It looks like another long college football season on the Palouse. It's difficult to get too excited about the UIdaho's 42-27 win over a Division I-AA football team. And Washington State simply stunk. Bet the Cougars still wished they had the Vandals on their schedule this year. On the other hand, I heard during the halftime show Saturday, that the Vandal volleyball team was 4-1, which included a win over Washington State. Mebbe we should start paying attention to UI sports other than football and basketball. Sounds like the other teams can compete in the WAC. As far as WSU goes, men's basketball can't arrive too soon. Now, for your Wild Card ...

Dean Hare/AP Photo
Washington State fans Tina Williams, center, and her daughter Maisy, 8, and son Clarence, 14, watch the final few minutes of an NCAA college football game against California on Saturday at Martin Stadium in Pullman, Wash. California won 66-3, Washington State's worst loss at Martin Stadium since a 55-0 loss to UCLA in 1955.

Question: How many combined wins will Washington State and University of Idaho have this year?

Item: Palin creates stir with designer glasses/Bruce Horovitz, USA Today

More Info: The nation's eyes aren't just on Gov. Sarah Palin — they're on her glasses. It's been awhile since the optical business has been as charged by celebrity specs as it has by the rimless pair the vice presidential nominee wears most of the time. If she wins, it could rock the vision-care market, which totals $26.6 billion a year, says tracker Jobson Optical Research. It's already shaking up the company that makes them. We keep getting calls from dealers who want to stock the exact shape and style that she's wearing," says Amy Hahn, vice president at Italee, the U.S. distributor of the frames designed by Kazuo Kawasaki, a Japanese industrial designer. The Palin frame — minus the lenses — starts at a suggested $375. Depending on the type of lenses, the total package can run to $700.

Dorothy Parker: "Men seldom make passes at girls who wear glasses."

Question: Do you think that glasses make people look more attractive or less attractive?

Item: Cell phone ban: 17 phones confiscated at Cd'A High School/KREM2

More Info: A major change for students this year as cell phones are no longer allowed in the Coeur d’Alene School District. So far officials at Coeur d’Alene High School have confiscated 17 phones. Several phones were also taken away at Lake City High School. The cell phone ban also includes i-pods, mp3 players, and video cameras. All devices capable of recording video or audio are not allowed in classrooms.

Question: Do you support the cell phone ban? If so, are you happy to see the Coeur d'Alene high schools following through by confiscating cell phones?

All in all, my experience at the Beachouse Restaurant was quite worth it. For me, it was a memorable and rare extravagance, and it was nice to have a fun friend to share the occasion with. We were sat in a back cubby at a table which I was told was owner Duane Hagadone’s favorite spot because he can see nearly everything going on. Sitting in his very chair, I tried to absorb some kind of unidentifiable Haga-essence. I pressed myself deep into where his posterior had previously rested but felt nothing unusual save for a slight buzz from my dank Huckleberry Pina Colada/OrangeTV," Get Out! North Idaho. More here.

Question: How often do you eat at a Hagadone restaurant?

Item: Colville man receives own death notice, loses benefits/KXLY

More Info: The letter from the Washington Department of Social and Health Services didn't stop there. It said, the household was no longer eligible for disability benefits, a major blow to Gonzales who suffers from Parkinson's disease. The medical plus the food stamps, all that helps me get my life in order," he said. Since getting the letter on August 23rd, he's been fighting to prove he is who he is.

Question: Have you ever been caught in a bureaucratic snafu involving a governmental entity ?

Item: California canines find help in Coeur d'Alene/SR

More Info: Fires and foreclosures have been forcing more than people out of their California homes – dogs also have been suffering, with many being abandoned as their owners leave the area or move into apartments that won't accept pets. Enter Bonnie Whiting and her North Idaho group Alternative Rescue Shelter. Whiting and fellow dog lover Jenn Pearce traveled to California earlier this summer to rescue 17 dogs destined for "death row," bringing them to Coeur d'Alene in the back of a van and finding new homes for the canines.

Question: What kind of dog do you have?

