News

‘To hell with it’: Trump increasingly weary of staff advice

WASHINGTON (AP) — The speech was written. A cast of relatable Americans with emotional stories was standing by to reinforce the message. But President Donald Trump was in no mood to play along.

“The hell with it,” Trump said, recounting the scene with his aides to a West Virginia crowd last week. Trump tossed the staff-prepared remarks on tax cuts in the air and ducked as the paper fluttered to the floor. “I said, ‘This is boring, come on.’ Tell it like it is.”

Facebook users to learn if they were part of privacy scandal

NEW YORK (AP) — Get ready to find out if your Facebook data has been swept up in the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

Starting Monday, the 87 million users who might have had their data shared with Cambridge Analytica will get a detailed message on their news feeds. Facebook says most of the affected users (more than 70 million) are in the U.S., though there are over a million each in the Philippines, Indonesia and the U.K.

Topless protester gets close to Bill Cosby as retrial begins

NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) — A topless protester with “Women’s Lives Matter” written on her body jumped a barricade and got within a few feet of Bill Cosby on Monday as the comedian walked into a suburban Philadelphia courthouse for the start of his sexual assault retrial.

The unidentified woman ran in front of Cosby toward a bank of TV cameras but was intercepted by sheriff’s deputies and led away in handcuffs.

Cosby seemed startled by the commotion as a halfdozen protesters chanted at him.

US official says NKorean leader ready to discuss nukes

WASHINGTON (AP) — North Korea’s government has communicated with the United States to say that leader Kim Jong Un is ready to discuss his nuclear weapons program with President Donald Trump, officials said Sunday, increasing the likelihood that the unprecedented summit will actually occur.

Mattis faults Russia on Syria, won’t rule out US strike

WASHINGTON (AP) — As President Donald Trump considered U.S. options in Syria, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Monday took aim at Russia for what he suggested was its failure to ensure the elimination of Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal. The Pentagon chief said he would not rule out a U.S. military strike against Syria in response to a suspected poison gas.

Child advocates ask FTC to investigate YouTube

Read carefully through the fine print of YouTube’s terms of service and you might notice that you’ve affirmed you are old enough to watch it.

“If you are under 13 years of age, then please do not use the service,” the terms say. “There are lots of other great web sites for you.”

It’s a warning that goes unheeded by millions of children around the world who visit YouTube to watch cartoons, nursery rhymes, science experiments or videos of toys being unboxed.

Teachers acquire a new skill: how to stop the bleeding

PLEASANT HILL, Iowa (AP) — As she learned the basics of applying direct pressure, packing a wound with gauze and tying a tourniquet, sixth-grade math and social studies teacher Kari Stafford shook her head at the thought that this may now be an essential skill for her profession.

Stafford didn’t like it, but with school shootings now a regular occurrence, she and her colleagues have reluctantly accepted that the attacks won’t stop and that teachers must know how to keep the victims from bleeding to death.

Family faced long road to adoption

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Dana and Dustin Trahan met seven years ago while attending nurse anesthesia school. The topic of marriage and children was often a subject of conversation.

Neither had children so far, yet Dana had expressed on many occasions that she wanted to be a mom. She made it clear that she often worried she would not be able to have children due to her medical history. Her concern was that the couple might not be able to conceive on their own. Dustin said they would find a way to have a family one day. At some point, they seriously discussed the possibility of adoption.

Welsh to hold public hearing on dog ordinance

WELSH – A public hearing to discuss changes to the town’s dog ordinances will be held at the next regular meeting of the board of aldermen here.

In the meantime, the board is discussing the possible changes in the law that would affect how the town handles cases of nuisance and dangerous dogs as well as what will constitute cruelty to animals.

Mayor Carolyn Louviere said the board is looking at the ordinances in other cities and towns to decide what is the best course of action.

A PURR-FECT MATCH

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Traditionally dogs are utilized as emotional support animals, but one veteran finds cats to be more his style.

Carroll Duhon, 49, and his emotional support cat Sammie live a quiet life in Jennings after the man’s years of service to the United States.

Duhon started his military career with Desert Storm in 1991 then came home later that year. He eventually returned to the Army and was stationed in Germany and other locations before leaving active duty after 11 years of service.

A little more than a year later he joined the National Guard and was sent to Iraq in 2004.