Newser Story Index from June, 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.
Ragtag Levees Leave Midwest Soaking
New York Times
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Jun 22, 2008 10:18 AM CDT
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As the Midwest battles massive flooding, the New York Times looks at the region's patchwork of homemade levees—which fail to meet federal standards and tend to spring unexpected leaks. Bill Clinton's White House advised a uniform levy system 15 years ago, but the report was read and forgotten. “We told them there were going to be more...
Lance's Romances Haven't Hurt His Cause—Yet
New York Times
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Jun 22, 2008 9:50 AM CDT
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Will the real Lance Armstrong please stand up? The seven-time Tour de France champ and cancer research advocate is also a serial dater whose affairs light up gossip pages. But so far, trysts with Ashley Olsen and Kate Hudson have not hurt the cancer survivor's higher cause—which includes testifying before Congress and selling 70 million yellow...
'Bogus Bill Gates' Winds Down Career
Network World
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Jun 22, 2008 9:19 AM CDT
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The Washington man who made his living doing dead-on impressions of Bill Gates is following the billionaire into retirement. Steve Sires has been impersonating the Microsoft chairman for a decade, and charging $2,500 for an appearance. But as the 52-year old Gates is winding down his career, so is his look-a-like, reports Network World .
Tsvangirai Pulls Out of Zimbabwe Race
Associated Press
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Jun 22, 2008 8:45 AM CDT
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The opposition leader in Zimbabwe's presidential runoff election has dropped out of the race, citing escalating violence and intimidation against his party by President Robert Mugabe's government. Morgan Tsvangirai announced his decision to pull out of Friday's runoff election at a news conference today in Zimbabwe's capital, after thousands of ruling...
France Shocked by Beating of Jewish Teen
Associated Press
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Jun 22, 2008 8:18 AM CDT
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A Paris teenager was beaten into a coma yesterday in what Jewish groups are calling an anti-Semitic attack, the AP reports. In one account, about 15 people beat the 17-year-old, who was wearing a skullcap in eastern Paris. Authorities have detained five people for questioning, and President Nicolas Sarkozy has called for "total determination to...
Billboards Reach Out and Almost Touch Someone
MIT Technology Review
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Jun 22, 2008 8:15 AM CDT
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Imagine a world where billboards watch you, react to your movements and invite you to interact with them. That world is pretty much here, reports MIT Technology Review . State-of-the-art motion-capture cameras in new Samsung billboards should provide all the interactivity of a touch screen—without any of the touching. The system could spawn...
Funny Car Racer Killed in NHRA Crash
Associated Press
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Jun 22, 2008 7:55 AM CDT
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Drag racer Scott Kalitta was killed yesterday after his Funny Car burst into flames as it crashed in an NHRA race, AP reports. The Toyota Solara driven by the 46-year-old former Top Fuel champ had been going 300 mph in a race to qualify for the Lucas Oil NHRA SuperNationals in New Jersey. “We are deeply saddened and pass along our sincere condolences...
Wife's Beer Co. Could Be Big Headache for McCain
Los Angeles Times
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Jun 22, 2008 7:36 AM CDT
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Cindy McCain's role as chairwoman of one of the nation’s largest beer wholesalers could turn into a thorny conflict-of-interest problem if John McCain wins the White House, the Los Angeles Times reports. Mrs. McCain's Hensley & Co.—one of its executives is John McCain's son, Andrew—takes an active role in lobbying against...
'Good Cop' Enticed 9/11 Mastermind to Talk
New York Times
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Jun 22, 2008 7:09 AM CDT
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A CIA interrogator’s rapport with a mastermind of the 9/11 attacks helped provide vast amounts of information on terrorism while raising tough questions about interrogation methods, the New York Times reports. Agent Deuce Martinez cajoled Khalid Sheikh Mohammed into discussing his thoughts in great detail—but it’s unclear whether...
Oil-Addicted Bush Must Kick the Habit
New York Times
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Jun 22, 2008 6:32 AM CDT
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The American thirst for oil is like a drug addiction, and George Bush wants another hit, writes Thomas Friedman in the New York Times . Bush’s irresponsible energy plan involves getting a little more oil from Saudi Arabia to keep prices low, and then drilling in Alaska—simply prolonging our addiction instead of allowing high fuel prices...
