- PoliticsYahoo News
With viral moments and hard facts, Democrats seek to seize the moment on gun control
Republicans have resisted such measures, but will increasingly find it difficult to do so, as the public desire for a solution to the nation's gun violence plague appears only to be increasing. The district Hayes represents, as she noted, includes Newtown, where 20 children were slaughtered by a gunman at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012. Around the same time that she was speaking on Capitol Hill, a powerful advertisement by the gun control group Sandy Hook Promise was going viral on the internet.
- NewsAOL.com
'Shocked and devastated': Connecticut father, son die in tragic fall after riding ATVs in abandoned quarry
"[Mark's] dad went to look at something, tripped and his son went to grab him and they both fell," the witness said during a 911 call reporting the incident. The father and son, who were both pronounced dead at the scene, spent a lot of time together, according to friends and family. "They're the type of guys that at 2 a.m. in the morning if your house was on fire, they'd be the first ones there," their boss, Dan Siracusa, told WFSB-TV.
- NewsYahoo News
'It's happening': Alien enthusiasts descend on Area 51 for a UFO party
The RVs, packed with UFO enthusiasts, conspiracy theorists and those just looking to party in a remote area of the Nevada desert for “Storm Area 51,” a gathering that began as an internet joke but is expected to attract several thousand people here over the next three days. It's here,” said Connie West, co-owner of the Little A'Le'Inn, which is hosting one of two competing “Alienstock” events this weekend. The original “Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us'” Facebook post was supposed to be a joke inspired by a recent documentary on the once secret military research site known as Area 51, part of the Nevada Test and Training Range, where conspiracy theorists allege the U.S. government is engaged in extraterrestrial research.
- NewsAOL.com
Texas man wanted for allegedly divorcing his wife without her knowledge
A Texas man is wanted by police after he allegedly filed for and completed divorce proceedings against his wife without her knowledge. Paul Nixon, 51, was accused of aggravated forgery — a felony charge — after authorities discovered his fraudulent divorce paperwork, the Houston Chronicle reports. Nixon apparently filed the paperwork on Feb. 15, the day after Valentine's Day.
- NewsAssociated Press
History buff finds ships that sank in 1878 in Lake Michigan
A diver and maritime history buff has found two schooners that collided and sank into the cold depths of northern Lake Michigan more than 140 years ago. Bernie Hellstrom, of Boyne City, Michigan, said he was looking for shipwrecks about 10 years ago when a depth sounder on his boat noted a large obstruction about 200 feet (60 meters) down on the lake bottom near Beaver Island. "I've made hundreds of trips to Beaver Island and every trip I go out the sounder is on," he told The Associated Press on Friday.
- BusinessCar and Driver
View 2020 Ford Mustang EcoBoost High Performance Photos
The latest four-cylinder pony car offers the heart of a Focus RS and transformative racetrack hardware. From Car and Driver
- PoliticsAOL.com
Bill de Blasio's net worth as he pulls out of 2020 presidential race
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio announced this week he is officially out of the 2020 presidential race. The official statement comes after weeks of speculation that the presidential hopeful planned on dropping his 2020 bid. De Blasio joins the likes of Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Rep. Eric Swalwell and Gov. Jay Inslee, among others, who have given up ambitions to potentially become the 48th President of the United States.
- WorldReuters
Iran says it will pursue aggressor even after limited attack - TV
Iran will pursue any aggressor, even it carries out a limited attack, and seek to destroy it, the head of the elite Revolutionary Guards said on Saturday, after attacks on Saudi oil sites which Riyadh and U.S officials blamed on Tehran. "Be careful, a limited aggression will not remain limited. We are after punishment and we will continue until the full destruction of any aggressor," he head of the Guards, Major General Hossein Salami, said in remarks broadcast on state TV.
WorldAFPThousands of Paris police deployed over 'yellow vest' clash fears
More than 7,000 police officers are to be deployed for rallies in Paris on Saturday over fears that yellow vest protesters and their radical, anarchist "black blocs" could try to infiltrate a march against climate change in the French capital. The yellow vest movement erupted 10 months ago and blindsided President Emmanuel Macron, who protesters accused of being out of touch with the needs of ordinary French people. Their weekly demonstrations prompted Macron to loosen the state's purse strings to the tune of nearly 17 billion euros ($18.8 billion) in wage boosts and tax cuts for low earners, but tapered off over the summer.
