More than 5,700 residents and businesses in the southern and central portions of Berkeley lost power Wednesday afternoon when a splice connecting two underground cables at Bancroft Way and Fulton Street failed. -more-

ALAMEDA – Having let Jon Gruden go to Tampa Bay, the Oakland Raiders replaced him with an assistant coach who has shadowed Gruden for the past seven years. -more-

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Thursday, March 14

A small, fragile woman with close cropped gray hair, Gloria Olivera, 65, quietly waits in line behind the bullet-proof glass at the check exchange on San Pablo and University avenues. Like the majority of check-exchange customers today, however, she is not there to cash a check. She’s there to get a loan. -more-

The shorthanded Berkeley High baseball team couldn’t get much offense going without two of its top hitters as the ’Jackets fell to Mt. Eden, 8-5, on Wednesday at San Pablo Park. -more-

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Steve Freedkin, a member of the city’s Peace and Justice Commission, leaves for an 11-day trip to Japan today in the latest exchange of Berkeley and Japanese activists. -more-

Local gymnast wins Golden Bear Invitational -more-

Today is Thursday, March 14, the 73rd day of 2002. There are 292 days left in the year. -more-

Every week, Gabriel Gutierrez, associate editor of the San Francisco bilingual paper, El Mensajero, does a “word on the street” column and on the afternoon of Sept. 11 he had no trouble finding immigrants who wanted to talk. Nowadays, readers are more hesitant to comment on the war. -more-

Livermore Lab employee wins -more-

SACRAMENTO — Out-of-state students may have to pay 15 percent more for tuition at California State University campuses starting this fall, under a proposal by CSU officials announced Wednesday. The tuition boost would generate an extra $11.8 million for the 22 campuses. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Fourteen new degrees will be added to 10 of the California State University campuses in the next five years, university officials announced Wednesday. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Republican congressmen investigating California’s energy crisis have accused Gov. Gray Davis of “stonewalling” their review. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gray Davis has appointed U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s husband, Richard Blum, to a vacant slot on the University of California Board of Regents. -more-

WASHINGTON — The Navy SEAL killed after falling from a helicopter during battle in Afghanistan has been awarded the Bronze Star. -more-

SAN JOSE — A Hewlett-Packard Co. director who heads a $769 billion investment company said Wednesday she was at first very skeptical that HP would be able to handle the complex absorption of Compaq Computer Corp., but is now convinced HP is up to the task. -more-

HOUSTON — While fire and brimstone are predicted at next week’s Hewlett-Packard Co. shareholder vote on its proposed purchase of Compaq Computer Corp., the atmosphere at Compaq has been comparatively serene. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — After Pacific Gas And Electric went bankrupt last year, the utility’s parent company rewarded 11 top executives with a total of $5.75 million in cash bonuses and stock grants now worth $24.8 million, according to documents filed Wednesday. -more-

Just days after the latest breakdown of contract negotiations between the Claremont Resort and Spa and Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Local 2850, about 30 union supporters picketed outside the exclusive Tunnel Road hotel early Tuesday morning. -more-

Many of the Cal baseball team’s 14 wins this season have been dramatic, come-from-behind affairs. But on Tuesday against USF, the Bears didn’t need any late inning heroics as they scored nine runs in the first four innings on the way to a 12-4 win at Evans Diamond. -more-

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Wednesday, Mar. 13

The number of Latino groups who have received hate mail and envelopes laced with white powdery substances grew to 30 Tuesday, which included an incident at the Center for Latin American Studies on the UC Berkeley campus. -more-

Panthers excel at NSIC meet -more-

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A group of local activists, including high school and university students and college professors, labeled the SAT racially-biased and urged the University of California system to drop the test as an entry requirement in a rally Tuesday afternoon at UC Berkeley. -more-

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Today is Wednesday, March 13, the 72nd day of 2002. There are 293 days left in the year. -more-

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The City Council is considering reducing the speed limit to 20 mph for all residential streets. -more-

