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 Make Modest Gains
Wall Street Journal
|
Feb 23, 2009 8:46 AM CST
(Newser) -
Stocks went modestly higher at the open today, with the Dow up about 60 points and the Nasdaq and S&P gaining 0.5% and 0.9% respectively, driven by big gains in financials. Citigroup was up 18%, after the Wall Street Journal reported that the government might convert its preferred shares into common equity, which would give it a 25%-40% stake...
GOP Guvs Right to See Stimulus Cash as 'Trap'
Wall Street Journal
|
Feb 23, 2009 8:40 AM CST
(Newser) -
Five Republican governors are threatening to turn down much of their stimulus windfall, afraid of taking addictive doses of spending on education, welfare, and health care that the states would have to shoulder in 2011 and beyond. And they're right to worry, the Wall Street Journal says. Take enrolling new families in Head Start, for instance: “There’s...
Holder Makes Solo Visit to Guantanamo
Associated Press
|
Feb 23, 2009 8:36 AM CST
(AP) -
Eric Holder is en route to the US prison at Guantanamo Bay, reports the AP, as the government weighs what is needed to shut the facility down. No news reporters are accompanying the attorney general on the flight, and it remains unclear if Holder will open any of his visit to press coverage. During the 2008 campaign President Obama repeatedly...
Supreme Court Needs Term Limits: Legal Eagles
Washington Post
|
Feb 23, 2009 8:26 AM CST
(Newser) -
The US judicial system is in need of a serious overhaul, law experts write in a letter to congressional leaders. They argue that Supreme Court justices shouldn’t keep their posts for life, instead taking 18-year terms before a shift in status, the Washington Post reports. Further, they say, the justices shouldn’t be allowed to decide...
It's Carnival! (But Crisis Hangover Looms)
AFP
|
Feb 23, 2009 8:21 AM CST
(Newser) -
Wednesday is the start of Lent, but until then millions are sambaing in the streets of Brazil in the days-long bacchanal known as Carnival. While the celebrations in Rio de Janiero are as big as ever, the economic crisis is taking its toll on the massive party. Corporate sponsorship for the multimillion-dollar productions has dried up, reports AFP,...
Gitmo Prisoner in Rendition Dispute Arrives in UK
BBC
|
Feb 23, 2009 8:12 AM CST
(Newser) -
The Guantanamo Bay prisoner at the heart of a diplomatic dispute between Britain and the United States has been released and landed in the UK today. Binyam Mohamed alleges he was tortured when the CIA rendered him to Morocco, but a British court decided not to release relevant documents after the government intervened. The BBC reports...
Mumbai Slums Cheer Millionaire
Associated Press
|
Feb 23, 2009 8:07 AM CST
(Newser) -
Children broke into Bollywood dance numbers in the narrow lanes of a teeming Mumbai slum today, as they gathered to watch Slumdog Millionaire's domination of the Oscars. Two of Slumdog 's child actors, Rubina Ali and Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail, hail from this desperately poor neighborhood, and their every appearance elicited squeals of joy from the...
Education Law in Dire Need of New Name
New York Times
|
Feb 23, 2009 7:58 AM CST
(Newser) -
No Child Left Behind has become “the most negative brand in America,” says a congressman, and new Education Secretary Arne Duncan says it’s time for a new name for the law. Educators and jokesters alike are trying their hand at rebranding, the New York Times reports. Proposals range from the Quality Education for All Children Act...
Condi Nabs 3-Book Deal
Associated Press
|
Feb 23, 2009 7:51 AM CST
(AP) -
Condoleezza Rice has agreed to a three-book deal officials say is worth at least $2.5 million, starting with a memoir about her years in the administration of President Bush. The former secretary of State “will combine candid narrative and acute analysis to tell the story of her time in the White House and as America's top diplomat," Crown...
Treasury Seeks Bankruptcy Financing for GM, Chrysler
Wall Street Journal
|
Feb 23, 2009 7:30 AM CST
(Newser) -
Treasury advisers are working to line up $40 billion in financing for General Motors and Chrysler—5 times the size of any previous bankruptcy loan—just in case the two automakers need it, the Wall Street Journal reports. While efforts continue to restructure the companies by other means, the administration is speaking to as many as 70...
