As cold weather descends and natural gas costs soar, the Berkeley City Council is expected to adopt a resolution tonight continuing a program to assist vulnerable residents heat their homes. -more-
The city will take eight of its most heavily-polluting vehicles off the streets and replace them with alternately-fueled transportation in the next six months. -more-
“Free from parental control at last. Now all you need is money. Cha-Ching.” -more-
LOS ANGELES — Fourth-graders joined the fight over diesel school buses Monday, donning gas masks and urging state air regulators not to spend millions to buy the vehicles. -more-
Some say clinical trials showing -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco International Airport will start transferring all international flights to a new $1 billion terminal. -more-
SAN DIEGO — A lawsuit seeking $682 million from tobacco companies for improperly marketing to California teen-agers has moved a step closer to class-action status with a state court’s tentative ruling. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court says the University of Washington Law School acted legally when it used race as a factor in its now-abandoned admission policy. -more-
LOS ANGELES — Animal control workers and advocates say a state law requiring pet shelters to delay euthanasia has led to overcrowding and increased dog fights in the city’s kennels, some of which date to the 1920s. -more-
Photos from a satellite orbiting Mars suggest the Red Planet was once a water-rich land of lakes, strengthening the theory that billions of years ago it had the conditions needed for the evolution of life. -more-
SACRAMENTO — An experimental program to increase salaries for underpaid, part-time “freeway fliers” who teach at multiple community colleges was approved Monday by the system’s state advisory board. -more-
LOS ANGELES — Lawyers for the first three officers convicted in a police corruption scandal said Monday that they will seek a new trial. -more-
SACRAMENTO — The California Legislature opened its 2001 session Monday with plenty of handshakes, hugs and unanimity, but there were also signs of discord lurking around the corner. -more-
NEW YORK — A key gauge of future economic activity fell 0.2 percent in October, suggesting further slowing for the U.S. economy in the new year. -more-
NEW YORK — PepsiCo Inc. shares rose Monday after it sealed a deal to buy Quaker Oats Co., the maker of Cap’n Crunch cereal, Aunt Jemima pancake mix and Gatorade, for about $13.4 billion in stock. -more-
REDWOOD CITY — The ExciteAtHome cable modem company Monday called off a joint venture with the Dutch communications giant UnitedGlobalCom to deliver high-speed Internet access overseas. -more-
They wept with Katie Lee as her songs of the flowing river brought David Brower’s spirit into the Berkeley Community Theater Saturday. -more-
Cal led in nearly every statistical category against Florida International University on Sunday, but in a game littered with poor shot selection, missed layups and general sloppy play, the 30 percent the Bears shot from the field proved to be the difference. -more-
While some mall retailers flagged down shoppers the day after Thanksgiving to convince them to work over the holiday season, stores in downtown and south Berkeley reported that they had already hired for the Christmas season. -more-
AUSTIN, TX - The University of California women’s swim team, behind a phenomenal performance by freshman standout Natalie Coughlin, finished in sixth place with 367 points at the 2000 Texas Invitational. -more-
Several streets in the Berkeley Marina area may soon be designated with the venerable names of three local heroes. -more-
AUSTIN, TX - The University of California men’s swim team finished in second place (563 points) at the 2000 Texas Invitational. Cal trailed only host and No. 1 ranked Texas (751). -more-
For 52 years, 60-year-old social worker Doris Mack said she has depended on faith at McGee Baptist Church to keep her going. Yesterday, she drew on the strength of those around her again during the World AIDS Day Service while remembering those who have died of the disease. -more-
Senior All-American defensive end Andre Carter took home several awards, including the Bear Backer Award for the team’s Most Valuable Player, at the annual Cal Football team banquet on Sunday night. -more-
A recent state supreme court ruling on employee recruitment practices in San Jose will deal a fatal blow to affirmative action in California, adversely affecting racial diversity in hiring and college admissions, a university law professor said. -more-
IRVINE – Ben Jones scored 15 of his 19 points in the second half Saturday as UC Irvine beat California 56-52. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO – Lee Wildes can’t stand inaction when it comes to treating patients with HIV and AIDS. That’s why he has sent thousands of dollars of surplus drugs to HIV sufferers in Africa — all but ignoring federal and international guidelines against doing so. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO – The day Productopia.com shut down, Joanna Nissen was talking on her cellphone about being laid off as she rode the bus to the office to clear out her desk. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO – When e-commerce companies began to evaporate this year, Silicon Valley venture capitalists Brad Garlinghouse and Joanna Strober paid a visit to Productopia.com to deliver a pep talk to the troops. -more-
TRUCKEE – Thousands of people were rudely awakened when a series of moderate earthquakes and aftershocks jolted this Sierra resort town early Saturday morning. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO – Rev. Jim Mitulski bid a fond farewell Sunday to his Protestant congregation at the Metropolitan Community Church, a place in the heart of the city’s predominantly gay Castro District where locals flock to hear sermons of compassion. -more-
