Preservation board to decide on Herald building

The city of Miami’s historic preservation office has compiled a lengthy, detailed report that substantially bolsters the case for designation of The Miami Herald’s “monumental’’ bayfront building as a protected landmark based on both its architectural merits and its historic significance.Somewhat unusually, the 40-page report by city preservation officer Megan McLaughlin,...

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FCC chairman urges FAA to revise in-flight iPad rules

No, it doesn’t make any sense that you have to turn off your iPad or Kindle during airplane landings, and now the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission wants to see that change. In a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration, FCC chairman Julius Genachowski urged the agency to “enable greater use of tablets, e-readers, and other portable devices” on flights, The Hill reports. Genachowski...

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Buzzmakers: A Royal Pregnancy & Demi's Wild Night

What had ET readers buzzing this week?1. Prince William & Kate Middleton Expecting a BabyAfter much speculation and anticipation over the past year, the royal palace has confirmed that Prince William and Kate Middleton are expecting their first child.An official statement issued Monday announcing the news reads: "The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall and...

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Berlusconi says he's running again for Italian premier

ROME — Silvio Berlusconi says he's running to be premier again — for the good of Italy.The media mogul confirmed to reporters Saturday that he'll try for a fourth term. Berlusconi quit in disgrace as premier last year after failing to save Italy from its sovereign debt crisis. He has since been convicted of tax fraud and now faces plunging poll numbers.He...

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Events showcase Miami’s growth as tech center

One by one, representatives from six startup companies walked onto the wooden stage and presented their products or services to a full house of about 200 investors, mentors, and other supporters Thursday at Incubate Miami’s DemoDay in the loft-like Grand Central in downtown Miami. With a large screen behind them projecting their graphs and charts, they set out to persuade...

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Police search for man who exposed himself to young girls in Southwest Miami-Dade

Miami-Dade Police are looking for a man wanted for lewd and lascivious exposure, investigators said Thursday.“We’re working a couple of cases in the area where a gentleman seen in the sketch is exposing himself to children,” one detective told a concerned parent.Yanitza Delgado was driving in the area of Southwest 80th St. and 154th Ave. Thursday when police approached her...

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Firm says first BlackBerry 10 phone to debut in March, QWERTY phone won’t launch until June

Research In Motion (RIMM) is gearing up for a series of make-or-break releases that could be considered the most important device launches in the company’s history. Everything is riding on the success of the RIM’s BlackBerry 10 platform, which will be unveiled in its finished state on January 30th next year. RIM CEO Thorsten Heins is on record confirming that BlackBerry 10 will launch in the first...

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Nurse Who Took Hoax Call at Kate's Hospital Dies

A nurse who accepted a prank phone call during Kate Middleton's stay in the hospital this week has been found dead.The nurse -- identified by King Edward VII's Hospital in London as Jacintha Saldanha -- was found unconscious Friday morning and could not be revived by emergency personnel, according to the BBC. RELATED: Prince Charles 'Thrilled' About Kate's PregnancyMultiple British media reports said...

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Bus driver in deadly Bronx crash found not guilty of manslaughter, negligent homicide

Robert KalfusOphadell Williams, right, is seen with his lawyer Patrick Bruno.A Chinatown bus driver was cleared of all counts of manslaughter for his role in a horrific crash that killed 15 passengers in The Bronx last year. This morning’s surprising verdict found Ophadell Williams guilty of only one minor count of aggravated unlicensed operation of a vehicle,...

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There’s lots of brand buzz during Art Basel

Cartier, Bugatti, and Perrier-Jouët are iconic luxury brands that you expect to find showcasing their products during Art Basel and the related art events. AriZona Beverages and Sears don’t have the same aura.But this week they’re all on the same playing field at Art Basel, Design Miami, and all the related art fairs. With thousands of people converging for this week’s...

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State lawmakers cautious about projected $437 million budget surplus

TALLAHASSEE -- Initial, positive indications about Florida’s budget for the coming fiscal year could be overtaken by events if the Florida Supreme Court strikes down changes to state employees or the nation plunges over the fiscal cliff, the state’s top economist warned Wednesday.Speaking to the first meeting of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Amy Baker — coordinator...

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Suits 2013 Episode Description Video

Suit up because Harvey Specter, Mike Ross and the rest of Pearson Hardman's legal eagles return on January 17 for the backhalf of Suits' sensational sophomore season! RELATED - Sarah Rafferty Dishes On Suits' Shocking FinaleAnd if you've made the gross oversight of not watching USA's addictive and inventive drama, I've got two excellent pieces of good news: first, ETonline scored an exclusive promo...

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Egypt's moves tanks to presidential palace, tries to restore order after protests

CAIRO — The Egyptian army sealed off the presidential palace with barbed wire and armored vehicles Thursday as protesters defied a deadline to vacate the area, pressing forward with demands that Islamist leader Mohammed Morsi rescind decrees giving himself near-absolute power and withdraw a disputed draft constitution.Inside the palace gates, Morsi met...

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South Florida foreclosure sales up in third quarter

Miami-Dade County’s foreclosure-related sales rose 43.9 percent in the third quarter from the second quarter and jumped 21.8 percent from a year earlier, as banks sold off more properties, according to RealtyTrac.In Broward County, third-quarter foreclosure-related sales rose 38.9 percent from the prior quarter, but were down 24.5 percent from a year ago, the real estate...

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HOLIDAY LIGHTS

It’s that time of year to decorate your home and tell us how wonderful it looks!We’re seeking all entries for our annual Holiday Lights showcase. Tell us about your home, your decorations and where you live. Send this information to Lidia at ltzdinkova@gmail.com. by Monday, Dec. 10 or to Joan Chrissos, Holiday Lights, Miami Herald, 1 Herald Plaza, Miami, Fl., 33132. Please...

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Austrian farmers dip into Internet “milking” craze

VIENNA (Reuters) – Dumping a bottle of milk over your head and filming it for a video post on the Internet has become a popular youth craze, but Austrian farmers say the spillage is a crying shame.“Milking”, as the trend is known, is among a variety of tongue-in-cheek stunts in which young people shoot pictures or videos of themselves posing as owls, planks of wood, or famous people and then share...

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Sneak Peek: Survivor's Loved Ones Reunion

It's the episode of Survivor every season that melts even the coldest heart -- the episode in which the contestants are reunited with dearly loved friends and family -- and ET has a sneak peek of tonight's reunion between Skupin and his son!Related: 'Survivor' Penner Reflects on Game Ouster On two seasons of the show, Michael Skupin has proven to be a nice guy, but he takes it to another level when...

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House would extend protection for past presidents

WASHINGTON — The House has voted to give former presidents and their wives lifetime Secret Service protection, arguing that terrorist threats and the comparative youth of recent presidents make such a change necessary.The legislation, which now goes to the Senate, reverses a 1994 law that terminated Secret Service protection 10 years after a president leaves...

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iPad’sdominance limits apps for other tablets

Q. When are companies going to start writing applications for tablet computers other than the iPad? I own a Pandigital tablet, and when I try to download apps, I’m told they’re either for the iPad or iPhone. LeRoy Hilton, Oro Valley, Ariz. You can expect more apps for non-Apple tablet computers when those devices gain more market share. How soon, or if,...

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State elections officials to investigate voting problems in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties

TALLAHASSEE -- Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner told a Senate committee Tuesday morning that he plans to dispatch a team of experts to Miami-Dade next week to investigate more fully the “problems” with the recent election, including long lines at the polls and an overwhelming surge of last-minute absentee ballots.Detzner, who is Gov. Rick Scott’s chief elections officer,...

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Swiss spy agency warns U.S., Britain about huge data leak

ZURICH (Reuters) – Secret information on counter-terrorism shared by foreign governments may have been compromised by a massive data theft by a senior IT technician for the NDB, Switzerland‘s intelligence service, European national security sources said.Intelligence agencies in the United States and Britain are among those who were warned by Swiss authorities that their data could have been put in...

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The Kennedys Honor Taylor Swift

Though Taylor Swift, 22, and Conor Kennedy, 18, reportedly ended their relationship in October, it looks like the singer hasn't seen the last of the Kennedy family yet. Swift was awarded with the Ripple of Hope Award from the RFK Center for Justice & Human Rights at a gala Monday night in New York City, by none other than Conor's dad Robert F. Kennedy Jr.The Ripple of Hope Awards goes to leaders...

