ttradeshows.com

Sunday, November 22, 2009

A 29-year-old woman from Quebec in Canada claims to have lost her long-term health care benefits she was receiving for depression, after her insurance company discovered pictures of her on Facebook smiling and having fun.

Nathalie Blanchard alleges that Manulife Financial cut off her long-term benefit payments because she was “available to work, because of Facebook.” She was diagnosed with long-term depression, something her lawyer says keeps her from working. Blanchard was previously employed at IBM.

Pictures posted included Blanchard and others at her birthday party strip tease, as well as smiling on a beach, among various private photos taken while on vacation. She says Manulife told her this is proof that she no longer suffers from depression.

Manulife denies her claims saying they “would not deny or terminate a valid claim solely based on information published on websites such as Facebook,”, but did not deny using the social networking site for gathering background information on customers.

According to Blanchard, her doctor told her to hang out with friends more and attend social gatherings as well as vacations. Blanchard’s lawyer says he is seeking options on how to proceed in an appeal.

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Stanley “Tookie” Williams, founder of the Crips street gangs, was executed by lethal injection in the State of California just after midnight local time Tuesday at the San Quentin State Prison after spending 24 years on death row. He was 51 years old.

Williams said no final words before his execution. It took two nurses 12 minutes to insert catheters into each of his arms, one nurse and one catheter per arm. The lethal doses were injected at 12:20 am, and Williams was pronounced dead at 12:35.

Hopes for clemency were dashed Monday when California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declined to commute Williams’s sentence to life imprisonment. Last minute appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court were also denied.

Williams was convicted in 1981 of the murder of Albert Owens during the robbery of a 7-Eleven convenience store, as well as the murders of motel owners Tsai-Shai and Yen-I Yang, and their daughter Yee Chen Lin in 1979.

Following his conviction, Williams became an outspoken anti-gang activist and was four times nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. His anti-gang message began in 1993. He co-authored with Barbara Becnel an elementary school book series called “Tookie Speaks Out”, and wrote a memoir called “Blue Rage, Black Redemption.”

Saturday, September 7, 2019

Adam Kokesh, an Iraq War veteran, activist, radio show host, and currently a candidate for the US Libertarian Party’s 2020 presidential nomination, spoke with Wikinews to discuss his background, political positions, and campaign for President of the United States.

Kokesh, who hails from Arizona, has been active in the anti-war movement since returning home from combat in Iraq. After an initial honorary discharge from active duty with the US Marine Corp in 2006, Kokesh was given a general discharge from the Marine Forces Reserve in 2007 after images of him wearing his uniform while participating in a protest with the Iraq Veterans Against the War were published in The Washington Post. Kokesh has also been involved in demonstrations in support of free speech, gun rights, and marijuana decriminalization. Some of these activities have resulted in his arrest. Kokesh previously hosted a show on RT and currently hosts a show on internet radio.

Politically, Kokesh supported the 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns of Ron Paul. He was a featured speaker at Paul’s Rally for the Republic in 2008. Kokesh ran for US Congress as a Republican in 2010 in New Mexico and for US Senate in Arizona in 2018. He announced his 2020 candidacy in 2013 during a jailhouse interview. He has based his campaign on the pledge to begin “dissolving the federal government in a peaceful, orderly manner” and to resign as president and take the title of “Custodian of the Federal Government.”

Other contenders for the Libertarian Party’s 2020 presidential nomination include former Libertarian Party Vice Chairman Arvin Vohra, businessman John McAfee, and New Hampshire state representative Max Abramson. Congressman Justin Amash and former Rhode Island governor and US Senator Lincoln Chafee are both reportedly considering runs. Former New York gubernatorial candidate Larry Sharpe and former Massachusetts governor William Weld were both previously considered potential candidates but Sharpe suggested he would not run and Weld has decided to run in the 2020 Republican Party presidential primaries, challenging President Donald Trump.

