April 2012 Archives

The Colorado Rockies beat the Milwaukee Brewers Sunday, as Michael Cuddyer hit a two run double in the eighth inning to seal it, according to ESPN.com.

Cuddyer, who signed with the Rockies in the offseason for three years and $31.5 million, went one for four with two RBIs and two strikeouts.

The double broke a 1-1 tie and gave reliever Fransisco Rodriguez (0-2) the loss.

"You have got to relish those opportunities," Cuddyer said. "It gives us confidence as a team."

Marco Scutaro and Troy Tulowitzki had two hits each for the Rockies who are now eight and seven this season.

The Brewers had just one run and four hits and lost their fifth home game already in 2012. Milwaukee had the best home record in the majors last season.

Comparisons are being drawn between the killings of Trayvon Martin and Bo Morrisson, who was killed in Wisconsin after entering a stranger's home trying to evade police, according to the Star Tribune.

Morrisson, 20, was at a party next door before he entered the neighbor's porch, and was shot by a homeowner who believed he posed a threat.

The case has brought gun laws under fire from State Senator Chris Larson, who believes these cases have raised gun awareness. "What happened with Bo, what happened with Trayvon Martin -- the public is paying attention to this now," Larson said.

Legislation was passed recently in Wisconsin that removed restrictions on gun use. "There is a very large agenda at play here in Wisconsin on everything from guns to business tax breaks," said state Sen. Jon Erpenbach, a Democrat who opposed the bill.

"People are so confused, so paranoid if they guess wrong," Rep. Tony Cornish said. "They think 'Can you defend yourself or not?'"

Opposition against the Syrian Government said Sunday that Homs was shelled, just a day after U.N. officials visited to observe the cease-fire, according to CNN.

19 people were killed across Syria Sunday, including six in Homs, and Syrian citizens voiced their concern.

"Today is the first day since two months ... Homs (is) without shelling," one man told the monitors Saturday. "When you come, shelling stops."

The cease-fire is showing signs of unraveling, according to CNN. "If there is not a sustained cessation of violence, full freedom of movement for U.N. personnel and rapid, meaningful progress on all other aspects of the six-point plan, then we must all conclude this mission has run its course," Rice said. "Our patience is exhausted," said Susan Rice, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.

The Syrian Government said Sunday that a terrorist group attacked a train that was carrying food, wounding six.

Etan Patz, a 6-year-old boy from New York who went missing in 1979, was searched for Thursday in a basement of a SoHo building, according to CNN.com.

Authorities said they are looking for human remains or personal effects of Patz, who disappeared walking to school over three decades ago. "It's a very painstaking process," said NYPD Deputy Commissioner Paul Browne.

Patz was officially declared dead in 2001, when the family filed a civil suit against Jose Antonio Ramos. Ramos is serving a 20-year sentence for molesting a different boy and will be released this year.

May 25, which was the day Patz went missing, was declared National Missing Children's Day by Ronald Reagan.

Investigators are looking into other suspects outside of Ramos, according to CNN.com.

The search was suspended Sunday around 2 p.m. for operational reasons, according to the FBI.

Two U.S. Soldiers accused two different academies Friday of ignoring "rampant sexual harrassment," according to CNN.com.

Annie Kendzior and Karley Marquet filed the lawsuit in U.S. Federal Court in which they say the U.S. Military and Naval Academies failed to "prevent rapes and sexual assaults at the Naval Academy and West Point."

Marquet said one weekend in January of 2011 that an upperclassmen came into her room to talk, before persuading her to drink in his room. He then turned off the lights and raped her, according to Marquet.

Struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts, Marquet told authorties because she didn't want it to happen to anyone else.

Kendzior also had too much to drink at a nearby off-campus party in the fall 2008, in which an upperclassman offered to her a place to stay. At the residence she said she was raped, according to CNN.

A series of attacks in Afghanistan this spring have been credited to the Taliban, officials said Sunday.

The Taliban said the attacks that occurred in four Afghan cities were the beginning of a new spring offensive, according to CBS News.

Officials believe the attacks are probably in response to the burning of Qurans by U.S. troops and murders of 17 civilians by a U.S. soldier.

In a written statement the international forces commander, U.S. General John Allen said he was "enormously proud" of the Afghan response: "They were on scene immediately, well-led and well-coordinated."

Minneapolis resident Barry McReynolds is one of many that have wondered about the odd location of Kmart on Lake Street and Nicollet Avenue, according to the Star Tribune.

"I know they had a good reason, but nobody ever told me about it," he said about the location of the store.

The store provides low prices for nearby residents, but blocks off Nicollet with its large parking lot.

Mayor R.T. Rybak said in he would like for the new light rail to "(bust) right through the back of that Kmart."

