Gay marriages can resume in California
San Francisco, Aug 13 - Same-sex marriages can resume in California after a federal judge Thursday lifted a temporary stay he put in place after overturning the state's ban on gay marriage last week.
Judge Vaughn Walker ruled that same-sex marriages will be legal in California from Aug 18.
Walker Aug 4 overturned California's ban on same-sex marriage, saying that the voter-approved restriction violated the highest law of the land, the US Constitution.
That ruling by Walker overturned a 2009 ruling by the California Supreme Court, which had upheld a statewide ballot proposition in 2008 that reserved marriage for two people of the opposite sex.
Students who learn more in kindergarten earn more as adults: Study
Washington, Aug 12 : A new research has revealed that students who learn more in kindergarten earn more as adults and are also more successful overall.
Harvard University economist John Friedman says he and a group of colleagues found that students who progress during their kindergarten year from attaining an average score on the Stanford Achievement Test to attaining a score in the 60th percentile can expect to make about 1,000 dollars more a year at age 27 than students whose scores remain average.
Mosque developers not interested in NY Governor''s offer to find new site
New York, Aug. 12 : New York Governor David Paterson has said that developers of the proposed mosque near Ground Zero''s have not responded to his offer to find a new site for the controversial project.
"I think that they would like to stay where they are," the New York Post quoted Paterson as saying a day after offering public land for the proposed site, which has sparked a national outcry for its proximity to the area where the World Trade Center once stood.
JetBlue flight attendant basks in glow of newfound fame
New York, Aug 12 : The JetBlue flight attendant, who shouted obscenities over the plane's intercom before deploying its emergency landing chute and jumping down, has revealed that he is very overwhelmed by the support he got from people.
Steven Slater, 38, who lives in Belle Harbor, Queens, revealed that he had always fantasized about escaping a plane by jumping down its emergency slide.
"It was great. I always wanted to do it," the New York Daily News quoted him as saying outside of his home.
After spending the night in an Upper East Side apartment after being bailed out of jail, he said he was shocked by his folk-hero status.
US woman ‘groped by Donald Duck at Walt Disney World’ files lawsuit
Washington, Aug 12 : A woman from the Philadelphia-area in the US has filed a civil suit after Donald Duck allegedly groped her at Walt Disney World.
According to website Smoking Gun, the suit was filed by April Magolon of Upper Darby, Pa., in July against Walt Disney Parks And Resorts, and Disney wants the case moved to federal court in Philadelphia.
The alleged groping happened in May 2008 when Magolon was at EPCOT in Orlando with her children and fiance, myfoxphilly. com reported.
John McCain says ''Jersey Shore'' star Snooki is ''too good looking'' to go to jail
New York, Aug 12 : ''Jersey Shore'' star Snooki, who was arrested in New Jersey, has found a rather strange ally in John McCain-the Republican thinks she is too cute for prison.
The Arizona Republican made the startling statement about the starlet while weighing in Wednesday on her recent arrest in Seaside Heights, N. J.
"I kind of think she might be too good looking to go to jail," the New York Daily News quoted McCain as saying on KMLE radio in Phoenix.
Obama may be prepared to meet Ahmadinejad, says NSA Jones
Washington, Aug. 12 : US National Security Adviser, General James Jones, has said President Barack Obama may be prepared to meet his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad if Tehran willingly resumes negotiations over its nuclear programme.
Jones also said Iran must also take steps to release and return three American hikers it has in its custody, suggesting that this would be an "important gesture".
Jones statement was in response to Ahmadinejad's request for face-to-face talks with Obama during next month's UN General Assembly meeting in New York.
The White House had has ruled out any such meeting for the time being.
Hindus & Jews criticize Helsinki for Roma eviction
Nevada (US), Aug 12 : Hindus and Jews have strongly criticized reported eviction notices to Roma camps in Helsinki (Finland) without providing alternatives.
Hindu statesman Rajan Zed; and Rabbi Jonathan B. Freirich, prominent Jewish leader in Nevada and California in USA; in a joint statement in Nevada today, said that it was simply inhuman to continuously crack down on poor Roma.
Taliban, Afghan insurgents responsible for rise in civilian deaths
Washington, Aug 12 : A United Nations report has revealed that Taliban militants are largely responsible for a rise in civilian deaths and injuries, dealing a major blow to insurgents in Afghanistan's crucial public relations war this week.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan released a report on Tuesday saying that number of Afghan casualties has increased 31 percent in 2010 compared to the same time period in 2009.
"Three quarters of all civilian casualties were linked to Anti-Government Elements (AGEs), an increase of 53 percent from 2009," FOX News quoted the report, as saying.
US plans to convert ‘Friends of Democratic Pakistan’ meeting for post-flood efforts
Washington, Aug 12 : US Special Envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke, has said that Washington plans to convert the Friends of Democratic Pakistan (FoDP) conference in Brussels into a meeting devoted to post-flood rehabilitation in Pakistan.
