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from Slate
[Information from this site may not be reliable.]
Napoleon Wasn’t Defeated by the Russians
What incredible circumstances could have caused the defeat of one of the greatest armies on the European continent, led by one of the greatest generals of all time? Surprisingly, it wasn’t enemy soldiers or the normal privations soldiers experience that devastated Napoleon’s army. Most of his soldiers were battle-hardened young men, so they should have been able to tolerate the cold, hunger, long marches, and fatigue. No, it was a microscopic organism that wreaked havoc and annihilated Napoleon’s army and his grand plans for conquest. A microbe called typhus, spread by a scourge of lice.
Napoleon Wasn’t Defeated by the Russians
What incredible circumstances could have caused the defeat of one of the greatest armies on the European continent, led by one of the greatest generals of all time? Surprisingly, it wasn’t enemy soldiers or the normal privations soldiers experience that devastated Napoleon’s army. Most of his soldiers were battle-hardened young men, so they should have been able to tolerate the cold, hunger, long marches, and fatigue. No, it was a microscopic organism that wreaked havoc and annihilated Napoleon’s army and his grand plans for conquest. A microbe called typhus, spread by a scourge of lice.
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from The Spokesman-Review
There arose such a clatter over pipe-free Santa
LEANNE ITALIE Associated Press
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Dutch builder’s dream sets sail
Man launches Noah’s Ark replica
Toby Sterling Associated Press
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Health care fee could add up
$63 per person will help cover those with pre-existing conditions
Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar Associated Press
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In brief: From Wire Reports:
BEIRUT – Rebels captured part of a sprawling Syrian army base outside the embattled northern city of Aleppo, tightening the opposition’s grip on areas close to the Turkish border, activists said Monday.
The gains by rebel forces came as the European Union denounced the Syrian conflict, which activists say has killed more than 40,000 people.
“The current situation in Syria is a stain on the world’s conscience, and the international community has a moral duty to address it,” European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said in Oslo as the EU received the Nobel Peace Prize.
The rebels also killed 13 soldiers in an ambush near a strategic northern town along a road linking Aleppo, the nation’s largest city and business hub, with Damascus, and captured 20 soldiers and policemen at a major post on the highway linking the central town of Salamiyeh with the northern city of Raqqa, activists said.
Once on the defensive, Syria’s rebels have gained momentum in recent weeks with a number of tactical advances, seizing airbases near Damascus and Aleppo and putting President Bashar Assad’s forces on their heels.
In an interview with Dubai TV, Syria’s top military defector said Assad’s regime is “over” and advised the president to leave office and let the country’s people decide their own fate.
Ill Clinton cancels trip to Arab world
WASHINGTON – Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton pulled out of a weeklong trip to the Arab world because of a stomach virus, officials said Monday, as the Obama administration declared a Syrian rebel group with alleged ties to al-Qaida as a terrorist organization.
The announcement was one of several Clinton planned to bring with her to North Africa and the Middle East as part of a U.S. effort to enhance cooperation with moderates in the Syrian coalition fighting President Bashar Assad’s regime, and to isolate extremists in their ranks.
Deputy Secretary of State William Burns will take Clinton’s place in Morocco, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates.
Earlier Monday, the administration took action against the rebel militia Jabhat al-Nusra, which has claimed responsibility for suicide bombings on Syrian government targets and raised fears of growing Islamic extremism among the opposition.
By branding the group a terrorist organization, the U.S. government is freezing any assets Jabhat al-Nusra holds in the United States and barring Americans from doing business with the group.
The action hasn’t been announced officially but was included in the Federal Register on Monday. In the notice, the State Department described the group as part of al-Qaida in Iraq.
RNC to examine party post-election
WASHINGTON – The Republican National Committee on Monday announced an inquiry into what went wrong in 2012’s presidential election and how the GOP can respond to the nation’s shifting demographics and adopt smarter political strategies.
