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DEDICATED TO PROUDLY DELIVERING LOCAL NEWS SINCE 1881
Monday, February 1, 2010
www.sweetwaterreporter.com
Vol. 112, Issue 066 ■ 50 cents
Sports
Check
out UIL
realignment
changes
on our
website. Also
see the story
in tomorrow's
paper
Life
East Ridge
announces A-B
honor roll
— See j
Viewpoints
Americans
deliver a
message
— See
—TEXHS-r.
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Conservation poster contest winners announced
1
The sixth grade conservation poster contest winners were Michael Hunt, first place; Lizzie Gray, second
place; and Max Nemir, third place.
Courtesy Photo
U.S. Wind industry breaks all records
The U.S. wind industry broke all previous records
by installing nearly 10,000 megawatts of new generat-
ing capacity in 2009, enough to serve over 2.4 million
homes, but still lags in manufacturing, the American
Wind Energy Association (AWEA) said today in its Q4
report.
These new projects place wind power neck and neck
with natural gas as the leading source of new electricity
generation for the country. Together, the two sources
account for about 80% of the new capacity added in the
country last year.
"The U.S. wind energy industry shattered all installa-
tion records in 2009, chalking up the Recovery Act as a
historic success in creating jobs, avoiding carbon, and
protecting consumers," said AWEA CEO Denise Bode.
"But U.S. w ind turbine manufacturing—the canary in the
mine - - is down compared to last year's levels, and needs
long-term policy certainty and market pull in order
to grow. We need to set hard targets, in the form of a
national Renewable Electricity Standard (RES), in order
to provide the necessary stability for manufacturers to
expand their U.S. operations and to seize the historic
opportunity we have today to build up a thriving renew-
able energy industry."
Early last year, before the Recovery Act (ARRA), the
industry anticipated that in 2009 wind power develop-
ment might drop by as much as 50% from 2008 levels,
with equivalent job losses. The clear commitment by the
President to create clean energy jobs and the swift imple-
• See WIND page 3
What will
Punxsutawney
Phil predict
this year
BY AMANDA
MORENO
Staff Writer
Shadow or no Shadow?
Punxsutawney will
decide tomorrow if this is
the end of winter, or if
we still have more cold
weather in the forecast.
Every year, on Feb. 2, he
makes his way out of his
hole and lets the nation
know what kind of weath-
er to expect.
If he sees his shadow, he
will retreat back into his
hole, and six more weeks
of winter will be expected.
If he doesn't see his shad-
ow, it is said to be the end
of winter.
What once started as
a Pennsylvania German
custom, has grown to be
a nationally recognized
event. The theory originat-
ed in the early 19th centu-
ry, from ancient European
weather lore, accord-
ing to Wikipedia. The
main difference from the
European weather lore, is
that it referred to a badger
or sacred bear. The Celtic
calendar, and medieval
Catholic holiday-Candle-
mas, have had influence
on this celebration.
Each town that cele-
brates Groundhog Day in
North America has their
own winter-predicting
groundhogs, but none
have gained as much as
attention as Punxsutawney
Phil.
According to studies, the
Groundhog Day results
prove to be right about 75
to 90 percent of the time.
Last year, Punxsutawney
predicted that there would
be six more weeks of win-
ter.
• See PHIL page 3
Riverdance to have farewell performance
liV AVI \ VIV\ i.
BY AMANDA
MORENO
Staff Writer
Everything good must
come to an end, but what
better way to say farewell
than with RIVERDANCE.
For the past 14 years,
RIVERDANCE has thrilled
audiences across the globe
and now it will play three
farewell performances at
the City Bank Auditorium
in Lubbock.
"Since 1996, the success
of RIVERDANCE in North
America has gone beyond
our widest dreams," Moya
Doherty, producer, said.
The show made its debut
in Dublin at the Point
Theatre, in 1995, and
serves as a tribute to every
dancer, singer, musician,
staff and crew member
who had dedicated them-
selves to the show, accord-
ing to Doherty.
RIVERDANCE uses
Irish traditions, Irish
dance and Irish music
to capture its audiences.
There have been 10,000
performances and over
22 million have seen it
live. The performance has
taken to 350 stages, in 40
countries and four conti-
nents. They have traveled
to the moon and back, or
at least in distance. Their
Grammy Award-winning
CD has gone platinum in
the United States and 10
million videos have been
sold.
RIVERDANCE did not
start out as a big pro-
duction, but as a simple,
seven-minute dance seg-
ment. It was first seen
on the 1994 Eurovision
Song Contest, which was
watched by 300 million
Europeans. Not long after,
it took off and turned into
a full-scale production.
The performance isn't
your traditional dance,
but a celebration of Irish
• See DANCE page 3
> *
1 4
/
Riverdance will play three farewell performances at the City Bank Auditorium in Lubbock, TX. Tickets range
from $25 to $55, per person. Tickets for this farewell performance can be purchased through Select-A-Seat,
United Supermarkets or online at SelectASeatLubbock.com or by phone at 806-770-2000.
