It News

July 9, 2012

Mitt Romney raised $106 million in June

By Holly Bailey
July 9, 2012
Mitt Romney's campaign officially confirmed his record-breaking fundraising month in June, announcing Monday that he raised $106 million for his campaign and the Republican National Committee last month.

The total includes contributions to the Romney campaign and the Romney Victory Fund, a joint committee set up between the campaign and the RNC. According to a statement from the Romney campaign, the combined fundraising effort ended the month with more than $160 million cash on hand.

Government overpaid $14 billion in unemployment benefits

By Annalyn Censky | CNNMoney.com
Don't spend that unemployment check too fast. The government might ask you to pay it back.
Overpayments are a rampant problem in the unemployment insurance system. The federal government and states overpaid an estimated $14 billion in benefits in fiscal 2011, or roughly 11% of all the jobless benefits paid out, according to reports from the U.S. Labor Department.
Of the states, Indiana was the worst offender, making more improper payments than it did correct ones.

Wall Streeters Lose $2 Billion in 401(k) Bet on Own Firms

By Michael J. Moore | Bloomberg
Jul 9, 2012
Wall Street employees, who dispense financial advice to individuals and companies, aren't following a basic investing tenet with their own money: diversification.
Workers at the five largest Wall Street banks saw the value of company stock in their 401(k) accounts, sometimes the biggest holding of those plans, decline more than $2 billion last year, according to

Mars Rover Curiosity Is One Month Away From Landing

JULY 8, 2012 BY NATHAN

The largest rover ever launched to explore an alien planet is only one month away from landing on Mars.
NASA’s very large rover, Curiosity, is headed towards its scheduled late-night landing on Mars, on Aug. 5 PDT (early Aug. 6 EDT).
“At 1 ton, Curiosity is the largest rover ever aimed at Mars. It will land in a completely new way, using a giant parachute and a rocket-powered sky crane. And it is carrying a sophisticated set of tools to find out if its Martian drop zone could once have been home for life.”
Of course, first, Curiosity has to reach Mars in one piece.

Adrian Peterson on arrest: The 'truth will surface'

Jul 08, 2012
By Matt Eppers, USA TODA

We are certain that Vikings running back Adrian Peterson was arrested at a Houston nightclub early Saturday morning.
Far more uncertain, though, are the circumstances and events that led to Peterson's arrest.

The All-Pro running back is among those waiting for all the details of the incident to emerge.

On Sunday, Peterson thanked fans on Twitter for waiting until all the facts came out before jumping to conclusions and said the "truth will surface."

As to the conflicting stories about what led to his arrest, Peterson quoted the late, great Winston Churchill:

Anne Hathaway’s ‘Prada’ training for Catwoman

By Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY
2012/7/8

Playing Selina Kyle (better known as Catwoman) in The Dark Knight Rises requires some serious acrobatic fighting in perilous high heels.

Thank the fashion gods Anne Hathaway had training when she starred in The Devil Wears Prada.

Hathaway credited her breakout role as a magazine editor assistant in 2006's Prada as fundamental training her for the required action in Dark Knight. It gave her the leg up on the skills needed to kick right alongside Batman (Christian Bale).

"The Devil Wears Prada was really good training for that," Hathaway said at a press conference on Sunday. "I kind of ran all up and down Manhattan then. Now I just ran up and

Samsung reportedly developing Windows RT tablet

The Korean hardware maker will use a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor in the new tablet, sources tell Bloomberg.
by Steven Musil July 8, 2012
As Samsung's Android legal woes mount, the hardware giant appears to be showing more interest Windows.
The Korean hardware giant plans to release a tablet running Windows RT when the forthcoming mobile operating system arrives later this year, sources tell Bloomberg. The news comes on the heels of Samsung's announcement that it would support Windows 8 with an all-in-one PC and a hybrid laptop-tablet.

