Category Archives: News

November is national novel writing month

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nanowrimo-crestEvery November is National Novel Writing month in which writers participate in writing a 50,000 word novel in thirty days.

The idea was started in 1999 in San Francisco by Chris Baty [Facebook]. Every year since then the event has grown from 21 writers to over 300,000 in 90 countries.

The center for the activity is the NANOWRIMO web site. There are also various local chapters of the site including one in Flagstaff. There is a little over two-weeks to sign up for the event.

Participants sign up on the NANOWRIMO web site and agree to write a certain amount of words a day totaling 50,000 by the end of the month. The web site also allows authors to communicate with one another and provide encouragement.

The organization does not guarantee a novel sale, of course, and it will probably need a re-write. The web site only encourages the process after which you may have a novel to submit. Or you might choose to self-publish through web sites such as LULU or CreateSpace.

WWII memorial barricaded again

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WASHINGTON DC—Less than twenty-four hours after the Million Veterans March in Washington tore down barricades blocking the World War II Memorial, the cash-strapped administration that cannot afford to keep them open found the money to have the barricades put back in place.

The veterans, which did not number a million, tore down the barricades and carried them past the White House.

The World War II Memorial was built with the help of public service announcements by actor Tom Hanks. Hanks played the role of Captain Miller in the hugely successful World War II film Saving Private Ryan. The advertisements appeared around the time of the 1998 film.

In an interview on YouTube, Hanks applauded the efforts of the veterans who re-opened the memorial if only for the weekend. At an event for his new film, Captain Phillips, Hanks said, “Good for the veterans. Good. Go see it. We should all have access to them all the time. Sorry that they didn’t have it.”

He joked, “Did they assault it with helicopters? Landing craft? Did they bust through in a jeep? How did they do it?”

Sadly the administration could find the money to re-barricade the memorial after veterans left.

First snow of the season hits.

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20131010-004WILLIAMS—The seven-day forecast from the National Weather Service shows a 100% chance of snow today. They have issued a hazardous weather advisory which indicates that there is a 20131010-003possibility of 2 to 4 inches of accumulation above 6500-feet with 4-6 inches over the Kaibab Plateau.

The danger, of course, is that roadways may be slick and we advise caution in driving. Add extra time to get where you are going and slow down. Begin braking well in advance.

Photographers may want to take this opportunity to stop along Perkinsville Road or Highway 64 to take photographs. Ensure that you find a place where you can pull off of the road completely.

The snow is predicted to stop by tonight and the temperatures should rise and hover around the sixties through Columbus day which will not be observed this year due to the government shutdown.

Donald Trump says he’ll pay for fallen warrior burials cut by shutdown

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Billionaire Donald Trump has offered to pick up paying a “death gratuity” to families of four soldiers and a Marine who died in combat in Afghanistan over the weekend after the Pentagon announced it is suspending immediate payments to families of combat fatalities because of the government shutdown.

When service men and women are killed in combat, the Pentagon normally pays families $100,000 to cover funerals and the cost of families to travel to receive the remains of their loved ones.

The Pentagon suspended those payments after the government shutdown, stirring outrage on Capitol Hill.

Read more at BizPac Review

Here’s Who Is Behind Those Creepy Billboards That Say ‘Your Data Should Belong To The NSA’

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nsa billboard bittorrent
In the past week, several online media outlets have noted a series of plain, white billboards that have popped up in New York and California bearing ominous surveillance-state messages like “YOUR DATA SHOULD BELONG TO THE NSA” and “THE INTERNET SHOULD BE REGULATED.”

Today, the peer-to-peer content sharing service BitTorrent claimed responsibility for the billboards, saying the Big Brother-esque statements reflect the harmful attitudes people have accepted in exchange for the convenience of using the internet.

In a post to the company’s blog, BitTorrent vice president of marketing Matt Mason said these attitudes are “an assault on freedom” that the public should refuse to accept.

Read more at Business Insider

Rep. Michaud Condemns Use of Veterans as Political Pawns

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WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Representative Mike Michaud (ME-02), Ranking Member of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, spoke on the House floor today during debate on H.J.Res. 72, a bill that partially funds VA operations and furthers the standoff over the government shutdown. Michaud has previously spoken out against piecemeal approaches pursued by Republican leaders.

“This House bill, like the others before them, will not be considered by the Senate and the President has said he will veto it. Instead of waging a PR war and wasting time on bills that will go nowhere, House Republicans should pursue a solution to the shutdown that could actually pass both chambers and be signed by the President,” said Michaud.

Read more at Veterans Today

Police: Soldier fatally stabbed; may be hate crime

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LAKEWOOD, Wash. – A Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldier was stabbed to death in a parking lot at the 12500 block of Pacific Highway Southwest around 2:30 a.m., officials say.

