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Juvenile center planning remains in limbo
(Local News ~ 01/31/03)
A consultant suggests Cape Girardeau County build a new juvenile detention center, but her preliminary report hasn't sold county commissioners on the idea. Joe Gambill, 2nd District commissioner, said a preliminary report from consultant Bobbie Huskey of Chicago, released in late December, indicates that the county will need 13 detention cells within 10 years. The current detention center in Cape Girardeau, which opened in 1974, has 10 cells...
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Probe cites cloud of flammable rubber dust in factory explosion
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
KINSTON, N.C. -- A deadly explosion that tore apart a medical supply factory may have been caused by an ignitable cloud of rubber dust, investigators said Thursday after interviewing bandaged and shaken plant workers. The thunderous blast, which left three employees dead and injured 37, occurred in a part of the West Pharmaceutical Services factory where rubber was mixed and formed into sheets. ...
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Coca-Cola Co. to cut 1,000 jobs
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
The Associated Press ATLANTA -- Coca-Cola Co. said Thursday it will lay off 1,000 employees as part of an effort to streamline the beverage giant's North American operations. The cuts at Coca-Cola North America, Coca-Cola Fountain, Minute Maid Co., Odwalla and Danone Waters amount to 8 percent of the North American division's 12,000 employees and 3 percent of Coke's 30,000 workers worldwide...
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Feds want terror suspect's bail revoked
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The government asked a judge Thursday to revoke bail for one of six men accused of attending an al-Qaida training camp in the months before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, citing new evidence that the suspect kept secret a private meeting with Osama bin Laden...
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Fewer women joining state legislatures
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
After three decades of gains, the number of women crafting state laws and policy has slipped in recent years, drawing concern from advocates who see statehouses as a training ground for the nation's future leaders. The latest drop is small: There are 35 fewer female legislators this year, down to 1,645 women out of 7,382 state lawmakers across the country...
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People talk 1/31/03
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
Twin teens not ready for college despite rumors CINCINNATI -- Ohio colleges were inundated with calls after a fake Web site reported that twin teenage actresses Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen had applied for admission. Current and prospective students called admissions officers in droves after seeing the fake links Tuesday and Wednesday...
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Bank apologizes for removing steeple from artwork
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- A bank apologized this week for removing a church steeple from a student's contest-winning sketch that was used on a company holiday card. Youssef A. Nasr, chief executive of HSBC USA, said in a letter that the contest didn't allow religious imagery, and that the judges should have chosen another winner rather than altering the fifth-grader's illustration...
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Turner's departure raises questions about future of CNN
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
NEW YORK -- Ted Turner's departure as vice chairman of AOL Time Warner Inc. renewed talk about merger negotiations between CNN and ABC or the possibility that Turner would consider buying back the cable network he founded. Business analysts were mulling both possibilities Thursday, despite the tremendous obstacles that stand in front of both...
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Information found online is important, but less trustworthy
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
Americans who use the Internet consider it at least as important as newspapers and books, and more important than television, radio and magazines, according to a new survey. But they've also become more skeptical of what they find online. The third annual nationwide survey of 2,000 households found Internet users are spending more time online and that they watch less television than nonusers...
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Thailand breaks off relations with Cambodia
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia -- Thailand sealed its border with Cambodia, recalled its ambassador and sent military planes to evacuate hundreds of terrified Thais Thursday after rioters looted and torched its embassy in the Cambodian capital. At least one Thai man is believed to have died when a hotel was set on fire Wednesday during the riots. The unrest was ignited by a TV star's alleged comments that Cambodia's famed Angkor Wat temple should belong to Thailand...
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Ridge wants to consolidate security work at borders
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
MIAMI -- People entering the United States would ideally meet with a single Homeland Security officer who would oversee all matters of customs, immigration and law enforcement, Secretary Tom Ridge said Thursday. Ridge, in Miami for his first public visit with department employees since his confirmation last week, described plans to combine border security and inspection agencies to streamline the entry process and increase the chance of catching terrorists and weapons at the border...
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Painting of Russian nobleman reveals Rembrandt self-portrait
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -- Art researchers have identified a Rembrandt self-portrait that was altered more than 300 years ago into the likeness of a Russian nobleman, the Rembrandt House Museum said Thursday. The restored portrait shows the Dutch master with medium-length curly hair, a slightly upturned mustache and a beret. In it, Rembrandt's portrait has the familiar round chin and gentle eyes of many other self studies...
