Pope Benedict XVI decried the increasing commercialization of Christmas as he celebrated Christmas Eve Mass on Saturday night, urging the faithful to look beyond the holiday's "superficial glitter" to discover its true meaning.

...

In his homily, Benedict lamented that Christmas has become an increasingly commercial celebration that obscures the simplicity of the message of Christ's birth.

"Let us ask the Lord to help us see through the superficial glitter of this season, and to discover behind it the child in the stable in Bethlehem, so as to find true joy and true light," he said.

It was the second time in as many days that Benedict has pointed to the need to rediscover faith to confront the problems facing the world today. In his end-of-year meeting with Vatican officials on Thursday, Benedict said Europe's financial crisis was largely "based on the ethical crisis looming over the Old Continent."

President Barack Obama is still the world's most respected leader, according to a new six-country poll.

Released today by France 24 and Radio France Internationale, the Harris Interactive Poll asked 6,135 adults between the ages of 16 and 64 who live in the United States, Britain, France, Italy, Germany or Spain to name their favorite world leaders.

Seventy-seven percent of those surveyed chose Obama, which is one percentage point higher than when Harris Interactive asked the same question in November.

Close on his heels is the Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader, who was mentioned by 75 percent of those polled. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton came in third at 62 percent, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel was mentioned by 54 percent of respondents, good enough for fourth place.

President Barack Obama is still the world's most respected leader, according to a new six-country poll.

Released today by France 24 and Radio France Internationale, the Harris Interactive Poll asked 6,135 adults between the ages of 16 and 64 who live in the United States, Britain, France, Italy, Germany or Spain to name their favorite world leaders.

Seventy-seven percent of those surveyed chose Obama, which is one percentage point higher than when Harris Interactive asked the same question in November.

Close on his heels is the Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader, who was mentioned by 75 percent of those polled. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton came in third at 62 percent, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel was mentioned by 54 percent of respondents, good enough for fourth place.

A French court has found former President Jacques Chirac guilty of embezzling public funds and other charges in a trial over illegal financing of the conservative party he long led.

He's the first former French head of state to face prosecution since the World War II era.

But Chirac, who is 79 years old, did not take part in the trial after doctors determined that he suffers severe memory lapses.

Chirac was given a two year suspended sentence.

There are a lot of misconceptions about public transit, despite its critical role in getting people around.

It's a $55-billion industry in the U.S. and a system that has been stretched by record-high gas prices and ridership levels not seen since the 1950s even as a troubled economy reduces funding nationwide.

The American Public Transportation Association says the long-term trend is clear: Ridership on the nation's buses, subways, commuter rail lines and other transit systems grew 34% in 1995-2009, outpacing 23% growth in the number of vehicle miles driven on highways in that period. The number of workers who rely on transit regularly grew by a million, to nearly 7 million nationwide, in 2005-09.

As state and local leaders explore setting up a regional public transportation system to help stabilize and ultimately improve service in southeast Michigan, they'll have to battle misunderstandings about public transportation: