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ST. PETERSBURG, Russia—As an engineer pulls the throttle, villagers track side gawk at the bullet-shaped train as it gathers speed. Soon, forests and wooden shacks are a blur as a dashboard display reads 250 kilometers an hour (155 miles per hour). Ten years in the making, Russia's state-owned railway is testing eight aerodynamic trains that in December will rush travelers from here to Moscow in less than four hours. With fancy kitchens and leather seats in first class, the Sapsans (Russian for peregrine falcons) mark a change in Russia's egalitarian rail tradition. More broadly, though, Russia's new trains mirror a...

The worst recession since the Great Depression has already eliminated 7.2 million jobs, and analysts figure 750,000 more jobs could disappear over the next six months. That means the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama may be forced to employ a second stimulus if it wants to preserve the fledgling recovery that has carried the Dow Jones Industrial Average back above 10,000. The U.S. unemployment rate officially hit 28-year high of 9.8% in September, according to the Labor Department. But that number grows to 16.8% when you add the number of “total unemployed, plus all marginally attached workers, plus total...

Taking on a major new constitutional dispute over gun rights, the Supreme Court agreed on Wednesday to decide whether to apply the Second Amendment to state, county, and city government laws. In another major case among ten new grants, the Court said it will rule on the constitutionality of one of the government’s most-used legal weapons in the “war on terrorism” — a law that outlaws “material support” to terrorist groups. The Court had three cases from which to choose on the Second Amendment issue — two cases involving a Chicago gun ban, and one case on a New York...

This data is current upto 28 September 2009. http://www.google.org/flutrends/intl/en_us/

The quote of the day from President Obama: “There is something about August going into September where everybody in Washington gets all wee weed up!” Now I realize that Matt Drudge is having a little fun running this photo on the right with this quote, but remember how tired Candidate Obama used to get? President Obama needs a nap. Even though he is on vacation, he is frantically doing interviews as he flails about trying to avoid having his popularity fall — oh no — below 50% approval. And so he’s going whee-whee all the way home. Or maybe...

President Barack Obama makes short work of a pesky fly during an interview with CNBC's John Harwood.

Not the greatest image, but there aren't very many of this place. Nonetheless, it is both geologically and geographically significant. So: where is it, and why is it noteworthy? (After guesses, answer will likely be posted Friday evening 05/01 or Saturday 05/02). I've scattered a couple of nebulous clues in this text. Super great cudos if you can name this place. Good luck! (Click for full size, if that helps.)

A Dobson High School Advanced Placement government class with strong opinions about Barack Obama watched the president's speech Wednesday on a small, grainy TV in the corner of their classroom. Some of the students attentively watched the speech, giving questioning looks and comments, shaking their heads and laughing at some of Obama's words. Other students listened, occasion ally glancing up to watch, while texting on their cell phones, reading a book or finishing school work. The gymnasium's events were shown simultaneously in rooms throughout the Mesa school, and teachers were given discretion on whether to show the speech, the students...

DALLAS -- A Texas high school girls basketball team on the winning end of a 100-0 game has a case of blowout remorse. Per the rules, only an excerpt allowed on AP stories. Read the full story at the link.

Where tax goes up to 60 per cent, and everybody's happy paying it The British want taxes kept low, but Gwladys Fouché discovers that in Sweden high rates underpin a successful society * guardian.co.uk, Sunday November 16 2008 00.01 GMT Political parties have been vying to offer the biggest tax cuts as the credit crunch tightens its grip on Britain. In their view, low taxes are now the best way to get the economy going and to help out families. Cutting or keeping taxes low has always proved popular with the electorate: in 1992 the Conservatives' election campaign slogan 'Labour's...