Leaks, diversions, auditions are all part of veepstakes

Published July 08, 2012
Associated Press

Republican Mitt Romney is considering his choices for a running mate, one of the most significant decisions of his presidential campaign. And the secrecy that shrouds such a selection has given rise to political sideshows that play out in public while the more serious search operation takes place at a largely subterranean level.
Names of new Romney short-listers emerge; others fall by the wayside.
Any kind of proximity to Romney -- or his opponent -- generates questions about GOP veep ambitions.
Why did Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire walk in a July Fourth parade with Romney? Why did

More public schools splitting up boys, girls

HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH, Associated Press, JESSIE L. BONNER, Associated Press
Updated 02:23 p.m., Sunday, July 8, 2012

In this photo taken May 9, 2012, Middleton Heights Elementary Principal Robin Gilbert holds a baby chick while visiting an all-girls classroom of first- and second-graders at her school in Middleton, Idaho. Middleton is believed to be the only public school in Idaho offering all-boy and all-girl classrooms, though the movement is widespread in other states and is now being targeted by the American Civil Liberties Union in a bitter struggle over whether single-gender learning should be continued. Photo: Jessie L. Bonner / AP

In this photo taken May 9, 2012, Dillon Elledge, 8, right, and Brody Kemble, 7, second from right, work with flash cards in their all-boys classroom at Middleton Heights Elementary in Middleton, Idaho. Middleton is believed to be the only public school in Idaho offering all-boy and all-girl classrooms, though the movement is widespread in other states and is now being targeted by the American Civil Liberties Union in a bitter struggle over whether single-gender learning should be continued. . Photo: Jessie L. Bonner / AP

MIDDLETON, Idaho (AP) — Robin Gilbert didn't set out to confront gender stereotypes when she
split up the boys and girls at her elementary school in rural southwestern Idaho.
But that's exactly what happened, with her Middleton Heights Elementary now among dozens of public schools nationwide being targeted by the American Civil Liberties Union in a bitter struggle over whether single-sex learning should be continued. Under pressure, single-sex programs have been dropped at schools from Missouri to Louisiana.
"It doesn't frustrate me," Gilbert said of the criticism, "but it makes the work harder."
While Gilbert's school is believed to be the only one in Idaho offering single-sex classes, the movement is widespread in states like South Carolina, which has more than 100 schools that offer some form of a single-gender program.

Federer Beats Murray to Win 7th Wimbledon, Reclaim No. 1

Danielle Rossingh, ©2012 Bloomberg News
Published 04:45 p.m., Sunday, July 8, 2012
July 8 (Bloomberg) -- Men’s Grand Slam record holder Roger Federer overcame Andy Murray at Wimbledon to win his seventh title and regain the top ranking in tennis.

The third-seeded Federer fell backward onto the grass after he defeated No. 4 Murray, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 on Centre Court at the All England Club.

His 17th Grand Slam singles title and his first since the 2010 Australian Open extends Britain’s 76-year wait for a male Wimbledon champion by at least another year. Murray was urged on from the

Actor Ernest Borgnine dead at 95

By the CNN Wire Staff

July 8, 2012 Borgnine sits outdoors during the filming of Michael Curtiz's "The Best Things in Life Are Free" in 1956.

CNN) -- Film and television actor Ernest Borgnine, who won an Academy Award for his portrayal of a lovelorn butcher in 1955's "Marty," has died at age 95, his manager said Sunday.

Once a dominant fighter, Anderson Silva is now truly a great one

by Jeff Wagenheim July 8, 2012

We thought we knew what made Anderson Silva great. We had no idea.
We watched him destroy opponent after opponent ever since his UFC debut six years ago. Not one of his first 11 bouts in the organization that's home to the world's elite mixed martial artists even made him break a sweat. The rangy Brazilian with a dancer's fluidity and a matador's killer instinct outclassed everyone, even when he appeared to be barely trying. We thought we were seeing greatness.
We weren't. We were seeing dominance.
Greatness would not come until two summers ago, when Silva stepped into the octagon with Chael Sonnen. The UFC middleweight champion won that fight, too, but it wasn't the day at the beach his fights had been to that point. Silva took a beating from the loquacious Sonnen, a smothering wrestler who surprised the sport's greatest striker with his fisticuffs acumen. For the better part of 23 minutes, Anderson was on his back beneath a Chael blanket, eating punches and elbows. But then he pulled a

