Newser Story Index from February, 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.
Stocks Can't Stop Bleeding
Wall Street Journal
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Feb 20, 2009 8:52 AM CST
(Newser) -
Stocks continued their march downward at the open today, following a wave of selloffs around the globe. The Dow dropped 136 points, after closing at a six-year low yesterday. The S&P plunged 1.8%, while the Nasdaq was off 1.1%. Yesterday’s US losses triggered a wave of global selling, with the FTSE 100 down 2.6%, the Dow Jones Stoxx 50 down...
Mexico Calls in Army as Drug War Escalates
Washington Post
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Feb 20, 2009 8:44 AM CST
(Newser) -
Mexican President Felipe Calderón yesterday defended his decision to deploy 45,000 troops in major cities in his fight against the drug cartels, reports the Washington Post . In a speech to the army, Calderón said the military would remain in place until it had regained control of the country's most violent regions; 650 Mexicans have...
Did Google Ocean Find Atlantis?
Telegraph (UK)
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Feb 20, 2009 8:32 AM CST
(Newser) -
A mysterious grid of lines spotted by a British aeronautical engineer using Google Ocean may be the fabled lost city of Atlantis, experts tell the Telegraph . The rectangular region—roughly the size of Wales—is located near the Canary Islands in a region believed to be a likely spot for Atlantis, which was described by Plato as a land...
To Save Economy, Give Money to Morons
New York Times
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Feb 20, 2009 8:20 AM CST
(Newser) -
Our economic system is supposed to be based on the principle that people must live with the consequences of their decisions, which tends to make them more careful deciders. “We’ve made a hash of all that,” writes David Brooks of the New York Times. We’ve had bailouts that reward foolish bankers, incompetent automakers, and...
Netanyahu to Form Israeli Government
BBC
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Feb 20, 2009 8:08 AM CST
(Newser) -
Right-of-center Benjamin Netanyahu has been asked to form Israel’s new government, despite President Shimon Peres’s initial hopes that Netanyahu would share power with centrist Tzipi Livni, who was the top vote-getter in the election last week. Livni said she would prefer to head the opposition, the BBC reports. A coalition would...
Saab Seeks Protection From Creditors, Break From GM
Bloomberg
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Feb 20, 2009 7:56 AM CST
(Newser) -
Saab applied for protection from creditors today, after parent company General Motors said this week it planned to cut the company loose, Bloomberg reports. In a process much like Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the Swedish automaker will restructure and look for funding with the goal of spinning off from GM or being sold; GM said several days ago it would...
Limbaugh to Obama: Don't Touch Talk Radio
Wall Street Journal
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Feb 20, 2009 7:45 AM CST
(Newser) -
There’s been talk among Democrats that government should intervene to ensure balance in talk radio. But government weighing in on content is a direct violation of the First Amendment, writes Rush Limbaugh in the Wall Street Journal , and as a former law prof, our new president knows that. President Obama has spoken against Limbaugh's show, the...
Kyrgyzstan Issues Eviction Notice to US
Associated Press
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Feb 20, 2009 7:32 AM CST
(Newser) -
Kyrgyzstan has issued an eviction notice giving US forces six months to depart an air base key to the transit of troops and supplies to the war in Afghanistan, the AP reports. But in spite of its rocky relationship with the US, nearby Uzbekistan has offered an alternative route for the transport of non-lethal cargo, a military official said. Attacks...
Ellen, Portia Turn to IVF for Baby
Star
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Feb 20, 2009 7:23 AM CST
(Newser) -
Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi are ready to start a family, Star reports. Though de Rossi once considered adoption, the pair, who wed in August, have settled on in-vitro fertilization—and are hoping for a boy. “Portia is prepared to go through it 10 times if she has to,” a source said, adding that de Rossi is trying to “gain...
Lobbyist Linked to McCain Ends Times Suit
New York Times
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Feb 20, 2009 7:07 AM CST
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Vicki Iseman, the lobbyist whose relationship with John McCain was the subject of an explosive New York Times article during the 2008 campaign, has settled her lawsuit against the paper. Iseman will receive no payment, and the Times has not retracted the article, which seemed to imply that she and McCain had an affair. But in an uncommon move,...