20-year-old Tevin Geike was walking with two other white soldiers along Pacific Highway SW when a group of black men drove by and shouted a racial comment toward the soldiers, the Lakewood Police Department said.

“One of the soldiers yelled back something about the suspects treating combat soldiers with disrespect,” Lt. Chris Lawler said.

The car turned around and the men confronted the soldiers, according to reports. As the verbal confrontation ensued, the driver of the vehicle realized the men were actually combat veterans and called his friends off. While the men headed back to their vehicle, one of the suspects appeared to have bumped into Geike, witnesses say.

Read more and see video at KOMO News

Patricia Blair Dies at 80; Starred in Television’s ‘Daniel Boone’

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p-blair

Patricia Blair and Edward Mulhare in Empire of the Lost.

Patricia Blair, an actress who played resourceful women in 1960s television westerns like “Daniel Boone” and “The Rifleman,” died on Sept. 9 at her home in North Wildwood, N.J. She was 80.

The cause was breast cancer, Amber Hennessey, a friend and neighbor, said.

Standing 5 feet 9 inches tall, Ms. Blair could fit in the same frame as lanky co-stars like Fess Parker, who played Daniel Boone, and Chuck Connors, the star of “The Rifleman.” She played the hotel owner Lou Mallory on “The Rifleman” starting in 1962 and Rebecca Boone, Daniel’s wife, in the six-year run of “Daniel Boone” on NBC beginning in 1964.

Read more at New York Times

From the Bench: Williams Justice Court Employee spotlight

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krombeem-20130412 009Ruth Alvarado has worked with us at the Williams Justice Court for over seven years now. Ruth is a Justice Court Specialist and her areas of responsibility include the criminal case load for the justice and municipal courts, plus a handful of other tasks as well. Ruth is the clerk who works behind the scenes and in the courtroom to ensure our criminal cases and all motions and activities associated with those cases are properly calendared and scheduled to the Court’s required timelines. That is no easy task considering we typically have over 400 criminal cases a year in both courts and scheduling those cases involves a lot of correspondence with the attorneys and parties involved. Ruth has attended the Coconino County Supervisor Academy so she regularly helps out with managing the court when Court Manager Jennifer Carter is absent. Ruth’s bi-lingual skills come in handy with our court’s Spanish speaking customers. We are thankful Ruth is able to provide those and all the other services she offers our court and customers. We are also very thankful that Ruth and her husband Pascual, along with their one and a half year old son Zuri, have decided and continued to make Williams their home.

Speaking of employees, Williams Justice Court Specialist Carla Dent was recently promoted from Administrative Specialist to Justice Court Specialist. This promotion was the result of the selection process to replace Bonnie Herbert, who is retiring later this month. We are saddened to see Bonnie retire but are excited to see Carla promoted into this position. Carla’s new responsibilities will include being responsible for the Justice Court’s Civil case load and the financial responsibilities and reports for both courts. Please join us in congratulating Carla for her promotion!

The Williams Justice and City Courts have consolidated their phone lines to improve customer service and reduce operational costs. The new number is (928) 679-7698 and the new FAX line is (928) 679-7688.

Both courts will be closed on October 25th, 2013, for our annual staff retreat. The retreat is an opportunity we look forward to for our staff to discuss plans for the future, ideas, and changes relevant to the administration of our courts. Information and instructions will be available and posted at the court for customers appearing for emergency orders and any other critical services that are needed that day.

Two neighborhood watch meetings scheduled for this week

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Flagstaff––Coconino County Sheriff, Bill Pribil and Coconino County Supervisor Liz Archuleta invite residents of the Timberline and Fernwood communities to the monthly Neighborhood Watch meeting on Tuesday, October 1, 2013. The meeting will be held from 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM at Summit Fire Station 33, located at 6050 Firehouse Lane, off of North Highway 89.

Judy Weiss who is the Director of the Coconino County Parks and Recreation Department will give an update on Peaks View Park. Dave Ramos, Public Safety and Health Department Chairperson and Gayle Benton, Director of Human Resources for Coconino Community College will give an update on recent programs.

District 4 Supervisor Mandy Metzger will join Sheriff Pribil to speak to residents of the Doney Park community to attend the monthly Neighborhood Watch meeting on Thursday, October 3, 2013. The meeting will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Cromer School, located at 7150 E. Silver Saddle Road.

Coconino County Sheriff Bill Pribil will be at the meeting to encourage continued neighborhood participation and to share information. Doney Park Community Deputies will be available to answer questions and provide support to this partnership between law abiding citizens, law enforcement and county government. District 4 Supervisor Mandy Metzger will be present to share information from Coconino County Government.

At the request of Neighborhood Watch participants, Shelly Shepherd who is the Information and Education Program Manager for the Arizona Game and Fish Department will speak about laws pertaining to hunting and will also talk about the dangers of interacting with wild animals in their natural habitat.