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will always enjoy this ride, it’s been great. DFO has allowed us to vent, to express, to get mad, to fly off the handle, to say our peace, to pretend, all of that. It’s a New Year coming, so let’s reflect on that fact and maybe be a little more kinder, more compassionate, less grinding on each other, and remember that we are all a family here and sometimes we don’t like each other, but at least we can put up with whomever at times and smile at that fact. I will try to do that more this year. (Courtesy photo: Kerri Thoreson)
Hill. No, not when he signed the 6-foot-2, 180-pound guard out of Post Falls to play with the Vandals, but his decision prior to the start of the season to redshirt the reigning Idaho 5A high school player of the year. “I probably shouldn't have even tried to redshirt him, looking back on it,” Verlin said. “… He can really shoot, and we knew that all along.” To give Verlin credit, it only took him three games to realize his error. In the 10 games since, Hill has established himself as one the Vandals' top pure shooters and a reliable sharp shooter off the bench, hitting on 45.7 percent of his attempts from 3-point range and averaging 5.7 points and 9.2 minutes per game/Devin Rokyta, Moscow-Pullman Daily News. 
second breath of life. This year of 2011, found a winter that was taking its time leaving us. And as April came around to add that extra year. It also brought some extra money. So the year started, with demolition derby. As we tore apart walls and took out drawers and cabinets and sink. Out went the old door, hello French doors. Then it was time to put it together. May came and went, and I finally had a sink again. No more washing dishes on the back deck or in the shower. In went insulation, and a new dish washer.. Up went beautiful wood cabinets and out with the old orange metal ones/Sis, From A Simple Mind. 
for The Spokesman-Review. Seems the questioner was upset re: 
the month. Today is the final day for Jeff Jordan, “Jordy” to all of us here. You know the scene in the Wizard of Oz when Dorothy says she'll miss the Scarecrow the most? I think everyone here feels that about Jordy. (We liked everyone else who left, too). Jordy will do a part-time gig on the sports desk, so he'll still be among us a couple of times a week, but his leaving got me thinking of the legacies we leave behind in our workplaces. They can be almost as important as the legacies we leave behind in families/Becky Nappi, End Notes. 
appear on “Good Morning America” and then, by satellite, on dozens of local newscasts and talk shows. He’d head home, eat something and hurry back to Times Square for “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve. ” These days, he says, he just reports to the studio in Times Square at 9 p.m. A stroke in 2004 profoundly changed Mr. Clark’s life, as well as his role on 
said. Of the total, $25,583 went to employee overtime and $27,828 went to operating costs. IDOC Director Brent Reinke says when his department began preparing for the execution, it made a commitment to carry out the assignment with professionalism, respect and dignity for all involved. “We believe we met those standards while at the same time being careful stewards of taxpayer dollars,” Reinke said. Operating expenses included medical supplies, equipment rentals and meals/Idaho Statesman. 
“shared sacrifice.” And if you're tempted to proclaim your desire to “win the future,” you've lost it here in the present. Michigan's Lake Superior State University is featuring those phrases in its annual List of Words Banished from the Queen's English for Misuse, Overuse and General Uselessness. The 2012 list, released Friday, was compiled by the university from nominations submitted from across the globe. What else do the syntactical Scrooges want to cast out with the good cheer in the new year? The list also includes “occupy,” “ginormous,” “man cave” and “the new normal”/Jeff Karoub, AP. 
“remarkably steady,” despite one of the worst recessions ever. Writes Esteve: “State agencies, boards and commissions spent roughly $42 million on travel in 2009, $39 million in 2010 and $40 million in 2011, according the review. Those numbers include everything from use of state cars to meals, mileage, plane tickets and hotel stays.” Kicking off his article, Esteve targets a trip to Coeur d'Alene taken by Debra McHugh, executive director of the Oregon Board of Psychologist Examiners: “She and a board member stayed three nights at the swanky lakefront 
Store officials weren't authorized to comment regarding the number of employees affected or the closing date. Inquiries were referred to corporate media representatives, who did not return calls. A company spokeswoman told The Associated Press each store typically employs 40 to 80 peoplle. The Sears store in Walla Walla was also on the list. Florida was the hardest-hit state, with 11 store closures. Ohio, Michigan and Georgia each had six stores on the list. Additional closings are expected. Sears Holdings announced Tuesday that a total of 100 to 120 under-performing Sears and Kmart stores will be shuttered/William L. Spence, Lewiston Tribune. 
ages 2 and 6 – were done up as elves, as were his wife and sister. In the back of the truck were boxes full of presents for the children at St. Margaret’s Shelter, a safe space for families wrestling with homelessness, domestic violence and other chaos. At first, Finn pulled up in front of the shelter on Hartson, but was told it would be better to leave that spot – the closest to the front door – open. He pulled into the empty parking lot – and into one of three open handicapped spots. “I never, ever park in handicapped spots,” Finn said. “Never, ever, ever.” Except this time. A shelter worker had told him to park wherever he needed to, he had a bunch of presents to unload, and he figured he’d be in and out in a short enough time that no one would be hurt, he said/Shawn Vestal, SR. 
the first two graphs from Washington Post online story: “A Washington state man faces felony marijuana trafficking charges after an officer found 3.3 pounds of marijuana wrapped up as Christmas gifts during a traffic stop in northern Idaho. Jason D. Palmer, 36, of Springdale, Wash., was arrested Dec. 22 as he returned from a trip to Montana, where he had been visiting family, the Coeur d’Alene Press. Kootenai County sheriff’s officials said Palmer was stopped east of Coeur d’Alene because his vehicle was repeatedly changing lanes and following other drivers too closely. The officer said he smelled marijuana as he approached the vehicle.” 
the ritual, familiarity and comfort of holiday traditions. For me, it begins on the day after Thanksgiving. While many folks shop til they drop on Black Friday, I decorate til I drop.My sons unearth the red and green plastic tubs bulging with garlands, angels, Santas and candles, and lug them to the living room. Then I pop a Christmas CD in the stereo and spend the day awash in memories of Christmas past/Cindy Hval, SR. 
largest wireless company is instituting a $2 “convenience charge” for those customers who make one-time bill payments using a debit or credit card, either online or by telephone. The fee will go into effect on Jan. 15. There are three ways for customers to avoid the charge: Customers can make a one-time payment using an electronic check, they can pay their bill using their home banking accounts, such as Citibank (
105 lawmakers for the upcoming session. As of then, Andrus had 17 responses, with
more Birkenstocks than stilettos. Eh. My feet are happier.” Which conjured my shoe purge earlier this week. I have shoes I haven't worn for years. Yet, they were piled in shoe racks and other places in the closet. So I put the unwanted shoes in a box and took them to the garage. Some still have many miles on them, particularly a pair of tennis shoes that I wore for a few weeks before deciding they were too tight. I doubt that anyone wants to wear used shoes. But I can't quite dump them in the trash. What would you do? (Wikipedia photo)
Obama has topped the USA Today/Gallup poll for the last four years, and he is followed by Presidents Bush and Clinton in the second and third spots, respectively.
the limited-government lobbying group wound up in my inbox. At the time, foundation honcho Wayne Hoffman told supporters that the group $30,000 short on its 2011 fund-raising goals. While Hoffman is steadfastly unwilling to talk details about who funds his group, he made it a point this morning to send his fundraising followup to my inbox. I’ll leave it to you readers to either sigh with relief or groan in resignation. Either way, this seems to fall just a tad short of the tear-jerker finish in “It's a Wonderful Life”/Kevin Richert, Idaho Statesman. 
Parade in California. This was for work. It was in the late '90s. That, in itself, is not remarkable. But here's the thing. There are people — female people — in my extended family who are really, really into that particular extravaganza. And yet they have never gotten to witness it in person. On the other hand, it would be fair to say I am less excited about it/Paul Turner, The Slice. 
On his Facebook wall, SR colleague Shawn Vestal writes: “You have reached a certain milestone in your life, regarding self-acceptance and the loss of possible coolness, when you eagerly embrace a product that promises the following: “Opens Your Nose More Completely.”
erratic driving on Interstate 90 turned into a marijuana bust in which Kootenai County sheriff's deputies found 3.3 pounds of the pungent drug plant packaged in Christmas presents. Arrested was Jason D. Palmer, 36, of Springdale, Wash., which is northwest of Spokane. Palmer has been charged with felony trafficking in marijuana. Also charged were two of Palmer's four kids, age 12 and 14, who were in the vehicle with him when he was pulled over and the pot was discovered. The boys were charged with frequenting/David Cole, Coeur d'Alene Press. 
Kralicek had almost passed until I read this Facebook post from Mike's wife, Carrie, last night: “It has been 7 years today since K57 was “down”. Our lives changed for what “appeared” to be the worst. Things are not always as they appear to be and what appears to be is not always what it seems. We have found peace and joy through the suffering, and an understanding you cannot have one without the other. I love you K57 you are more than a number. I love the new Mike and what you can do for others through honestly and openly speaking to agencies about officer involved shootings, overcoming adversity, and disability etc. You are still a HERO and one of a kind.” (2006 SR file photo: Mike Kralicek and then state senator Mike Jorgenson)
them to vote for a $400 billion Medicare prescription drug benefit. Otter told the Des Moines Register that Gingrich was “full of crap” in making a case for the bill. Still, Otter ultimately voted for the measure. Gingrich has repeatedly denied any lobbying and 
Police on Wednesday arrested the last of eight people suspected in a months long residential burglary spree that traumatized victims stretching from Spokane to North Idaho. Beginning in August, authorities across the region received dozens of reports of 
burglaries that followed a common theme. People would knock on the door and offer services, such as firewood sales or dog-walking. Some witnesses reported people saying they were looking for a friend, police reports show. When no one answered, police say, the door would be kicked in and valuables stolen. Stolen items ranged from guns and knives to a model sailboat, Tiffany jewelry, flat-screen televisions and furniture. Reports came from victims in Coeur d’Alene, Post Falls, Rathdrum, Hayden, unincorporated Kootenai County, Sandpoint and Spokane/Alison Boggs, SR. 
$5,000 to buy computers and programs and I ran the newspaper out of my bedroom for the first couple months because I didn't have an office.” Wednesday marked the final publication of the Rathdrum Star, a free newspaper mailed to about 10,100 homes in Rathdrum, Hauser, Spirit Lake, Twin Lakes Village and Blanchard. The newspaper published a front-page photo of the Star's office window painting of a cigar-smoking reporter tapping away at a typewriter with “Sorry; We're closed” written over the picture. Burnett, who turns 70 in January, said the publication has ended due to his retirement/David Cole, Coeur d'Alene Press. 
finished second to “Harry Potter” in a best of the year poll for MTV's Nextmovie.com, and trailed “The Hunger Games” as the most anticipated movie of 2012. 
Burke aka Susan Church at 1:30 p.m. today without incident. Burke was arrested in the 100 block of E. Indiana. All suspects in the home invasion style residential burglaries occurring in Kootenai County and Spokane are currently in custody/Coeur d'Alene police news release. 
locations in Chicago and across the country. Local moms say the demonstration is meant to raise awareness about controversies over nursing in public. This latest outcry, they say, stems from a recent incident in Texas. Michelle Hickman, a Houston mother of four, apparently was nursing in a remote area of a Target store when staffers told her to move into a fitting room. There were so many employees confronting her, she said, that it was time to speak up/Natalie Martinez, 5 NBC Chicago. 
missions of the 2012 Legislature will be selling the program to conservative Idaho lawmakers who are leery of inserting taxpayer money into areas where they believe the private sector should take the reins. The Idaho Global Entrepreneurial Mission, or iGem, as the proposal is called, includes a strategy of luring talented researchers to Idaho universities and the Center for Advanced Energy Studies in Idaho Falls. Once they arrive, they'll research energy, materials science and manufacturing, computer science and bio- and agricultural technology — areas where Idaho has a foundation — to develop products and spin off companies/John Miller, AP. 
its manual. In this morning's case, I bypassed doing the smart thing before going to the barn. Slipped and slid a couple of times and thought about those Yaks hanging on a door knob back in the garage. Still, I left them behind and picked out a route in the darkness to the barn. Old Lady Still Standing — good reality show title and the results of some lucky navigating through water, bare ground and bone-breaking ice/Marianne Love, Slight Detour. 
in fact, or that are taunting or demeaning. In 2012 no one will bleat a political party’s talking points endlessly. Instead everyone will think for themselves and have their own opinions. Oh yeah, people will admit it when they have said something that turns out to be wrong instead of just digging in deeper or disappearing until it blows over. Well, those are my New Year’s resolutions for everyone else. Chances that they will all come true? …. Uhhh not likely.
