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.
Buckley: Hands Off Dad's Torch, Rush
Daily Beast
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Oct 27, 2008 3:02 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Christopher Buckley, having been savaged by Rush Limbaugh for endorsing Barack Obama, fires back at the talk-show host for daring to think he can assume the conservative mantle of his father, the late William F. Buckley Jr. Writing in the Daily Beast, Buckley brandishes French, that tool of the “card-carrying member of the Eastern seaboard, proletarian-despising...
Obama Pushes Don't-Let-Up 'Closing Argument'
CNN
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Oct 27, 2008 2:50 PM CDT
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Barack Obama warned voters today against acting as if he’s already won the election, urging them not to “let up for one day, one minute, or one second in this last week,” CNN reports. Speaking in Canton, Ohio, Obama charged that 4 more years of “Bush-McCain” policies was a “gamble” too big to take.
Dancing With the Pols Has Web Shimmying
Chicago Tribune
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Oct 27, 2008 2:42 PM CDT
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Here’s an issue that’s gone largely unaddressed on the campaign trail: Which candidate can bust a move for America? A number of videos floating around the Internet attest to Barack Obama’s and John McCain’s ability to groove, the Chicago Tribune reports. Ellen DeGeneres held a Barack-Michelle dance-off, and some tricky filmmakers...
Bush's Next Act: Try Congress
Christian Science Monitor
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Oct 27, 2008 2:34 PM CDT
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President Bush can't have 4 more years, but he could try for 2, Steve Coronella writes in the Christian Science Monitor . Coronella urges Bush to follow John Quincy Adams, who served 17 years in the House. As a representative from Texas, he writes, “Bush could go on to make his mark on the national stage in a way that has eluded him.”
Young Island Is Scientists' Playground
Christian Science Monitor
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Oct 27, 2008 2:22 PM CDT
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On Surtsey, off Iceland's coast, scientists take life one species at a time, the Christian Science Monitor reports. Since the island erupted from the ocean in 1963, only researchers have been permitted to visit and catalog its colonization by external species. With 2½ acres of land eroding each year, they’re likely to be the only humans...
Candidates Bombard Swing States With Radio Ads
USA Today
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Oct 27, 2008 2:10 PM CDT
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Although conventional radio may seem obsolete, it is an important tool of the presidential campaigns this year, USA Today reports. Political advertising is flooding the airwaves in battleground states as the campaigns take advantage of the cost: $500 to $600 per airing for a 30-second spot in Northern Virginia, compared to at least $1,700 or more...
Role in White House for Obama Strategist?
Politico
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Oct 27, 2008 1:55 PM CDT
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With Barack Obama holding a lead in the polls, Democrats have begun discussing what, if any, role his top campaign strategist might have in an Obama White House, Politico reports. David Axelrod, say those who know him, is seriously weighing an administration position; where he ends up could be key to the trajectory of an Obama presidency.
Mac Should Muzzle Staffers, Drop Robocalls, Talk Security
New York Times
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Oct 27, 2008 1:45 PM CDT
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William Kristol has some advice for John McCain: “When you’re in a hole, stop digging.” In a recent poll, 64% of respondents said they believe McCain spends more time attacking Barack Obama than making his own case. The senator ought to pull his negative ads, robocalls, and mailers, “muzzle the campaign,” and make his...
Stevens Jury Finds Typo; Defense Urges Acquittal
The Hill
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Oct 27, 2008 1:31 PM CDT
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The jury in Ted Stevens’ corruption trial has uncovered an error in one indictment, and the defense is springing at the chance, the Hill reports. Jurors sent the judge a note today questioning a discrepancy in the prosecution’s allegations regarding the senator’s 2001 financial disclosure. Where the indictment said Stevens checked...
Robin Hood, Beware: The Rich Get Poorer
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 27, 2008 1:28 PM CDT
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Barack Obama and John McCain have sparred over the country’s income gap, but that gap is shrinking rapidly, Robert Frank writes in the Wall Street Journal . Financial crises always knock the rich down a peg, and this one is no different. One economist predicts the top 1%’s share of all income will fall to 18-19% during the next year, down...
Borneo Threatened by Green Gold Rush
National Geographic
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Oct 27, 2008 1:16 PM CDT
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Borneo, the Texas-sized island whose rain forests are astonishingly rich in biodiversity, has been plundered for its other riches—everything from rhino horns to coal to oil—for centuries. Now, with the market for palm oil, dubbed green gold, booming, oil-palm plantations threaten the remaining forest, Mel White writes in National Geographic...
'Perfect Storm' of Problems Forecast for Missouri Polls
Boston Globe
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Oct 27, 2008 1:04 PM CDT
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Missouri is one of several states anticipated to have voting problems next week, but nobody is sure just how big they might be, the Boston Globe reports. The potential is huge, though, in a sharply divided state where John McCain and Barack Obama are polling dead even and a legion of new voting laws and machines await testing.
Son Appears to Fetch Brain Doc for Kim
Times (UK)
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Oct 27, 2008 12:53 PM CDT
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Adding to the evidence that Kim Jong-Il is in grave health, the North Korean leader’s eldest son was filmed while apparently securing the services of a brain surgeon in Paris, the Times of London reports today. Fuji TV also showed clips of an unnamed surgeon being driven in a car owned by the North Korean embassy to de Gaulle airport for a...
'Circle of Pain' Snags Emerging Markets, Too
New York Times
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Oct 27, 2008 12:41 PM CDT
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Only a few weeks ago, it seemed the main fronts of the financial crisis were the Western banking system and mortgage market. But now the crisis has spread to emerging markets like Russia and Brazil. As Paul Krugman writes in the New York Times , the mantra of “decoupling”—that emerging economies could operate independent of the West—turns...
Hannity, Olbermann: On Different Planets
Washington Post
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Oct 27, 2008 12:29 PM CDT
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Barack Obama has suggested voters are “seeing two different realities, a Sean Hannity reality and a Keith Olbermann reality”—and he’s right, Howard Kurtz writes in the Washington Post . "Adored by fans and derided by critics," Fox's Hannity is an unapologetic John McCain booster, while Olbermann uses his MSNBC pulpit...
Run, Mascara: Glaucoma Drug Makes Lashes Longer
Daily Mail (UK)
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Oct 27, 2008 12:17 PM CDT
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A drug used to fight glaucoma also doubles eyelash growth, and cosmetics companies are taking notice, the Daily Mail reports. The maker of Lumigan wants a piece of the $3 billion-plus mascara market and plans to apply for a US cosmetic license. “It could be used in the treatment of alopecia and other hair growth problems” too, a researcher...
Voting by Mail Is 2008's Big Winner
Los Angeles Times
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Oct 27, 2008 12:03 PM CDT
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Nearly half of California's ballots this year will be cast by mail, marking an upward trend that isn't restricted to the Golden State, the Los Angeles Times reports. Washington and Oregon are almost completely mail-in only, and voter-rights organizations across the country hail the convenience of sending in votes. But critics have some big worries.
Police Believe Body Belongs to Hudson Nephew
CNN
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Oct 27, 2008 11:52 AM CDT
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Police think they’ve found the body of Jennifer Hudson’s nephew, Julian King, CNN reports, after Chicago authorities responded to “a call about a suspicious auto.” Though the body they found within has yet to be formally identified, the plates on the car match those in King’s Amber Alert, and the body is “believed...
Facebooked: Bono Caught Cavorting With Teens
Australia's News Network
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Oct 27, 2008 11:48 AM CDT
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Sorry, Bono fans, Facebook doesn't lie. The married U2 frontman spent a night in St. Tropez partying with two 19-year-olds, Australia’s News Network reports after the girls posted pics—and details—on their Facebook pages. But Bono didn't cross the line. “For somebody who's much older than I am … no thank you,” writes...
Anti-Washington Tide Threatens GOP Stalwart
Washington Post
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Oct 27, 2008 11:35 AM CDT
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The rising Democratic tide is threatening to wash over a Republican pillar: Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, is fighting for his political life in the deep-red state, reports the Washington Post . McConnell barely leads, and national Democrats are working hard to tip the race. A McConnell defeat would remove a canny opponent...
