Tomorrow's the big day. In Washington, the first increment (3 cents) of the 9.5-cent gas tax increase takes effect. Meanwhile, back in Idaho, the state sales tax drops back down to 5 percent (5.5 percent in Kootenai County).

Here's what else we're working on for Page One tomorrow:

Twenty-four high school students from 14 Native American tribes are learning about nursing and other health care issues at the 10th annual Na-ha-shnee Native American Summer Nursing Institute.

Kaiser has reached an agreement with the state on a clean-up plan for its Trentwood site. Quoth one state Ecology official: "This makes BN look like a tablespoon of Kool-Aid."

Off the wires: Spain beats Canada to the punch to become the third country to legalize gay marriage, and organizers of the Live 8 concerts (see tomorrows IN Life section) are hoping to persuade President Bush and others to double aid to Africa.

Sports editor Joe Palmquist said today's soccer photo by Christopher Anderson was "priceless," but he's dreading the phone call he frequently gets from a reader about how soccer isn't a "real" sport.

Coming up

Olympia reporter Richard Roesler is going to take a look at the "emergencies" in the legislature this year, including exempting parking-lot trams from vehicle licensing. Meanwhile, Idaho's sales tax is set to drop a percentage point tomorrow.

Property assessments are out in Spokane County, and the assessor's office is taking some heat. Meanwhile, a long-awaited committee to reform Idaho's property tax system convened in Boise today.

Here's what else is coming up for Page One tomorrow:

We'll hear from two former counselors at Morning Star who say the urged an end to physical abuse in the 1970s.

The downtown STA Plaza, which cost $20 million to build, is worth only a fraction of that on the open market, according to an appraisal released today.

A 76-year-old man who grew up poor in the Spokane area and became a multi-millionaire has been found murdered in Costa Rica.

A ruling by the Canadian Parliament could block cross-border prescription drug sales for good; also, action in the House could end the threat that many Amtrak routes - including the route serving Spokane and Sandpoint - could be eliminated.

Former Zag star Ronny Turiaf's selection to the Lakers is one of the most-read stories on the Web site today, and could have had better play on the front page today. There was a general write-out on the NBA draft, but people in the community are clearly interested in what's next for one of GU's most charismatic players.

Errata

Careful readers may have noticed a letter to the editor today urging the Valley city council not to pass a helmet ordinance. Problem is, the vote already took place last night. Late yesterday, the letters to the editor page had to be reshuffled to make room for Mayor West's guest column, it's possible this letter was inadvertently bumped ahead a day.

Coming up

We've recently learned that the man suspected in the shooting death of Matthew Migaki was arrested and released over a week ago in Portland. We'll also look at rising construction costs in the region, as well as the circumstances surrounding the demotion of Spokane Valley fire marshal Paul Chase to deputy chief.

President Bush calls for patience during the "difficult and dangerous" work ahead in Iraq in a speech attended by 750 soldiers and airmen.

Also coming up on Page One tomorrow:

Shannon Sullivan announced in a press conference today that she will ask the state Supreme Court to expedite an appeal of the effort to recall Mayor Jim West.

Newly release population statistics show Spokane locked in as the state's No. 2 city, as well as some interesting growth dynamics in North Idaho.

A study released today shows no evidence of systemic racial profiling in Washington State Patrol traffic stops.

Unusual circumstances surrounded the publication of Mayor West's guest column in today's paper. We recieved the four-page statement late in the afternoon as well as a demand that it be printed in full without any editing - a courtesy we normally don't extend even to a letter-writer. But West deserves his say in the newspaper, even if it contains "mischaracterizations, misrepresentations and flat-out lies," as Steve Smith put it this morning. Some of those statements are debunked in today's story on the recall appeal.

On second thought...

The story on the reopening of the Magic Lantern theater could have used a map showing where it is. The Supreme Court's ruling on file-sharing services wound up being underplayed - a promo was originally scheduled to run on the front page, but at some point it got overlooked.

Coming up

Shannon Sullivan is holding a press conference as we speak on West's decision to appeal the recall ruling; STA is expected to release an appraisal of the downtown transit plaza today; the state budget office has confirmed Spokane's status as Washington's second-largest city; and the Spokane Valley City Council is expected to vote on a bicycle helmet ordinance tonight.

Lots of developments in the Jim West case today: The mayor's attorneys have announced they will appeal the decision allowing a recall petition to proceed; the City Council has introduced a resolution urging West to abandon the appeal; and former councilman Steve Eugster has filed suit over the legality of the independent panel investigating West's use of city computers.

Other stories for Page One tomorrow:

We'll have more information on the fire at Marshall Chesrown's Black Rock Ranch; the Magic Lantern movie theater is expected to reopen at a new downtown location; the Supreme Court ruled today that displays of the Ten Commandments are constitutional, as long as they're not too religious; and accused killer Dennis Rader pleaded guilty today to 10 murders in Wichita, Kan. in the 1970s.

Reaction to Sunday's story outlining allegations of abuse at Morning Star Boys' Ranch has been limited - we've heard of at least two subscription cancellations and had a few e-mails and phone calls, generally taking the position that the ranch does more good than harm.

Steve Smith said the story was "a little heavier on anonymous sources than I'd like," but was nevertheless a solid story because the primary accusations are supported by public records. The story also discusses why the sources chose to remain anonymous, a step that isn't often taken. Clearly this disclosure strengthens the accusations, which raised a question of whether this disclosure could or should be taken further.

