Newser Story Index from December, 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.
Rival Israeli Pols Gain From Gaza Attack
Washington Post
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Dec 31, 2008 8:04 AM CST
(Newser) -
An uneasy triumvirate of Israeli politicians united to plan the offensive against Gaza, the Washington Post reports. Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, who will compete to become prime minister in February's election, both want to convince the electorate they can successfully defend Israel. For outgoing PM Ehud Olmert,...
Coleman Rejects Election Judge's Vote
Minneapolis Star Tribune
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Dec 31, 2008 8:00 AM CST
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Norm Coleman rejected 37% of recount ballots in a blue Minnesota county this week, including that of an election judge, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. Shirley Graham, who voted for Coleman, disputes a date discrepancy the senator used to deny her absentee vote. The state Supreme Court gave the candidates unilateral power to reject any ballot...
Court: Naked Have Right Not to Be Taped
Wisconsin State Journal
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Dec 31, 2008 7:45 AM CST
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Shucking off your clothes in front of somebody doesn't strip you of your privacy rights, a Wisconsin court ruled yesterday. The court ruled against a man who claimed that because his then-girlfriend was often nude in front of him, it was legal for him to secretly videotape her with a hidden camera. The court found that the girlfriend had a reasonable...
Drug Companies Agree to Stop Docs' Free Goodies
New York Times
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Dec 31, 2008 7:20 AM CST
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The piles of freebies drug companies lavish on doctors will go the way of the VHS tape as of tomorrow, the New York Times reports. The industry, facing criticism that it is trying to unduly influence doctors' decisions, has voluntarily decided to stop handing out pens, stethoscope holders, bandages, T-shirts, mugs, and the many other branded giveaways...
Israel Rejects Ceasefire
CNN
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Dec 31, 2008 6:48 AM CST
(Newser) -
Israel today rejected a 48-hour humanitarian truce designed to allow foreign aid into Gaza, CNN reports. Israeli officials said the deal, proposed by French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, didn’t come with any assurances that Hamas would honor it. “The residents of the south of Israel must have a real and sustainable solution and not...
Gonzales: I'm a Casualty of War on Terror
Wall Street Journal
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Dec 31, 2008 6:46 AM CST
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Controversial former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales didn't deserve the flak he got as a high-ranking Bush administration official, he tells the Wall Street Journal . Gonzales was pilloried for his involvement in the government's "war on terror" policies, but he denies drafting the legal opinions that supported harsh interrogation techniques...
Jumbo Jet Flies on Veggie Oil
BBC
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Dec 31, 2008 6:35 AM CST
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A Boeing 747 powered by a mixture of aviation fuel and vegetable oil flew on a two-hour test flight which is being hailed as a technological and ecological milestone. The Air New Zealand passenger jet was powered in part by oil from the jatropha plant, reports the BBC.
Publisher Yanks Kid Spinoff of Holocaust Fake
Publishers Weekly
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Dec 31, 2008 5:54 AM CST
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Publishers are now pulling a picture book inspired by a Holocaust love story revealed to be a fake, Publishers Weekly reports. Lerner Publishing has announced it will cancel reprints of Angel Girl and offer refunds for returned copies. Herman Rosenblat's memoir Angel on the Fence was canceled by another publisher after he admitted inventing the...
Sobbing SpongeBob Joins Viacom Fee Dispute
Wall Street Journal
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Dec 31, 2008 5:29 AM CST
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Viacom is enlisting some of its best-known kid cartoon characters in a contract renewal battle with Time Warner, the Wall Street Journal reports. Viacom wants higher fees from the cable carrier for its channels, which could disappear from Time Warner's service at midnight tonight if no new deal is reached. A wave of ads debuts today featuring a sobbing...
German Mayor in Hiding After Neo-Nazi Threat
Der Spiegel
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Dec 31, 2008 4:57 AM CST
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The mayor of a small German town is in hiding after receiving neo-Nazi death threats on a web site, reports Der Spiegel . The threats follow a near-fatal knife attack on a small-town police chief by a suspected neo-Nazi, and are raising concerns that extreme right-wingers are growing increasingly violent. "I was shocked," said Warin Mayor...
