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| Obama to unveil proposal for tuition-free community college |
| President Obama on Friday will propose making community college tuition-free for “responsible students,” launching what officials described as an ambitious plan for the federal and state governments to widen access to higher education. Read full article » |
| Democrat Barbara Boxer to retire from the Senate |
| Nearly 24 years ago then-Rep. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) helped lead a group of seven female Democrats across the Capitol hoping to crash one of the most exclusive clubs in America, a closed-door luncheon of Senate Democrats. Read full article » |
| American set to be deported from South Korea for pro-North views |
| TOKYO — A Korean American woman who traveled around South Korea saying complimentary things about North Korea could be deported as soon as Friday. Authorities in Seoul have accused her of violating South Korea’s anti-communist National Security Law. Read full article » |
| Boston selected by U.S. Olympic Committee as U.S. bid city for 2024 Olympics |
| The U.S. Olympic Committee selected Boston on Thursday as the city it feels represents the best chance to return the Olympics to American soil. In bypassing Washington and two other cities for the right to bid on the 2024 Summer Games, USOC officials opted for a cost-efficient vision put forward by Boston’s supporters that relies heavily on the city’s array of universities and public spaces. Read full article » |
| Gospel legend Andrae Crouch dead at 72 |
| Andrae Crouch, often described as the “father of modern gospel music,” died Thursday in Los Angeles after suffering a heart attack last week, according to news reports. Crouch has been hospitalized in recent years for a variety of health issues, including diabetes and cancer. Read full article » |
| Snow closings and delays in the D.C. area for Friday, Jan. 9 |
| Following is a list of weather-related closings and delays for Friday:Schools Read full article » |
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| POLITICS |
| Democratic claims on Keystone XL’s impact on the environment and oil exports |
| “This is oil that’s Canadian oil, the dirtiest and the way that it’s bought, extracted, causes incredible damage to the environment—and it’s for the international community. The interesting point is that Canada doesn’t want to transport it through Canada. They want to transport it through the United States, which obviously makes no sense.” Read full article » |
| Elizabeth Warren says the system is rigged for the rich. They vote way more than the poor. |
| "The system is rigged."It's the phrase Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has become known for — four words of populist rhetoric that warm the cockles of progressive hearts everywhere. This oft-repeated construct basically argues that government is set up to favor the rich because the rich control the process. Those without money and power are thus prevented from getting ahead by the very nature of the system. Read full article » |
| Why the government pays researchers to drug mice, birds and even spiders |
| Zebra finches, mice and spiders. They’ve all been drugged to benefit humankind.For many years, researchers have intoxicated animals in the name of science, often funding the work through federal grants from agencies such as the National Institutes of Health. The practice is controversial, but it can lead to important discoveries. Read full article » |
| Are black or white offenders more likely to kill police? |
| “How (many) police get killed by blacks and how many by whites? That’s important at this particular time.”—Twitter user @_R_S_S_@GlennKesslerWP Yeah, but how police get killed by blacks and how many by whites? That's important at this particular time. Read full article » |
| OPINIONS |
| Fareed Zakaria: Blasphemy and the law of fanatics |
| As they went on their rampage, the men who killed 12 people in Paris this week yelled that they had “avenged the prophet.” They follow in the path of other terrorists who have bombed newspaper offices, stabbed a filmmaker and killed writers and translators, all to mete out what they believe is the proper Koranic punishment for blasphemy. But in fact, the Koran prescribes no punishment for blasphemy. Like so many of the most fanatical and violent aspects of Islamic terrorism today, the idea that Islam requires that insults against the prophet Muhammad be met with violence is a creation of politicians and clerics to serve a political agenda. Read full article » |
