Rupert Murdoch and Wendi Deng have reached an “amicable” divorce settlement to end their 14-year marriage.
The News Corp boss and his estranged wife told a New York court they would move forward with “mutual respect” and a shared interest in their daughters’ welfare.
The details of the settlement have not been disclosed publicly.
Rupert Murdoch, 82, filed for divorce from Wendi Deng in June saying his marriage had “irretrievably broken down”.
Wendi Deng and Rupert Murdoch have a pre-nuptial agreement and are holding shares in trust for their children.
Rupert Murdoch and Wendi Deng have reached an “amicable” divorce settlement to end their 14-year marriage
They have two school-age daughters together, Grace and Chloe.
Wendi Deng, 44, is 38 years younger than the Australian-born media mogul, who is said by Forbes to be worth $9.4 billion.
Rupert Murdoch met his Chinese-born wife in 1997 at a cocktail party in Hong Kong. They were married two years later, weeks after his second divorce.
His global media portfolio includes the Wall Street Journal, Times Newspaper Ltd, as well as television channels such as Fox News and Sky, and the 20th Century Fox movie studio.
Rupert Murdoch filed for divorce just days before News Corp was split into two companies, one for its entertainment assets and the other for its publishing business. He is chairman of both firms.
The detained captain of Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise and other two British activists have been granted bail by a court in northern Russia.
Peter Willcox previously captained Greenpeace’s Rainbow Warrior ship when it was blown up by French agents in harbor in New Zealand in 1985.
Britons Alex Harris and Kieron Bryan were also bailed along with Dutch national Faiza Oulahsen.
Nine other foreign detainees and three Russians were granted bail earlier.
A third Briton, Anthony Perrett, is also hoping for a decision on Wednesday while three other British activists will have their bail hearings later this week.
Of the 13 detainees who appeared in court earlier this week all but one were given bail.
Peter Willcox, the captain the seized Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise, has been granted bail by a court in northern Russia
Australian activist Colin Russell, 59, who acted as the ship’s radio operator, was ordered to remain in pre-trial detention until February 24.
Greenpeace said it was “baffled” why he had been kept in custody for another three months while a spokesperson for Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop said she was concerned about his case and monitoring it closely, the Canberra Times reports.
The detainees have been held on charges of hooliganism after taking part in a protest at an Arctic offshore oil rig operated by the Russian company Gazprom.
If found guilty they face up to seven years in prison.
Kieron Bryan was on the ship as a freelance journalist and videographer.
Alex Harris, 27, acted as communications officer on the ship.
In a letter from prison to a fellow Greenpeace activist in October, quoted by the Torquay Herald Express, the activist wrote: “I dream of the outside world a lot. When I wake I’m sleeping with steel bars digging into my back, facing the same four green walls I’ve faced for 25 days. That’s the hardest time of the day.
“Despite everything that has happened I don’t hate Russia, I just want to go home.”
The Dutch foreign ministry says the bail ruling for Faiza Oulahsen was a positive development.
Nine people bailed on Tuesday were named as: Miguel Orsi (Argentina), Camila Speziale (Argentina), Ana Paula Maciel (Brazil), Paul Ruzycki (Canada), Sini Saarela (Finland), Francesco Pisanu (France), Cristian D’Alessandro (Italy), David Haussman (New Zealand) and Tomasz Dziemianczuk (Poland).
On Monday, Russian national Yekaterina Zaspa, who served as medical crew on the ship, was bailed along with photographer Denis Sinyakov and activist Andrey Allakhverdov.
Bail of 2 million roubles ($61,000) was stipulated for each detainee.
White supremacist serial killer Joseph Paul Franklin, who targeted black and Jewish people in a nationwide killing spree, has been put to death in Missouri.
Joseph Paul Franklin, 63, was executed for shooting dead a man and wounding two others outside a synagogue in 1977.
He was convicted of seven other racially motivated murders. He claimed to have committed 20 in total.
Joseph Paul Franklin’s execution came after the Supreme Court upheld an appeal court’s decision to lift a stay of execution.
In 1978, Joseph Paul Franklin shot Larry Flynt, leaving him partially paralyzed, after seeing a picture of a mixed-race couple in one of his magazines.
However, Larry Flynt – who opposes the death penalty – had sued to prevent Joseph Paul Franklin’s execution.
In a recent interview with the St Louis Post-Dispatch, Joseph Paul Franklin said he had renounced his racist views.
Joseph Paul Franklin was executed for shooting dead a man and wounding two others outside a synagogue in 1977
He said his motivation had been “illogical” and was partly a consequence of an abusive upbringing.
Joseph Paul Franklin said he had interacted with black people in jail, adding: “I saw they were people just like us.”
His lawyers’ appeal focused on a dispute over the type of lethal injections that Missouri uses in its executions.
US and EU manufacturers have been cutting off the supply of drugs used for lethal injections in recent years in an attempt to distance themselves from executions.
As a result, Missouri, which long used a lethal three-drug cocktail for executions, has changed the drugs it uses three times in as many months.
The single drug used in the execution of Joseph Paul Franklin was pentobarbital, a short-acting barbiturate that can induce death in high doses.
