Letters to the Editor
Published: Tuesday, April 25, 2006 How about a booze guzzler tax? As I read about this "Gas Guzzler Tax" proposal, I see that it is the working class Vermonter that is going to take the biggest hit. Generally our wallets are a little tighter and our pockets not so deep.

JIM DODSON: Spending an Afternoon With the Queen of Dirt
Since moving to Southern Pines a year ago, Ive been a frequent visitor to the grounds of James Boyds Weymouth estate and a growing admirer of the formal gardens found there.

Veronica Mars | tv : ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
Wow. I can't believe they did it. I can't believe Veronica Mars had the guts to kill Wallace. And that whole bit of business with Mac being the illegitimate daughter of Aaron Echolls didn't see that one coming!

Board moves forward with plans for year-round elementary schools
With weeks to go before a final decision is made on the 2006 school bond, the Wake County Board of Education spent Fridays work session hammering out plans to turn almost all elementary schools into a year-round schedule.

Suspected Drunken Driver Crashes Into Long Beach House
A suspected drunken driver crashes a vehicle into a house in Long Beach.

Bernanke Gets a Crash Course in Leadership After Dinner Remark
May 2 (Bloomberg) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke is getting a crash course in what it means to be the head of the world's most powerful central bank.

Mines smile as golden charge holds up
South Africa's lumbering gold-mining industry is smiling broadly as commodity prices hit quarter-century highs on world markets, opening up new frontiers once thought financially unviable.

Stinking gas - can't live without it and can't afford to buy it - Bob Paslay
Gasoline. We cant live with it and we cant live without it. I usually have a solution for everything even if I dont know anything about it. But I have to admit that I am baffled by this gas situation.

Cable movie listings April 30-May 6
The Accidental Spy 01 PG-13 Jackie Chan, Eric Tsang. A Hong Kong salesman gains possession of a deadly microbe. (S, N, V) 87m ENCORE Tue. 11 p.m., Wed. 7:30 a.m.

D.C. Notes: Lobby reform push smashes into reality in Washington
WASHINGTON -- Congressional vows for sweeping reforms of how lawmakers do business with lobbyists in the wake of the Jack Abramoff scandal are being watered down regularly.