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Mom of 5 Dies 10 Days After Birthing Triplets

(Mar 9, 2016 6:47 AM) A Kansas woman has died from a blood clot just 10 days after the premature birth of her triplets, leaving behind a husband and two older children. Cassia Rott died the day she came home from the hospital to see her two older daughters, Chloe, 7, and Tenley, 2, for the first time since her naturally conceived triplets, Levi, Piper, and Asher, were born, and it was the happiest I'd ever seen her, husband and father Joey Rott tells the Kansas City Star. At least she had that—a few minutes to enjoy the squeals of her adoring daughters and, after months of living close to a hospital in Wichita to play it safe, getting to see the century-old white farmhouse her family had worked so hard to make home. It was a good few minutes, Rott tells ABC News. Five minutes later, after complaining of chest pain, Casi was being raced down the gravel road by Joey, who knew he'd already lost her. It had happened once already: Casi suffered a pulmonary embolism (a blood clot in her lungs) just days after the triplets were delivered by C-section, but the doctors and family thought that with medications everything was under control. A family friend who also has triplets set up a GoFundMe page that asked for $10,000 and has already surpassed $110,000. Family members are also helping, and donations have been set up to help pay for a night service so that Joey, an IT worker, can sleep. Chloe, the 7-year-old, is helping care for her toddler sister and hopes her mom's tombstone can be heart-shaped but flat on the bottom, so it can stand forever. (See this heartwarming story about a mother of triplets.)

Mom Freezes Eggs for Sterile 2-Year-Old Daughter to Use

(Jan 11, 2011 6:23 PM) British mom Penny Jarvis is determined that her 2-year-old daughter—who was born without ovaries—will be able to have children of her own someday. So much so that Jarvis plans to freeze her own eggs so daughter Mackenzie can use them to get pregnant via IVF, the Daily Mail reports. It’s a comfort to know that if she did have a child they would still have part of her own genetic make-up as well, Jarvis said. So it would still be a part of her. Her sentiments aside, medical ethicists would have a field day working over the implications: Mackenzie's child would also be her half-sibling, rendering all the baby's aunts and uncles half-brothers and -sisters as well. You could look at it as her giving birth to her own brother or sister, but I choose not to see it like that, said Jarvis. You do the best for your children and Mackenzie’s daughter or son would be her own.

Odd Coupling: 90210 Star, 27, and Jon Lovitz, 58

(Mar 28, 2016 11:41 AM CDT) Those of you who figured 27-year-old Jessica Lowndes (star of the 90210 reboot and a number of TV movies) and 58-year-old Jon Lovitz couldn't possibly be engaged were correct, Entertainment Weekly reports. The odd couple appeared to reveal a secret relationship in a series of odd social media posts over the weekend, People reported; on Instagram, Lowndes posted a shot of a noticeably older hand on her thigh, overlaid with the words There's a new man in my life... and the caption His hands are wise and tell a thousand stories... #smitten #hatersgonnahate. There was also a reference to a sugar daddy, a picture of what appeared to be an engagement ring, a video of Lowndes in bed with what sounds like Lovitz's distinctive voice in the background, and Lovitz's own tweet featuring a photo of him and Lowndes captioned, Easter with my bunny, @jessicalowndes !!! Many, many headlines were made, though skepticism ran rampant from the get-go. As Uproxx pointed out, it just seems strange being that Lovitz has never been married or in a public relationship before, to the point that his Wikipedia page literally does not even have a 'personal life' section. Mashable rounded up tweets from some of the wary readers. Example: I only have 30 mins free wifi at the airport but I'm making the most of it by reading Jessica Lowndes/Jon Lovitz conspiracy theories. JustJared's sources claimed the relationship is actually a publicity stunt for a music project Lowndes is working on, and they were right: Per EW, Lowndes admitted in an Instagram video Monday that the whole thing was a prank meant to draw attention to her new music video, which stars Lovitz. The two apparently became fast friends while guest-starring on Hawaii Five-O last year.

13-Year-Old Is Youngest to Scale Everest

(May 22, 2010 5:49 AM CDT) A 13-year-old American boy became the youngest climber to reach the top of Mount Everest today, surpassing the previous record set by a 16-year-old Nepalese. Jordan Romero called his mother by satellite phone from the summit of the world's highest mountain, 29,035 feet above sea level. He is now one climb away from his quest to conquer the highest peaks on all seven continents—only the Vinson Massif in Antarctica remains. He says, 'Mom, I'm calling you from the top of the world,' Leigh Anne Drake said from California, where she had watched her son's progress on a GPS tracker online. I just told him to get his butt back home. The teenager with long curly hair—who climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa when he was 9—says he was inspired by a painting in his school hallway of the seven continents' highest summits.

College Grad $200K in Debt Wants You to Pay Her Loans

(Nov 23, 2010 9:47 AM) Sign No. 341 that our kids need some kind of financial education in high school: Northeastern alum Kelli Space has launched a website called Two Hundred Thou. Yes, you guessed it: Space borrowed close to that amount (when you tack on interest) to attend college, and is currently making $891 payments to Sallie Mae each month that she can't afford, even with a full-time job. How did she find herself in this pickle? By following the romantic advice that the cost of tuition should never keep you from attending a great school. What's a girl to do? Why ask you to pay her debt! Now, with your help, I can fix the mistake I made 5 years ago—as an 18-year-old, financially-unintelligent high school graduate, writes Space, who includes a handy chart on her site that explains that she just needs to find 300,000 Americans willing to donate 67 cents to pay it all off. To date she has raised $1,726.50. Click here for more.

Obama Wants New $10-a-Barrel Oil Tax

(Feb 5, 2016 3:00 AM) President Obama, apparently embracing his position as a Democratic president with no elections left to fight, is proposing a hefty new tax on oil to fund cleaner energy and transportation. The White House says Obama's budget request to Congress will include a $10-per-barrel tax on oil companies, which would raise up to $32 billion a year, some of which would be spent on mass transit and on replacing the country's aging infrastructure, the New York Times reports. The tax will affect foreign and domestic oil companies alike, and the White House—which will include relief for families affected by higher energy bills in the plan—admits that oil firms will probably pass the cost of the tax on to consumers, USA Today reports. Of course, even with today's relatively low oil prices, the GOP-controlled Congress is no more likely to adopt a new oil tax in an election year than it is to propose adding Obama's face to Mount Rushmore. Administration aides admit that the main goal is to introduce a new vision for transportation and change the debate, Politico reports. House Speaker Paul Ryan denounced the plan as an election-year distraction that this lame-duck president knows will be dead on arrival in Congress. Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, a Democrat, tells Politico that it will certainly be tough sledding —but he gives the administration credit for offering a long-term transportation blueprint instead of a short-term fix, and for having the guts to say how they would pay for it all.

Tupac's Letter Explaining 'Thug Life Is Dead': $225K

(Oct 5, 2015 10:03 AM CDT) After Tupac Shakur declared from jail in 1995 that Thug Life ... is dead, he explained himself in an emotional letter to Nina Bhadreshwar, a staffer at his record label, Death Row Records. That five-page letter is now for sale for $225,000 from Moments In Time, the New York Post reports. He opens by noting that he's replying to a letter from Bhadreshwar, who worked for Death Row Uncut magazine and her own publication. I am not granting this information to any other publication, not even Time & Rolling Stone so please represent it as it is layed, Shakur wrote. I trust u. He went on to explain that black males in America grow from young dustkicker to thug n---a to boss playa and that many n----z never survive the second level of thuglife. He wrote that he himself almost didn't. A regular Playa plays women, a Boss Playa plays life. A Boss Playa is a thinker, a leader, a builder, a moneymaker, a souljah, a teacher and most of all, a Man! I want all my homiez to know there is another level, it takes heart and courage 2 stand alone face the demons and make a change! So, since in my heart the thug n---a has advanced to be a Boss Playa, he wrote, Thug Life is not dead but in my heart it is. Read it in full here.

Firefighter Missing 9 Years Declared Dead

(Aug 19, 2015 8:59 AM CDT) Brandy Hall has been officially declared dead nine years and a day after the Florida firefighter's pickup truck was found stained with her blood. Family members of the mother of two had petitioned a court for a declaration of death, which was signed by a judge yesterday, reports Florida Today. The Presumptive Death Certificate records Hall's death as occurring on Aug. 17, 2006, the night she vanished after leaving a shift at the Malabar Fire Station. The amount of blood found in her truck was consistent with a conclusion that she died on the date of her disappearance, it states. Hall's husband, Jeffrey, who was at the court hearing, says the declaration is a formality that brings no closure to the couple's daughter, 19, and son, 14; WFTV reports the daughter was the one to request the death certificate. My youngest doesn't even remember his mom, and I don't like that. He was less than 5 years old, Jeffrey Hall says. The one person who did this is still walking the streets, and that's the bottom line. Until he gets put away, there will be no closure. Police suspect Hall's fire captain and lover, Randall Richmond, but have found no physical evidence linking him to the case. (Click for more.)

16 Hurt in California Amtrak Crash

(Oct 13, 2011 8:51 AM CDT) An Amtrak train crashed into another train unloading passengers at a station in California, leaving 16 people with mainly minor injuries, authorities said. The crash occurred late yesterday as the passenger train, traveling at a speed of up to about 20mph, struck the stationary Amtrak train at the station in Oakland. The city Fire Department battalion chief says the company told him that train went through a red light. There were injuries on both trains, most of which were minor, but several people were taken to local hospitals. An Amtrak spokesperson, who would not comment on whether one train ran a red light, said the wheels of each lead engine went off the track. One passenger told KTVU that he felt an awful jolt from the impact, while another witness told CBS5 that she heard a big bang like a bomb. It wasn't the only train mishap—a commuter train rammed a stationary car outside Philadelphia this morning.

7 Gored During Pamplona's Running of the Bulls

(Jul 8, 2016 2:07 PM CDT) Six foreigners, including three Americans, were among seven people gored in a hair-raising second running of the bulls Friday at Pamplona's San Fermin festival, the Navarra regional government said. A 58-year-old Spaniard identified only by the initials FLR, a 73-year-old South African man identified as MHO, and a Canadian aged 48 with the initials PCO were in serious condition after being gored, a government statement said. The regional government said one American, 55 and identified by the initials PGO, and another aged 23 years with the initials WRO, were gored but their injuries were reported to be less serious. A third, 46-year-old American with the initials JGO and an Indian aged 26, with the initials NSO, were also said to have suffered less serious goring injuries, the AP reports. The regional government said nine others were also taken to city hospitals for other injuries suffered in the run. Several of the six bulls used in the run got separated from the pack moments into the 8am run and began charging whatever came in sight. One runner, American Cindi Campbell, had a close call when she fell as one of the bulls came behind her. One man tried to protect her on the ground while husband, Marshall Campbell, pulled the beast away by the horn. This was my first and last time, said 53-year-old Campbell, an accountant from Cave Creek, Arizona, who only sprained her foot. She said she had watched her husband and friend running Thursday and thought the bulls would just pass her by. The first one did but a second made a go for her. I'm lucky to be alive actually, she says. I still say I'm glad I did it. Because if I hadn't done it I would regret it.

