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Track the Path of Hurricane Maria As It Strengthens in the Caribbean

Hurricane Maria is strengthening in the Caribbean and its latest path shows the storm threatening islands that are only just recovering from Hurricanes Irma and Jose. The Category 5 storm, with winds clocking at 130 mph, was expected to hit the Leeward Islands late on Monday, according to the National Hurricane Center. Maria could then take aim at Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and St. Martin over the next few days. Click or tap the arrows in the hurricane map below to follow Hurricane Maria's path as tracked by the National Hurricane Center, Maria follows Hurricane Irma, a storm that left dozens of people dead in the Caribbean and the U.S. and caused extensive destruction.

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Vandals Have Attacked a Jewish Cemetery in Missouri Toppling Scores of Tombstones

More than 100 headstones were reportedly damaged or toppled in a historic Jewish cemetery in University City, Mo. on Monday, in what local media says was likely an act of vandalism carried out by an organized group. According to Fox2 St. Louis, police will not say whether it is being pursued as a hate crime. "It's extraordinarily sad, I know people who are buried there," said Karen Aroesty, the regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, speaking to Fox2. "Enough already. This is where your loved ones come to be safe in perpetuity, and the level of tension in the Jewish community is pretty high.", The Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery was established in the St. Louis suburb of University City in 1893, and is a well-known and sacred memorial ground among the local Jewish population and other members of the community. , The incident follows a new round of bomb threats at Jewish community centers across the country. It's the fourth time this year that multiple Jewish institutions have received threats in tandem, causing alarm over what some say is a rise of anti-Semitism in the U.S. The White House denounced the threats on Monday, CNN reported, citing deputy press secretary Lindsay Walters. She said "Hatred and hate-motivated violence of any kind have no place in a country founded on the promise of individual freedom. The President has made it abundantly clear that these actions are unacceptable.", Trump's son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner is Jewish and his daughter Ivanka is a convert to Judaism. However, some Jewish community leaders have criticized the failure of President Donald Trump or his Administration to explicitly denounce anti-Semitism until now. "Racism and anti-Semitism have become more socially acceptable now," Rabbi Barry Leff of Birmingham, Ala. told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. When a Jewish reporter asked Trump last week about a perceived "uptick in anti-Semitism," the President criticized the reporter for asking an "unfair question.", At joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Feb. 15, Trump was asked a question about anti-Semitism but responded by talking about his electoral win. The Administration was also strongly criticized in January because a White House statement on International Holocaust Remembrance Day conspicuously failed to mention Jews or anti-Semitism.

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Suspect Caught in Charleston Church Shooting

Authorities on Thursday said they had arrested the suspect in the Charleston, S.C. shooting inside a historically black church that killed nine people and is being investigated as a hate crime. Police identified the suspect as Dylann Roof, 21, of Lexington, S.C. and said they had captured him after a massive manhunt from Wednesday night into Thursday morning. He was taken into custody at 1049 a.m. during a traffic stop in Shelby, N.C. where he was "cooperative" with officers, officials said. "We don't let bad people like this get away with these dastardly deeds," Charleston Mayor Joseph Riley said at a press conference just before noon announcing Roof's arrest. South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley broke down as she spoke at the press conference, describing the deep grief that had overwhelmed the state. "We woke up today and the heart and soul of South Carolina was broken," Haley said, adding, "It is a very very sad day in South Carolina. But it is a day we will get through, it is a day we will remember and it is a day that will allow us to get stronger.", Speaking at his own press conference Thursday afternoon, President Obama expressed his condolences to the victims' families and said, "At some point we as a country will have to reckon with the fact that this type of violence doesn't happen in other advanced countries.", He added, "Hatred across races and faiths poses a particular threat to our democracy.", Earlier Thursday, Police Chief Greg Mullen said the suspect, who is white, was in a meeting for about an hour inside the Emanuel AME Church before he began shooting, killing six women and three men. The time stamps on images of the suspect show him entering the church at 817 p.m. the shooting was reported at 905 p.m. Police believe he acted alone. , Eight of the victims were dead when police arrived on the scene, and the ninth was taken to a hospital and later died. Mullen said Thursday morning that there were three survivors who police have been communicating with. At a press conference Thursday afternoon, the county coroner said it was "obvious" that all the victims had died as a result of gunshot wounds. She also identified all nine victims by name Cynthia Hurd, Suzy Jackson, Ethel Lance, Rev. Depayne Middleton, Rev. Clementa Pinkney , Tywanza Sanders, Rev. Daniel Summons Sr. Myra Thompson and Rev. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton. Pinckney, one of the victims, was the church's pastor and a state senator. A black cloth was placed over his chair in the Senate in Charleston on Thursday. "This tragedy we are describing right now is indescribable," Mullen said in a press conference. "No one in this community will ever forget this night.", The FBI was called in to help with finding Roof. The official Twitter for the Berkeley County government posted photographs of Roof, as well as his potential license plate number, while the search was still underway, , , Speaking Thursday, Attorney General Loretta Lynch said the Department of Justice has opened a hate crime investigation into the shooting. "Acts like this one have no place in our country and no place in a civilized society," Lynch said. Rev. John Paul Brown, a Charleston minister, urged the community not to retaliate for the attack. "At this point there is so much healing that is needed, he told WBTV. "As a faith community we would kill everything that we stand for if we resorted to violence.", This attack comes two months after the fatal shooting of Walter Scott, an unarmed black man, by a white police officer in neighboring North Charleston, which ignited racial tensions in the state and around the country.

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Child Contracts the Plague After Trip to Yosemite National Park

Public Health officials in California are investigating a case of the plague contracted by a child who had recently camped at Yosemite National Park. News of the investigation comes in the wake of reports of the recent death of a Colorado resident who had contracted the rare disease that case marked the second plague death in Colorado this year. According to the California Department of Public Health, the childwhose age, gender, ethnicity have not been releasedgot sick after camping at Yosemite's Crane Flat Campground in mid-July. The child was hospitalized shortly after and is currently recovering. No one else that the child was camping with has reported being sick. Public health officials say the last time a human case of the plagueit's often found in fleas and rodentswas reported was in 2006. As a precaution, officials are warning residents to protect themselves from bugs using repellant containing DEET and to avoid feeding live, wild rodents and touching dead ones. "Never feed squirrels, chipmunks, or other rodents in picnic or campground areas, and never touch sick or dead rodents. Protect your pets from fleas and keep them away from wild animals," said Dr. Karen Smith, the director of the California Department of Health, in a statement. Symptoms of the plague include high fever, chills, and swollen lymph nodes. When caught in the early stages, plague is treatable by antibiotics. Without treatment, the disease can kill.

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CDC Confirms Zika Virus Infection in Minnesota Woman

A case of the Zika virus has been confirmed Wednesday in a Minnesota woman who traveled to Central America, health officials said. The Minnesota Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the woman began showing symptoms Jan. 1, after she traveled to Honduras. The woman was not hospitalized and officials say they expect her to make a full recovery. This is the first Zika virus infection in Minnesota since 2014 and state health officials advised travelers not to panic but to be weary when going to regions where infections are common. "Zika virus is not a health threat for people in Minnesota, but it is a reminder that anyone traveling to a different part of the world should be mindful of the health issues present in that region," Minnesota health commissioner Ed Ehlinger said in a statement. "Since some regions where Zika is circulating are popular destinations for Minnesota travelers in the winter, we expected we might see cases of Zika in the state.", Zika virus has put American travelers on notice, as several cases of infection have been reported in January. The virus, a mosquito-borne disease currently ravaging South America, has been reported to cause birth defects in children.

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The Quality of Mercy

Some actions simply can't be explained, only explored, their meaning shifting with the passage of time. First came the crimea young man warmly welcomed into a church Bible study in Charleston, S.C. in June, only to pull out a .45caliber handgun from his fanny pack and -methodically shoot one member after another, nine in all. Then, within 48 hours, came the plot twist, as surviving family members stood at a bond hearing and proclaimed mercy on his soul. Days later the bitter debate over the Confederate flag ended, flags disappeared like startled birds, and the country leaned back, relieved that an act of -violence meant to ignite a race war devolved instead into a pageant of amazing grace. Except like all parables, this story was not over, as the lessons were more complex. The physics of mercy is a mysterious science, as David Von Drehle writes in his extraordinary account of what has happened in Charleston in the past five months. "Ultimately, this story is the who, what, when and why of forgiveness," David says. "But to tell that story, we had to make a main character of Loss. The essay returns again and againnine times in allto reckon with this weighty presence, because we can't really talk about forgiveness until we have a real feeling for the offense.", After the shooting, I sent a pair of reporters to follow the unfolding story. Maya Rhodan and Jay Newton-Small arrived in Charleston on Aug. 2, rented an apartment and stayed through midSeptember. They were there to learn as much as they could from the five people who survived as well as relatives of the slain. "We knew we couldn't tell the story the way we wanted tothe way it needed to be toldwithout fully immersing ourselves in the community," Maya says. "We went to every Bible study, every church service. We took tours, attended rallies and even drove the routes some of the victims took to and from work and home and church." They conducted well over 150 interviews, some lasting two, three and even eight hours, some spread over a period of weeks. At night, they walked the streets of Charleston going over the interviews they'd conducted during the day, trying to make sense of the deeply personal stories they'd heard. Photographer Deana Lawson spent weeks creating portraits of those friends and family members, each coping in their own way with the challenges of grief, anger and forgiveness. Jay's experience as a reporter, including covering the war in Iraq and the Boston Marathon bombing, was deepened by another experience over the summer. "My father died the week before I left for Charleston," she says, "which made grief and grieving very much on my mind, though I lost my father to a long battle with Alzheimer'snothing as tragic as these murders. It also made it hard not to cry when my interviewees criedand they all cried, every one of them.", The philosopher Ernest Renan said that nations must forget the past in order to forgive and move forward. But perhaps Charleston points to the opposite truth. A genuine understanding of our past and an honest reckoning of the way it shapes our present is the only answer to the hatred that compelled this crime. As Maya says, "Despite the pages and pages of information that we'd gathered, we couldn't help but feel like our work wasn't yet finished. The truth is, the story of Charleston and the Emanuel Nine is still being written."

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President Trump Bypassed Normal Gun Licensing Procedures Says ExNYPD Official

NEW YORK A disgraced former commander in the New York Police Department's gun licensing bureau claimed in a court filing Wednesday that President Donald Trump and his eldest son were among celebrities and donors who got licenses without proper credentials. The court papers were filed by a lawyer for former Lt. Paul Dean, who seeks leniency after pleading guilty in August to conspiracy to bribe licensing officers. The charge related to plans by Dean to retire from the police department to start a business to help individuals get the coveted permits. In a court filing Wednesday, attorney Abe George said the bureau had a history of giving star treatment to certain applicants. He cited several powerful people who allegedly received licenses without normal vetting, including Trump, his former lawyer Michael Cohen and Donald Trump Jr. Others accused of benefiting from the scheme include business chief executives, Fox News Channel's Sean Hannity, comedian Tracy Morgan, actor Tom Selleck and the owner of a Manhattan nightclub who is accused of gifting members of the police department free lap dances. The filing did not suggest the Trumps, Cohen or the others did anything wrong or were aware of bribes. Representatives of Trump and his son did not immediately comment. In a statement, the police department said the information provided by Dean after his arrest on corruption charges was part of a thorough investigation by the NYPD Internal Affairs Bureau, the FBI's Public Corruption Unit and overseen by federal prosecutors. Those authorities, the statement said, "found no basis to charge any other individual.", In a statement Sean Hannity delivered through a spokesperson, the television personality said he has had his permit for most of his working years at Fox News, which he joined in 1996. "He has followed every legal and proper procedure for his original application and numerous subsequent renewals," the statement said. It also said he has no relationship with police officials Dean alleged were part of the scheme or with anyone else at the licensing department. Emails requesting comment from representatives for Morgan and Selleck were not immediately returned Wednesday. Dean, scheduled for sentencing Jan. 31, signed a plea agreement with prosecutors that recommends a sentence of between 18 and 24 months in prison. Prosecutors have not yet filed their pre-sentence submission. Dean's lawyer describes his client's 22-year police department career as "unblemished" prior to his 2017 arrest. His filing notes he was among the first responders to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and remained there for months afterward. It said the leniency was earned in part through "Dean's willingness to break the Blue Wall of Silence" and provide truthful information on three separate occasions to the government.", The prosecution alleged corrupt police officers in the licensing division accepted bribes to help expedite over 150 applications for gun licenses from a civilian who received as much as 18,000 per license. Dean maintained it was long an open secret that gun licenses were for sale as licensing officers accepted alcohol, meals, jewelry and cash.

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FedEx Says NRA Member Discounts Are Here to Stay

FedEx Corp. is maintaining discounts for members of the National Rifle Association, even as calls for a boycott mount on social media after a deadly school shooting in Florida. The courier said it "has never set or changed rates for any of our millions of customers around the world in response to their politics, beliefs or positions on issues." The NRA is one of hundreds of organizations in its alliance programs, FedEx said Monday in its first public comment on the matter. Since Sunday, the BoycottFedEx hashtag has been included in more than 700 posts on Twitter, including one by Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school student David Hogg that has been shared more than 13,000 times. Hogg who now has more than 330,000 followers on Twitter and peers at Stoneman Douglas have gained national attention as advocates for gun-law reforms since a Feb. 14 attack at the school left 17 students and teachers dead. FedEx said its views on firearms policy differ from the NRA's. While the company said it supports the constitutional right of U.S. citizens to own firearms, subject to appropriate background checks, it supports keeping assault rifles out of civilian hands. Assault rifles and large capacity magazines are "an inherent danger to schools, workplaces and communities when such weapons are misused," FedEx said in the statement. "We therefore support restricting them to the military.", Shares of the Memphis, Tennessee-based company rose less than 1 percent to 254.51 at the close in New York. They were unchanged in late trading, following the company's statement on the NRA. FedEx is part of the NRA Business Alliance and offers discounts through its FedEx Advantage program for shipping by FedEx Ground and FedEx Express and some services at FedEx Office, according to company and NRA websites. NRA officials also didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Delta Air Lines Inc. and United Continental Holdings Inc. are among companies that cut ties with the NRA following online calls to boycott the gun lobbying group. Symantec Corp. owner of Lifelock and Simplisafe Inc. rental car companies Hertz Global Holdings Inc. and Avis Budget Group Inc. and insurer MetLife Inc. all have cut ties to the NRA. Apple Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. were among companies being pressured Monday on social media to drop the lobbying group's streaming TV channel. For a look at why Delta, Hertz have more to lose from NRA ties, click here, Supporters of the NRA, however, were mounting their own campaigns. Georgia Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle, a Republican who is running for governor, on Monday threatened to kill tax legislation that would benefit Delta unless it reinstates its relationship with the NRA. A bill before the state's General Assembly would exempt jet fuel from sales tax, benefiting the airline. "Corporations cannot attack conservatives and expect us not to fight back," Cagle wrote on Twitter. Delta said Saturday it would end an NRA contract for discounted rates on flights to the group's annual meeting. The airline also asked to have its name removed from the NRA's meeting website.

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Prince Harry Meets President Obama at the White House

On Wednesday, Prince Harry followed his older brother Prince William in having an audience with President Barack Obama at the Oval Office. While Prince William spoke about the plight of endangered elephants and rhinos in Africa during his White House meeting last December, Harry was promoting his campaign to help wounded veterans. The former British Army captain, who completed two tours in Afghanistan, is on a one-day visit to D.C. to launch his paralympic-style Invictus Games, which will take place in Orlando, Florida, in May. Earlier on Wednesday, he spent time with First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, both of whom are big backers of veterans' welfare. Speaking at Fort Belvoir in Virginia, Harry, 31, discussed tackling the stigma behind many of the issues faced by wounded service members. "One thing we have to talk about more is breaking down these barriers around so-called invisible injuries, like post-traumatic stress, just as we have for physical injuries like the loss of a limb," he said. "This is a topic I know the First Lady and Dr. Biden are working hard to highlight so that people are no longer afraid to ask for help. This fear of coming forward, as a result of the stigma which surrounds mental health, is one of the greatest challenges veterans face. People from all walks of life struggle with issues like post-traumatic stress, anxiety, and depression, not just veterans. "We have to help them all to get the support they need, without fear of being judged or discriminated against. Not only is it okay to talk about it, we have to talk about it.", Harry has devoted much of his public life to helping those he has served alongside. Last month, he spent time with six ex-armed service members who are walking 1,000 miles around Britain. And he is expected to welcome that crew into Buckingham Palace on Sunday. "What's important is to recognize that the mental health support for these guys, former servicemen and women, is there," he told PEOPLE in September. "They have served their country. They have put their lives on the line for their country."

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This Is Hurricane Harveys Path and Forecast

Texas is preparing for Hurricane Harvey, which is likely to be the strongest such storm to hit the U.S. in over a decade. Currently a category two hurricane, it could strengthen into a category three storm before it strikes. Hurricane Harvey is expected to make landfall on the middle Texas coast late Friday or early Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. Harvey will then "meander near or just inland of the middle Texas coast through the weekend," the NWS says. It's expected to move north along the coast Tuesday and Wednesday before dissipating. In part because Harvey is expected to move so slowly, the hurricane is expected to bring rainfall of 15 to 25 inches, with as much as 35 inches in some areas, according to the NWS. Storm surge is an issue as well. Overall, flooding could reach between six and 12 feed above ground level. Mandatory evacuations have been ordered in all seven Texas counties along the Gulf coast. All citizens in four of those counties have been ordered to evacuate, with officials telling residents their safety cannot be guaranteed if they stay behind, the Associated Press reports. Tens of thousands of people have evacuated the area in total. Even still, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott told NBC affiliate station KPRC that some people aren't taking the warnings seriously enough. "A lot of people are taking this storm for granted thinking it may not post much of a danger to them," Abbott said.

