Stories from April 2003

HONG KONG -- Health officials sealed off an apartment building and quarantined all 240 residents Monday after reporting an alarming jump in new cases of a mystery flu-like disease. More than 600 people in this city are believed to have the dangerous respiratory infection, and almost half of those live in the Amoy Gardens apartment complex. Officials reported 92 new cases in the complex on Monday...

10 years ago: April 1, 1993 Three of four candidates for Cape Girardeau Board of Education support two school-funding measures on Tuesday's ballot; they say fourth candidate should take stand, not sit on fence. Bloomfield, Mo. -- Dan and Connie Sitze, owners and publishers of The Bloomfield Vindicator for past four years, have sold that newspaper to Gary Rust of Cape Girardeau; Rust also owns newspapers in Cape Girardeau, Poplar Bluff, Dexter, Kennett and Advance; Barbara Hill of Dexter will be publisher of Vindicator.. ...

Guardian Angel School8TH GRADE -- NICK ANDERSON, CHRIS ASMUS, SARAH GLUECK, ROBERT LANGE, MONICA SCHERER. 7TH GRADE -- CODY W. DIRNBERGER, MICHELLE ESSNER, DEREK GAINES, KELSEY GAINES, CALEB SEYER, JODI URHAHN. 6TH GRADE -- TODD MCANELLY, KIRSTIE MANGELS, VICTORIA WESTRICH...

DONGOLA, Ill. -- Dr. Richard L. Reavis, 64, of Dongola died Saturday, March 29, 2003, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. He was born Dec. 13, 1938, in Cape Girardeau, son of Cloyd and Helen McCullough Reavis. He and Sidna Handley were married May 28, 1966...

Silver Son to Marc and Debbie Silver of Chicago, Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago, 11:55 p.m. Thursday, March 6, 2003. Name, Charles Merrick. Weight, 7 pounds 13 ounces. First child. Mrs. Silver is the former Debbie Israel, daughter of Thomas and Kilja Israel of Cape Girardeau. She is an attorney with the office of State Appellate Defender in Chicago. Silver is the son of Alan and Shirley Silver of Woodbridge, Conn. He is an attorney with Barnes and Thornburg in Chicago...

Evelyn F. Hall, 45, of Oak Ridge died Friday, March 28, 2003, at Heartland Care Rehab Center in Cape Girardeau. She was born Oct. 25, 1957, at Perryville, Mo., daughter of Silver and Freida Bufford Hall. Hall was a 1977 graduate of Oak Ridge High School. She was self-employed in domestic service...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Mabel Mildred Alston, 88, of Chaffee died Monday, March 31, 2003, at Chaffee Nursing Center. Amick-Burnett Funeral Chapel in Chaffee is in charge of arrangements.

Edgar W. Hecht, age 78, of New Wells, entered his heavenly home Monday, March 31, 2003, at Missouri Veterans Home in Cape Girardeau. Edgar was born Oct. 22, 1924, in Altenburg, Mo., son of William H. and Louise Swan Hecht. He and Ruby E. Starzinger were married Oct. 12, 1947, at Immanuel Lutheran Church in New Wells...

Pray where you are ALL THIS hullabaloo about the photograph of the woman praying in the bar reminds of an old tale. Somebody asked an old Irish woman, "At which church to do you pray?" And she said, "I just throw me apron over me head and I'm in me tabernacle."...

Leita L. Kiehn, 94, formerly of Jackson, died Sunday, March 30, 2003, at Advance Nursing Center. She was born Nov. 16, 1908, in Advance, Mo., daughter of George and Mella Reed Chapman. She and Louis M. Kiehn were married Aug. 24, 1940, in Cape Girardeau. He died Aug. 19, 1973...

To the editor: I don't often agree with David Limbaugh, but I must agree with most of his March 27 column regarding the length and expectations of the Iraqi war. This is war. It cannot be timed or scripted. This is reality we are seeing, not a TV show. ...

Southeast Missouri State University's women's tennis team handed first-year coach Mike Stevens his inaugural Ohio Valley Conference victory as the Otahkians defeated visiting Austin Peay 5-2 Monday. The Otahkians improved to 2-4 overall and 1-1 in OVC play. The Governors fell to 1-16...

Five outstanding women were recently honored with the 2003 Women's Impact Award from the Girl Scouts of Otahki Council and St. Francis Medical Center. Theese are the women who succeed at making the community a better place. Barbara Blanchard, for whom the newest elementary school in Cape Girardeau was named...

The Bell City boys may not have repeated as Class 1 state champions, but the Cubs' two leaders repeated as all-state selections. Senior Eric Henry and junior Dominitrix Johnson again found their way onto the Class 1-3 Sportswriters and Sportscasters All-State Basketball Teams released today, leading a handful of local selections...

Globalization has not come without a cost. In today's world of international travel, if someone from Japan sneezes, someone in Southeast Missouri may soon catch a cold. Or maybe even something worse. One example is the so-called mystery disease now known as SARS, for severe acute respiratory syndrome. The deadly form of pneumonia has killed more than 50 people and required the hospitalization of more than 1,400 others, mostly in Asia...

It's that time of year again: The sun is up before you are and sets just before you do; the birds sing, the trees, daffodils, tulips and wildflowers are in bloom; and of course, the constant reminder that French fries are from Belgium and NOT France!...

Educare program earns service award Cape Girardeau Educare recently received the Early Childhood Collaboration Distingushed Service Award from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The award was given in recognition of the collaborative efforts in improving the quality of life for young children and their families...

MAYWOOD, Ill. -- Beeping and buzzing sounds are coming from one very special room at the Ronald McDonald Children's Hospital at Loyola University Medical Center's campus. Instead of medical equipment, though, a radio control room occupies one side of the room. ...

Fans of the "Legend of Zelda" series are in for a huge treat. "The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker" for Nintendo's GameCube is an absolute masterpiece, and one of the most delightful games I've had the pleasure of playing in many years. Shigeru Miyamoto is revered by gamers for his work with this series for Nintendo, and he won't lose any stature with his latest creation. Aside from some camera problems, it's a work of art...

Cape Girardeau Tuesday, April 1 The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau Police Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. Arrests Ronnie F. Parmer, 18, of 919 E. Rodney, Cape Girardeau, was arrested Sunday on suspicion of stealing. Lavonda R. Brown, 32, of 515 S. Logan, Carbondale, Ill., was arrested Sunday on suspicion of stealing...

WASHINGTON -- A food fight is brewing in school cafeterias that could elbow aside the long-standing drink of choice -- milk -- to make some room for soy. Soybean growers and the soy foods industry are pushing the government to reimburse schools that decide to offer soy milk as well as cow's milk. They say it is a healthy option, particularly for youngsters who have trouble digesting milk...

Cape Girardeau Tuesday, April 1 Firefighters responded Sunday to the following items: At 3:32 p.m., emergency medical service at Interstate 55. At 7:02 p.m., emergency medical service at 19 S. Kingshighway. At 7:57 p.m., emergency medical service at 1415 William...

Jackson Scott W. Wren, newcomer AGE: 34 SPOUSE: Tawana CHILDREN: Jacob, 12, Caleb, 10 EMPLOYER: St. Francis Medical Center EDUCATION: Bachelor's degree in nursing from Southeast Missouri State University MEMBERSHIPS: Elks Lodge, high school football official, involved in youth baseball...

WASHINGTON -- Legislation compensating people injured or killed by the smallpox vaccine was defeated in the House Monday amid debate over the size of the payments, and the troubled vaccination program was temporarily suspended in at least eight states...

Landslide kills four in Bolivian mining villageLA PAZ, Bolivia -- A landslide roared through a gold-mining town in Bolivia's tropical lowlands early Monday, killing four people, injuring three others and burying dozens of homes. Villagers of Chima spent the afternoon digging through a mountain of mud, rock and muck to reach survivors. Others waited hours for emergency crews to arrive from La Paz. There are no landing strips in the remote mountainous area...

WASHINGTON -- Calls for a holy war against the United States because of its attack on Iraq have now led to warnings of "100 bin Ladens"-- an ominous prospect for Americans who have been living with the fear of more terror attacks since Sept. 11, 2001...

WASHINGTON -- Secretary of State Colin Powell will travel to Turkey and Brussels, Belgium, for talks on the war with Iraq and postwar reconstruction of that country. Powell said Monday it was the first of a number of trips he intends to take in the weeks and months ahead "about our hopes for Iraq in the future."...

WASHINGTON -- U.S. troops killed seven Iraqi women and children at a checkpoint Monday when the Iraqis' van would not stop as ordered, a military official said. Two other civilians were wounded in the incident at a U.S. Army checkpoint on a highway near Najaf in southern Iraq, the official said. The military is investigating, he said...

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Missouri farmers are expected to plant more corn and less soybeans this year, according to a survey of farmers released Monday. Farmers are projected to plant 2.9 million acres of corn in 2003, up 4 percent from last year, said the Missouri Agricultural Statistics Service...

ST. LOUIS -- It's a tradition in St. Louis dating at least to the days of Ozzie Smith and Whitey Herzog -- fans in this baseball-mad town decked out for home games in red. On Monday, the red was joined by plenty of white and blue, too. In a town where the baseball season opener is a holiday ranking right up there with Christmas and Independence Day, there was a little different feel as the defending NL Central champs opened against the Milwaukee Brewers. ...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- An electronic laboratory reporting system designed to alert health officials to a possible bioterrorism attack or disease outbreak will be implemented statewide, Gov. Bob Holden and other officials said Monday. The biosurveillance system, called HealthSentry, was created by Cerner Corp. and has been tested in the Kansas City area for a year...

TOKYO -- North Korea test-fired a ground-to-ship missile Tuesday morning, Japanese defense officials said. The missile test came just days after Japan launched two satellites into orbit that will help keep watch over North Korea's missile and suspected nuclear arms programs. The launch angered the communist state and it threatened to test-fire a missile...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A diverse group of black, white, Catholic and Jewish adults and children gathered at the Capitol on Monday to push for a measure that would allow state funds to go to religious schools. The proposed constitutional amendment, if approved by the legislature, would have to go to a statewide vote in November 2004...

AMMAN, Jordan -- The first wartime U.N. humanitarian aid, a few truckloads of food and water, trickled across Iraq's borders from Turkey and Kuwait, U.N. agencies reported Monday. But officials said aid organizations and the U.S. military remain wary of working together on relief operations for Iraq...

BIYARE, Iraq -- A U.S.-led assault on a compound controlled by an Islamic Iraqi group has turned up a list of names of suspected militants living in the United States and possibly the strongest evidence yet linking Ansar al-Islam to al-Qaida, coalition commanders said Monday...

HINDIYAH, Iraq -- "We've got to get her off that bridge," he said. Capt. Chris Carter winced at the risks his men would have to take. Engaged in a lightning-fast raid for this Euphrates River town, they were battling for a bridge when -- through the smoke -- they saw the elderly woman. She had tried to race across the bridge when the Americans arrived, but was caught in the cross fire...

DENVER -- The outgoing Air Force Academy officer who oversees cadets endorsed his own removal Monday and expressed regret for making statements that suggested a cadet had invited a sexual assault. In a telephone interview, Brig. Gen. Sylvanus Taco Gilbert III also said he was proud of his record because he helped clean up a drug problem and improved discipline...

SPACE CENTER, Houston -- A tape recorder from the shattered Columbia shows temperatures surging inside the left wing three minutes earlier -- and hundreds of degrees higher -- than previously detected during the final portion of the shuttle's doomed flight, the chief investigator said Monday...

FAIRFAX, Va. -- Attorneys for sniper suspect Lee Boyd Malvo were denied permission to hire handwriting and voice recognition experts Monday, but were allowed to hire experts in DNA evidence, ballistics and fingerprints. Fairfax Circuit Court Judge Jane Marum Roush agreed with prosecutors that the defense did not need the voice-recognition and handwriting experts. The prosecution did not object to the other requests...

NEW YORK -- NBC fired journalist Peter Arnett on Monday, angered that he had given an unauthorized interview with state-run Iraqi TV saying the American-led war effort initially failed because of Iraq's resistance. Arnett apologized for his "misjudgment," but added: "I said over the weekend what we all know about this war."...

LAS VEGAS -- Steve Swanson looked out onto his lush, green golf course and gestured to the rolling fairways. "A lot more's going to have to come out," the Siena Golf Club superintendent said as he stood in a bed of crushed rock that used to be verdant grass...

HealthSouth fires chief executive over scandal BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- HealthSouth Corp. fired its founder as chairman and chief executive as a third company official pleaded guilty to fraud Monday in a mushrooming accounting scandal. The company said Richard Scrushy, who built HealthSouth into a leading health care chain and was previously suspended as chief executive officer, also was asked to quit the board...

CHICAGO -- Some people virtually housebound by congestive heart failure dramatically improve and even return to work after doctors insert new cells into their severely damaged pumping muscle, according to a report Monday. The experiment is the latest attempt at cell therapy, an approach still early in development that shows enticing hints it can restore life to stunned and scarred areas of weakly beating hearts...

McCartney may turn down volume in RomeLONDON -- Paul McCartney may turn down the volume to avoid disturbing the pope when he plays to an expected 300,000 fans outside Rome's Coliseum in May. Organizers of the free concert said Monday that the former Beatle may drop some of his louder rock numbers, including "Back In the U.S.S.R." and "Live And Let Die," so the concert won't disturb the 82-year-old pontiff at his quarters in the Vatican nearby...

I don't pretend to have all of the information I'd like to have to comment on the Missouri budget situation, but I have enough to make some suggestions and to raise some questions. I also have experienced serving six years in the Missouri House of Representatives with time on the state reorganization conference committee during the era of Gov. Kit Bond...

In a few months, Cape Girardeau emergency dispatchers will be able to track a 911 caller to a specific longitude and latitude -- even if the caller is using a cell phone and does not know where he or she is. On Monday, the Cape Girardeau County Commission authorized $4,800 be paid to the city of Cape Girardeau to assist with mapping efforts to upgrade the city's 911 service. ...

Army forces battled Republican Guard units at Hindiyah on Monday in street fighting scarcely 50 miles from Baghdad, part of stepped-up air and ground strikes in advance of a drive on the capital. A Pentagon official said 8,000 precision-guided bombs have been dropped on Iraq...

Matt Wulfers belted three home runs and drove in seven runs Monday to lead Notre Dame to a wild 15-10 baseball victory over visiting Kelly. The Bulldogs improved to 2-1 overall and 2-0 in the SEMO Conference. The Hawks fell to 1-3 and 0-3. "Matt had a day," Notre Dame coach Jeff Graviett said. "The wind was blowing out, but he hit the ball real well."...

By Josh Flory JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Before his death, Gov. Mel Carnahan was a polarizing figure in Missouri politics. Supporters touted him as the "education governor," while critics dismissed him as "Tax Man" Carnahan. But when the history of his administration is written, Carnahan's legacy might not match either of those sketches. ...

Concerns about school finance and an interest in construction projects have given voters in Cape Girardeau, Scott, Bollinger and Perry counties plenty of candidates to choose from in upcoming school board elections. In 12 school districts in those four counties, all but two school board elections are contested, with a total of 47 candidates running...

Donna Diebold Joplin has announced the opening of SEMO Appraisal LLC in Cape Girardeau. Joplin has 17 years of residential appraisal experience and 10 years of prior real estate experience. She is state certified and is an approved appraiser for most area lender and many nationwide mortgage and relocation companies. Her service area covers seven counties...

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee can finally pack its bags. The Lady Vols are headed to the Final Four again. Gwen Jackson scored 20 points and Kara Lawson had 15 as the top-seeded Lady Vols advanced to their 14th Final Four by beating No. 2 Villanova 73-49 in the Mideast Regional final Monday night...

The comforts of home are half a world away for the thousands of military personnel serving in the war in Iraq. But St. Francis Medical Center is working to send goods and provide aid and comfort to the soldiers and their families. "We want our co-workers, family members and friends to know that we miss them and we are thinking of them," said Steven Bjelich, president and CEO of St. Francis Healthcare System...

Pro-tax voters came out the winners in a week-long, unscientific Web poll conducted at semissourian.com. Registered Cape Girardeau voters will have a chance to express their opinions where they count on April 8, a week from today. They'll cast ballots for or against a quarter-cent sales tax, a local-use tax, a storm-water fee and a 10-cent property tax that would replace an identical tax set to expire in 2004...

Two of the three hosts of the Jan. 18 bonfire party held at a Cape Girardeau County farmhouse on County Road 621 now face misdemeanor charges for possession of beer by a minor. Criminal summonses were issued to Jonathon W. Edwards and Tyler L. Gerlach ordering them to appear in court April 10 at 9 a.m. for initial arraignment. Both men, now 20, were 19 years old at the time of the party, where 14 guests were seriously burned when a 5-gallon plastic gasoline container was thrown into the bonfire...

Could you identify the countries bordering Iraq? How would you define acid rain? Can you name the state that is home to Three Mile Island, the site of a nuclear power plant accident in 1979? The questions might seem tough, but armed with the correct answers two area students qualified for the National Geographic Bee and a chance to win cash prizes and a college scholarship...

By Mike Fitzpatrick ~ The Associated Press That special feeling of hope, joy and promise that accompanies every baseball opening day came with a shiver in many places this year. And a somber moment of silence. Snow delayed the Orioles' game against the Cleveland Indians on Monday in Baltimore, where fans huddled under blankets and downed more hot chocolate and coffee than beer...

Twenty-one years after their mother's murder, Don and Gary Call are still waiting on answers. When Margie Call, 57, was found dead in her bedroom in her Brink Street home in January 1982, police called it an "obvious homicide" but wouldn't release details of her injuries or the crime scene until well after the autopsy report was released...

ST. LOUIS -- Ethan Moreau scored with 1:52 left in regulation, Edmonton's third goal of the third period, as the Oilers rallied for a 5-5 tie Monday night with the St. Louis Blues. It was the second big comeback in two days for the Oilers, who came back from a 4-1 deficit on Sunday to tie Chicago 4-4...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Decisions related to state historic sites and monuments would be made by an independent citizens' panel and not by appointed state officials under legislation considered Monday by a Senate committee. The bill is a reaction to the January decision by Department of Natural Resources director Stephen Mahfood to permanently remove Confederate flags that had flown over the Confederate Memorial State Historic Site in Higginsville and the Fort Davidson State Historic Site in Pilot Knob.. ...

Rolen belts three-run homer to cap Cards' 11-9 comeback win over Brewers. By R.B. Fallstrom ~ The Associated Press ST. LOUIS -- Scott Rolen's first opening day in St. Louis was forgettable, until the eighth inning. Rolen made up for a costly error with a three-run homer that capped a six-run rally, and the Cardinals held on to beat the Milwaukee Brewers 11-9 Monday...

