-
1 of 10
-
2 of 10
-
3 of 10
-
4 of 10
-
5 of 10
-
6 of 10
-
7 of 10
-
8 of 10
-
9 of 10
-
10 of 10
Headlines
Archive
Comments
Story
World
In storms’ wake, some urge U.S. to allow more aid to Cuba
MEXICO CITY – Not even Hurricane Ike, a storm that has laid waste to a swath of the Caribbean, has been able to cast aside the hostile stalemate between the U.S. and Cuba’s authoritarian regime.
Cuban authorities reported that Ike destroyed hundreds of homes and left four dead as it tore through the island en route to the U.S. Gulf Coast where it was expected to make landfall.
In addition to this wake of destruction, Ike left a stormy debate in the U.S. government and the Cuban exile community.
After Hurricane Gustav jolted Cuba last week, the U.S. offered about $100,000 in humanitarian aid.
The State Department said Tuesday that it is considering additional assistance to address damage caused by Ike.
But the aid comes with one condition: that the money not be distributed by the Cuban government, but through independent nonprofit groups. Cuba rejected those conditions.
U.S. relatively ‘safe,’ while South Asia in turmoil
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – Seven years after Sept. 11, al-Qaida and its allies are gaining ground across the region where the plot was hatched, staging their most lethal attacks yet against NATO forces and posing a growing threat to the U.S.-backed governments in Afghanistan and nuclear-armed Pakistan.
While there have been no new strikes on the U.S. homeland, the Islamic insurrection inspired by Osama bin Laden has claimed thousands of casualties and displaced tens of thousands of people, and shows no sign of slackening in the face of history’s most powerful military alliance.
The insurgency now stretches from Afghanistan’s border with Iran through the southern half of the country. The Taliban are now able to interdict three of the four major highways that connect Kabul, the capital, to the rest of the country.
National
Unhappy Facebook users likely to accept new digs
CHICAGO – Imagine coming home from work to find your house in a different color, the rooms switched around and the furniture rearranged.
That’s the virtual equivalent Facebook users have faced or will face as the online hangout forces its 90 million members to adapt to a redesigned site, unveiled in late July. Beginning last week, users’ profiles will be irrevocably migrated to the new site. And the changes are being met with a mix of protest and resignation.
Facebook’s main purpose for redesigning was to de-clutter, and the makeover is noticeable. Instead of finding a glut of information on a single profile page, personal news and photos are split up into tabbed pages. Also, third-party applications are more hidden in the new version.
Pentagon memorial dedicated at solemn ceremony
WASHINGTON – The words on a giant video screen – “We will never forget” – captured the emotions that bonded thousands of spectators gathered at the Pentagon Thursday to enshrine a park-like memorial honoring the 184 who lost their lives when the hijacked airliner crashed into the Pentagon Sept. 11, 2001.
Dedicated on the seventh anniversary of Sept. 11, the memorial is the nation’s first permanent memorial to the nearly 3,000 victims of the terrorist attacks. President Bush called it a “reminder of the resilience of the American spirit.”
The memorial, designed by two young architects who experienced the horrific day in New York, is composed of 184 benches, each with a name of a victim and illuminated by lighted reflection pools below.
Local/BSU
Democrats limit staff work for campaigns
Three Idaho Democrats running for U.S. congressional seats say they would limit the amount of time their staff members could work on their campaigns.
They said they want to keep a clear division between tax-supported staff work and campaign work.
Although spokespeople for Rep. Bill Sali, Rep. Mike Simpson and Sen. Mike Crapo all work on their bosses’ campaigns on a volunteer basis, they say they are careful to distinguish the two duties, as is required by House and Senate rules.
But Democratic candidates Walt Minnick, Debbie Holmes and Larry LaRocco said they would either not allow staff to work on campaigns at all, or limit campaign work to early in an election year. Independent Rex Rammell, running for U.S. Senate, said he would try to keep campaign and staff duties separate.
Ferdinand retrial set for December
Canyon County Commissioner David Ferdinand’s retrial for possessing a weapon at the Boise Airport security checkpoint has been set for 8:30 a.m. Dec. 12 in Ada County.
Ferdinand is charged with carrying a handgun in his carry-on backpack Feb. 28 as he attempted to board a commercial airliner. Ada County Magistrate Judge Thomas Watson declared Ferdinand’s airport gun case a mistrial Aug. 29 after jurors deadlocked and could not reach a verdict.
The charge Ferdinand faces says he “knowingly” had the gun in his possession.
His defense attorney argued last month that Ferdinand forgot he had packed the gun in the backpack days before his trip to Washington, D.C. to attend a legislative conference for county officials.
The Boise city prosecutor in the case argued that Ferdinand knew the gun was in the backpack even though he may have forgotten it was there.
New study claims Idahoans are less social
A study from England’s University of Cambridge found that people in Idaho are less social than people in other American states.
Researchers created a “personality map” of the U.S. showing that Gem State residents are less likely to socialize. The findings appear in a new study that reveals how the personalities of American people often differ according to the state in which they live. Idahoans ranked among the lowest states for extraversion.
What The?
Ka-bang! Care to change your story?
A man in Shanghai swore to God that he didn’t owe his neighbor any money. Then he was struck by lightning.
Sir, can I be of assistance … arrrghhhh!
A policeman pulled over to help a man he thought was having car trouble when he saw the guy standing by his vehicle on the side of the road in Salem, Ore. The man responded by leaping headfirst into the patrol car and attacking the officer. After he subdued him, the cop asked the guy what the heck was the matter with him. “I’m high on mushrooms, dude,” he replied.
COMPILED BY ARBITER STAFF