| The Donald Trump Show Wraps Up First Season Posted: 20 Jan 2018 02:45 AM PST  WASHINGTON – At least from a ratings standpoint, America's 45th presidency without a doubt has had a successful first season, tremendous even.
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| The Story of the Turpin Family at Center of Abuse Allegations Posted: 18 Jan 2018 09:00 PM PST  David and Louise Turpin pleaded not guilty to a combined 75 counts that included charges of torture, child abuse and false imprisonment.
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| 2 Boys Arrested After Vandalism That Killed 500,000 Bees On Iowa Honey Farm Posted: 18 Jan 2018 09:54 PM PST  Two boys are facing felony charges after vandalism at an Iowa honey farm killed 500,000 bees, according to police.
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| 'We want to fix it': Google, YouTube CEOs on Election Meddling Posted: 19 Jan 2018 10:27 AM PST  Google CEO Sundar Pichai and YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki discuss what changes technology companies are making in the wake of foreign meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election via digital information platforms.
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| Delta issues new rules on emotional support animals Posted: 19 Jan 2018 08:05 AM PST  After the airline said it saw a spike in animal incidents, passengers must now provide documentation for their pet to the airline within 48 hours of their flight.
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| Meteorite hunters find first fragments of Michigan meteor Posted: 19 Jan 2018 12:33 PM PST  DETROIT (AP) — Meteorite hunters who flocked to Detroit from across the U.S. after a meteor exploded are finding the fragments.
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| Apostrophes trip up Kazakhstan's move away from Russian alphabet Posted: 20 Jan 2018 06:35 AM PST  Kazakhstan's quarter-century struggle to assert its autonomy from former overlord Russia has hit an unlikely snag: the lowly apostrophe. A vast but sparsely populated country wedged between Russia and China, Kazakhstan came under the rule of its northern neighbour as Russia and Britain jostled for control of Central Asia in the Great Game. It also came under its linguistic influence, and to this day, many Kazakhs speak more Russian than their Turkic native tongue. This became especially concerning after Russian state media, which remain popular in Kazakhstan, helped whip up Russian-speaking separatists to fight government forces in Ukraine in 2014. In April, Kazakhstan's president of 27 years, Nursultan Nazarbayev, ordered the government to prepare a new Kazakh alphabet based on Latin characters and ditch the one based on Russia's Cyrillic script, which the Soviets implemented in 1940. He has said this will give Kazakhstan "real independence" and help it join the "information world". But a cumbersome version of the new alphabet chosen by Mr Nazarbayev last autumn has sparked rare dissent in this authoritarian country due to its ample apostrophes. Of 32 letters in the alphabet, nine are written with an apostrophe. Mr Nazarbayev meets with Vladimir Putin in December. He has tried to gently assert Kazakhstan's independence from its former overlord Credit: Alexander Nemenov/Pool Photo via AP An "against apostrophes" hashtag soon appeared on social media. So did a "No to Kazakh Latinisation with apostrophes!" Change.org petition in October, which was briefly blocked. Film director Saken Zholdas made a video explaining how inconvenient the apostrophes were. "With this decision, we are unintentionally, or maybe intentionally, killing the brand of Kazakh language once and for all," he said. The problem lies in the need to differentiate related but distinct Kazakh sounds, such as a long and short "a," or consonants similar to "s" and "sh". Setting them apart with an apostrophe allows the alphabet to be typed on a standard Latin keyboard, but also produces odd flurries of punctuation and many eyesore words. For instance, the word for "bottle," pronounced "shisha," is written "s'i's'a", while "east," pronounced "shyghys," becomes "s'yg'ys". Those are hardly the worst: The word for "skier" will be "s'an'g'ys'y" and that for "crucial" will be "s'es'u's'i". The Republic of Kazakhstan will be written "Qazaqstan Respy'bli'kasy". The palace of peace and reconciliation designed by Norman Foster in Astana, Kazakhstan Credit: Sergei Bobylev/\TASS via Getty Images Some have speculated that Mr Nazarbayev picked the apostrophes to keep Kazakh distinct from the Latinised alphabets of other Turkic languages and placate Russia, which since Soviet times has feared pan-Turkic movements along its southern border. "The guy just liked it, and since our country is this way, no one in government can tell the president no," Aidos Sarym, a political analyst who previously served on a state working group on Latinisation, told The Telegraph. Last month, Mr Nazarbayev said while the new apostrophes had caused "much discussion," this version was the right one because it suited computer keyboards. But at the same time it complicates web searches and social media hashtags, where an apostrophe between letters splits them into separate words. "From a technical point of view, apostrophes create more problems than they solve," said political analyst Dosym Satpayev. Mr Nazarbayev appears with Donald Trump in the White House on Tuesday. He has tried to balance relations with the United States, Russia and China Credit: Olivier Douliery/Pool via Bloomberg In his video, Mr Zholdas suggested replacing the apostrophes with accent marks over the nine letters in question, a move he said could be supported by 70 per cent of computer fonts. Despite the defence of his version in December, Mr Nazarbayev also said there was still time to "work with the new alphabet" before the country switches over fully in 2025, giving hope that he could eventually relax his stance. "He wants to go into history … as the father of the new Latin Kazakh alphabet," Mr Sarym said. "You can choose any version and let it be called the Nazarbayev version, but do it right so there aren't problems now, and so that tomorrow we won't have to do an upgrade."
