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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Comedian George Carlin, a counter-culture hero famed for his routines about drugs and dirty words, died of heart failure at a Los Angeles-area hospital on Sunday, a spokesman said. He was 71. Carlin, who had a history of heart problems, died at St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica about 6 p.m. PDT (2 a.m. British time) after being admitted earlier in the afternoon for chest pains, spokesman Jeff Abraham told Reuters. Known for his edgy, provocative material, Carlin achieved status as an anti-Establishment icon in the 1970s with stand-up bits full of drug references and...

Here's an interesting dilemma for Obama. Assume, as appears likely, that he will NOT choose Hillary as his running mate, then he has another tough problem on his hands. How many Clintons will get to speak at the DNC, and more importantly, in what time slots? Can he afford to allow both Hillary AND Bill ( How many times will Bubba use the word "I" in his address) prime-time exposure? And who's more important, a former President who until recently was the darling of the party faithful, or the candidate whom he narrowly beat, and has been making his life...

The world's oldest living tree on record is a nearly 10,000 year-old spruce that has been discovered in central Sweden, Umeaa University said on Thursday. Researchers had discovered a spruce with genetic material dating back 9,550 years in the Fulu mountain in Dalarna, according to Leif Kullmann, a professor of Physical Geography at the university in northwestern Sweden. That would mean it had taken root in roughly the year 7,542 BC. "It was a big surprise because we thought until (now) that this kind of spruce grew much later in those regions," he said. Scientists had previously believed the world's...

Were the diapers in her car actually opened and used or not?

Three walks a week 'cuts heart risk' By Nic Fleming, Medical Correspondent Last Updated: 1:26am BST 15/08/2007 Walking for just 30 minutes three times a week can lower blood pressure and heart disease risk, scientists say. Guidelines from the Chief Medical Officer suggest adults do moderately intense exercise five times a week. However, researchers found that those who take three brisk walks a week had reduced waist and hip circumference and lower blood pressure. The authors of the study, published yesterday in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, said their findings could help those with sedentary lifestyles take up...

DAYTONA, FL - When you visit Orange Grove Baptist Church, the first thing you see is a lot of the number three. The number is on the cars, on the trucks, in the nursery, and even in the worship center. You may think, "Wow, they really like the Trinity here." They may, but that is not the reason for the ubiquitous 3. "We really like Dale Earnhardt, and we know he is part of 'Heaven's Racing Team,'" said deacon Frank Drake. This type of obsession is probably harmless in most places, but not in Daytona, a hotbed of NASCAR. However,...

Employers Add 157,000 to Payrolls; Unemployment Rate Holds Steady at 4.5 Percent WASHINGTON (AP) -- Employers showed a decent appetite to hire in May, boosting payrolls by 157,000, the most in two months. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.5 percent. The newest report on the nation's overall employment climate, released Friday by the Labor Department, suggested that the sluggish spell the economy has been experiencing hasn't severly crimped companies' need for workers. Those with jobs saw modest wage gains last month. Health care, education, professional and business services, leisure and hospitality, and the government were among the sectors adding...

A motorist in Helsingborg has been ordered to pay back over a quarter of a million kronor in disability benefits after claiming to be blind for a period of ten years. The person in question was caught driving a car on three separate occasions while at the same time receiving benefits totalling 268,000 kronor ($38,500). The Swedish Social Insurance Agency (Försäkringskassan) explained its decision to request reimbursement in a letter to the individual concerned: "While investigating your case in the autumn of 2006, we received information suggesting that you cannot be considered sightless.

Treasury, Citing Progress Against Budget Deficit, Says It Is Dropping the 3-Year Note WASHINGTON (AP) -- With budget deficits improving, the government said Wednesday it is discontinuing sales of three-year Treasury notes. The Treasury Department said the last auction of three-year notes will occur next week as part of the regular series of quarterly debt auctions used to help finance the $8.8 trillion federal government debt. The government's borrowing needs peaked in the 2004 budget year, when the federal deficit hit an all-time high in dollar terms of $413 billion. Since that time, the deficit has declined for three straight...