LOS ANGELES — Mauling trial defendant Marjorie Knoller denied under cross-examination Tuesday that her dogs were dangerous, refused to concede she ever lost control of the dog that killed Diane Whipple and insisted she tried to save her. -more-

WASHINGTON — The Bush administration is seeking to temporarily end habitat protections for 19 populations of salmon and steelhead in four Western states, which could open the areas to greater development. -more-

Prison’s target ranges closed -more-

SAN RAFAEL — Winnfred Wright and the women who bore his 13 children have asked for more time before entering pleas on charges of second-degree murder and child endangerment in connection with the death of an infant and the alleged mistreatment of the other 12. -more-

VALLEJO — A Catholic priest resigned as pastor of St. Vincent Ferrer Parish after being accused of sexual misconduct with a woman. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — An auction house on Tuesday called off the sale of an extensive collection of speeches, journals and notes attributed to the late civil rights leader Malcolm X. -more-

The lettuce in Arizona should be ready for harvest, but it’s not. The lettuce in Central California won’t be ready for at least another four weeks. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — The wine flowed freely but no one tasted a drop when a tanker truck tipped over on Highway 16 east of Petaluma on Tuesday morning. -more-

CHICAGO — United Airlines announced Tuesday that it is increasing the number of daily flights from O’Hare International Airport by 15 percent and will recall hundreds of furloughed employees to make it happen. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Calling it a project whose time has come, the state treasurer and a group of Democratic lawmakers proposed a $6 billion bond measure Tuesday to begin construction of a high-speed rail line linking California’s major cities. -more-

SACRAMENTO — The state of California spent $286 million to buy energy in February, the lowest monthly total since the Department of Water Resources started buying power on behalf of investor-owned utilities last year, the department announced Tuesday. -more-

Antero Alli, the director of “Hysteria” was born in Finland and grew up in Toronto, Canada. He moved to the Bay Area at age 19 in 1972 and stayed for 10 years. Alli also resided in the Portland and Seattle areas before returning to the Bay Area in 1996. -more-

It isn’t fun to face DaShawn Freeman on a basketball court. Even when you’re winning. -more-

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Tuesday, March 12

Three Latino social service agencies were closed down Monday after their respective mail rooms received derogatory letters accompanied by a suspicious white powder. -more-

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About 150 UC Berkeley students descended on the state Capitol in Sacramento Monday to speak to legislators about student housing, student fees and the University of California’s system-wide budget in the first-ever “Cal Lobby Day.” -more-

Editor -more-

The wheelchair-bound Dede Dewey has been a precinct worker for the past 16 years. The Berkeley resident with short gray hair and eyeglasses, said she was the first disabled person in Alameda County to become a precinct worker. -more-

Today is Tuesday, March 12, the 71st day of 2002. There are 294 days left in the year. -more-

Hundreds of RNs met on new nurse-ratio law and demanded reform of Kaiser Permanente’s arbitration system, which restricts the ability of patients to challenge managed care abuses. -more-

MENDOCINO — It took a lawn mower and a mild summer day for Jim McCummings to create a pathway to the Mendocino Bay Viewpoint and its sweeping vistas of the craggy Northern California coast. -more-

The Berkeley Police Department is keeping tight-lipped about the arrest of the owner/operator of the Normandy Massage Studio for “suspicion of pimping, pandering and conspiracy.” -more-

SAN JOSE — Two Hewlett-Packard Co. directors warned Monday that many board members and some of the company’s top executives might quit if shareholders reject the $22.6 billion purchase of Compaq Computer Corp. next week. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — The record labels blame online song swapping from services such as Napster for taking away valuable customers. In reaction, the labels have created their own legitimate online services for monthly subscribers. -more-

The Berkeley Police Department reports that a man was shoot twice early Saturday morning at the intersection of Channing Way and San Pablo Avenue. -more-

