Italy: Teen's father says son didn't know friend had knife

Fabrizio Natale issued a statement through a lawyer after visiting his son, Gabriel Christian Natale-Hjorth at a Rome prison, a meeting Natale described as "very tough for both" of them. Prosecutors say Elder has confessed to knifing Cerciello Rega, 35, who was stabbed 11 times and died at a hospital.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2Yz32O2

Read More

Fox News Proves Pete Buttigieg Right That All Democrats Will Be Called Socialists

REUTERSDuring Tuesday night’s Democratic presidential primary debate, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg declared that it is time for Democrats to “stop worrying about what the Republicans will say” because no matter what agenda they embrace, “they’re going to say we’re a bunch of crazy socialists.”Following the debate, a number of conservatives and Republicans on Fox airwaves have already gone out of their way to prove the mayor right.Discussing the debate Tuesday evening on The Ingraham Angle, Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani suggested that former Vice President Joe Biden—who is participating in Wednesday’s debate— may have gotten a boost from the debate before, of course, painting the Democratic field as socialist.“I think Biden probably gains tonight if he can have a decent performance tomorrow night,” he told host Laura Ingraham. “He is the one that naturally people would think of as a moderate, but Biden has been running to pretend that he can out-socialist all of them.”The following hour, Fox News anchor Shannon Bream welcomed Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel to weigh in on the debate. It didn’t take long for the RNC head to invoke socialism.“What you saw from the Democrats tonight is the total socialist plan, takeover of all of our health care with this proposal from Medicare for All,” she groused. “They didn’t know how to pay for it. They were dishonest about the fact that it was would raise taxes on every single American.”The following morning, meanwhile, Fox Business Network anchor Stuart Varney kicked things off on Varney and Co. by mockingly brushing off the notion that there were any centrist candidates on the stage the night before.“Now, the political story of the day, very obviously, the debates,” he declared. “The socialists, Sens. Warren and Sanders, emerged as the clear front-runners, at least for last night. So-called moderates, Klobuchar, Mayor Pete, Delaney, Bullock and Ryan, had very little impact. Beto all but disappeared. Last night, socialism rules!”Later on in the program, Fox News contributor Doug Schoen agreed with Varney that the party is “moving hard left and socialists rule the day,” adding that self-described Democrats like himself traditionally “don’t share socialist principles” and he can’t support Sanders, Warren or “their ilk.”The most glaring example, however, was a Wednesday morning interview with Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) during Fox News’ America’s Newsroom.Speaking with anchor Bill Hemmer, Kennedy fully rejected any notion that Tuesday’s debate was between progressives and moderates before fully proving Buttigieg’s prophecy correct.“I would remind you that the lesser of two socialists is still a socialist,” the Republican senator exclaimed. “And what I heard last night even from the so-called less liberal candidates—I’m not impugning their integrity—even from the less liberal candidates, I heard a job-killing, soul-crushing socialist agenda.”He added: “The only thing missing was the Cuban national anthem.”Hemmer, meanwhile, ended the brief segment by joking with the Republican lawmaker: “I don’t know how it played in Havana,” he said with a smile. “But I appreciate you coming back today.”There was one die-hard Fox News viewer who was thrilled over Kennedy’s on-air remarks, making sure to amplify them immediately.“‘The lesser of two Socialists is still a Socialist!’ Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana,” President Trump tweeted minutes after Kennedy’s appearance.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2yn0VlR

Read More

Trump renews attack on black congressman Elijah Cummings and says he should ‘investigate himself’

Donald Trump has attacked a black US congressman about the city of Baltimore for the second time in less than a week.Elijah Cummings, whose congressional district covers approximately half of the Maryland city, should use his role as House Oversight Committee chairman to “investigate himself”, the US president claimed. Billions of dollars sent to tackle crime and boost Baltimore’s economy had been “stolen or wasted”, Mr Trump tweeted. He wrote that the city’s “numbers are the worst in the United States on Crime and the Economy.”He added: “Billions of dollars have been pumped in over the years, but to no avail. The money was stolen or wasted. Ask Elijah Cummings where it went. He should investigate himself with his Oversight Committee!”Mr Trump was criticised over the weekend for saying the congressman’s majority-black district in the Baltimore area was a “rodent infested mess” where “no human being would want to live”.But when he was accused of race-baiting, the president insisted there was nothing racist about his comments.Instead, he accused Mr Cummings of racism.“If racist Elijah Cummings would focus more of his energy on helping the good people of his district, and Baltimore itself, perhaps progress could be made in fixing the mess that he has helped to create over many years of incompetent leadership,” he tweeted. He added: “His radical ‘oversight’ is a joke!”The remarks followed a weekend of attacks against Mr Cummings, who is leading number of congressional investigations into Mr Trump and his administration.Mr Trump claimed that the congressman’s district, which includes Johns Hopkins Hospital, the Social Security Administration and the national headquarters of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, is “considered the worst run and most dangerous anywhere in the United States”.He later accused rival Democrats of trying to “play the race card”.He tweeted: “There is nothing racist in stating plainly what most people already know, that Elijah Cummings has done a terrible job for the people of his district, and of Baltimore itself.“Dems always play the race card when they are unable to win with facts. Shame!”Mr Trump has been repeatedly accused of racism in recent weeks after he attacked four Democratic congresswomen of colour known as “the squad”. He said Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan should leave the US “right now”. He added that if they “hate our country” they can go back to their “broken and crime-infested” countries.All four Democrats are American citizens and only Ms Omar, who arrived in the US from Somalia at the age of seven, was not born in the US. He has also repeatedly attacked Mr Cummings. Earlier this week, he tweeted: “If the Democrats are going to defend the Radical Left ‘Squad’ and King Elijah’s Baltimore Fail, it will be a long road to 2020.”

