Elizabeth Warren "Destined For Political Stardom"

Says Pat Buchanan.

The McLaughlin Group 1/2/15 00:45-00:54.

Stuart Scott Tribute Video (1965-2015) - ESPN

Australian premier makes unannounced trip to Iraq

Source: AP

By SAMEER N. YACOUB
Jan. 4, 2015 8:31 AM EST

BAGHDAD (AP) — Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott made an unannounced visit Sunday to Baghdad, meeting with top officials to discuss ways his country can help Iraqi forces in their fight against the Islamic State group.

Abbott and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi discussed military cooperation between the two countries, including the training and equipping of Iraqi soldiers, state television reported. The Iraqi army collapsed last summer in the face of a blitz by extremists from the Islamic State group, which now holds about a third of Iraq and neighboring Syria in its self-declared caliphate.

During a joint news conference, Abbott said that his country is determined to provide all kinds of support to Iraq in its war against terrorism. He vowed to enhance cooperation between the two countries.

Australian fighter jets are bombing Islamic State group targets in northern Iraq as part of a U.S.-led coalition and 200 Australian special forces troops soon will enter Iraq to advise and assist local security forces.

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/a7e5065a30314d4d9faefe984a385646/australian-premier-makes-unannounced-trip-iraq

Afghan official: Insurgents kill 9 police

Source: AP


Jan. 4, 2015 6:03 AM EST

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — An Afghan official says insurgents killed five policemen, including their commander, in the volatile eastern province of Logar, a day after four policemen who were abducted in the same region were found dead.

Din Mohammad Darwesh, spokesman for the provincial governor, says insurgents ambushed the five men early Sunday in Baraki Barak district, where the Taliban launch frequent attacks on government security forces.

Insurgents had kidnapped four policemen from neighboring Wardak province on Saturday. Their bodies were found near the provincial capital Pul-i-Alam hours later, he said.

The violence follows the transition of security sovereignty to Afghan forces on Jan. 1 following the 13-year U.S. and NATO-led mission to rid Afghanistan of the Taliban-led insurgency.

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/c6b8abfb92c54ff09f444f7b776e0f1b/afghan-official-insurgents-kill-9-police

Bweh?

Derby the dog: Running on 3D Printed Prosthetics (FIVE-HANKIE ALERT)

Midwest, eastern US bracing for Arctic blast, subzero temps

Source: AP

By The Associated Press
Jan. 4, 2015 4:41 AM EST

CHICAGO (AP) — The Midwest and eastern parts of the U.S. on Sunday braced for Arctic temperatures that were expected to arrive during the next few days.

A mix of precipitation on Saturday that included snow, ice and rain affected a swath from the Oklahoma Panhandle — where several inches of snow were in the forecast — to southern New England, where up to a quarter-inch of ice is possible in the eastern Berkshires.

Freezing rain and ice factored into numerous accidents in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio and threatened an outdoor hockey game in Toledo.

And parts of the southern U.S. saw heavy rain and thunderstorms, leading the National Weather Service to issue tornado watches and warnings in Mississippi and Louisiana and a flash flood watch for portions of Arkansas.




Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/a3b7ebcbd9c94aafa027ab2d122f8400/midwest-eastern-us-bracing-arctic-blast-subzero-temps

Bushfires in South Australia 'destroy dozens of homes'

Source: BBC News

4 January 2015 Last updated at 03:35 ET

More than 30 homes are feared destroyed in South Australia as crews continue to battle out-of-control bushfires.

More than 800 firefighters are tackling the blazes, which have been burning for several days in the hills around the city of Adelaide.

Officials say the fires are the worst in the area since the Ash Wednesday bushfires in 1983, which left 75 dead.

Cooler weather may help firefighters tame the flames, which have been fanned by high winds and temperatures.

Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-30670966

Accused al-Qaeda terrorist Abu Anas al-Libi dies in U.S. custody

Source: CBC News (Canadian)

CBC News Posted: Jan 04, 2015 12:02 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 04, 2015 12:19 AM ET

A suspected al-Qaeda terrorist charged in the 1998 attacks on embassies in east Africa that killed more than 200 people has died in federal custody days before his trial was to start, a U.S. official said Saturday.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a court filing that Abu Anas al-Libi, who's also known as Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai, died Friday in a local hospital from sudden complications "arising out of his long-standing medical problems."

Al-Libi, 50, had pleaded not guilty to charges he conspired in the simultaneous attacks on embassies in Tanzania and Kenya that killed 224 people, including a dozen Americans. His family and former associates denied he was ever a member of al-Qaeda.

His federal trial was to begin Jan. 12 in Manhattan.

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/accused-al-qaeda-terrorist-abu-anas-al-libi-dies-in-u-s-custody-1.2889191

This map shows you just how many prisoners are in each US state

The incarceration rate in the US is the highest in the world.

According to the American Civil Liberties Union, although the US is home to only 5 percent of the world's population, it boasts 25 percent of the world's prisoners. About one in 100 American adults are behind bars, the Economist reports.

If those stats aren't enough to shock you, consider that the state of New Hampshire alone has about the same number of prisoners as the entire country of Israel.

(edit)

Here is a visual aid that helps elucidate why. The map below compares prisoner populations in individual US states with prisoner populations from different countries around the world.





Full article http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/141226/map-US-prison-population-compared-international

O'er the Land of the--- uh, ah, never mind.