'This is wut happens wen my baby hits me back': Andre Curry sparks police investigation after posting photo of his child BOUND WITH TAPE to Facebook

A young father is now the subject of a police probe after a shocking photo of his daughter with her hands and feet bound was posted on Facebook.

Andre Curry, 21, of Chicago, has generated intense internet backlash after he posted the photo in July.

Last week, it appeared on websites like TheDirty.com and The Smoking Gun.

In the image, the tape holds the girl's arms and legs together at the wrists and ankles, with another large piece of tape across her mouth.

The photo is slapped with the caption 'this is wut happens wen my baby hits me back'.

Je’Vanna Cobbins, a friend of Curry's, told The Smoking Gun that he was just “playing around,' and would 'never do anything to harm anyone.' Read More

U.S. senator: the world is better off without Kim Jong Il, who 'is joining Gaddafi, Bin Laden and Hitler in hell'..They sure know how to build Bridges

U.S. Senator John McCain has said the world is better off now that North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is dead.

McCain, a Republican lawmaker who was his party's nominee for president in 2008, said that Kim subjected his people to 'dire poverty and cruel oppression under one of the most totalitarian regimes the world has ever known.'

'The world is a better place now that Kim Jong-Il is no longer in it,' McCain said.

McCain's political colleagues, including GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, have joined the prominent and outspoken senator in saying bluntly that Kim will not be missed after decades of oppression and threatening the world with his nuclear programme.

But McCain, the top-ranking Republican on the Armed Services Committee who was tortured as a prisoner during the Vietnam war, didn't pull any punches.

He said, 'I can only express satisfaction that the Dear Leader is joining the likes of Gaddafi, Bin Laden, Hitler, and Stalin in a warm corner of hell.' Read More

Germany woos Britain over EU rift: PM's defiance rewarded as Merkel's man snubs Sarko - 20th Dec 2011

Germany launched an extraordinary charm offensive to try to get Britain back to the EU negotiating table last night despite George Osborne’s refusal to contribute billions to a Brussels begging bowl.

Guido Westerwelle, the German foreign minister, used a visit to London to extend an olive branch, lavishing praise on the UK as an ‘indispensable partner’ and promising a ‘hands-off’ approach to our financial services industry.

There are increasing signs Germany is prepared to go behind France’s back and contemplate giving David Cameron the special protections for the City of London that were refused at a crunch summit this month, prompting the Prime Minister to veto an EU-wide power-sharing treaty.

Mr Westerwelle, speaking alongside Foreign Secretary William Hague, promised a prosperous future for the City. He said Germany wanted the EU’s next steps to involve all 27 member states, adding: ‘My main message is for the British people – you can count on us, and we can count on you.

‘There is no doubt that we want to make the next steps in the EU together as 27. I am here to show you that we are willing to build bridges over troubled water.’

The remarks about ‘building bridges’ were in stark contrast to days of aggressive rhetoric from the French, who appear keen to see Britain exit the EU altogether. Read More

Forty hospital trusts and 800 patients fall victim to winter vomiting bug in just one week - 20th Dec 2011

Almost 800 patients have been struck down by the winter vomiting bug in hospitals in the last week.

More than 40 trusts are known to be affected by outbreaks of norovirus and most have closed wards to visitors in an attempt to halt the spread.

Figures from the Health Protection Agency show that the total number of cases so far this season is up a fifth compared with the same time last year.

But officials insist that the weekly rates are no worse than usual – and in fact the number affected in the last week is slightly lower than last year.

Up to a million Britons are struck down with the virus every year and the usual symptoms are sudden vomiting, diarrhoea, headache and temperature. Read More

Big firms let off £25BILLION in taxes: As families are chased for every penny, corporate giants dodge their massive bills - 20th Dec 2011

Britain's biggest firms owe the taxman up to £25.5billion, but are regularly let off the hook, MPs say today.

