Wire
TV journalist promoting strong bonds between black fathers, daughters
Year-long campaign includes programs, education materials and Web site Megan K. Scott Associated Press Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Black TV journalist Ed Gordon has a close relationship with his teenage daughter, and he’s hoping other fathers will, too. “Certainly there issues with fathers being involved, and in particular within black America that’s a problem and an issue and it’s larger than it should be,” he says. “But I don’t think it’s a...
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Schilling says season over, will have surgery
BOSTON (AP) — Curt Schilling will have surgery on his ailing shoulder Monday, ending his season and possibly his career. The 41-year-old Boston Red Sox right-hander will have the operation after a rehabilitation program preferred by the team failed to fix the tendon injury that sparked a spring training dispute between doctors about how to treat it. “My season is over and there is a pretty decent chance I have thrown my last pitch forever,...
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NBA demands $1.4 million from disgraced referee
NEW YORK (AP) — The NBA wants disgraced referee Tim Donaghy to pay the league $1.4 million, including his wages for games on which he bet or provided inside tips to gamblers. The written demand, filed Thursday in federal court, asks a judge to force Donaghy to pay the sum as restitution in his gambling case. The league previously indicated it would seek $1 million. The Donaghy scandal “has harmed the NBA and caused it to spend vast sums to...
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Oddities
Barge floats two-story home from Washington to Canada HUNTS POINT, Wash. (AP) — Rolling the waterfront house onto a barge on Lake Washington took slightly more than 20 minutes. The home’s maritime trip to British Columbia is taking a bit longer. In an effort to preserve a spectacular home at a bargain price, a Canadian family is moving the 3,360-square-foot, two-story house from this suburb east of Seattle to Vancouver Island. The former ...
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Credit card fees: Some gas stations say ‘no more’
Tom Breen Associated Press Writer CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — When gas station manager Roger Randolph realized it was costing him money each time someone filled up with $4-a-gallon gas, he hung a sign on his pumps: “No more credit cards.” He may be the first in West Virginia to ban plastic, but gas station operators nationwide are reporting similar woes as higher prices translate into higher credit card fees the managers must pay, squeezing ...
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Celebrities
SAN DIEGO (AP) — George Michael is a most happy fellow these days: He’s kicking off his first North American tour in 17 years and same-sex marriage has just been legalized in California. “It’s way overdue,” the 44-year-old English pop star told The Associated Press. “It’s something that happened ... almost without a whisper in England, but it was basically because we weren’t that concerned about the word ‘marriage.”’ Michael, who is openly...
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Heloise
FOR RELEASE FRIDAY, JUNE 20, 2008 Hints for the Road Dear Heloise: When traveling (we camp, but hotel it on the way to distant national parks), we carry a coolerCOOLER. Rather than fill it with loose ice, I use two to three rinsed-out milk jugs with a large “filling hole” cut out. I retain some of the handle. I fill these with water and freeze, then put them in the cooler. No food floating in water. As we travel, I pour o...
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Ask Amy
Dear AmyTHROAT-CLEARING COULD BE SIGN CO-WORKER HAS MEDICAL CONDITION DEAR AMY: I work in an office where we sit in cubicles. A new hire has a very annoying habit of clearing his throat and making grunting sounds constantly. It is very annoying to all of us who sit near him. We have even counted the noises he makes. He does this one to three times per minute. What would be a polite way of making him aware of this so that he might make a...
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Kansas lawmakers hail tanker decision
WASHINGTON (AP) — Kansas officials hailed a government report Wednesday that gave Boeing Co. a major victory in its quest to land a $35 billion Air Force tanker contract. The Government Accountability Office found major flaws in the Air Force’s decision earlier this year to award the contract to a competitor — a team comprised of Northrop Grumman and a European defense company. It recommended the service hold a new competition. “I have never...
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Kansas authority providing $3.7 million for research
SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Kansas Bioscience Authority is providing $3.7 million for research on cancer, HIV and osteoporosis as well as increased development of new medicines. The state-created agency announced the investments at a convention in San Diego on Wednesday, saying it hopes to highlight the existing capacity for bioscience research in Kansas. Lenexa-based ImmunoGenetix Therapeutics Inc. will receive $420,000 to help with a vaccine de...
