Egyptians back new constitution in referendum

CAIRO (Reuters) - An Islamist-backed Egyptian constitution won approval in a referendum, rival camps said on Sunday, after a vote the opposition said would sow deep social divisions in the Arab world's most populous nation. The Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, which propelled President Mohamed Mursi to power in a June election, said an unofficial tally showed 64 percent of voters backed the...

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US lobby issues point-blank 'no' on gun control

WASHINGTON: The most powerful gun lobby in the United States ruled out Sunday any support for greater regulation of firearms or ammunition magazines in the wake of the Sandy Hook school massacre.Wayne LaPierre, the executive vice president of the National Rifle Association (NRA), said planned legislation to outlaw military-style assault weapons and large-capacity magazines was "phony"...

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Govt issues notification to review sexual assault-related laws

NEW DELHI: Government on Sunday issued a notification for reviewing the present laws to provide speedier justice and enhanced punishment in cases of aggravated sexual assault.Announcing this, Union home minister Sushilkumar Shinde said government is serious about taking stringent action against those involved in the Delhi gang rape case at the earliest."The notification reflects how serious the...

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Predicting who's at risk for violence isn't easy

CHICAGO (AP) — It happened after Columbine, Virginia Tech, Aurora, Colo., and now Sandy Hook: People figure there surely were signs of impending violence. But experts say predicting who will be the next mass shooter is virtually impossible — partly because as commonplace as these calamities seem, they are relatively rare crimes.Still, a combination of risk factors in troubled kids or adults including...

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NRA Chief LaPierre: 'Call Me Crazy'

National Rifle Association CEO Wayne LaPierre fired back at his critics today, defending his proposal to put armed guards in every school in the country as a way to prevent future tragedies like the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that took the lives of 20 children and six adults."If it's crazy to call for armed officers in our schools to protect our children, then call...

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Vice president quits as Egypt votes on constitution

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's vice-president resigned on Saturday as Egyptians voted in a referendum that is expected to approve a new constitution that lays the foundations for the country's transition to democracy but will strip him of his role. Authorities extended voting by four hours in the second and decisive round of the plebiscite on an Islamist-drafted constitution that the opposition...

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US politicians trade blame over 'fiscal cliff' talks

WASHINGTON: Democratic and Republican leaders traded blame as they left for the Christmas holiday amid fading hope of an agreement to avert a year-end fiscal crisis that could lead to stiff tax hikes and drastic budget cuts.In the weekly Republican Party radio address on Saturday, House Speaker John Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, said that President Barack Obama's proposal to...

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Narendra Modi to move into 'North Block' in January

AHMEDABAD: While Narendra Modi may take some time to move to Delhi, he is poised to shift to a newly-built office in Gandhinagar which is already being unofficially dubbed as the 'North Block'. The move will happen soon after the 'kamurtas', or the inauspicious period that ends in mid-January. The Prime Minister, incidently, operates out of South Block in New Delhi. The new Rs 150-crore CMO complex,...

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Predicting who's at risk for violence isn't easy

CHICAGO (AP) — It happened after Columbine, Virginia Tech, Aurora, Colo., and now Sandy Hook: People figure there surely were signs of impending violence. But experts say predicting who will be the next mass shooter is virtually impossible — partly because as commonplace as these calamities seem, they are relatively rare crimes.Still, a combination of risk factors in troubled kids or adults including...

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'Fiscal Cliff' Leaves Boehner a Wounded Speaker

John Boehner is a bloodied House speaker following the startling setback that his own fractious Republican troops dealt him in their "fiscal cliff" struggle against President Barack Obama.There's plenty of internal grumbling about the Ohio Republican, especially among conservatives, and lots of buzzing about whether his leadership post is in jeopardy. But it's uncertain whether...

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