NRA returns to public debate, to meet with media

One week after the mass shootings that killed 26 people at a Connecticut elementary school — 20 of them children — the nation's largest gun-rights lobby is returning to the spotlight as Congress prepares to consider tighter restrictions on firearms in the new year.The 4.3 million-member National Rifle Association largely disappeared from public debate after the shootings in Newtown, Conn., choosing...

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NRA calls for armed police officer in every school

Guns and police officers in all American schools are what's needed to stop the next killer "waiting in the wings," the National Rifle Association declared Friday, taking a no-retreat stance in the face of growing calls for gun control after the Connecticut shootings that claimed the lives of 26 children and school staff."The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun," said...

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Few report sex assaults at military academies

 New details in a Pentagon report show that military academy students report just a fraction of the sexual assaults they say occurred in the past school year, signaling a continued reluctance by victims to seek criminal investigations.As reported earlier this week, the report shows that reported sexual assaults at the nation's three military academies jumped by 23 percent overall this year. But...

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Iran claims it has circumvented sanctions

Iran's oil minister claims his country has successfully circumvented sanctions on the sale of its oil.State TV on Sunday broadcast comments by Rostam Ghasemi that the industry was in "bad shape" about two months ago due to the oil embargo by the West, "but we left the bottleneck behind, almost."Ghasemi also said that Iran has set up its own insurance for ships that carry its oil after Western companies...

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Iran claims it has overcome sanctions

Iran's oil minister claimed Sunday his country has successfully overcome sanctions on the sale of its oil, state TV reported.The U.N. and West have imposed tough economic sanctions on Iran to try to persuade it to stop its uranium enrichment project, including a ban by the EU on oil imports, but Iran remains defiant.Oil Minister Rostam Ghasemi that the industry was in "bad shape" about two months...

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Another school massacre pressures Obama on gun control

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The mass killing on Friday at a Connecticut school put renewed pressure on U.S. President Barack Obama and other Democrats to reverse their years of caution about gun control laws and address the easy availability of firearms.The scenes from Sandy Hook Elementary - of children running from a school where a lone gunman killed at least 20 children and six adults [ID:nL1E8NE53F]...

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Some Democrats call for action on gun control after Connecticut shootings

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A day after the Connecticut elementary school massacre, a senior congressional Democrat on Saturday called on U.S. lawmakers to pass sweeping new gun control measures including banning assault weapons and high-capacity clips, saying, "Politics be damned."Representative John Larson, chairman of the House of Representatives Democratic Caucus, gave a list of specific policies he...

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Factbox: Major parties in Japan's parliament after December 16 poll

TOKYO (Reuters) - Conservative ex-premier Shinzo Abe will get a second chance to lead Japan after his Liberal Democratic Party surged back to power in Sunday's election, while Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's Democratic Party suffered a crushing defeat, securing less than one-fifth of the seats won in 2009.Below are some key facts about Japan's political parties.LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF JAPAN (LDP)Established:...

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NRA goes unusually silent after Connecticut school shooting leaves 20 youngsters dead

The nation's largest gun-rights organization — typically outspoken about its positions even after shooting deaths — has gone all but silent since last week's rampage at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school that left 26 people dead, including 20 children.Its Facebook page has disappeared. It has posted no tweets. It makes no mention of the shooting on its website. None of its leaders hit the media circuit...

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NRA goes silent after Connecticut school shooting

The nation's largest gun-rights organization — typically outspoken about its positions even after shooting deaths — has gone all but silent since last week's rampage at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school that left 26 people dead, including 20 children.Its Facebook page has disappeared. It has posted no tweets. It makes no mention of the shooting on its website. None of its leaders hit the media circuit...

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