HONG KONG -- Hong Kong invoked a colonial-era law Tuesday to quarantine more than 240 people in countryside vacation camps, part of redoubled efforts to halt the spread of a mysterious flu-like illness that has killed at least 64 people around the world...

10 years ago: April 2, 1993 Fire that broke out in warehouse at 2153 Independence yesterday extensively damaged building and its contests; warehouse, leased by several businesses, is located in Town Plaza near Plaza Galleria; fire was reported at 3:38 p.m. ...

Editor's note: Please submit your club news information either typed or printed. It is sometimes very difficult to make out people's names. Please use members' first and last names instead of formal titles. For instance, Jane Smith, not Mrs. John Smith. Thank you...

Stone Daughter to Scott Wayne and Julie Ann Stone of Jackson, Southeast Missouri Hospital, 12:36 a.m. Thursday, March 27, 2003. Name, Myah Cassady. Weight, 8 pounds 4 ounces. Mrs. Stone is the former Julie Cassady, daughter of Everett Cassady and Carmen Cassady of Jackson. She is employed at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri. Stone is the son of Roy Stone of Cape Girardeau, and the late Judy Stone. He is employed by Drury Co...

Bruce Parsons, 94, of Cape Girardeau died Friday, March 28, 2003, while visiting a son in Montgomery, Ala. Ford and Sons Mount Auburn Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

MOUNDS, Ill. -- Verna D. Stout, 97, of Mounds died Friday, March 28, 2003, at Gwinnett Medical Center in Lawrenceville, Ga. She was born May 5, 1905, in Pulaski County, Ill., daughter of Joshua and Daisy Hostler Childers. She married Edward Robert Stout, who preceded her in death in 1954...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Raynett Moll, 82, of Sikeston died Sunday, March 30, 2003, at Sikeston Convalescent Center. She was born March 3, 1921, in Sikeston, daughter of Raymond A. and Myrtle Sheppard Moll. Moll was a member of First United Methodist Church...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Ester May Hartwick, 62, of Sikeston died Tuesday, April 1, 2003, at Clearview Nursing Center. She was born Aug. 11, 1940, in Dell, Ark., daughter of Russell R. and Estell O. Manes McMinn. Hartwick was formerly of Bertrand, Mo., and had been a waitress...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Joshua Daniel Gross died at birth Friday, March 28, 2003, at the University of Louisville Medical Center in Louisville, Ky. Survivors include his parents, Clinton and Tammy Poe Gross of Paducah, Ky.; a brother, Levi Gross, a sister, Lexy Gross, both of Paducah; grandparents, Jack and Jane Hargraves of Chaffee, and Charles and Dessie Gross of Anniston, Mo...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Mabel M. Alston, 88, of Chaffee died Monday, March 31, 2003, at Chaffee Nursing Center. She was born Sept. 28, 1914, in Neosho County, Kan., daughter of Elzie Sigle and Florence Elizabeth Sours Edwards. She and William Riley Alston were married July 1, 1932. He died Dec. 17, 1992...

Vernon Edward Zimmerman, 67, of Scott City died Monday, March 31, 2003, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. He was born June 8, 1935, at Fornfelt, Mo., son of Theodore Roosevelt and Anna Lee Cambron Zimmerman. Zimmerman was a riverboat pilot. He was a member of First Assembly of God Church in Scott City, Harold O. Grauel Masonic Lodge 672 and Cape Shrine Club in Cape Girardeau, and Moolah Temple in St. Louis...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Rueben Clay Taylor, 85, of Sikeston died Sunday, March 30, 2003, at his home. He was born Oct. 7, 1917, in McMullin, Mo., son of Charles Paschall and Ada Adeliene Prichett Taylor. He and Evelyn Taylor were married May 4, 1938, in Sikeston. She died Dec. 20, 2002...

OLMSTED, Ill. -- Evelyn Ruth Cruse, 88, of Greenville, Ill., died Monday, March 31, 2003, at Farrow Nursing Home in Greenville. She was born Feb. 5, 1915, at Olmsted, daughter of James Arthur and Nellie Gillespie Palmer. She married Ralph Cruse, who died in 1981...

PUXICO, Mo. -- Woodrow Paul Crites, 81, of Puxico died Tuesday, April 1, 2003, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. He was born May 30, 1921, at Greenbrier, Mo., son of Horace and Dovie Cato Crites. He and Pauline Woodfin were married June 9, 1942, at Bloomfield, Mo...

Back our troops I THINK the American people should get behind our troops who are scattered throughout the world to keep our freedom in this country. If you know a veteran, young or old, thank them for what they have done in the past and will do in the future. These people are fighting these wars to keep our country free, and we need to back them 110 percent...

To the editor: In response to the letter "Snake Hill is one of Cape's few landmarks": Leaving Cape Girardeau in 1960 to join the Air Force and only returning for visits over the years, I have only fond memories of Snake Hill. After class at the old Juden Elementary School, I loved to ride my bike with a favorite pal up Snake Hill and back for the thrill of coasting to the bottom or riding over for a Wimpy Burger and racing home to do my chores before dark. ...

To the editor: In response to Terry Webb's letter "Protesters' real agenda: opposing President Bush": We've taken our cherished after-work time to get out on the streets here and away, write letters and talk to others about our firm belief that responding to violence with violence is not the way to proceed. ...

To the editor: As a member of the Cape Jaycees who promoted the swimming pool in Capaha Park in 1956, I want to comment on the upcoming election. I look at this election like the one in 1956. We are not just voting on a tax issue. We are voting to make an investment in Cape Girardeau. The things the city wants to do with the money are necessary for the growth of the city...

Briefly Boxing Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis may fight in the same ring June 21 -- just not against each other. Talks are under way for the two heavyweights to appear in separate fights of a heavyweight doubleheader, perhaps in Buffalo, N.Y. ...

The Women's Golf Association of Cape Girardeau elected officers during its spring banquet recently in preparation for the season that will begin with an event today. Officers for the year are Judi Brey, president; Mary Jane Eftink, vice president; Dana Underwood, treasurer; and Robyn Young, secretary. Marion Miles-Edwards and Dorris Young were presented honorary life membership in the association...

In times of peril -- and particularly in times of war -- prayer provides solace to those who are in danger and to those who have a special interest in the welfare of family members, loved ones and friends. Prayers for peace, for those who serve in the military and for the leaders of all nations have become an increasingly important fixture of religious gatherings since the war in Iraq began...

Removing moisture is easiest step to rid home of mold. By David Bradley ~ The Associated Press So, you think the air inside your home is clean and free of the contaminates you inhale once you step out the front door? Well, guess again. According to indoor air experts and the Environmental Protection Agency, air inside most homes is three to seven times worse than outdoor air, and the result might be a host of illnesses caused by particulates, molds and other toxins...

For those who may have thought this would be a one-week war, it's now clear that removing Saddam Hussein and his top commanders from control will take time, perhaps a considerable amount of time. As the war enters its third week, here are some thoughts about war:...

Cape Girardeau Wednesday, April 2 Firefighters responded to the following items Monday: At 6:38 p.m., a still alarm at 600 William. At 7:43 p.m., a fallen person at 254 S. Silver Springs. Firefighters responded to the following items Tuesday: At 7:55 a.m., a request for emergency medical service at 4753 Nash...

Cape Girardeau Wednesday, April 2 The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau Police Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. DWI James A. Snell Jr., 28, of 255 E. Cape Rock Drive, Cape Girardeau, was arrested Monday on suspicion of driving while intoxicated...

Rust Communications purchases Indiana paper Rust Communications has purchased the daily newspaper in Bloomfield, Ind., from William Miles. The sale of the Evening World was effective Tuesday. Randy List, publisher of three other Rust newspapers in Greencastle, Brazil and Linton, Ind., will also be the publisher of the Bloomfield newspaper. Chris Pruett, general manager of the Linton Daily Citizen, will also be the general manager of The Evening World...

In an article in Monday's edition, James R. McGhee, 20, of Cape Girardeau was incorrectly listed as not being charged with possession of beer by a minor. A criminal summons was issued on March 14. The Southeast Missourian regrets the error.

WASHINGTON -- Recent intelligence has the FBI worried that al-Qaida may be recruiting and training women to carry out terror attacks, trying to regain an element of surprise for a network thinned by arrests, officials say. For the first time in the war on terror, the FBI has issued a be-on-the-lookout bulletin for a woman, a Pakistani neurological expert, wanted for questioning in the terrorism investigation. ...

WASHINGTON -- Supreme Court justices vigorously debated the role of race in higher education Tuesday in a pair of cases that could rewrite the rules for affirmative action on campus and beyond. The justices aggressively questioned lawyers, focusing on likely consequences of discrimination and educational opportunity...

WASHINGTON -- A World Trade Organization panel will mediate a dispute between the United States and Canada over Canadian wheat exports. U.S. trade officials requested the three-person panel in March after earlier talks did not resolve the matter. The panel will review U.S. allegations that the Canadian government provides unfair help to its wheat farmers by granting the Canadian Wheat Board special monopoly rights and by subsidizing the cost of shipping wheat by railroad...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A state board on Tuesday authorized an April 10 sale of a projected $387 million in revenue bonds to help cover the state's budget shortfall. The bonds technically would help finance previously planned construction and repairs at state and university buildings. That would free up other money to go toward the state's budget shortfall...

HOUSTON -- Jeff Kent hit a home run in his first at-bat for Houston and Jeff Bagwell homered twice as the Astros won their season opener Tuesday night, 10-4 over the Colorado Rockies. Roy Oswalt pitched seven strong innings for the win and the Astros roughed up NL Rookie of the Year Jason Jennings in their first home opener since their stadium was renamed Minute Maid Park...

KUWAIT CITY -- For battle-weary troops already two weeks into a full-fledged war, one more challenge still looms -- the desert heat. With April and its 80-degree temperatures marking the start of summer, troops already loaded down with packs weighing up to 100 pounds will become another element of the war...

UMM QASR, Iraq -- British military engineers restored power to Iraq's major seaport for the first time in weeks, a major step in reopening the harbor and funneling desperately needed humanitarian aid deeper into the country. "A lot of things must have been left on when the power was cut, because suddenly you heard all these radios come on and the people started cheering," said Maj. John Taylor of the Royal Engineers...

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- A terror suspect attempted suicide at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba and was being treated at detention camp's new psychiatric ward, officials said Tuesday. The man was saved by guards within seconds of the attempt in his cell late Monday, Army Lt. Col. Barry Johnson said...

SHUAIBA PORT, Kuwait -- The U.S. Army's most lethal and modern heavy division is weeks away from joining the fight in Iraq, a top division officer said Tuesday. The first three ships carrying the 4th Infantry Division's equipment -- a force that will encompass more than 30,000 troops, 500 armored vehicles and 18 attack helicopters -- arrived Tuesday in this Kuwaiti port for unloading...

JERUSALEM -- Israel's foreign minister said Tuesday the United States is determined to publish a Mideast peace plan soon but Israel would seek changes before accepting it. The Israeli opposition leader, Amram Mitzna, and Palestinian officials said Israel effectively is rejecting the plan, a three-stage "road map" to Palestinian statehood by 2005...

SUN CITY, South Africa -- Congo's government agreed to a power-sharing deal with rebel groups Tuesday in a move mediators hoped could bring the sides a step closer to resolving one of Africa's most intractable conflicts. Representatives of the Congolese government, rebels, political parties and civic groups adopted a transitional constitution and an agreement to set up a transitional government for Congo, a country one-fourth the size of the United States that has been experiencing 4 1/2 years of civil war.. ...

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina -- Evidence found during a raid of Bosnian Serb military offices indicates the army spied on NATO troops and other international officials in Bosnia, a NATO spokesman said Tuesday. An analysis of evidence found March 7 in military intelligence offices in Banja Luka indicated the military spied at least all of last year, Capt. Dale MacEachern said...

SAN'A, Yemen -- Eleven people with suspected links to the al-Qaida terror network -- including two of the government's most-wanted terror suspects -- have been arrested in various parts of Yemen, a security official said Tuesday. The 11 suspects were arrested throughout Yemen on Friday and now are detained in the intelligence prison in the capital, San'a, the official said on condition of anonymity...

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- Mudslides triggered by flash floods in eastern Indonesia killed 27 people with at least five others reported missing, local officials and police said Tuesday. The floods swept away 17 houses on Flores island, 1,030 miles east of the capital of Jakarta, said Paulinus Domi, head of the local district of Ende. Police said they were searching for survivors late Tuesday in three villages hit by the flooding...

WOODBRIDGE, N.J. -- A funeral to say goodbye to a murdered 3-year-old collapsed into pushing and shouting when someone in the pews said the boy's sister was partly at fault in his death. Amir Beeks died a day after he was beaten Wednesday with a baseball bat, sexually assaulted and dumped face-down in a drainage ditch. Police said his killer was a 10-year-old who lured him from a library...

POLAND, N.Y. -- Three children were killed in a house fire early Tuesday and three other people were injured. The cause of the fire was not known. The Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office said it started just before 1 a.m. in this town 60 miles south of Buffalo...

Gardeners seeking dependable, bright summer color have long turned to the familiar petunia, and the plant in turn has returned its trust with lots of flowers. Recent work by plant breeders gives gardeners even more reason to trust the petunia to perform like a summer champ it can be. ...

KEY WEST, Fla. -- In the second hijacking of a Cuban plane in as many weeks, a hijacker claiming to have two grenades surrendered an hour after forcing the aircraft to land in Florida with 32 people aboard. The hijacker was carrying a little boy when he came off the Cuban Airlines plane at the Key West airport and was wearing a red windbreaker with the word "America" stitched in white on the back. He was taken into FBI custody...

Several times in the past two weeks, I've watched co-workers fighting with the vending machine in the company lounge. "It got me again!" one exclaimed Monday, giving it a frustrated smack. He headed off to find the unfortunate person who many years ago was handed the keys to our snack, soda and juice machines and hasn't been able to shed the responsibility for them...

smcclanahan I love it when we have a birthday to celebrate in our family. This time, though, it is not one of my little kids, it is the big kid in our house, Scott. Scott turns 40 today. I was telling someone at church Sunday that now 40 seems so young. ...

Pocahontas town officials have been doing background work on a sewer project for more than a year. They've held public information meetings, gotten engineer plans completed, they've applied for grants, and have received lagoon-location approval from the Department of Natural Resources...

By Robert Fulton PATTON, Mo. -- We have all heard the suggestion that Missouri should respond to its budget crisis the same way a family would: by learning to live within its needs. That is what responsible families do. They trim the extras. They postpone vacations and cut back on sporting events, restaurant meals and movies. Family members place the new coat or dress that are really not needed back on the rack...

ST. LOUIS -- Two words say it all about the Cardinals' rebuilt bullpen: Kiko Calero. The one-time Royals castoff, who is awaiting his major league debut at age 28, is just one of the many new faces that the NL Central champions will be counting on to hold the line. St. Louis also has three pitchers who missed all of last season with injuries -- Cal Eldred, Russ Springer and Lance Painter...

WASHINGTON -- American troops on Tuesday rescued Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch, who had been held as a prisoner of war in Iraq since she and other members of her unit were ambushed March 23, the Defense Department announced. Lynch, 19, of Palestine, W.Va., had been missing since nine days ago with 11 other U.S. ...

IRBIL, Iraq -- The Iraqi soldier leaned against his truck, kicking the mud from his boots and enjoying a cigarette. It would be his last. Across the valley in northern Iraq, a U.S. Special Forces team watched him through binoculars and summoned a laser-guided airstrike. The soldier disappeared in a cloud of black smoke; when it cleared, only the burned-out hulk of his truck remained...

Missourians with an emotional investment in the war with Iraq aren't only in uniform. In Neosho, they are parents who rub special gemstones in their pockets to think of a daughter serving in the Army. In Mexico, they are neighbors reviving blue star banners, staples of the homefront in past wars, to designate families with sons or daughters in military service...

Army ground forces attacked Republican Guard units Tuesday near Karbala, scarcely 50 miles from Baghdad, part of around-the-clock combat pointing toward an assault on the capital. An American POW was rescued in Iraq. Defense officials said Army units attacked elements of the Medina Division of the Republican Guard in the clash near Karbala, hitting an elite Iraqi force weakened by heavy air bombardment over several days...

Kentucky and Arizona were supposed to be playing Saturday night, a semifinal matchup that had all the makings of a championship game. Instead, the NCAA tournament favorites will be watching just like the rest of the country. In this season of parity, the Final Four has turned into a stage for coaches looking for a first national title and for stars showing off for a national audience...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A state appeals court on Tuesday rejected a former Dunklin County teen's claims that his murder confession was not voluntary due to his age, low mental ability and the fact he was medicated. Kenneth Gray had challenged his convictions for second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the Oct. 27, 1999, shooting death of R.W. "Dub" Cooley. Gray was 16 years old at the time and certified to stand trial as an adult...

All that stands in the way of an eight-game Southeast Missouri State University baseball winning streak heading into Ohio Valley Conference play is a victory over regional rival Southern Illinois. Southeast coach Mark Hogan knows that won't be easy...

NEW YORK -- Mike Sweetney took charge once again and led Georgetown to the NIT championship game, scoring 32 points as the Hoyas beat Minnesota 88-74 Tuesday night. The Hoyas turned down a bid to the NIT last season because they would have had to play on the road and miss classes. Now they'll play for the title after winning four straight games in the tournament -- all away from home. The Hoyas (19-14) won at Tennessee, Providence and North Carolina before coming to Madison Square Garden...

Southeast Missouri State University took its third second-place finish as Western Illinois University defeated Southeast in the finals of the Morton B. Harris Southeast Missouri State Four Ball golf tournament Tuesday at Kimberland Country Club. Tony Olson of Missouri-Kansas City won the individual competition, shooting a even-par 71 in the final round to give him a 3-under 210 for the three rounds...

Swimming has existed at Central High School for well over a decade, but school will encounter a first on Saturday when it serves as host to its first invitational. Central has hosted its share of duals, triangulars and quad meets over the years, but will attract six other schools for its first City of Roses Invitational at the Central Municipal Pool...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Legislation intended to force the governing authority for high school sports and other extracurricular activities to rescind rules some students and parents find objectionable will not move forward in its present form, a key lawmaker said Tuesday...

There was plenty of clutch hitting, clutch defense, good pitching and drama. The only thing in short supply was sunlight. Suspense gave way to suspension in play Tuesday just as Central's and Jackson's baseball teams were locked in a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the eighth inning. Play was halted due to darkness...

Notre Dame put away Perryville in the seventh inning, scoring four insurance runs to pick up a 12-6 road victory Tuesday in high school baseball. "It was just huge. They got a little rally going and cut it to 8-6, and we come in and put up a four spot and it took the wind out of their sails," Notre Dame coach Jeff Graviett said...

