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Governor asks for agencies to make new cuts
(State News ~ 02/07/03)
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- With Missouri's budget shortfall still growing, Gov. Bob Holden said Thursday he has directed state agencies to make another $60 million in spending cuts. The state's budget director said government would be working with the "bare essentials" -- canceling equipment improvements, eliminating even important travel and leaving nearly all vacant staff positions unfilled until the June 30 end of the fiscal year...
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Foam still under consideration as cause of disaster, NASA says
(National News ~ 02/07/03)
SPACE CENTER, Houston -- A day after all but ruling it out as a leading cause, NASA said Thursday that investigators are still considering whether a piece of insulating foam that struck Columbia's wing during liftoff was enough to bring down the shuttle...
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New York City jails to ban smoking
(National News ~ 02/07/03)
NEW YORK -- Lighting up a cigarette -- one of the few privileges for inmates at Rikers Island -- is about to become a thing of the past as the city joins a national trend to restrict smoking behind bars. The new city ordinance, which goes into effect March 30, is best known for banning smoking in restaurants and bars, but it applies to virtually all workplaces...
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Survey - States lose track of sex offenders
(National News ~ 02/07/03)
In a startling new survey, a child advocacy group found that states across the country have lost track of tens of thousands of rapists, child molesters and other sex offenders who are supposed to be registered in Megan's Law databases. Following an investigation that revealed California had lost track of at least 33,000 sex offenders, Parents for Megan's Law contacted all 50 states by telephone to ask about the accuracy of their registries...
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Police - Swindler found victims by reading obits
(National News ~ 02/07/03)
PHILADELPHIA -- Some people read the obituaries to find out if anyone they know has died. A tombstone salesman -- now charged with swindling widows out of their money -- read them to find his prey, police said. At least three agencies are pursuing complaints against William R. Groom, who, according to police, called on widows at their homes soon after their husbands died, selling them gravestones that were never delivered...
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101st Airborne Division receives deployment orders
(National News ~ 02/07/03)
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. -- The storied 101st Airborne Division -- which parachuted at Normandy, fought on "Hamburger Hill" in Vietnam and played a crucial role in the Gulf War -- was ordered Thursday to deploy overseas. The exact location and number of soldiers deploying was not disclosed. The 101st comprises about 20,000 soldiers...
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Articulate chemist now adviser to Saddam denies U.S. claims
(International News ~ 02/07/03)
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The Iraqi general whose job Secretary of State Colin Powell says is to deceive U.N. weapons inspectors is a chemist believed to be a driving force behind Iraq's banned weapons programs of the 1980s. Once dismissed from the army for having a foreign wife and not belonging to Saddam Hussein's ruling Baath Party, Lt. Gen. Amer al-Saadi now has one of Iraq's most high-profile jobs -- point man on the U.N. weapons inspections...
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Chavez opponents say currency controls will collapse economy
(International News ~ 02/07/03)
CARACAS, Venezuela -- Venezuela's business leaders warned Thursday that foreign currency controls imposed by President Hugo Chavez will breed corruption, fuel inflation and push the nation's fragile economy to the brink of collapse. They also suspect Chavez will use the controls to repress opponents and punish those who staged an unsuccessful two-month strike seeking to oust him...
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Pakistan's leader expresses doubt bin Laden died in Afghanistan
(International News ~ 02/07/03)
MOSCOW -- Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf further backed off his claim that Osama bin Laden was dead, saying the al-Qaida leader could have survived U.S. bombing and be hiding in the Afghan mountains near Pakistan. But he said the world's most wanted terrorist is definitely not in Pakistan, and al-Qaida was in disarray and unable to mount large-scale attacks...
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Suicide attempts up among terror detainees
(International News ~ 02/07/03)
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Suicide attempts among terror suspects held at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba are on the rise, the Pentagon said Thursday. A human rights group has called for an investigation. At least five detainees at the naval base have tried to hang themselves in the past three weeks, Pentagon spokeswoman Lt. Cmdr. Barbara Burfeind said Thursday in Washington...
