American troops, having won war in Iraq, are straining to manage anger, frustration and competing ambitions of nation long suppressed by Saddam Hussein; new politicial parties, Kurds and Shiite religious groups are asserting virtual governmental authority in cities and villages across nation, sometimes under noses of American soldiers; educated Iraqis eager for American-led transformation fear Americans may be losing initiative; anti-American sentiment remains palpable; photos (M

U.S. Is Now in Battle for Peace After Winning the War in Iraq

New York Yankees defeat Oakland Athletics, 5-3; photo (M)

Yankees' Patience At Plate Pays Off

George Vecsey Sports of The Times column discusses director Gary Ross, whose film Seabiscuit comes out this summer; Ross and five friends own 10 percent of Atswhatimtalknabout, which will race in Kentucky Derby; photos (M)

Sports of The Times; A New Day at the Races in Hollywood

 SARS Spreads in Taiwan  SARS seems to be spreading in Taiwan as fast or faster than anywhere except mainland China. The World Health Organization is planning to send a team there.   PAGE A7    Al Qaeda Plot Reported  American officials said they had uncovered a plot by Al Qaeda to crash a small aircraft loaded with explosives into the United States Consulate in Karachi, Pakistan.   PAGE A11

INSIDE

Some yogurt companies are reducing size of their containers, but keeping prices the same; single-serving size of Dannon yogury, for example, shrinks by 25 percent, to six ounces, but, in many grocers' refrigerators, price stays same; table shows price per spoonful for leading brands; photos (M)

Yogurt Makers Shrink the Cup, Trying to Turn Less Into More

Special three-judge panel, in jumble of often-conflicting rulings, upholds several major provisions of sweeping new law limiting political donations; Judges Colleen Kollar-Kotelly and Richard J Leon find Congress had right to bar national parties from using unlimited soft money donations for ads that attack or support candidates; most of soft money raised has been used in this manner; Leon finds it impermissible to bar national parties from using soft money for activities like increasing party registration or getting out vote; Judge Karen L Henderson finds entire ban on soft money is unconstitutional; law provides that Supreme Court review panel's decision; Sen Russell D Feingold, who sponsored law with Sen John McCain, hails upholding of main provisions; challenge to law is most important case dealing with role of money in politics since 1976; graphs of parties' reliance on soft money; photo (M)

Mixed Ruling on Constitutionality Of New Campaign Finance Law

Allied officials say Bush administration plans to withdraw most United States combat forces from Iraq over next several months and wants to shrink American military presence to under two divisions from over five by fall; Bush wants to set up new military structure under which American troops would continue to secure Baghdad while majority of forces in Iraq would be from other nations; sees Britain commanding multinational division in south near Basra and Poland commanding third division of troops from variety of nations; Britain is organizing conference to solicit troops; troop withdrawal schedule is ambitious given continued instability and size of nation; map; photo (M)

U.S. Plans to Reduce Forces In Iraq, With Help of Allies

New York City mass transit riders suggest myriad of ways Metropolitan Transportation Authority could make $.50 fare hike more palatable, including cleaner subways and less delays; photos (M)

For $2, How About Some Snacks? Transit Riders Share Wish Lists

Analysis of American government's sometimes erratic policies regarding airline industry since deregulating it quarter-century ago; government has struggled to map out consistent approach to industry and such questions as whether it should let market forces dominate, come what may, whether it should take role in industry's usually fractious labor negotiations and whether it should let foreign investors own controlling interests in domestic airlines; questions have recently taken on added urgency as airlines have sought wage and benefit concessions from their employees and made cutbacks in effort to reduce their costs; economists, executives and lawmakers say inability of government and industry to let go of each other as contributed to industry's problems; few agree on what government's policy should be, but they generally contend that officials should take a more sanguine view toward market forces (M)

Inconsistency: New Hobgoblin For the Airlines

New York State legislative leaders reach accord with Mayor Michael R Bloomberg to let New York City increase sales and income taxes to avoid severe layoffs; Legislature overwhelmingly approves bill to raise state sales tax for two years and impose three-year surcharge on people in high-income brackets, final piece of state budget; legislative leaders predict they will win battle to override Gov George E Pataki's threatened veto; taken together, sales tax would rise quarter percentage point outside city and three-eights of point in city; statewide, income tax would rise to 7.5 percent on taxable earnings above $100,000 for single people or above $150,000 for married couples; city residents would pay small added surcharge above that; Bloomberg fails to win commuter tax; deal will not prevent layoff of 3,000 city workers set for next few days; Pataki scores both state and city tax rises; stops short of threatening to block city package; says he is still willing to negotiate with Legislature; tables of Legislature's proposed state budget and aid package for NYC; photos (M)

ALBANY DEAL LETS CITY RAISE TAXES TO LIMIT LAYOFFS

Investors wonder why Berkshire Hathaway, Warren E Buffett's investment company, has increased its stake in PetroChina, state-controlled oil company that is largest in China; Berkshire Hathaway currently holds more than 9 percent of PetroChina's publicly traded shares, or about 1 percent of company as a whole; investment is notable departure from Buffett's previous approach to investing outside United States, and it has aroused considerable interest in China's fast-evolving oil industry; photo (M)

Investors Ponder Buffett's Move Into China Oil

Prime Min Atal Bihari Vajpayee says India will restore diplomatic and air links with Pakistan in his last effort at peace; hints moves could be first steps of more ambitious effort; breaks 16-month stalemate that began after Dec 2001 attack on Indian Parliament that India blamed on Pakistani support for Islamic insurgency in Kashmir; Min Mian Khursheed Mehmood Kasuri says Pakistan will also upgrade diplomatic ties and is ready to start talks on all outstanding issues, including that of Jammu and Kashmir; State Sec Colin L Powell hails Vajpayee's move; photo (M)

