Anchorage Daily News

NRA HONORS PALIN WITH ALASKA-THEMED ASSAULT RIFLE (N.Y. Daily News): The National Rifle Association Foundation will present Gov. Palin with an engraved, modified military-style assault weapon on May 14. The all-white "Alaskan Hunter" is a civilian version of an M-4 rifle carried by U.S. troops overseas. Palin, an NRA member, isn't scheduled to attend the New York banquet, reports The Christian Science Monitor. A military weapons specialist tells the Monitor the semiautomatic rifle is "sweet" but says it's not suitable for hunting -- or anything else, really. Josh Painter at RedState.com says a copy of the rifle will be auctioned off for the foundation. The gun's designer is Bob Reynolds of Templar Consulting; he said he wanted to thank her for her defense of gun ownership rights.

SITKA WRITERS SYMPOSIUM ENDS AFTER 25 YEARS (KCAW): The Island Institute will hold its 25th Sitka Symposium this summer, and then close the book on the annual gathering of writers, students, and thinkers.

COLLEGE MYSTERY: WHO IS THE SECRET DONOR? ("Morning Edition," NPR): UAA is the latest university with a female president to receive millions of dollars from a donor who demands anonymity. But philanthropy adviser Melissa Berman says schools would be wise to find out who the donor is. "Any institution would want to be sure they're not accepting money that was earned criminally," Berman says. "I think we will eventually know who this person is - curiosity is very powerful -- but it might take a couple of years."

KUSKOKWIM BREAKUP HAS VILLAGERS WORRIED (Alaska Public Radio Network): Residents in the upriver villages of Sleetmute, Red Devil and Crooked Creek are watching the river ice shift and the water rise. Snowpack and ice thickness are above average. "We put tents in our boat and bedding .. and food," says one Red Devil-area resident. UPDATE: Interior villages are flooding, reports ADN's The Village blog. ALSO:

WEB SITE TRACKS WHITTIER ROAD CLEANUP (Associated Press): State transportation officials say the incident command Web site launched Friday contains the latest information on the cleanup as well as transit information, worksite photos and links.

CENTURY-OLD CABIN NEEDS RESTORATION (Fairbanks Daily News-Miner): Restoration specialist Renee Blahuta is seeking donations to restore a century-old cabin near Fairbanks. "This wasn't the cabin of a prospector or a miner, but someone who ventured north in search of a settlement," Blahuta says. "This cabin is an everyman cabin. I want this to show how people lived during a certain time." The cracks between the logs are chinked with 100-year-old items including burlap cloth, rope, socks and even a lady's evening glove.

FROM THE UNALASKA POLICE BLOTTER ... (Unalaska Advertiser): "Animal - A taxi driver struck a dog which had darted away from its caretaker and into the roadway. The dog was treated locally for its injuries. No charges were filed. Civil - An officer responded to an altercation, concerning medical fees, between an injured dog's caretaker and the taxi driver who had injured the dog when it ran into the roadway. The two parties were advised that settlement of the medical bill was a civil issue."

BULLDOZER IN BUSHES REVEALS 1958 SAGA (Gary Titus, Peninsula Clarion): "There, in a stand of hemlock trees, sat a large yellow D-7 Caterpillar. This is not something you would expect to see in the wilderness, let alone far from any roads or people. So the historian in me had to know what it was doing there and how it ever reached this far from roads into the wilderness. Here is the story of what we had discovered." Includes photos

CRAB FISHING ISN'T GLAMOROUS, SAY 'DEADLIEST CATCH' CREWMEN (Juneau Empire): Complacency is deadly on the Bering Sea, said Time Bandit deckhand Russell Newberry. "Rule number one is stay on the boat, and rule number two is to keep the water on the outside of the boat, always." Includes photo

Return to Alaska Newsreader later in the day for new links.

---------------------

HIGHLIGHTS FROM RECENT NEWSREADERS:

Talkeetna residents without running water face bathing dilemma (KTNA)

Denali ranger dies in U.K. climbing accident (KTNA)

Native Americans descended from single ancestral group (Science Daily)

Forest Service investigates dying alders (KDLG, Dillingham)

The night Bob Hope nearly died in Alaska (Pensacola News Journal)

ADVERTISEMENT