Stories from Friday, December 12, 2003

Baseball The Kansas City Royals hope they filled one of their most pressing needs Thursday by signing catcher Benito Santiago. The veteran was signed to a two-year $4.3 million deal that calls for yearly salaries of $2.15 million...

I'm trying to figure out what went wrong. Our federal legislators announced recently that they are sending nearly $4 million from the national piggy bank for Really Big Projects in Cape Girardeau and Scott City. Included is $1.5 million for Southeast Missouri State University's NASA Educator Resource Center where, I guess, bright young minds will be filled with the physics of no-gravity sneezing...

The Dow Jones industrials closed above 10,000 Thursday, a milestone not seen in 18 months as investors cheered Federal Reserve minutes that suggested higher interest rates wouldn't come anytime soon. Stocks gained ground on a better-than-expected November retail sales report before sprinting higher in the late afternoon after the Fed released minutes indicating its concerns about a sluggish job market...

srobertson The Town and Country performs like an SUV yet gets excellent gas mileage Ask a college freshman what famous product is made in St. Louis, and you'll probably hear, "Budweiser." Tell them that one of the most successful vehicles in automotive history comes from St. ...

Southeast signs Minnesota gymnast The Southeast Missouri State University gymnastics team has signed Stephanie Ashmore of Moorhead, Minn., its first recruit of the season. The high school senior earned a bronze medal at the 2002 Junior Olympics, where she excelled on the beam...

GRAND FORKS, N.D. -- While officials and friends searched without success for Dru Sjodin, her mother went looking for help from the mother of the man charged with kidnapping the missing college student. "I asked her to reach out to her son and please ask him to lead us to Dru," Linda Walker told the Grand Forks Herald for its Thursday editions. "I asked mother-to-mother."...

HUNTSVILLE, Texas -- For the second time in as many days, the same lawsuit spared a condemned Texas inmate from the death chamber. The U.S. Supreme Court halted the execution Wednesday of Kevin Lee Zimmerman, who was part of a lawsuit that challenged one of the drugs used to carry out the death penalty...

Bush defends policy on Iraq rebuilding contracts WASHINGTON -- President Bush, under fire from allies, said Thursday that countries which sent troops to Iraq should be entitled to share in the $18 billion in American-financed reconstruction projects while other nations are shut out. ...

SPACE CENTER, Houston -- Taking a lesson from the Columbia disaster, NASA plans to embed high-tech sensors in the wings of the three remaining space shuttles to detect any blows from debris, an oversight panel said Thursday. The sensors will determine whether the leading edges of the wings were hit, but not the degree of damage, said Joseph Cuzzupoli, a Kistler Aerospace Corp. vice president who is part of the return-to-flight task force...

BOWIE, Md. -- More than 28,000 foster children have received the note, a duffel bag and the cuddly friend. "I want you to always know that you are loved, especially by me," the letter says. "And always remember to be positive, polite and never give up. Love Your Friend, Makenzie."...

NEW YORK -- Michael Jackson's parents say he's innocent of the child molestation allegations against him, and have offered to adopt his children if they're taken away from him. "Some people are trying to accuse him of being a pedophile, and that is not true," Katherine Jackson said in an interview airing today on ABC's "20/20."...

BALTIMORE -- When Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Luna's sedan cruised through a toll booth the night he was killed, his E-ZPass card automatically billed him. More importantly, it left an electronic record of his travels for police investigating the crime...

WASHINGTON -- Holiday shoppers catapulted sales at the nation's retailers higher in November. The Commerce Department reported Thursday that merchants' sales rose 0.9 percent last month, ending two straight months of belt tightening, which caused retail sales to drop by 0.3 percent in September and be flat in October...

some exporters fear delays By Olga R. Rodriguez ~ The Associated Press REYNOSA, Mexico -- Indian pigeon peas, Mexican cilantro, Turkish laurel leaves -- any food headed for the American market -- will be more closely examined starting today under new rules to thwart bioterrorists...

