California Budget Deal
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and California legislative leaders have finally agreed on a plan to close the state's $26 billion budget shortfall. The state will save the money by cutting $15 billion in education spending, and getting the rest of the money from donors who have pledged $11 billion to keep Schwarzenegger from making any more movies.



Continental Cuts
Continental Airlines is cutting 1,700 jobs... it's not clear which one of the remaining workers will now be in charge of losing your bags.



Cartel Reward
The U.S. government is offering up to $50 million for the capture of several Mexican cartel members; the Obama administration wants to get them to agree to take smaller payments and co-pays for illegal drugs.



New Orleans Delays
Several plans designed to protect New Orleans from the next major hurricane are lagging behind schedule. Democrats in Congress don't want the projects completed until there's a Republican president to blame when they don't work.



NBA Summer Leagues
The NBA summer league is in full swing. Teams use the summer leagues primarily to give rookies and first-year players valuable playing time — and to keep the veterans from fathering more than a dozen children each off-season.




July 21st

356 BC: Herostratus sets fire to the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. He is later convicted of insurance fraud.


1873: Jesse James and the James-Younger gang pull off the first successful train robbery... a tradition kept alive today by the guys who run Amtrak.


1983: The world's lowest temperature is recorded at Vostok Station, Antarctica at −129°F... local Vostok teens still refuse to wear a hat.