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.
Somali Suicide Bombers Strike UN Compound
Associated Press
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Oct 29, 2008 8:02 AM CDT
(AP) -
Suicide bombers struck a UN compound and several other targets in northern Somalia today, killing at least 22 people, as talks about Somalia's political crisis began in neighboring Kenya, officials said. "We are still counting the bodies," said a spokesman for the breakaway republic of Somaliland, where bombers hit the UN compound, the Ethiopian...
Elizabeth Edwards Back on Stump—for Health Reform
Washington Post
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Oct 29, 2008 7:44 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Elizabeth Edwards is cautiously reemerging into public life—sans wedding ring—after her husband's headline-grabbing affair, the Washington Post writes. She declines to play the role of the wronged wife and avoids interviews. But she's giving speeches again, a physically fragile but fierce advocate of a more fair health care system, drawing...
Namibia's Ivory Sale Raises Poaching Fears
Times (UK)
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Oct 29, 2008 7:31 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Namibia kicked off two weeks of ivory auctions yesterday, marking the first time in almost a decade that the elephant tusks have sold legally, reports the Times of London. Seven tons brought $1.18 million from Chinese and Japanese buyers, and 108 tons—the equivalent of 10,000 elephants—will sell over the course of the sale. But conservationists...
As Oligarchs Lose Billions, Kremlin Steps In
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 29, 2008 7:11 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Kremlin is allowing an individual businessman to tap into a $50 billion rescue fund, reports the Wall Street Journal , signaling a shake-up of the relationship between the Russian government and the country's oligarchs. Mikhail Fridman, whose creditors declared him in default on a $2 billion loan from Deutsche Bank, got the bailout from a state...
Obama Dials Up SMS Blitz
New York Daily News
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Oct 29, 2008 7:01 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Over the next seven days the Obama campaign will ratchet up its ongoing text messaging blitz, which has kept supporters in the loop and likely helped to pump up numbers at the 100,000-strong rally in Denver last week. Those who have opted in will get info about polling places, local Obama appearances, and even names of voters who might need a nudge,...
Car Dealers Write Off Domestic Franchises
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 29, 2008 6:36 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Two of the largest chains of car dealers report that their domestic auto franchises have become virtually worthless, the Wall Street Journal writes. The companies took a a combined $51 million in writedowns for the third quarter, reflecting disappearing "franchise value"—the measure of potential profit—for dealerships...
Trump in Trouble on Chicago Tower
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 29, 2008 6:16 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Donald Trump's 92-story Chicago tower has been hit by a triple-whammy of the credit crunch, the housing slump, and sagging retail sales, making foreclosure a real danger, the Wall Street Journal reports. Trump, who developed the tower without partners, owes $1 billion on the project but has so far sold only $600 million in condo units and condo-hotel...
In 8 Years, Bush Revolutionized Appeals Courts
New York Times
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Oct 29, 2008 5:33 AM CDT
(Newser) -
George W. Bush's two appointments tilted the Supreme Court to the right—but it's at the appellate level where his judicial legacy is greatest. The president has appointed fully a third of all appeals court judges, and Republican appointees now control 10 of the 13 circuits. The result, writes the New York Times , is a conservative legal...
Bookies Call Game 5 for Phillies
Las Vegas Review-Journal
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Oct 29, 2008 5:01 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Game 5 of the World Series is stuck in a rain-soaked limbo in Philadelphia but it's all over in Vegas, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. Nevada gaming ‘house rules’ state that a canceled game reverts to the score of the last finished inning, making it a 2-1 victory for the Phillies as far as bookies are concerned.
Lenders Yank Credit Cards as Economy Sours
New York Times
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Oct 29, 2008 4:33 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The flattening economy is putting the squeeze on credit card lending just when consumers can least afford it, the New York Times reports. Lenders are putting the brakes on new credit card offers and reining in lines of spending for existing holders, even those with good credit records. The flood of credit card junk mail has slowed to a trickle nationwide....
