Top Stories

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  Gas prices hit another high for holiday weekend AP - Fri Jul 4, 8:11 AM ET

  NEW YORK - Fireworks aren't the only thing skyrocketing on this Fourth of July. The price of gas has hit another all-time high.

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  Chestnut wins hot dog contest after eat-off AP - 1 hour, 10 minutes ago

  NEW YORK - Joey Chestnut reclaimed the top spot at the annual hot dog eating contest in Coney Island on Friday after first tying with archrival Takeru Kobayashi in a 10-minute chow-down and then beating him in a five-dog eat-off.

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  Larry Harmon, longtime Bozo the Clown, dead at 83 AP - Fri Jul 4, 12:36 PM ET

  LOS ANGELES - Larry Harmon wasn't the original Bozo the Clown, but he was the real one. Harmon, who portrayed the wing-haired clown for more than half a century, died Thursday of congestive heart failure, said his publicist, Jerry Digney. He was 83.

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  Court orders YouTube to give Viacom video logs AP - Fri Jul 4, 7:52 AM ET

  NEW YORK - Dismissing privacy concerns, a federal judge overseeing a $1 billion copyright-infringement lawsuit against YouTube has ordered the popular online video-sharing service to disclose who watches which video clips and when.

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  Federer, Nadal back in Wimbledon final AP - 1 hour, 35 minutes ago

  WIMBLEDON, England - Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will meet in their third consecutive Wimbledon final after commanding semifinal victories Friday.

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  Former Sen. Jesse Helms dies Reuters - 17 minutes ago

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Former Sen. Jesse Helms, a die-hard anti-communist firebrand who championed a wide range of conservative causes in his 30 years in the Senate, died early on Friday, aged 86, a foundation dedicated to his legacy said.

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  Firefighters hold line on California wildfires Reuters - 2 hours, 12 minutes ago

  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - California firefighters held the line overnight on two wildfires burning along the California coast that threatened more than 4,000 homes and other structures, fire officials said on Friday morning.

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  Sarkozy greets Betancourt in Paris Reuters - 2 hours, 58 minutes ago

  PARIS (Reuters) - French-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt landed in Paris on Friday to an emotional welcome from President Nicolas Sarkozy, who had made her release from captivity in the Colombian jungle a foreign policy priority.

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  Mugabe says opposition must drop claim to power Reuters - Fri Jul 4, 12:41 PM ET

  HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe, defiant despite growing African condemnation of his re-election, said on Friday the opposition must drop its claim to power and accept that he was the rightful head of state.

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  Iran responds to big powers' nuclear offer Reuters - 39 minutes ago

  TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran responded on Friday to an incentives package offered by six world powers aimed at resolving a standoff over its disputed nuclear ambitions.

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  Obama wades into controversy with Iraq comments Reuters - Fri Jul 4, 1:14 AM ET

  FARGO, North Dakota (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama waded into controversy on Thursday over his plans to withdraw U.S. combat troops from Iraq, first saying he might "refine" his views but later declaring his stance had remained unchanged for more than a year.

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  Poland rejects U.S. missile shield offer Reuters - 1 hour, 6 minutes ago

  WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland spurned as insufficient on Friday a U.S. offer to boost its air defenses in return for basing anti-missile interceptors on its soil but said it remained open to talks with Washington.

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  G8 to tackle inflation, but concrete action elusive Reuters - Fri Jul 4, 5:12 AM ET

  TOKYO (Reuters) - G8 leaders aim to present a united front against global inflation, driven by soaring oil and food prices, at a summit in Japan next week, but solving the problem requires more than just a strong message from rich nations.

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  Freed hostage Betancourt gets hero's welcome in France AFP - 44 minutes ago

  PARIS (AFP) - Freed Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt said Friday she owed her life to France as President Nicolas Sarkozy gave her a hero's welcome to Paris, turning the page on her six-year hostage ordeal.

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  Recognise me as Zimbabwe president or no talks: Mugabe AFP - 2 hours, 51 minutes ago

  HARARE (AFP) - Robert Mugabe ruled out the prospect of talks with his opponents on ending Zimbabwe's political crisis Friday unless they acknowledged his victory in a one-man presidential election.

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  Iran responds to world powers' nuclear offer AFP - 1 hour, 26 minutes ago

  TEHRAN (AFP) - Iran on Friday handed world powers its "constructive and creative" response to their letter presenting proposals to end the five-year standoff over its contested nuclear programme, top officials said.

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  Europe weighs price of unity on climate, energy policy AFP - 1 hour, 13 minutes ago

  PARIS (AFP) - European environment ministers on Friday wrapped up a two-day meeting that exposed an East-West divide within the EU over how to slash carbon pollution across the 27-nation bloc by 2020.

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  Phoenix scientists soon will analyze Martian ice AFP - 1 hour, 19 minutes ago

  WASHINGTON (AFP) - Scientists with the US Phoenix lander will make their first analysis of Martian ice fragments in coming days but it could be the last done in one of the probe's small ovens, NASA said on its website Friday.

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  Subprime-hit UBS says could break even second quarter AFP - Fri Jul 4, 11:32 AM ET

  ZURICH (AFP) - Swiss banking giant UBS, hit hard by the subprime crisis, on Friday said it would break even or report a slight loss for its second quarter thanks to a substantial tax credit.

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  Oil prices fall after record highs AFP - Fri Jul 4, 11:13 AM ET

  LONDON (AFP) - Oil prices fell Friday on profit-taking, a day after surging to record highs on the back of a weak dollar and concerns over tight supplies, traders said.

Most Popular Top Stories

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  Obama wades into controversy with Iraq comments Reuters - Thu Jul 3, 6:34 PM ET

  FARGO, North Dakota (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama waded into controversy on Thursday over his plans to withdraw U.S. combat troops from Iraq, first saying he might "refine" his views but later declaring his stance had remained unchanged for more than a year.

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  Fountain of youth? Red wine gives up secrets Reuters - Thu Jul 3, 12:52 PM ET

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A compound in red wine may ward off a variety of medical conditions related to aging, providing heart benefits, stronger bones and preventing eye cataracts, researchers said on Thursday.

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  World must brace for oil beyond $150 Reuters - Fri Jul 4, 11:18 AM ET

  LONDON (Reuters) - Oil's meteoric rise since the start of the year to nearly $150 has distressed consumers and policy makers the world over, but the stark reality is prices are likely to rise higher still.