The James Logan Courier

By Melissa Vargas
McClatchy Newspapers (MCT)

FORT WORTH, Texas — Sometimes, it's Mom and Dad who are naughty when they should be nice.

At this time of year, many have relied on the Santa clause: a dire warning that Mom or Dad can notify the jolly man — sometimes even by cell phone — when a child won't pick up her toys, clean his room or stop throwing a tantrum.

Every child knows what that means. No presents.

By Kim Barker
Chicago Tribune (MCT)

KABUL, Afghanistan — One of the Taliban's top commanders, a financial and logistics expert with ties to al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, was killed last week in an air strike in the lawless Afghan desert near the Pakistan border, the U.S. military announced Saturday.

By Joe Swickard
Detroit Free Press (MCT)

FALLUJAH, Iraq — Christmas comes to Bravo Company every few days in a couple of seven-ton Oshkosh trucks.

Twelve feet tall, 26 feet wide and Marine green, the trucks back up to the Fallujah train station, and the men, forming a line of khaki and camo elves, unload a mound of packages that quickly fill a lobby area shoulder-high with goodies from home.

Yet all the tiny twinkling trees, ornaments and tinsel shipped by families, friends and school children _ as welcome as they are to these troops — can't transform the station with a bomb-blasted locomotive into an island of Yuletide joy in the middle of strife-torn Iraq.


U.S. Army Soldiers from 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment provide security for Iraqi army soldiers during a patrol in Adhamiya, Iraq, Dec. 11, 2006. The purpose of the patrol is to decrease sectarian violence and insurgency activity while increasing the Iraqi security force's capabilities. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Jeffrey Alexander)

By Steve Corkran
Contra Costa Times (MCT)

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Raiders' offense Saturday night featured a different quarterback, a backup running back, different players at the guard positions, the third and fifth wide receivers as starters, and a new tight end, as well as a new offensive coordinator.

Anybody else have a suggestion for coach Art Shell? He now has tried just about everything through 15 games. To no avail. Try though they may, each game the Raiders add another inglorious chapter to a season destined to be remembered as the one the offense forgot.


Oakland Raiders defensive tackle Warren Sapp (99) tries to rally the fans during the team's final home game of the season against the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs defeated the Raiders, 20-9, at McAfee Coliseum in Oakland, California, Saturday, December 23, 2006. (Sherry LaVars/Contra Costa Times/MCT)

John Muir (April 21, 1838 – December 24, 1914) was one of the earliest modern preservationists. His letters, essays, and books telling of his adventures in nature, especially in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California, were read by millions and are still popular today. His direct activism helped to save the Yosemite Valley and other wilderness areas. The Sierra Club, which he founded, is now one of the most important conservation organizations in the United States. But more than that his vision of nature's value for its own sake and for its spiritual, not just practical, benefits to humankind helped to change the way we look at the natural world.

Read The Mountains of California by John Muir one of seven of his books available free from Project Gutenberg.


John Muir