| Charles Jenkins, American Held By North Korea For 40 Years After Defection, Dies At 77 Posted: 12 Dec 2017 12:56 PM PST  Charles Jenkins, a former American soldier who defected across the Demilitarized Zone into North Korea in 1965 and was held by the totalitarian regime for 40 years, died in Japan on Monday at the age of 77.
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| McMaster rips Russian 'campaigns of subversion' Posted: 12 Dec 2017 11:28 AM PST  President Trump's national security adviser, Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, accused Russia on Tuesday of waging "campaigns of subversion" against the United States and its allies.
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| 2 people killed after being stuck inside a burning school bus Posted: 11 Dec 2017 09:00 PM PST  Authorities are investigating why the student and school bus driver couldn't escape the burning vehicle.
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| Shark Viciously Attacks Woman On Her Honeymoon Posted: 13 Dec 2017 02:38 PM PST  Sarah Illig's dream honeymoon in the Bahamas turned out to be a nightmare after she was bitten by a shark.
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| Alabama Voters To Decide Whether Accused Child Molester Becomes Their Senator Posted: 11 Dec 2017 09:00 PM PST  For many in the state, the special election has become a way to project a message to the rest of the nation on what Alabama is. Supporters of Democrat Doug Jones want to shed the stereotype of Alabama as a stagnant backwater. Jones is best known for his work as a U.S. attorney in the 1990s, prosecuting Ku Klux Klan members for blowing up a black church in 1963.
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| Prosecutors move to keep death penalty an option in slayings Posted: 13 Dec 2017 09:46 AM PST ![Prosecutors move to keep death penalty an option in slayings]( "Prosecutors move to keep death penalty an option in slayings") DOYLESTOWN, Pa. (AP) — Prosecutors have moved to hold onto their ability to seek the death penalty against two cousins in the deaths of four men found buried on a Philadelphia-area farm, although attorneys have said a deal with one defendant would take capital punishment off the table.
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| Scientists to investigate if cigar-shaped asteroid could be an alien spacecraft Posted: 13 Dec 2017 01:32 PM PST  A team of researchers, including Stephen Hawking, is investigating whether the first known object from outside the solar system contains the first sign of life beyond our planet.
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| Firefighters defend homes as huge California wildfire rages on Posted: 13 Dec 2017 01:27 PM PST ![Firefighters defend homes as huge California wildfire rages on]( "Firefighters defend homes as huge California wildfire rages on") Firefighters grappling with a wildfire that has burned out of control for 10 days on California's scenic coastline, destroying more than 700 homes, sought on Wednesday to defend homes from flames whipped by resurgent Santa Ana winds. The so-called Thomas Fire, already the state's fifth-largest wildland blaze on record, remained a threat to the communities of Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Summerland and Montecito despite gains made by crews during a lull in the winds a day earlier. "Very high fuel loading, critically low fuel moistures, above average temperatures and single-digit relative humidities will continue to support fire growth on the west, east and north sides of the Thomas Incident," the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said in a statement.
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| Keaton Jones' Mom Responds to Criticism Over Confederate Flag Photos: 'I Can't Take It Back' Posted: 12 Dec 2017 11:07 AM PST  Kimberly Jones also claims she has nothing to do with a GoFundMe page that has raised $58,000 for her son.
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| White House says Trump's tweet to Gillibrand was not 'sexist at all' Posted: 12 Dec 2017 02:40 PM PST  White House press secretary Sarah Sanders defended President Trump's tweet saying Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand would "do anything" for campaign donations.
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| US, EU and Japan up the pressure on China at WTO Posted: 12 Dec 2017 07:07 PM PST  The United States, European Union and Japan jointly rounded on China's "market-distorting subsidies" at the World Trade Organization conference in Argentina Tuesday. A joint statement from the three powers made no direct mention of China, but said "severe excess capacity in key sectors, exacerbated by government-financed and supported capacity expansion, unfair competitive conditions caused by large market-distorting subsidies and state-owned enterprises" were serious problems for international trade.
