Newser Story Index from March, 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.
Transsexual Pregnant With Twins Mid-Sex Change
New York Daily News
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Mar 22, 2009 7:07 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A Spanish transsexual undergoing gender reassignment from female to male is pregnant with twins, reports the New York Daily News. Ruben Coronado interrupted the sex change process for fertility treatments after learning his partner couldn't have more children. Coronado plans to complete the sex change after the twins are born and act as their father....
Jade Goody Dies
CNN
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Mar 22, 2009 6:39 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Controversial British reality-TV star Jade Goody died early this morning of cancer, CNN reports. She passed away in her sleep at her Essex home with her new husband at her bedside. Goody's death, at 27, marks the end of a strange tabloid saga. Diagnosed with cervical cancer on the Indian edition of reality show Big Brother, Goody battled her...
Prez: 'Cheney Stirred US Hatred'
Politico
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Mar 22, 2009 6:11 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Barack Obama yesterday returned a jab from Dick Cheney on terrorism by accusing the former vice president of putting the US at risk by revving up anti-American sentiment, reports Politico. Cheney charged last week that the president's plan to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility increased the risk of a terrorist attack. "How many terrorists...
Knox Beaten By Italian Police: Stepdad
Independent (UK)
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Mar 22, 2009 5:49 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Accused killer Amanda Knox was repeatedly beaten during an all-night interrogation by Italian police, her stepfather tells the Independent. The American student, charged with murdering her British roommate on a study-abroad program, told police she was in the apartment during the murder—but made the statement after she was hit on the head by...
Huzzahs for Masters of Change
Rolling Stone
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Mar 22, 2009 5:14 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Saying that “change is no longer a dreamy notion but a reality—and a responsibility,” Rolling Stone lists 100 people from all walks of society with “the power of making people think and making them move.” The top five: Barack Obama: “He has a capacity to do so much in the next 8 years that he’ll...
Life's a Beach? Not During Spring Break Recession
Time
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Mar 22, 2009 4:49 AM CDT
(Newser) -
College students are refusing to let the economy throw a wet blanket on spring break, Time reports. They're just not going to the usual—and expensive—spots. Flights to the Caribbean and Cancun have sunk about 20%, as many revelers head for Orlando, Los Angeles or New York instead. “Spring break is a once in a lifetime experience,...
3 Oakland Cops Killed; Another on Life Support
Inside Bay Area (Oakland)
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Mar 21, 2009 11:12 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Three Oakland police officers were shot to death today and a fourth is on life support after two separate incidents with the same man, the Oakland Tribune reports. The first two officers, both motorcycle cops, were shot and killed about 1:15pm after making a traffic stop. The suspect fled on foot, and police tracked him down about two hours later....
Obama: Geithner's Job Is Safe
CBS News
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Mar 21, 2009 10:09 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Barack Obama has a message for those who want Tim Geithner out at Treasury: Forget about it. And if Geithner himself decides he's had enough and tries to resign, the president has a ready answer: "Sorry, Buddy, you've still got the job." In an interview with 60 Minutes that airs Sunday night, Obama also said that Wall Street honchos need...
4 Oakland Cops Shot, Critically Injured
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 9:33 PM CDT
(AP) -
Four officers were in critical condition tonight and a suspect dead after gunfire at a traffic stop in Oakland led to a massive manhunt that ended in a shootout. Two officers were shot in the first incident just after 1pm after they stopped the suspect's vehicle in east Oakland. He then fled on foot, and police found him in barricaded building about...
New Obama Plan Aims to Control Exec Pay
New York Times
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Mar 21, 2009 7:51 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The White House will roll out a plan next week to oversee executive pay and more deeply regulate Wall Street, the New York Times reports. Officials are still debating the details, but under the proposal, the Fed will supervise compensation at financial firms, banks, and other companies—even ones that don't take bailout funds. Officials will...
