Leo Varadkar becomes first openly gay elected Taoiseach of Ireland, succeeds Enda Kenny

Friday, June 16, 2017 On Wednesday, a Fine Gael party premier candidate and doctor Leo Varadkar was elected Taoiseach — Prime Minister of Ireland — succeeding Enda Kenny, who confirmed his resignation on Tuesday. He becomes the first openly gay Taoiseach in Irish history. In Wednesday’s election, 55 members of the Irish parliament Dáil Éireann voted for Varadkar as the 14th Taoiseach, the head of government; 50 against; and 45 abstained. Also, in Áras an Uachtaráin, the current President of Ireland, head of state, Michael D. Higgins presented Varadkar with…

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Judge jails ‘monstrous’ London serial killer Stephen Port

Sunday, November 27, 2016 More than a year after he was first charged, a judge on Friday sentenced London serial killer Stephen Port to life imprisonment without parole for four murders and a host of poisoning and sexual offences, calling him “wicked and monstrous”. Port was convicted of the murders on Wednesday. Chef Port, 41, was first charged on October 18 last year and made his first court appearance the following day. He initially faced four counts of murder and four of “administering a poison with intent to endanger life…

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Australian swimmer Steph Rice announces retirement

Wednesday, April 9, 2014 One of Australia’s most famous swimming Olympians, Stephanie Rice, 25, announced her retirement earlier today. The swimmer addressed the Australian public in a video. Here she thanked everyone that has supported her and reflected back on her Olympic career, “It’s sad, I definitely feel like I’m losing a part of myself, but I’m really excited about what’s about to come.” After several shoulder operations in the lead up to the 2012 London Olympics, Rice fell short of her own expectations. Disappointed with her performance, she says…

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American Academy of Pediatrics supports dairy for lactose intolerant children

Wednesday, September 6, 2006 The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), in the September 2006 issue of its journal Pediatrics, supports the use of dairy by lactose intolerant children. Dr. Melvin B. Heyman, author of the article, says that just because a child is lactose intolerant, does not mean that they should avoid dairy altogether. Many lactose intolerant people can consume small amounts of dairy. Heyman says that dairy consumption is important, especially for children, because of its high calcium content. The calcium is, in turn, important for stengthening growing bones.…

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Man auctions his life on eBay, is disappointed at sale price

Monday, June 30, 2008 After auctioning off his entire life on eBay for A$399,300 (€244 912.148) Ian Usher says he is “a little bit disappointed” at the final selling price. The 44-year-old British immigrant living in Perth, Australia, put all of his worldly belongings up for sale on the popular auction website, including his three-bedroom house and all its contents, his car, motorcycle, jetski, skydiving gear, and his job at a rug store, for which he offered a two week trial period. He even offered introductions to his friends living…

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Colleges offering admission to displaced New Orleans students/LA-ND

See the discussion page for instructions on adding schools to this list and for an alphabetically arranged listing of schools. Due to the damage by Hurricane Katrina and subsequent flooding, a number of colleges and universities in the New Orleans metropolitan area will not be able to hold classes for the fall 2005 semester. It is estimated that 75,000 to 100,000 students have been displaced. [1]. In response, institutions across the United States and Canada are offering late registration for displaced students so that their academic progress is not unduly…

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UK Chancellor of the Exchequer makes 2005 Budget speech

Wednesday, March 16, 2005 The United Kingdom Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Right Honourable Gordon Brown PC MP, in a speech to the British House of Commons today presented his ninth Budget, what is very likely to be his last Budget before the next UK General Election. This opened the parliamentary debate on the 2005 Finance Bill, and was followed by responses from the opposition parties. In a 48 minute long speech, the Chancellor presented a Budget of “tax cuts that are reasonable, spending that is affordable, and [economic] stability…

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UN Report: Earth ecosystem in peril

Thursday, March 31, 2005A report Tuesday from a United Nations-backed project, consulting more than 1,300 scientists from 95 countries, and written over the last four years, warns that 60 percent of the basics of life on Earth — water, food, timber, clean air — are currently being used in ways which degrade them. Furthermore, fisheries and fresh water use-patterns are unsustainable, and getting worse. “The harmful consequences of this degradation could grow significantly worse in the next 50 years,” according to a press release from the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA),…

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