BARRETT JUNCTION, Calif. – Miles behind the police barricades along Highway 94, martial law rules. At Barrett Junction, an intersection marked only by an old-fashioned roadside café, some 50 residents who refused to flee the Harris Fire gather at 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. for a free meal and some …

Last night we talked about a casino that’s instituting weight and height requirements for new hires, along with a stipulation that employees stay within 5 percent of their ideal weight or face counseling. This saddened me. And so I went home thinking about this, brooding in my rotating bed with …

We told you on Jan. 10: Rosie O’Donnell would leave “The View.” Her announcement this morning has nothing to do with contract negotiations breaking down. ABC did not end Rosie’s “View.” Rosie ended it. And don’t believe the spin that ABC was mad at her for comments made at the …

WASHINGTON – Besieged by domestic unrest and the revival of Pakistan’s largest opposition parties, led by exiled prime ministers Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf will likely survive upcoming elections, but not unscathed, say foreign policy analysts. “I don’t think Musharraf is going to come out of …

NASA is preparing to test an inflatable structure that might one day be used to establish an outpost on the Moon. Created by NASA contractor ILC Dover LP, the pumped-up structure sits poised for tests at the agency’s Langley Research Center in Virginia. “Right now it is a concept demonstrator,” …

WASHINGTON – A federal agency that disburses billions of dollars in humanitarian aid, disaster relief, and pro-democracy programs every year, has inadvertently funneled American taxpayer funds to individuals and entities with “terrorist affiliations” and lacks the safeguards to prevent such incidents from recurring, an internal audit has revealed. In a …

It’s been just hours since thousands of runners crossed the finish line at the New York City Marathon, and for many of those people, the experience most likely ranks up there as one of the most exhilarating of their lives. But, what happens with that natural high wears off? In …

Now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine: No Respect President Bush can’t seem to get any respect these days. First it was TIME — now The Times. TIME Magazine last week left the president off its list of 100 most influential people — a list that did include Rosie …

Whitney & Justin | Don Henley | Oprah Whitney Shows, Justin Doesn’t at Pre-Grammy Bash If the old adage is true — that 99 percent of life is just about showing up — then last night Whitney Houston at least scored some points, while Justin Timberlake failed miserably. You see, …

Tonight, we wrap up a week here in L.A. getting out of town just before the Academy Award weekend. By the way, here are my picks. “The Departed,” Martin Scorsese, Forest Whitaker, Helen Mirren, Alan Arkin, and Jennifer Hudson. But there’s little buzz here about the Oscars largely because there …