Print edition for January 30, 2006

Bush has new nuke plans in store: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration is reportedly planning to float a proposal to accept nuclear waste from other nations, and that could both re-energize the flagging effort to construct the proposed waste repository at Yucca Mountain and rally Yucca opponents.

Letter: Fear of nuclear war should bring us together: I visited the Pearl Harbor memorial, which was an emotional experience. Here in Las Vegas, painted on a wall on Buffalo Drive near Charleston Boulevard, is a painting for those who lost their lives on 9/11 to rest in peace.

Editorial: A 'dummy giveaway program': Unfortunately, the properties have proven to be surplus for a good reason -- they aren't habitable. Or they are located in remote areas.

Former dancer Petty remembered as 'the life of the party': Las Vegas lost one of its more colorful characters Jan. 12 with the passing of 73-year-old Betty Petty.

Teamsters resist plan to open NLV offices on Fridays: They are, by definition, public servants.

Editorial: Act swiftly on new mine laws: The priority of mine safety was considerably lowered after President Bush took office in 2001, according to an investigation by Knight Ridder newspapers. After examining federal records and conducting interviews with past and present mine-safety officials, the newspaper group found that "relaxed mine-safety enforcement is widespread."

No remedy in sight: Molly Ball; In the controversy over whether pharmacists should be allowed to refuse to fill prescriptions because of their moral beliefs, Caliente pharmacist Adam Katschke could be the poster boy.

Columnist Jeff Haney: 'Beat Boston' will continue even after the contest's namesake was injured in an attack on the Strip: The show will go on.

Career still on a high note: By Ed Koch; At a military affair in the late 1960s, Las Vegas showroom emcee G. Barney Rawlings sang the Irish classic "I'll Take You Home Again, Kathleen," which impressed then-Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John Paul McConnell.

Editorial: Admit that ANWR fight is over: But New Mexico's Sen. Pete Domenici, chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, is vowing to get a drilling bill passed one way or the other. He was quoted in the San Francisco Chronicle last week as saying, "We've got to find a way. We think there's one out there."

Young people's court: Molly Ball; After the prosecution rested its case in the affray trial of Durango High school sophomore Marco, the defendant testifies himself.

Slovenian artist's work rarely seen in the United States: For a prolific artist whose work has been shown in galleries and museums throughout Europe, Joze Ciuha has not had much exposure in the United States.

Letter: We have ourselves to blame for energy crisis: We Nevadans foolishly allowed the electric company to utilize natural gas as the clean fuel to generate electricity. We then don't allow for the development of natural gas resources in the name of ecology.

Columnist John Katsilometes: Basking in the splendor that is the annual Nevada Ballet Theatre Black & White Ball: Maybe it was the moment when Steve Wynn, gripping crutches, leaned forward to tell Rita Rudner, "You are the cleverest, coolest girl ... I have been watching comedians since I was a little boy and you're one of the best" that you realized this was indeed a top-shelf Las Vegas soiree.

Flashpoint for Jan. 30, 2006: Harry Reid has been called a lot of things since he became minority leader but columnist Daniel Henninger, writing in The Wall Street Journal, came up with an unexpected one last week vis-a-vis the Abramoff scandal: "Every time someone tells Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid that he, too, took money from Jack's clients, he starts jumping up and down like Rumpelstiltskin yelling, "This is a Republican scandal!" If you don't recall the story, he's the evil dwarf who spins straw into gold but demands a fantastic price -- her firstborn -- from a fair maiden. Of all the fairy tale ...

Letter: Health is the real issue with smoking: I am a nonsmoker and would prefer that all smoking was done outside and not in enclosed buildings as well, but Gunther calls smokers the most nervous people in the world.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: The legacy of a university president once mistakenly considered 'anti-athletics': If you can believe this, there was a time at UNLV when meeting the university president was optional for incoming coaches. As Jerry Tarkanian recalled in his new book "Runnin' Rebel," UNLV had called a press conference to announce his hiring before it dawned on him that he had yet to meet the university president.