The passing of former Bahamian Director General of Tourism David Johnson
Former Director General of Tourism Mr. David Johnson has lost his battle with colon cancer yesterday.
Johnson had succeeded Vernice Walkine, who joined the executive management team of the Nassau Airport Development Company and Lynden Pindling International Airport.
Johnson is a 39-year tourism and aviation industry veteran and former Senior Deputy Director of Tourism. Prior to his appointment as Director General, Johnson served as Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Tourism and president of the Grand Bahama Island tourism board.
Johnson also served as Director Marketing and General Manager of Bahamasair between 1986 and 1992.
A sportsman at heart, he was an avid golfer, basketball and softball fan and cultural artist. He exceeded expectations.
Nearly $500K disappeared from school cafeterias. Officials say the lunch ladies did it
For four years, nearly half-a-million dollars quietly vanished from cafeteria registers at two schools in Connecticut.
No one noticed the money was missing from the schools in New Canaan until 2017, when the school district installed an enhanced accounting system, authorities said.
Now two sisters are accused of allegedly pocketing $478,000 in cash from New Canaan Public Schools -- a scam that authorities say dates to 2013.
Joanne Pascarelli, 61, and Marie Wilson, 67, both worked at cafeterias at Saxe Middle School and New Canaan High School during that time. They were arrested this week and charged with larceny and defrauding a public community, the school district said.
"We are deeply upset by this alleged violation of our trust and the trust of the entire community, and are committed to continuing our full cooperation with the New Canaan Police Department regarding these allegations," the school district said in a statement.
Both women resigned in December, around the time the board of education started looking into the discrepancies.
Afghanistan Taliban withdraws protection for Red Cross
The Taliban says it will no longer allow safe passage to Red Cross staff working in Afghanistan.
The militants accuse the neutral humanitarian group of failing to meet its obligations to help Taliban prisoners in a jail in Kabul.
The International Committee of the Red Cross monitors detention conditions and provides medical aid. It scaled down its presence in Afghanistan last year after seven staff were killed.
Spokeswoman Andrea Catta Preta said the ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross) was in close contact with the Taliban following their announcement, and hoping to find a solution so the group's humanitarian work could continue.
The ICRC treats all parties harmed by warfare humanely and does not take sides. It has in the past given first aid training to Taliban members. It operates in Taliban-controlled areas with guarantees of safety and helps to repatriate bodies from both sides after fighting between the militants and the Afghan army.
In its statement on Monday, the Taliban said that many of its prisoners held in Pul-e-Charkhi jail in the capital Kabul were in a terrible state of health and that the ICRC would be responsible for whatever happened to them. Hundreds of fighters have been on hunger strike to demand better prison conditions.
Pennsylvania priests 'abused thousands of children'
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has released a grand jury report detailing sex abuse in the Catholic Church, naming over 300 accused clergymen. The landmark grand jury investigation found more than 1,000 children had been abused by members of six dioceses in the state for the last 70 years.
Officials say the probe found systematic cover-ups by the church. After an 18-month investigation, "over one thousand child victims were identifiable, from the church's own records," the grand jury states in the report released on Tuesday.
"We believe that the real number - of children whose records were lost or who were afraid ever to come forward - is in the thousands." The document states that young boys and girls, as well as teenagers, were abused by clergy.
"All of them were brushed aside by church leaders who preferred to protect the abusers and their institution above all," the report reads. Due to alleged cover-up efforts by the church's senior officials, most of the cases are too old for prosecution, the grand jury noted. But officials warned there may be more indictments as the investigation continues.
While the report names hundreds of priests, some names remain redacted due to claims that naming them violates their constitutional rights. "Church officials routinely and purposefully described the abuse as horseplay and wrestling and inappropriate conduct. It was none of those things. It was child sexual abuse, including rape," Mr Shapiro said.
Many victims claimed they were drugged or otherwise manipulated. Some recalled being beaten by family members who did not believe their stories.
