Stories from Thursday, June 1, 2006

June 1, 2006 Dear DC, A few Saturdays ago I left the house mad at you over something or other and went to the annual Demo Day at the driving range. On Demo Day, the major golf companies send representatives who let golfers try out the latest clubs. With all the company canopies and banners flying, the atmosphere is festive. Sort of like an Arthurian joust...

When Dr. Martin Jones arrived at Southeast Missouri State University as the new dean of the College of Liberal Arts in 1989, the university had no online classes and the River Campus arts school wasn't on the drawing board. The university had an open admissions policy. Some students, Jones said, weren't really equipped academically for college...

Southeast Missouri State University music professor Dr. Gary Miller will serve as director of the River Campus School of the Visual and Performing Arts. The two-year appointment comes as the university considers possible restructuring of the College of Liberal Arts and replacement of Dean Dr. Martin Jones, who retired Wednesday...

A 10-year-old girl alleged she was sexually assaulted by a family member in Cape Girardeau, according to police Sgt. Barry Hovis. The girl told her mother that the family member had sodomized her on multiple occasions since February on the city's southeast side...

Cape Girardeau city officials hope new sidewalks in the northwest part of town will make it safer and easier for children to walk to school. The city engineer's office put out for bid a project that will add 4,600 feet of sidewalk, much of it in the area surrounding Alma Schrader Elementary School at 1360 Randol Ave...

By Peter Kinder May is Older Americans Month. In recognition of Missouri seniors, I honored our best older workers and senior service award winners at the Capitol in early May. These individuals are actively working and volunteering in their communities long past retirement age, some 100 years and older. They are an inspiration to us all because they do whatever they can to make Missouri better. I salute these men and women who define good citizenship...

The Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce will hold its monthly First Friday Coffee at the Show Me Center this week. This month, state Sen. Jason Crowell and state Rep. Nathan Cooper will present an update on legislative issues before the legislature. The program will begin at 7:40 a.m. Friday after a continental breakfast. The room opens at 7 a.m...

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -- Lance Armstrong called it a "witch hunt" from the very beginning, saying a French newspaper used dubious evidence to accuse him of doping -- even charging that lab officials mishandled his samples and broke the rules. According to a Dutch investigator's findings released Wednesday, he may have been right...

Carl Edwards, coming off a third-place finish in Charlotte that equaled his best performance of the year, is trying to shake off what for him has been a slow start to the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup season. Heading into Sunday's race at Dover, the 13th race of the season, Edwards is 14th in the standings, trailing series leading Jimmie Johnson by 530 points. More important, though, last year's third-place Cup finisher trails 10th-place Kevin Harvick by 95 points...

SAN DIEGO -- The FBI has opened an investigation into a fledgling San Diego sports marketing firm that tried to recruit Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush, the attorney for the football star's family told The Associated Press Wednesday. Attorney David Cornwell of Atlanta said FBI agents interviewed him about "potential federal crimes" last week by phone. Cornwell said he intends to make Bush and his parents available to the FBI...

The statistics about child abuse in our area are shocking. The stories of the pain and suffering endured by youngsters are horrifying. If anything good can come from the darkness of such agony, it is the light of public awareness, along with the coordinated efforts of law enforcement agencies and organizations like the Southeast Missouri Network Against Sexual Violence...

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Shaquille O'Neal was about to throw down another backboard-shaking dunk. Ben Wallace wasn't having it. The 6-foot-9 Wallace leaped and stuffed O'Neal -- forcing a jump ball, putting the 7-1 O'Neal on his back and sparking Detroit's defense that refused to let the Pistons' season end...

WASHINGTON -- There's no prize for filing the longest tax return, but General Electric Co. could probably beat any competition. The company filed a 24,000-page tax return to the Internal Revenue Service this month. If it were paper, it would stack up 8 feet high. But instead of sending boxes to the tax collectors, GE filed its return electronically -- all 237 megabytes of it...

WASHINGTON -- The United States said Wednesday it would join in face-to-face talks with Iran over its disputed nuclear program once Tehran puts its atomic activities on hold, a shift in tactics meant to offer the Iranians a last chance to avoid punishing sanctions...

ST. LOUIS -- After the Houston Astros re-signed Roger Clemens, the St. Louis Cardinals put some more distance between themselves and their top rival in the National League Central. So Taguchi's bases-loaded single in the 11th inning off Mike Gallo gave the Cardinals a 4-3 victory on Wednesday, spoiling Houston's first game since re-signing Clemens. The Cardinals took two of three from the Astros, who beat them in the NL Championship Series last year en route to their first World Series...

Part two of a series "Cancer is an education you can live a lifetime without." This is what Angela said when she sat down to discuss the education she didn't sign up for when she was suddenly diagnosed with breast cancer. This lovely 43-year-old has her trademark wide-open smile at full throttle. She has lots to grin about these days. She just made it past her three-year cancer-free anniversary...

