EBay’s double tax base prompts calls for investigation

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain and Germany may have missed out on a combined $ 1 billion in sales tax since online marketplace eBay picked a tiny Luxembourg office as its base for EU sales, a shift that lawmakers say should now be investigated.EBay’s nomination of Luxembourg unit eBay Europe Sarl – with a staff of nine – as its provider of services to EU clients allows it to charge customers in Europe...

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Dr. Andrew Moore Performs Life-Changing Surgeries for Free

Heroes Among Us By Jennifer Wren 12/01/2012 at 09:40 AM EST Dr. Andrew Moore (center, in scrubs) with staff members, from left: Shirley Ramsey, Barry Bussell and Tony Reyes John Chiasson When an increasing number of his patients couldn't pay for their life-saving...

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South Africa makes progress in HIV/AIDS fight

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — In the early 90s when South Africa's Themba Lethu clinic could only treat HIV/AIDS patients for opportunistic diseases, many would come in on wheelchairs and keep coming to the health center until they died.Two decades later the clinic is the biggest ARV (anti-retroviral) treatment center in the country and sees between 600 to 800 patients a day from all over southern Africa. Those...

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Cliff fight may knock out December rally

NEW YORK (Reuters) - In normal times, next week's slew of U.S. economic data could be a springboard for a December rally in the stock market. December is historically a strong month for markets. The S&P 500 has risen 16 times in the past 20 years during the month. But the market hasn't been operating under normal circumstances since November 7 when a day after the U.S....

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General Assembly Grants Palestine Upgraded Status in U.N.

Damon Winter/The New York TimesThe Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, center, was congratulated by Turkey’s foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu. More Photos »UNITED NATIONS — More than 130 countries voted on Thursday to upgrade Palestine to a nonmember observer state of the United Nations, a triumph for Palestinian diplomacy and a sharp rebuke to the United States and Israel. But...

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RIM stock rises after Goldman Sachs upgrade

TORONTO (AP) — Research In Motion rose Thursday after Goldman Sachs upgraded the phone maker’s shares, saying there’s a “30 percent chance” RIM‘s much-delayed BlackBerry 10 smartphones will be a success.THE SPARK: Goldman Sachs analyst Simona Jankowski lifted RIM to “Buy” from “Neutral,” the latest analyst to voice a slightly more optimistic view for the troubled company. Goldman lifted its 12-month...

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Katie Holmes Plants Her Stake on Broadway - and Succeeds

By Tom Gliatto 11/30/2012 at 09:45 AM EST Katie Holmes and Norbert Leo Butz at the curtain call of Dead Accounts on opening night Andrew H. Walker/Getty     You'll want to know what sort of performance Katie Holmes gives in Theresa Rebeck's...

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Ukraine fights spreading HIV epidemic

BUCHA, Ukraine (AP) — Andrei Mandrykin, an inmate at Prison No. 85 outside Kiev, has HIV. He looks ghostly and much older than his 35 years. But Mandrykin is better off than tens of thousands of his countrymen, because is he receiving treatment amid what the World Health Organization says is the worst AIDS epidemic in Europe.Ahead of World AIDS Day on Saturday, international organizations have urged...

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Wall Street opens flat, Obama to speak on "cliff"

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street opened flat on Friday, amid caution ahead of a statement from President Obama on the progress of budget talks in Washington that have fueled volatility and nervousness in the financial markets. The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> gained 5.45 points, or 0.04 percent, to 13,027.27. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> dropped 0.51 points,...

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Hacking Report Criticizes Murdoch Newspaper and British Press Standards

LONDON — The leader of a major inquiry into the standards of British newspapers triggered by the phone hacking scandal offered an excoriating critique of the press as a whole on Thursday, saying it displayed “significant and reckless disregard for accuracy,” and urged the press to form an independent regulator to be underpinned by law. Dan Kitwood/Getty ImagesLord Justice Sir Brian Leveson...

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Past hosts teaming for Spike Video Game Awards

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Spike Video Game Awards are assembling past hosts.The cable network announced Thursday that the gaming extravaganza’s previous emcees would join “The Avengers” star and four-time VGAs host Samuel L. Jackson at next week’s show.Previous hosts Zachary Levi, Snoop Lion, Jack Black and Neil Patrick Harris are set to appear at the 10th annual ceremony.The show will also feature debut...

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Jude Law: I'm Okay Not Being 'That Young Pretty Thing' Anymore

Stylewatch Style News Now 11/29/2012 at 09:15 AM ET Courtesy T, The New York Times Style MagazineWhile most people dread getting older, Jude Law is actually thrilled about it. And not for any reason you’d expect.“In a weird way, it’s kind of a relief to think, ‘Oh, I know I’m not that young sort of pretty...