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| N.C. Toddler Freezes to Death on Porch as Mom Slept Inside with Drugs in Her System Posted: 12 Dec 2017 06:07 PM PST  A North Carolina woman whose 3-year-old son froze to death on their porch has been sentenced to prison for being unconscious at the time with drugs in her system, PEOPLE confirms
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| Kayla Moore On Anti-Semitism Claims: 'One Of Our Attorneys Is A Jew' Posted: 11 Dec 2017 07:43 PM PST  On the eve of the Alabama election that's put the character of Republican candidate Roy Moore in the spotlight, his wife's attempt to defend their family's tolerance seriously backfired.
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| Firefighters wrestle to control massive California wildfire Posted: 12 Dec 2017 06:42 PM PST ![Firefighters wrestle to control massive California wildfire]( "Firefighters wrestle to control massive California wildfire") By Ben Gruber CARPINTERIA, Calif. (Reuters) - An out-of-control California wildfire that has already destroyed nearly 700 homes in its path of destruction crept closer to the upscale hillside community of Montecito on Tuesday despite calmer winds that slowed its progress. The Thomas Fire, which broke out on Dec. 4 near the community of Ojai, has since traveled 27 miles (43 km) to become the fifth-largest blaze in state history. It has blackened more than 368 square miles (953 square km) in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, an area larger than New York City.
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| 26 Gifts For Teens Who Are A Struggle To Shop For Posted: 12 Dec 2017 01:10 PM PST  If you thought buying a gift for dad was hard enough, try finding the perfect present for a teen.
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| After NYC terror attempt, Trump says he will end chain migration Posted: 12 Dec 2017 01:34 AM PST  Pointing to the New York terror attempt, President Trump says that he will end visa lottery and chain migration.
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| U.S. Congress to let Iran deadline pass, leave decision to Trump Posted: 12 Dec 2017 02:14 PM PST  By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress will allow a deadline on reimposing sanctions on Iran to pass this week, congressional and White House aides said on Tuesday, leaving a pact between world powers and Tehran intact at least temporarily. In October, Trump declined to certify that Iran was complying with the nuclear agreement reached among Tehran, the United States and others in 2015. Congressional leaders have announced no plans to introduce a resolution to reimpose sanctions before Wednesday's deadline and aides say lawmakers will let the deadline pass without action.
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| Woman admits letting three-year-old son freeze to death outside house while she slept off drug binge Posted: 13 Dec 2017 05:06 PM PST  Jamie Basinger pleaded guilty to the involuntary manslaughter of Landyn Melton and he 24-year-old will be expected to serve 36 months of supervised probation and between 19 and 32 months of prison time, after cutting a plea deal with Prosecutors in her home town of Morganton, North Carolina. "She's going to have a battle, we all are, she told the Morganton News Herald, adding that she still had unanswered questions about the three-year-old's death. Landyn was found dead on 15 March after a neighbour called the police when they spotted him laying on the porch.
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| Woman with 84 Great Danes guilty of animal cruelty charges Posted: 12 Dec 2017 12:27 PM PST ![Woman with 84 Great Danes guilty of animal cruelty charges]( "Woman with 84 Great Danes guilty of animal cruelty charges") CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A woman who had dozens of filthy and sick Great Danes living in her New Hampshire mansion was found guilty Tuesday of 10 animal cruelty charges.
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| San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee Dies At 65 Posted: 12 Dec 2017 03:02 AM PST  San Fransisco Mayor Ed Lee died early Tuesday, a hospital spokesman told HuffPost.
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| Why I Responded Live On The Air To A Viewer Who Called Me A Racial Slur Posted: 12 Dec 2017 12:36 PM PST  Editor's note: This piece includes the uncensored use of racial slurs and graphic language that may be disturbing to readers.
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| Oreo Just Announced 3 New Fan-Created Flavors Posted: 12 Dec 2017 01:53 PM PST  Cherry Cola Oreos, Kettle Corn Oreos, and Piña Colada Oreo Thins head up the #MyOreoCreations contest submissions you can soon try for yourself.
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| Biggest LA fire spreading more slowly as survivors pick up the pieces Posted: 12 Dec 2017 07:42 PM PST  Crews battling wildfires ravaging southern California for a week have managed to slow the spread of the worst of the blazes, officials said Tuesday, as residents were taking stock of the catastrophic damage. Evacuation orders were in place for threatened areas in the Santa Barbara region about 160 kilometers (100 miles) northwest of Los Angeles. In the past day or so, the blaze figure has grown by around a thousand hectares.
