Au Revoir, Paris Nightlife

Shooting seen as sign of violent super power in decline

(NEWSER) - While Americans are wringing their hands, trying to make some sense of a senseless act, the rest of the world is shaking its head in dismay. To Europeans in particular, the shooting deaths of 6 people and the attempted assassination of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is symptomatic of a gun-obsessed nation rattled by the doubt and pessimism of a super power in decline, notes the Christian Science Monitor . Commentators from both the right and left in newspapers in London, Paris, and Berlin decry the toll of rabid political rhetoric, slipping fortunes, and entanglement in two wars. More»

Frustrated travelers camp out in airports, train stations

(NEWSER) - Hundreds of thousands of passengers on their way to family holiday festivities in Europe were camped out instead yesterday at mobbed airports and train stations shut down by record snow and cold. London's Heathrow Airport was largely closed for a second day as wanna-be fliers huddled under emergency blankets on trash-strewn floors, some of them for a third night waiting for their plane to take off. "It's very hard," a passenger with a ticket to Dallas told CNN . "All I want for Christmas is to hug my daughter." Charles De Gaulle and German airports canceled more than a quarter of their flights, and several Eurostar trips were delayed or ditched. More»

Cops nab man, 24

(NEWSER) - A $115,000 Banksy portrait and other art work was stolen from model Kate Moss' $10 million London mansion as she and her family slept. A 24-year-old man has been arrested in the theft, though police did not reveal if the art was recovered. Moss, 36, was staying in the home with partner Jamie Hince and her mom. It was a week for brazen art heists. A thief cut 5 masterpieces worth at least $100 million from their frames at the Paris Museum of Modern Art this week. Works included pieces by Picasso, Matisse, Braque and Modigliani. More»

From NYC to London, Berlin to Mississippi

(NEWSER) - Want to see hear some great music in a tiny place? The Guardian asks industry insiders for tips:

• Pegu Club, New York: Hitting this unassuming West Houston Street spot is “like going back to the great clubs of the 20s, when the staff were pretty and jazz and cocktails ruled,” says the director of one London jazz standby.
• Po’ Monkey’s, Merigold, Miss.: “Ramshackle hut powered by a single cable,” Po'Monkey's offers “raw blues at its authentic and spine-shivering best,” says one music-travel exec.

(NEWSER) - Some 740 passengers had to be evacuated from a packed Eurostar train from Paris last night after the electricity failed. Passengers were plunged into darkness as they awaited rescuers with ladders shortly after the train left the chunnel and headed toward London. More»