a cat and a couple dragonflies on his 40-by-20-foot, two-masted raft. “The Nord” was seven huge redwood logs lashed together with rope. 

Urbanczyk, a world-class sailor who has set records sailing solo across oceans, said he will try to make his trip again after he builds a smaller raft. 

Urbanczyk left Pillar Point Harbor near Half Moon Bay a week ago. He gave up his quest after circling around in nearly calm seas 60 miles off Santa Cruz. 

Cops cheat on promotion exam 

SANTA ANA – Results of a police promotion exam were tossed out after officials discovered that some of the 107 officers taking the test had an advance look at the questions. 

The City Attorney’s Office was investigating how the questions on an exam given to officers seeking promotions to corporal were leaked. 

After the city completes its probe, the case will be turned over to the department’s internal affairs division, Mario Carona, a spokesman for the Santa Ana Police Department, said Friday. 

Any officers who were found to have cheated could be fired, demoted or reprimanded, he said.

Arson suspected in grass fire 

VALLEJO — The Vallejo Fire Department says a three-alarm grassfire that scorched more than 50 acres near the Carquinez Bridge on Friday might be the result of arson. 

Fire spokesman Bill Tweedy says investigators are still probing the cause of the blaze, but it is suspicious in nature. 

The fire, which was reported shortly before 2 p.m. Friday, was fanned by 10-15 mph winds up a hillside above Interstate Highway 80 just north of the Carquinez Straights. 

There were no reported injuries but several structures were threatened at one point. 

Firefighters from Benicia, Crockett, Cordelia, American Canyon, Suisun City, Contra Costa County and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection assisted Vallejo fire crews in combating the fire. 

Rape treated as hate crime 

PALO ALTO— In an attack being called a hate crime a 15-year-old girl allegedly was raped at a drug store Friday. 

Palo Alto police said Sanjay Nair, 18, who is Hindu, allegedly made comments while raping the Muslim girl, leading police to label the attack a hate crime. 

The attack occurred in the basement bathroom of Longs Drug Store in Palo Alto. 

The girl was treated at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center before being released Saturday morning. 

A manager at the store said Nair had been suspended because he had reportedly sexually harassed the girl verbally. 

Nair is being held without bail in Santa Clara County Jail in San Jose on charges of false imprisonment, rape, hate crimes and sexual battery. 

Traffic police out on Labor Day 

Bay Area law enforcement authorities said today they have arrested 277 people for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs so far this Labor Day weekend during their coordinated anti-drunken driving campaign, called Bay Area AVOID.

SACRAMENTO – Lawmakers passed a two-months-late budget early Sunday morning and approved a last-minute array of bills ranging from construction defects to driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants as the Legislature ended its 2002 session. 

The $99 billion budget closed a $23.6 billion deficit through a combination of spending cuts and new revenues — which legislative leaders took great pains to not call new taxes — and required Gov. Gray Davis to make $750 million in cuts from government operations, not programs. 

Four Republicans joined 50 Assembly Democrats in voting 54-26 to pass the budget, but that vote was put on hold pending Senate action on a related constitutional amendment proposal on infrastructure spending. 

But one long-debated and heavily lobbied issue — limits on companies’ abilities to sell customer’s financial information — died in the session’s final minutes, as its Senate sponsor, Sen. Jackie Speier, D-Daly City, persuaded the Senate to kill a version of her original bill amended by the Assembly earlier in the evening. 

The Senate adjourned at 12:26 a.m. Sunday, and the Assembly followed at 1:31 a.m. 

Legislators also approved bills Saturday that let insurance companies offer discounts for some customers, but a state Senate committee struck down a bill that aimed to keep Hollywood film projects in California by giving incentives to production companies. 

A “right-to-repair” bill under negotiation for nearly a decade was sent to the governor Saturday, after homebuilders and lawyers compromised on ground rules for fixing construction defects in single-family homes and attached condominiums. 

The bill by Senate President Pro Tem John Burton, D-San Francisco, gives homebuilders the chance to fix problems before lawsuits are filed. It also lets homeowners sue for problems such as sagging roofs and faulty chimneys before they cause damage instead of after. 

Proponents said it will help jump start the condominium construction market and will result in more affordable housing in a state with one of the nation’s lowest homeowner rates. 

Legislators hope the measure will keep unhappy home buyers out of court and return insurers to a construction industry they have largely abandoned in the last decade. 

The Senate’s 33-6 vote sent the bill to Gov. Gray Davis. 

During the afternoon, Assembly Speaker Herb Wesson said he had reached a deal with Assembly Republicans to pass a $99 billion state budget, two months late and just hours before the Legislature was set to end its session. 

Four Assembly Republicans supported the budget, giving the majority Democrats the two-thirds majority they needed to pass it. The final vote was 54-26 with Republicans Dick Dickerson, Mike Briggs, David Kelley and Keith Richman joining all 50 Democrats to support it. 

The budget features about $2 billion in cuts and directs Davis to cut about $750 million from government operations, not programs, on top of $7 billion in cuts already proposed in May. It would cut 1,000 state jobs by the end of next fiscal year and encourage longtime state employees to retire by sweetening the state retirement package. 

The plan also would effectively reduce the minimum amount of money the state must spend on K-12 schools by $700 million. 

It also includes a semantically appealing solution to the issue of tax increases: About $2 billion in measures that add new money to the state treasury. Lawmakers have called these “revenue enhancements” to avoid calling them tax increases and appeal to Republicans and their constituents. 

But the deal abandons some major tax increase plans put forth by Davis — an increase in the state vehicle license fee back to 1998 levels and an increase on the state excise tax for cigarettes. 

Other bills approved by the Senate Saturday included a measure inspired by the recent Enron and WorldCom bankruptcies. 

A bill by Assemblyman Kevin Shelley, D-San Francisco, and Assemblywoman Barbara Matthews, D-Tracy, would require companies to disclose more information about their directors and officers to the public, including their compensation, stock options and fraud convictions. 

It would also force a company to reveal any bankruptcy filings and violations of federal security and state laws, as well as establish a restitution fund to assist victims of corporate fraud. 

The Senate also voted 30-0 to approve a bill to let insurance companies discount rates for customers who maintain coverage, even if they switch insurers. 

Consumer advocates said it would result in higher costs for previously uninsured motorists, and vowed to sue to overturn the bill if it is signed by the governor.

SACRAMENTO – California consumers will not gain any new financial privacy protections this year, despite three different attempts to pass such a bill on the last day of the legislative session. 

A turbulent debate over the issue culminated on the Assembly floor Saturday, as lawmakers first killed a bill by Sen. Jackie Speier, D-Daly City, that would have allowed consumers to prohibit companies from sharing their financial information. That bill was then amended, passed the Assembly and then slaughtered in the Senate, after Speier called the new version a “sham.” 

The Assembly narrowly voted 34-36 Saturday afternoon to kill Speier’s original bill, which was the strictest of the three measures. 

Shortly afterward, Assemblyman John Dutra, D-Fremont, proposed amendments to the bill, which were backed by a coalition of Democrats and Republicans who opposed the previous version. The amendments would give customers the ability to prohibit companies from sharing their financial information with non-affiliate companies, while Speier’s version would have applied to affiliate companies as well. 

Dutra said the bill still would have been the strongest privacy law in the country and could have been much stronger if the two had worked together. 

“Keep in mind, mine got 49 votes (in the Assembly). Hers got 34 (votes),” Dutra said. “Regardless of what she said about how much more beneficial it would have been, it’s not beneficial if you can’t enact it into law.” 

Speier and consumer activists said the amendments weakened the bill to the point it would not offer consumers enough protection. 

Dutra previously had plans to introduce an entirely new bill but reportedly had trouble finding a Senate author, forcing him to “hijack” Speier’s bill without her approval. With Speier retained as the bill’s author, she attempted to remove the bill from the floor, only to have supporters of the new bill counter with a vote to override her request. 

The bill passed the Assembly in a 49-12 vote. 

Speier, however, promised to “take it up and kill it after exposing it for what it is.” She was successful: The bill got just one vote.

OAKLAND – There will be no baseball strike. But fans were sweating it out until news of a settlement came Friday. 

As the Oakland Raiders were putting the Arizona Cardinals to sleep Thursday, ushers, security guards and vendors at the Coliseum nervously looked at their watches. At 9 p.m., they were supposed to learn if they would be working for the rest of the season. The baseball season, that is. 

Their fate was being decided by a cabal of millionaire owners and players, amid the threat of a players strike, in a closed meeting room in New York. 

The 9 p.m. deadline passed with no word. But Friday, the news came and it was good. No strike, and a chance for the Oakland A’s to extend their 15-game winning streak.  

But in a town known for its proud blue-collar fan base the bitterness that built before the decision will not likely evaporate soon. 

“This is about greed. It’s all about greed,” said one Coliseum usher who declined to give his name. “The average American doesn’t make a dime compared to what these guys make.”  

“This job provides about 15 to 20 percent of my family’s income,” he added, noting that if a strike would have occurred, he would have had troubles. 

A few fans also spoke candidly about the situation as they enjoyed $7 beers at the stadium.  

“You know what, just three to four years ago I started getting back into baseball since the last strike in ’94 which pissed me off,” said Luis Duenas, adding that his anger level was approaching what it was eight years ago. 

Fans will have the opportunity to reconcile their anger this weekend when the A’s host the Minnesota Twins. 

To the Editor: 

I am appalled from Kenneth E. Scudder's playing the “My hate crime is worse than yours,” game, (Forum, Aug. 29). The burning of a church is awful, and is to be condemned. By no means does this make the vandalism of Berkeley Hillel “insignificant.” When a brick was thrown through the Hillel window and the trash cans were defaced with anti-Jewish slogans, the Jewish community was shaken. Students were afraid to be identified as Jewish, greater security precautions were taken. The greater Jewish community was also made a target when someone attempted to burn down a synagogue in Oakland. It would be dangerous and absurd to get caught up in comparing hate crimes and dismissing those who we deem “insignificant.” Let's all be mature adults and deal with hate crimes as crimes against all cultured humanity. By differentiating crimes according to the victim's ethnicity we become no better than the people who commit these crimes. 

Tzurit Buskila 

Berkeley

The H. J. Heinz Building is located on San Pablo Avenue just north of Ashby Avenue. Its Mediterranean-style facade is a prominent and distinctive feature on the streetscape of San Pablo Avenue. The building looks like an elegant school or office complex from the exterior, but behind the nicely detailed facade was once a real industrial/manufacturing building engaged in the production of 28 of the H. J. Heinz company's famous “57 Varieties.”  

The Cleveland-based Austin Company, a construction firm founded in 1878 that specialized in all phases of design and construction of industrial buildings, with architect Albert Kahn (l869-1942) built the Heinz Building between 1927 and 1928. It was the largest such firm in the world.  

What might have been a large and simply utilitarian building was designed to be beautiful and to also enhance its San Pablo Avenue location, which at the time was the main highway. Like Samuel Kress of the Kress Five and Dime stores, Howard C. Heinz (1877-1941), son of the founder Henry John Heinz (1844-1919), was an avid traveler and collector whose ivory and watch collections are in the Carnegie Museum of Pittsburgh.  

The one-to three-story building has beige concrete-stucco siding and a red tile roof and is richly decorated with Mediterranean motifs. The entire site is ten acres and the building is a wide U-shape facing west. Along San Pablo Avenue the two-block long building is symmetrical with a three-story central section containing a richly decorated arched entry with an open loggia above. Flanking the entry are two-story sections with courses of deeply recessed metal sash windows separated by flat engaged columns with decorative capitals. The two-story sections are then flanked by one-story sections dived by square bays with hipped roofs and arched windows. At the corners are again, square bays with arched windows.  

The Berkeley Daily Gazette commented in 1927 that “Architecturally it will be one of the most beautiful industrial establishments in the West...an inspiration to the workers and an example for others.”  

The Heinz Company was founded in Pittsburgh in 1869, beginning with the production of horseradish; by 1896 it claimed to be producing the “57 Varieties” that the company used in its advertising. In 1947 the Heinz Company reported that the Berkeley plant was 28 of its 57 varieties, and employed seasonally between 200 and 1,000 workers. During tomato season the smell of cooking tomatoes filled the air. The plant closed in l956 and was moved to Tracy. It has been remodeled into a retail and office center. 

Susan Cerny is author of Berkeley Landmarks and writes this in conjunction with the Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association.  

In the wake of the Grateful Dead's brief reunion concert in Wisconsin last month, and with a pending winter mini tour, there could hardly be better timing for Dennis McNally's “Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead,” which the author will discuss at Cody's Wednesday. What sets the 600-page tome apart from other Dead bios is the author's background and his personal relationship with the band. 

“What makes my book different is that I have a doctorate in history,” said McNally, who earned his Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts. “The whole first half of the book is not just for Deadheads but really for anyone who's interested in a history of the sixties through the Grateful Dead.”  

Few are more qualified to tell it. McNally was hired by the band as publicist in 1984, and continues in that position today. His first book, a biography of Beat icon Jack Kerouac, convinced the band that he was the right man for the job. 

“Jerry revered and signified Kerouac very greatly,” said McNally. “He read my book and said, ‘If you understand that then you understand us, why don't you do us.’ I said, ‘Great idea.’ ” 

“The guy who encouraged me to do the Kerouac book turned me onto the Dead, so the two subjects were joined in my mind,” said McNally. “By the time I was well into the Kerouac project I had become a Dead Head, and I wanted to do these two books. It only took 29 years, but what the hell.” 

“The obvious connection is Neal Cassady, the man Jerry Garcia called ‘The furthest out guy I ever met,’ ” said McNally. Cassady was the model for Dean Moriarity of Kerouac's “On the Road,” and a fixture at Ken Kesey's mid-60s “Acid Tests,” where the Dead – then known as the Warlocks – began to find their feet as freeform psychedelic shamans.  

Guitarist Bob Weir expressed the familial bond that held the group together. “We're all siblings,” he said, “underlings to this guy Neal Cassady. He seemed to live in another dimension.” 

