Archives September 2021

Friday, August 20, 2010

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recalled 380 million eggs and the number is expected to grow, after around 300 in Colorado, California, and Minnesota and 2,000 nationwide became infected with salmonella after eating eggs distributed by Wright County Eggs.

The contaminated eggs were sold under the labels Lucerne, Albertson, Mountain Dairy, Ralph’s, Boomsma’s, Sunshine, Hillandale, Trafficanda, Farm Fresh, Shoreland, Lund, Dutch Farms, Kemps, Bayview, Mountain Dairy, NuLay and Sun Valley. Eggs have been sold in seventeen states.

Wright County Egg’s owner has been previously cited for breaking environmental laws.

In response to the outbreak the FDA deployed an initial team of ten investigators to Wright County Egg in Iowa to inspect the farms and determine the source of the contamination. Although no official statement has been issued, it is believed animals including birds and rodents defecated where food for chickens is stored.

The outbreak is believed to have started in early July, around the time new federal regulations to prevent salmonella contamination of eggs took effect.

According to the FDA, the symptoms of salmonella infection includes fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.

Thursday, December 9, 2004

COLUMBUS, OHIO — Nathan Gale, 25, jumped onstage during a concert with the band Damageplan and started shooting a handgun at band members, and then into the crowd. He killed four people, including former Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell, real name Darrell Abbott, who seems to have been the main target. Two others were wounded. The gunman was killed by a police officer responding to the call.

Damageplan was started by the brothers Vinnie Paul and Dimebag Darrell when their former band Pantera split up.

Abbot’s death is noted worldwide by guitarists, musicians, and lovers of metal.

Monday, October 30, 2006

On November 13, Torontoians will be heading to the polls to vote for their ward’s councillor and for mayor. Among Toronto’s ridings is Etobicoke Centre (Ward 3). One candidate responded to Wikinews’ requests for an interview. This ward’s candidates include Francis Ahinful, Ted Berger, Anthony Caputo, Suzan Hall (incumbent), Andre Lucas, Rosemarie Mulhall, Brian Prevost, and Sonali Verma.

For more information on the election, read Toronto municipal election, 2006.

Monday, April 3, 2006

Sometime during the night of Friday, January 28, 15 year-old Jenissa Ryan was assaulted and raped in Alice Springs. She was discovered near the entrance of Centralian Senior Secondary College around 10:30 a.m., and a college employee called an ambulance. The attack was not reported in the mainstream national media until this week, when it became known that the victim was the great-granddaughter of famous indigenous artist Albert Namatjira.

In an article published in Saturdays Sydney Morning Herald, Russell Skelton said that the fact that she was an Aborigine, and the location of her bashing, contributed to her death. “If Jenissa had been white, she might be alive today, though the scars of her brutal bashing and rape could never be erased. If she had been bashed and left for dead almost anywhere else, assistance would have been immediate and the outrage strident.” He also said that if her connection to Namatjira had been known, Jenissa’s death would have been a “national scandal.”

Police believe that she was attacked by a number of youths her own age while walking home. She continued to walk home, but collapsed unconscious near the entrance to the college. Here, according to police, she was found by three teenage boys, who dragged her out of view and raped her.

Jenissa was still alive when found. Skelton considered it likely that people had seen her during the morning but done nothing. “That means a number of residents of middle-class Grevillea Drive probably noticed. The white T-shirt and striped tracksuit pants were hard to miss,” he said.

She was taken to Alice Springs Hospital, and then flown to Adelaide’s Women and Children’s Hospital.

On February 13 Northern Territory Police charged a 16 year-old male and a 15 year-old female with assaulting Jenissa Ryan. Three other males, aged 14, 15, and 16, have been charged with having unlawful sexual intercourse with Jenissa Ryan. Police expressed gratitude for the assistance they had received from members of the public.

Father Asaeli Raass said that both indigenous and non-indigenous people were in denial about the incident. “Yes, it’s a painful thing, but people are sweeping it under the carpet when they should be confronting the big issues Jenissa’s death raises,” he said. He also said that the initial wave of publicity “never travelled outside Alice Springs.”

Jenissa’s mother, Carmel Ryan, said that her daughter wanted to be a painter, like her great-grandfather. “She wanted to be like him, to make a creative contribution we would all be proud of. Tragically that can never be, but I feel nothing but sorrow for the parents of the children involved in this terrible event,” she said.

Friday, August 21, 2009

Stock indexes worldwide rose on Friday, after US bank chief Ben Bernanke said that the US economy was starting to recover from the recession.

Addressing a conference in Wyoming, the bank chief said that “the prospects for a return to growth in the near term appear good.”

