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.
Terminally Ill Patients Avoid Hospice Talk
Boston Globe
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May 26, 2009 2:45 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Doctors and patients are prone to procrastinate when it comes to tough end-of-life decisions, according to a Harvard study. Researchers found that only about half of the 1,517 terminal lung cancer patients surveyed had discussed hospice with their doctors within four to seven months of their diagnosis. Hospice care focuses on keeping a patient comfortable,...
Iran Restores Facebook Access
Associated Press
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May 26, 2009 2:36 PM CDT
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Access to Facebook is back in Iran after being blocked late last week. Facebook was cut off Saturday, leading to accusations that authorities were trying to muzzle one of the main campaign tools of reformists opposing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in June 12 elections. The main pro-reform candidate, Mir Hossein Mousavi, is seeking a strong turnout...
Gay-Marriage Supporters Take to Streets After Ruling
San Francisco Chronicle
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May 26, 2009 2:30 PM CDT
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Supporters of same-sex marriage were disappointed but not surprised by the California Supreme Court’s decision today to uphold Proposition 8, the San Francisco Chronicle reports, as a crowd that had gathered at the state courthouse moved through city streets, blocking traffic and prompting arrest. “This is a serious blow on religious...
OJ Appeals Vegas Convictions
Associated Press
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May 26, 2009 2:21 PM CDT
(AP) -
OJ Simpson is appealing to the Nevada Supreme Court to overturn his conviction on Las Vegas armed robbery and kidnapping charges. Today's filing alleges the ex-football star's conviction in a hotel-room confrontation with two sports memorabilia dealers was tainted by judicial misconduct, a lack of racial diversity on the jury and errors in sentencing...
Former Tennis Prodigy Finds Purpose as Nun
Washington Post
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May 26, 2009 2:20 PM CDT
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The world met her as a plucky 14-year-old tennis phenom with pigtails, a bratty star who fought her way to No. 2 in the world rankings. But that early success came with a heavy pricetag, and Andrea Jaeger has found her place as an Anglican Dominican nun, the Washington Post reports, devoting life and fortune to helping kids with cancer, child athletes,...
Recession Pits Luxe Hotels' Owners Vs. Operators
New York Times
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May 26, 2009 2:13 PM CDT
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The recession is igniting new hotel wars: not battles for customers, but between owners of luxury hotels and the properties’ operators, the New York Times reports. The owners are often struggling to keep up with big debt payments, hindered by a more than 16% average drop in hotel bookings across the sector. But operators are loathe to cut rates...
Canadian Gov Guts Seal, Eats Raw Heart
AFP
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May 26, 2009 1:53 PM CDT
(Newser) -
When in Rome, do as the Romans do. And in Canada's Arctic, that means gutting a freshly slaughtered seal, slicing out its heart, and chowing down, reports AFP. Canadian Governor General Michaelle Jean kicked off a tour of the region yesterday by dining on raw seal as a gesture of support to Canada’s Inuit population, on edge after the EU recently...
TI Checks Into Jail Early
TMZ
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May 26, 2009 1:39 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Rapper TI began his prison sentence early today, leaving his home in Georgia and checking into the Arkansas federal facility before the noon deadline, TMZ reports. The time is a year and a day in the minimum-security Forrest City prison; the crime was attempting to buy unregistered machine guns and silencers from undercover officers in 2007.
Blago Brother's Talk With Burris Fair Game for Inquiry
The Hill
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May 26, 2009 1:32 PM CDT
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FBI recordings of a conversation between Sen. Roland Burris and the brother of disgraced former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich can be released to the Senate Ethics Committee, a judge ruled today. The committee is investigating Burris’ appointment by the now-impeached governor, made after Blagojevich was indicted, the Hill reports. The taped...
Baseball May Kill You
Slate
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May 26, 2009 1:22 PM CDT
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If you’re thinking about a trip to the ball park, you’d better have some good insurance. In their new book, Death at the Ballpark: A Comprehensive Study of Game-Related Fatalities, Robert Gorman and David Weeks chronicle 850 baseball-related deaths, listing them in reference-like fashion. You’d likely be shocked at just how many...