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Republicans Are Less Likely Than Democrats to Believe Women Who Make Sexual Assault Accusations Surv

In the two months since Harvey Weinstein was felled by a wave of allegations, American attitudes on sexual harassment and assault have shifted dramatically. Hundreds of people have come forward with accusations against powerful men in industries ranging from Hollywood and the media to politics and business, sparking a movement of "silence breakers" who were named TIME's Person of the Year for their influence on 2017. TIME and SurveyMonkey conducted an online poll to capture the rapid shift in the way Americans think about these issues and found that 8 in 10 people believe women are more likely to speak out about sexual assault and harassment since the allegations against Weinstein broke in October. But the poll of more than 2,300 adults also revealed a stark partisan divide in how Americans view sexual assault allegations. Democrats are more likely than Republicans to believe accusers 93 of Democrats say they believe the women alleging sexual harassment, compared to 78 of Republicans. Republicans are also twice as likely as Democrats to think that accused men are being unfairly treated by the media 52 of Republicans think the media coverage of the sexual allegations is unfair, compared to 20 of Democrats. And while 77 of Democrats say the MeToo movement will lead to meaningful change, 55 of Republicans say the movement is a distraction. The differences between the parties are even more dramatic when the question turns directly to politics. Most voters in both parties agree that a Democratic congressman accused of sexual harassment should resign from office 71 of Republicans and 74 of Democrats. But when the accused congressman is a member of the GOP, just 54 of Republicans demand a resignation, compared to 82 of Democrats. These findings are consistent with a November Quinnipiac poll, which found that 62 of Americans would definitely not vote for a candidate who has been accused of sexual harassment by multiple women, but Republicans are divided 42 say they would consider voting for the candidate and 41 said they wouldn't. The poll also found that a majority of Americans 65 are concerned about some men being falsely accused, and nearly three-quarters of men are concerned about this possibility only 9 think their own behavior would be considered misconduct. More than a quarter of men 28 said the MeToo movement made them more likely to speak up if they witness sexual harassment or assault, and 54 of men said the movement will lead to meaningful change. Still, women are more likely than men to see sexual assault and harassment as a pervasive problem in American life. Nearly 8 in 10 women say sexual harassment is a big problem, compared to just over half of men. The TIME/SurveyMonkey online survey of 2,358 adults was taken between Nov. 28-30, and has a margin of error of 3.5 percent.

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Pope Francis Newest Saint May Not Last at US Capitol

Though Pope Francis will soon formalize Junpero Serra's status as a saint in the Catholic Church, the California friar's place in the U.S. Capitol is less secure. A bronze statue of Serra currently stands in the National Statuary Hall, south of the Capitol Rotunda, where the pope will speak Thursday. The statue, one of two chosen by California to represents its history and culture, recognizes the Spanish-born friar who started nine missions in the 19th century. But while Francis will canonize Serra Wednesday, there is a movement afoot to replace the statue of him in the Capitol with one of astronaut Sally Ride, the first American woman in space. The House of Representatives started the Statuary Hall Collection in 1864, so that states could commemorate two of their own citizens within the Capitol. By 1933, the burden of only 65 out of 100 possible statues was already too much for the Hall, as the structure would not support all the weight. Congress decided to limit the states to one statue in the Hall each. Read More This Is the California Friar the Pope Is About to Canonize, The steps for replacing a statue in the Hall are complex, but any proposal first requires approval from the state legislature and governor. Architect of the Capitol spokesperson Laura Condeluci told TIME in an email that six states to date have decided to change their statues, all since 2003. Earlier this year, California State Sen. Ricardo Lara proposed a measure to swap out Serra's figure with a statue of Ride. Ride would also be the first statue of a gay or lesbian in the hall. Many Native Americans in California, who disapprove of Serra's treatment of indigenous people, support the measure and are protesting the Pope's canonization of Serra. California Gov. Jerry Brown, however, does not agree with the change. "Tragedy and good and evil often inhere in the same situation," he said in response to the outcry in January. "And that doesn't mean we won't have our saints. It's just that we have to understand that saints, like everybody else, are not perfect.", The measure passed the State Senate, but Lara requested to postpone a vote in the other chamber until after the Pope's visit. An assemblyman and state senator said in a June statement that debating the bill before Francis' visit "would have conveyed a terrible message to him and millions of Catholics around the world.", In the meantime, Brown said during a July visit to Rome that Serra's statue would remain in the Hall "until the end of time.", Read Next Here Are the 5 Controversies Over Pope Francis' Visit to Washington

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Parents Are Facing a Nightmare at the US Border

Earlier this year, a young Honduran woman named Mirian gathered her 18-month-old son into her arms and walked across the bridge between Matamoros, Mexico, and Brownsville, Texas, where she presented herself to U.S. border agents to ask for asylum. Mirian and her son spent the night in a detention facility. The next day, officials told her to put her son into a car seat in the back of a government vehicle. Her hands shook as she buckled him in. The officials wouldn't tell her where they were taking him, she wrote in a personal statement later published by CNN.comonly that she would not be allowed to go with him. As the car pulled away, she could see her baby looking back at her through the window, screaming. For the next 2 months, Mirian was detained at an immigration center, unable to speak with or visit her son, according to her lawyer Elissa Steglich. Mirian wondered if her son would forget the sound of her voice. "The separation is very harsh," says Denise Gilman, who heads the Immigration Clinic at the University of Texas School of Law, and who met with Mirian. "It often means not knowing where the other is.", Mirian and her son were eventually reunited, but a version of her parental nightmare has now become U.S. policy. On May 7, the Trump Administration announced a "zero tolerance" agenda on the U.S. border. The policy seems simple anyone who crosses the border without authorization is now subject to prosecution for a federal misdemeanor, which can result in a sentence of 180 days for a first offense. Because children can't be jailed alongside adults, minors must be separated and kept in juvenile facilities while their moms or dads are incarcerated. The crackdown on prosecutions has triggered an explosion of family separations. While ICE has not released official numbers, Reuters reports that as many as 1,800 families have been separated since late 2016. Regional public defenders report that some 400 children were separated from their families during a two-week stretch in May and June in McAllen, Texas, alone. "This is definitely new," says Diane Eikenberry, an associate director at the National Immigrant Justice Center. "It's something we haven't seen.", The new policy has extended not only to those crossing the border illegally. In a number of cases, says Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Immigrants' Rights Project, federal agents appear to have taken children away from their parents even when the parents have followed legal protocol for seeking asylum. Mirian, for example, was never charged with a crime, says Steglich. The new "zero tolerance" policy also marks a profound break from past Administrations, when parents traveling with children were usually either released wearing tracking devices, detained with their children or admitted to case-management programs in an effort to keep families intact. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson defended the Trump Administration's hard-line policy on the grounds that the government regularly incarcerates American-born criminals with children. "If you commit a crime, the police will take you to jailregardless if you have a family or not," the spokesperson said. He declined to address questions about pending litigation involving immigrants who were separated from their children despite not being charged with a crime. Immigrants' advocates offer wrenching accounts of how, exactly, federal authorities remove children from their moms and dads. On some occasions, advocates told TIME, kids are pulled, sobbing, from their parents' arms. On other occasions, agents have allegedly lied. "They say, We're just going to take your kids to have a bath,'" Gilman says. "But then they don't bring them back." The American Academy of Pediatrics recently published a letter noting that taking a child from a parent can do "irreparable harm, disrupting a child's brain architecture and affecting his or her short- and long-term health.", Reuniting families once parents are released is also a complicated process, fraught with delays. Because it requires that Customs and Border Protection, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Office of Refugee Resettlement, among other federal agencies, communicate with one another, not all families have been reunited, advocates say. In some cases, they say, parents have been deported while their children remain in the U.S. Whether a policy that results in the mass separation of children and parents violates the Constitution's guarantee of due process remains an open question. In June, a federal judge appointed by George W. Bush refused the Trump Administration's request to dismiss an ACLU lawsuit challenging the policy. The government's conduct, if true, appears "brutal, offensive, and fails to comport with traditional notions of fair play and decency," the judge wrote. He is expected to rule on the case this summer. The Texas Civil Rights Project and other groups have also filed an emergency injunction with the Washington-based Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Gelernt, who argued the ACLU case last month, said the question of whether the policy is legal looms large. But beyond that, he said, there's a question of what's humane. "Why be so mean-spirited?" he said. "So gratuitously cruel?"

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University of Iowa Student Found Frozen to Death in Minus51Degree Wind Chill the 8th Polar Vortex D

A University of Iowa student was found apparently frozen to death on campus as wind chills hit minus-51 degrees Fahrenheit one of at least eight people to die as a result of the record-setting cold that had settled on the Midwest this week. Authorities said the body of Gerald Belz, 18, was found by campus police just before 3 a.m. Wednesday behind an academic building. The pre-med student was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Officials believe his death was related to dangerously low temperatures, though they are yet to give a specific cause of death. Doctors did not find alcohol in his system. No foul play was suspected, police said. , , According to the National Weather Service, temperatures in Iowa City dropped to minus-21 degrees late Tuesday and early Wednesday with a wind-chill as low as minus-51 degrees. Michael Belz, Gerald's father, told KCRG his son was a "quiet, tough guy." He was a semester ahead at the University of Iowa due to extra college courses. "He was a good kid," Belz said. In a tweet, Belz's old high school principal paid tribute, as well as offering counseling services to any distressed students. , On Tuesday, a 55-year-old man was found dead outside a garage in Milwaukee, having collapsed after shoveling snow an 82-year-old in Pekin, Ill. died from hypothermia outside his home on the same day. A 75-year-old man was killed when he was struck by a snow plough near Chicago on Monday, and in northern Indiana, a young couple died after a their car was hit while driving on icy roads. Two others have died in Michigan. It is not the first time the severe cold has claimed a life on the University of Iowa campus. Last January, Paul J. Biagas, 24, was found dead in the snow outside the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center. At the time, the temperature in Iowa City was around 5 degrees, with a wind chill of minus-10 degrees.

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San Bernardino Shooters Left Their Baby with Grandmother Before Rampage

A couple who died in a hail of bullets after allegedly killing 14 people during a Christmas party at a state-run center for people with developmental disabilities left their six-month-old daughter with her grandmother before the onslaught. U.S.-born Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, and wife Tashfeen Malik, 27, were killed in a shootout with police more than four hours after the rampage at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, California, on Wednesday.

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A Woman Who Says She Is Donald Sterlings Ex Is Suing Him for Racial and Sexual Abuse

A woman claiming to be the ex-lover of Donald Sterling, the disgraced basketball-team owner who was recently barred from the NBA for life after making racist comments, launched a suit against the 80-year-old on Monday for alleged racial discrimination and sexual harassment. Maiko Maya King says she faced a "steady stream of racially and sexually offensive comments" both during their claimed relationship from 2005 to 2011 and after, when she was employed by Sterling as a personal assistant and caretaker. The lawsuit asserts that Sterling made comments about King's African-American husband, like, "Why would you bring black people into the world?" and "I want to take you out of the black world and put you into the white world." The former owner of the Los Angeles Clippers also allegedly said, "Black people do not take care of their children. All they do is sit at home and smoke dope.", King further claims that Sterling "dangled money only if she would have sex with him" and that he would give her bonuses if she could "help him to perform sexually." When she protested against the harassment on May 7, 2014, he fired her. The complaint seeks compensatory damages for continued pain, mental suffering and extreme mental anguish. THR

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Ahmed Mohameds Dad Says He Wont Return to Public School

The 14-year-old student who was arrested for bringing a clock that was mistaken for a bomb to class will not be returning to his high school, his father said Thursday. , Ahmed Mohamed will either enroll at a private school or be home schooled, his father told WFAA. The teenager was handcuffed and taken to a police station after he presented his clock to a teacher at MacArhur High School in Irving, Texas. School authorities thought it might be a bomb and summoned police officers. , The incident sparked widespread outrage on social media as people accused the school of overreacting because Mohamed is Muslim. The school's principal, Dan Cummings, defended the decision to have Mohamed arrested in a letter to parents, writing "we will always take necessary precautions to protect our students.", Since his arrest Mohamed has received invitations to visit Google, Facebook and even the White House. The 9th grader has said he wants to attend MIT for college. WFAA

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Florida Shooting Survivors Are Being Targeted by Conspiracy Theories Heres What to Know

After surviving a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School that left 17 people dead, many of the student survivors have become vocal advocates for gun control and changes in mental health care and school safety. Just days after they lived through the worst high school shooting in U.S. history, they're being targeted by conspiracy theories that claim they are paid "crisis actors" involved in a shooting hoax. Other, more mainstream conservatives are questioning whether the survivors are little more than pawns manipulated by Democrats, gun-control activists and even the FBI. The conspiracy theories are being promoted by fringe right-wing media outlets and social media accounts. An aide to Florida state Rep. Shawn Harrison was fired on Tuesday after he falsely told a Tampa Bay Times reporter that two Stoneman Douglas students were actually actors "that travel to various crisis when they happen," using a conspiracy video to back up his claim. Some claims are threatening to go mainstream because of attention from President Donald Trump's son. Donald Trump Jr. liked two tweets spreading a conspiracy theory about student David Hogg, accusing him of working with the FBI to criticize the president. As students, politicians and tech companies continue to respond to the conspiracy theories, here's what to know about the controversy, The false conspiracy theories have focused heavily on Marjory Stoneman Douglas student David Hogg, the high school's student news director who has been one of the most most visible and vocal advocates in the wake of the shooting. Hogg's father is a former FBI agent a detail that conspiracy theorists pounced on because the FBI is facing criticism for not investigating tips that were made about the Parkland shooter. President Trump has linked that failure to investigate with the ongoing investigation into Russian interference with the 2016 presidential election. , Postings on numerous right-wing Facebook pages and other social media outlets have also fueled false claims that Hogg is a crisis actor, hired to act as a victim in the wake of a mass tragedy. That claim and others have been promoted by far-right sites and have spread quickly on social media. The Gateway Pundit, a site that has promoted debunked conspiracy theories about Hillary Clinton in the past, accused Parkland students of plotting with liberal activists "to further anti-Conservative rhetoric and an anti-gun agenda.", "These people saying this is absolutely disturbing. And I am not an actor in any sense, way, shape or form," Hogg said in an interview with CNN on Tuesday. "I am the son of a former FBI agent, and that is true. But, as such, it is also true that I go to Stoneman Douglas High School, and I was a witness to this. I'm not a crisis actor, I am somebody that had to witness this and live through this.", "The fact that Donald Trump Jr. liked that post is disgusting to me," he added. Emma Gonzlez told BuzzFeed that she and her classmates having some fun at the expense of the conspiracy theorists. "It's actually really funny to us, last night we kept showing the pictures to each other of the actors that we're supposed to be and could not stop laughing it was nice, we haven't had such a good laugh in what feels like years," she told BuzzFeed. "It just shows how weak the other side's argument is, like they have to attack the messengers since the message is airtight. Also I'm thankful that there are people out there finding my doppelgnger for me, always wanted to have a party with a room full of people who look like me.", , Sarah Chadwick, a student whose tweets demanding action from President Trump went viral last week, joked that Hogg "can't act to save his life.", Facebook said Wednesday that it is working to remove posts that falsely label Parkland survivors as "crisis actors" working for liberal activists. YouTube faced criticism for prominently featuring a video that claimed Hogg was a crisis actor. The company said it is working to fix the problem. "This video should never have appeared in Trending. Because the video contained footage from an authoritative news source, our system misclassified it. As soon as we became aware of the video, we removed it from Trending and from YouTube for violating our policies. We are working to improve our systems moving forward," a YouTube spokesperson told CNBC. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio called the false "crisis actor" conspiracy theories "the work of a disgusting group of idiots with no sense of decency.", , , Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton called the conspiracy theories "disgusting smears" and praised the students for speaking out. Florida state Rep. Shawn Harrison the lawmaker whose aide, Benjamin Kelly, promoted the conspiracy theory called it an "insensitive and inappropriate allegation" and then fired him. "I am appalled at and strongly denounce his comments about the Parkland students. I am again sorry for any pain this has caused the grieving families of this tragedy," Harrison said on Twitter. Conspiracy theories have emerged after past shootings, even though they have been repeatedly debunked. Conspiracy theorists have alleged that the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting did not happen and argued that the gunman in Las Vegas was joined by other shooters. Both claims are false.

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Mad Men Creator Matthew Weiner Accused of Sexual Harassment by Former Writer

Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner has joined the growing list of high-profile men who have been accused of sexual harassment in recent weeks. Kater Gordon, a former writer on the popular TV show, said in an interview with The Information on Thursday that Weiner harassed her during a light night in the office. As they were working together, Weiner allegedly told Gordon she owed it to him to let him see her naked. The experience filled her with "shame" and "regret," she told The Information. Gordon, who started on Mad Men as Weiner's personal assistant and was promoted to writer's assistant and then staff writer on the show, won an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series in 2009. She shared the award with Weiner. However, Gordon was let go from Mad Men later in 2009 in a move that caused many questioning headlines wondering why a successful young writer would be cut from the show. In the interview this week, Gordon said she "froze and tried to brush the comments off," according to IndieWire, but she thought it was a "lose-lose situation.", "I knew immediately when he crossed the boundary that it was wrong," Gordon said in the interview. "But I didn't know then what my options were. Having a script or some sentences cued up as an arsenal like a self-defense harassment arsenal I could have used that in that moment, and it would have saved me years of regret that I didn't handle that situation differently.", Gordon has not worked in television since leaving Mad Men. She told The Information she believes her experience with Weiner crushed her confidence and that the speculation around her departure followed her. She is now creating a nonprofit to help victims of sexual harassment. A spokesperson for Weiner directed TIME to a statement given to The Information saying that the Mad Men creator did not remember the alleged interaction with Gordon. "Mr. Weiner spent eight to ten hours a day writing dialogue aloud with Miss Gordon, who started on Mad Men as his writers assistant. He does not remember saying this comment nor does it reflect a comment he would say to any colleague," the spokesperson said in the statement.

