Famous Atheist Now Believes in God

"A British philosophy professor who has been a leading champion of atheism for more than a half-century has changed his mind. He now believes in God more or less based on scientific evidence, and says so on a video released Thursday.

At age 81, after decades of insisting belief is a mistake, Antony Flew has concluded that some sort of intelligence or first cause must have created the universe. A super-intelligence is the only good explanation for the origin of life and the complexity of nature, Flew said in a telephone interview from England."

French Judge: ATMs Help Finance Militants

"Radical Islamic cells in Europe are using an ingenious way to finance terror networks that's virtually impossible to trace: withdrawing hundreds of thousands of dollars a month from cash machines with fake credit cards, according to France's top anti-terrorism judge."

One-time radical drops teaching plans

"A former leftist radical who spent 16 years in prison for possessing explosives has withdrawn from teaching a college seminar after her hiring sparked protests.

Susan Rosenberg made her decision because it was in the best interest of all parties, Hamilton College officials said Wednesday.

In response to her hiring, prospective students withdrew applications and donors rescinded hundreds of thousands of dollars in pledges, school officials said."

Marine 'hostage' to be charged with desertion

"A U.S. Marine who disappeared in Iraq and then showed up in a purported hostage video before later appearing as a free man in Lebanon, is being charged with desertion, Pentagon officials said Thursday."

NAACP Head Mfume Didn't Retire, He Was Booted Out

Don’t believe the well scripted press conference where former President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Kweisi Mfume, announced his resignation. Mfume did not resign from the nation’s oldest and most prestigious civil rights organization. He was kicked out, following a long simmering feud with NAACP Chairman Julian Bond.

Politicians want to raise our taxes, again!

"In 1969, when the average Mississippi worker brought home $46 a week, the $5 it took to register a car title was a 10-percent bite out of that weekly paycheck.

Today, the average worker brings home $448 a week. And the car title fee? The same $5, or less than 1 percent of a week's pay.

'It's unbelievable,' said state House Appropriations Committee Chairman Johnny Stringer, D-Montrose. 'The car title fee hasn't been raised in 35 years. It costs the state money every time we issue one.'"

What's unbelievable is the fact that lawmakers seem more inclined to raise taxes, rather than to cut unnecessary expenses.

Immigration enforcement grows weaker

"Immigration enforcement efforts actually have become more lax since the September 11 attacks and have had 'no meaningful impact' on the growing number of immigrants now in the United States — which has reached a record high of 34 million, according to a report released yesterday.

A 13 percent increase of U.S. immigrants, more than 4 million, since 2000 included more than 2 million illegal aliens, who now total about 10 million or 30 percent of the immigrant population, the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), said in its report, based on as-yet-unpublished U.S. Census Bureau data."

Melee in Chile seen as 'big deal'

"White House officials were still shaking their heads in disbelief yesterday that President Bush personally had to rescue a U.S. Secret Service agent from angry Chilean security officials Saturday night.

'This is a pretty big deal,' said a senior White House official, who called the incident a 'melee.'

'I mean, the guy who was supposed to be guarded had to rescue the guy who was supposed to be guarding him.'

The official expressed astonishment that Chilean security officials had stopped the No. 2 agent on Mr. Bush's security detail from accompanying the president into a meeting with another world leader, an unprecedented public breach of security arrangements agreed upon in advance."

Dolphins save swimmers from shark

"A pod of dolphins circled protectively round a group of New Zealand swimmers to fend off an attack by a great white shark, media reported on Tuesday.

Lifesavers Rob Howes, his 15-year-old daughter Niccy, Karina Cooper and Helen Slade were swimming 100 metres (300 feet) off Ocean Beach near Whangarei on New Zealand's North Island when the dolphins herded them -- apparently to protect them from a shark."

Show's over for the video recorder

"Video recorders have taken a step closer to extinction after Britain's largest electrical supplier said it would stop selling VCRs to concentrate on their successor, the DVD.

Dixons said on Monday demand for video cassette recorders had fallen dramatically since the mid-1990s while sales of DVD players, which cost as little as £25 ($46) had grown seven-fold in the past five years.

The chain said sales of higher-quality digital DVD players now outstripped sales of VCRs -- with their clunky tapes and habit of chewing up valuable recordings -- by a ratio of 40 to one."