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British authorities file charges in terror case
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
LONDON -- A 27-year-old man arrested in a raid linked to the discovery of the deadly poison ricin was charged Thursday with conspiring to produce a chemical weapon, police said. Kamel Bourgass was arrested Jan. 14 when police raided an apartment in Manchester in northern England...
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Morocco, Spain restore full diplomatic ties
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
RABAT, Morocco -- Morocco and Spain announced Thursday the restoration of full diplomatic ties, ending a 15-month dispute that peaked with a military standoff over a tiny, uninhabited island. Morocco's King Mohammed VI met with Spanish Foreign Minister Ana Palacio in the coastal resort of Agadir and later said he would send Ambassador Abdesslam Baraka back to Spain, the official MAP news agency reported...
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Venezuelan drive to oust Chavez shifts strategy
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
CARACAS, Venezuela -- With many opponents of President Hugo Chavez preparing to return to work, Venezuelans leading a 60-day-old strike shifted tactics Thursday, diving headlong into an initiative to shorten his six-year term with international help...
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Cleric greets well-wishers on first day of freedom
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
QOM, Iran -- Iran's senior dissident cleric ventured outside his home Thursday for the first time in five years, receiving a hero's welcome from a crowd of tearful supporters gathered to celebrate his freedom from house arrest. Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri -- who began his liberty with a dawn visit to a holy shrine -- remained defiant of the hard-line rulers who confined him for saying supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was not competent to issue religious rulings...
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Israelis kill militia leader, destroy market
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
JERUSALEM -- Israeli undercover troops killed two Palestinians, including a militia leader, after a car chase Thursday through the West Bank town of Tulkarem, and army bulldozers flattened more than 100 stalls in a Palestinian market in the city of Hebron...
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Commuter train derails outside Sydney, at least nine killed
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
SYDNEY, Australia -- A train packed with commuters derailed during rush hour today outside Sydney, killing at least nine people and trapping others in the wreckage. All four of the train's cars lay crumpled or toppled along the tracks. Rescue workers were trying to extricate passengers from the cars in the rough terrain of a ravine 20 miles south of downtown Sydney...
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S. Korea sent $186 million to N. Korea prior to peace summit
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
SEOUL, South Korea -- South Korea's main opposition party asked President Kim Dae-jung on Thursday to clear up suspicions that his government spent nearly $200 million to "buy" its crowning achievement: a historic summit with North Korea that helped Kim win the Nobel Peace Prize...
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Abducted millionaire released unharmed, without losing a cent
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
GREENWICH, Conn. -- Three weeks ago, one of the richest men in America was abducted from a parking garage in this wealthy New York suburb after leaving work at his $5 billion hedge fund. The kidnappers were clearly out of their league. Authorities said Edward Lampert's abductors were from crime-ridden New Haven neighborhoods a world away from Greenwich. Two had drug convictions; one was an eighth-grade dropout who, according to his lawyer, cannot read or write...
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University of Louisville bans credit card solicitors
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- The University of Louisville banned credit card solicitors after students were offered racially offensive and sexually explicit T-shirts during an on-campus promotion. The shirts were given away to students who applied for a credit card backed by Bank One during a campus visit last week. A caricature of a voluptuous black woman, a Bank One logo and "10 Reasons Why Beer is Better than a Black Man" appeared on the shirts...
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Ill Johnson keeps it simple in Blues' win
(Professional Sports ~ 01/31/03)
ST. LOUIS -- Even though he was under the weather, Brent Johnson got the job done. Keith Tkachuk scored with 1:34 left in overtime and the Blues, with one sick goalie stepping in for another, held the Buffalo Sabres to 17 shots in a 2-1 victory Thursday night...
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ND adds No. 1 Jackson to streak
(High School Sports ~ 01/31/03)
After chewing on a sixth straight opponent, it may be time to officially acknowledge the state champion Bulldogs have replaced some missing teeth. On Thursday night, Notre Dame's girls basketball team paid back Jackson -- No. 1 in the SEMO Top 10 -- for two losses earlier this season and assumed first place in the SEMO Conference with a 52-42 homecoming victory...
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Cape officer fired for violations
(Local News ~ 01/31/03)
Cape Girardeau police confirmed Thursday the termination of a narcotics detective who had been with the department for nearly 10 years. Capt. Carl Kinnison said patrolman Paul E. Tipler was fired last month for "policy violations." Kinnison would not elaborate on what those violations were or how many...