Pakistan Quake Kills 135, Toll Rising
AFP
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Oct 29, 2008 4:02 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A 6.4 quake rocked southwest Pakistan early this morning, killing more than 135 people, AFP reports. Pakistan has sent troops to the region to provide assistance and expects the death toll to rise steeply. Most of the deaths were in remote villages in the Afghanistan border region, where mud huts collapsed and tremors sent boulders crashing down slopes....
McCain Camp: LA Times Is Suppressing Obama Video
Los Angeles Times
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Oct 29, 2008 3:14 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The McCain campaign is accusing the Los Angeles Tim es of shirking its journalistic duty by sitting on a tape of Barack Obama speaking at a 2003 dinner in honor of a Palestinian-American scholar and activist. The Times —which wrote about the tape in an April article on Obama's ties to Chicago-area Jews and Palestinians—says it is merely...
You Can Vote Even if This Is Your Address: Ohio Judge
Cleveland Plain Dealer
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Oct 29, 2008 2:19 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A federal judge has ruled that the homeless in Ohio can vote even if their place of residence is a bench or a street grate, reports the Cleveland Plain Dealer . The US District Court has ordered Ohio authorities to count the votes of homeless people whether or not their ballots list a physical address. The ruling also protects ballots from being invalidated...
Asia Markets Up, Down (Again)
MarketWatch
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Oct 29, 2008 1:44 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Markets across Asia rebounded today following a huge Wall Street rally and hopes of a drop in interest rates, but failed to hold on to some of their biggest gains as investors hedged against weak earnings reports from heavy hitters such as Panasonic and Sony, MarketWatch reports. Meanwhile, the Japanese yen retreated against global currencies on...
America's Strangest Trips
Travel Leisure
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Oct 29, 2008 1:03 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Americans can stop longing for trips to mysterious locales like the Bermuda Triangle and Stonehenge, Travel + Leisure reports. Even stranger vacation spots exist within the 50 states: Racetrack Playa in Death Valley, Calif: So-called "sailing stones" move strangely over the sandy surface. Some blame strong winds, which reach...
Hudson Suspect Told Parole Agent He Was 'Baby-Sitting'
Associated Press
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Oct 28, 2008 9:56 PM CDT
(AP) -
The convicted felon suspected in the slayings of Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother, and nephew was arrested with crack cocaine in his car in June, but authorities declined to return him to prison on a parole violation. A judge dismissed the charge for lack of probable cause in July, but under the strict rules of the state's parole program,...
Britney May Host SNL Next Month
Celebuzz
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Oct 28, 2008 9:55 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Britney Spears is going to host Saturday Night Live on Nov. 22, an anonymous source tells Celebuzz. If the rumor is true, it will be Britney's third time. Eight years ago, at the tender age of 18, she became the youngest person to host and perform on the same show. As her comeback continues, however, she won't have full control of her money. A judge...
Microsoft Offers Early Peek at Vista's Successor
CNET
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Oct 28, 2008 8:25 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Microsoft offered an early look today of its new operating system, designed to smooth out the kinks of the much-maligned Vista. The company gave programmers test software of Windows 7, which CEO Steve Ballmer is pushing to release next year, CNET reports. Those with an early look have generally praised the stability of the new system, designed to be...
Red Really Is the Color of Lust
WebMD
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Oct 28, 2008 7:57 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Ladies looking to attract a man can ditch their magazines and follow some simple advice instead: Wear something red. So say researchers at the University of Rochester, who conducted five scientific-sounding experiments to conclude that men aren't all that complicated. The test subjects, all undergrads, judged women as sexier and more attractive if...
Foreign Policy Drove Wedge Between Hagel, McCain
New Yorker
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Oct 28, 2008 7:25 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Though Chuck Hagel and John McCain have plenty in common as Republican senators and Vietnam veterans, the Nebraskan says foreign policy is why he’s not on board. “In good conscience, I could not enthusiastically—honestly—go out and endorse him,” Hagel tells the New Yorker , “when we so fundamentally disagree on...
