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.
Cigarette Companies Lied, Appeals Court Rules
Washington Post
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May 22, 2009 3:20 PM CDT
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Tobacco companies engaged in “deceits” and knowingly marketed cigarettes without regard for consumers’ health, violating civil racketeering laws, a federal appeals court ruled today. In upholding the verdict in a landmark case brought by the Clinton Justice Department in 1999, the court refused to overturn a district judge’s...
Dow Off 15 Despite Retail News
Wall Street Journal
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May 22, 2009 3:13 PM CDT
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A strong retail sector and defensive buying ahead of the holiday weekend couldn’t correct a general malaise that left markets down slightly today, the Wall Street Journal reports. Sears was up 12% on a Q1 profit. Little movement in financials was welcome to some who believe the sector is stabilizing. The Dow was off 14.81 to 8,277.32. The S&P...
44 States Shed Jobs in April
Wall Street Journal
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May 22, 2009 3:07 PM CDT
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Instead of May flowers, April showers brought a flood of job losses, with 44 states notching declines, the Wall Street Journal reports. California led the pack with 63,700 positions cut, but its 11% unemployment rate trailed those of Michigan (12.9%), Oregon (12%), South Carolina (11.5%), and Rhode Island (11.1%). One bright spot: April saw fewer...
Skinny Jeans: Health Hazard
MSNBC
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May 22, 2009 2:50 PM CDT
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Skinny jeans might be crushing nerves in the very thighs they’re supposed to flatter, MSNBC reports. Experts say they’ve seen a spat of young women suffering from meralgia paresthetica, or “tingling thigh syndrome,” caused by wearing ridiculously tight jeans. It occurs whenever constant pressure is applied to the lateral femoral...
Bristol Palin Ends Feud With Babydaddy Levi
People
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May 22, 2009 2:36 PM CDT
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Bristol Palin is no longer at war with her baby daddy’s family. In fact, “I don’t think we were ever at war at all,” the 18-year-old mom tells People , adding that she and former fiancé Levi Johnston are trying to work together for the sake of their 5-month-old son Tripp.
Calif. Gay-Marriage Ruling Comes Next Week
Associated Press
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May 22, 2009 2:26 PM CDT
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The California state Supreme Court will issue its opinion on gay marriage Tuesday, the Los Angeles Times reports. The court will rule on three questions, including two challenges to the constitutionality of Proposition 8, which outlawed same-sex nuptials. One challenge comes from gay-rights lawyers who argue that Prop 8 was an illegal revision of...
Citigroup Chair, Model Have Love Child
New York Daily News
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May 22, 2009 2:17 PM CDT
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The credit crisis isn’t the only problem that's been on Citigroup chairman Richard Parsons’ mind in recent months—there’s also the love child he fathered with a Ralph Lauren model, the New York Daily News reports, and how to tell his wife of 31 years about it. The 61-year-old Parsons met MacDella Cooper, 32, through his support...
Terminator Nemesis Looks Familiar: It's Google
Fast Company
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May 22, 2009 2:10 PM CDT
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Could Google be SkyNet from the Terminator movies? Chris Dannen sees a resemblance, he writes for Fast Company . Heck, Google might be worse; SkyNet didn’t take over until 2029, but Google managed it by 2009. “Sure, one uses a giant Web crawler to index pages,” Dannen allows, “and the other uses a giant arsenal of automated...
New Credit Card Rules Could Trim $10B From Industry Coffers
Wall Street Journal
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May 22, 2009 1:53 PM CDT
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A law President Obama is expected to sign today bringing new consumer-friendly rules on credit cards could cost the industry $10 billion in revenue, the Wall Street Journal reports. The legislation, which dials back various fees and interest rates, will devastate companies that target consumers with checkered credit histories and issuers reliant...
Girlfriend Experience Not Much of One
Los Angeles Times
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May 22, 2009 1:45 PM CDT
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The Girlfriend Experience , which showcases the life of a high-class prostitute offering clients more than just sex, looks good—but it’s a bit dry, critics say: Steven Soderbergh’s movie is “an exquisitely filmed piece of urban impressionism that, unfortunately, leaves one feeling that a sleek gadget has been needlessly...