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Bush - War decision in 'weeks, not months'
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
WASHINGTON -- President Bush put allies on notice Thursday that diplomacy will give way to a decision on war in "weeks, not months." Wary world leaders and congressional critics urged patience and demanded proof of Iraq's transgressions. Opening an eleventh-hour campaign to sway a wide array of skeptics, the president said, "For the sake of peace, this issue must be resolved." His advisers said Bush will maintain consultations with allies through mid-February, when the next U.N. ...
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Reviving Iraq's oil empire a top U.S. goal
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
WASHINGTON -- If getting Saddam Hussein is the top priority in a war with Iraq, protecting the country's oil fields is not far behind. A U.S. task force is conferring with energy experts, industry executives and Iraqi opposition leaders on how to revive and expand Iraq's multibillion-dollar oil empire once Saddam is toppled...
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Al-Qaida follower Reid gets life in prison for shoe bomb
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
BOSTON -- Richard Reid, the al-Qaida follower who tried to blow up a trans-Atlantic jetliner with explosives hidden in his shoes, was sentenced to life in prison Thursday by a judge who warned him: "We are not afraid ... We are Americans. We have been through the fire before."...
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Public education perceptions
(Local News ~ 01/31/03)
A long-range planning meeting Thursday brought together about 80 parents, students and school officials to discuss the future of the Jackson School District, including an $18 million construction project at the high school. It was the first time for the majority of those in attendance to view preliminary plans for renovations and improvements to Jackson High School, where a lack of space and deteriorating facilities have become major concerns in recent years...
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Country headliners coming to Show Me Center
(Local News ~ 01/31/03)
Toby Keith and Rascal Flatts, currently two of the hottest acts in country music, will perform at the Show Me Center March 9. Keith, the Country Music Association Male Vocalist of the Year in 2001, was the top drawing country concert act last year. Rascal Flatts' first CD went platinum and produced four top 10 singles, something that rarely happens to a group the first time out...
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Central wrestlers wrap up regular season with road win
(High School Sports ~ 01/31/03)
Central's wrestling team wrapped up its most successful dual meet season since 1986 by rolling past host Marion (Ill.) 67-6 on Thursday. Trever Duncan moved up a weight class to get one more dual meet regular-season win, and fellow senior Brandon Hinkle got a major decision in his final regular-season dual meet match...
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Indians deliver KO early, roll through Tenn. State
(College Sports ~ 01/31/03)
Considering Tennessee State's struggles this season, Southeast Missouri State University entered Thursday night's game focused on burying the Tigers early and extinguishing any upset hopes they might have. Mission accomplished -- in a big way. The Indians built a 15-point lead after less than five minutes, moved ahead by 30 points at halftime and coasted to an 87-67 victory in front of an announced crowd of 3,897 at the Show Me Center...
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Students admit to using cell phones to cheat
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
ROCKVILLE, Md. -- Six University of Maryland students have admitted cheating on an accounting exam by using their cell phones to receive text messages with the answers, the school said Thursday. Another six students were implicated in the case. The scheme worked this way: Test-takers brought their cell phones into the exam with them. ...
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Hispanics, gambling, success
(Column ~ 01/31/03)
At a number of communities where we have our newspapers, there have been large Hispanic population increases, including major growth in Iowa and Arkansas. Hispanic America grew by 60 percent in the last decade. The 1990 census totaled Hispanics at 22.4 million. ...
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Title IX plan is a win for women's sports
(Sports Column ~ 01/31/03)
Desperate times call for desperate deals. Selling a sports franchise to a casino is that kind of deal. The NFL, so obsessed with maintaining its distance from gambling, wouldn't allow even a TV ad for Las Vegas to sully the Super Bowl. Baseball is worried that Pete Rose, under consideration for reinstatement, is still hanging out at casinos and sports books...
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Lottich keys Stanford's win against No. 1 Arizona
(College Sports ~ 01/31/03)
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Matt Lottich scored 23 points, including a crucial 3-pointer with 58 seconds to play, to lift Stanford to an 82-77 upset of No. 1 Arizona on Thursday night. The Cardinal (15-5, 6-2 Pac-10) won at McKale Center for the third year in a row and handed the Wildcats' their first Pac-10 loss...
