VP Biden on week-long trip to Africa

Joe Biden is traveling through Africa this week, with several stops. Later he will reach South Africa where he will represent the U.S. at the opening ceremonies of the 2010 world cup. Along with that, he will be meeting up with Egyptian President,Hosni Mudarak, "to discuss a full range of bilateral and regional issues," says the White House statement. The Vice President also had planes last March to go to Egypt to see Mubarak, But the trip was canceled when Mubarak fell sick. The V.P. is also going to stop in Kenya to "discuss peace and stability in the region- especially in Sudan and Somalia- with Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga." Jill, Joe's wife will be joining him during this trip. The 2 will stop in South Africa to watch the U.S. take on England in its 1st game on Saturday.

I'm glad that we are getting sort of involved in foreign affairs that doesn't include a ton of violence. Finally we are going to be doing something the right way to help out others, when everyone is really caught up with our own problem of the oil spill at the moment. Besides we need someone there to support our team.

What if pharmaceutical companies' influence led W.H.O. to exaggerate swine flu threat?

wheres the threat now? The H1N1 was supposedly going to be one of the worst pandemics we were ever going to see, with a purposive millions who were going to die. Well we got prepared, we have far fewer deaths and more then 70 million unused doses of the H1N1 vaccine(just in the U.S.). Now Europe is saying that the World Health Organization Over Exaggerated the threat, over cause that was poorly explained. This had lead to decrease in the trust of the W.H.O. They say that the W.H.O. caused unnecessary fear and wasted millions of dollars. The worst part is that they were getting their advice from the ones who were getting paid by the companies that were manufacturing the swine flu vaccine. But the W.H.O. of course denies all these cases and that the ones that are bringing this to the surface are being "irresponsible". But of course other experts are defending the health organization, saying they made the best decisions they could under the circumstances.

This is great. I was actually talking to my mom about this earlier, saying its weird how everyone was so afraid of what was going to happen, then everything was quiet and you didn't hear about the H1N1. I thought it was maybe because so many people got the preventive shot, i thought that we actually prevented it. but, now I'm not sure, i guess it could easily be the W.H.O.'s fault that everyone was worked up over nothing. Right now though i really don't have an opinion on if they did the wrong thing here.

Mexican authorities recover 55 bodies from mine shaft

In Mexico they have recently found 55 bodies that were left in a mines ventilation shaft. They say that the site was used as a mass grave in the city of Taxco. The bodies were found around a week ago but was not announced until Monday, they say that a week long recovery act will take place. Of the 55 bodies that were found here, 3 were mummified, and 2 others were just skeletal remains. 4 of the bodies have now been identified. One of the 4 was David Bravo Mota, who was a local and worked as an area prison warden. With the other bodies though, they are having a tuff time figuring out who they are. They have now just asked for people who are missing loved ones to come to the State Attorney Generals office to preform genetic testing to help possibly identify the remains. Meanwhile, there is said to be another 10 other ventilation shafts to search for more possible remains.

www.cnn.com/2010/world/americans/06/07/mexico.mass.grave/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed%3a+rss%fcnn_topstories+%28rss%3a+top+stories%29

Wow this is terrible. i wonder if they think these people have been murdered or if its just some weird thing like a grave robber who has moved the bodies, or a family of some sort put their loved ones there instead of in a cemetery? there is a lot of unanswered questions about his story and i hope to find out a little more about how 55 bodies just appeared in a mine shaft.

