Haverhill, MA man gets war honor - 65 years later

"John Gale doesn't know whether he hit anything or not. But the German planes that swooped in on Algiers that day in 1943 got to him.

When the attack ended, the Army soldier discovered he wasn't the same. Last month, nearly 66 years later, Gale, 93, received the Purple Heart for hearing loss sustained during his military service."

Click here for more on John Gale's story.

Ivy League dreams come true with liquor magnate's gift

Sidney Frank made millions marketing Jagermeister and other alcohol brands. Three years after his death, he's a big hit with students at the Ivy League college he briefly attended.

He's a big hit not because of what he sold, but because he's given dozens of them what he couldn't afford as a young man: an education at Rhode Island's Brown University.

On Sunday, 49 students from low-income families became the first Sidney E. Frank Scholars to graduate from Brown, owing virtually nothing except gratitude to the late liquor magnate.

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Shot of the Week

Flower - Wildblumen

By FLickr Member Member Ela2007

U.S.: Iraq attacks down nearly 60 percent

"High-profile attacks in Iraq have fallen nearly 60 percent in the past year, the U.S. military said Sunday, though violence continues to plague the northern city of Mosul, where a suicide car bomber targeting an American convoy killed one Iraqi and wounded 45 others."

Click here for more details about the shift in violence in Iraq.

World War II veterans get a day to remember: Special trip to D.C., rousing welcome home complete unforgettable thank-you for vets

"The ceremony at the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., was brief, solemn.

Yet for Lorraine Egan, the sight of fellow veterans reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and listening to the mournful strains of taps was just too much."

Click here for more on the ceremony in Washington, D.C.

‘Keyboard Cat’ takes Web, TV by storm

A new Internet phenomenon has drawn the interest of millions — including Stephen Colbert.

One of the most popular current online crazes is something called "Play Him Off, Keyboard Cat," a user-generated video meme.

Click here to read the rest of this story.

Put your passwords to the test: Stopping online crooks takes a little patience and a little imagination

Every few months, a little box pops up on my office computer screen prompting me to change my password, and the dreaded countdown begins. It warns me I have 14 days to craft a new word or phrase that will act as gatekeeper to my online identity. Each day I ignore the task until I finally pick something lame at the last minute.

Sound familiar? Online security experts say passwords all too often are afterthoughts, and our lack of effort puts us at risk for identity theft and other computer crimes. When it comes to Internet security, passwords are the front line of defense.

Click here for suggestions on stopping hackers.