Home & Design: Washingtonians turn former embassy buildings into treasured homes

When guests visit Eileen Ritter?s condo, she ushers them into the imperial Chinese envoy?s bedroom and sitting room. Of course, Wu Ting-fang, envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary from the Qing dynasty, vacated the premises back in 1909, when he retired from a distinguished diplomatic career. And the Qing dynasty itself collapsed in 1912, ending China?s 2,000-year history of imperial rule.

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Trains crash in Venezuela, 1 dead and about 30 injured, officials say

CHARALLAVE, Venezuela ? Two commuter trains collided in a tunnel outside Caracas on Thursday, killing at least one person, injuring about 30 and leaving frightened passengers gasping for air in the dark, officials said.

One train suddenly braked due to an apparent malfunction and another crashed into it from the rear, causing the first to derail, Transportation Minister Francisco Garces said on state television. Officials said a packed train coming in the opposite direction was able to stop before colliding with the others, averting a possible disaster.

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Bank of America to charge $5 debit card fee

Bank of America plans to start charging customers a $5 monthly fee for using their debit card to make purchases. The fee will be rolled out starting early next year.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/bank-america-charge-5-debit-card-fee-175330252.html

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Ford?s Theatre?s solemn ?Parade?

How could anyone not be appalled by the case of Leo Frank, convicted of murder in 1913 by a court reeking of prejudice and then lynched by a posse of prominent Georgians? The only rational response, of course, is disgust.

And yet, ?Parade? ? the 1998 Broadway musical exploring the lingering Southern resentment and festering anti-Semitism that gave rise to the atrocity ? is only partly satisfying precisely because a sense of moral revulsion is the only strong feeling engendered by this somber and stately show.

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News media derivatives: Sept. 29

In case you missed it ? We have only a matter of days in which to appreciate the legendary scam that Sarah Palin has pulled off as a Fox News contributor and as a potential GOP presidential candidate. So the Erik Wemple Blog transcribed a recent Palin interview with Greta Van Susteren, just to appreciate the glorious conflicts of interest that pop up in almost every sentence. Also: Jose Antonio Vargas appears to be alleging a crisis in coverage of immigration, then praises it.

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Why conservatives hate Warren Buffett

Maybe only a really, really rich guy can credibly make the case for why the wealthy should be asked to pay more in taxes. You can?t accuse a big capitalist of ?class warfare.? That?s why the right wing despises Warren Buffett and is trying so hard to shut him up.

Militant conservatives are effective because they are absolutely shameless. Many of the same people who think the rich should be free to spend unlimited sums influencing our politics without having to disclose anything are now asking Buffett to make his tax returns public. I guess if you?re indifferent to consistency, you have a lot of freedom of action.

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Mexico supreme court upholds state?s right-to-life amendment, making abortion ban state issue

MEXICO CITY ? Mexico?s supreme court on Wednesday let stand a right-to-life amendment to the Baja California state constitution that says life begins at conception and effectively bans elective abortions in the northern border state.

The ruling appeared to allow Mexican states to decide individually on the abortion question, though the court has also agreed to review a similar amendment from the north-central state of San Luis Potosi.

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