Muscled and Svelte, New Camaro Is No Meathead
Time
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Mar 21, 2009 7:36 PM CDT
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General Motors hopes to muscle its way back from the brink of bankruptcy by reintroducing the Chevrolet Camaro, a macho stud-machine that is flexed to impress, Joseph Szczesny writes in Time . “The new Camaro goes well beyond the old-fashioned ‘Detroit iron’ of the 1960s and '70s,” writes Szczesny, who test-drove the growler...
Let's Stop Dumbing Down Michelle
Economist
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Mar 21, 2009 7:30 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Our infatuation with Michelle Obama's arms and spiffy outfits is becoming dangerously dumb, the Economist writes. And no, it's not all the fault of New Yorker covers or Oprah-style adulation. The buck stops on Pennsylvania Avenue, where political groomers fear a backlash if they unveil the real Michelle—the Harvard/Princeton grad who delivered...
Supreme Court Will Rule on Hillary Documentary
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 7:04 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Supreme Court judges will go the movies next week when they hear arguments about a feature-length film on Hillary Clinton, the AP reports. Screened in eight theaters during the presidential campaign, Hillary: the Movie fizzled after federal courts said the scathing documentary and its commercials amounted to campaign ads. Citizens United,...
'Nova Ends UCLA's Final Four Run
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 6:44 PM CDT
(AP) -
The Wildcats had it all the way. Dante Cunningham scored 18 points Saturday, helping Villanova reach the round of 16 for the fourth time in 5 years with an 89-69 victory over UCLA that ended the Bruins' bid for a fourth straight Final Four appearance. Corey Fisher and Reggie Redding each had 13 points for the third-seeded Wildcats (28-7), who will...
Dem Groups Loyal to Obama Despite Snubs
Politico
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Mar 21, 2009 5:51 PM CDT
(Newser) -
President Obama is publicly ignoring and even criticizing the liberal interest groups feverishly courted by past presidents. He has chastised the teachers’ union, skipped the State of the Black Union (again), and eschewed fanfare when restoring funding to groups that promote abortion. But activists remain loyal anyway, Politico reports, because...
US Gives Iraq Control of Sunni Guards
Reuters
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Mar 21, 2009 5:23 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Baghdad took control today of 90% of the former insurgents employed by the US military to combat al-Qaeda, Reuters reports. Turnover of the roughly 84,000 “Awakening Council" Sunnis, who were paid about $300 a month to patrol neighborhoods, will test Iraqi reconciliation as the US prepares to withdraw combat troops by August 2010.
Redgrave Sang Lullaby to Dying Daughter
Daily Mail (UK)
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Mar 21, 2009 5:06 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Vanessa Redgrave serenaded Natasha Richardson with a lullaby from The Sound of the Music in her final moments, the Daily Mail reports. Redgrave caressed her daughter’s face as she sang the melody from "Edelweiss," which she had performed for Richardson’s first marriage 19 years ago.
New Solicitor General in Line for High Court
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 4:48 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Elena Kagan became America's first female solicitor general yesterday, putting her one step closer to a possible Supreme Court nomination, the AP reports. As the so-called "10th Supreme Court justice," Kagan will effectively audition for the high court if she argues a Voting Rights Act case next month. Justices will also routinely ask...
NASCAR Fights Empty Seats With Luxury Suites
Washington Post
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Mar 21, 2009 4:28 PM CDT
(Newser) -
With more and more empty seats lining NASCAR races these days, many tracks have decided to slash prices—but not the Texas Motor Speedway. Instead, it’s decided to tear down 21,000 seats and replace them with Nascar’s unique version of the luxury suite: The luxury motor-coach compound. Wealthy RV owners will be able to shell out $15,000...
Astronauts Take 2nd Spacewalk
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 4:02 PM CDT
(AP) -
Astronauts took another spacewalk at the international space station today, this time to lighten the workload for future crews. As soon as they floated outside, Steven Swanson and Joseph Acaba made their way all the way to the end of the space station's power-grid framework. They loosened bolts holding down batteries that will be replaced on the next...