On Tuesday, Joseph Paul Franklin’s lawyers won a stay of execution when they argued in federal court that using this drug would violate the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
However, early on Wednesday, a federal appeals court overturned the stay of execution. Its ruling was upheld by the Supreme Court, sealing Joseph Paul Franklin’s fate.
An anti-capital punishment group, Supporters of Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, attended a candlelight vigil for Joseph Paul Franklin outside a church in the city of St Louis.
Roman Polanski’s latest film, Venus in Fur, opened in France this month, with a likely 2014 release coming from Sundance Selects.
Venus in Fur (La Venus a la Fourrure) -a second stage-to-screen adaptation – premiered at the Cannes Film Festival a few months ago.
Venus in Fur premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2013
Taking over the roles made famous by Hugh Dancy and Nina Arianda (the latter winning a Tony for best actress), Roman Polanski brought on his wife,Emmanuelle Seigner, and her own Diving Bell and the Butterfly co-star, Mathieu Amalric.
Emmanuelle Seigner and Mathieu Amalric play a duo thrown into a game of cat and mouse centered on a young actress determined to book the lead role in a new play.
Venus in Fur’s first French trailer (without subtitles) and the first poster are now available.
Malala Yousafzai has received the EU’s Sakharov human rights prize at a ceremony in Strasbourg.
In a speech, the Pakistani schoolgirl and campaigner, who was shot in the head by the Taliban, dedicated the award to “the unsung heroes of Pakistan” and to human rights campaigners worldwide.
European Parliament President Martin Schulz presented the award.
Malala Yousafzai, 16, was shot a year ago after campaigning for better rights for girls in Pakistan.
The Sakharov Prize for free speech is awarded by the European Parliament annually in memory of Soviet physicist and dissident Andrei Sakharov.
The 50,000 euro ($65,000) prize is considered Europe’s top human rights award.
“I am hopeful the European Parliament will look beyond Europe to the suffering countries where people are still deprived of their basic rights, their freedom of thought is suppressed, freedom of speech is enchained,” Malala Yousafzai said.
Malala Yousafzai has received the EU’s Sakharov human rights prize at a ceremony in Strasbourg
“Many children have no food to eat, no water to drink and children are starving for education. It is alarming that 57 million children are deprived of education… this must shake our conscience.”
Malala Yousafzai began her speech with a famous quote often attributed to the 18th Century French philosopher Voltaire: “I do not agree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”
She said children in countries such as Pakistan “do not want an iPhone, a PlayStation or chocolates, they just want a book and a pen”.
MEPs gave her a standing ovation.
More than 20 former laureates attended the ceremony, a parliament spokesman said. Malala Yousafzai is the 25th laureate.
Martin Schulz called her “a global icon” and told her “you have given hope to millions of children”.
“It is our responsibility to ensure that your dream becomes a reality,” he said, referring to her ambition to spread free education to boys and girls everywhere.
Martin Schulz also praised her father for “not locking her away, and giving her freedom”.
Mala Yousafzai joins a distinguished list of winners of the Sakharov Prize that includes Nelson Mandela and Aung San Suu Kyi.
Duck Dynasty’s Si Robertson met 600 of his loyal fans at Sam’s Club in Las Vegas for a book signing session.
Si Robertson met 600 of his loyal fans at Sam’s Club in Las Vegas for a book signing session
Si Robertson, 65, came to Las Vegas last week to autograph copies of his New York Times bestselling book Si-cology 1: Tales and Wisdom From Duck Dynasty’s Favorite Uncle.
Duck Dynasty’s recently released Christmas album, Duck The Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas, featuring several top country stars, is reaching No 1 in Billboard Top Country Albums chart.
Duck The Halls debuted on October 29 and sold nearly 70,000 albums in its first week.
Now, three weeks in, it is the biggest debut country holiday album in the last decade, according to Nielsen Soundscan.
Phil, Si, Willie, Jase, Korie, Missy, Sadie and the rest of the Robertson family show off their singing talents in the CD, include a few classics such as I’ll Be Home for Christmas, Silent Night as well as originals like Have a Hairy Christmas and a Happy Happy Happy New Year and Ragin’ Cajun Redneck Christmas, which Willie wrote with Dallas Davidson.
Although none of them had vocal experience except for Missy Robertson, Willie said they weren’t concerned.
“We’ve all sung in church our whole lives,” the Duck Commander CEO said, “and we do lots of karaoke.”
“There are funny parts, serious parts, a little prayer, some of our antics,” he said.
“It’s got us all over it.”
The Robertson family has invited special guests George Strait, Alison Krauss, Luke Bryan and Josh Turner to join them on the 13-track album, which was produced by Buddy Cannon.
Duck The Halls debuted on October 29 and sold nearly 70,000 albums in its first week
The Duck Dynasty Christmas Special will air on A&E December 11, at 9/10 C.