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See Stunning Before and After Photos of Hurricane Irmas Impact on the Caribbean

Hurricane Irma tore into the Caribbean Islands and Florida with full force, killing at least 55 people and damaging thousands of properties. People and businesses, were reeling from the catastrophe. Many still are. , While the damage has been brutal, its full extent still has yet to be determined. These before and after photos, taken in 2014 and 2017 respectively, show the physical impact of a storm that left so many struggling in its wake. Irma made its first landfall as a category 5 in Barbuda on September 6, destroying 95 percent of structures on the Caribbean island which is only 68 square miles including its only hospital and airport. The island's 1,800 now-homeless residents were evacuated to neighboring Antigua. The two islands comprise their own nation state. "It is just a total devastation" Gaston Brown, the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, said in the immediate aftermath. "Barbuda right now is literally a rubble." Brown's government is now faced with the daunting task of rebuilding, which is expected to cost more than 100 million. One of the most populous British Virgin Islands, Tortola not only fell victim to Irma's winds and waves, but to looting that occurred in its aftermath. The sense of loss and tragedy is pervasive for the island's residents. "It's like we've been bombed," Sarah Penney, who lives in Tortola, told Britain's Press Association news agency. "People's everything' is gone Their businesses, their homes, their churches, their schools, are gone.", The French portion of the island was not spared either at least eight bodies were uncovered in the hours after Irma struck. In total, 90 of the island's total structures were destroyed. French President Emanuel also visited the island on Tuesday and said it would be rebuilt, according to CNN. , Irma came for the island of Sint Maarten, the portion of the Caribbean island under jurisdiction of the Netherlands, just hours after it destroyed Barbuda. Dutch King Willem-Alexander visited the island Monday and characterized the damage as unprecedented."I've never experienced anything like this before and I've seen a lot of natural disasters in my life. I've seen a lot of war zones in my life, but I've never seen anything like this," he told the Dutch national network NOS. Like Tortola, looting has also become a problem, causing even more chaos in an already stressful time. "We can't sleep in peace because of the thieves," Yovanny Roque, a 48-year-old mover, told the Associated Press. Even billionaire Richard Branson could not protect his private island from the wrath of Hurricane Irma. Although Branson said everyone who remained on the island during the storm was safe, he displayed photos showing the destruction. "Much of the buildings and vegetation on Necker has been destroyed or badly damaged. We felt the full force of the strongest hurricane ever in the Atlantic Ocean," he wrote on his blog. Sources DigitalGlobe, Juxtapose

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Mother of Columbine Shooter I Am So Sorry for What My Son Did

Sue Klebold, mother of Columbine shooter Dylan Klebold, spoke out about the guilt she still lives with over her son's deadly attack in an emotional interview with Diane Sawyer Friday night. "I am so sorry for what my son did, yet I know that just saying that I'm sorry is so inadequate," Klebold, 66, said on 20/20. "There's not a day that goes by that I don't feel bad about the kids that he harmed.", "It's very hard to live with the fact that someone you loved and raised has brutally killed people in such a horrific way. In his last moments he was hateful and cruel.", Dylan, along with fellow student Eric Harris, opened fire at Columbine High School in Colorado 17 years ago, killing 12 students and one teacher, and injuring 24 others before taking their own lives. "I remember thinking if this is true, if Dylan is really hurting people, somehow he has to be stopped, and at that moment I prayed, I hope he would die," Klebold said of the moment she heard about the shooting. Klebold said that, as a mother, she never would have predicted that Dylan could have planned such a massacre. "I think we like to believe that our love and understanding is protective, but I didn't know, and I wasn't able to stop his hurting other people, and stop his hurting himself.", She only learned later the full scope of Dylan and Harris' planning, which included 99 homemade explosive devices. Klebold also found out that Dylan had kept a journal detailing his suicidal thoughts, and that he and Harris had recorded a video just before the attack, where Dylan addressed his mom, saying, "I just want to apologize for any crap this might bring. I'm going to a better place." The tapes have reportedly been destroyed. This all painted his last few months in a different light. "Sometimes he would seem distant and quiet, and I would let it go. If it was me today, I would dig and dig and dig. I had all these illusions that everything was okay," said Klebold. She continued "Part of the shock of this was learning that how I lived and parented was an invention in my own mind. If I had recognized that Dylan was experiencing some real mental distress, he would not have been there, he would've gotten help. I don't ever for a moment mean to imply that I'm not conscious of the fact that he was a killer. Because I am.", Klebold's book about her experience, A Mother's Reckoning Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy, comes out Monday, with all profits going to research and charities focused on mental health. Klebold hopes that through the book and the 20/20 interview, more of the victims and their families will be willing to speak with her. "I don't want to impose myself to do that, because it has to be about them and their healing and what they need," she said. But for now, she's working on letting go of some of the intense guilt she feels towards the victims and their families any way she can, including visiting the memorial just outside the school grounds. "I feel kind of unwelcome there, of course, and perhaps I'm intruding," she said. "Sometimes I just sit there and think. And I tell them I'm sorry."

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White Nationalist Richard Spencer Will Speak at Texas AampM

Richard Spencer, the white nationalist and prominent figure of the so-called "alt-right" movement, will speak at Texas AM University in December, despite protests against the event. Spencer made recent headlines after video earlier in November was released showing him quoting Nazi propaganda in German during a highly anti-Semitic speech and shouting "Heil Trump!" at a controversial white nationalist conference held in Washington D.C. to celebrate Donald Trump winning the election. Video footage showed audience members raising a Nazi salute at the end of his speech. The"alt-right" movement generally favors racist and white supremacist beliefs. Preston Wiginton, a former student who said he was "sympathetic to nationalists," invited Spencer to speak at Texas AM because he has been in the news so much in light of the election, the Guardian reported. A spokeswoman for the school said Wigginton rented a room there as a private citizen, and that the university denounces Spencer's rhetoric. Wiginton said he had invited Spencer to speak at the university before the white nationalist conference, but had not considered rescinding the invite. Spencer is scheduled to speak on Dec. 6. "At American universities the education is so left-leaning that it's more of an indoctrination than a discussion of ideas," Wiginton told the Guardian. "I've brought other controversial speakers to AM on topics that people don't want to discuss. Things such as immigration. So I just thought it was an opportunity.", Nearly 10,000 people have signed a petition urging the university to denounce Spencer and cancel the event. University spokeswoman Amy Smith told the Guardian the event would continue as planned because of free speech laws, but that the school would review its booking policies. Texas AM has planned an alternative "inclusive" event for the same day as Spencer's speech.

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See One World Trade Center Light Up in Rainbow Colors for Orlando

Amid the outpouring of grief and solidarity that marks the aftermath of instances of mass violence, iconic global monuments have often used their lights and facades to make a statement and engender poignant symbolism. Saturday's mass shooting at a popular gay nightclub in Orlando the worst in U.S. history, where 50 people were killed is no different. While New York City's Empire State Building chose to remain dark on Sunday night to commemorate the Orlando victims as it has in the past, its crosstown cousin One World Trade Center also known as the Freedom Tower lit up its spire in the colors of the rainbow, a symbol of the LGBT community that was targeted in the attack.

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Betrayals a 100 Million Bribery and a Netflix Star These Are the 7 Biggest Bombshells From El Chapos

The dramatic drug-trafficking trial of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman had all the hallmarks of a television soap opera. Revealing text messages painted the 61-year-old notorious kingpin as a prolific philanderer. Stunning testimonies exposed the widespread government corruption in Mexico, implicating some of the country's top ex-leaders. And in time for the last few witnesses to be called, there was even a surprise celebrity guest appearance by Alejandro Edda, who portrays Guzman in Netflix's Narcos Mexico. When a jury found Guzman guilty on all charges Tuesday, following 34 hours of deliberation, Guzman remained mostly stoic and motionless until it was time for him to be escorted out of the courtroom. Before leaving, he glanced at his wife, who nodded at him and flashed him a thumbs up. Guzman now faces a possibility of life in federal prison. Sentencing is scheduled for June 25. Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn had put more than 55 witnesses on the stand since the trial began in mid-November to prove Guzman was guilty of trafficking billions of dollars worth of drugs into the U.S. as the leader of the Sinaloa cartel. His defense team said Guzman was being framed by the cooperating witnessesa cast of admitted drug traffickers who have struck deals with the federal government. Guzman is perhaps most famous for bolting from two top-security Mexican prisons. By the time he escaped for the second timeusing a mile-long tunnel in 2015he had already become one of the most lucrative and dangerous drug kingpins in the world. In 2016, Guzman was recaptured in Mexico. He was extradited to stand trial in the U.S. the next year. As one of the biggest narcotics cases in U.S. criminal history has come to a close, here are the seven biggest revelations that have emerged. In one of the most shocking testimonies of the trial, Christian Rodriguez, a 32-year-old I.T. specialist from Colombia, revealed to the jury how he built a secret communication network for Guzmanbut then gave U.S. authorities key access to it in a betrayal that led to the fugitive's capture and downfall. Rodriguez said Guzmn tapped the computer guru in 2008 to create a one-of-a-kind encrypted network that would enable him to run his enterprise and communicate with his inner circle in secret, the Associated Press reported. Rodriguez delivered. He also installed, by request, spy software on dozens of devices belonging to Guzman's wife and mistresses. "He called me all the time to ask me things regarding spy software," Rodriguez said in court, according to the AP. But in 2012, when confronted by the FBI, Rodriguez reportedly turned on the crime boss. From the U.S. where he was moved for safety and paid for his cooperation, Rodriguez helped authorities crack the complex encrypted system he had built and managed, the AP reported. Prosecutors are now using the intercepted messages from the system as evidence of Guzman's alleged drug trafficking activities. For Rodriguez, flipping on one of the most dangerous and feared crime bosses in the world was not an easy featand not one without consequences. Since becoming an FBI informant, Rodriguez said he has suffered at least two serious mental breakdowns from stress and even needed to undergo electro-convulsive therapy, court documents show. Cyber security experts, who were not part of Guzman's trial, told TIME the revelation exposed a serious vulnerability in encryption systems, which major criminal organizations across the globe heavily rely on. Sometimes they add "such a complexity to their enterprise that it winds up being the nail in their coffin," said Adam Wandt, a John Jay College of Criminal Justice assistant professor who specializes in cyber security. "In the act of trying to secure yourself, you actually wind up destroying yourself," Wandt said. "And that's what happened here.", The case also highlights the lengths federal investigators had to go to in their pursuit of a tech-savvy criminal mastermind. "It's sort of the modern day equivalent of how you bring down Capone," said Michael Daniel, president and CEO of the Cyber Threat Alliance, in reference to the famous Chicago crime boss. Daniel previously led President Barack Obama's national and international cybersecurity team., The cartel's corruption seeped through the highest levels of the Mexican government and its police force, multiple witnesses have testified. One of the most damning allegations to emerge from the trial is the claim that Guzman paid former Mexican President Enrique Pea Nieto 100 million to stop looking for him while he was on the lam. The revelation came from Alexander Cifuentes, a former cartel member who used to be Guzman's most trusted secretary. On his last day at the witness stand, Cifuentes described his role as Guzman's "left and right hand man.", Cifuentes said Pea Nieto first wanted 250 million from Guzmn if he agreed to stop hunting the most wanted man in the country, the New York Times reported. Guzmn offered 100 million instead, which Cifuentes said Pea Nieto took, according to the Times. In response to Cifuentes' testimony, Pea Nieto's former chief of staff, Francisco Guzman, tweeted that the claims were "false, defamatory and absurd." He said capturing and extraditing the kingpin had always been a "priority" for Pea Nieto's administration. Former Mexican President Felipe Caldern, who served before Pea Nieto, also wrote on Twitter that he did not take any payments from Guzman or his Sinaloa cartel. , , Jurors were later painted a bigger picture of how widespread corruption among the ranks may have hindered previous efforts to capture Guzman and other cartel leaders. U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration DEA Agent Victor Vazquez, who was part of a small task force that recaptured Guzman, said that for the operation to succeed, it was crucial to leave Mexican police in the dark. Past operations to bag the Sinaloa cartel's three bosses failed when they involved the Mexican police, Vazquez said. "Simply, the corruption levelusing them again was not going to work," he told jurors. Instead, on Feb. 22, 2014, a tiny team of about 100 trusted Mexican marines set out to capture Guzman at a beach resort in Mazatln, Mexico. They were successful. But Guzman would eventually make his famous tunnel prison escape the next year. Guzman's wife Emma Coronel Aispuro helped coordinate her husband's second prison breakout in 2015 when he escaped from Mexico's Altiplano prison through a long tunnel, according to testimony by Damaso Lopez Nunez, a former cartel lieutenant. Nunez said Aispuro, an American-born former pageant queen, passed along messages between Guzman and those who were in on the escape plans, according to the AP. She also participated in meetings about the breakout. The messages she shuttled back and forth contained orders on how to proceed initiating the tunnel plan, according to the Times. Guzman's wife has been present at her husband's trial almost every day. She declined to comment after the revelations were made in court, the Times reported. Guzman broke free from the prison in the summer of 2015. On Monday, James Bradley, an analyst with the Department of Defense, walked jurors through the intricacies of the mile-long tunnel escape route, which began with a gaping access hole in Guzman's shower area. Bradley said conspirators used a generator to pump air into the tunnel and disguised the exhaust fumes by placing a barbecue pit over them. There was also a metal track running down the middle of the tunnel to transport tools. It would have taken at least eight months to build the tunnel, Bradley said. In a report he wrote in 2015 after examining the tunnel, Bradley concluded at the time that the brazen escape "cemented" Guzman's "reputation.", Nunez, the ex-lieutenant who implicated Guzman's wife, also testified that Guzman's sons were responsible for the 2017 killing of Mexican journalist Javier Valdez. According to Reuters, the witness said Valdez was killed for his ongoing reporting on the cartel that cast the group in a negative light. Nunez did not say which of Guzman's sons were involved. Guzman is reported to have about a dozen children. Valdez, 50, was gunned down near his office in Culiacn, Mexico on May 15, 2017. He was an award-winning reporter who spent his career investigating Mexican drug cartels. The BBC said Valdez was one of at least 11 journalists slain in Mexico that year. In a previous interview with TIME about female Mexican cartel leaders, Valdez said "This is a world where men behave like animals.", On the side, Guzman had many lovers, including a former Mexican lawmaker who sobbed in courtin front of Guzman's wifeas she detailed her failed romance with the married kingpin, which ended her political career. In her testimony, the woman, Lucero Guadalupe Snchez Lpez, recalled how she and Guzman were naked in bed together, while hiding in Culiacn in 2014, when the Mexican military came barreling through, according to the Times. They escaped through a secret passageway under the bathtub, the newspaper said. Text messages between the two also showed how Lpez called the cartel boss "daddy," while he called her "love," the Times reported. The two met in 2010 when she was a 21-year-old local elected official in Sinaloa. She was impeached in 2016 after suspicions of their relationship arose. She was later arrested while trying to enter the U.S. Egged on by his wife, Guzman dreamed of making a movie or a book about his life and took concrete steps to realize those dreams. Cifuentes, the witness who called himself Guzman's "right hand man," told jurors he learned of his boss's silver screen ambitions while he was living with Guzman in hiding in 2007 and 2008 in the mountains of Culiacn, Mexico. Cifuentes testified that Guzman hired a Colombian producer to jumpstart the movie, and there was even a draft of a book tie-in to the film, according to Reuters. "He loved the idea," Cifuentes said, according to the AP. Cifuentes also testified that Guzman often lied about his wealth and influence. When Guzman told Cifuentes he had a fleet of planes, the secretary doubted that. In reality, Cifuentes said, Guzman had gone 20 million into debt in 2008 after drug losses and a prolonged war with his rivals. Cifuentes said the kingpin lived in "primitive" conditions while hiding out in the mountains. All of his chairs were folding plastic chairs. His "simple" wood-framed bed lay next to a night table made out of planks of wood. Guzman didn't even know what a plasma television was, according to Cifuentes. The witness said during an interview with a movie producer in 2012 in Culiacn, Guzman relayed a detailed story of how the Mexican military once smashed his hands with the butts of their firearms before tying his feet to a helicopter and hanging him upside down. Cifuentes said Guzman showed his hands to the movie producer, but it's unclear if there were any marks from the injuries. When asked on the stand whether he saw any scars from the apparent confrontation, Cifuentes said he didn't look. On one of the last days of witness testimonies, a surprise appearance by actor Alejandro Edda, who portrays Guzman in Netflix's Narcos Mexico, sent waves of excitement throughout the courthouse. While waiting on the long security line to enter the courtroom, Edda laughed and threw his hands in the air as journalists and other spectators who were also in line with him realized who he was. In the courtroom, Guzman smiled and waved at the actor, who was sitting in the bench as a spectator. Edda said he came to court early Monday mostly out of curiosity. He later told reporters it was a "very surreal moment" to see Guzman in person and that he believes Guzman to be guilty. "There's many, many horrendous things that he did," Edda said. Still, there was no denying Guzman was the real star of the trial. Later that day, immediately after prosecutors rested their case, the infamous defendant had courtroom spectators at the edge of their seats when he stood up and spoke. Following weeks of speculation about whether Guzman would testify in his own criminal trial, the defendant told U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan he would not. "Me and my attorneys have spoken about this, and I will reserve," he said through an interpreter. "I will not testify."

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Alligator Eats Burglary Suspect Hiding From Cops in Lake

A suspected burglar in Florida was killed and partially eaten by an alligator after he hid in a lake to evade police, authorities said Tuesday. Matthew Riggins, 22, drowned and was devoured by an 11-foot gator after a police chase in November, according to autopsy results released by the Brevard County sheriff's office. "I believe he was hiding," sheriff's major Tod Goodyear told The Guardian. "With the dogs out there, it's not a bad idea to go into the water.", Parts of Riggins' body were found in the alligator's stomach, a necropsy on the reptile found. There were alligator bites along Riggins' legs and body, according to USA Today. Investigators believe the reptile dragged him underwater. The Palm Bay man was being pursued by police on Nov. 13 after residents reported two men walking behind houses, authorities said. Riggins was reported missing later that day. His body was found 10 days later floating in a lake, police said. Goodyear said Riggins had allegedly told his girlfriend he would be burglarizing homes that day, according to The Guardian. The Guardian

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Donald Trump to Puerto Rico After Slamming Mayor Dont Believe The Fake News

President Donald Trump did an about-face Saturday when he praised officials in Puerto Rico after saying San Juan Mayor Carmen Yuln Cruz and others have "poor leadership ability.", Over the span of numerous tweets Saturday afternoon, Trump complimented Governor of Puerto Rico Ricardo Rossello and Congresswoman Jennifer Gonzalez-Colon of Puerto Rico and said the "Fake News Media" are working overtime and with Democrats. "Despite the Fake News Media in conjunction with the Dems, an amazing job is being done in Puerto Rico. Great people!" Trump tweeted. , , , , , Trump continued to speak out against Cruz's complaints, who pleaded for more help during a press conference Friday. "Results of recovery efforts will speak much louder than complaints by San Juan Mayor. Doing everything we can to help great people of PR!" Trump tweeted. Trump also said that FEMA and the military are doing great work in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. , The tweets came after Trump began facing criticism for his earlier tweets slamming Cruz and others saying "they want everything to be done for them."

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US Census Bureau Shows More People Living in Areas of Poverty

A U.S. Census Bureau report released on Monday reveals that the proportion of people living in areas of poverty increased by 7.7 percentage points from 2000 to 2010. Latest figures collected by the American Community Survey from 2008 to 2012 showed that 1 in 4 U.S. residents lived in areas with a poverty rate of at least 20. The report, Changes in Areas With Concentrated Poverty 2000 to 2010, compares new data with that collected in the 2000 Census Bureau to track income changes throughout the country. According to latest figures, 30 of the population lived in areas of poverty in the District of Columbia and 14 states an increase from only four states and the District of Columbia in 2000. States that had experienced the greatest increase included Tennessee, Oregon, Arkansas and North Carolina. Data also showed that the entire country was affected by the increase in poverty, regardless of race. Although the report indicated that minorities and households headed by single mothers were at the greatest risk of living in poverty, whites living in poor areas had the greatest proportional increase from 11.3 in 2000 to 20.3 in 2008 to 2012. The report's lead author, Alemayehu Bishaw of the Census Bureau's Poverty Statistics Branch, said in a statement that federal and government agencies would be able to use the data to provide assistance to those in need. "Researchers have found that living in poor neighborhoods adds burdens to low-income families, such as poor housing conditions and fewer job opportunities," he said. Despite the general rise throughout the country, the report found that the proportion of people living in poverty areas in West Virginia, Alaska, Louisiana, the District of Columbia and Hawaii actually decreased by at least 0.4 percentage points over the same period.

