Newser Story Index from November, 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.
Far Right Cheers Hillary at State
Daily Beast
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Nov 22, 2008 1:02 PM CST
(Newser) -
The far right is warming to the idea of Hillary Clinton as secretary of state, with neocons, righty writers, and a manager of Bill’s impeachment trial all getting excited about her perceived “willingness to veer right on international policy,” writes Ana Marie Cox at the Daily Beast. Said one consultant: “We all know that, secretly,...
Remember History: Give Pirates No Quarter...
Wall Street Journal
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Nov 22, 2008 12:45 PM CST
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The US can learn from its 18th-century experience with piracy, Michael Oren writes in the Wall Street Journal . America had no Navy in 1785, so when the Barbary Pirates demanded a million-dollar tribute in exchange for free passage through the Mediterranean, America paid. That million dollars represented 10% of the national budget, but in exchange...
... But We're the Good Guys, Says One Pirate
Guardian (UK)
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Nov 22, 2008 12:45 PM CST
(Newser) -
“We don’t see hijacking as a criminal act,” says Asad “Booyah” Abdulahi, “but as a road tax because we have no central government to control our sea.” Unable to afford college, and unable to get another job thanks to the government’s collapse, Abdulahi began his career as a fisherman, he tells the Guardian,...
Obama: We Need 2.5M Jobs in 2 Years
Bloomberg
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Nov 22, 2008 12:14 PM CST
(Newser) -
Barack Obama says he will move quickly once in office to enact an ambitious, two-year plan to save or create 2.5 million jobs, Bloomberg reports. Obama announced his plan in his weekly radio address, where he also warned that “we risk falling into a deflationary spiral that could increase our massive debt even further.” About 1.2 million...
Angry Sister of Web Suicide: 'No One Lifted a Finger'
Miami Herald
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Nov 22, 2008 11:46 AM CST
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The Florida teen who committed suicide live via webcam was bipolar and used his own prescription drugs to kill himself, the Miami Herald reports. “It’s unimaginable,” the boy’s father said. “I did everything I could. I'm sorry it wasn't enough.” His sister expressed anger at the online viewers who watched him lie...
Coleman's Lead Shrinks to 120
Minneapolis Star Tribune
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Nov 22, 2008 11:16 AM CST
(Newser) -
The Minnesota Senate recount is more than half done, and incumbent Norm Coleman is seeing his slim lead erode day by day, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. The Republican’s lead over challenger Al Franken is now 120 votes—down from 215 on Tuesday and around 700 after the election. Missing ballots and a growing number of challenges...
Zimbabwe Bars Carter, Annan, Mandela's Wife
Reuters
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Nov 22, 2008 10:57 AM CST
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Zimbabwe has denied Jimmy Carter, former UN chief Kofi Annan, and the wife of Nelson Mandela entry to the country to review its humanitarian crisis, Reuters reports. Even the support of former South African president Thabo Mbeki, who's been trying to mediate an end to the ongoing political stalemate, wasn’t enough to get the trio visas. “The...
Vick's Finances Have Gone to the Dogs
Associated Press
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Nov 22, 2008 10:45 AM CST
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Michael Vick is millions of dollars in debt, with his main hope of solvency hinging on the uncertain prospect of returning to the NFL, the AP reports. The former QB's bankruptcy filing puts his assets at $16 million but his debts at $20.4 million. Friends and family drive around in fancy cars provided by the player's former largesse, but Vick himself...
Irony Is Dead Again? Gee Thanks, Obama
New York Times
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Nov 22, 2008 10:36 AM CST
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Barack Obama’s America is an “irony-free zone” where “naïveté translated into ‘hope,’” writer Joan Didion groused after the election. But not all ironists agree: P.J. O’Rourke, for one, wrote that he hopes it's not too early to talk about Obama's "failed presidency," and novelist...
Hedge Funds Bleed Assets as Investors Flee Risk
Wall Street Journal
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Nov 22, 2008 10:27 AM CST
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Hedge Funds have never had a year this bad, and it's getting worse. Investors are pulling so much money from the once-prized investment vehicles, the Wall Street Journal reports, that redemptions are expected to claim 25% to 40% of hedge fund assets by March 2009. Add investment losses, and assets are expected to be down 50% from their peak by the...
