Stories from Thursday, August 24, 2000

DEXTER, Mo. -- It happens to folks nearly every summer. They come in from having a good time in the outdoors. They have a little itch and they naturally scratch it. It itches some more, and they scratch some more. A vicious cycle has started. The culprit is most probably poison ivy, or its cousins, poison oak and poison sumac, depending on which leafy creature was in the path...

Drivers in Missouri see things differently even before they get on the roads, a driver's license bureau official said. A state statute permits people with 20/40 vision or better to receive an unrestricted driver's license, said Linda Kemp, a manager with the state driver's license bureau in Jefferson City, Mo...

This column originally ran Aug. 17. It is being rerun to correct editing errors. Not a day passes without each of us encountering someone who displays inattention, impulsiveness or hyperactivity. But when these behaviors are observed in children, and when they clearly interfere with development, they may be a sign of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)...

Common Pleas Courthouse, which housed city offices for 124 years, could once again do so if county and circuit court offices are moved into the Federal Building on Broadway. Cape Girardeau County officials are interested in leasing or buying the Federal Building once a new federal courthouse is built. The courthouse is expected to be built and opened by 2004...

Ralph John Knoblauch didn't intend for Orville Meyer to live through Wednesday, but with help from several law enforcement agencies Meyer managed to survive, the Cape Girardeau County prosecuting attorney's office said. Knoblauch, 60, was arrested Tuesday and charged with conspiracy to commit murder, Prosecutor Morley Swingle said...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Nearly 2,000 years after Jesus Christ, the motives for why people follow him probably haven't changed, said the Rev. Dr. Ralph Bell. Christian disciples must "count the cost of following Jesus" in the coming days of the crusade, he said. It will mean sacrifices, schedule changes and work...

Aug. 24, 2000 Dear Ken, Choking -- not the Heimlich maneuver kind but the kind athletes fear more than suffocation -- interests the most recent issue of The New Yorker. Choking, the New Yorker maintains, is the act of thinking too much in a stressful situation when you should let your instincts rule. You have trained your muscles by hitting thousands of balls, so get your brain out of the way and let those muscles remember what to do...

Students at four Cape Girardeau schools will be dismissed early today because of heat concerns. District superintendent Dan Steska said Louis J. Schultz School will dismiss at 11:15 a.m., and the Cape Central junior and senior high schools, as well as the Alternative Education Center, will dismiss at 11:30 a.m...

Staff members from the Missouri Public Service Commission will be on hand at the Osage Community Centre tonight to answer questions from the general public during a PSC local public hearing in the AmerenUE natural gas rate request. Local public hearings give natural gas customers of AmerenUE an opportunity to comment on the rate hike request currently before the commission. In addition, customers are given a chance to bring any service-related problems to Commission's attention...

(Carnival rides begin operating at 6 p.m., stage entertainment begins at 6:30 p.m.) Today Talent show with singers ages 6-12, Country Touch band. Friday Talent show with dancers ages 6-12 and 13-21 and variety acts, followed by talent show finals. Saturday...

DEXTER, Mo. -- Much like the new school year itself, the political battle over who is the bigger supporter of public education is just getting started. The latest volley was fired Monday afternoon by state Sen. Jerry Howard (D-Dexter) who said that not only was his earlier criticism of Republican opponent Bill Foster of Poplar Bluff warranted, but he now has cause to further press issue of education support...

Offensive, threatening language in e-mail has become the grounds for Cape Girardeau County's first Internet crime charges, the county prosecutor said. In separate incidents, a 14-year-old Cape Girardeau boy and a 26-year-old Jackson man have been cited for harassment, a misdemeanor...

A third armed robbery in Cape Girardeau this week resulted in the arrest of a 42-year-old man who said he needed money for medication, police said. About 7:45 p.m. on Wednesday, an armed robbery involving a knife was reported by Rhodes 101 Stop at 407 Morgan Oak, patrolman Chris Muench said...

A Cape Girardeau attorney has been arrested for third-degree assault and tampering with a victim, the Cape Girardeau County prosecutor's office said. William Z. Shohet, 31, of 813 Illinois, was arrested Wednesday for three counts of misdemeanor assault and two counts of victim tampering...

What began almost a decade ago as a small neighborhood outdoor basketball tournament has grown into what Scott Porter believes is one of the finest events of its kind in the entire state. Porter, tournament director for Slamfest, had to turn away about 25 teams for the ninth annual event that will take place Saturday and Sunday at Indian Park in Cape Girardeau...