Morgana King: Godfather actress and Jazz singer dies aged 87
The Godfather actress and jazz singer Morgana King has died aged 87.
She played Carmela Corleone - the wife of Marlon Brando's Don Vito - in the first two Godfather films, alongside a Grammy-nominated jazz career.
King passed away from cancer on 22 March at her home in Palm Springs, California, the Riverside County coroner's office confirmed.
Her death had gone unreported until her friend John Hoglund posted a public message of condolence.
Paying tribute on Facebook he said that while "many will remember her as Marlon Brando's wife and Al Pacino's mother," King was also a "major part" of the jazz scene.
Born in New York to Italian parents, her father - a self-taught musician - died when she was 11, leaving her to be raised by her mother in the Bronx and attend James Munroe High School.
King's singing career began when she performed in clubs throughout her teenage years.
Respected by her peers, King went on to perform in Las Vegas and around the country as well as on television on The Tonight Show, Playboy After Dark and The Hollywood Palace.
A Grammy nomination for her 1964 hit single A Taste of Honey marked the commercial peak of her five-decade, 20-album career.
As rock'n' roll came to dominate the charts, King got her theatrical break in The Godfather after meeting with the trilogy's director Francis Ford Coppola.
The crime saga, starring Marlon Brando and Al Pacino as mafia kingpins of the Corleone family, won three Oscars and remains one of the most critically-revered series of all time.
Her portrayal of 'Mama' Carmela, Vito's long-suffering wife in 1972's opening instalment, featured virtually no spoken lines, but saw her take centre stage during its memorable wedding scene, singing the Italian song Luna Mezz'o Mare.
Mystery Russian satellite's behaviour raises alarm in US
A mysterious Russian satellite displaying "very abnormal behaviour" has raised alarm in the US, according to a State Department official.
"We don't know for certain what it is and there is no way to verify it,"said assistant secretary Yleem Poblete at a conference in Switzerland on 14 August.
She voiced fears that it was impossible to say if the object may be a weapon.
Russia has dismissed the comments as "unfounded, slanderous accusations based on suspicions".
The satellite in question was launched in October last year.
"[The satellite's] behaviour on-orbit was inconsistent with anything seen before from on-orbit inspection or space situational awareness capabilities, including other Russian inspection satellite activities," Ms Poblete told the conference on disarmament in Switzerland.
"Russian intentions with respect to this satellite are unclear and are obviously a very troubling development," she added, citing recent comments made by the commander of Russia's Space Forces, who said adopting "new prototypes of weapons" was a key objective for the force.
Ms Poblete said that the US had "serious concerns" that Russia was developing anti-satellite weapons.
Alexander Deynko, a senior Russian diplomat, told the Reuters news agency that the comments were "the same unfounded, slanderous accusations based on suspicions, on suppositions and so on".
He called on the US to contribute to a Russian-Chinese treaty that seeks to prevent an arms race in space.
2019 Acura RDX Earns Top Safety Pick Plus Rating From IIHS
The IIHS has named the 2019 Acura RDX a Top Safety Pick Plus after putting it through its full battery of testing. In order to get the Top Safety Pick Plus rating, a vehicle must fulfill the following requirements: earn Good ratings on roof strength, side impact, head restraints, moderate front overlap, and driver's side front small overlap impact; Acceptable or Good on the passenger's side small overlap impact; Advanced or Superior in the front crash prevention test; and offer an available headlight option that scores a Good rating.
Christine Hallquist: First transgender governor nominee picked
A former energy executive in Vermont has taken a major step towards becoming the first ever transgender governor of a US state.
Christine Hallquist defeated three other candidates, including a 14-year-old boy, to win the Democratic Party nomination on Tuesday.
She will now face the incumbent Republican Governor Phil Scott in the general election in November.
Her nomination came on a night of firsts for primary elections.
A former Somali refugee won her race in Minnesota, as did a celebrated teacher in Connecticut who could now become the state's first black Democrat in Congress.
Democrats are hoping for a "blue wave" in the midterm elections to regain control of at least one chamber of Congress.
