On Saturday, Bay of Pigs invasion veterans mark 50 years since their release

In the days before Christmas 50 years ago this weekend, 1,113 Bay of Pigs fighters captured by Fidel Castro’s forces and imprisoned for 20 months were finally released to a heroes’ welcome in Miami.The first planeload of POWs arrived at Homestead Air Force Base on Dec. 23, 1962. Gaunt and betrayed by the John F. Kennedy administration, members of the proud Brigade 2506 were...

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Facebook’s new easier-to-manage ‘Privacy Shortcuts’ rolling out globally

Managing Facebook (FB) privacy settings can be a daunting nightmare. Facebook’s new “Privacy Shortcuts” is designed to make sharing items as transparent as possible with always-visible privacy button on the top toolbar. The update also brings “an easier-to-use Activity Log, and a new Request and Removal tool for managing multiple photos you’re tagged in.” The new Facebook privacy controls are...

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Pope pardons ex-butler who stole, leaked documents

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI granted his former butler a Christmas pardon Saturday, forgiving him in person during a jailhouse meeting for stealing and leaking private papers in one of the gravest Vatican security breaches in recent times.After the 15-minute meeting, Paolo Gabriele was freed and returned to his Vatican City apartment where he lives...

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Investors shuffling assets ahead of fiscal cliff

Some citizens aren’t waiting to find out if the White House and Republicans in Congress will be able to reach a last-minute deal to pull the country away from the “fiscal cliff.” They are selling securities while capital gains tax rates are still low or transferring millions into trusts for the benefit of children and grandchildren before estate tax laws become more stringent....

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Weather alert: South Florida to feel ‘freezing’

Get ready to say, “Brr.”South Florida temperatures will dip into the 40s Friday night, but the wind chill will leave Miami-Dade and Broward feeling more like the 30s.Although a freeze watch is in effect late Friday through Saturday morning, the cold front will be mostly dry. There is a 30 percent chance of isolated thunderstorms Friday morning, but no chance of rain late...

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Nokia to get payments in patent deal with RIM

HELSINKI (Reuters) – Struggling Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia has settled its patent dispute with BlackBerry maker Research in Motion in return for payments, as it tries to exploit its trove of technology patents to boost its finances.Terms of the agreement were confidential, but Nokia said on Friday it included a one-time payment to be booked in the fourth quarter, as well as ongoing fees, all...

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Obama to gun control supporters: 'We hear you'

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama says his administration has received an outpouring of support for stricter gun laws following last week's elementary school massacre in Connecticut, telling respondents to an online petition, "We hear you."The president said in a video released Friday that he has been encouraged that many gun owners have said there are...

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Cuba lashes out against U.S. fines on foreign banks

The Cuban government Thursday denounced what it called the “unjust and illegal” multi-million dollar fines the U.S. government slapped on two foreign banks for violating Washington’s sanctions on the island. The U.S. actions show that its “ferocious persecution of financial and commercial transactions by Cuba and those with legitimate relations … has only changed but has...

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Florida schools buy emergency toilets for extended lockdowns

TRINITY -- The Seven Spring Middle School eighth-graders warily eyed the white plastic bucket.Is it for carrying cleaning supplies? Moving mulch?Then they noticed the black plastic seat on top. Their eyebrows raised, their noses crinkled, as it dawned on them that this was a portable toilet, designed for use during emergency lockdowns in classrooms without restrooms. ...

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Rock stars die young more than others, solo stars twice as likely to do so: study

LONDON — Rock 'n' roll will never die — but it's a hazardous occupation.A new study confirms that rock and pop musicians die prematurely more often than the general population, and an early death is twice as likely for solo musicians as for members of bands.Researchers from Liverpool John Moores University studied 1,489 rock and pop stars who became famous...

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Survey shows better lending climate

Most Miami-Dade businesses believe they have easier access to borrowed money amid a slowly improving economy.That’s one result from a recent survey of executives by Miami’s Bilzin Sumberg law firm. The online survey of about 200 top executives was conducted during the second half of 2012. Nearly 60 percent of respondents said they thought the financing environment had improved...

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Stone-crab season suffers in the Keys

Despite rocketing prices for stone-crab claws, many Florida Keys commercial fishermen have nearly given up on the season only 2 months old."We may see record prices but also record pain," said Gary Graves, general manager of Keys Fisheries in Marathon. "Prices don't mean anything if you can't catch anything."Harvests since shortly after the season opening Oct. 15 have been...

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Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg donating $500 million in stock to Silicon Valley charity

SAN FRANCISCO – Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Tuesday he is donating nearly $ 500 million in stock to a Silicon Valley charity with the aim of funding health and education issues.Zuckerberg donated 18 million Facebook shares, valued at $ 498.8 million based on their Tuesday closing price. The beneficiary is the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, a non-profit that works with donors to allocate...