Obama a Spineless Leader Thus Far: Krauthammer
Washington Post
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Feb 20, 2009 7:01 AM CST
(Newser) -
Barack Obama has faced a spate of little challenges thus far from Russia, Iran, and Pakistan—and flunked them all, writes Charles Krauthammer. While Putin compounds his military strength and Ahmadinejad insults America, the new president has exhibited "utter passivity" on the world stage. In just one month, says the Washington Post...
Suicide Bomber Kills 30 at Pakistan Funeral
New York Times
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Feb 20, 2009 6:39 AM CST
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At least 30 people died and 50 more were injured after a suicide bomber blew himself up during a funeral in Pakistan's volatile northwest, reports the New York Times . The bomber targeted the funeral of a Shia Muslim who was shot only yesterday, and eyewitnesses described seeing limbs scattered across the streets. Riots broke out following the attack,...
Clinton Warns North Korea, Names Special Envoy
Associated Press
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Feb 20, 2009 6:21 AM CST
(Newser) -
Hillary Clinton warned an increasingly belligerent North Korea to cease its "provocative and unhelpful" threats toward the South today, the AP reports. In a Seoul press conference, the secretary of state named former US ambassador to South Korea Stephen Bosworth as special envoy for North Korea and said he would work with regional countries...
Adoring Canadians Cheer Obama
Los Angeles Times
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Feb 20, 2009 5:53 AM CST
(Newser) -
Barack Obama found a new world of fans north of the border yesterday. His first foreign trip as president was greeted by a rare wave of pro-American sentiment on the streets of Ottawa, reports the Los Angeles Times . Thousands of people stood for hours in the slush in front of Parliament and along his motorcade route waiting for a glimpse of the president,...
Cheap Oil Keeps World Economy Off Balance
Washington Post
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Feb 20, 2009 5:18 AM CST
(Newser) -
Oil surged 13% yesterday in New York trading—and still closed at less than $40 a barrel, reports the Washington Post . Cheap oil has been a boon for consumers in the recession, but the collapse in crude prices has contributed to further havoc in international markets from Canada to Kuwait. While OPEC is expected to cut supplies again next...
Runaway Military Horse Hoofs It to Seine
Telegraph (UK)
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Feb 20, 2009 4:53 AM CST
(Newser) -
A 15-year-old Paris military horse was feeling his oats, threw his rider and tried to hot-hoof it back to his stable, reports the BBC. The horse, who had been on duty at the presidential palace, clattered full gallop along the Seine with police in pursuit, stunning pedestrians and causing drivers to jump on the brakes. The usually obedient Garibaldi...
US Demands UBS Cough Up 50K Tax Cheat Clients
Wall Street Journal
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Feb 20, 2009 4:19 AM CST
(Newser) -
The Justice Department has stunned UBS with a demand for the names of 52,000 clients believed to be American tax dodgers, reports the Wall Street Journal . The Swiss bank had expected to be asked for 20,000 names, but a court filing yesterday stated that an IRS investigator had uncovered an internal bank document referring to 52,000 secret American...
Critics Invoke Jesus in Anti-Stimulus Ad
Politico
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Feb 20, 2009 3:58 AM CST
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A conservative group has brought Jesus into the fray over the stimulus package, Politico reports. An anti-stimulus ad from the American Issues Project set to start airing today flashes a picture of the three wise men on the screen and asks viewers to imagine spending "$1 million every single day starting from the day Jesus was born" to illustrate...
Lutheran Panel Backs Gay Unions, 'Married' Gay Clerics
Los Angeles Times
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Feb 20, 2009 3:27 AM CST
(Newser) -
A task force from the nation's largest Lutheran denomination has recommended the church give its blessing to same-sex unions, reports the Los Angeles Times . The panel also recommended that the Evangelic Lutheran Church in America allow gays—currently only permitted to serve as clergy if they are celibate—to serve as clergy if they are...
Octu-Gramp Rips 'Irresponsible' Daughter
Huffington Post
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Feb 20, 2009 3:04 AM CST
(Newser) -
Nadya Suleman's father blasted his daughter and the doctor who implanted her eight embyros as "absolutely irresponsible" in an Oprah interview, reports the Huffington Post. "I'm no psychiatrist, but I question her mental situation," said Ed Doud in comments to air next week. But he pleaded with the public not to punish his daughter...
