The Fort Vancouver Regional Library recently revised its policy to limit children's Internet access and would change it again if required by a Supreme Court decision, said Bruce Ziegman, executive director. "We always would do whatever it takes to be in compliance with the law and meet our community needs," Ziegman said. The three-county library system recently adopted a policy requiring parental permission if a child 12 or younger wants unfiltered Internet access; parents will have an option of specifying Internet filtering for children from 13 to 17 years old. If the Supreme Court rules in favor of a national policy of mandatory filtering, the Fort Vancouver Regional Library's new system should be able to meet the requirements, Ziegman said. "We're trying to acquire the most flexible software possible. It will be able to handle most policy situations. That's not a concern," Ziegman said. Ziegman said the library system plans to implement its new filtering plan in the first quarter of 2003. The district is still negotiating with a software vendor. Ziegman said he does have a concern about the efficiency of the filtering software. "Current filtering technology can't distinguish between constitutionally protected and unprotected speech. But that's what we have to work with," he said. "We will do the best we can with what we have." $00:0200334015: $199:A0200334015 $01:Copyright 2002 The Columbian Publishing Co. $02:$?The Columbian $20:November 13, 2002, Wednesday $30:World/Nation; Pg. a3 $60:NETANYAHU PROMISES TO EXPEL ARAFAT $90:GREG MYRE, Associated Press writer $120: JERUSALEM -- Israeli Foreign Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday night that if he's elected prime minister, his top priority would be to force Yasser Arafat into exile. But the country's current leader said Israel should not "act in haste." Netanyahu's remarks, which drew cheers at the Likud Party convention Tuesday night, put him at odds with his boss, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who has sought to marginalize Arafat but has not made any public statements about driving him out. Instead, Sharon told the convention in a speech that immediately followed Netanyahu's remarks that Israel shouldn't move too fast on expelling the Palestinian leader. Without specifying any steps he might take against Arafat, he pledged to wage an unrelenting battle against Palestinian militants, and predicted the effort could lead to a more moderate Palestinian leadership. "The blows that are raining on the head of terror (groups) might lead to a historic change in which Palestinian society might remove the government of terror that oppresses it, and go with us toward a (peace) process," he said. Netanyahu is challenging Sharon for the party leadership and has long called for Arafat's expulsion. His remarks have taken on added significance since he joined Sharon's caretaker government last week. "The first order of business of the next government needs to be to expel this man," Netanyahu said in the televised speech. "I promise you that as prime minister I will expel Arafat," he said. "I think this is an absolute condition to eliminate terror." The United States, Israel's strongest ally, has also been extremely critical of Arafat and has cut off direct contacts with him. But the Bush administration opposes driving him from power. Arafat aide Nabil Abu Rdeneh dismissed Netanyahu's statements. "These threats are rejected and will not serve efforts by the international community to achieve peace and security in the region," he said. Both Sharon and Netanyahu are hawks who have taken a tough line with the Palestinians. The Likud Party will hold a ballot on Nov. 28 to chose one of them as party leader. National elections are scheduled for January. Meanwhile, Israel's military stepped up its actions against Palestinian fighters, sending troops and dozens of tanks into the West Bank city of Nablus early today and firing missiles against a suspected weapons-making workshop in Gaza City. Israeli helicopters fired four missiles on the workshop in downtown Gaza City, the second such strike on the site in two days, Israeli and Palestinian officials said. The shop was empty at the time, and there were no reports of casualties. $00:0200334017: $199:A0200334017 $01:Copyright 2002 The Columbian Publishing Co. $02:$?The Columbian $20:November 13, 2002, Wednesday $30:World/Nation; Pg. a3 $60:TORNADO WIPES MORE FROM ALABAMA TOWN $90:AP $120: CARBON HILL, Ala. (AP) -- Fate was trying to kill this old coal-mining town decades before a tornado roared through. The mines began closing in the 1950s, and the three sewing plants followed, along with the mobile home factory. The car dealers are gone and so is the high school, which burned down over the summer. And now a wave of violent weather that claimed 35 lives in five states saved its deadliest blow for Carbon Hill, killing seven people and severely damaging scores of homes and the remaining elementary school. The cleanup was well under way Tuesday, but nobody expects Carbon Hill to come back stronger. Just surviving will be enough. "We need to draw