Brinkley Ex Stops Payments to Mistress
New York Post
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Oct 27, 2008 11:22 AM CDT
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It appears Peter Cook’s ex-lover may not get the last third of her settlement, the New York Post reports, and her lawyers are to blame. Diana Bianchi, the teen whose affair with Cook led to his divorce from Christie Brinkley, signed a deal promising $300,000 as long as she kept quiet. But with sex tapes floating around, Bianchi's lawyers have...
Economic Woes Mean Reprieve for Weak Series
Hollywood Reporter
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Oct 27, 2008 11:10 AM CDT
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The financial crisis and the lingering effects of last year’s writers’ strike are breathing life into TV shows that would already have worn out their welcome in years past, reports the Hollywood Reporter . In previous seasons, ratings dogs like NBC's Knight Rider and ABC's Private Practice likely would have been canned, but the cost...
Papa Lohan Sorry for Sam Slam
New York
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Oct 27, 2008 10:57 AM CDT
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Michael Lohan is, er, publicly really sorry for publicly slamming La Lohan's girlfriend on a gossip website, New York magazine reports. Lohan calls himself "a Christian" and says he regrets everything he said about Samantha Ronson (especially that bit about calling her "dark, hideous, and a disgusting representation of humanity.")...
Bees Can Count, Scientists Claim—Up to 4, That Is
Reuters
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Oct 27, 2008 10:45 AM CDT
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Honey bees can count up to four, Australian researchers have found, but no higher. In a University of Queensland study, bees repeatedly flew to the same marked spot in a tunnel, even when it did not hold food, Reuters reports. "We find that if you train them to the third stripe, they will look subsequently in the third stripe," one researcher...
Twitter Turns Up the Volume
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 27, 2008 10:33 AM CDT
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Twitter, a micro-blogging service where users post what they’re up to in 140 characters or less, once thought the province of the self-absorbed, has been growing drastically as friends, businesses, and even services like fire departments find ways to make “tweeting” work for them, the Wall Street Journal reports. The site says its...
Economy May Be Death Knell for Landlines ... Even Cable
Advertising Age
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Oct 27, 2008 10:20 AM CDT
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An economy that’s stuck in “slow” could soon have consumers making choices about whether to keep their cable TV or Internet connections, and weighing whether they need a telephone landline, reports Advertising Age . A high-speed connection that can provide access to the Internet, phone service and even entertainment would be the...
'Redneck' Constituents Cool on Murtha
Politico
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Oct 27, 2008 10:06 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Democratic stalwart John Murtha just can’t give himself a break. The 17-term congressman first insulted his constituents by saying, “There’s no question Western Pennsylvania is a racist area,” in a newspaper interview, Politico recalls. Then, as his opponent gained traction in polls, Murtha apologized, but added, “This...
Even Oil-Rich Gulf States Hit by Financial Storm
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 27, 2008 9:51 AM CDT
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The financial crisis has finally struck the Persian Gulf—the one area of the world that had seemed immune—as a 50% plunge in oil prices since July and a raft of currency trades gone bad has led to the first bank bailout in the area. Kuwait’s central bank yesterday guaranteed deposits and arranged a cash infusion into one of the country’s...
No. 44 Must Get to Work Nov. 5
Bloomberg
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Oct 27, 2008 9:40 AM CDT
(Newser) -
America hasn’t been this eager for the new president to take over since FDR ousted Herbert Hoover, write John Brinsley and Edwin Chen for Bloomberg. Then, as now, an economic crisis heightened the urgency for a fast, smooth transition. And while Roosevelt rejected Hoover’s offers to work together on a rescue plan, there are signs that this...
Cops Find Body in SUV; May Be Hudson's Nephew
Associated Press
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Oct 27, 2008 9:18 AM CDT
(AP) -
Police searching for Jennifer Hudson's missing 7-year-old nephew said this morning they've found the body of a young black boy in a sports utility vehicle. There is no confirmation on the identity of the body. A spokesman for the Cook County Medical Examiner's office says it has sent investigators to the scene.
