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Factions reach agreement BEIRUT, Lebanon -- Lebanon's feuding factions reached a breakthrough deal today that ends the country's 18-month political stalemate, but also gives the militant Hezbollah group and its allies veto over any government decision
Factions reach agreement BEIRUT, Lebanon -- Lebanon's feuding factions reached a breakthrough deal today that ends the country's 18-month political stalemate, but also gives the militant Hezbollah group and its allies veto over any government decision. The deal, reached with the help of Arab mediators, was immediately praised by Iran and Syria, which back Hezbollah. But it appears certain to accelerate fears in the West over Hezbollah's ne...
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Kennedy heads to Cape Cod BOSTON -- Sen
Kennedy heads to Cape Cod BOSTON -- Sen. Edward M. Kennedy gave a thumbs up to well-wishers and kisses to relatives as he walked out of the hospital today, a day after learning he has a cancerous brain tumor. A square bandage at the back of his head marked the spot where doctors performed a biopsy Monday that led them to diagnose the Massachusetts Democrat with malignant glioma. Experts say such tumors are almost always fatal. Kennedy's dogs,...
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Chiefs add 6 rookie free agents
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The Kansas City Chiefs signed six rookie free agents to two-year contracts on Tuesday. Terms were not available for the contracts signed by guards L.J. Anderson and Edwin Harrison, safety Khayyam Burns, linebackers Weston Dacus and Lerue Rumph, and running back Dantrell Savage. Anderson played 36 games in three seasons at Central Florida, including 11 starts at right guard last year when he helped running back Kevin S...
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GM workers at K.C. plant begin voting
KANSAS CITY (AP) -- Union members at General Motors Corp.'s Fairfax assembly plant in Kansas City, Kan., have begun voting on a tentative deal that will end a 3-week-old strike. United Auto Workers Local 31 went on strike May 5 after failing to reach an agreement with the plant's management. Union president Jeff Manning says the new agreement largely addresses concerns the union had about job security, seniority and assigning jobs in the plan...
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Torch relay to resume after mourning
NINGBO, China (AP) -- The Olympic torch resumes its journey through China on Thursday after a three-day period of national mourning for victims of the coutnry's devastating earthquake. The torch relay will resume at a container port in eastern China's seaport city of Ningbo, traveling through the city and across the Hangzhou Bay bridge to Jiaxing. Later Thursday it was to be moved by vehicle to the country's commercial center of Shanghai. ...
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Chicago Bulls win No. 1 lottery pick
SECAUCUS, N.J. (AP) -- Suddenly, a coaching search isn't the only big decision facing the Chicago Bulls. Now they have to figure out what to do with the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft. The Bulls were the surprise winners of the draft lottery Tuesday night, giving them the right to choose between Michael Beasley and Derrick Rose. Hiring a new coach and deciding what to do in free agency already figured to take up plenty of general manager John Pa...
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Judge delays abortion case OLATHE -- A criminal case against a suburban Kansas City abortion clinic will be delayed almost two months because of an ongoing legal dispute over patients' medical records
Judge delays abortion case OLATHE -- A criminal case against a suburban Kansas City abortion clinic will be delayed almost two months because of an ongoing legal dispute over patients' medical records. A Johnson County judge today postponed a preliminary hearing in the case from next week until July 21-22. The hearing would determine whether District Attorney Phill Kline's case will go to trial. Kline has filed 107 charges against the clinic,...
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Families sue school over its 'English only' policy
WICHITA (AP) -- Four Hispanic families are suing St. Anne's Catholic School over a policy that requires students to speak English at all times while at school. The lawsuit, filed Monday, calls for an end to the policy and asks for an order barring similar policies at other diocese schools. It seeks the return of one student to the school who was allegedly kicked out for refusing to sign the "English only" pledge. And it asks for court costs a...
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Masterson is masterful in BoSox win
BOSTON (AP) -- Rookie Justin Masterson pulled into town in time to watch Jon Lester's no-hitter on his hotel television. Then he pitched the Boston Red Sox to another win over the Kansas City Royals, even though the 2-1 victory Tuesday night might not have met his wildest expectations after he watched Lester's masterpiece. "I was excited. Of course, then the (television) announcer said, 'Have fun following this one, Justin,'" Masterson said w...
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Celtics beat Pistons 88-79
BOSTON (AP) -- The Boston Celtics think they might be reaping the dividends of a couple of grueling series early in the NBA playoffs. The Celtics started fast Tuesday night against the sluggish Pistons and won 88-79 to take a 1-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals against a team that waited six days for the series to begin. "Whenever you play so many games in the playoffs, you learn a lot about yourselves," said Paul Pierce, who had 22 poi...
