Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service articles from March 1999

Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service archives from March 1999

To the surprise of analysts robust economy has not meant return of inflation.
March 1, 1999... WASHINGTON _ Despite worrisome recessions overseas, the U.S. economy grew at a blistering pace at the end of last year, which has triggered inflation fears and sent interest rates climbing in recent weeks. The Commerce Department on Friday...

Details about last summer's Afghan massacres have been slow in coming to light.
March 1, 1999... MASHHAD, Iran _ As her son stares mutely at goldfish swimming in a jar, Fatemeh Nazari tries to explain what it was that made the four-year-old boy stop speaking. ``They took my husband into the yard. They shot him in the chest. My...

Vowing independence, firm names new president.
March 1, 1999... CHARLOTTE, N.C. _ Piedmont Natural Gas sketched out its future Friday, saying it wants to acquire rather than be acquired and naming a likely successor to John Maxheim as chief executive officer. That successor is Ware Schiefer, a 35-year...

WinStar to join Miami wireless market.
March 1, 1999... FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. _ WinStar Communications will start selling its wireless phone services to businesses in Miami on Monday, joining the throng of communications companies piling into South Florida. The company will offer a package of...

Mother sues Chicago school, says her son was beaten by another student.
March 1, 1999... CHICAGO _ A mother has sued a Chicago area school district, alleging that, by not preventing a bully from beating her son, the school showed ``reckless disregard'' for his safety. The suit appears to be the latest in a growing number filed...

Charlotte Native named Meredith College's firs female president.
March 1, 1999... CHARLOTTE, N.C. _ Maureen Hartford, a Charlotte native who's now a University of Michigan vice president, was named Friday to become Meredith College's first female president. She'll start work July 1, following the retirement of John...

Taco Bell settles discrimination suit.
March 1, 1999... IRVINE, Calif. _ Taco Bell Inc. has settled a lawsuit filed by a former employee who alleged he was fired because of his HIV-positive status and sexual orientation. Neither Taco Bell nor Mark J. Leonardo, the Malibu, Calif., attorney who...

Public roared angrily at proposed bank rule to track deposits.
March 1, 1999... A proposal that critics say would invade personal privacy and turn banks into police officers has been slammed by regulators, lawmakers, bankers and, as of Friday, nearly 100,000 citizens. Americans have one more week to express their views...

Convicted murderer arrives at Death Row; may remain for years.
March 1, 1999... John William King, the unremorseful white supremacist sentenced to die for dragging a black man to his death in Jasper, arrived on Death Row on Friday and could be there for a decade or more if he vigorously fights his conviction, court...

A lesson from an Olympian: It's OK for girls to have muscles.
March 1, 1999... COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. _ The question came from the middle of a pack of high school swimmers, gathered at the Briargate YMCA to field advice from an Olympian. It was fairly typical as these things go, the famous athlete dispenses a few...

Hopeful Nigerians cast votes in national election.
March 1, 1999... (PHOTOS) (HAS TRIM) By Neely Tucker Knight Ridder Newspapers LAGOS, Nigeria _ Felecia Ojile pressed her ink-stained thumb onto her thin yellow ballot Saturday morning, casting a vote for a president she hopes will lead Nigeria...

Former ruler Obasanjo elected president in Nigeria.
March 1, 1999... LAGOS _ Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo, a former military ruler of this powerful west African nation as well as onetime political prisoner of its most brutal dictator, Sunday was set to return to power as the democratically elected president of...

New Nigerian president Obasanjo a study in contrasts.
March 1, 1999... LAGOS, Nigeria _ Olusegun Obasanjo, a former military ruler who is expected to become Nigeria's civilian head of state after Saturday's landmark presidential election, is a study in contrasts. Hailed overseas as one of Africa's few military...

Anthrax threats are keeping clinics on heightened alert.
March 1, 1999... CRANSTON, R.I. _ It's cheap and easy to produce. It's silent and invisible. And it can kill unsuspecting victims in a matter of days. No wonder anthrax has evolved into one of the most feared terrorist threats, and why anthrax hoaxes have...