RNC Chairman Reince Priebus asked a group of five respected party leaders to examine how the GOP can better talk with voters, raise money from donors and learn from Democrats’ tactics. Priebus also asked the group, known as the Growth and Opportunity Project, to look at how campaigns are best organized and deployed, how they can work with independent groups such as super PACs, and how the party should approach the 2016 presidential primaries as part of a top-to-bottom review.
Colorado’s pot law becomes official
DENVER – Marijuana for recreational use became legal in Colorado on Monday, when the governor took a purposely low-key procedural step of declaring the voter-approved change part of the state constitution.
Colorado became the second state after Washington to allow pot use without a doctor’s prescription. Gov. John Hickenlooper, a Democrat, opposed the measure but had no veto power over the voter-approved amendment to the state constitution.
Hickenlooper tweeted his declaration Monday and sent an executive order to reporters by email after the fact. He told reporters he didn’t want to make a big deal about the proclamation, a decision that prevented a countdown to legalization as seen in Washington, where the law’s supporters gathered to smoke in public to celebrate.
Fewer than two dozen people publicly marked Colorado’s legalization day.
Navy identifies SEAL killed in rescue
WASHINGTON – A Navy SEAL killed during a weekend rescue mission in Afghanistan was identified by the Pentagon on Monday as Petty Officer 1st Class Nicolas D. Checque, of Monroeville, Pa.
The 28-year-old died of combat-related injuries, the Defense Department said in a statement that gave no further details of the mission.
Checque was a member of SEAL Team Six, which freed an American doctor abducted by the Taliban. The same team killed Osama bin Laden last year, but it’s unclear whether Checque was involved in the bin Laden mission.
Dr. Dilip Joseph, of Colorado Springs, Colo., was rescued in eastern Afghanistan, according to officials in Afghanistan.
Pocket gopher may be protected
OLYMPIA – The federal government has proposed listing four subspecies of the Mazama pocket gopher for endangered species protection.
The Mazama pocket gopher is a species of small mammal that lives in prairie habitats in Washington and Oregon. They spend most of their time underground in tunnels, where they forage on grasses and forbs, and they rarely surface.
The four subspecies proposed for endangered species protection exist solely in Washington. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also proposed Monday to designate 9,234 acres of critical habitat for the gophers in Western Washington.
The proposal is open for public comment for 60 days.
Attorney general files suit over spam texts
SEATTLE – Washington state Attorney General Rob McKenna’s office has filed a lawsuit targeting a Florida-based company accused of sending people unsolicited text messages, calling it another form of spam that annoys people and costs them money.
It’s one of the first lawsuits by a state attorney general targeting spamming via text messages, said assistant Attorney General Paula Selis, who heads McKenna’s High Tech Unit.
The lawsuit was filed Thursday in a U.S. District Court in Seattle.
McKenna’s office is targeting Orlando-based Dinav Holding and its owners, Jonathan Charles Diaz and Juan Carlos Diaz. The lawsuit alleges the company over a period of two days in May targeted residents in Washington with texts advertising payday loans with companies not licensed in the state.
A phone number listed for Dinav Holding rang busy.
McKenna accuses Dinav Holding of violating the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act and two state consumer protection laws, the Washington State Commercial Electronic Mail Act and the Washington State Consumer Protection Act.
Washington law does not allow commercial text messaging. The federal law prohibits making calls using an automated dialing system, officials said.
Dinav Holding could face steep penalties. Violation of the federal act and one of the state laws comes with damages of $500 per violation if the company is found at fault, officials said.
Treasury announces final AIG stock sale
WASHINGTON – The U.S. government said Monday that it is selling its remaining shares of American International Group stock, moving to close the books on the government’s biggest bailout during the 2008 financial crisis.
Treasury said it had begun a sale of 234.2 million shares of common stock in a public offering. The government’s shares represent a 16-percent ownership stake in the insurance company.
Treasury has already recovered more on its AIG investment than the original $182.3 billion bailout. It was the largest government bailout package, including both loans and federal guarantees.
As of September, Treasury and the Federal Reserve had received $197.4 billion.
