UPI NewsTrack articles from December 2008

UPI NewsTrack archives from December 2008

Rights group prods Kazakhstan on reforms.
December 1, 2008... NEW YORK, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Human rights activists called on Kazakhstan to clean up its political system before it begins its term as head of a European security alliance. Human Rights Watch said in a report released Monday that the Kazakh...

Smallpox vaccine works a lifetime.
December 1, 2008... BETHESDA, Md., Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Lifetime protection is obtained from just one smallpox vaccination -- even if it occurred 88 years ago, U.S. researchers say. A study, published in The American Journal of Medicine, found that in the event of...

Mumbai attacks stir public anger.
December 1, 2008... MUMBAI, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government sought to control political damage Monday amidst rising public ire over the Mumbai terrorist carnage. As authorities assessed the death toll and damage from the...

Fugitive caught in Michigan.
December 1, 2008... ROMULUS, Mich., Nov. 30 (UPI) -- A once-convicted killer awaiting trial for attempted murder, assault and armed robbery was recaptured Sunday after escaping a Michigan jail, authorities said. Michigan State Police said Jonathan Good, 36,...

Study debunks Chinese model minority myth.
December 1, 2008... COLLEGE PARK, Md., Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Chinese-American professionals in the U.S. legal and medical fields earn as much as 44 percent less than their white counterparts, researchers say. One of the most highly educated groups in the United...

NFL: Minnesota 34, Chicago 14.
December 1, 2008... MINNEAPOLIS, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Gus Frerotte passed for one touchdown and ran for another Sunday, helping Minnesota assume sole possession of the NFC North with a 34-14 win over Chicago. The Vikings had entered the game in a three-way tie with...

NBA: LA Lakers 112, Toronto 99.
December 1, 2008... LOS ANGELES, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant combined for 47 points Sunday, carrying the Los Angeles Lakers to a 112-99 pasting of the Toronto Raptors. The Lakers are now an NBA-best 14-1, their strongest start since the...

Thai protesters allow some flights.
December 1, 2008... BANGKOK, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Anti-government protesters let 37 empty planes fly out of Bangkok's main airport Monday, bound for other airports to pick up passengers stranded in Thailand. The People's Alliance for Democracy-led protesters, who...

Persistent pollutant may promote obesity.
December 1, 2008... MISHIMA, Japan, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Two Japanese researchers say it is "plausible and provocative" to associate the obesity epidemic with chemical triggers present in the modern environment. Taisen Iguchi and Yoshinao Katsu of the Graduate...

Israeli navy expected to stop aid shipment.
December 1, 2008... JERUSALEM, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- A Libyan ship said to be carrying humanitarian aid bound for the Gaza Strip faced a likely blockade by the Israeli navy Monday, Israeli defense officials said. Jamal Khoudari, an independent Palestinian lawmaker,...

Karachi violence kills 20.
December 1, 2008... KARACHI, Pakistan, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Clashes between two ethnic groups in Pakistan's port city of Karachi during the weekend killed at least 28 people, police said Monday. The groups, which were not identified, rioted, attacked each other...

COL BKB: Wake Forest 87, Baylor 74.
December 1, 2008... ANAHEIM, Calif., Dec. 1 (UPI) -- No. 24 Wake Forest, paced by L.D. Williams' 15 points and 10 rebounds, busted Baylor 87-74 Sunday to win the 76 Classic in California. Jeff Teague added 14 points, eight rebounds and eight assists despite...

Brits turning to sex for cheap thrills.
December 1, 2008... LONDON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- With the economy drooping, Britons may be tightening their belts by turning to sex for cheap entertainment, a survey purports. A YouGov survey of 2,000 adults revealed sexual intercourse was the most popular free...

Jockstrip: The world as we know it.
December 1, 2008... Couple delays first kiss until wedding CHICAGO, Nov. 30 (UPI) -- A Chicago couple say they followed through on a vow to not even kiss each other until they were officially married. Claudaniel Fabien, 30, and Melody LaLuz, 28 -- both...

Watercooler Stories.
December 1, 2008... Brits turning to sex for cheap thrills LONDON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- With the economy drooping, Britons may be tightening their belts by turning to sex for cheap entertainment, a survey purports. A YouGov survey of 2,000 adults revealed...

