Print edition for May 28, 2006

Editorial: Real battle not yet begun: The primary issue dividing the two branches of Congress is the fate of 12 million undocumented immigrants.

Letter: It also takes a village to teach a child: As a former kindergarten teacher for 10 years in the Clark County School District, I am pleased that Ms. Flores recognizes the necessity of parental involvement in student success. However, I believe she missed the mark by stating that teacher pay should be based on "how many parents a teacher can convince to show up on open house night."

Jon Ralston follows the political game of chess being played through television, with the Democratic bid for governor going to the winner: When Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson commences his media campaign this week, though, the symphony - or cacophony - will begin playing, heralding a strategic ballet with state Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus in which any misstep can result in a crippling fall.

Editorial: Spellbound over gifted students: What explains it? An American fascination with the event dates at least to 1925, when the national bee began. The sports network ESPN began airing it in 1994, and the bee soon developed a national following.

John Katsilometes talks with longtime Klondike Hotel owner John Woodrum about the place closing on June 30: "I ran a (power) line to the sign and fired it up," Woodrum said. "It started running then. But someone cut the line - the County Commission didn't like the line running from my place to the sign there was a big dispute about who would pay for the power to the sign and the meter had been turned off. So I said, 'I'll keep the sign lit and I'll pay the power bill.' "

County, cities fear loss of revenue, cable control: Local governments are rallying against proposed federal legislation under which telephone companies could bypass them and obtain a national franchise through the Federal Communications Commission.

This Dancing Diva, at 66, still light on her feet: At 66, she's a redheaded knockout, who insists that laughing keeps her young and doesn't worry that her dance career will be halted because she's 4 foot 10 "and shrinking."

Letter: English-only bill just makes things worse: In its infinite wisdom, with no other pressing issues to worry about, the U.S. Senate, under the authorship of Sen. James Inhofe, passed English-only legislation.

Brian Greenspun wonders why the Review-Journal's boss unleashed a diatribe against Harry Reid: There were two things I could have taken from the Review-Journal publisher's column last Sunday. The first one is that he doesn't like Nevada's senior U.S. senator, Harry Reid. Despite what he said in his attempt to read the tea leaves of Nevada politics, it was made abundantly clear that Harry is not Sherm's favorite U.S. senator.

Colorado River drought not rare: That's a drop of bad news for water-system managers along the Colorado River. About 25 million people, including everyone in urban Las Vegas and its environs, depend on water from the river. Agencies running water systems like a steady, dependable and predictable supply.

Jewel thief says she sacrificed her freedom for a movie deal: The career jewel thief, now 75, says she walked into Neiman Marcus at the Fashion Show mall in July expecting to be arrested. Payne knew her photo had been circulated among staff, along with instructions to contact security upon sight.

Letter: Las Vegas continues descent into Babylon: Las Vegas is still just a destination. It has critical personnel shortages in the nursing, teaching and policing fields, with no cure in sight.

Editorial: Band-aid for nursing shortage: The measure pending in the Senate as an amendment to the immigration reform bill is aimed at easing America's nursing shortage. An estimated 118,000 nursing job vacancies in the United States could soar to more than 800,000 by 2020, according to one federal estimate.

Star Trek science meets UNLV: Electrical engineering professor Biswajit "BJ" Das speaks rapturously about the construction of a new science building at UNLV, the way someone else might describe a fine car or rare wine.

Commissioners play it safe: Clark County commissioners have been playing it safe on ethical issues ever since news broke of the G-Sting political corruption case.

Tom Gorman finds maneuvering through a bureaucracy can be a lot tougher than those orange barrels on the road: And what I learned is that navigating the bureaucracy is scarier than navigating the freeway.

Healing wounds of 'The Scarlet Letter': Her piece, "The Scarlet Letter," is an upside-down rendition of the 18th-century, Thomas Lawrence painting "Pinky," covered with the red letter A.

Jeff Simpson on Harrah's plan to transform the center Strip: After meeting Loveman last week in his offices at Caesars Palace, it is clear the professorial executive believes the project will stand apart from some of the other big developments that are planned or being built on the Strip.

Hal Rothman pauses to remember the true meaning of a holiday many take for granted: In the small town where I grew up, Memorial Day was the time for old soldiers to put on their dress uniforms - if they could still fit in them and sometimes even when they could not - and parade through town on their way to the cemetery.

Letter: Theft of vets' files can't be dismissed: I, as one of those affected military veterans, would be financially ruined in excess of $50,000, as an aftermath of a lifetime of work and thrift, if those Veterans Affairs stolen statistics are used in an identity theft operation. What a pittance to offer up for such a major governmental fiasco.