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ABOARD THE USS BONHOMME RICHARD – Down in the hull, everything is ready to go. There are tractors and trucks and three huge landing craft. There’s water purifying equipment, plastic tarps and wood beams for building temporary shelters. And there are more than 1,300 Marines ready to take it all …

LOS ANGELES – Surprise is what makes “24” (search) tick, and there should be plenty of it as Jack Bauer (search) embarks on a fourth season of saving the world from terrorists. Or maybe this time he won’t. With Agent Bauer, played by Kiefer Sutherland (search), you can never be …

NEW YORK – Nicollette Sheridan (search) of TV’s “Desperate Housewives” is the worst of the worst when it comes to wardrobe, according to Mr. Blackwell’s annual list of fashion winners and losers (search). “In barely there bombs, she’s a taste-free pain. Let’s crown her the Tacky Temptress of Wisteria Lane,” …

JAKARTA, Indonesia – Indonesia’s vice president welcomed a cease-fire offer by Aceh’s rebel movement, saying Thursday that Jakarta (search) would “make efforts” toward keeping peaceful relations as it seeks to rebuild the tsunami-battered region. “Of course we welcome it. Indonesia will also make efforts toward it,” said Jusuf Kalla, speaking …

SOMERS, Conn. – A chronological look at Michael Ross’ crimes, convictions and sentences: — May 1981: Dzung Ngoc Tu, a 25-year-old student, is killed in Ithaca, N.Y. — August 1981: A 25-year-old woman is raped and beaten in Rolesville, N.C. — September 1981: Ross attacks a 15-year-old girl in La …

NEW YORK – The host of a New York morning radio show and the rest of her on-air crew were suspended indefinitely Wednesday for airing a tasteless song parody that mocked victims of the catastrophic south Asia tsunami (search). “What happened is morally and socially indefensible,” said Rick Cummings, president …

JACKSON, Tenn. – A man opened fire Tuesday at a state Transportation Department (search) maintenance garage, killing his wife and two others, and wounding two, authorities said. David Jordan (search), 40, was arrested a short time later, not far from the maintenance garage, after officers followed him, police said. Two …

WASHINGTON – U.S. Social Security (search) cards won’t be worth the paper they’re printed on if California Rep. David Dreier (search) has his way. He is sponsoring a bill that would replace the old paper card with one that is more like a credit card. The card would basically have …

The FDA has approved a new pain reliever designed to ease a potentially debilitating type of pain caused by diabetes or shingles. Lyrica (search) is approved for the treatment of pain associated with: —Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (search). Nerve damage occurs when elevated blood sugar levels are too high for a …

WASHINGTON – Eleven former intelligence officers are speaking up on behalf of CIA officer Valerie Plame (search), saying leaking her identity may have damaged national security and threatens the ability of U.S. intelligence gathering. In a statement to congressional leaders, the former officers said the Republican National Committee (search) has …