Cabbies ordered to pick up all riders A court fight is likely as MAC cracks down on Muslims who decline alcohol-carrying riders. By Curt Brown, Star Tribune Last update: April 17, 2007 – 10:08 AM Printer friendly E-mail this story Save to del.icio.us MAC meeting earlier this year Jim Mone, Associated Press StarTribune.com Cabbies ordered to pick up all riders Airport commissioners insist it's simply a customer-service issue. But many Muslim taxi drivers say it's an unfair new penalty that violates their religious prohibitions against handling alcohol. Both sides agree that the dispute, part of a cultural conflict in the...

MAMARONECK, N.Y. (AP) - Democrat John Edwards got a taste of low-wage life Wednesday, rising before dawn to help to dress, shave and deliver breakfast to elderly residents of a nursing home outside New York City. His visit was part of the "Work a Day in My Shoes" program sponsored by the influential Service Employees International Union, where presidential candidates spend time with health care workers to understand the challenges of their jobs. Edwards was paired with certified nursing assistant Elaine Ellis, an 18-year employee of the Sarah Neuman Nursing Home who escorted him on her early morning rounds. Ellis,...

Focus on the Family founder James Dobson has dealt a potentially devastating blow to Fred Thompson’s presidential aspirations, saying the former senator is not a Christian. "Everyone knows he’s conservative and has come out strongly for the things that the pro-family movement stands for,� Dobson – considered the most politically powerful evangelical figure in the U.S. – said in a phone call to Dan Gilgoff, senior editor at U.S. News & World Report. "[But] I don’t think he’s a Christian. At least that’s my impression.� Thompson’s spokesman Mark Corallo took issue with the statement. "Thompson is indeed a Christian,� he...

WASHINGTON (AP) - California Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter, a long-shot candidate for president, does not plan to seek re-election to his House seat, but his son will probably run for the job, Hunter's presidential campaign spokesman said Wednesday. Hunter's son is Duncan D. Hunter, a former Marine who served two tours in Iraq. He has not yet made a formal announcement, but that could come soon, said spokesman Roy Tyler. Meanwhile, the son is helping his father in appearances on the presidential stump, Tyler said. "He makes a pretty good stand-in" for his father, Tyler said. Rep. Duncan Hunter, the...

Al Gore\'s movie, "An Inconvenient Truth," has met its match: a devastating documentary based on sound science by recording the statements of real climate scientists, says S. Fred Singer, professor emeritus of environmental sciences at the University of Virginia and adjunct scholar at the National Center for Policy Analysis. The scientific arguments presented in, "The Great Global Warming Swindle," can be stated quite briefly, says Singer: Observations in ice cores show that temperature increases have preceded -- not resulted from -- increases in CO2, by hundreds of years, suggesting that the warming of the oceans is an important source of...

And these little piggies might offend Muslims By Paul Stokes Last Updated: 2:13am GMT 16/03/2007 A school production of Roald Dahl's Three Little Pigs has turned the heroes into three little puppies for fear of offending Muslims. Dahl's play, in which he reworks Little Red Riding Hood to include the pigs, is being put on by Honley Church of England School, in Huddersfield, with 250 primary pupils from other schools singing along. Gill Goodswen, who is one of the organisers of the Kirklees Primary Music festival behind the changes, said: "We have to be sensitive if we want to be...

Rambo This next item was forwarded to me by my friend and fellow Del Cityan Dorothy "Jingles" Rimbold, a retired Marine. It speaks volumes about the brave people in Afghanistan (and there are many here in Iraq, too) that see the big picture- that for freedom's sake WE CANNOT LET THE TERRORISTS WIN!!- and are willing to do courageous things for the cause.So why do some in Congress want us to turn out backs on such people?***Hi everyone. I'm still alive but freezing my tail off. We got 8 inches of snow last week and it reached 5 degrees below...

