"Former IRA commander questioned in 1972 murder" New York Times November 28, 2014
DUBLIN — A former senior Irish Republican Army commander was detained for questioning in Northern Ireland Thursday in connection with a notorious 1972 murder case, his associates said.
Bobby Storey, 58, a prominent figure in the Irish nationalist political party Sinn Fein and a close confidant of its leader, Gerry Adams, was being questioned by the Police Service of Northern Ireland’s serious-crime office in Antrim. Adams was interrogated for four days in May at the same police station.
That was a mistake.
The police are investigating the murder and secret burial of Jean McConville, a widowed Belfast mother of 10. Many consider it to be among the most tragic episodes in the three decades of conflict in Northern Ireland, which cost more than 3,500 lives.
McConville’s children have given graphic accounts of the day their mother was dragged away by as many as 12 IRA members, some of whom they say they knew. IRA members suspected she was an informer for the British Army. She was killed and her body was buried on a secluded beach across the border in the Republic of Ireland; her remains were not discovered until 2003.
Adams has consistently denied any involvement in the murder of McConville, which he has called a “terrible injustice” inflicted by the IRA.
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Sorry to betray you on the coverage, readers.
Related: Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams, Unionist leaders trade insults
Also an insult:
"Scots to get new powers after rejecting separation" Associated Press November 28, 2014
LONDON — Britain’s main political parties agreed Thursday to grant Scotland new tax and spending powers, fulfilling a promise of greater autonomy made as politicians tried to persuade Scots to reject independence in a referendum.
The plans are unlikely to satisfy Scottish nationalists but may have far-reaching consequences, taking Britain toward a looser, more federated state.
On Sept. 18, 55 percent of Scottish voters opted to remain in the United Kingdom.
A commission of politicians has since been going over proposals to fulfill the promise made by anti-independence forces in the final weeks of the campaign, as polls showed rising support for separation.
A plan published Thursday would give the Scottish Parliament, established in 1999, the power to set income tax rates and keep revenue in Scottish coffers. Scotland would gain control over welfare spending.
Prime Minister David Cameron said the proposals kept a promise he had made during the referendum campaign, ‘‘that a No vote did not mean no change.’’
But John Swinney, deputy leader of Scotland’s pro-independence administration, said the powers fell short of what Scottish people wanted....
That's because the vote was stolen.
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"Prince William, Kate begin US visit" Associated Press December 08, 2014
NEW YORK — Britain’s Prince William and his wife, Kate, have a full schedule of events in the city, including a visit to the National Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum, and a basketball game between the Brooklyn Nets and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
William is set to meet with President Obama at the White House on Monday.
The prince is visiting Washington to attend a World Bank conference....
The visit will also include some events with other high-profile guests. Hillary Rodham Clinton and her daughter, Chelsea Clinton, will accompany them to a New York reception highlighting conservation efforts.
At a black-tie scholarship fund-raiser for the University of St. Andrews, guests are expected to include Tom Hanks and opera singer Renee Fleming. The ticket price went up to $10,000 per seat....
This thing is for elites, not me.
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I'm sorry I'm no longer breathing the fart mist.
"Mayor seeks drug testing for youths
BUDAPEST — The mayor of a Budapest district wants to introduce mandatory annual drug tests for children between the ages of 12 and 18, as well as for elected politicians and journalists. Mate Kocsis said the test was aimed at ‘‘those most at risk, decision-makers, and opinion-formers.” (AP)
What's in your pee?
"Chlorine gas leak sickens 19 at convention in Ill." Associated Press December 08, 2014
ROSEMONT, Ill. — Chlorine gas made several people sick and forced thousands of guests to flee from a suburban Chicago hotel early Sunday.
The guests, including many dressed in cartoonish animal costumes for an annual convention, were ushered across the street to a convention center that was hosting a dog show....
The source of the gas was apparently chlorine powder left in a ninth-floor stairwell at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare, according to the Rosemont Public Safety Department. Investigators believe the gas was created intentionally and are treating it as a criminal matter.
The hotel is hosting the 2014 Midwest FurFest convention, also called ‘‘Anthrocon,’’ where attendees celebrate animals that are anthropomorphic — meaning they have been given human characteristics — through art, literature, and performance.
That's unfair to animals.
Many of the attendees, who refer to themselves as ‘‘furries,’’ wore cartoonish animal outfits....
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Becoming more of a cartoon every day!
Related: Chicago approves $13-an-hour minimum wage
Must be why there has been a drop in violent crime.
Also see: 30 years later, disaster haunts Bhopal survivors
I'd rather you READ THIS instead.
Time for the Indian Inquisition:
Harsh conditions found in Indian mental health facilities for women
24 go blind after cataract surgery in India
Indian minister’s derogatory remark stirs uproar
New Delhi bans Uber cabs after alleged rape by driver
"The report of the rape in New Delhi over the weekend prompted the authorities to ban Uber and other online taxi services in Delhi, with the possibility of a nationwide ban as well."
Better let Deval know.
Of course, it is the Pakistanis that mistreat their women.
Related:
"On Wednesday, Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teenager shot in the head by the Taliban in 2012, and Kailash Satyarthi, an Indian campaigner for the rights of children, received their awards from the Norwegian Nobel Committee in a vast and ornate chamber at the Oslo City Hall before an audience of royals, dignitaries, family members and others.
In his speech to the ceremony, Mr. Satyarthi, speaking alternately in Hindi and in English, declared that he represented “the sound of silence, the cry of innocence, and the face of invisibility. I have come here to share the voices and dreams of our children, because they are all our children,” he said.
“There is no greater violence than to deny the dreams of our children,” he said.
“I refuse to accept that the shackles of slavery can ever be more stronger than the quest for freedom,” he added. “The single aim of my life is that every child is free to be a child.”
“We live in an age of rapid globalization,” he continued. “We are connected through high-speed Internet. We exchange goods and services in one single global market. Thousands of flights every day connect us to every corner of the globe.
“But there is one serious disconnect. It is the lack of compassion,” he said, adding: “Let us globalize compassion.”
Ms. Yousafzai, who studies at Edgbaston High School for Girls in Birmingham, England, said she had brought with her five other teenage girls from Pakistan, Nigeria and Syria, and added: “Why is it that countries which we call so strong are so powerful in creating wars but so weak in bringing peace? Why is it that giving guns is so easy but giving books is so hard? Why is it that making tanks is so easy, but building schools is so hard?”
It is in Iraq, Afghanistan, and AmerKa.
The Globe didn't want you to see that for some reason.
Related:
"In a separate development, four Pakistani intelligence officers said a top Al Qaeda-linked Pakistani Taliban leader, Omar Farooq, was possibly killed in a US drone strike. Other officials denied the strike occurred."
Never mind the protests or the polio in Pakistan.
Also see: Costa Concordia captain defiant on the stand
My interest in that item has sunk.
