Looks like dismal voter turnout to end Facebook's quasi democracy

So much for a quasi-democratic Facebook. So far, the social network's users haven't cast anywhere near enough votes to preserve users' ability to veto Facebook's policy changes.Facebook users have until noon today to vote on Facebook's recently proposed policy changes relating to data use and privacy. Unless at least 30 percent of Facebook's membership -- or around 300 million users -- cast ballots,...

Read More..

N. Korea extends rocket launch window a week

SEOUL, South Korea North Korea on Monday extended the launch period for a controversial long-range rocket by another week, until Dec. 29, citing technical problems. An unidentified spokesman for the North's Korean Committee of Space Technology told state media scientists found a "technical deficiency in the first-stage control engine module of the rocket." The statement didn't elaborate, but said...

Read More..

Royal Hoax: DJs 'Shattered' After Nurse's Suicide

The two Australian radio DJs who prank-called the London hospital where Kate Middleton was being treated last week said they were "shattered" and "gutted" after the nurse who answered their call apparently killed herself.Shock jocks Mel Greig, 30, and Michael Christian, 25, cried as they spoke to Australia's Channel 9 overnight in their first public interview since Jacintha...

Read More..

Egypt army gets temporary power to arrest civilians

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's government has temporarily given the military the authority to arrest civilians to help safeguard a constitutional referendum planned for Saturday, the official gazette said. The order, gazetted late on Sunday, said the military would support police and liaise with them to protect "vital institutions" until the referendum result is declared. The...

Read More..

More stepping forward for anonymous HIV testing: AfA

SINGAPORE: Advocacy group Action for AIDS (AfA) says more people are coming forward to be tested anonymously for HIV.The group said 1,368 people have been tested anonymously for HIV at its mobile van for the past 11 months.The mobile van started conducting such tests in December 2011. Seven have tested positive for HIV so far.It added that its Anonymous Test Site, located in a clinic run...

Read More..

Iran launches own YouTube-like video-sharing Web site

Mehr, Iran's alternative to YouTube.(Credit:Screenshot by Steven Musil/CNET)Iran has launched a video-sharing site in its latest effort to provide alternative government-sanctioned Internet services.Dubbed "Mehr," the Farsi word for affection, the site aims to attract Persian-speaking users and promote Iranian culture, according to the About Us page reviewed by the Agence France-Press."From now on,...

Read More..

Bruno Mars: Singing is all I ever wanted to do

(CBS News) All told, Bruno Mars' music videos have been viewed a staggering one BILLION times on YouTube. Not bad for a singer who was dumped by a big record label once upon a time. This morning, Bruno Mars talks to Lee Cowan For The Record: By his own definition Bruno Mars is a musical melting pot. He can spin from Pop to R & B to Reggae at the drop of that signature fedora. "So, what would...

Read More..

Colorado Springs Doctor Rescued from Taliban

Dec 9, 2012 6:34am ABCThe American doctor rescued from the Taliban in Afghanistan Saturday by U.S. Special Operations Forces is the medical adviser for a Colorado Springs NGO, his employer confirmed today.Dr. Dilip Joseph and two colleagues were kidnapped by a group of armed men while returning from a visit to a rural medical clinic in eastern Kabul Province, according...

Read More..

Egypt's Mursi scraps decree, fails to appease opponents

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's president scrapped a decree that gave him extra powers and ignited violent protests, but irate opponents said on Sunday he had deepened the conflict by pressing on with a vote on a constitution shaped by Islamists. President Mohamed Mursi and his Islamist partisans have insisted the referendum go ahead on December 15 to seal a democratic transition that began...

Read More..

Supply of Indonesian maids expected to fall next year

SINGAPORE: Maid agencies expect the number of Indonesian maids coming to work in Singapore to drop by 30 per cent, once the minimum wage for all Indonesians kicks in next month.With the minimum wage, salaries for those working in Jakarta can go up to S$300 per month.This may cause the maids to choose to work in Jakarta instead of Singapore. Some domestic helpers from Indonesia say they...

Read More..