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| Supreme Court blocks redrawing of North Carolina congressional maps Posted: 19 Jan 2018 05:15 AM PST ![Supreme Court blocks redrawing of North Carolina congressional maps]( "Supreme Court blocks redrawing of North Carolina congressional maps") The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday blocked a lower court's order for North Carolina to rework its congressional map because Republicans violated the Constitution by drawing electoral districts intended to maximize their party's chances of winning. The conservative-majority court granted a bid by Republican legislators in North Carolina to suspend the Jan. 9 order by a federal court panel in Greensboro that gave the Republican-controlled General Assembly until Jan. 24 to come up with a new map for U.S. House of Representatives districts.
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| Prosecutors Lay Out Horrifying Details in 'Severe, Pervasive, Prolonged' Torture of 12 Siblings Posted: 19 Jan 2018 03:27 AM PST  An act of courage and desperation freed 12 siblings from a house of horrors that shocked police
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| Mattis unveils new National Defense strategy Posted: 19 Jan 2018 08:43 AM PST  Defense Secretary Jim Mattis released the National Defense Strategy today that focuses on China and Russia as the biggest challenges to the U.S.
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| Classmate speaks out about California ‘House of Horrors’ victim Posted: 19 Jan 2018 08:03 AM PST  A classmate of one of the victims who attended community college says the Turpin son was very thin and always in the same clothing.
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| Helicopter crash claims Texas investor, decorated pilots Posted: 18 Jan 2018 05:47 PM PST  RATON, N.M. (AP) — Five friends, including a Zimbabwean opposition leader, traveling to a ranch in the U.S. state of New Mexico died when their helicopter crashed in a remote area. Here's more about the prominent people on board:
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| Thousands march on Washington in Donald Trump-supported anti abortion rally Posted: 20 Jan 2018 02:36 AM PST  Thousands of anti-abortion activists and protesters carried posters and shouted slogans in support for the unborn on Friday, as they descended on Washington from various parts of the country for the annual March for Life rally. President Trump addressed the crowds via video from the Rose Garden, saying he is committed to building a "society that is celebrated, protected and cherished," and reaffirming his support for the movement. He said he's the first president to address the gathering in its 45-year history. For anti-abortion activists like Karen Herzog from San Antonio, Texas, who has been attending the yearly rally since 2008, Mr Trump's words are encouraging. She represents an organisation that helps abortion clinic workers draw up an exit strategy when they are ready to leave the industry called 'An Then There Were None.' "I believe that this is a first for a president to show any kind of acknowledgment of the march. I'm very well pleased with that and I'm grateful for his support," she said. For protesters like Caroline from Virginia, the rally was an opportunity to share her experience of adoption with others. She says the choice of giving her daughter up for abortion empowered her, while helping a couple "complete a family" that is now a part of her own. US abortion clinics A year into his presidency, Mr Trump has sought to curtail abortion rights by making rules and policy changes across agencies. He also preserved the Supreme Court's conservative majority by getting Justice Neil Gorsuch confirmed. Abortion-rights groups say Mr Trump's actions amount to a sweeping rollback of reproductive rights.
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| Thai police arrest 'kingpin' in Asian wildlife trafficking Posted: 20 Jan 2018 01:18 AM PST  Thai police have arrested an alleged kingpin in Asia's illegal trade in endangered species, dealing a blow to a family-run syndicate that smuggles elephant ivory, rhino horn and tiger parts to Chinese and Vietnamese dealers. Boonchai Bach, 40, a Vietnamese national with Thai citizenship, was arrested on Friday evening over the smuggling of 14 rhino horns worth around $1 million from Africa to Thailand.