Question: Is it legitimate to demand presidential candidates show their love of country?/WorldNetDaily

1. No, these men have already proven themselves before millions of American voters
2. No, questioning a candidate's patriotism is hitting below the belt
3. No, calling a candidate unpatriotic is pathetic mudslinging, nothing more
4. No, patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel
5. No, true patriotism can't be measured by pins and flags, but by a vision for America's future
6. No, this election needs to be decided on the issues, not on who "loves" the U.S. more
7. No. How do we measure "love of country'? Everyone loves differently
8. No. Patriotism, wrongly used, depends on manipulation and group-think -- I'm wary of candidates who feel the need to trumpet it
9. No, we really can't know a candidate's heart well enough to judge his patriotism
10. No, the trappings of patriotism can be easily faked -- why would we make this important?

Steve Hanks/Lewiston Tribune, AP
University of Idaho's Deonte' Jackson finds the outside around Idaho State University's Rashaad Richards, left, and Michael Wright, bottom, today in Moscow. Idaho evened its record at 1-1 on the season by beating I-AA Idaho State 42-27. Brian Murphy/Idaho Statesman details how teams scored here ESPN coverage here.

Cal 66, WSU 3

One of the best things, in my opinion, Sarah Palin could do is buck the system. Come out with press release of her own regarding Oprah. It should look something like this: "While I appreciate any opportunity to discuss issues that face America's hardworking families, I will not be able to take time to meet with The Oprah Winfrey Show or any other talkshow-type venue. The issues that face families today cannot and should not be summed up in a one hour entertainment format. I know that Ms. Winfrey shares my belief that we need to leave this country in better shape than we found it and that is why John McCain should be our next President of the United States." If Sarah Palin wants to really shake things up, she should tell Oprah "thanks but no thanks." Oprah is certainly entitled to her opinions, her candidates, etc., because it is her show, afterall. But Sarah Palin is attracting interest in her own right without the wealth, enormous fame or midas touch of Oprah/MamaJD. More here.

Question: Do you really believe Oprah is trying to be fair by not asking any major candidate to appear on her show? Or has she already anointed Barack Obama to be the next president and she doesn't want to give the R's more exposure?

Two great things happened Friday -- our little church of about 150 souls raised at least $6000-6500 for the stricken Steve Tucker family. And I made my next-to-last mortgage payment. First, the fund-raiser. We staged a spaghetti dinner, silent auction, and auction of six dozen items (all of which sold but four) to raise the loot. Church people and community visitors, including one of you who slipped a $100 bill to the receptionist for me, were extremely generous. As for the house, that who-hoo you hear coming from the Borah Triangle the morning of Oct. 5 will be from my house. I've never lived in a house totally owned by anyone. I'll tell you how it feels in a month. Now, I'll play the Wild Card ...

Dan Pelle/SR
Salem-Keizer coach Tom Trebelhorn kicks his hat in anger at homeplate umpire Adam Schwarz, after a disputed call at first base in the 6th inning against Spokane Friday. The Indians won the game 11-10 in extra innings to even the five-game championship series at one game apiece. You write the cutline.

Question: Are vasectomies a good form of birth control?/Idaho Statesman

*Yes, if you don't want kids.
*Yes, if you don't want more kids.
*No, if you're too young.
*No, no matter the situation.

A six-story business building with a below-ground parking garage has been proposed for 704 Sherman Ave. in the lots where Senor Froggy's was a year ago. So far business partners JB Dodge Co. of Coeur d'Alene and VIQ Development of Boise have met with city planners three times and the project will be reviewed again in the near future. The plan shows a six-story, 65,550-square-foot building with balconies and a 120-stall parking garage. It would be mixed-use with commercial, possibly a restaurant, on the ground floor and offices above/Nils Rosdahl, SR. More here.

Question: Will downtown Coeur d'Alene be as appealing to you in the near future when all the multi-story condos and buildings are open? Or do you prefer the way it was 10 to 20 years ago?

Item: Washington schools face condom conundrum/KREM2

More Info: A new Washington State law requires schools not only teach 12 and 13-year old children about condoms, but also how to use them. Condom use is already taught in sex education courses but the key phrase is that the state now wants to teach students “how” to use them, and that has some school officials looking for a way around the new rules. “Check expiration date.” “Carefully open the condom wrapper.” “Roll the condom down."

Question: Has Washington gone too far by insisting that schools teach 'tweens explicit details about condom use?