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The Government Shutdown Could Hurt Americas Credit Rating if Its Not Resolved Soon

Bloomberg The U.S. political gridlock that has shut down part of the government risks running into a crucial deadline that would limit the Treasury's borrowing ability, if left unresolved, and potentially threaten America's top-credit standing. While the looming end of a debt-ceiling suspension on March 1 won't trigger credit-rating action, a prolonged standoff over the country's debt limit well past that date would increase the risk of a technical default and raise the likelihood of a downgrade, according to some ratings analysts. If Washington's inability to compromise on a budget to reopen the government is mirrored in a failure to suspend or lift the U.S.'s debt ceiling before March 1, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will be forced to use extraordinary measures to pay America's bills and stay under the statutory cap. While Wall Street expects these accounting maneuvers to buy Treasury until about August before the hard financing wall is hit, rating firms say any surpassing of that cliff would jeopardize America's credit stature. William Foster, a senior credit officer at Moody's Investors Service, says their base case is that Congress and the White House will come to an agreement before then and the U.S.'s top rating will remain intact. Yet, if that doesn't prove to be the case and a technical default where Treasury even temporarily can't make good on payments occurs, it would raise the specter of a downgrade. The U.S. is top rated by Moody's and Fitch Ratings, and one rank below by SP Global Ratings. "The main risk on the debt ceiling and the rating has to do with is if there was a technical default, which would happen several months after the March 1 debt-ceiling trigger when the U.S. Treasury runs out of extraordinary measures," Foster said by phone. "After that, there are many things that can happen, and have in the past. Passing March 1 just starts the clock for Congress to come to an agreement with the White House to raise the debt ceiling.", Talks to end a nearly three-week government shutdown broke down Wednesday after President Donald Trump stormed out of a White House meeting with congressional leaders, saying it was a "waste of time." Trump has shown no sign of backing down on his demand for border wall funding, a key campaign promise, while the Democrats have said they won't negotiate until the president agrees to re-open the government. Trump heads to the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas on Thursday to rally support for building the wall. "What this shutdown and the length of it shows us is that it is no easier today for Congress to make these funding decisions and work together," Charles Seville, a senior director at Fitch, said by phone. He said Fitch wouldn't review the rating until the so-called x-date, when scope for the Treasury to finance itself using extraordinary measures runs out. In a protracted 2013 debt-limit episode, Fitch put the U.S. rating on negative watch given the government's failure then to raise its borrowing limit as the Treasury's hard deadline neared. In 2011, a split House and Senate, similar to the incoming Congress, took the debt-limit debate down to the wire, prompting SP Global Ratings to cut America's sovereign credit grade for the first time. Back then the company cited the Washington gridlock as well as the lack of an agreement to contain the nation's growing debt load for its decision. "The current argument over funding the federal government generates uncertainty, which hurts the economy via the impact on confidence and investment," Jeff Sexton, director of communications for the Americas at SP Global, said in an emailed statement. "We do not think that the possible negative economic impact would hurt the sovereign rating.", He said that "uncertainty in policy formulation and timely decision making" were some of the factors that led to the 2011 downgrade. Foster at Moody's said that even in the event of a technical default, the government would "eventually pay everyone back in full." But the ratings firm expects an agreement to raise the debt ceiling before that happens. "We'd certainly expect that to happen, as they have done in the past. That is our base case. That would avoid a technical default."

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A Gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo Was Shot Dead After a Boy Fell Into the Exhibit

A gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo was shot dead Saturday after it grabbed and dragged around a three-year-old boy who had fallen into its enclosure, officials said. The child was treated for serious but non-life threatening injuries after he had crawled through a barrier and fell about 12 feet into the gorilla's exhibit, where he was "violently" dragged and thrown around, The Cincinnati Enquirer reports. Cincinnati Zoo President Thane Maynard said its 17-year-old male western lowland gorilla, Harambe, posed a danger to the child because of its 400-pound size and strength. "The choice was made to put down, or shoot, Harambe, so he's gone," Maynard said, according to the Enquirer. "We've never had a situation like this at the Cincinnati Zoo where a dangerous animal needed to be dispatched in an emergency situation.", The boy was with the gorilla for about 10 minutes before zoo officials deemed the situation life-threatening, the newspaper reports. "It's a sad day all the way around," Maynard said. "They made a tough choice. They made the right choice because they saved that little boy's life. It could have been very bad."

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Santa Claus Who Says Boy Died in His Arms Stands by Story Amid Doubts

The Tennessee Santa Claus who went viral for his heartbreaking story about a terminally ill boy dying in his arms stood by his story Wednesday as its veracity came into question. Eric Schmitt-Matzen, 61, made global headlines this weekincluding on TIMEafter he told a local newspaper of how he dressed as St. Nick to visit a 5-year-old boy in a hospital and how the ailing child took his final breath while wrapped in his arms. However, many have started to ask whether the encounter really happened after the Knoxville News Sentinel, which first reported the story, published an editor's note at the top of its article saying it could not "independently verify" Schmitt-Matzen's account. The newspaper said attempts to do so have "proven unsuccessful." "Although facts about his background have checked out, his story of bringing a gift to a dying child remains unverified," the note says. "The News Sentinel cannot establish that Schmitt-Matzen's account is inaccurate, but more importantly, ongoing reporting cannot establish that it is accurate.", Schmitt-Matzen, who has been donning the red suit for almost a decade, had tearfully told his story earlier this week to TIME, along with many other media outlets. On Wednesday, he said that he was hurt by all the doubts surfacing about his story. He declined to provide additional details about the incident, saying he wanted to protect the identity of the family of the child and the nurse who asked him to visit the boy. "I feel like I have been used and then hung out to dry," he said in a text message. "I emphasized from the very beginning that I intended to keep my word and not disclose any information that could lead to the folks' identity.", "Now I am being made out to be a liar," he added. "I tried to do a good deed, was talked into telling the story of what happened to me . . . and now the press is ridiculing me for standing my ground."

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GOP Rolls Back Online Privacy Rules

Congressional Republicans have voted to scrap a series of online privacy protections approved during the waning days of the Obama Administration by the Federal Communications Commission FCC. The rules, which were set to take effect in December, required Internet providers to obtain customers' permission before collecting and sharing personal data on their web-surfing habits. Without those protections, companies like Verizon, Comcast and ATT will continue to be able to track customers' online footprint, logging what sites they browse, what products they buy and what apps they use. Companies can then mine that sensitive data and sell it to marketers looking to deliver highly targeted ads. Tech firms like Google and Facebook already track similar data for their users. But Internet providers have a much broader ability to track what you do online. Republicans in the House and Senate, who voted in near lockstep to overturn the rules, argue that the FCC's restrictions were an example of regulatory overreach that inhibits business. But Democrats and privacy advocates say the move transforms the legal terrain for communications. Phone companies, for instance, are not able to sell information about calls to doctors or bankruptcy attorneys, because that information is considered the property of the person making the call. Online data, however, has become a commodity consumers cannot easily keep to themselves. "Data is power," Jeff Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy, wrote in a blog post opposing the move. "And that power should be in the hands of the peoplenot those that wish to financially and politically benefit by harvesting our information."

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Anthony Bourdain Sometimes Travels With a Sneaky Credit Card That Turns Into a Knife

Travel expert Anthony Bourdain of CNN's Parts Unknown shared his tip for traveling in areas with high crime. In an interview with the New York Times, Bourdain said he keeps the hidden knife for traveling in places with "heavy street crime.", "It's not something you'd want to get into a serious fight with, but it might be a rude surprise should someone grab you from behind as you enter your hotel room," he said. Small pocket knives that fold into the shape of a credit card are not available exclusively to the well-travelled. Amazon sells sets similar to the one Bourdain describes. However, Bourdain said he also has some less vicious travel item recommendations, including a sweatshirt or light jacket, Moleskine notebooks, jujitsu uniforms and books.

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Disneyland Asked California to Say Park Was Safe During Measles Outbreak Report Says

Disneyland asked California officials to reassure the public that the amusement park was safe to attend amid the measles outbreak that started there in December, according to a new report. The Associated Press, citing documents obtained, reports that Disneyland officials sent a series of emails to the California Department of Health and the Orange County Health Care Agency, asking the agencies to make it clear to the public that the park was not responsible for the outbreak, and that vaccinated people could still visit. Six Disneyland employees were among 70 people in California infected during an outbreak that has passed 100 cases in the U.S. A Disneyland spokeswoman told the AP the park was in contact with health officials "in order to ensure that factual and accurate information flowed both ways to avoid confusion and properly inform the public.", Read more at the Associated Press,

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Penn State Frat Suspended Over Facebook Photos of Nude Unconscious Women

A fraternity at Pennsylvania State University has been suspended after police accused members of operating a secret Facebook page that featured photos of naked women apparently taken when they were unconscious. According to WJAC, police in State College, Pa. were given a tip about two Facebook pages where members of the Kappa Delta Rho fraternity allegedly posted images of drug transactions, hazing, and partially nude women. The women in the images appeared to be "passed out or sleeping," according to police. The Facebook pages, titled "Covert Business Transactions" and "2.0," were invite-only. After the "Covert" page was shut down, "2.0" appeared in its place. The page had at least 150 members, including current students and alumni. The Penn State Interfraternity Council said in a statement it has suspended the full chapter and it will undergo a "conduct review session.", WJAC, Listen to the most important stories of the day.

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This Graphic Shows Where Sharks Attack Most in the US

, From the vicious predator portrayed in Jaws to Shark Week on the Discovery Channel, shark attacks occupy a unique place in the public imagination. That fascination was on full display this week when two separate shark attacks in North Carolina spurred a media feeding frenzy. Around the world, shark attacks are rare. But when they do attack, they're more likely to bite in the United States than in any other country. Around two-thirds of all shark attacks occur in U.S. waters, according to George Burgess, director at the Florida Program for Shark Research. The U.S. is prime territory for human-shark interactions due to the country's hundreds of thousands of miles of coastline and the American habit of relaxing on the beach, Burgess explained. But no place is a better draw for both sharks and humans within the U.S. than Florida. Beachgoers in the state experienced 28 shark bites in 2014, and there have been 10 already this year, according to the International Shark Attack File at the University of Florida. And if you really want to see where sharks meet humans, head to Volusia County in Florida, home to Daytona Beach. The county had 10 shark bites last year alone. "It's a good place to be a shark, it's a good place to be a human," said Burgess of Florida's coastline. "As a result, it's no surprise that Florida would lead the world in shark attacks.", No matter where you go, however, shark attacks are rarely fatal. There's been just one fatality this year in the U.S.

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President Trump Says HurricaneStricken Puerto Rico Is In Deep Trouble

President Donald Trump posted a trio of tweets Monday night that appeared to center on Puerto Rico's fiscal debt, as the devastated U.S. territory struggles to recover from powerful Hurricane Maria. After commending the recovery of Texas and Florida which were lashed by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, respectively Trump tweeted Monday "Puerto Rico, which was already suffering from broken infrastructure massive debt, is in deep trouble.", Trump continued, "It's old electrical grid, which was in terrible shape, was devastated. Much of the Island was destroyed, with billions of dollars owed to Wall Street and the banks which, sadly, must be dealt with.", "Food, water and medical are top priorities and doing well," Trump added. Hurricane Maria, the strongest storm to hit Puerto Rico since 1928, killed 16 people and left millions without power or communications when it battered the island last week. Beset by food and water shortages, Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossell issued a statement appealing for help for his "essentially devastated" island. "My petition is that we were there once for our brothers and sisters, our other U.S. citizens, now it's time that U.S. citizens in Puerto Rico are taken care of adequately, properly," Rossell wrote Sunday. On Monday, he called for greater federal aid and appealed to Congress to pass a relief package and treat Puerto Rico like any other U.S. state, Politico reports. , According to the Associated Press, 3.4 million U.S. citizens in the territory are without adequate food, water and fuel. Communications are still lacking and electrical power may not be fully restored for a month. Trump's response, which appeared to put the issue of the island's bank loans before emergency supplies, provoked consternation among some diplomats. "Is the President of the United States saying that the mammoth hurricane damage is Puerto Rico's fault?" posed Samantha Power, the former U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Before the Category 4 storm struck, Puerto Rico was suffering from a 73 million debt crisis, that had left agencies like the state power company broke. , The U.S. Federal Emergency Management said aid was getting to the island, and that the agency had more than 700 staff on the ground in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, delivering diesel, food and water to communities, reports AP.

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Poster Declaring Ideal Cheerleader Look Sparks Backlash Against University of Washington

An infographic telling prospective University of Washington cheerleaders how to do their hair and makeup has sparked a blacklash on campus and on social media. Women trying out for the cheerleading squad should have a "bronze, beach glow" with "flattering eye shadow" and should avoid "tops that cover the midriff," according to a flyer featuring a smiling blonde woman that has circulated widely online. "I can't believe this is real," UW student Jazmine Perez, director of programming for student government, told the Seattle Times. "As a student of color who looks nothing like the student in the poster, this feels very exclusive.", The document mimics similar infographics distributed for cheerleading tryouts Washington State University and Louisiana State University, according to the Seattle Times. , The university withdrew the flyer following the complaints. "Some of the details and descriptions provided were inconsistent with the values of the UW spirit program and department of athletics," the university said in a statement, according to NBC News. "Athletic department officials have reinforced the values of the programs to UW spirit leadership, and look forward to an equitable and diverse tryout process for interested students."

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The New York Times Shows Its Never Too Late To Issue A Correction

In 1853, the New York Times ran a profile on Northup, a free man kidnapped in the 1840s, sold into slavery, and then rescued 12 years later. That story was eventually made into the Oscar winning film 12 Years A Slave. But some particularly observant readers noticed that the 1853 article spelled Northup's name wrong, on two different occasions. , The article was corrected, 161 years later. Watch video above for more.

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WikiLeaks Source Chelsea Manning Sues Govt Over Hormone Treatment Request

Chelsea Manning, who is serving a 35-year sentence at Fort Leavenworth military prison for leaking classified government documents to WikiLeaks, has sued U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel over the government's refusal to pay for gender reassignment treatment. "The government continues to deny Ms. Manning's access to necessary medical treatment for gender dysphoria, without which she will continue to suffer severe psychological harms," Chase Strangio, an ACLU attorney and co-counsel with Manning's long-term civilian lawyer David Coombs, said in a statement. "Such clear disregard of well-established medical protocols constitutes cruel and unusual punishment.", Manning first expressed her intent to live as a woman before she was arrested in 2010 for perpetrating what at the time was the largest leak of classified information in American history. Since her arrest, she has been diagnosed by military doctors with gender dysphoria, the term used by the medical community to describe someone who does not identify with the physical gender he or she was assigned at birth. Since her incarceration, Manning has requested that the military pay for hormone therapy consistent with treatment others receive for gender dysphoria. Providing treatment for gender dysphoria is not uncommon in civilian prisons, but the Pentagon's policies differ from other prisons.The Defense Department considered moving Manning to a civilian facility in May, a move critics charged was an attempt to avoid confronting the decision of whether or not to provide treatment to military prisoners suffering from gender dysphoria. "I am proud to be standing with the ACLU behind Chelsea on this very important issue." said the civilian lawyer David Coombs. "It is my hope that through this action, Chelsea will receive the medical care that she needs without having to suffer any further anguish."

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Oklahoma Inmate Felt Liquid Fire During Execution Doctor Says

An Oklahoma inmate whose prolonged execution triggered a statewide moratorium on executions likely suffered excruciating pain akin to "liquid fire" throughout his lethal injection last April. That's how one doctor assessed what Clayton Lockett experienced as he was put to death, in a federal court hearing Wednesday that will determine whether the state can once again resume executions in January. Lockett, a convicted murderer who shot a 19-year-old woman and had her buried alive, was put to death with a three-drug combination on April 29. He reportedly writhed on the execution table and appeared to speak and regain consciousness during the process. Since then, several grisly details have emerged about what went wrong, problems that likely arose due to poorly trained executioners and the use of a sedative that may not adequately put inmates to sleep. MORE Report Executioner Errors Led to Botched Execution, On Wednesday, anesthesiologist David Lubarsky testified that midazolam, a sedative increasingly used by states as other drug sources have dried up, should not be used on inmates because it doesn't render them fully unconscious. Lubarsky said the injection of vecuronium bromide, a muscle relaxer, would've likely felt like "liquid fire" because Lockett wasn't properly knocked out. Joseph Cohen, a forensic pathologist hired by Lockett's lawyers to perform an autopsy following the lethal injection, also testified that he believed Lockett was conscious during the execution and confirmed that he found multiple puncture wounds on Lockett's body where executioners attempted to insert IV lines. Death row inmates in Oklahoma are seeking a federal court ruling to delay their upcoming executions, arguing in part that the state's three-drug protocol used on Lockett violates the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment. Oklahoma's next execution is scheduled for Jan. 15, 2015.

