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.
Coach Quits After Facebook Flirting With 14-Year-Old
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Feb 17, 2009 2:53 PM CST
(Newser) -
An Atlanta gym teacher is the subject of a criminal probe following allegations that he sent “inappropriate messages” via Facebook to a 14-year-old female student, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The girl’s sister reportedly found the offending messages and told her mother, who contacted police.
Firms Cut Pay Instead of Jobs
Chicago Tribune
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Feb 17, 2009 2:24 PM CST
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Companies looking to cut labor costs are increasingly turning to salary reductions rather than further layoffs in an attempt to save employee morale, the Chicago Tribune reports. One extreme case is Acco Brands in Illinois, which imposed a six-week, 47% reduction for all workers instead of downsizing. "It's an alternative to permanent reductions...
Obama Signs $787B Stimulus
Associated Press
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Feb 17, 2009 1:54 PM CST
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President Obama signed the economic stimulus bill into law today, the AP reports. In a Denver science museum chosen to underscore the bill’s investments in green technology and science education, Obama said he hoped the bill "will ignite our imagination once more, spurring new discoveries and breakthroughs that will make our economy stronger,...
Joy of Cooking a Fatty Read
Los Angeles Times
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Feb 17, 2009 1:32 PM CST
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The venerable Joy of Cooking has kept up with America's expanding waistlines by porking out itself, reports the LA Times . A look at 18 classic recipes from seven editions found calories per serving swelled 63% in all but one recipe between 1936 and 2006. Example: beef stroganoff required 3 tablespoons of sour cream in 1997, but 1 cup in 2006—though...
A-Rod: 'I Knew We Weren't Taking Tic-Tacs'
Associated Press
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Feb 17, 2009 1:16 PM CST
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A-Rod faced reporters in New York today to, in his words, “take my medicine.” He said he was injected by his cousin, with a substance that was legal in the Dominican Republic. “It was very amateur hour,” he said. “We probably didn’t even take it right.” He also said he’d taken a drug test before the news...
Now-Rare Malia, Sasha Dolls Go for $3K
New York Daily News
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Feb 17, 2009 12:53 PM CST
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Now off the market, Ty’s “Marvelous Malia” and “Sweet Sasha” dolls are going for $3,000 a pop on eBay, the New York Daily News reports. “"I've been selling Beanie Babies all my life and this escapes all reason,” says seller Richard Lee. The toys were yanked from shelves after Michelle Obama slammed Ty...
On Stimulus, White House Kept Congress Close
Wall Street Journal
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Feb 17, 2009 12:36 PM CST
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President Obama promised a new spirit of cooperation in Washington, and in his relationship with Congress, he did his best to deliver, the Wall Street Journal reports. Obama left congressional leaders wide leeway in crafting the stimulus bill and stayed in close touch with members. Joe Biden stayed on pivotal senators like Susan Collins, calling...
Sorry, Greenies, Americans Still Like Sprawl
New York Times
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Feb 17, 2009 12:10 PM CST
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When urban planners dream, they dream that Americans will give up on the suburbs in favor of a dense, environmentally friendly, less auto-dependent lifestyle. And it’s never going to happen, David Brooks writes in the New York Times. “Amsterdam is a wonderful city, but Americans never seem to want to live there.” According to a...
'Clueless' Chris Brown's Spin Doctor Will Win Him No Points
Fox News
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Feb 17, 2009 12:00 PM CST
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It’s not surprising that “19 and clueless” Chris Brown needs help doing damage control, but the PR flack he hired to disentangle him from his domestic violence mess will “win Brown no points in public,” writes Roger Friedman for Fox News. Mike Sitrick, Paris Hilton’s spin doctor, “is universally disliked by...
Oil Slips Below $35 a Barrel
Associated Press
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Feb 17, 2009 11:47 AM CST
(AP) -
A new batch of lousy economic news dragged oil prices down nearly 8% today as signs from across the globe pointed to a prolonged and painful recession. Light, sweet crude for March delivery fell $2.87 to $34.64 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after settling at $37.51 on Friday. Nymex was closed yesterday.
