'After the War in Iraq'

Thursday, May 22, Michael Nacht, dean of UC Berkeley's Goldman School of Public Policy, presents "U.S. Middle East Policy after the War in Iraq." Nacht, former assistant director for strategic and Eurasian affairs of the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, addresses the Bush administration's primary objectives in the Middle East, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the U.S. war on terrorism, and alternative futures facing our country in relation to the Middle East. Reception 5:15 p.m., program 6 p.m., Commonwealth Club of California, second floor, 595 Market, S.F. $15, $10 members. (415) 597-6712 or (415) 597-6719.

Journalism and war

Thursday, May 22, Stanford University's Ethics in Society Program and the Northern California Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists present "The Language of War and the Ethics of Journalism," the spring quarter 2003 installment of the Carlos McClatchy Memorial Symposium. Panelists include James W. Carey of Columbia University's Graduate School; Kathleen Hall Jamieson, dean of the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania; and Geoffrey Nunberg, senior researcher at the Center for the Study of Language and Information at Stanford University. 4-5:30 p.m., Stanford University, School of Education, Cubberley Auditorium, 485 Lasuen Mall, Palo Alto. Free. (650) 723-1941.

'The Panama Deception'

Thursday, May 22, join the neighborhood group Mission for Peace for a screening of the Academy Award-winning documentary The Panama Deception, which investigates the untold story of the 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama, followed by a discussion of the film and the parallels of that invasion to the war against Iraq. 7-9 p.m., New College Theater, 777 Valencia, S.F. Free. (415) 401-8744.

Protest ChevronTexaco

Thursday, May 22, join a delegation of Amazonian leaders in protesting ChevronTexaco Corp.'s operations in Ecuador, Nigeria, Iraq, and Richmond, at the oil conglomerate's corporate headquarters in San Ramon. The protest is organized by Amazon Watch, a local watchdog group fighting to defend indigenous peoples and the environment of the Amazon Basin. Noon, ChevronTexaco world headquarters, 6001 Bollinger Canyon Rd., San Ramon. (510) 419-0617.

Prison forums

Thursday, May 22, and Friday, May 23, Splitting the Sky, a leader of the Attica Prison rebellion, discusses past and present native peoples' struggles against the occupational government of the United States, as well as the Attica rebellion and the necessity of resistance and liberation in an escalating state of violence. Thurs/22, 7 p.m., AK Press Warehouse, 674A 23rd St., Oakl. Donation requested, no one turned away for lack of funds. (510) 208-1700. Fri/23, Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo, Berk. $5-$15 sliding scale, no one turned away for lack of funds. (510) 548-2220, ext. 233.

Lawyers for Mumia

Saturday, May 24, attend a planning meeting organized by the Lynne Stewart Defense Committee and the San Francisco chapter of the National Lawyers Guild for a mid-June visit by Stewart in collaboration with the Mobilization to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal. Stewart is the attorney accused of helping terrorists while representing Sheik Abdel Rahman, who was convicted of the 1995 World Trade Center bombing. 10 a.m., National Lawyers Guild, 558 Capp, S.F. Free. (415) 285-1055 or (510) 684-8270.

Global diversity

Tuesday, May 27, Tyler Cowen, professor of economics at George Mason University and author of Creative Destruction: How Globalization Is Changing the World's Culture, discusses the effects of American culture on the world and the risks to unique cultures posed by open-trade policies with the United States, at "Globalization and Cultural Diversity: Friends or Foes?" 6:30-8:30 p.m., Independent Policy Forum, 100 Swan Way, Oakl. $14, $10 members. (510) 632-1366.

Impact of the USA PATRIOT Act

Tuesday, May 27, the Alternatives to War Forum and the American Friends Service Committee present a panel discussion of the USA PATRIOT Act and its impact on everyday life. Panelists include Banafsheh Akhalghi, managing partner of Akhalghi and Associates, which represents clients affected by post-Sept. 11 legislation, and Angana Chatterji and Richard Shapiro, both scholar-activists from the Social and Cultural Anthropology program at the California Institute for Integral Studies. 7-9 p.m., San Francisco Friends Meeting, 65 Ninth St., S.F. Free. (415) 565-0201.

'Resistance Is Fertile'

Tuesday, May 27, attend "Resistance Is Fertile! Stop Corporate Globalization" and find out about a federally sponsored summit in Sacramento this June involving corporate representatives and government ministers from more than 100 countries. Also, enjoy a screening of Fed Up, a film about industrial agriculture, and a panel discussion with Anuradha Mittal of Food First and UC Berkeley professor Ignacio Chapela. 6:30 p.m., New College Theater, 777 Valencia, S.F. Free. (415) 384-0623.