'Bomb-making material' found in second Bangkok flat

Thai police say bomb-making materials have been found in a second apartment, and issue two new arrests warrants over the Erawan Shrine bombing.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1X9dMhd

A new era? Iranians erase 'Death to America' graffiti from wall of former US embassy in Tehran

Slogans against America are being erased from walls on the street of Tehran, Iranian media has reported in recent days. Iranian news sites have published pictures of a person wiping off graffiti that reads,"Death to America," also from the walls of where the US embassy was formerly located prior to its closure after the Islamic Revolution of 1979.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1LQ04wj

Not quite there yet

I was sent this list of 10 “biblical” beliefs that poison Christians, hosted on a site that opposes ‘spiritual abuse’. It’s a weirdly twisty look into the views of a fairly liberal but clearly fervent Christian — I actually agree with them that a lot of these beliefs are actively harmful, but the reasoning they use to reach that same conclusion is odd, to me. That makes it interesting to read, because it provides a peculiar perspective on concerns that are familiar to atheists.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1JImUiP

Does atheism have to be anti-religious?

We tend to understand atheism as a war between religion and science - but in earlier times atheism was both more complex and more rich, says philosopher John Gray.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1JIi9pp

VICE News Crew Facing Terrorism Charges In Turkey As Global Rights Groups Call For Their Release

Four members of a VICE News crew were arrested by Turkish police on Thursday, August 27, in the Kurdish city of Diyarbakir located in south-east Turkey. The reporters are scheduled to appear in court on Monday to face allegations of terrorism and assisting ISIS. Global rights groups including Amnesty International and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) are calling for an immediate release of all four reporters.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1LPAjw8

Artificial Unintelligence

In the early stages of the Lesser Depression, those of us who knew a bit about the macroeconomic debates of the 1930s, and realized how relevant the hard-won insights of Keynes and Hicks were to the post-financial crisis world, often felt a sense of despair. Everywhere you looked, people who imagined themselves sophisticated and possessed of deep understanding were resurrecting 75-year-old fallacies and presenting them as deep insights.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1Jtps5e

How Lena Horne Escaped Hollywood’s Blacklist

At the height of her career, the beautiful young performer accidentally stumbled into a power struggle between Hollywood communists and McCarthyites. By John Meroney.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1EubrYc

Three Category 4 Hurricanes in the Pacific Ocean: How Rare Is That?

The Pacific Ocean saw a very rare occurrence on Saturday evening.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1IAOeyB

881 E.T. cartridges buried in New Mexico desert sell for $107,930.15

City of Alamogordo will get $65,000 from sale of unearthed Atari catridges.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1LPbVef

When Prisons Need to Be More Like Nursing Homes

Finding new ways to treat the growing pool of older, ailing inmates. By Maura Ewing.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1Jt03IZ

News Photos for the Last Day of August

A look at the best news photos from around the world.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1MYFp7W

​Hurricane Fred Forms in the Atlantic; Hurricanes Ignacio, Jimena in Pacific Should Miss Hawaii

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami says Fred's maximum sustained winds Monday morning are near 80 mph. Gradual weakening is forecast to begin Tuesday.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1JsNZYd

In defense of single-payer: How it would reduce administrative waste

A universal system would make documentation irrelevant, and, therefore, unnecessary. By Adam Gaffney, M.D.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1KzZVeS

The Myth of the New Orleans School Makeover

The takeover by charter programs hasn’t helped the worst-off kids. By Andrea Gabor.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1PHjNMt

“Grey swan” cyclones predicted to be more frequent and intense

Study finds some coastal regions may face a risk of unprecedented storm surge in the next century.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1EtMImT

The oil crash has 'everyone on pins and needles' in Texas

The latest reading on the state of business in Texas.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1IA7Se9

Breaking: Massive explosion just hit another city in China

The blast comes just weeks after another major devastated the Chinese city of Tianjin.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1fRWoM2

The Movies of My Youth

There were years when I went to the movies almost every day, around the time of my adolescence. Those were years in which cinema was my world. By Italo Calvino.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1Fddrit

Mob molls of New York City: Female companions of Mafia men

Take a fascinating look at the female companions of the Mafia, who not only put their lives on the line being associated with some of the most dangerous men in the world, but who also acted as their accomplices in some of the most deadliest crimes.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1KnLRGV

Longer lasting ice-cream developed by scientists

A protein to make the frozen dessert melt more slowly has been discovered by physicists at Edinburgh and Dundee universities
Read more: http://ift.tt/1KXy58g

