Stories for September 24, 2008

• Rossi sees desperation in lawsuit

  GOP candidate Dino Rossi today accused his opponent and other Democrats of being “desperate” with an effort to challenge the designation he would carry on the ballot.

• Homicide victim shot in head

  In News, City The Spokane Valley man killed last weekend died from gunshot wounds to the head, the Spokane County Medical Examiner’s Office said today. Kenneth Cross, 80, was found dead in his …

• Bailout proposal runs into outrage

  In Nation/World on Page A1 WASHINGTON – The Bush administration sent some of its most powerful figures to Capitol Hill on Tuesday to rally support for a $700 billion plan to revive the U.S. financial …

• Elvis Pigsley, at your service

  In City on Page A1 All you pedigreed pooches on a mission for mankind better watch out. Elvis Pigsley’s in town, and you ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog.

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  Milfoil may be fuel source

  In City on Page A1 Ask boaters, dock owners, swimmers or scientists and you’re likely to get the same answer: Eurasian milfoil is a good-for-nothing pest. Since the mid-1970s, the feathery water plant has spread …

• New surgical techniques avoid incisions altogether

  In Nation/World on Page A1 When Albert Pagliuca got gallstones, his surgeon offered to remove his gallbladder with a new operation designed to hurt less, get him back to work more quickly and leave no …

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  Is a potbellied pig legally a pig?

  In City on Page A1 All you pedigreed pooches on a mission for mankind better watch out. Elvis Pigsley’s in town, and you ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog.

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  Redwood-sitters end long vigil

  In Nation/World on Page A2 SCOTIA, Calif. – After more than 20 years of protests, the last two people living in the giant redwoods of Northern California were climbing down for good, convinced by the …

• Need for repairs stalls particle collider

  In Nation/World on Page A3 GENEVA – Scientists will have to wait until spring to use the world’s biggest particle collider for groundbreaking research because repairs will run into the laboratory’s normal winter shutdown, the …

• Senate passes massive tax relief bill

  In Nation/World on Page A3 WASHINGTON – The Senate passed a giant tax package Tuesday that saves more than 20 million taxpayers from the bite of the alternative minimum tax. At a cost of more …

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  Bush tells world leaders he’s focused on markets

  In Nation/World on Page A3 UNITED NATIONS – World leaders heard assurances from President Bush on Tuesday that he is acting swiftly to contain America’s financial upheaval, but allies and critics alike called for a …

• Medicare payments questioned

  In Nation/World on Page A3 WASHINGTON – The government paid more than $1 billion in questionable Medicare claims for medical supplies that showed little relation to a patient’s condition, including blood glucose strips for sexual …

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  Georgia inmate granted stay of execution

  In Nation/World on Page A4 JACKSON, Ga. – The U.S. Supreme Court gave a reprieve to a Georgia inmate less than two hours before his scheduled execution Tuesday for the 1989 slaying of an off-duty …

• Governor signs long-due budget

  In Nation/World on Page A4 Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the most overdue state budget in California history Tuesday, skipping the usual fanfare because he said the Legislature’s efforts on the $144.5 billion spending plan were …

• Rail safety bill goes to House

  In Nation/World on Page A4 WASHINGTON – House and Senate negotiators reached a deal Tuesday on a major railroad safety reform bill that will require new technology to prevent crashes and limit hours engineers can …

• Democrats won’t renew drilling ban

  In Nation/World on Page A4 WASHINGTON – Democrats have decided to allow a quarter-century ban on drilling for oil off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts to expire next week, conceding defeat in a months-long battle …

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  Gunman kills 10, self in Finland

  In Nation/World on Page A5 BERLIN – A student chef in Finland killed 10 of his classmates in a suicidal shooting rampage at a vocational college Tuesday, a day after police questioned him about violent …

• Political prisoner among 9,000 freed in Myanmar

  In Nation/World on Page A5 YANGON, Myanmar – Myanmar’s longest-serving political prisoner was among more than 9,000 inmates freed Tuesday, days before the first anniversary of the junta’s deadly crackdown on anti-government protests led by …

• Prime minister, Cabinet resign

  In Nation/World on Page A6 Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and his Cabinet handed in their resignations today to pave the way for former Foreign Minister Taro Aso to become Japan’s third leader since 2006. Aso, …

• Candidates offer economic plans

  In Nation/World on Page A6 CLEARWATER, Fla. – Barack Obama and John McCain offered more details Tuesday about what they would do to bail out the nation’s struggling financial institutions, with both men demanding remedies …

• McCain aide’s firm paid recently by Freddie Mac

  In Nation/World on Page A6 WASHINGTON – The lobbying firm founded and co-owned by Rick Davis, the campaign manager for Sen. John McCain’s White House bid, received payments from Freddie Mac in recent months, despite …

• Fed plan could help sale of WaMu

  In Business on Page A8 NEW YORK – As Congress hashes out details of the government’s proposed rescue plan for troubled banks, potential suitors of ailing thrift Washington Mutual Inc. are waiting to pounce. Last …

