Khamenei rebuffs U.S. offer of direct talks

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran's highest authority, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on Thursday slapped down an offer of direct talks made by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden this week, saying they would not solve the problem between them. "Some naive people like the idea of negotiating with America, however, negotiations will not solve the problem," Khamenei said in a speech to officials and members of...

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Wall Street stymied as investors lack catalysts to trade

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were little changed on Wednesday as investors, without any major economic reports to guide them, awaited fresh incentives to trade after rallies took the S&P 500 to five-year highs. Transportation stocks were among the worst performers, weighed down by a 10 percent drop in CH Robinson Worldwide to $60.40 after the freight transport company posted...

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Braun says he used Fla clinic owner as consultant

NEW YORK (AP) — Milwaukee Brewers slugger Ryan Braun said the person who ran the Florida clinic being investigated by Major League Baseball was used only as a consultant on his drug suspension appeal last year."I have nothing to hide," Braun said in a statement released by his representatives on Tuesday night.Earlier in the day, Yahoo Sports reported the 2011 NL MVP's name showed up three times in...

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Cold-weather Super Bowl has new element, power

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — While the NFL and officials in New York and New Jersey say they will do everything they can to prevent another power outage at the Super Bowl, energy experts warn it’s almost impossible to guarantee the lights will stay on at any event, let alone the cold-weather championship game at MetLife Stadium in 2014.University of Pittsburgh energy expert Dr. Gregory Reed said the...

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Should we still fear al Qaeda?

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License number leads cops to salon robbery suspect

The Evanston man charged with robbing nearly a dozen hair salons in Chicago, Skokie, Morton Grove, Broadview and Niles was apprehended...

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Tunisia protests after government critic shot dead

TUNIS (Reuters) - A fierce critic of the Tunisian government's dealings with radical Islamists was shot dead on Wednesday, sending protesters onto the streets two years after their Jasmine Revolution sparked revolt across the Arab world. The headquarters of the moderate Islamist Ennahda party, which rules in a fractious coalition with secularists, was set ablaze after Chokri Belaid, an...

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Wall Street bounces back, Dow briefly passes 14,000

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday, with the Dow rising above 14,000, as earnings came in stronger than expected and investors sought bargains a day after the market's biggest drop since November. Dell Inc's stock rose after the world's No. 3 computer maker agreed to be taken private in a $24.4 billion deal, the largest leveraged buyout since the 2008-2009 financial crisis....

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Vonn hospitalized after crash in super-G at worlds

SCHLADMING, Austria (AP) — Lindsey Vonn crashed and apparently hurt her right knee during a super-G at the world championships Tuesday and was taken to a hospital by helicopter.Austria's ski federation president said doctors told him that Vonn tore her cruciate and lateral ligaments. Peter Schroecksnadel added that this is "the only injury she has, nothing besides this."The U.S. team gave no immediate...

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Slippers of Napoleon’s Sister Found

A delicate pair of slippers that had been sitting unnoticed in a Scottish university’s collection for more than a century may have actually belonged to Napoleon Bonaparte‘s sister, Princess Pauline Borghese, researchers say.The narrow silk and leather shoes, which measured just 1.5 inches (40 millimeters) across the toes and about 4 inches (10.2 centimeters) long, were marked on the sole “Pauline...

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