Newsweek: Americans Will Work for 25 Cents an Hour

(Jun 22, 2011 3:25 PM CDT) The minimum wage in America may officially be $7.25, but in fact there are Americans willing to work online for as little as 25 cents per hour—a fraction of the amount residents of Germany ($3), the Philippines ($2.25), and even India ($1) agreed to toil for. Or so says a Newsweek experiment. It turned to Mechanical Turk, an online freelance market run by Amazon.com. It posted easy hour-long jobs (like counting the number of times a specific word appeared) and set a price for it. Newsweek then kept dropping the pay until it found the lowest price multiple people actually agreed to work for. While Newsweek recognizes that its results are not really scientific—for instance, it does not take into account how many residents of the respective countries actually use Mechanical Turk—it does think the results are telling, calling the American rate of 25 cents shocking. Even against other wired places like the UK and Canada, Americans desperate to earn even a pittance were the cheapest around, says the magazine.

Woman Whose DirecTV Faltered During Flight Sues for $5M

(May 8, 2015 11:33 AM CDT) On Feb. 21, Cary David paid $7.99, settled back into her seat on a four-hour United Airlines flight from Puerto Rico to Newark, NJ, and got ready to watch some DirecTV programming to pass the time. Except that DirecTV and WiFi services don't work outside the continental US or when the plane is flying above water—a fact the airline neglected to tell her, David alleges in a $5 million federal class-action lawsuit she filed against United, the Record reports. This information [that the services do not work] is not disclosed to those who purchase DirecTV or WiFi on-board. It is not until after the purchase that the consumer learns he or she will not receive some or all of the service that has been paid for, David's complaint states, per the Asbury Park Press. But United has a completely different take on things, issuing a statement that says her suit doesn't fly. On our DirecTV-equipped planes, we clearly inform our passengers in writing on the screen before they confirm their purchase that 'Live DIRECTV programming is not available while the aircraft is outside of the continental United States' and that 'Wi-Fi service is available over the continental US,' the statement reads, per the Road Warrior Voices website. In the meantime, why—as Andrew Bender writing for Forbes queries—is David creating a federal case out of her encounter rather than simply asking for her eight bucks back? Because she thinks other people may have been scammed out of their money, too, her lawyer says, prompting her to file the complaint class-action style, per the New York Post. Defendants have earned millions of dollars, or more, from providing or purporting to … provide in-flight DirecTV and WiFi service, attorney Jennifer Sarnelli writes in the complaint. (This guy filed a class-action lawsuit because he's upset about who makes Blue Moon beer.)

Syesha's Out: Idol Down to 2

(May 14, 2008 9:34 PM CDT) Syesha didn't make the cut. The American Idol competition is down to two—David Cook and David Archuleta—after voters knocked out Syesha Mercado tonight, the AP reports. The 21-year-old showed her range in the final show, mixing sultry sounds with pop, but it wasn't enough. Archuleta, 17, took some ribbing from judges for not taking enough chances, while Cook, 25, earned the most praise. The finale is next week.

15% of Teens Expect to Die Young

(Jun 29, 2009 4:42 AM CDT) Teenagers who engage in risky behavior may do so because they believe they’re going to die young anyway, and may create a self-fulfilling prophecy with that belief, reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune. A study that tracked 20,000 kids in grades 7 through 12 found that 15% thought they would die before the age of 35. That group was seven times more likely to be diagnosed with AIDS. The fatalistic group was also more likely to do drugs, attempt suicide and get into fights that led to serious injuries. A pessimistic outlook was more common among Native American, black, and low-income teens, according to the study.

50 Killed in Afghanistan Airport Attack

(Dec 10, 2015 12:11 AM) Afghanistan says its forces have repelled a Taliban attack on the Kandahar airport that lasted more than 24 hours and killed 50 people, mainly civilians. The Defense Ministry said Thursday that the dead included 38 civilians, 10 Afghan soldiers, and two police officers. It said the 11 terrorists who took part in the assault were killed, and the fighting ended late Wednesday. Afghan forces have struggled to roll back Taliban advances since the US and NATO formally concluded their combat mission at the end of last year. The sprawling airport, known as Kandahar Airfield, has a military and a civilian section, as well as a NATO base. There were no coalition casualties.

15 Years Later, Crazy Bet on Grandson Worth $200K

(Oct 18, 2013 2:40 PM CDT) Like a good return on your investment? Try betting that a toddler will become a professional athlete—a gamble that turned $80 into roughly $202,000 for a grandfather in Wales, the BBC reports. Peter Edwards, 62, made the bet on grandson Harry Wilson nearly 17 years ago and just cashed in at 2,500-to-1 odds. I've retired one year early, says Edwards, an electrical contractor. I have come home now and will not be going back. Not bad for a daft bet. Edwards says he put the money down with a bookmaker after seeing little Harry chase a ball around on the carpet before he could walk. When Wilson rose to the professional ranks, sources speculated that England might woo him, but the midfielder chose to sign with Wales. Still, his debut was gut-wrenching for Grandpa: I was shattered because I had to wait for 85, 86 minutes before he came on, he says. But when he came on I had another glass of wine. [I was] a proud granddad first for sure.

White House Commutes 18 Life Sentences

(May 5, 2016 4:14 PM CDT) The Obama administration on Thursday commuted the prison sentences of 58 federal convicts, including 18 who were given life sentences, the AP reports. The action is part of a broader effort to overhaul the criminal justice system and ease punishments for nonviolent drug offenders. Most whose sentences were cut short are now due out on September 2, though some will be released over the next two years. Deputy Attorney General Sally Quillian Yates said in a statement that the prisoners have been granted a second chance to lead productive and law-abiding lives. The Justice Department revamped the clemency process two years ago to encourage more applications from nonviolent federal offenders.

Fritzl Bricked Up Own Mother for 21 Years

(Oct 30, 2008 4:24 AM CDT) The Austrian who fathered seven children with the sex-slave daughter he kept locked in a dungeon has confessed to imprisoning his own mother in a bricked-up room for 21 years. Josef Fritzl, 73, locked his mother in a room and bricked over the only window so that she never again saw the light of day, he told a psychologist, according to a report leaked to the media. He wanted to punish her for never showing him any love, reports the Daily Telegraph. He kept her prisoner until her death in the house he took over from her—the same house where he would later entomb his daughter. My mother was a servant and she used to work hard all her life. I never had a kiss from her, I was never cuddled, although I wanted that she would be good to me, said Fritzl of his brutal childhood. She used to beat me. It left me feeling totally humiliated and weak.

Hiker Finds 1.2K-Year-Old Viking Sword

(Oct 22, 2015 2:43 PM CDT) Goran Olsen was enjoying a leisurely hike recently in Norway when he stopped near the fishing village of Haukeli, about 150 miles west of Oslo. Under some rocks along a well-traversed path, he made a discovery that's now the envy of every detectorist in Scandinavia: a 30-inch wrought-iron Viking sword, estimated to be about 1,200 years old, CNN reports. One would think a sword that old would be so decrepit it could never be wielded again, but a Hordaland County archaeologist says it just needs a little polish and a new grip to be good to go. The sword was found in very good condition, Jostein Aksdal notes, per the Local. County conservator Per Morten Ekerhovd adds, per CNN: It's quite unusual to find remnants from the Viking age that are so well preserved … it might be used today if you sharpened the edge. The extreme weather in the area likely had something to do with the sword's relatively unscathed condition: The mountains are covered in snow and ice six months out of the year, and there's no humidity in the summer, so the sword would have been protected. No one's sure what the blade's backstory is yet, but scientists are already thinking beyond winter and into the springtime thaw. When the snow has gone in spring, we will check the place where the sword was found, Aksdal says. If we find several objects, or a tomb, perhaps we can find the story behind the sword. Ekerhovd says the weapon could have been from a burial site or belonged to someone passing through who may have died. But it was a costly weapon, and the owner must have used it to show power, Aksdal tells the Local. The Viking artifact has been sent for conservation at the University Museum of Bergen. (The inscription on this medieval sword has become a real head-scratcher.)

34 US Billionaires Pledge Half Their Money to Charity

(Aug 4, 2010 10:49 AM CDT) Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have convinced 34 more billionaires to sign onto their Giving Pledge initiative, promising to give away at least half their money to charity. The list includes the likes of Michael Bloomberg, Ted Turner, Barry Diller, Larry Ellison, and T. Boone Pickens, Reuters reports. I am enthusiastically taking the Giving Pledge, Bloomberg said in a letter. Nearly all of my net worth will be given away in the years ahead. Bloomberg isn’t alone in his magnanimity. Buffett, who has promised to give away 99% of his wealth, said he was delighted to see that many had decided to give above and beyond the 50% minimum. We’ve really just started, but already we’ve had a terrific response, he said. You can see the full list of donors at givingpledge.org.

Dow Up 112 Ahead of 3Q Earnings

(Oct 5, 2009 3:14 PM CDT) Stocks surged to gains late in the session today, as traders placed bets ahead of the third-quarter earnings season. Alcoa, which is expected to report a strong quarter, gained 4.6%. The ISM reported an upturn in the service sector in September—its index rose to 50.9, with a reading over 50 signaling growth. The Dow rose 112.08 points to close at 9,599.75. The Nasdaq was up 20.04, settling at 2,068.15, and the S&P 500 gained 15.25 to close at 1,040.46, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Zagat's 30-Point Scale Is No More

(Jul 27, 2016 2:53 PM CDT) Thirty-five years after it was founded in New York, the Zagat restaurant guide is ditching its 30-point rating scale to better compete with companies like Yelp and TripAdvisor, Bloomberg reports. A survey of Zagat customers found they wanted something simpler, so Google, which bought the company in 2011, launched a revamped Zagat app Tuesday. Instead of trying to split the different between a 26 dining experience and a 27 dining experience, users will now rate restaurants on a five-point scale from poor to perfection. According to Zagat, the new app will recommend restaurants to users based on their location and the time of day. Engadget calls the Zagat update simply a nice experience and good enough to make it your primary solution for discovering new places to eat. By keeping what always made it good—editorial reviews of restaurants created from the reviews of users—and adding the best aspects of Foursquare and Yelp, the new Zagat app is an improvement on those competitors, Engadget reports.

China Aftershocks Level 420K Homes

(May 27, 2008 12:58 PM CDT) More aftershocks rocked China today, destroying another 420,000 homes in battered Sichuan province, BBC reports. The aftershocks, including one that measured 5.7 magnitude, injured six people, although the majority of the homes were empty when the buildings were leveled. Eight people died when the same area was hit by an aftershock of similar magnitude on Sunday.

