Newser Story Index from May, 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.
Work With Your Hands: It Makes You Honest
New York Times
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May 23, 2009 5:27 PM CDT
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Greasy, sweaty manual labor instills a moral code that middle managers will never understand, Matthew B. Crawford writes in the New York Times . A doctoral graduate in poli-sci, Crawford parroted opinions at a Washington think tank before turning to motor bike repairs. Now he feels a deep satisfaction as customers rev their repaired engines. "It’s...
Mini-Cows Help Ranchers Buck Rising Costs
Los Angeles Times
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May 23, 2009 4:59 PM CDT
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Facing higher feed costs, ranchers aren’t having a cow—they’re merely downsizing them, the Los Angeles Times reports. Mini-cows have become the latest trend on farms around the country, because many eat less and are easier to handle, but produce 50% to 75% the rib-eyes and fillets of their normal-sized brethren. “We get more...
10 Odd Facts About World War II
Chicago Tribune
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May 23, 2009 4:35 PM CDT
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With Memorial Day and the 65th anniversary of Normandy coming up, it's time for a World War II history review. The Chicago Tribune has dug up ten strange facts: Elsie Mitchell and five children died in Gearhart Mountain, Ore., in May 1945, by touching a Japanese "balloon bomb" that had drifted into America. They are the only...
LA Judge Tosses Tyler Blog Suit
NBC Los Angeles
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May 23, 2009 4:14 PM CDT
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A Los Angeles judge dismissed Steven Tyler’s blogger lawsuit yesterday after unnamed suspects failed to show up in court, NBC Los Angeles reports. The Aerosmith frontman couldn't identify the online scribes he accuses of defamation and impersonation—that is, lying about him and his girlfriend, and posing as his dead mother. The judge dismissed...
US Lets Allies Detain, Grill Terror Suspects
New York Times
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May 23, 2009 3:53 PM CDT
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The Obama administration is stepping up its reliance on foreign allies to capture, interrogate, and detain mid-level terror suspects seized outside of Iraq and Afghanistan, the New York Times reports. In the last 10 months, Middle Eastern governments have handled the cases of about six al-Qaeda operatives. “It’s the preferred method now,”...
Dolla Family Rips Claim of Self-Defense
MTV
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May 23, 2009 3:32 PM CDT
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Self-defense played no role in the killing of 21-year-old rap artist Dolla, who was not a gang member, his family tells MTV. Aubrey Berry, 23, pleaded not guilty yesterday to murder and assault charges, saying he shot Roderick Burton in self-defense Monday in Los Angeles. His claim "is very colorful but the fact is that he traveled from Atlanta...
London OKs 10-Ft. Bronze Reagan Statue
Independent (UK)
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May 23, 2009 3:07 PM CDT
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London officials have overcome their distaste for an American artist and approved a 10-foot, bronze statue of President Reagan, the Independent reports. The Westminster City Council also waived a rule delaying statues for 10 years after a figure's death; Reagan died 5 years ago. Nancy Reagan and former PM Margaret Thatcher, both in poor health, will...
S. Korea Shocked by Death of Ex-Prez
BBC
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May 23, 2009 2:40 PM CDT
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South Koreans are reeling from news that former president Roh Moo-hyun has apparently killed himself, the BBC reports. Hundreds of mourners lined the streets as his body was transported to his hometown funeral. Crowds also gathered around Deoksu Palace in Seoul, presenting flowers and burning incense. "Don't be too sad," Roh wrote in...
Deutschland's Donald Duck Quacks Philosophical
Wall Street Journal
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May 23, 2009 2:20 PM CDT
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Donald Duck, German intellectual? The reputation may sound silly to Americans, but Susan Bernofsky explores in the Wall Street Journal how the Donald enjoys popularity in Germany that goes far beyond wacky adventures. In fact, thanks largely to souped-up German translations, he is known better for his complex intellectual opining and for quoting...
Clay to Idol's Adam: Sorry for 'Colorful' Slam
New York Daily News
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May 23, 2009 1:59 PM CDT
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Yesterday, Clay Aiken dismissed fellow American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert as “contrived, awful, and slightly frightening!” But today, Aiken is apologizing for his “colorful (and negative) choice of words,” the New York Daily News reports. “I hope he can forgive me,” Aiken wrote in a lengthy blog post. “I...
