"A Visitor from the Past", by Thelen Paulk

US pulls war fleet from Syrian water, returning home in surprising about-face

Shortly before the deployment of two American Patriot missiles manned by 400 US servicemen for defending Turkey against Syria was announced Thursday, Dec. 13, Washington quietly recalled from Syrian waters the USS Eisenhower aircraft carrier and its strike group and the USS Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready group and the 2,000 Marines on their decks.

This US fleet, now on its way to home base, stayed opposite the Syrian coast from the third week of November ready to take part in direct US intervention in the Syrian conflict.

Now that the American warships are gone, Russia’s Black Sea Fleet task force, which docked at the Syrian port of Tartus on Dec. 5, is the only war fleet remaining around the Syrian coast. According to debkafile’s intelligence sources, the Russian ships came to deliver a large consignment of arms for Bashar Assad’s army, although Russian sources claimed the vessels put into port for minor repairs and refueling.

http://www.debka.com/article/22618/US-pulls-war-fleet-from-Syrian-water-Ahmadinejad-cancels-Turkey-visit

Added info:
It would seem that the US is pulling out of any potential conflict in the Middle East, at least for the time being, and due to that fact we will be lifting the alert. However, we will keep a close eye on the situation, and will reinstate the alert immediately upon tensions rekindling. There is also the possibility that US forces in Turkey are enough to make war, and the fleet is no longer needed, something else we'll also study.

D-FOX: Please contact us if you can read this

To D-fox: if you're reading this, please contact us at thecomingcrisis@gmail.com. It's important -- we believe.

Connecticut Church near shooting site evacuated after bomb threat

Attorney General Secretly Granted Gov. Ability to Develop and Store Dossiers on Innocent Americans

In a secret government agreement granted without approval or debate from lawmakers, the U.S. attorney general recently gave the National Counterterrorism Center sweeping new powers to store dossiers on U.S. citizens, even if they are not suspected of a crime, according to a news report.

Earlier this year, Attorney General Eric Holder granted the center the ability to copy entire government databases holding information on flight records, casino-employee lists, the names of Americans hosting foreign-exchange students and other data, and to store it for up to five years, even without suspicion that someone in the database has committed a crime, according to the Wall Street Journal, which broke the story.

Whereas previously the law prohibited the center from storing data compilations on U.S. citizens unless they were suspected of terrorist activity or were relevant to an ongoing terrorism investigation, the new powers give the center the ability to not only collect and store vast databases of information but also to trawl through and analyze it for suspicious patterns of behavior in order to uncover activity that could launch an investigation.

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2012/12/gov-dossiers-on-us-citizens/

As Shooting Story Unfolds, Media Struggle With Facts

The scope and senselessness of the Newtown, Conn., school shooting challenged television journalists’ ability to do much more than lend, or impose, their presence on the scene.

Pressed with the awful urgency of the story, TV, along with other media, fell prey to reporting “facts” that were often in conflict or wrong.

How many people were killed? Which Lanza brother was the shooter: Adam or Ryan? Was their mother, who was among the slain, a teacher at the school?

http://connecticut.cbslocal.com/2012/12/15/as-shooting-story-unfolds-media-struggle-with-facts/

Not just the Media, conflicting reports are coming from officials giving Live interviews,....... designed to create confusion?

Armed man help stop Oregon mall shooting...

Nick Meli is emotionally drained. The 22-year-old was at Clackamas Town Center with a friend and her baby when a masked man opened fire.

"I heard three shots and turned and looked at Casey and said, 'are you serious?,'" he said.
The friend and baby hit the floor. Meli, who has a concealed carry permit, positioned himself behind a pillar.

"He was working on his rifle," said Meli. "He kept pulling the charging handle and hitting the side."

http://www.kgw.com/news/Clackamas-man-armed-confronts-mall-shooter-183593571.html

Assault Rifle Ban Proposed After Newtown Massacre

A leading US Democrat has said she will seek a ban on the sale of assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition clips after 26 people were shot dead in a school in Connecticut.

Senator Dianne Feinstein of California told NBC's "Meet the Press" programme: "I'm going to introduce in the Senate, and the same bill will be introduced in the House, a bill to ban assault weapons."

http://news.sky.com/story/1026271/us-shooting-democrat-plans-assault-weapon-ban

4.9 Magnitude Earthquake TARAPACA, CHILE - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.9
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 20:39:24 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 05:39:24 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
19.813°S, 69.510°W
Depth
108.5 km (67.4 miles)
Region
TARAPACA, CHILE
Distances
80 km (49 miles) NE of Iquique, Chile

'US Mid-East blunder a lesson not to start WW3 with Iran'

Adam Lanza Shooting: This Mass Murderer Might Have Been Motivated by Drugs, Not by Guns

Just a month ago PRWeb described drug induced violence as "medicine's best kept secret."

