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A good first step

Fri, 24 May 2013 18:26:02 MDT

A good first step

Updated May 24, 2013 06:26PM MDT

The decision by the Boy Scouts of America to allow openly gay boys to join in the pursuit of merit badges just like any other boy is a giant step forward for an organization that has struggled to remain viable in a society less willing to tolerate discrimination based on sexual orientation. Though commendable, as it undoubtedly is, Thursday’s decision by roughly 1,400 voting members of the BSA’s national council to adopt the proposal of the governing executive committee is only a partial victor...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Vote on gay Scouts at emotional moment for Utah, nation

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:11:21 MDT

Vote on gay Scouts at emotional moment for Utah, nation

Staff and wire reports

Updated May 23, 2013 04:11PM MDT

In a vote that will resonate in Utah, where thousands of boys participate in the Boy Scouts of America, selected leaders of the organization are deciding Thursday whether to allow gay Scouts to join. An announcement of the results is expected after 4 p.m. Fifteen Great Salt Lake Council members have joined the 1,400 members voting on the BSA proposal, which would allow gay youth but continue to exclude gay adults. Currently, the BSA — one of the nation’s oldest youth organizations, with million...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

West Valley City to alter how it reviews its police

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:36:23 MDT

West Valley City to alter how it reviews its police

By pamela manson The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 22, 2013 07:36PM MDT

West Valley City • A board that reviews complaints against police will begin issuing quarterly and annual reports on its operations under changes approved Tuesday by the City Council. In addition, citizens will be able to comment at the beginning of monthly meetings of the West Valley City Professional Standards Review Board (PSRB), the police will no longer have a role in appointing the body’s members and all seven members will be civilians. The police department had been appointing one of the ...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

House moves to strip commanders’ power over sexual assaults

Wed, 22 May 2013 20:07:07 MDT

House moves to strip commanders’ power over sexual assaults

By RICHARD LARDNER The Associated Press

Updated May 22, 2013 08:07PM MDT

Washington • Members of a House panel angry over the growing epidemic of sexual assaults in the military took a key step toward tackling the problem by passing legislation Wednesday that would strip commanding officers of their longstanding authority to unilaterally change or dismiss court-martial convictions in rape and assault cases. Lawmakers believe the revision will lead to a cultural shift and encourage victims to step forward. The legislation, which will be folded into a broader defense ...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Tensions mount as Salt Lake school board talks tax hike

Tue, 21 May 2013 23:01:22 MDT

Tensions mount as Salt Lake school board talks tax hike

By Ray Parker The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 21, 2013 11:01PM MDT

Budget discussions got so contentious Tuesday night, one Salt Lake City School District board member left the meeting. Tiffany Sandberg asked to be excused after board member Michael Clara continued to ask questions about the budget, yet none of the other members seemed to understand his point. Clara said he wants greater transparency involving district business, especially as he considers a vote on whether to increase taxes. The disagreement during Tuesday’s board meeting was the latest in a ...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

House immigration group reaches a deal

Thu, 16 May 2013 18:47:30 MDT

House immigration group reaches a deal

By ERICA WERNER The Associated Press

Updated May 16, 2013 06:47PM MDT

Washington • A bipartisan group of House members announced a deal Thursday on sweeping immigration legislation, a breakthrough that could boost chances for one of President Barack Obama’s top second-term priorities. It came after months of secretive talks among the four Republican and four Democratic House members had seemed to stall in recent days even as an immigration bill in the Senate moved forward. The House members met for two hours Thursday evening, emerging to announce they had a deal. ...

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

National PTA head visits Utah, talks of boosting membership

Thu, 16 May 2013 23:07:48 MDT

National PTA head visits Utah, talks of boosting membership

By lisa schencker The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 16, 2013 11:07PM MDT

PROVO • The soon-to-behead of the National PTA told Utah members Thursday he believes it’s possible for the group to reverse a trend of declining membership in some states and misconceptions about its politics. National PTA President-Elect Otha Thornton emphasized that the PTA — which has 117,000 members in Utah — is a nonpartisan group that tells its members to vote, but not how to vote. And he said it is possible to re-build membership numbers in some parts of the country. He said the power ...

For the U.S. military, a baffling rise in suicides

Wed, 15 May 2013 20:15:10 MDT

For the U.S. military, a baffling rise in suicides

By JAMES DAO and ANDREW W. LEHREN The New York Times

Updated May 15, 2013 08:15PM MDT

After Spc. Freddy Hook, a medic with the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division, killed himself in 2010, the trail of possible causes seemed long. He had used illegal drugs: Was it the demons of addiction? His rocky relationship with his fiancee? A wrenching deployment to earthquake-ravaged Haiti or the prospect of an impending tour in Afghanistan? As with most of suicides plaguing the military today, no one will know for sure. “There are so many factors,” said his mother, Theresa Taylor, of Lafayette, L...

Health reform gap for Native Americans may affect few Utahns

Wed, 15 May 2013 20:08:53 MDT

Health reform gap for Native Americans may affect few Utahns

By Kirsten Stewart The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 15, 2013 08:08PM MDT

In Fort Duchesne, a federally funded health clinic offers free medical care — prenatal care, well-baby checks, dentistry and eyeglasses — to patients with Ute Indian ancestry. But under the Affordable Care Act, some of the clinic’s patients may have to either buy health insurance they don’t need or pay a tax penalty. American Indians are exempted from the act’s upcoming mandate to buy insurance, but its definition is limited to those who are members of approximately 560 tribes recognized by th...