2006 World La Crosse

It is said that a garden bench never rests its owner, but a nice fall day might be the ideal time to sit for a few minutes and consider your vegetable garden. Besides being relaxing, this will provide you with a chance to review the successes and failures of the growing year. You’ll probably also notice some fall chores that need to be done, getting you up off the bench and fulfilling the prophecy. At the very least, evaluate, take note and plan for next year.

Take stock

Late fall is a good time to take a look at what varieties produced well, what didn’t and why, and what you might do differently.

“Greens did wonderfully this year, I had a great crop of kale and chard,” says Charmaine Slaven, a musician and Wallingford gardener. “Also this was the first year I successfully grew carrots.” The desirable variety was Nantes, purchased from Oregon’s Territorial Seeds.

Slaven, who earns her seed money with the acoustic musical groups Tallboys and Squirrel Butter, “got into it seriously this year,” gardening in both the front- and backyards, keeping chickens and taking classes from Seattle Tilth. She learned much about light and water needs, she says, and the soil quality at her rental home.

“Some of my beets that got too much shade didn’t do too well,” she says, “so I’m going to try to clear some of the tree branches to let in more light. And I’m building the soil in the front yard.”

This is the time of year for soil-building, as cover crops can be sown into beds now cleared of their summer produce.

Jot in your journal

Noting the cultural needs of your plants and this year’s weather pattern will help you next season as well. Keep a garden journal, including planting dates, varieties and soil amendments used. Record growing conditions, such as weather and rainfall amounts. (This year’s sad reality: too little sun to ripen all the tomatoes.)

Finally, keep track of harvests and yield. What was that wonderful bean that did so well? Save seed or mark the catalog for next year. Did a winter squash or pepper put out small or too-few fruit? Might want to shop for a different variety, one bred for more vigor in our climate.

It’s also useful to record which vegetables were planted in each of your beds so that you can practice effective crop rotation. Because of nutrient needs and the possibility of soil-borne diseases or pests, it is advisable to not plant the same veggies in the same place year after year.

Rotate crops from a leafy plant to a root vegetable to a flowering plant to a fruit.

“I plan to move my crops one to two beds over from where they were last year,” Slaven says, “which I hope will keep disease down to a minimum. I do everything organically here, so I’m really conscious of that.”

Tuck in the beds

If you’re growing root crops that will “overwinter,” or stay in the ground until spring, consider blanketing their bed with a layer of leaves for protection against cold, windy conditions.

A leaf layer will protect bare beds from the compaction from winter rains too. If not growing cover crops, mulch the beds with 3 to 6 inches of leaves. Alternatively, or in addition, cover the beds with burlap coffee bags (available free from coffee roasters) to protect the soil.

Gather extra leaves and keep them in dry bags or compost bins to use next summer, when the quantity of green compost material is high but the carbonaceous part of the mixture is more scarce. Leaves also make a great winter bedding for the worm bin.

Finally, don’t tidy the garden up too much. A pile of windblown leaves around the stems of woody plants or along a border will naturally provide the mulch and insect habitat your garden needs.

Consider the critters

Speaking of garden insects, mulch on the beds will increase earthworm activity and provide a safe haven for ground beetles and other beneficial bugs.

If you have mason bees - the small, native bee that nests in holes of wood blocks and emerges early in the spring to pollinate fruit trees - review their nesting boxes and store them for the winter.

To avoid spreading disease among the bee population, it’s best to use paper sleeves in the nesting holes. Those sleeves, if full of bees resting in their mud-colored cocoons, can be removed from the blocks and stored in an unheated space, or a refrigerator, advises Washington State University’s King County Extension Service.

Any partially filled tubes should be discarded, and the bee blocks can be washed and soaked in a chlorine bleach solution to remove parasites and pathogens. In February or March, the blocks can be set out again with the existing bees and empty fresh sleeves for nesting.

Still time for seeds

Does putting the garden to bed make sprouting season seem far away? If you still yearn to sow, some cover crop seeds, like hardy fava beans, can yet be planted. Early November is not too late to plant garlic either, and some lettuces and spinach will sprout in a good spell of weather. Calm the urge even further by tucking a few flower bulbs of crocus, daffodil or tulip around the edge of the garden for a bit of color to encourage those first vegetable seeds of spring.

Bill Thorness is a freelance garden writer in Seattle: bill@thorness.com.

Q: How can I learn more about cheese?

A: The best way to learn about cheese is from someone who knows. The rising popularity of artisanal cheese has been accompanied by an increase in cheese-related books. One good place to start is “Cheese Essentials,” by Laura Werlin (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2007, $24.95). Werlin’s first book, “The New American Cheese” (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, $35) is one of the best guides to the renaissance in American cheese-making.

Now she addresses the cheese novice with clear instructions on how to navigate the cheese counter and how to read cheese labels, what are the eight main styles of cheese, and how best to eat and cook with various cheeses (including which melt best). She also includes a helpful list that clusters cheeses progressively by strength.

Eleven years ago, the pioneering cheese monger Steve Jenkins published his authoritative and opinionated “Cheese Primer” (Workman, $16.95), and it is still a standard text, although it does not include cheeses that have become available (often through Jenkins’ own efforts) since 1996.

Less detailed, but very useful is last year’s “The Murray’s Cheese Handbook: A Guide to More Than 300 of the World’s Best Cheeses” by Rob Kaufelt (Broadway, $12.95), a pocket-size A to Z from the owner of one of Manhattan’s best cheese shops.

Max McCalman is the dean of curriculum and the master “fromager” for Artisanal Premium Cheese, Terrance Brennan’s cheese catalog-warehouse-think tank. He and David Gibbons have written two fine books (both Potter, $35), “Cheese: A Connoisseur’s Guide to the World’s Best,” an illustrated survey of world cheeses, and “The Cheese Plate,” which offers McCalman’s advice on serving cheese and pairing it with wine.

As you begin to learn about cheese, you may want to sample ever more specimens. If your local cheesemonger can’t help you, these Web sites offer a wide selection of well-tended cheeses that are described in detail: artisanalcheese.com, murrayscheese.com, igourmet.com and zingermans.com. When approaching a new subject of inquiry, it’s always helpful to narrow one’s focus. So, too, with cheese. Instead of taking on the whole world, start by learning about one region. Or, zero in on a type of cheese - hard, blue, washed-rind, - or on cheeses from one type of milk.

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Tropical Storm Noel brought heavy rain to the western Caribbean Tuesday as it pushed through Cuba and edged closer to Florida. Floods and mudslides across the region have killed at least 22 people.

Forecasters projected the storm would emerge over water Wednesday near central Cuba and head northeast toward the Bahamas. Warnings were in effect for rough surf for much of South Florida, including the Miami area.

The storm cut a destructive path across the island of Hispaniola, which is shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic, with emergency officials reporting between 22 and 36 people dead. In neighboring Haiti, at least six people died.

Islamabad, Pakistan

Suicide bomb near president’s office

A suicide bomber blew himself up Tuesday less than a half-mile from Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf’s office at army headquarters in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, killing seven other people.

The attack, the latest in a series of suicide assaults aimed at Pakistan’s political leaders and military installations, came 12 days after a bomber killed more than 140 people in the homecoming procession of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in Karachi, the nation’s largest city.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but suspicion fell on Islamic militants, who have carried out dozens of such attacks in recent months. The blast fueled tensions in Pakistan, which has been rocked by months of political instability and a rising Islamic insurgency.

Gaza City, Gaza Strip

Israelis strike Gaza police station

Israeli aircraft hit a Hamas-run police station in the southern Gaza City of Khan Younis late Tuesday, killing at least four people, Palestinian security and hospital officials said.

The Israeli military confirmed it carried out an airstrike, saying the target was a Hamas position in southern Gaza. It said the attack followed the firing of mortar shells by Hamas at an Israeli village near Gaza.

Earlier, Israeli forces fired a missile that hit a house in northern Gaza, wounding three people. The military said it was aiming at a rocket squad, but the missile misfired and hit the house.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Cambodian leader shuns gay daughter

Cambodian’s Prime Minister Hun Sen said Tuesday he was severing ties with his adopted daughter, who is a lesbian, but appealed to people not to discriminate against gays.

“My adopted daughter now has a wife. I’m quite disappointed,” Hun Sen said.

He made the rare revelation about his closely guarded family life during a public speech at a student graduation ceremony. Hun Sen said he plans to file a civil court case to disown his adopted daughter so that she cannot claim any inheritance from his family.

Tokyo

New Japanese fighter jet crashes

A Japanese fighter jet crashed an instant after takeoff and went up in flames Wednesday at an airport in central Japan, leaving the two pilots with minor injuries, an official for aircraft’s manufacturer said.

The F-2B fighter was on a test flight before delivery to Japan’s air force when it crashed, said Hideo Ikuno, a spokesman for the Daiya public-relations firm representing the plane’s maker, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

Also

Iran drug raid: Iranian law-enforcement officers killed seven drug traffickers in Iran’s northeast Khorasan Razavi Province on the Afghan border during a special operation, Iranian TV channels reported on Monday. Afghanistan, the world’s largest opium and heroin producer, has a long border with Iran, making the Islamic Republic a major drug-smuggling route.

China cancer: Breast cancer has risen sharply in Beijing during the last decade. The incidence of breast cancer has increased 23 percent in 10 years, with about 45 women out of every 100,000 diagnosed with the disease, the China Daily said. In Shanghai, it is 55 out of 100,000, up 31 percent in the past decade.

U.N. backs Cuba: The U.N. General Assembly voted for the 16th straight year Tuesday to urge the United States to end its trade embargo against Cuba. The 192-member world body approved a resolution calling for an end to the 46-year-old U.S. economic and commercial embargo.

Seattle Times news services

My mother was big on Halloween. And by that, I don’t mean she spent that hallowed day baking ghoulish cupcakes with teensy candy pumpkins, or admiring the costumes she’d handcrafted for her four kids.

Mom was in it for the costumes and the candy, all right: her costumes - and our candy.

On a particularly memorable Halloween, she arrived to pick me up from a Girl Scout bonfire-fueled jamboree. Jumping out of her ‘69 VW Bug, she made her way through the crisp autumn leaves to find me. I can’t recall how - or even if - I was costumed that night, but I’ll never forget how I felt when I lifted my bobbing head from a vat full of tooth-bitten apples:

Wiping cold water from my eyes, I focused on a 5-foot-2-inch figure dressed like Bozo the Clown - complete with white-face makeup, Joker lips and a spiky Halloween-orange bathing cap that looked suspiciously like the one my mother wore that summer at our local swim club. “Surprise!” yelled Bozo. Having earned my Girl Scout Mortification Badge then and there, I slunk to the car and promptly burst into tears.

Ah, golden memories of Halloween! I’ve got a million of them. And not a single one involves “snack-size” candy bars, “Harvest Festivals” or trick-or-treating in a Costco-bought costume under the fluorescent lights of an indoor shopping mall.

Celebrating Halloween as a kid in Philadelphia - where decorating for the holiday remains a citywide imperative - I had the great fortune of living in a 500-tract subdivision where kids ruled, candy was king and our rallying cry was, “Trick or treat! Smell my feet! Give me something good to eat!”

Back then, we actually did get something good to eat. Trudging up and down the streets and cul-de-sacs with pillow cases and UNICEF boxes in hand - devoid of flashlights, reflective gear or, God forbid, our parents - we’d score big on Hershey Bars, Goldenberg’s Peanut Chews and the occasional caramel-coated apple that we’d scarf on the spot, never considering the need to X-ray that special treat for razor blades.

And when, our sacks full-up to nearly bursting, we’d arrive home to empty our loot onto the dining-room table and trade candy (”I’ll give you two Butterfingers for a Necco Wafer”), justice had to be served. Her name was Mom. We paid her in dividends of Nestle Crunch and 3 Muskeeters, which she’d stash in a cookie tin kept out of our reach - or so she thought - atop our “side-by-side refrigerator-freezer.”

These days I spend All Hallow’s Eve in the company of a Sweet-Tarted-up grade-schooler, whose dad - bless him - lovingly makes the boy’s costumes. Tonight, in the company of a woman whose “costume” involves an Eddie Bauer jacket and mom-jeans, my son will traipse through downtown Edmonds in a small-town scene straight out of “Hocus Pocus.”

Eschewing last year’s costume (Count Dracula) for this year’s (an M&M), we’ll join 5,000 merrymakers who hit-up the local merchants, amassing umpteen miniversions of the same six candies (enough already with the Tootsie Rolls!). We’ll stop at the movie theater for a bag of popcorn and Just Say No to the line that snakes down the block from the local bake shop, where fresh doughnuts are free for those who can stand the wait.

Meanwhile, my husband will be sitting home with a cocktail and the dogs, waiting for the next wave of local urchins who know where to knock for full-size Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and Starburst candies and (if they’re very lucky and I haven’t been entirely too busy) a homemade caramel apple - hold the shaving implements.

If they’re smart, they’ll go across the street to our neighbors, the Smiths, who one-up us by a mile with their movie- theater-size candy boxes. And they’ll stay away from “Spooky Dave’s” - the neighborhood electrician who’s known to scare the yell out of the little ones when they ring his doorbell and he jumps out from behind a porch pillar dressed as a ghoul.

When we return home from our town’s communal festivities, cold, tired and hungry for the pizza that awaits us, we make certain to first pay a visit to the Smiths, and Spooky Dave, and the many neighbors who beg us to take an extra helping of candy - lest they’re forced to eat the leftovers themselves.

Back in the day - my day - there weren’t any “leftovers”: only lights turned out, doorbells unanswered and, occasionally, nickels and dimes doled out in lieu of sweets. But these days, with kids heading out to private parties, shopping malls and other clean, well-lighted places on Halloween, neighborhoods don’t see the kind of action they saw when I was growing up.

It’s enough to make my mother melancholic.

Mom recently moved from South Jersey to a fancy-pants retirement community in sunny South Carolina where, in the spirit of the season, I sent her a box of Nestle Crunch. I did it just so I can imagine her sitting poolside, soaking up some sun, sharing her Halloween candy with her gal-pals and clowning around in that spiky orange bathing cap. It’s a vision that still brings tears to my eyes.

Nancy Leson: Nancy Leson: 206-464-8838 or nleson@seattletimes.com.

More columns available at seattletimes.com/nancyleson.

The beverage industry is touting a natural resource with potent healing powers, one that promises to boost the immune system, aid weight loss, ease sore muscles and even fight hangovers.

It’s called water.

But this isn’t bland old tap water. It’s flavored and “nutritionally enhanced” bottled water that has been jazzed up with everything from cucumber to mango and grapefruit extracts, infused with vitamins, minerals and electrolytes, and loaded with herbal supplements, antioxidants and oxygen.

Known as “functional beverages,” thirst quenchers such as VitaminWater are especially popular with consumers ages 18 to 34 looking for a boost. The waters don’t just hydrate; they claim to “protect your skin from the inside out,” “revive your soul,” “improve your mood” and “increase energy and alertness.”

Whether fortified water can deliver on all those promises is still up for debate. Critics say there’s no science to show enhanced water has more health benefits than less expensive tap water, while environmental organizations, religious groups and even restaurateurs argue that all bottled water - enhanced or not - is a wasteful and insupportable use of fossil fuels because of the costs associated with its manufacture and transportation.

From a nutritional standpoint, experts maintain that it’s better to get nutrients through whole foods. They also point out that taking extra vitamins doesn’t necessarily make you healthier.

Consumers, meanwhile, might be surprised to learn that many of these beverages aren’t technically “bottled water” at all because, like soft drinks, they have added sweeteners and often calories. Water can be called “bottled water” only if it contains no added ingredients, except for antimicrobial agents or fluoride, according to the Food and Drug Administration’s definition.

We’re drinking it up

But Americans, always eager to try quick and convenient health remedies, are drinking up fortified waters anyway. From 2004 through 2006, sales for enhanced waters and sports drinks grew by 73 percent, to $1.2 billion, according to the market-research firm Mintel International Group.

“The enhanced waters are at the intersection of several growth trends in the beverage business,” said John Sicher, editor and publisher of Beverage Digest. “Consumers are gravitating toward lighter, lower-calorie beverages, there’s growing interest in functional beverages beyond taste and refreshment, and they’re playing off the growth of bottled water.”

In 2006, per capita consumption of bottled water in the U.S. was 27.6 gallons per person, a 9.5 percent increase from the previous year, according to the International Bottled Water Association. In 1976, Americans drank just 1.6 gallons per person.

Today, Coca-Cola and PepsiCo dominate the enhanced-water market, which Glaceau created in 1996. In May, Coke snatched up Glaceau for $4 billion; in addition to Glaceau’s VitaminWater, SmartWater and FruitWater, Coke’s brands include Dasani Plus. PepsiCo’s offerings of enhanced-water beverage include Aquafina Alive Wellness Water, SoBe Life Water and Gatorade’s Propel Fitness water.

VitaminWater and Propel are two of the most popular products in the category, according to Sicher. Although both have added sweeteners, they don’t contain high-fructose corn syrup and thus enjoy a healthy reputation.

Even though industry associations and trade groups claim that high-fructose corn syrup is not to blame for the obesity epidemic, more products are being labeled HFCS-free to appeal to health-conscious consumers, according to the market-research firm Datamonitor.

“As a nutritionist, I may not support (functional water), but as a public-health servant, I do,” said Roger Clemens, the public-health specialist for the Institute of Food Technologists. “Our goal is to provide the best possible nutrition for 300 million people in the country. In this case, it may be it takes us looking at fortified water to do that.”

“Liquid gold” to her

The premise behind functional water is that the public is chronically dehydrated and short on nutrients. And because it’s often hard to change a person’s behavior, food companies are changing the food they’re eating or drinking.

But is it necessary? Although the bottled-water association recommends drinking eight glasses a day of 8 ounces each, the Institute of Medicine says “the vast majority of healthy people adequately meet their daily hydration by letting their thirst be their guide.”

“Most people need to drink two quarts of water a day,” said Marion Nestle, a professor in the Department of Nutrition, Food Studies and Public Health at New York University who thinks “liquid gold” when she sees bottled water. “But these quarts do not have to come from water itself; they can also come from anything with water in it.”

