Newser Story Index from October, 2008
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.
Fox Ponies Up as Ad Picture Clouds
New York Times
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Oct 23, 2008 6:19 PM CDT
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With the election season winding down and the economy slumping, Fox News could have trouble paying the heavy hitters it's signed and re-signed to multimillion-dollar contracts, the New York Times reports. Experts agree that advertising, a big chunk of Fox’s budget, will fall off after the amazing expenditures during viewer-magnet election coverage....
NYC Extends Term Limits: Bloomberg Can Run Again
New York Daily News
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Oct 23, 2008 6:05 PM CDT
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New York’s City Council voted today to allow a third term for elected officials, paving the way for another Michael Bloomberg administration, the New York Daily News reports. Last-minute wrangling in the chamber, including a failed vote to establish a referendum on the issue, led to the 29-22 victory. “The City Council decided to give...
Duke Rape Accuser Stands By Her Story
News & Observer (Raleigh)
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Oct 23, 2008 5:51 PM CDT
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The woman at the center of the dismissed Duke rape case still insists she was assaulted, the Raleigh News & Observer reports. As she promoted her new self-published book, The Last Dance for Grace: The Crystal Mangum Story , the former escort service dancer asserted "without equivocation" that members of the lacrosse team assaulted...
Sarah Palin 'Do Is a Hit With Orthodox Women
Jewish Daily Forward
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Oct 23, 2008 5:30 PM CDT
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The Alaska governor's flashy signature 'do is a surprise hit with Orthodox Jewish women in Brooklyn, where the "Sarah Palin Wig" has been selling briskly—at $695 a pop—to women who keep their hair covered for religious reasons. “It's a very classic look, yet fashion forward,” the owner of the shop that carries them...
Hathaway's Ex Gets 4½ Years
TMZ
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Oct 23, 2008 5:15 PM CDT
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Anne Hathaway's ex-boyfriend will spend the next 54 months in jail for his conman ways, TMZ reports. Fund manager Raffaello Follieri, 30, was sentenced today on 14 counts of wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering. He bilked investors out of millions by leading them to believe he represtented the Vatican and had an inside track on church properties.
McCain Kicks Off Fla. Tour; Obama Heads to Hawaii
Los Angeles Times
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Oct 23, 2008 5:02 PM CDT
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The economy continues to be issue No. 1 on the campaign trail. John McCain kicked off his “Joe the Plumber Tour” in all-important Florida, blasting Barack Obama's tax plan for redistributing the wealth of ordinary Americans like Joe. Obama again linked McCain to the failed economic policies of George W. Bush before heading to Hawaii to...
Bono Joins Op-Ed Page of NYT
Radar
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Oct 23, 2008 4:48 PM CDT
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Bono may have finally found what he’s looking for: the New York Times ’ op-ed section will be the U2 singer’s new print home, Radar reports. Editorial page editor Andrew Rosenthal announced his newest columnist last night, telling Columbia's School of Journalism that the activist/sunglasses aficionado will pen between six and 10...
Warmer Feelings Flow From Cozy Hands: Scientists
HealthDay News
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Oct 23, 2008 4:34 PM CDT
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The temperature of whatever you’re holding may affect your mood, HealthDay reports. Two new studies, published in Science , indicate that holding warm objects tends to make people act more generously and see strangers in a kinder light than those holding something cold. “Simply holding a warm or cold object can influence people's interpersonal...
Gun Pulled After Colo. Palin Rally
Post Independent
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Oct 23, 2008 4:21 PM CDT
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Road rage following a Sarah Palin rally in Colorado on Monday allegedly resulted in one man pulling a loaded handgun, the Glenwood Springs Post Independent reports. Jack Cheskaty “wanted to be ready for anything” when another driver threatened to pull ahead of him in a bumper-to-bumper parking lot.
How Revolving Narratives Swamped Would-Be Narrator
New York Times
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Oct 23, 2008 4:11 PM CDT
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John McCain’s campaign has gone through a dizzying number of narratives, as Robert Draper outlines in the New York Times . Draper looks inside a dysfunctional operation driven by two quarreling old McCain friends (Rick Davis and speechwriter Mark Salter), and the Rovian outsider who reconciled them (Steve Schmidt). The troika has engineered...
