Newser Story Index from September, 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.
Tonight Stunt Sends Conan to the Hospital
Associated Press
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Sep 26, 2009 7:52 AM CDT
(AP) -
He's taken his lumps in the ratings, but yesterday Conan O'Brien hit his head during a stunt for the Tonight Show, and ended up at the hospital. The accident halted production, and a Tonight rerun with guest Jeremy Piven was aired. The scheduled show was to include Teri Hatcher and Seth "Family Guy," McFarlane.
Leak Forced Obama's Hand on Iran Nukes
Politico
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Sep 26, 2009 7:21 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Yesterday's surprise announcement at the G20 summit of the existence of a hidden Iranian nuclear enrichment facility wasn't the way President Obama planned to handle the information, Politico reports. His hand was forced by a reporter who learned of a letter in which Iran notified the UN's nuclear watchdog agency in Vienna of the previously undisclosed...
Gitmo May Not Be Closed by January
Associated Press
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Sep 26, 2009 6:42 AM CDT
(AP) -
The White House acknowledged for the first time yesterday that President Obama may not be able to meet his stated goal of closing the much-criticized Guantanamo Bay prison by January. Daunting legal and logistical hurdles remain to moving the more than 220 detainees still there: completing reviews of each detainee's case, establishing a new set of...
The Top 20 Chef Kings (Oops, 1 Queen)
New York
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Sep 26, 2009 6:41 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The phenomenon of the celebrity chef is well past the saturation point, but the restaurants, cookbooks, kitchen gadgets, and personal appearances keep coming. Presiding over the largest international empire is British pottymouth-cum-culinary genius Gordon Ramsay, according to a new list by New York 's Grub Street blog. The Grub Street formula for...
Suicide Bombs Kill 16, Wound 150 in Pakistan
Associated Press
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Sep 26, 2009 5:43 AM CDT
(AP) -
Two suicide car bombs killed 16 people and wounded about 150 others in separate attacks in northwestern Pakistan today, just days after the Taliban warned suicide strikes were coming if the military pressed forward with an offensive to rout the insurgents. The bombs were detonated outside a bank affiliated with the army in Peshawar, the capital of...
Obvious Guy to Fix Calif.: Guy Who Broke It?
American Prospect
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Sep 26, 2009 5:16 AM CDT
(Newser) -
California is a financial mess, hamstrung by some late-1970s leftovers: some ill-considered “low-impact liberalism” and a ballot measure that makes raising taxes nearly impossible. Both came during the governorship of Democrat Jerry Brown, he of the motto “Maybe by avoiding doing things you accomplish quite a lot”—and...
Her Math Puts BCS Formula to Shame
Oregonian (Portland)
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Sep 26, 2009 5:13 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The ranking system that determines who plays for college football’s national championship is derided nearly universally, not to mention annually, and though this year’s first set of Bowl Championship Series standings don’t come out until Oct. 18, the detractors might have a new champion: a 22-year-old undergrad at a small Oregon college...
Protests? Pittsburgh Just Glad for Respect
Wall Street Journal
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Sep 25, 2009 11:00 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Native Pittsburghers definitely saw a motley crew of protesters invade for the G-20 summit this week, and were generally pretty unfazed. “It’s cool. People need to speak their mind,” one local told Bari Weiss, writing for the Wall Street Journal . “They didn’t bother anyone.” Indeed, the Steel City was looking for,...
Terror Suspect Zazi Arrives Back in NYC
New York Times
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Sep 25, 2009 9:43 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Terror suspect Najibullah Zazi arrived tonight in New York from Denver, where he was arrested on charges of plotting bombings around the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. He’ll spend the weekend in jail and has a hearing set for Tuesday in a Brooklyn court.
Hanged Census Worker Was Naked, Bound: Witness
Associated Press
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Sep 25, 2009 8:17 PM CDT
(AP) -
A part-time US Census worker found hanging in a rural Kentucky cemetery was naked, gagged and had his hands and feet bound with duct tape, said an Ohio man who discovered the body two weeks ago. "The only thing he had on was a pair of socks," Jerry Weaver said of 51-year-old Bill Sparkman. "And they had duct-taped his hands, his...
