Newser Story Index from November, 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.
Unofficial Index to Going Rogue
Slate
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Nov 18, 2009 11:20 AM CST
(Newser) -
Sarah Palin's memoir, Going Rogue , doesn't have an index. So Slate has generously provided one. Some key references: Alaska: "robin's egg sky of," page 2. Books: cookbooks and the Bible, page 15; Animal Farm , page 27 Cap and trade: an "environmentalist Ponzi scheme," page 391
'I'm Like, That Is Not Me:' Dirty Soccer Player
New York Times
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Nov 18, 2009 11:10 AM CST
(Newser) -
Elizabeth Lambert is confused, remorseful, and a little defensive about some much-publicized bad behavior on the soccer field that got her suspended from the University of New Mexico team. “There were times in the game where I was literally like, ‘All right, Elizabeth, you’ve got to get control’ of myself,” she tells the...
Johnny Depp 'Sexiest Man Alive' Again
People
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Nov 18, 2009 10:56 AM CST
(Newser) -
Johnny Depp joins fellow heartthrobs Brad Pitt and George Clooney as a two-time winner of People ’s Sexiest Man Alive title. Depp, named Sexiest Man for both 2009 and 2003, is still working it at 46. Sexy-but-not-sexiest runners-up include Ryan Reynolds, Jake Gyllenhaal, Bradley Cooper, Nick Cannon, John Cho, and—shockers—Robert...
Sex Tape Star to Prejean: Release It!
TMZ
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Nov 18, 2009 10:53 AM CST
(Newser) -
If there’s anyone who knows how it feels to have a sex tape leaked—and the profit that can be gained—it’s former Playmate Shauna Sand, and she says Carrie Prejean should just release hers. In a letter to Prejean, she says she was “stunned and terrified” when Vivid Entertainment obtained her video earlier this year,...
Three Dems Threaten to Block Health Debate
New York Times
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Nov 18, 2009 10:43 AM CST
(Newser) -
Three Senate Democrats are threatening to prevent the health care reform bill from even making it to the floor of the chamber. Normally it’s a routine procedure to get the 60 votes necessary to open debate on a bill, but Ben Nelson, Blanche Lincoln, and Mary Landrieu are balking on helping the bill over even that preliminary hurdle, reports the...
Porn Director Making Jaycee Dugard Film
Associated Press
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Nov 18, 2009 10:32 AM CST
(Newser) -
Worst idea of the day (year?) so far: A horror-porn director plans to make a film about kidnap victim Jaycee Dugard and her relationship with accused abductor—and rapist—Phillip Garrido. A spokesperson for Dugard called the idea “exploitive, hurtful, and breathtakingly unkind” after filmmaker Shane Ryan told a Sacramento TV...
Holder on 9/11 Trial: 'We Need Not Cower'
Associated Press
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Nov 18, 2009 10:22 AM CST
(Newser) -
Republicans grilled Eric Holder on Capitol Hill today, criticizing his decision to try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed in civilian court. But Holder offered a forceful rebuttal, saying, “We need not cower in the face of this enemy. Our institutions are strong and our people are ready.” He added that “failure is not an option.” Republicans...
Palin Book All 'Fabrications': McCain Aide
Gawker
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Nov 18, 2009 10:18 AM CST
(Newser) -
Rachel Maddow’s show has surely been the locus of some Sarah Palin bashing, but last night it got its ammunition from an unlikely source—her handler during last year’s campaign. Nicolle Wallace is not happy about her characterization in Palin’s Going Rogue , and gave an interview despite John McCain’s suggestion that...
Reid 'Optimistic' About 60 Votes
Washington Post
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Nov 18, 2009 10:00 AM CST
(Newser) -
Harry Reid is “cautiously optimistic” about the success of his frantic attempts to unite the 60 votes of his caucus behind the Senate health care reform bill. “I think we’re together,” he says. But the majority leader was positively voluble about the bill itself, notes the Washington Post : “Of all the bills we've...
15K Yanks Turn Selves in for Offshore Tax Cheating
Reuters
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Nov 18, 2009 9:57 AM CST
(Newser) -
Prodded by the stick of a looming crackdown on offshore tax cheats and the carrot of an IRS amnesty program, some 14,700 rich Americans have turned themselves in, disclosing billions in hidden foreign assets. The "unprecedented" participation in the amnesty program surprised the IRS and advisers to the super-rich alike, Reuters reports.
