Asia
1:05 pm
Thu December 22, 2011

Pentagon: U.S., Pakistan Share Blame In Shooting

Originally published on Thu December 22, 2011 5:36 pm

The U.S. military said Thursday that U.S. and Pakistani forces both made mistakes in a U.S. helicopter attack that killed two dozen Pakistani troops in November along the Afghan-Pakistan border.

The Pentagon released the findings of its investigation that said a lack of trust, miscommunication and faulty map information all contributed to the shooting.

"For the loss of life and lack of coordination between U.S. and Pakistani forces that contributed to those losses, we express our deepest regret," said Pentagon spokesman George Little.

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Food
12:52 pm
Thu December 22, 2011

Get Into The Holiday Spirit With Scandinavian Glogg

Credit iStockphoto.com

In snowy Norway, nothing evokes Christmastime like a pot of glogg brewing on the stove. The traditional Scandinavian winter drink mixes wine, port and brandy with spices like caraway, cardamom and cinnamon to make for a brew that smells divine and tastes even better.

Urd Milbury, cultural attache from the Norwegian Embassy in Washington, D.C., and her husband, Todd, teach NPR's Lynn Neary how to make the holiday treat.

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The Two-Way
12:05 pm
Thu December 22, 2011

Because Of Somali Pirates, Ocean Racers Are In A 'Stealth Zone'

Credit Volvo Ocean Race / Getty Images
The Groupama Sailing Team (shown here on Dec. 10 near Cape Town, South Africa) is somewhere out ahead in the "stealth zone."

Originally published on Thu December 22, 2011 12:08 pm

The Two-Way
12:05 pm
Thu December 22, 2011

North Korea: 'Peculiar Natural Wonders' Reported In Tribute To 'Dear Leader'

Credit KNS / AFP/Getty Images
This handout picture taken by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency on December 21 shows members of the Korean People's Army crying for late North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il in Pyongyang.

Originally published on Thu December 22, 2011 12:10 pm

As we've reported before, North Korea's state news agency is fond of assigning supernatural occurrences to their Dear Leader. Over the past two days, the news agency has published an array of stories about Kim Jong Il's death. But late yesterday and today, they are revealing that "peculiar natural wonders" occurred just as Kim died.

Here's the news via the Korean News Service in Japan:

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Shots - Health Blog
11:35 am
Thu December 22, 2011

Journal Retracts Key Study Linking Virus To Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Credit TK
TK

The controversial scientific saga over an obscure virus that some researchers proposed as the cause of chronic fatigue syndrome appears a step closer to ending.

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The Two-Way
11:10 am
Thu December 22, 2011

Obama Puts More Pressure On House GOP Over Payroll Tax Cut

Originally published on Thu December 22, 2011 11:21 am

The political maneuvering continues in Washington as lawmakers debate how to extend about-to-expire payroll tax cuts and jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed.

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The Two-Way
11:09 am
Thu December 22, 2011

Fitch: U.S. Needs To Get Its Financials In Order, Or Face Downgrade

The credit rating agency Fitch Ratings has issued another warning to Washington. If it doesn't come up with a plan to reduce the nation's budget deficit, Fitch might yank its AAA rating by the end of next year.

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It's All Politics
11:00 am
Thu December 22, 2011

Tweeting All The Way, Buddy Roemer Continues His Quixotic White House Bid

Credit Jim Cole / AP
Former Louisiana Gov. Buddy Roemer files candidacy papers to run in the New Hampshire presidential primary in Concord, N.H. in October.

You may not have heard of Buddy Roemer. But he's running for president. And despite an impressive resume and gift for turning a phrase, Roemer barely registers in the polls. He's conducting his quixotic run for office without accepting campaign contributions that exceed $100.

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Susan Jane Gilman, whose reviews and commentaries can be heard regularly on All Things Considered, is a journalist, fiction writer and bestselling author of three nonfiction books: Hypocrite in a Pouffy White Dress, Kiss My Tiara: How to Rule the World as a SmartMouth Goddess and, most recently, Undress Me in the Temple of Heaven, a memoir about a naive and disastrous trek Gilman made through Communist China in 1986.

Gilman has written for The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Newsday, Ms., Us, The Village Voice, The New York Observer and Real Simple, among others.

Her short fiction has appeared in Story, Ploughshares, The Beloit Fiction Journal, Virginia Quarterly Review and The Greensboro Review, which awarded her its 1997 Literary Award. Gilman has received other awards as well, including a New York Press Association Award for articles she wrote on assignment in Poland as a cub reporter in 1990. She earned a BA in Literature from Brown University and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from the University of Michigan.

Gilman currently lives in Geneva, Switzerland, where she co-hosts Bookmark, a monthly book review show on World Radio Switzerland, the national English-language station. The rest of her time is spent writing, or as she puts it, staring catatonically at a blinking cursor. She also writes a humorous travel blog A View from A Broad.

Monkey See
10:34 am
Thu December 22, 2011

Holiday Greetings From The World Of Politics: Dogs, Churches, And Plaid Shirts

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