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President Trump abruptly yanks sanctions on North Korea because he 'likes' dictator Kim Jong Un

President Donald Trump overruled his own Treasury Department and withdrew new sanctions aimed at North Korea because he "likes" dictator Kim Jong Un.

The Latest: Black teen's family stoic as white cop acquitted

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Latest on the homicide trial of a white Pennsylvania police officer in the shooting of an unarmed black 17-year-old (all times local):

Bringing the Sting: The U.S. Navy Is Getting New F/A-18E/F Super Hornets

The Super Hornets would be the first new-build examples of the Block III variant of the F/A-18E/F. The Block III flies farther and carries more weapons than an older F/A-18E/F can do and also is stealthier than earlier Super Hornet models are.

Missouri River flooding forces evacuation of 7,500 from waterfront city

Record floodwaters that submerged vast stretches of Nebraska and Iowa farmland along America's longest river reached a new crest on Friday at the waterfront city of St. Joseph, Missouri, forcing chaotic evacuations of thousands from low-lying areas. With emergency sirens blaring as the Missouri River rose to the top of the three-story-high levee wall in St. Joseph, about 55 miles (88 km) north of Kansas City, Missouri, sheriff's deputies rushed door-to-door urging residents to flee to higher ground.

Ethiopian Airlines Denies Reports That Pilot in Boeing 737 MAX Crash Was Not Properly Trained

They were prepared to fly a Boeing 737 Max 8, the airline said

School shooting survivor stricken by 'survivor's guilt' takes own life

A teenager who survived the Parkland school shooting in Florida has killed herself while struggling with survivors' guilt, local media reported Friday. Sydney Aiello, 19, was a student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas last February 14 when a former student opened fire with a semiautomatic weapon, killing 14 students and three staff members. Among the dead were two of Aiello's best friends, Meadow Pollack and Joaquin Oliver.

JetBlue pilots who drugged and raped flight attendants continued working for airline without repercussion, lawsuit says

Three female flight attendants claim they were drugged and two of them raped by two JetBlue pilots during a layover in Puerto Rico, a new lawsuit filed this week in New York federal court has claimed. At least one of the female flight attendants said she was forced to work with one of the accused pilots after the alleged rape. After making their way to a beach in Puerto Rico near the hotel they were staying during their layover in May of last year, the women were offered sips from one of the flight attendant’s alcoholic beverages.

Some Pickups Lag in Passenger Crash Protection

Crash Tests Show Some Pickup Trucks Lag in Passenger Protection Most pickup trucks fall short when it comes to protecting passengers in certain types of crashes, according to new findings from t...

Remains of Missing WWII Pilot Returned Family in Utah

The remains of a World War II pilot who disappeared 74 years ago while flying a mission over Germany were returned to his family in Utah.

Middle East leaders kick back at US Golan Heights decision

President Donald Trump’s call for the United States to recognise Israeli sovereignty over occupied territory in the Golan Heights prompted global anger Friday, with Syria warning it would recover the area "through all available means". The call broke from decades of US foreign policy and a United Nations resolution, which treated the Golan Heights as occupied territory whose future would be negotiated in talks with Syria on a comprehensive peace. While Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Prime Minister, thanked the president in a phone call, telling him "you've made history", Damascus, its allies and fellow states in the region criticised the move as provocative. Syria’s foreign ministry said it showed “the blind bias of the United States” towards Israel but would not change “the fact that the Golan was and will always be a Syrian Arab territory”. "The Syrian nation is more determined to liberate this precious piece of Syrian national land through all available means," the ministry statement said. Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's foreign minister, tweeted he was "shocked by @realDonaldTrump continuing to try to give what is not his to racist Israel." While the Israeli Prime Minister thanked Trump, other regional leaders criticised the move as provocative Credit: JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images Turkey, which hosted the last indirect peace talks between Israel and the Syrian government in 2008 but has backed Syrian rebels in the civil war, said the change risked plunging the region into a "new crisis". "We will never allow the occupation of the Golan Heights to be made legitimate," President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said. Russia warned that the policy U-turn could spark new conflicts. "Certainly, such appeals can considerably destabilise an already tense situation in the Middle East," Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesman, said. "It's just a call for now, hopefully it will remain a call." The Arab League said Mr Trump's comments were "completely outside international law". Some even accused the US president of interfering with a close upcoming election in Israel in order to help ally Mr Netanyahu. Israeli army Merkava tanks gather in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights Credit: AFP The White House endorsement of Israeli sovereignty over the plateau, which was seized from Syria in 1967, fulfills a request from Mr Netanyahu and came less than three weeks before the country’s April 9 vote. Mr Trump denied that was his intention, telling Fox News. “I wouldn’t even know about that. I have no idea. I hear he is doing okay,” adding that he had been thinking about it for a long time. The UN Human Rights Council yesterday criticised Israeli settlement expansion in the Golan Heights. The UN rights forum adopted an annual resolution on the Syrian Golan, brought by Pakistan on behalf of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), with 26 states in favour, 16 against and five abstentions. European members including Britain voted against it.

