| Deadly Navy helicopter crash off Virginia coast Posted: 08 Jan 2014 10:59 AM PST  One of four rescued crew members confirmed dead, a fifth is still missing.
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| Three years after Tucson shooting, Gabrielle Giffords to go skydiving Posted: 08 Jan 2014 11:43 AM PST  TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — In the three years since she was severely injured in a mass shooting at a political event, Gabrielle Giffords has made an impressive recovery, learned to walk again and founded a national political organization. On Wednesday, while others gathered for bell-ringing and flag-raising ceremonies, she will mark the anniversary by skydiving.
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| TED talks don't work, says TED talker Posted: 08 Jan 2014 09:12 AM PST  TED talks, in which different experts speak to audiences about serious problems and bold ideas that may solve them, are a love 'em or hate 'em thing. Some find them inspirational.
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| Utah puts status of newly married same-sex couples 'on hold' Posted: 08 Jan 2014 09:59 AM PST  For now at least, Utah's state government won't recognize the marriages of about 1,000 newly married same-sex couples, the governor's office announced on Wednesday. On December 20th, a federal judge decided that the state's same-sex marriage ban was unconstitutional, allowing any eligible couple in the state — gay or straight — to marry, until the Supreme Court issued a stay on that decision on Monday. Based on counsel from the Attorney General's Office regarding the Supreme Court decision, state recognition of same-sex marital status is ON HOLD until further notice. The intent of this communication is to direct state agency compliance with current laws that prohibit the state from recognizing same-sex marriages.
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| Christie aide linked to 'traffic problems' that vexed N.J. mayor Posted: 08 Jan 2014 10:02 AM PST  The Fort Lee, N.J.. mayor did not publicly endorse the governor's re-election.
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| Snowblower man warms neighbors hearts—and cleans their drives Posted: 08 Jan 2014 07:59 AM PST  A 32-year-old with a snowblower is being hailed as a hero by his neighbors after he cleared their driveways and walkways in subzero temperatures, unprompted and for free.
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| Study: Teenagers who drink have more friends: Posted: 08 Jan 2014 08:03 AM PST  By Kathryn Doyle NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Middle and high school students who drink alcohol are often the same ones winning the popularity contests, new research suggests. "There has not been much data to support that drinking among teenagers directly leads to higher popularity and more friendships," said Peter Delany. He is the director of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality in Rockville, Maryland. Delany was not part of the study team, which was led by Mir M. Ali, also from SAMHSA.
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| Pilot's remarkable landing on Alaska highway Posted: 08 Jan 2014 06:30 AM PST  Armon Tabrizi's plane lost power on routine maintenance flight.
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| Fall of hard-won Fallujah to al-Qaida frustrates Iraq war vets Posted: 08 Jan 2014 10:11 AM PST  SAN DIEGO (AP) — Shirley Parrello knows that her youngest boy believed in his mission in Iraq. But as she watches Iraqi government forces try to retake the hard-won city of Fallujah from al-Qaida-linked fighters, she can't help wondering if it was worth Marine Lance Cpl. Brian Parrello's sacrifice.
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| Giant tip gives cheery waitress reason to smile Posted: 08 Jan 2014 06:21 AM PST  Cheerful waitress Abigail Sailors scores a whopper of a tip.
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| Navy helicopter crashes off Va. coast Posted: 08 Jan 2014 09:22 AM PST  Five people were aboard the craft; no reports on casualties.
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| American family outraged over Rodman's North Korea trip Posted:  The ex-NBA player "could do a lot" to help Kenneth Bae, a missionary held there since 2012.
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| Christian 'martyr' deaths double in 2013 Posted: 08 Jan 2014 05:23 AM PST  By Tom Heneghan, Religion Editor LONDON (Reuters) - Reported cases of Christians killed for their faith around the world doubled in 2013 from the year before, with Syria accounting for more than the whole global total in 2012, according to an annual survey. Open Doors, a non-denominational group supporting persecuted Christians worldwide, said on Wednesday it had documented 2,123 "martyr" killings, compared with 1,201 in 2012. There were 1,213 such deaths in Syria alone last year, it said. "This is a very minimal count based on what has been reported in the media and we can confirm," said Frans Veerman, head of research for Open Doors.
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| Private report shows 238k new jobs, optimism Posted: 08 Jan 2014 08:05 AM PST  By Ryan Vlastelica NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. private employers hired staff at the fastest pace in 13 months in December, data from a payrolls processor showed Wednesday, burnishing expectations that similar figures due later in the week from the government will confirm the U.S. economy was gathering steam at the end of last year. Companies added 238,000 jobs last month after an upwardly revised 229,000 in November, the ADP National Employment Report showed, topping expectations in a Reuters poll for a gain of 200,000. "We're now going to start to see an economic recovery more typical of the economic recoveries we've seen historically," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, which jointly develops the report with payrolls processor ADP. "It feels like the jobs market has kicked into a higher gear." The data was also likely a welcome affirmation of positive economic momentum for policy makers at the U.S. Federal Reserve, who last month were confident enough in the recent improvement in activity to set plans to scale back their massive stimulus program.
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| White House defends Biden against Gates criticism Posted: 08 Jan 2014 11:50 AM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is bristling over former Defense Secretary Robert Gates' new memoir accusing President Barack Obama of showing too little enthusiasm for the U.S. war mission in Afghanistan and sharply criticizing Vice President Joe Biden's foreign policy instincts.
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| Maddux, Glavine, Thomas elected to Hall of Fame Posted: 08 Jan 2014 11:45 AM PST  NEW YORK (AP) — Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas were elected to baseball's Hall of Fame on Wednesday, while Craig Biggio fell two votes short.
