President Barack Obama formally canceled a much-discussed visit to Moscow next month for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, citing a lack of progress in bilateral relations since Putin regained the presidency a year ago.
Obama will still attend a G-20 summit in St. Petersburg in early September, but now will go to Sweden beforehand instead of stopping in Moscow to meet with Putin, the White House announced.
“Following a careful review begun in July, we have reached the conclusion that there is not enough recent progress in our bilateral agenda with Russia to hold a U.S.-Russia Summit in early September,” a White House statement said.
It noted progress in relations with Russia during Obama’s first term, much of it when Dmitry Medvedev was president and Putin was prime minister. Putin regained the presidency in May 2012.
“Given our lack of progress on issues such as missile defense and arms control, trade and commercial relations, global security issues, and human rights and civil society in the last 12 months, we have informed the Russian government that we believe it would be more constructive to postpone the summit until we have more results from our shared agenda,” the White House said.
The notorious Cleveland house of horrors where Ariel Castro held three women captive for more than a decade was left in a pile of rubble after demolition crews knocked it down on Wednesday.
The wooden-framed house was razed as part of a deal that spared the convicted monster the death penalty when he was sentenced last week to life in prison, plus a millennium.
One of his victims, Michelle Knight, arrived at the Seymour Ave. home just before a track hoe began ripping the home to shreds about 7 a.m..
Knight — who was 22 when Castro kidnapped and imprisoned her — released several yellow balloons at the site, saying they represented children who were never found after they were abducted.
“Nobody was there for me when I was missing, and I want the people to know, including the mothers, that they can have strength, they can have hope, and their child will come back,” Knight told reporters, according to NBC News.
Everyone has heard of Bayer aspirin, it is a household name. Bayer AG also manufactures numerous other products, from pesticides to medicine for hemophiliacs called Factor 8.
In 1984 Bayer became aware that several batches of this Factor 8 contained HIV. They knew this because there was an outbreak of HIV among hemophiliac children, and this outbreak was traced back to Bayer.
Unable to sell their Factor 8 in the US, Bayer, with the FDA’s permission, (yes that’s right, the FDA allowed Bayer to potentially kill thousands) sold this HIV infected medicine to Argentina, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, and Singapore after February 1984, according to the documents obtained by the NY Times. The documents showed how Cutter Biological, a division of Bayer, shipped more than 100,000 vials of unheated concentrate, worth more than $4 million, after it began selling the safer product.
A gifted Florida teenager has made history across the pond.
Gabrielle Turnquest, from Windermere, has demonstrated superior academic prowess to become the youngest person to qualify as a barrister in the U.K.
She was called to the Bar of England and Wales after passing her exams with flying colors at just 18.
What makes this achievement even more extraordinary is that the average lawyer undertakes the notoriously rigorous Bar Professional Training Course when they are 27, according to The University of Law records.
A video of three 15-year-old boys brutally beating and kicking a 13-year-old on July 9 has come to light, as authorities try to determine if the bus driver who refused to physically intervene should be charged with negligence.
This whole situation prompts us to ask an important question – should bus drivers or teachers step in during violent situations such as this?
There’s been a lot of talk recently about workers. You know, the people who do the work in this country and who expect to be paid a livable wage while earning a little respect from employers and customers. The problem is that somewhere along the way, the conservative revolution has been glorifying the wealthy while bashing the people who actually create the wealth. I’m not saying anything new, but a spate of reports have caught my eye and I’m going to go out on a limb and say that if present trends continue, we could have another revolution, but this one will be messy.
First up are those pesky fast food workers, you know, the ones who serve the most meals in the country. They are holding one-day walkouts to protest the unlivable minimum wage, $7.25 an hour or about $30,000 per year if full time, that many of them can’t really live on. Add in the lack of health care benfits and you have the fixin’s of a major problem. Since many of the jobs being created these days are not full time, more people are earning a wage that doesn’t support even a minimal existence.
So what to do? In DC, the City Council voted to require Wal-mart to pay its employees at least $12.50 per hour in all of its city stores. Wal-mart was considering building six stores in DC, but now that they actually have to pay a livable wage, they’re threatening not to build three of them. This wage would also apply to other big box stores. Keep in mind that Wal-mart makes billions of dollars a year, as do other retailers such as Home Depot and Target, and they all pay their executives millions of dollars in salaries. But of course, they couldn’t lower some of those high paying jobs just a little bit to cover the hourly workers. That would send the wrong message. Like, we care about our employees.
