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Certain buildings on Shattuck Avenue define the historic character of downtown Berkeley and have changed little over the last 50 years. Old postcards are a wonderful source of historic images and downtown was a favorite subject of postcard publishers. -more-

Lala, the main character in Sandra Cisneros’ new novel “Caramelo,” clambers through her life’s journeys, as it twists and turns, like a free-wheeling road trip. Like Lala’s storytelling, the facts in “Caramelo” are based on real people from Cisneros’ life, but the “means for the end” are Cisneros’ own creations. The long-awaited second book from the author of the highly celebrated novel “The House on Mango Street” is a tale about a young girl who adroitly retells the story of her family and illustrates what it is like to be the youngest and only female among her siblings. -more-

Saturday, Oct. 26 -more-

Tell Pinole Valley we’re coming for them!” -more-

Berkeley’s not insulated from the nationwide surge in hate crimes reported since Sept. 11, 2001. And so, the city sponsored a Thursday-evening forum “A Community Dialogue to Prevent Hate Crimes.” -more-

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DETROIT — No need to worry. -more-

SEATTLE – Junior Melissa Bennett assisted on both Washington goals Friday, including Jaime Carstensen’s 75th-minute tally that lifted the 25th-ranked Huskies to a 2-1 upset of No. 7 Cal. -more-

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LOS ANGELES — Hollywood has long stereotyped Hispanic women as spitfires, bombshells and maids. -more-

When Cal has the ball -more-

City Councilmember Kriss Worthington, up for re-election in November, is denouncing a mysterious letter that accuses him of “siding with anti-Jewish and anti-Israel forces” and calls on Berkeley residents to donate to the campaign of his opponent, UC Berkeley student Micki Weinberg. -more-

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MERCED — On a remote foothills site marked by seven years of determination and controversy, Gov. Gray Davis inaugurated a 10th University of California campus Friday. -more-

Bill Beasley has had guns drawn on him twice: once by the Los Angeles Police Department and once by the Ku Klux Klan. But in four decades of civil rights activism, antiwar protests and gay pride celebrations, Beasley has never backed down in his fight for justice and basic human rights. -more-

Pedestrian safety sting -more-

OAKLAND — A spokesman for the Oakland Police Department Friday identified a man police say was shot Thursday night as he sat in his car, bringing the city's homicide tally to 92 victims this year. -more-

Bad news for grape growers -more-

Suit filed against state -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — An environmental group has filed papers in a federal court here to intervene in the California Farm Bureau Federation’s most recent suit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to extend the exemption of farms from air quality regulations. -more-

NEWARK — To family members, Eddie “Gwen” Araujo was a struggling but beloved teenager whose killing, allegedly committed in a fit of homophobic rage, is a private sorrow. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court on Friday overturned laws in San Francisco and Santa Monica that ban certain ATM fees charged by banks. -more-

WASHINGTON — Government investigators said Friday they want to find out whether a former Enron Corp. executive improperly hid the company’s stake in three California wind power farms. -more-

LOS ANGELES — William J. Bratton was sworn in Friday as the city’s new police chief, with a mandate to reform the corruption-tinged department and a goal of eliminating graffiti and minor offenses as a way of preventing more serious crimes. -more-

OAKLAND — An Alameda County Superior Court judge ordered Friday that a man charged with murdering his wife, former San Jose Mercury News photographer Lucille Houston, be held without bail. -more-

UC Berkeley students, joined by Mayor Shirley Dean, called for a significant investment in “clean energy” and “green building” techniques throughout the nine-campus University of California system Thursday. -more-

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Friday, Oct. 25 -more-

The Berkeley High girls volleyball team continued their dominance of league competition on Thursday, giving up just six points while beating De Anza High, 15-1, 15-3, 15-2. -more-

The music and recording industries sent out letters this month asking 2,300 colleges and universities around the country, including UC Berkeley, to clamp down on students sharing copyright-protected songs and movies over the Internet. -more-

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NEW YORK — Kurt Cobain regretted using heroin to ease the pain of a stomach ailment but could not bring himself to stop, and talked of shooting himself, according to excerpts from the late Nirvana star’s diaries. -more-

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In 1971, Pentagon official Daniel Ellsberg risked his career, his reputation and his freedom to make public what has become known as the Pentagon Papers – 7,000 pages of top-secret documents outlining America’s untold and often nefarious involvement in the Vietnam War. -more-

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NEW YORK — The Whitney Museum has unveiled its new $200 million collection of works from Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol and other American masters of postwar modernism at pivotal moments in their careers. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – Teased and taunted for tiptoeing around Barry Bonds, the Anaheim Angels decided to challenge him. -more-

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Friday -more-

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DAVIS — Farmers and consumers with questions about the national organic food standards adopted on Monday can find answers through a University of California program. -more-