In the spirit of the Beats and the Dead, the book loops around its subject matter. “I don't think a linear book would explain the Grateful Dead very well,” said McNally. The book chronicles the life span of the band, and interjects interesting “Interludes” about band members, the road crew, promoters, and even parts of the set. Additionally, McNally creates composite images of what the band was like at a certain point in its metamorphosis such as with “Shakedown (10/78-10/80).”  

While bands thrive on the spirit and muse, there is the business side of the entertainment life: money, contracts and such. The Dead were never keen on tackling this part of a musicians' career and early on often left the work to others, which had disastrous results. 

“In addition to being the grand spiritual adventure that it was, [The Grateful Dead] was also a business,” McNally said. “And if you didn't make enough money to get to the next show, you were screwed. A Long Strange Trip delves into many of the particulars of arranging gigs. “Someone wanting to get into the music business could do worse than to read a few chapters of this book,” the author said. 

Longtime Berkeley residents will remember events from the book. McNally recalls the Dead playing in People's Park in 1969 when the dispute between students and the UC first came to an ugly and tragic head. Later in their career, the Dead regularly sold out the Greek Theater in Berkeley until the city, overwhelmed by camping Dead Heads with no tickets, banned the group from performing there in 1989. 

As a historian, McNally has certain feelings about the Grateful Dead's legacy. “They lived the American Dream, with their own attitude,” he said. “I really don't know how to express how unusual that is, but it's true. They did what no other band did, forged electric rock instruments with jazz improvisation. It'll go on forever in some ways.”  

As a friend of the band and self-confessed Dead Head, the band's personal meaning to McNally is deeper. “Mickey Hart said, 'We're not part of the entertainment business, we're part of the transportation business. We move minds.' They created a completely unique approach that I always will love.” 

McNally was effusive about the recent Grateful Dead concert stint in Wisconsin, which featured founding members Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzman and Mickey Hart. “Frankly, the music sounded better than I expected it to. There's a lot of magic still there, a lot of wonderful juice in the relationship among those four guys.”  

McNally praised the musicians who were called in to round out the sound, particularly guitarist Jimmy Herring, who had to stand in Jerry's giant shoes. “He just played his butt off,” said McNally. “The band just locked down. Give these guys 10 nights back on the road and they're going to be monsters.” 

No matter the Dead’s future, McNally said, the brief weekend reunion signified a triumph. “I can't tell you who was happier, the band or audience. There was such obvious joy.”  

Saturday, August 31 

Blue on Breen, Ian Butler & Green Man Gruvin’ 

9:30 p.m. 

The Starry Plough, 3101 Shattuck Ave. 

841-1424 

$5 

Plan 9, Wormwood, Hit Me Back & Dystrophy 

8 p.m. 

924 Gillman St. 

525-9926 

$5 

Tuesday, September 3 

Bebelekov Family  

Ashkenaz, 1317 San Pablo Ave. 

525-5024 or www.ashkenaz.com 

$8 door/ Free for 12 and under 

Red Mountain & White Trash 

8 p.m. 

Freight & Salvage, 1111 Addison St. 

548-1761 or www.freightandsalvage.com 

$14.50 in advance, $15.50 at door 

Wednesday, September 4 

Carlos Oiveira & Ventos do Brasil 

8 p.m. 

Freight & Salvage, 1111 Addison St. 

548-1761 or www.freightandsalvage.com 

$15.50 in advance, $16.50 at door 

Tom Rigney & Flambeau 

7:30 p.m. 

Ashkenaz, 1317 San Pablo Ave. 

$8 door/ Free for 12 and under 

Thursday, September 5 

Jimmy LaFave 

8 p.m. 

Freight & Salvage, 1111 Addison St. 

548-1761 or www.freightandsalvage.com 

$16.50 in advance, $17.50 at door 

The Mekons 25th Anniversary Show 

9:30 p.m. 

The Starry Plough, 3101 Shattuck Ave. 

841-1424 

$15 

Friday, September 6 

Caribbean All-Stars CARIBBEAN ALLSTARS 

9:30 p.m. 

Ashkenaz, 1317 San Pablo Ave. 

$11 door/ Free for 12 and under 

Gehenna, Brainoil & Blown to Bits 

8 p.m. 

924 Gillman St. 

525-9926 

$5 

Tempest 

9:30 p.m. 

The Starry Plough, 3101 Shattuck Ave. 

841-1424 

$10 

Saturday, September 7 

Freedom Song Network’s Twentieth Birthday Benefit Concert 

8 p.m. 

La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave. 

$10 to 50 (sliding scale) 

Hirax, Phobia & Lack of Interest 

8 p.m. 

924 Gillman St. 

525-9926 

$5 

Mark Growden’s Electric Pinata, Amor 

9:30 p.m. 

The Starry Plough, 3101 Shattuck Ave. 

841-1424 

$6 

Rachel Garin CD Release Show 

8 p.m.  

The Freight and Salvage, 1111 Addison St. 

548-1761 or www.thefreight.org 

$15.50 in advance/ $16.50 at the door 

Sunday, September 8 

Kulture Schock 

8:30 p.m. 

Ashkenaz, 1317 San Pablo Ave. 

$8 door/ Free for 12 and under 

Darryl Purpose 

8 p.m. 

Freight & Salvage, 1111 Addison St. 

548-1761 or www.freightandsalvage.com 

$15.50 in advance, $16.50 at door 

Monday, September 9 

Kris Delmhorst, Noe Venable 

8 p.m. 

Freight & Salvage, 1111 Addison St. 

548-1761 or www.freightandsalvage.com 

$15.50 in advance, $16.50 at door 

BACA National Juried Exhibition 

Through Sept. 21, Wed.-Sun. Noon to 5 p.m. 

Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. in Live Oak Park 

40 artists from across the U.S. including 28 Bay Area artists. 

644-6893 

Free 

"Before and After"  

Reception 4 to 6 p.m.  

Through Sept. 19  

Albany Community Center and Library Galley 1249 Marin Ave. 

Jim Hair's photographs of the San Diego Hells Angels motorcycle chapter from the 1970s.  

524-9283  

Images of Love and Courtship 

Through Sept. 15 

Gathering Tribes, 1573 Solano Ave. 

Ledger paintings by Michael Horse. 

528-9038 

Free 

"Balancing Acts" 

Through Oct. 10 

Gallery 555, 555 12th St. in Oakland City Center 

Oakland's 'Third Thursday' art night features Ann Weber's works made of cardboard. 

http://www.oaklandcitycenter.com.  

Free 

The Creation of People’s Park 

Through Aug. 31, Mon. - Thurs., 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Fri. 9 to 5 p.m.; Sat. 1 to 5 p.m. Sun. 3 to 7 p.m. 

The Free Movement Speech Cafe, UC Berkeley campus 

A photo exhibition, with curator Harold Adler. 

hjadler@yahoo.com 

Free 

"New Work: Part 2, The 2001 Kala Fellowship Exhibition"  

Through Sept. 7, Tues.-Fri. Noon to 5:30 p.m., Sat. noon - 4:30 p.m. 

Kala Art Institute, 1060 Heinz Ave. 

Featuring 8 Kala Fellowship winners, printmaking 

549-2977  

“If These Walls Could Talk” 

Through Sept. 8 

Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California Campus (just below Grizzly Peak Blvd.) 

See how various civilizations built all kinds of structures from mud huts to giant skyscrapers at this building exhibit. 

642-5132 

Admission: $8 for adults; $6 for ages 5-18, seniors and disabled; $4 for children 3-4; Free for children under 3, LHS Members and full-time Berkeley students. 

"Poems Form/From the Six Directions" 

Through Sept. 15 

Pusod: Center for culture, Ecology & Bayan, 1808 Fifth St. 

A visual poetry exhibition and presentation of a wedding happening, a Filipino tradition. Poetry workshops presented by Eileen Tabios 7 to 9 p.m., Aug. 14, 21 and 28. 

883-1808 

Free 

“Virtually Real Oakland - The Magic, The Diversity and the Potholes” 

Through Sept. 21, Mon.-Fri. 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. 

Photolab Gallery, 2235 Fifth St., Berkeley 

Exhibit by Ken Burson; digitally enhanced photos of Oakland. 

644-1400 

Free 

Richard Misrach, Berkeley Work 

Though Oct. 13 

UC Berkeley Art Museum & Pacific Film Archive, 2626 Bancroft Way 

On view in Gallery 2, presents two photographic series by this internationally recognized Berkeley-based artist.  

642-0808, www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

$7, $5 BAM/PFA members, $4 UC Berkeley students 

Misch Kohn - Celebrating Sixty Years of Printmaking 

Sept. 12 through Oct. 16: Tues.-Fri., Noon to 5:30 p.m.; Sat., Noon to 4:30 p.m. 

Kala Arts Institute, 1060 Heinz Ave. 

549-2977, kala@kala.org 

Threads: Five artists who use stitching to convey ideas 

October 6 through December 15, Wed.-Sun., Noon to 5 p.m. 

Berkeley Art Center 

Live Oak Park, 1275 Walnut St. 

For more information: www.berkeleyartcenter.org, (510) 644-6893 

Free 

A Thousand and One Arabian Nights 

Through Sept. 28, Fri. - Sun. 8 p.m.; Sun. 4 p.m. 

Forest Meadows Outdoor Amphitheater, Grand Avenue at the Dominican University, San Raphael 

Marin Shakespeare Company’s presents this classic story with original Arabic music. 

415-499-4488 for tickets 

$12, youth; $20 senior; $22 general 

Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida 

Through Sept. 1, Sat. and Sun. at 5 p.m..  

John Hinkel Park, off The Arlington at Southampton Road in North Berkeley  

704-8210 for reservations or www.shotgunplayers.org  

Pay what you can 

Henry IV: The Impact Remix 

Aug. 30 through Sept. 8, Fri. and Sat. 8 p.m. and Sun. 7 p.m. 

Eighth Street Studio, 2525 Eighth St. 

Sept. 13 through 21, Fri. and Sat. 8 p.m. and Sun. 7 p.m. 

Julia Morgan Center for the Arts, 2640 College Ave. 

Impact theatre’s first Shakespeare production staring Rich Bolster as Prince Hal and Bill Boynton as Falstaff. 

464-4468, www.impacttheatre.com 

$15 general/$10 students 

Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar 

Sept. 5 through Oct. 12 

Thurs. through Sat. 8 p.m. 

LaVal’s Subterranean Theatre, 1834 Euclid 

234-6046 

$10 

Sunday, September 1 

Poetry at Cody’s on Telegraph 

7:30 p.m. 

Cody’s Books, 2454 Telegraph Ave.  

Readings by James Schevill and William Minor. 

845-7852  

$2 

Saturday, September 7 

Bay Area Poets Coalition Open Reading 

3 p.m. to 5 p.m. 

West Branch Berkeley Public Library, 1125 University Ave. 

527-9905, poetalk@aol.com 

Free 

September 7, 12 

Watershed Environmental Poetry Festival 

Noon to 5 p.m. 

Civic Center Park, Center St. at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Poetry readings, presentations by environmentalists, interactive events and more. 

526-9105  

Sunday, September 8 

Poetry Flash @ Cody’s 

7:30 p.m. 

Cody’s Books, 2454 Telegraph Ave.  

Ivan Arguelles reads “Tri Loka and Carolyn Grassi read “Transparencies.” 

845-7852  

$2 

Saturday, September 7 

Vertical Pool presents Three Experimental Narrative Videos 

8 p.m. and 10 p.m. 

TUVA, 3192 Adeline St. 

A screening of “Requiem For a Friend”, “Inertia” and “Roadkill” by Antero Alli. Filmmaker will be present. 

464-4640 

$7 

Saturday, August 31 

Berkeley Youth Orchestra Auditions (Wind, Brass, Percussion) 

All day 

Laney College Music Dept.  

Fallon St., Oakland 

Berkeley Youth Orchestra will audition musicians aged 10-15 for the 2002-2003 season. 

For an application or more information call Penny Boys at 540-0812 or e-mail her at philiph@seismo.berkeley.edu 

Book Reading: “21st Century Manzanar” 

4 p.m. 

Eastwind Books, 2066 University Ave. 

Perry Minyake reads his debut novel, “21st Century Manzanar,” a dark portrait of an America gone wrong. 

548-2350 

Free 

Sunday, September 1  

Women's Magic Circle  

3:30 to 6:30 p.m.  

Each participant leads the circle through a short magic exercise, ancient or homemade. All traditions are welcome.  

595-5541 or wrpclub@aol.com for more information  

$20 for 6 month membership  

Monday, September 2 

Labor Day Potluck Picnic and Poetry Reading 

Hosted by Bay Area Poets Coalition 

Noon to 4 p.m. 

Live Oak Park, Walnut and Rose St. 

527-9905, poetalk@aol.com 

National Organization for Women Oakland/East Bay Chapter  

6:30 p.m.  

Mama Bears Bookstore and Coffeehouse, 6536 Telegraph Ave. 

Chapter’s monthly meeting. Speaker: Multicultural historian, Lucia Chiavola Birnbaum, received 

the prestigious Valitutti Award for non-fiction.  

549-2970 

Free 

Tuesday, September 3 

The Listening Post 

11 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Wesley Student Center on Bancroft Way near Dana Dr. 

The Listening Post is a safe, non-judgmental, non-denominational place for students to talk about whatever may be on their minds, or weighing on their hearts. 

549-1244 

Opening of Classes,  

Berkeley City Ballet 

1800 Dwight Way  

First day of classes at BCB. Classes Monday through Friday for children 5 and up. Student performers are invited to audition annual Nutcracker performance.  

841-8913 

Thursday, September 5 

Nutrition Career Open House 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Institute of Educational Therapy  

706 Gilman St. 

Learn how to become a nutrition educator or consultant. 

558-1711 

Free 

Discussion: “Why We Call Ourselves Butch?” 

7 p.m. 

Boadecia’s Books, 398 Colusa Ave. 

This group is for self-identified butch women. New members are welcome. 