Stickman: Such a spectacular day to watch the bald eagles. The snow is all gone so they are easier to see and the high winds made for some beautiful soaring. I have gone quite a lot, but today was extra special as they were all out in their full glory. We probably saw at least 50 to 75 in the time we were out there. Many more were way up high just enjoying riding the winds. Check them out before they leave soon. (Kerri Thoreson photo of eagle she spotted by the road today off Lake Coeur d'Alene)
screen get bigger and better, movie crowds keep shrinking - down to a 16-year low as 2011's film lineup fell well short of studios' record expectations. … Just what has put the movie business in the dumps is anyone's guess - though safe bets include the tight economy, rising ticket prices, backlash against parades of sequels or remakes, and an almost-limitless inventory of portable and at-home gadgetry to occupy people's time/Associated Press. 
11:59 a.m. CPD issues release re: Coeur d'Alene fugitive Nathanial R. Howell, 32, (5-10, 175 lbs, hazel eyes & blond hair) who was last seen running from officers into woods in 1500 block of Sagle Road/Sagle. Howell is wanted on 4 counts of L&L with a Child and 5 counts sexual exploitation.
dysfunction more profoundly gripped the institution? Hardly. University of Tennessee 
The Washington Post is 
GOPlegislators in advance of Idaho's first-ever Republican presidential 
three St. Maries girls in the class of 2011 named Stephanie. Stephanie Mills, Stephani Brede and Ms. Comack adopted the moniker when they became friends in middle school. Ms. Comack was shot Dec. 25. She was airlifted to Kootenai Medical Center where she later died. Her boyfriend, Joe Herrera, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. … 
the past behind them. Wednesday is “Good Riddance Day,” a day where you're encouraged to say goodbye to whatever troubled you in 2011, and start 2012 with a clean slate. New York City has been celebrating Good Riddance Day since 2007 by allowing folks in Times Square to destroy their bad memories of the old year with a giant paper shredder/13News. 
murder was a childhood friend. Haven’t seen the kid or the heard his name since I lived in that lil’ ol’ town. That’s now the second kid from my diminutive St. Maries class — 
Washington who holds the same kind of policy through Met Life – will be paying 41 percent more a month for coverage of the various steep costs that come with long illnesses or health care needs late in life. The Thielbahrs face a difficult choice: Pay a lot more, get a lot less, or risk the life-crushing debt that can come with long-term health care. “We’re stunned right now,” said Thielbahr, a 68-year-old retiree living in Pullman. “I’m not sure what we’re going to do.” Thielbahr and his wife are caught in the vice that is the modern American health care system: The cost simply goes up, up, up/Shawn Vestal, SR. 
Housing and Finance Association program that helps people bridge the gaps to homeownership. Lauri Moore is the first graduate of the HOPES program – Homeownership Promotes Economic Stability – offered by IHFA’s Home Partnership Foundation. The foundation offers a 200 percent match on people’s savings of up to $2,000, giving them a total of $6,000 for down payments or, in Moore’s case, paying down the principal to make the mortgage more affordable. “It’s a dream come true,” Moore said. “Owning a home was when you made it. Now I feel a little more equal”/Alison Boggs, SR.
guilty as others. For Christmas, the King got me the MORE POWER, BIGGER THAN A LOT, KITCHEN AID PROFESSIONAL 500 MIXER. I use capitals not to shout, but so you understand … this is MORE POWER. I love machinery of MORE POWER, be it appliances or cars… MORE POWER, LOUDER MUFFLERS. That is just the way I roll. So there I was with my MORE POWER MIXER, in my kitchen. … I had the booklet in my hand. So I sat down with a cup of coffee and skimmed the booklet/Cis, From A Simple Mind. 
Comack of St. Maries. Herrera made his first appearance in court Tuesday where his bond was set at $200,000. Herrera claims that he was unloading his gun when it accidentally discharged. Benewah County Prosecutor Doug Payne says, however, that the evidence shows that when the gun discharged it was very close to Comack's head. Friends and family members close to Stefanie claimed Monday that Herrera had a history of abusive behavior and threatened to shoot her a week before she was killed/KXLY. 
idiots getting out of line. The Icon is such a dive and is almost solely responsible for the ever-growing stigma of downtown CDA and drama that goes down (nothing good happens after midnight, right?). I love the downtown CDA scene, but The Icon is ghetto fabulous but still not as bad as the artist formerly known as The Torch.
pretty personal and emotional: A health condition she's had for two years that's caused her to lose all of the hair on her body. For plenty of junior high girls what you look like can be pretty important, but Caitlin Bishop and her friends say they've learned from experience that it's what's on the inside that really matters. Bishop wants other kids to understand that too. Bishop showed KTVB old photos and videos of herself before she lost all of her hair when she was 11 years old. She had no idea she would ever lose all of it/Jamie Grey, KTVB. 
occurred the previous evening (2200 hours) at the Icon. According to the victim, a 53 year old male from Spokane, he and his lady friend had been dancing at the Icon when an unknown male pushed him aside and began dancing with his date. The “victim” tried several times to get his lady back, but the male kept getting
designer or a stylist. As it was, she sewed almost exclusively for her two daughters. I so under-appreciated her talent that I wouldn't have described her with a word like seamstress. In my childhood, she was the person I could turn to after a bad day, a devout Christian Scientist, a cook, a chauffeur and even a journalist, a job she left to marry and raise three children. My perception changed this holiday season as my sister, brother and I sat on the couch in my parents' basement in Omaha, Neb., looking at family photographs, the most complete record of my mom's body of work/Elaine Williams, Lewiston Tribune. 
the Christmas weekend that they will abstain from drinking during the 2012 session. Scott Andrus, 50, of Twin Falls, sent the solicitation to 
August special election fell woefully short of the mark. The Committee to Recall Tom Luna needed to collect nearly 160,000 verifiable signatures of Idaho voters to get the recall question on the ballot, but organizers said they’d collected only 50,000 signatures by their June deadline. Pete Peterson, campaign manager for the 2012 Luna Recall Committee, said last week that the effort to put the recall question to Idaho voters in November 2012 will be better organized. Peterson said the group is organizing sooner than it did last year, and has learned from a host of mistakes made last year/Eric Larsen, Twin Falls Times-News. 
With multiple styles and colors of helmets, jerseys and pants, the Ducks’ fashion sense has been the talk of college football for a few years now, whether you like them or not. What may be surprising to some is the Washington State Cougars uniforms were named one of the nation’s worst by an expert panel put together by the 
Mall were both busy. It was pleasing to visit the mall and see the excitement. All the shops and center-aisle kiosks were busy, which was nice to see because several weeks ago the place was practically deserted. Changes are happening there. Two new stores are either there or coming in — but two larger stores are leaving. Maurice's is moving north. Although mall mainstay Maurice's is leaving the mall, it's not leaving town. The store and its seven employees are moving to the large space vacated by Corral West beside Target on Canfield Avenue at the end of January/Nils Rosdahl, SR. 
who waves his outfielders in close, assuming the batter who swings with just his left arm can’t go deep, and then watches him smack one over the center fielder’s head for a double? Is it the defensive back, matched up across from a receiver with no right hand, who gives up on a long pass he just knows is uncatchable – only to see it go for a touchdown? Is it the basketball opponent who knows the player he’s guarding can only go to his left, yet still falls for even the suggestion of a crossover dribble that doesn’t exist and gets beat anyway? Or is it the stranger who discovers in the course of conversation that Josh Konkler is not just a three-sport pony?/John Blanchette, SR. 
pounds while training for his first Ironman, he had fallen short of completing the 2011 Coeur d’Alene race. He made the 2.4-mile swim and 112-mile bike ride just fine, but had nothing left for the marathon – a 26.2-mile run. He was at peace with his performance and didn’t plan to attempt the grueling endurance race again. Three days later, he woke up and signed up for the 2012 race. “I gotta do it again,” said the 63-year-old. “I was so close. I had to finish it because it’s something I haven’t finished. I don’t want to give up again. This time I’ve got to finish it”/Alison Boggs, SR. 
the holidays, the most crucial time of year for retailers. The closings are the latest and most visible in a long series of moves to try to fix a retailer that has struggled with falling sales and shabby stores. In an internal memo Tuesday to employees, CEO and President Lou D’Ambrosio said that the retailer had not “generated the results we were seeking during the holiday.” Sears Holdings Corp. said it has yet to determine which stores will close but said it will post on www.searsmedia.com when a final list is compiled. Sears would not discuss how many, if any, jobs would be cut/Associated Press. 
thousands of miles away in chilly Spokane. “I feel bad for her,” her brother, Austin Briggs, 20, said before she deplaned at Spokane International Airport late Friday. “She’s going to have climate shock.” Briggs, a 25-year-old Army medic with the 3rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, of Fort Hood, Texas, was among the last American soldiers to leave Iraq as the nearly 9-year-old war came to a close. When she arrived in Spokane, she exchanged a tight embrace with her mother, Ruth Briggs. “I’m back,” she told her mother as the two hugged. “I told you I’d make it”/Chelsea Bannach, SR. 
Missing: One 1967 Ford Mustang. The classic car was stolen from a Coeur d'Alene auto shop this month, and police are asking for help finding those responsible. 
now it seems things are shifting.The Coeur d'Alene Chamber of Commerce is seeing more people join and believes it reflects a larger trend at the county level.Jamms Frozen Yogurt is relatively new to downtown Coeur d'Alene. It's a prime location for that kind of business and despite a shaky economy, the family owned store is positive about their business.”We have not seen the type of growth yet that we would ultimately like to but we are positive that going into this next summer that things will improve gradually,” manager Andrew Campbell said.It's that positive outlook and a push to rejuvenate business that has led more people to join the Coeur d'Alene Chamber of Commerce/Anusha Roy, KXLY. 
heading up a local “Christmas Pawty” Tuesday and rolling out all the stops to find homes by Christmas for the shelters’ most adoption-challenged pets. That includes a lot of national social media plugging by Dr. Marty Becker, the veterinarian from Bonners Ferry, who’s most recognized as “America’s Veterinarian” appearing on ABC’s “Good Morning America” and the “Dr. Oz Show.” He has teamed with his daughter, pet trainer and author Mikkel Becker, and various shelter board members and volunteers to organize the “Christmas Pawty.” The public is invited to help find the harder-to-adopt animals forever homes. The locations and times Tuesday are: Kootenai Humane Society at 11650 Ramsey Road, Hayden, noon to 2 p.m.; Pandhandle Animal Shelter, 870 Kootenai Cut-off Road, Ponderay, ID from 3 to 4:30 p.m.; and, Second Chance Animal Adoption Shelter at 6647 Lincoln St., Bonners Ferry, ID from 5:30 – 7 p.m. 
Management wildlife biologist Carrie Hugo returned from an eagle cruise boat tour and reported that eagles were “all over the place” compared to just the week before, when her weekly survey counted 136 bald eagles in 
listing of posts, photos, shared links, check-ins, and more is a radically different arrangement than the Facebook profile you’ve been used to. And now that your life can be exposed for everyone to see — and scrutinize — you may be interested in curating the new interface. Once you’ve activated Facebook Timeline (go 
and Enforcement) followed up a hit and run accident that occurred on December 11th at approximately 1:00am at 2nd St. and Lakeside Ave. Victim Jessica White was struck by a maroon Toyota pickup and left lying in the roadway. Jessica sustained a broken back and was hospitalized at KMC. Officer Nick Knoll received information during the course of the investigation that led to a suspect by the name of Thomas James Lang, 21, of Post Falls. Suspect Lang is friends with the Jessica White. Jessica and several of her friends in common with Lang knew who struck her with the vehicle and failed to tell the police who was responsible/Sgt. Christie Wood, Coeur d'Alene police. 
Afghanistan by the Taliban. 
registered voters”, Hayes said. The County has been using 71 precincts for the last few years. The new Legislative District boundaries (L87) began the revised recommendation process. “The Commissioners gave our staff some specific guidelines”, said Hayes. “They wanted a voter’s potential drive time to the polling place to be no more than 30 minutes, and suggested about 40 overall precincts to save costs for taxpayers. Elections staff wanted precincts aligned with newly revised school district trustee zones to ensure ballot integrity. I’m pleased that the recommendations we’ll be making accommodate all these factors”/Kootenai County Clerk's press release. 