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- "Chase your own potential." Davis Love III underlined those four words, even put stars around them, as a reminder that the best way to catch Tiger Woods is to wear blinders. The strategy came from an offseason session with sports psychologist Bob Rotella. Love jotted down the notes on a yellow legal pad, and he reviewed them the night before the final round of The Players Championship...

Cape Girardeau voters will have at least one easy decision in Tuesday's elections with just two candidates running for two available positions on the Cape Girardeau School Board. Newcomer Robert Scott Brown and seven-year incumbent the Rev. William Bird were the only candidates to file for the two three-year terms on the board, making this is the second consecutive year the election has been uncontested...

Moss is either one of those plants that you love or hate. There seems to be no in between. There are individuals who grow and sell moss to garden centers and florists. Since their moss turns to dollars, I'm sure that they really like moss. My front lawn is now a moss garden. Since I live in the woods, most of the area around my house is shaded. It does have its advantages. Very seldom do I have to mow the "front lawn." It sure is nice and soft to walk on...

The Bush administration says the threat of an attack with the smallpox virus has never been higher. Yet far fewer health-care workers have been vaccinated than officials envisioned, and at least a dozen states have suspended their programs because of concerns the shots are linked to cardiac disease...

esidents in some Southeast Missouri towns are tying yellow ribbons around the old oak tree -- and any other tree they can find -- to show support for U.S. troops in the war in Iraq. Flower, fabric and hobby shops are scrambling to meet the demand for yellow ribbon, both for outside decorations and as lapel decorations...

Roger L. McIntyre walked out of the Cape Girardeau County Courthouse in Jackson Tuesday morning confident DNA samples taken by police will eliminate him as a suspect in the 1982 murders of Margie Call and Mildred Wallace. "I don't have to wait for the results," he said. "These guys are good and they'll catch the guy who did it."...

Southeast Missouri drivers, no doubt, have had their fill of potholes, a perennial problem made even worse this year by the harsh, wet winter. But these dangers and annoyances should be fading as the Missouri Department of Transportation and local municipalities wait on warmer, drier weather to remedy the patchy situation...

TORONTO -- Even the highest payroll in baseball couldn't prepare the New York Yankees for what they face now -- playing without leader Derek Jeter for at least a month. Jeter was placed on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday after dislocating his left shoulder on opening night. The Yankees expect to be without their All-Star shortstop for much longer, and it could be up to four months if he needs surgery...

CHESTER, Ill. -- After almost 12 years of fighting to be released from the maximum-security facility for the criminally insane, Rodney Yoder is finally getting his wish. It's just not in the way he'd hoped. Yoder's lawyer was notified Tuesday by the Illinois Department of Mental Health that Yoder will soon be transferred from Chester Mental Health Center to a medium-security facility in Elgin, Ill., which is 30 miles northwest of Chicago in Kane County...

Alexandra R. Yaremko "Golf. What is it Good For?" Golf is fascinating. Not the way golf fans would say it's fascinating. "Did you see that shot? Which club did he use?" Golf is fascinating because of the responses it elicits. These responses generally fall into two categories: complete devotion or utter boredom. Here, the population is pretty much divided evenly: men = complete devotion, women = utter boredom...

04/02/03 - "Spiderman Live", Fox Theatre 04/02/03 - Failing English, Hi-Pointe 04/02/03 - Supervillain Zero, Hi-Pointe 04/02/03 - Tree Of Woe, Hi-Pointe 04/02/03 - theSTART, Hi-Pointe 04/02/03 - The Datsuns, The Galaxy 04/02/03 - The Sights, The Galaxy...

by Tom Edwards As in real estate, the quality of a rock concert can be boiled down to 'Location. Location, Location' and one component still holds true: The filthier, darker, and more unseemly the location-the better. There should be an element of dirtiness in the venue of a rock n' roll show. ...

by Jason Parker Take a few of Gollum's most quoted lines from The Lord of the Rings movies and mix them with lines from the theme song to the Beverly Hillbillies. Riddle me that and you've got your why. You've made your point on the war. ...

April Questions Are Khakis coming back? Answer: Ask Again Later Can you hear me now? Answer: Yes, Definitely Aw, snap! Do I have to file taxes? Answer: Most Likely Am I getting a refund? Answer: Without a Doubt Does my bail bond count as moving expenses?...

by Jaysen Buterin Whether you got desire in my passion, or I spilled some passion on your desire, if you don't have that one special thing that you're not getting up for in the morning, then stop all the clocks and cut off the telephone because faith, fidelity, and the follies of being human have showed us that Maria Brooks was epiphanically right when she said, "Where passion is not found, no virtue ever dwelt." If you don't have the heart and soul to do something then you're only cheating yourself by going thru the perfunctory motions with a half-hearted interest that could easily be bested by exhaling. ...

by Keayn Dunya Many RPG games will be throwing around the title epic. More often than not that means giving up 50 plus hours of your life in the pursuit of that all-too elusive final cinema. Xenosaga: Episode I (of 6) is one of those games. Kiss the significant other goodbye, get a catheter and set the speed dial to the fast food place of your choice. Love it or hate it, once you start you're in for the long haul...

by Regina Yoast Don't ask the guys of Green Scene how they got their name. They'll only confuse you. One says it might have an environmental tinge, since green is the color of life. Another implies it may have something to do with mary jane. And yet another explanation is that green is the color of money, and they like money. But it might just be that green has another connotation- it's the color of the band's competition...

by Chad Armbruster Stop the world, I've got news that will shock some, mortify others and the majority of you will care less than that one time you did that one thing with your girlfriend's older sister. After eight years of Cape-dom I've left town. ...

by Greg Levrault More Than Toast is love. They express it in their Anime Music Videos(AMVs), choice clips of Japanese cartoons remixed to a catchy tune. And their love is spreading. Before they were More Than Toast, they were working at a Target store in West Palm Beach. ...

Jessica Simmons Why? I want to ask people short and tall Old and young It's for one and all For all the people out there- We need to realize life isn't fair! It has been this way forever past in every Country and state Why be full of anger and hate?...

Colorful horoscopes WARNING: It is not recommended that you plan your life around these horoscopes, but we do hope you find them amusing. ARIES (Mar.23-Apr.19) Break through the logjam. Under normal circumstances, this current should be strong and sweet. Soon you'll be where you belong, and then you can relax...

Reviewed by Justin Colburn The highest grossing film in Japanese box-office history (more than $234 million), Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away (Sen To Chihiro Kamikakushi) is a dazzling film that reasserts the power of drawn animation to create fantasy worlds. ...

10 years ago: April 3, 1993 Fire investigators are unsure what caused Thursday's blaze that extensively damages SEMO Heavy Industries, Cape Girardeau manufacturing firm in Town Plaza; but operator of business, Bill Evans, says cause likely was some type of electrical malfunction...

Demopoulos Daughter to Kostas Nikolaos and Autumn Astraea Demopoulos of Cape Girardeau, St. Francis Medical Center, 3:38 p.m. Tuesday, March 25, 2003. Name, Astraia Fotini K. Weight, 7 pounds 1 ounce. Second child, first daughter. Mrs. Demopoulos is the former Autumn McSpadden, daughter of Fara McSpadden of Advance, Mo., and Fred Naeter of Cape Girardeau. Mr. and Mrs. Demopoulos own California Juice Club. He is the son of Fotoula Demopoulos and Nikolaos Demopoulos of Cape Girardeau...

BREWER, Mo. -- David J. Huber, 85, of Brewer died Wednesday, April 2, 2003, at his home. He was born Oct. 31, 1917, in Perry County, son of Otto A. and Emily M. Moranville Huber. He and Norma D. Cambron were married Nov. 20, 1943. Huber retired from Carpenters Union Local 2214 in St. Louis. He was a member of Christ the Savior Catholic Church and its Holy Name Society at Brewer, American Legion Post 133 and VFW Post 4282 in Perryville, Mo...

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- Janet Maria Thies, 60, of Poplar Bluff died Thursday, March 20, 2003, at St. John's Mercy Hospital in St. Louis. Survivors include her son, Michael Thies, of Cape Girardeau. Friends may call after 4 p.m. Saturday at Cotrell Funeral Chapel in Poplar Bluff with burial following at 5 p.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery. A funeral Mass will be celebrated at 6 p.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Poplar Bluff with the Rev. Michael McDevitt officiating...

Lillie Wessling, 89, of Cape Girardeau died Wednesday, April 2, 2003, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. She was born Jan. 28, 1914, at Neelys Landing, Mo., daughter of Carl J. and Nora Clingingsmith Craft. She and Henry J. Wessling were married May 4, 1932, in St. Louis. He died April 16, 1985...

Lana G. Orrell, 54, formerly of Houston, died Wednesday, April 2, 2003, at her home in Jackson. Friends may call from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday at McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson. Funeral service will follow at 2 p.m. with the Rev. Rocky Tallent officiating. Burial will be in Russell Heights Cemetery...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Thrisey Wilkinson McClain, 58, of Sikeston died Wednesday, April 2, 2003, at her home. She was born Dec. 18, 1944, in Scott County, daughter of Riley Adam and Elsie Ray Long. She first married Les Wilkinson in 1978 at Benton, Mo. He died June 27, 1995. She and Larry McClain were married Sept. 12, 1997, at Sikeston...

It really works GOV. BOB Holden is apparently taking a position that he is opposed to allowing honest Missourians to defend themselves from criminal attack. This is unfortunate, because if the governor chooses to veto the bill to allow concealed weapons, it is honest Missouri men and women who will pay the penalty. ...

To the editor: As a member of VFW Post 3838, I am honored that the Southeast Missourian takes the time to visit our post home and interview our members. We are fiercely patriotic and willing to offer an opinion when asked. As a group, we are as varied as the community we live in, and our opinions on most subjects show that diversity...

Briefly Baseball The House Energy and Commerce Committee sent letters Wednesday to baseball commissioner Bud Selig and union head Donald Fehr, requesting documents about ephedra use in the sport. Congress is investigating dietary supplements containing ephedra, and baseball has come under scrutiny since the death of Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler in February. ...

To the editor: Many changes have been made in the medical field since the early 1900s. There were fewer doctors, and medicine was scarce. Home remedies were often relied upon. Midwives took the place of a doctor in the delivery of a baby. A recent item from 75 years ago in the Southeast Missourian featured Dr. W.C. Patton as Cape Girardeau's finest early doctor and surgeon whose treatment and expertise saved many lives...

Southeast Missouri State University's softball struggles continued as the Otahkians dropped a pair of 9-0 games to visiting Missouri Wednesday. Southeast (6-17) managed three hits on the day, including being no-hit in the opener. Missouri (21-13) pounded out 27 hits, including three home runs in the opener. Rachael McGinnis went 5-for-7 with a homer and four RBIs for the Tigers...

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Southeast Missouri State University's baseball team couldn't have envisioned a better way to enter Ohio Valley Conference play. The Indians extended their winning streak to eight games and continued a recent dominance of regional rival Southern Illinois with a 7-5 victory at Abe Martin Field Wednesday afternoon...

Notre Dame's unexpected run to the Class 4 girls basketball state championship game was rewarded with two all-state selections and recognition for its coach in today's release of the Missouri Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association's Class 4-5 all-state teams...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Through the first four games of the season Notre Dame junior Matt Wulfers was all about offense. On Wednesday, the Bulldogs called on their sweet-swinging outfielder to try to limit the offense of Chaffee in a wind-blown, zany game. Wulfers, who had four home runs and 11 RBIs in the Bulldogs' previous two games, made his varsity pitching debut in relief. ...

Today Family care-giving workshop from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in St. Claire conference room at St. Francis Conference Center. For information, call 331-5107. Blood pressure screening from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Cape Senior Center, sponsored through Southeast Missouri Hospital...

It happens all too often. A municipality promises it won't raise water rates for a few years if its residents will approve a multimillion-dollar bond issue to pay for new projects. Invariably, something goes wrong: project delays, extra costs or other miscalculations. City officials often offer these up as excuses why they have to raise rates...

Cape Girardeau Thursday, April 3 The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau Police Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. DWI Jeff McCord Meador, 19, of 350 N. Henderson, Apt. 129, Cape Girardeau, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of driving while intoxicated, possession of alcohol by a minor and operating a vehicle on the sidewalk...

Just for a moment, consider this: Your child doesn't come home from school one day and then is listed as missing. Days later, a witness tells police that she was abducted while walking home, pulled into a car by a stranger. The officers don't tell you, but you can see it in their eyes: In all likelihood, she's dead...

Cape Girardeau Thursday, April 3 Firefighters responded to the following items Tuesday: At 8:47 p.m., a citizen assist at 600 William. At 9:55 p.m., a good intent in the 800 block of Maple. Firefighters responded to the following items Wednesday: At 8:55 a.m., an emergency medical service at 624 S. Benton...

Daily Statesman DEXTER, Mo. -- The civil lawsuit filed against the city of Dexter, city officials and former police officers has been settled by the city's insurance company. Word was received this week that the lawsuit filed on behalf of the three victims in the case involving former Dexter police officer Robert Kennedy has been settled, with the three victims each monetary compensation...

Name: Jay B. Knudtson Lives in: Cape Girardeau Family: My wife's name is Cindy, son, Gunnar, age 9. Job: Executive vice president of First Missouri State Bank and Mayor of Cape Girardeau...

Cape Girardeau resident Sabina Childers has a special interest in the proclamation signed by Gov. Bob Holden last month declaring April as Autism Awareness Month. Her son, Larry, began exhibiting autistic behavior at about 15 months of age. Just before his third birthday doctors in St. Louis officially diagnosed autism. Larry does not like to stay belted in his car seat, making the trip a challenge...

'Jonah' the Veggie Tales movie at Grace Bible At 7 p.m. Friday, in cooperation with Big Idea Productions and Christian Video Licensing International (CVLI), Grace Bible Evangelical Free Church is presenting "Jonah" the Veggie Tales movie. This is a family movie for both kids and adults. Admission is free. The church can comfortably seat about 150 adults or children. The front doors to the sanctuary will open at 6:45 p.m...

Chili, stew dinner April 12 at New McKendree An all-you-can-eat chili and stew dinner will be served from 4 to 7 p.m. April 12 in the Fellowship Hall of New McKendree United Methodist Church, 225 S. High St. in Jackson, one block south of the County Courthouse. The dinner is sponsored by the men of New McKendree United Methodist Church...

WASHINGTON -- Improvised chemical or biological weapons could be concocted by terrorists using common household items and then might be hidden in food, the FBI warned Wednesday. Using materials available at stores, on the Internet or through mail-order firms, terrorists could make cyanide compounds, grow salmonella bacteria and botulinum toxin, or distill the poison ricin from castor beans, the FBI said in its weekly bulletin...

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that states can pass laws forcing HMOs to open their networks to more health care providers, giving patients broader choices of doctors and hospitals but potentially boosting costs. The unanimous ruling was a setback for the managed care industry, which argued that closed networks lower health care costs because providers agree to accept lower fees in return for a guaranteed stream of patients...

WASHINGTON -- Manufacturing is faltering as the weight of uncertainties surrounding the war in Iraq causes businesses and consumers to turn more cautious. Orders to U.S. factories fell 1.5 percent in February, the worst showing in five months, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. Private economists said manufacturers could see orders fall even more in March given the muddled economic climate...

ATLANTA -- Zach Day and three relievers combined on a three-hitter, and Jose Vidro hit a two-run homer to lead the Montreal Expos over the Atlanta Braves 3-0 Wednesday night. The vagabond Expos, who won't play in Montreal until April 22, have outscored the Braves 13-2 in the first two games at Turner Field. Atlanta is 0-2 for the first time in six years...

WASHINGTON -- The House passed legislation Wednesday to end a Social Security practice that allowed some government workers to receive increased retirement benefits. Texas Democrats claimed the bill was a hardship for their state's teachers. The bill, approved 396-28, also would deny Social Security benefits to fugitive felons and to people who violated probation or parole. Voting against the measure were 25 Democrats and three Republicans...

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Alex Rodriguez became the youngest player to hit 300 homers, but the Anaheim Angels beat the Rangers 11-5 Wednesday behind home runs from Troy Glaus, Brad Fullmer and Darin Erstad. Rodriguez, 27 years, 249 days old, hit a three-run homer in the fifth inning off Ramon Ortiz (1-0), his second of the season. The fastest to 300 had been Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Slightly more than 20,000 people have applied to participate in the second year of a state-run prescription drug program for senior citizens, state officials said Wednesday. The enrollment for the year that starts July 1 is almost the same as this year's participation, despite a fairly aggressive marketing campaign...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Support for measures designating an official state grape and grass has taken root in the Missouri Legislature. The Senate on Wednesday approved and sent to the House legislation designating the Norton/Cynthiana as the official state grape, while the House gave initial approval to a bill naming Big Bluestem as the official state grass...

Air Canada files for bankruptcy protection TORONTO -- Air Canada has become the latest major airline to file for bankruptcy protection as it seeks concessions from unions and government assistance amid the long worldwide slump for air travel. Air Canada is the country's largest airline and the only scheduled Canadian carrier with an extensive route network to the United States and other foreign destinations. It employs more than 30,000 people...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The House gave initial approval Wednesday to legislation that would create a new inspector general's position to check up on the Missouri Department of Transportation. The bill does away with MoDOT's internal inspector general, who investigates everything from employee grievances to criminal allegations, and establishes an inspector general who would report to the legislature...

HAVANA -- Armed hijackers seized a ferry off Cuba's coast Wednesday and threatened to toss passengers overboard if they cannot go to the United States, setting off a negotiating drama on the high seas. The FBI said the ferry was drifting in international waters about 60 miles off Key West and was sending hostage negotiators to the scene by helicopter to rendezvous with a U.S. Coast Guard cutter...

As U.S. troops moved ever closer to Baghdad on Wednesday, their commanders already had hints from Basra and other cities of what to expect: armed resistance from guerrilla bands, many in civilian garb, staging hit and run attacks and firing small arms from concealed positions, with civilians sometimes trapped in the crossfire...

ANKARA, Turkey -- Turkey agreed Wednesday to let the United States send food, fuel and medicine -- but not weapons -- through its territory to U.S. soldiers fighting in Iraq, another sign of limited cooperation from NATO's only Muslim member. Secretary of State Colin Powell and Turkish leaders also agreed on an "early warning" system to avert friction between Turkey and Iraqi Kurds -- an accord designed to block Turkey from sending its forces into northern Iraq. ...

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The passengers on the upper deck of bus No. 4 turned their heads in unison to look at the carnage left by the missile attack on the Bab al-Moazam telephone exchange. Many shook their heads in disbelief, and some stared with their mouths agape. But no one said a word...