Execution is swift in Texas, but in California, death's still not a sure thing.
March 1, 1999... LULING, Texas _ Two miles outside town, Soda Springs Road slithers through cow pastures, past squeaking oil wells and over what someone long ago nicknamed Crybaby Bridge. Locals say you can hear voices out here at night. On July 28, 1985, just...

Slavery in America: What if it had never existed?
March 1, 1999... No Civil War. No civil rights movement. No Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Lincoln. No Frederick Douglass or Martin Luther King Jr. No blues or jazz, Faulkner or Baldwin. Culturally, politically, philosophically, no United States as it now...

U.S. encryption policy harms businesses and the Internet.
March 1, 1999... Despite recent events highlighting the futility of its policy, the White House insists on regulating encryption technology. This policy is ineffective, harms U.S. encryption makers, and damages the economy. As they debate encryption reform,...

Anatomy of a murder conviction.
March 1, 1999... Soon after Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan commuted Darrell Mease's death sentence after a St. Louis meeting with Pope John Paul II, I spoke to a friend in Texas, where state executioners work overtime. I asked ``Tex'' if the pope's appeal would...

Despite jury's verdict, nothing important has changed.
March 1, 1999... Nothing important has changed yet. On Tuesday, a jury, which had deliberated in record time, found 24-year-old John William King guilty of capital murder in the horrific dragging death of James Byrd Jr., a 49-year-old Texas man. On...

Paul Robeson's flirtation with communism is no reason to write off a man with such talent, energy and sense of justice.
March 1, 1999... The two-hour television documentary last week on the life of Paul Robeson was a vivid reminder for me of what an amazingly gifted and talented singer and actor Robeson was. The PBS documentary was also a reminder of how far America has come...

It's time to abandon racial biases.
March 1, 1999... Leon Reed is a political science major who hopes to hold political office. On this night, the 30-year-old Texas Christian University senior is looking the part, dressed in a coat and tie with a closely cropped haircut framing his narrow,...

A long, downward slide for a once-popular student, now in jail.
March 1, 1999... MIDDLESEX, Va._ Leah Congleton, who five years ago was quoted in her high school yearbook as saying she would never wear bell-bottoms, now wears inmate attire: orange pants, orange tunic, orange flip flops. Smart, popular and pretty, she...

Doctors seek cure for health care; skyrocketing costs,unequal access cited as system's failures.
March 1, 1999... MIAMI BEACH _ They are revolutionaries in doctor's garb. And they're attempting to stage the most powerful kind of coup of all: a movement nurtured from within, fueled by public discontent. Their quest: reforming health care in America....

Independent counsel law needs to die.
March 1, 1999... Howard Baker says that Congress should let the independent counsel law fade quietly into oblivion. Let's hear it for Howard. Baker, the former Tennessee senator and White House chief of staff, told the Senate's Governmental Affairs...

When you call on death.
March 1, 1999... The following editorial appeared in the San Jose Mercury News on Friday, 2-26: X X X When Oregon became the only place on the planet where physician-assisted suicide is legal, there were dire predictions about what would happen:...

Easing the pain of costly drugs.
March 1, 1999... If you're in need of a prescription medication, odds are you already feel bad. You don't need the high costs of a drug to make you feel even worse. With some AIDS, cancer and hepatitis treatments carrying price tags of more than $20,000 a...

Hepatitis C sufferer battles pain, depression.
March 1, 1999... ``Thank God I had the smarts to organize the group, to try other things, to work on attitude, to do aromatherapy to relax _ to take a nice warm bath _ to try alternative stress reduction,'' says Melody Sugar, a 48-year-old Brooklyn woman....

A sign of wisdom is knowing when it's time to learn.
March 1, 1999... NEWPORT NEWS, Va. _ The word popped up about two-thirds of the way through the Bible verse. James Graham, who had been reading the verse aloud to the members of his Sunday school class, stopped suddenly. He peered at the word without a clue. He...

