Five former Blackwater Worldwide security guards won dismissal of manslaughter and weapons charges in the 2007 deaths of 14 Iraqi civilians in a hail of gunfire and explosives at a busy Baghdad intersection.

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Blackwater Guards Get Iraqi Death Charges Dismissed (Update3)

A federal judge dismissed all charges Thursday against five Blackwater Worldwide security guards accused of killing unarmed Iraqi civilians in a crowded Baghdad intersection in 2007. Citing repeated government missteps, U.S. District Judge Ricardo Urbina…

Blackwater Worldwide – United States – Security guard – Iraq – United States Department of Justice

Judge tosses Blackwater case, cites gov’t missteps

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks ended 2009 on Thursday with their best gains since 2003, driven by optimism about the economy’s recovery and a brighter outlook for profits.

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Wall St closes out ’09 with best gains since 2003

Federal Reserve officials are considering a proposal to schedule limited sales of bonds from the central bank’s $2.2 trillion balance sheet as part of a range of tools for withdrawing record monetary stimulus.

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Fed Discusses Limited Bond Sales to Withdraw Stimulus (Update1)

The U.S. box office will set a weekly record of almost $500 million in the final days of 2009 on sales from “Avatar,” “Sherlock Holmes” and “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel,” according to Hollywood.com.

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‘Avatar’ Tops Record Week as Hollywood Closes 2009 (Update1)

Free agent reliever Danys Baez and the Philadelphia Phillies have agreed to a two-year contract, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Thursday because Baez must pass a physical for the…

Philadelphia Phillies – Free agent – Contract – Danys Báez – Open source

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AP source: Phillies, Baez agree to deal

The nation’s top broadcast regulator on Thursday urged Time Warner Cable and the Fox television network to agree to a temporary deal that would keep football games on cable TV systems as the companies settle differences over fees. A failure to agree before a…

Time Warner Cable – Sugar Bowl – Fox Broadcasting Company – Cable television – Bart Simpson

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FCC urges Fox, Time Warner Cable to settle

Selling on Wall Street Thursday trims the year’s gains, but the S&P 500 finishes with a 23% jump

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Stocks Retreat to Finish Best Year Since 2003

New York state ended 2009 with $883.7 million of available cash, after borrowing from its short-term investment pool to absorb a record $600 million deficit in its general fund, according to a report by Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

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New York Borrows Internally to Cover Record General Fund Gap

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks closed out 2009 with the best performance in six years, but monthly employment figures in the first week of the new year will keep investors focused on what is likely to be 2010′s reality — the economy’s struggle to recover.

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New year, old worries for U.S. stocks

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The attorney general for Washington D.C. has filed a lawsuit against an AT&T Inc unit, seeking to recover consumers’ unused balances on prepaid calling cards.

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Washington DC sues AT&T over calling cards

The grandson of the late Walt Disney has pleaded not guilty to drug and gun charges in a Los Angeles court room. Patrick Disney Miller was taken into custody on $550,000 bail after his arraignment Thursday on the 19 felony counts. The 42-year-old Miller was…

Walt Disney – Movies – Arts – Studios – Walt Disney Pictures

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Walt Disney grandson pleads not guilty in LA court

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Worst Decade For Stocks, But Not All Stocks

Nokia Corp. continues to lob salvos at Apple Inc. in a patent infringement dispute. The Finnish phone maker filed a federal lawsuit in Delaware this week claiming Apple is infringing on seven Nokia patents in products from the iPhone to computers. Nokia made…

iPhone – Apple – Nokia – Patent infringement – Nokia and Apple

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Nokia files second lawsuit against Apple

Few analysts forecast this year’s remarkable stock market rebound as major indexes were plunging to 12-year lows last March. Now, with most experts predicting the pace of stocks’ gains will slow in 2010, there’s reason to believe they will be proven correct….

Stock market – Business – Investing – Stocks and Bonds – Equities

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Few called market turn, fewer predict it will last