Ex-Bell officials defend themselves as honorable public servants

Less than three years ago, they were handcuffed and taken away in a case alleged to be so extensive that the district attorney...

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Middle-Class Afghans Face a Murky Future

Bryan Denton for The New York TimesHaji Safiullah, right, attends to a customer at his pharmacy along the Kabul River. He is part of a new generation of Afghans that has succeeded in the private sector. KABUL, Afghanistan — The landmarks of this capital city’s new middle class light up a once-restrained night sky — vast and glittering wedding halls with aspirational names like “Kabul-Paris,” streetlamp...

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Taylor Swift Skips Grammys After-Parties - to Hang with Her Cat

People Pets By Alison Schwartz 02/11/2013 at 06:20 PM EST Taylor Swift and her cat Meredith Courtesy Taylor Swift. Inset: Christopher Polk/Getty Taylor Swift had plenty to celebrate Sunday after she picked up a Grammy for "Safe & Sound," her collaboration with...

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Pope shows lifetime jobs aren't always for life

The world seems surprised that an 85-year-old globe-trotting pope who just started tweeting wants to resign, but should it be? Maybe what should be surprising is that more leaders his age do not, considering the toll aging takes on bodies and minds amid a culture of constant communication and change.There may be more behind the story of why Pope Benedict XVI decided to leave a job normally held for...

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Boy with rifle, guns threatened to kill 23 classmates, police say

A 12-year-old student in northern San Diego County has been admitted to a hospital for "evaluation and treatment" after being taken into custody on suspicion of sending an email threatening to kill a teacher and 23 students, the Sheriff's Department said.Detectives served a search warrant Saturday night at the student's home and seized several computers and "numerous"...

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3 North Korean Doctors Are Killed in Nigeria

POTISKUM, Nigeria (AP) — Assailants in northeastern Nigeria have killed three North Korean doctors, beheading one of them, officials said Sunday. The attack on Saturday night in Potiskum, a town in Yobe State, comes after gunmen killed at least nine women who were administering polio vaccines in Kano, the major city in Nigeria’s predominantly Muslim north. The assailants apparently...

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Pink Reveals Her Secret to a Happy Marriage: Listening ... in Moderation

By Marisa Laudadio 02/09/2013 at 05:00 PM EST Three-time Grammy winner Pink, 33, who is up for best pop vocal album at this month's Grammy Awards – and kicks off her U.S. tour on Feb. 13 – shares the secrets behind her music.You're nominated for The Truth About Love. So how does the magic happen? When I start a record, I'm like, 'God, I...

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After early start, worst of flu season may be over

NEW YORK (AP) — The worst of the flu season appears to be over.The number of states reporting intense or widespread illnesses dropped again last week, and in a few states there was very little flu going around, U.S. health officials said Friday.The season started earlier than normal, first in the Southeast and then spreading. But now, by some measures, flu activity has been ebbing for at least four...

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Old mystery: Why did Gardena help get police vests to Cambodia?

A decade ago, Gardena Police Capt. Tom Monson was surprised to discover that a $5,190 check had been mailed to his station from...

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Venezuela, Despite Myriad Problems, Seizes On a Hat

Carlos Garcia Rawlins/ReutersVice President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela wore a patriotic cap to a parade Monday in Caracas. CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuela seems to lurch from one crisis to another. President Hugo Chávez has virtually disappeared since going to Cuba for cancer surgery more than eight weeks ago. Last month, 58 people were killed in a prison when inmates clashed with soldiers. Inflation...

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