Dalits Media Watch

News Updates 20.08.15

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·         Khap panchayat's diktat: Rape sisters to avenge their brother's action - Zee News

http://zeenews.india.com/news/uttar-pradesh/khap-panchayats-diktat-rape-sisters-to-avenge-their-brothers-action_1649579.html

·         Two suffocate to death in Bengaluru manhole - Zee News

http://zeenews.india.com/news/karnataka/two-suffocate-to-death-in-bengaluru-manhole_1649230.html

·         Karnataka records highest rate of atrocity cases - The Hindu

HTTP://WWW.THEHINDU.COM/NEWS/NATIONAL/KARNATAKA/KARNATAKA-RECORDS-HIGHEST-RATE-OF-ATROCITY-CASES/ARTICLE7558271.ECE

·         Steep rise in Dalit murders in 2014 - The Hindu

HTTP://WWW.THEHINDU.COM/NEWS/CITIES/CHENNAI/STEEP-RISE-IN-DALIT-MURDERS-IN-2014/ARTICLE7559545.ECE

·         In Seshasamudram, perpetrators cut across party lines - The Hindu

HTTP://WWW.THEHINDU.COM/NEWS/CITIES/CHENNAI/IN-SESHASAMUDRAM-PERPETRATORS-CUT-ACROSS-PARTY-LINES/ARTICLE7559547.ECE

·         Political riots deadlier than communal ones: NCRB - The Times Of India

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Political-riots-deadlier-than-communal-ones-NCRB/articleshow/48550560.cms

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Zee News

Khap panchayat's diktat: Rape sisters to avenge their brother's action

http://zeenews.india.com/news/uttar-pradesh/khap-panchayats-diktat-rape-sisters-to-avenge-their-brothers-action_1649579.html

Last Updated: Wednesday, August 19, 2015 - 17:04

Zee Media Bureau

Ghaziabad: Khap Panchayat is once again in news for wrong reasons. A young Dalit womanhas moved the Supreme Court against a Khap Panchayat in Uttar Pradesh for issuing diktat that she and her sister be raped and paraded naked in their village as revenge for their brother's action of eloping with a married girl from the Jat community.

The 23-year-old Dalit girl from Bhagpat district in her petition to the SC has sought protection for her and her family.

According to the girl, her brother Ravi and a Jat girl were in love but were forcefully separated after the girl's family married her off to someone else in February. The girl later escaped from in-laws home and eloped with Ravi onMarch 22. Though the boy and the girl had surrendered after Ravi's family was allegedly tortured by police and members of the Jat community, the Khap panchayat decided that the boy's family should be dishonoured to avenge the brother's deed.

The girl in her complaint to the Apex court has also mentioned that their family home in the village was ransacked and taken over by the Jat community members following which they escaped to Delhi.

According to reports, the court has now issued notice to UP government seeking its response in the matter within two weeks.  

Zee News

Two suffocate to death in Bengaluru manhole

http://zeenews.india.com/news/karnataka/two-suffocate-to-death-in-bengaluru-manhole_1649230.html

Last Updated: Tuesday, August 18, 2015 - 23:42

Bengaluru: Two civic workers suffocated to death on Tuesday in a choked manhole near a minister`s house here, an official said.

"The incident occurred when one of the victims -- Prasanna and Sethu -- entered to clean the clogged manhole but fell into the slush and got stuck. The second victim climbed down to rescue the other but also got buried," the official told IANS.

Though the city fire brigade lifted the two from the manhole and rushed them to a private hospital, doctors declared them dead.

The manhole is located behind the official residence of Health Minister UT Khader in Jayamahal area across the sprawling Bangalore Palace grounds.

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which hired the two workers to clean the overflowing manhole, ordered an inquiry into the incident.

The civic corporation`s sanitation workers association blamed the BBMP contractor for the tragic death of its members.

Elections to 198 wards of the BBMP are due on August 22.

The Hindu

Karnataka records highest rate of atrocity cases

HTTP://WWW.THEHINDU.COM/NEWS/NATIONAL/KARNATAKA/KARNATAKA-RECORDS-HIGHEST-RATE-OF-ATROCITY-CASES/ARTICLE7558271.ECE

K. V. ADITYA BHARADWAJ

Karnataka recorded the highest rate of cases under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in the country during 2014.

Though the State stands third in terms of the number of atrocity cases registered, preceded by Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, the rate of atrocity cases — number of cases per one lakh population of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes people — has given Karnataka the dubious distinction. The State stood third in terms of the rate of atrocity cases and fourth in terms of the number of cases during 2013.

This indicates the dual process of increasing number of caste conflict cases in the State and also increased awareness and resistance by Dalits, argued Indhudhar Honnapura, a Dalit activist and editor of Samvada, a monthly magazine.

Officials in the Social Welfare Department and the Police Department, however, said greater awareness among these sections of society had led to increased reporting of atrocity cases in the last few years.

"Not that these atrocities were not committed earlier. But incidents like denial of haircut in Koppal, Ballari and Tumakuru districts, and stigma towards Dalit cooks in a school in Mysuru district were confronted with resistance from Dalits and these cases were widely reported," an official said.

However, Mr. Honnapura said, "Caste conflict cases in the State are on the rise and so is the apathy of the State machinery. Recently, two Dalits were allegedly sacrificed in Chamarajanagar district. But till now no action has followed," he said, and added that accused in atrocity cases were easily getting bail of late and the conviction rate in such cases was the lowest, and this had made the law ineffective and those with such a bent of mind to act with impunity.

He, however, agreed that reporting of atrocity cases in Hyderabad Karnataka districts and other backward districts of north Karnataka had steadily increased over the recent years as the communities have become organised and more aware.

The Hindu

Steep rise in Dalit murders in 2014

HTTP://WWW.THEHINDU.COM/NEWS/CITIES/CHENNAI/STEEP-RISE-IN-DALIT-MURDERS-IN-2014/ARTICLE7559545.ECE

SRUTHISAGAR YAMUNAN

Tamil Nadu saw a disconcerting rise in the number of Dalits murdered in 2014, even though the overall incidence of crime against the Scheduled Caste (SC) community has dropped.

The latest crime figures released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) reveal that the situation in Tamil Nadu is as bad as it is in several Northern States with respect to murder of Dalits, with 72 such cases recorded in 2014. This is higher than Bihar, which registered 56 murders, and just below Madhya Pradesh with 80 cases under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code.

In 2013, 28 Dalits were murdered in Tamil Nadu. There were also 52 SC victims of attempt-to-murder cases in the State.