Some Democrats are criticizing Governor Palin for putting the pursuit of political office above the needs of her family. Now, if conservatives were doing so (and a few, such as Dr. Laura Schlesinger, apparently are), it would be a consistent position, although one that you could still criticize as "old-fashioned." But the Democrats are the party of subsidized daycare and aggressive, sometimes bizarre enforcement of laws against employment discrimination based on sex. And they are complaining that Governor Palin shouldn't be running for office because she has three kids at home, one of whom has Down's Syndrome and thus needs more attention? If Democrats who are making this criticism mean it, I guess that they will be arguing for revising the sex discrimination laws next to allow--no require--employers to discriminate against women with minor age children at home/Clayton Cramer. More here.

Question: Which side is the bigger hypocrites -- social conservatives who are cheering for Palin's VP nomination despite her young children at home. Or liberals who are complaining that a woman with young children shouldn't abandon them to run for the next-to-highest office in the land?

Mark Ambinder/Atlantic Monthly: A senior McCain campaign official advises that, despite the gaggle of requests and pressure from the media, Gov. Sarah Palin won't submit to a formal interview anytime soon. She may take some questions from local news entities in Alaska, but until she's ready -- and until she's comfortable -- which might not be for a long while -- the media will have to wait. The campaign believes it can effectively deal with the media's complaints, and their on-the-record response to all this will be: "Sarah Palin needs to spend time with the voters.

Unequivocal Notion: the McCain camp can only hide Palin behind closed doors for so long until the very swing voters they were gunning for start asking questions about why Palin isn't answering any. More here.

Question: Gov. Sarah Palin seems capable of handling herself, based on her performance at the GOP convention. Why then isn't the McCain campaign making her available to the press?

Item: Sarah Palin wants to look as if she's too busy to spend time on her hair, but the style is carefully thought out/Celia Walden, UK Telegraph.

More Info: As a former beauty queen, Sarah Palin - known in her basketball days as Sarah Barracuda - has a point to make: she's a female Clark Kent wishing to distance herself from the spandex and big hair of her cover-girl days; she's a hockey mom encumbered by her looks - or is she? That luxuriant hair, tied up so impatiently, is as carefully thought out as the spectacles; (I'm 90% sure they're clear glass).

Related: Rasmussen: Palin more popular than McCain or Obama -- Rasmussen Poll

Question: What does your hair say about you?

Coeur d'Alene School District's one goal is literacy for all students. But as a junior and senior English teacher I have only five novels to choose from besides my textbook! We have removed 78 books from our high schools and 39 from our middle schools. How does this removal of books promote the district's goal of literacy? Students can only read these "removed" books if they take an "elective" course such as honors. This is not equal education for all students. This is censorship in its highest form/Paul W. Swartz, Coeur d'Alene. More here.

DFO: If what this teacher says is true in his letter to the editor, something's really wrong in the Coeur d'Alene School District. At least, I think so. Do you agree?

Kyle Mills/Lewiston Tribune, AP
A clown in training, Caden Byrer, 6, of Lewiston, watches intently during the opening performance of the Lewiston Roundup Friday in Lewiston.

I'm outtahere troops, to grab a quick spaghetti feed before auctioneering tonight's Steve Tucker family fund-raiser at Hayden Bible Church, 290 E. Miles Ave., Hayden. As I mentioned, there's 70-plus goods, services, and gift certificates for sale, beginning at 7 o'clock. You're welcome to swing by and bid on items (which includes an above-ground pool, 40 hours of yard work and even a dozen farm fresh eggs per month for a year). You can read a list of the auction items here. If I don't see you there, I'll see you back here late tonight when I post Saturday morning's fodder. I'll leave this Wild Card behind ...

Chiang Ying-Ying/AP Photo
Thousands of Taiwanese students gather to demonstrate sign language during the " Deaflympics Countdown 365" event to warm up for the upcoming 21st Summer Deaflympics recognized by the International Olympic Committee and ruled in ICSD (International Committee of Sports for the Deaf) every four years, Friday, Sept. 5, 2008, in Taipei, Taiwan. The Deaflympics has been an IOC-sanctioned event since 2001 and Taipei won the bid to host the event after defeating Athens by a result of 52:32 at an ICSD voting session in 2003. Andrew Zahler's SR Today In Pictures here.