Japan November auto sales plunge.
December 1, 2008... TOKYO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Japan's November domestic auto sales, hit by the recession, fell 27.3 percent to 215,783 units from year-ago levels, the industry group said Monday. It was the fourth consecutive month of decline and the lowest for...

Cuts proposed in yellow fin tuna catch.
December 1, 2008... TOKYO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- An international ocean resources group wants a 30 percent cut in the yellow fin tuna catch in the Pacific to curb over fishing, sources told Kyodo news Monday. The proposal was made by the secretariat of the Western...

China launches satellite.
December 1, 2008... BEIJING, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The Chinese Space Technology Academy announced the Monday launch of a remote sensing satellite, sent aloft on a Long March-2D carrier rocket. The "Yaogan IV" satellite, fired from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch...

Coal mine disaster kills 18.
December 1, 2008... BEIJING, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- A blast in a coal mine in China's northeast Heilongjiang Province killed 15 miners and three rescuers who had tried to reach them, officials said. The gas explosion in the Changlong coal mine in Qitaihe city...

13,500 jobs draw 775,000 aspirants.
December 1, 2008... BEIJING, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- An indication of more Chinese seeking the security of civil service jobs came Sunday when about 775,000 of them took the test for 13,500 government jobs. The tests were given in 38 cities and the response showed...

Obama announces security team nominees.
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. President-elect Barack Obama Monday designated Hillary Clinton as his secretary of state and said he asked Robert Gates to continue as defense secretary. At a news conference in Chicago, Obama praised Clinton's...

Obama taps policy adviser for U.N. post.
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- President-elect Barack Obama has tapped his foreign policy adviser Susan Rice as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Democratic Party officials said. Rice's nomination to the diplomatic post is expected to be...

Four stabbed at boy's birthday party.
December 1, 2008... OSHAWA, Ontario, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Canadian police in Oshawa, Ontario, killed a man who fatally stabbed a woman and slashed her husband and two children at a weekend birthday party. Gino Petralia, 47, was shot by police at an adjacent...

Nuke, bioterror attack called likely.
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The United States and other nations need to act urgently to prevent a nuclear or biological terrorism attack in the near future, a bipartisan panel says. A report to be released Monday by the Commission on the...

Senate Dems look to GOP moderates for help.
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. Senate Democrats say they likely will have a working filibuster-proof majority on key issues that could give early wins for President-elect Barack Obama. Although the number of Democrats remains unknown --...

Coalition threatens Canadian Conservatives.
December 1, 2008... OTTAWA, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Canada's minority Conservative government faced the threat Monday of being toppled by a coalition of two opposition parties unhappy with economic policy. Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government announced policy...

U.S. cities making cuts as revenues fall.
December 1, 2008... PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. cities are looking at falling revenues as the economy slows and foreclosures continue at a high pace, records show. San Diego found foreclosures more than doubled in 2008, reaching 5,551. The city expects...

U.S. mayors push $90B building plan.
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. mayors, who have long complained of penny-pinching by the federal government, say they have a $90 billion infrastructure spending plan. With U.S. President-elect Barack Obama saying he wants to create 2.5...

Nigerian election protests spark violence.
December 1, 2008... JOS, Nigeria, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Fighting in Jos, Nigeria, seems to be subsiding, observers said, after churches and mosques were set on fire in clashes that killed at least 200 people. The violence began late last week amid charges that...

UPI Thoroughbred Racing Roundup.
December 1, 2008... Byline: ROBERT KIECKHEFER Sunday's Japan Cup was dominated by local runners while, in the United States, much of the spotlight went to the 2-year-olds pointing to springtime and the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks. In California,...

Crude oil prices fall.
December 1, 2008... NEW YORK, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Crude oil prices fell to $51.60 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after an oil ministers' meeting in Cairo ended without specific production cuts. Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting...

Supreme Court to rule on harassment case.
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- A dispute about the responsibilities of public schools to protect girls from sexual harassment is set to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court, officials say. The parents of a Hyannis, Mass., kindergarten girl are...