- NewsUSA TODAY
AOC on DC statehood: 'Disenfranchisement' of DC rooted in the 'history of slavery'
WASHINGTON – Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. weighed in on D.C. statehood during a Thursday hearing on the issue and discussed the "disenfranchisement" of the District's people as rooted in the "history of slavery." She opened her statement by talking about her family's roots in Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory, and how her family had lacked the right to vote in federal elections.
- U.S.Yahoo News Video
‘It’s happening’: Alien-enthusiasts descend on Area 51 for a UFO party — ‘storm’ or no storm
Get an inside look on how the small town of Rachel, Nevada is getting ready for Alienstock this weekend. With just one day to the festival, the small town with a population of 54 is getting ready for what could be thousands of visitors.
- NewsThe Independent
Imelda’s toll in Texas: Flooding and fears about a bridge
As the remnants of the former Tropical Storm Imelda moved north on Friday, residents in southeast Texas awoke to shut down roads, scattered thunderstorms and the possibility of more flooding from a storm that became one the top 10 wettest in U.S. history. The storm that had barely earned a name — it briefly ranked as a tropical storm before being downgraded to a tropical depression — took many residents by surprise with its relentlessness, rekindling memories from when Hurricane Harvey dumped more than 50 inches of rainfall in some areas and caused dozens of deaths in 2017. As rain trickled down on and off on Friday, residents steeled themselves to assess the damage: At least two people had died, and authorities were investigating a third death after a man last seen walking around during the storm was found dead in a ditch in Houston.
- NewsAOL.com
High school sparks controversy over 'ridiculous' lunch: 'It's honestly sad'
A Minnesota high school is facing criticism for serving a meal that many people have since called "ridiculous." Last Friday, Maryn Holler, a student at Apollo High School in St. Cloud, shared two photos of a lunch tray filled with baby carrots, a cup of marinara sauce and a hot dog bun filled with melted cheese. "Alright so i paid for this to eat at lunch today," she wrote on Facebook.
- NewsAssociated Press
Justices' DC sniper case examines teen murderers' sentences
At issue for the Supreme Court is whether Malvo should be resentenced in Virginia in light of Supreme Court rulings restricting life-without-parole sentences for crimes committed by juveniles. But the case could also be an opportunity for the Supreme Court, which has recently become more conservative , to put the brakes on what has been a gradual move toward more leniency for juvenile offenders . Regardless of the case's outcome, Malvo isn't leaving prison anytime soon.
- WorldThe National Interest
Israel Could Not Survive Hamas' Missiles Without The Iron Dome
Key point: Israeli missile defense technology is cutting edge. On July 15th, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced it was deploying more Iron Dome missile defense systems near Tel Aviv and other parts of southern Israel. The Iron Dome is Israel's most effective defense system against short-range projectiles.
- PoliticsThe Guardian
How Trump could lose the popular vote again – and hold the White House
In Washington this week, Hillary Clinton summed up her bid for the White House in 2016. You can win the popular vote. Clinton beat Donald Trump in the popular vote by nearly 3 million ballots yet lost the electoral college – the body of people who represent states and actually get to choose the president – by 304 votes to 227.
- WorldReuters
Dozens detained in Kazakhstan at anti-China protests
ALMATY/NUR-SULTAN (Reuters) - Police detained dozens in Kazakhstan's two largest cities on Saturday as they took part in the latest protest against China's influence in the Central Asian republic. Neighboring China is already one of Kazakhstan's largest investors and trade partners and a plan to relocate a number of Chinese plants and factories to the former Soviet republic has faced public opposition. The latest round of protests on Saturday was organized by supporters of Mukhtar Ablyazov, a fugitive banker living in France who has been the fiercest critic of Kazakhstan's first president, Nursultan Nazarbayev.
