Newser Story Index from April, 2007
Welcome to the Newser Story Index. Here you find stories written by Newser writers and editors, assembled with supporting photos and videos from the files of the news story.
Cho's Family: "He Has Made The World Weep. We Are Living A Nightmare"
CNN
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Apr 20, 2007 9:29 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The secluded family of the Virginia Tech gunman broke its silence today with a pained statement from his sister Sun-Kyung Cho, a Princeton grad who works as a contractor for the State Department. The family feels "hopeless, helpless and lost," she wrote, and is "deeply sorry" for his "unspeakable actions," CNN reported.
Dow Hits New High
CNN
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Apr 20, 2007 3:27 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The Dow closed at a record high of 12,961.98 today, gaining 153.35 points as it rode a wave of positive earnings reports that pushed the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq to six-year highs, too, CNN reports. The Dow reached an all-time high of 12,966.29 shortly before its third straight record close.
The Kingdom's Got a Big Closet
The Atlantic
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Apr 20, 2007 1:35 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Sodomy is a capital crime in Saudia Arabia, but that hasn't stopped a gay scene from flourishing there. Quite the contrary, writes Nadya Labi in the Atlantic. Men and women are so zealously separated that homosexual encounters are easier to pull off. One Syrian who moved to Riyadh seven years ago calls it a "gay heaven."
Cowell Defends Eye-Roll at VA Tech Tribute
BBC
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Apr 20, 2007 12:56 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Notorious wet blanket Simon Cowell insists he was not rolling his eyes at a contestant's tribute to the Virginia Tech victims during Tuesday's "American Idol." What viewers saw, the blunt British judge says, was a reaction to the performance, not the remarks, of "Idol" hopeful Chris Richardson.
Can Chinese Art Stay Hot?
Portfolio
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Apr 20, 2007 12:35 PM CDT
(Newser) -
After a year of high excitement and higher prices, Chinese artists are hot at influential European fairs. But the bubble may have grown too fast, and Portfolio's Alexandra Wolfe reports on speculation that it's about to burst. One curator says Chinese art is "a consumer category, not a collector category.”
Chinese Talk The Talk On Democracy
New York Times
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Apr 20, 2007 12:26 PM CDT
(Newser) -
It's spring in China, and calls for democracy are in bloom, the New York Times reports. Articles are about the need for political reform are being published—even encouraged—and leaders are promising openness. But the outburst of rhetoric has more to do with the political calendar than with an inclination toward change.
Musical McCain Becomes YouTube Hit
USA Today
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Apr 20, 2007 11:59 AM CDT
(Newser) -
If John McCain fails in his presidential bid, he may have a future in karaoke. The senator-turned-songbird's impromptu performance of "Bomb Bomb Iran"—set to the tune of the Beach Boys classic "Barbara Ann"—at a South Carolina campaign rally has picked up 118,000 YouTube views since being posted yesterday.
The Run to The NFL Starts Here
ESPN
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Apr 20, 2007 11:02 AM CDT
(Newser) -
There's a good reason Glades Central High School in Bell Glade, Florida, has produced 28 pro football players in the past 29 years. Refreshingly, it has nothing to do with steroids, high endurance training, or secret energy drinks, Eric Adelson testifies in ESPN . Deep in the Everglades, kids run. They chase rabbits. They chase...
Stop Periods, Period?
New York Times
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Apr 20, 2007 11:01 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Women may complain about their periods, but would they miss them when they're gone? The FDA is set to approve an oral contraceptive that suppresses periods entirely, sparking controversy—including a documentary making the rounds of college campuses—over the meaning of menstruation.
Gonzales Wipes Out
National Review
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Apr 20, 2007 9:53 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Senate Republicans turned on Alberto Gonzales yesterday, leaving little political wiggle room for the embattled A.G. Even the most mild questions from Republicans— including traditional Bush allies—about the U.S. attorney dismissals yielded embarrassing results for Gonzales, who came across as strangely disengaged from the department he...
Cho Diagnosed as Autistic, Say Relatives
Daily Mirror (UK)
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Apr 20, 2007 8:57 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Virginia Tech assassin Cho Seung-Hui's relatives in Seoul, tracked down by the London Mirror , report that Cho had been diagnosed as autistic after arriving in the U.S. His grandfather's sister, Kim Yang-Sun, said Cho caused his mother "a lot of problems" as a child and "never showed any feelings or emotions."
Reid Declares War Is Lost
ABC News
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Apr 20, 2007 8:31 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has upped the ante in the Dems' rhetoric on Iraq, saying the U.S. has "lost" in Iraq, and warning that, "the surge is not accomplishing anything." But he stopped short of threatening to pull funding from the war, the biggest gun in his policy arsenal.