SYDNEY, Australia -- What does a man have to do to get a tank of gas in Antarctica? A daredevil Australian pilot who flew his homemade plane over the South Pole last weekend has ignited a storm between Australia and its two closest allies -- the United States and New Zealand -- who are refusing to refuel his aircraft, which is stranded on an ice runway on the edge of Antarctica...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- State utility regulator Kelvin Simmons was named Thursday by Gov. Bob Holden as the next director of the state Department of Economic Development. Simmons, who has long been active in Democratic politics, was presumed to be the party's candidate for state treasurer next year until he announced in late September that he was not running and was relinquishing the chairmanship of the Public Service Commission...

Firefighters, residents and members of a neighboring district shared their concerns with the Fruitland Fire Department's board Thursday night at a monthly meeting. At issue was the district's aging 1976 pumper truck that recently has suffered mechanical problems -- including a breakdown at a Dec. 2 house fire on Chippewa Lane. At least three firefighters at the meeting said they had no faith in the engine...

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- U.S. bombs never hit Saddam Hussein's grandiose presidential palace in Baghdad, making its ample meeting rooms and vast conference tables an ideal headquarters for U.S.-led occupation authorities after the war. Now the building -- the physical seat and biggest symbol of Saddam's 23-year dictatorship -- is the likely site for the next U.S. Embassy in Iraq, U.S. officials in Washington and Iraq said this week...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- For the second straight game in the Sikeston tournament, Central's boys basketball team won on a last-second shot. Will Johnson beat his man off the dribble and hit a short jump shot with less than two seconds left to give the Tigers a 49-47 victory over Poplar Bluff Thursday night. Eli Harris beat Blytheville, Ark., with a bank shot in the closing seconds of Central's tournament opener on Tuesday...

HOUSTON -- Andy Pettitte followed his heart back home to Houston, making a "gut-wrenching" decision Thursday to leave the New York Yankees and accept a $31.5 million, three-year contract with the Astros. After winning four World Series championships and six AL pennants in New York, Pettitte hopes his winning ways will help lead Houston to its first-ever title. ...

Opportunities to hear the blues are rare in Cape Girardeau. If the Acme Blues Band isn't playing somewhere, a drive to St. Louis might be the next option. That's why Tony Scruggs named his new club St. Louis Nights Presents Blues on Broadway. Located at the corner of Broadway and Middle Street in downtown Cape Girardeau, the club opens today...

Saxony Lutheran High School officials signed a contract this week for construction of a new $4.5 million facility in Fruitland. The 42,084-square-foot project will be built by Brockmiller Construction Co. of Farmington, Mo. The bid was low enough that two additional classrooms have been added to the project, allowing for a capacity of 350 students. ...

The balance is smaller, but the Toybox program still needs $30,000 to complete its mission of giving needy children in Cape Girardeau holiday gifts. So far, between $5,000 and $6,000 has come in as cash donations to the Toybox program, said Mike Seabaugh, a Jaycees member...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- A Scott County duo were arrested Tuesday after a Scott County sheriff's deputy spotted the man buying items commonly used to make methamphetamine, according to the sheriff's department. During a traffic stop, the deputy found Donald R. White, 45, with drug paraphernalia, an item thought to be a controlled substance and the purchases...

In an effort to promote the recycling of Christmas wrapping paper and cardboard boxes, and also to bring more attention to the recycling center, the City of Jackson is sponsoring a customer appreciation day for its recycling customers the Saturday following Christmas...

James Litzelfelner Jr. has announced that he will run for a Jackson Board of Aldermen seat in the upcoming 2004 election. Litzelfelner will look to replace current alderman Joe Bob Baker. Litzelfelner is currently serving on the city's planning and zoning commission. He has served on the Jackson Park Board, is involved with youth sports and is a sideline reporter for Jackson High School football radio broadcasts...

NEW YORK -- Jason White appeared to be a lock to win the Heisman Trophy until he flamed out in the Big 12 title game. Luckily for Oklahoma's quarterback, he was not alone. Three of the four finalists for college football's most prestigious award had their worst games of the season with conference championships on the line...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Reeling from revelations about his family's dealings with troubled ex-basketball player Ricky Clemons, University of Missouri president Elson Floyd said Thursday he would not resign and said he did nothing wrong. Floyd, who became president of the four-campus system last January, was in Kansas City for a previously scheduled meeting with the university's Board of Curators which was to include a private discussion of his job performance...