Goldman Pumps $500M Into Small Businesses
Wall Street Journal
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Nov 18, 2009 9:20 AM CST
(Newser) -
In a move that definitely has nothing to do with spiraling public hostility, Goldman Sachs has announced a $500 million small-business assistance program. Headed by an advisory panel that includes Warren Buffett and Lloyd Blankfein (he who works for God ), the so-called “10,000 Small Businesses” program will invest half its money in entrepreneurs,...
Lincoln Letter to Boy on Sale for $60K
BBC
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Nov 18, 2009 9:15 AM CST
(Newser) -
When 8-year-old George Patten was mocked by classmates in 1861 who didn't believe he'd met Abraham Lincoln, his teacher wrote to the president seeking to expose the boy's tall tale. Lincoln instead sent the boy a letter confirming that they had met the previous year. That document, believed to be the only surviving letter written by Lincoln to a child,...
US Fears Insurgents Are Eluding Pakistan Crackdown
New York Times
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Nov 18, 2009 8:57 AM CST
(Newser) -
Pakistan's drive to oust militants from South Waziristan has been suspiciously successful, prompting US fears that the enemy is simply eluding Pakistani forces. The military, for example, recently captured Sararogha, the Taliban’s de facto capital. “It all started here,” a commander boasts to the New York Times . “This is the...
Miley Cyrus Is Anti- Twilight
MTV
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Nov 18, 2009 8:51 AM CST
(Newser) -
Miley Cyrus made headlines when, during a recent radio interview, the tween idol slammed another tween phenomenon— Twilight . “I've never seen it and nor will I ever. I don't believe in it. I don’t like vampires,” Miley—who, by the way, will soon be working with Twilight producers in a movie about fairies, MTV reports—told...
Robert Byrd Now Longest-Serving Legislator Ever
Associated Press
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Nov 18, 2009 8:39 AM CST
(AP) -
West Virginia Sen. Robert C. Byrd has become the longest-serving lawmaker in congressional history, a milestone to be marked today with a Senate resolution. "I look forward to serving you for the next 56 years and 320 days," Byrd said, adding that he was sorry his late wife Erma was not there with him. "I know that she is looking down...
Biden Yuks It Up With Stewart
DailyShow.com
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Nov 18, 2009 8:30 AM CST
(Newser) -
Joe Biden discussed his transition to vice president, the economy, and Amtrak with Jon Stewart on The Daily Show last night. “The Republican Party has nothing but hardcore conservatives. There’s no moderates left. The Democratic Party has moderates, liberals, and conservative Democrats,” Biden said. “And Communists,”...
Carbon-Tax Foes Must Think the End Is Nigh
New York Times
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Nov 18, 2009 8:25 AM CST
(Newser) -
Opponents of cap-and-trade legislation must believe that a massive plague will wipe out 2.5 billion people sometime between now and 2050. Otherwise, their stance makes no sense, writes Thomas Friedman of the New York Times . Even if you don’t believe climate change is real—and Friedman does—you can’t deny that the world is...
Dems: Use TARP Funds to Aid Jobless, Homeowners
The Hill
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Nov 18, 2009 7:44 AM CST
(Newser) -
Democrats in Congress want to direct some of the remaining billions in the Wall Street bailout funds to struggling workers and homeowners—a plan that puts them at odds with the White House, which aims to put the TARP balance toward deficit reduction. The change in Congress comes as unemployment soars and voters bristle at news of bailed-out firms...
Clinton Makes Surprise Afghan Visit
Associated Press
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Nov 18, 2009 7:40 AM CST
(AP) -
Hillary Clinton made an unexpected appearance in Afghanistan today to attend the inauguration of President Hamid Karzai and meet with Gen. Stanley McChrystal. It's Clinton's first trip to Afghanistan since becoming secretary of state. Clinton called the visit "a specific opportunity for everyone to take stock of where we are and to determine how...
Levi Johnston Gets Steamy for Playgirl
New York Daily News
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Nov 18, 2009 7:21 AM CST
(Newser) -
So you might not get to see a full-frontal shot of Levi Johnston in Playgirl , but at least you can get up close and personal with his armpit hair in this teaser image. The nudie mag released the shower shot yesterday, the New York Daily News reports. View it in all its shower-glistening glory above.
