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Let's call the focus on Hillary's brief teary-eyed moment what it is: pure sexism. If it's national news when her voice cracks for a moment and her eyes well up, but no tears roll, it is only because reporters have been waiting for her to act like a girl. Mitt Romney, you may recall, looked nearly hysterical in his speech in Iowa after the drubbing he took from Huckabee. He got all emotional about the campaign and switched between giggles and near-tears several times. More>>

Iraq immediately revoked the firm's licence to operate in the country and moved to expel its staff and prosecute those responsible for the shootings, but Blackwater's activities have since resumed.

This coincides with the release of a US Embassy report on the September 16 shooting, obtained by the Washington Post and described by a State Department official as a "first blush" account. It details the events, as given by Blackwater guards, and has stirred controversy in Iraq and Washington and prompted an inquiry into the role of Blackwater and other private security firms in Iraq. More>>

Meanwhile, the Building Societies Association revealed that savings hit a record high last year. This was largely due to savers moving their money out of the troubled Northern Rock and into building societies to protect their finances against a backdrop of economic uncertainty.

The CML said gross mortgage lending slumped to £22.6bn last month, the lowest figure since May 2005 and down 25% on November. The group said a seasonal fall of about 6% was normal from November to December, and blamed the sharp decline on the credit crunch, which is making banks more cautious about lending. More>>