The data says the 72 murder victims came from 43 incidents, indicating prevalence of mob attacks or clashes. Bihar, for example, had 56 victims from the same number incidents.

Thirty-three Dalit women were raped in Tamil Nadu in 2014, compared to 28 in 2013. There was a lone attempt-to-rape case.

Overall picture

The overall picture though provided a positive trend, with the incidence of crimes against Dalits dropping from 1,845 in 2013 to 1,546 in 2014. The NCRB data used the Census 2011 figures for population of Dalits, which was pegged at 1.4 crore for Tamil Nadu.

Underreporting

Calling the increase in murders of Dalits a "disturbing trend", Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi leader D. Ravikumar said Dalits faced huge hardship in getting cases registered.

At a recent public hearing conducted by the National Scheduled Caste Commission, many pointed to a high rate of acquittals in cases registered under the Prevention of Atrocities Act.

"There have already been questions raised on the number of farmer suicides the NCRB reported. I feel there is a clear case of underreporting," he said.

The Hindu

In Seshasamudram, perpetrators cut across party lines

HTTP://WWW.THEHINDU.COM/NEWS/CITIES/CHENNAI/IN-SESHASAMUDRAM-PERPETRATORS-CUT-ACROSS-PARTY-LINES/ARTICLE7559547.ECE

SRUTHISAGAR YAMUNAN

The Independence Day attack on houses of Dalits in Seshasamudram village has reiterated a growing trend in which perpetrators of caste violence seem to transcend political affiliations.

Police officials handling the case, in which houses of Dalits were burnt, said the seventy and odd persons held for the clash included sympathisers of most major political parties, including DMK, AIADMK and PMK.

"We are in the process of ascertaining the exact background of these people. Initially, we have found that there are persons from a number of parties," a senior Villupuram police officer said. Experts point out that even during the Dharmapuri clashes in 2012, a similar trend was observed. "In our experience in fact finding, we observe that in caste violence, mobilisation cuts across party lines. The idea is to cause maximum damage," said writer Stalin Rajangam.

In fact, the absconding mastermind of the Seshasamudram clash, who happens to be a Panchayat president, is a DMDK member.

Interestingly, the attacks on Dalits are yet to be condemned officially by the AIADMK and the DMK, the two major offshoots of the Dravidian movement.

While DMK treasurer M.K. Stalin chose to highlight the data relating to murders of Dalits in a statement on Wednesday, there had been no remark on the Villupuram incident.

"The problem now is electoral politics. The parties have reaped the benefits of using caste as a mobilising tool at the local level. This type of politics results in the crude silence you witness to caste clashes," says C. Lakshmanan, professor at the Madras Institute of Development Studies. He points out that even during the murder of Dalit youth Gokulraj in Salem, no strong direct action or protests were undertaken by the Dravidian parties.

The Times Of India

Political riots deadlier than communal ones: NCRB

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Political-riots-deadlier-than-communal-ones-NCRB/articleshow/48550560.cms

Deeptiman Tiwary,TNN | Aug 20, 2015, 06.55 AM IST

NEW DELHI: More people get injured or killed in political riots than in communal conflagration. According to latest data released by National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), in 2014, there were over 2,400 victims of political violence, while 2000 people were injured or killed in communal riots. 

According to the data, most communal incidents were reported from Jharkhand (349) followed by Haryana (201). West Bengal and Tamil Nadu had over 100 incidents each while Maharashtra recorded 99 cases. 

UP, which witnessed one of the worst communal riots in 2013, recorded only 51 cases last year but had maximum number of victims at 356. Maharashtra followed UP closely with 355 victims followed by Jharkhand with 349 victims. 

Caste clashes were the third biggest reason for conflicts with over 1,800 people either getting injured or killed in riots on caste lines. Curiously, however, conflicts of Dalits and tribals with upper caste resulted in far lesser injuries and deaths as compared to other inter-caste conflicts. 

According to the data, 507 people became victims of riots caused by clashes between people belonging to scheduled castes and tribes and those not from the category. On the other hand, 1,346 people became victims of other caste conflicts. 

Most conflicts between Dalits and non-Dalits were reported from Maharashtra with 147 riots and 183 victims. It was followed by UP with 66 cases and 101 victims. Bihar, curiously, recorded no such cases. 

Maharashtra again led the pack with 241 cases in other caste conflicts category followed by Tamil Nadu with 182 such cases. UP and Bihar had just nine and six such cases respectively. 

In the category of all riots (including all categories), Bihar led the pack with 13,566 incidents and 16,810 victims despite recording very few communal and political riots or even caste conflicts. 

The year also saw 170 industrial riots with 283 victims and 628 agrarian agitations that ended up in riots and injured or killed 1,319 victims.

News monitored By AMRESH & AJEET

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• How to make a Fruit Bowl from Paper

  Posted:Wed, 19 Aug 2015 09:38:11 +0000

  How to make a Fruit Bowl from Paper You can easily make your own fruit bowl like that. Check out this video for step by step instruction.   #Culture and Heritage #Art all the way #Art and craft...
  
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• Double denim

  Posted:Wed, 19 Aug 2015 09:21:00 +0000

  Double denim With double denim back in fashion, Tara shows you that you can style the trend and turn heads for all the right reasons. The post Double denim appeared first on hastakshep | हस्तक्षेप.
  
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  Posted:Tue, 18 Aug 2015 18:16:12 +0000

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• फैजाबाद को सांप्रदायिक हिंसा में फिर झोकने पर आमादा है सपा सरकार – रिहाई मंच

  Posted:Tue, 18 Aug 2015 17:13:28 +0000

  मस्जिद में आगजनी करने वाले अराजक तत्वों को तत्काल गिरफ्तार करने की मांग गाजीपुर के बारा, बलिया के बेल्थरा रोड के बाद फैजाबाद में मस्जिद में आगजनी सांप्रदायिक षडयंत्र का नतीजा लखनऊ, 18 अगस्त 2015।...
  
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• रॉंग साइड में चल रहे हो फेसबुक महोदय- दिलीप मंडल

  Posted:Tue, 18 Aug 2015 15:17:14 +0000

  फेसबुक ने बंद किया दिलीप सी मंडल का एकाउंट, सोशल मीडिया में कड़ी निंदा नई दिल्ली। फेसबुक ने तथाकथित राष्ट्रवादियों की शिकायत पर वरिष्ठ पत्रकार और ओबीसी चिंतक दिलीप सी मंडल का एकाउंट बंद कर दिया है।...
  
