Top Stories U.S. News U.S. Politics Alaska Ketchikan

The week in review By THOMAS HARGROVE - House OKs resolution blasting Iraq policy

The Democratic-controlled House Friday approved a nonbinding resolution criticizing President Bush's decision to send additional troops to Iraq. The vote was 246-182. "The stakes in Iraq are too high to recycle proposals that have little prospect for success," said Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California. Republican lawmakers - who lost their majority status on Capitol Hill in November's elections - said the resolution would lead to moves to cut off funding for the troops. The Senate planned a rare Saturday session for its debate.

North Korea agrees to nuclear disarmament

North Korea agreed to a tentative deal Tuesday that might lead to its nuclear disarmament in exchange for 500,000 tons of oil and other energy and humanitarian assistance. The agreement was reached among representatives from six countries holding a 16-hour negotiation session in Beijing. President Bush called the deal "a good first step." Former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton said it was a bad deal for the West. North Korean negotiators promised to "disable" their main nuclear reactor system within 60 days.

Bush: Iranian weapons used in Iraq

President Bush said Wednesday that the Iranian military has supplied high-tech explosive devices to Iraqi insurgents for use against U.S. troops. American intelligence officials briefed reporters Sunday about the new weapons, called "explosively formed penetrators," which can pierce tanks and other armored vehicles. Officials said the weapons have killed at least 170 U.S. troops. Bush said the weapons were provided by an Iranian military group called the "Quds Force," but said he cannot prove whether Iranian political leaders approved of the distribution.

Winter blast hits Midwest, Northeast

Old Man Winter conspired with Pennsylvania state government snafus to strand hundreds of motorists on a 50-mile stretch of Interstate 78, some for as long as 24 hours. National Guardsmen in Humvees and other good Samaritans on snowmobiles brought in food, water and baby supplies to those stuck in the snow and ice. The storm was blamed for at least 24 deaths throughout the Northeast and Midwest. A storm-related backlog left hundreds of JetBlue passengers stranded for more than eight hours on parked airliners at New York City's Kennedy Airport, waiting for the arrival of buses to take them back to the terminal.

Iraqi security crackdown begins in Baghdad

Iraqi military and police Wednesday launched a long-awaited security crackdown - code-named "Operation Imposing Law" - with the help of recently augmented U.S. forces. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said the new offensive will target anyone who wants to " continue with rebellion." Authorities established new checkpoints throughout Baghdad, randomly searched cars, set more stringent curfew hours and promised tighter security along Iraq's international borders. - More...
Sunday PM - February 18, 2007

Washington Calling: Protecting the Wall against marchers ... Dirty info ... More By LISA HOFFMAN - Some veterans are up in arms over plans by anti-Iraq-war demonstrators to assemble next month at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Billed as a protest marking the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war's start and the 40th anniversary of a pivotal march on the Pentagon against the Vietnam War, the March 17 event will commence near the haunting memorial and end at the Pentagon. Organizers expect an enormous turnout.

The Military Order of the Purple Heart, Rolling Thunder and other veterans groups are promising to form a protective ring around the Wall, which they consider "hallowed" ground. Purple Heart national commander Tom Poulter said his members are outraged that the protesters would "even consider gathering near the Wall." One fear is that someone may try to spray-paint the memorial as protesters did to the U.S. Capitol last month.

Protest organizer Richard Becker of the leftist ANSWER Coalition dismissed those fears as the rantings of "right-wing" extremists and said no one would attempt to deface or defile the memorial. And, although his group's press release said marchers will assemble at the memorial, Becker said the staging area will actually be in a nearby stretch of the National Mall.

X...X...X

About 1 in 5 Americans overseas who wanted to vote last November were unable to, according to a survey by the Overseas Vote Foundation. Some never received an absentee ballot, others got theirs too late to meet the voting deadlines and still others were confused by the complex rules governing voting abroad.

Of 100 U.S. troops overseas who were surveyed, more than 40 did not cast ballots, the study said.

X...X...X

Pretty soon, you may not only be able to get the dirt on someone, but store the info in dirt, too. Japanese researchers will report in an upcoming journal published by the American Chemical Society that they've developed a method for copying and pasting data encoded in artificial DNA into the genes of a common soil bacteria. Specifically, they stored the message "E=MC2 1905" - Albert Einstein's famous 1905 energy-mass equation - on a splice of the genetic material of a bacterium called Bacillus subtilis.

