Print edition for January 12, 2006

Homeless program missing mark: By Timothy Pratt; Nearly 18 months after its launch, a $1.5-million program to help the Las Vegas Valley's mentally ill homeless people get off the street has not housed a single person.

Editorial: Targeting owners of aggressive pets: The ordinance, written by Clark County, is to be discussed today by officials from the county, North Las Vegas, Henderson and Boulder City. The proposal, which will later be submitted to elected officials for consideration, is similar to an existing measure in Las Vegas that is designed to protect residents from animals that bite other animals or people.

Tropicana's owners take first steps toward redevelopment: By Liz Benston; The man who developed the Rio and built Bellagio and Wynn Las Vegas has been hired by the Tropicana's owners to design and price a redevelopment of the prime Strip property.

Acclaimed Jewish films showcased at Suncoast: By Jerry Fink; For some insight into Jewish culture, check out the upcoming film festival at the Suncoast.

48 more judges needed in 20 years: By Matt Pordum; In the next 20 years, Clark County will need 48 new District Court judges just to keep pace with the torrid pace of growth, according to a county analysis.

Letter: Traffic is even worse than you think: At most times of the day, we cannot make a left turn to go to South Coast or the nearby shopping mall. Nor can we make a left turn to return home from trips north of the area. We have to detour to Pebble Road where there is a traffic light via a series of back streets.

Letter: Dems didn't take Abramoff's money: I know Ms. Berkley means well, but I hope her return of this money doesn't give people the wrong impression. This is a Republican scandal -- it was the Republicans who took the money from Abramoff, not Ms. Berkley or other Democrats.

Peter Gorman: 2. It's how we use decentralization. How we use the regional offices and how we give more authority and autonomy to the principals to make the decisions in a more timely manner.

Daytona 500 is not a yardstick for sucess: Although his primary goal this season is to win the Daytona 500, Tony Stewart admittedly isn't putting the same kind of emphasis into winning the race as he did the Brickyard 400.

Letter: Plant owners deserve all the blame: You told it like it is: The owners have known for the past six years that they needed to clean up the tons of pollutants being emitted daily into the air and yet they refused to do it.

Edward Lee Vargas: 2. That's something that needs to be studied. We want schools that are sensitive to the community. It doesn't make a difference whether the district has 300,000 students or 50,000 students. As superintendent I have to focus on helping students by doing the right thing for them.

Editorial: Skies are a bit too friendly: On Jan. 3 Abramoff pleaded guilty to fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to bribe public officials in a deal that compels him to provide investigators with information about members of Congress who accepted his tainted largesse. Since the deal many members of Congress have been rushing to jettison campaign contributions they accepted from Abramoff.

Columnist Jeff German: Explaining why cops and their union are frustrated with arbitration: The contract arbitration process is wearing thin with the leader of the union that represents some 2,400 Metro Police officers.

Editorial: Iran's reckless nuclear plans: It truly is a frightening prospect: Iran, a country controlled by Islamic extremists and whose new president has called for the extermination of Israel, is embarking on a path where it could one day possess nuclear weapons. The United States and European nations stepped up talk this week of the United Nations imposing economic sanctions against Iran.

Letter: Freedom also applies to unborn children: If the right to abort an unborn child is to Brown "a personal freedom," then she has crossed the line and we are now discussing whether or not it is lawful to murder an unborn child.

Setting stage for superintendent: By Emily Richmond; The marriage with a new superintendent has yet to occur, but the Clark County School Board already is considering counseling.

Anticipating plans for Rx problem: CARSON CITY -- Anticipating the myriad problems plaguing the new federal prescription drug plan for seniors, state officials have set up a program to help people navigate the maze.

Take Five: Rob MacCachren: Rob MacCachren has been racing -- and winning -- off-road events for more than three decades.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: On the rag-tag American Basketball Association and on any number of reasons why Las Vegas' entry is no longer competing: They are to the latest reincarnation of the American Basketball Association what nearly forgotten teams such as the Memphis Tams, Virginia Squires, The Floridians and the Spirits of St. Louis were to the rollicking, original ABA of the early 1970s.

Columnist John Katsilometes: Taking in the year's best demolition (to date) of an old Las Vegas hotel and casino and reports how spectators rated the fall of the landmark that once was the Showboat: By John Katsilometes; Only in Vegas do you have a community of implosion aficionados. A few braved the chilly elements Wednesday morning to witness the flattening of the Castaways.

The six candidates for Clark County Schools superintendent state their positions: The questions:

Robert Collins: 2. We have a lot of large entities that are extremely successful. It's really not an issue of size because size brings economy. I think a regionalized system that has authority, power and is engaged with the public is the best way to address that.

Walt Rulffes: 2. We've already put in place a regional concept. Our initial surveys found that the public feared more layers, more bureaucracy. But later surveys have found growing support for the regional offices than for the central office.

Bernard Taylor: Student achievement. Keep in mind that students are being judged on standards that are just minimums, the floor. We have to pull up kids from the bottom, yes, but we also have to look at the middle and upper levels so that we help all students.

Flashpoint for Jan. 12, 2006: Ethics hearings are certain to produce comic moments -- often unintentional. There already have been some as the panel looks into whether County Commissioner Lynette Boggs McDonald tried to save her husband's state job. Her prime accuser, ex-Democratic assemblyman Wendell Williams, was asked about whether Boggs McDonald was a Republican. "I think she is today; she's been both several times," Williams said of the party-switching commissioner. Later, his pal Morse Arberry, still in the Assembly, contradicted his previous statements to the ethics panel and couldn't recall key facts he previously seemed sure of. Now that's reassuring and, alas, tragicomic.