Entries by batya

29 Dec, 2014

One dies, more injured

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One man, identified as Greek national Giorgos Doulis, is confirmed dead. The deceased passenger and his injured wife are discovered in a lifeboat emergency chute, and both are airlifted to a hospital in the southern Italian city of Brindisi. Passengers still stuck on the vessel describe harsh conditions. Many may be suffering from smoke inhalation and hypothermia. Mr. Giorgos Styliaras in an interview with Mega Channel earlier:

We are out on the deck, we have frostbite and are choking on smoke. The boat is still burning and the floors are boiling. Some are trembling and others coughing from the smoke.

More than 100 stranded

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More than 24 hours after the blaze broke out, more than 100 people are still waiting to be rescued from the burning vessel. Rescue personal provide blankets to the people waiting on the upper decks, who are exposed throughout the night to freezing rain and hail.

Italian navy Captain Riccardo Rizzotto:

Despite the smoke, the dark and the horrible conditions, rescue activities continued without stop throughout the night.

Al Jazeera reporter Simon McGregor-Wood:

At least 295 passengers and crew members have been saved so far from the burning ferry that leaves 183 still on board, and the rescue operation is continuing.

Italian car ferry Norman Atlantic burns in waters off Greece, rescue operation underway

28 Dec, 2014

Search halted

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Search for the missing Air Asia plane will cease for the night, due to poor visibility. However, large ships in the area will remain near the suspected crash site with their search lights on. Indonesian Transport Ministry official Hadi Mustofa:

We ended at 5:30 pm (1030 GMT) because it was getting dark. The weather was also not too good as it was getting really cloudy.

24 Dec, 2014

The Interview

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In this political comedy, Franco and director Seth Rogen c0-star as journalists on a mission to assassinate North Korean leader Kin Jong-un, under the guise of conducting an interview with him. Directed by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. Co-starring Diana Bang. Their reactions to threats made by North Korea regarding the movie’s impending release:

Rogen:

They don’t have freedom of speech there, so they don’t get that people make stuff.

Franco:

They went after Obama as much as us. Because [they think] Obama actually produced the movie.

The Interview Official Trailer #2 (2014) - James Franco, Seth Rogen Comedy HD

28 Dec, 2014

Harsh Weather Hampers Rescue

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Strong winds of up to 55 miles per hour make  evacuation of the ferry difficult. The ship is located about 44 nautical miles from Corfu. Planes, helicopters, and seven ships in the area are assisting in rescue operation. At least 150 passengers are reported to have reached life boats, and some 30 are safely aboard a nearby container ship. Priority is being given to women and children in the operation. Greek Shipping Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis tells reporters:

We are doing everything we can to save those on board and no one, no one will be left helpless in this tough situation. It is one of the most complicated rescue operations that we have ever done.

Ferry catches fire

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An Italian Ferry, the Norman Atlantic, catches fire in the Adriatic Sea, on route from Patras in western Greece to the eastern Italian city of Ancona.. Italian and Greek forces are involved in the rescue operation to save over 400 passengers and crew members. The fire begins at approximately 6:00 a.m. Passengers phone Greek television stations with live reports of the event. One passenger states:

They tried to lower some boats, but not all of us could get in. There is no co-ordination. It’s dark, the bottom of the vessel is on fire. We are on the bridge, we can see a boat approaching … we opened some boxes and got some life vests. We are trying to save ourselves.

28 Dec, 2009

Time – Person of the Year

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Ben Bernanke 2009Ben Bernanke is named Time’s Person of the Year after serving as Chairman of the United States Federal Reserve during the country’s financial crisis of 2007–2008. Runners-up for the honor are commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the Chinese worker, U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, and Jamaican sprinter and Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt.

Managing Editor Richard Stengel explains the magazine’s choice: He was the great scholar of the Depression who saw another depression coming, and did everything he could to stop it. He is influencing how the economy operates.

25 Dec, 2000

Time – Person of the Year

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George Bush 2000Bush is chosen as Person of the Year after the Supreme Court rules he is the new President of the United States, after campaigning against Al Gore in an election that  proved to be the closest race in the history of US voting. Bush is the first President to be awarded Time’s honor even before he begins his term. Journalist Barry Gray views Time’s choice as a political statement:

Bush was not elected president, he was selected by judicial fiat. He should, by rights, be called the president-select. The fact that this distinction has been universally ignored by the media and the political establishment is indicative of their desire to bury the events of recent weeks and, in the prevailing parlance, “move on.”

31 Dec, 2007

Time – Person of the Year

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Putin 2007Putin is chosen as Time’s Person of the Year, over runner-ups former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, British author J.K. Rowling, Chinese President Hu Jintao and the U.S. Commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus. Managing editor Richard Stengel explains the choice:

He’s not a good guy, but he’s done extraordinary things. He’s a new tsar of Russia and he’s dangerous in the sense that he doesn’t care about civil liberties; he doesn’t care about free speech; he cares about stability. But stability is what Russia needed and that’s why Russians adore him.