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- Indonesia averaged one human bird flu death every 2 1/2 days in May, putting it on pace to soon surpass Vietnam as the world's hardest-hit country. The latest death, announced Wednesday, was a 15-year-old boy whose preliminary tests were positive for the H5N1 virus. It comes as international health officials express growing frustration that they must fight Indonesia's bureaucracy as well as the disease...

EL PASO, Texas -- Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas' bedroom is nothing short of a shrine to the Marine whose death in an Iraqi roadside explosion preceded a firefight that now is the focus of a criminal investigation. On one wall is a Marine Comfort Quilt, a blanket sewn by strangers who heard of the 20-year-old's November death in Haditha, Iraq. ...

To the editor: Dog-slapping the Democrat-Socialist (Dazi) Party and associated useful Himmlers is a noble endeavor. But I am obliged to contract the sphincters of liberal-socialists (libsocs) with a fair and balanced flogging of the current Republican-in-name-only Grand Old Party...

25 years ago: June 1, 1981 MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- The future of ambulance service in Bollinger County likely rests on the outcome of a special election tomorrow on whether to establish an ambulance district which would rescue the financially strapped county government from having to subsidize the service...

Marble Hill UFO?; City landscaping; National knowledge; County sales tax; Hiroshima museum; Shaping opinion; Excessive speed

Sybil Mae Loos, 86, of Jackson passed away Friday, May 26, 2006, at Jackson Manor Nursing Home. She was born July 13, 1919, in Advance, Mo., daughter of Ray and Rosebud Shaner Brown. She and Emil Loos were married May 11, 1937. He passed away Aug. 10, 1992...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Ronald "Ron" Newcomb, 54, of Sikeston, formerly of Charleston, Mo., died Wednesday, May 31, 2006, at his home. He was born Aug. 31, 1951, in Cairo, Ill., son of Clarence Halton and Mary Lou Newcomb. He and Diane Rolwing were married Oct. 26, 1974...

Dr. Max E. Cordonnier, 71, of Cape Girardeau died Wednesday, May 31, 2006, at his home. Ford and Sons Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Terry Randall Simmons, 43, of Charlottesville, Va., died Wednesday, May 31, 2006. Amick-Burnett Funeral Chapel in Chaffee is in charge of arrangements.

John D. McClard Sr., 88, of Cape Girardeau died Tuesday, May 30, 2006, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. He was born Sept. 7, 1917, at Pocahontas, son of the late Albert and Ora Unger McClard. He and Addie "Billie" Craft were married Sept. 15, 1950, in Old Appleton, Mo. She preceded him in death Dec. 20, 1986...

Richard G. Joplin, 52, of Jackson passed away Tuesday, May 30, 2006, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. He was born Dec. 9, 1953, in Salem, Ore., son of David G. and Ruth Thomas Joplin. He and Debra L. Peters were married July 22, 1978...

Ethel Dora Park Coleman, 91, of Cape Girardeau, died Tuesday, May 30, 2006, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. She was born Sept. 22, 1914, in Collinsville, Ill., daughter of Howell Wright and Clara Candice Kershaw Park. She graduated from Greenville High School and attended Greenville College in Greenville, Ill., and Hanover College in Hanover, Ind...

Due to a mistake in the information provided to the newspaper, Juanita Cook's name was misspelled in Wednesday's club news.

Retired Southeast Missouri State University professor and well-known local artist Max Cordonnier took his own life at his home, Cape Girardeau County Coroner John Clifton said Wednesday. Cordonnier, known for computer-enhanced art filled with images from literature and mythology, was 71. He had retired from the university in 1992 after 31 years as professor of English teaching courses in Romantic- and Victorian-era English literature...

Scott County's long wait for a drug-sniffing dog is nearly over following the donation of a $5,000 check. Nestle Purina PetCare Company of Cape Girardeau presented Sheriff Rick Walter with the donation Wednesday afternoon that will go toward buying the department the new animal. While the sheriff's department has a tracking dog, this will be the county's first drug-sniffing dog...

Letter guidelines for the Southeast Missourian. 1. Letters on topics of general public interest are welcomed. 2. All letters must be signed. The name of the writer will be published. 3. All letters to be considered for publication must include the name of the town where the writer lives and a daytime telephone number where the writer may be reached during normal business hours...

Cape Girardeau...

Cape Girardeau...

Local families hold reunions n Overbeck -- The William H. Overbeck family reunion will be held June 11 at shelter No. 22 at Cape County Park, South. There will be a covered dish meal at 12:15 p.m. Democratic group to meet The Cape Girardeau area democratic meetup group will meet Wednesday, June 14, at 6:30 p.m. ...

The Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (known as CARF) has awarded the Community Counseling Center a three-year accreditation. This is the second consecutive three-year accreditation outcome that the international accrediting commission has awarded to Community Counseling Center. ...

