Print edition for December 6, 2002

Day of infamy forgotten in schools: By Emily Richmond; President Franklin Roosevelt said Dec. 7, 1941, was a day that would live in infamy, but as far as most of Clark County's schools are concerned, the 61st anniversary of Pearl Harbor has been all but forgotten.

States work to improve local security: Jace Radke; While the federal Homeland Security Department is moving toward linking more than 20 government agencies with state governments, public agencies and businesses are also working to better protect critical infrastructure from terrorist attacks.

HCA opens new service center: The company employs about 230 people in Las Vegas but expects to employ 625 people by the end of 2003, said Phil Dinwiddle, CFO of the Las Vegas center. Right, Angela Corona, HCA collections specialist, works on a claim at the center.

Sneezing, sniffling signs of cold and flu season: Those eligible for a free vaccine through Medicare or Medicaid must present an insurance card. For those not eligible, the cost is $15 for a flu immunization.

Goodman vows fight to keep tax shares: Las Vegas and Clark County lobbyists will fight any attempts to take property tax money from municipalities to help balance the state budget during the 2003 Legislature, Mayor Oscar Goodman said Thursday.

Baseball cards in state auction: State Treasurer Brian Krolicki said most of the items were recovered from unattended safe-deposit boxes.

Gomes qualifies by skin of his teeth: At a glance

Mandalay expects to meet analysts' estimates: By Liz Benston; Room rates at most of Mandalay Resort Group's Las Vegas casino resorts remain weak, but the company expects to achieve analysts' profit estimates for the fourth quarter, company executives said during a conference call with investors and analysts Thursday.

Casino developer studies opportunities in Mexico: The Journal said Wynn plans to go to Mexico in January to scout locations and that he would operate a casino with a partner, Alberto Santos, a wealthy Mexican businessman and former senator.

Porter names two top staff members: Porter has hired Windsor Freemyer to be his chief of staff and Traci Scott to be his press secretary.

Doctors say plan would reduce lawsuits: Two doctors who support efforts to change Nevada's new medical malpractice litigation law to reflect California's more physician-friendly statute say it would help reduce the number of malpractice lawsuits in this state.

Big League game returns to Las Vegas: The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Colorado Rockies will meet Thursday, March 27. Tickets go on sale March 1, but fans who purchase a ticket plan from the Las Vegas 51s receive the chance to but the seats early.

'Billy' Knight, brother of Gladys, dies at age 55: Billy Knight is the second high-profile member of Gladys' family to die in Las Vegas in the last four years. Gladys' son Jimmy Newman, her road manager, died on July 10, 1999, at age 36.

Three men indicted on murder charges: Erica Johnson; Three men have been indicted on murder charges for killings that took place earlier this year in Las Vegas.

Curbing water waste: Water district more aggressive in fining violators: Dennis Gegen's day tracking down water wasters begins at 4 a.m. because many of the Las Vegas Valley's sprinklers begin hissing before dawn.

Columnist Sal DeFilippo: Don't worry about the injuries, just enjoy Vick: Sal DeFilippo; I'm growing weary of hearing all the television commentators say that an injury to Falcons quarterback Michael Vick is simply a matter of time.

Mayor says he would practice law if elected to second term: Dan Kulin; Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said Thursday his campaign promise to stop practicing law while mayor was "foolish" and wouldn't be one he would make for a second term in office.

Columnist Jeff German: Back-room deal drives Experience: Paris has proven to be a master in the art of cutting back-room deals with public officials.

Another Yucca conflict of interest alleged: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- Nevada lawmakers say the Energy Department has ensnared itself in another conflict-of-interest mess involving a law firm it hired to handle a Yucca Mountain matter.

Penney out to cash in against UNLV: Steve Guiremand; NEXT UP

Lady Rebels head for road game in Texas: The Islanders (5-0) have posted victories over Texas-Arlington, Texas-San Antonio, Louisiana-Lafayette, SMU and North Texas.

