Civics

Village School Given Honor of Hosting Queen as she Celebrates 60 years on Throne (Video)

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:23:23 GMT

Today marks the anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the throne in 1952, after her father, King George VI, died.

A village school in Norfolk was given the honor of hosting the Queen and kicking-off the royal mum's diamond jubilee year. The primary school students performed music and a play based on her 60 years of service.

Cheering

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India Tops World with Record Green Energy Growth

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:12:56 GMT

India racked up investments of $10.3 billion for its green energy sector, an increase of 52 percent over last year, which dwarfed the rest of the world's economies in 2011.

Solar investments led the growth with a seven-fold increase in funding, according to figures released yesterday by analysts Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

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Rebellious Chinese Village Takes Baby Steps Toward Democracy

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:05:30 GMT

7,688 residents of a southern Chinese village used ballot boxes in their first open and transparent election last week, an experiment in democracy that could affect other places in China.

Wukan was in the spotlight late last year for a high-profile protest by villagers against local officials believed to be illegally selling public land to developers.

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Bismarck's Voice Found on Edison Recording

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 15:54:49 GMT

The voice of Otto von Bismarck, one of the 19th century's most important figures has been identified as one recorded on a wax cylinder more than 120 years ago.

The recording of the German chancellor was one of a dozen cylinders that were once stored near Thomas Edison's cot in his West Orange, N.J., lab,

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Las Vegas Principal Goes Door to Door Hoping To Beat The Odds

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 15:26:37 GMT

Nevada has the lowest high school graduation rate in the country. But now a multi-million dollar federal grant is helping one district turn its schools around. Host Michel Martin speaks with a principal who spent last Saturday knocking on the doors of students who dropped out, encouraging them to come back to school.

"We're trying to reclaim our students, the

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Super Bowl Pizzas Give US Troops a Taste of Home

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:06:15 GMT

10,000 Uno’s pizzas will be delivered to U.S. troops overseas in time for Super Bowl Sunday, thanks to the Evans family of Illinois who started Pizzas4Patriots in 2008.

Supporters of the operation want to send soldiers a taste of home, including the shipping company DHL Express, which delivers the pizzas for no charge.

The pizzas arrive power-baked and cryo-frozen, said Mark
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AmeriCorps Honored for 579,000 Hours of Joplin Tornado Relief Work

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:53:27 GMT

The Missouri House of Representatives today passed a resolution honoring AmeriCorps members from across the country who have played an indispensable role in helping the city of Joplin recover from the devastating tornado that flattened more than 7,000 buildings in the city on May 22, 2011.

AmeriCorps members from 20 organizations in seven states served in
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Iran Welcomes Nuclear Experts for 3-day Inspection Visit

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 15:17:38 GMT

UN nuclear inspectors began a critical mission to Iran on Sunday to investigate allegations that it seeks nuclear warheads.

The U.N. nuclear agency delegation includes two senior weapons experts.

"We’re looking forward to the start of a dialogue,” said IAEA’s Deputy Director General Herman Nackaerts.

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Israel to Clear Thousands of Mines in Desert

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 14:53:18 GMT

Israel's defence ministry says it will soon begin clearing thousands of mines in southern Israel.

In a statement Sunday, defense official Ervin Lavi says the ministry will clear 60 acres of land near the Dead Sea in March.

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South Korea Allows Food Aid to North Korea

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 15:22:09 GMT

South Korean civic groups received the okay to deliver eight trucks of food aid to North Korea Friday in an effort to help the starving people in that country.

The 180 tons of flour is being delivered to hospitals, schools and day care centers with the hope that the measure will also lead to a softening of strained inter-Korean
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Thousands of Arab and Jewish Youth Hold Online Peace Conference

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 17:09:53 GMT

Just beneath the radar of formal diplomacy and strategic talks, the largest peace conference in the history of the Middle East took place Monday and Tuesday on Facebook.