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| Gov't: End overly zealous discipline in schools Posted: 08 Jan 2014 08:57 AM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration is urging schools to abandon overly zealous discipline policies that civil rights advocates have long said lead to a school-to-prison pipeline that discriminates against minority students.
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| Rodman sings happy birthday to North Korean leader Posted: 08 Jan 2014 07:43 AM PST PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — Dennis Rodman sang "Happy Birthday" to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un before leading a squad of former NBA stars in a friendly game Wednesday as part of his "basketball diplomacy" that has been criticized in the United States as naive and laughable. |
| Syria rebels seize al-Qaida base in Aleppo Posted: 08 Jan 2014 07:11 AM PST  BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian rebels seized control Wednesday of a hospital used as a headquarters by an al-Qaida affiliate in the northern city of Aleppo, part of a widening campaign against the extremist group in the country's opposition-held north, activists said.
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| Utah mom to give birth to daughter's daughter Posted: 08 Jan 2014 11:15 AM PST  PROVO, Utah (AP) — A 58-year-old Utah woman is set to give birth in a few weeks — to her granddaughter.
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| Zoo animals get iced treats as Brazil swelters Posted: 08 Jan 2014 11:12 AM PST RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Sure, it's mind-bogglingly cold in the Northern Hemisphere. But the sweltering weather on the opposite end of the Earth has man and beast alike dreaming of ice. |
| Gunmen attack Iraqi army barracks, killing 12 Posted: 08 Jan 2014 10:23 AM PST  BAGHDAD (AP) — Authorities say gunmen have attacked an Iraqi army barracks north of Baghdad, killing 12 soldiers.
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| Maddux, Glavine, Thomas, Biggio could gain Hall Posted: 08 Jan 2014 07:20 AM PST NEW YORK (AP) — Baseball writers could elect a quartet of players to the Hall of Fame for the first time in more than a half-century. |
| US witness report found on Stalin's Katyn massacre Posted: 08 Jan 2014 09:39 AM PST  WARSAW, Poland (AP) — A researcher says she has uncovered vital testimony from a U.S. officer who in 1943 was forced by the Nazis to watch as they exhumed thousands of Polish officers killed on Soviet leader Josef Stalin's orders.
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| S. Sudan: US doctors try to heal ethnic fractures Posted: 08 Jan 2014 08:04 AM PST  JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — After receiving eye surgery from the American doctors, a South Sudanese man sat with other patients who belonged to tribes he once considered enemies. The men spoke about their newly restored vision — both their eyesight and how they now perceive members of other ethnic groups as potential friends, not sworn enemies.
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| UN warns of humanitarian threat in western Iraq Posted: 08 Jan 2014 06:51 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's prime minister urged al-Qaida-linked fighters who have overrun two cities west of Baghdad to give up the battle, vowing Wednesday to press forward with a push to regain control of the mainly Sunni areas. |
| Arctic air eases its grip on much of the US Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:59 AM PST  ATLANTA (AP) — An arctic blast eased its grip on much of the U.S. on Wednesday, with winds calming and the weather warming slightly a day after temperature records — some more than a century-old — shattered up and down the Eastern Seaboard.
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| Ex-beauty queen killed in crime that shocks violent Venezuela Posted: 08 Jan 2014 08:02 AM PST  Gunmen killed a former Miss Venezuela and her British-born partner in front of their young daughter in an attack that shocked the crime-plagued nation, authorities said Tuesday. Monica Spear, a 29-year-old soap opera star, and Thomas Henry Berry, 39, were killed in what appears to have been a botched robbery after their car broke down on a highway in northwestern Venezuela late Monday, police and prosecutors said. Their daughter, five-year-old Maya Berry Spear, was wounded in the right leg but was stable after receiving medical treatment after a crime that put a harsh spotlight on Venezuela's soaring homicide rate. Five people have been detained and were interrogated in connection with the killings, Interior Minister Miguel Rodriguez said after a televised meeting with President Nicolas Maduro, who vowed to use an "iron hand" to crack down on crime.
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| Stranded ships finally escape Antarctic ice Posted: 07 Jan 2014 08:22 PM PST  A complex international operation to free a Russian ship trapped in Antarctica ended Wednesday when the vessel cleared the ice field, as officials released a United States icebreaker from the rescue. The Russian-flagged Akademik Shokalskiy became stuck on December 24, triggering a rescue operation coordinated by Australian authorities which included French, Chinese, American and German agencies. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) confirmed Wednesday that the Akademik Shokalskiy and the Xue Long "have broken free from the ice in Antarctica and are no longer in need of assistance". The United States Coast Guard 399-foot long icebreaker Polar Star, which had been en route to the stranded ships, was released from the rescue.
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| Washington state pot farming applications grow like ... weeds Posted: 07 Jan 2014 03:51 PM PST SEATTLE (AP) — Washington state could be facing a curious economics problem: too many pot growers. |
| NYC first responders charged in massive 9/11 disability scam Posted: 07 Jan 2014 01:23 PM PST  Officers Were 'Coached' in How to Fake Anxiety, Depression, According to Indctment
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| US Air Force helicopter crashes in England, four feared dead Posted: 07 Jan 2014 02:23 PM PST  LONDON (AP) — A U.S. Air Force Pave Hawk helicopter crashed in a coastal area of eastern England on Tuesday night, an official said, and police said four people are believed to have died in the accident.
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| At least six deaths blamed on arctic blast Posted: 07 Jan 2014 02:21 PM PST  Coldest temperatures in two decades strain resources, overwhelm homeless shelters.
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