Prime

Your choices in San Francisco hotels are overwhelming. The prices can be too. So during our staff visit to the City by the Bay, we looked for reasonably priced hotels that had charm, location or both. We came back with 14 ideas on places to bed down. It's not a complete list, but it is eclectic, like the city itself. Mystic Hotel. This property, which opened in April, stands on a tunnel-adjacent block of Stockton Street that you'll never see on a picture postcard, yet it has style, as do the Burritt Tavern bar and restaurant downstairs.

There is reason for hope in Nawaz Sharif's victory in the recent Pakistani elections. Sharif, who has twice served as Pakistan's prime minister, has said he wants to build a more robust democracy, revive the country's shattered economy and end the military's 40-year domination of its politics. He has also promised to improve relations with India and take on the radical Islamist terrorism that has tormented Pakistan. The United States should assist him in every way possible to achieve those goals.

Scott Collins' "Channel Island" column remains one of the best reasons to read the L.A. Times, but I think he's all wrong about why 10 p.m. is no longer an attractive slot for TV series ["10 p.m. Is Past Its Prime Time for Viewers," Oct. 27]. Viewers who live on the West Coast have long commutes and have to get up early. I think the problem is simply this: 10 p.m. is our bedtime! Anne Strieber Santa Monica

WASHINGTON - President Obama faces a fresh test Thursday of his determination to steer clear of the civil war in Syria when he considers a desperate plea from a longtime U.S. ally. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to urge Obama in a White House meeting to move more aggressively to end a conflict that has sent more than 1 million refugees fleeing across Syria's borders and threatens to destabilize the region. "Syria will be our main topic.... We will draw a road map," Erdogan told reporters before leaving Ankara, Turkey's capital.

Thailand's biggest party endorsed its leader to resume the prime ministership when the issue is referred today to parliament, despite his ouster by a court this week. Opponents of Samak Sundaravej said that returning him to office -- or selecting one of his supporters -- would intensify protests by the People's Alliance for Democracy, whose members have been camped out in the prime ministerial office complex for more than two weeks. Some analysts warned that Samak's reelection could bring instability, economic chaos and even a military coup.

I'm shocked -- shocked! -- to find that Shea Hillenbrand was upset about something. Even though he was on a first-place team and had nothing to whine about, he was still a distraction. He may think he is, in his own words, a "quality player in my prime," but he's not hitting for average, he doesn't draw walks, and he's got a lower slugging percentage than anyone else in the starting lineup. The less Hillenbrand played, the more success the Angels had. He didn't put up, so he should have shut up. DAVID PENG Cerritos My wife and I are resurrecting an exchange from 2002: Her: "What's the score?"

Irish Prime Minister Charles Haughey, bidding for the overall majority that has always eluded him, Thursday called a general election for June 15. Haughey, his patience running out after six parliamentary defeats in two years for his minority government, made a brief announcement to deputies before officially asking President Patrick Hillery to dissolve Parliament. Haughey, a tough, self-made millionaire known as The Great Survivor in Irish politics, has been prime minister three times in his colorful, seesaw career but has never won an overall majority at the polls.

Three cheers to KTTV for bringing back the old "Batman" series. It's a prime example of a good, clean adventure series. Christy Vasconcellos, Fontana

Blair and religion: In a report in Wednesday's Section A about the religious faith of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, the name of his foundation was omitted. It is the Tony Blair Faith Foundation.

My heartfelt thanks to NBC for two excellent shows, "On Wings of Eagles" and "Sam's Son." They proved that there doesn't have to be bedroom scenes and offensive language to provide prime entertainment. Frances Schacht, Pacific Palisades

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - After a resounding victory in Pakistan's national elections, presumptive new Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif could have pressed his populist, hard-line approach that paints the U.S. as hopelessly malevolent and self-interested. Instead, Sharif, who served as prime minister in the 1990s, and his top aides have tried during the last few days to ensure that Washington does not feel alienated by his return to power. Sharif's team has denounced claims by critics who call him soft on militants and emphasized that the tension between Pakistan and the United States tied to American drone strikes and other issues cannot be resolved through threats and condemnation.

