Study says traffic congestion is worse Drivers waste nearly an entire work week each year sitting in traffic on the way to and from their jobs, according to a national study released Tuesday. Nation celebrates 4th of July The Fourth of July fireworks display billed as the nation's biggest is trying to up this year's oohs and aahs with a pyrotechnic novelty: exploding shells aimed at the water, not the sky. Spokane Diocese settles sex abuse claims The Spokane Catholic Diocese has agreed to pay at least $48 million to people molested by priests as a part of a deal to emerge from bankruptcy, a federal mediator announced Thursday.