Best and Worst of Oscar Night
Associated Press
|
Feb 23, 2009 7:12 AM CST
(Newser) -
Oscar night was filled with highs and lows, from the predictably inspirational moments when Kate Winslet finally won and Heath Ledger’s family received his posthumous award, to the cheap shot of producers cutting to Angelina Jolie’s face during Jennifer Aniston’s presenter speech. More from the Los Angeles Times . Best: Sean...
On First Trip, Clinton Strikes a Blunt Tone
Washington Post
|
Feb 23, 2009 6:55 AM CST
(Newser) -
On her first trip as secretary of state, Hillary Clinton spoke far more frankly than her predecessors about everything from North Korean leadership to the efficacy of US sanctions against Burma. As the Washington Post writes, the Asia trip showcased a blunter, more open style of American diplomacy. But veteran officials say Clinton violated...
Milwaukee's Dolan Named NY Archbishop
New York Times
|
Feb 23, 2009 6:40 AM CST
(Newser) -
The pope today named Timothy Dolan, who leads the archdiocese of Milwaukee, as the new Roman Catholic archbishop of New York. Dolan is 59, relatively young for promotion to such a prestigious seat—which normally comes with an elevation to cardinal. While he is doctrinally conservative, Dolan is less confrontational than many of his traditionalist...
Brown Calls for 'Global New Deal'
CNN
|
Feb 23, 2009 6:13 AM CST
(Newser) -
The world needs to unite on a "global New Deal" to end the economic crisis, Gordon Brown said yesterday at a European summit. The British prime minister, who is chairing April's meeting of the G20, joined colleagues from France and Germany to call for a major overhaul of the world's financial system, including greater international regulation....
YouTubers Dotty Over Bike-Riding Dalmatian
Telegraph (UK)
|
Feb 23, 2009 5:37 AM CST
(Newser) -
The latest video to hit the spot with YouTube fans is footage of a bike-riding Dalmatian in Japan, reports the Telegraph . The dog appears to pedal down the street on a small bike with training wheels, stunning pedestrians. The video has garnered hundreds of thousands of hits, with one viewer remarking that the Japanese "even train their dogs...
US Secretly Training Pakistani Commandos
New York Times
|
Feb 23, 2009 5:07 AM CST
(Newser) -
Dozens of American military advisers and technical specialists are secretly working in Pakistan to train armed forces to battle the Taliban and al-Qaeda, reports the New York Times . The Special Forces soldiers are providing intelligence and advising the Pakistani military on combat tactics, although they are not conducting combat operations. The...
Ledger Award Triggers the Tears
Associated Press
|
Feb 23, 2009 4:40 AM CST
(Newser) -
The most emotional moments at last night's Oscars occurred when Heath Ledger's parents and sister accepted his posthumous award for best supporting actor. Ledger's family said the honor for the actor's portrayal of the Joker—which Kevin Kline hailed as "menacing, mercurial, droll and diabolical"—will be held in trust for his daughter,...
Town Struggles With Prosecution of 'Killer Boy'
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
|
Feb 23, 2009 4:11 AM CST
(Newser) -
Pennsylvania authorities are struggling with how to handle the case of an 11-year-old boy arrested in the murder of his father's pregnant girlfriend. State law allows children over ten to be tried as adults. But the prison warden already wants Jordan Brown moved to a juvenile facility, reports the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review . Prison clothes are so...
Sumatran Tigers Kill 3 in Indonesia
Associated Press
|
Feb 23, 2009 3:47 AM CST
(Newser) -
Sumatran tigers have killed six Indonesians in the last month, including three over the weekend. The latest victims include a father-son pair of illegal loggers who were attacked while they slept in a protected forest, AP reports. Sumatrans are the world's most endangered tiger subspecies. Poaching and forest destruction have left only 250 of...
'Blade Runner' Recovering After Boating Crash
CNN
|
Feb 23, 2009 3:24 AM CST
(Newser) -
Oscar Pistorius, the double-amputee champion sprinter known affectionately as Blade Runner for his carbon-fiber running legs, is recovering from head and face injuries after a boating accident in South Africa. He and his friends were aboard a vessel that hit an unknown object, CNN reports. Pistorius, 22, has since had surgery and still plans to compete...