Item: Spokane man's suit claims popcorn led to lung disease: 'I would eat four to six bags a day'/Andrew Schneider, Seattle PI

More Info: Popping and eating four to six bags of popcorn a day has been blamed for damaging the lungs of a Spokane businessman. Larry Newkirk has been diagnosed with the sometimes fatal lung disease called bronchiolitis obliterans. The disease, which can often be treated only with a lung transplant, has been diagnosed in scores of workers in factories where a chemical butter flavoring called diacetyl is used. Newkirk is the second consumer in this country to ever be diagnosed with bronchiolitis obliterans, although other home users of popcorn are undergoing medical evaluation at this time.

Question: What do you make of a story like this?

Pecky Cox/As The Lake Churns
At As The Lake Churns, Pecky Cox calls this scenic on Priest Lake: "September Skies."

*Kootenai's joblessness doubles/SR
*No federal charges in RPS probe/SR
*Cluster of Sandpoint area crashes hurts 7/Bonner County Bee
*I-90 ramp painting to begin Sunday/Kootenai MPO
*Heron man gets 50-year sentence for sex abuse/Bonner County Bee
*CDA creates sidewalk repair account/Kootenai MPO
*Milltown Dam data raises concerns/Bonner County Bee
*150 bicyclists hit Trail of Coeur d'Alenes for MS fund-raiser/Shoshone News-Press

Jae C. Hong/AP Photo
Delegates dance barefoot on their chairs during the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn., Thursday. You write the cutline.

Top Cutlines

1. Outraged feminists point out that "Barefoot and Pregnant" is an offensive campaign gimmick degrading to women and simply illustrates one more reason to not support McCain/Palin -- MamaJD.
2. When he returned from the convention without any pictures of the candidates, with only pictures of feet, thousands of them, we knew Hong needed some counseling. He has been put on paid leave and will start meeting with a counselor this morning. - The Editors/TnTopHat
3. A brief shot from the upcoming direct to DVD release: Republicans Gone Wild! -- Nic; and: (Enter Larry Craig stage left.) "I heard there was some toe tapping going on" -- Shannon.

HM: John Austin & Shannon

2:03 p.m. A patrol officer is chasing a motorist in a stolen vehicle down Pleasant View and now onto I-90 westbound. ... The Washington Patrol has been notified. ... Motorist going 95 mph. Now exiting freeway near truck stop. ... Post Falls police have been asked for spikes ... Now e/b at 90 mph on 53 ... Pursuing officers have stopped vehicle just north of Seltice on Pleasantview. Frum Helen Back photo.

5:45 p.m. R/P reports 2 males are smoking pot from a bong as they drive in a gold Honda on Colfax Avenue/Dalton Gardens.
5:18 p.m. 1/4 fire west of the U-Haul center (Post Falls?)
3:32 p.m. Motorist reports a motorist in a green pickup has a gun to his head while he's traveling e/b from Diagonal toward Ramsey ... He's now been stopped, 3 miles east of Ramsey.
2:38 p.m. Trauma on 1600 block of E. Hoffman. Male fell off his bike. Has facial cuts and uncontrolled bleeding.

The security supervisor for The Spokesman-Review was arrested today on four felony charges alleging rape and molestation of a young girl. Robert J. Robel was arrested at 10:30 a.m. in the lobby of the newspaper by members of the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force, composed of deputy marshals and local police officers. The arrest came after the 60-year-old suspect was formally charged in Spokane County Superior Court with two counts of child rape and two counts of child molestation, said Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Edward Hay, supervisor of the county’s Special Assault Unit/Bill Morlin, SR. More here.

We didn’t have a grocery list with us (Wednesday) when we went to Costco, so we went up and down each aisle. I commented when we went down what used to be the junk food sections that it was mostly healthy stuff with no candy bars. Finally I did find one side of one aisle with candy bars. It didn’t get better as we cruised the other grocery sections. I just kept seeing Natural on the packages. Even the brownie mix had bitter chocolate chips. The food Nazis have won the war at Costco. I’m sure I won’t live long enough to see it go back to the way it was before the food wars started/Frum Helen Back, Hauser Thoughts. More here.

