Stories from Friday, March 4, 2011

Missouri senators are at odds over whether occupational disease victims should be allowed to sue their employers in civil courts. Sen. Jason Crowell, R-Cape Girardeau, led a four-hour filibuster Wednesday night in the Missouri Senate during debate on a bill by Sen. Jack Goodman, R-Mt. Vernon, that would make the workers' compensation system the exclusive remedy for occupational disease claims, including mesothelioma, a cancer caused by asbestos exposure...

The working day of the average guidance counselor is a day filled with questions. Questions about career path, college preparation, testing, class scheduling. Those arguably are the easy ones compared to the social and emotional disorders in today's students. Problems like self-injury or mutilation, cyberbullying, teen pregnancy, socioeconomic issues in a challenging economy...

The Meadow Heights girls basketball team beat Lesterville 84-50 in the Class 2 District 3 championship game

About 500 junior high and high school students from Southeast Missouri will compete next week in the National History Day in Missouri district contest. Judging begins at 9 a.m. March 11 at Southeast Missouri State University's University Center. The awards ceremony will be at 2 p.m. in Rose Theatre in the Grauel Building...

Tickets are now on sale for the fourth annual Heart to Heart Luncheon, sponsored by Saint Francis Medical Center and the Heart to Heart Committee. Nationally recognized nutrition and fitness expert Mitzi Dulan, RD, CSSD, will be the keynote speaker at the event April 1 at Drury Lodge, 104 S. Vantage Drive...

For more photos from a pledge drive bulletin, go to http://www.capecentralhigh.com/cape-photos/trinity-lutheran-church-pledge-drive/

Cypress knees set against a frozen lake in Burfordville.

A January sunset in Burfordville.

Plowed mounds of snow from road with a dusting of new snow.

Early snowfall on a country road in Cape Girardeau County.

Looking East at Cypress Lake, Hidden Valley, near Burfordville.

A frozen thicket in Bollinger County.

Commissioners approved the construction of a $22,000 park shelter at Cape Girardeau County Park North to replace an existing facility that is old and in disrepair. As part of his increased duties with the county parks department, Commissioner Jay Purcell proposed constructing a low-maintenance, larger shelter to replace the 36-year-old shelter three at Cape Girardeau County Park North. ...

VIP Industries recently celebrated Valentine's Day with their annual dinner and dance on Friday, February 25th. The party was held at the Fruitland facility located on US Highway 61 in Jackson, Missouri. Over 175 employees with developmental disabilities and staff from the Cape Girardeau, Fruitland, and Marble Hill plants attended the daytime celebration...

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. -- First Lt. Carter Roberts, of Jefferson City, has been appointed the new commander for the 1140th Forward Support Company in Cape Girardeau. During the ceremony, the unit guidon was passed to Roberts to symbolize the transfer of authority and responsibility...

Definition of contentment

An East Cape Girardeau, Ill., man has been arrested on weapons and drug charges following a string of thefts in Missouri and Illinois, law enforcement officials said Thursday afternoon.

SIKESTON, Mo. -- A 14-year-old girl was injured in a vehicle accident on the Sikeston Walmart parking lot Tuesday night. The Sikeston Department of Public Safety received a call at 8:39 p.m. regarding a girl being pinned between two cars. According to the report a motorist, who is not being named at this time, was backing up and pressed on the gas pedal and the brake, pushing two cars together and trapping the girl. She was taken to a hospital with minor injuries and released...

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- A town hall meeting will be held today in Dexter to discuss a proposed senate bill related to the closure of Missouri's six habilitation centers. The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. at the Dexter Inn, 1807 Business 60 West...

