Year: 2015

Reuters

The U.S. Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed legislation to avert a government shutdown, sending the measure to the House of Representatives just hours before funding for federal agencies runs out at midnight.

Passed by a 78-20 vote, the bill would keep federal agencies funded at current levels through Dec. 11. It does not include a controversial provision to cut off money to Planned Parenthood that many conservative Republicans had demanded.   Continue reading “Senate passes bill to avert government shutdown, sends to House”

Reason – by Jacob Sullum

Less than a year ago, Oregon voters approved Measure 91, which legalized marijuana for recreational use. Since July 1, Oregonians who are 21 or older have been allowed to possess up to an ounce in public and grow up to four plants at home. Tomorrow cannabis consumers without green thumbs (or friends who have them) will have another option: They can legally buy marijuana at more than 200 locations.   Continue reading “Legal Marijuana Sales Begin in Oregon Tomorrow”

Gallup – by Rebecca Riffkin

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Four in 10 Americans say they have “a great deal” or “a fair amount” of trust and confidence in the mass media to report the news fully, accurately and fairly. This ties the historical lows on this measure set in 2014 and 2012. Prior to 2004, slight majorities of Americans said they trusted the mass media, such as newspapers, TV and radio.   Continue reading “Americans’ Trust in Media Remains at Historical Low”

Mail.com

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A fugitive wanted in the kidnapping and torture of two women in suburban Portland nearly a quarter century ago was arrested at a hotel in Mexico, where he had been working and living under an assumed name.

Paul Erven Jackson, 45, was arrested Monday by Mexican immigration authorities in downtown Guadalajara, Deputy U.S. Marshal Eric Wahlstrom said. He was flown to the United States overnight and booked into a Los Angeles jail on Tuesday.   Continue reading “Fugitive accused of kidnapping arrested after 24 years”

Mail.com

DENVER (AP) — A man convicted of stabbing five people to death during a Denver bar robbery that netted $170 will be formally sentenced to life in prison on Wednesday.

A judge will issue a mandatory sentence of life without parole for Dexter Lewis, 25, who was convicted in August of five counts of murder for the October 2012 stabbings at Fero’s Bar and Grill. Prosecutors said Lewis led a four-man robbery crew at Fero’s, where he killed the bar’s owner and four customers. Two men testified that Lewis stabbed his victims while they were held at gunpoint.   Continue reading “Man who killed 5 in Denver bar to get life sentence”

Mail.com

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A ship carrying illicit arms believed to be from Iran was intercepted last week off the southern Arabian Peninsula by a member of a U.S.-backed naval coalition and was not registered with any country, the U.S. Navy said Wednesday.

The American description of the ship’s seizure conflicted in some instances with an earlier account provided by a separate Saudi-led coalition battling Yemen’s Shiite rebels, which claimed it had foiled the smuggling attempt. The Saudi coalition alleged that Iran was using the vessel to ship arms to the rebels.   Continue reading “Weapons believed to be from Iran seized in Arabian Sea”

RT

A temporary government spending bill is expected to clear the House and Senate just before a midnight deadline on Wednesday, averting a government shutdown and providing funding until December 11. As a precaution, House lawmakers have invoked “martial law.”

The use of martial law fast-tracks a spending bill by bypassing typical procedures. One of those procedures is that the House of Representatives has to wait a day after the Rules Committee produces rules for a floor debate before a vote on the bill can occur, according to the Hill. By invoking martial law, House lawmakers can vote on the short-term government spending measure on the same day.   Continue reading “‘Martial law’ invoked as Congress scurries to avoid another government shutdown”

RT

At least six people were killed and dozens injured after parcels containing explosives caused massive explosions in Liucheng county and Liuzhou city, in China’s north-central Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, CCTV reported. A suspect has been identified.

Up to 15 explosions were heard across the city between 3.15pm and 5pm.   Continue reading “15 massive blasts in Guangxi, China: At least 6 killed, 13 injured, police blame explosive parcels”

Cyrptogon

haha I’m in my usual middle-of-the-night slog through the doom and just reading about coffee made me feel high and happy. Who knows or cares if the fancy Harvard people are right about coffee being some sort of health elixir.

Mmmm coffee.

Via: Harvard:

Coffee is everywhere, through history and across the world. And increasingly, science is demonstrating that its popularity is a good thing.   Continue reading “Health Benefits of Coffee a Recurring Theme in Harvard Research”

Fox News

Russian warplanes began bombarding Syrian opposition targets in the war-torn nation’s north Wednesday, following a terse meeting at which a Russian general asked Pentagon officials to clear out of Syrian air space and was rebuffed, Fox News has learned.

A U.S. official said Russian airstrikes targeted fighters in the vicinity of Homs, located roughly 60 miles east of a Russian naval facility in Tartus, and were carried out by a “couple” of Russian bombers. The strikes hit targets in Homs and Hama, but there is no presence of ISIS in those areas, a senior U.S. defense official said. These planes are hitting areas where Free Syrian Army and other anti-Assad groups are located, the official said.   Continue reading “Russia launches airstrikes in northern Syria, senior military official says”

Fuel Fix – AP

LINCOLN, Neb. — The developer of the Keystone XL pipeline is shifting course in Nebraska and will withdraw lawsuits seeking to gain access to the property of landowners who oppose the project, the company announced Tuesday.

TransCanada said it will abandon its current efforts to invoke eminent domain through the courts, and will reapply for state approval despite having received the go-ahead from former Republican Gov. Dave Heineman in 2013.   Continue reading “Keystone XL developer drops eminent domain landowner lawsuits in Nebraska”

Infowars – by Kit Daniels

“Does your family own any guns?” asks a high school survey reportedly sent to 100 students. “If so, how many?”

The gun survey given to journalism students at Hendrickson High School in Pflugerville, Texas, also asks students for their parents’ political views.   Continue reading “School Asks Students For Number of Guns, Political Views Held by Family”

The Daily Sheeple – by Joshua Krause

The City of Chicago witnessed a shocking slew of shootings earlier this week, most of which were caused by two separate incidents. The first shooting occurred on Monday evening when a family was returning home from an outing, and were gunned down during a drive-by. A grandmother and her pregnant daughter were killed, and three others were injured. 5 hours later another shooter managed to kill 3 people and injure two more in the Fuller Park neighborhood. All told, 14 people were shot in a 15 hour period, and 6 were killed.   Continue reading “14 People Shot in 15 Hours: Rahm Emanuel Calls for More Gun Legislation”

RT

The only woman on Georgia’s death row has run out of time, despite a plea from the pope. After two stays of execution, Kelly Renee Gissendaner has been put to death via lethal injection.

Both the US Supreme and the Georgia Supreme Court denied Gissendaner’s last-minute appeals for a stay of execution. The US Supreme Court rejected three appeals from Gissendaner on Tuesday night.   Continue reading “Georgia executes only woman on death row, denying clemency bid, papal plea”