New tests have found that the DNA of former International Monetary Fund leader Dominique Strauss-Kahn matches material found on the shirt of a Manhattan hotel maid who says he attacked her, two people familiar with the investigation told AP. (May 23)
Continue reading …The one area in which I really thought President Obama might make a difference was in breaking the Israel-Palestine status quo. Unfortunately, it seems he’s better at sounding like he wants to change things than actually getting them done. King Abdullah of Jordan tells Christiane Amanpour on “This Week” that he doesn’t expect much change, either: King Abdullah II of Jordan, a key American ally and advocate of the Middle East peace process, says he does not have much hope for progress on negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians in the coming months. “My instincts tell me not to expect much over the next couple of months, unfortunately,” King Abdullah said in an exclusive interview with “This Week anchor Christiane Amanpour.” “I just have a feeling that we’re going to be living with the status quo for 2011.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is currently visiting the United States, where he met with President Barack Obama at the White House on Friday, before addressing a joint session of Congress next Tuesday. Netanyahu spoke strongly against President Obama’s Thursday address in which he publicly called for the pre-1967 borders of Israel to serve as the starting point for future peace negotiations. Abdullah, author of the new book “Our Last Best Chance: The Pursuit of Peace in a Time of Peril,” said the current realities on the ground leave him pessimistic, including Israeli settlement activity in the West Bank. “When he speaks to me, I see his vision of peace with the Palestinians, peace with the Arabs and I’ve always left those meetings feeling very optimistic,” Abdullah said of his discussions with Netanyahu. “But unfortunately, the circumstances that we’ve seen on the ground for the past two years does not fill me with much hope.” Former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, who resigned this month as President Obama’s envoy to the Middle East after serving two years, said that while President Obama’s comments on the 1967 borders were “a significant statement,” they do not signal a major shift in policy, especially when land swaps are taken into consideration. “The president didn’t say that Israel has to go back to the ’67 lines. He said with agreed swaps,” Mitchell told Amanpour. “Swaps means an exchange of land intended to accommodate major Israeli population centers to be incorporated into Israel and Israel’s security needs. Agreed means through negotiations. Both parties must agree.”
Continue reading …Despite the fact that Chris Christie has joked that committing suicide might be the only way to convince supporters he’s not running in 2012, President Obama’s campaign is still trying to get the dirt on the New Jersey governor. Sources tell the New York Post that Obama operatives are compiling…
Continue reading …Cognitive therapy for depression teaches people how to use a mental “toolkit” to challenge negative thoughts. Over the long term, this process can bring about positive changes in how a depressed person sees the world.
Continue reading …In Missouri, triage centers and shelters have been set up around Joplin, where over 85 people have been killed, and emergency officials have been rushing around trying to clear the way for search and rescue operations. But you don’t necessarily have to be in Missouri to give a hand. Here are some ways you can
Continue reading …South Sudan’s move toward independence has taken a turn for the worse: Armed looters burned sections of a disputed Sudan border town today as north Sudan’s army refused UN orders to withdraw from it, Reuters reports. Entering the town with tanks, the north took control of Abyei this weekend; thousands…
Continue reading …Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s story might seem like Law & Order fodder, but it would actually make for a “sprawling, complex, kaleidoscope-of-globalization” movie—something along the lines of Traffic or Babel , writes Ross Douthat, who summarizes the plot as he sees it in the New York Times . It would tell the story…
Continue reading …Google recently rolled out the beta release of Chrome 12, and now Cr-48 owners are getting a matching version of Chrome OS . This latest version, 0.12.433.48, brings bug fixes, Flash 10.2.158.22, a file manager context menu, and some spiffy new icons and avatars to its browser-based UI. We grabbed the update on our own Google-fied laptops and got some pics of the beta’s new bits for your viewing pleasure. We’re still getting acquainted with all of the changes, so if you’ve also copped the new Chrome OS let us know how it’s treating you in the comments. [Thanks, Alex] Gallery: Chrome OS 12 update Google releases OTA update for Chrome OS, Cr-48 owners can upgrade now originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 May 2011 20:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …It’s that time again: The new Bachelorette is here. We said, the new Bachelorette is here! Okay, so it might not be that exciting for some of you (this is, after all, the 128th season or so), but for the rest of us who aren’t as cynical as all get out, this clearly means the
Continue reading …Barack Obama let his Irish pride shine today in a speech before an exultant sea of people in Dublin, telling them he’d come to reaffirm the US’ enduring friendship with Ireland, the AP reports. “There’s always been a little green behind the red, white, and blue,” he told the roughly…
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