The sources in this story, as well as the accusers in our Jim West coverage, have given their names to us so that we can substantiate their stories. They have also agreed to go on the record in court should it come up. The former was mentioned in the story, why not the latter?

There are several issues to consider, including the degree to which we want to insert ourselves into the story, and the possibility that making it widely known that sources could be outed in the event of litigation could prevent other people from coming forward.

There's a lot of debate in journalism circles as to whether and when it is appropriate to use anonymous sources - we've set a pretty high bar, but readers will always make their own judgments as to whether those sources can be trusted.

What about Idaho?

The Morning Star story didn't show up anywhere in the Idaho edition. We switched the lead stories on the front page, but Morning Star was supposed to run inside the Idaho section somewhere. Space limitations probably made the swap next to impossible.

Which witch is which?

Speaking of anonymous sources, Sunday's piece about local witches was nearly spiked because the interviewees refused to be named. At one point, a decision was made to allow the subjects to use their Pagan names, but one insisted his real name - but only his first name - be used. It's a light enough story, though, that it wasn't weakened by the lack of named sources.

From the readers

One caller this morning accused us of giving "aid and comfort to the enemy" for running a story on a report that says many Muslims were wrongly detained in the months after 9/11. Another condemned today's editorial, saying that protecting the right to burn a flag while outlawing the burning of crosses is a double-standard.

Coming up

We'll have more information on the fire that destroyed a building at Marshall Chesrown's Black Rock Ranch; a look at whether this week's rains will mitigate the fire danger on the Fourth of July; and arguments are scheduled today in the Spokane Diocese bankruptcy case over who owns the parishes.

Another case of mad cow disease has been discovered, though not in Washington state this time. We'll look at what impact the news will have locally.

Also coming up on Page One tomorrow:

The city investigation of Mayor West got under way today.

Hoopfest is expected to draw thousands of people - and their wallets - downtown this weekend. We'll have a look at the event's economic impact and how it came together this year.

A car bomb attack in Iraq killed six Americans today, as President Bush rebuffs calls for a timetable to pull out U.S. troops.

The photo on today's InLife cover of Lindsey Lohan shows "the skinny Lindsey." The light-hearted celebrity profile so far is the most-read story today on the web site.

Editors enjoyed John Blanchette's column today about who's got game in Hoopfest. The column includes an obscure reference to the sports department's annual "golf" tournament, the Wet Dog Fur Open. (The name originates from a reader who said long ago that our sports section "sucks wet dog fur.")

The Ironman feature on Page 1 was a nice read, as was the cheerleading editorial about our twin community events this weekend.

There was some discussion about the Ironman being an "important" event, perhaps the biggest of the year in Coeur d'Alene, but with far fewer participants and spectators than Hoopfest. How do you balance coverage between the two? Today, the Ironman coverage was more prominent.

Nice feature story today by Rich Roesler on a strange person who criticizes judges on his web site.

Coming tomorrow:

We're trying to put together a story about hotels being filled for this weekend, and kennels being filled for Fourth of July weekend.

Also:

--As the cost of bankruptcy continues to skyrocket, parishioners and priests are asking for a quicker resolution: an out-of-court settlement that will likely include voluntary contributions from the people of the diocese. They aren't optimistic about this hearing scheduled for Monday.

--The panel investigating Mayor Jim West's use of city computers meets today at 1:30 p.m. in the Council Briefing Center in the lower level of City Hall.

Most likely the biggest news this weekend will be Hoopfest in Spokane and the Ironman Triathlon in Coeur d'Alene. But there's other news, too:

Northwest senators reacted swiftly and angrily today to an announcement by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs that the agency is $1 billion short of the funds it will need to care for the nation’s veterans this year.

We're writing about the bizarre case of Paul Trummel, a septugenarian British freelance journalist booted from low-income elderly housing in Seattle and jailed for four months because of his web site, which he uses to criticize judges, professors and others who've crossed him.

The Mariners already have lost today (Kirk Saarloos pitched a four-hitter for his second career shutout, leading the Oakland Athletics over the Mariners 5-0.). Also in sports, game 7 in the NBA finals is tonight.

International Speedway Corp., thwarted last year in a plan to build a NASCAR racetrack north of Seattle, announced today it has chosen a new site _ west of Seattle across Puget Sound.

From the wires:

In Iraq, four car bombs outside Shiite mosques killed 15 and wounded 28.

Cities may bulldoze people's homes to make way for shopping malls or other private development, a divided Supreme Court ruled today, giving local governments broad power to seize private property to generate tax revenue.

At least one caller has taken us to task this morning for publishing a special section for Hoopfest and not for Bloomsday. Well, it's not simply a matter of choosing one event over the other. The Bloomsday section was no longer economically viable. We still like both events, and we'll still cover them to the extent that our readers are interested.

The new Home section is getting bigger every week, and is expected to be 30 pages next Thursday.

The anti-gas tax petition you found in today's paper is a paid political advertisement, even though it isn't labeled very clearly.

Coming up today:

A judge is expected to appoint a reciever to take over finanical operations of Spokane Raceway Park.

We'll have a profile of five blind athletes participating in Ironman Coeur d'Alene.

