Sex, drugs, death- are you reading now?

Here at work, we've taken more of an interest in what you think.

Every day, before our meeting where the bosses determine which stories get front-page treatment, we get a printout of what our online readers have determined to be the most interesting stories.

And we've come to conclusions.

Any story that involves sex, drugs or death is wildly popular.

People seemed to be interested that Cairo's city attorney had just died. We wonder, however, how many people actually knew his name before they clicked on the "Cairo city attorney dies" link.

Of course you all went crazy for the story about a former Cape priest who was accused of sexual misconduct. And the two stories in the last week where police caught men trying to solicit teens for sex? You all just couldn't get enough.

And these little briefs about various drug busts are typically more popular than our county's so-called No. 1 problem, public transit. But you all don't seemed to interested in that issue. Hey, we understand. Getting the goods on some Perry County dope heads or some sleazeball predator is just more interesting.

So with you in mind, we've changed our column a bit this week:

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JACKSON, Mo. -- A 24-year-old Jackson woman has been charged with threatening the life of her 29-year-old husband as well as the unlawful use of a weapon.

A months-long sting operation conducted by the Family Bureau of Investigation using the husband as an informant revealed that Callie I. Miller, of Jackson, told her husband she wanted to "ring your neck." She also used what police describe as a "death stare" to intimidate the victim, a violation of the new "If Looks Could Kill" law.

The husband, Robert C. Miller, of the same address, was charged two months ago for sarcastic behavior, resisting chores, living under the influence of testosterone, failure to yield to wife's right of way and possession of allergy paraphernalia. Those charges were dropped in exchange for his cooperation in his wife's investigation.

Transcribed wiretaps reveal that Callie Miller, on several occasions, threatened her husband.

President Bush said Wednesday the warrantless wiretaps were legal because evidence proved that Callie Miller had clearly shown she was a threat to national security.

"She was a bomb waiting to go off," the president said. "We found a weapon of mass destruction living within our borders. Clearly this was a justified use of our nation's intelligence."

The probable cause statement accuses the wife of being "cute and talented." Therefore, an FBI spokesman said, it will be difficult to make any of the charges stick.

"Hey, I'm the victim here," said Callie Miller when reached at her office. "I have a husband who has given a name to a roll of toilet paper. How do you deal with that? He forgets stuff all the time, he doesn't call me in the evenings when he's at work. Half the time he walks around like some spiritless zombie who doesn't know me at all. And he tells the dumbest jokes. That's the real crime here. The jokes."

Robert Miller said the charges were justified.

"She's cute and talented, so she thinks she can get by with everything," he said. "It's time for her to learn that she can't just push me around anymore. Unless, of course, she wants to keep doing it."

If convicted, Callie Miller could face a lifetime sentence of husband belly-aching and summer weekends watching baseball.

No court date has been set.

cmiller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 128

bmiller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 122