Organized

NEW YORK - The next wave of union protesters isn't blue collar. It's lawyers, paralegals, secretaries, helicopter pilots, judges, insurance agents and podiatrists. These white-collar workers are not exactly the picture of the labor movement, but they are becoming a more essential part of it as they turn to unions for help in a tough economy as bosses try to squeeze out more profits. "Employers have been downsizing, asking employees to take on larger roles, making them work more hours," said Nicole Korkolis, spokeswoman for the Office and Professional Employees International Union.

WASHINGTON - As the Internal Revenue Service's last two directors struggled to provide answers Tuesday about the agency's improper scrutiny of conservative groups, a lawyer for another key IRS official said she would invoke the 5th Amendment rather than answer questions about the screening and why she didn't tell Congress about it. Lois Lerner, director of exempt organizations for the IRS, will assert her right against self-incrimination during her...

LAPD detectives are investigating whether the shooting of two men at a North Hollywood synagogue in October is the work of Israeli-connected organized crime. The Oct. 29 shooting ignited fear that it was a hate crime, but Los Angeles police officials quickly ruled that out. In the last few weeks, LAPD investigators have concentrated their resources on the idea that the shootings were designed to silence someone. "It is something we are looking at, but we have made no definitive conclusions," Deputy Chief Michael Downing, head of the LAPD's Counter Terrorism and Criminal Intelligence Bureau, told The Times.

WASHINGTON - In spring 2010, agents in the Cincinnati office of the Internal Revenue Service, which handles applications for tax-exempt status, faced a surge of filings by new advocacy groups, with little guidance on how to treat them. Their decision to deal with the problem by singling out tea party and other conservative groups for extra scrutiny has now triggered a criminal inquiry, congressional investigations, the departure of two top IRS officials and the naming of a new acting commissioner Thursday.

It was with considerable dismay that we at United Aerospace Workers Local 887 read the footnote on Harry Bernstein's Labor column of March 30, indicating that it was to be his last. Although we wish him the very best as he starts his retirement, we can't help but feel that organized labor has lost one of the few remaining honest labor analysts in the print media. Although there were times when we weren't in complete agreement with everything he wrote, he has never been anything but fair, incisive and direct when it came to stating the case for and about unions and union workers.

Re "Healthcare debate gets uglier," Aug. 6 I appreciate The Times acknowledging that the nationwide disruption of "town hall" meetings has been organized by lobbyists funded by health insurers and their allies. But I was astounded that the article noted: "Still, there is evidence of genuine public opposition," as if anyone disputes this. Of course citizens expressing fury are sincere. But the vast majority of their outrage is premised on utter fiction fed to them by the health insurers and their agents.

In response to a soaring crime rate and the neglected appearance to our neighborhood, located between Monterey Park and Rosemead, South El Monte and Montebello, we have organized the Wilmar/South San Gabriel Neighborhood Improvement Assn. We propose to eliminate the causes of our problems by working together as neighbors who take pride in our community. We recognize that gang graffiti, a blight in any neighborhood, must be removed from our streets and walls. To do this, we have organized a graffiti removal committee to remove it as fast as it goes up. Working closely with the Temple City Sheriff's Station, we have formed Neighborhood Watch teams that will report crimes in progress.

Any columnist who tries to write a daily column about the manners and morals of his times with honesty is bound to offend almost everyone, as I have. John A. McAllister of Hacienda Heights has encapsulated the problem in one all-encompassing paragraph: "Race, ethnicity, country of origin are out, lest you be labeled a racist; the female (human) gender is a no-no, or by George, you're a male chauvinist pig or at least guilty of sexism; comments on politics and religion, I'm sure, would evoke an avalanche of hostility from all sides; sexual preference subjects will get you charges of homophobia or gay-bashing."

Several major players in the conservative "tea party" movement announced on Thursday a new federation to help spread its message advocating smaller and more decentralized government. But don't call them organized. The National Tea Party Federation will issue news releases, respond to critics and help get the word out about tea party rallies and initiatives, organizers said. But they were careful to note it would not change the loose, grass-roots structure of the movement.

International law enforcement officials, including deputy U.S. Atty. Gen. David Ogden, called today for a far more coordinated global response to the growing threat of organized crime syndicates, which they said are increasingly teaming up with terrorist networks and drug traffickers to pose an unprecedented national security threat to the United States and its allies. Speaking at the 78th general assembly of the global police agency Interpol in Singapore, Ogden and some of his counterparts acknowledged that they need to do much more to work together on many fronts, including attacking the money laundering pipelines that are enabling the crime syndicates to flourish in terror hot spots such as Pakistan and Afghanistan and other strategic locations such as Europe, Africa and Latin America.