I am certainly not advocating fighting in the streets, but over time, as people find it difficult, if not impossible, to earn a living wage, and politicians turn a blind eye to them, then what other recourse will people have? Social media and elections will help, but gerrymandered Congressional districts almost ensure that anti-worker politicians will continue to be reelected. The gap between wealthy and not wealthy in this country is as large as it’s ever been, and that, in part, is why the economy is not growing a robustly as it should. Let’s solve this problem before more people become desperate.
“The threat appears to be much worse than it has (been) in a long time,” “It all leads us to believe something could happen in the near future.” These statements from U.S. officials are what has prompted the U.S. government to shut down its 22 embassies and consulates in the Middle East and North Africa. Of particular concern is Yemen, where the government is “on high alert against possible attacks in the days to come,” says a senior U.S. security official. Britain, France and Germany have said they too will close their embassies in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, on Sunday and Monday for security reasons.
The intelligence alert couldn’t come at a more opportune time for the intelligence gathering community particularly as the NSA has fallen from grace over the Edward Snowden debacle. And now that Snowden has received temporary asylum in Russia, there’s no telling how far down the rabbit hole he will go, taking United States “secrets” with him.
As frightened and horror-filled as I am of the possibility of another 911-like attack, the discovery of such plots — that are legitimate — by organizations like the NSA do a lot to validate the necessity of covert, high-tech surveillance operations in the country. The thing is, how do you prove there was a legitimate discovery of a terrorist plot unless, a) a culprit or culprits are caught in the act or b) a culprit or culprits actually commit the terrorist act?
And of course the unprecedented action of closing down all U.S. embassies in the M.E., possibly for the entire month of August, may also help stave off the lingering criticism of the Obama Administration over the September 11, 2012 attack of the U.S. compound in Benghazi Libya, which killed four Americans, including ambassador Christopher Stephens.
“House leaders have been briefed, Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi told reporters, adding that the travel alert and embassy closings provided “some understanding of the seriousness of the threat. New York Rep. Peter King, a member of the House Intelligence Committee who has also heard such briefings, applauded the government’s decision to close its diplomatic missions. “I give them credit,” the Republican said of the Obama administration. “I think the government is doing exactly the right thing here.” — CNN Politics
Two birds, one stone.
Al-Qaeda leader Aymanal-Zawahri’s condemnation of the overthrow of former Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi last month; the resulting chaos in the state of Egypt; newly elected Iranian president Hassan Rouhani replacing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad; “Highly charged emotions” coming off the Muslim religious holidays and Intelligence officials reporting a “high volume of internet chatter” back and forth between groups suspected of terrorist activities, are reasons given for the change in climate and subsequent heightened security.
The sacrificial lamb that is Goldman Sachs banker Fabrice Tourre.
Whew! We can all breathe a sigh of relief now that the financial crisis is over. The Securities and Exchange Commission has found former Goldman Sachs banker Fabrice Tourre liable on six counts of securities fraud.
I’m being sarcastic of course.
Fabrice Tourre
Mr. Tourre dealt out toxic mortgage deals under a company known as Abacus (you remember them home loan borrowers), which Goldman Sachs created in 2007 at the request of hedge-fund manager John Paulson. Paulson wanted to use the fund to bet against it, which he did considerably, garnishing him $15 billion before the Home Loans Crisis officially hit the fan and the news.
Suspiciously not on trial in the case was Goldman Sachs itself, although the bank paid all of Tourre’s legal fees, which was the least it could do for its sacrificial lamb. Earlier in 2010 Sachs settled with the SEC by paying a $550 million penalty without ever having to admit any wrongdoing.
A jury found that Tourre had misled investors about the nature of the deal, tricking them into thinking it had not been built for failure from the start. He now faces the possibility of heavy financial penalties and a lifetime ban from the securities industry.
A hollow victory in the wake of all the terminal damage to our economy that was caused.
The hooded sweatshirt Trayvon Martin wore the night George Zimmerman shot him to death could end up on display at the Smithsonian Institution.