Congressman Calls for End to 'Birthright Citizenship'
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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May 26, 2009 1:00 PM CDT
(Newser) -
A Georgia Congressman wants an end to a US policy granting citizenship to anyone born on American shores, the AP reports. “Birthright citizenship” granted by the 14th Amendment, helps fuel illegal immigration, says Republican Nathan Deal, who’s running for governor. But immigration advocates argue that a change wouldn’t stop...
Meet Prince Zimboo, Borat's Hip-Hop Brother
Slate
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May 26, 2009 12:54 PM CDT
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An up-and-coming player in the genre of “hipster world music,” Prince Zimboo Abakunamabooba is an African hip-hopper with 999 wives—or is he? Zimboo, who has been performing “deliriously funny music” since at least 2007, “is something like the African Borat,” writes Jonah Weiner for Slate, “a character...
How Many Cigarettes for a Cell Phone?
Time
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May 26, 2009 12:40 PM CDT
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We know the kind of thing that gets traded on the prison black market: weapons, alcohol, drugs, cigarettes. Now add cell phones to the list, Time reports: Authorities say there is an epidemic of smuggled cell phones, which have been used to orchestrate crimes, plot escapes, and harass witnesses, in addition to keeping in touch with friends and family....
Calif. Court Upholds Gay-Marriage Ban
Associated Press
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May 26, 2009 12:29 PM CDT
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California’s Supreme Court today upheld a state ban on gay marriage, but ruled that same-sex marriages that took place before voters approved the measure will stay valid, the Los Angeles Times reports. A court rejection of Proposition 8, which passed 52% to 48% in November, was considered highly unlikely. The move “virtually ensures”...
Obama Must Tax Employer Health Insurance
Salon
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May 26, 2009 12:25 PM CDT
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During the campaign, Barack Obama was scathing about John McCain’s plan to tax employer-provided health benefits. But Obama’s going to have to bite the bullet and tax them himself if he wants to pay for his own health care initiative, writes Robert Reich in Salon. Now that Congress has killed Obama’s original plan to raise funds by...
'Rockefeller' Jury Selection Begins
Boston Herald
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May 26, 2009 12:10 PM CDT
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Jury selection has started in the kidnapping trial of a German man long called Clark Rockefeller, the Boston Herald reports. But he won’t be going by that name in the trial—in fact, most won’t call him anything but “the defendant.” He was indicted as Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter, but only his lawyer and a prosecutor...
Did Our Health Care System Kill Jay Bennett?
Gawker
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May 26, 2009 12:06 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The death of 45-year-old musician Jay Bennett, former member of the band Wilco, is “intolerably sad”—but its implications about our current health care system are also “downright scary,” writes the Cajun Boy on Gawker. Bennett, fired from Wilco in 2001, sued the band’s frontman earlier this month for $50,000 in unpaid...
5 Judges Obama Never Considered
The Stimulist
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May 26, 2009 11:53 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Barack Obama probably never sat down to consider the worst possible contenders for David Souter’s Supreme Court vacancy. But the guys at The Stimulist did. Here are the top (bottom?) five judges who never had a shot: Myron Steele: Used his government email address to send a lewd video to 38 male friends. Donald Thompson: Convicted...
$200M Russian Investment Values Facebook at $10B
Associated Press
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May 26, 2009 11:49 AM CDT
(AP) -
Facebook is getting a $200 million investment from a Russian Internet investor that values the social networking company at $10 billion. The investment gives Digital Sky Technologies a nearly 2% stake in the Palo Alto, California-based company's preferred stock.
Cops Can Question Suspects Sans Lawyer: High Court
Associated Press
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May 26, 2009 11:35 AM CDT
(AP) -
The Supreme Court today overturned a longstanding ruling that stops police from initiating questions unless a defendant's lawyer is present, a move that will make it easier for prosecutors to interrogate suspects. The court’s conservatives, in a 5-4 victory, overturned a 1986 ruling that applied even to defendants who agree to talk to the authorities...
