Venezuela holds symbolic inauguration for Chavez

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Nothing shows the extent of Hugo Chavez's grip on power quite as clearly as his absence from his own inauguration Thursday.Venezuela gathered foreign allies and tens of thousands of exuberant supporters to celebrate a new term for a leader too ill to return home for a real swearing-in.In many ways, it looked like the sort of rally the president has staged dozens of times...

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Lawmakers release documents on Wal-Mart bribery

 Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s CEO Mike Duke found out in 2005 that the retailer's Mexico unit was handing out bribes to local officials, according to emails obtained by lawmakers.The lawmakers say the emails contradict earlier claims by Wal-Mart that executives weren't aware of bribes being made by the company.Democratic Congressmen Elijah E. Cummings and Henry A. Waxman, who are investigating bribery...

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Thousands hold street inauguration for Chavez

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Thousands of chanting supporters of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez rallied outside his presidential palace Thursday in an exuberant alternative inauguration for a leader too ill to return home for the real thing.Backers wearing T-shirts with the slogan "I am Chavez" waved flags while upbeat music from Chavez's last presidential campaign blared from speakers, proclaiming:...

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Venezuela's official statement on Chavez's health

English translation of statement read by Vice President Nicolas Maduro in Havana on Sunday about the health of President Hugo Chavez:"The Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela fulfills its duty by informing the Venezuelan people about the course of President Hugo Chavez's medical treatment after the surgery performed in Havana, Cuba on Dec. 11."As is known, on December 28 we traveled...

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Venezuelans offer prayers, songs for Hugo Chavez

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelans gathered on plazas and in churches to pray for President Hugo Chavez amid what seems an increasingly gloomy outlook for the ailing leader in his fight against cancer.Following an announcement that Chavez had suffered "new complications" from a respiratory infection after undergoing cancer surgery in Cuba, people were out in the streets of Caracas on Monday talking...

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Venezuelans take in shifting news on Chavez health

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelans began 2013 with a respite from shifting news about the health of President Hugo Chavez, who hasn't been seen in public since his fourth cancer-related surgery three weeks ago.The country was largely peaceful Tuesday after a New Year's Eve that saw a main government-organized celebration canceled due to Chavez's illness.Jorge Rodriguez, a Chavez ally and mayor...

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Colombia firm makes armored clothes for kids

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — A Colombian firm that makes bulletproof vests is now creating armored clothing for children.Factory owner Miguel Caballero said he never thought about making protective clothes for kids until requests came in following the deadly attack on Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut last month."After the tragedy in Connecticut, we started getting emails from customers asking for protected...

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Chile: Couple dies defending home against Indians

An elderly couple whose family's vast landholdings have long been targeted by Mapuche Indians in southern Chile were killed in an arson attack early Friday while trying to defend their home. The president quickly flew to the scene and announced new security measures, including the application of Chile's tough anti-terrorism law and the creation of a special police anti-terror unit backed by Chile's...

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Chile: Couple dies defending home amid protests

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — An elderly couple whose family's vast landholdings have long been targeted by Mapuche Indians in southern Chile were killed in an arson attack early Friday while trying to defend their home. The president quickly flew to the scene and announced new security measures, including the application of Chile's tough anti-terrorism law and the creation of a special police anti-terror...

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Venezuela's Chavez fighting severe lung infection

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan lawmakers will meet Saturday in a session that could shed light on what steps may be taken if President Hugo Chavez is too sick to be sworn in for a new term next week.Legislators will choose a president, two vice presidents and other leaders of the National Assembly, which is controlled by a pro-Chavez majority. Whoever is elected National Assembly president could...

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Venezuela VP: Chavez could be sworn in by court

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez could be sworn in by the Supreme Court later on if he's not able to take the oath of office before lawmakers next week because of his struggle with cancer, his vice president said Friday.The stance announced by Vice President Nicolas Maduro conflicts with the argument by some opposition leaders that the president of the National Assembly would...

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Android-powered Ouya console now shipping to 1,200 developers [video]

The Ouya console is no longer vaporware. The company announced on its blog on Friday that 1,200 Ouya console developer kits are boxed up and ready to be shipped out to awaiting programmers. Each kit includes a frosted translucent Ouya console that is about the size of a coffee mug, two frosted translucent controllers with batteries, an HDMI cable, a power cable and a Micro USB cable. As Ouya CEO Julie...

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10 Tech-Industry Predictions for 2013

If you have followed our Big Picture column for the past year, you will know that as industry analysts and observers, we study this industry and the markets that compose it on a daily basis. Because of that, we often get asked about our thoughts concerning trends in the coming year. So we thought we would do a joint column sharing our predictions for the tech industry in 2013.Tim’s PredictionsEach...

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Unreleased ‘BlackBerry X10′ QWERTY phone appears again in new photos

As Research In Motion’s (RIMM) January 30th BlackBerry 10 unveiling draws closer, nearly every last detail surrounding RIM’s first two BlackBerry 10-powered smartphones will likely soon emerge. The vendor has a long history of leaks leading up to its new device announcements, and this time around RIM reps toured the world showing the phones to every carrier that would meet with them. Pictured once...

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Can Samsung survive without Android?

Samsung (005930) is the world’s top Android smartphone vendor by a staggering margin. Aside from LG (066570), which managed a small $20 million profit from its mobile division last quarter, no other global Android vendor can figure out how to make money selling Android phones. Meanwhile, Samsung posted a $6 billion profit on $47.6 billion in sales in the third quarter, thanks largely to record smartphone...

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BlackBerry Z10 with AT&T-compatible LTE uncovered ahead of January unveiling

Hang in there, American BlackBerry fans — your wait for a new device is nearly over. Engadget reports that the Federal Communications Commission has granted approval to what looks like RIM’s (RIMM) BlackBerry Z10 smartphone for use on AT&T’s (T) LTE and HSPA networks. The Z10, which will be the first device released with the new BlackBerry 10 operating system, is rumored to include a Qualcomm...

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Afghan bomber attacks near major US base; no dead

A vehicle apparently driven by a suicide bomber exploded at the gate of a major U.S. military base in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday, with initial reports indicating some Afghans were injured but no one was killed, a NATO command spokesman said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.The vehicle, probably with a suicide bomber inside, exploded at the gate of Camp Chapman, located adjacent...

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8 dead in Christmas Day fires, riot in Philippines

Angry residents beat a man to death and threw rocks at firefighters after a shantytown fire left thousands of people homeless, and another Christmas Day blaze in the Philippine capital left seven people dead, officials said Wednesday.A resident was beaten to death by his neighbors after shouting that he started Tuesday's shantytown fire in suburban San Juan city, Senior Fire Officer Domingo Cabog...

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Three Afghans dead in new blast at U.S. base in Afghan east

A suicide bomber killed three people in an attack on a U.S. base in Afghanistan on Wednesday, the same base that is believed to be used by the CIA and which a suicide bomber attacked three years ago killing seven CIA employees.The Afghan Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in the eastern town of Khost, saying they had sent a suicide bomber driving a van packed with explosives to the base."The...

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Japan's Abe gets second term, to tap allies for cabinet

The lower house of Japan's parliament approved Shinzo Abe as prime minister on Wednesday, giving the hawkish lawmaker a second chance at the top job as the country battles deflation and confronts a rising China.Abe, 58, has promised aggressive monetary easing by the Bank of Japan and big fiscal spending by the debt-laden government to slay deflation and weaken the yen to make Japanese exports more...

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