Earl Smith is the man behind a military patch that President Obama prizes

AUSTIN, Tex. — That February morning in 2008 found Barack Obama decidedly out of sorts. He was locked in one battle with Hillary Rodham Clinton for the Democratic nomination that showed no signs of ending — and another with a vicious cold that felt the same way. As he rode the service elevator in the backway of a convention hotel here, the snowy-haired African American operating it...

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Football: Schalke edge nine-goal thriller

BERLIN: Schalke celebrated the resumption of the Bundesliga with a 5-4 win over Hanover on Friday, their first league triumph since November 10.Schalke moved provisionally into fifth place in the table ahead of the rest of the weekend programme which will see Bayern Munich looking to boost their lead at the top when they face rock-bottom Greuther Fuerth.Jefferson Farfan gave Schalke the...

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New surrogacy norms will hit ‘genuine couples’

MUMBAI: The home ministry's guidelines tightening visa norms for foreigners seeking children through an Indian surrogate have created confusion in various quarters. Foreigners who are midway in surrogacy procedures are worried that their future hangs in balance, even as doctors question the rationale behind some new provisions. There is, however, no denying the need for regulation given that the...

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First Human Contact With Large Emperor Penguin Colony

One of the largest emperor penguin colonies in Antarctica was discovered last month by a team from the International Polar Foundation's Princess Elisabeth station.The penguin colony had previously been identified through satellite imagery by researchers from the British Antarctic Survey. The penguins themselves didn't show up very clearly, but their excrement stains on the ice did.Expedition...

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Manti Te'o Hoax Incredibly Detailed and Complex

Fresh details have emerged about how complex and layered was the hoax involving Notre Dame star linebacker Manti Te'o and his fake girlfriend, "Lennay Kekua."According to ABC News interviews and published reports, Te'o received phone calls, text messages and letters before every football game from his "girlfriend." He was in contact with her family, including a twin brother,...

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Decree shows Chavez still rules Venezuela: minister

CARACAS: Venezuela's newly appointed foreign minister said Thursday the decree that installed him in office is proof that ailing President Hugo Chavez is still in control of the oil-rich country.Elias Jaua was named in Venezuela's official government gazette in a decree signed by Chavez, who remains gravely ill in a Havana hospital some five weeks after complications arose during his fourth...

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Anti-India broadcasts of Iran-Bangladesh radio service worries govt

NEW DELHI: Iran is a strategic partner for India. India and Iran are cooperating in Afghanistan and India has taken considerable flak from the US about maintaining ties with Iran. So is Bangladesh, which is now one of India's most important partners in the neighbourhood. But for some time now, India's security establishment has been tracking radio broadcasts by IranBangla Radio, a Bengali-language...

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Opinion: Lance One of Many Tour de France Cheaters

Editor's note: England-based writer and photographer Roff Smith rides around 10,000 miles a year through the lanes of Sussex and Kent and writes a cycling blog at: www.my-bicycle-and-I.co.ukAnd so, the television correspondent said to the former Tour de France champion, a man who had been lionised for years, feted as the greatest cyclist of his day, did you ever use drugs in the course...

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Officials: 5 Americans Escaped from Algeria Terrorists

Five Americans who were at an Algerian natural gas facility when it was raided by al Qaeda linked terrorists are now safe and believed to have left the country, according to U.S. officials. At least three Americans, however, were being held hostage by the militants when the Algerian military mounted an rescue operation earlier today that reportedly resulted in casualties.Reports...

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Football: Rooney hammers United into FA Cup fourth round

LONDON: Wayne Rooney marked his first Manchester United appearance since December 23 with the only goal of the game as they beat West Ham 1-0 in a FA Cup third round replay at Old Trafford on Wednesday.Victory saw Premier League leaders United, the record 11-time FA Cup winners, into a fourth round tie at home to fellow top flight side Fulham.Rooney opened the scoring in the ninth minute...

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