... the three-year old trade talks between South Korea and the United States. The free trade deal has been modified to incorporate certain provisions that were not included in the original pact in 2007 (Wolf). These changes improve the chances for the pact to receive legislative ratification. On November 11, attempts to modify the agreement ... failed because President Barack Obama was at an economic nations summit in Seoul (Ramstad). The free trade deal includes provisions on auto imports, exports and tariffs, the major ... 2.5% tariff on South Korean automobiles during the five year period...

• Word Count: 760
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

A landlord of a Philadelphian apartment discovered four mentally handicapped people chained in the basement when he went to investigate a short circuit on October 15th. Turgut Gozleveli discovered dogs locked inside of the boiler room and four adults hiding underneath a blanket. They were hunched together in a space not tall enough for an adult to stand, surrounded in human waste with only a jug of orange juice (Hoye). He unchained them while asking questions about their identity, but he didn't receive any answers. Believing them to be illegal immigrants, Gosleveli called in the police who qui...

• Word Count: 787
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

The trial of Dr. Conrad Murray, the personal physician of the late Michael Jackson, took a turn for the worse after the 911 call was played to jurors on September 29th. Murray chose not to call for an ambulance for nearly thirty minutes after he first realized that Jackson needed medical attention - a fact that prosecutors are calling an attempt at a cover-up (Los Angeles Times ... the room, he saw Jackson's lifeless body on the floor and Murray acting incompetent. Murray made a half-hearted attempt at CPR, according to Alvarez, who reported that Murray was using one hand, performing thrusts ...

• Word Count: 528
• Approx Pages: 2
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

U.S. security has seen a dramatic increase since the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Although the airlines have been cooperative so far, British Airways is finally voicing its frustration as the security becomes ever so tighter. As many of the traveling public would agree, chairman of British Airways, Martin Broughton, criticized the airport checks proposed by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration for being "completely redundant." At an annual conference of the U.K. Airport Operators Association in London, Broughton explained that the TSA is requiring foreign airports to increase checks on U...

• Word Count: 537
• Approx Pages: 2
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Millions of hotels across the United States nonchalantly discard their visitors' once-used bars of soap every day. In fact, hundreds of millions of soap bars are discarded each year in North American alone. As relatively wealthy Americans, no has thought anything of it - until Derreck Kayongo launched the Global Soap Project (Ruffins). The project began in the early 1990s after Kayongo's first hotel stay in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Ugandan native panicked when he noticed his bathroom soap was being replenished every day despite the fact that he only got one or two uses out of the bars (...

• Word Count: 1392
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• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... about its relationship with WikiLeaks and asked US internet providers to stop hosting the site. Amazon claims that the political pressure was not the reason for their decision, but that because WikiLeaks had breached their contract by not owning the rights to its content, they were forced to sever the relationship (Karmi). Despite the repercussions of its actions, WikiLeaks is receiving ... support from free speech activists. The Swiss Pirate Party, a group that formed two years ago to campaign for freedom of information, provided the site with its new domain. WikiLeaks ... of freedom o...

• Word Count: 734
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... the West Bank who marry Palestinian citizens of Israel. Palestinian citizens make up 20% of Israel's population. They have criticized the proposal for being racist (Sherwood). Avigdor Lieberman, a right-wing foreign minister, originally promoted the bill. Lieberman has made the issue of loyalty a staple in his ... political career. He originally campaigned for all existing Palestinian citizens of Israel to take the oath, although it has since been decided that the oath will only be required of ... future citizens. "I think this is an important step forward. Obviously this is not the en...

• Word Count: 499
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• Has Bibliography

... York City council. Last year, he was elected to the state Assembly but failed in his campaign for city comptroller in 2009 (Carnia). "It is expected that David Weprin will be unanimously supported by the Democratic parties of Brooklyn and Queens," said Evan Stavisky (Koplowitz). Weprin will meet with Queens ... Republican Party has not announced a nominee as of now, but they may not need to. The New York's 9th Congressional District, which Weiner represented for the past 13 years, covers Brooklyn and Queens. However, the New York lawmakers are trying to eliminate the district during thei...