UK Woman Faces Jail for Adultery in UAE
Times (UK)
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May 26, 2009 11:29 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A British woman's cheating heart might land her in the Dubai clink after her husband told on her, the Times of London reports. Adultery is illegal in the United Arab Emirates, where Sally Antia, 43, and her husband have lived for a decade. Antia confessed in a Dubai court and said she’d flown her lover in from Britain.
We're Just Pals: Jesus
New York Daily News
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May 26, 2009 11:14 AM CDT
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Yet another boy toy is denying reports of a romance with Madonna. Jesus Luz told Brazilian TV program Fantastico , “She is my friend, only my friend,” the New York Daily News reports. “I don't have plans of marrying her.” Elsewhere: Amy Winehouse has been boozing it up in St Lucia only because she’s been bored,...
Companies Hobbled by Fewer Wall St. Analysts
Wall Street Journal
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May 26, 2009 11:00 AM CDT
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The turmoil on Wall Street has left fewer analysts covering companies of all sizes, the Journal reports, leaving smaller operations struggling to connect with investors. Since September, there have been more than 2,200 instances of analysts formally dropping coverage—nearly a quarter of all research. That plunge has been accelerated because...
Israel to Propose Settlement Deal to Washington
Associated Press
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May 26, 2009 10:55 AM CDT
(AP) -
Israel would dismantle nearly two dozen wildcat settlement outposts in the West Bank in the next few weeks if the US drops its objections to continued building in existing, government-sanctioned settlements, officials said. Defense Minister Ehud Barak will bring the new proposal to senior American officials during his visit to Washington next week,...
Obama Wrecked Brainy-Black-Guy Cred
Salon
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May 26, 2009 10:33 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Sure, in his first 100 days President Obama made much-publicized strides forward. But he also ruined the game of “black male intellectuals” everywhere, writes G’Ra Asim for Salon: “This dude is destroying our street cred.” Whereas Asim, once “the only African-American male in Advanced Placement US History,”...
Colleagues See Sotomayor as 'Even-Handed,' 'Brilliant'
Washington Post
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May 26, 2009 10:13 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The daughter of Puerto Rican immigrants whose father died when she was 9, Sonia Sotomayor will bring more than a stellar legal resume to her Supreme Court confirmation hearings, the Washington Post reports. She worked her way out of projects in the Bronx to graduate from Princeton and Yale Law, where a former classmate says Sotomayor “was tenacious...
Cheney, Limbaugh Can't Touch Powell in Popularity
CNN
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May 26, 2009 9:56 AM CDT
(Newser) -
When Dick Cheney got in a fight with Colin Powell, it looks like he was punching above his weight class. Cheney dismissed Powell’s views on the Republican Party’s direction, saying, “I didn’t think he was still a Republican”—a comment echoed by Rush Limbaugh. But CNN reports a poll that shows Powell—who says,...
Why Sotomayor's a Lock
Time
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May 26, 2009 9:52 AM CDT
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The way to really win a fight is to be in too strong a position for it to even start, and President Obama is showing some of that kind of savvy with his Supreme Court pick, writes Mark Halperin in Time . Nominating Sonia Sotomayor maneuvers Republicans into a position where they can’t oppose this Bronx-raised Latina woman without sending all...
Geithner Back From the Dead, Politically
Politico
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May 26, 2009 9:51 AM CDT
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After a rough start, Timothy Geithner has found his sea legs. Many were calling for the Treasury secretary’s head after his botched handling of February's bailout speech and the AIG bonuses. But, reports Politico, as the economy stabilizes, Geithner’s getting the hang of things. His regular meetings have gotten the economic team on the...
Homes Shrink With the Economy
Los Angeles Times
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May 26, 2009 9:30 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Home sizes are aligned with the shrunken economy, the Los Angeles Times reports: last year, the typical home size dropped 11%—likely the fastest plunge since the 1970s. Some 90% of builders are working on a smaller scale now, an industry poll found. “People are realizing, 'Hey, I don't need the Lexus anymore,'" said a developer....