And the Citizens Commission on Human Rights International (CCHRI) is calling for a federal investigation on its web page which links no less than 14 mass killings to the use of psychiatric drugs such as Prozac and Paxil.

It is time our society look at our growing epidemic of addiction to pharmaceutical drugs and the role those drugs may play in the epidemic of mass killings. We must demand investigations be transparent regarding the use of psychiatric drugs by these killers. This is not a time when major pharmaceutical companies should be allowed to hide behind doctor patient privilege. We deserve to know the truth, regardless of the campaign contributions pharmaceutical companies have made to our elected officials.

http://www.policymic.com/articles/20856/adam-lanza-shooting-this-mass-murderer-might-have-been-motivated-by-drugs-not-by-guns

Adam Lanza's family 'a mystery'

While school friends recalled facets of Adam's personality, the family was basically not well known to many neighbours, like relative newcomers the Strocchia family.

“They are a mystery. Nobody knows about them. A lot of the people in this neighborhood know each other. It was very hard to find that I didn't know them and nobody on the block knew them,” said Len Strocchia, 46, who has lived on the same street as the Lanzas for six years.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/killer-adam-lanzas-family-a-mystery/story-e6frg6so-1226537747441

Mystery Man in Woods Handcuffed by Newtown Police: Solved?

Questions still unanswered:
1. If he found his daughter, why didn't he emerge with her?
2. Why was he reported being "in the woods" and wearing "camo"?
3. The media's original story, now forgotten, was that there were two shooters, and that one of the shooters was "a father of one of the children". Is that still relevant?

The mystery continues...

Nancy Lanza Not a Teacher at Sandy Hook?

One of the biggest questions remains what connection shooter Adam Lanza had with Sandy Hook Elementary School, and if his mother, Nancy Lanza even taught there. It was initially reported that she was a substitute kindergarten teacher there.

‘No one has heard of her,’ former board member Lillian Bittman told the Wall Street Journal. ‘Teachers don’t know her.’

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2248898/Sandy-Hook-Elementary-School-Shooting-remains-complex-investigation.html#ixzz2FF4PWh2f

Newtown Catholic church EVACUATED after Threat during noon mass

The Catholic church located in the center of the town devastated by Friday's school shooting has been evacuated after a report of a threat. The nature of the threat is not yet known, but multiple reports say that people inside the church for the noon Sunday mass have been evacuated from the building. A heavily armed SWAT team was seen entering St Rose, as well as a religious education center next door, with their guns out. The church has been a source of solace for many in the small town still coming to grips with Friday's tragedy.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2249056/Newtown-catholic-church-EVACUATED-threat-noon-mass.html

Now the EU puts laws in Place which could Bankrupt the Perfume Industry

Luxury perfume brands fear the European Union's new laws against allergens could severely curb or ban natural ingredients used in vintage best-sellers and put some perfume makers out of business.

But Brussels' proposed legislation — a draft will be unveiled early next year — is also causing a stir for another reason. It sheds light on the best-kept secret in the £20billion trade: many big brands have been tweaking their formulas for years.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2249006/Luxury-perfume-brands-warn-20bn-industry-faces-ruin-EU-proposes-ban-natural-ingredients-cause-allergies.html

Nancy Lanza a Prepper?

The mother of Newtown school massacre gunman Adam Lanza was a survivalist who was stockpiling food because she thought the world economy was on the verge of collapse.

Nancy Lanza began hoarding such items because she feared that the financial crisis was going to bring about the end of civilized society.

She reportedly became 'obsessed' with guns and taught Adam how to shoot, but on Friday he turned on her and blasted the woman to death while she laid in her own bed.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2248983/Connecticut-school-shooting-Adam-Lanzas-survivalist-mother-obsessed-guns.html

Von. I. Meyer Arrested With 47 Guns following School Threat, Indiana

A northern Indiana man who allegedly threatened to "kill as many people as he could" at an elementary school near his home was arrested by officers who later found 47 guns and ammunition hidden throughout his home.

