Number of Americans paying student loans soars
BOSTON — The rising cost of higher education is dogging Americans into retirement, with people aged 65 and older still carrying some $18.2 billion in unpaid student loans, according to a federal report released on Wednesday.While the Government Accountability Office report noted that relatively few U.S. households headed by...Obesity rates reach historic highs in more U.S. states
WASHINGTON — Rates of adult obesity increased in six U.S. states and fell in none last year, and in more states than ever - 20 - at least 30 percent of adults are obese, according to an analysis released on Thursday.The conclusions were reported by the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and were based...U.S. fast-food workers arrested in protests for wage hike
NEW YORK — U.S. fast-food workers staged protests in some 150 cities on Thursday in a fight for higher pay, and organizers said dozens were arrested from Manhattan's Times Square to Las Vegas to Detroit.About 400 protesters clogged Times Square during morning rush hour in the latest of ongoing actions aimed at raising their wage to...California high school drops offensive ‘Arab’ mascot
The Coachella Valley Unified School District confirmed Friday that it has retired the school’s controversial Arab mascot that prompted objections from The American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee last year.The Arab mascot costume was a cartoonish, headscarf-wearing man with a hooked nose, a thick beard and a devilish mustache. He...
Sotloff family mourns beheaded son as gentle soul
September 5th, 20140 A video purportedly showing U.S. journalist Steven Sotloff kneeling next to a masked Islamic State fighter holding a knife in an unknown location.WASHINGTON — The family of Steven Sotloff, the second American journalist beheaded by Islamic State militants, said on Wednesday he was no hero and no war junkie but "a mere man who tried to...American released by Syrian militants thanks Qatar, U.S. officials
CAMBRIDGE Mass. — A U.S. writer freed this week after being held captive for two years by Syrian insurgents on Wednesday thanked those who had worked for his release and said he was emotionally overwhelmed by his welcome home.Peter Theo Curtis, who was held by Nusra Front, al Qaeda's official wing in Syria, said he had no idea that...U.S. government sues Minneapolis suburb for rejecting Islamic center
Minneapolis — The U.S. government sued a small Minneapolis suburb on Wednesday, accusing it of religious discrimination after local leaders denied a Muslim group the right to open a center in the municipality.The Justice Department filed a complaint in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis against St. Anthony Village, where council...U.S. judge signals he may order more Abu Ghraib photos released
NEW YORK — A federal judge signaled on Wednesday he may order the U.S. government to release as many as 2,000 photographs depicting the alleged harsh treatment of detainees in U.S. custody at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and other sites.U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein in New York ruled the U.S. Department of Defense had failed...U.S. mother pleads to “Islamic State” leader for her son’s release
Shirley Sotloff, the mother of American journalist Steven Sotloff.BOSTON — The mother of an American journalist held captive by militant group "Islamic State" released a video on Wednesday appealing directly to the group's leader for his release."I am sending this message to you, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi al-Quraishi al-Hussaini, the...9-year-old girl accidentally kills Arizona shooting instructor
Shooting instructor Charles Vacca stands next to a 9-year-old girl at the Last Stop shooting range in White Hills, Arizona near the Nevada border, on August 25.TUCSON Ariz. — A 9-year-old girl accidentally shot and killed her shooting instructor at an Arizona range with an Israeli-made Uzi submachine gun when the weapon's strong...Girl plunges 550 feet to her death at Yellowstone National Park
WYOMING – An 8-year-old girl plunged some 550 feet (168 meters) to her death at Yellowstone National Park on Sunday after stepping off a trail overlooking a 1,200-foot (366-m) canyon and losing her footing, a park official said on Monday.The victim was identified by park officials as Zahra Allahyari of Poway,...NHTSA unveils new recall search tool
WASHINGTON – U.S. auto safety regulators on Wednesday unveiled a more precise way for vehicle owners to search online to find out if their cars or motorcycles have been recalled by the manufacturer.The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said owners can now search for possible safety recalls on the agency's...Hundreds of U.S. residents were given discounts through airline, traveled to Israel to aid military
WASHINGTON – In the last two months, EL AL Israel Airlines has flown more than 600 immigrants from USA and Canada to Israel. In the wake of the fighting in Gaza, U.S. airlines temporarily grounded flights to Israel last month, but that hasn't stopped supporters in the West from traveling to and relocating there this summer.More...Poll: Public supports U.S. intervention in Iraq
WASHINGTON – Despite rising criticism of his foreign policy– even from his former secretary of state – President Obama’s decision last week to carry out airstrikes against Islamic Statemilitants in northern Iraq enjoys relatively strong public support, at least so far.Over half (54 percent) of respondents in a poll released this...
