June 2010 Archives

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The Gulf oil spill has prompted a lot of soul-searching.

As the oil continues to spill in the Gulf of Mexico, what to do about off-shore drilling and the regulation of the oil industry is cause for debate in Congress and among coastal residents. Now add to this another dimension: religion.
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Focus on the Family is helping push legislation across the country requiring women to undergo an ultrasound and, if they choose, to view the images before they get an abortion.

Fire Damages Promise Keepers Office

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Promise Keepers (PK) has sustained "substantial" losses after a fire broke out at its ministry headquarters in Denver Sunday.
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The very word "evangelical" stands for someone who wants to bring the Gospel to others. But are current models -- teach your children, entice your friends -- working?
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Remember that mini-media blitz of 2008 stories saying hard times prompt people to attend a church, synagogue or mosque more often? A few booming churches were shown to present a case that recession had a spiritual silver lining.
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Gen. Stanley McChrystal resigned as the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan last week.
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Unknown vandals unhappy about atheists' billboard in Charlotte, N.C., spray-painted "Under God" on the ad, the city's atheist association discovered Monday. 
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This undated image taken from the Russian social networking website "Odnoklassniki", or Classmates, shows a woman journalists have identified as Anna Chapman, who appeared at a hearing Monday, June 28, 2010 in New York federal court. Chapman, along with 10 others, was arrested on charges of conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government without notifying the U.S. attorney general. The caption on Odnoklassniki reads "Russia, Moscow. Left 4 dead???"

Anna Chapman has been called the femme fatale of a spy case with Cold War-style intrigue - a striking redhead and self-styled entrepreneur who dabbled in real estate and mused on her Facebook page, "if you can dream, you can become it."
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Supporters of Rodolfo Torre mourn next to his coffin during his funeral.

President Seeks Unified Support for Drug War After Opposition Party's Candidate is Assassinated Days Before Election
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Newly appointed Prime Minister, Julia Gillard speaks during the House of Representatives question time in the Parliament House on June 24, 2010 in Canberra, Australia.

The Australian Christian Lobby has warned that Julia Gillard might have alienated Christian voters by declaring she does not believe in God.
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Former President Bill Clinton held discussions with Prime Minister Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Tuesday outside Moscow.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Tuesday criticized U.S. law enforcement, even as his government acknowledged that its citizens were among the 11 people that U.S. authorities charged were part of a long-running spy operation.
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MONTCLAIR, N.J. F.B.I. agents arrested Richard and Cynthia Murphy at their suburban home on Sunday night.

Russia has demanded an explanation from the United States over the arrest of 10 alleged Russian secret agents accused of operating a "deep cover" spying mission in the US.
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Rose Angiro has a favorite proverb: when two bulls fight, it is only the grass that suffers. Angiro, a maize farmer in western Kenya, is talking about Kenya's politicians and church leaders, who are locked in battle over a draft constitution that Kenya's 44 million people will vote on in August. 

News Corp. Sells Beliefnet to BN Media

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Steven Waldman, founder of BeliefNet.Net. 

News Corp. has sold Beliefnet, a spirituality website, to an investment group.
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Buried deep within each cell in Sergey Brin's body--in a gene called LRRK2, which sits on the 12th chromosome--is a genetic mutation that has been associated with higher rates of Parkinson's.

Several evenings a week, after a day's work at Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, Sergey Brin drives up the road to a local pool. There, he changes into swim trunks, steps out on a 3-meter springboard, looks at the water below, and dives.
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On Dec. 14, 1934, a failed stockbroker named Bill Wilson was struggling with alcoholism at a New York City detox center.
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Claremont President Jerry Campbell says: "We want our future religious leaders to understand the landscape in which they will be leading."

The longstanding relationship between the two had been threatened by the school's plans to train Muslim and Jewish clerics as well as Christian ones.

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A University of California law school's refusal to give official student group status to a Christian Legal Society chapter because it excludes gays was a reasonable application of anti-discrimination policies, the U.S. Supreme Court said Monday in a 5-4 ruling.
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Beauty queen Carrie Prejean is about to add a veil to her crown.
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In an image provided by CNN, talk show host Larry King is shown on the set of his program "Larry King Live" at the CNN studios in Los Angeles, Thursday, March 17, 2005. King, who interviewed statesmen and stars from a prime-time perch at CNN for 25 years but has faded in ratings and influence lately, said Tuesday June 29, 2010 that he will step down this fall from his nightly show.

CNN is preparing for a summertime search to find the successor to Larry King, who announced suddenly that he's leaving the show that has been the centerpiece of the news network's lineup for 25 years.
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David Villa of Spain is challenged by Ricardo Costa and Tiago of Portugal during the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Round of Sixteen match between Spain and Portugal at Green Point Stadium on June 29, 2010 in Cape Town, South Africa.

David Villa is not even the richest and most famous player in Spain's attacking line, let alone the Spanish team. Yet what Villa lacks in celebrity attraction he more than makes up with his performances on the field.
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David Villa scoring his fourth goal of this tournament as Spain ended Portugal's 19-game unbeaten streak, and its World Cup Tuesday.

