firefighters

As America prepares to commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11, eBay is seeing a surge in sales of relics and memorabilia from the World Trade Center and the terrorist attacks, fueled partly by speculators, and partly by our desire to connect with history, however painful.

By an almost entirely party-line vote of 247 to 161, the House on Tuesday passed a $26 billion bill that Democrats say will save the jobs of more than 300,000 teachers, municipal workers and first responders such as police officers and firefighters. President Obama quickly signed the legislation into law.

Police and fire departments nationwide are getting hit hard by city budget cuts as federal funds dry up -- resulting in layoffs, salary cuts or freezes and pared benefits. The public remains adamantly opposed to tax increases, even for services that protect them.

To earn an overtime bonus of 19 euros, or $27, two volunteer French firefighters have admitted to starting forest fires on the island of Corsica, according to news reports.While it's not as dumb as having your boss killed so you won't get laid off, it has to be up there on the list of dumb things...