Author: Sunfire

RT News

The heaviest snowstorm in nearly half a century in Tokyo and other areas of Japan has caused a rash of snow-linked accidents, resulting in nearly a dozen deaths and injuring more than a thousand people.

Watch more pictures from snow-stricken Japan in RT’s Galleries

Up to 27 centimeters (10.6 inches) of snow was recorded in Tokyo by late Saturday, the heaviest fall in the capital for 45 years, according to meteorologists.   Continue reading “‘Worst in decades’: 11 dead, 1,200 injured in Japan snowstorm”

Mail.com

MOSCOW (AP) — A man employed as a private security guard opened fire Sunday in a cathedral on Russia’s Sakhalin Island in the Pacific, killing a nun and a parishioner and wounding six others, investigators said.

Law enforcement officers detained the 24-year-old man at the scene and were trying to determine why he had attacked the Russian Orthodox cathedral in the city of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, the federal Investigative Committee said in a statement. The man worked for a private security firm in the city and was armed with a rifle. His name was not released.   Continue reading “Gunman kills nun, parishioner in Russian cathedral”

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MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Political dignitaries joined family members at Saturday’s memorial service for Joan Mondale, the wife of a former vice president who was remembered as “a highly charged battery of positive energy” for her passion and persistence about arts, politics and community.

Vice President Joe Biden, former President Jimmy Carter and their spouses Jill and Rosalynn were at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Minneapolis to pay tribute to Walter Mondale’s devoted partner, who died Monday at age 83 after an extended illness. Leading Minnesota officials, along with Japan’s consul general, filled rows of pews at the two-hour service.   Continue reading “Dignitaries, family bid farewell to Joan Mondale”

RT News

The US Treasury on Friday was forced to enact ‘emergency measures’ after spending its borrowed time and money. By month’s end, Uncle Sam’s piggy bank will be down to just $50 billion, US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew warned Congress.

By now, hand-wringing warnings that the US Treasury is about to go bust brings to mind the story of the little boy who cried wolf so many times that everybody eventually ignored him – much to his tragic demise.    Continue reading “Home / USA / US Treasury introduces ‘extraordinary measures’ as Feb. 27 debt deadline looms”

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TEPCO has revised the readings on the radioactivity levels at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant well to 5 million becquerels of strontium per liter – both a record, and nearly five times higher than the original reading of 900,000 becquerels per liter.

Strontium-90 is a radioactive isotope of strontium produced by nuclear fission with a half-life of 28.8 years. The legal standard for strontium emissions is 30 becquerels per liter. Exposure to strontium-90 can cause bone cancer, cancer of nearby tissues, and leukemia.   Continue reading “Fukushima radiation levels underestimated by five times – TEPCO”

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Ships from the Iranian army’s naval fleet are headed towards the United States maritime borders as part of a longstanding protest against US vessels in the Persian Gulf, Fars News Agency reports.

“The Iranian Army’s naval fleets have already started their voyage towards the Atlantic Ocean via the waters near South Africa,” Commander of Iran’s Northern Navy Fleet, Admiral Afshin Rezayee Haddad, announced on Saturday.   Continue reading “Iran dispatches warships to US maritime border”

Mail.com

DADE CITY, Fla. (AP) — A bail hearing for a retired Tampa police officer who fatally shot a man inside a movie theater during an argument over texting took a dramatic turn Friday: Prosecutors played a grainy video of the shooting and a recording of the defendant’s police interview.

“If I had it to do over again, it would have never happened,” Curtis Reeves told detectives. “But you don’t get do-overs.” Reeves, 71, is charged with second-degree murder in the Jan. 13 killing of Chad Oulson, 43. At the end of the hearing, which provided glimpses of the strengths and weaknesses of the prosecutors’ case, the judge ordered Reeves held without bail until his trial.   Continue reading “No bail for ex-officer charged in theater shooting”

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In a bid to beef up its missile defense systems, the United States Department of Defense intends to request $4.5 billion in additional spending over the next five years, according to a report by Reuters.

The move – disclosed by Riki Ellison of the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance and two unnamed congressional sources – comes partly in response to failed tests that have shown the interceptors built by Raytheon Co. to be less than reliable.   Continue reading “Pentagon wants additional $4.5 bln to fix failed missile defense interceptors”

Mail.com

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — President Barack Obama on Friday signed into law an agriculture spending bill that will spread benefits to farmers in every region of the country, while trimming the food stamp program that inspired a two-year battle over the legislation.

As he penned his name on the five year measure at Michigan State University, Obama said the wide-ranging bill “multitasks” by helping boost jobs, innovation, research and conservation. “It’s like a Swiss Army knife,” he joked.   Continue reading “Obama signs farm bill that trims food stamps”

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CHICAGO (AP) — A prosecutor is standing by her decision to invoke a rarely used Illinois law to charge three protesters with terrorism in 2012 — days before NATO’s Chicago summit.

