Clinton says corruption undermines Nigeria's government

 

 

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday said corruption has undermined the legitimacy of Nigeria's government and urged the oil-rich nation to embrace broad political reform and ease sectarian tensions.

In the Nigerian capital of Abuja on the fifth stop in a seven-nation tour Africa, Clinton told an audience of Nigerian civic activists that a culture of corruption and incompetence has hobbled Nigeria's ability to grow as an economic power and benefit its deprived citizens.

Judge rules in Palin e-mail case

 

 

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A judge ruled Wednesday that the Alaska governor's office can use private e-mail accounts to conduct state business, as former Gov. Sarah Palin sometimes did.

Superior Court Judge Jack W. Smith said in his ruling that there is no provision in Alaska state law that prohibits the use of private e-mail accounts when conducting state business.

'Thunderwear' among remedies for storm-phobic dogs

 

 

Dog owners who spend many a stormy night struggling to get some sleep while a panting, drooling, trembling pet climbs around on top of them know that the fear of thunder can be a tricky problem to solve.

Dogs with the condition often look to their owners for comfort, yet are in such a state of panic, they are inconsolable. And it can be hard to know how to soothe an upset dog without unwittingly reinforcing its anxiety.

AP Exclusive: Killer says he wants to make amends

 

 

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Death row inmate Chadrick Fulks insists he wants to help a slain West Virginia college student's family find solace by leading investigators to her body.

It wouldn't be the first time he's made that claim. State and federal authorities spent six years on wild goose chases prompted by tips from Fulks before one of his clues actually led searchers to another victim of his 2,300-mile crime spree, which left two women dead and several people injured in 2002.

Just who are these health care protesters?

 

 

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) - Nancy Snyder says she kept quiet when abortion was legalized and prayer in schools was eliminated. Not this time.

"They did it for prayer, they did it for abortion, and they're not going to do it for our health care," the 70-year-old nurse from Philipsburg, Pa., said Wednesday as she and her husband Robert, 74, a retired coal miner, waited in a long, snaking line for Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter's town hall meeting.

GE calls Fox report 'maliciously false'

 

 

NEW YORK (AP) - General Electric Co. called a Fox News Channel report about the company supplying terrorists with material used in bombs "irresponsible and maliciously false" on Wednesday, as a feud between Fox's Bill O'Reilly and MSNBC's Keith Olbermann kept sizzling.

It was the first time that GE, the parent company of NBC News and MSNBC, had publicly responded to accusations made by O'Reilly on his Fox show.

Peace activist can steer kids to non-military jobs

 

 

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - A rural North Carolina school district with a proud military tradition is allowing a Quaker peace activist a chance to compete with military recruiters at steering high school students to careers, attorneys said Wednesday.

For years, Sally Ferrell had been asking permission to warn students about joining the military. The Wilkes County School Board had denied her access, even though military recruiters are typically allowed in school, and school leaders had called her activities unpatriotic.

Georgia man convicted of aiding terror groups

 

 

ATLANTA (AP) - A 23-year-old Georgia man was convicted Wednesday of aiding terrorist groups by sending videotapes of U.S. landmarks overseas and plotting to support "violent jihad" after a federal jury rejected his arguments that it was empty talk.

The jury found Ehsanul Islam Sadequee guilty of all four charges he faced after about five hours of deliberations. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 60 years in prison and his sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 15.

Judge rebuffs Obama administration on mining rule

 

 

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - A federal judge on Wednesday rebuffed the Obama administration's attempt to reverse a last-minute Bush-era rule that allows surface mine waste to be dumped near streams.

Ship disappears after sail through English Channel

 

LONDON (AP) — First the ship reported it had been attacked in waters off Sweden. Then it sailed with no apparent problems through one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. And then it disappeared.

The Arctic Sea, a Maltese-flagged cargo ship, was supposed to make port in Algeria with its cargo of timber on Aug. 4. More than a week later, there's no sign of the ship or its Russian crew.

Piracy has exploded off the coast of lawless Somalia — but could this be an almost unheard of case of sea banditry in European waters?

Just who are these health care protesters?

 

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Nancy Snyder says she kept quiet when abortion was legalized and prayer in schools was eliminated. Not this time.

"They did it for prayer, they did it for abortion, and they're not going to do it for our health care," the 70-year-old nurse from Philipsburg, Pa., said Wednesday as she and her husband Robert, 74, a retired coal miner, waited in a long, snaking line for Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter's town hall meeting.

"We're not standing back this time," Snyder said.

JFK's sister Eunice Kennedy Shriver dies at 88

JFK's sister Eunice Kennedy Shriver dies at 88
Bob Salsberg, Associated Press Writer

 

 

BOSTON (AP) - Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the presidential sister who founded the Special Olympics and helped demonstrate that the mentally disabled can triumph on the field of competition and lead rich and productive lives outside the walls of institutions, died Tuesday at age 88.