Although artificially vitamin-enriched food and drinks may sound beneficial, they’re not the same as foods with naturally occurring vitamins and nutrients, wrote Renee Loux in “The Balanced Plate” (Rodale, $22.95). In many cases, the body can’t do much with the added nutrient because it can’t absorb it.

Then there’s the question of whether we really even need more B vitamins, electrolytes (sodium, chloride and potassium) or folic acid.

Endurance athletes who have lost electrolytes through sweat may benefit from electrolyte-enhanced drinks, for example, but for most people, the drinks simply offer extra calories.

Ones that should worry

According to government dietary guidelines, specific populations - those over age 50 and women of childbearing age - are the ones who should worry about increasing levels of vitamin B-12, folic acid, iron and vitamins E and D. The rest of Americans should work on reducing calories, saturated and trans fats, cholesterol, added sugars and salt.

“There’s not a single drink out there - from Enviga to SmartWater - that has any proof of impact,” said nutrition professor Barry Popkin, who directs the Interdisciplinary Center for Obesity at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

“Just because a nutrient is in the product doesn’t necessarily mean it will impact you or get in your body. There are all sorts of false labels promising health benefits.

“The American public is told they’re deficient in something when they’re not,” Popkin added. “And what they’re providing is not going to benefit. All they’re doing is selling sugar in another form, adding calories, feeding the obesity epidemic and calling it ‘healthy.”‘

Still, it’s a smart idea to hydrate. And if enhanced waters help people consume less calorie-laden soda, there’s a place for them in a diet, said registered dietitian Roberta Duyff, author of The American Dietetic Association’s “Complete Food and Nutrition Guide” (Wiley, $24.95).

But there’s still no substitute for a good diet and nothing better than plain water, Duyff said.

TOKYO - Japan’s justice minister said Monday a “friend of a friend” who belonged to al-Qaida had entered the country repeatedly with false passports and disguises, a disconcerting revelation in a nation that fears its support of the United States makes it vulnerable to a terror attack.

Justice Minister Kunio Hatoyama told reporters he had personal knowledge of how terrorists can infiltrate the country, citing an unidentified “friend of a friend” who was involved in a bomb attack on the Indonesian island of Bali.

“I have never met this person, but until two or three years ago, it seems this person was visiting Japan often. And each time he arrived in Japan, he used a different passport,” Hatoyama said.

The minister added that his friend, whom he did not name, had warned him to stay away from the center of Bali, where bomb attacks took place in 2002 and 2005.

Hatoyama did not specify when he received the warning, nor did he say whether he alerted Indonesian officials.

Indonesian police have said the 2002 nightclub bombings that killed 202 people on Bali were carried out by the al-Qaida-linked Jemaah Islamiyah militant group. The Southeast Asian terror organization has also been blamed for the 2005 attacks.

Hatoyama’s statement came during a news conference to discuss a new program to fingerprint nearly all foreigners entering Japan. The minister appeared to be offering the anecdote as evidence of the necessity of the program, which critics have denounced as a violation of human rights.

“The fact is that such foreign people can easily enter Japan,” Hatoyama said. “In terms of security, this is not a preferable situation.”

Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda said he hoped Hatoyama’s al-Qaida connection would not re-enter Japan. “I hope he’ll deal with this issue firmly through immigration controls now that he’s justice minister,” Fukuda said.

Tokyo’s support of the U.S.-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq and dispatch of forces to each region have raised concerns that Japan could be targeted by terrorists.

WASHINGTON - The State Department promised Blackwater USA bodyguards immunity from prosecution in its investigation of last month’s deadly shooting of 17 Iraqi civilians, three senior law-enforcement officials say.

The immunity deal has delayed a criminal inquiry into the Sept. 16 killings and could undermine any effort to prosecute security contractors for their role in the incident that has infuriated the Iraqi government.

“Once you give immunity, you can’t take it away,” said a senior law-enforcement official familiar with the investigation.

It’s not clear why investigators would make such a move, or who authorized doing so.

State Department officials declined to confirm or deny that immunity had been granted. One official - who refused to be quoted by name - said: “If, in fact, such a decision was made, it was done without any input or authorization from any senior State Department official in Washington.”

Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd and FBI spokesman Rich Kolko also declined to comment.

FBI agents in Baghdad have been trying to collect evidence in the Sept. 16 embassy convoy shooting without using statements from Blackwater employees who were given immunity.

The senior law-enforcement officials, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity, said all the Blackwater bodyguards involved in the incident - both in the vehicle convoy and in at least two helicopters above - were given the legal protection as investigators from the Bureau of Diplomatic Security sought to find out what happened. The bureau is an arm of the State Department.