In First, US Jobless Rate Set to Eclipse Western Europe's
New York Times
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May 22, 2009 1:41 PM CDT
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The unemployment rate in the US is set to eclipse that of Western Europe for the first time on record, the New York Times reports. When April numbers for the first 15 EU members come in, the US’ 8.9% will probably be higher than Europe’s, 8.5% in March. Some economists argued that the relative lack of government involvement in the US...
Playboy on Block for $300M
New York Post
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May 22, 2009 1:33 PM CDT
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With the magazine at its heart struggling against the tide of the Internet, Hugh Hefner’s Playboy empire is seeking a buyer for $300 million, the New York Post reports. That’s three times its current market capitalization, but sources say Hef won’t sell unless he can get the cash to keep up his luxe life. So far, none of the wealthy...
Gates Praises Soldier in Pink Boxers
Reuters
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May 22, 2009 1:23 PM CDT
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A US soldier who took up the fight against the Taliban sans pants and clad in “I Love NY” pink boxers got a vote of his support from the nation’s defense chief last night, reports Reuters. “Any soldier who goes into battle against the Taliban in pink boxers and flip-flops has a special kind of courage,” Defense Secretary...
Suu Kyi Pleads Not Guilty, Blames Regime's Security
Reuters
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May 22, 2009 1:15 PM CDT
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Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi pleaded not guilty today to charges she violated terms of her house arrest, Reuters reports. She blamed the regime’s lax security for allowing an American to swim to her lakeside home. Asked if she was guilty, Suu Kyi answered, “no, because I did not commit any crime.” Furthermore, “if...
Woman First to Use Washington Suicide Law
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
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May 22, 2009 1:08 PM CDT
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A 66-year-old woman became the first to opt for physician-assisted suicide under Washington state’s new death-with-dignity law, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports. Suffering from stage 4 pancreatic cancer, Linda Fleming took a lethal dose of medication last night, surrounded by her family, doctor and dog.
Pope Benedict Wants to Meet You on Facebook
Reuters
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May 22, 2009 1:05 PM CDT
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Pope Benedict probably isn’t at the computer himself, but the Vatican is making a major push to lure young believers online, Reuters reports. It’s launched www.pope2you.net, which offers Web 2.0 applications like “The pope meets you on Facebook,” and another that downloads the pope’s speeches for iPhones and iPods. “We...
Ledger's Last Role: Decent But Unspectacular
Time
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May 22, 2009 12:55 PM CDT
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Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus made its debut at Cannes to much buzz today, mainly because Heath Ledger died in the midst of filming. Critics say Ledger does nice—if short—work, while the fantasy itself is so-so. Richard Corliss, Time : "Ledger is fine, parading loads of his grinning charisma, though...
New Foreclosure Legislation May Not Be Enough
ProPublica
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May 22, 2009 12:45 PM CDT
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Congress’ Hope for Homeowners plan was aimed at fighting the foreclosure epidemic, and it’s been a success for exactly one person. Now, lawmakers have put “patches” on the legislation—but some worry the fixes aren’t going to do the job, ProPublica reports. Instead, it needs “some major, wholesale changes, since...
Obama Talks Terror at Navy Graduation
Wall Street Journal
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May 22, 2009 12:36 PM CDT
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President Obama reiterated his wish to close Guantanamo Bay and rein in harsh interrogation techniques in an address today to graduates of the Naval Academy, the Wall Street Journal reports. “We uphold our fundamental principles and values not because we choose to, but because we swear to,” he said. “Not because they feel good but...
EU Parliament Next Stop for Pro-Piracy Party
Times (UK)
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May 22, 2009 12:34 PM CDT
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Swedish pirates could soon be invading the European parliament, the Times of London reports. The Pirate Party, a political group whose sole aim is encouraging Internet copyright infringement, is poised to win several seats in next month’s elections. “The plan is Sweden, Europe, the world—in that order,” said the party’s...