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Mortar kills 29 Syrian students

BEIRUT — A mortar slammed into a ninth-grade classroom in the Damascus suburbs on Tuesday, killing 29 students and a teacher, according to state media, as the civil war closed in on President Bashar Assad's seat of power.The state-run news agency SANA blamed the attack on terrorists, the term the regime uses for rebels who are fighting to topple the government.The...

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The business behind the artist: Miami’s art gallery scene still evolving

This week, thousands of art collectors, museum trustees, artists, journalists and hipsters from around the globe will arrive for the phenomenon known as Art Basel Miami Beach. The centerpiece of the week: works shown at the convention center by more than 260 of the world’s top galleries.Only two of those are from Miami.While Art Basel has helped transform the city’s reputation...

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Miami Commissioner Spence-Jones sues Fernandez Rundle, Regalado

Battle-scarred Miami City Commissioner Michelle Spence-Jones has launched a legal offensive against Mayor Tomas Regalado and Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, accusing them of plotting to destroy her political career when Rundle twice charged the commissioner with political corruption.In a federal lawsuit filed Monday, Spence-Jones’ lawyers accuse Fernandez...

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Prince William & Kate Middleton Expecting a Baby

After much speculation and anticipation over the past year, the royal palace has confirmed that Prince William and Kate Middleton are expecting their first child. An official statement was issued Monday announcing the news reads: "The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Harry and members of both families are delighted with the news." PICS: Kate...

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Syria moving chemical weapons components: US defense official

WASHINGTON — U.S. and allied intelligence have detected Syrian movement of chemical weapons components in recent days, a senior U.S. defense official said Monday, as the Obama administration again warned the Assad regime against using them.A senior defense official said intelligence officials have detected activity around more than one of Syria's chemical...

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The business behind the artist: Miami’s art gallery scene still evolving

This week, thousands of art collectors, museum trustees, artists, journalists and hipsters from around the globe will arrive for the phenomenon known as Art Basel Miami Beach. The centerpiece of the week: works shown at the convention center by more than 260 of the world’s top galleries.Only two of those are from Miami.While Art Basel has helped transform the city’s reputation...

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Two dead after bus crash at Miami International Airport

What began as a day of prayer and fellowship turned into a surreal scene of stunned, bloodied passengers and twisted metal. There was the sickening sound of crunching metal early Saturday as a busload of Jehovah’s Witnesses was low-bridged by a concrete overpass at Miami International Airport, peeling back the top of the vehicle “like a can of sardines.” Airport workers running...

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7 Quirky Christmas Gift Ideas

‘Tis the season to give…bacon-shaped Christmas tree ornaments? Stocking-stuffer candy simulating black lumps of coal? Crime scene tape for wrapping packages? How about a dreidel with Santa’s picture on it?Yes to all these and more, say fans of quirky gifts.Online retailers specializing in leg-lamps–the kind made famous by the movie “A Christmas Story”–and in Emergency Santa Kits say business is brisk.Seattle...

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Bachelorette Ashley Hebert and JP Rosenbaum are Married

Ashley Hebert is a bachelorette no more!The 28-year-old dentist and her construction manager fiancé J.P. Rosenbaum, 35, walked down the aisle on Saturday in Pasadena, California, reports People Magazine.The ceremony, officiated by Bachelor and Bachelorette host Chris Harrison, was attended by familiar faces from the series including Ali Fedotowsky, Emily Maynard, and Jason and Molly Mesnick.Video:...

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Staten Island man in police custody after wife beaten to death

A Staten Island man was taken into custody after his wife was brutally beaten to death, police said.It was not immediately clear what led to the fatal beating in the family's home on Beechwood Place around 2:25 a.m. this morning, police said.Cops found 42-year-old Jodi Surinaga unconscious and unresponsive after one of the couple's two children inside the home called 911, sources said. The mother...

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Boat Show may block Miami’s 2016 Super Bowl bid

This winter, the biggest NFL match-up in South Florida might be Super Bowl versus Boat Show. As South Florida readies a bid for the 2016 Super Bowl, it must contend with a major potential conflict on the tourism calendar. The National Football League may move the Super Bowl to Presidents’ Day weekend, already home to the five-day Miami International Boat Show since the 1940s....

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