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Volcano near nuclear plant raising concerns in Japan | 17 Aug 2015 | Just under a week after the first nuclear power plant [Reactor Sendai 1] re-opened in Japan, critics are voicing concerns about safety. Oh, and there's a volcano...The Japan Meteorological Agency raised the warning level near Sakurajima from 3 to 4 this past week in light of tectonic plate movement. The highest level is a 5, which means necessary evacuation due to impending eruption. The Japan Times reported all 77 residents who live within a 2-mile radius of Sakurajima had been evacuated by Saturday. The Sendai nuclear plant has not made any changes in light of the volcano warning level.

Japan raises warning level on volcano not far from nuclear reactor | 14 Aug 2015 | Japan warned on Saturday that a volcano 50 km (31 miles) from a just-restarted nuclear reactor is showing signs of increased activity, and said nearby residents should prepare to evacuate. Sakurajima, a mountain on the southern island of Kyushu, is one of Japan's most active volcanoes and erupts almost constantly. But a larger than usual eruption could be in the offing, an official at the Japan Meteorological Agency said. Japanon Tuesday restarted a reactor at the Sendai nuclear plant, some 50 km from Sakurajima.

Fukushima operator's mounting legal woes to fuel nuclear opposition --Judge forces Tepco to disclose internal report | 17 Aug 2015 | Four and a half years after the [beginning of the ongoing] Fukushima disaster, and as Japan tentatively restarts nuclear power elsewhere, the legal challenges are mounting for the crippled plant's operator. They include a judge's forced disclosure of a 2008 internal document prepared for managers at Tokyo Electric Power Co warning of a need for precautions against an unprecedented nuclear catastrophe. Also, class actions against Tepco and the government now have more plaintiffs than any previous Japanese contamination suit and, overruling reluctant prosecutors, criminal charges have been levelled against former Tepco executives for failing to take measures to prevent the 2011 meltdowns and explosions.

Japan's plutonium stockpile worries Oxford specialist | 17 Aug 2015 | The handling of Japan's huge plutonium stockpile remains a challenge for the whole world, an Oxford environmental expert has warned. When Japan marked the 70th anniversary of Nagasaki's obliteration by a plutonium bomb on Aug. 9, its own cache of weapons-usable plutonium was more than 47 metric tons, enough to make nearly 6,000 warheads like the one that flattened the Japanese city, Dr. Peter Wynn Kirby of University of Oxford wrote in an op-ed on Monday's New York Times.

US nuclear site placed in lockdown over explosive scare | 17 Aug 2015 | The US Department of Energy's Savannah River Site nuclear reservation in South Carolina was briefly placed on lockdown Monday after a delivery truck scan prompted an emergency response over potential explosive residue. A "potential security event" was declared after electronic scans and detection dogs discovered a "possibility of explosive residue" on a delivery truck, the Energy Department said in a press release. "Law enforcement agencies from South Carolina and Georgia were called and are on the scene to assist Centerra, the site security contractor," the agency stated.

Pentagon to expand drone flights by 50% in next 4 years | 17 Aug 2015 | The US military will increase the number of drone flights from the current 61 a day to as many as 90 by 2019 while expanding lethal strike capabilities. The expanded drone program, operated mostly by the US Air Force, will allow for broadened surveillance and intelligence gathering from Ukraine and North Africa to Iraq and the South China Sea. The move would mark the most expansion within the drone program since 2011.

US to withdraw Patriot missiles from Turkey in October | 16 Aug 2015 | Turkey and the United States said Sunday that Washington would withdraw its Patriot missile batteries from the country in October after bolstering Ankara's air defences against threats from Syria's [CIA-fomented] civil war. The NATO mandate for the mission will run out in October and will not be renewed, but the US is prepared to return Patriot assets and personnel to Turkey within one week if needed, a joint Turkish-US statement said. A US defence official stressed that the move by the US military was for the purpose of force modernisation.

Spate of bombings kill 24 across Baghdad | 15 Aug 2015 | A spate of bombings across Baghdad killed at least 24 people on Saturday, two days after the deadliest attack in the Iraqi capital since Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi took office one year ago. The deadliest attack took place in the Shi'ite district of Habibiya, where 15 people were killed when a car bomb exploded near an open area where cars are displayed for sale. Saturday's explosion wounded a further 35 people.

AT&T Helped U.S. Spy on Internet on a Vast Scale | 15 Aug 2015 | The National Security Agency's ability to spy on vast quantities of Internet traffic passing through the United States has relied on its extraordinary, decades-long partnership with a single company: the telecom giant AT&T. While it has been long known that American telecommunications companies worked closely with the spy agency, newly disclosed N.S.A. documents show that the relationship with AT&T has been considered unique and especially productive. One document described it as "highly collaborative," while another lauded the company's "extreme willingness to help." AT&T's cooperation has involved a broad range of classified activities, according to the documents, which date from 2003 to 2013.

Sen. Brown blocks Obama nominee for deputy US trade representative over administration's refusal to grant his staff access to key TPP documents | 14 Aug 2015 | Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) is blocking an Obama nominee for deputy U.S. trade representative over the administration's refusal to grant his staff access to key trade documents, reigniting an intraparty battle over the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Brown, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and many other Democratic critics have long maligned the intense secrecy provisions that the administration imposes on negotiation drafts of the controversial trade corporate takeover pact with 11 other Pacific nations. The administration treats the text as classified information, making it a crime for lawmakers to publicly air specific complaints about the deal. Throughout the TPP talks, the administration has continued to impose barriers that have prevented Brown's top trade staffer from reviewing negotiation documents unless Brown himself is physically present in the room with her. Brown has said such standards are stricter than the government's information controls for some Iran sanctions work and CIA briefings.

New Zealand: nationwide actions protest controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership | 17 Aug 2015 | Twelve countries, including the United States and New Zealand, are participating in confidential negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, or the TPP. Activists around the world are ringing the alarm on the TPP, saying it is far from a standard trade agreement and could threaten the sovereignty of countries that sign it. The latest round of TPP negotiations stalled in Maui, and were followed by a week of actions against the controversial trade corporate takeover agreement in New Zealand.

Auckland TPP protest could turn 'confrontational' US citizens told [It's about time!] | 14 Aug 2015 | The United States is warning its citizens in Auckland that a TPP protest planned for Saturdaycould turn ugly, and they should stay away. In an email, the US Consulate General in Auckland urged any US citizens to avoid the march as "even demonstrations intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational." The US State Department email also mentions the risk of a terror threat ay any large gatherings. [LOL!] Up to 8000 protesters are expected to gather on Auckland's Queen St, to march against the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free-trade agreement corporate takeover.