559-9184 

Free 

Friday, September 6 

'The Winona LaDuke Reader' Lecture and Reception 

Presented by the American Indian Graduate Program 

5 p.m. Reception, 7 p.m. Lecture 

Native American environmental and Indigenous Rights activist and author of several books and articles, Winona LaDuke, will discuss the topics of her new book 'The Winona LaDuke Reader' as well as other current work. 

atalay@sscl.berkeley.edu 

Free 

Saturday, September 7 

Sick Plant Clinic 

9 a.m. to noon 

University of California Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Dr. 

UC plant pathology and entomology experts will diagnose what ails your plant.  

643-2755 

Free 

Travel Careers Seminar 

8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. 

Vista Community College  

2020 Milvia St., Room 306 

The day’s program will include travel industry speakers covering a variety of career possibilities: Cruise specialists, tour leaders, tour operators, adventure operators, home-based travel agents and more.  

981-2931 

$5.50 for California residents 

Sunday, September 8 

Lifelong Medical Care First Annual 5K Fun Run/Walk Fundraiser 

9 a.m. to noon 

West Berkeley 

Individual and team participation. Event includes a health fair, food, prizes, live music and free insurance eligibility screening. 

704-6010 

28th Annual Solano Avenue Stroll 

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Solano Avenue 

A mile-long block part featuring “Journey of a Thousand Cranes’ Parade” at 11 a.m.  

527-5358 or www.solanostroll.org 

Free 

Watershed Environmental Poetry Festival 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Free 

Prostate Cancer Lecture 

2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. 

Maffly Auditorium, Herrick Campus 

2001 Dwight Way 

Understand the risk of prostate cancer and how to detect early symptoms from a survivor. 

869-6737 

Free 

Tuesday, September 10 

Michael Newdow: Lecture 

8 p.m. 

2050 Valley Life Sciences Building, UC Berkeley Campus 

Micahel Newdow is a Sacramento physician with a law degree whose case against the common procedure of reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools fueled national uproar last summer.  

USE-SANE, sane@ocf.berkeley.edu, http://www.BerkeleySANE.org 

Free 

Thursday, September 12 

The 14th Small Business  

Development Trade Fair 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

The Pauley Ballroom in the Martin Luther King Jr. Student Union, near Telegraph Ave. and Bancroft Way, UC Berkeley 

The event will introduce small businesses to the UC Berkeley community and give campus departments a glimpse of the services and products small businesses have to offer.  

Caterina Rando discusses her new book Learn to Power Think: A Practical Guide to Positive and Effective Decision Making 

Boadecia’s Books, 398 Colusa Ave. 

559-9184, www.bookpride.com 

Saturday, September 14 

Basic Personal Preparedness 

9 to 11 a.m. 

Fire Department Training Center, 997 Cedar St. 

Learn five critical steps to take care of yourself, your family and your home. Classes open to those 18 or older who live or work in Berkeley. 

981-5605, www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/fire/oes.html 

Free 

It wasn’t the prettiest game, but the Cal women’s soccer team pulled out a 2-0 win over Ohio State to open the season on Friday at Edwards Stadium. 

Newcomers Carly Fuller and Tracy Hamm scored goals late in the second half for the Bears after senior striker Laura Schott was ejected from the game for drawing her second yellow card of the day. 

Fuller, a senior transfer from Duke, scored on a penalty kick in the 77th minute. Hamm, a freshman from Campolindo High in Moraga, gave the Bears an insurance goal eight minutes later, and goalkeeper Ashley Sulprizio made six saves on the way to a shutout in her first Cal game. 

Schott’s ejection rules her out of Sunday’s game against Purdue, so her run at the record books will be delayed for at least another week. Schott needs six goals to tie Joy Fawcett’s school record, and Fawcett’s record for total points is within reach as well. 

Both of Schott’s yellow cards were questionable. The first came when she collided with Ohio State goalkeeper Anna Mitchell going for a ball in the first half, and the second came when Schott plowed over a Buckeye defender in the 69th minute. Schott got the ball in that instance, but the referee judged her challenge to be overly zealous and tossed her from the match. 

Down a player, the Bears responded with their most inspired offense of the match. Midfielder Kim Yokers put Brittany Kirk behind the OSU defense almost immediately after the ejection, with Kirk sliding the ball just wide of the goal. Then defender Kim Stocklmeir played a beautiful long ball that Yokers corralled in the penalty area before being pushed down by Ohio State’s Jen Miller. Fuller slotted the ensuing penalty kick into the side netting for a 1-0 lead.  

Fuller, who was a starter at Duke for three years and took a few penalty kicks for the Blue Devils, volunteered to convert Yokers’ effort. 

“Coach (Kevin) Boyd just yelled over for somebody to take it,” Fuller said. “Kim was a little shaken up by the foul, so I just stepped up and took it.” 

The Buckeyes nearly evened the score moments later as forward Colleen Hoban got behind the Cal defense, but she hit her shot almost directly at Sulprizio, who dove to her left and held onto the ball. 

Hamm, a freshman winger from Campolindo High in Moraga, scored in the Bears’ exhibition game against University of San Francisco last week, and she continued her hot streak on Friday. She took a pass 15 yards outside the penalty area, dribbled past one defender and hit a spectacular shot to the left corner of the goal past a diving Mitchell. 

Boyd said he was expecting Hamm to simply play the ball deep to a corner of the field to run out the clock, but Hamm is confident enough in her abilities to make a gamble worthwhile. 

“I was just thinking that I only had to beat one person, and I thought I might as well try,” Hamm said. 

One of Cal’s fastest players, Hamm said she isn’t surprised by her quick adjustment to the college game. 

“I’ve been waiting to play at this level for so long,” she said. “My game is fast and strong, and that’s what the college game is about.” 

The Bears victory didn’t come without a price, however. Schott won’t be the only starter missing Sunday’s game, as Stocklmeir was part of a violent collision just before the final whistle and had to leave the game with an injured collarbone. The senior defender will have X-rays done on the injury this weekend.

A controversial plan to build a four-story apartment building with commercial space at 2700 San Pablo Ave. is facing yet another setback in a long line of snags the project has faced since it was proposed more than three years ago. 

This week neighbors Howie Muir, Julie Dickinson and Douglas Press filed a civil suit against the city of Berkeley in Alameda County Superior Court. According to the suit, the city did not comply with the California Environmental Quality Act and it violated state and zoning laws when it approved the project. 

The suit is the next step in the neighbor’s long fight. 

The proposal was approved on July 23 when the City Council denied an appeal by the neighbors who argued the building would be too tall and too dense for the area.  

The suit comes as City Council faces increasing pressure from state and local housing advocates to boost the city’s housing stock.  

The four-story project, proposed by developer Panoramic Interests and nonprofit developer Jubilee Restoration, calls for 35 residential units of which seven would be set aside for low-income and medium-income tenants. The project also proposes 52,000 square feet of commercial space. 

Since 1999 the proposal has been bouncing between the Department of Planning and Development, the Zoning Adjustments Board, Design Review Committee and City Council. 

The original plan called for 48 residential units and 5,500 square feet of commercial space. However, the developers withdrew the plan after the city’s Zoning Adjustments Board criticized it. Six month later the project was resubmitted in it’s current form.  

Muir says the city’s project review process, which ultimately approved the San Pablo development, does not function properly and that the city appears unwilling to fix it.  

“The city didn’t listen to the 400 residents who signed two different petitions opposing the size, density and height of this project,” Muir said. “The city ignored the [California Environmental Quality Act], its general plan and area plan to get the project built for it’s developer buddies.” 

Mayor Shirley Dean said she does not believe Muir’s allegations are true. She said the project was closely scrutinized by several city agencies and City Council. 

“I can only speak for myself, but I make it a habit to go over all the materials, including petitions, very carefully,” she said. “I believe we were very careful to make sure [state and city laws] were complied with,” she said. 

Dean also said Muir should be careful not to make insinuations that elected officials and city staff are somehow in bed with developers.  

Dean agreed, however, that some problems with the city’s review process exist, pointing to the suit’s filed date – three years after the project was first proposed – as evidence. 

“I don’t know what the basis of Mr. Muir’s suit is, but I am always hopeful that these matters can be worked out beforehand,” she said. “What’s the use of going through a long, grueling process, like we did on 2700 San Pablo, if it’s just going to end up in court?” 

President of Panoramic Interests, Patrick Kennedy, said the groundbreaking, which was scheduled for September, will have to be delayed yet again.  

“We already delayed the project for a year just to make sure all the ‘t’s were crossed and ‘i’s were dotted,” he said. 

Kennedy has been the city’s most prolific developer in the last 10 years, creating more than 300 housing units in a variety of projects including the Gaia building in downtown Berkeley.  

Battling tall and dense developments has become something of a campaign for Muir. He co-wrote the height initiative, a November ballot initiative that seeks to lower building height limits. Muir part of a lawsuit protesting the height and density of a proposal by developer Affordable Housing Associates that included 40 units of low-cost housing for seniors on Sacramento Street at Dwight Way. 

Ali Kashani, AHA’s executive director, said the approval process and lawsuit caused delays, adding to Berkeley’s critical housing shortage and costing tax payers money. 

“It took us three years to get the use permit for the Sacramento Street project,” Kashani said. “Now after going through all that, we have to take more time and spend more money to go through a legal action.”  

Muir argues that height limits are vital to maintaining the city’s character and says he is exercising his right to oppose the projects.  

“Anything less would mean a curtailing of public process and that’s ridiculous,” he said. 

To the Editor: 

Mayor Dean's plea for playing fields in the new Eastshore Park (Forum, Aug. 28) ended with an ominous, “Let's also reopen the discussion around the closing of Derby Street . . . (for) playing fields for Berkeley High students.” Yet again? Okay. I'll repeat the objections of residents living within the area bounded by the heavily-used Dwight, MLK Way, Ashby, and Shadduck/Adeline: 

n Closing Derby would mean that four of the eight east-west streets between Ashby and Dwight would be blocked at Shattuck/Adeline, causing still further congestion on Blake, Parker, Carleton, Stuart. (Russell, Oregon, and Ward are already blocked.) 

n Fire engines leaving the station at Derby and Shattuck to go west would use residential streets instead of Derby, which has no residential housing from Shattuck to MLK Way. This route would increase accident risk and emergency response time. 

n The proposed playing field is a “hardball” baseball field, requiring more land (hence a street closure) and high fences to protect surrounding people from the dense, hard, farther-traveling balls. Berkeley High practice fields are locked after school hours. This means locking up more than a city block for use by high school teams only and under the supervision of a coach – not an opportunity for “the joy of an informal game of touch football,” as Mayor Dean describes it. 

n Not only would the proposed field lock out our neighborhood children, it would bring in other high school teams for games, adding glaring lights, a blaring sound system, and more traffic. 

I recognize that this site is school property. Speaking or myself, I could support a fenced playing field without the closure of Derby Street, without an amplified sound system, with use open to neighborhood children after school hours, and finally, if it were locked at 10 or 11 p.m. to keep out transients. 

Dorothy Bryant 

Berkeley

When Cal has the ball 

Going to the air 

Cal’s wide receivers haven’t been able to run away from anyone in the last few seasons, but head coach Jeff Tedford plans to change that. The only player with proven breakaway speed for the Golden Bears is converted cornerback LaShaun Ward, who is battling a hamstring injury and has shaky hands. Quarterback Kyle Boller is more likely to find players open on crossing patterns, so look for more creativity with routes and overloading defensive zones from Tedford and offensive coordinator George Cortez. Baylor’s returning players accounted for just two picks last season. 

Tedford has vowed to incorporate the tight end into the Cal offense, but starter Tom Swoboda isn’t much of a pass-catcher. Backup Brandon Hall should be in the game in obvious passing situations. 

In the trenches 

Baylor’s left end A.C. Collier is a fierce pash rusher, so Cal right tackle Chris Murphy will have his hands full. Look for him to get help from right guard Jon Geisel (or David Hays, as Geisel is a game-time decision with a hamstring injury) and the Golden Bear tight ends. Tackle Mark Wilson and guard Scott Tercero have been working side-by-side for two years so they should provide a solid wall on the right side. 

The ground game 

Baylor has three 300-pounders in the middle of the line, so the straight-ahead running lanes may be clogged up for Cal’s Joe Igber and Terrell Williams. The linebackers are no great shakes, however, so if Igber and Williams can get past the first line of defense they could get some big gains. 

When Baylor has the ball 

Taking to the air 

Baylor quarterback Greg Cicero was just plain bad last season, throwing 13 interceptions and just six touchdowns. Backup Aaron Karas tossed just one less touchdown and only one pick, but Cicero remains the starter. The Bears should blitz to pressure Cicero and possible force some turnovers, something that was sorely lacking in Strawberry Canyon last season. Cicero’s main target will be Reggie Newhouse, who caught eight touchdowns last season, and Baylor will spread the field on occasion with extra receivers. 

In the trenches 

Baylor surrendered 27 sacks last year, not bad for a team that lives on the pass. But they have just two starters back, so Cal shouldn’t have much trouble mounting a pass rush. Rush end Tully Banta-Cain finished last season on a high note and could be a terror this season, and tackle Daniel Nwangwu has the quickness and agility to give Baylor problems on the inside.  

Stunts and blitzes could confuse the new Baylor offensive linemen, so keep an eye on outside linebackers Calvin Hosey and Matt Nixon. If they can make a few big plays, the Baylor offense will stall. 

The ground game 

Baylor had four running backs with nearly identical numbers last season and struggled to reach 100 yards on the ground per game. Tailback Jonathan Golden is the only returning back and should get the lion’s share of carries this year, but a team that averaged a miniscule 2.6 yards per carry shouldn’t strike fear in the hearts of Cal fans.

With budget cuts at Berkeley Unified School District meaning reduced staff, larger classes and sometimes demoralized teachers, Longfellow Middle School’s new principal Rebecca Cheung gave her staff a place to stash pessimism: a plastic Kodak film canister labeled, “My Container of Disbelief.” 

Cheung distributed the canisters to her teachers before the first day of school last week as a tangible reminder of a promise she asked her staff to make – think positively. However, even Cheung understands that the gesture may not be enough to contain the anxieties of a school that is still reeling from last year. 

“Longfellow had a pretty chaotic year last year,” said Cheung, referring to rampant staff infighting that compounded with the budget and program cuts.  