BusinessAFPColt to stop making AR-15 rifles, weapon of choice in US mass shootings
Legendary US gun manufacturer Colt has said it will no longer produce the AR-15, blaming market forces rather than the semi-automatic rifle's role in some of the country's worst mass shootings. "Over the last few years, the market for modern sporting rifles has experienced significant excess manufacturing capacity," said the company's chief executive Dennis Veilleux in a statement released on Thursday. For that reason, "we believe there is adequate supply for modern sporting rifles for the foreseeable future," he said, noting that his firm would continue to make assault rifles for the US military and law enforcement agencies, as well as its world-famous revolvers.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Billionaire Robert F. Smith's $34 million gift to Morehouse grads includes parent loans
Turns out the ultimate graduation gift – paying the education loan debt of nearly 400 graduates – costs $34 million. Four months after billionaire Robert F. Smith surprised the Morehouse College class of 2019 by pledging zero college debt, the Atlanta-based historically black, all-male college released more details of Smith and his family's donation. Not only will the donation pay off student loans, but loans their parents took out will be included, the college said in a news release Friday about the new Morehouse College Student Success Program.
- LifestyleAOL.com
Boy, 4, who was diagnosed with autism and cancer within months of each other beats odds
A 4-year-old boy who was diagnosed with autism and cancer within three months has impressively beaten the odds, the Cleveland Clinic recently announced in a news release. Two years ago, Simon McKenzie reportedly became reserved, raising concerns from his grandparents. "I think you need to have him evaluated for autism," the child's grandmother recalled telling his parents, Mark McKenzie and Autumn Ziemba.
- WorldUSA TODAY Opinion
After Iran bombs Saudi oil infrastructure, should the United States retaliate?
Iran is the strongly suspected perpetrator of weekend drone and missile attacks against key Saudi oil infrastructure at Abqaiq facility and Khurais oil field that temporarily cut the kingdom's oil production by almost half. Apparently, some 20 drones and several cruise missiles hit a total of at least 17 different aim points at these two general locations in the country's east. The weapons may have been launched either from Iranian soil or a place fairly close by.
- CelebrityAOL.com
‘House Hunters’ host Suzanne Whang dies at 56 after long battle with cancer
Suzanne Whang, who hosted HGTV's "House Hunters" for nearly a decade, died on Thursday after a long battle with breast cancer. Whang's partner, Jeff Vezain, took to Facebook to announce her death in an emotional message. "On Tuesday evening around 7:20pm, Suzanne breathed her last breath here at home, as I knelt beside her and caressed her.
- WorldAssociated Press
Youth leaders at UN demand bold climate change action
Fresh off the climate strike that took hundreds of thousands of young people out of classrooms and into the streets globally, youth leaders gathered at the United Nations Saturday to demand radical moves to fight climate change. "We showed that we are united and that we, young people, are unstoppable," Swedish 16-year-old activist Greta Thunberg, who started the climate strike movement with her lone protest in front of her country's parliament about a year and a half ago. More than 700 mostly young activists attended the first of its kind Youth Climate Summit, according to Luis Alfonso de Alba, the U.N. special climate summit envoy.
- NewsThe Independent
White supremacist who praised ‘psychedelic Nazis’ caught with stockpile of guns and LSD
In a secret chat last November, according to court filings, two associates of a violent white supremacist group discussed whether drug use was in line with their political beliefs. There's nothing more Aryan than entheogenic drug use,” Andrew Thomasberg, 21, texted a friend, according to prosecutors, referencing plants that have psychedelic effects. Thomasberg was arrested at his home in McLean, Virginia, on Thursday, according to court filings, accused of possessing guns as a drug user and illegally buying an AK-47 in 2017 for that friend, who is cooperating with authorities.
- WorldThe National Interest
Europe Has Its Very Own Missile Defense System
Ballistic missiles are making a comeback in the twenty-first century because they give countries like China, Iran, North Korea and Russia the ability to strike targets hundreds or thousands of miles away without having to expose vulnerable warplanes to interception. The precision allowed by modern guidance systems allows even non-nuclear missiles to deliver highly-deadly attacks against airbases, fuel and ammunition depots, and even moving aircraft carriers. Therefore, the ability to intercept ballistic missiles is also growing in importance.