Feds give final approval to Shell's Arctic drilling plan | 17 Aug 2015 | The [corporate-owned] Obama administration has given Royal Dutch Shell the final approval it needs to drill into potential oil reserves beneath the seafloor of the Arctic Ocean. The approval, issued by the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) on Monday, gives the company the chance to drill deeper for oil than it has before...The Obama administration's approval of Shell's drilling plans has angered environmentalists, who say the Arctic is too sensitive an ecosystem to permit oil drilling and risk a potential spill. Many major green groups released statementsMonday slamming the BSEE's final approval of the company's drilling plan.

On Martha's Vineyard, 'Frostpaw' the Polar Bear to Deliver Climate Message to President Obama | 17 Aug 2015 | The Center for Biological Diversity's Frostpaw the Polar Bear will be in Martha's Vineyard in the coming days urging a vacationing President Obama to call off plans to drill for oil in the Arctic; reject the Keystone XL pipeline; and take powerful action to address the global climate crisis. Frostpaw the Polar Bear and other climate activists will be on Martha's Vineyard urging President Obama to take strong action to curb climate change global warming and slow sea-level rise. Frostpaw is expected to appear at the farmers' market, Gay Head lighthouse, Bunches of Grapes bookstore, ice cream shops, and other places on the island.

How to de-oil a polar bear: Grim outlook for wildlife impacts from an Arctic spill | 15 Aug 2015 | In the event of a large oil spill in Alaska's Arctic, officials say they would have limited ability to clean oiled marine mammals, and in some cases might not be able to clean them at all. Assuming rescuers could reach them, polar bears would have to be cleaned just a few at a time. And the prospects for walruses are even grimmer...If a spill did happen in the Arctic, it could take several days for a U.S. Coast Guard ship to respond, depending on weather and sea ice, because of the region's size.

Another Yosemite National Park campground shuttered due to plague | 18 Aug 2015 | Two dead squirrels, one shuttered campground in the heart of Yosemite National Park, and one devastating disease -- plague. Less than two weeks after announcing that a child who camped at Yosemite's Crane Flat Campground had the plague, the park said this week Tuolumne Meadows Campground was closing because of the same disease. Authorities determined that two squirrels at Tuolumne Meadows had died of plague, prompting the closure.

Plague-infected squirrels found at Yosemite National Park campground | 14 Aug 2015 | About a week ago, officials said a child fell ill with the plague at Yosemite National Park. Now a popular campground there will be closed after several squirrels were killed by the disease. The plague-infected squirrels were found in the Tuolumne Meadows Campground, about 40 miles west of Crane Flat Campground, where the child was camping with family. In an "extremely precautionary public health measure," park officials will apply flea insecticide to rodent burrows.

River pollution 'an emergency' for Colorado's Navajo Nation | 12 Apr 2015 | Leaders of the Native American Navajo community are planning to sue America's Environmental Protection Agency after a toxic discharge from a disused mine pollutes the Animas and San Juan rivers. Over three million gallons of waste water, containing heavy metals such as arsenic, mercury and lead, gushed out of a disused mine and downstream into the Animas River after the accident last Wednesday, turning it bright yellow. The spill was triggered by a crew working for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at the Gold King Mine near Silverton in Colorado.

Tianjin Death Toll at 114 as Rain Portends Poison Gas Release | 17 Aug 2015 | Ten more bodies have been found at the site of last week's massive explosions in the Chinese port city of Tianjin, raising the death toll to 114, municipal officials said Mondaymorning. With storms moving into the area, environmental officials raised concerns that sodium cyanide exposed by the explosions Wednesday could release poisonous hydrogen cyanide into the air. Seventy other people remained missing Monday morning, many of them firefighters, five days after the huge blasts at a warehouse storing hazardous materials, officials said at a news conference in Tianjin.

Western Wildfires: 200 Active-Duty Soldiers Will Help Fight Blazes | 18 Aug 2015 | The government will mobilize 200 active-duty soldiers to help fight the wildfires torching the West -- the first time it has taken that step in nearly a decade. The Defense Department said the soldiers would come from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, in Washington state. They will be divided into 10 crews of 20 soldiers each and sent Sunday to a wildfire to be determined. An estimated 95 wildfires are burning across 1.1 million acres of land in seven Western states, taxing firefighters and budgets.

Two women make history as the first females to complete grueling Army Ranger school | 18 Aug 2015 | Two female soldiers will become the first ever to graduate from the Army's elite Ranger School this week after making history by completing the final agonizing leg of one of the U.S. military's most demanding courses. The women are part of a group of soldiers who hauled packs carrying 100 pounds through the rugged mountains of northern Georgia and the swamps of the Florida panhandle--while getting by on precious little food and sleep. The unidentified women, both of them West Point graduates, began the rigorous course in April along with 380 men and 17 other women as part of the first class to include women.

Bangkok Terror Suspect Identified as Australian Actor by Fans | 18 Aug 2015 | Thai authorities say they are hunting a man shown on security footage strolling into a packed religious shrine and placing a bomb-laden backpack before an explosion that killed at least 20 people. More than 100 other people were injured in Monday's attack as the blast left body parts, shattered glass and incinerated motorcycles strewn across the crushed concrete of a busy intersection...After the CCTV footage was released, Australian actor Sunny Burns went to police after social media users began pointing out similarities between him and the suspect. Burns, who lives in Bangkok, was made aware of the rumors by friends and presented himself to police. [Oh dear. Don't you just hate when you think all of your false flag ducklings are in a row, only to be undone by a pesky tattoo? --LRP]

Police: Explosive device found at Wichita women's clinic | 18 Aug 2015 |Police say a man is in custody after he brought a small [?!] improvised explosive device into a women's health care clinic that provides abortions in south-central Kansas. Wichita Police Department spokesman Doug Nolte says officers responded to the South Wind Women's Center around 3:30 p.m. Monday. He says on-site security inspected a backpack the man brought in and found knives and the explosive device. Clinic staff evacuated the building, and a bomb squad was called to remove the backpack.

Hypocrite and pseudo-tea party candidate Carson seeks ultimate big government, big pharma vaccine enforcement:Ben Carson wants forced vaccines, with schools serving as enforcement checkpoint --Ben Carson Wants Forced Vaccines | 14 Aug 2015 | Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson is making waves yet again, this time because he announced his pro-mandatory stance on vaccines. Carson, who is [horrifyingly] second in the GOP polls behind Donald Trump, also wants schools to be set up to enforce the provisions. This would men no religious or philosophical exemptions. This could also mean proposing stricter checkpoints at schools nationwide if Carson was to be elected.

