Dec
22

At Western Wall, a Divide Over Prayer Deepens

Rina Castelnuovo for The New York TimesMembers of Women of the Wall prayed this month while wearing tallits, fringed prayer shawls, and tefillin, leather prayer boxes, both of which Jewish men are told to wear. JERUSALEM — The face-off at the security gate outside the Western Wall one Friday this month was familiar: for more than two decades, women have been making a monthly pilgrimage to pray at...
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Predicting who's at risk for violence isn't easy

CHICAGO (AP) — It happened after Columbine, Virginia Tech, Aurora, Colo., and now Sandy Hook: People figure there surely were signs of impending violence. But experts say predicting who will be the next mass shooter is virtually impossible — partly because as commonplace as these calamities seem, they are relatively rare crimes.Still, a combination of risk factors in troubled kids or adults including...
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Drew Barrymore: My Dogs Are So Protective of Baby Olive

People Pets Only on People.com By Julie Jordan and Amy Jamieson 12/22/2012 at 05:30 PM EST Drew Barrymore, Will Kopelman and dog Douglas NPG She may have been a nervous wreck after baby Olive arrived this fall, but the Drew Barrymore could have rested easy because...
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Despite string of problem projects, firm continues to win state work

SACRAMENTO — When state officials wanted a computer system to track the cost of therapy, transportation and other services for...
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Dec
21

Putin Further Distances Himself From Syria’s Leader

BRUSSELS — President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Friday added to recent signals that Moscow is slowly distancing itself from the regime of Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, its longstanding but now severely weakened ally. Asserting that Russia’s main goal is to avoid chaos, Mr. Putin restated Russia’s position that Syria’s civil war could be resolved only through talks between the parties...
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See If You Can Spot the One Color That Popped on the Carpet This Week

Stylewatch Style News Now 12/21/2012 at 12:00 PM ET Getty; Splash News Online; WireImageEven though we didn’t see as many stars on the red carpet this week as last — it’s quiet in Hollywood this holiday season! — we still saw some...
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State parks agency's accounting problems began sooner than thought

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Dec
20

Narendra Modi, Polarizing Indian Politician, Gains Power

ReutersSupporters of the Bharatiya Janata Party waved party flags and lighted firecrackers on Thursday as they celebrated outside a vote-counting center. More Photos »NEW DELHI — The polarizing leader of the western state of Gujarat, Narendra Modi, inched closer on Thursday to becoming the leading political challenger to India’s dominant Gandhi family by winning a resounding re-election as chief minister....
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AP IMPACT: Steroids loom in major-college football

WASHINGTON (AP) — With steroids easy to buy, testing weak and punishments inconsistent, college football players are packing on significant weight — 30 pounds or more in a single year, sometimes — without drawing much attention from their schools or the NCAA in a sport that earns tens of billions of dollars for teams.Rules vary so widely that, on any given game day, a team with a strict no-steroid...
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The X Factor: Who Won the Show?

The X Factor 12/20/2012 at 10:10 PM EST from left: Fifth Harmony, Tate Stevens and Carly Rose Sonenclar Ray Mickshaw/FOX The X Factor ended on a particularly high note for one of the show's finalists Thursday night.After performing live one last time the night...
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