Newser Story Index from October, 2009
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.
Hey, America, Your Time Is Now: Bono
New York Times
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Oct 18, 2009 1:22 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Conservatives sneered at European naivete and even liberals shrugged when Barack Obama won the Nobel, but for U2's Bono, "the virtual Obama is the real Obama, and the man might deserve the hype." The humanitarian rock star lays out the difficult tasks Obama faces, from religious extremism to climate change and poverty; while solutions are...
Colo. Sheriff: Balloon Boy Case a 'Hoax'
Associated Press
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Oct 18, 2009 12:41 PM CDT
(Newser) -
A Colorado sheriff announced this afternoon that the balloon boy case was a hoax and that he would be pursuing criminal charges. In a rambling news conference, Sheriff Jim Alderden said that the drama surrounding Falcon Heene was likely a publicity stunt designed to hype a reality show.
Heart Doc's Tips for a Healthy Ticker
Prevention
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Oct 18, 2009 11:56 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Arthur Agatston, the cardiologist who cooked up the South Beach Diet, takes no medications and embraces a philosophy of moderation—he's not starving himself or downing dozens of vitamins. He clues Prevention magazine in on his advice for keeping your heart in tip-top shape: Eat four times a day: Three meals plus a snack—"a...
White House: Fox Is 'Not Really News'
Politico
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Oct 18, 2009 11:29 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The White House continued its scuffle with Fox News today, with Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace complaining on-air that the administration dissed its request for an interview, while top aides took to competing networks to denounce it. It's "not really news," David Axelrod told This Week. The network "has a perspective," Rahm...
Iran Bomber Kills 26, 5 Elite Guards
Associated Press
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Oct 18, 2009 10:26 AM CDT
(AP) -
A suicide bomber killed five senior commanders of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard and at least 26 others in a southeastern area that has been at the center of a simmering Sunni insurgency, the official IRNA news agency reports. The commanders were on their way to a meeting with local tribal leaders to promote Sunni-Shiite unity near Iran's border...
Gangs Down Police Chopper as Rio Burns
Associated Press
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Oct 18, 2009 9:35 AM CDT
(AP) -
Brazilian officials are insisting security won't be a problem for its just-won 2016 Olympics despite drug-gang violence that plunged Rio de Janeiro into a day of bloody chaos that saw gangs shoot down a police helicopter, killing two cops and injuring four. The hourslong turf war between rival gangs in one of the city's slums killed at least 12 people,...
Iran Releases Newsweek Reporter
Newsweek
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Oct 18, 2009 8:45 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Iran set free yesterday the Newsweek journalist it had held prisoner since the disputed June elections. Maziar Bahari was released on $300,000 bail, likely because of humanitarian conditions—the magazine reports that the 42-year-old is expecting his first child October 26, and the baby's mother has had serious health issues. Tehran was mum...
'Irresponsible' to Send Troops Without Election Results: Kerry
Reuters
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Oct 18, 2009 7:39 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The US is in no position to send more troops to Afghanistan with that country's presidential election still up in the air, Sen. John Kerry told State of the Union in an interview yesterday. Speaking from Kabul ahead of an announcement on whether a runoff would be held, the Senate Foreign Relations chair dismissed further commitment as "irresponsible...
Aussie Sailor, 16, Starts World Trip
Associated Press
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Oct 18, 2009 6:45 AM CDT
(AP) -
A 16-year-old Australian steered her bright pink yacht out of Sydney Harbor under gray skies and slightly choppy conditions today to start her bid to become the youngest person to sail solo and unassisted around the world. Jessica Watson's 23,600-mile journey through some of the world's most treacherous waters sparked debate about whether someone so...
Third Sweat-Lodge Victim Dies
Associated Press
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Oct 18, 2009 6:01 AM CDT
(AP) -
A Minnesota woman became the third fatality yesterday in an Arizona sweat lodge ceremony that hospitalized nearly two dozen people. Liz Neuman, 49, died at a Flagstaff hospital after suffering multiple organ damage during the Oct. 8 ceremony at a resort near Sedona. Authorities were treating all three deaths as homicides, but no charges have been...