Global Warming Expedition to North Pole Cancelled Due to Cold and Frostbite Posted by Noel Sheppard on March 12, 2007 - 16:53. Folks, you can’t make this stuff up. However, I sincerely beg all readers to properly stow potables, combustibles, and sharp objects before proceeding further. An expedition to the North Pole to bring attention to global warming was cancelled due to the extraordinarily cold weather. I kid you not. As reported by the Associated Press Monday (emphasis mine throughout): The explorers, Ann Bancroft and Liv Arnesen, on Saturday called off what was intended to be a 530-mile trek across...

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was having an extramarital affair even as he led the charge against President Clinton over the Monica Lewinsky affair, he acknowledged in an interview with a conservative Christian group.

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) - Blues Traveler singer and harmonica player John Popper was arrested after the vehicle he was riding in was clocked going 111 mph, the Washington State Patrol said Wednesday. Popper, 39, was arrested Tuesday afternoon on Interstate 90 near the Spokane/Lincoln county line, the Washington State Patrol said. Inside the black Mercedes SUV, officers found a cache of weapons and a small amount of marijuana, the Patrol said. A police dog searched the vehicle, finding numerous hidden compartments containing four rifles, nine handguns and a switchblade knife. Authorities also found a Taser and night vision goggles. The...

MIAMI - A sex offender was found guilty Wednesday of kidnapping and raping a 9-year-old girl and burying her alive in a case that led to a crackdown around the country on people convicted of sex crimes. Jurors deliberated about four hours before returning the verdict against John Evander Couey in the slaying of Jessica Lunsford, who was snatched from her bedroom in 2005 about 150 yards from the trailer where Couey had been living. Her body was found in a shallow hole, encased in two black plastic trash bags. She had suffocated, and was found clutching a purple stuffed...

WASHINGTON - Former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby was convicted Tuesday of obstruction, perjury and lying to the FBI in an investigation into the leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity to reporters. Libby, former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, was acquitted on just one of five charges after a trial that focused renewed attention on the Bush administration's claims of evidence about weapons of mass destruction in the run-up to the Iraq war. Libby had little reaction to the verdict. He stood expressionless as the jury left the room. His lawyer, Theodore Wells, said...

NEW YORK - Genealogists have found that civil rights activist the Rev. Al Sharpton is a descendent of a slave owned by relatives of the late Sen. Strom Thurmond, a newspaper reported Sunday. The Daily News said professional genealogists, working at the newspaper's behest, recently uncovered the ancestral ties between one of the nation's best known black leaders and a man who was once a prominent defender of segregation. "I have always wondered what was the background of my family," the newspaper quoted Sharpton as saying. "But nothing — nothing — could prepare me for this." "It's chilling. It's amazing."...

WACO, Texas - The father of NFL MVP LaDainian Tomlinson was killed Friday when the pickup truck in which he was riding blew a tire and flipped on a highway. Oliver Tomlinson was killed at about 1:30 p.m. in the one-vehicle rollover, said Charlie Morgan, a Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman. Tomlinson was 71. The driver, Ronald C. McClain was rushed by ambulance to Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition, Morgan said. The 48-year-old McClain is believed to be a relative of Tomlinson’s, Morgan said.

A Pakistani minister and woman’s activist was shot dead Tuesday by an Islamic extremist for refusing to wear the veil. Zilla Huma Usman, the minister for social welfare in Punjab province and an ally of President Pervez Musharraf, was killed as she was about to deliver a speech to dozens of party activists, by a “fanatic”, who believed that she was dressed inappropriately and that women should not be involved in politics, officials said. Usman, 35, was wearing the shalwar kameez worn by many professional women in Pakistan, but did not cover her head. The attack happened in Gujranwala, 120...

Former presidential candidate Ralph Nader on Sunday left the door open for another possible White House bid in 2008 and criticized Democratic front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton as "a panderer and a flatterer." ..."It's really too early to say. ... I'll consider it later in the year." Nader, 72, said he did not plan to vote for Clinton... "I don't think she has the fortitude. Actually she's really a panderer and a flatterer. As she goes around the country, you'll see more of that," Nader said. ... On whether he would be encouraged to run if Clinton gets the Democratic nomination,...

