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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.

Wall Street's Tumble Costs Buffett $9.6B
Wall Street Journal | Oct 23, 2008 8:08 AM CDT
(Newser) - Next time you check the value of your portfolio, know that America's top executives are taking a pounding with you: Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett has seen his holdings in his company decline $9.6 billion this year, reports the Wall Street Journal. And he’s got company. Oracle’s Larry Ellison is out $6.6 billion; Microsoft’s...
Paulson: I'd Do It All Again
New York Times | Oct 23, 2008 7:47 AM CDT
(Newser) - Does Henry Paulson have any regrets about his widely-panned handling of the financial crisis? “I could have seen the subprime problem coming earlier,” he allows, before quickly adding, “I’m not saying I would have done anything differently.” Critics see things differently, of course, so Paulson sat down with the New York...
Amid Crisis, China Faces Its Own Slowdown
New York Times | Oct 23, 2008 7:44 AM CDT
(Newser) - For three decades now, China has established itself as a global economic powerhouse by providing cheap exports to the rest of the world. But as demand for Chinese goods slumps in a global recession, the ruling Communist Party, which owes its popularity to expanding prosperity, faces new tests: slowing growth, rising unemployment, an epidemic of factory...
Goldman Sachs to Cut Staff 10%
Reuters | Oct 23, 2008 7:39 AM CDT
(Newser) - Goldman Sachs will cut almost 3,300 jobs, or about 10% of the bank's total staff, an insider told Reuters today. Although Goldman has weathered the credit crisis better than its competitors, its transition from an investment bank to a traditional enterprise means that it will have to obey stricter regulations and take fewer risks. The bank had no comment....
Study: Drug Reverses MS Brain Damage
BBC | Oct 23, 2008 7:19 AM CDT
(Newser) - Doctors are hailing what appears to be a huge breakthrough in the treatment of multiple sclerosis, the BBC reports. A drug used to treat leukemia reversed some of the brain damage caused by MS, researchers found, leaving sufferers less disabled at the end of the 3-year study than they had been at the start. Previous treatments only managed to slow...
Letters to Dimon: You'll 'Die in 10 Days'
ABC News | Oct 23, 2008 6:50 AM CDT
(Newser) - A flurry of letters threatening the life of JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, as well as an Oklahoma City-style bombing of a bank facility, are being investigated by the Postal Investigation Service. ABC News reports a $100,000 reward has been posted for information about the 45-plus letters, all postmarked last week in Amarillo, Texas.
Feds Warming to $40B Homeowner Bailout
Wall Street Journal | Oct 23, 2008 6:33 AM CDT
(Newser) - Homeowners struggling to pay their mortgages would get help from the federal government under a $40 billion plan FDIC Chair Sheila Bair is expected to unveil today, reports the Wall Street Journal . Bair’s initiative, which would offer banks financial incentives to rework troubled mortgages into more affordable ones, is one of several ideas...
GOP Gulps as $150K Threads Fray Palin Cred
New York Times | Oct 23, 2008 5:59 AM CDT
(Newser) - The $150,000 pricetag for Sarah Palin's new clothes has transformed the hockey mom into something of an empress, the New York Times reports, and GOP strategists are sweating the change in image. As the campaign enters the homestretch, Palin's unplain threads have become a symbol of excess akin to John McCain's seven homes or John Edwards' $400 haircuts—undermining...
What? Did I Say Something Wrong?
St. Paul Pioneer Press (Minn.) | Oct 23, 2008 5:25 AM CDT
(Newser) - Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann is catching more fallout from her controversial appearance on MSNBC : The National Republican Congressional Committee has pulled media buys made for her campaign, reports the St. Paul Pioneer Press . Bachmann told Hardball host Chris Matthews last week that Barack Obama "may have anti-American views” and...
UK Team Revs Plans for 1000mph Car
Independent (UK) | Oct 23, 2008 4:41 AM CDT
(Newser) - A team of British engineers is planning to build a car that could reach up to 1000mph and pulverize the team’s own land speed record of 763mph, reports the Independent . The toughest part of building Bloodhound, as the car is called, will be raising the needed $20 million—and figuring out how to stop the thing from going airborne.
