Youths have similar ideals to govt, says ESM Goh

SINGAPORE: Singapore youths generally have the same ideals as that of the government, observed Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong at the end of a national conversation session at the Marine Parade constituency.Mr Goh said this will make it easier for the government to work together with the generation of the future."Supposing they come up with very different ideals from what we think...

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Google's Ray Kurzweil hire could yield some good returns

Ray Kurzweil signing copies of his book, "The Singularity"(Credit:Dan Farber)Google has brought on futurist and artificial intelligence expert Ray Kurzweil as director of engineering, and there could be some real returns on the company's high-profile hire.In a statement, Kurzweil confirmed that he'd be joining Google. He noted that his interest in reading technology, artificial intelligence, drivingcars...

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Egyptians vote on Islamist-backed constitution

CAIRO Egyptians were voting Saturday on a proposed constitution that has polarized their nation, with President Mohammed Morsi and his Islamist supporters backing the charter, while liberals, many secular Muslims and Christians oppose it.With the nation divided by a political crisis defined by mass protests and deadly violence, the vote has turned into a dispute over whether Egypt should move toward...

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School Shooting: Officials Seek Details on Gunman

The FBI is in at least three states interviewing relatives and friends of the elementary school gunman who killed 20 children, seven adults and himself, trying to put together a better picture of the shooter and uncover any possible explanation for the massacre, ABC News has learned.The authorities have fanned out to New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts to interview relatives...

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Egyptians vote on divisive constitution

CAIRO/ALEXANDRIA (Reuters) - Egyptians queued to vote on Saturday on a constitution promoted by its Islamist backers as the way out of a prolonged political crisis and rejected by opponents as a recipe for further divisions in the Arab world's biggest nation. Soldiers joined police to secure the referendum after deadly protests during the buildup. Street brawls erupted again on Friday...

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Two dead, 10 missing after South Korea barge capsizes

SEOUL: Two construction workers were confirmed killed late Friday and 10 others missing after a barge carrying a crane capsized off South Korea's southeast coast, the coastguard said.The 2,600-ton barge sank off the city of Ulsan after the 80-metre (264-foot) crane collapsed, Yonhap news agency quoted coastguard officials as saying.Twelve people have so far been rescued with two others...

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Get a Sceptre 42-inch HDTV for $299 shipped

It was almost two years ago to the day that I wrote about a 32-inch TV selling for $299 (a Sceptre, in fact), and what a big deal that was.Now you can get a significantly larger screen for exactly the same price: For a limited time, and while supplies last, Walmart has the Sceptre X425BV-FHD 42-inch LCD HDTV for $299, plus sales tax where applicable. Shipping is free, or you can opt for free in-store...

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As "fiscal cliff" looms, health reform questions linger

Washington lawmakers this month are squarely focused on deficit reduction as they attempt to scramble off the so-called "fiscal cliff." All the while, however, the government is proceeding with the costly and ambitious rollout of the Affordable Care Act. Key components of President Obama's health care law won't go into effect for about another year, but federal and state lawmakers are obligated...

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Critics Faulted Rice's Work on Benghazi, Africa

United Nations Ambassador Susan Rice removed herself from possible consideration as secretary of state after becoming yet another player in the divide between the left and right.Rice, who withdrew her name Thursday, has faced months of criticism over how she characterized the Sept. 11 attack on a U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya. She also has come under fire for her approach...

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U.S., rebels urge gloomy Moscow to help oust Assad

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria's rebel leadership and the United States seized on Russian pessimism over President Bashar al-Assad's future to urge Moscow to help push its ally into ceding power and end the battles closing in around his capital. "We want to commend the Russian government for finally waking up to the reality and acknowledging that the regime's days are numbered," the U.S. State...

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US retail sales rebound in November

WASHINGTON: US retail sales rebounded in November, reversing October's decline as auto sales surged, the Commerce Department said on Thursday.Retail sales rose 0.3 percent after a 0.3 percent drop the prior month.Excluding automobile sales, up 1.4 percent after a 1.9 percent tumble in October, retail sales were unchanged from October.The Commerce Department said that Hurricane Sandy, which...

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BlackBerry 10 to be piloted by federal agency

Research In Motion's test unit for BlackBerry 10.(Credit:CNET)RIM's upcoming BlackBerry 10 is being eyed by one government agency that had already planned to switch to iPhones.The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency will take a look at BB10 starting in January. The agency plans to launch a pilot program to test BlackBerry 10 devices and the BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 to see...

