Newser Story Index from August, 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.
Things That Really, Really Bug Obama
Politico
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Aug 25, 2009 3:35 PM CDT
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Staffers say that “No Drama Obama” largely deserves his nickname. Nonetheless, there are ways to tick the president off. Politico lists his biggest pet peeves: When aides schedule events that conflict with dad/daughter time. People who try to get him to wear baseball gear from teams other than the White Sox. Missing...
Dow Up 30 After Rosy Data
Wall Street Journal
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Aug 25, 2009 3:21 PM CDT
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Stocks closed with modest advances on strong economic data and a drop in oil prices, the Wall Street Journal reports. Advances in second-quarter home prices and a boost in July consumer confidence propelled stock indices to new 2009 highs shortly after the open, but oil’s $2.32 drop moderated gains. The Dow gained 30 points to close at 9,539....
Feminists Don't Get It: Motherhood's a Drug
DoubleX
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Aug 25, 2009 3:08 PM CDT
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For Katie Roiphe, the connection with her newborn child is like an “addiction," she writes on DoubleX. "There is an opium-den quality to maternity leave. The high of a love that obliterates everything.” Why, then, can’t feminists accept that motherhood is more than a “vocation?” Sure, “the act of caring...
Record 40% of SAT Takers Now Minorities
Washington Post
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Aug 25, 2009 2:49 PM CDT
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Minority participation in the SAT is up to 40% in 2009, the highest level ever, the Washington Post reports. That's up 2 points since last year and a whopping 10 points since 1999. “More than ever, the SAT reflects the diversity of students in our nation's classrooms," says the president of the College Board, which crafts the test. Overall...
Medicare Is Dead—Long Live Medicare: Steele
Talking Points Memo
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Aug 25, 2009 2:30 PM CDT
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RNC Chairman Michael Steele continued his simultaneous defense of and onslaught on Medicare today, writes Eric Kleefeld of Talking Points Memo. Dems are “proposing up to $550 billion in cuts or shifting of funds out of Medicare, and I don't know what that means,” Steele said on Fox News. In other words, it must be protected. But when it...
World's Priciest Wedding Singers
New Zealand Herald
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Aug 25, 2009 2:19 PM CDT
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For the demanding bride-to-be who thinks a DJ just doesn't cut it, top-notch live entertainment can be had—for a few million dollars. The New Zealand Her ald runs down the best paid wedding singers: Rolling Stones: These aging rockers garner upwards of $8 million for a private audience, but will only show up if they're already...
How to Identify Hipsters: By What They Hate
The Stimulist
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Aug 25, 2009 2:07 PM CDT
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Josh Skolnick was looking for a way to sum up what a hipster is for the Stimulist, and stumbled upon the perfect tool: Stuff Hipsters Hate, a website that "gives the world its most coherent vision yet of what defines these folks.” A sampling: Other hipsters : "To be a true hipster, one does not identify oneself as such. That...
Forget Comfort Food: We Shun It in Turmoil
Time
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Aug 25, 2009 1:55 PM CDT
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Conventional wisdom has it that when we face big changes, we look to the familiar to get us through—whether it’s comfort food or music we’ve loved for years. But new studies suggest the opposite is true, that “change begets change,” in the words of one researcher. For example, subjects offered familiar or exotic food...
Jilted South Wooing Heisman Voters
Wall Street Journal
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Aug 25, 2009 1:40 PM CDT
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At least two Southern universities are spending some cash this year to try to correct a historical football inequity—at least in the eyes of the South, the Wall Street Journal reports. The SEC has won more national titles than any other conference since the Heisman Trophy debuted in 1935, but its players generally get the cold shoulder from...
It's Official: The 4-Day Week Works
Good
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Aug 25, 2009 1:32 PM CDT
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A year ago, Utah’s governor instituted a 4-day, 10-hour-a-day workweek for some 17,000 state employees—and the results so far show big benefits, GOOD reports: Closed offices on Fridays have cut energy use by 13% and reduced the state’s carbon footprint by some 6,000 metric tons—and that doesn’t even count the gas...