One teacher, who asked not to be named, recalled a conflict between a teacher and a volunteer that “involved profanities and throwing papers around.”  

But the biggest problem, according to the teacher, was that former principal William Dwyer had a difficult time controlling the staff. Dryer, who retired last year, could not be reached for comment. 

When district officials got word that students could sense bad feelings at the school, they grew concerned. 

To turn things around, Berkeley Superintendent Michele Lawrence brought in a new administration composed of Cheung, who at 28 is the school district’s youngest principal, and Gene Nakamura, a legendary veteran administrator who has 33 years of experience in the Berkeley school system. 

“She’s going to be a star,” Lawrence said of Cheung. “I believe through her leadership there will be a renaissance at Longfellow.” 

Cheung, a graduate of Julliard School of Music, spent six years in the Oakland school district and one year as principal of Berkeley’s Emerson Elementary. 

To cut costs at Longfellow, the district reduced the school day from seven to six periods, cut some classes and programs such as chorus and saved $402,000 by cutting six teachers. They also scrapped a bus system to trim $30,000 more. 

Meanwhile, enrollment at the school is up more than 50 students this year.  

Longfellow is not alone in its troubles. 

Districtwide, $9 million dollars has already been slashed from the budget, according to Lawrence. Most of the savings came from layoffs and the closure of a school, Franklin Elementary. Despite the closure, enrollment in the district is projected to hold steady, forcing class sizes to increase. 

“I’ve seen tough times,” said Lawrence, a former superintendent of Paramount Unified School District, a district near Los Angeles notorious for gang activity. “But last year was the toughest I’ve had in 20 years.” 

Nonetheless, many of the staff at Longfellow already sensed a change for the better. Teachers said the campus is cleaner and more peaceful. Several teachers have even written notes and e-mails to Lawrence thanking her for the school’s new administrators. 

“This is, I think, the best year I’ll ever have at this school and it’s because of the new administration,” said Tina Lewis, coordinator of Longfellow’s after-school program. “It’s a real visible difference.”  

At a school assembly for the eighth-grade class yesterday, Cheung seemed every bit the stern leader. 

“I don’t like to see anyone’s underwear and neither does Mr. Nakamura,” Cheung said, nodding to her vice principal. “That means ladies, I don’t want to see your belly buttons. And boys, keep those pants up.” 

After the assembly, she reflected on her no-nonsense demeanor while supervising a group of sixth-graders waiting in line for grilled cheese sandwiches and hot dogs in the cafeteria.  

“I’m not usually like that,” said Cheung, a former UC Berkeley music major. “But when I have to be, I am.” 

To the Editor: 

How to accommodate a million new Bay Area residents in the next 20 years seems like quite a problem. But is it the additional people who are the problem, or their cars . . . or the higher densities needed to make public transit a practical alternative? 

Driving a car is not a fundamental right. Elected officials can still pull the plug on public transit funding without violating the rights of anyone who is left stranded. But babies are still born with legs (not wheels) attached, so perhaps walking is the only mode of transportation we might claim as a natural or fundamental right. 

Many of us readily acknowledge that we’re forced to drive because the alternatives are inadequate. But the analysis always stops there. No one bothers to identify those guilty of the coercion. Once past that barrier it should be easy to identify the culprits. They’re local and county planners and elected officials who make the zoning and development decisions. They’ve put a disproportionate amount of our new urban and suburban growth in places that are accessible and functional for motorists only. 

For over half a century urban and suburban planning efforts have attempted to accommodate every auto the manufacturers can sell. And in that time we’ve never acknowledged whether the rights of those who’re forced to drive, or who are disenfranchised for lack of a car, might be more important than the property rights of the developers and land speculators. When considering our constitutional right to life, liberty and property we should remember that life comes first, liberty second, property third and cars kill. 

So let’s forget about subsidies and tax breaks to encourage transit – and pedestrian-oriented “smart growth.” Walking should be the basic transportation building block for all urban/suburban development. We’ll get all the smart growth we need if we just prohibit any development that forces us to depend on modes of transportation so dangerous that they require seat belts, air bags, crash helmets and personal liability insurance. And when the dust settles there might still be enough room so those who enjoy driving can take a circuitous five-mile route to get to the grocery store that’s just around the corner. 

Art Weber 

El Cerrito

NEW YORK — They saved a season and ended a streak by choosing to play rather than picket. 

With just hours to spare, baseball averted a strike Friday when negotiators pulled off a surprise by agreeing to a tentative labor contract. 

Commissioner Bud Selig called the deal “historic,” the first time since 1970 that players and owners accepted a new collective bargaining agreement without a work stoppage. 

“All streaks come to an end, and this was one that was overdue to come to an end,” union head Donald Fehr said. 

The deal that pulled baseball back from the brink penalizes big spending on player salaries and gives poorer teams a bigger share of the wealth. 

In return, the union received a guarantee that baseball won’t eliminate teams through the 2006 season. And for the first time, players agreed to mandatory, random testing for steroids. 

“It came down to us playing baseball or having our reputations and life ripped by the fans,” said Steve Kline, the St. Louis Cardinals’ player representative. 

“Baseball would have never been the same if we had walked out.” 

Perhaps that was why owners gained their most significant concessions since 1985 — maybe even since the start of free agency 26 years ago — with an agreement that runs until December 2006. 

“It’s not important today to talk about winning and losing,” Selig said. 

The commissioner and Fehr attended a morning bargaining session that wrapped up the deal, which averted the sport’s ninth work stoppage since 1972. The previous eight negotiations resulted in five strikes and three lockouts. 

“I think a lot of people thought they’d never live long enough to see these two parties come together with a very meaningful deal and do it without one game of work stoppage,” Selig said. 

Still, the pact has not been signed and parts weren’t even in writing. It was unclear when it would be ratified. 

The agreement was reached about 3 1/2 hours before the first game Friday, the deadline players set two weeks ago for a strike. But for most of the morning they weren’t sure whether they’d be packing bags or playing ball. 

“It was close. I was about to make my flight arrangements to go home,” Chicago Cubs outfielder Roosevelt Brown said as he arrived at Wrigley Field for that first game, against the Cardinals. 

A walkout threatened the final 31 days and 438 games of the regular season, and fans were angry at players and owners for their repeated quarrels over a business that generates $3.5 billion annually.

$5 Golden Gate toll sparks FasTrak signups 

Like last-minute Christmas shoppers, Bay area motorists rushed to sign up for FasTrak this week before the toll on the Golden Gate Bridge increases on Sunday. 

The toll goes from $3 to $5 but will cost FasTrak users only $4 – a $1 increase. 

More than 400 people signed up for FasTrak on Wednesday, more than the number of people who signed up for it during the last two weeks in August 2001, according to Mary Currie of the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. 

Since FasTrak started in July 2000, 71,379 FasTrak accounts have been opened, Currie said. 

Boy tells court church counselor molested him  

FAIRFIELD — A Vacaville church counselor allegedly molested a 12-year-old boy three times at the Vacaville First Baptist Church, the boy testified in court. 

The boy testified Thursday in Solano County court that Richard Rearden, 34, molested him three times in 1999. He said the molestations happened on nights when the boy came for Bible study classes. 

The boy said it started when Rearden patted him on the crotch one day, and weeks later touched him inappropriately again as the boy stood in front of a church bathroom urinal. 

Eventually, the boy testified, Rearden took him to a private room in the church, stripped him of his pants and underwear, then tied his hands and legs to a chair before molesting him as the boy screamed repeatedly.

Nan Rohan’s passion for the age-old art of soaking and plaiting wheat into handsome designs runs deep into the soil of her Berkeley garden which produced successful wheat crops both this year and last.  

Beginning Aug. 30 the artist’s work will be on display for two months when her Spirit of the Grain wheat weaving exhibit opens at the Berkeley Travel Company opposite the Monterey Market at 1301 California St.  

Much like Rumpelstiltskin, who spun straw into gold in the Brothers Grimm fairy tale, Rohan, who works as a graphic designer by day, magically transforms wheat stems into flaxen love knots, beads, horseshoes, harps, and treble clefs by night. It’s almost as if the practice has plaited a charmed strand into her life creating an added sense of purpose – increasing her inner harmony and even giving her the opportunity to communicate with Irish Poet Seamus Heaney, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1995. 

Rohan contacted Heaney earlier this year after she picked one of his poetry collections while dusting and the pages opened at “The Harvest Bow,” his poem about a straw plaiter or wheat weaver. Interested in relaying the incident to him and curious to know the identity of the weaver, she wrote Heaney.  

Soon he replied with a handwritten note expressing his pleasure at having a wheat weaver read his poem. He told her that the straw plaiter in the poem was his father. 

The note has now been filed away in the modest north Berkeley home she shares with her husband Pat Rohan, where the artist’s love for the grain, first cultivated in the Fertile Crescent, is evident even from the street. Two golden swans crafted from wheat dangle from inside the living room window and a welcoming wreath of wheat heads and acorns decorates the brick-red front door.  

Seated inside at the dining room table, the silver-haired mother of three grown children wears Celtic knot earrings fashioned from braided wheat and a matching pin in her lapel. High on the wall behind her a collection of her weavings including a Mexican Corazon de Trigo (Heart of Wheat), a Welsh Fan, and a Mariee de Moisson (bride of the harvest) showcase spectacular wheat heads and form a fitting backdrop for a conversation about wheat weaving. 

To set her work in context, Rohan explains that for centuries grain-growing cultures around the world have woven wheat to preserve seed from the previous harvest so that it could be ploughed under in the spring of the following year. “The spirit of the wheat was thought to have been kept alive by saving the last wheat of the harvest and hanging the resulting plaited design in the house over the winter,” said the two-term past president of the California Wheat Weavers Guild.  

Seeds for her own backyard harvests came courtesy of the U.S. Department of Agriculture which maintains a seed bank of older wheat varieties not commonly grown in California today. Rohan remembers hearing of this program, which furnishes free seed in return for information on the harvest, from fellow wheat weaving enthusiast Monica Spiller, whose interest lies in preserving wheat strains suitable for bread making. “The continuance of this program depends on feedback. If the USDA knows people are availing of the program, they will continue it,” said Rohan.  

Her drive to cultivate a personal stash of wheat for weaving has advantages. “Wheat weaving needs long stems. Modern wheat has been hybridized. Growers have bred out the longer stems because short wheat is easier for the farmer in that it withstands inclement and windy weather better,” she said.  

This reality makes her backyard harvest of French Chiddam, Pacific Bluestem, Sonora and Blue Beard wheat special indeed. When the crop ripened she carefully dried the wheat on the deck, tied the varieties together, stored them in plastic containers, and then used most of last year’s harvest to give weaving demonstrations at the California State Fair. “I was thrilled to be able to tell people who usually buy wheat from Kansas, North Dakota, Idaho, and Illinois that the wheat was grown in California,” said Rohan. 

With her first solo exhibit at the Berkeley Travel Company Rohan realizes a personal goal of bringing wheat weaving to the Berkeley public. The viewing hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday.  

“The point of the exhibit is to let people know about the pleasures of weaving,” she said. 

Few glitches on
first day of class 

Teachers at John Muir Elementary School earned ‘As’ in heavy lifting and selflessness Tuesday after a leaky pipe flooded two classrooms and threatened to disrupt the first day of school. 

School staff who arrived intending to put the final touches on classrooms instead rolled up their pant legs and trekked through puddles to salvage supplies and furniture. They set up makeshift classrooms for kindergarten- and fourth-grade students whose rooms were drenched. 

“It was an incredible display of strength and perseverance,” said Principal Nancy Waters. “The entire staff worked on and off all day.” 

The teachers at John Muir were not the only ones working hard this week.  

As Berkeley’s 9,000 public school students strolled, grumbled and giggled their way back to classrooms Wednesday, teachers chalked up several classroom improvements that reflected their summer toil. 

At Rosa Parks Elementary School in west Berkeley, science teacher Nancy Bynes spent the first two weeks of her summer working with the school librarian and other teachers to integrate science curriculum into the classroom. 

Now, instead of teaching unrelated lessons, classroom teachers and librarians will join science lab work into regular classroom activities, such as book reports and vocabulary lists. 

“Before kids would come [to the lab] and have a great lesson on the anatomy of an earthworm, but if they didn’t hear about it again they’d forget it,” Bynes said. 

By reinforcing science labs during classroom lessons, students will better remember the information and more easily grasp new concepts, Bynes said. 

At Berkeley High School, the transition from a seven- to a six-class day led two science teachers, Kate Haber and Vern Spohn, to devote some of their summer to writing a new, advanced biology curriculum to compensate for reduced class time, co-principal Laura Leventer said. 

Several math teachers also worked this summer, to design a double period of algebra for students who were at risk of flunking the subject. 

“It’s crucial that students are given every opportunity to learn Algebra,” Leventer said. “They can’t be eligible to attend university unless they pass.” 

Parents at Rosa Parks said the devotion of many teachers had not gone unnoticed. 

“The teacher’s here [at Rosa Parks] are all amazing. Last year my daughter’s teacher took the time to visit the houses of all her students,” said Tom Killilea, whose daughter Marie started the second grade Wednesday. 

In addition to the wet welcome at John Muir, the whole district had it’s share of drama when a computer glitch accidentally dropped several middle school students from their classes. The error was remedied quickly, said Superintendent Michele Lawrence. 

“There was the normal first day of school chaos but overall, everyone was just terrific,” Lawrence said. 

Contact reporter at  

matt@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To the Editor: 

As the days shorten and nights lengthen, the darkening shadows grow longer. 

The darkening shadows of war and lies and greed and despoilage lengthen across the land. Bellicose shouts and acts of destruction will not save our economy from selfishness. Later, we'll arise from the dust our cities and wonder, “What were we thinking?” 

Bruce Joffe, 

Piedmont

LOS ANGELES — Harry Potter at Hogwarts, Frodo Baggins bound for Mordor, Hannibal Lecter in his nuthouse cell, Jean-Luc Picard on the bridge of the Enterprise, and James Bond in bed with Halle Berry. 

Who says there are no sure bets in Hollywood? 