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/332DJXW

Read More

Shelter-in-place issued for areas west of Exxon plant fire in Baytown and south of 330 - 12newsnow.com KBMT-KJAC

1. Shelter-in-place issued for areas west of Exxon plant fire in Baytown and south of 330  12newsnow.com KBMT-KJAC
2. 6 injured in explosion, fire at Houston-area ExxonMobil refinery, reports say  Fox News
3. Fire contained at ExxonMobil plant in Baytown; 37 injured in blast  KPRC Click2Houston
4. Worker describes moment when fire started at Baytown Exxon Mobil plant  Houston Chronicle
5. 66 injured in ExxonMobil plant fire in Baytown | Shelter-in-place order lifted  KTRK-TV
6. View full coverage on Google News

from Top stories - Google News https://ift.tt/2Yyo1Rc

Read More

Gilroy Shooting Raises Anxieties About Security At Outside Lands - SFist

1. Gilroy Shooting Raises Anxieties About Security At Outside Lands  SFist
2. Clues to Gilroy shooting found in remote Nevada town: Ammo, gas mask, extremist writings  Los Angeles Times
3. Garlic Festival Band Took Cover Under Stage in Shooting  Inside Edition
4. How very American: a mass shooting at the Gilroy Garlic Fesitval  Los Angeles Times
5. Security concerns for big Bay Area events grow amid Gilroy shooting  KRON4
6. View full coverage on Google News

from Top stories - Google News https://ift.tt/2YrByxZ

Read More

Baltimore murder rate worse than Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, driving asylum surge - Washington Examiner

Baltimore murder rate worse than Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, driving asylum surge  Washington Examiner

The Baltimore murder rate is higher than the three Central American nations driving the border surge by migrants seeking to flee crime and murder back home.

from Top stories - Google News https://ift.tt/2LT4QiR

Read More

Woodstock 50 festival canceled - CNN

1. Woodstock 50 festival canceled  CNN
2. Woodstock 50 Has Officially Been Canceled  TMZ
3. Woodstock 50 Officially Canceled  CBS New York
4. Woodstock 50 Officially Off  Variety
5. Woodstock 50 Is Officially Canceled  Pitchfork
6. View full coverage on Google News

from Top stories - Google News https://ift.tt/2KdOXQZ

Read More

U.S. will extend sanctions waivers for Iran nuclear programs: Bolton

The United States will renew sanctions waivers for Iranian nuclear programs that allow Russia, China and European countries to continue their civilian nuclear cooperation with Tehran, White House national security adviser John Bolton said on Wednesday.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2OuzOA4

Read More

North Korean missile tests didn't violate Kim pledge to Trump: Bolton

U.S. national security adviser John Bolton said on Wednesday that Pyongyang's recent missile tests do not violate a pledge that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made to President Donald Trump, but he questioned when working-level talks on denuclearization would begin.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2YnZovn

Read More

South Korea detains North Korean man crossing the DMZ

The South Korean military detained a North Korean man who crossed the heavily fortified demilitarized zone (DMZ) that separates the two countries, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JSC) said on Thursday.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2ZnWDq5

Read More

'We're in pain': Family remembers Keyla Salazar, teen killed in Gilroy Garlic Festival shooting

Family and friends held a vigil for Keyla Salazar Tuesday evening, lamenting how a mass shooting at the Gilroy Garlic Festival ended her life at 13.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2YrcwuM

Read More

The 2 Canadian teen fugitives were searched at an alcohol checkpoint the day they were charged with murder, but authorities let them go

Tataskweyak Cree Nation checkpoint guards stopped the pair as they entered an alcohol free county, but let them pass after no contraband was found.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/3347tUA

Read More

Escape bids by rebel princesses throw spotlight on UAE rights

Princess Haya, who is battling her husband Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al-Maktoum in a UK court, is the third princess who has sought to escape the Gulf emirate in recent years. Activists say the attempts by Haya and two of Sheikh Mohammed's daughters to escape the United Arab Emirates (UAE) throw a harsh spotlight on the country's rights record, even as it tries to present a glitzy and modern image to the West. In 2000, Sheikha Shamsa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum tried to escape the family's entourage during a holiday in England, but was reportedly picked up two months later and forcibly returned to Dubai.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2K9omWp

Read More

Marianne Williamson explains the need for slavery reparations: 'A debt that is owed'

The self-help author helped herself Tuesday with a stirring answer on the question of slavery reparations.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2ZmoMOm

