■ United States
Cola linked to hypertension
Women do not develop high blood pressure from drinking coffee, but there is a link between hypertension and drinking colas that may have nothing to do with caffeine, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on Tuesday. The study is based on analysis of 12 years of data on 33,077 cases of high blood pressure among 155,594 women participating in the Nurses Health Study, which is jointly run by the Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Harvard School of Public Health. The association between hypertension and caffeinated colas was independent of whether the soft drinks were sugared or diet. The study did not look at non-cola soft drinks.
■ Chile
Diplomats visit Fujimori
Three officials from the Japanese Embassy have visited former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori in detention, Japan's Foreign Ministry said. The three diplomats met with Fujimori on Wednesday to assess his health and to check the conditions at the place where he is been held. Fujimori, who is wanted by Peru for alleged corruption and other charges related to his 10 years in power, was "in good health," Shiozaki said. The Japanese diplomats spoke with Fujimori for about 40 minutes. Media reports said Fujimori is detained in a room with a twin bed, a television and a laptop computer, but that he is not allowed to use his mobile phone.
■ United States
Libby book gets a boost
The indictment of Lewis Libby had one unintended benefit for the former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney: The resurrection of his once forgotten literary career. Used copies of his 1996 novel, The Apprentice, a thriller set in Japan have been selling for as high as US$2,400 on Amazon's Web site. The publisher, St. Martin's Press, has decided to bring the book back into print, announcing a new run of 25,000 copies. Libby has pleaded not guilty to charges of lying to investigators about leaking the CIA status of covert CIA officer Valerie Plame to reporters.
■ United States
Plan to drill oil abandoned
House leaders abandoned an attempt to push through a hotly contested plan to open an Alaskan wildlife refuge to oil drilling, fearing it would jeopardize approval of a sweeping budget bill yesterday. They also dropped from the budget document plans to allow states to authorize oil and gas drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts -- regions currently under a drilling moratorium. The actions were a stunning setback for those who have tried for years to open a coastal strip of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and a victory for environmentalists.
■ Canada
Early elections sought
Canadians would go to the polls in mid-February under an election plan unveiled by the New Democratic Party on Wednesday, two days after it said it would stop propping up Prime Minister Paul Martin's minority Liberal government. Leaders of the Conservative Party and the Bloc Quebecois said they might back the NDP proposal, but want more information. Liberal officials blasted the idea, and a constitutional expert said Martin could simply ignore it. NDP Leader Jack Layton said his party's plan would avoid sending Canadians to the polls near Christmas, but it would also force an election sooner than the Liberals had wanted.
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