Newsstand theft was not a perfect crime

On most days, we are pretty happy when copies of the Daily Bee disappear out of the 100 or so newspaper racks scattered from the Canadian border to Athol.

When the papers are gone it usually means we have sold out of that day's Bee and democracy and free expression are safe for another 24 hours and we have made 50 cents per copy.

That wasn't the case at the Bonner County Courthouse last week, though. It seems a county employee took it upon himself last Thursday to empty out the Daily Bee newspaper rack in front of the courthouse. He paid four bits, all right, but took the whole pile of papers.

Why? I don't know for sure. I do have the alleged culprit's name as well as two witnesses who watched the act, though.

The best bet from courthouse insiders is that he was very interested in the lead story with the headline: "Suit claims county clerk violating U.S. Constitution." The story discusses a political bumpersticker ban laughingly suggested by County Clerk Marie Scott to be in effect during absentee balloting.

Judge Michaud said Scott's actions could have a chilling and adverse impact on the First Amendment and issued a restraining order. Of course, we agree.

I will be very interested in what the alleged paper pilferer has to say for himself when I have a discussion with him this week. Stay tuned…

Mark Oct. 6 on your calendar for the now annual Walk to School Day. Students will be walking to Washington, Kootenai, Farmin, Stidwell, Sandpoint Middle and High schools with well-intentioned adults. With weather like we have had, I'll bet students would walk to school every day.

I get the pleasure of walking with middle school students from the library.

What's going on in Boundary County? Even diehard GOP'ers are talking about their prosecuting attorney Jack Douglas in not flattering terms. "We call him Monte Hall, because every case is Let's Make a Deal" one person told me.

The editor's chair at the Bonners Ferry Herald changed occupants last week. Lucy Dukes accepted the top spot with a huge smile on her face. Lucy has done a great job at the Bee since arriving here in April of 2003. The only problem was, we grabbed her after she was at the Bonners Ferry Herald.

She loves Bonners Ferry. She hated leaving Bonners Ferry and always wanted to go back there. And to top it off, her fiance calls Bonners Ferry home.

While we will miss her here, we have landed a great reporter with RJ Cohn. Jay has been the managing editor of the Herald since I left there in 2000. Jay will bring a different perspective to our coverage at the Bee.

It's a win-win situation for all. Although I will miss Lucy's breathy rendition of Happy Birthday.

Lots of luck, Lucy, and welcome aboard, Jay.

What a great night for football last Friday. The Bulldogs and the Badgers renewed a rivalry that goes back further than Jim Nelson. It wasn't much of a game on the scoreboard, but nothing beats the feeling of high school football on a Friday night.

The stands were packed; the band played and halftime ushered in inductees to the Bulldog Athletic Hall of Fame.

Did you know that the Sandpoint versus Bonners Ferry rivalry has resulted in a national high school record? First one to drop me a line to tell me about the record, wins a Walkers doughnut. E-mail me at dkeyes@bonnercountydailybee.com. Bob Hamilton can't play.

Do you think all of the national publicity Sandpoint has been receiving is good? That was our online question last week. As of Monday afternoon, 480 people had voted. The results? Sixty percent no and 40 percent thought the publicity was good.

This week's question: Do you plan to vote in November.

The much-anticipated photo history book will arrive from the printers early next week. The pre-ordered books will be available at the Bee and we are trying to put together an open house with the Hall family to have some autographed books.

There are only 600 or so books not purchased and they will be sold on a first-come, first served basis.

We are going to sell out, and I already regret not ordering more. The 168-page, hardbound book features more than 200 historical photos. Most of the photos come from private collections and the Bonner County Historical Museum.

A portion of the book is dedicated to local photographer Ross Hall and features a biography and photos selected by the Bee and Dann Hall.

It's coming … Feb. 26. More guesses on the local T-shirt publicity stunt front. The opening of the bathrooms at Jeff Jones Square is the most popular guess, in fact I would have to say it was the No. 1 and No. 2 best guess. Target opening, the Second Coming, OK, OK, all this pressure is wearing me down. Feb. 26 marks the … stay tuned next week and I will unveil the secret right here in this column many months before THE date. Kind of an extra bonus for reading this column next week.

David Keyes is publisher of the Bee. His column runs Tuesdays and will never run on Feb. 26.