The Beverly Hills school board is preparing to boot out 10 percent of its students as it ends a decades-old practice of allowing out-of-district pupils to attend city schools on “opportunity permits.” This move has upset so-called permit parents, mostly middle-class families who are against sending their children to LA Unified Schools.

The state estimates that more than 3 million Californians have become ill from the H1N1 flu. As of early December, California has ordered 7 million doses of H1N1 vaccine. The number of doses ordered so far is enough to vaccinate about 18 percent of the state’s population against H1N1.

Next June, get set for the rematch, the Americans against the English.

England coach Fabio Capello intends to bring David Beckham to the World Cup if the midfielder plays regularly in his second sojourn at AC Milan.
In an interview with the Gazzetta dello Sport on Monday, Capello was asked if he would bring the 34-year-old former England captain to South Africa.
The coach replied, “Of course _ if [...]

CARIBBEAN: 9 killed in fire on Greek-owned cargo ship off Venezuela’s Caribbean coast; 5 injured
CARACAS, Venezuela _ A Venezuelan navy official says a fire on a Greek-owned cargo ship in the Caribbean has killed nine crew members and injured five.
Adm. Carlos Maximo Aniasi Turchio tells Venezuelan state television that six of the dead crew [...]

A soccer rematch between Canada and Jamaica

Haitian arts and culture is in full bloom in the ‘Little Haiti’ community of South Florida

The number of travelers to Cuba has also been boosted by the Obama administration’s decision to let Cuban-Americans with family on the island visit as often as they like.

Paul Collingwood and Ian Bell, another batsman who had been in need of a solid innings to silence calls for his axing, put on 68 for the fifth wicket to nudge England ahead of South Africa.

When you get a flu shot this holiday season, you’re not only decreasing your own risk of getting sick from H1N1, the swine flu. You’re also giving the gift of health to your family, because when you get vaccinated, you’re also protecting your loved ones.
When you get vaccinated, you help build a wall of protection [...]

No life lost as American Airlines Flight 331 skidded off the runway as it landed in heavy rain Tuesday night in Kingston, Jamaica, arriving from Washington’s Reagan National Airport by way of Miami.

The pilot of an American Airlines jetliner that overshot a runway in Jamaica is praising his crew for their quick thinking and professionalism.
Captain Brian Cole said Saturday that he’s “just so happy to be home” with his family for the Christmas holiday.
Flight 331 was landing in Kingston, Jamaica, late Tuesday in heavy rain on a [...]

Los Angeles Lakers forward Ron Artest suffered a concussion and injured his left elbow after falling at his home.
Artest didn’t travel with the Lakers to Saturday’s game against Sacramento after tripping over a box and falling down stairs at his home on Christmas, the team said in a news release.
He was treated at a medical [...]

Less than two years since Usain Bolt brought world records and world renown to the island nation of Jamaica — Skier Errol Kerr is hoping to put his country on the map in the new Olympic sport of skicross.

Holiday visits have become safer for grandparents thanks to a childhood vaccine that has dramatically curbed infections spread by kids, a new study finds.
For years, serious bacterial infections spiked among older adults around Christmas and New Year’s, presumably because of contact with germy children. However, only one such spike has occurred since 2000, when the [...]