Christopher Anderson/SR
Taylor Rochestie drives down the lane to try and score against Gonzaga in Pullman Wednesday. Rochestie scored 6 points in the game, going 0 for 5 from 3 point range. ESPN game story & boxscore here.

South Carolina St 66, Idaho 59

In the news this evening, Gonzaga will tip off with Washington State in Pullman @ 7 (on Channel 6) here. Scanner Traffic has reported an injury accident involving a semi truck and a small car in Bonners Ferry here. Blogmeister Ryan told me today that we're planning an SR.com Web site and blog roll out either Monday afternoon or Tuesday morning. And you can continue to play this Wild Card below ...

Courtesy: As The Lake Churns
"We were snowmobiling with our 6 year old twins at Priest Lake," writes Lisa Sheehan/As The Lake Churns, and climbed to the top of a huge rock outcropping. It looked as if we were standing on top of the world.

SR World Snapshots

Item: NPR to lay off 7 percent of staff/AP

More Info: National Public Radio (NPR) said today that it's laying off 7 percent of its staff, the first time it's downsizing in 12 years, after experiencing sharp declines in funding, especially from corporate sponsors. NPR said the layoffs affect 64 full-time staff, half in news and programming.

Question: How often do you listen to NPR? Which programs are your favorites?

AP File Photo
President-elect Barack Obama, left, his wife Michelle Obama, right, and two daughters, Sasha, 7, and Malia, 10, second from right, wave at the election night rally in Chicago last month.

Item: Canyon leader criticized for forwarding e-mail about Obama dress/Idaho Statesman

More Info: The e-mail, which Rule forwarded last week, featured a photo of Obama in a black dress with red markings, next to a photo of a black widow spider. Rule said the markings seemed very similar, and he thought that was funny.

Jill Kuraitis/New West Boise reacts

Question: Was Canyon County Commissioner Steve Rule acting racist when he forwarded an e-mail comparing Michelle Obama to a black widow? Or simply using poor judgment?

Chris Greenberg/White House
President George W. Bush stands with Forrest M. Bird, of Sandpoint, after presenting him with the 2008 Presidential Citizens Medal in the Oval Office of the White House today. An inventor and scientist, Dr. Forrest Bird developed the world’s first reliable, mass-produced medical respirator. Story here.

*Bonner County EMT honored for saving 3 in Highway 95 crash/Bonner County Bee; and: Driver appears in court/KXLY
*Boise student aces ACT/SAT/KTVB
*CityLink numbers down from last month, way up from last year/Kootenai MPO
*Gas drops below $1.50 mark/Kootenai MPO
*Commissioner ripped for forwarding e-mail re: Michelle Obama's dress/Idaho Statesman
*Riley Creek lays off 14/Bonner County Bee
*Washington anticipates record apple crop/SR
*Trial set for suspect in UI student murder/Idaho Statesman
*ISP trooper cleared in August shooting/Idaho Statesman
*Mullan man pleads guilty to 3 felonies/Shoshone News-Press

5:43 p.m. Injury accident involving a semi truck and a small car on Highway 95 @ Bonners Ferry. Med-Star is en route.
4:20 p.m. A twentysomething blonde drove off in a silver Ford SUV from Holiday pumps on Haycraft without paying for gas.
3:22 p.m. Albertson's reports that a fiftysomething woman stole two six-packs and may be driving drunk in a blue Olds Cutlass.

Whatever you do, don’t complicate matters by resisting, or then by insisting that she go in alone, or by saying that you’re hot and tired and DON’T WANT TO HAVE ANYTHING TO DO with a place of such uncompromising rigidity, not to mention sexism, no matter how priceless the so-called mosaic treasures are. Because that’s likely to lead to your storming out of the church, tearing your shirt off, throwing it on the ground and, in general, making yourself look like a complete American horse’s ass to the delight of a crowd of gawking Sicilian men sitting on a nearby park bench/Dan Webster, Movies & More. More here.

*AFL problems shouldn't affect Shock, af2/Sportslink
*Olympia war on Christmas reaches YouTube/Spin Control 2.0
*Nothing says Xmas like terrified kids/Vox Box
*Illinois governor targets editorial writers?/A Matter of Opinion

Question: How do you avoid acting like an "ugly American" when you travel abroad?