USS Pueblo Crew Awarded $65M
Associated Press
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Dec 31, 2008 4:27 AM CST
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In a distant echo of the Cold War, a federal judge has ordered north Korea to pay $65 million in damages to four crewmen from a US ship captured in 1968, reports AP. The USS Pueblo was seized by North Korea on an intelligence-gathering mission, and crew members were severely beaten during 11 months of captivity. One of 83 crew members died, and the...
Dane Cook's Bro Busted for Embezzling
Boston Herald
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Dec 31, 2008 3:51 AM CST
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Comedian Dane Cook's half-brother and manager has been arrested and charged with stealing millions from the entertainer, the Boston Globe reports. On one occasion, Darryl McCauley—who has managed his younger brother's business affairs since the early '90s—forged Cook's signature on a $3 million check and deposited it into his own account,...
Gambian Missionaries Imprisoned for Insult
Times (UK)
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Dec 31, 2008 3:19 AM CST
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A British missionary couple has been sentenced to a year's hard labor in one of Africa's toughest prisons for calling the despotic president of Gambia "a madman" in an email, reports the Times of London. The parents of three apologized for the insult, hoping for leniency.
White House Frets Over Gaza Fighting
Los Angeles Times
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Dec 31, 2008 2:45 AM CST
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A deeply worried Bush administration is privately pushing Israel to settle on a Gaza exit strategy, despite the White House's public support of the offensive, insiders tell the Los Angeles Times . Amid rising international pressure to end the fighting, administration officials fear that rather than crushing Hamas, Israel's assault could increase support...
US Troop Deaths at New Low
USA Today
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Dec 31, 2008 2:09 AM CST
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The US military lost 467 service members in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2008, the lowest annual death toll since the Iraq war began in 2003, reports USA Today . But the coming year could be more challenging. Up to 30,000 extra troops are being sent to Afghanistan and upcoming elections are bound to be a flashpoint in Iraq.
Pakistan's Own Probe Sees Local Links to Mumbai
Wall Street Journal
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Dec 30, 2008 9:24 PM CST
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Pakistani officials are gradually coming to the same conclusion about the Mumbai attacks as their Indian counterparts: The plot was hatched in Pakistan, and the attackers were trained there by a militant group with long ties to the Pakistani military, the Wall Street Journal reports. The evidence is becoming clear as officials interrogate a captured...
Oscar-Worthy Comebacks
Metromix
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Dec 30, 2008 9:00 PM CST
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Some stars combust and others fizzle, but a few are reborn. Metromix honors the second wave: The Wrestler was made for Mickey Rourke, the "one-time '80s sex symbol" turned professional boxer. Drug habits wrote off Robert Downey Jr. until the Iron Man returned with back-to-back hits. Dennis Hopper suffered Downey's...
Rivals Wary of China's New Sea Power
Christian Science Monitor
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Dec 30, 2008 8:25 PM CST
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China's decision to flex its burgeoning naval muscles by sending two warships to patrol Somalia's pirate-infested waters has been met with equal parts thanks and worry from the international community, the Christian Science Monitor reports. The mission is China’s first outside of its own waters, and many are wondering what the country will...
More Health Rumors About Jobs Hit Apple's Stock
TheStreet
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Dec 30, 2008 7:48 PM CST
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More rumors regarding the health of Steve Jobs put a crimp in Apple's stock today, the Street reports. The company's stock had been trading in positive territory until the tech blog Gizmodo quoted an anonymous but "100% reliable" source as saying Jobs' health is "rapidly declining." After that, shares fell as low as $84.72, down...
Lobbyist Sues NYT Over McCain Affair Allegations
Virginia Lawyers Weekly
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Dec 30, 2008 7:14 PM CST
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Washingon lobbyist Vicki Iseman filed a $27 million defamation lawsuit today against the New York Times for running an article that she says falsely implied an affair with John McCain, the Virginia Lawyers Weekly reports. The February article said McCain aides worried in 1999 that their relationship had become romantic. The newspaper stood by the...