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Bush rallies behind McCain at fundraising dinner
Ben Feller Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Seeking to energize party loyalists, President Bush on Wednesday gave his most extended public support to Sen. John McCain, his former foe for the White House. The president said McCain is the only candidate in the race who can face tough decisions and “will not flinch.” In a full-throated fundraising appearance for Republicans, Bush never mentioned the name of McCain’s opponent in the pres...
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Celebrities
Toby Keith fundraiser brings in $709,000 NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Toby Keith’s annual fundraiser for families of children with cancer raised $709,000 this year. The money goes to Ally’s House, a charity started after original band member Scott Webb’s 2-year-old daughter, Allison, died of kidney cancer in 2003. The charity provides for families’ needs, such as prescriptions, rent or mortgage payments, utilities and gasoline and hopes to eventua...
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Celebrities
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Sara Evans has married former University of Alabama quarterback Jay Barker. Lori Genes, the country star’s publicist at Sony BMG Nashville, told The Associated Press on Monday the couple had married, but didn’t provide details. People magazine reported on its Web site that the outdoor ceremony took place Saturday on a farm in Franklin, Tenn. The 37-year-old singer filed for divorce from Craig Schelske in October 20...
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Judge scolds Kline for dragging feet on evidence
OLATHE (AP) — A Johnson County judge scolded District Attorney Phill Kline on Tuesday for not cooperating with defense attorneys in the Kelsey Smith case, but declined to impose sanctions requested by the defense. Defense attorneys told District Judge Peter Ruddick that they still hadn’t received a Target store video and follow-up reports on 1,100 leads. Ruddick responded that he had never handled a murder case that required so many hearing...
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Oddities
Police say Connecticut man urged snake to ’get’ officers BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) — Police in Bridgeport, Conn., say they arrested a man after he ordered his pet to attack two officers. Lucky for them, 9-foot-long pythons aren’t very obedient. Police say 21-year-old Victor Rodriguez was charged with threatening officers and disorderly conduct after Monday’s incident. No one was hurt. Police arrived at Rodriguez’s apartment after receiving a...
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Topeka apartment complex firedisplaces 50 people TOPEKA (AP) — Fire officials now say a three-alarm fire has displaced about 50 people from a Topeka apartment complex
Topeka apartment complex firedisplaces 50 people TOPEKA (AP) — Fire officials now say a three-alarm fire has displaced about 50 people from a Topeka apartment complex. Firefighters say the blaze reported at around 1 a.m. Wednesday quickly spread to several units at the Pines Apartments. Fire officials are not sure what caused the fire, which drew 50 firefighters from 12 companies. The flames destroyed ten apartments in the 40-unit complex. Th...
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Other Editors
The Topeka Capital-Journal, on Sen. Ted Kennedy: Generations of voters have grown up since Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts first won his Senate seat during a special election in November 1962. The liberal Democrat has survived and overcome setbacks in his political and personal life since then, and now finds himself in a battle with a malignant brain tumor. We haven’t always agreed with Kennedy’s politics or some of the choices he made i...
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‘Clean’ campaign in 2nd offers Ryun advantage
John Hanna Associated Press TOPEKA (AP) — Jim Ryun appears to be trying to give himself an advantage by calling for clean campaigning as he seeks the Republican nomination in the 2nd Congressional District. Ryun, the congressman ousted in 2006, and his GOP rival, State Treasurer Lynn Jenkins, filed for office hours apart last week. In between, Ryun issued his call for a campaign free of the negative attacks that he said tend to alienate voter...
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Heloise
FOR RELEASE TUESDAY, JUNE 17, 2008 Dodging Dosage Disaster Dear Heloise: I recently had a new prescriptionNEW PRESCRIPTIONfilled at the same pharmacy that I have used for years. I was hurting both physically and emotionally from a new diagnosis, and I did not remember them telling me that I needed to take two tablets instead of just the one that my doctor had prescribed. The medicine the pharmacy had in stock required two to equal ...
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Ask Amy
Dear Amy: My husband and I have vacationed with another family for the past 20 years. Now that all our kids are grown, we decided for the first time to take a “couples-only” vacation. Our friends went to a nearby lake where nude bathing is permitted, and they enjoyed it. Now they want to go to a nude resort. My husband and I frequently sleep in the nude, and before kids we used to go skinny-dipping at a secluded pond. My husband is willin...
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