With accredited Wikinews reporter William S. Saturn, Kokesh details his background and activism, his thoughts on the Libertarian Party, the Presidency of Donald Trump, and the goals for his campaign and presidency.

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

The UK Defence Secretary Des Browne has announced a plan to seek approval from Parliament to grant a group pardon to more than 300 British soldiers executed during the First World War for offences such as cowardice and desertion.

The proposed pardon will include the case of Pte. Harry Farr, whose family had appealed to the Defence Secretary to grant a full, posthumous pardon. The Ministry of Defence informed the family lawyers of the decision hours before making a public announcement.

Farr’s family members said in a statement that they were “overwhelmed”.

The government proposes to pardon all those executed in World War I under the Army Act 1881 and the Indian Army Act 1911, for what are considered “battlefield offences”, such as cowardice or desertion, which may have been influenced by the stress of the battle. The proposal involves several Commonwealth and former colonial countries whose troops also fought alongside British troops. Mr. Browne said that he intends to introduce a suitable amendment to the current Armed Forces Bill to request Parliament’s approval.

Announcing the plan, Mr. Browne said, “I am conscious of how the families of these men feel today. They have had to endure a stigma for decades. […] I believe it is appropriate to seek a statutory pardon.”

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) riders on the subway portions of the Red and Blue lines may see relief of the slow zone in the coming months. So-called “slow zones” are locations where trains travel at restricted speeds because of track work or deteriorating conditions.

The CTA is putting nearly US$15 millions towards renovation of the O’Hare to Clark/Lake portion of the Blue Line and Chicago to Belmont portions of the Red Line. Work will happen during off peak and overnight hours. The CTA says that one track operations and delays may occur.

“We have heard our customers’ frustration with slow zones and today we are acting to address their concerns,” said Chicago Transit Board chairperson Carole Brown. “I am pleased that we are able to leverage existing contracts to begin this work and I look forward to working with state lawmakers to increase transit investment to bring our entire system to a state of good repair.”

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Malaysian documentary The Last Communist was passed without cuts by the National Film Censorship board in March. Ten days before it was supposed to start screening, the Home Ministry retracted the approval.

The film made its world debut at the Berlin Film Festival 2006 without filmmaker Amir Muhammed in attendance. It also appeared at the Seattle International Film Festival 2006 and the London Film Festival 2006. It has been reviewed favorably in Variety and UK’s Sight & Sound. Sight & Sound called the film an “essayistic delight” and of Amir Muhammed “the only visible heir to the Chris Marker tradition.”

The ban comes after Berita Harian, a conservative Malay daily, printed a series of articles critical of the film and the Censorship board. In the first article, the reporters ask government ministers and professors to comment on the impact of the film. The response is wholly negative.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad issued a retraction of the approval on May 5, 2006. Deputy Minister Datuk Tan Chai Ho described the reasons behind the ban as, “the public was not very happy about the movie.”

Neither the Berita Harian journalists nor their sources had seen the full movie. The article misstates that the film glorifies “the communist leader” when Chin Peng is mentioned only once throughout the film.

At the request of opposition Parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang, the documentary was screened for ministers of Parliament. Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said, “The plot isn’t controversial and there’s nothing that could be deemed as offensive from the cultural viewpoint.” Lim Kit Siang called the movie, “an eye opener for all”.

On Monday, 22nd May, Radzi announced that in the annual meeting of the UMNO supreme council, in June, the government is scheduled to decide whether to keep the ban on the film, or let the people decide.

At the time of the ban, Radzi had not seen the film either.

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Wikinews held an exclusive interview with Wayne Allyn Root, one of the candidates for the Libertarian Party nomination for the 2008 U.S. presidential election.

Root is the founder and chairman of Winning Edge International Inc., a sports handicapping company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. In addition, he is an author and a television producer, as well as an on-screen personality both as host and guest on several talk shows.

Root, a long-time Republican, declared his candidacy for the Libertarian Party on May 4, 2007.

He says he is concerned about the qualities of many who run for president, and fears that they do not know the needs of American citizens. He also says that they cater to big businesses instead of small ones.

