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Newser Story Index from February, 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.

Spending Spree Puts Abu Dhabi Under Spotlight
New York Times | Feb 28, 2008 3:23 PM CST
(Newser) - When Abu Dhabi's investment arm poured $7.5 billion into Citigroup, to bail out America's biggest bank, the move didn't escape notice in Washington. The world’s biggest sovereign wealth fund has been flexing its muscle, making increasingly aggressive investments  in foreign interests, the New York Times reports. And though there’s...
Fashion Icon Enlists Kiddies
Reuters | Feb 28, 2008 3:12 PM CST
(Newser) - Children proved the future indeed for Vivienne Westwood at this year's Paris Fashion Week, with the British designer enlisting three dozen 7-year-olds to help with her latest collection. The British schoolkids painted bugs, plants, and snakes on Westwood’s eco-minded show "Chaos Point," which took to the runway Monday, Reuters reports.
Wikileaks.org Closing Doesn't Secure Bank's Client Info
Associated Press | Feb 28, 2008 3:00 PM CST
(Newser) - Legal action resulting in the closing of whistleblower site Wikileaks.org has backfired for the Swiss bank that sought to protect confidential information about their clients, the AP reports. Popular outrage over the closing of the site over its posting of documents from Bank Julius Baer has cause the widespread circulation of those documents on privacy...
Will Mac Reject His Radical Pastor's Nod?
Salon | Feb 28, 2008 2:59 PM CST
(Newser) - Barack Obama gets grilled over unsolicited praise from Louis Farrakhan, but John McCain draws no flak for “proudly” accepting the endorsement of a homophobic, Islamophobic evangelical pastor. Grotesque double standard, Glenn Greenwald calls it in Salon. Tim Russert made Obama “jump through multiple hoops” to disown the Nation...
1 in 100 Americans in Prison
New York Times | Feb 28, 2008 2:45 PM CST
(Newser) - One American adult out of 100 is incarcerated, a new study shows—the first time in US history such a high proportion of the population is behind bars. The Pew Center on the States reports the nationwide prison population grew by 25,000 last year, to 1.6 million, with around 700,000 others in local jails.
EU May Name Censorship a Trade Barrier
Ars Technica | Feb 28, 2008 2:33 PM CST
(Newser) - The EU is out to hack down the Great Firewall of China, Ars Technica reports. A new proposal would classify the web censorship China and other oppressive regimes employ as a trade barrier, an approach its creator calls “unusual, but effective.” The measure already sailed through the European Parliament 571-38, and now awaits European Council...
Nader Still Buffering ... Buffering ...
Politico | Feb 28, 2008 2:19 PM CST
(Newser) - Ralph Nader might seem like just the crusader to milk the Internet for all its movement-building potential, but, Andrew Rasiej and Micah L. Sifry write in Politico, his “self-defeating attitude” toward the web is likely to keep him on the sidelines. The third-party presidential hopeful claims his “Internet-literate associates”...
Heparin Supply Chain Shaky in China
New York Times | Feb 28, 2008 2:07 PM CST
(Newser) - With at least four US patients dead and hundreds suffering complications from the blood-thinning drug heparin, the New York Times follows the supply chain back to Chinese slaughterhouses that deal with the pig intestines that provide raw material for the drug. Though companies say the chain is secure, the Times finds it vulnerable to contamination...
Secret No More: Prince Harry's in Afghanistan
BBC | Feb 28, 2008 1:47 PM CST
(Newser) - Prince Harry is indeed in Afghanistan fighting the Taliban, the BBC reports. The news was leaked by foreign media and confirmed by the UK government despite a press agreement to stay mum on Harry’s military service. The prince, nicknamed “bullet magnet,” said he appreciates frontline duty: “I finally get the chance to do the...
Homeland Security Dep't Turns 5
Christian Science Monitor | Feb 28, 2008 1:32 PM CST
(Newser) - With the Department of Homeland Security celebrating its fifth anniversary Saturday, Secretary Michael Chertoff says six attack-free years could tempt the next US administration to make cuts in his agencies, the Christian Science Monitor reports. He said he has a "moral responsibility" to make choices he might not see bear fruit, rather...