Ashley Dupre Moving On From 'Many Mistakes'
ABC News
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Nov 22, 2008 9:58 AM CST
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Ashley Dupre presented herself in a primetime interview last night as a normal girl who made some misguided decisions. The woman whose tryst with Eliot Spitzer wrecked his career told ABC's Diane Sawyer she drifted into the escort business as a "naive" and "careless" 19-year-old, just 2 years after ditching high school and moving...
KGB Radiation Poisoning Suspect Ready to Talk
Times (UK)
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Nov 22, 2008 9:31 AM CST
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A former KGB agent accused of poisoning a Russian dissident in England wants to clear his name, he tells the Times of London. Alexander Lugovoi has offered to send a friend to London to speak with investigators, and may travel to the UK himself if officials pledge not to arrest him or turn his friend over to the German authorities seeking to extradite...
China Nixes Chinese Democracy
Wall Street Journal
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Nov 22, 2008 9:08 AM CST
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China's government-owned music monopoly has told record stores not to waste their time trying to order the first new Guns N' Roses album in 17 years, the Wall Street Journal reports. Officials say the title alone— Chinese Democracy —would probably be enough to doom it, but a reference to the banned Falun Gong movement finishes the job....
Rove Political Post Lives On Under Obama
Politico
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Nov 22, 2008 8:49 AM CST
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Barack Obama will keep the White House political office running, despite bipartisan calls to close it, Politico reports. Karl Rove’s old job will be handed to Patrick Gaspar, a labor operative and national political director for Obama’s campaign. Members of both parties had slammed the office, and John McCain had pledged to close it;...
DC Churches Woo Obamas
Washington Post
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Nov 22, 2008 8:12 AM CST
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The new first family will be looking for a place of worship in Washington, DC, and area congregations are feverishly offering up their advantages: presidential tradition; diversity; proximity to the White House; community activism; connections to Trinity, the Obamas' former Chicago church; a pastor who hails from Hawaii. A historian of presidential...
GM Board Would Consider Bankruptcy
Wall Street Journal
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Nov 22, 2008 8:11 AM CST
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Some General Motors’ directors are willing to consider bankruptcy protection as an option for the failing automaker, the Wall Street Journal reports, marking an unusual disagreement with CEO Rick Wagoner. Wagoner told Congress repeatedly this week, in seeking an immediate financial bailout, that reorganizing through a Ch. 11 bankruptcy is not...
Mexico Busts Former Drug Czar
Wall Street Journal
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Nov 22, 2008 7:26 AM CST
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The former chief of Mexico's anti-drug operations has been arrested on suspicion of taking massive bribes from drug cartels, the Wall Street Journal reports. Noe Ramirez, accused of pocketing $450,000 for passing information on investigations to drug kingpins, is the highest-ranking official arrested so far in "Operation Cleanup,"...
Obama Cabinet Picks: Seasoned and Centrist
New York Times
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Nov 22, 2008 7:13 AM CST
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Barack Obama swept into office on a wave of left-wing support, but his appointments thus far point to a centrist governing style, writes David E. Sanger in the New York Times . In choosing Hillary Clinton for secretary of state and Timothy Geithner for Treasury, Obama seems ready to “govern from the center-right of his party, surrounding himself...
This Year's Bad-Sex Winners
Guardian (UK)
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Nov 22, 2008 7:00 AM CST
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Ten authors have joined the distinguished ranks of such literary luminaries as Norman Mailer and Tom Wolfe—as nominees for the annual Literary Review Bad Sex in Fiction award. The dubious honor singles out “otherwise sound literary” fiction that includes “unconvincing, perfunctory, embarrassing or redundant passages of a sexual...
Obama's Kenyan Clan Adjusts to Fame
Los Angeles Times
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Nov 22, 2008 6:27 AM CST
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The election of Barack Obama has changed the lives of his Kenyan relatives forever, the Los Angeles Times reports. Roughly 400 people in western Kenya can claim kinship to the president-elect, and the clan is attracting huge amounts of attention from the world's media and from fellow Kenyans. Their village now boasts a new road, its first power line—and...