Ford Courts GM, Chrysler Customers
Detroit News
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May 22, 2009 12:25 PM CDT
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With General Motors and Chrysler struggling, Ford is moving to pick off some of its rivals’ customers, the Detroit News reports. The firm is passing cash to its dealers to ease Chrysler owners’ loan payments—so they can pick up Fords. Ford may soon do the same for GM owners. “We’re going to be aggressive, but we’re...
Obama's Inclusive Message Extends to White House Walls
Wall Street Journal
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May 22, 2009 12:17 PM CDT
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More change is coming to Washington, and this time it’s aesthetic. President Obama’s request for works from African-American, Hispanic, and female artists to adorn the White House walls stems from a desire to “round out the permanent collection” and “give new voices” to non-traditional or low-profile artists, the...
Geithner: Pay Changes Ahead for Bank Execs
Bloomberg
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May 22, 2009 12:09 PM CDT
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The Obama administration intends to push for “very, very substantial change,” in the way Wall Street pays executives, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner tells Bloomberg. “I don’t think we can go back to the way it was,” he said, arguing that the current big-bonus status quo encourages too much risk-taking. The changes will...
Take Me Off Google Street View: McCartney
Sun (UK)
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May 22, 2009 12:03 PM CDT
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Add Paul McCartney to the list of people who are freaked out by Google Street View. The Internet giant removed the former Beatle’s multimillion-dollar London abode after his security team complained, the Sun reports. “He was unsettled when he heard Google users could get a 360-degree view of the property,” a source says. A Google...
Blair's Path to EU Helm Grows Clearer
Times (UK)
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May 22, 2009 11:53 AM CDT
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If Ireland votes yes on the Lisbon treaty, officially creating the role of EU president, Tony Blair is looking more and more like the man for the job. Not that the former UK prime minister has publicly expressed any interest—he's remained tactfully silent—but he has pockets of support and a dwindling list of rivals, writes David Charter...
An Addict Warns: Beware iPhone Game Apps
Slate
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May 22, 2009 11:42 AM CDT
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You don’t have to be a gamer to become an iPhone-game addict, writes Farhad Manjoo for Slate. The apps follow an established recipe for great games: “They're easy to learn but difficult to master.” As a gaming system, the gadget doesn't have the sophistication of a Nintendo DS, but “you carry it everywhere, and it's always connected...
Madoff 'Staged the Whole Thing': Secretary
Vanity Fair
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May 22, 2009 11:33 AM CDT
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Bernie Madoff’s secretary thinks he staged his own arrest. “Bernie was never careless,” Eleanor Squillari writes in Vanity Fair. “He set up exactly how he wanted to go down.” Madoff began acting strangely weeks before the arrest, writing odd things in his appointment book. He’d leave the book lying in his office,...
De Niro's New Role: Grandpa
New York Post
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May 22, 2009 11:24 AM CDT
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Robert De Niro became a grandfather yesterday when son Raphael De Niro and daughter-in-law Claudine DeMatos welcomed Nicholas De Niro, the New York Post reports. Elsewhere: To prove he’s really not dead, Patrick Swayze posed for a picture with wife Lisa Niemi at their New Mexico ranch, the Sun reports.
'Happyhour' Gene Decides How Fast You Get Drunk
New Scientist
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May 22, 2009 11:15 AM CDT
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What if your genes determined how much of a tolerance you had to alcohol—and you could take a drug that would turn those genes on or off? That scenario may not be far from reality: researchers studying fruit flies have discovered a gene called "happyhour" that renders heavyweights incapable of handling more than a few sips, NewScientist...
Pelosi: I'm Not Talking About CIA Anymore
The Hill
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May 22, 2009 11:06 AM CDT
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Don't look for Nancy Pelosi to shed any more light on what she may or may not have known about the CIA’s interrogations. At a press conference today—her first since she accusedthe agency of misleading her and Congress—the House speaker clammed up, reports the Hill . “I have made the statement I am going to make,” she...
