Tuesday first shot of coffee and a few headlines

My morning updates are on K-106.3 The Greatest Hits of All Time with John Lee and Spirit FM with Don Burns at 93.3 and 100.7. You can also hear my early morning headlines on Y-95 in Camden.

It looks like Matt Jones had a fair night last night, even if Jacksonville didn’t. Yes. Matt plays for the Jags and MITCH MUSTAIN plays for USC. Yes, Pat made a mistake! Thank you for your corrective notes.

Just in case some of my closer friends are wondering, for the second straight year there will be no Lyncho Christmas party. Marie and I regret that 2008 sucks.

Did I mention that I am still looking for my new third job?

My passenger train blog is very popular. You will be surprised at the happenings on Trains for America.

http://trains4america.wordpress.com/

Construction on a proposed coal-fired power plant in southwest Arkansas is halted after an appeal of the state’s decision to grant an air permit.

The state is notifying thousands of Arkansans drawing unemployment checks that they may qualify for additional benefits under federal legislation approved this month.

Due to travel problems caused by weather in other parts of the country, Governor Beebe will not be attending the NGA meetings in Philadelphia with President-elect Obama and 38 other governors this week.

A gubernatorial task force announced Monday that it will ask the Legislature for $3 million over the next two years to combat the spread of HIV/ AIDS.

A state foundation that was set up to give housing grants to teachers but spent most of its funds on operating expenses should be merged into the Department of Education, according to a legislative subcommittee.

A legislative panel opposes using state money to make up for cuts in federal funding to the state Department of Education’s school-based mental health program.

Judge Larry D. Vaught has been named chief judge of the Arkansas Court of Appeals, the chief justice of Arkansas announced Monday.

The Dugger Family story of what publishers describe as “daily chaos” of living in a home with 18 children will hit the bookstands today. It’s  “20 and Counting.”

A federal magistrate says a group of parents suing the Malvern School District for trying to round up students improperly attending school elsewhere probably can’t win their case. The parents of at least 45 white students who filed the lawsuit in October had asked the court to prevent Malvern school officials from going after students and the nearby districts.

Baptist Health in 2007 sustained a loss of $17 million, largely due to an increase of nearly 10 percent in expenses over the previous year.

Pilgrim’s Pride has filed for bankruptcy. The nation’s largest poultry processor has operations in Arkansas, including a hatchery in Atkins and processing facility in DeQueen.

A weekend blaze at a high school construction site in Trumann is being investigated as arson.

A Jefferson County man who shot and killed a neighbor earlier this year was in court Monday over accusations he attempted to kill his girlfriend.  Dean Worthen is being held on an attempted capital murder charge after police said he attempted to kill Rachael Huntley on Thanksgiving Day.

A Russellville man who police say called his estranged wife 69 times in just under 26 hours from the Pope County jail where he was incarcerated pleaded innocent Monday to a charge of making terroristic threats.

An attempt Monday night to fire Pulaski County Special School District Superintendent James Sharpe for his actions regarding faulty roofs at two elementary schools failed in a 3-4 vote of the School Board.

The City of Little Rock is considering four bids to purchase its 3.82-acre portion of Ray Winder Field immediately adjacent to the Little Rock Zoo. A recommendation will be made to the board in a few weeks.

The UALR men’s basketball team climbed to No. 6 in CollegeInsider.com’s latest Mid-Major Top 25, boosted by non-conference wins over Missouri Valley Conference preseason favorite Creighton and Loyola Marymount.