Free Republic

It is still far too early to call a turn in the long-term trend of initial jobless claims but this is the 5th week that new lows have not been made, 4th miss in a row, and (despite last week's upward revision) claims sit at 2-month highs. Initial claims printed 291k (against 284k expectations) down very slightly from an upwardly revised 293k last week. However, continuing claims continue to tumble to fresh cycle lows at 2.33 million (below expectations and well down from last week's jump).

1:44 p.m. April 12, 2006 Animal control officers confiscated 28 tiny puppies that were stuffed under and taped into the front seat of a van that was trying to cross into the United States from Mexico, authorities announced Wednesday. The dogs ranged in age from three to five weeks old and included boxers, Chihuahuas, cocker spaniels and poodle mixes, said Dawn Danielson, director of the county's Department of Animal Services. “They were jammed under the front seat of the van and a Customs agent saw a paw sticking out, Danielson said. Some of the puppies are sick and all require...

By STEPHANIE NANO Associated Press Writer December 5, 2002, 1:22 AM EST Screening and treating immigrants from developing countries for dormant tuberculosis infections would prevent thousands of cases and save tens of millions of dollars, a study shows. While the number of TB cases in the United States has been dropping, immigrants account for a growing proportion of them. There were nearly 16,000 U.S. cases last year and about half were in foreign-born residents, up from 27 percent a decade earlier. Potential immigrants now get a chest X-ray to detect active TB, and those who are sick are required to...