Kerr and Bloom not betrothed.
December 1, 2008... LONDON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Miranda Kerr's publicist says the Australian model isn't engaged to her British beau Orlando Bloom, contrary to media reports claiming otherwise. Kerr is known for her work for the lingerie giant Victoria's Secret....

UPI NewsTrack TopNews.
December 1, 2008... Obama to announce security team nominees CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's security team is shaping up with Sen. Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Robert Gates taking the lead, officials said. Obama was...

Harvard University to honor Ted Kennedy.
December 1, 2008... BOSTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., joins a handful of international movers and shakers recognized for their life work by Harvard University. Kennedy was to receive an honorary degree recognizing his decades of public...

London Scottish Bank files for protection.
December 1, 2008... LONDON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- London Scottish Bank filed for court protection Monday after the Financial Services Authority declared it could no longer accept deposits. The British Treasury claimed all of the bank's retail accounts would be...

Venice flooded by extremely high tide.
December 1, 2008... VENICE, Italy, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Venetians should stay in their homes and tourists should reconsider traveling to the Italian city after a high tide swamped it in water, officials said Monday. Venice Mayor Massimo Cacciari told residents to...

AMPTP: SAG strike would be self-defeating.
December 1, 2008... LOS ANGELES, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- A group of TV and film producers says in an open letter printed Monday in the Los Angeles Times a Screen Actors Guild strike would be self-defeating. SAG President Alan Rosenberg said last month that guild...

Two dead, three critical in highway crash.
December 1, 2008... COQUITLAM, British Columbia, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The Royal Canadian Mounted Police were investigating a weekend British Columbia crash that killed two children and left three people in critical condition. The accident happened Saturday morning...

Blasts kill dozens in Baghdad, Mosul.
December 1, 2008... BAGHDAD, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Attacks Monday against government and military facilities in Baghdad and Mosul killed at least 35 people, Iraqi authorities said. An Iraqi Interior Ministry official said a car bombing and a separate suicide...

Capitol Visitor Center set to open.
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- An invitation-only ceremony is scheduled for Tuesday in Washington to mark the formal opening of the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center. The subterranean edifice, which took more than six years to construct, was...

Officials say supertanker to be freed soon.
December 1, 2008... MOGADISHU, Somalia, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The Saudi Arabian supertanker hijacked by Somali pirates Nov. 15 will be released within the next two days, diplomatic officials said Monday. Nabil Ashur, Saudi Arabian ambassador to Kenya, and a Saudi...

Straw: Smith acted properly in leak case.
December 1, 2008... LONDON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- British Justice Secretary Jack Straw says Home Secretary Jacqui Smith doesn't need to apologize for not intervening in the arrest of a member of Parliament. Smith has been under attack from Conservative Party leaders...

Firms promote cycling to work.
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. companies whose employees ride their bikes to work can soon take advantage of a tax credit included in congressional bailout legislation. The measure, which goes into effect next month, provides a tax...

'Slumdog' wins big at British indie awards.
December 1, 2008... LONDON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- "Slumdog Millionaire," a film set in India and directed by Briton Danny Boyle, won three prizes at the British Independent Film Awards. The movie was named best independent film, Boyle best director and star Dev...

Dubai film fest bosses sued for libel.
December 1, 2008... LONDON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The founder of the Dubai International Film Festival says he is suing the film fest's former chairman and managing director for libel. Neil Stephenson, the film fest's former CEO, has filed a lawsuit in a London...

Booze cheaper than water in British stores.
December 1, 2008... LONDON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Thirsty consumers seeking to wet their whistles can pay less for booze than bottled water at leading British supermarkets, research indicates. The British government announced plans last week to tackle a binge...

Explosion sets off fire in business park.
December 1, 2008... SLOUGH, England, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- British firefighters Monday were battling a blaze caused by an explosion at a plastics and chemical plant in a Slough-area business park. Whether anyone was hurt in the explosion and subsequent fire was...

Banks may take over fund manager.
December 1, 2008... LONDON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- British regulators denied troubled New Star Asset Management's request to suspend trading of its shares Monday, pushing stock value down 68 percent. The U.K. Listing Authority denied the request, triggering an...

