The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • Page 2

A2 THURSDAY. FEBRUARY I. 2001 LOS ANGELES TIMES The Top of Today's News 3 1 DEBATE ON CLOSE CALL Two Japan Airlines jetliners carrying nearly 700 passengers narrowly avoided an in-flight collision. Thirty-five people were injured, three seriously. Left, injured passengers get first aid at Tokyo's Haneda airport.

A8 An Up Month for Market The stock market ended mixed despite the Federal Reserve's latest interest rate cut, but Wall Street's bulls were more impressed with the month than the day: Most major stock indexes posted gains for January, and historically that has foretold an up year for the market CI Drop in Investment Clubs Investment club membership rosters nationwide dropped again in 2000. The decline suggests the trend, which was fueled by the bull market and widely touted club success stories, may have peaked. CI Freak Accident Tiger Woods injured his left knee in a collision with a fan after a practice round and might not be able to play at Pebble Beach. Dl Slow Recovery Former UCLA coach Walt Hazzard is making some progress from a stroke five years ago, but he is closer than ever with his family. Dl Lakers Have a Bad Trip Shaquille O'Neal didn't play, Kobe Bryant missed 11 of 17 shots and the Timberwolves won, 96-83.

Dl Fed Cuts Interest Rates to Combat Recession Threat The Federal Reserve cut key interest rates another half a point the second drop in January in an effort to keep a stumbling U.S. economy from lurching into recession. The Fed also signaled that more rate reductions are in the offing. Al Bush Backs New Runways The Bush administration, eager to ease air-travel delays, plans to speed construction of additional runways at major airports nationwide by expediting reviews of their environmental impact. Al J4 Reuters Israeli Arabs, Once an Ally, Are Deserting Barak In May 1999, Israeli Arab voters were a key component of Ehud Barak's landslide victory over right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

This time, they are determined to punish Barak, even if it means bringing to power Likud Party leader Ariel Sharon, a hawk long ago branded by Arabs as a warmonger. A6 Ann Landers E5 Kids' Page E7 Hot Property El Racing D9 Sports Stats D9 TVRadio Calendar Weekend Weather B7 Home Prices Research recent prices of homes sold in your neighborhood or where you hope to buy: www.latimes.com homesales One Guilty, One Acquitted in Lockerbie Bombing Trial A Libyan intelligence agent was convicted of murdering 270 people in the explosion of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, 12 years ago. However, his co-defendant was acquitted and quickly headed for home in Libya. Al Family members of some of the victims are stunned by the guilty verdict. Al Index to Today's Times Astrology E5 Bridge E5 Comics Crossword E4 Dear Abby E5 Deaths Editorials B10 The Times on the Internet Weekend Escapes Looking for a respite from the rat race? Check out our Travel section's collection of weekend getaways: www.

latimes.com escapes Town Hall LA. Hear movers, and people news as they at L.A.'s civic forum': latimes.com townhaU-la DOW 30 NYSE NASDAQ 6.16 .7.72 10,887.36 1,366.01 663.64 2,772.73 IPO Auction Questioned The surge in Peet's Coffee and Tea stock since its initial public offering may be making investors happy, but it's also raising questions about the special auction system used by online investment bank W.R. Ham-brecht Co. to sell the deal. CI Homes Pay Homage to Japanese Simplicity Gordon Steen turned his love for 16th century Japanese farmhouses into a vocation.

The businessman sells prefab homes resembling the minimalist, rustic houses he saw on his travels. El Trees of Derivation Tor Maclnnis grows 63 varieties of apples, on one tree in his North-ridge backyard. This is the time of the year for grafting especially on deciduous trees like apples when the juices are starting to flow. El Here's for a Rainy Day Is it raining outside? Well, it will and here are 15 ideas for rainy days in Los Angeles, like finding water beetles, touring Madrona Marsh or visiting the L.A. Zoo when the animals are most active.

Page 6 Rap 'n' Rock The rhyme and rhythm of Linkin Park, which made a name for itself on the Web, has resulted in a hit CD and top billing at this weekend's Dragon Festival. Page 37 Thursday Night Showdown One of the most anticipated battles of the television season takes place tonight when CBS' so-called reality show "Survivor" takes on NBC's established hit "Friends." Some are predicting the end of NBC's Thursday night ratings domination. Page 57 urn ASHCROFT The Senate opened its debate on former Sen. John Ashcroftwith heated accusations over whether the attorney general nominee can fairly execute the laws for all Americans. Left, anti-Ashcroft protesters on Capitol Hill.

A12 Associated Presi Skakel to Be Tried as Adult A 25-year-old murder case moved closer to resolution when a Connecticut judge ruled that prime suspect Michael Skakel, a nephew of Ethel Kennedy, the widow of Robert F. Kennedy, will be tried as an adult. A5 Fetal Cell Implants Study The results of the first federally funded study of fetal tissue implanted in humans performed in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease show that many recipients have regained lost mobility and reduced or even stopped their medications, researchers say. A16 REMEMBRANCE Mourners gathered to remember relatives lost one year ago when Alaska Airlines Flight 261 plummeted into the Pacific Ocean. Left, family members toss flowers into the ocean.

B4 Los Angeles Times Mayor's Race Fund-Raising Led by City Atty. James K. Hahn and businessman Steve Soboroff, the candidates for mayor of Los Angeles enter the campaign's home stretch with widely varying resourcesin some cases aided by aggressive fund-raising and in others held back by profligate spending. Bl shakers in the speak leading www. 7.

V- SCIENCE FILE A Win-Win Situation A boy with a syndrome in which an enzyme for processing sugar polymers is missing benefits from a new therapy developed partially with money his parents raised. B2 EDITORIALS Tax Cut Juggernaut Consensus about tax cut inevitability is building. Whether a rate reduction aids the economy will depend on how it's constructed. B10 COMMENTARY Arafat Plays Nader Is Yasser Arafat engineering an Ariel Sharon victory, hoping to rally global calls for a truculent Israel to return to 1967 borders? Bll Readers' Representative If you have questions or concerns about The Times' journalistic standards and practices, or you believe we have made an error, you may contact: Narda Zacchino Los Angeles Times Readers' Representative Telephone message line: (877) 554-4000 e-mail: readers.replatimes.com Postal mail: 202 W. 1st Los Angeles, CA 90012 Newspaper delivery hotline: (800) 252-9141 STEVE OSMAN Little Sympathy in Senate Several Western senators said during a U.S.

Senate hearing in Washington that they have little sympathy for California's predicament in the electricity crisis. They are confronting rising prices for power in their own states. A18 Related stories, Al, A19 Reading the Paper, 2001 Ink on hands Courtesy of The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.