Author: Sunfire

Mail.com

ATLANTA (AP) — Drivers got caught in monumental traffic jams and abandoned their cars Wednesday in North Carolina in a replay of what happened in Atlanta just two weeks ago, as another wintry storm across the South iced highways and knocked out electricity to more than a half-million homes and businesses.

While Atlanta’s highways were clear, apparently because people learned their lesson and heeded forecasters’ unusually dire warnings to stay home, thousands of cars were backed up on the slippery, snow-covered interstates around Raleigh, N.C., and short commutes turned into hours-long journeys.   Continue reading “Ice storm causes another traffic jam in the South”

RT News

The European Commission is set to authorize the growing of genetically modified maize on European soil, despite 19 member states voting against the move, highlighting the “absurd” rules of weighted votes in the EU.

In a debate on Tuesday, 19 EU member states indicated that they would vote against the authorization of genetically modified maize because of health and environmental concerns and opposition in the European Parliament.    Continue reading “EU to approve new GM crop, ignoring majority members’ opposition”

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Eric Holder called on a group of states Tuesday to restore voting rights to ex-felons, part of a push to fix what he sees as flaws in the criminal justice system that have a disparate impact on racial minorities.

“It is time to fundamentally rethink laws that permanently disenfranchise people who are no longer under federal or state supervision,” Holder said, targeting 11 states that he said continue to restrict voting rights for former inmates, even after they’ve finished their prison terms.   Continue reading “AG urges restoring voting rights to ex-inmates”

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Five years ago the Air Force considered a series of proposals to boost morale and fix performance and security lapses in its nuclear missile corps, according to internal emails and documents obtained by The Associated Press. But many fell short or died on the vine, and now, with the force again in crisis, it’s retracing those earlier steps.

The new effort is more far-reaching, on a tighter timetable and backed by Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel. So it appears to hold more promise for an Air Force under scrutiny after a variety of embarrassing setbacks and missteps raised questions about whether some of the world’s most fearsome weapons are being properly managed.   Continue reading “Nuke reform drive features ideas tried 5 years ago”

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ATLANTA (AP) — The city dodged the first punch of a dangerous winter storm Tuesday, but forecasters warned of a potentially “catastrophic” second blow in a thick layer of ice that threatened to bring hundreds of thousands of power outages and leave people in their cold, dark homes for days.

The streets and highways in metro Atlanta were largely deserted as people in the South’s business hub heeded advice from officials to hunker down at home, especially after the snow jam two weeks ago saw thousands of people stranded on icy, gridlocked roads for hours when 2 inches of snow fell.   Continue reading “Winter storm wallops the South; 4 killed in Texas”

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OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Washington has become the latest state to halt executions, with Gov. Jay Inslee issuing a moratorium on the death penalty for as long as he’s in office.

The first-term Democrat said during Tuesday’s announcement that he hopes it will enable officials to “join a growing national conversation about capital punishment.” Inslee said he came to the decision after months of review and meetings with victims’ families, prosecutors and law enforcement.   Continue reading “Washington Gov. Jay Inslee suspends death penalty”

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Shirley Temple, the dimpled, curly-haired child star who sang, danced, sobbed and grinned her way into the hearts of Depression-era moviegoers, has died. She was 85.

Temple, known in private life as Shirley Temple Black, died Monday night at her home near San Francisco. She was surrounded by family members and caregivers, publicist Cheryl Kagan said. “We salute her for a life of remarkable achievements as an actor, as a diplomat, and most importantly as our beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and adored wife for fifty-five years of the late and much missed Charles Alden Black,” a family statement said. The family would not disclose Temple’s cause of death.   Continue reading “Shirley Temple, iconic child star, dies at 85”

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NEW YORK (AP) — Kraft is removing artificial preservatives from its most popular Singles cheese product variety, in the latest sign that companies are tweaking recipes as food labels come under greater scrutiny.

The change affects the company’s Kraft Singles in the full-fat American and White American varieties, which Kraft says account for the majority of the brand’s sales. Sorbic acid is being replaced by natamycin, which Kraft says is a “natural mold inhibitor.”   Continue reading “Kraft Singles to lose artificial preservatives”

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MIAMI (AP) — Florida Highway Patrol Trooper Donna Jane Watts was on routine patrol early one morning when a Miami police car whizzed past at speeds that would eventually top 120 mph. Even with her blue lights flashing and siren blaring, it took Watts more than seven minutes to pull the speeder over.