Libertarian/State’s Rights wing of the party and the establishment (hereafter referred to, in the preferred language of the insurgents, as “RINOs” – Republicans in Name Only). Were one to only look at the
sports teams were tricked into locking lips with their own parents. The athletes were blindfolded at the winter pep fest and told they would be kissed by a special someone, presumably a fellow student. Instead, they were kissed by their own parents, who were not blindfolded. The prank was filmed and uploaded to YouTube, where various 
from and talk to numerous local elected officials who truly care about their communities. Unfortunately, many of these officials think they have a supernatural understanding of their local marketplaces and the ability to manipulate these markets to be whatever they want them to be. It really doesn’t matter where I go: Nampa, Boise, Pocatello, Ketchum, Post Falls or Sandpoint. Every town has self-proclaimed economic gurus who are making judgments about how to use taxpayer dollars to achieve unparalleled levels of economic prosperity/Wayne Hoffman, Idaho Freedom Foundation. 
package because some critics of the plan say he didn’t mention it during his run for re-election just months prior. Luna says he has been talking about reforms for years and that his record shows as much. The Republican superintendent also talked about his plans to fight three referenda that could overturn the laws in his reform packages. Over the course of the hearings dedicated to Luna’s legislation, several critics and detractors expressed dismay that the superintendent didn’t talk about his plan to reshape Idaho’s public school system in his 2010 re-election run/Dustin Hurst, Idaho Reporter. 
about the transformation of Coeur d’Alene. I am now convinced that Duane Hagadone has done more than anyone to protect and enhance the foundation of this community that we love so much. This 50-year marriage between Duane and the people of Coeur d’Alene has been so rocky at times. Often, we both would fight tooth and nail, exchanging body blows, red faces of anger, arms swinging, hurling screaming insults. We were woven tightly, chained to one another and many did not like it at all. We wanted that divorce but there was no way out/Steve Badraun, Coeur d'Alene Press guest editorial. 
more contentious stances, including abolishing federal courts he finds too activist. He also proposed cutting off all federal funding for sanctuary cities who refuse to cooperate with federal immigration law enforcement, and said he would drop lawsuits against states that have passed their own immigration crackdown laws. But he took fire from the other candidates, 
Yabetcha: Allow me to join in on the labeling. The so called “reasonable Republicans” in Kootenai County are not centrist. They are actually very conservative in the more traditional meaning, not Rinos, nor extremists.
treatment for cancer, was among the greatest polemicists of his generation. Many writers make the journey from a left wing youth to a right-leaning posture in later adulthood. And Hitchens' support for the military intervention in Iraq - along with his thoroughly disabused view of President Clinton - dismayed many of his erstwhile friends on the political left both in the United States and in Britain. But he was always too original a figure and too much his own man ever to be accommodated easily in the neat little pigeon holes of 'left' and 'right'/Hywel Williams, Mail Online. 
passes for civil dialogue in the Idaho Statesman comment queue. But the (anonymous) character who took a cheap shot at my son for landing an internship on Capitol Hill, saying it somehow flunked the smell test? Wow. All I can say is, welcome to public life, kid.” I responded that an anonymous troll who made an online crack about one of my kids in a HucksOnline thread would immediately be thrown in the cooler and forgotten about. Kevin must have thicker skin than I.
against the Republican and Democrat candidates. If they can find a good candidate, they will finance (I am sure they will be asking their list of people to help) the election for that candidate. So my question is … how does the HBO group feel about it.. I know the R's and D's will not like it, but what about the rest? And how about you? I know you are a heavy leaner on the R's side, but over the years, you have listen to the middle of the road. How do you feel about this group (who ever is the backer of them) … and the fact of finding some one thru the Internet? 
weekly news challenge, prepared by Jim Camden. You actually can win prizes if you submit the test by the end of today. If you answer all the questions correctly, your ballot will be mixed in with other winners for a drawing. I've asked the online techs to provide a button in the righthand rail to give you access to the quiz at any time. Any week. 
tree. The Play-doh nativity set sits once again in the place of honor atop the piano. The delicious aroma of Christmas baking fills my kitchen – and emails from The International Parking Institute fill my inbox. You see, while others may receive holiday greetings and cookie recipes via email during the weeks leading up to Christmas, journalists receive press releases. Lots of them.Companies desperate to get their products or organizations featured in newspapers and magazines, send out mass emails, hoping to snare a story/Cindy Hval, SR Front Porch. 
Digital Future. The forecast by center director Jeffrey I. Cole, based on 10 years of studies, says, “America is at a major digital turning point … We believe that the only print newspapers that will survive will be at the extremes of the medium — the largest and the smallest.” The New York Times, USA Today, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal will likely survive, along with some local weeklies, Cole writes/Jeff Sonderman, L.A. Weekly. 
portion of the public preserve known as the John C. Pointner Memorial Wildlife Sanctuary. 
Control? But you need not worry about this follow-up to the 2009 megahit Sherlock Holmes. That dazzling reintroduction to Conan Doyle’s crafty detective had stylized, big-budget-worthy direction from British indie darling Guy Ritchie, and a career-high performance by Robert Downey Jr. (well, maybe it slips in right behind what he did in Tropic Thunder). This one opens the action in 1891, with a political bombing attributed to anarchists, followed quickly by a fast-paced four-on- Holmes fistfight, and then by a couple of mysteries involving a missing Gypsy terrorist and Holmes’ arch-enemy, Professor Moriarty (Jared Harris). The film takes everything that was done right in the first one and makes it wilder, darker, and funnier/Ed Symkus, Inlander. 
Simpson made a dubious Top 10 list this week. Simpson was ranked No. 4 by the Los Angeles Times’ editorial board, 
proportionately confident in his chances at hooking up with her. Let that one roll around in your head for a while. According to a study that will soon be published in Psychological Science, the less attractive and dorkier a man is, the more he is likely to think that women can't help themselves around him. The full study is laid out in a 
high-quality style of entertainment, from fine dining, to bohemian eateries, and the excellent quality of plays and musicals. It has such diverse, first-rate offerings that defy the small lakeside village atmosphere. Coeur d’Alene survived the taint of bigotry from the white supremists that were a blight to humanity. Now, a play is going to do them in? The people of Coeur d’Alene gave proof that there was compassion, understanding, and integrity in their community. People come to Coeur d’Alene from all over the world. I would think that the high standard CDA has set in the entertainment field would embrace all the topics that Rent covers – be it a person’s lifestyle choice, or the struggles with addiction of any kind. Are you people in CDA better than the rest of us and above having any transgressions or bad behavior? I am very disappointed in you.
mentors, former Gov. Phil Batt. Batt, then 70, stunned supporters in 1997 when he announced that he wouldn't seek a second term as governor, noting, “If I were to serve out another term, I would be nearly 76.''
The successful onion farmer and longtime Idaho politician said he'd decided it was time to “step aside'' in favor of the next generation of Idaho leaders. Otter is 69, and turns 70 in May. If he served out a third term, by the end of it in 2018, he'd be 76. 
husbands or boyfriends. Experts in domestic violence don't find it too surprising, although some aspects of the survey may have led to higher numbers than are sometimes reported. Even so, a government official who oversaw the research called the results “astounding.” “It's the first time we've had this kind of estimate” on the prevalence of intimate partner violence, said Linda Degutis of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The survey, released by the CDC Wednesday, marks the beginning of a new annual project to look at how many women say they've been abused/Associated Press. 
announced his candidacy for state Senate after being snubbed by 7th Legislative District Republicans who picked three others to succeed retired Sen. Joe Stegner. Apparently, Nesset sinned against the hardliners by opposing the constitutionally questionable nullification push by state Rep. Vito Barbieri and controversial education reforms proposed by Superintendent of Schools Tom Luna. Marty Trillhaase of the Lewiston Tribune talks about the “Reasonable Republican” movement of Kootenai County and pendulum swing against uberconservative zealots in today's Lewiston Tribune editorial. 
Mullan injured seven miners Wednesday night. It was the third accident at the mine this year. Two miners died in the other incidents. Seven miners Wednesday night were transported by air and ambulance to area hospitals, according to the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office. Six were taken to Shoshone Medical Center, where two were held overnight for observation, a nursing supervisor said. Injuries were mostly cuts and bruises. A seventh miner was taken to Kootenai Medical Center and was listed in fair condition there this morning/Spokesman-Review. 
price in blood and money, as it set Iraq on a path to democracy. Panetta stepped off his military plane in Baghdad Thursday as the leader of America’s war in Iraq, but will leave as one of many top U.S. and global officials who hope to work with the struggling nation as it tries to find its new place in the Middle East and the broader world. More than 100,000 Iraqis have been killed since the U.S. invasion in 2003, according to the Iraq Body Count website. Bombings and gun battles are still common. And experts are concerned about the Iraqi security force’s ability to defend the nation against foreign threats/AP. 
Thus, I'm not sure that the 
represents the Gem State’s entire political spectrum. This new site will feature linked content from already-established and respected writers such as Dennis Mansfield, Idaho’s political guru, and the Idaho Conservative Blogger, who is already a force in political discourse in the Gem State. But, iSightonline.com will feature something that other news and opinion aggregation blogs don’t: Original content. Joel Kennedy, who maintains one of the top submarine blogs in the world, is bringing his skills and political insights to iSightonline.com and I think you’ll appreciate his words and humor/Dustin Hurst, iSightonline. 
basically a translation of a Roman joke book from the 4th century AD, called Philogelos, which just happens to be the oldest surviving collection of jokes in the world. Written by a couple of Greek scholars, it must’ve been the ultimate bathroom reader of its day. Our ancestors laughed at pretty much the same things we do today. Farts, sex, eunuchs. Well, maybe that last one has lost a bit of its edge over the years. In particular, the peoples of the ancient world truly enjoyed their blonde jokes. Back then, they were simply called idiots/Idaho Dad, A Family Runs Through It. 
anything wrong with that saying. I guess I just feel like everybody knows it already. It's the celebration of his birthday after all. I don't need my Christmas cards to remind anyone of that. But over the last few weeks, I've needed reminding myself. I had lost sight of the reason for the season. I was preoccupied with what my kids would like to find under the tree and the fact that I wouldn't be able to buy every single thing on their lists. But the sad thing is, their lists were in my head/A Butterfly Moment. 
pornographic material. But they aren’t trying to bolster their budgets by getting into the porn business; they are protecting their brands from entrepreneurs of the adult entertainment industry who may otherwise use the schools’ names to drive web traffic. “This isn’t our business,” said Chris Gill, GU’s chief information officer. “It’s an ongoing challenge.” GU paid $200 to register www.gonzagauniversity.xxx, and may purchase more in the future/Chelsea Bannach, SR. 
plastics aka brominated vegetable oil. It’s banned in Europe and Japan. But it’s there in your Mountain Dew. And your Squirt, Fanta Orange, Sunkist Pineapple, Gatorade Thirst Quencher (only orange flavor), Powerade Strawberry Lemonade and Fresca Original Citrus. Is this a bad thing, necessarily? Depends on who’s talking.
continue, in regional and minor ways, for months, if not years, but it no longer threatens to substantially alter our country's direction as it did in October, or as the tea party has continued to do for conservatives. For a month, the only national stories about the Occupy movement have involved their evictions from parks and numerous examples of excessive force by the police. Because no one tried to harness or focus the movement's substantial momentum — to do so would have been uncool — it has lost its momentum. We are left to wonder what the movement could have accomplished if it hadn't been an amorphous blob of disorganized people who couldn't gather around a vivid message or mission/Peter Mountford, Seattle Times guest opinion. 
suspected stolen loot will be used as evidence against him. “It'd be kind of silly for us not to,” said Sgt. John Nowels. The video, posted two days before his arrest, shows Nathan John Calvert in a vehicle he describes as a Jeep. He focused on a large amount of property in the back and passenger seat and said he hasn’t “really figured out what I’m going to do yet.” Police believe it's the same stolen Jeep that contained about 100 items of stolen property when Calvert, 28, was 
It’s about human beings and their trials. It tries to do what good art does: create empathy, draw viewers out of themselves, provoke emotional and intellectual reaction. It’s the constructive, valuable opposite of running around giving everyone a self-righteous thumbs-up or thumbs-down. But even if it wasn’t, one of the great things about America, of course, is we can go to hell if we want to. Whenever people start gas-bagging starchily about “fornication” – a word that’s only useful for hurling at others – you can be sure they’ve forgotten that. Besides the small-minded bigotry of it, opposition to “Rent” seems to grow from a serious cultural disconnect/Shawn Vestal, SR. 
