SR.com Blogs: Huckleberries Online

Richert: Swindell's An Advocate For Hire (DFO)

The cynical view is that Swindell went to Beijing to protest the shortage of TV cameras in Boise. Cynical, yes, but also naive. Yes, this protest was orchestrated for a time when the eyes of the world were turning to Beijing, and reporters, on the eve of the Games, were looking for a story. This was calculated for maximum effect, maximum exposure. As my 13-year-old would say, "Duh." Folks, this is how the process of public activism is played. Timing matters almost as much as message � the pros pay attention to both. Am I supposed to be surprised?/Kevin Richert, Idaho Statesman. More here. ( Full post )

My 2 Cents -- Blog Headlines Sell Links, Posts (DFO)

During my two years as a news editor of the Lewiston Tribune, I learned two things about headline writing -- I was so-so at it, and the heds that Bill Hall and Jim Fisher wrote for their editorials were superb. As the highlight of my swing shift (1982-82), I proofed their pages. One day, I asked Bill why the editorial page headlines screamed: "Read me, read me." He responded that he'd rather have a dull editorial than a dull headline. With so many other things to read in the paper, the headline served the role of carnival barker trying to get the fleeting attention of a browser distractedly taking in the many sights and sounds of the midway with kids in toe and cotton candy in hand. The one who shouted loudest and offered the most interesting fare made the sale. Why am I telling you this? Bloggers tend to be lousy headline writers. ( Full post )

Scanner Traffic -- 8/7/08 (DFO)

2:39 p.m. A pickup pulling a trailer with a flat tire from I90 onto I95 northbound is all over the road.
2:08 p.m. A 34YO female tore off her left index finger from the distal knuckle when she got her hand caught in the reins while loading a horse in a trailer at the Dalton Arena (16th & Dalton, I believe). Ambulance is en route to KMC with the horse woman and the amputated part.
10:10 a.m. A small white Plymouth truck is disabled on an I90 offramp in CDA, causing a traffic hazard.
9:47 a.m. Budget Motel employees (1519 Sherman) are checking room-by-room for a female who called to say she'd broken her foot, sounding frantic and drunk. ( Full post )

Local Blogs: Too Many Goodbyes (DFO)

Pecky Cox/As The Lake Churns
A little girl digs for coins at this year's Huckleberry Festival in Priest Lake to benefit the Priest Lake Search & Rescue organization. ( Full post )

Dogwalk: Why Must Everything Be Racist? (DFO)

In this morning's Spokesman Review there is an article headlined Gregoire calls campaign as untrue, racist. It speaks to an ad denouncing concessions she allegedly made to the Indian gambling concerns for which both her campaign and the Democratic Party received substantial contributions. How many other interest groups do the same thing when something happens in their favor? Is it better to hide such efforts with a lobbying firm where the negotiators may be of another ethnicity?/Dogwalk Musings. More here. ( Full post )

OTV: Smokey Robinson @ Festival Tonight (DFO)

"Everything's good in the world tonight, when Smokey sings," goes ABC's catchy 1987 hit and so tonight should be positively perfect, at least in Sandpoint where Smokey Robinson himself will be appearing as part of The Festival at Sandpoint's opening night festivities. I have to ask: Has SmoRo been dabbling in the botox? In recent publicity shots, he sure looks pert for a gentleman pushing 70. I hope they're giving him best injections LA has to offer because the man deserves it. Without Smokey and his pal Barry Gordy, there never would have been a Motown Records, and if there never was a Motown Records, maybe there never would have been a Diana Ross and the Supremes or a Stevie Wonder or a Mary Jane Girls and that's just too depressing to even think about/OrangeTV, Get Out! North Idaho. More here. ( Full post )

Huckleberries Best of the INorthwest -- 8/7/08 (DFO)

Rajah Boss/Spokesman-Review
The Blue Angels flying team arrives at Fairchild Air Force Base Wednesday. The team is in town for an air show Friday through Sunday. Story here. ( Full post )

HBO @ Noon: Bad Opening Lines (DFO)

Item: Local writers win bad-prose prizes/Seattle Times

Bad Opening Line: "Nobody knew just who the steely-eyed stranger was, where he came from, where he was headed, or what his intentions were while he was in Dodge City," wrote McKenzie, 54, an aerospace quality consultant. "He wasn't an hombre you'd want to stick your tongue out at or flip off, and any man who tried to tickle him would be asking for a long stay in a pine box." ( Full post )

Fool For An Attorney Didn't Query Duncan Jurors (DFO)

