- NewsNational Review
Columbine-Obsessed Woman Who Threatened Colorado Schools Reportedly Dead after FBI Manhunt
A Florida woman said to be obsessed with the 1999 massacre at Colorado's Columbine High School has reportedly died after a massive FBI manhunt. Authorities said Sol Pais, 18, made disturbing remarks about Columbine as Saturday's 20th anniversary of the shooting approached and was apparently “infatuated with the perpetrators.” She flew to Colorado on Monday, purchasing a pump-action shotgun after landing, and was considered armed and dangerous before she was found dead, Denver's local CBS affiliate reported, citing a law enforcement source in Clear Creek County. The FBI's Denver office later wrote on Twitter that the manhunt had ended.
WorldReutersUkraine says it captured Russian military intelligence hit squad
Ukraine's security service SBU said on Wednesday it had captured a Russian military intelligence hit squad responsible for the attempted murder of a Ukrainian military spy in the run-up to a presidential election on Sunday. The issue of how to deal with Russia, which annexed Crimea in 2014 and backs pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine, is prominent ahead of the vote, with incumbent Petro Poroshenko casting himself as the commander-in-chief Ukraine needs to defend the country. Vasyl Hrytsak, the head of the SBU, the main intelligence agency, told a news conference in Kiev that seven members of the Russian group had been detained and charged and that an eighth person had been detained on Wednesday morning.
WorldAssociated PressParents of Swedish coder held by Ecuador say he is innocent
The parents of a Swedish programmer suspected of plotting to blackmail Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno over his abandonment of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange made an anxious plea Tuesday for authorities to release their son. Dag Gustafsson acknowledged that his son, Ola Bini, had a friendship with Assange but said his ties with the hacker who lived in Ecuador's London embassy while evading U.S. and British authorities for nearly seven years ends there. "Ola is a friend of Julian Assange, nothing more," he said, sitting before a screen with an image of his son, dressed in cap and smiling slightly.
- WorldThe Daily Beast
How One Man's Deleted Tweet Launched a Worldwide Notre Dame Conspiracy Theory
Hale quickly tweeted that his friend had “zero evidence” for the claim beyond a purported conversation with cathedral staff, and he deleted the original tweet minutes later. But it only took those few minutes for his tweet to become a core piece of proof for right-wing conspiracy theorists who are convinced, without any actual evidence, that the fire was set by terrorists. With one tweet, Hale became sucked into a right-wing media machine eager to both rile up its audience and earn more traffic on social media.
NewsYahoo NewsOcasio-Cortez backs boycott of New York Post over cover attacking Ilhan Omar
While President Trump repeatedly attacks the New York Times and other purveyors of “fake news,” New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is targeting her own media foe: the New York Post. In a Sunday interview with the Yahoo News podcast “Skullduggery,” the freshman New York congresswoman explained why she is endorsing a boycott of the paper organized by local Yemeni-American bodega owners, calling the Post's attack on her friend Rep. Ilhan Omar “beyond the pale. Ever since she was elected last November, the Post has relentlessly attacked Ocasio-Cortez over her progressive views and her opposition to Amazon's plan to move its headquarters to Queens.
- WorldThe Guardian
Trump's new Cuba crackdown puts US at odds with Canada and Europe
Donald Trump has taken another step towards reversing Barack Obama's historic rapprochement with Cuba with a measure that earned swift criticism from allies in Canada and Europe. The US announced on Wednesday that it would enable lawsuits against foreign companies that use properties nationalised by the communist government after Fidel Castro's 1959 revolution. The policy shift, which could draw hundreds of thousands of legal claims worth tens of billion of dollars, aims to put pressure on Cuba at a moment when the US is demanding an end to Havana's support for Venezuela's socialist president, Nicolás Maduro.
WorldAFPNotre-Dame's precious rooster statue found 'battered' in debris
A wrought copper statue of a rooster that sat atop Notre-Dame has been found "battered" in the debris of the Paris cathedral following its devastating fire, France's culture ministry said. The statue is considered all the more important because it contains three holy relics -- including a fragment of the Crown of Thorns believed by Christians to have been worn by Jesus Christ during his crucifixion, placed there to protect Parisians. The sculpture of the bird -- which is an unofficial symbol of France -- was recovered Tuesday by a restorer picking through the rubble left when the spire on which it had sat toppled at the height of the inferno that ravaged Notre-Dame on Monday, a ministry spokesman told AFP.