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N. Korea - U.S. attack on nuclear facilities would trigger war
(International News ~ 02/07/03)
SEOUL, South Korea -- Pre-emptive attacks on North Korea's nuclear facilities would trigger a "total war," the communist state warned Thursday after Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld labeled the North's government a "terrorist regime." The White House said North Korea's talk of war was a "real cause for concern." Presidential spokesman Ari Fleischer said the United States had "robust plans for any contingencies," including military action...
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Nigerian bank guards detained for deadly blast
(International News ~ 02/07/03)
LAGOS, Nigeria -- Two security guards were detained in connection with a weekend bombing that flattened a bank building in Nigeria's commercial capital, killing at least 46 people, authorities said Thursday. The two worked for a security company that guarded the Prudent Bank, a senior bank official said on condition of anonymity. Six other people, including the bank manager and five employees, arrested Wednesday for questioning were released, Lagos police spokesman Emmanuel Ighodalo said...
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International pressure builds following Powell presentation
(International News ~ 02/07/03)
PARIS -- President Jacques Chirac said Thursday the U.S. case against Iraq wasn't enough to change France's anti-war stance. But there were other indications of a shift in Europe toward Washington. In a subtle change in diplomatic tone, French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin told Europe-1 radio that Iraq must cooperate immediately with U.N. weapons inspectors -- suggesting that his nation, too, was running out of patience...
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Michael Jackson says revealing documentary betrayed his trust
(International News ~ 02/07/03)
LONDON -- Michael Jackson filed complaints with two TV watchdogs Thursday over a controversial documentary about his life, during which the King of Pop revealed he sometimes lets children sleep in his bed. Jackson, who said he felt betrayed by the "terrible" documentary, had his attorneys file the complaints with Britain's Independent Television Commission and the Broadcasting Standards Commission, saying he had been "unfairly treated" by the program...
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People talk 2/7/03
(National News ~ 02/07/03)
Zsa Zsa celebrates birthday while in hospital LOS ANGELES -- Zsa Zsa Gabor spent her 86th birthday Thursday in the luxury suite of a hospital for aging movie stars, recuperating from a car accident late last year. "Frederic is going to surprise me with something," Gabor told KNBC-TV Wednesday, referring to her husband, Frederic von Anhalt...
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School colors
(Column ~ 02/07/03)
From The Wall Street Journal A recent study by the Civil Rights Project, a liberal outfit housed at Harvard, uses the racial composition of inner-city schools to allege that the U.S. is undergoing resegregation. Our reading is that their findings say much more about the state of inner-city public education...
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One less cookie may crumble threat of an obese America
(National News ~ 02/07/03)
Eating 100 fewer calories a day could help hold the line on weight, a researcher says By Lauran Neergaard ~ The Associated Press Could eating a mere 100 fewer calories a day -- a cookie's worth -- improve Americans' health by fighting the weight creep that adds up to, on average, 2 pounds a year?...
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Thursday as snow day
(Local News ~ 02/07/03)
Monday, wash day; Tuesday, ironing day; ... Thursday, snow day? During the past two months, Thursday has become almost synonymous with snow for residents of Southeast Missouri. The region has seen fresh snow on four out of the last six Thursdays -- a trace on Jan. 2, then 2.5 inches on Jan. 16, a trace on Jan. 23, and a little more than two-tenths of an inch Thursday...
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Emerson bridge still on schedule
(Local News ~ 02/07/03)
This winter's unusually frequent snowfalls have some Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge watchers wondering if it can be built by the oft-stated completion date: the end of this year. District engineer Scott Meyer with the Missouri Department of Transportation assures naysayers that it can and should be...
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Cape health workers get first shots for smallpox
(Local News ~ 02/07/03)
Five nurses and one doctor from Cape Girardeau County's Public Health Center will be among about 100 of the state's front-line health-care workers to receive the smallpox vaccination today, representing the first concrete effort to protect Missouri from a possible bioterrorism attack...
