Meijer Inc. is acquiring a distribution center in southeastern Wisconsin, as the Michigan-based superstore chain prepares to open its first stores in the Dairy State.

Meijer has struck a deal with Supervalu to purchase, for an undisclosed sum, a 580,000-square-foot distribution complex in Pleasant Prairie, Wis., just north of the Illinois-Wisconsin state line, MLive.com has reported. Meijer has signed agreements for five Wisconsin sites.

Supervalu reportedly will continue to operate the distribution center into early 2013. Meijer does not have immediate plans to operate or staff the facility, but the retailer plans to upgrade the two-decade-old complex.

Meijer operates 199 stores in Michigan, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio.

http://www.progressivegrocer.com/top-stories/headlines/industry-intelligence/id36577/meijer-prepares-for-wi-entry/

Associates at West Sacramento, Calif.-based Raley’s appeared to be poised for a strike this week amid management’s announcement that 40 of the chain’s 130 stores are losing up to $2 million each annually, the Modesto Bee reported.

Meanwhile, union leaders are reportedly not convinced of the company’s dire straits as the privately held chain has refused their demand to inspect its financial records.

Some observers say a strike could be catastrophic for Raley’s, which has never had a strike in its 77-year history.

Raley’s had not responded to PG’s request for comment at post time. Read the full Bee article for more details. http://www.modbee.com/2012/10/29/2433650/raleys-workers-are-gearing-up.html

http://www.progressivegrocer.com/top-stories/headlines/industry-intelligence/id36588/raleys-on-verge-of-strike/

BUTLER, MO. -- Earlier this week, the golden prairie-grass pasture here 70 miles south of Kansas City was quiet except for whistling wind and the distant growl of a tractor.

On Saturday, though, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources expects 200 people to gather on this spot about a mile up a gravel-covered Bates County road off Missouri 52 at 11 a.m. A band will play patriotic music, dignitaries will speak and a flag will rise as the state dedicates this farmland as a historic site.

A bronze plaque will be unveiled on a stone monument at the edge of this field, which in the past year has been transformed into a state park.

Here — on the Old Toothman farm — the First Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry set up headquarters 150 years ago, calling it Fort Africa.

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2012/10/25/3885869/black-soldiers-1862-valor-finally.html#storylink=cpy

Missouri Executive Order 44, also known as the "Mormon Extermination Order"[1] (alt. exterminating order)[2] in Latter Day Saint history, was an executive order issued on October 27, 1838 by the governor of Missouri, Lilburn Boggs. The directive was issued in the aftermath of the Battle of Crooked River, a clash between Mormons and a unit of the Missouri State Guard in northern Ray County, Missouri, during the Mormon War of 1838. Insisting that the Mormons had committed "open and avowed defiance of the laws", and had "made war upon the people of this State," Boggs precipitously directed that "the Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must be exterminated or driven from the State if necessary for the public peace—their outrages are beyond all description".[2]

While the order is often referred to as the "Mormon Extermination Order" due to the phrasing used by Boggs, relatively few people were killed as a direct result of its issuance. However, the state militia and other authorities used Boggs' missive as a pretext to expel the Mormons from their lands in the state, and force them to migrate to Illinois. Mormons did not begin to return to Missouri until 25 years later, when they found a more welcoming environment and were able to establish homes there once more. In 1976, citing the unconstitutional nature of Boggs' directive, Missouri Governor Kit Bond formally rescinded it.[3]

more at link
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extermination_Order_(Mormonism)

1. First and foremost, pick a pumpkin that is hard. Also, make sure that it has no blemishes. “You don’t want them to have any frost damage,” says Andres. “You can tell that by looking at the fruit.” Watery dark spots on the top of the pumpkin are an indication of frost damage.

2. “You want to wait until the last moment before carving pumpkins,” says Andres, since they tend to rot within a week or so. “But once you carve them, there are a few tricks to making them last a little bit longer.” You can squirt lemon juice on the exterior of the pumpkin, for instance. Lemon juice, as you may know, prevents the browning of fruits, such as apples and avocados (and pumpkins!). The browning is a result of phenols and enzymes in the fruits reacting with oxygen, but acidic lemon juice blocks the enzymes and thereby inhibits the reaction. Vaseline or vegetable oil can also be applied to preserve the pumpkin once it is cut.

