In 6-3 Vote, Supreme Court Upholds Indiana Voter ID Law
The Supreme Court upheld Indiana’s voter identification law on Monday, concluding in a splintered decision that the challengers failed to prove that the law’s photo ID requirement placed an unconstitutional burden on the right to vote.
Gaza Mother and Children Killed in Israeli Operation
A Palestinian mother and her four young children were killed in northern Gaza on Monday during an Israeli operation against militants there, and a dispute quickly arose over exactly how they had died.
Austrians Recoil at Case of Incest in Cellar Dungeon
With his Mercedes-Benz and the rings on his fingers, Josef Fritzl looked every inch a property owner, neighbors in this tidy Austrian town said Monday. Even when running errands, they said, he wore a natty jacket, crisp shirt and tie.
Ex-Prosecutor Tells of Political Urging by Pentagon on Detainees
The former chief prosecutor here took the witness stand on Monday on behalf of a detainee and testified that top Pentagon officials had pressured him in deciding which cases to prosecute and what evidence to use.
Rising Petroleum Prices Fail to Prompt Increase in Refinery Output
As oil prices soared to record levels in recent years, basic economics suggested that consumption would fall and supplies would rise as producers drilled for more oil.
Shorts (left)
Four U.S. soldiers were killed by rocket or mortar attacks in Baghdad on Monday, a day after a dust storm blanketed the city and provided cover for fierce shelling of the fortified Green Zone and assaults on American and Iraqi forces.
Shorts (right)
The Indian prime minister described the widespread practice of aborting female fetuses as a “national shame” Monday, and called for stricter enforcement of laws devised to prevent doctors from helping parents to avoid the birth of unwanted daughters.
Blip-in Rain
After 14 straight days of mostly sunny skies, dry conditions, and warm weather (remember that?), the streak came to an abrupt end yesterday. It was the longest such streak since mid-March 2006. While yesterday’s steady light rain was just a nuisance, today’s moderately heavy rain likely will dampen spirits (and the bottom of pants for that matter). The rain will last through the lunch hours, and by early evening, the last water droplets will likely come to an end.
Red Flagged and Chapped Lips
No, this is not about a dry-lipped freshman in danger of failing a class. Instead, it is in reference to yesterday’s dangerous fire weather conditions. Red flag warnings are issued by the National Weather Service (the so-called “real” meteorologists) when a majority of the following conditions occur: dry air, strong winds, and approximately 10 or more days without precipitation. We certainly had that yesterday. The first two can be attributed to yesterday’s strong vertical mixing. This “homogenizing” process “dragged” the air from 1 mile above towards the surface. Since the air above is almost always windier and drier, this caused the desert-like dryness (with relative humidity readings near 10 percent) and wind gusts of 35 mph.
For Airlines, Runways Growing Increasingly Dangerous
The recent groundings of thousands of flights have raised flags about skipped airplane inspections and botched repairs to wiring.
Pakistan Approaching Peace Deal With Militant Tribes
The Pakistani government is close to an agreement to end hostilities with the most militant tribes in its turbulent border area, whose main leader is accused of orchestrating most of the suicide bombings of recent months and the assassination of the former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.
Shorts (left)
The top American envoy to Africa declared Thursday that Zimbabwe’s main opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, was the “clear victor” over President Robert Mugabe in the nation’s disputed election and called on other countries — including the United States — to help solve the deepening political and humanitarian crisis there.
Shorts (right)
Seizing on her Pennsylvania primary victory, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and her surrogates are renewing their efforts to have the disputed Michigan and Florida convention delegates seated and pushing the argument that she now leads in the total number of votes cast when the tallies in those two states are included.
McCain Faults Bush’s Emergency Response to Katrina Disaster
Sen. John McCain took direct aim at the Bush administration Thursday as he stood in the lower 9th Ward of New Orleans, the area hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and declared the handling of the disaster “terrible and disgraceful” and pledged that it would never happen again.
Medics, Trained for Combat Wounds, Tend to Iraq’s Needy
Shortly before 1 a.m. Thursday, there was a desperate wail at the back gate of B Company’s compound in Sadr City. A woman had been badly burned and her relatives were begging for help.
Shrinkage of Work Hours Contributes to Market Slump
Not long ago, overtime was a regular feature at the Ludowici Roof Tile factory in eastern Ohio. Not anymore. With orders scarce and crates of unsold tiles piling up across the yard, the company has slowed production and cut working hours, sowing worry and thrift among its workers.
Probe of Outgoing H.U.D. Chief Reveals Ties to Contractors
Most of the time, the prominent men hovered in different orbits and different cities. Yet for years now, their lives have converged here on this resort island of white beaches and rippling sea.
Clinton’s Latest Attacks On Obama Sway Few Voters
Throughout their contentious debate on Wednesday, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton tried again and again to put Sen. Barack Obama on the defensive in a pointed attempt, her advisers say, to raise doubts about his electability among a small but powerful audience: the uncommitted superdelegates who will likely determine the nomination.
Across Globe, Food Shortages Prompt Rising Social Unrest
Hunger bashed in the front gate of Haiti’s presidential palace. Hunger poured onto the streets, burning tires and taking on soldiers and the police. Hunger sent the country’s prime minister packing.
Dramatic Increase in Deaths, Doctor Visits Characterizes This Flu Season
The current flu season has been more severe than the last three, with more doctor visits and more deaths from flu and pneumonia, federal health officials are reporting.