Homeland Security Chief: Terror List Isn't So Long
CNN | Oct 23, 2008 3:56 AM CDT
(Newser) - The terrorist watch list isn't the million-name behemoth it’s been reported as, the Homeland Security chief says. Only 2,500 people are on the no-fly list, according to Michael Chertoff, and just 10% of them are US citizens. Less than 16,000 people are on another, lower-level threat list, which permits flying. A new program is aimed at cutting...
BioBeer: This Bud's for Cancer
ComputerWorld | Oct 23, 2008 2:59 AM CDT
(Newser) - Imagine a beer that can prevent cancer and heart disease—even stave off aging. Researchers at Rice University are attempting to craft just such a concoction, reports Computerworld , using a genetically modified strain of yeast that produces resveratrol, the same disease-busting compound found in red wine. The team hopes to bottle a brew that...
Detroit's Woes Become a Drag for NASCAR
Washington Post | Oct 23, 2008 2:15 AM CDT
(Newser) - The gloomy economic outlook is putting the brakes on sporting sponsorships everywhere and NASCAR is one of the hardest-hit, the Washington Post reports. Sponsorship cash makes up around 80% of the average racing team's budget, but long-standing partnerships with Detroit’s auto giants and other major backers are running out of gas as budgets...
Palin: I'm No Bubblehead
People | Oct 23, 2008 1:24 AM CDT
(Newser) - Tina Fey's portrayal of Sarah Palin as a bubblehead is way off, the candidate tells People magazine in a joint interview with hubby Todd. Palin says she considers herself an intellectual and is a voracious reader, largely of historical books and autobiographies. The Looming Tower , a look at events leading up to 9/11, is her current reading material—along...
Duchovny Kicks Up Racket Over Cheating Story
Reuters | Oct 23, 2008 12:46 AM CDT
(Newser) - David Duchovny sued a British newspaper yesterday for the media flap it created by claiming the actor cheated on his wife with a tennis player, Reuters reports. The Daily Mail 's story "is false—it never happened," the lawsuit states. Duchovny, who split from wife Tea Leoni several months ago after 11 years of marriage, is seeking...
Phillies Win Series Opener
Philadelphia Daily News | Oct 22, 2008 11:05 PM CDT
(Newser) - Solid pitching and a dose of power gave the Phillies Game 1 of the World Series tonight in Tampa Bay. Chad Utley hit a two-run homer in the first inning, and ace Cole Hamels pitched 7 strong innings in Philadelphia's 3-2 win, the Philadelphia Daily News reports. Carl Crawford homered for the Rays, who will try to even things up Thursday night.
Asian Markets Tumble Again on Recession Fears
Associated Press | Oct 22, 2008 10:46 PM CDT
(AP) - Asian stocks tumbled for a second day Thursday as a barrage of downbeat company forecasts deepened fears of a global recession. Every major regional benchmark was in the red. Japan's Nikkei lost 5.5% to 8,195.74, on top of a 6.8% drop yesterday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was down 662.89, or 4.65 percent, at 13,603.71. The Hang Seng hadn't closed...
Outsourcing Still Alive and Well
strategy+business | Oct 22, 2008 9:30 PM CDT
(Newser) - Reports of the death of outsourcing have been greatly exaggerated, three specialists in the field write in strategy+business . While a few big companies such as Dell and Apple have scaled back on customer service operations overseas, these decisions remain the exception to the rule, no matter what you read in the mainstream business press. The...
Kirk Blasts Sulu for Wedding Snub
Associated Press | Oct 22, 2008 9:00 PM CDT
(AP) - William Shatner is setting his phaser to stun against his old Star Trek co-star George Takei. In a video posted on Shatner's Web site today, he lashed out at Takei for not inviting him to his wedding last month. The 77-year-old Kirk said Takei, who played Enterprise helmsman Sulu, apparently harbors a grudge.
Trendy Pomegranates Have a Downside, Too
Chicago Tribune | Oct 22, 2008 8:21 PM CDT
(Newser) - Those five bottles of pomegranate juice you drink per day to help you live longer? Turns out they could be hurting you, reports the Chicago Tribune . Pomegranates, which have reached “superstar status” because of their alleged health benefits, can interfere with a number of drugs, including Crestor and Lipitor. "I do not recommend...
