Feb
13

Letter from India: Executions as a Matter of Opinion

NEW DELHI — When Indian cops take defendants to court, they walk holding hands, as if they were grim lovers. In photographs and video footage of Muhammad Afzal, also known as Afzal Guru, he can be seen being led in this manner by a man in uniform. But the state had no affection for Mr. Afzal. He was found guilty of helping terrorists who attacked the Indian Parliament in 2001, and thus of...
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Study questions kidney cancer treatment in elderly

In a stunning example of when treatment might be worse than the disease, a large review of Medicare records finds that older people with small kidney tumors were much less likely to die over the next five years if doctors monitored them instead of operating right away.Even though nearly all of these tumors turned out to be cancer, they rarely proved fatal. And surgery roughly doubled patients' risk...
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Stock futures edge higher, Deere jumps after outlook

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures edged higher on Wednesday, suggesting the market would continue a recent advance that lifted benchmark indexes to multi-year highs. While the long-term trend in markets should remain positive, some investors may take profit at current levels, analysts said, with the S&P near its highest since November 2007. Recent daily moves have been small...
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Feb
12

IHT Rendezvous: IHT Quick Read: Feb. 12

NEWS North Korea appeared to conduct its third, and probably largest, nuclear test on Tuesday, according to American and Asian officials, posing a new challenge for the Obama administration in its effort to keep the country from becoming a full-fledged nuclear power. David E. Sanger reports from Washington, and Choe Sang-hun from Seoul.Pope Benedict XVI’s surprise announcement on Monday that he will...
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The Bachelor's Sean Lowe Blogs About His Dates in St. Croix

Sean Lowe is the star of season 17 of The Bachelor, which airs Mondays on ABC. The hunky Dallas businessman and entrepreneur is blogging about his romantic journey for PEOPLE.com. I'd developed really strong feelings for the final six women on The Bachelor – and I could hardly wait to take them to St. Croix. Our previous week in Canada was great! My heart and head were back on track, and I felt as...
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Pope shows lifetime jobs aren't always for life

The world seems surprised that an 85-year-old globe-trotting pope who just started tweeting wants to resign, but should it be? Maybe what should be surprising is that more leaders his age do not, considering the toll aging takes on bodies and minds amid a culture of constant communication and change.There may be more behind the story of why Pope Benedict XVI decided to leave a job normally held for...
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Yen steady, euro dips after G7 urges against FX war

LONDON (Reuters) - The yen hovered near three-year lows against the dollar and the euro fell on Tuesday after the G7 nations urged countries to refrain from competitive devaluations and a U.S. official backed Japan's new anti-deflation policies. The Group of Seven industrialized nations published a statement saying it remained committed to "market-determined" exchange rates, reacting...
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Feb
11

Letter From Europe: France Takes a Step Back in Its History

PARIS — Many years ago in Ouagadougou, the dusty capital of Burkina Faso, a visiting couple from France ordered dinner in a French-owned restaurant called Le Safari whose offerings included dishes listed as “selon arrivage,” loosely translated as “depending on availability.” The overhead thunder of a French airliner on final approach to landing offered a more telling definition. “Not...
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Anne Hathaway on Winning An Oscar: Whatever Happens, Happens

By Phil Boucher 02/11/2013 at 07:00 AM EST She's won big at the Golden Globes and now the BAFTAs, but will Anne Hathaway take home an Oscar?Hathaway – who is nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Les Misérables – isn't spending too much time worrying about it. "Whatever happens in two weeks, happens. It won't be the worst...
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What heals traumatized kids? Answers are lacking

CHICAGO (AP) — Shootings and other traumatic events involving children are not rare events, but there's a startling lack of scientific evidence on the best ways to help young survivors and witnesses heal, a government-funded analysis found.School-based counseling treatments showed the most promise, but there's no hard proof that anxiety drugs or other medication work and far more research is needed...
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