Search results for

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is the primary enforcer of the nation's gun laws, but advocates and former ATF officials say agents face legal restrictions that limit their effectiveness. In addition, the agency has been without a permanent director for years.

One of the world's most basic cooking ingredients could be the key to protecting some of Europe's most stunning buildings. The limestone used in England's 800-year-old York Minster is particularly vulnerable to pollution. The oleic acid in olive oil, British researchers say, may provide the protective coating needed to prevent further decay.

The Republican leadership has installed immigration hawks to chair the House Judiciary Committee and a subcommittee that would be charged with drafting immigration bills. And a veteran Democrat has left another coveted committee to join the judiciary panel and help push through possible changes.

Payments to farmers survived in the latest extension of the farm bill. But not all of the groups that argued for the end of the subsidies see this as a loss. They've just been given nine more months to make their case to Congress.

Frank Deford bats around the impact of allegations of drug use by some players and laments that debating who should be in the Hall of Fame isn't as fun as it was in the past.

Encinitas, Calif., is celebrated by many as the yoga mecca of America. But when the spiritual discipline was recently incorporated in a local school, a group of parents quickly likened it to religious indoctrination. They worry the new model will be exported to schools across the country.

Tales of Machiavellian office politics are all the rage in China, where "bureaucracy lit" is flying off bookstore shelves. The books are read as both entertainment and as how-to guides for aspiring civil servants. Pioneers of the genre offer a path to success in China's corridors of power.

Blanco, a first-generation Cuban-American, says he identifies with the theme of the inauguration: Our People, Our Future. He is the fifth poet to take part in a U.S. presidential inauguration, and also the youngest. He says being selected was a "great honor."

Polling found Congress' most recent approval rating is 9 percent. Other things were tested too, and it was discovered root canals are more popular than lawmakers. On the bright side for Congress, it is more popular than the Ebola virus and playground bullies.

With the economy on the brink of disaster, American taxpayers bailed out the insurance giant. Now, its former CEO is leading a lawsuit that claims shareholders didn't get fair compensation. But the threat of a public backlash may have kept AIG from joining the suit.