Coming for tomorrow:

There were several close calls Tuesday night when that severe storm blew through the region, and more damage than authorities can tally. Thousands of people were left without power, although power was restored to most people this morning.

We also will write about the fire in Suncrest that killed a 14-year-old. He apparently was asleep when a candle left burning in the basement started a fire. The boy's sister and her friends were at a McDonald's; his mom was across the street and thought her son was with the group at McDonald's.

Many historic photos may have been lost in a basement fire this afternoon at the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture.

The panel investigating Spokane Mayor Jim West's use of city computers has agreed to meet in public Friday, reversing an earlier decision to meet in secret.

Coeur d’Alene Police Officer Mike Kralicek received a hero’s welcome today when he rolled off a commercial airplane in his wheelchair into a receiving line of fellow officers at Spokane International Airport.

And from Iraq: Four car bombs exploded at dusk today, killing at least 23 people. The coordinated attacks served as a chilling reminder of how potent militants remain in the capital despite around-the-clock American and Iraqi troop patrols. In all, at least 32 people were killed across Iraq today.

There was a lot of late scrambling in the newsroom last night to tally up the "far-flung" damage caused by the thunderstorm that moved through the region late in the day. Editors discussed whether there was enough information to link the fire death in Suncrest to the storm.

The story about the lions who apparently saved the kidnapped girl in Ethiopia was the "feel-good" story of the day, and it was bumped off Page 1 because of the storm.

There also was some discussion about whether the story about the conviction of the former KKK leader in Mississippi belonged on Page 1. A quick survey showed that newspapers in the East and South played the story prominently on Page 1, while many papers on the West Coast didn't put the story on Page 1. Is Spokane too far removed from a 41-year-old Mississippi case, or did we miss an important moment in civil rights history by putting the story on an inside page?

For tomorrow, we'll follow the storm cleanup (power has been restored almost everywhere) and the fatal fire.

Also today in Idaho, Officer Mike Kralicek returns from Colorado, where he's been trying to recover from a severe gunshot wound that occurred six months ago during an arrest.

The business section will include stories about the new multi-plex theater in Coeur d'Alene and how the total value of Itron's soaring stock has topped $1 billion.

InLife will have a story about the Coeur d'Alene Summer Theater's version of "Guys and Dolls."

The lead story for tomorrow's Page 1 is about the release today of another batch of e-mails from Mayor Jim West's computers.

The e-mail confirms that West was using his city computer to offer an internship to a fictitious young man he'd met online on Gay.com. Also, the second batch of e-mails show that some city business leaders now calling for West to step down were offering him support shortly after the abuse of power scandal broke in early May.
The e-mails released so far also contradict the mayor's assertions last month that public response was running 2-1 in his favor. About half his e-mail still hasn't been released by the city attorney's office.

Also tomorrow:

--Right now Spokane area drivers are suffering through the side-effects of efforts to heal area streets. Ragged pavement, winding detours and stalled traffic are the results of drastic street surgery that many say is long overdue. Some of the work was made possible only by voters who approved last year the city of Spokane’s $117 million street bond issue.

--An autopsy concluded that a 7-year-old Stevens County boy whose adopted mother claimed he had a bizarre drinking disorder died of dehydration last winter. Tyler DeLeon died on his birthday, Jan. 13, after arriving at a Spokane hospital reportedly suffering from the flu. He weighed just 33 pounds and was severely dehydrated.

--In Idaho, we're reporting on a possible drowning in Hauser Lake.

--The sole provider of human blood for Spokane-area hospitals has cut its hours and will lay off four workers to offset a drop in revenue.

--A bizarre story from the animal kingdom. A 12-year-old girl who was abducted and beaten by men trying to force her into a marriage was found being guarded by three lions who apparently had chased off her captors.

--A former Klansman was convicted of manslaughter in a 41-year-old Mississippi case.

--The U.S. Senate endorsed President Bush's policies on climate change.

Sometimes news meetings are rousing, full of conversation. Sometimes they're short and sweet. There wasn't a lot of discussion this morning, other than compliments for the "Ross Man" story in IN Life, about an 11-year-old fighting off bone cancer, who's back playing in Hoopfest this year. Virginia de Leon also did a nice job with her "Breaking the cycle" story, providing some good news balance to recent stories about problems in civic and volunteer groups. More thoughts on this one from Marianne Love at News is a Conversation.

A call from a reader this morning also prompted some discussion of how we've played coverage of congressional hearings on cutting the PBS budget. We didn't have anything in this morning's paper.

Stories we're looking at for tomorrow:
-- It's a nightmare navigating Spokane these days, and we'll have a story on the road construction projects scattered around the city. We'll look into a sidebar on the effects they're having on sales at businesses trapped next to torn-up roads. Maybe a map, as well.
-- Idaho will be checking in with the Kootenai County Commission to see whether they've reached a decision on the BNSF depot deal.
-- We'll be receiving another set of Jim West emails today. Possibly a story there.
-- IN Life has a guide to grilling. No word on how many delicious meat photos we'll have.

Three major business groups are asking Mayor Jim West to skip any appeal of the recall effort he faces, and let the voters decide whether he should stay in office. That story will be the lead of Page 1 tomorrow.

In the U.S. Senate, Republicans have mounted a long-shot effort to force John Bolton's United Nations nomination through the Senate, even as the White House raises pressure by refusing to rule out the idea that President Bush would act on his own.

