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| Plan to divide California into 6 states advances Friday, Feb 21, 2014 05:25 AM PST  LOS ANGELES (AP) — California has reached the breaking point, says Tim Draper. The Silicon Valley venture capitalist is pushing a proposal to crack the nation's most populous state into smaller pieces — six of them. Full Story | Top |
| Archdiocese defends expansion of 'Bishop of Bling's' retirement home Friday, Feb 21, 2014 08:53 AM PST John J. Myers, the Archbishop of Newark, is facing heavy criticism after a report from the New Jersey Star Ledger detailing a $500,000 expansion to the archbishop's future home that he will use in retirement. Full Story | Top |
| The Dalai Lama's secret to happiness in 140 characters Friday, Feb 21, 2014 12:04 PM PST His Holiness sums up his life's philosophy and why he might be the last Dalai Lama ever Full Story | Top |
| Obama throws support behind Dalai Lama, Tibet rights Friday, Feb 21, 2014 01:48 PM PST  US President Barack Obama on Friday offered his "strong support" for the protection of Tibetans' human rights in China as he defied protests from Beijing to meet the Dalai Lama. With China warning that the meeting would derail ties between the world's two largest economies, Obama took care to avoid any trappings of an official visit, receiving the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader in the Map Room of the White House residence and not the Oval Office where he usually talks to dignitaries. The Dalai Lama, usually chatty and playful with foreign audiences, was nowhere to be seen at the White House, which did not allow in reporters. In Beijing, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui summoned the US charge d'affaires, Daniel Kritenbrink, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Full Story | Top |
| Religious freedom bill riles gay rights supporters Friday, Feb 21, 2014 12:35 AM PST  PHOENIX (AP) — The Arizona Legislature gave final approval to legislation that allows business owners asserting their religious beliefs to refuse service to gays, drawing backlash from Democrats who called the proposal "state-sanctioned discrimination" and an embarrassment. Full Story | Top |
| Silver Hoop Earrings Found Among Ancient Treasure in Biblical City Friday, Feb 21, 2014 04:22 AM PST  A jug containing silver earrings and ingots has been discovered at the ancient biblical city of Abel Beth Maacah in Israel. "We found it in a small jug leaning against a wall, apparently on a dirt floor," said researchers Robert Mullins, Nava Panitz-Cohen and Ruhama Bonfil in an email to Live Science. Full Story | Top |
| 1920s Luxury Lives on in the Largest Freshwater Pool Friday, Feb 21, 2014 05:43 AM PST I didn't exactly put up a fight when I was told to do a story on a pool in South Florida. After all, New Yorkers have been living under thirty-feet of snow this winter and my complexion was a little … Continue reading → Full Story | Top |
| Florida lawmakers vote to expand ‘stand your ground’ law Friday, Feb 21, 2014 12:09 PM PST  Less than a week after Michael Dunn was not convicted of first-degree murder in the shooting death of an unarmed teenager, a bipartisan group of Florida lawmakers passed a bill out of committee on Thursday that would expand the state's controversial "stand your ground" law. Full Story | Top |
| Detroit files plan to fix debt, leave bankruptcy Friday, Feb 21, 2014 10:13 AM PST  DETROIT (AP) — Detroit's emergency financial manager filed a plan Friday that would bring the city out of bankruptcy, providing for the first time a detailed look at what the Motor City would look like when it finally sheds its financial burdens. Full Story | Top |
| Colorado, Utah move to hike smoking age to 21 Friday, Feb 21, 2014 12:57 PM PST  DENVER (AP) — Two Western states with some of the nation's lowest smoking rates are considering cracking down even more by raising the tobacco age to 21. Full Story | Top |
| Arizona ‘religious freedom’ bill: Attack on gays or shield for some Christians? Friday, Feb 21, 2014 11:39 AM PST Pushing back at judges who have told Christian business owners that they have to take photos and bake cakes for gay and lesbian weddings, Arizona lawmakers on Thursday sent a "Christian shield" bill to Gov. Jan Brewer (R), who has not yet said whether she'll sign it into law. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which would allow business owners to cite religious beliefs to discriminate against gays, is the first of 10 such proposed bills in Republican-controlled states. The Arizona legislation has sparked outrage from primarily gay rights activists and Democrats, many of whom say the proposal would enshrine some kinds of discrimination and has "no role in a modern society," as state Senate minority leader Anna Tovar (D) said in a statement. Writ large, the bill is part of a pushback in conservative corners of America against the rapid legal and societal acceptance of gay marriage – the idea that gay couples should have every right, benefit, and privilege as a traditional dual-sex partnership has. Full Story | Top |
| California farmers won't get federal water Friday, Feb 21, 2014 04:09 PM PST FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — Without a lot more rain and snow, many California farmers caught in the state's drought can expect to receive no irrigation water this year from a vast system of rivers, canals and reservoirs interlacing the state, federal officials announced Friday. Full Story | Top |