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Otahkians turn back EIU for win on the road
(College Sports ~ 01/31/03)
CHARLESTON, Ill. -- Coming off one of their worst Ohio Valley Conference game of the season, the Southeast Missouri State University Otahkians had to play well to avoid an upset at Eastern Illinois Thursday. While the Otahkians weren't perfect, they did shoot better than 40 percent from 3-point range and held off a second-half Panther charge to capture their fifth OVC victory 82-64...
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Hall beats Georgetown with six men, league says
(College Sports ~ 01/31/03)
Seton Hall used a couple of extras to beat Georgetown in a Big East basketball game -- overtime and a sixth man on the court. The Big East acknowledged Thursday that Seton Hall had six men on the floor for the final seconds of regulation in a game the Pirates won 93-82 in overtime...
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Southeast's Jenkins breaks record in Arkansas St. meet
(College Sports ~ 01/31/03)
Southeast Missouri State University track and field athlete Heather Jenkins established a school record while also breaking arena and meet records in the weight throw during last weekend's meet at Arkansas State. Jenkins, a sophomore from Central High School, had a throw of 55 feet 9 inches that is the best in the Ohio Valley Conference so far this indoor season...
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Plan to overhaul Title IX law voted down
(College Sports ~ 01/31/03)
A Bush administration advisory commission rejected a proposal Thursday to overhaul the landmark gender equity law credited with igniting a women's sports explosion. But some women's groups said the panel opened the door to such changes. The Commission on Opportunity in Athletics considered about two dozen recommendations for Title IX during two days of sometimes contentious meetings. ...
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Government plans to ban smoking from Ireland's pubs
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
DUBLIN, Ireland -- A once unthinkable change is coming to one of the social hubs of Ireland: The pub is going smoke free. Bowing to health concerns, the government said Thursday that it will ban smoking from all workplaces including pubs, where a pint and a cigarette have long gone hand in hand...
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Victims' families urge stiff penalty for alleged co-plotter
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
HAMBURG, Germany -- Their voices quavering as they told how their loved ones died on Sept. 11, five Americans on Thursday confronted the first suspect to stand trial for the attacks and demanded harsh punishment for "the puppets of Osama bin Laden."...
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Chinese identify men who fell from Air France jet
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
SHANGHAI, China -- Two men whose bodies fell from an Air France jetliner in Shanghai last week were identified Thursday by police as Turkish nationals with a history of stowing away in airline luggage holds. Ramazan Karacoban, 20, and Onur Ozuyaman, 19, are believed to have been stowaways aboard the Air France flight, said police spokeswoman Fang Dinghua...
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Marie Anderson
(Obituary ~ 01/31/03)
Marie Luella Anderson, 88, of Cape Girardeau died Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2003, at Ratliff Care Center. She was born March 2, 1914, at Jackson, daughter of Roy S. and Rosa Ellen Jones Fox. She and George B. Anderson were married Oct. 18, 1936. He died March 2, 1963...
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Dr. Earl Hanebrink
(Obituary ~ 01/31/03)
Dr. Earl Lee Hanebrink, 78, of Jonesboro, Ark., died Thursday, Jan. 23, 2003, at St. Bernard's Medical Center. He was born March 24, 1924, in Cape Girardeau, son of Harry and Augusta Fornkohl Hanebrink. He married Vernelia McCrady. Hanebrink received a bachelor's degree from Southeast Missouri State University, master's degree from the University of Mississippi, and doctorate at Oklahoma State University...
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Jack Jones
(Obituary ~ 01/31/03)
DONGOLA, Ill. -- Jack D. Jones, 63, of Dongola, died Thursday, Jan. 30, 2003, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. He was born April 7, 1939, in Union County, son of John and Mae Adams Jones. Jones was a retired crane operator. He was a member of Operating Engineers Local 318 and Anna Moose Lodge...
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Lillian Bellamy
(Obituary ~ 01/31/03)
Lillian Beatrice Pierce was born May 16, 1912, to Edna Irene and Orren Pierce in Cape Girardeau. She married Charles W. Bellamy Feb. 7, 1940. He preceded her in death Aug. 22, 1965. She worked for Himmelberger-Harrison, Cape Girardeau Country Club, Buckner-Ragsdale, and owned Sands Pancake House. She was a lifetime member of Centenary United Methodist Church, and also belonged to the Rebekahs, Eastern Star, PWP, and lived most of her life in Cape...
