Automakers End 2012 With Sales at 5-Year High

DETROIT — Automakers on Thursday reported their strongest sales year since 2007, posting solid December results in the United States and promising more growth in 2013. Sales of new cars and trucks increased 9 percent in December, a gain that put total sales for 2012 at about 14.5 million vehicles — the industry’s best performance in five years, according to the research firm Autodata. ...

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Bieber urges crackdown on paparazzi after photographer's death

Justin Bieber and his collection of exotic cars have been tantalizing targets for celebrity photographers ever since the young...

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A Google-a-Day Puzzle for Jan. 3

Our good friends at Google run a daily puzzle challenge and asked us to help get them out to the geeky masses. Each day’s puzzle will task your googling skills a little more, leading you to Google mastery. Each morning at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time you’ll see a new puzzle posted here.SPOILER WARNING:We leave the comments on so people can work together to find the answer....

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U.S. soul singer Bobby Womack says he has signs of dementia

(Reuters) – U.S. singer-songwriter Bobby Womack said he is beginning to show early symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, including trouble remembering names and song lyrics.“The doctor said, ‘You have signs of Alzheimer’s,’” Womack, 68, told Britain’s BBC Radio 6 music station over the weekend. “He said it’s not bad yet but it’s going to get worse.”He added: “How can I not remember songs that I wrote?...

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Hillary Clinton Is Discharged From Hospital After Blood Clot

Hillary Rodham Clinton, whose globe-trotting tour as secretary of state was abruptly halted last month by a series of health problems, was discharged from a New York hospital on Wednesday evening after several days of treatment for a blood clot in a vein in her head. The news of her release was the first welcome sign in a troubling month that grounded Mrs. Clinton — preventing her from answering...

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Some Breaks for Industries Are Retained in Fiscal Deal

Nearly $250 million for Hollywood. Over $330 million for the railroad industry. More than $220 million for rum producers. And $62 million for doing business in American Samoa. While taxes are expected to increase for most Americans as a result of the deal between the White House and Congress to end the fiscal impasse in Washington, corporate America was more fortunate. A bevy of tax breaks...

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The 'fiscal cliff' con game

Whatever the ultimate shape of the "fiscal cliff" solution that has preoccupied all Washington, and a fair swath of the rest of country, in the final days of 2012 and into the new year, Americans of all walks of life should be asking themselves this question: How do we like being conned?The deal, passed by the Senate on New Year's morning, was made...

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Heartwarming moments defy chill at Rose Parade

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — A couple who became husband and wife on the “Love Float,” a surprise reunion between a returning soldier and his little boy, and a grand marshal famed globally for her chimpanzee research were among the highlights of the 124th Rose Parade on Tuesday.The parade’s spectacular 42 floral floats brightened an otherwise cloudy New Year’s morning and boosted the spirits of a chilled...

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Drug Makers Losing a Bid to Foil Generic Painkillers

Public officials have long urged makers of powerful painkillers to do more to make the medications harder to crush and abuse. But now that some companies have done so, they want something in return — a ban on generic versions of the drugs they make that do not have such tamper-resistant designs.  Stuart Isett for The New York TimesPurdue Pharma’s OxyContin ...

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Amid Pressure, House Passes Fiscal Deal

Luke Sharrett for The New York TimesPresident Obama spoke at the White House after the House vote on Tuesday. More Photos »WASHINGTON — Ending a climactic fiscal showdown in the final hours of the 112th Congress, the House late Tuesday passed and sent to President Obama legislation to avert big income tax increases on most Americans and prevent large cuts in spending for the Pentagon and other government...

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