3. Spray the jack o’lantern with a bleach solution, to stave off fungus growth.

4. Keep the pumpkin away from freezing temperatures. If it freezes, the pumpkin will thaw and inevitably rot.

http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/artscience/2012/10/keep-your-jack-olantern-looking-dapper/?utm_source=smithsoniantravandcult&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=201210-travel

(KMOV.com) -- Critics of red light cameras say they’re about money, supporters say they save lives.

Most of the cameras around Metropolitan St. Louis come from one company based in Arizona.

That company gets a portion of every ticket paid here in St. Louis and it’s leading to some incredible wealth.

So News 4 we wanted to know who’s getting rich. Because make no mistake, those cameras might be about safety but they’re also about money.

Shawn Dow might just be the most vocal critic of American Traffic Solutions. Dow and his group, Campaign for Liberty, have been battling the Scottsdale, AZ Company for years.

When asked about the company’s stance the cameras are about safety, Dow replied “it is a lie; it is pure PR spin so they can keep their money grab going.”

http://www.kmov.com/news/local/Arizona-Brothers-making-Millions-on-Red-Light-Camera-Tickets-in-St-Louis-175861641.html

ST. LOUIS COUNTY • A complaint filed with the Missouri Ethics Commission accuses the St. Louis County library of violating campaign laws by spending public money and using its staff to promote a tax increase referendum on the Nov. 6 ballot.

A University City resident, Tom Sullivan, filed the complaint alleging that the library has spent $175,000 for radio ads and brochures that are designed to drum up support for Proposition L.

Sullivan also found that the library's website linked users to a campaign site that promotes the tax increase, a practice that the ethics commission has previously declared as a violation of campaign laws.

And emails that Sullivan obtained from the library indicate that personnel were, at one point, cooperating with a political consulting firm, Sequel LLC, of Clayton, in the firm's request for a list of its patrons, including juveniles, to be used for campaign mailings.

Library Director Charles Pace said the ads and brochures don't violate any campaign laws because they are strictly informational.

http://www.stltoday.com/print/a-section/9867c227-144b-5f31-a46e-200ddff8d14c.html

CAHOKIA, Il (KMOV.com) -- The leader of a Metro East community is accused of using his city’s police force to intimidate voters and influence the outcome of an election.

18-year-old students at Cahokia High School say the mayor sent his officers to try to sway their vote at the polls.

The mayor categorically denies the accusations, but some students and employees at Cahokia High School say the supporters of the county board candidate backed by the mayor tried to influence their decision when they did early voting this week.

Then that the mayor and police chief of Cahokia gave them the third degree about how they voted. If there’s any truth to the accusation, there could be violations of state and federal laws.

http://www.kmov.com/news/local/Cahokia-mayor-accused-of-voter-intimidation-by-early-voters-175883401.html

Tina Fey has a bone to pick with politician Todd Akin over his comments on "legitimate rape."

Speaking at the Center for Reproductive Rights' Inaugural Gala in New York Wednesday night, the "30 Rock" star called out the Missouri Republican Senate candidate over his assertion in an August TV interview that rape victims have a slim chance of getting pregnant because the body "has ways to try to shut the whole thing down."

"Todd Akin claims that women can't really get pregnant from a legitimate rape because the body secretes hormones," Fey told the crowd. "Now I can't even finish this sentence without getting dumber; it's making me dumber when I say it--but it's something about the body not being able to get pregnant when it's under physical stress. Mr. Akin, I think you are confusing the phrase 'legitimate rape' with the phrase 'competitive gymnastics.'"

http://todayentertainment.today.com/_news/2012/10/25/14696492-tina-fey-slams-senate-candidate-over-legitimate-rape-remarks?lite#__utma=14933801.1288128132.1342442063.1351176157.1351180676.261&__utmb=14933801.5.10.1351180676&__utmc=14933801&__utmx=-&__utmz=14933801.1342442063.1.1.utmcsr=%28direct%29|utmccn=%28direct%29|utmcmd=%28none%29&__utmv=14933801.|8=Earned%20By=msnbc|cover=1^12=Landing%20Content=Mixed=1^13=Landing%20Hostname=www.nbcnews.com=1^30=Visit%20Type%20to%20Content=Earned%20to%20Mixed=1&__utmk=86547480