David Villa finished off a move of Spanish perfection to finally break down Portugal's defensive wall Tuesday, giving the European champions a 1-0 win and a spot in the World Cup quarterfinals.
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Paraguay's Oscar Cardozo, right, celebrated after scoring the decisive goal in the shootout.

Paraguay had tried and tried and tried to reach the quarterfinals of the World Cup. But despite reaching the Round of 16 in two of the previous three tournaments, poor performances and superior opponents kept the South Americans from advancing.

Nadal, Soderling to Renew Rivalry

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Rafael Nadal of Spain practises during Day Eight of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 29, 2010 in London, England. Murray will meet Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France in the quarter-finals on June 30.

While waiting nearly 1 1/2 years for another shot at Roger Federer on a Grand Slam stage, Rafael Nadal has developed a pretty fair rivalry with Robin Soderling.
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Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria (L) celebrates winning her Quarter Final match against Venus Williams of USA (R) on Day Eight of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 29, 2010 in London, England.

An hour later, Venus Williams still seemed stunned. In the 10 previous years at Wimbledon, she had played in eight finals and triumphed five times and, somewhere along the way, this tournament became her tournament.
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Sepp Blatter, president of FIFA, at the Germany v England match. Germany beat England 4-1 and eliminated them from the World Cup.

England's and Mexico's misfortunes prompted a previously recalcitrant Sepp Blatter, the president of FIFA, to apologize on Tuesday for refereeing errors and to announce that he would reopen the discussion about the use of goal-line technology in soccer.
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In the 35th minute, Maicon's corner kick found Brazil's center back, Juan, who headed the ball to put his team ahead 1-0.

Let others complain about a lack of beauty. Dunga, Brazil's coach, is concerned only about winning. The World Cup is, after all, a soccer tournament. The goal is to put another trophy in the case, not to hang a picture on the wall.
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Arjen Robben, in his first tournament start, put the Netherlands up, 1-0, in the 18th minute.

Impressive for extended stretches if not yet entirely convincing, the Netherlands continued doing what matters most on Monday by winning its second-round World Cup match against Slovakia.
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Yen-Hsun Lu of Taipei greets Andy Roddick of USA after defeating him on Day Seven of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 28, 2010 in London, England.

After the final ball bounced past him, Andy Roddick showed a facial expression somewhere between dumbfounded and perplexed. Defeat had sneaked up behind him, suddenly and dramatically.
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Steve Jobs became the butt of countless jokes over the weekend after declaring that there's a right and wrong way to hold the iPhone 4. But that didn't stop throngs of eager customers from lining up to buy one.
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(In Stores Everywhere, Thursday, July 1, 2010)
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Mpower Pictures ("The Stoning of Soraya M.") and Beloved Pictures are teaming to co-produce C.S. Lewis' fantasy novel "The Great Divorce."

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Miriam Davis, of Siloam Springs, Ark. sets up up the DaySpring Cards, Inc. booth at the International Christian Retailer Show, held at the America's Center. DaySpring sells Christian greeting cards, gifts and is a subsidiary of Hallmark Cards, Inc. The International Christian Retailer Show goes through Wednesday, June 30. 

To get to the movie section at Lifeway Christian Store in Bridgeton, customers pass by shelves of books, CDs and greeting cards. The rack of Christian DVDs isn't huge, but it's twice as big as it was a year ago and "growing all the time," said manager Francine Evans.
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Kim Clijsters, left, and Justine Henin shook hands after their match on Monday. Clijsters won 2-6, 6-2, 6-3.

All Monday, Wimbledon bombarded the senses with an overload of tennis, an embarrassment of must-see match-ups held from early afternoon to evening, from Center Court to Court 18.
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Ms. Kagan, the solicitor general, before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday.

Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday that justices on the nation's highest court should be even-handed and impartial in order to promise "nothing less than a fair shake for every American."

Seeking God's Help for a Wounded Gulf

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The assistant pastor at the Fishermen Baptist Church in Bon Secour, Ala., asked the men of the congregation to come forward for a prayer.

In a small white building along the baptizing Bon Secour River, a building that once housed a shrimp-net business, the congregation of the Fishermen Baptist Church gathered for another Sunday service, with the preacher presiding from a pulpit designed to look like a ship captain's wheel.
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This photo is from CNN's Patrick Oppmann: A statue of Jesus keeps watch over Point Aux Chenes, a small mainly Native American community in the Louisiana bayou.  You can find more of CNN's oil spill coverage here.

Public Sees a Future Full of Promise and Peril
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A police officer outside the offices of the Archdiocese of Mechelen in Belgium on Thursday. Officers have been investigating sexual abuse by clerics.

In a sign of sharply rising tensions between the Vatican and Belgium, Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday criticized as "surprising and deplorable" a raid on church property last week by Belgian police officers investigating sexual abuse by clerics.
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Photo: Moscow

Russians' attitude towards the U.S. has warmed up and become more positive over the last year, an opinion pollster said on Monday.

