Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Federal court: Discrimination in Texas voting maps

Federal court: Discrimination in Texas voting maps

Federal court: Discrimination in Texas voting maps

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:54 PM PDT

A federal court has found evidence of discrimination in Texas voting maps drawn by the state's Republican-controlled Legislature.

Tapping engineers, families for hospital safety

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:53 PM PDT

This undated handout photo provided by Nicole D. James shows James, of Elkridge, Md., who spent two extra weeks in the hospital when a doctor added an unneeded medication to her usual care for sickle care anemia without consulting her first. A project announced Tuesday by Johns Hopkins University and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation aims to improve hospital safety by engineering safer treatment systems and getting more patients and families actively involved in care. (AP Photo)Head of the hospital bed raised? Check. Patient's teeth brushed? Check.

Obama courts college students returning to campus

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:52 PM PDT

President Barack Obama speaks during a campaign event at Iowa State University, Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012, in Ames, Iowa. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)President Barack Obama, appealing to students who powered his first White House run, swooped onto college campuses Tuesday to remind those returning to class that they hold a unique power to determine the election.

Police say attack on Mich. student not hate crime

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:51 PM PDT

Police say an attack on a Michigan State University student at an off-campus party is not being investigated as a hate crime.

Obama: Americans ready to help out during Isaac

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:50 PM PDT

President Barack Obama speaks about Tropical Storm Isaac, Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012, in the Diplomatic Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)As Hurricane Isaac neared the Gulf Coast, President Barack Obama said Tuesday that Americans will help each other recover, "no matter what this storm brings."

U.S. Gulf oil industry largely shut down as Isaac nears

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:49 PM PDT

HOUSTON (Reuters) - U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil production dropped by more than 90 percent and coastal refineries shut down on Tuesday as Hurricane Isaac approached the Louisiana coastline. Government figures showed offshore oil output down by 1.3 million barrels per day from normal levels. Offshore gulf natural gas output was curtailed by two-thirds, and refinery and port closures added to the storm-related supply disruptions. The closures were precautionary and most energy analysts expected Isaac to spare Gulf Coast energy installations from any significant damage. U.S. ...

Troops deployed as Hurricane Isaac targets New Orleans

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:48 PM PDT

New Orleans resident Diana Whipple stands on the shore of Lake Pontchartrain as tropical storm Isaac approaches New Orleans, LouisianaNEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - Tropical Storm Isaac strengthened into a hurricane just off the U.S. Gulf Coast on Tuesday, lashing the New Orleans area with strong winds and heavy rain seven years after the city was devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Isaac's storm surge could pose a major test of New Orleans' new flood control systems and reinforced levees. Forecasts from the U.S. National Hurricane Center showed the storm coming ashore in the Mississippi Delta late on Tuesday, possibly taking direct aim at the so-called Crescent City. ...

Mexico sect vows fight over public schools

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:45 PM PDT

Father Luis Maria, spokesman of a religious group of followers of the Virgen del Rosario, delivers a speech against secular education in Nueva Jerusalen, Mexico, Monday, Aug. 27, 2012. Mexican authorities are still unable to overcome the resistance of an apocalyptic religious sect in western Mexico which has refused to allow public school teachers to hold classes in their town. (AP Photo/Alexandre Meneghini)Sprouting out of the corn fields of western Mexico rises a hill crowned with two arches and four towers, marking the gates of an improvised "holy land" that farmers built brick by brick over nearly four decades. The sprawling complex, they believed, would be the only place saved in the coming apocalypse: Nueva Jerusalen, or "New Jerusalem."

Grand Slam partners Bhupathi, Mirza split at US Open

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:41 PM PDT

India's Sania Mirza (L) and Mahesh Bhupathi are pictured during a match in July 2012India's Mahesh Bhupathi and Sania Mirza will not play mixed doubles at the US Open despite the pair having captured two Grand Slam titles together as the bitter fall-out from the Olympics continued.

Stewart isn't expecting any issues with Kenseth

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:40 PM PDT

The green flag is waved to start the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series auto race on Saturday, Aug. 25, 2012, in Bristol, Tenn. (AP Photo/Jason Smith, CIA Bristol Motor Speedway, Pool)Tony Stewart joked Tuesday that his two-handed toss of his helmet at Matt Kenseth was "not bad for a 41-year-old who doesn't work out."

LA mayor hits Republican efforts to woo Latinos

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:38 PM PDT

FILE - In this Nov. 30, 2011 file photo, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa speaks at the Los Angeles City Hall. Villaraigosa says Republican efforts to use Latino speakers at the GOP national convention to win over Latino voters won't work. Antonio Villaraigosa told reporters Tuesday that the GOP The Democratic mayor of Los Angeles says Republican efforts to use Latino speakers at the GOP national convention to win over Latino voters won't work.