By contrast, families and small businesses are treated much more harshly and forced to pay up.

The sum owed by corporate giants is the equivalent of £1,000 for every British family, or the equivalent of everyone in the UK paying an extra 6p on the basic rate of income tax.

n a withering attack, the Public Accounts Committee accuses HM Revenue and Customs of having a ‘far too cosy’ relationship with big firms, which are repeatedly allowed to cut their tax bills or avoid paying interest.

The report, published today, says: ‘We have serious concerns that large companies are treated more favourably by HMRC than other taxpayers.’

It criticises the department’s ‘specific and systemic failures’.

Margaret Hodge, Labour chairman of the committee, says the report is ‘a damning indictment of HMRC’. Read More

4.7 Magnitude Earthquake NEAR NORTH COAST OF NEW GUINEA, PAPUA NEW GUINEA - 20th Dec 2011

A magnitude 4.7 earthquake has struck near the North Coast of New Guinea, Papua New Guinea at a depth of 55.4 km (34.4 miles), the quake hit at 03:03:16 UTC Tuesday 20th December 2011.
The epicenter was 100 km (62 miles) ESE of Vanimo, New Guinea, Papua New Guinea
No Reports of Injuries or Damage at this time

5.0 Magnitude Earthquake OFF THE COAST OF CHIAPAS, MEXICO - 20th Dec 2011

A magnitude 5.0 earthquake has struck off the Coast of Chiapas, Mexico at a depth of 45.7 km (28.4 miles), the quake hit at 01:54:19 UTC Tuesday 20th December 2011.
The epicenter was 125 km (77 miles) Southwest of Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Injuries or Damage at this time

4.9 Magnitude Earthquake SOUTHEAST INDIAN RIDGE - 20th Dec 2011

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake has struck the Southeast Indian Ridge at a depth of 9.9 km (6.2 miles), the quake hit at 01:26:53 UTC Tuesday 20th December 2011.
The epicenter was 1980 km (1230 miles) East of Heard Island
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Injuries or Damage at this time

4.5 Magnitude Earthquake BONIN ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION - 20th Dec 2011

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake has struck the Bonin Islands, Japan Region at a depth of 362.5 km (225.3 miles), the quake hit at 01:22:23 UTC Tuesday 20th December 2011.
The epicenter was 205 km (127 miles) West of Chichi-Shima, Bonin Islands, Japan
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Injuries or Damage at this time

4.5 Magnitude Earthquake KERMADEC ISLANDS REGION - 20th Dec 2011

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake has struck the Kermadec Islands Region at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles), the quake hit at 00:35:16 UTC Tuesday 20th December 2011.
The epicenter was 130 km (80 miles) Southeast of Raoul Island, Kermadec Islands
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Injuries or Damage at this time

5.1 Magnitude Earthquake SOUTHWEST OF SUMATRA, INDONESIA - 19th Dec 2011

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake has struck Southwest of Sumatra, Indonesia at a depth of just 1.1 km (0.7 miles - Poorly Constrained), the quake hit at 21:03:45 UTC Monday 19th December 2011.
The epicenter was 311 km (193 miles) Southwest of T.-Telukbetung, Sumatra, Indonesia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Injuries or Damage at this time

Arrest Order for Sunni Leader in Iraq Opens New Rift - 19th Dec 2011

Iraq’s Shiite-dominated government was thrown into crisis on Monday night as authorities issued an arrest warrant for the Sunni vice president, accusing him of running a personal death squad that assassinated security officials and government bureaucrats.

The sensational charges against Tariq al-Hashimi, one of the country’s most prominent Sunni leaders, threatened to inflame widening sectarian and political conflicts in Iraq just one day after the last American convoy of American troops rolled out of the country into Kuwait.