Utility settling power manipulation probe: The Texas power supplier would refund $14 million and stop wholesale electricity trading for two years under an agreement with Federal Energy Regulatory Commission trial staff, El Paso Electric said Thursday.

Casino sued by landlord: The lawsuit was filed by Olivia Silvagni and the Northern Trust Bank as co-trustees of the Michele Silvagni Family Trust, William Morse and Wells Fargo Bank as co-trustees of the Victor Silvagni Family Trust, Moe Ltd. Family Partnership, Gregory Moe, Maria Wadsworth, Rebeca Polidan, Garrett Wadsworth, Heather Moe, Morgan Moe, Kathryn Seligman, Diane Coulthard Kneeland, Premier Trust of Nevada and Karen Coulthard Tadsen.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Mayweather brings it on himself: Dean Juipe; Floyd Mayweather Jr. came into professional boxing with a clean slate, like most everyone else.

Gambling publisher Luckman dies: Edna Luckman was not a gambler, but she realized early on the need in Las Vegas for gamblers to have a sporting chance against the casinos.

Two finalists named to head Housing Authority: Dan Kulin; A former head of the Charlotte, N.C., Housing Authority and the current assistant executive director of the Philadelphia Housing Authority are the finalists for the top job in the Las Vegas agency.

Underdogs with plenty to gain: Dean Juipe; One of the underdogs feels he has a score to settle, while the other can do a great deal not only for himself but for the solvency of his promotional company with a victory Saturday night.

News briefs for Dec. 6, 2002: The state treasury will auction off unclaimed property, including a large collection of sports cards, jewelry and encased silver coins, Saturday at Robert Deiro and Associates, 4050 W. Harmon Ave., Suite 1.

Record exhibit space sold: A spokeswoman for the Consumer Electronics Association, Arlington, Va., said Thursday that CES will have more than 1.2 million square feet of exhibits at the Las Vegas Convention Center, the Las Vegas Hilton, the Riviera and Alexis Park for the show Jan. 9-12.

Women's death called mystery: Jenn Lawson; The Clark County coroner's office is investigating the "very unusual" death of a woman found burned in a house near Durango Drive and Flamingo Road Thursday night, Clark County Fire Department spokesman Bob Leinbach said.

Herbst expands with slot route deal: By Liz Benston; Herbst Gaming Inc. of Las Vegas has signed an agreement to purchase the Nevada slot route operations of slot making giant International Game Technology, a deal that would put No. 2 ranked Herbst in line with the largest slot route operator in Nevada.

On Display for December 6, 2002: "The Holly Dolly Show," an exhibit featuring handmade dolls, puppets, toys and ornaments created by Contemporary Arts Collective members, is on display through Dec. 28 at the Arts Factory, 101 E. Charleston Blvd., Suite 101. 382-3886.

Columnist Spencer Patterson: Was the Stones' show at The Joint inferior? Yes: Spencer Patterson; Strange as it may sound, the Rolling Stones could have learned a thing or two by watching Yes on Tuesday night.

Editorial: Planning is a facade in county: Last week the Clark County Commission, in a mind-bending vote, changed the county's master plan in the southwest to allow 300 homes to be built underneath the flight path of planes departing from McCarran International Airport. To no avail, the County Commission's staff, the Planning Commission, the Spring Valley Town Board, the airport's managers and the school district all asked the County Commission to reject the change.

Editorial: Is Bush rearranging chairs on Titanic?: Worried that a languid economy might ruin his chances for a second term -- a fate that befell his father -- President Bush on Friday gave the boot to Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill and economic adviser Larry Lindsey. The dismissals, coming on the heels of the resignation of Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Harvey Pitt, could be positive if they signal a change in economic policy. Without that, it doesn't much matter who signs our currency or bends the president's ear.

Big issues face lawmakers: Erin Neff; WEEKEND EDITION: Dec. 8, 2002

Columnist Jeff German: New allies aid state in Yucca struggle: But now that the battlefield has switched from Congress to an independent federal court in Washington, the state is finding more allies than it ever could have imagined.