Feud Cuts LiLo's Betty Stand Short
New York Post
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Oct 23, 2008 4:00 PM CDT
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Lindsay Lohan’s stand on ABC’s Ugly Betty has been reduced from six episodes to four, and a breakdown in relations with star America Ferrera is the cause, the New York Post reports. Insiders said Lohan—signed to play a high-school rival—wouldn’t emerge from her (trashed) dressing room until Ferrera was on set, and...
Microsoft Releases Emergency Security Patch
Tech Herald
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Oct 23, 2008 3:48 PM CDT
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Microsoft has discovered a Windows security vulnerability dangerous enough that it's released an “out-of-cycle” security patch for the first time since April 2007, reports the Tech Herald . The weakness could allow a computer worm to spread malware around networks.
Volatile Day Ends With Gains
MarketWatch
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Oct 23, 2008 3:35 PM CDT
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Stocks saw wild triple-digit swings today before closing with gains, MarketWatch reports. Many earnings reports were poor, and weekly jobless claims spiked, but investors also found bright spots amid the gloom. The Dow rose 172.04 to 8,691.25. The Nasdaq fell 11.84 to 1,603.91, but the S&P 500 rose 11.33 to close at 908.11.
EU Honors Chinese Dissident, Enraging Beijing
Telegraph (UK)
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Oct 23, 2008 3:26 PM CDT
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A move by the European Parliament to award a major human-rights prize to a Chinese dissident has Beijing outraged on the eve of a summit on the economic crisis, the Telegraph reports. The government denounced as “gross interference in China's domestic affairs” news that the jailed Hu Jia had won prestigious Sakharov Prize; a delegation...
20 Best New Places to Dine
Esquire
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Oct 23, 2008 3:13 PM CDT
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After surveying restaurants across the US, Esquire gave the country props for its chops, proclaiming "the emergence of American cooking as the most diverse and most innovative in the world." It highlighted 20 favorite new restaurants of the year: L20 (Chicago): Overlook its Midwest locale; this place serves the best fish, with a...
The Makeover Palin Should Have Had
Washington Post
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Oct 23, 2008 3:00 PM CDT
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That the GOP dressed up “a no-frills hockey mom” for her star turn is fine, but that they dressed her up in Neiman's, Saks, and Barneys is “mind-boggling evidence of a tin ear for the symbolism of popular culture,” style maven Robin Givhan wails in the Washington Post . It doesn’t take much fashion knowledge to know a...
Stevens Jury Wants Difficult Member Out
Anchorage Daily News
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Oct 23, 2008 2:48 PM CDT
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The jury in the Ted Stevens trial today asked that one of its number be removed, the Anchorage Daily News reports. A note from the foreman indicated juror No. 9 “is being rude, disrespectful and unreasonable. She has had violent outbursts with other jurors and that's not helping anyone.” The judge will remind members to be civil before...
Fla. Woman's Dreadlocks Are Mane Event
Orlando Sentinel
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Oct 23, 2008 2:46 PM CDT
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She may not threaten the mark for longest hair, but a Florida woman is banking that 8-feet, 9-inches will get her the world record for longest dreadlocks. Asha Mandela, 46, has nurtured “her baby” since shaving her head two decades ago, the Orlando Sentinel reports. “You don't believe it until you measure it, really,” said...
Mac Hypocritically Mum on Felonious Pal Liddy
Chicago Tribune
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Oct 23, 2008 2:34 PM CDT
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Bad enough for a presidential candidate to pal around with a “lawless radical,” Steve Chapman writes in the Chicago Tribune , but worse to clam up about it even as you blast your opponent for the same thing. That’s exactly where John McCain is over dealings with G. Gordon Liddy, who was convicted for Watergate felonies and since...
Robocall Master Bought Palin's Fancy Clothes
The Atlantic
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Oct 23, 2008 2:31 PM CDT
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The Republican National Committee’s $150,000 spree on Sarah Palin’s wardrobe is so last news cycle, but, in the Atlantic , Joshua Green notes that the man swiping the credit card is GOP operative Jeff Larson. Larson is most notable for his role as a partner in the robocalling company that smeared John McCain in South Carolina in 2000—and...