Designer Cavalli Defies the Recession
Vanity Fair
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Aug 25, 2009 1:20 PM CDT
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Roberto Cavalli’s name is synonymous with sexy, edgy designs. The father of animal print and Lycra jeans talks to Vanity Fair ’s Mark Seal about his rebellious childhood in Florence, his rise to the top of the fashion world, and his confidence at staying there. “I declare war on the economic crisis!” says Cavalli, who defied...
Your GPS' New Voice? Bob Dylan
NME
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Aug 25, 2009 1:11 PM CDT
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Looking for Highway 61? The answer, my friend, might soon be blowin' in the wind: “I am talking to a couple of car companies about being the voice of their GPS system,” Bob Dylan revealed in a radio interview today. “I think it would be good if you are looking for directions and hear my voice saying something like, ‘Left at...
US Afghan Toll Mounts; 2009 Deadliest for Foreign Troops
Associated Press
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Aug 25, 2009 12:40 PM CDT
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A busy, bloody day in Afghanistan: Five car bombs detonated simultaneously in Kandahar, killing at least 30 people and injuring more than 50, reports the AP. That follows news of a blast in southern Afghanistan that killed four US troops, bringing to 41 the number of American deaths in August. That's the second highest monthly total...
Help—I'm Jealous of My Own Kid!
Details
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Aug 25, 2009 12:36 PM CDT
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You’re trying to give your kids the best: karate lessons, top schools, the latest video games. “You couldn't be prouder, really,” writes Christopher Noxon in Details , until “it hits you: you’re jealous.” Your childhood was never this good, and now, as your kid expands his horizons, you’re sitting on the sidelines....
Brown 'Repulsed' by Libya
Times (UK)
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Aug 25, 2009 12:27 PM CDT
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Gordon Brown finally broke his silence on the release of Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi today, denying speculation that it had been part of a deal between the UK and Libya. “When I met Colonel Gaddafi over the summer I made it absolutely clear to him that I had no role in the decision,” he said, adding that he was “angry...
The Healthiest Ways to Watch TV
Esquire
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Aug 25, 2009 12:17 PM CDT
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Dr. Mehmet Oz is getting a new show starting Sept. 14, inspiring Esquire to ask Oprah’s favorite physician how to watch the tube in the healthiest way possible. His recommendations: Drink water —Take advantage of the opportunity: you won’t mind its blandness when your focus is elsewhere. Munch on nuts— particularly...
Testosterone Linked to Women's Career Choice
ABC News
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Aug 25, 2009 12:10 PM CDT
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Women with higher testosterone levels may be more likely to seek out riskier careers, according to a new study. Researchers at the University of Chicago tested the testosterone levels of 500 graduate business students, then tracked their post-graduation career moves. Ultimately 36% of women went into high-risk financial careers, and those with more...
Frank Rewriting Wall Street Rules as Public Yawns
Boston Globe
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Aug 25, 2009 11:59 AM CDT
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Barney Frank is working on the biggest legislation of his career, and no one seems to care. Frank, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, is preparing for markup sessions on a bill to revolutionize America’s financial regulatory structure. “It’s been eclipsed obviously in the public’s mind by health care,”...
Taliban Finally Confirm Mehsud's Death
BBC
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Aug 25, 2009 11:42 AM CDT
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Weeks after a US drone reportedly took out the Taliban's leader in Pakistan, Baitullah Mehsud's fellow commanders have confirmed his death. Two Taliban officials—including his successor, Hakimullah Mehsud—tell the BBC that their leader actually died Sunday after being critically injured in the airstrike. The development also clears...
Ruth Madoff Knew Nothing: Mistress
Gawker
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Aug 25, 2009 11:35 AM CDT
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Ruth Madoff was probably thrilled to hear another woman talk about sleeping with her husband this morning. Alleged Madoff mistress Sheryl Weinstein told Good Morning America that the financier was terrified Ruth would find out about their affair, because “divorces or something like that leads to books being opened…something might come...