The accusations were broadcast over Iraqi television, in a half-hour of grainy video confessions from three men identified as Mr. Hashimi’s bodyguards. They spoke of how they had planted bombs in public squares, driven up to convoys carrying Iraqi officials and opened fire. Read More

4.7 Magnitude Earthquake NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN - 19th Dec 2011

A magnitude 4.7 earthquake has struck near the Coast of Honshu, Japan at a depth of 40 km (24.8 miles), the quake hit at 17:24:47 UTC Monday 19th December 2011.
The epicenter was 11 km (6.8 miles) West of Hitachi, Honshu, Japan
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Injuries or Damage at this time

Germany 'has no hidden agenda' on European treaty...of Course they would admit it if they did have a hidden Agenda

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle says Europe must work together to battle throught the financial crisis.

The German foreign minister pledged to "build bridges" in the wake of David Cameron's summit veto - insisting Britain was an "indispensable partner" in the EU.

At a joint press conference with Foreign Secretary William Hague in London, Guido Westerwelle said the union had to remain "united".

"For Germany the United Kingdom is an indispensable partner in the European Union," he said. "There is no doubt for us that we want to make the next steps in the EU together as 27, or next with Croatia as 28 countries.

"We think we have a common destiny. We think the EU is not only the answer to the darkest chapter of our history. It is also a life insurance in times of globalisation because no country, not Germany, not Great Britain, not France, no country is strong and big enough to face the challenges of globalisation alone."

He added: "My main message is for the British people - you can count on us, and we count on you." (now how about signing over 50 billion euros for our Euro bailout fund) Read More

One of the Units at Romanian Cherna Voda Nuclear Power Plant decommissioned over Leakage incident - 19th Dec 2011

Bucharest. One of the two units of the Romanian Cherna Voda Nuclear Power Plant has been decommissioned due to leakage of distilled water.

The Romanian operator–company say they have avoid violation of the work of the security systems of the NPP, RIA Novosti reported.

The unit was decommissioned in the morning at about 09.30 and is expected to be resumed after 48 hours after elimination of the damage. Source

Six People Die in Wonosobo Flash Flood, Landslide, Java, Indonesia - 19th Dec 2011

Six people died during a flash flood and landslide in Wonosobo, Central Java on Sunday.

According to the spokesman for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a joint search and rescue team from the local mitigation agency, the military, police and local people found five more bodies on Monday.

Five others are still missing and 627 people were displaced by the natural disaster and are taking shelter at the village meeting center.

“The missing victims might be buried under the mud,” Sutopo said.

A flash flood and landslide swept away 13 houses in Tieng village, Wonosobo on Sunday afternoon and damaged seven houses.

A survivor, Romdhon, said the disaster occurred during heavy rain.

“My mother and I were outside our home, while my father was inside,” he said. “All of sudden mud covered our house and swept it away.”

His father still has not been found. Read More

Strange disease kills two in Amansie West District, Ghana - 19th Dec 2011

A strange disease is said to have killed two persons in the Amansie West District of the Ashanti Region.

Laffa viral hemorrhagic fever has symptoms similar to malaria but causes victims to bleed to death.

It is highly contagious and passed on from infected rodents like mice.

“About two months ago, a young man of 19 years came to our health centre here and complained of malaria, so we treated him for malaria but suddenly, blood started coming from the nose, the mouth, the anus and the ears, and immediately he died …it is the first of it’s kind in Ghana,” Municipal Director of Health in the Amansie West District, Dominic Brobbey told Joy News.

He said the situation is currently under control, but warns there are no drugs to treat the disease in Ghana. Source

4.5 Magnitude Earthquake OFFSHORE OAXACA, MEXICO - 19th Dec 2011

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake has struck offshore Oaxaca, Mexico at a depth of 48.1 km (29.9 miles), the quake hit at 16:57:55 UTC Monday 19th December 2011.
The epicenter was 90 km (56 miles) Southeast of Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, Mexico
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Injuries or Damage at this time

Marcin Kasprzak Guilty Of Burying Lover Alive In Box - 19th Dec 2011

A man who buried his fiancee alive in a woodland grave and then claimed he only wanted to frighten her has been found guilty of attempted murder at Leeds Crown Court.

