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R&B icon Betty Wright signed her first local label deal when she was only 11, and by the time she was 17, she'd released her first hit single, 1971's "Clean Up Woman," which also crossed over to the pop charts. With a four-octave vocal range, an impressive grasp of the connection between gospel and R&B, and a sensual style, Wright continues to weave an impressive legacy. Her songs have been sampled by many hip-hop, rock and R&B musicians, including Mary J.

For more than a decade, Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul has had to deal with questions about why a newsletter he published in the 1980s and '90s included some racist writings. He's said more than once that, while he takes responsibility for what was in the newsletters, he didn't pay enough attention to what was printed, wasn't aware of the racist messages at the time and rejects them.

Somehow 35.5 pounds of cocaine wrapped in a fake diplomatic sack made it to the United Nations' headquarters in New York. The AFP reports that U.N. officials said on Thursday that the cocaine had been shipped from Mexico through DHL, which handles U.N. mail.

At the rate they're going, those nutritious-looking sprouts may disappear from sandwiches and salads near you in not too long. And that may be a good thing.

This week, the Beaumont, Tex.-based Jason's Deli chain announced that it would no longer serve fresh sprouts, citing frequent recalls due to bacterial contamination.

Violence is increasing in Syria, with activists reporting multiple clashes in cities. The U.N. Security Council is meeting Friday to discuss a resolution on the conflict there. It's also likely to ask President Bashar Assad to step down.

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Twitter Announces It Can Now Block Content By Country

Signaling Modest Growth, U.S. GDP Grew At 2.8 Percent In Fourth Quarter

Twitter announced, last night, that it now has the ability to block content by country. This means, for example, that if a Tweet breaks a German law, Twitter can now block it in Germany but leave it up in the rest of the world.

In a blog post, Twitter explained:

The United States economy continued to expand modestly toward the end of 2011. The Commerce Department says it grew at an annual rate of 2.8 percent in the fourth quarter and 1.7 in all of 2011.

This means that the economy has expanded for the last two years, after a 3.5 percent decline in 2009. The economy did slow down in 2011. It grew 3 percent in 2010.

The Commerce Department explains: