TUESDAY BRIEFING

Good crops vs. bad air

Pesticides and soil fumigants help farmers raise bumper crops, but, unfortunately, they also contribute to air pollution. And when a farming region, such as the San Joaquin Valley, sits between a couple of mountain ranges -- and also is home to a growing suburban population -- the result is some of the dirtiest air in the nation.

California regulators are targeting hundreds of pesticides in an attempt to cleanse the air around Bakersfield, Fresno and the rest of the agricultural region. The Department of Pesticide Regulation is asking manufacturers to begin reformulating 700 insecticides and herbicides, which often contain volatile compounds that evaporate easily and waft upward from the fields. It also plans to impose tougher rules on fumigants.

Growers say they saw the new rules coming -- a federal judge has ordered the state to cut pesticide emissions -- and insist “we’re certainly going to try” to meet the state’s emissions goal. But they also worry about finding alternatives for safeguarding crops and say it’s important that regulators accept “real-world solutions.” Page B1

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Another kind of aftershock

As the death toll from the Indonesian earthquake edges past 5,100, many survivors confront a disturbing future -- one without homes, jobs or food.

Authorities estimate that 100,000 to 200,000 are homeless in the central part of Java island. At a hospital in Bantul, patients are too scared to stay inside, preferring to sleep in exterior corridors. And in other places, residents stand in busy streets to beg for assistance, in some cases placing furniture in the roads to slow the traffic. Page A14

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America’s day of tribute

From Huntington Beach to the San Fernando Valley, veterans, civilians and politicians pay tribute to fallen servicemen on Memorial Day. At the Los Angeles National Cemetery in Westwood, Gov. Schwarzenegger and Mayor Villaraigosa give speeches full of praise, while parents and their children make quieter statements.

One man, asked why he was in attendance, answered with a single word: “Gratitude.” Page B1

A list of military personnel from California who have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan since last Memorial Day. Page B4

In Washington, President Bush lays a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns and says the country can best honor those killed in Iraq and Afghanistan “by defeating the terrorists, by advancing the cause of liberty, and by laying the foundation of peace for a generation of young Americans.” Page A5

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Afghan road becomes war zone

In Afghanistan, Western troops say they must drive aggressively to avoid roadside bombs and suicide attackers. Residents, though, complain about the tactics, and call the military convoys reckless.

The matter boiled over Monday after U.S. military vehicles struck several civilian cars in Kabul, causing at least one death. Riots ensued, and at least eight people were killed and more than 100 injured.

The violence is the worst in the capital since the fall of the Taliban 4 1/2 years ago. Page A14

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High court saves the worst for last

In the waning days of the Supreme Court term, 37 cases remain to be decided by the end of June. As usual, they are the thorniest. Subjects include terrorism tribunals, wetlands protection, lethal injection, domestic violence prosecutions and campaign finance limits. The harmony of recent rulings is vulnerable -- as Chief Justice Roberts says, “I do feel at this point a bit like the fellow who jumped off the Empire State Building, passed the 50th floor and said, ‘So far, so good.’ ” Page A4

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Eyeing hurricanes from the Rockies

How does one become a hurricane expert working at Colorado State University?

William Gray did. Or perhaps it should be said that Colorado State University became known for its hurricane expertise because of William Gray. Anyway, the location of his office isn’t an issue to him. “You don’t have to live on the surface of Mars to study its atmosphere,” he says.

Gray pioneered the concept of “seasonal” hurricane forecasting; since 1983, he’s issued forecasts on the number of hurricanes that will form each year. This year he predicts nine, although he will update that Wednesday. Page A6

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Anger management

Things in Atlanta were hotter than Southern barbecue, but this was no Memorial Day cookout. This was Dodger pitcher Brad Penny throwing a hissy fit. In the fifth inning, he threw meatballs and surrendered six consecutive hits. Manager Grady Little brought out the hook, and Penny hurled invective all the way to the clubhouse. Page D1

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THE CRITIC: ‘Hemophiliac kids, sick from transfusions of tainted blood, were forced from schools; televangelists claimed to see the punishing hand of God at work; friends were lost, jobs put in jeopardy.’ Robert Lloyd on the PBS documentary ‘Frontline: The Age of AIDS,’ Calendar, E1

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CALENDAR

T Bone’s meaty new sound

If you wonder whatever happened to the literate singer-songwriter T Bone Burnett, you haven’t been paying attention. He wasn’t performing, but he was producing records for artists such as Elvis Costello and Counting Crows. He won a Grammy for the soundtrack to “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” Well, brother, he’s here now, with “The True False Identity,” an album to “rediscover music from scratch.” Page E1

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But did they inhale?

