Print edition for January 13, 2007

Snowy Nevada weather to be followed by hard freeze: AP; Chains or snow tires still were required in parts of northern Nevada, particularly in the eastern sections, but it was the cold that was beginning to be the weather news.

Convention decision is just the beginning: By Joe Schoenmann; The decision by Democrats this week to hold their 2008 presidential nominating convention in Denver rather than New York was made with a strong push from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and a law firm with ties to Las Vegas.

Lake Mead mussels identified as quagga, not zebra: By Launce Rake; A newly discovered freshwater mussel at Lake Mead has been identified as the quagga mussel - not the zebra mussel, as first suspected - and that is just half of a double dose of bad news.

FLASHPOINT for Jan 13, 2007: By Jon Ralston; There was a time when no Nevada Democrat would be caught dead being a member of the NCC.

THE READERS SOMETIMES E-MAIL: Readers have opinions and fill my e-mail box, letting me know when mine are right (sometimes) and wrong (often). From time to time, I'll share their comments.

Road to Vegas Grand Prix smooth: By Brian Hilderbrand; It's safe to say that the smoothest roads in Southern Nevada can be found encircling the Fremont Street Experience in downtown Las Vegas.

Letter: War of attrition unfolding in Iraq: No, I am not being facetious. In order to win, our enemies have to have a new caliphate - a large area of the world hermetically sealed from any of our social, cultural, economic or political influences. They have to have this form of privileged sanctuary while practicing coercive proselyting in our homeland. Without these conditions, they are doomed to failure.

Letter: Myriad problems face valley's teachers: We have students who come to our classes with no English language skills, and we have a large number of students for whom English is a newly acquired, and not yet fully developed, skill. In addition, we have a transient population as children regularly change schools throughout the year. The No Child Left Behind law tells us that all these children need to pass the same tests successfully at the same time or our schools are a failure.

Editorial: Out of juice, out of luck: Baseball's steroid scandal torpedoed McGwire's bid because neither he, nor baseball, has provided a convincing argument as to whether the behemoth sluggers, who in the past 20 years have put up astronomical numbers, did so by using juice.

Editorial: No smoking in this House: So judging by her words alone, there was nothing surprising about a strong statement she made on Wednesday, five days into her new role as the most powerful member of Congress.

Rogers-regents rocky marriage hits a wall: By Christina Littlefield; From the moment three years ago when Jim Rogers took over as chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education, his maverick, authoritarian ways made him a candidate for either the guillotine or sainthood - or in the eyes of some regents, both.

Letter: Troop surge is a losing bet: It's all about saving face - saving the faces of the war-game players who have never been in harm's way!

For valley's homeless, it's even colder out: By Timothy Pratt; A thin woman named Suzanne appeared from the brush wearing a large coat, her big toe sticking out of a torn sock in flip-flops.

Editorial: Waiting for reason: The House has approved a measure that authorizes federally funded research using stem cells harvested from the embryos that fertility clinics would otherwise discard.