Former Beatle Ringo Starr marks 72nd birthday with peace, love

Published July 08, 2012 Associated Press
beatles band.jpg

NASHVILLE, Tennessee – The 1960's mop top is gone, but Ringo Starr is still flashing a peace sign.
The former Beatle marked his 72nd birthday Saturday by holding a "peace and love" moment at noon. He asked people worldwide to do the same at 12 p.m. in their time zones.
The idea came to him in 2008 when an interviewer asked him what he wanted for his birthday. Since then, he has held events each year in cities such as New York, Chicago and Hamburg, Germany.

iPhone 5: The Good News And The Bad News

By Saqib Khan
We have two news about the iPhone 5 – the good news and the bad news. Let’s start with the good news first.

We have earlier reported that Apple may launch the iPad Mini by this year’s end. This smaller version of iPad will come with a screen size of 7 to 8 inches and it won’t feature Retina display.

The iPad Mini can be announced with the release of iPhone 5, in September or October of this year.

China's Wen warns economy under pressure

2012/7/8
SHANGHAI — Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Sunday that the country's economy faces downward pressure as he called for more aggressive moves to keep growth on track, state media reported.
China cut interest rates from Friday, following a similar move early last month, as the government seeks to avert a hard landing for the world's second-largest economy.
"Currently, China's economy is generally stable, but downward pressure is still relatively big," the official Xinhua news agency quoted Wen as telling a government meeting in the eastern city of Nanjing.
"We must take further steps to increase the strength of pre-emptive fine-tuning," he said, referring to economic policy.

What could tighter voter ID laws mean in November?

A study by the Associated Press found that legitimate votes have been rejected after many states passed tougher voter ID laws in order to prevent fraud.
By Mike Baker, Associated Press / July 8, 2012

When Edward and Mary Weidenbener went to vote in Indiana's primary in May, they didn't realize that state law required them to bring government photo IDs such as a driver's license or passport.
The husband and wife, both approaching 90 years old, had to use a temporary ballot that would be verified later, even though they knew the people working the polling site that day. Unaware that Indiana law obligated them to follow up with the county election board, the Weidenbeners ultimately had their votes rejected — news to them until informed recently

Boehner: Americans ‘Aren’t Going To Fall In Love’ With Romney

July 8, 2012

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney speaks as Rep. Rob Portman, left, and Rep. John A. Boehner, the Speaker of the House, stand behind him during a campaign event at K’s Hamburger on June 17, 2012 in Troy, Ohio. (credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON (CBSDC) — House Speaker John Boehner believes Americans “aren’t going to fall in love” with presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney.

According to Roll Call, Boehner made the comment during a fundraiser in West Virginia on June 30 when a woman asked him: “Can you make me love Mitt Romney?”

“No,” Boehner said, according to Roll Call. “Listen, we’re just politicians. I wasn’t elected to play God. The American people probably aren’t going to fall in love with Mitt Romney. I’ll tell you this: 95 percent of the people that show up to vote in November are

Justin Bieber 'Driving Like a Maniac' in Studio City

See the TMZ report, City Councilman Dennis Zine said he should be arrested.
By Mike Szymanski and City News Service July 7, 2012

Justin Bieber was issued a speeding ticket today, after allegedly driving recklessly on the Hollywood (101) Freeway, authorities said.

Bieber, 18, was pulled over about 10:45 a.m. after allegedly speeding on the freeway between Coldwater Canyon and Vineland avenues, according to the California Highway Patrol.

(This wasn't far from where he had a minor fender-bump last year where he owns a condo in Studio City.)