AC/DC Is No. 1? Must Be a Recession
Guardian (UK)
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Oct 28, 2008 6:56 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Forget complicated economic indicators—the surest sign that recession looms is that AC/DC is back on top of the charts after 28 years, writes Alexis Petridis in the Guardian . It seems that whenever the Aussie rockers have a best-selling album, at least in Britain, the economy's in the tank. See 1980’s Back in Black and 1990’s...
In Pivotal Virginia, Lawsuit and Dirty Politics Surface
Talking Points Memo
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Oct 28, 2008 6:30 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The election is heating up in Virginia, with fake notices and lawsuits flying around the swing state. The majority black region of Hampton Roads has been blanketed with official-seeming fliers falsely stating that Democrats are to vote November 5, Talking Points Memo reports. And the NAACP has sued the state, claiming that it is not prepared to handle...
Judge Sends Detroit's 'Arrogant' Ex-Mayor to Jail
Detroit News
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Oct 28, 2008 6:03 PM CDT
(Newser) -
If Detroit's ousted mayor hoped to catch a break in court today, he was very much disappointed, the Detroit News reports. After upbraiding Kwame Kilpatrick as "arrogant" and "defiant," the judge told the disgraced politician he'd have to serve his full 4-month sentence for obstructing justice with no hope of early release. Kilpatrick...
Disney's Worldly Approach Makes HSM a Global Smash
Time
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Oct 28, 2008 5:21 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The success of High School Musical 3 proves that 293 million tweens can't be wrong. The series’ third installment debuted No. 1 in 19 international markets, confirming Disney's success with a strategy that marries the franchise’s universal themes to local cultures, Time reports. “You weave it together, forming a partnership...
Knox Will Stand Trial for Murder
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
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Oct 28, 2008 4:51 PM CDT
(Newser) -
American exchange student Amanda Knox and her Italian boyfriend will stand trial on charges of murdering her British roommate, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports. The trial in the death of Meredith Kercher will begin Dec. 4 in Perugia, Italy. Prosecutors say Kercher was killed during a violent sex game gone awry and that Knox, a 21-year-old Seattle...
Christian Science Monitor Will End Daily Print Edition
Washington Post
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Oct 28, 2008 4:40 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The Christian Science Monitor will discontinue its daily print edition in April as it shifts to the Internet. The paper, which turns 100 next month, will print a weekly edition instead. The Monitor has seen its circulation decline to 52,000 from 160,000 20 years ago, and while it is subsidized by the Christian Science church, the financial losses...
Björk: Iceland Must Heal Itself
Times (UK)
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Oct 28, 2008 4:25 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Given Iceland’s economic crisis, it would be madness to add to the country’s dependence on aluminum smelters, native singer Björk writes in the Times of London. In addition to environmental damage, lessons learned from the collapse of Iceland’s fishing industry should warn against putting “all our eggs in the same basket.”...
Vermont Begins Push to Save Historic Barns
Boston Globe
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Oct 28, 2008 4:11 PM CDT
(Newser) -
To Vermonters, the aging barns dotting their landscape are as important to the state's character—and tourism—as maple syrup or skiing. But the cost of maintaining them and the decline in family farms have taken a heavy toll, the Boston Globe reports. Now the state is conducting a "barn census" to catalog the structures that...
Racism Will Blunt Obama's Lead: Barkley
Raw Story
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Oct 28, 2008 3:57 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Charles Barkley has news for the experts predicting the Bradley effect won’t undermine Barack Obama’s lead. “The polls are absolutely useless,” the former NBA star says, anticipating a race “down to the wire.” While he concedes some whites will vote Democrat for “their financial situation,” the Obama-backer...
Amish Could Give McCain Crucial Swing-State Support
Daily Beast
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Oct 28, 2008 3:46 PM CDT
(Newser) -
With John McCain now focused on winning Ohio, Indiana and Pennsylvania, he could get help from a group that has traditionally avoided politics: the Amish. When they do vote, Amish are thought to be 100% Republican because of their views on abortion, Benjamin Sarlin writes in the Daily Beast; George W. Bush was able to mobilize the reclusive Amish vote...
