Newser Story Index from December, 2011
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.
Why America Should Eat Horse
Time
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Dec 31, 2011 7:00 PM CST
(Newser) -
When Congress lifted the ban on funding horse meat inspections , no one exactly cheered, because Americans find the idea of eating horse meat “gross.” But maybe it’s time to get over “our national revulsion” against the stuff, writes Josh Ozersky in Time . For one thing, since horse meat is so unpopular, it would be...
Obama Signs Defense Bill Despite 'Reservations'
Associated Press
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Dec 31, 2011 5:42 PM CST
(AP) -
President Barack Obama signed a wide-ranging defense bill into law today despite having "serious reservations" about provisions that regulate the detention, interrogation and prosecution of suspected terrorists. The bill also applies penalties against Iran's central bank in an effort to hamper Tehran's ability to fund its nuclear...
Facebook Cited in 33% of Divorces
Daily Mail (UK)
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Dec 31, 2011 5:02 PM CST
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All that flirting on Facebook is leading to a sad but hardly surprising outcome: divorce. One-third of divorce filings based on unreasonable behavior are citing Facebook these days, and such filings are up by half over the past two years, says the law firm Divorce-Online. "People contact ex-partners and the messages start as innocent, but lead...
Top 10 Magazine Articles of 2011
Slate
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Dec 31, 2011 4:35 PM CST
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The year's best magazine articles cover everything from Scientology to conjoined twins to religious slavery in a Louisiana prison. Slate lists 10 favorites via Longform.org , including: "The Apostate," The New Yorker. Famed Hollywood screenwriter Paul Haggis reveals his falling out with the Church of Scientology. "I just...
Teens Text and Google for Newfangled Sex Ed
New York Times
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Dec 31, 2011 4:06 PM CST
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Why teach sex education in class when students prefer to text and Google about it anyway? So say some health organizations and school districts that are setting up sex-ed websites and texting services for teens, the New York Times reports. And students seem to like it: “You can ask a random question about sex and you don’t feel it was...
Palin Gives Advice to 2012 GOP Nominee
Washington Post
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Dec 31, 2011 3:33 PM CST
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Sarah Palin is offering a little advice to whoever becomes this year's Republican presidential nominee. First, she says, pick up her book, Going Rogue . "I must implore the candidates to do something that sounds self-promoting, but whatever," she writes in the Washington Post. "Candidates, please turn to Chapter Three ......
40K New State Laws Kick In for 2012
MSNBC
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Dec 31, 2011 3:10 PM CST
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The new year has brought us about 40,000 state laws ranging from abortion and voter restrictions to golf cart requirements and a ban on happy hours. MSNBC runs down a few of them: Several states will require employers to confirm the legality of workers through a federal system called E-Verify. Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina all...
DNA Unlocks Secret of Early Humans
Independent
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Dec 31, 2011 2:30 PM CST
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Early humans may not have journeyed north out of Africa after all. Instead, DNA experts say, they built boats about 60,000 years ago and floated their way from East Africa over to India. That and other interesting tidbits are emerging from a DNA study called the Genographic Project, the Independent reports. Modern-day volunteers are offering their...
Perry Wanted Brand to Divorce Her
TMZ
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Dec 31, 2011 1:56 PM CST
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Looks like religion actually did play a role in the Katy Perry-Russell Brand divorce filing yesterday—but more in the timing of it. Details are trickling out on the long-rumored celebrity breakup: Perry wanted Brand to file the divorce papers so as not to upset her religious parents, sources tell TMZ . Perry was raised with the belief...
Iran to World Leaders: Let's Discuss Nuke Program
Associated Press
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Dec 31, 2011 1:30 PM CST
(AP) -
Iran said today it has proposed a new round of talks on its nuclear program with six world powers that have been trying for years to persuade Tehran to freeze aspects of its atomic work that could provide a possible pathway to weapons production. The country's top nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, said he has formally called on the US, Russia,...
Apple's Design Chief Is Now a Knight
San Jose Mercury News
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Dec 31, 2011 1:06 PM CST
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Apple's lead designer has a new title: Knight Commander of the British Empire. Or just Sir Jonathan if you like. Jonathan Ive has been awarded a knighthood in his native England, reports the BBC . The 44-year-old worked closely with Steve Jobs and has played a large role in creating everything from the iPhone to the iPad. The San Jose Mercury...