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- The NFL has nixed a church's plans to use a wall projector to show the Colts-Bears Super Bowl game, saying it would violate copyright laws. NFL officials spotted a promotion of Fall Creek Baptist Church's "Super Bowl Bash" on the church Web site last week and overnighted a letter to the pastor demanding the party be canceled, the church said. < snip > But the NFL objected to the church's plans to use a projector to show the game, saying the law limits it to one TV no bigger than 55 inches. The church will likely abandon...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — It may soon be lights out for the traditional light bulb in California. Assemblyman Lloyd Levine, D-Van Nuys, is proposing that the Golden State become the first to ban sales of incandescent light bulbs, by 2012. In their place, Californians could purchase more energy-efficient compact fluorescent lamps. Those are the spiral-shaped bulbs that cost more upfront but save money and energy over the long haul. Switching light bulbs is an idea that environmentalists have long supported. But getting consumers to embrace change has been slow going. Banning energy-intensive incandescents "saves consumers money, saves the state money and...

The jury finds the woman accused of poisoning her Marine husband so she could cash in on his $250,000 life insurance policy guilty. Cynthia Sommer, 33, was charged with murder and special circumstance allegations of murder by poison and murder for financial gain in the Feb. 18, 2002, death of Sgt. Todd Sommer. She faces life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted.

While Drudge and everyone else is caught up in Obamamania, Tancredo throws his hat in the race as well.

story on the breaking banner on the website.. www.foxnews.com

District Attorney Mike Nifong has requested that he have himself removed from prosecuting the Duke Lacrosse rape investigation, ABC News has learned. A source close to the investigation said Nifong sent a letter to North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper asking his office to assume responsibility of the case. Three Duke Lacrosse players, Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty, and David Evans were indicted in 2006 on charges of rape, sexual assault, and kidnapping.

A US lawmaker stirred up controversy when he expressed uneasiness over the election of a Muslim to serve with him in the House of Representatives, which he said endangered "the values and beliefs traditional" to the United States. "The Muslim representative from Minnesota (Keith Ellison) was elected by the voters of that district, and if American citizens don't wake up and adopt the Virgil Goode position on immigration, there will likely be many more Muslims elected to office and demanding the use of the Koran" in their swearing-in ceremonies, Goode said in a letter to one of his associates, sent...

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Nov. 2, 2006) – Citing the long, proud tradition of sacrifice and valor of Americans in combat, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson yesterday awarded the Purple Heart to four servicemembers wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan. “Our freedoms, democratic traditions and American way of life rest on the shoulders of heroes who are willing to face extraordinary challenges and make astonishing acts of self-sacrifice,” Nicholson said. In a ceremony at the National Press Club, Nicholson presented the award to Pvt. Kevin Araujo of the 10th Mountain Division; Spec. Nicholas Helfferich of the 2nd Battalion, 37th Armor,...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 20, 2006 – U.S. soldiers from Multinational Division Baghdad have found three weapons caches and captured six suspected terrorists in and around Baghdad since yesterday. Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 89th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, found a large weapons cache during a dismounted patrol southwest of Baghdad around 2 p.m. yesterday. The cache consisted of 100 155 mm artillery rounds with trip wires, 1,000 7.62 mm sniper-rifle rounds, two burlap bags containing rockets, and an unknown amount of bomb-making materials. Earlier yesterday, soldiers from 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team,...

Three From Clinton Administration Urge Disney to Cancel or Revise Sept. 11 MiniseriesBy JESSE McKINLEY Published: September 7, 2006 Three members of the Clinton administration have written the chairman of the Walt Disney Company, ABC’s parent, to complain that the network’s coming two-part miniseries “The Path to 9/11” is fraught with factual errors and fabrications. The letters ask that the five-hour movie, scheduled for broadcast Sunday and Monday, be either edited for accuracy or canceled, and ABC gave a small indication yesterday that some changes might be made. One of the officials, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, said in...