The FoDP was formed in New York in 2008 for consolidating democracy in Pakistan, and to support social and economic development in the country.
The founding members states of the group include the US, Britain, France, Germany, China, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, Turkey, Australia and Italy, plus the United Nations and the European Union.
New Jersey school district faces flak for adding Muslim, Hindu holidays
Washington, Aug 12 : Students in a central New Jersey school district will have three more days off this year.
Two Islamic holidays and a Hindu observation are marked on the South Brunswick School District's 2010-11 school-year calendar.
The New Jersey school district will be shut down for Eid-ul-Fitr, the end of Ramazan (September 10), Eid-ul-Adha, the Muslim Feast of Sacrifice (November 16) and the Hindu new year, Diwali (November 5).
School board president Matthew Speesler said it was time, and added that some parents were upset, feeling there were too many holidays already on the school calendar.
Osama’s Sudanese cook sentenced to 14 years in prison
Washington, Aug 12 : Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden's cook has been sentenced to 14 years in prison, making it the first Guantanamo secret conviction under President Barack Obama.
Ibrahim al-Qosi (50), a native of Sudan, who worked for bin Laden for years before the September 11, 2001 terror attacks, pleaded guilty last month to conspiracy and material support for terrorism as part of a pre-trial agreement.
Only three detainees were convicted at Guantanamo under the Bush administration, and two of those have since been released. Qosi was among the first four detainees charged before a military commission in
2004.
New Hampshire Democrat criticized for publicly stating death wish for Palin
New York, Aug 12 : A New Hampshire Democrat is under severe criticism for saying that former Governor Sarah Palin should have crashed with Senator Ted Stevens.
Ted Stevens' died on Monday in a plane crash near a small fishing town on Alaska's Bristol Bay.
Keith Halloran, a Democratic candidate for state representative in New Hampshire, took a swipe at Palin on Facebook.
"Just wish Sarah and Levy were on board," Halloran wrote, apparently taking aim at the former Alaska Governor and her daughter's ex-fiancée, Levi Johnston.
The New Hampshire Republican Party quickly fired back with a statement denouncing the posting, the Daily News reports.
Calling Obama''s Democratic critics ''crazy'' forces spokesman Gibbs to apologise
Washington, Aug. 12 : White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs was forced to apologise after losing his temper and calling US President Barack Obama's critics "crazy" and saying they needed to be "drug tested".
Gibbs made the comments after Democratic Party left-wingers compared Obama to former US President George W Bush, The Telegraph reports.
Gibbs was quickly forced to apologise after conceding he was watching too much 24-hour cable television news that "gets frustrating" and had apparently clouded his judgement.
Calling Obama''s Democratic critics ''crazy'' forces spokesman Gibbs to apologise
Washington, Aug. 12 : White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs was forced to apologise after losing his temper and calling US President Barack Obama's critics "crazy" and saying they needed to be "drug tested".
Gibbs made the comments after Democratic Party left-wingers compared Obama to former US President George W Bush, The Telegraph reports.
Gibbs was quickly forced to apologise after conceding he was watching too much 24-hour cable television news that "gets frustrating" and had apparently clouded his judgement.
UN appeals for 460 million dollar emergency aid for Pak flood victims
New York, Aug 12 : UN humanitarian chief John Holmes has appealed for 460 million dollars in emergency aid for the flood-affected people in Pakistan.
Holmes called for help saying that the disaster was "one of the most challenging that any country has faced in recent years".
"We have a huge task in front of us to deliver all that is required as soon as possible," The Daily Times quoted Holmes, as saying.
Osama bin Laden's cook sent to 14 years in prison
Washington, Aug 12 - A Sudanese man accused of being Osama bin Laden's cook and driver and helping the Al Qaeda mastermind avoid capture has been sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Ibrahim Ahmed Mahmoud al Qosi, 50, pleaded guilty in July to two charges for his support to the Al Qaeda and for conspiring to plan terror acts from August 1996 till his capture in December 2001, Xinhua reported.
A military commission at the US Naval station in Guantanamo Bay gave the sentence, according to which Qosi agreed to a prison term that would be kept secret till the Pentagon reviews it.
US in dialogue on visa fee hike
Washington, Aug 12 (IANS) Amid growing voices against a "discriminatory" US legislation to hike visa fees for highly skilled professionals, Washington began a dialogue with lawmakers, business and within the government on the issue.
"This is an issue that we've had conversations with leaders on the Hill about," State Department spokesman Phillip J Crowley told reporters Wednesday when asked to comment on similar bills passed by both chambers of Congress.
Dogs affected by oil spill get new home
New York, Aug 12 - The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico had 94 unexpected victims. Most of the residents living along the US coast decided to give up their dogs after their livelihood was affected. But now all of them have found a new home.
The 94 dogs of different sizes and types were transported from Louisiana to an animal care centre in New Jersey.
Heather Cammisa, president of the St. Hubert's Animal Welfare Centre, says the dogs are now available for viewing and possible adoption.