Eric Risberg/AP Photo
A sign promoting Day Without a Gay is shown posted in the Castro District in San Francisco today. A daylong strike for which people were encouraged to call in "gay" to work to express support for same-sex marriage is drawing spotty participation. In the gay Castro district, several residents and merchants said Wednesday they endorsed the cause, but they did not think the hastily arranged work stoppage was practical given the poor economy.

Question: Did advocates of gay marriage help themselves or hurt themselves in the court of public opinion by trying to stage a work stoppage with the economy in bad shape?

I was in the doctor's office a few weeks ago, and the nurse asked me my weight rather than putting me on the scales. I lied by only ten pounds that day, but my driver's license has me about 20 pounds lighter than my lie, and the great part is that my untruthful weight remains constant for four years. Just got the license renewed/Marianne Love, Slight Detour. More here.

Question: Is the weight that's listed on your driver's license accurate?

Granati/OrangeFrog76
"... the scout master would be next to the oil barrel fire while drinking his "hot chocolate" or whatever it was with the scouts running here or there, trying to sell an overpriced, dead, brown-needled, green-painted tree to those that dared step foot in their presence," writes Granati of his family's practice of buying Xmas trees in days gone by. More here.

HBO Numbers: 9533 PVs/5372 UVs

*Nightmare 101/Tumblewords
*Dining on shaved fish/Atmospheric Ruminations
*An historic epiphany/Bay Views
*The anticipation of Santa/Community Comment
*Oprah Winfrey: Heavyweight/Dogwalk Musings
*I don't give Christmas presents any more/Simple Mind
*Remember December: J is for James Taylor/Gathering Around The Table
*Swing Street Christmas Concert/Get Out! North Idaho
*Overload/Kellogg Bloggin'
*What's it mean to you/Live, Love, Laugh, Hope

Question: Where do you go to get your Christmas tree?

Courtesy: Wayward Episcopalian

Two, it is in a very public place, perhaps the most highly trafficked part of the airport, and doing anything illegal there would be incredibly stupid. Three, and I just thought this was hilarious, there is a statute of Snoopy right outside the bathroom. And four, the stall itself is very dark. I mean, many bathroom stalls are poorly lighted because they depend on the light from the main restroom, but this one was especially dark. It was exactly the type of stall you would use in a movie if you wanted to depict someone doing something creepy in a bathroom/Wayward Episcopalian. More here.

It was time to step into the lion's den and ask a female why women as a whole now use purses the size of bowling bags. "The bigger your purses, the more attention you get" said one woman on campus, wielding quite a large (purse). "It's like a respect thing." This answer simply stunned me. I, for some reason, assumed that the ladies wear these Merry Poppin' purses in order to keep things in them. But what would I know, right? I barely have a fanny pack to my name so I have no room to talk. The next lovely lady I came upon had a purse of gargantuan proportions. When asked why she would ever need such purses, the female said "It's fashionable and a good conversation starter"/David Humphreys, NIC Sentinel. More here.

Question (for women): Why do you carry the purse you do?

Bill Schaefer/Idaho State Journal, AP
Deputy Mike Hart, of the Bannock County Sheriff's Department, talks to Joel Bosquez, 6, during the " Shop with a Cop" in Pocatello Saturday.

David Horsey/PI 'toon

*Montana to appeal assisted-suicide ruling/Billings Gazette
*2YO tot may have shot baby sister/Daily Inter Lake
*Fallen hiker's retriever found on Bitterroots peak/Missoulian
*Newspapers in Boise, Northwest change to fight economy/KTVB
*Helena police want to kill 150 more urban deer/Helena Independent-Record
*Ex-justice Silak to head Concordia law school/AP
*South-central Idaho has lowest monthly mortgages in state/Twin Falls Times-News
*Tri-City 14YO arrested for online shooting threat/Tri-City Herald
*ITD curbs GARVEE request/Idaho Press-Tribune

Orbusmax Special: Willamette basketball coach dies during practice here.

