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With troops poised to invade Gaza, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert ruled out negotiating with the captors of an Israeli soldier. Olmert promised a "broad and ongoing" military offensive if Palestinian kidnappers do not release their prisoner. But an attack may threaten the life of the 19-year-old hostage.

Mastercard and Visa collect billions of dollars in fees each year from the nation's retailers. Merchants have long complained about the way those fees are determined. A lawsuit accusing Mastercard and Visa of antitrust violations is expected to go to trial in Brooklyn soon.

Warren Buffett doesn't use e-mail. He shies away from technology stocks. He has made billions of dollars by buying companies he likes, and then leaving them alone to do their business. This minimalist approach has made Buffett the world's second richest man.

Matt Pike overcame long odds to find success in metal bands Sleep and High on Fire. But his deepening obsession with conspiracy theories has created a dissonant riff.

The NBC television network plans to post clips from some of its fall shows on the video-sharing Web site YouTube.com -- a big step for YouTube.com and NBC, which previously attempted to block the site from posting clips of NBC shows. Madeleine Brand talks with Janet Babin of Marketplace about the win-win move for NBC and YouTube.com's "guerilla cred."

In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court upholds most of the Texas congressional districting map engineered by former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. The court, however, did find that the map infringes on the minority voting rights of some Hispanics.

Lake Baiyangdian, a network of nearly 150 lakes that form North China's largest wetland ecosystem, has shrunk by one-third in recent years, and lost many of its plant and animal species. The government is trying to rescue what ecologists call "North China's kidney" before it runs dry.

Israeli forces in Gaza have arrested dozens of Palestinian ministers and lawmakers from the ruling Hamas party. Israel entered Gaza after Palestinian militants captured a young Israeli soldier. Israel has promised continuing military action if the soldier is not released. Also, the body of a kidnapped 18-year-old Jewish settler was found in the West Bank, according to Israeli security officials. Steve Inskeep talks to Linda Gradstein.

The ballooning crisis over a captured Israeli soldier held by militants in the Gaza Strip has revealed fractures within Hamas. Exiled leaders have appeared more radical than those inside Gaza and the West Bank. But as Israeil troops gather at the border, divisions have emerged in Hamas' internal leadership as well.

Israel launches new airstrikes in south Lebanon, just hours after the announcement of a 48-hour suspension of the aerial campaign. The partial suspension came after the bombing Sunday of an apartment building in the southern Lebanese town of Qana that left more than 50 civilians dead.

The Israeli Cabinet voted overnight to expand ground operations in southern Lebanon. Israel Radio reported that the number of ground troops in Lebanon will more than double. Despite growing international calls for a cease-fire, Israeli officials say the offensive against Hezbollah could last for weeks.

The interstate highway system is the result of the largest earth-moving project in human history -- so large that it's been called the "51st state." The system accelerated suburban development, changed shipping, leisure travel and American culture as a whole.