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| Zimbabwe opposition leader Roy Bennett killed in U.S. helicopter crash Posted: 18 Jan 2018 11:28 PM PST ![Zimbabwe opposition leader Roy Bennett killed in U.S. helicopter crash]( "Zimbabwe opposition leader Roy Bennett killed in U.S. helicopter crash") (Reuters) - Exiled Zimbabwe opposition leader Roy Bennett and four other people were killed in a helicopter crash in a remote northern part of the U.S. state of New Mexico, officials and his political party said on Thursday. The crash of a private Huey helicopter in rugged terrain near Raton, New Mexico, on Wednesday evening killed Bennett, 60, along with his wife, Heather Bennett, 55, James Coleman Dodd, 57, of Colorado, Charles Ryland Burnett, 61, of Texas and Paul Cobb, 67, of Texas, New Mexico State Police said.
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| Why This Black Girl Will Not Be Returning To The Women’s March Posted: 19 Jan 2018 02:45 AM PST  Recently, I came across the Facebook event page for the 2018 Los Angeles Women's March.
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| A Norwegian Airline Claims to Have Set a New Record for New York to London Flights Posted: 19 Jan 2018 12:59 AM PST  Norwegian Airlines flight DY7014 beat the previous subsonic record by three minutes
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| After a year of Trump's immigration crackdown, migrants living in fear are using WhatsApp to avoid deportation Posted: 20 Jan 2018 06:39 AM PST  While President Donald Trump was preparing to take the oath of office last January, immigrants were thinking ahead to what was to come: raids, deportations, roadside checkpoints, stakeouts, and — for a now-burgeoning group of people — constant uncertainty. One year out, immigrants say that those preparations are a final line of defence as the Trump administration ramps up its anti-immigrant policies.
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| Donald Trump's 'Screaming' Face On A Newspaper Stack Gets The Funniest Reworking Posted: 20 Jan 2018 01:06 AM PST  A photo-editing battle has erupted over this somewhat unsettling snap of President Donald Trump's face on a stack of German newspapers: PsBattle: Trump screaming in a stack of newspapers from photoshopbattles The viral image was actually part of an advertising campaign for the Der Tagesspiegel newspaper back in 2016, reports AdWeek.
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| The Funniest Tweets From Parents This Week Posted: 19 Jan 2018 06:00 AM PST  Kids may say the darndest things, but parents tweet about them in the funniest ways.
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| Confronting China and Russia, not tackling terrorism, is now America's top security priority Posted: 19 Jan 2018 01:11 PM PST  Countering China and Russia is a bigger focus for US national security than defeating terrorism, the American administration announced yesterday. Donald Trump's new national defence strategy named "inter-state strategic competition" as its primary concern rather than jihadist attacks. It marks a tipping point after almost two decades when the US has focussed on countering terrorism following the September 11 attacks. China, Russia, North Korea and Iran were all mentioned as powers that were threatening the international order. The strategy signals a return of a Cold War-style mentality in American foreign policy that will focus on countering rival great powers. James Mattis, US Secretary of Defense Credit: EPA/WALLACE WOON James Mattis, the US defence secretary, explained the rationale behind the 11-page national defence strategy in a speech on Friday. "We will to continue to prosecute the campaign against terrorists that we're engaged in today, but great-power competition - not terrorism - is now the primary focus of US national security," he said. Mr Mattis added: "To those who would threaten America's experiment in democracy: they must know if you challenge us, it will be your longest and worst day." The document itself included a similar message: "Inter-state strategic competition, not terrorism, is now the primary concern in US national security." It called out threats posed by rival nations. "China is a strategic competitor using predatory economics to intimidate its neighbours while militarising features in the South China Sea," it read. US President Donald Trump, right, and Russia's President Vladimir Credit: APEC-SUMMIT "Russia has violated the borders of nearby nations and pursues veto power over the economic, diplomatic, and security decisions of its neighbours. "As well, North Korea's outlaw actions and reckless rhetoric continue despite United Nation's censure and sanctions. "Iran continues to sow violence and remains the most significant challenge to Middle East stability." John McCain, the Republican senator of Arizona, welcomed the strategy, saying: "It gets the big decisions right, prioritises the threats we face, and offers clear guidance for making tough choices." Mr Mattis also called on Democrats to agree new funding ahead of a midnight Friday deadline, warning that the military would suffer if they blocked budget proposals. Appealing to Congress, he said: "No strategy can survive without predictable funding. As hard as the last 16 years have been, no enemy has harmed the US military more than defence spending caps and sequestration." Mr Trump cancelled his trip to Florida on Friday in an attempt to help avoid a government shutdown as Republicans piled pressure on their political opponents. The US president was due to fly to his Mar-a-Lago resort but stayed in Washington as scrambled negotiations played out behind the scenes. A fierce blame game erupted in the American capital as political rivals pointed the finger at each other over who was at fault. Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader of the Senate, accused Democrats of being unpatriotic by threatening to block a funding extension. "The American people, the citizens who actually elected us, will be watching," he said. "They will see which senators make the patriotic decision, stand up for the American people and vote to continue government funding." Chuck Schumer, the most senior Democrat in the Senate, noted that Mr Trump once said that America could use "a good shutdown".
