December 31

• It's New Year's Eve, and you know what that means!  Some offices may close early, so call ahead to verify office hours.  All federal, state, county, and city offices will be closed on New Year's Day (Tomorrow).  There will be no mail delivery or collections tomorrow.  License branches will be closed tomorrow.  Banks will be closed tomorrow.  Also, you should not drink and drive. 
  
  
• This holiday is the second-deadliest holiday for drunken-driving fatalities.  Only the Fourth of July tops it.  As such, police intend to be out in force to try to reduce the number of drunken-drivers on the roads.  If you are traveling, be aware that there will be sobriety checkpoints in many cities.
  
  
• Two former Indianapolis brothers are being held in the Philippines for suspected ties to terrorists.  Both men grew up in Indianapolis, where Jamil Duad Mujahid, formerly James Stubbs, changed his name after converting to Islam.  Mujahid had run-ins with the FBI and refused to stand for the national anthem.  Family members say neither he nor his brother, Michael Ray Stubbs, have anything to do with terrorists.  Philippine officials say that Mujahid met with members of the Abu Sayyaf Muslim and Moro Islamic Liberation Front extremist groups, which allegedly have ties to al-Qaida.  Both men are in the Philippines visiting their Filipino wives, who cannot legally reside in the United States.  Family members say that Mujahid became bitter about the U.S. after serving in the military during the Vietnam War.
  
  
•  Some Indiana National Guardsmen are no longer going to see the sights in Bosnia.  The peacekeeping force led by the Hoosiers that will be heading to the Balkans next spring has been cut almost in half.  The Indianapolis-based 38th Infantry Division will take control of the northern region of Bosnia in April with just 800 of the original 1,458 troops originally planned, of which Indiana will provide about 700 soldiers.  Most of the reductions hit units from other states.  The change is due to NATO's decision to trim its multinational peacekeeping force from 12,000 soldiers to 7,000 by June.  At this time, with NATO reconsidering its role, the soldiers may have to stay longer than expected until there is a transition.
  
  
• Health officials are hoping that the holiday season break will help to stem the spread of this year's influenza outbreak.  The CDC hopes to see a downturn, but there is also a chance that holiday travel could help spread the illness.  At least forty-five states have reported widespread influenza cases this year, and at least forty-two children have died from it, mostly in western states.  Meanwhile, schools are using the break to give buildings a thorough cleaning with disinfectant to try and keep germs from spreading.
  
  
• And finally, a recreation park in Indonesia is displaying a 49-foot python that was revered as a tribal ruler and has a huge appetite for dogs.  The snake is the longest ever captured, having a diameter of 2.8 feet, weighing 984 pounds and is 48-feet, 7-inches long.  According to a snake handler at the park, the python can gulp down five dogs in a month.  According to the Guinness World Records, the longest discovered snake was also a reticulated python from Indonesia.  It was 33 feet long when found in Sulawesi Island in 1912.  Last year, Samantha, a snake measuring eight meters and dubbed the largest in captivity, died in the Bronx Zoo.  Samantha also came from Indonesia.  The 49-foot python came from the Kubu tribe which live in the jungles of southern Sumatra.  They had captured the creature and revered it to be the ruler of the Kubu tribe.
  

December 30

• Much to the consternation of shooting victim Michael McKinney's friends and family, a Delaware County grand jury has cleared the campus police officer accused of wrong-doing in his death.  The decision by the grand jury ends any possibility of criminal charges against Robert Duplain in this shooting.  Duplain will return to the university police department in a nonpatrol capacity after completing training at the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy.  His training begins Monday.
  
  
• The state said the logging of four hundred trees in the Morgan-Monroe State Forest would not be noticed by the park's visitors.  Activists say that prediction did not happen.  They say the fifty-four acre section of the forest that was logged is littered with the splintered limbs and trunks of the felled trees.  Along the main logging road, severed tree tops are strewn about protruding stumps, and smaller trees are flattened, scraped or gashed from being struck by falling trees.  THe Forest Alliance has sued the DNR, accusing the agency of permitting logging in Indiana's state forests without conducting specific environmental studies or assessing the impact on the site.
  
  
• In Anderson, a newly-elected City Council member angered Democrates by dressing up as Santa Claus and handing them insulting Christmas cards during a romp through Anderson's city hall.  The front of the Republican's cards read "I hope the next four years will be as blessed for you & your family as they will be for me and mine."  That was not so bad, but the inside read "You've been bad, so here's the scoop -- all you get is snowman poop!"  It was signed Councilman Santa.  Although the Republican Santa did not intend the message to be malicious, Democrats felt provoked and harrassed.
  
  
• Geologists have begun working with Missouri and Illinois agencies to study St. Louis-area soil and bedrock.  They will be looking to better map the danger zones and safer places in case of a serious Midwestern earthquake.  The study is expected to take almost five years and will also examine conditions around Evansville.  This study comes as many scientists and engineers suspect that the New Madrid Fault beneath the Bootheel area in southeast Missouri could produce a significant tremblor within the next fifty years.  A series of earthquakes in 1811-12, have been linked to that fault.  Other earthquakes that were lesser in size, but damaging, followed in 1843 and 1895.  The New Madrid Fault zone includes Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee.
  
  
• The Bush adminsitration has decided to ban the herbal weight-loss supplement ephedra from U.S. markets because of concerns about its effects on health.  Ephedra has been linked to as many as one hundred deaths.  The FDA had proposed warning labels and dosage limits for dietary supplements back in 1997, but then withdrew the proposal after complaints from the industry and members of Congress.  In 2001, the National Football League banned its players from using ephedra as a dietary supplement.
  
  
• The Bush administration is facing growing political pressure over America's first case of mad cow disease.  Some opposition Democrats have urged it to ban sick cattle from the human food supply.  More than twenty-four countries have stopped buying U.S. beef since the case was diagnosed last week, bringing the $3.2 billion U.S. beef export business to a halt.
  
