The Republican Presidential Problem

Mitt Romney 

While I am not American I tend to follow political events in the worlds most powerful nation with interest as a citizen of an increasingly globalized world. As always I try to keep Junction News a non bias outlet but it appears to me and indeed even several conservative pundits such as Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh (as summarised by  Ann Coulter that the Republican party's most likely candidate (in my opinion) Mitt Romney has serious issues to overcome if he is to become the next president of the united states.

Few can remember a contest as fluid as the current war between the 4 remaining potential Republican nominees. While Romney has always been touted by many as the eventual nominee the popularity of the other nominees is constantly changing.  Michelle Bachmann, an early favourite among the ultra conservative tea party movement bowed out after a crushing defeat in the first in the nation caucuses in Iowa.  Hermain Cain also found himself riding high in the polls but was forced to end his run without having ever faced the public, following a number of claims he had  been unfaithful to his wife.

Weekend Randomness: Playmate Found Mummified

Yvette Vickers

The body of Yvette Vickers, a former playboy playmate was found severely decomposed in her Beverly Hills home this week. A neighbour of her's had claimed that the B-Movie actress had not been seen outside her home since the Summer.

It was this neighbour (Susan Savage) who noticed cobwebs forming on the Ms Vickers' letterbox. There she found the cordless phone off the hook and the electric heater still on. She claimed the body of her neighbour was barely recognisable.

The Death of Osama Bin Laden

Obama watches real time footage of the attack

The internet and media outlets will no doubt be abuzz with the aftermath of the death of Osama Bin Laden for the coming weeks and months. His killing on the night of Sunday the 1st of May in Abbottabad has been welcomed by massive celebrations at the site of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and by public representatives of all political denominations across the world. 

The death raises a number of questions. Firstly, there will be retaliation from Al Qaeda, it is a question of when, not if. It is up to security forces to foil attempts as successfully as they have many times in the past. Osama Bin Laden has undoubtedly become a martyr for the cause of Islamic Fundamentalism and indeed for many he had become a spiritual figurehead for many extremists in the Church. The second question is a little more complex.

Tornadoes Ravage the South of America

Tuscaloosa, Alabama

As the world *sigh* celebrated the Royal *sigh* wedding on Friday the people of the Southern states in America were dealing with the aftermath of a multitude of terrifying tornadoes in concentration across 6 states. As of today the lives of some 340 people were claimed by the extreme weather conditions, the majority of which some from the State of Alabama.

The city of Tuscaloosa was badly effected with officials reporting 1,600 people were treated by medical personnel. 31counties among the state's  67 were effected by the storms. President Obama signed the State's state of emergency act and has ordered the mobility of federal services to supplement the local efforts.

Weekend Randomness: The Tattoo and the Murder Conviction

Anthony Garcia

Tattoos are something that often polarizes opinion. While some consider them a beautiful form of body art, others consider them a  painful laser surgery waiting to happen ( or at least something to be regretted down the line). Few, I would be willing to bet, would consider them possible evidence in a murder trial.

This weeks Weekend Randomness deals with the case of one Anthony Garcia who hails from the city of Los Angeles, California. In 2004 Garcia was arrested regarding driving offenses and while in custody had his tattoos photographed by the police.  Fast forward 4 years and LA Sergent Kevin Lloyd was searching through a mugshot book when he happened on the picture of a bare chested Garcia.

President Obama's Birth Certificate

Barrack Obama

In the past few hours President Barack Obama has released the long form copy of his birth certificate confirming he is in fact an American Citizen. Perhaps the headline should have read "Hussein" in American birth shocker or maybe another obvious choice would have been "PresidentTtakes Bizarre Decision to Prove he is American".

Numerous people have questioned the President as to his nationality since he began the race for the White House as far back as the last Democratic Caucases.  One of the most notable of these critics is business tycoon and presenter of the US version of The Apprentice, Donald Trump. He has humbly stated his personal pride in "accomplishing someting no-one lese has accomplised. I am really honoured to have played such a big role in hopefuly getting rid of the issue". President Obama's comments on the issue were more dismissive of Mr. Trump's "achievement". He claimed, " We do not have time for this kind of silliness. We've got better stuff to do".

Tragedy in Tucson: The Debate

The people of Tucson, Arizona remain in mourning for those lost in Saturday's attack on congresswoman Gabrielle Gifford's public forum with constituents outside a commercial outlet in the city. The attack left 5 dead, including a federal judge, with Gifford now in a stabilising condition in a nearby University Medical Centre.  The 22 year-old gun man named as Jared Loughner will face charges which may result in a sentence as severe as the death penalty.

