From Reuters.com
Go ahead, make his day: Best of the week
Maybe it’s the recession, but groceries were a big hit with readers this week. The smackdown king of popularity, however, was no doubt President Obama and his healthcare law, stories for which dominated our most-read figures. Here are the week’s most popular tales.
1. Obama dares Republicans to seek healthcare repeal
“Go ahead, punk. Make my day.” While President Obama surely doesn’t carry a Magnum 45 like Dirty Harry did, he certainly talks as tough. Speaking to university students after signing his landmark healthcare legislation into law, the president taunted the Republicans to go ahead and try to repeal the new law. “If they want that fight, we can have it,” he proclaimed. Do you feel lucky, punk? Do you?
2. Wal-Mart to slash grocery prices
Are you feeling pretty hungry as this recession rolls on? Is your stomach in need of filling? Don’t worry! Help is on the way. Wal-Mart, your friendly neighborhood big box behemoth is slashing prices on groceries. That’s right, slashing prices! Hurry on down! But wait, there’s more. Buy one full bag of groceries and get another bag free! That’s right, free! (Ok, I made that last bit up.)
3. Massive storm hits Perth, Australia
Crikey, mate. That’s a lot of rain! This video was by far the most popular of the week. The storm that seemed to come out of nowhere dropped hail the size of big ice-cubes, blew over trees and shattered car windshields. But I think the real reason it was so popular was the yellow-raincoat-wearing scooter rider.
The day ahead: Thursday
Wal-Mart sales numbers will hold the spotlight along with results from Walt Disney and Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Highlights:
* Wal-Mart is expected to report higher third-quarter earnings, but Wall Street is focused on U.S. sales, which the retailer has stopped reporting on a monthly basis.
