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10 Aug 2011 15:00

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Offbeat, U.S.: How imprisoned polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs will keep his influence

  • cause Warren Jeffs is the leader of a polygamist sect of the Mormon church who was recently sentenced to life in prison for child sex abuse. Not only was he married to underage girls, but many others in the complex he ran were clearly pregnant. However, this was all part of his religion, he claimed — and everyone there has been pretty much brainwashed to believe the same.
  • effect Life in prison won’t separate those in Jeffs’ cult from him. Since he’s been in jail, his followers have continued to believe that he is a prophet and he’s continued to lead church services over the phone. “Now we can really begin to focus on liberating these people and freeing their minds from the mental shackles that Warren Jeffs has put on them,” said Elissa Wall, a former member of the church. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Aug 2011 14:28

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World: London riots: Overworked officials fighting fire with water

  • 1,100 people arrested in the London riots source
  • » And authorities are fed up. That’s why they’re planning on breaking out the water cannons — which have never been used in England before. While London has been more calm today, violence has begun breaking out in other cities. The fact that they’re going to all new measures for security shows just how desperate they are for it, but they have a good reason to be. The riots are calling into question authorities’ ability to keep London secure. It’s not a good time for this to crop up — they can’t afford the extra instability ahead of the 2012 Olympics.
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Aug 2011 14:10

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Biz, World: French credit weaknesses pushing markets down worldwide

  • The cost of insuring France’s debt rose to a record high today. And unlike the United States, France can’t just increase their money supply to pay its creditors. Partly as a result, it’s the most indebted of all European AAA-rated countries. It’s having a ripple effect that’s driving markets down worldwide. While S&P and the two other major ratings firms say they have no plans to downgrade France’s credit rating, it’s evident that investors are not as confident in the country’s financial situation. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Aug 2011 15:54

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World: U.S. plans to ease Somalia’s burden just a little bit

  • $100 million in U.S. aid could head Somalia’s way source
  • » Will this be enough to help? Joe Biden’s wife recently visited Somalia to highlight how bad things are. In case you don’t know, here are some numbers: Aid is only reaching 20% of the people who need it, more than 12 million people need aid in the Horn of Africa, and over 640,000 children are acutely malnourished. Let’s just hope that this aid can actually reach those who need it.
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Aug 2011 14:31

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U.S.: President Obama tries to reassure after credit rating downgrade

  • No matter what the agencies say, we will always be a AAA country.
  • President Barack Obama • Talking about the S&P’s downgrade of the United States in a speech today. He explained that they didn’t downgrade us because they didn’t believe that we would default on our debt, but because our politics get too much in the way — and because the threat of default was used as a bargaining chip. He also talked about our real challenge — long term deficit reduction. He stuck to his guns on policies like tax  cuts for the wealthy, and also said that we need to keep unemployment benefits around to keep our recovery going. However, just from this speech it’s clear that it isn’t going to be easy. It’s evident that despite the fact that Obama has good intentions, the politics simply aren’t going to change overnight. Obama also honored the troops that died in the helicopter crash over the weekend, which was well-deserved and moving. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Aug 2011 15:38

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World: Unprecedented access of the day: Crazy photos from North Korea

  • The Associated Press got unprecedented access to North Korea. The photos from The Atlantic website are absolutely stunning and show a different side to North Korea. Easily the most interesting thing you’ll see today. (Thanks to ProducerMatthew for these!)source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Aug 2011 14:54

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Biz: USDA knew about salmonella outbreak for two weeks

  • Officials knew that the infected ground turkey came from Cargill, inc. They just didn’t want to say anything because there was no way to know for sure. Cargill issued a voluntary recall yesterday, and the outbreak began in March. That’s kind of a long time — but with good reason. At first it was confusing to investigators because some people who didn’t eat the turkey would get sick, but when more cases of this particular strain of Salmonella became more widespread, an earnest investigation was started. Eventually it was traced back to Cargill, and the recall was issued — the third largest of its kind on record. Yikes. source
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04 Aug 2011 14:20

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U.S.: Amid negative economic data, stock market having a really crappy day

  • 350+point dip in the Dow at one point today (ouch) source
  • » It’s becoming more and more apparent that we might be heading for a double-dip recession here. The Dow fell for eight days straight, only ending the losing streak yesterday — but it could fall steeply today. The new jobless numbers are mostly to blame for the weak market. There were 400,000 new unemployment claims in the week that ended July 30. That, in addition to a spreading debt crisis in Europe, has been enough to convince investors that the U.S. economy isn’t in a great spot right now, and it’s hurting our stock market bad.
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Aug 2011 16:44

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U.S.: DB Cooper’s niece? Woman comes forward with new info

  • Does she hold the key to one of the greatest mysteries in aviation history? We mentioned this bizarre case the other day, but now there’s more information on just who is coming forward, and with what. Someone who is calling herself Cooper’s niece is coming forward, saying she remembers her uncle talking about his financial troubles being over, and several family members talking about him hijacking a plane. Her name? Marla Cooper — so at least the last names match. However, the FBI has said this isn’t a huge priority for them — so don’t expect them to drop everything for this 40-year-old cold case. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Aug 2011 14:40

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Offbeat: Animals are pretty good at escaping from zoos in New York

Yesterday, a peacock escaped from Central Park Zoo. It flew away, perched on this Fifth Avenue apartment window, and took a nap. After it woke up, it flew back to the zoo. Not exactly the next summer blockbuster, huh? source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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