Job Growth Slows, Israel Opposes Nukedeal
Friday, April 3, 2015
Vol. 4, No. 93
Jobs: Economic growth slowed in March with the addition of only 126,000 jobs to the workforce. Analysts blame brutal March weather and the drop in oil prices, which is killing jobs in the petroleum industry. The slowdown might cause the Federal Reserve to continue holding down interest rates.
Nukedeal: Today Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his cabinet is united in “strongly opposing” the Iran nuclear deal that “threatens the survival of Israel.”
After tough and exhaustive negotiations, Iran and global powers yesterday agreed on the framework of a deal that will limit Iran’s ability to make nuclear weapons and lift international sanctions that have crippled the country. The agreement, if it goes forward, will last at least 10 years while slowly lifting sanctions as Iran performs. It will still take several months to turn the agreement into a concrete plan.
Answering critics in Israel and the US Congress who don’t trust Iran and say the deal doesn’t go far enough, President Obama said, “This deal is not based on trust. It’s based on unprecedented verification.”
Kenya Massacre: The assault on Garissa University College in Kenya yesterday by al-Shabab militants turned into a campus massacre as four gunmen hunted down Christians, killing 147 people. The attack and resulting gun battle with security forces lasted 15 hours before all the gunmen were killed.
Al-Shabab is the same group that massacred shoppers at Nairobi’s Westgate Shopping Mall in 2013. A recent video released by al-Shabab threatened the giant Mall of America in Minnesota.
Nation: A major fire is burning today at a General Electric manufacturing plant in Louisville. A portion of the building has collapsed. The facility is the 1,000-acre industrial park where they make appliances.
Germanwings: The co-pilot of the crashed German airliner increased the jet’s speed as it descended, according to data taken from the plane’s flight data recorder. A statement released by investigators said, “several times during the course of the descent, the pilot modified the setting of the automatic pilot to increase the speed of the descending plane.”
Homeland: Federal authorities have arrested two American women living in Queens, NY and accused them of plotting to make a bomb they planned to detonate somewhere in the US in an act of jihad at home. The women are identified as Noelle Velentzas, 28, and Asia Siddiqui, 31.
Investigators say the two contemplated bombing a military or government facility, or a police funeral. Much of their information comes from an undercover officer said to have worked closely with the two women.
Second Thoughts: After a national uproar, legislatures in Indiana and Arkansas both voted to change the language of their “religious freedom” laws to protect the rights of gays and lesbians.
Three Hour Cruise: A South Carolina sailor lost at sea and presumed dead has been rescued after 66 days on his crippled boat. Louis Jordan, 37, said his sailboat rolled in heavy weather, snapping the mast, and breaking his collarbone. He says he survived on rainwater and raw fish.
Petite: The French parliament has passed a law banning the employment of runway models who are deemed too skinny. The models must have a certified Body Mass Index of at least 18 … that’s the ratio of height to weight. The average BMI for French women is 23.2. The average BMI for women in the US is 28.7.
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