Cape Girardeau Central High School left no doubt as to which softball team is the best in Cape Girardeau -- at least at this point in the early season -- as the Lady Tigers disposed of visiting Notre Dame 12-0 in five innings Wednesday. Holly Schnurbusch was the winning pitcher for Central, which improved its record to 2-0. She struck out four and walked two...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Nora Lou Powers, 88, of Sikeston died Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2000, at Missouri Delta Medical Center. She was born June 9, 1912, in Kewanee, Mo., daughter of William Frederick and Iva Armentha Mays Gestring. She and Harry Powers were married Sept. 6, 1934, in Cape Girardeau. He died Jan. 17, 2000...

Twin sons to Elton Lee and Melisa Lynn Stanley of Jackson, Mo., Southeast Missouri Hospital, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2000. Dawson William was born at 6:40 p.m. and weighed 6 pounds 10 1/2 ounces. Dalton Lee was born at 6:41 p.m. and weighed 5 pounds 4 ounces. ...

TAMMS, Ill. -- Mary Louise McDaniel, 76, of Granite City, Ill., died Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2000, at Maryville Manor in Maryville, Ill. She was born Aug. 20, 1924, in Clinton, Ky., daughter of Claude Ezra and Sally Mae Cagle DeJarnett. She and Adolph O. "Doc" McDaniel were married Feb. 26, 1949, in Cairo, Ill...

Funeral for Jessie Marie Callahan Edgar of Cuba, Mo., will be held at 2 p.m. today at Britton Brothers Funeral Home in Steelville, Mo. The Rev. Harrison Brown will officiate. Burial will be in Martin Cemetery in Cherryville, Mo. Edgar, 79, died Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2000, at Missouri Baptist Medical Center in Sullivan, Mo...

William David Stevens II, 91, of Milwaukee, Wis., died Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2000, at Mt. Carmel Nursing Home in Greenfield, Wis. He was born July 26, 1909, in Cochester, England, son of William John and Ellen Mary Thrulow Stevens. He and Maxine M. Madden were married July 15, 1933, in Milwaukee. She died in September 1983...

Elaine Followell, 84, of Cape Girardeau died Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2000, at St. Francis Medical Center. McCombs Funeral Home in Cape Girardeau is in charge of arrangements.

Funeral for retired Col. Garvel R. "Bob" Trimble of Hope, Idaho, was held Wednesday at Coffelt Funeral Home in Sandpoint, Idaho. Private burial will be in Green Acres Cemetery in Scottsdale, Ariz. A memorial service will be held in October. Trimble, 85, died Friday, Aug. 18, 2000, in Sandpoint...

KELSO, Mo. -- Josephine Barbara Robert, 95, of Kelso died Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2000, at Fountainbleau Lodge in Cape Girardeau. She was born March 15, 1905, in Scott City, Mo., daughter of Louis A. and Theresa Fischer Ziegler. She and David Gabriel were married June 18, 1929. He died May 27, 1964. She and Elva Robert were married May 30, 1967. He died April 16, 1989...

CYPRESS, Ill. -- Harlan Hartline, 71, of Cypress died Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2000, at his home. Wilson Funeral Home in Karnak, Ill., is in charge of arrangements.

To the editor: There was this man who invented a better mousetrap. As the story goes, people beat a path to his door. I visualize him living in a rural setting where there were no neighbors close by, if any. But that quickly changed. There came so much traffic that it no longer was a path. ...

Say what you will about the American process of selecting a president, but in comparison to every other system, it's still the best. Consider Lech Walesa, Nobel Peace Prize winner, former president of Poland and former dockworker and labor organizer. Walesa wants to make another run for the presidency in his native country...

When buildings are open to the public, they also are required to be accessible to individuals whose disabilities make it difficult to get in and out and around those buildings. Any discussion of disability access, of course, must acknowledge that newly constructed buildings have no excuse for barriers to handicapped individuals. But older building are a stickier problem...

In response to the booing of Eagle Scouts by delegates at the Democratic National Convention and the demand by gay-rights protesters at the Boy Scouts of America's headquarters in Irving, Texas, that gays be admitted to Scouting, the American Freedom Center has issued the following statement:...

Has the Bush campaign been crippled by the Gore freight train? I think not, but Gore's temporary convention bounce should serve as a wake-up call and an antidote for overconfidence for the Bush camp. Last week's events in Los Angeles were very odd, to say the least. Granted, people have short memories. But regarding the Democrat convention, we're talking amnesia...

I am calling about a Speak Out article that appeared Aug. 17 entitled bigger classes. As the number of students in a teacher's classroom increases the amount of individual attention for each child decreases. A lack of individual attention presents a variety of problems for our children. ...

To the editor: I would like to thank the Southeast Missourian for its coverage of the Southeast Hospice Music Festival showcasing great local talent and a special appearance by U.S. Sen. John Ashcroft. However, I am obligated to clarify some information...