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Evelyn Irwin
(Obituary ~ 01/31/03)
PERKINS, Mo. -- Evelyn L. Irwin, 84, of Perkins passed away Thursday, Jan. 30, 2003, at Advance Nursing Center. She was born Oct. 20, 1918, at Farrenburg, Mo., daughter of Walter and Sylvia Lane Lenon. She and Charles Irwin were married Sept. 3, 1933, at Jackson. He died Jan. 20,1982...
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Speak Out A 01/31/03
(Speak Out ~ 01/31/03)
Pay fair share I AM not against paying taxes. I just think everyone should pay their fair share. Marijuana proposal THE MARIJUANA question on the ballot in Columbia, Mo., was proposed by students from the law school in conjunction with local lawyers and does not represent the legalization of marijuana. ...
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School board urged to allow creation theories
(Letter to the Editor ~ 01/31/03)
To the editor: It has come to my attention that the science curriculum in the Cape Girardeau School District only allows for the teaching of evolution when teaching creation. The U.S. Department of Education has interpreted U.S. Supreme Court decisions regarding the position teachers and administrators should take: "Teachers and school administrators, when acting in those capacities, are representatives of the state and are prohibited by the Establishment Clause from soliciting or encouraging religious activity, and from participating in such activity with students. ...
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Sheryl Crow's views reflect integrity, courage
(Letter to the Editor ~ 01/31/03)
To the editor: I am writing in reply to Dr. Robert Ward's letter protesting statements made by Sheryl Crow expressing her view that we need to maintain a country that doesn't bully others for corporate profit and kill needlessly -- one worth defending...
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Howard Barnes
(Obituary ~ 01/31/03)
Howard F. Barnes, 66, of Cape Girardeau died Thursday, Jan. 30, 2003, at his home. McCombs Funeral Home in Cape Girardeau is in charge of arrangements.
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Charles Seabaugh
(Obituary ~ 01/31/03)
Charles Norton Seabaugh, 87, of Missouri Veterans Home in Cape Girardeau died Thursday, Jan. 30, 2003, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. Ford and Sons Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
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University Museum welcomes high school artists
(Entertainment ~ 01/31/03)
armington High School sophomore Caroline Crecelius, whose father is a blacksmith, created an abstract forged metal sculpture as tall as a person. Dimension and unusual medium also attracted New Madrid County Central High School's April Nelson, who wove an enormous headpiece made of raffia, a fiber from the leaves of a palm tree....
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Artifacts 1/31
(Entertainment ~ 01/31/03)
Marble Hill native works on Grammy nominee Marble Hill, Mo., native Mitchell Dane engineered the Jars of Clay album "The Eleventh Hour," which has been nominated for a 2003 Grammy Award. Dane, whose real last name is Goskie, has worked with the band on numerous projects as an engineer and producer...
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Everybody's a critic - 'Darkness Falls'
(Entertainment ~ 01/31/03)
Half star There are two kinds of horror films: Awesome and B-movie awesome. "Halloween" is awesome. "The Evil Dead" is B-movie awesome. "Darkness Falls" is neither of these. It's the most predictable movie I've seen in years. For example, there are certain things that should be explained in a horror film. ...
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Former high school 'dorks' now the darlings of MTV
(Entertainment ~ 01/31/03)
SAN FRANCISCO -- Sticking to nearly the same sound that got them booed during their debut performance as kids at a Palo Alto middle school, The Donnas have paved a nine-year path from obscurity to success. "We were just dorks in high school with weird clothes," Head Donna and lead vocalist Brett Anderson deadpans between bites of breakfast at Mel's Diner during a tour stop in San Francisco...
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Births 1/31/03
(Births ~ 01/31/03)
Sadler Daughter to Larry Ray and Renee Rachelle Sadler of Malden, Mo., Southeast Missouri Hospital, 11:44 a.m. Friday, Jan. 24, 2003. Name, Gracie Danielle. Weight, 7 pounds 9 ounces. Second child, first daughter. Mrs. Sadler is the former Renee Telker, daughter of Carlton and Diane Stewart of Malden. Sadler is the son of Carolyn Jobe of Cape Girardeau and Jackie Sadler of Chaffee, Mo. He is employed by Elfrink Trucking...
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Out of the past 1/31/03
(Out of the Past ~ 01/31/03)
10 years ago: Jan. 31, 1993 Annual Men's Day is observed at First Baptist Church, with businessmen of congregation leading worship services and assuming duties of church staff; event begins at 8 a.m. with breakfast for families of church, which is cooked and served by the men...
