Myanmar says jets used against Kachin rebels

YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar's military has used jets to attacks rebel fighters in northern Kachin state, the government said on Thursday, its first admission of an intensification of a conflict that has raised doubts about its reformist credentials. Rebel sources have reported aerial bombings, shelling and even the use of chemical weapons since December 28 after the Kachin Independence...

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Wall Street starts 2013 with a rally on "cliff" agreement

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks soared on the first day of trading in 2013, after Washington lawmakers cut a last-minute deal to avoid automatic tax hikes that threatened to pinch economic growth. The rally was broad-based, with 10 stocks rising for every one falling on the New York Stock Exchange. All 10 S&P 500 industry sector indexes rose at least 1 percent, led by the S&P information...

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Stanford holds off Wisconsin 20-14 in Rose Bowl

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Andrew Luck, Toby Gerhart and coach Jim Harbaugh started Stanford's improbable football renaissance, yet they never stood in the center of the Rose Bowl with the West Coast's most coveted trophy raised above their heads.In fact, the last Stanford team to do what the Cardinal did Tuesday night had a defense known as the Thunderchickens.Forty years after Stanford's last Rose...

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Baby Panda Rings in 2013

This little panda cub rang in the New Year with a clean bill of health.At a checkup Tuesday (Jan 1), caretakers determined that Xiao Liwu — the latest giant panda born at the San Diego Zoo — is healthy and getting stronger. The cub continues to sprout baby teeth and is mouthing, chewing and teething a bit, zoo officials said. At 22 weeks old, the baby bear weighs 16 pounds (7.3 kilograms) and measures...

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Time to rebrand in Lincoln's image?

Wade Henderson thinks the modern Republican Party should look to Abraham Lincoln for some inspiration.STORY HIGHLIGHTSWade Henderson: January 1 is 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation He says GOP should look to Lincoln, a canny politician who led moral fight on civil rightsHe says GOP has history of civil rights support that it has largely abandoned in recent yearsHenderson: In 2012,...

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Taxes to rise for most Americans despite 'fiscal cliff' deal

President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans looked...

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U.N. lifts Syria death toll to "truly shocking" 60,000

AMMAN/GENEVA (Reuters) - More than 60,000 people have died in Syria's uprising and civil war, the United Nations said on Wednesday, dramatically raising the death toll in a struggle that shows no sign of ending. In the latest violence, dozens were killed in a rebellious Damascus suburb when a government air strike turned a petrol station into an inferno, incinerating drivers who had rushed...

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Senate approves "fiscal cliff" deal, crisis eased

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate moved the U.S. economy back from the edge of a "fiscal cliff" on Tuesday, voting to avoid imminent tax hikes and spending cuts in a bipartisan deal that could still face stiff challenges in the House of Representatives. In a rare New Year's session at around 2 a.m. EST (0700 GMT), senators voted 89-8 to raise some taxes on the wealthy while making permanent...

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Reid among 7 NFL coaches sacked in firing frenzy

Andy Reid is the winningest coach in the history of the Philadelphia Eagles. Lovie Smith led the Chicago Bears to the 2007 Super Bowl.Now they're looking for work.Seven coaches and five general managers were fired Monday in a flurry of pink slips that were delivered the day after the regular-season ended.Ken Whisenhunt is out after helping Arizona reach the Super Bowl following the 2008 season. Also...

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How Gratitude Can Improve Your Life

As the new year begins, good things, however small, are happening.Someone’s loved one got a new job in San Francisco. In Charlottesville, a canceled reservation allowed someone else to get a seat on a sold-out train and arrive in time for a wedding. The storybook characters Pooh and Piglet made someone in East Sussex, England, happy, and in Colorado Springs, ever-reliable bacon brightened someone’s...

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