'Urine Stew' Vid Sparks Furor in S. Africa
Mail & Guardian (South Africa) | Feb 28, 2008 1:19 PM CST
(Newser) - South Africans have reacted with outrage and violence to a homemade video showing white college students forcing black employees to eat dirty meat and soup mixed with urine. The four Afrikaners, who don't disguise their faces, made the video to protest racial integration at the formerly all-white University of the Free State, reports the Mail &...
City Dweller: Drive These Top 10
Forbes | Feb 28, 2008 1:07 PM CST
(Newser) - City streets are tight, and the stop-and-go driving eats up over-priced gas. Then there’s the parking … if you can find it. Forbes says urbanites should consider one of these city-friendly rides: Audi A3: Handles well, loaded with safety features, tiny turning radius Mazda3: Great at dodging potholes, safe MINI Cooper:...
McCain, Obama Left No Place for Bloomberg
Newsweek | Feb 28, 2008 1:00 PM CST
(Newser) - If Rudy and Hillary were the frontrunners, Michael Bloomberg wouldn't have ruled out an independent bid for the presidency, as he did today, writes Jon Meacham of Newsweek .  But John McCain and Barack Obama, the putative nominees, have a lock on the “novelty narrative,” so the billionaire mayor—who's been successively a Democrat,...
Chrysler Loss Deepened After Daimler Split
Wall Street Journal | Feb 28, 2008 12:56 PM CST
(Newser) - Chrysler lost nearly $2.9 billion in a 2-month period last fall, after its split from Daimler, a filing by the German company shows. The filing by Daimler, which retains 19.9% of the automaker, offers a rare look at how costly the company's reorganization effort has been since it was taken private by Cerberus Capital Management in May, the Wall Street...
Peterson: I'm Ready for Jail
Chicago Tribune | Feb 28, 2008 12:44 PM CST
(Newser) - Drew Peterson, the ex-cop suspected in the disappearance of his fourth wife, said today he is psychologically ready for arrest and even time behind bars, the Chicago Tribune reports. On NBC’s Today show, Peterson maintained his innocence in the October disappearance of Stacy Peterson and in the 2004 murder of his third wife, whose bathtub...
Attack Teflon Barack, and You'll Be Sorry
Politico | Feb 28, 2008 12:33 PM CST
(Newser) - Barack Obama has accepted a lot of apologies this election cycle, and each has made the Democrat stronger, notes Politico writer Ben Smith. From Joe Biden’s “articulate and … clean” gaffe to Bill Cunningham’s attempts to accent his middle name, opponents are always stepping over a line with Obama, and with every apology...
The House of Mirthlessness
Berkshire Eagle | Feb 28, 2008 12:19 PM CST
(Newser) - Edith Wharton's masterpieces include The House of Mirth , but the story of her own house is much less joyous. Her estate in the Berkshires of Massachusetts, currently a museum called the Mount that chronicles her life and career, is drowning under some $9 million in debt. Now, writes the Berkshire Eagle , a bank has warned it will foreclose on the...
Sunni Fighters Growing Tired of US Neglect
Washington Post | Feb 28, 2008 12:06 PM CST
(Newser) - The mostly Sunni volunteer forces that have drastically improved Iraq’s security are losing patience with US handlers, the Washington Post reports. Desertions are under way in key provinces over lack of resources, political disagreements, and disputed accounts of US troops killing members of the so-called Sunni Awakening. “Now, there...
China ATM Glitch Nets Man Life
Los Angeles Times | Feb 28, 2008 11:56 AM CST
(Newser) - It seemed like a miracle to Xu Ting of Guangzhou: a misplaced decimal point somewhere in the bowels of an ATM meant that his $140 withdrawal debited his account only 14 cents. Over several hours he made another 170 transactions, pocketing more than $24,000. But after getting robbed and buying lottery tickets, he ended up in court—where he was...
Google Sites App Again Targets Microsoft Office
New York Times | Feb 28, 2008 11:43 AM CST
(Newser) - Google hopes to make another dent in Microsoft’s productivity empire with a new application: Google Sites. The program lets workgroups create multimedia web content, and rivals Microsoft’s $1-billion-a-year SharePoint, the New York Times reports. It joins Google apps for email, word processing, and more in an assault on MS Office—and...
