Press "Enter" to skip to content

Posts published in “News”

Italy Rescues Sixty-Nine African Migrants

ROME, (UPI) — Some 69 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa aboard a dinghy were rescued Friday in the Sicilian Channel, the Italian coast guard said.  The migrants, reported to be in good health, were taken to the island of Lampedusa, reported Italy’s ANSA news agency.  Recent good weather has spurred a rise in Africans crossing the Mediterranean for opportunities in Europe.  Fifteen minors who had earlier reached Italy have been transferred from the migrant reception center on Lampedusa to youth homes around Agrigento.

article via upi.com

Obama Says Consumer Watchdog Can Help With Credit Scores

WASHINGTON, Oct. 27 (UPI) — U.S. President Barack Obama said the government’s Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will look out for working families and make everyone play by the same rules.

The consumer watchdog was established as part of Wall Street reform to make sure Americans have the information they need to make financial decisions such as paying for college or buying a home, Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address.

The agency will go after “anyone who tries to take advantage of you, or rip you off,” the president said.

“Starting this month, that includes the folks who come up with your credit score. … The companies that put your credit score together can make mistakes. They may think you had a loan or a credit card that was never yours. They may think you were late making payments when you were on time. And when they mess up, you’re the one who suffers,” Obama said.

“Until this week, if you had a complaint, you took it to the company. Sometimes they listened. Sometimes they didn’t. But that was pretty much it. They were your only real hope.

“Not anymore. If you have a complaint about your credit score that hasn’t been properly addressed, you can go to consumerfinance.gov/complaint and let the consumer watchdog know.”

President Barack Obama Backs Gay Marriage Initiatives in Three States

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks at a campaign rally at Doolittle Park on October 24, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Obama is on a 48-hour campaign tour of battleground states, including Colorado, Florida and Iowa. (Photo by John Gurzinski/Getty Images)

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks at a campaign rally at Doolittle Park on October 24, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Obama is on a 48-hour campaign tour of battleground states, including Colorado, Florida and Iowa. (Photo by John Gurzinski/Getty Images)

(AP) – President Barack Obama on Thursday threw his support behind ballot measures in Maine, Maryland and Washington state that would legalize same-sex marriage.  Though the president first voiced his general approval for gay marriage in May, he had not previously offered specific endorsements of the three measures.  In each case, the endorsements were issued through the state branches of Obama’s re-election campaign.

Colin Powell Endorses Obama A Second Time

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell on CBS This Morning earlier today.

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell on CBS This Morning earlier today.

Saying that “I think we ought to keep on the track that we are on” and that fellow Republican Mitt Romney has not “thought through these issues as thoroughly as he should have,” former secretary of state and retired Gen. Colin Powell this morning endorsed President Obama’s re-election bid.  Powell made the announcement on CBS This Morning. The show has been tweeting his comments and has posted video here.  Then-Sen. Barack Obama also got Powell’s endorsement in 2008.  Powell also told CBS that “I’m a Republican of a more moderate mold … dying breed.”

article by Mark Memmott via npr.org

Ways To Find Your Polling Place Before November 6

If voters haven’t received their Voter Information Ballots by now, they should consider calling their local election offices before the Nov. 6 election to ensure that they have accurate information.  Another source of information is a website maintained by the League of Women Voters Education Fund called Vote 411. It enables voters to enter the address where they are registered and get information on polling places.  In addition, boards of election offices in most states maintain websites where voters can get information on how to find polling places.  Every vote counts – make sure yours is among them!

Chicago’s Black Businesses Get a Bigger Slice of City Contracts

The Chicago skyline seen from a helicopter.  More black businesses have been given city contracts this year. (AP Photo Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Chicago businesses owned by African Americans got $193 million, or 21 percent, of the contracts awarded by the city for the first eight months of this year. This is an increase from the mere eight percent ($96 million) they got for the same period last year.

“Although the black contracting surge sounds too good to be true, [Chief Procurement Officer Jamie] Rhee said it’s a product of the mayor’s decision to reform the scandal-scarred minority business program, return certification and compliance to the Department of Procurement Services and ‘really get out there and aggressively talk to people’ about upcoming opportunities,” reports the Chicago Sun-Times.

Judge Wilhelmina Wright Newest Minnesota Supreme Court Justice

History was made this past Tuesday (Oct. 16) when Judge Wilhelmina Wright was sworn in as the first African-American woman to serve on the state’s Supreme Court.  Wright joins Justice Alan Page as the only two African-American Minnesota Supreme Court justices. Page was elected to the Court in 1992 by the votes of the state. Wright was appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton to fill the vacancy created with the stepping down of Justice Helen Meyer.

Homeless South Carolina Man Wins $200,000 Lottery

homeless south carolina man wins lottery

A homeless South Carolina man (pictured) is $200,000 richer after spending $10 on a lottery ticket in Greenville, Fox affiliate KEYC-TV reports.  The South Carolina Education Lottery confirmed the win. The winner declined to be identified. He bought the winning ticket at a Simon’s Liquors last week and jumped for joy after realizing that he had the winning numbers.

The man plans on purchasing a home with his winnings. “To see a person, you know he gets $200,000 he doesn’t have a penny in his pocket but $20,” said Simon Sfeir, owner of Simons Liquors, who sold the winning ticket, according to the Associated Press. Sfeir gets $2,000 of the winnings for selling the ticket.

article by Terrell Jermaine Starr via newsone.com

Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston Lead Inaugural Class for Induction to R&B Music Hall of Fame

michael jackson & whitney houston

Robinson Global Sports & Entertainment Group LLC has announced it plans to develop the Official R&B Music Hall of Fame Museum that will be a state-of-the-art, highly interactive, virtual reality experience for individuals of all ages and cultures.  It will memorialize rhythm artists, promoters and others that have contributed to this music genre.  Its educational and preservation values alone are needed and have been welcomed and by many U.S. cities:  Cleveland, Ohio Mayor Frank G. Jackson; East Cleveland, Ohio Mayor Gary Norton; Detroit, Michigan’s The New Detroit Entertainment Inc and the Motown Alumni Association; Memphis, Tennessee Mayor A.C. Wharton, Jr.

Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston Lead Inaugural Class for Induction to R&B Music Hall of Fame

michael jackson & whitney houston
Robinson Global Sports & Entertainment Group LLC has announced it plans to develop the Official R&B Music Hall of Fame Museum that will be a state-of-the-art, highly interactive, virtual reality experience for individuals of all ages and cultures.  It will memorialize rhythm artists, promoters and others that have contributed to this music genre.  Its educational and preservation values alone are needed and have been welcomed and by many U.S. cities:  Cleveland, Ohio Mayor Frank G. Jackson; East Cleveland, Ohio Mayor Gary Norton; Detroit, Michigan’s The New Detroit Entertainment Inc and the Motown Alumni Association; Memphis, Tennessee Mayor A.C. Wharton, Jr.