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The Two-Way
3:40 pm
Wed January 4, 2012

Pro-Piracy Group Says It's Now A Recognized Religion In Sweden

Credit Kopimi
A screengrab of a Kopimi symbol, used by the Missionary Church of Kopimism to signify a site's willingness to be copied.

The Missionary Church of Kopimism has one central belief: that it's okay to copy information, in any form.

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Asia
3:29 pm
Wed January 4, 2012

Indonesian Economy Booms, Its Infrastructure Groans

Indonesia has one of the world's fastest growing economies and it's already the largest in Southeast Asia. This growth and stability recently earned it a major credit upgrade at a time when Western countries are fearful of downgrades.

Yet this vibrant economy has an Achilles' heel: its crumbling, overwhelmed infrastructure.

The problem becomes painfully apparent this time every year, when the rainy season fills commuters with dread in the capital Jakarta and many other cities.

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NPR Story
3:00 pm
Wed January 4, 2012

Obama Appoints Cordray To Head Watchdog Agency

Congressional Republicans reacted angrily to President Obama's recess appointment of Richard Cordray to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Congress had been holding "pro forma" sessions every few days to prevent such recess appointments.

The Two-Way
2:20 pm
Wed January 4, 2012

Gordon Hirabayashi Has Died; He Refused To Go To WWII Internment Camp

"This order for the mass evacuation of all persons of Japanese descent denies them the right to live," Seattle native Gordon Hirabayashi wrote in 1942. "I consider it my duty to maintain the democratic standards for which this nation lives. Therefore, I must refuse this order of evacuation."

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The Two-Way
1:53 pm
Wed January 4, 2012

U.S. Carmakers, VW, Report Big Gains In Auto Sales For 2011

Credit Scott Olson / Getty Images
A Jeep Wrangler is seen at a dealership in Chicago. Powered by a newly designed fleet of vehicles, the brand saw a sharp rise in sales in 2011.

America's big three automakers all experienced double-digit sales growth in 2011, helping the U.S. market continue its rebound from a dismal 2009. With annual reports out today, Chrysler says its sales were up 26 percent, while General Motors and Ford Motor Co. reporting gains of 13 and 11 percent, respectively.

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It's All Politics
1:50 pm
Wed January 4, 2012

McCain Endorses Romney

Saying he's there "to make sure we make Mitt Romney the next president of the United States of America," 2008 Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain just returned to New Hampshire to endorse the White House bid of his one-time rival, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

McCain and Romney fought a hard battle for the GOP nomination n 2008, after which Romney endorsed the Arizona senator.

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Shots - Health Blog
1:38 pm
Wed January 4, 2012

Number Of Twins Soars As Older Moms Turn To Fertility Treatments

Credit iStockphoto.com

The number of twins born each year in the United States has more than doubled since 1980, federal health officials reported Wednesday.

For most of the last century the rate at which American women gave birth to twins remained steady at about 2 percent of all births.

But the rate increased steadily between 1980 and 2009, according to the latest data from the National Center for Health Statistics. And by 2009, more than 3 percent of all births produced twins.

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The Two-Way
1:33 pm
Wed January 4, 2012

As EU Mulls Oil Embargo, Iran Remains Defiant

Reuters and Bloomberg are both reporting that the European Union is close to imposing an embargo on Iranian oil. The Wall Street Journal goes a step further, saying that now that Greece has dropped objections to the ban, the EU has reached a preliminary agreement.

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The Two-Way
12:47 pm
Wed January 4, 2012

Boeing Says It Will Close Wichita Plant That Employs 2,160 Workers

Credit Larry W. Smith / Getty Images
Boeing plans to close its Wichita plant, where in 2005 members of the Machinists Union voted to go on strike, seen in this file photo.

Boeing Co. says it will shut down its Wichita facility, which specializes in maintaining and modifying the company's planes for military or government use. The plant is slated to close by the end of 2013.

The closure could devastate a portion of the local economy, according to The Wichita Eagle:

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Opinion
12:41 pm
Wed January 4, 2012

Will Charlie Rose Rise And Shine For CBS?

Credit Stephen Lovekin / Getty Images
TV personality Charlie Rose attends the 10th annual National Design Awards gala on Oct. 22, 2009 in New York City.

Andrew Wallenstein is an editor at Variety.

Charlie Rose may very well be the best interviewer on the planet. If there's something important in the news, chances are he's left his mark on the story — from the events unfolding in North Korea to the modern relevance of Shakespeare.

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