Bristol Palin Plays a Teen Mom on TV

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Bristol Palin attends" The Harsh Truth: Teen Moms Tell All" Town Hall Meeting sposored by The Candie's Foundation at Lighthouse International Conference Center on May 5, 2010 in New York City.

Art imitates life with upcoming appearance on 'The Secret Life of the American Teenager'
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President Obama and other world leaders at the Group of 20 summit meeting in Toronto on Sunday.

Leaders of the world's biggest economies agreed Sunday on a timetable for cutting deficits and halting the growth of their debt, but also acknowledged the need to move carefully so that reductions in spending did not set back the fragile global recovery.
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The creater of Glee says he's adding a "Christian character" to the eclectic mix of show-stopper teens for its second season.

Are Your Vendors Happy?

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"Do I pay staff, payroll taxes, or the vendor?" After staring at the checkbook it was obvious I could only do one of the three. This is a dilemma many business leaders have faced, but now the decision was mine. 

Is Bankruptcy Ever Okay for a Christian?

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With many people still struggling to find work, bankruptcy filings continue to grow.  More than 500,000 people have filed so far this year, according to the National Bankruptcy Research Center.  That's up 17 percent from last year at this time.

We're All Living in Maradona's World Cup

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Diego Maradona head coach of Argentina celebrates with Gonzalo Higuain after he scores his side's second goal during the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Round of Sixteen match between Argentina and Mexico at Soccer City Stadium on June 27, 2010 in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Diego Maradona dominated the World Cup in 1986 like few players ever. Argentina won the event, of course, and Maradona was the awarded the Golden Ball as its best player. That was just a small part of it.

Hamburgers Linked to Asthma Risk in Kids

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Study Shows Higher Risk for Asthma in Kids Who Eat 3 or More Burgers a Week
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Argentina Coach Diego Maradona offered little sympathy afterward.

It was forward Carlos Tévez who said the words no one else was willing to speak: the only satisfactory World Cup for Argentina would be to win it.
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Germany's Thomas Muller, left, scored again to give his team a 4-1 lead over England. Germany would go on to win by the same score.

The Germans power on, but the English become the third of Europe's big five soccer nations to depart the World Cup woefully short of living up to their billing.
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Alex Rodriguez, right, talks to starting pitcher Andy Pettitte during the third inning.

Just when the Los Angeles Dodgers thought their lead was safe in the hands of one of the game's best closers, the mighty Yankees snatched away a win.
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Cristie Kerr poses with the trophy after her 12-stroke victory at the LPGA Championship presented by Wegmans 2010 at the Locust Hill Country Club on June 27, 2010 in Pittsford, New York.

Cristie Kerr spent all week discussing her dream to become the first American to be No. 1-ranked women's golfer in the world.
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United States Coach Bob Bradley, right, after his team was eliminated Saturday in overtime.

After 120 minutes, Bob Bradley was still not done coaching, even though his team had lost, 2-1, to Ghana in overtime in the Round of 16.
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Maria Sharapova of Russia returns a shot during her match against Barbora Zahlavova Strycova of Czech Republic on Day Six of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 26, 2010 in London, England.

Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova met in 2004 in the Wimbledon final, before time and circumstances sent them on divergent paths.
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Pushing forward in a search for the tying goal in the final frantic minutes put U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard, second from right, in the rare position of challenger to his Ghana counterpart, Richard Kingson.

Of course, the United States could not keep playing like this and hope to survive in the World Cup, using stress as its inspiration, anxiety as its caffeine.

Ergun Caner Out as Liberty School Dean

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A Baptist minister who toured the country to talk about his conversion from Islam to Christianity is no longer the dean of Liberty University's theological seminary following allegations he fabricated or embellished facts about his past, the school said Friday.

How Should Schools Handle Cyberbullying?

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Students at Benjamin Franklin Middle School in Ridgewood, N.J., are old hands at text messaging, but not all of the words are friendly.

The girl's parents, wild with outrage and fear, showed the principal the text messages: a dozen shocking, sexually explicit threats, sent to their daughter the previous Saturday night from the cellphone of a 12-year-old boy. Both children were sixth graders at Benjamin Franklin Middle School in Ridgewood, N.J.
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The country's first dog-fighting DNA database contains samples from victims like Reggie, a pit bull recovered in a 2009 raid, and helps establish ties among breeders, owners and pit operators.

Scientists and animal rights advocates have enlisted DNA evidence to do for man's best friend what the judicial system has long done for human crime victims. 

Porn Sites Closer to .xxx Web Address

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It may soon be easier to block Internet porn: The agency that controls domain names said Friday it will consider adding .xxx to the list of suffixes people and companies can pick when establishing their identities online.
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BeBe & CeCe Winans will officially have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, joining Oprah and producer Will.i.am, as 2011 honorees !
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One essential task for the Christian Church is to rebuild and maintain a marriage culture -- even when marriage itself no longer makes sense to so many around us.
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New Orleans Saints quarterback and Super Bowl XLIV MVP Drew Brees will take part in a book-signing tour next month to promote his autobiography.
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'A Sweet Seasons' book series

Christian young adult fiction has been given a cautious thumbs-up in a leading online secular magazine.
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Musician Chris Brown performs a Michael Jackson tribute onstage during the 2010 BET Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium on June 27, 2010 in Los Angeles, California.

