Known as one of the Bay Area's biggest and best block parties, Sunday’s Solano Stroll is expected to draw 150,000 strollers to Albany for a day of food, fun and wholehearted fulfillment. -more-
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Without public transportation in the form of trains and streetcars the fast paced urban development of the Bay Area, 1863 to 1915, would not have been possible. The first railroad in the Bay Area opened in 1863 and ran from San Francisco to San Jose. The transcontinental railroad opened in 1869, and soon there were rail lines around the state. The railroads made development possible and created a network of towns and cities. -more-
Gina Rose Halpern’s paintings are colorful, often exuberant works that incorporate references to many spiritual traditions, from Christianity to Buddhism to the nature religions of the world’s indigenous people. For Halpern, her work is not simply decorative or expressive but a form of healing. The 51-year-old El Cerrito artist has a career as vibrant and colorful as her paintings. She is an interfaith minister, teacher, and therapist who believes in the literal healing power of art. -more-
A depleted Cal women’s soccer team fell to 10th-ranked Texas, 2-1, Friday afternoon at Edwards Stadium. The Texas win avenged a 2-1 loss to Cal in Austin last year. -more-
Michael Israel had been living in subsidized housing at 1040 University Ave. for only a week when fire swept through his building and put him out of a home. Like many of the 69 residents who were ousted by the Aug. 26 blaze at UA Homes, Israel had been a drifter, living in the streets of the East Bay, before rooting himself with the help of social service workers in the now scorched west Berkeley residential hotel. -more-
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The Cal men’s soccer team got its first win of the season in dramatic fashion against Portland on Friday, tying the game with three minutes left in regulation before scoring a golden goal in overtime for a 2-1 victory. -more-
With the ink still drying on the state’s 2002-2003 budget, Berkeley Unified School District officials say the impact on the local school system is far from clear. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO – As a judge framed it Friday, the lawsuit over who owns Barry Bonds’ record-setting 73rd home run ball boils down to simple definitions: “A catch is a catch – if it’s a catch.” -more-
Mayoral candidate Tom Bates and Councilmember Donna Spring were the big winners at Wednesday’s Berkeley Green Party nomination event. Both candidates won overwhelming support in preliminary votes and are now all but assured the official endorsements, to be named Sunday. -more-
LOS ANGELES — A Los Angeles County woman has tested positive for West Nile virus in what is believed to be the first case of a person contracting the illness in the western United States, health officials said Friday. -more-
A dispute over a leaky roof has made finding authentic south-of-the border cuisine considerably more difficult for west Berkeley residents and has roused the mayor while forcing at least one single mother to lose her livelihood. -more-
OAKLAND – Alameda County officials announced Thursday that the contractor working on the new critical care building at the Highland Hospital campus has been pulled off of the job. -more-
SANTA CRUZ — Medical marijuana advocates outraged by a raid at a local prescription pot supplier protested at federal offices in several cities in Northern California and across the country Friday. -more-
SANTA ROSA — As the insurance industry tries to offset rising costs and poor investment returns, leading providers are raising rates and denying renewals to people who’ve filed claims. -more-
NEW YORK — The smoke hangs thick at Pete’s Tavern, swirling through the 138-year-old pub as the lunch-hour conversation turns to the mayor’s plan to ban smoking in thousands of bars and restaurants across the city. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — As many as 76 million people — mostly children — could die from water-related diseases by 2020 if changes aren’t made worldwide in the way communities develop their water systems and policies, according to a California think tank. -more-
NEW YORK — It makes an eye-opening story: knives, razors and pepper spray easily passing through supposedly beefed-up airport security. But it also raises troubling ethical questions: In particular, are journalists justified in breaking a law to expose weaknesses in enforcing it? -more-
SACRAMENTO — A survey of California students released Friday found that more than 10 percent of high school students have tried the drug Ecstasy, prompting the state to create a media campaign to target use of the drug. -more-
Student activists criticized UC Berkeley’s admission practices and launched a campaign to boost minority student enrollment, at a press conference Thursday. -more-
The 20-somethings in slacks breeze into a café on University Avenue, hardly taking notice of a woman sitting hunched with her back to the sunlit doorway. They don’t know that she lived for 12 years in a cave smaller than the café’s restroom or that she has come here to help them along the path to enlightenment and happiness. -more-
There is a full slate of college soccer this weekend in Berkeley, with Cal’s men and women’s teams both playing two games against nationally-ranked teams. -more-
Winona LaDuke has used nearly every form of writing to tell the story of Native Americans through their eyes. Via essays, speeches, poetry and fiction, she’s been telling the tale of a wounded culture trying to restore ancient patterns of life, and how 19th and 20th century consumerism and militarism undermine those efforts. An overview of her oeuvre, The Winona LaDuke Reader, was published by Voyageur Press this year and will be discussed by the author at Black Oak Books on Sunday evening. -more-
n Freshman surprise: Redshirt freshman Chris Mandarino got his first start at fullback last week and made a good impression with three catches for 41 yards, including a great catch on an 18-yard touchdown reception. -more-
UC Berkeley again found itself in the hot seat Wednesday when plans to stop the distribution of red, white and blue ribbons on campus Sept.11 were blasted as un-American. -more-
