Posted: Tuesday, December 11, 2012 -- 8:15 a.m.

1. BRITISH BANK TO PAY RECORD FINE

HSBC's agreement to pay $1.9 billion is the biggest ever in a case involving a bank.

2. WHY AMERICANS ARE AFRAID OF THE `FISCAL CLIFF'

Voters tell the AP they have tough financial problems and have no confidence that Washington can reach a deal.

3. CLASHES EXPECTED IN CAIRO

Supporters and opponents of Egypt's Islamist leader planned to stage rival mass rallies ahead of a vote on a constitution that has polarized the nation.

4. MORSI LOOKS MORE AND MORE LIKE A DICTATOR

Some say it should come as no surprise: heavy-handed rule has a history in Egypt and in the region.

5. MEXICO PRESIDENT NOT BACKING DOWN FROM WAR ON DRUGS

Enrique Pena Nieto tells The AP's Katherine Corcoran that legalization of marijuana in two U.S. states won't keep him from prosecuting it in Mexico.

6. WHY INVESTIGATORS ARE LOOKING AT THE OWNER OF JENNI RIVERA'S PLANE

The Las Vegas company was involved in a federal drug investigation before the plane crash that killed the singer in Mexico.

7. SCALIA REBUTS CRITICS WHO SAYS HE IS ANTI-GAY

The Supreme Court justice says legislative bodies can ban what they believe to be immoral when asked about his rulings on sodomy laws.

8. ANOTHER JUSTICE SHARES PERSONAL SIDE

Sonia Sotomayor says her fear of dying young from diabetes kept her from having children.

9. APPLE TAKES AUSTRALIANS THE WRONG WAY

Police say the software giant's mapping service is "potentially life-threatening" for sending drivers looking for the southern city of Mildura to a remote desert.

10. WHY ALAN ALDA WANTS TO KNOW WHAT TIME IS

The "MASH" star posed the question from his childhood to scientists as a visiting professor at a New York college.

Copyright 2012: Associated Press