SEC Accuses Texas Firm of 'Massive Fraud'
Bloomberg
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Feb 17, 2009 11:43 AM CST
(Newser) -
The SEC today accused Robert Allen Stanford, head honcho of Stanford Financial group, of running a “massive, ongoing fraud,” and roughly 40 policemen and other law enforcement officials raided the group’s Houston headquarters. The group sold $8 billion in certificates of deposit with abnormally high rates of return, and its explanation...
Long Island Lolita a Stripper at Last
New York Post
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Feb 17, 2009 11:37 AM CST
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In what many will probably see as reaching her ultimate destiny, the Long Island Lolita and accidental porn star has laid bare her plans to become a stripper, the New York Post reports. Not just a stripper, but a high-paid, touring-the-country stripper. “I am going to take this road until my fans tell me, ‘Dear, please put your clothes...
Obama Gets Rail Rolling With $8B Stimulus
Politico
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Feb 17, 2009 11:31 AM CST
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America's railways are about to get a huge handout: At today's signing of the stimulus package, $8 billion will be allocated to high-speed rail. Though the money will be divvied up according to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood's master plan, the expansion is truly President Obama's pet project, reports Politico. "The president wanted to have...
DC Dems Look for Ill. to Act on Burris
Politico
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Feb 17, 2009 11:25 AM CST
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As further concerns emerge about Illinois Sen. Roland Burris’ ties to Rod Blagojevich, DC Democrats hoping to escape the former governor’s shadow are hoping Illinois will address the problem for them, Politico reports. Burris has acknowledged Blago contact that he hadn’t mentioned earlier, and while the senator says he’s done...
New Procedure Uses Athletes' Own Blood to Heal Them
New York Times
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Feb 17, 2009 11:13 AM CST
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Before the Super Bowl, Hines Ward and Troy Polamalu got a dose of an exciting new medicine: their own blood. They join at least one Major League pitcher, 20 pro soccer players, and many more casual athletes as early adopters of platelet-rich plasma therapy, a shockingly simple new procedure that proponents say could revolutionize sports medicine and...
Birth Defects, IVF Linked, but How Linked?
New York Times
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Feb 17, 2009 11:03 AM CST
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Though the octuplets have pushed in vitro fertilization into the spotlight, there's still one question that's going largely unasked, reports the New York Times: "What is the chance that an IVF baby will have a birth defect?" Though a November study provided preliminary evidence—of 9,584 babies with birth defects, 2.4% were conceived...
Moss Not Preggo, Just Bustier
New York
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Feb 17, 2009 10:36 AM CST
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Kate Moss isn’t pregnant, she’s just grown boobs, she tells New York magazine. “I’ve just started wearing bras. It’s a miracle. I am a woman now!” says the model, who can finally fill a B-cup. “Even my friends are phoning me up and saying ‘Are you pregnant?’ And I’m like, ‘No! I just...
Rival Labs Fight Like Hell to Find 'God Particle'
BBC
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Feb 17, 2009 10:24 AM CST
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The US-based Fermilab is gaining ground on Europe's CERN in the race to discover the Higgs boson, the elusive prize of particle physics, reports the BBC. While the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland remains out of order, Fermilab's facility in Chicago has been cranked up. At a recent conference, the director of the American facility predicted...
Octuplet Mom Rules Out Reality Show
Access Hollywood
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Feb 17, 2009 10:11 AM CST
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Is a reality show in octu-mom Nadya Suleman’s future? “No, I think that's exploitation of my kids,” she told TMZ. Good thing that's her attitude, because yet another PR firm has denied having ties with the mother of 14, reports Access Hollywood . The president of Ambassador Agency, which represents the McCaughey septuplets, refuted...
Last-Minute Switch Doomed Geithner Speech
Washington Post
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Feb 17, 2009 9:47 AM CST
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Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner was supposed to ride in on a white steed and save our financial system—only as he made his charge, the would-be knight got thrown from his horse and landed with a thud. Now the Washington Post reports that Geithner changed course only days before rolling out his bank plan, abandoning the one he’d been developing....