Philly Inquirer Owner Files for Bankruptcy Protection
Reuters
|
Feb 23, 2009 2:57 AM CST
(Newser) -
The owner of the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Daily News has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to restructure as ad revenues plunge, Reuters reports. Company spokesmen insist operations are "sound and profitable," and managers plan to continue publishing regularly. The announcement came a day after the 20-newspaper chain the...
New Drug Promises to Cure All Flu, From Bird to Seasonal
WebMD
|
Feb 23, 2009 2:36 AM CST
(Newser) -
Researchers have developed a drug cocktail that could provide a cure-all to the flu in all of its forms, WebMD reports. The new antibodies target a part of the virus that has only two known variations, a vulnerability that past vaccines have missed. Drugs mobilizing the new technology could debut by the 2011 flu season, sooner if there's a threatening...
Cairo Blast Kills French Teen, Injures 17 Schoolmates
Times (UK)
|
Feb 23, 2009 2:08 AM CST
(Newser) -
A French teenager was killed and 17 others in her visiting school group were injured when a bomb tucked beneath a bench exploded in a bustling Cairo bazaar last night, the Times of London reports. Police later dismantled a second device in a souvenir market. Three suspects are in custody. French President Nicolas Sarkozy expressed "deep sorrow"...
Taxpayers May Get 40% Stake in New Citi Deal
Wall Street Journal
|
Feb 23, 2009 1:45 AM CST
(Newser) -
Fearing further losses, Citigroup is negotiating with the government to convert part of the public's $45 billion investment in Citi from preferred to common stock, which could give the US up to 40% of the bank at no additional cost. Such a move would boost the bank's capital portfolio while diluting the value of stock held by other Citigroup shareholders,...
Slumdog Wins Best Picture
Associated Press
|
Feb 22, 2009 11:03 PM CST
(Newser) -
In a fast-moving Oscar ceremony tonight, Slumdog Millionaire led the pack with eight awards including best picture and best directing, the Los Angeles Times reports. Sean Penn beat out Mickey Rourke for best actor in the evening's major upset, and Kate Winslet scored gold for her controversial turn in The Reader . Penélope Cruz won for...
Oscar Rolls Out Red Carpet
Associated Press
|
Feb 22, 2009 6:47 PM CST
(Newser) -
Miley Cyrus was one of the first to arrive with her mom, in a flower-petaled Zuhair Murad gown. Mickey Rourke showed in a Jean Paul Gautier tux, accessorized with a photo of Loki, the love-of-his-life dog who died last week. For other highlights from the Oscar red carpet click "image."
Federal Sleuth to Oversee Stimulus Plan
Politico
|
Feb 22, 2009 6:31 PM CST
(Newser) -
President Obama is naming one of Washington's top investigators to oversee spending of the $787 billion stimulus plan, Politico reports. Earl E. Devaney, inspector general of the Interior Department, will head a board overseeing how agencies and departments spend the taxpayers' money. A former fraud investigator, Devaney helped amass evidence on Jack...
Richie to Have Kid No. 2
New York Daily News
|
Feb 22, 2009 6:21 PM CST
(Newser) -
Nicole Richie and boyfriend Joel Madden’s 1-year-old daughter will soon have a new sibling, the New York Daily News reports. Madden made the announcement on his band's website: “What's better than winning an Oscar?" the Good Charlotte drummer wrote. " I am so happy to tell everyone that Harlow is going to be a big sister!”...
Army Charity Hoards Millions as Veterans Suffer
Associated Press
|
Feb 22, 2009 6:10 PM CST
(Newser) -
A US Army charity is hoarding tens of millions of dollars while military families face record foreclosures and long deployments, the AP reports. Designed to dole out cash to veterans in financial crisis, Army Emergency Relief has padded reserves with $117 million and given or lent only $64 million. "I think they could give more," said...
Rare Comet Streaks Into View
Wired
|
Feb 22, 2009 5:44 PM CST
(Newser) -
Comet Lulin will travel into sight tomorrow, says Wired. The rare chance for a glimpse comes as the comet passes 38 million miles from Earth, traveling south-southwest of Saturn and visible to the naked eye at night. NASA astronomers, tracking the comet with the Swift Gamma-Ray Explorer satellite, report that the comet is dumping 800 gallons of water...