Von. I. Meyer, 60, of Cedar Lake, was arrested Saturday after prosecutors filed formal charges of felony intimidation, domestic battery and resisting law enforcement against him. He was being held Sunday without bond at the Lake County Jail, pending an initial hearing on the charges, police said in a statement.

Cedar Lake Police officers were called to Meyer's home early Friday after he allegedly threatened to set his wife on fire once she fell asleep, the statement said.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/ind-man-47-guns-arrested-school-threat-17991470#.UM4OpOTLS8A

4.6 Magnitude Earthquake SOUTH OF PANAMA - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.6
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 16:49:05 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 11:49:05 AM at epicenter
Location
5.905°N, 78.025°W
Depth
10 km (6.2 miles) set by location program
Region
SOUTH OF PANAMA
Distances
156 km (97 miles) W (278°) from Quibdo, Colombia

4.6 Magnitude Earthquake BOUGAINVILLE REGION, PAPUA NEW GUINEA - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.6
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 16:10:09 UTC
Monday, December 17, 2012 at 02:10:09 AM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
6.631°S, 154.893°E
Depth
91.1 km (56.6 miles)
Region
BOUGAINVILLE REGION, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Distances
74 km (45 miles) WSW of Panguna, Papua New Guinea

Abu Qatada pockets £500000 in UK legal as WE continue to Pay!!, so that he can continue to fight his deportation

Terror suspect Abu Qatada has received more than £500,000 in legal aid from the UK to help him fight the government’s attempts to have him deported.

The Legal Services Commission (LSC), which deals with legal aid in England and Wales, confirmed it had paid out £515,778 by December 5 – with the total expected to rise further.

Labour MP Valerie Vaz obtained the figure in a written parliamentary answer by justice minister Jeremy Wright.

http://metro.co.uk/2012/12/16/abu-qatada-pockets-500000-in-uk-legal-aid-to-fight-his-deportation-3318601/

5.3 Magnitude Earthquake ROTA REGION, NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
5.3
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 15:52:01 UTC
Monday, December 17, 2012 at 01:52:01 AM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
14.190°N, 146.788°E
Depth
24.4 km (15.2 miles)
Region
ROTA REGION, NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS
Distances
143 km (88 miles) SE of JP Tinian Town pre-WW2, Northern Mariana Islands

4.3 Magnitude Earthquake SUMBAWA REGION, INDONESIA - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.3
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 13:12:28 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 09:12:28 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
8.395°S, 117.743°E
Depth
45.1 km (28.0 miles)
Region
SUMBAWA REGION, INDONESIA
Distances
23 km (14 miles) NNE of Labuhankuris, Indonesia

Michael Bennison Wanted after Stabbing his Girlfriend in York

Police hunting an "extremely dangerous" man wanted on suspicion of trying to murder his girlfriend have issued an urgent warning to the public.

Michael Bennison, 28, is suspected of stabbing his 27-year-old girlfriend with a bladed item in York on Friday afternoon.

North Yorkshire Police have urged Bennison to hand himself in and warned members of the public not to approach him.

http://news.sky.com/story/1026165/york-stabbing-police-hunting-michael-bennison

Body slamming piglets to death humane, pork experts say (WARNING: with graphic video)

Pork industry experts say most of what is seen in a hidden camera investigation at a Manitoba hog farm is widely accepted practice.

The video, filmed by an investigator working with the group Mercy for Animals Canada, shows what the group calls “extreme cruelty,” including piglets being slammed down onto the floor by staff.

But the Animal Care Review Panel, made up of a University of Manitoba animal sciences professor, an Ontario Veterinary College professor and a research scientist, says that’s a humane way to euthanize piglets.

The panel, formed by the Center for Food Integrity, a U.S.-based organization representing farmers, food processors and retailers, said most of what’s in the video is widely acceptable and humane.

However, it did condemn scenes that appear to show workers euthanizing a piglet by swinging it into a metal post and kicking and slapping a pig that is having trouble getting up.

http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Body+slamming+piglets+death+humane+pork+experts+with+graphic+video/7677326/story.html

Gandhi: 
The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way in which its animals are treated.
I hold that the more helpless a creature, the more entitled it is to protection by man from the cruelty of man.
I feel that spiritual progress does demand at some stage that we should cease to kill our fellow creatures for the satisfaction of our bodily wants.

