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The process for the Society of St. Pius X’s return to full communion with Rome is expected to be concluded by the end of MayThe response sent to the Vatican on 17 April by Bishop Bernard Fellay will be examined in the next few days by the cardinal and bishop members in Ordinary Session of the Congregation of the Doctrine for the Faith, commonly known as Feria Quarta; their decision will then be submitted to Benedict XVI. The process which should lead the Society of St. Pius X – founded by Mgr. Lefebvre - to return to full communion with...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 27, 2006 -- It’s imperative that the United States, its allies and the Iraqi government stop Islamic extremists from achieving their goal of controlling Iraq and the surrounding region, a senior U.S. military officer said on CBS’s “60 Minutes” yesterday. “We have to stabilize Iraq and the broader regional dynamic in order to make the region less conducive to extremism, because if we don’t, the extremist values will become mainstream and we will have a much worse security situation develop in the future,” Army Gen. John P. Abizaid, commander of U.S. Central Command, told CBS reporter Lara...

3/23/2006 - MANAS AIR BASE, Kyrgyzstan (AFPN) -- On any given night over Afghanistan, a KC-135 Stratotanker refueling aircraft may be flying nearby as Soldiers in night-vision goggles move in on an enemy position. If needed, Soldiers call for close-air-support from the Air Force -- an A-10 Thunderbolt II may answer the call for help. No matter how well-trained the ground troops are, or how skillful the pilot is, if the A-10 runs out of fuel, it could spell failure. But the pilot knows a tanker will be there. Introduced to the fleet in 1954, there are more than 400...

Most of the attention in California politics this year has focused on battles between Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democrats over unions, gay marriage and school spending. But lost amid the cacophony is a green surprise: More than a dozen significant bills that would toughen environmental protections -- from global warming to chemicals in cosmetics -- have made it to the governor's desk with little public notice. Schwarzenegger has nine days left to sign or veto them. It's unclear what he'll do. The politics are complicated, experts say. Since he took office, Schwarzenegger has taken numerous stands supported by environmentalists, including signing...

JERUSALEM - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (news - web sites) said Sunday that Israel has some "hard decisions" to make as it moves toward peace with the Palestinians and the creation of a neighboring democracy. On her first trip to the Middle East since taking over at the State Department, Rice also urged both sides to live up to their promises. "This is a hopeful time, but it is a time also of great responsibility for all of us to make certain that we act on the words that we speak," Rice said before meeting with Israel's prime minister,...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Leaders of the Legislature's Democratic majority said Tuesday they are setting aside a long-standing call for tax increases to close the state's $8.6 billion deficit next year and instead will concentrate on closing tax loopholes and chasing more federal support. Calling the new budget plan from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger a Republican document, Democrats criticized the administration's plans to close the gap using billions in borrowing and taking heavily from schools and public health programs. But lacking their own budget plan and wary about a politically charged special election looming on the horizon, Democrats also said they are...

Dark days await armies gathering for the mother of all showdowns around Baghdad By Donald Macintyre in Qatar 25 March 2003 The United States and Britain began a ferocious air and missile attack on the Republican Guard divisions protecting Baghdad yesterday in their first concerted effort to force a way through the treacherous "red zone" surrounding the Iraqi capital. The US confirmed that one Apache helicopter gunship was downed in the first wave of air assaults, launched as a precursor to what military planners see as the decisive phase of the campaign. And the US 3rd Infantry Division was slowed...

People of Baghdad await the inevitable and fear the worst By Kim Sengupta in Baghdad 27 February 2003 The Iraqi people know that a war is inevitable, that many will die and that those who survive will have their lives changed for good. And, most of all, they are afraid that something calamitous, terrible even by the standards of this violent country, will befall Baghdad. The cautious optimism present even a month ago that the return of the UN inspectors would prevent a conflict has evaporated. The two cities that will bear the brunt of the suffering, it is commonly...