Most fall films are uncertain commodities, but a handful have such built-in appeal, they can pretty much count their tickets before they’re sold: 

n “Red Dragon”: Anthony Hopkins does diabolical killer Lecter in his early asylum days in a prequel to “Silence of the Lambs” and “Hannibal.” Edward Norton stars as the FBI agent who captured Lecter and years later needs his help on a new case. 

Though it’s set years before the action of “Silence” and “Hannibal” and Hopkins is a decade older than when he first played the role, “he’s one of the greatest actors ever. If you’re looking at the wrinkles on his face, I’m not doing a very good job,” said “Red Dragon” director Brett Ratner. “In the first five minutes, you may say, ‘Yeah, he looks older,’ but then you get into the story. Anthony Hopkins is Hannibal. Whether he looks younger or older, he’s Hannibal Lecter.” 

n “Die Another Day”: Agent 007 (Pierce Brosnan) beats up on villains as he pursues a mega-weapon. Brosnan said he and Berry share one of the steamiest Bond love scenes ever and that the movie is ripe with fond allusions to earlier 007 flicks. 

“This particular film for any Bond aficionado will be a connoisseur’s delight in terms of picking out lines used in other movies and paying certain homages to past films,” Brosnan said. “I don’t think it will disappoint when you have the beautiful Halle Berry coming out of the water” in a take on Ursula Andress in the first Bond movie, “Dr. No.” 

n “Star Trek: Nemesis”: Patrick Stewart and the Enterprise crew find a nasty new enemy on a peace mission to the Romulans. For those subscribing to the theory that even-numbered “Trek” films are the best, this is No. 10. 

“In two or three years (when an 11th “Trek” film is likely), I will pooh-pooh that theory, but for now, I’ll hold on to it dearly,” said producer Rick Berman. “This is probably the most action-packed and exciting, edgy and dark of the movies we have made. There’s startling and shocking elements to it, and I would say we’ve probably got the best ‘Star Trek’ villain we’ve ever had (British actor Tom Hardy).” 

As for the season’s main events, need we say more than “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”? 

Blessed with lead-in films last year that each took in more than $300 million domestically, “Chamber of Secrets” and “Two Towers” are set to disprove the old Hollywood notion that audiences need a two- or three-year breather between blockbuster sequels. 

“Conventional wisdom would be that 12 months is too close together to have a sequel,” said Mark Ordesky, an executive producer of the three “Lord of the Rings” films. “But what’s become evident with ours is that people are perceiving the films as what they are. Not sequels, but one giant, epic story told in three installments.” 

Since director Peter Jackson shot all three “Lord of the Rings” films simultaneously, fans can expect another dose of class and quality. 

It doesn’t hurt that J.R.R. Tolkien’s saga of Middle-earth and a hobbit named Frodo has almost 50 years of built-in fandom, and that Jackson left audiences salivating for part two with last year’s opening chapter, “The Fellowship of the Ring.” 

Likewise, 2001’s top moneymaker, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” has fans itching for the next big-screen adaptation from J.K. Rowling’s fantasy series about the boy wizard. 

“Chamber of Secrets” director Chris Columbus, who also made “Sorcerer’s Stone,” said audiences can expect another two-and-a-half-hour adventure as Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) fights fresh evil at Hogwarts school. 

Columbus found two big advantages this time. He could jump right in on the action, without the character set-up and scene-setting necessary in the first film. And he said “Chamber of Secrets” makes for a more visual tale — “I found it to be the most cinematic of all the books, except maybe ‘Goblet of Fire.”’ 

The action is buoyed by improved special effects, Columbus said, including a bigger and better round of quidditch, a game played on flying broomsticks, crafted by George Lucas’ Industrial Light & Magic effects house. 

Inevitable blockbusters, the only question about “Chamber of Secrets” and “Two Towers” is where they will stack up on a 2002 box-office chart that already has produced a $400 million sensation in “Spider-Man” and a $300 million smash in “Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones.”

Thursday, August 29 

The KGB, Solemite & The Penomenauts 

8 p.m. 

Ashkenaz, 1317 San Pablo Ave. 

525-5024 or www.ashkenaz.com 

$7 door/ Free for 12 and under 

The Unreal Band 

9:30 p.m. 

The Starry Plough, 3101 Shattuck Ave. 

841-1424 

$5 

Friday, August 30 

Capoeira Mandinga 

8 p.m. 

Ashkenaz, 1317 San Pablo Ave. 

525-5024 or www.ashkenaz.com 

$10 door/ Free for 12 and under 

Gipsy Kings 

8 p.m. 

Greek Theatre, UC Berkeley 

642-9988 

$32.50 to $70 

The Lab Rats, Damage Done,  

The First Step & Diehard Youth 

8 p.m. 

924 Gillman St. 

525-9926 

$5 

The Pre-teens, Hansi & Flair 

9:30 p.m. 

The Starry Plough 

3101 Shattuck Ave. 

841-1424 

$5 

Saturday, August 31 

Blue on Breen, Ian Butler  

& Green Man Gruvin’ 

9:30 p.m. 

The Starry Plough  

3101 Shattuck Ave. 

841-1424 

$5 

Plan 9, Wormwood, Hit Me Back  

& Dystrophy 

8 p.m. 

924 Gillman St. 

525-9926 

$5 

BACA National Juried Exhibition 

Through Sept. 21, Wed.-Sun., noon to 5 p.m. 

Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. in Live Oak Park 

40 artists from across the U.S. including 28 Bay Area artists. 

644-6893 

Free 

"Before and After"  

Reception 4 to 6 p.m.  

Through Sept. 19  

Albany Community Center and Library Galley 1249 Marin Ave. 

Jim Hair's photographs of the San Diego Hells Angels motorcycle chapter from the 1970s.  

524-9283  

Freedom! Now! 

Berkeley Arts Festival Gallery & Headquarters 2055 Center St. 

Reception 6 to 8 p.m. 

Through Aug. 25, Tues. - Sun., noon to 5 p.m. 

Commemorates the work of those who struggled for justice and freedom from government/state repression. 

841-2793 

Images of Love and Courtship 

Through Sept. 15 

Gathering Tribes, 1573 Solano Ave. 

Ledger paintings by Michael Horse. 

528-9038 

Free 

The Creation of People’s Park 

Through Aug. 31, Mon. - Thurs., 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Fri. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sat. 1 to 5 p.m. Sun. 3 to 7 p.m. 

The Free Movement Speech Cafe, UC Berkeley campus 

A photo exhibition, with curator Harold Adler. 

hjadler@yahoo.com 

Free 

"New Work: Part 2, The 2001 Kala Fellowship Exhibition"  

Through Sept. 7, Tues.-Fri., noon to 5:30 p.m.; Sat., noon - 4:30 p.m. 

Kala Art Institute, 1060 Heinz Ave. 

Featuring 8 Kala Fellowship winners, printmaking 

549-2977  

“If These Walls Could Talk” 

Through Sept. 8 

Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California Campus (just below Grizzly Peak Blvd.) 

See how various civilizations built all kinds of structures from mud huts to giant skyscrapers at this building exhibit. 

642-5132 

Admission: $8 for adults; $6 for ages 5-18, seniors and disabled; $4 for children 3-4; Free for children under 3, LHS Members and full-time Berkeley students. 

"Poems Form/From the Six Directions" 

Through Sept. 15 

Pusod: Center for culture, Ecology & Bayan, 1808 Fifth St. 

A visual poetry exhibition and presentation of a wedding happening, a Filipino tradition.  

883-1808 

Free 

Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida 

Through Sept. 1, Sat. and Sun. 5 p.m. 

John Hinkel Park, off The Arlington at Southampton Road in North Berkeley  

704-8210 for reservations or www.shotgunplayers.org  

Donations accepted 

Henry IV: The Impact Remix 

Aug. 30 - Sept. 8, Fri. and Sat. 8 p.m. and Sun. 7 p.m. 

Eighth Street Studio, 2525 Eighth St. 

Julia Morgan Center for the Arts, 2640 College Ave. 

464-4468, www.impacttheatre.com 

$15 general/$10 students 

Thursday, August 29

2nd Annual LGBT Elders Conference 

9 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

First Unitarian Church  

685 14th St., Oakland 

Workshops and conference for LGBT elders to learn about senior services.  

705-8918 

$20 registration, no one denied for lack of funds 

Saturday, August 31

Berkeley Youth Orchestra Auditions (Wind, Brass, Percussion) 

All day 

Laney College Music Dept.,  

Fallon Street., Oakland 

Berkeley Youth Orchestra will audition musicians aged 10-15 for the 2002-2003 season. 

For an application or more information call Penny Boys at 540-0812 or e-mail her at philiph@seismo.berkeley.edu 

Book Reading:  

21st Century Manzanar 

4 p.m. 

Eastwind Books  

2066 University Ave. 

Perry Minyake reads his debut novel, 21st Century Manzanar, a dark portrait of an America gone wrong. 

548-2350 

Free 

Monday, September 2

Labor Day Potluck Picnic and Poetry Reading 

Hosted by Bay Area Poets Coalition 

Noon to 4 p.m., Live Oak Park 

Walnut and Rose streets. 

527-9905, poetalk@aol.com 

National Organization for Women Oakland/East Bay Chapter  

6:30 p.m.  

Mama Bears Bookstore and Coffeehouse, 6536 Telegraph Ave.  

Chapter’s monthly meeting. Speaker: Multicultural historian, Lucia Chiavola Birnbaum, received 

the prestigious Valitutti Award for non fiction.  

549-2970 

Free 

Thursday, September 5

Nutrition Career Open House 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Institute of Educational Therapy  

706 Gilman St. 

Learn how to become a nutrition educator or consultant. 

558-1711 for reservations and information 

Free 

Friday, September 6

'The Winona LaDuke Reader'  

lecture and reception 

Presented by the American Indian Graduate Program 

5 p.m. Reception, 7 p.m. Lecture 

Native American environmental and Indigenous Rights activist and author 

of several books and articles Winona LaDuke will discuss the topics of 

her new book 'The Winona LaDuke Reader' and other work. 

atalay@sscl.berkeley.edu 

Free 

Saturday, September 7

Travel Careers Seminar 

8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. 

Vista Community College, 2020 Milvia St., Room 306 

The day’s program will include travel industry speakers covering a variety of career possibilities: Cruise specialists, tour leaders, tour operators, adventure operators, home-based travel agents and more.  

981-2931 

$5.50 for state residents 

Sunday, September 8

Lifelong Medical Care First Annual 5K Fun Run/Walk Fundraiser 

9 a.m. to noon 

West Berkeley 

Individual and team participation. Event includes a health fair, food, prizes, live music and free insurance eligibility screening. 

704-6010 

28th Annual Solano Avenue Stroll 

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Solano Avenue 

A mile-long block part featuring “Journey of a Thousand Cranes’ Parade” at 11 a.m.  

527-5358 or www.solanostroll.org 

Free 

Watershed Environmental Poetry Festival 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Berkeley Farmers' Market 

Center Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way 

Wednesday, September 11

Commemorating the tragedy of Sept. 11 

5:30 a.m., Justin Hermann Plaza,  

Market Street at the Embarcadero, San Francisco 

A day of remembrance with art, culture, spirit, politics, and words of hope 

Information: (415) 255-7296, www.initedforpeace.org 

Free 

Prostate Cancer Lecture 

2 to 3:30 p.m. 

Maffly Auditorium, Herrick Campus 

2001 Dwight Way, Berkeley 

Understand the risk of prostate cancer and how to detect early symptoms from a survivor. 

869-6737 

Free 

Thursday, September 12

The 14th Small Business Development Trade Fair 

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

The Pauley Ballroom in the Martin Luther King Jr. Student Union, near Telegraph Ave. and Bancroft Way, UC Berkeley 

The event will introduce small businesses to the UC Berkeley community and give campus departments a glimpse of the services and products small businesses have to offer.  

Caterina Rando discusses her new book Learn to Power Think: A practical Guide to Positive and Effective Decision Making 

Boadecia’s Books 

398 Colusa Ave. at Colusa Circla, Kensington/North Berkeley 

559-9184, www.bookpride.com 

Saturday, September 14

Basic Personal Preparedness 

9 to 11 a.m. 

Fire Department Training Center  

997 Cedar St. 

Learn five critical steps to take care of yourself, your family and your home. Classes open to those 18 or older who live or work in Berkeley. 

981-5605, www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/fire/oes.html 

Free 

Heritage Day 

11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

Fourth and University avenues 

International barbecue and beer festival 

Free 

Spin for the Stars Fund-raiser 

9 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

Spieker Aquatics Complex, Recreational Sports Facility on UC Berkeley campus 

Noncompetitive swimming and stationary cycling event. Proceeds will help Cal STAR enhance its facilities and programs for the disabled. 

$20 registration fee, $35 for biathlon challenge  

West Berkeley Open Air Market 

11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

University Avenue between Third and Fourth streets 

West Berkeley celebrates Neighborhood Heritage Day with crafts, food, live music, art and family entertainment. 

841-8562 or sfbayshellmounds@yahoo.com 

Free 

Thursday, September 19

Sukkot Holiday Workshop 

7 to 8:30 p.m. 

Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center, 1414 Walnut St. 

Join Dawn Kepler, director of Building Jewish Bridges, for hands-on crafts, food projects, creative sukkah decorations and tips for making your own sukkah (hut). 

848-0237 Ext. 127 

$10 BRJCC members/$12 public 

Saturday, September 21

BREAD and Roses Garden Party 

1 to 5 p.m. 

Peralta Community Garden, Berkeley 

Hopkins & Peralta, Wheelchair accessible  

BREAD's birthday party - five years of dismantling corporate rule through local currency. 

644-0376 

$12 advance, $15 door, low-income rate $10 

Coastal Cleanup Day 

10 a.m. 

Work at the outflow of Strawberry Creek to clean up the San Francisco Bay coastline. 

info@strawberrycreek.org  

or 848-4008 

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 

2 to 7 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. 

