Wire
Copper thefts may cost city $1 million
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The theft of copper cables from streetlights could cost Kansas City more than $1 million this year — and city officials aren’t sure where they will find the money. At a meeting last week, City Engineer Greg Rokos said the city has completed or was currently repairing lights at more than 30 locations at a cost of more than $270,000. But another 18 locations are still awaiting repairs, at a projected cost of $152,000. ...
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Obama raises stunning $150 million in September
WASHINGTON (AP) — Barack Obama raised more than $150 million in September, a stunning and unprecedented eruption of political giving that has given him a wide spending advantage over rival John McCain. The Democrat’s campaign released the figure Sunday, one day before it must file a detailed report of its monthly finances with the Federal Election Commission. Obama’s money is fueling a vast campaign operation in an expanding field of compe...
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She’s been voting for presidents since 1932
SOUTH HUTCHINSON (AP) — Letha Frazier cast her first ballot for Herbert Hoover in 1932. She later regretted that vote and became a strong admirer of Franklin Roosevelt, who won that election. “He got us out of the Depression,” she said. The 99-year-old resident of Mennonite Manor has voted in every presidential election since then. She generally prefers Democrats, but isn’t a straight-party-ticket voter. She once voted for Richard Nixon. ...
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GOP attacks back on missed meetings in Kansas 2nd District
TOPEKA (AP) — A Republican official attacked Democratic Rep. Nancy Boyda on Monday over House Armed Services Committee meetings she has missed, accused her of abusing her office and called her a hypocrite. A spokesman for Boyda, who is seeking a second term in Kansas’ 2nd Congressional District, dismissed it all as “silly.” Boyda and fellow Democrats have raised questions about Republican challenger Lynn Jenkins’ performance in two terms a...
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Celebrities
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — As the father of three girls, Tim McGraw understands the challenges that face dads who want to please their daughters. So the children’s book he’s co-written with Tom Douglas has some simple advice: As long as you’re spending time with them, it doesn’t really matter what you do. “My Little Girl,” to be published Tuesday by Thomas Nelson, tells the story of a father who spends a fun day with his little girl Katie doing...
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Oddities
SoCal officials bring back music-making asphalt LANCASTER, Calif. (AP) — The folks who silenced the nation’s first “musical road” are singing a different tune. Workers on Wednesday began carving grooves on Avenue G that will produce notes of the “William Tell Overture” when cars drive over them. The high desert city north of Los Angeles placed the grooves on another road, Avenue K, last month for a Honda commercial. The quarter-mile strip...
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Ask Amy
Dear Amy: After kissing a lot of toads, I finally found my “Prince” more than 11 years ago. We had so much in common and were so in love. However, as with all relationships, things have changed. Now I am wondering what changes I should and should not accept. We used to go to church together, to the movies, art festivals and ballroom dancing. We had a healthy sex life. None of this interests him now. For example, he was a huge movie buff, so...
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Heloise
Dear Readers: Have you wondered what causes some shirts to fray and wear out faster than others? Research from the Drycleaning and Laundry Institute stated that under typical conditions, the average life expectancy of a shirt is about two years. This may vary depending on the fiber content, amount of abrasion, strain placed on the shirt during wear, how the shirt is constructed and how it is laundered. -- Heloise Dear Heloise: We had a cry...
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Hawaii coin ends popular state quarter program
Leanne Italie Associated Press Writer NEW YORK (AP) — With a big aloha to Hawaii, a new generation of coin collectors will soon shut their books on the U.S. Mint’s popular 10-year state quarter program full of fond family memories and a fun dose of history. While not terribly rare, considering about 34 billion were produced, the commemorative quarters have captured the frenzied fancy of kids and their parents as they’ve drawn extended fam...
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Celebrities
OSLO, Norway (AP) — Diana Ross will headline artists performing at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in honor of the 2008 laureate, Finnish peace mediator Martti Ahtisaari, organizers said Thursday. The show’s hosts, generally Hollywood superstars, are to be announced next week. Last year’s show was hosted by Uma Thurman and Kevin Spacey. The list for the Dec. 11 concert also includes Canadian singer Feist, American country singer Dierks Bentl...