Elderly Trapped in Houses That Won't Sell
New York Times
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Nov 22, 2008 6:19 AM CST
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The collapse of the housing market has left many elderly people marooned in their own homes, the New York Times reports. Retirement communities require hefty down payments that many elderly were expecting to raise by selling their homes. With no buyers out there, frail people requiring daily care are stuck in houses too big—or treacherous—for...
Drug Abuse Rising Among US Soldiers
USA Today
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Nov 22, 2008 5:16 AM CST
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US soldiers are testing positive for drugs in record numbers even as the number of Army counselors shrinks, USA Today reports. This year 2.38% of troops tested positive during routine urine screens, up from 1.74% in 2004, and more than 7,000 soldiers were sent to counseling for dependency, up from 5,727 in 2003.
Birds Think Like Us
Scientific American
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Nov 22, 2008 4:01 AM CST
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In her new book Alex and Me researcher Irene Pepperberg explains how her work with the African gray parrot shed light on human intelligence, Scientific American reports. The author says Alex’s smarts demonstrate why scientists should examine how an animal’s brain works, not just how it looks, because the human cortex resembles a bird’s...
Beyoncé, Jay-Z Top List of Hollywood Power Couples
Forbes
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Nov 22, 2008 2:46 AM CST
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With "an $82 million hip-hop brand and an $80 million R&B empire" in their collective pocket, Beyoncé Knowles and Jay-Z take the top spot on Forbes ' list of highest-earning celeb mates. The runners-up: Will and Jada Pinkett Smith earned a cumulative $85 million from June 2007–June 2008. The split here was much less...
Pentagon Plans Afghan Surge of 20,000
Reuters
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Nov 22, 2008 2:24 AM CST
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US commanders are drawing up plans to send an extra 20,000 troops to Afghanistan over the next 12 to 18 months, Reuters reports. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says the surge will help reverse the rising violence in the country and safeguard elections planned for next fall. Commanders say the current NATO force in southern Afghanistan is overwhelmed...
Insurance Ad Gave 'Heart' to Election TV: Carpenter
Washington Times
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Nov 21, 2008 8:40 PM CST
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Singer-songwriter Mary Chapin Carpenter admits that the presidential election intruded on her life. But she found an unlikely source of inspiration amid her hours of obsessive TV watching—in a Liberty Mutual ad. Its old-fashioned carnival scene and music by the band Hem "evoked a nostalgia" for "a place where you pay attention...
Will Obama Change Pop Culture?
Entertainment Weekly
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Nov 21, 2008 7:52 PM CST
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Can "No-Drama" Obama cast a spell over Hollywood? After years of bleak television dramas, a Dark Knight superhero, and a James Bond who rarely smiles, some in Hollywood say Obama will inspire an era of optimism. ''The idea of change and hope has permeated the country," says Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, whose development meetings...
British College Launches Astronaut Course
Guardian (UK)
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Nov 21, 2008 7:14 PM CST
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A British university is making a political stand as it teaches students how to survive in outer space, the Guardian reports. The University of Leicester has hired NASA shuttle veteran Jeff Hoffman to lead a new course on how to become an astronaut, despite the UK government's ban on manned space flight. Lawmakers are reviewing the policy and...
Germany Drops Pursuit of Scientology
Associated Press
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Nov 21, 2008 6:32 PM CST
(AP) -
Germany is dropping its pursuit of a ban on Scientology after finding insufficient evidence of illegal activity, security officials said today. But domestic intelligence services plan to continue monitoring the group. The German branch of the Los Angeles-based Church of Scientology has been under observation by domestic intelligence services for more...
Amsterdam Weeds Out Pot Cafes Near Schools
AFP
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Nov 21, 2008 6:02 PM CST
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The city of Amsterdam will close some of its famous cannabis-selling coffee shops, AFP reports, targeting cafes that operate near schools in keeping with a new directive from the Dutch government. The law, which will shutter 43 of the city’s 228 such establishments, isn’t terribly popular with city officials; the mayor said they’ve...
