Protest forces iconic London cathedral to close (AP)

PARIS — Some 1,500 visitors were cleared out of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris after a man put a letter on the altar of the 850-year-old monument Tuesday, pulled out a gun and shot himself in the head. It’s the first suicide in decades at the landmark site, Monsignor Patrick Jacquin, the cathedral’s rector, told The Associated Press. The BBC is reporting that the man is Dominique Venner, an award-winning far-right historian.

Japan will raise military spending this year for the first time in over a decade under a ruling party plan, an official said, as Tokyo summoned Beijing's envoy amid a territorial row. The national defence task force of the newly-elected Liberal Democratic Party will increase the defence budget request by more than 100 billion yen ($1.15 billion) in response to an emboldened China, a party official told AFP.

The remains of what was Christchurch Cathedral, whose shattered spire became a symbol of the New Zealand city's quake devastation, is to be dismantled after Anglican church officials said the earthquake had damaged the structure of the iconic church beyond repair.

Faced with decreasing revenues, the Garden Grove megachurch filed for bankruptcy protection in October.

In response to Attack Dogs Unleashed on Ron Paul; No Need to Rethink Endorsement; Plus Side of Attack Dogs I received many emails informing me that Ron Paul did not walk out of an interview with CNN with Gloria Borger.

The California megachurch famous for its glass-walled sanctuary and power of positive thinking message is in financial trouble. The church is more than $40 million behind in mortgage payments and money owed to creditors. Church officials say the recession has led to a big drop in revenue.» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

MOSCOW — Millions of people died in Soviet dictator Josef Stalin’s gulag, but the 75th anniversary of the founding of one of the notorious forced-labour camps was cause for a celebration in Russia. Russian news portals reported Tuesday that local officials and prison wardens threw a party last week honoring the Usolsky camp in the Urals, with music and dancing and speeches by former camp guards.