Print edition for June 25, 2007

Convention Crashing: International Billiard Home & Recreation Expo: Perhaps, like many Americans, you have a mate.

Editorial: Overseeing overtime: A story by the Las Vegas Sun on Friday reports that Bob Chinn, deputy chief in charge of homeland security, has been demoted to captain and will be reassigned to head Metro's McCarran International Airport bureau. Lt. Sean Donnelly has been placed on leave pending the outcome of the Internal Affairs investigation that began in February.

Henderson entertains itself: By Mike Trask; When you're running an outdoor venue in Henderson tucked between a police station and a Cheesecake Factory, it's tough to compete with the Entertainment Capital of the World.

Editorial: The ugly side of secrecy: Documents released by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, chaired by Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., say that for four years Cheney has refused to cooperate with inquiries by the National Archives Information Security Oversight Office. The National Archives is charged under presidential executive order with collecting data on classified documents. Its security oversight office monitors the classification and declassification of such documents.

Letter: Nevada veterans are getting short shrift: Our returning troops from Iraq and Afghanistan are suffering seven casualties for every fatality. This is more than double the rate in previous wars. The rate of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is now one out of six troops and traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one out of 10 troops injured.

Skin cancer experts join Nevada team: By Marshall Allen; Nevada Cancer Institute, in a quest to land top-drawer oncologists, has landed two skin cancer experts to form the core of its new melanoma research team.

In private, they screen judges, and their power could grow: Sam Skolnik; An obscure state agency called the Commission on Judicial Selection could wield more influence if Nevada changes the way it selects judges.

Letter: Clergy by no means oversteps its bounds: I would simply like to state that so far as expressing their political opinions in public, without speaking from a "bully pulpit," I see nothing wrong in the clergy, men and women of God, doing so. What limited effect their opinions can have in shaping American politics cannot, in any way, be construed to be a violation of the separation of church and state.

Metro goes gangbusters: The changing face of gang culture has found Metro Police using new tactics. They're getting to know their gangsters.

Letter: Don't overlook huge cost of 'amnesty' bill: It seems to me that implementation of the amnesty bill would require a cost and bureaucracy every bit as huge as a round-up approach. Further, I think that the amnesty bill would hope for, if not rely on, illegal immigrants turning themselves in.

Editorial: A shortsighted president: Rather than allowing valuable research to move forward using tiny clusters of cells that provide the foundation for - but are not, in actuality - human life, Bush stopped in its tracks federally funded and important research that scientists think holds the key to cures for diabetes, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases , and other debilitating illnesses.

Hatton knocks wind out of Castillo's career: Sometimes, the nuance of a particular phrase becomes lost in translation.

Jeff Haney on why the gaming world lost out when professional sports handicapper Fezzik decided that dealing with the message board critics wasn't worth the effort: It certainly seemed that way last week when Las Vegas professional gambler Fezzik shut down his eponymous sports betting Web site, citing his frustration with personal attacks on his online message board and a general preponderance of cyber-goofballs overrunning the site.

The next big thing: Jerry Fink, Las Vegas Sun; Forget about being the Entertainment Capital of the World, Las Vegas seems to be aiming to become the Entertainment Capital of the Universe.