Iraq Halts Preparations for Jan. Election
Reuters
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Nov 18, 2009 7:00 AM CST
(Newser) -
In a move that could derail both Iraq's fragile democracy and US plans to withdraw troops by next summer, all preparations for elections in January have ground to a halt. The Iraqi election committee stopped "all our activities and work" today after the country's vice president vetoed part of a new election law, Reuters reports.
Rupe Disses 'in-the-Dark' Blind NY Gov
Huffington Post
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Nov 18, 2009 6:54 AM CST
(Newser) -
Continuing his streak of casually slamming black Democrats, Rupert Murdoch yesterday said New York's blind governor, David Paterson, "can't read braille and doesn't really know what's going on." Murdoch's comments about Paterson, coming a week after he agreed with Glenn Beck that President Obama is a racist, support Michael Wolff's claim...
FCC Eyes Hiking Phone Bills to Expand Internet Access
Wall Street Journal
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Nov 18, 2009 6:48 AM CST
(Newser) -
Al Gore may think he created the Internet, but it's the FCC that's looking to make it available to all Americans—and it's considering taxing your phone bill to pay for it. Federal regulators will outline their case today for stepping up government control of Internet and phone services, the Wall Street Journal reports, in a move to reverse...
Maersk Alabama Repels 2nd Pirate Attack
Associated Press
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Nov 18, 2009 6:30 AM CST
(AP) -
Somali pirates today attacked the Maersk Alabama for the second time in seven months, but guards on board the US-flagged cargo ship repelled the takeover attempt. When pirates attacked with automatic weapons early this morning about 350 nautical miles east of the Somali coast, guards on board the craft fired back, thwarting the attempted hijacking....
Aussie Scientologists Accused of Torture
Times (UK)
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Nov 18, 2009 6:18 AM CST
(Newser) -
Scientology's status as a church masks a "criminal organization" guilty of torture, forced imprisonment, coerced abortion, embezzlement and blackmail, charges an Australian senator, whose accusations have triggered concerns by the Aussie prime minister. Nick Xenophon, who yesterday showed the Australian parliament and police letters from...
Obama: We Won't Make Gitmo Deadline
Washington Post
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Nov 18, 2009 5:40 AM CST
(Newser) -
Guantanamo Bay prison won't close by the January deadline he set when he took office, President Obama admitted today, but he still hopes to shut it next year. Obama is "not disappointed" in missing the deadline, he says in a FoxNews interview airing this morning, since closing the facility is "technically hard" and people are understandably...
Palin Memoir: I Inspired Obama's 'Change'
Telegraph (UK)
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Nov 18, 2009 5:30 AM CST
(Newser) -
Sarah Palin believes she might deserve some of the credit for President Obama's victory but not in the way some people in the McCain camp would have it. In Going Rogue , Palin points to her campaign for Alaska governor as having used the "Change" theme and suggests she may have inspired the Obama campaign, the Telegraph reports.
Obama Tone in China Reflects New Power Realities
Washington Post
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Nov 18, 2009 5:20 AM CST
(Newser) -
President Obama's starkly different tone in his visit to China—more congratulatory than confrontational—is less a shift in policy from his predecessors than a change in the two country's roles, write Andrew Higgins and Anne Kornblut in the Washington Post . When President Clinton visited in 1998, the US was the world's only superpower...
Composers Seek Pay Tune-Up With Teamsters
Los Angeles Times
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Nov 18, 2009 4:58 AM CST
(Newser) -
A group of composers for movies and TV seeking a better deal now have the Teamsters in their corner. The musicians, who complain that their pay is shriveling as studios expect them to absorb more costs, were one of the few groups of Hollywood workers not covered by union contracts. The unlikely alliance was made at the suggestion of the Writer's Guild...
Tape Released of Mother's 911 Call on Shaniya
WFMY (Greensboro, NC)
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Nov 18, 2009 4:33 AM CST
(Newser) -
Shaniya Davis' apparently emotional mom tells a 911 dispatcher that she awoke to find her daughter missing, just days before the North Carolina kindergartner turned up dead. "I don't know if she walked out or I don't know what's going on, but she's not here," says Antoinette Davis . She suddenly becomes calmer under questioning by the dispatcher,...
