December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A1 People may see snow in the hills and holidays on their calendars, but Christmas weekend won’t be great for a backcountry romp. Avalanche danger is moderate to extreme in northeastern …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A1 Cougar Nation. It’s here and it’s big. Books about Washington State University’s championship football season are selling as fast as they are printed. Cougar T-shirts, sweat shirts, hats and jackets …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A1 Thank you! A thousand times over, thank you. Actually, 13,400 thanks to everyone who supported The Spokesman-Review Christmas Fund. That’s the number of children who had a gift to open …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A1 1. First Lt. Mikle Lewis of Portland has a Christmas Eve wish for Santa in the hallway of the 396th Combat Support Hospital in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Photos by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A1 In 1963, Gloria Spanier’s brother and his wife, both Army medical corps members, were sent to Vietnam. “I was a basket case,” she said. “I made a promise to God …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A2 Wednesday’s Washington Triple Choice: 618. Wednesday’s Washington Lotto: 1-4-11-15-23-45.

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A2 Ten years ago: Authorities recaptured Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, who had escaped two days earlier from the federal prison in Alderson, W.V., where she was serving a life sentence for her …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A2 1066: William the Conqueror was crowned king of England. 1818: “Silent Night” was performed for the first time - at the Church of St. Nikolaus in Oberndorff, Austria. 1991: Soviet …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A2 People gathering for an open-air Mass cheer as a procession passes San Francisco de Paula church last week in Havana. Photo by Associated Press

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A2 (photo of Toshiro Mifune)

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A3 Raymond Phillip Weaver stands below his American flag Wednesday. Fifty years ago, the sailor was court-martialed and demoted for taking 4 pounds of butter from his Navy base. President Clinton …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A3 President Clinton made quick work of his Christmas Eve shopping, an annual ritual with his daughter, Chelsea. In under two hours, he rang up a potpourri of loot: jumbo coffee …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A3 Nearly 25 percent of American adults continued to smoke in 1995, suggesting that the nation will fall short of its goal of 15 percent by the year 2000, the government …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A3 Offering a Christmas Eve preview of his budget, President Clinton on Wednesday announced that he is asking Congress for a 40 percent increase next year in aid to the homeless. …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A4 Medical science helped Donna and Ron to have a baby through in vitro fertilization, after 15 maddening years failing to get pregnant. Now, they want to do the same for …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A4 Liz Chai hides her face from the blowing snow as her mother, Sally Chai, hides behind her on Wednesday in Iowa City, Iowa, during a snowstorm that left much of …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A7 Partygoers feeling a little crowded on New Year’s Eve may have good reason: As of Jan. 1, 1998, the Census Bureau projects there will be 268,921,733 people living in the …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A7 Bargain hunting appears to have paid off for a woman accused of shoplifting. A felony retail theft charge against Cheryl Newton was reduced to a misdemeanor, meaning she could get …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A7 Southwest Airlines canceled about 50 flights Wednesday because of bad weather and a high number of flight attendants calling in sick. Both the airline and the flight attendants’ union said …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A7 A Denver firefighter helps postal employee Richard Garcia down a ladder from a window of the mail sorting center in downtown Denver during a hostage standoff. Photo by Associated Press

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A8 Dark smoke billowed from the one-story home in Falls Church, Va., and Nicholle Harris-Depaz feared that her grandfather lay somewhere inside, helpless and dying. The 12-year-old suddenly decided she had …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A8 Some black leaders are asking the U.S. government to look into a new conspiracy theory - that the late Commerce Secretary Ronald H. Brown was murdered last year and his …

December 25, 1997 in Nation/World on Page A9 The same jurors who found Terry L. Nichols only indirectly responsible for the death and destruction caused by the Oklahoma City bombing can still punish him with death, the judge …