Facebook pic of toy mortar leads to armed cops raid

The picture as it appears on Driscoll's Facebook page. Yes, that's a toy mortar.(Credit:Screenshot by Chris Matyszczyk/CNET)When you make your Facebook profile picture that of Action Man (aka the British G.I. Joe), it can be a clue to your fascination with fantasy.It also suggests that if there's a toy mortar in the background of the picture, that, too, might actually not be entirely real.Please try...

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Dorner's cause of death revealed

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. Fugitive ex-cop Christopher Dorner apparently killed himself with a gunshot to the head amid a fierce battle with police, law enforcement officials said Friday. He fired his last shot as the cabin he was holed up in was going up in flames. Police initially weren't sure if Dorner was killed by one of their bullets or by a fire sparked when they launched incendiary tear gas...

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Vatican Raises Possibility of Early March Conclave

The Vatican raised the possibility Saturday that the conclave to elect the next pope might start sooner than March 15, the earliest date possible under current rules that require a 15-20 day waiting period after the papacy becomes vacant.Vatican spokesman The Rev. Federico Lombardi said that the Vatican rules on papal succession are open to interpretation and that "this is a question...

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Pistorius, girlfriend were planning future: uncle

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African athlete Oscar Pistorius was planning a future with girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, who he is accused of shooting in cold blood this week, his uncle said on Saturday. "We are in a state of total shock - firstly about the tragic death of Reeva who we had all got to know well and care for deeply over the last few months," Anthony Pistorius said in a statement...

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G20 pledges to refrain from currency warfare

MOSCOW: G20 finance ministers on Saturday moved to calm fears of looming "economic warfare" on the currency markets, pledging they would not target specific forex rates or devalue currencies to make them more competitive.The jitters -- similar to previous disputes with China -- have been set off by Japan's plan of monetary easing to boost inflation and activity by reducing the value of...

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Passengers trade broken-down ship for broken-down bus

(CBS News) Thousands of passengers erupted into cheers Thursday night as the crippled triumph finally pulled up to the dock. As they stepped onto dry land, and into the arms of their loved ones some couldn't contain their excitement. Carnival then chartered a caravan of buses to transport folks out of Mobile, Ala. To add insult to injury, at least one of those buses became stranded on the way to...

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Falling Meteor Causes Blast, Injures Hundreds

A massive meteor shower slammed into Earth near the Russian city of Chelyabinsk, located about 1,000 miles east of Moscow in the Ural Mountains.Dashboard cameras captured a blinding flash of light streaking across the sky. Moments later, the fragments smashed into the ground. The impact, and the sonic boom of the meteor entering the atmosphere, shattered windows around the city...

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Meteorite hits central Russia, more than 500 people hurt

CHELYABINSK, Russia (Reuters) - More than 500 people were injured when a meteorite shot across the sky and exploded over central Russia on Friday, sending fireballs crashing to Earth, shattering windows and damaging buildings. People heading to work in Chelyabinsk heard what sounded like an explosion, saw a bright light and then felt a shockwave according to a Reuters correspondent in...

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Eastbound MRT service delayed due to faulty train

SINGAPORE: Eastbound train service on the East-West Line was delayed due to a faulty train at Raffles Place station on Friday evening. Rail operator SMRT said passengers were asked to alight, and the train was taken out of service. To maintain service on the unaffected stretches of the East-West Line, some trains were turned around at Queenstown and Outram Park stations (eastbound), and...

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Vimeo buys app that turns your video stills into animations

Vimeo has bought aboard a new app and new people that can transform your videos into animations.The company announced today that it now owns Echograph, an app that lets iPhone and iPad users create antimations by blending together different parts of a video clip.Purchased from Clear-Media, the Echograph app previously cost $2.99 but is now available for free.As described in this online video, an Echograph...

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Couple describes Dorner ordeal, unexpected compliment

(CBS News) Police in Southern California are defending their actions in the manhunt for Christopher Dorner. They say they did not intentionally burn down the cabin where he apparently died. Dorner was a suspected killer with a grudge against the Los Angeles Police Department, but two of his final victims say he didn't seem like a bad man. Karen and Jim Reynolds are the owners of Mountain Vista Resort,...

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'Blade Runner' Charged With Murdering Girlfriend

Oscar Pistorius, the Olympic and Paralympic athlete known as the "blade runner," was taken into custody in South Africa today and charged with the murder of his girlfriend, who was fatally shot at his home.Police in the South African capital of Pretoria received a call around 3 a.m. today that there had been a shooting at the home of 26-year-old Pistorius, Lt. Col. Katlego Mogale...

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"Blade Runner" Pistorius charged with murdering girlfriend

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African "Blade Runner" Oscar Pistorius, a double amputee who became one of the biggest names in world athletics, was charged on Thursday with shooting dead his girlfriend at his upscale home in Pretoria. Police said they opened a murder case after a 30-year-old woman was found dead at the Paralympic and Olympic star's house in the Silverlakes gated complex...