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Girard man shares apples with own orchard
Nikki Patrick Pittsburg Morning Sun GIRARD (AP) — Joe Cizerle often asks new acquaintances if they have an apple tree in their yard. If they don’t, he tells them not to bother planting one. “I’ve got enough apples for both of us,” Cizerle said. In fact, he’s got around 300 apple trees at the orchard, not to mention 25 pecan trees, five varieties of grapes and some pear trees. He was born three miles from his current home in rural Girard, the ...
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Oddities
Monkey photo fails to fool Los Angeles court LOS ANGELES (AP) — A California man is headed back to court after trying to use a photo of his pet monkey alongside a Mexican newspaper to fool a court commissioner into believing the animal had been sent south of the border. David Grigorian had been ordered to surrender his marmoset Cheeta because he did not have a permit for the animal. Authorities say the 43-year-old Van Nuys man was in cour...
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When cash gets tight, nannies are first to go
Megan K. Scott Associated Press Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Casey Rishavy has contacted agencies, posted ads on Web sites and approached families she sees with small children on the beach. But no one seems to be looking for a full-time, live-in nanny. “It’s very frustrating,” said Rishavy, 20, of San Diego, Calif. “Even agencies are not calling back.” With child-care the second biggest expense after mortgage payments, many families are looki...
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Reger Rental Sales and Service: A business bred from hard times
HUTCHINSON (AP) — Life was hard in the 1930s. Many appliances that today’s families consider a necessity were an extravagance. Perry Reger’s grandmother was one of the lucky ones; she owned a Maytag wringer washing machine. And Perry’s father, Pete, saw it as a golden opportunity. “Necessity is the mother of invention,” said Perry Reger of his dad’s simple idea that planted the seed for the family business that has grown into Reger Rental Sal...
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Woman who miscarried settles KC police lawsuit
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A woman who miscarried after two Kansas City officers failed to get medical treatment for her has reached a $750,000 settlement with police. Sofia Salva’s attorney, Andrew Protzman, and police confirmed the settlement Thursday. The federal lawsuit alleged wrongful death and personal injury. Salva says the officers caused the death of her child when they denied her medical care during a traffic stop in 2006. Both ...
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Celebrities
LOS ANGELES (AP) — DJ AM was back on the decks for the first time since surviving a fiery plane crash. The visibly scarred celebrity disc jockey, whose real name is Adam Goldstein, joined Jay-Z at a special concert Wednesday celebrating the reopening of the Hollywood Palladium, the historic venue which once hosted the likes of Frank Sinatra, “The Lawrence Welk Show,” Led Zeppelin and the Emmy Awards on its more than 11,000-square-foot circula...
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Oddities
Sheriff: California family cremated mom, kept benefits CORNING, Calif. (AP) — The family of a dead elderly woman cremated her remains on a makeshift barbecue and continued collecting her retirement checks amounting to more than $25,000, authorities in Northern California said. Ramona Allmond’s daughter and grandson were arrested Sunday on suspicion of embezzlement, elder abuse and disposing of a body without a permit. Allmond, 84, likely ...
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Ask Amy
Dear Amy: I am 45 and my wife is 40. We have been married for 15 years. My wife has never believed in romantic things such as holding hands, long walks in the park, candlelight dinners, going to movies together, kissing, cuddling or any foreplay. She expects me to be ready on-demand whenever she wants to be physical. I am expected to perform like a machine. I am very unhappy with the lack of love and romance in my married life, and in the ...
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World briefly
A 380-point loss becomes a 401-point gain: Just another day for the volatile stock market NEW YORK (AP) — A stock market as difficult to fathom as it is volatile pulled off another stunning U-turn on Thursday, transforming a 380-point loss for the Dow Jones industrials into a 401-point gain. Was it the government’s bailout beginning to have an effect? The credit markets finally beginning to loosen up? Investors looking for a bottom in stock...
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Medical copter crash kills little girl, crew of 3
AURORA, Ill. (AP) — A toddler being flown to a hospital died in a fiery helicopter crash with three crew members when the aircraft clipped a radio tower wire and went down in a suburban Chicago field, authorities said Thursday. Federal authorities said they were investigating whether the tower’s lights were on at the time of the fatal crash minutes before midnight Wednesday — the sixth involving medical helicopters in the U.S. this year. Me...
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