Oakland, Calif. (AP) – A second-grade teacher in Northern California was placed on leave while the school investigates a report by a student that classmates engaged in oral sex and stripped off some of their clothes during class, officials said Friday. “We believe if the reports are true, there was a serious lapse of judgment […]
(CNSNews.com) – “While other cities are slashing employee benefits, Berkeley is slated to add one more: paying for sex-change operations,” the San Francisco Chronicle reported on Tuesday. The Berkeley City Council was expected to vote Tuesday night on a proposal to reserve $20,000 annually for city employees’ gender-reassignment surgery, which is not covered by the […]
Oxon Hill, Md. (AP) – The national Republican Party, coming off huge election victories but facing a $22 million debt and an internal war over identity, ousted chairman Michael Steele Friday and chose Wisconsin party chief Reince Priebus to lead in the run-up to the 2012 presidential race. The embattled Steele dropped his re-election bid […]
(CNSNews.com) – The Pepsi plant in Baltimore will no longer make soda, and the company plans to lay off 77 people — a decision blamed in part on a controversial new beverage tax in the city, the Baltimore Sun reported on Tuesday. Kristine Hinck, a company spokeswoman, cited the 2-cent tax on bottled beverages passed […]
Montgomery, Ala. (AP) – Mark Twain wrote that “the difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter.” A new edition of “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” and “Tom Sawyer” will try to find out if that holds true by replacing the N-word with “slave” in an effort not to […]
Beirut (AP) – Hezbollah says looming indictments by a U.N. court for the assassination of a former prime minister are of no concern to the group. Hezbollah’s leader, in fact, says he is so relaxed he sleeps an extra hour every night. Behind the veneer of confidence, however, analysts say the Shiite Lebanese group is […]
(CNSNews.com) – Christmas 1944 – 66 years ago — was a difficult time for U.S. troops holding Bastogne, Belgium.It came in the midst of the famous Battle of the Bulge, the last-ditch major German offensive in which the German High Command threw thousands of tanks and troops into what was perceived to be the weak point in […]
Honolulu (AP) – A politically rejuvenated President Barack Obama arrived here late Wednesday for a 10-day family vacation in his home state. Air Force One touched down shortly before midnight local time. The president headed to the rented oceanfront home in Kailua Bay where his wife, Michelle, daughters Malia and Sasha, and dog Bo have […]
Coban, Guatemala (AP) – Gangs roamed the streets with assault rifles and armored vehicles, attacking whomever they pleased and abducting women who caught their eye. Shootouts became so common, residents couldn’t tell gunfire from holiday fireworks. Local leaders of the mountainous northern province of Alta Verapaz, which has become a prime corridor for smuggling drugs […]
Washington (AP) – Don’t touch my brownies! A child nutrition bill on its way to President Barack Obama – and championed by the first lady – gives the government power to limit school bake sales and other fundraisers that health advocates say sometimes replace wholesome meals in the lunchroom. Republicans, notably Sarah Palin, and public […]
