Union member Gabrielle Rogano (C) reacts with fellow union members after hearing that a union vote narrowly passed by 51% in support of Boeing's contract with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) District Lodge 751 to construct the wings for the 777X jetliner in Seattle, Washington January 3, 2014.  REUTERS/David Ryder

Boeing wins, union approves new contract

SEATTLE/NEW YORK - Boeing's machinists narrowly approved a crucial labor contract that secured thousands of jobs and billions of dollars of economic activity for Washington state but will cost workers their pensions.  Full Article 

Early days of Obamacare bring trickle, not flood, of patients 7:08am EST

NEW YORK - U.S. medical providers are seeing only a trickle of patients newly insured under President Barack Obama's healthcare law, as insurers, hospitals and doctors try to work out any hitches in coverage.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan arrives at the cabinet meeting in Ankara December 30, 2013. REUTERS/Umit Bektas

As lira slides, Turkey's ruling party scrambles

ISTANBUL - Turkey’s ruling AK Party has relied on its economic record to keep the support of many Turks. But the sudden worsening of the economy -- just before local and national elections -- has eroded a pillar of the party’s stability.  Full Article 

New York Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio speaks to the press outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington, December 13, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed

Pre-K may help parents more - and that's okay

Bill de Blasio, New York City's new mayor, has pledged to provide full-day pre-K for all 4-year-olds in the city. The problem with this effort is that it promises too much regarding children’s skills and glosses over what it can do for the earning potential of parents.  Commentary 

Mikhail Gorbachev, soviet Politburo member poses with British PM Margaret Thatcher at Chequers during his December 1984 visit to the UK. REUTERS/Stringer

How the USSR charmed Britain's Iron Lady

LONDON - Britain has shed light on Mikhail Gorbachev's audacious bid to save the ailing Soviet Union, publishing previously secret documents showing his attempt to forge better ties with the West during the depths of the Cold War.  Full Article 

Host Ryan Seacrest isseen during a commercial break at the Season 12 finale of "American Idol" in Los Angeles, Calfiornia May 16, 2013.  REUTERS/Phil McCarten

BlackBerry sues Ryan Seacrest's company

TORONTO - BlackBerry said it had filed a lawsuit against a company co-founded by "American Idol" host Ryan Seacrest that offers a physical keyboard that can be attached to some of Apple's touchscreen iPhone 5 models.  Full Article 

People line up to buy used cars at a government owned dealership in Havana January 3, 2014. REUTERS/Enrique de la Osa

Pricing of cars dash Cuban hopes

HAVANA - Cubans awoke on Friday for the first time in half a century with the right to buy new and used vehicles from the state without special permission, but markups of 400 percent or more quickly dashed most people's expectations.  Full Article | Video 

Reihan Salam

Universal preschool may help parents more than kids -- and that’s okay

Bill de Blasio, New York City's new mayor, has pledged to provide full-day pre-K for all 4-year-olds in the city. The problem with this effort is that it promises too much regarding children’s skills while glossing over what it can do for parents.  Commentary 

Colin T. Hayes

Don’t belittle Congress’s attempts to enhance mineral production

America’s reliance on foreign mineral commodities is impeding growth, and in some cases it is jeopardizing our national security. Congressional testimony, federal agency publications, and news coverage all provide ample evidence of this.  Commentary 

Jack Shafer

The Times advances the NSA's amnesty-for-Snowden trial balloon

In urging leniency for Snowden, the Times editorial page is urging leniency for a specific news-pages source, which the editorial doesn't directly state. If that doesn't define enlightened self-interest, nothing does.  Commentary 

John Lloyd

An empire dies slowly

For all the lavishness of Putin's $50 billion Olympic splurge, the events will take place not just on the bones of ancestors, but on the still crumbling infrastructure of a Soviet empire that money and hard power cannot rebuild.  Commentary 

David Rohde

How 2013′s partisanship hurt us abroad

Militants gained strength from Syria to the Sahel over the course of 2013. Republicans and Democrats, however, remained focused on winning their daily messaging battle in Washington.   Commentary 

David Wise

Will Snowden's disclosures finally rein in the NSA?

The Church Committee in the mid-1970s revealed serious intelligence abuses and lawbreaking in the NSA. But the agency has largely been able to evade serious consequences or restrictions after the earlier revelations.  Commentary