DISPATCHES A Farewell to Dreams Teaser: You don’t have to be St. Germaine, Nostradamus, or the Oracle at Hemis to gaze into the future and see trouble, trouble and more trouble; the signs smack you in the face.
AP - President Barack Obama said Thursday that the racial firestorm that led to the ouster of a black Agriculture Department official was a "phony controversy" generated by the media. He said his administration overreacted by forcing her out.
Reuters - California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency over the state's finances on Wednesday, raising pressure on lawmakers to negotiate a state budget that is more than a month overdue and will need to close a $19 billion shortfall.
AP - The world's biggest rice importer, the Philippines, is now "swimming" in the staple grain because of massive imports by the previous government that drove world prices to record highs and possibly enriched corrupt officials.