"Two vehicles were seen traveling in a reckless manner southbound on US 101 near Coldwater Canyon," the CHP said in a statement. "It appeared the second of the two vehicles was chasing the vehicle in the front. A traffic stop was made on the lead vehicle, and the driver was identified as 18-year-old Justin Bieber,'' the CHP reported. "The second vehicle fled the area and (a) follow-up investigation is underway to determine

Yahoo, Facebook Settle Patent Dispute

By Cameron Scott, IDG News Jul 7, 2012
Yahoo and Facebook announced Friday they have settled a high-profile patent dispute with a deal that analysts said would likely be good for both sides.

As part of the agreement, Yahoo and Facebook have signed a cross-licensing deal granting access to each others' patent portfolios, they said in a joint statement. They've also forged an advertising partnership and will expand an existing content distribution agreement.

Yahoo sued Facebook in March under the leadership of former CEO Scott Thompson. It accused Facebook of infringing patents covering technologies related to social networking, advertising, privacy, site customization and communications. Facebook's News Feed and the way it handles privacy were both in violation of Yahoo's patents, Yahoo contended.

Apple Removes Green EPEAT Certification From All Products

By David Murphy July 7, 2012

Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Retina Display)

Word is starting to hit the airwaves that Apple has officially withdrawn its 39 products from EPEAT certification – that's the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool, a program that awards products with "gold," "silver," or "bronze" classification based on how well they meet a variety of environmental-themed criteria including recyclability, energy consumption, and environmental impact.
That sounds like a lot of green gobbledygook, but it's a classification program that Apple appeared to take seriously up until the company's request for removal (announced early last month). In fact, Apple still touts its iMacs' EPEAT Gold status on their official product page although, as The Verge's Bryan Bishop notes, the gold status logo is now conspicuously absent

China Rejects US Criticism Involving Syria Conflict

VOA News
July 07, 2012

Beijing has rejected criticism by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that China and Russia are hampering efforts to end the Syrian conflict by supporting President Bashar al-Assad.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin said Saturday that Clinton's comments are "totally unacceptable."

He said China has wide support among members of the international community for its stance on Syria, and that any effort to slander China will fail.

Nearly $6M in Michigan ads to unseat Obama come from independent groups

July 6, 2012
By Todd Spangler
Detroit Free Press Washington Staff
WASHINGTON – More than $6 million has been spent on TV ads seeking to influence the presidential election – but it’s not the presidential campaigns themselves that are doing the spending.

An analysis from the Michigan Campaign Finance Network, based in Lansing, showed Friday that neither President Barack Obama nor Republican rival Mitt Romney has paid for TV advertising in Michigan since the contested GOP primary in the state – won by Romney – on Feb. 28.

6 new ways hackers are using malware

By Matthew Black, special to CBC News Posted: Jul 5, 2012 Malware, the malicious viruses and bugs employed by computer hackers to con and annoy, has become more prevalent in Canada than ever before, according to computer industry research. In fact, the volume of malicious software detected in 2011 was up 41 per cent over the previous year, said Dean Turner, director of Symantec Intelligence Group. At the same time, the complexity of computer viruses is also increasing. Long gone are the days when they were nuisances that scuttled Word documents. "The long and short of it is that today's malware is incredibly sophisticated," said Turner, who estimated that 90 per cent of it is used for cybercrime,

Extreme heat wave spreads across U.S.

July 7, 2012
(AP) PHILADELPHIA -

Highways buckled across the country, the waters of Lake Michigan were unusually warm for this time of year and even a minor train derailment outside Washington was blamed on heat as the hot weather gripping much of the country only worsened Saturday.

Temperatures of more than 100 degrees were forecast in Philadelphia and excessive heat warnings were issued for several states in the Midwest as the days of smothering heat piled on, accompanied by severe storms that have knocked out power in spots from Michigan to the East Coast.

Most notable was last weekend's sudden and severe storm that drenched the mid-Atlantic region, where thousands remained without electricity a week later.

