HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam (AP) — Wrapping up a historic visit to Vietnam, U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday May 18th, praised the country’s next generation of leaders for being more conscious of the environment than previous ones and urged them to “do something about” climate change. During his final public event here, Obama … Continue reading
LE HAVRE, France (AP) — French drivers are fuming, oil industry workers are divided, and the government is reaching into its fuel reserves to end gasoline shortages that have heightened the stakes of nationwide protests to defend labor protections. Unions are targeting the nation’s gas tanks, railroads and electricity network this week, protesting a bill … Continue reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans are attempting to hold together a rare bipartisan deal to help Puerto Rico manage its crippling finances as a committee considers the legislation on Wednesday. The bill to create a financial control board and restructure some of the U.S. territory’s $70 billion debt has support from House Republican and Democratic … Continue reading
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Baylor University and its president faced mounting pressure Tuesday, May 10th, over how the school has handled reports of rape and assault by football players, and the Texas university said its governing board was still considering the results of an internal investigation into the matter. Asked about reports that the board … Continue reading
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Within weeks of the September 2014 disappearance of 43 college students, Mexican authorities had rounded up scores of suspects and announced they had solved the case. At a hastily called news conference, prosecutors showed video of drug gang members confessing to taking the students from police, then slaughtering them and incinerating the … Continue reading
CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. (AP) — A former Virginia Tech student charged in the kidnap-slaying of a 13-year-old girl called her co-defendant a “sociopath” and referred to herself as a “sociopath in training” a police detective testified Friday. Also, prosecutors in the case against David Eisenhauer and Natalie Keepers introduced text messages taken from Eisenhauer’s cellphone speculating … Continue reading
SHENZHEN, China (AP) — Forget Beijing and Shanghai. China’s economic future is emerging in Shenzhen. Formerly a collection of fishing enclaves next door to Hong Kong that became the epicenter of China’s manufacturing-driven miracle, Shenzhen is reinventing itself again by staking its future growth on finance, technology and culture. The metropolis teeming with millions of … Continue reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — A man shot by a U.S. Secret Service officer outside the White House remained in critical condition in a Washington hospital, a hospital spokeswoman said. George Washington University Hospital spokeswoman Susan Griffiths would provide only his condition Saturday, May 21st, one day after the shooting. She referred other questions to the Secret … Continue reading
TUPELO, Miss. (AP) — A plane that crashed in Mississippi dropped exhaust system parts on a runway as it was taking off, a National Transportation Safety Board investigator said Tuesday, May 16th. Millicent Hoidal said debris was recovered when the runway at Tupelo Regional Airport was swept after the Monday, May 15th, crash that killed four Texans. … Continue reading
BEIJING (AP) — China’s government fabricates and posts several hundred million social media posts a year to influence public opinion about the country, according to a new paper by U.S. researchers examining one of the most opaque aspects of the Communist Party’s rule. The academic study led by Harvard political scientist Gary King claims to … Continue reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — The latest government snapshot of school crime paints a picture of safer schools with declines in violent crime, bullying and harassment because of sexual orientation. Still, about 3 percent of students ages 12 to 18 said they were victims of crimes at school in 2014. About 1.3 million students were suspended for … Continue reading
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Between cocktails, campus tours and squash games, alumni visiting St. George’s School for their annual reunion weekend will find something different this year: discussions about what has unfolded at the elite boarding school since December 2015, when leaders acknowledged dozens of students were sexually abused in the past. St. George’s is … Continue reading
SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — Professor Robert Smith covers a lot of ground teaching American government, yet recent class discussions ranging from the electoral college to minority rights have kept returning to the same subject: Donald Trump. So this summer, Smith plans to cede the spotlight to the billionaire who’s shaken up presidential politics. He’s created … Continue reading
SEATTLE (AP) — In progressive Seattle, a presidential order that public schools give transgender students access to the bathrooms matching their gender identity won’t require a shift. While the debate has reached a fever pitch in other parts of the country, the city’s public schools have accommodated transgender students in the bathrooms and locker rooms … Continue reading
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — President Barack Obama on Sunday May 15, urged college graduates to shun those who want to confront a rapidly changing world by building walls around the United States or by embracing ignorance, as he delivered a sharp and barely concealed critique of Donald Trump. Obama used his commencement speech at Rutgers … Continue reading
Spartan Echo 