  
• Actor Earl Hindman, best known for playing a neighbor whose face was forever obscured by a fence on the television show "Home Improvement," died of lung cancer Monday.  Before appearing as Wilson on the popular series, Hindman played Detective Lt. Bob Reid for sixteen years on the daytime drama "Ryan's Hope."  He was 61.
  

December 26

• Bedford's state Representative Eric Koch has filed a bill that would set up a council to promote agricultural tourism.  House Bill 1011, would establish an Indiana Agritourism Council.  Agritourism is the name given to such activities as farm tours, corn mazes, pumpkin patches, apple picking, cider making and hay rides - ventures that provide extra income for farmers and help educate the public about agriculture.  The council would promote agritourism in Indiana and set goals for using it to creat new jobs and bolster farm income.
  
  
• Brown County Commissioner Amy Couch is under the microscope.  A special prosecutor has been appointed to investigate whether drunken-driving charges should be filed against her after she was injured in a crash.  She was returning home from a charity auction when her car slid out of control on the wet and snowy road and hit a utility pole.  A test given at Columbus Regional Hospital showed her blood alcohol level at 0.16 and detected marijuanna in her system.
  
  
• It is getting to be just too dangerous to stop and get out of your vehicle anymore along the highways and interstates.   In the span of mere minutes, one person was killed and three were injured after being struck by other vehicles.  A good Samaritan died after being hit.  He had stopped to help someone changing a flat tire.  An SUV struck the two men working on the tire and sped off.  The Samaritan was thrown into traffic by the impact, and a second car struck him.  That driver stopped.  Another man stopped to help in the stitutation, but he was struck by yet another vehicle that also fled the scene.
  
  
• A twelve year-old boy is lucky as he recovers from a bullet wound after being accidentally shot by a friend playing with a handgun.  The fifteen year-old boy who fired the gun told police he found it in a trash bin behind a tavern and wanted to show it to friends, but the gun slipped when he removed it from his pocket.  The gun fired when he tried to grab it.
  
  
• The Christmas spirit was at its finest in Paris, France.  A pair of theives who seized a van loaded with pricey designer goods took a two-hour detour so they could drive the van's owner home for his Christmas Eve dinner, before fleeing with the loot.  The two men apparently posed as police and tricked the van's owner into pulling over.  Despite being armed with guns and wearing black balaclavas, the theives asked their victim where he lived, explaining "we don't want you to have too far to walk".
  
  
• A Florida woman tried to rob a jewelry store in a unique manner.  She was arrested after surveillance tape showed her putting a $20,000 diamond ring into her mouth.  She denied this, but an X-ray showed it was inside her.  She was kept under observation in a jail cell until the ring passed through her digestive system.
  

December 24

• It is Christmas Eve, and with this day comes the early closings of many offices in the area.  You will want to call ahead to find out the hours of any office you will be going to today.  Tomorrow, all federal, state, city, and county offices will be closed.  There will be no mail delivery tomorrow.  The license branch will be reopen on Monday (long weekend!).  Schools and banks will be closed.
  
  
• The flu virus changes with each flu season.  The National Center for Infectious Diseases and the government have prevented drug companies from reducing the preparation lead time by insisting chicken eggs be used in the process rather than monkey cells when incubating the viruses.  This year, is the first in which demand has outstripped supply.  Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson hopes new federal funding for flu research will be used to encourage companies to develop new egg-free ways to manufacture the vaccines.
  
  
• French Lick officials have upped the ante to the five applicants who already have paid $70,000 each in hopes of receiving the operating permit for the state's eleventh riverboat.  Officials want them to put up $50,000 more.  Town officials say they need the money to pay legal bills associated with planning, zoning, and other expenses to prepare the casino.  Some casino companies say they are not paying yet, they want to wait and see what the Gaming Commission has to say about the request.
  
  
• The new Indianapolis Airport terminal which was under construction, will have a delay of twelve to eighteen months, according to Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson.  The move comes in response to pleas from the financially troubled airline industry.  While the industry responded positively to the announcement, it did not rule out requests for even more delays in the future.  The city cites reduced airplane taxiing times, better layout for security, improved road access, and increased economic development possibilities as being benefits of the project.  But airlines, which are set to pick up roughly sixty percent of the projects $1 billion bill have long complained that the industry is in no condition to foot the bill.  Late last year, Peterson expressed confidence that the timing of the project was right.  Current work that will continue on schedule in 2004 is being funded with federal dollars and passenger fees.
  
  
• A single Holstein on a Washington state farm has tested positive for mad cow disease.  This is the first appearance of the disease in the United States.  Fear of the disease has brought economic ruin on beef industries in Europe and Canada.  Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman remains confident about the safety of our food supply, but Japan, the largest foreign customer for American beef, announced a temporary halt on U.S. beef imports, as did South Korea. THe cascade effect continued when Hong Kong, Australia, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia followed suit. The farm where the infected cow originated has been quarantined while officials trace how the animal contracted the disease and where its meat went.  Mad cow disease eats holes in the brains of cattle and prmpted massive destruction of herds in Europe.  A human form of mad cow can be contracted if we eat infected beef or nerve tissue, and possibly through blood transfusions.  The human form of the disease has killed 143 people in Britain and ten people elsewhere.
  
  
• Lee Boyd Malvo, the second of the D.C. snipers to go to trial has been sentenced to life in prison without parole for his part in the tree-week sniper spree that left ten people dead in and around the nation's capital in October 2002.  Defense attorneys say the conviction will be appealed.  Malvo could be tried in other shootings in Virginia and elsewhere, and could still get the death penalty.  Prosecutors in Maryland, Alabama, and Louisiana have all said they want a crack at both Muhammad and Malvo.
  

December 23

• Holiday travel always requires additional time to clear thru the airports.  Now, with our nation on high alert, you'd be wise to arrive at any airport two hours or more ahead of departure.
  
  
• A Columbus man, Philip R. Benedict, 41, has been charged with the murder of 29-year-old Melanie Barlowski.  He is accused of killing Barlowski in her sleep by beating her in the face with a kitchen skillet around December 8.
  
