US says it won’t sue to undo state marijuana laws
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department said Thursday that it would not sue to block laws legalizing marijuana in 20 states and the District of Columbia, a move that proponents hailed as an important step toward ending the prohibition of the drug.
Mixed feelings for Syrians as they await a US strike
BEIRUT — In a narrow alley in the old city of Damascus, a shopkeeper who opposes the Syrian government spent Thursday as usual, drinking coffee with the other merchants who keep him company in place of long-vanished tourists. But the calm on the cobblestone street, he said, could hardly mask the fear and ambivalence over an American military strike.
Shorts (left)
WASHINGTON — The goal of the cruise missile strikes the United States is planning to carry out in Syria is to restore the smudged “red line” that President Barack Obama drew a year ago against the use of poison gas.
A humid end to summer
Summer is commonly regarded as beginning on Memorial Day weekend and ending on Labor Day weekend. While the astronomical summer runs from June 21 to Sept. 22, the warmest temperatures tend to lag the peak insolation; meteorological summer is therefore defined as June, July, and August. Therefore, defining Labor Day as the end of summer does have some merit.
Switzerland and US reach accord to curtail banking secrecy
Switzerland and the United States reached a watershed deal Thursday to punish Swiss banks that helped wealthy Americans stash money in hidden offshore accounts, closing the door on an era of bank secrecy and tax evasion.
Under Obama, little progress on high-level jobs for women
WASHINGTON — Behind the roiling conversation over whether President Barack Obama might make Janet L. Yellen the first female leader of the Federal Reserve is an uncomfortable reality for the White House: the administration has named no more women to high-level executive branch posts than the Clinton administration did almost two decades ago.
Iran’s pick for nuclear talks carries hope of eased tensions
TEHRAN, Iran — Until this summer, Mohammad Javad Zarif, one of Iran’s most accomplished diplomats, was an outcast, exiled from the government by ultraconservatives for working too closely with the West. Rather than presenting the Iranian case to the world, as he had done so effectively throughout a 35-year diplomatic career, he was spending his days teaching at the Foreign Ministry’s training center on a quiet, leafy campus in North Tehran.
Greece on track for more aid, German official says
BERLIN — With Greece and its continuing debt crisis an issue ahead of Germany’s national election next month, the highest-ranking German in the European Central Bank said Monday that Athens could be eligible for additional aid and debt relief next year if it continued to fulfill promises made for assistance it is already receiving.
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JINAN, China — Concluding a trial that has riveted China, Bo Xilai, the former elite Communist Party official, attacked elements of the prosecution’s case Monday and said his former top deputy and his wife, both of whom provided evidence against him, had a passionate relationship with each other.
Confident Syria used chemicals, US mulls action
WASHINGTON — Moving a step closer to possible U.S. military action in Syria, a senior Obama administration official said Sunday that there was “very little doubt” that President Bashar Assad’s military forces had used chemical weapons against civilians last week and that a Syrian promise to allow U.N. inspectors access to the site was “too late to be credible”.
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WASHINGTON — Unless Congress raises the debt ceiling, the Treasury Department said Monday that it expected to lose the ability to pay all of the government’s bills in mid-October.
Several chances for showers amid sunshine
A series of disturbances will move across southern New England this week, creating an unstable weather pattern for the week of Orientation. Periods of sunshine and warmth will be punctuated by showers and thunderstorms. While no particular day is expected to be rain-out, the chance for occasional showers will persist through Thursday. The most likely times for precipitation will be this morning, Wednesday night, and Thursday afternoon, although there may be a slight chance of showers outside of these times as well.
High pressure creates picture-perfect weekend
The cold front that passed through our region yesterday has ushered in a high pressure system that will dominate our weather for the next few days. With the high pressure in control, we can expect clear skies, sunshine, and calm winds for the entire weekend. The substantial westerly winds that brought temperatures in the upper 80s °F to Boston earlier this week will now be absent, allowing for the development of a sea breeze. With sea surface temperatures near 70°F in Massachusetts Bay, the sea breeze will work to cool off the Institute, keeping afternoon temperatures around or below 80°F each day. This pattern is expected to continue at least until Monday night, when the next frontal system will begin to approach from the west.
NASDAQ technical problem results in three-hour trading halt
NEW YORK — Trading in a wide array of stocks, including popular ones like Apple and Microsoft, ground to a halt Thursday after a technology problem at the Nasdaq stock exchange. It was the latest prominent disruption in the markets caused by computer glitches.
Fed appeals rejection of rule on regulating debit-card fees
WASHINGTON — A fierce legal battle that pits financial firms against the retail industry took a new turn Wednesday when the Federal Reserve said it would appeal a recent decision involving debit-card transaction fees.
Obama plans to make attending college more affordable
President Barack Obama plans to announce on Thursday a set of ambitious proposals aimed at making colleges more accountable and affordable by rating them and ultimately linking those ratings to financial aid.
Manning sentenced to 35 years for leaking government secrets
FORT MEADE, Md. — A military judge sentenced Pfc. Bradley Manning on Wednesday to 35 years in prison for providing more than 700,000 government files to WikiLeaks, a gigantic leak that lifted the veil on U.S. military and diplomatic activities around the world.
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WASHINGTON - The Obama administration on Thursday escalated its efforts to restore a stronger federal role in protecting minority voters in Texas after the Supreme Court’s June ruling striking down part of the Voting Rights Act, announcing that the Justice Department would become a plaintiff in two lawsuits against the state.
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HONG KONG - An early reading Thursday of a closely watched survey of manufacturing-sector activity provided the latest indication that China’s economy had bottomed out after many months of slowing growth.
United Nations criticizes Australia over asylum policy
SYDNEY - Australia’s indefinite detention of 46 recognized refugees amounts to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, the United Nations said Thursday, applying more international pressure on the government’s tough policies toward asylum seekers.