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World stock markets plunge further

Julia Kollewe
The Guardian
Thu, 18 Aug 2011 10:22 UTC
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© APIt's all over bar the crying - we hope you're canning and storing food.
FTSE, Dow Jones, Dax and Cac all fall as investors flee to gilts and gold

Global stock markets crashed and gold soared to a new record high on Thursday, amid growing fears that the world is sliding into a double-dip recession.

Dire manufacturing figures from the US prompted a sell-off on Wall Street, where the Dow Jones plunged more than 500 points at one stage. It later traded down 445 points at 10965, a fall of nearly 4%.

The FTSE index in London plummeted 220 points, or 4.1%, to 5110 with all 100 stocks on the index down - banking and mining stocks were among the biggest fallers, led by Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland.

Germany's Dax fell 6.3% and France's Cac lost 5.7%, while markets in highly indebted Spain, Italy and Portugal dropped by 5.8%, 6.1% and 4.8% respectively. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei closed down 1.25% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng tumbled 1.2% and the Shanghai Composite ended the day 1.6% lower.
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Wine

France: Depardieu Outrages Passengers by Urinating in Plane

Cyril Altmeyer and Daniel Flynn
Reuters
Wed, 17 Aug 2011 00:00 UTC
Gerard Depardieu
© The Associated Press / Roberto PfeilIn this Sept 12, 2010 file picture, French actor Gerard Depardieu tests a glass of wine during a gastronomy fair in Duesseldorf, Germany. French actor Gerard Depardieu was unable to control his bladder ahead of a Paris-Dublin flight and urinated on himself aboard the plane, a passenger on the flight told French radio Wednesday Aug. 17, 2011.
French actor Gerard Depardieu outraged fellow passengers by urinating in the aisle of an Air France flight as it prepared to take off on Tuesday, forcing the plane to turn back to its parking spot.

A passenger on the flight said Depardieu, 62, the star of movies such as Jean de Florette and Green Card, appeared to be drunk and insisted he be allowed to use the bathroom during takeoff, when passengers must remain seated.

When he was asked by a hostess to return to his seat, Depardieu urinated in the aisle, the passenger told French radio station Europe 1 on Wednesday.

"You could see that he had been drinking, but there were no comments. The hostess was shocked but there was no argument, nothing," said the passenger.

"I was outraged. When you are an actor, you are not like other people, you do not have to abide by the rules. He could have waited, all the same."
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Info

US, California: Militant Makes Death Threat Against David Letterman


Reuters
Wed, 17 Aug 2011 08:18 UTC
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© Reuters/Jessica RinaldiLate night television host David Letterman waves to the crowd as he accepts The Johnny Carson Award for Comedic Excellence at ''The Comedy Awards'' in New York City March 26, 2011
A Muslim militant has urged American followers to assassinate talk show host David Letterman, saying his tongue deserved to be cut out, a U.S. intelligence monitoring group said on Wednesday.

The SITE intelligence group said the death threat was posted on an online website used by militants after the writer became upset by a joke Letterman made about the death of a leading member of al Qaeda killed in an air strike in Pakistan.

The militant called on Muslims in the United States to "cut the tongue of this lowly Jew and shut it forever," the threat against Letterman said, according to a translation by SITE. The popular late-night television host is not Jewish.

The FBI said it was taking the threat seriously.

The writer was angered by watching Letterman on his show drawing his finger across his neck while talking about the June death of senior al Qaeda figure Ilyas Kashmiri.
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2 + 2 = 4

US, Florida: Race Separating Brother and Sister in Polk Schools?

Chase Cain
WTSP 10 News
Wed, 17 Aug 2011 08:09 UTC

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Is race keeping a brother and sister from attending the same school? That's the question facing the Polk County School Board.

The students' parents have been fighting for weeks to get their kids in the same magnet school. For the family, it's not about race. They say it's simply about keeping the family together. However, school officials say it's more complicated than that.

"We think this continues to be just swept under the rug," says Chris McLaughlin. He and his wife, Stacey, are taking on the Polk County School Board to stand-up for their kids.

Rising first grader Trip and soon-to-be kindergartener Katie should attend the same school under normal county policy. However, now that Trip has gotten into the top-notch magnet school Lincoln Avenue Academy, a technicality means Katie can't go with him.
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Ambulance

US: Food Deliveryman Robbed, Beaten Unconscious In Delaware


CBS News Philly
Wed, 17 Aug 2011 08:14 UTC
police, crime scene
© unknown
Police in Delaware are searching for seven suspects who robbed and attacked a food deliveryman, leaving him unconscious.

The attack happened at about 10:40 p.m. Tuesday in the 500 block of W. 26th Street in Wilmington.