Japan's Own Banking Crisis Informs Current Power Play
Financial Times (UK)
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Oct 23, 2008 2:27 PM CDT
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Japanese banks, which just years ago needed US investors to save them from bankruptcy, are using the current crisis to scoop up low-priced international firms. The timing is perfect for the Asian banks, desperate to bolster profits limited by a saturated domestic sector, the Financial Times reports. Though expansion may be challenging, institutional...
Gates Gambles Big on Bold Medical Probes
Washington Post
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Oct 23, 2008 2:13 PM CDT
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The Gates Foundation has awarded more than $10 million to medical researchers with quirky ideas that might not be funded otherwise, the Washington Post reports. The initiative, dubbed Grand Challenges Explorations, offered a simple 2-page application and vetting by entrepreneurs, not medical professionals. “Peer review—by definition almost—excludes...
Why GOP Name-Calling Is Backfiring This Time
Salon
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Oct 23, 2008 2:09 PM CDT
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The spectacle of Republican politicians painting their opponents as anti-American is a familiar one, Glenn Greenwald writes for Salon, but three recent headline-making incidents show that something has changed. "The idea that any of them would apologize for insulting liberals or impugning their patriotism is simply unfathomable," he writes—and...
Obama Takes Big Leads in Big Ten Country: Polls
Big Ten Battleground Poll
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Oct 23, 2008 2:07 PM CDT
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Barack Obama enjoys sizable leads in crucial Midwestern states, a Big Ten Battleground poll shows. Across Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota—home to the universities in the Big Ten Conference and key battlegrounds in previous elections—Obama leads John McCain by margins of at least 10%.
Hasselbeck to Stump for Palin
New York Daily News
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Oct 23, 2008 2:00 PM CDT
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Elizabeth Hasselbeck has been invited to bring her spunky conservatism to the stump with Sarah Palin, the New York Daily News reports. Hasselbeck will take off for Florida this weekend to join the GOP veep pick on a tour around the state. “I will be flying there to travel with her,” Hasselbeck said. “That's an honor, I'm excited...
Murdoch Picks Fight With Newser Founder
New York Times
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Oct 23, 2008 1:53 PM CDT
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It won't surprise anyone that Rupert Murdoch managed to get his hands on an advance copy of Michael Wolff's upcoming biography of him, despite a strict embargo, or that he complained to the publisher over some of the contents. Murdoch gave Wolff more than 50 hours of interviews and access to everyone from his top execs to his 99-year-old mother, and...
Cuppa Joe Could Shrink Your C-Cup
New York Post
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Oct 23, 2008 1:48 PM CDT
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Three cups a day makes cleavage go away, a study has found. Though coffee protects against cancer, drinking caffeine for an extended time period makes breasts shrink. The reduction is most noticeable in larger busts, but it’s not enough to make Dolly Parton a Keira Knightley, the New York Post writes. But boys, beware: caffeine can create...
Comic Becomes Bible of Asia's Wine Culture
New York Times
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Oct 23, 2008 1:32 PM CDT
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What do Freddie Mercury and a Jean-François Millet painting have in common? Both have been used to describe wine in The Drops of the Gods , a Japanese comic series that’s quickly becoming the go-to wine literature in Asia, reports the New York Times . Customers tend to ask for wines featured in the comic, leading wine sellers to snap...
Pundits' 7 Worst Campaign Blunders
Salon
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Oct 23, 2008 1:16 PM CDT
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Pundits make mistakes. And Salon has tallied the biggest whoppers of the presidential campaign: The “Palin bounce”—It fizzled and the Alaska governor has the highest negative approval ratings of a VP candidate in history. “Sergeant” Schmidt will right the USS McCain—Steve Schmidt’s strategy of...
MacBook Doesn't Disappoint: Mossberg
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 23, 2008 1:07 PM CDT
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The redesigned MacBook adds several nice features to an already top-selling laptop line, writes Walt Mossberg in the Wall Street Journal . The most striking difference from the old models is the trackpad: rather than tacky plastic, the controller is slick glass like the screen of an iPhone, and users depress the screen to click, rather than a button...
