Yemen Pullout, WashPo Sold, A-Rod Out
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Vol.2, No. 219
World: The State Department has flown diplomatic staff out of Yemen and urged UScitizens to leave the country. This follows the closure of US embassies and consulates across the Middle East after the interception of a message from Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri to his lieutenant in Yemen ordering an attack. US authorities told reporters they took the matter very seriously because it was a conversation between major players. The attack was supposed to have been carried out this past Sunday, but the high alert continues. Britain has also pulled embassy staff out of Yemen.
Extra, Extra!!: The Graham family newspaper dynasty shocked the publishing world yesterday announcing an agreement to sell The Washington Post to Amazon.com billionaire Jeff Bezos for $250 million. The Grahams have run and owned the post nearly 80 years. Publisher Donald Graham, in an announcement to the newsroom, admitted that his management couldn’t figure out how to survive in the Internet age and thought the paper had a better chance with a new owner.
A-Roid: Yankee slugger Alex Rodriguez was booed when he went to bat in Chicago last night, hours after he was suspended from Major League Baseball through the end of the 2014 season for using performance-enhancing drugs. Rodriguez can play while he appeals, but if he loses he would not get to the plate again until he is nearly 40. He makes about $25 million a year. A dozen other players, three of them All-Stars, accepted 50-game suspensions for using drugs provided by the Florida lab Biogenesis.
National: A gunman shot and killed three people at a town meeting in Ross Twp. Pennsylvania last night. Police arrested a man who had a long-running dispute with the town. Officials were considering condemning his poorly kept property.
Hot Water: Japan’s nuclear watchdog says the Fukushima nuclear plant destroyed in the 2011 tsunami is leaking radioactive groundwater. The agency calls the situation an “emergency”. A barrier built to contain the radioactive water has been breached and increasing amounts of tainted water are seeping into the Pacific.
Text Me: The Department of Transportation announced plans to fight an increase in pedestrian deaths attributed to “distracted walking,” talking on the phone and texting while crossing the street. Twenty-two cities with the most pedestrian deaths can apply for $2 million grants to convince people to get off the phone. How about, “Hey, get off the phone!!!”
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