Print edition for July 12, 2001

Letter: Save energy by dimming Las Vegas glitter: Way up here in Nowheresville we have been making our humble attempts to conserve, and we have discussed the problems in Nevada and California. We have speculated among ourselves as to how much power could be saved if the casinos in your city were to turn down the glitter.

Hornish having great second season: Steve Brisendine; KANSAS CITY, Kan. - Sam Hornish Jr. worried the highly regarded Panther Racing team before the season.

Letter: Balance sought on Middle East: I just returned from a extensive tour of Israel, and I would venture to say that the 2 million Arabs who live in Israel don't find it "democratic." They are second-class citizens who don't benefit one iota from the social system.

Herta's team getting up to speed: Tim Puet; His engine no longer silent, Bryan Herta is starting to make some noise on the CART circuit.

Editorial: Beltway appraisals need review: Many people, who have refinanced a mortgage or are looking to sell a house, can attest that an appraisal is hardly a science. Two appraisers can look at the same piece of land or house and arrive at two very different amounts. But the gulf between what the county offered, and what eventually was arrived at in some instances, is startling. The disparity in some of these cases is so great that county government should reassess its appraisal of land along the beltway.

Harvick flying plenty, on and off track: Jenna Fryer; Kevin Harvick is flying all over the place, spending as much time in airplanes as in race cars.

Auto racing schedules, winners and points standings: Feb. 18 - Daytona 500, Daytona Beach, Fla. (Michael Waltrip)

Columnist Joe Delaney: Bowyer returns to Lady Luck after Irish foray: Joe Delaney; Bowyer and daughter Aisling (pronounced Ash-ling) have been touring together in Ireland, England and Australia as part of a nostalgia package, highlighting hits of the past, similar to the groups playing successfully at New York-New York and Stardust.

Stewart fined $10,000, gets more probation for post-race blowups: Jenna Fryer; CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Tony Stewart avoided a costly suspension Wednesday when NASCAR fined him $10,000 and extended his probation through the end of the season for separate blowups with a Winston Cup official and a reporter following the Pepsi 400.

Letter: Make executives of utilities pay: The ratepayer is subject to all rate increases levied by executive supervisory personnel, yet cannot reprimand them for their actions. They are high-salaried executives with experience and foresight to adjust to all so-called shortages and high costs for their products. However, it is easier to request rate increases through the Public Utilities Commission to cover their blunder, and solves no problem.

Columnist Ruthe Deskin: Memories don't cost too much: Ruthe Deskin; What a difference the years make.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Jones confident heading into L.A. bout: Dean Juipe; From Roy Jones' perspective, confidence has never been in short supply.

Historic gambling spot gutted by fire: Caryn Rousseau; HOT SPRINGS, Ark. -- An early-morning fire Wednesday gutted two buildings in downtown Hot Springs, including the historic Ohio Club, a century-old saloon that once served gangster Al Capone and until the late 1960s offered illegal gambling.

Bus driver in crash faced prior complaints: Keith Paul; The driver of a Greyhound bus, which crashed through a guardrail near Glendale July 3, was the subject of two previous passenger complaints that he fell asleep while driving.

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Savoie ties Muldowney for NHRA win record: Angelle Savoie may have added her name to the NHRA record book last weekend, but the 30-year-old Pro Stock Motorcycle rider isn't completely satisfied.

Community briefs for July 12, 2001: United Blood Services, 6930 W. Charleston Blvd., has scheduled blood drives at these locations:

Columnist Paula DelGiudice: Value of fish takes plunge: Paula DelGiudice; There is a tagged fish in Lake Mead -- part of Busch beer's "Big Jake" promotion gone awry -- only it is not worth anything.

12 days: Steve Guiremand; The Las Vegas 51s return from the All-Star break tied for first place with Fresno in the Pacific Coast League's South Division.

Man gets 4 to 10 years in woman's slaying: Kim Smith; Despite what prosecutors say about him, murder defendant Ernest Valezquez told a judge Wednesday he regrets the slaying of an elderly Las Vegas woman.

Kim Lester hired as Rebels' assistant: Lester comes to the UNLV staff after spending the 2000 season as an assistant at Idaho State where the team went 9-21 overall and 4-12 in the Big Sky Conference.

Guinn awaits local response on air quality: Erin Neff and Diana Sahagun; Gov. Kenny Guinn said Wednesday he is not willing to act as peacemaker between warring local governments in the air-quality debate.