Read More

Mom of slain Navajo girl urges tribes to use Amber Alerts

The mother of a Navajo girl who was kidnapped and killed in 2016 urged tribal officials and children's advocates Tuesday to take advantage of tools and funding under a law that expands access to the nation's Amber Alert system. Pamela Foster spoke during a training at Isleta Pueblo, south of Albuquerque, for tribes seeking to implement the alert system. Despite a 2007 pilot project, it was not in place on the Navajo Nation when her daughter Ashlynne Mike was abducted near Shiprock, a town in northeast New Mexico.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2YwH4ek

Read More

Tim Ryan: Democrats will 'lose 48 states' on a 'Medicare for All' platform

Ryan called the "Medicare for All" proposals a "potential disaster" for the party.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2Mu5kf6

Read More

3-year-old Chinese boy falls from six stories, gets saved by blanket-wielding crowd below

A three-year-old boy who fell from the sixth floor of a building on Monday wassaved after a crowd of bystanders used a blanket to catch him, China's CCTVreported

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/32ZfdY1

Read More

‘Disgruntled’ Employee Kills Two Co-Workers Inside Mississippi Walmart: Police

Joe Raedle/Getty ImagesA “disgruntled employee” at a Mississippi Walmart killed two co-workers and wounded a police officer in a deadly Tuesday shootout inside the superstore, authorities said.Martez Abram, 39, a recently-terminated employee of the Southaven store, was charged with two counts of murder Tuesday afternoon, DeSoto County District Attorney John Champion said. The deadly incident began around 6:30 a.m., when Southaven police responded to reports of an active shooter at a Walmart near the Tennessee border. Abram “senselessly murdered” two store employees and wounded an officer before he was injured and apprehended, authorities said. The victims have been identified as Anthony Brown, 40, and Brandon Gales, 38, the DeSoto County Coroner’s Office confirmed to The Daily Beast. “These people were doing the same thing you and I do everyday, showing up to work in an attempt to provide for their families, then became victims of a senseless violent act,” Moore told reporters at a Tuesday press conference. Bernie Sanders Confronts Walmart Over ‘Starvation Wages’ at Shareholder MeetingSouthaven Mayor Darren Musselwhite told reporters that Abram, who is currently in surgery at Regional Medical Center, was a former “disgruntled employee who had a personal grievance with employer.” Champion said Abram was terminated on Monday after showing another employee a knife in his belt. While the prosecutor did confirm that authorities are reviewing video evidence of the incident, he did not provide further details. Authorities said there were 60 employees inside the megastore, which is about 13 miles from Memphis, Tenn., when the gunfire started early Tuesday. When officers arrived, they found Abram in the parking lot and exchanged fire, Moore said.“One of our officers was shot at this time. He was saved by his vest," Moore said, adding that the officer was taken to another nearby hospital. “At this point, Abram was engaged by another officer. He was struck twice by gunfire from our officer. He was taken into custody.”6-Year-Old Boy Among 3 Killed at Gilroy Garlic Festival Mass ShootingGales’ father told local station FOX13 that the father of three was a Walmart employee for almost over 15 years and was recently promoted to department manager. Brown, a father of two and Mississippi native, was the store manager, his family told the local news station. Phil Cox,  a 70-year-old Walmart customer, told NBC News he had just left the store when he heard gunshots near him. Turning around, Cox said he saw a man sprinting into the store. “We were within milliseconds of being very close to him, coming right at him, and maybe being in the line of fire,” Cox said. “Now that we’ve had some time to think about it, it’s alarming we were that close.”Minnesota Father Charged With Murder After Setting House Fire That Killed Daughter: ProsecutorsRead more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2LR8VUW

Read More

Ancestry will let you search online for relatives who were displaced by the Holocaust

Ancestry is digitizing millions of Holocaust persecution records and making them searchable online for free.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2KeZECH

Read More

Taking Nasa's space buggies for a spin

BBC Click's Spencer Kelly takes a ride in some in some of Nasa's latest vehicles.

from BBC News - Technology https://ift.tt/2STBh1q

Read More

Virginia black caucus, state Democrats boycott commemorative events over Trump's attendance - CNN

1. Virginia black caucus, state Democrats boycott commemorative events over Trump's attendance  CNN
2. President Trump Speaks At Ceremony Commemorating 400th Anniversary Of Jamestown Colony  RealClearPolitics
3. Jamestown ceremony marks birth of democracy in America; black Va. legislators skip because of Trump  The Washington Post
4. Celebrating American Democracy  The Wall Street Journal
5. Virginia state lawmaker protests Trump's 'go back' attacks during speech  CNN
6. View full coverage on Google News

from Top stories - Google News https://ift.tt/2GwZqWH

Read More

California woman gives birth to two infants behind local business, resulting in the death of one: police - Fox News

California woman gives birth to two infants behind local business, resulting in the death of one: police  Fox News

A California woman is in custody after police say she abandoned two newborns behind a local business after appearing to give birth to them on the sidewalk, ...