The Latest: Defense expert supports cop who shot black teen

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Latest on the homicide trial of a white Pennsylvania police officer in the shooting of an unarmed black 17-year-old (all times local):

Who was Renty? The story of the slave whose racist photos have triggered a lawsuit against Harvard

The photos of Renty and his daughter Delia, taken in nude in 1850 against their will for a Harvard University professor, are now the subject of a lawsuit that Tamara Lanier has filed this week.

'Inland Oceans' from One of Southern Hemisphere's Worst Storms Seen from Space

A deadly cyclone that hit southern Africa left extensive flooding that looked like "inland oceans" in images from space taken just days after the storm made landfall.Sentinel-1, a satellite mission that's part of the European Union's Earth-observation program, Copernicus, captured imagery on March 19 that showed far-reaching floodwaters around Mozambique's town of Beira on the coast of the Indian Ocean.Cyclone Idai could turn out to be "one of the worst weather-related disasters" in the Southern Hemisphere, said Clare Nullis, spokesperson for the World Meteorological Organization.In Mozambique, at least 1,000 people are feared dead and tens of thousands have lost their homes, according to the United Nations, after the cyclone made landfall on March 14, bringing heavy rainfall, a storm surge and strong winds of up to 105 mph (170 km/h). Malawi and Zimbabwe were also severely affected as Idai continued traveling west as a tropical storm. [Earth from Above: 101 Stunning Images from Orbit]Cyclone Idai seen from space on March 13, 2019, west of Madagascar and heading for Mozambique. ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGOHerve Verhoosel of the U.N. World Food Program said that the flooding in Mozambique from above looks like "inland oceans extending for miles and miles."This is a major humanitarian emergency that is getting bigger by the hour," Verhoosel said Tuesday (March 19). According to the Red Cross, 90 percent of Beira, which has a population of about 600,000, has been damaged or destroyed.With communication lines and roads wrecked, rescue efforts have been slow and many people remain cut off from aid.Sentinel-1 is tasked with, in part, mapping flooded areas -- like the recent flooding in the Midwest -- to help relief efforts in such situations.According to the European Space Agency, the images acquired before and after the storm offer immediate information to first responders on the extent of flooding and the location of the affected areas; eventually, that satellite data could also be used to assess environmental and property damage.The first Sentinel-1 satellite launched in 2014, and the second launched in 2016. The pair of polar-orbiting satellites have radar instruments that can "see" in the dark, as well as through clouds and rain.Sentinel-1 has also provided imagery to map flash floods in Laos and to show that an island where the Bangladesh government wants to house Rohingya Muslims is vulnerable to frequent flooding and cyclones. * Rainbow Rivers: See Gorgeous Maps of the World's Waterways * The Strangest Places on Earth (Photos) * Earth's 8 Biggest MysteriesOriginally published on Live Science.

Indonesia's Garuda says to cancel 49-jet Boeing 737 deal after crashes

Indonesia's national carrier Garuda has told Boeing it will cancel a multi-billion-dollar order for 49 Boeing 737 Max 8 jets after two fatal crashes involving the plane, in what is thought to be the first formal cancellation for the model. "We have sent a letter to Boeing requesting that the order be cancelled," Garuda spokesman Ikhsan Rosan said. "The reason is that Garuda passengers in Indonesia have lost trust and no longer have the confidence" in the plane, he said, adding that the airline was awaiting a response from Boeing.

Google rival wants more details about Google's Android proposal

Seznam, which attracts as much advertising spend as Google in the Czech Republic, took its grievance to the European Commission nearly three years ago. It subsequently joined lobbying group FairSearch whose complaint triggered the European Commission's investigation into Google's mobile operating system Android which ultimately led to a record 4.34 billion euro ($4.9 billion) fine. Seznam is losing market share because of Google's search engine installed by default on mobiles," said Michal Feix, Seznam's former chief executive and now a partner at a consultancy advising the company.

Trump’s McCain Insults Stir Republicans’ Better Angels

“I can’t understand why the President would, once again, disparage a man as exemplary as my friend John McCain: heroic, courageous, patriotic, honorable, self-effacing, self-sacrificing, empathetic, and driven by duty to family, country, and God,” Romney wondered on Twitter. Just three years ago, Romney had more clarity. “I’m far from the first to conclude that Donald Trump lacks the temperament to be president.

