Mama June's Weight Loss Wows Readers, While Kate's Baby Bump Draws Love

By Andrea Billups 02/09/2013 at 01:35 PM EST Mama June (left) and mama-to-be Kate Pacific Coast News; TOP STAR PICTURES What's on the minds of PEOPLE readers this week? We love seeing your responses, and as always, you weighed in with plenty of angry, sad and...

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After early start, worst of flu season may be over

NEW YORK (AP) — The worst of the flu season appears to be over.The number of states reporting intense or widespread illnesses dropped again last week, and in a few states there was very little flu going around, U.S. health officials said Friday.The season started earlier than normal, first in the Southeast and then spreading. But now, by some measures, flu activity has been ebbing for at least four...

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Tunisian Islamists rally to show "power of street"

TUNIS (Reuters) - Thousands of Islamists marched in Tunis on Saturday in a show of strength, a day after the funeral of an assassinated secular politician drew the biggest crowds seen on the streets since Tunisia's uprising two years ago. About 6,000 supporters of the ruling Ennahda movement rallied to back their leader Rachid al-Ghannouchi, who was the target of angry slogans raised...

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Egypt court suspends YouTube over anti-Islam film

CAIRO (Reuters) – An Egyptian court ordered the suspension of online video service YouTube for a month on Saturday for broadcasting a film insulting the Prophet Mohammad, state media reported.The country’s administrative court ordered the ministries of communication and investment to block YouTube, owned by Google, inside Egypt because it had carried the film “Innocence of Muslims,” said state news...

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Britney Spears Gets Another Dog

People Pets 02/08/2013 at 01:40 PM EST Britney Spears and her new dog Courtesy Britney Spears It's a furbaby one more time for Britney Spears. After bringing home pooch Hannah in November, Spears introduced her newest furry family member on her Facebook page Friday. "Say...

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Health officials: Worst of flu season may be over

NEW YORK (AP) — Health officials say the worst of the flu season appears to be over.The number of states reporting intense or widespread flu dropped again last week. By some measures, flu activity has been ebbing for at least four weeks. Deaths from the flu or pneumonia have been dropping for two weeks.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the latest flu numbers on Friday.This flu...

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Equities climb in wake of positive data

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks extended gains on Friday, with the Nasdaq rising 1 percent, putting it within close reach of a 12-year high. The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> gained 47.66 points, or 0.34 percent, to 13,991.71. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> rose 7.47 points, or 0.49 percent, to 1,516.86. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was up 30.23 points,...

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Violence mars funeral of Tunisian opposition leader

TUNIS (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of Tunisians turned out on Friday to mourn secular opposition leader Chokri Belaid, whose assassination has deepened a political crisis and led to violent protests against the Islamist-led government. Teargas and smoke from burning cars at times wafted over the Tunis cemetery where Belaid was buried in the country's biggest funeral since independence...

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What If the Wii U Were Just Its Tablet Controller? Meet the 7-Inch Wikipad

The Wii U made a splash with its personal tablet controllers. Sandwiching a 6.2-inch touchscreen in between a regular analog stick and buttons, the Wii U’s GamePad is like a Nintendo DS’ lower touchscreen for a home console, and even lets you play games right on its screen. It streams those games from the Wii U itself, though, meaning it’s basically useless when it’s out of range of the console.Imagine...

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Shirley MacLaine's Only Daughter Pens a Shocking New Tell-All

Seeing her mom, Shirley MacLaine, play a saucy septuagenarian on Downton Abbey, Sachi Parker couldn't help but smile."She was true to form," Parker says of MacLaine, 78, whose zinger-slinging turn as Lady Grantham's American mom shook up the big house this season. "It certainly hit home." Hearing about Parker's relationship with MacLaine makes it easy to understand why. Raised mostly by her...

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Southern diet, fried foods, may raise stroke risk

Deep-fried foods may be causing trouble in the Deep South. People whose diets are heavy on them and sugary drinks like sweet tea and soda were more likely to suffer a stroke, a new study finds.It's the first big look at diet and strokes, and researchers say it might help explain why blacks in the Southeast — the nation's "stroke belt" — suffer more of them.Blacks were five times more likely than whites...

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Wall Street dips on renewed euro zone concerns

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Shares fell on Thursday after the euro currency dropped against the safe-haven dollar and yen, raising worries about Europe's outlook and curbing investors' appetite for risky assets such as stocks. The euro sank after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said the exchange rate was important to growth and price stability, which investors took as a sign the...

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Khamenei rebuffs U.S. offer of direct talks

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran's highest authority, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on Thursday slapped down an offer of direct talks made by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden this week, saying they would not solve the problem between them. "Some naive people like the idea of negotiating with America, however, negotiations will not solve the problem," Khamenei said in a speech to officials and members of...

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Nova Scotia gives BlackBerry $10 million over five years to keep jobs

HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government is giving tech giant BlackBerry (TSX:BB) $ 10 million over five years to help the company keep at least 400 jobs in the province.Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter says in return, BlackBerry has committed to spend $ 4 million a year on a facility that would purchase new equipment and conduct research and development.Last summer, the company laid off about 95 people...