'Snoopy' stripped to essentials at West Charleston: They are the loveable characters created by one of the most lovable cartoonists.

Still time to bid in Sun Holiday Auction: This years list of items, which appeared in last Fridays Sun, can be accessed through a link on the homepage of the Suns website at lasvegassun.com.

Where I Stand -- Mike O'Callaghan: Don't forget homeless: It has been more than three years since we last recorded the death of a homeless man caught in a drainage ditch during a rainstorm. None of us know or can remember the name of the homeless men who drowned in 1999 and last week. Somebody knew them because they were a friend, brother, father, cousin or uncle to another human being. They weren't just numbers but were fellow men and women who belonged to somebody at some time during their lives among us. I have been told that 47 homeless people have died on the streets of Clark County ...

Geoff Carter -- Scene Selection: Mouse roars in Disney set: Few Hollywood studios have documented their history as faithfully or as well in recent years as Disney. Granted, the studio has to answer to a higher standard than Warner Bros. or Metro-Goldwyn Mayer: Unlike Jack Warner, Walt Disney was a public figure and almost universally beloved, and unlike MGM, Disney owns its entire film catalog -- all the way back to the first Mickey Mouse cartoon in 1928.

Columnist Muriel Stevens: Gaetano's unique among LV's neighborhood Italian restaurants: There is something about Gaetano's at 10271 S. Eastern Ave., Suite 111, in Henderson that sets it apart from other neighborhood Italian restaurants, yet good Italian food is common in Las Vegas. But at what other Italian restaurant can you dine on sand dabs -- those delicious, small sole-like fish -- at lunch or dinner?

Leppard's spots: Spencer Patterson; WEEKEND EDITION: Dec. 8, 2002

Corgan's Zwan taking flight as a supergroup: Spencer Patterson; When: Thursday.

Performing Arts for December 6, 2002: Brass band

Columnist Jon Ralston: Re-election tops Reid's wish list: In case you are unaware, Reid's re-election campaign began Nov. 6 -- the morning after the election in which the teetotalling senior senator nevertheless had a pounding hangover after the Democrats lost the Senate and his Nevada-sponsored slate of candidates were landslide losers.

VegasBeat -- Timothy McDarrah: Take a holiday from 'Gangs': Scorsese and my family were both guests one summer weekend at Jill Krementz' family's New Jersey estate.

Letter: Party must go back to its roots: Ralph Nader is highly qualified as the world's best con artist. The Green Party is not admirable, only naive. Nader will appear on the scene sometime next year just long enough to pick up his election funding money. He will make a speech, which will again mislead the Greens into wasting votes. He then will fade away for the next four years. On our tax money!

Letter: Elected officials make veterans feel less patriotic: I still remain patriotic, but I question the real motives of warlord Kublai W. Bush, who is hot to trot for war no matter what U.N. inspectors find in Iraq! Why? Well, for starters, war makes many jobs, it takes minds off of the economy, and the rich get richer.

Columnist Benjamin Grove: Yucca rhetoric is heating up on both sides: Benjamin Grove; As Gov. Kenny Guinn and other prominent Nevada politicians are committing to a lengthy legal challenge to the project, a Las Vegas-based group called Nevadans for Nuclear Safety and Benefits has been quietly pining for the dump (they prefer to call it a "highly sophisticated engineered facility"). The group has launched a statewide mailing campaign to convince people that Nevada should throw in the towel.

What's driving some local college students?: Jennifer Knight; Higher education and big rigs go together about as well as a cocktail of beer and diesel fuel -- yet a trucking school has found a home at the Community College of Southern Nevada.

Columnist Erin Neff: Lawmakers must wrest Legislature from lobbyists: Erin Neff; Forget about setting new limits on what the paid representatives can do in Carson City, the Legislature is just now getting around to telling the lobbyists what the old rules were supposed to be.