Public Unions a '50-Year Mistake'

(Feb 22, 2011 1:47 PM) Protesters in Wisconsin complain the governor is out to kill unions made up of government workers, to which Jonah Goldberg responds: Hallelujah. Remember, he writes, we're not talking about private sector unions here—those played a needed role in protecting imperiled workers, like coal miners. By contrast, do you recall the Great DMV cave-in of 1959?, Goldberg asks in the LA Times. How about the travails of second-grade teachers recounted in Upton Sinclair's famous schoolhouse sequel to The Jungle? No? Don't feel bad, because no such horror stories exist. Unlike their private-sector counterparts, government unions came to be in the 1960s for rankly political reasons. Membership soared, along with political contributions—to Democrats. Put simply, people in the government business support the party of government, writes Goldberg. The set-up makes no sense: While private sector unions fight with management over an equitable distribution of profits, public unions negotiate with politicians over taxpayer money, putting the public interest at odds with union interests. It's time to end this failed experiment, he writes.

12 New Frog Species Found

(Sep 17, 2011 8:54 AM CDT) Years of combing tropical mountain forests have paid off for a team of Indian scientists that has discovered 12 new frog species, plus three others thought to have been extinct. The new species include the meowing night frog, whose croak sounds more like a cat's call; the jog night frog, unique in that both the males and females watch over the eggs; and the Wayanad night frog, which grows to about the size of a baseball. Three other species were rediscovered, including the Coorg night frog described 91 years ago but not seen since. We first have to find the species, know them and protect them, so that we can study them for their clinical importance, said the project's lead scientist, Sathyabhama Das Biju of the University of Delhi. Worldwide, 32% of the world's known amphibian species are threatened with extinction, largely because of habitat loss or pollution, according to the group Global Wildlife Conservation. Frogs are extremely important indicators not just of climate change, but also pollutants in the environment, said Biju.

New Zealand Battles to Save 80 Beached Whales

(Feb 4, 2011 4:30 AM) More than a hundred rescuers in New Zealand are struggling to save some 80 beached pilot whales. They beached themselves today on the country’s South Island, and while rescuers managed to turn four back to sea, 10, including one baby, have died, reports the New Zealand Herald. With tides and nightfall preventing any of the whales from returning to sea until tomorrow morning, more are likely to die tonight, an expert says. Tourists are among the rescuers who've tried to keep the animals cool.

Why We Must Stop Printing $100 Bills

(Feb 16, 2016 12:40 PM) How often do you use $100 bills? Never? That's probably because you're not a criminal. As Lawrence H. Summers explains at the Washington Post, there's a school of thought that high-denomination currency aids crime and even terrorism. In a new paper out of Harvard, senior fellow Peter Sands argues that illicit activities are facilitated when a million dollars weighs 2.2 pounds —as it does when 500 euro notes are used— rather than more than 50 pounds as would be the case if the $20 bill was the high denomination note. Indeed, the 500 euro note is called the bin Laden by some. The same concern applies for the $100 bill, writes Summers, a former treasure secretary who currently teaches at Harvard. Thanks to advances in technology, there is no longer a need for high denomination notes. Summers thinks removing all existing such notes is too big a step, but we should certainly stop printing new ones. A global agreement to stop issuing notes worth more than say $50 or $100 ... would be as significant as anything else the G7 or G20 has done in years, he says. We all want to fight corruption, and taking this step would show that the global financial groupings can stand up against 'big money' and for the interests of ordinary citizens. Click for his full column.

Georgia Tech Offering $7K Master's Degree

(May 16, 2013 8:40 AM CDT) In what the dean of computing calls a revolutionary step, Georgia Institute of Technology will offer a $7,000 online master's degree in computer science—that's one-sixth the cost of its traditional degree, and officials say the two degrees will be comparable. The university will partner with Silicon Valley startup Udacity to offer the three-year program, and AT&T will subsidize it, Inside Higher Education reports. Georgia Tech will hire about eight new instructors, who will make all the academic decisions, while Udacity mentors will answer the bulk of the questions from new students. Georgia Tech plans to increase its 300 current computer science students to 10,000, from all over the world, over the next three years. The first year will add several hundred students, most of them coming from the military and AT&T; enrollment begins in January. Over the next three years more students will be admitted, including drop-in students who are seeking a certificate rather than a full degree, and even students who pay nothing to take courses for no credit. (Udacity offers such free, not-for-credit courses, known as massive open online courses, or MOOCs.) Says Udacity's CEO, I think it’s important for higher education to open access to people who can’t get access. While online degrees are popular, this is one of the first to cost so much less than a traditional degree.

44 States Shed Jobs in April

(May 22, 2009 3:07 PM CDT) Instead of May flowers, April showers brought a flood of job losses, with 44 states notching declines, the Wall Street Journal reports. California led the pack with 63,700 positions cut, but its 11% unemployment rate trailed those of Michigan (12.9%), Oregon (12%), South Carolina (11.5%), and Rhode Island (11.1%). One bright spot: April saw fewer Americans involved in mass layoffs. The US has lost a net total of 5.7 million jobs since the recession began. Fed chief Ben Bernanke hopes the pace of layoffs will decline, but even if that happens, the unemployment rate—currently 8.9%—is still expected to hit double digits. Meanwhile, Arkansas and Montana tied for the biggest payroll gains, and at 4%, North Dakota’s unemployment rate remains America’s lowest.

Newt Gingrich Surges to No. 1 in Iowa Poll

(Dec 4, 2011 5:36 AM) With less than a month to go until Iowa caucuses, the GOP nomination there is looking like a three-candidate race—and leading the way is Newt Gingrich, reports the Des Moines Register. Gingrich was the top choice of 25% of likely caucus voters in the latest Selzer & Co. poll, followed by Ron Paul in second with 18%, and Mitt Romney in third with 16%. Further behind were Michele Bachmann and the now-defunct candidate, Herman Cain, at 8%, Rick Perry and Rick Santorum at 6%, and Jon Huntsman at 2%. The poll's margin of error was 4.9 percentage points. Gingrich's surge was remarkable considering he received just 7% from a poll in Iowa at the end of October—a poll that Cain had led with 23%. Even better news for Gingrich is that he is also the leading second choice among those polled, with 46% of respondents choosing him either first or second. Ron Paul is also building support steadily, up from 12% a month ago and just 7% in the summer. However, a spokesman for Selzer & Co. emphasized that there is still a high level of uncertainty in Iowa, with 11% of respondents saying they are uncommitted to their first choice and 60% saying they are willing to change their mind.

Tiny Bird Migrates Incredible 1.7K Miles Over the Ocean

(Apr 1, 2015 4:12 PM CDT) A tiny songbird that summers in the forests of northern North America has been tracked on a 1,700-mile, over-the-ocean journey from the northeastern US and eastern Canada to the Caribbean as part of its winter migration to South America. Scientists had long suspected that the blackpoll warbler had made its journey to the Caribbean over the ocean, but the study that began in the summer of 2013 when scientists attached tracking devices to the birds was the first time that the flight has been proven, according to results published in the journal Biology Letters. It is such a spectacular, astounding feat that this half-an-ounce bird can make what is obviously a perilous, highly risky journey over the open ocean, says co-author Chris Rimmer of the Vermont Center for Ecostudies. In the summer of 2013, scientists tagged 19 blackpolls on Vermont's Mount Mansfield and 18 in two locations in Nova Scotia. Of those, three were recaptured in Vermont with the tracking device attached and two in Nova Scotia. Four of those warblers had departed between Sept. 25 and Oct. 21 and flown directly to the islands of Hispaniola or Puerto Rico in flights ranging from 49 to 73 hours; a fifth bird departed Cape Hatteras, NC, and flew nearly 1,000 miles before landing in the Turks and Caicos and continuing on to South America. On their return journeys north, the birds flew along the coast. Knowing how the blackpoll warblers migrate helps scientists know more about the implications of changing climate and why their numbers may be declining, says a migration biologist.

DEA Nabs 175 Mexican Drug Cartel Suspects

(Sep 18, 2008 8:31 AM CDT) US officials arrested 175 suspected Mexican drug traffickers this week in raids in a dozen states, the LA Times reports. Prosecutors believe the suspects are part of the violent Gulf cartel, considered to be a driving force in Mexico’s escalating drug wars. The raids were part of a 15-month DEA investigation that has netted 507 arrests and the seizure of more than $60 million. One of the cartel’s regional hubs was found in Atlanta, where 43 were arrested. Another 66 suspects were nabbed throughout Texas. We believe these arrests are a substantial blow to the Gulf cartel, said a key official. Cartel violence has intensified since Mexican President Felipe Calderon began a crackdown initiative 22 months ago.

Zuckerberg Could Be Worth $28B

(Feb 1, 2012 7:40 PM) So just how rich will Mark Zuckerberg be after Facebook's IPO? Very, very rich. Today's filing shows that he is the company's biggest shareholder with a 28% stake, reports the Wall Street Journal. If Facebook gets its high-end valuation of $100 billion when the stock debuts this spring, he's worth $28 billion, which the Journal notes would put him at No. 9 on the Forbes list of the world's wealthiest people. Last year, Zuckerberg earned about $1.5 million in salary, bonus, and other compensation, though he's going to take a base salary of $1 starting next year, notes TechCrunch. (Read his full letter explaining Facebook's mission in the SEC filing here.) AllThingsD, meanwhile, has the nitty gritty on what other top Facebook execs made last year, including COO Sheryl Sandberg: $382,000 in salary and bonuses, plus $30.5 million in stock awards.

Suicide Bomber Kills 35 in Iraq

(Feb 13, 2009 9:15 AM) A female suicide bomber killed at least 35 Iraqi pilgrims on the way to a religious festival today, reports CNN. Another 45 were wounded. The victims, mainly women and children, were in the town of Mussayib, about 40 miles south of Baghdad. Hundreds of thousands of Shia pilgrims are currently en route to Karbala for Arbaeen, a holy event for Shia Muslims. Arbaeen marks the end of a 40-day period of mourning for Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Mohammed and the major figure (after Mohammed) for Shia Islam. The holiday has typically been a major target for attacks, and 30,000 Iraqi security forces troops are deployed around Karbala to protect the millions of expected pilgrims.

2 Injured in Wisconsin Prom Shooting; Gunman Killed

(Apr 24, 2016 6:58 AM CDT) An 18-year-old gunman opened fire outside of a high school prom in northern Wisconsin, wounding two students before a police officer who was in the parking lot fatally shot him, authorities said Sunday. The attack happened late Saturday outside the Antigo High School prom, said Eric Roller, the chief of police in Antigo, a community of about 8,000 people roughly 180 miles north of Milwaukee. Roller told reporters that the gunman shot the two students as they exited the building, though he didn't say if investigators believe they were specifically targeted or discuss a possible motive for the attack. Officers were in the parking lot patrolling the activities and heard the shots and an officer immediately fired upon the shooter, stopping the threat, he said in a statement, per CNN. He said the gunman was then taken into custody. Authorities said the two students and the attacker were taken to a hospital and that investigators don't believe there is a further threat to the community. Langlade County Coroner Larry Shadick told the AP that the attacker died shortly after 1am in the intensive care unit of a Wausau hospital. Authorities haven't disclosed the identities of the wounded students or the attacker, but he said the victims' families had been contacted. After the attack, students were escorted from the prom to safety.

