John Kerry, nominee for Secretary of State, is expected to push for global solutions to the “climate change” problem, if confirmed for the cabinet position. Kerry, failed presidential candidate and current senior senator from Massachusetts, has a long interest in
On Monday, the United Nations General Assembly voted to resurrect a treaty to regulate international arms trade. The treaty is opposed by the NRA. The Obama adminstration supports the treaty, placing the adminstration at odds with the nations largest gun-rights
(AP) Afghan bomber attacks near major US baseBy AMIR SHAHThe Associated PressKABUL, AfghanistanA vehicle driven by a suicide bomber exploded at the gate of a major U.S. military base in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing the attacker and three Afghans,
By DAVID GERMAINAP Movie WriterLOS ANGELESThe big deal for Hollywood is not the record $10.8 billion that studios took in domestically in 2012. It’s the fact that the number of tickets sold went up for the first time in three
BEIRUT (Reuters) – The head of Syria’s military police has defected from the army and declared allegiance to the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, according to a video and a Syrian security source. The high-level defection, while not a strategically
(AP) Shinzo Abe returns as Japan’s prime ministerBy ERIC TALMADGEAssociated PressTOKYOOld-guard veteran Shinzo Abe was voted back into office as prime minister Wednesday and immediately named a new Cabinet, ending three years of liberal administrations and restoring power to his
(Reuters) – Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi has signed into law a new Islamist-drafted constitution he says will help end political turmoil and allow him to focus on fixing the fragile economy. Anxiety about the deepening economic crisis has gripped Egypt
President Barack Obama was to cut his holiday short and head back to Washington on Wednesday to try to address the “fiscal cliff,” a set of tax hikes and spending cuts to take effect next year. Despite weeks of negotiations,
Russia’s upper house of parliament was due Wednesday to vote for a bill barring Americans from adopting the country’s children, in retaliation for a new piece of human rights legislation in the US. The highly contentious bill has inflamed tensions
By DALIA NAMMARIAssociated PressBETHLEHEM, West BankPilgrims and locals celebrated Christmas Day on Tuesday in the ancient Bethlehem church built over the site where tradition holds Jesus was born, candles illuminating the sacred site and the joyous sound of prayer filling
(AP) Durning, king of character actors, dies in NYCBy BOB THOMASAssociated PressLOS ANGELES Charles Durning grew up in poverty, lost five of his nine siblings to disease, barely lived through D-Day and was taken prisoner at the Battle of the
Congress may not want to dump an online sales tax on Americans in the wake of Christmas, but they’re preparing to do so next year. According to Christina Mulka, spokeswoman for Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), no bill will be brought
The tyranny is in full swing in Egypt, where the government has now banned anyone wanting to leave the country from taking more than $10,000 with them. This is the same measure used by the government of Iran to prevent
Christmas Eve in Chicago was bloody – as are most evenings these days – with seven people hurt in shootings across the South Side and West Side of the city. The evening led off with a 37-year-old man taking fire
As it turns out, the children of Great Britain understand far better than their parents the reasons for the collapse of Western Civilization: lack of children, and lack of two-parent heterosexual homes. A poll of British parents showed that topping
(AP) TEHRAN, IranAn Iranian semi-official news agency says there has been another cyberattack by the sophisticated computer worm Stuxnet, this time on the industries in the country’s south. Tuesday’s report by ISNA quotes provincial civil defense chief Ali Akbar Akhavan as
(AP) Many share Newtown’s mourning during holidaysBy BROCK VERGAKIS and KATIE ZEZIMAAssociated PressNEWTOWN, Conn.As residents prepared to observe Christmas less than two weeks after a gunman killed 20 children and six educators at an elementary school, people sharing in the
Russian President Vladimir Putin unveiled the final extension of a new $25 billion oil pipeline to the Pacific that underscores the energy power’s gradual shift away from stagnant European markets. The East Siberia – Pacific Ocean (ESPO) link is also
(AP) UNITED NATIONSThe U.N. General Assembly has voted overwhelmingly to hold a conference in March to try to reach agreement on a U.N. treaty to regulate the multibillion-dollar global arms trade. A resolution approved late Monday by a vote of 133-0
By ERIC TALMADGEAssociated PressTOKYOJapan’s prime-minister-to-be announced his top lieutenants on Tuesday and promised his conservative party will pursue fresh policies to tackle the nation’s chronic economic woes and bolster its sagging influence on the international stage. Shinzo Abe, who led
(AP) VATICAN CITYHere is the official Vatican English translation of the “Urbi et Orbi” Christmas Day message read in Italian by Pope Benedict XVI Tuesday. “Urbi et Orbi” is Latin for to “The city and to the world.” ____ Dear brothers
(AP) Health care tax hikes for 2013 may be just a startBy RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVARAssociated PressWASHINGTONNew taxes are coming Jan. 1 to help finance President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul. Most people may not notice. But they will pay attention if
(AP) Obama has long work list to tackle when he returnsBy CHARLES BABINGTONAssociated Press WriterWASHINGTONIt’s hardly a secret that Barack Obama, like every president no doubt, muses about his ultimate legacy and spot in the presidential pantheon. He approaches his
(AP) NORAD says record number of calls to track SantaBy DAN ELLIOTTAssociated PressPETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo.Most of the thousands of children who call the annual Santa-tracking operation at a Colorado Air Force Base on Christmas Eve ask the usual
(AP) Officials: NY gunman set ‘trap’ for firefightersBy JOHN KEKISAssociated PressWEBSTER, N.Y.A man who set his house on fire then lured firefighters to their deaths in a blaze of flames and bullets had attracted little attention since he got out