India Announces Steps in Effort To End Its Conflict With Pakistan

Wal-Mart Stores will sell its McLane Co division to Berkshire Hathaway in $1.45 billion deal that puts Berkshire Hathaway in position to become dominant player in food-distribution industry; purchase seems particularly well timed for Berkshire Hathaway, with many of McLane's competitors like Fleming Companies and US Foodservice unit of Royal Ahold either floundering or under investigation (M)

Wal-Mart Agrees to Sell Food Supplier

New Jersey Devils defeat Tampa Bay Lightning, 2-1, in triple overtime, to win second-round playoff series, 4-1, and advance to Eastern Conference finals; photos (M)

In Extra Periods, Devils Get Exclamation Point

New York City public school teachers anxiously await direction from Chancellor Joel I Klein with regard to uniform curriculum he plans to implement next school year; Klein has yet to furnish teachers with schedule for when various programs will be adopted and has not hired enough coaches to help teachers learn new methods (M)

Teachers In the Dark On Curriculum

Environmental Protection Agency reports that average fuel efficiency of nation's cars and trucks fell to its lowest level in 22 years in 2002 model year; technological and engineering leaps of last two decades have been poured into everything but fuel economy; since 1981, average vehicle has 93 percent more horsepower and is 29 percent faster in going from 0 to 60 miles per hour; it is also 24 percent heavier, reflecting surging sales of sport utility vehicles; over same period, fuel economy has stagnated, contributing heavily to nation's rising oil consumption; cars and light trucks--SUV's, pickups and minivans--account for about 40 percent of nation's oil consumption and fifth of its carbon dioxide emissions; EPA report exasperates environmentalists, who are already frustrated by years of legislative defeats and recent retreat by Ford Motor Co on pledge that it would improve fuel economy of SUV's; in 2002 model year, fuel economy averaged 20.4 miles per gallon, lowest since fleet averaged 19.2 miles per gallon in 1980; fuel economy peaked at 22.1 miles a gallon in 1988 but has mostly fallen since; photos (L)

Fuel Economy Hit 22-Year Low in 2002

New York State farmworkers, many of whom are immigrants working to send money back to their families living elsewhere, march to Albany demanding more benefits; Democratic-led Assembly approved recent bill giving workers overtime pay and other benefits, but farmers lobbied against it, which caused Republican Senate to oppose bill; fate of farmworkers is now uncertain; photos (M)

Onward to Albany in the Footsteps of Chavez; Farmworkers Adopt a California Activist's Tactic to Press Their Case

Labor Department reports unemployment rate rose to 6 percent in Apr from 5.8 percent in Mar, matching eight-year high; economy lost 48,000 jobs; labor leaders and some Democrats use report to call for extension of unemployment benefits; tables of employment data; graphs; photo (M)

JOBLESS RATE ROSE TO 6% LAST MONTH

Trainer Bobby Frankel says his horse Empire Maker should be favorite for Kentucky Derby, even though odds at Derby are usually against favorites; photos (M)

The True Believer

Charter schools, financed through local taxes but independently operated, have begun expanding from traditional base in cities to more affluent suburbs, shift that threatens political support for such schools; charter schools are forcing tax increases in small districts that cannot cut costs at traditional schools to offset loss of pupils and their financing to charter schools; resistance to charter schools is growing in New York and other states because of costs; photos (M)

Charter Schools Grow in Suburbs, Uneasily

Coaches in large universities are often subject to code-of-conduct clauses in their contracts that are far more stringent than those for other university employees, as high profile coaches are often most visible faces on campus (M)

For Coaches, Fine Print Is Part of Job

Crash between two cars in Linden (NJ) kills Mercedes driver Edward C Belvin and immigrants Jorge Alpuin, Juan and Olga Chavez, Wilman Rojas and Marlon Alexis Castro, who used to carpool home from work; photos (M)

5 Who Died in Car Crash Were Immigrants Who Dreamed of Home

 Jobless Rate Climbs to 6%, Matching an 8-Year High  The unemployment rate rose to 6 percent last month, from 5.8 percent in March, matching an eight-year high, as the deepest jobs slump in almost 20 years continued to worsen.    The economy lost 48,000 jobs in April, the Labor Department reported; in the last three months 525,000 jobs have disappeared. Since 1960, every loss of that magnitude has occurred during a recession. [Page A1.]

BUSINESS DIGEST

Correction of May 2 article about legislation authorizing American states to require European insurance companies to make public names of Holocaust-era customers, whose families may be eligible for benefits

Corrections

Correction of March 20 article about Ahmad Zahir performer known as Afghan Elvis, who died in car wreck 24 years ago

Florian Richard Wirtz is a German professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen and the Germany national team. He is widely regarded as one of the best attacking midfielders in the world.

Florian Wirtz, German footballer

Florian_Wirtz

Suzy Parker was an American model and actress active from 1947 until 1970. Her modeling career reached its zenith during the 1950s, when she appeared on the covers of dozens of magazines and in advertisements and movie and television roles.

May 3, 2003

Headlines from May 3, 2003

U.S. Is Now in Battle for Peace After Winning the War in Iraq

Yankees' Patience At Plate Pays Off

Sports of The Times; A New Day at the Races in Hollywood

INSIDE

Yogurt Makers Shrink the Cup, Trying to Turn Less Into More

Billboard 200

Thankful

The New Breed

Say You Will

Have You Forgotten?

Get Rich Or Die Tryin'

Notable Births

Notable Deaths

Historical Context for May 3, 2003