- Lifestylemotorious
Porsche Collection Destroyed in Explosion
The building itself also contained one of America's largest Porsche collections according to the Charlotte Observer. The rather unassuming red brick building didn't boast about the treasures within, but video from the Charlotte Observer revealed a huge hole in the roof and the charred remains of what appears to be a 550 Spyder amongst other less identifiable wreckage. Bob Ingram, a retired pharmaceuticals executive, and his wife reportedly started the collection in 1998 after a visit to the Monterey Historic Automobile Races.
- PoliticsUSA TODAY
Bernie Sanders leads Joe Biden in Emerson national poll of 2020 contenders
WASHINGTON – Sen. Bernie Sanders finished ahead of Joe Biden in the first major national poll of the year that did not find the former vice president leading the pack of potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidates. When asked whom they would support from a list of 20 candidates – including "someone else" – 29% named Sanders, and 24% named Biden in an Emerson College poll released Monday. They were trailed by South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who was the pick of 9% of likely Democratic primary voters.
NewsAssociated PressSuspect in attack on boy at Mall of America held on $2M bail
A man accused of throwing a 5-year-old boy from a third-floor balcony at the Mall of America said little Tuesday during his first court appearance but appeared lucid and followed the court's directions. Emmanuel Aranda, 24, of Minneapolis, is charged with attempted premeditated first-degree murder in Friday's attack. The child plunged almost 40 feet and is fighting for his life in a Minneapolis hospital with head trauma and multiple broken bones.
- BusinessReuters
UPDATE 4-U.S. Justice Department tells T-Mobile, Sprint it has concerns about merger deal -sources
The U.S. Justice Department has told T-Mobile US Inc and Sprint Corp it has concerns about their proposed $26 billion merger in its current structure, sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday, although no final decision has been made. Sprint shares fell about 9 percent after the bell as investors increased bets the deal would not be completed following a Wall Street Journal report the merger is unlikely to be approved as currently structured. Shares of T-Mobile fell 4 percent.
- WorldThe Independent
Ola Bini: Wikileaks collaborator and Assange ally accused of plotting to blackmail Ecuador president faces 'threats in jail', parents say
The parents of a Swedish programmer who was an early ally of Julian Assange and Wikileaks and who has now been accused of trying to blackmail Ecuador's president, is facing threats in jail, his parents have claimed. Ola Bini, 36, was arrested last Thursday in Ecuador, hours after Mr Assange was detained by police in London who entered the Ecuadorian embassy. Mr Assange was charged with skipping bail by a London judge, while the US charged him with conspiring with whistleblower Chelsea Manning to hack a US computer.
- U.S.WABC – NY
NTSB investigates American Airlines flight tipped by wind at JFK Airport
Federal safety officials are investigating an American Airlines flight in which the plane tipped in a strong wind and a wingtip clipped a runway marker during takeoff last week from New York's Kennedy Airport.
- SportsCar and Driver
See 2020 Toyota Highlander Photos
Toyota's three-row crossover is little changed, because why mess with success? From Car and Driver
CelebrityYahoo NewsOcasio-Cortez admits bungling the Green New Deal rollout
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. says the biggest mistake she's made in her first four months as a freshman congresswoman was how the rollout of the so-called Green New Deal — her ambitious environmental plan to combat climate change — was handled. "It was done in a way that it was easy to hijack the narrative around it," Ocasio-Cortez said in an interview with the Yahoo News podcast "Skullduggery" on Sunday.
WorldAFPGerman far right tries to link Notre-Dame fire to anti-Christian 'attacks'
A leader of Germany's far-right AfD party on Tuesday tried to link the devastating fire at Paris' Notre-Dame cathedral to rising "intolerance" against Christians in Europe, although French investigators believe the inferno was an accident. In a tweet, Alice Weidel, the parliamentary group leader of the Alternative for Germany, the country's largest opposition party, implied a connection between Monday's blaze and previous anti-Christian "attacks" in France. "The Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination Against Christians in Europe speaks of a significant increase," she added, including a link to a March article in a German Catholic magazine headlined "Catholic churches desecrated across France".