| NYPD should go ahead and strike |
| NEW YORKNationwide, this flu season looks to be the worstin many years. And here in the Big Apple, the flu has been especially ferocious, felling almost an entire class of workers: the employees of the New York Police Department. Read full article » |
| Raise the gas tax. A lot. |
| For 32 years I’ve been advocating a major tax on petroleum. I’ve got as much chance this time around as did Don Quixote with windmills. But I shall tilt my lance once more. The only time you can even think of proposing a gas tax increase is when oil prices are at rock bottom. When I last suggested the idea six years ago, oil was selling at $40 a barrel. It eventually rose back to $110. It’s now around $48. Correspondingly, the price at the pump has fallen in the last three months by more than a dollar to about $2.20 per gallon. Read full article » |
| Journalists must stand firm |
| Je suis Charlie Hebdo. If “freedom of expression” is to be more than an empty slogan, Wednesday’s terrorist attack in Paris cannot be allowed to have the chilling effect its murderous perpetrators intended. Read full article » |
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| LOCAL |
| Morning of long, cold waits for Metro riders because of cracked, broken rails |
| Thursday’s biting cold weather led to a miserable morning of delays for Metro riders on five of six subway lines as the transit agency struggled with broken rails and broken trains.In what already had been a bad week for Metro customers, the new problems prolonged the commuting headache. On Wednesday, there were delays on the Blue, Orange and Silver lines. And amid Tuesday’s snowfall, some Metrobus service was curtailed and other routes were shut down. Read full article » |
| Water main closes Wilson Lane in Bethesda |
| A water main break has closed part of Wilson Lane in Bethesda.The roadway is closed at River Road. It is not immediately clear how long the roadway would be closed.Drivers are advised to avoid the area, as crews are working in cold and icy conditions to try to make the repairs. Read full article » |
| D.C. area forecast: Possible morning snowflakes usher in a second round of wind and deepening chill |
| WEATHER GANG | Any snow will be minor, but it could cause slick spots for if it comes together. Read full article » |
| Gospel performer, songwriter Andraé Crouch dies at 72. |
| Andraé Crouch, a legendary gospel performer, songwriter and choir director whose work graced songs by Michael Jackson and Madonna and movies such as “The Lion King,” has died. He was 72.Mr. Crouch died Thursday at Northridge Hospital Medical Center in the Los Angeles area, where he was admitted Saturday after suffering a heart attack, said his publicist, Brian Mayes. Read full article » |
| SPORTS |
| The Redskins have a new GM. Vinny Cerrato marked the occasion by telling ridiculous stories |
| Every time I write anything about Vinny Cerrato, Redskins fans protest. “We don’t care about Vinny Cerrato,” they tell me. “This is insane. Why are you doing this? Don’t mention his name again. We’ve suffered enough. Please don’t hurt us anymore. Ow, my spleen. I can’t feel my limbs. What’s happening to me? Why are you showing me the Queen of Diamonds?” And so on and so forth. Read full article » |
| Derek Fisher’s unusual speech doesn’t work as Knicks fans wear bags over heads |
| Nothing has worked for Derek Fisher’s Knicks so far this season, so why not try reminding them that their opponents “put their shorts on the same way you put yours on”? That didn’t work, either, but at least it provided a few laughs. Read full article » |
| Blazers’ Nicolas Batum wears pre-game shirt honoring victims of Paris terrorist attack |
| Nicolas Batum, a forward for the Trail Blazers who was born and raised in France, wore a shirt Thursday night with the phrase “Je Suis Charlie” during warmups before a game against the Heat. The gesture was in support of the victims of a terrorist attack in Paris on Wednesday, in which masked gunmen killed 12 people at the headquarters of the weekly satirical publication Charlie Hebdo. Read full article » |
| TV and radio listings: January 9 |
| NBA8 p.m. Chicago at Washington » ESPN, Comcast SportsNet, WNEW (99.1 FM), WFED (1500 AM)10:30 p.m. Cleveland at Golden State » ESPNNHL9:30 p.m. Chicago at Edmonton » Comcast SportsNet Plus Read full article » |
| FEDERAL GOVERNMENT |
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| VA Secretary Bob McDonald visits El Paso clinic after fatal shooting of doctor |