Wal-Mart Cuts Some Workers’ Hours After Pay Raise Boosts Costs

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., in the midst of spending $1 billion to raise employees’ wages and give them extra training, has been cutting the number of hours some of them work in a bid to keep costs in check.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1EvTLvE

Last Week Tonight With John Oliver: History Lies (Web Exclusive)

John Oliver shares some of his favorite completely made-up history facts.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1FcoCIb

Michelle Carter's and Conrad Roy's messages before suicide

Conrad Roy, who was battling with depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts, was seeking for help but instead was encouraged by his narcissistic 18-year-old girlfriend Michelle Carter to finish the business. When Conrad started to worry about the consequences of his suicide, Michelle promised it’s not a big deal. “Everyone will be sad for a while, but they will get over it and move on. They won’t be in the depression,” she wrote.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1X5WMZs

The ‘Fight for $15′: It’s not just about raising wages at McDonald’s, it’s about a living wage for everyone

The Fight for $15 is giving McDonald’s a stark choice – either sit down and work together with us to find a way to lift up hundreds of thousands of low-wage McDonald’s workers or face continued economic war. That warning is not without heft. Already, as a result of the Fight for $15’s prodding, Brazilian prosecutors are investigating alleged wage theft, child labor and unsafe conditions at McDonald’s franchised operations, while the European Union is investigating...
Read more: http://ift.tt/1NSbtv2

'Pendulum Factor' could land Trump in White House

If you’re having trouble understanding the phenomenal rise of Donald Trump, buck up — you’re not alone. Even political pros are dumbfounded. They were shocked when the reality-TV star and businessman first grabbed the lead in national GOP polls. Now they’re double shocked as he soars in primary states, grabbing a 24-point lead in New Hampshire and a 15-point lead in South Carolina.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1JGLl02

Denali or McKinley? How a 19th century political ‘joke’ turned into a 119-year-long debate

There was no reason why a gold prospector of little consequence should have been able to christen America's tallest peak. But the name "Mount McKinley" stuck
Read more: http://ift.tt/1JwhN8v

Alabama Is About To Make It Much Harder To Get A Voter ID

With Alabama’s Republican controlled legislature refusing to consider any tax hikes, the state is preparing to take drastic measures to address its budget crisis, including shutting down all state parks and the vast majority of Departments of Motor Vehicles (DMVs). The proposal to close dozens of DMVs across the state, starting in rural areas, could hurt voters who need access to those offices in order to get the ID they need to cast a ballot.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1O3cmie

93-year-old man finally gets his high school diploma

Harold Trautman had all but given up on ever getting a high school diploma that he was on track to receive in 1940. The 93-year-old Jonestown native managed to make a good living without it – relying on his work ethic, skills as an accomplished photographer and love of learning. But it was a credential that he came to learn that others put a lot of stock into having.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1JGkBg5

Malaysia's Mahathir calls for 'people power' movement to topple PM

By Trinna Leong and Al-Zaquan Amer Hamzah
Read more: http://ift.tt/1hO7UKs

The Ghosts of Old London

To dispel my disappointment that I cannot rent that Room to Let in Old Aldgate, I find myself returning to scrutinize the collection of pictures taken by the Society for Photographing the Relics of Old London held in the archive at the Bishopsgate Institute. It gives me great pleasure to look closely and see the loaves of bread in the window and read the playbills on the wall in this photograph of a shop in Macclesfield St in 1883.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1hqMy53

China’s WWII victory march plans are clashing with falling markets and Tianjin

The parade, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, will take place on Sept. 3, a newly created holiday to celebrate the allied forces victory over Japan. While Europe’s (arguably mostly successful) post-WWII reunification strategy might be summed up as “don’t mention the war,” in Asia unifying forces have lost out to rising nationalism in recent years. China’s plans to commemorate the “War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression as well as the World Anti-Fascist War”
Read more: http://ift.tt/1UgPT8F

Why Are So Many Christians So Un-Christian?