American Legion Baseball standings: (Through July 10)

Where I Stand--Mike O'Callaghan: A book for vacation: EVERY YEAR THOUSANDS of new residents pour into Clark County and call it home. Some have been here for several years and have come to believe this is Nevada. They are only partially correct and sadly they are missing much of the Silver State. This can be corrected by spending vacation time in Ely, Elko, Winnemucca, Fallon, Reno, Carson City or Yerington rather than returning to the place they had left behind before coming to Nevada. This is a big state and its people have big hearts.

President pledges Medicare reform: Discount prescription drug card a priority: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- All seniors should be eligible for a discount prescription drug card to help them cope with the high cost of medications, President Bush said today, unveiling a "Framework to Strengthen Medicare" plan.

Las Vegas area fishing report: LAKE MEAD: Anglers using Sassy Shad lures continue to have success catching striped bass that are feeding on schools of threadfin shad at the Hemingway Wall.

Obituaries for July 12, 2001: Walter Alex Jr., 53, of Las Vegas died Wednesday in a local hospice. He was born April 12, 1948, in St. Joseph, La. A resident for 34 years, he was a hotel porter.

Retailer closes stores in Las Vegas, nationwide: The closings, including HomeLife's one standalone store in Las Vegas, come amid a retail shakeout that has seen falling profits and the demise of big-name competitors Helig-Meyers and Montgomery Ward.

Real estate firm redesigns website: The site enables users to obtain perspective on residential and commercial real estate trends, both in and out of the local market.

Vegas franchisee sued by franchisor: Rick and Gayle Lewis doing business as Event Photo sued Gabor Viczko doing business as Shine Enterprises and Event Photo Las Vegas in Clark County District Court.

Murphy, Tabish appeal to high court: Attorneys for Ted Binion's convicted killers, Sandy Murphy and Rick Tabish, sent lengthy appeal briefs Wednesday to the Nevada Supreme Court in a bid to win new trials for the imprisoned defendants.

Aviation pioneer Morrisey dies: Aviation pioneer Bill Morrisey, envisioning that one day people worldwide would fly aircraft for recreation, provided a simple but rugged airplane for that purpose.

News briefs for July 12, 2001: An investigation by a law enforcement task force into a drug trafficking group operating in Las Vegas resulted in five arrests last week.

Court suspends local attorney: CARSON CITY -- The Nevada Supreme Court Wednesday temporarily suspended attorney Kenneth Hall in connection with a gross misdemeanor child abuse conviction.

Defecting employees sued by LV employment agency: All Jobs Employment sued Michelle Rielly, who resigned on May 4, Michele Reese who resigned on May 7 and their new employer, Career Search International, in Clark County District Court.

Business strong for Boyd Gaming: Boyd Gaming Corp. of Las Vegas rode improved results at its Sam's Town locals franchise to beat analysts' expectations in its second-quarter earnings, the company said today.

Former Reynolds site to have Greek theme: The company that acquired the Debbie Reynolds hotel-casino near the Las Vegas Strip is dropping the Reynolds name and theme in favor of a new orientation based on Greece.

Shufford takes step up in class: Dean Juipe; It's a fight that other, perhaps better known, men rejected.

Halfway house suit to continue: Lorri Ahlm owns the halfway houses for recovering drug addicts and alcoholics. She had sought an injunction blocking the suit.

Contract awarded for new hotel tower: Schuff International Inc. said it will begin work on its portion of the project in November 2001 and complete its work in February 2002. The 13-story tower will sit atop the Venetian's 10-story parking garage.

Ralph Siraco's selections for Friday's races at Hollywood Park: 1st Race -- Sieze Her -- Nakatani takes this Dutrow, Jr. trainee, draws good post for sprint opener, Sieze Her for the victory. Forever Rita -- Pincay aboard Moger, Jr. trainee, needs a prompt start and clean trip from inner box, a factor thoughout. Value Play -- Continental Issue

Quiet aircraft technology legislation introduced: The U.S. Air Tour Association has embraced the Grand Canyon Quiet Technology Implementation Act, introduced by Sens. Harry Reid and John Ensign.

DiMaria, battling cancer, returns as coach: Spencer Patterson; Lying in an isolation room in a New York City hospital fighting off one of the deadliest forms of cancer, Izzy Marion DiMaria hoped for the day he might return to the baseball diamond.

