This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

A lot of warnings in the news today. Mostly unheeded. That's what makes them sad. And newsworthy:

— Utah engineers' warning was ignored before Challenger explosion 30 years ago — Tom Harvey | The Salt Lake Tribune

"Jan. 28, 1986, was a chilly day in Utah, with a low of 18 degrees in Brigham City. That's also about how cold it had dipped to overnight at Cape Canaveral, Fla., where the Space Shuttle Challenger was sitting on the launch pad.

"An eager crowd gathered there while students from around the nation were herded before TV screens to see New Hampshire's Christa McAuliffe become the first teacher in space.

"None knew that a Utah group of engineers from Morton Thiokol Inc., maker of the booster rocket motors attached to the shuttle's external fuel tank, had recommended against the launch because of the cold temperatures in Florida.

"With their warning rescinded by their bosses, under pressure from NASA, some of the engineers feared Challenger might explode on the launch pad.

"It didn't. It blew up 73 seconds into flight. ..."

— Mike Noel warned Utah woman arrested in Oregon standoff not to go — Christopher Smart | The Salt Lake Tribune

"Public-lands protester Shawna Cox, 59, of Kanab, faces felony charges that could land her in prison stemming from a standoff with law enforcement authorities in eastern Oregon. ...

" ... her close friend, Mike Noel, who represents the Kanab area in the Utah Legislature, has known Cox for some 40 years and described her as a stalwart in her community. ...

" ... Noel said he warned Cox not to go to Oregon for several reasons: It's the wrong state, the wrong federal agency (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service) and the wrong approach.

"Getting involved with a controversial group in a revolutionary manner was not a good idea," he said. "She went off base with this one, and she shouldn't have. ..."

— Utah Dems to guv: Reverse Planned Parenthood order — Annie Knox | The Salt Lake Tribune

— A chance for Utah to do right by Planned Parenthood — Salt Lake Tribune Editorial

"Gov. Gary Herbert's decision to pull federal funding from the Utah chapter of Planned Parenthood was based on a lie. That we already knew.

"Now we find out that that lie was, at least according to a Texas grand jury, orchestrated by people who committed crimes in the process of fabricating their evidence.

"That news should, of course, be the political cover Herbert needs to reverse his decision, end an expensive and embarrassing lawsuit, and restore the state contracts that paid Planned Parenthood some $200,000 a year in federal funds to provide useful health services — not abortions — to the people of this state. ..."

— Proposal to give all Education Fund money back to K-12 could backfire on Utah students — Annie Knox | The Salt Lake Tribune

— Another constitutional amendment won't fix Utah schools — Salt Lake Tribune Editorial

— Lawmakers, Utahns wary of Lake Powell Pipeline's unknown cost — Emma Penrod | The Salt Lake Tribune