Jeremy Lin agrees to Houston's offer sheet

By Jeff Zillgitt, USA TODAY
Restricted free-agent point guard Jeremy Lin agreed to Houston's four-year, $29 million offer sheet, a person familiar with negotiations told USA TODAY Sports Thursday.
The person requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly while negotiations were ongoing.
The person also told USA TODAY Sports that he expects the New York Knicks to match Houston's offer and retain the 23-year-old who dazzled the NBA and captivated the world with his improbable and unexpected rise to stardom with the Knicks last season.

Rivals come together for one goal

Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash are joining forces in an attempt to win an NBA title
By J.A. Adande | ESPN.com
July 5, 2012
This is the week Kobe Bryant went from acknowledging his advancing age to accepting it. Yes, there is a difference. It's one thing to say and joke that you're old; it's another thing to let that fact dictate your actions. I can't imagine Bryant teaming up with Steve Nash as recently as, say, 2010. But that's what two more years and two early playoff exits will do. They create urgency, which creates unlikely alliances.

Patrick Schwarzenegger Joins Taylor Swift on 'Amazing' 4th of July Beach Fun

July 06, 2012
Patrick Schwarzenegger, 18, celebrated independence day together with Taylor Swift, 22, on the beach. The twosome were joined by some members of the iconic Kennedy family, sailing at Hyannis Port in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

The son of Arnold Schwarzenegger and the country music singer were caught on camera sharing laugh and taking a stroll along the beach with some male friends. She wore a sleeveless floral dress and traded it with a polkadot halter-neck one-piece swimsuit.

It's unclear whether they were dating or not. While Taylor didn't mention anything about the sunny-day outing, Patrick took to Twitter to gush, "Had such an amazing day. Best 4th of July I could ask for. Hope everyone had a great day!"

Samsung tips record Q2 operating profit of $5.9 bln

(AFP) 7/5/2012
SEOUL — South Korea's Samsung Electronics said Friday it expects a record operating profit of 6.7 trillion won ($5.9 billion) in the second quarter, amid strong sales of its mobile devices.
Samsung, the world's largest electronics company, was giving earnings guidance before official results later this month. The predicted operating profit for April-June would represent a 79 percent rise from a year earlier.
The previous highest operating profit was 5.85 trillion won in the first quarter.
The company estimated a 19 percent rise in sales to 47 trillion won in the second quarter. It did not give a net profit figure or explain its forecasts.

Malware threat could strike Monday despite unprecedented effort by Google, Facebook and others

By Brandon Bailey
bbailey@mercurynews.com
07/05/2012
Thousands of computer owners may find it impossible to reach the Internet on Monday despite an unprecedented campaign by a coalition of tech security groups and the online giants Google (GOOG) and Facebook, which have sought to warn people about the malicious software known as DNSChanger.

Stringent voter ID law in Pa. could prevent 750,000 from voting

July 5, 2012
By Lucy Madison
(CBS News) New data released by Pennsylvania officials suggests that as many as 750,000 voters in the crucial battleground territory could be impacted by a stringent new voter ID law.
The law, passed this May ostensibly to prevent voter fraud, requires all voters in Pennsylvania to show a valid photo ID at the polls.

Among those acceptable forms of photo ID include a state-issued driver's license, a valid U.S. passport, a U.S. military ID, a government-issued employee ID, an ID card from an accredited Pennsylvania

Service Sector Increases at Slowest Pace in 2 Years

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: July 5, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) — The service sector in June grew at the slowest pace in nearly two and a half years, more evidence that the economy has weakened.
But those same companies increased hiring last month, supporting other data that shows job growth may have picked up last month.

The Institute for Supply Management said Thursday that its index of nonmanufacturing activity fell to 52.1 last month, from a May reading of 53.7.

The reading was the lowest since January 2010. Still, any reading above 50 indicates expansion. The sector has grown now for 30 straight months.