NEW YORK -- This is one honor LSU coach Nick Saban won't have to share. Saban's steady leadership helped earn him The Associated Press Coach of the Year award Thursday, beating Pete Carroll of Southern California. "Even though I'm accepting the honor, it's for all of the players and coaches and support staff, also," Saban said. "They all had as big a part in it as I did. I'm very flattered and honored."...

HAMMOND, Ind. -- A tenant in a rundown apartment house was charged with murder Thursday after a third body was discovered buried beneath a layer of freshly poured concrete in the building, police said. The remains, discovered during a search for three missing teenagers, were found covered in heavy layers of plastic and duct tape. Police used a jackhammer and hand tools to locate and remove the bodies from the concrete...

NEW YORK -- Cable and phone companies are hustling to offer new services that route calls over the Internet, a technology that eventually will make the 125-year-old telephone system seem about as advanced as sending smoke signals. That day bounded closer this week as three major communications companies -- Time Warner Inc.'s cable TV unit, Qwest Communications International Inc. and AT&T Corp. -- announced plans to sell Internet phone services to consumers...

Federal officials announced Thursday that the flu has hit hard in Missouri and 23 other states, nearly twice as many as last week, prompting public health officials to offer more flu shots in Cape Girardeau and elsewhere. The Cape Girardeau Public Health Center -- which vaccinated over 4,600 people this fall before running out of the flu vaccine -- recently obtained 500 more doses. ...

PARIS -- A presidential commission on Thursday backed a ban on Islamic head scarves in public schools -- stepping into the wrenching debate over how to preserve the country's secular identity while integrating France's Muslim population, the largest in Western Europe...

CLINTON, Ill. -- A woman accused of drowning her three children in a car submerged in a lake had asked her own mother to take custody of two of them just months before their deaths, the mother said Thursday. Two hours after she watched her daughter cry as a judge read the first-degree murder charges she faces, Ann Danison said she couldn't help but wonder if she could have averted the tragedy...

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Bill Clinton heads a list of past and present government officials scheduled to speak at the funeral Sunday for former Sen. Paul Simon at Southern Illinois University. Clinton will deliver an address at the public funeral, as will Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy and Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, university spokeswoman Sue Davis said Thursday. The funeral is set to begin at 1:30 p.m. Sunday at the SIU Arena...

ADVANCE, Mo. -- Mabel Louise "Bobbie" Bogad, 83, of St. Robert, Mo., died Friday, Dec. 5, 2003, at Phelps County Regional Medical Center in Rolla, Mo. She was born April 3, 1920, in Advance, daughter of Benjamin and Ada Pixley Croy. She and Frank Joseph Bogad were married June 16, 1951, in St. Louis...

Arthur B. Miller, 87, of Jackson died Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2003, at Life Care Center in Cape Girardeau. He was born Aug. 1, 1916, in Hannibal, Mo., son of Arthur B. and Zetta Miller. He and Angela Leimer were married Dec. 4, 1981. Miller was an orderly at old St. Francis Hospital in Cape Girardeau...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Raymond G. "Ray" Blaylock, 70, of Perryville died Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2003, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. He was born Jan. 8, 1933, in Perry County, son of Roy G. and Bertha Loberg Blaylock. Blaylock was a retired heavy equipment operator with Bloomsdale Excavating Co. He was a member of Crossroads Methodist Church, Union Local 513, a booster member of American Legion Post 133, AM Vets Post 94, and River Hills Eagles Lodge 4034...

John R. Cowell, 82, of Missouri Veterans Home in Cape Girardeau died Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2003, at St. Francis Medical Center. He was born June 13, 1921, in Charleston, Mo., son of Charley Eugene and Lois Clayton Cowell. He and Josephine Halter were married Oct. 24, 1937, in Caruthersville, Mo. She died May 4, 2002...

DIEHLSTADT, Mo. -- Malcolm J. Green, 72, of Diehlstadt died Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2003, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston, Mo. He was born Aug. 25, 1931, in Hayti, Mo., son of Malcolm J. and Mary Elizabeth Green Sr. He married Katie Ione Allen Jan. 31, 1953...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Marlin Lee Smith, 80, of Sikeston died Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2003, at Miner Nursing Center in Miner, Mo. He was born Jan. 24, 1923, in East Prairie, Mo., son of Jess and Karleen Harris Smith. He and Nancy Ellen Groves were married Dec. 28, 1942...

