Jamaica to abolish slavery-era flogging law

KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) — Jamaica is preparing to abolish a slavery-era law allowing flogging and whipping as means of punishing prisoners, the Caribbean country’s justice ministry said Thursday.The ministry said the punishment hasn’t been ordered by a court since 2004 but the statutes remain in the island’s penal code. It was administered with strokes...

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Analysis: New Microsoft mantra after Sinofsky – teamwork

SEATTLE/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – The sudden departure of powerful Windows boss Steven Sinofsky this week is the first step in a plan by CEO Steve Ballmer to remodel Microsoft Corp as a much more integrated operation in an attempt to take on Apple Inc and Google Inc at their own game.After nearly 13 years at the helm of the world’s largest software maker,...

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Oklahoma’s Rate of Diabetes Triples in 16-Year Time Span

There’s plenty of bad news to go around much of the nation when it comes to the current rates of type 2 diabetes, but Oklahoma especially so, with a triple rate increase from 1995 through 2010, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .CDC Research The CDC wanted to learn what, if any, regions...

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World stocks flat on Europe, US woes; Japan gains

BANGKOK (AP) — Trading on world stock markets was lethargic Friday after data showed Europe slipped back into recession and several big U.S. retailers disappointed investors with weak forecasts.The European Union’s statistics agency said Thursday that the combined economy of the 17 countries that use the euro contracted 0.1 percent in the third quarter...

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“Gangnam Style” song channels New Yorkers’ power woes

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Move over Psy. The next hot thing – at least on Long Island, New York – is a music video parodying the South Korean rapper and dancer’s blockbuster hit, “Gangnam Style.”While the locally produced “LIPA Style” may not attract millions of YouTube views, it’s channeling the frustration of thousands of disgruntled New Yorkers, many of...

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Canada’s Carney says rate hikes “less imminent”

TORONTO (Reuters) – Interest rate hikes have become less imminent than the Bank of Canada once expected, although rates are still likely to rise, central bank Governor Mark Carney said in an interview published on Saturday.“Over time, rates are likely to increase somewhat, but over time, so a less imminent timing relative to our expectation,” Carney said...

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Even moderate drinking in pregnancy may affect child’s IQ

LONDON (Reuters) – Women who drink even moderate amounts of alcohol while pregnant may risk lowering child’s intelligence levels, according to a study by British scientists.Advice to pregnant women about drinking is contradictory, with some guidelines recommending no alcohol at all and others suggesting the odd drink now and then is safe. But...

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Card firm fined for pushy sales

15 November 2012 Last updated at 04:03 ETCard protection company CPP faces a bill of £33.4m after being censured by the City watchdog for mis-selling insurance products. The bill includes a fine of £10.5m from the Financial Services Authority – the joint largest for a retail group – and £14.5m in compensation to customers.The...

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Jon Bon Jovi’s daughter arrested after suspected drug overdose

(Reuters) – Rock star Jon Bon Jovi‘s daughter was arrested in New York state on Wednesday on drug possession charges following a suspected heroin overdose, local police said.Stephanie Bongiovi, 19, was found unresponsive in a dormitory room at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York from an alleged overdose and taken to a local medical facility, according...

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Beating tax cheats key to Italy’s recovery plan

ROME (AP) — Good plumbers may be worth their weight in gold, but when one was spotted zipping around in a bright red Ferrari, Italian tax police were fast on his trail.Stamping out entrenched tax evasion is crucial to Premier Mario Monti‘s quest to keep Italy from succumbing to the European debt crisis, and it is critical to fellow eurozone members in...

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Britain condemned for “mad house” schizophrenia care system

LONDON (Reuters) – Patients with schizophrenia in Britain are too often locked up in “mad house” institutions that are more likely to make them worse than better, mental health experts said on Wednesday.In a damning report on how people with the severe mental illness are cared for in Britain, the experts said there were “catastrophic failings” in treatment...

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Subj: Emailed Secrets Will Be Found Out

David Petraeus ran the largest, best-funded, most capable intelligence service in the history of the world, but even he failed to learn the lesson learned long ago by small-time mobsters and corner drug dealers: If you want something to remain a secret, stay off the phones and—more important—stay off e-mail.You have to presume that anything sent electronically...

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Liza Minnelli to guest star on TV musical drama “Smash”

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Liza Minnelli will guest star on an episode of TV musical drama “Smash,” NBC said on Tuesday.The singer and actress will play herself and sing a number in one episode of the show when it returns in February 2013. The series, starring Debra Messing, Anjelica Huston and Katharine McPhee, dramatizes the backstage life of writers, producers...

