Community colleges suddenly in spotlight Long the neglected stepchildren of American higher education, community colleges have come front-and-center in the eyes of students, policymakers and philanthropists.  NYT: Daschle poses conflict-of-interest testThe choice of Tom Daschle for secretary of health and human services poses questions about how broadly Barack Obama will apply campaign promises to limit conflicts of interest among appointees.  It's North vs. South in Big Three bailout fightShould taxpayers in Alabama be asked to help bail out Big Three automakers whose plants are concentrated in Northern states such as Michigan and Ohio? How the auto industry pits North against South.  Talk of GM bankruptcy filing fuels debateAs the days pass and GM’s money burns away, bankruptcy is a distinct possibility. But what, exactly, would a GM bankruptcy mean? Report: Economy is sickening U.S. hospitals The dismal economy has U.S. hospitals ailing, with new data showing declines in overall admissions and elective procedures, plus a big jump in patients who can't pay for care. Bush set to relax rules protecting species Animals in danger of becoming extinct could lose the protection of government experts who make sure that dams and other projects don't pose a threat, under a regulation the Bush administration is set to put in place.  Blast kills 1, wounds 23 at Thai PM's officeA grenade attack on anti-government protesters occupying the Thai prime minister's office killed one person and wounded at least 23 early Thursday, an army official and protesters said. Lawyers visit secret Gitmo camp For the first time, defense lawyers have been allowed to see a section of the Guantanamo prison that is so restricted, even its location on the U.S. base is secret. Teen lives 118 days without a heart An American teenager survived for nearly four months without a heart, kept alive by a custom-built artificial blood-pumping device, until she was able to have a heart transplant. Minnesota recount begins City and county workers across Minnesota have started recounting more than 2.9 million ballots from the state's U.S. Senate race. Calif. court takes up gay marriage ban California's highest court agreed Wednesday to hear several legal challenges to the state's new ban on same-sex marriage but refused to allow gay couples to resume marrying before it rules.  Patience, politeness training for airport workersEmployees at Newark Liberty International Airport are getting training in patience and politeness to help them handle the crush of stressed-out holiday travelers.  Scientists spot hints of dark-matter blastA balloon-borne instrument soaring high over Antarctica has found potential evidence of a large clump of mysterious dark matter relatively close to our solar system, scientists said Wednesday. Wall Street drops to more than 5-year low Wall Street hit levels not seen since 2003 on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones industrial average plunging below the 8,000 mark amid a dour economic outlook from the Fed.  As nest eggs shrink, many defer retirementAs financial markets have ravaged his savings, Gary Laursen, 62, has put his retirement on hold. He is one of millions of Americans confronting a stark reality about retirement.  New penguin found, 500 years after extinctionResearchers studying a rare and endangered species of penguin have uncovered a previously unknown species that disappeared about 500 years ago.  Insurance may soon cover maggot therapyMaggot therapy has received a boost from the medical establishment that could make it easier for patients and doctors to get insurance reimbursement for this treatment.  U.S. intel office adds warming to warningsA major U.S. intelligence report coming out Thursday is adding climate change to the "traditional" mix of factors expected to destabilize the world into the near future. NBC: Daschle to be Obama's HHS secretaryThe former Senate majority leader has been a close adviser to the president-elect throughout the campaign for the White House and recently wrote a book proposing health care improvements.  ‘Pacman’ reinstated, but will miss next 2 gamesDallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Wednesday the suspended cornerback has been reinstated by league commissioner Roger Goodell, but he must miss two more games — this Sunday and the following game on Thanksgiving. He’ll be back Dec. 7 at Pittsburgh.  Senate leader calls off vote on auto bailoutThe Senate's top Democrat has called off a planned vote this week on a $25 billion auto industry bailout.  Dem sources: Clinton to help wife get State jobThe former president has offered several concessions to help his spouse become secretary of state, including releasing the names of several major donors to his charitable foundation.  Al-Qaida No. 2 says Obama betrays raceAl-Qaida's No. 2 leader used a racial epithet to insult Barack Obama in a message posted Wednesday, describing the president-elect in demeaning terms that imply he does the bidding of whites. Mayor sorry for kids' anti-Obama chant The mayor of an Idaho town where second- and third-grade students on a school bus chanted "assassinate Obama!" has publicly apologized, saying there's no excuse for such behavior.  G’day! Hugh Jackman is new Sexiest Man AliveHugh Jackman, People's 2008 Sexiest Man Alive, is a romantic in a hard body who leaves women saying "Oh ... my ... God."  Spacewalker learns from tool mistakeThe astronaut who lost her tool bag on a spacewalk admitted Wednesday that she made a mistake by not checking to see if the sack was tied down, and said she’s still smarting over the whole thing. | An 8-year-old suspected of killing his father and another man will be allowed to leave a juvenile jail for 48 hours to spend Thanksgiving with his mother, a judge ruled. Police said the boy confessed to shooting the men, and a tape of the interrogation was released. Legal analysts who spoke with CNN said the questioning was improper and that any incriminating statements shouldn't stand up in court. President-elect Barack Obama has chosen former Sen. Tom Daschle to be secretary of Health and Human Services, and the former Senate majority leader has indicated he wants the job, three sources close to the transition told CNN. Daschle -- not White House staffers -- will be writing the health care plan that Obama submits to Congress, sources indicate. Some lawmakers lashed out at the CEOs of the Big Three auto companies today for flying private jets to Washington to request taxpayer bailout money. "It's almost like seeing a guy show up at the soup kitchen in high hat and tuxedo," one lawmaker said. Like many other corporations, all three have policies requiring their CEOs to travel in private jets for safety reasons. Read full story for latest details. Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said Wednesday he's not trying to settle old scores with his onetime GOP rival Mitt Romney, despite sharply criticizing the former Massachusetts governor in a book out earlier this week. Online dating site eHarmony will create a service for same-sex matching in a settlement of a 1995 complaint that the company's failure to offer such a service was discriminatory. Scientists have found a wide-eyed primate -- a clawed fur ball that fits snugly in one hand -- in the first live sighting in more than 80 years of a creature that some thought was extinct. Right now in the state of Nebraska, the governor is literally begging people not to bring their teenage children there to dump them, so that the state then has to care for them. But it's happening. It's happening a lot. The father of Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver was beaten by Houston, Texas, police officers as they arrested him for outstanding traffic warrants, Driver's family members claimed Wednesday. This holiday season, it's still shoes off and liquids out at airport security, but changes may be on the way to part of this routine, and agents will be watching much more than the contents of your carry-on. |