Lobbying Rules Also Ensnare Do-Gooders
Washington Post
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Mar 21, 2009 3:49 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The Obama administration’s strict new rules on lobbying—aimed at stopping stereotypical DC weasels from cashing in—are also tripping up do-gooders, the Washington Post reports. Activists who work for non-profits and charities, many of whom registered as lobbyists for reasons of transparency and have a yen to work in the administration,...
Decriminalize Incest? Romania Is Not Alone
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 3:26 PM CDT
(Newser) -
As the Josef Fritzl case echoes across Europe, Romania is considering a new approach to incest: legalizing it, the AP reports. The Justice Ministry is contemplating the move amid wider legal reforms, arguing that decriminalization would sync its stance with EU members France, Spain, and Portugal. “Not everything that is immoral has to be...
Deadly Acid Spill Forces 5K to Flee
CNN
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Mar 21, 2009 3:04 PM CDT
(Newser) -
About 5,000 people were evacuated from their homes in eastern Pennsylvania today after a tractor-trailer carrying 33,000 pounds of acid flipped over along a state highway, CNN reports. The driver, who swerved to avoid a deer, was initially trapped inside the truck, but has been released from hospital. Authorities have contained the leak of the deadly...
Shopkeeper Testimony Cuts Hole in Knox Alibi
ABC News
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Mar 21, 2009 2:56 PM CDT
(Newser) -
An Italian shopkeeper has contradicted Amanda Knox's claim that she slept in the day after her roommate was murdered, ABC News reports. Marco Quintavalle testified in Italy yesterday that Knox, 21, dropped by his store early on the morning of Nov. 2, 2007—when Knox says she was at the home of her ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito, 24, who is also...
Cuomo Could Capitalize on Wall St. Crisis
New York Times
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Mar 21, 2009 2:33 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Andrew Cuomo’s political career has hit a crossroads, the New York Times reports. The New York attorney general has found his moment, slinging subpoenas at Wall Street like a populist avenger. He’s forced concessions from the rating agencies and student loan lenders, and pried the names of bonus recipients from AIG and Merrill Lynch,...
Craigslist Beats MySpace as Top Search Term
CNET
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Mar 21, 2009 2:09 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Bargain hunters helped Craigslist beat MySpace as the Web’s most popular search term last week, CNET reports. Searches for the classifieds site soared 105%, giving the San Francisco-based company its first ever most-searched-for crown. Business has been booming—bartering is up 100% and roommate ads 65%—but searches for Facebook, which...
Obama 'Kowtowing' to Iran: Kristol
Weekly Standard
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Mar 21, 2009 1:45 PM CDT
(Newser) -
President Obama’s recent address to Iran isn’t just weak, and it doesn’t just backpedal—it’s flat out “kowtowing,” William Kristol writes in the Weekly Standard . Unlike President Bush, Obama shows minimal respect for the Iranian people. Instead, he focuses on extending an olive branch to their repressive...
In Today's Economy, Nannies Must Multitask
Los Angeles Times
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Mar 21, 2009 1:13 PM CDT
(Newser) -
As affluent Americans downsize their household staffs, the once distinct lines between nannies and housekeepers are getting a little fuzzy, the Los Angeles Times reports. More and more, nannies are being asked to scrub the toilets along with watching the kids, and housekeepers are being asked to vacuum with a young charge in tow. “It just doesn't...
Health Care Debate Turns Nastier
Politico
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Mar 21, 2009 12:45 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The claws have come out in the Capitol Hill debate on whether the government should create a public insurance plan to compete with private insurers, Politico reports. One of the first tangible signs begins today with an advocacy group's TV ad campaign against Sen. Charles Grassley in his home state of Iowa. Grassley has been the most vocal opponent...
Alaska and Florida Move to Ban Bestiality
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 12:18 PM CDT
(Newser) -
When a man in Klawock, Alaska, was spotted luring a Labrador into the woods, where he allegedly tied it to a tree and had sex with it, the authorities didn’t have much to charge him with. The DA settled on criminal mischief and theft. But that case, and others like it, have spurred lawmakers in Alaska and Florida—two of the 15 states where...