Many right-wing Christians vilify the poor, in direct contradiction to the teachings of Jesus. Why the hypocrisy?
Read more: http://ift.tt/1VpVvKO

Welcome to Beautiful Parkersburg, West Virginia

Home to one of the most brazen, deadly corporate gambits in U.S. history. By Mariah Blake.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1PG1zeo

Surprising Truth About Where US Immigrants Are Coming From

More than one in 10 people living in the United States right now was born in another country. Of the 41 million immigrants in the U.S., most come from Mexico, our neighbor to the south. However, when you take out Mexico out of the equation, a more diverse picture emerges.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1KwRyAM

Iowa Poll Shows Bernie Sanders Closing In on Hillary Clinton

A new poll in Iowa shows Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton losing considerable ground to her chief rival, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders
Read more: http://ift.tt/1ErUCgr

William Ash: The cooler king

World War Two threw up many extraordinary characters. But even among this exalted company William Ash - the model for the character played by Steve McQueen in The Great Escape - stands out, writes the author of a new biography, Patrick Bishop.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1Euo3i8

The rise of the comic book in the Middle East

Amid growing demand, the Muslim and Arab world has begun constructing more of its own comic superheroes.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1Q2gW1s

Brutal B.C.,Canada Windstorm Leaves Thousands Still Without Power

Hydro crews continue working to reconnect tens of thousands of customers who lost power as a windstorm swept across southwestern British Columbia.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1KwAlaB

13 YO Boy Almost Boiled Alive When He Asked For Pending Wages To Buy A Rakhi Gift

A restaurant owner was arrested from Barra on Friday for allegedly pouring boiling water on his 13 years old servant, who had asked for his pending wages so that he could buy gifts for his sister on the occasion of Rakshabandhan.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1Q2aEPm

Shooting survivor's husband: It was a matter of 'centimeters'

The bullet that struck Vicki Gardner, the chamber of commerce executive shot during a live news broadcast in Virginia, came within "centimeters" of taking her life, according to her husband. "The surgeon told me that a couple of centimeters and she wouldn't be walking and a couple of centimeters more and she wouldn't be alive," Tim Gardner told ABC News.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1hqe02E

In pictures: An emotional arrival in Europe

The Greek island of Lesbos is just 14km from Turkey and a key migrant entry point into Europe. Photographer Fernando Del Berro watched some arrive.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1Q1YJRM

Windstorm causes power outages, injury in Metro Vancouver

One woman suffered life-threatening injuries after she was hit by tree during a severe rain and wind storm that whipped through B.C.’s South Coast on Saturday.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1MWfzla

What's the difference between a religion and a cult?

Hopes&Fears answers questions with the help of people who know what they're talking about. Today, we speak to theologians and psychologists about worship, fanaticism and blurred lines.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1JDKDRb

The Invincible Trump

What hasn’t killed Donald Trump has only made him stronger. Right off the bat, there was the shocking statement about the Mexican government sending over immigrant “rapists.” Then came the challenge to John McCain’s war hero status, a low blow from someone who avoided the draft. Next were the “bimbo” retweet attacks on Fox host Megyn Kelly (not to mention the reference to her “wherever”). His latest rants on “anchor babies”...
Read more: http://ift.tt/1O1J3wr

How companies make millions off lead-poisoned, poor blacks

Structured-settlement annuitants are lured by quick cash to unload their future payouts for dimes on the dollar.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1Q1lrJL

Oliver Sacks, eminent neurologist and author of Awakenings, dies aged 82

Author who also wrote The Man Who Mistook His Wife For a Hat revealed in February that he was in the late stages of terminal cancer
Read more: http://ift.tt/1Umf706

Bank of America to pay $36 million in California overtime infraction case

A subsidiary of Bank of America has agreed to settle with 365 current and former employees for $36 million over charges it failed to pay overtime, an Oakland lawyer who brought the case said Thursday. The settlement comes just under the wire: It was slated to go to trial on Aug. 31, but the $36 million settlement, if and when it is approved by the court, now resolves all claims.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1JF7vQi

Les Miserables star Kyle Jean-Baptiste dies in US fire escape fall

The first African-American and youngest person ever to play the lead role in Les Miserables on Broadway has died in a fall, a show spokesman has said. Kyle Jean-Baptiste, 21, fell from a fire escape after Friday evening's performance at the Imperial Theatre, said representative Marc Thibodeau.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1Um717K

Inside the most expensive nuclear bomb ever made

Could America's latest atomic weapon ignite a new arms race?
Read more: http://ift.tt/1LLuLmq

Flying Girls: A Compendium of WW2 Airplane Pin-Ups

Since the Egyptians had their chariots, the Vikings had their ships and the Zulu warriors had their shields, man has been decorating his instruments of war.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1JEwNm4