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Thursday, August 17, 2006

Cousin Willie and the Wizard

By Ken Herman | Thursday, August 17, 2006, 04:22 PM

Former UCLA basketball coach John Wooden, the legendary Wizard of Westwood, now has a Post Office named in his honor.

And so does another Indiana native, this one best known as “Cousin Willie.”

The honors were doled out Thursday when President Bush, prior to boarding Marine One for a weekend at Camp David, signed congressional measures renaming several Post Office locations.

The Coach John Wooden Post Office Building is at 7320 Reseda Boulevard in Reseda, California.

And at 1310 Highway 64 NW. in Ramsey, Indiana, one can now find the Wilfred Edward “Cousin Willie” Sieg, Sr. Post Office.

Cousin Willie made his name in the popcorn business as head of a family operation.

A father of 13, he died of cancer in February at age 76.

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White House: Reading is good

By Ken Herman | Thursday, August 17, 2006, 12:47 PM

The White House is opting for sort of a generic response to the commercial success of “Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq.” The book by Washington Post reporter Thomas E. Ricks offers a critical look at the handling of the war.

“A lot of people are reading Tim Russert’s book, too,” White House spokesman Tony Snow said today. “It’s nice that people are reading.”

Earlier in the week, Deputy Press Secretary Dana Perino also slalomed around a question noting that many people are reading Ricks’ book.

“Am I concerned that American people are reading books? Absolutely not,” she said.

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