Tuesday October 24, 2006

The Final Word: “Memory Problems Edition”

(The media experiment in which we conjoin the headline and last paragraph of each bylined article in the A-section of today's New York Times.)

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Ford Posts Loss of $5.8 Billion, Worst Since '92:

Asked whether he felt pressure from the expectations being placed on his performance, Mr. Mulally replied, "There's no reason why we can't do this, so it's no pressure."

Chrysler Reports It Has About 50,000 Unsold Vehicles: And while the precise level of inventories may not be a critical statistic, Mr. Pinelli said, most people would assume inventory reports to be valid — especially after Chrysler's image was tarnished by the practice decades ago. Mr. Iacocca, for his part, argued that the order bank was "destroying the company" and said that the words "order bank" should be struck from Chrysler's corporate vocabulary.

In Southwest, a Shifting Away From Party Ties:

"Right now, both parties are way too far apart and nobody is looking out for the good of the people," he said.

Medical Views of 9/11's Dust Show Big Gaps:

"We are actively trying to determine whether Detective Zadroga and Mrs. Dunn-Jones are alone," she said. "And we are trying to find a way to do this that is scientifically correct while also being responsive to the needs and fears of the communities involved."

Offering Perks, Lenders Court Colleges’ Favor:

"The school is not being asked in any way, shape or form to steer a percentage of loan volume," Mr. Joyce said.

War in Sudan? Not Where the Oil Wealth Flows:

"The Americans are not a threat, but if the international community lines up against us, ahh, that is a different issue," said Osama Daoud Abdellatif, chairman of the DAL Group, a conglomerate that owns the Coke factory, the Ozone Café and a number of other businesses. "Everything has been going so well, but Darfur could spoil the party."

Meat Labels Hope to Lure the Sensitive Carnivore:

Martha Warburton, 62, said she did not have a problem with eating meat, though she also did not want farm animals to be mistreated. Still, when confronted with an "animal compassionate" label on meat, Ms. Warburton said, "I might not want to eat meat at all."

Other News

Bush, Facing Dissent on Iraq, Jettisons 'Stay the Course':

He added: "Stay the course also means don't leave before the job is done. And that's — we're going to get the job done in Iraq. And it's important that we do get the job done in Iraq."

Enron's Skilling Is Sentenced to 24 Years:

"Enron has become a horror to me," Mr. Skilling said, glassy-eyed and shaking. "The word Enron conjures up some really awful things. I don't blame the judge for what he did."

U.N. Official Says Iran Is Testing New Enrichment Device:

Some European diplomats have expressed concern that, should the Security Council act, the moderates in the Iranian government who have been involved in negotiations over the nuclear program could be shoved aside, and that some combination of military leaders and hard-line mullahs would push the country to speed its nuclear production.

Ethics Panel Says N.Y. Comptroller's Use of Drivers Broke the Law:

A spokesman for Governor Pataki, Michael Marr, said that the governor was reviewing the "deeply troubling findings" in the report. "Upon conclusion of our review and after taking into consideration all pertinent factors — including the fact Albany County District Attorney Soares has an ongoing criminal investigation into the matter — we will determine the appropriate course of action," he said.

Clashes Disrupt Hungary's Celebration of Anti-Soviet Revolt:

Some protesters responded by throwing stones. Mounted police officers with rubber batons and a water cannon were brought in to clear the area.

With Smudge and Streak, Rogers Has Left Imprint:

Rogers said he had never even experimented with pine tar on a baseball, and said he doubted it would help him, anyway. "I really don't see how it would benefit," Rogers said, "except maybe throw it 20 feet shorter."

Giants 36, Cowboys 22: After Bizarre Turn, Giants Hold on to Win:

The Giants shook off the Cowboys. And they carried away the feeling of a first-place team, one with championship aspirations firmly intact, one headed steadfastly in the direction it thought it could go.

Self-Portraits Chronicle a Descent Into Alzheimer's:

"He's always been an outsider," she said. "He was never quite in the same time slot with what was going on. Everybody was doing Abstract Expressionist, and there he was, solemnly drawing the figure. It's so strange to be known for something you're doing when you're rather ill."

International

Gletsch Journal: Frozen in Memories, but Melting Before Their Eyes:

Mr. Carlen is philosophical, reflecting that things could have been worse. In the early 1980's, he said, the Swiss government drew up plans for a dam and a power station at the end of the valley that would have submerged Gletsch. "Those plans remain in a drawer in the government building," he said. "And I hope that's where they stay."

