Hundreds gather for traditional new year county hunt

A FEW hundred people turned out in Carmarthen on Monday morningto cheer the riders of the traditional new year's county hunt.

The dozen riders of Carmarthenshire Hunt, with their houndsweaving and chasing among the crowd, trotted into Guildhall Squarewhere they were met with applause and cheers.

Hunt master Mike Watts, dressed in a red tunic, doffed his blackriding helmet to the onlookers. His speech was all but drowned outhowever by about 20 anti-hunt protestors who, armed with placards,started singing behind him.

Mr Watts said to the crowd: "I just want to say -- but I can'tget a word in edgeways -- happy new year and to thank you forsupporting …

Oil Prices Steady at $68 a Barrel

SINGAPORE - Oil prices held steady around $68 a barrel in Asian trading Monday on lingering concerns U.S. gasoline supplies are still not meeting peak summer demand.

Light, sweet crude for July delivery edged down 2 cents to $67.98 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange midmorning in Singapore. The contract rose 35 cents to settle at $68 a barrel Friday, its highest close since September.

"There's still the ongoing problems with getting enough gasoline ready," said Tobin Gorey, a commodity strategist with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney.

Analysts said traders continue to react to last week's report by the U.S. Energy Department's Energy …

Military wants more time before gay ban ends

The Pentagon wants more time before the ban on gays serving openly in the military is reversed.

A senior military official says that while President Barack Obama has been clear that he wants to repeal the ban, there is no specific timeline to do it. The official says that leaves room that the military wants to use to make sure the eventual change goes well.

The official …

Tax Sales of Firearms in State

Sometimes lawmakers must settle for less simply to get a foot inthe door. So it is, with House Bill 471, which creates the FirearmTax Act in Illinois.

Sponsored by Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie (D-Chicago), thelegislation would impose a tax on all businesses that sell firearms.Proceeds would be allocated to trauma centers.

The bill would change the rate of taxation from $20 to 15percent on the purchase price of handguns and all concealable weaponsrequiring a 72 hour waiting period. It also would tax at 5 percentof the purchase price a rifle, shotgun or other long gun requiring a24-hour waiting period.

The tax would raise …

China manufacturing index up in December

BEIJING (AP) — China's manufacturing index rose in December to 50.3 percent, a slight rebound after a greater-than-expected fall in November.

The state-affiliated China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said Sunday that its purchasing managers index, or PMI, rose 1.3 percentage points from 49 percent in November.

November's figure had been well below the 50-level that signifies expansion, and marked the first contraction in manufacturing activity since early 2009.

Federation analyst Zhang Liqun said the rebound signaled China should not expect to see a big slowdown in economic growth in 2012.

A competing Chinese survey released Friday, the HSBC China …

AP Interview: UN proposal unlikely to resolve dispute with Macedonia, Greek minister says

Greece does not consider a new U.N. proposal will resolve its dispute with Macedonia over the country's name, its foreign minister said Thursday, and Athens will block its neighbor from joining NATO next week unless the issue is settled.

U.N. mediator Matthew Nimitz presented a new proposal on Tuesday to try to solve the 17-year-old dispute that threatens to disrupt NATO's expansion plans.

But Nimitz's suggestion "is some distance away from the goals we are seeking for a solution that is clear, practical" and can be implemented, Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.

"We have sent our …

No child left behind? Don't believe education reform hype Our school communities should question the law's hidden consequences and hypocrisy.

It sounded like such a good idea. The year-old federal No ChildLeft Behind Act was sold to the American people as a means ofbringing about public school improvement through higher expectationsof all children and new requirements for accountability.

Sadly, the devil is in the details. Our school communities shouldactively question the hidden consequences, unspoken agenda andhypocrisy of the act.

It calls for annual testing of our students from third to eighthgrade and throughout high school. Results must be broken down bydemographic categories, including minorities, low-income, specialeducation and limited-English students. In every school, all of thesegroups must …