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Feature

The Shaman's Apprentice

Kao Saephanh says he is a typical teenager. But most 15-year-olds aren't learning how to talk to the spirit world and perform animal sacrifices

By Bernice Yeung

Published: September 5, 2001

It was only 8 a.m. on a blue-skied Saturday morning in early August when Kao Kae Saephanh rolled out of bed. Though his younger brothers and sisters were still asleep, Kao pretended it was a...

Sidebar

We Are the People

The History of the Iu-Mien

By Bernice Yeung

Published: September 5, 2001

The Iu-Mien are an ethnic minority from Southeast China. Originally ruled by kings, the Iu-Mien have ties to Chinese history that can be traced to as early as 2240 B.C. Throughout history, they...

Mecklin

Heavy Issues

The city has new guidelines on discrimination against the fat, skinny, tall, and short. They teach us a valuable lesson: Our leaders need to quit pandering and focus on business.

By John Mecklin

Published: September 5, 2001

I was walking the other afternoon on the beach below the bluffs of Fort Funston, the long-decommissioned military facility that's gained a national measure of fame as a battleground in the great...

Dog Bites

Dog Bites

The Law of Unintended Consequences; Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining; From the Record Shelf

By Matt Smith

Published: September 5, 2001

The Law of Unintended Consequences So, Supervisor Jake McGoldrick has introduced an ordinance making it illegal for candidates to knowingly make false statements in their campaign literature...

Bay View

Through a Different Lens

We don't need more pretty pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge. So why is one of the country's finest documentary photographers taking hundreds of them?

By Mark Athitakis

Published: September 5, 2001

"The Golden Gate Bridge is a cliché," says Richard Misrach. "No serious photographer would be caught dead trying to photograph that." Richard Misrach is a serious photographer, generally...

Letters

Letters to the Editor

In the Company of Angels; 'Toon Training; Image Problems; Stop Him Before He Critiques Again; Corrections

Published: September 5, 2001

In the Company of Angels Choose one: This reader recently had a bad experience with A) a pretty woman, B) a job recruiter, C) A and B: Although it clearly was not his intent, Jeremy Mullman's...

Music

After School Special

Jon Bernson's DJ Club gets kids off the streets -- and onto the turntables

By Andrew Strickman

Published: September 5, 2001

The first rule of DJ Club: School can be cool. Even though it's summertime, the doors of A.P. Giannini Middle School are unlocked. The school, located at 38th Avenue and Ortega in the Sunset...

Music

The Gospel According to Marcus

Zen Guerrilla's Marcus Durant wants to save your soul -- for rock 'n' roll

By Jennifer Maerz

Published: September 5, 2001

For those who think rock 'n' roll is heaven, Marcus Durant is a musical high priest, spreading the Zen Guerrilla gospel from his San Francisco church. During live shows, the Afroed frontman shakes...

Music

Mazarin

A Tall-Tale Storyline (spinART)

By Andrew Marcus

Published: September 5, 2001

September 2001. Aesthetic fetishism becomes a federal crime -- film festivals are shuttered, vintage clothing stores torched. Jackbooted thugs descend upon Quentin Stoltzfus' three-story Philly...

Music

Binary Star

Masters of the Universe (Subterraneous)

By Greg Doherty

Published: September 5, 2001

A binary star is a pair of stars that travel together, often appearing as one. Binary Star is a pair of "star" Michigan MCs whose distinct styles bind in a sonic embrace. With twice the...

Hear This

Hear This

Belle & Sebastian

By Dan Strachota

Published: September 5, 2001

Few things in life live up to expectations. Most events are built up so much that the reality can't possibly match the anticipation. (Et tu, George Lucas?) Occasionally, however, a happening...

Eat

Down on the Corner

26's Corner

By Greg Hugunin

Published: September 5, 2001

The first time a friend told me about 26's Corner, I was reminded of the time a different friend told me about Sanraku: Once again I learned that there was a really, really good sushi place whose...

Eat

East Meets Zest

Oritalia

By Matthew Stafford

Published: September 5, 2001

When undertaking the task of reviewing a restaurant, the first step is to round up a troupe of fellow food-lovers, food-lovers who will have something interesting to say about the food they'll be...

Side Dish

The Cocktail Charade

Is the Clift mucking with its martinis?

By Harry Coverte

Published: September 5, 2001

Shaken and Stirred On the heels of a lawsuit alleging that the Clift switched valet services in order to present a paler-faced crew, Harry has heard another alarming accusation: An outraged...

Social Grace

Was It Something I Said?

What to do if you discover a co-worker's ad at an online dating service

By Social Grace

Published: September 5, 2001

Dear Social Grace, I recently joined a gay online dating service that lets you post a photo online. While looking at photos of potential matches, I noticed a picture of a co-worker I have a...

Film

Bang, You're Dead

For a wrenching view of the world, try Barbet Schroeder's latest

By David Ehrenstein

Published: September 5, 2001

If you were to hear that Our Lady of the Assassins is one of the most genuinely shocking films you'll ever see, what would that suggest to you? Some new level of extreme violence and explicit...

Film

Metal Meltdown

Marky Mark becomes a rock star, but he doesn't get to enjoy it

By Robert Wilonsky

Published: September 5, 2001

A year after Cameron Crowe climbed back aboard the tour bus for one last spin through rock's golden days of giddy hedonism and phony heroism comes a film set a decade later, in the mid- 1980s,...

Reel World

Reel World

Oakland's Black Cinema Café screens challenging films for African-American professionals

By Michael Fox

Published: September 5, 2001

Jump Tomorrow Come Oct. 15, Oakland will have its own Black Cinema Cafe. The monthly, free, invitation-only event for black professionals consists of an hour or two of schmoozing followed by a...

Night&Day;

There's a Griot Goin' On

Guitarist and singer Habib Kolte expands on the vibrant musical traditions of Mali

By Todd Dayton

Published: September 5, 2001

Africa's musical heart is buried somewhere in Mali, a nation of diverse cultures and home to world music heavyweights like Ali Farka Touré, Salif Keita, and Oumou Sangare. American music...

Night&Day;

American Beauty

Photographer Joel Sternfeld captures the diverse lives of strangers in his cross-country travels

By Lisa Hom

Published: September 5, 2001

You can't judge a book by its cover, but you can certainly look for clues. In New York photographer Joel Sternfeld's Stranger Passing (2001) , his recently published collection of deceptively...