A rising number of people have seen their retirement plans evaporate. As 401(k)s dwindle, their dreams of golden years are being replaced by feelings of hopelessness and anger.

New claims for unemployment benefits jumped last week to a 16-year high, the Labor Department said Thursday, providing more evidence of a rapidly weakening job market.

Somali pirates released two hijacked ships after ransoms were paid, U.S. military officials said Thursday.

The choice of Tom Daschle for secretary of health and human services poses questions about how broadly Barack Obama will apply campaign promises to limit conflicts of interest among appointees.

With violence down sharply this year, the U.S. military is broadening its efforts to reconcile Sunnis and Shiites.

Oil prices have hit levels not seen in more than three years and retail gasoline prices are below $2 in nearly half of the country.

Because of the tight job market, the White House says President George W. Bush would sign legislation pending in Congress to further extend unemployment benefits.

At some major U.S. airports today, youd hardly know theres an economic slowdown. In Seattle, Chicago and near Washington, D.C., new runways are being opened up today. This, despite a projected 10 percent drop in domestic flights this winter.

Online dating service eHarmony said Wednesday it will launch a new Web site which caters to same-sex singles as part of a discrimination settlement with New Jersey's Civil Rights Division.

Review: BlackBerry fans can rejoice: the Storm, Research In Motions first all-touchscreen Blackberry will make even iPhone users salivate just a little bit over some of the features of this very slick and sophisticated smartphone.

An early Barack Obama supporter from the southwestern part of the country, the former Arizona attorney general is a leading contender for the job of secretary of homeland security.

Pakistan summoned the U.S. ambassador Thursday to protest a suspected U.S. missile strike deep inside its territory as militants threatened revenge attacks unless the cross-border raids stop.

Michael Jackson's lawyer says the pop star has agreed to come to London to respond to a Bahraini sheik's $7 million lawsuit.

Many Americans nearing retirement are bombarded with invitations to attend financial management seminars. A free lunch is offered. But that lunch may prove to be pricey.

The Cincinnati Bengals say Chad Ocho Cinco, the wide receiver formerly known as Chad Johnson, will be deactivated for Thursday nights game with the Pittsburgh Steelers for violating a team rule.

Over a thousand Chinese infants are still in hospital receiving treatment for kidney damage caused by tainted milk, China's Health Ministry said on Thursday, more than two months after the scandal broke.

McDonald's has recruited mothers to go behind the scenes of the company's operations, meet senior executives and then communicate what they see via the Web in a bid to brighten its image.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, his counterparts in 12 states and regional leaders from four other countries signed a declaration Wednesday pledging to work together to combat global warming.

Australian police said Thursday they will stop restricting the movements and communications of a former Guantanamo Bay detainee.

The New Zealand air force searched for 29 fishermen Thursday after the charred remains of their boat was found abandoned near the South Pacific island nation of Kiribati.

An al-Qaida in Iraq leader blamed in the 2004 abduction and murder of an Army reservist and other deadly attacks was killed in an American raid in Baghdad, the U.S. military said Thursday.

The Marley & Me star tells New York Times magazine, This is horrible to say, but there are times when I laugh my rear end off.

President-elect Barack Obama promised the voters change but has started his Cabinet selection process by naming several Washington insiders to top posts.

Long the neglected stepchildren of American higher education, community colleges have come front-and-center in the eyes of students, policymakers and philanthropists.

Animals in danger of becoming extinct could lose the protection of government experts who make sure that dams and other projects don't pose a threat, under a regulation the Bush administration is set to put in place.