The Commercial Appeal (2007-Current)

Corrections

Frontier Justice Is Still Here -- Support for Death Penalty Remains Strong in Texas

HUNTSVILLE, Texas - In the middle of a prison cemetery known as Peckerwood Hill, inmates Mack Matthews and George Washington share a common fate. The men were among five condemned killers who on Feb. 8, 1924, were strapped into Texas' new wooden electric chair for what the Austin American-Statesman described as a two-hour "harvest of death."

Scholarships High On Assembly List -- Education, Elderly Care, Cable Will Also Be Topics for Session

NASHVILLE - Expansion of Tennessee's lottery scholarships, prekindergarten and long-term care for the elderly - plus cable TV competition, drunken driving and public meetings - top the agenda for state lawmakers when the 2008 legislative session opens Tuesday. When the General Assembly adjourned last June, a bill for broad changes in the Hope Scholarship program fell victim to a dispute between the Democratic-dominated House, which passed the bill, and the Republican-controlled Senate, where ...

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MOST READ Top prospect chooses Tigers

Celebration of Faith -- Sikhs Honor Birth of Gobind Singh

Pink Tasers Stunningly Stylish -- Home Parties Help Sell Women On Self-Defense

GILBERT, Ariz. - Before she lets them shoot her little pink stun gun, Dana Shafman ushers her new friends to the living room sofa for a serious chat about the fears they all share. "The worst nightmare for me is, while I'm sleeping, someone coming in my home," Shafman says, drawing solemn nods from the women. Shafman, 34, of Phoenix, used to stash knives under her pillow for protection.

Briefly

GEORGIA Hiker's body sought in woods

Bubble Fountain -- Wet in Waco

Spending Heats Debate -- Romney, Mcclain Clash Over Records

MANCHESTER, N.H. - Mitt Romney and John McCain sparred Sunday over their tax and spending records and who was a better agent for change, in the second Republican debate in as many days as the clock wound down to the New Hampshire primary. "You have a choice," Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, said after ticking off his accomplishments in office. "You can select somebody who wants to fight for those things, or you can select somebody who's actually done those things."

Suicide Bomb Leaves 11 Dead -- Iraqi Soldiers' Heroic Act Saves Many Lives

BAGHDAD - Three Iraqi soldiers threw themselves on a suicide attacker wearing an explosives vest at an Army Day celebration Sunday - an act of heroism the U.S. said likely prevented many more deaths. Iraqi police said at least 11 people were killed in the blast, the deadliest in a series of bombings in Baghdad. One of the attacks in the capital killed an American soldier - one of two U.S. deaths announced on Sunday.

Opposition Offers to Share Power

NAIROBI, Kenya - Kenya's opposition leader on Sunday signaled he is willing to share power with the government he accuses of rigging elections, but at the same time called for mass rallies - a move that threatens renewed bloodletting. Weary Kenyans, some hungry and homeless after a week of violence marked by ethnic clashes, prayed for peace and begged their leaders to break the political deadlock.

Newsmaker -- Georgian President Claims Re-Election

TBILISI, Georgia - Mikhail Saakashvili won a second term as Georgia's president Sunday in an election that thousands of opposition protesters denounced as fraudulent, threatening instability in this former Soviet republic once considered a beacon of reform. For the pro-Western Saakashvili, the prospect of unrest is an ironic echo of the mass demonstrations that swept him into office four years ago as a champion of democracy fighting rigged elections.

Bush to Press Peace in Visit -- Long-Standing Obstacles Cast Shadow Over Trip

JERUSALEM - President Bush heads to Israel and the West Bank this week, hoping his first visit as U.S. leader will open the throttle on Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking. But in the six weeks since Bush declared at an international gathering in Annapolis, Md., that "the time is right" to make peace, two perennial obstacles to Mideast peacemaking have already reared up: Israeli settlements and violence.

Names in the News

In what is expected to be his last keynote kickoff of the annual International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates on Sunday night announced a flurry of new agreements that will help the world's biggest software company deliver what he characterized as the next "digital decade" for consumers. Gates disclosed deals with Atlanta-based Turner Broadcasting System Inc., MGM Studios and TV makers Sony and Samsung.

They Said It

Ohio State cornerback Malcolm Jenkins well remembers the sting of last year's BCS championship football game, in which the Buckeyes lost to Florida, 41-14. The No. 1 Buckeyes take on No. 2 LSU tonight for the crown in New Orleans. "You can't expect that to go away within a year. That's going to be on highlight reels centuries from now. Luckily, we have a chance to get that taste out of our mouths, erase that memory."

Floodwater Freezes in Nev. Town -- Up to 11 Feet of Snow Blankets Sierra Nevada

FERNLEY, Nev. - Hundreds of homes sat in as much as 8 feet of water Sunday following a canal rupture as freezing weather spread sheets of ice over yards and streets, hindering efforts to get the water to drain away. As many as 400 homes were damaged when the canal's bank gave way following heavy rainfall produced by the West Coast storm system that had piled snow as much as 11 feet deep in the Sierra Nevada.

Driverless Cars Possible in 10 Years, Gm Says -- 'This Is Not Science Fiction,' Exec Insists

DETROIT (AP) - Cars that drive themselves - even parking at their destination - could be ready for sale within a decade, General Motors Corp. executives say. GM, parts suppliers, university engineers and other automakers all are working on vehicles that could revolutionize short- and long- distance travel. And Tuesday at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas GM Chief Executive Rick Wagoner will devote part of his speech to the driverless vehicles.

On the Stump

Clinton-Obama clash gets testy MANCHESTER, N.H. - Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton clashed Sunday in the slushy New Hampshire homestretch, deriding each others' claims to be the true candidate of change.

On the Front

8 tribal leaders killed in Pakistan From Our Press Services