View full coverage on Google News

from Top stories - Google News https://ift.tt/32YVYxv

Read More

Astros deal for Greinke in Deadline stunner - MLB.com

1. Astros deal for Greinke in Deadline stunner  MLB.com
2. Cubs trade catcher Maldonado to Astros for Kemp  ESPN
3. Astros Acquire Martin Maldonado For Tony Kemp  MLB Trade Rumors
4. Game thread 110, July 31st, 2019, 6:10 CDT. Astros vs Indians  The Crawfish Boxes
5. Astros acquire catcher Martín Maldonado from Cubs  Yahoo Sports
6. View full coverage on Google News

from Top stories - Google News https://ift.tt/2GFDB7r

Read More

Trump 'rodent' tweets ring true at Kushner-owned apartments

Davon Jones doesn't have to look far to see the irony in President Donald Trump's tweets that Baltimore is a "rat and rodent infested mess." His apartment owned by the president's son-in-law has been invaded by mice since he moved in a year ago. Jared Kushner's family real estate firm owns thousands of apartments and townhomes in the Baltimore area, and some have been criticized for the same kind of disrepair and neglect that the president has accused local leaders of failing to address. James says he sees a massive contradiction in Trump's much-publicized tweets laying the blame for Baltimore's poverty, crime and rodent problems on frequent antagonist Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/313QEXY

Read More

Inmates behind Brazil deadly prison riot transferred: official

Forty-six inmates involved in one of Brazil's deadliest prison riots were being transferred to other jails Tuesday, an official said. At least 57 people were killed on Monday when fighting broke out between rival drug gang factions in the Altamira Regional Recovery Centre in the northern state of Para. Sixteen were decapitated in the hours-long battle, but most died in a fire that engulfed part of the overcrowded facility that used converted shipping containers to house some of the inmates.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/32TmYhU

Read More

How to Stop Iran’s Maritime Misadventures

(Bloomberg Opinion) -- European nations, alarmed by Iran’s capture of a British oil tanker, are mounting a response to protect their commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and Persian Gulf. The Royal Navy has started to escort British ships, and a plan for a European naval mission has been endorsed by Denmark, France and Italy.It’s a promising start. But effectively curbing Iran’s misbehavior and safeguarding ships in the region will require a more ambitious —and truly international — effort. Most important, it needs to involve the U.S. Navy.The Europeans are wary of combining their fleets with a nearby American operation for fear of being identified with President Donald Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran. France’s foreign minister says a separate effort is needed to reduce tensions and “create the conditions for inclusive regional talks on maritime security.”This is both naïve and shortsighted. A disjointed naval effort increases the likelihood of accidents and miscalculations. It might leave open gaps that could be exploited by the marauding speedboats of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. And it creates unnecessary quandaries for ship captains: If, say, an American tanker with British nationals aboard were attacked while under U.S. Navy protection, would the HMS Duncan not respond to a call for assistance, for fear its intentions might be misconstrued by the Iranian regime?QuicktakeThe World’s Oil FlashpointFar better to present a united front. By fully joining their resources, the Americans and Europeans would be better able to police sea lanes and respond to provocations. In fact, they should be working together to recruit other countries — India, for instance — into a unified coalition, akin to the multinational task force formed to counter Somali pirates a decade ago. That effort, first headed by the U.S., drastically reduced attacks, helped strengthen local navies and coast guards, and safeguarded commercial traffic and humanitarian missions.Mounting such a response in the Gulf may sound politically difficult. But Europe should remember that the capture of the British ship, the Stena Impero, had essentially nothing to do with the nuclear deal: It was retaliation for the British Navy’s seizure of a vessel carrying Iranian crude to Syria, in contravention of European Union sanctions. Iran should’ve contested the seizure through legal processes. Instead, it’s holding the British ship hostage and demanding as ransom the release of its own tanker — and the freedom to keep sending oil to Syria, in support of the dictator Bashar al-Assad.It’s yet another reminder of how Iran’s misconduct threatens the entire region, and part of a disturbing pattern. In recent weeks, the regime has attacked ships and oil installations, shot down an American drone, restarted its uranium enrichment program, and even test-fired a ballistic missile, all while refusing good-faith efforts at mediation. It’s lashing out in the hopes that it can intimidate the world into doing what it wants.The U.S. and Europe shouldn’t give in to this kind of aggression. They should instead be united in opposing it. The waters of the Persian Gulf would be a good place to start.—Editors: Bobby Ghosh, Timothy Lavin.To contact the senior editor responsible for Bloomberg Opinion’s editorials: David Shipley at davidshipley@bloomberg.net, .Editorials are written by the Bloomberg Opinion editorial board.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2yoUWwG

Read More

'Passive aggression. It's a lifestyle': Ocasio-Cortez responds to a GOP congressional critic

Rep. Jody Hice, R-Ga., accused Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of having "deliberately misled the American people" about the treatment of migrants in detention.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2K7xF9r

Read More

Motive for slayings at California festival still unclear two days later

California police on Tuesday were still trying to determine why a teenager went on a shooting rampage over the weekend at a popular food festival south of San Jose, killing a 6-year-old boy, a 13-year-old girl and a man in his 20s. The police have since obtained search warrants for a home in Gilroy associated with the suspect and the car they believe he drove to the festival, a decades-old annual event celebrating the produce farmed in the countryside of California's Santa Clara Valley.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2YeJV0x