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Robert Shelton
(Obituary ~ 01/31/03)
ANNA, Ill. -- Robert Shelton, 74, of Anna died Thursday, Jan. 30, 2003, at his home. Funeral arrangements are incomplete at Crain Funeral Home in Anna.
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Ines Nickell
(Obituary ~ 01/31/03)
SIKESTON, Mo. -- Ines Nickell, 77, of Sikeston died Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2003, at Missouri Delta Medical Center. She was born Jan. 23, 1926, at Bernie, Mo., daughter of Robert and Mary King. She and Merlin Nickell were married July 3, 1948. He died Dec. 8, 2000...
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Outdoors notes 1/31/03
(Outdoors ~ 01/31/03)
Eagle Day will include presentations, viewing PUXICO, Mo. -- The Mingo National Wildlife Refuge and Duck Creek Conservation Area's Eagle Day is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Live eagle presentations will be held at the top of every hour between 9 and 4, and spotting scopes will be set up near two active eagle nests on Mingo and Duck Creek's Pool No. 1...
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UConn's 58-game streak gets serious test at Duke
(College Sports ~ 01/31/03)
DURHAM, N.C. -- With three national titles and a record 58-game winning streak, Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma hasn't slipped up too often. This time, though, he might have picked a fight he can't possibly win -- with the Cameron Crazies. Auriemma insulted Duke fans Thursday, adding more intrigue to Saturday night's game that will feature the two best teams in women's college basketball this season -- the top-ranked Blue Devils (20-0) against No. 2 UConn (19-0)...
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Kemper Military School items to be auctioned off
(State News ~ 01/31/03)
BOONVILLE, Mo. -- "AUCTION" proclaims the yellow billboard on Interstate 70, one more sign of the passing of what was once the oldest military academy west of the Mississippi River. Kemper Military School, founded in 1844 and shut down last summer because of financial problems, will be sold off bit by bit in early April -- classroom buildings, dormitories, and everything else, right down to old military boots, student uniforms, swords and class pictures...
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SIU faculty union pushes for arbitration to avert strike
(State News ~ 01/31/03)
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Southern Illinois University officials gave the campus' faculty union what they called their final contract offer Thursday in an attempt to avert a threatened strike Monday. A spokesman for the 400-member union said late Thursday that the group had not yet made a decision on the university's proposal and declined to comment on it...
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House gives initial approval to create Amber Alert system
(State News ~ 01/31/03)
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Local and state law enforcement agencies would work together to alert the public to suspected kidnappings under a bill given initial House approval Thursday. The measure, which now awaits a final House vote, would create a statewide Amber Alert system, nicknamed for 9-year-old Texas girl abducted and murdered in 1996. Believing that instant publicity might have saved Amber Hagerman, citizens persuaded a radio station to begin broadcasting reports of possible kidnappings...
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Senate panel approves travel moratorium
(State News ~ 01/31/03)
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A Senate panel on Thursday approved a one-year moratorium on paying for out-of-state travel for senators, a move that could save the state about $80,000. The Republican-controlled Senate Administration Committee voted 3-2 along party lines in favor of the new travel restrictions that went into effect immediately...
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Report - Al-Qaida built 'dirty bomb'
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
LONDON -- Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terrorist network successfully built a crude radiological device known as a "dirty bomb" in Afghanistan, the British Broadcasting Corp. reported Thursday. British intelligence agents infiltrated the network and found documents that showed al-Qaida members had built the device near Herat in western Afghanistan, the BBC said...
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Snow causes commuter chaos in Britain
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
LONDON -- Snow storms and freezing temperatures caused a major disruption for commuters in parts of Britain on Thursday, forcing the closure of one London airport, cancelled flights, delayed trains and car accidents. At London's Heathrow Airport, 150 arrivals and departures were canceled, and many others were delayed for up to four hours as crews battled to clear runways of snow and planes of ice...
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Iraq invites chief U.N. inspectors back to Baghdad
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Iraq invited the chief U.N. inspectors back to Baghdad on Thursday for more talks on ways to verify Iraqi disarmament and deflect charges that Saddam Hussein's government is not cooperating fully with them. In a letter, presidential adviser Amer al-Saadi asked Hans Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei to return in advance of their next crucial report to the U.N. Security Council on Feb. 14. The U.N. officials conducted two days of talks with Iraqi officials here on Jan. 19-20...
