Print edition for November 15, 2004

Passenger traffic could set record this year: Until now, industry economists had expected passenger traffic this year to be second to the pre-9/11 surge in 2000. But low fares, a diminished terrorism threat, more international travel and a favorable forecast for the holiday season have changed the consensus among industry trackers.

Air Force recruiting soars at annual show: Eric Leake; The C-5 Galaxy is one mammoth plane. It sat at the entrance to the Aviation Nation air show Sunday, cargo maw wide open, like a 247-foot-long, 65-foot-tall billboard for the Air Force.

North Vista Hospital owner reports jump in earnings: Michelle Swafford; IASIS Healthcare LLC, owner of North Vista Hospital in North Las Vegas, reported its profit increased 74 percent during the fiscal fourth quarter.

Lovelock prison in lockdown after fight: CARSON CITY -- About 20 prisoners are in isolation today at the state prison in Lovelock as a result of a fight that erupted in the prison yard Friday.

Another Yucca advocate likely to replace Abraham: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- The departure of Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham likely would not herald changes in the Energy Department's Yucca Mountain project because President Bush is sure to appoint another Yucca advocate, observers said today after Abraham's resignation was announced.

September tourism rises 9.7%: The second-highest percentage increase in monthly visitor volume of the year in September more than made up for a lackluster August, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority statistics released today show.

Columnist Ralph Siraco: Jockeys fighting for better health care coverage: Ralph Siraco; One of the issues in the recent presidential campaign was the rising costs of health insurance. If newly re-elected President Bush wants to get some input on the issue, he need look no further than down the road to former U.S. Ambassador William Farish of Lane's End Farm.

Property owners on notice: Tax bills going up: Hundreds of thousands of Clark County property owners are receiving or soon will receive unwelcome notices that their tax bills are going up, in many cases dramatically so.

Firm asks for dismissal of suit over Web site: The company that owns the lasvegas.com domain name has asked a Clark County District Court judge to dismiss a claim from the owner of VEGAS.com that it be allowed to buy the rights to lease the name.

Teen who fought dress code returns to school: By Emily Richmond; For Kim Jacobs, there were some first-day-of-school butterflies in her stomach this morning.

Mediator goes to work on union dispute: Alana Roberts; Operating Engineers Local 501 and Mandalay Resort Group bosses met Friday for negotiations with the help of a federal mediator in hopes of hammering out a contract to cover about 320 maintenance workers at three hotels.

Grant to boost health studies at UNLV: The UNLV School of Public Health, in business since August, has secured a grant from the National Institute of Health that will be used to further the school's research goals.

Saturday's Major College Basketball Scores: AP; New Mexico 93, Santa Clara 59

News briefs for November 15, 2004: A Las Vegas man died Sunday night after being shot outside a local apartment complex.

Top 25 Fared: AP; No. 1 Southern Cal (10-0) beat Arizona 49-9. Next: vs. No. 24 Notre Dame, Nov. 27.

Sierra Pacific stock back over $10: Kevin Rademacher; Sierra Pacific Resources, parent company of Nevada Power Co., on Friday reached a milestone when its long-depressed stock reached a double digit price in trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

Union to protest at opening of Bass Pro Shops: Alana Roberts; Fanfare over the opening of the new Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World at the Silverton Hotel Casino today may be tempered by protesters from the Carpenters Union, who plan to pass out leaflets and post banners near the store.

Obituaries for November 15, 2004: June Adelienne Baker, 80, of Las Vegas died Friday in a local hospital. She was born May 28, 1924, in Jim Thorpe, Pa. A resident for 25 years, she was a homemaker.

Alabama to announce gambling machine decision: Phillip Rawls; MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- Attorney General Troy King said his review of Alabama's electronic gambling businesses has taken longer than expected because the industry is governed by a complicated patchwork of laws and regulations.

Ramadan challenging for converted Muslim: Giving up food and water was easy.

Saturday's Women's Major Basketball Scores: AP; Georgia St. 73, Columbus St. 64

Vegas Marine killed in Iraq: Jace Radke; A 19-year-old Marine from Las Vegas died in Iraq on Friday, making him the ninth member of the military from Nevada killed in Iraq, Kuwait or Afghanistan since fighting began in the Middle East in late 2001.

