Explosion In Philly

A gas explosion in Philadelphia injured 4 people and killed one. It was caused by a gas leak and it set off 3 fire alarms around the area. Dozens of people evacuated their homes due to the gas explosion and the authorities finally got the fire under control at about 11 P.M. The body of the victim has been found but can not be identified and is being brought into further investigation. It set 2 other homes on fire and a truck nearby.

I think that it is bad that this stuff happens to innocent people. All though people can not ensure that still will happen it still in unfair. I hope that stuff like this someday in the future will be able to be fixed. I also hope that this will never occur in the history of the universe. Even though i really am not affected by this stuff it scares the living hell out of me that it can happen to anyone at any random point in time. I hope that my house is secure and it wont happen there so i can live a very successful life.

Obama, Hu to Meet With American CEO's

Source CNN.com

China's president, Hu, is coming to America to talk economics. Many big American businesses are sending representatives to the White House for this huge meeting. Some of the things being focused on are: increasing exports to China and more investment in American and Chinese companies by both countries. Strangely enough, American automakers are absent from the list of invitees, even as their stocks are surging once again.

I hope that this meeting goes well. Our economy is still struggling, but if we get help from China and we work together then both of us can get better economies. I think our automakers should be invited though because they are just starting to do better, and this could really help their foreign markets.

Shots Fired In Tuscon

Source : CNN.com

The shooting in Arizona was searched and 31 casings of gun shells were found. It said that there was 30 rounds in the magazine of the Glock-19 gun and one was already in the chamber during the shooting. It said that he was trying to reload the gun during the shooting and because of that pause in time he was able to be tackled and the weapon pried from his hands. During the shooting luckily only 6 people were killed but 13 other people were wounded during the shooting. He legally bought the gun at a sportsman warehouse and later in the day before the shooting bought the bullets.

This guy is completely crazy. He clearly has mental problems, and maybe we need stricter gun laws. At least check to make sure the guy isn't a psycho before you sell him a gun. Hopefully, the Congress woman that was shot makes a full recovery, and I feel terrible for the victims and their families.

A state of emergency in crisis-ridden Tunisia

CNN.com



In Tunis, Tunisia rioters were tear gassed while doing peaceful protests. The were protesting poor living conditions and a lack of rights. Earlier this week the President fired some government officials, but the riots continued. Now, he has declared a state of emergency and dissolved the entire thing. He has said that he hopes to hold new elections within six months. People around the world are outraged at the obvious police brutality shown by the riot police. This brings further instability to the already unstable continent of Africa.

This seems like really bad news. The president now controls the entire government and he could become corrupt. Hopefully, with all of his power he makes good decisions for his country. Finally, I hope that the USA doesn't get involved. We are always getting involved in international issues, but we have plenty of our own to deal with first.

2 million fish found dead in Maryland

Source: CNN.com

Another mass death of animals is now being reported. This time 2 million fish were found dead in Maryland. This come after thousands of blackbirds died in Arkansas after New Years Eve. The fish are almost totally juvenile spot fish, and experts are agreeing that the most likely cause is the extremely cold water temperatures. Another contributing factor was probably the unusally large number of this species of fish this year. The water could just not support all of the fish. This is at least the third time that a massive fish kill has happened in this area, the others were in 1976 and 1980.
This is crazy. I personally believe that the world is ending. Within the next year all of the animals of the world will most likely die and then humans will become extinct. First the birds, then the fish in Arkansas, and now the fish in Maryland. 2012 WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE. The Mayans were the smartest people ever. MEYER!

Strong signs of life for the job market

Source: CNN.com

The job market is showing positive signs of life for the first time in the last couple years. According to one source 297,000 jobs were added in December. This is almost triple what was thought was going to happen, most experts were predicting 100,000 jobs to be added. The story went on to explain how small businesses, which are the backbone of our economy, are the ones that are really adding as they recover. Also, companies that are struggling are starting to cut less jobs, which shows that even they are starting to do better.
I think this is great news. After seemingly years of negative economic news, finally there is some positive stuff going around. The recession has personally affected my family because my dad lost his job a couple years ago. Hopefully, others have been able to find new jobs like my dad. This is a positive sign for our recovering economy.

Assange condemns investigations

Source: http://www.cnn.com/

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is being held in a British jail on rape charges in Sweden. He says that the charges are fabricated and were made up just to make him look bad. He goes on to say that the world is angry with him for releasing documents, but he still wants to release them. If convicted he could face up to two years in prison, but he says that there is no evidence against him. Bail was set at over $300,000, but when Assange paid bail they wouldn't release him because of assassination threats.