The True Meaning of Obama's Reading List
Slate
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Aug 25, 2009 11:27 AM CDT
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President Obama is on vacation, and that means it’s the media’s sacred duty to overanalyze his summer reading plans. John Dickerson of Slate delves into the meaning behind what Obama’s packing: The Way Home by George Pelecanos Lush Life by Richard Price Hot Flat and Crowded by Thomas Friedman John Adams...
I Want a New Job: Jon
Us Weekly
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Aug 25, 2009 11:21 AM CDT
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Life is so hard for Jon Gosselin that he would trade his gig on a hit reality show for a desk job, he tells Us. “I wish I had a 9 to 5 job instead of the nightmare I'm living. This is 24/7,” he said while standing outside his $1.1 million home. “I don't even want to do taping for the show anymore.”
Pauly Shore Heads to Reality TV
New York Post
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Aug 25, 2009 11:03 AM CDT
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Just when you thought reality TV couldn’t get any worse, Pauly Shore gets his own show. Adopted will follow the comedian’s efforts to adopt an African child, reports the New York Post , citing Variety . This can’t possibly end well.
Thirtysomething Hits DVD— But Is It Still Good?
Slate
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Aug 25, 2009 10:59 AM CDT
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Thirtysomething is finally on DVD, much to the excitement of baby boomers everywhere—and Seth Stevenson, who, inexplicably, loved the show as a 14-year-old boy. “I wondered: Would I find it even more compelling now that I’d actually reached my 30s?” he writes for Slate. But, though the performances are top-notch and the...
Amy Winehouse Sues Blake's Mum
Sun (UK)
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Aug 25, 2009 10:57 AM CDT
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Amy Winehouse is suing her former mother-in-law for copyright infringement, the Sun reports. Nope, Blake Fielder-Civil’s mum didn’t steal one of Winehouse’s songs—she sold a love letter from Amy to Blake, and the singer is “furious the private letter was used to make money,” a pal says. Winehouse is suing for nearly...
US Deficit Soaring to $1.6T This Year
New York Times
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Aug 25, 2009 10:56 AM CDT
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Here's the latest eye-popping number produced by the recession: $1.6 trillion. The White House and CBO today projected that figure as this year's deficit, reports the New York Times . While it would be the biggest since World War II, the figure is actually about $260 billion better than anticipated in May. Still, the red ink is expected...
Guiding Light's Lesbian Couple Finally Gets to Kiss
New York Times
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Aug 25, 2009 10:53 AM CDT
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Thanks to the Internet, a popular lesbian soap opera couple will finally get their long-awaited kiss. Crystal Chappell, Guiding Light’ s Olivia, is bringing friends and fans together to create a Web series after the soap goes off the air next month. And though never allowed to make out with her Light partner, in Venice the two will kiss...
Galileo's World-Changing Telescope Turns 400
Guardian (UK)
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Aug 25, 2009 10:37 AM CDT
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On August 25, 1609—400 years ago today—Galileo Galilei introduced Venice to the telescope, and the discoveries it enabled were every bit as revolutionary as Darwinism, writes Peter Walker of the Guardian . With his telescope, a brown stick weaker than today's store-bought models, Galileo detected moon-like phases of Venus, proving that...
Bachelorette Cheater's Emails Exposed
Us Weekly
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Aug 25, 2009 10:18 AM CDT
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Ed Swiderski, who won the heart of Bachelorette Jillian Harris and almost immediately started battling cheating rumors, “never” took the show seriously, Us reports. In a series of emails published by RealitySteve.com, it's clear that Swiderski wooed two other women while competing on the show, promising to “molest” one when...
Jacko Doc Disputes Cops' Timeline
Associated Press
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Aug 25, 2009 10:13 AM CDT
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As a timeline of Michael Jackson’s final hours began to emerge, Dr. Conrad Murray’s lawyer was was quick to question it, calling it “police theory” in a statement yesterday, the AP reports. “Dr. Murray simply never told investigators that he found Michael Jackson at 11am not breathing,” after allegedly giving Jackson...