City officials are exploring options regarding streetcars going up and down Nicollet to 46th Street, with another plan being the implementation of an Interstate 35W exit.

"There's a big box with an ocean of surface parking in front, which is not what any of us want in our neighborhood and commercial corridor," the Minneapolis director of transit development David Frank said.

Matt Carpenter had five RBI Sunday against the Chicago Cubs, hitting a home-run and a triple for the St. Louis Cardinals, according to ESPN.

Carpenter, who has been filling in for injured Lance Berkman, went 4 for 5 and raised his average to over .400, according to ESPN. Berkman could be back Tuesday against the Reds.

The Cubs have now lost three in a row to St. Louis, as Paul Maholm (0-2) gave up six runs in four innings. Maholm has lost his last seven starts dating back to last July.

St. Louis scored multiple runs in four different innings, and the Cubs had just six hits as they dropped to 3-7 for the season.

Reed Johnson was the only Cub to get multiple hits in the game, going 2-4 with a sacrifice in the fifth inning.

Chicago will travel to Miami Tuesday in which Ryan Dempster (0-1) will face Josh Johnson (0-2).

U.N. monitors arrived in Syria Monday morning during a cease-fire that began Thursday, according to CNN.

A decision was made Saturday by the U.N. Security Council to send representatives to monitor the cease-fire.

There have been signs that the cease-fire is on the brink of collapsing, according to CNN, and the council means to send over 250 observers depending on the success of the initial group.

Opposition to the Syrian government reported Sunday that the city of Homs is still being attacked by helicopters, and 23 people died across Syria Sunday, according to the Local Coordination Committees of Syria.

The Syrian regime said it was "armed terrorists" who violated the cease-fire.

Five died including three children Saturday in a small Oklahoma town after a series of tornadoes ripped through the Midwest, according to ABC News.

The two daughters of Woodward, Okla. resident Frank Hobie died overnight, according to the Associated Press. They were aged 5 and 7.

There were 29 people that were treated at Woodward Regional Hospital after the storms, with injuries ranging from scrapes to more serious injuries.

A siren that was supposed to alarm Woodward citizens was knocked out by the storm, according to Woodward City Manager Alan Riffel.

There were over 100 reports of tornadoes throughout states like Oklahoma, Kansas, Iowa, and Nebraska, according to ABC News.

An article in the Detroit Free Press cleared up some great facts about the Trayvon Martin case that I had not heard. Anything from the weight and height of both involved to why Trayvon was there and where the shot entered his body were stated. I spoke with African-American student Dominique Howard about it, and he had some interesting thoughts on the entire situation.

His take was that there is no need to make this case about race. He said that he is not interested in the case as a member of the black community, basically citing that it is just another murder of someone he doesn't know.

" It is a thing of the past, people are killed and issues are not resolved. It is not the first time it has happened nor will it be the last," Howard said.

My take-away from talking with him is that it is possible that the media creates more issues with race than they resolve. To Dom, the fact that it was a white man killing a black man did not trigger an angry reaction any more than if it were a different situation. His position was that the media blow things out of proportion and have a big part of these racial issues.

I agree with him in the respect that the use of mass media to get news out fast and sometimes without details causes misinformation for those not close to the situation. For example, someone here in Minnesota who heard a tweet from a reporter saying a black teenager was killed by white man will immediately look at it suspiciously.

Because we live in a world where immediate and quick are valued, no one takes the time to let the facts come out or read into all of the scenarios. This leads to a misinformed public and non-issues turn into widespread debate.

An avalanche at a Pakastani army base buried 120 trooops near the India border Saturday, according to the Washington Post.

The soldiers were sleeping in their barracks when the building was covered with 80 feet of snow. The military used dogs, helicopters and snowmobiles to look for bodies but have been unsuccessful so far.

"We haven't really been able to recover anyone dead or alive so far," said Major Gen. Athar Abbas.

The army said the area is typically not one that is in danger of avalanches, according to the Financial Times . Smaller posts at higher elevations are more at risk. "It's very unusual that slides come into this area," Gen Abbas said.

The avalanche was believed to be almost a kilometer long, and author Myra MacDonald called it the worst disaster since the Pakistani/Indian war began in 1984.

Minnesota Gopher senior linebacker Gary Tinsley was found dead in his dorm Friday morning, university officials said. He was 22.

He was found at Roy Wilkins Hall in Minneapolis, and an initial report shows no foul play was involved. University Police Chief Greg Hestness said they are not aware of any medical conditions that could have factored into the death.

Tinsley was found in his bed after one of his roommates noticed his alarm clock was sounding and not being turned off. He found Tinsley not breathing.

He was pronounced dead at the scene around 8:15 a.m., Hestness said.