Diving group retrieving artifacts from sunken Civil War fort.
March 1, 1999... CHARLOTTE, N.C. _ It was a Civil War fort that never fired a shot. Instead the octagonal fort of earth and sod off Ocracoke Island was captured and burned by Union sailors in September 1861, two months after Confederates began manning its...

Tips for keeping secrets.
March 1, 1999... It's impossible to completely insulate yourself against identity fraud. ``The way information is bandied about, there is no way you can keep it from getting into the hands of a crook,'' said Beth Givens, project director of the Privacy Rights...

How to avoid being a victim of identity theft.
March 1, 1999... As a victim of identity theft, maybe Alexandra May of Cupertino, Calif., should consider herself fortunate. May found out within months that a woman was using her name and credit record, while many other victims of this fraud _ which is growing...

Albright's China trip reaps little progress beyond airing differences.
March 1, 1999... BEIJING _ The gloves were off even before Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan sat down to business Monday at the Chinese government's elegant Diaoyutai guesthouse. In her first trip here since...

Baghdad is preparing for the long haul.
March 1, 1999... WASHINGTON _ After two months of increasingly aggressive air strikes by the United States and Great Britain, Iraq shows little sign of relenting in its challenges to the aircraft patrolling the country's two no- fly zones. U.S. warplanes...

1960s testing at SRS found radiation in animals.
March 2, 1999... COLUMBIA, S.C. _ As health researchers pushed the government to open classified files at the Savannah River Site, they uncovered chilling hints of how radiation built up in plants and animals near the nuclear weapons factory. A detailed...

Young students get a look at college sports, dreams.
March 2, 1999... MIAMI _ Sometimes it takes the eyes of a child to see even simple pleasures in a new light. On Monday, the eyes of thousands of Miami-Dade middle schoolers were opened to the excitement of college sports and how educational dreams can unfold....

Firing of N.J. police superintendent adds fuel to racial-profiling debate.
March 2, 1999... Robert Wilkins, a black, Harvard-educated lawyer, could see this was no ordinary speeding ticket. The Maryland state police officers were taking too long. So he climbed out of the rented Cadillac that drizzly dawn in 1992 to find officers...

Nazi raid on a Danish village is life-changing event for boy.
March 2, 1999... On April 9, 1940 (he'll never forget that date), Henning Doest, who lives in Orange, Calif., was a shy, 11-year-old Danish boy who hated school, except for his history teacher who drew kings and knights on the blackboard to illustrate his...

Those who recall Bruton don't miss segregation but do miss sense of community.
March 2, 1999... WILLIAMSBURG, Va. _ Marie needed a dress for graduation.But she didn't know how to sew. Perhaps she couldn't afford the material either; it's hard for her classmates to remember now, 50 years later. They recall what happened, though....

The independent counsel act's time has finally expired.
March 2, 1999... When you conclude that even Kenneth Starr doesn't deserve to be hounded by an independent counsel, you have to figure you've pretty much given up on the independent counsel law. That's where I find myself. In the abstract, there's a case...

Make room for women engineers.
March 2, 1999... Once known as one of the Ivy League's ``Seven Sisters,'' Smith plans to boldly go where no women's college has gone before: Starting in the fall, Smithies will be able to take engineering classes on campus, instead of going to the nearby...

There's more than one way to limit politicians' terms.
March 2, 1999... Bad news: Members of Congress who promised to limit their own terms are having second thoughts. Good news: There are only four of 'em. The headline in my paper on Friday made it seem worse: ``Republicans rethinking pledges for term...

The American people remain their nation's master; Why have conservatives lost confidence in the judgment of the people?
March 2, 1999... NEW YORK _ There is an odd thing happening in American politics. Assaults on the American character are now coming from the right rather than the left. For decades, the left attacked American culture as shallow and Americans as...