Meanwhile, Secreatary of State Condeleeza Rice has delievered a high-profile call for political reform in the Middle East, and has urged Egypt to lead such a transformation.

Locally, Virginia de Leon is writing about children who have a parent in prison or jail. They often lead chaotic lives marked by poverty, substance abuse and exposure to criminal activities. They’re also at greater risk for alcohol and drug abuse, poor grades in school and juvenile delinquency.

What does it mean when Mercury, Venus and Saturn align in the constellation Gemini? Pretty good astronomical viewing, according to local star buffs. Three planets will be within a 2.5 degree span of the northwestern sky on Friday, and will remain fairly close for a few days.

And with Fourth of July coming, Spokane Fire Chief Bobby Williams is asking the City Council for a five-fold increase in the fine on fireworks use as a deterrent to a trend of increased illegal fun.

Idaho law officers also are cracking down on fireworks violations. Many fireworks are not allowed off the reservation boundaries. Areas have been set up on the reservation for shooting off fireworks, but is anyone using them? Or are people trying to sneak past deputies patrolling the Fighting Creek area?

In addition to normal newspaper delivery tomorrow, the paper will be delivered to roughly 130,000 households of non-subscribers. This is a quarterly experiment called "The Big Day," in which advertisers get more than double the reach for a regularly priced ad.

Reaction to Steve Smith's Sunday column on civic reaction to the West story has been overwhelmingly positive. Some negative calls, and some saying that city leaders are working behind the scenes. Which is precisely the point the column intended to address.

A handful of calls have also come in regarding the IN Life section's 78 days of summer story. Not because of the activities suggested, but because the accompanying illustration on the IN Life cover shows a bike-riding kid without a helmet. (The illustration doesn't appear online because, unfortunately, graphics don't export well from our publishing system.)

Voice editor Richard Miller noted the Father's Day juxtaposition on A1: good dad / bad dad. Editors also described the trouble reporter Rich Roesler had in getting all the documents he requested for his Sunday West story. Delayed or difficult access to public records is a constant problem. And there were kudos for a very busy Erica Curless, who did a good job of capturing John Pointner's personality in her story on his donation of land as a public wildlife preserve.

Opinion editor Doug Floyd weighed in with an interesting note for people who haven't lived in the area long: about three decades ago, Spokane witnessed the same phenomenon described in Sunday's Business story on the hot housing market luring people into the real estate field. He said people then were leaving their jobs -- including some from the newsroom here -- to become Realtors. The question is, where are they now?

Stories we're looking at for tomorrow's paper:
-- reporter Virginia de Leon is writing about a program that hopes to help children with parents in jail or prison avoid a heightened risk of substance abuse and juvenile delinquency.
-- reporter Mike Prager, whose name you'll recognize when local stargazing events pop up, is writing about a rare occurrence on tap for Friday, when Mercury, Venus and Saturn align in the constellation Geminii.
-- as we head toward July 4, Idaho reporter Susan Drumheller is working on a story about efforts to crack down on people trying to sneak illegal fireworks outside the boundaries of the reservation, where it's OK to shoot them off.
-- the IN Life section has story on an 11-year-old who's been fighting bone cancer, and who's doing well enough to get back into Hoopfest this year.

The latest financial news out of New York will lead the newspaper tomorrow: "A security breach of customer information at a credit card transaction company could expose to fraud up to 40 million cardholders of multiple brands."

Locally, there will be a story about risky sex. The proliferation of online sites makes it easier for people to hook up for casual sex.

But the biggest local news of the day probably will be coverage of skating legend Tony Hawk's "Boom Boom HuckJam" at the Arena.

Also from the wire services:
--A major U.S. military offensive is launched in Iraq.
--Teens give adults poor marks on how well they are solving problems facing teens and the rest of the nation.
--A story from AP about the changes that have occurred in the meat industry three years after a major beef recall.

The Spokesman-Review has asked that meetings of the commission appointed to investigate Mayor West be open to the public. The newspaper has asked for West's e-mails to be made public, and to be available in electronic form. These and many other recent "open public records" requests cost a lot of money in legal fees, and Editor Steve Smith said in the meeting today that we should document for readers all of our recent efforts to ensure that the public's business be done in public.

Several photos and stories from today's paper were praised by editors:

--The Brian Plonka photo of a kid jumping for joy that accompanied the end-of-school story.

--The photo, also by Plonka, from the community college graduation.

--Frank Sennett's Hard 7 column in today's "7" section.

--Courtney Dunham's All We Never Knew column in the "7" section.

--The coverage by Kevin Graman and Colin Mulvany of the Vietnam vets in Branson, Mo.

Editors were somewhat embarrassed by the six corrections listed on Page B1 today, but were reminded that the newspaper is one of the few businesses to fess-up to errors in such a public way, which aids our credibility.

For tomorrow:

--The Internet spreads information, but does it also spread disease? The huge popularity of chat rooms and singles sites, including Craigslist and gay.com, have made it easier than ever for people to hook up for casual sex--both heterosexual and homosexual. So how is that affecting the STD rates in Spokane and North Idaho?

--Tony Hawk's Boom Boom HuckJam, which in English means a lot of action sports stunts on skates and BMX bikes, is tonight at the Arena.

