AIG posts 1Q loss of $7.8B, plans to raise $12.5B

American International Group Inc. says it will raise $12.5 billion in the coming months as the insurer looks to shore up a capital base that has been rocked by deterioration in the credit markets.

AIG shares tumbled $3.27, or 7.4 percent, to $41.45 in after-hours trading Thursday after the company disclosed it needs fresh cash and reported a first-quarter loss of $7.81 billion.

The capital raising effort will be a two-step process, with the first portion estimated to raise $7.5 billion through an offering of common stock and equity units. The equity units will consist of subordinated debt securities and contracts that require the holders to purchase AIG stock …

Instead of reducing terrorism, the war generated more terrorism.

Richard Clarke's Against All Enemies is one very scary book.Unlike most people who have an opinion on it, I've read the book.

It is understandable that the administration has become hystericalin its attacks on Clarke. If his account is accurate, then thepresident is a man of limited talents, capable of absorbing onlysimple proposals and surrounded by advisers from Cloud Cuckooland.Yet for all the viciousness of the assault, no one has explained whya registered Republican civil servant who has served in fiveadministrations, three of them Republican, would write such a bookunless he was genuinely worried about the state of the country. Asfor it being a partisan political …

Medical Errors: My Child's Story ; Early on Saturday, Sept. 12, 1998, my wife, Kim, in just the 24th week of her pregnancy, gave birth to our daughter, Katelyn Mary.

Early on Saturday, Sept. 12, 1998, my wife, Kim, in just the 24th week of her pregnancy, gave birth to our daughter, Katelyn Mary.

Katie weighed in at just 1 pound 4 ounces. She didn't cry when she was born. Babies who arrive that early don't have the lung capacity to make sounds.

Immediately upon birth, Katie was whisked to the neonatal intensive care unit, where she would stay for four months as doctors and nurses fought to save her life. From the delivery room, my wife was wheeled back to her bed, where it was soon discovered that the area around her cesarean section had been infected with E. coli bacteria, preventing the wound from healing. She would stay in …

Kramnik holds Anand to second draw in chess

World chess champion Viswanathan Anand of India started the second game of his championship match against Russian challenger Vladimir Kramnik with a definite advantage Wednesday, but had to settle for a draw.

Still, it was a much more exciting game than the unspectacular opener to the match on Tuesday, which also ended in an draw.

Anand, playing with White, led with the Saemisch variation of the Nimzo-Indian Defense. His first move, 1. d4, was a minor surprise because he almost always leads with 1. e4 and it gave him a slight edge over Kramnik.

"At a certain point in the opening, the position became very sharp," Anand said.

…

Mexico to see if monument contains founders' bones

Mexicans have long believed the remains of 15 of their independence heroes lie in crypts beneath the Independence Monument in the capital, but experts now say they are not so sure.

The government plans to open the crypts for maintenance and research as part of the 200th anniversary of the 1810 revolt against Spanish rule.

A top official of the Bicentenary …

Harmony rules at St. Sabina's season opener Tensions over league membership finally put to rest

They came for the basketball, and that's what they got.

Parents, siblings and teachers, clad in their schools' respectivecolors, cheered loudly as the scrappy, scrawny players made their wayup and down the well-worn gym floor.

But the camera crews and a capacity crowd of about 500 signaledsomething much bigger than an afternoon of parochial leaguebasketball.

On Saturday, the St. Sabina Saints opened their season as part ofthe Southside Catholic Conference, marking the first time the largelyblack school has competed in the predominantly white athletic league--and putting to rest a roller-coaster, race-tinged debate.

But though tensions had been high …

Another Tibetan monk sets himself on fire in China

BEIJING (AP) — A British human rights group says another Tibetan Buddhist monk has set himself on fire in a protest against Chinese rule over the Himalayan region in the 10th self-immolation this year.

The monk set himself ablaze early Tuesday outside a Tibetan monastery in southwestern Sichuan province's Ganzi prefecture, the London-based Free Tibet group said in a statement.

The group said it was unable to confirm the monk's age or name. It was unsure of his condition and whereabouts.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said Wednesday that the ministry had noted reports about the alleged incident, but was unable to confirm it had happened.

The ministry …