5 reasons Charlie Crist should (and shouldn’t) run for Florida governor

It was the biggest piece of thoroughly unsurprising news in months: Charlie Crist is becoming a Democrat. The next expectation is Crist will announce a campaign for Florida governor. He’s tanned, rested and ready after two years at a high-profile law firm and anyone who follows his career has a hard time picturing Crist out of public life forever. But the Florida Republicans’...

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Google+ app for Android updated with new photo-sharing features, emoticons, GIFs and more

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Riveting Details Emerge from CT School Rampage

As morning turned to afternoon on Friday, further details continued to emerge from Newtown, CT, a tight-knit community shaken by a massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School that took the lives of innocent students and teachers, in addition to the gunman, reportedly identified as Adam Lanza.RELATED: President Fights Tears as He Addresses NationAs President Barack Obama touched on in his tear-jerking...

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Domino's founder sues federal government over mandatory contraception coverage in Obamacare

DETROIT — The founder of Domino's Pizza is suing the federal government over mandatory contraception coverage in the health care law.Tom Monaghan, a devout Roman Catholic, says contraception isn't health care but a "gravely immoral" practice.He filed a lawsuit Friday in federal court. It also lists as a plaintiff Domino's Farms, a Michigan office park complex that Monaghan owns.Monaghan offers health...

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Miami in spotlight at AVCC, other entrepreneurship events

Entrepreneurs from around the world took the stage during this packed week of entrepreneurship events in Miami: Florida International University’s Americas Venture Capital Conference (known as AVCC), HackDay, Wayra’s Global DemoDay and Endeavor’s International Selection Panel.The events, all part of the first Innovate MIA week, also put the spotlight on Miami as it continues...

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Pentagon official stepping down to join FIU

Miami native Frank O. Mora is stepping down from a high post in the Pentagon to become director of the Latin American and Caribbean Center at Florida International University.Mora, 48, has spent the past three and a half years guiding Defense Department policy in the Americas as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Western Hemisphere — a position that has had oversight...

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Old School vs. New in Billy & Bette's New Movie

Often times the best movies are the ones that come from personal experiences, and that's just what Billy Crystal mined for his new comedy with Bette Midler, Parental Guidance. Get a first look behind the scenes!Video: Watch the 'Parental Guidance' Trailer Inspired by his own real-life experience of being asked to babysit his daughter's kids for several days, Billy says he immediately cranked...

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Gunman's rampage took only minutes, cop radio calls reveal

AFP/Getty ImagesState Police inspect the area near Sandy Hook Elementary School.Judging by the radio calls, it took only a few minutes for a gunman to snuff out the lives of 20 Newtown school children and six adults.The first word of the horrifying Newtown school shooting went out over the town’s police radio at 9:36 this morning.Two minutes later, a dispatcher...

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Gasoline prices soon to hit low point for 2012

Gas prices will soon drop to their lowest level of the year. By Monday, the national average should fall below the $3.28 a gallon that drivers paid on Jan. 1, according to analysts. The drop is a gift for those hitting the road during what is expected to be the busiest Christmas travel season in six years. Still, it’s more like a stocking stuffer. That’s because for the second...

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Citizens to postpone action on controversial loan program

TALLAHASSEE -- Citizens Property Insurance Corp will shelve a controversial $350 million loan program while it gathers data and looks at more options to reduce its number of policies. Citizens Chief Financial Officer Sharon Binnun told a Citizens’ panel Thursday that recent success in other depopulation efforts and uncertainty over the long-term success of those efforts...

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Verizon Offering $5 Shared 4G Plan for Samsung Galaxy Camera

Imagine the powerful Samsung Galaxy S III smartphone, except that it can’t make phone calls and its backplate has been replaced by a digital camera — handgrip, zoom lens, and all. That’s basically the Samsung Galaxy Camera in a nutshell, and whether it’s a small, awkwardly-shaped Android tablet or a digital camera that you can play Modern Combat 3 on depends on how you look at it.When the Galaxy Camera...