Read More

Pelosi, Schumer Stand Firm in Opposing Impeachment

Senator Chuck Schumer said Tuesday that he stands with House speaker Nancy Pelosi in opposition to impeachment proceedings despite pressure from the caucus to move forward.“I believe that . . . Speaker Pelosi is handling this appropriately,” Schumer said in reference to Pelosi's strategy of encouraging Democratic House committee chairmen to continue their probes into President Trump and his campaign but hold off on impeachment.After former special counsel Robert Mueller's testimony to Congress last week, Pelosi stated that the House does not yet have the evidence necessary to open an impeachment inquiry. “We will proceed when we have what we need to proceed,” she said. “Not one day sooner.”Meanwhile, two members of Senate Democratic leadership have come out in favor of proceeding with impeachment. Assistant Democratic Leader Patty Murray of Washington called for an impeachment inquiry “to determine whether the president’s actions necessitate impeachment,” and Senator Debbie Stabenow, the chair of the Senate Democratic Policy Committee, on Monday said she agreed.Minorities of the Democratic caucuses in both chambers support spearheading the impeachment process. Only twelve Democratic senators say they back impeachment, while over 100 but still fewer than half of the 235 Democratic House members agree.Despite consistent demands to begin the impeachment process against Trump among some Democratic lawmakers and voters, the movement has been largely kept at bay thanks to Pelosi.“I’m not for impeachment,” the speaker said in March. “Impeachment is so divisive to the country that unless there’s something so compelling and overwhelming and bipartisan, I don’t think we should go down that path, because it divides the country."

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2YtAsNT

Read More

Water meant for Puerto Rican hurricane victims dumped on farmland

Tens of thousands of water bottles destined for desperate Puerto Ricans after devastating back-to-back hurricanes slammed into the US island territory remain unopened on farmland almost two years later, emergency aid officials confirmed Monday. Aerial images captured by AFP show a sea of water bottles, packaged into massive bundles, heaped on what appears to be a private estate in the Higuillar neighborhood in Dorado, 25 miles (40 kilometers) west of San Juan. A spokesman for the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) confirmed it had provided the water bottles as part of relief efforts for Hurricane Maria, which occurred in September 2017.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2KgPyRZ

Read More

A 33-year-old woman who used to work for Amazon is the suspect in the massive Capital One hack — meet Paige Thompson

Thompson is accused of stealing data from millions of Capital One customers, including Social Security numbers and linked bank accounts.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2GFsfjQ

Read More

Whither Evangelical Purity Culture? Thoughts on the Legacy of a Lost Pastor

If you don’t live in Evangelical-world, you probably missed this news. An influential Evangelical author and pastor named Joshua Harris announced on Saturday that he was in the process of “deconstruction.” His statement was clear. “By all the measurements I have for defining a Christian,” he said, “I am not a Christian.” He apologized to the LGBT community for not affirming gay marriage and for the ways that his writing and speaking “contributed to a culture of exclusion and bigotry.”For Christians, it’s a sad statement, but it’s also full of real integrity. Rather than try to jam Christianity into his evolving worldview, he respects orthodoxy by opting out.Harris burst into prominence as a young Christian with every author’s dream: a giant, influential first-book bestseller. It was called I Kissed Dating Goodbye, and it sold almost a million copies. If anything, however, the sales numbers understated its influence. It was part of the foundation of Evangelical “purity culture,” and it revolutionized parenting and dating for countless Christian parents and families.I remember it well. I was a youth pastor for a few memorable months at the height of the courtship craze. The year was 1998, I was a youth volunteer at a small church in Georgetown, Ky., when our youth pastor left. Until we could find a new youth pastor, I was in charge. I preached the youth service every week, I led the youth Sunday school, and I led the youth prayer groups. I was also a commercial litigator in a big law firm, and suddenly I had two full-time jobs. It was one of the best times of my life.But we also had a problem. The youth ministry had gone all-in on purity culture. The previous youth pastor had even declared “no date ’98,” placing a moratorium on every kid in the youth group: not even a single date for the entire year. When it came to relationships, it would be “courtship” (tersely defined as parental-supervised visits and outings) or nothing.This wasn’t wanton repression or cruelty. Many parents had entered adulthood wounded by past broken relationships. They regretted the mistakes of their youth and desperately wanted their kids to avoid similar heartbreak. Also — and this is crucial for understanding purity culture — they fervently believed in a specific earthly reward for their child’s youthful obedience. Courtship represented the best method of ensuring a healthy, sexually vibrant marriage to a faithful spouse.This is what writer Katelyn Beaty called the “sexual prosperity gospel,” an “if/then” transactional relationship with God that manufactures a series of promises from scripture and then creates a form of Christian entitlement and expectation. “I did what you asked, Lord, now may I see my reward?”Beaty’s critique is well taken, and it’s certainly true that purity culture built a series of (often wildly unrealistic) expectations about the marriage relationship that awaited kids who courted. But I think it did something even darker — in its effect (if not its intent), it reversed the gospel message, teaching Christian kids that they risked being defined by their sins, not by Christ.It worked like this — sexual sin stained young persons, even if Christ forgave them. They would walk into marriage diminished in some crucial ways. The white dress, fundamentally, was a lie. And the message wasn’t confined to sexuality. Did you drink? Did you smoke a joint? Each one of those things altered a person’s self-definition. They were no longer “pure.” They could never be “pure” again.All too many times, I saw the despair. A young person would come to me and say, “I screwed up.” They would really mean, “I’m ruined.” Their storybook dreams were dead. A 17-year-old with (God willing) 70 years of life ahead of him would approach me carrying the awful burden of thinking that he had defined his life forever. He was no longer — and never would be — the person he wanted to be.Sometimes the despair would trigger wild rebellion. If they’re “ruined,” then why should they care about obedience? There are two states of being — virgin or not, teetotaler or not — and if you’re not, then you might as well indulge yourself. Other times the despair would trigger constant, nagging guilt and regret. A girl would walk down the aisle to marry a man who loved God and loved her, and she’d feel a shadow on her soul.In point of fact, the gospel message rests first on bad news, then on indescribably good news. The bad news is simple: You were never “pure.” It’s not as if sex or drink or drugs represent the demarcation line between righteous and unrighteous. They are not and were never the “special” sins that created particularly acute separation from God. Yes, they could have profound earthly consequences, but they did not create unique spiritual separation.The indescribably good news is that from the moment of the confession of faith, believers are not defined by their sin. They’re not defined even by their own meager virtues. They’re defined by Christ. Moreover, they find that “for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” This does not by any stretch mean that past sin wasn’t sin — one of my best friends is an eleven-years-sober addict who did dreadful things during his worst days — but it does mean that their past now gives them a unique ability to reach suffering people. Their terrible stories and past pain have been redeemed, transformed into instruments of grace and mercy.One of my first acts as youth pastor was to lift the ban on dating. Ending legalism is not the same thing as sanctioning sin, and I have no idea if there was more or less extramarital sex as a result of the dating ban or the purity rings. But it was incumbent upon me — in the limited time that I had in leadership — to tell the truth, and the truth was that legalism is its own kind of sin. To create burdens where Christ did not is an act of arrogance. It’s deeply harmful. And, sadly, it’s a way of life in all too many Christian churches.Harris has famously repented of his past legalism, and that makes his departure from the faith particularly poignant. He helped define young people by their sin, and then he left. He separated from his wife, and he rejected Christianity itself. He is like an inadvertent arsonist, who flees the burning house rather than helping fight the fire he helped ignite. I’m sad to see him go. I’m sadder still to see the pain he caused when he was present.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2YkYrUB

