Sunday, February 24, 2013
Saturday, February 23, 2013
The Morning Report -- Sunday February 24, 2013
Daytona 500 Wreck -- Vatican Denounces Rumors -- Iran Gains Access To More Uranium -- Top UK Cardinal Faces Accusations -- Radioactive Waste Leaking In Washington -- Federal Budget Standoff Continues -- SC Governor Pushes For 'Healthy' Food Stamps -- North Korea Warns Of 'Destruction'
DAYTONA 500 CRASH INJURES DOZENS
At least 33 fans were injured Saturday during a NASCAR race when a car flew into the fence at Daytona International Speedway, hurling a tire and large pieces of debris into the stands.
The accident happened on the last lap of the second-tier Nationwide Series race on the eve of Sunday's Daytona 500, which officials said would go on as scheduled.
The crash began as the field approached the checkered flag and leader Regan Smith attempted to block Brad Keselowski to preserve the win. That triggered a chain reaction, and rookie Kyle Larson hit the cars in front of him and went airborne into the fence.
VATICAN DENOUNCES 'FALSE' GAY PRIEST REPORT
 |
| USA Today |
VATICAN CITY — The Vatican lashed out at the news media Saturday, addressing for the first time reports that Pope Benedict XVI's resignation was linked to an emerging scandal involving gay priests and high-priced blackmail.
Vatican Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone, who didn't speak in specific terms about the scandal, said, "It is deplorable that as we draw closer to the time of the beginning of the conclave ... that there be a widespread distribution of often unverified, unverifiable or completely false news stories that cause serious damage to persons and institutions."
IRAN CLAIMS TO FIND URANIUM, ANNOUNCES 16 MORE PLANTS
 |
| European Pressphoto Agency |
TEHRAN -- On the eve of international talks about its disputed nuclear program, Iran announced Saturday that it had designated 16 sites for new nuclear power plants and also had discovered substantial new uranium deposits in its territory.
The Islamic Republic also confirmed earlier reports that it had installed scores of new centrifuges to enrich uranium at its Natanz site in central Iran.
The timing of Saturday’s announcements from the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran suggests that Tehran is trying to bolster its negotiating position in advance of nuclear talks scheduled to begin Tuesday in Kazakhstan.
CARDINAL O'BRIEN ACCUSED OF INAPPROPRIATE ACTS
Britain's senior Roman Catholic cleric has been reported to the Vatican over historical allegations of inappropriate behaviour, a newspaper has said.
The Observer said three priests and one former priest made the complaint against Cardinal Keith O'Brien, 74, leader of the Scottish Catholic Church.
They have also demanded his immediate resignation, the paper said.
A statement from the Scottish Catholic Church said Cardinal O'Brien contested the claims and was taking legal advice.
SIX UNDERGROUND TANKS HOLDING TOXIC WASTE LEAKING IN WASHINGTON STATE
 |
| Fox News |
YAKIMA, Wash. – Six underground tanks holding a mix of radioactive and toxic waste are leaking at America’s most contaminated nuclear site in Washington, federal and state officials say, posing an eventual risk to groundwater and rivers.
The leaking materials at Hanford Nuclear Reservation are no immediate threat to public safety or the environment because it would take perhaps years for the chemicals to reach groundwater, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said Friday. So far, nearby monitoring wells haven't detected higher radioactivity levels.
NEITHER SIDE BLINKS IN FEDERAL BUDGET STANDOFF, SEQUESTRATION LOOMS
 |
| Chicago Tribune |
WASHINGTON — The nation's budget solution was never supposed to look like this: Congress and the White Housestaring at across-the-board spending cuts that will begin slashing indiscriminately through the federal government in a matter of days.
Each side had expected cooler heads to prevail, assuming the other would set aside its political preferences and compromise to prevent the economic problems that are widely expected from a sudden reduction in the flow of federal funds.
House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) believed that President Obama was so fearful of deep reductions to domestic programs that the White House would yield to Republican demands. Instead, Obama has stuck to his insistence that wealthier Americans and corporations must contribute more in taxes as part of any solution to the country's long-term debt problems.
HALEY PUSHES TO LIMIT FOOD STAMPS TO HEALTHY ITEMS
COLUMBIA — South Carolina, long at the back of the line in health care, wants to take the lead among states in the battle against obesity by allowing only healthy foods to be purchased with food stamps.
Gov. Nikki Haley on Thursday joined leaders of three state agencies to announce plans to seek a waiver from the federal government to change the food stamp program. Haley noted that South Carolina has the eighth highest rate of obesity among states.