700 Missing as Typhoon Sinks Philippines Ferry
Reuters
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Jun 22, 2008 6:10 AM CDT
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A Philippines passenger ferry sank in a typhoon, leaving at least four known dead and some 700 missing, Reuters reports. A rescue ship arrived at the scene to find none of the missing, AP reports, and only three people were found alive in various villages. Some of them may have transferred to another ship, officials said.
Farming Tigers for Profit Best Way to Save Species
Spiked
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Jun 22, 2008 5:42 AM CDT
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Though animal conservationists hail the success of India's Jim Corbett National Park in increasing populations of endangered tigers, Kirk Leech complains in Spiked that numbers continue to decline—and that expanding protected areas for tigers harms indigenous human populations. His solution: for-profit tiger farms, where selling animal parts...
Can Video Games Save the World?
Washington Post
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Jun 22, 2008 5:13 AM CDT
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A small group of educators and activists is championing the use of video games for more than just entertainment, the Washington Post reports. “I don't think games have to be fun,” one key organizer said. “I think games have to be engaging.” New titles in the so-called serious game genre focus not only on subjects such as Darfur,...
Broker Breaks Ranks to Rant on Profession's 'Gibberish'
Bloomberg
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Jun 21, 2008 10:41 PM CDT
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A London broker who wrote a popular, anonymous newspaper column that lambasted the greed, superficiality, and "gibberish"-peddling nature of his profession is going public, quitting the financial world, and, of course, writing a book about it all, Bloomberg reports. “We didn't invent greed,” said Geraint Anderson, who revealed...
For Web 'Game,' Everything New Is Old
Portfolio
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Jun 21, 2008 8:44 PM CDT
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Won’t these Internet startups ever learn about business plans? That's backward thinking, says prolific venture capitalist Joi Ito, who has a stake in the new website PMOG. “People make fun of the idea," he told Portfolio . “There are few sites, however, that have a critical mass where they usually don't figure out a business...
Blogger Keeps Quake in Focus
Jezebel
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Jun 21, 2008 8:30 PM CDT
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A Chinese graphic novelist determined to keep the aftermath of last month's earthquake on the front burner is using her new blog to get the message out, and fellow citizen journalists on the other side of the world are catching on. "We love you, Coco Wang," a blogger at New York-based Jezebel writes to the Beijing-based artist.
Army Snubs Air Force, Takes On Air Duties in Iraq
New York Times
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Jun 21, 2008 8:00 PM CDT
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Fed up with what it sees as shoddy help from an overstretched Air Force, the Army has begun an unprecedented operation to provide its own air support in Iraq, the New York Times reports. The year-old Army program uses a hodgepodge of about 25 aircraft—some manned, some operated by remote control—mainly to provide surveillance, find...
Wildfires Tamed in Calif., Rage in NM
Associated Press
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Jun 21, 2008 6:35 PM CDT
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Firefighters almost completely contained a Northern California blaze today as fires in New Mexico threatened to spread, buoyed by lightning and high winds, the AP reports. The California fire, in Santa Cruz County, has leveled up to 15 homes and led to the continued evacuation of 2,000 people. Officials hope it will completely contained by the end...
Houston All Smiles While US Economy Sinks
Slate
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Jun 21, 2008 6:15 PM CDT
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Oil prices are crippling most American budgets, but folks are just fine in Houston—where unemployment sits at 3.8% and luxury jewelry stores and restaurants are jammed with customers. Oil refineries aren't fueling business, either: It's know-how, Daniel Gross writes in Slate. "It's the knowledge that has concentrated here that is driving...
Worldwide War Tally Triples in New Study
ABC News
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Jun 21, 2008 6:09 PM CDT
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Wars have killed three times more people over the past 50 years than once thought, a new study says. Researchers in Boston, using a new method to estimate fatalities, say that 5.4 million people died due to war between 1955 and 2002. "It's important that there's an awareness of how many people actually die," researcher Ziad Obermeyer told...