Jacko Bro Plans Slavery Theme Park
Telegraph (UK)
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Feb 17, 2009 9:32 AM CST
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Michael Jackson's big brother Marlon wants to bring tourists to Nigeria by building a $3.4 billion resort—complete with an ever-so-slightly controversial slavery theme park, a replica slave ship, oh, and a Jackson Five exhibit, the Telegraph reports. Visitors to the park, located in Badagry, the departure point for thousands of slaves, can...
Cheney Furious at Bush for Not Pardoning Libby
New York Daily News
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Feb 17, 2009 9:26 AM CST
(Newser) -
Dick Cheney is furious that President Bush wouldn’t listen when he repeatedly pushed for a last-minute pardon for Scooter Libby, the New York Daily News reports. The ex-VP “went to the mat and came back and back and back at Bush” for a full pardon, said one close to Cheney. "He was still trying the day before Obama was sworn...
Coffee: Good? Bad? Whatever. Just Don't Smoke
Chicago Tribune
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Feb 17, 2009 9:12 AM CST
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It can seem impossible to sort through the health news that comes out every day: Is coffee good for you? Is it bad? Does this or that give you cancer? The best solution, for now, may just be not to worry about it, Trine Tsouderos writes in the Chicago Tribune . Specific studies that seem to reveal a lot about a particular habit really don’t...
A-Rod's V-Day Treat: 5 Ladies
New York Post
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Feb 17, 2009 9:05 AM CST
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Alex Rodriguez may be having image troubles, but it doesn’t seem to have hurt him with the ladies: He spent Valentine’s weekend with a total of five women, the New York Post reports. He spent Friday night with Madonna buddy Ingrid Casares at a Miami Beach restaurant, hung out during the day Saturday with model Melissa Britos, and went...
GOP Guvs Break With Party on Obama Stimulus
New York Times
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Feb 17, 2009 9:03 AM CST
(Newser) -
Barack Obama’s relationship with DC Republicans is on the rocks, but he couldn’t be getting along better with GOP governors, reports the New York Times . Why? Follow the money. Struggling to balance their budgets, the governors don’t care which party help comes from. “The essence of a recovery package is essential to get our...
Stocks Plummet on Global Panic
Wall Street Journal
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Feb 17, 2009 8:54 AM CST
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Stocks fell at the open, as investors continued to fret about the financial system. The Dow dropped 150 points, while the Nasdaq and S&P lost around 2.9% each. The declines follow similar losses overseas, with the Nikkei down 1.4%, the Shanghai Composite down 2.9% and the FTSE 100 down 2%. Gold climbed to a 7-month high as traders scrambled for...
DOJ Pulls Prosecutors Off Stevens Case
Politico
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Feb 17, 2009 8:46 AM CST
(Newser) -
The Justice Department has yanked the team that prosecuted Ted Stevens off any future action in the case, Politico reports, after the judge found four of the lawyers—including chief prosecutor Brenda Morris—in contempt. Morris and company raised the judge’s ire by withholding documents related to FBI agent Chad Joy’s accusations...
Oil's Plunge Trouble for Palin
Associated Press
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Feb 17, 2009 8:37 AM CST
(AP) -
Sarah Palin's first two years as Alaska's governor were a time of milk, honey, and crude, with sky-high oil prices pumping wealth into the state. The second half of her term isn't looking so rosy. The rapid decline of oil prices has left the state with a looming budget shortfall of up to $1.5 billion. That could have political repercussions for the...
Brokerages Get Tough on B-List Hedge Funds
Wall Street Journal
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Feb 17, 2009 8:30 AM CST
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Brokerage firms are cutting their financing and support to hundreds of hedge funds, reports the Wall Street Journal , delivering a further blow to what was the highest-flying sector of American finance. As they attempt to shore up their own positions, the banks are dividing their hedge fund clients into two categories: ones that can probably ride...
S. African Crew Held in $360K Coke Haul
BBC
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Feb 17, 2009 8:08 AM CST
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A South African Airways crew was arrested at Heathrow Airport yesterday after officials found almost $360,000 worth of cocaine on their plane, the BBC reports. Officers seized some 11 pounds of the drug from a suitcase stowed aboard the flight from Johannesburg. The 15 crew members, now in custody, will face questioning; crews are checked just like...