SPINBOLDAK, Afghanistan -- Two dozen U.S. special forces troops and hundreds of their Afghan allies swooped in on a border village Wednesday to drive out resurgent Taliban fighters in southern Afghanistan. Under fierce attack, the Taliban fled into nearby mountains where they were pummeled by U.S. aircraft...

MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippine president ordered a "total war" on terrorists after a bomb exploded Wednesday near a bustling wharf in the southern port of Davao, killing at least 16 people, including two children. Forty people were injured in the blast, the second in Davao in less than a month. The death toll would have been higher if the nation was not already on high alert for terror acts, officials said...

BEIJING -- Under escalating global pressure, China agreed Wednesday to let international health investigators visit the place where the mystery illness apparently began -- the southern province of Guangdong. Officials also updated the nation's death toll by a dozen to 46 as they revealed the illness had spread to other regions and sickened far more than they initially reported...

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- Israeli tanks backed by attack helicopters invaded a refugee camp near the Gaza-Egypt border late Wednesday, clashing with gunmen and killing four Palestinians, doctors said. Earlier, Israeli troops rounded up hundreds of men in a sweep of the West Bank town of Tulkarem and demolished the home of a jailed Palestinian accused in a string of attacks...

PHILADELPHIA -- At age 50, TV Guide is showing signs of maturity. Circulation is down amid competition from newspapers that offer their own listings and TV shows that provide a steady stream of celebrity news. But TV Guide has also adapted to the changes in the media business in recent years, with online listings, an interactive program guide and a television channel that make the most of its recognizable name and logo...

SAN FRANCISCO -- A 20-year-old Marine reservist seeking to be discharged as a conscientious objector has given himself a second way out -- he's told military leaders he's gay. "I believe that as a gay man, someone who is misunderstood by much of the general population, I have a great deal of experience with hatred and oppression," Lance Cpl. Stephen Funk wrote in his application for a conscientious objector discharge...

EL MONTE, Calif. -- On her second trip to the El Monte Comprehensive Health Center, Candy Guerrero spent nearly an hour waiting for an appointment. The first time, she waited in vain for two hours. "I went home crying," said Guerrero, 61, who suffers from diabetes and a heart condition. "I could not make an appointment. I could not see the doctor."...

Shuttle parts found on Louisiana Army base PICKERING, La. -- The discovery of three engine parts from the space shuttle Columbia could mark the end of the debris search in Louisiana. On Tuesday, workers recovered the debris in two craters at Fort Polk in central Louisiana, ending NASA's search for shuttle debris in the area, said Kelly Humphries, a space agency spokesman...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Two tobacco companies are suing California, saying the state's anti-smoking TV ads unfairly vilify their industry. The counterattack follows a series of multibillion-dollar jury awards against beleaguered cigarette makers, which are trying to cope with a nationwide sales decline...

DETROIT -- General Motors Corp. recalled 341,000 sport utility vehicles Wednesday to replace a driver seat belt buckle assembly. The recall covers model year 1997 Chevrolet Blazer, GMC Jimmy and Oldsmobile Bravada SUVs. Some 313,000 are in the United States and another 19,000 are in Canada...

NEW YORK -- Tyco International filed a $400 million lawsuit against former chief financial officer Mark Swartz, claiming he looted the conglomerate for his personal gain. Swartz already faces criminal charges of theft and fraud filed by government prosecutors, who say he and former CEO L. Dennis Kozlowski stole $600 million from Tyco. They have pleaded innocent...

NEW YORK -- U.S. Technologies CEO C. Gregory Earls pleaded innocent Wednesday to charges he cheated investors out of $15 million and diverted some of the money to a trust for his children. His attorney, Thomas Green, said it was unclear whether Earls could afford a permanent lawyer because the Securities and Exchange Commission froze Earls' assets. A federal judge gave Green and Earls a month to settle the matter...

A drug long used in Germany slows down memory loss and physical decline in advanced Alzheimer's patients, according to a study of what could be the first effective treatment for late stages of the mind-robbing ailment. There is no cure or known prevention for Alzheimer's, which affects about 4 million Americans, and the only medications are approved for earlier stages of the disease...

Growing up in Western Kentucky surrounded by Kentucky Lake and a pond on every farm, it's not hard to grow accustomed to fishing. Michael Wells did. These days Wells not only brings his love for fishing to Cape Girardeau, but he also brings a well-sought desire to help his community...

Rap band Linkin Park's new release at top spot NEW YORK -- Linkin Park's latest release has made a meteoric rise to the top of the album chart, debuting at the No. 1 spot. "Meteora" sold more than 810,000 copies during its first week in stores, according to industry figures released Wednesday...

AUSTIN, Texas -- So much for big, ol' Texas being Football U. The Longhorns just might turn this place into -- gulp -- a hoops hotbed. The men's and women's basketball teams both are in the Final Four, only the fourth time a school has done that. And it's no small feat at a university where the running joke is that there are two sports on campus: football and spring football...

ST. LOUIS -- Woody Williams looked perfectly healthy -- and dominant again at home. Williams, limited to 17 starts last season by a pulled muscle in his left side, pitched two-hit ball into the seventh inning to lead the Cardinals over the Milwaukee Brewers 7-0 Wednesday night...

Sikeston's baseball team sent 19 batters to the plate in a 13-run third inning on its way to a five-inning, 20-5 victory over host Central Wednesday afternoon. Sikeston (4-0) received three-run home runs by Blake DeWitt and Jacob Priday. DeWitt finished with six RBIs, and Priday, who went 4-for-4, had five RBIs...

By Gilbert Degenhardt When it became apparent that addressing growing concerns about the adequacy of the ongoing heath-care delivery system, several basic needs surfaced: simplification, understandability, transportability and all-inclusiveness...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- It would be more difficult for Missouri voters to pass initiative referenda dealing with fish and wildlife issues than tax increases -- or anything else -- under a constitutional amendment proposed by a Southeast Missouri lawmaker...

There will be only two races within Cape Girardeau County for Tuesday's election. In Allenville, four candidates are running for three spots on the board of trustees. In Delta, Ward 2, two candidates are running for one position. Ed Williams' name will appear on Allenville's ballot even though he cannot hold the post due to his parole status for a felony conviction for intent to manufacture methamphetamine...

Cape Girardeau can be a trashy place in mid-April with junk piled high along city streets. But city officials don't mind. It's all part of the city's weeklong spring cleanup that gives residents a chance to get rid of all those broken down couches, old appliances, clothes and other junk...

Area health-care providers are mixed about whether to ask their employees to be inoculated with the smallpox vaccine after reports surfaced of a possible connection to heart-related problems. St. Francis Medical Center is the most notable local example where the growing list of risks, side effects and questions -- including the death of three health-care workers in other places -- has made an impact. The hospital has decided not administer the shots to employees at this time...

Americans today count yellow ribbons as a patriotic gesture, but local historian Frank Nickell says the tradition has more to do with an Irish drinking song than a salute to troops. The origins of the yellow-ribbon tradition to remember soldiers in conflict may date back to the Civil War, but there's little solid evidence to support it. Civil War historians say no diaries, letters or photographs of that era could be found documenting the tradition...

Returning with a unanimous verdict, a Cape Girardeau County jury found an Illinois great-grandmother guilty of conspiracy to commit murder but asked that she not serve any prison time. After more than two hours of deliberation, the jury recommended a five-year prison sentence for Helen A. Severs, 67, of Ullin, Ill., but additionally asked Circuit Judge John Heisserer to suspend the imposition of that sentence and place her on probation...

The city of Jackson will be able to move forward with its search for a police chief on Friday after the county sheriff's department hands over its background checks today. It is another step toward filling the position in a process that has been ongoing for nearly six months...

NASIRIYAH, Iraq -- An American flag folded across her chest, Pfc. Jessica Lynch left Iraq on a stretcher Wednesday after U.S. commandos, acting on a CIA tip, rescued the prisoner of war. But the operation also brought sad news -- the troops found 11 corpses, some believed to be Americans...

The Associated Press AMMAN, Jordan -- Four journalists detained for a week in Baghdad said Wednesday they feared for their lives "every second" they were in Iraq's most notorious prison. Newsday correspondent Matt McAllester, 33, and photographer Moises Saman, 29, were freed Tuesday after being held for a week in Abu Ghraib prison, along with Molly Bingham, a freelance photographer from Louisville, Ky., and Danish freelance photographer Johan Rydeng Spanner...

ABOARD THE USS KITTY HAWK -- The two Americans bailed out of a failing F-14 Tomcat fighter jet in the Iraqi desert, and when rescuers asked if they could walk, they didn't hesitate. "I can run, just point me in the right direction," replied one crew member, a lieutenant commander nicknamed Gordo...

In a day of advances and losses, U.S. forces fought to within sight of the Baghdad skyline 20 miles away Wednesday, seizing key bridges and shattering two divisions of the vaunted Republican Guard as they thrust north from two directions -- the Army from the southwest, Marines from the southeast...

HAVANA -- Cuba is seeking life sentences for at least 10 of the dissidents jailed in the largest crackdown in years aimed at extinguishing all government opposition, the island's best-known rights activist said Wednesday. A total of 78 dissidents have been arrested since March 18, accused of working with U.S. diplomats to subvert Fidel Castro's government and being mercenaries in the pay of Washington...

GENEVA It was 2:30 a.m. when Dr. Mike Ryan was awakened by the phone call that catapulted the world's health officials into crisis mode over a deadly flu-like illness striking in Asia. n It was health authorities in Singapore. They had heard that a doctor from their country might be sick with the mysterious Asian bug -- and he could be carrying the new disease around the world on a flight home from New York...

April 3, 2003 DC, Snow began falling sideways just as I arrived in Massachusetts. Just like James Taylor sings, the Berkshires were dreamlike, mountainous silhouettes in the whiteness. The drive took 23 hours not counting lunches and made to seem longer by a grinding run side-by-side with semis on the rainy Pennsylvania turnpike...

New exhibits open at Arts Council of Southeast Missouri Exhibits "Pulp Elements" by Teresa Mosley Dirks and "Walkin' Down Main Street" by Tim Hahn will be on display beginning today at the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri. The exhibits open with an artists' reception from 5 to 8 p.m. tonight. Dr. Dale Haskell will provide music at the reception...

Briefly Baseball Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett was cleared Thursday of all charges in the alleged sexual assault of a woman in a restaurant bathroom. A jury of six men and six women deliberated nearly 12 hours over two days. ...

Three and a half stars A combination of U.S. forces and intelligence made this movie pretty exciting. Although a movie with adults in mind, a few teens may find "The Core" enjoyable. It is a mix of subtle adult humor and brainy facts. Not much of a date movie, but I would suggest to get a group of friends together to go to see "The Core." It is scary to a certain point, in the beginning you see all these people keel over and you have no idea why. ...

10 years ago: April 4, 1993 The Rev. Ann Sherer, consecrated as bishop of Missouri Area in 1992, preaches during morning worship service at Centenary United Methodist Church; her topic is "Eager Every Morning." Good Shepherd Lutheran Chapel begins Holy Week with festival Palm Sunday service in morning; children of congregation participate in procession of palms, and the Rev. ...

Rendleman Daughter to Stuart Jason and Amy Lu Rendleman of Anna, Ill., St. Francis Medical Center, 3:34 p.m. Monday, March 31, 2003. Name, Keri Lu. Weight, 6 pounds 6 ounces. Fourth daughter. Mrs. Rendleman is the former Amy Follis, daughter of Fawn Follis of Jonesboro, Ill. She is a computer information specialist at Southern Illinois University. Rendleman is the son of Leon and Sue Rendleman of Anna. He is an ironworker with Taylor Brothers...

ST. LOUIS -- Mike Conley, 55, of Jackson, died Thursday, April 3, 2003, at the John Cochran Veterans Hospital in St. Louis. Arrangements are incomplete at the McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson.

ADVANCE, Mo. -- Willard "Bill" Rainey, 79, of Advance died Tuesday, April 1, 2003, at Missouri Southern Healthcare in Dexter, Mo. He was born Aug. 21, 1923, in Advance, son of Charles and Lula Raver Rainey. He and Helen Croy were married Aug. 24, 1945, in Piggott, Ark...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- George W. Keller, 84, of Perryville died Thursday, April 3, 2003, at Perry County Memorial Hospital. He was born Nov. 19, 1918, at St. Mary's, Mo., son of Harry E. and Mabel Roth Keller. He and Mary Schneier were married Feb. 7, 1942...

HAYWOOD CITY, Mo. -- Ida Mae Wilkins, 54, of Haywood City died Friday, March 28, 2003, at the home of a sister in St. Louis. She was born April 21, 1948, in Greenville, Miss., daughter of Mary Stevens and Wilber Moore. She and George Wilkins were married in 1971. He died in 1985...

MILLER CITY, Ill. -- Evelyn Becker, 81, of Beaumont, Texas, died Wednesday, April 2, 2003, in Beaumont. She was born May 25, 1921, in Miller City, daughter of Thomas and Vera Willis McCoy. She and the Rev. Walter E. Becker were married in 1944. The Beckers resided in the Miller City/Olive Branch, Ill., area until moving to Beaumont in the 1950s...

Wilma Below, 85, of Delta died Wednesday, April 2, 2003, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. She was born June 8, 1917, at Wittenberg, Mo., daughter of William and Jennie Wray Whitener. She and John Below were married Jan. 16, 1945, at Jackson. He preceded her in death May 7, 1975...

Robert Baxter Paden, 70, of Maysville, Mo., died Wednesday, April 2, 2003, at Heartland West Medical Center in St. Joseph, Mo. He was born June 22, 1932, in Kansas City, Mo., son of Thomas Elmer and Emily Hannah Morrison Paden. He and Jean Lowes were united in marriage Oct. 23, 1965...

ADVANCE, Mo. -- Betty J. Nettler, 73, of Advance entered into rest Wednesday, April 2, 2003, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. She was born Jan. 18, 1930, at Brownwood, Mo., daughter of Laurence and Eula Smith Williams. Betty was united in marriage to Larry Nettler June 18, 1966, in St. Louis. He preceded her in death Nov. 14, 1992...

No more to squeeze IF I had a great income or a prosperous business, I wouldn't mind a tax increase too much. But many of us don't, and we can't afford more taxes. City council, read our lips: Stop squeezing the turnip. Imperfect people ADDICTION IS a disease? How about diabetes? How about obesity? We'll just get rid of all the imperfect people. ...

To the editor: I recall the childhood I so loved, when all seemed good in the world, in the bootheel of Missouri where summers scorched your skin and winters seemed a little magical -- to a child anyway. I suddenly understand why my father loves and respects his home so...

To the editor: History tells us that in times of national distress people turn to the arts for an emotional outlet. The arts can be a powerful tool for a city when recruiting businesses. When relocating, people are interested in the cultural activities a city can offer their children. The Arts Council of Southeast Missouri provides a venue for local and national artists and sponsors the Children's Arts Festival, concerts, programs for seniors and the disabled and summer arts classes...

What would you say if I told you that you could invite someone to remove bugs for you and they wouldn't charge you a fee? You might be skeptical and rightly so. The bug catchers I am referring to charge a fee, but it is not money. They want habitat, and if you're in tune with their demands I think the arrangement will be equitable...

Let's just say that the world's auto makers don't have to worry about competition from the solar cars that race 2,200 miles every two years from Chicago to Los Angeles. The solar-powered cars are big on efficiency and short on style and comfort. In spite of a solar car's shortcomings, it always proves to be quite an attraction as it is shown off. ...

Since the U.S. economy soured more than two years ago, Missouri has been among those states that have been hardest hit. The economic impact has been seen in softer tax revenue for virtually all levels of government from city sales taxes to state income taxes...

Cape Girardeau Friday, April 4 The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau Police Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. Arrests Austin E. Haley, 60, of 412 S. Ellis, Cape Girardeau, was arrested Wednesday on a Cape Girardeau County warrant for bad checks...

Cape Girardeau Friday, April 4 Firefighters responded Wednesday to the following items: At 3:39 p.m., alarm at 900 Normal. At 4:53 p.m., false call at 1405 Mississippi. At 11:45 p.m., gas smell at 807 N. Sprigg. Firefighters responded Thursday to the following items: At 12:11 a.m., gas smell at 821 Broadway...

Bush proposes housing changes to help poor WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration wants to give states control of federal vouchers that help nearly 2 million families pay the rent -- a major shake-up for one of the government's largest housing programs...

WASHINGTON -- The nation's overtime pay law took another hit Thursday as a House panel approved legislation that would let employers offer paid time off instead. A House Workforce subcommittee voted 8-6 along party lines to approve the bill, which the full committee will take up next week. House leaders want a floor vote by early May...

American forces might stop short of storming Baghdad and instead isolate it while the makings of a new national government are put in place, President Bush's top military adviser said Thursday. Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, indicated the coming days might bring neither an all-out fight for the city, as many have predicted, nor a conventional siege of the capital...

ST. LOUIS -- A former Southeast Missouri bank employee has pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $100,000 from her bank, U.S. Attorney Ray Gruender said Thursday. Sharon C. Miles, 49, of Viburnum, faces sentencing June 26. Miles held various jobs at the Quad County State Bank in Viburnum from June 1995 until she was removed in February 2002. Gruender said Miles embezzled money through various means beginning in 1996. All told, she embezzled $115,000, he said...

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Five days before voters will decide whether to loosen restrictions on marijuana use, a White House official urged Columbia residents "not to fall for the lie" that marijuana is an innocent drug. At a news conference Thursday, Scott Burns, director of state and local affairs for the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, repeatedly said he was not in Columbia to tell people how to vote, but attacked many of the primary arguments presented by those who support the proposal.. ...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Legislation capping property tax increases for older Missourians cleared the House on Thursday and went to the Senate. The bill, passed on a 108-28 House vote, also makes a key revision in the state's SenioRx Program, which helps some Missourians 65 and older pay for prescription drugs. The change is intended to attract more companies that make generic drugs to the program...

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Margaret Daugherty considers her job a labor of love -- all 90 hours a week. A home health-care worker paid by the state, she cares for three elderly or disabled people, cleaning, running errands, helping them bathe, even cutting their hair. She does it for $7 an hour with no overtime, sick leave, vacation or health insurance...

WASHINGTON -- The Senate voted easily Thursday to give President Bush about $80 billion for initial costs of the war with Iraq and other anti-terrorism efforts. The House neared approval of a similar bill after thwarting conservatives trying to lash out at Turkey...

The Associated PressHAVANA -- The first wave of dissidents rounded up in a nationwide crackdown went on trial Thursday as Fidel Castro's government moved to wipe out growing opposition. Prosecutors sought life sentences for 12 of the 80 defendants...

GUANGZHOU, China -- A team of international scientists landed Thursday in this city just west of Hong Kong and set to work hunting clues to the origins of a fatal flu-like illness as the worldwide death toll rose. Officials in Guangdong province on China's southern coast gave the World Health Organization team figures indicating that fewer people in the hard-hit region are getting sick from severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, said Chris Powell, a spokesman for the team...