It was comeback night at the BET Awards.
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Within hours of releasing his highly-anticipated third studio album, Between Two Worlds, Reach Records recording artist Trip Lee saw his June 22nd release debut in the Top 10 Albums Chart at iTunes. 

Jordin Sparks Sees Her Career Thriving

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Platinum pop singer Jordin Sparks, the impossibly young Season 6 winner of American Idol three years ago, hasn't even hit her 21st birthday.
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Adam Young of Owl City performs onstage at the Q102 Jingle Ball at the Susquehanna Bank Center on December 9, 2009 in Camden, New Jersey.

'I can't tell you what it means for people to want to hear the Sky Sailing songs,' Young tells MTV News.

The Hope and Imagination of PIXAR

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With Toy Story 3 now in theaters, it's a good time to reflect on two of the greatest virtues found in Pixar's films.
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Director of The Lovely Bones Peter Jackson speaks to the media during The Lovely Bones press conference at Intercontinental Hotel on December 14, 2009 in Wellington, New Zealand.

It seems Peter Jackson might direct the two "Hobbit" movies after all.
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The Senate has lost one of its legends with the death of Robert C. Byrd, an orphan child who married a coal miner's daughter and rose from the hollows of West Virginia coal country to become the longest serving senator in U.S. history.
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ATLANTA, (June 28, 2010) - The family feud continues in Patricia Haley's, Destined, the sequel to Chosen. 

More Protests Expected at G-20 Summit

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Police said they were preparing for more disruptions Sunday after groups of protesters burned cars, hurled bricks and smashed windows as they tried to penetrate the fence surrounding the G-20 summit.

America's Feuding Founding Fathers

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In the American imagination, the founding era shimmers as the golden age of political discourse, a time when philosopher-kings strode the public stage, dispensing wisdom with gentle civility. 

Nine Lies Women Think About Men

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Sitting across the table from my beautiful friend in the quaint coffee shop, my worry mounted. She was sharing details about her new whirlwind relationship that had begun a couple months earlier.
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Tropical Storm Alex -- the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season this year -- formed in the Caribbean on Saturday as BP continued to battle a massive oil spill in the Gulf.
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As any churchgoer who tuned in to watch the recent NBA finals contest between the Lakers and Celtics already knows, the term redemption is probably now heard more often in NBA sports broadcasts than in homilies. 

Joni Eareckson-Tada, founder of the ministry Joni and Friends, has been diagnosed with breast cancer.
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Last week President Obama nominated an ambassador at large for international religious freedom, a position created by the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act.
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Senators Christopher J. Dodd and Richard C. Shelby on Thursday.

Nearly two years after the American financial system teetered on the verge of collapse, Congressional negotiators reached agreement early Friday to reconcile competing versions of legislation that would transform financial regulation.
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President Obama and President Dmitri A. Medvedev of Russia (second right) talked after ordering lunch on Thursday at Ray's Hell Burger in Arlington, Va.

With recent accords on national security behind them, President Obama and President Dmitri A. Medvedev of Russia engaged in a bit of economic summitry on Thursday, with Mr. Obama pushing for more exports to Russia and Mr. Medvedev seeking more American business investment, especially in technology.
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President Obama was greeted by diplomats and local officials when he arrived at Lester B. Pearson International Airport in Toronto on Friday.

President Obama arrived here Friday for back-to-back meetings of world leaders that will test international unity on how to restore global economic growth.
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Julia Gillard and Wayne Swann leave a parliamentary meeting following the Labour leadership spill which saw Julia Gillard, the current deputy Prime Minister of Australia, call a leadership ballot for the role of Prime Minister at Parliament House on June 24, 2010 in Canberra, Australia. Gillard demanded the ballot as party support for current PM Kevin Rudd collapsed. However no votes were cast in the caucus held this morning at 09:00 AEST, as Rudd conceded and stood down, making Gillard Australia's first female Prime Minister, with current treasurer Wayne Swan moving into the role of Deputy.

Australia appointed its first woman prime minister, Julia Gillard, who vowed on Thursday to end division over a controversial mining tax, resurrect a carbon trade scheme and call elections within months.
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Mary Beth Chapman and Steven Curtis Chapman onstage at the 40th Annual GMA Dove Awards held at the Grand Ole Opry House on April 23, 2009 in Nashville, Tennessee.

'A Night with the Chapmans' will include Mary Beth talking about finding hope after tragedy
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John Wall, a point guard from Kentucky, shaking hands with N.B.A. Commissioner David Stern.

A half-hour before the Washington Wizards, to the surprise of almost no one, selected John Wall with the first pick over all in the N.B.A. draft, Wall sat at a table, wearing a gray pinstriped suit and a scowl, as if he had a game to play.
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John Isner reacted after losing a point to Thiemo de Bakker.

It seemed unfair, really. An impossible task. After his first-round match lasted for more than 11 hours, spread over three days, John Isner had only about 20 hours to recover before returning for his second-round match.
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Brazil's goalkeeper Julio Cesar made a save against Portugal's Raul Meireles.