Cities Fight Urban Blight With Free College Tuition
Miller-McCune | Oct 22, 2008 7:48 PM CDT
(Newser) - Cities on the decline across the country are testing a new strategy to stem urban decline: Families who buy homes in town get their kids college tuition paid in full. These "promise communities"—about 80 in all—seek to attract new residents and keep upwardly-mobile city dwellers from moving out, Ryan Blitstein writes for Miller-McCune...
Catty Stylista Fits the Times
New York Times | Oct 22, 2008 7:16 PM CDT
(Newser) - Stylista depicts fashion’s “empty ambition and distaste for civility,” but the show’s timely appeal is its “fresh resonance” during the current job market, Ginia Bellafante writes in the New York Times . In the CW series beginning tonight, 11 contestants trample and scramble to present the best breakfast arrangement...
DC Schools Give Kids Money to Improve Grades
NPR | Oct 22, 2008 6:45 PM CDT
(Newser) - Schools in Washington, DC, hope to expand children's minds by filling their wallets. Students who get good grades, attend class, and behave earn points that will net them paychecks of up to $1,500 each year, NPR reports. "Every child has a switch, and it's our job as educators to find it," said one principal of the "Capital Gains"...
AP Poll: It's a Dead Heat
Associated Press | Oct 22, 2008 6:20 PM CDT
(Newser) - Not all the polls are going in Barack Obama's favor. An AP-GfK survey says John McCain has closed the gap with Obama after the last debate by gaining voters among whites and those earning less than $50,000. The poll has the race at 44%-43% in favor of Obama, a statistical tie indicating that the "Joe the plumber" analogy resonated. The same...
Economy Is Democrats' Fault, But Media Turn Blind Eye
Meridian | Oct 22, 2008 6:00 PM CDT
(Newser) - Mainstream media—aka the Democrats’ “public relations machine”—have fed Americans a “big fat lie” by ignoring the fact that this economic mess can be traced directly to Democratic policies, writes Orson Scott Card in Meridian. The crisis is “not a vague emanation of the evil Bush administration,"...
Ignore Hype of 'Wine Clones'
New York Times | Oct 22, 2008 5:39 PM CDT
(Newser) - If you believe the hype of many American wineries, you don’t have to travel to Burgundy to sample grand cru pinot noir—thanks to "suitcase clones": American wines that supposedly had their start as smuggled cuttings from the mother country. Though “such stories may excite gullible consumers,” wine columnist Eric Asimov...
FDA May Strengthen Chantix Label
Wall Street Journal | Oct 22, 2008 5:25 PM CDT
(Newser) - The FDA may beef up its warning for the anti-smoking drug Chantix after an increase in the number of serious incidents linked to the drug, the Wall Street Journal reports. A drug-safety group tallied 1,001 reports of patients suffering seizures, blackouts, and loss of motor control—some while driving—in three months. The figure is...
Europe's Culture Gets Virtual Backup
Der Spiegel | Oct 22, 2008 5:10 PM CDT
(Newser) - European culture is going digital. Priceless items such as the Magna Carta, the Mona Lisa, and the Gutenberg Bible will eventually be accessible worldwide for free on “Europeana,” an online encyclopedia funded by the European Union. It plans to match Google Library Project’s 10 million artifacts by 2010, Der Spiegel reports. ...
AIG Agrees to Freeze Executive Bonuses
New York Times | Oct 22, 2008 4:55 PM CDT
(Newser) - AIG will suspend bonus payments to its executives after getting pressure from New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. The ailing insurance firm, which recently got billions of dollars in loans from the Federal Reserve, also will stop $19 million in payments to a former CEO fired in June. Cuomo said it made no sense to reward management under the...
Airfares May Sag in '09: Report
Reuters | Oct 22, 2008 4:47 PM CDT
(Newser) - The slumping economy may bring some good to the travel industry: Domestic airfare and hotel rates could fall next year as strapped individuals and companies think twice about globetrotting. A slash in oil prices, down to half of summer’s record high, has also brought airlines relief, Reuters reports. In its annual forecast, American Express sees...