Feds Weigh New Bailouts for Smaller Banks
Associated Press
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Sep 25, 2009 6:40 PM CDT
(Newser) -
With the residential and commercial real-estate markets continuing to hammer smaller US banks, the Treasury and other federal agencies are trying to diagram help for institutions considered too much of a gamble under original bailout terms. Congressional Democrats are “very, very supportive” of such a move, a source tells AP, while, predictably,...
Crocs Too Comfy for Yom Kippur: Rabbi
Ynetnews
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Sep 25, 2009 5:47 PM CDT
(Newser) -
A Lithuanian rabbi has ruled that Crocs should not be worn during Yom Kippur because the sandals are too comfortable, Ynet news reports. Rabbi Elyashiv based his judgment on a prohibition against leather sandals, saying they were banned because they fail to provide an appropriate level of suffering for the holiday. "It is permissible legalistically" to...
Smoking Ban Health Hype Going Up in Smoke
Spiked
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Sep 25, 2009 5:23 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Reporters are covering stories that link smoking bans to lower heart attack rates—which would be terrific news if it were true, Christopher Snowdon writes on Spiked. Even the anti-smoking group Action on Smoking and Health stood up to a Sunday Times report of a "10% heart attack drop," saying it had no foundation in science. A BBC report...
G-20 Saved World Economy: Obama
Associated Press
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Sep 25, 2009 5:06 PM CDT
(AP) -
President Barack Obama asserted today that he and other leaders of the world's 20 largest economies took actions that "brought the global economy back from the brink" and saved or created millions of jobs. "We leave here today confident and united," he said at the conclusion of a two-day summit to deal with the worst economic crisis...
Lawsuit Hits BoA for '1,784 Billion, Trillion Dollars'
Reuters
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Sep 25, 2009 4:46 PM CDT
(Newser) -
An angry customer is suing Bank of America for "1,784 billion, trillion dollars" over service he found less than satisfying, Reuters reports. Dalton Chiscolm filed the suit for "inconsistent information from a 'Spanish woman,'” a judge says. "He apparently alleges that checks have been rejected because of incomplete routing...
Computer Whiz Records Life as 'E-Memory'
CNN
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Sep 25, 2009 4:26 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Philip K. Dick, eat your heart out. Microsoft researcher Gordon Bell is recording his entire life with video and audio equipment and storing it on a hard drive to keep it safe, CNN reports. The 350 gigabytes of data—which include scans of receipts and PDFs of every Web site he visits—is better than natural memory, he says, because...
Pittsburgh G-20 March Proceeds Peacefully
WTAE TV4 (Pittsburgh)
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Sep 25, 2009 4:11 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Protesters again marched in Pittsburgh today while world leaders met at the G-20 summit, but the demonstration has so far been peaceful, in marked contrast to the mayhem that marked yesterday’s rally. The demonstration, organized by the antiwar Thomas Merton Center, made its way across town after an opening rally at noon. "We do not want...
Stossel: Yeah, I'm Biased. So?
Reason Magazine
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Sep 25, 2009 3:56 PM CDT
(Newser) -
When John Stossel announced he was leaving ABC for Fox News, many complained he was “biased.” His response? “Every reporter has political beliefs,” he writes for Reason Online. “The difference is that I am upfront about mine.” For example, most media outlets call President Obama’s plan to overhaul health care...
Ballsy Move Helped Gervais Cast New Movie
Telegraph (UK)
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Sep 25, 2009 3:39 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Ricky Gervais, perhaps best known for the original version of The Office, bids for movie stardom with The Invention of Lying, out next week. Gervais co-wrote, co-directed, and stars as the only person on earth with the ability to lie. He tells the Telegraph about the experience, and what jumps out is the tale of the casting of Oscar winner Philip...
Dow Off 42, Wrapping Up Down Week for Stocks
Wall Street Journal
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Sep 25, 2009 3:27 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Stocks fell today after reports of a smaller-than-expected rise in new home sales and a drop in orders for durable goods over the last month. Blue chips Alcoa, Amex, and Wal-Mart all fell at least 2%, and RIM dropped 17.1% after issuing a disappointing earnings forecast. The Dow dropped 42.25 points to close at 9,665.19. The Nasdaq lost 16.69, closing...
