Tuesday, December 19, 2000
Trade gap stays close to record high in October
WASHINGTON (AP) -- America's trade deficit stayed close to an all-time high in October at $33.2 billion as imports of crude oil climbed to the highest level on record. The deficits with China and Japan also set records.
Internet in every classroom no longer enough, report finds
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Schools connected to the Internet but lacking instant, complete access to its resources will be left behind this century, just as those with dated textbooks were in the last one, a bipartisan panel concludes.
Extra credit
Laura Bogenschutz, Baxter, and Laura Sperl, Little Falls, each earned a $1,000 chancellor's academic honor scholarship from the University of Wisconsin-Stout. Bogenschutz is majoring in early childhood and Sperl is majoring in art.
Report: American adults better educated
WASHINGTON -- American adults are getting better educated, new Census Bureau estimates show.
Woman who craves diamond may be bad marriage investment
DEAR ABBY: I'm 28, my girlfriend is 32. We've been dating for three months and care about each other, but there are a few issues I'm afraid spell "trouble ahead."
Fires
Two homes in Unorganized Territory sustained severe damage in fires Sunday.
Accidents
GARRISON -- Two vehicles, in separate incidents, went through the ice on Mille Lacs Lake this past weekend, though no serious injuries were reported.
Births
Eric and Annette Klang, Brainerd, a boy, Josiah Truett, 9 pounds, 12 ounces, Nov. 15, 2000.
Crimes
BURGLARY -- Marty Homer, 700 block of Kingwood Drive, reported Friday his residence was broken into.
Bush's national security pick brings strong resume
WASHINGTON -- Condoleezza Rice has spent her whole life -- 46 years so far -- as the youngest and smartest person in almost any room.
Money for everyone
WASHINGTON -- When University of Idaho officials wanted help making their jazz history archive available on the Internet, they turned to their state's congressional delegation.
Electoral College upholds Bush victory
In the end, the Electoral College outcome may have been the one vote in election 2000 that could have easily been predicted -- with a narrow but resounding victory for Texas Gov. George W. Bush.
Coats likely Bush choice for defense chief
WASHINGTON -- President-elect Bush conducted a parade of private job interviews Monday for potential Cabinet secretaries, including his leading candidate to head the Pentagon.
Across nation, electors gather to cast votes for president
The ceremonies will be buttoned-up and businesslike, or met with song and costumes. Now that George W. Bush won the postelection contest, the Electoral College chooses the nation's next president.
Bush meets with Greenspan, Hill leaders
WASHINGTON -- President-elect Bush met with Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and congressional leaders on Monday for the first time since he wrapped up the election. "I'm excited about what we can do together," Bush said after his meeting on Capitol Hill.
Risky Bush legal strategy paid off
WASHINGTON -- The presidency of the United States was won on what at first seemed like the unlikeliest of legal arguments.
Members of Congress impressed with Bush's charm
WASHINGTON -- The man who campaigned as a Washington outsider came to Capitol Hill Monday and wasted little time wooing the insiders who have the clout to make or break his presidency.
Two more E. coli cases bring sickened Minnesotans to 36
ST. PAUL, Minn.(AP) -- Two more Minnesotans and a Wisconsin man were sickened in the E. coli outbreak linked to ground beef from a Wisconsin meat packer and sold at Cub Foods and other stores, bringing the number of illnesses to at least 43.
Study finds no cell phone, cancer link
CHICAGO -- A study of people who used cell phones for an average of less than three years found no evidence the devices cause brain cancer.
Questions arise in Brainerd police chief selection process
Questions have surfaced in the search for a Brainerd police chief.
Not everyone thinks the weather outside is frightful
ISLE (AP) -- A few weeks ago, it was just open water. Now it's the beginning of a city.
Crash near Pine River kills woman
PINE RIVER -- One person is dead and another injured following a one-vehicle accident reported at 5:23 p.m. Sunday on Highway 371, just south of Pine River.
Man shot to death
MINNETONKA (AP) -- A man was shot to death here shortly after going to answer his door, police said. Just before 11 p.m. Saturday, police received a 911 call from a woman who told them her husband, Dustin Jirasek, had gone to answer the front door to see what was making his family's Great Dane bark.