“All of that is about to change, not in what we say but in actions,” Haley said. “We are going to make changes .. so we actually can see results. Then other states will say, ‘What are they doing?’ ”
NORTH KOREA WARNS U.S. FORCES OF 'DESTRUCTION' AHEAD OF DRILLS
 |
| Fox News |
SEOUL (Reuters) — North Korea on Saturday warned the top U.S. military commander stationed in South Korea that his forces would “meet a miserable destruction” if they go ahead with scheduled military drills with South Korean troops, North Korean state media said.
Pak Rim-su, chief delegate of the North Korean military mission to the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom, gave the message by phone to Gen. James Thurman, the commander of the U.S. Forces Korea, KCNA news agency said.
It came amid escalating tension on the divided Korean peninsula after the North’s third nuclear test earlier this month, in defiance of U.N. resolutions, drew harsh international condemnation.
Friday, February 22, 2013
ACN Deals
Previously we attempted a regular segment of the blog called "Deal Of The Day" that would feature a list of deals you could take advantage of. The necessary time devoted to finding the deals got to be too much and unfortunately had to be discontinued. However we've decided to restart the "Deal Of The Day" program under a new title, and a different schedule: "ACN Deals." These deals will include the best money-saving tips/offers we can find all over the internet. As we find more, a new post will be made. We hope you enjoy the following deals
Opinion: U.S. Drug Czar On Marijuana Legalization
A recent article, which was featured in the 2/22 'Morning Report', detailed how the current United States Drug Czar from the Obama administration stated that the feds would be "going after" distributors of marijuana in Colorado and Washington state. This came as a surprise to us as the administration has previously stated that they would not concern themselves with the goings-on in CO and WA regarding pot legalization. We decided to look into things and came across with a better understanding of the situation that, while it may not necessarily change the trajectory of the remarks, should provide context to Mr. Kerlikowske's statement. Read our opinion report below:
Mr. Kerlikowske is, as he is statutorily required to do, doing (and saying) whatever he needs to to prevent the legalization of cannabis. It's codified into his job description and duties.
So, when he says:
"I think a patchwork of policies would create real difficulties. We still have federal law that places marijuana as being illegal. The administration has not done a particularly good job of, one, talking about marijuana as a public health issue, and number two, talking about what can be done and where we should be headed on our drug policy."
This is true. The White House, and for that matter the DEA, ONDCP, DHHS and a myriad of other Federal agencies continue to insist that cannabis is more dangerous than cocaine, methamphetamine prescription opiates, alcohol and tobacco. They assert cannabis is a gateway drug, despite statistics that show 91% of users never go on to harder drugs. And they all work actively together to cage people, deny them health and welfare benefits, take children away and all manner of oppression. So yeah, no one in government has any credibility on the issue. Kinda happens when you lie openly for forty years.
"I don’t look at marijuana as a human right, or a civil right, or even in the same venue as gay marriage. This is a public health issue. There are significant health concerns around marijuana from all the science, not ideology. I don’t see the legalization of drugs and making them widely available as a good thing, and I don’t think locking everyone up is a good thing either."
I've yet to see a cop of any kind on active duty who thinks cannabis is a human right. That doesn't mean it is not a human right. History has NEVER ONCE shown an example of laws prohibiting people from doing what they want with their bodies and lives. No, at the very core, a Prohibitionist is motivated purely by ignorance, envy, greed or hatred.
"Our Congress has made it very clear on these issues that if we feel we lack sufficient legislation, given what we've suffered from, the deaths—particularly in poverty-stricken areas of Appalachia—then we should ask for additional authorities.
What we've done is to say once the problem has been identified and been well-publicized, then our elected officials have been very helpful."
Translation: "Whenever a new substance is invented or discovered, we quickly push to make it illegal. We would rather codify into law a criminal market, absent regulations for quality and safety. We would prefer to enrich criminals, and fight with them. We will make sure we block all requests for research, and will conduct powerful raids with automatic weapons, attack helicopters, and maybe even a fighter jet or two if a kingpin gets too out of line. We will also rev up the propaganda machine and ensure that no one is looking at our massive failure to effect supply or demand of any substance. And we can sucker unwitting politicians into this trap EVERY SINGLE TIME! Look how quick we got everyone to lay down immediately on synthetic marijuana. They didn't even ask if cannabis prohibition itself was the cause of this stuff. It's like shooting fish in a barrel they're so stupid and shortsighted."
