Killer whales trapped in Quebec sea ice

MONTREAL (AP) — A community in Quebec’s Far North is calling for outside help to free about a dozen killer whales trapped under a vast stretch of sea ice.Locals in Inukjuak said the mammals have gathered around a single hole in the ice — slightly bigger than a pickup truck — in a desperate bid to get oxygen.Mayor Peter Inukpuk urged the Canadian government Wednesday to send an icebreaker as soon as...

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Karzai's U.S. visit a time for tough talk

The last time Presidents Obama and Karzai met was in May in Kabul, when they signed a pact regarding U.S. troop withdrawal.STORY HIGHLIGHTSAfghan President Karzai meeting with President Obama in Washington this weekFelbab-Brown: Afghan politics are corrupt; army not ready for 2014 troop pulloutShe says Taliban, insurgents, splintered army, corrupt officials are all jockeying for powerU.S. needs to...

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Exhumation of poisoned lottery winner proceeds

Cook County authorities continue to move toward exhuming the body of a Chicago man who died of cyanide poisoning weeks after...

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Venezuela's top court endorses Chavez inauguration delay

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's top court endorsed the postponement of Hugo Chavez's inauguration this week and ruled on Wednesday that the cancer-stricken president and his deputy would continue in their roles, despite a cacophony of opposition complaints. Critics had argued the 58-year-old's absence from his own swearing-in ceremony on January 10 meant a caretaker president must be...

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Wall Street slips as earnings season gets under way

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks fell on Tuesday, retreating from last week's rally on the "fiscal cliff" deal in Washington, as companies started to report results for the fourth quarter. After a 4.3 percent jump in the two sessions around the close of the fiscal cliff negotiations, the S&P has declined a bit, with investors finding few catalysts to extend the rally that took the benchmark...

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Jaguars hire Falcons' Caldwell as general manager

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — The Jacksonville Jaguars have hired Atlanta director of player personnel David Caldwell as general manager, charging him with turning around one of the league's worst teams.His first move will be deciding the fate of coach Mike Mularkey.Owner Shad Khan tabbed the 38-year-old Caldwell on Tuesday, a day after a third interview. FoxSports.com first reported that the Jaguars...

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New ‘Bone’ in Milky Way Skeleton Discovered

Astronomers have spotted a new component of the Milky Way galaxy‘s skeleton — a “bone” of dust and gas that contains about as much material as 100,000 suns.The newfound Milky Way bone is more than 300 light-years long but just 1 or 2 light-years wide, giving it the appearance of a slender cosmic snake, researchers said.“This is the first time we’ve seen such a delicate piece of the galactic skeleton,”...

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Case of Wall Street greed gone too far

Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein was one of the executives whose stock award was accelerated to beat higher tax rate.STORY HIGHLIGHTSGoldman Sachs granted $65 million in stock to execs before new tax rates beganSusan Antilla says the firm's CEO had endorsed higher rates, called for entitlement cuts She says Goldman benefits from the implicit promise that U.S. will bail it outAntilla: It was unseemly...

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Medical examiner seeks to exhume body of poisoned lottery winner

Urooj Khan won the $1 million in the lottery just weeks before he died suddenly of a heart attack in his West Rogers Park...

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Venezuela postpones inauguration for cancer-stricken Chavez

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela will postpone the inauguration of President Hugo Chavez for a new term due to health problems, the government said on Tuesday, another sign the socialist leader's cancer may be bringing an end to his 14 years in power. The 58-year-old former soldier who has dominated the South American OPEC nation since 1999 has not been heard from since surgery on December...

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