News Alert: Romney and Paul in Virtual Dead Heat, Poll Says

Breaking News Alert
The New York Times
Saturday, December 31, 2011 -- 8:16 PM EST
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Romney and Paul in Virtual Dead Heat, Des Moines Register Poll Says

The Des Moines Register poll — the final one before the Iowa caucuses on Tuesday — has Mitt Romney and Ron Paul virtually tied in the lead going into the final 72 hour of voting.

In the survey, Mr. Romney has 24 percent and Mr. Paul has 22 percent.

The new poll, which was released online by the newspaper at 7 p.m. local time, shows the candidates closely bunched up behind the two leaders.

Read More:
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/31/romney-paul-ahead-in-new-iowa-poll/?emc=na

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Books Update: Haiti's Tragic History

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December 30, 2011 Books Update

On the Cover of Sunday's Book Review 'Haiti: The Aftershocks of History' By LAURENT DUBOIS Reviewed by ADAM HOCHSCHILD The scholar Laurent Dubois's new book relates the violent birth and troubled existence of Haiti, a tale of much misery, shot through with flashes of hope and bravery. ADVERTISEMENT Also in the Book Review 'Gossip: The Untrivial Pursuit' By JOSEPH EPSTEIN Reviewed by HOLLY BRUBACH Joseph Epstein argues that gossip serves a number of worthwhile purposes. 'How It All Began' By PENELOPE LIVELY Reviewed by SUSANN COKAL A mugging changes the lives of several characters in Penelope Lively's novel. 'Salvage the Bones' By JESMYN WARD Reviewed by PARUL SEHGAL A pregnant 15-year-old and her family await the arrival of Hurricane Katrina in this National Book Award-winning novel. 'Smut: Stories' By ALAN BENNETT Reviewed by THOMAS MALLON Proper middle-class characters have surprising secrets in Alan Bennett's tales. 'The Man Within My Head' By PICO IYER Reviewed by LIESL SCHILLINGER Pico Iyer writes about the kinship he feels with Graham Greene. 'Some of My Lives: A Scrapbook Memoir' By ROSAMOND BERNIER Reviewed by LOUISA THOMAS A fixture in the worlds of art and fashion reflects on a splendid career. 'Roger Williams and the Creation of the American Soul' By JOHN M. BARRY Reviewed by JOYCE E. CHAPLIN John M. Barry explores the personal trials that shaped a Puritan dissident's advocacy for the separation of church and state. Up Front: Joyce E. Chaplin 'The Unquiet American: Richard Holbrooke in the World' Edited by DEREK CHOLLET and SAMANTHA POWER Reviewed by JACOB HEILBRUNN Essays about the foreign-policy stalwart Richard Holbrooke, and some writings of his own. 'The Partnership: Five Cold Warriors and Their Quest to Ban the Bomb' By PHILIP TAUBMAN Reviewed by GARY J. BASS A journalist examines the unlikely campaign of five cold war veterans to eliminate our nuclear arsenal. '420 Characters: Stories' Written and illustrated by LOU BEACH Reviewed by SCOTT BRADFIELD These brief tales first appeared on Facebook. The 10 Best Books of 2011 The Book Review picks the year's best fiction and nonfiction. 100 Notable Books Selections by Michiko Kakutani | Janet Maslin | Dwight Garner Notable Children's Books of 2011 Notable Crime Books of 2011 ArtsBeat: Editors and Critics Pick Their Favorite Books of 2011 ADVERTISEMENT