Ms Hallquist's nomination comes in an election year already marked by record numbers of lesbian, gay and transgender candidates.
There are also a record number of female candidates in elections for governor and for the House of Representatives.
This year, 43 transgender candidates have run for political office at all levels in the US.
But Ms Hallquist is the first transgender person to win a major party nomination for state governor.
TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS AND BAHAMAS PUBLIC FORECAST FOR TODAY AND TONIGHT WEDNESDAY 15TH AUGUST 2018
GENERAL SITUATION: SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE PERSIST ACROSS THE BAHAMAS MAINTAINING BREEZY CONDITIONS OVER MOST OF THE ISLANDS WHILE A TROPICAL WAVE IN THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS AND AN UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL ENHANCE POCKETS OF CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY.
SPECIAL WARNINGS: BOATERS SHOULD BE ALERT FOR THE RISK OF RIP CURRENTS AT EAST COAST BEACHES IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS.
CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS
WEATHER: A MIX OF SUN AND CLOUDS, HOT AND HUMID WITH WIDELY SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS.
ADVISORY: SMALL CRAFT CAUTION REMAINS IN EFFECT.
WINDS: EAST TO SOUTHEAST AT 15 TO 20 KNOTS OVER OPEN WATERS.
SEAS: 4 TO 6 FEET OVER THE OCEAN.
NORTHWEST BAHAMAS
WEATHER: PARTLY SUNNY AND HOT WITH A FEW ISOLATED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. MAINLY FAIR AND WARM WITH A FEW BRIEF PASSING SHOWERS TONIGHT.
ADVISORY: BOATERS SHOULD BE ALERT FOR GUSTY WINDS AND HIGHER SEAS IN OR NEAR HEAVY SHOWERS OR THUNDERSTORMS.
WINDS: EAST TO SOUTHEAST AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS OVER OPEN WATERS.
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET OVER THE OCEAN.
DAYTIME HIGH TEMPERATURE 93°F 34°C
OVERNITE LOW TEMPERATURE 77°F 25°C
HEAT INDEX 107°F 41°C
SUNRISE: 6:44AM
SUNSET: 7:42PM
MOONRISE: 11:01AM
MOONSET: 11:08PM
HIGH TIDE: 10:46AM 11:06PM
LOW TIDE: 5:02PM 5:27AM THUR
EXTENDED FORECAST: THE RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE WILL PREVAIL ACROSS THE BAHAMAS WITH GENTLE TO FRESH BREEZES THROUGH THE WEEKEND.
SUBTROPICAL DEPRESSION FIVE ISSUED BY THE BAHAMAS DEPARTMENT OF METEOROLOGY FORECAST OFFICE
NEWS ITEM ON SUBTROPICAL DEPRESSION FIVE ISSUED BY THE BAHAMAS DEPARTMENT OF METEOROLOGY FORECAST OFFICE SECTION, AT 6AM WEDNESDAY 15TH AUGUST 2018.
… SUBTROPICAL DEPRESSION FORMS OVER THE CENTRAL ATLANTIC…
AT 5:00AM EDT, THE CENTER OF SUBTROPICAL DEPRESSION FIVE WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 37.6°NORTH AND LONGITUDE 45.6° WEST OR ABOUT 1015 MILES WEST OF THE AZORES.
SUBTROPICAL DEPRESSION FIVE IS MOVING TOWARD THE NORTH NEAR 5 MPH, AND THIS GENERAL MOTION WITH A SLIGHT INCREASE IN FORWARD SPEED IS EXPECTED TODAY. A FASTER NORTHEASTWARD MOTION IS FORECAST TO OCCUR ON THURSDAY AND FRIDAY.
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 35 MILES PER HOUR (MPH) WITH HIGHER GUSTS. SOME STRENGTHENING IS FORECAST DURING THE NEXT DAY OR SO, AND THE SUBTROPICAL DEPRESSION IS EXPECTED TO BECOME A SUBTROPICAL STORM LATER TODAY.