Sunday, December 17, 2000

Baby boomers may be in store for a 'heir-cut'
Americans may not be saving much, the stock market may be going into the tank, Social Security may be headed for trouble -- but, hey, not to worry, frugal parents of members of the baby-boom generation are about to bequeath them vast sums that will assure them of a comfortable old age.

Italian takes plunge into scuba diving in Brainerd
International ties are not foreign in the lakes area.

Stores get nervous as clock ticks on holiday season
NEW YORK -- The clock is ticking for America's stores.

Living a musical dream
PEQUOT LAKES -- A small business dream created a Pequot Lakes store that offers a mix of brass and string.

Misplaced wife blocks benefits
Question: When I signed up for a 401(k), my employer said I must designate a beneficiary, so I just put down my wife's name, even though we had never actually lived together and I wasn't sure then whether we ever would. Now I no longer work at the company and have requested a withdrawal of my funds. My request was rejected because it required spousal consent and her signature. The trouble is I don't even know her whereabouts. My landlady can attest that my wife has never lived with me from day one. Is there another way to get the money that belongs to me, or is it doomed to stay there forever? Should not truth carry more weight than a technicality?

Whirlpool announces job cuts, restructuring, issues earnings warning
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Whirlpool Corp. announced a restructuring plan Wednesday that could cut up to 6,000 jobs -- 10 percent of its work force -- and close some plants within the next year.

Best Buy earnings down 27 percent; meet lowered estimates
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Slowed consumer spending and discounted prices reduced Best Buy Co.'s third quarter earnings by 27 percent, matching Wall Street estimates that were lowered after the company issued an earnings warning in early November.

Earnings, not election, dominate Wall Street
NEW YORK -- Investors who thought the resolution of the presidential election would set off a rally on Wall Street found themselves instead in the midst of a huge selloff.

Business notes
Roger Kegler of the Crow Wing County Farm Bureau will serve on the Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation Board of Directors.

Bush challenged by an economic slowdown right at the beginning of his presidency
NEW YORK (AP) -- Down through the ages it's been said again and again, that in some obscure and contradictory way victory loves trouble. Too often, it seems, problems are the prize for winning.

Edina Web careers company Techies.com lays off 120 workers
EDINA (AP) -- An Edina-based company that offers a career Web site for information technology workers has laid of 42 percent of its employees, or 120 of its 280 workers.

Too much time in office is bad on back
NEW YORK (AP) -- One reason that you lose office time because of back pain is too much office time, spent in that chair.

Around the watercooler
MAKING THE HONEYMOON LAST: Cutting-edge gadgets, stock options and fair salaries are among the perks that can prevent high-technology workers from seeking greener pastures, a new study has found.

Shaq bags another trophy: His diploma
BATON ROUGE, La. -- Adorned in full rap and gown, a hallowed hall-sized member of the class of 2000 sent his classmates into the world Friday with this solemn wisdom:

Packers persecution
NEW PRAGUE -- It's not easy being green.

December Volunteer of the Month
Name: Dorothy Janes

Pets of the week
Marshmallow is a blue-eyed female cat, white with tan markings, that would make an ideal companion for a single person or family.

Getting rid of junk mail
NEW YORK -- Even before Isabelle Dervaux and her husband moved into their new home in San Francisco last January, junk mail began piling up annoyingly at the front door.

Volunteer activities
GRANDMA/GRANDPA GOOSE -- Share the joys of learning. Assist teachers in teaching reading and counting through nursery rhymes. For one hour, one or two days per month. School District No. 181. Susan Rogers 828-0842 or RSVP 824-1345.

Thieves find merriment during holidays
DEAR ABBY: May I offer some words of advice for those who make it easy pickings for burglars? Stealing during the holidays is like taking candy from a baby. Most homes display lovely gift packages under Christmas trees. If no precautions are taken, homes become a "marketplace" from which thieves can "shop" with impunity. It is also a time when stores are teeming with careless, unsuspecting shoppers who are stressed out looking for last-minute gifts, and rushing around trying to get everything done. Pickpockets and muggers delight in how easy it is to rob shoppers during the holiday season.

Agendas
Brainerd City Council

Accidents
LITTLE FALLS -- A two-car crash near Little Falls left both drivers injured Friday, the State Patrol reported.