How America Fell for Peggy Noonan
Women's Wear Daily
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Jun 21, 2008 5:20 PM CDT
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Peggy Noonan begged Women's Wear Daily to can its feature article on her, saying she "winced at things I'd said." But Jacob Bernstein's piece ran, revealing how the anti-Clinton, pro-Reagan pundit turned on President Bush and won a huge crossover audience with her Wall Street Journal column. "She's come face-to-face with what happened...
The 5 Priciest Albums of All Time
Esquire
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Jun 21, 2008 5:00 PM CDT
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As old vinyl gets hipper, Matthew Shepatin of Esquire charts the five most expensive albums in today's market: That’ll Be the Day/In Spite of All the Danger, The Quarrymen (1958): Features John, Paul, George, and some guys who aren't Ringo. Could sell for $200,000, if Paul would sell. Double Fantasy , John Lennon (1980): The...
Artist Tasha Tudor Dead at 92
New York Times
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Jun 21, 2008 4:31 PM CDT
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Tasha Tudor, the children’s illustrator known for her bucolic watercolors and old-fashioned lifestyle, died Wednesday at her Vermont home. Called a 19th-century Martha Stewart, Tudor's art appeared in nearly 100 books and countless greeting cards, plates, dolls, and quilts. The New York Times once applauded her for capturing “the same...
Most Lucrative College Majors
Forbes
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Jun 21, 2008 4:07 PM CDT
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College students looking for fast cash after graduation should study computer engineering, Forbes reports. Here are the most lucrative college majors, with salaries for beginners and veterans alike: Computer engineering ($60,500-$104,000) Economics ($48,000-$96,200) Electrical engineering ($59,900-$96,100) Computer science...
Advisers to Bush: You Asked for It
Washington Post
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Jun 21, 2008 3:44 PM CDT
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President Bush ignored warnings that his detainee policy would spark a Supreme Court backlash, the Washington Post reports. Top lawyers both in and outside Washington said that jailing suspects without Congressional approval would push the court to rule on national security—but the White House either ignored the advice or disagreed.
Obama Campaign Fixes Gender Balance
Politico
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Jun 21, 2008 3:22 PM CDT
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Barack Obama's campaign has been getting more women on board at high levels, Politico reports. Female activists welcome the new hires, while campaign insiders say the "boy's club" image that dogged Obama's campaign during the primaries was never correct. Among the biggest names are Patti Solis Doyle, former campaign manager for Hillary Clinton,...
Intel Suit Exposes 'Squishy' Antitrust Laws
New York Times
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Jun 21, 2008 3:08 PM CDT
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Washington's probe into Intel exposed just how "squishy" antitrust issues can be, Joe Nocera writes in the New York Times . What rival chipmaker AMD has called "predatory behavior" can also be seen as "good old-fashioned competition. What makes antitrust so maddening is that the answer depends as much on who is asking the...
Ruling Lets Students Pick Top SAT Score
Los Angeles Times
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Jun 21, 2008 3:01 PM CDT
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High school students can soon pick which of their SAT scores are sent to colleges, the Los Angeles Times reports. Starting with the class of 2010, the College Board, which administers the exam, will reverse its policy of sending all results—good, bad, or indifferent. A spokesman said the change would give students more control and less stress.
'Redneck' Lawmaker Gives Obama Unlikely Boost
Wall Street Journal
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Jun 21, 2008 2:41 PM CDT
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Jim Webb, Virginia’s firebrand junior senator, is becoming Barack Obama’s wing man for courting pro-military and national defense voters. A respected war veteran and best-selling novelist, he is also among the more colorful candidates for Barack Obama's VP slot. But the politician who calls himself a "redneck" does have his liabilities,...
Naomi Ducks Prison Time in Airline Assault
Times (UK)
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Jun 21, 2008 2:09 PM CDT
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Naomi Campbell was sentenced to 200 hours of community service and about $5,600 in fines yesterday for her tantrum on a British Airways flight, the London Times reports. She pleaded guilty to assaulting two police officers and berating the pilot after the airline lost her luggage. "You are not leaving until you find my f***ing bags," she...