Lavern Bangert, 79, of Jackson died Thursday, Dec. 11, 2003, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson is in charge of arrangements.

ORAN, Mo. -- Helen Marie Furlong, 76, of Oran died Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2003, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. She was born Feb. 28, 1927, at Canalou, Mo., daughter of Joe and Alma Ploense Schac-herbauer. She first married Billy Sadler, who preceded her in death. She and Wayne Furlong were married Jan. 8, 1968. He died March 4, 1981...

PERKINS, Mo. -- Bill "Dub" Crowden, 85, of Perkins died Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2003, at his home. He was born Feb. 1, 1918, in LaMar, Ark., son of W.L. and Jennie Seiler Crowden. He and Irene Dufur Himes were married Jan. 7, 1986. Crowden was a retired pipefitter with Local 562 in St. Louis. He was a former member of Chaffee Masonic Lodge 615 and Chaffee Elks Lodge 1810, and Sikeston Order of Eagles Aerie 3319...

'Lord of the Rings' Starring Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom, Sean Astin, Dominic Monaghan, Billy Boyd, John Rhys-Davies, Cate Blanchett, Liv Tyler, and Christopher Lee. The final film in Peter Jackson's adaptation of the J.R.R. ...

Three stars (out of four) Movies with hip-hop dance scenes in them have always left me feeling like a klutz. I felt that way after this show, but I also felt like I'd been taught a valuable, albeit cliched, lesson: Stay true to your dreams. The dance scenes are quite impressive. ...

In freezing temperatures last Friday, a crane at the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge construction site hoisted a bucket bearing Dr. Joel W. Ray and two construction workers 300 feet to the top of one of the bridge's towers. He took photographs on the way up to keep from being afraid...

'Musiq' On his third album, Musiq proclaims himself a "Soulstar," and the album mostly delivers on the promise. The upbeat "Forthenight," finds the artist proposing a no-strings-attached hookup, while "Womanopoly" cleverly uses Monopoly to tell the story of a woman who took control of her own life...

When Dr. Robert Gifford retires from the Department of Music at Southeast Missouri State University at the end of the school year, one of his legacies will be the Children's Arts Festival he founded four years ago. Another will be the Southeast Chamber Players, the ensemble he has directed throughout its nearly 15-year history...

LOS ANGELES -- For those with perhaps a grade school exposure to Emily Dickinson or a wariness about poetry, "Loaded Gun: Life, and Death, and Dickinson" is comfortably akin to Cliffs Notes. Which is not to say that the PBS documentary about the reclusive poet isn't illuminating or worth watching. It's also, improbably enough, entertaining in a Michael Moore-ish, guerrilla kind of way...

Kenneth A. Ulrich, 73, of Louisville, Ill., died Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2003, at his home. He was born Sept. 13, 1930, in Cape Girardeau, son of Fred and Myrtle William Ulrich. He married Mary Alice McCorkle. She died in 1965. Ulrich was a former member of VFW Post 3838...

ORAN, Mo. -- Charles B. Eftink, 80, of Oran died Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2003, at Chaffee Nursing Center in Chaffee, Mo. He was born Jan. 14, 1923, at Portageville, Mo., son of Herman Bernard and Cecelia Suzanne Strack Eftink. He and Coletta Ann Jansen were married Feb. 16, 1949. She died March 25, 2003...

ST. LOUIS -- Heavy interest in two offensive linemen on the Rams' practice squad led to a chain reaction of minor moves by the team on Thursday. The Rams signed guards Andy King and Scott Tercero from their practice squad rather than lose them to other teams. To make room for those two, they released linebackers Courtland Bullard and Scott Shanle...

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Three suicide bombers in a furniture truck blew themselves up at the gates of a U.S. Army base Thursday, killing one soldier and wounding 14. It was the third suicide attack on American troops in Iraq this week. Three wounded soldiers were evacuated from the headquarters of the 82nd Airborne Division west of Baghdad to a combat hospital and the other 11 wounded were treated and returned to duty, the U.S. military reported...

Summit begins with Japan seeking freer trade TOKYO -- Japan joined 10 Southeast Asian nations in a pledge to expand trade and join forces on regional security as they opened a two-day summit on Thursday. The summit in Tokyo marks the first time leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have met outside of their region. Japan, which is not an ASEAN member, is ASEAN's second-largest trading partner and investor, after the United States...