Nigeria Declares Emergency After Attacks
Associated Press
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Dec 31, 2011 12:31 PM CST
(AP) -
Nigeria's president today declared a state of emergency in parts of Africa's most populous nation, after a recent slew of deadly attacks blamed on a radical Muslim sect killed dozens of people. President Goodluck Jonathan declared an indefinite state of emergency in four states, which would all allow security agencies there to make arrests...
Thanks, Celebs, for This Year's 23 'WTF?!' Moments
Huffington Post
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Dec 31, 2011 12:08 PM CST
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Hollywood has given us many, many reasons to be glad 2011 is over—including the nearly two dozen “WTF?!” moments rounded up by the Huffington Post : Chris Brown shatters a window in a rage after Good Morning America . Rebecca Black releases “Friday.” It goes on to rack up the most YouTube views of the year....
Asia, Australia Welcome 2012
Associated Press
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Dec 31, 2011 11:25 AM CST
(AP) -
Glittering fireworks exploded as revelers in Australia and Asia welcomed 2012. That included more than 1.5 million crowded onto boats in Sydney Harbor. In Europe, German Chancellor Angela Merkel set the tone for a continent hammered by an unprecedented economic crisis: She warned in her New Year's message that despite her country's comparatively...
Kelly Clarkson Sales Soar After She Backs Ron Paul
CNNMoney
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Dec 31, 2011 11:03 AM CST
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Behold the power of Ron Paul's followers: Since Kelly Clarkson tweeted her support for Paul to be the nominee, her album sales have soared, report CNN Money and the Hollywood Reporter . Her latest, Stronger , shot up from No. 38 to No. 7 on Amazon between Thursday and yesterday, with sales up 442%. As of this morning, the album had risen...
Bolivia Is Now a McDonald's-Free Zone
hispanicallyspeakingnews.com
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Dec 31, 2011 10:40 AM CST
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Those traveling in Bolivia can forget about a Big Mac. McDonald's has closed its eight restaurants there because of weak sales, making Bolivia the only nation in Latin America without the golden arches, reports the Hispanically Speaking News blog . The chain tried without success for 14 years to gain a foothold in the nation.
LA Arson Spree Torches Cars
Los Angeles Times
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Dec 31, 2011 10:34 AM CST
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Los Angeles apparently has one or more arsonists running around. Firefighters battled 16 more blazes overnight, on top of 21 the previous night, mostly around Hollywood, reports the Los Angeles Times . It appears the fires were started in parked cars, and several spread to nearby buildings. The most notable example: A home in the Hollywood Hills...
10 Most Nagging Mysteries of 2011
theatlanticwire.com
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Dec 31, 2011 10:19 AM CST
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A lot of big news happened in 2011 ... and some of it only half-happened. The Atlantic Wire took a look at the most frustrating unanswered questions of the year, and keeps its fingers crossed that 2012 will bring new details. Highlights from its list of the year's 10 most nagging mysteries: What's the deal with the Long Island serial...
Feds to Airlines: Stop Hiding Ticket Fees, Taxes
CNN
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Dec 31, 2011 9:39 AM CST
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Airlines will soon be forced to advertise the full price of tickets—including government taxes and fees—instead of a stripped-down price with an asterisk. The rule scheduled to go into effect in late January is designed to keep prospective fliers from getting a nasty surprise several steps into the buying process when mandatory taxes and...
Military's New Worry: Synthetic Pot
Associated Press
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Dec 31, 2011 9:11 AM CST
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More and more American soldiers are using synthetic marijuana, specifically an herbal concoction called "Spice" that is both potent and easy to get, reports AP . The Pentagon put into place a rigorous testing program this year that flagged more than 1,000 troops. One stat shows the spike: Two years ago, the Navy investigated 29 Marines for...