• THE WORKPLACE

  In Business on Page A8 Midcareer job changers may be the nation’s best hope to fill an estimated 1.5 million teaching vacancies expected in the next 10 years. But $50,000 a year may be the …

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  Grass could be greener

  In Business on Page A8 GUYMON, Okla. – Curtis Raines describes himself as “just a dumb old farmer” who’s not afraid to ask an obvious question: Why grow corn for fuel when it could be …

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  T-Mobile unveils Google phone

  In Business on Page A8 NEW YORK — The first phone that harnesses Google Inc.’s ambition to make the Internet easy to use on the go was revealed Tuesday, and it looks a lot like …

• Home price drop accelerates

  In Business on Page A8 WASHINGTON – Nationwide home prices in July fell a record 5.3 percent compared with a year ago, a government agency said Tuesday, and now have receded to October 2005 levels. …

• WSU provost on personal leave

  In City on Page B1 A Washington State University vice president and provost has been placed on personal leave at his own request. WSU officials aren’t saying why Steven L. Hoch made the request Monday, …

• Accuracy watch

  In City on Page B1 For 09-24-2008

• EWU changing housing locks

  In City on Page B1 Eastern Washington University plans to change the locks to 3,500 dorm rooms and campus apartments because a key fitting all of them has been missing since spring. “It is the …

• Teacher’s aide convicted in teen rape case

  In City on Page B1 A former Spokane middle school teacher’s aide who fathered a child with a teenage girl faces about a year in prison after a jury convicted him Tuesday of third-degree rape …

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  College enrollments on the rise

  In City on Page B1 The poor economy has not meant fewer students this year at Inland Northwest colleges and universities. In fact, as fall quarter begins, most schools are reporting strong freshmen enrollments, including …

• Idaho Records

  In City on Page B2 For 09-24-2008

• Democrats sue over ‘GOP’

  In City on Page B2 OLYMPIA – The state Democratic Party is suing to get a Republican on the ballot. In the latest twist of a bruising governor’s race, Democrats sued Secretary of State Sam …

• Washington Records

  In City on Page B2 Spokane County Marriage licenses

• Scoring error costs Vancouver millions in state funds

  In City on Page B2 SEATTLE – A state board yanked millions of dollars in redevelopment funding from the city of Vancouver and Whitman County on Tuesday after discovering a scoring error in the way …

• Car dealer must make restitution in fraud

  In City on Page B3 A former used car dealer must make $286,000 in restitution to buyers and funding sources after pleading guilty to four felonies in Spokane County Superior Court. As part of a …

• Video released from fatal Sequim shootout

  In City on Page B3 PORT ANGELES, Wash. – Investigators of the fatal shooting of a U.S. Forest Service officer and a Sequim-area retiree have released a surveillance video taken minutes before a fugitive died …

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  Medical mission

  In City on Page B3 When you witness destitution, homelessness and orphaned children firsthand in a Third World country, going back is something you just have to do, Stacey Mainer said. The north Spokane resident …

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  Tickets aplenty in crosswalk sting

  In City on Page B3 Spokane police spent more than 1 1/2 hours Tuesday working a well-marked crosswalk at Hamilton Street and Desmet Avenue after neighbors near Gonzaga University expressed concern about pedestrians in the …

• A difficult choice

  In Opinion on Page B4 I’m undecided. That’s a position in which I have never found myself at this stage of a presidential contest. I’ve been an active Republican since I registered to vote in …

• It’s also a vote on what black means

  In Opinion on Page B4 black (blak) adjective 1. of the color black;

• Watch that cure, Congress

  In Opinion on Page B4 Who was it who said, “crack-brained meddling by the authorities” can “aggravate an existing crisis”? Ronald Reagan? Milton Friedman? Adam Smith? Not even close. It was Karl Marx. Unlike most …

• Our View: Your input may be key to corridor’s completion

  In Opinion on Page B4 In some science fiction films, asphalt roads have disappeared. Citizens get around in “hovercars” that fly through the air above crowded cities. On the Washington State Department of Transportation’s Web …

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  Chadwick commits to Cougars

  In Sports on Page C1 PULLMAN – David Chadwick has known Washington State basketball coach Tony Bennett most of his life. Now he’ll be playing basketball for him.

• Lobster tale is a script waiting to be written

  In Sports on Page C1 Cliff Stoudt, one-time backup to the stars, knew the secret of his station. “The way to stay popular as a quarterback,” he said, “is never to play.”