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Harley Pasternak Blogs About the Surprising Ways Alcohol Can Hurt Your Diet

Celebrity Blog By Harley Pasternak 02/06/2013 at 02:00 PM EST Harley Pasternak Courtesy Harley Pasternak Last week, country singer Tim McGraw made a splash when PEOPLE magazine featured an article about his complete physique transformation.What I found most interesting...

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Wall Street stymied as investors lack catalysts to trade

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were little changed on Wednesday as investors, without any major economic reports to guide them, awaited fresh incentives to trade after rallies took the S&P 500 to five-year highs. Transportation stocks were among the worst performers, weighed down by a 10 percent drop in CH Robinson Worldwide to $60.40 after the freight transport company posted...

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Tunisia protests after government critic shot dead

TUNIS (Reuters) - A fierce critic of the Tunisian government's dealings with radical Islamists was shot dead on Wednesday, sending protesters onto the streets two years after their Jasmine Revolution sparked revolt across the Arab world. The headquarters of the moderate Islamist Ennahda party, which rules in a fractious coalition with secularists, was set ablaze after Chokri Belaid, an...

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French court throws out EDF guilty verdict in hacking case

VERSAILLES, France (Reuters) – A French appeals court on Wednesday threw out a 1.5 million euro ($ 2 million) fine against energy giant EDF, overturning a lower court’s ruling that the company had been complicit in hacking the computers of Greenpeace in 2006.EDF had appealed against the November 2011 decision by the Nanterre criminal court that a company it hired had hacked into confidential information...

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Tim McGraw Visits The Ellen DeGeneres Show - Sans Underwear!

By Maggie Coughlan 02/05/2013 at 01:45 PM EST TMI, Tim McGraw!Ellen DeGeneres has been known to hand out underwear with her show's name on it to her famous guests. And McGraw, who makes an appearance on Tuesday's episode, is seen wearing them in a photo taken while he was out for a jog. "Are you wearing them...

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Critics seek to delay NYC sugary drinks size limit

NEW YORK (AP) — Opponents are pressing to delay enforcement of the city's novel plan to crack down on supersized, sugary drinks, saying businesses shouldn't have to spend millions of dollars to comply until a court rules on whether the measure is legal.With the rule set to take effect March 12, beverage industry, restaurant and other business groups have asked a judge to put it on hold at least until...

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S&P 500 gains more than 1 percent

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 rose more than 1 percent on Tuesday as stronger-than-expected earnings helped the outlook for profit growth while the Nasdaq also traded more than 1 percent higher. The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was up 121.55 points, or 0.88 percent, at 14,001.63. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was up 16.25 points, or 1.09 percent,...

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Iran's Ahmadinejad kissed and scolded in Egypt

CAIRO (Reuters) - Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was both kissed and scolded on Tuesday when he began the first visit to Egypt by an Iranian president since Tehran's 1979 Islamic revolution. The trip was meant to underline a thaw in relations since Egyptians elected an Islamist head of state, President Mohamed Mursi, last June. But it also highlighted deep theological and geopolitical differences....

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EU wants to tackle money laundering on gaming sites

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union may try to counter money laundering through online betting sites by extending legislation beyond casinos to include Internet gambling.The executive European Commission formally proposed on Tuesday to include online gaming in EU-wide legislation that seeks to combat fraud. It could become law within two years if approved by the EU’s 27 member countries.The Commission...

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Baby Girl on the Way for Kathryn Fiore

Mom & Babies Celebrity Baby Blog 02/04/2013 at 01:00 PM ET Courtesy Katheryn Fiore Cue the lullaby: The Wedding Band is prepping for its littlest fan yet.Actress Kathryn Fiore, 33, and her husband, actor Gabriel Tigerman, 32, are expecting a daughter in late May, her rep confirms to PEOPLE exclusively.“We...

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APNewsBreak: Catholic hospital acknowledges error

DENVER (AP) — A Catholic hospital on Monday acknowledged it was "morally wrong" for its attorneys to argue in court that a fetus is not a human being under Colorado law.The admission comes after executives of Catholic Healthcare Initiatives met with Colorado's Roman Catholic bishops to discuss its defense in a wrongful death lawsuit filed after a mother and her unborn twins died in the emergency room...

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Wall Street retreats from five-year high

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks fell on Monday after a disappointing report on factory orders, retreating from gains in the prior session that left the S&P 500 at a five-year high and the Dow above 14,000. Investors also grew wary on political uncertainty in the euro zone, leading to a sharp rise in Spanish government bond yields. Chevron and Wal-Mart were among the biggest...

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North Korea nuclear test would face "firm" U.N. action: South Korea

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council is united on North Korea's nuclear arms program and will undoubtedly approve tough measures against Pyongyang if it carries out a new atomic test as expected, South Korean U.N. Ambassador Kim Sook said on Monday. "The North Korean nuclear test seems to be imminent," Kim, who is president of the Security Council this month, told reporters....

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BlackBerry shares jump after Bernstein upgrades stock

TORONTO (Reuters) – Shares of BlackBerry rose more than 8 percent in on Monday after Bernstein Research said it was upgrading the stock to “outperform” after last week’s launch of the company’s new line of BlackBerry 10 smartphones.The brokerage firm, which has not had an “outperform” rating on the stock for more than three years, also lifted its price target to $ 22 from $ 12, saying it has grown...

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