Gap Year Gains Favor Among High School Graduates
Wall Street Journal
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Dec 30, 2008 7:08 PM CST
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As more high school graduates decide to take a so-called “gap-year” before college, a veritable industry has sprung up to offer these seekers advice on how to go about it, the Wall Street Journal reports. Given the increased popularity of a year off, which some educators advocate because “not every 17-year-old is ready to enter...
Terminator, Deliverance Join US Film History
Variety
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Dec 30, 2008 6:40 PM CST
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The Terminator will live forever. The Arnold Schwarzenegger action flick is among 25 films being added this year to the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry, which seeks to preserve movies of historical, cultural, or aesthetic note. Also among the crop this year were Deliverance , The Asphalt Jungle , Sergeant York , a 1950s home...
Broncos Fire Shanahan After 14 Seasons
Denver Post
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Dec 30, 2008 6:11 PM CST
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The Denver Broncos fired longtime head coach Mike Shanahan today after a late-season flop that left the team out of the playoffs, the Denver Post reports. Shanahan had been coach for 14 years and led the team to two Super Bowl wins. The Broncos, however, have only one playoff victory since the second of those championships—and the departure...
All New York Will Feel Wall Street's Pain
New York Post
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Dec 30, 2008 6:00 PM CST
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All American cities are facing budget shortfalls because of the recession, but Wall Street's meltdown has decimated New York City's tax base, Michael Bloomberg said yesterday in announcing plans to slash 20,000 city jobs, cut services and raise taxes. The aim is to reduce an expected $4 billion deficit, reports the New York Post.
Obama Blasts Blago's Move
CNN
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Dec 30, 2008 5:47 PM CST
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Barack Obama today criticized Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's decision to appoint a successor to the president-elect's Senate seat, CNN reports. Obama called the governor's move "disappointing" and said he backed Democrats' position of blocking any such appointment. Obama again urged Blagojevich to resign so Illinois could have a "functioning...
Cowher Will Talk to Jets About Coaching Job
New York Daily News
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Dec 30, 2008 5:15 PM CST
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The New York Jets and former Steelers coach Bill Cowher have agreed to meet as early as this week to discuss the team's coaching vacancy, the Daily News reports. The Jets fired Eric Mangini following the team's late-season collapse and are prepared to offer big money and concessions to woo the Super Bowl winner away from his studio gig with CBS,...
Man Charged With Driving Zamboni Drunk
Portland Press Herald
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Dec 30, 2008 5:00 PM CST
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A Maine man has been charged with drunken driving after police found him, intoxicated, atop an idling Zamboni ice-resurfacer, the Portland Press Herald reports. The man was found inside a building that appeared to have been burglarized and damaged; he was also charged with criminal mischief, burglary, and a bail violation. Police responded to the...
Columbia Crew Had No Chance to Survive
Houston Chronicle
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Dec 30, 2008 4:45 PM CST
(Newser) -
The seven astronauts aboard the space shuttle Columbia lost consciousness quickly and did not suffer when the craft broke up during its descent to Earth in 2003, a NASA report says. While the crew had zero chance of survival, the report found fault with the astronauts' safety equipment and recommended improvements in everything from helmets to...
Israeli Army Puts War Videos on YouTube
Jerusalem Post (Israel)
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Dec 30, 2008 4:29 PM CST
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The Israeli army has launched a YouTube channel of graphic war videos in an attempt to curry public favor for its Gaza siege, the Jerusalem Post reports. The footage shows aerial strikes, aid distribution, and—in one potentially unsettling piece—an alleged airstrike on two men loading Israel-bound rockets onto a truck. The web-savvy IDF...
In Mexico, Corruption Is Rampant and Pervasive
Christian Science Monitor
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Dec 30, 2008 4:14 PM CST
(Newser) -
During his two years in office, Mexican President Felipe Calderón has made a valiant attempt to expel corruption from his government, but many think his efforts are quixotic at best, the Christian Science Monitor reports. “I don't think there is ever a point that Calderón can claim 'mission accomplished,'” one expert said...
