NEWS@jcutrer.com

AP - A legislative panel agreed Thursday to share confidential personnel records with the lawyer who is leading a second abuse-of-power investigation into Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's firing of her public safety commissioner.

AP - Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama are together again, this time at an political dinner in New York City.

AP - John McCain, angry man?

AP - A female telecommunications lobbyist who became part of an explosive story early this year about John McCain has broken months of silence to deny the main subtext of the account — that she was suspected of being romantically involved with the Republican presidential candidate. "I did not have. […]

AP - John McCain told David Letterman that "I screwed up" by canceling a "Late Show" appearance three weeks ago, then faced a sharp round of questioning about Sarah Palin and his campaign tactics.

AP - Police arrested a man after he got into an ambulance and drove it a few feet because it was partially blocking his car. Police said a 48-year-old man was charged Thursday with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, operating a vehicle under a suspended license, interfering with police. […]

AP - A man who went to buy cigarettes in a gorilla suit to win a bet with his girlfriend is now being accused of receiving stolen property. Altoona police said they noticed a 20-year-old man walking down the city's Sixth Avenue just after midnight on Wednesday dressed as an ape.

AP - An 88-year-old Massachusetts woman wants a refund after learning that she's been paying taxes for nearly four decades on land she doesn't own. Valeria Novak, of Agawam, says the amount she has overpaid since 1970 probably totals less than $2,000. Nonetheless, she feels she deserves an abatement. […]

AP - Police say a man was recovering from a gunshot wound after he shot himself in the leg with a handgun while practicing a quick draw. Police said a bullet from a revolver entered the 61-year-old man's leg just below the left knee and lodged in his foot.

AP - It took Brad Sciullo 4 hours and 39 minutes to finish a marathon. A meat marathon, that is. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound western Pennsylvania chef is the first person to eat a monstrosity called the Beer Barrel Belly Bruiser: a 15-pound burger with toppings and a bun that brought the total weight t. […]

Reuters - International Business Machines Corp , the biggest technology services company, said it expects to meet long-term profit forecasts despite economic turmoil, partly due to continued growth in emerging markets.

CNET - WASHINGTON--Financial information about companies is sometimes difficult to uncover, and even more difficult to compare.

AP - Video game sales declined in September, as expected. But for those quick to blame the economic downturn, it's good to note that comparisons were skewed by "Halo 3," the blockbuster from Microsoft Corp. that accounted for more than a third of all game sales in the same month last year.

AP - IBM Corp.'s third-quarter profit jumped nearly 20 percent, surpassing analyst estimates, as the technology company overcame slumping hardware sales and signed a healthy number of new services contracts.

AP - Google Inc. shook off the economic turbulence to deliver a third-quarter profit that topped analysts' forecasts, supporting the Internet search leader's theory that its advertising system will prosper even in tough times.

Reuters - Two factories subcontracting to Hong Kong-listed toymaker Smart Union Group have shut their doors, the China Daily reported, calling it the first recent bankruptcies for an industry heavily dependent upon exports to the United States.

AP - Gunshots were fired Thursday near the U.S. Consulate in the Mexican city of Monterrey, prompting officials to suspend visa services and beef up security. It was not clear if the consulate was the target.

AP - As of Thursday, Oct. 16, 2008, at least 4,185 members of the U.S. military have died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

AFP - A general who has called for more multinational troops to be sent to Afghanistan is set to be named the new head of the British army within days, newspapers reported Friday.

AP - U.S. warships watched a hijacked vessel laden with tanks while other gunboats patrolled the dangerous waters off Somalia, but pirates still seized another freighter this week — and now hold about a dozen despite the international effort to protect a major shipping lane.

AP - The slugging Tampa Bay Rays, just one win from the World Series, got three more homers from B.J. Upton, Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria and led the Boston Red Sox 5-0 after three innings in Game 5 of the AL championship series Thursday night.

AP - Democrat Barack Obama extended his front-running campaign into West Virginia, a bastion of white, middle-class voters who rejected his primary season appeals, and confidently broached the subject of victory in a presidential contest playing out on Republican turf.

AP - A stock market as difficult to fathom as it is volatile pulled off another stunning U-turn on Thursday, transforming a 380-point loss for the Dow Jones industrials into a 401-point gain. Was it the government's bailout beginning to have an effect? The credit markets finally beginning to loosen. […]

AP - A female telecommunications lobbyist who became part of an explosive story early this year about John McCain has broken months of silence to deny the main subtext of the account — that she was suspected of being romantically involved with the Republican presidential candidate. "I did not have. […]

AP - Joe the Plumber's story sprang a few leaks Thursday. Turns out that the man who was held up by John McCain as the typical, hard-working American taxpayer isn't really a licensed plumber. And court documents show he owes nearly $1,200 in back taxes.