'The Shot' by LeBron Has Echoes of Jordan
Cleveland Plain Dealer
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May 23, 2009 1:45 PM CDT
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LeBron James' 3-point bomb at the buzzer last night to beat Orlando is the stuff of legend. In fact, writes Jodie Valade in the Plain Dealer , it invokes another classic shot in Cavaliers' history, this one by Michael Jordan 20 years ago to beat Cleveland. "He was born to do that," said guard Sasha Pavlovic of James. "I believed....
Intern Who Had Affair With JFK to Pen Memoir
New York Times
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May 23, 2009 1:17 PM CDT
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The former lover of John F. Kennedy exposed in 2003 has a deal with Random House to write a memoir, the New York Times reports. Mimi Beardsley worked as a White House intern and had an 18-month affair with the president from 1962 to 1963, starting when she was 19. Beardsley, who now carries the surname Alford, admitted in 2003 that she was “involved...
Town's Stalemate Offers Snapshot of Afghan War
Wall Street Journal
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May 23, 2009 12:49 PM CDT
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A stalemate between US Marines and Taliban fighters in a small, abandoned town in southern Afghanistan could be seen as a microcosm of the war there, Michael M. Phillips writes in the Wall Street Journal . In Now Zad, a 300-strong company of Marines has traded fire with a Taliban force it cannot overcome since last year. But neither can the Americans...
Drug Users Worldwide Fall into 'K-Hole'
GlobalPost
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May 23, 2009 12:28 PM CDT
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“Special K” isn’t part of the most important meal of the day. It’s part of a dangerous trend that’s seeing recreational drug users turn to ketamine, a substance commonly used as a horse tranquilizer, GlobalPost reports. In humans, ketamine induces a hallucinogenic, immobile state. “Everything kind of went into 3D...
WHO Revising Pandemic Standards
New York Times
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May 23, 2009 11:45 AM CDT
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The WHO will revise its policy for announcing the global threat of diseases in response to discontent with their alerts regarding the swine flu outbreak, the New York Times reports. The WHO’s deputy director says the new criteria will include an assessment of actual harm to people, as opposed to the prior emphasis on geographic spread. The...
Hitchhiker Didn't Know Driver— McCartney
Daily Mirror (UK)
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May 23, 2009 11:30 AM CDT
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Is 26 too young to recognize a member of the most popular group in music history? Apparently for some, like the hitchhiker who got picked up by Paul McCartney on the West Indies island of Mustique—and didn’t realize it until Macca started discussing upcoming concerts. “I wasn’t a big Beatles fan and did not recognize him at...
Generals Puzzle Through Surge in Army Suicides
Washington Post
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May 23, 2009 11:13 AM CDT
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Top Army brass are meeting monthly to figure out the disturbing rise in soldier suicides, the Washington Post reports. The generals pore through case studies and examine factors such as solitude, multiple tours of duty, and interactions between anti-depressants and high-caffeine drinks like Rip It popular among soldiers. “It's the most gut-wrenching...
Paris Booted for Bathroom Hook-Up
Daily Mirror (UK)
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May 23, 2009 10:57 AM CDT
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Celebutante Paris Hilton’s latest Cannes antics: Getting kicked off a yacht party for hooking up with her boy toy in the bathroom. Elton John’s partner caught the two “tearing into each other” below deck, a source tells the Mirror , adding that none of the fellow party-goers were sad to see Hilton and Doug Reinhardt go: “Everyone...
Realtors Sue CSI Over Kinky Portrayal
Los Angeles Times
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May 23, 2009 10:46 AM CDT
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Scott and Melinda Tamkin are your average married real estate agents. Unless you watch CSI , in which they are conniving, kinky-sex-loving real estate agents. The couple is suing the producer of a February episode they say is based on a warped version of them, the Los Angeles Times reports. The producer knew the Tamkins from a failed 2005 real estate...