Duck The Halls song list:
1. Ragin’ Cajun Redneck Christmas (Willie Robertson) Written by Willie Robertson and Dallas Davidson
2. I’ll Be Home For Christmas (Missy Robertson) Written by Walter Kent, Kim Gannon and Buck Ram
3. You’re A Mean One, Mr. Grinch (Si Robertson) Words by Theodor S. Geisel and Music by Albert Hague
4. Christmas Cookies (Phil Robertson and George Strait with Miss Kay) Written by Aaron Barker
5. Away In A Manger (Sadie Robertson with Alison Krauss, Luke 2: 8-14 Scripture Reading by Mia) Arranged by Buddy Cannon, Willie Robertson, Jase Robertson, Korie Robertson and Missy Robertson
6. Hairy Christmas (Willie Robertson and Luke Bryan with Phil, Uncle Si, Jase, Jep) Written by Chancie Neal, Jimmy Melton and Michael Mobley
7. Baby, It’s Cold Outside (Missy and Jase Robertson) Written by Frank Loesser
8. Duck The Halls (Robertson Family) Arranged by Buddy Cannon, Willie Robertson, Jase Robertson, Korie Robertson and Missy Robertson
9. Camouflage And Christmas Lights (Reed Robertson) Written by Michael Logen and Andrew Dorff
10. Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (Sadie Robertson and Robertson kids with Uncle Si) Written by Johnny Marks
11. Night Before Christmas (Si Robertson) Written by Willie Robertson
12. Why I Love Christmas (Missy Robertson with Josh Turner) Written by Josh Turner
13. Silent Night (Robertson family) Arranged by Buddy Cannon, Willie Robertson, Jase Robertson, Korie Robertson and Missy Robertson
At least ten Egyptian soldiers are reported killed and dozens more wounded in a car bomb attack near the North Sinai city of el-Arish.
Al-Masri al-Youm newspaper said a convoy of buses carrying infantry soldiers was hit by a roadside bomb as it moved through the Kharouba area.
The death toll was likely to rise, a security source said.
Attacks on security forces in the Sinai have increased since Islamist President Mohamed Morsi was ousted in July.
No group has admitted carrying out Wednesday’s bombing, but the peninsula has grown increasingly unstable in recent years, triggered by the fall of President Hosni Mubarak.
His overthrow in February 2011 left the northern Sinai prone to groups of jihadists, some with links to the Gaza Strip.
Ten Egyptian soldiers are reported killed and dozens more wounded in a car bomb attack near the North Sinai city of el-Arish
In September security forces launched an offensive against Islamist militants in the Sinai, but have suffered a spate of deadly bombings. In recent months some 100 members of the security forces have been killed.
Wednesday’s attack, which took place at around 07:45 local time on the road from Rafah to el-Arish, is thought to be the bloodiest against the military since Mohamed Morsi was deposed.
Among the 10 who died were six soldiers, three security officers and the driver, the military said.
Another 35 soldiers were wounded in the explosion which was said to have hit one of the two buses in the convoy.
The attack is reported to have targeted Egypt’s Second Field Army, which has been deployed in Sinai and has been involved in an operation to destroy tunnels along Egypt’s border with Gaza.
The soldiers were on their way back to Cairo on leave, reports said. Some of the most seriously wounded victims were being airlifted to hospital in the capital.
President Barack Obama has urged senators to hold off from proposing more sanctions against Iran to allow time for world powers to complete a deal on Iran’s nuclear programme.
A White House spokesman warned that if a deal with Tehran was not agreed, Iran would continue enriching uranium.
Envoys from the P5+1 group of nations will begin a new round of negotiations with Iran in Geneva on Wednesday.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Javid Zarif said he believed issues could be resolved.
In a message on the video-sharing site YouTube, Javid Zarif said: “We expect and demand respect for our dignity. For us Iranians, nuclear energy is not about joining a club or threatening others. Nuclear energy is about a leap, a jump toward deciding our own destiny rather than allowing others to decide for us.”
Barack Obama has urged senators to hold off from proposing more sanctions against Iran
Barack Obama held two hours of talks with senators at the White House on Tuesday, along with Secretary of State John Kerry and National Security Adviser Susan Rice.
In recent days some legislators have expressed concern that the White House is moving too fast and should take a harder line with Tehran.
“We have the opportunity to halt the progress of the Iranian programme and roll it back in key respects, while testing whether a comprehensive resolution can be achieved,” the White House said in a statement.
It said that if there was not an initial agreement, Iran would grow its stockpiles of enriched uranium, install new centrifuges and develop a plutonium reactor in the city of Arak.
Press secretary Jay Carney said President Obama had told the senators new sanctions would be most effective as a consequence if Iran refused to accept the deal now on the table or agreed and then failed to comply.
The president also rejected reports that Iran would receive at least $40 billion in sanctions relief.
Since 2006 the UN Security Council has imposed a series of sanctions on entities and people involved in Iran’s nuclear programme.
Separate US and EU sanctions have targeted Iran’s energy and banking sectors, crippling its oil-based economy.
Duck Dynasty’s Si and Jase Robertson have teamed up with insurer State Farm to reinforce the importance of turkey fryer and cooking safety this holiday season with a brand-new video titled Hang on a Minute with Jase and Si Robertson.
The video captures the importance of turkey frying safety in a humorous yet educational way by cautioning viewers to “hang on a minute and think before you fry”. Regardless if the person frying the bird is experienced or a novice, everyone should take appropriate safety precautions prior to frying.