X...X...X

Look for the Air Force to back off its plans to cut 20,000 airmen from its ranks as a way to save millions of dollars, which the service would rather spend on aircraft and other hardware. The brass says Congress' order last year to add 90,000 troops total to the Army and Marine Corps now means more airmen will be needed to support the added force with transport and combat air support. - More...
Sunday PM - February 18, 2007

Viewpoints Opinions/Letters Basic Rules Newtown Zoning By Christy Showalter - Sunday PM It is time for our whole Country to go to war By Patrick Jirschele - Sunday PM Death of Gordan Wright By Roger McDonald - Sunday PM Forest Service Plan: Clearcuts Help Stop Global Warming By Soren Wuerth - Sunday PM Novel litter idea By Dan Patton - Sunday PM RE: More Smoke By Willi & Kären Johannsen - Sunday PM Ban Smoking in restaurants By Taylor McDonald - Sunday PM Funding PERS and TRS is Vital by Rep. John Harris - Friday AM Vessel Management Systems for Commercial Fishermen An Onerous USCG Requirement By Rep. Bill Thomas - Friday AM Trumpeter Swans By Bev Kingdon - Thursday PM Complaints By Jerry Cegelske - Thursday PM More Smoke By Charlotte L. Glover - Thursday PM Smoke-free Valentine's Day Dinner? By Rick Grams - Thursday PM Elizabeth Peratrovich Day By Janice Jackson - Tuesday PM Losing Our Soul, Speeding Up Around a Blind Curve By Jill Bohr Jacob - Tuesday PM Children of Smokers By Valerie Hendel - Tuesday PM Smoke-free Valentine's Day Dinner? By Kim Flores - Tuesday PM Different Views By Dinah Pearson - Tuesday PM Borough Bus Should Go To Airport By Anna Hoon - Tuesday PM What People Think By Jerry Cegelske - Tuesday AM Airport Shuttle Was Best Idea By Ken Levy - Tuesday AM Smoking By Robert McRoberts - Tuesday AM Disclosure vs Shorter Session By Rep. Peggy Wilson - Monday PM MANDATORY RENEWABLE ENERGY - THE ENERGY EVOLUTION By Jay Draiman - Monday PM Government regulation of smoking in cars with children By Devin Klose - Monday PM Vehicular Homicide By Rob Holston - Monday PM Trash Everywhere By Andrea Wick - Monday PM Re Firing Squad By Carl Webb - Monday PM More Viewpoints/ Letters Publish A Letter Ketchikan Ketchikan Police Report AK Troopers Daily Dispatch Today's Forecast Satellite Today's Weather Images Marine Forecasts Ketchikan Weather Data Current AK Weather Map CLASSIFIEDS Auto-post your ad in the proper category, or email your ad & photos to ads@sitnews.us  CLASSIFIEDS' CATEGORIES Announcements For Sale / Free Stuff Garage Sales Homes / Apts/ Property Pets Wanted Lost & Found Local Services February 2007 S M T W T F S 28 29 30 31 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28       More Front Page Archives

Ann McFeatters: Be defiant and read this - Since you are reading this (bless you), you have not succumbed to what many think is the next big trend - the end of the written word.

Newspapers are in big trouble - circulation is falling for many if not most papers. Wall Street hates newspapers on the grounds they don't make as much money as they used to make, although compared with many other businesses they are still lucrative. Advertisers are seeking new venues.

The number of books published in this country is declining. As many as 40 million American adults are barely literate. Many college students are doing more poorly than their predecessors did on reading-comprehension tests.

Instead, we are watching more television, playing video games and being mesmerized by online graphics.

Is this bad? And what is it going to do to the practice of democracy?

Some think this is a good trend, which will lead to less stigmatizing of people because they can't read or write. In other words, people are not stupid just because they are not literate. - More...
Sunday PM - February 18, 2007

Dan K. Thomasson: That was then ... and now is what really matters - The thorniest question in the current free for all for both the Democratic and Republican presidential nominations unfortunately may be one that is also highly unfair and actually irrelevant - whether the candidate voted for the resolution supporting the invasion of Iraq. Well, who cares?

It is not unlike holding one accountable in 1968 for voting for the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, which completely changed the nature of U.S. involvement in Vietnam. Nearly everyone did. Both resolutions were based on assumptions that later turned out to be false and, in the case of the Tonkin Gulf on an event that may not even have happened.

But faced with the available information at hand both times few members of Congress were willing to vote "no."

In both instances, voting for or against the military action called for was (as historically is often the case) a political crapshoot. If the assumptions proved to be correct and the war goes well, all the supporters are home free. If it turns out badly, of course, all the supporters are held accountable. But few have the courage to deny a president his wishes in these cases when presented with what seemed to be a credible reason for proceeding. Once engaged, troop support then tempers opposition. - More...
Sunday PM - February 18, 2007

Steve Brewer: As the years pile on, so do the maintenance issues - Having recently "celebrated" the passing of a milestone birthday (one that ends in a zero), I've given much thought lately to aging.

I've decided it's not impending mortality that makes getting older so hard to take. It's not the decline in vitality and possibility. The worst part of aging is all the darn maintenance.

Talk about a paradox. We have less life ahead of us with every passing day, but more and more of our dwindling time is spent on caring for our faces and our bodies and our overall health. By the time we finally take our final breaths, we're ready to die, just so we can stop fussing with our hair.

It's so much easier for the young. I watch my sons get ready for school in the morning and marvel at how little effort is required. They roll out of bed, throw on some clothes from the array on the floor, shovel in some breakfast, and they're ready to go. They barely give the mirror a glance. They're teens, they're male, they assume they look fine.

If pressed, I can still do the quick shower and dress and out-the-door in 15 minutes. (What we call around here "sliding down the Batpole.") But most mornings require that more attention be paid to the mirror. - More...
Sunday PM - February 18, 2007