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Commercial burglary -more-

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WASHINGTON — Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, has raised and distributed tens of thousands of additional dollars to congressional candidates using a practice that campaign finance experts say could skirt federal limits. -more-

Stanford psychologist -more-

Settlement reached with parents and fraternity -more-

SACRAMENTO — Democratic Gov. Gray Davis had $12 million on hand as of Oct. 19 for the closing days of his re-election bid — 10 times as much as Republican challenger Bill Simon, according to campaign reports submitted Thursday. -more-

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SAN FRANCISCO — One year ago, attorneys emerged from a California judge’s chambers and announced a historic, pro-consumer settlement of a lawsuit accusing Ford of producing millions of defective vehicles prone to stalling. -more-

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NEW YORK — Profit-takers rushed back to Wall Street Thursday as disappointing news from International Paper and Duke Energy stirred fears that stocks won’t hold gains from their two-week surge. The Dow Jones industrials slid more than 170 points. -more-

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LOS ANGELES — It was one of the most important decisions for the California Fish and Game Commission in 10 years. Yet President Mike Flores and Commissioner James Kellog weren’t there. -more-

NEWPORT BEACH — The son of Britain’s top judicial officer was sentenced Thursday to 16 months in state prison after pleading guilty to stalking the boyfriend of a woman he met in a tanning salon. -more-

LONG BEACH — Nurses who staged a one-day strike at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center were barred from the hospital Thursday and replaced for five days by contract workers. -more-

The University of California made a comprehensive contract proposal to its roughly 1,600 lecturers Wednesday in an aggressive bid to end a 2 1/2-year-old labor dispute over job security, wages and arbitration procedures. -more-

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Cal Performances is a Bay Area treasure. Last year it presented, among other riches, Yo-Yo Ma and Mikhail Baryshnikov, and this season it offers Mark Morris and Merce Cunningham, the Abbey Theater and Robert Lepage, the Kronos Quartet and Sarah Chang, Pat Metheney and Dianne Reeves. Pretty impressive, and that’s not half of a list that comprises talent from Argentina, Senegal and Africa. -more-

Ever see a pride of lions go after a downed gazelle? How about sharks in a feeding frenzy? Try watching the Cal defensive line go after a quarterback. -more-

Police, sewers, infrastructure. These may not be the issues that Berkeley residents care to ponder over coffee, but these are the issues candidates are bringing to the forefront of the 4th District City Council race. -more-

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OAKLAND — With perspiration glistening on his forehead, Ron Owens is pacing in front of a class full of recently paroled men and women, describing how he adopted the “hip, slick and cool” persona when he was 13. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Just in the nick of time, the San Francisco Giants solved the Kid. -more-

On Election Day, Berkeley voters will have a chance to make a $10 million investment in pedestrian safety. But some say the investment would be a waste of taxpayer dollars. -more-

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LOS ANGELES — The Ozzy Osbourne clan will return to MTV in November with the second season of their hit reality show, the music network announced Tuesday. -more-

Faced with an unprecedented rise in hate crimes, city officials are trying to stem the tide of intolerance. This evening, the city will sponsor its first ever community forum to address the alarming problem. -more-

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MOSCOW — About 50 armed Chechen rebels stormed a crowded theater in a daring assault, took hundreds of theatergoers hostage and threatened early Thursday to shoot their captives and blow up the building if Russian security forces attacked. -more-

The Berkeley Police Department awarded medals to seven officers Wednesday who demonstrated bravery in the line of duty. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco Police Department says it is working with several other agencies in a search for surveillance video of a man who responsible for a trans-bay hit-and-run spree that claimed the life of a woman and critically injured a bicyclist. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — California politicians are hoping the stunning admission by a top Enron trader that the energy giant manipulated power markets will help the state’s plea for $9 billion in refunds. -more-

EL CERRITO — The El Cerrito del Norte BART station at 6400 Cutting Blvd. was closed following a bomb threat, a BART spokeswoman said Wednesday morning. -more-

NEWARK — An Alameda County prosecutor said Wednesday that he doesn't anticipate any more arrests in the slaying earlier this month of a 17-year-old Newark boy who sometimes passed as a girl. -more-

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Woman saw red dot on -more-

SANTA BARBARA — A state commission decided Wednesday to create one of the nation’s largest marine reserves by banning fishing in areas around the Channel Islands. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Fourteen people were arrested in one of the nation’s largest recycling fraud cases for allegedly swindling millions of dollars from California’s recycling program by transporting discarded bottles and cans from outside the state and redeeming them in Los Angeles. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — West Coast dockworkers deliberately are slowing the pace of work in response to a bitter labor dispute, according to documents shipping companies have filed with the Department of Justice. -more-