Demjanjuk Farce Is a Funny Kind of Justice
Esquire
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Oct 18, 2009 5:19 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The world's eyes will be on alleged Nazi war criminal John Demjanjuk when he stands trial in Germany next month, but this dying old man is a strange candidate to be the last Nazi to be tried, writes Scott Raab. Demjanjuk—regardless of whether he is guilty of serving at the Sobibor death camp when he was a POW—isn't a Nazi or even a...
A-Rod, Yanks Top Angels in 13th
Associated Press
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Oct 18, 2009 3:03 AM CDT
(AP) -
Alex Rodriguez is putting all those playoff failures behind him, and the LA Angels are turning the AL championship series into a defensive debacle. Coming through under pressure once again, Rodriguez hit a tying homer in the 11th inning and the New York Yankees edged Los Angeles 4-3 last night on Maicer Izturis' error in the 13th for a 2-0 lead in...
Balloon Boy Family to Face Charges
Associated Press
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Oct 17, 2009 8:41 PM CDT
(AP) -
A Colorado sheriff said tonight that criminal charges are expected to be filed in the balloon boy case. He didn't specify what the charges would be, but he suggested that investigators smelled a hoax. "I think you get the gist," said Sheriff Jim Alderden when asked directly if the family faked the incident. He would not elaborate. The development...
NYT Reporter Recounts 7 Months as Prisoner
New York Times
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Oct 17, 2009 5:05 PM CDT
(Newser) -
New York Times reporter David Rohde begins a gripping first-person account of his 7 months as a Taliban prisoner in Afghanistan before he managed to escape. In the first of the five-part series, he writes of his capture ("I waited for the sound of gunfire. I knew I might die but remained strangely calm"), his pleas for release ("I...
Union Chief Takes On White House
Politico
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Oct 17, 2009 4:21 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The leader of one of the nation's biggest labor unions is not playing ball with the White House, writes Ben Smith. AFSCME's Gerry McEntee seems to be breaking the unwritten rule among progressives when dealing with this administration: Hush up, or we'll freeze you out. McEntee has repeatedly taken public stands against parts of the health care reform...
Morehouse Bans Students in Drag
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Oct 17, 2009 3:31 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Morehouse College insists that the "image of the strong black man needs to be upheld," and that most definitely involves not dressing up like a strong black woman. The school's new dress code has the usual stuff like banning do-rags and lewd T-shirts. But it also includes a stipulation that forbids the "wearing of clothing usually...
Sharpton Threatens to Sue Limbaugh
New York Daily News
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Oct 17, 2009 2:59 PM CDT
(Newser) -
This could get loud, or at least long-winded: Al Sharpton is threatening to sue Rush Limbaugh over his op-ed in the Wall Street Journal today. In the essay, Limbaugh lashes out at critics who foiled his NFL bid, and he accuses Sharpton of playing a "leading role in the 1991 Crown Heights riot." Sharpton says he wasn't in Crown Heights...
MTV Show May Have Put DJ AM Over the Edge
New York Times
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Oct 17, 2009 2:18 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Now that MTV is running the DJ AM reality show Gone Too Far —in which the recovering addict helped other addicts get clean—the question is tough to avoid: Did the show bring him too close to his demons and contribute to his death? It "could certainly have been a relapse trigger for Mr. Goldstein," a drug rehab...
Don't Fear Sweet Wines
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 17, 2009 1:37 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Americans shy away from sweet wines, and it's a shame, write Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher in their Wall Street Journal column. Times have changed, and some fine US bottles are out there. Some of their favorites: Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyard Bunch Select Late Harvest Riesling 2006 : "Clean, fresh, and tangy," with a light...
Look Out, Wall Street: Feds Using Wiretaps Now
Bloomberg
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Oct 17, 2009 1:04 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The bad boys of Wall Street better watch their mouths. Federal prosecutors used wiretaps to make their case against hedge fund giant Raj Rajaratnam this week, and they plan to use them again in similar investigations. Wiretaps may be common when going after the mafia, say, or terrorists, but their use in the Rajaratnam case is "unprecedented,"...