Question: As a Costco shopper, are you satisfied with the selection of good in the store, particularly sweets?

Larry LaRocco's in CDA today for the opening of his seventh field office 408 Sherman Avenue), including ones in Moscow and Lewiston. The public is invited to attend from 6-8 p.m.

DFO: How do you read the attempt by Congressman Bill Sali to lobby three minor opponents (Independent Pro Life, Libertarian Kent Marmon, and Independent Rex Rammell) to leave the U.S. Senate race?

LL: Desperation. It's heavy-handed. Their options are closing out. At some point, Jim Risch is finally going to have to face the voters here. I've been campaigning for 16-plus months. They tried to decapitate Rammell. And now trying to get other two out of the race. Jim Risch is finally going to have to meet a voter and actually campaign.

Paul Sancya/AP Photo
Levi Johnston, kisses Trig, brother of his girlfiend Bristol Palin, as she holds him during the Republican National Convention.

I have three friends who are in it for the long haul. One of the grandparents have been in it for 17 years. 17 years of trying their best to bring the two young men a good life. 17 years of putting their own lives on hold. It was suppose to be retirement time for them. Instead they watch their retirement go down the drain. The retirement funds went down the drain, as there was no financial help. There were behavior problems, bring on therapist, and other expense/Simple Mind. More here.

Question: If your child was pregnant and irresponsible, would you be willing to step in and raise your grandchild?

Courtesy: As The Lake Churns
Pecky Cox calls this wonderful shot submitted to her As The Lake Churns blog: "Priest Lake Olympics."

*13 amazing facts about McRib/Get Out! North Idaho
*Beyond McCain's rhetoric/Dogwalk Musings
*Walking on sunshine/A Family Runs Through It
*Post No. 800/Atmospheric Ruminations
*Beginning a teaching year/Gathering Around The Table
*Telltale signs/Tumblewords

HBO Numbers (for Thursday, Sept. 4): 14,385 page-views/8024 unique views

Robin Loznak/Roseberg News-Review
A frog swims in a pond at a city park in Roseburg, Ore., earlier today.

*Spokane Valley man suing after 5 bags of popcorn per day made him sick/KREM2
*Yates' execution date set Sept. 19/SR
*Potlatch workers won't strike/Lewiston Tribune
*South Hill Rapist returns to court next week/SR
*Cougar sighted near Lapwai Elementary/Lewiston Tribune
*Idaho jobless rate jumps to 4.6%, US @ 6.1%/Idaho Statesman
*Wyoming: Ban helps smokers quit habit/AP
*Missoula tanker crash victim: 'Great Christian young man'/Missoulian
*3rd car caused crash that killed 3, including trooper, near Glacier Park/Daily Inter Lake

Orbusmax Special: Oklahoma City transforms Sonics into -- yawn -- Thunder here.

You guys” is a phrase that has become a common way to greet a group of friends, but to the Women’s Center, it’s a cause they want to draw attention to. Most people would argue that “you guys” is just a general term that includes both men and women. However, the Women’s Center argues it is a generic “male” term that makes women invisible by lumping them into a group with men/Rubell Dingman, UI Argonaut. More here.

Question: Do you use the term "you guys"? Has the article above raised your awareness that it might be an offensive term?

Question: Why did your headline about Sarah Palin’s speech read “Palin lashes out at critics, Obama?” She didn’t lash out at the Democrats. Lashing out is something a family member does during a victim impact statement in a court proceeding.

Managing Editor Gary Graham: Headline writing is an art . Headlines are supposed to capture the essence of the story, focusing on key words or pieces of news. And by their nature, headlines have to fit in a defined space. Did Palin whip the crowd into a frenzy of anger? No, but she sure fired them up and won them over with her direct attacks on Obama. Was it a violent attack? Of course not. But it certainly wasn’t patty-cake, either. Our caller thinks we miscast what Palin said. I respectfully disagree. More here.

Question: Did Palin "lash out" at the Obama-Biden ticket? Did Biden "lash out" at the McCain-Palin-GOP ticket? Does it matter that the SR used this word to describe Palin's actions?