Here's a Tip: Despite Recession, Gratuities Grow
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 23, 2008 12:53 PM CDT
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A diner who leaves a 10% tip these days is likely a tightwad, a tourist, or a victim of terrible service, but that same 10% tip would have been perfectly acceptable in the '50s. The going rate for gratuities has steadily crept up over the decades, studies find, hitting 15% by the '70s and '80s and now averaging 18%. The Wall Street Journal looks...
He's the Grown-Up We've Waited for
Time
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Oct 23, 2008 12:29 PM CDT
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Barack Obama is an adult. That, writes Joe Klein in Time , is why he's winning—"the steadiness of his temperament and the judicious quality of his decision-making." In contrast, John McCain seems to lurch wildly, making a "peremptory selection" of a running mate and suspending his campaign for no clear substantive reason....
Online Divorcee Jailed After Killing Virtual Hubby
Associated Press
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Oct 23, 2008 12:23 PM CDT
(AP) -
A 43-year-old Japanese woman whose sudden divorce in a virtual game world made her so angry that she killed her online husband's digital persona has been arrested on suspicion of hacking, police said today. The woman allegedly used her digital husband's identification and password to log onto popular interactive game "Maple Story" and kill...
Curb Cranks Up for New Season
Variety
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Oct 23, 2008 12:12 PM CDT
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Curb Your Enthusiasm , the longest-running show in HBO’s lineup, is returning for a seventh season next year, Variety reports. Ten episodes of the half-hour sitcom are set to begin production in December, a source says; the executive producers and air dates are still under wraps. The show, created by its star Larry David, was nominated for...
Iran Cannot Be Allowed to Go Nuclear
Washington Post
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Oct 23, 2008 12:04 PM CDT
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The US must prevent Iran from going nuclear, even if it means military intervention, write Daniel Coats and Charles Robb, heads of a bipartisan think tank on the issue. “An Islamic Republic of Iran with nuclear weapons capability would be strategically untenable,” they argue. Even if Iran doesn’t use its arsenal, simply having one...
Greenspan: I Was Wrong to Trust Banks
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 23, 2008 11:51 AM CDT
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Alan Greenspan made a mild mea culpa today as lawmakers grilled him on his role in a financial crisis the former Fed chief called a “once-in-a-century credit tsunami,” the Wall Street Journal reports. Asked if he was wrong to champion deregulation, Greenspan replied, “partially,” explaining he’d believed lending institutions...
SD Senator's Re-Election Bid in Good Health
New York Times
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Oct 23, 2008 11:36 AM CDT
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Despite efforts by his Republican challenger to raise the issue of his health, Sen. Tim Johnson looks to be comfortably ahead in his South Dakota re-election bid despite effects of a 2006 brain hemorrhage that often confine him to a wheelchair, the New York Times reports. “We’re a loyal state,” one resident said, despite his own...
Madge's Fear: Guy Married for Money
Sun (UK)
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Oct 23, 2008 11:21 AM CDT
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Madonna always suspected Guy Ritchie married for money and was jealous of his sexy, younger ex, sources tell the Sun . Ritchie dumped model Tania Strecker months before marrying the Material Girl in 2000. “Madonna took Guy from Tania, but never really trusted him,” a source said. “She’s consumed by the fear that ... if it hadn’t...
Insurance Guzzles Savings From Fuel-Efficient Cars
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 23, 2008 11:07 AM CDT
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Think you’re saving money by driving that small, fuel-efficient car you traded in your SUV for? Maybe, but you’re probably paying more for your insurance—a lot more, reports the Wall Street Journal . In accidents, small cars tend to sustain more damage, and occupants more injures, than larger vehicles. Hence a Honda Civic, for example,...
Stylists: $150K Well Spent on Palin
Politico
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Oct 23, 2008 11:00 AM CDT
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The outrage over Sarah Palin’s pricey wardrobe doesn’t extend to professional fashionistas, Politico reports—putting money into a candidate’s appearance is a perfectly wise use of funds, they argue. “You are talking about branding a person who you are launching into the public eye,” said one San Francisco stylist....
