Ny Safidinao

High school test scores unimpressive, yet grades, transcripts improving WASHINGTON - Large percentages of high school seniors are posting weak scores on national math and reading tests even though more of them are taking challenging courses and getting higher grades in school, say two new government reports released Thursday. “The reality is that the results don’t square,” said Darvin Winick, chair of the independent National Assessment Governing Board, which oversees the national tests. Nearly 40 percent of high school seniors scored below the basic level on the math test. More than a quarter of seniors failed to reach the basic level on the reading test. Most educators think students ought to be able to work at the basic level. The reading scores show no change since 2002, the last time the tests were given. “We should be getting better. There’s nothing good about a flat score,” Winick said. The government said it could not compare the math results to old scores because the latest te

CARSON CITY, Nev. - Former Sen. John Edwards jabbed gently at Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday in the first all-candidates forum of the 2008 Democratic presidential campaign, saying her refusal to disavow a 2002 vote on Iraq was "between her and her conscience." "It's not for me to judge," said Edwards, who — like Clinton — voted in 2002 to authorize the invasion of Iraq, but unlike her, has since apologized for his vote. The event format did not permit Clinton to respond to Edwards' swipe, which stood out on an afternoon in which Democrats launched serial attacks on President Bush 's war policies. "The worst we can do is tear each other down," said New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who called on his Democratic rivals to sign a pledge to avoid negative campaigning and concentrate their energy on taking the White House away from the Republicans next year. Among Democratic presidential contenders, only Barack Obama ( news , bio , voti

LOS ANGELES - Checks from Hollywood's A-list stars such as George Clooney, Eddie Murphy and Barbra Streisand added up to an expected, one-night take of $1 million for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama ( news , bio , voting record ). Three of the entertainment industry's biggest names — DreamWorks studio founders Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen — planned a private, Beverly Hills fundraiser for the freshman senator from Illinois. The lineup of celebrities writing checks read like a red carpet's who's who — Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington and Ben Stiller among others. Tickets to the fundraiser are $2,300, the maximum individual donation to a federal campaign, or $4,600 for a couple. A later, private dinner at Geffen's home is being held for fundraisers who brought in at least $46,000 for the evening. The fundraiser underscored the intense competition among the party's leading 2008 candidates for Hollywood dollars and endorsements. Th

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Raleigh, North Carolina, topped the list of the best U.S. cities for getting a job, according to an annual survey released on Friday by Forbes.com. Among U.S. states, Florida is home to the most cities among the top 25 best spots for job opportunities, with Jacksonville at No. 3 and Orlando at No. 4 as well as Fort Lauderdale, Sarasota, Tampa and West Palm Beach, Forbes said. Rounding out the top five cities were Phoenix in second place and Washington, D.C., in fifth place, Forbes said. The U.S. capital was No. 1 in the previous year's list. Forbes said it compiled the list by ranking unemployment rates, job growth, income growth, median household incomes and costs of living in the nation's 100 largest metropolitan areas. Raleigh, part of the so-called "research triangle" with Durham and Chapel Hill where several major universities are located, has low unemployment, strong income and job growth, high incomes and a relatively low cost of living, Fo

MOUNT POCONO, Pa. — The hard-and-fast rule on Martz Trailways Bus No. 101: no talking. Almost as soon as the bus lurches from the station at 5:05 a.m., the 42 bleary-eyed commuters slouch into their seats and squeeze as many z's as they can on the two-hour ride into New York City. The only sounds are soft snores. "The sun isn't even up," says Sandra Foster, 42, who's been making the 85-mile trip into Manhattan for nearly a year to her job as an information-technology recruiter. "The last thing anyone wants to do is chat." Foster is one of 3.4 million Americans who endure a daily "extreme commute" of 90 minutes or more each way to work. They're among the fastest-growing segment of commuters, according to a Census study, Journey to Work, released in March. Their commute times are more than triple the national average of 25.5 minutes each way. For many extreme commuters, the distance is so far they actually travel through several weather zones