Print edition for October 17, 2001

Rebels finish 11th in Pate Intercollegiate: The Rebels (296-292-306--894) passed Arizona State in the tourney's final round, but still finished 43 strokes behind tourney champ Oklahoma State. Clemson's D.J. Trahan and Oklahoma State's Hunter Mahan shared medallist honors.

Columnist Muriel Stevens: Energy tips gratefully illuminated: When the power crunch came and my monthly bill soared to more than $300, I knew it was time make some changes in how I light up my life.

Panel: Building loyalty means offering value: Casino consumer experts can't wait for the Palms hotel-casino in Las Vegas to open.

Letter: Mining rules not detrimental: Environmentally responsible mining as described by recently strengthened Bureau of Land Management mining rules (that Secretary of Interior Gale Norton is expected to revoke soon) does not require Americans to choose between a clean environment and a strong economy.

Obituaries for October 17, 2001: Wade Leon Albertson, 39, of Las Vegas and Pahrump died Sunday in Las Vegas. A resident for 19 years, he was an assembler of modular housing and a Marine Corps veteran.

News briefs for October 17, 2001: A 37-year-old woman was killed Tuesday when the pickup she was driving collided with a dump truck in the intersection of Gowan Road and Commerce Street.

Venetian seeks replacement of lien judge, master: CARSON CITY -- The Las Vegas Strip's Venetian megaresort asked the Nevada Supreme Court on Tuesday to remove Senior District Judge James Brennan and a special master from a case involving more than $300 million in construction lien claims against the property.

Columnist Jon Ralston: Nolen was consummate City Hall insider: NOTES ON A PASSING and a boring election year to come:

Chlorine in water to be doubled: Las Vegas Valley Water District customers may soon notice a stronger chlorine smell in their tapwater.

Editorial: Questions still linger about plant: Ammonium perchlorate is a hazardous material that Las Vegans are all too familiar with. In 1988 there was a terrible explosion at the Pacific Engineering and Production Co., a plant that produced ammonium perchlorate in the southeast part of the valley. Two people died and more than 350 were injured in that blast, which also resulted in more than $70 million in damage, much of it to residential homes in Henderson.

Decision on new murder trial awaited: Kim Smith; The wait for Paul Browning and his family continues.

Coffee beans run aground in Las Vegas shops: Max Jacobson; What is Matsuo's mission? It is to roast and sell the best coffee in the city.

County frees grants to help subsidize laid-off workers: Adrienne Packer; Clark County administrators expect that the $1.6 million they freed up in federal and state grants will help pay the rent for almost 600 families hurt financially as a result of last month's terrorist attacks.

Judge set to decide Mack case: Diana Sahagun; District Judge Sally Loehrer will decide this week whether to dismiss a lawsuit seeking to remove Las Vegas Councilman Michael Mack from office for alleged malfeasance.

Letter: Term limits for officeholders defy rationality: Take for example Bill Clinton and Rudy Giuliani. They are two politicians, one from each major party, each with similar flaws in their private lives, and both with outstanding track records in public office. They are both highly competent, capable leaders. They both inspire confidence and a level of comfort when they're in charge due to their proven abilities. In both their cases, they would probably win re-election if they weren't forbidden from running again because of term-limit laws.

UMC's contracts with Sierra Health to be terminated: By Emily Richmond; The County Commission, acting as the University Medical Center board, voted Tuesday to terminate contracts with Sierra Health Services next year, a move the public hospital's chief executive said is part of ongoing negotiations with the managed care company.

District struggles to compile data on school tests: Terry Webster; The last high school proficiency test for the Class of 2001 was given in July, but the Clark County School District still doesn't have an accurate count of how many of its 11,000 students passed or other statistical information it usually gathers from the test's results.

Poll: Nevadans favor more wilderness land: A poll released by a coalition of environmental groups Tuesday shows widespread support for an increase in federally designated "wilderness" areas statewide and in Clark County.

Pollution rules for Apex area weighed: New rules to clean up the air in the Apex area are on the way, Air Quality Assistant Director Catherine MacDougall told Clark County commissioners on Tuesday.

Letter: Bin Laden's goal is unattainable: He wants to unite the whole Middle East countries and have them all fight against the United States in a brutal holy war. Where he gets the idea that he can accomplish his feat is beyond my powers of comprehension. The majority of Middle Eastern countries are allies of America.

Chaparral teacher gets Milken honor: The award recognizes outstanding educators throughout the country. It also seeks to expand teachers' opportunities for professional growth and provide a national network with other Milken Award winners, with the goal of improving education.