| With a promise to ramp up security, Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald on Thursday visited the El Paso VA clinic where an agency psychologist was fatally shot by an Iraq war veteran who had worked at the clinic. Read full article » |
| New GOP Senate looks to blast Obama at confirmation hearings |
| Look for some fireworks soon as the new GOP Senate starts hearings on Obama’s two cabinet nominees: Loretta Lynch for attorney general and Ashton Carter as secretary of defense.There doesn’t appear to be any indication so far that Lynch or Carter will personally come under fire at the hearings, which may be held the end of this month or the first week in February. Read full article » |
| Postmaster general hits unions on his way out |
| Like many other working-class people in Pittsburgh, Pat Donahoe could have ended up toiling in the steel mills that once thrived in the city. Instead, he listened to his Uncle Bob, who rousted the young Donahoe from bed to take a post-office employment test. Read full article » |
| NATIONAL |
| Islam preaches tolerance of critics, no matter what the Charlie Hebdo attackers believed |
| From the fatwa on author Salman Rushdie to the attack on the offices of French weekly Charlie Hebdo, the phenomenon of anti-blasphemy actions remains prominent in the Muslim world.At first glance, the problem appears to be quite simple. For many years, there has been much talk about the conflicts between blasphemy and free speech within Islam. Some go further and argue about the “intrinsic hostility between two civilizations: Islam and Europe,” as the philosopher Talal Asad puts it. Read full article » |
| House Republicans are about to pass a really bad idea to “fix” Obamacare |
| If I could ask the new Congress to be guided by one principle, it would be this: Do no harm. And yet, in one of their first votes of the year, the House of Representatives will likely pass a bill Thursday that violates that simple request. Read full article » |
| Why is China acting like a responsible stakeholder? |
| Earlier this week China announced that, on rare earth exports, it would now play by the rules of the global game. The Wall Street Journal’s Chuin-Wei Yap explains:China has dropped decade-old quotas limiting exports of strategically important minerals that sparked an global trade dispute and led some countries to reduce their reliance on Chinese supplies…. Read full article » |
| WORLD |
| U.S. to realign forces in Britain and other European countries |
| The Pentagon will close three Air Force bases in Britain that date to World War II as part of a broad realignment of U.S. forces and installations throughout Europe, defense officials announced Thursday. Read full article » |
| France has strict gun laws. Why didn’t that save Charlie Hebdo victims? |
| When American audiences read of a dramatic event in a foreign country, they often frame it in terms of the political debates occurring at home. As such, it was no surprise that after shootings at the satirical French newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris this week, some Americans began to wonder about gun control laws. Read full article » |
| Cuba reportedly releases at least two dozen detainees |
| Cuba has released more than two dozen political prisoners in the past two days, following a pledge to free detainees as part of last month’s agreement to normalize relations with the United States, according to human rights groups and activists. Read full article » |
| Gunmen kill Pakistani ‘blasphemer’ who thought he was a prophet |
| With the world still stunned by the massacre in Paris, Pakistan is living through yet another example of the brutal street justice that is meted out here when someone is accused of disrespecting the prophet Muhammad. Read full article » |
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| BUSINESS |
| Where America’s Social Security benefits go, in four maps |
| This post comes via Know More, Wonkblog's social media site. Check out Know More's homepage, Twitter or Facebook for the best and most interesting visuals, videos, and data hits from around the Web.Most Social Security recipients — including retired or disabled workers, plus their spouses and children, and in some cases their parents — receive benefits through the Old-Age, Survivors and Disability (OASDI) program. Seth Kadish of Vizual Statistix created the maps below, which break down how OASDI funds are distributed. The maps show, clockwise from the top left, the percentage of a county’s population that receives OASDI benefits; the percentage of OASDI beneficiaries who are retired, rather than disabled; the areas where payments to men most greatly outweigh those given to women; and the average monthly OASDI payment, in hundreds of dollars. Read full article » |