Brazilian ex-president remains silent under questioning

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Former Brazilian President Michel Temer remained silent when questioned by investigators Friday, a day after he was arrested as part of the country's sprawling Car Wash corruption probe.

More Misconceptions about College

Now that we’ve all had a good airing of grievances about elite colleges and their attendant injustices, let’s get some perspective.While the numbers of high-school graduates heading off to college have increased in recent years, the percentages graduating with a four-year degree have not increased much. Many students, especially those who are the first in their families to attend college, drop out before receiving a degree. (They cannot drop out of student-loan payments, though.)Data from the Lumina Foundation show that among Americans aged 25–64, 52.4 percent have no more than a high-school diploma (though 15.4 percent of them attended college for a while). An additional 5.2 percent received a certificate of some kind, and 9.2 percent obtained an associate’s degree. What most people think of when you say “college” is a four-year institution. Only 21.1 percent received bachelor’s degrees, and another 12.2 percent also earned graduate degrees. Adding the last two categories brings the fraction of Americans with college or graduate degrees to just over one-third.While most of the conversation in the past week has focused on highly selective colleges such as Yale and Penn, it’s important to remember that only a small number of America’s colleges are selective. As FiveThirtyEight has reported, more than 75 percent of undergrads attend colleges that accept at least half of all applicants. The number who attend selective colleges -- i.e., schools that accept 25 percent or fewer — is just 4 percent. And the number who attend schools in the very top tier, colleges that reject 90 percent or more, can be counted on your fingers and toes. You can probably guess most of them. (Though not all. On this U.S. News list, Pomona College came in at No. 11, and the Minerva Schools at Keck Graduate Institute came in first.) Less than 1 percent of college students attend these elite schools.Most students attend commuter schools, which tend to be community colleges. Even among those at four-year institutions, almost 25 percent attend part-time. Half of college students are also working, not getting plastered at frat parties.There’s a healthy debate in policy circles about whether our current cultural preoccupation with college for all is a good thing. Some people who are funneled toward college might be a better fit for vocational training, apprenticeships, or other life paths; and while there is no doubt about the association between college completion and higher income, there is uncertainty about the causal relationship.Rather than gnash our collective teeth about whether Jason or Jessica can get into MIT, we might want to focus on all students, those who are headed for college and those who are not. Every student in elementary and high school should be learning about the “success sequence.” The phrase was introduced by Isabel Sawhill and Ron Haskins of the Brookings Institution and has lately been reinforced with a study by W. Bradford Wilcox and Wendy Wang of the Institute for Family Studies.What they’ve found is that students have it within their power to virtually guarantee a middle- or upper-class income if they follow three steps. Those three basics are 1) finish high school, 2) get a full-time job, and 3) get married before having children. Young people who follow all three steps have only a 3 percent likelihood of living in poverty when they reach young adulthood. Eighty-six percent of Millennials who put marriage first had incomes in the middle or upper third, compared with 53 percent who had children before marriage. The success sequence works for those born into poverty, too. Seventy-one percent of Millennials who grew up in the bottom third of the income distribution were in the middle or upper third by young adulthood if they followed the three steps. Among African Americans, 76 percent who followed the success sequence achieved the middle class or above, and among Hispanics, the percentage was 81 percent.With all of the emphasis on a tiny sliver of the top 1 percent of students, most young people can get the impression that they are doomed to a lesser life. In fact, avoiding a few pitfalls like dropping out of high school, having a baby out of wedlock, and failing to find employment is a ticket to success.There’s a bias among writer types to pay attention to Princeton and Columbia. But that’s not really where the action is in helping most Americans.© 2019 Creators.com

Love it or Hate it?: China Is Studying Russia's New Su-57 Stealth Fighter

The Su-57's overall capability is "not bad at all," Global Times paraphrased Wang as saying.

Why did the Dow plunge? Banks and tech stocks drag down market

U.S. stocks moved broadly lower on Wall Street Friday, dragged down by banks and industrial companies.