• Word Count: 538
• Approx Pages: 2
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... stabilizes, the government will come out of this with an enormous amount of loans, including interest, that will be due to the U.S. The government will be paid back for their help plus interest, when they are able to sell off the loans in a more stable economy at a profit. It really isn't a bad idea on ... the U.S.'s part when you think about it. They are helping in the present by contributing to the stabilization of the banking industry, and will earn their money back plus more in the long run. So those that are worrying about the added ... debt that is being incurred by the U.S. gover...

• Word Count: 519
• Approx Pages: 2
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

The trial of former University of Virginia lacrosse player, George Huguely V, for allegedly murdering his on-again off-again girlfriend, Yeardley Love, began last week and has largely centered around the incriminating emails Huguely sent to Love before the incident stating, "I should ... alcohol. According to Huguely's attorneys, the blood found at the base of Love's brain came from forcefully administering CPR (FOX News). Huguely and Love dated for two years before the relationship went sour, as displayed by the exchange of emails used in the courtroom. These angry and abusive emails sugges...

• Word Count: 541
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• Has Bibliography

... Arctic Circle and located in Hammerfest, the northernmost city in the world, pipes gas from the sea bottom (Reiss). Despite being one of the world's leading exporters of both oil and natural gas, Norway is now being closely scrutinized for research purposes. As Washington prepares to revamp offshore drilling safety rules after the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico last ... year, the Norwegian system is being studied by regulators, oil companies, and communities living near offshore finds (Reiss). Last April, BP experienced the ... ...

• Word Count: 782
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• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... four of his patients. In a medical world that relies more heavily on medication every day, Volkman wrote more prescriptions for oxycodone from 2003 to 2005 than any other doctor in the country, resulting in the deaths of several of his ... ; and took the lives of numerous individuals who died just days after visiting him" (CBS News). Paula Eastly, mother of Steven Hieneman who was one of Volkman's victims, berated Volkman just before his sentencing. Hieneman died from overdose after Volkman prescribed him oxycodone, hydrocodone, and other drugs. "He ... can do something about the future...

• Word Count: 606
• Approx Pages: 2
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

The public unveiling of an extremely controversial proposal involving the budget deficit is scheduled for release on Wednesday. The new plan, constructed by Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson, is a revised draft of the plan proposed earlier this month, that also resulted in great controversy. Changes to the second draft include higher domestic cuts ... a change in how awards are made (Andrew and Kuhnhenn). The proposals that did not change from the original draft include a gradual increase in the Social Security retirement age to 68 by 2050 and 69 by 2075. The cost-of-living for the programs wi...

• Word Count: 495
• Approx Pages: 2
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... still attempting to find the body of David Hartley, who was reportedly shot by pirates, according to his wife Tiffany. The couple was riding jet skis on Falcon Lake, when they wandered onto the Mexican side, even though it is a known stronghold for the Zeta drug cartel (AOL News). Tiffany claims that the couple had gone ... to the other side of the lake that straddles the Texas-Mexico border to take pictures of a small church when a band of pirates opened fire on them (Owens). According to her, one of the bullets struck her husband ... authorities are continuing their search and "have ...

• Word Count: 521
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• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... down, ineffective and full of regulations that make healthcare an enormous nightmare for the person in need of its services. The result is that the healthcare reform bill proposed by Democrats and raped beyond recognition by special interest groups acting through puppet Republicans will then, in its ... implementation, become an albatross around the necks of future Democratic candidates and we will find our lawmakers embroiled for another 40 or more years ... , in the debate on how to reform failed healthcare reform. The infuriating thing about all of this for ... when they are in need ...

• Word Count: 865
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... Minnesota Representative, Michele Bachmann, fell to the background after announcing her candidacy (Hunt). From a political point of view, Christie could easily raise enough funds for his campaign, although his competitors obviously have a pretty good head start. However, because of his position as a Republican governor of a Democratic mid-Atlantic state ... , Christie could easily fill the niche between Romney's business background and a more personable candidate (Hunt). However, political aides for candidate Perry believe that Christie will suffer the same problems that Perry did after ...

• Word Count: 822
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... saying they will be banned from entering Israel for the next decade and their equipment will be impounded. The warning came from a letter signed by the Government Press Office, saying the flotilla is "a dangerous provocation that is being organized by Western and Islamic extremist elements to aid Hamas" ... fought back in favor of the activists, saying journalists have a right to cover a legitimate news event and should not be threatened or intimidated for doing their jobs. The association said the threats send "a chilling message to the international media and raises serious questions a...