Commission agrees changes are needed in public defender's office: Adrienne Packer; Clark County commissioners agreed Tuesday that significant changes must be made in the public defender's office before also agreeing to name longtime deputy public defender Marcus Cooper to the top post.

LV firm makes Forbes list: Shuffle Master was ranked No. 32 on the list, up from No. 33 last year. This is Shuffle Master's third year on the list.

Community briefs for October 17, 2001: The Nevada Council of the Blind will hold its 29th annual state convention 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday at the First Southern Baptist Church, Building C, 700 E. St. Louis Ave.

Columnist Elizabeth Foyt: Spirit of the islands marks Ortanique opening: Elizabeth Foyt; Ortanique Las Vegas, inside Paris Las Vegas, enjoyed a high-spirited evening as guests were welcomed to the restaurant's opening party by "Jubilee" showgirls in glittering bikinis made of gold coins.

Editorial: Bush shouldn't cave in to industry over rules: The mining companies contend that unless Bush considerably weakens the Clinton regulations, they may be forced to relocate to countries where the regulations aren't as stringent, a threat they've made before when new rules have been proposed. Well, guess what? Many of them have left anyway, even though there hasn't been a significant change made to mining regulations since 1980. They have no compunction about quickly shutting down operations in Nevada and leaving ghost towns in their wake. And while reclamation is much better than it once was, the reality is that the industry, by its very nature, does alter ...

McCarran beefs up security: Adrienne Packer; McCarran International Airport administrators hope that 27 new security guards, who will patrol terminals at McCarran, will increase passengers' comfort levels and, ultimately, encourage more people to fly.

Money pours in for rebuilding Greek Orthodox church: Stacy J. Willis; Before Sept. 11, Manhattan's St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church cast its shadow -- of a small, square building with a cross on top -- against the World Trade Center south tower.

Riverboat faces huge fine: Grand Victoria is the highest-grossing casino in Illinois, averaging between $1.2 million and $1.5 million in revenues each day. Donna More, a lawyer for the riverboat, said officials were "shocked" by the Gaming Board's claims and plan to appeal to an administrative law judge.

Burned worker 'just started to run': Keith Paul; Samuel Pagdilao didn't see or hear the explosion Monday at the model rocket plant where he was working. He just saw people running out of the building.

Harrah's reports lower earnings: David Strow; A post-Sept. 11 downturn in business and problems at the Rio hotel-casino in Las Vegas combined to send Harrah's Entertainment Inc. earnings down 14 percent in the quarter ending Sept. 30.

Columnist Peter Benton: Fans have to get out to pro golf events: Peter Benton; It was only a couple of years ago that we lost the LPGA Tour stop in Las Vegas. Now, the Las Vegas Senior Classic is gone.

Airlines losing $50 million per day: Dave Carpenter; CHICAGO -- United Airlines' chief executive James Goodwin says the carrier "will perish" sometime next year if it cannot soon stem huge losses that have worsened dramatically since Sept. 11.

Columnist Victoria Sun: Even without Tiger, event was a success: Victoria Sun; So Tiger Woods didn't magically appear at the $4.5 million Invensys Classic that wrapped up Sunday afternoon when missed birdie putts by Tom Lehman and Rory Sabbatini gave Bob Estes a one-stroke victory.

Memorial service set for church: Stacy J. Willis; Before Sept. 11, Manhattan's St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church cast its shadow -- of a small, square building with a cross on top -- against the World Trade Center's South Tower.

Earnings mixed for Harrah's: David Strow; While business is down in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, Harrah's Entertainment Inc. said today that a strong bounce back at its Midwestern riverboat casinos and its newest acquisition helped ease the pain of the post-Sept. 11 downturn.

Tuesday's prep results: BOYS SOCCER

Van Pelt relishing role as Rams' quarterback: Steve Guiremand; If UNLV and Colorado State had played last month as originally scheduled, Bradlee Van Pelt would not have been the starting quarterback for the Rams.

Officials say fiscal goals are being met: Jeffrey Libby; Henderson City Manager Phil Speight is staring over an empty notepad, his chin cupped in his hand. His tasseled loafers are perched on the legs of the chair next to him.

Berkley proposes help for tourism: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- To revive the flagging tourism industry, Congress should allocate new small-business loans, give travelers a $500 tax credit and make business meals 100 percent tax deductible, Rep. Shelley Berkley told House colleagues today.

Reid staff being tested for anthrax exposure: Staff members from Nevada Sen. Harry Reid's Hart Building office on Capitol Hill were being tested for anthrax this morning after traces of the deadly bacteria were reported to be in the building's ventilation system.