Since opening his own online shop to sell paintings at the popular arts and crafts website Etsy.com in 2009, James Thurman has found an investment of his time can equal sales. Thurman, a watercolor painter and ceramic sculptor from Sullivan, Mo., had only sold his work at art shows or galleries until he began using the site...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Delinquent Missouri taxpayers would get a chance to pay off their debts without owing penalties or interest under legislation approved by the House. Taxpayers would need to pay their bills between Aug. 1 and Oct. 31 to qualify for the amnesty. They also would need to comply with state tax laws for the next eight years, or they would owe the penalties and interest that have been pardoned...

I wanted to let the Southeast Missourian know how very much I appreciate the text alert service. Because of your alert, I was awakened during our recent storm for the tornado warning. Thankfully, nothing became of it, but I have really begun to rely on this service to alert me to news and weather at all times of the day...

Becoming a home owner is a lifelong dream for many. However, for some this dream has been put on hold due to past legal problems. And this is where a program called Project Home steps in. Project Home, which was started by the U.S. Probation Office in the Eastern District of Missouri, is a program designed to provide information to ex-offenders on owning a home. ...

Like most veterans, I value the personal freedoms we enjoy in this great country. I also appreciate the sentiments of residents who feel they cannot support the proposed smoke-free ordinance since it will apply to "private clubs" such as the VFW. Despite the good intentions, those sentiments are misguided. Personal freedom has never been defined as allowing one person's behavior to harm or risk harm to another's. That is exactly what secondhand smoke does...

WHEN I read about neglect to our veterans, I was shocked to see what percentage of the budget that goes to foreign countries and how much will be deducted from programs here. The Bible says those who don't take care of their families first are worse than idiots. We are the family of America. Don't take our Social Security money and give it to foreign countries...

We would like to extend a very appreciative thank you for the fantastic article written by the Southeast Missourian's Erin Ragan. We received compliments on her Feb. 4 featured piece on our guest artist, Malcolm McCrae. Great job, Erin. LYNDIE KEMPFER, O'Tenem Gallery members, Cape Girardeau...

By the time you read this, Libya may be rid of its ruler -- a man described as a despot and madman by his friends and even worse by his enemies. A man who, according to some sources, has skimmed $35 billion from the Libyan economy during his regime but forgot to promote himself to a rank higher than colonel...

We give thanks to you, O God, for your love endures forever. Amen.

NEW YORK -- An odd but hopeful picture book about a lovable lost creature has a new life in the United States to go with its Oscar-winning, 15-minute movie. The Academy Award victory in the short animated film category for Australian Shaun Tan's "The Lost Thing" coincides with its release this month in "Lost & Found," a collection of three stories primarily by Tan from the Scholastic imprint Arthur A. Levine Books...

FIRST FRIDAY RECEPTIONS The Artist Studio Gallery owner Judy Barks Westrich celebrates her six-year anniversary in the downtown gallery with a solo showing of her new pieces. 38A N. Main St.; 651-4464 Black Door Gallery Sonya Miller will be showing her art sculpture installations...

Arts and entertainment briefs

More opera is coming to Cape Girardeau, and this time the performances can be seen at Cape West 14 Cine in Cape Girardeau. George Bizet's "Carmen" will be shown in 3-D at 1 p.m. Saturday and 6 p.m. Sunday. This production of "Carmen" is from the Royal Opera House, London. Francesca Zambello's version of "Carmen" is set in modern times. Christine Rice is Carmen, Bryan Hymel is Don Jose and Aris Argiris is Escamillo...

Most people know Creative Edge in Jackson as a marketing one-stop shop, but the business also promotes music. The space, with a stage and room for tables on one level and a U-shaped balcony above, lends itself perfectly to musical acts. Tuesday and Wednesday will host Jimmy Needham, a Texas-based singer/songwriter whose faith-focused pop songs incorporate blues and roots rock to liven the contemporary Christian genre he represents. ...

RICHMOND, Va. -- The nation's largest cigarette manufacturers on Thursday said the Justice Department's proposed corrective statements about smoking's dangers are inflammatory and inaccurate and violate guidelines set by the court overseeing the lawsuit...