Service companies employ about 90 percent of the economy. They include retail, construction, financial services, health care and hotel businesses, among others. The service sector includes low-paying positions in retailing and restaurants but also covers higher-paying jobs in professions like information

Central Banks Deliver 45-Minute Salvo As Growth Weakens

By Simon Kennedy - Jul 5, 2012
Global central banks went on the offensive against the faltering world economy, cutting interest rates and increasing bond buying as a round of international stimulus gathers pace.
In a 45-minute span, the European Central Bank and People’s Bank of China cut their benchmark borrowing costs, while the Bank of England raised the size of its asset-purchase program. Two weeks ago, the Federal Reserve expanded a program lengthening the maturity of bonds it holds and Chairman Ben S. Bernanke indicated more measures will be taken if needed.

How human error turned Air France's minor technical problem into tragedy

PAUL KORING
WASHINGTON — The Globe and Mail
Jul. 05 2012

Brazilian Navy sailors pick a piece of debris from Air France flight AF447 out of the Atlantic Ocean in this handout file photo distributed by the Navy on June 8, 2009.

The grim reality emerging from the Air France Flight 447 disaster is that the Airbus A330 jetting from Rio to Paris slammed into the dark sea – killing all 228 passengers and crew – after pilot-induced loss of control when there was nothing significantly wrong with the plane.

The disaster was unprecedented. Never before has a modern airliner been wrenched by its pilots into such position that it – literally – stopped flying, leaving its doomed passengers in a freefall to their deaths while the confounded flight crew debated what they had done and needed to do.
There was no terrorist bomb, nor a lightning strike that destroyed the plane’s electronics, although wild media speculation suggested the latter two in the early days after Air France 447 mysteriously

"Spider-man" top of the box office

"Spider-man" set to climb to the top of the box office

Brent Lang
Reuters
July 5, 2012
LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "The Amazing Spider-Man" has cast quite a web over the North American box office, and there's not much room left for poor Katy Perry and Oliver Stone to break through.

The pop singer and the provocateur are facing the unenviable task of trying to attract moviegoers to their latest offerings in a crowded field.
After swinging into theaters to the tune of $35 million on Tuesday, Sony is projecting that its Spider-Man reboot will command $130 million over its first six days of release. That's a good start for a movie

Memo to Draghi: Dead Central Banks Don't Have Credibility

Karl Whelan, Contributor
7/05/2012

Mario Draghi today uttered what I think was perhaps the most depressing sentence of the euro crisis so far. Draghi dismissed out of hand the idea that Europe’s bailout fund, the European Stabilisation Mechanism, could be given a banking license that would allow it to borrow from the ECB, declaring

I don’t think there is anything to gain destroying the credibility of an institution by asking it to behave outside the limits of its mandate

In case you’re in doubt here, the institution whose credibility he is worrying about is his own.

Higgs boson

Physicists Find Elusive Particle Seen as Key to the Universe

By DENNIS OVERBYE
Published: July 4, 2012

ASPEN, Colo. — Signaling a likely end to one of the longest, most expensive searches in the history of science, physicists said Wednesday that they had discovered a new subatomic particle that looks for all the world like the Higgs boson, a key to understanding why there is diversity and life in the universe.
Like Omar Sharif materializing out of the shimmering desert as a man on a camel in “Lawrence of Arabia,” the elusive boson has been coming slowly into view since last winter, as the first signals of its existence grew until they practically jumped off the chart.

“I think we have it,” said Rolf-Dieter Heuer, the director general of CERN, the multinational research center headquartered in Geneva. The agency is home to the Large Hadron Collider, the immense particle accelerator that produced the new data by colliding protons. The findings were announced by two separate teams. Dr. Heuer called the discovery “a historic milestone.”

