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The Two-Way
12:55 pm
Tue May 21, 2013

Airbnb Stays Are Illegal In New York, Court Rules

Credit Airbnb
A search for places to stay in New York City via Airbnb returns plenty of results, despite the practice of short-term rentals being found to be illegal under city and state law.

People who use Airbnb, the web company that pairs travelers with residents who rent out their homes on a short-term basis, are breaking New York City's laws, according to an administrative law judge. The vacation rental business was found to run afoul of the city's occupancy code; it also doesn't conform with a state law.

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The Two-Way
12:52 pm
Tue May 21, 2013

VIDEO: Tears Flow As Mom Finds Son After Tornado

Credit The Oklahoman
When Trenda Purcell found her son Kamden, her joy — and tears — erupted.

We don't need to say much. Just watch this video from The Oklahoman of Trenda Purcell's reunion Monday with her 8-year-old son Kamden, who she found safe and sound after the tornado that swept through Moore, Okla.

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The Two-Way
12:47 pm
Tue May 21, 2013

JPMorgan Shareholders Vote To Keep Dimon As Chairman, CEO

Credit Mark Wilson / Getty Images
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon during testimony on Capitol Hill.

JPMorgan Chase shareholders voted on Tuesday to allow Jamie Dimon to continue being their chairman and CEO.

The AP reports:

"At the bank's annual meeting, 32 percent of shareholders voted for a measure that would have required the bank to split the roles. Had the measure succeeded, Dimon would have had to relinquish the role of chairman.

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The Two-Way
12:28 pm
Tue May 21, 2013

'Tornado Emergency': A Rare, Dire Warning Born In Oklahoma

Credit Brett Deering / Getty Images
Piles of debris and cars lie around a home destroyed by a tornado in Moore, Oklahoma.

If you were watching news coverage on Monday, before a monster EF-4 tornado barreled through Moore, Okla., you probably heard the term "tornado emergency."

The warning is used rarely by forecasters to flag the deadliest of situations.

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The Two-Way
11:40 am
Tue May 21, 2013

Big Changes At U.S. Speedskating Body, But Scandals Linger

Credit Rick Bowmer / AP
Speedskaters practiced for the U.S. Single Distance Short Track Speedskating Championships in Kearns, Utah, last year.

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 12:56 pm

Rebellious athletes, drained budgets, dysfunctional management and a string of embarrassing scandals forced a major reorganization of U.S. Speedskating over the weekend.

The group governs a sport that has produced 85 Winter Olympic medals for the United States — more than any other sport. But persistent turmoil threatened continued success in the next Games, just nine months away in Sochi, Russia.

The changes leave USS with a smaller board and without numerous committees that have permitted parochial interests to meddle in the governance of the sport.

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Monkey See
11:22 am
Tue May 21, 2013

The Starfleet Divide: The 'Star Trek' Universe Revisits One Of Its Great Debates

Credit Zade Rosenthal / Paramount Pictures
Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto in Star Trek Into Darkness.

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 5:18 pm

[Caution: contains pretty abundant spoilers about the Star Trek universe, but only fairly nonspecific ones about the new film.]

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The Two-Way
11:13 am
Tue May 21, 2013

'I Was Dismayed' To Learn What Agency Did, Ex-IRS Chief Says

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 12:05 pm

Facing questions for the first time about why Internal Revenue Service personnel singled out some conservative groups for inappropriate scrutiny while he was head of the agency, former IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman told Congress on Tuesday that "I was dismayed and I was saddened" to learn about what had happened under his watch.

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The Two-Way
10:25 am
Tue May 21, 2013

After Tornado, A Dog Rescue Raises Spirits, And Gains Fans

Credit Brett Deering / Getty Images
Barbara Garcia, right, sits with friends after a tornado destroyed much of their neighborhood in Moore, Okla. During an interview with CBS, Garcia found her dog buried in the wreckage of her house.