NEW YORK — Wall Street managed a modest advance Wednesday, rising for a fourth time in five days as investors weighed a mixed economic assessment from the Federal Reserve against disappointing earnings from Eli Lilly. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — The California Supreme Court on Wednesday let stand a $290 million personal injury jury award levied against the Ford Motor Co. stemming from a Bronco rollover accident in 1993. -more-

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SAN FRANCISCO — Pac Bell Park was pumped. -more-

Good news for tenants. There will be no rent hikes next year. -more-

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MARTINEZ — An autopsy has not been able to determine what caused a 19-year-old Diablo Valley College football player to collapse and die during practice in August. -more-

The chief pollster for Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Simon said the campaign should focus more on Simon’s agenda and less on attacking Gov. Gray Davis, during an appearance at UC Berkeley Tuesday. -more-

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SAN JOSE — Goalie Evgeni Nabokov agreed to a two-year, $7.15 million contract with the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday, ending his holdout after five games. -more-

ROCKVILLE, Md. — A bus driver was shot to death Tuesday as he was about to set out on his morning route in what authorities fear was the 13th attack by the Washington-area sniper. Police also revealed a chilling warning found at a weekend shooting scene: “Your children are not safe anywhere at any time.” -more-

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An award-winning mentoring service at Emerson Elementary School faces an uncertain future after the state cut funding for the program in September. -more-

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SACRAMENTO — Leonard Gianessi, who has been barnstorming across the country promoting the benefits of genetically modified crops, was met Tuesday by protesters who complained the technology is not completely understood and, at a minimum, will ruin organic farmers. -more-

NEWARK — Newark police said today they are looking for a fourth person in connection with the slaying of a 17-year-old boy who sometimes passed as a girl. -more-

OAKLAND — A Hayward chemical supply company and seven individuals have pleaded innocent in federal court in Oakland to charges of conspiring to sell $11 million worth of freon to make methamphetamine. -more-

Wrong ballots sent to voters -more-

FRESNO — Environmentalists sued the federal government Tuesday to force it to clean up air pollution in the San Joaquin Valley after a decade of neglect. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Sen. Joe Lieberman called again Tuesday for the federal government to adopt an economic stimulus package, while he criticized President Bush’s handling of the economy. -more-

SAN DIEGO — A Navy sailor says he feels lucky to have survived an aircraft carrier accident that left him floating in the frigid Pacific Ocean for more than seven hours. -more-

SACRAMENTO — They met in beauty salons and suburban homes with the guests — all invitation only — coming for the promise of helping their community while making a huge profit for themselves. -more-

NEW YORK — Still skeptical about the stock market’s long-term potential, investors cashed in some gains from two weeks of rallies Tuesday, sending prices lower. Disappointing earnings from Kimberly-Clark, Wyeth and Texas Instruments also prompted some selling. -more-

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LOS ANGELES — Southern California got mixed grades in a new study on protecting the environment, ranking high in recycling but nearly failing in use of treated wastewater. -more-

SANTA ANA — A Superior Court judge gave a Yorba Linda family until Nov. 5 to get their $650,000 home out of foreclosure, a house they nearly lost when they came up $51.56 short on a monthly mortgage payment. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Armed with an opinion from the Legislature’s attorney, Senate leader John Burton said Tuesday that Proposition 51 is unconstitutional and that lawmakers will ask a court to overturn it if it’s approved by voters. -more-

LOS ANGELES — Former baseball star Steve Garvey did not know that he was making false claims when he said people could use a weight-loss product and eat “forbidden foods” such as buttered biscuits and ribs, his lawyer said Tuesday. -more-

Struggling readers appear to be making significant progress under a four year-old “early literacy” program in the Berkeley’s elementary schools, according to a report released last week. -more-

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Tuesday, Oct. 22 -more-

For most of his young life, Sean Young didn’t want to go to Cal. Enter new Golden Bears coach Jeff Tedford – now it looks like Berkeley fans will be able to see Young at Memorial Stadium on a regular basis. -more-

A north Berkeley housing complex planned for where an old gas station once stood at 1797 Shattuck Ave. could pose health risks to neighbors, according to nearby residents. -more-

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SAN FRANCISCO — Just mention Pacific Bell Park and what’s the first image that comes to mind? Barry Bonds plopping balls into the water, of course. -more-

Democracy, public safety and about $47 million in taxpayer dollars will be at stake Nov. 5 when Berkeley voters cast ballots on Measure J. -more-

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Berkeley police arrested 12 men for soliciting prostitutes along San Pablo and Heinz avenues during a four-hour sting Friday evening, police said. -more-

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ROCKVILLE — In a tantalizing turn in the hunt for the Washington-area sniper, investigators said Monday the killer apparently tried to contact them in a phone call that was too “unclear” to be understood. They pleaded with the person to call back. -more-

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OAKLAND — The Oakland Police Department reports that investigators are looking into the city's 90th killing as of Monday. -more-