Alec Baldwin Loses It On Voicemail
TMZ
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Apr 20, 2007 8:23 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A savage voicemail from Alec Baldwin to his 11-year-old daughter Ireland is burning up the Web, thanks to the bitter battle between the "30 Rock" star and his ex-wife Kim Basinger. The recording, in which the furious actor calls his daughter a "thoughtless little pig," was leaked to TMZ .
FDA: Pet Food Poison Added Intentionally
Los Angeles Times
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Apr 20, 2007 7:50 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The chemical which contaminated over 100 brands of pet food—with disastrous results for dog and cat lovers—may have been intentionally added by Chinese manufacturers in an effort to fudge nutrition ratings on their rice protein and wheat gluten. "That's still a theory, but it certainly seems to be a plausible one," the FDA’s...
Russia Locks Down Foreign Students
Guardian (UK)
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Apr 20, 2007 7:26 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Moscow’s top medical school is urging 2,000 foreign students to stay indoors for the next three days, citing an annual surge in attacks by skinheads around Aprll 20—Hitler’s birthday. The lockdown of non-native students is a preventative effort in response to a rise in xenophobic violence in Russia.
Nacchio Goes Down for Insider Trading
Wall Street Journal
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Apr 20, 2007 6:50 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Joseph Nacchio, former CEO of Internet-bubble-blowing telecom Qwest, was found guilty of 19 counts of insider trading by a federal jury in Denver yesterday. Nacchio dumped more than $100 million in Qwest stock in 2001, before the stock imploded over questionable accounting practices. The jury acquitted on 23 other counts.
Newsrooms Pull Cho Video
Associated Press
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Apr 20, 2007 6:21 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Fox News vowed to stop playing the disturbed, invective-laden video made by Virginia Tech shooter Seung Cho after a backlash from viewers—especially the victims' families—against its endless airing yesterday. Other networks said they would “severely limit” the tape.
Doolittle Steps Down After FBI Raid
The Hill
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Apr 20, 2007 5:54 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Republican John Doolittle has ceded his coveted seat on the House Appropriations Committee—a week after FBI agents made a surprise raid on his Virginia home. Doolittle and his wife, Julie, a consultant, are under investigation for their ties to besmirched fundraiser Jack Abramoff.
Senators Knock Crosby, Pens Out of Playoffs
Canada.com
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Apr 19, 2007 11:02 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The Ottawa Senators looked dominant in closing out their series against Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and the other gifted, snotty-nosed young upstarts of Pittsburgh. Ray Emery, the tattooed, python-owning goalie who got his start with the Senators during last year's playoffs, stopped all 19 Penguins shots.
A-Rod Notches Tenth Homer
Associated Press
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Apr 19, 2007 10:58 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Oft-embattled Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez hit his tenth home run in 14 games to sink Cleveland 8-6, matching the second-fastest ten-homer start in major-league history. Cleveland closer Joe Borowski gave up six runs in the bottom of the ninth, all after achieving two quick outs.
Gonzales Refuses to Resign
Washington Post
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Apr 19, 2007 4:53 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said under oath today he had only limited involvement in the firing of eight U.S. attorneys and "did not do anything improper." Testifying before clearly hostile lawmakers, he spurned calls that he step down, saying, "The moment I believe I can no longer be effective, I will resign."
Iran Frees Murderous Vice Squad
New York Times
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Apr 19, 2007 4:12 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Iran's Supreme Court has exonerated a group of Islamic hardliners earlier convicted of the vigilante killing of Iranians they considered "morally corrupt," the Times reports. Six members of the Basiji force, an elite paramilitary group, were originally convicted of murdering five people, including an engaged couple walking together...
Enjoy the Veal, Hold the Guilt
New York Times
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Apr 19, 2007 3:13 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Veal is back, says the Times , thanks to humane ranching methods. You're still eating baby cows, of course, but the tiny crates that once confined them—provoking a 20-year-long boycott—are giving way to to open pastures where they hang with mom. Or at least pens where they walk around and mingle with other calves.
Privacy Laws Tie Colleges' Hands
Baltimore Sun
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Apr 19, 2007 1:43 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Despite numerous red flags, Cho Seung-Hui was able to live in a Virginia Tech dorm and plot a campus massacre in part because the law limits colleges' ability to seek help for adult students who do not request it. Stalking complaints and a report that Cho was suicidal did not outweigh federal privacy statutes and medical ethics.
Manny Being Manny
New Yorker
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Apr 19, 2007 12:44 PM CDT
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The New Yorker 's Ben McGrath finagled an astounding nine minutes with Manny Ramirez, the notoriously fractious and endlessly fascinating Red Sox slugger. In the interview the reclusive Ramirez embodies all the myths about him: He's deeply personal, funny, petulant, and cryptic—besides being, arguably, "the greatest hitter of his generation."