Giant inland sea created by the disastrous Mozambique cyclone

Cyclone Idai left death, destruction, and a sprawling inland sea in its wake. The powerful tropical cyclone -- which struck Mozambique last Thursday as the equivalent of a Category 2 or 3 hurricane with winds of around 100 mph -- has left at least 150 dead and 600,000 in need of help in the flooded nation said the EU, though the Associated Press reports over 300 fatalities as of March 21 when accounting for deaths in neighboring Zimbabwe.The cyclone's widespread flooding -- in part overshadowed by simultaneous and historic flooding in the Midwest -- has left behind an inundated area some 200 square miles in size (518 square kilometers), with the inland sea reaching up to 15 miles wide, according to satellite images from the European Space Agency (ESA). > And for better comparison a GIF animation of the images showing the Mozambique flood before (March 2nd) and after (March 20th) Mozambique Copernicus Sentinel-1️ Better quality GIF https://t.co/h8608N8so5 MozambiqueFloods MozambiqueFloods2019 RemoteSensing Beira Idai pic.twitter.com/d9hOmdiBbp> > -- Pierre Markuse (@Pierre_Markuse) March 21, 2019The destruction is particularly severe around Mozambique's fourth largest city, Beira. SEE ALSO: The West accepts its drought-ridden future, slashes water use"The situation is terrible. The scale of devastation is enormous. It seems that 90 per cent of the area is completely destroyed," said the Red Cross's Jamie LeSueur, who is working in the region. > The latest delineation maps for Mozambique: > ✴️Nhantaze: 24,837.7 ha (248 sq km) flooded > ✴️Macorreia: 9,862.5 ha (98.6 sq km) flooded > Maps and geospatial data: https://t.co/w3uo4SPyREMozambiqueFloods Idai IdaiCyclone pic.twitter.com/0siHZhW6hM> > -- Copernicus EMS (@CopernicusEMS) March 21, 2019Though there's little evidence showing that the planet is experiencing more cyclones and hurricanes, there is mounting evidence that these storms are growing stronger compared to storms in the 21st century.What's more, cyclones, like any big storm today, can now carry more water: The world has warmed by 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit, or 1 Celsius, over the last century, and for every 1 degree C of warming the atmosphere holds seven percent more water. > This just in: shocking footage from our team via helicopter that has just arrived in Beira, Mozambique. The devastation is widespread with barely a house intact following CycloneIdaipic.twitter.com/BnyqVIJ9YF> > -- IFRC Africa (@IFRCAfrica) March 17, 2019Since the 1960s, only three tropical storms of category 3 or stronger have hit Mozambique, according to Weather.com.When the total number of fatalities are confirmed and the great inland sea dissipates, Idai's rampage may end up being the worst storm on record in the Southern Hemisphere, the EU noted.  WATCH: Jordan Peele explains the childhood experience that made him love horror

Crashed Boeing jets lacked two safety features that would have cost extra

Two Boeing jets that crashed in Ethiopia and Indonesia each lacked a pair of cockpit safety features that the plane manufacturer charged extra for. The systems  might have helped the pilots as they struggled to control their planes, aviation experts said. Lion Air Flight 610 crashed in October killing 189 people, and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 went down on March 10, shortly after takeoff from Addis Ababa, with the loss of 157 lives. Both Boeing 737 Max aircraft were new but did not have an angle of attack indicator, which shows how much the nose is tilted. They also did not have an angle of attack disagree light, which is triggered if other sensors are giving conflicting information, the New York Times reported. Such safety features were not required on new planes by the US Federal Aviation Administration, and Boeing charged a fee to have them put in if an airline requested them. Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines had opted not to. Boeing has now announced the angle of attack disagree light will be free on new 737 Max planes. Ethiopia Airlines crash Bjorn Fehrm, an aviation analyst, told the New York Times: "They're critical and cost almost nothing for the airlines to install. Boeing charges for them because it can. But they're vital for safety." The various extra customised features offered by plane manufacturers can be expensive, with airlines paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for them. Many low-cost airlines opt not to do so if regulators have not made them mandatory. Airlines with Boeing 737 Max 8s in their fleet The US Justice Department has reportedly issued a number of subpoenas as part of an investigation, which is in its early stages, looking at Boeing's safety procedures. In a statement Ethiopian Airlines said its pilots went through all the extra training required by Boeing and the FAA to fly the 737 Max. As investigators look into the crashes attention has turned to a new software in the planes that can push the nose down in some circumstances, for example when the sensors suggest the plane may be stalling. The FAA has said satellite-based tracking data showed the movements of both flights were similar before they crashed. It has emerged that the Lion Air pilots frantically scrambled through a handbook to understand why the jet was lurching downwards.

CNN takes over a week to report Covington lawsuit

What happened to 'facts first'? Reaction from former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino.

Venezuela detains top aide to Guaido in move U.S. calls 'big mistake'

U.S. President Donald Trump's national security adviser, John Bolton, called for the immediate release of Marrero and warned that "Maduro has made another big mistake," adding that the arrest "will not go unanswered." Guaido invoked the constitution in January to assume the interim presidency after declaring Maduro's 2018 re-election a fraud. Maduro, who has overseen a dramatic collapse of the OPEC nation's economy, has called Guaido a puppet of the United States and said he should "face justice," but has not explicitly called for his arrest. Top U.S. officials have repeatedly warned Maduro not to touch Guaido and his inner circle, but it is unclear what more they can do.