Red Planet on the Money Will $13 a gallon gasoline change voters' minds in Blue States? [Click on images to enlarge them.] If the voters in Blue, Democrat-controlled states are looking for a culprit for high gas prices, they may look no further than in the mirror. Their representatives in Congress continue to strangle the oil supply--by ruling most of the USA off-limits for drilling. This artificial restriction by the Dem-controlled Congress is a great subject of two great Red Planet Cartoons. The subject: why the Dem-controlled Congress' posturing on the environment is costing every driver, every energy-user in the...

She was captain of her high school cheerleading squad, a nearly straight-A student and a soon-to-be pre-med student at the University of Florida. But now, 18-year-old Stephanie Kuleba is dead, and her friends and family are pointing to breast augmentation surgery as the cause, The Palm Beach Post reported. "She was a role model for a lot of people," her friend Vicky Goldring, 16, told the paper. "She was incredibly smart. She wanted to help people. She was just a happy 18-year-old girl." Kuleba died Saturday of what friends believe were complications from the plastic surgery she had the previous...

CAMP TAJI, Iraq, Feb. 21, 2008 – Hearing a noise in the hallway, Dean gets out of his bed on the floor and trots to the door as he searches the cool February air for a clue. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Vaneta Vaughn, the top enlisted soldier with 64th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Multinational Division Baghdad, scratches Dean, the battalion chaplain’s dog, behind his ear at Camp Taji, Iraq, Feb. 16, 2008. Dean deployed to Iraq with the soldiers as the battalion’s therapy dog. Photo by Pfc. April Campbell, USA  (Click photo for screen-resolution...

Homecoming events say viva East High! Fun-filled week is planned THE DANCE: The "Viva Las Vegas" theme event will be from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Oct. 6 in the school gym. Tickets are $10 each and must be purchased in advance during homecoming week at the school. THE GAME: 7:20 p.m. Oct. 5 at Williams Stadium against Roosevelt. THEME DAYS: Monday, dress in Las Vegas-style apparel or as a famous person for Vegas Day; Tuesday, dress in clothing of the opposite sex for Gender Bender Day; Wednesday, dress as a person or occupation on "...er" Day; Thursday, dress as someone...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 21, 2007 – Operation Homefront, a national nonprofit group started shortly after the 9/11 attacks, recently earned a leading charity evaluator’s highest marks. Charity Navigator, which evaluates charities’ financial health, including day-to-day operations and sustainability, has bestowed its top “four-star” rating upon Operation Homefront. Less than a quarter of the charities Charity Navigator evaluates received their highest rating. “This exceptional designation from Charity Navigator differentiates Operation Homefront from its peers and demonstrates to the public it is worthy of their trust,” said Trent Stamp, president of Charity Navigator, in a letter to Operation Homefront. Operation Homefront is...

High temps cut swath across U.S. MONTGOMERY, Ala., Aug. 23 (UPI) -- High temperatures cut a swath across the United States Thursday from the deep South to Ohio. In Alabama, where temperatures have topped 100 degrees for 14 days so far in August, at least 12 deaths have been blamed on the heat, the Montgomery Advertiser reported. "Because of the extreme heat Alabama is still suffering from, I am afraid that we will have even more heat-related deaths reported to us before the state cools down this fall," Dr. Jim McVay of the Alabama Public Health Service said. Six of...

WASHINGTON, July 11, 2007 – Regardless of what’s happening in terms of recruitment, soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines already serving are reenlisting at rates that surpass all expectations, according to defense officials. Defense Department statistics for June, released yesterday, showed the Army missed its active-duty recruiting goal for the second consecutive month. Yet retention remained high across the board, 101 percent of goal for the active Army, 119 percent for the Army Reserve, and 107 percent for the Army National Guard, Maj. Anne Edgecomb, an Army spokeswoman, told American Forces Press Service. “Recruiting is important, but so is retention,” Bryan...

A week-long tour in the Middle East comes to a close for Governor Janet Napolitano. She arrived home at Sky Harbor airport in Phoenix Sunday afternoon. Governor Napolitano got to see first-hand some of the dangers that Arizona National Guard members face. Napolitano says, "Their morale, their spirits are good. They're working very, very hard."