Cape Girardeau city sales tax revenue grew by 5.2 percent over the last quarter compared to the same time last year, city officials say. "It appears it is trending back up," said city finance director John Richbourg. Still, that doesn't mean the city's in great financial shape, he said. For the calendar year, sales tax revenue grew at less than half a percent, Richbourg said...

Hamburg al-Qaida suspect freed from custody HAMBURG, Germany -- A German court Thursday freed a Moroccan accused of supporting the Sept. 11, 2001, al-Qaida cell in Hamburg, saying there was new evidence he did not know about the plot. The decision also cast doubt on the only conviction so far in the suicide attacks in the United States. The new evidence suggested that those involved in the terrorist plot were only the three Hamburg-based suicide hijackers and their alleged al-Qaida liaison...

Schedule (see map below) 8 a.m. -- Gates open to the public 9 a.m. -- Ceremony begins at the middle of the bridge with dignitaries' remarks 10:15 a.m. -- Ribbon cutting (bridge cable cut with grinder) 10:30 a.m. -- Inaugural drive/celebration caravan...

Cape Girardeau The following items were released by the Cape Girardeau Police Department. Arrests do not imply guilt. Arrests Dewayne E. Phoenix, 41, of 401 S. Pacific, No. 8C, Cape Girardeau, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of larceny. Tammy R. Story, 44, of 1112 Perry Avenue, Cape Girardeau, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of stealing...

Cape Girardeau Firefighters responded Wednesday to the following items: At 4:59 p.m., medical assist at 1850 Martin Court. At 7:09 p.m., medical assist at 1820 Scotts Lane. At 7:55 p.m., emergency medical service at 3208 Themis, Apt. 5. Firefighters responded Thursday to the following items:...

When Cape Girardeau nurses met recently with U.S. Sen. Jim Talent, they were eager to share their concerns about what has widely been described as a critical nursing shortage nationwide. The main point: If the federal government is here to help us, you need to know that the federal government is one of our biggest problems...

Missouri high school football coaches honored Central by placing six Tigers on its all-state team this week. Colin Schermann was a first-team all-state pick by the Missouri Football Coaches Association. He finished 36-of-41 on extra points and made seven field goals with a long of 51 yards. Schermann also kicked 32 kickoffs for touchbacks...

To the editor: This is regarding the 27-year-old youngster who thinks it's unfair for him to have to pay for Medicare for today's senior citizens. I'm one of those seniors who also pays for my Medicare, as do others. Many seniors paid for this 27-year-old's public education and probably partially paid for his college degree...

To the editor: Located in the White House, the Office of Management and Budget can hardly be dismissed as a left-wing environmental organization. However, as environmentalists and progressive politicians have argued for years, OMB reports that environmental regulations make sound economic sense. ...

To the editor: I am writing in response to Bob Todd's Nov. 5 letter to the editor concerning the St. John's Bayou levee project. His figures are incorrect. He should obtain proper numbers before calculating. Saving people from drowning and from the ravages of flooding are not conservative or liberal issues. People help other people. It is what we do. Helping others is much more important than money can ever be...

Good for Dobbins I SAY hats off to Ken Dobbins and too bad for these malcontent professors. Dobbins is trying to take Southeast Missouri State University back to where it used to be when SEMO graduates were not too good to do manual labor. Let Mizzou, Rolla and SIU educate the bosses. SEMO graduates need to have strong backs...

Mallie Mae Leonard, 86, of Cape Girardeau died Monday, Dec. 8, 2003, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. She was born Dec. 15, 1916, at Keytesville, Mo., daughter of Grover and Sarah Carter Shoemaker. She and Gerald Leonard were married July 27, 1936, in Salisbury, Mo. He died in 1979...

Wood sculptures in Poplar Bluff POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- "Odyssey in Dimension and Form," an exhibition by wood sculptor Ralph W. Freer, is now on display at the Margaret Harwell Art Museum. Christmas re-enactment at Fort Massac METROPOLIS, Ill. -- An Olde Tyme Christmas and Living History program will be presented Saturday and Sunday at Fort Massac State Park, 1308 E. ...