U.N. Report Points to Peril From Noxious ‘Brown Clouds’ Over Asia
A noxious cocktail of soot, smog and toxic chemicals is blotting out the sun, fouling the lungs of millions of people and altering weather patterns in large parts of Asia, according to a report released Thursday by the United Nations.
Hopes Dim for U.S. Car Manufacturer Bailout
The prospects of a government rescue for the nation’s foundering automakers dwindled Thursday as Democratic congressional leaders conceded that they would face potentially insurmountable Republican opposition during a lame-duck legislative session next week.
Iraqi Militants Turn to Small Bombs in Attacks
They are usually no bigger than a man’s fist and attached to a magnet or a strip of gummy adhesive — thus the name “obwah lasica” in Arabic, or “sticky bomb.”
Quantum of Tempest
One doesn’t have to be in New England very long to realize that the weather gets crazier as we approach the winter solstice. While the polar regions cool off quickly, the tropics remain relatively constant producing a large equator to pole temperature difference and a strong jet stream. The consequence of this is increased storminess that throws the area in to a weather roller coaster yielding huge swings in temperature and a whole gamut of precipitation. It’s Mother Nature’s way of trying to restore equilibrium, but at the cost of a wet pair of pants and shoes from time to time.
In Washington, Car Companies Plead for Bailout
Executives of Detroit’s Big Three automakers traveled to Washington on Thursday to press their case for more financial aid from the federal government because of the bleak prospects for their industry.
Just Before Holiday Season, Retail Sales Decline Sharply
Just ahead of the crucial holiday shopping season, most of the nation’s retailers reported double-digit declines in October sales on Thursday, underscoring how the financial turmoil has touched all stores, be they discount or luxury.
Three European Central Banks Cut Interest Rates Sharply
The top three European central banks cut interest rates on Thursday in the face of increasingly dire evidence that much of Europe was moving into a serious recession.
Bush Warns of Vulnerability In Transition to Obama
President Bush, warning that terrorists “would like nothing more than to exploit this period of change,” said Thursday that he intends to talk to President-elect Barack Obama on Monday about issues that will face his administration, including the turmoil in the financial markets and the war in Iraq.
Shorts (left)
In another sign of the economy’s toll on the nation’s health care system, some hospitals say they are seeing fewer paying patients even as greater numbers of people are showing up at emergency rooms unable to pay their bills.
Accounts Undercut Georgia’s Claims of Russian Provocation
Newly available accounts by independent military observers of the beginning of the war between Georgia and Russia this summer call into question the long-standing Georgian assertion that it was acting defensively against separatist and Russian aggression.
Shorts (right)
Sales of handguns, rifles and ammunition have surged in the last week, according to gun store owners around the nation who describe a wave of buyers concerned that an Obama administration will curtail their right to bear arms.
Clash of Extremes
A slowly moving low-pressure region currently over the Dakotas has set up a contrast of extremes in the middle of the country. Areas to the east of the low, in the warm sector of the storm, have set all-time November maximum temperature records. In contrast, areas just to the west of the low are receiving blizzard conditions. Some areas of the Dakotas have been getting pounded by several feet of snow and winds gusting over 55 mph at times. This storm is partly responsible for the above average temperatures that we have been feeling over the past few days, but thankfully it will lose its punch before approaching Boston.
Shorts (left)
Madelyn Dunham, who watched from afar as her only grandson rapidly ascended the ranks of American politics to the brink of the presidency, did not live to see whether he was elected.
Afghan Officials Aided an Attack on U.S. Soldiers
An internal review by the American military has found that a local Afghan police chief and another district leader helped Taliban militants carry out an attack on July 13 in which nine U.S. soldiers were killed and a remote American outpost in eastern Afghanistan was nearly overrun.
Guantanamo Tribunal Convicts Al Qaida Propaganda Chief
A military panel at the Guantanamo naval base convicted a former Qaida propaganda chief of terrorism charges on Monday and sentenced him to life in prison, giving the Bush administration a second conviction in a war-crimes trial there.
U.S. Sales of New Cars and Trucks Plummet in October
Sales of new cars and trucks in the United States plummeted in October to levels not seen in the auto industry in 25 years.
Shorts (right)
Tuesday marks the end of a battle that has lasted for more than two years, with each side predicting apocalyptic consequences should it lose.
With Internet, Presidential Race Rewrites the Rules
The 2008 race for the White House that comes to an end on Tuesday fundamentally upended the way presidential campaigns are fought in America, a legacy that has almost been lost with all the attention being paid to the battle between John McCain and Barack Obama.
Networks May Call Race Before Voting Ends
At least one broadcast network and one Web site said Monday that they could foresee signaling to viewers early Tuesday evening which candidate appeared likely to win the presidency, despite the unreliability of early exit polls in the last presidential election.
Steady Blue (Clear View) and Democrats Too?
Can today’s weather affect the US election? According to an article in the June 2007 edition of the <i>Journal of Politics</i>, it can. In any election, rain and wind can impact voter turnout. Although there is likely a low correlation, there appears to be a signal in this study: rain benefits Republicans. Because democrats are more likely to live in urban areas, rain will impact Democratic “peripheral” voters more. The city folks are likely to have longer time outdoors, such as walking to polling stations, waiting for public transportation and in longer lines at urban polling places. As a result, these peripheral voters are presumably less inclined (or even less able) to go vote, and hence fewer democrats show up when it is raining. According to the study, for each inch of rain (above normal), the Republican presidential candidate received an extra 2.5 percent of the vote. So in a close election, rain can impact the election results.