Print edition for January 19, 2006

Silence golden for UNLV senior: UNLV senior Nick Hurd obviously wants to be a millionaire and may even be one -- but until this spring, he's the only one who knows.

Kurt Busch is feeling like No. 1 with his new No. 2: For a moment Tuesday, Kurt Busch assumed it was a case of mistaken identity.

Flashpoint for Jan. 19, 2006: Culture of corruption. Honest leadership. Remember those phrases, folks. On second thought, don't bother. You're going to hear them clanging in your head before Campaign '06 is through. From D.C., where the Harry Reid-led Democrats unveiled their ethics reform package, to Las Vegas, where Nevada Democrats did the same, the party smells blood. Ethics is going to be used more than ever this year. And on the eve of a sexy political corruption trial here, expect the culture of corruption also to be affixed to the County Commission while challengers present their honest leadership. I have a headache already.

Letter: Hollywood continues to shun biblical themes: Remember last year, when the Oscar went to "Million Dollar Baby" instead of Mel Gibson's magnificently directed "The Passion of the Christ"? "Passion" earned $370 million by Sept. 2, 2004, while "Million Dollar Baby" brought in a mere $100 million. Yet there was no Oscar for Mel and his "Passion." Why? I believe it was because Hollywood simply refuses to recognize great movies that possess a biblical theme.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: Blowing bubbles can be serious: Yeah, I know. Get a life.

Columnist Jeff German: On the tireless efforts to solve girl's death: From a distance the mass of candles, stuffed teddy bears, flowers and candy hearts looks out of place in front of a dirty parking lot Dumpster at The Fountains at Villa Cordova apartments.

Columnist John Katsilometes: Don't expect to see any Miss America contestants at the tables: The pageant has been moved from Atlantic City to Las Vegas, the show is being broadcast from the Aladdin (a major hotel on the Strip, for the uninitiated), and the contestants and support staff are being housed at that very resort.

Editorial: Lobbyist training closer to home: According to a recent Newhouse News Service story, experts say mandatory training sessions for lobbyists probably won't prevent scandals such as the one emerging around Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff. But it can't hurt to remind those who lobby lawmakers what the rules are.

Editorial: Partial scholarships for full loads: The program once offered graduates of Nevada high schools scholarships covering a full class load of 15 credits per semester at state schools of higher education. But in order to save money, state lawmakers decided last summer that the scholarships now will pay for only 12 credits per semester.

Letter: Smokers who pack casinos are rude: Clearly, I believe that the smoking habit that many people have should not be allowed to affect my life. Only because tobacco is legal are smokers allowed to force their vile habit onto others.

Where I Stand -- Brian Greenspun: Bringing us Hank Greenspun's eulogy to the founder of the Showboat Hotel: When buildings die, they get imploded. That is the way it works in Las Vegas.

Blues' popularity goes in cycles: "There was a big blues explosion in the '40s and '50s and then again in the middle '60s," said Tommy Castro, one of the busiest blues guitarist/vocalists in the country. "The explosions seem to come when something happens to bring attention to the music, and people say 'Wow, this is great stuff,' when it's been around all the time.

Letter: Alaska not the key to energy woes: He, and others like him, should be aware that even if the oil companies had permission to drill there, it would be much more than a decade for this oil to be realized.

Jeff German on the tireless efforts to solve girl's death: As you get closer, you see computer-generated photos sprinkled throughout the makeshift memorial to the 2 1/2- year-old girl whose body was dumped here last week, clad in the kind of soft and brightly colored clothing you would expect any girl of her age to be wearing.

Slow fire response blamed on short staffing: North Las Vegas firefighters cannot respond to emergency calls quickly enough because of a shortage of staff in the rapidly growing community, according to a study the fire department hopes will bolster its calls for a budget increase.

Last trip home to Mexico: By Timothy Pratt; To obtain the visa, the following documents are needed:

Editorial: Reprieve for assisted suicide: It permits doctors to prescribe lethal drugs to terminally ill patients who are mentally competent and who have been medically determined to have less than six months to live. Two doctors must verify these conditions before the drugs can be prescribed. After surviving federal court challenges, resistance from some state lawmakers and a ballot initiative against it, the law finally became effective in 1997.

County program criticized in audit: J. Craig Anderson; Clark County's program designed to ensure that growth does not harm endangered plants and animals is suffering from poor supervision and is riddled with conflicts of interest involving specialists who oversee it, auditors say.

County chooses not to sue: Clark County administrators are not buying the argument from two Las Vegas lawyers that the county could recover hundreds of millions of tax dollars from Internet travel operators.