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Listen up, students of Virginia, this question could be on your next geography quiz: What is the name of the major body of water is located between Japan and the Korean peninsula?

If you said Sea of Japan, you're only half right. It's also called the East Sea.

That's according to a new bill passed by lawmakers that hands South Korea a minor victory in a long-running battle over the naming of the stretch of water. After intense lobbying from both sides, the state's House of Delegates approved the measure by an 81-15 vote to include "East Sea" along with "Sea of Japan" in the state's textbooks.

The two-line bill states simply that, "all textbooks approved by the Board of Education ... when referring to the Sea of Japan, shall note that it is also called the East Sea."

As The Washington Post reports:

"The issue has drawn intense interest from, among others, Japanese diplomats, Korean Americans in Northern Virginia, and [newly elected Gov. Terry] McAuliffe, who promised to support the measure during his campaign but has been squeezed between that pledge and warnings that Japanese businesses in Virginia could react poorly to the move."

The content of the leaked phone conversation that we told you about yesterday (Thursday) continues to have diplomatic repercussions.

The story began when the recording of a call between Victoria Nuland, the top U.S. diplomat for Europe, and Geoff Pyatt, the U.S. envoy to Kiev, appeared to show them discussing the merits of Ukraine's various opposition figures. In it, Nuland can also be heard using a crude phrase while describing the European Union.

Talking about the EU's position in Ukraine, she says, "F- - - the EU."

A spokeswoman for German Chancellor Angela Merkel weighed in Friday, calling Nuland's comments "absolutely unacceptable." Christiane Wirtz, the spokeswoman, added that Merkel supported the EU's efforts in Ukraine and believes Catherine Ashton, the EU foreign policy chief, "is doing a marvelous job."

Nuland herself refused to comment on the controversy, saying in Kiev that she didn't think it would hurt U.S.-Russian relations. But she did call the tape's recording and leaking "pretty impressive tradecraft."

As we reported, both the White House and the State Department accused Russia of orchestrating the leak of the conversation, but Russian officials strongly denied that claim.

The Associated Press quoted Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin as saying on Twitlonger:

"While the Westerners weave little intrigues and get into scandals, Russia is helping the regions of Ukraine restore lost connections with our industries. Maybe then there will be fewer unemployed and embittered people to organize riots in their own cities with foreign money."

четверг

The Lego Movie

Directors: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller

Genre: Animation, action, comedy

Running time: 100 minutes

Rated PG

With Will Arnett, Elizabeth Banks, Craig Berry

(Recommended)

What might have been a routine update on the state of the federal budget Tuesday instead became the newest front in the ongoing political war over President Obama's signature health care law.

At issue: a revised estimate about how many people would voluntarily leave the workforce because they can get health care without necessarily holding down a job.

The Congressional Budget Office originally predicted that the availability of subsidies for low-income Americans to buy health insurance would result in about 800,000 people leaving full-time work by 2023. The revised estimate increases that number to about 2.5 million.

Republicans pounced, pointing at the nonpartisan office's estimate as proof of the Affordable Care Act's damaging effects on the economy. In a statement, House Speaker John Boehner said: "The middle class is getting squeezed in this economy, and this CBO report confirms that Obamacare is making it worse."

Texas Republican John Cornyn took to the Senate floor with the same message. "The president's own health care policy ... is killing full-time work, and putting people in part-time work," he said.

Obama's White House wasted little time responding, sending Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Jason Furman to the daily press briefing. There, Furman turned Cornyn's charge on its head, arguing that if some people are able to work part time and spend more time with their children, or if others can leave a job to start a business of their own without fear of losing health insurance, then these are good things happening because of the Affordable Care Act.

The Affordable Care Act, Explained

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