--Western writers have descended upon Mirabeau Park Hotel in hopes of finding the right hook to become the next Louis L'Amour. Blazing Trails, a conference for Western writers, blew into town on Tuesday, and runs through Saturday, with an agenda packed with presentations and book signings.

The Page 1 centerpiece story/photo package will be about today being the last day of the year for Spokane Public Schools.

At the top of Page 1 will be a story about the rosy Washington state revenue forecast. See an early version of that AP story out of Olympia.

Also scheduled to be "above-the-fold" on Page 1 will be a story about the city's commission investigating Mayor West.

A bizarre story about a serial child molester also will be on Page 1. He's thought to have molested thousands of kids in western states, including Washington, Idaho, Oregon and California. (Small-world note -- the author of this Associated Press story from San Jose, Calif., Rachel Konrad, used to be a reporter here.)

And there will be a story rounding up the developments in Iraq, including the deaths of six U.S. troops.

Yes, the crime rate is up in Spokane, and it's a lot of drug-related property crime. The headline: "Spokane crime rate soaring" in a very large type size at the top of Page 1 may have left readers with the impression that violent crime is up, which is not true.

Kevin Graman's story from Branson, Mo., about the Vietnam vets "homecoming" was praised by editors as a fascinating read. It's expensive to send reporter/photographer teams on the road, but this was considered a good investment.

The photo of raw meat on a barbecue on the cover of today's Home section wasn't very appetizing. Perhaps the meat could have been seared and turned before the photo was taken.

Editors agreed it was a good idea to run the story about the results of the Terri Schiavo autopsy to put to rest any speculation that she might have had significant brain function.

For tomorrow, we'll have a story about the city commission investigating Mayor West, and we'll apparently hear from the mayor about whether he plans to appeal the recent judicial ruling in the recall petition case.

Today also is the final day of school for Spokane Public School. Valley schools are out tomorrow.

The business staff is writing for tomorrow's paper about the city's economic development director leaving to go to work for the developer of the Summit project overlooking the Spokane River on the north bank near Monroe.

The InLife section for tomorrow will have a story about the 30th anniversary of the movie "Jaws."

The "7" section will be a whopping 40 pages -- the biggest ever for that year-old section. The cover will be about skating legend Tony Hawk's "Boom Boom Huck Jam" event this weekend.

Sports will have coverage of the U.S. Open, the NBA Finals and the Mariners.

Lots of good stories on tap for tomorrow, and too many to fit on Page One. As a result, we've had to do some rearranging...

We've got a look at the FBI crime stats for Spokane, which may come as a surprise to some people. A story on break-ins at the St. Vincent DePaul Society on East Trent was intended to run with this story, but is being moved back to the Region section to make room.

Meanwhile, a story about accused child-killer Robert L. Doney's sentencing being delayed was slated for the Region cover, but is now moving inside the B section.

How do we make these decisions? There are a lot of factors involved. Timeliness, readability, length and the availability of photos all play a role, in addition to general concepts of news value.

Also coming up on Page One tomorrow:

Today's story about the release of thousands of Jim West's e-mails touched upon - but didn't elaborate on - an important point. The city is turning 12,000 of West's e-mails into paper copies and is charging 15 cents each to reproduce them. For those of you without a calculator handy, that's $1,800 for the lot. Making matters worse - media outlets had to share a single copy of the e-mails and note which ones they wanted copies of.

Meanwhile, the state is providing all of West's Senate e-mails on a searchable computer disk.

Is the city violating the spirit of open records laws? Might be something to explore...

An apology

We've been taken to task from several readers via phone and letters to the editor for letting D-Day slip by without a story. In general, current events take priority, but it's also important to remember our history. We'll try to make up for it next year.

Back on the home front

One of the more common complaints we hear is that we don't run enough positive stories. Kevin Graman is helping fill that void with a series of stories about, well, war. It's new small feat to write about the horrors of Vietnam in a way that's uplifting...

Coming up

Talker of the day: the results of Terri Schiavo's autopsy were released this morning. Also, we'll get another dispatch from Operation Homecoming USA in Branson, Mo; Fifteen-year-old Jacob Carr is expected to plead guilty to attempted murder of a Ferris High School teacher today; and the Kootenai County Commission is having a public meeting (not a hearing) on the BNSF depot today.

More than 2,000 of Jim West's e-mails were released today, and Karen Dorn Steele is in the process of wading through them. We'll also have a follow on the recall effort, as well as a possible conflict of interest with a member of the independent city commission that is investigating the mayor.

Here's what else we're working on for Page One tomorrow:

Vietnam vet Thomas Watt had an emotional reunion with a fellow member of the 1st Infantry Division. Kevin Graman reports from day one of Operation Homecoming USA in Branson, Mo.

U.S. officials are considering offering amnesty to Iraqi militants, and suicide attacks killed 28 people today.

A quick scan of our site traffic today appears to confirm that the decision to play the Michael Jackson verdict lower on the page appears to have paid off. Very few people are reading the story on our site, which could mean that 1) Everyone who cares already knows about it; 2) Said readers are turning to national outlets for more complete coverage; or 3) People are just sick to death of the whole thing. The Newseum shows that most other papers felt this was a bigger story.

That said, the recall story probably deserved better play. Lead stories get the big, bold headline, and this story also had our centerpiece photo. Combining the two pushes the headline below the fold, making it easier to overlook. Steve Smith suggested the headline should have run above the photo in this case.