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Heres What Pope Francis Gave Speaker John Boehner

Pope Francis gave Speaker John Boehner a gift during a private meeting Thursday morning. The pope's gift was a bronze bas relief decorated with the logo of the World Meeting of Families, the largest gathering of Catholic families in the world. Held every three years, the event will be held this year in Philadelphia, the last stop on the pontiff's three-city tour of the United States. This year's theme is "Love Is Our Mission The Family Fully Alive, according to its website. Pope Francis also gave President Obama with raised bronze sculpture on Wednesday. Read Next Why Pope Francis Cited Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton

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Donald Trumps Move to Shrink Two National Monuments Sets Stage for Battle Over 111YearOld Law

On Monday, President Donald Trump traveled to Utah, where supporters greeted him at the airport and protestors were awaiting him at the state capitol with signs like, "Keep your tiny hands off our public lands.", The purpose of the trip was to announce that two national monuments in the state would be shrunk, following an unprecedented review of federally-protected landscapes earlier this year. "We're going to Utah," Trump told reporters as he boarded Marine One in Washington, D.C. Monday morning. "It will be one of the great, really, events in this country in a long time." , When he arrived, Trump signed proclamations that downsized areas known as Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante by about one million acres each, splitting those two monuments up into five smaller ones. With that stroke of his pen, Trump also set the stage for a historic legal fight. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke led the review of 27 monuments stretching from Maine to California, and he recommended in August that the boundaries of six be altered. Several groups vowed to sue if Trump followed that advice, arguing that the president does not have the authority to significantly change monuments declared by his predecessors. And they started making good on those promises immediately following his announcement. , Within hours of Trump's action, Earthjustice, an environmental organization, filed a lawsuit challenging the reduction of Grand Staircase-Escalante, an area rich in dinosaur fossils named for a series of descending plateaus. Also on Monday, five Native American tribes filed a lawsuit challenging the reduction of Bears Ears, an area sacred to tribes that is named for two ruddy plateaus that rise above rock art and cliff dwellings. Also preparing a lawsuit is outdoor retailer Patagonia, according to CEO Rose Marcario, who has said that fighting for the protection of public land is part of the company's corporate DNA. , Presidents have been proclaiming national monuments since 1906, when Congress passed the Antiquities Act. Faced with looting at cultural sites in the West, lawmakers delegated some of their authority over the nation's land so that presidents could act quickly to protect areas that might be in danger. When land is declared to be a monument, it typically comes with restrictions about how the land can be used, whether that means bans on mining or logging or riding ATVs. Though manmade things like pottery may have been top of mind for lawmakers when the act was passed, Teddy Roosevelt quickly used the law to protect the 818,000-acre Grand Canyon, setting a precedent for the protection of whole landscapes. Congress later made the area into a national park. Since Roosevelt's time, the act has been used by presidents from both parties to declare 157 monuments, ranging from Giant Sequoia trees in California to a rare underground pool in Iowa to a historic bar in New York City. Presidents, including Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Roosevelt, have also shrunk monuments during the last century. But those preparing lawsuits stress that such actions have never been challenged in court and note that the right to alter monuments is not expressly laid out in the law. While some legal experts have argued that the power to change monuments is implied as many presidential powers are others argue that Congress meant to reserve the right to modify monuments for itself. Assuming this issue is settled in court, a win for the Trump Administration could clarify that he or any other president has the right to unilaterally remake monuments throughout the country. Conservatives have grievances of their own about the use of the law that will be central to the case, arguments that spurred the review and Trump's decision to downsize the contested areas in the first place. A requirement that is expressly spelled out in the Antiquities Act is that a monument must be the "smallest area compatible" with protecting the objects of scientific or historical significance that prompted the designation. Critics say Democratic presidents have set aside areas that are much bigger than they need to be, including Bill Clinton's designation of Grand Staircase-Escalante and Barack Obama's designation of Bears Ears. Originally each was bigger than the state of Delaware. "It has been abused," Utah Rep. Rob Bishop told TIME about the Antiquities Act, "to a point where it no longer deals with protecting antiquities but with making political statements.", A win for the challengers could mean that the bar for altering monuments is higher, perhaps requiring legislative action. In a conference call about the lawsuits preceding Trump's trip, New Mexico Sen. Tom Udall called the new proclamations "the largest attack on public lands we have ever seen." The Democrat also said that the president is "using never tested and dubious legal authority" that could put energy development back on the table for the area. Natalie Landreth, a representative for the Native American Rights Fund, argued that the changes Trump is making are so significant that they constitute a "revoke-and-replace." No president has outright revoked a monument established by another commander-in-chief before, and so such action has not been challenged in court either. Given all the interests at play when it comes to the usage of public lands, from the rights of ranchers to archaeologists, it's unsurprising that monuments have been controversial since the very beginning. Roosevelt's designation of the Grand Canyon, for example, ended up being affirmed by the Supreme Court after a disgruntled miner filed suit. Opponents of monuments often paint them as a "land grab" because of new rules that get laid out in presidential proclamations even though monuments can only be declared on land the federal government already owns. Supporters tend to celebrate those same rules as a means of preserving landscapes that are rich in natural beauty or historical artifacts. The values of economic development and conservation will likely be pitted against each other as the legal action goes forward. It's a common debate in the West, where the federal government owns huge tracts of land, including nearly two-thirds of the Beehive State. While the legal landscape is still taking shape, multiple groups have said that the Navajo Nation plans to lead the fight in Bears Ears because Obama originally protected the land at the behest of Native American tribes. Their representatives push back on the notion that Bears Ears was bigger than it needed to be in order to protect items of significance in the area. "If any land grab happened," Ethel Branch, attorney general for the Navajo Nation, told TIME, "it was the grab that took those lands from us in the first place."

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White House Opioid Crisis Commission Tells Trump Declare a National Emergency

Members of the White Houses Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the opioid crisis have called on President Donald Trump to "declare a national emergency" under either the Public Health Service Act or the Stafford Act, to prevent any further American deaths due to drug addiction and overdoses. In a draft report, the commission, headed by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, cites data from the Centers for Disease Control CDC estimating that 142 U.S. citizens die every day from a drug overdose. "The average American would likely be shocked to know that drug overdoses now kill more people than gun homicides and car crashes combined," the report said. "In fact, between 1999 and 2015, more than 560,000 people in this country died due to drug overdoses this is a death toll larger than the entire population of Atlanta.", The report explains that opioids are a prime contributor to the U.S.' addiction and overdose crisis, and, in 2015, nearly two-thirds of drug overdoses were linked to opioids like Percocet, OxyContin, heroin, and fentanyl. The commission acknowledges that President Trump has recognized that the U.S. is in the midst of an opioid crisis, however, it urges him to act quickly to combat the severity of the "national problem." The report sets out several recommendations for Trump, the "first and most urgent" being for him to declare a national emergency, to "force Congress to focus on funding and empowering the Executive Branch even further to deal with this loss of life.", Other recommendations laid out in the report include establishing and funding a federal incentive to enhance access to Medication Assisted Treatment MAT, rapidly increasing treatment capacity and prioritizing funding to develop sensors that can detect fentanyl, a synthetic opioid many times more powerful than heroin, which currently defies detection at the U.S.' borders. In August 2016, the U.S.' Health and Human Services HHS declared a public health emergency in Puerto Rico in response to the Zika outbreak.

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Iranian Man Charged With Hacking HBO and Stealing Game of Thrones Episodes

U.S. prosecutors have charged an Iranian national with hacking into cable TV network HBO and stealing episodes and plot summaries for unaired programs including "Game of Thrones," then threatening to release the data unless he was paid 6 million. Behzad Mesri, also known as "Skote Vahshat," was charged with the hack in a sealed indictment that was released on Tuesday by the U.S. Attorney's office in Manhattan. A spokesman with the U.S. Attorney's Office said Mesri has not been arrested, and declined to comment on the suspect's whereabouts. The indictment described Mesri as a "self-professed expert" in hacking who had worked on behalf of Irans military to attack military systems, nuclear software systems and Israeli infrastructure. It also alleged that he helped an Iranian hacking group, Turk Black Hat Security Team, deface hundreds of websites in the United States and other countries. The cyber attack surfaced over the summer as HBO was running a new season of "Game of Thrones" and as the cable network's parent Time Warner Inc sought regulatory approval to sell itself to ATT Inc in an 85.4 billion deal announced in October 2016. , The indictment charges Mesri with hacking into HBO from May to August and stealing unaired episodes of programs including "Ballers," "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "The Deuce.", Mesri also stole scripts and plot summaries for "Game of Thrones," according to the indictment. It said he obtained credentials that HBO employees use to access the network, then used those accounts to steal data from the company's servers from May to August of this year. He demanded up to 6 million to keep the data secret in extortion emails to HBO staff, some of which ended with photos of Night King, a menacing zombie villain from "Game of Thrones," according to the indictment. Reuters was unable reach Mesri for comment. Prosecutors charged Mesri with computer fraud, wire fraud, extortion and identity theft. HBO spokesman Jeff Cusson declined to comment on the indictment. "As far as the criminal case is concerned, we prefer to leave any comments to the US Attorney's Office," he said in an email. He declined to say if the company's investigation into the breach was complete or how much the incident had cost the cable network.

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Kayla the Orca Has Died at SeaWorld Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. A 30-year-old orca has died at SeaWorld's Orlando park. SeaWorld officials say Kayla died Monday after a brief illness. SeaWorld officials say a cause of death won't be known until a post-mortem examination is conducted. Kayla began showing signs of discomfort on Saturday, and veterinarians began treating her based on what they found from a physical exam. Park officials say her condition worsened on Sunday and she was given around-the-clock care until her death. Kayla was among the last orcas at SeaWorld's Orlando park, as well as parks in California and Texas. The company announced in 2016 that it had stopped its orca breeding program. SeaWorld has 20 orcas left at its parks. There are five in Orlando, five in San Antonio, and 10 in San Diego.

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What to Know About the Deadly Amtrak Crash in South Carolina

An Amtrak train collided with a CSX freight train in South Carolina early Sunday morning, the second crash to have happened within the past week. The collision happened in Cayce, South Carolina. Two Amtrak personnel were killed and dozens were injured, according to the Associated Press. The train was en route from New York to Miami Amtrak said eight crew members and 139 passengers were on board. All passengers have been removed from the train. Here's what we know so far. Amtrak train 91 collided with a freight train, authorities said early Sunday morning. The collision caused 5,000 gallons of fuel to spill and authorities are working to contain the leaks. The National Transportation Safety Board has launched an investigation into the incident. At a briefing on Sunday, NTSB chairman Robert L. Sumwalt confirmed earlier reports that the CSX train was on the right track, and that Amtrak was on the wrong one. Sumwalt said he did not know the speed of the train at the time of the crash, and that authorities are still gathering the necessary materials for the investigation, and would be able to provide more information Monday. CSX said in a statement its personnel are on site to assist authorities and will provide more details as they develop. The coroner's office of Lexington County in South Carolina confirmed the two people who were killed were Amtrak personnel. They have been identified as 54-year-old Michael Kempf, an Amtrak engineer from Savannah, Georgia, and 36-year-old Michael Cella, the train's conductor, from Orange Park, Florida. "We are deeply saddened to report the death of two of our employees in this morning's derailment," Amtrak said in a statement. The Governor said Sunday morning 116 people were transported to local hospitals. Amtrak says 147 people 8 personnel and 139 passengers were on the train that derailed. No one was on the CSX train, local authorities said. "We just awoke to violent shaking I just knew immediately we were off the tracks and I couldn't believe it was actually happening," Erin Wittman, a passenger on the train, told MSNBC. The passengers who were not injured were taken off the train and transported to a local school, where Red Cross staff are on site. Alternative modes of transportation have been provided to take them to their destinations, local authorities said. , The President, who is spending the weekend at his Mar-A-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla. has been briefed on the situation and is receiving regular updates. "Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone that has been affected by this incident," Deputy White House Press Secretary Lindsay Walters said in a statement. Trump tweeted similar sentiments, including thanking first responders, shortly after noon eastern time. , The crash in North Carolina comes less than a week after an Amtrak train carrying Republican lawmakers to their annual retreat crashed into a truck in Virginia, killing a passenger in the vehicle, and sparking calls from some lawmakers for reform. As incidents repeat, with injuries and deaths, inaction is inexcusable," Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal wrote on Twitter. "America's railroads must be made safer.", , Trump called for the passage of a 1.5 trillion infrastructure plan during his State of the Union last week, touting the desire to "build gleaming new roads, bridges, highways, railways, and waterways across our land."

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Widespread Wireless Outages Hit Southern States

Several major wireless carriers experienced outages across Tennessee, Kentucky and other southern states on Tuesday afternoon. Customers began experiencing connectivity issues in cities including Nashville, Tenn. Louisville, Ky. and Huntsville, Ala. around 300 p.m. Central Time, according to outage maps from ATT, Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint. According to a statement from Sprint, the issue was caused by a local exchange provider. All four companies are investigating the issue, which appears to be affecting customers regardless of their carrier, T-Mobile's customer service team said on Twitter.

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A Filipino Boy Was Speechless After Discovering George HW Bush Was His Pen Pal for Years

Former President George H.W. Bush quietly sponsored and exchanged letters with a Filipino boy for years without revealing his true identity and the child was "speechless" when he finally learned that his buddy was the former world leader. Identifying himself only as George or G. Walker in their correspondence, Bush began writing to Timothy, then a 7-year-old boy living in the Philippines, in 2001 as part of a sponsorship through the Christian nonprofit organization Compassion International. "I want to be your new pen pal," Bush wrote in his first letter to Timothy. "I am an old man, 77 years old, but I love kids and though we have not met I love you already. I live in Texas. I will write you from time to time. Good luck.", Subsequent letters shared by Compassion International reveal the warm relationship that developed between Bush and Timothy. The former president, who died on Nov. 30, wrote to the boy about various parts of his life, including sending pictures of his dog, Sadie, offering facts about Texas and sharing where he traveled in the United States. Timothy, in response, shared photos, poems and drawings, and always inquired after Bush. In one letter, he said his family particularly loved the photo of Sadie. "I hope you won't get tired of writing to me," Timothy wrote at one point. Bush and Timothy exchanged letters for about three years, Wess Stafford, Compassion International's president from 1993 to 2013, tells TIME. Stafford says the former president and the boy were connected after Bush attended a Christmas concert in 2001, where the musicians asked the audience if they would like to sponsor a child. "His hand goes up, and he says, I want one,'" Stafford says. Bush never fully revealed who he was to Timothy, based on the advice of his security, who said the boy could be put at risk if word got out that he was in touch with a former U.S. president, according to Stafford. While Bush kept key personal details hidden, the former president sometimes offered hints about his identity, including writing once that he "got to go to the White House at Christmas time.", Timothy, who was told about Bush's identity after he graduated from the Compassion International program in 2010, was shocked to find out that "Walker" was former U.S. president George H.W. Bush, Stafford says. "He was speechless," he says. "He didn't know what to say.", Jim McGrath, spokesman for the Bush family, confirmed the authenticity of the letters in an email to TIME. In a tweet earlier this week, McGrath said he "had no idea" Bush had carried on a correspondence with Timothy, but was "not the least bit surprised.", "He spent his entire life reaching out and trying to help lift the lives of others, both in and as we see here out of elected office," McGrath said.

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We Do Not Tolerate Discrimination American Airlines CEO Responds to NAACP Warning for Black Passenge

American Airlines' CEO said Wednesday that he was "eager to meet" with the NAACP, a day after the civil rights group issued an advisory warning black travelers that flying with the airline could be "unsafe." , "We were disappointed to learn of a travel advisory issued by the NAACP regarding American Airlines," said American Airlines CEO Doug Parker in a memo to employees. Parker continued "The mission statement of the NAACP states that it seeks to remove all barriers of racial discrimination.' That's a mission that the people of American Airlines endorse and facilitate every day we do not and will not tolerate discrimination of any kind. We have reached out to the NAACP and are eager to meet with them to listen to their issues and concerns.", Parker's note follows a statement from the NAACP highlighting what it called "a pattern of disturbing incidents reported by African-American passengers, specific to American Airlines," and arguing the events suggest "a corporate culture of racial insensitivity and a possible racial bias.", American Airlines did not respond to TIME's request for further comment. The company's stock is down about 1.5 as of late Wednesday morning, though it isn't clear if that dip is tied to the NAACP's warnings. Read Parker's memo to American Airlines employees in full below,

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President Trump Will Not Declare a National Emergency During the State of the Union Report

Bloomberg President Donald Trump has decided he won't declare a national emergency on the U.S. border with Mexico during his State of the Union address on Tuesday, according to three people familiar with the matter. Trump suggested last week he might declare an emergency during or shortly after the annual speech to Congress. He believes the declaration would allow him to fund construction of a border wall without congressional approval. "You'll hear the State of the Union and then you'll see what happens right after the State of the Union, OK?" he told reporters on Thursday after he was asked whether he expected to declare an emergency. "I think you'll find it very exciting.", He had decided as of Tuesday afternoon not to make the declaration during the televised speech, one of the people said. The people asked not to be identified discussing Trump's speech in advance and cautioned that he could change his mind before it's delivered at 9 p.m. in Washington. Trump caused a 35-day partial government shutdown after rejecting congressional spending bills that would have provided no new money for border wall construction and demanding 5.7 billion for his top campaign promise. He capitulated last month and signed legislation temporarily re-opening the government after Democrats agreed to appoint a conference committee to negotiate border spending, without promising any money for the wall. The spending bill expires Feb. 15, when the government will again partially shutdown in the absence of an agreement between Congress and the president. Trump has frequently mused to reporters about invoking emergency powers to begin construction without congressional approval. But Democrats have threatened to fight such a move in court, and the idea is unpopular even among many Republican lawmakers, who fear Trump could set a dangerous precedent for future presidents. Immigration and border security is expected to be a major theme of Trump's second State of the Union address.

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Officials Celebrate Stonewall Inns Dedication as National Monument

Officials converged on Greenwich Village Monday to celebrate the dedication of the landmark Stonewall Inn as a National Monument, fting the symbol of the gay rights movement just weeks after a shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando shook the nation. President Obama announced on Friday that Christopher Park which is across the street from the bar and 7.7 acres of the surrounding area would join the National Park system in recognition of the historic riot that took place there in 1969, CBS News reports. At the Monday ceremony, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio noted, "We're going to remember the struggle, we're going to remember the people we lost, we're going to remember that fateful night in 1969people here were pursuing something that is a fundamental part of the founding documents of this nation The pursuit of happiness.", Read more Stonewall Is the First National LGBT Rights Monument. It Won't Be the Last, Also on the scene were Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and the owners of the Stonewall Inn. "It is really honoring the Stonewall veterans," said co-owner Stacy Lentz, "and all the people who have worked on the struggle for equality.", CBS News

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Houston Airport Terminal Closed for 4th Day in a Row After TSA Sickout

Bloomberg Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport has closed portions of one terminal again as a result of higher absentee rates among airport security screeners, who have been forced to work without pay during the partial government shutdown. The security checkpoint and public areas where passengers get boarding passes in Houston's Terminal B was shut Wednesday for the fourth day in a row, the airport said on its twitter feed. No flights were affected because passengers could access Terminal B gates through other airport entrances. The Transportation Security Administration's struggles during the partial shutdown which has blocked funding for more than a dozen U.S. departments and agencies have been among the most high profile. In recent days, the TSA was forced to close screening lanes at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson and Virginia's Washington Dulles airports. , On Monday, 6.8 percent of screeners had unscheduled absences from work, more than twice the rate from the same day a year ago, according to the agency. The government has been partially shut since Dec. 22 in a dispute over whether to fund a wall on the Mexico border.

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Remembering JFK Jr 15 Years Later

The son of one of America's most beloved Presidents, John F. Kennedy Jr. first won our hearts in pictures of him playing around his dad's desk in the Oval Office. And after his father's assassination, the image of the small boy saluting Kennedy's casket seared itself into our national consciousness. A celebrity idol and a national heartthrobdubbed the Sexiest Man Alive by PEOPLE in 1988JFK Jr. kept the Camelot mythology alive until his untimely death in a plane crash in July 1999 at the age of 38. 15 years after that tragic day, TIME looks back at the life of an American icon.