Would-Be Car-Battery Kings Jostle Over $2.4B From Feds
Wall Street Journal
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May 26, 2009 9:23 AM CDT
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Some 165 companies and states are battling for a $2.4 billion Obama administration grant aimed at making the US a leader in electric-car batteries, the Wall Street Journal reports. General Motors, Dow Chemical, and General Electric are among the firms vying for the money; states like Michigan, Kentucky, and Massachusetts are on board, hoping to become...
JFK Jr Wedding Video Peddled
New York Post
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May 26, 2009 9:16 AM CDT
(Newser) -
As the 10th anniversary of John F. Kennedy Jr.’s death approaches, someone is trying to cash in on the tragedy. “Mickey the Monkey” is selling an unauthorized video of the Kennedy-Carolyn Bessette 1996 nuptials for $9.99. The website—which the New York Post won’t publish—shows stills of the couple cutting the cake...
Dalai Lama Offers $100K to Save Florida Religion Dept.
Miami Herald
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May 26, 2009 8:57 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Dalai Lama has ponied up $100,000 to help save a Florida college's religion department from being closed in a round of budget cutting, the Miami Herald reports. “In our deeply interconnected world, understanding and appreciation of diversity of religions is critical in fostering a culture of genuine tolerance and peaceful coexistence,”...
Stocks Down on Housing Data
Wall Street Journal
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May 26, 2009 8:48 AM CDT
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A bad Case-Shiller number helped push stocks lower at the open, with the Dow down 37 points, and the Nasdaq and S&P down 0.4% and 0.5% respectively. Home prices fell more than 10% year-over-year in 15 of the 20 major metropolitan areas monitored by the Case-Shiller index, reports the Wall Street Journal . Traders are also nervous about North Korea’s...
Obama Can't Pack the House in Vegas
Associated Press
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May 26, 2009 8:46 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Not being able to fill a room isn’t a charge usually leveled at President Obama, but, the Los Angeles Times reports, there are still (relatively cheap) tickets available for a fundraiser he’s hosting tonight for Sen. Harry Reid at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Elton John and Celine Dion routinely sold out the venue; Obama hasn’t,...
Troop Autopsies Yield Life-Saving Clues
New York Times
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May 26, 2009 8:39 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Navy pathologist Capt Craig T. Mallak's groundbreaking decision to order autopsies on every US casualty killed in Iraq and Afghanistan has helped save the lives of American troops, the New York Times reports. The autopsies—and, since 2004, CT scans—have allowed the military to build a huge database on war injuries and yielded improvements...
Kate Moss Takes Up Writing
Sun (UK)
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May 26, 2009 8:31 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Kate Moss is working on a new career for when her catwalk gigs disappear, the Sun reports. The supermodel has taken up writing, dug deep for inspiration, and is working on her first novel in tandem with rock-singer-turned-author Louise Wener. The subject? A young model's rise from obscurity to superstardom.
Fans Seek to Resurrect Polaroid Film
New York Times
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May 26, 2009 8:28 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A determined band of entrepreneurs, scientists, and lovers of retro photography is doing its best to bring Polaroid film back from the dead, the New York Times reports. The group managed to buy the company’s old equipment just before it was dumped and is now attempting to reinvent the chemicals Polaroid once produced in plants dismantled after...
Afghan Taliban Have Momentum: Gates
Wall Street Journal
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May 26, 2009 8:17 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Taliban have the momentum in the war in Afghanistan and the US is rapidly losing time to turn it around before public support runs out, Robert Gates tells the Wall Street Journal. The defense secretary said in an interview that American support for the war will recede unless the Obama administration can beat back the insurgency within the...
Obama Already Throwing Weight for Midterms
Wall Street Journal
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May 26, 2009 8:16 AM CDT
(Newser) -
He’s been in office just a few months—but President Obama’s already working to get Democrats elected in 2010, the Wall Street Journal reports. So far this month, Obama has urged a potential candidate to run in North Carolina, battled a primary threat to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, pledged support for Sen. Arlen Specter, and planned...