Relax, World Isn't Ending in 2012
Los Angeles Times
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Oct 17, 2009 12:36 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The statement issued by a Los Angeles observatory and Sky & Telescope magazine this week says it all: "The world will not come to an end on Dec. 21, 2012." It seems a confluence of events—the coming end of the Mayan calendar, for one, and the marketing of a new apocalyptic movie, for another—is fueling hysteria that...
Balloon Boy Family Plans 'Big Announcement'
Denver Post
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Oct 17, 2009 12:09 PM CDT
(Newser) -
With skeptics in full throat, the balloon boy family promised a "big announcement" today. "I'd like to speak to everybody about a few things," dad Richard Heene said this morning. He scheduled a 1pm news conference, then postponed it til later in the day after soliciting reporters' questions in a box. "Absolutely no hoax,"...
Target Blasted Over 'Illegal Alien' Costume
Minneapolis Star Tribune
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Oct 17, 2009 11:55 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Target has apologized for an "illegal alien" Halloween costume that comes complete with green card and orange jail suit. The company is removing the costume from its website after Hispanic groups complained. "It's very disturbing," an official with the League of United Latin American Citizens tells the Minneapolis Star Tribune...
Socialism, Not Racism, Fuels Obama Foes
Politico
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Oct 17, 2009 11:39 AM CDT
(Newser) -
It turns out race isn't what's fueling the conservative opposition to Barack Obama, at least according to focus groups conducted by a Democratic organization. It found that white, self-identified conservatives believe Obama is harboring a "secret agenda" intended to destroy America's founding principles and turn it into a socialist country.
Maldives Leaders Meet Underwater on Climate
Associated Press
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Oct 17, 2009 11:25 AM CDT
(AP) -
Members of the Maldives' Cabinet donned scuba gear and used hand signals today at an underwater meeting staged to highlight the threat of global warming to the lowest-lying nation on earth. President Mohammed Nasheed and 13 other government officials submerged and took their seats at a table on the sea floor—20 feet below the surface of a lagoon...
Rush: I'm Another Victim of Left-Wing Bias
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 17, 2009 10:24 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Rush Limbaugh is the victim of a vast left-wing conspiracy. Or so he argues in a Wall Street Journal essay in the wake of his NFL adventures. Lefties in the news business, "including the sportswriter community," have nothing but "contempt" and "blind hatred" for conservatives, he writes. The charge of racism "is...
Fairey Admits Lying Over 'Hope' Photo
Associated Press
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Oct 17, 2009 9:50 AM CDT
(Newser) -
An unexpected twist in the Shepard Fairey copyright fight: The artist admits that he lied about which AP photo he used for his Obama Hope poster and submitted fake evidence to support his claim. His lawyers have now dropped him as the legal fight continues. "I am very sorry to have hurt and disappointed colleagues, friends, and family,"...
Anna Nicole Took Drugs While Pregnant
New York Daily News
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Oct 17, 2009 9:27 AM CDT
(Newser) -
More sad details about Anna Nicole Smith's drug use emerged during the Howard K. Stern hearing yesterday, as babydaddy Larry Birkhead testified that she took methadone while pregnant with daughter Dannielynn out of fear that she'd go into shock and lose the baby if she stopped. As to why she was taking methadone in the first place, Birkhead said she...
Obama Sets Softer Sudan Policy
Washington Post
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Oct 17, 2009 8:51 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Though Obama advocated a confrontational approach to Sudan on the campaign trail, his administration will announce a somewhat soft policy toward the country on Monday. Ending months of internal wrangling, the policy is designed use to "pressure and incentives" to bend the government to address US concerns over the killings in Darfur and a...
Balloon Boy Dad Called TV Station, Then Police
Telegraph (UK)
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Oct 17, 2009 8:15 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A detail that's sure to bolster hoax-believers in the odd tale of balloon boy: Turns out dad Richard Heene phoned a TV news station that had a helicopter before calling 911 after learning that 6-year-old Falcon had supposedly drifted off in a flying saucer-shaped helium balloon. Though Heene's first phone call was to the FAA, that detail may not...
