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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

TUESDAY, APRIL 13, 2010


Taking her usual work break at the nearby Dept. of Licensing building, Katie Sprengel offers a walnut treat to "Arnoldette," one of several Capitol campus squirrels she has befriended during her regular walks Tuesday, April 13, 2010, in Olympia, Wash. (Steve Bloom / The Olympian)

Parting Shot -- 4.13.10 

Taking her usual work break at the nearby Dept. of Licensing building, Katie Sprengel offers a walnut treat to "Arnoldette," one of several Capitol campus squirrels she has befriended during her regular walks Tuesday in Olympia, Wash. (AP Photo/The Olympian, Steve Bloom)

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Wild Card/Tuesday -- 4.13.10 14 

I'm checking out rumors that there's a political subset that there's a Repub subset that's further to the right than your typical Pachyderm Clubber -- and wants control of the Central Committee. Seems Rally Right has targetted a coupla District 5 races, including Mike Jorgenson's…

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Tankovich Erases Smile Just In Time

The hate crime trial in Coeur d’Alene taught one of the defendants to check his gear before he draws a practical joke. Deputy Prosecutor Art Verharen used an erasable board to have a witness draw how the Tankovichs’ pickup, which had a swastika and “born…

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Top Story: Palin Rakes In $12M 68 

Pundits can debate the political costs and benefits of Sarah Palin's decision to step down as Alaska governor, but the monetary advantages of leaving her $125,000-a-year public service post are beyond dispute. Since leaving office at the end of July 2009, the 2008 Republican vice…

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Mikael Kamph of MK Energiflis of Sweden demonstrates the use of an $800,000 chipper in Athol on Monday, April 12, 2010. The chipper is designed to turn the tops of trees and other waste materials into biomass. (Kathy Plonka / The Spokesman-Review)

PM Headlines -- 4.13.10 

Mikael Kamph of MK Energiflis of Sweden demonstrates the use of an $800,000 chipper in Athol on Monday. The chipper is designed to turn the tops of trees and other waste materials into biomass. Story by Becky Kramer/SR here. (Kathy Plonka/SR)Idaho joins firearms freedom case/Betsy…

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FILE - This undated file photo provided by the Department of Justice shows detained suspect Sony Dong, with songbirds strapped to his legs at Los Angeles International Airport. On Monday, April 12, 2010, Duc Le, pleaded guilty to conspiracy for his role in smuggling songbirds into the United States from Vietnam by hiding them in Dong's pants. He faces up to five years in prison when he is sentenced in June. (Department Of Justice)

APhoto Of The Day -- 4.12.10 

This undated file photo provided by the Department of Justice shows detained suspect Sony Dong, with songbirds strapped to his legs at Los Angeles International Airport. On Monday, Duc Le, pleaded guilty to conspiracy for his role in smuggling songbirds into the United States from…

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Scanner Traffic/PM -- 4.13.10

5:58 p.m. A 10YO boy fell off his bike and scraped his elbows at the Cherry Hill Park BMX track.5:12 p.m. Caller reports that builders left a 3-foot fire burning unattended in 3800 block of Pinnacle/Post Falls.5:12 p.m. 2 females are fighting in front of…

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HBO, OpenCDA ... Yin & Yang? 

OrangeTV: Comedy gold as usual. I'd quite miss the ongoing HBO vs. OpenCDA war if it were to ever end. It's like yin and yang, two opposites that would be incomplete without the other. Two “gossip blogs” feeding off each other in a beautiful, natural…

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California State University,Stanislaus students Alicia Lewis, left, and Ashli Briggs, move a cart loaded with documents and shredded papers they say they found on the school's campus that included parts of a speaking contract for former Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin, after a news conference in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, April 13, 2010.   Briggs and Lewis say they were tipped off on April 9, about the attempt to get rid of documents concerning Palin's speaking appearance with the CSU Stanislaus Foundation in June. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

In The News: Palin's Speaking Contract 19 

California State University,Stanislaus students Alicia Lewis, left, and Ashli Briggs, move a cart loaded with documents and shredded papers they say they found on the school's campus that included parts of a speaking contract for former Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin, after a news conference…

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NIC Sentinel Wins More Awards.

The North Idaho College Sentinel has won top honors in the "general excellence" category as well as several other honors in the recent two-year college newspaper division of the Region 10 Society of Professional Journalists Conference in Seattle. Jake Donahue from Portland, Ore., earned first…

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Tankovich Hate Crime Trial Begins

The trial against three Coeur d’Alene brothers charged with threatening a Hispanic man has made it through most of the first day without the need for a judge to call a mistrial. Last week, the trial didn’t make it through the first witness before 1st…

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Melissa: Don't Shoot The Messenger 

"I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to defend myself or this news organization because people don’t want us to report the news. The latest example: the story Jeff Humphrey did yesterday about a South Hill daycare shut down because one of the…

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Think Tank News Sites Take Root 