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| Video Shows Trump Supporters Saying 5-Year-Old Girl 'Looks Like' A Terrorist Posted: 13 Dec 2017 01:32 PM PST  In a video that went viral on Twitter, people wearing American flag-themed clothing, including one wearing a shirt supporting President Donald Trump, can be seen laughing at a Palestinian-American family who attended a pro-Palestine rally in Los Angeles on Sunday.
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| Rights group criticizes China for mass DNA collection in Xinjiang Posted: 13 Dec 2017 03:29 AM PST ![Rights group criticizes China for mass DNA collection in Xinjiang]( "Rights group criticizes China for mass DNA collection in Xinjiang") Chinese authorities have collected DNA and other biometric data from the whole population of the volatile western region of Xinjiang, Human Right Watch said on Wednesday, denouncing the campaign as a gross violation of international norms. Hundreds of people have been killed in Xinjiang in the past few years in violence between Uighurs, a mostly Muslim people, and ethnic majority Han Chinese, which Beijing blames on Islamist militants. Police are responsible for collecting pictures, fingerprints, iris scans and household registration information, while health authorities should collect DNA samples and blood type information as part of a "Physicals for All" program, the New York-based group said in a statement, citing government a document.
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| The Latest: Sessions says he's voted in Alabama Senate race Posted: 12 Dec 2017 09:18 AM PST  BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — The Latest on Alabama's U.S. Senate election (all times local):
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| 'Trump you failed to protect your nation', New York bomb suspect wrote ahead of failed attack Posted: 12 Dec 2017 06:44 AM PST  The New York bomb suspect wrote "Trump you failed to protect your nation" on Facebook before heading to a busy transit hub to set off a pipe bomb, prosecutors said on Tuesday. Akayed Ullah, from Bangladesh, has been charged with providing material support to terrorists and using weapons of mass destruction, following the failed suicide bomb attack on Monday. The 27-year-old was arrested after setting off a pipe bomb strapped to his body at one of New York's busiest commuter hubs which left four other people injured. He later told police that he carried out the attack "for the Islamic State (Isil)," according to court papers filed by federal prosecutors. Ullah posted his message to Trump on his Facebook account on the morning of the attack. Ullah's passport was found at his home covered in handwritten notes, including one that read: "O America, die in your rage." pipe bomb suspect Akayed Ullah Credit: New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission Mr Trump has said he would end immigration provisions in response to the attack. Speaking at the White House on Tuesday the president highlighted that two recent attacks in New York involved foreign nationals living in the US on immigration programs. Ullah first arrived in the US in 2011 on a visa available to those with family connections in the country. Sayfullo Saipov, the 29-year-old Uzbek immigrant who killed eight people in an attack in November, was living in the US under a diversity lottery program which gives permanent resident visas to around 50,000 applicants a year. Five people were injured in the Isil-inspired attack Mr Trump said Congress "must get involved immediately" as he vowed that the two immigration programs "will be ended". It is believed Ullah became radicalised after he began watching pro-Isil material online in 2014 and carried out his attack because he was angry over US policies in the Middle East, prosecutors said. The bomb, described by authorities as a low-tech device, exploded inside an underpass leading to three train lines and the Port Authority Bus Terminal near Times Square, the nation's busiest bus station. Police respond to a report of an explosion near Times Square on Monday, Dec. 11, 2017, in New York Credit: AP He has been charged with criminal possession of a weapon, supporting an act of terrorism and making a terrorist threat, New York Police said. US prosecutors also brought federal charges including using a weapon of mass destruction, which carry a maximum sentence of life in prison. Investigators found a nine-volt battery inside Ullah's trouser pocket, as well as fragments from a metal pipe and the remnants of what appeared to be fairy lights attached to wires. Officials said Ullah told investigators he built the bomb at his Brooklyn home a week before the attack, filling the pipe with metal screws to maximize damage. Meanwhile investigators in Bangladesh were questioning Ullah's wife - with whom he has a six-month old son - and her family, according to US officials.
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| China warns against livestreaming after 'rooftopper' falls to death Posted: 12 Dec 2017 03:49 AM PST ![China warns against livestreaming after 'rooftopper' falls to death]( "China warns against livestreaming after 'rooftopper' falls to death") A young Chinese climbing enthusiast's fatal fall from a skyscraper while making a selfie video on a $15,000 "rooftopping" dare has spurred warnings by state media against the perils of livestreaming. Wu Yongning plunged to his death from a 62-storey building in central China on Nov. 8, the day he stopped posting videos of his skyscraper exploits on Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter.
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| 14 Awesome Kitchen Gifts That Are Under $25 Posted: 12 Dec 2017 11:31 AM PST |
| Storm-hit Puerto Rico starving for tourists Posted: 12 Dec 2017 06:06 PM PST  Until Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico, Jose Figueroa did brisk business renting kayaks to tourists itching to see a lagoon that lights up by night thanks to millions of microorganisms. "We do not know if we will have any work tonight," Figueroa said.
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| PolitiFact's Lie Of The Year: Donald Trump And 'This Russia Thing' Posted: 12 Dec 2017 09:03 AM PST  PolitiFact on Tuesday revealed its 2017 "Lie of the Year," focusing on how President Donald Trump has regularly disputed whether Russia interfered in last year's election and questioned the widely held conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies, which he has frequently undermined and dismissed as "political hacks."
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| NTSB investigates Delta plane that nearly landed on taxiway Posted: 13 Dec 2017 02:25 PM PST ![NTSB investigates Delta plane that nearly landed on taxiway]( "NTSB investigates Delta plane that nearly landed on taxiway") WASHINGTON (AP) — A Delta Air Lines plane nearly landed on a taxiway that was occupied by another plane at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, federal accident investigators said Wednesday.
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| Goat Cheese And Roasted Garlic Beehive, The Best Appetizer Ever Posted: 13 Dec 2017 01:36 PM PST  You know a dish is a hit when guests come back after the party to ask if there's any left over.
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| The Latest: Homeland Security watching Alabama election Posted: 12 Dec 2017 12:03 PM PST  BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — The Latest on Alabama's U.S. Senate election (all times local):
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| Rabbi Aharon Leib Shteinman, Israeli Ultra-Orthodox Leader, Dies at 104 Posted: 12 Dec 2017 06:36 AM PST  Rabbi Aharon Leib Shteinman, the spiritual leader of Israel's non-Hassidic ultra-Orthodox Jews of European descent and one of the country's most influential and powerful rabbis, died on Tuesday. He was 104.
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| Subway bomber wounds self, three victims in New York Posted: 11 Dec 2017 06:57 PM PST ![Subway bomber wounds self, three victims in New York]( "Subway bomber wounds self, three victims in New York") A Bangladeshi man set off a homemade pipe bomb strapped to his body in a crowded New York City commuter hub during the morning rush hour on Monday, officials said, immediately calling it an attempted terrorist attack. The suspect, Akayed Ullah, 27, was taken to a hospital after suffering burns from the explosive device, which was attached to his body with Velcro and zip ties and did not fully ignite, officials said. Investigators told Reuters they believe the attack in midtown Manhattan was intended to be a suicide bombing.
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| It Turns Out Legal Weed In Colorado Hasn't Led To Kids Abusing The Drug Posted: 12 Dec 2017 12:32 PM PST  Opponents of marijuana policy reform have warned that legalizing cannabis could give way to an epidemic of young people abusing the plant.
