Print edition for September 25, 2006

'Mob Museum' wants display that can't be refused: By Mark Hansel; Whether the new museum at the old Post Office and federal courthouse site on Stewart Street will be a tribute to groundbreakers or leg-breakers depends on whom you ask.

Letter: Clarifying ambiguous terms makes sense: The issue isn't whether the president understands the definition of human dignity. The issue is what definition are partisan politicians going to give those words on any given day.

FLASHPOINT for Sep 25, 2006: So the pot folks have a poll that shows they are winning the hearts and minds of Nevadans on legalizing (don't call it that!) and regulating marijuana. They say the voters, by a 6 percentage point margin, want to pass their scheme, financed by out-of-state interests and opposed by the sweating, frothing law enforcement types. A news release from these folks was very hostile to a newspaper poll that showed quite different results and phrased the question in a highly inflammatory way. Now I should resist the obvious question here. I really should. But I simply will not: What percentage ...

Letter: Bush demonstrates fiscal irresponsibility: Virtually everything that he touches turns to garbage sooner or later, with a great burden to the American taxpayers and all of their progeny as far as we can see.

THE OPENING LINE: There's a new movie out about high school football, starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. It's called "Gridiron Gang," with the plot focusing on a bunch of juvenile delinquents who become productive members of society by playing football.

Editorial: Error mustn't cost veterans: For reasons that are not clear, but most likely human error, Veterans Affairs officials used these estimates in preparing the department's budgets for last year and this year.

LOOKING IN ON: EDUCATION: By Emily Richmond; Since the academic year began Aug. 30, School Police have confiscated six guns from individuals on campuses, including a loaded .40 caliber handgun taken from a student at Bonanza High School.

Ivanpah's soil perfect for rare plant, but will it ground airport?: Comments can be submitted at each meeting.

Letter: GOP morphs Iran into Iraq for elections: Iran is the next bad guy to keep us from changing horses in November. Not only is George Bush ranting about Iran's nuclear program, but a congressional committee on intelligence has said it has evidence that Iran is making nuclear weapons with the connivance of the International Atomic Energy Agency. The IAEA says Iran is not making weapons-grade material and does not have the capability to do so. As you may recall, it was the IAEA that said Saddam had no active nuclear weapons program before that invasion.

Convention ear: Nanotechnology, which uses particles as small as atoms, is at best years away from producing commercially useful miniature machines.

LOOKING IN ON: LOUNGES: If Mickey Spillane were alive, he'd have written that the beautiful blond lounge singer had more curves than the Pacific Coast Highway, and her low-cut dress clung to every one of them as if for dear life.

Titus is master of free media as Gibbons opens his war chest: By J. Patrick Coolican; When former Democratic governors Bob Miller and Richard Bryan saw the podium, they knew it wouldn't do. A nearby door allowed in too much light, threatening to bleach out the camera shots.

Breath of fresh air: By Marshall Allen; The American Lung Association is imploring all states to join the Smokefree Air 2010 Challenge by banning smoking in offices, restaurants, bars and casinos by the end of the decade.

Jeff Haney analyzes the 'house edges' and recommends two sports books to those who want to bet on a team to win the Super Bowl: If you're looking to put money on which National Football League team is going to win the Super Bowl this season, your first two stops in Las Vegas should be the Palms and the Venetian.

Take a load off: Gaughan, a 31-year-old Las Vegas native, competes in 25 truck races a year but none are as hectic as the weeklong run-up to his hometown race.

Editorial: Paved with good intentions: U.S. District Judge Elizabeth Laporte's ruling Wednesday reinstates environmental reviews and protections included under the so-called roadless rule that President Clinton enacted just before leaving office in January 2001. That rule, which prohibits road construction, logging and other development in some 49 million acres of national forests (including 3.1 million acres in Nevada), was enacted after three years of study and some 600 public hearings.

LOOKING IN ON: CITY HALL: The stipulation that new projects in the Downtown Centennial Plan area include ground-floor retail space is starting to show positive results.

Editorial: Bring free market to cabs: Without a certificate from the Nevada Taxicab Authority, cab companies cannot legally put drivers to work, as noted last week in a story by Las Vegas Sun business reporter Richard Velotta. State law spells out the conditions under which the authority can grant the certificates.

Gibbons backs call for larger agency: WASHINGTON - It's not every day that a staunch conservative congressman calls for bigger government - especially in the middle of a campaign for governor.