Headlines Wednesday 31st December 2008

Who we clicked: the biggest stories of 2008
Celebrity tragedies, violent sportsmen and wacky politics dominated the headlines in 2008. Here’s what you clicked.
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Israel posts YouTube videos of Gaza air strikes
The Israeli military has launched its own channel on video-sharing website YouTube, posting footage of air strikes and other attacks on Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.
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Bank glitch leaves man £100 billion overdrawn
A British man was left reeling in shock Tuesday when his bank statement showed him to be STG100 billion ($A208.44 billion) pounds overdrawn.
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World powers call for end to Gaza fighting - Obama has no answers
The world's top diplomats urged Israel and Hamas to halt their conflict on Tuesday, amid mounting concern over the bloodshed and fears the conflict could escalate.
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'Hostages taken, shots fired' in siege
Children have reportedly been taken hostage and shots are believed to have been fired in a siege on the NSW mid-north coast.
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'Barack the Magic Negro' has media twisted around his thumb
A senior Republican's distribution of a song titled "Barack the Magic Negro" has triggered a nasty battle for the soul of the struggling party.
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Job situation could get worse: Gillard
Australian jobs could be hit hard in 2009 by the continuing global financial crisis, Acting Prime Minister Julia Gillard says.
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IT’S JUST TOO HARD
Tim Blair
“We have done a lot of work on climate change on Sunrise,” writes morning TV presenter David Koch:
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LOVE BOMBED
Tim Blair
Michael Leunig presents a sophisticated view of current events in the Middle East:

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BANK SUSTAINED
Tim Blair
August: ”Bank of America has committed $20 billion over the next ten years to make their operation sustainable [and] reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”
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SHE IS FROM FAMOUS SENATOR FAMILY
Tim Blair
Finally, someone stands up for Caroline Kennedy.
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ORANGE JIHAD
Tim Blair
A pro-Palestinian demonstrator in New York is violently opposed to liquid extracts:

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TOO BAD THEY’RE SO EXPENSIVE
Tim Blair
A warmenist dream from Dave Bath:
Wouldn’t it be great if we could force all climate-change deniers and mitigation stallers to buy homes and make property investments a metre or less above current king tide levels.
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SPENDING CONDEMNED
Tim Blair
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd urges that people spend quickly in order to “create more jobs across Australia and strengthen the Australian economy”. Paris Hilton helpfully obliges during a Melbourne visit, spending $5560 on dresses in 40 minutes:
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NOTHING TO SEE HERE
Tim Blair
The New York Times reports (in its Media & Advertising section):
Quietly, as the United States presidential election and its aftermath have dominated the news, America’s three broadcast network news divisions have stopped sending full-time correspondents to Iraq …