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| Tasmanian tiger was 'doomed by poor DNA' long before it was wiped out by hunting, scientists say Posted: 12 Dec 2017 02:49 AM PST  Scientists in Australia have mapped the genetic sequence of the extinct Tasmanian tiger, raising hopes of reviving the species, whose last survivor died in a zoo in the city of Hobart in September 1936. The landmark study of the Tasmanian tiger, or thylacine, was based on examination of DNA from a female pup that had been preserved in ethanol at a museum since 1909. Andrew Pask, a researcher from the University of Melbourne, said that establishing a blueprint of the thylacine's entire genetic code was the first step in trying to bring back the species through cloning. "As this genome is one of the most complete for an extinct species, it is technically the first step to 'bringing the thylacine back'," he said. "We are still a long way off that possibility. We would need to develop a marsupial model to host the thylacine genome, like work conducted to include mammoth genes in the modern elephant." Tasmanian tigers became extinct on the Australian mainland about 3,000 years ago but survived on the island state of Tasmania. The species was hunted by European settlers who believed the animals threatened their sheep and who were encouraged by a government bounty of £1 per carcass. Tasmanian tigers or thylacines photographed at Beaumaris Zoo in Hobart in Australia's Tasmania state in 1918 Credit: AFP / TASMANIAN MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY The last known creature died in captivity in 1936, though the species was not officially declared extinct until 1982. But the genome study revealed that the sandy-coloured marsupial may have become extinct even if humans had not settled in Tasmania. The sequencing found that the thylacine had little genetic diversity, making it harder for it to survive changes in environmental conditions. "They were actually in pretty bad genetic shape and it wasn't because of their isolation on Tasmania. It was a longer-term decline in their history," Dr Pask said. "We certainly made them go extinct — there's no question about that. But we now know even if [thylacines] were still around today they'd probably be in the same genetic dire circumstances as the Tasmanian devil [a local species that is under threat]." The Tasmanian tiger has a somewhat mythical status in Australia and there is still frenzied speculation about whether it may have survived in the wild. There have been regular reported sightings, though most experts believe that the creatures that are spotted are probably feral dogs and that the thylacine is unlikely to have survived. Recent unconfirmed sightings in the state of Queensland prompted a fresh search which has so far proven fruitless. The study found that the genetic health of the thylacine became compromised about 70,000 to 120,000 years ago, an era which coincided with an ice age. The Tasmanian species became isolated when the island was cut off from the mainland due to rising seas about 14,000 years ago. On the mainland, the species became extinct due to extreme weather and drought, according to a study released earlier this year. Experts said it could take some years – and billions of dollars - to revive the species. "We still have a way to go to get the technology and to get that at a reasonable cost," Christy Hipsley, from Museums Victoria, told Channel Seven. However, Dr Pask said he believed humans have a moral obligation to try to revive the species. "I think we were responsible for hunting [the species] to extinction - in that case, we almost owe it to the species to bring it back," he said. The findings were published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution.
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| Google opens AI centre in China as competition heats up Posted: 13 Dec 2017 12:16 AM PST  Google announced Wednesday that it will open a new artificial intelligence research centre in Beijing, tapping China's talent pool in the promising technology despite the US search giant's exclusion from the country's internet. Artificial intelligence, especially machine learning, has been an area of intense focus for American tech stalwarts Google, Microsoft and Facebook, and their Chinese competitors Alibaba, Tencent and Baidu as they bid to master what many consider the future of computing.
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| 50 World Leaders Gather In Paris For Climate Summit. Trump Was Not Invited. Posted: 12 Dec 2017 01:50 AM PST  On Tuesday, the two-year anniversary of the adoption of the historic Paris Agreement, 50 world leaders planned to gather in the French capital to attend an invite-only climate change conference hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron, the World Bank and the United Nations.
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| Volkswagen releases 2019 Jetta sketches ahead of Detroit reveal Posted: 13 Dec 2017 03:15 AM PST ![Volkswagen releases 2019 Jetta sketches ahead of Detroit reveal]( "Volkswagen releases 2019 Jetta sketches ahead of Detroit reveal") It might be hard to believe for anyone outside the United States, but the Jetta is still Volkswagen's biggest-selling model in America. Despite the continuing decline of sedan sales, the seemingly unstoppable rise of the SUV, the sheer quality of the Golf, and the age of the Jetta, it really is still VW's most important model in the US. It's therefore a pretty big deal that the German automaker has now released some sketches of the all-new 2019 Jetta ahead of a full reveal at the Detroit Auto Show in January.
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| The Rock For President? Dwayne Johnson Now 'Seriously Considering' A Run Posted: 12 Dec 2017 09:18 PM PST  Could the People's Champion end up in the People's House?
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| Kentucky lawmaker won't resign; says assault claim false Posted: 12 Dec 2017 09:52 AM PST  LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A Republican state representative in Kentucky says a woman's claim that he sexually assaulted her in 2013 has no merit and he will not resign.
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