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Philippine gunmen "demand to stay in Malaysia"

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's government said Thursday its security forces have surrounded dozens of Philippine gunmen in a remote area of Borneo island, and a report said the group is demanding the right to stay.Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein told reporters about 80 to 100 gunmen had been cornered by security forces near the small coastal town of Lahad Datu in the Malaysian state of Sabah.He...

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Amazon's Prime Instant Video adds more CBS reruns

Amazon Instant Video on Nintendo's Wii.(Credit:Amazon Instant Video)Amazon announced today that it's adding a new batch of CBS and Showtime reruns to its video-streaming service.The new additions to Amazon's Prime Instant Video service include "America's Next Top Model," "Everybody Loves Raymond," "Jericho," "The L Word," "Undercover Boss," and "United States of Tara." This selection builds on the...

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U.S. faces 2nd wrongful death lawsuit over "Fast and Furious"

A second wrongful death lawsuit has been filed blaming U.S. government officials involved in the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives' "Operation Fast and Furious," which allowed thousands of weapons to fall into the hands of Mexican drug cartels. Tuesday, the Texas family of fallen Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent Jaime Zapata sued the Justice Department, the Department...

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Charred Human Remains Found in Burned Cabin

Investigators have located charred human remains in the burned-out cabin where they believe suspected cop killer and ex-LAPD officer Christopher Dorner was holed up as the structure burned to the ground, police said.The human remains were found within the debris of the burned cabin and identification will be attempted through forensic means, the San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner...

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Insight: Divided Damascus confronted by all-out war

DAMASCUS (Reuters) - MiG warplanes roar low overhead to strike rebels fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad on the fringes of Damascus, while artillery batteries pound the insurgents from hills overlooking a city divided between all-out war and a deceptive calm. Whole families can be obliterated by air raids that miss their targets. Wealthy Syrians or their children are kidnapped....

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Former Romanian diplomat's trial resumes in Bucharest

SINGAPORE: The trial of former Romanian diplomat Silviu Ionescu resumed on Wednesday in Bucharest.The judge handling the trial has expressed displeasure with the defence lawyer for dragging the case over three years.He noted that the submission of evidence should have been long finished, but Ionescu's lawyer has asked for yet another witness to be heard.Ionescu's lawyer replied that the...

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Facebook wants to be mobile app developers best friend

DANA POINT, CA -- Facebook wants to be the mobile app developers best friend. With more than a million apps across iOS and Android, Facebook thinks it can be the primary platform for discovering mobile apps. According to Comscore, 23 percent of time spend in mobile apps happens on Facebook. Of the billion plus Facebook users, 680 million are accessing the service on mobile device, and 70 percent come...

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Poll: 45% approve of Obama's handling of the economy

By Sarah Dutton, Jennifer De Pinto, Anthony Salvanto, and Fred Backus As President Barack Obama prepares for the first State of the Union Address of his second term, one which will primarily be focused on economic issues, fewer than half of Americans (45 percent) approve of how he's handling the economy, while more (49 percent) disapprove. Overall, Mr. Obama is performing better with 52 percent of...

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Fort Hood Hero Says Obama 'Betrayed' Victims

Three years after the White House arranged a hero's welcome at the State of the Union address for the Fort Hood police sergeant and her partner who stopped the deadly shooting there, Kimberly Munley says President Obama broke the promise he made to her that the victims would be well taken care of."Betrayed is a good word," former Sgt. Munley told ABC News in a tearful interview...

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China joins U.S., Japan in condemning North Korea nuclear test

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea conducted its third nuclear test on Tuesday in defiance of existing U.N. resolutions, drawing condemnation from around the world, including from its only major ally, China, which summoned the North Korean ambassador to protest. The reclusive North said the test was an act of self-defense against "U.S. hostility" and threatened further, stronger steps if necessary....

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Three men in hospital after fight at mall in Sembawang

SINGAPORE: Three men ended up in hospital after an apparent brawl at Sun Plaza in Sembawang.The Singapore Civil Defence Force said it received a call for ambulance assistance just before 6pm.The three men were then taken to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital.Police said investigations are still on going.An eyewitness, Nur Indra Abdul Karina, told Channel NewsAsia that one of the men involved in the...

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Holograms of Holocaust survivors let crucial stories live on

A hologram of Holocaust survivor Pinchas Gutter interacts with onlookers during a demonstration of the New Dimensions in Technology project. (Click to enlarge.)(Credit:USC Institute for Creative Technologies)Pinchas Gutter has told his story many times. Of the horrors of childhood in the Warsaw Ghetto. Of being ripped away from his parents and 10-year-old twin sister the day the family arrived at...

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