According to investigators, the victim told them he was making a delivery when he was met by an unknown black male. The victim said six other black males appeared and began to strike him in the head and face until he lost consciousness.

Upon waking, the victim discovered that money, personal property and the food order had been taken.

Anyone with information is urged to call the Wilmington Police Criminal Investigation Division at 302-576-3620 or Delaware Crime Stoppers at 1-800-TIP-3333.
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Pills

US, Virginia: Arrests Made After Fredericksburg Cancer Patient Beaten, Robbed

Mike Vrabel
ABC WIRC
Wed, 17 Aug 2011 00:00 UTC

Two suspects have been arrested in connection with Monday's home invasion and robbery on Altoona Drive.

With assistance from the Virginia State Police, Christopher Kyle Deviers, 25, and Chad Wallace Lumpkin, 25, both of Spotsylvania, were each arrested at their homes without incident and charged with robbery and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.

Deviers and Lumpkin are both incarcerated at the Rappahannock Regional Jail under no bond.

The investigation is ongoing and additional arrests are anticipated.
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Stormtrooper

US, New York: Bible Belted: NYPD Seeks Thugs Who Beat Fordham Heights Man, Took Bible


CBS News New York
Wed, 17 Aug 2011 10:46 UTC
The NYPD is hunting for a vicious trio who have been robbing folks along Creston Avenue in the Fordham Heights section of the Bronx.

The brutes are described as African Americans, aged 16-20. They may have a fourth accomplice.

1010 WINS’ Terry Sheridan speaks with the victim


Police say the thugs have struck three times in the same spot: 181st & Creston Avenue, just off the Grand Concourse. They've allegedly robbed people on July 23, August 3 and August 8. In all three cases, the muggings were in the early morning - between 1:00 a.m. and 3:00 a.m.

The August 8 attack was caught on tape and is shocking for its senseless brutality.

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Crusader

Spain: Student Plotted Attack on Anti-Pope Crowd

Daniel Woolls
The Associated Press
Wed, 17 Aug 2011 00:00 UTC
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© The Associated Press / Emillio Morenatti A demonstrator shouts slogans agains the next visit of Pope Benedict XVI in Madrid Wednesday Aug. 17, 2011. Pope Benedict XVI is due to arrive Thursday for a nearly four-day visit to celebrate World Youth Day, and thousands of protesters railing against his visit marched through central Madrid to the central Sol plaza where they have held months of demonstrations against the government's anti-austerity policies.
A chemistry student working as a volunteer for the pope's visit to Madrid was arrested on suspicion of planning a gas attack targeting protesters opposed to the pontiff's stay, officials said Wednesday.

Pope Benedict XVI is due to arrive Thursday for a nearly four-day visit to celebrate World Youth Day, and thousands of protesters railing against his visit staged their march Wednesday night to Madrid's central Sol plaza where they have held months of demonstrations against Spanish politicians and the government's anti-austerity policies.

A police official said the suspect arrested in Madrid Tuesday is a 24-year-old Mexican student specializing in organic chemistry. She would not say whether investigators believe the man was actually capable of carrying out a gas attack, and did not know if he actually had chemicals that could have been used to assault the protesters.

The detainee was identified by the Mexican Embassy in Madrid as Jose Perez Bautista, which said he was from Puebla state, near Mexico City.

He was arrested at a Madrid convention center where the hundreds of thousands of pilgrims coming to town for the papal visit are supposed to pick up their accreditation, the police official said on condition of anonymity in line with the department's rules.
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Dollar

Psychopath Alert! US: Massachusetts Man Accused of Stealing $200,000 from Dates


The Associated Press
Wed, 17 Aug 2011 00:00 UTC

A married Massachusetts man met four other women online, romanced them over the span of years and then stole more than $200,000 from them by feigning financial and medical problems, authorities said.

Albert Lovering Jr., of Waltham, was indicted Tuesday on 23 counts of larceny. He pleaded not guilty Wednesday.

Lovering, 54, met the women through various dating websites and deceived them into believing he was romantically attached to them, Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone said. The women loaned Lovering money - including one who gave him more than $100,000 after meeting him just once - with the expectation he would repay them, but he never did, Leone said.

"These allegations are extremely troubling and the defendant's lies spanned several years, targeting numerous victims who were conned into believing the defendant cared for them," Leone said in a statement.
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Handcuffs

Canada: Imam at Toronto Mosque Charged with Sexual Assault


The Globe and Mail
Wed, 17 Aug 2011 10:49 UTC

A man who taught at a Toronto Islamic centre and travelled to mosques around the world is facing sexual assault charges involving at least five alleged victims.

Police announced Wednesday that Mohammad Masroor, 48, has been charged with 13 offences, including sexual assault and threatening death. Police declined to provide further detail on the charges.
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