Venus Loses Round 1 at Wimbledon

(Jun 25, 2012 9:15 AM CDT) Five-time champion Venus Williams lost in the opening round of Wimbledon for the first time since 1997, falling 6-1, 6-3 to Elena Vesnina of Russia. Williams lost the first five games and then saved two set points before making it 5-1. But she was broken for the fourth time in the next game as Vesnina clinched the set with a forehand return winner. Williams put up more of a fight in the second but was broken in the sixth game when she missed a forehand. Vesnina clinched the match with a service winner. Williams was making her 16th straight appearance at Wimbledon and had not lost in the first round since her debut.

6 NATO Troops Killed in Afghanistan Suicide Bombing

(Dec 12, 2010 2:35 PM) An explosives-packed minibus blew up at the entrance of a joint NATO-Afghan base in southern Afghanistan today, killing six NATO troops and two Afghan soldiers as they prepared to head out on patrol. NATO has claimed improvements in security after months of raids, patrols and strikes on insurgents in Kandahar province, but today's blast—the deadliest attack on coalition troops this month—shows the area is still far from safe. Afghan officials said today's suicide attack took place in Kandahar's Zhari district, where Mullah Mohammad Omar organized the Taliban in the early 1990s. Taliban spokesman Qari Yousuf Ahmadi claimed responsibility for the blast, saying the insurgent group was retaliating for attacks on its fighters in the area in recent months. NATO said that the six service members had been killed in an insurgent attack and did not disclose their nationality. Most coalition forces in the south are American.

Police: 5 Terrorized Jewish Camp in Pennsylvania

(Jul 27, 2012 4:41 PM CDT) Police nabbed three adults, ages 18 to 21, and two juveniles accused of terrorizing a Jewish camp in Pennsylvania. The assailants allegedly tore through the camp in a pickup truck, narrowly missing several campers and staff, while damaging fences, fields, and buildings, reports CNN. They also fired paintball guns at campers and staff and shouted anti-Semitic insults and threats. The harassment took place over three occasions at Camp Bonim on July 14 and 15. Luckily none of the children suffered any serious physical injury; said the county's district attorney, but the emotional damage done is immeasurable. The three adults were slapped with several felonies and misdemeanor charges including ethnic intimidation, terroristic threats, and reckless endangerment.

Tsunami, Volcano Kill 130 in Indonesia

(Oct 26, 2010 10:48 PM CDT) Twin disasters caused by activity in the Pacific Ring of Fire have killed at least 130 people in Indonesia. A tsunami triggered by an earthquake has killed more than 100 in an island chain west of Sumatra. Hundreds more villagers are missing. On the island of Java, the Mount Merapi volcano erupted just before dusk yesterday, killing at least 18 people and forcing thousand more to flee, the AP reports. Rescuers in the Merapi area fear many more victims killed by heat and burning ash are still to be found. Evacuations are continuing amid fears that pressure building up in the volcano will cause a huge blast, although experts believe a slow release is more likely. It's too early to know for sure, a government expert said, adding that a big blast could still be coming. But if it continues like this for a while, we are looking at a slow, long eruption.

Mark Zuckerberg Giving $100M to Newark Schools

(Sep 23, 2010 1:20 AM CDT) Newark's cash-strapped public school system is getting some help from a wealthy friend. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is planning a $100 million donation to improve the system, officials tell the New York Times. Zuckerberg, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and Newark Mayor Cory Booker will announce the donation on the Oprah Winfrey Show tomorrow. Zuckerberg—who is now richer than Steve Jobs, according to Forbes—has no strong personal connection to the New Jersey city, but insiders say that he has a long-standing interest in education. Zuckerberg has, over the last year, held a series of meetings with people involved in education and developed a relationship with Booker, who will gain some control over the state-run system in conjunction with the gift, say sources. The gift, Zuckerberg's largest charitable donation by far, will come in the form of Facebook stock that will be used to establish a foundation, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Rockies Make an Epic Typo— on 15K Jerseys

(Jul 27, 2014 10:13 AM CDT) The Colorado Rockies love their All-Star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki so much that at last night's game the team gave out 15,000 replica jerseys—emblazoned with his name spelled as Tulowizki. The rather large-scale typo was in fact noticed, the Rockies say, but they decided to go ahead with the giveaway anyway, reports ESPN; a new round of jerseys presumably stamped Tulowitzki will be given out in September and fans will be allowed to exchange the flubbed one. That is, if they want to: As one usher tells the AP, many took the shirt and left. They recognized it was a collector's item. They were gone fast.

Nevada Deals 20 Years to Thieving Chinese Bankers

(May 7, 2009 4:34 AM CDT) Two managers who scammed the Bank of China for nearly $500 million and fled to the US have been sentenced to more than 20 years each by a Nevada court, the BBC reports. The men's wives—who helped them launder the cash through Las Vegas casinos—were given 8-year sentences. Prosecutors said they hoped the sentences would send a message to foreign crooks seeking to live the high life in the US with their ill-gotten gains.

12 Headless Crimefighters Found Near Acapulco

(Dec 22, 2008 2:59 AM) Mexican police have found 12 headless bodies an hour away from Acapulco in the capital of Guerrero, a popular destination for Americans on holiday. The dead apparently included soldiers and a high-ranking police officer, reports the Los Angeles Times. Nine heads were bundled in plastic bags and dumped at a shopping center. The murders are believed to be retribution for the deaths of three gunmen who were shot by soldiers last week. Beheadings have become common in heightened drug violence that has claimed 5,300 lives in Mexico this year—some 500 of them in Guerrero. Last week, the US and Mexico pledged to beef up efforts in the drug war, with America agreeing to fork over $1.4 billion, pending congressional approval, to curb trafficking and drug-related crime.

G20 Arrest Total Soars Above 500

(Jun 27, 2010 1:50 PM CDT) Police in Toronto conducted a large raid and rounded up more protesters today in an effort to quell further violence at the global economic summit after black-clad youths rampaged through the city, smashing windows and torching police cruisers. Police said they have arrested more than 500 demonstrators, many of whom were hauled away in plastic handcuffs and taken to a temporary holding center constructed for the G20 summit. Thousands of police in riot gear formed cordons to prevent anti-globalization demonstrations from breaching the steel and concrete security fence surrounding the summit site. A rep said police made at least 50 arrests in a morning raid on a University of Toronto building, seizing a cache of street-type weaponry such as bricks, sticks and rocks. What we saw yesterday is a bunch of thugs that pretend to have a difference of opinion with policies and instead choose violence to express those so-called differences of opinion, a spokesman for PM Stephen Harper said.

Obama 2012: From 'Yes We Can' to 'Whatever'

(Apr 5, 2011 6:55 AM CDT) President Obama is officially running for reelection, but somehow his campaign slogan has gone from Yes We Can to You Know, Whatever, Jon Stewart complained last night on the Daily Show. Obama's first campaign video features supporters with a disturbing lack of enthusiasm, saying (and Stewart is, of course, paraphrasing here) things like, I mean, I don't really like him, I don't really trust him, but what are we gonna do? Learn someone else's name? Perhaps the ennui is the natural result of what happens when campaign promises are exposed to oxygen, Stewart theorized, pointing specifically to Obama's campaign promise to make the White House more transparent. Unfortunately, in reality, this has been the administration that's prosecuted more whistleblowers in two years than in the preceding 40 years, that meets with lobbyists across the street from the White House so they don't have to disclose they're meeting with lobbyists, and, this is true, censored nearly 200 pages of internal emails about their efforts to make government more transparent. Then there was that pesky transparency award...

Oct. Deadliest Afghan Month as 8 US Troops Die

(Oct 27, 2009 10:05 AM CDT) Eight American troops have been killed today in multiple bomb attacks in southern Afghanistan, making October the deadliest month for American troops there since the war began in 2001. The 8 deaths occurred in multiple, complex bomb attacks in the south, according to the US military. One Afghan civilian was also killed, and several other troops were wounded and taken to a nearby medical facility. The latest deaths bring to 55 the total number of American troops killed in October in Afghanistan. Fighting previously spiked around the presidential vote in August, when 51 US soldiers died.

Driver Charged With Murder in Deaths of 5 Bicyclists

(Jun 9, 2016 4:46 PM CDT) A Michigan prosecutor filed murder charges on Thursday against the 50-year-old driver of a pickup truck that struck a group of bicyclists, killing five of them and seriously injuring four others. Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeffrey Getting charged Charles Pickett Jr. of Battle Creek with five counts of second degree murder and four counts of reckless driving in the crash Tuesday in Cooper Township north of Kalamazoo, the AP reports. Pickett will be arraigned as soon as his health permits, the prosecutor said. The bicyclists ranged in age from 40 to 74 and were part of a group that called themselves The Chain Gang. They were five miles into a weekly 30-mile ride when they were struck from behind on a road in the western Michigan countryside. Police said they had received complaints about a pickup being driven erratically and were searching for it minutes before the crash around 6:30pm on the two-lane road. The driver fled on foot but was caught by police shortly afterward. He remains in custody. Getting said police are continuing to gather information on what led to the crash and the charges on Thursday were the first step in the legal process.

10 Best Movies You Didn't See

(Dec 30, 2009 8:00 PM) Sick of reading Best of 2009 movie lists that contain endless references to Inglourious Basterds and Up in the Air? Then check out the picks Grady Hendrix made for Slate: The top 10 films of the year that you probably didn’t see.

Politicians to Oppose 9/11 'Coverup'

(Jan 5, 2015 3:30 PM) A group seeking to declassify data on 9/11 will speak out this week and highlight the possible involvement of Saudi officials in the terror attack, the New York Post reports. Leading the charge is Bob Graham, a former Democratic senator who co-chaired the panel that released the redacted congressional 9/11 report in 2002. Along with him, 9/11 families as well as Reps. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass) and Walter Jones (R-NC) will take part in the Capitol Hill press conference on Wednesday. Graham, who speaks of a coverup, has long called for the US government to release the report's 28 redacted pages, the Miami Herald reports. Graham says those pages include vital information on Saudis who helped fund 9/11 hijackers via the Saudi embassy in Washington, Saudi consulate in Los Angeles, and a wealthy family in Florida linked to Saudi Arabia's royal family. Lynch and Jones say they'll offer the new Congress a resolution seeking declassification of the 9/11 documents; the bipartisan effort, first introduced a year ago, has 21 co-sponsors. In an interesting sideline, liberal Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Orlando) says the US House Intelligence Committee denied his request to see the redacted pages because he has decried NSA domestic spying, Florida Bulldog reports. This is a petty means for the spying industrial complex to lash back, he says.

CT Scans Cut Lung Cancer Deaths 20%

(Nov 4, 2010 2:57 PM CDT) CT scans of smokers can detect lung cancer at an early phase and cut the death rate by 20%, says a new study. Duke University researchers found that the scans were much better than regular chest X-rays at catching tumors at a more treatable phase, reports USA Today. The results were so definitive that the study of 53,000 heavy smokers was stopped early so participants could be advised of the results, notes the LA Times. This is good news, says one cancer expert unaffiliated with the study. The reduction in deaths is comparable to mammograms, which reduce deaths by 14% to 15%. The study focused on smokers or ex-smokers over 55, so further research is needed to see if the results are applicable in younger patients who have never smoked.

