As foreigners go, Afghan city is feeling abandoned

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — By switching from studying business management to training as a nurse, 19-year-old Anita Taraky has placed a bet on the future of the southern Afghan city of Kandahar — that once foreign troops are gone, private-sector jobs will be fewer but nursing will always be in demand.Besides, if the Taliban militants recapture the southern Afghan city that was their movement's birthplace...

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Google's Android software in 3 out of 4 smartphones

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George Lucas' filmmaking rooted in rebellion

LOS ANGELES (AP) — There's no mistaking the similarities. A childhood on a dusty farm, a love of fast vehicles, a rebel who battles an overpowering empire — George Lucas is the hero he created, Luke Skywalker.His filmmaking outpost, Skywalker Ranch, is so far removed from the Hollywood moviemaking machine he once despised, that it may as well be on the forest moon of Endor.That's why this week's announcement...

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Floods render NYC hospitals powerless

NEW YORK (AP) — There are few places in the U.S. where hospitals have put as much thought and money into disaster planning as New York. And yet two of the city's busiest, most important medical centers failed a fundamental test of readiness during Superstorm Sandy this week: They lost power.Their backup generators failed, or proved inadequate. Nearly 1,000 patients had to be evacuated.The closures...

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Romney, Obama look for edge as campaign nears end

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) — Three days. Nine states — give or take. A magic 270 electoral votes. For President Barack Obama and rival Mitt Romney, the final touch-and-go stretch of campaigning is down to the numbers.New hiring reports or a new jobless rate. Spending totals or early vote totals. Percentage points and rhetorical points. Frequency of stops or size of crowds. In a game of metrics, each camp...

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Gunmen kill 18 in bus attack in southwest Pakistan

QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — Gunmen riding on two motorcycles opened fire on a bus at a small fuel station in southwest Pakistan on Friday, igniting a massive blaze and leaving 18 dead, a Pakistani official said.Abdul Mansoor Kakar said all 16 people on the bus, including eight women and three children, were killed and the bodies badly burned. The vehicle had been parked next to fuel drums that ignited...

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Google's Android software in 3 out of 4 smartphones

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APNewsBreak: Cusack developing Rush Limbaugh film

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Hollywood director says she's working with actor John Cusack on a movie about conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh.Director Betty Thomas said Cusack's production company has a script ready that will star the actor as Limbaugh. It's not typecasting: Cusack is an outspoken liberal.Production is set for next year, Thomas said. The working title is "Rush," Cusack's New Crime Productions...

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Floods render NYC hospitals powerless

NEW YORK (AP) — There are few places in the U.S. where hospitals have put as much thought and money into disaster planning as New York. And yet two of the city's busiest, most important medical centers failed a fundamental test of readiness during Superstorm Sandy this week: They lost power.Their backup generators failed, or proved inadequate. Nearly 1,000 patients had to be evacuated.The closures...

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Bloomberg cancels marathon amid outcry

BREAKING: The New York City Marathon will be canceled --> http://t.co/FeKe0...

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No pigeons, planes, pingpong balls at China meet

BEIJING (AP) — Don't roll down the taxi windows. Don't buy a remote-controlled plane without a police chief's permission. And don't release your pigeons.Beijing is tightening security as its all-important Communist Party congress approaches, and some of the measures seem downright bizarre. Kitchen knives and pencil sharpeners reportedly have been pulled from store shelves, and there's even a rumor...

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Microsoft pushes new Windows to developers

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Days after launching Windows 8, Microsoft Corp is mounting a strong campaign to win over the software developers it needs to kick-start its new operating system. A lack of apps is Microsoft's Achilles heel as it attempts to catch Apple Inc and Google Inc in the rush toward mobile computing. Windows 8, the new Surface tablet and a range of Windows-based...

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Chris Brown to stay on supervised probation

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A California judge says Chris Brown must return to court to update her on the progress of his probation after he completes an overseas tour.Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg did not address questions raised at a previous hearing about whether the R&B singer had completed the terms of his community labor sentence.A prosecutor said a report filed for Thursday's hearing did...

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The Sandy 15? Superstorm comfort-eating on menu

Jamie Sanders went to the grocery store in the aftermath of superstorm Sandy with good intentions. Cucumbers and apples were on her list.But her local supermarket hadn't gotten any new supplies — and with the prospect of working in her Upper East Side apartment for several days ahead, she joined the hordes of East Coast residents holed up in their homes who found comfort in the bottom of a crinkly...

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Exasperation builds on Day 3 in storm-stricken NYC

NEW YORK (AP) — Frustration — and in some cases fear — mounted in New York City on Thursday, three days after Superstorm Sandy. Traffic backed up for miles at bridges, large crowds waited impatiently for buses into Manhattan, and tempers flared in gas lines.Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the city would send bottled water and ready-to-eat meals into the hardest-hit neighborhoods through the weekend,...

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Afghans set presidential poll date; Taliban jeer

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghans will elect a new president in the spring of 2014 in a ballot considered crucial for their country's stability and security after more than 11 years of war.Afghan politicians and the country's foreign backers hailed Wednesday's announcement as a step toward a peaceful transition of power. The Taliban, who could make or break the poll, denounced it as meaningless and...

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Changing channels; Sony, Sharp in turnaround battle

TOKYO (Reuters) - Sony Corp is likely to say it returned to an operating profit for July-September after it sold a chemicals business, but investors still aren't sure a consumer electronics revamp will deliver the profit growth the group seeks. Sony shares, valued at less than $12 billion, have dropped 16 percent since end-June and its 5-year credit default swaps - the cost of insuring against...

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