( Reuters) - U.S. consumer confidence rebounded in December, rising to an eight-month high as consumers' view of the labor market improved, a survey showed on Thursday. The Conference Board said its index of consumer sentiment climbed to 109.0 in December -- its highest reading since April 2006 -- from an upwardly revised 105.3 in November. Economists polled by Reuters on average had forecast a December reading of 102.0. But Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board Consumer Research Center, said there was little to suggest sharp improvement in overall economic activity in the fourth quarter of the year. ``Given...

Strong earnings by New York investment banks Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers Holdings helped set off a broad rally by stocks, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average to a new intraday high. Investors shrugged off a jump in oil priced triggered by OPEC's decision to curb output. In fact, higher oil prices gave a boost to the energy sector, adding another leg to the run-up. The surge by stocks was a surprise to many investors. Stocks showed little reaction to strong earnings by Goldman Sachs on Monday. Tuesday's Federal Reserve decision to leave rates unchanged, and a much better-than-expected report...

'Stripes' And Superconductivity: Two Faces Of The Same Coin? Researchers at Brookhaven National Laboratory and Cornell have made a surprising discovery about the behavior of high-temperature superconductors that could be a further step toward understanding how these valuable materials work. Scanning tunneling microscope photo of the surface of a sample of non-superconducting material. Whether or not the lined pattern seen here corresponds to the "striped" arrangement of electron pairs in the material is still to be determined, according to Cornell physicist J.C. Séamus Davis. (Image courtesy of Cornell University) Previous experiments have shown that in high-temperature superconductors known as cuprates,...

When stereotypes dosn't fit in

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Supreme Court jumped into the legal battle over voter identification laws today by ruling that Arizona may require voters to provide certain types of IDs when they cast their ballots next month. The justices' unsigned five-page order cautioned that they were not issuing a ruling on the constitutionality of Arizona's law and noted the the facts are hotly contested. Indeed, the court said it would review the legal challenge to Arizona's Proposition 200, approved by the state's voters in 2004.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - In his bid for re-election as governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger has a comfortable lead over Democratic challenger and state Treasurer Phil Angelides among the state's "high propensity" voters, according to a report released on Tuesday. These voters also back two of four general obligation bond measures that lawmakers put on the November 7 ballot that seek billions of dollars in debt issuance for public works. The celebrity governor, a Republican, has the support of 53.6 percent of high-propensity voters, compared with 31.4 percent backing Angelides. Another 11.4 percent of these voters favor other candidates and...

Bird flu triggers high and sustained virus buildup, cause of severe disease 15:13:05 EDT Sep 10, 2006 Canadian Press: HELEN BRANSWELL (CP) - The severe disease that H5N1 avian flu provokes in people appears to be caused by the virus's ability to replicate at unusually high levels for a prolonged period - an overwhelming assault that triggers a massive and devastating immune system response, a new scientific paper suggests. Interrupting that process before it reaches the tipping point is critical, say the authors of the article, who based their observations on detailed study of 18 H5N1 patients in Vietnam. But...

BEIRUT, Lebanon, Aug. 14, 2006 — To American civilians, eating a meal ready-to-eat, or MRE, can be an intimidating prospect. It’s handed to them cased in a non-descript brown sleeve, not unlike certain types of discreet mail. Once opened, its contents are filled with individual packages, chemical heaters and official-sounding foods like “fortified applesauce.” With a family in tow, a war on their heels and military transit to look forward to, nearly 14,000 Americans faced the additional daunting task of MRE dining before their authorized departure from Beirut, Lebanon, earlier this month. Making that task just a little easier were...