Twin brother among UK gunman's victims

Derrick Bird a self-employed taxi driver has used his own taxi to create one of the worst massacres in recent British history. Bird killed 12 and wounded 11 during his drive-by shootings before shooting himself. Among the killed was his twin brother David Bird. The dead were all found on close to roads. Queen Elizabeth II is shocked by the event and has issued condolences to the families of the dead and the wounded as well. One taxi driver witnessed the scene and was shot in the back said that he watched Bird shot another driver dead at point blank range.
The police has released a map of the route that Bird had traveled last Wednesday on his rampage. It starts in a little village and takes a trip through the seaside towns while ending up inland further. The police have told us that there has been more then 30 crime scenes that have already been released, this is not including his own home, which is still blocked off. Forensics say that there was 2 weapons used, a shotgun and a .22 rifle with a telescopic sight. Bird was a licensed firearms holder for over 20 years but the police are not sure if the license covers the 2 seized firearms.
Police believe that they have finished searching the route that Bird took and feel that there will be no more victims found. but for the wounded, 8 are still in the hospital. Friends of Birds say "i can't shed any light on it,... He was a decent guy, and I'm sorry for what's happened."

What could cause someone to just randomly go and kill how many people. He had to be very mentally unstable, how did no one see that, and if someone did why didn't they do anything about it. I am sorry for the family of Birds and also for the families that lost loved ones during this terrible massacre.

Tylenol recall: Serious side effects investigated

The FDA(food and drug administration) is looking closely at McNeil (a division of Johnson and Johnson) because there has been a report that the last drug recalled has a least 775 serious side effects. included in these side effects was death which has effected 30 people, but none were found to be tied to Tylenol, Motrin, or Benadryl drugs between the time of Jan. 1, 2008 through April 30, 2010. The FDA is also investigating because of the recall of 50 children's versions because of serious quality and safety concerns. Some of the consumer complaints from these medications were death, hospitalization, disability, and other health complications. A hearing has been made for May 27 to examine the recall. It's a good time because Johnson and Johnson have had 4 recalls in just the past 7 months. But McNeil would like to mention that the children's drugs were stooped just as a precautionary measure

The problem Medications have been traced to the Fort Washington, Penn plant where earlier this year the FDA issued a 17 page inspection report listing 20 violations the plant had made

This is scary. Johnson and Johnson is one of the biggest producers of a lot of different goods. If things like this keep happening, who are people going to be able to trust. I can't believe that this plant was not shut down until problems were fixed, which they clearly were not if this is still happening, knowing that its killing people and has a great possibility to hurt many little babies. they really need to get their act together and quickly.

5 accused of enticing NH teen to get vulgar tattoo

In Concord, NH 4 men and a juvenile are now facing charges after persuading a mentally ill 14 year old boy to let them give him a tattoo, in return to stop teasing the boy. The men have been teasing the boy for a long time and told him the they would simply stop if he got the tat. but, what they tattooed on the poor boy's butt is terrible, they said its to bad words and a nasty picture, they also possibly gave the boy a bag of marijuana. The crime was found out when the pictures the men took started to spreed around the school and was seen by one of the teachers. The men are now all looking at being expelled, along with the criminal charges of two counts of assault, tattooing without a license, criminal threatening, along with other charges and two of the men face conspiracy charges. two of the men have been jailed with a $35,000 bail the others are not yet decided upon. The boy now has to go through medical procedures to remove the profound tattoo.

Wow. I just don't understand why people do this, even how they can do this. How could you possibly stoop so low as to tattoo a mentally ill persons butt as a joke, its not funny, its stupid. I'm kind of up set that the harassment wasn't stopped before it could get as bad as this, I'm sure someone had to have noticed. I am so shocked by this that I'm at a lose for words. I just can't see how this could be done as a joke.

Man accused of smuggling 15 pounds of cocaine in candy

A man named Robert Lopera, a U.S. citizen, entered Kennedy Airport on April 11th, arriving from Medellin, Colombia was stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection as a random luggage search. when looking through the backpack and duffel bag they found a gift package with several boxes of chocolates and bags of pistachios. when lifted by the official, they seemed heavier then they really should so they were confiscated. the chocolates where then looked at carefully and taken apart. inside they found a center of cocaine. they also found that the pistachios also had a cocaine center. All together they found a total of 15 pounds of cocaine, equaling about $500,000 if sold on the streets. They have yet to find the actual destination for the drugs but its still under investigation and Lopera has been charged with illegal importation of cocaine and is still waiting for federal prosecution.