When an interviewer on MTV asked Bill Clinton if he preferred briefs or boxers, he answered. When a journalist on MTV Latinoamerica asks the Mexican presidential candidates if they ever smoked marijuana, they answer. As they do when asked if they’ve ever stolen anything, what was the last CD they bought, and what they will do to help young people get their first job. The shows air this week.

MTV reckons that Mexico’s 30 million people between 18 and 34 -- 45% of the electorate -- are more likely to vote when the candidates speak their language. Page E1

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Common themes, varied approaches

Take three artists -- a mother, Betye Saar, and her daughters, Alison and Lezley -- who share a history and who explore similar themes. What would viewers see if their works were displayed side by side?

“You can see the differences,” says Alison of “Family Legacies,” on display in Pasadena. Betye has been known to explode racial stereotypes, such as her image of a gun-toting Aunt Jemima figure. Lezley sometimes takes a tongue-in-cheek -- if not cheeky -- attitude. At right, Lezley’s painting of Mrs. Lincoln’s seamstress, Elizabeth Keckley, holding a melting snowball. Page E1

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The ABCs of spelling

Used to be that competitive spelling was for kids who couldn’t hit a grounder past the pitcher’s mound, and whose ants died in their science fair project.

But since 1994 ESPN has broadcast the National Spelling Bee finals, and in the last couple of years a raft of bee movies, books and musicals have rendered the ex-nerd extracurricular activity way cool. At least that’s what ABC is banking on when it televises the final rounds live on Thursday. Finally, a sport all America can get behind: nervous teenagers sweating out words like “prepubescent” in prime time. Page E3

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ON LATIMES.COM

Once every century, a devil of a date

Fears of 6-6-06: If the approaching triple sixes next week echo the prophecy of the apocalypse, the last 6-6-06 may offer guidance on what to expect. Browse editions of The Times from June 6 and 7, 1906, as well as the front pages from other dates during the last century containing these numbers, which some consider the mark of the beast. See any sign that the evil played a role in these routine, odd and tragic stories? Also, review historical background, links and an overview of what worries people about the numbers.

latimes.com/666

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SPORTS

Making the cut in college baseball

The college baseball playoffs are set, and Cal State Fullerton, Pepperdine, UCLA and UC Irvine get good news -- they’re in. The bad news goes to Long Beach State, which didn’t make the postseason even though it finished ahead of Irvine in the Big West Conference.

Pepperdine will play host to an NCAA regional this weekend. Monday, though, team members attended a barbecue hosted by a rather famous Waves supporter: Pamela Anderson. Page D3

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Fishing for compliments

One is by land, one is by water, but the two sports -- NASCAR and bass fishing -- have much in common: a graduated series of circuits with commensurate prize money; loudly decorated vehicles; and a heavily Southern, white fan base.

During the nine years he has fished in BASS tour events, Ishama Monroe, the only African American on the premiere Citgo Bassmaster Elite Series Tour, says he has been pulled over for “routine checks” more times than he cares to remember. But now, people notice his race less than his deft ability with a rod and reel. Today, with 10 career top-10 finishes, and as winner of this season’s opener (worth $100,000), when the cops pull him over, what they want is his autograph. Page D1

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BUSINESS

It’s good to be king

Some executives are paid so well their compensation registers as a percentage of company profit. Last year, Gateway’s chief executive made 89.4% of the company’s annual earnings. Broadcom’s CEO got 15.7% of its company’s profit. In California, chief execs’ total compensation was an average 6.6% of annual earnings, and they took home 20% more than they did in 2004.

Some analysts say inflated compensation takes a toll on corporate value and profit, but industry spokespeople have a differing view, contending that companies must pay well to bring in leaders who can generate strong profit. “It’s pay for performance,” one says. Page C1

SEC rule 10b5-1 sets the terms under which executives may exercise stock options. But a recent study found a disturbing pattern of sales before negative earnings were made public, and although there is no evidence that execs are gaming the system, the report’s author is concerned. Page C5

As executive pay gains weight, there’s a move afoot to force companies also to disclose the salaries of highly paid employees. And there are some pretty highly paid employees in Hollywood, which wants to bury the idea. Celebrity compensation, opponents of the proposal say, is a matter of protecting the individual’s privacy and the company’s competitive edge. If, hypothetically, CNN knows how much CBS is paying Katie Couric, it knows the cost to woo her. Page C1

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Plain Jane is the best name

Sure, name your kid Aloysius, but your company? Go for Bob. A Princeton University study says people are more likely to buy initial public offering stock in companies with simple names and ticker symbols. Page C1

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