60 Years Later, Buried Bombs Still Frighten Germans, and Kill Some:

The biggest problem, Mr. Semmler said, is that many Germans do not want to spend the money searching for bombs before they start digging. Property developers have to bear that cost, and it can quickly rise into the tens of thousands of dollars for a large site in the middle of a city.

Russia Ends Some Suspensions of Foreign Agencies:

Other groups noted that even if they were approved, other requirements could still undermine their ability to work, including a full annual plan that must be submitted by next week. The groups said the requirements for the plan were at once vast and vague, leaving them unsure what to submit, and worried that any submission the government did not like could be ground for future suspensions.

Israeli Premier Reaches Out to Far Right:

Mr. Shinbari was among five men in his family in their late teens or 20's who were killed in the gun battle, in the town of Beit Hanun, according to Palestinian medical workers. Several Palestinians were also wounded.

Iranian Women Should Have More Children, Leader Says:

"Some of our friends mentioned that we live at a sensitive time, but I want to add that humanity is living in a historical stage," he said, elaborating on why he wants to increase the population.

Troops Look for American Soldier Missing in Baghdad:

Prime Minister Maliki issued a statement on Monday warning militias, particularly in Amara, to stop the violence. "The Iraqi government hereby warns all groups with illegal weapons to refrain from any armed activities that undermine public security," he said, according to The Associated Press. "Let everyone be informed that orders have been issued to the armed forces to stop any transgression against state power."

National Report

Man Unable to Remember Is Reunited With Fiancée:

"He started crying, out of frustration, anxiety, crying out of the fact that he should know those people but he doesn't," she said.

Coca-Cola Is Donating Land for Proposed Rights Museum:

Coca-Cola, which is based in Atlanta, has often led the way here in changing attitudes about race. When Dr. King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, it was Robert Woodruff, then the leader of the company, who made sure that his hometown, where many members of the white establishment still thought of Dr. King as a troublemaker, honored him at a gala dinner for 1,500.

San Rafael Journal: At This Gathering, the Only Alternative Is to Be Alternative:

"We get tremendous energy from it," Mr. Casey said of the gathering. "It's like the Big Bang."

For a Top Democrat, Further Climb Seems Out:

"Congresswoman Harman does not know what this is all about," said her lawyer, Theodore B. Olson. "She has no information from the government that she is under an investigation of any sort, and the idea that she should be investigated for being a supporter of Aipac is frightening."

Brother of N.F.L. Star Posts Antiwar Essay:

Since the article went up on the Web site, it has received more than 4,000 responses, though Web server limits have prohibited publishing that many, Mr. Scheer said.

Obama Offers More Variations From the Norm:

"This administration has done great damage to this country," he said, citing the Iraq war as the chief reason.

Seats in Danger, Democrats Proclaim Their Conservatism:

"If Democrats are going to get elected in this district, they've got to stake out the middle position, which is what traditional Southern Democrats did," Mr. Bullock said. "And when they did, they held the South."

Democrats Urge Their Flush Candidates to Share the Wealth:

"Instead of a small map, we are dealing with a much larger map," said Sarah Feinberg, a spokeswoman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. "The issue now is making sure we have the resources to play in as many races that are up for grabs."

Political Action: The Money Starts Talking:

In the House, Democrats have steadily increased the number of races where they are competing. By Sunday it was 40, including Republican-held seats in California, Minnesota, Nevada and New York. The Republicans have apparently pulled out of two Ohio districts, as well as once-competitive districts in Indiana, West Virginia and South Carolina.

Suddenly, a Contest:

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is pumping money into an advertisement criticizing Mr. Gutknecht for voting against added military benefits while backing Congressional raises. The National Republican Congressional Committee weighed in with an attack against the Democrat on immigration.

President Googles, but E-Mail Is Out:

But Mr. Bush is no fan of e-mail. "I don't e-mail, because of the different record requests that can happen to a president," he said. "I don't want to receive e-mails because there's no telling what somebody's e-mail would show up as a part of some kind of a story, and I wouldn't be able to say, 'Well, I didn't read the e-mail.' 'But I sent it to your address, how can you say you didn't?' So, in other words, I'm very cautious about e-mailing."

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