  
• A militia leader convicted of plotting to attack another member of the group has been arrested on federal firearms charges.  Fred Heuthan, 64, Cloverdale, was arrested on the federal charges following his release from the Owne County Jail.  Keuthan is the leader of the 14th Regiment of the Indiana State Militia.  He received a suspended sentence last week on charges of conspiracy to commit battery with serious bodily injury and dealing marijuana.
  
  
• An Indianapolis toddler has died of meningitis.  The two-year-old died of meningococcal menigitis within hours of contracting the disease.  Meningitis is contagious, but so far, no other children in the child care center have contracted it.  The biggest problem is correct diagnosis, since its symptoms often paralell that of the flu.
  
  
• California had some excitement around their lunchtime yesterday.  They experienced a deadly earthquake which registered 6.5.  More than thirty aftershocks were reported in the hour after the quake, with the strongest measuring 4.7.  The epicenter was about six miles northeast of the town of San Simeon, about 240 miles north of Los Angeles and 200 miles south of San Fancisco.  The earthquake is considered to be a strong one by geologists.  It was relatively shallow, and it is the shallow ones that cause more damage.  At least two people were killed in the city of Paso Robles, with dozens injured.

December 22

• Considering the severity of the flu this year, do make a point of washing your hands often with plenty of soap and warm water.  Stay home if you're feverish... get plenty of rest... eat nutritious food... keep children ages 6 - 24 months out of big crowds, and clean doorknobs, faucets, and telephones that are touched frequently.  Cleanliness and consideration go a long way in preventing the spread of flu.
  
  
• Back in 1994, a former teacher started a business in a small shop in Nashville, IN.  She now employs 150 people inside a 92,000 sqaure-foot factory in nearby Helmsburg with some of the most innovative knitting equipment in the industry.  Sharon Rivenbark's company, Bare Feet, produces thousands of sock designs for clients including Major League Baseball, the N-B-A, resorts, national parks, and novelty dealers.  The Indiana Pacers were an early customer, when Reggie Miller ordered "Lucky" socks for the playoffs.  Former Pacers center Rick Smits had such huge feet, the company had to custom knit his socks.  From the start, Rivenbark has viewed the business the same way she viewed her former students:  It has infinite potential for growth.
  
  
• Ford Motor Co. and its former auto parts arm Visteon Corp. have announced agreements aimed at untangling pricing and cost-sharing issues.  Visteom employs about 5,800 workers in Indiana, with the Bedford plant having more than 1,000 workers.  The agreement will help Visteon become a viable stand-alone company.  Visteon has been in constant restructuring mode since its break with Ford.
  
  
• State Senator Vi Simpson, who was earlier hoping to be the first woman elected Indiana's governor, has decided that she will seek a sixth term in the state Senate.
  
  
• If you travel by plane, train, or automobile during this holiday season, you will likely encounter tighter security at airports, train stations, bridges, and highways.  Security in these venues has been tightened in response to the government raising the national threat level from yellow to orange, saying that terrorist attacks are possible during the holidays.  To avoid undue stress, smile alot and relax.  Oh, yes.  Leaving a bit early to catch your train or plane is also a good idea.
  
  
• In order to help the state police keep roads free from drunken drivers, the state has posted roadside signs across Indiana encouraging motorists to call 911 if they see a driver they suspect is drunk or otherwise impaired.  The signs are part of a campaign focusing on the holiday season and read "Report Impaired Drivers: Dial 911".  Police already receive calls almost daily from motorists reporting drunken drivers.  Usually, an officer is dispatched to the area and is able to establish probable cause to stop that driver.  It helps to tell the 911-operator why you think the driver is impaired, a vehicle description, license number, the road, and the route of travel.
  

December 19

• A popular southern Indiana attraction officially opens its doors for the winter season.  Paoli Peaks has a variety of trails open.  Snow making will also continue at the ski resort at all possible times.  Several areas currently hold a base of ten- to twenty-inches.
  
  
• Mitchell Junior High School Student Breanna Stalker, age 13, died Wednesday afternoon in Indianapolis.  Breanna died of multisystem organ failure associated with the damage from influenza.  X-rays showed Breanna had developed pneumonia before she was transferred to Riley Hospital in Indianapolis.  Breanna's mother hopes her child's untimely death will help to educate parents and move people to donate, in lieu of flowers, to a fund in her daughter's name.  The money will be sent to Riley, where she hopes is can be used to better diagnose, treat, or find a cure for the flu.  A memorial service for Breanna will be at 2:00 p.m. Tuesday in First Baptist Church in Mitchell.
  
  
• Paoli Incorporated is in the process of gaining new owners.  Hon Industries, the second-largest office furniture manufacturer in the United States has signed an agreement of purchase.  Paoli Inc.  has annual sales of over eighty million dollars and employs 650.  The possible new owners expect to keep the present workforce.
  
  
• A new agreement has been reached between Ivy Tech State College in Bloomington and Indiana University.  It will allow students who earn two-year degrees, an Associate of Science in general studies, at Ivy Tech to apply those credits toward a four-year degree at I.U., to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree in General Studies.  This agreement could open the door to other areas, such as criminal justice or  biotechnology.
  
  
• Indiana's population growth has been steady so far this decade, but is still lagging the nation's despite the state's surge in the Hispanic population and strong growth in suburban areas.  If trends continue, Washington cold surpass Indiana's fourteenth ranking by 2006.
  

December 18

• Some snow may make Indiana more Christmas-like.  Snow is likely today, with up to two inches of accumulation possible.  With temperatures steady near 30, there will be little melting of what does accumulate.
  
  
• Down in Orange County at West Baden Springs (sounds like the beginning of a song!) Mark Newbauer is embarking on filming a new movie at his studio in the former Kimball International building.  Newbauer has written the film entitles "Fish in a Barrel".  His star, well-known Burt Reynolds, was expected to begin work there this week.  However, Reynolds is simply not available until after the holidays.
  