Dow Jumps 889, Cracks 9,000
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 28, 2008 3:35 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Stocks zoomed past the 9,000 mark late in today's session as investors ignored a rock-bottom consumer-confidence rating, focusing on blue-chip gains and the likelihood of another rate cut by the Federal Reserve, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow shot up 889.35 to close at 9,065.12. The Nasdaq climbed 143.57, closing at 1,649.47, and the S&P...
Global Warming Changes Thoreau's Walden
Boston Globe
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Oct 28, 2008 3:33 PM CDT
(Newser) -
While living at Walden Pond, Henry David Thoreau collected detailed data on the plant species native to Concord, Mass. Scientists studying climate change have compared those records to present-day biodiversity—and found chilling evidence of global warming’s effects, the Boston Globe reports. 27% of the species Thoreau documented are gone,...
UK Bars Foreign 'Preachers of Hate'
Telegraph (UK)
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Oct 28, 2008 3:18 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Britain has new rules designed to keep “preachers of hate” off the island, the Telegraph reports. The measures shift the burden of proof from authorities to the foreign-born accused, who must retract controversial statements and sometimes make pro-democracy public statements to enter or remain in the UK. While terrorists are the obvious...
Religious Right Plots Takeover of GOP
Los Angeles Times
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Oct 28, 2008 3:06 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Social conservatives are wrangling with moderates for control of the GOP, plotting a January takeover of the Republican National Committee even if John McCain wins, the Los Angeles Times reports. Moderates like Colin Powell say the party has alienated voters—especially minorities—by narrowing its focus, but “moderating our party...
GOP Email Compares Obama to Nazis
ABC News
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Oct 28, 2008 2:54 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The Pennsylvania GOP has disavowed an email that went out last week to 75,000 Jewish voters comparing a vote for Barack Obama to support for the Third Reich. The message, sent out by a consultant charged with securing the Jewish vote, warns that "Jewish Americans cannot afford to make the wrong decision," like their ancestors who "ignored...
Google Settles Lawsuit Over Book Scanning for $125M
Wired
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Oct 28, 2008 2:43 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Google has settled a lawsuit concerning intellectual property rights in its book-scanning initiative, Wired reports. Google will pay $125 million to authors who claimed their work was put online without their consent. The settlement also establishes a system where many out-of-print, but still copyrighted, books will be available to buy online, with...
Dig May Confirm Solomon's Mines
Newsweek
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Oct 28, 2008 2:31 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Science and the Bible have a rare moment of “confluence,” says an archaeologist who helped unearth possible proof of King Solomon's reign, Newsweek reports. In present-day Jordan, scientists have found a 10th-century BC copper production center that coincides with the rule of the Biblical king of Israel. A spike in metallurgic activity...
Aussie Feces Fracas Drags Bacon's Name Down Under
Age (Aust.)
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Oct 28, 2008 2:19 PM CDT
(Newser) -
No, actor Kevin Bacon did not poop in anyone’s ice cream, reports Australia's Age . That we know of. But Stephen and Jessica Whyte insist someone put human feces in the gelato they were served at a Sydney hotel. Newspapers noticed that the Whytes have ties to a rival pub, but the family lawyer calls that a “Kevin Bacon six-degrees-of-separation”...
GOP Ticket Agrees: Stevens Must Go
Politico
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Oct 28, 2008 2:09 PM CDT
(Newser) -
John McCain and Sarah Palin delivered Ted Stevens a synchronized shooing toward the Senate door today, Politico reports. McCain said the 84-year-old Republican senator, convicted yesterday of corruption, “should now step down,” while Palin—who stopped short last night of urging her fellow Alaskan to resign—said today “he...
US: Attack Was 'Warning' to Jihadist-Friendly Syria
Times (UK)
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Oct 28, 2008 2:00 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The US says its attack Sunday on a Syrian village was a warning to Damascus to take more action against Iraq-bound militants. “We are left with no choice but to take matters into our own hands,” an official tells the Times of London. Washington recently praised Syria for curtailing the number of jihadists crossing the border, but sees...
