Nice day for a ride. Or to take a swim. Me? I'm helping my wife's sister and her husband from Big Sur, Calif., move into their Post Falls home this afternoon. When they pull in around noon tomorrow, they'll make Nos. 16 & 17 members of my extended family who'll be in North Idaho. I'm excited. But enough of me. You can start your own threads with this Wild Card ...

A total triumph and an utter defeat

The Greens also got what they wanted when Mr Swinney announced an extra £4 million for bus operators to help keep fares down and encourage greater use of public transport.This was enough to persuade the two Green MSPs to abstain on the Budget – the vital, last piece in the jigsaw, giving the SNP the numbers necessary to get the package through.These final concessions came on top of earlier moves to get the Tories and Greens on board, including an extra £10 million for an additional 300 police officers and £4 million more to fight climate change.The Tories were derided by Labour and Liberal Democrat MSPs for helping the SNP.Tavish Scott, the Liberal Democrats' finance spokesman, described the settlement as a "Nat-Con" budget. He labelled Mr Salmond's threat to resign if the Budget had not been passed as "a landmark strop".Iain Gray, for Labour, said the Budget deal was nothing more than a "tartan Tory tango", and he also derided Mr Salmond's threats to quit."The unedifying pantomime of a First Minister threatening resignation from behind the safety of deals already done is an act of vacuous bravado which sums up his government's approach to this whole process," he saidBut Annabel Goldie, the Scottish Tory leader, was delighted with her party's achievements.

Moore Wealth moves to creek location

She said she brings to the financial planning industry the same dedication she brought to the bio-medical sciences before she changed her career in 1996. Her training in that field made her detailed an thorough, a background that is an asset to financial services, she said.

Moore, an active member of the Frederick community, is a member of the Frederick Chamber of Commerce, the Rotary Club of Frederick, president and founder of the Women's Business Network of Frederick, a board member of Frederick Innovative Technology Center Inc., the Women's Giving Circle, and a contributor to The Frederick News-Post's Money Panel and the Indus Journal.

Moore is a member of the Financial Planning Association and a strong proponent of education. With the support of Frederick businesses Moore Wealth hosts, , an annual economic symposium every fall and conducts educational workshops, seminars and classes through Frederick Community College.

Clinton makes her case to Nashville voters

I can't imagine any place I'd rather be than right here in Nashville," she said. After promising not to assault the ears of Music City with a song of her own, Clinton congratulated fellow Democrat Barack Obama on his win and thanked South Carolina voters.

"I'm not asking people to support me because I'm a woman, I'm asking them to support me because I am the best qualified person for the job," Clinton said during her half-hour stump speech, which was followed by the town-hall style forum.

Some of Clinton's biggest applause lines of the night came with her call for an end to the war in Iraq, to tie the minimum wage to Congressional pay raises and her promise to "get those two oil men out of the White House."

Tennessee, a state Clinton's husband carried twice, is one of five Southern states along with Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas and Missouri that will be voting during the Super Tuesday primary on Feb.

FIFTH ONE-DAY INTERNATIONAL, Christchurch:

The rain has lessened but not ceased completely, and the umpires are having a chat with the ground staff.

"Wouldn't it be ironic if the England bowling, which has been the weak part of this whole series, turned out to be the winning factor in this match? Not that I want to become too optimistic at this stage... but 'hope springs eternal'..."Paul, another expatriate Brit in Canada (Vancouver area), in the TMS inbox

"Oh dear are England doing it again, making us all think it's a lost cause and then coming back giving us hope, only to disappoint? Hope not"Andy, Alberta, in the TMS inbox

"We all wake up to doom and gloom, and then suddenly three wickets down. Who says the power of prayer/positive thought doesn't work!"Carol, reading online in Portugal [Someone may have done a rain dance since you sent that e-mail - MM]

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Ferry Report Blames Owners, Corruption

A professor at the University of South Florida and one-time campaigner for President George W. Bush, Al-Arian was a prominent advocate of inter-faith dialogue when he was first arrested more than three years ago. His case won wide attention in the Arab world after Al-Arian was profiled in Egypt Today in December 2003. (See “Shattered Dream” by Yasmine Moll, page 72.)