Si and Jase Robertson have teamed up with insurer State Farm to reinforce the importance of turkey fryer and cooking safety this holiday season
Jase Robertson and Uncle Si have been frying turkey for years without incident because they recognize the dangers and take the proper safety measures to reduce their risk of a fire.
Cooking fires are the number one cause of home fires and home injuries. Based on data from State Farm, more cooking fires occur on Thanksgiving than any other day of the year. The good news is that State Farm cooking fire claims on Thanksgiving Day have been reduced from 66 claims in 2010 to 29 claims in 2012, the lowest number of claims in a decade.
While the reduction is significant, the fact remains there are still injuries and damage to property as a result of turkey frying or cooking fires each year.
November is the number one month for grease and cooking related fire and December is the second highest month.
Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s Proserpine has sold for £3,274,500 ($5,275,000) at Sotheby’s in London, setting a new record for the artist.
Sotheby’s said a fierce round of bidding, involving five international bidders, was won by a private collector in the UK.
Proserpine, depicting the empress of the underworld, is a defining image of the Pre-Raphaelite art movement.
Rossetti’s Proserpine, depicting the empress of the underworld, is a defining image of the Pre-Raphaelite art movement
The model is Jane Morris, wife of artist William Morris.
Biographers have said Jane Morris’ life bore similarities to that of the captive goddess, abducted by Pluto after eating pomegranate seeds, suggesting she was caught between a loveless marriage and her intimate relationship with Dante Gabriel Rossetti.
The drawing, in colored chalks, had come to the art market for the first time in more than 40 years and been expected to fetch up to £1.8 million ($2.9 million).
Proserpine was begun in 1878, and acquired by Glasgow MP William Graham in 1880.
It was last sold in 1970 by the Stone Gallery in Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
George Zimmerman’s bail has been set at $9,000 after being charged with aggravated assault with a weapon and battery.
He was accused in court of choking girlfriend Samantha Scheibe and threatening suicide.
George Zimmerman, who was arrested a day earlier on a felony assault charge for allegedly threatening his girlfriend with a gun, was released on $9,000 bond with an order to stay away from the woman and firearms.
The former neighborhood watch volunteer, who was acquitted in the shooting of unarmed teen Trayvon Martin, was released Tuesday after posting bail.
While being locked up for two days meant his estranged wife Shellie Zimmerman, who had her own domestic dispute with him in September, was able to have him served with a divorce petition, his lawyers confirmed.
Shellie Zimmerman, through her attorney, released a statement saying she was “saddened” to hear of the latest news regarding her husband, “but unfortunately not surprised.”
His lawyers said that while George Zimmerman was stressed, he did not appear suicidal.
“I don’t think he’s going to hurt himself or anyone else,” said Daniel Megaro, one of two public defenders appointed by the court to represent George Zimmerman after he declared he is indigent with $2.5 million debts.
Questions about George Zimmerman’s state of mind arose during his initial court appearance on the charges stemming from Monday’s dustup with girlfriend Samantha Scheibe at her home in Apopka, Florida.
In requesting $50,000 bond, the prosecutor said Samantha Scheibe had told authorities about an incident a week and a half earlier – “a choking that she did not report to the police”.
Samantha Scheibe also claimed that George Zimmerman had “mentioned suicide in the recent past” during a breakup talk, telling her that he had “nothing to lose,” the prosecutor said.
“She is in fear for her safety,” the prosecutor said as George Zimmerman, wearing a jail jumpsuit and handcuffs, listened quietly.
George Zimmerman’s bail has been set at $9,000 after being charged with aggravated assault with a weapon and battery
George Zimmerman is not facing any criminal charges from the alleged choking incident. Outside court, Daniel Megaro and the other defense lawyer, Jeff Dowdy, said they only learned of the choking allegation in court and had not spoken to their client about it.
They predicted that George Zimmerman would be cleared of wrongdoing in Monday’s clash. The judge found probable cause for his arrest on charges of felony aggravated assault, misdemeanor battery and misdemeanor criminal mischief.
George Zimmerman was barred him from having weapons, and his lawyers said his guns had been confiscated by the sheriff’s department after Monday’s confrontation.
Meanwhile, police have released the recordings of 911 calls that Samantha Scheibe and George Zimmerman separately made during the argument.
In her call, Samantha Scheibe can be heard shouting at George Zimmerman: “You just broke my glass table, you just broke my sunglasses, and you put your gun in my f——’ face, and told me to get the f— out!”
She can then be heard pleading with George Zimmerman to leave her house, before telling a dispatcher: “He just pushed me out of my house and locked me out!”
When asked what kind of weapon her boyfriend displayed, Samantha Scheibe said it was a “shotgun,” adding that “he has all of his guns inside, both the shotgun and his AR” as well as “two handguns”.
Looking to clarify, the 911 operator asks Samantha Scheibe if George Zimmerman has an “AR-15 ” – an assault rifle – and she replies: “Yeah.”
In the other audio recording, George Zimmerman tells a dispatcher: “My girlfriend has, for lack of a better word, gone crazy on me.”
When asked why he’s calling, George Zimmerman replies: “I just want everyone to know the truth.”
He also denied brandishing any weapon at his girlfriend.
“She’s got a 9 millimeter. I have my firearms. She was throwing my stuff out. And in one of the bags was one of my firearms. I never pulled a firearm. I never displayed it. When I was packing it, I’m sure she saw it. I mean, we keep it next to the bed.”
Later in the call, George Zimmerman can be heard saying: “I just wanted to leave.”
He adds: “She’s pregnant with our child and she told me it was better if we co-parented and she raised the child on her own. That’s fine. I said, <<Are you sure this is what you want to do?>> She said, <<Yes>>. As soon as I started to pack up my stuff and leave, she just completely changed…”
The dispatcher asks: “When you said she changed, what did she do?”
George Zimmerman replies: “At first she was letting me pack my stuff so that I could go – we could go our own ways amicably. When she changed, she just started smashing stuff, taking stuff that belonged to me, throwing it outside, throwing it out of her room, throwing it all over the house.”
He also disputed the allegation that he broke the table: “She broke a glass table because she threw something on it – I don’t even know if it was mine or hers, whatever it was.”
Police later said Samantha Scheibe declared she is not pregnant. No one was hurt during the incident, police said.
White supremacist serial killer Joseph Paul Franklin has been granted a stay of execution by a federal judge amid legal challenges over the use of a new drug in the execution process.
The ruling came hours before Joseph Paul Franklin was due to be put to death in Missouri.
Joseph Franklin, 63, was sentenced to death for killing one man and wounding two others outside a synagogue in 1977.
He was also convicted of a series of other racially motivated murders.
Joseph Paul Franklin also confessed to being the sniper who shot publisher Larry Flynt in 1978, leaving him partially paralyzed.
In the past two years US and European drug manufacturers have sought to distance themselves from executions – cutting off supplies and leaving US states that use the death penalty scrambling for alternatives.
Missouri announced it would instead use pentobarbital, sourced not from a pharmaceutical company but from a compounding pharmacy that makes small batches of drugs on demand for specific clients.
Joseph Paul Franklin has been granted a stay of execution by a federal judge amid legal challenges over the use of a new drug in the execution process
However, campaigners object to these pharmacies, partly because they are not subject to regulation by the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
In her ruling on Tuesday, District Court Judge Nanette Laughrey said that a lawsuit filed by Joseph Paul Franklin and other death-row inmates challenging Missouri’s drug protocol must first be resolved.
She said details of the execution protocol had been “illusive at best”.
“It is clear from the procedural history of this case that through no fault of his own, Franklin could not resolve his claims without a stay of his scheduled execution date.”
Judge Nanette Laughrey added: “Franklin has been afforded no time to research the risk of pain associated with the department’s new protocol, the quality of the pentobarbital provided, and the record of the source of the pentobarbital.”
Joseph Paul Franklin was to be executed for shooting a man dead outside a Missouri synagogue in 1977 – one of some 20 killings in which he targeted black and Jewish people across several states.
In 1978, Joseph Paul Franklin shot Larry Flynt after seeing a picture of a mixed-race couple in one of his magazines.
However, Larry Flynt opposes the death penalty and had backed the appeal by convicts on Missouri’s death row.
If the execution is carried out, Joseph Paul Franklin would be the 35th inmate executed in the US in 2013, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
A roof collapsed at the construction site of a South African shopping mall killing one person, officials say.
About 50 others are feared trapped at the construction site.
Rescue teams are working in the dark and are using sniffer dogs to look for survivors beneath the rubble at the site in Tongaat, north of Durban.
About 30 people had been taken to hospital – some with massive traumatic injuries, paramedics say.
Officials said those trapped were construction workers.
Rescue teams are working in the dark and are using sniffer dogs to look for survivors beneath the rubble at the site in Tongaat
The deputy mayor of the municipality told South African media that authorities had obtained an injunction a month ago to halt construction at the site.
“There are areas of the law that they [construction firms] did not follow in terms of building,” Nomvuzo Shabalala told broadcaster ENCA.
“We were not aware that they were continuing building,” she added.
Chris Botha, from the ambulance company Netcare 911, said it was too early to know the cause of the collapse.
The accident happened around 16:30 local time.
About 100 rescue workers are at the scene, where hydraulic equipment is being used to break through the concrete blocks.
Tongaat is a small town about 25 miles north of Durban and has a large South African Asian population.
Nearby transport routes to Tongaat had been affected as the main road through the town has been shut to traffic and trains have been stopped.
Duck Dynasty‘s Si Robertson communicates telepathically to Jase Robertson on his birthday.
Should have sent a Hallmark card, Jack! #birthdayfail.
Si Robertson communicates telepathically to Jase Robertson on his birthday
Uncle Si posted on his Facebook account: “The telegraphs, the telephone…and hey… your mind are lost arts of communications.
Whether I did or did not commit a #birthdayfail is the opinion of one Jason Silas Robertson. Check out this and other #birthdayfail videos at Hallmark.”
Macy’s has decided to move Joan Jett and her band off the South Dakota tourism float in its Thanksgiving Day parade after ranchers complained about having a vegetarian and animal rights advocate representing their state.