Read More

North Korean projectiles were ballistic missiles, flew about 250 km: South Korea

The unidentified projectiles launched by North Korea early on Wednesday were ballistic missiles that flew about 250 km (155 miles), South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2MlUjMK

Read More

California has strict gun laws. Here's how the Gilroy gunman evaded them

US lawmakers renew calls for federal gun reform after shooter purchased weapon legally in NevadaPolice officers escort people from Christmas Hill Park following the shooting. Photograph: Noah Berger/APCalifornia has some of the most stringent gun laws in the country, including a ban on the type of rifle that a shooter used to kill three and wound 15 at the garlic food festival in Gilroy on Sunday.But the gunman had legally purchased the “assault-type rifle”, in the style of an AK-47, from the neighboring state Nevada on 9 July before carrying it illegally over state lines into California, highlighting what some gun control advocates say is a loophole in the way laws operate, state by state.The suspect, 19, opened fire in the last hours of the three-day garlic festival, a beloved annual tradition that draws thousands of attendees of all ages. He injured 15 people and killed three – a six-year-old boy, a 13-year-old girl and a man in his 20s – before being shot dead by police officers, who rushed him within a minute of bullets being heard.> Just days ago, a California judge upheld that state’s assault weapons ban. > > Yesterday, a murderer who acquired an assault weapon legally in Nevada shot more than a dozen people in Gilroy in less than one minute. THIS is why we need a national ban. NoRAhttps://t.co/CCVonmecqL> > — NoRA (@NoRA4USA) July 29, 2019The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence ranks California first in the nation for having the strongest gun laws.California raised the minimum age to purchase a rifle to 21 in 2018. And last week, a federal judge upheld California’s ban on owning, manufacturing or selling semiautomatic rifles and so-called “bullet buttons”, rifle attachments that allow shooters to reload more quickly. The state has banned semi-automatic weapons for 20 years. The bullet button ban dates from 2016.Nevada, on the other hand, is ranked 25th in the Giffords Center’s ranking.Big Mikes Gun and Ammo, the Nevada store where the gunman bought his weapon, said in a statement on its Facebook page that the shooter had bought the rifle off of the store’s internet page.“The reach of the California law ends at our border,” California’s attorney general, Xavier Becerra, told the San Francisco Chronicle, “and so we cannot control what other states do, and that’s what makes it so tough. We may have progressive gun laws, but if other states don’t match us, we have to rely on the ability to catch” the person.Several lawmakers have pointed at Sunday’s shooting to once again call for a federal law that would close this cross-state loophole.“The gun used by the Gilroy shooter was an AK-47 type assault rifle. This weapon is illegal to buy or possess in California, which appears to be why the shooter crossed into Nevada to buy the gun,” said Senator Dianne Feinstein in a statement. “The assault weapons ban legislation I introduced earlier this year would have prevented that sale from happening. It’s time for Congress to debate this bill and vote on it.”Feinstein continued: “There are other bills out there that deserve to see the light of day including bills to require comprehensive background checks, help establish extreme-risk laws, prohibit the purchase of high-capacity magazines and eliminate loopholes that allow prohibited individuals [to acquire] guns.”“This loss cannot be in vain,” tweeted the California congresswoman Jackie Speier early Monday.Speier is looking to close the gap, as one of 190 members of the House who co-sponsored a bill that would ban the import, sale, manufacturing or possession of semiautomatic assault weapons and large capacity ammunition feeding devices on the federal level.> I worked to pass the state law banning assault weapons in the 90’s. We need to buy back the ones still in people’s possession & throw the book at those who defy the law! We must also pass H.R. 1296, the Assault Weapons Ban, to ban military-style assault weapons across the U.S.> > — Jackie Speier (@RepSpeier) July 29, 2019The California representative Eric Swalwell, who campaigned briefly for the Democratic 2020 presidential nomination and was the only one of two dozen candidates to focus his platform primarily on stronger gun control, was another one of the bill’s co-sponsors.> My heart breaks for all of our Bay Area neighbors who attended the GilroyGarlicFestival. We need gun reform and we need it now. EnoughIsEnough> > — Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) July 29, 2019Senator Kamala Harris, who represents California, has called for a renewal of a federal assault weapons ban as well. She has stated that should she be elected, she will give Congress 100 days to take legislative action on gun violence, and if lawmakers cannot reach a consensus, she will take executive action.> Simply horrific. I'm grateful to the first responders who are on the scene in Gilroy, and my thoughts are with that community tonight. Our country has a gun violence epidemic that we cannot tolerate. https://t.co/WqWNxGAQnA> > — Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) July 29, 2019The gun laws differ so vastly from state to state that a small California city located near the Nevada and Arizona borders voted this month to ask state legislators to allow gun owners from other states to carry registered firearms in the town.> Our thoughts are with the families of those lost last night in Gilroy, CA, as well as the survivors facing a tough road ahead. But thoughts are not enough — action must be taken to EndGunViolence. Every day the Senate refuses to act is a stain on the conscience of our nation.> > — Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) July 29, 2019

