OBAMA ANNOUNCING AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL TO START IN 2011:

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama is sending 30,000 extra U.S. troops to Afghanistan on an accelerated timetable that will have the first Marines there as early as Christmas and all forces in place by summer. But he'll also declare Tuesday night that troops will start leaving in 19 months.

In a prime-time speech to the nation from West Point, N.Y., that ends a 92-day review, Obama will seek to sell his much bigger, costlier plan for the 8-year-old stalemated war to a skeptical public in part by twinning it with some specifics about an exit strategy, said two senior administration officials.

He will tell the American people that U.S. troops will start leaving Afghanistan in July 2011, one official said.

If you would like to be interviewed about your thoughts on the speech, contact The Marietta Times newsroom at 376-5460 or e-mail reporter Sam Shawver at sshawver@mariettatimes.com .

MARIETTA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES GRANTS:

The Marietta Community Foundation announced Tuesday (Dec. 1) nine grants totaling nearly $23,000 to area organizations during the third grant cycle of 2009.

Some of the largest grants awarded went to programs involving children and young adults. One grant was awarded to Marietta College for the Anderson Hancock Planetarium to assist in an expansion project focused on additional programs for preschool through second-grade students and for the benefit of the community at large.

Another grant was awarded to the Washington County Career Center concentrating on The Youth Employment and Dropout Prevention Program, which monitors students and attempts to remove both academic and financial barriers that often lead to the student not completing graduation requirements.

Other grants awarded went to the Community Action-Washington/Morgan County Secret Santa Program, the Washington County Harvest of Hope for items needed to produce fresh produce for food pantries and meal-providing family aid organizations, and EVE Inc., to help support the Washington County Supervised Visitation Center.

OHIO'S NEW DEATH PENALTY PLAN OUTLINED:

COLUMBUS (AP) - Ohio's new backup plan for executing inmates by injection allows at least three attempts to administer drugs through muscles in the arms or legs.

The backup would be used if administering a single powerful anesthetic through a vein doesn't work.

The plan filed in federal court Monday requires executioners to check the inmate five minutes after the backup drugs are administered and inject a second dose if the inmate is still breathing.

The plan requires executioners to check again after five minutes and administer a much larger dose of just one drug if the inmate continues to breathe.

The plan says executioners can continue to administer the larger dose as needed.

The state adopted the new procedures in time for the execution of Kenneth Biros scheduled on Dec. 8.

TOP STORIES OF 2009:

The Marietta Times is compiling its list of the top news stories of the year for a special section to run later this month.

As always, reader input is wanted to help determine the most important, interesting and memorable stories of 2009. E-mail your suggestions to ebevins@mariettatimes.com or contact the newsroom at 376-5447.