The Westboro Baptist Church, an extremely controversial group that has made anti-gay messages its hallmark, is the latest group asking to place a holiday sign at the state capitol. "Santa Claus will take you to hell," it begins. The sign, the contents of which are posted below, says that "God's hate" is to blame for the weak economy, that Santa's a child molester and responsible for the death of U.S. troops. All of which is very much in keeping with the church's tactic of spreading its anti-gay message with controversial signs at high-profile funerals and other events/Rich Roesler, Eye On Olympia. More here.

Question: Should Washington allow hatemonger Fred Phelps to erect a sign in the state capitol, too?

Sky Real Lives/PA/AP
This is an undated handout photo issued Tuesday by British TV channel Sky Real Lives, of Craig Ewert, 59, whose death in an assisted suicide in a Swiss clinic will be broadcast on British television today. The British television channel says it plans to broadcast the death of an American man at a Swiss euthanasia clinic. Ewert had degenerative motor neuron disease and died at a clinic in Zurich run by the group Dignitas. Assisted suicide is legal in Switzerland in some circumstances and various organizations there provide suicide services. Story here.

Question: Would you watch a television show of someone ending their lives via assisted suicide?

"Certainly the 'privacy interest in avoiding unwanted communication' is very strong in a stall in a public restroom. ... Here it is the place in which the conduct occurred, as much as or more than the nature of the conduct, that determines its offensive nature. The conduct charged here occurred in a place in which the ordinary citizen might feel most eager to 'avoid unwanted communication'”/Court document in Larry Craig case. More from Kevin Richert.

Steve Hartgen, the former publisher of the Twin Falls Times Times-News, hasn't taken office as a legislator yet -- and already he's come up with a loony notion. According to an Idaho State Journal editorial, cited by Unequivocal Notion, Hartgen is considering legislation that would require online commenters to use their real names. Responds Unequivocal Notion: "I'd like to know how exactly soon-to-be-Rep. Hartgen plans on funding such a ridiculous idea. I mean it's not like there is any room in the coming year's budget to tack on some sort of fantasy-cyber squad to police the 'tubes in Idaho. This basically smacks of censorship of the internet." More here.

*Gov. Otter's expenses/Kevin Richert
*Larry Craig: The final chapter/Fort Boise
*Magical 'if'/Morialekafa
*Almost perfect storm of corrupt politics/Clayton Cramer
*Report: Even Idaho school kids get heavy doses of toxic chemicals/Rocky Barker
*Larry Craig loses appeal (see photoshop photo)/Left Side of the Moon
*On shellfish & gay marriage/IVA
*Belief & intent/IdaBlue

Question: What do you think of Rep. Hartgen's idea that online commenters should be forced to use their real names?

Randy Squires/AP
In this August 2005 file photo, Sen. Barack Obama, D- Illinois, left, laughs with Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich during Governor's Day at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield, Ill. Blagojevich was roused from bed and arrested Tuesday, after prosecutors said he was caught on wiretaps audaciously scheming to sell now President-elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat for cash or a plum job for himself in the new administration. You write the cutline.

Top Cutlines

1. You know Jesse Jr. will pay a couple hundred g's for mine but I'm telling you Hillary's seat could go for twice that, fer crying out loud a Kennedy is interested in that one -- KeithinCDA.
2. Breaking news: Illinois Governor is in critical condition after being thrown under the bus by President-elect Obama. Flim (flam) at 11 -- John Austin.
3. Wait until Keith Olberman hears about this!!! That clown will try and blame Bush...God I love Keith -- LSUdabest.

HM: Kage Mann

... here. And tell us what you think of it in the comments section below.

If you're going to family dinner and you're makeup looks like you may be making an appearance at the club, it's skanky. A lot of times makeup can look painted and plastered on, but, seriously, save it for the big game. Clothes are a very important factor. Be careful with shirt slogans, it's pretty obvious what looks bad. Cleavage is OK. Tight clothes do look good if they fit right as well as a limited number of holes in one's jeans. If there is too much skin showing, it just doesn't work. It totally defeats the purpose of clothing. Seriously, they're meant to cover you up. As my high school volleyball coach taught us, we don't want to see the three Bs: no boobs, butt or belly/Ann Truesdell, NIC Sentinel. More here.