First Granny Mulls White House Move
Boston Globe
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Dec 30, 2008 3:59 PM CST
(Newser) -
With the Cabinet-pick mania waning, Beltway buffs are left speculating on whether first granny Marian Robinson will join the Obamas in their new residence. One poll places the move-in likelihood at 70%, and there's a petition going that supports "her presence in the Obama White House." Even Barack Obama, in uncharacteristic son-in-law...
Troops Must Also Fight for Custody
Washington Post
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Dec 30, 2008 3:44 PM CST
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They already risk their lives daily in Afghanistan and Iraq, but members of the US military increasingly face a different kind of fight on the home front: custody battles. As military divorce rates rise, so too do the number of ex-spouses of troops using deployment as a legal argument in attempts to regain custody, the Washington Post reports.
Dow Rises 184 on GMAC News
MarketWatch
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Dec 30, 2008 3:32 PM CST
(Newser) -
Stocks rose today as investors were encouraged by the extension of at least $5 billion in bailout money to the financing division of General Motors, MarketWatch reports. GMAC said the aid would allow it to offer loans to more US consumers seeking to buy vehicles. The Dow gained 184.46 points to close at 8,668. The Nasdaq climbed 40.38 points, closing...
Smiling, Frowning Is Hardwired Into Genes: Study
WebMD
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Dec 30, 2008 3:18 PM CST
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Facial expressions from smiling to sneering are dictated by human genes that all of us share, a new study suggests. Researchers examined the facial expressions on thousands of photographs of blind and sighted athletes at the 2004 Athens Paralympic Games and the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. They discovered that no matter whether athletes could see or...
Blago Names Burris; Senate Dems Say 'No Way'
Chicago Tribune
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Dec 30, 2008 3:06 PM CST
(Newser) -
Rod Blagojevich announced today that former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris will fill Barack Obama’s vacant Senate seat, the Chicago Tribune reports. Blagojevich said Burris was a man of "unquestioned integrity" and asked that people not allow "the allegations against me to taint this good and honest man." Meanwhile,...
Three Genes Made 1918 Flu So Deadly
Reuters
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Dec 30, 2008 2:58 PM CST
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Researchers have pinpointed the reason the flu pandemic of 1918 was “the most devastating outbreak of infectious disease in human history,” Reuters reports. The key is a combination of three genes that allowed the virus to enter the lungs and cause pneumonia. Typically, the flu affects only the upper respiratory tract. The scientists made...
Placenta Drip: Fad or Fantastic?
Slate
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Dec 30, 2008 2:47 PM CST
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Feeling tired? A Tokyo clinic offers relaxation drips containing human placental extract as a pick-me-up. Long used by the Japanese to treat liver disease and menopause symptoms, placenta—with its immune molecules and nutrients that sustain the fetus during pregnancy—is symbolic, if not utterly scientific. The idea of a fountain...
'Jena 6' Teen in Hospital After Shooting Self
Monroe News Star
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Dec 30, 2008 2:33 PM CST
(Newser) -
Mychal Bell, one of the “Jena six” who were the focus of a racial controversy in 2006, survived a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest and is in a Louisiana hospital, the Monroe News Star reports. Bell shot himself after being arrested for shoplifting on Christmas Eve and said “that he shot himself because he was tired of all...
AIG's Downfall, Part 2: 'Almost Free Money'
Washington Post
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Dec 30, 2008 2:20 PM CST
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According to the computer models, credit default swaps almost couldn’t fail. They were the latest derivative contract in 1998, and AIG Financial Products decided to get on board, the Washington Post reports, in the second part of its series on the insurer’s self-destruction. When AIG struck its first default swap deal, no one realized...
Groups Go High-Tech in Push for Obama Jobs
Politico
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Dec 30, 2008 2:10 PM CST
(Newser) -
Special interest groups eager to cement plum spots in the Obama administration are using private websites and online databases to angle for positions, Politico reports. Instead of tossing their résumés onto the pile at Change.gov, savvy applicants are casting their lots with these groups, which pore over the resumes and pitch the cream...