14% of Death Row Inmates Are There Because of Just 5 Prosecutors

(Jul 1, 2016 6:02 PM CDT) Just five prosecutors representing less than 0.2% of US counties are responsible for 14% of all people currently on death row and 5% of people sentenced to death in the past 40 years. That's according to a recently released report from Harvard Law School's Fair Punishment Project. The report—subtitled How overzealous personalities drive the death penalty —found the death penalty was more about prosecutors cultivating an over-aggressive and reckless style than the actual crimes, the Huffington Post reports. And, according to the Guardian, that leads to a highly arbitrary use of the death penalty. The five prosecutors, who have sentenced a total of 440 people to death, are Joe Britt in North Carolina, Bob Macy in Oklahoma, Lynne Abraham in Pennsylvania, Johnny Holmes in Texas, and Donnie Myers in South Carolina. Only Myers is still serving as a prosecutor. All five prosecutors seem to relish securing the death penalty. Myer has an electric chair paperweight. Macy, who got a 16-year-old sentenced to death, saw it as his patriotic duty. Abraham says she's never doubted one of her death sentences, despite two of them later being exonerated. And that leads to another problem: the illegal or unethical behavior that seems to go hand-in-hand with a passion for the death penalty. Misconduct was found in a third of Macy's 54 death sentences, and three of them were exonerated. Britt was found to have committed misconduct in more than a third of his 38 death sentences and had two developmentally disabled teens exonerated. Myers was found to have a 46% misconduct rate, often for excluding jurors on the basis of race. He once referred to a black defendant as King Kong and a beast of burden. Read the full report here.

Strict Dress Code Yields 200 Detentions in 2 Weeks

(Sep 15, 2014 2:01 PM CDT) A strict dress code adopted by a Staten Island school has resulted in 200 detentions in the last two weeks. A city Department of Education spokeswoman tells the New York Post the new Dress for Success policy at Tottenville High School was a local decision made at the discretion of the principal. The DOE says parents signed off on the policy before the start of the new year. But some parents say the policy, which covers everything from tank tops and short-shorts to hoodies and sunglasses, has backfired. District 31 Superintendent Aimee Horowitz says skimpy clothing is banned because it interferes with the learning and teaching process. Ninety percent of the detained students have been girls.

Man's Sentence: Write 'Boys Do Not Hit Girls' 5K Times

(Dec 24, 2013 12:01 PM) It's a tale of two men out of Montana: One an infamous felon, one a rather infamous judge. Pacer Anthony Ferguson showed up twice in Yellowstone County District Court this week. One appearance was about an attempted robbery that took place at knife-point in a Walmart parking lot in 2003; he was released from prison for that crime, but the judge ruled he violated the terms of his release, and ordered him sent to Montana State Prison for eight years. The violation may have something to do, in part, with his second appearance, which was in front of District Judge G. Todd Baugh. The Billings Gazette reports that Ferguson confessed in court to punching his girlfriend in the face while the two were fighting in August 2012; her injuries were so severe that a mesh titanium plate had to be permanently implanted in her face. For that, Baugh sentenced Ferguson to the max: 6 months in county jail. But then there was this twist: Ferguson was also ordered to write Boys do not hit girls 5,000 times. Gawker points out that you're likely familiar with Baugh and his questionable ruling[s], even if his name doesn't immediately ring a bell: He's the one who handed down a controversial 30-day sentence to a Montana teacher who had sex with a 14-year-old student.

Petraeus: US Could Be Out of Baghdad by July '09

(Sep 3, 2008 12:46 PM CDT) US troops could pull out of Baghdad by next summer if violence continues declining, David Petraeus told the Financial Times today. Conditions permitting, yeah, the top American general said when asked about a withdrawal by July 2009, adding that daily attacks in the capital have fallen dramatically enough that a handover to Iraqi troops was under consideration. The number of attacks in Baghdad lately has been, gosh, I think it’s probably less than five [a day] on average, and that’s a city of 7 million people, said Petraeus, whose term as commander in Iraq comes to a close this month.

Apple Sued Over iPhone 4 Glitch

(Jul 2, 2010 3:07 AM CDT) Two class action lawsuits have been launched against Apple and AT&T by iPhone 4 buyers irked by antenna problems. The plaintiffs—evidently not satisfied with Steve Jobs' advice to just avoid holding it in that way to dodge dropped calls—accuse Apple of knowingly selling a defective phone. They're seeking compensation and a ban on Apple and AT&T selling more iPhone 4s, Reuters reports. Almost immediately after the purchase of their iPhone 4 devices, users began to experience significantly reduced reception and performance when handling the phones as demonstrated in Apple's advertisements or as a reasonable person would handle a mobile telephone, states one of the suits filed in Maryland. The plaintiffs accuse Apple of infractions including negligence, fraud by concealment, and defective design.

US Clinches World Cup Berth With 4th 2-0 Win Over Mexico

(Sep 11, 2013 12:20 AM CDT) The US is going to its seventh straight World Cup after beating archrivals Mexico 2-0 in Columbus, Ohio—the same venue where the Americans won 2-0 in World Cup qualifiers in 2001, 2005, and 2009. Chants from the raucous capacity crowd included Dos a cero, This is our house, and You're not going to Brazil, as the US won with second-half goals from Eddie Johnson and Landon Donovan, the AP reports. It's become its own monster. People want to come to Columbus and see US-Mexico, goalkeeper Tim Howard said. You almost feel like it's our destiny to win here. But fans had to wait until nearly an hour after the final whistle to be sure that their team was going to Brazil next year, USA Today notes. Players celebrated on the field after Honduras tied Panama 2-2, clinching the US berth. Mexico, meanwhile, dropped to fifth in the group, leaving them with an uphill struggle to qualify.

US Military Plane Breaks Into 3 Pieces in Crash

(May 3, 2013 5:15 AM CDT) A US military refueling tanker plane crashed today in Kyrgyzstan, the Central Asian nation's emergencies ministry said. There was no immediate word on any casualties. A ministry statement said the plane crashed this afternoon near the village of Chaldovar, about 100 miles west of the Manas air base. Kyrgyzstan hosts a US base that is used for troops flying into and out of Afghanistan and for C-135 tanker planes that refuel warplanes in flight. It was not immediately clear if the plane was a C-135 or another model. The head of the region that includes Chaldovar told the AP by telephone that the plane broke into three pieces when it crashed into an uninhabited area. On Monday, a civilian cargo plane crashed at Afghanistan's Bagram Air Field, killing all seven crew members.

Shell Profits Spike to a Record $27.6B

(Jan 31, 2008 7:55 AM) Soaring crude prices and new oil and gas projects drove Royal Dutch Shell to 2007 profits of $27.6 billion—a new record for a British corporation—despite declining production. While critics branded the results obscene and called for a windfall tax, Shell’s CEO called them satisfactory and warned that 2008 would be a tougher year for the company as production costs soar and reserves dwindle, reports the Guardian. Shell’s output was down 2% in 2007, said CEO Jeroen van der Veer, the fifth straight year output fell. He said violence in Nigeria was partly to blame. Shell reported fourth-quarter pre-tax profit at  $13.3 billion, up  from $9.1 billion a year ago. For the year, pre-tax profits were $50.6 billion, compared to $44.6 billion in 2006.

Cops: Mansion Caretaker Drank 52 Bottles of Rare Whiskey

(Mar 23, 2013 10:15 AM CDT) Fifty-two bottles of well-aged whiskey disappeared between his lips, police said, and now it's time for a western Pennsylvania man to settle up. John Saunders, the former live-in caretaker of a Pittsburgh-area mansion, faces criminal charges for allegedly drinking more than $100,000 worth of the owner's whiskey. Owner Patricia Hill had found nine cases of whiskey hidden in the walls and stairwell of the century-old Georgian mansion built by coal and coke industrialist JP Brennan after she bought it in 2012. The Old Farm Pure Rye Whiskey was produced in the early 1900s by the nearby West Overton Distilling Co. Scottdale police told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that Saunders drank dozens of bottles whiskey valued at $102,400 by a New York auction house. Saunders, 62, of Irwin, was charged with receiving stolen property and theft. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.

Got a $15K Car in Michigan? No Food Stamps for You

(Oct 20, 2011 8:52 AM CDT) If you’re not making much money but are driving a nice car, don’t expect any help buying groceries in Michigan. The state this month began checking the assets of would-be food stamp recipients, USA Today reports; anyone with more than $5,000 in liquid assets or a car or truck worth more than $15,000 is most likely disqualified. If you’re driving an Escalade, maybe it’s time to find a car that better fits your current economic situation, a Department of Human Services official explained. Michigan isn’t the only state to check assets—Arizona, Texas, and Indiana, do as well, among others. But the move runs counter to the current trend; many states, including Nebraska and Louisiana, decided to ditch asset tests to help the recently unemployed and preserve any modest savings they might have. Telling them they can't have assets, you're undermining the premise of the program, one advocate for the poor explains. A lot of these benefits go to people that were, a few years ago, solidly within the middle class. It's probably going to be temporary help.

Rogue UBS Trader Loses $2B

(Sep 15, 2011 3:28 AM CDT) A rogue trader at UBS has lost around $2 billion, the Swiss banking giant says. The unauthorized trades by a trader in its investment banking unit could lead UBS to report a loss for the third quarter of 2011, but no client positions were affected, the bank said in a statement that offered few other details. Shares in UBS dived almost 10% in early trading after the announcement, which arrived on the third anniversary of Lehman Brothers' declaration of bankruptcy, the Guardian notes. The Wall Street Journal identifies the 31-year-old, who was arrested by British police at 3:30am UK time today, as Kweku Adoboli. He reportedly worked in London, at UBS' trading desk for exchange-traded funds. The AP notes that the unauthorized trades could erase nearly all of the 2 billion Swiss francs ($2.28 billion) UBS last month announced that it hoped to save by doing away with 3,500 jobs over two years.

Ron Paul Wins CPAC Straw Poll for 2012

(Feb 20, 2010 4:52 PM) Ron Paul today emerged as the surprise winner of the presidential straw poll at CPAC. Conservatives at the conference picked the Texas congressman with the libertarian bent as their favorite candidate with 31% of the vote, ahead of Mitt Romney (22%), the only other politician in double digits. Trailing them were no-show Sarah Palin (7%), followed by Tim Pawlenty, Mike Pence, Newt Gingrich, and Mike Huckabee. Not that it's the kiss of success: Romney has won the last three years, reports Fox News. About 2,400 voters took part in the straw poll, about a third of attendees. And of those, nearly half were students, perhaps a sign of the organizing prowess of Paul's young followers. CPAC organizers weren't happy. A spokesman rushed over to reporters to make sure they heard the booing when results went up, notes Politico.