Agendas
Crosby-Ironton school board

Predicted energy shortage will be concern of Legislature
ST. PAUL -- For decades, electricity has been something Minnesotans didn't have to worry much about. It's been plentiful, cheap and reliable.

Massive budget package approved
WASHINGTON -- President Clinton and congressional leaders are hailing a compromise budget package boosting spending on schools, health and other programs that the clamorous, lame-duck 106th Congress sent him before finally adjourning for the year.

Vietnam shaped Powell's foreign policy views
WASHINGTON -- During his second tour of duty in Vietnam more than 30 years ago, Colin Powell came to the aid of a soldier -- "just a kid," he later recalled -- who had stepped on a mine and whose face showed a mixture of astonishment, fear, curiosity and, most of all, incomprehension. He died in Powell's arms and left behind, in Powell's mind, the unanswered question of why American soldiers were in Vietnam.

Congress approves North Dakota water project
WASHINGTON -- A final spending bill that includes North Dakota's Garrison water project won final approval in Congress. It gives permission to spend $631 million on North Dakota water projects, but puts off the contentious question of delivering Missouri River water to the Red River Valley.

Clinton lauds his administration's final budget accord
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Clinton on Saturday called the final budget deal of his administration a spending plan that puts people first and lauded the bipartisan effort that Congress put into the document.

Grams likes idea of spot in Bush administration
WASHINGTON -- Minnesota, Rod Grams said, is a place he still considers home. But the soon-to-be ex-senator plans to stay in Washington for the foreseeable future, where he's gunning for a job in the Bush administration.

Federal panel recommends adding estrogen to list of cancer-causing agents
WASHINGTON -- While stressing the value of estrogen treatments for women, a government scientific advisory panel recommended Friday that the chemical be added to the nation's list of cancer-causing agents. Maybe, one scientist said, this step might encourage doctors to talk with their patients about both the risks and the benefits.

CDC: Four listeriosis deaths linked to recalled poultry products
WAYZATA -- Cargill Inc.'s CEO on Friday urged consumers to destroy recalled poultry products from its Waco, Texas, plant that have been linked to four deaths and three miscarriages or stillbirths.

Teen-ager accused of impersonating doctor
FAIRFAX, Va. -- A teen-ager, aspiring to be a doctor, allegedly gave medical directions to nurses and prescribed medication and minor medical procedures for patients without being challenged, officials at a suburban Washington hospital disclosed Friday.

Health care and medical services
Blood Pressure Clinics

Chemical dependency groups and AA groups
Adult Children-Chem.Dep.

Support groups
Crisis Line-Referral Ser.

Healthy business
ROCHESTER (AP) -- The doctor is in every month -- in Fortune magazine, that is.

Bare floors could lead to better breathing
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Consider the beauty of your bare floors if you or anyone in your house has allergies or asthma.

HOT GIFT ITEMS
Electronics appear to be a hot ticket item again this year, but holiday shoppers who are looking for PlayStation 2 have plenty of competition and fewer opportunities.

Senator Ventura?
ST. PAUL -- A Wellstone-Ventura matchup in 2002 may materialize after all, but don't presume it will be in a race for Minnesota governor.

This was Brainerd
DECEMBER 17 - 20 years ago (1980) - Faced with some hefty lobbying efforts from the program backers, the Crow Wing County Board this morning rescinded its action Monday and unanimously approved a local management plan for the Upper Mississippi River.

Pie maker
Mary Etta Durham, Pequot Lakes head cook for almost 30 years, is retiring from the school next week to sweeten the profits on her lucrative pie-making business. Read her story in Monday's Dispatch.

Nominees for BHS hall of fame are sought
The Brainerd High School Hall of Fame Selection Committee once again is asking the public for help.

Counting on last-minute rush
After an explosive start after Thanksgiving, many area retailers last week reported slightly slower sales this holiday season.

Teen charged after gun used in accidental shooting
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- A teen-ager whose gun was allegedly used in the accidental shooting of a 4-year-old has been charged with two felonies, Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar said Friday.