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Zoe Saldana's 'Avatar' Sequels Update

Is Zoe Saldana ready to once again don a motion-capture suit and dive back into the world of Avatar? The Star Trek Into Darkness star gave ET the latest update on the highly anticipated back-to-back sequels to one of the all-time highest-grossing films in history.Related: Sam Worthington 'Ready to Jump' Into 'Avatar' Sequel "All we have gotten is the call to get ready – that at some point next year...

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FDNY hunk cleared of felony assault in trial against glamorous transsexual girlfriend

Steven HirschFireman Taylor Murphy was found guily of two non violent counts in his trial. He cried in court after the partial verdict.He didn't choke her. He didn't tamper with her testimony. But he did assault her -- a little.A Manhattan jury has reached a final, though mixed, verdict in the bizarre War of the Hoses assault trial in Manhattan, acquitting...

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Google Maps return to iPhone with new mobile app

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Google Maps has found its way back to the iPhone. The world's most popular online mapping system returned late Wednesday with the release of the Google Maps iPhone app. The release comes nearly three months after Apple Inc. replaced Google Maps as the device's built-in navigation system and inserted its own map software into the latest version of its...

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Video shows 15-year-old girl being brutalized in Florida juvenile prison

For the third time in recent years, Florida juvenile justice administrators have caught on tape the abuse or neglect of a children in state custody.On Wednesday, the Department of Juvenile Justice released to The Miami Herald five video segments that show an inmate of a Panhandle youth corrections being brutalized by a guard from a privately run lockup. The guard, 33-year-old...

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AP PHOTOS: Top 10 Search Trends of 2012

NEW YORK (AP) — From the tragic to the downright silly, millions of people searched the Web in 2012 to find out about a royal princess, the latest iPad, a record-breaking skydiver and the death of a pop star.Google released its 12th annual “zeitgeist” report on Wednesday. The company calls it “an in-depth look at the spirit of the times as seen through the billions of searches on Google over the past...

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Ashley & J.P. Rehearse First Kiss

Practice makes perfect and Bachelorette couple Ashley Hebert and J.P. Rosenbaum made sure their first kiss as husband and wife was everything they wanted it to be.Playfully bickering whether to share one or two kisses at the altar, the two rehearsed their romantic smooch at their Pasadena, CA venue. Ashley teased her groom, "You want two kids, I want one. You want two kisses, I want one."To see J.P....

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Alleged parent killer thinks DNA evidence is 'funny,' pleads not guilty

The Queens drug addict accused of killing both his parents 15 months apart callously tried to claim that DNA evidence against him was nothing more than a remnant of his doting mom’s affection for him, prosecutors said.“Funny that you found DNA now, where did you find it — under her fingernails? My mother likes to run her fingers through my hair,” cocky...

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South Florida trade poised for a record year

International trade through South Florida was up more than 10 percent during the first nine months of the year, putting the Miami Customs District in position to finish among the nation’s Top 10 Customs districts for the first time.The Miami Customs District, which includes airports and seaports from Palm Beach County to Key West, is expected to edge out the San Francisco...

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South Florida students learn the effects of hatred

In a high school round table discussion, all eyes turned to 93-year-old Holocaust survivor Julius Eisenstein as he showed his identification tattoo: Number B-1208.The tattoo was proof of the years he spent in the various concentration camps, but also proof of his survival. Eisenstein was one of 70 survivors who shared their stories Tuesday at Student Awareness Day, organized...

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Obama election tweet most repeated but Olympics tops on Twitter

(Reuters) – An election victory tweet from President Barack Obama — “Four more years” with a picture of him hugging his wife — was the most retweeted ever, but the U.S. election was topped by the Olympics as the most tweeted event this year.Obama’s tweet was retweeted (repeated) more than 810,000 times, Twitter said as it published a list of the most tweeted events in 2012. (http://2012.twitter.com/)“Within...

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A Chance to Win an ACA Gift Bag

Fresh off the heels of Monday night's American Country Awards, ET is giving you the chance to win an official gift bag from the award show.CLICK HERE TO ENTER the American Country Awards Sweepstakes.Bottero boots, a HaperCollins Publishers book and a Crabtree & Evelyn candle are just some of the contents to be found in the gift bag. Other products include items by Ballasox, CC Corso Come, Coulee...

