While test scores have increased slightly, the news still isn’t good. According to newly-released ACT scores, 28% of this year’s high-school graduates did not score high enough on the standardized test to meet the standards for expected college success. Nearly three in 10 test takers (28%) failed to meet any of the benchmarks in the
Continue reading …Michele Bachmann’s presidential campaign is brash and boisterous—and increasingly rough with the reporters covering it, reports Politico . In less than two months, there have been at least five incidents reporters have called unusually hostile, including a Norwegian reporter who says an aide threatened to break his arm. Bachmann’s campaign…
Continue reading …
Franciscans of San Salvatore al Monte pin up prayer hoping unknown villain succumbs to ‘a bout of the shits’ A group of Franciscan monks furious at the theft of bibles from their church in Florence have taken the unusual step of praying for the thief to be struck down by diarrhoea. Monks at the 15th century church of San Salvatore al Monte, which was a favourite of Michelangelo, were irritated when a rare and expensive bible disappeared from the lectern, and they flew off the handle when a replacement bible donated by a worshipper also went missing and within a few hours. In a note, pinned up in full view of worshippers, the monks say they hope the thief sees the error of his ways. But in case he does not, they add: “We pray to God that the thief is struck by a strong bout of the shits.” This turn of events will, they hope, “encourage him to carry out no further thefts”. Described by La Stampa newspaper as “the product of the Tuscan ability to be ironic about anything”, the note and its unorthodox request will be forgiven, claim one of the monks. “It is not exactly clean language,” the monk said, “but we couldn’t put up with it any longer. The Lord and the faithful will understand.” Italy Religion Europe Tom Kington guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Yen equivalent of £29m has been found and returned to its owners since tidal wave disaster After the waves tore into their homes and sent them fleeing for their lives, many of the survivors of Japan’s tsunami must have thought they had lost everything. Yet in the months since the 11 March disaster thousands of people have been reunited with cash totalling 3.7bn yen (£29m), along with other valuables. Of the 2.36bn yen retrieved from 5,700 safes, all found in the three worst affected prefectures of Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima, 96% had been returned to its owners by mid-July, according to the national police agency. In addition, 1.3bn yen in loose cash has been recovered from handbags and purses, along with credit cards. Police said about 85% had been returned to its rightful owners, adding that the hunt would continue until all of the money had been accounted for. It is scant consolation, given the loss of homes and livelihoods, but the return of piles of cash points to a desire to do the right thing, despite the hardship that continues to blight life for tens of thousands of people along the devastated Tohoku coast. While most of the private and company safes were found by police and troops searching for survivors, others were handed in by members of the public. About 900 safes – which are common in Japanese households, offices and workshops – were returned in the city of Kamaishi alone. One, retrieved from Ishinomaki, contained 100m yen and has been given to its owner. Police have attributed the unusually large number of safes to a preference for cash transactions among fishermen, who make up a large portion of the population affected by the disaster. Many safes also contained the documents that businesses will need to rebuild: bank books, stock certificates, land rights deeds, and gold bars and other precious metals. The grateful recipients include Torazo Chiba, a 65-year-old resident of Iwate prefecture, who was recently reunited with a safe containing cash and his treasured radio operator’s licence. Looking at an old photograph of himself on the licence, Chiba, whose home was washed away by the tsunami, told the Yomiuri Shimbun: “This has inspired me to try hard again, like I did back then.” Japan disaster Japan Natural disasters and extreme weather Justin McCurry guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Gemma Redmond remembers her last moments with her husband on their honeymoon, following him being mauled by a shark The widow of a man killed by a shark on their dream honeymoon in the Seychelles has said that her husband had laughed off the dangers of sharks. Gemma