"We arrest about 2.4 million people in this country a year for alcohol. We arrest less than 700,000 people for marijuana—and for all drugs, only 1.3 million. Alcohol is perfectly legal. So making drugs available without any sanction would only lead to more abuse."
To come to that conclusion, a person has to willfully ignore the results from Portugal, where we have 10 years of decriminalization of ALL drugs, not just cannabis. The results? Significant decreases in overdose deaths, HIV/hepatitis infections, long term dependency, usage by adults in all age categories, and most importantly among youths. There have also been marked declines in petty crime such as theft and vandalism, and a voluntary treatment program is resulting in better long term recovery rates. Did I mention the savings reaped from fewer arrests, court cases and incarcerations?
Of course, Kerlikowske is on record as saying he doesn't think the experience of Portugal will be matched here. Apparently, basic human behavior is different in Portugal than in the rest of the world.
"The other part is if people go into drug treatment—and the research bears this out clearly—if they knock on the door and say, look, I have a drug problem and I need help, or if they go in with handcuffs on—the outcomes are pretty similar. The criminal justice system, if it has the right resources, can be incredibly helpful at getting people into treatment."
The same miserable results: 1 in 20 who enter addiction treatment remain abstinent for two years or longer. It's doesn't matter what the addiction is by and large. And I seriously doubt any cop, judge or prosecutor is qualified to determine what a person medically needs. It's a statement on the arrogance of Prohibitionists to presume they know what's best for people and how they should live. And he's lying when he says he doesn't think we should lock people up. If that were the case he'd ask his officers to ignore dispensaries. He wouldn't say in one sentence they aren't targeting individuals while they work diligently to remove the supply.
"In the U.S., we really pushed our pharmaceutical industry to develop the abuse-resistant formulas. But if they are easily accessible in Canada, you will see them here. Our first seizure of these was in Milwaukee. So we are keeping a close eye to see if we see others."
'Pushed' is the proper term for these goons. And to the net result that opiate addiction is still a major problem. Only, the goons have scared ethical physicians into not prescribing needed pain medication, leaving patient's legitimately suffering and having to find relief in the black market, or through pain clinics, where the entire regime is designed to keep the pills flowing without the DEA knocking down the doors. Patient care and long-term outcomes are way down the list of priorities, with physician profit being at the very top of the priority list.
To keep the DEA from kicking the doors in and shutting them down, they run drug screens and will kick anyone out of the program that tests positive for 'illicit drugs'. Remember, they are beholden to the police first, thanks to guys like Kerlikowske and his lack of concern for human rights. So naturally, that includes cannabis. Never mind the VAST bank of peer-reviewed studies showing analgesic and other specific benefits for pain. Never mind that patients CONSISTENTLY report having to use less opiates when they use cannabis. Never mind that cannabis has been shown a highly effective strategy to help opiate-dependent patients reduce their intake of opioids. None of those things matter. It's a Schedule I narcotic, and even though no one has ever died from cannabis in recorded history, and even though these myriad of promising medical benefits exist, guys like Mr. Kerlikowski insist otherwise. So if you test positive for any illicit drug, you are not entitled to painkillers in the program. And they wonder why they have no credibility in the public eye.
"Yes, they’d injected safely and hadn’t overdosed, but there was nothing else for them but to continue to get other drugs. I’m sure this will be a controversial statement."
Well, when you don't see this as a human rights issue, I guess you will still find some way to twist that into the notion that prohibiting something will reduce harms. Here's a clue Mr. Kerlikowske: you and your ilk have done nothing but CAUSE harm. You and those like you have endorsed, enforced, and participated with vigor in a program and Prohibition that has resulted in MILLIONS upon MILLIONS dead and suffering, lives ruined and turned upside down. It's resulted in $1 TRILLION of our tax dollaers being wasted. It's resulted in a public that sees the police and Feds as corrupt oppressors, and the public is correct. It's resulted in disrespect for the law (given 100,000,000 Americans have used cannabis in their lifetimes). And it's resulted in a cemented racial and class divide, with people of color and the poor being forever trapped in their situation because of this stupid law.
Every last lawmaker and law enforcement person who supports or enforces this law has an unconscionable legacy. Whether they accept it or not, their hands are stained with the blood of their citizens and the cries of agony for those denied relief. That's the truth.