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Man pleads guilty to felony charges
(Police/Fire Report ~ 02/07/03)
A Cape Girardeau man pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court to felony drug and bomb charges. David B. Branum, 46, pleaded guilty to one count of attempt to manufacture methamphetamine and one count of malicious use of an explosive device. Branum faces up to 40 years in prison and a $2 million fine on the meth charge and up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the explosive device charge. Sentencing has been set for May 5...
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Mentally ill may lose as evaluators eliminated
(Local News ~ 02/07/03)
Budget cuts are eliminating 17 mental health jobs across Missouri that patient caregivers, judges and law enforcement officials believe are vital to saving lives of the state's mentally ill. One of those employees losing his job is Cape Girardeau's Bob LeFebvre, mental health coordinator to 14 Southeast Missouri counties...
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ND swimmers add 2 state qualifiers
(High School Sports ~ 02/07/03)
Despite having to postpone its conference swimming meet because of bad weather Thursday, the Notre Dame and Central boys swimming teams competed at the Central Municipal Pool to try to qualify more swimmers for the state meet. Notre Dame added two state qualifiers. Jordan Kuper qualified in the 200 IM in 2:09.63 and John Fisher qualified in the 100 fly in 57.60...
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It's back to hoops for LeBron and teammates
(High School Sports ~ 02/07/03)
CLEVELAND -- LeBron James' next court date is Saturday. He won't be bringing his lawyers. Now that he has been given permission by a judge to continue playing, James will return to the floor this weekend when top-ranked Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary plays in a tournament in Trenton, N.J...
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Deaf Central wrestler thrives on quiet success
(High School Sports ~ 02/07/03)
Brandon Hinkle has attributes that will serve him well in life. Coaches and teammates on the Central Tigers wrestling team cite a great sense of humor, easy-going nature, hard work ethic, dedication and determination. They've already been useful in the face of a glaring absence, since one characteristic was not standard equipment for Hinkle: The ability to hear...
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Morehead State duo dooms Indians' upset
(College Sports ~ 02/07/03)
One of the Ohio Valley Conference's most improved players and perhaps its best player joined forces Thursday night to turn aside Southeast Missouri State University's upset bid. Chez Marks and Ricky Minard combined for 63 points as Morehead State solidified its hold on the OVC's top spot by easing past the Indians 79-69 in front of an announced crowd of 4,719 at the Show Me Center...
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'Other' dogwood trees earn a place with wildlife enthusiasts
(Outdoors ~ 02/07/03)
Flowering dogwood trees are enormously popular. Their large blooms help usher in spring, making them a feast for the eyes and perhaps help secure a place as Missouri's state tree. What many people do not know is that there are other types of dogwood trees, and that they are all appropriate for wildlife...
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Prep rivalry takes a back seat to the adults' drama
(Sports Column ~ 02/07/03)
Mention Bell City High School boys basketball and, chances are, you'll hear about a reason to dislike David Heeb. Better yet, ask him yourself. He's heard the reasons enough to have the list memorized. He recruits athletes. He lacks sportsmanship. He's too young. He's too arrogant. He's lost control of his program. He's lost control of himself...
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Agency taking steps to avoid collisions with space junk
(National News ~ 02/07/03)
WASHINGTON -- Space shuttles have been returning to Earth with a larger-than-expected number of dings from space junk, prompting NASA to make changes to better avoid potentially catastrophic collisions, space agency documents show. As NASA explores whether damage from space debris could have caused the Columbia disaster, its own documents detail replacements of nicked windshields and dents caused by space debris collisions that have become more frequent than NASA's computer models had predicted.. ...
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Missouri Boy Scout on his way to the White House
(State News ~ 02/07/03)
ST. LOUIS -- John Reese III speaks with the thoughtfulness of someone who's walked through the fires of life. He has, though he's only 12. John, a sixth-grader at St. Roch Catholic School in St. Louis, is a Boy Scout honored for his heroism in leading his younger brother and himself to safety from a burning house three years ago...