U.S. students heading overseas for college.
December 1, 2008... FIFE, Scotland, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- St. Andrews, the Scottish university attended by Britain's Prince William, reports it has 1,230 Americans this year among its 7,200 students. With higher education becoming a global commodity, more Americans...

Frasier and Lilith to reunite in 'Fame'.
December 1, 2008... LOS ANGELES, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Megan Mullally, Kelsey Grammer and Bebe Neuwirth have signed on to play faculty in the upcoming remake of the New York-set film "Fame," producers said. Mullally is best known for her work on TV's "Will &...

U.S. markets slide Monday.
December 1, 2008... NEW YORK, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. markets slid sharply Monday morning, investors realizing the nation's busiest retail weekend was merely busy with discounts. The National Retail Federation said more than 172 million shoppers visited stores...

Man who filmed restrooms is acquitted.
December 1, 2008... STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- A court in Stockholm has acquitted a 42-year-old man charged with sexual harassment for secretly filming dozens of women in the restrooms of Stockholm cafes. The court ruled the recordings represented an...

Madonna and A-Rod in Mexico City.
December 1, 2008... MEXICO CITY, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Rumored lovers Madonna and Alex Rodriguez were both in Mexico City during the weekend, E! News said. The pop star and baseball player, whose respective marriages both recently ended, were in town as Madonna...

Mothers kill male babies to end war.
December 1, 2008... GOROKA, Papua New Guinea, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Mothers in remote regions of Papua New Guinea say they have resorted to killing their male infants as a way to end constant tribal warfare. Two women from the country's Eastern Highlands told a...

Palin stumps for Georgia's Chambliss.
December 1, 2008... ATLANTA, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has joined the list of Republican figures to campaign in Georgia for U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss, observers said. Palin, the former Republican U.S. vice presidential nominee, joined Chambliss...

FDA reports on food supply safety.
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a report on the year-long implementation of its Food Protection Plan to protect domestic and imported foods. The plan, officials said, outlines strategies for...

12.8M watched Spears on 'X Factor'.
December 1, 2008... LONDON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Nearly 13 million people tuned in to see U.S. pop star Britney Spears perform on the British TV talent show "The X Factor," The Times of London said. Spears lip-synched and danced to her new single, "Womanizer," as...

U.S. retail still looks like an off year.
December 1, 2008... NEW YORK, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. retail researchers said shopping increased during the week compared with a year ago, but not all the numbers look promising. Bill Martin of ShopperTrak warned the 27 shopping days between Thanksgiving and...

Winter storm hits nation's midsection.
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Car accidents and flight delays were the rule as a winter snowstorm pounded the nation's midsection at the conclusion of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. After dumping snow as far south as Georgia, the storm headed...

Personality Spotlight: Hillary Clinton.
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., President-elect Barack Obama's rival during the Democratic primaries, is a key member of his team as secretary of state nominee. Obama named Clinton as his nominee to the top diplomatic...

Construction spending declined in October.
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Spending on private and public construction in the United States fell 1.2 percent in October, the U.S. Commerce Department said Monday. Construction fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.072 trillion,...

Climate change effort opens in Poland.
December 1, 2008... POZNAN, Poland, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The first meetings of an effort to craft a successor to the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on global climate change got under way Monday in Poland, observers said. The aim of the early gatherings in the city of Poznan,...

UPI NewsTrack Entertainment News.
December 1, 2008... AMPTP: SAG strike would be self-defeating LOS ANGELES, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- A group of TV and film producers says in an open letter printed Monday in the Los Angeles Times a Screen Actors Guild strike would be self-defeating. SAG President...

Buscemi, Scorsese may team up for pilot.
December 1, 2008... LOS ANGELES, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Steve Buscemi is in talks to headline "Boardwalk Empire," an HBO drama pilot set in 1920s Atlantic City and to be directed by Martin Scorsese. The Hollywood Reporter said Scottish actress Kelly Macdonald is in...

Miami judge questions tainted fees charge.
December 1, 2008... MIAMI, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- A federal judge in Miami says a charge against a Florida lawyer for allegedly laundering illegal funds in exchange for legal fees is controversial. U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke said during a pretrial hearing in...