Fourth and University avenues 

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 

The Mersey Hot Shots, a Berkeley club soccer team, recently made the journey to Europe to take part in two of the world’s biggest soccer tournaments. The players kept a diary of their travels and experiences. Part 1 of the diary: 

Day 1 

What day is it? It is 10:30 pm and it’s still dusk outside! After traveling for 36 hours, we are exhausted. We’re at the Dana Cup in Hjorring, Denmark. We are staying in a classroom in a big brick building surrounded by 4 others. We had our first money exchange and questions about exchange rates. 

We were told that we are 1 of 125 teams to arrive just today! Throughout the Dana Cup, all 10,000 players from 820 teams will be eating together; over 4,000 meals per hour are served! 

Catherine Charpentier 

Day 2 

We found a good bakery for breakfast, which I will be revisiting. Other teams have come and the mugging has started. Tonight we had a practice and then went out for dinner. Then we played pool and raced cars. We’re going to shop tomorrow and spend all our money.  

Mei-Lin Ha 

Day 3 

After breakfast at a bakery, it was really exciting to find a store that sold fruit. It was pouring rain all day. It would have been nice except that we had to play two, count them, two scrimmages against a Washington, D.C. team and a team from Saudi Arabia. Then we had our first dinner in the Dana Cup cafeteria. There were so many different kids from all around the world all sizing each other up. Awesome. Then came opening ceremonies. This was the most fun I’ve had the whole trip. All the teams lined up and paraded around the town ending at the stadium where each team was announced and “danced” across the stage. Everyone got totally into it and we were dancing with the Ghana team. 

Hannah Grenfell 

Day 4 

Our first day of the Dana Cup. Walked to the cafeteria and had cereal and toast. Our first game of the day was against a Swedish team, which we lost 6-0. Our second game of the day was against a team from Norway, and we lost that one 1-0. Even though we were all tired from our two games, we decided to go to our first disco in Europe. We heard that there was one provided by the Dana Cup. Well, when you think disco, you think maybe a gym transformed or some sort of big building… wrong! It was a huge tent over a muddy field! After the little shock of our first “disco,” we got over it and had a great time. 

Grace Sampson 

Day 5 

Happy Birthday Hannah! Today we woke up at 7 a.m. for an early game. We lost both games, but we still are guaranteed another game in the B flight. 

We surprised Hannah with a birthday cake at dinner and everyone went out with her after dinner to celebrate her 18th birthday. 

Anya Schwin 

Day 6 

YES. Finally we won our first game 1-0 against a Norwegian team. It feels so good to finally win a game. We are all tired. Our bodies ache, our uniforms are filthy. The smell of our classroom is gross. Dirty jerseys, socks and shoes line the stairs. It’s hard to imagine we could be so disgustingly messy. We lost our second game and are out of the Dana Cup. Too bad.  

The rest of the week we’ll just soak up the experience of being here. Tomorrow we are going to watch a women’s Nigerian team play and our English (boy)friends play. It’s a mini-World Cup. The rest of our time here will be relaxing and fun, meeting new people from all over the world sharing one common interest… SOCCER! 

Lauren Lieberman 

Day 7 

This was the first day we were able to sleep in. It felt so good to finally get a good night of sleep. We went to the semi-final game for the under-19 girls to see the Nigerian team. They won 3-0. We were so impressed by their level of play that we went to see them in the final game this evening. Everyone who watched them seemed excited and moved by their victory when they won 3-0 again. You could tell how serious they took this tournament and how much they’d prepared themselves for it. Hopefully we were able to learn a few things by watching them to help us in our next tournament! 

Jessica Hanzo 

Day 8 

We went to the laundromat to wash all of our dirty clothes. It took a long time and cost a lot. We skipped eating in the cafeteria and ate lunch in town instead, then most of us went to watch a bunch of the final games. At night, half the team went to go hang out with some Camden boys we met and the other half went to the pool hall. It was a nice last day in Denmark. 

Elise McNamara 

Day 9 

We left Denmark, had a short stopover in Norway and now are on our way across the North Sea to England. I’ve never slept on a boat before and it wasn’t bad considering that our cabin, shared with four girls, was the size of my mother’s closet. Another setback was the motion sickness that a few of the girls struggled with. Despite these small things, the team had a fun time on the “color line” ferry. Between the teenage disco and the all-you-can-eat buffet, our trip from Denmark to Newcastle, England was great. The team looks forward to a successful tournament in England.  

Katie Lieberman 

Pick up next Thursday’s Daily Planet for Part 2 of the Mersey Hot Shots’ European diary.

UC Berkeley’s three-day strike took its greatest toll Wednesday as numerous classes were canceled after lecturers marched alongside clerical workers on the final day of their strike. 

Lecturers are nontenured professors who teach approximately one-quarter of the university’s classes – and like the striking secretaries, telephone operators and child care workers – the lecturers have been without a contract for more than a year and accuse the university of purposely stalling contract negotiations. 

Students said Wednesday that several graduate student instructors and tenured professors joined lecturers in canceling class to show sympathy for the striking workers. 

“I probably should have stayed home today,” said one student whose anthropology class was canceled due to the strike. 

On an otherwise sparsely populated campus at least 700 strikers were joined by elected officials and a strong contingent of students at a boisterous final campus rally outside California Hall. 

Berkeley mayoral candidate Tom Bates, a former UC Berkeley lecturer, drew cheers when he told strikers that his department could not have functioned without clerical workers. 

Bates’ opponent this November, incumbent Mayor Shirley Dean, lead strikers in the chant “negotiate now.” 

After appearing uninterested at the beginning of the strike Monday, most students now say they support the strikers. 

“People have started talking about it,” said Danilo Trisi, a graduate student. “From what I read, it seems that the college can offer them more.” 

After the rally, clericals said the strike had clearly demonstrated their importance to the university. 

“I don’t care what they say, I think they’re scared to death,” said Jude Bell, an administrative assistant for the art practice department. 

But Paul Schwartz, a university spokesperson, said the strike can’t change the fact that state budget cuts prevent the university from meeting the union’s salary demands. 

“We have given the unions everything we possibly can,” Schwartz said. “When the state is looking at a $23.5 billion budget deficit, I think we were lucky that the universities weren’t cut more.” 

The clericals, represented by the Coalition of University Employees, want a 15 percent raise over two years, but the university says it can only guarantee them 2 percent this year, and just another 1.5 percent next year if state funding remains stable. 

Lecturers, who say that on average they make less than local grade school teachers, want increased pay and job security. Presently, a lecturer can only get a contract that extends longer than one year after six years of continuous employment. And they can never receive a contract longer than three years. 

“I’ve worked here two years, but I didn’t find out until the final day of last semester if I’d have a job this fall,” said Stuart Tonnock, a lecturer in the school of education.  

University officials and union spokespeople continued to give conflicting accounts of the strike’s impact on university services and operations. 

University spokesperson Carol Hyman said that 60 percent of the clericals had crossed the picket line. She said that the clericals’ strike coupled with sympathy strikes by other unions hindered telephone service, slowed construction projects, prevented overnight mail deliveries and reduced available medical service. 

Students said Wednesday that the inconveniences caused by the strike added up. 

“For me this has been a pretty big deal,” said Ben Durie, a senior whose job at a university child care center was postponed due to striking child care workers. 

Yuri Pan said he went to the math department for advice about a class, but found that all of the counselors had refused to work out of respect for the clericals. 

Today, striking clericals and lecturers are expected to return to their jobs. Lucy Montanez didn’t envision any difficulty in working under the same contract after three days of picketing. 

“We all love what we do and we want to make this the best institution possible,” she said. 

University negotiators will meet with lecturers and a state-appointed mediator Sept. 5 and 6. There is no confirmed date for further negotiations between the clericals and the university. 

Officials for both unions said more strikes are possible if negotiations continue to falter. 

Contact reporter at  

matt@berkeleydailyplanet.net 

To the Editor: 

Devorah Liss’ letter (Aug. 26), deploring a previous letter which she finds insensitive to anti-Jewish vandalism simply perpetuates the churlish insensitivity of many Jewish Americans to Palestinians and Arab-Americans. 

Liss says a Passover bombing in Israel is the culmination of violence there, ignoring the thousands of Palestinians who have been killed by Israel in its brutal, illegal occupation. She frets about insignificant damage to Hillel, and is silent about the total destruction by arson of a large, beautiful Palestinian church in Los Altos Hills that will cost a million dollars to rebuild. And she speaks only of anti-Jewish “attacks,” not of the harassment of those who are or “look Arab.” Violence against these folks has caused San Francisco to distribute “We are not the enemy” posters. Perhaps they're needed in Berkeley as well.  

When Jewish Americans break with Israel once and for all and join in solidarity with Palestinian-Americans and other supporters of freedom for Palestine, there will be much greater moral clarity on this issue. 

Progressive whites, many of them Jews, helped lead the fight against South African apartheid; progressive Jews can do the same here in the worldwide struggle against the racist Israeli state. 

Kenneth E. Scudder,  

San Francisco 

There is no relief in sight for patients like Dee Strandvold who will lose an important resource when the Alta Bates Summit pain management clinic in Berkeley closes this year. 

Strandvold, who suffers chronic back pain, will be among the hundreds left searching for new treatment centers because of the clinic’s financial problems under umbrella organization Sutter Health. 

“ We can’t continue to provide a service when we can’t cover the cost of that care,” said Jill Gruen, spokesperson for Alta Bates Summit Medical Center. 

For patients like Strandvold the explanation doesn’t ease the pain. 

“If Medicare and Medi-Cal don’t pay enough, why must the disabled be the ones to pay?” Strandvold asked. 

State Sen. Don Perata, D-Oakland, and Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson have searched for ways to answer that question, but so far have been stymied in their efforts. 

“We’re really just trying to bring the parties to the table so that the patients don’t have to go so far when they close this place,” Perata representative Simeon Gant said. “We’re urging the pain clinic to at least inform [the patients] of their options.” 

Carson added that the county, while hoping to find a way to offer the missing service, is running into an ever-present hurdle in the health care industry – a lack of money. 

“There are not currently any plans in motion for [the county to reopen the clinic]. There just isn’t a funding source,” Carson said. “Those services are needed but even the hospitals are having to fight hard for those dollars.” 

County health Director Dave Kears has also been involved in trying to find a solution. Kears has requested that Alta Bates provide a profile of the program so that other agencies might try to replicate it but make the program pay for itself. 

Still, Kears acknowledged that the problem will probably get worse before it gets better. 

“As health costs rise and the difficulty in paying for those services continues, this will be reoccurring,” Kears said. 

Alta Bates clinic officially stopped accepting new patients July 15 and has been reducing its services ever since. 

“We have a devoted full time staff dedicated to contacting patients and working with appropriate referrals,” said Alta Bates’ Gruen. 

But this may not be good enough, patients say. 

“I don’t know what will happen now,” Strandvold said. “I fear that if the pain clinic dies, I won’t be far behind it. Before the Summit pain clinic, I was in so much pain. I used to grind my teeth so hard I would break off my molars in my sleep.”  

Strandvold and the “Painfighters”, a group of former patients organized to fight the clinic’s closing, will be holding a demonstration 11:30 a.m. Sept. 2 at the Summit South Pavilion, where the pain clinic is located.

To the Editor: 

How can Will Youman (letters, Aug. 21) honestly deny that hate graffiti on a Kosher restaurant, or bricks thrown through a Hillel center window, or assaults on Chasidic-garbed Jews are anything but anti-Semetic hate crimes. 

This denial is far more dangerous than the violent hate crimes themselves. As long as progressive communities like ours are steadfast in decrying hate crimes, the few perpetrators are marginalized and defused. But the recipe for disaster exists when the populace is willing to look the other way or to excuse the conduct as a fraternity prank or to blame the victims for “bringing it on themselves.” That is why Mr. Youman's glib legalisms are so much more dangerous than the brutal thugism that he seeks to protect. 

Hate crimes attack us all. Jews, gays, Arabs, hispanics, African-Americans – anyone who is attacked because of perceived differences –share the common enemy of intolerance and need the common protection of a community that will not abide it. If Mr. Youman doesn't understand this, he needs some lessons in law and morality. 

As a veteran anti-Semite and erudite law student, Mr. Youman understands the significance of denying that anti-Jewish violence qualifies as a hate crime, and blaming Jews themselves for being victims. He takes a page from Nazi Germany, whose propagandists were similarly adept at deflecting attention away from the abhorently racist nature of their conduct. 

If white-sheeted thugs assaulted African Americans on College and Bancroft, nobody would excuse it as a “wild partying fraternity prank.” Similarly, if an abortion clinic were vandalized and painted as a home of “baby killers,” only the most cynical apologist would claim that the message is too “ambiguous” to warrant condemnation. 

Mark I. Schickman, 

Berkeley 

president, Holocaust Center  

of Northern California 

When environmental activist Darryl Cherney returned home from vacation this week, he was delighted to hear that his legal victory over the FBI and Oakland Police Department had been confirmed by a federal judge. 

“We’re really pleased. The judge didn’t even alter, or even worse, reverse the verdict,” Cherney said. 

A 10-person jury in June awarded $4.4 million in damages to the activist and fellow plaintiff, the late Judi Bari, who alleged that the FBI and Oakland police had violated their civil rights by treating them as suspects in a 1990 East Bay car bombing. On Aug. 13, U.S District Court Judge Claudia Wilken made the jury’s decision official. 

The judge’s actions clear the way to legal challenges, for which both sides have recently begun planning in hopes of landing a more favorable settlement. 

“We’d like to see the judge reverse the decision or have the trial thrown out,” said Maria Bee, the Oakland deputy city attorney who defended the police department. 

On the flip side, Cherney wants to see more law enforcement agents charged and greater damages awarded. 

Neither side has formalized a challenge yet. 

Post-trial motions, which serve to question the court proceedings, are due within the month and are scheduled to be heard by Wilken on Nov. 1. Appeals can be filed only after the post-trail motions have been addressed. 

The June verdict, which Cherney and supporters touted as a huge blow to law enforcement credibility, found three Oakland police officers and three FBI agents guilty of First and Fourth amendment rights violations. 

Illegal search, false arrest and conspiracy were among the charges made by Cherney and Bari following the 1990 explosion in Bari’s Subaru station wagon in Oakland which led to their arrest.  