Robert Kraft's plea deal offer for prostitution charges hinders real progress on sex trafficking

Those who buy sex have more power and privilege than those who sell it. There's a disgusting imbalance in every commercial sex interaction.

Home loan applications rise as wealthier shoppers hunt for more expensive houses

Mortgage interest rates are now lower than a year ago, and home shoppers are buying in, but most are wealthier and purchasing more expensive homes.

Energy giants spent $1bn on climate lobbying, PR since Paris: watchdog

The five largest publicly listed oil and gas majors have spent $1 billion since the 2015 Paris climate deal on public relations or lobbying that is "overwhelmingly in conflict" with the landmark accord's goals, a watchdog said Friday. Despite outwardly committing to support the Paris agreement and its aim to limit global temperature rises, ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, BP and Total spend a total of $200 million a year on efforts "to operate and expand fossil fuel operations," according to InfluenceMap, a pro-transparency monitor. Two of the companies -- Shell and Chevron -- said they rejected the watchdog's findings.

Brexit End Likely to Be Based on a Customs Union, JPMorgan Says

(Bloomberg) -- The realities of the Brexit situation indicate that the U.K. is going to end up with “something that’s founded on a customs union” with the European Union, according to Karen Ward, chief market strategist for Europe, Middle East and Africa at JPMorgan Asset Management.

Seats aboard JetBlue now feature most legroom of any US airline

Long-legged flyers may be interested to learn that JetBlue's newest cabin redesign now features the most legroom of any US airline for economy-class cabins. 

Bride has to hide her IV drip after being diagnosed with cancer just days before her wedding

On the day of her dream wedding, Ashley Heil, 27, had to hide an IV drip in her arm and get a dose of nausea medication all before cutting her own cake. The Pennsylvania woman was diagnosed with cancer just days before her wedding.

Dem long shot John Delaney wants to take on the 'bully' in the White House

Neither of his parents went to college, and it was a scholarship from his father’s labor union that helped fund his attendance at Columbia University.

Catholic Church scandal: 395 Illinois priests, deacons accused of sexual misconduct

A report identifies 395 Catholic clergy members in Illinois who have been accused of sexual misconduct.

Analysis: Victory over Islamic State may be short-lived

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a campaign that spanned five years and two U.S. presidencies, unleashed more than 100,000 bombs and killed untold numbers of civilians, the U.S. military engineered the destruction of the Islamic State group's self-proclaimed empire in Iraq and Syria.

New Zealand bans assault weapons within days of massacre

New Zealand imposed a ban on assault weapons Thursday, moving swiftly following the Christchurch massacre and triggering renewed calls from leading American politicians for gun controls in the United States. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said assault rifles and semi-automatic weapons were now banned with immediate effect, making good on a pledge to the country of the military-style weapons used in last week's slaughter of 50 people.

Facebook Employees Had Access to 'Hundreds of Millions' of Users' Passwords

Facebook on Thursday confirmed that it had improperly secured “hundreds of millions” of user passwords, leaving them open to be viewed.

Ram Rebel TRX Pickup Spied, Likely to Get the Supercharged Hellcat V-8

Looks like the Ford F-150 Raptor isn't going to have the sandbox to itself anymore.

Missouri governor declares state of emergency amid rising floodwaters in Midwestern U.S.

Flooding triggered by last week's so-called "bomb cyclone" storm has already inflicted damage estimated at nearly $1.5 billion in Nebraska, killed at least four people in Nebraska and Iowa and left a man missing below Nebraska's collapsed Spencer Dam. "The rising floodwaters are affecting more Missouri communities and farms, closing more roads and threatening levees, water treatment plants and other critical infrastructure," Governor Mike Parson said in issuing his emergency declaration. "We will continue to work closely with our local partners to assess needs and provide resources to help as Missourians continue this flood fight and as we work to assist one another," Parson said.

Watchdog Probing Boeing, FAA to Testify to Senate Aviation Panel

Calvin Scovel, the Transportation Department’s inspector general, will testify along with FAA Acting Administrator Daniel Elwell and National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Robert Sumwalt, the Senate Commerce Committee said on its website. The committee also intends to hear from Boeing executives, pilots and other aviation industry groups in a second hearing in the near future, the panel said.

Tax refunds are $3 smaller on average versus last year after seventh week of filing season

After three weeks of rising tax refunds, the average tax refund is $3 less than a year ago.