I think this guy should be put in jail until he stops releasing documents. His website is endangering lives across the world. Many embarrassing things about the USA have also been released. He says that he is doing it for the greater good, but he is clearly not thinking straight. Hopefully, we arrest him on espionage charges.

DREAM Act Appears to be Dead

Source: http://www.cnn.com/

The DREAM act, which one of Obama's ideas appears dead in Congress. The Senate Democrats have removed it from consideration, so it probably won't be considered again until next year. The Dream act deals with the hot issue of immigration, because it appears that just trying to deport all of the illegals isn't working. The DREAM act says that the illegal immigrant goes to college of joins the military then they will become a legal US citizen.

I think this is probably a bad idea. If all they could do is join the military, then it would be okay, but the college path is not the right one. All of the illegal immigrants are poor, so they will need a lot of financial aid. They will drain all of the money that US citizens should be receiving. This would be like a reward for the illegals, and punishing those US citizens that have worked hard and deserve the money.

Issue One: Comprehensive vs. Incremental Health Care Reform

Health care reform is thought of as imminent. Both the republicans and the democrats believe that we need to change something, but their ideas are very different. The liberals, or democrats, think that we need major reform. They believe in a universal system, with the government controlling most of the system. The government would become the single purchaser and everybody would buy from the government. The republicans, on the other hand just want to reform our current system. Medicare which is for old people, and medicaid which is for poor people, basically welfare. The republicans believe that government controlled insurance would destroy the competition and ultimately make the quality poor. They want to enhance HMO's and offer tax deductions for people with coverage.

I believe that the republicans have the right idea. I don't think that the government should have this kind of power. Private insurance companies have strong competition, and it makes the actual healthcare better. If the government runs the program, then quality will decrease. John McCain supports this point of view. This is a website about his specific views on healthcare:http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/19ba2f1c-c03f-4ac2-8cd5-5cf2edb527cf.htm

Issue two: http://beireis.blogspot.com/2010/11/issue-2.html

Issue three: http://kinseydokken.blogspot.com/2010/11/issue-3-safe-to-eat.html

17 buried alive; Costa Rica on storm 'red alert'

Source: msnbc.com

Seventeen people are now confirmed dead in Costa Rica after a giant mudslide. This western part of Costa Rica received 6.3 inches of rain causing an entire hillside to collapse. At least twenty homes were destroyed and all of the survivors lost everything. Rescue efforts are on going, but so far all that has been found are corpses. This is a very poor part of Costa Rica, and most of the homes were just mud huts. There has been reports of hearing cries for help, but not being able to find the person under the layers of mud.

This is a crazy story and I hope that they are able to find some survivors. Hopefully these people are able to get some assistance from their government because they were apparently poor and lost everything. I don't know if this was just a freak rainstorm or caused by a hurricane, but lately I have been hearing about many natural disasters. Sounds like global warming.

S. Korea fires warning shots at disputed border

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39983651/ns/world_news-asiapacific/

On Wednesday the South Koreans fired warning shots at a North Korean fishing vessel. The boat had crossed into South Korean waters and they fired ten shots at the boat to make it turn around. North and South Korea both say they don't know why the boat went into South Korean waters. This incident is right before the big G-20 summit and the USA hopes it does strain the already strained relationship between the north and south. The USA has told urged Beijing to exercise its influence on the North to make them not do anything back.

This is not what these two nations needed. Their relationship is already bad and upcoming peace summit is really important. I don't understand why the fisherman even fished there because the borders between the two are clearly marked and he almost died. I hope he caught a lot of fish to make it worth the risk. Hopefully, these two nations can forgive and forget this incident.

BP lifts cost for spill, denting quarterly profit

BP now owes at least $40 billion dollars of fees because of the oil spill, and the total could reach as high as $69 billion. This was an increase of 7.7 billion from the previous total. These additional fines have put a dent into BP's third quarter profits, but they still have made money. BP is the world's largest non-government owned oil company.

I think this is a good thing. We should make sure that BP pays for everything that they caused, and the people that lost money get the proper amount they lost. Even though BP has gotten fined this much, they are still making a profit and I'm sure that they will soon forget the fines. Finally, BP really needs to make their rigs safer, so that this kind of stuff never happens again.

Police intercept parcel bomb sent to French leader

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39948639/ns/world_news-europe/

Greek police have arrested two guys who sent a package containing a bomb to the French president. The two men were connected to a Greek terrorist group, the police say. Both of the men when found were armed and wearing bullet proof vests. The men were found with other bombs that were addressed to other leaders around the world.