UK Beaches Awash in Cocaine
Guardian (UK) | Feb 28, 2008 11:28 AM CST
(Newser) - When a British beachcomber brought police a wheelbarrow full of 50 lbs. of pure Colombian cocaine the other day, Cornwall police weren’t stunned. In the last 3 weeks, five other such packages have washed up on Cornwall’s beaches, with a total street value of $1.2 million. “Luckily I’m one of the good guys,” said the upright...
Israel Pounds Hamas Targets in Gaza Strip
Reuters | Feb 28, 2008 11:15 AM CST
(Newser) - Israel hit targets inside the Gaza Strip today, including an apparent warning attack near the Hamas PM's home, after a rocket killed an Israeli student, Reuters reports. Two days of violence have left 17 Palestinians dead, including a 6-month-old baby who died when a strike on a Hamas-run ministry damaged nearby buildings. Condoleezza Rice decried...
Spain Gets on Divorce Express
Time | Feb 28, 2008 11:06 AM CST
(Newser) - Marriage has become a battleground in Spain, where divorce has been legal for 20 years, but a recent reform accelerating the process led to a 74% spike in the divorce rate. With 1 in every 2.3 married couples now parting, the Catholic Church is accusing the socialist government of obliterating family values, Time reports. "The reform has transformed...
Bahrain Arm Accuses Alcoa of Corruption
Wall Street Journal | Feb 28, 2008 10:47 AM CST
(Newser) - A company controlled by Bahrain's government has filed a lawsuit in US federal court accusing metals giant Alcoa of a host of shady business practices, the Wall Street Journal reports. Pittsburgh-based Alcoa, one of the world's biggest aluminum companies, systematically overcharged Bahrain Aluminum for raw materials and funneled money to corrupt...
Stumping Hazardous to Health
Forbes | Feb 28, 2008 10:36 AM CST
(Newser) - Even the presidential candidates who miss out on the White House will feel the effects of their campaigns for years to come. The mad dash to the Oval Office—speeches all day, deadline pressures, cross-country tours—puts tremendous stress on the body. Forbes takes on the low points: Sleep deprivation, leading to memory losses and...
Freddie Mac Reports Record $2.45B Loss
Bloomberg | Feb 28, 2008 10:27 AM CST
(Newser) - Freddie Mac, the nation’s second-largest mortgage finance company, lost $2.45 billion in 2007's fourth quarter, topping the record $2.02 billion it lost the previous quarter, Bloomberg reports. Freddie’s CEO predicted still-greater losses ahead as loan defaults take their toll, but said the company had raised enough money to weather the...
Angelina Jolie: Hooked on Kids?
ABC News | Feb 28, 2008 10:16 AM CST
(Newser) - As actress Angelina Jolie nurtures her latest pregnancy that will boost the number in her brood to 5—all under the age of 7—people are beginning to wonder if it's a bit much. In fact some mental health experts believe the former wild child's rapidly expanding family could be a sign of depression. A compulsion to have children "is...
Sprint Nextel Takes $29B Loss as Customers Walk
Wall Street Journal | Feb 28, 2008 10:00 AM CST
(Newser) - Sprint Nextel posted a net fourth-quarter loss of $29.45 billion and doesn’t expect a quick recovery, the Wall Street Journal reports. The No. 3 US wireless company will hold off dividend payments and draw down credit lines for protection as more customers leave the service. It has also announced a beefy $100-a-month unlimited plan including...
Bush Urges Congress to Pass Surveillance Bill
CNN | Feb 28, 2008 9:29 AM CST
(Newser) - President Bush urged Congress this morning to pass an update to the terrorist surveillance bill that expired more than a week ago, CNN reports. Bush said the delay poses "a risk of opening a gap in our intelligence gathering." The bill stalled in the House over a provision granting immunity for telecommunications companies that might have...
Liberty Looks to Leverage DirecTV Deal
Wall Street Journal | Feb 28, 2008 9:26 AM CST
(Newser) - Closing Liberty Media’s $12 billion deal for a 41% share of DirecTV took more than a year, but positioning the satellite-TV service to rival telcos and cable companies offering triple-play packages of TV, phone, and broadband could be a bigger test, reports the Wall Street Journal today. The deal with News Corp was finalized yesterday after...