Divers return to Hudson, hoping to recover plane

 

 

HOBOKEN, N.J. (AP) - New York police divers and crews from the Army Corps of Engineers worked together Tuesday afternoon on efforts to recover the last two victims of a plane-helicopter collision that killed nine people.

Two members of the NYPD dive team went into the water about 3:20 p.m. The plane that collided with the sightseeing helicopter on Saturday is still in the water with one body inside; seven bodies and most of the helicopter have been recovered.

Plane pilot in Hudson collision had clean record

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The pilot of the single-engine airplane that collided with a tourist helicopter over the Hudson River obtained his license to fly more than a decade ago, had a clean flying record that included missions taking ill patients to medical facilities and was trained to fly even in poor weather.

There was nothing in the weather forecast or in Steven Altman's aviation files to portend the horrifying accident that would happen Saturday 1,100 feet over the river, when his aircraft smashed into a tourist helicopter, killing nine people.

U.S. oil refineries implicated in new chapter of Mexican drug war

MEXICO CITY (AP) — U.S. refineries bought millions of dollars worth of oil stolen from Mexican government pipelines and smuggled across the border, the U.S. Justice Department told The Associated Press — illegal operations now led by Mexican drug cartels expanding their reach.

Criminals — mostly drug gangs — tap remote pipelines, sometimes building pipelines of their own, to siphon off hundreds of millions of dollars worth of oil each year, the Mexican oil monopoly said. At least one U.S. oil executive has pleaded guilty to conspiracy in such a deal.

NY police divers find man's body in plane wreckage

HOBOKEN, N.J. (AP) — Hudson River divers on Monday found the wreckage of a small plane and one of two victims missing following a midair collision with a sightseeing helicopter that killed nine people.

The wreckage of the single-engine Piper was found in about 60 feet of water in the middle of the river, indicating it had drifted from the spot where it crashed, closer to New Jersey's riverbank, said the New York Police Department's top spokesman, Paul Browne. It was found on its side with no wings visible.

Shrinking job loss figures signal light at end of tunnel

WASHINGTON (AP) — It's the clearest sign yet the recession is finally ending: Employers laid off far fewer workers in July, the jobless rate dipped for the first time in 15 months and workers' hours and pay edged upward.

Those are the kind of figures that could give Americans the psychological boost necessary for recovery to take root after the worst recession since World War II.

A net total of 247,000 jobs were lost last month, the fewest in a year and a drastic improvement from the 443,000 that vanished in June.

Pa. gunman was a devoted follower of dating guru

Michael Rubinkam, Associated Press Writer

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The lonelyhearted man who killed three women in a shooting rampage at a health club knew the book "How to Date Young Women: For Men Over 35" chapter and verse, and was a devoted follower of its author.

Recession means fewer babies; US births fell 2 pct

ATLANTA (AP) — There aren't just fewer jobs in a recession. There are fewer babies, too.

U.S. births fell in 2008, the first full year of the recession, marking the first annual decline in births since the start of the decade and ending an American baby boomlet.

The downturn in the economy best explains the drop in maternity, some experts believe. The Great Depression and subsequent recessions all were accompanied by a decline in births, said Carol Hogue, an Emory University professor of maternal and child health and epidemiology.

Sox burned by Rays

Dems look to limit increases in cost of insurance

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats sought to limit increases in the cost of insurance sold under a sweeping health care bill Friday as they labored to clear the final committee obstacle to a September showdown on President Barack Obama's top domestic priority.

Several officials said a last-minute agreement among Democrats on the Energy and Commerce Committee also included authority for the federal government to negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies for lower drug prices under Medicare.

THE HEALTHY PLATE: Cans can compete nutritionally

Historically, canned foods have been considered the poor relative of the culinary world and have an even worse reputation nutritionally speaking. But times have changed.

In the past, fruits were only canned in sugary syrups and vegetables were overcooked and packed in salty brines. But advances in canning technology mean many foods now come packed in water or juice. Even low-sugar and low-salt varieties are available.

Sen. Dodd has prostate cancer, will have surgery

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Connecticut Sen. Christopher Dodd said Friday that he has been diagnosed with an early stage of prostate cancer and will have surgery in early August, but the prognosis is good and the illness will not affect his plans to seek a sixth term next year.

Health officials: U.S. swine flu deaths surpass 350

ATLANTA (AP) - Health officials say their count of U.S. swine flu deaths has risen to 353 and swine-flu associated hospitalizations have grown to more than 5,500.

The cumulative number of deaths rose from the 302 reported last Friday. Last week, health officials said there have been about 44,000 lab-confirmed illnesses but the government would stop providing such counts. Officials believe more than 1 million Americans have had the infection, but many cases go unreported.

Jackson's personal doctor was in financial trouble

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Dr. Conrad Murray was in dire financial shape when he signed on as Michael Jackson's personal physician earlier this year at $150,000 a month.

The Las Vegas cardiologist owed a total of at least $780,000 in judgments against him and his medical practice, outstanding mortgage payments on his house, delinquent student loans, child support and credit cards.