Climate skeptic group works to reverse renewable energy mandates

The Heartland Institute, a libertarian think tank skeptical of climate change science, has joined with the conservative American Legislative Exchange Council to write model legislation aimed at reversing state renewable energy mandates across the country. The Electricity Freedom Act, adopted by the council’s board of directors in October, would repeal state standards requiring utilities...

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Thai PM faces no confidence motion

BANGKOK: Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra on Sunday faced a no-confidence debate launched by her opponents in parliament, a day after political protests turned violent in Bangkok.But the motions, which also target three other government ministers, appeared to have little chance of being passed by a legislature dominated by Yingluck's Puea Thai party and its coalition partners."The...

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Rajya Sabha panel for power to Lokpal to sanction prosecution

NEW DELHI: Lokpal will have power to grant sanction to initiate prosecution against a public servant, a parliamentary committee has recommended, seeking to amend a provision in the bill which said no previous sanction was required for the ombudsman to bring charges. The recommendation of the Rajya Sabha Select Committee on Lokpal comes against the backdrop of the stand taken by the government...

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Distant Dwarf Planet Secrets Revealed

Orbiting at the frozen edges of our solar system, the mysterious dwarf planet Makemake is finally coming out of the shadows as astronomers get their best view yet of Pluto's little sibling. Discovered in 2005, Makemake—pronounced MAH-keh MAH-keh after a Polynesian creation god—is one of five Pluto-like objects that prompted a redefining of the term "planet" and the creation of a new group...

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After Sandy, World Hopes to Hear New US Voice on Climate Change

During a year with a monster storm and scorching heat waves, Americans have experienced the kind of freakish weather that many scientists say will occur more often on a warming planet.And as a re-elected president talks about global warming again, climate activists are cautiously optimistic that the U.S. will be more than a disinterested bystander when the U.N. climate talks resume...

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Patty Murray likely to be a key voice in Senate on budget deal

One of the biggest winners in the sweeping Democratic victories in Senate races this month was a woman whose name appeared on no ballot: Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.). With a low-key style that contrasts with some of the Senate’s camera hogs, Murray may be the most powerful senator a whole lot of people have never heard of outside of the two Washingtons where she lives and works....

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Sarkozy denies receiving money from L'Oreal heiress

BORDEAUX, France: Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy told judges he received no money from France's richest woman, Liliane Bettencourt, a newspaper said, amid allegations that his 2007 election campaign was illegally financed."I have known the Bettencourts for 28 years and I am 57... They have never given me a sou (cent) and I have never asked them," Sarkozy said during a 12-hour hearing in...

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Top Jaish-e-Mohammad militant commander killed in J&K

SRINAGAR:A top Jaish-e-Mohammad militant commander was killed in an encounter with security forces in Sopore in north Kashmir's Baramullah district in the wee hours today.Sopore Police and 22 Rashtriya Rifles cordoned Chatlora village, 55 kms from here, at around 1am after receiving information that a self-styled divisional commander of foreign origin of the outfit was hiding in a village, official...

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Distant Dwarf Planet Secrets Revealed

Orbiting at the frozen edges of our solar system, the mysterious dwarf planet Makemake is finally coming out of the shadows as astronomers get their best view yet of Pluto's little sibling. Discovered in 2005, Makemake—pronounced MAH-keh MAH-keh after a Polynesian creation god—is one of five Pluto-like objects that prompted a redefining of the term "planet" and the creation of a new group...

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Gas Explosion Levels Buildings Like 'Missile Strike'

A natural gas explosion in one of New England's biggest cities on Friday leveled a strip club with a boom heard for miles and heavily damaged a dozen other buildings but didn't kill anyone, authorities said.Firefighters, police officers and gas company workers in the area because of an earlier gas leak and odor report were among the 18 people injured in the blast, authorities said."This...

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Polls offer little guidance for politicians tackling ‘fiscal cliff’

Politicians tasked with negotiating a deal next month to avoid the “fiscal cliff” can be thankful that their talks are taking place immediately after a clarifying national election that laid out exactly how the public wants Washington to deal with debt and deficits. Or n...

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Chan Chun Sing observes joint defence exercise

SINGAPORE: Senior Minister of State for Defence Chan Chun Sing observed Exercise APEX at the Changi Command and Control (C2) Centre on Friday morning.The exercise, held from 29th October to 27th November, is led by the Singapore Armed Forces' Maritime Security Task Force (MSTF).It involves over 1,000 personnel from agencies such as the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN), Air Force (RSAF),...

