Daily News Channel
English contains more words than any other other language on the planet and will add its millionth word early Wednesday, according to the Global Language Monitor, a Web site that uses a math formula to estimate how often words are created.
Iran’s voters had been anticipating a heated discussion in their country’s first-ever presidential candidates’ debate, but even then, Wednesday night’s showdown between incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and moderate challenger Mir-Hossein Moussavi was a rough-and-tumble affair that exceeded expectations. And the new season of televised politics could get even nastier
— Quoting from the Quran for emphasis, President Barack Obama called for a “new beginning between the United States and Muslims” Thursday and said together, they could confront violent extremism across the globe and advance the timeless search for peace in the Middle East.
They’re known as the "post 1980s" kids or the "Tiananmen-plus-20" generation: 200 million-strong, Web-savvy, pop-culture-conscious and decidedly apolitical. As the world observes the 20th anniversary of the bloody crackdown on Beijing’s Tiananmen Square on Wednesday, pro-democracy advocates abroad lament how little Chinese youth today know or care about the student-led movement that ended with the deaths of hundreds when tanks rumbled through the capital’s streets and troops opened fire. But what is lost in the generalization is whether today’s political apathy is a fact or a front
From where he came, no one could have predicted what Ronald Takaki would become. Raised in a low-income area of Oahu, Hawaii, a descendant of Japanese immigrants who toiled in sugar cane plantation fields, he cared more about surfing than schoolwork
Judge Sonia Sotomayor may not know for some time when her Supreme Court confirmation hearings will be held. It could be next month or perhaps in September. As a waiting game, however, that pales in comparison to an important environmental lawsuit that has been pending at Sotomayor’s court for almost three years
The former wife of a man accused of kidnapping their daughter told a jury Monday about the unraveling of her 12-year marriage to a man she thought was a member of the moneyed Rockefeller family. Financial consultant Sandra Lynn Boss, 42, was stone-faced and repeatedly referred to her former husband as “the defendant” as she took the witness stand Monday at his kidnapping trial. She now lives in London, England, with the girl, Reigh, who just turned 8.
Today’s not only the first of the month or the start of the summer season meteorologically: It’s the first day of hurricane season 2009. On this day, forecasters often begin speculating about when the season’s first storm will form in the Atlantic. There’s no need to wonder about that this year, because there’s already been a tropical depression — before the official season even began
Barack Obama has an uncanny ability to disarm critics, especially those itching for a fight, and it was on full display this past week. His choice of federal judge Sonia Sotomayor as a Supreme Court nominee, of course, got all the attention. But another key appointment of a Hispanic with top-notch credentials and a compelling personal story also showed just how good the President is at keeping his opponents off balance.
The health care of thousands of retired auto workers is about to change: On Friday the membership of the United Auto Workers overwhelmingly approved a restructuring plan with GM, according to UAW president Ron Gettelfinger. The plan gives the union’s health care vehicle some promissory notes plus a 17.5% stake in GM and warrants to purchase another 2.5%. Assuming the deals survive bankruptcy court, and experts expect it will, the change marks a new direction in health care for GM retirees, and now puts them in much the same camp as Chrysler retirees.