Three Iranian factories 'mass-produce bombs to kill British in Iraq' Toby Harnden in Washington (Filed: 20/08/2006) Three factories in Iran are mass-producing the sophisticated roadside bombs used to kill British soldiers over the border in Iraq, it has been claimed. The lethal bombs are being made by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps at ordnance factory sites in Teheran, according to opponents of the country's theocratic regime. Designed to penetrate heavy armour, the devices being manufactured in Iran involve the use of "explosively formed projectiles" or EFPs, also known as shaped charges, often triggered by infra-red beams. The weapons can pierce...

THE Israeli army killed at least three Hezbollah fighters in south Lebanon after armed gunmen approached the forces, a spokesman said. “Four armed gunmen approached Israeli Defence Forces, they posed a threat, they were armed, in an act of self-defence the forces opened fire... At least three were killed,” the spokesman said. In another incident, a lone gunman approached Israeli troops who opened fire. The militiaman was hit but the army spokesman could not confirm he had been killed. “All of the incidents were acts of self-defence,” he said. “The IDF continues to respect UN resolution 1701.” At least four...

Israel rejects UN aid truce call> Many have been forced from their homes, but others remain trapped Israel has rejected a United Nations call for a three-day truce in southern Lebanon, as US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrives in Israel. The UN says children, the elderly and disabled people are trapped and supplies are short. But an Israeli spokesman said there was no need for a truce as a humanitarian corridor to the area had been opened. Israeli missiles landed near the main Lebanese border crossing into Syria on Saturday, witnesses and officials said. In a separate incident, two...

FUHUYLAT, Iraq (July 24, 2006) -- Marines from 1st Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, rescued three hostages and uncovered a large weapons cache, including a fully-assembled vehicle-borne improvised explosive device, during Operation Spotlight. The intelligence-driven operation was conducted alongside Iraqi Army soldiers from 2nd and 4th Brigades, 1st Iraqi Army Division. The three hostages were personal assistants of Dr. Rafa Hayid Chiad Al-Isawi, an Iraqi government official in Baghdad. They were held by al-Qaeda insurgents for 27 days. “We are extremely pleased we were able to recover these Iraqi citizens,” said Col. Larry D. Nicholson, Regimental Combat Team 5’s commanding officer....

FORT LEWIS, Wash. (Army News Service, July 10, 2006) – Charges were preferred July 6 against 1st Lt. Ehren Watada of 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, for his refusal June 22 to accompany his unit to Iraq and for actions related to that refusal. The charges arose from an initial investigation conducted in the two weeks since the incident. According to Fort Lewis officials, Watada faces charges for three separate violations: missing movement, contempt toward officials and conduct unbecoming an officer. If found guilty on all charges, Watada faces a maximum sentence of seven years in prison, forfeiture of all...

A young mother who was murdered, along with her three children, in Columbus last week, were loved by many in her old hometown of Warren, and they showed that love today. The funeral for Jameila West, daughter Jameire, and sons Trevion and Jakia, was held today at the family's church in Warren. Beyond the uplifted hands and voices at the Greater Apostolic Church in Warren, is the devastating loss of four loved ones, but only two caskets. 27 year old Jameila West and her 3 year old son Jakia lie in one, 10 year old Jameire and 5 year...

WASHINGTON, June 25, 2006 – Three American soldiers were killed by improvised explosive devices while on patrol in Iraq in recent days, officials in Iraq said today. Separate IED explosions in Baghdad and Tikrit June 24 each claimed the life of one U.S. soldier. A roadside bomb explosion in Baghdad on June 23 killed another U.S. soldier. Another U.S. soldier in Baghdad died of a non-combat incident June 23. Names of the deceased are being withheld until their families are notified. Coalition forces in Iraq are continuing operations to thwart enemy IED attacks, officials said. Iraqi forces captured three members...

Court orders arrest of three extremist group leadersPublished: Tuesday, 13 June, 2006, 11:38 AM Doha Time MADRID: A Spanish judge ordered yesterday the arrest of three suspected leaders of left-wing extremist group Grapo on charges of belonging to an armed organisation and forgery, a court source said. No date has been fixed for their trial. The Civil Guard said on Friday that Grapo was “practically decapitated” with the arrest of the three in the northeastern Spanish town of Reus. The detainees are alleged to be group leader Juan Garcia Martin, wanted in relation to various thefts and the murder of...