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Coalition enemies in Afghanistan increasingly elusive
(International News ~ 01/31/03)
KABUL, Afghanistan -- U.S. troops and their allies are finding it tough to pin down Taliban and al-Qaida remnants, a fact driven home by fighting that sputtered out this week with little indication of who the enemy was or what gains, if any, had been made...
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Helicopter crash kills four soldiers in Afghanistan
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
WASHINGTON -- Four U.S. soldiers were killed when their Black Hawk helicopter crashed during a training mission in eastern Afghanistan on Thursday, U.S. officials said. The cause was being investigated. It was the deadliest day for the American military in Afghanistan since March 4, 2002, when seven soldiers were killed and 11 wounded at the outset of an offensive against Taliban and al-Qaida remnant forces...
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Senate OKs Snow for top position in Treasury
(National News ~ 01/31/03)
WASHINGTON -- The Senate approved President Bush's nomination of John Snow as treasury secretary Thursday night after the railroad executive gave assurances he would review a department rule on pensions that opponents contend discriminates against older workers...
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School board members deserve our thanks
(Editorial ~ 01/31/03)
The nation's school boards may be the closest thing to pure representative democracy. The men and women who serve on school boards generally are or have been involved as parents of schoolchildren, pay taxes to local schools and work with or employ the graduates of our public school systems...
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Budget-gap questions deserve answers
(Editorial ~ 01/31/03)
Missouri's governor, Bob Holden, is spending a lot of time and energy trying to convince legislators to quickly approve the sale of bonds to cover an anticipated funding gap in the current state budget that ends June 30. There are lots of reasons to proceed carefully, despite threats from Holden to cut state aid for public schools...
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Cape, Jackson police reports 1/31
(Police/Fire Report ~ 01/31/03)
Cape Girardeau Friday, Jan. 31 The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau Police Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. Arrests Damontray L. Blair, 24, of 920 N. Fountain, Cape Girardeau, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance and no operator's license...
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Cape/Jackson police reports 1/31
(Police/Fire Report ~ 01/31/03)
Cape Girardeau Friday, Jan. 31 Firefighters responded Thursday to the following items: At 7:09 p.m., false alarm at 225 N. Spanish. At 7:39 p.m., alarm at Towers complex at Southeast Missouri State University.Jackson Friday, Jan. 31 Firefighters responded to the following call Thursday:...
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Cape, Jackson plan new affordable housing projects
(Local News ~ 01/31/03)
Twenty new two- and three-bedroom duplexes could be ready for low-to-moderate-income families in Cape Girardeau by the summer of 2004, thanks to $340,000 in tax credits handed down by the Missouri Housing Development Commission. Meanwhile, a Jackson developer has received $200,000 in tax credits from the MHDC to build 30 senior apartments on the new stretch of Main Street in Jackson...
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Charges dropped against Cape man accused of forcible rape
(Local News ~ 01/31/03)
Prosecutors dismissed charges Wednesday against Donald Lee Yeager, 36, of Cape Girardeau, after reviewing an alleged rape victim's testimony and her changing version of the events. Yeager was arrested Sept. 21 after a 26-year old Cape Girardeau woman told police he raped her in his car, near his residence. He was charged with forcible rape and sexual assault and held on $50,000 bond...
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Report cites mistrust of child welfare system
(Local News ~ 01/31/03)
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A Senate committee on Thursday reported a "serious lack of trust in the child welfare system" in Missouri following its investigation last fall into alleged problems and failures of the system. The draft report of the Senate Interim Committee on Children's Protective Services and Foster Care primarily finds fault with the Missouri Division of Family Services for abuse of power, a lack of accountability and failure to adequately protect children under its supervision...
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Region/state briefs 01/31/03
(Local News ~ 01/31/03)
Michigan man found dead in Marble Hill MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- A Baldwin, Mich., man who was on his way to visit relatives in Arkansas was found dead inside a burned vehicle Thursday morning on a gravel road in southern Bollinger County. According to Bollinger County Coroner Charles Hutchings, John Groenezeld, 41, had apparently been operating a propane heater in his truck and was probably overcome by carbon monoxide. The truck was found on Bollinger County Road 524 around 7:20 a.m. Thursday...
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The missing kink
(Column ~ 01/31/03)
Pretty soon, motorists heading north on Cape Girardeau's Main Street from downtown will no longer have to worry about barricades and detours. When the barricades come down, alert motorists will notice something else is missing: the kink in the street...
Stories from Friday, January 31, 2003
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