“I’ve decided to switch from South Dakota to another float because people’s political agendas were getting in the way of what should be a purely entertainment driven event,” Joan Jett said in a statement.
“I will remain focused on entertaining the millions of people watching, who will be celebrating a great American tradition.”
Orlando Veras, Macy’s parade spokesman, told The Associated Press that a new performer for the South Dakota float will be announced later.
He said that the annual parade in New York City is about entertainment, not advocacy, and that Macy’s was making the change “to prevent any further distraction from our entertainment mission”.
“The Parade has never taken on, promoted or otherwise engaged in social commentary, political debate, or other forms of advocacy, no matter how worthy,” Orlando Veras said in a statement.
“Macy’s intention is only to provide a range of entertaining elements and performers free of endorsements or agendas.”
Macy’s moved Joan Jett and her band off the South Dakota tourism float in its Thanksgiving Day parade
Some South Dakota farmers and ranchers voiced concern about the choice to put Joan Jett on the float because she is a supporter of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which promotes a vegetarian diet and criticizes livestock production practices.
South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association President Cory Eich, who farms and ranches near Canova in eastern South Dakota, said Friday that he thinks it was a mistake to select Joan Jett because her stands don’t mesh with the state.
“Coming from such a rural state where livestock is such a part of our life, we didn’t think it was appropriate,” he said.
Cory Eich said his association “didn’t go looking for a fight,” but once Joan Jett’s affiliation with PETA was brought to the group’s attention, officials felt they had to respond accordingly.
“I wish it never would have gotten brought out,” he said.
Dan Mathews, PETA’s senior vice president, said that he’s happy with the publicity generated by the controversy.
“Thanks to South Dakota’s reactionary ranchers, people across the country have learned why Joan Jett supports PETA,” Dan Mathews said.
“The meat trade can’t stand any scrutiny of its cruelty,” he said.
South Dakota Tourism Secretary Jim Hagen has said that many people mistakenly assumed state officials selected Jett to appear on the float. None of the artists the state proposed were available or willing to appear in the parade, so Macy’s selected Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, he said.
The state pays $175,000 to support the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and have a float in the event, and $5,000 of that goes to pay expenses for the artist on the float, officials have said.
The South Dakota float, which has appeared each year since 2010, features Mount Rushmore, the Badlands, the Black Hills and more.
Don McLean appeared on the float last year. Previous years’ entries featured Neil Diamond and Mannheim Steamroller.
More than 3 million people are expected to watch Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on the streets of New York, with more than 50 million watching the event on television nationwide.
Bitcoin’s value has soared to over $900, after a US Senate committee hearing.
The committee was told that virtual currencies were a “legitimate financial service” with the same benefits and risks as other online payment systems.
The Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee is exploring the “promises and risks” of Bitcoin for “government and society at large”.
The virtual currency has more than trebled in value since October.
The Senate hearing was prompted by the closure of the Silk Road website in October. The site, which sold drugs and other illegal goods, was shut down by the FBI.
Users of the site were required to pay for their transactions using bitcoins.
Representatives from the Department of Justice and financial regulator the Securities and Exchange Commission have been asked to provide their views about virtual currencies to the committee and submissions have been received from the FBI and the US Federal Reserve.
“Virtual currencies, perhaps most notably Bitcoin, have captured the imagination of some, struck fear among others, and confused the heck out of the rest of us,” the chair of the committee, Senator Thomas Carper, said in opening remarks.
Bitcoin has more than trebled in value since October 2013
The FBI, in a letter to the committee released on Sunday, said that it recognized virtual currencies offered “legitimate financial services” but they could be “exploited by malicious actors”.
Jerry Brito, senior research fellow at George Mason University told Bloomberg: ”Two years ago it was alarm when Silk Road first came on the scene.
”Since then, Congress has been educating itself and understands that there are great potential benefits, and like any new technology there are going to be some challenges. But they see there is a balance to be struck here and they are generally positive on the technology.”
Trade in Bitcoin is small compared with that in countries’ official currencies. But since its creation in 2008, Bitcoin has become a popular way to pay for things online. There are currently more than 12 million bitcoins in existence according to Bitcoincharts, a website that provides financial information about the currency.
On one exchange site, Mt. Gox, the value of the currency rose to $900 on Monday before falling back to $727. This compares with a price of $200 in late October.
The closing down of Silk Road and hearings in front of US government committees have led some to believe that prices are increasing as investors think Bitcoin will gain more mainstream acceptance.
“Lots of factors are driving the price action in Bitcoin, including pure speculation,” said Garrick Hileman, an economic historian at the London School of Economics.
“Regulatory interest in Bitcoin also traditionally has a positive effect on the price of Bitcoin,” he added.
Jan Lambregts, head of financial market research at Rabobank, which does not trade in Bitcoin, said regulators were right to get involved.
“Looking at it from a distance, it very much looks like it could be a speculative bubble. It’s a small market, with a lot of interest in it, which is inflating and distorting the price,” he said.
“But you can see the concerns for governments – this is a currency outside their normal domain and which is not influenced by central banks.
“It may all be relatively small-scale now, but decisions taken now could have wider repercussions were such virtual currency experiments to be expanded in the future,” he added.
President Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg address – one of the most famous speeches in US history – is celebrating its 150th anniversary on November 19.
An Abraham Lincoln impersonator will read the remarks at the Pennsylvania cemetery where the civil war leader spoke.
President Abraham Lincoln gave his speech more than four months after the Battle of Gettysburg, when Union troops beat the Confederacy, in a turning point for the war.
About 235,000 people commemorated the battle’s anniversary in early July.
Abraham Lincoln gave his speech on November 19, 1863, as he dedicated the Soldiers’ National Cemetery in Gettysburg, where thousands of Union soldiers were laid to rest.
The brief oration, delivered as the nation fought for survival, is admired for having distilled the essence of American ideas on equality, liberty and democracy into just 10 sentences.
As every American schoolchild knows, it begins with the words: “Four score and seven years ago.”
President Abraham Lincoln gave his speech more than four months after the Battle of Gettysburg, when Union troops beat the Confederacy
Civil War historian James McPherson and US Interior Secretary Sally Jewell are due to speak at Tuesday’s commemoration.
The ceremony begins with a wreath-laying event at the cemetery.
There will also be a graveside salute to US Colored Troops at noon, and a tree-planting ceremony in the afternoon.
Abraham Lincoln’s speech, a mere two minutes, envisioned “a new birth of freedom” for America out of the ashes of the war between the southern slave-holding states and the northern states.
“The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here,” Abraham Lincoln said of those who fought the battle, in which as many as 50,000 soldiers were killed or wounded.
“It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced.”
The headline speaker that day was actually the former Massachusetts Governor Edward Everett, whose two-hour, 13,000-word monologue has since been all but forgotten.
Abraham Lincoln’s subsequent comments were initially overlooked.
Indeed, a local newspaper, the Harrisburg Patriot and Union, dismissed the address as “silly remarks”.
Senator and former gubernatorial candidate Creigh Deeds has been hospitalized after being assaulted at his home in Virginia, where another person was found dead.
Virginia State Police said in a news release Tuesday that Democratic Senator Creigh Deeds, who unsuccessfully ran for governor four years ago, had suffered serious injuries.
Creigh Deeds has been hospitalized after being assaulted at his home in Virginia
Creigh Deeds was being treated at the University of Virginia Hospital in Charlottesville after the assault at his residence in rural Bath County, which is in western Virginia.
Police have not identified the dead person found in Creigh Deeds’ home or released details about the assault.
White supremacist serial killer Joseph Paul Franklin, who is responsible for as many as 20 murders, is set to die in Missouri just past midnight Tuesday, the first execution in the state in nearly three years.
Joseph Paul Franklin, 63, is scheduled to die at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday for killing 42-year-old Gerald Gordon in a sniper attack outside a suburban St. Louis synagogue in 1977. It was one of as many as 20 killings committed by Joseph Paul Franklin, who targeted blacks and Jews in a cross-country killing spree from 1977 to 1980.
He was convicted of seven other murders but the Missouri case was the only one resulting in a death sentence.
Joseph Paul Franklin, who is responsible for as many as 20 murders, is set to die in Missouri just past midnight Tuesday
Joseph Paul Franklin has also admitted to shooting and wounding civil rights leader Vernon Jordan and publisher Larry Flynt, who has been paralyzed from the waist down since the attack in 1978.
Larry Flynt has also sued to stop Joseph Paul Franklin’s execution because he doesn’t believe the death penalty is a deterrent.
Missouri Governor Jay Nixon on Monday refused to halt the execution, denying Joseph Paul Franklin’s clemency request and calling his crime in Missouri a “cowardly and calculated shooting.”
George Zimmerman was arrested and charged in connection with threatening girlfriend Samantha Scheibe with a gun Monday after Florida authorities responded to a disturbance call at the woman’s home.
George Zimmerman, 30, has been charged with felony aggravated assault, misdemeanor battery and misdemeanor criminal mischief, Seminole County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Dennis Lemma said during a press conference Monday in Sanford, Florida.
He was arrested in Apopka, roughly 15 miles northwest of Orlando.
Samantha Scheibe told a 911 operator and deputies that she and George Zimmerman were having a “verbal dispute,” and she alleged that he broke a table and pointed a long-barreled shotgun at her, Dennis Lemma said.
Both Samantha Scheibe and George Zimmerman separately called 911 – one from inside the house and one from outside – and police have released audio of the calls.
Samantha Scheibe can be heard shouting at George Zimmerman: “You just broke my glass table, you just broke my sunglasses, and you put your gun in my f——’ face, and told me to get the f— out!”
She can then be heard pleading with George Zimmerman to leave her house, before telling a dispatcher: “He just pushed me out of my house and locked me out!”
Samantha Scheibe also alleged that George Zimmerman barricaded the front door with furniture, according to Dennis Lemma.
Moments later, she tells a dispatcher: “He knows how to do this. He knows how to play this game.”
George Zimmerman was arrested and charged in connection with threatening girlfriend Samantha Scheibe with a gun
When asked what kind of weapon her boyfriend displayed, Samantha Scheibe said it was a “shotgun,” adding that “he has all of his guns inside, both the shotgun and his AR” as well as “two handguns.”