Question: What's the difference between sexy and skanky?

But before the sides get loud again tonight in Pullman, let's take a moment and appreciate … what? Well, that Gonzaga vs. Washington State simply is. That there are two national programs where once there were none. That a ticket is something to treasure. That it's not just another game but a spectacle. That there's no end in sight."It's good for basketball in the Northwest," said Cougars coach Tony Bennett. Actually, it's good for basketball nationally, too, at least perhaps as a beacon in those dark corners where stubbornness has crushed the public good/John Blanchette, SR. More here.

Question: Who do you want to win the big game in Pullman tonight -- the No. 4 Zags or Tony Bennett's scrappy Cougars?

Several citizens and panel participants informally resumed the rallying cry for Kootenai County's Board of Commissioners to do what it has refused to do since Tom Taggart held the position years ago: Re-create a high-level county administrative position -- a county manager, administrator or whatever it ends up being called. It is a move that was strongly endorsed in 2005 by a community panel that examined the structure and function of county government, and one this newspaper has ardently supported. Unfortunately, the county commission has opposed any changes to its existing governmental structure. We can't think of a better time than now for commissioners to reconsider/CDA Press Editorial Board. More here.

Question: Should county commissioners re-create the position of county administrator or manager?

Kathy Plonka/SR
Coeur d'Alene High basketball player Devon Austin, shown here in practice Monday, scored 30 points last night as the Vikings opened the season at Elmer Jordan Court with an easy 69-51 win over Moses Lake. Story here.

*Idaho Records/Sherry Adkins, SR
*Real winter weather coming/Jody Lawrence-Turner, SR
*Support sought for NIC campus at St. Maries/St. Maries Gazette-Record
*Census: Spokane, CDA residents live in big houses/Shawn Vestal, SR
*Car dealers seeing less sales, changing tastes of consumers/Rick Thomas, CDA Press
*277-acre Prairie Falls subdivision clears first hurdle/Brian Walker, CDA Press
*ITD officials say they saved millions in 2008/Idaho Statesman
*ISP closing Pocatello dispatch center/LocalNews8

Do you ever make a conscious decision to buy goods from local stores?/Idaho Statesmam

*Always
*Sometimes
*Rarely
*Never

Item: Bloem gives 'State of the City' address: Mayor says risk takers have made Cd'A what it is, what it will be/Tom Greene, CDA Press

More Info: The city's greatest accomplishments were created by people taking risks, which is what the community needs more than ever during economic hard times, the mayor said Tuesday at the annual "State of the City" address. Mayor Sandi Bloem pointed to Tubbs Hill, The Resort and its floating green, the new library, the Kroc Center and the education corridor as ideas that have, or will make the city a better place. The same ingenuity used in their creation, Bloem said, needs to be applied to future priorities.

Question: How would you rate the job Mayor Sandi Bloem has done in her two terms?

In an interview published in the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday, Obama reiterated that point, saying: "I have not discussed the Senate seat with the governor at any time." But Obama wouldn't answer a question on whether he was aware of any conversations between the governor and his top aides, including incoming White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel. "It's an ongoing investigation," Obama said. "I think it would be inappropriate for me to ... remark on the situation beyond the facts that I know"/AP. More here.

Question: Will Barack Obama be hurt by Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's attempt to sell his Senate seat to the highest bidder?

Signe Wilkinson/Philadelphia Inquirer

In the news, an international science exam shows US students are doing no better in science today than they were a decade ago here. Sony has announced plans to cut 4% of its worldwide work force here. The 'Dark Knight' is out on DVD today here. A new study finds women are more likely to die from heart attacks than men here. And it's time for today's Wild Card ...

Paul Sloth/Journal Times, AP
Two Burlington High School students run through fresh snow Tuesday morning, Dec. 9, 2008, in Bushnell Park toward the bridge over the Fox River in the Town of Burlington, Wis.

SR World In Pictures

I felt it again driving home Friday night – first when I passed a horse drawn carriage elegantly moving along Lincoln towards Riverfront Park – beautiful, graceful horses slowly dancing down the street. Then I passed a truck carrying a Santa sleigh, totally engulfed in twinkling red and white lights, ready to be the carrier for the Great Saint Nicholas himself! You could taste the thrill in the air, the crispiness of the night, the anticipation of Santa, of holidays, of Christmas, of magic!/JeanieSpokane, Community Comment. More here.