  
• Bloomington's effort to become a destination for gay tourists has attracted attention from USA today and NBC's "Saturday Night Live".  Bloomington was included this month on a USA Today list of cities with advertising campaigns geared toward gay tourists.  Officials altered the official slogan of "Breakaway to Bloomington" three years ago.  The new un-official slogan is "Come Out and Play".  The colors used in the city's name have been changed from crimson to rainbow.  The rainbow is used to denoted support for gay causes.  The city even has a new website www.visitgaybloomington.com, which is still under construction.
  
  
• Republican gubernatorial candidate Mitche Daniels says Hoosiers should be first in line when it comes to state contracts.  Daniels says that if he is elected in 2004, he would issue an executive order on his first day in office saying all state contracts should go to Indiana companies unless the commissioner of the Department of Administration grants a waiver.  He also favors changing state law to reflect a practice followed in other states:  allowing instate-firms to win state contracts even if their bids are three- to five-percent higher than one submitted by an out-of-state firm.  He said the goal should be ninety percent of the state's spending to stay in the state.  A two-year review showed that eighty-five percent of the state's contracts for professional services are with Indiana firms, while sixty percent of the commodities purchased have come from Indiana vendors.
  

December 17

• A paper-making company plans to reopen a pair of Jackson County mills that have been idle for two years.  The $34 million project by Unicell Paper Mills Inc. is expected to create 67 jobs by 2006.  The company plans to renovate the former Kieffer Paper and Pulp Mills in Brownstown.  The paper mill was built in 1899, and now has two machines capable of producing eighty tons of paper a day.  The newly renovated mill will be equipped to produce more than 120 tons per day of high-grade pulp and more than 30,000 tons of products such as facial tissue and napkins.  Unicell expects to have the plants in full operation by early 2005.
  
  
• E-bay has been used to sell a variety of items.  The soon-to-be-vacant Jasper Middle School building may be listed for sale on the popular website.  Next Tuesday is the last day students will attend class in the old building.  The school's new building will be the locate of classes when they resume on January 5.  The sale would be similar to the one held by the LaCrosse, Kansas, Unified School District on e-bay.
  
  
• By now, we have all heard about the Indiana driver's licenses that were illegally obtained.  Not only are state officials investigating how 1,000 foreign nationals obtained the licenses, but they are also trying to determine why they wanted them.  Fears of terrorist attacks have focused extra attention on the long-existing problem of fake ID's.  More than a dozen people have been arrested since the scam was uncovered last month.  Some state employees have been suspended after prosecutors accused them of accepting fradulent documents at the BMV.  Some employees even received bribes.  The foreign nationals came from China, Mexico, Russia, Pakistan, and eastern Europe.
  
  
• A state senator has proposed to create an office of state inspector general to monitor five agencies.  Senator Jeff Drozda, R-Westfield, will introduce the legislation next month.  Under the legislation, the inspector general would examine complaints about the Family and Social Services Administration, the Department of Administration, the Department of Corrections, the Department of Workforce Development, and the Bureau of Motor Vehicles.  He feels this will "aggressively weed out government waste, fraudulent acts, and abuse of the system."
  
  
• President Bush has signed into law legislation aimed at giving computers users relief from spam.  Not this is not the meat in a can, it is the unwanted, unsolicited email messages that find their way into your email box.  The Can-Spam Act replaces anti-spam laws already passed in some states, and provides both civil and criminal penalties for spammers.  It also authorizes the Federal Trade Commission to create a do-not-spam list of e-mail addresses.  Only time will tell how effective the new legislation will be against spammers, since they can be difficult to track down.
  
  
• The video game "Manhunt" for PlayStation 2 has been the first video game banned from sale or rent in New Zealand.  New Zealand's Office of Film and Literature Classification said the game depicts horror, cruelty, crime and violence in such a manner that its availability was likely to hurt the public good.
  
  
• Canadian promoters are bringing a new form of action to ice hockey.  The "Battle of the Hockey Gladiators" is planned to come to Grand Forks, North Dakota, early next September.  It is said it will be pit denizens of the penalty box at center ice, in full hockey gear, for two minutes of pure pummeling.  The promoters say it is the brawls in hockey games that fans love the most.  Participants will pay a $350 entry fee, with $50,000 in prize money up for grabs.  By the way, have you ever noticed that it is difficult to spell the word hockey correctly with the "i" so close to the "o" on the keyboard that it often comes out as "hickey"?
  

December 16

• The post office is in full swing processing the load of Christmas mail.  Keep in mind that if you are mailing cards and packages in the states, you are okay for now.  But, by Saturday, you had better hit the post office if you want your mail to arrive at its destination by Christmas.  If you are mailing internationally, today is the last day unless you want to pay through the nose for global express delivery.
  
  
• Earlier this week, it was announced that the state of Indiana and the Indianapolis Power and Light Co. had reached an agreement for the state to purchase 1500 acres of land for an undisclosed price.  The price tag has just been announced.  Indiana will pay $4.5 million.  The price amounts to $3,000 per acre for the heavily wooded property, which will becom part of the Morgan-Monroe State Forest.  A group of investors puchased the rest of the land for $3,350 per acre.  The investors already have been discussing putting the land into a forest protection program.  The Forest Legacy program pays landowners who agree not to develop their property.  The program allows them to harvest timber and use the land for recreation.
  
  
• The state is considering reducing services provided to more than 4,000 disabled Hoosiers to eliminate a $21 million deficit in the program that helps them.  The division of disability services will trim nonessential services and could revisit staffing and housing arrangements.  The essential services will be kept, which means that people will get what they need, not necessarily everything that they want.  This means that funding for things like summer camp is out.  Officials hope to have all the plans by February 1.  Changes must be implemented by June 30.
  
