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Tuesday, January 31, 2012 – Daily News 7A WORLD BRIEFING Protest rekindles debate about flag-burning OAKLAND (AP) — Many in the crowd outside Oakland City Hall shouted ''Burn it! Burn it!'' as masked protesters readied to set fire to an American flag. That's when a woman emerged from the scrum, screaming for them to stop, that it would hurt the cause. Moments later, the flames began, and suddenly a movement that seemingly vanished weeks ago was back in the spotlight, this time for an act of protest that has long divided the nation and now the movement itself. The images of the flag- burning went viral in the hours after Saturday's demonstrations on Oak- land's streets, with Occupy supporters denouncing the act as unpatriotic and a black mark on the movement. Others called it justified. The flag-burning, how- ever, raised questions about whether the act will tarnish a movement of largely peace- ful protests and alienate peo- ple who agree with its mes- sage against corporate excess and economic inequality. ''I'm quite confident that the general view is that vio- lence of this sort — whether it's symbolic or otherwise — is contrary to the spirit of the movement and should be renounced,'' Columbia Uni- versity sociologist Todd Gitlin said. Gitlin, who is writing a book about the movement, noted that flags have had a prominent place at the Occupy Wall Street encampments that sprang up last fall. They are typically pinned to tents or waving from wooden flagpoles. ''I was thinking how they have come to embrace the American flag as a hallmark of this movement; it's very common to see American flags honored and elevated at these encampments,'' he said. Flag-burning has been a powerful symbol since the days of the anti-Vietnam War movement. Congress at the time passed a law to pro- tect the flag in 1968, and most states followed suit. In 1989, the U.S. Supreme Court decided such laws were unconstitu- tional restrictions on free speech. The court's decision set off a move in Congress to pass a constitutional amendment to prohibit dese- HOME OF THE BEST TRI-TIP THIS SIDE OF THE HUDSON RIVER 2 Bud's BBQ Best of Tehama County 2009 * 2010 * 2011 Mon.- Fri. 11am-6pm Sat. 11am-3pm 22825 Antelope Blvd. Red Bluff 528-0799 cration of the flag. An attempt in 2006 failed by only one vote in the Senate. In Oakland, social activism and civic unrest have long marked the rough- edged city across the bay from San Francisco. Beset by poverty, crime and a decades-long tense relation- ship between the police and residents, its streets have seen many clashes, includ- ing anti-draft protests in the 1960s that spilled into town from neighboring Berkeley. At Occupy Oakland, flag-burning is nothing new. A well-known Bay Area activist burned three during protests that temporarily shut down the Port of Oak- land in November. Troy Johnson, an Occu- py Oakland member, said he arrived just in time Saturday to watch his friend, whom he would not name in order to protect his identity, emerge from City Hall with an American flag in tow. ''He asked the crowd: 'What do want us to do with the flag?''' Johnson recalled. ''They said, 'Burn it! Burn it! Burn it!''' Fla. officials defend decision GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — The Florida High- way Patrol says conditions were clear when they decid- ed to reopen the interstate highway where 10 people were killed in two deadly pileups amid heavy smoke and fog. Lt. Patrick Riordan said Monday in a news confer- ence that visibility quickly deteriorated after they reopened the highway early Sunday morning. The crash- es started shortly after. About midnight, the highway patrol closed Inter- state 75 near Gainesville because of low visibility but reopened it about 3:30 a.m. Pileups began about 15 min- utes later, with survivors describing smoke and fog so thick they couldn't see. Riordan says troopers did their ''due diligence'' before a sergeant and lieutenant decided to reopen the road. He says drivers have to be alert and be prepared to make good judgments. Americans barred from leaving Egypt given refuge CAIRO (AP) — Three American citizens barred from leaving Egypt have Auto Recycling Inc. *WILL PAY CASH FOR JUNK CARS* Quality Used Parts for Less 824-2880 10 ACRES OF INVENTORY Highway 99W & Capay Road (Halfway between Corning & Orland) 22521 Capay Road, Corning CA. 96021 Mon-Fri 8am-5pm • Sat. 9am-2pm All Star • DOMESTIC • FOREIGN • PICK-UPS 442 Walnut St., Red Bluff Valentine's Day Cards Courageous DVD and apparel in stock! Great selection of Bibles 15% off ends February 3rd 530-527-7663 sought refuge at the Ameri- can Embassy in Cairo amid growing tensions between the two allies over an Egypt- ian investigation into for- eign-funded pro-democracy groups. The White House said Monday it was disappointed with Egypt's handing of the issue, which U.S. officials have warned could stand in the way of more than $1 bil- lion in badly needed U.S. aid. The growing spat between the two longtime allies reflects the uncertainty as they redefine their rela- tionship nearly one year after the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak following an 18-day popular uprising. Mubarak was a steadfast U.S. ally, scrupulously maintaining Egypt's peace treaty with Israel and while seeking to mediate between Israel and the Palestinians — a clear American interest. Now, Egypt's council of ruling generals, who took power when Mubarak stood down last Feb. 11, often accuse ''foreign hands'' of promoting protests against their rule. Reactor shuts down, releases steam at Illinois plant BYRON, Ill. (AP) — A nuclear reactor at a northern Illinois plant shut down Monday after losing power, and steam was being vented to reduce pressure, accord- ing to officials from Exelon Nuclear and federal regula- tors. Unit 2 at Byron Generat- ing Station shut down around 10:18 a.m., after los- ing power from an off-site source, Exelon officials said. Diesel generators began supplying power to the plant equipment and operators began releasing steam from the non-nuclear side of the plant to help cool the reactor, officials said. Even though the turbine is not turning to produce electricity, ''you still need to cool the equipment.'' said U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission spokeswoman Viktoria Mitlyng. Releasing steam helps ''take away some of that energy still being produced by nuclear reaction but that doesn't have anywhere to go now.'' The steam contains low levels of radioactive tritium, but the levels are safe for workers and the public, fed- eral and plant officials said. Unit 1 was operating nor- mally while engineers inves- tigate why Unit 2 lost power, which comes into the plant from the outside power grid, Mitlyng said. Smoke was seen from an onsite station transformer, she said, but no evidence of a fire was found when the plant's fire brigade responded. Water trucked to Central Texas town AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A Central Texas village that's become the state's first community to run out of water due to a punishing drought will have water trucked in by the Lower Colorado River Authority, officials said Monday. Mon-Fri: 9am - 7pm Sat: 9am - 5pm Sun: Closed En Español 26 Sale Lane, Red Bluff (530) 529-2192 www.Claytonredbluff.com $48,505 3 bedroom, 2 bath Singlewide: Includes home, set-up, delivery, X12 foundation, gravel pad, A/C, skirting and steps Local Business Operators: Appointments being accepted for Custom personalized Online Marketing Presentations www..RedBluffDailyNews.com Want to learn more about online users? Who is using Facebook and Google? Where do local residents turn for online news and information? National online marketing experts will be in Tehama County February 6 – 10, 2012 Only! PLUS! Free to registered businesses: Pulse of America Survey data on Demographics and Spending Patterns of local digital households To register for an appointment, call your Daily News Account Executive (530) 527-2151 or email advertise@redbluffdailynews.com Agency spokeswoman Clara Tuma said the region's wells are no longer produc- ing enough water to meet Spicewood Beach's needs. The community located on Lake Travis and about 35 miles west of Austin, has about 500 water connections that serve roughly 1,100 people and an elementary school. The first tanker was expected to arrive Monday afternoon. ''The reading over the weekend showed the levels were stabilizing, but the amount of gallons per minute we were able to draw from the well was going down,'' Tuma said. ''And so it became clear to us that we needed to begin the trucking operation today.'' Spicewood Beach has watched the water level drop since October 2010, when the worst single-year drought in Texas began. Tuma said the authority does not know how long it may have to truck in water, but that a recent storm and conservation efforts had helped slow the decline in the well levels. Nearly 14- pound baby boy born in Des Moines DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa woman has given birth to a boy weighing 13 pounds and 13 ounces — without the aid of surgery. Asher Stewardson was born Thursday at Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines, measuring 23 1/2 inches long. Fifteen months ago, his brother, Judah, arrived weighing 12 pounds and an ounce at birth. Mercy officials say only a tenth of 1 percent of all newborns weigh more than 11 pounds at birth. The boys' mother, Kendall Stewardson, endured six hours of labor without an epidural injec- tion. She says she and her husband, Joshua, wanted to avoid cesarean delivery because that wouldn't have been good for her or Asher. Breakfast Special Homemade Chicken Fried Steak Served with 3 eggs, hash browns or home fries & toast $799 Served 6:30am-2pm 7 days a week No substitutions ORDERS TO GO 7875 HWY 99E LOS MOLINOS, CA 384-1265