Print edition for September 10, 2006

The freedom to teach: By Emily Richmond; The most dramatic schools experiment in Clark County's recent history is less than two weeks old and already Superintendent Walt Rulffes is wondering if it's good enough to parlay into a program 10 times its size.

Battle for rural water heads to capital: The war over water enters a new battlefield Monday as advocates and opponents directly debate Southern Nevada's controversial plan to take billions of gallons from wells in the rural, east-central part of the state and deliver them more than 200 miles south to the Las Vegas Valley.

FLASHPOINT for Sep 10, 2006: So the champagne is flowing this weekend as opponents of Tax and Spending Control celebrate the question's ouster from the ballot, courtesy of the state Supreme Court. But I wouldn't be celebrating so fast. The fury this development will generate among the conservative faithful will be significant. And it will play into all the conspiracy theories about elected judges being influenced by their contributors, who wanted it booted. But I suppose it's better for Democrats than having a rallying point on the ballot for the right wing. But now all these folks who lobbied to have the question removed from ...

Letter: Substandard wages are norm for teachers: Teachers are having trouble supporting even themselves, no matter how many hours they work (often more than 50 per week), or how much stress and abuse they endure. They receive no salary increases after about 14 years. During those years the increases are laughable. Additionally, teachers do a crucial job.

Letter: Leaders' gaffes too numerous to count: To save page space, as well as readers' time, I'm suggesting we adopt the following abbreviation when identifying our current Republican and Democratic "leaders": PPP (Peter Principle Personified).

Letter: No need to bow before president: What the mayor actually said was "a patriot" does not ask concerned people to be quiet. That to be quiet is to be a "sycophant." It is also interesting that the mayor was speaking at a rally and the president was to speak later at an American Legion convention. It's not like they were on the same stage at the same time. I doubt the mayor was even invited to the president's speech. How rude!

Comeback hopes rest on stand-up gigs in Las Vegas: She's back. A little older, a little wiser. Clean and sober.

Hearing in Carson City on Monday: The hearings will be carried live on the Internet at: www.leg.state.nv.us/audio/AudioVideo.cfm

Jack Sheehan weighs pros, cons and misconceptions about our fair desert city: The general assumption is that car parkers here make $80,000 a year and cocktail waitresses knock down six figures and declare far less to our friends at the IRS. And that even a bloke with a fourth-grade education should be able to come here and take down serious lucre and absolve some of the debt that has accrued from previous life missteps.

Hal Rothman on whether we are better off now than we were in 2001: This was not the first such attack on American soil. That infamous distinction belongs to the British, who sacked Washington, D.C., and burned the White House during the War of 1812. There have been other attacks, of course. Pancho Villa invaded Columbus, New Mexico, during the Mexican Revolution. He had financed his revolution by credit extended him by local merchants. When he wanted more weapons and supplies, they turned him down cold. Villa had maxed out his credit. He attacked in response.

Editorial: Our future is at stake: A plan 16 years in the making by the Southern Nevada Water Authority is our best hope. It involves pumping ground water from deep aquifers in Lincoln and White Pine counties and piping it south to Clark County.

Human trafficking victims can get help: By Timothy Pratt; Kept inside different apartments for four years, the woman spoke little English.

Jeff Simpson reflects on eye-opening journey to magical land of Macau: Last year the Sun sent our tourism reporter Richard N. Velotta to Macau (and Beijing and Singapore) and Richard wrote a top-notch series of stories that helped Sun readers understand the power of the Chinese economy and its tourism impact on Las Vegas, the vibrancy of Macau casinos and the gaming potential of Singapore.

Bad hair day: Steve Marcus, Las Vegas Sun; Rossi Ralenkotter, left, president and chief executive of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, and Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson straighten their hair after strong winds buffeted the Henderson Events Plaza during a grand-opening ceremony Thursday. The wind blew over some decorative displays, but Gibson caught the American flag during the singing of the national anthem before the flag hit the ground. The plaza, between City Hall and the Henderson Convention Center and Visitors Bureau, was partly funded by an $8 million recreational facility capital improvement grant from the LVCVA.

Editorial: Get on with the real war: The Gulf War had weakened Iraq, and any further thoughts of external aggression by its ruler, Saddam Hussein, were being contained by U.S.-enforced no-fly zones and United Nations sanctions. As for Afghanistan, its Taliban rulers were well known here for their internal repressions but few of us realized they had welcomed Osama bin Laden and his terrorist training camps into their midst.

Brian Greenspun on how cynicism can lead to distrust that papers must guard against: And the way things have been going in this country for the past three decades, it appears that trust is something in decreasing supply. I understand why people have become so much more cynical than they should be.

Jon Ralston wants a substantive debate on tax policy between Nevada's gubernatorial candidates: It's easier to say where it is not: It is not over. Not by any stretch of Rep. Jim Gibbons' imagination.

Letter: U.S. went to war for all the wrong reasons: I know President Bush couldn't find Iraq on a map, didn't know a Sunni from a Shiite, didn't know the history and culture of Iraq and failed to listen to or seek advice from those who did.

Smoking initiatives cloud ballot: By Marshall Allen; At first blush, it appears like a mismatch: a middleweight versus a heavyweight - health and public interest groups backing a stringent anti-smoking initiative squared off against another less-stringent but similar initiative bankrolled by the casino industry and bar owners.

Analysis: Nevada's ground water tug of war: Few would argue that Southern Nevada is the driest metropolitan area in the United States. What many did not realize until recently is that its residents are among the most aggressive water conservers in the country.

Editorial: Standing on principle: The seven justices unanimously removed from November's ballot an initiative that would have severely tied the hands of the Legislature and the governor when it comes to government spending and raising taxes to effectively meet the needs of the nation's fastest-growing state.