Print edition for September 15, 2003

Football 'the savior' for Boulder City: Adam Candee; Two weeks of pain finally numbed in the Boulder City end zone Friday night. It all but disappeared after the game in the Eagles' locker room, full of boisterous song, funky dance and sweet release.

An Unclear Picture: Questions abound as age of digital TV approaches: Kirk Baird; Confused?

Wagers offered on NYSE chief's future: Contracts tracking the probability that the exchange's chairman and chief executive will announce his resignation by Dec. 31 began trading Thursday at TradeSports Exchange Ltd.'s website, where everything from the outcomes of sporting events to the likelihood of Osama bin Laden's capture can be traded.

Columnist Susan Snyder: Austin folks put new spin on the old: She showed off the 19th-century pipe organ next to the altar. It still sings on Sundays, powered by canvas bellows tucked behind it.

Officials: Western states key to gas dilemma: Bob Anez; BIG SKY, Mont. -- The demand for natural gas continues to outstrip supply and western states, from Montana to New Mexico, are prime sources for filling that gap, a pair of Bush administration officials said Sunday.

Editorial: A star's final message: He wasn't always a great role model. His was the image of a tough iconoclast, albeit an iconoclast of the people. He went through his drug and alcohol phases without alienating his fans or even the pinnacle of the establishment -- in 1970 he performed at the Nixon White House. Still, toward the end, he had a message for all of us about those kinds of choices. Earlier this year he recorded an emotional music video about what a lifetime of drug abuse can do to your health and to the people around you. "What have I become?" he sang.

Mosley ready to capitalize on victory: Dean Juipe; It is generally agreed that Shane Mosley failed to capitalize on his 2000 win against Oscar De La Hoya. He went into a shell, fought a few lesser opponents, and eventually was beaten in back-to-back fights that scuttled his marketability.

Letter: Alabamans say no to big tax increases: Except in this case the state is Alabama, the Republican governor is named Bob Riley and the tax increase is not up to the politicians -- it is put before the voters. Result: an overwhelming defeat. Sixty-eight percent of the voters decided they'd rather take a chance on services being cut and schools being closed than accept an unfair tax burden of epic proportions.

Birth announcements for Sept. 15, 2003: Aug. 29:

Columnist Dean Juipe: Judges' decision has Arum fuming, claiming fix: Dean Juipe; Like a volcano waiting to erupt, Bob Arum progressed in stages, from calm to boiling to out of control.

Company to start cell phone venture with Motorola: The deal is a coup for Microsoft, which has struggled over the last four years to gain credibility in the mobile phone market.

Letter: Citizens must be more informed: I would also like to recommend to all Clinton critics -- if they think they can handle the truth -- a best-selling book by Al Franken titled, "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right." The things President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and the rest of that bunch have done and are still doing make Bill Clinton a saint by comparison.

Columnist Lisa Ferguson: Sun Lite for Sept. 15, 2003: Lisa Ferguson; Fall officially starts next week, and you know what that means: Well, it actually means different things to different people.

Rebels believed in their coach's message: Steve Guiremand; UNLV coach John Robinson had a simple message for his team following their final practice on Thursday afternoon before heading off to Big Ten heavyweight Wisconsin.

Presley's show marked by star (not vocal) power: Spencer Patterson; After she introduced her band Saturday night, Lisa Marie Presley had a bit of fun with her audience.

Small rise in industrial production reported: Jeannine Aversa; WASHINGTON -- Industrial production edged up by just 0.1 percent in August, restrained by weakness in manufacturing, especially for big-ticket goods such as automobiles.

Editorial: Worrisome ruling on initiatives: The judges are overreaching in claiming that the principle of "one man, one vote" is being harmed. The Idaho law takes reasonable steps to make sure that initiative petitions have support across the state before they go on the ballot. A requirement that signatures must be collected in many of a state's counties prevents the initiative process from being dominated by large metropolitan centers. If an initiative does get enough signatures, every registered voter has a chance to cast a ballot on the question, hardly a situation that impairs "one man, one vote."

Letter: Pols ignore their constituents: I wonder how average citizens might think about this if they did more than watch TV news. The arrogance and the casual air that these politicians have when they do things like this are beyond irritating and quite alarming.

Thunderbirds may be grounded for Nellis show: Air Force officials are not saying how long the Thunderbirds will be grounded in the wake of Sunday's crash in Idaho, and that leaves the team's performance in question for November's air show at Nellis Air Force Base.

