National Service

President Clinton would be well advised to have the students perform their national service before, not after, they receive the money for college tuition. CAROLINE SWEITZ Woodland Hills

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- It's like Russian roulette for Midwesterners: There's a storm coming, so you stick your head out the back door to get a gander at it. Most of the time there's no danger, which is why so many people do it. But it's a habit weather officials are trying to stop. As a highly volatile system moves into the lower Midwest - with "likely" tornado-producing storms expected to barrel through Kansas and Oklahoma and then Nebraska later Saturday evening - the National Weather Service could be looking at the first true test of its new, stronger-worded warning system intended to send Midwesterners to their basements a little sooner.

President Obama on Tuesday signed into law a bill that will more than triple the number of federally sponsored community service volunteers. The legislation, which had broad bipartisan support, authorizes an expansion of AmeriCorps and other national service programs. It was named for its lead sponsor, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), who attended the signing along with President Clinton, who started AmeriCorps in 1993.

If you're a Civil War buff or you're planning a trip to a Civil War site, a new  National Park Service website can help you. Even if you're not going anywhere, the website is fascinating to browse, from its lists of places to visit to its facts to the people who played major roles in the war. I'm not sure it's as popular as the recently released 1940 Census data that slowed traffic on that site to a crawl this week,...

Senate Democrats Thursday failed by one vote to break a Republican filibuster blocking passage of a scaled-back version of President Clinton's national service bill but said they expected to have the votes to do so, probably today. Sources in both parties said several Republicans, including Sen. Mark O. Hatfield (R-Ore.), were considering switching and voting to end the filibuster, which would give the Democrats enough votes to put the bill on track for final passage.

On day three of a campaign swing meant to showcase his values, Barack Obama spoke about the importance of national service, telling an audience here that his work as a young community organizer gave him needed direction at a time when he was adrift. The senator from Illinois laid out his plans for an expanded national service program, though little in it was new.

President Clinton's national service legislation won final House approval Friday and awaited a last Senate vote before going to Clinton for his signature. The House favored the three-year, $1.5-billion plan, 275 to 152. The vote came two days after House and Senate negotiators compromised on differing versions of the legislation.

The White House began implementing President Clinton's national service plan Monday, announcing the first batch of community programs providing jobs and money for higher education. The programs will place 7,000 people in projects in 47 states and the District of Columbia, funded by $47 million from the federally financed Corp. for National Service. By the end of the year, up to 200 programs employing 20,000 people are expected to be in place.

The House gave final approval Friday to a slimmed-down version of President Clinton's plan to offer students help with college tuition in return for national service, but the Senate will not vote on the legislation until after Congress returns from its August recess. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) asked the Senate for unanimous consent to bring the bill to the Senate floor late Friday but Senate Minority Leader Bob Dole (R-Kan.

Senate Democrats struck a deal Friday with their Republican colleagues to end a weeklong filibuster of legislation to implement President Clinton's national service program, a move that virtually assures the plan's passage. "This is a good day for the Senate, a better day for national service and a great day for America," said Eli Segal, who heads the White House office of national service. "The long haul seems to have been worth it. I think essentially we're done."

If ever there were a sure bet on the weather, Sunday would appear to be it. "We have 100% chance of rain," said Todd Hall, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Rain is expected throughout the day, with a slight chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon, Hall said. The system will taper off to showers by afternoon or evening and clear out in time for Monday's commute. Rain amounts will range from three-quarters of an inch to as much as 3 inches in some Southern California mountain areas.

One day deep in the administration of George W. Bush — a time of tumult among environmentalists and conservationists — Roger Kennedy found himself shaking his head and sighing. The Endangered Species Act was in the cross hairs of a Republican Congress and his beloved National Park Service, which Kennedy directed from 1993 to 1997, was under assault. Kennedy was disgusted by the partisan bickering. When had stewardship of the environment become a political football, he asked, posing a rhetorical question to a reporter.

The remnants of Tropical Storm Lee threatened flooding from the Tennessee Valley to New England on Tuesday, while people in the storm's wake continued to face power outages and blocked roads. The National Weather Service issued flood and flash-flood watches and warnings from the Southern U.S. through the Appalachian Mountains and into the Northeast. Heavy rains will continue through Thursday, with 4 to 8 inches expected, though some areas could get as much as 10 inches. "These rains may cause life-threatening flash floods and mudslides," the weather service said.

One of roughly a half-dozen mountain lions living in the Santa Monica Mountains was killed Tuesday trying to cross the 405 Freeway near the Getty Center at the start of the morning rush hour. Circumstances of the death, apparently from a collision with a vehicle, were not known, and the California Highway Patrol said it had no record of an emergency call reporting an animal-related incident in that area Tuesday. "We believe it may have made such a daring crossing attempt possibly because it was being flushed out of the area it was in by another male lion," said Woody Smeck, superintendent of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.

A closer inspection of the earthquake-damaged Washington Monument found about half a dozen more cracks, and the structure will be fenced off while engineers decide how to repair it, the National Park Service said Wednesday night. The Lincoln and Jefferson memorials reopened one day after the East Coast's rare 5.8 temblor, but the Washington Monument will remain closed indefinitely. Finished in 1884, the monument is one of the capital's most popular tourist attractions, with about 1,700 visitors going inside each day. It is the world's tallest obelisk, standing more than 555 feet high.

Two years ago, Britons were outraged when U.S. politicians like Sarah Palin, in the debate over healthcare reform, turned this country's National Health Service into a public whipping boy, denouncing it as "evil," "Orwellian" and generally the enemy of everything good and true. It's time for some payback. Britain is now embroiled in a healthcare argument of its own, prompted by a proposed shake-up of the NHS. And the phrase on everyone's lips is "American-style," which may not be as catchy as the "death panels" that Palin attributed to socialized medicine but which, over here, inspires pretty much the same kind of terror.

At a Lynwood construction site, Lisbeth Mora applies a fresh coat of paint to a house that has stood empty for more than a year. It is the second home the 23-year-old architecture graduate has helped rehabilitate for Habitat for Humanity, which provides housing for low-income families. At the Public Counsel Law Center in Koreatown, Stacy Garrick Zimmerman, 33, is providing free legal help to veterans struggling to obtain disability benefits. She has won more than $100,000 in compensation for her clients in about a year.

Robert S. Chandler, who dealt with complex problems as superintendent of many of the country's largest national parks and took the lead in implementing the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area in the late 1970s and early '80s, has died. He was 74. Chandler, a resident of Tehachapi, Calif., died Dec. 23 of multiple myeloma at a hospital in Bakersfield, said his son, Alan Chandler. In a 38-year career with the National Park Service that began in 1958 and included serving as superintendent of the Grand Canyon, Olympic and Everglades national parks, Chandler was known as an effective leader who worked with local communities and state and government officials on tough issues.