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Syria dismisses IAEA report, says probe should end
VIENNA (Reuters) - Syria's nuclear energy chief said on Friday a U.N. watchdog report on an alleged secret Syrian nuclear site bombed by Israel proved nothing and the investigation should...

U.S. wary on chances of normal NATO-Russia ties
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The United States raised doubts about the prospect of a fast return to normal ties between NATO and Russia after the Georgian war on Friday, despite a European Union...

Gaza groups want calm with Israel: Hamas leader
GAZA (Reuters) - Palestinian armed groups in Gaza remain committed to a truce with Israel if the Jewish state reciprocates, Hamas's Gaza leader said on Friday, even as militants launched...

Japan school violence hits record high
TOKYO (Reuters) - Cases of violence by Japanese school students hit a record high in the past year, with elementary students increasingly violent, the education ministry said.

Pakistan army practices shooting drone aircraft
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani soldiers practiced shooting at pilotless "drone" aircraft Friday, the military said a day after the government lodged a protest with the U.S. ambassador over

Ethiopia floods leaves 100,000 homeless
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - The death toll from floods in southeastern Ethiopia has risen to 17 and more than 100,000 people have been left homeless, the government said Friday.

"Cursed" Congo still shocks and fascinates
DAKAR (Reuters) - Reports of massacres, rapes, looting and child soldiers have put Democratic Republic of Congo back on the world news agenda this month as Tutsi rebels battled government...

Thousands protest in Iraq against U.S. troops pact
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Followers of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr marched Friday against a pact letting U.S. forces stay in Iraq until 2011, toppling an effigy of President George W. Bush...

Honeymoon: Left cuts Obama slack for now Liberal base watching Obama's moves on Lieberman, Gates, Clinton -- but not even milk sours in two weeks. See also: Obama plans to name Clinton to State Economic policy: No one in charge? Zach Wamp, Cesar Conda, Peter Fenn, David Boaz, Grover Norquist and more in The Arena. Obama makes public stop in Chicago He picks up corned beef with senior adviser Valerie Jarrett. See also: Obama stumps for Olympics Live feed from Politico's L.A. conference Politico editors and writers sound off on the 2008 race -- and the new administration -- from USC. Mukasey released from hospital The AG returned to work after collapsing Thursday night while giving a speech in Washington. Waxman win has ripple effects Fallout from Waxman's fight will affect Hill for years. See also: Life in the (much) smaller GOP minority The hawking of a president A special TV offer for Obama coins is just a whiff of the opportunistic post-election hawking of all things Obama.

'She knew this was the right thing to do'... Woodward: Obama must be 'smoking something'... NY TIMES: HILLARY ACCEPTS Obama to delay repeal of 'don't ask don't tell'... SUN SETS ON USA POWER: REPORT PREDICTS END OF DOMINANCE... China challenges with cyberwarfare... TROUBLE: ASSOCIATED PRESS to cut 10% jobs... WEATHER CHANNEL lays off staff... NYTIMES cuts dividend, 'reevaluates' assets... WIRE: WALL STREET JOURNAL Invades NYTIMES Ad Turf... Screenwriting guru McKee says Hollywood is finished... STUDY: Banning fast-food TV ads could dent obesity... School ban on sugary drinks shows little effect... Government warns of 'catastrophic' quake... Somali pirates seize ninth vessel in 12 days...