Where I Stand -- Mike O'Callghan: Let's not forget what happened 61 years ago today: This was another world war that was supposed to be the war that ended all wars. Americans hoped this would be the end of wars, but deep in their hearts most of them knew it was a dream. What was foremost on their minds was to retaliate and make the world a safer place for everybody. They knew what terror Germany and Japan had caused among the people of many nations, but the whole truth didn't surface until Americans returned from Japanese prison camps and Nazi death camps were made public.

Where I Stand -- Mike O'Callaghan: Special family members: PETER LANDERS, writing last month in The Wall Street Journal, reported on two studies featured in the journal Science. Landers writes:

'Holiday Follies' joins Snoopy: "The Holiday Follies" will feature food, a silent auction, entertainment and a special performance of "Snoopy! The Musical."

Columnist Susan Snyder: A crisis difficult to identify: He was a homeless man found dead in a storm drain Monday. Authorities believe he was among a small group of people who sought refuge in a wash that sheltered them from the cold and society's view.

Datebook for December 6, 2002: Las Vegas Arts District will showcase local artists, unique shops and street entertainment 6 p.m.-10 p.m. the first Friday of each month at Main Street and Charleston Boulevard. Admission is free. 678-6278.

Computer repair class pays dividends for schools: By Emily Richmond; WEEKEND EDITION: Dec. 7, 2002

'Cathouse' sheds light on Nevada prostitution: Kirk Baird; So sex, specifically the Moonlight Bunny Ranch in Carson City, is the perfect backdrop for HBOs latest America Undercover special, "Cathouse."

Columnist Susan Snyder: Feeling quite cozy in Vegas: December is the time of year when we get to feel a little smug.

All a'Board: 'Billboard Music Awards' strives for variety in Vegas show: Spencer Patterson; "Las Vegas is an incredibly visual location and venue, and it offers us the opportunity to go there every year and try to create stuff that feels fresh," Bain, the program's executive producer, said in a recent phone interview from his Los Angeles office.

Columnist Jerry Fink: A sea of musical gifts keeps Boatman afloat: Tim Boatman was a musical prodigy, learning to play the piano at age 5.

At last: Graceland and Las Vegas converge: What: Mobile Graceland.

Community briefs for Dec. 6, 2002: Las Vegas Valley Senior Friends will host Patsy Crawford-Waits, president of Medicare Advisory Foundation, who will be on hand to provide members with the latest information on Medicare changes for 2003 from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Editorial: Pay raise now up to the voters: Great care should be given to how the ballot question is written and what restrictions should be placed on the compensation if the measure passes. For starters, there should be two ballot questions, so that residents vote separately on the pay raise and the car allowance. A pay raise and a car allowance are very different types of compensation and should be dealt with individually. Besides, one shouldn't die or survive based on the other.

Cammack, prominent surgeon and humanitarian, dies: Dr. Kirk Cammack was a cowboy at heart.

Families value Scintas' wholesome act at Rio: Who: The Scintas.

Political notebook: City Council gets its Irish up: Erin Neff; It's long been proven that bettors who follow Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman's advice will usually end up ripping up their tickets.

Air Force halts training missions: Wednesday's mid-air collision of two A-10 jet fighters about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas was apparently the last straw for the Air Force general in charge of air combat.

Letter: Study biological danger at Yucca: Bacteria and viruses already in the mountain, and new ones introduced by storage of nuclear wastes there, could develop mutant strains that will be indestructible for a long time.

Developer has plans for 61 acres: The developer, whom the mayor would not identify, has had an architect draw up plans for an academic medical center and a "mini-Central Park" on the former railroad yards.

Editorial: Bush should release local security funds: In Nevada, Guinn estimates additional tax money totaling $800 million will be needed over the next two years to keep essential services intact. Governors of other states face the same financial pressure. At the same time they are asking their legislatures to realize the need for tax increases, governors should be pressuring the Bush administration, which is holding up federal money already approved for local law enforcement agencies to bolster their antiterrorism programs. Western governors should be on record as insisting that this money -- more than $1.5 billion -- be released immediately. Without its necessary funding, homeland security is ...