Childhood Abuse May Lead to Obesity
Los Angeles Times
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Oct 17, 2009 7:50 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Compounding the mental and physical pain that accompanies childhood abuse, a new study suggests abuse may lead to adult obesity. Researchers studied 410 children who had court-substantiated cases of physical and sexual abuse before the age of 11; 30 years later, their body mass index scores were compared with a control group. Physical abuse sufferers...
Obama Rips Into 'Dishonest' Insurers
Roll Call
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Oct 17, 2009 7:23 AM CDT
(Newser) -
President Obama ripped into insurers today, admonishing them for attempting to derail his health care initiative with "deceptive and dishonest" advertising. “The insurance industry is rolling out the big guns and breaking open their massive war chest to marshal their forces for one last fight to save the status quo,” he said in...
Pakistan Army Launches Assault on Taliban
Associated Press
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Oct 17, 2009 7:03 AM CDT
(Newser) -
More than 30,000 Pakistani soldiers launched a major assault on the Taliban's sanctuary in Waziristan early today, following months of airstrikes intended to soften up militant defenses. Officials have given few details but said the troops are pursuing militants holed up in the region. Civilians have been evacuated from the lawless area on the Afghan...
Colleges Tackle the 'Sexile' Issue
Washington Post
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Oct 17, 2009 6:52 AM CDT
(Newser) -
"Sexiles" banished from their rooms by sexually active roommates have long been a feature of student life, but colleges across the country are looking into ways to help the hapless figures found crashed on lounge sofas get a good night's sleep. Many now require roommates to sign a contract covering overnight guests to avoid conflict when...
Wife: Bin Laden Loves Gardening, Cars, Jihad
AFP
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Oct 17, 2009 6:30 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Osama bin Laden was a tough dad who liked growing corn and sunflowers when he wasn't busy preparing for jihad, his first wife and his fourth son reveal in a memoir to be published this month. Bin Laden loves fast cars and owned a gold Mercedes and a speed boat, but shuns the use of most modern appliances and would beat his children for "showing...
Atlantis-like City Mapped Off Greek Coast
Guardian (UK)
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Oct 17, 2009 6:06 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Marine archaeologists have uncovered a sunken city that may have inspired the myth of Atlantis. Located off the coast of southern Greece, Pavlopetri dates back more than 5,000 years and is thought to have been engulfed by the sea around 1,000 BC, making it the only sunken Greek city known to predate the writing of Plato's tale of Atlantis. Though the...
Child-Protection Office Eying Balloon Family
Denver Post
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Oct 17, 2009 5:34 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Colorado child-protection officers have spoken to the sheriff's office about the Heene family following Thursday's bizarre balloon incident, said Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden, who hopes an investigation will follow. Police plan to re-interview the family today following a CNN interview in which 6-year-old Falcon said he hid in an attic while...
Yankees Top Sloppy Angels 4-1
Associated Press
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Oct 17, 2009 2:00 AM CDT
(AP) -
On a blustery night more suited to bobsleds than baseballs, CC Sabathia pitched eight superb innings of four-hit ball to win his second straight postseason start, and the New York Yankees took advantage of a rare sloppy game by the Angels to win the AL championship series opener 4-1.
Jindal Slams Anti-Mixed Marriage Judge
CNN
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Oct 16, 2009 11:58 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Gov. Bobby Jindal and other Louisiana officials say a justice of the peace who refuses to marry interracial couples should lose his job. "This is a clear violation of constitutional rights and federal and state law," Jindal said, calling for Keith Bardwell's case to be referred to a state commission. "Disciplinary action should be taken...
Ariz. Sheriff Defies Feds with Immigration Sweep
Associated Press
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Oct 16, 2009 9:00 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The "toughest sheriff in America" isn't going to let anything stop him enforcing the law—not even the law. Joe Arpaio launched crime and immigration sweeps in Phoenix yesterday in defiance of a federal order stripping his deputies of the right to make immigration arrests in the field. "it doesn't bother me, because we are going...