Redmond described how she and her husband Ian had gone to the Seychelles partly because they thought the islands were free from dangerous animals. In an interview with the BBC, she said she had asked a receptionist if there were sharks and was told: “No, not in the Seychelles, the Seychelles are very safe waters.” She said: “We didn’t really think that sharks would be in the Seychelles at all. It wasn’t something we were aware of.” Gemma Redmond has also described the moment she heard his “awful scream”. She said she first thought her husband was sneezing as he was snorkelling. But Gemma said she soon realised he was in trouble. She said: “I could see the top of his snorkel because he had a bright orange band around it so I could always follow where he was. “And, all of a sudden, I heard this ‘Help’ and I thought at first he was sneezing. “And then I heard it again – I heard ‘Help’ and the most awful scream. “I can still hear it when I close my eyes.” Redmond said she was sitting with their bag on the beach and her 30-year-old husband had been in the water for 20 minutes when he was attacked. One onlooker described her saying she “still had hope” for her husband while he lay on the sand with terrible injuries after the attack, which happened off Anse Lazio beach on Praslin, the second largest island in the archipelago. Earlier this month, a 36-year-old French tourist was killed by a shark in the same area. Government officials have issued a ban on swimming in certain areas until the killer is captured. Ian Redmond, an IT specialist, was savaged just 10 days after his wedding to primary school teacher Gemma Houghton at St Michael’s Church, in the village of Dalton, Lancashire, just a few hundred yards from the bride’s family home. It is thought that the parents of the couple, from Lancashire, have travelled to the Seychelles following the attack. Police said the incident two weeks ago had been treated as a “freak occurrence”, but the death of Ian Redmond has “changed the whole complexion of things”. Search teams are still trying to find the animal and discover what species it is by examining a tooth they recovered. Until this month the last recorded fatal shark attack in the Seychelles was in 1963. Seychelles Marine life Africa Wildlife Animals guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Spanish fashion chain’s parent denies claims but will compensate 15 migrants ‘rescued’ from Sao Paulo workplace Retail fashion chain Zara is under investigation by Brazil’s ministry of labour after a contractor in São Paulo was found to be using employees in sweatshop conditions to make garments for the Spanish company. The Brazilian government listed 52 charges against Inditex, Zara’s parent company, after it “rescued” 15 workers from a factory sub-contracted by AHA, the company responsible for 90% of Zara’s Brazilian production. Fourteen of the workers were Bolivians and one was from Peru. One was 14. Inditex said in a statement that it could not be held responsible for “unauthorised outsourcing” but would compensate the workers because AHA had violated Inditex’s code of conduct. Zara has 1,540 stores worldwide, including 64 in the UK. The response has not satisfied the Brazilian authorities. “AHA is a logistical extension of its main client, Zara Brasil,” said the prosecutor, Giuliana Cassiano Orlandi. “The company is responsible for its employees. Its raison d’être is making clothes and it follows that it must know who is producing its garments.” Inditex said its 50 suppliers last year produced 7m garments, with only 0.03% made in unlicensed workshops. It was working closely with the ministry of labour to eradicate sweatshop conditions. Renato Bignami, who led the investigation, said the workers – who lived on the premises – worked 12-hour shifts in dangerous and unhealthy conditions. One Bolivian told the TV channel A Liga that the labour component of a pair of Zara jeans selling at $126 (£76) was $1.14, which was divided between the seven people involved in the process. The workers earned between $156 and $290 a month. The minimum wage in Brazil is $344. The investigation began after unions reported last June that sweatshops in Sao Paulo were producing garments for Zara. “Before then, no accusations had been made against Zara,” said Maria Susiclea Assis of the local garment-makers’ union. Bignami said the economic crisis in Spain was driving impoverished migrant workers from places such as Bolivia, Paraguay and Peru back to Brazil, which is in a boom. The high exchange rate for the Brazilian real means that, even at these wages, workers can send money home. “They work 16 or