BofA Boss Ordered to Testify in $3.6B Bonus Probe
Wall Street Journal
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Feb 20, 2009 2:36 AM CST
(Newser) -
Bank of America chairman Kenneth Lewis has been subpoenaed to testify in the investigation into possible deception of investors over the Merrill Lynch takeover, sources tell the Wall Street Journal . New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is exploring whether the bank broke the law by failing to inform investors of the scale of Merrill's losses, and...
Chimp Victim Moved to Face Transplant Clinic
Stamford Times
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Feb 20, 2009 2:15 AM CST
(Newser) -
The woman whose face was horrifically injured by a crazed chimpanzee has been transferred to the clinic that performed America's first face transplant, the Stamford Times reports. The woman was in surgery for 7 hours after the attack on Monday and was still in critical condition when she was transferred yesterday, although her vital signs had improved...
Iraqi Kurds Fear a Resurgent Baghdad
Economist
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Feb 20, 2009 1:45 AM CST
(Newser) -
Now that violence between Sunni and Shia Arabs is declining across Iraq, tensions are mounting again between Arabs and Kurds, who want Barack Obama to step in to cool off conflicts, the Economist reports. Oil and land disputes, political losses and an empowered central government have weakened the Kurds, who complain of Arab bullying. One official...
Post Apologizes for Cartoon
New York Post
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Feb 19, 2009 10:43 PM CST
(Newser) -
The New York Post has apologized—to almost everyone—for the editorial cartoon that sparked protests and accusations of racism. "It was meant to mock an ineptly written federal stimulus bill," an editorial says, acknowledging that the cartoon chimp was taken by some as a racist depiction of Barack Obama. "This most certainly...
Tehran Has Enough Fuel for Nuclear Bomb
Financial Times (UK)
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Feb 19, 2009 9:50 PM CST
(Newser) -
Here's news that won't cheer Washington as it figures out how to deal with Iran: A UN agency says the nation now has enough uranium to build a nuclear bomb. In order to do so, Tehran would have to refine it further and kick out inspectors. But it reached this threshold of low-enriched uranium about a year earlier than expected, the Financial...
First Rihanna Photo Emerges
TMZ
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Feb 19, 2009 9:30 PM CST
(Newser) -
The first photo of Rihanna from the night of her assault has apparently surfaced. The gossip site TMZ released a police photo that shows a woman's bruised face, with bad swelling around one eye. Rihanna hasn't commented publicly since the Feb. 8 assault and is recuperating in her native Barbados, the New York Post notes. Chris Brown has apologized...
Limbaugh Links Liberals to Murderers, Rapists
Huffington Post
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Feb 19, 2009 9:05 PM CST
(Newser) -
Rush Limbaugh today complained on his radio show that Democrats have morphed into "liberal socialists" and "must be stopped." That was the routine part. But he then "pushed the envelope," writes Sam Stein in the Huffington Post, with a rant that linked liberal ideas to murderers, rapists, and "this Muslim guy"...
Ebert on Siskel: 'He Is in My Mind Almost Every Day'
Chicago Sun-Times
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Feb 19, 2009 8:21 PM CST
(Newser) -
Ten years after the death of his sparring partner, Roger Ebert pays tribute to Gene Siskel in the Chicago Sun-Times . "He is in my mind almost every day," writes Ebert. Yes, they had a sometimes volatile relationship, but the friendship endured. “No one else could possibly understand how meaningless was the hate, how deep was the love."...
Winslet: No More Nudity
Time
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Feb 19, 2009 7:55 PM CST
(Newser) -
Kate Winslet has never been shy about removing her clothes in film, from her breakthrough in Titanic to her current role in The Reader . But the 33-year-old tells Time that those days may be behind her. "I think I won't do it again," she says. "A) I can't keep getting away with it, and B) I don't want to become 'that actress who...
Shoe Thrower Says Bush's 'Icy Smile' Set Off Attack
USA Today
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Feb 19, 2009 7:20 PM CST
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No wonder he came so close: The Iraqi journalist who chucked his shoes at George Bush practiced two years in advance and even videotaped taped himself doing so, USA Today reports. However, Muntadhar al-Zeidi said he didn't know he'd go through with it until he saw Bush "smiling icily" at the press conference. He said he's been tortured...
