NATIONAL BRIEFS

CALIFORNIA: Slow boat to San Diego

As two tugboats slowly towed the disabled Carnival Splendor back toward San Diego, the nearly 4,500 people and crew passed the time with live band music, scavenger hunts and trivia contests. The pool and casinos are closed and the rooms, without air conditioning, are pitch-black and stuffy. The food is cold, but at least the bar is open and offering free drinks. The return journey for the 952-foot cruise ship could take until late Thursday. The ship entered cell phone range Wednesday and a bank of satellite phones was set up, allowing passengers to finally reach loved ones.

WASHINGTON: EPA's greenhouse gas rules

Pressing ahead with plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions despite a congressional stalemate over global warming, the Environmental Protection Agency issued guidelines Wednesday that give states considerable discretion in regulating carbon dioxide emissions from large industrial facilities like power plants, refineries and factories. On Jan. 2, the country's largest emitters of greenhouse gases will have to show state regulators how they plan to curb such emissions when they build new facilities or make major changes in existing facilities that result in increased discharges of the gases that most scientists link to climate change and global warming. Gina McCarthy, EPA assistant administrator for air and radiation, said reductions would be achieved by companies that focused on energy efficiency.

Condit link to Chandra seen

Semen stains found in Chandra Levy's underwear matched former California congressman Gary Condit's DNA, an FBI examiner testified Wednesday. The semen sample provided seemingly incontrovertible proof that Condit had a sexual relationship with Levy, something he has never publicly acknowledged. It did not, however, go far in solving the mystery of Levy's 2001 death. A pair of underwear was taken by investigators from her apartment shortly after she disappeared in May 2001. Levy's skeletal remains, and some accompanying pieces of clothing, were found in May 2002. Prosecutors have acknowledged they lack any DNA or other physical evidence connecting the accused, Ingmar Guandique, to Levy's death. They rested their case yesterday.

SOUTH CAROLINA: Army gains a Sikh soldier

Until Wednesday, there were no members of the Sikh faith in the enlisted ranks of the U.S. Army, due to the service's restrictions against beards and turbans. The faith requires men to wear beards and turbans. The Army banned those "conspicuous articles of faith" in 1984. But Spc. Simranpeet Lamba stepped onto Fort Jackson's Hilton Field parade ground Wednesday with the rest of his basic training graduating class, wearing a beard and black turban. And he was selected by his fellow soldiers and drill instructor to carry the guidon flag for his platoon, a position of honor. A native of New Delhi, Lamba also became a U.S. citizen. "It is a dream come true to be in uniform and treated like any other soldier," he said. Lamba, who is training to be a combat medic, is the first enlisted soldier to receive an "accommodation," or special exception, to wear his faith's beard and turban.