Friend testifies on her concern for Smith: Kim Smith; Alice Wilsey was so concerned about the welfare of her friend, Christine Smith, that she jotted down her suspicions and contacted police.

Pay plan for state workers has limits: CARSON CITY -- The new double-dipping pay plan for government workers in Nevada, which allows them to collect their pensions and still draw a salary, won't be open to everybody.

Wind, not rolling blackout, causes brief power outage: About 10,000 Nevada Power customers lost electricity Wednesday afternoon but it was not a repeat of last week's rolling blackout, company officials said.

Teacher bonus funds to fall short: Cy Ryan and Ed Koch; The $34 million allocated by the Nevada Legislature to provide 3 percent bonuses to teachers and school personnel this year won't be enough to cover all the costs, leaving it up to local school districts to come up with more money.

Mack in town but not back on job yet: Diana Sahagun; Las Vegas City Councilman Michael Mack is reportedly back in town and in good health, but he won't report to work until next week.

Metro's finest are honored: Eleven other officers and civilian employees were also given awards during a ceremony Wednesday.

LV resort gets new president: Hornbuckle is leaving the top post at Las Vegas's largest resort-casino to take the post of executive vice president of marketing at MGM MIRAGE, the MGM Grand's parent company.

Boxer's competency considered by judge: Bonaventure learned Wednesday that the director of a state mental facility believes the former heavyweight fighter is now competent.

Friday's horse racing entries: Post Time 3:30 p.m.

Petal pushers: Demand for flowers in Las Vegas keeps blooming: Walking through an enormous refrigerator, Bruce Greenfield stops and lifts a giant purple allium from a flashy assortment sitting in white buckets along a wall.

Detroit officer accused of felony assault: David Goodman; DETROIT -- A police officer was charged Wednesday with felony assault for beating a man outside a casino, which caught the incident on videotape, authorities said.

Aladdin attorney reports progress on its redesign: David Strow; An attorney representing one of the Aladdin's owners outlined the progress of a redesign of the struggling Strip property to the Nevada Gaming Control Board Wednesday, but provided little new light into the property's financial situation.

Fight schedule: Friday

OfficeMax sued in Las Vegas delivery dispute: The Las Vegas delivery service provider said Cleveland-based OfficeMax, which has nine locations in Las Vegas, breached the agreement when it began on Jan. 5 to use two or more delivery persons OfficeMax hired and also contracted with United Parcel Services to deliver its office furniture, equipment and supplies.

Strip club bouncer faces charges in man's death: John Curran; ATLANTIC CITY -- A bouncer at a strip club has been charged with murder in the stomping death of a 24-year-old investment banker who had just been ejected, authorities said Wednesday.

LV company disputes workers' comp claim: Mission is disputing a decision by an appeals officer with the state Department of Administration to reopen an industrial injury claim by an employee, Brian Britz.

Guinn gives few details on how he'll address future taxes: Erin Neff; With the state facing a $1 billion shortfall over the next eight years, Gov. Kenny Guinn told a business group Wednesday the state's various interests must work together to find a solution.

Las Vegas, St. George rank high in business study: Austin, Texas, topped the list in the same category -- cities with a population between 750,000 and 1 million.

Editorial: Pilot fatigue taken seriously by FAA: The Air Transport Association and the Regional Airline Association both argued that strict enforcement of the regulation, which is set to go into effect in mid-November, could result in flight delays or even cancellations. The groups assert that if a flight was running behind schedule, and if it was estimated that by the time the flight landed at its next stop it would go beyond a pilot's 16-hour day, then the pilot couldn't leave for the next destination. The airlines argue that it would be next to impossible in many circumstances to find a pilot on short notice to continue ...

Columnist Ron Kantowski: We're still wondering about Junior: The debate rages on. Was "The Fix" on for Junior?

Henderson's Latham wins home run contest: Steve Guiremand; It's been a week to remember for Henderson's Chris Latham.

Ex-middle school teacher pleads guilty to sex charge: Kim Smith; A former middle school teacher accused of sexually assaulting a former student accepted a deal Wednesday.

Stock split announced: The additional shares will be issued Aug. 20 to shareholders of record as of July 31. The split will increase Alliance's shares outstanding from 10.87 million to 21.74 million.

Garcia urges earlier proficiency in algebra: Terry Webster; A single word is enough to scare students who cling to their calculators or barely make it through basic math.