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Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Friday he will declare a "fiscal emergency" in January to give him and the Legislature more power to deal with the state's growing deficit. Schwarzenegger made the announcement Friday after meeting with lawmakers and interest groups this week to tell them California's budget deficit is worse -- far worse -- than economists predicted just a few weeks ago. The shortfall is not $10 billion, but more than $14 billion -- a 40 percent jump that would put it in orbit with some of the state's worst fiscal crisis, those who have met with him said.

The wreckage of a pirate ship abandoned by Captain Kidd in the 17th century has been found by divers in shallow waters off the Dominican Republic, a research team claims. The underwater archaeology team, from Indiana University, says they have found the remains of Quedagh Merchant, actively sought by treasure hunters for years. Charles Beeker of IU said his team has been licensed to study the wreckage and convert the site into an underwater preserve for the public. It is remarkable that the wreck has remained undiscovered all these years given its location, just 70 feet off the coast of...

HONG KONG (Reuters) - China's worst fuel crunch in years has led a crematorium to dump half-burnt corpses to try saving on diesel costs, a Hong Kong newspaper said on Friday. Villagers in Hengyang county, in the southern province of Hunan, discovered the practice when an "unbearable stench" started coming from the site, and tried to block a road on Wednesday to stop funeral vehicles from delivering more bodies. The village sent people to investigate the smell and the South China Morning Post said they saw "crematorium workers putting half-burnt human remains and organs in plastic bags and throwing them...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- At last, Bowie Kuhn beat Marvin Miller at something. The late commissioner was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Monday while Miller was rejected by a revamped Veterans Committee stacked with those he regularly opposed -- and beat -- in arbitration and bargaining sessions that altered the history of the game. "Bowie was a close friend and a respected leader who served as commissioner during an important period in history, amid a time of change," commissioner Bud Selig said, adding: "I was surprised that Marvin Miller did not receive the required support given his important...

NEW YORK -- The Hall of Fame pitched another shutout. Ron Santo, Jim Kaat and all the other candidates were left out Tuesday when the Veterans Committee admitted no new members for the third straight election. Gil Hodges, umpire Doug Harvey and union leader Marvin Miller also fell short of the 62 votes needed for Cooperstown. Santo came the closest to the required 75 percent -- the former Cubs third baseman was picked on 57 of 82 ballots (70 percent). Kaat, who was strongly backed by Hall member Mike Schmidt, and Harvey each drew 52 votes. Miller showed a strong...

WASHINGTON - People once again spent everything they made and then some last year, pushing the personal savings rate to the lowest level since the Great Depression more than seven decades ago. The Commerce Department reported Thursday that the savings rate for all of 2006 was a negative 1 percent, meaning that not only did people spend all the money they earned but they also dipped into savings or increased borrowing to finance purchases. The 2006 figure was lower than a negative 0.4 percent in 2005 and was the poorest showing since a negative 1.5 percent savings rate in 1933...

A married woman who was having an affair with a fellow skydiver plunged 13,000ft (4,000m) to her death after her love rival and best friend tampered with her parachute, police say. Els Van Doren, 37, fell to earth in a garden in front of a group of onlookers. Els Clottemans, 22, has been charged with her murder. Minutes earlier the pair had joined hands in a star formation with two other skydivers including Ms Clottemans’s boyfriend, a Dutchman named only as Marcel, who police say was having an affair with Mrs Van Doren. While he and Ms Clottemans broke away...

A California radio station has fired 10 employees, including five on-air personalities, after Jennifer Strange, a mother of three, died following her participation in a 'Hold your wee for a Wii' competition, reports the Sacramento Bee. The 28-year-old died of water intoxication having consumed an estimated two gallons of water in an attempt to win a Nintendo console for her children. The winner of the contest was to be the person who managed to drink the most water without going to the bathroom. Strange called into her office after the show and told a co-worker that she had a "really...

WAUSAU, Wis. - Who is that mysterious, elegant man? And why is he sitting on a dead horse? Such are some of the questions sparked by a black-and-white photograph taken in Sheboygan between 1876 and 1884 that has led to nationwide curiosity, speculation and jokes. "It is just a funny picture," Prescher said. "He is sitting on there with a top hat like he had somewhere special to go and his horse just croaked in the middle of the road." No one knows who the gentleman is, exactly what year the picture was taken or the circumstances surrounding it, said...

The body found last month in a glacier east of Fresno belongs to an airman killed in a 1942 plane crash at Kings Canyon National Park, military officials confirmed Wednesday. Scientists identified a name on the nearly obliterated tag attached to the uniform on the body, said the Joint POW-MIA Accounting Command, the military unit in charge of recovering and identifying the remains of lost soldiers. "The name on the badge matches a name they also found on the clothing," said Army Maj. Rumi Nielson-Green. The body belongs to one of four servicemen aboard an AT-7 training flight from Mather...