Egypt backs sharia-based constitution in first round vote - unofficial results

Central heating now a luxury for many in Greece

From flood to apocalypse, US 'preppers' ready for anything

4.8 Magnitude Earthquake ANTOFAGASTA, CHILE - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.8
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 11:46:27 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 08:46:27 AM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
24.776°S, 70.158°W
Depth
39.2 km (24.4 miles)
Region
ANTOFAGASTA, CHILE
Distances
76 km (47 miles) NNE of Taltal, Chile

Merkel rips German opposition for blocking tax cuts

Chancellor Angela Merkel criticized the centre-left opposition for blocking her government's efforts to cut income taxes by 6 billion euros, telling a German newspaper those parties will have to explain that to voters in next year's election.

Merkel, seeking a third term in September, also found fault with Social Democrats (SPD) and Greens in a newspaper interview for thwarting a deal with Switzerland to tax assets stashed by Germans in Swiss banks although without revealing their names.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/16/us-germany-politics-merkel-idUSBRE8BF05720121216

Syrian fighter jets bomb Palestinian camp in Damascus: activists

Syrian fighter jets fired at least two rockets at the Palestinian Yarmouk camp in Damascus on Sunday, for the first time since the revolt against President Bashar al-Assad erupted last year, activists in the capital said.

They said dozens of people were killed when at least one rocket hit a mosque in the camp sheltering refugees who fled the violence in nearby suburbs of Damascus.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/16/us-syria-crisis-idUSBRE8AJ1FK20121216

Fashion Island mall shooting send shoppers into panic as gunman fires 50 rounds, California

Police have taken a 42-year-old man into custody after more than 50 shots were fired at a Southern California shopping mall, forcing mass panic and a full lock down.

According to Newport Beach police, multiple shots were fired in the area of a Macy's department store at the Fashion Island mall Saturday around 4:30pm in the upscale affluent coastal community.

Police arrested Sarinana Gurrola on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, said Kathy Lowe, a spokeswoman for the Newport Beach Police Department.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2248893/Fashion-Island-Mall-California-shooting-sends-shoppers-panic-gunman-fires-50-rounds.html

UFO Sighted Over Mebourne Australia

UFO over Lubbock, Texas on the News

Sammie Eaglebear Chavez arrested for 'plotting to bomb and shoot students at a Oklahoma high school' on SAME DAY as Connecticut massacre

A student from Oklahoma is in custody on charges of plotting to bomb and shoot students at the Bartlesville High School auditorium on the same day that more than two dozen people were shot and killed at an elementary school in Connecticut.

Police arrested 18-year-old Sammie Eaglebear Chavez at about 4:30 a.m. Friday after learning of the alleged plot Thursday, the Associated Press reported.

An arrest affidavit says Chavez tried to convince other students to help him lure students into the auditorium, where he planned to chain the doors shut and start shooting.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2248708/Sammie-Eaglebear-Chavez-Oklahoma-student-arrested-plotting-bomb-shoot-students-high-school.html

Newtown Shooting remains a complex investigation as authorities sort out conflicting reports of Newtown gunman's relationship to school - and if his mother was a teacher there

There are certain unmitigated facts – that a gunman entered Sandy Hook Elementary School on Friday morning, and that as a direct consequence, 27 people in the small town of Newtown, Connecticut are dead.

But as the investigation into the shooting goes on, many aspects of it remain complex.

Perhaps the biggest question lingering on people’s minds across the nation is why the shooting happened – something that may never be answered in a satisfactory manner.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2248898/Sandy-Hook-Elementary-School-Shooting-remains-complex-investigation.html

Deep space fly-by: Incredible pictures taken by Chinese probe passing asteroid show giant rock 4.5 million miles from Earth

The Chang'e-2 probe successfully conducted the mission to scan the surface of the potato-shaped asteroid Toutatis (inset left). It happened on December 13 at 16.30om Beijing Time, the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense announced today. The flyby was the first time an unmanned spacecraft launched from Earth has taken such a close viewing of the asteroid, named after a Celtic god.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2248682/Deep-space-fly-Incredible-pictures-taken-Chinese-probe-passing-asteroid-giant-rock-4-5-million-miles-Earth.html

4.9 Magnitude Earthquake SOUTHERN XINJIANG, CHINA - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.9
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 10:29:32 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 06:29:32 PM at epicenter
Location
39.984°N, 77.897°E
Depth
8.6 km (5.3 miles)
Region
SOUTHERN XINJIANG, CHINA
Distances
169 km (105 miles) ENE (70°) from Kashi, Xinjiang, China

4.6 Magnitude Earthquake OFF THE COAST OF COSTA RICA - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.6
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 10:23:42 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 04:23:42 AM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
10.525°N, 86.158°W
Depth
44.4 km (27.6 miles)
Region
OFF THE COAST OF COSTA RICA
Distances
56 km (34 miles) W of Sardinal, Costa Rica