The Morning Report -- Saturday February 23, 2012
White House Expands Access To Research Findings -- Top UK Cardinal: Let Priests Marry -- Obama Drug Czar Targets CO and WA -- United States To Air-Drop Toxic Mice On Guam -- More Rumors Surface About Pope -- Manhunt Underway After Las Vegas Shooting -- NV Legalizes Online Gambling
WHITE HOUSE EXPANDS PUBLIC ACCESS TO FEDERALLY FUNDED RESEARCH
From the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy
The Obama Administration is committed to the proposition that citizens deserve easy access to the results of scientific research their tax dollars have paid for. That’s why, in a policy memorandum released today, OSTP Director John Holdren has directed Federal agencies with more than $100M in R&D expenditures to develop plans to make the published results of federally funded research freely available to the public within one year of publication and requiring researchers to better account for and manage the digital data resulting from federally funded scientific research. OSTP has been looking into this issue for some time, soliciting broad public input on multiple occasions and convening an interagency working group to develop a policy. The final policy reflects substantial inputs from scientists and scientific organizations, publishers, members of Congress, and other members of the public—over 65 thousand of whom recently signed a We the People petition asking for expanded public access to the results of taxpayer-funded research.
TOP UK CARDINAL PUSHES TO ALLOW PRIESTS TO MARRY, HAVE CHILDREN
Britain's most senior Roman Catholic has said he believes priests should be able to marry if they wish to do so.
Cardinal Keith O'Brien said it was clear many priests struggled to cope with celibacy, and should be able to marry and have children.
The cardinal will be part of the conclave that chooses the next Pope.
He spoke of his surprise at the resignation of Benedict XVI, and said he was open to the new Pope coming from outside of Europe.
OBAMA DRUG CZAR: WE WILL GO AFTER MARIJUANA DISTRIBUTORS IN COLORADO AND WASHINGTON
In an interview with Canadian news magazineMaclean’s last week, Gil Kerlikowske, President Obama’s Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, stated that despite recreational legalization in Washington and Colorado, they would still go after distributors and growers in both states.
"You’ll continue to see enforcement against distributors and large-scale growers as the Justice Department has outlined. They will use their limited resources on those groups and not on going after individual users," said Kerlikowske, who is also a former Seattle Police Chief.
US GOVERNMENT TO AIR DROP TOXIC MICE ON GUAM SNAKES
ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam (AP) — Dead mice laced with painkillers are about to rain down on Guam's jungle canopy. They are scientists' prescription for a headache that has caused the tiny U.S. territory misery for more than 60 years: the brown tree snake.
Most of Guam's native bird species are extinct because of the snake, which reached the island's thick jungles by hitching rides from the South Pacific on U.S. military ships shortly after World War II. There may be 2 million of the reptiles on Guam now, decimating wildlife, biting residents and even knocking out electricity by slithering onto power lines.
WHY IS THE POPE LEAVING SO SOON?
The Pope cited his “incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me” in “today’s world, subject to so many rapid changes.” This was the same week the producers of Maker’s Mark announced they were lowering the alcohol content of their bourbon: Here was the leader of the Catholic church bemoaning his inability to adapt to a changing world. Has everyone forgotten their brand?
MANHUNT UNDERWAY FOR SUSPECTS IN LAS VEGAS STRIP SHOOTING
 |
| Reuters |
(Reuters) - A multi-state manhunt was under way on Friday for the men who shot dead an aspiring rapper as he drove on the Las Vegas Strip in a Maserati, touching off a fiery crash that killed a cab driver and his passenger.
Las Vegas police have not named any suspects in the dramatic pre-dawn shooting in the heart of the desert resort city on Thursday, but said they were still hunting for a black Range Rover used in the incident.
One or more gunmen in the apparently brand-new luxury sport utility vehicle opened fire on a silver Maserati being driven by 27-year-old Kenneth Wayne Cherry Jr. at the busy intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Flamingo Road.
NEVADA SEEKS JACKPOT WITH ACCEPTANCE OF ONLINE GAMBLING
Already home to a major gaming industry, Nevada is preparing to take its expertise online after officials rapidly approved a law to become the first state in the nation to authorize what could become one of the most lucrative gambling markets still to be tapped.
At the bill signing held in the same Capitol room where lawmakers legalized gambling some 80 years ago, Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval formally put his signature to the law Thursday. By quickly moving the bill through the Legislature, Nevada gets ahead of rival New Jersey in the race to win the first slot in the online poker business, where billions of dollars are being wagered domestically and tens of billions of dollars are bet from around the world.
Opinion: Why Is The Pope Checking Out So Soon?
