| Search for serial rapist spreads fear
The girlfriend of the man who killed five people and himself at Northern Illinois University said Sunday that he called her early on the day of the shooting, to say goodbye. Steven Kazmierczak "called me at midnight and told me not to forget about him," Jessica Baty, 28, told CNN from her home. Investigators still haven't determined why Kazmierczak, 27, opened fire in a lecture hall at his and Baty's alma mater, and she shed no light on a motive Sunday. She confirmed that he had stopped taking an antidepressant about three weeks ago because "it made him feel like a zombie," but she denied his recent behavior was unusual. Washington Official says racing a known problem Despite complaints, illegal street racers have roared for more than 20 years down the straight stretch of Maryland highway where eight fans were killed this weekend, a community leader said Sunday.
Hotline activated for needy in region
A new hotline makes finding social services as easy as calling police or firefighters. Beginning today, anyone in the Bay Area who needs help with food, housing, employment or health care can simply dial 211. The three-digit hotline began operating in San Francisco nearly two years ago; and since then six other Bay Area counties - Solano, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa and Santa Clara - have been in various stages of operation. But as of this morning, the service is officially up throughout the seven-county region. Among the newcomers is Contra Costa County, where 211 has operated in test mode until today. Still, operators at the Contra Costa Crisis Center have been fielding hundreds of calls a month. "Near Concord? OK, let's see, hmm," specialist Minerva Blaine told a caller Friday, scrolling through a computer database to find affordable housing units for the homeless mother of a new baby.
How many people have four kidneys?
It is more common for these "duplex kidneys" to split only partially, or to grow a second ureter (the tube that drains urine into the bladder). Moon is having tests to check her four kidneys all work properly. If they do, she may be able to donate one or two. Duplex kidneys occur in 1% of the population, the most common complication being infections caused by urine flowing back up to the ureter. But some patients have been delighted with their extra organs. Two Latvian brothers found to have four kidneys each said it explained why they were able to drink their friends under the table. Kidneys are not the only organs that can appear more often than they should. Around one in 1,000 women in the UK is born with two wombs. In 2006, Hannah Kersey from Northam in Devon gave birth to triplets from one of them.
Iran demands exclusive IAEA oversight
TEHRAN, Iran—Iran's top leader demanded an end to U.N. Security Council oversight of the country's nuclear program during a meeting Saturday with the chief of the U.N. nuclear watchdog, state-run television reported. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on all state matters in Iran, told International Atomic Energy Agency head Mohamed ElBaradei that the IAEA should exclusively handle Iranian nuclear questions—not the security council. "There is no justification for Iran's nuclear dossier to remain at the U.N. Security Council," state TV quoted Khamenei as telling ElBaradei. Iran is under two sets of U.N. Security Council sanctions for its refusal to freeze uranium enrichment, a potential pathway to nuclear arms, and Washington is pushing for additional U.N. penalties.
Wisconsin Screens Newborns For 'Bubble Boy Disease'
Wisconsin became the first state in the nation to screen all newborns for Severe Combined Immune Deficiency (SCID). Sometimes known as "Bubble Boy Disease," SCID is a genetic disorder that is fatal without early diagnosis and treatment. Babies diagnosed can be referred for potentially life-saving treatment.The Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services approved moving to phase two of the pilot screening program in which screening for SCID will be routine for all newborns in Wisconsin (estimated at 70,000 annually). The screening has been added to the current panel of 47 other tests that are given to newborns.The pilot program began one year ago as a collaborative effort between the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Children's Hospital of Wisconsin in Milwaukee and the Jeffrey Modell Foundation.
Words from the (Investment) Wise for the Week That Was (Feb 4 - 10 ...
Things are going to get a lot worse before they are going to get worse." Randall Forsythe of Barron's offered the following commentary: "The Mardi Gras that's lasted four decades for the American consumer is drawing to an end, if it is not already over. After Fat Tuesday comes Ash Wednesday, which is observed today, and is the beginning of Lent, a 40-day period of fasting, self-examination and renewal for Christians, analogous to Ramadan for Muslims or Yom Kippur for Jews. Lower interest rates are a palliative, not a cure, for the economy's woes. Time is the only healer. Economists call that time a recession, and it can no longer be avoided." Before highlighting some thought-provoking news items and quotes from market commentators, let's briefly review the financial markets' movements on the basis of economic statistics and a performance chart.
Sauk Rapids teachers reject deal a 2nd time
Sauk Rapids-Rice teachers on Monday rejected for the second time a two-year agreement that would have provided pay and benefit increases. The vote comes three weeks after the districts 250 teachers rejected a previous tentative agreement. The rejection did not come down to money but was about language in the contract that delays raises teachers receive for additional experience until future contracts are ratified, said Linda Patton, president of the Sauk Rapids-Rice Association. We have such a good contract when it comes to language. Its better just not to put it in there and keep the language the way it is, Patton said. The raises for experience, called steps, take effect July 1 under the current contract. A number of other districts do not give teachers their step raises until the new contract is done because it saves districts money.
Rise of the Ron Paul Republicans
Along comes government, which prints another $10 bill. It looks just like yours and spends just like yours. The only difference is that government did nothing to create its $10. Remember, you had to work for yours. At first, both $10 bills buy the same amount of goods. But after awhile, merchants notice there is more money "out there" and with it, more demand for their products. So they raise their prices. Suddenly, your $10 is worth $5 less than it was before. It is not the products and services which have become worth more; the currency is worth less than it was before. Some economists say that inflation is a normal part of a healthy economy. This is false. It only exists when a monetary system has no sound base. We are also told that the boom and bust cycle is a normal part of all economic activity.
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