Thousands of Palestinian, Israeli and Arab youth joined together for the virtual peace summit where real world leaders, like Hillary Clinton, Shimon Peres and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, congratulated their
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In Daring Raid, Navy SEALs Free 2 Aid Workers From Somali Pirates

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:24:52 GMT

In a daring raid reminiscent of the kind used to kill Osama bin Laden, U.S. Navy SEALs swooped into Somalia Wednesday morning and rescued two aid workers, who had been held by pirates since October.

The soldiers came in by helicopter and engaged in a firefight that killed nine pirates. The SEALs left with Jessica Buchanan, a
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Egypt Army Pardons 1,959 Detainees, Prominent Activist

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:47:07 GMT

Egypt's military ruler has pardoned 1,959 people convicted by military courts in the year since President Hosni Mubarak's ouster, including activist Michael Nabil whose hunger strike had brought him close to death.

The pardon comes just four days before the first anniversary of the Egyptian uprising which began on January 25 igniting the Arab Spring protests
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World Makes Stunning Progress in Education of Young Children

Sat, 21 Jan 2012 16:11:44 GMT

Over the past 12 years, the world has made stunning progress toward the goal of having more children attend primary school.

In sub-Saharan Africa, enrollment in primary school is up 18 percent; and globally, we added 37 million kids to school rolls, an increase of 35 percent a huge achievement.

Countries have made progress on this UN Millennium Goal by abolishing
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8 US Lawmakers Withdraw Support for SOPA After Websites Go Black in Protest

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:53:13 GMT

The blackout of Wikipedia and other websites protesting against the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act, have prompted eight US lawmakers to withdraw their support for the law.

Two of the bill’s co-sponsors, Marco Rubio and Roy Blunt, are among those backing away.

Wikipedia and Reddit shut down their operations for 24 hours yesterday urging American viewers to call their Congressmen to protest
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El Salvador Apologizes for State Violence on 20th Anniversary of Peace Accords, Offers Reparations

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 06:54:46 GMT

On January 16, crowds gathered in the small community of El Mozote to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Peace Accords that ended El Salvador´s 12-year-long civil war. Rural El Mozote is the site of a 1981 massacre of more than 1,000 civilians and children, carried out by the Salvadoran Armed Forces.

At the solemn event, El Salvador’s
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Va. GOP Moves to Scrap Loyalty Oath as Requirement for Primary Voters

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:46:38 GMT

The Virginia Republican party voted overwhelmingly to reverse its December decision to place on their ballot a "loyalty oath" that would have required March primary voters to support the eventual GOP nominee for president.

Scrambling to meet a Friday deadline for finalizing primary ballots, Virginia Republican chairman Pat Mullins polled the state party’s governing central committee by phone and e-mail.

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At Last, a Year for State Budgets When the Sky is Not Falling

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 15:22:38 GMT

After a four-year run during which states had to close budget gaps of historic proportions, the term “surplus” is finally making a modest comeback in capitals.

According to the Rockefeller Institute of Government, at least 45 states saw their revenues increase over the past year.

Enough economic vital signs are headed in the right direction that the mood in most states
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At Last, Fuel Delivery Reaches Iced-in Alaska Town

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 16:09:17 GMT

A Russian fuel tanker has finally reached Nome harbor after a Coast Guard icebreaker cleared a path for it through hundreds of miles of ice in a last-ditch effort to provide heating fuel and gasoline to the Alaska town.

A storm prevented Nome's 3,500 residents from getting a fuel delivery by barge in November. Without the tanker delivery, supplies
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Iron Chef in Prison Cooks up a New Future for Filipino Convicts

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 19:44:29 GMT

Convicted murderers and rapists in the Philippines faced off against each other in a prison battle using knives, but also aprons, pots and pans.

Teams of inmates in Manilla, many of whom have worked previously in the food profession, cooked against the clock to concoct a menu of delicious dishes in what was dubbed, "Iron Bar
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