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The shooting death of a pregnant Iraqi, apparently by U.S. troops, as she was rushing to a hospital threw an intense spotlight Wednesday on the troubling issue of Iraqi civilian deaths. Iraqi police and witnesses said the troops gunned down the woman and her cousin in their car. The U.S. military said the car entered a clearly marked prohibited area but failed to stop despite repeated signals; shots were fired to disable the vehicle, it said...

DILI, East Timor -- Machete-wielding youths battled in East Timor's capital Wednesday amid burning and looting as more foreign troops bolstered a force struggling to stop the unrest that has destabilized the country. More than 100,000 residents of Dili have fled their homes to escape the violence, an aid official said...

KABUL, Afghanistan -- A U.S. military spokesman said Wednesday that American soldiers used their guns in self-defense after rioting Afghans opened fire during a melee that broke out after a deadly road crash. President Bush spoke with the Afghan leader and pledged a full investigation into Kabul's worst unrest since the Taliban's downfall. The anti-foreigner riots were sparked by an accident Monday in which a U.S. truck plowed into a line of cars, killing up to five Afghans...

PARIS -- Roger Federer was better than the weather. On a third consecutive damp, chilly day at the French Open, the top-ranked Federer endured two rain delays while beating Alejandro Falla 6-1, 6-4, 6-3 in the second round Wednesday. The two delays totaled 1 hour, 31 minutes, while the match lasted only 1 hour, 26 minutes...

Kimbeland teams compete in scramble Five two-woman teams from Kimbeland Country Club in Jackson played Tuesday in the scramble at Hidden Trails Country Club in Dexter, Mo. The team of Vicki Long and Harriet Myers led the way by finishing second in the championship flight...

ST. LOUIS -- Jim Edmonds missed his fifth straight start Wednesday with what St. Louis Cardinals medical officials again suspect is a sports hernia, and manager Tony La Russa expects to be without the outfielder for a while. Edmonds was scheduled to be examined by a specialist later Wednesday after undergoing an MRI on Tuesday. Team doctors have struggled to pin down a diagnosis...

As a volunteer assistant coach in 2002-03, John Ishee helped B.J. Smith's first Southeast Missouri State women's basketball team put together a breakthrough season. Now Ishee hopes to help the Redhawks continue their impressive run of success under Smith as a full-time assistant coach...

The Jackson American Legion team and visiting House Springs were evenly matched in all but one inning Wednesday. The fifth inning made the difference. House Springs scored six runs in the top of the fifth to open an eight-run lead and held off Post 148 for a 10-5 victory...

The Cape Girardeau Ford and Sons American Legion baseball team continued their winning ways Wednesday night at Capaha Park, posting a five-inning 11-1 victory over visiting Plaza Express from Fulton County, Ky. Cape Girardeau starting pitcher Lance Young, a recent Central High graduate, went the distance to record the win, giving up only three hits...

HOUSTON -- The memory of his mother pushed Roger Clemens to come back. The chance to play with his oldest son persuaded him to pick the Houston Astros. "We'll see what happens," Clemens said Wednesday. "Here we go." Clemens agreed to a $22 million contract to pitch for Houston for the rest of 2006, ending months of speculation around baseball and in his own mind whether he could -- or even wanted to -- play a 23rd season...

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Oran did not commit an error in either of its first two games in the state playoffs. The state final four is a different animal, though, and despite Oran's state tournament experience, the Eagles made six errors in Wednesday's Class 1 semifinal at Taylor Stadium...

Calvin Williams didn't have to look long to find a familiar face when he decided to transfer from the University of Colorado. Williams knew about Scott Edgar from the time Edgar was an assistant coach at Alabama-Birmingham and tried to recruit Williams, then a high school basketball star in Memphis, Tenn...

Summertime events are in full swing, from barbecues to the opening of local swimming pools to hiking at Trail of Tears State Park. But some caution is needed during these activities. The most obvious danger to look out is damage from the sun...

The final stop Tom Neumeyer made in downtown Cape Girardeau Wednesday morning before returning to his studio was the May Greene Garden. Rumors abound concerning the garden's fate if the Cape Girardeau County government gets control of the current federal building. The garden sits behind the building, on the site of the former Greene estate. But some worry that the garden's location could move...

Cape Girardeau and Jackson's municipal bands are kicking off another season over the next few days. Jackson's band will have its first show tonight, while Cape Girardeau's band performed its first show last Monday. The bands perform once a week, with Cape Girardeau's band playing at 8 p.m. on Wednesday nights at Capaha Park Municipal Bandshell. Jackson's band usually plays at 8 p.m. Thursday nights at Jackson City Park, with a few of its performances beginning at 7 p.m...

Debra Baughn's research into her family history unearthed an interesting nugget: Her ancestors were married by Cape Girardeau founder Louis Lorimier in 1801. And, Baughn surmises, since there were no churches around, the nuptials very well may have taken place at Lorimier's home, the so-called Red House along the Mississippi River...