Thursday's horse racing entries: Post Time 1 p.m.

Internet gaming out of bill on terror: WASHINGTON -- The House overwhelmingly passed a measure today expanding the government's power to cut money flows to terrorist networks -- without an earlier provision designed to cripple the burgeoning Internet casino industry.

Hazardous materials, permits, hard to track: Erin Neff; Monday's explosion of a model rocket plant in Clark County sent shock waves beyond the evacuated half-mile radius of AeroTech Inc.

Chlorine in water to double: Las Vegas Valley Water District customers may soon notice a stronger chlorine smell in their tapwater.

JetBlue gets ready to pounce if a Las Vegas airline fails: JetBlue Airways, a New York-based low-fare air carrier with plans to begin flying to Las Vegas in 2003, may accelerate those plans if an established airline drops out of the picture.

CDC retesting Reno sample: Despite a positive finding by the state, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta has not found anthrax in the contents of a mailing received by Microsoft workers in Reno.

Ralph Siraco's selections for Thursday's races at Santa Anita: 1st Race -- Kimora -- Berrio aboard Dee trainee, draws good box for route opener, only runner in the race who trains over Anita oval. Fila Dough Pro -- Ships in from training center, draws good rail post, Valenzuela atop Baker trainee. Value Play -- Lady Luckster

Inspections held at plant within past six months: Keith Paul; Clark County fire and federal officials within the past six months inspected the model rocket plant that erupted in flames Monday, triggering several explosions.

Company reports 19 percent drop earnings: Company reports 19 percent drop earnings

Ford revenue slumps, loss posted: The results were in line with Wall Street expectations.

LV firm developing Playboy slot machines: Under the agreement with Playboy Enterprises International Inc., Alliance's Bally Gaming and Systems will create a series of slot machines "featuring the trademarks, art and images of the Playboy brand." Marcus Prater, vice president of marketing for Alliance, said the company hopes to submit the first slot machines in the line for regulatory approval by spring 2002.

Columnist Jeff Haney: Duke opens as big favorite to retain title: Hailed by one oddsmaker as a "mini NBA team," powerhouse Duke has been installed as a heavy favorite to repeat as college basketball's national champion.

Casinos missing Internet marketing chances: David Strow; When it comes to the marketing potential of the Internet, Saverio Scheri III believes only a few casino companies truly "get it."

Columnist Steve Addy: Spoonhour rejuvenated by time off: Steve Addy; The first time white-haired Charlie Spoonhour raised his voice to his UNLV players with salty words, all of the air seemed to leave the arena. It was like getting cussed out by your grandpa.

Reid staff to be tested for anthrax exposure: Staff members from Nevada Sen. Harry Reid's Hart Building office on Capitol Hill were being tested for anthrax this morning after traces of the deadly bacteria were reported to be in the building's ventilation system.

Media giant's loss widens: AOL Time Warner had a net loss of $996 million, or 22 cents per share, in the three months ending Sept. 30, compared to a net loss of $905 million, or 21 cents per share, in the same period a year ago. Revenues, however, grew 6 percent to $9.32 billion from $8.76 billion.

Ex-UNLV assistant Down fired by Boston: Down, once an assistant coach at UNLV, succeeded Jim Rice after the Red Sox finished next to last in the AL with a .267 batting average in 2000. This season, they finished tied for seventh at .266, one point behind the New York Yankees.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: Robinson cashes in: According to British fashion designer Mary Quant, "Having money is rather like being a blonde. It is more fun, but not vital."

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Several CART teams may defect to rival IRL: Honda's announcement last weekend that it would follow Toyota's lead and pull out of the CART FedEx Championship Series after the 2002 season has fueled speculation that several of the series' top teams would defect to the rival Indy Racing League.

Prosecutors' remarks anger high court justices: CARSON CITY -- Justices of the Nevada Supreme Court fumed Tuesday over improper remarks prosecutors in Las Vegas and Reno have made to juries in criminal trials.

Metro, FBI united in terrorist tracking: Relations between Metro Police and the FBI are at an all-time high, as both law enforcement agencies work hand-in-hand tracking the local movements of the terrorists in the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington.

State tennis tourney set to begin Thursday: Unbeaten Bishop Gorman and defending state champion Silverado will square off in one girls semifinal at 1:30 p.m., with Northern Region champion Galena battling Green Valley in the other, also at 1:30 p.m. Winners will advance to this year's team title clash, slated for 9 a.m. Friday.