mistakes made in the city election, Mary weighs in about the “extremely serious charge!” that Kennedy made about County Clerk Cliff Hayes. At the Coeur d'Alene City Council meeting last week, Kennedy called Hayes' absence a “dereliction of duty” because he wanted an explanation for the dozens of illegal/improper ballots cast in the Coeur d'Alene city elections Nov. 8. “That's an extremely serious charge!” fumes Mary. (Ah, actually it's simply one public figure getting a dig in at another one. No harm, no foul. And certainly not as serious as the ongoing OpenCdA.com claim that Coeur d'Alene government is corrupt.) Mary then defends why the larger number of mistakes of the 2011 Coeur d'Alene election aren't as meaningful as the ones in 2009, which led to the Souza-supported election challenge of 2009 by Jim Brannon. 
tend to be more trusting of others than those who read newspapers less frequently. The effect holds for both residents of small towns and big cities, even though researchers found small town residents are more trusting in general than city dwellers. Featured in the latest issue of Mass Communication and Society, the study was conducted by Douglas Hindman, associate professor of communication, and Masahiro Yamamoto, WSU graduate student and assistant professor of humanities at Colby-Sawyer College in New Hampshire. It underscores the importance of newspapers in their communities. By reinforcing feelings of trust, the researchers said, newspapers can help make communities better places to live/Robert Strenge, WSU News. 
a solution. Caught flat-footed, Luna's adversaries struggled to catch up but not before Luna was able to string together persausive slogans, sound bites and explanations - and ascribed to his opponents nefarious motives. Only this wasn't 2011, when a newly re-elected Luna blindsided educators with his package of undermining teacher collective bargaining rights, imposing merit pay and transferring dollars meant for salaries into the online education sector. This was a year earlier/Marty Trillhaase, Lewiston Tribune. 
darkest hours of the night, in many cases never seen by their customers, represents some of the hardest workers you'll ever find. Some are young parents starting a family. Some are retirees wishing to supplement their Social Security. Many are adults who have another full-time job but need the income to make ends meet or to meet an important need, like college tuition for a child or the ability to pay large medical bills. All are dedicated beyond the bounds of normalcy. Every single night, 365 days a year, they're responsible for delivering a product that thousands of households depend upon/Mike Patrick, Coeur d'Alene Press. 
the good”. So Newt's directive to his campaign that he would NOW “go positive” is a refreshing new national direction for this horribly “directionally dyslexic” Presidentail campaign - in that these people are majoring on the minors… and no body cares. New Hampshire and Iowa are important…but not that important. Our economy and our safety are where we need to concentrate our attention. And it needs to be done in a positive way/Dennis Mansfield. 
waged by the Florida Family Association, a small conservative group. Lowe's said the show has become too much of a “lightning rod,” and has stuck by its decision. But a backlash has grown among Muslim groups, elected officials and celebrities. One, hip-hop mogul 
District 4A. Luke Malek is a Kootenai County native, and an active member of the community. Malek says his focus will be to usher economic prosperity by limiting government and promoting local control. “Government has decided that it needs to try and muscle its way into every aspect of our lives, and that needs to change,” he said. “It will be the hard-working people of Idaho and our businesses that bring jobs back to our state, but the government needs to step out of the way and allow that to happen.” Marge Chadderdon, who currently holds seat 4A and is retiring after the 2012 session, is endorsing Malek/Luke Malek press release. 
Lake man who was 
weekend from a storage shed at Silverlake Automotive, 274 W. Hanley Ave. Owner Will Sando told police that the Mustang was being stored in a trailer when he left work at 5 p.m. Saturday and 7:30 a.m. Monday. Employee Fred Meyers reports he was certain the trailer and vehicle were still at the business at 3 p.m. Sunday. The burglar apparently cut a lock off the building and drove off with the trailer, stealing tires and rims as well as the collector's Mustang from Sando.
field as well, where Leach has partnered with the publisher of a series of Houston-area strip-club guides to put on a college all-star game. On January 16, dozens of the top college football players in the country will travel to Tucson, Arizona, to play in the Casino Del Sol College All-Star Game, to be broadcast on Fox Sports. On the game's website, the organizers are listed as Arizona Sports Group, LLC, a business incorporated in 2010 listing Leach and John Gray as co-managers. The site's 
has some good suggestions 
legislators. The superminority Democrats have little clout in the state Capitol. But no North Idaho legislators made the list either — not even Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint — who should get an honorable mention, at least. Oh well, article by Emilie Saunders Ritter about Brent Hill, Lawerence Denney, & three other friends worth the read as we all prepare for 2012 version of legislative Keystone Kops. 
The Sunlight Foundation's revamped 
in Baghdad, Iraq.” Many of the 2,700 National Guard soldiers from the Northwest who just returned from Iraq aren’t old enough to have much of a pre-deployment work history. Now, many soldiers struggle to translate their war experience into a civilian career. In Iraq, Specialist David Hampton was an IT guy. His formal job title was information management officer. But back in Idaho, it’s a different story. “Right now I’m trying to get by,” Hampton says, “driving around, putting in job apps, submitting resumes.” Hampton figured his tech skills would easily transfer to the civilian workforce/Jessica Robinson, StateImpact. 
recent city elections in Kootenai County, Bill levels his considerable bile for all things “Corrupt d'Alene” and Mike Kennedy in a silly screed that protects new County Clerk Cliff Hayes. Bill takes umbrage at Kennedy's comments from last week castigating Hayes for not being present to answer questions re: all the miscast ballots in the Nov. 8 elections. (Remember when Bill blazed away at far fewer ballots miscast in the 2009 Kennedy-Brannon election?) Spinmeister McCrory dismissed Kennedy's comments as “offensive, unprofessional, and misinformed.” Then, he defends Hayes: “The Kootenai County Clerk is not a mind reader; no one from the City had invited him to attend or to send a representative to the December 6, 2011, Coeur d’Alene City Council meeting.” 
Bonners Ferry, Idaho. In 1907 Kootenai County was split. The northern portion was called Bonner County after Edwin L Bonner, the operator of the ferry across the Kootenai River in Bonners Ferry. In 1915 Bonner County was split and the northern portion became Boundary County due to it “boundaries” on Canada, Washington and Montana. There is no Kootenai in Kootenai County, there is no Bonner in Bonner County. All of North Idaho was named after the influential people of Bonners Ferry and its environs. That explains why Boundary County and Bonners Ferry remain today on “top” of Idaho.
is suffering from, well, discontent. “I knew it was hard for politicians to make tough decisions,” the Republican Labrador said in a profile in Sunday’s Statesman. “I didn’t realize how hard.” The past 13 months has been an education for us all — for Labrador, for his 1st Congressional District constituents, and for anyone worried about the direction the country is going. But will Labrador be part of the solution, or part of the problem? When it comes to the toughest decisions facing Congress — how to attack the nation’s spiraling deficit — Labrador hasn’t been a problem-solver/Idaho Statesman. 
recommendations from each of its subcommittees, on how to implement new technology initiatives in Idaho schools, including phasing in providing a laptop computer for every Idaho high school student and teacher and a new focus on online learning. “The work that has been done here is historic, and it's definitely unprecedented in its scope and in its focus,” said state schools Superintendent Tom Luna, the task force chairman and the architect of the “Students Come First” reform plan/Betsy Russell, Eye On Boise. 
the oath of citizenship, the country’s immigration minister said Monday. Jason Kenney said most Canadians find the practice of reciting the oath behind a veil disturbing and said new Canadians should take it in view of their fellow citizens. He said he has received complaints from lawmakers and citizenship judges who say it’s difficult to ensure that individuals whose faces are covered are actually reciting the oath. The Conservative minister called the issue a matter of deep principle that goes to the heart of Canada’s identity and the country’s values of openness and equality. He said women who feel obliged to have their faces covered in public often come from a cultural milieu that treats women as property rather than equal human beings/AP. 
tradition. I hope not. Which may be surprising, coming from someone who has been known to refer to such letters as “Brag-o-Grams.” Jokingly, of course. Usually. I guess I should confess up front that I rarely write them. My husband and I lead a fairly quiet life and figure that those who are truly interested in the details pretty much know them already. Individual, personal letters take care of the rest—no need for a mass mailing. The exception to this was the year we moved from the suburbs of Illinois to the mountains of Idaho. That year, it took a mass-produced letter to notify people of our new address, share photos of the place, and reassure loved ones that we hadn't completely taken leave of our senses/Jennifer Lamont Leo, Writing North Idaho.
book lover, you should go. It's literally a warehouse full of books. Shelves from the floor to tall enough that I have to stand on my tiptoes to reach the highest one. (And yes, I know that's not that high. But still.) You can find everything from board books for the youngest reader to kid's picture books to young adult lit to adult best sellers. With some pencils and posters and bookmarks thrown in for good measure. And right now almost everything is 50-80% off/A Butterfly Moment.
me into an unplanned skating lesson while the local 9- and 10-year-old team practiced. Before that, my skating experience was limited to dusty Tanya Harding jokes and flipping past hockey on TV. I should have known there was much more to it than just gliding around when Sugden handed me a helmet. The first step onto the ice isn't the hard one. It's the first step away from the rail. Thankfully I had a hockey stick to brace with/Cody Bloomsburg, Lewiston Tribune. 
you shouldn't be surprised that I visited Hastings last night to snag the DVD of “Cowboys & Aliens.” Enjoyed it, too. Hey, if aliens can invade in the 20th Century, according to all the movies, why couldn't they invade in the 19th Century? Anyway, I was surprised when Mrs. O, who slept through part of the movie, threatened to post on Facebook that “Cowboys & Aliens” was the worst. Movie. Ever. It might have been that if not for performances by Harrison Ford and Daniel Craig. How can Hans Solo and James Bond not turn in a good performance?
father played Mary in an Idaho Christmas pageant. The first-person memory was penned by Kurt Manwaring and recounts an incident when the high priests group of the Pocatello, Idaho, Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was having a hard time finding someone to portray Mary in their re-creation of the Nativity. “The girls were all afraid to ride the donkey,” wrote Manwaring. “To this day, very few people know the young girl on the donkey that night wasn't actually a girl-it was my father (back when he was 12). The story never ceases to find its way into our Christmas traditions”/George Prentiss, Boise Weekly (via Deseret News). 
the Second Amendment: “The Federal Government has no authority to regulate firearms within the State of Idaho.” And states’ rights: The 17th Amendment (removing the Legislature’s power to appoint U.S. senators) “should be repealed.” And taxation: “The ‘Internal Revenue Code’ is an abomination and an absurdity.” Which office does Green want? Kootenai County sheriff, of course. Or maybe not. Under the topic of “Sound Money,” Green says, “As an Idaho senator, I will work to ensure that the State of Idaho protects its citizens from the fraud of ‘fiat’ money.” Green might consider updating his position stands and tailoring them more to the current office he targets/DFO, SR Huckleberries. 
of “Rent,” Meesterbox said: “On a side note, I don’t plan on watching this play. I had a bad experience with a musical as a child.” To which I responded: “I (heart) musicals. Play ‘em in my 4Runner to & from work, and while I’m running around town. Favorite: “Phantom of the Opera.” No. 2: “Les Miserables.” Got 'em both, as well as “Evita,” “Chicago,” “Rent,” 'O Brother Where Art Thou?” and more. (Need to buy “Cats.”) Could fill out a top 10 easily. I also like poetry, too. Dunno how the above happened with a trucker dad and two trucker brothers.”
legal response to federal authorities' move to foreclose on his Athol, Idaho home for years of unpaid federal income taxes, interest and penalties. Hart, acting as his own attorney, asked for a delay until Jan. 5, which is four days before the start of this year's legislative session, to allow him time to bring on and qualify an out-of-state attorney and get him up to speed to file the response. “Defendant Hart states that the purpose of the continuance is not for delay, but it is needed for him to obtain counsel and allow said counsel to be admitted … and review the case in preparation for filing an Answer,” Hart wrote in his motion to the federal court/Betsy Russell, Eye On Boise. 
companies deliver online school courses in Idaho have a mentality not unlike protestors in the Occupy Wall Street movement. Luna also said that those worried about for-profit education companies providing online school courses might be anti-capitalist in nature. The superintendent was interviewed last week by IdahoReporter.com. “This undertone that somehow because for-profit companies are going to want to compete for educations dollars is the end of public education as we know it, that is an Occupy Wall Street argument that we see going on all across the country,” Luna said, “where there’s this attack on capitalism and an attack on profits”/Dustin Hurst, Idaho Reporter. 