A lot of attention has been given to green building lately. With that attention has come some confusion about what precisely green building is. Other terms, like “healthy” building, “natural” building, and “sustainable” building, or development, also add to the confusion. This is a complex topic that we will try to clarify in today’s “Power Play” and in the Nov. 11 “Power Play.” -more-

Citations issued in -more-

SACRAMENTO — California’s teen birth rate has dipped below the national average for the first time since 1980, the state Department of Health Services reported Monday. -more-

NEW YORK — Investors rewarded Wall Street for an upbeat earnings season again Monday, pushing stocks sharply higher and extending two weeks of stunning gains. The market overcame an earlier round of profit taking and saw the Dow Jones industrials shoot up more than 200 points. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Pacific Gas and Electric Corp. continued negotiating with lenders Monday, hoping to extend the deadline on a $431 million loan to its unregulated energy trading arm that it says it can’t afford to pay. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — United Airlines announced Monday the closure of a reservation center, leaving more than 500 employees on furlough, according to a United Airlines spokesman. -more-

CHICO — Gov. Gray Davis rallied rural residents and workers while Republican challenger Bill Simon courted farmers Monday as each scrambled to secure support from crucial blocs of voters with 15 days until Election Day. -more-

SACRAMENTO — California’s job and population growth continues to outpace its supply of homes and apartments, steadily worsening one of the nation’s most severe housing shortages, says a new report by a nonprofit group that studies economic and budget trends. -more-

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court refused Monday to review a challenge of police powers in car searches, the latest post-Sept. 11 example of the justices’ siding with law enforcement in a privacy case. -more-

NEW YORK — Nearly every TV season brings a newly designated “It Girl.” -more-

A pediatrician by trade, Dr. Helen Caldicott’s call to save the children is a fight against militarism. -more-

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onday, Oct. 21 -more-

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The St. Mary’s High football team kicked off their Bay Shore Athletic League season with a 37-14 stomping of Kennedy (Richmond) High on Saturday, getting three rushing touchdowns from Fred Hives in their easiest win of the year. -more-

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In her eight years on the Berkeley City Council, Polly Armstrong has long argued that council’s time and energy was better spent dealing with “police and potholes,” not the international issues raised by colleagues. -more-

Arizona St. 45, No. 7 Oregon 42 -more-

ASHLAND, Va. – A man was shot and wounded in a steakhouse parking lot Saturday night while walking to his car with his wife. Authorities were investigating whether the Washington-area sniper who has killed nine people had struck again, for the first time on a weekend. -more-

Tuesday -more-

Ed Rossbach, a pioneer in the fiber-arts movement, has died at age 88. -more-

A Berkeley police officer shot and killed a pit bull Sunday while responding to a domestic disturbance in northeast Berkeley, authorities said. -more-

A spokesman for Highland Hospital confirms that a man died after being shot in the back in West Oakland around 4:30 a.m. this morning. -more-

n Assault with deadly weapon -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – Eddie “Gwen” Araujo was a good-looking girl – so good, it cost him his life. -more-

Health products company fined in employee deaths -more-

Report: Border security hurting San Diego economy -more-

DENVER – Property-rights groups plan to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to determine whether President Clinton acted illegally when he protected Colorado’s Canyons of the Ancients, California’s groves of giant sequoias and six other federal tracts as national monuments in 2000. -more-

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SAN FRANCISCO – After promising this week to produce proof of a dockworker slowdown at West Coast ports, shipping companies embroiled in a labor dispute with longshoremen on Friday again delayed filing the documents with Department of Justice lawyers. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – Adobe Systems Inc. today launched its popular Acrobat software in a new direction aimed at increasing the use of the Internet to fill out contracts, tax forms and other key documents. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – The San Francisco city attorney filed a civil lawsuit that claims one of the Bay Area’s largest mechanical contractors faked a partnership with a Filipino firm to defraud the city’s minority contracting program of $8 million. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – Scientists at the University of California, San Francisco have developed a new mad cow disease detector they claim is faster and more accurate than existing models and could “significantly reduce human exposure” to the fatal brain-destroying malady. -more-

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PINOLE — The former sister-in-law of one of the suspects arrested in connection with the sniper shootings in the Washington, D.C. area expressed sympathy for the victims and their families. -more-

KENSINGTON — The search for the sniper stalking the suburbs of the nation’s capital stretched across the country Wednesday as FBI agents converged on a home in Tacoma, Wash., with metal detectors and chain saws. -more-

OAKLAND — Critics of a ballot initiative authorizing 100 new police officers to fight Oakland’s rising murder rate are slamming the plan as a misguided and costly approach. -more-

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Six men were indicted Monday on charges of supporting terrorism by training at an al-Qaida camp in Afghanistan where Osama bin Laden declared that there “is going to be a fight against Americans,” authorities said. -more-

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