2 dead in Texas Panhandle pipline explosion

On Tuesday last week a natural gas pipeline exploded and killed 2 construction workers in Texas. After being notified about the explosions, fire trucks from all over came to help. While the 5 construction people were working, their bulldozer struck the pipeline. Besides the 2 that died, 2 escaped without bad injuries, and the other was taken to a hospital in Oklahoma City. About 3 hours after the pipe exploded, there was a black patch of grass land. This patch was hundreds of feet in diameter. This is a huge environmental concern and a devastating event.

I keep hearing more and more about oil spills in the south. It's terrible that now people are dying from it. Also though, I think that the workers should have been extremely careful when working with their machinery. It was pretty much their own fault that the pipe exploded. While I do feel incredibly sorry for them, it's important to stress that it could have been avoided. We need to be careful while working with any dangerous substance like that. Now only will the families of those who died be affected, but the whole area will be too. The animals living there could die. Many plants could die too. We need to take care of our land as much as possible by finding ways to prevent and stop this from happening.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/06/08/texas.pipeline.explosion/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

Children's quality of life declining, says report

For the first time in 20 years, 21 percent of children will be living below the poverty line this year. This study was done by the Foundation for Child Development. 8 things that the study is based on is the child's economic well-being, how safe or risky they are, relationships, emotional and spiritual well-being, community involvement, education, and health. Even though those aspects are low now, they're predicted to increase as time goes on. A huge reason is the recession our country is in. 15.6 millions children are going to live in poverty this year. Right now, there's about 500,000 kids that are homeless. However, there are some things a family can do to ensure their child lives a healthy and safe life. They can increase family routines. This could mean going on walks or just eating supper together. If something isn't done, there could be effects in the kid's future.

I think that this is something that definitely needs to be noticed. When a couple has a child, they are completely responsible for that person's life. It's their job to make sure they grow up safe and secure. With our economy the way it is now, more than ever it's important for parents to do all they can to make sure it doesn't affect their children in a negative way. The examples the website listed are all good ideas. Some other good ideas to try would be family game night or movie night or going to church together. If every family tried to do this, they may not be able to stop a recession, but their lives will be much much happier.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/06/08/children.wellbeing/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

Mississippi man faces sixth capital murder trial in 1996 shootings

Curtis Flowers is believed to be the only person to be tried six times on the same murder charges. Prosecuters are hoping that this will be his last trial. The murder happened in 1996 inside of a furniture store in downtown Winona, Mississippi. The owner and 3 employees were shot in the head that day. The population has declined in the past 14 years since that event. Since it was a small town, almost everyone living there had some connection to the victims who were shot. This man has been held in custody ever since for committing the murders. He has been sentenced to death 2 times. There isn't much evidence for the murder. There isn't any DNA, no weapon has been found, and all the eyewitness stories conflict with each other. Curtis was a former employee there and it is said that he killed those people to get back at his former employer. The defense side is using race as a major issue. They're claiming that a white man wouldn't be tried for this case, but since Curtis is black, he's a suspect. Whatever the outcome ends up being, everyone is hoping that there is equal justice and no racial unfairness.

This seems to be a case that's being dragged out too long. He's already been tried 5 times for this murder. Since there isn't any clear evidence that blames him, how can he lose his life for it. I'm not saying he didn't commit this crime, but I am saying that according to our justice system, he's innocent until proven guilty. It's too bad that the whole town had to be affected by this. Even the population has gone down. They've also probably lost their sense of security in the town. I know I would be more scared after that happened. I just hope that he isn't accused just solely on his race. That would be completely unfair and unjust, but hopefully it all works out and they can put this case to rest finally. 6 times is a bit too much. What makes them think that the 6th trial will all of a sudden change direction?
http://http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/06/06/curtis.flowers.trial/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

Severe Weather rakes Midwest; 7 dead

Seven people were killed by dangerous weather in Ohio when storms struck on Saturday and early Sunday. The severe thunderstorms and tornadoes happened overnight. That's one of the reasons why so many died. All of the deaths occurred in Wood County. One of the deaths was a 5 year old. Even 11 people were injured in Michigan. 10 of those people were taken to hospitals by an ambulance, and one had to be flown in a helicopter. Illinois was also affected by this weather. 50 people were hurt and 17 needed to be taken to hospitals. Despite these bad things, 500 people staying at a resort were safely evacuated to a middle school. The tornado was recorded as an F2. Its winds were between 113 and 157 miles per hour. Approximately 30 homes were damaged. Severe weather is predicted to continue in some of the areas.

I remember I used to always get a thrill from scary storms, but now it's easy to realize how truly terrifying they can be. We've been lucky in Alexandria to not be hit with a storm this severe. At least in my lifetime. I think it's important to realize that it is a very serious thing. We should continue teaching kids safe storm skills, so that if we are hit with a storm, even the children know what to do. I know we do drills in school and that's good, but also explaining what to do when you're at home would be wise. Then we'll be able to prevent more deaths from happening. I'll remember those who were affected by this scary storm. http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/06/06/midwest.storms/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29