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2SQ87QF

Read More

Death toll in Brazil prison massacre rises to 57 with over a dozen decapitated

SAO PAULO/RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - A bloody clash between two prison gangs on Monday left at least 57 inmates dead with 16 of them decapitated, authorities in the state of Para said, the latest deadly clash as Brazil's government struggles to control the country's overcrowded jails. Prisoners belonging to the Comando Classe A gang set fire to a cell containing inmates from the rival Comando Vermelho, or Red Command, gang, Para's state government said in a statement. "It was a targeted act," state prison director Jarbas Vasconcelos said in the statement, adding there was no prior intelligence that suggested an attack would take place.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2Ms373F

Read More

Police investigate after man says he found baby in freezer

A St. Louis man says a box that had been in his mother's freezer for decades contained the mummified remains of a newborn baby, which he discovered while cleaning out her home after she died. Adam Smith told St. Louis media outlets that he opened the cardboard box Sunday expecting to find something like the top of his mother's first wedding cake or money because she never had a bank account. St. Louis police confirmed that they are investigating a "suspicious death" involving an "unknown infant" found inside the home and that autopsy results were pending.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2Khg65l

Read More

Andrew Yang's campaign blasted the DNC for not allowing him to use 2 polls from same source for fall Democratic debates

The Yang campaign was unhappy the DNC only let them use either an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll or an NBC/SurveyMonkey poll but not both.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2yB0O6p

Read More

'Stay inside and lock your doors': Tiny Canadian village on lockdown as teenage murder spree suspects spotted scavenging for food

A massive police manhunt has been launched in a remote part of northern Canada for a pair of teenager double murder suspects.The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has been chasing Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18, for weeks since the pair were connected to two separate killings in British Columbia earlier this month.The teenagers have been tracked in a series of stolen cars as they have travelled thousands of miles across Canada, from its Pacific coast in the west all to the way east to rural Manitoba.Police helicopters, a plane, drones, dog units and armed officers have flooded the area around York Landing, a small village in remote northern Manitoba, where a local indigenous neighbourhood watch group had spotted the duo.Officers tweeted residents in York Landing should stay inside and lock all their doors and windows while the heavy police presence searched their community.James Favel from the Bear Clan Patrol, the First Nations group which reported the sighting, said some of his volunteers spotted two young men who matched the description of Mr McLeod and Mr Schmegelsky.The pair immediately stood out in the small, close-knit village while scavenging for food near a dump and ran away as soon as they realised they had been seen, he added.RCMP units had already been searching the nearby town of Gillam and believe the pair have been cornered in this region of rural Manitoba.But the intense police presence was leaving its mark on the locals. “Up here, all the towns and communities, they look like ghost towns,” said Wade Taylor, another volunteer with the Bear Clan Patrol.“Like, everyone’s inside. There’s a high level of stress, anxiety and fearfulness because they’re being kept in their houses.“Some of the people, you can tell by their voice that they’re almost at the point of breaking down crying. You could say it’s traumatic.”The manhunt saga began on 12 July when Mr McLeod and Mr Schmegelsky, childhood friends, left their home in Port Alberni on Vancouver Island and travelled 1,500 miles north to Whitehorse, in the Yukon, to look for work.But on 15 July police discovered the bodies of a young couple near Liard Hot Springs, back in British Columbia and the RCMP has said the teenagers are suspects in the case and wanted for questioning.A few days later a burnt-out truck driven by the pair was discovered, along with the body of Leonard Dyck. Mr McLeod and Mr Schmegelsky have been charged with his murder and chased across Canada by the RCMP ever since.The duo are believed to be armed and the public has been warned not to approach them.The father of Mr Schmegelsky has told reporters he believes his son is on a “suicide mission” and expects him to eventually die in a confrontation with the police. “A normal child doesn’t travel across the country killing people,” he said. “A child in some very serious pain does.”

