New York news

New York lawmakers narrowly voted to legalize gay marriage Friday, handing a victory for revolutionary activists in the state where the gay rights movement was born.

New York, will become the sixth state where gay couples can  wed and the biggest by far.


“We are leaders and we join other proud states that recognize our families and the battle will now go on in other states,” said Sen. Thomas Duane, a Democrat.

Although New York is a latecomer on allowing gay marriage, it is considered a major prize for defenders, given the size of government and the international stature of NewYork and its role as the cradle of the movement gay rights, which is considered to havebegun with the Stonewall Riots in Greenwich Village in 1969.

Coffee Shops

If you can't start your day without a great cup of coffee and you're constantly on the lookout for the best tasting, smoothest, richest beans, this is the list for you.

Coffee Shops

There were more than 100 passionate comments on our old article on where to find Brisbane's best coffees and we've painstakingly gone through them all to find the places you consistently rave about.

We've put your recommendations together with those of Mei Yen Chua, the author of Brisbane's Budget Bites, who compiled a list of more than 30 favourite coffee shops around Brisbane for the 2011 edition of her book.

Vote here. Brisbane's best coffees

United Airlines

CHICAGO — United Airlines passengers across the country were stranded for at least five hours Thursday following a computer crash that grounded flights.

United Airlines announced to passengers in Denver that it was preparing to resume service shortly after 11 p.m. MDT – about five hours after the computer problems started.

The airline did not immediately return calls seeking comment about whether flights were resuming everywhere.

Earlier the airline confirmed the problem on Twitter. United spokesman Charles Hobart did not elaborate on the nature of the problem. He said the airline is apologizing to travelers.

As a result of the outage, long lines of passengers formed at check-in counters at Chicago's O'Hare International and Denver International airports, two of United's largest hubs.

Honda Civic

Though its miles per gallon rating rings in at 44/44/44 (that's city/highway/combined), the all-new 2012 Honda Civic Hybrid is still no match at the pump for the third-generation, 51/48/50 mpg Toyota Prius that debuted as a 2010 model year vehicle. Sure, the 2012 Civic Hybrid is more fuel-efficient than its predecessor, but it doesn't trump the Prius, and that's a shame considering that the new Honda hybrid now packs a sophisticated lithium-ion battery pack and a reworked electric motor that's more powerful than the old unit.

Honda Civic

So far, sales of the 2012 Civic Hybrid have been rather sluggish (Honda reports that sales hit 389 through the end of May). That's due in part to the vehicle's limited availability because of quake-related supply issues. However, with a sticker price that starts at $24,050, the 2012 Civic Hybrid is $1,920 more than a base Prius, which begs the question: can Honda's costlier hybrid – one that's not even as fuel efficient as the Toyota.

Review video : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRH22aH7UtU