Coffin break

Today's story on the coffin found underneath Third Avenue answered a lot of questions. I wonder if the people who lived at that site around the turn of the century had any concept of what the area might look like today...

Coming up

Mayor West's e-mails will start flowing in today - on paper. Some lucky soul will get to sort through them all, but it's hard to say whether anything newsworthy will come up.

Kevin Graman and Colin Mulvany are in Branson, Mo., for Operation Homecoming USA, a tribute to Vietnam veterans.

The Coeur d'Alene Planning Commission has a public hearing scheduled for tonight on Duane Hagadone's plan to build a marina on Blackwell Island.

Editor Steve Smith asked the question: "Does Michael Jackson's acquittal belong in the lead spot on Page 1?" All of the editors seemed to agree that the story instead belonged low on the page.

Also for Page 1 tomorrow:

--The recall petition against Mayor Jim West can move forward, a judge ruled this afternoon. (See early version of the story.)

--A state archaeology group wants greater examination of the Division Street coffin site before it's capped and paved over.

--The tribunal that will put Saddam Huseein on trial released a video today showing the 68-year-old former dictator -- looking drawn and tired but dressed in a pinstriped suit -- being questioned about the killings of at least 50 Iraqis in a Shiite town.

--The Supreme Court warned prosecutors today to use care in striking minorities from juries, siding with black murder suspects in Texas and California who contended their juries had been unfairly stacked with whites.

And, if there's room on the page:

--More than a million Americans are believed to be living with the virus that causes AIDS, the government said in a report that reflects both a victory and a failure at combatting the disease.

Several editors this morning commented on Kevin Graman's story and Colin Mulvany's multimedia piece on Sunday about Vietnam veteran Thomas Watt. It's possible on the web to combine text with photos, audio and video to produce a compelling package.

There also was a lot of discussion and speculation on what will happen with the coffin that was found under Division Street as part of the Third Avenue reconstruction project. If interest in the newsroom is any indication, there's probably interest among readers in following this story. Are there more bones there? Was this perhaps an ancient Indian burial ground, too? If so, would that halt the project? If they leave the coffin there, will it seem creepy to Spokane residents to drive over that spot? We'll see if we can come up with some answers.

Doug Clark was praised for his satiric Sunday column about escapes from the Geiger Corrections Center.

Erica Curless was praised for a line in her Sunday story about preparations for the Ironman Triathlon: "Organizers of the Ironman Coeur d'Alene triathlon just may have added another element to the swimming, biking and running competition this year – smooth sailing."

Today, we'll be updating the story of a young man who was shot to death in the parking lot of a Shadle-area shopping center.

And we'll follow the afternoon court hearing in the Jim West recall petition case.

This story will be a contender for Page 1 tomorrow: "The president of a company that provides care to people with mental disabilities allowed her daughter to manage the personal accounts of clients for four years even though her daughter had a felony drug conviction and previously had stolen company property."

Business is writing about a company that dismantles computers and ships the parts to China.

Features has a story about the problem of morning sickness.

And sports is covering the first day of practice of the Spokane Indians.

And it feels so good.

Our e-mail is working again - so it will be easier for readers and Jim West's lawyers to reach us. Good thing, too, because MSN was very prompt in taking down the hotmail.com address we had set up, which apparently violated their user agreement forbidding commercial use of the product. In retrospect, we should have known better. But you know what they say about hindsight.

War games

Today's 7 piece on war re-enactors raised some interesting questions. Do people from other countries re-enact wars? What do veterans, or soldiers currently fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan, think about the idea of war as a theatrical exercise? Do these re-enactments glorify combat, or bring us closer to history?

Speaking of 7

Tom Bowers' restaurant notes failed to mention the location of Pacific Avenue Pizza - it's at Pacific and Cannon, next door to Tawney's Cleaners (that's the big white building with the mural, across from the Elk).

OK, so who is it?

One of today's opinion columns had an overline attributing it to Cal Thomas, but a photo of Thomas Sowell. Both are conservatives, so it could be a fun game to guess who actually wrote the piece - and if you chose Cal Thomas, you're right. This was a production error that's easy to make (the columnist mugs are all stored in a directory and pulled in by the copy editor who lays out the page) but probably should have been caught.

"5 o'clock lightning"

Our Idaho bureau had its hands full pulling together the story on Coeur d'Alene being named a finalist for a $29 million community center grant on short notice. We didn't find out about the story until 4:30 p.m. or so, which doesn't leave a lot of wiggle room for tracking down public officials.

Coming up

BNSF is giving Rathdrum and Hauser residents a free train ride from the refueling depot to Sandpoint - Idaho reporter Erica Curless will be along for the ride.

The retirement of teacher Connie Evans after 32 years comes as her school, Hayden Lake Elementary, is closing. Reporter Taryn Brodwater will look at how the changes in CdA's school system will impact students and teachers.

You know what they say about the best-laid plans. Two large stories were held over for more work last night, and there was a scramble to fill the holes that they left. The aftermath resulted in a couple of things that might be puzzling to readers:

A story about declining fire danger had an infobox about weather conditions in Boise that ran across all editions on Page One. Normally, we would try to find Washington information for Spokane and regional editions, but there just wasn't time.

