ECM WORLD WATCH: NATIONAL AND GLOBAL NEWS

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May 4, 2016, 2016 (San Diego's East County)-- East County Magazine's World Watch helps you be an informed citizen about important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflect all voices and views, we include links to a wide variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views. Top world and U.S. headlines include:

U.S.

General news

Presidential primary

WORLD

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

U.S.

General news

U.S. women may soon be required to register for the military draft (Reuters)

American women could be required to register for the military draft as soon as next year under an amendment to a defense policy bill passed by a House of Representatives committee on Thursday, and supported by some key members of the Senate.

Thousands of New Yorkers named as apparent Islamic State targets (CS Monitor)

An online group claiming Islamic State ties threatened 3,600 New Yorkers and distributed their personal information last week on a secure messaging app.

TSA's 'gross mismanagement' persists at cost of safety, employees say (CS Monitor)

TSA whistleblowers told a House Committee that the security agency is run by underqualified "bullies," with practices that leave employees disgruntled and travelers at risk.

U.S. spy court rejected zero surveillance orders in 2015: memo (Reuters)

The court received 1,457 requests last year on behalf of the National Security Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for authority to intercept communications, including email and phone calls, according to a Justice Department memo sent to leaders of relevant congressional committees on Friday and seen by Reuters. The court did not reject any of the applications in whole or in part, the memo showed. 

U.S. high court approves rule change to expand FBI hacking power (Reuters)

The Supreme Court on Thursday approved a rule change that would let U.S. judges issue search warrants for access to computers located in any jurisdiction despite opposition from civil liberties groups who say it will greatly expand the FBI's hacking authority.

There are only two companies left with triple A credit ratings (Marketplace)

As of this writing, there are only two companies in these United States that have a Triple A credit rating. A higher rating, for what it's worth, than the actual government of the United States. Guess who.

U.S. to consider banning criminal history from federal job applications (Reuters)

The U.S. agency that oversees personnel hiring for the federal government will propose a rule that would remove questions about criminal history from job applications, the Office of Personnel Management said on Thursday.

Elizabeth Smart says abstinence-only sex ed harms victims of rape (Slate)

In 2002, 14-year-old Elizabeth Smart was abducted from her Salt Lake City home, held captive in the mountains, and raped repeatedly for nine months.* Since her escape, she has emerged as an advocate for human trafficking victims—and recently, a critic of abstinence-only sex education. When Smart spoke at a Johns Hopkins University panel last week, she explained one of the factors deterring her from escaping her attacker: She felt so worthless after being raped that she felt unfit to return to her society, which had communicated some hard and fast rules about premarital sexual contact.

TSA damage your stuff? Good luck getting reimbursed (San Diego Union-Tribune)

Few people who file claims with the TSA manage to get their money back for damaged luggage.

Federal Court Condemns Congress for Giving Unconstitutional Regulatory Powers to Amtrak (Reason)

D.C. Circuit strikes down federal law that "grants Amtrak, a self-interested entity, power to regulate its competitors."

Presidential primary

24% opt out of a Clinton-Trump race (Rasumussen Reports)

Nearly one-in-four voters say they will stay home or vote third party if Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are the major party presidential candidates.  A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely U.S. Voters finds Trump and Clinton tied at 38% each. But 16% say they would vote for some other candidate if the presidential election comes down to those two, while six percent (6%) would stay home. Only two percent (2%) are undecided given those options.

Can California Republicans say yes to Trump? (Sacramento Bee)

… Cruz’s decision to drop out Tuesday, followed by Ohio Gov. John Kasich on Wednesday, leaves Trump the task of rallying those who initially found him wanting. A Fox News survey in April of likely California Republican voters reported 22 percent supporting Cruz and 20 percent supporting Kasich.

Donald Trump accused of rape and depraved sex acts in civil lawsuit (Broward Palm Beach New Times)

In a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in the federal court in the Central District of California, a plaintiff filing under the name Katie Johnson accuses Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein of having forced her to "engage in various perverted and depraved sex acts" and threatening to harm her and her family…the complaint states that the defendants committed "forcible rape" against her in 1994, when she was 13. Trump has responded, saying that it looks like a hoax and that the plaintiff may not even exist. He denied the allegations and called them "disgusting."  