School shares memories with all.
March 2, 1999... NEWPORT NEWS, Va. _ Today, the belongings of graduates of Bruton Heights are kept behind glass on public display, so they may last like graduates' memories. Lucille Washington Minkins gave a class ring from 1941; Jean Gerst Stewart, a gold...

Drug-certification process should be abolished.
March 2, 1999... President Clinton's certification of Mexico for successfully combating drugs was a charade. But so, too, is the annual certification process itself. In a congressional hearing days before the certification announcement, Drug Enforcement...

Al Gore's toxic mess: U.S. must say no to animal tests on industrial chemicals.
March 2, 1999... As any emergency room physician will tell you, turpentine is poisonous to people. So is leaded gasoline. So is rat poison. We do not need to conduct painful, pointless acute toxicity tests on rats or mice to ascertain such well-established...

Ex-Clinton spin champ McCurry looks back on the fury.
March 2, 1999... If you're trying to sort through your feelings about Bill Clinton's roller-coaster presidency, show up at the Rhode Island Convention Center on March 17 and listen to former White House press secretary Mike McCurry. McCurry, 44, is battle...

International terrorism, a conflict without boundaries.
March 2, 1999... American intelligence officers boasted breathlessly that they had prevented Saudi terrorist Osama bin Laden from carrying out at least seven vehicle bomb attacks on American facilities overseas since his lethal attacks in Africa last August....

Broke by 2008: It's Medicare, not Social Security, that demands immediate attention.
March 2, 1999... The following editorial appeared in the Miami Herald on Monday, 3-1: X X X It's all very well that President Clinton and congressional leaders are talking about how to salvage Social Security. But hey, that program's raking in $100...

Holding child responsible is a lesson.
March 2, 1999... In a recent column, I advised the parents of a 4-year-old girl who was stealing from them to hold the child responsible for any possession of theirs that suddenly, and under mysterious circumstances, disappears. Until a missing item was...

Are we so full of Clinton scandal we are numb to rape?
March 2, 1999... I fought a gag reflex at the news. ``What, another one?'' I asked when I heard that Jane Doe No. 5 had gone public alleging some sort of sexual history with President Clinton. Won't they ever go away? I'd long ago given up any expectation...

Throughout history, women have assisted others during childbirth; today, doulas continue the tradition.
March 2, 1999... X X X ``Dear Jenna, This is the story of your birth. My name is Wendy Carpenter, and I had the privilege of being present when you were born... '' X X X WICHITA, Kan. _ Jenna Rae Znamenak had a lot of help being born _ and that's...

Technology drives a California car-sharing effort.
March 2, 1999... PLEASANTON, Calif. _ Kevin Greenlee pulls up to the Dublin-Pleasanton Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) station in the morning, knowing that in about two hours some stranger will hop in the car and drive away. But it's not car theft, It's the...

Forget about being friends with your kids, John Rosemond says.
March 2, 1999... GULFPORT, Miss. _ Let your kids hate you now. You'll be glad later. Popular family psychologist John Rosemond said that's the answer to the single biggest problem in American families today _ parents who try to be buddies with defiant...

Surge in credit cards for kids poses modern dilemma.
March 2, 1999... FORT WORTH, Texas _ A few months ago, Bill Meadows intercepted a piece of mail sent to his 10-year-old daughter, an offer for a low-interest credit card. ``It seemed so predatory,'' said Meadows, a Fort Worth real estate executive and...

Aging work force poses possible labor shortage.
March 2, 1999... The nation's work force is hitting middle age, and along with the wrinkles comes a crisis: the threat of a long-term labor shortage. Nearly half of U.S. workers now fit in the 35-54 age group. By next year, one in every three workers will...

A new bandage could save thousands of lives.
March 2, 1999... ROCKVILLE, Md. _ Every year, 50,000 Americans bleed to death _ victims of car wrecks, street violence and other trauma. Even the most sophisticated medical care can do little to stanch the tragic waste. Victims simply shed too much blood before...