Iraq Prepares Grim Saddam Museum
Reuters
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Dec 30, 2008 1:49 PM CST
(Newser) -
Two years ago today Saddam Hussein breathed his last, but Iraq is taking steps to ensure the dictator isn't forgotten, reports Reuters. Soon, the country will open a dark museum full of artifacts from Saddam’s reign, including the torture devices he employed, the chair he was tried in, and some 26 million documents penned during his decades-long...
Franken and Coleman Still Jousting on Absentees
Politico
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Dec 30, 2008 1:44 PM CST
(Newser) -
It’s not clear what the Minnesota Supreme Court was thinking when it made the outcome of the Senate race contingent on the two campaigns working out a deal on disputed absentee ballots. Not surprisingly, the Al Franken and Norm Coleman camps, currently separated by 46 votes, are still far apart, and sniping at each other instead of settling....
Clintons to Lead NYC New Year's Countdown
Reuters
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Dec 30, 2008 1:37 PM CST
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Hillary Clinton will get a raucous sendoff from her adopted hometown New Year's Eve, when the New York senator is slated to join hubby Bill and Mayor Michael Bloomberg as they push the ceremonial button to signal the descent of Times Square's iconic ball, Reuters reports. That begins the 60-second countdown to a year of new beginnings—and allies—for...
Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon Lead to Madoff
New York
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Dec 30, 2008 1:28 PM CST
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It turns out Kevin Bacon didn’t put enough degrees between himself and Bernie Madoff. Bacon and wife Kyra Sedgwick join Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg on the list of Hollywood denizens duped by the Ponzi schemer, Bacon’s rep confirmed to New York magazine . Rumor has it the couple lost everything but their land and checking...
Who's Still at Guantanamo?
USA Today
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Dec 30, 2008 1:21 PM CST
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Before he can close Guantanamo, Barack Obama must decide what to do with the 250 detainees still there. About 80 are scheduled to be tried and will serve their sentences in their home countries, USA Today reports. The Pentagon has approved the release of 60 more, but has not found countries to accept them. That leaves 110 alleged terrorists...
Volatile Markets a Growing Concern for Farmers
Wall Street Journal
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Dec 30, 2008 1:05 PM CST
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Volatile commodity prices and uncertainty about future demand are nurturing growing concern among American farmers as revenues sink—even as demand sprouts in emerging energy markets, the Wall Street Journal reports. Costs of doing business—namely seed, machinery, and fertilizer—are riding high alongside transportation costs, and...
Has Obama Got Game on the Green?
Chicago Tribune
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Dec 30, 2008 12:51 PM CST
(Newser) -
Sure, he cleaned up in the electoral college, but how’s Barack Obama’s golf game? According to one vocal observer, it beats his bowling, the Chicago Tribune reports. The “protective pool” of press that tails Obama 24/7 offers a play-by-play of his day on a Hawaiian green, describing “a shot that flew low and straight...
Liz Claiborne CEO Flies Coach to Cut Costs
Wall Street Journal
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Dec 30, 2008 12:47 PM CST
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Like most CEOs, William McComb is a jet-setter, flying 200,000 miles a year, give or take. But unlike most CEOs, he does it in the cheap seats, flying exclusively on commercial jets, and almost always in coach. “Every penny counts,” he reasons, given that his company, Liz Claiborne, has posted a loss for four straight quarters.
Israeli Navy Rebuffs Gaza-Bound Relief Boat
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Dec 30, 2008 12:43 PM CST
(Newser) -
An Israeli warship collided with a boat of activists defying a blockade to deliver medical supplies to war-torn Gaza today, the Journal-Constitution reports. Georgia Rep. Cynthia McKinney, who was aboard, says the "peaceful mission was thwarted by Israel's aggressiveness." An Israeli spokesman denied that the ramming was deliberate....
'Magic Negro' Flap May Help GOP Pol
Politico
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Dec 30, 2008 12:33 PM CST
(Newser) -
When a conservative politician is called racist, expect a backlash. The fracas over Chip Saltsman’s distribution of the song “Barack the Magic Negro” in his campaign to be Republican National Committee chairman has, as per usual, caused compatriots to flock to his defense, Politico reports, and may actually work to his benefit. Committee...