Nabisco plant worker asks Emanuel, Obama to save Chicago jobs [LOL! TPP*mp Obama doesn't give a d*mn, and Rahm Emanuel is *useless.* Ask Donald Trump - he mentioned the job-killing Nabisco dirt-bags in Iowa.] | 12 June 2015 | A worker at Chicago's Nabisco plant reached out to Mayor Rahm Emanuel and President Barack Obama on Friday, asking for their help to keep hundreds of jobs in Chicago rather than seeing the work go to Mexico. Last month, Mondelez International told union officials representing more than 1,200 workers at its Chicago bakery that it plans to shut down nine of the 16 lines at the facility. It also wants to install four state-of-the-art production lines but said it would cost much more to put them in Chicago than at the company's new facility in Salinas, Mexico...If the company adds capacity in Mexico, Chicago stands to lose about 600 jobs.

Trump saves 1,000 US jobs: Ford announces new U.S. production day after Trump blasts its $2.5 Mexican plant | 12 Aug 2015 | A day after GOP Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump slammed Ford Motor Company for its plan to invest 2.5 billion in plants in Mexico, Ford announced that it is actually moving production out of Mexico to a plant outside of Cleveland. While Trump's comments and Ford's announcement appear to have no connection, the move to build the medium-duty F-650 and F-750 commercial trucks at a plant in Avon Lake, Ohio is the first time that the Detroit-based company has returned its auto-manufacturing operation back to American soil from a foreign country. The shift back to the 41-year-old Ohio plant means that about 1,000 workers represented by the United Auto Workers union will keep their jobs, Jimmy Settles, United Auto Workers vice president, said in a statement released by Reuters.

Latest CNN Republican Poll Has Donald Trump at 24% | 18 Aug 2015 | Support for Donald J. Trump remains robust among Republicans after the first debate, according to a new poll from CNN that shows nearly a quarter of the party's likely voters would support his nomination for president. According to the latest survey, Mr. Trump leads the Republican field by a large margin with 24 percent supporting his White House bid. Former Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida, whose standing dipped after the debate, is in second place with 13 percent, and Ben Carson, whose prospects have improved, comes in third at 8 percent.

Donald Trump gives kids helicopter rides at Iowa state fair | 15 Aug 2015 | This weekend, the Iowa State Fair is teeming with presidential hopefuls giving speeches atop a hay bale, stuffing their faces with greasy, fried foods, and enjoying carnival rides. But real-estate tycoon and Republican candidate Donald Trump, true to form, is taking it a step further, becoming perhaps the first candidate to arrive by helicopter. He also fulfilled a promise by offering kids helicopter rides over the fair grounds.

Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders Converge on Iowa State Fair --Three of the biggest 2016 Democratic and Republican presidential contenders arrive within hours of each other | 15 Aug 2015 | Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders was midway through his speech at the Iowa State Fair's "soapbox" stage when a helicopter buzzed overhead...Hillary Clinton bit into a pork chop on a stick during her visit to the fairSaturday. Mr. Sanders delivered a red meat speech that skewered the nation's "billionaire class." Yet it was Mr. Trump who turned out to be the scene-stealer, flying in on his personal helicopter and wading through a swarm of fairgoers shouting "Donald!" and pressing him for autographs and selfies.

State Department flags 305 more Clinton e-mails for review[Yeah, too bad the media didn't care when Bush/Cheney had'1,000 days of e-mails' that went missing from January 2003 to 10 August 2005, many of which likely covered their 9/11 drill-gone-live.] | 17 Aug 2015 | A State Department official told a federal judge Monday that 305 more of former secretary of state Hillary Rodham Clinton's e-mail messages have been flagged for further review by intelligence agencies, to see whether they contain classified material that should not be released to the public. Clinton turned 30,000 e-mails over to the State Department in December 2014, and the department now has a team reviewing the correspondence to determine what should be released and what should be redacted under laws that allow the government to withhold public documents from release on a variety of grounds, including national security. A federal judge has ordered the State Department to release the cleared documents to the public on a rolling basis, with all of them to be available by January.

Julian Bond, charismatic civil rights figure, dies at 75 | 15 Aug 2015 | While still in his 20s, Julian Bond was already one of the most charismatic and best-known figures of the civil rights movement. Tall, strikingly handsome and a gifted orator, he won a Supreme Court challenge in 1966 to be seated in the Georgia state legislature, and he remained an outspoken voice against discrimination for more than 50 years as president of the Southern Poverty Law Center, chairman of the NAACP and a professor at American University and the University of Virginia. Mr. Bond died Aug. 15 at a hospital in Fort Walton Beach, Fla., at age 75. 

Current Feed Content

• एक संस्कृति ऐसी भी

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 18:58:56 +0000

  दिल्ली में गर्मी से परेशान हो गया था। अब एक ही रास्ता था कि कहीं ठंड में चला जाय। दिल्ली से हिमाचल पास था। तो हिमाचल चलने का कार्यक्रम बनाया। इससे एक पंथ दो काज, एक गर्मी से मुक्ति दूसरा घूमना-फिरना...
  
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• पूर्व सैनिकों के साथ भी जुमलेबाजी!

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 18:34:49 +0000

  15 अगस्त के दिन जब हम सब आजादी की 69 वी वर्षगांठ के जश्न व जयकारों में मशगूल थे, उस वक्त देश के दो अहम हिस्सों में दो घटनाएं (एक ही बिरादरी के नागरिकों द्वारा) अंगड़ाई ले रही थीं, जो हो सकता है आजादी...
  
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• ये गलियों के आवारा कुत्ते बनाम पशुप्रेमियों का अतिवाद

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 18:04:59 +0000

  ये फैज़ की गज़ल के गलियों के वो आवारा, बेकार कुत्ते नहीं हैं जिन्हें ज़ौक-ए-गदाई बख्शा गया है या जिनका सरमाया ज़माने की फटकार और जिनकी कमाई जहां भर की दुत्कार है, ये अपने इलाके के दबंग, बेखौफ और दादा...
  
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• नरेंद्र दाभोलकर हत्याकांड- दो साल बाद भी हत्यारे पकड़ से बाहर

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 13:27:11 +0000

  नई दिल्ली। महाराष्ट्र में सामाजिक कार्यकर्ता नरेंद्र दाभोलकर की हत्या हुए दो साल बीत चुके हैं, लेकिन उनके कातिल आज भी खुले घूम रहे हैं। कानून उनके कातिलों को दंडित करना तो दूर गिरफ्तार करने तक में...
  