Land mine destroys bus in Chechnya, killing six ROSTOV-ON-DON, Russia -- A bus was blown apart by a remote-controlled mine in Chechnya Thursday, killing at least six people just weeks after a referendum touted as the start of a peace process. The explosive was hidden in a pile of trash in the capital Grozny, said Yuri Miroshnichenko, a duty officer at the Emergency Situations Ministry's office for southern Russia...

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -- A Dutch court has blocked publication in the Netherlands of a Russian children's book that author J.K. Rowling said was too similar to her "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." The Amsterdam district court on Thursday ordered Dutch publisher Byblos to withhold 7,000 translated copies of "Tanja Grotter and the Magic Bass," by Dmitry Yemets, rejecting an argument that it was a parody of Harry Potter...

'Elephant'Remember the first time you inhaled from a cigarette and broke into a cold sweat for 45 horrible, nauseous minutes? If you were stupid enough to do it again and again ... mmm, blissfully hooked. So it is listening to The White Stripes' fourth -- and arguably best -- album, a sharp-tongued, tweaked-out, menacing rock assault that secretly mocks you for loving every juvenile, sweaty, spittle-flying minute of it...

CANCUN, Mexico -- With dozens of wildly popular reality shows crowding the television airwaves, it was only a matter of time before Hollywood took a crack at its own version of "real life." The two-producer team that created MTV's "The Real World" has taken the phenomenon south of the border, throwing 16 college students together in a hotel and taping every minute of the spring break insanity that follows...

LOS ANGELES -- This is shaping up as a very good year for BET. Just three months into 2003 -- after a major programming overhaul -- Black Entertainment Television has seen double-digit increases in advertising and subscribers, now at 74 million households. And BET attained its highest ever prime-time ratings in January...

NEW YORK -- A growing number of companies, searching for ways to cut costs, are suspending their matching contributions to workers' 401(k) retirement accounts. Such a move by broker Charles Schwab & Co. won wide attention in March because the company has been outspoken in its support of the investment vehicle. But Schwab is not alone...

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- HealthSouth Corp. cut 20 percent of its headquarters staff Thursday as five more executives agreed to plead guilty in a huge accounting fraud that has the health care giant teetering on bankruptcy. The layoffs of 165 people was HealthSouth's first mass personnel cut since the government accused it of overstating earnings by at least $1.4 billion since 1999 to make it appear the company was meeting Wall Street forecasts...

BOSTON -- A man who spent 19 years in prison after three rape victims identified him as their attacker was freed Thursday, cleared by new DNA evidence on evidence dug up by a law student working on his case. "It's a big change," Dennis Maher said at the Boston office of his attorneys. "I expected to die in prison and now I'm out."...

PHILADELPHIA -- With cash tight and bills looming, legislators around the country are turning to neighborhood pubs to help them drown their woes: At least 19 states are either considering plans to boost beer taxes or have already done it. Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell has proposed one of the heftiest hikes, a plan that would raise the tax on a gallon of beer for the first time since 1947, from 8 cents to a quarter. It would add 14 cents to the cost of an average six pack and raise $55 million...

'Matrix' sequel will premiere at Cannes PARIS -- The futuristic sci-fi sequel "The Matrix: Reloaded" will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May, where its filmmakers and stars will walk down the red carpet. The second film in the "Matrix" thriller trilogy, "Reloaded" will be shown out of competition on May 15, the second day of the festival, which runs until May 25. That's the same day the film will be released worldwide...

When you hear the words old-world charm, rustic and a timeless classic, and petite bistro you might think you have opened up a travel brochure, but you haven't -- you have walked into the Rose of Broadway. The Rose is a small restaurant, but I felt very comfortable there (kick-off-your-shoes comfortable)...

Government officials won't pull out the ceremonial shovel until next Friday, but anyone who drives along North Kingshighway near the intersection of Interstate 55 can tell that ground has already been broken for a conservation campus project at Cape Girardeau County Park North...

LONDON -- The number of new cancer cases worldwide is expected to increase by 50 percent over the next 20 years, partly because poor nations are adopting unhealthy Western habits, the World Health Organization said Thursday. The World Cancer Report is the first comprehensive examination of cancer around the globe, covering the current understanding of its causes, prevention and treatment...

NEAR NAJAF, Iraq -- More than 150 hard-line Iraqi fighters remained shuttered Thursday inside the gold-domed Mosque of Ali, while hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets of Najaf to keep U.S. troops from entering the Shiite Muslim shrine. An uneasy peace finally descended on this holy city in southern Iraq, with U.S. troops pulling back from the mosque after the loyalists defied orders to abandon it...

NASIRIYAH, Iraq -- A flimsy donkey cart rolled slowly toward the heavily guarded bridge. In it rode a teenage boy, his legs horribly burned from accidentally spilling hot oil on himself. The boy needed help. He found it from U.S. forces. When the Americans reached Nasiriyah after days of heavy fighting, many anticipated an angry reception. ...

UNITED NATIONS -- A U.S.-run administration in Iraq will not have the authority under international law to award American companies major contracts to modernize and run Iraq's vast oil industry, a senior U.N. official said Thursday. Under the Geneva Conventions, an occupying power can only deal with day-to-day administrative operations unless the U.N. Security Council decides otherwise, said Mark Malloch Brown, administrator of the United Nations Development Program...

It's an enchanted evening that most girls dream about for years, but the cost of attending a high school prom these days is nothing to bat your eyes at. Students in area schools say their attire alone for the formal event can be as much as $500, and then there's eating out, photographs and souvenirs to consider...

Patriotism over promotion. That's what several area businesses have chosen by at least temporarily replacing the slogans and product pitches on their outdoor signs with sayings like "God bless America," "We support our troops," and "Pray for our military."...

Several veteran teachers, along with school administrators and a librarian, have been named winners of this year's educator of the year awards by the Jackson and Cape Girardeau chambers of commerce. Jackson's educators of the year will officially be recognized during the chamber of commerce's annual banquet April 24 at the Knights of Columbus Hall. Cape Girardeau's chamber will hold an awards banquet May 1 at Drury Lodge...

SBC Communications Inc. on Thursday reduced its long-distance calling rates for consumers to a flat monthly rate in an attempt to ward off competition and retain customers. SBC, the No. 2 U.S. local telephone company, said its new residential service package will include unlimited local and domestic, long-distance calls, caller ID, and voice messaging for $52.95 a month in Missouri...

Army forces launched a nighttime attack on Saddam International Airport just outside Baghdad on Thursday and fought running battles with Iraqis along the city's southern fringes. "A vise is closing on the regime," President Bush told cheering Marines stateside...

The Cape Girardeau Regional Air Festival will take to the skies this year after a one-year hiatus because of difficulties in securing corporate sponsors. The "Heroes and Legends" festival is scheduled for July 11-13 at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport and will feature Lima Lima, the world's only six-plane civilian formation aerobatic team...

Saxony Lutheran High School will hold a rummage sale from 7:30 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Heartland Banquet Hall in Jackson, located on U.S. 61 across from the water slide. Concessions will be available. Proceeds will benefit school activities.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- In a move sure to please students, school districts that had a substantial number of snow days this year will be allowed to forgo making up as many as five days of classes under legislation sent to the governor on Thursday. The bill was a response to the uncommonly harsh winter in the southern part of the state. Some Southeast Missouri districts canceled classes on more than 20 days...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- After 29 versions, Senate President Pro Tem Peter Kinder thought he had a nursing home reform bill all sides could live with when he brought it up for debate Thursday. However, the effort hit a snag when another Republican senator offered a substitute proposal that reform proponents said upset the delicate compromise reached in Kinder's bill...

Now is the time to get into some of the best catfishing in Missouri's rivers. With clearer, colder waters, it's also a great time to snag some of the best-tasting catfish of the year. Shad sides or guts and night crawlers are the baits of choice. The catfish are eating on shad kills from winter and worms that the warmer weather has brought. Other baits, such as stink bait and liver, need warmer water to have their best effect...

A season that should provide plenty of options for area fans and a new level of competition among race tracks begins in earnest today. Oval tracks near Benton, Fredericktown, Farmington, Malden and Pevely -- many of them featuring either similar or identical weekly classes -- are scheduled to kick off the season today and Saturday...

Chaffee freshman Whitney Horrell made her varsity softball debut a memorable one, firing a six-inning no-hitter at Meadow Heights as the visiting Red Devils rolled to a 14-0 victory Thursday. Horrell struck out nine of the 20 hitters she faced and hit one batter. The Red Devil allowed a second baserunner on an error...

Like everything else about John Wooden, his retirement is the envy of coaches everywhere. In 1975, in the aftermath of the Bruins' 10th national championship in 12 seasons, a UCLA booster sidled over to Wooden and said, "This makes up for you letting us down last year." The remark so disgusted the Wizard of Westwood that he resigned within days...

Hannah Stuckenschneider is proud of what she has accomplished so far during a stellar track and field career at Southeast Missouri State University. She takes even more pride in her academic achievements. "A lot of people didn't think I would make it this far, and I'm really proud of myself," said Stuckenschneider, a senior 400-meter specialist who will join her teammates in this weekend's Gatorade Classic at the Abe Stuber Complex...

The name has changed, but expect Southeast Missouri State University's annual track and field meet to feature its usual top individual performances and competitive team battles. The 22nd annual Gatorade Classic -- it's the fourth name change the event has had --will be this weekend at the Abe Stuber Complex. Titled the All Sport Classic the past few years, Pepsi Mid-America remains the corporate sponsor...

ST. LOUIS -- Garrett Stephenson feels good, and it showed. The former 16-game winner, bothered by injuries the past two seasons, allowed one run in 6 1/3 innings as the Cardinals completed an opening three-game sweep of Milwaukee by beating the Brewers 6-4 Thursday...

The AssociatedPress ST. LOUIS -- Nathan Dempsey and Chris Simon each scored twice and rookie goalie Michael Leighton won his first career game as the Chicago Blackhawks beat the slumping Blues 6-4 Thursday night. The Blues trail the Avalanche by three points for fourth place in the Western Conference, and home-ice advantage for the first round. ...

We're learning about DVDs at our house. The learning curve, I must say, is steep. Which is why I am pleading, one more time, with Asian manufacturers of electronic gizmos to stop hiring Venezuelan immigrants living in Denmark to write the instruction manuals intended for speakers of English...

It wasn't until the late 1980s that scientific advancements permitted authorities to gather and rely on evidence contained in each person's unique genetic code. As a result, there now is a precise way to identify -- or eliminate -- criminal suspects...

FOSHAN, China -- In an extraordinary move, the Chinese government apologized Friday for not warning people quickly about the dangers of the deadly mystery illness that began here. The apology came as international health investigators said they believed they were on the trail of the first person ever infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome...

WASHINGTON -- Federal researchers are beginning work toward a vaccine that could eventually help control the mystery illness that has spread from Asia to North America and killed at least 85 people. The research on a vaccine is just getting under way at the National Institutes of Health, but officials said Friday they are already trying to interest industry in producing a vaccine based on the results...

Businessman Jim Drury lashed out at Cape Girardeau city government "tax math" on Friday, charging that four tax and fee issues on Tuesday's ballot would cost households close to $300 more a year rather than the $83.51 figure city officials have calculated...

The economy is in a funk. America is mired in a war. Wall Street is indecisive, at best. Not to mention that 100,000 jobs have left Missouri in the last 18 months, and this remains one of the few states in the country still steeped in recession. That was the dour message about 60 Southeast Missouri State University students and faculty heard Friday from two state legislators who listed those reasons as factors behind Missouri's estimated $1 billion budget shortfall...

An Iraqi lawyer tipped U.S. forces to the location of POW Jessica Lynch after seeing her slapped in the face by a burly Fedayeen security man guarding her in a Nasiriyah hospital, according to published reports. The 32-year-old lawyer, identified only as Mohammed, told The Washington Post and USA Today that he peered through a window at the hospital where his wife worked as a nurse and saw a sight that "cut" his heart: Lynch being slapped in the face by the black-clad Iraqi security agent...

NEAR KHAZER, Iraq -- The Kurds' yellow flag was wedged into the rusty bridge at Khazer, a key crossing point on the road to the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. Militiamen allied with U.S. forces marched over single file, their rucksacks and guns swaying on their backs...

NEAR BAGHDAD, Iraq -- U.S. troops found thousands of boxes of suspicious white powder, nerve agent antidote and Arabic documents on how to engage in chemical warfare south of Baghdad. But a senior U.S. official familiar with initial testing said the materials were believed to be explosives...

U.S. tanks and armored vehicles rolled into the Iraqi capital early this morning for the first time, making reconnaissance probes as Marines and infantry on the city edges fought to impose a "choke hold" on President Saddam Hussein's seat of power...

When you're the wife, mother, father, brother, sister, child or even aunt or uncle of someone in the military right now, it doesn't seem to matter whether they're in combat or anticipating deployment. "Waiting for the phone call is just as bad," said Kim Dohogne, the ombudsman for the U.S. Naval Reserve Station in Cape Girardeau...

WASHINGTON -- With their troops overtaking Iraq, President Bush and wartime ally Tony Blair will meet next week in Northern Ireland to review final-stage battle plans as well as Bush's hotly debated blueprint for postwar reconstruction. Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern will join the leaders in Belfast for meetings Tuesday that also will address efforts to bring peace to Northern Ireland and the Middle East...

SYDNEY, Australia -- The bride has arrived and so has Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani with her dress. Despite a planning hiccup, the chapel is ready and tents are up to protect guests from the prying eyes of the media. But that hasn't stopped reporters and photographers from trying to peek at the preparations for Russell Crowe's wedding to girlfriend Danielle Spencer -- mostly from helicopters hovering over the Oscar winner's ranch...

BAGDAD, Calif. -- It's hot and dry here and not terribly hospitable. Years of neglect have left few structures standing. Trucks rumble by, kicking up desert dust. This is Bagdad -- the California version. The now-abandoned highway stop deep in the Mojave desert is one of at least 10 Bagdads in a handful of states that existed in relative obscurity until Iraq's capital once again became a target for U.S. bombs...

BOONVILLE, Mo. -- A surprise winning bid by the city of Boonville kept Kemper Military School's campus from being sliced up at auction Friday. But thousands of school items -- some historic, some mundane -- were sold to the highest bidders. Those bidders included clusters of alumni determined to preserve items ranging from class photographs to ethics codes signed by generations of cadets at what was the oldest military school west of the Mississippi River...

ST. LOUIS -- A former Cape Girardeau public defender has resigned in the fallout from a racist joke he told. Kent Hall, the head of the public defender's office in St. Louis, quit Thursday. Others in his office said Hall's joke caused credibility problems, especially considering that more than nine out of 10 of their clients are black...

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Protesters against the war with Iraq joined several hundred people for a march honoring Martin Luther King Jr. on the 35th anniversary of his assassination. "The truest kind of patriotism is to challenge your country to do the right thing," Joseph Lowery, a former King associate and longtime civil rights leader, told more than 3,500 people gathered for a memorial service for King following the march...

CHIMA, Bolivia -- Crews searching for survivors from a landslide that buried this Bolivian mining town said Friday they may declare the site a mass grave after another day of rescue efforts found nothing. Crews, which have recovered 17 bodies, have given up hope of finding anyone alive from Monday's avalanche. Villagers have reported dozens of people still missing, but officials had no firm number of victims still buried...

MEXICO CITY -- Police arrested nine members of the powerful Juarez Cartel during raids across Mexico, capturing the violent drug gang's main killers, the federal attorney general said Friday. The arrests, carried out Thursday and early Friday in seven separate states, marked the latest blow to the country's powerful drug trade. ...

WASHINGTON -- U.S. companies slashed 108,000 jobs in March as war in Iraq battered the economy at home. The unemployment rate held at 5.8 percent after thousands of job seekers gave up and dropped out of the work pool. Job cuts were widespread with few hiring gains, the Labor Department reported Friday. That ignited fresh recession worries among economists, who said that a quick end to the war couldn't even resuscitate the jobs market, which is expected to worsen in coming months...

National Day of Prayer speaker announced Former Missouri Secretary of State Bekki Cook of Cape Girardeau will be the featured speaker during the Mayors' Prayer Breakfast May 1 at the Osage Community Centre. A community choir also will perform. The event is part of the area's National Day of Prayer observance. The breakfast will be from 6:45 to 8 a.m. at the Osage Centre and is a continental breakfast...

Saturday "Dwelling in the secret place" conference for women from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Illmo Baptist Church in Scott City. Speaker is Laura Trapp of MorningJoy Ministries and music by Audrey Franklin and Celebration Generation. Cost is $12 and includes a light breakfast and lunch...

Down the drain IF THE tax for a water park passes, we will literally throw tax money down the drain -- though for a good reason. Within our means WE WOULD like to live beyond our means just as our state and federal governments do. However, we have not yet found a way to get votes for an increase in our wages or Social Security. ...

Dirnberger Son to Derek and Nicole Dirnberger of St. Louis, St. Mary's Medical Center in Clayton, Mo., 2:51 p.m. Monday, March 24, 2003. Name, Drew Michael. Weight, 5 pounds 10 ounces. First child. Mrs. Dirnberger is the former Nicole Inman, daughter of Larry and Fern Burgess of St. Charles, Mo. She is a sales representative with Paychex. Dirnberger is the son of Henry and Pam Dirnberger of Benton, Mo. He is self-employed with Dirnberger Resurfacing...

10 years ago: April 5, 1993 Proponents of school bond issue and building fund tax levy to be decided Tuesday by Cape Girardeau voters denounce "11th-hour campaign" by people hoping to defeat two propositions; opposition, Citizens Against the School Bond Issue, ran half-page advertisement in Sunday's and today's Southeast Missourian outlining their reasons for opposing school bond issue...

ANNA, Ill., -- Junior R. Miller, 70, of Anna died Friday, April 4, 2003, at the Veterans Home in Anna. Funeral arrangements are pending at Hileman & Parr Funeral Services in Jonesboro, Ill.

CAIRO, Ill. -- Maudie Christine Chambliss, 100, of Cairo died Tuesday, April 1, 2003, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. Chambliss was formerly of Mounds, Ill. Friends may call at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Mound City, Ill., after 9 a.m. today...

Michael L. "Mike" Conley, 55, of Jackson died Thursday, April 3, 2003, at John Cochran VA Medical Center in St. Louis. He was born July 4, 1947, in Cape Girardeau, son of William R. and Virginia Crader Conley. He and Reita Schweain were married Sept. 1, 1967, in Jackson...

To the editor: In response to the article "War ties up demand for yellow ribbon": Thank you for placing the photo of our youngest son, John, on the front of the April 2 edition in the story about the yellow ribbons. He was very proud to be able to answer your reporter's questions about his brother's involvement in the war. ...

