Burning Man (Amazing Pics) 2012
"Out on the playa of Nevada's Black Rock Desert, more than 50,000 participants gathered last week to form Black Rock City, a temporary city that became the home of the 26th annual Burning Man Festival. Every year, participants from around the world descend on the playa -- performers, artists, free spirits, and more -- to form a self-reliant community, to dance, to express themselves and take in the spectacle of the festival. Reuters photographer Jim Urquhart spent the week on the playa, and returned with these photographs, taking us along on a virtual visit to Burning Man 2012."
Monday, September 3, 2012
Americans Take Day Off From Looking For Work
Americans Take Day Off From Looking For Work
NEW YORK—Citing the day-in, day-out grind of waking up early every morning and plugging away nonstop to find a job, Americans across the nation are spending their Labor Day taking a well-deserved day off from looking for work.
Whether it’s spending time at the park, firing up the grill, or simply enjoying a relaxing day inside watching television, U.S. citizens, who reportedly work an average of eight hours a day searching for employment, said they were glad to take some time off from the near-constant pressure of their job hunts.
“It’s definitely good to recharge,” said unemployed operations manager Rob Wilkes, 44, who vowed to relax and not send a single looking-for-work-related email the entire day. “I honestly can’t remember the last time I took a day off from trying to find a job.”
Added Wilkes, “Labor Day last year, maybe?”
Stating how important their finding a career is to them, Americans admitted it would be somewhat difficult to completely tear themselves away from various work-seeking responsibilities that typically pop up during the day, such looking through the classified sections of multiple newspapers, and blindly sending out dozens of resumes and cover letter.
However, citizens maintained that their lives can’t just revolve around their job search, and that it's essential to take some time away from the grueling—and some would say mind-numbing—hours spent staring endlessly at a computer monitor displaying Monster.com and LinkedIn.
Moreover, for the entire day, Americans have vowed to completely avoid discussing the subject of finding work, and just enjoy hanging out with friends, relatives, and former coworkers.
“I’m constantly in looking-for-work mode,” said former market researcher Amanda Cooper, adding that Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. till 6 p.m. she can be found glued to her bedroom desk trying to find a job. “But you know what? It’s Labor Day. I’m not going to think about all the follow-up phone calls I have to make to potential employers, or how I’m behind on updating my CV. In fact, there is a job application to Burger King sitting on my kitchen table right now, and it’ll just have to wait until tomorrow.”
“Broad, wholesome, charitable views ... can not be acquired by vegetating in one's little corner of the earth.”
“Broad, wholesome, charitable views ... can not be acquired by vegetating in one's little corner of the earth.” | |
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Canadian cities largely safe but rising gun violence ‘disturbing’
Canadian cities largely safe but rising gun violence ‘disturbing’
Based on 2006 crime figures — which Wortley says remain stable — Toronto’s murder rate was 1.8 per 100,000 people. By way of comparison, Regina’s murder rate was 4.5 and Edmonton’s was 3.7. Over the border, New York’s homicide rate is 7.3, Buffalo’s is 26.4 and Detroit’s is 47.3. Chicago, often considered Toronto’s sister city, is 16.4.
Wortley spoke to CBC News about Toronto crime, perception versus reality and the rise in public shootings.
Why We Must Ban High-Capacity Gun Magazines
Why We Must Ban High-Capacity Gun Magazines
"We're determined to ban high-capacity gun magazines like the one Jared Lee Loughner allegedly used in Tucson, Arizona, when he was able to fire 31 bullets in 15 seconds because he supersized his Glock 19 handgun with a high-capacity magazine.
"We're determined to ban high-capacity gun magazines like the one Jared Lee Loughner allegedly used in Tucson, Arizona, when he was able to fire 31 bullets in 15 seconds because he supersized his Glock 19 handgun with a high-capacity magazine.
Loughner's massacre ended only when he stopped to reload and bystanders wrestled him to the ground. If he had used a standard magazine and was forced to reload earlier, some of his victims might have been spared.
High-capacity magazines -- devices that dramatically boost a weapon's firing power -- were prohibited from 1994 until 2004, when the federal assault weapons ban was in place. Since its lapse, high-capacity magazines have become easily accessible, turning up on shelves in gun shops and even some sporting goods stores.
As a recent investigation revealed, during the last year of the ban in 2004, just 10 percent of the crime-related guns seized by Virginia police were equipped with high-capacity magazines, a 10-year low. By last year, with the ban expired, the percentage had surged to 22 percent.
The fact is, guns are used to murder more than 9,500 people in our country in a single year. By comparison, about 5,900 American troops have died in Afghanistan and Iraq during the past 10 years."
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