[News Update] AIRASIA INDONESIA FLIGHT QZ8501  —  AirAsia Indonesia regrets to confirm that flight QZ8501 from Surabaya to Singapore has lost contact with air traffic control at 07:24hrs this morning.  —  At the present time we unfortunately have no further information regarding the status …

Hey GQ, can't find any crazy Democrats?  Here's 16  —  Photo: Getty Images; AP; WireImage; Getty Images; Getty Images; Reuters  —  In a survey of the “Craziest Politicians of 2014,” GQ had difficulty locating any Democrats.  Seventeen out of 20 on the list were Republicans …

5,200 Days in Space  —  An exploration of life aboard the International Space Station, and the surprising reasons the mission is still worthwhile  —  When humans move to space, we are the aliens, the extraterrestrials.  And so, living in space, the oddness never quite goes away.

Can Carter make a defense difference?  —  He will face the likely return of sequestration.  —  Ash Carter faces a double-barreled challenge if he's the next Defense secretary: leading a Pentagon handicapped by a Congress unwilling to go along with military-proposed spending reforms …

Nothing funny about ‘The Interview’  —  Just when did assassination become a subject for American humor?  —  This is a nation which still mourns Abraham Lincoln, John Kennedy, and Martin Luther King — all assassinated.  It is living through a period of renewed racial violence …

Protester who advocates peace charged with setting fire at Berkeley QT  —  One of the most frequently quoted and photographed Ferguson protesters was charged Saturday with setting fire to a Berkeley convenience store last week.  —  St. Louis County police arrested Joshua Williams, 19 …

A bigger tent?  GOP faces minority challenge  —  Associated Press 1 hr ago  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The faces of the Republican Party's most ambitious members are changing.  —  Long criticized as the party of old white men, the GOP's next class of presidential contenders may include two Hispanic senators …

Son Shoots Father  —  The incident started when a father gave his son a Christmas present  —  BAYVIEW -  —  A dad is recovering after police said he was shot in the eye by his son.  It happened after another son attacked his dad because of a Christmas gift.

Congress likely to make key decisions on drones  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration is on the verge of proposing long-awaited rules for commercial drone operations in U.S. skies, but key decisions on how much access to grant drones are likely to come from Congress next year.

Bill De Blasio 2 Hours Late to Wake for Slain Officer Rafael Ramos  —  On Friday evening, thousands of New Yorkers attended a memorial service for Rafael Ramos, one of the two NYPD officers assassinated a week ago by an Eric Garner protester.  The service brought mourners from every corner of the city.