Duncan stuck by his request to take over the questioning of jurors himself, even after listening to his lawyers conduct extensive, detailed questioning of the first two prospective jurors, so the judge allowed him to take over � though Duncan said he probably won�t ask any questions. �You understand that the court has been on the bench for 46 years, and I�m urging you and telling you that this is a huge mistake,� U.S. District Judge Edward Lodge told Duncan. �You understand?� �I understand that,� Duncan responded/Betsy Russell, Eye On Boise. More here. ( Full post )

Boxers? Or Briefs? (DFO)

Ray Stubblebine/Hasbro, AP

I was going to save this photo for HBO @ Noon. With Editor Steve Smith arriving in a few minutes, however, I decided to post it now. Above, Cavity Sam, left, the patient in Hasbro's "Operation" game, shows off his new boxer shorts to show host Lydia Hearst, center, and underwear model Jed Hill at an underwear fashion show during the 6th Annual National Underwear Day in New York Tuesday. ( Full post )

Idaho Blogs -- Brandi, Brandi & More Brandi (DFO)

It is good and all that they are trying to raise awareness about what is going on in China, but it's pretty clear the only reason they are there now is because there are cameras there. Why haven't they ever protested in China before? Are they afraid of actually being tossed in a cell when the cameras aren't there? Why haven't they ever gone to the middle east to protest the oppression of women there? I think it is also pretty clear that they didn't get the repression they wanted the first day, so they probably upped the ante for the second protest/Unequivocal Notion. More here.

( Full post )

JeanieSpokane SOS -- Broken Fingernails (DFO)

Am I the only female that is vain about my beautiful, long, fingernails? One just broke. I think I need comp time until it grows out/JeanieSpokane.

Questions For Lt. Gov. Risch? (DFO)

With fear and trembling, I'm going to change course a little and ask for possible questions to pose to Lt. Gov. Jim Risch when he stops by for an online chat at 1:30 p.m. Friday. I already have 7-8 of the 12 I plan to ask. So don't jump on me if I don't use yours. I'll consider questions that are short and don't require a long answer (because I'll be typing the responses online here as Lt. Gov. Risch provides them). I'm also looking for rapid-fire questions that can be answered yes or no -- and will comprise one entry. Now, Sisyphus, didn't you want to know what the lieutenant governor had for breakfast? ( Full post )

Boise Activist Protests For 2nd Day In Beijing (DFO)

( Full post )

Pool Shuts After Lifeguards Busted For Drinking (DFO)

Item: With lifeguards fired, pool closes: Teen staffers arrested for allegedly drinking in pool house/Meghann M. Cuniff, SR

More Info: A teen drinking incident is making August a bit more uncomfortable for some people near Holmberg Park. The park's pool closed two weeks early Monday after Spokane County sheriff's deputies busted nearly half the lifeguard staff for allegedly hosting a beer fest in the pool house over the weekend. It was a double whammy: The three teens were arrested and fired. ( Full post )

Should Chickenpox Vaccinations Be Required? (DFO)

Item: Washington pushes to require chicken pox vaccinations/KREM2

More Info: The push comes after 14 students at Jefferson Elementary became sick with chickenpox last year, and students who had not been vaccinated for the virus were advised to stay home from school. The state wants to avoid that situation this year, but officials are having trouble crafting a program that would be sensitive to the religious and personal preferences of parents. ( Full post )

KMC ER Gets To Patients Quickly (DFO)

Item: Worth the wait: KMC emergency among nation's best at getting to patients in short time/Tom Hasslinger, Coeur d'Alene Press

More Info: For those in pain, minutes crawl like hours. For the Kootenai Medical Center Emergency Department, that's important to keep in mind. According to federal statistics released Wednesday, average times that hospital emergency room patients wait to see a doctor has grown from about 38 minutes to almost an hour over the past decade. But the patients needing immediate care at KMC shouldn't have to wait that long. ( Full post )

AM Headlines -- 8/7/08 (DFO)

Jerome A. Pollos/Coeur d'Alene Press
Dick Phillips, 88, and his wife Maggie, 92, make their way to an appointment Wednesday on their electric scooters in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. The couple use their scooters to maintain their independence while going to doctor appointments or lunch dates together. Story here. ( Full post )

APhoto of the Day -- 8/7/08 (DFO)

Joni Peterson/AP
Paul Lunde, left, Al Floyd,second from left, Debbie Dixon, David Gorden, second from right, and Dean Peterson, right, model prototype kilt uniforms for postal workers at the National Association of Letter Carriers' convention this summer in Boston, where Peterson introduced a resolution to add kilts to the U.S. Postal Service uniform choices. You write the cutline. ( Full post )

Cis: 'The Shack' Is A Must Read (DFO)

I got two of THE SHACK today...one for reading and one for loaning.... I have had several people besides the ones here telling me, you HAVE to read this book... if it is that good... I don't want to lose my own copy, and it was cheap enough, I could get two/Cis. ( Full post )