NH to OK Civil Unions
Foster's Daily Democrat
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Apr 19, 2007 11:59 AM CDT
(Newser) -
With the stroke of a pen rather than a protracted legal battle, New Hampshire will become the fourth state to allow same-sex civil unions. Gov. John Lynch, who had not previously taken a position on the issue, said today that he will sign the legislation after the state senate votes next week.
US Attorneys Fired for Being Soft on Porn
Salon
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Apr 19, 2007 11:40 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Several of the U.S. attorneys axed by Alberto Gonzales may have been forced out because they failed to crack down on pornography, Salon reveals. Gonzales and his staff pressured attorneys to pursue adult obscenity cases, even if it meant yanking prosecutors away from, say, terrorism. Some who resisted got a pink slip.
Breast Cancer Decline Tied to Hormone Drop
Washington Post
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Apr 19, 2007 9:05 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Researchers are linking a dramatic drop in the number of breast cancer cases to the decline in estrogen consumption by menopausal women. Women dropped hormone replacement therapy en mass after a 2002 study tied it to breast cancer risk. Other scientists argued that the decline—about 16,000 fewer new cases per year—may have other causes.
BlackBerry Blackout Lasts 12 Hours
New York Times
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Apr 19, 2007 8:57 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Five million BlackBerry scrollers in the U.S. and Asia were stymied for 12 hours over Tuesday night and yesterday morning while Research in Motion frantically fixed a service outage. Early-riser Wall Streeters working on deals with London were particularly annoyed by the downtime. Experts surmise the blackout was a side effect of rapid expansion.
Hitchens: Lay Off Wolfie!
Slate
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Apr 19, 2007 8:19 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Unflappable contrarian Chris Hitchens casts a sympathetic eye at beset World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz. Cries for Wolfowitz's resignation have crescendoed since revelations that he had a hand in getting his girlfriend, Shaha Riza, a big promotion at the poverty-fighting organization last year.
Cho Guns Were Legal Despite Police Record
CNN
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Apr 19, 2007 8:09 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Killer Cho Seung-Hui's gun purchases were completely legal, despite his 2005 brushes with the police for stalking fellow students and threatening suicide. The judge who deemed him "an imminent danger to himself because of mental illness" ordered Cho to outpatient treatment; Virginia blocks gun sales only to those who have been involuntarily...
Sanjaya Gets The Boot
USA Today
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Apr 19, 2007 7:50 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Reality caught up with reality TV last night, when "American Idol" contestant Sanjaya Malakar was finally booted from the show. Sanjaya, as he's known to legions of fans and detractors, gained attention for his missed notes, his faux-hawk, and his popularity on the sabotage website votefortheworst.com
Baghdad Blasts Claim Nearly 200 LIives
Guardian (UK)
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Apr 19, 2007 7:35 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Nearly 200 people were killed, and more than 200 injured, by five apparently coordinated explosions that rocked Baghdad yesterday. It was the deadliest day since the U.S. troop surge in the besieged capital, and a chilling backdrop to an announcement by PM al-Maliki that Iraqis will be completely in charge of the country by 2008.
Dow Powers to Record High
Wall Street Journal
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Apr 19, 2007 7:08 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Dow rose 30.80 points yesterday, closing above 12800 for the first time. The new record was powered was by JP Morgan Chase, Boeing and Caterpillar, while nearly two-thirds of the Dow components failed to make gains, the Wall Street Journal reports. Tech stocks continued to be weak; the Nasdaq negative.
Alito Swings Court Against Late Abortion
New York Times
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Apr 19, 2007 6:43 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Supreme Court's decision to uphold a ban partial-birth abortions is a gauntlet thrown down by the Roberts court, reports Linda Greenhouse in the Times . Samuel Alito, the newest justice, was the deciding factor in the 5-4 turnaround. While it will affect a small subset of abortion procedures, the focus on "ethical and moral concerns"...
Gunman Mails Manifesto
MSNBC
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Apr 19, 2007 6:01 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Virginia Tech gunman Cho Seung-Hui took a time out from his murder spree to mail a macabre package of videos, photographs and a delusional diatribe to NBC News. The images, posted between the dorm shootings and the carnage at Norris Hall, show him in combat gear, wielding the guns used in the massacre.
It's Not Easy Being Knut
Der Spiegel
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Apr 19, 2007 5:45 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Knut watchers were on high alert yesterday after the Berlin Zoo's polar bear cub was targeted with an anonymous death threat, just a day after recovering from a health scare that turned out to be a toothache. The 4-month-old alarmed visitors Monday by refusing to frolic, lying on the ground with his paws over his eyes.
