Around the Nation

Goodbye Casual Fridays, Hello Formal Fridays

8:46am January 04, 2013

First people wore suits and ties, dresses or skirts to work. Later came casual Fridays. Now, The Wall Street Journal reports some companies have instituted formal dress wear for Fridays.

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Catfish swim in a tub outside the Osage Catfisheries office.

National

Drought Puts The Squeeze On Already Struggling Fish Farms

6:10pm January 03, 2013

by Kristofor Husted

The year's dry, hot weather forced aquaculturists to spend a lot more to keep their fish healthy and fed. For US catfish farmers, though, already suffering from competition with Asia, the drought has been an especially hard blow.

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Tamara Burney's kindergartners eat lunch in the Hillview Elementary cafeteria in Jefferson County, Ala.

For Many Kids, Winter Break Means Hungry Holidays

6:10pm January 03, 2013

by Dan Carsen

Most kids look forward to their school's winter break. But millions of students in the U.S. get free or reduced-price meals at school, and when school is closed, many of those children eat less until classes are back in session.

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Officers Carol Mitchell and John Hill investigate the death of a disabled teen who was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver in Los Angeles.

National

Hit-And-Run Deaths Increase, But Culprits Hard To Capture

6:10pm January 03, 2013

by Gloria Hillard

In Los Angeles, where the car is the major mode of transportation, hit-and-run accidents involving pedestrians occur almost daily. But these crimes can be the most difficult for law enforcement to investigate and solve.

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'Stand Your Ground' Linked To Increase In Homicides

10:54am January 03, 2013

A controversial self-defense statute appears to produce more killings, according to a new study. Advocates for the law say it's working as designed. But researchers have different explanations about what might be happening.

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The day after their neighborhood was flooded, the Hardys returned to their house to start bagging up the garbage. The contents of the fridge were spread all over the kitchen floor and even outside. There were sausages in the street. The kitchen floor was

National

Superstorm Sandy Brings One Family Closer

8:26am January 03, 2013

by Marianne McCune

The Hardy family goes back generations in a tiny neighborhood called Gerritsen Beach in Brooklyn. For them, Superstorm Sandy has created an extended family reunion. Not only is their small, barely livable home bursting with family members — the storm brought an emotional change, as well.

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Kid Convinced He Bought $50,000 Car On eBay

7:44am January 03, 2013

Don't play with the iPad if mom tells you not to — especially if mom's a prankster. Kenyon, 8, was looking at a car on eBay. His mom told him he accidentally bought it for $50,000. She posted his reaction to YouTube.

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Pete Sampras returns a forehand against Russia's Marat Safin during an exhibition tennis match at the L.A. Tennis Open tournament in 2009. The tournament, which has been around for decades, is now relocating to Colombia as America's dominance in the sport

Game, Set And Match: U.S. Tennis Tournaments Move Abroad

7:16am January 03, 2013

by Ben Bergman

At its height, American tennis consistently fielded the world's top male players. Now that American dominance is gone, so too are many of the top U.S. men's tournaments. They're moving overseas, snapped up by groups offering more lucrative payouts in a sport enjoying huge global appeal.

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Politics & Government

Farmers Frustrated By Farm Bill Extension

7:09am January 03, 2013

by Jeremy Bernfeld

Farmers and ranchers across the country expected to start 2013 with a new farm bill, the legislation setting agricultural policy for the next five years. But the new farm bill got scrapped after more than a year of work when Congress passed the "fiscal cliff" deal.

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Economy

What Is A Good Unemployment Number, Really?

6:50am January 03, 2013

On Friday, new unemployment numbers will be released for December. In last month's report, the unemployment rate dropped to 7.7 percent, a four-year low. For a preview of the labor market prospects for the new year, Steve Inskeep talks to Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at IHS Global Insight, an international consulting firm.

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