Charleston Gazette

Men's Health Magazine: ; Survey Calls Charleston America's Most Accident-Prone City

Eight months after judging Charleston to be to America's "Worst City for Men" in terms of health and recreation, Men's Health magazine has declared West Virginia's capital to be at the bottom of the heap in another category. But before you decide to rush to a newsstand to see what it is, be sure to wear your seatbelt, obey traffic laws, and for good measure, put on a helmet: According to the October issue of Men's Health, Charleston is also the nation's most accident-prone metropolis.

A Shoulder to Lean On: ; Butterflies Raise Childhood Cancer Awareness

Monica Thornton caught up Sunday with some of the hospital nurses who cared for her daughter, Harley, along with other children and family members she's met along the way. Thornton and her husband, Glen, joined other families who have lived through pediatric cancer.

Iran Reports Test-Firing of Short-Range Missiles

TEHRAN - Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard said it successfully test-fired short-range missiles Sunday in drills meant to show Tehran is prepared to crush any military threat from another country. The display of force comes days after the U.S. and its allies warned Iran over a newly revealed nuclear facility it was secretly constructing.

Mu Grades Controversy: ; Perdue Daughter Says Two Memos Violated Privacy

Emily Perdue said she did nothing wrong and got no special treatment when she earned two A grades this summer to replace two "incomplete" grades for courses she took during the spring 2009 semester at Marshall University. During an interview on Sunday, Perdue said she received the incomplete grades after she withdrew from two courses taught by Laura Wyant, a professor of adult and technical education at Marshall.

Health-Care Reform: ; the 60th Vote: Byrd Still Wields Clout; Commentaries Question Ailing Senator's Effectiveness

Some political commentaries, including a recent Wall Street Journal analysis, question how effective Sen. Robert C. Byrd can be after suffering recent health problems, especially in helping pass health-care reform legislation. Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, told The Charleston Gazette, "As long as Byrd is able to be there, he has enormous influence because of his seniority and stature.

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Children Need More Time in School, Obama Says

WASHINGTON - Students beware: The summer vacation you just enjoyed could be sharply curtailed if President Obama gets his way. Obama says American kids spend too little time in school, putting them at a disadvantage with other students around the globe.

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Berkeley Voters Approve Bond Sale

MARTINSBURG - Voters in Berkeley County have approved a plan to sell $51.5 million in bonds to build a new high school and three other projects. County Clerk John Small Jr. says more than 63 percent of voters approved the bond sale, while 36.3 percent voted against the idea. Now that voters have approved the bond sale, Berkeley County schools are eligible for $25 million in funding from the state School Building Authority.

Study of State Court System Is Wrapping Up Research

West Virginia's Independent Commission on Judicial Reform has a little more than six weeks to recommend any changes to the state's court system. With its final report due by Nov. 15, the nine-member panel expects to hold the last of three public meetings Tuesday as it fulfills the executive order issued by Gov. Joe Manchin in April.

Nursing-Home Monitoring Faulted

WASHINGTON - A government program that brings extra scrutiny to poorly performing nursing homes leaves out hundreds of troubled facilities, investigators report. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services identifies up to 136 nursing homes as "special focus facilities" subject to more frequent inspections because of their living conditions. In every state except for Alaska, there are between one and six such facilities. But investigators said four times as many homes, or 580, could be con...

Budget Deficit Looming for Social Security: ; Unemployment, Early Retirement Take Toll On Fund

WASHINGTON - Big job losses and a spike in early retirement claims from laid-off seniors will force Social Security to pay out more in benefits than it collects in taxes the next two years, the first time that's happened since the 1980s. The deficits - $10 billion in 2010 and $9 billion in 2011 - won't affect payments to retirees because Social Security has accumulated surpluses from previous years totaling $2.5 trillion. But they will add to the overall federal deficit.

Oklahoma City Bombing Tapes Show Blanks: ; Minutes Shortly Before 1995 Blast Go Unrecorded, Investigating Attorney Says

OKLAHOMA CITY - Long-secret security tapes showing the chaos immediately after the 1995 bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building are blank in the minutes before the blast and appear to have been edited, an attorney who obtained the recordings said Sunday. "The real story is what's missing," said Jesse Trentadue, a Salt Lake City attorney who obtained the recordings through the federal Freedom of Information Act as part of an unofficial inquiry he is conducting into the April 19, 1995, bo...

What Is the Real - American - Deal?: ; Throughout History, Politicians Have Tried to Put Their Stamp On Essential U.S. Character

PITTSBURGH - The guy who runs the planet's latest G-20 summit city made an illuminating remark as he welcomed the world to his front door. "Let's keep in mind why we were chosen," Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said this past week. "The president of the United States picked Pittsburgh because of the fact that our story is real."

Beer Fest Returns to West Side

If you like brats and sauerkraut, polka music and, above all, beer, make plans for OktoberWest - West Side Main Street's version of the traditional Bavarian beer blowout. Kids are welcome at the main event, which runs from 4 to 8 p.m. Oct. 3 along Bigley Avenue between Washington Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. For the second year of the festival's short history, organizers have added OktoberWest Kids - a series of free events aimed specifically at children.

Statehouse Beat: ; Greyhound Training Tracks and State Funds

When the state Racing Commission meets today, it will continue to wrangle with its controversial legislative mandate to build two $1 million greyhound training tracks. Funding for the training tracks - which many breeders contend are unneeded and overly elaborate - will come from racetrack video lottery profits, which also was the source for the $2,424,634 paid out in 2008 from the Greyhound Breeders Development Fund.

Innerviews: ; Old Neighborhood Inspires Trail-Blazing Cop

At 71, Richard Casey James looks back with great fondness on the humble neighborhood that nurtured him, a lively, self-contained place variably called Wertz Avenue and Wilson Hollow. Inspired by boyhood memories, he wrote a little book about the history of the community and the people who lived there. The book pays special tribute to people who defied the odds and emerged from Wilson Hollow to lead highly successful lives. He knows firsthand about the challenges they faced. In one chapter, he...

Traveling Outside the U.S.? Be Ready for High Luggage Fee: ; Airlines Charging More for Passengers to Check Baggage

MINNEAPOLIS - You can leave the U.S., but it's getting harder to leave behind baggage fees. Fees to check bags on international flights are creeping in and may be here to stay. In the past three months, all the big U.S. carriers have added $50 fees to check a second bag on flights to Europe. Delta and Continental are charging second-bag fees for flights to Latin America, too.