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Obama Donates Nobel Peace Prize Winnings

Sophia Lin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:30:19 +0000

Image courtesy flickr user jurvetson

(Metro) President Barack Obama has announced which groups will get the $1.4 million he received for winning the Nobel Peace Prize.

He says $250,000 will go to Fisher House, a national nonprofit that houses families whose loved ones are receiving care at Veterans Administration medical centers. He will give another $200,000 to the Bush-Clinton Haiti Fund to help the country recover from the earthquake.

Study warns of rising inhalant abuse among children

News — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:28:25 +0000

Photo licensed under Creative Commons, courtesy Flickr user gothikrose

More and more young people are abusing inhalants nationwide. Alejandra Ceja has more:

[Transcript]:
According to a National Inhalant Prevention Coalition study, the numbers are alarming. They say kids are “huffing” household substances such as aerosol sprays, nail polish, and gasoline in an effort to get high.

Pamela Hyde, head of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration, says this is a serious problem.

“More 12-year-olds have used potentially lethal inhalants than have used marijuana, cocaine and hallucinogens combined,” Hyde says. “So, we’re approaching 7 percent of our twelve-year-olds in the country.”

The Coalition is kicking off a national awareness week with personal stories about the lethal dangers of inhalant use.

Susan Trinh contributed to this report.

URI president proposes student-business alliance

Sophia Lin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 21:30:24 +0000

(Metro) The new president of the University of Rhode Island wants to forge tighter bonds between the school and businesses in the state. President David Dooley says his initiative would enlist URI students to participate in the Rhode Island Manufacturing Extension

Service to assist companies that need help raising competitiveness and profitability. Dooley says the partnership, if approved, would help drive the state’s economy and provide the students with practical experience.

The Daily Beast says Providence is America’s third-craziest city

Eric Johnson — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:51:25 +0000

Photo licensed under Creative Commons, courtesy Flickr user: OrangeCounty_Girl

Which city is America’s craziest? According to The Daily Beast, it’s Cincinnati, Ohio. But Providence, Rhode Island has earned the coveted (or not) #3 spot.

The Beast’s “study” was based on four criteria: psychiatrists per capita, stress, eccentricity and drinking. They also cite a Guinness Record-breaking strand of red and white beads made by a group in East Providence last year.

Check out the full list here.

Marines Investigating Jet Crash

News — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:48:06 +0000

Image licensed under Creative Commons, courtesy of flickr user crosstrippin

The Marine Corps is trying to determine why a fighter jet suffered engine failures, crashing into the ocean off South Carolina and forcing the pilots to bail out. Officials say neither the pilot nor the weapons officer on the jet suffered serious injuries when they ejected late yesterday afternoon about 35 miles offshore. The Marines, whose names were not released, were picked up by a Coast Guard helicopter about an hour after the plane went down.

Biden Calls for Negotiations Between Israelis, Palestinians

News — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:42:55 +0000

Image licensed under Creative Commons, courtesy of flickr user World Economic Forum

Vice President Joe Biden says “good faith negotiations” can recognize Israeli security needs and the Palestinian goal for a separate state. Biden is urging Israel to make a serious attempt to reach peace with the Palestinians. In a speech at Tel Aviv University on Thursday, Biden repeatedly voiced Washington’s commitment to Israel’s security, while also saying an end to the conflict would restore to the Palestinians “the fundamental dignity and self-respect that their current predicament denies them.”

Obama Nominates Rhode Island Lawyer for Federal Bench

News — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:31:53 +0000

A Rhode Island lawyer has been nominated for a federal judgeship. President Barack Obama on Wednesday nominated Jack McConnell for a seat on the U.S. District Court in Rhode Island. McConnell is a managing partner of the Providence office of the Motley Rice law fir, and has been involved in lawsuits against tobacco companies. He was recommended for the position by senators Sheldon Whitehouse and Jack Reed.

Proposal to set US Education standards released

Vasundhara Prasad — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 23:23:32 +0000

Culminating a year’s work, The National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers, released a set of proposed common academic standards today. The standards, posted on the panel’s web site, lay out the panel’s vision of what American public school students should learn in math and English, year by year, from kindergarten to high school graduation. Over the coming weeks, the public and education experts are invited to review and comment on the proposed standards before final versions are published later this spring.

Information used from NYTimes.

Patrick Kennedy blasts Afghanistan policy

Vasundhara Prasad — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 23:22:10 +0000

U.S. Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy attacked U.S. policy in Afghanistan as “shameful” and called the national press as “despicable” for what he portrayed as its “cynicism” and its insufficient coverage of the issue. Raising his voice in a House floor speech on a resolution to pull U.S. troops out of Afghanistan, the Rhode Island Democrat said American troops should not be fighting in Afghanistan. Kennedy voted for the 2002 resolution that approved of giving then-President George W. Bush authorization to invade Iraq. But he later turned sharply against that war and against the increasing troop levels in Afghanistan.

Information used from the Providence Journal.

Six charity workers killed in Pakistan

Vasundhara Prasad — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:40:07 +0000

Six Pakistani employees of the American Christian charity World Vision were gunned down today, and seven others were wounded in an attack on the aid group’s offices in a remote village in northern Pakistan. Pakistani authorities said about a dozen masked militants stormed the building at about 9:30 a.m., pulled the staff members out of their offices and herded them into a single room, then started shooting indiscriminately. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Information used from NYTimes.