Yes, Dick Clark Is On Tonight
Huffington Post
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Dec 31, 2011 8:43 AM CST
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Dick Clark will be in his usual New Year's Eve spot tonight, in front of the cameras for his New Year's Rockin' Eve show on ABC, notes the Huffington Post . As has been the case since 2005, Ryan Seacrest will co-host and handle most of the duties for the 82-year-old Clark, who has been slowed by a stroke since 2004. This year is the...
Romney's Super PAC Is Destroying Gingrich
New York Times
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Dec 31, 2011 8:16 AM CST
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Newt Gingrich might well be the first big-name casualty of the Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling that rewrote the rules on campaign financing. The decision cleared the way for "super PACs" like the one backing Mitt Romney called Restore Our Future, which has poured $2.8 million so far into nonstop TV ads attacking Gingrich, reports...
This Burger Costs $5K
Fox News
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Dec 31, 2011 7:44 AM CST
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A Vegas casino has just the thing to help jackpot winners leave some of that cash behind: a $5,000 burger. The Fleurburger 5000 at the Mandalay Bay hotel has Kobe beef, duck foie gras, and sauteed truffles that cost $1,500 a pound, reports Fox News . Also helping drive up the meal's price is a bottle of Chateau Petrus, a fine wine served on the...
Obama Tries to Capitalize on Romney Son's Birther Gaffe
CBS News
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Dec 31, 2011 7:16 AM CST
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Probably the weirdest thing to come off the campaign trail yesterday was the mini-brouhaha that resulted when one of Mitt Romney's sons made a birther joke. As CBS explains, Matt Romney, 40, was answering a question in New Hampshire about whether his father would ever release his tax returns, when he went for a laugh: "I heard someone suggest...
Google Flight Search Shakes Up Travel Market
Wall Street Journal
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Dec 31, 2011 7:00 AM CST
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Online travel agents like Expedia and Orbitz complain that Google's new flight search tool is unfairly squeezing them out of business. Searches like "NY to LA" now produce a Google chart of airfares, with links directly to airlines, that appear above the results for middlemen. The travel sites accuse Google of abusing its power in an...
China Sees First Bird Flu Death in More Than a Year
Reuters
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Dec 31, 2011 6:38 AM CST
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Let's hope it's an isolated case: A bus driver in southern China has died of the bird flu virus, the nation's first case in more than a year, reports Reuters . It's not clear how he contracted it: The 39-year-old apparently had no contact with poultry before coming down with a fever earlier this month. He lived in Shenzhen, near Hong...
Who Has the Biggest New Year's Eve?
NPR
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Dec 31, 2011 5:19 AM CST
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If you're looking to celebrate New Year's Eve with a whole bunch of other people, head to China. The time zone that includes China plus Taiwan, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Timor, and parts of Siberia, Indonesia, and Australia must have at least 1.5 billion people in it, NPR concludes. It wins the most-populous...
California Has First Gray Wolf in 88 Years
Los Angeles Times
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Dec 30, 2011 6:33 PM CST
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A lone gray wolf is wandering around the forests of California's Siskiyou County, and that's a milestone for wildlife experts. The 2-year-old male is the first gray wolf in the state since 1924, reports the Los Angeles Times . He crossed the border from Oregon Wednesday afternoon, according to biologists tracking his movements via GPS. This...
Cops: Man Intentionally Infected Women With HIV
MSNBC
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Dec 30, 2011 5:29 PM CST
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Awful story out of Michigan: Authorities say a 51-year-old man who is HIV-positive confessed to intentionally exposing hundreds of people to the disease through unprotected sex, report MSNBC and the Grand Rapids Press . Court documents say that David Dean Smith harbored a "desire to harm women" and tried to infect as many people as he...
'Silent Strokes' May Damage Memory
USA Today
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Dec 30, 2011 5:00 PM CST
(Newser) -
"Silent strokes" may be taking a toll on seniors' memory. A new study shows that seniors who have suffered such strokes—they don't have obvious symptoms but leave behind dead brain cells—do worse on memory tests, reports USA Today . It's no small thing: An estimated 1 in 4 seniors have had the strokes.