Krugman on Toxic Assets Plan: 'What an Awful Mess'
New York Times
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Mar 21, 2009 11:51 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Obama administration’s new plan for dealing with toxic bank assets is “creating massive moral hazard,” Paul Krugman blogs in the New York Times . The idea of providing taxpayer money to insure the purchase of possibly worthless assets is equivalent to the poor practices laid bare in the Savings & Loan scandal of the 1980s....
Tyson: I Hear Voices
Guardian (UK)
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Mar 21, 2009 11:33 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Mike Tyson’s handlers want him to stay on task, to talk about his new movie Tyson . The notorious heavyweight has other ideas. “I’ll talk about anything,” he says. “I’m not ashamed of anything I’ve done in my life.” And talk he does, touching on boxing, on women, on the voices he hears in his head. Tyson...
Hit Website in France Revels in Humiliation
Wall Street Journal
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Mar 21, 2009 11:06 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A website inviting users to share tales of misery and humiliation has become one of the most popular sites in France, the Wall Street Journal reports. The editors of "Vie de merde"—roughly, "a crappy life"—sift through about 1,000 submissions a day and post those that strike a chord for being funny, original, touching,...
Palin May Create Fund to Pay $500K in Legal Bills
Anchorage Daily News
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Mar 21, 2009 10:49 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Sarah Palin has racked up more than $500,000 in lawyers' bills defending herself against ethics complaints and may create a legal fund to help pay them off, the Anchorage Daily News reports. The Alaska governor calls the complaints “baseless” and chalks them up to "political blood sport." Six of 10 have been dismissed, one...
Unable to Fix Economy, Hungary's PM Steps Down
Reuters
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Mar 21, 2009 10:32 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Hungary’s Socialist prime minister will step down so that a leader more adept at managing the country’s dire economic straits can take over, Reuters reports. “I hear that I am the obstacle to the cooperation required for changes,” Ferenc Gyurcsany told a meeting of his party. “I am eliminating this obstacle now.”...
AIG Bonuses Higher Than Thought: $218M
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 10:25 AM CDT
(Newser) -
AIG documents show the firm paid out $218 million in bonuses—higher than the $165 million that had been disclosed, says Connecticut’s attorney general. The papers show five at the firm scored bonuses of more than $4 million, said Richard Blumenthal, whose office received the papers last night after issuing a subpoena, the AP reports. The...
North Korea Confirms It's Holding 2 US Reporters
New York Times
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Mar 21, 2009 10:12 AM CDT
(Newser) -
North Korea today confirmed it is detaining two American journalists on charges of “illegally intruding” into the communist nation, the New York Times reports. The reporters, both from Al Gore’s Current TV station, were reporting along the river border between China and Korea when they were apprehended. “A competent organ...
FDA OKs Drug for Kids Despite Justice Probe
Reuters
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Mar 21, 2009 9:42 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The FDA has approved an antidepressant called Lexapro for kids, just weeks after the Justice Department accused its maker of marketing it illegally—for kids. Prosecutors say Forest Laboratories for years sweet-talked pediatricians into prescribing Lexapro and the similar Celexa by offering spa visits, event tickets, and fishing trips, even though...
Ground Zero Developer Wants a Bailout
Wall Street Journal
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Mar 21, 2009 9:11 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The long-delayed rebuilding at the World Trade Center site has hit another snag. Private developer Larry Silverstein is asking for financial help from the government—specifically, the already strapped Port Authority, the Wall Street Journal reports. Sources think the agency is so eager to avoid more delays it will help with financing on at...
Pope to Angolans: Convert Witchcraft Believers
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 8:47 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Pope urged Catholics in Angola to reach out and convert witchcraft believers frightened by “evil powers,” the AP reports. “In today's Angola, Catholics should offer the message of Christ to the many who live in the fear of spirits,” a fear that can lead them to “condemn street children and even the most elderly because—they...