C-I board will wait until November for levy vote
CROSBY -- The Crosby-Ironton School Board agreed Monday to wait until November to have residents consider another levy referendum.
State briefs
ROCHESTER -- A 34-year-old Rochester man was in custody and another man was being questioned in the death of an Illinois man.
St. Paul police investigate 16-year-old girl's death
ST PAUL (AP) -- A 24-year-old man was being held for questioning in the death of a 16-year-old girl found in a garage Sunday night, police said.
Lots of Santas
A rural Hackensack couple's home is filled with 100 carved wooden Santas, as well as 13 needlepoint Santa tree decorations. Look for the story Wednesday in Neighbors.
This was Brainerd
20 years ago (1980) - A recent call to Crime Stoppers has cracked six crimes and sparked the recovery of $3,000 in stolen merchandise according to area law enforcement agencies.
Message of the three trees
Greg and Margaret Rosenberg created and decorated three trees, which represent the birth, death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, at Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church in Baxter.
Gun threat leads to lockdown at school
PINE RIVER -- The threat of a possible gun in the building led to the lockdown of Pine River-Backus High School Monday afternoon.
Zoning officer kept busy
Dennis Myers walked into the job Oct. 27 as Crow Wing County's zoning enforcement officer and has been trying to catch up with the number of complaints ever since.
Brainerd will work on noise ordinance
The Brainerd City Council Monday approved repealing the city's Jake brake ordinance in favor of drafting a noise control ordinance.
High winds, snow force closing I-90
A 300-mile stretch of Interstate 90 reopened across Minnesota and South Dakota on Sunday morning after high winds and blowing snow forced authorities to close it for the night.
Local briefs
The Brainerd Public Library will be closed Saturday, Monday and Jan. 1 during the holiday season.
Wellstone pressures State Department for report on priest's death in Kenya
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sen. Paul Wellstone, D-Minn., criticized the State Department on Monday for failing to turn in a report on its investigation into the death of an American Roman Catholic priest in Kenya.
State briefs
ST. PAUL (AP) -- Minnesota's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for November was 3.1 percent, a half-percentage point higher than the same month last year, the Minnesota Department of Economic Security reported Tuesday.
Goedker given Tower Award
Council member Gene Goedker served in his final Brainerd City Council meeting Monday.
Flyers win two of three meets at Park Rapids
PARK RAPIDS -- After being defeated by Wadena-Deer Creek in their first meet, the Little Falls Flyers rallied to win their next two rounds of wrestling competition Saturday at the Park Rapids Invitational.
Baxter sign takes shape
Baxter's entrance sign at Isle Road and the C. Elmer Anderson Memorial Highway north of County Road 48 started to take shape this morning.
Mary Etta makes more time to make pies
PEQUOT LAKES -- As Pequot Lakes School's longtime "lunch lady," Mary Etta Durham has become a fixture at the Pequot Lakes School, serving up hot meals at the school for almost 30 years.
This was Brainerd
DECEMBER 19 - 100 years ago (1900) -- Justice Skillings is making special prices to those wishing to get married during the holidays.
C-I game postponed
The Crosby-Ironton Rangers boys' basketball game against Greenway tonight has been postponed until Jan. 29.
State leads in voter turnout
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Although hundreds of votes in Florida separated the fates of George W. Bush and Al Gore, more than 105 million Americans cast ballots in the presidential election.
Enthusiasts brave the cold to count the birds
BURNSVILLE (AP) -- The elusive spotted towhee proved to be elusive indeed.
Housing code draws city panel's study
The Brainerd City Council Monday approved the creation of a committee to study the Brainerd housing code.
Maker of 'safer' cigarette sues over national tobacco settlement
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- A small Virginia company that claims to have developed a safer cigarette is challenging the constitutionality of the national tobacco settlement.
Panel advises tighter controls on biotech food
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A committee formed by the United States and the European Union recommended tighter controls Monday on genetically engineered foods, including mandatory labeling of products that contain biotech ingredients.
Fire affects hundreds
OSHKOSH, Wis. (AP) -- Hundreds of residents who were rushed from their homes when fire broke out in a chemical-carrying train car may not be allowed to return for several days because of dangerous fumes, authorities said Sunday.