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| Phoenix police: Serial killing suspect tied to 9 attacks Posted: 18 Jan 2018 11:34 PM PST  PHOENIX (AP) — The nine shooting deaths around metropolitan Phoenix that occurred in just a three-week span seemed unconnected at first glance. The victims differ in age, gender and geographical location. But the more law enforcement investigated, the more correlations came to light.
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| The Electrification Era Moves Closer for Cars Posted: 19 Jan 2018 11:42 AM PST  Automakers are seeing the future, and increasingly it's more high voltage than high octane. At this year's North American International Auto Show in Detroit, just under the sheet metal and hoods ...
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| Kremlin 'regrets' Ukrainian law recognising Russian occupation Posted: 19 Jan 2018 09:35 AM PST  Of course, Russia will remain committed to the word and spirit of the Minsk accords with other guarantor countries France and Germany, but we regret that such steps only distract us from the desired goal," the Kremlin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists. The EU-brokered Minsk peace agreement, backed by Moscow and Kiev, was first reached in late 2014 and then re-worked in early 2015 with the help of Germany and France, but is violated almost daily.
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| Why It's So Hard For Victims Of Extreme Abuse To Leave Posted: 18 Jan 2018 06:52 PM PST  When police entered the home of David and Louise Turpin in Perris, California, they encountered 12 siblings who were being held in filthy, dark conditions ― some chained to furniture.
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| Anti-abortion activists rally in annual 'March for Life' in Washington Posted: 19 Jan 2018 12:51 PM PST ![Anti-abortion activists rally in annual 'March for Life' in Washington]( "Anti-abortion activists rally in annual 'March for Life' in Washington") Thousands of anti-abortion activists from around the U.S. gathered in the capital Washington Friday for the annual "March for Life" -- fired up by the support of Donald Trump, who addressed the crowds via video link.
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| South Korea President Moon's approval rating drops on Olympics furor Posted: 18 Jan 2018 07:36 PM PST ![South Korea President Moon's approval rating drops on Olympics furor]( "South Korea President Moon's approval rating drops on Olympics furor") South Korean President Moon Jae-in's approval rating has fallen to a four-month low, a poll showed on Friday, after a public backlash over a decision for South and North Korea to field a joint ice hockey team at next month's Winter Olympics. Moon's approval rating dropped to 67 percent, Gallup Korea said in a press release, down from last week's 73 percent and the second-lowest ever after the rating stood at 65 percent in late September last year.
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| NASA bumps astronaut off space station flight in rare move Posted: 19 Jan 2018 08:32 PM PST  Jeanette Epps was set to become the first African-American to liveon the International Space Station.
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| Twitter Concedes Russian Influence Before U.S. Election Was Greater Than Initially Thought Posted: 19 Jan 2018 05:21 PM PST  At least 677,774 people in the United States followed, retweeted or liked content distributed by Russian government-linked Twitter accounts in a 10-week span prior to the 2016 U.S. election, Twitter announced Friday.
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| 'Jersey Shore' Star Mike 'The Situation' Sorrentino Pleads Guilty To Tax Evasion Posted: 19 Jan 2018 02:24 PM PST  On Friday, "Jersey Shore" star Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino pleaded guilty to tax fraud in federal court in Newark, New Jersey.
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| The Latest: Man accused in 9 killings had bleak upbringing Posted: 19 Jan 2018 03:21 PM PST PHOENIX (AP) — The Latest on nine killings in the Phoenix area that have been linked to the same convicted felon (all times local):
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| China Wants Missile Defenses To Stop India (And Kill Satellites) Posted: 19 Jan 2018 04:28 AM PST  India conducted a successful test of its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), a nuclear-capable Agni-5, on Thursday, underscoring a potential threat to China as well as Pakistan. China is also within range of nuclear-armed North Korean missiles and Japan is mulling whether it should develop similar capabilities.
