Free Republic

HAVANA - Cuban art students and cartoonists painted an American eagle cartoon Wednesday on the asphalt of Havana's coastal highway so cars can drive over it as they pass the U.S. diplomatic mission, the latest salvo in a spat over pro-dissident Christmas decorations hung by the Americans. Police closed off two blocks of the highway as the students drew the colorful cartoon of an aggressive-looking eagle with an enormous "B" on its chest — referring to the U.S. "bloqueo," or trade sanctions. The government has used the figure in a televised campaign to criticize four decades of sanctions. "This character...

Oracle prevails in PeopleSoft tender Stage set for potential proxy battle in the spring LOS ANGELES (CBS.MW) -- Oracle Corp. cleared a crucial hurdle Friday night in its $9.2 billion bid to take over PeopleSoft Inc., winning a clear majority of shares in its smaller rival following a direct appeal to investors. More than 60 percent of PeopleSoft (PSFT: news, chart, profile) shares were tendered in favor of the $24-per-share offer, Oracle (ORCL: news, chart, profile) said in a statement released less than an hour after the deadline for accepting the bid expired. In a letter to PeopleSoft seeking to...