After jurors acquitted them Friday of all terrorism charges, prosecutor Anita Alvarez said she had no regrets. She told reporters she’d file the same charges again without hesitation. Brian Church, Jared Chase and Brent Betterly were accused of plotting Molotov cocktail attacks on President Obama’s campaign office and other targets.   Continue reading “NATO trial prosecutor stands behind terror charges”

RT News

The Chinese are preparing to deploy submarines armed with nuclear missiles that will patrol the northern Pacific Ocean and come within range of at least two US states, according to a new report from the US Navy.

The US Naval Institute (USNI) reported that the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has tapped the Jin-class nuclear ballistic submarines to begin patrols in 2014. The subs will carry intercontinental range missiles that are thought to have a range of no less than 14,000 kilometers (8,699 miles) and can deliver a single or multiple warheads.   Continue reading “New Chinese submarine patrol puts Hawaii, Alaska within nuke range – report”

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People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals’ (PETA), known for its anti-fur campaigns, put down 1,792 stray cats and dogs at its shelter last year alone. PETA defends its work, saying euthanasia is sometimes the best option for animals.

The death rate per animal averages 5 per day. The 1,792 figure represents an 82 percent euthanasia rate of the total number of animals PETA brought to its Norfolk, Virginia shelter in 2013, according to an annual report by the Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF).   Continue reading “Watchdog fail: PETA killed nearly 2,000 shelter animals in 2013 – report”

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The value of the bitcoin cryptocurrency has dropped below $690 per unit on one of the world’s biggest exchanges Mt. Gox, after the Japanese trader temporarily stopped withdrawals to fix technical problems.

“In our efforts to resolve the issue being encountered by various bitcoin withdrawals, it was determined that the increase in the flow of withdrawal requests has hindered our efforts on a technical level. To understand the issue thoroughly, the system needs to be in a static state,” according to a statement released Friday, February 7.   Continue reading “Bitcoin plunges 20% on big Japan-based exchange as withdrawals halted”

How can a bankrupt country give money it doesn’t have to Ukraine?!?

RT News

The United States is ready to provide financial support to Ukraine if the country implements the necessary political reforms, senior US diplomat Victoria Nuland said.

“We have had extensive discussions at all meetings concerning support from the international community, including the United States,” Nuland, the Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs said at a press conference in Kiev on Friday.   Continue reading “US will give money to Ukraine if Kiev makes necessary reforms – Nuland”

Mail.com

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Police officers testified Friday that a Georgia teen died almost immediately after a Florida man fired repeatedly into his vehicle following an argument over loud music outside a convenience store.

Officers Robert Holmes and Dawn Valentine of the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said they found 17-year-old Jordan Davis slumped against another young man in the backseat of the SUV. Blood was coming out of the back of the teen from Marietta, Ga., Holmes said.   Continue reading “Officers Testify in Florida Shooting over Loud Music”

Mail.com

CHICAGO (AP) — The question of when a planned protest becomes conspiracy to commit terrorism was the focus of closing arguments Thursday in the trial of three men accused of hatching a plan to throw Molotov cocktails at President Barack Obama’s campaign headquarters and other Chicago sites during the 2012 NATO summit.

Prosecutor Tom Biesty argued two weeks of testimony from undercover police officers and wire recordings proved the three out-of-state activists conspired to attack the campaign office in Obama’s hometown, Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s home and police stations.   Continue reading “NATO trial asks question: Who’s a terrorist?”

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ATLANTA (AP) — Facing the latest in a string of legal battles with her brothers, the daughter of Martin Luther King Jr. is seeking to portray herself as the true heir to her father’s legacy.

Bernice King has been outspoken this week in her opposition to what she said is a plan by her brothers, Dexter King and Martin Luther King III, to sell their father’s Nobel Peace Prize medal and personal traveling Bible. Bernice has possession of both items, and her brothers asked a judge last week to order her to turn them over.   Continue reading “Martin Luther King’s children battling over estate”

RT News

Some of the most drought-ravaged areas of the US are also heavily targeted for oil and gas development using hydraulic fracturing – a practice that exacerbates water shortages – according to a new report.

Three-quarters of the nearly 40,000 oil and gas wells drilled in the US since 2011 were located in areas of the country facing water scarcity, according to research by the Ceres investor network. Over half of those new wells were in areas experiencing drought conditions.   Continue reading “Fracking is draining water from US areas suffering major shortages – report”

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Marijuana advocates in Alaska have obtained more than enough signatures to ensure voters there will have the opportunity this year to weigh-in on a measure that could legalize recreational marijuana, state officials admitted this week.

As of Tuesday, a petition that would let residents of the forty-ninth state vote to make pot legal for adults surpassed a 30,169 signature threshold, all but clearing the way for the issue to appear in ballot booths during elections there on August 19.   Continue reading “Alaska to vote on pot legislation this August”