Knox Lied About Sex Murder Under Stress: Witness
Daily Mail (UK)
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Sep 25, 2009 3:14 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Amanda Knox was telling the truth when she said she was lying, a neurologist testified today. Professor Carlo Caltagirone, the final witness in Knox's 8-month trial, backed up the suspect's claim that she had confessed to overhearing Meredith Kercher's murder because of stress, the Daily Mail reports. "Situations of stress and tension can create...
Hula-Hooping Comes Around as Workout Craze
Time
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Sep 25, 2009 2:55 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The hula-hoop is seeing a revival as a fitness tool, with out-of-shape Americans finding twirling a plastic tube a more enjoyable way to burn calories than running or weight-lifting. Companies like HoopGirl and Hoopnotica have seen sales of weighted hula-hoops and enrollment in hoop fitness classes surge. "I finally found an exercise that I could...
Let's Pay People Not to Cut Down Trees
Economist
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Sep 25, 2009 2:42 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Deforestation releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, so how about paying people to keep trees standing? A pilot project in Brazil has paid families to do just that, and aroused the interest of world leaders who plan to negotiate a climate deal in Copenhagen in December, the Economist reports. But analysts fear that wealthy countries, who...
Obama and Cable News: It's Love/Hate
Politico
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Sep 25, 2009 2:28 PM CDT
(Newser) -
President Obama tries to downplay the “cable chatter” of the 24-hour news networks, but his frustration with them is as old as their fascination with him. “I think a lot of this stems from the election,” press secretary Robert Gibbs tells Politico, when some donors “would get fixated by cable and get freaked out and start...
The Express Lane's a Myth
True/Slant
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Sep 25, 2009 2:12 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Which is faster: the express lane with more customers, or the standard lane with fewer? It’s a conundrum we’ve all faced, and there are too many variables to give a definitive answer. But math teacher and blogger Dan Meyer broke down data from a 6-hour shift, added his own observations, and concluded that in general, the express line is...
Zazi Linked to 9/11 Redux Bomb Strike
New York Daily News
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Sep 25, 2009 1:58 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Najibullah Zazi may have been planning a bomb attack in New York on the anniversary of September 11th, a federal prosecutor said today. “There is a chilling, disturbing sequence of events showing the suspect was intent on being in New York on Sept. 11,” said Assistant US Attorney Tim Neff. A judge has ordered Zazi to face charges in New...
Worst Films of the Decade
Rotten Tomatoes
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Sep 25, 2009 1:43 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Some films—including a few released mere weeks ago (we’re looking at you, All About Steve )—are just plain bad. Rotten Tomatoes compiles the absolute worst 100 of the decade so far. A sampling from the top 10, aka the bottom 10: Witless Protection : “ Larry the Cable Guy continues his critical losing streak with this...
Honduran Leaders Will Reopen Talks
Bloomberg
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Sep 25, 2009 1:31 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The ousted president and acting president of Honduras have agreed to reopen dialogue after the recently returned Manuel Zelaya announced he would accept the results of a November election. Zelaya and Roberto Micheletti held separate meetings with four presidential candidates yesterday and may meet face to face soon, according to one candidate. Micheletti...
Girls' Debut 'Dizzily Powerful'
Pitchfork
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Sep 25, 2009 1:27 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The frontman of the pop duo Girls has a backstory that’s “epically sad and squalid and ultimately triumphant,” but you don’t need to know his history to recognize Girls' debut, Album , as “a dizzily powerful piece of work,” writes Tom Breihan for Pitchfork. Christopher Owens’ voice sounds like “every...
Osama Warns Europe to Leave Afghanistan
AFP
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Sep 25, 2009 1:15 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Osama bin Laden wants Europe to pull its troops out Afghanistan and sever ties with the US. In a new audio message, the al-Qaeda chief admonishes European nations for putting in with a United States whose “supreme commander has no regard for human life and intentionally bombs villagers from the air,” AFP reports. He promises retaliation...
