Print edition for October 16, 2006

Editorial: Fuel for conspiracy fires: Some suspect it's an October surprise engineered by Republicans hoping for a last-minute positive - The economy is improving! - to swing voters before the Nov. 7 election.

OPENING NIGHT AT THE PHILHARMONIC:: The Las Vegas Philharmonic opened its season with a flourish.

UFC takes first step to go global: By Jeff Haney; On a night that Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana White chose to highlight the international flavor of his organization, it was appropriate that a Brazilian star who has fought mostly overseas won the main event in emphatic fashion.

Editorial: Real space cowboys: Patrick Wiggins and Holly Phaneuf, the Utah pair credited with spotting the asteroid just outside Mars' orbit in 1999, named the celestial body after the northeastern Nevada town because it is where Wiggins was born, according to a recent story by the Deseret Morning News.

LOOKING IN ON: EDUCATION: By Emily Richmond; At Thursday's School Board meeting, members put off voting on a proposal that would award flags to schools that score well on standardized tests or show significant improvement. The proposal, which would hand out flags to more than 180 campuses, would cost between $7,000 and $40,000, depending on the materials used.

Letter: In search of direct Quran passages: Christian clergy and evangelists are known for quoting the Bible exactly, citing chapter and verse number. This makes their references verifiable. It's hard to misquote the Bible to the masses or the media nowadays, because they're everywhere.

Audit shows where schools can pinch pennies: Emily Richmond; A penny saved is still a penny earned, even when your operating budget exceeds $1.8 billion.

Editorial: The extinction of a skill: A recent story by The Washington Post says that just 15 percent of the 1.5 million members of the class of 2006 who took SAT exams used cursive on the handwritten essay section of the test. The rest printed their answers in block letters.

John Katsilometes chats with Tippi Hedren about Elvis, his badges and his guns: Sort of.

FLASHPOINT for Oct 16, 2006: I have had some fun at the expense of those pushing the pot legalization initiative. Why? Because it's easy. But today I need to make light of some folks who are even easier: the Board of Regents. Three of the more conservative regents decided to try to get the board to come out against that pot initiative last week. No, they don't have enough to deal with in the Nevada System of Higher Education. What were these people thinking? What makes me think they were thinking? Luckily, the move to stick their noses into the subject was defeated when cooler ...

Big questions for the suburbs: By Mike Trask; It's a question that could change the political landscape of one of the fastest growing cities in the United States.

Jeff Haney gets a brash prediction from a favored card shark who will be on hand for the World Poker Tour's next stop this week at the Bellagio: "I'd have to say that right now I'm definitely the favorite," Hansen said late Saturday night at the Bellagio, displaying a steely, picture-perfect poker face.

Letter: Another way to address health care: Later the editorial points out that health care is predicated on continuing development of new pharmaceuticals, medical devices and diagnostic equipment. How do they expect to pay for these improvements which result in better health care?

THE NEVADA VOTE: When the nation's second President John Adams was America's first vice president, he said of his role as second fiddle to George Washington: "I am nothing, but I may be everything."

Learning from a master, no strings attached: Eyes closed, body swaying, violin nestled under his chin, Alex Gonzalez played every note as if he were deeply in love.