AIG, which is based in New York City, nearly collapsed at the height of the financial crisis. The company suffered massive losses from exotic financial instruments whose value was based on mortgage securities.
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N. Korea extends launch window
Associated Press
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EU leaders receive Nobel Peace Prize
Associated Press
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Mexico tackling education ills
President announces broad reform plans
Los Angeles Times
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Egypt military role expands
Army takes on pre-vote security
Maggie Michael Associated Press
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Report scrutinizes Freddie, Fannie pay
Top managers earned median of $200,000
Marcy Gordon Associated Press
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opinion:
Mona Charen Creators Syndicate
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sports:
Growing pains doom Eastern
Eagles shoot 37 percent in loss to Seattle
Jim Allen The Spokesman-Review
Upcoming opponents pose similar problems
Jim Meehan The Spokesman-Review
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health:
Depressed seniors need to be convinced it’s OK to seek help
Adrian Rogers The Spokesman-Review
For many seniors, depression often gets lost in aging process
Adrian Rogers The Spokesman-Review
Anthony L. Komaroff Universal Uclick
Dr. Alisa Hideg
Vitamin D eased pain in hip, leg
Joe Graedon M.S. peoplespharmacy.com.
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Court strikes down Illinois concealed carry law
Associated Press
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Democrats: Don’t cut Medicaid in fiscal cliff deal
Associated Press
David Espo, Donna Cassata Associated Press
Jim Kuhnhenn Associated Press
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NTSB: Use ignition locks for all drunken drivers
Joan Lowy Associated Press
Wrong-way driving crashes claim hundreds of lives
Joan Lowy Associated Press
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New tests could hamper food outbreak detection
Lauran Neergaard, Mary Clare Jalonick Associated Press
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US set to boost ties with Syrian opposition
Matthew Lee Associated Press
Robert Burns Associated Press
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HSBC to pay $1.9 billion
British bank settles U.S. money-laundering probe
Pete Yost Associated Press
Govt outlines HSBC ties to drug money laundering
Pete Yost Associated Press
Pete Yost Associated Press
HSBC to pay $1.9B to settle money-laundering case
Pan Pylas, Pete Yost Associated Press
Air Force sends mystery mini-shuttle back to space
Marcia Dunn Associated Press
Texas judge halts oil pipeline work
Ramit Plushnick-Masti Associated Press
Pan Pylas, Pete Yost Associated Press
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Air Force sends mystery mini-shuttle back to space
Marcia Dunn Associated Press
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Texas judge halts oil pipeline work
Ramit Plushnick-Masti Associated Press
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Fla. ex-cop set for execution in 1986 killing of 9
Associated Press
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Global study of student scores a mixed bag for US
Josh Lederman Associated Press
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Peppermint pigs a smashing tradition in NY
Michael Hill Associated Press
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Right-to-work debate heats up ahead of Mich. vote
Jeff Karoub, John Flesher Associated Press
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Alan Alda asks scientists to explain: What is time?
Frank Eltman Associated Press
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from TheWenatchee World
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| CASHMERE BUSINESS, 1913: This 1913 photo shows Stewart Brothers’ General Hardware and Farm Implement Store, one of Cashmere’s pioneer businesses located on Cottage Avenue. The Spokane Merchants Association took over the business in 1914 and William A. Doelle purchased the building 18 months later. Pictured are Willis Carey, Fred Eels, Hugh Stewart, Charley Wheeler and Joe Welty Sr. |
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K.C. Mehaffey World staff writer
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Common Ground: Exploring link between conservation and economy
Rufus Woods Publisher
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As mission winds down, letting go in Afghanistan
David S. Cloud Los Angeles Times
The Associated Press
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Solid evidence elusive in right-to-work debate
The Associated Press
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Judge: N.C. can’t offer only ‘Choose Life’ license plates
The News & Observer
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Great gift confection ideas
Sharon K. Ghag McClatchy Newspapers
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The Geminids are coming!
Year’s best meteor shower happens early Thursday
Christine Pratt World staff writer
Christine Pratt World staff writer
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