Huntsman May Drop if He Doesn't Crack Top 3 in NH
Associated Press
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Dec 30, 2011 4:48 PM CST
(Newser) -
It's getting to be put-up-or-shut-up time for the back-benchers in the GOP field. Rick Santorum, for instance, says he's done if he flops in Iowa . Now Jon Huntsman is setting a bar of his own in New Hampshire: If he doesn't finish in the top three, he will likely drop out of the race, reports AP . He doesn't say so explicitly, but...
Anonymous Releases 75K Stolen Credit Card Numbers
Washington Post
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Dec 30, 2011 4:17 PM CST
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The band of hackers known as Anonymous has just released the names, email addresses, and passwords for around 860,000 users of Stratfor, a security think tank, as well as 75,000 credit card numbers belonging to Stratfor's paying customers. The initial digital theft took place on Dec. 24, reports the Washington Post . Stratfor's website has...
Occupy's Rose Parade Float: Giant Octopus
Los Angeles Times
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Dec 30, 2011 3:52 PM CST
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Occupy Los Angeles activists are staging a protest at Monday's Rose Parade in Pasadena with their very own float: a 70-by-40-foot octopus made of recycled plastic bags. More than 1,000 Occupiers are expected to join the demonstration, reports the Los Angeles Times , and organizers promise to keep it family-friendly. The protesters have been...
Congress' Job Approval: Count It on One Hand
Rasmussen Reports
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Dec 30, 2011 3:25 PM CST
(Newser) -
This version of Congress hasn't been getting good marks from the public, but a new poll by Rasmussen Reports still has an eye-popping stat on just how deep the frustration goes. In a survey of likely voters, only 5% thought Congress had done a good or excellent job. Not surprisingly, that would be a record. A whopping 68% rated the performance...
Verizon Scraps $2 Fee
Wall Street Journal
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Dec 30, 2011 2:38 PM CST
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About that new $2 "convenience fee" for Verizon Wireless customers: Never mind. The company backtracked quickly today and scrapped its plan to charge customers who make one-time payments online or by phone, reports the Wall Street Journal . Online petitions in protest sprang up immediately , and federal regulators said they were looking...
Top 10 GOP Campaign Moments
Politico
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Dec 30, 2011 2:30 PM CST
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Politico rounds up what it views as the top 10 moments of the Republican primary campaign so far. Some highlights: Perry's 'Oops': Any doubt that Rick Perry's brain freeze during a debate in November would make the list? It may well have killed his campaign. See it here . Cain's rise and fall: Herman Cain's surprise...
Baby-Sitter Charged in Indiana Girl's Murder
Associated Press
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Dec 30, 2011 2:14 PM CST
(AP) -
Prosecutors in Indiana charged a baby-sitter with murder and two other felonies today after he told police he bludgeoned and dismembered a 9-year-old girl just days before Christmas. Michael Plumadore, 39, was charged in Fort Wayne with murder in the killing of Aliahna Maroney-Lemmon . He remains jailed without bond.
Russell Brand, Katy Perry Divorcing
TMZ
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Dec 30, 2011 1:53 PM CST
(Newser) -
Big news in the celebrity splitsville department: Russell Brand has filed for divorce from Katy Perry, reports TMZ . The Brit actor, who had denied rumors of marital trouble earlier in the month, confirmed in a statement: "Sadly, Katy and I are ending our marriage. I'll always adore her and I know we'll remain friends." The divorce...
Gingrich Tears Up at Iowa Stop
Los Angeles Times
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Dec 30, 2011 1:38 PM CST
(Newser) -
The Newt Gingrich story line has long been whether "good Newt" could keep "bad Newt" at bay during the campaign. Well today, we met "emotional Newt." The candidate got choked up and shed some tears during a campaign event in Iowa when remembering his late mother, notes the Huffington Post . “I identify my mother...
Cities Cracking Down on ... Garage Sales
Wall Street Journal
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Dec 30, 2011 1:19 PM CST
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Across the nation, lawmakers are cracking down on the most insidious of threats: the garage sale. Though there is no official figure, some experts say garage sales are increasing significantly, and officials are bristling as some sites hold sales on a weekly basis—each time with different merchandise, and not just the usual old junk from your...