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General investigated for emails to Petraeus friend

PERTH, Australia (AP) — In a new twist to the Gen. David Petraeus sex scandal, the Pentagon said Tuesday that the top American commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Allen, is under investigation for alleged “inappropriate communications” with a woman who is said to have received threatening emails from Paula Broadwell, the woman with whom Petraeus had an...

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Belize wants to quiz anti-computer virus guru McAfee in murder probe

BELIZE CITY (Reuters) – Police in Belize want to question U.S. anti-computer virus software pioneer John McAfee in connection with the murder of a neighbor he had been quarrelling with, but they say he remains a person of interest at this time and is not a suspect.McAfee, who invented the anti-virus software that bears his name, has homes and businesses...

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Arseus makes three acquisitions, sees more this year

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Belgo-Dutch medical supplies firm Arseus has made three acquisitions in drug compounding and plans to announce more by the end of the year as it seeks to benefit from a growing trend of pharmacists mixing their own medicines.The firm, which also sells dentist chairs and surgical equipment, said on Tuesday it has made acquisitions in...

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Glitch prevents trading in over 200 stocks on the NYSE

NEW YORK (Reuters) – NYSE Euronext on Monday suspended trading in over 200 stocks on the New York Stock Exchange due to a technical problem with a server, though the stocks in question were still trading actively on other markets.There will be no closing auctions in the affected stocks, and a list of the official closing prices for the securities, based...

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Australia’s INXS calls it quits as touring band after 35 years

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australian rock group INXS has called it quits as a live touring band after 35 years, thanking fans and honoring late frontman Michael Hutchence in a statement on Tuesday.INXS, which sold more than 30 million albums worldwide, including more than 10 million alone of their 1987 breakthrough “Kick”, issued the statement after comments...

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Clarke’s 218 puts Australia on front foot

BRISBANE (Reuters) – Australia captain Michael Clarke scored a brilliant unbeaten double century to give the hosts a remarkable 37-run first innings lead on the fourth day of the first test against South Africa on Monday.Supported first by a maiden century from opener Ed Cowan in a record stand of 259, and then by Mike Hussey‘s 86 not out, Clarke’s 218...

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Global deal agreed to fight tobacco smuggling

SEOUL (Reuters) – Global health officials agreed a deal on Monday to fight smuggling of tobacco products, a trade which robs governments of more than $ 40 billion in revenue each year and undercuts efforts to reduce smoking.The measures include making it mandatory for member governments to license manufacturers and for tobacco packaging to be marked so...

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Oil drifts as fiscal cliff looms over US economy

BANGKOK (AP) — Oil prices drifted Monday as traders worried about the threat to the U.S. economy if lawmakers and President Barack Obama don’t reach an agreement to avoid automatic tax hikes and spending cuts.Benchmark crude for December delivery was down 23 cents to $ 85.84 a barrel at late afternoon Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York...

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Laughing in the storm: Comics don’t shy from Sandy

NEW YORK (AP) — Comedian Dave Attell told a packed house at the Comedy Cellar that New York after Superstorm Sandy had a familiar feel. “It was dark. Toilets were backing up. … It was pretty much like it always was.”Another comic, Paul Mecurio, told the same crowd that he got so many calls from worried family members that he started making things up about...

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Israel kills Gaza rocket crewman in second day of clashes

GAZA (Reuters) – An Israeli air strike killed a Palestinian militant in the Hamas-governed Gaza Strip on Sunday as a surge in cross-border violence entered its second day, local officials said.Islamic Jihad, a smaller faction than Hamas which often operates independently, identified the dead man as one of its own, saying he was a member of a rocket crew...

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U.S. investigator in Afghan rampage case suggests gunman not alone

TACOMA, Washington (Reuters) – The wife of an Afghan villager killed in a rampage blamed on a decorated U.S. officer told an Army investigator that more than one soldier was present when her husband was shot dead at their home in March, the investigator testified on Saturday.Military prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Army Staff Sergeant Robert...

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China slams “distorted” view of copyright piracy problem

BEIJING (Reuters) – China‘s top official in charge of fighting copyright piracy on Sunday slammed what he said was deliberate distortion of the problem by the Western media caused by the country’s poor global image, saying important facts had been ignored.Foreign governments, including the United States, have for years urged China to take a stronger stand...

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