Signe Wilkinson/Philadelphia Inquirer

Signe Wilkinson/Philadelphia Inquirer

Daryl Cagle's Palin 'Toon Roundup:
*McCain picks Palin
*Palin's pregnant daughter

I swear this should be my last post on my fake Sarah Palin quote post. Here's the latest - I'm getting unique visitor counts in the thousands every day searching me out because of these fake quotes, apparently there is some email that's gone out to "tens of millions" of Obama supporters that list the quotes as real and claim they were released from MSNBC (they weren't, they were pasted into a poli forum there) and now there's even a website by some guys who domain-registered the phrase I used in a fake quote where Sarah describes dinosaurs as "Lizards of Satan." They nicely credited me as their source/TUBOB. More here. Fake quotes here.

The Obamessiah attended Occidental College in Los Angeles for two years before transferring to Columbia. He then took five years off before going to Harvard Law School. I never recall this being an issue with him. I went to three different schools in four years. Why? For much the same reason that I'll bet that Palin, the daughter of school teachers, did: Money. After one year at a private college, I had to transfer to a community college because I could no longer afford tuition. I was able to obtain my bachelor's degree at another private college through a combination of scholarships and loans/Tom Forbes, Red County. More here.

*John McCain's cowboy Idaho/Dennis Mansfield
*Palin polarizes debate on aerial wolf killing/Rocky Barker
*Keith Olbermann is correct/43rd State Blues
*The culture war option/Fort Boise
*Saddest thing about McCain's speech/Unequivocal Notion
*What happens on WestPac .../The Stupid Shall Be Punished
*The 'scandal' involving Palin's ex-in-law/Clayton Cramer
*Burning questions remain/Idaho Conservation League

Question: How many colleges did you attend? And how long did it take you to get your college degree?

"Jesus was a community organizer, Pontius Pilate was a governor" -- Rum, Romanism & Rebellion.

Adam's Blog response

Now comes this KTVB story that says Rammell, independent candidate Pro-Life and Libertarian Kent Marmon have been asked to bow out of the Senate race. At least a couple of the calls came from Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Sali, says KTVB. The logic behind all of this is that Rammell, Pro-Life and Marmon are apt to draw most of their votes from GOP Lt. Gov. Jim Risch, bolstering Democratic candidate Larry LaRocco's chances of pulling an upset. The GOP is certainly sending mixed messages. Risch, who says he knew nothing about the anti-Rammell lawsuit, continues to cite his double-digit lead in the polls (including a LaRocco poll from May). Risch's optimistic read of the race doesn't square with Republicans' efforts to clear the field/Kevin Richert, Idaho Statesman. More here.

Question: By fighting to limit primary access, by trying to block Rex Rammell's name from appearing on the ballot, and now by trying to talk minor foes out of the U.S. Senate race, the Idaho GOP appears to be running scare? Is it? Or is it simply being cautious?

Grammy award winner Amy Winehouse and Repub VP nominee Sarah Winehouse seem to go to the same hairdresser. (AP Photos).

Don't touch the hair. Yet. Of course, I'm sure it will evolve but it's very in, very now, very lady-in-power. Makes Hillary look like an old scarecrow/OrangeTV.

They called themselves the elite six — and the name was meant to be ironic. This was Wasilla, Alaska, 30 miles (about 50 km) north of Anchorage, in the early 1990s — when the sagging economy meant, as a local recalls, "everyone had dust on their ass." There was nothing élite about this little town on the stretch of highway along the railroad. And there was nothing élite about the group either — six stay-at-home moms who sought one another out to escape the house and get some exercise in the long northern winter. They would do their step aerobics, then drive to a local diner for coffee and dessert. It was a lifeline in lean times/Nathan Thornburgh, Time. More here.

Jerome A. Pollos/CDA Press, AP
Cody Maguire, 4, walks behind his father, Ryan Maguire, on their way home Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2008, from a fishing trip to Fernan Lake in Fernan, Idaho. Cody reeled in his trout fast enough to keep it out of the talons of an osprey.