Madge Scheduled the Sex
Daily Mail (UK)
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Oct 27, 2008 9:10 AM CDT
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In a divorce battle that just keeps getting nastier, sources now say that Madonna scheduled sex with husband Guy Ritchie into her planner weeks in advance, wedged in between 4-hour workouts and Kabbalah meetings. “Guy of course felt this a tremendous turn-off,” the source told the Daily Mail . “As a consequence, their sex life died...
As Mac Defends Turf, Obama Preps Closing Argument
New York Times
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Oct 27, 2008 9:08 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Barack Obama is closing out the campaign fighting for Republican ground, the New York Times reports, with the Democrat aiming to seal the deal by giving still-unsold voters a final chance to size him up. His final message will hit broader, less partisan themes, and his strategy is forcing John McCain’s beleaguered campaign to defend once deep-red...
Stocks Dip Amid Global Selloff
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 27, 2008 8:58 AM CDT
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Stocks pointed downward this morning, as big overseas selloffs spooked investors, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow dropped 134 points shortly after its open, while the S&P dropped 1.7% and the Nasdaq 1.6%. There were positive signs overseas, including an IMF rescue plan for Hungary and Ukraine and a surprise rate cut from South Korea,...
Mutant Anthrax Cells Led, Slowly, to Ivins
Washington Post
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Oct 27, 2008 8:56 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The anthrax poisoning case against Bruce Ivins won't be made in court, but it is compelling, the FBI says. Although the late Army scientist's lawyer dismisses the case as “heaps of innuendo,” federal records reveal a far-reaching, exhaustive investigation that required newly invented technology and depended on mutant bacteria, reports the...
IMF Bails Out Hungary, Ukraine
Bloomberg
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Oct 27, 2008 8:47 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The IMF will provide multibillion-dollar loans to Ukraine and Hungary, which have followed Iceland to become the latest national victims of the global financial crisis. Ukraine will receive a $16.5 billion loan, while the specifics of the Hungary deal are still being worked out. Both Eastern European countries have seen their currencies devalued and...
Pentagon Will Keep Extending Soldiers' Tours
USA Today
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Oct 27, 2008 8:30 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Soldiers are likely to face involuntary extensions of combat duty throughout 2009, USA Today reports, despite repeated Pentagon promises to rely less on the practice. Roughly 12,000 soldiers are hit with “stop loss”—which forces them to stay in the Army after their commitment has expired—each month, and that number is likely...
Experts Call for Earlier HIV Treatment
USA Today
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Oct 27, 2008 8:19 AM CDT
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New research challenges one of the basic assumptions about treating HIV—that patients should begin treatment only when levels of a type of white blood cell fall below a certain mark. New studies show that patients treated under current guidelines are 70% more likely to die than those treated sooner. Early treatment, however, is dependent on early...
Bankruptcy Looms if GM, Chrysler Don't Get Cash
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 27, 2008 8:12 AM CDT
(Newser) -
GM and Chrysler are both on track to run out of cash before the end of 2009 if a merger or major government intervention doesn’t occur, analysts tell the Wall Street Journal . With credit markets choked and rapidly diminishing reserves, experts say bankruptcy, which would carry massive consequences for the industry and economy as a whole, could...
Guess What's Still Selling Strong?
Washington Post
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Oct 27, 2008 7:47 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Fears of an anti-gun presidency and the threat of civil unrest in a worsening economic climate are fueling record sales of firearms and ammunition, the Washington Post reports. Sales have been climbing since 2006 and this year have shot past the average annual 5% increase to reach 10%, as gun advocates predict that some weapons may become illegal...
In Pakistan, US Moves From Ground to Air
New York Times
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Oct 27, 2008 7:07 AM CDT
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The US has recalibrated its antiterror campaign in Pakistan, backing off ground raids via the Afghan border and intensifying its CIA-led airstrikes against militants. The Pakistani government had lodged bitter complaints about the ground operations, the New York Times reports, which were seen as a violation of the country's sovereignty. The...
