Current Events December 20, 2010

Local

Lyndhurst Observatory offering rare glimpse at eclipse tonight

The Record

Tonight, Monday December 20, the Lyndhurst observatory will open at 11:30 p.m. so people can get a glimpse of the lunar eclipse. This will be the first lunar eclipse in nearly 3 years. The eclipse is set to occur at 3:17 a.m. early Tuesday morning. Visitors will be viewing the eclipse through the observatory's 20-inch diameter telescope. However, if the sky becomes very cloudy the program will be cancelled.

National

8 injured when bus carrying church group rolls over

CNN

On Saturday, December 18, in Gunnison County, Colorado, eight people were seriously injured when a tour bus carrying a church group lost control. The bus with 46 people onboard, slid off the road and rolled onto its side on an icy highway. The bus had been transporting the church group from Denton Texas to Crested Butte, Colorado. Authorities reported that they were still investigating the crash late Saturday.

Global

British police nab terror suspects in early-morning raids

CNN

On Monday in London, 12 men were arrested by British counter-terror police in a "large-scale, pre-planned, intelligence-led" operation. The suspects range from ages 17 to 28 and are all of Pakistani descent. Assistant Metropolitan Police Commissioner, John Yates, said the arrests were "necessary" in order to "ensure public safety. He said they were arrested on suspicion of "preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism in the UK." The officers making the arrests were unarmed and 11 out of 12 of the men were arrested in their homes.

December 13, 2010 current events

Local

Drug Arrest on Mission Street

The Record

This weekend on Mission Street, police arrested a Montcliar man after they saw him allegedly selling crack the previous night in the area. They saw the man, Brandon Brown, 23, retrieve items form the siding the siding of a Mission Street home and then trading it for money from individuals who approached him. After investigating, the police found 40 small bags of crack. The man was charged with various drug offenses, but released on a bail of $5,000

National

Inmates in Georgia Prisons Use Contraband Phones to Coordinate Protest

New York Times

This weekend, prisoners in at least 7 prisons in Georgia planned a non-violent riot using contrabands cell phones. The prisoners want better work conditions and want to be paid for the work they do. They want their list of demands to be addressed before they preform chores, work for the Corrections Department Industrial arm, or shop at prison commissaries. Their list of demands includes; more educational opportunities, compensation for their work, better food, and sentencing rules changes. The inmates said that though the riots started Thursday, they had been organizing this for months using word of mouth and text messages.

World

South Korea to Conduct Naval Drills

CNN

Starting today, South Korea is going to conduct a new round of naval fire drills. These drills are planned to avoid border islands. They will take place off all sides of the country and will continue through friday. None are scheduled to be near Yellow Sea islands south of the maritime boarder with North Korea. Tension has built between the Koreas when North shelled South Korea's Yeonpyeong Island on November 23 killing two marines, two civilians and injuring 18. The North now has accused the South of provoking the attack.

Absence of Malice

Meg is an unethical journalist who cares more about her stories then the lives of others. She was first wrong in looking in the police file left on the desk. If she did not have permission to open it from the officer, she certainly didn't have the right to publish information from it. The world does not have the right to know that Gallahger is under investigation since no evidence has really been discovered.

She acts unethically again when she publishes the article about the abortion. Not only did it ruin the girls life, but the girl asked for it not be reported before she said it. The abortion story was not backed by any facts. Before publishing such a story, Meg should have looked for proof. She should not publish the story based solely on believing what the girl said. She could have at least consulted Gallahger to see if he would corroborate the story.

Current Events December 6, 2010

Local

Woodcliff Lake Apple Store Burglarized

The Record

Early Monday morning, four people broke into the Apple Store on Chesnut Ridge Road in Woodcliff Lake. They broke in at around 2 a.m. and took iPods, MacBooks, and iPhones. Though the break in set off the stores alarm, the burglars were gone before the police arrived. This is the second reported theft at this Apple store; the first theft in 2008 in which three of the four men involved were captured and charged.