Covered California, the state's health insurance exchange, announced $37 million in grants Tuesday to begin the massive task of educating millions of Californians about the new healthcare law. The grants will go to 48 organizations, including universities, nonprofit groups, health foundations and unions. They will help state officials explain the new benefits, show people how to access insurance, and encourage small businesses to enroll. Covered California's executive director, Peter Lee, said Tuesday that getting the word out will require collaboration and partnership across the state.

With this app, collect and organize vacation ideas before your trip, as well as digital memorabilia afterward. Name: Springpad Available for: iOS, Android What it does: Saves notes, photos, videos, to-do lists, audio, books, music and more to notebooks that multiple users can share and collaborate on. Cost: Free What's hot: This is not a travel-specific app, but it works nicely as one. For my pre-departure trip...

WASHINGTON - The Internal Revenue Service improperly singled out conservative groups for extra scrutiny of their applications for nonprofit status, a top agency official said Friday, setting off calls for investigations into an organization already under fire for its handling of secret political spending by nonprofits. Employees at the agency's Cincinnati nonprofits office, while screening a flood of applications from so-called social welfare groups last year, set aside about 75 containing the words "tea party" and "patriot" for more detailed review, said Lois Lerner, IRS director of exempt organizations.

SAO PAULO, Brazil--Roberto Azevedo of Brazil has been elected the first Latin American director-general of the World Trade Organization , the global body charged with moving forward stalled trade agreement talks. The choice of Azevedo over close rival Herminio Blanco, from Mexico, was seen as a victory for Brazil's goal of increasing its influence through multilateral institutions, as well as for Brazil's focus on a more “gradual approach to removing commercial barriers” and a significant role for the state, said Brazilian newspaper Folha de S.Paulo . At the national level, Mexico is more supportive of the types of free trade agreements favored by the United States and the European Union, who were said to have backed Blanco.

When giant container ships sail into major ports like Los Angeles and Long Beach, it's not just clothing and cars that they deliver. They also carry critters. The specimens - microscopic algae cells or larger castaways, such as eggs of fish or crustaceans - float about in the thousands of tons of water the boats use as ballast. When the ships dump their ballast at port, the species can establish a foothold in foreign lands, often with detrimental consequences to native wildlife. But soon ports may be able to mitigate some of that harm by predicting where invasive species are likely to arrive.

WASHINGTON - An influential network of some of the country's wealthiest liberal political donors is steering resources to an advocacy group backing President Obama's agenda and to organizations working to pass immigration reform, providing a surge of money that could boost the president's legislative goals. Democracy Alliance, an invitation-only group that makes funding recommendations to its members, selected the pro-Obama Organizing for Action and immigration reform groups such as the National Immigration Forum as some of its top 2013 priorities at its spring conference in Laguna Beach last week, according to leaders of the organization.

Organized praying in school makes as much sense as organized chanting of multiplication tables in church. DONALD SCHWARTZ Santa Ana

Organized major league baseball in a word: "Greedlock." JACK WARNER JR. Los Angeles

BEIJING -- Stephen Lang of “Avatar ” fame has signed on to play a pivotal role in the Chinese-German co-production “The Dragon Angel,” which will be shot in Beijing and the southern Chinese province of Sichuan this year. One-name French director and visual effects specialist Pitof (“Catwoman”) will take the helm of the family-friendly film.  “The Dragon Angel," which was voted most promising co-production in development at last year's Shanghai International Film Festival, tells the story of a 12-year-old American boy who moves to China with his father, an architect who plans to erect the tallest building in the world in a historic part of old Beijing.  The boy wants to save a traditional Chinese courtyard, or siheyuan , from the destruction wrought by the modernization his father represents.

Gary Sacks , the Clippers' vice president of basketball operations, wanted to put an end to speculation about Coach Vinny Del Negro's future. Sacks said that the organization supports Del Negro and that officials are happy with how the team has played. "Our head coach and his staff have done a terrific job here," Sacks told The Times on Monday night. "They deserve a huge amount of credit for the way the team has played and the way our roster has developed. " Del Negro is in the final year of his contract, leading to speculation that his future with the Clippers is uncertain.