Nation's longest crime decline levels out in 2000
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The nation's longest-running decline in crime ground to a virtual halt in the first half of 2000, falling only slightly overall with rape and assault on the rise, the FBI reported Monday.
Father heads for Cuba, hoping to return with son
MIAMI (AP) -- The father of a boy taken from Florida to Cuba by his mother has flown to the island in an effort to bring the 5-year-old back to the United States.
Coast Guard saves panicked sailors
The winds blew harder and the waves soared higher as the Coast Guard helicopter crew flew toward a ship in trouble off the Virginia coast.
Coroner rules woman jumped from plane
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- The Sacramento County coroner ruled Monday that a Hewlett-Packard Co. employee who plunged to her death from a corporate plane committed suicide.
Many Europeans see Bush as executioner extraordinaire
LONDON -- George W. Bush has been a jet fighter pilot, a business owner, and chief executive of a state bigger than most European countries. But across Europe, the president-elect is known primarily for something else: "He's the world champion executioner," said former French Justice Minister Robert Badinter. "He is a horrible symbol of your mania for the death penalty."
Two-month-old girl dead after shaking
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- A 2-month-old girl died Monday of injuries suffered when her father allegedly shook her more than 20 times because he was annoyed by her crying, state police said.
Randolph Hearst, father of Patty, dies at 85
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Randolph Apperson Hearst, the newspaper heir whose daughter Patricia was kidnapped by the revolutionary Symbionese Liberation Army in 1974, died Monday at a New York hospital after suffering a stroke. He was 85.
Report makes grim predictions about global security
WASHINGTON -- Communal tensions flaring among indigenous groups from Mexico to the Amazon. Dozens of Chinese nuclear warheads aimed at the United States. Russia's power in serious decline, its population diminished by 16 million. A cold peace in the Mideast, but transcontinental terrorists attempting devastating attacks with weapons of mass destruction.
Bush meets with Clinton, plans to meet later with Gore
WASHINGTON -- President-elect Bush greeted the man he will succeed on Tuesday, saying as he met with President Clinton "I'm here to listen." The outgoing Democratic chief executive said his only advice to the Republican was "to get a good team and do what you think is right."
Hall, overseer of crash probes, leaving NTSB
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Jim Hall, who has overseen investigations into the TWA Flight 800 and John F. Kennedy Jr. plane crashes during his six-year tenure as head of the National Transportation Safety Board, is resigning Jan. 18, his office said Monday.
Workers begin removing chemicals
OSHKOSH, Wis. (AP) -- Emergency workers wearing gas masks removed burned chemicals from a boxcar Monday and promised residents the work could be finished by Tuesday, clearing the way for them to return home.
Nichols loses bid for new trial
DENVER (AP) -- Convicted Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Terry Nichols lost his bid for a new trial after a federal appeals court ruled the FBI did not withhold crucial evidence.
Gillette cuts jobs
BOSTON (AP) -- The Gillette Co. on Monday announced plans to eliminate 2,700 jobs, or about 8 percent of its work force, and close eight factories and 13 distribution centers as part of a plan to boost its profit growth.
Scoreboard
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Vikings pack it in
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Green Bay Packers' playoff hopes are still slim, but they overcame long odds Sunday to remain in contention.
Scoreboard
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Brandon's overtime shooting lifts Wolves
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Terrell Brandon missed two chances Saturday night to win the game in regulation. He made up for it in overtime.
Vikings seek answers
EDEN PRAIRIE-- The mood among the Minnesota Vikings already was low Monday. And then Daunte Culpepper walked in with a cast on his right foot.
Scoreboard
AMERICAN CONFERENCE
Hockey today
SCOREBOARD
Transactions
BASEBALL
Homecoming not happy for Stars
ST. PAUL (AP) -- Nothing went right for the Dallas Stars in their first trip back to their old home.
Owens breaks 50-year-old record for receptions
Terrell Owens made history on a day when only the New York Giants could wrap up a playoff berth.
Vikings' notebook
EDEN PRAIRIE (AP) -- If the Minnesota Vikings could explain why free safety Orlando Thomas keeps breaking his shoulder bone, they would feel better about letting him play again.
National briefs
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- From A to Z, Salt Lake bid deputy Dave Johnson kept exhaustive files on IOC members when bidding for the 2002 Winter Games.