Jessica Biel Is Most Dangerous Celeb Online
Associated Press
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Aug 25, 2009 10:01 AM CDT
(AP) -
Jessica Biel is the most dangerous celebrity on the web, says a security tech firm. McAfee reported that searches for the 27-year-old actress are more likely to lead to online threats such as spyware and viruses than searches for any other celebrity. Fans searching for the actress have a one-in-five chance of ending up at a website designed to damage...
Companies Use Recession to Stomp Hurting Competition
Wall Street Journal
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Aug 25, 2009 9:37 AM CDT
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When the recession hit, Bed Bath & Beyond saw an opportunity. Chief competitor Linens ‘n Things was laden with debt, so Bed Bath & Beyond “decided to destroy them,” says one analyst. It matched every Linens’ discount, issued a barrage of coupons in Linens’ key markets, and, sure enough, Linens soon went bust. It's...
Dad: Marriage Was 'Hell on Earth'
New York Daily News
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Aug 25, 2009 9:26 AM CDT
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Friends and family of Ryan Jenkins and Jasmine Fiore are speaking out, painting a picture of a toxic relationship that ended with her murder and his suicide, the New York Daily News reports. Their marriage “was hell on Earth—I advised him 50 times to get out of that relationship,” says Jenkins’ father, who downplayed any signs...
Miley's Bro: Tattooed Nice Guy
Details
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Aug 25, 2009 9:21 AM CDT
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Miley Cyrus’ half-brother Trace is covered in tattoos, wants to beat up two-thirds of the Jonas Brothers, and says the best—and worst—advice he ever got was when “Tom Delonge from Blink-182 told me not to sleep with too many nasty girls on the road.” But the truly shocking thing about the Metro Station guitarist and singer...
Test-Prep Giant Stanley Kaplan Dead at 90
Washington Post
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Aug 25, 2009 9:00 AM CDT
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Stanley Kaplan, founder of the test-prep behemoth that bears his name, died this weekend of heart failure at age 90, the Washington Post reports. Kaplan’s company not only helped millions of students level the playing field in what he described as a “poor man’s private school” but also smashed a widely-believed fallacy—that...
Cheney Blasts Obama for Torture Probe
Politico
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Aug 25, 2009 8:50 AM CDT
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Dick Cheney lambasted Barack Obama today for his decision to name a special prosecutor to look into Bush-era terror interrogations. The move raises “doubts about this administration’s ability to be responsible for our nation’s security,” he said in a statement. “The people involved deserve our gratitude. They do not deserve...
Obama Nominates Bernanke for 2nd Term
Associated Press
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Aug 25, 2009 8:43 AM CDT
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President Obama has nominated Ben Bernanke for a second term as Federal Reserve chairman, saying Bernanke “led the Fed through the one of the worst financial crises that this nation and this world have ever faced,” the AP reports. “Ben approached a financial system on the verge of collapse with calm and wisdom; with bold action and...
Amateurs Enlisted to Solve Astronomy Mystery
Wired
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Aug 25, 2009 8:29 AM CDT
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Scientists are calling on amateur astronomers to help solve the centuries-old puzzle of a super-bright star that goes dim every 27 years. Epsilon Aurigae will fade out from this fall to spring 2011; this time around, scientists are looking to ordinary sky-watchers to provide extra data on the mysterious companion believed to be blocking the star's...
London Cameras a Bust: 1 Crime Solved Per 1K
Telegraph (UK)
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Aug 25, 2009 8:19 AM CDT
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Surveillance cameras are nearly worthless in the fight against crime, a London police report concluded, with fewer than one crime solved annually for every 1,000 cameras.The UK is one of the world's most monitored countries, with one camera for every 14 people and 1 million cameras in London alone. Yet the internal report, obtained by the Telegraph...
CIA Docs Don't Vindicate Cheney
Washington Independent
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Aug 25, 2009 8:14 AM CDT
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Dick Cheney has long insisted that two CIA documents from 2004 and 2005 would prove the value of torture. But after obtaining them yesterday, the Washington Independent says they do nothing of the kind. The documents actually suggest, albeit murkily, that non-abusive techniques were more effective. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed’s interrogators got...