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Monday, March 11

Officials at the University of California at Berkeley are scheduling an open house today to answer questions and inform the public about plans for new student housing near the Southside neighborhood near campus. -more-

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The National Nuclear Security Administration announced this week that scientists at the Lawrence Livermore and Los Alamos national laboratories have completed two of the largest computer simulations ever attempted and created the first full-system, three-dimensional simulations of a nuclear explosion. -more-

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Andrew Hintz, a UC Berkeley senior and member of Cal Democrats said, that recent casualties in Afghanistan hasn’t weakened his support for the war. -more-

Today is Monday, March 11, the 70th day of 2002. There are 295 days left in the year. -more-

LOS ANGELES — Some 500 friends and relatives of Daniel Pearl remembered the slain journalist Sunday as intelligent and sometimes clumsy, but always generous and committed to changing the world. -more-

SAN DIEGO — After Sept. 11, a wave of fear swept through this beach town, better known for its sun, surf and laid-back attitude. -more-

officials divided on whether the war is winding down or taking shape -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – J. Eugene McAteer High School, an educational dumping ground where poorly performing students often were assigned, will close permanently at year’s end. -more-

WALNUT CREEK – A Walnut Creek pharmacist will be forced to surrender his license at the end of the month, after his business mixed a batch of medicine linked to an outbreak of illness and three meningitis deaths in June. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – An African American deputy probation officer in Marin County was awarded $1.6 million in damages in a civil rights suit. -more-

LOS ANGELES – As The Walt Disney Co. struggles to rapidly resuscitate ABC, the entertainment giant is looking to use the muscle of its ESPN cable sports network to bolster its flagging media division. -more-

Extension employees have been negotiating with the university for better wages during the past six months -more-

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Jewish music will take center stage in Berkeley for the next two weeks, but many people may be surprised by what they hear. -more-

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Saturday, March 9

When the St. Mary’s High boys’ basketball team faces off against top-ranked Oakland Tech in a Northern California Division I semifinal game tonight, there aren’t likely to be many surprises on either side. -more-

Berkeley teachers react to layoff notices -more-

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‘There are no risks for us in Hollywood. We deliver the bill or the dry-cleaning, do our karate chop and leave,” said actor Sung Kang at Thursday night’s opening of the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival. -more-

LOS ANGELES – California improved by 34 points in a span of six days. It wasn’t nearly enough. -more-

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California scored four runs in the fourth inning against rival Stanford Friday afternoon at Evans Field, jumping out to an early lead in the opener of the non-league series. But the Cardinal responded with seven runs in the seventh inning, then eight runs in the eighth, pounding the Bears 15-4. -more-

Power has been restored to all but three buildings on the UC Berkeley campus after a blackout on Thursday. Etcheverry Hall, North Gate Hall and Soda Hall were still out of power Friday afternoon. -more-

Today is Saturday, March 9, the 68th day of 2002. There are 297 days left in the year. -more-

Berkeley police officers investigated a suspicious package found on the second floor of a state office building located at 1947 Center St. at around 6:30 p.m. Friday. -more-

MIDWAY, Utah – Laughter erupts from down the hall in the direction of the medical room. Cross country skiers hoot and holler as they plunge into a natural hot spring to work on their “lung capacity.” An anxious athlete lets go of her fears and steels her resolve to compete with a reassuring “I know I’ll be OK.” -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — After three days of ballot counting, Harry Britt conceded the Democratic nomination for state Assembly to Mark Leno on Friday in a race that is expected to ultimately send the first openly gay man to Sacramento. -more-

HALF MOON BAY — A body that washed up on shore Friday has been identified as one of two fishermen missing for nearly a week. -more-

Q. Volker asks: How do I change a leaking toilet tank? -more-

BEAVERTON, Ore. — The threat of terrorism has boosted military and corporate interest in high-tech security improvements at all levels, even turning something as simple as a chain-link fence into a sophisticated surveillance system. -more-

By Sarah Freeman -more-

Community voices concerns over future -more-