A pungent, sickly sweet odor punctuates the breeze on 33rd Street in Oak Park. Ramon and Jennifer Nickelberry grimace as they stand in their front yard and gesture toward the vacant lot next door. More dead things, they say.

UNITED NATIONS - President Bush wants the U.N. to uphold its pledge to fight for freedom in lands of poverty and terror and plans to punctuate his challenge by promising new sanctions against the military regime in Myanmar.

Just an advisory note to all Maricopa County Regional Library User parents: unless you put a parental control on your child’s library card, any child can check out any DVD, even sexually explicit “R-rated” movies. Please monitor your child’s library card and activity for their protection, especially over the summer months. It is our duty to protect our children.

I find it so routine, the negative comments regarding the recent “Mirandizing” letter to the editor. The comments as to which TV news reporting agency is the most biased is a banal and moot point which will never be put to rest. As are the comments about watching Law & Order, et al. Those readers have missed the issue; why isn’t the ‘suspected’ bomber being adjudicated as a terrorist instead of a poor Islamic refugee who enjoys blowing up his fellow citizens in the name of Allah? And yes, the shoe bomber was 2001; and again the issue was missed. That of, “Did the government learn nothing from it?” I sense people suffering political shame.

Arizona has the ‘Stupid Motorist Law’ for people who continue to challenge the forces of nature with their vehicles. It’s about time we had the ‘Stupid Hiker/Camper Law’ for those who think they can outwit nature/happenstance with their personal abilities. These folks are obviously lacking in common sense and make themselves a liability to the tax payer. I sincerely hope (these people are) held accountable and made to pay monetarily for their ‘stupid’ indiscretions.

Could it be there is a politico agenda regards the President’s White House ‘private’ swearing in, Sunday the 20th, and it not being held at the Capitol? The Constitution dictates the President is to be sworn in on the 20th of January which falls on a Sunday this year. Since there is to be no connection between “church” & “state”, could it be the public ceremony at the Capitol, planned for the 21st, Martin Luther King Day, is part of a hidden agenda? Sure smells that way.

A couple things to address: First, the Venter who disagrees with the wholesomeness of “Leave It To Beaver,” et al, obviously doesn’t get the moral of the story.

Allegiant Airways will halt flights from Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport to Honolulu in August for a short time, an airways spokesperson said Tuesday.

After hearing about how the TV show, “The Bible,” was causing such a controversy, I made it a point to start watching it to see what all the fuss was about.

Love is in the air at Mesa’s monthly Second Friday art walk 6 to 10 p.m. Feb. 8. Downtown Mesa’s historic Main Street comes alive with the Valentine theme “Sweethearts on Main” where attendees are encouraged to get out that zoot suit or flapper dress they’ve been hiding in the back of the closet and participate in a dance and costume competition while they rekindle romance over a dinner at one of downtown’s many restaurants.

That’s ‘YOUR’ money their donating folks and I, as a Salt River client and entrapped customer of a monopoly, am insulted by it. Personally, I wouldn’t give two cents to attend a Super Bowl game, but that’s besides the point. The City of Glendale has trickled away millions of $’s of their tax payers hard earned monies on sporting events and venues, unfortunately that’s their problem. But I sure don’t relish the fact that a public utility is using my hard-earned cash to help finance a sporting event supported by a minority of the utility’s paying customers. Next time SRP wants to raise it’s rates, give a second thought to where the money may be spent. Gee, I wonder if it has anything to do with a SRP executive being on the Super Bowl Committee?

In observance of Veterans Day on Sunday, Nov. 11, Famous Dave’s Bar-B-Que would like to thank all former and current military personnel for their dedication and commitment to our country by offering a “Two Meat Salute.” The free special is a choice of two different meats served with a corn bread muffin and a side.

Mesa officials hope to gather ideas for buildings, parks, programs and more from residents through a new app dubbed “This is My Mesa.” Through the app, people can provide ideas of what could be part of the city’s general, transportation or transit plan.

I’d like to comment on those ridiculous remarks made by a person in your Vent column last Wednesday about the old “Leave It To Beaver” TV program. Where in the heck do they get the idea that it was racist and sexist and that the kids were constantly misbehaving? That show never had anyone smoking pot, sniffing cocaine and using swear words as today’s TV programs do. They also never promoted the idea of people living together and making babies BEFORE marriage — that’s if they would get married at all as in today’s TV programs. We need more programs today to show that at one time, we had a decent family oriented society in America.

Someone tell me if I’m not reasoning properly here; I just viewed the 9 p.m. news on FOX-10 where one of the stories had to do with Sandusky’s recording of riotousness and innocence sent from his cell in ‘Stalag 17.’ The two newscasters were both complaining about reporting the story, thinking they had heard the last of Sandusky. Correct me if I’m wrong but, aren’t the folks who report the news, (media), responsible for it’s content and presentation? I’ll bet there isn’t one viewer who was the least bit interested in Sandusky’s boo-hooing nor the report of Jordan Van Der Sloot effectively sewing his oats in a Peruvian prison.

Is it any wonder more and more folks, to include yours truly, are less enthusiastic and interested in the upcoming federal election and the candidates involved. As one watches their speeches and TV ads, one can only liken them to “static noise.”

Now that the home pregnancy test shows a bundle of baby soon to arrive, what’s next?

As the voice of 1960s “flower children,” The Mamas and The Papas came to define that decade with songs — like “California Dreamin’” and “Monday, Monday” — we still recognize today.

When you are applying for a job, you are usually required to fill out an application. Most employers review your application before they choose to see you.

Travis Miner had 74 yards rushing and a touchdown on 14 carries to lead McClintock to a 22-7 victory Friday over host Glendale.

December 13, 2004

Highland High School sophomore Chelsea Johnson, 15, loves to talk. The Gilbert student keeps in touch with many of her classmates on the telephone, but the main way she communicates with her friends when they are apart is through Internet instant messaging.

It is now being reported the Boston bombing suspect was unnecessarily ‘Mirandized’ in the midst of the FBI interrogations from which the FBI was obtaining important intelligence re present and future terrorist activities. The question now is; did the attorney general’s Boston representative jump the gun by rushing a Federal Magistrate and lawyers to the suspects hospital room to ‘file a criminal complaint’ and ‘Mirandized’? By doing so it placed the suspect into civil proceedings which we find out is not a necessary decision at this time. It has effectively limited further FBI interrogation(s).