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Owner: Rams aren't moving
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- One of the new owners of the Rams says he has been approached by "several people" about selling the team and there is "every intention" of keeping the NFL franchise in St. Louis. Chip Rosenbloom issued a statement Tuesday, denying a report by Yahoo Sports that the team was on the market and being shopped for up to $900 million, with a sale raising the possibility of a return to Los Angeles. The story quoted former 49ers owne...
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NEW YORK (AP) -- Spot nonferrous metal prices today
NEW YORK (AP) -- Spot nonferrous metal prices today. Aluminum -$1.350 per lb., London Metal Exch. today. Copper -$3.8480 Cathode full plate, U.S. destinations. Copper $3.7905 N.Y. Merc spot Tue. Lead - $2110.00 metric ton, London Metal Exch. Zinc - $1.0438 per lb., delivered. Gold - $923.00 Handy & Harman (only daily quote). Gold - $919.50 troy oz., NY Merc spot Mon. Silver - $17.900 Handy & Harman (only daily quote). Silver - $17.671 troy oz...
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Panel delays casino application vote
TOPEKA (AP) -- After two days of listening to 11 developers pitch their competing casino projects, the Kansas Lottery Commission postponed voting until next week on the which contracts to endorse because signed agreements haven't been reached. At the urging of the Lottery staff, the commission said Tuesday it would meet May 27 -- the deadline for signing contracts with those wanting to manage the state-owned and state-operated casinos in Wyan...
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Merck pays state $1.2 million in settlement share
TOPEKA (AP) -- Kansas is receiving $1.2 million from a multistate settlement with the manufacturer of the painkiller Vioxx, and the attorney general's office plans to use the money for consumer protection programs. Attorney General Steve Six announced Tuesday that his office had filed a judgment in Shawnee County District Court to claim the state's share. Kansas, 28 other states and the District of Columbia had been investigating Merck & Co. ...
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Mennonite church opens doors for Hispanic faithful
NEWTON (AP) -- The two-story white house at 510 S.E. Second in Newton looks like any other family home on the block, but a different kind family has made this house a home -- a religious family. A new Hispanic Mennonite church has been planted in Newton and is meeting in the house, which is owned by the First Mennonite Church, which is located across the block. The church is the only Mennonite service in Spanish offered in the state, accordin...
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Evidence analyst determined to find truth
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Whether searching for the truth or standing up for what she believes to be right, Jenny Smith does not back down. In her work at the Highway Patrol crime lab as a trace evidence analyst, Smith said she is "determined to get at the truth of it, so some good can come from it, some resolution for somebody." And in her community service with historic preservation organizations, Smith analyzes the situation and promo...
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NFL owners opt out of labor agreement
ATLANTA (AP) -- The NFL owners voted unanimously today to end their agreement with the players' union in 2011, two years before the deal was to expire. The league, however, emphasized that it will keep negotiating with the NFL Players Association and said games will be played "without threat of interruption for at least the next three seasons." The owners had until Nov. 8 to opt out of the agreement, a provision written into the deal when it ...
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Defense claims feds took over Kansas medical board
WICHITA (AP) -- Prosecutors "commandeered" the Kansas Board of Healing Arts, improperly asserting federal authority over the regulation of medicine in their prosecution of a Kansas doctor charged with illegally prescribing narcotic painkillers, his defense attorneys said. Court documents filed in the criminal case against Dr. Stephen Schneider and his wife, Linda, contend their prosecution is an abuse of the federal criminal process and an af...
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Boyda now supports GI Bill reform
TOPEKA (AP) -- A former Marine with two tours in Iraq and one to Liberia is hoping the Senate follows the House's lead on reforming the GI Bill. Dan Parker, who spent five years in the Marines, is now attending the University of Kansas on the GI Bill. He said Monday that the additional funding proposed in a bill passed by the House last week would encourage more veterans to go to college and complete their degrees. He said the Senate should p...
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New opportunities for future medical assistants
SALINA (AP) -- When Melissa Franklin graduates from Salina Area Technical School's new medical assistant program in a few weeks, she'll have the mix of skills that will allow her to shift between, say, starting an IV, and handling the filing and billing. Or, as program director Jane Peterson puts it, "they learn both clinical and clerical." "I've always been interested in the medical field, and this is a growing need," said Franklin, who said...
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