There has been much speculation around Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation. For a week now, rumors have swirled on the internet that the Pope is retiring within the Vatican City to avoid arrest in some kind of lawsuit. Then, Thursday, the Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica reported that the Pope decided to resign Dec. 17, the day he received the findings of a probe into the “Vatileaks” affair, including allegations of a network of gay priests and the blackmailers they’d attracted.
Meanwhile, it was disclosed that Pope Benedict has undergone heart surgery, providing a reasonable explanation for leaving any job – except the one of being God’s chosen representative on Earth.
|
| Reuters |
The Pope cited his “incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me” in “today’s world, subject to so many rapid changes.” This was the same week the producers of Maker’s Mark announced they were lowering the alcohol content of their bourbon: Here was the leader of the Catholic church bemoaning his inability to adapt to a changing world. Has everyone forgotten their brand? Since when did the Catholic church agonize over its inability to respond to change? Not responding to change is what the church does best.
But then, on the heels of the Pope’s announcement another story broke, almost as though he’d sought to get in front of it – a story I like to believe is more likely to explain his hasty retirement: A team of Japanese scientists has announced the discovery of a sea slug that has a disposable penis.
Sea slugs are hermaphrodites. As human knowledge grows, God’s occasional whimsicality with sex organs is something the church has had to confront. An animal with both sets raises questions for a church so particular about gender roles. And given that Pope Benedict XVI’s predecessor, John Paul II, took the position that animals have souls, the soul of a sea slug in a body possessed of two sets of sex organs might have been a worry to the pontiff.
Sea slugs mate with both sets of sex organs, concurrently. I imagine (reminding you that sin lies not in the desire, but only in acting upon that desire) that double-sex must be a pretty tempting proposition, one that could lead many a sea slug astray. Twice. And at the same time. Sea-slug Craigslist postings must be novella length. Questions abound: Does the involvement of four sex organs automatically make the most mundane Monday-night, post-“let’s-see-what’s-on-Netflix” sea-slug encounter an orgy?
I’m guessing that the church would sanction that, provided the sea slugs really concentrated on what went where, with no funny stuff – but remember, sea slugs live underwater, and are at the mercy of the currents. Two pious sea slugs could be lining up their organs just fine, by the book, and then suddenly a large tuna, say, could swim over them. The poor little things could get flipped around in the act of procreation and suddenly they’d be having a big, gay, tuna-induced orgy. One wave and the purest of sea-slug couples attempting to form a blessed union might inadvertently find him/herself and him/herself in an aquatic version of Satyricon.
I’d like to believe that while these things weighed heavily on him, like other popes before him, the Pope grappled with their theological implications, as was his lot, until news came of a sea slug that, post-coitus, drags his/her penis alongside him/herself for 20 minutes before casually discarding it and then growing anoth er one within 24 hours – and that proved too much. Consider the moral issues a detachable penis raises: If one of God’s creatures uses a different penis every time he has sex, is he a virgin each time? Would any sea slug drawn into the service of the Lord have to stop being a priest for the 24 hours she didn’t have a penis?
All of this would be enough to throw any pontiff into spiritual crisis, but, what’s more, the sea-slug penis in question appears to be covered with tiny spines that scrape out any competing sperm inside the vagina-like organ of his/her partner as he himself attempts fertilization. Thus, he disposes of his rival’s seed when he ditches his used penis. We’re confronted with a removable penis that is also an effective, though selective, form of birth control. What Pope wouldn’t feel overwhelmed?
Word has it that Benedict will issue a decree speeding up the process of appointing his replacement. While the pontiff is fatigued, he recognizes that there must be guidance – during this, the age of the disposable penis.
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
The Morning Report -- Thursday, February 21, 2013
U.S. Military Milestone In Afghanistan -- Pentagon Braces For Sequester -- Keystone XL Oil Pipeline Jobs Dwindle -- Supreme Court To Take Up Donation Limits -- Mars Curiosity Rover Breakthrough -- Senator Fathers Son With Senator -- Skeleton Found On Mars? -- Stanford Raises $1 Billion
30 DAYS WITHOUT A U.S. MILITARY DEATH IN AFGHANISTAN
 |
| Getty Images |
A milestone was reached in Afghanistan Wednesday that has not happened in six years: 30 days without a U.S. military fatality.
It is the longest gap between U.S. military fatalities in Afghanistan since February and March of 2007, when there was a similar 30 day gap.
The winter months in Afghanistan always see a relative reduction in American military casualties as the cold weather and the elements restricts combat engagements.