Doctors' offices, transportation industry unprepared for Y2K, senators warn.
March 3, 1999... WASHINGTON _ Tuesday was Y2K Day on Capitol Hill as members of Congress tried to focus their institution and the nation's attention, at long last, on the coming Year 2000 computer glitch. In doing so, however, lawmakers found themselves...

De Niro intimidating, but only at first, says Crystal.
March 3, 1999... If you ever happen to find yourself in Billy Crystal's Beverly Hills office, interviewing him for his latest movie, here's a little tip: Make sure to drop a few famous names into the conversation, and get ready for some free entertainment. ...

Da Vinci's ``Last Supper'' may be fighting a losing battle against time.
March 3, 1999... MILAN, Italy _ Some critics have dubbed it ``The Lost Supper.'' They say that efforts to restore one of the most recognized paintings in Western civilization have gone disastrously awry. Others defend it, saying the controversial repair...

Billy Crystal on ...
March 3, 1999... _On why he didn't want to host the Oscars this year: ``If I was going to host the Oscars, I'd be sitting here not paying any attention to this interview. I would be thinking about a `Saving Private Ryan' joke or a `Life is Beautiful' joke....

China warns U.S. not to shield Taiwan with missile defense system.
March 3, 1999... BEIJING _ China lashed out Tuesday at American proposals to extend a missile-defense system to Taiwan as Secretary of State Madeleine Albright wound up two days of contentious talks vowing to maintain U.S. pressure on China over its human...

Top court grapples with deciding when a gift is criminal.
March 3, 1999... WASHINGTON _ In a case arising from the investigation of former Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy, the Supreme Court on Tuesday grappled with the issue of when a gift to a government official, from football tickets to millions of dollars, becomes...

Several automakers report higher February sales.
March 3, 1999... A handful of automakers on Tuesday reported record or near-record February sales, getting 1999 off to a roaring start after robust sales in January. The year's strong early performance is prompting talk of hiking industry sales estimates...

Pat Buchanan launches 3rd presidential bid with New Hampshire rally.
March 3, 1999... MANCHESTER, N.H. _ Even though the economy is robust, Pat Buchanan has seen just enough bad news to run again for the presidency. After a day spent touring a West Virginia steel mill where workers are struggling against a flood of cheap...

Irish factions likely will seek Clinton's help in finishing path to peace.
March 3, 1999... WASHINGTON _ Factions fighting over the future of Northern Ireland were expected to seek President Clinton's help in removing the last major stumbling block to peace when they visit the United States for St. Patrick's Day talks. ``March 17...

Orlando Cepeda, Nestor Chylak and Smokey Joe Williams join Hall.
March 3, 1999... CLEARWATER, Fla. _ For George Brett, Nolan Ryan and Robin Yount, it took just one election to get into the Baseball Hall of Fame. For Orlando Cepeda, it took a quarter-century. But Tuesday afternoon, Cepeda joined those men to form one of...

Amway to establish Web presence, take sales online.
March 3, 1999... Amway Corp. is adding a twist to its successful, mostly in-home sales. It plans to sell products on the Web. The Ada-based direct-sales company plans to launch Quixtar.com Sept. 1. The company is keeping details about Quixtar under...

Celebration of Purim wasn't so merry this year in Israel.
March 3, 1999... REHOVOT, Israel _ The holiday of Purim is supposed to be among the most festive times in Israel, a Halloween-like carnival when children dress up as goblins and fairies, parents paint their faces and even the ultra-Orthodox are encouraged to...

Chavez's project makes immediate difference in the lives of poor Venezuelans.
March 3, 1999... CARACAS, Venezuela _ Trash usually clogs the weedy drainage ditches in Valle Alegre, a tin-hut slum cut into the hills above Caracas. Rusted hulks of burned cars sprawl along the rutted red-earth road, and rivulets of sewage trickle among the...

Bush urges lawmakers to overhaul education, cut taxes.
March 3, 1999... TALLAHASSEE, Fla. _ Greeted by high-fives and war whoops, Gov. Jeb Bush opened the 1999 Legislature on Tuesday by urging lawmakers to overhaul education, use the state's robust economy to cut taxes and work toward a new ``shared vision'' of...