A new Monday ritual: The NFL's Phil Beck hour
Anyone who watches football knows you need total concentration, so I told my wife Monday night it would be a good time for her to go out and buy my Christmas present.
NFL summaries
At Cleveland
NHL
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Bryant, Horry headliners for Lakers against Raptors
Kobe Bryant prevailed in a marquee matchup and veteran reserve Robert Horry earned top billing for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Things aren't so super for Rams
TAMPA, Fla. -- Last gasp.
Carolyn A. Fisher
VERNDALE -- Carolyn Ann Fisher, 62, Verndale, died Friday, Dec. 15, 2000, at Tri-County Hospital in Wadena.
Russell Tideback
AITKIN -- Russell Tideback, 77, Aitkin, and formerly of Malmo Township, died Sunday, Dec. 17, 2000, at the Riverwood Health Care Center in Aitkin.
Lee 'Skip' F. Norwood III
LADYSMITH, Wis. -- Lee "Skip" F. Norwood III, 26, Ladysmith, Wis., died Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2000.
Margaret Sweeney
LITTLE FALLS -- Margaret Sweeney, 86, Little Falls, died Monday, Dec. 18, 2000, at St. Otto's Care Center in Little Falls.
Lucille Nelson
PILLAGER -- Lucille Nelson, 82, Pillager, died Saturday, Dec. 16, 2000, at St. Gabriel's Hospital in Little Falls.
Donald P. Dobrzynski
BAXTER -- Donald Peter Dobrzynski, 65, Baxter, died Saturday, Dec. 16, 2000, at Bethany Good Samaritan Home in Brainerd.
June R. Bollig
LITTLE FALLS -- June R. Bollig, 73, Little Falls, died Sunday, Dec. 17, 2000, at St. Cloud Hospital.
Douglas E. Lasher
CROSBY -- Douglas Edward Lasher, 55, Crosby, died Sunday, Dec. 17, 2000, at Cuyuna Regional Medical Center of Crosby.
Kristine Fuhrer
PINE RIVER -- Kristine Fuhrer, 32, Pine River, died Sunday, Dec. 17, 2000, as the result of an motor vehicle accident.
Donald Dobrzynski
BAXTER -- Donald Dobrzynski, 65, Baxter, died Saturday, Dec. 16, 2000, at the Bethany Good Samaritan Home of Brainerd.
Doug Lasher
CROSBY -- Doug Lasher, 55, Crosby, died Sunday, Dec. 18, 2000, at Cuyuna Regional Medical Center of Crosby.
OTHER OPINIONS MnSCU's chancellor
James McCormick brings a wealth of experience to the job, which becomes his in July. For the past 17 years he has served as chancellor for a similar network of colleges in Pennsylvania.
Open Forum
There will be many different opinions about the 2000 Presidential Election. I thought I'd express mine.
Florida still too close to call
WASHINGTON -- Neither President-elect Bush nor Al Gore nor anybody else will ever know with certainty who really got more votes in Florida. At 0.00009 percent of the vote, the margin by which it was certified for Bush, it was too close for absolute proof that the count was beyond doubt.
Open Forum
In response to "Don't Point Fingers", this letter states that if people made responsible decisions and held accountable for our actions, we wouldn't even get to a point where one has to decide whether or not to terminate a preg
The Santa factor
One good thing about parenting is you get Santa Claus back in your life. At least I think this is good. To tell you the truth, it's been so long since I've thought about the guy in red, I'm not sure where we left off. Was it on pleasant terms? Did I walk off in a huff?
Colin Powell's message
The following editorial appeared in Monday's Washington Post:
Dispatch editorials
Editorial views in The Brainerd Dispatch represent a consensus of opinion by members of the newspaper's editorial board.
Looking ahead - Dispatch Editorial
As 2000 winds down and the real millennium approaches Brainerd residents have reasons to be hopeful about the future of their city.
Bad advice
It's not that we haven't seen this before when Republicans have won the White House. Candidates for the losing Democrat side -- in this case Gore-Lieberman, but in previous elections, Mondale-Ferraro and Dukakis-Bentsen, -- say that the winning Republicans should abandon the issues on which they ran and adopt the positions of the people they defeated.