Tiger Returns to PGA Next Week
Associated Press
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Feb 19, 2009 7:00 PM CST
(AP) -
Eight months after winning the US Open on one good leg, a healthy Tiger Woods is returning to golf. Woods said on his Web site today that he will defend his title next week in the Accenture Match Play Championship in Tucson. "I'm now ready to play again," said the new dad, who had reconstructive surgery on his left knee.
Hidden RAT Spoils Obama's Stimulus Bill
Washington Examiner
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Feb 19, 2009 6:37 PM CST
(Newser) -
Hidden away in the $787 billion stimulus bill is a lousy provision that threatens to inject politics into the jobs of supposedly independent government watchdogs, writes Byron York of the Washington Examiner . The bill creates something called the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board—the RAT board to the few who know of it. From...
Argentina to Holocaust Denier: Get Out
Times (UK)
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Feb 19, 2009 6:12 PM CST
(Newser) -
Maybe the Vatican has an extra room. Argentina today ordered the Holocaust-denying Catholic bishop to leave the country in 10 days, the Times of London reports. Bishop Richard Williamson triggered an international outcry when he made his claims about the Holocaust in a TV interview, then got accepted back into the church by Pope Benedict. The...
Airline Warned of Runway Glitch Before Buffalo Crash
CNN
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Feb 19, 2009 5:51 PM CST
(Newser) -
Add this to the mix in the Buffalo plane crash: Southwest Airlines warned its pilots just weeks ago about a landing glitch involving the same runway the Continental flight was destined for, CNN reports. It seems an earthen dam near the runway interferes with signals in a so-called instruments landing, used during low visibility. The glitch could cause...
Oscar Win Is No Career Boost
Reuters
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Feb 19, 2009 5:34 PM CST
(Newser) -
That gold-plated statuette actors take home Oscar night may as well be a parting gift from Hollywood. Past winners—like Nicole Kidman, Halle Berry, and Adrien Brody—have had little luck at the box office in subsequent years, Reuters reports. The problem, says one film critic, is that the winners usually get flooded with lucrative project...
McDonald's Won't Pay Hospital Bills of Hero Employee
Arkansas Times
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Feb 19, 2009 5:18 PM CST
(Newser) -
It doesn't pay to be a hero, sometimes. A McDonald's employee who stepped in to prevent a man from beating up a woman in the restaurant got shot multiple times and ended up with $300,000 in medical bills. Now McDonald's says it's won't pay up because his injuries "did not arise out of or within the course and scope of his employment," the...
Seth Rogen: Playboy Cover Model
New York Daily News
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Feb 19, 2009 4:52 PM CST
(Newser) -
Seth Rogen is about to join a very selective club: Playboy is putting him on the cover of its April issue, the Daily News reports. That's an honor shared by fewer than 10 men, including Jerry Seinfeld and Steve Martin. Readers who don’t buy Playboy for the articles will be happy to know that Rogen’s cover also will feature model...
Protesters Picket Post After Chimp Cartoon
Newsday
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Feb 19, 2009 4:32 PM CST
(Newser) -
Hundreds of protesters led by the Rev. Al Sharpton assembled outside the New York Post ’s headquarters today to condemn the paper's now-infamous chimpanzee cartoon, Newsday reports. Protesters called for a boycott and vowed to return tomorrow. They insist it's a racist slam against President Obama, while the paper calls it a "clear parody."...
FBI Finds Stanford in Virginia
ABC News
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Feb 19, 2009 4:11 PM CST
(Newser) -
Manhunt over: FBI agents located fugitive financier Sir R. Allen Stanford near Fredericksburg, Va., today and served him with civil legal papers on behalf of the SEC. Stanford, accused of bilking investors of $8 billion, is not under arrest and remains free. He did, however, turn over his passport to authorities and promised not to flee, ABC News...
U2's $31M Spider-Man Musical Hits Delays
Bloomberg
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Feb 19, 2009 4:01 PM CST
(Newser) -
Spider-Man has hit more snags en route to its debut as a Broadway musical, Bloomberg reports. Rehearsals for the U2-scored production, set to begin this spring, have been postponed indefinitely. With its budget currently at $31.3 million, the Spidey musical is the most expensive Broadway show ever, and costs could balloon to as much as $40 million....