Great Wall of China 'Magical': Obama
Associated Press
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Nov 18, 2009 4:33 AM CST
(Newser) -
Following in the footsteps of Richard Nixon and every president since then, Barack Obama today wound up his visit to China with a stop at the Great Wall, where he stoked his hosts' pride in ancient Chinese civilization by reflecting on the wall's enduring nature. "It's magical," Obama said. "It reminds you of the sweep of history and...
Globe on Course for 'Worst-Case' Temp Hike
Independent (UK)
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Nov 18, 2009 4:08 AM CST
(Newser) -
The worst-case scenario for climate change is getting closer to becoming reality, a group of climate scientists warned yesterday. World temperatures are on course to rise an average of 6 degrees Celsius by the end of the century, according to the Global Carbon Project researchers. Experts believe a temperature rise on that scale would make much of...
Beverly Hills, LA Ban Cat Declawing
Associated Press
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Nov 18, 2009 3:44 AM CST
(Newser) -
Furniture beware: Los Angeles and Beverly Hills have become the latest California cities to outlaw the declawing of cats. Santa Monica and San Francisco recently passed similar bans and others are considering banning declawing before next year, when a new state law on the regulation of veterinary medicine will effectively ban cities from banning declawing....
Leggy Palin Pic Is Gender Neutral: Newsweek
Huffington Post
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Nov 18, 2009 3:19 AM CST
(Newser) -
A Newsweek cover of Sarah Palin in running shorts showing lots of leg met a "gender neutral" standard despite Palin's complaints of sexism, said the magazine's editor. "We chose the most interesting image available to us to illustrate the theme," Jon Meacham said in a statement provided to Huffington Post . "That is a gender-neutral...
'Counterproductive' Offsets Ditched
New York Times
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Nov 18, 2009 2:54 AM CST
(Newser) -
Carbon offsets are becoming big business, but many emissions experts say green travel is too good to be true. Responsible Travel was one of the first travel firms to offer customers the chance to pay extra money to help offset emissions caused by their air miles. But it has now canceled the program, saying that while it may have eased passengers' consciences,...
Jackson Sex Accuser's Dad Commits Suicide
Telegraph (UK)
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Nov 18, 2009 2:32 AM CST
(Newser) -
The father of a boy who accused Michael Jackson of child molestation has been found dead in an apparent suicide. Evan Chandler reported Jackson to authorities in 1993, claiming that the singer had abused his son Jordan, then 13. Jordan repeated the accusations to a psychologist, sparking a criminal investigation. Chandler and his son settled out of...
ADL: Beck Is Top Hate Monger
New York Daily News
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Nov 18, 2009 2:09 AM CST
(Newser) -
Right-wing Fox mouth Glenn Beck is the most toxic media hate monger operating in the US today, according to a report by the Anti-Defamation League. "Beck has made a habit of demonizing President Obama and promoting conspiracy theories about his administration," the r eport states. He "has even gone so far as to make comparisons between...
Arab Singer's 'Monkey' Lyric Enrages Nubians
Guardian (UK)
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Nov 18, 2009 1:44 AM CST
(Newser) -
Egypt's 2 million-strong black community has been outraged by a Lebanese pop song that refers to them as monkeys. The song by Haifa Wehbe, one of the Arab's world's biggest stars, includes a child singing: "Where is my teddy bear and the Nubian monkey?" Nubian lawyers have filed an official complaint, saying the song has fueled discrimination...
Senate Delays Climate Bill
Wall Street Journal
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Nov 18, 2009 1:20 AM CST
(Newser) -
Senate Democrats have announced that they won't be debating a major climate bill until sometime in the spring. The delay, which reduces America's bargaining power at next month's Copenhagen conference, reflects weakening support for the controversial "cap-and-trade" bill as unemployment remains high, the Wall Street Journal notes. The...
SF Store Gives Palin Profits to Help Save Alaska Wolves
The Green Apple Core
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Nov 17, 2009 10:25 PM CST
(Newser) -
A bookstore in San Francisco—probably not a locale Sarah Palin would consider “real America”—is donating all the profits from the sale of her book, Going Rogue , to an Alaska foundation that, among other things, helps to protect wolves from the aerial hunting the ex-governor ardently supports. In noting the move on Green Apple...