Collectors switch to slab to improve cards' value.
March 3, 1999... You don't want to put these things between your bicycle spokes. They're worth too much money _ and the hard plastic casing around the cards will make for some mighty rough riding. The evolution of sports card collecting continues. At...

Chances that serious change in campaign-finance law will take root appear slim.
March 3, 1999... WASHINGTON _ It is becoming one of Congress' hardy perennials. Against all odds, a small handful of lawmakers backed by government watchdog groups are once again making an assault on what they believe to be the corrupting role of money in...

Buchanan enters presidential fray.
March 3, 1999... WIERTON, W.Va. _ On a dreary late winter day, Pat Buchanan came to this grimy, smoky Rust Belt town and vowed to keep the promise Bill Clinton broke when he pledged here in 1992 to protect the local steel industry. ``I give you my word I...

Vowing positive campaign if he runs, Bush forms exploratory committee.
March 3, 1999... AUSTIN, Texas _ On Texas Independence Day, Gov. George W. Bush took aim Tuesday at higher office, saying America wants honorable leaders who can unite people in the belief that ``prosperity is for everybody, not a handful.'' ``You can't...

Republicans push through a bill that gives both unions better pension benefits.
March 3, 1999... TALLAHASSEE _ Republicans opened the legislative session Tuesday by keeping a promise to police and firefighters and pushing through a bill that gives both unions better pension benefits, despite protests from cities. House leaders call it...

Texas lost almost $1 billion in federal aid because 1990 census missed nearly a half-million people.
March 3, 1999... WASHINGTON _ Texas lost almost $1 billion in federal aid because the 1990 census missed nearly a half-million people in the state, according to a study released Tuesday. The General Accounting Office report, believed to be the first of its...

Dell plans online superstore to offer other brands.
March 3, 1999... ROUND ROCK, Texas _ Dell Computer Corp. is expected to unveil Wednesday a major expansion of its Internet presence with a Web site that will sell computer-related products from a wide variety of manufacturers. The site, Gigabuys.com, is...

Cambodians welcome prospect of Khmer Rouge tribunal.
March 3, 1999... HANOI, Vietnam _ The prospect that an international tribunal will be established to judge the former top leaders of the Khmer Rouge was warmly welcomed Tuesday in Cambodia. But a proposed ``truth commission'' to hear all other cases was...

Wisconsin wolf plan allows broader killing.
March 3, 1999... While most attention has focused on Minnesota in the debate over removing wolves from federal protection, Wisconsin also is embarking on a new era of state-controlled wolf management. Wisconsin has about 180 timber wolves now and has formed...

Women enriched our history.
March 3, 1999... March is Women's History Month, a time to honor the women who helped make this society what it is today. As pioneers and politicians, activists and artists, educators and environmentalists, women in all walks of life have left their mark on...

Improved era in girls sports adds a new dimension to a father's life.
March 3, 1999... Women will not be made or broken on the playing fields of America, I suppose, but let this father give one strong cheer for what Title IX has done for women's sports options. In the small-town high school that I attended, real men went out...

Where to buy 'em and where to go.
March 3, 1999... How many kinds of outdoor equipment can double as wall ornaments? Tents? Too bulky. Boots? Too heavy. Backpacks? Too chunky. Sleeping bags? Too aesthetically boring. But a pair of snowshoes? Now there's a great way to...

Are homeschooled children socially deprived?
March 3, 1999... Once dismissed as a fringe movement for left-wing hippies and right-wing Bible-thumpers, homeschooling has gone mainstream. In fact, several recent news stories report that more than 1 million young people in America are now being homeschooled....

U.S. delinquent on landmines treaty.
March 3, 1999... This week, the Ottawa Convention outlawing antipersonnel landmines took effect, thus becoming binding international law more quickly than any major treaty in history. But where is the United States? It has said it wants to sign, but it has...