Best Sellers Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Combined Print & E-Book Nonfiction Hardcover Fiction Hardcover Nonfiction Paperback Trade Fiction Paperback Mass-Market Fiction Paperback Nonfiction All the Lists Back Page Liu Xiaobo's Plea for the Human Spirit By JONATHAN MIRSKY In essays and poems, the imprisoned Chinese poet demonstrates a considerable amount of anger while retaining his Gandhian nonviolent spirit. Plan your holiday shopping with The New York Times 2011 Holiday Gift Guide. TBR Inside the List By GREGORY COWLES Robert K. Massie is at No. 8 on the hardcover nonfiction list this week with his biography of Catherine the Great, who "always kept a book in her room and carried another in her pocket." Editors' Choice Recently reviewed books of particular interest. Paperback Row By IHSAN TAYLOR Paperback books of particular interest. Book Review Podcast This week, Gary Bass talks about Philip Taubman's book "The Partnership: Five Cold Warriors and Their Quest to Ban the Bomb"; Louisa Thomas discusses "Some of My Lives," a memoir by Rosamond Bernier; and Gregory Cowles has best-seller news. Sam Tanenhaus is the host. E-Reader Help From New York Public Library Book Review Podcast: What Literature Owes the Bible Book That Became Hit French Film to Be Released in U.S. Reviews by The Times's Critics 'Smut' by Alan Bennett 'Forgotten Land' by Max Egremont 'How to Think Like a Neandertal' 'Death Comes to Pemberley' by P.D. James 'Whore of Akron' and 'When the Garden Was Eden' Archive Crime Columns Children's Books The New York Times Book Review: Back Issues Editor's Note Thanks for taking the time to read this e-mail. Feel free to send feedback; I enjoy hearing your opinions and will do my best to respond. John Williams Books Producer The New York Times on the Web ADVERTISEMENT

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Afternoon Update: Large Protests Held in Syria to Prove Discontent to Monitors

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December 30, 2011 Afternoon Update

TOP NEWS Large Protests Held in Syria to Prove Discontent to Monitors By KAREEM FAHIM and HWAIDA SAAD Syrian security forces opened fire on several of the demonstrations on Friday, according to activists, as hundreds of thousands staged protests across the country. Global Markets Fail to Post Gains in 2011 By CHRISTINE HAUSER Stock markets around the world closed out 2011 on a positive note for the day but with double-digit declines for the year. On Wall Street, shares were little changed. On Gay Rights, Obama Lets Aides Take the Lead By MARK LANDLER The president is reluctant to be drawn into the issue in an election year, although support for gay rights is growing. Bits Blog Verizon Drops Plan for $2 Fee on Some Bill Payments By BRIAN X. CHEN Verizon Wireless has canceled plans to impose a $2 "convenience fee" on some bill payments, just a day after announcing the new policy. The company said the move came in response to customer feedback. City Room At a Brooklyn Music Store, Resolving to Adapt By DAVID GONZALEZ Working to keep the Latin sound alive in a small pocket of Brooklyn. • NYTimes.com Home Page »

Multimedia Video: TimesCast | December 30, 2011 Republican presidential candidates head into the Iowa caucuses | A look back at the birthplace of Occupy Wall Street. Opinion Room for Debate Why We Collect Stuff What drives people to collect things? And when does collecting become a problem? Slide Show What We Collect

BUSINESS When Investors Rush In, and Out, Together By GRAHAM BOWLEY The prices of financial assets, which in normal conditions move in unpredictable directions, are increasingly surging up or down in lock step. Off the Charts The Year the Governments Lost Their Credibility By FLOYD NORRIS In 2011, European governments badly underestimated the debt crisis and the United States nearly defaulted and had its credit rating cut. Tax Benefits From Options as Windfall for Businesses By DAVID KOCIENIEWSKI Companies that granted stock options after the 2008 stock market collapse are benefiting from those awards too - in the form of tax savings. Spain Raises Deficit Forecast By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Spain's new conservative government forecast the country's 2011 budget deficit at 8 percent of its gross domestic product. Index Points to Weakness in Chinese Economy By REUTERS The HSBC purchasing managers' index edged up to 48.7 in December, from a 32-month low of 47.7 in November. An index reading under 50 indicates contraction. • More Business News »

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Movies Update: Reviews of 'The Iron Lady,' 'A Separation' and More

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December 30, 2011 Movies Update