He added, however, that “the economic recovery is likely to be relatively slow at first, with unemployment declining only gradually from high levels.”

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 155.91 points, or 1.67%, to end the day at 9505.96. The Nasdaq reached 2020.90 points after gaining 1.59%. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, meanwhile, struck a ten-month high, reaching a level of 1,026.13 at the closing bell, up 1.9%.

The British FTSE index rose about two percent, closing at 4,851. The French Cac index gained 3.1% and the German Dax 2.8%.

“Bernanke was a little bit more bullish than most people were expecting. He’s saying that the global economy is starting to emerge from the recession and that the fears of a financial collapse have receded substantially,” said Jacob Oubina, the currency strategist of Forex.com.

“I think the market is just taking those headlines as extreme positives for the outlook.”

Jean-Claude Trichet, the European Central Bank president, warned that talk of a complete recovery might be premature. “I am a little bit uneasy when I see that, because we have some green shoots here and there, we are already saying, ‘well, after all, we are close to back to normal,’ ” he said.

Thursday, November 16, 2006

According to New Zealand doctor, Doctor Glenn Twentyman from Child, Youth and Family Services at Wiri, South Auckland, hoodies can be a health risk because they block sunlight which causes a vitamin D deficiency, thus weak bones and low energy.

Dr Twentyman said: “It’s the hoodies and the hats and the downward glance of the teenagers, shading your face all the time.”

Dr Twentyman said that every young person that he had tested showed a deficiency of vitamin D. Vitamin D helps vital minerals to be absorbed into the bones. Vitamin D is given to our body from the sun. “A lot of these kids stay away from sunshine. They don’t hang out at the beach or in the bush. Some are into drugs and alcohol and a lot of it is indoor activity and night-time activity. They sleep during the day. They are wearing those hoods and literally they don’t get out in the sun.”

Even though vitamin D is usually absorbed through sun it can also be found in: fatty fish, liver, eggs, full fat milk and butter.

There is an increase in reports of vitamin D deficiency in Oceania. This is most likely because of people trying to cover up because of the higher risk of getting skin cancer due to the ozone hole over New Zealand. His comments come as evidence mounts of increasing vitamin D deficiency in Australasia, partly caused by covering up to avoid skin cancer. Also one student from Tangaroa College, Vincent Wesche, said that he wears a hoodie because “I don’t want to lose my hair,” also referring to rugby player, Carlos Spencer, “Carlos Spencer is starting to lose his hair from the sun.”

Doctor Cameron Grant, from Starship hospital in Auckland, said that he had done a study for four years which found that infants living in Auckland did have a deficiency of vitamin D. “We know that vitamin D deficiency is a health issue in New Zealand. We know that people who are at risk of vitamin D deficiency are for example groups who keep themselves clothed and keep themselves indoors for religious reasons … so his idea is not an unreasonable one.”

Another study also showed that 87% of pregnant woman living in Wellington were vitamin D deficient.

Dr Twentyman said that the people who are most likely to have a vitamin D deficiency are “depressed people and the elderly, such as those kept indoors in rest homes all day.”

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Richard Hammond, a British television presenter known for presenting shows such as Top Gear and Brainiac, is in a “stable” condition in hospital following a car accident during filming for Top Gear. He was injured when the jet-powered car he was driving crashed during filming for the former. The car, similar to the “Vampire” which holds the British land speed record, overturned whilst being driven at speeds of up to 300 miles per hour at Elvington airfield near York, in what was suggested to be an attempt at bettering the previous record. It has been suggested that he succeeded in a previous attempt. Emergency services were called to the scene at 5.45pm local time (16.45 UTC).

He was airlifted to the specialist neurological unit at Leeds General Infirmary. A former firefighter who was providing fire safety at the site and witnessed the accident said that Hammond was initially unconscious but able to speak when removed from the wreckage. At the time he indicated some pain in his lower back. Numerous eyewitnesses from the Top Gear crew claimed he was ‘helped into’ an air ambulance, suggesting he was conscious at the time. The ambulance service is reported to have said that Hammond was unconscious when they arrived at the scene, but began to regain consciousness upon arrival at the hospital.

The car was “very very badly damaged and in many pieces on the runway”, according to BBC News 24, reporting comments made by his colleagues.

A web sitehas been set up for well-wishers enabling them to donate to the Yorkshire Air Ambulance. This site will accept donations until January 21, 2007. As of 23.09 (UTC) 21st September 2006 (day 2) £52,239.90 had been raised, surpassing the original target of £340.00 and well past their target of £51,000 (150 flights) that was set in the past few days.