  
• December is one of the deadliest months for house fires.  Christmas trees, lights, and other decordations up at homes for the holiday season contribute.  Space heaters, dry needles on Christmas trees, and overloaded electrical outlets increase the chances of fires.  Taking some simple precautions can ensure that your holidays remain merry.  Replace worn-out lighting on Christmas trees and unplug lights on trees and other wiring before going to bed.  Consider purchasing artificial trees or water live trees regularly and keep them away from heat sources.  Regardless of the time of year, make sure you have working smoke detectors in the proper places in your house.
  

December 15

• Now that Saddam has been captured, the clamour for a public trial is growing.  The Iraqi Governing Council has created a special tribunal to try the dictator and his henchmen, although the ultimate decision on the trial location lies with the White House.  The possibility of the death sentence lies with an Iraqi trial.  Already, Human Rights Watch, a human rights group, questions the Iraqi court's legitimacy.
  
  
• The nation of India is screaming right past us in the development of technology.  Same with China.  Have you ever tried to receive help for a computer problem?  More often than not, you will be assisted by someone living in Bombay.
  
  
• Bloomington has been having more than its fair share of false fire alarms.  Officials are hoping that will cease after January 1.  On that day, an ordinance goes into effect to assess a penalty to any business or individual who has more than three false alarms a year.  Bloomington firefighters have responded to 2,646 reported emergencies this year, and nearly a third of them have been false alarms.  The penalty will be a $50 fine issued to the alarm system holder adter the fourth false alarm of the year.  Each false alarm after that will bring a $100 penalty.
  
  
• The Indianapolis Colts are charging their way into the playoffs.  Yesterday, the team clinched a spot in the playoffs.  They must still wait another week for a chance fo clinch their first division title since 1999.  If they win or the Titans lose, the Colts will have the AFC South title.  Their performance this season may lend some muscle in the debate about paying the team to stay in Indianapolis!
  
  
• Birdwatching is becoming one of Indiana's most popular outdoor activities.  The popularity of birds was reflected last month when about 450 bird-watchers jammed into a tiny parking area at Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge to watch 16 whooping cranes on their annual migration south.  Serious bird watchers keep lists of what birds they have seen.  Many do not consider themselves real birders until they have spotted two hundred species.  This year, sscores of bird-watchers are expected to take part in the 104th Christmas Bird Count, organized by the National Audubon Society.  Dozens of counts are scheduled in Indiana.  The counts begin this week and conclude January 5.  These counts are useful to biologists, who monitor bird populations.  For more information, you can visit the website of the National Audubon Society.
  
  
• Indiana's Better Business Bureau is warning people to be wise when it comes to giving this holiday season because some charities may be scams.  As such the bureau has a Wise Giving Guide that can be of help when you are being solicited for a donation.  The giving guide outlines who oversees the charity and how decisions about spending are made.  You can obtain your free Wise Giving Guide by visiting the website or calling 1-866-INDY-BBB.
  
  
• Many years ago, you may have been one of the "Free Willy" movie fans.  Keiko, the killer whale star of the movies, has died and was buried in a snow-bound pasture during the deep darkness of Nordic winter in a ceremony kept secret from the public.  The roughly six-ton whale died Friday in a Norwegian bay where his team was trying to reintroduce him to the wild.  His trainers said the likely cause of death was pneumonia.
  

December 12

• Indiana ranks just below the national average in the percentage of residents with high school diplomas, according to Census Bureau figures.  Wyoming leads the nation with a 90.2% of residents 25 and older having graduated from high school.  Indiana's rate of 82% is tied with Arizona, New York, and the District of Columbia for 33rd-highest.  Mississippi has the lowest rate at 75%.
  
  
• In this time of the state's budget crisis, central Indiana residents will get a new recreation area for hiking, birdwatching, and hunting in a land deal between Indiana and Indianapolis Power & Light Co.  The deal, for an undisclosed price, takes more than one third of the land out of a controversial auction scheduled for Monday.  The utility will be selling off unused property in Morgan County.  The new recreation area is about 1,500 acres - an area about one third the size of Eagle Creek Park in Indy - and will become part of the Morgan-Monroe State Forest.  The rest of the land, 1,550 acres of forest and 1,000 acres of farmland, is up for grabs.  Real-estate experts have said similar land in the area would fetch up to $3,500 an acre.
  
  
• A 22-square-mile area north of Fort Wayne is the nation's most mercury-contaminated spot.  What a distinction!  The EPA did not identify the source of the pollution, but a senior policy analyst with Environmental Defense said power plants in northwest Indiana and the Chicago area are probably behind much of the mercury in that hot spot.  Indiana's power plants emit the fourth-larget amount of mercury pollution in the country.  Environmental groups say that Hoosiers will be among those most affected if the Bush administration does not require power plants to significantly reduce emissions.Mercury can cause developmental and brain damage in children and fetuses.
  
  
• A bit of world trivia!  Who has been Canada's Prime Minister for the past ten year?  O.K.  Many of you may have known it was Jean Chretien.  Today, Chretien steps down and the new Prime Minister is... Paul Martin.  Martin is a former finance minister who has pledged to seek smoother ties with the United States despite strains over Iraq.  Chretien is now a private citizen after more than forty years as a member of parliament first, then prime minister.
  
  
• The United Nations may have to give up its two-year effort to stabilize Afghanistan because of rising violence blamed on the Taliban.  The U.N.'s top official in the area said his team cannot continue its work unless security improves.  He has called for more foreign tropps to halt attacks that have killed at least eleven aid workers across the south and east since March.
  

December 11

• Ball State University will be announcing changes in training for campus police as a result of Michael McKinney's death.  The Delaware County prosecutor has asked a grand jury to decide whether to file criminal charges against Officer Robert Duplain in the fatal shooting.
  
  
• Purdue has extended football coach Joe Tiller's contract.  Tiller has become the second-winningest football coach in Purdue's history.
  
  
• This Saturday, December 13, the Army National Guard will celebrate its 367th birthday.  We would like to honor them and recognize the guard, as they are older than the United States itself.  If each of us goes out of our way to shake the hands of a guardsman, and tell them how vital they are to our defense, that gesture may contribute in a small way to the morale of these men and women.
  
