Least Happy State: New York

Congress may unite to hand him first override of his presidency

(NEWSER) - President Bush is gearing up for another battle with Congress, but his latest fray could result in the first overriding of one of his vetoes, the Washington Post reports. His rejection yesterday of the water resources bill, popular with Democrats and Republicans, is a gamble because it may endear him to fiscal conservatives but erode his authority on Capitol Hill. More»

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1. Ocracoke Lifeguarded Beach, Outer Banks, North Carolina
2. Caladesi Island State Park, Dunedin/Clearwater, Florida
3. Coopers Beach, Southampton, New York
4. Hanalei Bay, Kauai, Hawaii
5. Coast Guard Beach, Cape Cod, Massachusetts

Windshield was iced over, and he was flying in circles

(AP) - Coast Guard crews saw no signs today that the pilot of a small plane survived when it went down in the Gulf of Mexico about three hours after two F-15 fighter jets tried to make contact with him. The plane landed right-side up on the ocean surface and had been floating right after the crash, said the Coast Guard chief. Planes reportedly did not see a life raft deploy or anything to indicate the pilot—the lone person aboard—was alive. The military pilots reported that the plane's windshield had been iced over. More»

Hawaii wins again, followed by North Dakota and Minnesota

(NEWSER) - So people like sun and surf and swaying palm trees —who knew. For the third straight year, Hawaii has taken first place in a national poll of happiness among US states, LiveScience reports. The telephone survey of more than 350,000 adults posed questions about emotional health, work environment, and self-evaluation for the present and five years down the road. Here are the happiest states, including a score out of a possible 100 points: More»

Want to stay off the beaten path? Start here

(NEWSER) - If you’ve seen enough of Old Faithful and the Grand Canyon, CNN has an idea for you: Why not visit another of the country’s 397 national parks and monuments, like one of these seven you’ve probably never heard of?

• Dry Tortugas: You have to seriously want to make it all the way out to one of these seven islands 70 miles west of Key West, which are only accessible by ferry or seaplane. But don’t expect actual dryness: Tropical storms are a regular occurrence.