New owner revamping Alexis: The new owner of the non-gaming Alexis Park Hotel has acquired 4.7 acres adjacent to the property and is on track to develop a 28-story hotel with 1,000 rooms and a 70,000-square-foot casino.

22 years after alleged rape, trial begins: Molly Ball; Richard Miller's cornrows are graying now, and so is Spencer Brooks Jr.'s beard.

Women's College Basketball Schedule: AP; Minnesota at Washington, 10 p.m.

Play area opens at mall: Play area opens at mall

Sunday's Major College Basketball Scores: AP; Santa Clara 90, N. Carolina A&T 52

Cuban artists seek asylum: The grim reality of life in Cuba was no match for Las Vegas' bright lights, excitement ... and freedom.

Sunday's College Basketball Scores: AP; FAR WEST

NHRA-Automobile Club of Southern California Finals Results: AP; Funny Car

Air Force's newest weapons displayed at Aviation Nation: Eric Leake; Firmin Berta went to the Aviation Nation air show Sunday for the flyovers, the people -- and to see what his money bought.

Lottery asks police to review handling of ticket scandal: Lottery Director John M. Ross said in a news release that he asked for the review to reassure the public of the lottery's integrity.

Indian lobbying mess thickens in Louisiana: Alan Sayre; NEW ORLEANS -- Under any analysis, $32 million is a lot of money for lobbying, especially when the guy who is getting the money refers to his clients as "morons," "monkeys" and "stupid idiots."

Scherer, former spokeswoman, for LV, named to state post: Scherer, 47, of Carson City was named to the post by Allen Biaggi, director of the department. For the past four years she has been president of Nevada Strategies, a company that provides planning, communications and government relation services.

Northern Arapaho Tribe near casino license deal: David T. Staddon, general manager of 789 Bingo and Casino, last week also showed members of the Select Committee on Tribal Relations the artist's rendering of the new casino, along with floor plans.

Lady Rebels give No. 14 Minnesota a close call: Adam Candee; The Lady Rebels awoke today to find the best possible medicine for coming torturously close to upsetting 14th-ranked Minnesota on Sunday night in Seattle: a chance to get right back on the court.

Kaplan won't ask for recount in Assembly race: Kaplan challenged Republican Valerie Weber, R-Las Vegas, in Assembly District 5. Democrats targeted the seat, largely because the district is closely divided between Republicans and Democrats, and ultimately they registered enough people to take a lead in the district, 9,519 registered Democrats to 9,447 registered Republicans.

N.Y. governor signs pact with tribe for Catskill casino: New York Gov. George Pataki and the Seneca-Cayuga Indian tribe of Oklahoma agreed to allow the tribe to build the first of three casinos in the Catskill Mountain region.

Ten compete to lead Nevada State College: The 10 candidates vying for the chance to lead Nevada State College at Henderson are predominantly provosts, vice presidents or deans looking for a step up.

Wrigley to buy Kraft's candy brands for $1.48 billion: Chris Burritt; Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co., the world's largest gum maker, agreed to buy brands including Altoids mints and Life Savers for $1.48 billion from Kraft Foods Inc., its biggest acquisition ever.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: This UNLV football season is past tense: Since the Rebels joined a real conference in 1996, they've had only one season in which they won more games than they lost. Regardless of the spin athletic director Mike Hamrick is putting on his pitch to prospective replacements for John Robinson, the UNLV football program is not -- I repeat, is not -- a sleeping giant.

Sports briefs for November 15, 2004: Serena Williams pretended she couldn't remember playing Maria Sharapova in the Wimbledon final, amnesia being a convenient way of forgetting her one-sided loss.

Bickering Rebels don't put up much of a fight: Steve Guiremand; FORT COLLINS, Colo. --- Before the kickoff of Saturday's game at Colorado State, retiring UNLV coach John Robinson was introduced to the Hughes Stadium crowd and given a plaque with a golden Ram on it in recognition for his contribution to Mountain West Conference football.