Aso Will Be First Foreign Leader to Visit Obama
Wall Street Journal
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Feb 17, 2009 7:54 AM CST
(Newser) -
Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso will head to Washington next week to discuss the economy with President Obama, Hillary Clinton announced today. It will be the first time Obama welcomes a foreign leader to the White House. The meeting was billed as a “bilateral summit” that will show that “the world’s largest economy and its...
Dead Girl, 16, Found in Army Barracks
News Tribune (Tacoma, Wash.)
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Feb 17, 2009 7:49 AM CST
(Newser) -
A 16-year-old girl was found dead and another girl the same age was found unconscious in an Army barracks at Fort Lewis, Wash., early Sunday, the Tacoma News-Tribune reports. The girls were found by emergency personnel responding to a 911 call. A soldier who allegedly knew at least one of the girls has been questioned but not detained.
Gillibrand Moves Twin Rifles From Under Her Bed
Newsday
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Feb 17, 2009 7:30 AM CST
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After admitting in an interview that she and her husband kept a pair of rifles under her bed—to protect their upstate home—New York's new senator, Kirsten Gillibrand, has moved the weapons, Newsday reports. “Given that the location of the guns has been disclosed, they have been moved for security reasons,” said a rep. She...
Crashed Subs Carried '1200 Hiroshimas'
Independent (UK)
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Feb 17, 2009 7:15 AM CST
(Newser) -
British lawmakers are demanding to know how the flagships of the British and French nuclear submarine fleets—each carrying missiles with enough power for 1,250 Hiroshima bombings—managed to collide earlier this month, the Independent reports. Defense sources say the crash was just incredibly bad luck, but experts are amazed that sonar...
Taliban Target Pakistanis With Relatives in US
New York Times
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Feb 17, 2009 7:01 AM CST
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The Taliban have developed a new tactic as they grow stronger in Pakistan: kidnapping and intimidating Pakistanis with relatives in the US. Immigrants are targeted through their families for money or as punishment for perceived political dissent, reports the New York Times . This creates a vexing paradox for Pakistanis in the US, whose American income...
Bristol: Mom Clueless About Teenage Sex
New York Daily News
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Feb 17, 2009 6:53 AM CST
(Newser) -
Sarah Palin doesn't have a clue about teenage sexuality, her 18-year-old daughter, Bristol, indicated in a Fox News interview last night. The former VP candidate backs teen sexual abstinence, but that's just "not realistic at all," the teen mom told Greta Van Susteren. And while teenage sex may be a given, resulting pregnancies are no fun,...
Calif. Can't Settle Budget; Guv Will Begin 20K Layoffs
Los Angeles Times
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Feb 17, 2009 6:37 AM CST
(Newser) -
California’s legislature couldn’t agree on a budget by the time it adjourned last night, so even as legislators trudge back to negotiate this morning, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will begin proceedings to lay off 20,000 government workers and halt the 275 state-funded public works projects still in action, the Los Angeles Times reports....
Afghan Civilian Deaths Soar 39%
BBC
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Feb 17, 2009 6:18 AM CST
(Newser) -
Civilian casualties in Afghanistan rose by 39% last year, according to the UN. Some 2,118 Afghans died in 2008, the highest figure since the Taliban were removed from power in 2001. Of those deaths, 55% were blamed on militants, the BBC reports, while 39% resulted from US, NATO, and Afghan forces. NATO, however, has rejected the figures as too...
30 Years Later, Khmer Rouge Goes on Trial
Times (UK)
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Feb 17, 2009 5:44 AM CST
(Newser) -
Thirty years after the end of its reign of terror, the Khmer Rouge went on trial in Cambodia for the first time today. In the dock in Phnom Penh is the commander of the notorious Tuol Sleng prison, which became a symbol of the brutality of Pol Pot's murderous regime. As the Times of London reports, the trial of Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Comrade...
Smooching Gets Kiss-Off in London Rail Station Ban
Independent (UK)
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Feb 17, 2009 5:18 AM CST
(Newser) -
"Mind the Kissing Ban" could become the watchphrase of London train stations just as its subways are known for the "Mind the Gap" warning. Officials have posted signs barring kissing in certain sections of the renovated Warrington Bank Quay station because tarrying lovers are causing too much congestion, reports the Independent...