Government officials who spoke to The New York Times - also on condition of anonymity - said the investigators offered the immunity grants even though they did not have the authority to do so, the newspaper reported on its Web site. Prosecutors at the Justice Department, who do have such authority, had no advance knowledge of the arrangement, those officials added.

Iraq is demanding the right to launch its own prosecution of the Blackwater bodyguards.

The company has said its convoy was under attack before it opened fire in west Baghdad’s Nisoor Square, killing 17 Iraqis. A follow-up investigation by the Iraqi government, however, concluded that Blackwater’s men were unprovoked. No witnesses have been found to contradict that finding.

An initial incident report by U.S. Central Command, which oversees military operations in Iraq, also indicated “no enemy activity” was involved. The report says Blackwater guards were traveling against the flow of traffic through a traffic circle when they “engaged five civilian vehicles with small-arms fire” at a distance of 50 meters.

The FBI took over the case early this month, officials said, after prosecutors in the Justice Department’s criminal division realized they could not bring charges against Blackwater guards based on their statements to the Diplomatic Security investigators.

Officials said the Blackwater bodyguards spoke only after receiving so-called “Garrity” protections, requiring that their statements only be used internally - and not for criminal prosecutions.

Garrity protections generally are given to police or other public law-enforcement officers, and were extended to the Blackwater guards because they were working on behalf of the U.S. government, one official said. Experts said it’s rare for them to be given to all or even most witnesses.

“You have to be careful,” said Michael Horowitz, a former federal prosecutor in Manhattan and senior Justice Department official. “You have to understand early on who your serious subjects are in the investigation, and avoid giving these people the protections.”

The FBI has re-interviewed some of the Blackwater employees, and one official said Monday that at least several of them have declined to answer questions, citing their constitutional right to avoid self-incrimination. Any new incriminating statements that the guards give to the FBI could be used to bring criminal charges.

If prosecutors do bring charges, they will have to prove that any evidence they include was uncovered without using the guards’ statements to State Department investigators. They “have to show we got the information independently,” one official said.

Bureau of Diplomatic Security chief Richard Griffin last week announced his resignation, effective Thursday. Senior State Department officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, have said his departure was directly related to his oversight of Blackwater contractors.

Last week, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice ordered a series of measures to boost government oversight of the private guards who protect American diplomats in Iraq. They include increased monitoring and explicit rules on when and how they can use deadly force.

Blackwater’s contract with the State Department expires in May and there are questions whether it will remain as the primary contractor for diplomatic bodyguards. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has said his Cabinet is drafting legislation that would force the State Department to replace Blackwater with another security company.

Congress also is expected to investigate the shootings, but a House watchdog committee said it has so far held off, based on a Justice Department request that lawmakers wait until the FBI concludes its inquiry.

Associated Press writers Matthew Lee and Lolita C. Baldor contributed to this story.

