Around the Nation

Ornaments Give Tornado Victims A Little Christmas Cheer

11:30am December 21, 2013

by Kate Carlton Greer

When a powerful tornado hit Moore, Okla., back in May, two dozen people died and more than a thousand homes were destroyed. In the aftermath, the first priorities were food, clothing, housing and furniture. Now a good Samaritan is providing Christmas tree ornaments, too.

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Religion

Minister Defrocked Over Officiating Gay Wedding Will Appeal

3:12pm December 20, 2013

by Emma Jacobs

United Methodist church officials have defrocked the Rev. Frank Schaefer, who presided over his son's gay wedding.

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Overturned Truck Spills Holiday Hams

11:13am December 20, 2013

An interstate ramp outside of Atlanta was tied up on Thursday — not with cars but with 40,000 pounds of ham. The driver wasn't hurt but ham and diesel fuel were everywhere.

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A lettuce thinner created by an agricultural tech startup uses cameras and sensors to thin lettuce rows. Salinas, Calif., has hired a venture capital fund to help it attract other high-tech agricultural companies to the area.

National

A City Turns To Lettuce Fields To Grow High-Tech Startups

8:46pm December 19, 2013

by Aarti Shahani

Salinas, Calif., is just an hour from Silicon Valley, but production at many local lettuce farms is decidedly low-tech. City officials here decided it's time for an upgrade — and have hired a venture capital firm to help Salinas transition into a high-tech agricultural hub.

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A view of a B-52 about to have its tail section cut at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Ariz.

National

Once A Mighty Bomber, A B-52 Meets Its End In The Desert

6:16pm December 19, 2013

by Ted Robbins

The Air Force on Thursday destroyed the last B-52 bomber required under the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty with Russia. A crew used a circular saw to cut through the plane's aluminum skin, the tail section separating from the fuselage with a loud thunk and officially rendering the bomber useless.

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National

One Ohio Mall Store Offers Nothing For Sale, Just Faith And Cheer

5:42pm December 19, 2013

by Cheri Lawson

Christmas is less than a week away and shoppers continue their quest for the perfect gift at the perfect price. But at one shop in a southwest Ohio mall, Roman Catholic friars are offering their presence for free.

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Senate Follows House, Passes Budget Deal

12:08pm December 19, 2013

Congress has approved the bipartisan Budget Act of 2013. It temporarily ends months of partisan gridlock over spending.

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Even If FCC Relaxes Rules, Delta Won't Allow In-Flight Calls

12:08pm December 19, 2013

by Kathy Lohr

Delta CEO Richard Anderson says frequent flyers believe voice calls in the cabin would disrupt travel. So the airline announced it will ban in-flight calls even if the FCC changes the rules.

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Researchers Try Paying Kids To Eat Their Veggies

12:08pm December 19, 2013

University researchers at Brigham Young and Cornell experimented paying kids to consume vegetables. When paid, veggie consumption went up. When payments stopped, so did eating veggies.

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Handcuffed Suspect Proposes To Girlfriend, She Says 'Yes'

12:08pm December 19, 2013

A man being arrested in Elk City, Okla., for allegedly writing bad checks asked the officer if he could have a moment because he had been about to propose to his girlfriend. The cop said he couldn't remove the man's handcuffs, but did help him out by getting the ring from his coat pocket.

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