'Octu-Dad' Bares Mom's Breast Stunt
Huffington Post
|
Feb 22, 2009 5:42 PM CST
(Newser) -
A sperm donor who believes he fathered all of Nadya Suleman's octuplets said he thinks she was still married when they started dating and she asked him for sperm, reports the Huffington Post. They had been seeing each other just weeks when she took a sample of sperm he had donated at Suleman's home and cushioned it between her breasts, he reports on...
Madea Laughs Up Box Office Win
Entertainment Weekly
|
Feb 22, 2009 5:25 PM CST
(Newser) -
Tyler Perry showed his box office muscle this weekend by grossing $41.1 million with Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail , Entertainment Weekly reports. Perry's biggest opening ever—and Lionsgate's too—roused audiences on a normally slow Oscar weekend. Filling out the top five: Taken ($11.4 million), Coraline ($11 million), He's...
Stanford Bank in Antigua Missing $8B
Times (UK)
|
Feb 22, 2009 5:03 PM CST
(Newser) -
Investigators rummaging around Allen Stanford's Antiguan bank have confirmed media reports that $8 billion is missing, the Times of London reports. “The $8 billion you hear about in the media isn’t there,” one official told customers outside the Stanford International Bank. "It appears to be a Ponzi scheme.”
Dying Reality TV Star Says 'I Do'
BBC
|
Feb 22, 2009 4:37 PM CST
(Newser) -
British reality TV star Jade Goody married fiancé Jack Tweed today in an emotional ceremony near London, the BBC reports. Goody, whose battle with cancer has played out on UK television, shed tears because of "the lovely things that were being said,” she said. Like most recent events in Goody’s life, the wedding was televised: A...
Beheaded Wife Feared Abusive Husband's Wrath
Buffalo News
|
Feb 22, 2009 4:16 PM CST
(Newser) -
Now that authorities have charged Muzzammil Hassan with beheading his wife Aasiya, reports are surfacing that he had beaten her for years, the Buffalo News reports. Local police knew of the violence, but didn't act because Aasiya refused to press charges. “She was afraid she would cause Bridges TV to fail,” said a colleague, of the Muslim...
Nations Move to Breach Whaling Ban
Independent (UK)
|
Feb 22, 2009 3:46 PM CST
(Newser) -
Secret government meetings could usher in a new era of legal commercial whaling for the first time in more than 20 years, the Independent reports. Twenty-eight whaling and anti-whaling nations have met twice to reach a compromise on the ban, which came after the near-extinction of many species. Environmentalists say the plan amounts to “waving...
On the 7th Day, States Look to Down Blue Laws
Time
|
Feb 22, 2009 3:22 PM CST
(Newser) -
Recession blues could swallow blue laws, Time reports. State legislatures in Georgia, Connecticut, Texas, Alabama, and Minnesota hope lifting a ban on Sunday alcohol sales will boost revenues. But Christian activists oppose the move, saying cash-strapped families are already feeling pressure. “I don't think we need to add even more pressure...
Sebelius Mum on HHS Post
Associated Press
|
Feb 22, 2009 2:54 PM CST
(AP) -
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, mentioned as a top candidate for health secretary, said today she has not talked with President Barack Obama about joining his Cabinet. "There really isn't anything to tell. I haven't had any meetings about the position," Sebelius, 60, said in an interview with the AP during the winter meeting of the National...
Greek Convicts Stage Daring Prison Break—Again
BBC
|
Feb 22, 2009 2:34 PM CST
(Newser) -
Two Greek criminals escaped the most secure prison in Athens for the second time, the BBC reports. Vassilis Paleokostas and Alket Rizai fled the Korydallos prison after accomplices picked them up using a helicopter they landed on the building’s roof. The escape is similar to their 2006 breakout, when the pair was picked up by helicopter from...
Hilton, Myers Reign at Razzies
OK!
|
Feb 22, 2009 2:13 PM CST
(Newser) -
While the acting elite fretted over tonight's Oscar ceremony, the Razzies were roasting Hollywood's not-so-elite efforts last night in their annual nod to the worst, OK! reports. Mike Myers won Worst Picture and Worst Actor for The Love Guru , while Paris Hilton grabbed Worst Actress for The Hottie and the Nottie . She also won Worst Supporting...