Test Site workers' screening continues: A total of 62 former Nevada Test Site workers or their families have received compensation for illnesses related to their work at the nuclear weapons proving ground during the Cold War.

Letter: Limit terms of president, congressmen: Make it one three-year term for representatives, one four-year term for senators and one eight-year term for presidents. We don't need career politicians.

Turn in those bighorn plates: No registration renewal or emissions inspection is required if the registration is current. However, motorists will be charged a $5 decal fee and a Prison Industries Fee of 50 cents per plate.

Appeals court upholds conviction: The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the appeal of Keith Shwayder, who was convicted of racketeering and other charges in the scam.

Columnist Steve Guiremand: Mountain West teams deserve a lump of coal: Steve Guiremand; The Las Vegas Bowl has two more years remaining on its deal to take the No. 2 team from the Mountain West Conference. And if I were executive director Tina Kunzer-Murphy, I would begin sending out feelers to the Big 12 Conference and Big Ten Conference to see if they'd be interested in perhaps taking that spot.

Las Vegas Area Fishing Report: Updated Dec. 6, 2002

Columnist Adam Candee: Respect for LV's Pool runs deep: Adam Candee; You're Chad Pool and you live football through every fiber of your body.

Saturday's horse racing entries: Post Time 12:30 p.m.

Rahal, Honda to team up for car on '03 IRL circuit: Brack returns to Team Rahal after spending one season with Target/Chip Ganassi Racing in CART. Brack drove for team owner Bobby Rahal in 2000 and 2001 in CART and won four races and earned six poles in 40 races. In 19 races this season with TCGR, Brack had one win and one pole and finished sixth in points.

Blood drives scheduled: Wednesday: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., County Government Center, 500 Grand Central Parkway; 7 a.m. to noon, Valley Hospital, 620 Shadow Lane; noon to 5 p.m., Cox Communications, 121 S. Martin Luther King Blvd.; 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Internal Revenue Service, 4750 W. Oakey Blvd.

High Country News gets new chief: It is the first time in 20 years that the nonprofit, independent newspaper has changed leaders.

Cheyenne, Gorman lead the pack: Adam Candee; Boys basketball glance

Three area students scholars at UNR: Senior Scholar Award winners from Southern Nevada are:

Ralph Siraco's selections for Saturday's races at Hollywood Park: Saturday's card

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Herbst's season not so terrible: Troy Herbst of Las Vegas continued his desert domination by claiming both the Class 1 and overall championships in the 2002 Optima SCORE Desert Series -- and made a little off-road racing history in the process.

Obituaries for Dec. 6, 2002: Katie Anderson, 79, of Las Vegas died Tuesday in Las Vegas. She was born June 20, 1923, in Tennessee. A resident for eight years, she was a retired director for the state of Tennessee, a World War II Navy veteran, a member of Christian Women's Club and Nevada Gems.

Official questions legality of initiative: Dan Kulin; The North Las Vegas city attorney says City Council meeting policies cannot be changed by a ballot initiative, as is proposed in a petition that would have voters decide in April whether residents should have more say in council meetings.

VegasBeat -- Timothy McDarrah: Animal magnetism draws PETA to NFR: The National Finals Rodeo at Thomas & Mack Center, which starts today and runs through Dec. 15, is no exception.

Correction: The Sun corrects its errors. If you find a mistake, call 385-3111 to report it.

Columnist Barb Henderson: Holiday season sparkles with nature's beauty: Barb Henderson; December blows in and delivers a special magical outdoor connection with the holiday season.

Thursday's prep results: Boys Basketball

Lawmakers work on property tax relief: CARSON CITY -- While most of the talk around the Legislature is about taxes, two Republican lawmakers are working on plans to protect Nevadans from losing their homes for failure to pay taxes in dire emergencies.

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