He has goals of limiting the federal government and believes that the US went into Iraq for wrong reasons. A strong supporter of the War on Terror, he feels that it was mishandled. He has conservative values and came from a blue collar family in New York. He graduated from Columbia University with fellow presidential hopeful Barack Obama in 1983.

Root believes that America is in trouble and hopes to change that if elected.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

There are two things one can expect on a trip to see Michael Musto at the offices of the Village Voice: a 20-minute round-trip wait for the elevator and rapid fire answers from one of the most recognizable gossip columnists in the United States. Musto, in addition to his appearances on Countdown with Keith Olbermann and the E! network, has been writing his column for the Voice since 1984. He has recently compiled the best of them in a book released this year titled, La Dolce Musto: Writings by the World’s Most Outrageous Columnist. He was Carrie Bradshaw, replete with a prodigious use of puns, before Sex in the City was a thought. His column is a romp through his life, spats and opinions on socio-political issues. As David Thigpen of the Chicago Tribune wrote, Musto is “a funny and caustic satirist who masquerades as a gossip and nightlife columnist.”

Musto, a Columbia University graduate, is a rarity in today’s celebrity world: he is accessible. He often corresponds with his readers and his public functions are a mix of parties, nightclubs, academic lectures, university panels and film premieres.

He is friendly and frank, and he welcomes people to join him in his world (“I just got a message that Michael Lucas died!” he says staring wide-eyed at his phone; the message turned out to be false). Wikinews reporter David Shankbone spoke with Musto about his life and his relationship to the world of celebrity journalism. And he did not hold back.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Catherine McGuigan, a resident in South Mimms, Hertfordshire, UK, found skeletons from over a century ago buried under her dining room.

She had hired builders for an extension for her cottage, where she has lived for eleven years, and at the beginning of April they found human bones in the ground.

Her cottage was built over a burial ground; from 1697 to 1820 the land was owned by the Religious Society of Friends. In the 1600s, members of the society, better known as Quakers, were persecuted for their beliefs and so were not allowed to be buried in consecrated church grounds. Instead burials, which were also sometimes for others not recognised as parishioners – such as homeless people, often took place in the countryside.

The Daily Mail states in its April article that the Religious Society of Friends have advised McGuigan that she “must cremate” the bodies, however Quakers have written an open letter to the Daily Mail, informing that for Quakers, there is “no specific advice on the disposal of bodies”, and that they had never expressed an opinion on how the discovered skeletons should be buried.

The cremation was rumoured to cost up to £32,000 – an £800 quote for cremation of a single body multiplied by 40, however as yet only ten bodies have been discovered.

The builders originally thought the bones were pieces of pipe, and McGuigan has now ordered coffins and is looking to holding a mass cremation or a burial in a nearby field.

Saturday, April 2, 2005

Chicago city inspectors closed the landmark Lithuanian restaurant Healthy Food on Thursday, after finding mouse feces on the meat slicer and cutting board, and a dead mouse in the cooler.

The restaurant has operated at 3236 S. Halsted, on the south side of the city in the Bridgeport neighborhood, since the 1930s.

Wikinews reporter David Vasquez placed a call to the restaurant to inquire if they were open. The call was answered by a woman who said, “No, we’re closed. There’s some technical difficulties. I’m sorry. Thank you for calling.” A second phone could be heard ringing in the background.

Streets and Sanitation spokesman Matt Smith told the Chicago Sun-Times, “To reopen, they’re going to have to present us with a revamped game plan for not only rodent control but also housekeeping, they’ll have to make all the corrections that our inspectors point out,” he continued, “and pass a very stringent follow-up inspection.”

Patrons have praised the restaurant’s sauerkraut soup and other dishes over the years. Before it was closed, the restaurant had a lot of traffic from the nearby Cook County Circuit Court. The restaurant was once voted “Best Ethnic Eastern European Restaurant in Chicago”, according to New City.