GOP Reps. Pin Fort Hood on Obama
Talking Points Memo
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Nov 17, 2009 9:07 PM CST
(Newser) -
Hinting that Obama administration’s restrictions on how the government fights terrorism led to the Fort Hood shooting, two Republican Congressman today called for an immediate probe of the incident. Congress has been asked to wait until a military investigation is complete, but, Pete Hoekstra says , “It has to happen now. This is not something...
En Route to Daily Show , a Not-So-Funny Incident
New York Post
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Nov 17, 2009 8:00 PM CST
(Newser) -
Three people were injured tonight when New York police clearing the way for Vice President Joe Biden’s appearance on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart collided with a livery cab trying to skirt the stopped traffic. “They T-boned him,” a witness told the Post of the incident, which sent two cops and the livery driver to hospital...
FBI After Calif. 'Geezer Bandit'
San Diego Union-Tribune
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Nov 17, 2009 7:47 PM CST
(Newser) -
The FBI has jumped in on the pursuit of a California robbery suspect authorities have dubbed the “Geezer Bandit.” The most recent of the five heists came yesterday outside San Diego; surveillance video of previous incidents shows a man believed to be in his 70s and, in at least one case, toting an oxygen tank. “Armed and dangerous”...
Heart Disease: Pharaohs Had It, Too
WebMD
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Nov 17, 2009 7:20 PM CST
(Newser) -
In a finding that pokes holes in the thinking that our modern fast-food lifestyle is behind heart disease, scientists have discovered that Egypt’s mummies, too, had hardened arteries. “Atherosclerosis is not just a disease of modern times,” one researcher tells WebMD . “It’s part of the human condition.” CT scans...
Ken Ober, Host of MTV's Remote Control , Dead at 52
Los Angeles Times
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Nov 17, 2009 6:38 PM CST
(Newser) -
Ken Ober, who hosted MTV’s 1980s game show Remote Control , died Sunday at 52; a rep says the cause is still unknown, but that the actor and stand-up comic complained of a headache and flu-like symptoms Saturday. The show—at the time a relative rarity, given that the channel still played music videos—tested young contestants’...
Wal-Mart Will Push TVs, Laptops on Black Friday
CNN
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Nov 17, 2009 6:18 PM CST
(Newser) -
Details of Wal-Mart's Black Friday deals—normally kept under wraps until Thanksgiving week—have been obtained by CNNMoney and partially confirmed by the retailer. The day after Thanksgiving will see deep discounts on high-def TVs, laptops, and Blu-ray players. Some specifics: Sanyo 50-inch plasma TVs will be available for $598. Magnavox...
Trump Drops Bid to Control Bankrupt Casinos
Wall Street Journal
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Nov 17, 2009 5:53 PM CST
(Newser) -
Donald Trump will let creditors have the Trump Entertainment Resorts, easing the way for the three Atlantic City casinos to emerge from bankruptcy. The Donald and daughter Ivanka have stopped all litigation against a group of creditors who sought to block a bid by the Trumps to regain control over the casinos, which went under Chapter 11 in February....
'Hit the Bitch' Site Preaches Against Violence
AdFreak
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Nov 17, 2009 5:31 PM CST
(Newser) -
It’s supposed to be a PSA against domestic violence, but ‘ Hit the Bitch ’—a webgame from a Danish advocacy group—takes things to a disturbing level. Users manipulate a big onscreen hand to beat a model, with their score advancing from “100% pussy” to “100% gangsta” with every new bruise. But when...
Mother of Slain 5-Year-Old Is Pregnant
ABC Local
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Nov 17, 2009 5:13 PM CST
(Newser) -
The North Carolina woman accused of selling her 5-year-old girl into sexual slavery—the girl's body was found yesterday—is pregnant. Antoinette Davis, 25, is being isolated from other prisoners as a result, reports WTVD . She has not entered a plea to charges of human trafficking, prostitution, and child abuse. Police say she sold young...
Obama's China Visit Achieves Little
BusinessWeek
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Nov 17, 2009 4:48 PM CST
(Newser) -
President Obama and Chinese leader Hu Jintao paid lip service today to the idea of stronger US-China relations, but Obama's visit has done nothing but highlight the "yawning differences" between the two nations on economic issues, writes Dexter Roberts. "Lofty statements of common interests aside, the all-important Sino-US economic relationship...