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• शिक्षा में खास तरह के दक्षिणपंथी विचारों को थोपने के वास्ते पुणे से लेकर भोपाल तक उच्च शिक्षा पर हमला

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 13:05:15 +0000

  एफटीआईआई, पुणे के विद्यार्थियों के आंदोलन के समर्थन में प्रदर्शन भोपाल। एफटीआईआई, पुणे के विद्यार्थियों के आंदोलन के समर्थन में और संस्थान के प्रशासन द्वारा विद्यार्थियों पर पुलिस से हमले करवाने के...
  
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• हुकूमतों की औकात क्या कि लबों को हरकतों से रोक दें!

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 10:07:43 +0000

  Jadavpur University students in Solidarity with the ongoing FTII movement and vows to stand by in its struggle against the brutal repressive measures by the STATE .. RESIGN GAJENDRA , GO BACK MODI,...
  
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• खुले आम सजाये बैठे हैं जुमलों की महफ़िल

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 09:23:57 +0000

  सौदागरों के वास्ते बिछ गया दस्तरख़ान...
  
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• मांझी जी, आप विधान सभा का चुनाव अवश्य जीतें ताकि और बढ़िया झूठ बोल सकें

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 09:11:19 +0000

  हमारे दलित चेतना वाले मित्र इस पर बुरा मान सकते हैं। उनकी मेहरबानी। बात जीतन राम मांझी की कर रहा हूं। वह न तो विधायकों के जरिए ही मुख्यमंत्री बने थे, न ही अपनी किसी काबलियत के कारण। वह अधिकारवादी...
  
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• सम्‍हलो कि लगने वाला है ताला ज़ुबान पर!

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 08:34:59 +0000

  ताला ज़ुबान पर ! सॉफ्ट पोर्न फिल्‍मों के कलाकार और संघी कार्यकर्ता "युधिष्ठिर"गजेन्‍द्र चौहान को संस्‍थान का अध्‍यक्ष बनाये जाने के फैसले के विरुद्ध एफ.टी.आई.आई. के आन्‍दोलनरत छात्रों की...
  
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• ऐ मोदीजी, एक ठौ पैकेज मामा को भी दे दो न!

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 08:15:57 +0000

  ऐसा समझा जा सकता है कि मध्यप्रदेश के लोग यदि 15 साल से भाजपा को ही जिताये जा रहे हैं तो वे बड़ी भयंकर भूल किये जा रहे हैं ! क्योंकि यदि यहाँ भी बिहार की तरह ही गैर भाजपा की सरकार होती तो उसे हराने के...
  
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• क्या सरकार तेल में मिलावट करती है ? और अंबानी का तेल 'शुद्ध'है ?

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 07:37:32 +0000

  क्या सरकार तेल में मिलावट करती है ? और अंबानी का तेल 'शुद्ध'है ? रिलायंस के पेट्रोल पंप फिर से चालू हो गये हैं। रिलायंस के पंप पर तेल दूसरे सरकारी अनुबंधित पेट्रोल पंप से दो रूपया महंगा...
  
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• यह वाकई बिहार का अपमान है

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 07:12:20 +0000

  मेरे एक मित्र हैं जिनका राजनीति से कोई वास्ता नहीं है। उनकी राजनीतिक समझ टीवी समाचारों से बनती है। घर पर टाइम्स आफ इंडिया और जागरण मंगाते हैं। मुझे शक है कि इन्हें वह पढ़ते हैं भी नहीं ,जब भी उनके घर...
  
  पूरा आलेख पढने के लिए देखें एवं अपनी प्रतिक्रिया भी दें http://hastakshep.com/

      

• निजी बिजली कंपनियों का सीएजी आडिट कराने की बिजली इंजीनियरों की मांग

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 06:50:21 +0000

  दिल्ली की निजी वितरण कम्पनियों का लाइसेन्स रद्द करने और ऊर्जा क्षेत्र व उपभोक्ताओं के हित में सभी निजी बिजली कंपनियों का सीएजी आडिट करने की मांग लखनऊ। समाचार पत्रों में प्रकाशित सीएजी की रिपोर्ट में...
  
  पूरा आलेख पढने के लिए देखें एवं अपनी प्रतिक्रिया भी दें http://hastakshep.com/

      

• बच्चों के लिए दो बेहतरीन पुस्‍तकें

  Posted:Thu, 20 Aug 2015 06:40:15 +0000

  नई दिल्ली। वरिष्ठ पत्रकार पंकज चतुर्वेदी द्वारा अनूदित दो पुस्‍तकें आई हैं। इन्‍हें नेशनल बुक ट्रस्‍ट के लिए ही अनुवाद किया गया था, इसको मिला कर श्री चतुर्वेदी द्वारा अनूदित कुल 50 पुस्‍तकें हो गईं।...
  
  पूरा आलेख पढने के लिए देखें एवं अपनी प्रतिक्रिया भी दें http://hastakshep.com/

      

• बिहार में 'जंगल राज'का सबसे खतरनाक नरभक्षी भाजपा संरक्षित-पोषित रणवीर सेना ही है?

  Posted:Wed, 19 Aug 2015 18:20:04 +0000

  भाजपा-पोषित रणवीर सेना कमाण्डरों को गिरफ्तार करो । कोबरापोस्ट स्टिंग की रिपोर्ट पर कार्यवाही करो । बाथे, बथानी, शंकरबीघा, एकबारी, सरथुआ, मियांपुर जनसंहारों का जुर्म कबूल करने वाले रणवीर सेना के...
  
  पूरा आलेख पढने के लिए देखें एवं अपनी प्रतिक्रिया भी दें http://hastakshep.com/

      

• টানা দু-রাত অবস্থান মঞ্চেই কাটালেন অনেক বামপন্থী নেতা।

  Posted:Wed, 19 Aug 2015 17:43:50 +0000

  টানা দু-রাত অবস্থান মঞ্চেই কাটালেন অনেক বামপন্থী নেতা। তাদের পাশে ছিলেন অসংখ্য কর্মী-সমর্থক-দরদী। Copy paste with courtesy from – Left Front Daily The post টানা দু-রাত অবস্থান মঞ্চেই কাটালেন...
  
  पूरा आलेख पढने के लिए देखें एवं अपनी प्रतिक्रिया भी दें http://hastakshep.com/

      

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Kim Jong-un orders North Korean frontline troops onto war footing --Supreme Leader orders his troops to be in a 'wartime state' after exchange of artillery fire with South Korea | 21 Aug 2015 | Kim Jong-un has ordered front-line North Korean troops onto a war-footing as tensions on the border with South Korea soared following an exchange of artillery fire. South Korea fired dozens of artillery rounds towards North Korea during the day after the North shelled across the border to protest against anti-Pyongyang propaganda broadcasts by Seoul - the first exchange of fire in 10 months. In the early hours of Friday morning, North Korea's Supreme Leader ordered his troops to be in a "wartime state".