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Father of former firefighter accused of beating transsexual lover describes son's motherless upbringing

He wants his mother.There were more waterworks in the War of the Hoses assault trial today -- as beefy FDNY calendar boy Taylor Murphy called his own dad to the stand to talk about his motherless upbringing, and the anguished pair cried enough tears in open court to put out a small kitchen fire."I had custody [over Taylor and his two older brothers] from...

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Armani Jeans opens in Miami Beach

The first Armani Jeans store in the U.S. opened last week on Lincoln Road.Launched in 1981, the Armani Jeans brand features not just jeans, but a range of casual clothing, accessories, shoes, and small leather goods for men and women. Prices start at around $125 and go up to $650 for limited-edition products.The 2,100-square-foot store is located at 741 Lincoln Road. The...

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Keeping your identity safe during the holidays

I have received many emails regarding identity theft, particularly during this time of the year.I have turned to our FBI partners for information. Special Agent Darin M. Didier, a six-year veteran of the FBI who investigates identity theft for the FBI’s Miami Division, wrote this column.Have you ever found unauthorized purchases on your credit card or tried to file a tax...

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Fourth accuser sues Kevin Clash: Elmo's puppeteer had sensitive 'medical condition'

Elmo have hard problem.The fourth man to accuse “Sesame Street’’ puppeteer Kevin Clash of inappropriate sexual contact says the older man couldn’t get it up when the two were getting it on in Clash’s New York City pad around 1995, according the alleged victim’s civil lawsuit filed today in Manhattan Federal Court.At the time, Clash, then 35, blamed his...

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AutoNation: Back in the fast lane with expansion, higher sales

Despite an agonizingly slow economic recovery, the country’s largest auto retailer, Fort Lauderdale-based AutoNation, is thriving again as demand for vehicles expands. The company, one of Florida’s largest, is posting increasingly strong profits and revenues. Just last week, in a sign of confidence, Autonation announced a major acquisition — buying six large auto stores in...

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U-Haul chase suspect appears in Miami-Dade court on Sunday

The suspect arrested in connection with Friday’s chase through the streets of Miami-Dade in a rental U-Haul truck appeared in front of judge Sunday morning. Darrell Conyers, 45, made his first appearance in bond court. Conyers faces a number of charges including grand theft, fraud and resisting arrest with violence. During the hearing, the judge noted...

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Top 10 Tech This Week

1. Here Comes the First Real Alternative to iPhone and AndroidJolla, a Finnish startup, launched a new mobile OS called Sailfish, which the company believes will become a legitimate alternative to the Coke and Pepsi of smartphone platforms: Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android. Learn more about the new OS.Click here to view this gallery.[More from Mashable: Jimmy Fallon and Mariah Carey Take on ‘All I...

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Skyfall Regains its Lead Over Twilight Breaking Dawn Part 2

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn-Part 2 lost its traction this weekend at the box office, dropping to the number three spot after three weeks at the top.Skyfall, the latest James Bond flick starring Daniel Craig, emerged triumphant for its fifth weekend in US theaters with an estimated $11 million earned between Friday and Sunday.Related: 'Skyfall' Wins Box Office, Sets Franchise Record Not far behind,...

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Mexican-American singer Jenni Rivera missing after plane disappears over Mexico

MEXICO — A small plane carrying Mexican-American singer Jenni Rivera went missing early Sunday after taking off from the city of Monterrey, authorities in northern Mexico confirmed Sunday.Jorge Domene, spokesman for the Nuevo Leon state government, told Milenio television that the plane left Monterrey about 3:30 a.m. local time after a concert there and...

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Events showcase Miami’s growth as tech center

One by one, representatives from six startup companies walked onto the wooden stage and presented their products or services to a full house of about 200 investors, mentors, and other supporters Thursday at Incubate Miami’s DemoDay in the loft-like Grand Central in downtown Miami. With a large screen behind them projecting their graphs and charts, they set out to persuade...

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