Stories from Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Several Nebraska cities are considering a ban on pit bulls or other types of vicious dogs, and it is naturally generating a lot of debate. Pit bulls are natural-born-killers, goes the argument for the ban. No, Staffordshire terriers are friendly if properly trained, say their owners, and it would be unfair to ban them simply because of genetics...

Last Wednesday returning from a trip to San Antonio, I spotted an iconic "Piper Cub" tied down on the ramp. Ambling over to check it out the N number (United States Registration) told me that it was manufactured pre-World War II. Sure enough it was an original Piper J-3 manufactured in 1941. To me it looked as good as the day it rolled off the line in Lockhaven, Pa., but then I am kind of partial to well kept airplanes and ladies of about that vintage...

Why isn't the news media, including your publication, devoting more attention to the true condition of the federal government's finances? The nonpartisan Peter G. Peterson Foundation recently published a primer titled "The State of the Union's Finances." It's shocking to see what poor shape the government is really in. ...

The opening night winners for the McCook Football League Friday night at Weiland Field were the Rams and Redskins of the 5th-6th grade division and the Colts and Ravens of the 7th-8th grade division. The Rams defeated the Cowboys 13-7 in double overtime, the Redskins defeated the Eagles 14-6, the Colts shut out the Raiders 28-0 and the Ravens shut out the Chiefs 27-0...

LINCOLN -- There will be three McCook Bison connections to the 50th anniversary Nebraska Shrine Bowl Football Game Saturday night. Kickoff at Memorial Stadium is 6:30 p.m. McCook's Sam Frazier and J.D. Stone will play for the South Team, which will be guided by former Bison head coach Bob Fuller, who led McCook to a state runnerup finish in the fall of 1994...

Red Willow County commissioners plan a public hearing Monday, Aug. 11, at 10 a.m., in their room on the third floor of the courthouse in McCook, to discuss the fate of a county road on the books since 1889. Landowners Phillip and Janice Bamesberger are asking commissioners to officially abandon or vacate the road that runs east of the intersection of Roads 397 and 713, south of Indianola on the Danbury-Indianola road. ...

One of the final steps in the city's years-long search for clean water came to fruition Monday night, as the McCook City Council unanimously approved plans and specifications for the completion of the deep injection well. "This is the last step of a very long process," Public Utility Director Jesse Dutcher told the council at is regular meeting...

The City of McCook has lost a lawsuit against Retro Development and has filed for a new trial. The city first sued Retro Development, Peter A. Spoto of Omaha and other entities in August 2006, for breaching a contract that concerned the redevelopment of the YMCA into low-cost housing, called the YMCA Apartments...

Taten Emigh (foreground), Sabrina Maxey and Alan Hammer play on slopes of the mountain of wheat piled on about a block-and-a-half of Danbury's downtown main street. "We're completely full. The elevators are stuffed. We're filled to capacity," said Tina Rae, a clerk at the Decatur Co-Op's Danbury branch. ...

LINCOLN - The Nebraska State Patrol Air Wing and the Police Service Dog Division (PSD) were called on to provide assistance in two separate incidents in two separate cities over the past couple of days. On Monday, July 21, 2008, at approximately 1:30 p.m., the Nebraska State Patrol helicopter and a PSD team provided assistance to the Lincoln Police Department (LPD) and the Lancaster County Sheriff's Office (LSO) in the search for burglary suspects. ...

The McCook Police Department will be keeping a closer eye on vicious dog attacks, said Ike Brown, Police Chief. Two incidents over the weekend involved one dog attacking and killing another dog, while in another neighborhood a man was bit while riding a bicycle...