How Ron Paul Could Win Nomination
Reason Magazine
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Dec 30, 2011 1:04 PM CST
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Ron Paul scoffers, consider this: It's possible he could follow the same path to the GOP nomination John McCain did in 2008, writes Matt Welch in Reason . Like McCain, Paul has lots of support in the early states among independents and non-Republicans in general. That's precisely how McCain won enough of those states to cement himself as the...
Streep Wows as Iron Lady
Guardian (UK)
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Dec 30, 2011 12:50 PM CST
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As a biopic, The Iron Lady is nothing to write home about—but critics are blown away by Meryl Streep's typically excellent performance as Margaret Thatcher: The film contains "little sense of the outside world, the human cost, or the ripple effect of divisive government policies. It is a movie that gives us Thatcher without Thatcherism,"...
China Plans to Grab Moon Rocks by 2016
New York Times
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Dec 30, 2011 12:36 PM CST
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Might China soon be the new king of space? With NASA cooling its jets and Russia misfiring repeatedly on rockets and satellites, Beijing is steadily working toward filling the void. It unveiled a five-year plan yesterday to launch a space lab, collect samples from the moon on an unmanned mission, and build a more powerful spaceship for its astronauts...
French 'Cola Tax' Starts Next Week
Der Spiegel
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Dec 30, 2011 12:16 PM CST
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Two things in France keep getting bigger: the deficit and the nation's waistline . To fight both simultaneously, a new "cola tax" will go into effect on New Year's Day, reports Der Spiegel . The tax will be a little more than a penny per can on Coke and other soft drinks, and industry insiders warn the move could eventually result...
What Boycott? GoDaddy Gained Users Yesterday
Techdirt
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Dec 30, 2011 11:58 AM CST
(Newser) -
An impending boycott may have pushed GoDaddy to change position on SOPA, but the boycott itself didn't hurt the company much. Yesterday, the official day of the movement, GoDaddy actually saw a net increase of 20,748 domains, TechDirt reports. Indeed, GoDaddy saw almost twice as many transfers into its systems as out, and the number of new...
New Iowa Poll: Romney, Paul, Santorum Are 1-2-3
MSNBC
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Dec 30, 2011 11:44 AM CST
(Newser) -
With zero hour approaching in Iowa, the polls seem to be settling into a kind of clarity: Mitt Romney (23%) and Ron Paul (21%) are essentially tied at the top in a new NBC survey, with a surging Rick Santorum in third (15%). Former frontrunner Newt Gingrich, meanwhile, continues to fall. He's in fourth (13%), a point behind Rick Perry. Everyone...
Bachmann Insists: Ron Paul Bribed My Guy
Bloomberg
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Dec 30, 2011 11:30 AM CST
(Newser) -
Michelle Bachmann may be down in the polls , but she's certainly not backing down. The GOP candidate yesterday continued to insist that her Iowa campaign chair defected to Ron Paul's camp because he was bribed to do so, reports Bloomberg . Kent Sorenson "told me that he was offered money, he was offered a lot of money by the Ron Paul...
10 Killed, Thousands Protest in Syria
BBC
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Dec 30, 2011 11:14 AM CST
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Tens of thousands—perhaps hundreds of thousands—of protesters rallied across Syria today in an effort to show Arab League monitors the extent of opposition anger. At least 10 were reported killed in ensuing clashes with security forces, the BBC reports; the deaths follow up to 40 others yesterday. But the arrival of the monitors has reportedly...
Hudson: Dead Brother's Voice Pushed Me to Sing Again
Huffington Post
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Dec 30, 2011 10:59 AM CST
(Newser) -
How was Jennifer Hudson able to make a comeback, singing the national anthem at the 2009 Super Bowl just months after her mother, brother, and nephew were murdered? Those family members played a part, she explains to Dateline in an interview airing Jan. 8. "I felt as though I had to," Hudson says in a preview obtained by the Huffington...
Law Would Fine Singers for Altering National Anthem
Indianapolis Star
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Dec 30, 2011 10:45 AM CST
(Newser) -
An Indiana lawmaker is sick of hearing the national anthem parodied, and she's proposing a law to ban such alterations. The bill would set a $25 fine payable by any singer who doesn't meet "performance standards" when belting out the tune at an event at a public school or state university, the Indianapolis Star reports. The "Star-Spangled...
