Close encounter with Ike...Slower drawdown...Hiring outlook worsens

MIAMI (AP) Evacuation orders have been canceled in the Florida Keys, but Hurricane Ike could still cause some problems for parts of Florida. The National Hurricane Center says isolated Tornadoes and waterspouts could be seen in south Florida and the Keys today.

Ike is still hitting Cuba with 80 mile-per-hour winds.

Washington (AP) A drawdown of U.S. forces from Iraq will be slower and smaller than expected. President Bush says roughly 8,000 troops will be back home by February of next year. It was thought that top Iraq commander General David Petraeus would recommend a faster pullback.

WASHINGTON (AP) A new independent report warns the U.S.

remains "dangerously vulnerable" to chemical, biological and nuclear attacks seven years after 9/11. The report also concludes there's a lack of international cooperation in preventing terrorists from obtaining weapons of mass destruction. It warns that escalating tensions with Russia don't help matters.

MILWAUKEE (AP) Manpower Incorporated says it's not a good time to be job hunting. The employment firm surveyed 14,000 employers and found only 22 percent expect to increase staff during the final three months of the year. Thirteen percent expect cut backs.

DUBLIN, N.H. (AP) The Old Farmer's Almanac is going further out on a limb than usual this year. It says based on past weather patterns, you can expect not just a colder winter, but several decades of global cooling, not warming. The almanac goes on sale today.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APNP 09-09-08 0244CDT | save this article / add to your favorites list