Dec
23

S'pore shares end firmer in shortened pre-holiday session

SINGAPORE: Singapore shares closed slightly firmer after wavering between positive and negative territories in a shortened pre-holiday session.Dealers said volume was thin as investors were unwilling to take on new positions ahead of the Christmas holiday break.Uncertainty over the US fiscal cliff also kept players away.The Straits Times Index (STI) rose 5.01 points, or 0.16 per cent,...
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Manmohan, Putin meeting venue shifted from Hyderabad House to 7RCR

NEW DELHI: With India Gate and its surrounding area the scene of violent protests against a gang rape, the venue of the meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday was changed from Hyderabad House to 7, Race Course Road. The meeting was earlier scheduled at Hyderabad House, which adjoins India Gate where thousands of people, mostly youth, clashed...
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Pictures: Fungi Get Into the Holiday Spirit

Photograph courtesy Stephanie Mounaud, J. Craig Venter InstituteMounaud combined different fungi to create a Santa hat and spell out a holiday message.Different fungal grow at different rates, so Mounaud's artwork rarely lasts for long. There's only a short window of time when they actually look like what they're suppose to."You do have to keep that in perspective when you're making these creations,"...
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Get 'em While You Can? Gun Sales Soar

The National Rifle Association may still get its way and defeat the lawmakers calling for a ban on the sale of assault ridles, but some gun store owners say it seems their customers aren't taking any chances."We have never seen anything like this," said Larry Hyatt, who owns a gun shop in Charlotte, N.C. "We have the Christmas business, the hunting season business, and now we...
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Dec
22

History of gun control is cautionary tale for those seeking regulations after Conn. shooting

At 3 a.m. on July 2, 1993, Steve Sposato sat down in his darkened living room to write, by hand, a letter to the president of the United States. His life had just been shattered. Hours earlier, in the afternoon, a deranged man armed with semiautomatic weapons had gone on a rampage, slaughtering eight people at an office building in downtown San Francisco. The gunman’s motive would remain...
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Japan Emperor Akihito turns 79, says back to health

TOKYO: Japanese Emperor Akihito turned 79 years old on Sunday and reassured thousands of well-wishers that he has regained his health since his heart bypass surgery in February.The softly-spoken monarch gave his birthday address to the public from a glass-covered balcony at the Imperial Palace overlooking the East Garden, filled with visitors braving the bitter cold and waving small Japanese...
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Railways pitches for 5-10 paise fare hike per kilometre

NEW DELHI: Faced with mounting deficit of over Rs 20,000 crore in the passenger segment, Railways is keen on raising passenger fares between 5-10 paise per km in the coming months to generate about Rs 4,000 crore revenue. The hike could come close on the heels of railways finalising the broader contours of the proposed Rail Tariff Authority (RTA), which would be placed before Cabinet in January....
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Pictures: Fungi Get Into the Holiday Spirit

Photograph courtesy Stephanie Mounaud, J. Craig Venter InstituteMounaud combined different fungi to create a Santa hat and spell out a holiday message.Different fungal grow at different rates, so Mounaud's artwork rarely lasts for long. There's only a short window of time when they actually look like what they're suppose to."You do have to keep that in perspective when you're making these creations,"...
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Obama, Congress Waving Bye-Bye Lower Taxes?

The first family arrived in the president's idyllic home state of Hawaii early today to celebrate the holidays, but President Obama, who along with Michelle will pay tribute Sunday to the late Sen. Daniel Inouye at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, could be returning home to Washington sooner than he expected.That's because the President didn't get his Christmas...
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Dec
21

Tax fight sends GOP into chaos

The main thing that has held Republicans together philosophically is the belief in holding down taxes. Not one of them in Congress has voted for a significant increase in more than two decades. Now that very issue is tearing the GOP apart and making it an all-but-ungovernable majority for Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) to lead in the House. Disarray is a word much overused in politics....
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