| Earnings of Family Dollar Stores drop sharply |
| Family Dollar Stores, the discount retailer at the center of a takeover battle, posted a 47 percent decline in first-quarter earnings as a new pricing strategy and a shift to lower-margin products took a toll on profits. Read full article » |
| Middle age is slightly less terrible when you’re married |
| Researchers have shown that over the course of a lifetime, happiness generally follows a U-shaped curve: Happiness is high when you're young, dips in middle age, and rises again going into your golden years. This makes some intuitive sense: Middle age tends to be a time when obligations to career and family are at their highest. The stress of juggling childrearing and long hours at the office can take a toll on one's sense of well-being. Read full article » |
| TECHNOLOGY |
| At CES, privacy is a growing business |
| Whenever I say the word "privacy" to many of the presenters at International CES, there's a little sigh before they answer. The thing to get excited about at this year's show, after all, is the connection of everything to the internet, so you can track how much energy your lightbulbs use or how you hold your toothbrush. Read full article » |
| After a long delay, Obama declines to fire U.S. attorneys over Aaron Swartz’s suicide |
| The White House is declining to fire two Justice Department officials over their handling of a controversial court case involving Aaron Swartz, an Internet activist who committed suicide in 2013 after being accused of hacking into a university network. Read full article » |
| If Mark Zuckerberg is the next Oprah, Facebook is in trouble |
| When Mark Zuckerberg makes a New Year’s resolution, people notice. This year, of course, the Facebook chief executive has segued from learning Mandarin to creating one of the Internet’s largest book clubs. His “A Year of Books” Facebook page, which encourages Facebook users to read one new book every two weeks and then discuss online, has already picked up more than 218,000 likes and helped to drive record sales for the first book selection (Moisés Naim’s “The End of Power.”) It’s no wonder people are already comparing Zuckerberg to Oprah and surmising that he’s done something wonderful like unlocking the future of mobile commerce for Facebook. Read full article » |
| FCC chair has all but confirmed he’ll side with Obama on net neutrality |
| President Obama's top telecom regulator just issued his strongest hints yet about a pending plan to regulate Internet providers, and judging by reports from the room, he's leaning hard toward the most aggressive proposal on the table. Read full article » |
| LIFESTYLE |
| Jim Inhofe is a small-plane-flying, global-warming-denying senator. And now he’s got a gavel. |
| At the end of last year, with most of his colleagues stuck in Washington for an important Senate session on a Saturday, Sen. James M. Inhofe was in Tulsa getting spurs fastened onto a pair of boots.“They’re ostrich,” said Inhofe (R-Okla.), the country’s most prominent climate-change denier, referring to his footwear. “Probably some endangered species; I have a reputation to maintain.” Read full article » |
| Liam Neeson, a beloved action star who can pack an emotional punch |
| Casting Liam Neeson in last year’s “The Lego Movie” was a brilliant move. The star voiced a schizoid cartoon character known as Bad Cop/Good Cop, a plastic action figure whose head swivels 180 degrees. On one side: a volatile, gruff-voiced interrogator in mirrored shades; on the other, a sensitive bookish type with a soft voice. Read full article » |
| Why are some fans upset with Sia’s new video? |
| Sia has responded to criticism that her latest music video — the cage-fighting inspired take on her song “Elastic Heart” — is creepy and disturbing. The Australian singer apologized on Twitter “to those who feel triggered” by the video. “My intention was to create some emotional content, not to upset anybody,” she wrote. Read full article » |
| Carolyn Hax: Best way to stop a backstabber? Be discreet. |
| Dear Carolyn:How do you treat someone who talks about you behind your back? She does this with everyone. Cutting her out of my life is not an option.Think of it in terms of output and input, where output is what you say to her, and input is what she says about you. Read full article » |
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