NEW YORK - Joe Girardi is back in pinstripes, taking over as New York Yankees manager from his mentor.
Girardi was hired Tuesday, agreeing to a three-year contract to replace Joe Torre in New York’s dugout.
“I think any of us would be somewhat surprised to get the job because it’s such an honor,” Girardi said. “I’m extremely excited and thrilled.
“I can’t be Joe Torre, because I’m made up different. I’m a different character. I’m just worried about being myself and getting the most out of the guys.”
The deal is worth an average salary of at least $2 million annually, a baseball official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the team has not announced the details.
Girardi was the 2006 NL Manager of the Year with Florida, plus he has a pinstriped pedigree. The hard-nosed catcher played on three Yankees teams that won the World Series, served as their bench coach under Torre and was a TV announcer this year.
“Joe Girardi is a good man,” Torre said Monday on “Late Show with David Letterman.” “He’s got a feel for this organization.”
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman was impressed by three attributes he saw in Girardi: hard work, accountability and discipline.
“He likes to compete all the time,” Cashman said. “We believe he’s mentally tough.”
Once he was informed Monday that the Yankees had chosen Girardi, Don Mattingly told the team he had no interest in returning next year as bench coach or in any other coaching position.
Beloved as team captain, Donnie Baseball was the early favorite to replace Torre and openly coveted the spot. Instead, the Yankees picked experience over popularity, choosing Girardi even at the risk Mattingly would walk away from the franchise.
“I think Joe is a good baseball person and totally will be a great manager there in New York,” Mattingly said.
Still, spurning Mattingly — who always receives one of the loudest ovations on Old-Timers’ Day — was sure to be compared to another famous Yankee snub: Babe Ruth was never offered the manager’s job he so desperately wanted.
“It’s no secret that Donnie is extremely important to the Steinbrenner family and the Yankee organization and always will be,” said Hank Steinbrenner, son of owner George Steinbrenner.
Mattingly was the Yankees hitting coach for three years before moving next to Torre this season. Girardi also beat out Yankees first-base coach Tony Pena, who had the most managerial experience of the candidates.
Girardi caught for the Yankees from 1996-99, served as a bench coach in 2005, then managed the Marlins the following year. He kept a young team in contention until September and then was fired, apparently for clashing with owner Jeffrey Loria and others above him.
The 43-year-old Girardi often told many in the Marlins about how the Yankees did things, reinforcing the winning ways he learned in New York. Now, he’ll get a chance to try them out himself.
Girardi was the first person to interview to replace Torre, who managed the team to the playoffs in each of his 12 seasons. Girardi turned down the Baltimore Orioles’ managing job last summer, choosing to spend time with his ailing father.
Mattingly also interviewed for the Yankees spot last week, telling team management how much he wanted it. Earlier this month, he said replacing Torre would be quite a challenge.
“It’s like following John Wooden or something,” Mattingly said then.
Girardi gets the unenviable task of following Torre, who led the Yankees to four World Series titles in his first five years — but none since — and was one of the most celebrated sports figures in the city.
Girardi inherits a team in transition and one without Alex Rodriguez. He also is not assured of getting back pitchers Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera or catcher Jorge Posada.
“Obviously they are important Yankees, and they have meant so much to the organization,” Girardi said.
Rivera and his agent, Fernando Cuza, were at Legends Field in Tampa on Tuesday, to talk with Yankees officials. The ace reliever, who has filed for free agency, said only, “We’ve got to see something.”
Afterward, Cuza said they had a good meeting but wouldn’t speculate whether Rivera will be a Yankee next season.
“I don’t know,” Cuza said. “It’s up to them.”
Rodriguez informed the Yankees on Sunday that he was terminating his contract and becoming a free agent. The Yankees have repeatedly said they wouldn’t negotiate with A-Rod if he hit the open market.
“You are going to miss those 54 home runs and 150-plus RBIs, but to me you can’t look backwards, you have to look forwards,” Girardi said.

Freelance writer Mark Didtler in Tampa, Fla., contributed to this report.

KIRKLAND - The business of football returned in full swing to Seahawks headquarters Monday with all of the players back from the bye week off.

The Seahawks don’t normally practice Mondays, lifting weights and doing conditioning on days after games. But because there was no game to play Sunday, they went through about a 70-minute workout.

“This is kind of a little bit of a bonus day, we’re calling it,” coach Mike Holmgren said afterward.

Not all the players practiced, though, with eight sitting out.

Among those not practicing was quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, whose strained oblique muscle kept him out per advice to Holmgren from the team medical staff. Wide receiver Deion Branch, fullback Leonard Weaver, defensive end Darryl Tapp, right tackle Sean Locklear and defensive tackle Rocky Bernard, all starters, also missed practice.

“I wanted them to practice,” Holmgren said, “and I think we’re being a little careful. But I’ll go with what they [trainers and doctors] tell me, but they’re all practicing Wednesday.”

Hasselbeck stood and watched while backup Seneca Wallace and No. 3 quarterback Charlie Frye took snaps, Wallace working with the starters. Hasselbeck was one of what he said was a group of six Seahawks forced to stay in town for injury treatment, causing him to scrap a planned vacation.

“I haven’t tested it too much, but I think I’ll be fine,” Hasselbeck said of his oblique.

Tapp has a broken right hand suffered in the Seahawks’ last game, Oct. 21, and had surgery. He is expected to play Sunday at Cleveland. Tight end Marcus Pollard, who also missed practice, had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee last week in Seattle and is expected to miss the game.

Branch still has a sore foot but is expected to return to practice this week after missing the last game, Holmgren said. But wide receiver D.J. Hackett took part in practice Monday and will likely play in his first game since Week 1.

“If we can get Deion back, if we can get D.J. back, that would be huge because those guys have done a lot of work with us and they kind of fit in nicely,” Hasselbeck said. “A lot of these plays are designed for them. We have a lot of experience together.”

Locklear said a St. Louis Rams player fell on one of his ankles, so he’ll see how he feels by Wednesday when the team starts preparing for the Browns. Monday’s practice was more about self-evaluation.

“We tried to really focus in on what we can do better, more so than game planning and that kind of thing,” Hasselbeck said.

Defensive tackle Craig Terrill and offensive lineman Ray Willis also missed practice. Bernard and Terrill are expected back this week. Willis has a knee injury that will keep him out for perhaps another few weeks.

Boston’s finest

Hasselbeck, a native New Englander, was happy to see his Boston Red Sox win the World Series. He’s also enjoyed his alma mater, Boston College, going 8-0 this season and currently being ranked No. 2 in the BCS standings.