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McCaskill's office will audit St. Louis Election Board
(State News ~ 02/07/03)
ST. LOUIS -- The state auditor's office agreed Thursday to examine the St. Louis Election Board's finances after Mayor Francis Slay called for scrutiny of how $350,000 in cell phone bills went unpaid for two years. Slay asked State Auditor Claire McCaskill to find out how the election board spent an additional $500,000 the city budgeted for the board this year, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported on its Web site...
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Holden embraces changes to stem malpractice costs
(State News ~ 02/07/03)
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Democratic Gov. Bob Holden embraced a proposal Thursday to attack doctors' rising malpractice insurance costs by creating a temporary state-run insurance plan. The state plan would be limited to physicians in some of the higher-risk specialties that have seen the largest rise in premiums, such as obstetricians, neurosurgeons, orthopedic surgeons, and trauma and emergency room doctors...
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Desert Storm left uranium legacy of pain, suffering
(Letter to the Editor ~ 02/07/03)
To the editor: I wonder if Americans really know what kind of legacy we left behind us after Desert Storm. Do people realize that America used shells made of uranium that left behind a radioactive battlefield? The incidence of leukemia and cancer in the children of Iraq has gone up six to 12 times in the past 10 years. ...
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Community gives support, comfort at time of loss
(Letter to the Editor ~ 02/07/03)
To the editor: On behalf of the Alan R. Stroup family, we want to publicly thank the many people who have shown the Minor, Stroup and Payne families so much kindness in our time of extreme sorrow following the Alan's death. People have been so supportive in so many different ways. ...
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Speak Out A 02/07/03
(Speak Out ~ 02/07/03)
A facility for all IT IS absolutely ridiculous to complain about the Osage Centre being rented to protesters. The Osage Centre is part of the City Parks and Recreation Department. The protesters pay their taxes too and are as entitled as anyone else to use it...
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Hilda Buchheit
(Obituary ~ 02/07/03)
PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Hilda S. Buchheit, 89, died Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2003, at Perry County Nursing Home in Perryville. She was born April 16, 1913, at Longtown, Mo., daughter of Louis and Theresa Unterreiner Leible. She and Isidore W. Buchheit were married Nov. 5, 1935, at Apple Creek, Mo. He died April 7, 1994...
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Altha Day
(Obituary ~ 02/07/03)
Altha Day, 89, of Lakewood, Colo., died Sunday, Jan. 12, 2003, at Hospice of St. John of Lakewood. She was born Dec. 30, 1913, at Tilsit, Mo., daughter of Peter and Maude Whittaker. She and Norman W. Day of Cape Girardeau were married Jan. 10, 1933. He preceded her in death...
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Louis Bauer
(Obituary ~ 02/07/03)
ANNA, Ill. -- Louis H. Bauer, 77, of Sun City, Ariz., and formerly of Union County died Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2003, at Hospice of the Valley Care Center in Mesa, Ariz. He was born March 6, 1925, in Jonesboro, Ill., son of Ernest and Emma Roth Bauer. He married Betty Jo Gillespie in 1947. She preceded him in death on Aug. 6, 1989...
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Births 2/7/03
(Births ~ 02/07/03)
Uelsmann Son to Scott and Alison Uelsmann of St. Louis, St. John's Mercy Medical Center, 4:22 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16, 2003. Name, Cole Andrew. Weight, 8 pounds 11 ounces. Mrs. Uelsmann is the former Alison Henry, daughter of Gene and Diane Henry of Waterloo, Ill. She is a financial analyst with Enterprise Rental Car. Uelsmann is the son of Herman Uelsmann of Cape Girardeau and Marcia Stone of Jackson. He is a physical therapist...
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Correction 2/7/03
(Correction ~ 02/07/03)
The Cape Girardeau County Historical Alliance will meet at 2 p.m. Sunday in the Missouriana Room of the University Center on the Southeast Missouri State University campus. The time was incorrect in Thursday's edition. The Southeast Missourian regrets the error...