Obama, Harper Launch 'Clean Energy Dialogue'
Globe and Mail
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Feb 19, 2009 3:40 PM CST
(Newser) -
President Obama and PM Stephen Harper today announced an environmental partnership between the US and Canada, the Globe and Mail reports. Harper spoke of a “clean energy dialogue” between top officials to “collaborate on the development of clean energy science and technology.” Said Obama, who was making his first trip...
Dow Drops to 6-Year Low
MarketWatch
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Feb 19, 2009 3:22 PM CST
(Newser) -
Stocks fell again today, with the Dow sinking to its lowest point in six years, MarketWatch reports. The usual financials led declines, with poor results from Fifth Third Bancorp souring sentiment. The Dow fell 89.68 points to close at 7,465.95. The Nasdaq lost 25.15 points, closing at 1,442.82, and the S&P 500 shed 9.48 points, settling at 778.94....
Gregg Flap Sheds Light on Perennial Census Battle
New York Times
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Feb 19, 2009 3:21 PM CST
(Newser) -
Judd Gregg’s flirtation with the top job at Commerce has brought the partisan battle over the US Census to the fore with just a year to go before before the official count, the New York Times reports. Most Americans may not think of the census as a political tool, but it helps determine representation, districting, and federal dollars. Republicans...
Obama Should Draft Krugman
Boston Phoenix
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Feb 19, 2009 3:11 PM CST
(Newser) -
Barack Obama’s economic team so far has failed to inspire confidence, writes Steven Stark for the Boston Phoenix . Instead of Geithner and Summer, Obama should pick a new man to lead the charge on the financial crisis: Appoint Paul Krugram, Nobel laureate and economics columnist for the New York Times , as top economic adviser.
Feds Hit Blago's Wife With Subpoena
Chicago Sun-Times
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Feb 19, 2009 2:57 PM CST
(Newser) -
Federal investigators subpoenaed Patti Blagojevich today, requiring the former first lady of Illinois to supply documents concerning the corruption charges against her husband, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Blagojevich is said to have complied with the subpoena, which demanded that she provide information on more than 40 people or entities, ranging...
Let the Coffins Be Seen
Cleveland Plain Dealer
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Feb 19, 2009 2:43 PM CST
(Newser) -
The ban on media at Dover Air Force Base when America’s war dead come home ignores the very rights they died fighting for, and it should be lifted, Connie Schultz writes for the Cleveland Plain Dealer . “Supporters of the Iraq war have long argued that media images of the fallen are nothing more than political statements,” Schultz...
Octuplets' Birth Certificates List No Dad
TMZ
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Feb 19, 2009 2:31 PM CST
(Newser) -
The birth certificates of most of Nadya Suleman’s children list no father, TMZ reports, though all 14 kids have the surname Solomon. A "David Solomon"—who may be from Israel, based on a liberal interpretation of the documents—is listed as the father of four of Suleman’s first six children, but with four different...
Crazed Chimp Had Troubled History
Associated Press
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Feb 19, 2009 2:18 PM CST
(Newser) -
Travis, the Connecticut chimpanzee who was killed after he viciously attacked his owner’s friend, had a history of violence, the AP reports. A woman says he bit her hand in a 1996 incident, and then tried to pull her into a car. Leslie Mostel-Paul says she contacted police, to no avail. “If they had followed through,” she said, “maybe...
How We Can Get Rid of This Guy
Salon
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Feb 19, 2009 2:02 PM CST
(Newser) -
Even with everyone in sight calling for his head, even after he’s been caught lying multiple times about his appointment, Roland Burris seems determined not to step down. But there is a quick way to be rid of him, law professor Garrett Epps writes for Salon: The Illinois legislature could call a special election, pronto. “It would be the...
Dentists Feel No Pain in Recession
Time
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Feb 19, 2009 1:51 PM CST
(Newser) -
Clenched jaws abound during this recession, and a combination of stress-related damage and layoff victims rushing to be treated before they lose their insurance is helping keep dentistry afloat as the economy dives. Dentist's offices last year reported the highest profit margins of any industry, including top moneymakers like accounting and legal services,...