Bush's choice
AUSTIN, Texas -- President-elect Bush is naming retired Gen. Colin Powell as his first Cabinet choice, selecting the popular hero of the Persian Gulf War as his secretary of state.

Unprecedented FBI march protests possible pardon for Leonard Peltier
WASHINGTON -- More than 300 FBI agents, in an unprecedented show of political activism, marched on the White House Friday to urge President Clinton to reject clemency for a Native American man convicted of killing two agents a quarter-century ago.

Police investigate Wichita's second multiple shooting
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) -- Four people, including a high school teacher, were abducted, taken to a bank ATM and driven to a field where they were shot to death in Wichita's second quadruple homicide in eight days. A fifth victim was wounded.

Court-martial called inappropriate for pilot in Kuwait crash
JACKSONVILLE, Ark. -- An Air Force commander has recommended that court-martial charges be dismissed against the pilot of a C-130 cargo plane that crashed in Kuwait last December, killing three servicemen.

Hillary Clinton seals $8 million book deal
WASHINGTON -- New York Sen.-elect Hillary Rodham Clinton Friday agreed to accept $8 million in advance money for a memoir about her eight scandal-fraught and politically tangled years as first lady.

Palestinian jailed in U.S. on secret evidence is released
BRADENTON, Fla. -- A Palestinian was released from jail and walked into the arms of his weeping family Friday, after being locked up for three years on secret government evidence without being charged with a crime.

Author Kobler dies
NEW YORK (AP) -- John Kobler, an author whose skill at criminal reportage and writing biographies coalesced in an enduring biography of Al Capone, died Monday. He was 90.

Woman reportedly despondent before fall out of plane
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- A Hewlett-Packard Co. employee who fell 2,000 feet from an airplane into a backyard garden has left behind a baffled team of investigators who are trying to determine whether her death was a tragic accident or suicide.

Philly proposes leasing out historic City Hall to save it
PHILADELPHIA -- You can't fight city hall, but in the City of Brotherly Love, you might be able to lease it.

Gregg Jefferies retires
NEW YORK (AP) -- Gregg Jefferies looked at the future and decided he didn't want to be a role player, so he's retiring from baseball at age 33.

USC picks Pete Carroll as coach
LOS ANGELES -- Pete Carroll has been here before.

A chance to revisit a special night
There's a VCR alert for Tuesday night.

GREEN BAY (7-7) AT MINNESOTA (11-3)
Noon, FOX

Scandalous: These eight men are out
This is what happens when you ignore the writers and turn the vote over to the fans, players and coaches.

Vikings hoping for a boost from Metrodome
EDEN PRAIRIE -- The way the Minnesota Vikings treat the Metrodome, it would seem the last place they would go looking for a favor.

NFL this week
Dave Wannstedt saw what happened last week when Jay Fiedler tried to play in a downpour with a sore left shoulder: three interceptions and a fumble in a 16-13 loss to Tampa Bay.

Mets pitcher in domestic violence complaint
BALTIMORE (AP) -- New York Mets reliever Armando Benitez slammed a door against his fiancee during an argument, the woman claimed in a police report.

Wolves take Garnett's heroics for granted
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) -- While Kevin Garnett amazes most people with his talent, his coach just shrugs his shoulders.

Top NFL teams
The top six and bottom six teams in the NFL based on current level of play:

Winners and losers A look at baseball's offseason spending spree
NEW YORK (AP) -- Baseball's billion-dollar offseason spending spree has brought a few teams closer to the New York Yankees in payroll.

NFL competition committee makes changes
NEW YORK (AP) -- The NFL's competition committee underwent personnel changes with the selection of three new members Friday.

Red Sox sign Nomo, Reds re-sign Wohlers
NEW YORK (AP) -- The Boston Red Sox keep on spending.

Defense calls phone calls signs of 'classic' drug deal
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- Clusters of telephone calls between former NFL player Rae Carruth and two of his co-defendants suggest they were plotting a "classic drug transaction," not a murder for hire, defense attorneys told jurors in Carruth's murder trial.

NFL injury report
NEW YORK (AP) -- The updated National Football League injury report for this week's games, as provided by the league:

NBA leaders
Through Dec. 14

Lucille Nelson
PILLAGER -- Lucille Nelson, 82, Pillager, died Saturday, Dec. 16, 2000, at St. Gabriel's Hospital in Little Falls.