Editorial: Big Dig has implications for Nevada: In Boston they do have a nickname for their biggest project. They call it the "Big Dig." It's a highway re-routing and rebuilding job that's been going on since 1991, around the time work on Yucca Mountain started. It's designed to streamline Boston's notorious traffic, and it involved tunneling under Boston Harbor to Logan Airport. The nearly finished project would merit only passing interest in Las Vegas except for two things: Hundreds of leaks are allowing millions of gallons of water to pour into the tunnel. And the co-manager of the Big Dig, Bechtel Corp., is the same corporation co-managing ...

Grants to help school projects: The Clark County Public Education Foundation announced its annual Leader's Choice Initiative grants last week, with awards ranging from $11,000 to $25,000.

Editorial: People with no names: After years of being adrift on the streets, with no place to safely store belongings, many, if not most, homeless people no longer have birth certificates, Social Security cards, driver's licenses, military records or any of the normal paperwork required for proving you are who you say you are.

Traveling squads go home with losses: Nick Christensen; OVERTON -- The road was cruel to football teams from smaller schools as three of the four traveling 2A and 3A teams were shut out in Saturday's state semifinals.

Senate Democrats get committees: CARSON CITY -- Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, has released her party committee assignments for the 2005 Legislature.

Columnist Susan Sndyer: Ruling is a true education: Susan Sndyer; Last month board members for the Dover Area School District mandated that high school students learning about evolution and Charles Darwin must simultaneously learn the concept of "intelligent design," the Associated Press reports.

Diary may play role in jury's decision: Molly Ball; Three hours after he fatally shot his ex-girlfriend, Vannasone Ouanbengboune wrote in his journal in red felt-tipped pen, "The only forgive that I have for you is one bullet in the head."

Wynonna's wide-ranging styles wow crowd: Leah Robinson; The 40-year-old country star delivered a tour-de-force performance, proving she's a redhead to be reckoned with.

Augustine's attorneys look forward to cross-examining: CARSON CITY -- Controller Kathy Augustine, suspended from office but still drawing pay, will return to the Senate on Nov. 29 to enter a plea to articles of impeachment charging her with misusing her office and breaching the public trust.

Cheyenne marches on after emotional win: Nick Christensen; DeMarco Murray lay on the field Friday at Valley High School, the rubber pellets in the artificial turf absorbing the tears that just kept coming.

Letter: Bush now free to implement radical agenda: Bush was clear about his agenda, he was endorsed by 51 percent of the voters and Republicans hold significant majorities in the House and Senate. People should get what they voted for. Bush should be unfettered in fully implementing his legislative agenda and all judicial candidates should be promptly ratified.

Tabish talks of alibi, relationship with Murphy: By Matt Pordum; As he began his roughly five hours of testimony in a packed courtroom on Friday afternoon, Rick Tabish said he "absolutely and unequivocally" did not kill Ted Binion.

Most cars fare poorly in group's whiplash test: Of 73 cars tested by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, only eight received an overall good rating.

American Express suing credit card companies over antitrust violations: Eileen Alt Powell; NEW YORK -- American Express Co., the travel and financial services giant, said today it was suing Visa and MasterCard over anticompetitive business practices.

Letter: Northwest land must be spared: Now that two varieties of endangered plants have been identified in these undeveloped sections of the northwest desert, as well as paleontological fossils that hold clues to how life was lived in the Mojave Desert during the Ice Age, we are asking that all parties sign a conservation agreement to protect these and other sensitive resources in our area.

Lions Club hosts eye screenings: Wednesday: Rainbow Plaza, 911 S. Rainbow Blvd.

High court OKs lawsuit in face-scarring cosmetic case: CARSON CITY -- A cosmetics company that gave a lotion to a Las Vegas woman whose face was permanently scarred is entitled to sue the manufacturer of the product, the Nevada Supreme Court has ruled.

Birth announcements for November 15, 2004: Nov. 4:

Clinton, P-Funk show no signs of slowing down: Spencer Patterson; Legendary frontman George Clinton and his Parliament-Funkadelic crew rocked Rain at the Palms for 3 1/2 hours Sunday night, sending their audience home in a blissful daze after the clock struck midnight.

Web Gems: Not constricted by content or format, Webtoons splash across Internet: Kirk Baird; Not to mention with the click of a mouse, Internet surfers had access to any number of Webtoon sites, such as www.icebox.com, www.atomfilms.com and www.wildbrain.com. The dot-com bust, though, changed all of that.