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Russian Warplane Flies in Unsafe Manner Near US Aircraft

A Russian Su-27 jet flew dangerously close to a U.S. Air Force RC-135 aircraft over the Baltic Sea on Friday, military officials said. The Russian plane flew within 25 feet of the RC-135's fuselage, conducting a barrel roll over the U.S. plane. Lt. Col Michelle Baldanza, a Defense Department Spokesperson said that, "on April 29, 2016, a U.S. Air Force RC-135 aircraft flying a routine route in international airspace over the Baltic Sea was intercepted by a Russian SU-27 in an unsafe and unprofessional manner.", She added that the Russian plane "performed erratic and aggressive maneuvers" and that "the SU-27 intercepted the U.S. . . . Read the rest of the story from our partners at NBC News

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How Smart Traffic Lights Could Transform Your Commute

The traffic signals along Factoria Boulevard in Bellevue, Wash. generally don't flash the same stretch of green twice in a row, especially at rush hour. At 930 a.m. the full red/yellow/green signal cycle might be 140 seconds. By 933 a.m, a burst of additional traffic might push it to 145 seconds. Less traffic at 937 a.m. could push it down to 135. Just like the traffic itself, the timing of the signals fluctuates. That's by design. Bellevue, a fast-growing city of more than 130,000 just east of Seattle, utilizes a system that is gaining popularity around the U.S. intersection signals that can adjust in real-time to traffic conditions. City officials say that these lights, known as adaptive signals, have led to significant declines in both the hassle and cost of commuting. "Adaptive signals make sure that inefficiencies never happen," says Alex Stevanovic, director of the Laboratory for Adaptive Traffic Operations Management at Florida Atlantic University. "They can make sure that the traffic demand that is there is being addressed.", As city leaders increasingly turn to data for insight into running their metros more efficiently, adaptive signals have emerged as a 21st century strategy to chip away at a longstanding scourge. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, almost 11 million Americans commute more than an hour each way to their job while 600,000 U.S. residents have one-way "megacommutes" of at least 90 minutes or 50 miles. And all that time on the roads costs money. The Centre for Economics and Business Research estimates that U.S. commuters lost 124 billion in 2013 due to the cost of fuel, the value of time wasted in traffic, and the increased cost of doing business. CEBR predicts those costs will rise 50 by 2030. Only 3 of the nation's traffic signals are currently adaptive, but the number of smart signals in the U.S. has jumped from 4,500 in 2009 to 6,500 in 2014, according to Stevanovic, who tracks the signals' installation around the U.S. The largest concentration of adaptive signals is in Los Angeles, a city that has long struggled with congestion. Nearby Orange County, Calif. has the second largest, followed by Utah, where about 80 of the state's traffic signals are adaptive. But the frontier of adaptive traffic management may be in Bellevue, according to transportation policy experts. The city's overhaul began in 2010 when it began implementing a system called SCATS Sydney Coordinative Adaptive Traffic System, which was first developed and used in Sydney, Australia. Currently, 174 of Bellevue's intersections have been outfitted with the new technology with plans for all 197 intersections to use adaptive signals by the end of the year. The system uses a series of wires embedded in city streets that tell the signals how much traffic is moving through the intersection. When traffic is heavier, the green lights stay on longer. Less traffic means shorter greens. During peak traffic periods, nearby intersections sync their lights to allow long stretches of green. When there are fewer cars on the road, those intersections revert to their own cycles. Mark Poch, the Bellevue Transportation Department's traffic engineering manager, says uncoupled intersections work more efficiently when there are fewer cars on the road because they can better respond to specific situations at that cross street. Along Factoria, one of Bellevue's main downtown arteries, travel times have decreased by 36 during peak rush hour since adaptive lights were installed, according to city transportation officials. Along NE 8th Street, another heavily trafficked street, travel times are down 43 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Those decreased delays appear to add up to real savings for drivers Bellevue officials say the 5.5 million system saves drivers 9 million to 12 million annually they estimate that a driver's time is worth 15 an hour. For all of Bellevue's success, adaptive signals are not a panacea for clogged roadways. Kevin Balke, a research engineer at the Texas AM University Transportation Institute, says that while smart lights can be particularly beneficial for some cities, others are so congested that only a drastic reduction in the number of cars on the road will make a meaningful difference. "It's not going to fix everything, but adaptive has some benefits for a smaller city with a particular corridor on the verge of breaking down," he says. In Bellevue, the switch to adaptive has been a lesson in the value of embracing new approaches. In the past, Poch says, there was often a knee-jerk reaction to dealing with increased traffic just widen the lanes. Now he hopes that other cities will consider making their streets run smarter instead of just making them bigger. "It's been a slow change," Poch says. "It's easy to think the way to get out of it is to widen the road. However, as we move toward being better stewards of our resources and more sensitive to environmental issues, let's take what we have and operate it better. I think that's a more prevailing thought now, and I think it makes sense."

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Cornel West Obama Administration Is a Drone Presidency

Famed public intellectual Cornel West, whose new book Black Prophetic Fire is a re-examination of key black political figures through a different lens, was initially a big supporter of Barack Obama and appeared with him during his first presidential campaign. But in 2012, West says he didn't even vote. "I couldn't vote for a war criminal," he said, calling Obama's administration a "drone presidency.", In an interview with Time for 10 Questions, which can be read here, the always outspoken West said the President lacks courage. "I think he lacks backbone," he says. "I think he's settled for the middle ground rather than the higher ground.", One example of that, he explains, is the way Obama addresses young black men, which West characterizes as "paternalistic," and very unlike the subservient way he deals with Wall Street. "When you say your major program for black young boys is going to be one of charity and philanthropy but no public policy, no justice, then criticism must be put forward just to be true to the black prophetic tradition," he said. The Obama legacy, West says, is contrast to the black leaders in the book, such as Malcolm X, whom West says, "specialized in de-n___izing' black people"that is, he clarifies, encouraged them not to "be intimidated, afraid, and so scared of speaking their mind and allowing their soul to be manifest that they defer to the powers that be, especially the white supremacist powers.", West, who's no stranger to controversy, is currently a professor at Union Theological Seminary. He's hoping to draw as many young people as he can to a rally in Ferguson, Missouri, on Oct. 13, to protest the killing of Michael Brown by police there. "It's a beautiful thing to see the young people in Ferguson and all across the nation, organizing there."

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Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough Trump is Not Mentally Equipped to Watch Morning Joe

MSNBC hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski have questioned President Donald Trumps mental fitness after he described them as "Psycho Joe" and "low I.Q. Crazy Mika" on Twitter, adding that Brzezinski was "bleeding badly from a face-lift" at Mar-a-Lago around New Year's Eve time. In a scathing op-ed penned for the Washington Post, the Morning Joe hosts described the President's "obsession" with Morning Joe as "unhealthy". "We are both certain that the man is not mentally equipped to continue watching our show," they wrote. "Despite his constant claims that he no longer watches the show, the President's closest advisers tell us otherwise.", In the piece, Scarborough and Brzezinski rejected Trump's claim that the pair "insisted" on joining him in Mar-a-Lago three nights in a row. "That is false. He also claimed that he refused to see us. That is laughable," they wrote. The hosts said the President invited them to a dinner on Dec. 30, which only Scarborough attended. The pair said they then agreed to visit the President and Melania Trump in Mar-a-Lago together the next day, before "politely declining his repeated invitations to attend a New Year's Eve party.", Scarborough and Brzezinski also contradicted Trump's claim that Brzezinski was "bleeding badly from a face-lift." "That is also a lie," they wrote. "Putting aside Mr. Trump's never-ending obsession with women's blood, Mika and her face were perfectly intact, as pictures from that night reveal." The pair added that Brzezinski has "never had a face-lift.", The President's tweets which are considered official presidential statements sparked an immediate backlash after they were posted Thursday, even by members of his own party. However, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders defended the comments, telling reporters Thursday "When Trump gets attacked he's going to hit back. I don't think it's a surprise to anyone that he fights fire with fire.", Washington Post

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Joe Biden Adopts a Rescue Dog Named Major

Former Vice President Joe Biden's family has a furry new addition. Biden and his wife Dr. Jill Biden adopted a 10-month-old German Shepherd from the Delaware Humane Association DHA on Saturday, after fostering him for several months. The pup's name is Major. DHA posted about the lucky dog on their Facebook page as the Bidens took him to his new "forever home.", "Today is Major's lucky day! Not only did Major find his forever home, but he got adopted by Vice President Joe Biden Dr. Jill Biden!" the post said. "The Bidens have gotten to know Major while fostering him and are now ready to make the adoption official. Best of luck and thank you for being one of our Friends for life!", According to DHA, Major is from a litter of German Shepherd pups that were given up for adoption and are currently "not doing well at all.", "Once we posted about them Joe Biden caught wind of them and reached out immediately. The rest is history!" DHA said. , The Bidens are proud owners of another German Shepherd named Champ. In a statement, the Bidens thanked the shelter for their help finding dogs permanent homes. "We are so happy to welcome Major to the Biden family, and we are grateful to the Delaware Humane Association for their work in finding forever homes for Major and countless other animals," the statement read.

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The Pain Wont Go Away Sister of Charleston Shooting Victim Reacts to Texas Attack

Bethane Middleton-Brown knows the pain the families and victims in Sunday's mass shooting at a Texas church are feeling all too well. In June 2015, her sister, Rev. DePayne Middleton, was among the nine parishioners killed by a self-proclaimed white supremacist who had been welcomed at a Wednesday night Bible study class at Charleston's Emanuel A.M.E. Church. In the wake of the tragedy at the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, Texas, where 26 people including 8 members of one family and children as young as 18-months-old were killed by a shooter during Sunday services, Middleton-Brown has offered heartfelt prayer for the victims and their families in a statement to TIME. "It is a horrific tragedy that continues to lurk its ugly face at the world, but I believe this too shall pass," she said. "The families will feel the wrath of pain and the sinful ways of this old world and in time they will learn just as I have how to find a balance because the pain won't go away, but you can live through it.", There have been numerous mass shootings since a gunman opened fire on the gathered group in the Emanuel church basement. In the time since, the families have grown all too familiar with the cycle and in turn they, like the families of the Sandy Hook massacre and countless other tragedies, have become de-facto experts on grief and tragedy. Members of the media often call on them to offer thoughts and prayers and help for others who now find themselves members of an increasingly non-exclusive club they never imagined they'd be forced to join. It's a responsibility they carry on top of the heavy burden of grief. In her prayer, Middleton prayed that the families find the same "patience, guidance and strength" she and the rest of DePayne's family have had to find for themselves. "May they all be guided by God through the spirit of their beloveds," she said. "I will carry their pain and burden in my heart because it's just simply too great of a burden to bear alone. I pray for healing.", Middleton-Brown, who stepped up to take care of her sister's children in the wake of the Emanuel A.M.E. Church massacre was not the only family member to speak out. Chris Singleton, the son of Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, expressed his grief in a series of tweets on Sunday. "The Lord blessed us with free will and at times like these I am destroyed by the things people do with it," he said in one message. , , , Singleton was one of the many Charleston family members who spoke out in forgiveness of his mother's killer shortly after the shooting took place. At the time, he said, "love is always stronger than hate, If we just love the way my mom would, then the hate won't be nearly as strong as the love is." In a recent interview with USA Today, Singleton said he formed his own relationship with God in the wake of his mother's death. For a while, he told the paper, he'd call his mom's old cellphone just to hear her voice. He stopped about a year ago when a person answered his mother's number was taken. "Now, I have this video of my mom praying on my phone, at a funeral service of her friend's dad," he told USA Today. "She was ironically talking about how you get through that stuff. So I listen to that. It helps me get through tough times.'', Malcolm Graham, a former North Carolina state senator and the brother of Cynthia Hurd, another of the Emanuel A.M.E. victims, says during a different time, before Emanuel, the bulk of the calls he received related to politics. Now, he says, whenever there's a shooting his phone is ringing. The frequency of mass shootings in America has made healing all the more difficult, he says. A month after his sister and eight others were killed, there was another shooting at a military recruitment station in Tennessee. A few months later in October, a shooting on a community college campus in Oregon. And then in December, the terrorist-linked mass shooting in San Bernardino, Calif. So, too, has the familiar set of events that unfold after each shooting the rush of coverage followed by a lull until the next tragedy. And, he says, the lack of action from lawmakers. "I think policy makers need to stop saying their thoughts and prayers are with the families. The folks in Charleston, the folks that died yesterday were in the church. These are prayed up folks. They were worshiping their God," he says. "What they ought to do is get to work addressing these issues that affecting our country.", It's time for lawmakers to "get their head out of the sand and acknowledge the elephant in the country," which he says is "domestic terrorism" perpetrated by folks who have easy access to powerful weapons. "You should have the right to bear arms, you should have the right to protect your family, you should have the right to protect your property with a firearm," he says. "But those individuals in Charleston, those individuals at the church yesterday, those individuals who were enjoying the concert in Las Vegas also had the right of liberty and the pursuit of happiness.", He's calling on lawmakers to address what he calls "common sense" gun safety measures, including limits on the types of weapons people can buy, how many rounds the guns can shoot, background checks and resources for mental health needs. His message to the Texas families and community members, in the meantime, is to "be strong.", "Something that we learned when I was pledging a fraternity is this quote. It's something that I had to repeat over and over to myself when Cynthia passed," he says. "It says, Be strong, we're not hear to play, dream or drift, we have hard work to do and heavy loads to lift. Shun not the struggle for it's God's gift be strong.'", "Encourage the families in Texas to be strong," he says. " To the faith leaders in that community, I would just encourage them to be strong and to demonstrate their faith. But also like James Chapter 2 says, Faith without works is dead.' They also have work that they have to do to help this country face some troubling issues."

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Read President Obamas Speech in Flint on Water Crisis

President Barack Obama spoke to the community in Flint, Mich. on Wednesday, visiting the city for the first time since findings about the city's lead-contaminated water came to light. Here is a transcript of his speech at Northwestern High School in Flint. Read more What an 8-Year-Old Girl in Flint Wants from President Obama

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Matt Damon Gives Good Will Hunting Lesson to MIT Grads I Now Know Better Than to Cry at MIT