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Wall Street climbs at open on "cliff" deal hope

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose in early trading on Thursday on optimism that Congress was progressing toward a fiscal agreement in Washington that would avert a possible recession. Market participants are focused on discussions in Congress over avoiding big spending cuts and tax hikes, known as the "fiscal cliff," beginning in January. Still, equities may retreat, as they did Tuesday,...

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News Analysis: Sunni Leaders Gaining Clout in Mideast

Mohammed Saber/European Pressphoto AgencyA Palestinian woman in Gaza City on Tuesday walked amid the rubble left from eight days of fighting that ended in a cease-fire. RAMALLAH, West Bank — For years, the United States and its Middle East allies were challenged by the rising might of the so-called Shiite crescent, a political and ideological alliance backed by Iran that linked regional actors deeply...

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Angus T. Jones's Video Surprises Two and a Half Men Set

By Mike Fleeman 11/28/2012 at 08:35 AM EST After the Charlie Sheen tiger blood debacle, it would seem that nothing could shock the cast and crew of Two and a Half Men anymore.Then came the Angus T. Jones video."This came as a surprise to most people. This isn't who he grew up as," a source on the show tells...

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CDC: HIV spread high in young gay males

NEW YORK (AP) — Health officials say 1 in 5 new HIV infections occur in a tiny segment of the population — young men who are gay or bisexual.The government on Tuesday released new numbers that spotlight how the spread of the AIDS virus is heavily concentrated in young males who have sex with other males. Only about a quarter of new infections in the 13-to-24 age group are from injecting drugs or heterosexual...

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Wall Street opens lower on "cliff" worry

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks opened lower on Wednesday, putting the S&P 500 on track for a third consecutive decline, as investors remained on edge given the lack of details on U.S. budget, or so-called fiscal cliff, talks. The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> dropped 53.22 points, or 0.41 percent, to 12,824.91. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> dropped 7.44...

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Anti-Morsi Protesters Gather on Cairo Streets

CAIRO — Demonstrators began flowing into the streets of Cairo on Tuesday for a day of protest against President Mohamed Morsi’s effort to assert broad new powers, dismissing his efforts only hours before to reaffirm his deference to Egyptian law and courts.   Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the headquarters of the lawyers’ trade group as others milled around a small tent city...

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Card firms’ block on WikiLeaks did not break rules: EU

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – A block on processing donations for WikiLeaks by Visa Europe and other credit card companies is unlikely to have violated EU anti-trust rules, the European Commission said on Tuesday.DataCell, a company that collected donations for WikiLeaks, complained to the Commission about Visa Europe, MasterCard Europe and American Express Co after they stopped processing donations for WikiLeaks...

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The Voice Singers Tackle Risky Songs

TV Watch The Voice By Julia Haskins 11/27/2012 at 09:30 AM EST From left: Cassadee Pope, Terry McDermott, Dez Duron, host Carson Daly, Cody Belew, Nicholas David, Trevin Hunte, Melanie Martinez and Amanda Brown Tyler Golden/NBC With the competition as fierce as...

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Bounce houses a party hit but kids' injuries soar

CHICAGO (AP) — They may be a big hit at kids' birthday parties, but inflatable bounce houses can be dangerous, with the number of injuries soaring in recent years, a nationwide study found.Kids often crowd into bounce houses, and jumping up and down can send other children flying into the air, too.The numbers suggest 30 U.S. children a day are treated in emergency rooms for broken bones, sprains,...

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Market opens down on "fiscal cliff" caution

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks opened slightly lower on as worry over the threat to the economy posed by the "fiscal cliff" offset optimism from a deal to ease Greece's debt burden. The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> dropped 33.02 points, or 0.25 percent, to 12,934.35. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> shed 2.58 points, or 0.18 percent, to 1,403.71. The Nasdaq Composite...

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As Rebels Gain, Congo Again Slips Into Chaos

GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo — The lights are out in most of Goma. There is little water. The prison is an empty, garbage-strewn wasteland with its rusty front gate swinging wide open and a three-foot hole punched through the back wall, letting loose 1,200 killers, rapists, rogue soldiers and other criminals. Now, rebel fighters are going house to house arresting people, many of whom...

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Prince Charles Is Impatient to Be King - Or Is He Joking?

By Andrea Billups 11/26/2012 at 08:45 AM EST Prince Charles and Queen Elizabeth Indigo/Getty; Abaca Is the man who would be king tired of waiting his turn?Speculation reigned in Great Britain this weekend after Prince Charles spoke of his "impatience" at an event to promote his 64th birthday...

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Bounce houses a party hit but kids' injuries soar

CHICAGO (AP) — They may be a big hit at kids' birthday parties, but inflatable bounce houses can be dangerous, with the number of injuries soaring in recent years, a nationwide study found.Kids often crowd into bounce houses, and jumping up and down can send other children flying into the air, too.The numbers suggest 30 U.S. children a day are treated in emergency rooms for broken bones, sprains,...

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