AP Exclusive: Syria defectors live in secret camp

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:37 PM PDT

FILE - In this Thursday, June 21, 2012 file photo, the entrance of King Hussein Air Base in Mafraq, Jordan, 45 miles (70 kilometers) north of Amman, Jordan. In an isolated stretch of Jordanian desert not far from Syria, a heavily guarded, secretive compound houses 1,200 senior police and army officers who defected from the neighboring country. Though their movements are limited, they are protected in an arrangement that underscores Jordan's growing role as a quiet supporter of Syria's opposition. (AP Photo, File)In an isolated stretch of Jordanian desert, a heavily guarded, secret compound houses 1,200 senior police and army officers who defected from nearby Syria.

New Orleans' post-Katrina gentrification is touchy

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:36 PM PDT

Jennifer Jones, a Grand Marshal for various bands and events, poses for a photo in the Treme section of New Orleans, Thursday, Aug. 23, 2012. The face of New Orleans is changing: Seven years after Hurricane Katrina the city many said would not recover is racially more diverse, and whiter, younger and richer; indicators not of failure but its success at reinventing itself. In fact, the city is experiencing a boom, and even gentrifying.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)With Isaac bearing down on New Orleans, the city finds itself at a delicate moment in its rebuilding since Hurricane Katrina struck seven years ago.

Italian police: Pope John Paul II relic stolen

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:36 PM PDT

This undated photo provided by Italian police shows a relic with a vial containing the late Pope John Paul II's blood. Italian railways police say they have foiled the theft aboard a train of a vial containing the late Pope John Paul II's blood. A priest Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012 was carrying the relic aboard a train going from Rome to a suburb where the relic was supposed to be put on display for admirers of the pontiff, who died in 2005. Police said they would give details later on how they recovered the vial a few hours after it was snatched away Tuesday. John Paul's relics have gone on display in several parts of the world. The Vatican put the Polish-born pontiff quickly on the road to possible sainthood. (AP Photo/Italian Police)A trio of thieves aboard a train stole a priest's backpack containing a vial of the late Pope John Paul II's blood on Tuesday, but police recovered the relic a few hours later, authorities said.

Oil rises as Isaac plows through Gulf

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:34 PM PDT

Oil rose as Isaac gathered strength on its way into the heart of the Gulf of Mexico's oil and refinery operations.

Paralympic flame lit at 'spiritual home'

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:29 PM PDT

Simon Richardson lights the cauldron with the Welsh Flame at a ceremony for the London 2012 Paralympic Games torch relayThe Paralympic flame was lit at the spiritual home of disabled sport on Tuesday, signalling the start of the 24-hour countdown to the start of this year's Games.

Isaac brings familiar New Orleans dilemma: stay or go

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:29 PM PDT

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - For New Orleans, Tuesday morning brought an all-too-familiar dilemma: to flee or not to flee. With Hurricane Isaac bearing down on the low-lying city, residents scrambled to either leave or gather supplies to weather the storm. With no mandatory evacuation orders in place for New Orleans' 360,000 residents, streets were largely quiet. Traffic along Interstate 10 ran smoothly, despite predictions that both sides of the busy thoroughfare would be needed to accommodate motorists scrambling to leave the city. ...

Flight attendant's career landing in Guinness Book

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:28 PM PDT

A flight attendant is landing in the Guinness Book of World Records after his 63 years of moving about the cabin ended in his home state of Hawaii.

Shell shuts some Gulf Coast operations ahead of Isaac

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:28 PM PDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Shell Oil, one of the largest oil and gas operators along the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, said on Tuesday it shut in several key crude pipelines and terminals ahead of Hurricane Isaac and was in the process of shutting down two other plants. Shell said it was starting an orderly shutdown of process units at its manufacturing facilities in Convent and Geismar, Louisiana ahead of Isaac, a massive, slow-moving Category 1 hurricane expected to strike the Louisiana coast early Wednesday. ...

France opens murder inquiry into Arafat's death

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:27 PM PDT

FILE - In this Aug. 13, 2003 file photo, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, with tears in his eyes, after he was informed of the death of his sister Yousra Abdel Raouf Al Kidwah at his compound in the West Bank town of Ramallah. French prosecutors opened a murder inquiry into the death of Yasser Arafat on Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012, judicial officials told a French new agency, after his widow and a TV investigation raised new questions about whether the Palestinian leader was poisoned. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser, File)French prosecutors opened a murder inquiry into the death of Yasser Arafat on Tuesday, his widow's lawyer said, after she and a TV investigation raised new questions about whether the Palestinian leader was poisoned.