Journal Poaches Times ' Ad Dollars
Bloomberg
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Nov 21, 2008 5:45 PM CST
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The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal are in an advertising war, and it appears the Journal is winning, Bloomberg reports. Notable accounts, particularly in the luxury market, are fleeing to the Times ’ rival. “They’re definitely stealing advertising dollars,” one analyst said of the Journal , which has broadened...
SNL Seeks a New Post-Election Obama
Daily Beast
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Nov 21, 2008 5:25 PM CST
(Newser) -
Lorne Michaels has a tough decision to make, and the fate of Saturday Night Live may depend on it: Who will parody the president-elect? Fred Armisen played Barack Obama during primary season, but the executive producer can’t squeeze 4 years of laughs out of his milquetoast portrayal, writes Jocelyn Guest for the Daily Beast. He auditioned four...
The Culture Wars, College Football Style
New York Times
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Nov 21, 2008 5:00 PM CST
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The cultural disconnect between conservative college football programs and America’s liberalizing culture in the late 1960s and early ‘70s is the theme of War as They Knew It , a book by Detroit Free Press columnist Michael Rosenberg. The survey of the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry (which continues tomorrow) through the prism of their...
Hunting Canada's Polar Bears Breeds Heated Argument
Economist
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Nov 21, 2008 4:43 PM CST
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One man’s endangered species is another’s livelihood in the Arctic north, where polar bear hunting is this season’s hot-button issue, the Economist reports. Scientists set a sustainable annual quota to protect dwindling species near the Canada-Greenland border, but some Inuit locals—who distrust outsiders and use the bears...
Sasha, Malia Will Attend Chelsea's Alma Mater
Washington Post
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Nov 21, 2008 4:27 PM CST
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Malia and Sasha Obama will enroll at Sidwell Friends School, the Quaker institution that educated Chelsea Clinton, Michelle Obama's spokeswoman said today. The girls visited both Sidwell and Georgetown Day School this week, and Malia expressed a preference for Sidwell because she's friendly with one of Joe Biden's grandchildren, who's already a student...
Forward-Facing Strollers Have Backward Effect
Telegraph (UK)
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Nov 21, 2008 4:00 PM CST
(Newser) -
Parents who place babies in forward-facing strollers could be harming their child’s development, a study suggests. Infants in carriages who were not turned toward their caregivers were less likely to sleep, laugh, or interact with them, the Telegraph reports. The study also found that babies in away-facing carriages have faster heart rates...
Old Library Gets New, Uh, Reading Room
Associated Press
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Nov 21, 2008 3:48 PM CST
(Newser) -
The library in Roxbury, Vt., installed wireless Internet ages ago, and last week finally caught up with 20th-century technology by adding indoor plumbing. “I used to say, ‘We’re the Wi-Fi library without a pot to p--- in,’” the library director tells the AP. Since 1934, patrons who needed a restroom had to take their business...
Tiny Tubes May Trumpet End of Bulky Loudspeakers
Economist
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Nov 21, 2008 3:36 PM CST
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You may soon be able to add paper-thin speakers to that flat-panel TV, the Economist reports. Scientists have used ultra-tiny carbon nanotubes to make a transparent film that produces sound identical to a signal-carrying current that passes through it. If the technology can be made commercially viable, you might be saying goodbye to those heavy speaker...
Dow Up 494 on Geithner Pick
MarketWatch
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Nov 21, 2008 3:23 PM CST
(Newser) -
News that Barack Obama’s will nominate Timothy Geithner, head of the New York Fed, as Treasury Secretary buoyed stocks today, although the major indices all lost value for the week, MarketWatch reports. The Dow closed up 494.13 at 8,046.42. The Nasdaq gained 68.23 to settle at 1,384.35, and the S&P 500 rose 47.59, closing at 800.03.
With Election Gone, SNL Enters 'Rebuilding' Phase
USA Today
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Nov 21, 2008 3:14 PM CST
(Newser) -
The election may be over, but SNL still has 14 episodes to fill. Lorne Michaels says the show will be in one of its periodic "rebuilding" periods, but he has much praise for three new faces. Here's the lowdown, from USA Today : Abby Elliott: The daughter of former cast member Chris Elliott is only 21, but Michaels...
