Cheryl K. Chumley

AFL-CIO gives gays, transgenders a nod at unionization

The AFL-CIO voted this week to allow transgender and gay organizations the right to organize under the union’s umbrella, amending its guiding documents to embrace those of all genders and expressions.

September 12, 2013

Pope’s summer home evacuated for WWII bomb detonations

Roughly 400 residents of a Rome community, along with the pope’s summer residence, were evacuated this week to make way for the detonations of two discovered World War II bombs in the lakefront area.

September 12, 2013

Boulder County, Colo., mulls rules recognizing rights of plants

Boulder County planners are poised to consider a proposal that would give plants rights the same rights of existence as those enjoyed by humans and animals, based on the logic that are all living, breathing entities.

September 12, 2013

John McCain rebuked by Ariz. GOP for ‘unbecoming’ deal-making with Dems

The Legislative District 26 Republican Party in Arizona has spoken, and they're not happy with Sen. John McCain. The group issued a sharp and formal written rebuke of their senator, calling his work across party lines — particularly with Democratic Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid — destructive to GOP party principles.

September 12, 2013

Mississippi students under fire for patriotic 9/11 T-shirts

Two students who wore Sept. 11 tribute T-shirts to their high school in Slayden, Miss., are in trouble with administrators, who accused them of dress code violations and ordered them to change clothes.

September 12, 2013

Syrian rebels accuse Assad regime of second chemical attack

Syrian rebel fighters on Thursday said President Bashar Assad’s regime has unleashed a second chemical weapon attack in the same Damascus region as the first, Israeli media reported.

September 12, 2013

Fiery preacher Terry Jones arrested for planning to burn 2,998 Korans

A fiery preacher labeled by some as anti-Islam was arrested Wednesday on charges stemming from his plan to burn 2,998 copies of the Koran — to match the number of victims killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on American soil.

September 12, 2013

James Woods on Obama: He’s the ‘gift from hell’

It's a safe bet there's no love lost between Hollywood actor James Woods and President Obama — the former has taken to Twitter several times over the last few months to trash the policies and politics of the latter.

September 12, 2013

4 in 10 American adults: We’re living in the end times

A new finding from a research firm that focuses on faith issues says that two-fifths of Americans believe we're at the end times, living out Revelation biblical principles.

September 12, 2013

North Korea appears to have restarted reactor at plutonium facility: satellite

Satellite images suggest that North Korean authorities have restarted the reactor at the Yongbyon plutonium production site, leading the West to wonder if the country is actively pursuing development of a nuclear weapon.

September 12, 2013

CIA starts shipping weapons to Syrian rebel fighters

The CIA finally has made good on a months-old promise from the Obama administration and started shipping weapons to rebel fighters in Syria.

September 12, 2013

Prince William completes military service: Next up, environmentalism

Prince William has wrapped seven years of service in the military and is on the cusp of leaving, Kensington Palace announced this week.

September 12, 2013

Texas grand jury refuses to indict trooper over illegal-immigrant shootings

A Texas trooper who shot and killed two Guatemalan immigrants who had illegally crossed into the United States and were fleeing authorities will not be charged with any crime, a grand jury determined Wednesday.

September 12, 2013

Facebook facing FTC fire for privacy changes

The Federal Trade Commission said it is investigating Facebook to determine if two of its recently announced privacy rule reforms are in violation of a 2011 agreement.

September 12, 2013

Medical examiner for Trayvon Martin case fired, as lawyer launches suit

The medical examiner who gave weak courtroom testimony about his autopsy of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin has been fired, and his attorney says a discrimination lawsuit is pending.

September 12, 2013

University of Alabama sororities accused of blocking blacks

A judge who sits on the board at the University of Alabama has recommended the school investigate charges made by a student-run publication that sororities have intentionally blocked black women from pledging.

September 12, 2013

Girl, 15, brags of using 9/11 name-reading to petition Obama on Syria

The family members of one Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack victim were stunned and outraged during Wednesday’s name-reading ceremony in New York City when a girl at the podium, who was supposed to say their son’s name and move on, instead launched into a plea to President Obama about Syria.

September 12, 2013

Colorado flash floods kill 1, destroy homes, evacuate communities

Flash flooding brought on by heavy rains in Boulder, Colo., has left one person dead, sent dozens packing and washed away numerous homes and buildings.

September 12, 2013

Putin sends message to America: You are not exceptional

Russian President Vladimir Putin's barely subtle message to America — that we are hardly exceptional — as relayed in an op-ed on The New York Times' website has sparked some serious fire, including a reaction from a senator who said the piece nearly made him vomit.

September 12, 2013

China sees surge in billionaires — now second to U.S.

China, it seems, is the place to be to make money. The nation touts a 25 percent rise in billionaires in the past few months, from 64 to 315, The New York Post reported.

September 11, 2013