Belgian pedophile accomplice gets early release

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:26 PM PDT

In this March 3, 2004 file photo, accused Michelle Martin, ex-wife of convicted rapist Marc Dutroux, attends a hearing at the Palace of Justice in Arlon, South East Belgium. Belgium's highest court on Tuesday Aug. 28 2012 granted conditional early release to one of the nation's most despised criminals, the accomplice and former wife of a pedophile and child killer, even though she let two of his victims starve to death. Martin can leave prison under strict conditions after serving more than half of her sentence, and will work in a Belgian convent. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe, file)One of Belgium's most despised criminals, the accomplice and former wife of a pedophile and child killer who let two of his victims starve to death, left prison for a convent after serving barely half her 30-year sentence.

A college football guide

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:22 PM PDT

College football is in for some big and, some say, much-needed changes with the switch to a four-team playoff.

Radwanska, Ivanovic cruise at US Open

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:20 PM PDT

Agnieszka Radwanska of PolandWimbledon runner-up Agnieszka Radwnaska and former world number one Ana Ivanovic breezed into the US Open second round on Tuesday as both women look to bury their woeful Flushing Meadows records.

Goal of united Syrian opposition still elusive

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:17 PM PDT

Syrian girl, Haya Khalil, 8, who fled her home in Homs with her family due to fighting between the Syrian government forces and the rebels, looks up, as she and her family take refuge at the Bab Al-Salameh border crossing, in hopes of entering one of the refugee camps in Turkey, near the Syrian town of Azaz, Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)In the foreign halls of power, the strategy is clear: Syria's opposition should unite to present an alternative to Bashar Assad's rule — a step France's president says would lead to diplomatic recognition.

Americans' confidence falls off in Aug

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:14 PM PDT

In this Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2012, photo, a cashier rings up a sale at a Target store in Chicago on Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2012. A private research group says that consumer confidence unexpectedly fell in August to the lowest level since November 2011, as Americans' outlook about jobs flared up. The New York-based Conference Board said Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012, that its Consumer Confidence Index fell to 60.6, down from a revised 65.4 in July. Economists had expected a reading of 66. The index now stands at the lowest point since November 2011 when the reading was at 55.2. (AP Photo/Sitthixay Ditthavong)Americans are feeling worse about the economy than they have in a long time — a fact that could have wide-reaching implications everywhere from Wal-Mart to the White House.

Isaac becomes Cat 1 hurricane near Gulf Coast

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:14 PM PDT

A car sits stranded in rising floodwaters from Isaac, which is expected to make landfall in the region as a hurricane this evening in Venice, La., the southernmost tip of the state, Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012. Venice is outside the storm protection system and has been under mandatory evacuation. Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center warned that Isaac, especially if it strikes at high tide, could cause storm surges of up to 12 feet (3.6 meters) along the coasts of southeast Louisiana and Mississippi and up to 6 feet (1.8 meters) as far away as the Florida Panhandle. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)Isaac became a hurricane Tuesday that could flood the coasts of four states with storm surge and heavy rains on its way to New Orleans, where residents hunkered down behind levees fortified after Katrina struck seven years ago this week.

Romney ready to claim prize, wife to argue case

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:14 PM PDT

Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney walks to his car after arriving at Tampa International Jet Center, Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)Poised at last to claim the prize he's been chasing for years, Mitt Romney barreled into his convention city Tuesday as Republicans worked to showcase him at their national convention as a man who understands everyday Americans and a leader who can fix the economy.

Peterson witness: 3rd wife died accidentally

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:12 PM PDT

A forensic pathologist testified for the defense Tuesday that he's convinced Drew Peterson's third wife died of an accidental fall in the bathtub and wasn't murdered, countering earlier testimony by state witnesses that her 2004 death appears to have been a homicide.

Republicans kick off storm-hit convention

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:10 PM PDT

Delegates stand for a prayer and the U.S. national anthem at the start of the second session of the Republican National Convention in TampaTAMPA, Florida (Reuters) - Presidential candidate Mitt Romney flew to Tampa on Tuesday to join fellow Republicans seeking to put their shortened convention in the spotlight and prevent his message from being drowned out by a hurricane bearing down on the U.S. Gulf Coast. Finally kicking off festivities after the storm threat delayed the convention's start by a day, delegates were poised to affirm Romney as the party's nominee in an evening capped by prime-time speeches by his wife, Ann, and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. ...

Venice Film Festival focuses on artistic roots

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:08 PM PDT

Workers prepare the logo on the Palace of Cinema at the 69th edition of the Venice Film Festival at Venice Lido, Italy, Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012. The world's oldest movie festival will open on Aug. 29th through Sept. 8. (AP Photo/Joel Ryan)The Venice Film Festival is focusing on its artistic roots this year, courting celebrated directors and not flashy Hollywood blockbusters.