Six coal research projects selected.
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Energy says it has selected six university-proposed projects under its University Coal Research Program. The program -- the nation's longest-running student-teacher research grant...

N.Y. demands permit for outdoor Xmas trees.
December 1, 2008... NEW YORK, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Those New York residents who are considering decorating a Christmas tree in front of their homes in the city limits should think twice, officials say. Officials said the trees themselves are typically allowed to...

Personality Spotlight: Eric Holder.
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Eric H. Holder Jr., President-elect Barack Obama's attorney general nominee, would be the first African-American in that post if confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Holder, formerly a Superior Court judge for the District...

Future first lady had illiterate ancestor.
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Census records show the woman who will soon become first lady of the United States is the great-great granddaughter of an illiterate South Carolina slave. Jim Robinson, who worked on the sprawling Friendfield rice...

UPI NewsTrack Business.
December 1, 2008... U.S. markets slide Monday NEW YORK, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. markets slid sharply Monday morning, investors realizing the nation's busiest retail weekend was merely busy with discounts. The National Retail Federation said more than 172...

Autistic kids have slight brain wave delay.
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Typically used for epilepsy evaluation, magnetoencephalography can also be used to identify autism timing abnormalities in the brain, U.S. researchers said. Timothy Roberts of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia...

Fey's husband explains her facial scar.
December 1, 2008... NEW YORK, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Tina Fey's husband says the facial scar the U.S. television star doesn't talk about publicly happened when a stranger slashed her as a child. "It was in, like, the front yard of her house, and somebody just came...

Online porn browsing up in the workplace.
December 1, 2008... NEW YORK, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- A growing number of employees in the United States who use the Internet are taking time during their workday to visit pornographic sites, data indicate. Nielsen Online said its October figures show the percentage...

Personality Spotlight: Robert Gates.
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's choice of Robert Gates to lead the Pentagon means Gates will have held security roles under presidents of two parties. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who has been defense...

Canadian 3Q economy surprises with gain.
December 1, 2008... OTTAWA, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The Canadian economy surpassed expectations in the third quarter, with an annual gain of 1.3 percent, the Statistics Canada agency reported from Ottawa Monday. The year-over-year increase was fueled largely by gains...

Red Sox fans can get logo on coffins.
December 1, 2008... BOSTON, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Loyal fans of the Boston Red Sox can now back their team even in death thanks to new coffins featuring the MLB team's logo, a funeral director says. Magoun-Biggins Funeral Home co-director Dan Biggins said his site...

Personality Spotlight: Susan Rice.
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Susan Rice will bring a strong background in the frequently violent geopolitical struggles of Africa to her new post as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. Rice, 44, was named to the ambassadorship Monday by U.S....

U.S. manufacturing declined in November.
December 1, 2008... TEMPE, Ariz., Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. manufacturing activity declined for the fourth consecutive month in November, the Institute for Supply Management said Monday. The institutes's headline index, the Purchasing Managers Index, fell 2.7...

Iceberg computer program is created.
December 1, 2008... STATE COLLEGE, Pa., Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say they've created a computer program to help predict when icebergs will calve from ice sheets. "The models we have do not currently have any way to figure out where the big ice sheets...

UPI NewsTrack TopNews.
December 1, 2008... Obama to announce security team nominees CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. President-elect Barack Obama Monday designated Hillary Clinton as his secretary of state and said he asked Robert Gates to continue as defense secretary. At a news...

Memphis church helps update Bible.
December 1, 2008... MEMPHIS, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- A worldwide publisher held a gathering at a Memphis church at which attendees offered handwritten passages for an updated Bible, participants say. Project head Lissa Stoddard said last weekend's event at Christ...

Personality Spotlight: Janet Napolitano.
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano's experience in confronting illegal immigration in her home state could serve her well as the new secretary of homeland security. Napolitano, 51, was named by U.S. President-elect...

NASA studies pilot cognition.
December 1, 2008... CLEVELAND, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The U.S. space agency is trying to find an effective way to monitor pilots' brain activity to help stop mishaps caused by stress, fatigue or distraction. The research being conducted at the National Aeronautics...