Two of soccer's most prolific teams couldn't find the net Friday at the World Cup.
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North Korea's goalkeeper Ri Myong-Guk let a shot from Ivory Coast's Yaya Toure get past for a goal.

Ivory Coast bowed out of the World Cup in style.
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Fabio Quagliarella, who scored Italy's final goal, was distraught after the loss to Slovakia.

Like a car on a frigid morning, Italy always seemed to need time for its engine to turn over at the World Cup.
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Japan's Yasuhito Endo, left, celebrated his goal that gave his team a 2-0 lead. Japan went on to a 3-1 victory.

Take a bow, Japan. Better yet, take two. You've advanced at the World Cup.
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Klaas Jan Huntelaar of the Netherlands scored his team's second goal to make it 2-1.

The players were delighted, the coach was discomforted.
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Paraguay's Nelson Haedo Valdez, top, headed the ball in front of New Zealand's Rory Fallon.

Paraguay couldn't score against New Zealand. Then again, it didn't need to.
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Britain's Queen Elizabeth II meets Roger Federer, left, and Serena Williams as she attends the Wimbledon tournament for the first time in 33 years.

Andy Murray and Jarkko Nieminen walked onto Centre Court on Thursday, halted at the service line, turned toward the royal box and bowed. The burning question -- to bow, or not to bow -- had been answered.
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Venus Williams of USA in action during her match against Alisa Kleybanova of Russia on Day Five of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 25, 2010 in London, England.

Second-seeded Venus Williams has beaten Alisa Kleybanova 6-4, 6-2 to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon.

Serena Williams Advances at Wimbledon

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Serena Williams of USA in action during her second round match against Anna Chakvetadze of Russia on Day Four of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 24, 2010 in London, England.

Serena Williams has reached the third round at Wimbledon, routing Anna Chakvetadze (Chuk-veh-TAHD-zeh) 6-0, 6-1.
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Rafael Nadal of Spain in action during his second round match against Robin Haase of Netherlands on Day Four of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 24, 2010 in London, England.

Top-ranked Rafael Nadal has rallied in the second round at Wimbledon to beat Robin Haase of the Netherlands, 5-7, 6-2, 3-6, 6-0, 6-3.

Three Tied At 4 Under For Lead In L.P.G.A.

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Cristie Kerr, who shares of the first-round lead with Stacy Lewis and Seon Hwa Lee, hits her tee shot on the sixth hole during the first round of the LPGA Championship.

Already the top American in the world rankings, Cristie Kerr is aiming a little higher after taking a share of the lead after the first round of the L.P.G.A. Championship on Thursday.

A gallery of highlights from this year's edition of tennis' oldest Grand Slam event.

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Christine Acham looks over images with Ivan Dixon's widow, Berlie, for a documentary on "The Spook Who Sat by the Door."

When director Ivan Dixon and writer Sam Greenlee were trying to get the politically charged African-American film "The Spook Who Sat by the Door" made in the early 1970s, they faced major challenges in securing funding.
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Downtrodden Gulf Coast residents may soon have something besides the oil spill to worry about. But it's not really a "new" threat -- it's what they fret about every summer: tropical weather.
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Pictured: Gabe Lyons

Less Emphasis on Abortion -- More on Justice, Common Good, Equality
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We want to reach people with the Gospel--but at what cost to ourselves and our safety?
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Without a prayer: Lord Mayor of Leicester Colin Hall sparked outrage after he banned Christian prayers from council meetings.

An atheist lord mayor has ended the tradition of Christian prayers before council meetings less than a month after he took up the chains of office.

Americans' Confidence Waning in Obama

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President Barack Obama pauses in the East Room of the White House in Washington on April 6.

Americans are more pessimistic about the state of the country and less confident in President Barack Obama's leadership than at any point since Mr. Obama entered the White House, according to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll.
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President Obama leaving the Rose Garden after announcing that he had replaced Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal. His advisers were divided over how to handle the controversy over the general.

By the time he woke up Wednesday morning, President Obama had made up his mind.
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Gen. David H. Petraeus with the defense secretary and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

President Obama on Wednesday fired his top Afghanistan war commander after only a brief meeting in the Oval Office, replacing Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal with his boss and mentor, Gen. David H. Petraeus, and sending a clear signal that the current war strategy will continue despite setbacks and growing public doubts.
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A stadium that usually holds thousands of soccer fans was filled for a prayer rally this week in South Korea.

Are Czechs the Least Religious of All?

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Central Prague. The Czechs have a rich religious history, but don't seem very interested in organised religion any more.

Survey after survey shows the Czech Republic to be the least religious country. That may be true, but it's not the whole story.

One Father Too Many, by Jim Daly

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The Obama administration is actively changing the cultural norms of our country.
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I always feared seeing my hometown turn into Armageddon, and five years ago, sure enough, that's just what happened. 
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For the past two years, high schools in the town of Enfield, Conn. have preferred the indoor comforts of a church for their graduation ceremonies. But lawyers are now moving to stop the practice after it left some students feeling increasingly out in the cold.
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Melissa Brannan is a chaplain for Tyson Foods.