Roundup: Brandon Moss' bat lifts A's to sweep of Red Sox

2012-07-04
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) – Jemile Weeks hit a go-ahead RBI single in the seventh following Coco Crisp's leadoff triple, and the Oakland Athletics completed a three-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox with a 3-2 win Wednesday.
Red Sox slugger David Ortiz hit his 400th career home run and also scored on Adrian Gonzalez's sixth-inning single, but Boston couldn't avoid its first sweep by the A's since May 23-25, 2008, also in Oakland. The Red Sox lost just their fourth series in the last 17 and completed a disappointing 2-5

Federer-Djokovic Face-Off Set; Murray’s Battle Continues

By CHRISTOPHER CLAREY
Published: July 4, 2012

WIMBLEDON, England — Roger Federer was still on Centre Court on Wednesday, giving one of his favorite opponents, Mikhail Youzhny, another extended look at the cruel beauty of his game, as British royalty and tennis royalty applauded from above.
A short stroll across the grounds, Novak Djokovic was still on No. 1 Court, chasing down the unorthodox offerings of Florian Mayer.

But with Federer and Djokovic in command, the mind was already leaping to Friday: to their semifinal, which will be their first meeting at Wimbledon and also their first meeting on grass.

“I don’t know how it changes the preparation, but I certainly think it’s intriguing, and when it’s intriguing, it’s a pleasure,” Federer said. “We know our matches on clay, outdoors and indoors, on hard courts. But we don’t know what it’s like to play on grass.”

Obama rolls out bus campaign in Rust Belt states Ohio, Pa.

By David Jackson, USA TODAY
2012-07-04
It's back on the bus for President Obama on Thursday.
From the glass factories of Toledo, to the steel mills around Pittsburgh, Obama will lead a two-day bus tour of key areas in two states that are central to his re-election bid: northern Ohio and western Pennsylvania.
"It's the Rust Belt corridor," University of Akron political scientist David Cohen said.
STORY: Next president's hurdle: Unemployment

Four things you REALLY need to know about Windows 8 upgrades

By Martin Brinkmann

2012/07/04

Two days ago, Microsoft revealed that it would run an upgrade promotion in most markets that would allow Windows customers to buy a downloadable upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for $39.99. Joe Wilcox asks if $40 is to much to pay for Windows 8 and current results show that customer opinion is split in half. About 43 percent of all users who participated in the poll stated that they would upgrade for the price, while roughly 42 percent stated they would not.

Mitt Romney joins New Hampshire parade

By ASSOCIATED PRESS | 7/4/12

Mitt and Ann Romney are shown at the Fourth of July Parade in Wolfeboro, N.H.

WOLFEBORO, N.H. - Wednesday’s Fourth of July parade in this New Hampshire community gained a national flavor, with the participation of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and his wife, Ann.

Euro, sterling on defensive as central bank action eyed

By Ian Chua
SYDNEY | Wed Jul 4, 2012

The sign of the Euro currency is painted onto the glass door of the Academy of Arts in Berlin as the Brandenburg Gate is reflected on it July 3, 2012. REUTERS-Thomas Peter

(Reuters) - The euro wallowed near one-week lows on Thursday, struggling to find any traction ahead of a widely expected interest rate cut by the European Central Bank.
The single currency traded at $1.2522 early in Asia, having fallen around 0.7 percent on Wednesday in trading made subdued by a U.S. holiday. Surveys showing all of Europe's biggest economies are in recession or heading there added to the gloom.

Support is seen around $1.2495, the 76.4 percent retracement of Friday's dramatic rally sparked by an EU deal to tackle the region's debt crisis.

Traders said part of the euro's weakness overnight was due to heavy selling against the Swedish crown,

Syria’s Assad says he’s willing to step aside

Facing diplomatic isolation, Syria’s Assad says he’s willing to step aside

BY ROY GUTMAN 07.04.12
MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS
ISTANBUL -- After losing his most important supporters outside Syria, President Bashar al Assad said his office “doesn’t mean anything to me” and he’s willing to give up it up, though preferably after national elections.

“If the president’s departure is in the interest of Syria, the president should naturally go. This is self-evident,” he told the Turkish newspaper Cumhuriyet. “You should never stay in office one day if the people do not want you; and the elections are the means through which the people show whether they want you or not.”