Also, in the rush to find copy for the B section, a story about the dangers posed to fire crews by insects was used a second time. The story originally ran on Sunday, but sometimes stories move multiple times on the wire, and it's easy to run something twice if you don't have time to go back and check.

Communication breakdown

Our e-mail servers have been down since Tuesday. Something to do with a malfunction during a server upgrade. I haven't been able to get much more than that out of our tech people, who understandably have their hands full.

You can still reach us by phone or mail. You can also send singing telegrams, but we may or may not tip.

Coming up:

-The Spokane Park Board is expected to approve action to remove wading pools from city parks - a new lifeguard requirement makes the pools much more expensive to operate.

-A public hearing is scheduled at 6 p.m. tonight in Coeur d'Alene on a proposal to dredge a channel at Blackwell Island.

-Researchers at WSU say fungicides and pesticides may alter the genes of entire generations of families - look for the details in tomorrow's paper.

I suppose it's a good thing that one of the more controversial topics this morning was the flatiron steak photo on the cover of IN Life today. "News is a Conversation" blogger Russ Lipton says he's going to reconsider vegetarianism. Marianne Love is reaching for the A-1 sauce.

The angle of the photo and the way the sauce is drizzled on the plate create the illusion that the meat is oozing juices - which could understandably be (un)appealing for some. Even the die-hard steak connoisseurs at the table could see how the photo might be off-putting, particularly for vegetarians.

Reader Jennifer Olsen provides a good insight on the challenges of food photography. All I can say is, what time is lunch?

Managing Editor Gary Graham did a quick survey of front pages to see how other papers treated Anne Bancroft's death. Most did the same thing we did - putting a promo in the "rail" (the index down the side of the page) or the "skybox" (the area above the newspaper's logo, also known as the "flag"). A notable exception was the L.A. Times, which ran a front page story.

At least one editor has some misgivings about referring to slain teenager Matthew Migaki as a "drug dealer" in today's story (one in which, incidentally, his last name was misspelled throughout - look for a correction tomorrow). Reporter Tom Clouse explained that while two ounces of pot may seem like a small amount, it is in fact a wholesale quantity - first-time sellers and users typically deal in "dime bags," a smaller quantity usually sold for around $10. The term "drug dealer" is meant to be descriptive of Migaki's actions, but it's also a term that carries a lot of connotations and should be used judiciously.

Coming up today:

-The effort to recall Mayor West faces its first legal test today at 1:30 p.m. Judge Craig Matheson is going to review whether the petition is legally sufficient, that is, whether the allegations listed would prove malfeasance if they are found to be true. It is important to distinguish that the judge will not be making a ruling on the veracity of the allegations themselves, only whether the recall can proceed.

-The Idaho Board of Education is considering change the way universities and fund-raising foundations operate, in response to UI's failed attempt to build a branch campus in Boise.

-Spokane Valley police are cracking down on speeders around University High School. We'll take a closer look at how and when the school zone limits are enforced.

A quick scan of the Newseum shows that our play of the governor's race announcement differed somewhat from other papers in the state. While most others used a photo of Dino Rossi leaving the podium at his press conference, we chose the AP photo of Democratic Party lawyers celebrating in the courtroom.

Two factors guided the photo selection: One, the photo of the lawyers was more candid, and revealed more about the atmosphere at the courtroom; and two, the story wasn't entirely about Rossi - it was about the court ruling. If not for the judge's decision, Rossi wouldn't have ceded the election. Rossi's announcement did, however, get the headline because it was the most current component of the story.

Jim Camden pointed out that our Olympia reporter, Richard Roesler, is also in the photo - look for the guy in the blue shirt with the red tie toward the center.

The story of Matthew Migaki's death has been generating a lot of interest on our Web site, but it's hard to know whether this is an isolated group or a broader trend across our readership.

Today we're following up on the canoe accident that injured a 7-year-old boy on Sunday, including whether installing ladders on the bridge abutments will improve safety or encourage mischief. We're also exploring the potential impact this will have on the development of a whitewater park in the area.

Spokane County could decide the fate of the controversial Southridge Development today. Neighbors on the South Hill oppose the project on the grounds that it will endanger nearby wetlands.

The newsroom is generally down to a skeleton crew on Sundays, typically a pretty slow news day - so reporter Megan Cooley and photographer Liz Kishimoto had their hands full covering a shooting and near-drowning. It's rare to have two breaking news stories on a Monday front page.

Rave reviews for Tom Lutey's Exit 289 piece on the supposed California invasion, as well as Paul Turner's Sunday story on the changing face of family road trips.

City Editor Carla Savalli and reporter Bill Morlin were at an Investigative Reporters and Editors conference in Denver this weekend for a panel discussion on our coverage of Mayor West. Carla reports the reaction was "almost universally positive," though some reporters were still not convinced we exhausted all alternatives before turning to a forensic computer expert to verify West's online activity.

Speaking of West, why didn't we post video of the entire press conference on our site? In short, we don't have the technology to stream such a large video file (yet), and the end product would have taken users forever to download. Videographer/photographer Colin Mulvany and I ultimately decided to use a judicious selection of highlights instead.

In watching those clips, you may notice a sneezed expletive from one of the "reporters" (it's actually a guy who used fake credentials to get in). This situation always prompts a lot of discussion - do we print the expletive in the story, or do we write around it? Newspapers almost always opt for the latter, avoiding turning a story about the mayor into a debate over the use of profanity in print.