STOCKTON – The Department of Corrections is disputing projections it will need 9,000 to 11,000 fewer beds because of a voter initiative that bars many drug users from prison. -more-
Last Christmas, Father Bill O’Donnell, Councilmember Kriss Worthington and a host of labor activists donned santa hats and sat in the Berkeley Marina Radisson Hotel lobby chanting Christmas carols with pro-union lyrics. -more-
The phone rings almost nonstop. This one is a call from a San Francisco attorney. Like so many calls to the East Bay Sanctuary Covenant, it is urgent. The attorney is doing pro bono work for a Guatemalan couple, political refugees now living in Stockton. They have just been granted asylum, so they can now apply for refugee status for their three children, 9-20 years old. -more-
In a built-up city like Berkeley, there’s not much space for new projects. So when the city offers its parking lot at Oxford Street and Allston Way for development, it’s likely to create a flurry of interest. -more-
Local prep star Lorenzo Alexander has made a verbal committment to attend Cal next fall, despite having the school far down his list for much of the recruiting process. -more-
This is one in a series of articles the Daily Planet will run over a year, looking at how the city is addressing the dispirit health needs of low-income minority residents. -more-
Vista College is finally going to get a permanent home. -more-
The public is invited to join Earth Island Institute, the Brower family, and the City of Berkeley for a David Brower Memorial Celebration from 2 to 4 p.m today at the Berkeley Community Theater, 1930 Allston Way. -more-
SAN JOSE — Black and Hispanic drivers are pulled over more often than whites in San Jose, according to statistics released Friday, but the police department said that does not mean its officers target minorities. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — Union warehouse workers and truck drivers approved a new contract with Summit Logistics on Friday, ending a six-week strike marred by violence that depleted Safeway store shelves throughout the state. -more-
SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gray Davis said Friday that utilities should be barred from selling off any more power plants and dams until California’s turbulent wholesale electricity market smooths out. -more-
SAN DIEGO — A San Diego man pleaded innocent to murder on Friday for fatally shooting a 17-year-old who was videotaping friends doing skateboarding tricks as part of a drama class project. -more-
SACRAMENTO — California’s tough anti-smoking measures and public health campaigns have resulted in a 14 percent decrease in lung cancer over the past 10 years, the government reported Thursday. -more-
SANTA ROSA — Computer networking giant Cisco Systems Inc., which already employs more than 500 people in Petaluma, is looking for another Sonoma County location for a new campus that eventually could employ up to 4,000 people. -more-
SACRAMENTO — John C. Fremont Charter School is caught in two sides of California’s education world – aloof from most state regulations as a charter, yet judged along with other public schools in Gov. Gray Davis’ ranking and rewards system. -more-
In a surprise announcement, Cal Athletic Director John Kasser resigned from his post Thursday to become the executive director of Pac-10 Properties. -more-
While Berkeley’s efforts to reduce the number of new HIV/AIDS cases has been successful over the last six years, the city’s infection rate is still higher than that in Alameda County and California. -more-
Sharing syringes and other equipment for drug injection is a well known route of HIV transmission, yet injection drug use contributes to the epidemic’s spread far beyond the circle of those who inject. -more-
POUND RIDGE, N.Y. — To please a gardener with a holiday gift, think useful. What can he or she do with it in the garden? -more-
Q: We are trying to tighten up our home for the winter and are tracking down and eliminating sources of drafts. The doors and windows were no problem, but we noticed a bad draft coming from our clothes dryer vent. What’s the best way to handle this situation? -more-
WASHINGTON — Aiming to overcome the scandals and infighting that have tarnished its image, U.S. Olympic Committee leaders began a four-day meeting Thursday to choose a new chairman and decide whether to keep an interim chief executive officer. -more-
The Associated Press -more-
By Robin Shulman -more-
By Robert W. Fuller -more-
The Berkeley High women’s basketball team played its first game of the season Wednesday, and got its opening-day jitters out of the way early. -more-
Already facing criminal charges for allegedly transporting immigrants to the United States for cheap labor and sex, Lakireddy Bali Reddy now faces civil charges in the wrongful death of Chanti Jyotsna Devi Prattipati. -more-
Cal defensive end Andre Carter and punter Nick Harris were named to the All-Pac-10 first team this week, the league office announced. It was the second straight selection for both seniors. -more-
When the UC Regents approved plans for the new central dining and office facility, the existing dining pavilions, classic examples of modernism, came closer to the wrecking ball. -more-
The No. 4 Cal men’s water polo team, which finished the 2000 season 17-8 (5-3 in MPSF) and placed second in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament last weekend in Los Alamitos, CA, did not receive an at-large berth to the NCAA Championship. -more-
In accord with its mission to encourage the writing of poetry and to bring together people who enjoy it, Poets’ Dinner invites entries in its 75th annual poetry contest. -more-
SAN JOSE — President Clinton and Chilean President Ricardo Lagos, commenting from opposite coasts, said Wednesday their countries have initiated talks on a free trade agreement and agreed that formal negotiations should start as soon as possible. -more-