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Out of the past 2/7/03
(Out of the Past ~ 02/07/03)
10 years ago: Feb. 7, 1993 The Rev. George Orvick preaches at morning service at Scriptural Lutheran Church, County Road 635; Orvick, president of Evangelical Lutheran Synod, speaks informally to congregation after service and answers questions. Following family tradition, 16-year-old John H. ...
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Everybody's a critic - 'Narc'
(Entertainment ~ 02/07/03)
Three stars Some movies spend way too long setting up the plot and developing the characters. The great thing about "Narc" is that it doesn't do this. You immediately join the action of a gun chase, which sets the tone for the rest of the movie. The movie kept my interest from this very first chase to the surprise ending...
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Blindness no obstacle to applause
(Entertainment ~ 02/07/03)
NEW YORK -- Gary Bergman bounds onto the stage, hopping backward down a short flight of stairs -- a dangerous move, even for the most agile. George Ashiotis enters more cautiously, feeling his way across a complex set that is new to him. Both men are actors, rehearsing the Agatha Christie play "Ten Little Indians." And both are blind...
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Artifacts 2/7/03
(Entertainment ~ 02/07/03)
Art by Parker, Jennings on display at Arts Council Art created by James V. Parker and Damon Jennings will be displayed in exhibits opening today at the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri, 119 Independence St. in Cape Girardeau. A reception for the artists will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. today...
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Kansas teams with Styx and John Waite tonight at Show Me Center
(Entertainment ~ 02/07/03)
The band Kansas recorded some of the great rock 'n' roll anthems of the 1970s: "Song for America," "Carry On Wayward Son," "Dust in the Wind," and others. Violinist Robby Steinhardt and vocalist Steve Walsh were the most distinctive elements of the six-piece band's sound, a marriage of classical and rock music that with the bands Yes and Emerson, Lake & Palmer defined the term progressive rock...
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Intense bombing of Baghdad would be insane
(Letter to the Editor ~ 02/07/03)
To the editor: I just read that the plan for invading Iraq starts with dropping more bombs on Baghdad in two days than were dropped in the whole Gulf War. This is a densely populated area, and low-end estimates are that 500,000 innocent Iraqis will die. ...
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Jackson responds after apartment fire
(Editorial ~ 02/07/03)
Six tenants of an apartment building in Jackson can take some comfort after a fire nearly cost them their lives that a suspect was quickly apprehended and is being held in the county jail on first-degree arson charges. Jackson police acted swiftly after learning an earlier dispute apparently resulted in the deliberate setting of a fire in the building's entry hall -- blocking the only door out of the building for the upstairs occupants...
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State to help financially troubled Cairo schools
(State News ~ 02/07/03)
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- The State Board of Education on Thursday voted to set up an advisory board to save a Southern Illinois school district from bankruptcy, the third such panel created in less than two months. State schools superintendent Robert Schiller will appoint members to a financial oversight panel to monitor and approve a bailout plan for the Cairo school district...
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Antique shop owner catches man wanted for passing bad checks
(State News ~ 02/07/03)
PALMYRA, Mo. -- Thousands of tourists pass through this little town on their way to see the Mark Twain tourist sights in nearby Hannibal, which served as the inspirational setting for the Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer classics. But potential criminals better steer clear of the Midwest Antique Co...
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Senate approves nominee for state health director
(State News ~ 02/07/03)
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Despite strong objections from anti-abortion groups and some lawmakers, Richard Dunn won confirmation Thursday by the state Senate as Missouri's new health director. Gov. Bob Holden's nominee to lead the Department of Health and Senior Services drew opposition because of his statements on awards of state family planning funding to Planned Parenthood, which also provides abortions...
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Barricades around Arch grounds draw some complaints
(State News ~ 02/07/03)
ST. LOUIS -- Critics who don't like the aesthetics of the new barriers along the western edge of the Gateway Arch grounds can take solace in knowing they are temporary. Or are they? The National Park Service office in St. Louis said Thursday the string of 10-feet long, 32-inch high, 4,100-pound concrete barriers along Memorial Drive is a temporary security measure, intended to keep a truck or van carrying explosives from entering the Arch grounds, the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial...