New Facebook Fine Print Irks Users in Privacy Tug-of-War
New York Times
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Feb 17, 2009 4:46 AM CST
(Newser) -
An outcry over a terms of service change has forced Facebook's founder to reassure users that they still own and control their own information, the New York Times reports. The update—which remains unchanged—removed a provision that said users could delete their content at any time, and added a clause saying users’ content would...
Liberty Media Nears Sirius Rescue Deal
Financial Times (UK)
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Feb 17, 2009 4:21 AM CST
(Newser) -
Sirius XM may have found its white knight just in time, the Financial Times reports. The deadline for the satellite radio firm to restructure its debt or file for bankruptcy protection is today, and Liberty Media is believed to be readying a last-minute rescue deal that would give it a stake in the company in exchange for $250 million in debt payments....
Pope to Meet With Pro-Choice Pelosi
The Hill
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Feb 17, 2009 3:56 AM CST
(Newser) -
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been granted an audience with Pope Benedict XVI tomorrow, the Hill reports. Pelosi, who describes herself as an "ardent Catholic" but holds views on reproductive rights firmly at odds with the Vatican's position, is on an eight-day official trip to Italy. Vatican officials made it clear she is being received...
Chimp Shot After Vicious Attack on Woman
Stamford Advocate
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Feb 17, 2009 3:33 AM CST
(Newser) -
Connecticut police shot dead a pet chimpanzee yesterday after it critically injured a woman in a vicious attack, the Stamford Advocate reports. The owner of the 200-pound chimp stabbed it with a butcher knife after it leaped on her visiting friend for no apparent reason. A police officer who arrived on the scene shot the animal when it yanked open...
Japan Finance Minister Denies Being Drunk, Quits Anyway
Reuters
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Feb 17, 2009 3:04 AM CST
(Newser) -
Japan's finance chief has announced his resignation amid public ridicule over a news conference where he slurred his words and appeared drunk, Reuters reports. Shoichi Nakagawa, who seemed to fall asleep during the Rome conference of G-7 ministers, denies he was intoxicated and insists the few sips of wine he had reacted badly with cold medicine he...
Muslim TV Founder Confesses to Beheading Wife
CNN
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Feb 17, 2009 2:40 AM CST
(Newser) -
The founder of a Muslim TV network in New York has been charged with beheading his wife in the midst of an acrimonious divorce. Muzzammil Hassan, 44, was busted last week after he told police his wife's body could be found at his Buffalo offices and confessed to her murder, reports CNN. Hassan had a history of domestic violence, according to cops....
Plane's Wreckage Removed to Beat Buffalo Snowstorm
Buffalo News
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Feb 17, 2009 2:16 AM CST
(Newser) -
Crews are working to shift the wreckage of Continental Connection Flight 3407 from the crash site before a snowstorm hits, the Buffalo News reports. Half the wreckage has already been removed and five of the plane's six de-icing valves have been recovered. Investigators hope to determine whether the de-icing system, which had been activated, was...
Collectors Hunt for Obamabilia Treasures
Washington Post
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Feb 17, 2009 1:50 AM CST
(Newser) -
Collectors are sifting through a sea of Barack Obama memorabilia searching for items that will be the gems of the future instead of tomorrow's junk, the Washington Post reports. Vast quantities of knick-knacks, ranging from dancing presidential dolls to Obama mints, have left even experts stumped about what to buy.
Girl's Death Hastened by Fear of Dentists
BBC
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Feb 16, 2009 9:34 PM CST
(Newser) -
A British girl who died in 2005 from dehydration and starvation suffered from a severe fear of dentists that kept her from eating, the BBC reports. Sophie Waller was in and out of the hospital after she refused to eat when teeth came lose, but medical professionals mislaid her case. The child, who appeared to be recovering after the teeth were pulled,...
GM 'Unlikely' to Make Deadline in UAW Talks
Detroit Free Press
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Feb 16, 2009 9:17 PM CST
(Newser) -
General Motors made progress in talks with workers and bondholders today but will probably miss its Tuesday deadline, the Detroit Free Press reports. “Everyone is working around the clock,” a source said, but a deal with bondholders was "not looking very likely." GM is seeking concessions to show Washington that it can...