Obama Passes Off Biden Gaffe as 'Flourish'
Chicago Tribune | Oct 22, 2008 4:35 PM CDT
(Newser) - Barack Obama sought to blunt criticism of Joe Biden today, saying that though his running mate “engages in rhetorical flourishes,” he was right in saying “the next administration is going to be tested, regardless of who it is,” reports the Chicago Tribune . Critics in the McCain campaign had used Biden’s prediction of...
Gay Marriage Vote Highlights Calif. Divides
San Francisco Chronicle | Oct 22, 2008 4:22 PM CDT
(Newser) - California’s looming referendum on gay marriage is highlighting the cultural divide between coastal and inland regions, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Polls show 37% of voters in coastal counties supported Proposition 8—which would amend the state constitution to ban same-sex marriage—in a June poll, while 54% in the Central...
Life With Wolves Has Couple in Own Reality-TV Pack
Newsweek | Oct 22, 2008 4:10 PM CDT
(Newser) - A British authority on wolves is taking his fiancée into the wild, and bringing cameras along, Newsweek reports. Shaun Ellis, who has spent years living with wolf packs, coaxed Helen Jeffs from her job as a schoolteacher to live on a wildlife refuge where they eat raw meat and cavort with their lupine brethren for the Animal Planet show Living...
Doyenne Dies in Style at NY Hotel
New York Times | Oct 22, 2008 3:57 PM CDT
(Newser) - When 71-year-old Marie-Dennett McDill learned she had terminal cancer, her children checked her into her beloved Carlyle Hotel, the Times reports. McDill stayed at her favorite swanky locale in NYC under 24-hour hospice care for her last 10 weeks. She took daily walks in Central Park and camped out in the hotel’s piano lounge, requesting...
Obama Welcomes Mac Attacks as Signs of 'Flailing'
Newsweek | Oct 22, 2008 3:45 PM CDT
(Newser) - You wouldn’t expect a political campaign to circulate its opponent’s attack on its candidate—yet that’s exactly what Barack Obama’s media-relations team is doing, observes Andrew Romano for Newsweek . An email linking to stories on John McCain’s latest jabs is part of the “rapid response” squad’s...
Dow Sinks 514 on Bad Earnings
Wall Street Journal | Oct 22, 2008 3:32 PM CDT
(Newser) - Stocks continued yesterday’s decline amid a wave of poor earnings reports across the board, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow, down at one point nearly 700 points in the final hour, fell 514.45 to close at 8,519.21. The Nasdaq shed 80.93 points, closing at 1,615.75, and the S&P 500 slid 58.27 points to 896.78, its lowest close in...
Boeing CEO Hopeful as Strike Talks Set to Resume
Seattle Times | Oct 22, 2008 3:16 PM CDT
(Newser) - Boeing’s CEO is confident that the next round of talks could resolve a costly strike by its machinists union, the Seattle Times reports. With formal negotiations set to resume tomorrow, Jim McNerney thinks headway can be made on the pivotal issue of outsourcing the production of parts traditionally fashioned by the machinists.
Becks May Play for Milan on MLS Break
Guardian (UK) | Oct 22, 2008 3:03 PM CDT
(Newser) - Officials of Italian soccer juggernaut AC Milan officials are confident David Beckham will play for the team during his break from Major League Soccer, the Guardian reports. Though Beckham has remained mum, a Milan exec was emphatic. “Beckham wants to train and play for Milan. We want him and he will arrive in January for the rest of the season.”
UK Group Raises $80K for Atheist Bus Ads
Guardian (UK) | Oct 22, 2008 2:47 PM CDT
(Newser) - A campaign to plaster London buses with agnostic advertising has far exceeded its fundraising goal, the Guardian reports. The ads, aimed to counter what one writer sees as overbearing Christian messages, will say, “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” Organizers have raised 10 times more money than their...
Redstone to Divorce (Again)
Los Angeles Times | Oct 22, 2008 2:41 PM CDT
(Newser) - Media magnate Sumner Redstone is calling it quits with his wife of 5 years, the Los Angeles Times reports, even as the Viacom and CBS chairman tries to maneuver his family company through a debt crisis. Though the 85-year-old cited irreconcilable differences in ending his marriage to Paula Fortunato, the pair said in statement that they did so “amicably.”