Idol 's Lambert May Front Queen Someday
Rolling Stone
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May 23, 2009 10:20 AM CDT
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Despite high-flying rumors, American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert isn't the new frontman for Queen—yet. But after performing with him on the show's finale, drummer Roger Taylor and guitarist Brian May “are definitely hoping to have a meaningful conversation with him at some point,” May tells Rolling Stone . Though they won’t...
Obama: Court Pick Will Go Beyond 'Ivory Tower' Smarts
Bloomberg
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May 23, 2009 10:05 AM CDT
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President Obama said today he would be announcing his nominee to the Supreme Court “soon” and hopes to have the new justice confirmed by Congress’ August recess, Bloomberg reports. In a C-SPAN interview, Obama laid out his criteria, which includes not only “ivory tower learning” but also empathy. “You have to be...
US, Afghan Forces Kill 60 in Massive Taliban Drug Raid
Reuters
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May 23, 2009 9:43 AM CDT
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US and Afghan forces seized a massive drug cache and and killed 60 militants in a four-day operation in Helmand province, Reuters reports. The troops scored more than 17 tons of morphine, opium, and heroin, along with 75 tons of poppy seeds, and caches of weapons and equipment, the military said.
Colleges Consider Move to 3-Year Degrees
Washington Post
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May 23, 2009 9:28 AM CDT
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A growing number of colleges are looking at ways to cram 4-year degree courses into 3 to help students combat tough times, the Washington Post reports. More than half of teens have changed their college plans because of the economy, according to a recent survey, and many in the world of higher education believe the time has come to rejig the centuries-old...
Passer-by Pushes Would-Be Suicide Off Bridge
BBC
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May 23, 2009 9:00 AM CDT
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China’s Haizhu Bridge has attracted 12 would-be jumpers since April—none jumped, but all caused traffic jams. The latest, Chen Fuchao, was the final straw for Lai Jiansheng: After traffic was stopped for 5 hours by police, Lai broke through a barrier, shook Chen’s hand, and pushed him off the bridge himself—then saluted the...
Tennis Elite No Longer Sees Red Over Clay
Wall Street Journal
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May 23, 2009 8:39 AM CDT
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Clay has long been the red-headed stepchild of the tennis world, with top pros like John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors, and Pete Sampras almost taking pride in never winning a French Open. The term “clay-court specialist” was a veiled insult. Now, though, world No. 1 Rafael Nadal is a clay-court wonder, and elite players have embraced extensive...
Writer Lays Bare World of Naked Yoga
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
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May 23, 2009 8:15 AM CDT
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Naked yoga is about self-confidence rather than sex, Nick Sortal of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel discovered after a foray into a men's nude yoga class. Sortal—who firmly reminded himself he was straight before stripping down and joining his 17 mostly gay classmates in a mirrored room—found the main focus was "learning to be comfortable...
Storms Delay Shuttle for Another Day
Associated Press
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May 23, 2009 8:08 AM CDT
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Thunderstorms in Florida will keep space shuttle Atlantis in space for yet another day, the AP reports. Mission Control canceled all landing attempts for the second straight day at the Kennedy Space Center. The forecast looks clear for tomorrow, so the seven astronauts will try again then rather than heading to California. They're wrapping up a successful...
Supermax Neighbors Fear Gitmo Influx
New York Times
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May 23, 2009 7:59 AM CDT
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People who live near some of America's most notorious killers fear closing Guantanamo Bay will wreck their neighborhood, the New York Times reports. Residents of Cañon City, Colo., close to the Florence "Supermax" prison, worry the detainees will be transferred there, making them a target for terrorists and potentially prompting...
Town Known for Civil Rights Murders Elects Black Mayor
CNN
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May 23, 2009 7:57 AM CDT
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In a town best known for the 1964 killings of three civil rights workers, the election of its first black mayor is more than just noteworthy: It’s “an atomic bomb of change,” says James Young. Young, who remembers being harassed by the Ku Klux Klan, defeated the white, three-term mayor of Philadelphia, Miss., by 46 votes. “It’s...
US Suspects N Korea Regime Shift
Wall Street Journal
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May 23, 2009 7:37 AM CDT
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American officials believe North Korea’s increasingly hostile foreign policy is the result of a power shift quietly taking place in the secretive nation, the Wall Street Journal reports. Analysts note that North Korea withdrew from nuclear talks shortly after Kim Jong Il’s suspected stroke, and say the leader’s brother-in-law and...