Suspect Who Fled Into Sewer 2 Weeks Ago Still Missing

(Aug 18, 2016 4:10 AM CDT) This is one fugitive who authorities hope managed to get away. Keith Jean fled into the sewer system in Newark, NJ, two weeks ago after swimming across the Passaic River to get away from police, and there's been no sign of him since either inside or outside the sewer system, NJ Advance Media reports. The chances of the 31-year-old having created a Penguin-style crime lair down there are slim: Officials say the outflow pipe he entered leads to a network of cramped chambers where he would find potentially deadly gases, and to a main tunnel where there's a constant flow of human waste from Newark and 47 other northern New Jersey communities. Robots have searched the tunnels, and cadaver dogs have sniffed sewer grates, but they haven't found traces of Jean, alive or dead. Cops say he was a passenger in a car stopped for suspicious activity near a parking lot where there had been reports of car break-ins, the Jersey Journal reports. After he fled, they discovered there were warrants out for his arrest in two New Jersey counties. Manholes were staked out after he fled into the sewer, but police believe he may still have been able to slip away. With any luck, he just got out, says the executive director of the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission, though he notes that a dead body probably wouldn't disrupt the flow of sewage.

Mystery Samaritan Returns 4-Carat Diamond Ring

(Apr 7, 2014 4:25 PM CDT) Return a diamond ring at Newark Airport on Valentine's Day? Then you're in luck, because airport officials want to reward you with free round-trip voucher from United Airways, the New York Post reports. Navneet Guleria, 52, dropped the ring from her 25th wedding anniversary while being screened for a flight to London—and only noticed it missing on the plane, Yahoo reports. I just panicked, she says. Luckily a Good Samaritan turned it in, and a TSA officer gave it to a supervisor, who handed it to lost and found. I was amazed by the honesty, says Guleria, of Pennington, NJ. It’s unheard of. (For more good news, read about drivers who saved an unconscious baby.

DNA Clears Man in Prison for 16 Years for Rape

(Nov 24, 2015 2:13 PM) A California man imprisoned for 16 years for sexual assault was exonerated Monday after DNA tests showed another man committed the crimes, USA Today reports. Luis Vargas, 46, broke down when an LA Superior Court judge granted a petition to release him from his sentence of 55 years to life for three sex crimes. The move came after DNA evidence linked those assaults to a serial attacker known as the Teardrop Rapist, so labeled for having a teardrop tattoo under his eye, the AP notes. That man, who was never caught, is suspected of having committed about three dozen crimes in the LA area. Vargas had matched assailant descriptions, and he caught investigators' eye because he had a faded teardrop tattoo under his left eye and a 1992 rape conviction involving his girlfriend at the time, reports the Los Angeles Times. You can sentence me to all the years you want, but ... that individual that really did these crimes might really be raping someone out there, Vargas warned a judge before he was sentenced in 1999. In 2012, Vargas reached out to the California Innocence Project and asked to use DNA techniques to examine samples on the clothing of one of his alleged victims, per the Times. The DNA matched that of the victim and the Teardrop Rapist. The three victims had positively IDed Vargas as the perpetrator, but an Innocence Project attorney tells the AP it was a shaky witness case, an assertion the LA district attorney's office backed up in a recent court letter that said there were discrepancies and uncertainties in their identification of the rapist, the Times notes. Vargas still has to clear up some immigration issues before he's fully released, but he hopes to be home by Christmas.

3 Generations Drown in Lake Accident

(Aug 27, 2014 12:11 PM CDT) Searchers in an Oregon lake recovered four bodies in what seems to have been a tragic accident: Three generations of the same family apparently drowned. People fishing in Henry Hagg Lake, located in a Washington County park that, police say, draws up to 10,000 people per day, first noticed an unconscious 3-year-old boy near the shore Monday. Despite their efforts to perform CPR and the arrival of fire crews, Jeremy Scholl died, the Oregonian reports. But he didn't appear to have been alone: Officials found four pairs of shoes at the edge of the lake and a dog wandering nearby, no owners in sight. Other abandoned items including a towel, a cooler, and a phone also hinted there were other people to be found. An initial search revealed no one in the woods or water. But a call to the boy's aunt revealed that relatives had gone to the lake and hadn't been heard from since, and the following day, divers recovered three more bodies: those of the boy's mother, Gabriela Garcia-Ixtacua, 25; his uncle, Michael Garcia-Ixtacua, 13; and his grandmother, Jova Ixtacua-Castano, 42. Authorities saw no indication of foul play. This appears to be a tragic incident where someone likely got into trouble in the water and others attempted to help them, an officer says, per KGW. Detectives are still searching for any answers. (In a happier turn of events this year, another child was underwater in a Utah river for 20 minutes—and survived.)

11 More Bodies Dumped in Mexico

(Sep 23, 2011 10:55 AM CDT) Another mass dumping of bodies in Mexico in and near the port city of Veracruz: Police found 11 more victims in four separate locations yesterday, just days after 35 were brazenly dumped on a busy city street, reports AP. Police suspect drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzman for the first batch of tortured victims—12 women and 23 men, all thought to be part of rival gangs. The public displays of violence come as state prosecutors and judges meet in neighboring Boca del Rio, notes CNN. The effects of this illicit activity are not only seen reflected in the poisoning of our society, but it is also the motor generating the violence, said Attorney General Marisela Morales. The government figures about 35,000 people have been killed in drug-related violence in the past five years, and independent reports have even higher tolls.

Grateful Dead Tickets: Yours for Up to $116K

(Mar 4, 2015 11:48 AM) The core four original members of the Grateful Dead are reuniting for a three-day 50th anniversary show in Chicago, and let's just say people really, really want to see it. The farewell show, appropriately titled Fare Thee Well, sold out, but tickets are being sold on the secondary market for as much as $116,000 each. Even the least-expensive tickets are around $1,350, Billboard reports, and CNN notes that some of those have an obstructed view. Soldier Field, where the July 3-5 event is being held, seats about 70,000; the original ticket prices ranged from $59.50 to $199.50 per day. Phish frontman Trey Anastasio will be taking over for the late Jerry Garcia.

Boy Shaken as Baby Dies 12 Years Later

(Mar 23, 2016 4:44 PM CDT) A 12-year-old boy who was shaken as a baby and remained in a vegetative state for the rest of his life has died, authorities said Wednesday. Aiden Stein died Sunday at a Columbus hospital. The case drew national attention when his parents waged a successful legal fight to prevent a court-appointed guardian from having him removed from life support. Three doctors had testified that Aiden would never recover. The Ohio Supreme Court eventually ruled that a probate court lacked the authority to allow a guardian to stop the care keeping Aiden alive when his parents hadn't permanently lost their parenting rights. Four-month-old Aiden was rushed to a Mansfield hospital in March 2004 after his father, 21-year-old Matthew Stein, reported the baby had lost consciousness. Stein was later convicted of felonious assault and child endangerment and spent eight years in prison despite his assertions that he never injured his son. Richland County Prosecutor Bambi Couch Page told the AP on Wednesday that it was unlikely she'd pursue further charges against Stein. I would have to look at the reason (Aiden) died, Couch Page said. But there would probably be a stretch in jurors' minds that he died as the result of what the dad did. It's unclear if a cause of death has been determined. Click for more of Aiden's story.

New York City Hits 104 Degrees

(Jul 22, 2011 3:41 PM CDT) It's official: This heat wave is one of the all-time greats. Temperatures soared to a record-high 104 degrees in New York City and to 108 degrees in Newark—the hottest day in the city's history, reports NBC. It's much the same everywhere from Kansas to Maine, reports AP, with heat indexes routinely topping 110 degrees. Electricity companies in New York are reducing voltage to nearly 100,000 homes to ease stress on the grid, and officials say residents can expect scattered outages through the weekend. Emergency room visits are up across the country, summer schools in Philadelphia have been canceled, and the heat killed at least six more people nationwide yesteray. Temperatures aren't expected to ease until Sunday.

Boy, 5, Sick With E. Coli After Friend, 4, Dies

(Sep 11, 2014 4:56 PM CDT) A 4-year-old girl in Oregon has died after being stricken with E. coli, and her 5-year-old friend remains hospitalized, reports Q13 Fox. Authorities are awaiting lab results that might help determine how Serena Faith Profitt of Otis got sick, though they say they may never zero in on the exact source, reports AP. Two possibilities: The pair shared a turkey sandwich at a restaurant over the Labor Day weekend, and they swam together in a pond the weekend before that, reports the Oregonian. A check of the restaurant has raised no red flags, however, and nobody else who swam in the pond has gotten sick. Our investigation is ongoing, says a health official in Lincoln City. There's a lot of field work, then there's a lot of waiting. Serena fell ill and eventually suffered kidney failure and brain damage. At one point, she was released from the hospital, only to return in worse shape. Her family tells KATU that the hospital failed to run tests that would have diagnosed E. coli and might have saved her, and they are planning legal action. Meanwhile, Serena's friend, 5-year-old Brad Sutton, is showing signs of improvement. His levels for his kidneys are coming up ... but he’s not out of the woods, says his mom.

After Trump SNL, 4 GOP Candidates Get Equal Time

(Nov 24, 2015 1:57 AM) Live from New York, it's ... Mike Huckabee, John Kasich, Jim Gilmore, and Lindsey Graham? The four struggling GOP candidates requested equal airtime after Donald Trump's Saturday Night Live appearance earlier this month and NBC has agreed to provide it, although they won't be actually hosting the show, Variety reports. Instead, the candidates will be granted 12 minutes and five seconds—the same amount of time Trump was on screen—on 18 affiliate stations in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina during prime-time hours this Friday and on SNL Nov. 28, according to the Hollywood Reporter. George Pataki is also in talks with the network for equal time, reports the Verge, which notes that the situation should provide SNL with some decent sketch fodder.

Tomorrow: 9/11 Case Back On at Gitmo

(May 4, 2012 9:47 AM CDT) It's been three years since President Obama paused the case against Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other alleged planners of the 9/11 attacks. Tomorrow, the case resumes in a military tribunal at Guantanamo after efforts to move the proceedings to a civilian court failed. Things could be a little different this time around, however: While Mohammed once said he'd welcome the death penalty, now, I don't think anyone is going to plead guilty, says a lawyer for another defendant, Ramzi Binalshibh. The trial itself won't likely begin for at least a year; tomorrow will begin with an arraignment before the court hears defense motions that challenge the charges and certain secrecy rules. There still are major problems in terms of whether the trial will be fair and, more important, will they be perceived as fair, says a human rights activist. Click through for more on the defense's concerns.

What Recession? SJP Plans $18K Nursery

(May 25, 2009 1:15 PM CDT) Sarah Jessica Parker is going all Carrie Bradshaw on her twins’ nursery. Her purchases so far total more than $17,500, Bang Showbiz reports, and include a $5,800 day bed, a $6,300 armoire, a $4,700 double crib, and a $1,600 rocking horse. Sarah Jessica and Matthew will spend whatever it takes to make the nursery perfect, says a source. They want to give it a classical French look. SJP is also planning the wardrobes for the babies, expected this summer via a surrogate, the source adds. Sarah Jessica loves Isaac Mizrahi’s tutu dresses and she’s planning to commission him to make personalized versions for her girls. She’s also fallen in love with baby Ugg boots for the cold New York winters.