Gene Discovery Lets Mice Gorge on Carbs, Stay Thin
Los Angeles Times
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Mar 21, 2009 8:33 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Yet another breakthrough for mice: Genetic researchers have found a way to allow them to eat all the carbs they want and not get fat, reports the Los Angeles Times . The scientists turned off a gene in the liver that plays a role in turning excess glucose into fatty acids. When two groups of mice were fed an all-carb, low-fat diet, the ones without...
Jet Tail Hits Australian Runway on Takeoff
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 7:42 AM CDT
(AP) -
The tail of an Emirates jetliner carrying more than 225 people slammed into the runway as it took off from Melbourne, Australia, last night, sending smoke into the cabin and forcing the pilot to make an emergency landing. No one was hurt, but passengers described being terrified after learning something was wrong soon after the Airbus A340 bound for...
Palin Rips Obama for Special Olympics Comment
Christian Science Monitor
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Mar 21, 2009 7:31 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Sarah Palin has waded into the fray over President Obama's Special Olympics clunker, the Christian Science Monitor reports. The Alaska governor, whose youngest son has been diagnosed with Down Syndrome, said she was shocked to hear Obama say his bad bowling "was like the Special Olympics." She called the quip a "degrading remark about...
Iran's Supreme Leader Slams Obama Overture
Associated Press
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Mar 21, 2009 7:18 AM CDT
(AP) -
Iran's Supreme Leader dismissed overtures from President Obama today, saying Tehran does not see any change in US policy under its new administration. Responding to Obama's video message reaching out to Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said there will be no change between the two countries unless the American president brings "real changes" in...
Michelle Talks Fashion, Food, Fitness
New York Times
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Mar 21, 2009 6:51 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Barack Obama pays as much attention to his wife’s wardrobe as the media does, Michelle Obama tells the New York Times in an interview on life in the Obama household. "He’s always asking: ‘Is that new? I haven’t seen that before,’ the first lady said. "It’s like, ‘Why don’t you mind your own...
Feds Seize Wholesale Credit Unions
Bloomberg
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Mar 21, 2009 6:19 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Federal regulators have taken control of two major wholesale credit unions, which provide services to thousands of credit unions nationwide, to stabilize the industry, Bloomberg reports. The institutions, which have combined assets of $57 billion, failed the so-called stress test, showing an unacceptably high level of risk from mortgage-backed securities....
Toxic Asset Plan to Offer Subsidies to Investors
Wall Street Journal
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Mar 21, 2009 6:08 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Treasury will unveil a plan to take up to $1 trillion in mortgage-backed securities and other troubled assets from financial institutions early next week, the Wall Street Journal reports. The plan, the cornerstone of efforts to rescue the banking system, calls for the creation of an entity to buy and hold bad loans and relies heavily on private...
Sugar Makes Comeback on Corn Syrup's Bad Rep
New York Times
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Mar 21, 2009 5:50 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Sugar, once a nutritional outcast, is back in fashion as American consumers start to turn away from high-fructose corn syrup, the New York Times reports. Manufacturers are rushing to replace the syrup—used in everything from soft drinks to spaghetti sauces—with sugar, and selling the switch as a move to a more natural, healthier, "retro"...
Richardson Rejected Ski Helmet
Sun (UK)
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Mar 21, 2009 5:15 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Natasha Richardson turned down a $10 ski helmet that could have saved her life, workers at the Mont Tremblant ski resort tell the Sun . Employees say the actress was cheerful but a little nervous ahead of the ski lesson that led to her fatal fall. She told staff she wasn't a good skier but declined the offer to rent protective headgear.
NJ Scrubs Plan to Ban Brazilian Bikini Waxes
Chicago Tribune
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Mar 21, 2009 4:26 AM CDT
(Newser) -
New Jersey has ripped up a plan to forbid the state's salons from offering Brazilian waxes, reports the Chicago Tribune . A state panel was moving towards banning the procedure—which involves the full removal of hair “down there”—after reports of injuries, but the state's consumer affairs chief decided to focus on better training...