America's Safest Colleges
Daily Beast
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Sep 25, 2009 1:04 PM CDT
(Newser) -
In the wake of the Yale slaying, the Daily Beast ranks America’s safest colleges. The rankings rest on crime rates from 2006 to 2007, at schools with at least 6,000 students and some on-campus housing. The results: New York Institute of Technology: Located in a quaint Long Island suburb, NYIT didn’t have a single reported crime....
Spanked Kids Have Lower IQs
Associated Press
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Sep 25, 2009 12:52 PM CDT
(Newser) -
American children whose parents use spanking for discipline have lower IQs than those who aren't spanked, a new study finds. Researchers assessed about 800 2- to 4-year-olds and 700 5- to 9-year-olds and revisited them 4 years later, reporting a dropoff of up to 5 IQ points in kids whose parents engaged in corporal punishment, the Los Angeles Time...
Sotomayor Reminisces About Life-Changing Call
USA Today
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Sep 25, 2009 12:39 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Sonia Sotomayor sat by the phone for 12 hours waiting for the call. When it finally rang, “I had my left hand over my chest, trying to calm my beating heart,” she recalls in an interview with C-SPAN. When President Obama offered her the Supreme Court appointment, “I caught my breath and started to cry and said, ‘Thank you, Mr....
Coco Before Chanel Is 'Beautifully Woven'
Metacritic
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Sep 25, 2009 12:26 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Coco Before Chanel gets mostly positive reviews for its portrayal of the legendary designer in the days before her rise to fame. “The most obvious credit goes to the strong, sure performance of Audrey Tautou,” writes Kenneth Turan in the Los Angeles Times. “Tautou not only resembles Chanel, she inhabits the role completely."...
Feds Head Off Bombing Plots in Dallas, Illinois
Dallas Morning News
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Sep 25, 2009 12:01 PM CDT
(Newser) -
A Jordanian citizen arrested in an elaborate FBI sting is to be arraigned today on charges of attempting to blow up a Dallas skyscraper. The court appearance comes a day after an Illinois man was charged with plotting to detonate a bomb near a Springfield courthouse, only to learn that his supposed al-Qaeda contact was an FBI agent. The cases...
Thin Limbaugh Spars With Jay, Flattens Gore
Celebrity Cafe
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Sep 25, 2009 11:53 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A thinner Rush Limbaugh—he's dropped 82 pounds—showed up on Jay Leno's show last night to talk politics ("I'm not polarizing," Obama is) and flatten Al Gore. While taking Leno's "green car" challenge, Limbaugh ran over a cardboard cutout of Gore, then drew big laughs by backing over it. He and Leno sparred a bit on the...
Ankle Monitors Get a Grip on Drunk Drivers
Washington Post
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Sep 25, 2009 11:41 AM CDT
(Newser) -
In the fight against drunk driving, cash-strapped municipalities are embracing cheaper penalties than the traditional—and expensive—jailhouse, and the ankle monitor has a high-tech addition: an alcohol sensor. Repeat offenders can skip probation and even rehab if they submit to sweat-analyzing remote surveillance. “We are at a point...
Victoria Gotti Spills Mob Secrets in Tell-All Book
New York Daily News
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Sep 25, 2009 11:28 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Victoria Gotti insists she doesn’t condone crime. But in her new tell-all book, The Family of Mine , Mafia don John Gotti's daughter compares mobsters to Robin Hood and his merry men, claims they’re better than corrupt politicians, and says she sees no difference between paying into a protection racket and paying taxes to the police. She...
Weinstein Co. in Trouble, Despite Success of Basterds
Wall Street Journal
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Sep 25, 2009 11:15 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Inglourious Basterds ’ success has provided a stay of execution for Weinstein Co., but the firm needs several more blockbusters like it to stay afloat, sources tell the Wall Street Journal reports. The 4-year-old company hasn’t released as many films as it thought it would, but it’s burned through its $1.2 billion in startup funding.
Ginsburg Leaves Hospital, Heads to Work
Associated Press
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Sep 25, 2009 11:04 AM CDT
(AP) -
Ruth Bader Ginsburg was released from a Washington hospital today after spending the night as a precaution. The 76-year-old Supreme Court justice planned to be back at work later today. Ginsburg, who underwent surgery for pancreatic cancer in February, "developed lightheadedness and fatigue" in her office yesterday after receiving treatment...