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Parliament disruption continues, both houses adjourned till noon

NEW DELHI: Both houses of Parliament were adjourned till 12 noon soon after they met on the second day of the winter session over differences on FDI in retail and quota for SC/ST in promotions.The Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha, which witnessed disruptions on the first day of the winter session on Thursday before being adjourned for the day, saw ruckus on Friday too as the BJP along with the CPM...

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Distant Dwarf Planet Secrets Revealed

Orbiting at the frozen edges of our solar system, the mysterious dwarf planet Makemake is finally coming out of the shadows as astronomers get their best view yet of Pluto's little sibling. Discovered in 2005, Makemake—pronounced MAH-keh MAH-keh after a Polynesian creation god—is one of five Pluto-like objects that prompted a redefining of the term "planet" and the creation of a new group...

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Stores Work to Keep Black Friday Safe

With earlier-than-ever deals and 147 million people expected to hit the stores this holiday weekend, retailers such as Best Buy are taking extra steps to avoid the Black Friday shopper chaos -- and inevitable news stories -- of the past.Best Buy officials said they've been prepping for the madness for days.The retailer has created color-coded maps, moved merchandise around to...

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Survey: Federal workers’ morale dropping

Salary freezes, tight budgets and a dim view of federal work held by many Americans have soured the motivation and commitment of many government employees, a survey released Wednesday found. Federal employees still think that their jobs are important, and many are passionate and dedicated to their agency’s mission. But increasing threats to their pay and benefits and criticism of their...

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Japan appoints new ambassador to China

TOKYO: Japan on Thursday appointed a new ambassador to China, months after the last nominee died before he could take up his post and as tensions simmer between Tokyo and Beijing over disputed territory.Career diplomat Masato Kitera's appointment will be effective on Monday, the foreign ministry said, while local media reported that the 60-year-old will be dispatched to Beijing next month...

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Parliament adjourned over differences on FDI

NEW DELHI: Both houses of Parliament were adjourned till 12 noon soon after they met on the first day of the winter session over differences on FDI in retail.In the Lok Sabha, BSP members rushed towards Speaker Meira Kumar's podium protesting the law and order in Uttar Pradesh.The Samajwadi Party in turn demanded the rollback of the LPG price hike. Earlier, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sought cooperation...

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Distant Dwarf Planet Secrets Revealed

Orbiting at the frozen edges of our solar system, the mysterious dwarf planet Makemake is finally coming out of the shadows as astronomers get their best view yet of Pluto's little sibling. Discovered in 2005, Makemake—pronounced MAH-keh MAH-keh after a Polynesian creation god—is one of five Pluto-like objects that prompted a redefining of the term "planet" and the creation of a new group...

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Egypt's Morsi Wins U.S., Israeli Gratitude

Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi is being credited with brokering the cease-fire today between Israel and Hamas, but the international gratitude and praise he is gettting could come with a political price at home.Both Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Obama heaped praise on the Egyptian president. Obama called his Egyptian counterpart today to thank him for...

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Blazing a legal trail to help improve health care

Ariane Tschumi has spent more than a year in government as a Presidential Management Fellow (PMF), taking on challenging assignments at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) designed to develop her leadership skills and give her a window into how government operates. She has worked alongside health-care experts designing model programs intended to better health care and lower...

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The world won't end next month, Maya experts insist

MEXICO CITY: Relax doomsayers, the Maya people did not really mark their calendar for the end of the world on December 21, 2012.As tourists book hotel rooms in Mexico's Maya Riviera and Guatemalan resorts ahead of next month's fateful date, experts are busy debunking the doomsday myth.The apocalyptic prophecy that has inspired authors and filmmakers never appears in the tall T-shaped stone...

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Ajmal Kasab hanged and buried in Pune's Yerwada Jail

PUNE: After nearly four years, Ajmal Kasab, the sole surviving Pakistani gunman involved in the Mumbai attacks, was hanged to death at the Yerawada central prison here this morning in a top-secret operation.Kasab was buried inside the premises of Pune's Yerawada Central Jail shortly after he was hanged, Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan said."Ajmal Kasab was hanged at 7.30am," Maharashtra...

