Print edition for May 22, 2007

Bill out to guard Vegas water from uranium: The Energy Department would have to more quickly move a radioactive uranium pile away from a site in Utah near the Colorado River, which supplies Southern Nevadans' drinking water, under a bill approved last week by the House of Representatives.

Editorial: Funding should reflect justice: Public Defender Phil Kohn requested 24 more attorneys and 22 more staff members. The proposed county budget funds just one new attorney for his office.

Surprise offer a shrewd move: By Liz Benston; To understand why billionaire dealmaker and MGM Mirage majority shareholder Kirk Kerkorian made a surprise offer Monday for the Bellagio and CityCenter - the most expensive and luxurious jewels in MGM Mirage's impressive crown - one need only look at recent deals occurring in the gaming industry's plainer, yet more visible, sister: the hotel industry.

Rental homes can have revolving door of partyers: By Mike Trask; When Kari DeMattia bought her home five years ago she didn't expect to be living next to a hotel.

Editorial: Clean up corruption: Metro Police have seen an increase in tips about corruption, which is the result of public disgust in the aftermath of the high-profile federal G-Sting prosecutions that netted four former Clark County commissioners. As Tony Cook reported in Sunday's Las Vegas Sun, police have been busy in an area they normally don't touch, launching four high-profile corruption investigations recently. Metro officials, however, are almost apologetic about the new line of work.

FLASHPOINT for May 22, 2007: Mayor Oscar Goodman just loves people. He has town hall meetings and coffees where people can ask for his help - or, better yet, lavish him with praise. But what if people follow up, as one woman did, but she got no satisfaction from the mayor's office? Channel 8 reported that incident as part of a story about vacation party rentals that could be next to your house. The mayor's PR team sprang into action and wrote that "no one has communicated with (the mayor) on the issue." This claim came despite a message from a mayoral staffer on the ...

Letter: Drug makers profit at consumers' expense: I am retired, but not yet eligible for Medicare. Neither is my wife. Six years ago she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent an operation and radiation treatment. She was put on a regimen of the prescription drug Tamoxifen for five years. A few months after the operation, my insurance lapsed and we had to take out a new policy.

Editorial: Not good enough: The legislation, introduced by senators Thursday, has some promising points, including provisions that would tighten U.S. borders and create a process for the 12 million undocumented immigrants already living in the United States to obtain legal status. But it also has many weaknesses:

Letter: Making argument for full-time Legislature: Isn't it also ironic that this same green building initiative increases the property and the potential sales value of these green buildings?

Surprise offer a shrewd move: By Liz Benston; To understand why billionaire dealmaker and MGM Mirage majority shareholder Kirk Kerkorian made a surprise offer Monday for the Bellagio and CityCenter - the most expensive and luxurious jewels in MGM Mirage's impressive crown - one need only look at recent deals occurring in the gaming industry's plainer, yet more visible, sister: the hotel industry.

LOOKING IN ON: SUBURBS: By Mike Trask; North Las Vegas City Manager Gregory Rose is getting a raise. Rose earned $181,885 last year. This year he will get a 7 percent raise, pushing his salary to more than $194,000.

Capital nerves, steel: Michael J. Mishak and Joe Schoenmann; Legislative negotiators tried to solve an impasse Monday over the state's K-12 education budget, the biggest point of conflict between the Democratic Assembly and the Republican Senate, as the Legislature's 120-day deadline wound down.

Letter: GOP has stood in the way of conservation: President Jimmy Carter implemented regulations increasing average gasoline mileage that reduced oil imports by 87 percent. In 1986 President Ronald Reagan rescinded those regulations, doubling oil imports. In that one year, America burned more oil than is in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve. In 1995 Congress passed legislation prohibiting the Environmental Protection Agency from even studying high gasoline mileage standards. In 2003 legislation was introduced in the U.S. Senate that would have eliminated loop holes excluding some vehicles from mileage regulation. The bill was defeated by the Republican-controlled Congress.