Howard/Price Matchup Could Make for Epic Series
Washington Post | Oct 22, 2008 2:37 PM CDT
(Newser) - The best reason to watch this World Series is that at some point, Ryan Howard will face David Price, and the game will probably be on the line, writes Dave Sheinin of the Washington Post . “That’s what you want to see,” says Jonny Gomes. “Power versus power in the World Series.” Both are homegrown stars and if you don’t...
Times Hit by White Powder Scare
New York Times | Oct 22, 2008 2:27 PM CDT
(Newser) - A New York Times employee found white powder inside an envelope earlier today, prompting police to evacuate that floor, close the office lobby, and ask three workers to bag their clothing and shower, the paper's City Room reports. The letter was addressed to editorial page editor Andrew Rosenthal. The newspaper had a similar scare in October 2001,...
Afghan Writer's Death Sentence Reduced
Los Angeles Times | Oct 22, 2008 2:21 PM CDT
(Newser) - Parwez Kambakhsh won’t be executed for distributing literature on women’s rights, but the student and part-time journalist will spend the next 20 years in prison, an Afghan appeals court ruled yesterday. “This is arguably worse for him,” one human-rights advocate told the Los Angeles Times of the 24-year-old’s death...
Grandparents Say Caylee's Still Alive
Orlando Sentinel | Oct 22, 2008 2:11 PM CDT
(Newser) - The grandparents of missing Florida 3-year-old Caylee Anthony say they are not in denial for insisting she is alive, and told the Today Show they haven’t visited daughter Casey in jail in order to focus on the missing toddler. Casey’s mother, Cindy, called the murder indictment against her daughter a “tactic” to prevent defense...
Shhh. Don't Tell: I'm Voting for Obama
Washington Post | Oct 22, 2008 2:02 PM CDT
(Newser) - There are plenty of unpredictable factors that might elude pollsters, Kathleen Parker writes in the Washington Post. Most famous is the Bradley Effect. “While some have minimized the impact of a Bradley Effect in this election, we'd be wrong to discount it. Anti-black has morphed to some degree into anti-foreigner and anti-Muslim.” But...
Woman Charged With Buff Bartending
Alton Telegraph | Oct 22, 2008 1:56 PM CDT
(Newser) - Lowered inhibitions aren’t uncommon in bars, but one in suburban St. Louis has been having trouble keeping its female bartenders clothed, the Alton (Ill.) Telegraph reports. Something strange is going on around Alton, where Jamie Day, 24, was charged Friday with bartending in the nude—the area’s second such arrest in about a month.
Man Who Lured Boy on Facebook Gets 35 Years
Chicago Tribune | Oct 22, 2008 1:49 PM CDT
(Newser) - A 25-year-old Chicago stockbroker was sentenced yesterday to 35 years in prison for soliciting sex from minors on Facebook, the Tribune reports. Facebook said this appears to be the first case of a sexual predator using the social networking site. Michael Macalindong posed as a girl to lure a teenage boy, and then blackmailed the teen with video...
China Embraces Credit Cards
Los Angeles Times | Oct 22, 2008 1:36 PM CDT
(Newser) - Banks are moving to tap China’s lucrative market for credit cards, issuing millions in new plastic in recent years, the Los Angeles Times reports. There are about 100 million credit cards today in China, up from 3 million in 2003. And the market is still tiny, by American standards: The average Chinese consumer has only two cards, while an...
US Farmers See Leaner Times in Stormy Market
Wall Street Journal | Oct 22, 2008 1:20 PM CDT
(Newser) - Plunging crop prices and soaring costs are hitting US farmers with a one-two punch that’s knocked the fight out of what had been one of the stronger segments of the nation’s economy, reports the Wall Street Journal . Corn prices have dropped some 50% since July, and prices for fertilizer and seed are expected to jump 40% next year.
Is Obama a Radical or Reconciler?
Washington Post | Oct 22, 2008 1:11 PM CDT
(Newser) - Barack Obama may be on the brink of the presidency, but many still wonder whether he’s a closet radical, Michael Gerson writes in the Washington Post . He carries a liberal Illinois legislature record, associations with Ayers, Alinsky, Wright, and ACORN, and an “elitist disdain for bitter, God-clinging conservatives,” Gerson notes....
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