Print edition for January 28, 2006

Homeless plan shifts to awareness: By Timothy Pratt; A regional committee has approved a stripped-down proposal to use advertising for helping the homeless, 16 months after the plan was first pitched.

Editorial: Recalling the Challenger tragedy: Teacher Christa McAuliffe, commander Dick Scobee, pilot Mike Smith and astronauts Greg Jarvis, Ron McNair, Ellison Onizuka and Judy Resnick perished when an O-ring failed in the seal of a solid rocket booster, causing the shuttle to blow up just after liftoff from Kennedy Space Center on Florida's east coast.

Letter: School Board doesn't need Council's help: We have elected or selected School Board members to hire a superintendent. I resent the level of interference by the council in the School Board's business.

Editorial: Lawmakers fail to see red: But it's a wonder these 11 legislators didn't see red the first time a major company offered them free tickets, worth $500 to $1,000 a pair, to one of the hottest concerts in Las Vegas. According to the Reno Gazette-Journal, Ameriquest's $325 million national settlement -- $1.7 million of which will go to Nevadans -- was announced just days after the tickets showed up on seven lawmakers' annual financial statements.

Letter: Have Democrats forgotten 9/11?: The Patriot Act is designed to protect all Americans, both Democrats and Republicans, yet the Democrats in Congress do all they can to deny this protection. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., even brags of this action. Have they all forgotten 9/11?

Flashpoint for Jan. 28, 2006: If I had a dollar for every candidate who claimed an opponent lied about him, I might own a newspaper. Mostly, those lies, real or perceived, are forgotten after Election Day. But not so with Danny Tarkanian, who lost a state Senate race in 2004 and now is running for secretary of state. In a little-noticed, still-pending lawsuit, Tarkanian sued his '04 opponent, state Sen. Mike Schneider, for statements the incumbent made in fliers and elsewhere about the basketball son's business history. Why? Because, the suit says, the statements "will cast a strong stigma on Plaintiff's professional standing, and will ...

New schools chief vows to improve grad rate: By Emily Richmond; If Walt Rulffes could unanimously win a job that he appeared to be on the verge of losing by a 4-3 vote, then maybe he will be able to also work wonders with the nation's fifth-largest school district.

Mexican shows Brits: Mexican striker Jared "Desert Fox" Borgetti needed only 37 minutes to score in his first English Premiership start for Bolton last Saturday.

Rogers closer to his goals: UNLV President Carol Harter's pending departure is one more chess move in Chancellor Jim Rogers' quest to remake the Nevada System of Higher Education.

Editorial: Foster children on the run: Children who are removed from their homes because of suspected neglect or abuse often do not want to stay in the foster homes or shelters where they live temporarily until their cases are resolved. So they run away, leaving behind social workers and foster families who don't know how to find them and bring them home.

Rogers: Morgan should consider post: UNLV's Boyd Law School Dean Richard Morgan is an ideal candidate for the university's soon-to-be vacated presidency, Chancellor Jim Rogers said Friday.

Letter: Why Alito nomination should be rejected: The issue is not whether Alito is likely to vote against Roe v. Wade or his religious background, but rather his proclivity to uphold the evil concentration of power that the corporationist Bush administration is pursuing. Already Bush and his fear mongers have extorted information from Yahoo!, MSN, AOL and other collections of Internet activity in order to stifle our use of this great communication medium. Thus far, Google has resisted the threats of the so-called "Justice Department" to hand over information on its subscribers.

Fellowship resurrected: It's not easy being a Christian for those who work in Las Vegas' media or entertainment industry, said the Rev. Bob Rieth, founder of Media Fellowship International.