With a Barnes & Noble punch, clash of book titans revs up
In a sharp answer to Amazon and its expanding publishing efforts, Barnes & Noble said Tuesday that it would not sell books released by Amazon Publishing in its bookstores.
Clouds Expected for Groundhog Day
Tomorrow is Groundhog Day, the annual holiday on which the most famous rodent resident of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania predicts whether winter will last another six weeks, or yield to an early spring. The groundhog, known as Punxsutawney Phil, emerges from his burrow each February 2nd. According to legend, if he sees his shadow upon emerging, he will be frightened into running back underground for six more weeks of hibernation. However, cloudy weather is expected for Punxsutawney tomorrow, meaning the groundhog will stay above ground, thereby predicting an early spring. Of course, the official Groundhog Day prediction has only been correct 39% of the time historically, so Phil may not be the best medium-to-long range forecaster.
Winter wallops west; Cambridge avoids the worst wild weather
The unusual dry spell that defined this winter for most of the continental U.S. broke last week as the Jet Stream resumed its more typical pattern. Heavy precipitation poured throughout the West and parts of New England, delighting skiers but resulting in slick roads and avalanches in mountainous areas.
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BAGHDAD — A series of explosions in Shiite neighborhoods here killed nine people and wounded dozens more Tuesday, the latest in a wave of sectarian attacks.
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WASHINGTON — The International Monetary Fund warned Tuesday that global growth prospects had dimmed as the sovereign-debt crisis in the eurozone entered a “perilous new phase.”
Obama sets goal of economy built for the long run
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama pledged on Tuesday night to use government power to balance the scale between America’s rich and the rest of the public, seeking to present an election-year choice between his continued leadership toward an economy “built to last” and a Republican argument that the country would benefit from less federal intervention.
Pro-government Libyan militia routed from Gadhafi bastion
CAIRO — Forces loyal to Libya’s interim government were violently expelled Monday from a town long seen as supportive of Moammar Gadhafi, a local militia leader said Tuesday. The assault left at least four combatants dead and raised the specter of renewed conflict between revolutionary forces and those supportive of the old order.
Americans split on tax policy, NYT/CBS poll finds
It may come as no surprise, but Americans are deeply split along party lines when it comes to federal tax policy.
A new policy on privacy from Google, amid continuing social push
SAN FRANCISCO — Google said Tuesday that it would revise its privacy policies and terms of service to change the way it can use information that its customers provide.
Gingrich tries to lure Tea Party support in Florida primary
SARASOTA, Fla. — As he moved to consolidate the conservative base behind him, Newt Gingrich on Tuesday waved the red cape of a former Florida governor who quit the Republican Party and lost to Tea Party favorite Marco Rubio — a line that got a big reaction from crowds who have not forgotten that act of moderate apostasy.
European central bankers criticize role of rating agencies
LONDON — Two European central bank chiefs are urging investors to pay less attention to credit rating agencies and to consider other factors in assessing what the region’s debt is worth.
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LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles City Council approved a mandate Tuesday requiring all actors in pornographic films to wear condoms during any filming that takes place within city limits. The law is the first of its kind, advocates said, and could have a significant impact on what some say is a $1 billion industry.
Few cities have regained jobs<br/>they lost, report finds
Less than a tenth of the nation’s metropolitan areas have regained the jobs they lost in the economic downturn, according to a report being released Wednesday by the nation’s mayors as they gather in Washington to express their exasperation that the federal government seems more intent on cutting aid to cities than on sending more.
More ship bodies found, new drama in capt. transcript
GIGLIO, Italy — Rescuers pulled five bodies clad in sodden life vests from the partly sunken cruise ship Costa Concordia on Tuesday, bringing the death toll in the disaster to at least 11, as Italian media published transcripts of a screaming match between the coast guard and the ship’s captain, who fled to a life boat after he smashed the vessel on a reef.
For Southern TV chef Deen, Type 2 diabetes leads to ‘I told you so’
For 10 years, wielding slabs of cream cheese and mounds of mayonnaise, Paula Deen has become television’s self-crowned queen of Southern cuisine and one of the country’s most popular chefs, with an empire built on layers of gooey butter cake, fried chicken and sheer force of personality.
Active Winter Weather Moving to New England
The tranquil weather pattern and above-average temperatures of this winter in the Northeast should slowly change through the rest of January. The cold temperatures last weekend, when Logan Airport reached 6°F (-14°C) Saturday night, serve as a good example of what’s probably coming later this month. The jet stream, or the main storm track, has been split between northern Canada and a path from the desert Southwest toward the northern Plains for most of winter. This pattern has “locked” the cold air within Canada, allowing for warm air to stream in with the relatively weak storms thus far across the lower 48.
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BEIRUT — Adding to fears of a worsening political crisis in Yemen, a top government official hinted that presidential elections set for February that would mark the formal end of President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s 33-year rule could be delayed.
Opponents of Wisconsin governor deliver recall petitions
Critics of Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin submitted to the state on Tuesday more than 1 million signatures, nearly twice as many as required, on recall petitions against Walker to force a new election.
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A judge in Belfast on Tuesday rejected an attempt by Sean Quinn, once considered Ireland’s richest man, to declare bankruptcy in Northern Ireland rather than in his home country, where terms are tougher.
A long shot for Geithner as he begins Beijing talks
BEIJING — Timothy F. Geithner, the U.S. Treasury secretary, came to Beijing on Tuesday hoping to persuade Chinese leaders to toughen their diplomatic stance toward Iran and soften their opposition to fiscal changes like a stronger renminbi that might help the U.S. economy.