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Two Berkeley High School students were injured during a brawl involving roughly 50 students Wednesday afternoon at Civic Center Park. -more-
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With a ballot initiative vote to improve pedestrian safety still two months away, the Berkeley Police Department Wednesday got a jump on dangerous drivers. -more-
SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gray Davis signed a $98.9 billion hard-times state budget Thursday that makes $9 billion in cuts, trims the state payroll by 7,000 jobs and leaves Capitol budget players open to criticism they did too little too late to prevent worse cuts next year. -more-
SACRAMENTO — Crime in California increased 3.7 percent last year over 2000, the state attorney general said Thursday, though violent crime dropped 0.8 percent over the same period. Total property crime was up 6 percent. -more-
SANTA CRUZ — Federal agents raided a marijuana farm Thursday and arrested the owners, who grow the pot for a medical users club, surprising community members and local law enforcement. -more-
LOS ANGELES — Federal prosecutors announced a 36-count grand jury indictment Thursday against four executives charged with defrauding investors in a public technology company of $140 million in a “cook the books” scheme. -more-
LOS ANGELES — EBay Inc. said Thursday it is considering legal action against a parody Web site called E-Gray that lampoons Gov. Gray Davis and is produced by his opponent’s campaign. -more-
LOS ANGELES— A police officer arrested last week for alleged drunken driving was charged Thursday with manufacturing the “date-rape” drug GHB, prosecutors said. -more-
Ten Berkeley police officers assembled outside headquarters in the dark, early hours Wednesday. -more-
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Mekons front man John Langford did not expect his band to last 25 days let alone a quarter of a century when he started the Mekons along with Tom Greenhaigh in the late ’70s. But low and behold the band that hails from England is on the first leg of its 25th anniversary tour. The Mekons will bring their signature brand of English country rock to the The Starry Plough Pub tonight. -more-
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. The conclusion of the diary: -more-
California’s majestic coast redwood and Douglas fir trees are susceptible to a pathogen that causes Sudden Oak Death, UC researchers have confirmed. -more-
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An independent arbitrator ruled in favor of the local teachers’ union in a contract squabble with the Berkeley Unified School District over the new six-period class schedule at Berkeley High School. -more-
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Berkeley police closed off traffic through the intersection of Ashby and Telegraph avenues for nearly two hours while they investigated a suspicious suitcase that turned out only to contain a sweater. -more-
The state Department of Fair Employment and Housing announced Tuesday that it has finalized a conciliation agreement with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory after an investigation based on a complaint filed in 1999 by nine Asian-American workers. -more-
SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gray Davis said Wednesday he will eliminate another 1,000 government jobs on top of the 6,000 already slated to be cut so that the “size of government reflects the revenues that are coming in.” -more-
LOS ANGELES — Bill Gates introduced Microsoft’s newest multimedia software in Hollywood on Wednesday, promoting his company’s bid to make its technology central to tomorrow’s digital home entertainment center. -more-
SACRAMENTO — California teachers and health insurance companies are teaming up to get more kids enrolled in the state’s public insurance programs. -more-
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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. -more-
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. -more-
The worst fear of city planners, whose affordable housing plan was rejected by the state earlier this summer, may come true. -more-
By Jennifer Coleman -more-
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. -more-
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. -more-
OAKLAND — Miguel Tejada and the Oakland Athletics simply refuse to lose — even when the degree of difficulty gets higher and higher. -more-
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. -more-
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. -more-
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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. -more-
LOS ANGELES — With labor unrest looming at West Coast ports, the Rev. Jesse Jackson told thousands of union workers Monday to “stand your ground.” -more-
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. -more-
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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. -more-
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. -more-
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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. -more-
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. -more-
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. -more-
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. -more-
UC Berkeley is offering its first course taught entirely over the Internet this year. -more-
A Berkeley-based nonprofit group announced the availability this week of a second edition of its free guide that provides information to disabled people trying to navigate sites around San Francisco. -more-
WALNUT CREEK — The chief nursing home and hospital inspector in Contra Costa and Alameda counties was fired for what the state Department of Health Services called an “inexcusable neglect of duty,” the Contra Costa Times reported. -more-
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. -more-
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. -more-
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. -more-
