Print edition for October 11, 2007

Letter: Blame bars for smoke where it shouldn't be: First, they made specious jurisdictional and constitutional claims. When that didn't work, they parsed and tortured common words such as "indoor," "food" and "served." Some establishments have even erected, at great cost, glass barriers around their video poker bar, separating the dining area but sealing the huffers and puffers in that noxious cloud of their own making. This is my favorite reaction to the law, but I do feel sorry for the staff who have to breathe it in for eight hours.

Letter: Greed drives casinos' stance on schools tax: I am cynical enough to believe that the powers that be are really not interested in a well-educated community. It gives them a pool of potential workers who are content to work for low wages and tips. The excuse they use about "reinvestment" is not really valid since they are opening casinos in Asia as well as other states in the United States. The money spent by locals is being siphoned off to other localities.

Letter: Smoking ban will be effective one day: It's going to take awhile for proper civil enforcement and, in time, to become second nature. The best thing you can do is not support the place and inform the health department of your observations.

Victor David Wood: 1923-2007: Victor Wood was crusading for computers in Clark County schools when Microsoft founder Bill Gates was a 13-year-old student trying to master an old Teletype terminal.

Ron Kantowski on what's wrong with Chase Field and why goats, black cats and nerds aren't what's hurting the Cubs: Notes, quotes and anecdotes from a National League Division Series scorecard that, as a long-suffering Cubs fan, I really have no intention of hanging on to:

News to lawmakers: County's lawyer also works for other side: By Tony Cook; Since 1999, Clark County has awarded California attorney Scott W. Gordon more than $368,000 in contracts for his advice on Sunrise Landfill, the former dump that has been a source of contention among the county, garbage company Republic Services and federal regulators.

Letter: Too few are aware of what Bush is up to: Apparently the man on the street is not aware of what is going on. When I broached the subject of the State Children's Health Insurance Program to another person, he was shocked to hear of the president's veto concerning health care of children. Apparently current events are not on the minds of our citizens, although they profess the dislike of the president and his policies.

Under the radar, Caesars dealers push for union: By Liz Benston; For decades, dice and card dealers resisted unions, preferring to watch out for themselves, pocket their own tips and cut their own deals for choice shifts.

Editorial: Must justice be a victim?: Lower federal courts accepted the Bush administration's hollow argument that allowing the man's lawsuit to go forward would endanger state secrets.

Nevada Ballet revels in fans' love: By Kristen Peterson; The standing ovation will come as no surprise. This audience loves its ballet company. They know its history. They know the performers. They're in it for the long haul.

Editorial: He stood for ethics: After retiring from university life three years ago, he remained a prominent commentator as president of the Nevada Center for Public Ethics.

Jam band, funk band, fun band: Four Way Free adds up to three: Who: Four Way Free

Editorial: Paying for schools: That is a sensitive question in a state that prides itself on its low taxes because it acknowledges a basic truth: Someone has to pay for educating Nevada's children.

School counselors get relief, students get time: By Emily Richmond; Guidance counselor Willie Hutson is too busy to figure out exactly how many Sierra Vista High School students are assigned to his care this year.

Letter: GOP candidates are as wrong as Bush is: Reading about the poor people in Baghdad being able to have electricity for only two hours per day is pretty confusing since we've been there rebuilding for 4 1/2 years. We have even built an embassy that's larger than the Vatican in Rome. I'm sure that our ambassador really needed a compound that large.

Silver lining as well as green in tax push: Michael J. Mishak; The Nevada State Education Association's push to boost taxes on gaming offers the union an advantage on another front. The tax plan provides leverage as the association tries to fend off a rival union.

More cameras on the Strip?: Although the Strip and the resorts along it already are among the world's most intensely monitored areas in terms of security surveillance, Las Vegas Boulevard may be about to get a new set of eyes watching over it - and not everyone feels safer because of it.

FLASHPOINT for Oct 11, 2007: By Jon Ralston; The Democrats are hoping the blue trend will make the Republicans red in the face. The party put out one of those "everything is going our way" releases Wednesday as registration figures are in its favor. After years of Republicans having a registration edge statewide, the Democrats now lead by 4,000 voters. Considering the total pot of voters is more than 1 million, that's a very small lead. But this is politics, where every blip is a trend, every increment is a leap forward. The Democrats also point to the more than 6,000-voter edge in the 3rd Congressional District, which ...