Coming up for today:

A Chelan County judge upheld Gregoire's election as governor, saying the Republicans failed to prove that errors in the process caused Dino Rossi to lose.

A north Spokane church is in transition between the Norwegian immigrant community that founded it and the Russian-speaking congregation that recently bought the building.

Reporter Jim Camden is in Clarkston today to cover a congressional panel on salmon recovery.

We've heard a lot of postitive feedback on Joel Ferris Jr.'s guest column today on the demise of Joel Inc. after 55 years. Readers and editors alike appreciated Ferris' candor and honesty - the closure is surely a tragedy for the family, yet Ferris offers a pragmatic and forward-looking assessment of the problems our busienss community faces.

The graphic on Page One with the story on the CDC's assessment of the dangers of obesity was a bit confusing - it lists the numbers of deaths attributed to obesity based on varying statistical methods, but doesn't say whether the number is per year. It's a safe assumption, but we shouldn't leave readers in a position of having to speculate what data mean.

Coming up today:

>>Mayor West will give a press conference at 5 p.m. today - we'll have a story and video up on our Web site this evening.

>>Closing arguments are expected in the governor's race challenge today. Look for an update this afternoon. We'll also take a look at some of the diehard spectators in the Wenatchee courtroom.

A soldier from Idaho's 116th Brigade died from non-combat injuries Wednesday. Virgil R. Case, from Mountain Home, was the first soldier from the unit to die in Iraq.

Here's what else is in store for Page One tomorrow:

Insurgents killed 39 people in a series of attacks today in Iraq. Some of this information was in today's (Thursday's) paper - news from Iraq tends to come over the wire around 10:30 or 11:00 at night, usually just in time to make our print edition.

The county Republican Party called for Jim West to resign at a press conference this afternoon. Also, West's attorney, Bill Etter, will be on a panel discussion on KSPS tonight at 7 p.m.

Bush chose California Rep. Christopher Cox to head the Securities and Exchange Commission today.

And finally, the CDC distanced itself from a report downplaying the harms of obesity, reaffirming that being overweight is not, in fact, healthy.

Reader Marianne Love offered some feedback on today's paper via our News is a Conversation blog, which I was able to share with the editors at this mornings meetings. It's the next best thing to actually having someone at the table helping critique our work.

Marianne's comments sparked a conversation about whether Doug Clark's column today about Jim West's national TV appearance is crossing the line into opportunism. We're certainly more sensitive to the problem of "piling on" with this story since we were the ones who first broke it. However, we also offer columnists a great deal of latitude in terms of subject matter, and Clark has a track record as an equal-opportunity satirist. We can't beat the story to death, but we also can't suppress our writers too much.

Incidentally, those little channel number icons in the print edition of Clark's column were no small feat to pull off - credit Senior Editor and design zenmaster Geoff Pinnock for that.

Several editors felt that the promo for the Photo of the Day on Huckleberries Online was weak tea for Page One. We tease to the Web site daily, and this was an effort to make the promos more specific and current. However, the front page is also a vehicle for communicating to readers the most important news items of the day, and Photo of the Day probably doesn't rank real high on that list.

Here's what we're working on for today:

>>The Spokane County Republican Party is expected to announce their position today on Mayor West at 4 p.m. - we'll have the story on the Web site as quickly as we can pull it together.

>>Sen. Patty Murray is in town to speak at the groundbreaking fo the National Guard's Combined Readiness Center.

>>Not much going on at the governor's race challenge today - closing arguments and a wrap-up are expected tomorrow.

Researchers have found that people who inhale brain compound called oxytocin became more trusting, and allowed a partner to invest more simulated money than people who didn't get the hormone. The appeal to con men and supervillains is obvious, but neuroscientists are also excited by the research.

Here are the other contenders for Page One tomorrow:

We ride along with a North Idaho couple scrambling to find a house in an exploding real estate market.

The county prosecuting attorney's office has filed a petition with Superior Court to recall Jim West. We've got other developments, including a reaction to the council's vote to recall West from his legal team.

Changes are in store for the Spokane County Interstate Fair, including lower ticket prices.

Boundary County's school levy passed, we'll get reaction from residents.

Dutch voters have rejected the EU's constitution, and it may be dead for good.

If you've been puzzling over the meaning of "Dead Salad Perfect," you're not alone. The headline, we're told, is a play on "dead solid perfect," a golf expression that is also the title of a novel as well as a movie starring Randy Quaid. In retrospect, it seems fairly clear that most of our food section readers probably aren't big Randy Quaid fans. Play-on-words headlines, especially ones this obscure, should probably be shopped around the newsroom before going into print.

What did Steve Eugster say at last night's City Council meeting? The photo shows Dennis Hession sternly cutting off his testimony, but all we get in the story is a brief mention of Eugster's contention that the newspaper conducted an "illegal invasion of privacy." We'll look into getting ahold of video footage from the meeting to post online.

Reporter Shawn Vestal used all of his Idaho connections to localize the Deep Throat story - he even got the name of a high school classmate of Mark Felt's, only to find that the classmate had passed away. Felt, at 91, has outlived most of his UI peers.

In the pipeline today:

A look at the region's exploding housing market; why ArtFest is moving to Coeur d'Alene Park; the Habitat for Humanity Blitz Build is underway; and an update on the governor's race challenge.