I can't believe that someone actually got as far as they did with the drugs. If they would not have randomly picked that guy to search or not noticed the simple thing like the weight difference from what they should weigh all of those drugs would no be on our streets. This just makes me wonder what other things people somehow sneak into our country. I know our security is tight, believe me i have recently travailed through some of the most restricted areas and i just can not believe that they almost got away with it. I wonder what they are bringing into this country and how they are going about hiding it. what will people do just to make a few bucks.

Offshore Wind Power: Is It Worth the Trade-Offs?

The U.S. has approved the first offshore wind farm. This farm, off the coast of Cape Cod, will supply enough energy for ¾ of Cape Cod and the islands of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. The project will include 130 wind turbines over a 24 sq. mi. about 5 miles from shore. One nice thing about this project is that will not produce and carbon or any other pollutant. This could be the beginning of a new area to cleaning up our earth, being the first of many planed projects all along the Atlantic coast. Even with all the benefits, some are not thrilled about the project. The project will cost $1 billion and will be built on Indian burial grounds; it will also block the Cape Cod’s sea views.
This is what the wind industry has been waiting for after their largely spreading achievement across the land. Last year alone more than 10,000MW of wind power added, which equals about 39%, and has an estimated ability to produce 90,000MW of energy along the coast line. Most people feel that this process will be a very positive impact.
I’m so glad that somebody finally found a way to produce energy without harming our planet anymore. Everybody is trying to go green and this seems to be a great way to show that even energy could easily go completely green. We really need to do more of this. There is no way of reversing global warming but we can reduce it, which is really need with all the extreme disasters and weather we have been having lately.

Suspected pirates nabbed after skirmish with U.S. Navy ship

A group was captured Thursday, this group are suspected pirates. These pirates attacked the U.S. Sixth Fleet stationed in the Indian Ocean. USS Nicholas tells us that their ship received fire not long after midnight, they fired back, and soon took the skiff and its 3 passengers. They soon sunk the skiff, but first found ammunition and fuel aboard the skiff.

Not long after 2 more pirates were captured on a "mother ship". they have decided that for now they will keep their captives aboard the USS Nickolas until the pentagon decides what they will do with them. Right now they feel that they will be sent to Kenya to be tried, then go from there.

According to the USS Nickolas, based in Norfolk, Virginia as part of the U.S. military's Africa Command, the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean is a real hot spot for pirate attacks the last few years. They have had to add naval escorts and expanded monitoring, it's so bad. Just last week they had a brawl on the water, an attack broke out on a Panamanian-flagged cargo ship. It was so bad they needed to call in a European Union naval force to help out.

Wow, I didn't know that there were still pirates around. This is crazy. To the sound of it, there seems to be quite a few roaming around the ocean. I wonder why we don't hear more about these attacks. I almost feel that we need to inform more people about this, just to tell them that there are still pirates and to beware.

Police: Missing California family may have disappeared intentionally

Joseph and Summer McStay and their 2 children have been missing since February 4th, their families have no idea where they are or if they planed to leave or even if something happened to them. whats worse is that since the family has been missing they have not used their bank or credit cards or their cellphones. This is making it really hard for the police to answer any questions on their where abouts.

Some evidence, that was collected at their residence, suggests that they were planing on a trip to Mexico. But, if this was a planed trip how could they leave their pets at home with no food or water. Another bad sign was that 4 days after there disappearance authorities discovered their vehicle abandoned along the boarder of Mexico not far from a checkpoint.

A surveillance video of that evening was discovered and it shows what appears to be the missing family casually walking across the boarder. This makes the police feel that there is no criminal involvement, but a brother of the McStay's disagrees and feels terrible, hoping to find them soon and alive.

Wow. I don't know what i would do if a family member of mine just got up and disappeared let a alone the whole family. I don't know what would make someone feel that they want to just get up and leave. But, i really do feel that something weird is going on if they ditched their car and walked into Mexico. Are they trying to escape and get new identities? Or are they being held against their will, which could be if they are not using any money. But, yes, i do feel this could have possibly been planed, Maybe they got into a little trouble and need to get out of it. I don't know, but i do hope they find them so we can find out just why they did it.