Question: Despite all the commercialization of Christmas, and the current rotten economy, have you experienced a sense of anticipation this yuletide yet?

A couple of things caught my attention right off the bat. Chicago based (don't you love it?) Patrick Fitzgerald, the U.S. Attorney that handled the Valerie Plame/Scooter Libby mess was in charge of the investigation that led to the arrest of Rod Blagojevich and his chief of staff (sound familiar?). I mean, how dumb can you be Rod? This Fitzgerald guy is good! It's like deja vu all over again! The second thing that caught my eye was his mop of hair. What is the correlation between male politicians with "big" hair and the sleaze factor? Read John Edwards. Maybe none. Eliot Spitzer had barely any hair!/Dogwalk Musings. More here.

Question: How do politicians who are smart enough to fool the electorate and get elected to high office do such stupid things as Blagojevich, Edwards, Spitzer, Craig, etc.?

Jesse Tinsley/SR
Kids from Spirit Lake Elementary listen to Christmas carols on Maine St. in Spirit Lake, Idaho while drinking hot chocolate and eating cookies Friday. At the annual event, the kids walk from their school to the downtown area, listen to Timberlake High jazz band play carols and then meet Santa. See Jesse Tinsley's slide show coverage of this event here.

*Judge: Adopted sons can inherit Billy Tipton estate/SR
*Silver Valley unemployment tops 12%/Shoshone News-Press
*Stimson proposing massive Bonner County subdivision/Bonner County Bee
*Former Zags help Gonzaga prepare for WSU/KHQ
*School district seeking 2-year levy totalling $13M/Bonner County Bee
*Spokane driver arrested in fatal Highway 95 crash/SR
*Southwest Airlines to trim Boise to Portland schedule/KBCI
*ITD crews ready for coming storms/KXLY

5:37 p.m. 2 R/Ps report that an lder Chevy pickup is driving w/o lights @ 10 mph and all over the road at Cecil and Poleline/Post Falls.
5:28 p.m. 3-vehicle non-injury accident that wound up in the median of the w/b lanes on I-90 near the Huetter rest stop.
4:27 p.m. Several R/Ps report flames of 70 to 80 feet high in the Signal Point area.

AP Photo

Good King Wenceslas was mild,
kind and sweet and docile,
but he raised eight kinds of hell
once he chugged the wassail.

The Bard of Sherman Avenue

It was a simple idea, one probably every child has had. Set up a lemonade stand and make a few bucks. But Hannah Raschke, age 7, had no interest in making money for herself. She wanted to sell the lemonade to raise money to fight cancer even though it has never touched her life. This giving nature truly surprised her mother Cynthia. “I had no idea that this was something she would want to do,” says Cynthia. “Most kids that age – as bad as it sounds – are kind of selfish. So to hear my daughter tell me that just made me so proud.” “I just thought it was a way to help someone out,” says a sheepishly shy Hannah/KMC spokesman Chris Wagar. You can see how much Hannah raised here.

Question: How cool is this?

After losing his case at the Minnesota Court of Appeals, Idaho Sen. Larry Craig could appeal to the Minnesota Supreme Court, but he'd have to petition the court to hear his case. “Review is not automatic, and the court grants relatively few petitions,” said Steve Simon, a law professor at the University of Minnesota. Plus, Simon noted that the Court of Appeals ruling in Craig's case was issued as an “unpublished” opinion, which means it has no value as a legal precedent/Betsy Russell, SR Eye On Boise. More here.

A marijuana incident in Oregon forced former ASNIC Pres. Austin Folnagy to resign Oct. 21, a source close to the college's student government stated. Although he cited "personal reasons" during his resignation, a judicial board gave Folnagy the option to name those involved or lose his job, according to the source, who requested anonymity due to being so close with ASNIC. Folnagy, who is sticking to his "personal reasons" excuse, will neither confirm nor deny the allegations that led to his resignation/Jack Donahue, NIC Sentinel. More here.