WASHINGTON, July 28, 2006 – U.S. troops serving in the provinces around Baghdad believe in the mission they’re performing and know they’re making a difference in the lives of Iraqis, a U.S. commander in the area said today. “I'd say that morale among my troops is very good,” Army Col. John Tully, commander of 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, said in a news conference from Camp Liberty. “Based on the sensing sessions I've done and going around just talking to people, getting feedback from officers and NCOs, just talking to troops, morale is very high. “They're very proud...

KABUL, Afghanistan, July 28, 2006 – Almost five years into the mission, American troops are still highly motivated about their duty in Afghanistan, the top enlisted man for Combined Forces Command Afghanistan said. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Daniel Wood travels the country with the commander, Army Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, and on his own. He is in a unique position to see what the joint force assigned here thinks. “The morale is great because it doesn’t take long after servicemembers get here to understand what the focus is,” Wood said during an interview. “The baseline for this theater is the...

Why elephants avoid the high road 17:20 24 July 2006 NewScientist.com news service Roxanne Khamsi Elephants do their utmost to avoid going uphill, a new satellite-tracking study shows – their finely balanced metabolism may reveal why. Researchers tracked elephants by satellite and found that the animals avoid travelling up slopes whenever possible. Calculations suggest an explanation for this behaviour: the big beasts would have to spend hours eating to compensate for travelling up even a relatively gentle incline. Scientists know that elephants can climb relatively steep mountainous terrain if they must. The North African general Hannibal is even said to...

WASHINGTON, July 21, 2006 – Two-thirds of U.S. troops serving in Iraq say they believe the cause they're fighting for is worthwhile, according to a new Stars and Stripes survey. The survey results, reported in the July 19 Mideast edition of Stars and Stripes newspaper, revealed that 46 percent of readers in Iraq who responded to a survey called fighting the war for America "very worthwhile." Another 30 percent rated it "somewhat worthwhile." Fourteen percent of respondents called the mission "not very worthwhile," and just 8 percent referred to it as "not worthwhile at all," the July 20 paper reported....

WASHINGTON, July 12, 2006 – The military has been able to fill its ranks without sacrificing quality, DoD's top personnel official told reporters yesterday. David S. C. Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, said all active-duty components met their recruiting goals in June for the 13th month in a row. He said the reserve components also did well, with all but the Navy Reserve making their recruiting goals. All told, DoD recruits about 300,000 servicemembers in all components each year. Chu called the fact that the department can fill the ranks of the volunteer force a testament to...

LULAC chapter criticizes Austin school district for going against community's wishes.A Hispanic community group is criticizing the district's choice to lead Travis High School, saying he is inexperienced and unfamiliar with issues facing the campus. Austin school board members last week approved the hiring of Rene Garganta, former principal of University Middle School in Waco. Garganta has also worked as an administrator in the Victoria district and as an administrator, teacher and coach in the Seguin district. The local League of United Latin American Citizens is circulating an e-mail saying the district went against the wishes of the organization and...

WASHINGTON, June 15, 2006 – About 800 National Guard troops have arrived for duty in four U.S. border states as "Operation Jump Start" gets under way. The Guard members reported to Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California, to support the U.S. Border Patrol and are expected to begin their missions by next week, Michael Friel, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman, told American Forces Press Service. "They're in various stages of in-processing," Friel said. Some command-and-control elements are already standing up a joint task force, and many of the operators are expected to be working within days, he said....

BAGHDAD, June 15, 2006 – Al Qaeda in Iraq is in disarray and confusion following the death of its terrorist boss, and the Iraqi government is moving forward quickly to provide security for its capital city, coalition officials said today at a news conference. Army Maj. Gen. Bill Caldwell, a coalition spokesman, said Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's death June 7 helped set the conditions for a huge step forward in the security picture of Iraq. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced the beginning of Operation Together Forward yesterday. Iraqi forces are leading this operation and it is designed to cripple or...