SACRAMENTO — The California Supreme Court refused Wednesday to consider the insurance industry’s challenge to a new state law that gives thousands of Northridge earthquake victims a year to refile their claims. -more-
WESTMINSTER — More than half of Southern California’s shoreline – from Santa Barbara to San Diego – is unsafe for swimming after rainstorms because of bacteria carried to the ocean by urban runoff, according to a new study. -more-
SAN DIEGO — Three San Diego-based Marines face military charges for allegedly raping two teen-age girls during a port stop in Australia. -more-
STAFFORD — Filled with sadness, environmental activist Julia “Butterfly” Hill returned Wednesday to the wounded tree that was her home for two years. -more-
SAN DIEGO — Religious figurines and bright chrysanthemums stood beside the blood-stained sidewalk where a 17-year-old boy fell dead when a neighbor opened fire on a group of skateboarders. -more-
FRESNO — By his own words, motel handyman Cary Stayner guaranteed that he’ll never be a free man for murdering a naturalist in Yosemite National Park. -more-
LOS ANGELES — Don’t expect the smog jokes to stop anytime soon, but Southern California has made significant progress toward fighting air pollution – especially in the last five years. -more-
For the first time, a vaccine protected monkeys against the lethal Ebola virus, raising doctors’ hopes of developing a means of inoculating people against the terrifying disease. -more-
SANTA BARBARA — More than 20 people knew 15-year-old Nicholas Markowitz was being held by kidnappers who eventually killed him but none of them notified police, county grand jury transcripts show. -more-
Chanting and waving signs, condemning the visit of former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, demonstrators broke through police lines Tuesday evening and prevented lecturegoers from entering the high school gates, the entrance to the theater where Netanyahu was to speak. -more-
Some people can’t rent the school district’s Berkeley Community Theater – rap groups, for instance, are barred, according to theater management. -more-
The Zoning Adjustments Board put off a decision Monday to approve an environmental study on the proposed Beth El project. -more-
Lt. Russell Lopes describes the series of shootings in the area of 2700 Sacramento Street as a battle between the Hatfields and the McCoys. -more-
Charging that the city of San Jose violated the California Environmental Quality Act, environmentalists and communities to the south sued to block Cisco Systems, Inc.’s 688-acre research park proposed for one of Silicon Valley’s last remaining rural tracts. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — Cancer is eating away at Creighton Frost. His lymph glands, thyroid, larynx and much of the muscles on the right side of his body have been removed. Marijuana, he says, is his only comfort. -more-
SACRAMENTO — A consumer group outraged at spiraling electric bills wants to put a ballot initiative before voters that would reverse the 1996 law deregulating California’s power industry. -more-
SAN JOSE — Stanford University may go ahead with its development plans and reserve the opportunity to build on its nearby foothills, something environmentalists were hoping to prevent. -more-
SACRAMENTO — Eyeing a projected $10.3 billion state budget surplus, Republican leaders Tuesday proposed spending $710 million on jails, crime labs, law enforcement equipment and prosecution of gun-related crimes. -more-
LOS ANGELES — An alternate juror in the corruption trial of four police officers told a judge Tuesday she did not hear an alleged statement by the jury foreman that he believed the defendants were guilty before testimony began. -more-
LOMA LINDA — The risk a study of a toxic water pollutant poses to its human participants is outweighed by its potential benefit to the general public, doctors conducting the research said Tuesday. -more-
TRACY — Allegations of picket line violence prompted a judge to issue a restraining order against workers striking at the massive warehouse that supplies Safeway stores in three western states. -more-
George W. Bush’s point man in Florida argued Tuesday it was “wrong, simply wrong” for Al Gore to claim that thousands of votes have never been counted in the state’s bitterly contested presidential election. The vice president said so anyway, and asked a state court to oversee a hurry-up manual recount of thousands of ballots. -more-
AUSTIN, Texas — George W. Bush is “on track” in planning a new government, one that would include Democrats in key positions, aides suggested Tuesday. Still, continuing legal clouds subdued some of Bush’s optimism. -more-
SAN JOSE — Those afraid of needles may breathe easier with news of an experimental flu vaccine that takes the form of a nasal spray. -more-
The Pacific Film Archive and Berkeley Art Museum will undergo a $4 million seismic retrofit starting in April of 2001, the University of California at Berkeley announced Friday. -more-
OAKLAND — In a case that could lead to more drilling near a marine sanctuary or could leave up to 1 billion barrels of oil untapped, a federal judge has stepped into a dispute between California and federal officials over offshore oil exploration. -more-
ATLANTA — A survey of what people know about AIDS found that four out of 10 mistakenly believe it is possible to get the disease by sharing a drinking glass or being coughed or sneezed on by an infected person. -more-
OAKLAND — The launch of electronic toll collection on the Oakland-San Francisco Bay Bridge is being called a “relative success” by Caltrans officials this morning. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — A self-described “old hippie” and music producer has filed suit against Bertelsmann BMG’s e-commerce unit, alleging it is helping to finance Napster Inc.’s online music-sharing service. -more-
