Print edition for September 20, 2006

Dumping ground: Computers. Big-screen and not-so-big televisions. Cell phones and stereos. The detritus of high-tech civilization is piling up in Nevada, and all those gizmos come with a price: They are loaded with potentially toxic materials.

Legal dueling over Web site domain: Sam Skolnik; In 2004, Harrah's acquired the venerable Binion's Horseshoe casino downtown in large part, company executives said at the time, so the company could cash in on Binion's increasingly popular World Series of Poker, or WSOP for short.

Crews battle trio of wildfires burning in Sierra: AP; The largest was the Bassetts fire in the Tahoe National Forest 15 miles east of Downieville, Calif., and 1 mile north of California 49. The highway was closed between Sierra City and Sattley.

Faces of change, lessons for living in a small town: By Timothy Pratt; MESQUITE - Pete Wu remembers the days leading up to May 1, when immigration marches spread across the nation's cities.

Editorial: A tale of torture: Results of the 2 1/2-year investigation, released Monday, show that Maher Arar - a then-34-year-old Syrian native who had immigrated to Canada with his family at age 17 - was falsely labeled "an Islamic extremist" and detained as he changed planes in New York City in September 2002. Arar was shackled and spirited off to Syria for interrogation under the secretive U.S. "extraordinary rendition" program.

Four people die in three western Nevada accidents: AP; Tina Park, 42, of Smith Valley was killed Tuesday evening when her Jeep utility flipped on Lower Colony Road. The Nevada Highway Patrol said she was speeding and lost control of the vehicle before it overturned.

Art of reaching out: A few years ago, a visiting artist at Opportunity Village's Oakey campus supplied the clients - as they are known to staff - with paint brushes, then spread out a canvas.

Jon Ralston explains why Tessa Hafen is not going to be one of the pushovers that Rep. Jon Porter has grown accustomed to facing from past elections: How many times has that sentence been uttered about Rep. Jon Porter since he entered politics a quarter-century ago?

$1 million of school grant may be returned: By Emily Richmond; In the face of mounting criticism, a Clark County schools administrator said Tuesday she wants to return more than $1 million in funds that were intended by state legislators to pay for innovative educational improvements.

Letter: Appreciation for the Clinton era: And yet, if we remember the eight years under Bill Clinton, we had relatively stable employment, stable inflation numbers, a somewhat more peaceful world than we see now, many more friends around the world, and - take a breath - actual surpluses in the Federal Treasury.

Editorial: Public can handle the truth: Sadly, daily bloodletting has been a staple of Iraqi life since President Bush ordered the war three and a half years ago. We've been hearing more about it in recent weeks only because this war-related violence among Iraqis has been on the rise.

How Gulutzan spent his summer vacation: Glen Gulutzan spent his offseason in Saskatchewan. He played several positions on the softball diamond and built an enclosed patio on the rear deck of his Fishing Lake cabin.

Editorial: Who's failing? The teachers?: The report, produced from a four-year study, was authored by Arthur Levine, formerly of Columbia University where he was the president of Teachers College. It was part of the Education Schools Project, a Washington-based initiative focusing on schools that is funded by several foundations.

Letter: If we're at war, let's start acting like it: It seems like the only people making any real sacrifices are those in the military and their families. And we never hear about their ultimate sacrifices unless they are from Nevada. The Sun does print, on the inside of the front page, the names of all U.S. troops killed in action, but our other local paper never makes any mention of those killed.

Jeff Haney describes a televised poker game in which quads beat out 6s over 5s to claim a $575,700 pot: At more than $500,000, the pot contested by poker pros Gus Hansen and Daniel Negreanu was likely the largest single cash-game hand ever captured on tape. Unlike most poker TV shows, "High Stakes" portrays a cash game in which players mix it up with their own money, rather than a tournament.

Letter: Bush fails test as leader of free world: Skillful interrogation aside, is putting a leash on a prisoner and making him bark like a dog an outrage upon human dignity? Waterboarding?

FLASHPOINT for Sep 20, 2006: The things you learn on public radio. For instance, did you know that panhandlers make $500 a week here in Las Vegas? That priceless nugget was unearthed on Wednesday's airing of KNPR's "State of Nevada." And you know who it came from - Mayor Oscar Goodman: "If they don't make $100 a day, I'm a monkey's uncle." Goodman also told the interviewer that panhandlers have pockets "stuffed with green" and that "they are probably making more money than we're making." And Goodman described it as "mind-boggling that they would lie that way" by claiming to make a few bucks a ...