5.2 Magnitude Earthquake GUATEMALA - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
5.2
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 10:07:12 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 04:07:12 AM at epicenter
Location
14.752°N, 91.383°W
Depth
113.5 km (70.5 miles)
Region
GUATEMALA
Distances
15 km (10 miles) SE (125°) from Quezaltenango, Guatemala

UK spent £4.5m of its international aid budget combating corruption in Russia... And guess what? It didn't work

Britain spent £4.5million of its international aid budget on combating corruption in Russia, before civil servants admitted the programme had been largely unsuccessful.

The money was spent between 2007 and 2011 on trying to make public administration in Russia, where bribery is rife, more efficient and transparent.

It funded training courses for officials run by locally based non-governmental organisations.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2248808/UK-spent-4-5m-international-aid-budget-combating-corruption-Russia.html

Adam Lanza massacred 20 schoolchildren and their teachers in less than three minutes

When the children had begun filing into Sandy Hook Elementary School on Friday, Lanza had already murdered his mother at their four-bedroom home five miles away on hilly Yogananda Street, Newtown. Afterwards, Lanza took the keys to her black Honda Civic and packed a .223-calibre Bushmaster rifle and four pistols in the boot before driving to the school. He set off at about 9.10am. By 9.35am the worst school massacre in American history was over. In all, the shooting had lasted barely three minutes, but it left 20 children and six teachers and school staff dead.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2248860/How-killer-massacred-20-schoolchildren-teachers-minutes.html

Hate preacher Abu Qatada's new £450,000 four home - paid for by you...

The fanatical Muslim, who preached hate sermons towards the West - arrived in the leafy suburb of North-West London last week. He had left his previous £400,000 four-bedroom rented home near Wembley Stadium after apparently complaining it was too small for him and his family. He shares his new detached home, which is paid for by state handouts, with his wife and four of their five children. Similar homes in the area have sold for close to £500,000.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2248832/Hate-preacher-Abu-Qatadas-new-450-000-bedroom-home--paid-you.html

4.6 Magnitude Earthquake FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.6
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 09:17:17 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 12:17:17 AM at epicenter
Location
52.722°N, 167.069°W
Depth
21.3 km (13.2 miles)
Region
FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
Distances
123 km (76 miles) E (101°) from Nikolski, AK

UBS faces $1.6 billion fine over Libor rigging: paper

UBS (UBSN.VX) faces a fine of 1.5 billion Swiss francs ($1.63 billion) to settle interest rate rigging charges, a Swiss newspaper reported on Saturday.

Citing unnamed sources, Tages-Anzeiger daily said the bank would admit 36 traders around the globe manipulated yen Libor between 2005 and 2010. A UBS spokesman declined to comment.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/15/us-ubs-libor-fine-idUSBRE8BE05M20121215

Violence breaks out in Cairo as Egyptians vote

2 Mass Shootings Connected To Libor Scandal?

The father of Connecticut school shooter Adam Lanza, Peter Lanza, was the tax director for General Electric, a corporation that paid -0- taxes on 14.2 billion dollars in profits last year. According to Fabian4Liberty, Peter Lanza was scheduled to testify in the ongoing global LIBOR scandal. In what could only be described an amazing coincidence, the father of Colorado Batman shooter James Holmes, Robert Holmes, was also a LIBOR witness in his position with FICO. According to the link at FICO, Robert Holmes was a ‘Fraud Scientist’.

From Fabain4Liberty:

The father of Newtown Connecticut school shooter Adam Lanza is Peter Lanza who is a VP and Tax Director at GE Financial. The father of Aurora Colorado movie theater shooter James Holmes is Robert Holmes, the lead scientist for the credit score company FICO. Both men were to testify before the US Sentate in the ongoing LIBOR scandal.

http://beforeitsnews.com/economics-and-politics/2012/12/2-mass-shootings-connected-to-libor-2447738.html

Coincidence?

A year under Monti: from hope to doubt

When Mario Monti took the helm a year ago, with Italy teetering on the edge of a Greek-style debt crisis, he was welcomed as a savior who could finally put the country back on track.