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2JZskAT

Read More

Afghan soldier killed two US troops: official

An Afghan soldier was responsible for the killing of two American troops a day earlier, an official told AFP Tuesday, in what appears to be the latest example of an insider attack. The US military on Monday said two of its troops had been killed in action in Afghanistan, but did not provide any additional details, pending notification of next of kin. Mohammad Qasam, a deputy police chief in Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan, said the attack took place at an Afghan army base during a visit by US forces.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2Ors6GO

Read More

Joint Chiefs nominee denies assault allegations, enlists key support

Sen. Martha McSally — a retired Air Force pilot who revealed this year that she was raped by a superior officer — came out with a staunch defense of Air Force Gen. John Hyten.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2Yve2zR

Read More

The president is right about Baltimore. Are Democrats really prepared to defend failure?

Baltimore is one of the least livable, most dangerous cities in America. It's not racist to point that out.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2Ooyv5E

Read More

3 dead, including 2 children, and at least 12 hurt: What we know about Gilroy Garlic Festival shooting

A gunman opened fire at the annual Gilroy Garlic Festival on Sunday killing three people and injuring at least 12 others. Here's what we know.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/32ZySXN

Read More

Ben Carson says President Trump would be happy to work with Elijah Cummings to bring relief to Baltimore

HUD Secretary Ben Carson praises Trump administration efforts to rehabilitate America's distressed areas.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/315OuqC

Read More

A teacher dug up a 2.12-carat diamond — and learned how much gems are really worth - Houston Chronicle

1. A teacher dug up a 2.12-carat diamond — and learned how much gems are really worth  Houston Chronicle
2. Nebraska teacher finds largest diamond of 2019 in Arkansas’ Crater of Diamonds State Park  New York Daily News
3. Nebraska Teacher Finds 2.12-Carat Diamond in Arkansas State Park While on Family Vacation  PEOPLE.com
4. Man finds 2.12-carat diamond on family vacation to Crater of Diamonds State Park  ABC News
5. View full coverage on Google News

from Top stories - Google News https://ift.tt/2K7kjbK

Read More

Jameela Jamil Slams Piers Morgan, Calls Him the 'Thirstiest Bitch Alive' - TooFab

Jameela Jamil Slams Piers Morgan, Calls Him the 'Thirstiest Bitch Alive'  TooFab

"The Good Place" star fired back at the British journalist after he slammed her inclusion in the latest issue of British Vogue, which was guest-edited by Duchess ...

from Top stories - Google News https://ift.tt/2ynqsLD

Read More

Jason Whitlock rips LeBron James, compares fame-chasing to cocaine - New York Post

1. Jason Whitlock rips LeBron James, compares fame-chasing to cocaine  New York Post
2. Many defend LeBron's parenting after criticism of his courtside enthusiasm at son's tournament  Yahoo Sports
3. Fox Sports' Jason Whitlock blasts LeBron James' parenting, compares fame thirst to cocaine  USA TODAY
4. LeBron James dunking at Bronny's AAU game: Cool move, or doing too much? | Jalen & Jacoby  ESPN
5. LeBron James dunks in layup line, loses shoe in court-storming celebration at AAU games (video)  ProBasketballTalk
6. View full coverage on Google News

from Top stories - Google News https://ift.tt/2YqTzIA

Read More

China to weigh in on deepening Hong Kong crisis

After weeks of increasingly violent protests, China's top policy body on Hong Kong affairs was set to hold an extremely rare press briefing Monday on the crisis engulfing the financial hub, where dozens of protesters were arrested in weekend clashes with police. What began as a mass display of opposition to an extradition bill two months ago has morphed into a wider pro-democracy movement that has thrown down the most significant challenge to Beijing's authority since the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997. While China has issued increasingly shrill condemnations of the protests in the last two weeks, it has largely left the city's pro-Beijing administration to deal with the situation.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2Oxoaoi

Read More

Baltimore paper blasts Trump after his attacks on city: 'Better to have a few rats than to be one'

The Baltimore Sun editorial board lit up President Trump Saturday night for his Twitter tirade against its city and Rep. Elijah Cummings, the powerful Democrat who represents Maryland’s Seventh District.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/30VfyJc

Read More

Texas teenager accused of murder, rapes to be tried as adult

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/2GAjI1v

Read More