Looking to clarify, the 911 operator asks Samantha Scheibe if George Zimmerman has an “AR-15 ” – an assault rifle – and she replies: “Yeah.”
In the other audio recording, George Zimmerman tells a dispatcher: “My girlfriend has, for lack of a better word, gone crazy on me.”
When asked why he’s calling, George Zimmerman replies: “I just want everyone to know the truth.”
George Zimmerman also denies brandishing any weapon at his girlfriend.
“She’s got a 9 millimeter. I have my firearms. She was throwing my stuff out. And in one of the bags was one of my firearms. I never pulled a firearm. I never displayed it. When I was packing it, I’m sure she saw it. I mean, we keep it next to the bed.”
Later in the call, George Zimmerman can be heard saying: “I just wanted to leave.”
He adds: “She’s pregnant with our child and she told me it was better if we co-parented and she raised the child on her own. That’s fine. I said, <<Are you sure this is what you want to do?>> She said, <<Yes>>. As soon as I started to pack up my stuff and leave, she just completely changed…”
The dispatcher asks: “When you said she changed, what did she do?”
George Zimmerman replies: “At first she was letting me pack my stuff so that I could go – we could go our own ways amicably. When she changed, she just started smashing stuff, taking stuff that belonged to me, throwing it outside, throwing it out of her room, throwing it all over the house.”
He also disputed the allegation that he broke the table: “She broke a glass table because she threw something on it – I don’t even know if it was mine or hers, whatever it was.”
Dennis Lemma later said that “the victim has disclosed that she is not pregnant.”
Police also said no one was hurt and nobody else was at the house when sheriff’s deputies arrived. The deputies got inside the house using a key given to them by Samantha Scheibe.
George Zimmerman was booked into Seminole County Correctional Facility at 1 p.m. He is scheduled to make an appearance in front of a county judge Tuesday afternoon. The judge is expected to determine what, if any, bond is appropriate.
George Zimmerman is currently being held under “no bond status,” Dennis Lemma said.
Police are also requesting a search warrant for the home so they can look for weapons – they believe there are at least two weapons in the house, Dennis Lemma said.
Jay Leno is being sued by former American Airlines flight attendant Louann Giambattista, who claims that she was falsely accused of bestiality during a segment of “Woulda, Coulda Shoulda” on NBC’s The Tonight Show.
In the complaint – filed in New York Supreme Court – Louann Giambattista claims that a July 2013 episode of The Tonight Show picked up a story about her supposedly smuggling her pet rat onto work flights in her underwear and/or pantyhose, Courthouse News Service reported.
Louann Giambattista says that the story was the result of an alleged “relentless campaign of discrimination” by American Airlines.
Jay Leno is being sued by former American Airlines flight attendant Louann Giambattista
According to the suit: “Leno and his guests falsely accused Ms. Giambattista of engaging in s**ual relations with a rat,” primarily via the comments made by the panelists on the “Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda” segment.
Among the comments: “[If] I were one of those rats, I would’ve been very upset. I prefer not to sit in cooch.”
Since the segment aired, Louann Giambattista claims she and her husband, Steven Goldring, have become “pariahs in their own community, among their long-standing group of friends, among their co-workers and even among family”.
Even worse, Louann Giambattista and Steven Goldring’s intimate life has suffered, because: “Every time he looks at her he thinks of Defendant Leno and the heinous segment depicting her as a s**ual deviant.”
Louann Giambattista, who’s also suing American Airlines in a separate complaint, is seeking unspecified damages.
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has cut global growth forecasts for 2013 and 2014 after weak prospects in emerging markets.
Global GDP for 2013 is now expected to grow by 2.7%, down from 3.1% forecast in May.
However, the OECD said global economic growth would speed up by 2015.
The OECD also revised down its global growth forecast for 2014, which it now estimates at 3.6%. In May, it had forecast 4%.
In a first estimate for 2015, it predicts growth of 3.9%.
The OECD said “weakness” in the banking system was a “major drag” on growth in the euro area.
OECD has cut global growth forecasts for 2013 and 2014 after weak prospects in emerging markets
The “potentially catastrophic crisis” over the debt ceiling in the US and “strong” market reaction to its suggestion of tapering had also unsettled confidence, it said.
OECD chief economist Pier Carlo Padoan said: “Brinkmanship over fiscal policy in the United States remains a key risk and uncertainty.”
Carlo Padoan said hitting the debt ceiling could “knock the US and the global recovery off course”.
He called for monetary policy in the US to “remain accommodative for some time”.
The global economy would act as an “amplifier” for negative shocks from a “stronger slowdown” in emerging markets, Carlo Padoan said.
He cited population trends in emerging economies, and the narrowing gap with advanced economies, as behind the “fragility”.
“Downside risks dominate and policy must address them,” he said.
Carlo Padoan said high levels of public debt in Japan created risks, but commended its export growth, rising consumer spending and rebound in business investment.
He warned governments about the risks of complacency as recovery gained momentum.
“Policy inaction or mistakes could have much more severe consequences than the turbulence seen to date and jeopardize growth for years to come.”