LONDON - Prime Minister David Cameron moved Monday to beat back a brewing rebellion within his Conservative Party over Britain's membership in the European Union, rejecting demands for a speedy public vote on exiting the trading bloc but insisting that he would offer such a referendum by the end of 2017. As he met with President Obama in Washington - where Cameron lobbied for a U.S.-EU free-trade pact - the British leader found himself on the defensive at home against members of his party who want their country to withdraw from the 27-nation EU as soon as possible.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Millions of Pakistanis braved threats from militants and voted Saturday in national elections that marked the country's first democratic transfer of governance and appeared to put former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on track for a potential return to power. The elections change Pakistan's political landscape and probably will sideline the Pakistan People's Party, which has ruled the country for five years. But the results are not expected to lead to any major shift in U.S.-Pakistan relations because the country's powerful military still holds sway over crucial issues such as Pakistan's role in peace talks with insurgents in Afghanistan and the country's relationship with its nuclear archrival, India.

Giulio Andreotti, the seven-time Italian prime minister who dominated Italian politics after World War II, but was tainted by accusations of Mafia ties, died in Rome on Monday after suffering from respiratory problems. He was 94. A lawmaker who lived through Italy's monarchy and its fascist era and sat in every Italian parliament since 1945, Andreotti had a career so intertwined with the country's 20th century history that when he faced trial for seeking favors from Cosa Nostra, the entire system was on trial too. "Andreotti was politics," Pier Ferdinando Casini, head of the Italian centrist Democratic Center Union party, said Monday.

The looming resignation of Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, announced last week, may be very bad news for the prospects of good governance in Palestine. But it has the potential to inject clarity and honesty into the problems of the much-too-promised land. Fayyad's departure may help to dispel four dangerous myths that continue to distort the way different constituencies view the issues that divide the region. It's time we lay them to rest. They are: The myth of Palestinian unity Now that Fayyad is leaving, the way should be clearer for serious discussions between Hamas and Fatah about achieving reconciliation and unity.

JERUSALEM -- Embattled Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad resigned late Saturday after struggling for years against political rivals and lackluster public support. Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who in recent months had also clashed with Fayyad, accepted the resignation, but asked him to remain in office until a replacement is named, according to Palestinian Authority spokeswoman Nour Odeh. The departure means that a new Palestinian government, the fourth since 2007, could be formed in coming weeks.

Ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra pleaded not guilty today before the Supreme Court in one of two corruption cases against him. The court session came on the eve of Thaksin's monthlong trip to England. The court already has granted him permission for the trip. Thaksin faces conflict of interest and malfeasance charges related to his wife's 2003 purchase of a prime piece of real estate in Bangkok.

The prime minister, in office for 5 1/2 lackluster years, resigned to make way for his deputy, who must now try to fix an economy close to recession, heal the country's deep racial divisions and revive a moribund ruling party. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, 69, submitted his resignation to the king, the constitutional monarch, as part of a power transition dictated by the ruling United Malays National Organization to have Najib Razak installed as the next leader. The king accepted the resignation and will swear in Najib, a 55-year-old British-educated politician, as prime minister today, said the chief secretary to the government, Sidek Hassan.

RAMALLAH, West Bank - The political future of Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad appeared shaky Thursday amid reports that he will resign after growing tired of constant battles with his rivals. Fayyad has come close to stepping down before, only to be pressed by President Mahmoud Abbas to stay on as leader of the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority government. Though Fayyad, a Western-educated independent, is popular among donors and the international community, he is resented by many leaders of Fatah, the main political faction in the West Bank.

The death of Margaret Thatcher this week has created renewed public interest -- and, for some, nostalgia -- for British politics during the 1980s. "Yes, Prime Minister," the play based on the popular '80s sitcom that ran on the BBC, is scheduled to have its U.S. premiere at the Geffen Playhouse on June 12. The company announced Wednesday that the cast will feature Michael McKean, Jefferson Mays and Dakin Matthews. "Yes, Prime Minister" ran on British television from 1986 to 1988 -- at the height of Thatcherism -- and was the sequel to the hit sitcom "Yes, Minister.