Playhouse intends to perform the scandalous musical “Rent” in January. Executive Director George Green would have us believe that our community is extremely fortunate to have this opportunity to be the only venue in the Northwest to provide this degenerate musical! He believes that the show gives us a chance to be enlightened on the plight of HIV victims and to encourage sympathy. However, the musical is a reflection of a group of gay and lesbians (one is a gay drag queen) and their fornicating interactions… a girlfriend leaves her boyfriend for a lesbian and one line has a homosexual stating “I'm more of a man than you'll ever be… and more of a woman than you'll ever get!”/Arcadia Nicklay, Coeur d'Alene Press letters to the editor. 
General Lawrence Wasden could once again find himself at the center of the legal storm. That was where he ended up last session, after refusing to play along with efforts to prohibit state and local government agencies from enacting or enforcing any portion of the federal health care reform legislation. … “I think there's a body of legislators who want to listen to what we have to say, even if they don't agree with it,” said Wasden, who was in Lewiston Friday. “Then there's a more vocal group who couldn't care less what we have to say. They want to take away our funding and hire their own attorneys. Is that good public policy? Are they going to get an honest broker, or someone who'll say what they want to hear? My job isn't to tell you what you want to hear. It's to tell you what the law says”/William L. Spencer, Lewiston Tribune. 
Coming into the year, Idaho coach Don Verlin looked at this week — with games at home against Washington State and at Oregon State separated by three days — and knew it would be telling for the Vandals. Could they hang with two Pac-12 schools? It turns out they could, and they almost went 2-for-2 in upsets for the week. UI squelched every Oregon State rally attempt in the second half and rolled to a 
person. A human being. Fewel, the president and CEO of Inland Northwest Bank, got in touch with me not long ago, after I’d written a column encouraging people to take their money out of banks and take it to credit unions. I engaged in a little bank-bashing, which is a popular – and I think, on balance, fair – pastime these days, given what some of our large financial institutions have done to the economy and the price they have not paid for it. Fewel didn’t necessarily take issue with what I said about big banks. But he made an excellent case that I’d given small, community banks short shrift/Shawn Vestal, SR. 
aftermath of a 2009 high school football game may have robbed his family of his companionship and promise, yet good has come from the tragedy. Surgeons were able to collect organs from Drew’s body and successfully transplant them into people desperate to live. These gifts will be honored in the 2012 Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, Calif., on Jan. 2. Artists have created what they call a “floragraph,” an organic portrait of the 17-year-old made of leaves and seeds, coffee grounds and flowers. It will be displayed alongside 71 other portraits as the centerpiece of the Donate Life float that will be constructed of thousands of roses and other flowers. Drew’s former classmates, friends, family and medical providers at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center had lunch and shared memories on Friday/John Stucke, SR. 
early evening hours, we made it midway through our journey, and across the darkened horizon, we could see nothing but red lights, flickering on and off, mostly in unison as far as the eye could see, from north to south. Returning to Idaho under the light of day, the culprit was plain: dozens upon dozens of wind turbines dotting the landscape. Ugly as thistle, these turbines have adulterated what used to be a stunning Western landscape. Those of us who have driven the rural outskirts in eastern Idaho know that wind turbines are also fouling up Idaho’s majestic scenery, aided by sales tax breaks and a property tax exemption for the land that hosts these ugly beasts/Wayne Hoffman, Idaho Freedom Foundation. 
Four Kootenai County residents are among the five most wanted by Major Ben Wolfinger in his weekly felony warrant roundup list. Ashley Marie Davis Allen, 20, of Post Falls, is wanted for failure to appear in court on charges of possesion of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia. She'll face a $50,000 bond when caught. Others on the felony warrant list are: Christine Anne 
Homer, 45, of Spokane, for probation violation for possession of a controlled substance (no bond). Devon Sean Houston, 22, of Coeur d'Alene, for failure to appear on a grand theft charge (no bond). Evan Michael O'Neal, 31, of Coeur d'Alene, for failure to appear on charges of possession of stolen vehicle and controlled substance (no bond). Brent Lee Wolf, 31, of Coeur d'Alene, on two charges of grand theft and one of burglary ($25,000 bond). 
launch something called Forkfly and re-launch “Spokane 7.” You know I don't push much here. But you might want to click on that “Forkfly” button in the upper righthand corner of HucksOnline, insert the town where you live or ship, and check out all the sweet deals you can find at local eateries, businesses, and stores. 
and through donations (approximately $10K not including time and lost productivity), then you add the city and county staff time, and the continuing lawyers time (for the appeal to the Supreme Court) I think it will cost the “defending” side of city and county alone well more than a quarter million dollars. Yes, $250,000 in taxpayer money to find out what was known all along - that there are human errors in elections and sometimes people vote incorrectly despite everyone's best efforts. The difference now is that even after the most vetted election in Idaho history, new Clerk Hayes oversaw an election with more errors, and the same kind of absentee ballot envelope “mystery” that his supporters, city opponents, and campaign advocates saw fit to assassinate Dan English's character over. And yet you hear no criticism at all. More below.
Thursday's in the Hedlund Building. Here's part of a North Idaho Sentinel review: “My waiter, Simon Gookin, was personable and attentive in spite of being very busy with other customers. I chose the cheese ravioli with roasted red bell peppers. I did have to inquire about beverage availability as no information was provided on the menu, and then ordered coffee with cream. A basket was brought to the table with a large slice of homemade bread and butter. I was also given the choice of a cup of French onion or Southwestern corn-tomato soup to precede my meal, and chose the latter. It was, again, fresh and homemade, and topped with crispy, cheesy tortilla strips.” 
of the country ought to be able to cite a favorite theme in stories spun by the expedition. Me? No contest. It's the accounts of the explorers' introduction to grizzly bears. I've always loved that. You can picture those guys shaking their heads and saying “What is the deal with these western bears? You shoot 'em three times and they just keep coming!”/Paul Turner, The Slice blog. 
pattern: Remove the hair, fat and sinew from the skull, boil it clean and bleach it bone white. A European mount, also known as a museum mount, is nothing more than a skull and a set of antlers. It's a bare-bones form of taxidermy with a classic look that can be done by do-it-yourselfers with relatively little investment in time or equipment. You just need to be willing to fiddle with some gross stuff like brains and eyeballs, not mind spending an afternoon toiling over a simmering pot of deer-head stew and be unafraid to work with some semi-astringent chemicals/Eric Barker, Lewiston Tribune. 
For the High Noon post, I defer to new Twitter friend — yeah, yeah, I know you're suppose to call Twitter followers “tweeple” but I just can't do it — SeattleWineGirl (pictured). Who asks in a post this morning: “Name one thing about your personality or values that you are proud of!” Moi? I know how to laugh at myself. How about you?'
could sneak bites of her chocolate chip cookie dough. If busted, she'd issue a stern warning that we'd “get worms” if we ate too much of it. That warning was never scary enough to make us stop. But this bit of news might: A 
the freelance writer: Up early to finish a piece for Gonzaga's magazine, jump in the truck and scoot to Seattle to take a last-minute assignment that pays really well, have a great interview with a woman who was receiving a civil rights award last night but who had spent the day walking on the BOTTOM of Puget Sound wrangling geoducks for the Suquamish Tribe, then drive 300 miles home. Why yes, I think George Clooney can play me in the movie.”
don't tweet about it. Three congressional aides for U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen apparently failed to follow that script, resulting in their swift sacking after they inexplicably broadcast their high jinks via Twitter. Larsen, a Democrat from Lake Stevens, fired the three staffers Thursday, just an hour after being alerted to a stream of indiscreet tweets dating back to July. The Twitter feeds were filled with comments about watching Nirvana videos on taxpayers' dime, swigging “Jack” behind desks and other depictions of congressional staffers behaving badly/Kyung M. Song, Seattle Times Washington bureau. 
those of the rich. Guess who won? Not you. On Dec. 1, Democrats tried to renew the year-old payroll tax cut and pay for it by imposing a 3.25 percent surcharge on millionaires. Crapo, Risch and the GOP minority blocked the idea. Crapo and Risch are not opposed to a payroll tax holiday. A year ago, they voted for it - even though it meant piling on more national debt/Marty Trillhaase, Lewiston Tribune (Cheers & Jeers column). 
home that burned to the ground Wednesday morning as a man fired handguns and rifles to keep emergency responders away, Clark County authorities said. Authorities have not identified the two deceased adults nor have they revealed a possible motive for the events that led to their deaths inside the home at 3275 F Place. However, family and friends of the homeowners, Steven and Leona Stanbary, indicated on their Facebook pages that the husband and wife, along with Leona Stanbary’s twin sister, perished Wednesday/Ray Legendre and Paul Suarez, Columbian. 
counting and recounting they couldn’t find why the number was different. They just had to leave it with the statement, “The Elections staff has no further action to resolve this variance.” I also understand from years of experience that despite the fact that you do training before each and every election, poll workers will still make honest mistakes. In fact, with dozens of precincts, hundreds of poll workers, and thousands and thousands of ballots cast, it is unrealistic to think you won’t have at least some errors in every election. But you work very hard to minimize those errors.
Some teachers have a book exchange. Some do treat bags and everyone brings a little something for everyone else. I can never decide what to do. It's really fun for the kids to bring a gift for a classmate. They love the giving. And it's fun for them to get a little toy from someone else. … “Is a traditional gift exchage outdated? Unwanted? Silly? What do I do?”/A Butterfly Moment.
including his stand that the “federal government has no authority to regulate firearms within the state of Idaho.” Another entitled “Sound Money” seems to indicate Green is running for the state Senate rather than sheriff. It reads: “The monetary system of the United States is a perversion of Logic and Justice. It subverts the Natural Law and allows for and, in fact, fosters crime and poverty. Our founding Fathers provided us with a Constitutional standard of measure that allows us to protect our wealth and calculate value. That standard is the Constitutional Dollar, a fixed unit of measure. As an Idaho Senator, I will work to ensure that the State of Idaho protects its citizens from the fraud of “fiat” money. 
characters. As simple as it sounds, the concept remains too confusing and frustrating for a lot of people. A redesign is supposed to make Twitter easier to navigate. It offers more accessible features that customize the experience for each user. The service is also expanding users’ profile pages to accommodate more detailed information about brands in text, photos and video as Twitter tries to convert more companies into advertisers/AP. 
to correct the record – as he sees it. Hart, R-Athol, said yesterday that it was the Idaho Legislature’s passage of House Bill 343 that spurred Congress to remove Idaho and Montana wolves from the U.S. Endangered Species List in April and allow this year’s wolf hunt. Forget that U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, and other members of Congress and Gov. Butch Otter have worked the issue since before wolves were reintroduced in Idaho in 1995. “I was one of the main authors of the wolf emergency bill last session, which caused Congress to delist the wolves about three days after the (Idaho) Senate approved that bill,” Hart told me/Dan Popkey, Statesman. 
congressional delegates on several issues. Johnson: “I've seen this first hand as we've worked with business leaders—Republican business leaders—who support Boulder-White Cloud, Clearwater, Panhandle and Owyhee wilderness areas. Or working with a major industrial player to craft mercury rules. Or working with business leaders who see local option tax as key to Idaho economic development. Boise Foothills, is another issue where Republican business leaders are simpatico with conservation and protecting Idaho's greatest asset: our quality of life.” 
she posted online that an Oregon lawyer acted criminally during a bankruptcy case, a decision with implications for bloggers around the country. Crystal L. Cox, a blogger from Eureka, Mont., was sued for defamation by attorney Kevin Padrick when she posted online that he was a thug and a thief during the handling of bankruptcy proceedings by him and Obsidian Finance Group LLC. U.S. District Judge Marco Hernandez found last week that as a blogger, Cox was not a journalist and cannot claim the protections afforded to mainstream reporters and news outlets/AP. 