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 12:57 pm

Before Monday's tornado hit, Barbara Garcia says, she had a gameplan. In the event of an emergency, the Moore, Okla., resident would gather up her little dog and retreat to a bathroom to wait out the storm. But after Monday's powerful twister blew through her neighborhood, Garcia tells CBS News, she couldn't find her dog.

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Shots - Health News
9:55 am
Tue May 21, 2013

Less Sleep For Teens Means Higher Risk For Car Crashes

Credit iStockphoto.com
Sleep-deprived teenagers face the greatest risk of accidents while driving at night.

Originally published on Wed May 22, 2013 8:06 am

Parents who want to keep their teenagers safe while they're driving might want to tuck them in bed early the night before.

Drowsiness is a well-known risk for adult drivers, but teenage drivers are more impaired than adults when facing an equivalent lack of sleep, an Australian study finds.

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The Two-Way
9:04 am
Tue May 21, 2013

Oklahoma Tornados: Finding Aid, Giving Aid

Credit Brett Deering / Getty Images
Aid groups are mobilizing relief efforts to help victims of the storm. Here, Candice Lopez, left, and Stephanie Davis help clean debris from Thelma Cox's mobile home near Shawnee, Okla., after it was destroyed Monday.

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 10:40 am

Residents of Moore, Okla., are searching for survivors and coming to terms with a massive tornado that left dozens of people dead and injured more than 200 others Monday afternoon. As aid and recovery groups search for victims and try to reunite loved ones, they're also seeking donations and coordinating housing:

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The Two-Way
8:22 am
Tue May 21, 2013

Top Stories: Oklahoma Tragedy; IRS Officials To Testify

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 10:08 am

Good morning, here are our early stories:

-- Death Toll From Devastating Tornado Revised Down.

-- IRS Officials To Be On Hot Seat.

And here are more early headlines:

Israel, Syria Trade Shots Across Ceasefire Line. (BBC)

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The Two-Way
7:16 am
Tue May 21, 2013

Book News: Stephen King's New Bogeyman? Digital Publishing

Credit Mario Tama / Getty Images
Stephen King holds a special pink Kindle given to him at a 2009 unveiling event for the Amazon Kindle 2.

The daily lowdown on books, publishing, and the occasional author behaving badly.

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The Two-Way
7:11 am
Tue May 21, 2013

IRS Officials To Be On Hot Seat

Credit Dennis Brack / Landov

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 11:18 am

Both the former IRS commissioner who was in charge when the agency singled out some conservative groups for extra scrutiny and the man who replaced him will be appearing at a Senate Finance Committee hearing Tuesday morning.

Douglas Shulman, an appointee of President George W. Bush who left the IRS last November, and acting commissioner Steven Miller (who is losing his job because of the scandal) are due at the 10 a.m. ET hearing.

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The Two-Way
6:20 am
Tue May 21, 2013

Death Toll Climbing In Oklahoma Tornado Tragedy

Credit RIchard Rowe / Reuters /Landov
The destruction was wide and devastating in Moore, Okla., on Monday after a tornado roared through.

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 8:48 pm

(We're following the news from Oklahoma, where a tornado devastated the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore on Monday. Most recent update: 8:40 p.m. ET.)

A day after a monster EF-5 tornado pummeled Moore, Okla., the focus turned to the victims.

NPR's Wade Goodwyn spent the day in the city talking to survivors. Christie Parrish decided to leave her home for her sister's shelter.

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Shots - Health News
3:01 am
Tue May 21, 2013

Texas Medicaid Debate Complicated By Politics And Poverty

Originally published on Wed May 22, 2013 8:08 am

When the sun rises over the Rio Grande Valley, the cries of the urracas — blackbirds — perched on the tops of palm trees swell to a noisy, unavoidable cacophony. That is also the strategy, it could be said, that local officials, health care providers and frustrated valley residents are trying to use to persuade Gov. Rick Perry and state Republican lawmakers to set aside their opposition and expand Medicaid, a key provision of the federal health law.

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