Wayne Hoffman, center, the executive director of the Idaho Freedom Foundation, talks with acquaintances in the Idaho Capitol in Boise, Idaho. A growing number of conservative groups are bankrolling startup news organizations around the country, aggressively covering government and politics at a time when newspapers…

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Idaho Blogosphere -- 4.13.10 18 

Well here we go, the bad just keeps on getting worse. Last week White House economic adviser Paul Volcker, a former Federal Reserve chairman, said the United States should consider imposing a "value-added tax" to help get the deficit under control. Here’s an idea, STOP…

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Twitter Introduces Ad Tweets 

Online messaging service Twitter is introducing advertising, allowing companies to pay to have their messages show up first in searches. The feature introduced Tuesday is called Promoted Tweets. Twitter says Best Buy Co., Sony Pictures, Starbucks Corp. and Virgin America are some of the advertisers.…

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OpenCDA: Thumbs Down To DFO 

At OpenCDA.com, the usual suspects are in full meltdown mode over Jim Brannon's challenge to Councilman Mike Kennedy for a do-over election during the May primaries. In their usual fit of paranoia, one of the three regular commenters on the site believe the posts yesterday…

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Phil Mangeac of Nampa, Idaho waves to motorists as they pass by a tax preparation location on Monday, April 12, 2010 in Nampa. (Charlie Litchfield / Idaho Press-tribune)

HBO's Inland Northwest -- 4.13.10 

Phil Mangeac of Nampa waves to motorists as they pass by a tax preparation location on Monday in Nampa. (AP Photo/Idaho Press-Tribune, Charlie Litchfield)Southwest strands more passengers in Spokane/Rob Kauder, KXLYIdaho dairies struggle to hang on/Bethann Stewart, Idaho StatesmanDaughter exits closet to father at discrimination…

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High Noon: 'Simplify Your Life' 

"This year’s theme (for Earth Day CDA, on Saturday) is, 'Simplify Your Life,'' writes Anissa Duwaik." "As the coordinator of the events this year, I had thought of this years theme as a result of the changes that have taken place in my own life.…

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Ed Bruns lies quietly maintaining his focus while more needles are prepared for insertion during a Guinness World Record breaking event at Pain for Sale in Gillette, Wyo., Sunday, April 11, 2010. The "ladders" of needles are mapped with numbered ink dots. (Alton Strupp / Gillette News Record)

Going For Guinness w/Piercings 

Ed Bruns lies quietly maintaining his focus while more needles are prepared for insertion during a Guinness World Record breaking event at Pain for Sale in Gillette, Wyo., Sunday. The "ladders" of needles are mapped with numbered ink dots. (AP Photo/Gillette News Record, Alton Strupp)Question:…

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Scanner Traffic/AM -- 4.13.10

Noonish: A 19-20YO male has suffered a seizure @ Center Partners/Clearwater Loop.11:25 a.m. A 33YO male has taken his mother's purse so she can't leave her property on Majestic/Rathdrum.11:15 a.m. A female has returned to a Post Falls day care on 8th after being told…

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Cops Probe Craigslist 'Boy For Sale' 

Item: 'Boy for sale' ad taken down from Spokane Craigslist/KREM2More Info (from KREM2): According to the search warrants, the post was about a 4-year-old boy for $5,000 in Spokane. The description of what’s for sale is strange -- the boy sounds more like a pet.…

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Rally Right Targets 'Liberal' Local R's? 10 

A Berry Picker has provided Huckleberries Online w/a list of "liberal" Republicans apparently targetted for election defeat (legislative & at precinct level) by the new Rally Right group in the May primaries. The list (or should I say 2 lists because it includes a group…

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First lady Michelle Obama, center, Haiti's first lady Elisabeth Debrosse, right, and Vice President Joseph Biden's wife, Jill Biden, greet children in Port-au-Prince, Tuesday, April 13, 2010. Michelle Obama made a surprise visit to the devastated Haitian capital, joining a long list of political figures and celebrities who have toured the country and affirmed international support for reconstruction. (Brennan Linsley / Associated Press)

In The News: Michelle Obama In Haiti

First lady Michelle Obama, center, Haiti's first lady Elisabeth Debrosse, right, and Vice President Joseph Biden's wife, Jill Biden, greet children in Port-au-Prince Tuesday. Michelle Obama made a surprise visit to the devastated Haitian capital, joining a long list of political figures and celebrities who…

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HBO Poll: Suit $$$ Unfair To MikeK 

Monday Poll: 127 of 179 respondents (71%) said it was unfair that Councilman Mike Kennedy is forced to pay his own legal bills as a result of challenger Jim Brannon's lawsuit. 45 of 179 (25%) said it was fair.Today's Poll (in lefthand rail): Should Councilman…

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Huckleberries Online

D.F. Oliveria started Huckleberries Online on Feb. 16, 2004. Oliveria's Sunday print Huckleberries is a past winner of the national Herb Caen Memorial Column contest.