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I have purchased a copy of The World Almanac and Book of Facts every single year since the 1971 edition (this would have been my 43rd consecutive issue). Several years ago I switched from the cheap paperback copies to the hardcover simply because the type is a little larger and easier to read. At first I ordered them through bookstores but the past couple years I have ordered them online. I placed my order for the hardback edition of the 2013 World Almanac from Amazon.com back on the first of August. At first they told me its mailing date would...

WASHINGTON - The FBI (news - web sites) is warning police nationwide to be alert for people carrying almanacs, cautioning that the popular reference books covering everything from abbreviations to weather trends could be used for terrorist planning. In a bulletin sent Christmas Eve to about 18,000 police organizations, the FBI said terrorists may use almanacs "to assist with target selection and pre-operational planning." It urged officers to watch during searches, traffic stops and other investigations for anyone carrying almanacs, especially if the books are annotated in suspicious ways. "The practice of researching potential targets is consistent with known methods...