30 days and counting: Homebuyer tax credit expires

The great deal is about to end. For a while now the government has been giving people tax refunds for buying new houses. This bill was introduced in hopes of people decided that this would an amazing way to help them to afford a house in this economy. A first time house owner could get $8,000 back in taxes and those who have owned previous housings could receive $6,500.
When introduced this bill was a great success. It helped to boost the housing economy quiet a bit. But now they have extended the bill multiple times, the first time there was another great raise in home purchases, but sales have slowed over the winter and spring months. They now feel that it would be no more use to extend the bill any longer. They also feel that this will tell people that this deal really wont last forever, and if their thinking of buying a home this would be the last chance to get a great deal because they need to have the contract in place by the end of April to still receive their refund.
I feel that this bill was an amazing idea. It helped out our economy sooo… much. It helped boost home sales, which in the end boosts all sales, it seems that if the housing economy is doing well so is the rest of the economy. That’s probably because housing requires so many things to put it all together that everyone is some how tied to that industry. But I feel that yes, all good things need to come to an end, and if we keep extending this bill then people will feel that it will always be there and there really wont be a need for them to buy right now. In the end this was a great idea and it has rewarded us and hopefully will continue in the future.

U.S. ambassador: Iraq elections a turning point for democracy

The turning point for the Iraqi democracy has come according to some. Christopher Hill said that the result of the past suggests “there is democracy in this country.” Also people are looking at the different options and going in different directions, this is a good sign for the hopes of the upcoming election. People are looking for their best interests, like who would be the best for security and stability, and to provide an improvement in their income.
The 2 Men running are former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi and Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, with Allawi in the lead so far according to elections officials. Allawi also said this, “if you’re the frontrunner you’ve got to look out there to other coalitions (and)say how can i put together a government that’s going to work? This isn’t all about...who’s a Shia or who’s a Sunni; it’s about who can govern better.”
I feel this is great. Our goal was, when we went over there that we would set up a working government for them to go by so that they would stop fighting between themselves. So this is a great improvement so far, because the last election that was planed did not go as planned. But if people are looking for their best interests they defiantly won’t take long to get used to this better way of government.

Scientists Get Closer to Understanding Why We Age

A group of scientists that won the Nobel prize last year, have seem to found a great advancement of how the body ages. They have found that there are little things, like the plastic tip of a shoe string, called telomeres on the ends of our chromosomes, which contain our DNA. These caps (telomeres), when duplicated tend to fray and shrink. When this happens the DNA tends to change slightly, which could possibly be the cause of some age related illnesses such as heart disease and some cancers. Although, they don’t yet know if the telomeres have anything to do with a person’s appearance.

The teams are still doing many different tests to help pinpoint a link to the length of telomere. They have found the gene that has to do with different lengths of telomere in different people. Right now they have found 500,000 genetic markers to using the whole genome and hopfully finding around 50 million markers.

Once they find out the missing pieces, they will be able to make new treatments to many age related diseases. But the treatments that we have now found might be more hurtful then helpful. They have found that if the fix the genes for heart disease then it could possibly cause the genes to carry cancer cells longer. Everyone has a certain amount of cancer cells but with the telomeres fraying they lose the trait after a few duplications, and fixing the cells could possibly stay longer causing the cancer cells to potentially become harmful.

Wow this is great news. Next thing we know they will be making a cure for aging. We might live forever. But is this a great idea? Should we really be messing with peoples genes so much? Oh well, I still feel that this is a great advancement in the field and we are now just one more step to a cure to all major disease. This is great for the future of man and our fight to survive.