Calm largely holds in Missouri after grand jury opens shooting investigation
August 22nd, 20140 FERGUSON Mo. – Small crowds staged largely peaceful protests late on Wednesday over the Aug. 9 fatal shooting of a Black teenager by a White police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, the calmest night since riots erupted over the racially charged killing.U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder met the parents of 18-year-old Michael Brown and......
Cost of raising a child in U.S. tops $245,000
WASHINGTON – An average middle-income family in the United States can expect to spend about $245,000 over 18 years to raise a child born in 2013, the U.S. government estimated on Monday.The Department of Agriculture's annual "Cost of Raising a Child" report showed child-rearing costs - which reflect food, housing, childcare,...American man arrested at New York City airport after returning from Lebanon
NEW YORK – An American alleged to have ties with Islamic state terrorists abroad was arrested at a New York airport on Aug 2. and is being held without bond, due in part to his Twitter rants reportedly suggesting his militant leanings.FBI agents arrested Donald Ray Morgan, 44, of North Carolina, at John F. Kennedy International...
U.S. can keep court orders, phone companies secret in NSA spy case
August 15th, 20140 WASHINGTON – The U.S. government need not turn over a secret surveillance court's orders or the names of phone companies helping it collect call records, because it might reveal methods needed to protect national security, a federal judge decided this week.U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, California, rejected...Police fire tear gas, stun grenades at Ferguson protesters
FERGUSON, Mo — Police here fired tear gas, stun grenades and smoke bombs to disperse several hundred protesters late Wednesday, the fourth night of racially charged demonstrations after police shot and killed an unarmed Black teenager.Protesters have gathered every night since Saturday when 18-year-old Michael Brown was killed by......
New York man accused of online death threats against Obama
NEW YORK – An upstate New York man was accused on Tuesday of threatening to kill President Obama and other political leaders just days after he was arraigned on charges that he had made previous online death threats against them, authorities said.Brandon Correa, 30, of Rochester, faces a seven-count indictment charging him with...Virginia GOP official resigns after anti-Muslim comments
RICHMOND – State GOP Treasurer Bob FitzSimmonds unapologetically stepped down more than a week after he responded in harsh fashion to comments President Obama made praising Muslim Americans. ‘This is pure nonsense. Exactly what part of our nation's fabric was woven by Muslims,’ FitzSimmonds wrote.FitzSimmonds, the outspoken......
Deal may be near for Colorado woman accused of aiding Islamist insurgents
August 8th, 20140 DENVER – U.S. prosecutors and lawyers defending a Colorado woman accused of providing material support to Islamist militants fighting the governments of Syria and Iraq may be close to resolving the case, court records show.Shannon Maureen Conley, born in 1996, has been in federal custody since she was arrested in April for allegedly...Younger Americans less likely to support Israel, poll suggests
WASHINGTON — As the death toll mounts in Gaza to more than 1,900, polls indicate American’s support for Israel remains strong and in some cases has grown.Those same polls, however, reflect a “deep partisan divide” and show a widening generational gap as sympathy for the Palestinians grows among younger people.A Pew Research poll......