Obama Touts Chicago's 2016 Olympics Bid
Chicago Tribune
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Nov 21, 2008 3:05 PM CST
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Barack Obama made a surprise appearance today in a video address to the International Olympic Committee, pushing Chicago’s bid to host the 2016 Summer Games, the Tribune reports. The video, shepherded to Istanbul by Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, showed Obama talking about his belief “in the Olympic movement,” and how he has “long...
Tolerance Museum Digs Up Trouble in Jerusalem
Bloomberg
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Nov 21, 2008 2:59 PM CST
(Newser) -
A parking lot in downtown Jerusalem is the latest battleground in the Arab-Israel conflict, Bloomberg reports, as plans for a museum of tolerance have inflamed tensions after initial construction work uncovered human remains in long-abandoned Muslim cemetery. The Israeli supreme court’s decision to approve the re-interment of Muslims remains...
Clinton Will Take State Post
New York Times
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Nov 21, 2008 2:51 PM CST
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Hillary Clinton will be secretary of state under President Barack Obama, the New York Times reports. Two anonymous insiders confirmed her acceptance, and the Obama camp expects her to formally agree to the position after Thanksgiving. "She's ready," said a source. Bill Clinton’s willingness to abide by the incoming administration's...
NY Fed Prez Lands Top Job at Treasury
MSNBC
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Nov 21, 2008 2:51 PM CST
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The Obama transition team has settled on a treasury secretary nominee, NBC reports: Timothy Geithner, the president of the New York Fed. The announcement is expected to come Monday, when the president-elect will announce his entire economic team in an attempt to quell the unrest surrounding the financial markets. Geithner beat out his former...
Millionaire's Thievery Ruins Priceless Books
Independent (UK)
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Nov 21, 2008 2:30 PM CST
(Newser) -
An Iranian scholar and millionaire sliced pages from extremely rare volumes at the British Library, some dating back to the 16th century, to replace missing sections in his own book collection, reports the Independent. Farhad Hakimzadeh, who pleaded guilty to theft and faces prison time, removed pages from a reported 150 volumes over the course of...
'Wardrobe Malfunction' Case Bound for Supreme Court
Broadcasting & Cable
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Nov 21, 2008 2:22 PM CST
(Newser) -
The FCC is continuing to push the "wardrobe malfunction" case and has turned to the Supreme Court, Broadcasting & Cable reports. The agency is attempting to have its $550,000 fine reinstated against CBS for Janet Jackson’s disrobing during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show. A federal appeals court threw out the fine in July....
Klein: Obama's Team of Rivals 'Strong and Wise'
Time
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Nov 21, 2008 2:19 PM CST
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If current rumblings are to be believed, Barack Obama’s national security team would be disparate indeed, consisting of Hillary Clinton at State, retired general Jim Jones as National Security Adviser, and Robert Gates sticking around as defense secretary. It’s an “extremely strong and wise,” team, writes Joe Klein in Time...
Oprah's Newest Favorite Thing: Thrift
Us Weekly
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Nov 21, 2008 2:11 PM CST
(Newser) -
Oprah’s favorite things this year are cheap, cheap, cheap, Us Magazine reports. The TV host, who usually gives away pricey items on an annual holiday show, will bow to the economy and push affordable stocking-stuffers instead. The Nov. 26 airing also includes DIY tips, with viewers meeting “a mom who shows us how to create a one-of-a-kind...
Putin Promises to Help Sliding Russian Economy
Wall Street Journal
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Nov 21, 2008 2:01 PM CST
(Newser) -
Vladimir Putin proposed steps yesterday to stabilize the Russian economy as layoffs and deferred wages cause rising insecurity about the nation’s finances, the Wall Street Journal reports. Russian firms now owe $145 million in delayed wages to 300,000 people, and those figures may actually be higher—a fifth of poll respondents said their...
Waxman's Coup Promises New Agenda
Politico
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Nov 21, 2008 1:49 PM CST
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Henry Waxman ascension to the chairmanship of the House Energy and Commerce Committee could pit him against both Republicans and fellow Democrats, Politico reports. Moderate former chair John Dingell, ousted by the liberal Waxman, left many subcommittee heads who could clash with their new boss. And the GOP is up in arms, saying Dems have been “pulled...