Vandals hat everywhere we went, and everyone wanted to ask us about White Supremacists and Aryan Nations and Neo-Nazis. People would ask us if everyone in Idaho was like that, and we told them “Only in northern Idaho. It’s not like that where we live.” Just as many of you resent the power of Boise over the state of Idaho, many of us who were raised in southern Idaho felt very embarrassed by our North Idaho cousins in the 1980s and 1990s. I still get asked about neo-Nazis and Aryan Nations when I go to southeastern Idaho to visit my family for holidays. It’s still embarrassing that I have to explain that most people in North Idaho are good, decent folks. You think your reputation has gone away. It hasn’t. (AP file photo: On July 3, 1999, Richard Butler, center, founder of the Aryan Nations, salutes along with other members of the neo Nazi group during a rally in Coeur d' Alene.)
initiative through the Legislature. After failing miserably to persuade his own party to back a badly needed infusion of cash into transportation in 2009, Otter has ceded the stage. Lawmakers have dominated spending issues. Others have usurped the governor's traditional role of setting the political agenda, whether it was schools Superintendent Tom Luna's school reform package or the Tea Party's effort to defy national health care reform through the discredited tactic of nullification. Five years later, it's Kempthorne who gets points for engineering a successful rebooting in his fifth year, while Otter's fifth year shows no turnaround/Marty Trillhaase, Lewiston Tribune. More to come. (AP file photo: Dirk Kempthorne, as Interior secretary in 2008, testifies in Washington)
Coeur d'Alene Mayor Sandi Bloem, left, and Spokane Mayor Mary Verner have challenged each other to see whose city can raise the most money to help support their community. Each Mayor will be hosting a Salvation Army Red Kettle at a participating Fred Meyer location this Saturday, from 9am-8pm. Kettles will be tallied mid-day, and the city with the highest grossing kettle at the end of the day wins. Mayor Sandi Bloem is scheduled to staff the Red Kettle at Fred Meyer in Coeur d'Alene from 9am to 11am, and will also be visiting her kettle throughout the day. The remaining hours will be staffed with Salvation Army Advisory Board members, community volunteers, and/or paid workers. Mayor Mary Verner is scheduled to staff the Red Kettle at the Thor/Freya Fred Meyer in Spokane from 10am to 11am. The remaining hours will be staffed with community volunteers and/or paid workers/Salvation Army Kroc Center news release. 
abandoned his bell to sing by the donation box instead.Farmer turned the Safeway in Coeur d'Alene into his stage on Wednesday. His audience was made up of people coming in out and of the store.Farmer described himself like a juke box. He runs through the first verse of 16 different carols over and over again through out the day.Farmer has turned heads and been called amazing. But for the 63-year-old, he's out there to encourage people to donate/Anusha Roy, KXLY. 
that the prosecutor's office is providing attorney Betsy Black, a former county prosecutor and wife of Chief Deputy Prosecutor Barry Black, significantly higher compensation than what county-contracted defense attorneys receive. “The disparity of what they're willing to pay someone to come back and work on a particular case to prosecute, versus what they're paying the rest of us for our defense is outrageous,” said defense attorney Michael Palmer/Alecia Warren, Coeur d'Alene Press. 
from the public about whether the statue of Jesus Christ on Big Mountain should be removed. The volume of comments became so unwieldy that Forest Service supervisors assigned a special team to organize, filter and read the comments, the majority of which were sent by email from across the United States. “It's a very divisive issue, and a very emotional issue,” Derek Milner, who is leading the public review project for the Flathead National Forest, said. “People are either adamantly in favor or adamantly opposed. There really is no middle ground”/Tristan Scott, Missoulian. 
among the Constitutionalists, Libertarians and ultraconservatives that dominate GOP central committees in the five northern counties. Ten prominent Republicans have had enough. They’ve founded the North Idaho Republican Political Action Committee, aiming to find sensible, business-friendly candidates for the May primary. The PAC includes Sandy Patano, a top aide to former U.S. Sen. Larry Craig; Jim Riley of the Intermountain Forest Industry Association; and Jim Pierce of Washington Trust Bank. “You can’t be on the Republican Central Committee unless you can look through a keyhole with both eyes at the same time,” said Dean Haagenson, another PAC founder who is CEO of Contractors Northwest and a former lawmaker. “We’re raising money to support candidates that are better than Phil Hart”/Dan Popkey, Idaho Statesman. 
man who appears to have past ties to illegal firearms, domestic violence and white supremacists. Steven Douglas Stanbary, who once said his hero was white supremacist Randy Weaver (pictured) of Ruby Ridge fame, is believed to have died Wednesday as his home burned to the ground. Firefighters and police were held at bay by repeated gunfire and explosions. The whereabouts of Stanbary’s wife and her teenage daughter also weren’t known late Wednesday. Authorities weren’t commenting on how many bodies they were searching for. Today’s search takes place on the 27th anniversary of a landmark gun battle and standoff between the FBI and Robert J. Mathews – another iconic hero of white supremacists — about 180 miles away on Whidbey Island, Wash./Hate Watch, Southern Poverty Law Center. 
On her Facebook wall, HBO super-sub CindyH offers this pickup line — from her 12YO son. Here's the conversation: “Sam, 12: Want to hear a great pick up line? Me: I guess. How much does a polar bear weigh? Me: I dunno. Sam: Enough to break the ice for us, baby. I really hope he doesn't get better at this.”
independent and non-partisan public opinion research and consultation firm based in Portland, Ore. But they weren’t as concerned. And Idahoans were less willing to drive less and consumer less to combat climate change. But more said they should spend less and adjust their lifestyle to address the poor economy. The poll was a part of environmental journalism collaboration by public radio stations in Idaho, Oregon and Washington and Idaho Public Television. DHM Research polled 1,200 people in the region, with 400 in each state. The online survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.9 percent/Rocky Barker (pictured), Statesman.
going more quickly than some students would like. Students at Brigham Young University, Idaho recently encountered a new sign in the university’s testing center that read simply, “No skinny jeans.” The popular clothing item is something many students at Brigham Young University would not think twice about; however, it has become a somewhat polarizing issue at BYU’s Idahoan affiliate. In a September question-and-answer session students and faculty, Advancement Vice President Henry J. Eyring was asked whether skinny jeans are in violation of the university’s honor code, which states that clothing should not be form-fitting/Stephanie Grimes, StateImpact. 
a high school basketball game. Several adults and one juvenile exchanged a series of threatening text messages. The situation escalated after the combatants arrived at the Clark Fork home of Larry Dean Flanigan, Jr., 19, on East Mountain View Road. After a heated verbal exchange, Flanigan allegedly discharged one shotgun round at a vehicle, hitting two of the occupants with birdshot BBs. One juvenile and one adult received non-life threatening injuries. They were treated at Bonner General Hospital and released. Flanigan was charged with two counts of aggravated battery and three counts of aggravated assault. Bond was sent at $100,000. This case remains under investigation/Bonner County Sheriff's Office news release.
trees along the Rosenberry Drive (“The Dike Road”) in Coeur d’Alene. The lawsuit alleges that the Corps failed to perform an adequate environmental analysis, and that the Corps is attempting to enforce a memorandum that isn’t actually a law. The Gonzaga University Law School's Environmental Law Clinic represents KEA in this case. The KEA lawsuit alleges that, at some point, the Corps of Engineers should have performed some sort of environmental analysis for the vegetation removal – either at the national program policy level, or at the local implementation level. The Corps has essentially done neither, which KEA alleges is in violation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).” 
ending months of speculation about the Broncos’ future conference plans. The rest of Boise State’s programs are going to the Western Athletic Conference, which was the Broncos’ home from 2001 to 2011. The conference moves will take effect July 1, 2013. “Today’s announcement represents another significant step forward in the evolution of the Bronco football program and in the incredible growth of Boise State University. The move to the Big East Conference makes a powerful statement about our vision for the future of the football program, and more than ever will showcase the Broncos in the national spotlight,” Boise State President Bob Kustra said/Brian Murphy, Statesman. 
problem to try and overturn the outcome. The number of human mistakes found after that exhaustive process was far less than we’ve found in this election. The county clerk should have some explaining to do, especially in light of the fact that this is the second significant problem in his short tenure managing elections (the first being the wording of the school bond election ballots). But last night he was AWOL at our meeting. That’s sad and disappointing.
IDOG, Idahoans for Openness in Government, and co-sponsored by the Spokesman-Review and the Coeur d'Alene Press. Press Managing Editor Mike Patrick told the crowd it was the first time he could remember the two competing newspapers co-sponsoring an event. Among those attending were numerous local government officials and staffers, reporters for a variety of news media, political activists, several former state legislators and lots of interested citizens. Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden singled out an audience member, former state Rep. Gary Ingram (left in photo, huddling with Wasden), for special recognition: Ingram is the author of much of the Idaho Open Meeting Law/Betsy Russell, Eye On Boise. 
hire for his football staff, David Emerick, whom Leach said will be chief of staff, basically making sure everything runs smoothly in the football office. Emerick first crossed paths with Leach as a football operations intern when Leach was offensive coordinator at Kentucky, then joined Leach’s staff at Texas Tech, moving his way up to the chief of staff position. The past two years he’s worked in football operations for the recently fired Mike Stoops at Arizona. That change opened the door for Emerick to move north. “There is no better guy in the country to work for than Mike Leach,” Emerick said Tuesday following Leach’s introduction to the Washington State faithful/Vince Grippi, SR. 
after year! Let’s just list out all the crap most people hate: Smoking, brussel sprouts, beets, Pit Bulls, Mom Jeans, etc. and let’s just tax the ever-loving hell out of them. Just do it! This bi-annual demogoguery and chipping away at “sin” tax stuff makes me KRAZY! Let’s just get it all out of our system and move on to the crap that actually matters!
on Pearl Harbor that day as “hell on earth.” Today is the 70th anniversary of what President Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaimed as “a date which will live in infamy,” and survivors Hamelrath, Gaynos and Charlie Imus still remember it vividly. “You don't forget it,” said Hamelrath, who served in the Navy and lives in Hayden. “I had the good fortune of not having my ship sunk (the USS Tangier) under me, but I still remember all the casualties and damage. It was hard to accept and hard to believe at the time”/Brian Walker, Coeur d'Alene Press. 
19-year-old reading the paper while he ate lunch. I grew up in a newspaper-reading family. My mom read the paper every morning while she had her coffee and my dad read it when he came home from work. All of my sons read at least one section of the paper, a couple times a week. Not only can they discuss current events, they all have amazing vocabularies. Coincidence? I think not.
Steve Adams, a Coeur d'Alene council member elected and North Idaho Patriots member, will be promoting Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul at a Patriots meeting at The Donut House, 8761 Government Way, Hayden, at 6:30 p.m. Thursday. An ad in today's Coeur d'Alene Press says: “Steve Adams won a tight race in Coeur d'Alene. Come learn how those tactices will be a win for Ron Paul in Kootenai County.”
attended last night did so to determine if this new organization was merely a re-branded Rally Right and if the purpose of this organization was to conduct political purges within the Republican Party. It is pure delusion (although a number of speakers alluded to it) that the Republican Central Committee in Kootenai County is infested with moderates and liberals. I challenge anyone to honestly name five active Precinct Committee Chairs who are not conservatives. Previously anyone, regardless of their solid conservatism, who refused to take direction from Rally Right's Mr. Pederson, were slanderously branded as liberals. There was also an element of Obama-like class warfare with attacks on the affluent members of the Central Committee as if financial success somehow invalidated one's conservatism. I sincerely hope this organization will not continue those insidious and destructive tactics.” 
about their careers as well as their personal lives. Kathryn Benoit was one of many students who gravitated toward Mr. Bustamante. She enrolled in one of his classes last fall, and by the end of the semester she had not only joined his research laboratory and made him her graduate adviser, but had also begun sleeping with him. Their tumultuous relationship, however, soon began to fray. Ms. Benoit, who was 22, filed a complaint with the university in the summer, accusing Mr. Bustamante of sexual harassment and of threatening her life with a loaded gun. By the beginning of this semester, both the graduate student and the assistant professor were dead/Robin Wilson, of Moscow, The Chronicle of Higher Education. 
conventions, so who knows how many I’ve trampled and broken out of ignorance. But in those 7 months of searching for like-minded tweeps to follow (see, I’m picking up a little lingo along the way), I’ve read thousands of profiles. In that time I’ve noticed some trends. See if you recognize any of these under-140-character descriptions:
aboard as the new head coach of the WSU football program.Leach flew into Pullman early Tuesday and was introduced to the crowd by Provost Warwick Bayly and Athletic Director Bill Moos; President Elson Floyd was reportedly sick and could not attend the press conference.In his introduction to the man taking over the football program from Paul Wulff, Moos said of Leach that, “I talked to one man and I only wanted one man.”“I came back to Washington State to go to the Rose Bowl and we're going to go there,” Moos said/KXLY.
on cigarettes from $1.25 per pack from 57 cents to $1.82. Similar legislation was considered last year. The key paragraph in the story is this: “Interest groups on both sides of the tobacco tax issue will surely spend a significant amount of money lobbying lawmakers in the direction of their cause. According to a 
Myrick of Nampa from what Meridian police said was her 5th DUI arrest in 10 years, MADD's Miren Aburusa said. Meridian Police say they arrested Myrick, 41, Sunday night for DUI, driving without privileges and transport of an open container. She was later booked into the Ada County jail. MADD advocates mandatory ignition interlocks, or in-car breathalyzers, for all first-time DUI offenders. The devices require convicted drunken drivers to prove they are sober before their vehicles will start/Mike Butts, Idaho Press Tribune.