"We lost one of ours today in Gary Tinsley, who I know is in a good place," said head coach Jerry Kill.

Police are approaching the death suspiciously because "the death of a young athlete is out of the ordinary," Hestness said.

Two children died Friday on Clearwater Lake after their boat capsized while sailing with their father, according to the Star Tribune.

The father, Dan Risland of Leonard, Minn. swam to shore to get authorities and the 2-year-old and 6-year-old were brought to area hospitals. It was there that officials found they had died of hypothermia.

A third 8-year-old boy is in critical condition at Children's Hospital in Minneapolis.

"No foul play was expected in this terrible accident. and we are deeply saddened," Clearwater County Sheriff Mike Erickson said in a prepared statement. "We were all struck terribly by this tragedy."

All three boys were wearing life jackets during the accident, but the wind was too strong to get them to shore.

Clearwater County Sheriff Mike Erickson said it will be a miracle if the third child survives, according to CBS.

U.S. officials said everyone in the apartment complex in eastern Virginia that was hit by a U.S. Navy fighter jet Friday are accounted for, according to Voice of America.

Seven people were injured in the crash, including the two pilots, who ejected from the plane before the crash.

According to CNN.com, the plane experienced "catastrophic mechanical malfunction" when it took off. It damages five apartment buildings and around 40 apartments.

One of the pilots was a student pilot, and officials said a leakage of fuel indicated there was something wrong.

One of the pilots is in good condition at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital, while the rest of those injured have been released, according to CNN.com.

Tulsa police are in search of a lone gunman who shot three dead and wounded two others Friday, according to CNN.com.

All of the shootings were within a mile of each other, and according to those who survived the shooter asked for directions after pulling up in his white truck.

Police are looking into it as a possible hate crime, as all of the victims were black and the shooter was white. Tulsa police Capt. Jonathan Brooks said there were no racial slurs said, which are typical in hate crimes.

The police are investigating both the truck that was seen near the crimes and the weapon, which they believe is a small-caliber gun.

According to the Detroit Free Press, the victims did not know each other.

"We have to handle this because there are a number of African-American males who are not going to allow this to happen in their neighborhood," said the Rev. Warren Blakney Sr., president of the Tulsa NAACP. "We're trying to quell the feeling of 'let's get someone' and we will make as certain as we can that this isn't pushed under the rug."

In sports articles numbers are very important in terms of telling what happened in the story. For example, Saturday the Lakers beat the Hornets in an NBA game, but the focus of the story is how poorly Kobe Bryant shot from the field. The title of the story gives inclination of the focus on numbers--"Kobe Bryant misses first 15 shots, sinks go-ahead 3-pointer to lift Lakers." Already we know that we will see stats that explain the story. Kobe shot 3 of 21 from the field, telling us that the Lakers most likely lost. The important part of the story, however, is that they won despite Bryant playing poorly.

Like in every basketball article, they go through the important players' stats, like Pau Gasol scoring 21 points and 11 rebounds. This gives context to who played well and who didn't and readers can make assumptions as to who was most important to a win.

Numbers were also used to give a timeline, mentioning important moments of the game. For example, "The Lakers trailed 75-65 before he hit a 17-foot jumper over Marco Belinelli with 7:52 remaining for his first field goal." This sentence tells us a lot about the game. First, that this could have been the turning point in the game. Second, New Orleans was winning late in the game and probably should have won. Finally, Kobe did not score until the fourth quarter. Numbers were used to create all of those facts.

The article also lists teams stats that give insight as to who played better even without knowing the final score. All the numbers in the article are designed to get the reader to project how the game went without having seen it.

Rick Santorum said Sunday that no matter what happens in the Wisconsin primary on Tuesday he will continue his quest for the GOP nomination.

Santorum has won 27 percent of the delegates to this point, and needs to win 74 percent of the remaining delegates to win the nomination, according to the Star Tribune.

The candidate said Tuesday's primary will send a "strong signal" about who will win the race.

Wisconsin is a great opportunity for Republicans, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

"You have an incredibly engaged and active electorate right now in Wisconsin," said Mark Graul, a Republican strategist in the state. "That will certainly hold through to November."

A group of boaters racing in the Clipper Round the World Race are seeking help from the U.S. Coast Guard Sunday after being caught in a storm in the Pacific Ocean, a race organizer said.

A large wave hit the Geraldton Western Australia, removing communications equipment, said the organizers. Four of the crew members suffered injuries, including broken ribs and back injuries.

The American-flagged Puma is leading the race, as it passed France's Groupama rounding Cape Horn, according to the Independent.

Officials intended to get the injured members off of the ship, but because of rough seas were unable to do so. The U.S. Coast Guard dispatched a cutter and helicopter to rescue the crew, according to CNN.