Marisol Corrales, an operations manager for a Dallas housecleaning service, doesn't attend church regularly or see herself as a religious person, she says. But she calls regularly on a workplace chaplain provided by her employer whenever she is worried about her family or stressed over problems on the job.
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Some 1.2 million people belong to one of AA's 55,000 meeting groups in the US.

What Are Smartphones Doing to Us?

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With the arrival of the iPhone 4, we take a look at the effect of all that information and "efficiency" on our humanness.
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Most days after work, Diane Werle can be found hunkered down and reading her Bible, often at a neighborhood coffee shop.

'Sin-free' Sex Toy Shops for Christians?

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Joy Wilson says she and her husband pray for guidance before adding new sex toys to their catalog.

Sex toys for Christians? They're heating up online stores like Book22 and My Beloveds Garden, where devout couples can browse for everything from "intimacy kits" to lubricants. 
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Nicolas Mahut of France (R) stands next to John Isner of USA during the third day of their first round match on Day Four of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 24, 2010 in London, England.

When John Isner finally won the longest match in tennis history, he collapsed on the Wimbledon grass and then summoned one last burst of energy, springing to his feet and applauding along with the crowd.

Sharapova Into 3rd Round of Wimbledon

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Maria Sharapova of Russia plays a shot during her second round match against Ioana Raluca Olaru of Romania on Day Four of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 24, 2010 in London, England.

Tennis is Maria Sharapova's priority now, but the former Wimbledon champion says she'll be ready for a new career when the time is right.
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Landon Donovan's goal in extra time lifted the United States to a 1-0 victory over Algeria. The victory qualified the United States for the round of 16.

Chance after frantic chance the United States had Wednesday in its 1-0 victory over Algeria at the World Cup, each one more tempting and frustrating than the other. Finally, desperation seemed to tighten like a noose, strangling the Americans' patience and accuracy.
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England's Jermain Defoe scored a goal to give his team a 1-0 lead over Slovenia on Wednesday.

When the referee Wolfgang Stark blew the final whistle Wednesday, both teams on the field had reason to feel like celebrating.
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France's Thierry Henry, second from right, walked off after losing to South Africa, 2-1, on Tuesday.

France exited in disgrace from the World Cup on Tuesday with no victories and little sympathy for a team that infamously used an intentional handball to get into the tournament and self-destructed on the way out.

ARGENTINA 2, GREECE 0: Argentina Moves On

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Argentina's Martin Palermo, left, celebrated with Argentina Coach Diego Maradona after scoring the team's second goal. Argentina went on to win, 2-0.

Look out, world. Even playing mostly backups Argentina looks good.
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Lee Jung-Soo celebrated after Park Chu-Young's goal gave South Korea a 2-1 lead over Nigeria.

Having achieved its aim of making the second round of the World Cup, South Korea is reassessing its ambitions for the remainder of the tournament.
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Uruguay celebrated its victory over Mexico on Tuesday. Both teams advanced to the next round.

Uruguay and Mexico did not have to try very hard. A tie in their final Group A match Tuesday would have sent both teams to the second round of the World Cup. Neither the overmatched host team, South Africa, nor hapless France, meeting at the same time in Bloemfontein, posed a viable threat in their group.
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Carrying British hopes, fourth-seeded Andy Murray defeated Jan Hajek, 7-5, 6-1, 6-2, in his first-round match.

Serena Williams promised the Queen a curtsy she would never forget, but it is Andy Murray and not the women's champion who will get the chance to perform in front of the monarch at Wimbledon on Thursday.
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Serena Williams opened defense of her title with a 6-0, 6-4 win over Michelle Larcher de Brito.

If Monday sprung surprise here, with near upsets of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic and the second match in the history of Centre Court held partly underneath the roof, Tuesday returned the tournament to normal.

How to Save a Christian Marriage

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I often remind couples when they are going through problems in their marriage that before they can save their marriage from divorce they need to work on saving themselves.
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Tenth Avenue North, the road steady, Dove Award-winning progressive pop band, is currently working its way through the summertime festival season, but with one eye on its ambitious (and already successful) headlining fall tour in support of its latest release, The Light Meets The Dark. 
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Last week, a rumor spread suggesting District 9 director and Peter Jackson protoge Neill Blomkamp might direct The Hobbit. But Blomkamp's representatives tell Vulture that no one from Warner Bros. or MGM has even approached the director about the project at all.

The Alien Beauty of Socotra

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An island off the coast of Yemen is home to hundreds of plants found nowhere else on earth. Photographs by Tomas van Houtryve -- VII Network

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Now that "Shrek" the ogre is playing out his final chapter on the big screen, DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. is turning to trolls to bring in the green.

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Police and rescue workers inspect the station after a high-speed train struck a group of people in Castelldefels, Spain, Thursday.
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Stephen Appiah of Ghana and Dejan Stankovic of Serbia jump for the ball during the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Group D match between Serbia and Ghana at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on June 13, 2010 in Pretoria, South Africa.