National

In Kentucky, Noah's Ark Theme Park is Planned

New York Times

The governor of Kentucky is planning the creation of a biblical-themed amusement park in order to battle the increase in unemployment. He is giving tax incentives to entrepreneurs to create this park called "Ark Encounter." It is planned to include a full size ark filled with animals and actors. Since the proposal of this plan, congress has questioned if it is constitutional for the government to back an enterprise that promotes specific religion.

World

Teen Detained After Firefighters Douse Israeli Wildfire

CNN

Today in Jerusalem, investigators of the wildfire in northern Israel detained a 14-year-old boy after he admitted to throwing the coals from his pipe into the woods. The fire had broken out on Thursday killing at least 42 people and forced the evacuation of around 17,000 people. Two teenagers who had previously been detained are now reales.

Questions about Review of Absence of Malice

What kinds of things does Sally Field do that are considered unethical for a journalist?

• She approaches a secret investigation unethically; she attains secret information and prints a story without sighting any sources. She then sleeps with the subject of the investigation
• 
  

Describe Sally Field's character.

• Sally Field's character is an unscrupulous journalist, willing to breach the responsibility and ethical standards of a journalist to print her stories.

Describe Paul Newman's character.

• Paul Newman plays a liquor distributor being investigated for murder. Though he is innocent, the papers keep dirtying his name, because of his father's repuation. He is attractive and sneaky.

Does Roger Ebert think that the events in this movie are realistic?

• He thinks they weren't realistic. He thinks that Sally Fields actions were not realistic of a reporter. He does not think editors would actually publish her articles either.

After reading this review are YOU interested in seeing this movie?

• No, because Roger Ebert gave away some of the story already

November 29, 2010

Local

Carjack Victim Dragged with Vehicle, Nutley Police Say

The Record

On Saturday, in Nutley, a 49-year old man was carjacked and dragged about 20 feet at the Getty Station at the corner of Kingsland Street and Washington Avenue. The victim had stopped to check his tier pressure. While out of his 2003 four-door BMW wagon, the suspect jumped into the victims car. The car has been added to the state's stolen car vehicle. No surveillance of the incident was found.

National

Obama Freezes Pay For Federal Workers for Two Years

CNN

On Monday, President Obama announced a pay freeze for civilian federal workers. The freeze is planned to last two years in order to appeal to Republican leaders and to address the high deficit spending. Obama explains that fixing the deficit will "require some broad sacrifice." This proposal comes the day before Obama hosts Congressional leaders of both parties at the whitehouse.

World

Six NATO Troops Killed by Afgahn Police Officers

The New York Times

On Monday, November 29, six NATO service members were killed. While training the Afghan border police, an office shot them. This occurred in the Pachir-Wa-Agam district of Nangahar. This was not the first occurrence of such an event, but at least the fifth time in 13 months that Afghan soldiers and policemen turned their weapons on NATO members.

Current Events November 22,2010

World

13 year old American boy arrested in China for protesting

Indie Pro Pub

On Monday November 22^nd, a 13 year old from Mississippi was arrested in China for protesting in front of Tiananmen square. The boy was campaigning to turn the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea into a peace park. Minutes after the boy unveiled his pro peace banner undercover cops swarmed around him and told him he had to stop protesting. The boy and his family returned back to the United States the following day.

National

Midwest hit hard by extreme winds, flash floods

Cnn

On November 22 2010, the states of Illinois and Wisconsin were hit by severe tornadoes. Coupled with severe winds, the storm destroyed many buildings and flipped over a school bus that carried three children. The storm also took out power lines that left many people helpless.

Local

N.J. city nets $800K in 3 months from red light cameras

Bergen Record

On Tuesday November 22^nd, it was reported that the implementation of traffic cameras that would detect if someone ran a red light has netted Linden over 800 thousand dollars generated through 20,000 issued tickets. The cameras were installed over three months ago and they have not only made money through the action but also has improved highway safety.