Burning-monk photographer Malcolm Browne dies

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:08 PM PDT

FILE - In this June 11, 1963 file photo, a Buddhist Monk sets himself on fire in Saigon to protest against the pro-Catholic Diem regime. Malcolm W. Browne, the former Associated Press correspondent who made the photo and was acclaimed for his trenchant reporting of the Vietnam War, has died. He was 81. (AP Photo/Malcolm Browne, File)The phone calls went out from Saigon's Xa-Loi Buddhist pagoda to chosen members of the foreign news corps. The message: Be at a certain location tomorrow for a "very important" happening.

Exhibition football helps NBC, CBS

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:06 PM PDT

New York Jets defensive end Quinton Coples (98) knocks the ball away from Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton (1) during the first half of a preseason NFL football game, Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)The NFL season hasn't started yet, but with little else happening on broadcast television, exhibition football games are making a dent in the ratings.

Yosemite officials say 1,700 visitors risk disease

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:05 PM PDT

FILE -- In this file photo from Sunday Oct. 23, 2011, tents are seen in Curry Village in Yosemite National Park, Calif. On Monday, Aug. 27, 2012, Yosemite officials announced a second person had died of a rare, rodent-borne disease after staying in one of Yosemite National Park's most popular lodging areas, prompting federal officials to step up efforts to locate and warn recent visitors. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)Yosemite officials told 1,700 past visitors on Tuesday they may have been exposed to a rodent-borne disease already blamed for the deaths of two people who stayed at the park.

Fire extinguished at Venezuela refinery

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:03 PM PDT

Firefighters douse a fuel tank at the Amuay refinery near Punto Fijo, Venezuela,Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012. Officials said Tuesday that all fires have been extinguished at Venezuela's biggest oil refinery after raging for more than three days following a deadly explosion early Saturday. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)Venezuela's biggest oil refinery remained offline Tuesday after firefighters extinguished a blaze that raged for more than three days following an explosion that killed at least 41 people.

Israeli court rejects US activist's family lawsuit

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 12:00 PM PDT

Cindy, center, and Craig Corrie, right, the parents of Rachel Corrie, a pro-Palestinian activist who was killed by an Israeli bulldozer in Gaza in 2003, sit together with their daughter Sarah, during an interview with the Associated Press in Jerusalem, Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012. Almost a decade after their daughter was crushed to death by an Israeli army bulldozer as she tried to block its path in a Gaza Strip war zone, Rachel Corrie's parents are bracing for the judge's ruling in their high-profile civil lawsuit against the military. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)An Israeli court on Tuesday cleared the military of wrongdoing in the death of a young American activist who was crushed by an Israeli bulldozer during a protest in the Gaza Strip nearly a decade ago, rejecting claims by her parents that the driver acted recklessly.

Belgium frees serial killer Dutroux's accomplice early

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 11:58 AM PDT

Martin, 52, was given a 30-year sentence in 2004 for helping Dutroux imprison victims and for complicity in two deathsThe notorious accomplice and ex-wife of paedophile serial killer Marc Dutroux won parole on Tuesday midway through her 30-year jail sentence -- on condition she moves into a convent.

MLB, ESPN extend television contract

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 11:56 AM PDT

Major League Baseball and ESPN have extended their television contract through 2021.

2 charged in death of NY girl, 5, appear in court

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 11:56 AM PDT

This photo provided by the Niagara Falls Police Department on Monday, Aug. 27, 2012, shows John Freeman, 16, charged as an adult with murder in the death of missing Isabella Tennant, 5, in Niagara Falls, N.Y. Freeman is one of two teenagers were arrested Monday in connection with the death of a 5-year-old girl who vanished from her great-grandmother's house and whose body was found dumped in a garbage can, authorities said. (AP Photo/Niagara Falls Police)Two teenagers charged in connection with the death of a 5-year-old upstate New York girl have been arraigned.

Israel calls Iran the greatest nuclear threat

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 11:54 AM PDT

FILE - In this March 5, 2012 file photo Israel's ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Ehud Azoulay waits for the start of the IAEA board of governors meeting at the International Center, in Vienna, Austria. Muslim nations and Israel are heading for a clash next month at a 154-member nuclear meeting, over an Arab initiative to criticize Israel's secretive atomic program. Documents submitted for that gathering show the Arabs seeking Israel's condemnation, while the Jewish state says the move is a sideshow that deflects attention from the real danger to Mideast peace _ Iran. (AP Photo/Ronald Zak, File)Muslim nations and Israel are heading for a confrontation at a 154-nation nuclear meeting next month over an Arab initiative to criticize Israel's secretive atomic program.

Exxon: 247 million cubic feet/day natgas output shut due to Isaac

Posted: 28 Aug 2012 11:46 AM PDT

HOUSTON (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil Corp said it had shut 247 million cubic feet per day in natural gas production and 11,000 barrels per day in crude oil output in the Gulf of Mexico due to Hurricane Isaac, according to a statement the company issued on Tuesday. (Reporting by Erwin Seba; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick)
Posted by Harshad at 1:07 PM

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