No pressure or anything, but Ghana coach Milan Rajevac is hoping his team can give all of Africa something to cheer in the next round of the World Cup.
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President Barack Obama (L) meets with Lt. Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal in happier times.

America's top military commander in Afghanistan is unlikely to survive the fallout from remarks he made about colleagues in a magazine profile to be published Friday, according to a Pentagon source who has ongoing contacts with the general.

Who Are Americans?

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What Christians contribute to the search for a national identity.

The Theology of Multi-Ethnic Church

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Diversity isn't just a social issues, it's a biblical one.
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A scene from Toy Story 3.

The toy market is on a hot streak at movie theaters.
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A scene from the upcoming new Green Hornet movie.

A trailer and a few movie stills from the upcoming feature, "The Green Hornet," have hit the web, revealing Seth Rogen in a role that's a little atypical for the "Pineapple Express" actor.
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(L-R) President & CEO, NAMM, Joe Lamond, students Afeifha Thomas, Amber Colquhoun and Jazmine Williams, T.V. news personality Mike Huckabee, and Executive Director/Vice President, VH 1 Save The Music Foundation, Paul E. Cothran pose for pictures after attending Mike Huckabee & NAMM Foundation Wanna Play Fund Donate instruments To Kids at Fox News Channel Studios on May 14, 2010 in New York City.

Sun was bouncing off the miles of Jerusalem stone and the black hats of the Hasidim on the afternoon when Mike Huckabee went to visit the Wailing Wall, earlier this year.
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More Than 2 Million Americans Cast Their Vote to Choose Season 3 Winner
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by David Platt
Multnomah, May 2010
240 pp., $9.99
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Gen. McChrystal, the top commander in Afghanistan, was ordered back to Washington on Tuesday to explain his quotes in a magazine article.
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Nearly half of the refugees are children. Five percent are babies, and 2,000 of the women are breast-feeding, according to Unicef.

"I have three children -- 9, 7 and 4 years old -- and they are just in shock," a woman named Ursanoy Mamadaliyeva said on Monday. "My youngest said to me, 'Mama, if we return to Kyrgyzstan, then you have to buy me an automatic weapon.'
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On Monday at the Gaza City port, Palestinians protested against the Israeli blockade of Gaza and in support of ships bound for Gaza from Lebanon.

The beach was teeming with children and their parents, and it seemed the whole neighborhood had come out to kick a ball, fly kites or just sit in the sand as the sun set in the Mediterranean Sea. So Muhammad Ali decided it was the perfect time to start a business, to try to sell corn on the beach.

Britain Marks 300th Death in Afghan War

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The coffin of Andrew Breeze, a British lance corporal killed in Afghanistan, arrived June 17 at Royal Air Force base Lyneham.

Britain marked its 300th military death in the Afghanistan war on Monday, a milestone that Prime Minister David Cameron described as "desperately bad news" and a reminder that Britain was "paying a high price for keeping our country safe."
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Reporters outside the Federal District Court in Manhattan were Faisal Shahzad appeared in court.

The suspect in the failed Times Square bombing pleaded guilty on Monday, an abrupt and expedited end to a terrorism case that extended to Pakistan and an Islamic militant group there.
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David Villa (7) scored twice for Spain, which bounced back from a stunning loss to Switzerland in its opening game.

Spain played with urgency Monday night, to survive in the World Cup, to defeat one opponent in hopes of avoiding another.
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Mark Gonzalez scored the first and only goal of the match for Chile against Switzerland. Chile won, 1-0.

Chile broke through the formerly impenetrable Swiss defense, and Mark Gonzalez's goal might be enough to get the South Americans into the second round of the World Cup.
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Members of Portugal celebrated another goal against North Korea. Portugal went on to win, 7-0.

It was around the time that Tiago scored Portugal's third goal in seven minutes that it became relevant to wonder if viewers in North Korea were still watching live soccer.
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Luis Fabiano scoring the first of his two goals for Brazil, which got two assists (and an ejection) from Kaká in its second victory.

Spain lost its first match at the World Cup. France is in revolt and it is not yet Bastille Day. Italy appears to be participating in the "Antiques Roadshow." England has been so disappointing that one of its fans went to the locker room the other night and complained.
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Abdul Kader Keïta, bumped lightly, was down; Kaká was out.

The Ivory Coast forward cried out in apparent agony, covered his face with his hands and dropped to the turf with a thud in the waning minutes of his team's 3-1 loss to Brazil on Sunday at the World Cup.
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French players on their way to their bus after they refused to practice Sunday, a protest at the expulsion of striker Nicolas Anelka.

The Europeans regard themselves as all powerful in world soccer, and at the club level, they are. But by Sunday night, three of Europe's soccer giants -- France, England and Italy -- appeared to be completely losing it at the World Cup.
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Argentina's head coach Diego Maradona shows off a new pair of sunglasses given to him by his daughter as a fathers day gift during a press conference at Loftus Versefeld Stadium on June 21, 2010 in Pretoria, South Africa.