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- While much of the nation's attention remains focused on a stalled proposal in Wisconsin to restrict collective bargaining rights for public workers, an Ohio measure that in some ways is tougher and broader is speeding toward reality...

COALINGA, Calif. -- Parole officials have refused to give Sirhan Sirhan a date with freedom, saying he hasn't shown sufficient remorse for Sen. Robert F. Kennedy's death and doesn't understand the enormity of the assassination that changed U.S. history more than 40 years ago...

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- A federal judge who declared President Barack Obama's health care overhaul unconstitutional ruled Thursday that states must continue implementing it while the case makes its way through the courts. U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson was responding to a request from Obama administration attorneys who sought to ensure Florida and 25 other states follow the law until their challenge to it is resolved...

BREGA, Libya -- Rebels reinforced a key oil port Thursday while facing new regime airstrikes in eastern Libya, and thousands of angry mourners buried victims of a counteroffensive by Moammar Gadhafi's forces, shooting guns in the air, shouting "Down with Gadhafi!" and swearing to take vengeance...

ISLAMABAD -- Pakistani Christians burned tires and rallied for justice Thursday, a day after Islamist militants assassinated a Catholic government minister who had braved death threats to speak out in their defense. The government, which has been accused of appeasing hard-liners, vowed to tackle the threat, but officials routinely make such promises after high-profile attacks and questions remain over its will to counter militants once supported by the state...

JERUSALEM -- Israel has concluded that a final peace deal with the Palestinians cannot be reached at this time and is weighing alternatives to try to prove that it is interested in keeping peacemaking with the Palestinians alive, officials said Thursday...

CAIRO -- Egypt's military rulers appointed the first post-Hosni Mubarak prime minister Thursday, replacing an air force pilot close to the ousted leader in a bid to appease thousands of protesters who had threatened to renew the occupation of a central Cairo square...

WASHINGTON -- Four years after a retired FBI agent mysteriously vanished inside Iran, U.S. officials have received irrefutable proof he is alive, a development that has intensified secret negotiations to bring him home, The Associated Press has learned...

Marilyn Wilson Ritter of Kennett, Mo., departed this life on earth to join her heavenly father Wednesday, March 2, 2011, at the age of 88. She was born June 13, 1922, in Desloge, Mo., to the late Luther and Bessie Wilson. She and James A. Ritter were married July 5, 1955. James preceded her in death...

James D. Melvin Ash passed away Wednesday, March 2, 2011, at Monticello House in Jackson at the age of 94. He was born Nov. 21, 1916, in Kenton, Tenn., to the late Sam and Minnie Fausett Ash. He was married 68 years to Martha Jeanette Williams, who preceded him in death...

Raymond C. "Ray" Gibson, 40, of Jackson died Monday, Feb. 28, 2011, in Laredo, Texas. A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Sunday at the chapel of McCombs Funeral Home and Cremation Center, with the Rev. James Green officiating.

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Wilbert "Wib" Hacker, 74, of Perryville died Wednesday, March 2, 2011, at his home. He served in the Air Force during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Visitation will be from 4 to 9 p.m. today, and 6:30 to 8:15 a.m. Saturday at Young and Sons Funeral Home...

Cape Girardeau city and Chamber of Commerce officials are working on a transportation tax proposal that could be placed before voters later this year; voters may be asked to approve not only a half-cent sales tax to finance street improvements and other transportation projects, but also a bond issue which would be retired with the proceeds of the new sales tax...

Daughter to Jeffrey Charles and Nicole Ann Wendel of Sedgewickville, Mo., Southeast Hospital, 8:11 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2011. Name, Charley Ann. Weight, 8 pounds, 3 ounces. Mrs. Wendel is the former Nicole Whitener, daughter of Larry and Lois Patrick of Frohna, Mo., and Len and Jane Whitener of Cape Girardeau. She is a rural carrier with the Jackson post office. Wendel is the son of Charles and Diane Wendel. He is a clerk at the Jackson post office...