WANT TO GO? "One Voice" production at 7 p.m. April 11, 12 and 13 at Cape First, 254 S. Silver Springs Road. Admission is $3. Call 334-4421 for information. "Freedom" production at 7 p.m. April 9 to 13; matinee at 3 p.m. ...

To the editor: I used to think this was a great place to live until I moved away. You people complain about every little thing that crosses your minds. If I were a person thinking of moving to or vacationing in Cape Girardeau or Jackson and happened to read Speak Out, I'd abandon the thought immediately...

What would the English language be without the English Bible? Etymologists say the grand old Bibles, along with Shakespeare, pretty much established the tongue and their words still resonate. Consider "Passover," for example. The English label for Judaism's annual festival originated with a Christian Bible. (The Hebrew "Pesach" literally means "Passage.")...

Through the emergence of various community groups, talent shows and the like, Southeast Missouri residents are learning just how many artistically gifted people live among us. The latest effort is the Heartland Pops Orchestra and Chorus, which will present "Broadway at the Pops" at 3 p.m. Sunday in the Jackson High School auditorium. The group, formed last August, first performed a Christmas concert...

Cape Girardeau Saturday, April 5 The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau Police Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. Arrests Paula J. Cornman, 29, of 224 Independence, Apt. E, Cape Girardeau, was arrested Thursday on a Dunklin County warrant for probation violation...

Cape Girardeau Saturday, April 5 Firefighters responded Thursday to the following items: At 6:54 p.m., smoke alarm at 1901 Weissinger. At 8:24 p.m., emergency medical service at 301 N. West End Blvd. At 8:38 p.m., smoke alarm at 703 Watkins. At 10:03 p.m., emergency medical service at 1805 Margaret...

Cape Girardeau County Saturday, April 5 The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. Arrests Robert J. Luttrel, 24, of Chaffee, Mo., was arrested March 27 on a warrant for failure to appear...

Man stabbed during argument at gas station An argument over a woman between two Cape Girardeau brothers escalated into a stabbing in a gas station parking lot Thursday night, police said. The victim, 41, was allegedly cut on his upper right arm by Bobby E. Reed, 39, of Cape Girardeau, said police spokesman Sgt. Rick Schmidt...

A Cape Girardeau business that supplies parts to motorcycle shops around the world and an organization set up to assist businesses were given the U.S. Department of Commerce's Export Achievement Certificate Friday morning. Motorcycle Stuff and the Small Business Development Center at Southeast Missouri State University were presented the certificates at First Friday Coffee, a Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce event...

ATLANTA -- After months of debating Georgia's flag, state lawmakers from both parties struck a surprise compromise Friday -- an entirely new flag with no public referendum first. Gov. Sonny Perdue, who had proposed a statewide referendum on changing the flag shortly after his upset victory last November, is now endorsing a completely new design that does not include the divisive Confederate battle emblem. ...

PLATTE CITY, Mo. -- The bell that graced the bridge of the USS Platte for more than 30 years has been given to Platte County. The Platte County Board of Commissioners received the bell from the Navy on Thursday. The bell was on the USS Platte from 1939 to 1970...

ST. LOUIS -- A St. Louis man was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison in connection with an incident in which he shot at a city police officer in October. Maurice Thomas Poindexter, 25, was convicted in U.S. District Court in January of one felony count of being a previously convicted felon in possession of a firearm...

CHICAGO -- A fire erupted Friday in a food store that illegally sold leopard and tiger meat to gourmets with exotic tastes, and an underground animal rights group claimed credit for starting the blaze. "The Animal Liberation Front has claimed credit for starting this fire," FBI spokesman Ross Rice said. He said the fire was being considered an act of domestic terrorism on the part of the animal-rights group...

HAVANA -- Cuban security forces waiting in the waters of Mariel port rescued hostages jumping from a ferry boat as other troops stormed the vessel and arrested the captors, the government said Friday. The nearly 50 hostages were uninjured, according to a government statement read on state television. The hijackers were taken by boat to an undisclosed location and their identities were not released...

FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. -- A soldier from the 101st Airborne Division has been charged with murder in a grenade attack on officers' tents in Kuwait that killed two. The charges against Sgt. Hasan K. Akbar, 32, were announced Friday afternoon. Fort Campbell officials said Akbar was charged March 25 with two counts of premeditated murder and 17 counts of attempted murder, under military law...

The Jackson police chief search committee narrowed its list to three candidates Friday. The finalists are Jackson police detective James Humphreys; Douglas E. Lebert, police chief in Lebanon, Ill.; and Jeffery Womack, recently retired from the Missouri State Highway Patrol Gaming Division...

WASHINGTON -- Michael Kelly, editor-at-large for The Atlantic Monthly, was killed while covering the war in Iraq, the first American journalist to die in the conflict. Kelly, also a columnist for The Washington Post and a former editor of The New Republic, died Thursday night along with a U.S. soldier when their Humvee went into a canal. Kelly, 46, was traveling with the Army's 3rd Infantry Division as one of 600 journalists embedded with U.S. forces...

TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Although Jeremy Mayfield got his first pole in more than two years, he doesn't figure the Talladega Superspeedway aces from Dale Earnhardt Inc. should be too worried. "That doesn't change anything," Mayfield said of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Michael Waltrip. "We beat them in qualifying, but they don't ever qualify that well."...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Brian Vickers was just another new kid in the Busch Series a week ago. Then he had an almost-certain victory taken from him and the list of big-name drivers rallied around him. From Dale Earnhardt Jr. to Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, all supported the 19-year-old after NASCAR ruled against a pass he attempted in the Busch race at Texas last weekend...

ST. LOUIS -- Brad Ausmus hit a grand slam in the first inning and a solo shot in the 12th to lead the Houston Astros over the Cardinals 6-5 Friday night. With two runners on in the bottom of the 12th, Brad Lidge struck out Albert Pujols on a 3-2 pitch and Ausmus threw out Fernando Vina trying to steal third to end it...

Briefly Baseball Derek Jeter and the Yankees might have caught a big break: The All-Star shortstop probably won't need surgery. Team doctors said Friday that Jeter's injury should be treated "conservatively" instead of with an operation that could have sidelined the heart and soul of the Yankees for most of the season. Instead, Jeter could be back in about a month...

CHICAGO -- Pavol Demitra's goal early in the third period lifted the St. Louis into a 2-2 tie with the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night, stretching the Blues' winless streak to four games. Demitra tied it 5:36 into the third when his centering pass deflected off the stick of Chicago's Alex Zhamnov and past rookie goalie Michael Leighton...

You wouldn't expect somebody who played his first major college football game against Nebraska's vaunted defense in front of nearly 80,000 rabid Cornhusker fans to shy away from a crowded quarterback situation. So forgive Andrew Goodenough if he doesn't seem bothered by the presence of two record-setting signal callers at Southeast Missouri State University...

Heather Jenkins won the first Gatorade Classic title of her career Friday -- but not in the event most would expect. Jenkins, a sophomore track and field athlete at Southeast Missouri State University, captured the hammer throw as the 22nd annual Gatorade Classic began at Southeast's Abe Stuber Complex...

Southeast Missouri State University's softball team will look to shake off Wednesday's pair of 9-0 losses to Missouri when the Otahkians jump back into Ohio Valley Conference play this weekend. The Otahkians (6-17, 2-1 OVC) visit Austin Peay (13-16-1, 3-0) for a three-game series beginning with today's 1 p.m. doubleheader. There will be a 1 p.m. single game Sunday...

NEW ORLEANS -- Kansas coach Roy Williams looks at Marquette's Dwyane Wade and sees a momentary flicker of Michael Jordan. When Marquette coach Tom Crean describes KU forward Nick Collison's versatility, he might as well be talking about Larry Bird...

Southeast Missouri State University's baseball team has already played 19 games, but in reality, the Indians' season begins today. It's not that what the Indians have done to this point is meaningless. But coach Mark Hogan and his players know that ultimately the season will be judged on how the Indians perform in the Ohio Valley Conference...

For a baseball game that took four days to complete, the end came swiftly. Central and Jackson resumed their darkness suspended game on Friday at Central Junior High School and needed just seven pitches to declare a winner. Mark Dunaway, the third hitter of the day and the Tigers' No. 9 batter, lined a two-out single in the left-center field gap in the bottom of the eighth inning to score Josh Ford with the winning run for a 4-3 Central victory...

COLUMBIA, Mo. --Missouri basketball coach Quin Snyder and his staff might have violated NCAA rules with improper phone calls during the recruitment of VMI transfer Jason Conley, according to a published report in Friday's St. Louis Post-Dispatch. According to records obtained by the paper, at least six calls were made to Conley's mother, Karyne Conley, from Dec. ...

After two years of coaching at Central High School, girls basketball and volleyball coach Sheila Midgett has resigned her positions to join the staff at Jackson High School next school year. Midgett, who recently led her team to a 15-11 season in basketball, handed in her resignation this week to become a physical education teacher at Jackson. She also will be an assistant varsity basketball coach, pending school board approval...

Notre Dame won 10 events and beat Principia 122-54 in a girls dual swimming meet Friday in St. Louis. Ashly Ducharme (200 and 500 freestyles) and Janelle Essner (200 IM, 100 butterfly) each won two individual events and were members of the winning 400 freestyle relay team. Other winners were Lauren Bader (diving), Jennifer Barrett (100 backstroke) and Maggie Glastetter (100 breaststroke)...

Southeast Missourian Joining the cast of an Easter production at church wasn't as simple as showing up for rehearsal and learning some lines for Mickey Wright. Wright had to get permission from his boss at the Southeast Correctional Center at Charleston, Mo. -- where he teaches GED classes -- to grow his hair long and to wear a beard so he could look more like his character. He's playing John the Baptist in an upcoming drama at Cape First...

BODIES OF EVIDENCE WHAT IS DNA? DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the genetic material found in the body's nucleic cells -- those with a nucleus -- such white blood cells, semen, bone, skin and hair. Only identical twins have the same distinctive DNA markers...

Southeast Missourian He once showed up at a manhunt for an escaped murderer wearing combat fatigues and carrying a shotgun. He had an 18-year-old pet python named Monty. He was everything from a decorated Green Beret to published author, from strict-but-just prosecutor to tender and generous friend...

NEW YORK -- It's spring and the urge to shop is almost overwhelming. The brightly colored frocks are practically calling your name from newly decorated store windows. Yet something is holding you back. Are you a little jittery about the economy? Is there no room left in your closet? Maybe the trendy miniskirts are just a little too miniature...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The era of never-ending government programs could itself come to an end under legislation that won unanimous Senate approval last week. The bill would set a six-year expiration on new state programs and provide a review process to determine whether a program is worthy of renewal...

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court's upcoming ruling on affirmative action in college admissions has the potential to subtly or significantly affect the nation's 15,000 school districts, many of which have long considered race in shaping student enrollment plans...

Can severe acute respiratory syndrome be stopped? As hard as public health officials work to stamp out the virus, many experts reluctantly conclude it is likely if not inevitable that it eventually will spread everywhere. The highly contagious disease has already sickened more than 2,000 people, and new cases appear daily in Hong Kong, despite an all-out effort to isolate victims and quarantine those at risk...

GUANGZHOU, China -- The key to controlling the fast-spreading respiratory illness known as SARS could lie in identifying highly infectious people, a World Health Organization official said Saturday. Puzzled by the rapid but seemingly erratic spread of the new disease, a WHO team is visiting hospitals and talking with experts in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, where the epidemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome began...

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Deafening explosions rocked central Baghdad earlier today as Iraqi troops, members of President Saddam Hussein's Fedayeen militia and teenage soldiers patrolled streets to protect the capital from U.S.-led forces. With the Americans trying to send the message they can strike anywhere, Iraqi leaders maintained a bold front...

OVER NORTHERN SAUDI ARABIA -- Its lethal payload of bombs already delivered, a U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter refueled for the ride home, performing a delicate sky tango with a KC-10 tanker plane. Master Sgt. Rod McClary, the boom operator controlling the pipe that feeds fuel to the jet, asked the other pilot whether the bombs reached the target...

NASIRIYAH, Iraq -- A flimsy donkey cart rolled slowly toward the heavily guarded bridge. In it rode a teenage boy, his legs horribly burned from accidentally spilling hot oil on himself. The boy needed help. He found it from U.S. forces. When the Americans reached Nasiriyah after days of heavy fighting, many anticipated an angry reception. ...

KUWAIT CITY -- British forces in southern Iraq have found hundreds of boxes containing human remains in a warehouse near Zubayr and are investigating how they got there, military officials said Saturday. There was no immediate indication of the nationalities of the dead, and it appeared they had died some time ago -- not in the current fighting...

Several members of the Youth United Way spent Saturday steadily shoveling dirt into the bed of a pickup truck. To celebrate April as National Volunteer Month, the Youth United Way chose Habitat for Humanity to make a difference by helping an area family build their first home on College Street...

AMMAN, Jordan -- Baghdad's hard-pressed surgeons, flooded with war-wounded, are amputating the limbs of children and adults with too few anesthetics to block the pain and too few antibiotics to protect the patients, a Greek doctor newly arrived from Iraq reported Saturday...

CAMP PATRIOT, Kuwait -- Meticulously combing their way through the murky waters of Iraq's Umm Qasr port is the U.S. Navy's most sophisticated mine-detection team -- the dolphin platoon. For the past week, a crew of Atlantic bottle-nosed dolphins, specially trained to spot lethal mines littering the sea floor, have been scouring the country's only deep-water port to allow humanitarian aid to be shipped in...

NAJAF, Iraq -- Saddam Hussein's face on a sign outside an amusement park made a perfect target for Lt. Col. Stephen Schiller. The Army helicopter pilot fired a rocket through it, then blasted military equipment hidden inside the park in Najaf. "We didn't hit any of the rides," Schiller boasted on Wednesday...

By Calvin Woodward ~ The Associated Press U.S. troops dashed inside Baghdad on Saturday, blasting targets nestled in palm trees, to show they can move at will against Iraq's beleaguered defenders. Allies adapted their air campaign to prepare for a climactic ground assault on the capital...

Our trip this week is to Van Buren, Mo., and Big Springs Park. To get there, take Interstate 55 south to Sikeston, Mo., and then turn west on U.S. 60 and go through Dexter, Mo., Poplar Bluff, Mo., and on to Van Buren. It is a little more than 100 miles one way, but easy to do in a day and well worth the trip...

SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- "We have an audience," proclaims Julia Louis-Dreyfus. The Emmy-winning actress is referring to how "Watching Ellie," her series about struggling Los Angeles club singer Ellie Riggs, is being recreated this season. The show returns to NBC Tuesday, April 15 at 8 p.m...

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica -- During a recent trip to Costa Rica, I found myself constantly looking up to see the host of exotic animals that reside in this beautiful country. I spotted toucans -- even the famous "Froot Loops" species -- monkeys, gorgeous butterflies, poisonous frogs as small as an inch long and more lizards and colorful birds than I could count...

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- A $51.5 million north woods-themed resort hotel under construction near Kansas Speedway will feature a 38,000-square-foot indoor water park and a 100-game arcade. There's nothing else like it in the region, said Tom Holden, director of the Hotel and Motel Association of Greater Kansas City...

American peace activist shot in West Bank JERUSALEM-- An American peace activist volunteering as a human shield in the West Bank was seriously wounded on Saturday when Israeli troops allegedly opened fire on him. Brian Avery, 24, from Albuquerque, N.M., heard shots fired and came out of his apartment building in Jenin to investigate just as an armored personnel carrier rounded a corner, said Tobias Karlsson, a fellow activist from Sweden...

Siren song REGARDING Snake Hill: Far too many us believe almost as a matter of course that planned change of any sort is progress. That is a uniquely American and a usually worthy idea, but it is not always correct. The closing of Wimpy's and the proposal to rescind almost any meaning of the word "snake" in Snake Hill is not progressive, but regressive. We should not sacrifice treasures like Snake Hill to the sometimes siren song of progress...

Mr. and Mrs. Vern H. Sebastian of Jackson recently celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. The couple was honored at a family dinner at the home of their daughter and son-in-law, Rhonda and Wayne Parenteau of Jackson. Sebastian and Viola M. Welty were married Feb. 27, 1943, at Emanuel United Church of Christ in Jackson, by the late Rev. H.H. Borne...

Mr. and Mrs. Orville G. Bragg of Cape Girardeau observed their 50th wedding anniversary March 28, 2003. Bragg and the former Juanita Holder were married March 28, 1953, in Cape Girardeau, by the Rev. A.J. Langston. The Braggs have lived in Cape Girardeau all their married life...

Kenny D. and Bambi L. Fowler of Jackson announce the engagement of their daughter, Heidi Nicholle Fowler, to Stacy Alan Langston. He is the son of Terry L. and Betty Langston of Jackson, and the late Toni K. Langston. Fowler is a 1997 graduate of Jackson High School. She is a 2000 graduate of Cape Girardeau Career and Technology Center School of Practical Nursing. She is a licensed practical nurse at Cape County Regional Dialysis Center...

Don and Sharon Dinkins of Whitewater announce the engagement of their daughter, Jessica Lee Dinkins, to Alan Thomas Blattel. He is the son of Tom and Pat Blattel of Cape Girardeau. Dinkins is a 1998 graduate of Delta High School. She expects to receive a degree in elementary education from Southeast Missouri State University in May, and is student teaching at Woodland Elementary School in Marble Hill, Mo...

Tony and Mary Dell of Morley, Mo., and Michael and Johnna Williamson of Farmington, Mo., announce the engagement of their daughter, Mika Williamson, to Travis Johnston, both of Cape Girardeau. He is the son of Henry T. and Kay Johnston of Cape Girardeau...

Katherine Mayer and George H. Webster III announce their engagement. She is the daughter of Paul and Jean Hermsdorfer of Cape Girardeau. He is the son of Jeff and Karen Webster of Jackson. Mayer is a 1999 graduate of Notre Dame High School, and is a senior at Southeast Missouri State University. She is employed by Drury Inns Inc...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Sheila Diane Griffin and Jon Eric Kellogg of Sedalia, Mo., announce their engagement. She is the daughter of Paul and Charlene Griffin of Chaffee, and the late Yvonne Griffin. Kellogg is the son of Jules E. "Bud" Kellogg of Rich Hill, Mo., and the late Marcheta Kellogg...