WORLD

State of emergency declared in Baghdad as protesters take Iraqi Parliament (Washington Post)

…Live footage on Iraqi television showed swarms of protesters, who have been demanding government reform, inside the parliament building, waving flags and chanting. Lawmakers were berated and beaten with flags as they fled the building, while demonstrators smashed the windows of politicians' cars. Baghdad Operations Command declared a state of emergency and said all roads into the capital had been closed… Iraq is in the grip of a political crisis, with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi attempting to reshuffle his cabinet and meet the demands of the demonstrators, who have been spurred on by the powerful Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

Bangladesh terror attacks target culture of tolerance (CS Monitor)

Muslim-majority Bangladesh has long been a bulwark against Islamist radicalism. That appears to be making it a growing target…. The trend suggests an almost gang-like campaign by rival Islamist extremist groups to attract supporters by outdoing each other in violently defending their views of Islam.

Will Venezuela's two-day workweek help its energy crisis? (CS Monitor)

Venezuela is embracing an unusual solution to its growing energy crisis: a two-day workweek for government workers.

Why are buildings in Kenya collapsing? (CS Monitor)

A six-story building collapsed Friday night in Nairobi, killing at least a dozen people. Several buildings in Kenya have collapsed in the past year. Why?  ….In Nairobi alone, only 42 percent of the cities building's are considered safe for inhabitants, according to a 2015 audit by Kenya’s National Construction Authority, the Daily Nation reported.

Italy nabs four suspected in ISIS plot to attack Israeli embassy, Vatican (JPost)

The four arrested Thursday include a man and wife living near Lake Como.

Hamas: 'There will be an explosion' unless Israel lifts Gaza blockade (JPost)

The report cited a statement issued by the spokesman of the Palestinian terrorist group's military wing at an event that presented a model of the Israeli bus that exploded in a bombing in Jerusalem claimed by Hamas last week.

China’s Toxic School Just the Tip of the Iceberg (ECO Watch)

China woke up to disturbing headlines on the morning of April 18: Nearly 500 children at a middle school in Jiangsu province had fallen sick, with illnesses ranging from bronchitis and eczema, to abnormalities in their blood and thyroid and in a few chilling cases, leukemia. The cause was highly suspected to be due to the fact that their new school campus was adjacent to the sites of three former chemical plants.

What happens to a country without a government? Take a look at Spain. (CS Monitor)

The country's bureaucracy continues to trundle on, but the deadlock exposes political and economic risks that could have long-term effects – both positive and negative.

Springtime In Iran Means The 'Morality Police' Are Out In Force (NPR)

As Iranian authorities strengthen the so-called morality police, women are bracing themselves for extra scrutiny of their dress and behavior. Will a new, crowdsourced app help them dodge harassment?

Smuggling attempt foiled: Israel seizes 4 tons of Gaza-bound chemicals used in rockets (JPost)

Customs and security officials at the Nitzana Border Crossing seized ammonium chloride concealed within a shipment of salt before the Passover holiday. / The Shin Bet estimates that the importer of the latest smuggling attempt is a Gaza resident associated with Hamas. The importer was believed to have been urged by the terrorist group to bring the materials into the Strip for manufacturing use by Hamas.

Hamas says its ties with UK Labor's Corbyn 'painful hit for the Zionists' (JPost)

Hamas’ praise of Corbyn coincides with a media firestorm in the United Kingdom surrounding recent revelations of extremist anti-Israel and anti-Jewish expressions by Labor members.

A French synagogue is being repurposed as a mosque after local Jews left the neighborhood (Washington Post)

A synagogue in Marseille, France, is being closed as the Jewish community that once supported it has left the neighborhood. Instead, the building will soon be reopened as a mosque, catering to the area's growing Muslim community.

 


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