NIC Sentinel opposes forced resignation

Question: If a marijuana incident during a school-sponsored trip in Portland is at the source of this controversy, should Folnagy have been forced to resign?

An unfortunate truism, however, is that we are a country in desperate need of more shoppers. Consumer spending makes up 70 percent of the economy and, given that consumer spending is undergoing a sharp decline, the less we shop the worse our economy gets. That is if you believe the economic theory that fewer shoppers equates to declining profits for businesses, which equates layoffs which equates to even fewer Americans with the wherewithal to shop; shopping seems to be the driving factor for most of our economy. This version of economics has even led some observers to state that shopping is an act of Patriotism, such as George Bush urging us to shop after 9/11/David Laird, Community Comment. More here.

*'Supernanny's' in Spokane/Parents Council
*Idaho Preps: Lakeland's appeal denied/SportsLink
*Proposition 8: Mini-musical/Spin Control 2.0
*PETA goes cute rating 'Marley & Me'/Movies & More
*Food news of the week/Vox Box
*A trial lawyers group by another name/Eye On Olympia

Question: In these hard times, can it be said that shopping helps the economy and prevents layoffs; therefore, it's patriotic to shop 'til you drop?

In a meeting this evening, the city planning commission will discuss a proposal that could allow six-story buildings, from 11th to 23rd, on Sherman Avenue -- and 165-foot buildings along 23rd Street & Lake Coeur d'Alene Drive to the Resort Golf Course. The current regulations call for single-family dwellings of no more than 2 1/2 stories and multiple-family ones of 3 1/2 stories. The East Mullan Neighborhood Association has organized to oppose the changes, claiming that the future buildings, constructed to the new heights, would look down in back yards that are separated only by an alleyway and destroy the small-town charm of the neighborhood. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 5:30 tonight in the basement of the new library.

Question: Do you support an increase in height for East Sherman Avenue buildings?

Don’t visit your former newsroom, at least not yet. For one thing, you’re not nearly as welcome as you might expect. Those who remain on the job have to believe they are doing the right thing, that their work matters (it does) and that they can continue to perform at a high level. They will not want to be reminded of the tough, emotional times. They ate a piece of your goodbye cake. They don’t want seconds. They need to focus on their future. For now, you are part of a past they must backburner. You need to respect their needs just as you hope they understand and respect yours/Steve Smith, Still A Newspaperman. More here.

Question: Former SR editor Steve Smith is targetting his advice to journalists who lost jobs as a result of the economy and the state of the industry. Are there some parts of his advice that'd pertain to anyone who loses a job?

Courtesy: OnLocation North Idaho
The 24' wide pine wreath on the parking garage entrance to the Coeur d'Alene Resort is locally made and weighs nearly three tons, posts Kerri Thoreson/OnLocation North Idaho. It's hard to believe there's only about three weeks left in 2008 and we've yet to see snow!

HBO Numbers: 9298 PVs/5321 UVs

*Doodles & Haiku/Tumblewords
*I know a short cut/Nuts & Nonsense
*A new, improved blog look/Rants, Raves & Random Thoughts
*God bless us, everyone/Silver Valley Girl
*God tree & guardian angel mystery/Slight Detour
*Advice for jobless journalists/Still A Newspaperman
*It will rain for a million years/Synaptic Disunion
*An Upper Marble Creek creche/The 'Kan EWA
*In which I outsmart a dryer/Wayward Episcopalian
*Simply put/Mrs. Mac Energetic

Question: Are you dreamin' of a white Christmas? Or are you content to travel roads that are free from snow?

Idaho’s Chief Justice Dan Eismann, a dedicated public servant and a strict constructionist, will be undergoing high-powered chemotherapy this week in his battle against cancer. It is possible his exposure to carcinogens goes back to his tours as a helicopter pilot in Vietnam, during which he earned a Purple Heart/IVA. More here.

“I am extremely disappointed by the action of the Minnesota Court of Appeals. I disagree with their conclusion and remain steadfast in my belief that nothing criminal or improper occurred at the Minneapolis airport. I maintain my innocence, and currently my attorneys and I are reviewing the decision and looking into the possibility of appealing. I would like to thank all of those who have continued to support me and my family throughout this difficult time”/Larry Craig statement on Eye On Boise.

