Egyptian opposition to shun Mursi’s national dialogue

CAIRO (Reuters) – President Mohamed Mursi was expected to press ahead on Saturday with talks on ways to end Egypt‘s worst crisis since he took office even though the country’s main opposition leaders have vowed to stay away.Cairo and other cities have been rocked by violent protests since November 22, when Mursi promulgated a decree awarding himself sweeping powers that put him above the law.The upheaval...

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New Sony online store offers remote downloads to PlayStation and mobile devices

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Australia’s Gillard in spoof: Mayans were right, world is ending

CANBERRA (Reuters) – According to Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, the Mayans were right and the apocalypse is near.In a spoof 50-second video appearance promoting a local radio station‘s breakfast show, Gillard provided hair-raising details that she said would come when the world ends this month, as the ancient Mayans calendar predicted.With the straight face she often uses in a normal press...

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Trade-offs in raising Medicare eligibility age

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans are living longer, and Republicans want to raise the Medicare eligibility age as part of any deal to reduce the government’s huge deficits.But what sounds like a prudent sacrifice for an aging society that must watch its budget could have some surprising consequences, including higher premiums for people on Medicare.Unlike tax hikes, which spawn hard partisan divisions,...

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Wall Street Week Ahead: “Cliff” worries may drive tax selling

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Investors typically sell stocks to cut their losses at year end. But worries about the “fiscal cliff” – and the possibility of higher taxes in 2013 – may act as the greatest incentive to sell both winners and losers by December 31.The $ 600 billion of automatic tax increases and spending cuts scheduled for the beginning of next year includes higher rates for capital gains, making...

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Ghana election, test of democratic reputation

ACCRA, Ghana (AP) — Voters in Ghana were selecting their next president and a 275-seat parliament in elections Friday, solidifying the West African nation‘s reputation as a beacon of democracy in the region.Some 14 million people are expected to turn out. President John Dramani Mahama, in office for only five months, is running against seven contenders. A former vice president, Mahama became president...

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Spotify gains more listeners and Metallica

(Reuters) – Digital music service Spotify rolled out new features and said it increased the number of active users at a press event that featured a special musical performance by Frank Ocean.Spotify now has 20 million active users worldwide, up 33 percent in less than six months. The company counts five million people among paying subscribers, a 25 percent increase during the same time period.Spotify...

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Men more likely to die of cancer: study

(Reuters) – Not only are men more likely than women to be diagnosed with cancer, men who get it have a higher chance of dying from the disease, according to a U.S. study.In an analysis of cases of all but sex-specific cancers such as prostate and ovarian cancer, for example, men were more likely than women to die in each of the past ten years, said researchers, whose findings appeared in The Journal...

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Starbucks agrees to pay more tax

6 December 2012 Last updated at 13:49 ETPlease turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Starbucks UK’s Kris Engkov: “We are going to do what’s required beyond the law”Coffee chain Starbucks has agreed to pay more UK corporation tax, after a public outcry over how little it pays.Kris Engskov, managing director of Starbucks UK, announced that the company would pay “a significant amount...

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South Africa military plane crashes in mountains

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — A South African military aircraft on an unknown mission to an area near the village where former President Nelson Mandela lives crashed in a mountain range, officials said Thursday. It was unclear whether there were any survivors.The Douglas DC-3 Dakota, a twin-propeller aircraft, had taken off from Pretoria’s Waterkloof Air Force Base on Wednesday night, said Brig. Gen. Xolani...

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Sean Bean replaces Brendan Fraser in TNT pilot “Legends”

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – TNT‘s upcoming pilot “Legends” is getting a Stark makeover.Sean Bean, who played ill-fated Lord of Winterfell Eddard Stark in HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” has signed on to replace Brendan Fraser in TNT’s upcoming pilot “Legends.”Fraser dropped out of the pilot last month; the show would have marked his first starring turn on a TV series.Bean will play Martin Odum, a deep-cover...

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FDA staff says Zogenix painkiller has abuse risks

(Reuters) – Drug reviewers said a painkiller developed by Zogenix Inc could possibly be abused more than currently available hydrocodone combination products.Zogenix’s painkiller Zohydro is a single-entity product containing hydrocodone — a narcotic painkiller. Hydrocodone and oxycodone are often-abused drugs.Combination hydrocodone drugs usually also contain acetaminophen, the active ingredient in...

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Exclusive: HSBC might pay $1.8 billion money laundering fine – sources

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – HSBC Holdings Plc might pay a fine of $ 1.8 billion as part of a settlement with U.S. law-enforcement agencies over money-laundering lapses, according to several people familiar with the matter.The settlement with Europe’s biggest bank – which could be announced as soon as next week – will likely involve HSBC entering into a deferred prosecution agreement with federal...

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Sri Lanka see backlash from Aussie ‘wounded soldiers’

(Reuters) – Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene has warned his team to be wary of a backlash from Australia in their three-test series after the hosts were stung by their series defeat to South Africa earlier this week.Australia’s hopes of snatching the Proteas’ top test ranking ended in a crushing 309-run defeat in the third and final test in Perth on Monday, but Jayawardene took little comfort...