Marcin Kasprzak, 26, shot Michelina Lewandowska with a stun gun, tied her up with packing tape and buried her in a cardboard box in woods near Huddersfield in May.

Miss Lewandowska, 27, eventually escaped by using her diamond engagement ring to cut through the tape before kicking her way out of the shallow grave and flagging down a passing motorist.

In a statement read outside court, Miss Lewandowska said she thought she was going to die.

"I prayed to God to help me to survive so that I could look after my young son. The thought of my son gave me the strength to fight my way out of the box and save myself," she said. Read More

'Black Panther' Serial Killer Donald Neilson Dies In Jail - 19th Dec 2011

One of Britain's most notorious serial killers, known as the 'Black Panther', has died suddenly after becoming ill in jail.

Donald Neilson, 75, was serving a whole-life sentence for murdering five people, including the teenage heiress Lesley Whittle.

Neilson became infamous in the mid-70s when he went on the run after shooting dead three country post-masters during a string of night-time raids in the north and midlands.

But it was the kidnap of 17-year-old Lesley and her gruesome murder that put him top of the Most Wanted list.

He targeted her after reading how she had inherited £80,000 from her father two years earlier.

He snatched her from her Shropshire home in January, 1975, and forced her to hide, naked, with a rope around her neck on a ledge in a freezing drain shaft beneath a park.

Neilson used the park as a potential rendez-vous for a £50,000 ransom demand.

Her body was found hanging there a week later after a police search. Read More

UK Refusing To Help With EU Bailout Fund... Well I for one can't Blame them after last weeks treatment

Britain is refusing to contribute to the IMF's bailout fund for the EU, Sky News understands.

Chancellor George Osborne has apparently told his EU colleagues he will not provide any cash to boost the fund, which is specifically aimed at the troubled eurozone.

During a conference call with 26 other EU finance ministers, Mr Osborne made clear that whilst the UK is prepared to take part in global efforts to increase the IMF's resources, it would not participate in any fund specifically intended for a Euro bailout.

"We were clear that we would not be making a contribution," a Treasury source said.

Another said there was "no agreement" on the proposed 200bn euro fund.

Britain is resisting pressure to contribute up to 50bn euros to the fund which is being set up to increase the IMF's ability to help crisis-hit economies.

However, some other non-euro countries could yet contribute, along with eurozone countries.

More follows...

Ayla Reynolds Mother filed for custody hours before she disappeared from her father's home - 19th Dec 2011

The mother of missing toddler Ayla Reynolds filed for full custody of the 20-month-old hours before the child disappeared from her father's home, it was revealed today.

Trista Reynolds, who also has a nine-month-old son, was looking after Ayla until October when Maine's Department of Health and Human Services removed her and gave care to the father.

A massive hunt for the child was continuing today after she went missing from her father's home in Waterville some time between 8pm on Friday night at 8.30am on Saturday morning.

The toddler's grandparents revealed today Ms Reynolds filed for full custody the day before the child disappeared and criticised the decision by the Department of Health and Human Services to remove her from her mother's care in October. Read More

One THIRD of young Americas are arrested by age of 23 (NOT including traffic offences) - 19th Dec 2011

Almost one in three teenagers and young adults have been arrested by the age of 23 for anything from underage drinking to violent crime.

Experts believe the increase is not necessarily because of more criminal activity - but a more zealous police approach to arresting young people.

Researchers were left surprised by the arrest figure - which has risen to 30 per cent, compared to the last available figure of 22 per cent in 1965.

‘It was certainly higher than we expected based on what we saw in the 1960s, but it wasn't dramatically higher,’ said Robert Brame.