In Premiere, Jon & Kate Cast Doubt on Future
Us Weekly
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May 26, 2009 8:14 AM CDT
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Jon & Kate Plus 8 premiered last night to massive hype, and—as promised by TLC promos—Jon and Kate “faced each other for the first time,” albeit not until the episode was nearly over, Us reports. In solo clips during the show, both spouses gave the tabloids fodder with lines like “I am thinking this possibly could...
US Gets Tough on Foreign Bribery
Wall Street Journal
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May 26, 2009 8:06 AM CDT
(Newser) -
US corporations are looking over their shoulders, thanks to a Justice Department crackdown on foreign bribery, the Wall Street Journal reports. At least 120 companies are being investigated under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA—a nearly-forgotten Nixon-era law dusted off in the wake of a rash of corporate scandals—which forbids...
Obama Picks Sotomayor for Court
Associated Press
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May 26, 2009 7:48 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Barack Obama named Sonia Sotomayor his Supreme Court pick this morning, the AP reports, setting the 54-year-old appeals court judge up to be the high court’s first Hispanic justice. Obama noted that she'd "worked at almost every level of our judicial system," saying she had more experience than any current justice had when nominated. ...
'Octo-Mel' Confirms Pregnancy
People
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May 26, 2009 7:13 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Mel Gibson finally addressed the rumors head-on, confirming last night to Jay Leno that his girlfriend is pregnant, People reports. “This is true. We’re gonna have a child,” he said in response to Leno’s question about Oksana Grigorieva, adding that this will be his eighth: “I guess I’m Octo-Mel.” He skirted...
GM Bankruptcy a Gold Rush ... for Lawyers
New York Times
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May 26, 2009 7:07 AM CDT
(Newser) -
GM's expected bankruptcy is bad news for thousands of auto workers, dealers and managers—but a bonanza for the lawyers and consultants orchestrating the most complicated Chapter 11 in history. Bankruptcy specialists who are already billing Chrysler, Lehman Brothers and the US government stand to make hundreds of millions of dollars from...
Recession Pushes African Immigrants to Head Home
Washington Post
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May 26, 2009 6:48 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The US recession is driving many middle-class African immigrants home, where life is slower and growth has lately pointed to a bright economic future, the Washington Post reports. Diaspora societies of immigrants say many members are planning to return to Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana.“The people I know here work two or three jobs just to make...
North Korea's Real Aim May Be to Peddle Nukes to Others
Associated Press
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May 26, 2009 6:44 AM CDT
(Newser) -
North Korea's nuclear test yesterday makes it no likelier that the rogue state will actually launch a weapon of mass destruction, argues AP analyst Robert Burns. What it does suggest is something perhaps even scarier: that the regime may facilitate the nuclear ambitions of other state actors or even of terrorists. The cash-strapped North...
Pakistan High Court Lifts Ban on Sharif
Associated Press
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May 26, 2009 6:40 AM CDT
(AP) -
The Pakistani Supreme Court has lifted a ban on opposition leader Nawaz Sharif that prevented him from running for election, clearing the way for the popular politician to vie for a third term as prime minister. Sharif had been blocked from public office because of a criminal conviction in 2000 widely seen as politically motivated. Today's decision...
How to Diversify the Court: Pick a WASP
Washington Post
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May 26, 2009 6:40 AM CDT
(Newser) -
If you’re looking to diversify the Supreme Court, Robert Barnes of the Washington Post has an idea: Why not pick a WASP? There hasn’t been a white Anglo-Saxon Protestant nominated since David Souter in 1990. The current court boasts five Catholics and two Jews—not exactly representative. Of course, white people have had a good run,...
Thai Protesters Form New Political Party
Wall Street Journal
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May 26, 2009 6:33 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The yellow-shirted protest movement that brought down two Thai governments voted to become a formal political party yesterday, adding a new force to the country's already volatile political system. The People's Alliance for Democracy, which draws support from the country's middle class and is opposed to exiled PM Thaksin Shinawatra, will contest...
