DIAMOND BAR, Calif. (AP) – Firefighters aided by Mother Nature continued to make gains early Monday on three raging wildfires that reduced hundreds of homes to ash and cinders and forced thousands of residents to flee in Southern California.,”Firefighters make gains on Southern California wildfires as weather conditions improve
DIAMOND BAR, Calif. (AP) – Firefighters aided by Mother Nature continued to make gains early Monday on three raging wildfires that reduced hundreds of homes to ash and cinders and forced thousands of residents to flee in Southern California.
Ferocious Santa Ana winds finally abated after fanning the blazes that have destroyed more than 800 houses, mobile homes and apartments since Thursday night from Santa Barbara to Los Angeles and counties to the east. In all, the fires burned more than 35,000 acres or 55 square miles.
In Orange and Riverside counties, the fires chewed through nearly 24,000 acres and were pushing toward Diamond Bar in Los Angeles county. A major aerial attack on Sunday raised containment to 19 percent.
Meanwhile, a 15 square-mile fire that hit hard in the Sylmar area of northern Los Angeles on Saturday had moved into the Placerita Canyon area of the rugged San Gabriel Mountains and was burning vigorously, but well outside the city. It was 40 percent contained.
The Santa Barbara-area fire that swept through tony Montecito has burned 3 square miles and was 80 percent contained.
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Obama, McCain in their first meeting since the campaign ended
CHICAGO (AP) – Once campaign rivals, President-elect Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain are ready to talk about how they can collaborate on issues facing the country.
A private meeting, slated for Monday at Obama's transition office in Chicago, will be the first since Obama beat McCain, the Republican candidate, in the Nov. 4 election.
The meeting comes as Obama, who resigned his Senate seat on Sunday, has been interviewing some of his one-time political opponents to help him run the country.
Advisers to the former candidates have said they don't expect Obama to consider McCain for an administration job.
The two will be joined by Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a McCain confidant, and Rep. Rahm Emanuel, an Illinois Democrat Obama has chosen as his White House chief of staff.
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Many concerns left unanswered after weekend global finance summit
TOKYO (AP) – Analysts, investors and media around Asia expressed concern Monday that a weekend summit of world leaders aimed at tackling the global financial crisis – and preventing future debacles – was high on symbolism but low on action.
While welcomed around Asia as a significant first step, the two-day summit in Washington, which brought together leaders from 21 nations, put off many hoped-for concrete goals until their next meeting, to be held in late April after U.S. President George W. Bush is gone and President-elect Barack Obama is in office.
Asian markets reacted little to the summit – major stock indices were mixed Monday – perhaps because investor expectations were low.
"To put it harshly, there is little point in trying to figure out ways to prevent a disease once a patient is sick," Credit Suisse Japan analyst Shinichi Ichikawa said in a report released Monday. "The just-concluded summit came up with no specific prescription to alleviate the effects of the most serious international financial crisis."
T.J. Bond, a Merrill Lynch economist in Hong Kong, said some investors were disappointed there was no explicit announcement of coordinated fiscal stimulus measures. The leaders supported the benefits of enacting government spending to stimulate their economies but stopped short of a commitment for all to act at the same time, as some Europeans had favored.
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Iraq's Cabinet overwhelmingly approves US security pact, parliament next hurdle
BAGHDAD (AP) – Iraq's Cabinet overwhelmingly approved a security pact with the United States on Sunday, ending prolonged negotiations to allow American forces to remain for three more years in the country they first occupied in 2003.
The deal detailing the conditions of the U.S. presence still needs parliamentary approval, and lawmakers could vote as soon as Nov. 24. For Iraqis, the breakthrough was bittersweet because they won concessions from the Americans but must accept the presence of U.S. troops until 2012.
"It's the best possible, available option," said government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh. He was referring to the conflict between Iraq's desire for full sovereignty and control over security and its need for American support and cooperation to achieve that goal.
Al-Dabbagh described the pact – intended to supplant the U.N. mandate expiring Dec. 31 – as an "agreement on the withdrawal of U.S. troops," and Washington welcomed the Cabinet's approval.
"While the process is not yet complete, we remain hopeful and confident we'll soon have an agreement that serves both the people of Iraq and the United States well and sends a signal to the region and the world that both our governments are committed to a stable, secure and democratic Iraq," said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the White House's National Security Council.