Controversial Chemical Leaches From Bottles to Water
Boston Globe
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May 22, 2009 10:57 AM CDT
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One aspect of the bisphenol A controversy can be put to rest: drinking from clear plastic bottles does increase the amount of the chemical in the body. The extent of BPA's effects on healthy adults is still not well known, but the FDA says existing exposure levels aren't high enough to harm even infants, reports the Boston Globe .
Jon & Kate Hit Therapy; Cameras May Follow
National Enquirer
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May 22, 2009 10:48 AM CDT
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How will Jon & Kate Plus 8 deal with the rampant cheating rumors following its husband-wife team when the show’s next season premieres Monday? By broadcasting their therapy sessions, the National Enquirer reports. Kate Gosselin at first refused counseling, but she also “wants a future in showbiz, and airing their counseling sessions...
RNC Recycles LBJ 'Daisy' Ad to Bash Obama on Gitmo
Salon
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May 22, 2009 10:39 AM CDT
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RNC chairman Michael Steele has rolled out an ad remixing an LBJ classic on nuclear war to warn about the danger of closing Guantanamo. The infamous 1964 spot used images of a little girl plucking petals off a daisy juxtaposed with a nuclear explosion to illustrate the risk of Armageddon. Steele’s version throws in some footage of President Obama...
Dance Flick Busts Some Funny Moves
Rotten Tomatoes
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May 22, 2009 10:29 AM CDT
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The Wayans brothers' latest laffer parodies dance movies and musicals, with a bit of Twilight for good measure. If you’re not seeking high culture, Dance Flick is a barrel of laughs: Stephen Holden of the New York Times calls it an “explosively funny spoof.” Though it “relies on the density of jokes that push the...
You Can't See It, But Cheney's Pants Are on Fire
McClatchy Newspapers
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May 22, 2009 10:19 AM CDT
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In his full-on assault on the president's conterterrorism policies yesterday, Dick Cheney deployed an arsenal of “omissions, exaggerations and misstatements,” charge Jonathan Landay and Warren Strobel of McClatchy. Among them: Cheney claimed that harsh interrogations yielded vital, attack-preventing information and quoted Adm. Dennis...
Bridge May Help Super-Seniors Trump Dementia
New York Times
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May 22, 2009 10:10 AM CDT
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An exclusive club of senior citizens—people who have passed 90 without suffering from dementia—is helping researchers delve into the secrets of aging and the keys to staving off mental decline. "The most successful agers on earth," who represent just one-half of 1% of the population, are "only just beginning to teach us what’s...
New Newsweek a Lot Like Old Newsweek
New Republic
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May 22, 2009 10:02 AM CDT
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Freshly fired by Time , Michael Kinsley checked out the much-ballyhooed Newsweek makeover. Let’s just say he’s less than impressed. In his introductory note, editor John Meacham says, “We are not pretending to be your guide through the chaos of the information age.” Already, Kinsley sees a mistake: “Why not at least...
Brangelina Facade Cracks a Bit
Sun (UK)
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May 22, 2009 9:51 AM CDT
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And the award for best acting at the Cannes Film Festival goes to… Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, reports the Sun . Hollywood is abuzz with rumors of the power couple’s impending breakup: They’re putting on their happy faces along the Riviera but struggling to hide the awkwardness between them—a stark change from last...
Recession, Competition Imperil Malls
Wall Street Journal
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May 22, 2009 9:42 AM CDT
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A half-century-old American standby is ailing as shopping malls around the country struggle to stay afloat, the Wall Street Journal reports. Same-store sales in shopping centers fell 6.5% in the year ending March 31, and the biggest mall operator has seen sales drop 7.3%. Some 100 malls could be labeled “dead” by the end of the year,...
Tumor-Stricken Tasmanian Devils Now 'Endangered'
BBC
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May 22, 2009 9:31 AM CDT
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The Tasmanian devil, the iconic inhabitant of the island off Australia and the world’s largest surviving carnivorous marsupial, is now officially endangered, reports the BBC. Under attack by a virulent disease characterized by facial tumors, the devil population may be as low as 20,000, down 70% since the mid-1990s. The new status of endangered—changed...