WorldAFP'Yellow vest' Libya protesters say France backs Tripoli assault
Dozens of "yellow vest" protesters rallied Tuesday in the Libyan capital to denounce what they said was France's support for military strongman Khalifa Haftar who has launched an offensive on Tripoli. The demonstrators donned yellow vests in a nod to the jackets worn by anti-government protesters who have been rallying across France since November. "France must stop backing the rebel Haftar," read one sign held up by the demonstrators gathered in central Tripoli's Algiers Square.
- PoliticsTime
Robert Mueller Showed How U.S. Elections Broke in 2016. Here's How to Fix Them
Over a nearly two-year investigation, Special Counsel Robert Mueller has shown the sheer breadth of the Russian effort to meddle in the 2016 election. From hacking into campaign email systems to using social media to stir up voters, the Russian effort hit at a number of soft spots in the American electoral system. Experts say Russia didn't stop there either, using similar strategies to attempt to influence the 2018 elections, and, they expect, the 2020 elections as well.
- NewsAOL.com
20-year-old college student falls 100 feet off cliff to her death
A 20-year-old college student plummeted 100 feet to her death off a cliff during a school trip last weekend. Although it is considered one of Arkansas' most photographed spots, Hawksbill Crag has been the site of multiple deaths by unintentional falls in recent years, including that of a 19-year-old University of Arkansas coed in 2016. Briar Cliff University released a statement on Saturday following Norton's tragic death.
- BusinessPopular Mechanics
The 6 Best Cars and Concepts From the New York Auto Show
Little dune buggy... ♫ From Popular Mechanics
NewsUSA TODAYJussie Smollett purposely misled police by saying assailants were white, lawsuit alleges
CHICAGO — “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett purposely attempted to mislead police by falsely describing alleged assailants who he said attacked him on a cold January night as white men, the city of Chicago claimed in a civil lawsuit filed Thursday. The allegation comes in a lawsuit filed by the city, which is attempting to force the actor to pay back more than $130,000 they say the police department spent in overtime costs to investigate a supposed hoax attack set up by the actor. Smollett, 36, who is black and gay, allegedly hired two brothers — Abel and Ola Osundairo — to stage an assault on him and make it look like a hate crime, police and prosecutors say.
- BusinessReuters
UPDATE 6-Qualcomm shares soar on surprise settlement with Apple of long legal dispute
Qualcomm Inc on Tuesday won a major victory with a surprise settlement of its wide-ranging legal dispute with Apple Inc that includes a supply agreement paving the way for the iPhone to once again use Qualcomm modem chips. The settlement also incorporates a six-year patent license and a payment from Apple to Qualcomm, but the companies did not disclose the amount. Because Qualcomm is already shipping 5G chips while Apple supplier Intel Corp is still developing them, the deal gives Apple an opportunity to catch the iPhone up to Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and other manufacturers whose phones already work on the faster networks.
- BusinessCar and Driver
Hybrids vs. Plug-In Hybrids
In addition to hybrids (HEVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), the universe of electrified vehicles (that is, vehicles that incorporate an electric motor into their powertrain) includes full-electric vehicles (EVs) that are powered solely by a large battery pack and have no gasoline engine. These vehicles are largely defined by the amount of electric assist and electric-only range they provide. They may be small-battery "mild" hybrids-with electric motors that add some acceleration, recover energy during braking, and provide some juice for stop-start systems-or big-battery, long-range EVs.
- BusinessBloomberg
EU Takes Aim at Trump's Heartland With Tariff-Retaliation Plan
The European Union published its preliminary list of U.S. goods being targeted in a $12 billion plan for retaliatory tariffs over subsidies to Boeing Co., with a focus on farm products from areas that help form President Donald Trump's political base. The European Commission began a public consultation over the American products ranging from ketchup and nuts to video-game consoles and bicycle pedals. The World Trade Organization will ultimately decide the level of damages the EU can seek, with a verdict possible toward the end of this year or in early 2020.
WorldAssociated PressDonations for burned black churches up after Notre Dame fire
A crowdfunding campaign for three African American churches in Louisiana recently gutted by arson was climbing Tuesday after social media posts urging the public not to forget the plight of the small houses of worship as the eyes of the world were on the fire-ravaged Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. "As we hold Paris in our hearts today, let's also sent some love to our neighbors in Louisiana," a Tuesday tweet from Hillary Clinton read. Freelance journalist Yashar Ali, with 394,000 followers, struck a similar tone, tweeting that the Notre Dame restoration "will be well funded" and urging support for the Louisiana churches.
