Taxing situation

Recent business before the Clark County Board of Equalization was the tip of a very large iceberg that could leave the governments of Nevada taking on even more water.

Bowing to the god of ‘diversity and inclusion’

Higher education officials haven’t wavered from their forecasts of fiscal doom: Further budget reductions, they say, will destroy their ability to provide core academic programs at Nevada’s public colleges and universities, including those in high demand amid the deepening recession.

‘Stimulus’ spending

Massive cash handouts like the current “stimulus” funds flowing out of Washington invite several problems, but the obvious risk is that such one-time funds will be used to create new jobs, programs and constituencies who can be relied upon to squawk like starving nestlings when the funds run out.

SAY WHAT?

“The United States will be vigorously engaged in the pursuit of a two-state solution every step of the way. The inevitability of working toward a two-state solution is inescapable.”

Plus, ‘you can program it!’

As luck would have it, I was up well before the doorbell rang at 7:45 a.m. Thursday.

What’s that smell?

President Obama appeared at week’s end to be intending to break a campaign promise and try to do something about the foul smell wafting from pig excrement in Iowa.

We’ll all pay for this massive spending plan

When I was but a youngster, my father and my grandmother frequently told me that money didn’t grow on trees. However, I’m starting to think the Democrats and the federal government believe otherwise.

Yucca can be useful

It’s not often that I find myself in agreement with U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, but on the point of the idiocy of the obsolete concept for long-term storage of nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, we seem to share some similar views.

Earmarks, schmearmarks

Can’t tell you how many times I’ve yelled that at the TV lately as Barack Obama, who sermonized every Sunday about the evils of earmarks, now can’t muster the backbone to practice what he preached.

Two-thirds the charm for voters

Hoping to limit the damage state legislators seem to do every time they meet, Nevada’s voters passed a constitutional amendment a few years ago limiting legislative sessions to 120 days every two years.

THE WATER COOLER

Here are a few things in news, entertainment and popular culture that we’ve been talking about lately.

NAME DROPPING

Growing up, they were all about baseball and making it to the major leagues. Now local band The Reputation is about becoming the popular new sound of music.

Add a touch of the tropics to your desert landscape

We may live in the desert, but that doesn’t mean tropical flowering plants can’t add a little zing to your landscape. While plants such as lantana, red bird of paradise, bougaianvilea and oleander often fall victim to freezes, they have eye-catching blooms and grow back quickly in the spring.

OUTDOOR BRIEFS

IN TOUCH WITH NATURE

Set enemies ablaze in ‘Killzone 2’

Fire is the new black. At least it is in video games, as flamethrowers are suddenly appearing remarkably often. Over the years, they’ve popped up sporadically, as in old “Metal Gear Solid 3” and “Army Men,” in which you set plastic soldiers on fire to melt them — funny yet oddly touching.

TRAVEL BRIEFS

ST. PAUL, Minn.

OUT THERE

HIKES

BOOKMARK

Here is a listing of events designed for book lovers. Information is subject to change or cancellation without notice. Additions or changes to this listing must be submitted at least 10 days in advance of Sunday publication to Bookmark, Las Vegas Review-Journal, P.O. Box 70, Las Vegas, NV 89125. For more information, call 383-0306.

Place Your Order

Las Vegas is known for its sexy cocktail waitresses. (At least George Clooney and Michael Phelps seem to think so.)

Time On Your Hands

Good morning. You’re late.

Inaugural Women’s Leadership luncheon honors three

Women’s Leadership, sponsored by United Way of Southern Nevada, had their inaugural Women’s Leadership luncheon on Feb. 25 in the Emperor’s Ballroom at Caesars Palace to celebrate local women of distinction.

Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve great place to see avian visitors

Springtime rates as the top season for spotting a wide variety of birds in the desert. One of the best places for bird watching in our area is the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve just off Sunset Road, east of Boulder Highway, at 2400 Moser Drive. Birders list more than 200 species of birds, both resident and visitors, at the site on the grounds of the Henderson Wastewater Reclamation Facility. When you first arrive, you may notice odors from the treatment plant, but most visitors soon get used to them and stop noticing.

COMING IN THIS WEEK’S BUSINESS PRESS

DON’T GO THERE: Being the Wall Street of fun is hurting Las Vegas. Government agencies and companies that received federal bailout money drew loud scoldings for plans to visit Sin City; a senator called one such trip an “extravagant junket.” Economy watchers say the bad-mouthing is costing the valley business.

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