National: More than 77 late-season tornadoes ripped through the Midwest yesterday. Six people are reported dead. The National Weather Service reported that most of the twisters touched down in Illinois, where Coal City and Washington were hit hard. Entire blocks of homes were destroyed near Peoria. In Chicago, where winds reached 75 mph., the Bears and Baltimore Ravens had to stop play for two hours while football fans at Soldier Field were told to take cover.

World: A Russian passenger jet crashed yesterday in the city of Kazan, killing all 50 people on board. The Tatarstan Airlines 737 was attempting  a second landing when it lost altitude, crashed and caught fire. Witnesses said the jet dropped vertically to the runway. No immediate cause was given.

• French police are hunting for a gunman who fired shots in the lobby of the Paris newspaper Liberation, seriously wounding  a photographer’s assistant. He also fired his gun outside the headquarters of the bank Societe Generale, before forcing a motorist to drive him to the Champs Elysees where he disappeared. Police believe it was the same man who broke into the Paris offices of the 24-hour news channel BFMTV on Friday and emptied his weapon without hitting anyone.
• Bloomberg News suspended a reporter who claimed an investigative

story about corruption was spiked to avoid ruffling the Chinese government. Bloomberg editors had interviewed staff members to determine the source of the leak. Michael Forsthye was escorted from Bloomberg’s Hong Kong newsroom and suspended without pay.

Syria: Four generals were among the 31 dead in an explosion at a Syrian government building near Damascus. The explosives may have been placed in the building’s basement. If true, that means rebels got access. A British observation group said the building was leveled.

  Meanwhile, a top Syrian rebel commander has died of his wounds after an air strike in Aleppo. Abdul Qadir al-Saleh commanded 8,000-10,000 fighters.

Money, Money: Stocks hit record highs after the markets opened this morning, with the Dow Jones crossing the 16,000 line for the first time. The market is being stoked by continued low interest rates. Some analysts say it is time to expect a “correction”.

Sisters: The daughters of former Vice President Dick Cheney are openly fighting about gay marriage. Liz Cheney, who’s running for Senator from Wyoming, said gay marriage is something she and her sister disagree about. Mary Cheney, who is married to a woman, took to Facebook and wrote, “Liz — this isn’t just an issue on which we disagree you’re just wrong — and on the wrong side of history.” Mary says Liz congratulated her on her marriage, but Liz cannot endorse gay marriage if she hopes to be elected in Wyoming. The NY Times says the two sisters haven’t spoken in months.

Season’s Greetings: The Christmas ads are on television, so it must be Mallomars season. Nabisco only ships the chocolate-covered marshmallow cookies September through March when the weather is cooler and the chocolate won’t melt. They could use refrigerated trucks, but they stick to their 100-year tradition.  

-30-