Melvin Godfrey Bakke
IRONTON -- Melvin Godfrey Bakke, 92, Ironton, died Friday, Dec. 15, 2000, at the Cuyuna Regional Medical Center in Crosby. He was born Nov. 6, 1908, in Minneapolis, to Louis and Tillie (Halverson) Bakke.

Marguerite Larson
CHEYENNE, Wyo. -- Marguerite Kempenich Larson, 82, Cheyenne, Wyo., formerly of Randall, died Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2000, in Cheyenne.

Robert Zimmer
STAPLES -- Robert Zimmer, 63, Staples, died Thursday, Dec. 14, 2000, at the Greater Staples Hospital.

Strong talk from Bush
WASHINGTON--No majority. No mandate. Not even broad public agreement that he deserved the prize that fell into his hands when the Supreme Court, itself deeply divided, ordered that the ballot recounts in Florida must halt. This is not the way George W. Bush hoped--or planned--to come to the presidency.

Snowmobiles - Dispatch Editorial
Snowmobiles are a way of life for many Minnesotans. Snowmobilers are easy to spot in winter. They're the ones with the glum looks on their faces when a major snowstorm just misses Minnesota.

Open Forum
I would like to inform everyone that "Friends in the Christmas Spirit" will once again be serving a free Christmas Day Dinner to

'Oh Florida, oh Florida'
All together now! To the tune of "Oh Christmas Tree."

Outdoor notes
Dozens of inquiries regarding the welfare of the swan that lives on the pond at the Paul Bunyan Learning Center were received in recent weeks. People were concerned that as the pond froze over the swan would be left out in the cold.

How birds, animals cope with the cold
Outside my office window a pale cream orb rises in the southeast to illuminate the fresh white fluff that coats the landscape. Snow crystals catch the soft early morning light, glistening like a spread of dancing diamonds. Early birds have arrived to forage at the feeders. A red-breasted nuthatch snips at the suet, a goldfinch snatches some thistle, juncos scrape around under the feeders and the ubiquitous chickadees swoop in for sunflowers. From my warm confines and with a cup of hot cocoa in hand, I see the outside thermometer registers a mere six degrees.

A-trapping we will go Brainerd duo pursues a once-common winter pastime
Norm Ebinger lowers a chisel through a hole in the ice and gently stirs the water.

50th anniversary
Donovan and Darlene Hegle, Fort Ripley, recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with a celebration in St. Paul.

Engagement announced
Emily Moerer and Ben E. Black announce their engagement.

50th anniversary
John and Cecilia Biggins will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary Saturday at Mass at St. Francis Church, followed by dinner at Cragun's Resort.

Sullivan-Zappa
Stephanie Sullivan and Allen Zappa were married Nov. 15, 2000, in Brainerd.

Fried-Propeck
Allison Fried and Adam Propeck were married July 21, 2000, at Lakewood Evangelical Free Church of Baxter with Pastor Jeff Wright officiating.

Wedding planned
Janel Marilyn Mathison and Jason Eugene Fletcher announce their engagement.

Hoemberg-Hiles
Jodie Hoemberg and Brendan Hiles were married Sept. 16, 2000, at Lakewood Evangelical Free Church of Baxter with Pastor Randy Ahlberg officiating.

Wo-Lapka
Yi Ree "Queenie" Wo and Marco Lapka were married April 12, 2000, in Taipei, Taiwan.

Lenk-Wacker
Christy Lenk and Wade Wacker were married Oct. 28, 2000, at St. Francis Catholic Church of Brainerd with Father Seamus Walsh officiating.

Engagement announced
Shanna Johnson and Brian Chileen announce their engagement.

Four generations
Four generations recently gathered were Madalyn Marie Smith, Big Lake, daughter; David Smith, Big Lake, father; Mary Smith, Georgetown, Ky., grandmother; and Marjorie Vuchetich, Brainerd, great-grandmother.

Engagement announced
Eric Erickson and Rebecca Lynn O'Rourke announce their engagement.

Bunyan battle Warrior wrestlers trying to catch Bemidji
With four finalists wrestling for individual championships, the Brainerd Warriors were virtually assured a better finish in the 34th annual Paul Bunyan Invitational Saturday at Brainerd High School.