even 18 hours a day,” he said. “It is extremely exhausting work, from Monday to Saturday, sometimes even Sunday depending on demand. I’ve seen workers who have taken home R$150-250 (£57-94) at the end of the month – after paying off housing debt, food debt, telephone card debt, debt [to people traffickers] for the journey here.” Many have to work for three or four months to pay off the “coyotes” who have smuggled them into the country. “These are classic cases of immigrant sweatshops,” Bignami said, adding that he had no doubt that such labour conditions characterised modern-day slavery. Workers often face “threats, coercion, physical violence. All this to increase productivity,” he added. Ineke Zeldenrust of the Clean Clothes Campaign, in Amsterdam, said such sub-contracting was common in the industry. “It is Zara’s responsibility to know who is making their clothes,” she said. “According to the code of conduct that they have signed up to, they are responsible for everyone involved in the supply chain. It is up to them to do the monitoring.” Zara is a family business founded in 1975 in La Coruña, north-west Spain by Amancio Ortega, who has become Spain’s richest man and the seventh richest in the world. According to Forbes magazine, half of production remains in Spain, with 26% per cent in Europe and the remainder spread around the world. In July, 300 Zara employees staged a demonstration in Madrid, complaining that 80% of the mainly female workforce were on temporary contracts. They earn €830 for a 40-hour week. Slavery Brazil Spain Retail industry Europe Stephen Burgen Tom Phillips guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Taylor Swift Wardrobe Malfunction!!!!…………….vlog# 23 The Iron Man Of Documentaries Morgan Spurlock talks about his favourite ad ScottDay80 says: RT @ EntNewsUK : New interview opportunities on site: Rhod Gilbert, Liz Brewer, Gemma Merna, Morgan Spurlock , Matt Dawson. More here: http://t.co/Wh0GfFy
Continue reading …
Leroy James, 14, seen in ‘altercation’ with another youth before 10th fatal stabbing of a teenager in London this year Detectives are appealing for help in finding the killer of a 14-year-old boy who was stabbed to death in a daytime attack in a busy north London park. Police and an air ambulance were called to Ponders End recreation ground in Enfield at about 5.30pm on Wednesday. They arrived to find Leroy James fatally injured in the centre of the park. Attempts to resuscitate him failed and he was pronounced dead at the scene. Officers, who believe the boy was stabbed by another youngster, said there was no evidence his death was gang-related. Officers said the victim had been in an altercation with at least one other youth. The teenager’s father – also called Leroy – visited the scene on Thursday to pay tribute to “a pretty quiet boy” and football enthusiast who would live on in his memory. Mr James, a 41-year-old scrap metal dealer from nearby Edmonton Green, said he found out about the attack when one of his son’s friends called him. “I was at home,” he said. “[Leroy's friend] just said to me if I heard what happened. He said Leroy has been stabbed and he’s been taken to the Royal Free hospital. “But actually he was still in the park until 2am.” Detective Chief Inspector Caroline Goode of the Metropolitan police appealed for more witnesses to come forward. “We know from what witnesses have told us so far that Leroy was in an altercation with at least one other boy,” she said. “I’m completely open-minded as to the motive at this stage. “There’s certainly no evidence or any intelligence at this time that this is a gang-related murder.” Goode described Leroy as “a 14-year-old young man who didn’t deserve to lose his life”, adding: “People who were there will know who has done this. We want to hear from anyone who was in the park at 5.30pm and can help us … There will be a lot of people who were in the park and a lot of talk in the community. We plead with people to come forward.” Darren Griffiths, who lives in a flat backing on to the scene, said he had seen police taping off the area at 5.30pm. “I knew it was something fatal,” said the 39-year-old. “It’s normally peaceful around here. They’ve just built an outside gym here which is where the kids hang out and where it’s taken place. “Last week, we had the kids walking through the park from the riots, but apart from that it’s quiet.” The murder – the 10th fatal stabbing of a teenager in London this year – was met with sadness and anger in Ponders End. But one resident said he was not surprised, adding: “Things happen in that park at night.” Many in the area complained that the local