Huckleberries Best of the INorthwest — 10/23/06

Jim Valentine, who runs a landscaping and excavation business called Dixie Services in Post Falls, stands near a sign he put up warning homosexuals that they’re not welcome in Idaho Friday. Frum Helen Back/Hauser Thoughts reported in the Huckleberries Online comments section Saturday that Valentine had removed the sign. You can read the original story and comments about the sign here /Jesse Tinsley, Spokesman-Review.

Stapilus: Washington Post doing story on Idaho’s 1st Congressional District race and quotes a tough question asked by our Bubblehead here .

1. Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck is expected to miss two to four weeks because of a sprained medical collateral ligament in his right knee here .

2. Missing Hunters: Spokane hunter found dead near Metalline Falls here , and Eagle man found safe after surviving 5 days in wilderness here .

3. Six weeks ago, an Olympia woman wondered where her fiance was. At the same time, a man on a Denver sidewalk wondered who he was. The woman, Penny Hansen of Olympia, identified the man suffering from amnesia in Denver as Jeffrey Alan Ingram , 40, her fiance, after national television news broadcast the man’s plight, hoping to find someone who could identify him here .

4. Long-haul truck driver Stephen Carney dug out his suit and tie from the cab of his semi parked near the University of Montana, polished his shoes and trekked over to Music Building to try out for the national Metropolitan Opera auditions Sunday here .

5. A Bozeman man has been charged in connection with last month’s sexual assaults near and on the campus of Montana State University here .

6. IMHO-NW: Doug Clark /Spokesman-Review ( Wonders that make you wonder ), Jim Camden /Spokesman-Review ( Political parties about to scare you ), Spokesman-Review ( Cathy McMorris endorsed ), Idaho Statesman ( Larry Grant endorsed ), and Jimmy Blue /WSU Evergreen ( Wal*Mart cons outweigh pros ).

Online Poll: 70% of 999 respondents to an Idaho Statesman poll said they are not as likely to invest in the stock market despite the recent records set by the Dow Jones Average.

*Idaho hunting is a $540 million industry here .

*Boise offices pull smash-and-grab burglary suspects from burning Jeep here .

*Boise State remains at No. 15 in BCS standings, despite 42-26 victory over UIdaho Saturday here .

Orbusmax Special: Oregon has 75,000 problem gamblers here .