RALPH COUEY

California raids 9/11 fund for deficits

An Associated Press review of the $15 million collected since lawmakers approved the “California Memorial Scholarship Program” shows only a small fraction of the money went to scholarships.

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May 14, 2011

RALPH COUEY | Twisters: Frightening, yet fascinating

Ralph Couey For The Tribune-Democrat The Tribune-Democrat Sat May 14, 2011, 11:51 PM EDT

— I’ve always been fascinated by weather. I grew up in the Midwest – “Tornado Alley” – a million-cubic-mile severe weather laboratory.

During the spring and summer months, I watched, engrossed, as dark, ominous cloud masses boiled up from the southwest. The winds gusted, bending trees and sending loose objects flying. Thunder roared; lightning flashed. Rain gushed from the sky like a waterfall, sometimes accompanied by the clattering of hail. And in the middle of it all, the hair-raising sound of sirens spooling up.

Sure, it was scary. But I couldn’t tear myself away.

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