Copyright 2000 The Omaha World-Herald Company
Omaha
World-Herald
January 21, 2000, Friday METRO EDITION
SECTION: ;NEWS; Pg. 17
LENGTH: 810 words
HEADLINE:
Order Should End Protest at Pine Ridge
BODY:
Stating that "law and order needed to be restored" and public safety
ensured, the Oglala Tribal Court on Thursday basically ordered an end to the
occupation of the tribal headquarters by protesters.
Chief Judge Patrick
Lee's order instructed the Tribal Council to appoint an assistant treasurer so
Wesley "Chuck" Jacobs would not be the tribe's sole signatory on checks drawn on
the Oglalas' primary accounts at the First National Bank of Gordon in Gordon,
Neb.
Removing or trimming Jacobs' duties as treasurer was one of the
goals of the 100 grass-roots protesters who occupied the tribal headquarters
Sunday.
- David Hendee
Johanns to Object To Waste-Route Plan
Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns will protest the possible shipment through
the state of spent nuclear fuel and other high-level radioactive waste at a
Department of Energy hearing Monday in Lincoln. The hearing will focus on a
draft environmental impact statement the agency has released on a proposed
permanent storage facility for the waste at Yucca Mountain in
Nevada.
Interstate 80 and several railway lines across Nebraska are
identified in the statement as possible shipping routes for the waste, said
Gayle Fisher, an agency spokeswoman.
Chris Peterson, a spokesman for
Johanns, said the governor's statement will include concerns about public safety
and about safeguarding the shipments.
Fisher said Yucca
Mountain has not been selected for waste storage and remains under
study, so no definitive routes have been selected.
Waste from two
nuclear power plants in Nebraska - Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station near Fort
Calhoun and Cooper Nuclear Station near Brownville - would be stored there,
along with waste from other places.
Monday's hearings will be at the
Ramada Inn Airport, 1101 Bond St., in Lincoln, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 6
p.m. to 9 p.m. The draft environmental statement is posted at www.ymp.gov
- Julie Anderson
Legion Leader Pushes Benefits, Strong Defense
The national commander of the American Legion came to Omaha Thursday
evening armed with a call for a strong national defense and improved medical
benefits for the nation's veterans.
Al Lance, who was elected national
commander in September, wrapped up a two-day swing through Nebraska with an
appearance at Post 374 at 4618 S. 139th St. He was scheduled to address about
200 people at the post.
Lance said the United States has a hollow
military force that is being asked to do too much.
When the Berlin Wall
came down, he said, the world did not achieve the peace we had hoped for.
An active-duty military force of nearly 1.4 million people is too small
to carry out its mission, Lance said, burning out personnel and leading to the
service's abysmal retention rates.
Some experts, he said, estimate the
nation needs an active-duty force of about 1.8 million to fulfill all the
obligations it has taken on.
Lance also called for improved funding for
Department of Veterans Affairs health-care programs.
He praised the men
and women he met during visits to other posts in Norfolk, Grand Island, Columbus
and the organization's largest post worldwide - Post 3 in Lincoln, which has
6,000 members.
The Nebraska Legion has enrolled half of the veterans
eligible to be in the organization, more than the 16percent national average.
- Mike Sherry
Diplomas to Veterans Will Continue
North
Platte, Neb. - A program to award World War II veterans with their high school
diplomas will continue this year.
Gov. Mike Johanns said the success of
Operation Recognition, a joint effort of the State Veterans Affairs and
Education Departments, prompted the program's continuation.
Through
Operation Recognition, diplomas are awarded to people who left school in the
1930s and 1940s to serve in the armed forces and never finished their education
after their return home.
Nearly 700 veterans received high school
diplomas last year in ceremonies across the state, many at high schools.
- AP
State Bar Association Celebrates 100th Year
Lincoln
- The state's lawyers association celebrated its 100th anniversary Friday with a
ceremony at the State Capitol rotunda.
Amy Longo of Omaha, president of
the Nebraska State Bar Association, presented a plaque describing the
significance of the organization to John Hendry, chief justice of the Nebraska
Supreme Court, and other dignitaries, including Gov. Mike Johanns.
-
Paul Hammel
Lottery Sales Resume After Computer Problem
Des
Moines - Ticket sales for Iowa's lottery drawings, suspended for more than 24
hours because of a computer software problem, were back online at 5 a.m. Friday.
The games affected were Powerball, Cash 4 Life, Iowa's $ 100,000 Cash
Game and Pick 3. Scratch and pull-tab tickets were not affected.
LOAD-DATE: January 21, 2000 
