DEMOCRACY IN EGYPT. Presidential Palace Protesters.
Islamists and secularists are waging bloody street battles as president outlaws protests. Meanwhile, Egypt’s opposition continues to break through barricades
as thousands of protesters converge on presidential palace, chanting slogans against President Morsi.

OBAMA WANTS 60 BILLION. NY and NJ Sandy Recovery.
$60 billion in federal assistance for storm-battered New Jersey and New York to recover and rebuild from Super storm Sand. This package is short of the $82 billion that state governors had originally requested.

Whether it's holiday entertainment, presents for the kids, or for your family and friends, the costs of video games, DVDs, and other gifts quickly add up. But if you think about it, you can find some pretty ideas:

EGYPT'S PRESIDENT vs Egypt's Restless Population.
President Morsi shows no sign of compromising during a nationally televised speech, while protesters rally in Tahrir Square.

HIGH PRICED ELECTION. It Cost More Than Ever.
Reports indicate that the entire U.S. presidential campaigns spent more than $2 billion, which breaks previous spending records.

ASSAD's GRIP ON DAMASCUS. May Not Last Long.
A massive security clampdown includes checkpoints, blast walls and army tanks.

FIGHT OVER WATER. Raging Anew.

International police authorities have tracked down anti-virus software developer and murder suspect John McAfee for illegally entering Guatemala.

McAfee crossed into that Central American country to evade police in Belize, who want to question him about the recent murder of his American neighbor, Gregory Faull.

The eccentric 67-year-old had been hiding in plain sight in Belize, dodging police and giving interviews. He developed the world's largest dedicated security company.

David Warren "Dave" Brubeck was an American jazz pianist and composer. Brubeck wrote a number of jazz standards, including "In Your Own Sweet Way" and "The Duke" (December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012)

"Time Out", a groundbreaking recording by this amazing composer was almost scrapped by Columbia records executives because at first they claimed that people can't dance to these rhythms, recalled the late and great jazz legend, who died yesterday.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAF9_g05MCg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnOv-WS4tvo

FISCAL CLIFF FIXES. Supported By US, According To AP.
Published reports show that many want to raise taxes on the rich but have no desire for cuts to Social Security and Medicare.

EGYPT STRUGGLE. Opposing Sides ill Not Budge.
The opposition supports protests unless Morsi's Islamist is rescinded.

WHERE WOULD ASSAD HIDE? Is He Going To Flee?
White House says some nations have already offered him asylum.

WASHINGTON STATE PUFF-IN. Smokers Plan Toking In Public.
Just as marijuana is legalized, some smokers are smoking pot in public.

The prime minister of Australia joined the debate whether, or not the world will end on December 21 under the Mayan calendar in a spoof video about Korean pop and flesh-eating zombies.

Her a one-minute video address recorded for a youth radio station, the sombre-looking Gillard says the pending apocalypse is at hand despite there being no proof.

Julia Gillard says there is a bright side to armageddon, which she noted had not come as a result of the much-hyped Y2K millennium computer bug in the year 2000 or due to Australia's corporate pollution tax.

FISCAL CLIFF COUNTDOWN. Finding Common Ground.
Both sides now concede that more tax revenues and cuts in entitlement spending are going to be necessary elements of a deal.

MORE PROTESTS IN EGYPT. Morsi Mess.
Anger in cities signals a prolonged standoff between the president and the opposition.

FIGHTING IN SYRIA. Violence Increases.
The Syrian capital of Damascus could be a new major battlefield in the conflict.

WORLD'S OLDEST PERSON. Dead At 116.
Ms. Bessie Cooper passed away peacefully at a Georgia nursing home in Georgia after having her hair set.