But this winter season has seen one of the lowest casualty rates in years.
PENTAGON INFORMS CONGRESS OF 800 THOUSAND CIVILIAN WORKER FURLOUGHS
The Pentagon notified Congress on Wednesday it will be furloughing its civilian workforce of 800,000 employees if sequestration goes into effect March 1
defense officials have warned lawmakers that sequestration will devastate the military and lead to a hollow force, but the civilian furloughs will be one of the first major impacts felt by the across-the-board cuts.
The Pentagon furloughs will affect civilians across the country. Pentagon officials have said that civilians could face up to 22 days of furloughs, one per week, through the end of the fiscal year in September. The employees would receive 30 days' notice before being furloughed.
KEYSTONE'S 'THOUSANDS' Of JOBS FALL TO 20
 |
| Bloomberg |
TransCanada Corp. (TRP)’s Keystone XL oil pipeline, heralded by supporters as a major job creator, will add few permanent positions once the $7 billion project is built.
The number of people needed to operate and maintain the 1,661-mile (2,673-kilometer) pipeline may be as few as 20, according to the U.S. State Department, or as many as a few hundred, according to TransCanada.
“I don’t see a big jobs impact,” Stephen Fuller, director of the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University in Arlington, Virginia, said in an interview. “It gets the oil into refineries that already exist. It’s like replacing a bridge on the highway.”
JUSTICES TO HEAR APPEAL OF INDIVIDUAL DONATION LIMITS
 |
| Roll Call |
WASHINGTON— The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Tuesday to consider taking another step toward dismantling campaign finance laws, potentially freeing wealthy donors to give as much as they want in any election cycle and raising the possibility that it could overturn limits that apply to individual candidates as well.
In its landmark Citizens United decision, the court ruled in 2010 that corporations, unions and individuals could spend unlimited sums on campaign ads so long as they are independent of the candidates and political parties. That triggered the creation of so-called "super PACs," which can raise and spend huge sums on politics, so long as they are ostensibly independent of a candidate or party.
NASA CONFIRMS FIRST DRILLED MARS ROCK SAMPLE
 |
| NASA |
PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has relayed new images that confirm it has successfully obtained the first sample ever collected from the interior of a rock on another planet. No rover has ever drilled into a rock beyond Earth and collected a sample from its interior.
Transfer of the powdered-rock sample into an open scoop was visible for the first time in images received Wednesday at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
"Seeing the powder from the drill in the scoop allows us to verify for the first time the drill collected a sample as it bore into the rock," said JPL's Scott McCloskey, drill systems engineer for Curiosity. "Many of us have been working toward this day for years. Getting final confirmation of successful drilling is incredibly gratifying. For the sampling team, this is the equivalent of the landing team going crazy after the successful touchdown."
SENATOR FATHERS CHILD WITH DAUGHTER OF ANOTHER SENATOR
 |
| Getty Images |
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Former Sen. Pete Domenici of New Mexico fathered a son outside of his marriage more than 30 years ago with the then-24-year-old daughter of a Senate colleague, the retired Republican has acknowledged.
The revelation stunned many who know the state's longest-serving senator as a family man who advocated honesty.
Domenici and Michelle Laxalt sent statements to the Albuquerque Journal identifying their son as Nevada attorney Adam Paul Laxalt. They said they decided to go public with their decades-old secret because they believed someone was about to reveal the information in an attempt to smear Domenici.
FOSSILIZED SKELETON FOUND ON MARS?
A video making the rounds on the web has alien hunters and Mars watchers excited with what looks remarkably like a fossilized skeleton of a lizard-like creature photographed by the Mars Curiosity rover. What is it?
Paranormal bulletin boards are on fire with still images, enhanced and enlarged, which do bear a striking resemblance to fossils of ancient creatures found on Earth.
The video, uploaded to YouTube on Feb. 19, is a vignette made from a single photo taken by Curiosity earlier in the month. The photo seems to show the outline of animal vertebrae snaking into what looks like a tail and exposed above the rocky Martian soil.
STATE UNIVERSITY RAISES RECORD BREAKING $1BN
Stanford University has become the first US college to raise more than $1bn (£650m) in a year.
The California institution ranked first in the 2012 Council for Aid to Education's survey, for the eighth straight year.
The report found that 3,500 US universities raised a total of $31bn, 2.3% more than the previous year.
The top 10 schools, including Harvard and Yale, accounted for 17% of the total fundraising efforts.
But the total was just short of the all-time record in 2008.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)