11 Travel Faux Pas to Avoid
Travel Leisure
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Jun 21, 2008 1:39 PM CDT
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A great pleasure of this wide world of ours is the multiplicity of cultures and customs. That diversity can also get you into a heap of trouble. So, when traveling, here’s what not to do, and where not to do it, from Travel and Leisure . Touching: Too intimate in Asia. And steer clear of that baby’s head in Thailand! Eating...
Where Are the Feminists for Michelle?
Washington Post
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Jun 21, 2008 1:12 PM CDT
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Like strong women before her, Michelle Obama has been “demonized” in the press—so why aren’t feminists coming to her aid? asks Mary C. Curtis in the Washington Post . Feminists spoke out when Hillary Clinton faced sexism in her campaign—but the cause hasn’t embraced women of color. “In America, there's seldom...
Unseemly Word Loses Its Sting
Esquire
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Jun 21, 2008 12:42 PM CDT
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The word douchebag is in danger of losing its bite thanks to rampant overuse, writes Richard Dorment in Esquire . It's not that the "toxic mess of a man" population has increased, he observes. It may seem that way, what with reality TV and cable punditry promoting unsavory characters. But it's really that the term's literal meaning...
McCain, Obama Raise $21M Each
MSNBC
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Jun 21, 2008 12:11 PM CDT
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John McCain nearly matched Barack Obama’s fundraising intake last month, granting the presumptive Republican presidential nominee “a level of parity that would have been unimaginable just a few months ago,” MSNBC says. McCain scored $21.5 million while Obama, whose fundraising slumped to its lowest levels of the year, pulled in $21.9...
Mexico's Secret Drug Museum
Newsweek
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Jun 21, 2008 11:39 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Mexico City's least-known museum may be one of its most interesting, Newsweek reports. The city's Narcotics Museum chronicles drug use in Mexico from the days of the Aztecs to the ruthless heroin-smuggling narcotraficantes of today. Exhibits include bling and heavy weaponry confiscated from drug lords. A visit is essential training for cadets in...
Olympic Omens Worry Superstitious Chinese
Christian Science Monitor
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Jun 21, 2008 11:11 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Superstitious beliefs the Communists once tried to stamp out have been making a comeback in China, the Christian Science Monitor reports, especially in this troubled Olympic year. The Games are set to begin on August 8, as 8 sounds like fortune in Mandarin, making 8/8/8 an especially lucky date, but the country has been anything but lucky in recent...
US, S. Korea Reach Beef Deal
Associated Press
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Jun 21, 2008 10:46 AM CDT
(AP) -
All US beef imported into South Korea will come from cattle less than 30 months old, officials said today, in a deal made to placate South Korean protesters worried about mad cow disease. Nonetheless, thousands of protesters returned to the streets of Seoul, calling for a complete renegotiation of an April agreement to resume imports of American beef.
Amtrak Sees Boom in Riders as Fuel Costs Soar
New York Times
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Jun 21, 2008 10:10 AM CDT
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With fuel prices soaring, travelers are increasingly turning to Amtrak, which posted a record for passengers in May—not usually a big travel month, reports the New York Times . But the struggling rail service has shrunk so drastically since it was created in the '70s that it won't be able to respond to the passenger surge very quickly. “We’re...
Africa Braces for Zimbabwe Refugees
Times (UK)
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Jun 21, 2008 9:40 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Zimbabwe's neighbors are preparing for a flood of refugees after next week's election, the London Times reports. About 3 million have already fled Robert Mugabe's regime to South Africa, Zambia, and Botswana. As it becomes increasingly clear that Mugabe will not give up power even if he loses the election, it is feared that millions more will soon...
Plunging Truck Sales Drive Ford Deeper Into the Red
Wall Street Journal
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Jun 21, 2008 9:12 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Ford's recovery plans have been sent careening off the road by the continuing drop in truck and SUV sales, the Wall Street Journal reports. The company, which now expects this year's losses to top 2007's $2.7 billion, has given up hope of being back in the black by 2009. The ailing Detroit giant has cut production again and delayed the launch of...