Related: Craig's Minnesota appeal denied

If you shop at Costco, as our family does, consider asking to speak to the store manager next time you’re into to complain about the company’s decision to avoid the word “Christmas” in its advertising and in-store displays. Wreaths, cards and trees are advertised as “Holiday” items rather than “Christmas” items. In fact, better yet, choose not to buy “Christmas” merchandise at Costco, and let the manager know that you are going to buy “Christmas” items someplace else until they start calling them what they are. Wish the checkers a “Merry Christmas,” and see if you get “Merry Christmas” back. If you don’t, ask why. The company insists it is not directing its employees not to say “Merry Christmas.” Well, there’s a simple way to find out!/Idaho Values Alliance.

Question: Would you quit doing business with a retailer simply b/c it ordered clerks to use "holiday" instead of "Christmas" in extending season's greetings?

Jesse Tinsley/SR
In this March 7 photo, Gypsy Lawson poses with her dog Albert on their front porch in Spokane, Wash. Lawson, 29, and her mother were convicted Monday by a U.S. District Court jury of smuggling a monkey into the United States. Lawson hid the sedated rhesus monkey under her blouse, pretending to be pregnant, and successfully passed through U.S. customs after returning from Bangkok, Thailand, in November 2007 with her mother, Fran Ogren, 55, of Northport, Wash. Story here.

*Craig's Minnesota appeal denied/SR Eye On Boise; and: Craig: 'Nothing improper occurred'/SR Eye On Boise.
*WSP wraps up probe of troopers in diploma mill scandal/Seattle PI
*Montana veteran claims to own Hitler's cutlery/Billings Gazette
*Montana lawmaker will sponsor assisted-suicide law/Missoulian
*Washington richer, better educated than US as whole/AP
*Otter considering two dozen names for lieutenant governor/Idaho Statesman
*Bald eagle visits rising on Lake Coeur d'Alene/SR
*Idaho sees big jump in food stamp recipients/KTVB
*WSU hanging onto investment properties/Lewiston Tribune

Yep. I made a bullet-point list on Word which contained: 1)My family's names 2)Tony's family 3)Our mutual family and friends. Aghast, upon printing out copies for myself and Tony, I realized there were almost 40 names on the list. That's when we decided that we would limit each gift to a token- between 10 and 20 dollars per friend/family member. The only exception would be Tony's daughters- their limit was between 75 and 100 apiece. Who knows what we'll end up spending on each other, or Jameson ... probably too much, as usual/Kendramama. More here.

Question: How do you trim your Christmas list to a manageable size w/o hurting anyone's feelings?

Steven Senne/AP
Edgar, a 4-year-old long-haired female cat, is seen with stitches running the length of her face while resting with an Elizabethan collar around her neck following surgery at the Angell Animal Medical Center, in Boston Tuesday. Veterinarians completed an unusual surgery to reattach the face of the cat that was slashed by a car's fan belt while she apparently tried to stay warm under the hood.

At 11 a.m. today, the Idaho State Police took William Deardorff into custody on charges of aggrevated DUI and vehicular manslaughter. These charges are a result of a Tuesday, Dec. 2, crash in Cocolalla in which Kimberlee Dingman of Sandpoint was killed, and another adult and child were injured. Deardorff was arrested upon his release from Kootenai Medical Center and transported to Bonner County Jail/ISP news release.

When it comes to her weight, Oprah Winfrey has always been straightforward. The talk show queen continues the honesty, saying in the January issue of "O" magazine out Tuesday that she now weighs 200 pounds and has "fallen off the wagon" when it comes to healthy living. "I'm mad at myself," Winfrey writes in an article provided early to The Associated Press by Harpo Productions. "I'm embarrassed," she writes. "I can't believe that after all these years, all the things I know how to do, I'm still talking about my weight. I look at my thinner self and think, 'How did I let this happen again?'"/AP. More here.

Question: Which do you enjoy more? Oprah's honesty? Or the fact that she's now tipping the scale at 200 again, after all the ballyhoo about losing weight?