  
• Federal officials say the flu has hit hard in twenty-four states, nearly doubling the number since last week.  At least eleven children have died in the outbreak, and some experts predict this year's death toll could easily surpass the annual average of 36,000 deaths.  Epidemiologists, however, are not ready to predict just how severe this flu season will be, since it began early, it may peak early - which is the norm.  Use good hygeine and do not venture out if you are already ill.
  
  
• In Indianapolis, the flu outbreak sent hundred of sick people out in search of care, swamping some area hospitals and prompting some to divert incoming patients to other medical centers.  The surge in demand for medical care seems to be due to the widespread news coverage of the outbreak.  Not all those who have been ill have been diagnosed with influenza.
  
  
• The U.S. had plans to deploy the first battalion of Iraw's new army.  The battalion was highly celebrated when the newly retrained soldiers completed a none-week basic training course in early October.  The graduates, including sizty-five officers, were to be the core of an army that would defend its country and not oppress it.  Unfortunately, the plans are in doubt as roughly one third of the Iraqi soldiers have quit.  A second battalion is still in the training course.  Some $2 billion will be spent on rebuilding the Iraqi army in the next year.
  

December 10

• Indiana had hoped to get more than 10,000 doses of flu vaccine, but it has found only 4,450 - well short of its goal.  The result is that the state will now limit what it has to go to Indiana children. The doses that state received came from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.  Efforts to obtain at least that same amount from other sources failed.  The flu shots will be used as part of the Vaccine for Children program at 800 sites across the state.  The Vaccine for Children programs are held at local health deaprtments and offices of participating doctors.  Under a federal grant that pays for the program, all vaccines must go to children.
  
  
• The popular Gray Brothers Cafeteria in Mooresville remains open and unaffected by the financial failure of a spinoff restaurant in Bloomington.  Debt collection lawsuits seeking more than $1.1 million have been filed in Monroe and Morgan county courts against the owners of the Gray Brothers Cafeteria in Bloomington.  On November 24, the operators of the Bloomington restaurant filed for Chapter 7 liquidation in federal bankruptcy court.  The owners declined to comment about the reasons for the failure in Bloomington, but stressed that the closing of the Bloomington eatery in November - after only five months of operation - will not affect the restaurant in Mooresville.  The popular family eatery was founded in the 1940's and dishes up thousands of meals a day drawing diners from throughout Central Indiana and beyond.
  
  
• Egg prices are the highest they have been in twenty years.  What could be causing the surge?  Industry experts all agree that the low-carbohydrate, high protein diets of millions of people hoping to lose weight have contributed.  In the past two months, egg prices have climed as much as $1.40 a dozen.  With high cholesterol and fat-filled yolks, eggs once suffered from a reputation as artery cloggers.  Recent reports have shown they are healthier than previously thought.  Indiana is the fourth-largest egg-producing state, behind Iowa, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
  
  
• A Canadian researcher has written a paper that supports a finding that six popular nursery rhymes refer to alarming injuries.  She said parents should instead give children the hard facts in "medically sound" ditties that offer quick relief for nursery rhyme characters who clearly suffer major head injuries.  The offending rhymes include "Jack and Jill", and "Humpty Dumpty".  Particularly offensice were the injuries presumable sustained by "Ten Little Monkeys," who begin the rhyme jumping on a bed but by the end of its end are nowhere to be found.  The paper's author decided there could be only one conclusion:  Each monkey must have sustained a major head or spinal injury. "After the first incident, the monkeys should have been placed in foster care, perhaps with "The Man with the Yellow Hat."
  

December 9

• Indiana has broken tradition by adding a title sponsor to this year's Indiana-Kentucky basketball game.  Indiana, which does not allow advertising inside Assembly Hall for men's basketball games, reached a deal with three central Indiana Volkswagen dealerships to sponsor the December 20 game at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis.  The game will be televised by CBS and the official title of the game will be "The Indiana-Kentucky Rivalry Game Presented by Indianapolis Area Volkswagen Dealers."  The deal was reached by Indiana University Sports Properties, which is a division of Learfield Communications.  Postcards will be handed out to those attending the game and fans can redeem the cards at particiapting dealerships to see whether they've won a car.  The winning numbers will be chosen before the game and will be posted at the dealerships after the game.
  
  
• Members of the 138th Personnel Service Battalion got an unpleasant Christmas surprise.  They have been called up.  They are reporting to Camp Atterbury today to prepare to go to the Middle East, and will not be home for Christmas.  Members will be at Camp Atterbury until they get their official orders and they may be gone for up to eighteen months.  They will be among the hundreds of other soldiers who won't be home for the holidays.
  
  
• Can this be a good sign for the economy?  You decide.  Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. sais it plans to recall 103 employees back to work early next year, cutting in half the number of workers laid off from the Lafayette plant.  The employees are being recalled to work on the 2005 Subaru Legacy line, and are scheduled to return to work in January and February.
  
  
• This year, doctors have been surprised by the number of children with severe flu complications.  At the forefront of their concern is the rise of a common drug-resistant staph infection that is complicating efforts to treat children with the flu.  Some children have died from the staph infections, something the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has not seen before.  Flu complications for children have always been dire.  Among them are pneumonia, kidney and heart failure, and possible brain damage.  In October, the CDC warned parents that many school athletes had been found to carry methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a usually mild infection. The infection is now causing pneumonia, which it normally doesn't without the flu virus.  Flu and its complications are the sixth leading cause of death nationally among children age 4 and younger.  Whether you have had a flu vaccination or not, it is best to follow simple hygeine procedures:  wash hands with soap and warm water for at least 15 seconds frequently;  do not touch your mouth, nose, and eyes with your hands; if you feel ill, stay home.
  
  
• The thirty-seven year-old Miranda warning, which begins with the familiar "You have the right to remain silent...", is beginning to be reviewed by the Supreme Court.  The landmark Miranda V. Arizona ruling has been criticized harshly over the years.  There are several cases on the Mirand warning before the Supreme Court. The eventual rulings will clarify rules for police questioning and let courts know when they must bar confessions or evidence from trial.  While the Supreme Court reaffirmed Miranda in 2000, these cases will probably be used to fine tune the standard.
  