The dominance of South American teams in the World Cup over those from the rest of the globe are borne out by some telling statistics with half of the 64 games in the tournament completed on Monday.
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Roger Federer reacted after winning the third set on Monday. He went on to win the next two sets.

On the first afternoon of Wimbledon, in the first match on Centre Court, Roger Federer found himself in an unfathomable position, losing by two sets. His face filled with frustration, exasperation and disbelief, a host of unfamiliar emotions, matching the monumental upset in the making.
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Graeme McDowell (R) of Northern Ireland celebrates with the trophy on the 18th green after winning the 110th U.S. Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links on June 20, 2010 in Pebble Beach, California.

Graeme McDowell did what no one else seemed willing or able to do Sunday at Pebble Beach Golf Links, grabbing hold of the United States Open and then hanging on to become the first man from Northern Ireland to win the championship and the first European to do so since Tony Jacklin in 1970.
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Dustin Johnson watches his tee shot on the fourth hole during the final round of the 110th U.S. Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links on June 20, 2010 in Pebble Beach, California.

Saturday night, when he led the 2010 United States Open by three strokes, Dustin Johnson confessed he might be nervous during Sunday's final round. He also conceded that unusual things sometimes happen on the last day of a major championship.
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Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks) is hoisted by his friends in "Toy Story 3."
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Michael Fassbender and Josh Brolin in "Jonah Hex."
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Shrek, Dora the Explorer, and other animated TV and movie stars beloved by children have been moonlighting as junk-food pitchmen in recent years. And they're good at it.

Amazon and B&N Cut E-Reader Prices

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Greta Barnes, left, and her daughter, Marselena, trying out the Nook e-book reader at a Best Buy store in Manhattan.

A price war is brewing in the growing market for electronic reading devices.
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COMMUNITY In an ecosystem known as a cold seep, which thrives on the Gulf of Mexico seabed, tube worms that could be centuries old thrive among corals, crabs, brittle stars and other creatures.

The deep seabed was once considered a biological desert. Life, the logic went, was synonymous with light and photosynthesis. The sun powered the planet's food chains, and only a few scavengers could ply the preternaturally dark abyss.
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Today, I have a couple of pre-emptive tips for those of you who will be traveling this summer. The first is for those who will be traveling abroad, and the second for travelers who plan to pay bills ahead before they leave town for an extended period of time.
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Always a band to shed light in contemporary society, Word Records' Satellites & Sirens will be making their greatest impact yet. 

Exporters Optimistic Over Move on Currency

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An assembly line in East Peoria, Ill. Caterpillar produces in China but also sells some American-made equipment there.

Embracing China's decision to let its currency move more freely, American businesses said on Monday that the move would make it easier to compete against Chinese companies and would help reduce the United States trade deficit.
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President Barack Obama makes remarks during a Father's Day mentoring barbeque on the South Lawn of the White House, June 21, 2010. 

In his Father's Day Proclamation, Barack Obama became the first President ever to use the occasion to say that "two fathers" are a nurturing family unit. Homosexual groups must be beaming with delight today but this is the type of line that can really come back to haunt him. Do NOT underestimate the power of those two words.
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Police investigators gather at the scene where eleven people were killed late Sunday after suspected gang members set fire to a public bus outside San Salvador.
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Barnes & Noble Inc. (BKS) unveiled a scaled-down version of its Nook e-reader with wireless-only Internet capacity. The device joins the growing field of similar products at a retail price of $149.
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They are not exactly Cain and Abel, but theologically and philosophically Christopher and Peter Hitchens are just as divided as the brothers of the Old Testament.
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Brian Rauber grew up in church, slacked off during college, then stopped going to church altogether.
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And on the first day without a state budget, the men and women of God gathered in prayer at the Capitol to beg that he guide the mortals in closing a gap of biblical proportions.
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Tony Hayward's yacht, left, sailed in the J. P. Morgan Asset Management Round the Island Race on Saturday.

BP officials on Saturday scrambled yet again to respond to another public relations challenge when their embattled chief executive, Tony Hayward, spent the day off the coast of England watching his yacht compete in one of the world's largest races.
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U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks at the State Department on June 18, 2010 in Washington, DC.

The Obama administration has decided to file a lawsuit to strike down a new Arizona law aimed at deporting illegal immigrants, thrusting itself into the fierce national debate over how the United States should enforce immigration policies.
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Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden marries Daniel Westling in a lavish ceremony at the Stockholm Cathedral with royal guests from all over the world. 

It was a lavish spectacle of elegant style, royal pageantry and traditional ceremony - though with a thoroughly modern twist.
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HEADING TO WORK Yuan Yandong on his way to punch in at the Foxconn factory in Shenzhen, China, on Thursday.

Inside one of the world's largest electronics factories, Yuan Yandong, 24, sits on a stool six nights a week, 12 hours a night barring meal and bathroom breaks, and assembles computer hard drives for an American company called EMC.

Polish Voters to Elect New President

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Pictured: Bronislaw Komorowski

More than two months after Poland's president was killed in a plane crash, Poles are voting Sunday to choose his successor -- and polls show they might pick one of his political rivals rather than his twin brother.