MILLER CITY, Ill. -- David and Debbie Willis of Miller City announce the engagement of their daughter, Leslie R. Willis, to Sgt. David L. Thompson. He is the son of Audry "Lee" and Brenda Thompson of Olive Branch, Ill. Thompson is serving in the U.S. Army with the 1st Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division, and is currently stationed in the Middle East...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Tim and Karen Savage of Belton, Mo., announce the engagement of their daughter, Pamela Rowe, to James Carr. He is the son of Charles and Mary Ellen Carr of Sikeston. Rowe expects to receive a degree in secondary English education from the University of Missouri-Columbia in May...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Mr. and Mrs. Bob Smith of Chaffee announce the engagement of their daughter, Jessica Lynn Smith, to Joshua Paul Hanlon. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Bill Hanlon of Chaffee. Smith is a 1999 graduate of Chaffee High School. She expects to receive a bachelor of science degree in elementary education from Southeast Missouri State University in May. She is employed at Kids Academy Preschool...

Stan and Lois Latimer of Jackson announce the engagement of their daughter, Ashley Renee Latimer, to Seaman J. Wes Jones. He is the son of David and Doris Jones of Millersville. Latimer is a senior at Jackson High School. Jones is a 2000 graduate of Jackson High School. He is serving in the U.S. Navy, stationed at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia Beach, Va...

Robert and Carla Scheper of Gordonville and Kenneth Menz of Chaffee, Mo., announce the engagement of their daughter, Julie Michelle Menz, to Mark Darin Kiehne, both of Jackson. He is the son of Larry and Lois Kiehne of Millersville. Menz is a 1996 graduate of Jackson High School. ...

Donna J. Diebold and Dr. Timothy S. Joplin were married in a private ceremony Feb. 14, 2003. The Rev. Charles Prost performed the ceremony. The bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Diebold of Scott City. The groom is the son of Irene Joplin of Benton, Ill., and the late Rev. Walter Joplin...

Maple United Methodist Church was the setting Oct. 5, 2002, for the wedding of Kristi Dawn Henderson and Cameron Leggett. Jim Cooper performed the ceremony. Parents of the bride are Kayla and Jeff Winters of Rocky Mount, Mo., and Gerald and Brenda Henderson of Mt. Vernon, Ind. The groom is the son of Tom and Flossie Leggett of Cape Girardeau...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Amanda Kaye Lange and William Henry Pepmiller were united in marriage Dec. 28, 2002, at Guardian Angel Catholic Church in Oran, Mo. The Rev. John Harth performed the ceremony. Readers were Emily, Sarah and Andrew Lange, sisters and brother of the bride...

10 years ago: April 6, 1993 Jackson Board of Aldermen yesterday voted to appoint four-member study committee to look into formation of board that would assist in promoting tourist attractions in Jackson; Ward 4 Alderman LeRoy Brown as appointed chairman of committee; he will work with city administrator Carl Talley, city attorney David Beeson and Ward 3 Alderman Glenn Oldham to determine whether tourism board is needed...

ANNA, Ill. -- Mary B. Whitney, 86, of Anna died Friday, April 4, 2003, at Union County Nursing Home. She was born Dec. 15, 1916, at Anna, daughter of Dee and Vica Young Brimm. She and Leon Whitney were married Nov. 7, 1942. He died Nov. 16, 1972. Whitney was a member of Beta Sigma Phi Sorority and the First Baptist Church. She was city clerk for the city of Anna for 28 years before retiring...

ANNA, Ill. -- Junior R. Miller, 70, of Anna died Friday, April 4, 2003, at the Illinois Veterans Home in Anna. He was born April 22, 1932, at Reynoldsville, Ill., son of Dorothy Hazel Miller Skiles. Miller was a veteran of the Korean conflict. He worked at Carter Carburetor in St. Louis for many years...

Frieda Clore of Cape Girardeau died Saturday, April 5, 2003, in Des Peres, Mo. Arrangements were incomplete at Ford and Sons Funeral Home.

Ian Sutherland, 70, of Cape Girardeau died Saturday, April 5, 2003, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston, Mo. Arrangements are incomplete at Fords and Sons Mount Auburn Chapel.

P A West Virginia soldier has provided inspiration. As coalition forces bear down on Saddam Hussein's stronghold in Baghdad, the fighting is escalating to its most intensive phase. Casualties on both sides are likely to increase. There already have been casualties in the war in Iraq, as would be expected of any conflict between armed military forces...

P Americans are showing their support for the troops by praying, wearing yellow ribbons, meeting together and honoring soldiers in print. In spite of political and philosophical differences, Americans once again are showing their high regard for the men and women who serve this nation by wearing the uniforms of its various military branches...

Notre Dame Regional High School's production of "West Side Story" will be the focus of KRCU's "Going Public" radio show today. Cindy King, Notre Dame high school theatre director, and Casie Janet and Keith Seyer, Notre Dame students, will discuss the musical production...

Cape Girardeau Sunday, April 6 Firefighters responded to the following calls Friday: At 6:32 p.m., emergency medical service at 2525 Boutin. At 9:29 p.m., emergency medical service at 40 S. Sprigg. At 9:39 p.m., emergency medical service at Broadway and Clark...

Special to the Southeast Missourian The American Red Cross movement began on the battlefield and, 150 years later, the organization's commitment to serving those who serve is stronger than ever. Now that conflict is underway, the Red Cross continues to support our service men and women. Red Cross employees and volunteers honor this commitment both at home and abroad, serving side-by-side with our troops, anywhere they are deployed...

The Associated Press WASHINGTON -- The Justice Department, citing security concerns, held five Cubans in isolation cells where lights burned 24 hours a day and some detainees wore only underwear. The department relaxed the extraordinary restrictions this week following an interagency review. The restrictions had been in place for a month...

WEST PLAINS, Mo. -- A Howell County sheriff's deputy says he was fired for wearing religious pins on his uniform. Jimmy Denton, a former bailiff, jailer and transport officer, said he was fired by Sheriff Bill Shephard on Wednesday after he refused to remove a cross and guardian angel pin from his uniform...

MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. -- Aurora Foods Inc.-- the company known for Duncan Hines baking mix and Lender's bagels-- said it has eliminated about a quarter of its corporate staff. Company spokesman Chuck Dohrenwend told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch about the reductions but would not say how many people were being laid off. He said most of the job cuts came from Aurora's headquarters in the St. Louis suburb of Maryland Heights...

ELGIN, Ill. -- The buzz in Elgin these days is more like a hum. For weeks, residents have been trying to figure out where that humming sound they heard was coming from. It bothered some of them so much they called the police, who investigated. For a while, the hum had the police stumped...

BRIMFIELD, Ill. -- A 67-year-old Brimfield retiree, known to local residents as the "Bee Man," has died after an allergic reaction to multiple bee stings, the Peoria County Coroner said. Don Waldman died Wednesday evening at Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria, about two hours after his family called for an ambulance, Peoria County Coroner Dan Heinz said. He said he did not know how many times Waldman was stung...

CHICAGO -- Gov. Rod Blagojevich took his overdue wife to a Mexican dinner Friday night and was repaid with a healthy baby daughter Saturday morning. Patti Blagojevich, 10 days overdue with the couple's second daughter, gave birth to Anne Blagojevich at 5 a.m. Saturday at Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Prentice Women's and Maternity Center. Mother and child were expected to be released from the hospital Monday...

URBANA, Ill. -- A Champaign man has been arrested on suspicion of calling in a bomb threat to the Champaign County Courthouse. Police said Marvin Lacy, 57, called an employee of the circuit clerk's office around 8:45 a.m. Wednesday morning, 15 minutes before he was to appear at a hearing to revoke his probation in an obstruction of justice case...

NEW YORK -- New season, new look, right? 'Tis the time to test out the self-tanner that was purchased but is still in the box, or the liquid eyeliner that you haven't figured out how to use. These beauty projects shouldn't be rushed, though. Take an hour or two to play with some new cosmetics and to allow their looks to sink in -- mentally and physically...

NEW YORK -- The fashion pendulum has swung again, this time knocking out the loose bohemian styles that were all the rage only a year ago. Many of spring's top looks are polished, pretty and quite ladylike; the clothes are reminiscent of the 1950s with their polka dots, small floral prints and bows, but they are a little sexier than the average American housewife was wearing at the time...

MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- David Baker remembers the upheaval in his hometown of Anniston in the 1990s when many residents realized their health and property had been contaminated by toxic PCBs from a nearby chemical plant. The experience spurred Baker and others in predominantly poor, black west Anniston to form Community Against Pollution to fight for damages and clean up the contamination. Today, most of the group's members have been involved in lawsuits against the chemical company...

LOS ANGELES -- An online sportsbook said it has dropped betting on CBS' "Survivor" after allegedly finding that network employees were wagering -- and winning -- on the hit reality show. The Costa Rica-based BoDog.com found at least two CBS employees betting on the show's outcome, said BoDog spokesman Lance Bradley. The suspicion is they had insider knowledge, he said Thursday...

We're glued to the ultimate reality show - the war in Iraq, beamed into our homes in living color, complete with sandstorms, bombs bursting in air and embedded reporters in combat gear. There have always been dispatches from the front, but today's technology gives us a front-row seat at the battle for Baghdad...

jkoch By Dr. John Koch Question: I have a Yorkshire terrier who thinks he is king of the hill. Unfortunately my neighbor's Maltese has the same attitude. In spite of our good intentions to keep them apart, they occasionally get together. ...

By Denny Banister JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- In this day and age of political correctness, we have to be very careful what title we use when addressing someone. Some women are offended if they are addressed as Mrs. or Miss, although never call my wife Ms. to her face...

Despite the return of the 2001 women's champions Southwest Missouri State, host Southeast Missouri State University won its second straight Gatorade Classic at Abe Stuber Track Complex Saturday. The Otahkians fended off a strong Southwest running day by dominating the field events. ...

There is no guarantee that Southeast Missouri State University will win a second consecutive Ohio Valley Conference baseball championship this season. But, in front of more than 1,200 enthusiastic fans at Capaha Field, the Indians began their title defense with a bang Saturday by sweeping a doubleheader from Tennessee Tech, 5-0 and 6-5...

NEW ORLEANS -- The Kansas Jayhawks played as though they belonged in the NBA, not the NCAA. Showing off their superior speed and versatility at both ends of the court, the Jayhawks overwhelmed Marquette 94-61 Saturday night in one of the most lopsided victories in Final Four history...

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. -- Southeast Missouri State University and host Austin Peay split an Ohio Valley Conference softball doubleheader Saturday, the Otahkians winning the opener 5-0 and losing the finale 2-1. The Otahkians are 7-18 overall and 3-2 in OVC play. The Governors are 14-17-1 and 4-1...

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras -- A fistfight at a prison in northern Honduras escalated into a riot Saturday that left 86 inmates dead and dozens of prisoners and guards injured after the prisoners set fire to their mattresses and furniture, authorities said...

If you're a Southeast Missouri State University baseball fan, days don't get much better than Saturday afternoon at Capaha Field. The weather, although perhaps a bit cooler than normal for this time of the year, was almost picture-perfect. And Kohlfeld Distributing provided free beverages for the more than 1,200 fans in attendance. It was a festive atmosphere to say the least...

Kyle Kuba spent time using weights in his high-school gym, but the thought of lifting them seriously never crossed his mind. Then he came to Southeast Missouri State University and met Ron MacCubbin, a local bodybuilder. "In high school I lifted, but I had no idea what I was doing," Kuba, 19, said. "Since coming to Southeast, Ron has really pushed me, he got me interested and also prepared me for my shows."...

To the editor: A recent letter to the editor legitimately questioned our lack of weekend baseball games recently at Southeast Missouri State University. The Ohio Valley Conference schedule dictates when we schedule non-conference games. The OVC asked all member schools to not schedule games on the weekends of March 14 to 15 and March 21 to 22. ...

Less skin, please IT AMAZES me how guys who are in sports can manage to wear enough clothes, but if it's a woman in sports they have to wear as little as possible, such as on your front page Thursday. Personally, I don't think that picture is appropriate. How she chooses to run around the track at Southeast Missouri State University is her and the school's business. But as far as the front page of my paper, I resent it...

Briefly Baseball Ken Griffey Jr. dislocated his right shoulder while diving for a fly ball Saturday, the second year in a row that the Cincinnati Reds outfielder was hurt in the season's first week. He left the game immediately and had the shoulder popped back into place by team physician Dr. Timothy Kremchek. Griffey was taken to a hospital for tests to see how much damage was done. There was no immediate estimate on how long he'll be sidelined...

ST. LOUIS -- Right now, Brad Ausmus is the best clutch hitter the Houston Astros have. Ausmus drove in the go-ahead run for the second straight game with a ninth-inning single as the Astros beat the Cardinals 2-1 on Saturday. He had a grand slam and then homered in the 12th of a 6-5 victory Friday night, and is 7-for-15 overall with seven RBIs...

In a pitcher's duel, Notre Dame's baseball team fell 2-1 to visiting Parkway North Saturday. The Bulldogs (4-2) scored a run in the sixth inning to cut the lead to 2-1, but Jeff Brosey was gunned out at the plate in the bottom of the seventh to end the game. Brosey was trying to score from second on a single...

Bestselling author Dahl prepares new book LONDON -- Sophie Dahl, a model and granddaughter of children's author Roald Dahl, has signed a deal for her second book, the publishing house Bloomsbury said. Bloomsbury, which publishes the hugely successful Harry Potter series, said Friday it likely would release the book next year...

A niece and nephew, Ann and Charles Wichman, who live in Doe Run, Mo., send me copies of the newspaper, The Farmington Press. Doe Run was my last home before I departed for college, teaching, marriage and Cape Girardeau. Doe Run was once a thriving little town, headquarters for St. ...

10 years ago: April 7, 1993 Voters in three area school districts approved bond issues Tuesday, but voters in Cape Girardeau School District rejected bond issue and building fund levy hike. Jackson voters elected their first mayor in 22 years yesterday, as Ward 1 Alderman Paul Sander easily defeated 22-year incumbent mayor Carlton "Cotton" Meyer; Sander will take over as mayor in early May...

Gladys L. Ritter, 87, of Potosi, Mo., died Sunday, April 6, 2003, at Potosi Manor. Arrangements are pending with Ford and Sons Mount Auburn Chapel.

Frieda C. Clore, 91, of Cape Girardeau died Saturday, April 5, 2003, at Des Peres Hospital in Kirkwood, Mo. She was born Feb. 23, 1912, in Cape Girardeau, daughter of William and Emma Overbeck Krieger. She and Charles Scott Clore were married June 29, 1935, in Cape Girardeau. He died in June 1944...

PATTON, Mo. -- The Rev. Robert "Bobby" C. Trentham, 65, of Patton died Saturday, April 5, 2003, at his residence. He was born March 12, 1938, in Advance, Mo., son of the Rev. Carl and Sarah Douglas Trentham. He and Carolyn Berry were married June 11, 1960, at New Hope Church in Cascade, Mo...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Gilbert A. Bock, 84, of Uniontown, Mo., died Saturday, April 5, 2003, at Perry Oaks Manor. He was born May 30, 1918, in Uniontown, son of Immanuel and Pauline Stelling Bock. He and Hilda Huttegger were married Jan. 17, 1942. He was a farmer and a member of Grace Lutheran Church in Uniontown...

DONGOLA, Ill. -- Roy Casper, 66, of Dongola died Sunday, April 6, 2003, at his residence. Arrangements are pending with Crain Funeral Home in Dongola.

GALE, Ill. -- Raymond Gregg Pulley, 69, of Gale died Sunday, April 6, 2003, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. He was born Aug. 17, 1933, in Mexico, Mo., son of Mitchell Shire and Alta Haislip Pulley. He moved to Gale from St. Louis in 1969...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Glenville L. "Glen" Martin, 87, of Perryville died Sunday, April 6, 2003, at Perry Oaks Manor. He was born Oct. 12, 1915, in St. Louis, son of Ethel Radford. He and Verna Nations were married Sept. 9, 1939. She died May 7, 1970...

Good old days TYPE I diabetes has been treatable for decades. Mary Tyler Moore had it. As far as modern-day technology goes, I guess some would like it, but at what cost? We are living longer. As a result, the elderly can pay for 10 or more pills a day or they can decide to buy food with their limited incomes. ...

Southeast Missouri State University's 10-game winning streak was put on hold Sunday as the Indians' scheduled home game against Tennessee Tech was rained out. The Ohio Valley Conference contest will not be made up, as dictated by league regulations...

P With important local government offices to be filled and critical spending decisions to be made, it's a shame that so few voters bother to exercise their right to participate in representative government. On Tuesday, Southeast Missouri voters will head to the polls to decide a number of governmental races and ballot issues...

P The city and county are cooperating on equipment that will make sure Cape Girardeau authorities can find 911 callers. A year ago, wireless phone dealers estimated 22 percent of Cape Girardeau County residents owned cell phones. There's no doubt that number has risen, as one can hardly drive a mile or buy a basket of groceries without seeing cell phones being used...

Chamber hires Schlosser as membership director The Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce has hired Cathi Schlosser as its new director of membership development. Schlosser comes to the position as an accomplished membership recruiter. For six straight years (1996-2001) she won the Go-Getter Award, which is awarded to the member of the Chamber Ambassadors Committee who scores the most points throughout a calendar year. ...

Downtown merchants to sponsor planting contest The Downtown Merchants Association will sponsor the first annual Capescape Container Planting Contest throughout the Old Town Cape District. Beginning as soon as the season permits, merchants are invited to create a container planting of flowers, vegetables, herbs or combination to adorn the front of their business...

A Scott City teenager sustained serious injuries in a one-vehicle accident Sunday on Interstate 55. Lee Essner was southbound one-half mile south of Benton, Mo., when he fell asleep, ran of the west side of the roadway and overturned the 2000 Dodge he was driving, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol...

Cape Girardeau Monday, April 7 Firefighters responded to the following calls Saturday: At 5:44 p.m., a citizen assist at 3217 Kage Hills Drive. At 6:49 p.m., an illegal burning at Themis and Park. At 6:55 p.m., a box alarm and flu fire at 760 Giboney...

Cape Girardeau Monday, April 7 The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau Police Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. DWI Timothy Tucker, 42, of Scott City was arrested Saturday on suspicion of driving while intoxicated.Arrests Maxine Mahler, 30, of Scott City was arrested Saturday on a warrant...

There were death-defying stunts, daring acrobats and even a few performing alligators as the Show Me Center became a temporary big top on Sunday for Piccadilly Circus. Around 1,900 people attended two shows featuring performers from around the world -- Argentina, Russia, Israel, France, Germany, Canada, Mexico and Morocco...

Construction crews still have more concrete to pour and steel cables to string, but all the work should be done and the new $100 million Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge completed by late this year, Missouri Department of Transportation officials say. Any spring flooding, however, could delay the project, said Stan Johnson, MoDOT engineer. "Most of the work they are doing from barges on the river," he said...

7:30 p.m. Monday City Hall Public hearing Hearing to consider a proposed amendment to the Water Distribution System Analysis Facility Plan to include the Water Supply Well No. 7 project, on North High Street.Action items Motion to set a special council meeting for noon May 2 to complete any old business and administer the oath of office to newly elected officials, and to approve appointments to various offices, boards and committees...