WASHINGTON, June 13, 2006 – Two separate terrorist attacks yesterday left three Afghan civilians dead and six others wounded, U.S. military officials reported today. A makeshift bomb placed under a bridge in Paktia province was detonated as two passenger vehicles passed above. The blast killed two Afghans and wounded five others. Elsewhere, extremists attacked two Afghan civilian trucks in Ghazni province, killing the driver of one truck and wounding the other. The wounded driver was taken to Ghazni hospital for treatment. "These unprovoked attacks against civilians are criminal," U.S. Army Lt. Col. Paul Fitzpatrick, Combined Joint Task Force 76 spokesman,...

BALAD, Iraq, June 4, 2006 – Iraqi soldiers raided a housing compound in Baghdad on May 31 and captured three insurgents who were members of a vehicle-bomb cell, military officials here reported today. Scouts from the 3rd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, assisted by coalition force advisers, raided three separate objectives simultaneously in the Al Rasheed district in east-central Baghdad. They captured three key members of a cell operating in the Al Doura area of Baghdad. This cell is responsible for making vehicle bombs and carrying out attacks against Iraqi and coalition forces, officials said. The Iraqi soldiers also detained...

Hamas leader's three sisters live secretly in Israel as full citizens By Tim Butcher in Tel Sheva (Filed: 02/06/2006)Ismail Haniyeh: Visited family Israel regards Ismail Haniyeh, the Palestinian Hamas prime minister, as an enemy of state. But three of his sisters enjoy full Israeli citizenship, having moved 30 years ago to the desert town of Tel Sheva. Some of their offspring have even served in the Israeli army, the force responsible for decades of Israeli occupation in Gaza and the West Bank, an occupation that the Islamist movement, Hamas, was founded to fight.The Daily Telegraph tracked down the Haniyeh sisters,...

WASHINGTON, May 30, 2006 – Terrorists bombed the site of a future Iraqi city hall yesterday, and coalition forces killed three terrorists and detained 10 more suspects in three incidents May 28. The construction site of the future Lutafiyah city hall was bombed late last night. Iraqi and Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers were sent to investigate the explosion and have secured the site, according to U.S. officials. No injuries were reported. On May 28, coalition forces killed three terrorists and wounded one as they transported and attempted to emplace roadside bombs near Ramadi. The individuals have been linked to a...

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2006 – Afghan and coalition forces detained two suspected Taliban fighters in Afghanistan's Kandahar province yesterday, while in separate incidents today and yesterday, three Afghan civilians were killed and three others were wounded by enemy action, military officials reported. Three Afghan civilians were seriously injured today when their vehicle struck a landmine buried in the center of a main road between Orgun and Gayan districts. The injured Afghans suffered ankle fractures and shrapnel injuries to the head. One also suffered an eye injury. All three were taken to a coalition medical facility for treatment. "Roadside bombs cause...

AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq (May 3, 2006) -- "Too many people died under Saddam," Kaleed said, as he turned to look at his brother, "We lost too many friends to him." Despite death threats to anyone who joins the Iraqi Security Forces, three brothers enlisted in the Iraqi army together, hoping their contributions will help bring freedom from the insurgency terrorizing their country. Ism'ael, Kaleed and Razak joined the army on the same day nine months ago seeking the same thing: financial freedom for their family and independence for their country. Razak, who serves in the same company as...

'I made a mixture of drugs and injected them. They were dead in three hours' Doctor provided first aid for insurgents - and went on to kill police and soldiers brought in for treatment Michael Howard in Kirkuk Monday April 17, 2006 The Guardian (UK) Lieutenant Arjuman of the Kirkuk police lay unconscious in the recovery room after a successful operation to remove an insurgent's bullet from his chest. His weary surgeons had gone home for the night, satisfied a life had been saved. Al-Jumhuriya hospital - Kirkuk's largest and busiest - was quiet. At 10.30pm, a doctor moved along...