RNC Warns Tenn. GOP Over 'Hussein' Use
Politico | Feb 28, 2008 9:14 AM CST
(Newser) - The Republican National Committee wagged a finger at the Tennessee party yesterday after it pointedly used the full name “Barack Hussein Obama” in a press release questioning whether an Obama presidency would endanger Israel, Politico reports. The RNC added that if Obama’s Muslim-sounding middle name appears again, the committee...
Korea's Kimchi Ready for Lift-Off
International Herald Tribune | Feb 28, 2008 8:56 AM CST
(Newser) - South Korea spent millions to make sure its first astronaut is well-prepared for his mission—by perfecting a space-safe kimchi, reports the International Herald Tribune . South Koreans put down 1.6 million tons of the national dish each year, and Ko San will blast off April 8 for a 10-day stint at the International Space Station with his share...
Sicilian Mafia Rebuilding US Family Ties
BBC | Feb 28, 2008 8:40 AM CST
(Newser) - The Sicilian Mafia is sending people to the US to revitalize old family ties with its American cousins that faded in the '80s, according to a new report by the Italian government. The FBI nabbed more than 80 New York mobsters in a recent swoop code-named "Old Bridge,"  reports the BBC, referring to the transatlantic the mob link.
Kenyan Leaders Reach Deal
BBC | Feb 28, 2008 8:12 AM CST
(Newser) -  Kenya’s feuding leaders have finally reached a power sharing deal, Kofi Annan announced today after a four-hour meeting. Annan said he could not yet release details, but the deal is expected to spell out duties for the prime minister position to be created for opposition leader Raila Odinga, the BBC reports. Though the violence that swept...
Glitches Delay 'Virtual' Border Fence 3 Years
Washington Post | Feb 28, 2008 8:12 AM CST
(Newser) - Plans to build a high-tech "virtual fence" along the US-Mexico border have been set back at least 3 years after serious problems emerged in the pilot project, the Washington Post reports. The 28-mile fence south of Tuscon, which included unmanned surveillance towers equipped with radar linked to computers, didn't function as planned. Boeing-installed...
Gunman Shoots 8 at LA Bus Stop
Los Angeles Times | Feb 28, 2008 7:32 AM CST
(Newser) - Five children and three adults were wounded yesterday when a gunman opened fire on a crowded South Los Angeles bus stop minutes after classes ended at a nearby middle school. The school was locked down as police hunted for the shooter, who fired some 15 rounds into the crowd with a semiautomatic gun. Investigators were still hunting for him last night....
Paulson Raps Mortgage Rescue Plans
Wall Street Journal | Feb 28, 2008 7:06 AM CST
(Newser) - Homeowners burned by the subprime mortgage meltdown shouldn't be looking to the federal government for help, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told the Wall Street Journal yesterday. Facing down mounting congressional pressure for stronger measures to stem an epidemic of foreclosures, Paulson dismissed proposals on the table as "bailouts"...
Deposed Thai PM Returns Home
BBC | Feb 28, 2008 6:33 AM CST
(Newser) - Ousted Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra flew home today after 17 months in exile to cheering supporters and police, who quickly escorted him to court to face corruption charges. Thaksin, the billionaire owner of the Manchester City soccer team who was forced from power by a military coup, knelt and touched his native soil with his forehead when...
Missile Hits 'al-Qaeda Haven' in Pakistan
Reuters | Feb 28, 2008 6:19 AM CST
(Newser) - A missile struck a house in South Waziristan, the volatile Pakistani region bordering Afghanistan, killing 10 suspected militants and wounding 7 others. The house was known to be a safe haven for members of al-Qaeda, and most of the casualties are believed to have been Arabs, Reuters reports. A spokesman for Pakistan's military said he had no knowledge...
House Passes Bill to Halt Big Oil Tax Breaks
Washington Post | Feb 28, 2008 5:36 AM CST
(Newser) - Millions of dollars in tax breaks enjoyed by the top five oil companies would be rescinded under an $18 billion tax package which cleared the House of Representatives yesterday. The money saved would be plowed into creating alternative sustainable energy sources. It represents just a penny a gallon to the oil giants Exxon Mobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips,...