Top British politician likens US troops to ISIS: Labour party frontrunner compared fanatics' barbarity to Americans in Iraq during TV interview | 21 Aug 2015 | Jeremy Corbyn [accurately] compared Islamic State brutality to US military action in Iraq in a TV interview, it emerged yesterday. The Labour leadership frontrunner called for 'acceptance and understanding' of IS supporters while speaking on Russia Today, the Kremlin-backed broadcaster, in June last year. He only condemned 'some' of the brutal regime's actions in Iraq, saying: 'Yes they are brutal, yes some of what they have done is quite appalling, likewise what American forces did in Fallujah and other places is quite appalling.'

The U.S. government is looking for new places to stash war prisoners after Guantanamo Bay closes | 20 Aug 2015 | Teams working on plans to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay have been visiting detention facilities in the United States to identify sites where war prisoners could be held long term, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Thursday. Carter said Defense Department assessment teams had visited the U.S. Army detention facility at Leavenworth, Kansas, and would soon go to the U.S. Naval Consolidated Brig at Charleston, South Carolina, to look at what investments might be needed to make them suitable for holding Guantanamo detainees prisoners. The U.S. defense chief said other prisons also would be assessed in the coming weeks, providing the administration with information needed for a broad recommendation to Congress on closing Guantanamo.

Britain to reopen Tehran embassy after 4-year closure | 20 Aug 2015 | The British embassy in Tehran, the capital of Iran, will be officially reopened by Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond over the weekend nearly four years after it was closed following an attack by a group of activists. The Iranian embassy in London will also reopen at around the same time, as fractious relations between Iran and the West continue to thaw following the nuclear deal signed in July. Hammond will be accompanied on his trip to Tehran by Sir Simon Gass, who represented Britain during the marathon negotiations over Iran's nuclear program.

Cairo explosion: at least six injured in bomb attack near security building | 19 Aug 2015 | A car bomb exploded near a security building in Cairo early on Thursday morning Egypt's interior ministry has said, in the latest of a series of violent attacks that have shaken the capital in recent months. The blast happened close to the national security agency building in Shubra Al-Khaima, a neighbourhood on the northern edge of the Egyptian capital. Egypt's interior ministry confirmed in a statement that a car had exploded outside the security compound. The assailant fled the scene on a motorcycle, it said.

US boxer Roy Jones Jr. asks for Russian passport over cup of tea with Putin in Crimea | 21 Aug 2015 | During their brief meeting in Crimea, famous boxing champion Roy Jones Jr. has asked President Putin for a Russian passport which would help facilitate business. Putin noted that fans would be thrilled, promising assistance if the champ spends enough time in Russia. The 46-year-old US boxer and rapper who will take part in a show in Sevastopol this weekend, opted to stay away from politics during a meeting with Vladimir Putin in the Black Sea city, and said that sport could help "build a bridge" between the US and Russia.

Former SLC mayor sues NSA, George W. Bush and Dick Cheney over 2002 Olympic spying | 19 Aug 2015 | Former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson has filed a class-action lawsuit against the National Security Agency, former President [sic] George W. Bush and former Vice-President [sic] Dick Cheney over accusations of spying on everyone in Salt Lake City during the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. In a lawsuit filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court, Anderson accused the NSA and the Bush administration of blanket surveillance over everyone in Salt Lake City and the Olympic venues from the start of the opening ceremonies until the closing ceremonies two weeks later...The lawsuit claims a Fourth and First Amendment violation and seeks class-action status.

Chelsea Manning Found Guilty of Violating Prison Rules | 19 Aug 2015 | Convicted national security leaker Chelsea Manning was found guilty Tuesday of violating prison rules and will receive three weeks of recreational restrictions at the Kansas military prison where she's serving her 35-year sentence, her attorney said. The transgender Army private was accused of having a magazine and an expired tube of toothpaste, among other things. Her attorney, Chase Strangio of the American Civil Liberties Union, said in a news release that Manning was convicted of all charges after a closed four-hour disciplinary board hearing in which she had no counsel. The maximum punishment she could have faced was indefinite solitary confinement.

Far left splits from Tsipras as Greece heads to elections | 21 Aug 2015 | Rebels opposed to Greece's international bailout walked out of the leftist Syriza party on Friday, formalizing a split after its leader Alexis Tsipras resigned as prime minister and paved the way for early elections. Greece's president gave the conservative opposition a chance to form a new government following Tsipras's resignation on Thursday, but the country appears almost certain to be heading for its third election in as many years next month. Tsipras is hoping to strengthen his hold on power in a snap election after seven months in office in which he fought Greece's creditors for a better bailout deal but had to cave in and accept more onerous terms.

Greece crisis: Syriza rebels form new Popular Unity party | 21 Aug 2015 | Rebels from Greece's governing left-wing Syriza are to break away and form a new party. Prime minister and Syriza leader Alexis Tsipras stood down on Thursday, paving the way for new elections. The move came after he lost the support of many of his own MPs in a vote on the country's new bailout with European creditors earlier this month. Greek media reports say 25 rebel Syriza MPs will join the new party, called Leiki Anotita (Popular Unity).

Former president Jimmy Carter says cancer has spread to his brain | 20 Aug 2015 | Former president Jimmy Carter said that the cancer doctors discovered earlier this year on his liver has also been found on his brain. Carter, 90, said he will receive his first radiation treatment for the disease Thursday afternoon. Carter saidThursday that doctors found "four spots of melanoma on my brain -- small spots" after first discovering cancer during an Aug. 3 operation to remove a tumor from his liver. During that surgery, Carter said, doctors suspected that the cancer had originated in another part of his body. They later discovered the melanoma spots, about "two millimeters" in size, on his brain.

Critics of Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal warn about arbitration clause | 19 Aug 2015 | When Australia began prohibiting brand logos and requiring grim pictures of smoking-borne diseases on cigarette packs, tobacco giant Philip Morris fired back using a novel tactic. It turned to an obscure dispute-arbitration clause in a 1993 trade agreement between Australia and Hong Kong to argue that the Australian government's new public-health law amounted to discrimination [!] and an expropriation of a foreign investment. That case, which is pending, illustrates what opponents of the Trans-Pacific Partnership say they fear most about the nearly completed trade corporate takeover pact: that it will benefit big corporations at the expense of consumers and workers. The provision allows multinational investors to sue foreign governments for expropriation and unfair or unequal treatment,giving them the ability to bring cases before a special, extrajudicial arbitration tribunal that is unavailable to domestic investors.