Infidelity's Up, as Women Lead Charge
New York Times
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Oct 28, 2008 1:48 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Studies show infidelity rates rising across the board, the New York Times reports, with women closing the cheating gap on men. Lifetime infidelity rates for men over 60 jumped from 20% to 28% between 1991 and 2006, while women leaped from 5% to 15%. The trend affects young and old—20% of men under 35, and 15% of women, say they’ve cheated.
Texts Much More Effective Than Robo-Calls
Slate
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Oct 28, 2008 1:39 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The candidates’ automated call campaigns have received a lot of attention, but text-messaging, which only the Obama campaign uses, is likely to have a much more potent effect on the race, writes Farhad Manjoo for Slate. Studies have shown that personal appeals are more effective at mobilizing voters than mailers or robo-calls: Door-to-door visits...
Kim Calls Shots from Hospital: Japan
AFP
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Oct 28, 2008 1:22 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Kim Jong-Il is probably in the hospital but still calling the shots, Japanese PM Taro Aso says, citing intelligence reports and adding that if the North Korean leader were incoherent, "we would be seeing different developments." A Japanese professor returning from Pyongyang says North Koreans are calm, a sign that Kim is not as gravely ill...
Doctors See Rise in Kids With Kidney Stones
New York Times
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Oct 28, 2008 1:14 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Once associated with middle age, kidney stones are growing more common among US children, the New York Times reports. A few decades ago, physicians would “see a kid with a stone once every few months,” says one doctor. “Now we see kids once a week or less.” The increase comes from factors like salty diets and drinking too...
Friends Say LiLo's Too Skinny
Boston Globe
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Oct 28, 2008 1:00 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Lindsay Lohan's dropped 14 pounds, and friends worry her skinny-mini girlfriend might be the reason, the Boston Globe reports. “Since falling in love with Samantha Ronson—who is naturally very slim—Lindsay seems desperate to lose more weight,” a source says. But Lohan, who's denied eating disorder rumors before, says her diet...
Who Lost the Race? Blame the Maverick
National Review
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Oct 28, 2008 12:56 PM CDT
(Newser) -
John McCain could still win the election, but it would be in spite of himself, writes Rich Lowry in the National Review . If Republicans are laying blame for the 2008 race, they should lay it on John McCain, paradoxically the best and worst candidate they could have fielded. McCain’s appeal was that he was a maverick, “or, in a less exalted...
Kabbalah Bosses Want Quick, Quiet Divorce
Daily Mail (UK)
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Oct 28, 2008 12:49 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Madonna's split from Guy Ritchie is getting messier by the day, and Kabbalah leaders don't want the couple's dirt tarnishing the sect's image. Madge's spiritual guide has given her 24 hours to come up with a mediation plan, the Daily Mail reports. Rabbi Yehuda Berg “would like to put an end to the public raking over of their marriage,”...
PR Blitz Aside, Big Oil Drilled Consumers for Stockholders
Los Angeles Times
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Oct 28, 2008 12:43 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Despite public-relations campaigns designed to make consumers think otherwise, big oil companies remain firmly tied to doing what’s best for their stockholders and bottom line, the Los Angeles Times reports. Though demand has outstripped production, companies spend more on stock buybacks than supply-boosting exploration. But, one analyst notes,...
Series Delayed Another Day
NBC Philadelphia
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Oct 28, 2008 12:38 PM CDT
(Newser) -
A forecast of high winds, heavy rain, and even snow in Philadelphia tonight moved Major League Baseball to push the conclusion of Game 5 of the World Series until at least tomorrow, NBC10 reports. “While obviously we want to finish Game 5 as soon as possible, the forecast for today does not allow for us to continue the game this evening,”...
Chill Out: It's a Recession, Not the Apocalypse
Telegraph (UK)
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Oct 28, 2008 12:33 PM CDT
(Newser) -
If you’re fretting, panicking, or just plain moping about the economy, Boris Johnson has some advice: Wake up and go shopping. “This isn’t some disaster movie about a virus from Mars. It’s a recession,” the mayor of London writes in the Daily Telegraph . “It doesn’t mean we have to line our rooms with newspaper,...