• Benson says move was right one

  In Sports on Page C1 Wade Benson wanted a chance to coach volleyball at a BCS school and he didn’t know how many invitations would come his way. So roughly two months before the 2007 …

• M’s end skid at 12 games

  In Sports on Page C1 SEATTLE – Kenji Johjima drove in three runs to lead the Seattle Mariners’ comeback from a four-run deficit to snap a 12-game losing streak with a 9-6 victory over the …

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  Tigers on the prowl

  In Sports on Page C1 It’s certainly a different feel watching the Lewis and Clark Tigers play volleyball this season. The two-time State 4A runner-up Tigers lost some key components after last season, as did …

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  WSU’s Lopina out

  In Sports on Page C1 PULLMAN – The Pac-10 has always been considered a quarterback’s conference. From Oregon State’s Terry Baker to USC’s Matt Leinart, the conference’s quarterbacks have won five Heisman trophies. Now it …

• Fast Break

  In Sports on Page C1 For 09-24-2008

• Rams go Green, bench Bulger

  In Sports on Page C2 Marc Bulger is out as the St. Louis Rams starting quarterback after throwing only two touchdown passes in three games and will be replaced by 38-year-old Trent Green for Sunday’s …

• Today’s Best

  In Sports on Page C2 Jason Kubel Went 3 for 4 with a pair of home runs and three runs batted in to help the Twins beat the White Sox.

• Bring back Azinger in 2010

  In Sports on Page C2 LOUISVILLE, Ky. – No one spent more time in the PGA of America hospitality room last month at Oakland Hills than Corey Pavin, presumably to start lobbying to be the …

• Minnesota trips up White Sox

  In Sports on Page C4 Maybe Ozzie Guillen was right about Javier Vazquez. Two days after the manager said Vazquez hasn’t been a big-game pitcher during his career, the White Sox right-hander lasted just four …

• Sandpoint bounces back, blanks Bears

  In Sports on Page C6 It was a measure of redemption. The Sandpoint High boys soccer team, which saw its streak of nine straight state tournament appearances snapped by Moscow last year, suffered a second …

• Sanders helps Cougs place 4th

  In Sports on Page C6 The Washington State men’s golf team, led by freshman Trent Sanders, took fourth at the Giustina Memorial Classic in Corvallis, Ore., on Tuesday. The Cougars shot 5-under-par 859 at Trysting …

• Today’s menu

  In Sports on Page C6 For 09-24-2008

• Ferdinand’s 60th: Here’s the scoop

  In Food on Page D1 Help Ferdinand celebrate six decades and countless scoops today. Ferdinand’s Ice Cream Shoppe, the campus outlet for cheese and ice cream produced at the Washington State University creamery, is 60 …

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  Lessons from Quillisascut Farm School

  In Food on Page D1 Eyes closed, the details of the day come rushing back to my senses. Delicate white flowers of the blooming serviceberries framed the driveway. The smell of spring sun on the …

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  Curing Comeback

  In Food on Page D1 One word characterizes the modern American culinary psyche: Reversion. After decades of industrialized alienation from the process of eating, it’s as if our stomachs are urging us to re-establish a …

• Butting in depends how close you are

  In Features on Page D2 Dear Carolyn: My fiance and I are getting married in a few months. One of the friends we invited just found out that another of our friends (who is also …

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  Life turns in the blink of an eye

  In Features on Page D2 Despite several surgeries for burns over his torso and lower body, former Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker is trying to stay positive after a plane crash that killed four people, including …

• Culinary calendar

  In Food on Page D3 Military Families Food Drive - Global Credit Union and Operation Spokane Heroes have teamed up once again to help support local military families in time for the holidays. All nonperishable …

• Fruit drop cookies unusual but delicious

  In Food on Page D4 Mother Nature has continued to keep area farmers guessing this season. Green Bluff farms were still offering peaches for the picking as late as last weekend, when orchards usually have …

• L’Ecole wines remain consistently good

  In Food on Page D5 With the number of Walla Walla wineries now past 100, it’s hard to believe that L’Ecole No 41 represented a 50 percent increase in the winery population when it opened …

• Ore-Ida’s mashed potatoes worth a try

  In Food on Page D5 Everybody’s busy. So, shortcuts that can produce tasty just-like-homemade side dishes in a hurry are welcome in many kitchens. Ore-Ida’s latest time-saving dish is worth a try, members of The …

• Add seasonal flavors to spice up your meals as cool weather returns

  In Food on Page D5 That chill in the air means it’s time for a different kind of fresh. Let onions, squash, grapes, pears and pumpkins take a seat at your dinner table. Here are …

• ‘Old Christine,’ new ‘Gary’ on CBS

  In Features on Page D6 Tonight’s must-see “The New Adventures of Old Christine” (8 p.m.) and “Gary Unmarried” debut (8:30 p.m.), CBS. CBS expands its comedy turf with fairly good results.

• Rules of hospitality: Say no to outside food

  In Features on Page D7 Dear Miss Manners: I believe you have said that it is rude to show up at someone’s house with your own recently purchased coffee drink. I’m wondering why this practice …

• NOTE TO READERS: The answer to the second question was inadvertantly omitted from Tuesday’s Annie’s Mailbox column. Here are the question and answer in their entirety.

  In Features on Page D7 Dear Annie: Nearly five years ago, my son (now 24) started dating a girl from our church. At least two nights a week, she and her older brother stop by …

• Reunions

  In Features on Page D7 Schools Worley All-Class Reunion – Friday, at the Coeur d’Alene Casino, 37914 S. Highway 95, Worley, Idaho. Registration/social hour is 5-6:30 p.m., buffet dinner is at 6:30 p.m. Cost is …