a court decision that he did. Mary suggests that County Clerk Cliff Hayes has uncovered some profound evidence that Mike actually tied Brannon. Or mebbe, shazam, that he lost to Brannon. Mary: “Mike Kennedy won his re-election in 2009 by only 5 votes. During the lengthy and sometimes contentious Election Challenge trial that followed, the court decided to invalidate 3 of Mike’s votes. That brought Mike’s margin of victory down to 2. Now, it seems, the election was possibly a tie or, in my opinion, an almost certain win for Jim Brannon and probably other candidates in that election as well.” Mary goes on to explain her “rationale” for her theory. 
organizations and most if not all the Republican Central Committees in the five northern counties of Idaho. John Cross who is the Republican Region One Chairman, played a prominent roll as did Representative Phil Hart, Representative Vito Barbieri, Representative Dick Harwood and Kootenai Sheriff candidate, John Green (pictured). Mr. Green recited an event when as a young Deputy Sheriff and he was sent to back up two IRS agents who where conducting a seizure of assets. He stated that he should have arrested the agents then and there but did not have the knowledge and courage to do so at the time. He promised that things will be different when he becomes Sheriff. There was significant talk about RINOs and a degree of gloating about the progress Conservatives had made against the Rino’s in the Kootenai County Republican Central Committee. (Photo from John Green for Sheriff Facebook wall)
atomic bomb, died Sunday at his Moscow home of lung cancer. Johnston, 93, designed the detonator for the bombs that were detonated at White Sands, N.M., and Nagasaki, Japan, and is believed to be the only eyewitness to all three of the 1945 atomic explosions that also included Hiroshima, Japan. His later assignment was to measure the impacts of the bombs. He was a professor of physics at the University of Idaho from 1967 to 1988/Lewiston Tribune. 
Sometime during that week, Derek and I will have to attend at least one school Christmas concert. I guess we’re bad parents. We loathe school concerts. It wasn’t always this way. When our eldest child was 4, we attended our first holiday concert at his preschool. It was delightful. The children were adorable, but none as precious as our own darling boy. That was 11 years ago. We’d probably still be enjoying holiday concerts except we’ve added three more sons since that first experience. Consequently, we’ve attended about 30 school concerts. We’ve endured recorder recitals, choir competitions and spring solo extravaganzas, but the bane of our existence remains the Christmas concert/Cindy Hval, SR.
going here. Here’s the thing. The Post Office was Ben Franklin’s idea of the Internet way back then. And should the power go out we’ll need it as much as the folks in the 18th Century did. What’s killing the Post Office, excuse me, Postal Service, is the perpetual lie of the price of a stamp. Let it rise with the price of everything else. Let us keep the great service we have — in the past two weeks I have gotten letters sent from Wallace on a Friday and received in Connecticut and New York on Monday — but charge fair value for it. I think a buck or even $2 is fair, to get a letter picked up from my house and delivered to somebody’s front porch on the other side of a continent is a very fair value. Eggs aren’t 25 cents a dozen anymore, and a gallon of milk ain’t a dollar anymore either.
adequate or great president? Is the “myth” of Camelot or the “substance” of a star crossed and tragic tenure just so much rosy memory or was Kennedy’s short presidency a grand testament to a simpler, elegant, even better time? Would Kennedy have avoided Vietnam or would his hawkish anti-Communism have taken us precisely where 
your writing implement of choice. (If you can't think of anything writerly to ask for, December issues of writing magazines are replete with suggestions. This year, the Writer's Clock, pictured above, available from 
struck me that really no other decision — not even the profession you choose — determines how your life plays out. You and a spouse or partner choose where to live, if and when to have children, what friends you'll hang around with. When you marry you inherit a bunch of other family members. Even if you divorce, the marriage carries on its influence in the rest of your life, especially if you have children together. And at the beginning of a marriage, romantic love blinds you to the lifelong implications. Maybe that is a good thing/Rebecca Nappi, End Notes. 
that the incident described was probably someone using their own laptop rather than one of the unfiltered computers in the library's computer lab. Filtering would not have an impact on the WiFi
agree upon: We love the Muppets. At least, that’s what we assumed. But according to the heavyweight cultural thinkers at Fox Business, The Muppets is nothing but liberal, anti-capitalist propaganda. In an unintentionally hilarious segment titled “Are Liberals Trying to Brainwash Your Kids Against Capitalism?,” Follow the Money host Eric Bolling goes bananas on the Muppets’ unjust persecution of the movie’s villain, a greedy oil magnate named Tex Richman/Judy Berman, Flavorwire. 
Wyoming and New Mexico. Mental health professionals attribute it in part to cutbacks in Medicaid funding, to the recession and to the culture of the rural West. In Idaho, somebody kills himself every 35 hours, according to a 2009 report to Idaho's governor by the state's Council on Suicide Prevention. Their report calls suicide “a major public health issue” having a “devastating effect” on Idaho's families, churches, businesses and even schools: 65 students aged 10 and 18 killed themselves in a recent five-year period. Last week a county sheriff in Bonneville told the Idaho Falls Post Register that his department was getting more suicide calls than in 2010—a year in which 290 Idahoans took their own lives. “We're in a spike right now,” he says/Alan Farnham, ABC News. 
favor of four teams ranked outside the Top 10. “The whole thing needs to be changed, there’s no question about it,” he said. “… I think (change) is coming, I really do.” The Broncos (11-1) were left out of a BCS game with a Top 10 ranking for the fourth time in eight years. This time, they were passed over for a Sugar Bowl matchup that features No. 11 Virginia Tech (11-2) and No. 13 Michigan (10-2). Virginia Tech lost by 28 points Saturday and hasn’t beaten anyone currently ranked. “Everybody is just very tired of the BCS,” Petersen said. “I think that’s the bottom line. Everybody is frustrated. Everybody doesn’t really know what to do anymore. It doesn’t make sense to anybody. I don’t think anybody is happy anywhere”/Chadd Cripe, Idaho Statesman. 
sorry about that brief flash of 
abandoning GOP orthodoxy to join hands with Democrats to find the only realistic solution: cutting entitlement spending and reforming taxes in a way that means new revenue. Crapo was a member of the 2010 deficit commission that built a framework for a lasting solution and has tirelessly sustained the effort as a member of the bipartisan “Gang of Six.” Simpson came later to the game, but his partnership with Rep. Heath Shuler, D-N.C., persuaded 100 House members last month to touch their political parties’ third rails. Wise men — from Secretary of State Ben Ysursa to political scientist Jim Weatherby — could cite no previous example of two members of Idaho’s tiny congressional delegation playing leading roles on the major issue of a generation/Dan Popkey, Statesman. 
birders are invited to join avid birdwatchers on more than a dozen counts that are being organized within 100 miles of Spokane. Each volunteer group will count for one day between Dec. 14 and Jan. 5 in a designated circle 15 miles in diameter. Area Audubon groups offer 10 counts on four days during that period. Some birders join in more than one. The count began on Christmas 1900 in 25 eastern localities where groups publicized the pleasure of identifying, counting and recording all the birds they saw/Rich Landers, SR. 
A forgettable, yet unforgettable 56-3 thrashing by Nevada on Saturday capped a painful three-month stretch which featured two wins, four losses by seven points or fewer and one of the most consistently underprepared football teams I've ever had the pleasure (or in this case, displeasure) of watching. In the fourth quarter on Saturday, Idaho was able to sum up its season with a comedy of errors that seemingly only the Vandals could pull off. With backup Taylor Davis in at quarterback and the Vandals facing a fourth-and-8 down by 46 points, the offense couldn't get the play in and had to take a delay of game penalty/Troy Warzocha, Lewiston Tribune. 
Butch Otter, who canceled his leadership of a 
Arpie: Boise State shanked again. They’re back in 
birthday last Wednesday, his mother, Elizabeth Yalian, of Rathdrum, emailed Huckleberries a letter she wrote about her son. It included this essay Jonny wrote at age 9 upon learning he was getting his first BB gun (complete with a child’s misspellings): “The best thing I ever (heard) was the day Mom said I could have a B.B. gun. I thaohgt I would faint when Mom said yes but I had to get this awfull haircut but I didn’t care. Mom had already gotton me B.B.s and later got me some pellets. We went in to Shopco and thier it was the most buitiful thing I ever saw. After school I couldn’t wait to go shooting I was very angcious to knock some cans of the hey stak. A few weeks later I got a scope and after Christmas I got a case for it.” Gone but never forgotten/DFO, Huckleberries print. 
sales at their state-run liquor stores along the Washington-Idaho border and have tabled plans for new state liquor stores in Oldtown and Post Falls. ”I think we will continue to remain competitive,” said Idaho State Liquor Division Director Jeff Anderson, “but we really don’t know.” Last year, Idaho’s liquor division distributed $50 million in profits to the state’s general fund, cities, counties and courts. For now, Anderson said, Idaho won’t add any new stores, and will instead try to “get more out of the stores we have.” At least 13 of Idaho’s state liquor stores are within 15 miles of the Idaho-Washington border/Betsy Russell, SR. 
considered. The slate of candidates matching the exact number of vacancies is then offered as a slate vote, and installed. At least that is how it happened last year, and is one of the reasons I resigned from the board, and rescinded my membership. The fact that they made their endorsements basically worth about the same as a peso by dropping the requirement of a unanimous vote to just 60% of those board members who are present didn’t sit well either.
body, and mind. I take issue with them just merrily going along and putting a part where I don’t want it, or running some kind of medical test or procedure. I feel like the ad “It’s My Money And I Want It Now!” I want to shout at them (especially the medical people “It’s My Body and I Want It Back!” Recently the nurses wanted me to have a fistulagram - a really icky, invasive angioplasty of the veins that are used for dialysis. I researched it and discovered many people’s fistulas were ruined by the balloon blowing up their veins. I balked at it and finally settled for an ultrasound. Guess what??? My veins are great!
cigarette ads on TV disappeared. And the child born when Big Tobacco settled its lawsuits, forfeited billions in profits to the states and curbed advertising geared to youngsters is now attending high school. Who would have imagined back then - when it was 1964, 1971 or even 1998 — that one of five American teenagers would continue to take up a habit that could eventually sicken and kill them? And who in his right mind would have thought that politicians today would allow that to continue? Take Idaho for instance, where one of every seven teenagers will begin a life-long smoking habit/Marty Trillhaase, Lewiston Tribune. 
for saying Happy Holidays. This is a term or saying I have had for years.. before it fell from grace of the times of politicial correct police. I have said, I wish you happy holidays … I have written, Happy Holidays on cards… been doing for … what 20, 30 years? I start about this time of the year. Why do I do this? Because I don’t feel like I have to list each one to say to enjoy these holidays … Do I really have to stand there, or write/say.. Happy Thanksgiving, and Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year … or can I say Happy Holidays?/Cis, Simple Mind. 
decided on her own, count us in.” I wish to clarify that the Mayor does not vote except in the case of a tie vote. Over the past ten years the Mayor has broken a tie vote of the City Council six (6) times. That is six (6) times in 365 meetings held by the City Council over the past 10 years. In reviewing the City Council meeting minutes, the Mayor last broke a tie vote on January 1, 2009. Prior to that she cast a tie-breaking vote in November 2008, June 2006, September 2006, August 2002 and July 2002. The only time the Mayor has cast a vote regarding McEuen Park was on July 16, 2002 when she broke a tie vote on a motion by Council to limit public comments to three minutes. The motion failed with the Mayor’s tie-breaking vote”/City Clerk Susan Weathers.
minutes every 6 weeks complaining to me about his crappy life AND he wouldn't listen to me when I wanted to grow my hair out. After 20 years, I couldn't take it anymore. Now, I may have to break up with my nail tech. My nails look great, but I have to listen to her boyfriend woes for an hour every 3 wks and then tip her. I get paid to listen when I'm working, and some days I'm kind of listened out by lunch time. And this concludes my complaint.”
Letter guy. I think I sent out 200 a few years back. Then I tried doing the card online and having links to it send out on postcards. Most people didn’t understand it. Last year I totally gave up on the concept, as apparently have quite a few of my friends and relatives. I’m curious how many people here do the Christmas Card thing any more?
slog through to the end even if I wasn’t enjoying it. Instead of sharing beautiful writing and funny prose out loud (to whoever happened to be in the room), I’d make cracks about sentence structure, sappy characters and pedantic plotting. I think my compulsion to complete every book stemmed from an overdeveloped sense of responsibility – that I have to start the things I finish. No more. About a year ago I realized this reading approach is a lot like holding onto a losing investment. Just because I’d invested hours in a book, didn’t mean I needed to waste more of my time if it wasn’t working for me. I don’t get paid to read, after all/Jill Barville. 