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| Turkey says it will press ahead with all out attack on Kurdish held city of Afrin in Syria Posted: 19 Jan 2018 10:00 AM PST  Turkey said Friday that it would press ahead with a full scale assault on a Kurdish enclave in northern Syria despite pleas from the US to hold back. Ankara has been threatening for days to send its forces into Afrin, a Syrian district near the Turkish border controlled by Kurdish forces who are allied with the US but mortal enemies of Turkey. Turkish troops shelled the area on Friday and said it was moving units of commandos near the border as well as mobilising pro-Turkish Syrian rebel groups for the attack. "This operation will take place; the terror organisation will be cleansed," said Nurettin Canikli, Turkey's defence minister. "The operation has actually de facto started with cross border shelling." Mr Canikli said Syrian opposition fighters would lead the attack with the support of Turkish ground forces. Graphic: Areas of control in Syria As of Friday night, an all out ground invasion did not yet appear to be underway. Turkey has in the past promised a major incursion into northern Syria but pulled back at the last minute. Turkey's apparent willingness to press ahead with the attack, despite American objections, illustrates the dire state of relations between Washington and Ankara. Turkey has long fumed over America's decision to ally itself with the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil). The US has found the Kurds to be effective allies against the jihadists but Turkey accuses them of carrying out terrorist attacks against Turks. Turkish anger reached boiling point this week after US officials said they were helping the YPG to train a 30,000 strong "border force" that would patrol the Syrian side of the Turkish border. Rex Tillerson, the US secretary of state, hastily tried to ease tensions, insisting that it had been a mistake to call the unit a "border force" but his words have so far done little to appease the Turks. The potential Turkish offensive is complicated by the presence of Russian troops in Afrin. Turkish state media reported that Russian soldiers had evacuated ahead of the offensive but the YPG said they remained in place. Turkish military and intelligence chiefs travelled to Moscow this week to discuss the operation with their Russian counterparts. The Syrian regime warned that any Turkish offensive would be considered "aggressive act" an that Syrian forces would attack Turkish aircraft. But the regime has often issued such warnings to the myriad of foreign militaries operating inside Syria without then acting on them.
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| Tourists in Jamaica Warned Not to Leave Resorts Due to Violent Crime Posted: 20 Jan 2018 11:01 AM PST  There's been a string of violent crimes in Montego Bay
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| Don't Let Dishonest Don Erase Honest Abe Posted: 20 Jan 2018 02:45 AM PST  Michael Wolff's blistering account of the Trump administration's first year, Fire and Fury, prompted what has now become the president's routine response to anyone who criticizes him.
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| How to Solidify Your Retirement Fund Posted: 19 Jan 2018 07:27 AM PST ![How to Solidify Your Retirement Fund]( "How to Solidify Your Retirement Fund") The traditional three-legged retirement stool -- consisting of pensions, personal savings and Social Security benefits -- is looking wobblier than ever. Defined benefit pension plans, which have been disappearing for some time, are now on the verge of extinction. Just 8 percent of private employers offered pension plans in 2017, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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| Aly Raisman Tells Nassar 'You Are Pathetic' After He Complains About Sentencing Hearing Posted: 19 Jan 2018 10:37 AM PST  Olympian Aly Raisman addressed serial sexual abuser Larry Nassar in court Friday with a powerful statement, calling the former USA Gymnastics team doctor "pathetic" for complaining about the length of his sentencing hearing and "a monster" for abusing the trust of his young patients.
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| Takata Recalls 3.3 Million More Airbags Posted: 19 Jan 2018 10:47 AM PST  Takata has expanded its already massive recall by an additional 3.3 million airbag inflators over the same concerns that they might explode and spray dangerous metal fragments into the vehicle's ...
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| Puerto Rico finances under scrutiny amid plea for help Posted: 19 Jan 2018 10:30 AM PST  SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Top financial officials in Puerto Rico offered a peek Friday into why the U.S. territory is mired in an 11-year recession as a federal control board demanded more transparency and information about the island's finances.
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| Hezbollah slams US decision to keep troops in Syria Posted: 19 Jan 2018 08:14 AM PST  Lebanon's Hezbollah movement on Friday said a US pledge to keep its troops in Syria to defeat the Islamic State group was just a "flimsy excuse" to occupy the country. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Wednesday that US forces would remain in Syria to both fight IS and counter the influence of President Bashar al-Assad. Assad is a key ally of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah, which has deployed its forces to keep the Damascus regime in power.
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| The Way Serena Williams Looks At Her Baby Girl Will Make Your Heart Melt Posted: 19 Jan 2018 06:39 AM PST  Serena Williams is simply smitten with her baby girl, Alexis Olympia.
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| 13 siblings allegedly held captive at home by parents: Part 1 Posted: 19 Jan 2018 03:45 PM PST  David and Louise Turpin pleaded not guilty to a combined 75 total counts, including charges of torture, child abuse and false imprisonment.
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