| For Obama, a new sense of purpose in acting alone Friday, Feb 21, 2014 03:29 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — This week, President Barack Obama promoted tougher fuel efficiency standards for trucks. He touted progress on initiatives to strengthen the U.S. patent system. And he signed an executive order intended to speed up the process for approving import or export cargo. Full Story | Top |
| Kerrigan looks back, 20 years after Harding drama Friday, Feb 21, 2014 11:50 AM PST  SOCHI, Russia (AP) — Nancy Kerrigan stood in front of a group of reporters, voice quivering and hands fidgeting as she described her emotions after watching a one-hour retrospective on the figure skating scandal that shook the Olympic earth 20 years ago. Full Story | Top |
| British pink diamond 'thief' held in Australia Friday, Feb 21, 2014 07:00 AM PST  Australian police said Friday they had arrested and X-rayed a British man over the theft of a pink diamond worth more than Aus$200,000 (US$180,000), with fears he had swallowed the rare jewel. The 29-year-old, reported by Australian media to be British tourist Matthew Osborne, was arrested as he attempted to board an international flight in Melbourne. "He is expected to appear in the Cairns Magistrates Court tomorrow charged with entering premises and stealing property," police said. The pink diamond, from Rio Tinto's exclusive Argyle mine and valued at more than $200,000, was stolen Saturday from a jewellery store at Cairns, in northern Queensland. Full Story | Top |
| Want Hand-Tossed Pizza? It's All in the Delivery Friday, Feb 21, 2014 10:41 AM PST They've put a new spin on pizza delivery in England, but things could get a bit messy if it becomes a trend. Thomas Oldbury walked past his window and noticed a pizza man parked outside. Usually this is a normal occurrence. But Oldbury saw that the pizza man had popped his trunk and a person three stories above was hanging out his window. Full Story | Top |
| Oregon won't defend gay-marriage ban in lawsuit Thursday, Feb 20, 2014 11:59 PM PST PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — On March 12, 2004, the state of Oregon had a problem. Its most populous county was handing out marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and the state was unsure whether those actions were on solid legal footing. Full Story | Top |
| Democrats see a chance to undercut GOP governors Friday, Feb 21, 2014 11:09 AM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — In a campaign season with broad presidential implications, Democrats are working to undercut prominent Republican governors who expect to strengthen their political appeal in November's midterm elections. Full Story | Top |
| Israeli demand sparks 'Jewish state' debate Friday, Feb 21, 2014 12:35 AM PST  JERUSALEM (AP) — Is Israel "the Jewish state"? Full Story | Top |
| Deal signed to end Ukraine crisis; move to free Tymoshenko Friday, Feb 21, 2014 06:07 PM PST Ukraine's embattled leader signed a deal Friday with the opposition in a bid to end the ex-Soviet country's worst crisis since independence after three days of carnage left nearly 100 protesters dead. But President Viktor Yanukovych's decision to hold early elections and form a unity government while granting amnesty for protesters detained during the unrest was met with scepticism by many who simply want their leader to step down. "Elections in December are not enough -- he has to leave now," said 34-year-old Oleh Bukoyenko as he joined 40,000 protesters on central Kiev's main square earlier Friday evening. Ukraine's parliament quickly adopted a flurry of opposition-backed laws that still need the president's backing before entering into force. Full Story | Top |
| Ukrainian parliament approves new charter, amnesty Friday, Feb 21, 2014 07:39 AM PST KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — In a day that could significantly shift Ukraine's political destiny, opposition leaders signed a deal Friday with the country's beleaguered president that calls for early elections, a new constitution and a new unity government. Full Story | Top |
| Obama pitches minimum wage hike with Dem governors Friday, Feb 21, 2014 03:06 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — As President Barack Obama pushes for a minimum wage increase, the real action is in the states. Full Story | Top |
| Obama meeting with Dalai Lama rankles China Friday, Feb 21, 2014 12:50 AM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is hosting the Dalai Lama at the White House over the stern objection of China, which warned the meeting would "inflict grave damages" on the U.S. relationship with the Asian powerhouse. Full Story | Top |
| Stunning Ice-Covered Great Lakes Seen from Space (Photo) Friday, Feb 21, 2014 11:12 AM PST  A deep freeze has settled in over the Great Lakes this winter and a new image released by NASA shows the astonishing extent of the ice cover as seen from space. NASA's Aqua satellite captured this image of the lakes on the early afternoon of Feb. 19, 2014. At the time, 80.3 percent of the five lakes were covered in ice, according to the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL), part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Earlier this month, ice cover over the Great Lakes hit 88 percent for the first time since 1994. Full Story | Top |
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