News

Each FEMA-registered family with kids can pick out toys at the volunteer-run Staten Island store.

National

Free Toy Shop Brings Cheer To Sandy's Displaced Families

9:21pm December 21, 2012

by Margot Adler

Many Staten Island residents are still not back in their homes since Sandy washed ashore. Local volunteers have opened a toy store where FEMA-registered families with children can pick up donated toys, holiday decorations and stocking stuffers. Thus far, the shop has given away more than 2,000 toys.

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Science

Why Some Kids Have An Inflated Sense Of Their Science Skills

8:49pm December 21, 2012

by Shankar Vedantam

A massive analysis of some 350,000 students in 53 countries has uncovered a paradox: Students in many countries that are mediocre at science have an inflated sense of good they are.

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Health & Safety

Medicare Starts To Reward Quality, Not Quantity, Of Care

11:16am December 21, 2012

by Jordan Rau

The nation's biggest insurer is starting to dole out bonuses and penalties to nearly 3,000 hospitals as it ties almost $1 billion in payments to the quality of care provided to patients.

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Health & Safety

When The Doctor Works For The Insurance Company

11:16am December 21, 2012

by Tracey Samuelson

Big insurance companies are opening their own doctors' offices and clinics — a strategy that has previously met with mixed results.

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Plug Pulled On 'Plan B,' House Breaks For Christmas

11:16am December 21, 2012

by Tamara Keith

House Speaker John Boehner was dealt a major defeat Thursday night. After spending most of the week trying to round up votes for his "Plan B" to extend tax cuts for virtually everyone, he pulled the measure without a vote. The clock keeps ticking toward the end of the year, when automatic tax increases and spending cuts are set to hit.

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National

A Moment Of Silence To Remember Newtown Victims

11:16am December 21, 2012

Connecticut officials and residents and others across the nation on Friday observed a moment of silence and the ringing of bells to remember the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown.

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Politics & Government

Boehner Answers Questions About Withdrawing 'Plan B'

11:16am December 21, 2012

House Speaker John Boehner had a news conference Friday, after he had to withdraw his "Plan B" for avoiding the tax increases and spending cuts due at the end of the year. Many of his fellow Republicans wouldn't support it because it included higher taxes for millionaires.

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Sen. Kerry Gets Obama's Nod For Secretary Of State

11:16am December 21, 2012

President Obama is expected Friday to nominate Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., as his next secretary of state. Kerry would replace Hillary Clinton, who's planning to leave the post after four years as the president's globetrotting emissary.

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In this photo illustration, a Rock River Arms AR-15 rifle is seen with ammunition.

Financial Ties Bind NRA, Gun Industry

10:51am December 21, 2012

by Peter Overby

NRA leaders say that when they break their silence on the Sandy Hook shootings Friday, they will be speaking for the group's 4 million members. But they will also be speaking for the gun industry, which has close financial links to the association.

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A Sig Sauer handgun on sale at a shop in Tucker, Ga.

National

Gun Control: 'Only Modest Change' In Opinion Since Newtown Shootings

9:25am December 21, 2012

by Mark Memmott

The latest Pew poll shows a slight upward shift in the percentage of Americans who say it's more important to control gun ownership than it is to protect the right to own guns. But deeply felt feelings appear to be limiting the change.

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