*Idaho Records/Sherry Adkins, SR
*CDA adopts $77M budget/Tom Hasslinger, CDA Press
*Despite governor's order, flags weren't flown at half staff for fallen soldier/KREM2
*Citizens Corps creator to be honored/Alecia Warren, CDA Press
*Vaccine suspected in death of Bonners Ferry dog/KXLY
*Student growth qualifies Post Falls for funds/Brian Walker, CDA Press
*Counties critical of lake plan/Alecia Warren, CDA Press

Item: EPA says it erred in figuring Idaho phosphorus limits/Becky Kramer, SR

More Info: A multiyear effort to lower phosphorus levels in the Spokane River - and reduce algae blooms and improve water quality in the reservoir behind Long Lake Dam - has hit a major snag. The Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday it erred when calculating phosphorus limits in permits for Idaho cities that discharge treated sewage into the river. The method it used wasn't "legally solid," said Christine Psyk, associate director in EPA's Office of Water. The result is further delay in the effort to clean up the river.

Question: Does this shake your faith in EPA oversight? Or do you dismiss this news as proof again that everyone makes mistakes, even government entities?

Item: McCain vows to end partisan rancor in Washington/AP

More Info: John McCain, a POW turned political rebel, vowed Thursday night to vanquish the "constant partisan rancor" plaguing the nation as he launched his fall campaign for the White House. "Change is coming" to Washington, he promised the Republican National Convention.

Question: Can either Republican John McCain or Democrat Barack Obama close the political divide in Washington?

Item: By 10-to-1 Public Says Reporters 'Trying to Hurt Palin'/Rasmussen Reports

More Info: “Over half of U.S. voters (51%) think reporters are trying to hurt Sarah Palin with their news coverage, and 24% say those stories make them more likely to vote for Republican presidential candidate John McCain in November,” Rasmussen Reports announced Thursday in posting survey results which determined “just five percent (5%) think reporters are trying to help her with their coverage, while 35 percent believe reporters are providing unbiased coverage.”

Question: Do you think the media are trying to hurt or help Republican VP nominee Sarah Palin?

Charles Dharapak/AP Photo
Republican presidential nominee John McCain, right, is joined by his running mate, Sarah Palin at the end of his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn., Thursday.

Question: What did you think of John McCain's speech?

1. It was lackluster, lacking ideas or inspiration
2. McCain was shown up by his running mate
3. It showed him as the angry, senile warmonger he is
4. It paled in comparison to the the vision Obama offered
5. It was long on Washington insider talk and short on real solutions
6. Paris Hilton was right -- McCain's just a wrinkly, white-haired guy
7. Too many promises that would require too much government to fulfill
8. Words ... just words
9. I was unmoved -- I'm still for none of the above
10. He really showed his age

I'm a bit tired today (read: beware, I might have a short fuse) b/c I was up until 2 in the morning helping my wife organize a fund-raising option for Steve Tucker's family. Steve is a manager at Chili's whose son, Steve Jr., was born this spring severely handicapped and continues to be hospitalized. Even worse, Steve's mother, Florence, died recently. Tough situation. So I didn't mind when she drafted me as the auctioneer for Friday night's event. However, I didn't realize that she'd also drafted me for behind-the-scenes grunt labor. With that warning -- beware of grouchy blogmeister today -- I'll post the Wild Card ...

Paul Sancya/AP Photo
Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, left, is joined by Republican presidential candidate John McCain at the end of her speech at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn.

Question: What are you expecting from Republican presidential nominee John McCain tonight?

Item: Cinematic Sandpoint: Sundance clone returns for another fall run/Luke Baumgarten, Inlander

More Info: We're still scratching our heads, two years later, over the renaming of Sandpoint's film festival to "Lakedance." When most of the hundreds of film festivals try desperately to set themselves apart, why was this one seeking to paint itself as a Sundance clone? To be fair, "Idaho Panhandle International Film Festival," the name the event took in its first year, didn't inspire excitement either. Some of this year's films, though, will.

Question: Are you planning to attend Lakedance this year? Do you mind the name?

Item: States face low vaccination rates/John Stucke, SR

More Info: Many parents in Washington and Idaho are failing to have their children vaccinated against deadly diseases, prompting pleas from health officials to boost immunizations. Both states are among the bottom five nationally for vaccination rates, according to a report issued Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The report measured vaccination coverage rates for children between the ages of 1 ½ and 3 years old.

Question: Generally, Idaho falls somewhere near the bottom of these kinds of rankings. But Washington, too? Why are these two states ranked so low on vaccination rates?