Today's hits from the big national dailies

New York Times

Italian in Euthanasia Debate Dies
An Italian doctor said on Thursday he switched off the life support system of a terminally ill man to end a life he described as "torture," after a legal battle for the muscular dystrophy sufferer's right to die failed.
Oregon: Search for Climbers Ends
Search teams gave up any hope of finding two missing climbers alive on Mount Hood and abandoned the rescue effort after nine days. "We've done everything we can at this point," said Sheriff Joe Wampler of Hood River County, choking back tears after returning from one last, fruitless flyover of the 11,239-foot peak

Washington Post

Harvesting Cash The Myth of the Small Farmer
Federal Subsidies Turn Farms Into Big Business
The very policies touted by Congress as a way to save small family farms are instead helping to accelerate their demise, economists, analysts and farmers say.

Los Angeles Times

Wall St. Journal

Seattle Times

Overnight storm mild, but mountain passes get lots of snow
The winds that breezed through the region overnight weren't as intense as expected and caused only minor problems for area power utilities

PSE to some residents: It's partly your fault
Property owners east of Woodinville — the hardest-hit area of last week's windstorm — are partly to blame for their power outage because they did not allow Puget Sound Energy (PSE) to remove hazardous trees, an official for the utility said Wednesday

...and from Oregon's papers.

The Oregonian

Hood search suspended as more details emerge
Climbers - An autopsy reveals that Kelly James died of hypothermia probably soon after he called his family

Panel stops short of perks ban
Ethics - The law commission calls on the Oregon Legislature for tougher rules but takes no stand on gifts from lobbyists

Cell phone location tip for Kims not heeded
Police report - An Edge Wireless employee gave state officers precise data two days before Kati Kim was found

Retailers see strong sales with anger, stress in mix
This year's run-up to Christmas brings a rare weekend for a last-minute crush

Salem Statesman Journal

Panel backs many ethics-law changes
Next step for bills, other measures is the 2007 Legislature

Local News Daily

Inmate sentenced for sex abuse released by mistake
Multnomah County Sheriff's Office detectives looking for Jessy Moore

The Bend Bulletin

Eugene Register-Guard

Veteran knows, and loves, the risk
When the storms cleared and the sky above Mount Hood turned blue briefly on Saturday, Latham Flanagan felt his hopes for the climbers who had been lost for a week near the summit slipping away.

Eugene Weekly

LaGrande Observer

Timber Payment Future Worries County
With the future of the federal county payments bill in doubt, Union County is hoping for the best and preparing for the worst.

Lake County Examiner (weekly)

East Oregonian (subscription only)

Program cuts feral cat population

Governor plans to address Measure 37 in next Legislature
Gov. Ted Kulongoski has told the Oregon Task Force on Land Use Planning he plans to address Measure 37 in the upcoming legislative session and ironing out Measure 37 isn't the task force's concern.

Hermiston Herald

Christmas season spiking sales
Tis the season to be jolly — and so far, local retailers have reason to be jolly.

Tri City Herald

CBC, WSU Tri-Cities get budget windfall
Washington State University Tri-Cities and Columbia Basin College got the big items on their wish lists in the 2007-09 biennial budget that Gov. Chris Gregoire unveiled Tuesday

Sisters Nugget

the Source (Bend's alternative weekly)

Dial-A-Hassle
Pat Snow first learned that she was no longer welcome on the bus system she had used for the past two years in Bend when she called to book a ride this past fall. Snow, who is 73 years old and has arthritis in both of her feet, was told that she could walk a mile from her west side home to the nearest bus stop downtown and catch a ride on the city's new fixed route bus system.

Central Oregonian (Prineville)

Madras Pioneer

City loses eviction battle at airport site
Eight months after the city of Madras shut off his sewer in an attempt to evict Paul Jensen from his leased airport property, the city has lost its battle in civil court. After a two-day trial, a jury of six people found that the city did not have the right to evict Jensen.

Baker City Herald

Wallowa County Chieftain

Blue Mountain Eagle

The Grinch stole Christmas lights
A question for many traveling the main street through Mt. Vernon at night has been, "Where are the lights at John Laliberte and Sue Newstetter's home?"

Argus Observer (Ontario)

Mail crunch hits
Typically, the busiest day of the year for a post office is the Monday before Christmas

Corvallis Gazette Times

A kid for Kids
Corvallis girls raises money to provide a goat for children in Sudan, and earns a trip to London

Albany Democrat-Herald

Faster first response
Computer system helps dispatch send emergency workers more efficiently

Lebanon Express updated late morning

Cracking down on attendance, tardies, pays off for LHS
Lebanon High School presented School Board members Dec. 11 with data showing improvements in attendance and grades, but also an increase in behavior referrals

The Columbian (Vancouver) updated late morning

The Dalles Chronicle

Schools eye full-time kindergarten
Possibility of change puts classroom space at premium

Hood River News

Nearing 30th year, Residents' Committee turns its entire focus toward Measure 37

The Daily Astorian (most stories subscription only)

Pfund, Hunsinger demand answers on dredging

Rural residents still waiting for power to return
West Oregon Electric Co-op struggles to repair lines; service expected to return for Christmas

Tillamook Headlight Herald

theworldlink (South Coast)

Klamath Falls Herald & News

Agency loses public funding
A Klamath Falls employment training and job search agency under investigation for financial mismanagement will lose its public funding Dec. 31.

Ashland Daily Tidings

In search of a new vision
Community-wide concern over the fate of the Ashland library spilled out of the building and spread quietly through the city this week. E-mail exchanges, online posts and letters of concern circulated, including a rumor that the Ashland library would close in February.

Roseburg News Review

Medford Mail-Tribune

County remains neutral on dirt-bike park
Angry neighbors urge commissioners to reject a motorcycle group's efforts to expand its holdings around John's Peak

Quick links to nearly every daily in the state
http://www.usnpl.com/ornews.html
http://www.cascadelink.org/ritnet/news.html