Print edition for December 26, 2001

Las Vegas flights unaffected by Hawaii airlines merger plan: Both companies have one-stop round-trip flights between McCarran International Airport and Honolulu.

November jobless rate highest point in 7 years: CARSON CITY -- Nevada's unemployment in November rose to 6.5 percent, the highest in seven years.

Notebook: Star lineman sits out for Utah: Steve Guiremand; University of Utah players didn't find out until just before boarding their bus for Sam Boyd Stadium on Tuesday morning that they would be without their best offensive lineman, senior all-Mountain West Conference left tackle Doug Kaufusi.

Locals, tourists enjoy holiday, LV style: By Emily Richmond; Tourists and locals enjoyed Christmas Day in Las Vegas, taking advantage of holiday sales along the Strip, big-payoff slots and a county marriage license bureau open for business.

High-end retailers change strategies to attract sales: At Las Vegas' upscale shopping malls, there are signs -- literally -- of a struggle to attract customers.

Community news briefs for December 26, 2001: A conference on the diagnosis and treatment of Attachment Disorder is planned for Jan. 7-8 at UNLV.

Nickel slots carry load in Nevada: CARSON CITY -- It's the nickel slot machine player, not the high rollers, who is producing for Nevada casinos through the tough times.

Price cap rise may not help Nevada Power: David Strow; Price caps on wholesale electricity sold in the West could be rising in the near future, a move that Nevada Power Co. had been begging the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to take since last summer.

Casino revenue continues to increase after hotel's opening: BRIDGEPORT, Ind. -- The Caesars Indiana riverboat casino has exceeded analysts' revenue and admissions expectations since the opening of its new hotel in late August.

Local news briefs for December 26, 2001: Police say a Las Vegas man killed his ex-girlfriend and then shot himself to death on Christmas.

Former mental hospital eyed for entertainment potential: PRESTON, Conn. -- In southeast Connecticut, a region made famous by casino gambling, a former mental hospital may be headed for new life as an entertainment complex.

Columnist Jeff Haney: Handicapper likes Buckeyes, Ducks as 'dogs: Handicapper Wayne Root of Las Vegas-based Global Sports & Entertainment is releasing all of his college bowl game picks for this season in the Sun.

Filings increase by 27%: Chapter 7 bankruptcy filings -- personal and business -- climbed 27 percent statewide over a one-year period ending in October, the Reno Gazette-Journal reported in its Sunday editions.

Safety tech: Jennifer Knight; Before America's sense of safety was assaulted on Sept. 11, Evangelos Yfantis was busy in his university laboratory transforming the digital language of ones and zeros into a computer program that would make airlines safer.

Board disciplines Vegas firms: RBM Concrete Construction Inc. had its license revoked by the board because it allegedly failed to pay for materials and services, failed to cooperate in the investigation of a complaint and failed to establish financial responsibility. The company was also accused of failing to include a license number and monetary limit on a contractor proposal and failing to report a change of address or personnel.

Retailer fires back at Desert Passage: Manrico sued Desert Passage, a mall at the Aladdin resort in Las Vegas, in Clark County District Court on Dec. 18.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Bowl game exceeds expectations: Dean Juipe; As far as I'm concerned, all the fears and advance negatives pertaining to the Las Vegas Bowl can be bundled up and set out by the side of the road with the rest of the post-Christmas trash.

Charity director takes job in Calif.: Gail Ousley, interim director of the United Way of Southern Nevada, has resigned to become vice president of a California United Way. Her resignation creates a leadership issue for the agency that finances local charities.

Colleges sell information to credit card companies: Jennifer Knight; It was a given that the Community College of Southern Nevada would make money off of Denise Wilcox, 48, when she signed up for a creative writing course, but she never realized they would profit from her name.

Utes come up 'huge': Steve Guiremand; Utah tailback Dameon Hunter and USC safety Troy Polamalu were named game MVPs for their respective teams Tuesday:

Guinn proud of first three years in office: CARSON CITY -- Gov. Kenny Guinn says his administration has made "great progress" in his first three years in office, but some political observers would beg to differ.

Local club scene serves up tasty fare: Max Jacobson; Everyone knows that Las Vegas is a 24/7 town, but for those night crawlers who want to both eat and be entertained, the choices are more limited than some might imagine.

A Helpful Hand: Ruth DeHollander has traveled the world. She's sharp, outgoing, witty, fiercely independent, organized and creative.

Letter: Social Security needs 'lock box': The president and Republican leaders feel the way to combat the downturn in our economy is to raid the Social Security Trust Fund. They would have everyone believe it is becoming financially insolvent, and the only way to remedy it is to begin privatization of Social Security.

Columnist Elizabeth Foyt: Holiday party helps Marine Corps' campaign: Elizabeth Foyt; Drawing upon the resources of the more fortunate to help the U.S. Marines' Toys For Tots campaign, James "Bucky" Buchanan and his bride, Gianna Orlandi Buchanan, recently hosted a holiday open house. Entering guests were welcomed by uniformed Marine Corps personnel, who accepted the bags and boxes of toys that filled a truck at evening's end. The toys and others brightened the hearts of local children in need this season.

Savvy wine buys: Yalumba Oxford Landing Shiraz '99: Available at Lee's Discount Liquors, $9.99.

Editorial: Congress: Good, bad and the ugly: A good example is the passage of additional presidential trade powers. These powers were denied President Bill Clinton by Republicans, and many Democrats, for the past seven years. This year, in the name of unity, they were passed by Congress and sent to the White House. The 107th Congress passed other bills that provided tax cuts, additional funds for education, use of force against nations and organizations supporting terrorism, airport security, airline bailout, expansion of government surveillance and detention powers and a $40 billion spending bill for domestic defense.

Letter: Stop nuke waste by shutting down the plants: The first thing to do is to stop creating more waste. Right now, the owners of every nuclear power plant in America are assuring their local citizens that the nuclear waste will be moved to a federally approved repository some day. But no such repository exists, and numerous scientists have denounced Yucca Mountain as unworkable.

Columnist Nicholas Kristof: Pakistan tries to control its own terrorists: Nicholas Kristof; JUST TO PUNCTURE our hypocrisy for a moment: We've been battling terrorism by bolstering backers of terrorism in Pakistan.

Republic Services to add cleaner-burning trucks: Availability of funds and a need to provide the local waste disposal company with cleaner-burning garbage collection trucks have paved the way for Republic Services of Southern Nevada to land $25 million in tax-exempt bond money.