SEVENTH BIGGEST IN THE WORLD

Mayor Bloomberg calls the NYPD ‘my own army’

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New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg said the New York Police Department was like his own personal military force during a speech at MIT.

PROTECTING THE SICK

Governors petition federal government to reclassify marijuana

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Governors Christine Gregoire (D-WA) and Lincoln Chafee (I-RI) announced at a press conference Wednesday that they were jointly filing a federal petition to reclassify marijuana for medical use.

SPY MACHINES

Researcher: Androids record communications

An Android powered smartphone. Photo: Flickr user Johan Larsson.

If you own a smartphone, your device knows who your friends and family are. It knows where you are, where you’re going and, chances are, what you’ll be doing next. But what else do they know?

SKEWERED

Ron Paul blasts Gingrich with new ad

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Ron Paul’s presidential campaign accused his rival former House Speaker Newt Gingrich of “serial hypocrisy” in an ad released on Wednesday.

RACISM LIVES

Kentucky church bans interracial couples

Interracial couple Stella Harville and  Ticha Chikuni banned by Kentucky church

A small church in Pike County, Kentucky has voted to ban interracial couples from most church activities “to promote greater unity among the church body.”

CAIN'S BANE

Cain: ‘Stupid people are ruining America’

Herman Cain smiles in an AFP photo.

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain complained Wednesday that idiots are destroying the country, and must be out-voted.

Science

Philippine solar light bottles offer hope

Filipino entrepreneur Illac Diaz is aiming to help a million poor people in a year, and with…

World deforestation rate ‘accelerating’: U.N.

The world’s deforestation rate has accelerated to 6.4 millionhectares a year, a new UN survey showed on Wednesday,…

Tech News

Analysis: AT&T may struggle to find asset buyers

(Reuters) – AT&T Inc will struggle to find buyers for any asset sale big enough…

Internet stock slips raise fears of new bubble

Quick cooling of hot stock market debuts by Internet darlings such as Groupon has fed fears of…

Media

Nude Lady Gaga reveals her bad romance

LOS ANGELES — Eccentric “Bad Romance” songstress Lady Gaga says she has an “inability to…

China viewers welcome TV advert ban

Chinese viewers on Tuesday welcomed a ban on commercials during popular television dramas, but advertising professionals warned it…

World

Hackers break into ‘outdated’ United Nations server

SAN FRANCISCO — The United Nations on Wednesday said that hackers broke into an old server and swiped outdated account…

Banks lent over $300 billion to coal industry

Leading banks around the world lent 232 billion euros ($308 billion) to the coal industry, one of the biggest sources of…

German jobs, retail numbers offer rare eurozone cheer

Germany provided a rare ray of light in the eurozone gloom on Wednesday, with record low unemployment and surprisingly good retail data…

Chinese panda loan kept top secret

As world leaders held frenzied talks to try to save the crisis-hit eurozone in the south of France earlier this…

U.S. News

Evangelist Billy Graham hospitalized

WASHINGTON — Reverend Billy Graham was hospitalized Wednesday for possible pneumonia, the facility treating the…

Tea Party support falling in U.S.: poll

WASHINGTON — Support for the conservative Tea Party is slipping across America, even in areas…

Ronald Reagan shooter seeks more time out of jail

WASHINGTON — The gunman who tried to assassinate president Ronald Reagan in March 1981 appealed…

Palin fans urge her to get into 2012 race

CHICAGO — Fans of conservative darling Sarah Palin urged the former Alaska governor to jump…

First lawsuit filed against former Penn State coach Sandusky

A 29-year-old man has filed the first lawsuit against former Penn State University assistant football…