The shirt became a powerful symbol of the case after Zimmerman described Martin as wearing a “hoodie” the night he killed the teen, claiming self-defense. Protestors across the country wore hoodies in support of Martin as they called for Zimmerman’s arrest, prosecution and conviction.
Have you ever wondered why you are not losing weight after following the exact same diet as your best friend and she manages to lose those 10 pounds fast and easy? Ever asked yourself why you get sick so often or why is your immune system so weak?
Are you eating the right foods for your blood type? It is important to learn how your blood type affects your health and wellness, same as your weight and believe it or not your blood type makes you more susceptible to certain diseases.
Why does this happen? We understand that there are four blood groups A, B, AB and O, and that blood type is determined by genetics. There are certain antigens (these could be proteins, carbohydrates and glycoproteins) that when they enter the body, the immune system produces antibodies against them. We respond differently to these antigens depending on our blood type.
Blood is classified by: New: AB
Old: O
Agrarian: A
Nomadic: B
Blood type and diet: Certain foods such as legumes contain a carbohydrate-binding protein called lectin. This substance is most likely to cause inflammation in the body, but it will produce stronger reactions in certain blood types. Therefore it can make you more susceptible to certain diseases and other factors like fatigue, poor digestion and weight gain.
There are a lot of chemical reactions going on in our bodies all day long, digestion is one of them and our blood type can affect how we digest the food, meaning it will be crucial in terms of weight loss or weight gain
Blood Type O Recommended to eat:
-High-protein found in meat and fish
-Reduce carb intake
-Avoid diary
Blood Type A Recommended to eat:
-Vegetarian diet (lots of veggies!)
-Grains (beans, legumes)
Blood Type B Recommended to eat:
-Red Meat (avoid chicken)
-Dairy
-Fruits and vegetables
Blood Type AB Recommended to eat:
-Lean meat
-Dairy
-Seafood
-Vegetables and legumes
Blood types and diseases: As previously mentioned every blood type is different because of their antigens located on the surface of the red blood cells. Each blood type creates certain defenses to help fight diseases.
Blood type and personality:
Blood Type O -Outgoing
-Initiators
-Creative
-Social
-Confident. Blood Type A -Most likely to be calm
-Perfectionists
-Most artistic
-Bold
-Trustworthy
-Sensitive Blood Type B -Goal oriented
– Strong minded
-Independent Blood Type AB -Split personalities: outgoing and shy
-Confident and timid
-Responsible
-Care a lot for others
Blood type and fertility: Women chances of fertility are different in different blood groups; this happens due to the fact that the amount of a hormone called follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) varies, depending on the blood type.
Some studies to prove this theory show that women with blood types A and AB were generally less likely than others to produce the follicle-stimulating hormone.
Please note that according to many nutritionists, there is not enough scientific evidence to support these claims, and if you’re among those who manage their diet based on scientific evidence, then you have to wait for more results to come up.
Kimberly Bryant, a biotechnology and engineering professional and founder of the nonprofit Black Girls Code, was one of 11 people to receive the White House Champions of Change for Tech Inclusion award today. The award is given to celebrate people in the U.S. “who are doing extraordinary things to expand technology opportunities for young learners—especially minorities, women and girls, and others from communities historically underserved or underrepresented in tech fields.”
Bryant founded San Francisco-based Black Girls Code in 2011 as a way to close the digital divide for girls of color. So far the organization has trained more than 1,500 girls to work in technology fields such as robotics, video game design, mobile phone application development and computer programming. Bryant says she aims to reach one million girls by 2040.
O.J. Simpson won parole Wednesday on some of the charges that have kept him in a Nevada prison for almost five years, but still faces at least four more years behind bars.
The Nevada Board of Parole Commissioners order says the decision relates to two kidnapping and two robbery convictions and one conviction of burglary with a firearm. But Simpson, 66, will continue to be held on other charges for which he is not yet eligible for parole.
The charges stem from a confrontation Simpson had with two sports memorabilia at a Las Vegas hotel room in 2007. Simpson, a former superstar in the National Football League, said he was attempting to retrieve his own memorabilia.
Simpson appeared before two members of the board last week. He told them that he has been a model prisoner and that other inmates come to him to tell their stories and seek guidance. He expressed regret for his crimes
We use cookies to improve your experience on our site. By agreeing to this, we can analyze browsing behavior and unique IDs on this site. Declining or revoking consent may affect certain features.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