Las Vegas Motor Speedway results: At New Hampshire International Speedway

Aid sought after insect invasions: CARSON CITY -- Nevada received $240,000 last spring from the U.S. Agriculture Department to use to spray pesticide on the swarms of crickets that infested millions of acres in Northern Nevada.

Second annual diabetes walk set for Saturday: Registration for the walks can be done online at www.diabetes.org/walk

Guinn recall leaders call DMV action illegal: CARSON CITY -- The committee organizing a drive to recall Gov. Kenny Guinn says its efforts to gather signatures has been illegally blocked by the state Department of Motor Vehicles.

VegasBeat -- Timothy McDarrah: Weekend dish is all about the bout: Britney Spears also sang in Las Vegas over the weekend. She performed a surprise miniconcert at Rain in the Desert, which will be broadcast on Carson Daly's top-rated MTV show, "Total Request Live."

Gaming briefs for Sept. 15, 2003: PORTLAND, Maine -- A disputed anti-casino advertisement is now airing on all television stations in Maine.

Mother of suspect said she tried to get help: Erica D. Johnson; A mother of an alleged member of the 311 Boyz says she tried to get help for her son's violent behavior years before he attacked another teenager while wearing brass knuckles.

Principals will get chance to appeal: By Emily Richmond; Principals who believe their schools were unfairly designated as failing to show the "adequate yearly progress" will have a chance to appeal, Clark County School District officials said.

News briefs for Sept. 15, 2003: North Las Vegas Police are searching for a suspect in the shooting of two men Sunday morning near Cheyenne Avenue and Civic Center Drive, police spokesman Justin Roberts said.

Sports briefs for September 15, 2003: Kristie Marano won a gold and the U.S. women won six other medals, but Japan won five golds to take the women's team title and Georgia took the men's Sunday in New York at the World Freestyle Championships.

UMC task force to make recommendations: The citizens committee created in response to University Medical Center's fiscal crisis is putting the final touches on policy changes at Clark County's public hospital.

Fresno still looking for a patsy or two: From the decals on its travel bags and the size of the lumps of its backside, it's apparent that Fresno State will play anybody, anytime, anywhere.

Forum Shops expansion continues: Forum Shops expansion continues

Palms misses deadline, seeks extension to exit Nevada Power: Kevin Rademacher; The Palms hotel-casino saw its window of opportunity to leave the Nevada Power grid and buy electricity on its own expire last week.

Las Vegan's museum houses military artifacts: Jace Radke; Bill Schott's home looks much like any other in a well-kept older neighborhood in southeast Las Vegas, but inside a specially sealed room in the garage, Schott's passion for military history comes alive.

Fourth student disciplined in wake of teen's death: Dan Kulin; A fourth Boulder City High School student has been disciplined as a result of the principal's investigation into events surrounding the death of a football player, a Clark County School District official said Friday.

Obituaries for Sept. 15, 2003: Vera M. Bullock, 76, of Las Vegas died Friday in a local hospice. She was born Feb. 3, 1927, in Texarkana, Ark. A resident for 58 years, she owned Ruben's and Ruben Bullock's West Side Story.

Report: Plodding costs city schools teachers: WASHINGTON -- For five years Roni Cooper tried to get a teaching job at a New Orleans public school. She had experience, credentials and an interest in working in the hard-to-fill field of special education -- just the combination schools want.

Railroad exempt from tax on payroll: CARSON CITY -- In its rush to enact a tax package, the Legislature inadvertently exempted the Union Pacific Railroad from the new payroll tax, and the railroad may even receive a tax reduction.

Organizers expect more than 15,000 to attend G2E: The event -- known in the industry as G2E -- is expected to attract more than 15,000 people to the Las Vegas Convention Center today through Thursday. The event is sponsored by the American Gaming Association and Reed Exhibitions, a British trade-show organizer.

Three killed as semi hits cars on Interstate 15 in California: Seven people were injured in the chain-reaction collision, the California Highway Patrol said.

Southern makes trek worthwhile: Nick Christensen; Two weeks after the UNLV football team drew 21,791 for its home opener, two Division I-AA teams from across the country battled it out at Sam Boyd Stadium in front of a crowd nearly as large.

Rebels' pressure on quarterback neutralized star Badgers receiver: One of the key matchups in Saturday's UNLV-Wisconsin game had Lee Evans, the Badgers' All-Everything receiver, going against Rebels cornerback Ruschard Dodd-Masters and his relatively inexperienced teammates in the defensive secondary.