The coverage now seems to be turning towards motive and the prevention of further attacks of this nature from re-occurring. As a general rule of thumb after tragedies of this nature that force people to do considerable amounts of soul searching numerous figures appear on television (indeed generally with far more expertise than myself) hypothesising as to what could have spurred someone to commit such an atrocity. While I do not profess to be an authority or even have any considerable knowledge of mass killings of this kind I hope you may indulge me in some opinions of my own on this tragic event.

Weekend Randomness: Montana Teen Tries to Buy Drugs off of a Police Officer

This story is an amusing little gem which came out of the Associated Press News Agency today dealing with the case of a teen from the Montanan capital of Helena in the central Northern United States.

The male teen thought he was sending the following message to his drug dealer to get some pot "Hey Dawg, do you have a $20 I could buy right now?" Unfortunately, the young man actually sent the message to the Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Leo Dutton.

Earl Closes in on the East Coast

Every hurricane season the media latches on to the prospect of another storm reaking catastrophic damage to the people of the Carribean and the US. This year it is the turn of hurricane Earl to get it moment in the spotlight, and it couldnt have come at a worse time, on the Eve of the Labour Day weekend in the US that would usually draw scores of Americans to the beach one last time before the Summer bids farewell.

The strength of the hurricane had been moved to a category four storm before being downgraded. However, as of 3A.M this morning it had again been upgraded with winds as strong as 135 miles per hour. The Hurricane has also been generating waves as high as 50 feet and is certainy the strongest of the 2010 Hurricane season.

Breaking Hostage Situation in Maryland

Reports are surfacing tonight of a potential hostage situation in the American State of Maryland. An armed man said to be of Asian descent has stormed the headquarters of the Discovery channel in a commuter belt town, Silversprings, near to the capital Washington D.C.

The building also houses a number of other companies such as architectural practices. The man is said to not only be carrying firearms but also has explosives strapped to his person. He has demanded a meeting with top officials at the corporation. It is clear he has some grievance with the group.

Set back for anti-Islam Book Burners

You may have heard the pretty alarming story of Pastor Terry Jones and his Dove World Outreach Church in the American State of Florida. The Church is a fundamentalist Christian organisation with a staunch anti-gay and anti-Islamic philosophy. The Church was founded in 1986 and Jones has been a minister working with the group almost since its inception.

The Church has constantly kept itself in the news through its deeply conservative campaigns and headline grabbing speeches. Last year it began distributing t-shirts with the slogan "Islam is the devil" emblazoned on the back and Biblical scripture on the front. Children of members of the Church were sent to school wearing the t-shirts. One was forced to change his between classes. Another student was sent home along with a further elementary school student.  It also erected billboards with a similar slogans.

A UN Report is Bad News for Afghanistan

A long awaited report released today by the UN has detailed a sharp increase in the number of civilians killed in Afghanistan in the first six months of this year. The figure marked a 36% increase on the same period last year. About 76 of the casualities were caused by anti-Government forces.

The death toll for the  for the period stood at 1,271 with a further 1,997 injured, mainly in roadside bombings. The toll from NATO lead forces and pro-Government forces dropped 30% to 386 ,while the share for the Taliban rose from 53% to 76% according to the report. A spokesman for the Taliban has denied the claims.

The Arizona Immigration Debate

All over America people have argued the legality of the proposed Arizona immigration bill, parts of which have come into effect today. Just yesterday the Obama administration won a key victory when parts of the bill were deemed unconstitutional  by District Judge Sarah Bolton. The moved has angered many republicans in the border state which suffers greatly from the immigration crisis.

The Governor of the State Jan Brewer is planning to appeal the decision of the judge and it looks likely the bill will be taken to the supreme court. Many other states across America were considering enacting similar laws and now it seems there pans may have hit a roadblock.

North Korea on the Offensive Again

There are very few countries I can think of as verbally aggressive as North Korea. In the wake of military drills on the Southern Norther border they released this charming little quote from the central press agency. The said they would "legitimately counter with powerful nuclear deterrence the largest-ever nuclear war exercises to be staged by the U.S. and the South Korean puppet forces."  I don't exactly understand if this is North Korea claiming they are willing to go to war with the super power or basically reminding us they have nuclear weapons.


The drills carried out by the US and South Korean forces were in response to the sinking of a South Korean warship in March. if you missed that you can catch up here. Indeed the threat of War from both sides I believe is minimal. The last thing Obama wants is another war while his efforts to wind down US  involvement in Afghanistan are faltering and North Korea, a country with a devastated economy and aging leader surely doesn't want such unrest during a leadership exchange.