Paul's Money Can't Buy Heather Love
Sun (UK)
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Oct 23, 2008 10:47 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Snapping up everything from swanky real estate to savory soy dogs, Heather Mills has blown more than a third of her $40 million divorce settlement with Paul McCartney since March, The Sun reports. She spent some $13.7 million on property and donated $1 million in vegetarian food to homeless kids in the Bronx. The Beatle's ex, who also owes her attorneys...
Pakistan to Arm Local Militias
Washington Post
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Oct 23, 2008 10:32 AM CDT
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Pakistan plans to give weapons to thousands of tribal fighters along its border with Afghanistan, the Washington Post reports—a strategy that has helped the US in Iraq. The move to link the militias—called lashkars—to anti-Taliban efforts is a boost to US confidence in Pakistan’s military efforts, and commanders say...
Deputy Admits Gay Affair With Austrian Rightist
Times (UK)
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Oct 23, 2008 10:08 AM CDT
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The successor of the Austrian far-right leader Jörg Haider lost his position yesterday after admitting that he had a sexual relationship with the firebrand politician, who died in a car crash last week. "He was the man of my life. Our relationship went far beyond friendship," said the 27-year-old Stefan Petzner, who was president of...
A Black President Will Boost Brand USA
New York Times
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Oct 23, 2008 9:58 AM CDT
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Skin color is no reason to vote for anybody, Nick Kristof writes in the New York Times , but there's no denying that electing a black president would give America's image abroad a much-needed boost—"redefining the American 'brand' to be less about Guantánamo and more about equality." Almost half of people abroad polled by the...
Palin Shunned by Political Elite's 'Shabby Frat House'
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 23, 2008 9:43 AM CDT
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Take a long hard look at our political elite, suggests Daniel Henninger in the Wall Street Journal , and ask yourself: Are these guys really out of Sarah Palin’s league? “Behold the shabby frat house that says it's above her pay grade.” Given a choice between members of the 12%-approval-rating Congress and Palin, Henninger chooses...
LA Wildfire Threatens Getty
Los Angeles Times
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Oct 23, 2008 9:27 AM CDT
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A wildfire raging in Los Angeles this morning threatens the Getty Center’s priceless paintings and sculptures, and homes in swanky Brentwood's hills, the Times reports. Firefighters temporarily closed an interstate as more than 500 of them deployed an air assault to battle the early-morning blaze. Officials worry winds picking up after daybreak...
Foreign Views Prove Less Neat Than 'Hawk' and 'Dove'
New York Times
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Oct 23, 2008 9:13 AM CDT
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For the presidential candidates, divergent experiences in Asia—John McCain's time in a Vietnam prison, Barack Obama's childhood years in Indonesia—gave rise to opposing views of American power. Yet the nominees' foreign policy stances have often blurred during the campaign, with Obama appearing more hawkish and McCain more diplomatic, according...
Stocks Rise Despite Job Woes
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 23, 2008 8:58 AM CDT
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Stocks got a modest bump at the opening bell today despite an ugly job report, as mixed earnings clouded the waters. The Dow rose 69 points, while the S&P and Nasdaq rose 0.7% and 0.5% respectively. Jobless claims took an unexpected spike last week, and the Wall Street Journal reports that Goldman Sachs is about to cut 10% of its workforce.
Anti-Government Thais Give That Protest a Hand
AFP
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Oct 23, 2008 8:49 AM CDT
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Plastic hand-shaped clappers have become a must-have among Thais trying to bring down their government, AFP reports. Hands clapped raw by months of protesting need a break, and vendors outside the occupied Government House sell hundreds of clappers daily. The clappers—used to hound the prime minister out of a mall last month—have become...
Oprah Sued for $180M in Extortion Case
Access Hollywood
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Oct 23, 2008 8:37 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A Louisiana man is suing Oprah Winfrey and the FBI for $180 million for falsely accusing him of extortion and damaging his reputation, Access Hollywood reports. Keifer Bonvillian was arrested in 2006 after recording conversations with—and accepting money from—a Harpo Productions employee. The extortion charges were dismissed after Bonvillian...