Dr Brame of the University of North Carolina and his colleagues analysed data from a national youth survey conducted between 1997 and 2008. Read More

Lead by Example: Obama's $4 MILLION vacation in Hawaii

Barack Obama’s annual vacation in Hawaii this year is likely to be his most expensive ever - and the majority of it is being funded by the taxpayer.

The President will travel separately to his family this time because he wants resolve the payroll tax cut issue before leaving Washington D.C.

First Lady Michelle took their children this weekend in a flight that cost an extra $100,000 - and her husband’s round-trip journey will be $3,271,611.

The bill for the trip went up last week when Mrs Obama decided to take Sasha and Malia herself while her husband tries to save the U.S. economy.

His flight was estimated by the Hawaii Reporter as the largest expense of the holiday trip, which will cost more than $4million in total. Read More

Enrique Gomez De Molina faces JAIL over taxidermy - 19th Dec 2011

Like a modern day Dr Frankenstein, Enrique Gomez De Molina creates hauntingly stunning hybrid sculptures made from the stuffed parts of dead animals.

But it is his beloved mythical creatures that could land the Miami artist in jail for up to five years and see him forking out $250,000 in fines.

Death toll from tropical storm in Philippines rising to more than 900 - 19th Dec 2011

The death toll from a tropical storm in the southern Philippines has reached more than 900, an official with the country's disaster agency said Monday.

Benito Ramos of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said the toll stood at 927.

The Philippines Red Cross reported a lower death toll, at 713.

Tropical Storm Washi affected more than 167,000 people, the council said in a report Monday. About 88,000 people were being served at evacuation centers.

President Beningo Aquino plans to visit the region Tuesday.

U.S. President Barack Obama issued a statement Monday expressing "deep condolences for the tremendous loss of life and devastation."

He said the United States "stands ready to assist the Philippine people and government should humanitarian assistance and recovery efforts be needed." Read More

Three injured as train full of commuters collides with farm vehicle stuck on level-crossing - 19th Dec 2011

Three commuters have been injured after a train ploughed into a lorry trapped on a level-crossing today.

Up to 60 people were on the crowded service between Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, and Manchester when it hit a farm vehicle carrying bales of hay at 9.50am.

The driver was unable to stop the train, which was travelling at 50mph, in time after spotting the lorry stuck on the crossing at Whitland, Carmarthenshire, police said.

Passengers told how commuters screamed in terror as the train suddenly slammed on its emergency brakes, before they felt a sharp impact.

Three commuters have been injured after a train ploughed into a lorry trapped on a level-crossing today.

Up to 60 people were on the crowded service between Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, and Manchester when it hit a farm vehicle carrying bales of hay at 9.50am.

The driver was unable to stop the train, which was travelling at 50mph, in time after spotting the lorry stuck on the crossing at Whitland, Carmarthenshire, police said.

Passengers told how commuters screamed in terror as the train suddenly slammed on its emergency brakes, before they felt a sharp impact. Read More

Syria finally agrees to Arab observer mission - 19th Dec 2011

Syria finally gave its agreement Monday to an Arab observer mission to monitor a deal to end nine months of bloodshed, ending weeks of prevarication that had prompted the Arab League to adopt sanctions.

Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al-Maqdad and Arab League Assistant Secretary General Ahmed Ben Helli inked the document at League headquarters in Cairo, an AFP correspondent reported.

Speaking at a news conference in Damascus, Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said that Syria had only signed up to the deal after making sure it did not infringe its sovereignty.

He said the deal was an initial period of one month, renewable with the agreement of both sides.

"Signing the protocol is the start of cooperation with the Arab League and we will welcome the observers' mission from the Arab League," he said.

"Sovereignty is protected in the text of the protocol," he added. Read More

Saab Files for Bankruptcy in Sweden - 19th Dec 2011

Saab Automobile, the Swedish auto maker which filed for bankruptcy Monday after a desperate three-year fight for survival, will be missed as a once-innovative manufacturer of turbo-charged cars.