Not certain who was behind the wheel, she approached the car warily, with gun drawn, according video from her cruiser’s dashboard camera. “Put your hands out of the window! Right now!” she yelled. It turned out the driver was Miami Police Department officer Fausto Lopez, in full uniform. Watts holstered her gun but still handcuffed him and took his weapon.   Continue reading “Fla. trooper who stopped cop sues after harassment”

RT News

A landmark legal battle between two farmers over alleged GM contamination has started in the Western Australian Supreme Court. The case is expected to determine GM farmers’ liability if their crops affect neighboring territories.

The globally monitored legal battle involves local farmer Steve Marsh who sued his neighbor Michael Baxter for negligence over the alleged contamination of the land that Marsh used for growing organic oat and wheat crops at Kojonup, 250 km south-east of Perth, Western Australia.   Continue reading “‘World’s first’ farmer trial over GM crop contamination begins in Australia”

RT News

A record number of Americans renounced their citizenship or green cards in 2013, according to new data that may draw a complicated picture for US tax assessors who impose financial obligations on citizens living outside the country.

A total of 2,999 men and women formally resigned their citizenship in 2013, surpassing the previous record of 1,781, which was set in 2011. Last year’s total is also a steep 221 percent jump from the 2012 total of 932.   Continue reading “Record number of Americans renounce citizenship thanks to tightening tax laws”

RT News

Eleven days after the 2011 US elite forces raid that resulted in the killing of Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, the head of US special operations ordered the destruction of all photos of the corpse or for them to be given to the CIA, new evidence shows.

The disclosure was revealed Monday in an email obtained and released by non-profit legal group Judicial Watch via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. The heavily-redacted email was sent by Admiral William McRaven, head of US Special Operations Command, to subordinate officers on May 13, 2011, instructing them that any remaining photos of Bin Laden’s body must be destroyed or handed over to the CIA. Bin Laden was killed on May 2, 2011 at his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, by the special operations team commonly known as Seal Team Six during Operation Neptune Spear.   Continue reading “‘Destroy immediately’: Top US commander ordered Bin Laden photos purge”

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TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — More subpoenas are expected to be issued by a New Jersey legislative committee investigating a plot by aides to Gov. Chris Christie to create gridlock by blocking traffic lanes near the George Washington Bridge.

A person familiar with the committee’s plans told The Associated Press that up to a dozen subpoenas could be issued after the panel meets Monday. The person spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to disclose pending actions of the panel before the meeting.   Continue reading “More subpoenas to come in bridge probe”

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Angling to avoid political peril, the Obama administration Monday granted employers another delay in a heavily criticized requirement that medium-to-larger firms cover their workers or face fines.

In one of several concessions in a complex Treasury Department regulation of more than 200 pages, the administration said companies with 50 to 99 employees will have an additional year to comply with the coverage requirement, until January 1, 2016.   Continue reading “Another delay in health law’s employer requirement”

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BAGHDAD (AP) — An instructor teaching his militant recruits how to make car bombs accidentally set off explosives in his demonstration Monday, killing 21 of them in a huge blast that alerted authorities to the existence of the rural training camp in an orchard north of Baghdad. Nearly two dozen people were arrested, including wounded insurgents trying to hobble away from the scene.

The fatal goof by the al-Qaida breakaway group that dominates the Sunni insurgency in Iraq happened on the same day that the speaker of the Iraqi parliament, a prominent Sunni whom the militants consider a traitor, escaped unhurt from a roadside bomb attack on his motorcade in the northern city of Mosul.   Continue reading “Iraqi militants accidentally kill 21 of their own”

Mail.com

PETERBOROUGH, N.H. (AP) — An explosion rocked a small-town ball bearings plant on Monday, shaking walls, shattering windows and sending at least 15 people to the hospital, but a company spokeswoman said none of their injuries appeared to be life-threatening.

Hazardous-materials teams responded after Monday afternoon’s explosion at the New Hampshire Ball Bearings Inc. plant in Peterborough, but firefighters said there didn’t appear to be any environmental damage.   Continue reading “Explosion at NH ball bearings plant injures 15”

RT News

Washington will announce on Monday a massive aid package to Afghanistan, which it hopes will assist the war-torn country get back on its feet after 12 years of playing host to foreign troops, Reuters has learned.

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) will announce three new development programs worth almost $300 million to wean Afghanistan off its ‘war economy,’ which is heavily subsidized today by opium exports – a trade that had been practically squashed while the country was under Taliban rule.   Continue reading “US to pump $300mn into Afghanistan to end ‘war economy’ – report”