Hasselbeck was asked about the hot sports scene in New England - the NFL’s Patriots are also undefeated.

“They’re all very happy right now. I don’t blame them,” Hasselbeck said. “It’s wicked good right now.”

Note

• Holmgren came back with a bit of a tan from his bye-week time in Arizona. He admitted he “didn’t work very hard” and spent time taking walks, reading and riding his motorcycle.

José Miguel Romero: 206-464-2409 or jromero@seattletimes.com

ANCHORAGE - A key witness in an Alaska political-corruption scandal claimed Monday he was the target of a blackmail plot over his efforts to renovate U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens’ home.

During questioning in an Anchorage federal courtroom, former oil executive Bill Allen alleged that his nephew blackmailed him about the work done on Stevens’ Girdwood, Alaska, home seven years ago. The FBI has been investigating the remodel.

For decades, Allen was one of the most powerful and politically connected businessmen in Alaska and helped raise money for politicians, including U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, the longest-sitting Republican senator in Congress.

Allen was so vexed by the blackmail plot that he threatened to kill his nephew, according to an attorney who has reviewed a secret FBI affidavit.

But Allen testified Monday that he didn’t think he made statements about taking the life of his nephew.

“I wasn’t going to kill him,” Allen said under cross-examination in the bribery trial of Rep. Vic Kohring, a former Republican state legislator. “I wouldn’t have done that because his mother is my sister.”

The nephew is Dave Anderson, who worked on Stevens’ home in 2000, according to Bob Bundy, Allen’s lawyer.

In a recent interview, Anderson said he worked for about two decades for VECO, an oil-field-services company founded by Allen. He declined to comment on the blackmail allegations made by his uncle.

“We’re sitting on a hot skillet here,” he said. “If I could give you the full scoop, I would, but I can’t now. We have family members to think about.”

Talk of both the blackmail and a possible plan to harm or kill Anderson was contained in an FBI affidavit reviewed by Jim Wendt, an Anchorage defense attorney. Wendt represented a former Alaska state legislator who was convicted last month for accepting bribes from Allen and VECO.

“The whole issue with the blackmail indicated that Bill Allen had threatened to kill his nephew as a result of the blackmail,” Wendt said.

These allegations add another layer to one of the biggest political-corruption investigations in Alaska history. Two state legislators were convicted earlier this year of bribery. In the summer, the FBI raided Stevens’ Girdwood home.

Allen, 70, is the founder of VECO, which recently was sold to CH2M Hill for more than $400 million.

Allen has contributed heavily to Alaska politicians, including Stevens, U.S. Rep. Don Young and a slew of state lawmakers.

From at least September 2005, Allen has been a target of the FBI. Federal agents gained court approval to secretly record Allen’s phone calls. In August 2006, Allen agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors and the FBI as they continued to investigate Alaska politicians.

In May, Allen pleaded guilty in an Anchorage federal court to bribery and conspiracy charges. He agreed to cooperate in the ongoing federal investigation, including testifying against former lawmakers he claims to have bribed in an attempt to influence a 2006 legislative vote to raise state oil taxes.

In exchange for his plea and cooperation, the government may recommend Allen receive a reduced prison sentence and has agreed not to charge his children with crimes arising from the corruption investigation.

The investigation became public last year when the FBI raided Alaska lawmakers’ offices. In July, FBI agents took the extraordinary step of searching Stevens’ home, looking for evidence about the renovation.

Last month, Allen testified in the trial of another former legislator that he and VECO provided workers and paid some of the contracting bills in the home renovation. Stevens’ home, which sits at the base of the Alyeska Resort, was initially about 1,200 square feet. The 2000 remodel roughly doubled the size to include 10 rooms and three baths.

Steven has said that he and his wife, Catherine, paid all construction bills that were forwarded to him, and that they amounted to more than $130,000.

“This is a sad portion of my life - it will take time to explain,” Stevens wrote in a note to Wev Shea, a former U.S. attorney in Alaska.

Stevens has denied any wrongdoing.

Allen on Monday was asked if the remodel was a “gift” to Stevens. He answered, “No.” In an interview Sunday, Allen’s attorney, Bundy, gave another reason why his client might have been angry at his nephew. He said Allen was upset about Anderson’s relationship with a woman whom Allen used to date.

Bundy stressed that Allen had no intention of killing Anderson.

“Bill was very upset, but he was just talking,” Bundy said.

Tony Hopfinger: thopfinger@gci.net

Tony Hopfinger is a freelance writer in Alaska. Seattle Times reporter

Hal Bernton and freelance writer Amanda Coyne contributed

to this report.