Disgusted with the scandals, corruption and cronyism that had flourished under Silvio Berlusconi, workers and businessmen at first meekly accepted the technocrat premier's higher taxes and harsh pension reform, confident he would guide them out of the euro zone debt storm into calmer waters.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/13/us-italy-vote-monti-idUSBRE8BC0WO20121213

Nigerian governor killed in helicopter crash: official

The central north Nigeria's Kaduna State government on Saturday announced the death of the state governor, Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa, who died a helicopter crash in southeast Bayelsa State.

A statement signed by the secretary to the state government Lawal Samaila Abdulahi, said the governor died in a navy helicopter on his way Port Harcourt from Bayelsa State.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-12/16/c_132043332.htm

Norovirus is highly infectious

Newtown shooting: 'British boy' Dylan Hockley among dead

A six-year-old boy, who is believed to be British, is among the 26 victims of a US school massacre.

Dylan Hockley was shot dead at Sandy Hook Elementary School, in Newtown, Connecticut, on Friday.

In an undated article in The Newton Bee newspaper published before the shootings, his mother, Nicole, said she and her British husband, Ian, moved to the US from England two years ago.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20745431

4.8 Magnitude Earthquake IZU ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.8
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 08:04:41 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 05:04:41 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
29.103°N, 140.769°E
Depth
99.6 km (61.9 miles)
Region
IZU ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION
Distances
264 km (164 miles) NNW of Chichi-shima, Japan

4.0 Magnitude Earthquake DODECANESE ISLANDS, GREECE - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.0
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 07:03:13 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 09:03:13 AM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
35.215°N, 27.691°E
Depth
34.8 km (21.6 miles)
Region
DODECANESE ISLANDS, GREECE
Distances
54 km (33 miles) SE of Karpathos, Greece

4.7 Magnitude Earthquake SANTA CRUZ ISLANDS - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.7
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 06:04:17 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 05:04:17 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
10.709°S, 166.101°E
Depth
153.7 km (95.5 miles)
Region
SANTA CRUZ ISLANDS
Distances
29 km (18 miles) E of Lata, Solomon Islands

4.7 Magnitude Earthquake SOUTH OF THE KERMADEC ISLANDS - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.7
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 05:52:08 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 05:52:08 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
33.606°S, 179.298°W
Depth
41.5 km (25.8 miles)
Region
SOUTH OF THE KERMADEC ISLANDS
Distances
244 km (151 miles) S of L'Esperance Rock, New Zealand

4.8 Magnitude Earthquake OFFSHORE GUATEMALA - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.8
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 03:06:53 UTC
Saturday, December 15, 2012 at 09:06:53 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
14.095°N, 91.901°W
Depth
72.3 km (44.9 miles)
Region
OFFSHORE GUATEMALA
Distances
23 km (14 miles) S of Champerico, Guatemala

4.8 Magnitude Earthquake PAGAN REGION, NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS - 16th December 2012

Magnitude
4.8
Date-Time
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 02:30:55 UTC
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 12:30:55 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
18.215°N, 146.973°E
Depth
55.5 km (34.5 miles)
Region
PAGAN REGION, NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS
Distances
127 km (78 miles) E of Pagan, Northern Mariana Islands

UKIP 'Now The UK's Third Largest Party'

The UK Independence Party has surged to a record poll rating - knocking the Liberal Democrats into fourth place.

The ComRes poll for The Independent on Sunday and the Sunday Mirror put Ukip on 14% - a six-point gain on last month and the party's highest rating in a ComRes poll.

The findings will alarm Tory MPs who fear the party is haemorrhaging support over issues such as Europe, the economy and its support for gay marriage.

http://news.sky.com/story/1026043/ukip-now-the-uks-third-largest-party

4.2 Magnitude Earthquake SALTA, ARGENTINA - 15th December 2012

Magnitude
4.2
Date-Time
Saturday, December 15, 2012 at 23:46:46 UTC
Saturday, December 15, 2012 at 08:46:46 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
24.030°S, 67.110°W
Depth
163 km (101.3 miles)
Region
SALTA, ARGENTINA
Distances
83 km (51 miles) WNW of San Antonio de los Cobres, Argentina

Gunfire erupted at Los Vegas Excalibur: Two dead after murder-suicide

A man and woman were dead after a possible murder-suicide Friday night inside the Excalibur lobby.

Las Vegas police responded to the Strip hotel about 8:30 p.m. after gunfire erupted in the front lobby, officer Laura Meltzer said.

The man died at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The woman died at University Medical Center about two hours later, police said.

The hotel remained open, but the lobby was closed as detectives tried to piece together what happened and why.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/man-dead-woman-critically-injured-in-shooting-at-excalibur-183608761.html