19 Dec, 2004

Time – Person of the Year

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George Bush 2004Bush joins ranks with six other former US Presidents when he is chosen as Person of the Year for a second time around.Time Managing Editor Jim Kelley explains the magazine’s decision:

Obviously many supporters of the president will be pleased, many people who do not support the president will probably sigh. But even those who may not have voted for him will acknowledge that this is one of the more influential presidents of the last 50 years.

17 Dec, 2008

Time – Person of the Year

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Barack Obama 2008Newly elected President Obama is chosen as Time’s Person of the Year over runners-up Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Gov. Sarah Palin and Chinese director Zhang Yimou. The magazine writes about the choice:

In one of the craziest elections in American history, he overcame a lack of experience, a funny name, two candidates who are political institutions and the racial divide to become the 44th President of the United States.

27 Dec, 2010

Time – Person of the Year

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Mark Zuckerberg 2010Zuckerberg is chosen as Time’s Person of the Year, for the role he played and still plays in founding and running Facebook. Runners-up are WikiLeaks editor-in-chief Julian Assange, President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai, the 33 rescued Chilean miners, and the rightwing US Tea Party movement. Time journalist Lev Grossman says that Zuckerberg received the honor:

…for connecting more than half a billion people and mapping the social relations among them; for creating a new system of exchanging information; and for changing how we all live our lives.

31 Dec, 2012

Time – Person of the Year

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cover.digital version.inddObama is chosen as Time’s Person of the Year for a second time, due to his achievements in changing the face of America. The magazine notes that Obama is the first President since Franklin Delano Roosevelt to win more than 50 percent of the vote in two straight elections. Runners-up are Pakistani female education activist Malala Yousafzai, Apple chief executive Tim Cook, Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, and atomic physicist Fabiola Gionetti. A spokesman for Time::

In 2012, he found and forged a new majority, turned weakness into opportunity and sought, amid great adversity, to create a more perfect union.

23 Dec, 2013

Time – Person of the Year

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Pope Francis 2013The Pope is chosen as Time’s Person of the Year for 2013. Other candidates for this year’s award are NSA leaker Edward Snowden, gay rights activist Edith Windsor, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Syrian President Bashar Assad. Managing editor Nancy Gibbs explains the choice

He really stood out to us as someone who has changed the tone and the perception and the focus of one of the world’s largest institutions in an extraordinary way.

Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi says:

The Holy Father is not looking to become famous or to receive honor. But if the choice of Person of Year helps spread the message of the Gospel — a message of God’s love for everyone — he will certainly be happy about that.

7 Aug, 2014

Reveals Plans for Future

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According to Bergdahl’s lawyer, Gene Fidell, the soldier intends to leave the army and go to college once his investigation is complete. Fidell says:

This is a chapter that’s going to come to an end, sooner rather than later, I hope, so he can get on with his life and pursue a college education and do those things a person wants to do at his age and make up for lost time, frankly.

20 Aug, 2014

Longer Investigation Expected

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Army investigator Major General Kenneth Dahl estimates that he may need more than the allotted 60 days to complete and submit the investigative report. A statement released by the army clarifies:

As the investigating officer works through this final stage, it is possible that he will have to follow up on issues that may require additional witness interviews.

Feb 2007

Founds JouroList

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Klein sets up a closed email list as a forum for leftist journalists. The forum is nicknamed “JList”, and provides journalists with a place to share thoughts and ideas out of the public eye. Members include Nobel Prize-winning columnist Paul Krugman, and staffers from Newsweek, POLITICO, Huffington Post, The New Republic, The Nation and The New Yorker. Klein says about the list:

Basically, it’s just a list where journalists and policy wonks can discuss issues freely.

15 Feb, 2010

Becomes Newsweek Contributor

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Newsweek hires Klein as a biweekly columnist for the print magazine. He is also slated to write features, as well as online content. The first column is due to appear within a week or two. Newsweek editorial director Mark Miller says Klein will bring to the publication:

…a combination of reporting and analysis that’s critical now.

18 May, 2009

Blogs for Washington Post

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Klein posts his first blog entry as a newly hired blogger for the Post. He encourages his readers to subscribe to the blog, and to comment, email and tweet him in response to his writings – and he promises he will respond in turn. Klein tells his readers he will be focusing on politics and the policy of the economy, but will also write about:

…financial regulation, education policy, the future of organized labor, even the food production system. Anything else that comes up.

6 Oct, 2014

Ezra Klein

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EzraKleinCroppedEzra Klein is a Jewish American journalist and blogger who defines himself as “an opinionated reporter. Klein was born on May 9, 1984 in Irvine, California. At age 19 he began blogging and was noticed and hired by the American Prospect in Washington DC in 2005. In 2009, the Washington Post hired Klein to be the paper’s first blogger on politics and economics. Klein won several awards for his blog with the Post, and in 2011 was named one of the 50 most powerful people in Washington Dc by GQ magazine. In January, 2014, Klein quit his job with the Post and established his own news site with Vox Media. Klein married Annie Lowrey in October, 2011.