The Salina Journal from Salina, Kansas • Page 1

Border war Page B1 Ti lilpiAr OCTOBER KANSAS Serving Kansas since 1871 50 cents Patriotism All Much of nation's Capitol shut down for testing IRAUM The Assoilated Press The mail' Dorne anthrax scare has raised the stakes and the costs of the on terrorlism. Confusion and fear at the Capitol iUusti'ate the vulnerability of what has for two centuries been a symbol of open, democratic goverri -v. ment. Much of the vast Capitol complex was shut down Wednesday for testing after at least 80 people tested positive for exposure to the biological agent, carried on a letter addressed to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle. The anxiiBty spread to other elected represehtatives when an initial test proved positivie in the Manhattan offices of New York Gov.

George Pataki. Lawmakers already were apprehensive. Many believe the Capitol was the intended destination for a hijacked airliner that crashed into the Pennsylvania countryside on Sept. 11. Three other hijacked planes destroyed the World Trade Center and seriously damaged the Pentagon, killing more than 5,000 people.

And now, lots of testing The preliminary results in the Senate intensified concerns about how many others in the Capitol's work force, 535 lawmakers and throngs of daily visitors might have been exposed. A thousand people were tested Tuesday; hundreds more were tested Wednesday, During the'past five weeks, congressional leaders have said they would not allow terrorists to stop the business of Congress. But now an entire branch of the government' has been disrupted. The stakes in the coming days are high, for the public confidence as well as the perpe- trator's ability- to paralyze the U.S. government.

"You know, one of the things I The Associated Press U.S. Capitol Police officer Jonathan Getz standi guard outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., WedneiBday. Anthrax fears drove congressional leaders Wednesday to order the extraordinary shutdown of the House of Representatives so offices can be swept for the bacteria. Experts: No need to panic Some say 'conflicting messages' by politicians have added to hysteria By MITCH MITCHELL Fort Worth Star-Telegram Kill one, ft-ighten 10,000.

That's mission statement for the terrorists Hii the Tom Clancy book "The Sum of All Fears." After aU, that's what take away our freedom afid pur- liberty Part of that freedom liberty is having elected elected by the peopirto db thV-' work in thiTnK FBLagente, law enforce- work in this nation. And we re agencies around the of haye been exposed biacteria. "Yes, this.is'normal. But does it See ANTHRAX, Page A7 make any sense? Of course not," not going to relinquishtthatdu- ty," House Speaker Hastert said Wednesday said Dr. Daniel Creson, a psychiatrist and professorat the University of Texas Medical School at Houston.

More than 37,000 people were killed in traffic crashes last year, and no one gets scared enough to stop driving, he said. Americans need more facts so they can be more realistic about the danger, according to risk assessment experts. time to be treated People have one to two weeks to get treated after exposure to.an­ thrax before they get Dr. Robert Haley, chief of fepideiuiolo- gy at the University of Texas Soilth- western Medical Dallas. After getting sick, a person has up to four.days to get.treatm^nt before the disease becomes severe.

"Once they get that information, they'll be a lot more reassured," ley said. But the disproportionate fear is understandable, experts say "Our politicians have put us in a double bhid," Creson said. "They tell us to put this in perspective, to be reasonable but be alert. They tell us we are in great danger but to go back to your normal life. The people are getting a lot of conflicting messages." Government officials should be spending more time communicating with the public about the specific things they can do to protect themselves and what measures are appropriate to take, said Elaine Vaughan, an associate professor of psychology at the University of California at Irvine.

"We've received nonspecific instructions firom the government, and people are overreporting suspicious acts," Vaughan said. ATTACK ON AMERICA Salinans' curiosity increases Since the Sept. 11 attacks, Interest in religion, terrorists and Nostradamus has risen By NATE JENKINS The Saltnn Journal What are the lyrics to the song, "God Bless America?" How do you sew an American flag? Those are among the questions received recently at the reference desk of the Salina Public Library Such questions illustrate the curiosity of the public in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the East Coast. And librarians and booksellers have seen heightened interest in Afghanistan, the Muslim faith, terrorism and the world atlas.

And Nostradamus. "We got overwhelmed with requests for information about Nostradamus," said Nancy Jo Leachman, referring to the 16th century French astrologer. Leachman is head reference librarian at the Salina library Astrologer has following Books with Nostradamus' musings have flown off the shelves as quickly as false claims he predicted the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. Leachman is not surprised, and said there is a steady stream of interest peaks in the books after major events.

Nancy Reese, collection development librarian at the Salina library, said Nostradamus books are ordered "constantly" "Those get checked out and never brought back all the time," Reese said. Leona McCoy, owner of McCoy Christian Supply, 109 S. Santa Fe, said although sales of Bibles have not increased, "A lot of people want to read prophetic things," such as the book of Revelation in the New Testament. And more people are asking for information on fasting, believing it may allow them "to hear God better," McCoy said. other topics sought out, too Not all readers, of course, seek to attach mystical or religious connotations to the hammer-thud reality of the event leading to what President Bush has called a new kind of war.

Connie Hocking, circulation clerk at the library, said she has noticed more demand for books with information on how to deal with grief. Also, there is a general thirst for knowledge of the religious, political and historical factors that sometimes receive short shrift on the television news. See CURIOSITY, Page A2 SCHOOL FINANCE Legal fight against state plan rages on Salina district among those seeking from state From Staff and Wire Reports TOPEKA The Salina School District's. Ipgal fight against the state school finance formula took another step this week with the filing of more documents claiming the funding of education is inadequate. Attorneys for midsized ischool districts, including the Salina district, claim is not providing to carry out the 'State Board of That, they say, violates the state Constitution.

That accusation is spelled out in documents filed in' Shawnee County District Court as part of a lawsuit challenging the distriliution of the state's $2.36 billion.ln aid. The documents were just the latest installment in a lawsuit that has'been pending since 1999 and names Salina and Dodge' City! school districts as plahitiffs. Wichita attorney Alan Rupe, who repi the school said the most recent fillings 9te a judge's request. JTheijudge us for a legal'bagis for of the Is- sttfs film in the St See FINANCE, Page A7 SAUNA Graves schools Salina students Governor returns to former elementary school to help with lesson on government By ANDREW BACH The Salina Jourrtal Salina Journal Kansas Qov. at Mendowlarfc Ridge Elementary School Wednesday iim SalTna native looks through the bool( "If I Were The Governor of produced.

Gov. Bill Graves traded his Capitol office for a classroom Wednesday afternoon. The governor visited with third-graders at his old stomping grounds, Meadowlark Ridge Elementary School, 2200 Glen. Graves' visit to his former school was part of a unit third-grade students were studying on community government, said teacher Anne Blackwell, who helped arrange, the visit. i thought if the governor could come, it i'would fit in perfectly with what we were dbing," she said.

"I talked to a flriend of mine, and it happened." For most of the visit, the governor sat in Blackwell's classroom, fielding questions all of Meadowlark's third-graders. See GRAVES, Page A7 today IQtbao'raph. wectowdaMen Qov. BUI theTSovemor's Arts Lqcal exhibit Kansas State struggle to content and in mixed media NSiDE aassified7B6 114 Death87A4' Landers Money 5pQrts B13 A13.