police station, which is only 50 metres from the entrance to the park where Leroy was killed, had recently closed. Hazel Nelson-Williams, founder of an anti-youth crime group, the Nelson Williams Foundation, said it had been a mistake to close the station. “If that young man had had the opportunity to run away, where would he have run to?” she asked.”In light of what’s happened, cutting police numbers is so not the right thing to do.” Enfield, which has significant areas of deprivation alongside streets of comfortable suburban homes, experienced a night of riots and looting earlier this month. The disturbances spread from the town centre towards Ponders End to the east. According to Scotland Yard figures, knife crime involving young people in London has risen almost 10% over the past year, with a bigger increase in the number of youths injured in knife attacks in the past few years. Knife crime Crime London Sam Jones Peter Walker guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Chaos in Bournemouth as about 60mm of rain falls – more than the average for the whole of August Flash flooding caused chaos in Bournemouth as torrential rain drenched parts of Dorset and Hampshire, closing roads and leading to the evacuation of shops and offices. Water rose to the level of car bonnets in some areas, according to Dorset police, as around 60mm (2.4in) of rain fell in a few hours – more than the average 56mm for the whole of August. Firefighters attended more than 150 emergency calls over two hours from 10.30am as storms, accompanied by thunder and lightning, hit on the first day of the Bournemouth air festival. Dorset fire brigade said more than 20 appliances and 100 firefighters were used. Wading teams rescued a man from his car in Charminster, Bournemouth. “It’s localised flooding affecting supermarkets, shops, hotels, even a private hospital,” said a spokeswoman, “but also domestic premises and roads.” Central Bournemouth was one of the worst hit areas and Central Gardens and Boscombe Gardens were under water. There were also reports of flooding in Poole and Christchurch. Debbie Reeves, who co-owns four ice-cream kiosks in Bournemouth’s Lower Gardens, said her staff had to abandon their posts. “The water came downhill through the town centre square and the narrow entrance to the gardens made a channel for it,” she said. “The water just kept coming and coming, it was like a waterfall. “The water got to waist-high in two of the kiosks and about one feet deep in the other two. We have lost the fridges, microwaves, electrical goods and a lot of stock which was ruined in the flooding.” Dozens of shop workers had to be evacuated when a wall collapsed in the town centre, triggering a gas leak. A Dorset police spokesman said a number of roads had been closed and many vehicles broke down. One of the worst affected roads was the A338 Wessex Way, which was temporarily closed with flood water reported between 60cm and 90cm. “The rainwater was very deep, almost reaching the bonnets of some of the vehicles,” said the spokesman. A woman caller told police a slip road was “splitting” and that “water was coming out of the road like a fountain”. In Westbourne, the fire brigade were called to bale out two basements. The Nuffield Health Bournemouth hospital was turning away patients as water leaked through a ceiling. Meanwhile, organisers of the Bournemouth Air Festival decided to cancel some of the evening’s events, which were to include fireworks, musical performances from an Abba tribute act and the Royal Marines Band. Residents and holidaymakers were warned not to go out unless absolutely necessary.” Flooding is extremely dangerous. Please call us if you believe yourself to be in danger in your property or in your car. And don’t go out if you don’t have to,” said the fire brigade spokeswoman. In neighbouring Hampshire, roads were closed in Basingstoke, Winchester, Southampton and the New Forest. In the New Forest, the A338 at Fordingbridge was flooded. A motorcyclist and passenger were treated by ambulance crews in Burley after coming off the vehicle on Forest Road and their motorcycle ended up submerged. In the Winchester area, there were reports of widespread flooding. The services at Sutton Scotney on the A34 were also affected. Weather Bournemouth United Kingdom Caroline Davies guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
A source is confirming to The Associated Press that a Maryland businessman detained in Aruba had a $1.5 million insurance policy on his missing travelling companion and that he sought to collect on it shortly after she disappeared. (Aug. 18)
Continue reading …