Oakland police and the FBI claimed at the time that Cherney and Bari, members of politically active Earth First!, had accidentally detonated their own bomb. Oakland police said that FBI agents had believed the two were tied to domestic terrorism. 

Charges were never filed against the two, and instead the activists painted a government conspiracy against them and their environmental cause, which led to their successful suit this year. 

In the June verdict, only Cherney’s false arrest charge was not upheld by jurors. The 10-member panel was hung over the issue, which would normally require a retrial. But Cherney, who now lives in Humboldt County, said he would drop the charge as long as no surprises came up during the appeal process. 

- Contact @Kurtis@berkeleydailyplanet.net

To the Editor: 

The Daily Planet is doing a great job covering the clerical workers' strike at UC. The front page articles for the past two days have really sent the message that the workers are trying to get across.  

Congratulations to Daniel Freed for giving the readers a personal view of the clerical workers' motivation for the strike. As the daughter of an administrative assistant working at UC for 15 years or more, I know firsthand the struggles they have to face in trying to get paid and treated fairly. The clericals do many many important jobs at UC Berkeley. In effect, they run the university. Without their hard work and dedication, the school could not operate. I hope the new students and the chancellor and faculty realize that and start giving them the respect and financial compensation they rightly deserve. 

Acacia St. John, 

Oakland

$1 saves at least $20 million 

ELKHART, Ind. — Bayer Corp. is selling a former Alka-Seltzer factory for less than you would pay for a box of the fizzing tablets — $1. 

But whoever buys the building may need to stock up on the tablets, since its $6 million to $7 million a year in maintenance costs could give anyone a case of indigestion. 

For Elkhart Mayor Dave Miller, though, the news helped ease any concerns he had about the site. 

“Bayer’s willingness to essentially give the building to a qualified operator is probably the best news for the city of Elkhart,” Miller said. 

The building has 933,000 square feet of space and includes space for manufacturing, laboratories, offices. It also includes large refrigeration units that could be used for a company working with foods, said Joe Martin, senior vice president and general manager for Bayer Diagnostics. 

Bayer would save the cost of maintaining the building, as well as the $20 million it would cost to demolish. “So it’s really a win-win situation for everybody,” Martin said. 

It’s a prison,
not a country club 

CARSON CITY, Nev. — When some Nevada prison inmates who wanted to work on their golf game started to build a driving range, the state prison director got a bit teed off. 

Now it’s a baseball field. 

Prisons Director Jackie Crawford said convicts at the prison system’s 100-inmate Tonopah Conservation Camp got the idea for their own driving range after volunteering time to build one for the city of Tonopah. 

“Our inmates made a beautiful driving range for the city,” Crawford said when asked Friday about the convicts’ activity. “Then they said, ’Why not make our own?”’ 

Crawford quickly stopped such talk. 

“I can assure you that there are no golf courses at our prisons,” Crawford added. “Not under this director.” 

Softball’s another matter, she said, adding, “That’s something all the prisons should have. It helps expend energy.” 

‘Urban Warfare’ overseas
helps soldiers feel at home 

LOS ANGELES — Some 10,000 Navy submariners are skateboarding, racing cars and playing hockey — all thanks to a donation from the video game industry. 

Each of the Navy’s 72 subs has been given a video game console and about 20 top-selling games as part of the industry’s post-Sept. 11 effort to boost morale of soldiers fighting terrorism. 

The donation comes from members of the Interactive Digital Software Association, a trade group for the video game industry. Consoles donated include Microsoft’s X-Box, Sony’s PlayStation 2 and Nintendo’s GameCube. 

“While overseas on active duty, our troops can’t enjoy many of the things they relax with at home, so we decided to bring the games they love to them as our small way of saying ’thanks”’ said Doug Lowenstein, IDSA president. 

About 1,700 games were donated, including titles ranging from “Star Wars Rogue Leader” and “Delta Force Urban Warfare” to “Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3.” 

BERKELEY – A risk analysis by a Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory researcher and a University of Michigan physicist has turned up some unexpected results about the comparative safety of big and bulky SUVs. 

The study by lab Environmental Energy Technologies Division energy analyst Tom Wenzel and University of Michigan professor Marc Ross says most cars are safer than the average sports utility vehicle, and pickup trucks are “much less safe than all other types.” Minivans and import luxury cars have the safest records. 

The report, “An Analysis of Traffic Deaths by Vehicle Type and Model,” was prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy and is available for $12 from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy or through its web site at http://aceee.org. 

Ross and Wenzel reviewed government statistics on deaths each year for vehicles sold between 1995 and 1999. Their study is among the first to examine the “combined risk” of all drivers involved in a crash, and they also tracked the age, sex and driving style of the typical driver of each vehicle model. 

The study found that “sports cars as driven are extremely risky for their drivers, who tend to be young males, and minivans are extremely safe for their drivers, very few of whom are young males,” Wenzel and Ross. They found no evidence that the age and sex of the typical SUV driver increased the risk of the average SUV compared to the risk of the average midsize car or a safe smaller car model. 

The safest SUV, the Suburban, has at least a 40 percent higher combined risk than the three safest midsize and large cars, the Avalon, Camry, and Accord, the scientists say in their report.  

The analysis found the Chevy Suburban to be the safest SUV, but it was still nowhere near as safe as a Camry or an Accord, and the report says the wide range of risks between different subcompact and compact models is evidence that vehicle quality is a more important safety consideration than weight. 

“In looking at all vehicles, cars designed by Honda and Toyota consistently are safer, and weigh less, than comparable cars designed by domestic manufacturers,” Wenzel said. The study found that the safest small cars, the Volkswagen Jetta and Honda Civic, were twice as safe as the comparably sized Chevrolet Cavalier, Ford Escort, and Dodge Neon. 

“All the evidence in our study shows that vehicles can be and in fact are being made lighter and more fuel efficient without sacrificing safety,” Wenzel said. “The argument that lowering the weight of cars to achieve high fuel economy has resulted in excess deaths is unfounded.”

The Oakland Police Department reports that three shootings on Tuesday night within one hour have left one man dead and two in stable condition. 

Authorities say that officers responded to the 600 block of Louisiana Street at about 9:43 p.m. to find a male victim suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Medical authorities pronounced the man dead at the scene shortly afterward. 

Police units responded to reports of a shooting in the 1600 block of Seminary Avenue at about 9:14 p.m. A male victim was found suffering from a single gunshot wound to the torso and was taken to an area hospital in stable condition. 

The third shooting of the hour occurred in the 700 block of 105th Avenue just before 9:59 p.m. when a male adult was found suffering multiple gunshot wounds to the left arm after the suspect drove by in his car and shot the man. Medical units took the man to Highland Hospital where he was treated and said to be stable condition, said a police spokesman. 

Police say that the homicide unit is investigating the shooting at Louisiana Street. No suspects are currently in custody for any of the incidents.

The Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority has won two court rulings in the past two days in disputes with the Golden State Warriors that could net the coliseum $23.5 million in back revenues – if the rulings stand up on appeal. 

In the first decision, a state appeals court in San Francisco on Tuesday upheld a 1999 arbitration award that requires the Warriors to pay the coliseum $17 million for premium seating revenues and other fees between 1997 and 1999. 

Coliseum authority lawyer Jon Streeter said interest since 1999 amounts to $4.5 million, making the total $21.5 million in that case. 

Streeter said that in a second ruling, an Alameda County Superior Court judge Tuesday confirmed another award in which a different arbitrator in January said the basketball team must pay $2 million for proceeds of a ticket surcharge over the past two years. 

The disputes began after the Warriors started playing in November 1997 in a new arena constructed in the coliseum, which was financed in part through taxpayer-guaranteed bonds. The premium seating revenues were intended to help retire the bond debt. 

Streeter said the double decisions are “a great thing for Oakland.” 

Lawyers and spokesmen for the Warriors were not immediately available for comment this afternoon. 

Both rulings could be appealed.

SAN JOSE – The developers of San Jose's Santana Row residential and retail complex have announced a new grand opening date for the mixed-use development that was devastated by fire earlier this month. 

Retailers in seven of Santana Row's buildings plan to be open for business on Nov. 7.  

Santana Row was originally slated to open on Sept. 19, one month to the day after the 11-alarm fire destroyed a number of residential units, a few retail shops and parking lots. 

Developers say they are working through the issues associated with the impact of the fire and have a goal to open as much of the retail space in the damaged building as soon as possible. 

“In light of last week's fire, the November 7 opening demonstrates our steadfast commitment to making Santana Row rewarding and successful for the community, our tenants and our shareholders,” said Steven Guttman, chairman and CEO of Federal Realty,  

“Words cannot express our appreciation for the outpouring of support from the city of San Jose, surrounding neighborhoods, merchants and future residents during the past week.” 

The damaged building contained 18 percent of the retail space and 940 retail parking spaces. 

Developers said all of the residential units in the building, which were still under construction and scheduled to be completed beginning in January 2003 were destroyed. 

One thing firefighters, law enforcement, city officials and Federal Realty representatives are all grateful for is that no one was killed or injured in the fire that was one of the largest in San Jose's history. 

“We are grateful that this fire didn't result in any loss of life and that it was contained to one building,'' Guttman said. 

The Maryland-based Federal Realty Investment Trust specializes in the ownership, management, development and redevelopment of shopping centers and street retail properties. The trust currently owns and operates about 15 million square feet of retail space in major metropolitan areas across the country. 

Santana Row was designed as a groundbreaking facility combining a vibrant and diverse mix of shopping, dining, entertainment and living. The completed complex was slated to include a state-of-the-art movie theater, a 213-room hotel, three-level executive villas, a farmer's market, landscaped parks and plazas, 36 retail shops, several restaurants and 246 townhomes, flats and lofts. 

So far officials have not determined the cause and have not tallied a damage estimate. A $5,000 reward has been offered for information about the cause of the fire. 

Gov. congratulates school district
for raising credentials 

OAKLAND— Gov. Gray Davis issued an official proclamation Wednesday to Oakland Unified School District for successfully reducing its number of emergency permit teachers by 64 percent last year. 

Davis credited the district’s participation in the Transition to Teaching pilot project for its decrease in teachers with emergency credentials. The program is part of Project Pipeline, a nonprofit group that operates the state-sponsored Northern California Teacher Recruitment Center. 

In the 2001-2002 school year the district reduced the number of emergency permit teachers from 257 to 93, said Margaret Fortune, the center’s director. 

When school opens Thursday, only 35 teachers with emergency credentials will show up for work, compared to 500 in 2000. 

Fortune said some teachers were eligible for credentials and just applied, and others put in the work needed to earn theirs. Teachers who did not pursue credentials were replaced. 

Defendants in SF killing
of senator’s son in court 

SAN FRANCISCO – After a three month delay, the preliminary hearing of evidence resumed Wednesday against two young men accused of killing a state senator's son during a San Francisco street robbery last fall. 

Hunter McPherson, 27, was shot on Potrero Hill's Mariposa Street on Nov. 17 while walking home with his girlfriend after a night of socializing with friends. The two men arrested a few weeks later are charged with committing a series of similar armed robberies that night, ending with the shooting death of one of their intended victims. 

One defendant, 22-year-old Dwayne Reed, had asked for and received a new attorney well into the preliminary hearing in May leading Superior Court Judge Ksenia Tsenin to grant postponements so that newly appointed attorney Cheryl Wallace could prepare.  

Several witnesses, including McPherson's girlfriend Alexa Savelle, had either pointed out a shooter that was different than who police expected or they were unable to identify either defendant as present at the scene. 

On Wednesday, homicide Inspector Thomas Cleary took the stand again to continue responding to defense questions about how officers identified Reed and his co-defendant, 18-year-old Clifton Terrell, as suspects.  

Still unanswered is whether one narcotics investigator involved – Officer Paul Lozada, who interviewed Reed in jail during late November – would respond to a defense subpoena issued while he was off duty on disability pay. The judge had threatened to issue a warrant if he didn't show up. 

US Commerce secretary gives
$6.4 million for tech uncubator  

HAYWARD – U.S. Commerce Secretary Don Evans Tuesday gave a $6.44 million check to a technology incubator housed in the former U.S. Navy base in Alameda, the largest economic development grant issued by the Bush administration so far. 

The award will go toward the construction of a home for the organization Advancing California's Emerging Technologies, which helps fledgling high-tech, biotech and environmental technology companies as they strive to become self-sufficient. 

A project of the California State University at Hayward, the incubator opened in 1998 and has "graduated'' seven companies which have created between 900 and 1,000 jobs and raised an estimated $150 million in venture capital. 

By its fifth year in operation, the new facility – scheduled to open in 2004 – will graduate 12 to 15 companies per year, add an estimated 6,000 new jobs to the Bay Area economy and attract $1 billion in investment.

SACRAMENTO — California will face a “perfect storm” if the lawmakers can’t pass a state spending plan by the end of the month, state Controller Kathleen Connell said. 

“There would be a series of rippling financial problems if the Legislature does not get a state budget passed,” Connell said. 

Starting on Sept. 1, the state will be unable to make payments for services that aren’t mandated by federal and state law, Connell said. Abortion services and state programs for the developmentally disabled are the latest programs in jeopardy. 

Those programs were protected under special legislation passed in 1998, which authorized the controller to continue cash payments through Aug. 31. 

Connell also announced that revenue was down for June, July and most likely August, meaning the state could face an additional $3 billion deficit that will have to be worked into this year’s or future budgets. 

In the worst-case scenario, the state would not have enough cash to meet financial obligations in October and November. If that’s the case, California will have to sell a “super-sized” revenue anticipation warrant, a short-term debt security, which could come with a high interest rate and bump up future financial obligations, Connell said. 

With just four days left until the end of the legislative session, Assembly Republicans said Wednesday they are still “miles apart” from Democrats in reaching a budget agreement.

LOS ANGELES — Bill Simon, who signed a pledge during the gubernatorial primary stating “domestic partnership” benefits belong exclusively to marriage, told a gay Republican group he supports domestic partnership laws if they’re not based on sexual orientation. 

