Plans Las Vegas return
At the 2015 Billboard Music Awards Dion announces she plans to return to the stage again on Aug. 27.
If there’s going to be one person in the theater that night it’s going to be him. It’s going to be for him. I want to make him see me strong again. The reason we did not come back before was because I wasn’t emotionally ready to come back. My husband and my family needed me, they still do. He wants me strong. He wants to see me again because I’m his favorite singer. So, he wants me out there, and I have to say that I’m ready. It’s very touching for me because he wants me to have a good time.
Object not bullet
The NTSB’s lead investigator says the object that hit the train windscreen is not a bullet, and cautioned that there is still not enough information to determine whether it was related to the train derailment.
I’d like to downplay that part. I’ve now seen the fracture pattern. It looks like something about the size of a grapefruit, if you will. And it did not even penetrate the entire windshield…It could be completely coincidental or it could be causal. And that’s exactly what we intend to find out.
Criticizes Obama’s foreign policy
Walker criticizes Obama’s foreign policy and calls for an aggressive stance against terrorism.
Obama’s foreign policy has been to draw a red line in the sand and allow people to cross it…. United States should deal with terrorism head on and take the fight to them.
Close to decision on presidential run
While visiting New Hampshire, Webb says he is close to making a decision on running for President, and he is weighing what it takes to mount a serious campaign. Mustering enough money is part of the consideration.
We don’t need a billion dollars but what we do need is to be able to come out here, make the case, have a viable campaign, and we’re looking at those things.
Webb says he is discussing his experiences, both in and out of government, and what he could bring to the race.
They’re looking for leaders that they can trust. That’s what I hear over and over again.
‘Disappointed’ with Tsarnaev sentence
Chafee weighs in on Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s death sentence:
I was disappointed. Even some family members of victims had advocated to spare Tsarnaev, and I thought that was powerful testimony…The arguments for the death penalty are that it’s a deterrent. In this case, considering all the volatile relations we have with the Muslim world, and some of the brutality that ensues on innocent people by ISIS and the like, I just have concerns that this is going to be some kind of trigger. I hope not…It’s a big question that has been with human civilization for a long time. Is it a deterrent or isn’t it? Most civilized countries have banned capital punishment; we haven’t.
As president Chafee says he would support banning the death penalty at the federal level.
Train struck before derailment
The NTSB says a projectile appears to have hit the windshield of Trail 188 before it derailed. One of the two assistant conductors on the train said that shortly after leaving Philadelphia’s 30th Street station, she heard an engineer from a local SEPTA commuter train report his train being hit.
She recalled that the SEPTA engineer had reported to the train dispatcher that he had either been hit by a rock or shot at. And that the SEPTA engineer said that he had a broken windshield, and that he placed his train into emergency stop….This is her recollection, and certainly we are going to be conducting further investigation of this comment. Our investigation has not independently confirmed this information, but we have seen damage to the left hand, lower portion of the Amtrak windshield that we have asked the FBI to come in and look at for us
The NTSB later tells CBS News it was looking into reports that a third train, Amtrak Acela 2173, was also struck by an object the same night.
Emancipation
Winter, announces her emancipation from her mother on Twitter.
I am now officially emancipated!!! I’m really lucky I have an amazing support system and lovely people in my life who have given me the support and guidance to have been given this wonderful opportunity. Thank you to all my family, friends, and fans who have supported me through all of my endeavors in life, and have encouraged me. Thank you for making my life so special! I can’t wait to embark on my new adventures. Most importantly I want to thank @shanelle_gray and my father for their special support regarding this matter, I really couldn’t have done it without them.
Antarctic ice shelf disintegrating
NASA reports that the last intact section of the Larsen B Ice Shelf, which has existed for at least 10,000 years, is weakening fast and will likely disintegrate completely in the next few years, contributing further to rising sea levels. What is left covers about 1,600 square km. A NASA glaciologist says analysis of the data reveals that a widening rift in Larsen B will eventually break it apart completely, probably around the year 2020. Once that happens, glaciers held in place by the ice shelf will slip into the ocean at a faster rate and contribute to rising sea levels.
This study of the Antarctic Peninsula glaciers provides insights about how ice shelves farther south, which hold much more land ice, will react to a warming climate.
Link to Zika confirmed, officials downplay
The Oswaldo Cruz Foundation confirms Dr Soare’s research. Officials downplay the disease as having moderate effects, compared to Dengue fever, which kills hundreds people each year. Health Minister:
Zika virus doesn’t worry us. It’s a benign disease.
US issues advisory
The United States issues a travel warning for Burundi, telling its citizens not to go there and urging those in the country to get out as soon as possible. It says it orders all non-emergency US government personnel and dependents of American staff to leave Burundi.
US citizens should shelter in place until it is safe to move about, ensure that your travel documents are up-to-date, and confirm that air and land borders are open before attempting to depart the country.
Calls Warwick ‘profoundly ignorant’
Waters responds to Warwick’s comments about not succumbing to his pressure.