Brown to Meet With Obama on Economic Crisis
Independent (UK)
|
Feb 22, 2009 1:56 PM CST
(Newser) -
President Obama will host British PM Gordon Brown at the White House next week for their first meeting since the election, the Independent reports. The leaders enjoy “a special partnership,” the White House says, and they’ll discuss the global recession ahead of April’s G20 meeting in London. The news comes as George...
Can Jackman Save Oscar?
Los Angeles Times
|
Feb 22, 2009 1:33 PM CST
(Newser) -
Hugh Jackman has a big weight on his shoulders tonight: carrying an Academy Awards show that cynics are sure is doomed to be ignored by the public and the acting community alike. But producers remain excited that the singing, dancing, not-just-an-action star will lure viewers, and Jackman tells the Los Angeles Times he's keeping things in perspective....
Jokey Bush Applies for, Turns Down Job
BBC
|
Feb 22, 2009 1:03 PM CST
(Newser) -
George W Bush made a surprise visit to the hardware store that published a job offer for him in a Dallas paper, joking that he was "looking for a job." The owner provided him with a jacket and nametag ("W"), and the former president spent an hour trying out the position of store greeter, the BBC reports.
Gibbs Has the Ear of Obama
Time
|
Feb 22, 2009 12:33 PM CST
(Newser) -
Press Secretary Robert Gibbs may be best known these days for deflecting harsh questions in the briefing room, but his advisory role in the administration goes much deeper than that, writes Michael Scherer in Time . “There isn't a single decision that the president has formed in the course of his campaign or the presidency that Robert didn't...
Governator: Obama Needs 'Team Players'
Politico
|
Feb 22, 2009 12:03 PM CST
(Newser) -
Arnold Schwarzenegger is urging politicians of all political stripes to line up behind President Obama. “I feel very strongly that President Obama right now needs team players,” the California governor told ABC’s This Week, noting that partisan wrangling creates “insecurity.” Schwarzenegger also called his fellow Republicans...
Website Lets You Into Harvard—Free
Slate
|
Feb 22, 2009 11:35 AM CST
(Newser) -
No notes, no homework, and you can wear your PJs the entire time you "sit in" on Harvard classes—online. Academic Earth's online classes are "unexpectedly irresistible," Farhad Manjoo writes for Slate. "It's like Hulu, but for nerds." The company's collection of videotaped lectures from schools like Harvard, Yale,...
Did Gitmo Turn 'Lost Kid' Into Suicide Bomber?
Washington Post
|
Feb 22, 2009 11:19 AM CST
(Newser) -
A young Guantanamo inmate described by a lawyer as just "a kid who was lost" ended up bombing an Iraqi army outpost last year, killing 13 soldiers. While he was originally thought to be a low-level Taliban fighter—one of the “least dangerous” at Gitmo—his lawyer says his treatment at the prison fueled his transformation....
Rourke Steals Show at Spirit Awards
BBC
|
Feb 22, 2009 10:31 AM CST
(Newser) -
Mickey Rourke brought the house down with his acceptance speech last night at the Independent Spirit Awards, a 5-minute ramble that ran the gamut from thanking the Santa Monica Police ("for giving me a bed 10 years ago") to praising co-star Marisa Tomei's pole-dancing skills. Rourke praised Wrestler director Darren Aronofsky, and called...
Cardinals Slam Isolated Pope's 'Errors'
Times (UK)
|
Feb 22, 2009 9:35 AM CST
(Newser) -
In an unusual public display of church disharmony, cardinals are pushing back against the pope for being out of touch as controversies swirl over recent decisions, the Times of London reports. The pope spends too much of his day in solitude with his books, critics charge. “People feel that the pope is governing in a very monarchical way,”...
Crazed Chimp's Mom Also Killed in Rampage
New York Daily News
|
Feb 22, 2009 9:09 AM CST
(Newser) -
The mother of the crazed chimpanzee killed last week after critically injuring a Connecticut woman was also shot dead after a rampage, reports the New York Daily News. Suzy the chimp was shot by a Missouri teen in 2001 after she attacked a dog. Meanwhile, another victim of a chimp attack—who lost his jaw, nose, and an eye when a former pet...