JeanieSpokane: This will probably get me blitzed from all those football fans, but am I the only one who is appalled at the multi-million dollar package offered to Leach, while we are still in economic chaos, and we wonder why tuition goes up so high! It is egregious!
McEuen. I’m sick of people claiming that the “community” is against McEuen or the “people” demand a vote. I am part of this community, I am the people, and I support Mayor Bloem and our city council’s decision to move forward.
within the house by the end of fall semester, said Brandon Cary Delta Chi president. “It has been a rough road for us,” Cary said. Cary said he was unprepared for the review conducted Nov. 9 and 10. “I felt like I overlooked the warning gave earlier in the year,” Cary said. “I didn’t think (the review) was even close to necessary. I expected it to be an incident (that caused the review), not a decision.” The decision to review the University of Idaho chapter was made after members of Delta Chi voted to allow alcohol in the fraternity, Cary said/David Humphreys, Idaho Argonaut. 
Republican Party. Our namesake Ronald Reagan said it best “I want the record to show that I do not view the new revitalized Republican Party as one based on a principle of exclusion. After all, you do not get to be a majority party by searching for groups you won't associate or work with.” Reagan opposed purging those from the party that he or some self-appointed arbiter of Conservatism deemed ideologically impure. Reagan confidently believed enough in the rightness of Conservatism to try to persuade instead of purge. Yet there are those who do not share Reagan's views and believe the party must be “purged” of all those who do not support their favored candidates or bend to the arbitrary will of their self-appointed leaders or oppose their monolithic control of party committees/Jeff Ward, Reagan Republicans president. 
drawn from the war horses of ancient Rome or from Greek mythology. Look closely, and you’ll see their rippling muscles, flared nostrils and the fire in their eyes. “I like bringing out the spirit of animals,” the 26-year-old Rathdrum metal sculptor said. “Anybody can draw an animal. But you don’t always get that spark. That’s the single biggest thing I like to put in my pieces. I want it to look alive.” Tonight, Kearns’ metal sculptures will be among 300 pieces by 33 mostly regional artists in the opening of Art Spirit Gallery’s 13th annual Small Artworks Invitational show in downtown Coeur d’Alene. Most of the artists are from Spokane or Coeur d’Alene, but others come from Pasco, Boise, Olympia and Oregon/Alison Boggs, SR. 
legislative panel is concerned, that’s just dandy. When these lawmakers rewrote the state’s 2007 energy plan in November, they saw no need to write in language that would create a consumer advocacy office. Forty-six states have a division that works expressly on behalf of their ratepayers; Idaho never has, and is the only state in the West to hold this dubious distinction. This year, the idea drew broad support from consumer advocates, conservation groups and even big ratepayers such as Monsanto. But the plan hit resistance from utilities — to the surprise of, well, nobody — and that was good enough for the committee/Kevin Richert, Idaho Statesman. 
The city is discussing the idea of a megaload staging area that would be set up in the parking lot across from the visitor’s center. During a special city council meeting Thursday, members unanimously gave Mayor Dick Vester the authority to enter into a contract to use the space for megaload parking and maintenance for six months. “It’d be good for commerce in Wallace,” Vester said, because crews would utilize hotels, restaurants and stores in town/Kelsey Saintz, Shoshone News-Press.
Thursday for the Associated Taxpayers of Idaho annual conference. Traditionally the opening round of the legislative season - lawmakers formally convene Jan. 9 - the ATI forum telegraphs what's ahead. With the state's top echelon attending, governors use that platform to at least foreshadow what they may have in mind. After his office last week merely announced there would be “no public events or meetings scheduled,” Otter left Tuesday for Orlando, Fla., where he is attending a meeting of the Republican Governors Association. Reports the Idaho Statesman's Dan Popkey: The RGA is paying for the trip. Good thing, too, considering Idaho's too broke to pay Otter's dues to the National Governors Association/Marty Trillhaase, Lewiston Tribune. 
four seasons. Tucked in one of the most remote towns of any BCS conference, the school would seemingly be hard-pressed to attract a high-profile coach. Instead, Wazzu just landed a coach that took a Big 12 program to 10 straight bowl games, went 84-43, earned national coach of the year honors in 2008 and is considered one of the greatest offensive innovators in the sport. The Cougars just scored their biggest win in years. Mike Leach's two-year exile from coaching is over because a moribund Pac-12 program was able to do what Maryland and so many others could not: It got past the baggage. As a result, the Cougars won't be moribund much longer/Stewart Mandel, SI.com. 
ignited some desire to cut taxes. Lawmakers need to remember that when they vote to set a state budget and establish the tax policy that goes with that budget, what they’re really voting on is how much money to take out of the economy. They’re voting on how much money businesses, their employees, Idaho residents, charitable organizations and so on should not have because government supposedly needs it more. Some money is invariably necessary to provide services that fall under the heading of the “proper role of government.” … But it is important to remember that every penny that’s taken out of the private sector to run government programs and services and entitlements is a penny that isn’t available to the private sector for salaries and raises, to hire new employees or to make capital investments/Wayne Hoffman, Idaho Freedom Foundation. 
or decided on her own, count us in. We've criticized her decisions before, and we're pretty sure we'll do it again. But we're not jumping on the bandwagon of those who are taking personal potshots at the mayor because of differences in perspective. We wonder how many people lambasting Bloem for the kind of person they think she is have actually sat down and talked with her, one on one. Because McEuen Park is the municipal powderkeg of public opinion, and the mayor happens to have a very strong sense of what that property should become, she has somehow earned the title of Public Enemy No. 1/Mike Patrick, Coeur d'Alene Press.
respect. I am afraid that too many on this blog have been so absorbed in partisan bickering that they find it difficult to believe that some people try to do the right thing just because it is the right thing to do. Although there was an article written about Ron Nilson’s contribution to those less fortunate I did not see him promoting himself. Our Community needs more people like Ron Nilson.
f-word appeared in between two paragraphs in a sports-section article from The Associated Press about the upcoming Georgia and LSU game. The word did not reference anything in the article. In a statement on its website, executive editor John Pittman apologized for the word. “We are saddened by this and assure everyone that we will 
employees. 
decision, saying that the woman, former prosecutor Betsy Black, is the best qualified to handle the case she was hired for. Black led the investigation into the January 2009 death of 2-year-old Karina Janay Moore before going into private practice. “She had the best working knowledge of anybody in the office,” Prosecutor Barry McHugh says, defending Black’s hire. Moore’s foster parents were charged last month in the girl’s death. “It made sense to continue to have Betsy work on the case.” But Kootenai County Chief Public Defender John Adams says Black’s $100-per-hour compensation, along with the access to a computer and secretary offered by the prosecutor’s office, is excessive. Black is married to chief deputy prosecutor Barry Black/Chris Stein, Inlander. 
Come First” school reform plan in the coming legislative session will be minor, and won't affect the upcoming November 2012 referendum vote on the package. “We don't want to affect the referendum,” Hill said. “They had 40,000 signatures to put it on the ballot. We owe the people the right to vote on that. We're not going to sabotage that.” Hill said he's conferring with the Idaho Attorney General's office to make sure any proposed legislation doesn't affect the referendum vote/Betsy Russell, Eye On Boise. 
Mike Leach. The former Texas Tech coach was officially announced as the new Cougars football coach on Wednesday, signing a five year contract worth more than $2 million per year. WSU Spokesman Darin Watkins said the WSU ticket office received 750 new orders for season tickets on Wednesday, including 100 club seats at $2,000 per order. That means the University made more than $200,000 on Wednesday alone. “Mike Leach” was also trended No. 2 nationally on Google and according to Watkins, “WSU” and “Mike Leach” were on many twitter top ten lists on Wednesday/Chris Daniels, KING5. 
ommuted at least one day in every month of 2011. Once I got downtown, I took a little detour before heading to the Review Tower. I rolled over to Main to see the illuminated Madonna and child while it was still dark out. And there it was, where it always is at this time of year, on the corner of The Bon, er, Macy's. I know I am not alone in thinking of it as one of the true signals that the Christmas season has arrived in Spokane/Paul Turner, Slice blog.
offered a coaching session for attendees about how they should communicate to the public. Yahoo! News’ Chris Moody 
A new species has risen from the shallows of the Internet: the angry commenter. Sure, there is a long tradition of inspired cranks and interested retirees who have always written letters to the editor, but something in the anonymity and speed and stamplessness of the Internet has unleashed a more powerful and uncontrolled vitriol. I am not here talking about the thoughtful, intelligent comments, which also abound, but rather the bile unloosed, flashes of fury and unexamined rage that pass as “comment”/Katie Roiphe, Slate. 
When football tickets and fancy student centers are the currency of the day, rather than affordable and quality education, clearly something is awry. When most classes are scheduled only between Tuesday and Thursday and the institutional answer is to build more buildings to accommodate the demand from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.—as Penn State is doing—something is awry/Anne Neal, Wall Street Journal. 
home working on my book. As I sat down on the edge of the bed to shuck my shoes, a flash of glitter caught my eye. A sparkling tiara rested on my pillow.Now, I’ve never been a Lilac Princess or a Prom Queen, and I most certainly am not a morning person. Yet every day before he leaves for work my husband, Derek, kisses me and says, “Good morning, Princess.” After almost 26 years of marriage, he decided to make it official. He went out and bought me a crown and left it on my pillow to welcome me home/Cindy Hval, SR Front Porch. 
Newt Gingrich is now polling better than President Obama in one survey of likely voters - all while taking more 
heat from his GOP rivals. Gingrich, whose campaign has risen from the dead to the top of most Republican leaderboards, has opened up a slim lead in a hypothetical matchup with the man whose job he wants. The former House speaker leads Obama 45%-43%, according to a Rasmussen national poll released Thursday. That’s within the survey’s three percentage-point margin of error, but it showed a serious surge for Gingrich. A week ago, the former Georgia congressman trailed Obama by six points/Jonathan Lemire, New York Daily News. More here. (AP photo)
Question: Newt? Really?
key to help gain access to most other Honda cars. In Kitsap County, Wash., 50 Honda vehicles have been stolen since June, and a dozen since Oct. 25. “Every time we have a new stolen (car), I ask if it's a '90s model Honda,” Port Orchard police commander Geoffrey Marti told the Kitsap Sun. Twenty Hondas have been stolen from Port Orchard this year. The 1994 Honda Accord was the No. 1. stolen car on the National Crime Insurance Bureau stolen cars list released in August, and topped the LoJack stolen vehicles survey released in April/AOL.com via KHQ. 
elves? And the mall parking lots, jammed full of cars? Can't you just smell the pepper spray that some folks use to clear a path to the Xbox video game players? It's said that Jesus is the reason for the season, but he appears to be peripherally involved, at best. When it comes to X-mas, Santa is The Man. Originally rooted in innocence and humility, the Christmas season has become almost unrecognizable - with merchants intent on their bottom line, and shoppers a-twitter over the prospect of buying, giving and getting more stuff/William Brock, Moscow-Pullman Daily News. 
blame that on an anti-environmental and anti-regulatory agenda on the part of Idaho's Republican majority. DEQ's 24 percent budget loss is in line with other state programs - higher education, 22 percent; agricultural research, 28 percent; Idaho State Police, 30 percent; public schools, 7.5 percent. Nor does Idaho stand out. As John Miller of The Associated Press reported, state after state is balancing its budget in part by scaling back on environmental protection. Among 24 states surveyed by the Environmental Council of the States, the average agency saw its budget sliced $12 million, or 11.5 percent/Marty Trillhaase, Lewiston Tribune. 
Cougars lost their minds. In the very best way, of course – providing you’re not wedded to a 1980s way of how Wazzu fits into the football jigsaw puzzle or bearish on how universities do their sweaty show business nowadays. For really the first time since college athletics became a runaway train, the Cougars have scrambled on board. Barely 24 hours after he’d officially lopped Paul Wulff and his $600,000 annual salary off the payroll as head football coach, athletic director Bill Moos leveraged $11.25 million of the school’s share of the upcoming Pac-12 television bonanza to hire a replacement/John Blanchette, SR. 
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It is widely known that the further you have to go to vote, the less likely Joe and Jill Six-pack are likely to participate. In some cases the Commissioners do this deliberately, since many borderline voters stay home. Full post here.