  
• Ozzy Osborne was on a ventilator in intensive care yesterday after fracturing several bones including a neck vertebra in a quad bike accident.  He had emergency surgery to restore the flow to a blood vessel damaged in Monday's accident.  It is currently not known how the accident will affect production of the MTV reality series "The Osbornes."
  
  
• We have been hearing about the record snow storm that hit the northeast a few days ago.  Finland's town of Rovaniemi which it the home of Santa's village is snowless.  Normally, the town is blanketed in snow, where around 70,000 people come to Lapland to see Santa during his busy pre-Christmas weeks.  What began in the 1950's as a shack on the Arctic Circle outside Rovaniemi to mark a visit by Eleanor Roosevelt now lures tourists with Santa's office, a postal center, reindeer and dog-sledding, and a Santa shopping center.  Even making snow has been problematic, since it has not been cold enough for the artificial snow to stick.  They fear they will see a repeat of what they call the snowless Black Christmas of 1986.
  
  
• An unsuccessful 1998 California gubernatorial candidate has been refused political asylum in Canada.  Steve Kubby argued the he was a political target of the police because of his outspoken views in favor of medical marijuana and against U.S. anti-drug laws.  Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board stated that what Kubby alleged did not amount to persecution.  Kubby was convicted on drug posession charges in 2001, but moved to Canada before serving his sentence of house arrest.  Kubby argued that his need for marijuana is the same as a diabetic who requires insulin to stay alive.  He claims his life would be threatened if he was returned to the United States and denied the drug.
  

December 8

• It does not matter how it happened, but the Colts were able to capitalize on four fumbles by the Tennessee Titans to capture a 29-27 victory.  This win puts the Colts in seat number 3 in the AFC division.
  
  
• They tried, but were unable to reach an agreement.  The General Assembly's session on property taxes is over, but the bill that will become law will not put the issue to bed.  The provision gives eligible homeowners until December 15 to file for existing deductions.  It will also allow an estimated 95,000 homeowners to save money on next year's rax bills, but the $70 million tab will be picked up by others.  There will also be tighter spending controls on local governments, which could slow the growth in property taxes, and prevent huge increases in any single year.  Many in the General Assembly are unhappy that the bill does nothing to help the people who will lose their homes because of the increase in property taxes.  This can mean only one thing - the debate will continue in January, when the General Assembly reconvenes.
  
  
• Turkey - a subject on many people's minds during the holiday seasons.  Did you know that one of the greatest sucess stories in wildlife restoration in U.S. history is the wild turkey?  Officials from the Indiana Division of Fish and Wildlife are currently evaluating parts of east central Indiana for wild turkey habitat.  The restoration effort in Indiana began in the 1970's, gained momentum in the 1980's and exploded in the 1990's.  The locations chosen for turkey relocation must favor large unbroken stretches of forest with protected grassland or prarie areas.  Late December into January and early February is the best time to trap and relocate the birds.  Southern Indiana already is home to many wild turkeys.
  
  
• The flu is a topic widely discussed at this time.  Many companies who usually offer flu shots have run out of the vaccine.  This year's severity of the flu has caused many more people than usual to turn out for the flu clinics. Six children in Colorado, three in Texas, one in Oklahoma, and one in New Mexico have died from the flu so far this season.
  
  
• Our soldier in Iraq are battling more than just Iraqis.  The Army's 101st Airborne Division has sent twenty soldiers to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington for treatment for a skin disease transmitted by bites from sand flies in Iraq.  Another ten to twenty soldiers from the division are under observation for the illness, called leishmaniasis.  The disease, known as "Baghdad Boil" to U.S. soldiers in Iraw can leave disfiguring lesions on the skin for months.  The U.S. military did issue insect repellant to soldiers and impregnated their uniforms and insect netting with permethrin, an insecticide.  Vaccines and drugs to prevent infections are not currently available.  The soldiers are suffering for their country, and deserve at the least our thanks and respect.
  

December 4

• 35-year-old Seymour resident David B. De-fibaugh was arrested late Tuesday night after a traffic stop because of a seatbelt violation.  That was not what caused him to get arrested.  He was a passenger in vehicle that got stopped.  The woman driving the car consented to a search of the vehicle, and officers found four bags of meth on Defibaugh when he was searched.  Defibaugh now faces charges of posession of methampetamine with intent to deliver and possession of methamphetamine less than three grams.
  
  
• Indiana is bracing for a severe flu season.  Doctors have received information from the state health department on what strains of the flu are circulating.  So far, the strain that caused the 4 children's deaths in Colorado is not circulating in Indiana much.  Flu shots are recommended, even though the particularly dangerous strain of flu was not in the vaccine.  Partial protection will still be obtained from the shot.  Also, officials are saying to get to your doctor immediately if you have flu symptoms.  Typical symptoms include fever, aches and pains, headaches, runny nose, possibly a dry cough, and extreme fatigue.  Try to get to your doctor withing 48 hours.  There are other treatments available to hopefully shorten the course of the illness.
  
  
• Highway crews are creating three wetlands to replace wildlife habitats disrupted by construction in Interstate 65 in southern Indiana.  Federal environmental regulations require that disturbed wetlands be replaced.  In recent weeks, 2,100 tree seedlings have been planted along the sides of a 37-foot-deep hole crews dug in the median near I-65 and Ind-62.  Workers also planted grass and sixty-eight 10-foot trees to create a 7 1/2 acre wetland.  Another wetland is planned to be complete next spring along the I-65 interchange at Lewis & Clark Parkway, formerly Ind-131.  The third wetland has already been completed at the I-65 and Ind-60 interchange. This wetland project is in the watershed of Mill Creek, which connects with the Ohio River near the Falls of the Ohio.
  