WASHINGTON - Republicans breathed a $5 million sigh of relief Wednesday at Rep.-elect Brian Bilbray's narrow victory in normally safe San Diego, an election that underscores the challenge facing Democrats even at a time of public dissatisfaction with President Bush. The news wasn't so good for Republicans in Montana, where State Senate President Jon Tester handily defeated campaign-scarred John Morrison for the Democratic nomination to oppose Sen. Conrad Burns (news, bio, voting record). Then there was the impact on Bush's call for immigration legislation that includes a guest worker program and a shot at citizenship for many of the 11...

If the foreclosure statistics in North Texas are any guide, we don't have to worry about a housing bubble. But that doesn't mean we're immune to hard times in real estate. More than 3,200 Metroplex homes were posted for Tuesday's foreclosure auctions, according to the Foreclosure Listing Service in Addison. That's 13 percent more than a year ago, and more than twice as many as June 2002. The number of distressed properties has been climbing at double-digit rates, and North Texas added more foreclosures in April than any metropolitan area in the nation, according to another tracking service. Nationwide, foreclosure...

Gunmen kill 21 commuters near BaghdadBy QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA, Associated Press Writer 2 hours, 11 minutes ago BAGHDAD, Iraq - Gunmen dragged passengers off a buses northeast of Baghdad and killed 21 people, including a dozen high school students. The attackers spared four Sunni Arabs in one the worst sectarian atrocities in recent weeks. Serwan Shokir, the mayor of Qara Tappah, said one other person was wounded in the early morning attack. He said there were 26 people on three mini headed from his town to Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad. The 12 slain students were apparently headed for Baqouba...

Last month, Ithaca High School administrators sent a letter home with students, informing their parents that the flag of the Confederacy had been banned. Ithaca High School students can no longer display the emblem on belt buckles, t-shirts, or anywhere else while on school property. Apparently, the students wearing their Dixie Outfitters t-shirts, in a proud nod to our country’s better half, were white. It is unfortunate that civil liberties apply only to those in privileged groups, such as blacks or Hispanics.Because the United States Supreme Court has ruled in favor of protecting the freedom of speech exercised in displaying...

Serbia's navy left high and dry by the vote for independence By David Rennie, Europe Correspondent (Filed: 24/05/2006) Serbia is about to join the select club of former naval powers. Officers, who remember the heyday of the old Yugoslav navy - it boasted nearly 80 warships - are weighing their options following Sunday's independence referendum in Serbia's sister republic of Montenegro. The Yes vote means Serbia will lose its sea ports and naval bases. Gen Radosav Martinovic, a military adviser to the government of Montenegro, said that the Serbian navy would be lucky to end up with some patrol craft...

MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif. (May 19, 2006) -- What makes a first-term Marine with two combat tours, nearing the end of his four years in the Marine Corps, want to reenlist? This is a question many career planners aboard the Combat Center face daily when dealing with Marines nearing their end of active service date as they tailor both that question and incentives to each Marine. Their mission is to retain these combat veterans and other experienced Marines despite the possibility of deployments and hardships while a conflict overseas continues. Yet they still meet their...

5/15/2006 - SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- Battlefield awareness has reached new levels with Global Hawk production-model aircraft flying in the U.S. Central Command Air Forces theater. Reaching a breakthrough point in April, the Global Hawk team has maximized the aircraft’s sorties, collecting more than 96 percent of the target area -- nearly 5,000 images of enemy locations, resources and personnel. The Global Hawk, surveying large geographic areas with pinpoint accuracy and giving military commanders near real-time information, has proven its worth in recent operations, said Capt. Ty Gilbert, senior intelligence duty officer at the combined air operations center, or CAOC,...

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., May 7, 2006 – Spectators packed a four-mile stretch of beach and spilled into the street here to watch military and civilian air teams show their stuff yesterday. An estimated 1 million people crowded Fort Lauderdale Beach, Fla., May 6 and 7 for the 2006 McDonald's Air and Sea Show. Photo by Samantha L. Quigley  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. For those who missed the McDonald's Air and Sea Show yesterday or want to see it again, the show is being repeated today. After a morning of power boat races and a beach invasion demonstration...

