News In Brief
Auto giant DaimlerChrysler announced 26,000 job cuts at its US-based Chrysler unit in an effort to turn around the floundering division. The cuts, which represent one-fifth of the company's North American work force, will occur over the next three years - many via retirements. The turnaround plan also calls for six assembly plants to be idled through 2002 and for cutbacks in advertising and dealer incentives. Analysts said that although cuts were essential, they would not solve all of Chrysler's problems. More details of the plan are expected to be divulged next month.
President Bush established a White House office that would distribute billions of dollars to religious groups and charities over 10 years. The money is intended to aid after-school programs, prison ministries, drug-treatment efforts, and other initiatives. But critics say the funds - originally from taxpayers - could violate the constitutional separation of church and state. Representatives of some faiths, in addition, are wary of government money that may come with strings attached.
The Baltimore Ravens' iron-clad defense made the New York Giants appear helpless Sunday night, resulting in a 34-7 victory in Super Bowl XXXV in Tampa, Fla. The win brought pro football's championship back to Baltimore for the first time since 1971, when the city's franchise was known as the Colts. It also was the first Super Bowl win for Art Modell in his 40 years as an NFL owner.
Despite urging California to find its own solution to the state's electricity crisis, Bush was to assemble his top economic advisers to discuss the issue, especially with a view to developing a national energy policy. The White House said it also was making plans to dispatch top energy officials to a meeting in Portland, Ore., with Western governors whose states also have been affected by California's problems.
After finding human remains at a remote Texas ranch, authorities believe the search is over for nationally known atheist leader Madalyn Murray O'Hair, who mysteriously disappeared in 1995, an FBI agent said. The breakthrough followed a deal struck last week between prosecutors and David Roland Waters, who is charged with kidnapping and extortion in connection with the case.
The New York Stock Exchange, along with the American Stock Exchange, was to begin trading all listed issues in decimals instead of fractions. The Securities and Exchange Commission ordered the shift on the theory the decimals are easier to understand, potentially encouraging more investment. The Nasdaq is to follow suit in March.
(c) Copyright 2001. The Christian Science Publishing Society