7 p.m. Monday City Hall Study session at 5 p.m. Public hearings A public hearing regarding the request of Cape Retirement Community Inc. for a special-use permit for an on-site banking facility for First Missouri State Bank at 3120 Independence Street in an R-4, multiple family residential district...

Cape County resident Charlotte Lanpher was recognized as the American Cancer Society's Volunteer of the Year 2002-2003 at a recent banquet held at Drury Lodge. Lanpher accepted the award from Amy Evans, American Cancer Society community development specialist...

photo by Chris Pagano Participating in a jump off, an event held at the American Heart Association's All City Jump Rope for Heart at West Lane Elementary School, are, from left, Heather Gilmore, Molly Powell and Ciarra Binns. Students Raise Money for American Heart Association...

Supervisor to appear on 'Independently Speaking' The next guest on "Independently Speaking" will be Terry Regenold, case management supervisor for The Sikeston Regional Center. She will speak on the services the center offers to the region. This program will air on WDKA-TV, cable channel 17, at 5:30 a.m. Sunday and on cable access channel 5 at 7:30 p.m. April 15 and 29...

Fish fry in Charleston to be held on Friday St. Henry's ninth annual fish fry will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday at St. Henry's gym in Charleston, Mo. St. Joseph Church to hold spring dinner A family-style dinner will be held from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. ...

Name: Dorothy "Dot" Lee Schlegel Lives in: Jackson Family: Kim and Mark VanMatre are my daughter and son-in-law; Lynn and Kevin Schlegel are my daughter-in-law and son; Dr. Stacy and Darrin Meyr are my daughter and son-in-law, and my favorite little people in the world are granddaughters, Stevie Ann Buchheit and Grace and Anna Schlegel...

Gov. Bob Holden awarded the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce Health and Human Services Committee with the Governor's Fitness and Health Leadership Award in recognition of outstanding achievement in advancing physical fitness and health in Missouri...

WASHINGTON -- When al-Qaida leaders decided an attack on a U.S. military shuttle bus was not spectacular enough, the Singapore-based operatives who proposed the idea meticulously planned to hit more daring targets. They laid out plans to blow up embassies of the United States and three other nations and had a chemist buy four tons of ammonium nitrate -- four times the amount of explosive that Timothy McVeigh used to bomb the Oklahoma City federal building...

WASHINGTON -- The number of people in U.S. prisons and jails last year topped 2 million for the first time, driven by get-tough sentencing policies that mandate long terms for drug offenders and other criminals, the government reported Sunday. The federal government accounted for more inmates than any state, with almost 162,000, according to a report by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, part of the Justice Department. ...

DENVER -- Colorado's ninth division title was easily its most difficult. Milan Hejduk scored his 50th goal of the season, and Peter Forsberg had a goal and two assists as the Avalanche beat the St. Louis Blues 5-2 Sunday for a record ninth consecutive division title...

ST. LOUIS -- Albert Pujols now might be able to play on his own bat day. The game between the Houston Astros and St. Louis Cardinals was rained out Sunday and will be made up on May 29. Fans were supposed to receive Pujols bats Sunday, but last year's runner-up in the NL MVP race wasn't going to start because of a pulled left hamstring...

NEW ORLEANS -- The Kansas Jayhawks feature plenty of senior leadership and four starters who were in the Final Four last season. They're a very good man-to-man defensive team and have the country's best transition game on offense. The Syracuse Orangemen start two freshmen and two sophomores, and they use a stifling 2-3 zone defense while running the offense through a versatile rookie who has spun, shot and slam-dunked his way to stardom...

ATLANTA -- With her offense down the stretch and her defense on the final play, Diana Taurasi put Connecticut back in the women's national championship game. Taurasi, bothered by a sore ankle and back, still managed to score 26 points and keep the Huskies on course for their third title in four years with a 71-69 victory over Texas on Sunday night...

DULUTH, Ga. -- Ben Crane stood on the 18th tee with a two-shot lead, his first PGA Tour victory within reach. He planned to play conservatively, but a 357-yard drive changed that strategy. Crane made an eagle on the last hole Sunday and beat Bob Tway by four shots at the BellSouth Classic for his first victory in his 40th tour event...

NEW ORLEANS -- A near miss here, a bad bounce there. Just like Jim Boeheim, Roy Williams knows what it's like to come up short of a dream. "Jim's a much, much better long-iron player than I am -- much more consistent," Williams said, his eyes glazing over, his mind wandering to a different time and place...

TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. narrowly avoided an early crash and charged from behind Sunday to win the Aaron's 499, becoming the first driver to win four straight races at Talladega Superspeedway. Earnhardt, who led nine times for 34 laps in a race in which there was a total of 43 lead changes among 16 drivers, fought off challenges at the end from Jimmie Johnson, Ward Burton and Matt Kenseth...

SALMAN PAK, Iraq -- The rusted shell of an old passenger jet sat out in a field, its tail broken off. Good for hijacking practice, U.S. Marines speculated Sunday as they examined an Iraqi training base about 20 miles south of Baghdad. The Americans also found a full obstacle course -- with wooden walls and other barriers to be climbed over or crawled under -- as well as a three-story concrete tower draped with ropes, apparently for rappelling...

BAGHDAD OUTSKIRTS, Iraq -- Gunfire erupts from a side street on the outskirts of Baghdad, sending Marines diving for cover. They crawl behind storefronts, scanning the area for their attackers. Suddenly, a shout comes from a Marine armored vehicle, a loud and desperate American voice...

LANDSTUHL, Germany -- After everything she's been through -- an Iraqi ambush, a daring rescue and several surgeries -- Pfc. Jessica Lynch had nothing but smiles for her family during a long-awaited reunion in the hospital Sunday. Her parents, Deadra and Gregory; two siblings and a cousin paid Lynch two brief visits after arriving early Sunday from West Virginia, said U.S. military officials at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in southwestern Germany...

IRBIL, Iraq -- U.S. warplanes struck a convoy of allied Kurdish fighters and U.S. Special Forces during a northern battle Sunday in one of the deadliest friendly fire attacks of the war. At least 18 people were killed and more than 45 wounded, including senior Kurdish commanders, Kurdish officials said...

McCaughey septuplets begin to test their limits DAVENPORT, Iowa -- The 5-year-old McCaughey septuplets are still learning how to tie their shoes, but they already know a thing or two about testing their parents. "They're at the age now where they try to push the limits more and more all the time," Bobbi McCaughey said of her children, the world's first surviving septuplets. ...

CHICAGO -- The American Academy of Pediatrics says all exclusively breast-fed infants should receive vitamin D supplements to prevent rickets, a bone-weakening disease doctors fear may be becoming more common. Breast-fed infants should receive vitamin supplements beginning at 2 months of age and until they begin taking at least 17 ounces daily of vitamin D-fortified milk, the academy says in a new policy statement, being published today in Pediatrics magazine...

Plane makes emergency landing on LA freeway ANAHEIM, Calif. -- A small plane having engine trouble clipped a car but landed safely amid the traffic of the Riverside Freeway that runs through the Los Angeles suburbs. The impact Saturday afternoon shattered the car's rear window, scattering glass on two children who were in the back seat on their way to Disneyland, but authorities said no one was seriously injured...

Bad news for those of you who were pushing for Kohl's department store to move into the Albertsons building: It's not going to happen. South Star, the Memphis-based company that owns the building, is still four to six weeks away from closing any deals to sell or lease the roughly 60,000-square-foot building...

Tonight is the culmination of a wild year, not to mention a wild month of college basketball. Finally, some closure on a tournament I think we would all like to forget. Unless you're a Jayhawk or an Orangemen. At the beginning of the month, when I was composing "my perfect bracket" and pouring over stacks and stacks of stats from the season, I wondered when Roy Williams and Jim Boeheim would win their first titles. ...

KENNETT, Mo. -- We Americans, thank heaven, are a trusting lot, traceable perhaps to an endowed conviction that everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, qualifying it as a part of the more or less basic beliefs of all humans. More often than not, we believe what we hear or read, and the higher the source the more believable it seems. ...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The two chambers of the Missouri Legislature are pursuing substantially different approaches in their efforts to improve the sullied public image of the Missouri Department of Transportation. While the House of Representatives last week passed a bill that would increase legislative oversight over the agency and give lawmakers a direct say in the selection of MoDOT's independent governing board, the Senate prefers a far less intrusive approach...

EAST CAPE GIRARDEAU, Ill. -- Construction crews are widening the main highway in this town of 478 people, much to the dismay of some residents and business owners who say the $3 million project isn't needed and will lead to more traffic accidents. "I don't think it will help anybody over here," said Floyd Ralls as he mowed his small, tidy yard last week a few blocks from the highway construction. ...

SAN FRANCISCO -- Yahoo! Inc. is rolling out a souped-up search engine Monday in a bid to supplant its business partner, Google, as the most popular place to find things on the Internet. With the revisions, Yahoo believes its search engine will provide more useful information than Google's and be simpler to use. The rebuilt version will combine Google's index with Yahoo's customized services spanning sports, driving directions and weather reports...

For almost a year, Shawn Seabaugh watched his buddies play darts, wishing he could join in. Stricken with muscular dystrophy, Seabaugh, 30, cannot use his arms or his legs. Otherwise, he's just like any other guy. He likes to fish with his buddies, hang out at local pubs, watch NASCAR races and go down to the Benton races every Saturday night during the summer...

Chipping away at the vestiges of Saddam Hussein's power, U.S. forces encircled Baghdad on Sunday and began flying into the capital's airport. British forces in the south made their deepest push into Iraq's second-largest city. A hulking U.S. C-130 transport plane landed at the Baghdad international airport, carrying unknown cargo but weighted with symbolism and tactical importance. ...

NEW YORK -- Wiretapping takes on a whole new meaning now that phone calls are being made over the Internet, posing legal and technical hurdles for the FBI as it seeks to prevent the emerging services from becoming a safe haven for criminals and terrorists...

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- In an earlier era, this western Massachusetts city had a knack for the next big thing. Draftsman Milton Bradley made the first mass-produced parlor game here, and brothers Charles and Frank Duryea built the first automobile manufacturing plant. Taxidermist Clarence Birdseye became the father of modern frozen food, and teacher James Naismith invented basketball...

WASHINGTON ig seems like it would be better when it comes to food. Fast-food restaurants make burgers so big it's hard to get your mouth around them. And don't forget about those mega-cups of soda at convenience stores. Vegetable companies, however, have found that bite-size is better and they are growing baby food for big people...

NEW YORK -- NBC News correspondent David Bloom, one of the network's most prominent young stars and a near-constant television presence reporting from the Iraqi desert, died Sunday from an apparent blood clot, the network said. The 39-year-old co-anchor of the weekend "Today" show was about 25 miles south of Baghdad and packing gear early in the morning when he suddenly collapsed...

10 years ago: April 8, 1993 Daniel L. Overbey, who has had varied career in promoting economic development, marketing, and finance, has been named executive director of Southeast Missouri Regional Port Authority; for last four years, Overbey has been real-estate representative with Drury Development Corp...

Jansen Son to Gregory Louis and Katherine Marie Jansen of Jackson, Southeast Missouri Hospital, 7:47 a.m. Tuesday, March 25, 2003. Name, Hayden James. Weight, 7 pounds 14 ounces. Third child, second son. Mrs. Jansen is the former Katherine Lohr, daughter of Barbara Lohr of Jackson, and the late Bob Lohr. Jansen is the son of Mary Jane Jansen of Kelso, Mo., and the late Martin Jansen. He is employed by Columbia Construction...

CROSSTOWN, Mo. -- Malcolm H. Corse, 85, of St. Louis died Sunday, April 6, 2003, at St. Joseph Hospital in Kirkwood, Mo. He was born March 5, 1918, at Crosstown, son of Henry and Lydia Wadsworth Corse. He married Irene Miget, who died Jan. 1, 1979. Corse had been a heavy equipment operator with Massman Construction. He was a member of Bethlehem Baptist Church...

DONGOLA, Ill. -- Roy Casper, 66, of Dongola died Sunday, April 6, 2003, at his home. He was born April 13, 1936, in Perks, Ill., son of Homer and Ivah Eddleman Casper. He and Carol Churchill were married Aug. 30, 1958. Casper was owner/operator of Casper Trucking. He previously was foreman at Johnson County Asphalt in Red Bud, Ill. He was a member of Maple Grove Baptist Church in Perks...

LEEMON, Mo. -- Lena Viola Farrow, 87, of Fieldon, Ill., died Sunday, April 6, 2003, at Jersey Community Hospital in Jerseyville, Ill. She was born Aug. 8, 1915, at Leemon, daughter of Albert and Ora Unger McClard. She and Oliver Clarence Farrow were married Dec. 24, 1935, in Perryville, Mo...

MILLER CITY, Ill. -- Harold L. Greenley, 74, of Red Bud, Ill., died Friday, April 4, 2003, at Red Bud Regional Hospital. He was born March 11, 1929, in Miller City, son of Lloyd and Beatrice Switzer Greenley. He and Virginia Rushing were married Jan. 6, 1963, at Fredericktown, Mo...

Gladys L. Ritter, 87, of Potosi, Mo., died Sunday, April 6, 2003, at Potosi Manor. She was born Dec. 9, 1915, at Desloge, Mo., daughter of Luther Matthew and Bessie Inez Pinkley Wilson. She and Harold Lee Ritter were married Sept. 12, 1938, at Caledonia, Mo. He died Oct. 7, 1984...

Norma Dean Keller, 78, of Scott City died Monday, April 7, 2003, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. She was born Aug. 19, 1924, in Cape Girardeau, daughter of Frank and Yevetta Hunt Reed. She and Roger A. Keller were married Jan. 31, 1942, in Cape Girardeau. He died Sept. 13, 1993...

I THINK it was unprofessional that the city of Jackson released the names of the three finalists for the police chief's job before they contacted the remaining four other persons that they conducted background checks and turned their lives upside down while doing the checks. Thanks for being so considerate...

Retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Ian D.W. Sutherland of Cape Girardeau died Saturday, April 5, 2003, from injuries related to a skydiving accident. Col. Sutherland was born Feb. 7, 1933, son of Adam W. and Mary Moser Sutherland, and raised in Jefferson City, Tenn...

To the editor: Thank you very much for including the little-known details of Ian Sutherland's life in your article. For those of us who have been lucky to have our lives touched by this man, it is those accomplishments and the quiet support he always provided his friends that made Ian a remarkable person. ...

To the editor: Ian Sutherland was both a dear friend and a beloved colleague. I saw a bumper sticker that said, "You're never old as long as you haven't lost your marvels." Ian never lost his and still enjoyed life and all its marvels to the fullest. This included jumping...

Legislators attempting to balance Missouri's budget are confronting a daunting task when it comes to the state's Medicaid program. Medicaid is a state-federal program designed to meet the health care needs of some of Missouri's most vulnerable populations. The primary populations served by Medicaid include:...

P Potholes created dangerous driving obstacles, but MoDOT and municipalities have done their best to address them. The harshest winter in years caused freezing temperatures and mounds of snow in Southeast Missouri -- not to mention a bumper crop of potholes...

The anti-smoking measure may have ended a romanticized era, but the benefits to smokers and nonsmokers alike are well worth it. With what one news story described as "fear, loathing and lament," New York City is finally clearing the air, meaning that the Big Apple is a bit closer to living up to its health-conscious nickname...

Student wins flag at Notre Dame career day Lauren Mehner recently won an American flag during a drawing at Career Day at Notre Dame Regional High School. The flag was donated by Lorberg Memorial Funeral Chapel. Masonic Lodges offer college scholarship...

"Primal" is a spectacularly beautiful game which almost lives up to the unblushing praise heaped on it by its developers in the months before it was released. "Primal," whipped up by Cambridge Studios for Sony's PlayStation 2, tells the story of two unlikely cohorts, the part-demon rock star-loving Jennifer Tate and an ugly little boulder called Scree...

BOSTON -- What is a Finnish pancake? In the children's show "ZOOM," viewers find out the answer to that question -- and more -- as they travel the globe. Although "ZOOM" has always had a multicultural twist -- featuring young cast members from different ethnic backgrounds -- this time around the show will be infused with an even greater ethnic flair...

Cape Girardeau Tuesday, April 8 Firefighters responded Sunday to the following items: At 10:34 p.m., emergency medical service at 430 N. Frederick. At 10:59 p.m., emergency medical service at 1467 Water. Firefighters responded Monday to the following items: At 12:50 a.m., smoke smell at 3020 Boutin...

Cape Girardeau Tuesday, April 8 The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau Police Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. DWI Dereck J. Darlington, 31, of 2803 S. Sprigg, Cape Girardeau, was arrested Sunday on suspicion of driving while intoxicated...

CAPE GIRARDEAU CITY COUNCIL ACTION Public hearings Held a public hearing regarding the request of Cape Retirement Community Inc. for a special-use permit for an on-site banking facility for First Missouri State Bank at 3120 Independence St. in an R-4, multiple family residential district...

Action items Set a special council meeting for noon May 2 to complete any old business and administer the oath of office to newly elected officials, and to approve appointments to various offices, boards and committees. Changed regular council meeting date from May 5 to 7 p.m. May 12...

WASHINGTON -- Cities and states vary widely in their preparations to deal with bioterror attacks and want clear guidelines from the federal government on what they should do, according to a government study released Monday. While most of the seven states studied by the General Accounting Office had emergency response strategies for natural disasters or other large-scale problems, their plans were not tailored to responding to a bioterror attack...

WASHINGTON -- The allies have claimed the surrender of an Iraqi division that didn't, the firing of an Iraqi Scud missile that never flew and military advances sometimes less dramatic than described. Whether because of the chaos of the battlefield or an overeagerness to take a propaganda advantage, U.S. officials and their British allies have made assertions that haven't held up...

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court ruled Monday that states can punish Ku Klux Klansmen and others who set crosses afire, finding that a burning cross is an instrument of racial terror so threatening that it overshadows free speech concerns. The court voted 6-3 to uphold a 50-year-old Virginia law making it a crime to burn a cross as an act of intimidation. A lower court had ruled the law muzzled free speech...

P The plan would include further interest rate cuts and be aimed at pulling the United States out of a nosedive. By Martin Crutsinger ~ The Associated Press WASHINGTON -- Confronting new fears of recession, the Federal Reserve is refining an emergency economic rescue plan that includes further interest rate cuts and billions of dollars in extra cash for the banking system...

SALEM, Mo. -- A man charged with killing a deputy sheriff and two other people will be back in court later this month. At a preliminary hearing Monday, a judge found sufficient cause for Earl Forrest II, 53, to appear in Circuit Court in Salem on April 22 for a formal arraignment...