iStockphoto.com A few weeks back, I blogged a Times of India story about how China's construction boom was driving up iron prices, resulting in widespread theft of manhole covers in Mumbai. Now, the New York Times is reporting that the epidemic of manhole theft is spreading throughout the United States as well. In Philadelphia alone, 2,500 covers have been stolen in the last year, costing the city...

The McCain campaign has taken to mocking the press corps left behind to cover the Arizona senator while Barack Obama is overseas, Hotline reports. Here are the luggage tags McCain staffers jokingly put on reporters' bags yesterday: Chuck Todd and company at MSNBC's First Read comment, "Why does McCain think belittling his own press corps is a good idea?" Good question....

ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP/Getty Images Despite assurances from some that the declining dollar will remain the world's primary reserve currency, there may be an emerging threat -- the Russian ruble. That is, at least, if Hugo Chávez has his way: Chávez echoed Russian calls to make the ruble a major reserve currency in opposition to a weakened dollar. "The ruble must become a world currency,"...

China, as part of its ongoing efforts to be culturally sensitive and have its people on their best behavior for the Olympics, is displaying posters informing its people of eight things they should not ask foreigners: Don't ask about income or expenses. Don't ask about age. Don't ask about love life or marriage. Don't ask about health. Don't ask about someone's home or address. Don't ask about perso...

STR/AFP/Getty Images Even as a power-sharing deal between President Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF party and Morgan Tsvangirai's Opposition for Democratic Change in Zimbabwe seems to be moving forward, deep doubts still remain. EU leaders don't seem impressed by the negotiations. Yesterday, they slapped an additional 37 people and four companies, all of whom are now blacklisted, with new sanctions includi...