A Sandbagger Reflects
New York Times
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Jun 21, 2008 8:45 AM CDT
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Even when it proves futile, sandbagging is an experience with its own unique rewards, writes an Iowa resident in the New York Times . “Passing sandbags is a personal thing,” Joe Blair notes in an essay. “The line may be 300 feet long,” but for you, “it’s intimate, a three-person event. You take. You turn. You give....
Teacher Who Branded Students Fired
Associated Press
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Jun 21, 2008 8:20 AM CDT
(Newser) -
An Ohio school board has voted unanimously to fire a science teacher who used an electrostatic device to brand 8th-graders with a cross, the AP reports. Science teacher John Freshwater, who says the marks were simply Xs, had been in trouble with the board before for teaching creationism, slamming evolution and other scientific theories, and keeping...
50 Cent Sues Ex for $20M
New York Daily News
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Jun 21, 2008 7:55 AM CDT
(Newser) -
50 Cent has slapped the mother of his 11-year-old son with a $20 million defamation lawsuit, the New York Daily News reports. The rapper's ex has publicly accused him of being behind the blaze that forced her out of the home they once shared. 50 Cent—barred from contacting his ex by a restraining order issued yesterday—denies the allegations...
Rise in Renters Wiping Out Gains in Homeownership
New York Times
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Jun 21, 2008 7:29 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Americans are shifting from being homeowners to renters in rising numbers, the New York Times reports, all but wiping out gains made during the boom. The percentage of homes headed by homeowners dropped from 69.1% to 67.8% this year, which sounds modest, but is, in fact, the biggest decline in 20 years. President Bush's ambitious "ownership...
Ellen, Rachael Score Emmys
E! Online
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Jun 21, 2008 7:00 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Ellen DeGeneres took home her fourth consecutive Daytime Emmy for best talk show host yesterday—but the award for the top show itself went to foodie Rachael Ray, E! Online reports. Meanwhile, Tyra Banks scored in the new category of Informative Talk Show. “I never take this for granted,” DeGeneres said. “It's not what we do...
Hunters Battle Invasion of Hungry Hogs
New York Times
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Jun 21, 2008 6:39 AM CDT
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Hog hunters are finding their services in demand as the wild beasts spread across the country, reports the New York Times . The porkers—descendants of pigs brought by Spanish explorers, escaped swine from farms, and wild boar released by hunters—weigh up to 400 pounds and cause around $800 million in property damage yearly. Some are even...
Olympic Torch Arrives in Tibet
Reuters
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Jun 21, 2008 6:17 AM CDT
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Under tight security, the Olympic torch made its way through Tibet’s capital in the most controversial leg of its worldwide journey—a jaunt that ended with Chinese criticism of the Dalai Lama, Reuters reports. “We will be able to totally smash the splittist schemes of the Dalai Lama clique,” said the Communist party’s...
Overfishing Oceans Leads to 'Rise of Slime'
Christian Science Monitor
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Jun 21, 2008 6:00 AM CDT
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Overfishing results in more than just the depletion of one species—it can mean the degradation of entire ecosystems. As the populations of large, predatory fish such as sharks and tuna decline, their prey flourishes, with sometimes-devastating results. The Christian Science Monitor looks at the problem of the world's increasingly depleted oceans.
Gator Caught—in Chicago?
Chicago Tribune
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Jun 21, 2008 5:32 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Alligator wranglers may not be the busiest of folks in metro Chicago, but they came through yesterday by yanking a 5-foot unwelcome visitor out of the Chicago River, the Tribune reports. The healthy female, probably a discarded pet, is on her way to a sanctuary in the Southeast.
Home Is Where the Robot Is
Economist
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Jun 21, 2008 5:01 AM CDT
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A kinder, gentler, smarter Frankenstein may soon be mowing your lawn and folding your unmentionables. Manufacturers are developing a new generation of metallic humanoid that will not only carry heavy objects, but pull their weight around the house and at work, the Economist reports . These new-age robots can touch, see, and may even respond to commands.