The company's demise, barring a last-gasp salvage of Saab's operating assets as they are liquidated, underscores how tough it is for niche auto makers to survive in the increasingly competitive global industry when development and manufacturing costs are so high. Marrying originality with mass production has proved too difficult for Saab's different owners. Read More

Tories militerise London for Olympics

Anonymous attacking creators of indefinite detention bill

With President Obama read to sign away the freedoms of Americans by inking his name to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, opponents are already going after the lawmakers that made the legislation possible.

The act, abbreviated as NDAA FY2012, managed to make its way through Congress with overwhelming support in recent days, despite legislation that allows for Americans to be detained indefinitely and tortured by authorities for the mere suspicion of committing “a belligerent act." The Obama administration originally decreed that they would veto the bill, only for the White House to announce a change of heart on Wednesday this week.

With the passing of the act almost certain at this point, hackers aligned to the massive collective Anonymous are taking a stab at staking out the politicians that helped put the bill in the president’s hands.

On Wednesday, Internet hacktivists gathered on the Web to find a way to take on the lawmakers, who have allowed for this detrimental legislation to make it all the way to the Oval Office desk. Upon discussion of routes to take to show their opposition to the overwhelming number of politicians who voted in favor of NDAA, Anonymous members agreed to begin with Senator Robert J Portman, a Republican lawmaker from the state of Ohio.

By Thursday morning, an Anonymous operative released personal information pertaining to the lawmaker, and revealed that not only was Sen. Portman among the politicians to vote “aye” on the legislation, but it has also been revealed that the senator had good reason to do so.

According to a OpenCongress.org, Sen. Portman received $272,853 from special interest groups that have shown support for NDAA. Read More

SOPA is China-style censorship say Google, Twitter, eBay

Nine Internet godfathers have taken out full-page ads in the New York Times, saying SOPA is an offer they will refuse. Founders of giants like Yahoo, eBay, Google and Netscape claim the bill will “undermine the framework” of free expression.

The bill is intended to crack down on websites operating outsidethe United States. If passed, the legislation would allow the US government to shut down any site illegally hosting copyrighted content. Lawmakers behind the Stop Online Piracy Act say it would deal a blow to online pirates and producers of counterfeit brand products like designer fashion items or medicine.

But the signatories, who include top men and women from services like Wikipedia, PayPal, Flickr, LinkedIn and YouTube, believe that online services would be required to monitor what users link to and upload, which would have a "chilling effect on innovation."

They also insist that the bill would give Washington Internet censorship rights similar to “China, Malaysia and Iran” and are urging Congress not to risk the “tremendous benefits the Internet has brought to hundreds of millions of Americans and people around the world.” And it seems their collective voice is being heard, as both Democrats and Republicans in the US have decided to oppose the bill. From Ron Paul to Nancy Pelosi, more and more politicians are adopting an anti-SOPA stance.

However, many support the act, with the US entertainment industry being the strongest lobbyist for SOPA. Read More

Talk of 'nuclear default' sums up Left's anger at EU dictates

Tempers are fraying in austerity-racked Portugal. A top socialist politician was taped at a party dinner calling for diplomatic warfare against the EU's northern powers and issuing threats of debt default.

"We have an atomic bomb that we can use in the face of the Germans and the French: this atomic bomb is simply that we won't pay," said Pedro Nuno Santos, vice-president of the Socialist Party in the parliament.

"Debt is our only weapon and we must use it to impose better conditions, because recession itself is what is stopping us complying with the (EU-IMF Troika) accord. We should make the legs of the German bankers tremble," he said.

The comments came as Portugal slides deeper into recession, with the economy expected to contract by 3pc next year. Protesters marched through Lisbon on Thursday denouncing plans by the new conservative government to raise the working week to 42 hours. Wages are being cut 16pc for higher paid, and 8pc for lower paid public workers.

The parliament passed a fresh austerity budget earlier this month under the terms of its €78bn loan package from the EU and the International Monetary Fund. Read More