Hannity Guest: I'm No Nazi—Obama Is
Gawker
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Aug 25, 2009 8:06 AM CDT
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After a congressman compared health care protesters to “brown shirts,” a disabled Marine vet appeared on Sean Hannity’s show to refute the claim, saying the “Nazi” label was better placed on the Democrats, Gawker reports. “I don’t think it’s acceptable language that he’s comparing us to Nazis,”...
McCain, Hatch Nods to Kennedy Are a Load of BS
True/Slant
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Aug 25, 2009 7:48 AM CDT
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John McCain and Orrin Hatch's recent kind words about Ted Kennedy's ability to negotiate across the aisle "would be touching as hell if they weren't total bull," Rick Ungar writes on True/Slant. Ungar shames the GOP senators for praising Kennedy's skills of reaching consensus while themselves refusing to seek any meaningful compromise on...
Sorry US, China Is World's Solar Powerhouse
New York Times
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Aug 25, 2009 7:40 AM CDT
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If the US wants to be, in Barack Obama’s words, the “world’s leading exporter of renewable energy,” it’s got a lot of catching up to do. China is the king of solar, and it’s moving aggressively on the US market, the New York Times reports. Chinese solar companies have cut the price of panels in half, with one company...
Jacko Doc Writes 'Dear Barack' Letter
TMZ
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Aug 25, 2009 7:25 AM CDT
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A British doctor friend of Michael Jackson fired off a letter to President Obama—or "Barack," as she calls him—pleading for tougher laws for "unethical doctors" who ply patients with drugs. Dr. Susan Etok, who says she turned down more than $800,000 from the King of Pop for controlled substances, tells the president...
Huge Welcome Home for 'First Lady' Semenya
Mail & Guardian (South Africa)
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Aug 25, 2009 7:15 AM CDT
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World champion sprinter Caster Semenya received a heroine's welcome today in Johannesburg, where thousands of South Africans waved signs reading "Our first lady of sport" and "100% female woman." The 18-year-old runner, caught up in suspicions about her gender, had a huge smile as spectators sang and danced around her and her...
For Chinese, Ikea a Great Place to Nap
Los Angeles Times
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Aug 25, 2009 6:59 AM CDT
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In Beijing, people flock to the local Ikea—but for many, it’s not about picking up new housewares. Instead, they spend the day napping in display beds, eating at the cafeteria, enjoying free soda refills, and posing in front of in-store displays, the Los Angeles Times reports. it's become as much theme park as retailer. “It's the...
South Korea Launches Space Rocket
Associated Press
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Aug 25, 2009 6:44 AM CDT
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South Korea's first rocket blasted off into space today following an aborted attempt last week and just months after its rival North Korea drew international ire for its own launch. A problem quickly surfaced, however, when the satellite the rocket was carrying apparently failed to enter its intended orbit. South Korean and Russian scientists...
Rudy Weighs NY Governor Race
New York Times
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Aug 25, 2009 6:34 AM CDT
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Less than two years after crashing and burning in the race for the White House, Rudy Giuliani is weighing another return to politics—as governor of New York. Last week Giuliani asked the state's GOP chairman to step aside, and the New York Times reports that he has discussed a possible run with Mike Bloomberg, his successor as NYC mayor....
Shanghai Seeks to Stamp Out 'Chinglish' Signs
BBC
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Aug 25, 2009 6:06 AM CDT
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Foreign tourists in Shanghai may soon have to go without the amusement of photographing signs in mangled English: City authorities, long embarrassed by the signs, are launching a campaign to root out "Chinglish" ahead of hosting the 2010 World Expo, the BBC reports. Student volunteers will check the city's signs, on the lookout for warnings...
Fed Judge Tosses DoMA Suit
Los Angeles Times
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Aug 25, 2009 5:52 AM CDT
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A federal judge in California dismissed a lawsuit challenging the Defense of Marriage Act yesterday, supporting the Obama administration's claim that a gay couple had not suffered "an injury in fact." The Justice Department filed a brief agreeing with the plaintiffs that DoMA is discriminatory, but said it was bound to defend the law...