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Etan Patz suspect: He was alive when I left him

NEW YORK Pedro Hernandez told New York City Detectives that, when he left Etan Patz's body in a doorway, he believed the little boy was still alive. The 1979 disappearance of the six year old became the most symbolic kidnapping case since the murder of the Lindberg baby, stirring the movement that put missing children on milk cartons and billboards. The stunning revelation and other new details...

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Mall Shooter Quit Job, Was Hawaii Bound

In the days before he stole a semiautomatic weapon and stormed into an Oregon shopping mall, killing two people in a shooting spree, Jacob Roberts quit his job, sold his belongings and began to seem "numb" to those closest to him.Roberts' ex-girlfriend, Hannah Patricia Sansburn, 20, told ABC News today that the man who donned a hockey mask and opened fire on Christmas shoppers...

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Russia says Syrian rebels might win

MOSCOW/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian rebels are gaining ground and might win, Russia's Middle East envoy said on Thursday, in the starkest such admission from a major ally of President Bashar al-Assad in 20 months of conflict. "One must look the facts in the face," Russia's state-run RIA quoted Mikhail Bogdanov as saying. "Unfortunately, the victory of the Syrian opposition cannot be ruled...

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Fed likely to expand QE with economy still slow

WASHINGTON: Economists expect the Federal Reserve (Fed) to add to its stimulus efforts with an expanded bond-buying program Wednesday when it concludes its last policy board meeting of 2012 amid still-slow growth.With the US economy still sluggish despite two years and hundreds of billions of US dollars of quantitative easing (QE) operations, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is...

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Square to ink payment-processing deal with Burberry -- report

A merchant accepting Square's mobile payments lets potential buyers know that at an antiques fair in Alameda, Calif.(Credit:James Martin/CNET)Square has lined up its first luxury brand partner, a new report claims.Square and Burberry are testing out a deal to see how the company's payment processing might work in the fashion brand's boutiques, The Next Web is reporting today, citing people who claim...

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Motive unclear in Oregon mall shooting that left three dead

PORTLAND, Ore. A masked gunman wearing camouflage opened fire Tuesday in a busy Portland mall, leaving the gunman and two others dead and one person injured, and forcing the mall's Santa Claus and hundreds of Christmas shoppers and employees to flee or hide among store displays. Austin Patty, 20, who works at Macy's, said he saw a man in a white mask carrying a rifle and wearing a bulletproof vest....

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Mall Gunman Wanted to Kill 'Total Strangers'

The masked gunman who opened fire in the crowded Clackamas Town Center mall in suburban Portland, Ore., killing two and seriously injuring a third before killing himself, was trying to "kill as many people as possible."The shooter, wearing a white hockey mask, black clothing and a bullet proof vest, tore through the mall just before 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, entering through a Macy's...

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North Korea launches rocket , raising nuclear arms stakes

SEOUL/TOKYO (Reuters) - North Korea successfully launched a rocket on Wednesday, boosting the credentials of its new leader and stepping up the threat the isolated and impoverished state poses to opponents. The rocket, which North Korea says put a weather satellite into orbit, has been labeled by the United States, South Korea and Japan as a test of technology that could one day deliver...

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US trade gap widens in October as exports fall

WASHINGTON - The US trade deficit widened in October as exports fell sharply from the prior month amid a slowing global economy, government data released Tuesday showed.The trade gap increased to US$42.2 billion from a revised US$40.3 billion in September, the Commerce Department said.Exports fell by 3.6 percent, while imports fell by 2.1 percent.The decline in exports was the sharpest...

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WiLAN sues RIM over BlackBerry Bluetooth technology

Research In Motion has been hit with a new lawsuit from WiLAN.WiLAN, which derives its revenue from licensing patents to vendors, says that it filed the patent infringement claim against RIM in the Southern District of Florida. The company says that RIM is violating Patent No. 6,260,168 related to Bluetooth technologies.WiLAN has a long history of initiating litigation to get companies to license...

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Mandela "responding" to treatment for infection

JOHANNESBURG South Africa's former President Nelson Mandela is suffering from a recurring lung infection and is responding to medical treatments, the nation's presidency said Tuesday. The ailing Mandela, 94, has been hospitalized since Saturday for medical tests at 1 Military Hospital near South Africa's capital, Pretoria. 34 PhotosNelson MandelaThe announcement ended speculation about what was...

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