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Record setting weekend for New Jersey's gun buyback program in wake of Newtown massacre

APGuns cover tables at a press conference in New Jersey where Camden, NJ Mayor Dana Redd and New Jersey Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa announced a record breaking weekend for the state's gun buyback program.CAMDEN, NJ — Residents of New Jersey's most impoverished and murder-prone city turned in a record number of weapons in a recent gun buyback program,...

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Stone-crab season suffers in the Keys

Despite rocketing prices for stone-crab claws, many Florida Keys commercial fishermen have nearly given up on the season only 2 months old."We may see record prices but also record pain," said Gary Graves, general manager of Keys Fisheries in Marathon. "Prices don't mean anything if you can't catch anything."Harvests since shortly after the season opening Oct. 15 have been...

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Miami owner of mental health chain pleads guilty to stealing millions from Medicare

Kept behind bars because of fears he might flee to Cuba, Armando “Manny” Gonzalez has pleaded guilty to stealing tens of millions of dollars from Medicare by fraudulently billing the taxpayer-funded program through a mental health chain in Miami and North Carolina.Gonzalez, 50, a convicted cocaine trafficker who joined the Medicare rackets in the mid-2000 era, had opened...

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Iran leader gets the clicks with Facebook rumor

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A Facebook page purportedly created by Iran‘s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei attracted nearly 10,000 followers on Tuesday although the site’s content and style raise serious questions about its authenticity.Iranian authorities had no immediate comment on the site, which apparently went online last week but only recently gained prominence among social media...

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Westchester County won't host gun show

Westchester County will not host a gun show early next year in the wake of the massacre in Newtown, Conn.County Executive Rob Astorino said it would be inappropriate for the county to hold the event.Former County Executive Andrew Spano had banned the show after the 1999 Columbine school shootings in Colorado. The ban remained in effect for more than a decade.Astorino...

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American Airlines adds new agreements, flights in South America

In a nod to the importance of Latin America for its business, American Airlines on Monday announced new codeshare agreements with airlines in the region as well as new routes.American has agreed to codeshare with TAM Airlines, based in Sao Paulo, and LAN Colombia, both part of LATAM Airlines Group.The airline also said that it will add new routes in late 2013 between Miami...

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Rilya Wilson legal guardian testifying in murder trial

The lover of the woman charged in the murder of foster child Rilya Wilson is on the stand Monday morning.Pamela Graham, who was also the child’s legal guardian, is so far the most high-profile witness to appear in the 4-week-old murder trial of Geralyn Graham. The two are not related.Geralyn Graham, 66, is on trial for the death of the 5-year-old foster child whose disappearance...

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Modern Etiquette: A bit of netiquette will keep Christmas real

LONDON (Reuters) – Christmas is a convivial time of year when people get together for celebrations and conversation. It’s all about human contact so it’s important that you’re discriminating about how you use your digital devices.It’s fine if they’re used to facilitate get-togethers and spread seasonal cheer. But Christmas is a real, not a virtual event, so it’s important to discard the phones, tablets...

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Boozed-up man drives wrong way on SI Expressway, leaves 1 dead: cops

Wayne CarringtonA drunken driver drove the wrong way on a Staten Island highway this morning and crashed into a car -- leaving one person dead, authorities said.The boozed-up driver took a wrong turn near Richmond Road and wound up on the Staten Island Expressway just before 2 a.m. heading against the flow of traffic, police said. He then collided with...

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Boat sales jump 10% this year

More evidence that the U.S. economy is climbing out of the recession: Sales of new recreational powerboats are estimated to be up by 10 percent in 2012, according to the National Marine Manufacturers Association.“We are pleased to see the industry growing,” NMMA president Thom Dammrich said. “Our projection is the industry will grow in 2013 by another 5 to 10 percent.”Dammrich...

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7-year-old in critical condition after accident

Police were investigating an accident involving a 7-year-old who was struck by a vehicle in a Lauderhill neighborhood late Saturday, Lauderhill Police spokesman Rick Rocco said. The vehicle and its driver, who has not yet been identified, remained on scene after the incident near the intersection of Northwest 27th Court and 56th Avenue.The child was transported to Broward...

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SUV crash in Brooklyn leaves two off-duty corrections officers dead and an off-duty cop in stable condition

Two off-duty corrections officers are dead and an off-duty cop is in stable condition after two SUVs collided in East Flatbush, sources said.A 43-year-old woman and a 31-year-old woman were traveling northbound on Kings Highway in a gray 2004 Nissan Murano around 4:40 a.m., when their SUV swerved across several lanes of traffic onto the southbound side...

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Miami in spotlight at AVCC, other entrepreneurship events

Entrepreneurs from around the world took the stage during this packed week of entrepreneurship events in Miami: Florida International University’s Americas Venture Capital Conference (known as AVCC), HackDay, Wayra’s Global DemoDay and Endeavor’s International Selection Panel.The events, all part of the first Innovate MIA week, also put the spotlight on Miami as it continues...

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