Rep. Patrick Kennedy (news, bio, voting record) crashed his car near the Capitol early Thursday, and a police official said he appeared intoxicated. Kennedy said he had taken sleep medication and a prescription anti-nausea drug that can cause drowsiness. Kennedy, D-R.I., addressed the issue after a spate of news reports. His initial statement said: "I consumed no alcohol prior to the incident."'Later, however, he issued a longer statement saying the attending physician for Congress had prescribed Phenergan on Tuesday to treat Kennedy's gastroenteritis.Kennedy said he returned to his Capitol Hill home on Wednesday evening after a final series of votes...

High gas prices provide fuel for Democratic volleys at GOP policiesThe Business Journal of Phoenix - 10:29 AM MST Friday by Mike Sunnucks The Business Journal Gasoline prices have hit or surpassed the dreaded $3 per gallon mark and oil company profits are through the roof, giving Democrats more ammunition against Republicans on the disconcerting economic issue. Democrats and U.S. Senate challenger Jim Pederson are pointing to a Senate Republican Policy Committee report earlier this year, which said the oil industry was already heavily taxed and opposed efforts to roll back tax breaks and subsidies for the sector. That policy...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks ended higher on Wednesday, with the Dow industrials hitting a 6-year high, buoyed by stronger-than-expected earnings from companies such as top brewer Anheuser-Busch Cos. and a key broker's dropping its "sell" rating on General Motors Corp. The latest string of results in a stronger-than-forecast earnings season overshadowed investors' worries about rising interest rates after orders in March for durable goods such as airplanes and refrigerators surpassed expectations. Anheuser-Busch reported stronger-than-expected earnings, sending its shares up 5.3 percent, or $2.27, to $44.90 on the New York Stock Exchange. For details see: . Top U.S. brokerage Merrill...

WASHINGTON, April 25, 2006 – Unity is at an all-time high in Iraq, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said yesterday. "I think you have greater unity of the various elements of Iraqi society than you've ever had," Rice said while en route to Athens, Greece. "You have a much more active and integrated Sunni leadership ... with clear indigenous roots, which should help with the movement of Sunnis away from violence to the political process." Rice said the new Iraqi prime minister-designate, Jawad al Maliki, who was appointed April 22, will be the first permanent prime minister with the full...

HEREFORD, Texas (April 21, 2006) -- Two columns of camouflaged bodies trudged up a rocky trail through dry creek beds. A thin dusty haze rose from the ground. The Afternoon sun beat down on the weary hikers, but they pushed themselves and motivate each other as they file towards the finish line of their six-mile hike. No, these aren’t the newest students at Marine Combat Training fresh off their brief boot camp leave periods. The 80-member unit known as “1st Herd Battalion,” is made up of students from Hereford High School’s Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps unit. The...

JALALABAD AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, March 29, 2006 – Hundreds of people gathered March 25 to celebrate the renovation of Agam High School in the Pachir wa Agam district in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province. Sayeed Rahman, sub-governor of Pachir wa Agam district in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province, cuts the ribbon at the reopening ceremony of Agam High School on March 25. At left is Marine Capt. Bart Battista, commander of B Company, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment. Behind him is Army Maj. Dennis C. Edwards, the battalion civil affairs officer. At right is Nu Salaam, the president of Agam High School. Photo by...

NEW YORK -- Lower oil prices and a rebound in manufacturing activity helped Wall Street extend its rally Friday, lifting the Dow Jones industrials to a fresh five-year high for the fourth straight session. Investors cheered a Federal Reserve report that the nation's industrial production grew 0.7 percent in February after sliding 0.3 percent the month before, with the onset of cold weather driving an upswing in utilities output. The promising economic report overshadowed downbeat earnings news from General Motors Corp., which said its 2005 loss was $2 billion more than originally reported. Insurance firm American International Group Inc. also...