Obama Marks Fourth of July With New Citizens

By JACKIE CALMES

Published: July 4, 2012
WASHINGTON — President Obama for a fourth straight Fourth of July joined with military families to eat barbecue and watch fireworks from the White House lawn, but this year he also began the day with active-duty service members, presiding at a citizenship ceremony that made 25 of them new Americans.
And in between, he marked the 14th birthday of his older daughter, Malia.

The naturalization event on Wednesday in the ornate East Room, which was packed with the service members’ families and friends, was the third such ceremony in the Obama White House but the first on Independence Day.

Mini-iPad coming this fall?

By Deborah Netburn
July 4, 2012
Rumors of a mythological miniature Apple tablet--smaller than the iPad but larger than the iPhone--have been circulating on the Internet for a while now, but if two new reports in the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg are to be believed, the myth will become a reality by the end of the year.

On Wednesday, both the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg reported that a smaller Apple tablet may be on the market by the year's end.

The Wall Street Journal reports that component suppliers in Asia said that Apple told them to prepare for mass production of the smaller tablet, which will be smaller than 8 inches.

Rumor roundup: The new iPhone

Frank Ocean first love was...

Rap singer Frank Ocean says his first love was a man

Jul 4, 2012
(Reuters) - Singer Frank Ocean, a rising star who is part of the rap collective Odd Future, has revealed online that his first love was a man, an admission of same-sex attraction that is seen as groundbreaking for the world of hip hop.
Ocean late on Tuesday posted on Twitter a link to his writings on his Tumblr blog page that described his coming to terms with his sexual orientation. But he did not specifically call himself gay.

The post, which music mogul Russell Simmons called courageous and a "big day" for hip hop, came as Ocean faced rumors about his sexuality due to content on his forthcoming album, "Channel Orange,"

U.S. doctors buying unapproved drugs

By Armen Keteyian July 3, 2012
(CBS News) A patient in a cancer clinic takes it on faith that he or she is getting the chemotherapy their doctor prescribed. But it turns out many are injected with dubious concoctions no better than water. The Food and Drug Administration approves drugs sold in the United States, but some clinics are buying drugs outside the U.S. not approved by the FDA. CBS News, which has been investigating this trend, has this latest development.

This is what cancer drugs that are not approved for use in the U.S. look like: foreign labels with no stamp of approval from the federal Food and Drug Administration. They're illegal for doctors in the U.S. to prescribe.

"It could be deadly. It could be fatal," said one person, who asked to be disguised, who works at a medical clinic that purchased unapproved foreign cancer medications for years.

Read and watch Armen Keteyian's previous reports about counterfeit cancer drugs

The clinic worker was asked when the drugs come through if she sees them with foreign writing on the

Celtics agree to 3-year deal with Jason Terry

By Gary Washburn | GLOBE STAFF JULY 03, 2012

The Celtics continue to shore up their roster for another title run in 2012-13 by agreeing to a three-year contract with former Dallas sharpshooter and Sixth Man of the Year Jason Terry for the full mid-level exception of $5 million.

Saints' suspension appeals denied

JUL 3, 2012
NEW ORLEANS (AP)

Former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has rejected the appeals of four players suspended in connection with the league's bounty investigation of the New Orleans Saints
In a ruling handed down on Tuesday, Goodell told Jonathan Vilma, Anthony Hargrove, Will Smith and Scott Fujita that each of them is still welcome to meet with him to give their side of the story, and that he reserves the right to reduce the suspensions should new information be brought forth.

Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch (Mid 2012)

Brian Westover July 3, 2012

Junior Analyst, Hardware
If you don't look closely—very closely—you might not realize that the Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch (Mid 2012) ($1,499.00 direct) is any different than the nearly identical models from Spring and Fall of 2011, like the Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch (Thunderbolt) ($1,499 direct, 3.5 stars). Apple's iconic laptop designs are largely unchanged on the outside, but the new model gets a bump in processing speed and can now take advantage of newer USB peripherals thanks to the addition of USB 3.0 ports. It's a solid laptop, but the end result isn't that different from the previous iteration, and does little to stand out from the crowd of Windows laptops with similar specifications.

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