Controversial plans to dig up William Shakespeare's grave, to find out whether he was murdered by his son-in-law, have been revealed by American scientists. The US experts, who are convinced the Bard's death was anything but natural, are hoping to be granted permission by his descendants to exhume his body. Shakespeare died on his birthday on April 23, 1616, and was buried two days later at Stratford-upon-Avon's Holy Trinity Church. His grave has remained untouched for more than 350 years, but now American pathologists want to disturb his resting place, in spite of warnings of a curse on Shakespeare's tomb...

....In 1989, Ms. Miers placed first in a field of four Dallas City Council at-large candidates to force a two-person runoff election. Somewhat to his surprise, said first-round opponent Roy Williams, Ms. Miers advocated a council representation system that featured 14 single-member council districts and a mayor elected citywide. Mr. Williams was among the plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit to create a 14-1 system, which he argued was tantamount to black and Hispanic citizens receiving proper political representation. "I know she will be an advocate for women and minorities," Mr. Williams says. "I wouldn't label her as a conservative or...

In an administration that makes a virtue -- for its staffers, at least -- of anonymity and self-effacement, Harriet Miers could well be considered a saint. Miers, 59, tapped to replace Attorney General-designate Alberto Gonzales as White House counsel, has long been one of the most discreet, most private and most protective members of George W. Bush's inner circle. Now Miers, the White House deputy chief of staff, is poised to become one of its most prominent as well. The first female president of the State Bar of Texas and a Dallas native, Miers has known Bush since 1993, when...

Burt Bacharach has teamed up with rapper Dr Dre for a new album of passionate protest songs. Bacharach, 77, known for classic pop songs like Alfie and Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head, says several tracks are critical of President Bush. Dr Dre provides drum loops on three of the tracks on the album, At This Time, while other contributors include Elvis Costello and Rufus Wainwright. Tracks on the album, due out on October 24, include Please Explain, Where Did It Go?, In Our Time, Who Are These People, Can't Give Up, Go Ask Shakespeare and Dreams. Bacharach said: "People...

ST. LOUIS -- Mark McGwire stands by his no comment. The St. Louis Cardinals season home run king made his first appearance at Busch Stadium this season on Friday as part of a final-weekend reunion at the 40-year-old ballpark. He said he had no regrets about his often-criticized testimony before Congress in March during steroids hearings, during which he repeatedly said "I'm not here to talk about the past." "I've moved on from it and I wish the media would," McGwire said. "I've made my statement in Washington, that's my statement, and when I left Washington that's the last time...

It sure didn't take very long for Barry Bonds to start setting records. With his first home run of the season, Bonds broke Babe Ruth's 70-year-old record. No, not that record. Bonds most likely won't hit No. 715 until next season. But he erased Ruth's standard for most home runs as "as an outfielder," according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Bonds' first HR of the season was the 704th of his career, but more significantly was his 693rd as an outfielder, Elias says. All totaled, Bonds is credited with 696 as an outfielder, eight as a designated hitter and three...

SAN FRANCISCO -- Barry Bonds used to commit any spare time before games to lifting weights, working meticulously to build up his leg strength for long nights of standing in left field and on the basepaths following his many walks. His bum right knee no longer allows it. He is carrying a few extra pounds around his middle and vows to spend the offseason bringing his playing weight down from more than 228 pounds to about 200. "I'm going to be skinny," said Bonds, who weighed 185 pounds as a rookie in 1986 but has not been near 200 for...

(CNN) -- The Supreme Court released statements by seven Supreme Court justices who paid tribute to Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, who died Saturday. A statement from Justice David Souter is not expected, the court said.Justice John Paul Stevens: "William Rehnquist's independent, impartial and dedicated leadership of the Supreme Court has been an inspiration to those of us privileged to serve with him -- and to the entire nation as well. Charles Evans Hughes, a great chief justice whom he particularly admired, would have been proud of the example he set as the leader of the court. "He was truly...

BEIJING --A Chinese artist who grafted the head of a human fetus onto the body of a bird has defended his work as art after a Swiss museum withdrew the piece from an exhibit. "It's precisely because I respect all life that I did this," artist Xiao Yu said Tuesday. He said the bird and fetus "died because there was something wrong with them. ... I thought putting them together like this was a way for them to have another life."

MAY. 1, 2003: THINGS TO COME While Donald Rumsfeld takes his victory lap in Iraq and Americans celebrate the capture of yet another al Qaeda creep, the British media are consumed by a controversy over ... chocolate. It’s worth paying attention--because a similar story will in all likelihood be coming on this side of the Atlantic very soon. Cadbury’s is the dominant British chocolate maker. Last week, they announced a new promotional scheme. In exchange for empty Cadbury wrappers, the company would offer schools athletic equipment. It’s not exactly a new idea, but it kicked off an incredible row in...