July was the hottest month since records began in 1880 as heatwaves swept the Earth's countries and oceans --All-time high average temperature 62F (17C) recorded globally in July --The first seven months of 2015 have also surpassed temperature records | 20 Aug 2015 | July was the warmest month ever on record worldwide and 2015 has been the hottest year so far, figures reveal. In its monthly global climate report, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said many countries and the world's oceans experienced heatwaves last month. Nine of the 10 hottest months since records began in 1880 have occurred since 2005, the NOAA report said. According to the NOAA, this July was the all-time highest monthly temperature in the records that date back to 1880, at 61.86F (16.61C).

Study finds global warming makes California's drought worse | 20 Aug 2015 | Climate change Global warming has aggravated California's devastating drought, causing between 8 and 27 percent of the dry conditions afflicting the nation's most populous state, a study released on Thursday has found. The study, published this week in Geophysical Research Letters, is the first paper to estimate how much climate change global warming has exacerbated the state's drought by sending moisture from plants and soils into the air, according to Columbia University, where the lead author works. Researchers examined monthly weather data, including rainfall and temperatures, going back 114 years to isolate the proportion of the drought they concluded was due to climate change global warming, as opposed to natural weather variations that have heated up the state, according to Columbia University.

3 firefighters killed, 4 hurt battling one of Washington state's many wildfires | 19 Aug 2015 | Three firefighters died and four others were injured while battling a wildfire in northern Washington state, Gov. Jay Inslee said Wednesday evening. The firefighters were confronting a blaze in Okanogan County near the town of Twisp, about 150 miles northeast of Seattle. Inslee also requested a federal declaration of emergency for the state, saying 11 counties are battling more than 40 fires in all. Hours earlier, the approaching fire led officials to tell residents to evacuate the towns of Twisp and Winthrop, whose combined population is about 1,300, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's latest figures.

Danny intensifies into first hurricane of the 2015 season | 20 Aug 2015 | After its skeletal appearance on Wednesday, Danny has exploded to life overnight and is now a hurricane with sustained winds of 75 mph. Hurricane Danny is the first hurricane so far this season, and right on time -- the median date of the first hurricane formation is Aug. 16. Hurricane Danny's forward speed is just 12 mph, meaning it's still about four days away from reaching the eastern Caribbean if it maintains this speed.

FBI investigating Ashley Madison hack; 37M emails exposed | 20 Aug 2015 | The FBI is now investigating that massive breach of an website dedicated to helping people cheat on their spouse. Tens of millions of email addresses belonging to customers of the Ashley Madison website are now available to see on the internet. Among the surprises: the number of emails that seem to belong to members of the military and government. It's not known how many of the email addresses are legitimate.

15,000 government emails revealed in Ashley Madison leak | 19 Aug 2015 | Thousands of clients using the affair-oriented Ashley Madison website listed email addresses registered to the White House, top federal agencies and military branches, a data dump by hackers revealed. The detailed data, released Tuesday, will likely put Washington, D.C., on edge. Indeed, more than 15,000 of the email addresses used to register accounts were hosted on government and military servers. Buried in the list are emails that could be tied to multiple administration agencies, including the State Department and Department of Homeland Security, as well as several tied to both the House and Senate.

Head of Louisiana GOP among those in Ashley Madison data dump | 20 Aug 2015 | Louisiana GOP Executive Director Jason Doré said Thursday that his name was among those released as part of the Ashley Madison data dump earlier this week because he used the site for "opposition research." Hackers released a trove of data from the infidelity networking website on Tuesday that included at least 10,000 email addresses that appear to be associated with government and military accounts. Doré told NOLA.com that an account had been created using his name and former personal credit card information as part of work done by his law firm, Doré Jeansonne.

Donald Trump's venue for Alabama rally moved to larger stadium | 20 Aug 2015 | Donald Trump has been drawing large crowds at events throughout the country, but his next event in Alabama could draw his largest gathering yet. Trump is holding aFriday night "pep rally" in Mobile, Alabama, and because of increased expected attendance, a last minute venue change is taking place, the campaign said Thursday. Previously planned for the nearby Civic Center -- which can hold up to 4,000 people -- the event is now being moved to the 43,000-seat Ladd-Peebles Stadium, normally home to high school football games. As ofThursday morning, 35,000 tickets to the event have been distributed, according to the Trump Campaign.

Gas Line Explodes During Construction at a Manhattan High School | 20 Aug 2015 | A gas line exploded during construction at John F. Kennedy High School in the Marble Hill section of Manhattan on Thursday night, injuring three workers, one critically, and heavily damaging three floors, the authorities said. Seven people were working on a construction project in a science laboratory on the sixth floor shortly after 8 p.m. when the explosion occurred, the police said. The workers were draining gas from a main in the lab before starting their work but failed to drain it completely, setting off the blast, the police said.

MSNBC Airs Softball Interview With Anti-Union Activist Campbell Brown | 19 Aug 2015 | After her show was cancelled on account of low ratings, former CNN anchor [pea-brain] Campbell Brown reinvented herself as an education reformer and charter school advocate -- this despite having little to no training in education, and never having taught students herself. She founded the education corporate advocacy group the Partnership for Educational Justice to fight teacher tenure in New York and recently launched the Seventy Four, an "nonprofit, nonpartisan" education news site. However, as some critics have pointed out, Brown's news [sic] site is largely dedicated to trashing teachers unions and advocating for school choice...Brown has refused to disclose the donors behind her Partnership for Educational Justice -- which is not tied to the news site -- saying only that they come from "both sides of the aisle." But MSNBC made no mention of Brown's ties to advocacy groups -- or her lack of transparency -- when she came on "Morning Joe" on Wednesdayto promote an upcoming education forum with many of the Republican presidential nominees.

Avoid LongHorn Steakhouse: Millville, NJ, waitress fired by LongHorn Steakhouse after trying to save dog left in car by diners | 19 Aug 2015 | All Cristal Perez thought she was doing was helping a small dog that she felt was suffering while it was left inside a car at the Longhorn Steakhouse last week. But Perez said the comments she made to the dog's owners about the situation Aug. 11 resulted in her being fired as a waitress at the restaurant where she has worked since May 2014. The dog's owners were a couple she was serving, and Perez said they complained to management about her comments...The National Weather Service reported the high temperature in the city on Aug. 11 as 84 degrees, with the heat index making it feel like 90 degrees. Information on the website for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals states that the temperature inside a parked car can soar to between 100 degrees and 120 degrees "in just minutes" on a 78-degree day.