First lady calls for united effort to fight childhood obesity

The first lady announced that she is setting up a national effort to end childhood obesity. The reason she is speaking out against the topic is that children are getting type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, which is something that we usually don’t see until adulthood.
She wants more teachers and coaches to help with her by having them look at the “Let’s Move Web site.” She says that 1/3 the population’s children are obese, and hopes that with this program they will be able to end childhood obesity within a generation, because it’s something that needs to be dealt with now because they have now termed this as an epidemic which needs to end soon.
Many high officials have now joined her in her race against “one of the most urgent health issues that we face in this country.” They have decided that people need to give support in promoting healthy choices that may be difficult to obtain. Like turning off the TV serving smaller portions and drink more water.
To help parents she wants labels should be easier to read and wants the nutrition facts to be moved onto the front of the packaging. She also wants this labeling put on eh front of pop cans so they can easily be seen from the inside of vending machines.
But her plans are not only for at home, she wants to spend $10 billion over a 10 year span to improve the nutrition in school food. The funds will include providing more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and low fat dairy products. Food suppliers have to also decrease the amount of sugar and fat in the foods.
She wants Pediatricians to also start measuring children’s BMI frequently to stop obesity before it gets too bad.
Finally! We are always saying that something needs to be done soon because all of our kids are getting fat, yet not very many people do anything about it. It’s just all words and no action. But now with such a planed program being set up, I really think that it will actually start to work and we will probably see a great change in our near future. But will it actually end childhood obesity in one generation? I’m not sure. We are all in a rut right now. We have been told that it’s bad for you to eat bad food and not exercise but yet we don’t have easy access to anything that will really help us with this task. This project will really help everyone to learn what is good for us and be able to easily use our knowledge to make smart, healthy choices.

Best economic growth in six years

The economy finnally grew

The economy finally grew this past quarter. It’s been 6 years since it has grown at this fast of pace. The economy has grown 5.7% which shows us that the economy is on the rise and has beaten all the rates that were projected for the 4th quarter with an estimated 4.7% growth. This is the highest percentage since 2003. But even with this surprising increase this past year was the worst year our economy has faced since 1991.
There is some word that the recession ended sometime in the last year but the GDP never reports anything until they are positive which may take 6 months to a year. This is because sales are up. Auto sales and personal consumption both grew this past quarter.
Even with the good signs of hope for our economy, we still need to get people jobs in order to get them to feel comfortable spending more money, this is greatly need for 2/3 of the economic activity is from consumers spending.
But not all of our hard work with the stimulus discounts this year was a waste. It actually might be the reason for the growth that we have seen. The auto and home discounts that we have received from the government helped our economy more than most of us first thought. But unfortunately this kind of stimulus can only help us so much because they are so hard to keep going.
“it is normal to have a burst of acceleration coming out of a recession, particularly a sharp recession, and then have growth ease back,” this brings me a lot of hope. I know that in the past month the stock market has dropped another 600 points and I was starting to feel that we would never get out of these terrible times. The business that I work for recently had to close their doors because of the times and I was really kind of worried about what I was going to do until I can find another job, if I can find another job with unemployment rates so high.
But I’m super glad to hear that there is hope for my future and for the future of our country. I feel that if we stay in the rut we are presently in we will probably fall into a huge hole and possibly be taken over by another country while we are at our weakest. I know that many counties would love to get back at us; this would be a great way of doing so. At least we have somthing to look forward to.

Arkansas recruiting center killing suspect: 'This was a jihadi attack'

Abdul Hakim Muhammad finally pleads guilty to the shooting to kill one military officer and wounding another in Arkansas last June. He also claims that he is part of al Qaeda and that he, being Islamic has the right to fight anyone who rages a war against Islam or Muslims. He said that he was mad at the United states for what they have done in the past and had shoot at the people with the intentent of killing them. He also wishes not to plead insanity, which his laywer wanted him to do.
I feel that if this guy pleads guilty against his lawyer’s wishes we should take that into consideration when we sentence him. I also feel that we have to keep in mind what we do to him as a punishment, because if he really is part of the al Qaeda we never know how the others of the group will feel about our actions and try to get back at us even though Abdul is an American citizen. But I do feel that something needs to be done about this. It is not an action that we can risk having happen again, especially at the state of almost panic we are in about any sort of terrorist action.