Cops Probe Claim Britney Was Drugged
E! Online | Feb 28, 2008 5:19 AM CST
(Newser) - As Britney Spears' True Hollywood Story unfolds in real time, the latest dust-up centers on mother Lynne Spears' accusations that her daughter was drugged by former manager Sam Lutfi. The LAPD is working "to determine if laws have been violated" in response to Lynne's deposition claiming that Lutfi told her he had added ground-up pills to...
SO Win Brings Avs Into Reach of Playoffs
Rocky Mountain News | Feb 28, 2008 5:00 AM CST
(Newser) - Two shootout goals left Colorado with another extra-time win in a 3-1-1 road trip, this time 3-2 in Vancouver. The Avalanche forced overtime with a Joe Sakic goal with 15 seconds to go, and Sakic and Marek Svatos got past Roberto Luongo in the shootout, the Rocky Mountain News reports. Elsewhere in the NHL:
Daughter to Thief: Please Return Mom's Ashes
Minneapolis Star Tribune | Feb 28, 2008 4:50 AM CST
(Newser) - A Minnesota woman had planned to scatter her late mother's ashes on a vacation this summer—but they've been stolen by a burglar, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports. The distraught daughter says the thief can keep the jewelry and electronic equipment he stole but she desperately wants the ashes back. "It just bothers me that they might...
$1.50 Euro Sparks Biz Plea for Help
Telegraph (UK) | Feb 28, 2008 4:39 AM CST
(Newser) - Now that its common currency is trading above the $1.50 barrier, eurozone industry is calling for action to remain competitive in global markets. BMW, which has already laid off 5,600 employees, will have to take further action in the event of a "sustained rise" of the euro, reports the Telegraph . "We can't cope with such an exchange...
T-Mobile Brings Cell Phone Service Home
Wall Street Journal | Feb 28, 2008 4:10 AM CST
(Newser) - Cell phone giant T-Mobile is moving into the landline business. The company is trying out a service that ties cell phones to landlines that if successful in Seattle and Dallas could go nationwide within months, the Wall Street Journal reports. The company's new service uses a special router to tie a home WiFi network into its cell phone network....
Hornets Sting Suns Again
Associated Press | Feb 28, 2008 4:05 AM CST
(Newser) - Chris Paul's 25 points and three steals dealt another blow to Phoenix, AP reports. Last night's 120-103 battering of the Suns earned New Orleans a four-game sweep of the season series between the two teams, and provided respite from a three-game losing streak. With the Hornets' victory, the new-look Suns have lost three of their last five.
Hotshot Nuggets Shred Sonics 138-96
Rocky Mountain News | Feb 28, 2008 3:40 AM CST
(Newser) - Denver came off a three-game skid in a big way, shooting 67% as a team to decimate the hapless SuperSonics 138-96. "After a while, it did feel easy," admitted Allen Iverson, whose 31 points topped the night. Seven Nuggets scored at least 12 points in the cakewalk, the Rocky Mountain News reports. Meanwhile, in Los Angeles:
Bibby's Debut Lifts Hawks
Atlanta Journal-Constitution | Feb 28, 2008 3:20 AM CST
(Newser) - Mike Bibby gave his old team a demonstration of all his skills—from the wrong side of the court, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution . In his home debut with Atlanta following a move from Sacramento, Bibby put up 24 points, 12 assists and five rebounds to lift Atlanta past the Kings,123-117.  "We got the win," said Bibby....
Heir Not Just Putin's Puppet
New York Times | Feb 28, 2008 3:16 AM CST
(Newser) - The man hand picked by Vladimir Putin to be his successor and a virtually certain victor in this Sunday's election has been portrayed in the West as the Russian president's personal puppet. But Dmitri Medvedev, who plans to appoint Putin as his prime minister, may be more independent, reform-minded and Western-oriented than some observers have suggested,...
Georgetown Survives St. John's Attack
The Hoya (Georgetown University) | Feb 28, 2008 2:50 AM CST
(Newser) - St. John's out-shot and out-rebounded No. 11 Georgetown, but the Hoyas regrouped to come up with the 64-52 win over the 14th-place Red Storm. DaJuan Summers had a rocky game for Georgetown, missing two dunks along with other easy shots, but he still collected a game-high 21 points, The Hoya reports. In other NCAA basketball action:
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