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SIU union begins vote on new contract
(State News ~ 02/07/03)
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Members of Southern Illinois University's faculty union started voting Thursday on a new contract, union officials said. The union's 400 members were scheduled to vote Thursday and Friday on the university's four-year proposal, said Randy Hughes, a union officer...
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Blues rally, keep Sather looking for his first win
(Professional Sports ~ 02/07/03)
The Associated Press ST. LOUIS -- It was another blown point for the Blues, who always preach defense first. Keith Tkachuk's second goal of the game put the Blues ahead of the New York Rangers with 7:17 to go, and Mikael Samuelsson responded with his second only 45 seconds later in a 4-4 tie Thursday night. The Blues tied the Stars 2-2 Wednesday night, giving up the tying goal with 1:30 remaining...
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Tobacco worry adds to NASCAR's big day
(Professional Sports ~ 02/07/03)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The millionaires sat at their tables, discussing the latest business deals and how their portfolios might be affected. A convention of Fortune 500 execs? No, just a bunch of NASCAR drivers at media day, the kickoff to a new season that got quite a jolt when R.J. Reynolds, the sponsor of the Winston Cup Series, said it might sever sponsorship ties with NASCAR...
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U.S. drops nearly 500,000 leaflets over southern Iraq
(National News ~ 02/07/03)
WASHINGTON -- U.S. planes dropped nearly a half-million leaflets over southern Iraq on Thursday, including some saying American forces "do not wish to harm the noble people of Iraq," the Defense Department said. The planes dropped 480,000 leaflets at about 2:30 a.m. EST near Basra, Iraq's second-largest city, as well as the cities of Umm Qasr, An Nasiriyah and Az Zubayr, according to a statement from U.S. Central Command...
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CIA officer killed in training accident in Afghanistan
(National News ~ 02/07/03)
Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON -- One CIA officer was killed and two others were injured in a training accident in eastern Afghanistan, agency officials said. The officer, Helge Boes, was killed Wednesday when a grenade detonated prematurely during a live-fire exercise, CIA officials said in a statement issued Thursday evening...
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Region/state briefs 02/07/03
(Local News ~ 02/07/03)
Invest 4 Cape topic of First Friday coffee The Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce will host the First Friday Coffee at 7:30 a.m. today at the Show Me Center. The topic is Invest 4 Cape, a program by Mayor Jay Knudtson and city manager Michael Miller. The two will explain four separate tax issues that will appear on the April 8 ballot in the city. Refreshments will be served...
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Cape/Jackson police report 2/7/03
(Police/Fire Report ~ 02/07/03)
Cape Girardeau Friday, Feb. 7 The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau Police Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. DWIs Rodney Patrick Pearman, 19, of RR1 Box 17, Cairo, Ill., was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of driving while intoxicated, failure to stop at a stop sign and minor in possession of alcohol...
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GOP offers alternatives and compromise
(Editorial ~ 02/07/03)
Missourians have been waiting to see how the state legislature, controlled by Republicans for the first time in more than half a century, would address a shortfall currently estimated at $350 million in the state budget for the fiscal year that ends June 30...
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Cape fire report 2/7/03
(Police/Fire Report ~ 02/07/03)
Cape Girardeau Friday, Feb. 7 Firefighters responded Wednesday to the following items: At 5:33 p.m., emergency medical service at 1548 Revlon. At 7:28 p.m., illegal burn at 535 S. Benton. At 7:42 p.m., emergency medical service at 105 Clark Street. At 8:52 p.m., burning after hours at Lexington and Old Sprigg...
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This could put you in a (padded) cell
(Column ~ 02/07/03)
I'm all for cell phones. Let me confess up front that I have a cell phone. I have one of those plans that allows me to call anywhere in the country without being charged extra for long distance. There are a few restrictions. For example, I'm limited on how many minutes I can use during peak times, whatever that is. ...
Stories from Friday, February 7, 2003
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