Porn King Flynt Sued by Brother
Associated Press
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May 23, 2009 7:00 AM CDT
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Larry Flynt keeps getting embroiled in lawsuits with members of his family. The Hustler publisher’s brother—whose sons are being sued by Flynt for hawking their own line of adult movies under the family name—is accusing Flynt of evicting him from his Hustler retail store to get leverage in the other lawsuit, the AP reports. Brother...
GM Borrows Another $4B From Feds
Wall Street Journal
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May 23, 2009 6:09 AM CDT
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General Motors has borrowed another $4 billion from the Treasury ahead of its June 1 deadline to restructure or face bankruptcy, the Wall Street Journal reports. A statement from the automakers said the loan, which brings the total borrowed to nearly $20 billion, is "to maintain adequate liquidity" during restructuring efforts. GM is widely...
Cheney Hunts Book Deal
New York Times
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May 23, 2009 6:07 AM CDT
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Dick Cheney is seeking as much as $2 million from publishers for a book on his life in politics, the New York Times reports. Insiders say the former vice president, who served in four Republican administrations, is selling the book as not just a look inside the Bush administration, but as a history of "the entire Republican ascendancy going...
Priest: Holocaust's Toll Likely Higher Than Thought
Times (UK)
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May 23, 2009 5:30 AM CDT
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A Catholic priest probing the slaughter of Jews in Eastern Europe believes the Holocaust's true death toll may be far higher than the 5 to 6 million historians have settled on, the Times of London reports. Father Patrick Desbois has spent the last five years methodically investigating mass graves in the former Soviet Union, where the Nazis rounded...
Obama Picks Ex-Astronaut as NASA Chief
Los Angeles Times
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May 23, 2009 4:59 AM CDT
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President Obama will name former astronaut Charles Bolden Jr. as his NASA administrator soon after the Atlantis shuttle returns to Earth this weekend, sources tell the Los Angeles Times . Bolden, a military aviator who flew four shuttle missions, will be the first African-American to lead NASA if he is confirmed by the Senate. Obama's campaign space...
Closures Thwart Man's Goal to Visit Every Starbucks
Wall Street Journal
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May 23, 2009 4:24 AM CDT
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Starbucks' store closure program is giving the chain's biggest fan a bad case of the jitters, the Wall Street Journal reports. The 37-year-old, who calls himself "Winter," has visited more than 9,000 Starbucks stores in a quest that has lasted over a decade, but he now faces a "race against time" as hundreds of stores close on...
Bundchen 'Definitely Pregnant'
Radar
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May 23, 2009 3:47 AM CDT
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The rumors are true and Gisele Bundchen definitely has one in the oven, Radar reports. The supermodel, who married Tom Brady earlier this year, has told close friends that her first child is on the way. The Patriots quarterback has a 1-year-old son from his relationship with ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan.
Prosecutors Unveil DNA Evidence Against Knox
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
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May 23, 2009 3:17 AM CDT
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Italian prosecutors began presenting forensic evidence in Amanda Knox's murder trial yesterday, the S eattle Post-Intelligencer reports. Experts testified that the American's DNA was identified on the knife allegedly used to kill British student Meredith Kercher—who was found with her throat cut in the flat the two shared—and that DNA...
Las Vegas Co. Rents Out Babes Who Can Play
Time
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May 23, 2009 2:31 AM CDT
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For lonely men on the back nine, scantily clad women golfers are just a phone call away, Time reports. Las Vegas-based Play Golf Designs advertises a roster of attractive female players suited for corporate schmooze-fests or bachelor parties on the green. "They'll liven things up," said founder Nisha Sadekar, a former LPGA prospect...
S. Korean Ex-Prez Dies From Fall: Cops
Associated Press
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May 22, 2009 9:45 PM CDT
(AP) -
Former South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun has died, presumably after a fall while mountain climbing, police say. A news report said a suicide note was found. The former leader suffered severe head injuries and died after being transported from his hometown of Gimhae to a hospital in the southern city of Busan, Yonhap news agency said.