Gadhafi: Lockerbie Is Over, 'Legally, Politically, Financially'
Wall Street Journal
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Sep 25, 2009 10:52 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Moammar Gadhafi tried to leaven his image a bit after his 90-minute UN diatribe by sitting down with the Wall Street Journal yesterday. The Libyan strongman assured reporter Jay Solomon he could "comprehend" the anger of Americans who lost friends and relatives in the Lockerbie bombing. He denied orchestrating a hero's welcome for the...
Google Earth, Al Gore Detail Climate Change
Guardian (UK)
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Sep 25, 2009 10:41 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Google—with the help of Al Gore—has introduced new “layers” to its Earth application that detail the possible effects of climate change in the next century. The Nobel laureate narrates an intro to a series of virtual tours that highlight terrifying scenarios and solutions. The upgrade allows users to look at a view of any area...
Surrogates : Silly But Suspenseful
Rotten Tomatoes
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Sep 25, 2009 10:30 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Critics are lukewarm about Surrogates , the new sci-fi flick starring a surprisingly hirsute Bruce Willis, in which humans command tricked-out robots who do their work and play for them. It's a "preposterous movie that luxuriates in its own silliness," says Stephanie Zacharek of Salon. There's a "heavy-duty moral," but the...
Pittsburgh Braces for Big March After 66 Arrests
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
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Sep 25, 2009 10:19 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Pittsburgh police are preparing for a big afternoon march today after arresting 66 people yesterday. One big difference: Today's march to protest the G-20 summit is sanctioned, and organizers are requiring demonstrators to pledge to behave. Yesterday and last night, a group of self-described anarchists tried to march downtown before running into riot...
Race for Better Light Bulb Heats Up
New York Times
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Sep 25, 2009 10:08 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Dutch electronics giant Philips has created an LED light bulb that, if it lives up to its billing, could claim the US government’s coveted “L Prize.” More important, the new bulb could inherit the 60-watt bulb’s throne. The Energy Department is offering $10 million—and a pile of juicy government contracts—to...
Hipsters, Please: Stop With the Rattails
Gawker
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Sep 25, 2009 9:57 AM CDT
(Newser) -
There’s a new generation of hipsters “and, if you can believe it, they're sporting something even more disgusting than von Dutch fashions: a rattail,” writes Andrew Belonsky for Gawker. Think it’s no more than an ill-informed fashion decision, “the hairstyle of choice for rednecks and unwashed losers”? Think again:...
Barbie, He-Man Flicks Launch Casting Rumors
Independent (UK)
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Sep 25, 2009 9:46 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Now that Barbie and He-Man are joining fellow toy franchises Transformers and GI Joe on the big screen, who can play the iconic characters? The Independent has some ideas. For Barbie: Anna Faris , Heather Graham , or Katherine Heigl : Would be perfect if not for the fact that they’re in their thirties. Reese Witherspoon :...
Public Option Lives—If the Left Pushes Hard Enough
Salon
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Sep 25, 2009 9:35 AM CDT
(Newser) -
As health care reform chugs through the Senate Finance Committee, Mike Madden checks in on the prospects for a public option and finds it's not quite dead yet. A big test comes today when the committee votes on amendments from supporters of the public option, such as Jay Rockefeller. "Don't count it out," says Chuck Schumer, sounding not...
Kardashian-Odom Wedding 'News' Rules Tabloids
TMZ
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Sep 25, 2009 9:23 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The fairytale romance of Khloé Kardashian and Lamar Odom, who met over a $3,000 bar tab a mere 4 weeks ago and plan to marry Sunday, continues—and the tabloids and gossip sites are eating it up. Some recent tidbits: Guests are shelling out for some very fitting wedding gifts, including a $1,075 decanter, $750 champagne bucket, and...
Brooks: Listen to McChrystal
New York Times
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Sep 25, 2009 9:12 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Talk to people who have a superficial sense of Afghanistan, and you'll hear the same thing: It's a "graveyard of empires," and the US needs to get out. Genuine experts, people who live there, dismiss the stereotype as "rubbish" and take a more "guardedly optimistic" view. President Obama should listen to them and...