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Astronauts prepare to fix wing-rotating joint on space station, unpack urine-to-water filter
HOUSTON (AP) – Astronauts aboard the international space station and the newly arrived shuttle Endeavour planned Monday to start unpacking a new toilet and a contraption that purifies urine and sweat into drinkable water at the orbiting outpost.
The main business of the day is unloading a cargo container nicknamed "Leonardo" from space shuttle Endeavour's belly and attaching it to the international space station. Inside the 21-foot-long container is almost 15,000 pounds of equipment that will allow the space station to expand from three to six crew members next year.
"Things are going exceedingly well," said LeRoy Cain, chairman of the mission management team.
Besides the extra bathroom and urine processor, Endeavour delivered an exercise machine, kitchenette and two sleeping compartments. Endeavour docked with the space station Sunday afternoon almost two days after it launched from Florida.
The shuttle's crew will spend almost two weeks orbiting 220 miles above Earth at the outpost, setting up the new equipment and going on four spacewalks to clean and lubricate a solar wing-rotating joint that broke down more than a year ago.
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Post-election session of Congress this week to decide fate of quick rescue for automakers
WASHINGTON (AP) – Hardline opponents of an auto industry bailout branded the industry a "dinosaur" whose "day of reckoning" is near, while Democrats pledged Sunday to do their best to get Detroit a slice of the $700 billion Wall Street rescue in this week's lame-duck session of Congress.
The companies are seeking $25 billion from the financial industry bailout for emergency loans, though supporters of the aid for General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC have offered to reduce the size of the rescue to win backing in Congress.
Senate Democrats intended to introduce legislation Monday attaching an auto bailout to a House-passed bill extending unemployment benefits; a vote was expected as early as Wednesday.
A White House alternative would let the car companies take $25 billion in loans previously approved to develop fuel-efficient vehicles and use the money for more immediate needs. Congressional Democrats oppose the White House plan as shortsighted.
Majority Democrats will need at least a dozen GOP votes in the Senate to prevent opponents from blocking their measure – assuming all Senate Democrats support it. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky questioned whether there was sufficient Democratic support for an auto bailout in a statement released Sunday.
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Huntington, W.Va., home to highest percentage of obese; also tops in diabetes, loss of teeth
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) – As a portly woman plodded ahead of him on the sidewalk, the obese mayor of America's fattest and unhealthiest city explained why health is not a big local issue.
"It doesn't come up," said David Felinton, 5-foot-9 and 233 pounds, as he walked toward City Hall one recent morning. "We've got a lot of economic challenges here in Huntington. That's usually the focus."
Huntington's economy has withered, its poverty rate is worse than the national average, and vagrants haunt a downtown riverfront park. But this city's financial woes are not nearly as bad as its health.
Nearly half the adults in Huntington's five-county metropolitan area are obese – an astounding percentage, far bigger than the national average in a country with a well-known weight problem.
Huntington leads in a half-dozen other illness measures, too, including heart disease and diabetes. It's even tops in the percentage of elderly people who have lost all their teeth (half of them have).
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'TRL' says goodbye to screaming fans, Times Square, video countdowns and superstars in finale
NEW YORK (AP) – Carson Daly chatted with Eminem, Beyonce gave a show-stopping performance, girls shrieked at the sight of Justin Timberlake and hundreds of fans lined up outside in Times Square for a glimpse at superstars.
For few hours, it seemed like old times at MTV's "Total Request Live" – back when the show was not only music's most powerful force but a dominant part of pop culture. Unfortunately, it took the show's demise to make it relevant again.
MTV pulled the plug on its most influential franchise Sunday night following years of declining ratings, but not before marking the occasion with celebration and nostalgia, as some of pop's biggest stars paid respects to the show that helped launch their careers.
"I feel like they're kinda tearin' down my home," said Eminem, via phone, as he and Daly, "TRL's" first and most famous host, commiserated during the live, three-hour broadcast from the show's headquarters, in the heart of Times Square.
"It's a bittersweet moment," Diddy, the show's most frequent guest, said as he cried mock tears and gave one of the final waves to the Times Square audience from "TRL's" glass-encased studios above.
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