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Thanksgiving 2012 Myths and Facts

Before the big dinner, debunk the myths—for starters, the first "real" U.S. Thanksgiving wasn't until the 1800s—and get to the roots of Thanksgiving 2012.Thanksgiving Dinner: Recipe for Food Coma?Key to any Thanksgiving Day menu are a fat turkey and cranberry sauce.An estimated 254 million turkeys will be raised for slaughter in the U.S. during 2012, up 2 percent from 2011's total, according...

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Ceasefire or 'De-Escalation'? Words Chosen Carefully

Nov 20, 2012 7:27pm AP Photo/Hatem MoussaAs news reports emerged Tuesday of a cease-fire or truce to end the crisis in Gaza, American officials made it a point not to use either of those terms.Instead, U.S. officials were  talking about “de-escalating” the violence in Gaza as a step toward a long-term resolution.Briefing White House reporters in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, ...

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Blazing a legal trail to help improve health care

Ariane Tschumi has spent more than a year in government as a Presidential Management Fellow (PMF), taking on challenging assignments at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) designed to develop her leadership skills and give her a window into how government operates. She has worked alongside health-care experts designing model programs intended to better health care and lower...

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Master of musicals

SINGAPORE: The cost of an evening of Broadway theatre not too far from home? Priceless.With Singapore inaugurated into MasterCard's global Priceless program in October this year, becoming the first Southeast Asian city to become a Priceless City, the card company has joined hands with Marina Bay Sands and BASE Entertainment Asia to take priceless to the next level.The Sands Theatre and...

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Manmohan Singh meets Japanese PM Yoshihiko Noda in Cambodia

PHNOM PENH: After they missed an opportunity of meeting in Tokyo, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Japanese counterpart Yoshihiko Noda met today to review the bilateral relations and ways in which these could be pushed further. Singh and Noda, who met on the sidelines of East Asia Summit, shared the view that the relationship between the two countries were warm. In his opening remarks, Noda...

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Cuba's Oil Quest to Continue, Despite Deepwater Disappointment

An unusual high-tech oil-drilling rig that's been at work off the coast of Cuba departed last week, headed for either Africa or Brazil. With it went the island nation's best hope, at least in the short term, for reaping a share of the energy treasure beneath the sea that separates it from its longtime ideological foe.For many Floridians, especially in the Cuban-American community, it was...

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Israel Combats Cyber Attacks During Gaza Offensive

The Israeli government said today that since the beginning of its military operation in Gaza, cyber attackers have launched more than 44 million attempts to disrupt the operation of various Israeli government websites, but were only successful in knocking out one site for a short period."One hacking attempt was successful and took down a site for a few minutes," Carmela Avner, the...

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Obama to praise Burma’s journey toward democracy

RANGOON, Burma — President Obama will hail Burma’s “dramatic transition” and “remarkable journey” toward a more open, democratic society in a speech here Monday, while warning that the progress must shine as a “North Star” for the nation’s 60 million people. Obama made history when Air Force One touched down at 9:35 a.m. local time Monday, making him the first U.S. president to visit...

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S'poreans live longer than counterparts in the tropics: report

SINGAPORE: Singaporeans now live longer than their counterparts in the tropics, according to the State of the Tropics Report.The report said Singaporeans can expect to live up to 80.6 years as life expectancy here has increased by 20.4 years between 1950 and 2010. This means that the average Singaporean lives about 16 years longer than their counterparts in other tropical countries.This...

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SC issues notice to Centre, CBI for cancellation on a plea seeking SIT probe in coal scam

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Centre and CBI on a PIL seeking SIT probe in coal block allocation scam. The SC refused to stay government's decision by which coal blocks were allocated to companies. The SC had earlier posed six questions on coal block allocations and the alleged irregularities reported by the CAG. The present PIL requested the court to appoint a...

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Lonesome George Not the Last of His Kind, After All?

The tide may be turning for the rare subspecies of giant tortoise thought to have gone extinct when its last known member, the beloved Lonesome George, died in June.A new study by Yale University researchers reveals that DNA from George's ancestors lives on—and that more of his kind may still be alive in a remote area of Ecuador's Galápagos Islands. This isn't the first time Chelonoidis...

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Officials: Israeli Strike Kills 11 Civilians in Gaza

The Palestinian civilian death toll mounted Monday as Israeli aircraft struck densely populated areas in the Gaza Strip in its campaign to quell militant rocket fire menacing nearly half of Israel's population.Overnight, an airstrike leveled two houses belonging to a single family, killing two children and two adults and injuring 42 people, said Gaza heath official Ashraf al-Kidra....

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