First, in my view, Dionne Warwick is a truly great singer. Secondly, I doubt not that she is deeply committed to her family and her fans. But, ultimately, this whole conversation is not about her, her gig in Tel Aviv, or even her conception of boundaries and art, though I will touch on that conception later. This is about human rights and, more specifically, this is about the dystopia that can develop, as it has in Israel, when society lacks basic belief in equal human value, when it strays from the ability to feel empathy for our brothers and sisters of different faiths, nationalities, creeds or colors.
I believe you mean well, Ms. Warwick, but you are showing yourself to be profoundly ignorant of what has happened in Palestine since 1947, and I am sorry but you are wrong, art does know boundaries. In fact, it is an absolute responsibility of artists to stand up for human rights – social, political and religious – on behalf of all our brothers and sisters who are being oppressed, whoever and wherever they may be on the surface of this small planet.
Wouldn’t have invaded Iraq
Bush says on the subject of Iraq:
Knowing what we know now, I would not have engaged, I would not have launched an invasion. We’ve answered the question now…That’s not to say that the world [isn’t] safer because Saddam Hussein is gone. It is significantly safer. That’s not to say that there [wasn’t] a courageous effort to bring about a surge that created stability in Iraq. All of that is true. And that’s not to say that the men and women who’ve served uniform and many others who went to Iraq to serve, they did so, certainly, honorably. But, we’ve answered the question now.
Eight dead, all passengers accounted for
An eighth body is found in the wreckage of the train by a search dog, in the mangled first car. The victim has not been identified; only six of the victims have been identified by authorities or friends and family. Mayor Nutter says that all 243 passengers are now accounted for.
‘Reckless and irresponsible’
Philadelphia Mayor Nutter criticizes Bostian:
Clearly he was reckless and irresponsible in his actions. I don’t know what was going on with him, I don’t know what was going on in the cab, but there’s really no excuse that could be offered.
NTSB’s lead investigator:
[I’m] not going to agree with that at all. I think that’s a subjective, judgmental statement,” he said. “We’re here right now just to find out what happened, and that’s what we want to do. We want to find out what happened and why, and we’re not casting any judgment because at this point right now we want to talk to this person and find out what his perspective was.
‘No memory of crash’
Bostian’s lawyer says his client has no memory of the crash, and that he suffered a concussion, leg injuries and a cut in his head that needed 14 staples to close. He has not yet talked with the NTSB.
He remembers driving the train, he remembers going to that area generally, has absolutely no recollection of the incident or anything unusual.
NTSB:
We’ve not interviewed the engineer, but I want to point out that for somebody who’s been through a traumatic event, this is not at all unusual for human behavior to have the mind blank out things like that, at least for the short term.
DOT wants to require V2V communication
Secretary Foxx’s discussion took place at Delphi Labs in Silicon Valley, where autonomous car technologies are being developed and tested.Antuan Goodwin/CNET
The DOT plans to expedite making vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication a requirement in future cars, autonomous or otherwise. The V2V technologies likely won’t become requirements for years to come — the proposal is called Beyond Traffic 2045 — but many autonomous driving technologies are hitting the road today. DOT Secretary Foxx says:
The Department wants to speed the nation toward an era when vehicle safety isn’t just about surviving crashes; it’s about avoiding them. Connected, automated vehicles that can sense the environment around them and communicate with other vehicles and with infrastructure have the potential to revolutionize road safety and save thousands of lives. Autonomous technologies will lead to cars that can drive themselves better than a human can.
Israel: Treaty does not promote peace process
Israel is releases a statement about the Vatican’s treaty recognizing Palestine as a State.
This move does not promote the peace process and distances the Palestinian leadership from returning to direct and bilateral negotiations. Israel will study the agreement and will consider its steps accordingly.
Vatican recognizes Palestine
The Vatican announces it will sign a treaty that includes official recognition of the “State of Palestine.” Vatican Official:
Yes, it’s a recognition that the state exists. The treaty concerns the Catholic Church’s activities in that territory and both parties are expected to sign it soon.
Black Spider letters released
27 letters, written between September 2004 and March 2005, from Prince Charles to government ministers, the so-called “black spider” memos because of Charles’s scrawly handwriting style, are published after a 10-year legal battle to keep them from public view. The letters reveal the scale of Charles’ lobbying and cover issues including equipment provided for British soldiers in Iraq, badger culling, herbal medicine, problems in the dairy sector, and saving the Patagonian toothfish. Clarence House issues a statement on behalf of the Prince:
The publication of private letters can only inhibit his ability to express the concerns and suggestions which have been put to him in the course of his travels and meetings.
Traveling at twice speed limit
Federal investigators say the train was travelling at 102 mph, when engineer applied the locomotive’s emergency braking system just after entering the curved stretch of track. The maximum allowed speed on the curve is 50 miles per hour. The brakes slow the train to 102 mph before the locomotive and all seven passenger cars derail. Black box event recordings and video from the train have yet to be fully analysed. NTSB experts believe the derailment would have been prevented by installation of an advanced safety system called “positive train control”. Authorities have offered no explanation for why the locomotive was traveling so fast. They intend to interview the engineer in the next few days. NTSB official:
This person has gone through a very traumatic event and we want to give him an opportunity to convalesce for a day or two. But that is certainly a very high priority for us.