Dorothy Lee Niswonger, 84, of Jackson died Thursday, March 3, 2011, at Monticello House. Ford and Sons Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

PHOENIX -- Rep. Gabrielle Giffords has been showing emotion, good memory skills and a grasp of everything from legislative business to song lyrics as she recovers in a Houston hospital from a gunshot wound to the head. The Democratic congresswoman has been undergoing extensive therapy in the nearly two months since she was shot at a political event in Tucson, and has been receiving frequent visits from her astronaut husband Mark Kelly as he trains to be the commander of the next shuttle mission.. ...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri House pressed forward Thursday to put new restrictions on funeral protests, despite a U.S. Supreme Court ruling earlier this week affirming the First Amendment right of groups such as Westboro Baptist Church to hold demonstrations...

The Jackson Police Department will join other Missouri law enforcement agencies to crack down on drunken driving March 16-20. The department will participate in statewide sobriety checkpoints and DWI saturation patrols in an effort to keep impaired drivers off the road...

BENTON, Mo. -- Recording documents in Scott County just got easier. County recorders from New Madrid, Mississippi, Stoddard, Dunklin and Pemiscot counties, as well as representatives from title companies, gathered at the Scott County Recorder of Deeds Tom Dirnberger's office Tuesday to watch the office's first e-recording take place...

The Jackson Police Department released the following items. Arrests do not imply guilt. Assault Firefighters responded to the following call Tuesday:...

The Cape Girardeau Police Department released the following items. Arrests do not imply guilt. Thefts...

Aronka Schultz has published her first children's book, "A Dinosaur on the Loose." Schultz grew up in Cape Girardeau and, after a few years in Las Vegas, now lives in St. Louis. "A Dinosaur on the Loose" is a silly story about a 4-year-old named Luke who's haunted by the threat of a dinosaur attack if he doesn't listen to his parents. ...

NEW YORK -- Strong February sales at stores up and down the price spectrum, from J.C. Penney to Saks, show that a broad range of shoppers are feeling more comfortable about the economy. The question is whether rising gas, food and clothing prices will reverse the trend this spring...

WASHINGTON -- The job market suddenly looks brighter. The number of people filing for unemployment benefits sank last week to its lowest point in nearly three years, and retailers and other service companies posted strong results Thursday for last month...

WASHINGTON -- Newcomer Jason Arnott scored the tiebreaking goal with 5 minutes, 19 seconds and the Washington Capitals beat the St. Louis Blues 3-2 on Thursday night for their third straight victory. Capitals goalie Michal Neuvirth stopped 25 shots to set a franchise record for wins by a rookie with 21...

JUPITER, Fla. -- Jordan Zimmermann knows exactly what Washington Nationals teammate Stephen Strasburg is going through. Zimmermann made just seven starts last year after returning from elbow reconstruction surgery in August of 2009. Strasburg had the procedure last September...

It didn't take Southeast Missouri State long to find a new volleyball coach. Julie Yankus was named to fill the position Thursday, barely three weeks after Renata Heard announced her resignation. Yankus spent the past five years as associate head coach at Southern Illinois-Carbondale. She coached the outside hitters and oversaw recruiting, scouting and equipment...

Austin Peay defeated Southeast Missouri State 76-60 in the OVC tournament quarterfinals.

The Southeast Missouri State baseball team plays its second road series of the season against another tough opponent from the Sun Belt Conference. Southeast (7-2) visits Troy (6-2) for a three-game set beginning at 6 p.m. today in Troy, Ala. There also will be contests at 6 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday...