The Indy 500 Has Its First Official Poet in 90 Years

(Apr 30, 2016 9:36 AM CDT) An Indiana University student who is a poet and a performer has been named the Indianapolis 500's first official poet since the early 20th century. Adam Henze of Bloomington beat out more than 200 others who submitted Indy 500-themed poems for the contest co-sponsored by Indiana Humanities, reports the AP. The competition revives an Indy 500 tradition from the 1920s, when an official poem was included in the race day program. Henze is an educator and a doctoral candidate at IU. He receives a $1,000 cash prize and two tickets to the 100th running of the race on May 29. His poem, titled For Those Who Love Fast, Loud Things, will appear in the official race program. Henze also will read his winning poem at the Speedway during qualification weekend.

Paycheck Data Dismal in 2010

(Oct 20, 2011 2:26 PM CDT) The Social Security Administration quietly released payroll data for 2010 yesterday, and they were in a word, awful, writes David Cay Johnston at Reuters—assuming you’re not a millionaire, that is. The number of people making at least $1 million rose by 20%, jumping from 78,000 to almost 94,000. But for everyone else, there were fewer jobs and they paid less. The median paycheck fell 1.2% to $26,364, or $507 a week, its lowest level, adjusting for inflation, since 1999. The number of Americans with jobs fell by more than half a million, to 150.4 million. That’s down 5.2 million since 2007. Add in the estimated 4.5 million who would normally enter the workforce over three years, and there are around 10 million who couldn't find a single hour of work. These are important and powerful figures, Johnston writes. Yet the government doesn’t announce when it releases them—perhaps because the data show how the United States smolders while Washington fiddles.

US Troops Pull Man, Buried 2 Weeks, From Rubble

(Jan 26, 2010 6:56 PM) US troops pulled a 35-year-old Haitian man alive from the rubble of a building in downtown Port-au-Prince today. Ricot Duprevil, who was dressed only in underpants, appeared to have no serious injuries despite being buried for the two weeks since the 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck the Caribbean nation, Reuters reports.

UN Asks Davos for $613M in Gaza Aid

(Jan 29, 2009 9:24 AM) The UN asked attendees at the Davos economic forum for $613 million to address massive and multi-faceted needs resulting from recent violence in Gaza, the BBC reports. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon says the funds will provide medical care and clean water for 6-9 months. As fresh violence heightened the need for relief, the agency also asked Israel to lift its Gaza blockade.

Gunmen in Acapulco Kidnap 22 Men

(Oct 2, 2010 5:06 PM CDT) Gunmen kidnapped 22 men who were traveling together in Mexico's Pacific coast resort city of Acapulco, authorities said today. The group was visiting from the western city of Morelia and looking for a place to stay when they were abducted Thursday. Witnesses said the men, ranging in age 17 to 47, were kidnapped by an armed gang that drove them away in the three cars in which the group had been traveling. The motive was unknown. A man who said he was traveling with the group but was in a store at the time of the abductions told police the detainees were tourists. Acapulco has been a key battleground for lucrative drug-trafficking routes. Violence in the region increased this year after a split in the Beltran Leyva cartel. Police, who were scouring the resort cities and the highways leading out of it for the missing men, gave no indication that they were tied to drug trafficking.

Michael Steele Blew $1,946 at S&M Club

(Mar 29, 2010 12:25 PM CDT) Michael Steele’s getting a real flogging this morning for lavish spending, but hey, maybe he likes it that way. On a recent trip to California, FEC records show that Steele enjoyed a $9,099 stay at the Beverly Hills Hotel, spent another $6,596 at the nearby Four Seasons and—get this—dropped $1,946 at Voyeur West Hollywood, a bondage-themed topless nightclub. Yelp reviews of the place describe bare-chested dancers acting out S&M scenes, a half-naked girl hanging from a net across the ceiling, and two girls simulating oral sex inside a glass case in the bathroom. And he's not even fundraising on these trips, insiders gripe, just recruiting candidates. Steele also spent $17,514 on charter flights in February alone, and once suggested the RNC just buy him a private jet, sources tell the Daily Caller.

US Women Win 4x400 Relay; Felix Snags Third Gold

(Aug 11, 2012 2:55 PM CDT) Allyson Felix won her third gold medal of the London Olympics, giving the United States a 20-meter lead after the second leg of the 4x400-meter relay and then watching teammate Sanya Richards-Ross bring home the victory today. The US runners finished in 3 minutes, 16.87 seconds for the country's fifth straight Olympic title in the event. Russia finished second in 3:20.23 and Jamaica was third in 3:20.95. In other Olympics news, the Jamaican relay team featuring Usain Bolt set a world record in the men's 4x100-meter relay by finishing in 36.84 seconds, the New York Times reports. The US team took second with 37.04 and Trinidad and Tobago took third at 38.12.

800 Babies in a Septic Tank? Maybe Not

(Jun 10, 2014 7:44 AM CDT) The story went that the remains of 800 babies were found in an Irish septic tank—but it's becoming increasingly clear that things are more complicated. Yes, 796 babies died at St. Mary’s Mother and Baby Home in Ireland between 1925 and 1961. But some of the headlines that went abroad internationally were quite horrendous and gave a very mistaken impression of what actually happened, says Irish education minister Ruairi Quinn. Indeed, historian Catherine Corless now tells the Irish Times she never said to anyone that 800 bodies were dumped in a septic tank. But she still believe(s) those bodies are there in that general area. The septic-tank theory was based on the childhood observations of a man who offered detectives a different account. People are making out we saw a mass grave, Barry Sweeney now says. But we can only say what we seen: maybe 15 to 20 small skeletons. Corless concluded in a 2012 article that the children were buried in an unmarked grave at the back of the property; local residents have long cultivated roses and other flowers there. They tell the New York Times they don't want an uproar —they just want the babies' graves marked.

These Actually Exist: 3D-Printed Guns

(Dec 21, 2012 12:29 PM) Virtual weapons and cyber violence are poised for a massive upgrade into real-world weapons and violence, thanks to the combination of 3D printers and a group called Defense Distributed, which claims to have created downloadable plans anyone can use to print working gun parts, reports the AP. A University of Texas law student who is the leader of the group's Wiki Weapons project says group members were able to print key parts of a semiautomatic AR-15 rifle last month and test fire it six times before it broke. The goal is to make a fully downloadable weapon. 3D printers were developed for aerospace, automobiles, and other high-tech industries, but prices on the technology are dropping, and they can now be purchased for as little as $1,500—although you'd have to spend at least $10,000 for a model that could print a gun. And as the guns are printed using plastics, the weapons would not show up on metal detectors. Rep. Steve Israel is using such guns as an argument for renewing the Undetectable Firearms Act, currently set to expire at the end of 2013. When the [act] was last renewed in 2003, a gun made by a 3D printer was like a Star Trek episode, he says, but now we know it's real.

11-Year-Old Rape Victim Gives Birth

(Aug 14, 2015 3:12 AM CDT) An 11-year-old rape victim in Paraguay is now a mother. The girl, whose case caused a fierce debate on abortion that divided the country, gave birth to a healthy baby girl at a hospital in Asuncion yesterday, CNN reports. The infant was delivered via C-section and weighed 7 pounds, 13 ounces. The now-mother was 10 when authorities say she was raped by her stepfather, even after he had been reported for sexual abuse. But even though pregnancy can be very risky in girls that young and Amnesty International said forcing her to continue the pregnancy was tantamount to torture, she was denied an abortion under strict laws that say the procedure is only allowed when there is a risk to the mother's health. The girl and her baby are in good condition, but that does not excuse the human rights violations she suffered at the hands of the Paraguayan authorities, who decided to gamble with her health, life, and integrity, an Amnesty spokeswoman tells CNN. The girl's mother has been charged with neglect; she was released on bond in June and has been at her daughter's bedside these last 10 days, reports the Guardian. The 32-year-old says she was the one who reported the abuse (CNN says in November 2013; the Guardian says as early as January 2014); but a health official told CNN neighbors actually alerted authorities and claims the mother denied the abuse. The girl's stepfather, who claimed to be infertile when he was arrested, is awaiting trial. A doctor at the hospital where the 11-year-old gave birth says two 12-year-old girls and several young teens are waiting to give birth, the BBC reports. You must invest in education, he says. There is nothing else to be done.

Lawyers Halted From Taking $2.7M of $3M Settlement

(Aug 7, 2013 12:47 PM CDT) It turns out there is a limit to how shameless lawyers can be in paying themselves in class action lawsuits. A federal appeals court last week threw out a $3 million settlement that Procter & Gamble had agreed to in a class-action suit over its allegedly rash-inducing Pampers Dry Max diapers, because $2.73 million of that settlement went to the lawyers. That left only a couple hundred thousand to distribute among the few dozen named plaintiffs, who would have gotten $1,000 each, the Wall Street Journal reports. Unnamed class members were given the right to a one-box refund—something the company had offered independent of the settlement. The relief that this settlement provides to unnamed class members is illusory, one judge wrote, according to Bloomberg. But one fact about this settlement is concrete and indisputable: $2.73 million is $2.73 million. It was a 2-1 decision; the dissenting judge pointed out that without the settlement class members would have gotten even less. P&G can now try to have the case dismissed or attempt to work out a new settlement, notes the Journal.

Bell, Carter's AG, Dead at 90

(Jan 5, 2009 5:24 PM) Griffin Bell, a Southerner who opposed racial segregation and led the Justice Department under President Carter, died today at age 90, the New York Times reports. Bell handled damage control as a post-Nixon attorney general, de-politicizing the Justice Department and the FBI. His earlier rulings as an appeals court judge, helping black urban voters in Georgia, helped ease controversy about Carter picking a Southerner as top lawman. A staunch defender of the First Amendment, Bell was also an independent thinker, as comfortable co-managing JFK's Georgia campaign as he was counseling President George H.W. Bush during the Iran-Contra affair. He later sat on a panel opposing Washington data mining  of personal information, and proposed limiting the presidency to a single 6-year term.

Chicago Busts 2 More on Terror Charges

(May 20, 2012 10:59 AM CDT) Two more men have been arrested in Chicago on terrorism-related charges, reports the Chicago Tribune. Sebastian Senakiewicz, a 24-year-old Chicago resident, was charged yesterday with a single count of terrorism/false threat after being arrested on Thursday, for planning/conspiring in the building of explosives, including molotov cocktails which were to be used/detonated during the NATO summit, according to a police report. Mark Neiweem, 28, also of Chicago, is charged with attempted possession of explosive devices after he allegedly provided an ingredient list for an explosive device. Both men have minor criminal records. The arrests came a day after three out-of-town men were accused of plotting to bomb President Obama's campaign headquarters, Rahm Emanuel's house, and other targets. Asked if the incidents were related, a Chicago police spokesman tells Reuters, That's being investigated. Senakiewicz is being held on $750,000 bond and Neiweem on $500,000.

