| Following McCain rally appearance, Bill Cunningham used Obama's middle ...
Well, my friend, Sean, McCain should be repudiating Democrats and leaving conservatives alone. His people told me to give the faithful red meat. Give them red, raw meat." Cunningham also repeatedly referred to Obama as "Barack Hussein Obama" during the January 27 edition of Fox News' Hannity's America. Additionally, the blog Think Progress noted that during the segment, Cunningham both referred to Obama as "this Manchurian candidate" and asserted, "I do not believe Barack Hussein Obama is a terrorist or a Manchurian candidate." During the Hannity & Colmes segment, Cunningham asserted, referring to the controversy surrounding his comments: "What happened to me today is what's going to happen to conservatives for the next eight months if they bring up Barack Hussein Obama's name.
Homeowners detail woes in tax assessment battle
Last year, Judy Barket bought a home in Pottsville for herself and her two children. But shortly after moving in, she got an unpleasant surprise.
Pottsville Area School District appealed the property tax assessment of her home based on the $110,000 sale price. So Barket's property tax will increase 59 percent this year, which she said will cost her several hundred dollars and force her to pay more than people in her neighborhood with comparable homes.
Barket, whose story is shared by thousands of others in Lehigh, Carbon and Schuylkill counties as well as other regions across the state, was heard Friday by the state Legislative Local Government Committee, meeting in Schuylkill Haven. And she got a sympathetic reception.
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Wall St ends mixed as investors eye rate cuts
US STOCK markets ended mixed overnight although the leading Dow Jones Industrial Average finished higher for the fourth straight trading day as investors set their sights on lower interest rates. The Dow stock barometer finished up 62.59 points or 0.47 per cent at a preliminary close of 13,374.32, but off earlier highs which had seen the index soar by more than 100 points. Technology stocks lost momentum as the Nasdaq composite fell 7.17 points or 0.27 per cent to 2660.96. The broad-market Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 11.65 points or 0.79 per cent to a preliminary close of 1481.37. The Dow remained in positive territory following a speech by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke late yesterday in which the Fed chief warned that strains in the financial markets may lead to broader economic problems.
Chadian rebels seize large parts of Ndjamena
Saturday, a relative calm had returned to Ndjamena, with only sporadic gunfire heard, but the situation remained tense around the president's residence. "The forces of the president tried to push the rebels to the east of the city and take back some territory in the city centre," a military source in Ndjamena said. Chadian rebel spokesman Abakar Tollimi said there were plans to attack the presidential residence on Saturday night. "We suppose that Deby is inside. If he wants to leave we have no problem," Tollimi told AFP by satellite telephone earlier Saturday. "We control the situation, we control the city, there are some pockets of resistance." Tollimi said government troops were surrounding the presidential palace and using heavy weapons against the rebels, who French military sources said numbered about 2,000 armed with machine-guns, assault rifles and rocket launchers.
Fools rush in to virus writers' love trap
Star-crossed lovers have been warned not to lose their heads as well as their hearts on Valentine's Day as virus writers seek to exploit romantics. While couples around the world engage in what is to some, a celebration of love and to others, a nauseating display of smugness, internet users have been cautioned about opening up e-mails from suspected secret admirers. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) warned earlier this week that people should be careful not to open up Valentine's Day-related e-cards in case they contain the 'Storm Worm', which it said has been designed to capitalise on the holiday by sending millions of e-mails advertising an e-card link within the text of the message to individuals. The e-mail directs the recipient to click on a link to retrieve the e-card.
No Cow Left Behind
USDA inspectors were at the Westland plant twice a day and saw nothing amiss, which is to say that these abuses simply constitute business as usual in America's abattoirs. But is this kind of institutionalized cruelty acceptable in our culture? Our pal Bonnie Powell over at the Ethicurean doesn't think so: As the massive outcry in response to the Humane Society's expose of a California beef-processing plant shows, Americans are extremely sensitive to the mistreatment of animals — even those we intend to eat. It would be nice if we showed we cared even half as much about the human-rights abuses that are epidemic in our cheap-food system. At least the animals have got the Humane Society working on their behalf to shame the USDA into action; if only the workers who are getting chewed up and spit out by the factory farms had an equally effective, well-funded watchdog looking out for them.
Chang, winner of 1989 French Open, elected to Hall of Fame
McCormack and Scott were selected in the contributor category, the hall announced Wednesday. The induction ceremony is July 12 at the International Tennis Hall of Fame and Museum. Chang was only 17 when he won the 1989 French Open -- the youngest male player to win a Grand Slam title. He was the first U.S. champion at the clay-court Grand Slam tournament since Tony Trabert in 1955. Chang's run to the French Open title included a memorable five-set upset of No. 1 Ivan Lendl in the fourth round, when a cramping Chang resorted to underhand serves. He defeated Stefan Edberg in the final. Chang reached No. 2 in the rankings in 1996, finished runner-up three times at Grand Slam tournaments and won 34 singles titles. McCormack, who died in 2003 at 72, was a sports marketing pioneer.
Bomb-plot teacher jailed
A QUEENSLAND high school teacher has been jailed after he admitted plotting to ``scare'' his ex-girlfriends parents with bomb blasts to win back her love. John Howard Amundsen, 42, was sentenced to six years imprisonment in the Brisbane District Court after pleading guilty to a string of charges, including possession of dangerous goods and weapons and making death threats. Amundsen, who continually interrupted Senior Judge Gilbert Trafford-Walker's sentencing remarks, has already served 657 days after he was first arrested on May 9, 2006. The arrest came after police uncovered 53kg of explosives, embedded with nails, at his Aspley home in Brisbane's north. Today, Senior Judge Trafford-Walker set a parole eligibility date of three years, or May 2009. Amundsen was first arrested on terrorism charges, subsequently dropped, after two incendiary devices were found at his Aspley home, in Brisbane's north, after he emailed police to expect an Al-Qaeda style attack in Brisbane.
Clijsters has baby girl
BRUSSELS, Belgium—Former U.S. Open champion Kim Clijsters gave birth to a daughter on Wednesday, nine months after retiring from tennis. Clijsters and her husband, American basketball player Brian Lynch, named the baby Jada. "The parents and the baby are in great shape," spokesman Jeroen Jespers said. The 24-year-old Clijsters retired in May, saying a string of injuries had led to fatigue, a lack of motivation and a decline in play. She said she wanted to focus on a new life with Lynch, who plays in the Belgian league. Clijsters was Belgium's first tennis player to reach the No. 1 ranking, holding it for 19 weeks in 2003. She won her only Grand Slam title at the 2005 U.S. Open, but Clijsters also won the 2002 and 2003 WTA Championships as part of her 34 career singles titles.
Microsoft's acquisitions chief quits after 12 years
Japanese electronics giant Matsushita Electric Industrial will drop the founder's name and adopt the brand name Panasonic as the company name, public broadcaster NHK TV reported today. The reported decision marks a dramatic shift for the manufacturer founded in 1918 by Konosuke Matsushita, widely respected in Japan for his managerial, manufacturing and political thinking. The company is far better known outside Japan as Panasonic. Brocade No retrial for exec in stock-option case A former Brocade Communications Systems executive who was convicted in a landmark stock-options case won't get a new trial, despite a key prosecution witness recanting some testimony. U.S. District Court Judge Charles Breyer on Wednesday denied ex-CEO Gregory Reyes' motion for a new trial, saying the witness's new statements would not likely have altered the outcome.
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