Local shorts
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- Brainerd High School graduate Chris Bjorklund scored a game-high 18 points while Brandon Beeson added 12 points and 13 rebounds to help Cal Poly to a 95-72 men's college basketball win over California-Riverside Sunday afternoon.
Scoreboard
Adapted Floor Hockey
Denver nears top of WCHA with sweep of UMD
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Denver continued its climb toward the top of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association over the weekend, getting two wins over Minnesota-Duluth.
Two Warriors win Bunyan titles
Brainerd coach Bob Brakke growled as he entered the wrestling room Saturday after the Warriors' final competitor had finished his match in the Paul Bunyan Invitational.
Rangers, Gobblers clash anew
The storied rivalry between Crosby-Ironton and Aitkin heats up 7:30 p.m. Friday when the Rangers' boys' basketball team travels to Aitkin for a non-conference game.
Field goal denies Johnnies
SALEM, Va. (AP) -- Rodney Chenos told Mount Union's seniors he wouldn't fail them if the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl came down to a field goal.
Raiders women storm past Madison
Think about how history might have changed if plans had been changed because of a little bad weather.
Bemidji wins Paul Bunyan team title
Despite winning just one individual championship the Bemidji Lumberjacks captured the team title in the 34th annual Paul Bunyan Invitational wrestling tournament Saturday at Brainerd High School.
Second chances lead TRF past Warrior boys
In basketball when a player scores off an offensive rebound it's called second-chance points.
Scoreboard
Boys Basketball
Chisholm girls defeat Rangers
CHISHOLM -- The Chisholm Bluestreaks outscored the Crosby-Ironton Rangers 16-9 in the third quarter on their way to a 51-38 non-conference girls' basketball win Saturday.
Gophers' safety suspended; he'll miss game
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Minnesota's leading tackler, Delvin Jones, won't play in the Micronpc.com Bowl because he has been suspended from school for a semester, the Saint Paul Pioneer Press reported Monday.
Wolfpack foul up bid by CLC men
Whenever a call goes against a basketball team, you can count on fans to loudly accuse the referee of being in some way impaired. Usually it's the referee's eyesight that's called into question.
Georgia, much of 'sunny' South jolted by snow blanket, which also covers Midwest
This is the sunny South?
Snow emergencies keep Twin Cities hopping
A second storm in three days disrupted travel and school schedules across much of Minnesota on Monday, three days ahead of the official start of winter.
Snow
Weather drawing by Megan Griggs of Mr. Trucano's fourth grade class at Baxter school.
Deadly weather
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- The tornado that ripped through Tuscaloosa was seven football fields wide and was the deadliest twister in the nation this year, a federal weather official said.
Nation braces for more severe storms
The nation braced for more severe weather Monday as it emerged from a weekend of deadly storms, heavy snows and quirkily unseasonable temperatures.
Names and faces
NEW YORK (AP) -- Elizabeth Hurley has been fined $100,000 by the Screen Actors Guild for filming an Estee Lauder commercial during the six-month strike against commercial advertisers.
Tag-along friend needs to know she's not family
DEAR ABBY: My friend "Nancy" and I have known each other for three years. She's a nice person and I cherish her friendship. The problem is she always invites herself to go with me to family functions.
Names and faces
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A collaboration between Britney Spears and LL Cool J is in the works.
File for magazine expiration dates
Dear Heloise: After renewing my magazine subscriptions a few times (double renewing), I now paste the address labels on an index card to ascertain the date of the last issue. The expiration date is on the label.
Mexican volcano erupts
SANTIAGO XALITZINTLA, Mexico -- The volcano that towers over Mexico City "lit up like a Christmas tree," spewing red-hot rocks into the air and sending residents who had refused to evacuate its slopes fleeing for shelter Tuesday.
Putin wins agreements in Canada, except on U.S. missile defense plan
OTTAWA (AP) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin got most of what he wanted in Canada -- agreements on closer cooperation and support for a bid to join the World Trade Organization -- but could not persuade Prime Minister Jean Chretien to reject a proposed U.S. missile defense plan.
In Israel election twist, Netanyahu says -- for now -- he won't run
JERUSALEM -- Former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Tuesday that he would not run for his old post despite a commanding lead in opinion polls. Netanyahu said he did not want the job if the current gridlocked parliament remains in place.