White House Doesn't Take Glenn Beck 'Very Seriously'
Chicago Tribune
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Oct 16, 2009 7:05 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Fox talking head Glenn Beck has White House communications director Anita Dunn in his crosshairs, but the administration isn't exactly sweating. "I caught some of that from the Glenn Beck show yesterday, but I don't think anybody takes it—takes his attacks very seriously," the deputy White House press secretary said today of Beck's...
Record $1.4T Deficit Imperils Recovery
New York Times
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Oct 16, 2009 6:35 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The federal deficit in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30 was $1.4 trillion, lower than projected but still a record. At 10% of GDP, the figure is the largest since 1945, when the deficit was 21.5% of GDP. The figure made public today coincides with early rumblings about extending some features of last winter's $787 billion stimulus package,...
Obama, Bush 41 Tout Public Service
Eagle (Bryan-College Station, Texas)
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Oct 16, 2009 6:07 PM CDT
(Newser) -
A bipartisan call for public service got a warm reception today at Texas A&M, where George HW Bush welcomed President Obama and 44 hailed 41 as "an inspiration to us all." At a forum celebrating the 20th anniversary of the former president's Points of Light Institute, Obama—who was met by protesters opposing health care reform—called...
How Australia Dodged the Recession
BNET
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Oct 16, 2009 5:42 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Australia has weathered the financial crisis better than any other developed country. Last week its central bank raised interest rates, indicating its primary concern is now inflation, not growth. What were the keys? Phil Dobbie of BNET explains: Befriending China: Australia used to export much of what it made to the US and UK, but over the...
Drill, Baby, Drill!: Palin
National Review
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Oct 16, 2009 5:15 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Even as the US develops renewable-energy sources and cars that don’t need gas, it’s important to recognize that petroleum will be a part of our lives for some time, writes Sarah Palin. And as long as we need it, we should be getting as much as possible from our own land. "Building an energy-independent America will mean a real...
Deadly Carbon Monoxide May Also Be Good For You
Boston Globe
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Oct 16, 2009 4:45 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Low-level doses of the deadly chemical carbon monoxide may actually have medical benefits, pioneering new research suggests. The research is preliminary, and no scientist denies the lethal results of CO poisoning. But studies in animals have found small, controlled doses of the gas can have benefits for organ transplantation and fighting infections....
Tyson, Holyfield Make Up
AOL Sports
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Oct 16, 2009 4:25 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Evander Holyfield forgives Mike Tyson for biting his ear during their heavyweight title fight in 1997, he said during a joint appearance with his former opponent on today's Oprah Winfrey Show . The boxers—who knew each other as teens—shook hands, and Holyfield said the famous bite “wasn't really as bad as they made it out to be.”...
Logical, Ethical Lapses Beset Washington Post
Gawker
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Oct 16, 2009 4:07 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The next-to-last straw was the Washington Post editorial saying Neda Agha Soltan should have won the Nobel Peace Prize, which isn't awarded posthumously. The last straw was today's op-ed raising—but not bothering to answer—the question of whether President Obama can even accept the honor without violating the Constitution. The piece confirms...
Swine Flu More Likely to Cause Pneumonia
Washington Post
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Oct 16, 2009 3:52 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Swine flu is much more likely than seasonal flu to cause potentially life-threatening viral pneumonia, the World Health Organization said today, urging doctors to immediately treat even young and otherwise healthy suspected H1N1 cases with antiviral meds. “It’s not like seasonal influenza,” said a WHO officer. It travels farther into...
New Yorkers Hate New York, I Love You
Newsday
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Oct 16, 2009 3:35 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Not everyone hates New York, I Love You —Roger Ebert, for example, found the anthology a “jumble sale” containing “some nice discoveries.” But the New York-based critics sure weren’t sold. Here’s what they’re saying: Filmmakers had just 2 days to shoot their 6-minute segments. “There were,...
