Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/26294
6B – Daily News – Thursday, March 3, 2011 Furniture Depot 235 So. Main St., Red Bluff 527-1657 MON.-FRI. 9:00-6:00 SAT. 9:00-5:00 • SUN. 11:00-5:00 SCOTUS: Anti-gay protesters allowed WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that a grieving father’s pain over mocking protests at his Marine son’s funeral must yield to First Amendment protections for free speech. All but one justice sided with a fundamentalist church that has stirred out- rage with raucous demon- strations contending God is punishing the military for the nation’s tolerance of homosexuality. The 8-1 decision in favor of the Westboro Bap- tist Church of Topeka, Kan., was the latest in a line of court rulings that, as Chief Justice John Roberts said in his opinion for the court, protects ‘‘even hurt- ful speech on public issues to ensure that we do not sti- fle public debate.’’ The decision ended a lawsuit by Albert Snyder, who sued church members for the emotional pain they caused by showing up at his son Matthew’s funeral. As they have at hundreds of other funerals, the West- boro members held signs with provocative messages, including ‘‘Thank God for dead soldiers,’’ ‘’You’re Going to Hell,’’ ‘’God Hates the USA/Thank God for 9/11,’’ and one that combined the U.S. Marine Corps motto, Semper Fi, with a slur against gay men. Justice Samuel Alito, the lone dissenter, said Snyder wanted only to ‘‘bury his son in peace.’’ Instead, Alito said, the pro- testers ‘‘brutally attacked’’ Matthew Snyder to attract public attention. ‘‘Our pro- found national commit- EXPERTISE IS STANDING BY. MAKE AN APPOINTMENT, TODAY. ©2010 HRB Tax Group, Inc. 1315 Solano St, Corning, CA 96021 530-824-7999 120 Bell Mill Road, Red Bluff, CA 96080 530-527-7515 Mon-Fri 9 am to 7 pm Thru Thurs. March 31, 2011 NoTAXSale *”no sales tax” in reference to discount given equal to the amount of calculated sales tax. WORLD BRIEFING and had retreated to a uni- versity campus 5 miles (7 kilometers) away. Ohio Senate passes bill to ment to free and open debate is not a license for the vicious verbal assault that occurred in this case,’’ he said. The ruling, though, was in line with many earlier court decisions that said the First Amendment exists to protect robust debate on public issues and free expression, no matter how distasteful. A year ago, the justices struck down a fed- eral ban on videos that show graphic violence against animals. In 1988, the court unanimously overturned a verdict for the Rev. Jerry Falwell in his libel lawsuit against Hus- tler magazine founder Larry Flynt over a raunchy parody ad. Rebels corner Gadhafi forces BREGA, Libya (AP) — Rebel forces routed troops loyal to Moammar Gadhafi in a fierce battle over an oil port Wednesday, scram- bling over the dunes of a Mediterranean beach through shelling and an airstrike to corner their attackers. While they thwarted the regime’s first counteroffensive in eastern Libya, opposition leaders still pleaded for outside airstrikes to help them oust the longtime leader. The attack on Brega, a strategic oil facility 460 A Clean, Reliable, Trustworthy, Chimney Company... Possible? ”Their tarps are always clean and my home is always clean afterward. What I like best is their reliability and quality.” “I can trust them!” Dr. Evan Reasor Flue Season 527 3331 THE Chimney Professionals miles (740 kilometers) east of Gadhafi’s stronghold in Tripoli, illustrated the deep difficulties the Libyan leader’s armed forces — an array of militiamen, merce- naries and military units — have had in rolling back the uprising that has swept over the entire eastern half of Libya since Feb. 15. In the capital of Tripoli, Gadhafi warned against U.S. or other Western inter- vention, vowing to turn Libya into ‘‘another Viet- nam,’’ and saying any for- eign troops coming into his country ‘‘will be entering hell and they will drown in blood.’’ At least 10 anti-Gadhafi fighters were killed and 18 wounded in the battle for Brega, Libya’s second- largest petroleum facility, which the opposition has held since last week. Citizen militias flowed in from a nearby city and from the opposition stronghold of Benghazi hours away to reinforce the defense, final- ly repelling the regime loy- alists. The attack began just after dawn, when several hundred pro-Gadhafi forces in 50 trucks and SUVs mounted with machine guns descended on the port, driving out a small opposi- tion contingent and seizing control of the oil facilities, port and airstrip. But by afternoon, they had lost it all Alan Wylie Inspector 4950 Mountain Lakes Blvd #B Redding, CA 96003 Mobile: 530/638-1015 TERMITE INSPECTION FREE & SERVICE* or UP TO 15% OFF TERMITE TREATMENT PEST EVALUATION FREE & SAVE 10% OFF PEST CONTROL SERVICE* ban striking COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The bargaining rights of public workers in Ohio would be dramat- ically reduced and strikes would be banned under a bill narrowly passed by the Ohio Senate on Wednesday. A GOP-backed mea- sure that would restrict the collective bargaining rights of roughly 350,000 teachers, firefighters, police officers and other public employees squeaked through the state Senate on a 17-16 vote. Six Republicans sided with Democrats against the measure. Firefighters and teach- ers shouted ‘‘Shame!’’ in the chamber as the legis- lation was approved. The bill would ban strikes by public workers and establish penalties for those who do participate in walkouts. Unionized workers could negotiate wages, hours and certain work conditions — but not health care, sick time or pension benefits. The legislation would also set up a new process to settle worker disputes, giving elected officials the final say in contract disagreements. Binding arbitration, which police officers and firefighters use to resolve contract disputes as an alternative to strikes, would be elimi- nated. Senate sends spending bill to Obama WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate on Wednesday sent President Barack Obama a Republi- can-drafted stopgap fund- ing bill that trims $4 bil- lion from the budget, completing hastily processed legislation designed to keep partisan divisions from forcing a government shutdown. Moments later, Obama called on congressional leader to meet with top administration figures including Vice President Joe Biden to discuss a longer-term measure to fund the government through Sept. 30. ‘‘We can find common ground on a budget that makes sure we are living within our means,’’ Obama said. ‘‘This agree- ment should be biparti- san, it should be free of any party’s social or polit- ical agenda, and it should be reached without delay.’’ The White House said Obama will sign the bill. Congressional Repub- licans said it’s up to Democrats to offer an alternative to carry into the talks. They have yet to produce one to respond to a $1.2 trillion omnibus spending measure that passed the House last month. devout Muslim, who was born and raised in Germany and worked at the airport. In Washington, Presi- dent Barack Obama promised to ‘‘spare no effort’’ in investigating the slayings. ‘‘I’m saddened and I’m outraged by this attack,’’ he said. The attack came as the bus sat outside the airport’s Terminal 2, according to Frankfurt police spokesman Manfred Fuellhardt. The bus driver and a passenger were killed, while one air- man suffered light injuries and a second suffered seri- ous wounds and was in life- threatening condition, he said. Wis. stalemate could drag on for months MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin’s budget stalemate over union bar- gaining rights shows no sign of resolution — and it could be a long wait. The governor isn’t budg- 2 US airmen killed, 2 injured in Frankfurt shooting FRANKFURT, Ger- many (AP) — A man armed with a handgun attacked a bus carrying U.S. Air Force troops at Frank- furt airport Wednesday, killing two airmen and wounding two others before being taken into custody, authorities said. Boris Rhein, the top security official in the Ger- man state of Hesse where the shooting took place, identified the shooter as a 21-year-old from Kosovo. Family members in Kosovo described the suspect as a ing. AWOL Democrats aren’t planning to come back. And, despite talk of deadlines and threats of mass layoffs, the state does- n’t really have to pass a bud- get to pay its bills until at least May. Even then, there may be other options that could extend the standoff for months. ‘‘This is a battle to the death,’’ said Mordecai Lee, a political scientist at the University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee. ‘‘Unless one party can come up with a compromise that the other party will buy, which I doubt, this really could go on indefinitely. I could see this going on until the sum- mer.’’ The confrontation began Feb. 11, when Republican Gov. Scott Walker proposed legislation that would strip most public workers of their collective bargaining rights as part of a plan to fix a bud- get deficit projected to be $137 million by July. Democrats, who are in the minority in the Legisla- ture, hightailed it for the Illi- nois border on the day the Senate was to adopt the bill. Their absence left the cham- ber one member short of the quorum needed for a vote.