The Scott City girls basketball team defeated Woodland 58-45 in the Class 3 District 3 title game

Scott County Central defeated Oak Ridge 67-30 in the Class 1 District 2 final

Saxony Lutheran rallied from a five-point deficit in the fourth quarter and beat Scott City 59-54 in the Class 3 District 3 final

Delta defeated Scott County Central 60-47 in the Class 1 District 2 title game

The Oran boys basketball team defeated Advance 72-55 in the Class 2 District 3 final

In addition to the new galleries joining the First Friday festivities, comes a service to help people enjoy the receptions on that opening night each month: the First Friday Art Shuttle. This shuttle bus, borrowed from Southeast Missouri State University and organized by the ARound Town group of galleries, runs from the River Campu, through downtown to catch people filing out of places like the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri or the Bilderbach Art Plaza and takes them to Garden Gallery and Aartful Rose.. ...

FRANKFURT, Germany -- Arid Uka grew up in a well-kept immigrant neighborhood in Frankfurt as the son of a relatively prosperous, not all that religious family of ethnic Albanians from Kosovo -- a group notable more for their pro-American outlook than for mosque attendance...

KELSO, Mo. -- Martin "Marty" Wuesthoff, 57, of Kelso died Thursday, March 3, 2011, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. Amick-Burnett Funeral Chapel in Scott City is in charge of arrangements.

ATLANTA -- Fewer teens and young adults are having sex, a government survey shows, and theories abound as to why. Experts say this generation may be more cautious than their predecessors, more aware of sexually spread diseases. Or perhaps emphasis on abstinence in the past decade has had some influence...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Eastbound Malone Avenue from Selma Street to Missouri Street in Sikeston will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday while Atmos Energy repairs a gas line. The work will be done from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Signs will mark the work zone, and motorists are urged to use caution while traveling near the area. For more information, contact the Missouri Department of Transportation's Customer Service Center at 888-275-6636...

The St. Vincent girls basketball team knocked off Viburnun 46-35 in a Class 2 District 4 semifinal.

While Mardi Gras technically falls on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday -- hence the Fat Tuesday references -- most people start celebrating the weekend before, enjoying a nice long jaunt of revelry before Lent begins. Fun-lovers in Southeast Missouri are no different. The fun starts today and reappears at various bars and venues until deep into the night Tuesday. Gather friends, don feathers and a mask and head out to the local taverns to catch some beads and make some memories...

Two days after the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce announced its support of two April ballot issues to fund a new wastewater treatment plant and its opposition to a proposed smoking ban, Old Town Cape has followed suit. The downtown business group's board of directors met Thursday and voted to support passage of an extension of a quarter-cent sales tax and a separate $72 million bond issue to pay for a new wastewater treatment plant. ...

Cape Central Middle School fifth grade Students of the Month for February are (front row from left) Rebekah Ropp and Megan Golden; (second row) Noah Umbeck, Rose Hall, Timara Wiley and Courtney Serrano; (third row) Anthony Miller, Demetrius Rayford, Shaniyah Carter and Chloe Hampton. SoutheastHEALTH recognizes these students in its role as Central Middle School's Partner in Education...

Cape Central Middle School sixth grade Students of the Month for February are (front row from left) Dontay Hartfield, Tremayne Sutherland and Keira Harvey; (second row) Victoria Crisman, Katie Wikel and Kim Spinks; (third row) Makenzie Reeves, Rebekah Garner, Katie Kinder and Nia Johnson. SoutheastHEALTH recognizes these students in its role as Central Middle School's Partner in Education...

Highway 25 between Highway 74 at Dutchtown and Route K at Gordonville is closed due to an accident, the Missouri Department of Transportation reported in a news release shortly after 11 a.m. today. The section of road will be closed until further notice, the transportation agency reported...

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Missouri will close its Cape Girardeau office in May, transitioning 150 of its approximately 175 employees to home offices. Company officials made the announcement Thursday, less than a year after eliminating 125 workers at the Cape Girardeau office last April...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Missouri House Speaker Steven Tilley is questioning whether the secretary of state is correctly verifying that candidates for public office qualify for the ballot. The Republican speaker released a letter this week asking how Secretary of State Robin Carnahan verifies a candidate's tax history. A state law bars candidates who owe back taxes from appearing on the ballot...