The GOP gubernatorial candidate also said he would proclaim a Gay Pride Day, as past administrations have done, and promised to uphold a variety of gay-friendly laws and regulations. 

Simon’s responses to the Log Cabin Republicans questionnaire earlier this month prompted angry responses from some conservative backers Wednesday. 

Rev. Louis P. Sheldon, chairman of the Traditional Values Coalition, said he felt “misled and conned” by Simon and his campaign. 

“I spent months with Bill Simon touring Anglo and Hispanic churches where he vowed support for traditional values,” Sheldon said in a statement. “His responses on this questionnaire tells me otherwise.” 

The Campaign for California Families, which circulated the Marriage Protection Pledge that Simon signed, issued a press release titled “Bill Simon’s Gay Agenda” condemning the candidate’s responses as “shocking.”

Senate passes bill banning
imports of genetically
altered salmon 

SACRAMENTO — California’s fish farmers will have to wait at least until 2005 to begin growing genetically altered salmon if a bill passed Wednesday by the state Senate becomes law. 

The bill temporarily bans the so-called “superfish” from being introduced into California, requiring the state to decide by 2004 if the ban should become permanent. The Senate passed the bill 21-11, sending it back to the Assembly for agreement to Senate changes. 

The federal government is presently deciding if salmon should become the first altered animal or fish approved for human consumption. 

Many farmers and environmentalists worry that genetically enhanced salmon, which grow to full size in half the time of natural fish, could escape from farms in Washington state and prey on California’s native salmon. They cite studies by Purdue University that altered salmon could overpower natural species for food, mates and habitat. 

Growers dispute the notion, saying they only use sterile females. 

Consumer group says one
gas grade could curb prices 

SANTA MONICA — Californians could save billions of dollars if oil companies were forced to offer only a single grade of gasoline, a consumer group estimated Wednesday. 

A law requiring stations to offer only one grade of gas with an octane of 87 or 88 “would greatly reduce the ability of oil companies to create price spikes” by artificially lowering supplies of the most sought-after gas, said the study released by the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights. 

By eliminating underused premium and mid-grade varieties, the state could free storage space for a public fuel reserve that could be used to cushion higher future prices, according to the two-year study. 

“Rather than drill in the Arctic, let’s clean the pumps of the 50 percent of higher-octane fuel that is not used,” Jamie Court, executive director of the foundation, said in a statement. 

About 95 to 97 percent of California cars could use the single grade and motorists whose vehicles need higher octane could use additives, the study argued. 

Judge dismisses case filed
by former Mexican workers 

SAN FRANCISCO — In a blow to Mexican laborers who had hoped to claim money they said they were owed for working on American farms and railroads more than 50 years ago, a judge Wednesday granted requests by the United States and Mexican governments and Wells Fargo Bank to dismiss their case. 

The workers were among more than 300,000 Mexicans who came to the United States between 1942 and 1949 to harvest crops and maintain railroad tracks as guest workers. Called “braceros,” after the Spanish word for arm, they came under an agreement between the United States and Mexico aimed at filling labor shortages caused by World War II. 

Under the agreement, 10 percent of each worker’s wage was to be withheld and transferred, via U.S. and Mexican banks, to individual savings funds set up for each bracero. But many braceros said they never received that money when they returned to Mexico. 

SF’s Asian Art Museum
acquires 999 new works 

SAN FRANCISCO — The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco is the proud owner of 999 new works of art for its growing collection, the museum announced Wednesday. 

The new works include more than 800 objects from the LLoyd Cotsen Bamboo Basket Collection. Costen also provided the museum with a research endowment. 

The remaining objects come from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation’s Southeast Asian Art Collection. 

The Duke collection includes many rare paintings and decorative arts as well as Thai, Burmese and Cambodian sculptures. One of the Duke objects is an 11-foot-tall, 19th century gilded Burmese throne for a Buddha image. 

“We rearranged the entire gallery plan at our new facility to showcase some of the new objects from the Duke collection,” said chief curator Forrest McGill. “The pieces were so important and stunning that we had to give the a prominent place.” 

The Asian Art museum outgrew its home in Golden Gate Park and is set to reopen in a new facility at the city’s Civic Center in January. 

The museum’s collection now stands at more than 15,000 objects.

They were allegedly
aware that the company
booked false revenues 

Two former sales vice presidents of Critical Path Inc., a San Francisco high-tech company, were criminally charged with insider trading in federal court Tuesday. 

The charges in U.S. District Court in San Francisco against Jonathan Beck, 33, of San Francisco, and Kevin Clark, 37, of Pleasanton, follow guilty pleas by two other former executives earlier this year in a fraud investigation. 

In February, former President David Thatcher pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit securities fraud by booking false revenue during the third and fourth quarters of 2000 in order to meet predicted financial results. 

In April, former Vice President Timothy Ganley pleaded guilty to engaging in insider trading by selling stock in January 2001 at a time when he knew the company was executing illegitimate revenue deals and hiding expenses. 

Thatcher and Ganley have not yet been sentenced. 

In Tuesday's charges, Beck and Clark were also accused of insider trading by selling stock in January 2001 when they were allegedly aware that the company had been booking false revenues and that the fraud had not yet been revealed.  

Beck was accused of selling more than $600,000 in Critical Path stock and Clark was accused of selling more than $350,000 worth.  

The charges were filed by the U.S. Attorney's office. They carry a theoretical maximum sentence of 10 years in prison upon conviction, but the actual penalty, if the defendants are convicted, would be determined under federal sentencing guidelines. 

Critical Path restated its revenues in April 2001, saying it overstated income by about $10 million in each of the third and fourth quarters of 2000. The company's stock price fell from $116 per share in March 2000 to less than $4 per share on Feb. 15, 2001. 

The company, which provides e-mail and other communications services, has said the employment of all executives accused in the probe has been terminated and new management is in place. 

Also today, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil fraud and insider trading lawsuit against Clark and former Critical Path executive William Rinehart. The charges were settled at the same time the lawsuit was filed, the SEC said.

REDWOOD CITY— Bankrupt Napster Inc. on Thursday plans to seek a Delaware court’s approval of its proposed sale to Bertelsmann AG, which hopes to revive the silenced Internet music-sharing service. 

No other bidders emerged for Redwood City-based Napster after German-based Bertelsmann forced the company into bankruptcy in June. Bertelsmann values its bid for Napster at about $100 million, including debts that will be waived as part of the deal. 

Bertelsmann’s bid still faces a potential obstacle. The Music Publishers Association and the Recording Industry Association of America — two powerful trade groups that have fought Napster for years — have objected to the sale. 

Before federal courts ruled Napster’s online file-swapping service violated copyright laws, the service had attracted 60 million users and revolutionized the way people obtained music. 

Although Napster’s service has been idle since July 2001, millions of Web surfers still exchange music files on the Internet, much to the frustration of recording studios and artists who say they are being cheated out of sales and royalties. 

If its takeover bid wins court approval, Bertelsmann hopes to resurrect Napster as an industry-approved subscription service. 

Microsoft must respond to
Sun injunction request by Oct. 4 

BALTIMORE — Microsoft Corp. must respond by Oct. 4 to Sun Microsystems’ request for a federal court injunction that would require the software giant to integrate Sun’s Java programming into Windows, a spokeswoman for Sun reported Wednesday. 

U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz set a Dec. 3 hearing on Sun’s request for the preliminary injunction, in which Sun also asks that Microsoft be prevented from distributing Virtual Machine for Java in an unlicensed manner. 

Java is software used to run servers that run large computer networks. 

Oracle introduces new guide
to explain prices, policies 

REDWOOD SHORES — Hoping to quell criticism of its sales practices, slumping business software maker Oracle Corp. on Wednesday introduced a new customer guide that spells out its pricing policies. 

Redwood Shores-based Oracle characterized the 40-page guide as a breakthrough in an industry that often hammers out complex business deals in a freewheeling style similar to the back-and-forth negotiations of a used car lot.

VALLEJO – Two men are in custody and police are looking for a third in connection with nine East Bay bank robberies that have occurred since July. 

According to a police statement, 31-year-old John Cullum of Iowa was arrested on Thursday and charged with three robberies that occurred in Solano County. Authorities in Contra Costa and Alameda counties are also said to be filing robbery charges against Cullum. 

Also arrested was Vallejo resident Derrick Mapes, 23, who is charged with driving a getaway car during one of the robberies, police said.  

Vallejo resident Royce Gipson, 33, has been identified as a third suspect but he has not been taken into custody. 

Police allege that Cullum has been living in area motels since April but started robbing banks on July 25, when he hit the Bayview Bank on Tennessee Street. After that, they said he committed additional robberies in Pinole, Richmond, San Leandro, Fremont and Albany. 

In all of the robberies police said the suspect would demand money from bank tellers after giving them a note that indicated he had a gun. No gun was ever seen, however, and there were no injuries in any of the robberies. 

Multiple police departments worked with the FBI on the case until investigators received a break in the case following a robbery that occurred Aug. 28 at the Mechanic's Bank in Pinole. A witness to that robbery was able to provide a partial license plate number to police who connected it with a vehicle that had been registered at several area motels. 

A surveillance operation was set up based on that information and, with the use of surveillance photos taken at several of the robberies, police arrested Cullum.

OAKLAND – The Labor Day weekend was no break from the violence that is patterning this year as one of the bloodiest in Oakland’s history. 

Sunday night, a 26-year-old woman was shot and killed by a former boyfriend at her home on the 1700 block of 23rd Ave, according to the Oakland Police Department. The suspect later phoned the department and turned himself in, police reported. 

The shooting represents the 76th homicide in Oakland this year, significantly more than the number of homicides at the same time last year. 

Later Sunday night police responded to another shooting on the 5100 block of West Street in west Oakland. The incident was not fatal, and the male victim, whose name was not immediately released, was reported to be in stable condition at Highland Hospital. 

On Saturday evening, a 17-year-old Oakland man was shot to death on the 900 block of Mandela Parkway, police reported. No suspects have been identified. 

On Friday night, Georgia McIntyre, 68, of Oakland was killed after being hit by a motor home that had been stolen from a dealership in south Oakland, according to police. No suspects have been identified. 

-Compiled from staff and wire reports

OAKLAND— Transit officials are taking a look at a new mass transit system that would use small trams instead of trains and would look similar to a freeway with rest areas. 

Projections of low-cost construction and overwhelming convenience have seemed unrealistic in the past. But the idea has finally caught the attention of BART and the Port of Oakland. It would be used primarily around Oakland International Airport and as a feeder to BART for hard-to-reach locations such as Alameda. 

Based on a concept called Group Rapid Transit, the system involves dozens of electronically powered and computer-operated “trams” to take passengers direct to their destination. 

Instead of having one large train stop at many stations, the group rapid transit concept calls for many small trains stopping at few stations. 

“Some people look at (it) and say that is Jetsons-type stuff and we don’t need to waste money on that,” said Richard Lu, a senior analyst in BART’s research and development department. “It is so new that nobody wants to look foolish, but given the politics and demand out there for new connections, we thought that it was worthwhile to at least take a look.” 

The cost of construction has been estimated at $10 million a mile, compared with BART’s $100 million a mile. 

Alameda-based CyberTran Inc. developed and tested a prototype of a tram that can be used on the system. The firm also has developed computer models of how the system could work in the San Francisco Bay area.

LOS ANGELES — Your stocks turned out to be lemons? Think about investing in vintage vehicles, say collectors who point to skyrocketing values led by American muscle cars. But step into the classic car market carefully, the experts advise. 

“The key to collector cars is you can drive them and show them. You can’t do that with your portfolio,” said Mike Yager, who added five Corvettes this month to his stable of 55 sports cars. 

“It’s hard to take a stock certificate for a quarter-million shares of, let’s say AT&T, and say, ‘Hey, look what I’ve got.’ Nowadays, you’re embarrassed to own stock.” 

Vintage car auctions, shows and swap meets are thriving with baby boomer buyers. 

“I now own no stock and a lot of cars. A lot of people are investing in them,” said collector Craig Jackson, who still owns his first car — a 1957 Chevrolet — and keeps his eyes peeled for another investment in nostalgia. 

Museum quality vehicles demand millions, such as the $5.9 million 1962 Ferrari sold by RM Auctions this month in Monterey. At January’s Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Ariz., a 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle convertible sold for $172,800 and a customized 1957 Chevy Bel Air sold for $183,600. 

“It’s that whole baby boomer generation of cars and vintage hot rods that are coming on strong,” said Jackson, whose annual Barrett-Jackson Classic Car Auction is considered the nation’s premier collector-car event. 

Crowds swelled by 25 percent over last year and sales topped $26.9 million with a record 86 percent of vehicles on the block sold. One of those that didn’t sell was a 1969 Plymouth Roadrunner, despite a top bid of $135,000. 

The owner’s betting he’ll get more later.

Today’s Highlight in History: 

On Aug. 29, 1944, 15,000 American troops marched down the Champs Elysees in Paris as the French capital celebrated its liberation from the Nazis. 

On this date: 

In 1943, responding to a clampdown by Nazi occupiers, Denmark managed to scuttle most of its naval ships. 

In 1957, South Carolina Sen. Strom Thurmond (then a Democrat) ended a filibuster against a civil rights bill after talking for more than 24 hours. 

In 1965, Gemini Five, carrying astronauts Gordon Cooper and Charles (“Pete”) Conrad, splashed down in the Atlantic after eight days in space. 

In 1966, the Beatles concluded their fourth American tour with their last public concert. It was at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. 

Ten years ago: The U.N. Security Council agreed to send 3,000 more relief troops to Somalia to guard food shipments. About 13,000 people staged an anti-extremist rally in Rostock, Germany, even as right-wingers continued attacks on foreigners. 

Five years ago: Hooded men killed more than 300 people in an Algerian farm village in the worst carnage since an Islamic insurgency began.  

One year ago: George Rivas, the ringleader of the biggest prison breakout in Texas history, was sentenced to death for killing an Irving policeman, Aubrey Hawkins, while on the run. 

Today’s Birthdays: TV personality Robin Leach is 61. Singer Michael Jackson is 44. Actress Rebecca DeMornay is 40.