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Hugh Hefner heads to altar again, with “runaway bride”

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Playboy founder Hugh Hefner is headed to the altar again – with the blonde Playmate who ditched him five days before their planned wedding in 2011.Hefner, 86, and his former “runaway bride” Crystal Harris, 26, obtained a marriage license in Beverly Hills on Tuesday, Los Angeles County Recorder spokeswoman Elizabeth Knox said.Celebrity website TMZ.com said the couple, who reunited...

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Casting Light on Astronaut Insomnia: ISS to Get Sleep-Promoting Lightbulbs

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The U.S.-China Cold War Over Accounting

U.S. regulators are cracking down on Chinese companies for issuing misleading financial reports. But the feds have been stymied so far by a wall of resistance to U.S. accounting rules—and not just from the companies.The Securities Exchange Commission on Dec. 3 formally accused the Chinese affiliates of the Big Four accounting firms of violating U.S. law. The issue at hand: failure to provide documents...

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Officials: NATO to decide on missiles for Turkey

BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO foreign ministers are expected to approve Turkey‘s request for Patriot anti-missile systems to bolster its defense against possible strikes from neighboring Syria.NATO foreign ministers are meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday in Brussels. Parliaments in both nations must approve the deployment, which would also involve several hundred soldiers.Ankara, which has been highly supportive...

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Judge gives initial OK to revised Facebook privacy settlement

(Reuters) – A U.S. judge on Monday gave his preliminary approval to a second attempt by Facebook Inc to settle a class action lawsuit which charges the social networking company with violating privacy rights.U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg in California rejected a settlement in August over Facebook‘s ‘Sponsored Stories’ advertising feature, questioning why it did not award money to Facebook members...

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Matt Damon, Alec Baldwin, Don Cheadle Sign on for James Cameron’s Climate-Change Doc

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – James Cameron‘s climate-change documentary “Years of Living Dangerously” has lined up some high-level talent to get its message across. Matt Damon, Alec Baldwin and Don Cheadle have signed on to narrate the documentary, Showtime – which will air the project over multiple episodes next year – said Monday.Actor Edward Norton is also expected to come aboard, Showtime said,...

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NFL-Kansas City Chiefs murder/suicide key may never be unlocked

* Player’s death adds to recent NFL suicides* Player head injuries seen as ongoing problem* Experts wonder if drugs such as steroids involvedDec 3 (Reuters) – The murder/suicide committed on Saturday by Kansas City Chiefs football player Jovan Belcher left the National Football League, its fans and health professionals struggling to understand what drove him to do it.Belcher, 25, shot and killed his...

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EDF extends nuclear plants’ life

4 December 2012 Last updated at 02:15 ETEDF Energy is extending the operational life of two of its UK nuclear power stations by seven years.Hinkley Point B in Somerset, and Hunterston B in North Ayrshire, are now expected to remain operational until 2023. Both had been due to cease generation in 2016.Two other nuclear plants, Heysham in Lancashire, and Hartlepool had their life extended by two years...

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Gunmen assassinate peasant leader in Paraguay

ASUNCION, Paraguay (AP) — Gunmen murdered one of the surviving leaders of a peasant movement whose land dispute with a powerful politician prompted the end of Fernando Lugo‘s presidency last June.Vidal Vega, 48, was hit four times early Saturday by bullets from a 12-gauge shotgun and a .38-caliber revolver fired by two unidentified men who sped away on a motorcycle, according to an official report...

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Olly Murs tops UK single and album charts

LONDON (Reuters) – Singer Olly Murs‘s single “Troublemaker“, featuring U.S. rapper Flo Rida, retained the No. 1 spot in Britain’s pop charts for a second week in a row on Sunday, the Official Charts Company said.“Troublemaker” is Murs’s fourth No. 1 single in the British charts.The former contestant on the British version of television talent show ‘The X Factor’ also nabbed the top spot in the album...

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Novo Nordisk insulin Ryzodeg passes Japan review

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – Denmark‘s Novo Nordisk, the world’s biggest insulin producer, said on Monday its Ryzodeg insulin had passed the first review by an advisory committee to the health ministry in Japan.Novo Nordisk said in a statement it expected to receive marketing authorization for the treatment from the Ministry within a few months.Price negotiations for another insulin, degludec, continued...

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Asian shares, euro rise after firm China PMI

TOKYO (Reuters) – Asian shares and the euro rose on Monday as further signs of a stabilizing Chinese economy boosted investor risk appetite, but gains were capped by worries that an impasse in U.S. budget talks could tip the world’s largest economy into recession.European shares will likely track Asian shares higher, with financial spreadbetters predicting London’s FTSE 100 <.FTSE>, Paris’s...

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Italy votes for center-left candidate for premier

ROME (AP) — Italians are choosing a center-left candidate for premier for elections early next year, an important primary runoff given the main party is ahead in the polls against a center-right camp in utter chaos over whether Silvio Berlusconi will run again.Sunday’s runoff pits a veteran center-left leader, Pier Luigi Bersani, 61, against the 37-year-old mayor of Florence, Matteo Renzi, who has...

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Zynga stock falls after Facebook terms change

NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of Zynga slumped Friday after it disclosed with its partner Facebook that they have loosened their close ties to one another.THE SPARK: The companies said in regulatory filings Thursday that they have amended their 2010 contract to say Zynga will no longer have to display Facebook ads or use Facebook payments on its own properties, such as Zynga.com.In addition, Zynga, which...

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