  
• Facing the threat of a trade war, President Bush has decided to lift steep tariffs he imposed on foreign steel twenty month ago.  He will soften to blow on the domestic steel industry by announcing new measures designed to protect against unfair foreign competition.  The administration was acting to avert a threatened trade war with Europe and other big trading partners.  Those nations had vowed to retaliate with punitive tariffs on American products unless the steel tariffs were removed.
  
  
• The Army is in the news again, this time does not give a positive view of the Army's capabilities or compassion.  This week, the Army deducted hundreds of dollars from the paychecks of Indiana National Guardsmen serving in the Middle East to make up for a $21-a-month overpayment.  The Army found that the soldiers had been overpaid for meal allowances since they were deployed back in February.  Instead of just deducting the amount they were overpaid, the entire incorrect meal allowance was deducted, and the correct meal allowance was added back.  Unfortunately, this did not happen on the same check.  Theoretically, each soldier's paycheck should be evened out by the end of next week.  This is just another error in a string of errors that has affected the Indiana National Guardsmen checks since last January.  Federal and state income taxes were deducted when they should have been exempt.  Some soldiers are still waiting certain pay categories, sich as family separation, and soldiers with children.  Some soldiers have been waiting for the money since March.

December 3

• The Bloomington Pops Orchestra took a year off, and is now ready to return to the stage later this month.  The group will stage a Christmas concert on December 21 and will resume its annual Picnic with the Pops event on July 4.  The Pops was hit hard with money problems last December when an internal audit revealed $10,000 was missing.  Pops officials have said the group's financial difficulties centered around a failure to acquire enough corporate sponsorships.
  
  
• Officials in Jasper, IN, are seeking a new home for an old southern Indiana bridge that is targeted for replacement.  The Portersville Bridge, which was built arond 1912 and crosses the East Fork of the White River, has been closed for years.  The state Department of Natural Resources would like to see the bridge preserved for its historic value.  If there are no takers on the bridge, an agreement is being prepared for removal and storage of the bridge for ten years.
  
  
• Wal-Mart officials have said that the popular store would stop accepting MasterCard for debit-card transactions that require a signature because of high fees.  They are the first major retailer to make such a move after a seven-year battle over debit fees.  This change will take effect February 1, 2004.  Wall-Mart will still accept MasterCard credit cards, and most customers would be able to use their MasterCard debit cards as long as they key in a PIN.  This announcement does not affect the VISA debit cards.  Wal-Mart will continue to accept the VISA signature debit cards since they were able to negotiate lower fees than VISA currently charges the retailer.
  

December 2

• Public health officials are warning that Indiana may be in for a severe flu season.  The flu may be more severe than usual this year and could affect a broader range of age groups.  Several Indiana residents have already been hospitalized with the flu.  Young children may be more at risk this season.  Flu shots are being recommended.  The CDC says flu viruses are circulating at a higher level than usual at this time of year. The flu strin that doctors are seeing is part of a class of ciruses that caused severe outbreaks in the United States in the 1990's.
  
  
• In November, Governor Kernan cancelled a contract with an overseas firm to upgrade the computer system that would be processing unemployment claims.  Now, most lawmakers on Indiana's Senate Economic Development and Technology Committe oppose Senate Bill 4.  That bill was written by State Senator Jeff Drozda, R-Westfield, because he opposes Indiana spending public money to creat jobs for low-paid workers from other countries.  Republicans and Democrats alike worried that a ban on all foreign workers would go too far and have unintended consequences in a time that Indiana is trying to lure overseas investment.  Governor Kernan feels that no lew laws are needed, just changes in the state's contracting procedures.
  
  
• The Indiana House Ways and Means Comittee approved a property tax relief package that seeks to keep taxes in check by controlling local government spending.  The legislation, crafted by the Republican-controlled Senate, will be considered by the full House Thursday.  Democrats voted for the bill, even though it does not include the additional tax breaks for homeowners that they wanted.  There are now two almost identical property tax bills before the legislature - House Bill 1001 and Senate Bill 1.  If the General Assembly cannot reach an agreement this month on property tax relief, the issue will likely resurface in January, when the legislature reconvenes.
  
  
• Senator Richard Lugar has been awarded the Heinz Award for his decades-long battle to rid the world of nuclear weapons.  Lugar, along with former Senator Sam Nunn, D-Georgia, created the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program in 1991.  This program is credited with accelerating the dismantling of nuclear weapons.    In addition, more than 20,000 Russian scientists are now pursuing peaceful research, instead of being employed in weapons of mass destruction programs.  Each Heinz Award comes with a $250,000 check.
  
  
• Governor Joe Kernan has asked President Bush to leave tariffs on imported steel in place despite the threat of economic sanctions.  In a letter dated Monday, the Democratic governor told Bush the nation's steel industry needs more time to repair damage Kernan blamed on "dumping" - below cost pricing - by foreign manufacturers.  Bush imposed the tariffs in March 2002 to ease foreign competition while the beleagured U.S. steel industry consolidates and restructures.  The European Union has threatened to slap $2.2 billion in retaliatory sanctions on U.S. exports if the tariffs are not eliminated by December 10.  Kernan feels the steel industry needs the full three years to recover that were planned when Bush announced the tariffs last year.  President Bush is expected to reach a decision on the tariffs later this week.
   
  
• A recall has been issued for weed and brush cutters.  They were manufactured by Bachtold Brothers Inc..  The recall includes the W-24 models sold under the Bachtold Whipper, DR Field & Brush Mower and B-800 (with a 77-100 deck) brand names.  All the models have either an orange or green body.  The brand name is printed on the drive box between the engine and left wheel.  The cutters pose a serious injury hazard to consumers.  The operator can come in contact with the machines' blade when disengaged, by pulling on the motor deck while the engine is running.  Consumers can call Backtold Brothers toll-free at 1-877-784-5161 8a.m. - 4 p.m. Mon thru Fri.  More information is also available at www.bachtoldbros.com and www.weedcutterrecall.com.
  

December 1