from each other," said Leah Bray, a city council member whose home was destroyed. "If we don't stay together, we'll die." Nearly a third of the town of 2,070 about 70 miles northwest of Birmingham was damaged or destroyed by a twister that struck Sunday as many residents were returning from church. $00:0200334019: $199:A0200334019 $01:Copyright 2002 The Columbian Publishing Co. $02:$?The Columbian $20:November 13, 2002, Wednesday $30:World/Nation; Pg. a3 $60:NURSING HOME DATA RELEASED NATIONWIDE $90:AP $120: WASHINGTON (AP) -- People can now get quality indicators on all 17,000 nursing homes in the United States, a new effort to give families tools to make better decisions for loved ones. Beginning Tuesday, consumers could go to the government Web site www .medicare.gov/ or call 800-MEDICARE for information on such topics involving nursing homes as the prevalence of physical restraints at a facility or its percentage of residents with bed sores. Information on deficiencies found during annual inspections and complaint investigations is also being made available. The program is an expansion of a pilot program that began this year in Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Ohio, Rhode Island and Washington state. "This is a new approach to bringing about better quality care in our nation's nursing homes," said Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson. "Not only will consumers be better informed, but nursing homes themselves will be able to see more clearly what they must do to make the quality grade." Donna Lenhoff, executive director of the National Citizens' Coalition for Nursing Home Reform, called the program "extremely important." "It means that consumers will be able to find out more information, and they will be alerted to some of the questions they need to ask about nursing homes," Lenhoff said. She and others cautioned, however, that the information should not be the sole resource when choosing a nursing home. Visiting the facility, talking to residents and getting information from the long-term care ombudsmen's office in each state are still recommended. "Consumers should take the time to investigate thoroughly," said James Parkel, president of AARP, the nation's largest lobbying group for older people. $00:0200334021: $199:A0200334021 $01:Copyright 2002 The Columbian Publishing Co. $02:$?The Columbian $20:November 13, 2002, Wednesday $30:World/Nation; Pg. a3 $60:LOCAL ANGLE: INFORMATION ABOUT STATE AVAILABLE SINCE APRIL $90:KELLY ADAMS, Columbian staff writer $120: The information about quality of care in nursing homes has been available in Washington since last April, said Kary Hyre, the state's Long-Term Care Ombudsman. Washington was part of the pilot program for evaluating nursing homes on the Medicare Web site. One new feature is information about the five-year trends at nursing homes and results from on-site inspections by state surveyors from the past three years. "That's an important improvement in the Web site," Hyre said. Information about the physical condition of nursing home residents as well as the history of complaints about the home are provided. For anyone looking for a nursing home, the checklist provided on the Web site is a vital tool, Hyre said. He encouraged on-site visits with the list in hand. Jeri Szilagyi, the regional representative for the state's ombudsman, said Clark County's 10 nursing homes generally pass muster. "I think there are pros and cons to all of them," she said. "There's always room for improvement." The information provided on the Web site should be considered just one of the tools for evaluating whether a loved one will be well cared for at a particular nursing home. $00:0200334023: $199:A0200334023 $01:Copyright 2002 The Columbian Publishing Co. $02:$?The Columbian $20:November 13, 2002, Wednesday $30:World/Nation; Pg. a3 $60:BUSH LOOKS AT OPTIONS FOR BOOSTING ECONOMY $90:MARTIN CRUTSINGER, Associated Press writer $120: WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration, concerned that the Federal Reserve is running out of room to boost growth with interest-rate cuts, is examining a wide range of possible tax cuts for individuals and businesses to bolster the shaky recovery. President Bush told U.S. Chamber of Commerce officials on Tuesday that a number of options were under consideration, participants said. The president "did not in any way articulate what way the wind may be blowing," said Bruce Josten, the chamber's executive vice president, said after the meeting. "All he did say is, 'We are examining what we have done and other steps the government has taken. We want to vet all of these, measure what result came of them and what will have the greatest impact,' " Josten said, quoting Bush. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill told a separate group of business executives Tuesday that he did not believe broad-based measures would be needed but targeted stimulus proposals should be considered to help particular industries suffering the most. Outside of a few sectors, consumer demand was holding up, he said. "When you think about broad-based intervention, I think implicit in that is the assumption that all of the sectors of our economy need some additional support," O'Neill told a global business forum sponsored by Fortune magazine. However, others in the administration said broader tax relief remained very much an option, and Bush may decide to unveil new proposals during his State of the Union address in January. $00:0200334024: $199:A0200334024 $01:Copyright 2002 The Columbian Publishing Co. $02:$?The Columbian $20:November 13, 2002, Wednesday $30:Sports; Pg. b1 $60:SPOTLIGHT: KNIGHT FILES SUIT AGAINST INDIANA $90:The Associated Press $120: Bob Knight is suing Indiana University, alleging he lost more than $2 million in income since being fired by the school two years ago. Knight contends he was fired without cause, without a proper meeting of university trustees and without a chance to defend himself. The lawsuit was filed in the Monroe County Circuit Court on Friday after talks between his lawyers and the school collapsed. Under state law, the former Hoosiers basketball coach had until Tuesday to take legal action. Knight was fired Sept. 10, 2000, by university President Myles Brand, and gave Indiana notice in early 2001 that he might sue. The school denied Knight's allegations. "The university has fulfilled all of its obligations under the contract it had with Mr. Knight. Indiana University will defend its interests vigorously," the university said. Attorneys have said a key issue in the talks is whether Indiana should pay Knight for lost income and how much. Russell Yates, Knight's attorney, said Knight filed the lawsuit because he believes the university breached the contract both by firing him and costing him compensation. The university paid Knight under the conditions of his contract, but the coach lost income that was directly dependent on the agreement, including money derived from television and radio programs, a basketball camp, a shoe contract and other endorsements, the lawsuit said. $00:0200334026: $199:A0200334026 $01:Copyright 2002 The Columbian Publishing Co. $02:$?The Columbian $20:November 13, 2002, Wednesday $30:Sports; Pg. b1 $60:EVERGREEN KEEPS ROLLING $90:ANDREW SELIGMAN, Columbian staff writer $100:high school sports $120: This time, the dramatics weren't necessary. There was no late-game suspense, no lead changes and, mostly, no reason for Evergreen to worry because it established its supremacy early. Actually, it did so immediately. The Plainsmen opened the Class 4A football playoffs with a 34-14 victory over Tahoma on Tuesday at McKenzie Stadium, one that was even more convincing than the final indicates. The suspense ended shortly after kickoff. By the time the game was over, Corey Fredericks had 118 yards rushing and Jason Ohman 75 on eight attempts. OK, so the numbers were good if not dominant, but Evergreen dominated. The Plainsmen (9-1) made it clear early on that there would not be four lead changes in the final four minutes, as there were Thursday when they beat Mountain View for the 4A Greater St. Helens League title. And now, they can prepare for Saturday night's game against Capital (7-2) at McKenzie. "When we execute the way the coaches teach us, we know we can get a game like this," senior Brig Walker said. By "this," he means scoring on four of the first five drives, including the game's opening possession. He means being ahead 28-0 at halftime and 34-0 in the third quarter. He means forcing turnovers and making the opponent pay for them. And, he means setting the tone at the start. That's exactly what Evergreen did. It started at its own 34 on the game's first possession and, in seven plays, grabbed a 6-0 lead, a 35-yard pass from Kyle Miller to Jarvis Thomas finishing that drive. "It was big for us," Thomas said. "We said if our offense could put points on the board, our defense could stop them. We had to have a big game on both sides of the ball." "We knew at that point, a lot of things were going good for us," coach Cale Piland said. That did not change. Evergreen spent the rest of the first half dominating on both sides of the ball. That opening drive was just an indicator, or as Walker put it, "that first drive was going to be the key." Evergreen proved it was quicker and stronger, the linemen opening holes and the running backs running through defenders, and the defense did its part, too. Tahoma managed just 83 yards rushing and six passing in the first half. The lead grew to 14-0 with just over two minutes in the first quarter, when Miller scored from the 3 to finish an 80-yard drive. Then, there were the turnovers. Twice in the second quarter, Tahoma fumbled the ball away in its territory. The first time, Evergreen recovered at the 28, and that led to a 2-yard touchdown run by Ohman. The second time, the Plainsmen recovered at the 44, and Fredericks ran it in from the 11. "The real difference was we took advantage of the turnovers," Piland said. That created a major difference on the scoreboard. And in the process, the suspense ended. But Evergreen's season continues.
Tom Vogt, Columbian staff writer
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