These guys are psychos. Also, they seem really stupid because anyone who thinks this plan would work is obviously retarded. This kind of thing seems to be occurring more often around the world. Seems like every other day I hear about some crazy terrorist trying to blow something up.

Existing home sales on the rise

Source: http://money.cnn.com/2010/10/25/news/economy/existing_home_sales/index.htm?hpt=T2



According to this CNN article home sales are once again on the rise. This is the second straight month of improving home sales. During September, over 4.25 million houses were sold, each averaging about $171,000 in price. Over the past two months home sales have steadily rose, after July, where home sales plummeted. This is good news according to many economists, but home sales are no where near what they were before the recession, and still lower than even last year.



This seems like very good news to me. After like three years of hearing all negative things about the economy, it is nice hearing something good. I think you have to put this all into perspective though, the housing market is up 10%, but it was very low before this month. I believe that many people probably won't want to buy a house until they get a better job, as many people were laid off. Hopefully, the market continues to rise.

As rescue drill nears, miners in Chile still have long way to go

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/10/05/chile.miners.rescue.plan/index.html?hpt=T2

The Chilean miner's ordeal might finally be coming to an end. Within a few weeks the the 2047 foot hole will be down to the miners. For months the miners have been receiving food, water, and other things they need through a smaller hole. They have also been in contact with their families through satellite computers. The miners have been stuck in the collapsed mine for months. The last step of the project will be to reinforce the tunnel and to make sure all of the trapped miners can fit through it.

This is truly an amazing story of human survival. First off, these people had to survive the explosion that mad the mine collapse, then before they were found they had to eat whatever they could find. I hope that they all get their jobs back and maybe some form of compensation for their ordeal. Finally, I hope that all the families are able to be reunited.

Federal Budget Blog: Issue One

The President, part of the executive branch, is the commander and chief of the military. Congress though has the power to declare war and to decide how the country's money is spent. This is called The Power of the Purse. Many times throughout history the President has wanted to go to war or make changes to an on going war, but Congress has stopped them. Even today many people think the President is unfit just by himself to dictate how a war is run. These people tend to think that Congress should use it powers to stop the spending spree that we are currently on. On the other hand, some people think that the President should have the power to run a war without the interference of Congress.





I believe that Congress should have the power to make decisions about war because there is more than onbe person in Congress. If only the President made decisions he could become corrupt with power, which is why we have checks and balances. Many people think the same as I do, for example http://www.freecongress.org/ this group believes in Congress's power. It is called the Free Congress Foundation.

Issue Two Lucas Beireis:http://beireis.blogspot.com/2010/10/issue-2-spending-what-we-can-afford.html

Issue Three Andrew Strater: http://astrater.blogspot.com/2010/10/issue-3-social-insecurity.html

Arrests amid pope's visit to London

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/09/17/uk.pope.visit/index.html?hpt=T2

The Roman Catholic Pope is on day three of his four day visit to London, and yesterday five guys were arrested on suspicion of terrorism. The five men ages 25-50 can be held for up 28 days under the Terrorism Act 2000. Many think it was a plot to kill the Pope. The Pope is on this trip to promote the religion and to spin it out of the negative light that many people currently see it in.

I think it is crazy how many terrorist threats and actual attacks there are these days. I know many people don't like the Catholic religion, but I would think that killing their leader wouldn't do much. Also, I think killing is against most religion's beliefs. I think that the Pope making this tour is good thing though, because many people see the Catholic religion in a negative light because of the sex scandals. I hope that the Pope can finish his European tour in safety and that is able to change many people's minds about Catholicism.

Florida pastor unclear about Quran burning

Source:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/09/10/florida.quran.burning.imam/index.html?hpt=T2

In Florida a Christian Pastor wants to burn a bunch of Korans, the Islamic Holy Book. He says that his reasoning behind the burning is the proposed Mosque that will be built near Ground Zero on New York City. He thinks that it is offensive for this building to be built there. His idea has caused a firestorm of media attention and global criticism. Even USA military leaders are asking Jones not to do this, fearing attack on our soldiers. Jones and the Imam of the New York area have a probable meeting for early this week discussing this issue. Many people around the country have criticized Jones, saying that he just wants the media attention. Jones has also reportedly gone back and forth on whether or not to do this.

I think that this guy is a total psycho. First off, burning the Korans is going to make people mad and cause more problems. Also, it could endanger the lives of our deployed troops in foreign countries.I hope that Jones doesn't do this because I think that it could spark a global incident. Finally, I believe that Jones is doing this just for the media attention and that this is just some crazy guy that wants some money.