Bush?s last rule-making hurrah The Yahoo! Newsroom - In recent days, the Bush administration announced new rules to speed oil shale development across 2 million rocky acres in the West. It scheduled an auction for drilling rights alongside three national parks. It has also set in motion processes to finalize major changes in endangered species protection, allow more mining waste to flow into rivers and streams, and exempt factory farms from air pollution reporting. Clinton accepts Obama secretary of state offer: NY Times Reuters - New York Sen. Hillary Clinton has accepted an offer from President-elect Barack Obama to become U.S. secretary of state, joining her former Democratic rival to help guide U.S. foreign policy, the New York Times said on Friday. Florida teen commits suicide in front of webcam AP - A South Florida college student killed himself by overdosing on drugs in front of a live online audience as some computer users egged him on, some debated his method, and others tried to talk him out of it. Prosecutor who had Cheney indicted yells at judge AP - A county prosecutor who brought indictments this week against Vice President Dick Cheney and others pounded his fist and shouted at the judge Friday during a routine hearing. Willacy County District Attorney Juan Angel Guerra asked Presiding Judge Manuel Banales to recuse himself from the case, which alleges abuse at federally run prisons. Dems work out plans Big 3 need to meet for aid AP - Democratic leaders began laying out conditions Friday that they say Detroit's Big Three automakers need to meet before Congress will consider giving them an emergency $25 billion lifeline. Victoria Secret model Karolina Kurkova looks through a magazine ... (Reuters) - Victoria Secret model Karolina Kurkova looks through a magazine while having her hair done during a hair and makeup session prior to the Victoria Secret Fashion Show at the Fountainbleau Hotel in Miami Beach November 15, 2008. REUTERS/Hans Deryk (UNITED STATES) Secret show : Model KarolinaKurkova presents a creation during ... (AFP) - Secret show : Model Karolina Kurkova presents a creation during the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach. (AFP/Timothy A. Clary) Victoria's Secret model Karolina Kurkova walks the runway ... (Reuters) - Victoria's Secret model Karolina Kurkova walks the runway at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2008 in Miami Beach, Florida November 15, 2008. REUTERS/Carlos Barria (UNITED STATES) Model Karolina Kurkova walks the runway during Victoria's Secret ... (AP) - Model Karolina Kurkova walks the runway during Victoria's Secret Fashion Show at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach Hotel on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2008 in Miami Beach. The show will be broadcast on the CBS Television Network on Dec. 3, 2008. (AP Photo/Evan Agostini) Victoria's Secret models, from left, Miranda Kerr, Heidi Klum, ... (AP) - Victoria's Secret models, from left, Miranda Kerr, Heidi Klum, Doutzen Kroes, Alessandra Ambrosio, Marisa Miller, Adriana Lima, Selita Banks and Karolina Kurkova pose in front of the hotel after arriving by yacht to the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach, Fla., Friday, Nov. 14, 2008. (AP Photo/Jeffrey M. Boan) Cell phone in man's chest pocket stops bullet AP - A man says his cell phone saved his life. A stray .45-caliber bullet hit R.J. Richard's chest while he was mowing the lawn —hitting so hard he thought it was a stone kicked out by his tractor. He pulled out the phone. It fell apart. For toilet-less Vermont library, a new chapter AP - When you gotta go, you gotta go. But for decades, when you had to go in the Roxbury Free Library, you really had to go —somewhere else, that is. Obese have right to two airline seats Reuters - Obese people have the right to two seats for the price of one on flights within Canada, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled on Thursday. Rapper gets 20 years after writing shooting song AP - He shot a man twice and felt so good about it, police said, a rapper wrote a song describing the shooting and calling out the victim by name. A judge sentenced 25-year-old Rico Todriquez Wright Monday to spend the next 20 years in prison after his victim mentioned the hip hop confession to police. Man says cell phone saved him from stray bullet AP - R.J. Richard says he doesn't normally put his cell phone in his chest pocket. But he says it saved his life the one time he did. Woman wins $2.4M in her first trip to Vegas AP - A 24-year-old woman, on her first trip to Las Vegas, is worrying less about the nation's economy. That's because Jessica Agbunag won $2.4 million on Wednesday at a Wheel of Fortune slot machine at the California Hotel and Casino. Stocks jump on report of Geithner nomination NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street got a boost of confidence late Friday following a report that President-elect Barack Obama plans to name New York Federal Reserve President Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary.... Pentagon bans computer flash drives WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Pentagon has banned, at least temporarily, the use of external computer flash drives because of a virus threat officials detected on Defense Department networks.... Citigroup's options dwindle as shares under $4 NEW YORK (AP) -- Citigroup's options are dwindling along with its stock price as the credit landscape deteriorates and fears escalate about future loan losses at the company....

The Moose Stops Here The post-election Republican soul searching has featured a convenient amnesia about the party?s race-based ?Southern strategy.?

The Lame-Duck Economy
The prospects for the economy look much grimmer now than they did a week or two ago. Yet economic policy, rather than responding to the threat, seems to have gone on vacation.

M. Dowd

Two for the Price of Two
If Hillary Clinton gets to be the Mistress of Foggy Bottom, Bill Clinton?s guilt over his primary tirades would be alleviated.

T. Friedman

Madam Secretary?
Is Barack Obama considering Hillary Clinton for secretary of state in order to get her off his back or as a prelude to protecting her back?

?Drop Dead?Is Not an Option
New York City?s fiscal crisis of the 1970s was in no way comparable in scale to the myriad crises facing the country right now. But it?s still instructive.

Emptying Pandora?s Box
Crisis demands statesmanship, which cannot be composed of calculation alone, but must reach for the unquenchable in the human spirit. Hope.