Movie Reviews Movie Review | 'The Iron Lady' Polarizing Leader Fades Into the Twilight By A. O. SCOTT "Iron Lady," about the former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, is the story of a widow and a half-abandoned mother who happened to have been one of the most powerful women of the 20th century. Streep Dons Thatcher's Armor Trailer: 'The Iron Lady' Movie Overview | Showtimes | Trailers | Rate and Review Movie Review | 'A Separation' A House Divided by Exasperation By A. O. SCOTT In "A Separation," Iran's candidate for a foreign-language Oscar, a middle-class Tehran couple's disagreement over where and how to live leads to growing chaos. A Searing Family Drama Reveals a Human Side of Iran ArtsBeat Blog: Q. & A. With Asghar Farhadi, the Director of 'A Separation' Movie Overview | Showtimes | Trailers | Rate and Review ADVERTISEMENT Movie Review | 'Pariah' A Brooklyn Girl Who's Just Not Frilly By STEPHEN HOLDEN "Pariah" is Dee Rees's stirring coming-out story of a virginal 17-year-old African-American lesbian in a pious household in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. Video: A New Black Wave? New Directors Flesh Out Black America, All of It Movie Overview | Trailers | Rate and Review Movie Review | 'Angels Crest' A Cold Mountain Village Where Heartbreak Is Everybody's Business By STEPHEN HOLDEN Gaby Dellal's new film, "Angels Crest," depicts the pain of a small town and a young father after a tragedy. Movie Overview | Trailers | Rate and Review Movie Review | 'The Darkest Hour' Poof to Life as You Knew It By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS In "The Darkest Hour," four young adults partying in Moscow fight for their lives when aliens invade and glowing fireballs transform most of humanity into cremains. Movie Overview | Showtimes | Trailers | Rate and Review Movie Review | 'Le Père Noël Est Une Ordure' A Crude, Rude Christmas Tale By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS The 1982 farce "Le Père Noël Est une Ordure" presents two social-services hot-line employees who do more harm than good for their distressed clients. Movie Overview | Trailers | Rate and Review Movie Review | 'El Sicario, Room 164' A Thug Talks and Talks, and Scribbles By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS In "El Sicario, Room 164,"' a reformed hit man for the Mexican drug cartel regales us with 20 years' worth of kidnapping, torture and cold-blooded murder. Movie Overview | Trailers | Rate and Review News & Features Film Specters and Shades of Black in 2012 Films By NEIL GENZLINGER There are some odd trends - "The Woman in Black" and "The Men in Black 3," anyone? - and the story, till now untold, of "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter." Familiarity Breeds Hollywood Sequels By MICHAEL CIEPLY So far, the top seven pictures at the domestic box-office have been sequels, as Hollywood continued a flight to financial safety. Media Decoder: For Hollywood, More Reasons for Concern Movies Streep Dons Thatcher's Armor By CHARLES McGRATH When offered the role of Margaret Thatcher in "The Iron Lady," Meryl Streep explained, "To say, 'No, I'm not interested' would just be ridiculous. There is no other opportunity like it." Streep on Her Messy Process More on The Carpetbagger » DVD Unsung Features, Screwball to Noir By DAVE KEHR DVD releases this week include "Nothing Sacred," "The Nickel Ride" and "The People Against O'Hara." ADVERTISEMENT

Photos & Video Video: Critics' Picks: 'The Thin Red Line' A. O. Scott looks at the relationship between humans and the natural world in Terrence Malick's war drama. Video: A New Black Wave? Nelson George discusses the state of black cinema through a close reading of "Pariah," directed by Dee Rees. A. O. Scott recommends: War Horse NYT Review Readers' Reviews Buy Tickets Watch Trailer Manohla Dargis recommends: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy NYT Review Readers' Reviews Buy Tickets Watch Trailer Stephen Holden recommends: The Muppets NYT Review Readers' Reviews Buy Tickets Watch Trailer More Critics' Picks » Showtimes & Tickets Enter Title and/or Enter Zip Code Go to Showtimes & Tickets » Box Office Top 5 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked! Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol New Year's Eve The Sitter Go to Box Office » Editor FeedBack Thanks for taking the time to read this e-mail. Feel free to send feedback; I enjoy hearing your opinions and will do my best to respond. Mekado Murphy Movies Producer The New York Times on the Web Coming Soon Once Upon a Time In Anatolia The Devil Inside Roadie Go to Coming Soon » Times Pulse The most popular movies among NYTimes.com readers. The Iron Lady Nader and Simin, A Separation The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo War Horse Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy Go to Times Pulse » ADVERTISEMENT

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