Thank you. Thank you, President Reif and thank you, Class of 2016!, It's an honor to be part of this day an honor to be here with you, with your friends, your professors, and your parents. But let's be honest It's an honor I didn't earn. Let's just put that out there. I mean, I've seen the list of previous commencement speakers Nobel Prize winners. The UN Secretary General. President of the World Bank. President of the United States. And who did you get? The guy who did the voice for a cartoon horse. If you're wondering which cartoon horse that's "Spirit Stallion of the Cimarron.", Definitely one of my best performances as a cartoon horse. Look, I don't even have a college degree. As you might have heard, I went to Harvard. I just didn't graduate from Harvard. I got pretty close, but I started to get movie roles and didn't finish all my courses. I put on a cap and gown and walked with my class my Mom and Dad were there and everything I just never got an actual degree. You could say I kind of fake graduated. So you can imagine how excited I was when President Reif called to invite me to speak at the MIT commencement. Then you can imagine how sorry I was to learn that the MIT commencement speaker does not get to go home with a degree. So yes, today, for the second time in my life, I am fake graduating from a college in my hometown. My Mom and Dad are here again, And this time I brought my wife and four kids. Welcome, kids, to Dad's fake graduation. You must be so proud. So as I said, my Mom is here. She's a professor, so she knows the value of an MIT degree. She also knows that I couldn't have gotten in here. I mean, Harvard, yes. Or a safety school like Yale. Look, I'm not running for any kind of office. I can say pretty much whatever I want. No, I couldn't have gotten in here, but I did grow up here. Grew up in the neighborhood, in the shadow of this imposing place. My brother Kyle and I, and my friend Ben Affleckbrilliant guy, good guy, never really amounted to much we all grew up here, in Central Square, children of this sometimes rocky marriage between this city and its great institutions. To us, MIT was kind of The Man This big, impressive, impersonal force That was our provincial, knee-jerk, teenage reaction, anyway. Then Ben and I shot a movie here. One of the scenes in Good Will Hunting was based on something that actually happened to my brother. Kyle was visiting a physicist we knew at MIT, and he was walking down the Infinite Corridor. He saw those blackboards that line the halls. So my brother, who's an artist, picked up some chalk and wrote an incredibly elaborate, totally fake, version of an equation. It was so cool and so completely insane that no one erased it for months. This is true. Anyway, Kyle came back and he said, you guys, listen to this They've got blackboards running down the hall! Because these kids are so smart they just need to, you know, drop everything and solve problems!, It was then we knew for sure we could never have gotten in. But like I said, we later made a movie here. Which did not go unnoticed on campus. In fact I'd like to read you some actual lines, some selected passages, from the review of Good Will Hunting in the MIT school paper. Oh, and if you haven't seen it, Will was me, and Sean was played by the late Robin Williams, a man I miss a hell of a lot. So I'm quoting here "Good Will Hunting is very entertaining but then again, any movie partially set at MIT has to be.", There's more. "In the end," the reviewer writes, "the actual character development flies out the window. Will and Sean talk, bond, solve each other's problems, and then cry and hug each other. After said crying and hugging, the movie ends Such feel-good pretentiousness is definitely not my mug of eggnog.", Well, this kind of hurts my feelings. But don't worry I now know better than to cry at MIT. But look, I'm happy to be here anyway. I might still be a knee-jerk teenager in key respects, but I know an amazing school when I see it. We're lucky to have MIT in Boston. And we're lucky it draws the people it does, people like you, from around the world. I mean, you're working on some crazy stuff in these buildings. Stuff that would freak me out if I actually understood it. Theories, models, paradigm shifts. I'll tell you one that's been on my mind Simulation Theory. Maybe you've heard of it. Maybe you took a class with Max Tegmark. Well, for the uninitiated, there's a philosopher named Nick Bostrom at Oxford, and he's postulated that if there's a truly advanced form of intelligence out there in the universe, then it's probably advanced enough to run simulations of entire worlds maybe trillions of them maybe even our own. The basic idea, as I understand it, is that we could be living in a massive simulation run by a far smarter civilization, a giant computer game, and we don't even know it. And here's the thing a lot of physicists, cosmologists, won't rule it out. I watched a discussion that was moderated by Neil deGrasse Tyson, of the Hayden Planetarium, and by and large, the panel couldn't give a definitive answer. Tyson himself put the odds at 50-50. I'm not sure how scientific that is, but it had numbers in it, so I was impressed. Well, it got me to thinking What if thisall of thisis a simulation? I mean, it's a crazy idea, but what if it is?, And if there are multiple simulations, how come we're in the one where Donald Trump becomes the Republican nominee?, Can we, like, transfer to a different one?, Professor Tegmark has an excellent take on all this. "My advice," he said recently, "is to go out and do really interesting things so the simulators don't shut you down.", But then again what if it isn't a simulation? Well, either way, my answer is the same. Either way, what we do matters. What we do affects the outcome. So either way, MIT, you've got to go out and do really interesting things. Important things. Inventive things. Because this world real or imagined this world has some problems we need you to drop everything and solve. Go ahead take your pick from the world's worst buffet. Economic inequality, there's a problem Or how about the refugee crisis, massive global insecurity climate change and pandemics institutional racism a pull to nativism, fear-driven brains working overtime here in America and in places like Austria, where a far-right candidate nearly won the presidential election for the first time since World War II. Or Brexit, for God's sakes, that insane idea that the best path for Britain is to cut loose from Europe and drift out to sea. Add to that an American political system that's failing we've got congressmen on a two-year election cycle who are only incentivized to think short term, and simply do not engage with long-term problems. Add to that a media that thrives on scandal and people with their pants down Anything to get you to tune in so they can hawk you products that you don't need. And add to that a banking system that steals people's money. Like I said, I'm never running for office!, But while I'm on this, let me say this to the bankers who brought you the biggest heist in history It was theft and you knew it. It was fraud and you knew it. And you know what else? We know that you knew it. And yeah, OK, you sort of got away with it. You got that house in the Hamptons that other people paid for as their own mortgages went underwater. Well, you might have their money, but you don't have our respect. Just so you know, when we pass you on the street and look you in the eye that's what we're thinking. I don't know if justice is coming for you in this life or the next. But if justice does come for you in this life her name is Elizabeth Warren. OK, so before my banking digression, I rattled off a bunch of big problems. And a natural response is to tune out, turn away. But before you step out into our big, troubled world, I want to pass along a piece of advice that Bill Clinton offered me a little over a decade ago. Well, actually, when he said it, it felt less like advice and more like a direct order. What he said was "turn toward the problems you see.", It seemed kind of simple at the time, but the older I get, the more wisdom I see in this. And that's what I want to urge you to do today turn toward the problems you see. And don't just turn toward them. Engage with them. Walk right up to them, look them in the eye then look yourself in the eye and decide what you're going to do about them. In my experience, there's just no substitute for actually going and seeing things. I owe this insight, like many others, to my Mom. When I was a teenager, Mom thought it was important for us to see the world outside of Boston. And I don't mean Framingham. She took us to places like Guatemala, where we saw extreme poverty up close. It changed my whole frame of reference. I think it was that same impulse that took my brother and me to Zambia in 2006, as part of the ONE Campaign the organization that Bono founded to fight desperate, stupid poverty and preventable disease in the developing world. On that trip, in a small community, I met a girl and walked with her to a nearby bore well where she could get clean water. She had just come from school. And I knew the reason that she was able to go to school at all clean water. Namely, the fact that clean water was available nearby, so she didn't have to walk miles back and forth all day to get water for her family, as so many girls and women do. I asked her if she wanted to stay in her village when she grew up. She said, "No! I want to go to Lusaka and become a nurse!", Clean water something as basic as that had given this child the chance to dream. As I learned more about water and sanitation, I was floored by the extent to which it undergirds all these problems of extreme poverty. The fate of entire communities, economies, countries is caught up in that glass of water, something the rest of us get to take for granted. People at ONE told me that water is the least sexy aspect of the effort to fight extreme poverty. And water goes hand-in-hand with sanitation. If you think water isn't sexy, you should try to get into the shit business. But I was already hooked. The enormity of it, and the complexity of the issue, had already hooked me. And getting out in the world and meeting people like this little girl is what put me on the path to starting Water.org, with a brilliant civil engineer named Gary White. For Gary and me both, seeing the world its problems, its possibilities heightened our disbelief that so many people, millions, in fact, can't get a safe, clean drink of water or a safe, clean, private place to go to the bathroom. And it heightened our determination to do something about it. You see some tough things out there. But you also see life- changing joy. And it all changes you. There was a refugee crisis back in '09 that I read about in an amazing article in the New York Times. People were streaming across the border of Zimbabwe to a little town in northern South Africa called Messina. I was working in South Africa, so I went up to Messina to see for myself what was going on. I spent a day speaking with women who had made this perilous journey across the Limpopo River, dodging bandits on one side, crocodiles in the river, and bandits on the other. Every woman I spoke to that day had been raped. Every single one. On one side of the river or both. At the end of my time there I met a woman who was so positive, so joyful. She had just been given her papers and had been given political asylum in South Africa. And in the midst of this joyful conversation, I mustered up the courage and said, "Ma'am, do you mind my asking were you assaulted on your journey to South Africa?", And she replied, still smiling, "Oh, yes, I was raped. But I have my papers now. And those bastards didn't get my dignity.", Human beings will take your breath away. They will teach you a lot but you have to engage. I only had that experience because I went there myself. It was horrible in many ways, it was hard to get to but of course that's the point. There's a lot of trouble out there, MIT. But there's a lot of beauty, too. I hope you see both. But again, the point is not to become some kind of well- rounded, high-minded voyeur. The point is to try to eliminate your blind spots the things that keep us from grasping the bigger picture. And look, even though I grew up in this neighborhood in this incredible, multicultural neighborhood that was a little rough at that time I find myself here before you as an American, white, male movie star. I don't have a clue where my blind spots begin and end. But looking at the world as it is, and engaging with it, is the first step toward finding our blind spots. And that's when we can really start to understand ourselves better and begin to solve some problems. With that as your goal, there's a few more things I hope you'll keep in mind. First, you're going to fail sometimes, and that's a good thing. For all the amazing successes I've been lucky to share in, few things have shaped me more than the auditions that Ben and I used to do as young actors where we would get on a bus, show up in New York, wait for our turn, cry our hearts out for a scene, and then be told, "OK, thanks." Meaning game over. We used to call it "being OK thanksed.", Those experiences became our armor. So now you're thinking, that's great, Matt. Failure is good. Thanks a ton. Tell me something I didn't hear at my high school graduation. To which I say OK, I will!, You know the real danger for MIT graduates? It's not getting "OK thanksed." The real danger is all that smoke that's been blown up your graduation gowns about how freaking smart you are. Well, you are that freaking smart! But don't believe the hype that's thrown at you. You don't have all the answers. And you shouldn't. And that's fine. You're going to have your share of bad ideas. For me, one was playing a character named "Edgar Pudwhacker.", I wish I could tell you I'm making that up. But as the great philosopher, Benjamin Affleck, once said "Judge me by how good my good ideas are, not by how bad my bad ideas are." You've got to suit up in your armor, and get ready to sound like a total fool. Not having an answer isn't embarrassing. It's an opportunity. Don't be afraid to ask questions. I know so much less the second time I'm fake graduating than the first time. The second thing I want to leave you with is that you've got to keep listening. The world wants to hear your ideas good and bad. But today's not the day you switch from "receive" to "transmit." Once you do that, your education is over. And your education should never be over. Even outside your work, there are ways to keep challenging yourself. Listen to online lectures. I just retook a philosophy course online that I took at Harvard when I was nineteen. Or use MIT OpenCourseWare. Go to Wait But Why or TED.com. I'm told there's even a Trump University. I have no earthly idea what they teach there. But whatever you do, just keep listening. Even to people you don't agree with at all. I love what President Obama said at Howard University's commencement last month he said, "Democracy requires compromise, even when you are 100 percent right.", I heard that and I thought here is a man who has been happily married for a long time. Not that the First Lady has ever been wrong about anything. Just like my wife. Never wrong. Not even when she decided last month that in a family with four kids, what was missing in our lives was a third rescue dog. That was an outstanding decision, honey. And I love you. The third and last thought I want to leave you with is that not every problem has a high-tech solution. I guess this is obvious. But it is really?, If anybody has a right to think we can pretty much tech support the world's problems into submission, it's you. Think of the innovations that got their start at MIT or by MIT alums the World Wide Web. Nuclear fission. Condensed soup. This is true! You should be proud., But the truth is, we can't science the shit out of every problem. There is not always a freaking app for that. Take water again as an example. People are always looking for some scientific quick fix for the problem of dirty and disease-ridden water. A "pill you put in the glass," a filter, or something like that. But there's no magic bullet. The problem's too complex. Yes, there is definitely, absolutely a role for science. There's incredible advances being made in clean water technology. Companies and universities are getting in on the game. I'm glad to know that professors like Susan Mercott at D-Lab are focusing on water and sanitation. But as I'm sure she'd agree, science alone can't solve this problem. We need to be just as innovative in public policy, just as innovative in our financial models. That's the idea behind an approach we have at Water.org called WaterCredit. WaterCredit is based on Gary White's insight that poor people were already paying for their water and they, no less than the rest of us, want to participate in their own solutions. So WaterCredit helps connect the poor with microfinance organizations, which enables them to build water connections and toilets in their homes and communities. The approach is working helping 4 million people so far and this is only the start. Our loans are paying back at over 99 percent. Which is a hell of a better deal than those bankers I was talking about earlier. I agree it's still not sexy but it is without a doubt the coolest thing I've ever been a part of. So, graduates, let me ask you this in closing What do you want to be a part of? What's the problem you'll try to solve? Whatever your answer, it's not going to be easy. Sometimes your work will hit a dead-end. Sometimes your work will be measured in half-steps. And sometimes your work will make you wear a white sequined military uniform and make love to Michael Douglas. Well, maybe that's just my work. But for all of you here, your work starts today. And seriously, how lucky are you?, I mean, what are the odds that you're the ones who are here today?, In the Earth's 4.5 billion year run, with 100 billion people who have lived and died, and with 7 billion of us here now Here you are. Yes, here you are alive at a time of potential extinction-level events a time when fewer and fewer people can cause more and more damage a time when science and technology may not hold all the answers, but are indispensable to any solution. What are the odds that you get to be you, right now, The MIT class of 2016, with so much on the line?, There are potentially trillions of human beings who will someday exist whose fate, in large part, depends on the choices you make on your ideas on your grit and persistence and willingness to engage. If this were a movie I were trying to pitch I'd be laughed out of every office in Hollywood. Joseph Campbell himself he of the "monomyth," the ultimate hero's journey even he wouldn't even go this far. Campbell would tell me to throttle this down lower the stakes. But I can't. Because this is fact, not fiction. This improbable thing is actually happening. There's more at stake today than in any story ever told. And how lucky you are and how lucky we are that you're here, and you're you. So I hope you'll turn toward the problem of your choosing Because you must. I hope you'll drop everything Because you must And I hope you'll solve it. Because you must. This is your life, Class of 2016. This is your moment, and it's all down to you. Ready player one. Your game begins now. Congratulations and thanks very much!,

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Find Out What the Most Popular Holiday Candy in Your State Is

The holiday season is often a time to indulge on heavy meals and an abundance of sweets, including candy. Indeed, it appears that each state in the U.S. may have a favorite candy for the holidays, ranging from the more traditional candy cane in Washington and peppermint bark in California to the universal Starburst in Oklahoma, Pez in Texas, Skittles in New York and Snickers in Mississippi. These findings come from a survey that CandyStore.com, a bulk online candy store, gave to more than 50,000 of its customers. While some states chose less holiday-specific candies as their favorites for the season, 1.76 billion candy canes are produced every year, and so are around 150 million chocolate Santas, according to CandyStore.com. , As CandyStore.com noted, Americans will spend 1.93 billion on holiday candy this year in the eight weeks ahead of Christmas, according to the National Confectionary Association. Additionally, Americans will spend far more on food and candy than they will on decorations, spending 110 on the former alone. Here's a list of every state's favorite candy for the season, according to CandyStore.com, Alabama Reindeer corn, Alaska Hersey Kisses, Arizona Pez, Arkansas Starburst, California Peppermint bark, Colorado Hersey Kisses, Connecticut MM's, Delaware Candy canes, Florida Skittles, Georgia Candy canes, Hawaii Starburst, Idaho MM's, Illinois Jolly Ranger, Indiana Snickers, Iowa MM's, Kansas Peppermint bark, Kentucky MM's, Louisiana Pez, Maine Candy canes, Maryland Reese's Pieces, Massachusetts Skittles, Michigan Reindeer corn, Minnesota Jolly Rancher, Mississippi Snickers, Missouri Starburst, Montana Skittles, Nebraska Hershey Kisses, Nevada Peppermint bark, New Hampshire Candy canes, New Jersey Reese's Minis, New Mexico Pez, New York Skittles, North Carolina Pez, North Dakota Chocolate Santa, Ohio Pez, Oklahoma Starburst, Oregon Reese's minis, Pennsylvania Candy canes, Rhode Island MM's, South Carolina Pez, South Dakota Reese's Minis, Tennessee MM's, Texas Pez, Utah Reindeer corn, Vermont Candy canes, Virginia MM's, Washington Candy canes, Washington, D.C. Jolly Rancher, West Virginia Peppermint bark, Wisconsin Pez, Wyoming MM's

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Fowling A New Sport That Combines Football and Bowling

A man in Michigan has invented a fusion of two American pastimesand it's catching on. The rules of fowling, a hybrid of football and bowling, are simple two teams set up bowling pins across from one another and take turns trying to knock each other's pins down by throwing a football. The first team to knock down all of the opposing team's pins wins. If the rules sound pretty similar to beer pong, that's because inventor Chris Hutt created the game while tailgating at the Indianapolis 500. Hutt now owns and operates the Fowling Warehouse in Hamtramck, Mich. There, players get a special prize when they achieve a "bonk," which means downing only the middle pin on the first throw they can blow the "bonk honk" a giant horn in the middle of the warehouse. Still confused? Check out a game of fowling in the video above.

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Kim Davis Lawyers Argue Altered Marriage Licenses Are Valid

Kim Davis' attorneys said Tuesday that the Kentucky clerk has taken reasonable steps to comply with a judge's orders and should not be fined. Davis spent five days in jail last month for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples in Rowan County despite a Supreme Court decision that effectively legalized gay marriage across the country. Davis said she would play no role in issuing marriage licenses when she returned to her job. But she did make changes to the license forms by removing her name and other details, prompting the couples who initially sued her and the American Civil Liberties Union to ask a judge to order Davis' office to return to using the original forms. Her lawyers say there is no need. "Marriage licenses are being issued in Rowan County, which Kentucky Gov. Steven Beshear and Kentucky attorney general have approved as valid, which are recognized by the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and which are deemed acceptable by the couples who received them," her lawyers said in court filings Tuesday, according to the Associated Press. Davis could face a fine if the judge finds that the altered documents are problematic. One of Davis' deputy clerks said the Davis had deleted her name, mentions of deputy clerks and references of Rowan County from the document. "The Kentucky governor and Kentucky attorney general both inspected the new licenses and publicly stated that they were valid and will be recognized as valid by the Commonwealth of Kentucky," Davis' lawyers said. Her legal team has also filed a suit against Governor Besmear and another state official accusing them of violating her religious freedom. AP

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Remembering Americas Angel of Death Row

She was called "the Angel of Death Row" more than a few times in her life, but Scharlette Holdman was not everyone's idea of angelic. She had a salty tongue and a wicked sense of humor and a temper that once moved her to pick up a typewriter and heave it at a door. She had a rebellious streak so wide that it really wasn't even a streak. Distrusting and opposing authority was more like the core of her being. Because authority exercises no greater power than the power to kill, Holdman focused her enormous rebellious energy on thwarting the state's power to kill. After more than four decades defending some of the most notoriousand some of the most facelesskillers in America, Holdman died July 12 at the age of 70, a fighter to the end. Although 70 is not particularly old, it might have surprised a lot of people who knew her at the beginning of her often thankless battle that she made it as long as she did. For roughly a dozen years in the late 1970s and '80s, when the death penalty was among the most popular policies in Florida and the vast resources of that very large state were trained on speeding executions, Holdman led the resistance, fueled by cigarettes, caffeine, alcohol and nerves. As director of a tiny non-profit with an even tinier budget, Holdman, an anthropologist and political organizer, made herself an expert in one of the most complex and dysfunctional corners of criminal law. Her expertise allowed her to understand exactly when each of the more than 200 prisoners then facing death in Florida would need emergency legal representation. When the alarm rang, she would scour the state, or even the country, begging and wheedling, for a volunteer to take the case. In some cases, practically anyone with a law license would do. And if the often reluctant lawyer turned out to know little or nothing about criminal appeals, Holdman would connect them with one of the small band of brilliant young attorneys who shared the fight with her, people who are legend in the tight community of death penalty lawyers, like Mark Olive, Richard Burr, and the late Craig Barnard. Read More The Death of the Death Penalty, Critics dubbed her "the Mistress of Delay," and to hear Florida's politicians and prosecutors tell it, Holdman was a mighty force thwarting the will of the people. In fact, she was a single mom living on 600 a month, collecting unused copy paper from wastebaskets in the Florida State University library for use in last-minute briefs written during bleary all-nighters. It was a time of 100-mph car rides to distant courthouses as clocks ticked down on death row. Holdman once found herself transporting the unclaimed body of an executed man in the back of her station wagon for burial. The rag-tag nature of this life-and-death litigation, and the near-executions of men who turned out to have strong grounds for appeal when Holdman finally found them a lawyer, went on for years. But eventually it scandalized the Florida Bar Association enough that the legal community put its muscle behind a publicly funded agency to coordinate capital appeals. Long ago, I published a book about this period called Among the Lowest of the Dead, and my biggest regret was that Holdman refused to be interviewed for it. The attempt to fold her into the new state agency had been, predictably, a fiasco, and she was still stinging from her ouster. But she was nice enough to turn me down in person over drinks one night in Atlanta, where I wound up laughing much harder and longer than anyone could expect a disappointed author of a book about the death penalty to laugh. She was an utter original, and her sincerity was apparent even to people who found her devotion to saving the likes of Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, Jared Loughner and Eric Rudolph misguided. She traced her activism to her childhood as the daughter of a slumlord in segregated Memphis, where her father taught her the rough art of rent collection, which he referred to as "going ning." The perky cheerleader learned two important lessons, neither of which her father intended. The first had to do with the brutal oppressiveness of poverty. The second was how to talk to poor and vulnerable peoplenot as specimens to be studied, not as patients to be cured, not as problems to be managed, but as, simply, people. Post-Florida, she drew on this lesson to perfect the art of mitigation, the key to modern anti-death penalty law. Read More Every Execution in U.S. History, Since restoring capital punishment in 1976, the Supreme Court has required that every death sentence meted out by U.S. courts must weigh the specific qualities of the individual defendant, taking into account the accused killer's motives, background, mental capacity, circumstancesthe whole life story. And because many violent criminals have been raised in circumstances of abuse and neglect, in badly broken families scarred by mental illness and addiction, it's not always easy to dig out every detail that might weigh in favor of sparing their lives. Even when the story has been found, often the hardest part remains. As Holdman once put it to writer Jeffrey Toobin in the New Yorker "The fact that someone tells you that story in their living room is a long, long way from getting them to tell you that story in a public courtroom", This became Holdman's forte, and as she moved from California to Louisiana she trained and inspired hundreds of younger investigators around the country to do the same work. At the time of her death, she was executive director of the Center for Capital Assistance in New Orleans. For many people who met Holdman in person or in the press, the same question popped to mind. How could she grow so close to the guilty, when ordinary human sympathy is drawn to the innocent? Though I spent many hours talking with Holdman's colleagues and friends and poring over the history of her work in Florida, I can't say that I ever entirely answered it. She was so close to Ted Kaczynskiwho killed and maimed strangers as the Unabomberthat he tried to give her his tiny cabin, his principle worldly possession. The government blocked the gift. She was so close to Mohammed, the accused mastermind of 9-11, that she immersed herself in Islam and reportedly received a Muslim burial on July 13. The closest I came to an answer is that loving the sinner is not an easy task, and doing it full time takes a particular sort of person. But if a civilized society is going to include death as a punishment, and if it hopes to remain civilized, then the process must be made rigorous and the decision must be kept difficult. No one made those decisions more difficult than Scharlette Holdmanfor which America should be grateful, even if we can't easily understand.

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Why Your Electricity Will Be Greener in 2016

Natural gas and renewable energy sources are expected to amount to more than 93 of new electric generation, the latest sign of a shift away from high polluting fossil fuels like coal and oil, according to new government numbers. Analysts behind the report, published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration EIA, found that utilities and commercial institutions are expected to add more than 26 gigawatts of generating capacity to the country's power grid in 2016. Solar, natural gas and wind will make up 37, 31 and 26 of that total respectively. Just three coal-fired power plants are expected to enter use over the entire year, according to the report. "These trends have been pretty stable over the past few years and I don't think there's much than can change that," says EIA analyst Tim Shear. "You may see a coal plant being built here and there, but, by and large, they're not being built.", The report, derived from information submitted to the EIA by utility companies, is good news for clean energy advocates. Coal pollutes the air and contributes to climate change more than any other common electricity source. Still, the effects of natural gas power plants on the environment and climate change remain a topic of debate. Burning natural gas is cleaner than burning other fossil fuels, but regulators have struggled to quantify the scale of leaks that pervade the natural gas system. Those leaks result in high levels of methane emissions, a greenhouse gas more damaging than carbon dioxide by many measures. Energy experts say simple economics, not concerns about climate change, is the most significant factor behind the move away from coal-fired and petroleum power plants. The cost of producing power from both sources is expensive and shows no signs of letting upeven in a time of low petroleum prices. At the same time, the cost of natural gas plummeted during last decade's shale boom as the rise of fracking has expanded the areas where energy companies can recover the gas. Both solar and wind power have also become cheaper in recent years thanks to advances in technology and are expected to become more affordable in the future. Government policy has undoubtedly played a key role driving the transition to clean energy sources as well. State and federal policies aimed at driving a transition to clean energy, including tax credits and grants, have made solar and wind power more appealing. Most significantly, the Obama administration's Clean Power Plan has required states to reduce dirty emissions from power plants. And while many regulations face an uncertain future due to legal and political challenges, including the Clean Power Plan, energy experts say coal is on the way out regardless of their outcome. "Natural gas prices are so low that it wins out," says Shear, "Even if we're not talking about all these possible rules and legislation."

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Why a Black Lives Matter Activists Race Is Under Scrutiny

The race of a prominent Black Lives Matter activist has been thrown into question, after photos and documents posted by conservative websites appear to show that he is white and not mixed race. Shaun King, who built a large online following during the 2014 protests in Ferguson, Mo. following the death of unarmed teenager Michael Brown, has long claimed to be of mixed race, saying his mother is white and his father is black. King, 35, writes frequently for various online publications including Justice Together, which advocates for an end to police brutality against minorities. He also attended Morehouse College, a historically black school. But rumors have circulated on conservative websites that King is actually not mixed race but white. In the last few weeks, a conservative blogger, Vicki Pate, published what she said was King's birth certificate showing his father as Jeffrey Wayne King, a white man. Pate's website, Re-NewsIt!, also published photos purportedly showing King's father. On Wednesday, the story was picked up by Breitbart, a leading conservative news site. King did not respond to TIME's request for an interview but on his Twitter account, he vehemently denied the accusations in more than 30 tweets, The conservative website The Blaze has also questioned King's account of an incident in March 1995 in which King says he was beaten by a mob of "rednecks," which he has described as a hate crime. Documents published by The Blaze describe the incident as involving just one other person rather than group and that King's injuries were minor. Officers also marked his race as white at the time. According to the New York Times, the officer said he marked King as white based on his appearance and his mother, who is white. Along with being a writer for the Daily Kos, King has also written for the Guardian, The Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post. Earlier this summer, NAACP chapter president and civil rights advocate Rachel Dolezal admitted to lying about her race and publicly posing as a black woman. She later resigned from the NAACP after it was revealed that her parents were both white. Update, In a post Thursday on the Daily Kos, King wrote that the man listed as his father on his birth certificate is not actually his biological father. "My actual biological father is a light-skinned black man," King wrote.

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Thousands of Flights Are Being Cancelled Because of the Extreme Cold Heres What to Do if It Impacts

More than 2,000 flights have been cancelled across the U.S. this week as historically frigid weather is sending much of the country into a deep freeze. Nearly 2,000 of the cancelled flights were scheduled to arrive or depart from Chicago, where temperatures are below zero degrees Fahrenheit and wind chills are diving as low as 50 to 60 degrees below zero, according to FlightAware's cancellation tracker. Other flights going in and out of St. Louis, Minneapolis, Baltimore, Denver and Buffalo were also cancelled as of Wednesday morning. USA Today reports extreme weather and wind chills can negatively affect employees whose work requires them to be outside. The cold can also impact parts of the the plane, like freezing water lines or cargo doors. Wind chill temperatures are expected to be between 30 to 60 degrees below zero across the northern Plains, Great Lakes and upper Midwest, according to the National Weather Service. Wind chill warnings or advisories have been issued for several states from across the Midwest to parts Pennsylvania. Airlines cancelled more than 700 flights set to leave Chicago's O'Hare International Airport and 167 that were to depart from Chicago Midway International Airport, along with 725 flights that were set to land at O'Hare and 166 flights at Midway. Southwest Airlines, which serves many passengers traveling through Midway airport, has cancelled 625 flights as of Wednesday afternoon. United Airlines and American Airlines, which have hubs at O'Hare, cancelled 139 flights and 270 flights, respectively, on Wednesday. Earlier in the week, both airlines cancelled a combined 824 flights that were arriving or departing from O'Hare. Train travelers are also facing obstacles due to the severe cold. Amtrak announced that all trains going to and from Chicago would be cancelled on Wednesday and Thursday because of "extreme weather conditions and an abundance of caution," and that customers can change their reservations without additional charges. People attempting to travel shared their cancellation woes online. , , , For those whose flight travel is impacted by the extreme weather and flight cancellations, several airlines are waiving ticket change fees. American Airlines travelers who were scheduled to fly on Tuesday or Wednesday through cities affected by the winter weather can rebook their tickets without charge. The waiver covers several cities in the Northeast, including New York City, Newark, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Buffalo, Cleveland, Boston and Toronto. Delta Airlines is also waiving change fees for people traveling Tuesday and Wednesday through the same region. Rebooked travel must start no later than this Saturday, Feb. 2. United Airlines will cancel any change fees for people scheduled to travel through Chicago between Jan. 27 and Feb. 1, for new United flights leaving on or before Feb. 4. JetBlue is offering a similar deal to travelers going through a number of cities on Jan. 30, including New York City, Buffalo, Albany and others in the Northeast.

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Sexual Assault Allegations Resurface Against Bryan Singer Director of Bohemian Rhapsody

NEW YORK Bryan Singer, the director of the Oscar-nominated "Bohemian Rhapsody," has been accused of sexually assaulting minors in an expose published by the Atlantic. The Atlantic on Wednesday published a lengthy article based on a 12-month investigation. It details the stories of four alleged victims who said they were seduced and molested by the "Bohemian Rhapsody" director while underage. Three of the men spoke on the condition of anonymity. Victor Valdovinos said he was molested by Singer on the set of 1998's "Apt Pupil" when he was in the seventh grade. The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office earlier investigated claims that male minors were pressured into stripping naked for a shower scene in "Apt Pupil" but declined to press charges. Lawsuits filed by families of the minors involved were settled out of court. In a statement issued through his attorney, Singer denied the claims and called The Atlantic article a "homophobic smear piece" that he said was "conveniently timed" to take advantage of the success of "Bohemian Rhapsody.", The Freddie Mercury biopic on Tuesday was nominated for five Oscars, including best picture. Singer was dismissed as the director of "Bohemian Rhapsody" during shooting after several absences from the London production. Singer remains the sole credited director on the film even though he was replaced by Dexter Fletcher. Singer sharply criticized The Atlantic for publishing a story that Esquire magazine had been preparing before ultimately declining to publish. "It's sad that The Atlantic would stoop to this low standard of journalistic integrity," said Singer. "Again, I am forced to reiterate that this story rehashes claims from bogus lawsuits filed by a disreputable cast of individuals willing to lie for money or attention.", The journalists, Maximillian Potter and Alex French, defended their reporting as rigorously fact-checked in a statement issued Wednesday. Potter and French said the story was originally vetted and approved for publication at the Hearst-owned Esquire, but was "killed by Hearst executives." A spokesperson for Hearst didn't immediately respond to messages Wednesday. Shortly after Singer was fired from "Bohemian Rhapsody," Cesar Sanchez-Guzman filed a lawsuit in Seattle against Singer alleging the director raped him in 2003 when Sanchez-Guzman was 17. Singer's attorney Andrew Brettler at the time said Singer "categorically denies these allegations and will vehemently defend this lawsuit to the very end.", The case is still pending. Soon after it was filed, the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts removed Singer's name from its cinema and media studies division. The school said Singer requested his name be removed until the allegations against him were resolved. The Atlantic report alleges a pattern of predatory behavior on Singer's part, including sex with a 15-year-old at a Beverly Hills, Calif. mansion in 1997. Singer preemptively denied the report in October when he wrote on his Instagram account that the reporters were "attempting to tarnish a career I've spent 25 years to build.", Singer, the 53-year-old director of "The Usual Suspects" and "X-Men," last fall was hired to direct a remake of the fantasy adventure "Red Sonja" for Millennium Films. A spokesperson for Millennium didn't return requests for comment Wednesday.

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California Bill Banning Affluenza Defense Is Nixed

California lawmakers on Tuesday killed legislation that would ban the use of the "affluenza" defense, stopping what would have been the first such ban in the nation. State assemblyman Mike Gatto introduced the bill after a wealthy Texas teenager was given only probation last year for killing four people and injuring others in a drunk-driving accident. His lawyers successfully argued that he had been so coddled by his affluent parents that he couldn't be expected to appreciate the rules of law or the consequences of his actions. The sentence sparked outrage, seen by many as an obscene example of privilege begetting privilege and inequity in the justice system. "In our justice system, people who have means already have advantages," Gatto said in introducing the bill before a legislative committee. "They have access to the better lawyers, they have access to better relationships and they know how the system works. And the idea of a defendant saying that a life of privilege and an upbringing of means somehow makes that defendant absolve him or herself of personal responsibility for a heinous act really is insulting to the intelligence of just about everybody who interacts with the justice system, and those of us who care about making sure that the justice system is blind.", Gatto's bill originally defined the notion of affluenza as the argument that a "defendant may not have understood the consequences of his or her actions because he or she was raised in an affluent or overly permissive household." One issue raised by other lawmakers on the committee was the use of the phrase overly permissive, which some worried could apply to poor children with absentee parents as much as a rich kid who got to do whatever he wanted. Opponents of the bill, though sympathetic to its intent, argued that it's generally not a good idea to put limitations on legal defenses, that the bill presumed a jury couldn't determine on its own the worth of a defense, and that such restrictions may prevent certain facts from coming forward during a trial. Gatto also refused to accept an amendment supported by the chair of the committee, assemblyman Tom Ammiano, who wanted to build exceptions and affirmations of constitutional protections into the bill. "We are trying to prohibit the affluenza defense," Gatto said, adding that he had "real heartburn" about writing "into the statute all the times where the defense could be used.", Before voting against the bill, Ammiano, a Democrat, said he would have preferred Gatto accept the amendments offered by the committee. The two Republicans on the committee voted to support the bill, and the rest of the members, all Democrats, abstained. Those abstentions essentially counting as nay votes, the measure failed. The ban would have prohibited the use of affluenza as a defense or a mitigating factor in sentencing. Gatto, a Los Angelesarea Democrat, has said that while the high-profile case happened in Texas, he was attempting to be "proactive" in California. In June 2013, Texas teenager Ethan Couch stole beer from a Walmart, drank enough for his blood-alcohol content to be three times the legal limit, got in his pickup truck, lost control and sped it into a group of people who were helping a woman with a stalled car on the side of the road near Fort Worth. Four people died. Others, including many crammed into his vehicle, were injured. Thanks in part to a psychologist who argued that Couch's wealth was so extreme he couldn't separate right from wrong, the then 16-year-old was given 10 years' probation and ordered to attend rehab for the intoxication manslaughter and assault charges. In February, Judge Jean Boyd reaffirmed that sentence in a private hearing, denying prosecutors' second request for 20 years in prison. At the end of the committee hearing on Tuesday, the possibility of "reconsideration" was raised, meaning Gatto might bring his bill before the committee again at another time. But that would likely require a compromise that lawmakers did not appear ready to make on Tuesday.

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Minneapolis Neighborhood Invaded By Frozen Pants

The chilly temperatures have led to an unusual invasion in a neighborhood in Minneapolis of around a hundred pairs of disembodied frozen pants. The mastermind behind the artistic display, Tom Grotting, 64, says that temperatures need to get down to at least 0 degrees Fahrenheit for the pants to stay in place. This week, he's in luck the wind chill in Minneapolis went down to 55 degrees below Fahrenheit on Wednesday, and the air temperature was as low as 29 degrees below Fahrenheit. Grotting, the co-owner of digital equipment company Digital Pictures, Inc. says that he came up with the idea to freeze the pants during another Arctic blast about 6 years ago. When the temperature gets this cold, Grotting says, "Life doesn't exactly stop but it sort of slows down. When it lasts a couple days you can go stir crazy, so your mind thinks of things to do.", He says that he suspects some of the inspiration came from his childhood. His parents used to hang clothes outside to dry, and he always found it entertaining to see them freeze in funny shapes. When he first got the idea he had hoped to embarrass his children, who he says were at "eye-rolling age." His daughter, Ava now 19 was "just mortified," Grotting says, but his son, Cole now 22 took to the idea. Now that Cole is away at college, he has started setting up his own display of frozen pants. For the past two years, many of Grotting's neighbors have started putting out their own pants. The hashtag frozenpants has started to pop up on Facebook and Twitter as his neighbors and other Minnesotans create their own pants art. Grotting says that he's honed his skills over the last few years. To protect his own pants, he buys size 54 men's jeans from the dollar store. This year, he also froze a tuxedo that had belonged to his college roommate. "It doesn't quite hold the water like the jeans," Grotting says. Corrected Jan. 31, The original version of this story misstated the name of Tom Grotting's company. It is Digital Pictures, Inc. not Digital Creations.

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Navy SEAL Students Drowning Death Ruled Homicide

The case of a Navy SEAL student who drowned after being "dunked" underwater by an instructor has been ruled a homicide Wednesday, according to a San Diego Medical Examiner report. Seaman James Derek Lovelace's May 6 death was not announced by the Navy until officials were questioned about it days later, according to the Virginian-Pilot, and even then it was announced as a training mishap. Lovelace, 21, was apparently struggling during a drill where trainees tread water while wearing combat gear. Instructors, according to the report, are "reportedly advised to not dunk or pull students underwater.", Video of the incident, however, shows otherwise as instructors repeatedly splashed the student. "Although the manner of death could be considered by some as an accident, especially given that the decedent was in a rigorous training program that was meant to simulate an adverse' environment, it is our opinion that the actions, and inactions, of the instructors and other individuals involved were excessive and directly contributed to the death," wrote Kimi Verilhac and Abubakr A. Marzouk of the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office. "The manner of death is best classified as homicide.", A Navy Seal spokesman declined to comment on the report.

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60 Minutes Correspondent Bob Simon Has Been Killed in a Car Crash

Bob Simon, the veteran CBS News reporter and correspondent for the network's iconic 60 Minutes show, was killed in a car accident Wednesday evening. According to a report from CBS, Simon was in the backseat of a livery cab on New York city's West Side Highway at 645 p.m. on Wednesday when the crash took place. The car rear-ended another vehicle and crashed into the highway's central barrier, a statement from the New York police department said. Simon was taken to a nearby hospital with injuries to his head and torso, and died after reaching the hospital. The cabdriver has been taken to a different hospital with injuries to his arms and legs, authorities said. Simon covered the Vietnam War and several other major stories, reporting from Northern Ireland, Portugal, Cyprus, the Middle East and many more in an award-winning career spanning five decades. He was 73 years old. "It's a terrible loss for all of us at CBS News," said a statement from 60 Minutes executive producer Jeff Fager. "It is such a tragedy made worse because we lost him in a car accident, a man who has escaped more difficult situations than almost any journalist in modern times.", CBS,

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New York City Authorities Alerted Of Election Day Terror Threat

Federal officials have warned New York City authorities about potential attacks by al Qaeda around election day. The New York Police Department and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey were given information about a potential threat, and the police are on alert this weekend ahead of the election. "We are aware of the information. We have been working with the FBI through the Joint Terrorism Task Force and our Counterterrorism and Intelligence Bureaus," the New York Police Department said in a statement provided to TIME. "We are continuing with the high level of patrols at all of our facilities that we have had in place for some time now," spokesman Steve Coleman of the Port Authority said, without offering details about the threat.

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Truck Accidentally Leaks 75 Gallons of Maple Syrup Onto Highway

Sad news for waffle lovers and New Hampshire commuters traffic was backed up near Keene, N.H. after a truck carrying maple syrup started leaking onto the highway. Thankfully, only 75 of the 220 gallons of syrup the truck was carrying leaked, the Keene Sentinal reports. The driver, who says he doesn't know what caused the leak, was driving through New Hampshire when officials from the state's transportation department alerted him to the sticky situation. Whose job is it to clean up maple syrup anyway? That responsibility has fallen to the fire department, which is using tarps and sand to clean up the syrup, CBS reports. Sentinel Source