• Word Count: 620
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• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Jean Jacques Rousseau was born in 1712 and was considered one of the best writers and philosophers of his time. He was known for his hectic lifestyle of traveling back and forth between Paris and his homeland of Geneva from the age of 16, when he suddenly found himself an orphan. ... well-known work of art Emile, ou l"education. In English translation it reads Emile: or, On Education. Emile was published in the year 1762, and was proclaimed by Rousseau himself as both the best as well as the most important writing he ever penned. Emile is a philosophical outlook on man himself. The book looks...

• Word Count: 375
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In the United States, four military generals stepping down would have been a relatively small matter - one, most likely, not newsworthy. However, in Turkey, the event was met with mixed emotions. On one hand, military figures rarely ever step down from their positions. Instead, they would overthrow the government if they wanted change. On the other hand, the generals' resignations signified the end ... the military were unable to agree on specific promotions at the High Military Council meeting. Erdogan specifically announced that the 250 soldiers awaiting trial would not be considered for p...

• Word Count: 521
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... of the U.S. Sentencing Commission's decision to retroactively apply the Fair Sentencing Act, which reduced prison terms for inmates convicted of crack-cocaine offenses. On a unanimous vote, "unfairly long sentences" for crack offenders, who are mostly African Americans, were reduced to be more compatible with sentences given to ... go into effect in November barring that Congress does not veto it, although that is highly unlikely. The average crack sentence will be reduced by about 37 months, which could save more than $200 million in the next five years according to the federal Bureau ...

• Word Count: 790
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

In the Khowst District, coalition forces have been targeting the Haqqani terrorist network for some time. In the past week alone several operations have been executed. The first operation of last week was with ... targeting the Haqqani terrorist system in the Sabari District. The goal was to capture those Haqqani militants working with multiple Haqqani subcommanders to place IED's for attacks. Armed terrorists fired upon Coalition and Police forces as they approached the area. Using AK-47s, the militants attacked as they came out of ... to the stand off, and several suspected Haqqani terrori...

• Word Count: 401
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... "investment" that would cost taxpayers "not a dime," the bailout cost billions (Graver). An estimated $14 billion of the $80 billion spent by the Obama and Bush administrations will come directly from the taxpayers' pockets. However, the auto companies are adding jobs and gaining market share against ... last year's average of $2.72. Home prices are down 5.1% in the first quarter of 2011 from one year before. Some experts predict another recession just in time for election season. According to a poll conducted by CNN, 58% of respondents disapproved of Obama's handling of the economy comp...

• Word Count: 806
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... in the next 15 months. Ten thousand of these forces will be home by the end of this year, and the remaining 23,000 soldiers will return by September 2012 (CNN). Obama referred to the surge as "one of the most difficult decisions that I've made as president" but said the ... And thanks to our intelligence professionals and special forces, we killed Osama bin Laden, the only leader that al Qaeda had ever known. This was a victory for all who have served since 9/11" (CNN). He added, "Over the last decade, we have spent a trillion dollars on war, at a time of ... (CNN). Initially, many diffe...

• Word Count: 1589
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... pockets off of the misery of the middle class. He saw an equitable tax system, and a health care system where no one would ever die for lack of medicine or treatment. No one expected him to do all this in four years. It was almost a given that we would give him eight. Then the ... all is the best time to enact these changes. These are ways Obama can raise the needed money. 1. Stick by his plan to end subsidies to the oil companies. Why we are subsidizing one of the most profitable industries in the country has always been a mystery. 2. Change the tax code so that the ... who close dow...

• Word Count: 582
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• Grade Level: High School

... Hood soldiers - which would have marked the second attack on this specific Army post in the recent past. Abdo was found and arrested right outside of Fort Hood with just one of the explosive devices police believe he was planning on detonating in a restaurant that many soldiers visited before attacking the Army post itself. Greg Ebert, an employee of Guns Galore ... to check it out" (Stengle). John Cohen, the principal deputy counterterrorism adviser at the Homeland Security Department, agreed, "A vigilant public and informed local law enforcement make it much more complicated for peopl...

• Word Count: 813
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• Has Bibliography