Mugabe Rival Released After 8 Hours' Detention

(Jun 4, 2008 10:52 PM CDT) Zimbabwe police released opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai tonight after holding him 8 hours and charging him with violating public order by campaigning ahead of the runoff election. Tsvangirai and several aides were arrested at a police road block, the Washington Post reports. No trial date has been set, and such charges are typically dismissed. Police have restricted most political activity ahead of the June 27 election. It's just an effort to destabilize our campaign program, said a party spokesman.

Wells Fargo Buys Wachovia for $15.4B, Trumps Citigroup

(Oct 3, 2008 7:17 AM CDT) Wells Fargo will buy struggling bank Wachovia in a $15.4 billion takeover, reports the Wall Street Journal. The deal was announced today and comes just days after Wachovia had reached an agreement to sell its banking operations to Citigroup. The Wells Fargo purchase requires no government assistance, and the San Francisco bank will buy 100% of Wachovia, while Citigroup only wanted a fraction. Wells Fargo had said on Sunday that it would not be purchasing Wachovia, setting off a government-brokered shotgun wedding between the Charlotte lender and Citigroup. But then the board changed its tune, offering $7 a share, 79% above Wachovia's Thursday afternoon closing prize. Since then shares in Wachovia have surged premarket by 64%, while Citigroup stock has declined.

Occupy LA Leaves Behind 30 Tons of Trash

(Dec 1, 2011 9:03 AM) When the protesters of Occupy LA vacated their encampment, they left behind 30 tons of debris. Sanitation workers have already removed 25 tons of garbage, clothes, and random belongings—all of which went to a landfill, the Los Angeles Times reports. Protesters, who lived in the tent city for two months, left behind not just trashed protest signs and food, but everything from mattresses to electric razors to bicycles to a treehouse—and, of course, dozens of tents. According to the AP, the site doesn't smell so great, either—specifically, it reeks of urine and unwashed bodies. The grass is ruined, trees are damaged, there's graffiti on the walls of City Hall and on statues, and there are rumors of a lice or flea infestation. The site is so contaminated, it doesn't even make sense to sort [the left-behind belongings] out, says a sanitation superintendent. There were rows of portable toilets, but protesters still urinated in bottles that must now be disposed of. Says a city refuse collection supervisor, I've never seen anything like this.

11 Dead as Syria Shells Homs

(Jun 17, 2012 9:01 AM CDT) A day after the UN abandoned its mission in Syria, Bashar al-Assad's troops are turning up the heat in Homs, riddling the city with shelling that activists say has killed at least 11 so far. Around 85% of Homs is now under shelling or bombardment with mortar rounds and heavy machine guns, an opposition leader tells Reuters. Dozens of wounded are without treatment because all the hospitals have fallen under the control of (the militia). The dead are the lucky ones. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Local Coordination Committees is urging the UN to intervene, reports the AP, calling for the evacuation of more than 1,000 families it claims are in mortal danger. Since the observers stopped working yesterday we have seen a clear escalation, another activist says.

Twisted Sister Drummer Dead at 55

(Mar 20, 2015 4:17 PM CDT) AJ Pero, the drummer for the heavy-metal band Twisted Sister, died today at age 55. The band said Anthony Jude Pero died of an apparent heart attack while touring with Adrenaline Mob, a group with which he played in between engagements with Twisted Sister. Jay Jay French, Twisted Sister guitarist, said Pero was on a tour bus this morning when Adrenaline Mob band members tried unsuccessfully to awaken him, then called an ambulance. He was taken to a hospital in Poughkeepsie, New York, where he was declared dead shortly after 11am. His drive was the heart and soul of the band's sound, the engine that drove us, French said. We lost a friend and a legend. Twisted Sister singer Dee Snider, not one for modesty, called Pero the final piece in a band that would become an international sensation and one of the greatest live rock acts to ever hit the stage. Pero was well-known for a scene in the video for 1984's We're Not Gonna Take It in which he struck a snare drum covered with glitter, sending it spraying into the air. He joined Twisted Sister in 1982, right before the Long Island bar band exploded onto the burgeoning heavy metal scene after nearly a decade of slogging through small clubs. Wearing makeup and glam costumes, the band was a perfect match for the fledgling MTV network and become one of its mainstays with hits that included I Wanna Rock.

Food Stamp Use: Up 70% Since 2007, and Growing

(Apr 20, 2012 7:16 AM CDT) We earlier reported that 45 million Americans are currently on food stamps, and a new report out of the Congressional Budget Office puts that number in perspective: The number of food stamp users has jumped 70% since 2007, and shows no signs of stopping. The CBO expects it to rise for two more years. In 2007, the program cost $30 billion; the figure has risen to $72 billion, the Wall Street Journal reports, with the bulk of that spending increase due to the increased rolls. The good news is that a rosier economy should prompt a decrease in food stamp recipients after 2014, the CBO says. The bad news? Beneficiary numbers will remain high by historical standards. It expects about 34 million to be on the program in 2022 at a cost of $73 billion, making it among the highest of all non-health-related federal support programs for low-income households.

Israel Arrests 25, Including Palestinian Lawmakers

(Feb 4, 2013 6:44 PM) Israel today arrested three Palestinian lawmakers amid a roundup of 25 Hamas members in the West Bank, Global Post reports. Israel didn't explain the arrests but has discussed plans to detain more suspected militants in the wake of civil unrest, notes Breitbart. One of the detainees, still unidentified, was behind reconciliation talks between militant Hamas and its secular opponent Fatah. Hamas promptly criticized the roundup as an attempt to derail the reconciliation, reports the Jerusalem Post. An official in a multi-party Palestinian group condemned the arbitrary arrests, saying that Israel has violated international law and the most basic norms of human rights. Israel is already holding more than 4,500 Palestinians, 12 of whom are Palestinian parliament members. Israel once held far more Palestinians but released over a thousand in 2011 in a trade for soldier Gilad Shalit, who had been held by Palestinian militants for more than five years.

Duggars Expecting Baby No. 20

(Nov 8, 2011 9:29 AM) Why stop at 19 kids when you’re biologically capable of going for 20? Yep, it’s time once again to offer up a Mazel tov! to Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. The 19 Kids and Counting stars will welcome their 20th child in April, People reports, despite the fact that both Michelle and youngest child Josie experienced complications when Josie was born prematurely in December 2009. Josie has suffered no long-term effects, Michelle says, and is now the most energetic, busy little almost 2-year-old. As for Michelle, she’s probably in better health now than she was 10 years ago, explains Jim Bob. She has been getting on an elliptical for about an hour a day and is very careful of what she eats. Which leaves only one question: What J names are left for the Duggars to use? Offer up your guesses in the comments.

In 11-Page Letter, Manning Writes of Naked Humiliation

(Mar 11, 2011 9:40 AM) Bradley Manning has released an 11-page letter describing his treatment at Quantico's brig in his own words for the first time. The alleged WikiLeaker says he has been left to languish under the unduly harsh conditions of max custody, and complains that being placed on Prevention of Injury watch amounts to unlawful pre-trial punishment, according to the Guardian. Under that designation, he’s forced to strip every night and stand naked at parade rest, with my hands behind my back and my legs spaced shoulder-width apart. I stood at parade rest for about three minutes, Manning writes. The [brig supervisor] and other guards walked past my cell. He looked at me, paused for a moment, then continued to the next cell. I was incredibly embarrassed at having all these people stare at me naked. He says he’s no danger to himself, and was enraged when he was briefly put on suicide watch. Out of frustration, I clenched my hair with my fingers and yelled: ‘Why are you doing this to me? Why am I being punished? I have done nothing wrong.’

Woman Confesses to Murder She Committed —in 1946

(Jun 9, 2011 1:27 PM CDT) A murder mystery has been solved with the confession of a 96-year-old woman—and it only took her 65 years to do it. The 1946 killing of Felix Gulje, the head of a construction company who had high political ambitions, rocked the Dutch political landscape at the time. Atie Ridder-Visser confessed to the killing in a letter to the mayor of Leiden, saying it happened in the mistaken belief that Gulje had collaborated with the Nazis. Two subsequent interviews with her, and a review of the historical archives persuaded Mayor Henri Lenferink that her story was true. Ridder-Visser will not be prosecuted, Lenferink said. On the cold sleeting night of March 1, 1946, Ridder-Visser rang Gulje's doorbell in Leiden, and told his wife that she had a letter to give to her husband. When he came to the door she shot him in the chest, and he died in the ambulance. Even now, after 65 years, the murder should be strongly condemned, Lenferink said. It is a case of vigilantism, and is unacceptable. But he appealed to reporters to leave her alone. Mrs. Ridder-Visser is a very old, very frail woman who hears poorly, is disabled, and needs help, he said.

2 Horses Die, Jockey Injured in Early Preakness Day Races

(May 21, 2016 1:45 PM CDT) In a tragic start to Preakness day, two horses died and a jockey broke a collarbone after a spill on a damp, rainy Saturday at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, the AP reports. A horse named Pramedya broke down around the turn in the fourth race and tumbled to the ground as jockey Daniel Centeno was thrown to the turf. Pimlico racing officials said the 4-year-old filly was euthanized on the track after breaking her left front cannon bone. Centeno was driven off in ambulance. Officials said he broke his right collarbone. In the opening race of the day, a horse named Homeboykris collapsed and died after winning and having his picture taken in the winner's circle. Track officials believe the 9-year-old gelding suffered cardiovascular collapse. The horse's body will be taken to New Bolton Center in Pennsylvania for a necropsy. Homeboykris won the Champagne Stakes in 2009, and a year later finished 16th in the Kentucky Derby. He had just won his 14th race in 63 career starts.

Senate Passes Jobs Bill 70-28

(Feb 24, 2010 10:16 AM) The Senate has passed a bill aimed at boosting job growth by giving tax breaks to businesses that hire the unemployed. Economists say the tax breaks could create perhaps 250,000 jobs. The jobs legislation would also extend highway and mass transit programs through the end of the year and pump $20 billion into them in time for the construction season. It's the first of several job-creation measures promised by Democrats, who also want to give cash-strapped states further help with their budgets and give subsidies to people who make their homes more energy efficient. The measure passed by a bipartisan 70-28 and now goes back to the House, which passed a far more ambitious version in December.

As Pakistan Shells Taliban, 500K Flee Swat

(May 7, 2009 6:55 AM CDT) Refugees continue to flee the Swat Valley in Pakistan, reports the Guardian, where government forces battling resurgent Taliban militants have been conducting airstrikes in heavily populated areas. The government is preparing for up to 500,000 refugees in what the UN warns is becoming a humanitarian crisis. The Washington Post reports from a camp outside Islamabad, where refugees told of violence under the Taliban and erratic behavior by the government and military. I feel like I have lost my mind, says one refugee, recounting two years of living under Taliban abuses. Another man describes watching two Taliban fighters slit the throat of a policeman they dragged out of a truck. But the Pakistan government's back-and-forth efforts in the region, alternatively cutting deals with the Taliban and attacking them, have left citizens confused and unsure of whom to trust. Says one refugee, The people were filled with great rage, and great fear.