Reid hires Begich campaign manager (Politico): Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has hired Alaska Sen. Mark Begich's former campaign manager to run his 2010 campaign, the latest in a series of aggressive moves Reid is making in his bid for a fifth term, according to Democratic insiders.
Call from Emmonak for emergency economic aid gets nationwide attention with help from AK bloggers: A handful of Alaska bloggers this week jumped into action after reading Nicholas Tucker's account of economic woe in the Western Alaska village of Emmonak. They've fed the story to national blog sites and are hoping for CNN coverage. Tucker told radio station KUDO's host CC in an emotional interview on Wednesday that donations are starting to flow in. Today's Daily News story is here. And here's a wrap-up of online coverage so far:
> Hope coming to Emmonak and beyond? (The Mudflats blog): Nick Tucker, talking to radio personality CC on KUDO, had a message for all those who have stepped up to help rural Alaskans who are having to make the choice of whether to keep their children and elders warm, or fed. "It's a blessed day. It's like angels have landed on Earth."
> KUDO radio interview of Tucker (Celtic Diva's Blue Oasis blog, KUDO)
> Another village in trouble (Writing Raven's Alaska Real blog)
> Emmonak: How the hell can this occur? (The Ester Republic blog)
> A cry for help from rural Alaska: Is anyone listening? (The Mudflats blog; see also Huffington Post, Daily Kos)
> Bloggers get the word out on Emmonak (Progressive Alaska blog; see also FireDogLake.com)
> A village in peril (Alaska Dispatch)
> Original Bristol Bay Times article with Tucker's letter
Donations of $1,200 energy rebate to help rural residents, others (Alaska Newspapers Inc.): A grass-roots effort that asked people to donate their energy rebate to those who need it more will help rural Alaska's largest electric utility distribute more than $15,000 to rural residents.
Moose makes house call (KXLY, Spokane): A North Spokane family had an unwelcome guest pay their home a visit Thursday night when a young moose broke one of their windows and came crashing into their basement. With photos, video
Anchorage bike commuters test the ice -- none die (Bicycles and Icicles blog): What were drivers talking about when they arrived (many of them late) to work on Wednesday? Stress, sliding through intersections and how many cars they saw in the ditch. And how "insane" bike riders must be.
Spam: It's not just for inboxes anymore (City Pages, Minneapolis): The economy is down, which means Spam sales are up and the Hormel plant in Austin, Minn., is running two shifts, seven days a week for the foreseeable future. Let's take a look at all the wondrous ways to eat Spam.
Not-so-fast food: Moose meat was important but often off-limits to early Kenai homesteaders (The Redoubt Reporter): Many folks in those days believed they would receive lighter punishment for killing another human being than they would for killing a moose. Still, she said, the authorities were occasionally known to look the other way, particularly if it was understood that a homesteader's survival might depend upon the infraction.
Unleashed: New attacks from Palin (NBC "Today Show" video): Gov. Sarah Palin continues her attacks on the media.
Final track: Juneau record store to close (Capital City Weekly): Small, independently owned record stores all over the country are going out of business faster than they can be remembered. Juneau's own Capital Records will take its place in the record store graveyard at the end of January.
From the Unalaska police blotter... (Unalaska Advertiser): Animal - A woman was concerned about some dead foxes in her parking lot, as her dog was quite interested in the carcasses. The investigating officer determined that the foxes had been legally taken for their pelts, and were awaiting additional care from the hunter. The caller, new to the island, was grateful for the information about local laws and lifestyles.
Return to Alaska Newsreader through the day for new links.
----------------------
HIGHLIGHTS FROM RECENT NEWSREADERS:
Minus 80 in Tok? Probably not. Minus 68 in Chicken? Afraid so (AccuWeather)
Bering Sea ice causes problems for crab fishermen (Alaska Public Radio Network)
"Oddball" car buyers keep Subaru healthy amid automakers' gloom (Time magazine)
Important warning about e-mails purporting to be from the adn.com staff.