Fergus rolls over Flyers in overtime in hockey
LITTLE FALLS-- The Little Falls Flyers boys' hockey team lost to Fergus Falls in overtime 5-4 on Friday night. Ryan Miller pumped in the game winning goal for Fergus Falls on a power play at 5:06 of the overtime period.

Weekly league leaders
THROUGH SUNDAY

Local shorts
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- Jamaal Scott drained a three-pointer with 0.4 seconds remaining to send the game into overtime and Cal Poly outscored Eastern Washington 10-4 in the extra period to win 87-81 in men's college basketball Thursday.

WCHA
ST. CLOUD (AP) -- Scott Meyer had 22 saves and assisted on a third-period goal as St. Cloud State beat Alaska-Anchorage 3-1 Friday night.

Raider men storm to win
The winter storm warnings were breaking out all over northern Minnesota but the real flurry was happening in the Central Lakes College gym where the Raiders' men's basketball team was piling up points on its way to a 97-74 victory over Minnesota West Friday night.

Bowling
MONDAY AFTERNOON

Women's basketball notebook
Several Central Lakes College Raiders women's basketball players maintain prominent positions in Northern Division statistical categories.

Rocori boys defeat BHS
COLD SPRING -- The Brainerd Warriors dropped a 74-59 Central Lakes Conference boys' basketball contest against the Rocori Spartans Friday.

The Heisman winner from Pine River
For years I thought Rohn Stark was the most accomplished football player to originate from Pine River. How many NFL players can a community of 871 generate anyway?

Area events Saturday
Girls Basketball

Girls' hoops
BELGRADE -- The Pierz Pioneers improved to 2-0 in the Central Minnesota Conference and 5-1 overall with a 78-40 win over the Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa Jaguars on Friday.

CLC women too pesky for Minnesota West
You arrive in the Brained lakes area in mid-December. There's a few of inches of snow on the ground and the thermometer reading is right around zero. You've got to figure that all those pesky little swarming creatures that inhabit the area in the summer are long gone.

Boys' basketball
BAXTER -- The Pillager Huskies jumped out to a 41-13 halftime lead and never looked back in a 64-35 non-conference boys' basketball victory over the Lake Region Christian Hornets Friday.

Rochester drawing high-tech firms
ROCHESTER (AP) -- Almost seven years ago, executives from fledgling software maker Lakeview Technology pitched IBMer Kenneth Zaiken an offer he could refuse.

Some gifts are more practical than others
Where are you?

For the kids
Canine rocket

America Online-Time Warner merger could set framework for Internet policy
WASHINGTON -- For years, the government has taken a hands-off approach to emerging technologies that promise a new world of Internet services for consumers.

Say cybercheese
Great pix, good price

Before leaping into a tech career, open your eyes
The sweaty palms. The rapid heartbeat. The inability to form a complete sentence.

A guide to this year's video games
"The Sims" (PC/MAC) Maxis' wildly popular offering takes real-time, PC strategy gaming into a bizarre but delightful world where you direct your own domestic soap opera with characters of your own creation.

More snow, cold for Plains, Pacific Northwest
The nation's midsection braced for subzero wind chills and another bout of snowfall on Saturday, further complicating a massive effort to restore power to tens of thousands of homes left dark and cold since a midweek storm.

Let it snow
Weather drawing by Leona Caruthers of Sharon Jendro's first grade class at Lowell school.

Organizations
Brainerd Jaycees

Much obliged
The Heartland Symphony Orchestra Band would like to thank all the people who made our Grand Old House Tour Fundraiser a success.

Barak makes bid for peace in Clinton's final days in office
JERUSALEM -- Fighting for his political life, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak is making one last high-stakes bid to achieve a peace agreement with the Palestinians in the final days of Bill Clinton's presidency.

Thousands ordered to evacuate as Mexico's Popocatepetl Volcano spews ash
MEXICO CITY (AP) -- Calling it a pressure cooker with a rattling lid, officials kept a wary eye on a towering volcano and ordered thousands evacuated as the fiery crater spat out gas, vapor and ash for a fourth straight day.