Buehrle No-Hits Rangers; ChiSox Roll, 6-0
Associated Press
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Apr 18, 2007 10:50 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Mark Buehrle, two starts from a minor injury to his throwing arm, thoroughly dominated the Texas Rangers today, giving up no hits and just one walk (to Sammy Sosa, whom he promptly picked off at first base). Two Jim Thome solo shots and a grand slam from Jermaine Dye provided more offense than was strictly necessary.
Sammy Blasts Homer in Chicago
Associated Press
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Apr 18, 2007 10:49 PM CDT
(Newser) -
It was just like 1998. Sammy Sosa’s 3-run homer, number 591 of his career, propelled his team to an 8-1 win over the White Sox last night in Chicago. Only this time, it was on the North Side, Sosa was wearing a Rangers uniform, and the fans were booing him.
Phillies Manager Assaults Reporter
ESPN
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Apr 18, 2007 10:43 PM CDT
(Newser) -
In a confrontation in his office, Philadelphia manager Charlie Manuel blew up at radio host and long-time Manuel goad Howard Eskin and threatend to take him down. Later, in the Phillies clubhouse, two coaches physically restrained Manuel from making good on his threat. Eskin had enraged the manager by suggesting he inspire his lackluster team...
Draft Prospects Admit To Smoking Pot
NBCSports.com
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Apr 18, 2007 10:17 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Three of the most highly regarded prospects in the upcoming NFL draft—Calvin Johnson, Amobi Okoye, and Gaines Adams—admitted in interviews at the combine that they have used marijuana. Nevertheless, all three are considered to be free of the kind of dramatic character problems that have plagued the NFL recently.
Police Talked to Cho in 2005
Washington Post
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Apr 18, 2007 1:50 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Police questioned Virginia Tech shooter Cho Seung-Hui twice in 2005, after two women accused him of accused making unwanted contact, the Virginia Tech police department said this morning. The same semester, poetry professor Nikki Giovanni had him removed from her class. But since Cho made no direct threats, the police could not legally take action...
Mobster Guns Down Nagasaki Mayor
CNN
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Apr 18, 2007 1:36 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The mayor of Nagasaki was murdered yesterday by a gangster affiliated with Japan's largest organized-crime syndicate. The assassin, who shot Iccho Ito twice in the back, reportedly was steamed that the city refused to pay for damages to his car after he drove it into a hole at a construction site.
Study: Men Work Hard, Too
Slate
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Apr 18, 2007 1:33 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Men and women work about the same number of hours—if you count labor at home as well as on the job, a new study claims. Despite the popular wisdom that women do more heavy lifting, a broad survey of 25 countries, spanning the economic spectrum, found that both sexes toil about 7.9 hours a day, Slate reports.
Dollar Gets Pounded
Guardian (UK)
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Apr 18, 2007 11:53 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The British pound hit a 26-year-high against the dollar this morning, triggering inflationary fears there as it pushed past $2 for the first time since Margaret Thatcher's early reign. As inflation figures spiked to 3.1% in March—the highest in 10 years—the middle class got hit the hardest, the Daily Telegraph reports.
Supreme Court Supports Late-Term Abortion Ban
Washington Post
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Apr 18, 2007 11:44 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Supreme Court voted today to uphold a ban on partial birth abortions, handing a significant victory to President Bush, whose appointees to the high court voted with the 5-4 majority. The 2003 law, which bars a controversial late-term procedure, is the first federal restriction on abortion since the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling.
Brits Find US Feckless On Gun Control
Guardian (UK)
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Apr 18, 2007 11:23 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Guardian takes aim at U.S resistance to gun control, calling it an "enduring civic failure" that allows tragedies like the Virginia Tech shootings to occur. The paper describes a country held hostage by the NRA, failing its basic responsibilities by being "unable to defend its ordinary citizens from its armed maniacs."
Kerry Says Imus Shouldn't Have Been Fired
NY1
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Apr 18, 2007 10:28 AM CDT
(Newser) -
John Kerry defended Don Imus in a TV interview last night, saying CBS should have suspended the shock jock, not fired him. The network should have waited to make its move, he suggested, until after Imus met with the Rutgers team. "To me it was in the hands of the young women," the senator said.
Cho's Macabre Plays Warned Of Violence
News Bloggers
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Apr 18, 2007 9:54 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Ian MacFarlane, a former classmate of Seung Cho, blogs on AOL about two plays written by the Virginia Tech killer for a writing class. The short pieces, along with other compositions, writes MacFarlane, were "like something out of a nightmare," imagining bizarre murders and exuding an obsession with revenge.
The Owner Fans Love to Hate
Wall Street Journal
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Apr 18, 2007 9:49 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Chicago hockey fans have reviled Blackhawks owner Bill Wirtz ever since he failed to re-sign wildly popular winger Bobby Hull, who carried the team to their last championship 45 years ago. The team's eight-year playoff drought hasn't helped Wirtz's case, nor has the fact that most Hawks home games aren't televised.