Obama Reopens Migration Talks With Cuba
New York Times
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May 22, 2009 7:50 PM CDT
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Reaching out to an old foe and risking political turbulence at home, the Obama administration today scheduled meetings with Cuba on migration between the two nations, the New York Times reports. Officials made the move as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton resisted pressure from Latin American countries seeking a stronger US measure: bringing...
Obama Signs Credit Card Bill Into Law
Washington Post
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May 22, 2009 7:12 PM CDT
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President Obama signed a landmark bill into law today limiting the fees and interest rates credit card companies can impose, the Washington Post reports. "Just as we demand credit card users act responsibly, we demand that credit card companies act responsibly too," said Obama at the Rose Garden signing, joined by consumer advocates and...
Kiefer, Designer Make Up Over Head-Butt Incident
E! Online
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May 22, 2009 6:38 PM CDT
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Kiefer Sutherland made nice today with the designer he allegedly head-butted at a Soho nightclub 2 weeks ago, E! Online reports. "I am sorry about what happened that night and sincerely regret that Mr. McCollough was injured," the 24 star said in a statement, the AP reports. Jack McCollough accepted, despite what he called a broken...
Journalist Saberi Back in US
Associated Press
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May 22, 2009 6:12 PM CDT
(AP) -
Roxana Saberi, the journalist who spent 4 months in an Iranian prison, was greeted this afternoon with cheers and hugs from friends as she returned to her native US. Saberi, 32, told reporters at Washington Dulles International Airport that singing the national anthem helped keep her going. "And it may sound corny, but I'm so happy to be home...
NYC Man Pleads Not Guilty in Harvard Shooting
Associated Press
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May 22, 2009 5:38 PM CDT
(AP) -
A New York songwriter pleaded not guilty today to murder charges in the shooting at a Harvard dormitory of a man prosecutors say was there to sell drugs. Jabrai Jordan Copney, 20, whose girlfriend is a Harvard senior, traveled to the Cambridge, Mass., campus on Monday with two other men with plans to rob the reputed dealer of money and drugs, prosecutors...
5.7 Quake Shakes Tall Buildings in Mexico City
Associated Press
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May 22, 2009 4:54 PM CDT
(AP) -
A strong earthquake swayed skyscrapers in Mexico City and rattled colonial buildings in neighboring Puebla state today, sending frightened people into the streets. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage. "There is absolute calm, zero damage,” a Puebla official said. The US Geological Survey said the quake had a magnitude...
Waterboarded Shock Jock Mancow: 'Absolutely Torture'
NBC Chicago
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May 22, 2009 4:42 PM CDT
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A Chicago radio host submitted himself to a waterboarding demonstration to prove it isn’t torture, but it didn’t work out that way, NBC affiliate WMAQ-TV reports. “Way worse than I thought it would be, and that’s no joke,” Erich “Mancow” Muller said. “I don’t want to say this: absolutely torture.”...
Peterson Sought to Hire Hitman: Prosecutors
Chicago Sun-Times
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May 22, 2009 4:25 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Drew Peterson attempted to pay someone $25,000 to kill his third wife in 2003, a year before she was found drowned in her bathtub, prosecutors alleged today. The disgraced former cop, who has been charged with murdering Kathleen Savio himself, tried and failed today to have his $20 million bail reduced, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Falwell's Liberty U. Quashes Campus Dems
Lynchburg News Advance
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May 22, 2009 4:15 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Jerry Falwell’s conservative Christian Liberty University has suspended the student Democratic Club for supporting candidates “directly contrary to the mission” of the school, the Lynchburg News Advance reports. Virginia Democrats are up in arms. “I urge the leadership of Liberty University to reverse this attack on the liberty...
Nashville Becomes 'Silicon Valley of Music Business'
The Atlantic
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May 22, 2009 3:45 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Nashville really is Music City, Richard Florida writes in the Atlantic . Charting the demographics of the music industry from 1970 to 2004, Florida found that “Nashville was the only city that registered positive growth. In effect, it sucked up all the growth in the music industry.” It’s not just stars and bars, either: The city...
