Kenyan children face looted, burned schools

When Nelly Chepchumba returned to school this week, she found charred walls where her classroom used to be and two corpses half-buried in the garden. A place of learning had been consumed in the explosion of violence that followed a disputed presidential election in Kenya.

Thirteen-year-old Nelly poked through the grounds for old uniforms and missing shoes. She stepped over ripped-up spelling books. Old attendance sheets and a blackboard with the message "Don't hesitate to discipline children. A good spanking won't kill them!" served as reminders of the students who used to gather.

"I'm jealous of other children who get to return to their …

Dons are given a warning

Aberdeen can learn lessons from Rangers' defeat in the ChampionsLeague on Wednesday night.

The Gers were expected to coast through to the last 16 againstLyon, but that failed to materialise as the French champions ran out3-0 winners.

A lot of people seem to be expecting Aberdeen to sail throughtheir must-win UEFA Cup game against Copenhagen on Thursday, but Iwould urge everyone to remain …

Patriot scorecard mixed; PAC-3 use limited

PENTAGON REPORTS INDICATE that Patriot missile defense systems destroyed all the Iraqi tactical ballistic missiles they were fired at, but the system also shot down two coalition aircraft and targeted a third during the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. Contrary to initial reports, most of the intercepts were done by older model Patriot Advanced Capability-2 (PAC-2) missiles rather than the more heralded, newer Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) interceptors, which saw limited action.

Patriot interceptors destroyed nine Iraqi tactical ballistic missiles, while another six Iraqi missiles were "not fired at, based on the predicted impact area," Lieutenant Yvonne Lukson, a spokesperson …

Oil prices pass $143 a barrel

Oil prices surged above $143 a barrel for the first time ever Monday, as a weaker dollar spurred investors to seek refuge in dollar-denominated oil futures to hedge against inflation.

"The main factors behind the rise today are the U.S. dollar remains fragile and geopolitical tensions, particularly surrounding Iran," said David Moore, a commodity strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney. "That's unsettling for the oil market."

The European Central Bank may raise interest rates at its next meeting on Thursday, a move that would help strengthen the euro against the dollar, Moore said.

Light, sweet crude for …

Admitted Nazi hit man trial to begin this month

Germany's highest court said Thursday it has declined to hear the appeal of admitted Nazi hit man Heinrich Boere, clearing the way for his trial later this month for the execution-style killings of three Dutch civilians during World War II.

Boere, 88, was initially ruled unfit for trial due to medical problems, but a Cologne appeals court in July overturned the decision, saying the trial could proceed.

Boere's attorneys had appealed that decision to the Federal Constitutional Court in Karlesruhe, arguing that their client suffers a serious heart condition and that to put him on trial would violate his human rights by putting him in a possibly life-threatening …

In case you're having trouble getting through

Santa Claus can now be reached athttp://web.telepost.no/santa/claus/html,http://members.aol.com/cunfuzzled/san ta.html,http://users.aol.com/serggio/index.htm, http://www.northpole.net/,http://www.netm.com/santa, http://www.greenland-guide.dk/santa,http://webtade.com/home pages/santa.html, http://lovesanta.com,http://web2.air mail.net/rdhaar/, http://www.santaletters.com/,http://www.santa4kids.com/,http://www.cybrgem.com/santa/http://www.santacard.com,http://204.71.96.157/santaclaus/ or http://www.markettech.com/

Ho ho ho.Check him out

The British Charity Commission has warned people to check thecredentials of any Santa who shows up on the doorstep …

Porsche reports $1.5 billion H1 operating earnings

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Porsche says it made over a billion euros in operating profit in the first half as customers in China bought more of its cars.

The figure of €1.07 billion ($1.5 billion) improves on €675 million from the first six months of last year. Revenues rose 19 percent to €5.2 billion.

Porsche AG, maker of the 911 sport car and Cayenne SUV, said …