September 13, 2004

Sen John Kerry accuses Bush administration of letting 'nuclear nightmare' develop by refusing to deal with North Korea when Bush administration first came to office; says Pres Bush's preoccupation with Iraq let North Korean crisis fester to point that there are now indications that country might be preparing to test plutonium bomb; American intelligence officials and policy makers scramble to determine what caused huge fire spotted on North Korea's border with China; intelligence analysts are still debating whether activity is harbinger of test, but Kerry insists that even North Korean threat of test is sign of failed diplomacy; Kerry's basic argument, that Iraq war has diverted attention from more dangerous nations like North Korea, is one he has often used on campaign trail, but his latest language is far harsher, accusing Bush of leaving US more vulnerable to North Korea; Bush's press secretary Scott McClellan claims Kerry wants to return to what he calls failed policies of Clinton administration, which he says was 'duped' by North Korea; photo; map (M)

Profile of troubled Siebel Systems; company has long dominated market for customer service software, which helps companies manage their electronic relations with customers and better understand consumer buying habits, but has stumbled in recent years; finds itself on wrong side of several trends sweeping technology industry; new chief executive J Michael Lawrie comments on plans; market share graph; photo (M)

Election officials gearing up for presidential election say they are struggling to cope with coercive tactics and fraudulent vote-gathering involving absentee ballots that have undermined local races across country; both major political parties have intensified their efforts to promote absentee balloting as way to lock up votes in presidential race; some election officials express concern about extent to which critical swing states have allowed party operatives to involve themselves in absentee voting, fearing this could taint general election in Nov; as many as 25 percent of Americans who vote are expected to use absentee ballot; North Carolina becomes first state to distribute ballots; some experts say concern about problems with voting machines is overshadowing more pressing issue of absentee ballot fraud; many states, including battlegrounds in presidential race, have abandoned or declined to adopt safeguards on absentee voting that election officials have warned they will need to prevent rigged elections; photos; chart showing absentee voting laws in 19 swing states (L)

New academic year for New York City's 1.1 million public school children will serve as crucial barometer of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's education efforts, which are certain to be central issue in his 2005 re-election campaign; after winning control of city's schools two years ago, he introduced most ambitious overhaul of schools ever attempted, altering virtually everything, including way reading and math are taught, number of superintendents, even cafeteria menus; he continues to push for changes; more than 90 new schools are opening, including 9 charter schools, first wave in mayor's plan to open 50 such privately run schools; new accountability system will gauge effectiveness of principals and teachers by measuring individual student progress instead of comparing overall test results from one year to next; top school officials and some business leaders are convinced that system is on brink of major cultural shift that mayor has sought; many teachers and principals are indignant about starting their second school year in row without labor contracts; photo (M)

Philadelphia Eagles defeat New York Giants, 31-17, in season opener; photos (M)