Designer Jeans Thrive in Tight Times
Los Angeles Times
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May 22, 2009 9:16 AM CDT
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The economy may be tight, but consumers aren’t cutting their pricey denim loose, the Los Angeles Times reports. Sales of premium brand jeans climbed 17% in 2008 and continued a smaller increase into this year—one of the few bits of good news for retailers. A new “focus on fit” and “women's never-ending quest for the...
Xerox CEO Shuffle Historic for Women
CNN
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May 22, 2009 9:14 AM CDT
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The announcement that Ursula Burns will replace Anne Mulcahy as head of Xerox is brimming with historical significance, writes Patricia Sellers in Fortune . Not only is it the first woman-to-woman CEO handoff in Fortune 500 history, but Burns will be the first black woman to head a Fortune 500 company. It proves the “Queen Bee” era—in...
Clay: Idol 's Lambert 'Frightening'
Gawker
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May 22, 2009 9:02 AM CDT
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Former American Idol runner-up Clay Aiken finds this year’s runner-up, Adam Lambert, “slightly frightening.” Aiken trashed Idol in a post on his blog yesterday, Gawker reports, and Lambert did not escape unscathed. Aiken says he watches Idol only once a season, and “this year, I happened to turn it during the minute Adam...
Stocks Flat Ahead of Holiday
Wall Street Journal
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May 22, 2009 8:48 AM CDT
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Stocks got a small bounce at the open after yesterday’s 130-point selloff, the Wall Street Journal reports. The major indexes gave back minor gains this morning, to trade mostly flat. Volume is expected to be low and volatility high ahead of the three-day Memorial Day weekend. AIG was down 4% on news that Edward Liddy will step down, and other...
Israeli Settlers Defy Demolition, Blame Obama
Times (UK)
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May 22, 2009 8:32 AM CDT
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Jewish settlers whose tiny outpost in the West Bank was demolished by the Israeli army—just days after Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Washington—returned hours later and started rebuilding, reports the Times of London. Netanyahu reportedly agreed to Barack Obama's demands to dismantle illegal outposts in the Palestinian territories, but...
Google Earth Helps Amateur Spies Map North Korea
Wall Street Journal
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May 22, 2009 8:24 AM CDT
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Spying on North Korea would seem to be a job for intelligence services, but one PhD student at George Mason University has exposed many of the secrets of the insular regime from his home computer. Piecing together clues from news reports, photos, and eyewitnesses, Curtis Melvin and colleagues have annotated Google Earth's map of North Korea with...
Soap Box Was No Gift for Meghan McCain
New York Times
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May 22, 2009 8:22 AM CDT
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Poor Meghan McCain, writes Judith Warner in the New York Times . Nobody’s born a pundit—you have to achieve it. But McCain’s had punditry thrust upon her, and it’s obvious she isn’t ready. “I do feel sorry for Meghan, the 2007 college grad who ought to be facing the kinds of barriers to public self-expression that...
20 Years On, Chinese Youth Forget Tiananmen
Los Angeles Times
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May 22, 2009 8:12 AM CDT
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It's now been 20 years since the Chinese army rolled into Tiananmen Square, killing hundreds of students in the final push to put down a growing democracy movement. Beijing is anxious as the June 4 anniversary of the massacre approaches; Google "Tiananmen" in Beijing and you'll likely find pages blocked. But as the Los Angeles Times reports,...
Obama Overrules the Overruling of State Laws
Washington Post
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May 22, 2009 8:03 AM CDT
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President Obama is rewriting another set of rules inherited from his predecessor. This time, the Washington Post reports, it’s President Bush’s policy of overriding state laws with federal regulations, known as “preemption.” Says an activist, “It's environmental law, it's drug law, it's mortgage law, it's a whole host...
Cheney, Obama Telling Same Lie About Bush: Brooks
New York Times
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May 22, 2009 8:00 AM CDT
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Barack Obama and Dick Cheney conspired to perpetuate the same myth yesterday, writes David Brooks of the New York Times . In their telling, we have seen a sharp break between Bush-Cheney terror policies and Obama-Biden ones. “This is a completely bogus distortion of history.” In reality, the policies Cheney’s defending were in place...
