With money tight, Napa will rely on strategic alliances to fight global warming.

Since Craig and Kathryn Hall bought their first Napa Valley vineyard in 1995, they have made a huge imprint on the face and the culture of the valley.

A Napa motorcyclist has died nearly two weeks after he was hit by a driver — who was subsequently arrested for driving under the influence — on Highway 29 in north Napa.

Gov. Schwarzenegger signed a bill Friday that will allow all vintners in California to pour their wine at events sponsored by charitable organizations.

Amid the sound of gurgling water, Napa officials Friday dedicated the city’s Jamieson Canyon water treatment plant in honor of former council member Edward I. Barwick.

Ralph Mann and Gwen Pyle, of Napa, dance to the Wild Catahoula’s cajun zydeco in Lyman Park in St. Helena. “We love to dance and we love this music,” says Pyle. Lianne Milton/Register

MOSCOW — Former President Mikhail Gorbachev said Friday that the fall of the Soviet Union, which he helped bring about, ushered in an era of U.S. imperialism responsible for many of the world’s gravest problems.

BEIJING — China’s premier ordered increased vigilance over food and drug safety Friday as the Cabinet announced a new regulation that mandates stronger supervision and outlines hefty punishments for makers of dangerous goods.

WASHINGTON  — The Democratic-controlled House passed legislation Friday that combines billions in aid for farmers with money for low-income nutrition programs, defying a veto threat from President Bush over the bill’s largesse to crop producers.