Mystery Writer Tony Hillerman Dead at 83
Associated Press
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Oct 27, 2008 6:39 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Bestselling author Tony Hillerman died yesterday at 83 of pulmonary failure, the AP reports. He was known for his mystery novels, which featured two Navajo policemen with distinct views on their people, constantly balancing the Navajo world with the Anglo one. A onetime journalist, he found success with Skinwalkers in 1987 and made bestseller lists...
2 Killed in Arkansas Campus Shooting
CNN
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Oct 27, 2008 5:57 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Two students were killed and one wounded in gunfire outside a dorm at the University of Central Arkansas last night, CNN reports. One person has been detained in the shooting, but no arrests have been made. “At this time we do have some pretty good leads,” police said. One student died outside the dorm; another, an 18-year-old male, died...
World Stocks Crash Again
Guardian (UK)
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Oct 27, 2008 5:26 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Japanese stocks hit a 26-year low as markets in Asia and Europe plunged again amid tenacious fears of a prolonged global recession. The Nikkei fell 6.4% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped a staggering 12%—its biggest single-day tumble since 1997. In London the FTSE opened down more than 5% this morning, and the pound dropped another...
Obama Speech Draws 100,000 in Denver
Chicago Tribune
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Oct 27, 2008 5:07 AM CDT
(Newser) -
John McCain insists his campaign is “doing fine” even as his rallies in key states pull a fraction of the crowds turning out for Barack Obama, the Chicago Tribune reports. The Republican drew about 2,000 supporters at each of his recent events in Iowa and Ohio. Obama, meanwhile, spoke to tens of thousands at rallies in Colorado.
Raise Your Hand If You're Sick of the Election
ABC News
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Oct 27, 2008 4:39 AM CDT
(Newser) -
News flash: Voters are getting sick of hearing about the election. With just eight days to go the battleground states are weary with campaign fatigue, particularly in places like Iowa, where the candidates have made a total of 263 stops. "People are fed up with it, and maybe they won't vote,” warned an Iowan.
Hero Pup Protects Kittens in Burning House
Australia's News Network
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Oct 27, 2008 4:08 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A terrier pup in Australia is due for a bravery medal after refusing to abandon a box of kittens trapped in a blazing house over the weekend, reports the Melbourne Herald Sun . Leo the Lion-hearted—as he’s been dubbed—was carried from the blaze and resuscitated by firefighters, who dove back in to save the kittens as well. Nobody...
Gas Prices in Record Fall
Reuters
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Oct 27, 2008 3:35 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Gasoline prices have dropped 53 cents in the last two weeks, the steepest decline ever, according to the nationwide Lundberg Survey. The national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded is $2.78, Reuters reports. Wichita, Kansas, has the cheapest gasoline, at $2.26 a gallon, and San Francisco gas is the most expensive, at $3.37.
Hasselbeck and Palin Dress Down Clothes Critics
New York Daily News
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Oct 27, 2008 3:00 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Conservative View co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck hit the campaign trail with Sarah Palin yesterday to blast the media flap over the Palin family's $150,000 campaign wardrobe—purchased by the GOP—as a “deliberately sexist” diversion and blatant double standard.
World's Heaviest Groom Weds
Associated Press
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Oct 27, 2008 2:30 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The world's heaviest man was married yesterday in a bizarre wedding ceremony in Mexico that required a crane to transport him to him to the nuptials. Manuel Uribe, 47, was driven to the ceremony on the back of a flatbed truck, decorated in white, still resting in the bed he hasn't left for six years. His 38-year-old bride has been helping Uribe lose...
Stevens Jury to Start Over as Member Is Dismissed
The Hill
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Oct 27, 2008 1:55 AM CDT
(Newser) -
One of the jurors in the corruption trial of Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens has been dismissed, the Hill reports. In a hearing last night the judge released a woman who left Washington Friday following the death of her father, and has been unreachable since. He said he would replace her with an alternate this morning and order the jury to restart deliberations....
