Print edition for July 19, 2007

Editorial: Sentence says: Crime pays: It's a sentence that, frankly, makes our skin crawl.

Letter: Democrats have guts to stand up to bullies: I agree that we do have the greatest nation on Earth. But chest pounding and war mongering, and deceit and lies , are what got us into this mess in Iraq in the first place. Who m do we attack next, Iran? How much more can our military take? They are being killed and maimed. They are stretched thin and they are becoming burned out.

Editorial: Resignation long overdue: Nicholson, 69, is a former chairman of the Republican National Committee who was appointed in 2005 to head the VA - a department with 235,000 employees, making it the government's second-largest after the Defense Department.

Reid's obligation: By Lisa Mascaro; Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's ornate offices in the U.S. Capitol are not the kind of gilded-age place where you want to be caught in your underwear.

LOOKING IN ON: MOTOR SPORTS: Occasionally, a professional athlete will surprise - indeed, impress - even the most cynical observer of sports.

Letter: Bush respects, fears no one except Cheney: Are the presidents who complained about the limits of the office the ones who viewed the Constitution as a valid document, and the U.S. Congress as a legitimate institution? Are those same complainers the ones who respected an independent judiciary and recognized the validity of verdicts handed down by citizens serving on juries?

Caesars' aim: Keep towering over Strip: By Liz Benston; Click here for a printable graphic.

Q+A: Alexis Gershwin: Jerry Fink, Las Vegas Sun; What: "Gershwin Sings Gershwin"

Letter: President's use of Almighty is selective: In our great country, we already have freedom, but under Bush we don't have affordable health care for all (my Almighty would certainly gift that to my fellow citizens). Instead, it is acknowledged that the health care industry is reaping great rewards and many soldiers are not getting the care that they need.

Letter: Use eminent domain to fix up apartments: Instead of uprooting 800 people and trying to find them other, affordable (for us taxpayers as well as them) housing, wouldn't it make more sense to use eminent domain to take control of the Buena Vista Springs Apartments?

Presidential race adds fuel to Culinary's fire: J. Patrick Coolican and Michael J. Mishak; Say you're MGM Mirage management, and you're in tough negotiations with the Culinary Union over a new contract, a contract that will determine much of your economic fate for the next few years.

Jeff Haney on how the new face of championship poker came from unlikely origins, gained fame lightning fast and plans to give away part of his winnings: By Jeff Haney; 2. Tuan Lam, Mississauga, Ontario, $4.84 million

Freed overseas, thanks to help from Nevada: After 18 months in prison in Russia and Kazakhstan, Mark Seidenfeld is free.

Bill Fanning, 1926-2007: Las Vegas lost another piece of its colorful past Sunday with the passing of comedian Bill Fanning, affectionately called Uncle Bill or Uncle Willie by friends and fans.

Letter: Let the Iraqis solve their own problems: We would like to instill democracy in Palestine. Let's insert the U.S. Army into the cauldron that exists between Hamas and Fatah. They are only two different political parties, both of the same religion. Would anyone in their right mind consider doing this? I think not. Iraq is the same , only worse. Different politics and different sects.

Gibbons seen undermining a nuke-free Yucca: It was not one of Gov. Jim Gibbons' friendlier meetings.

FLASHPOINT for Jul 19, 2007: Where are the Republicans? It is becoming more obvious that the GOP presidential candidates - and the state GOP - are not up to speed on the Nevada caucus. And because the locals don't seem so on the ball, it's no surprise the candidates aren't flocking here. A Democratic candidate - John Edwards - is here again today, one day after his campaign manager, former Rep. David Bonior, was in town. Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton is announcing a new endorsement every day, and Barack Obama just unfurled his steering committee to show his campaign has life here. And still no sign ...