Monthly Archives: March 2019

Summit ends abruptly, Kim praised

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By NAOMI FEINSTEIN

The second summit meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, between President Trump and Kim Jong-un ended abruptly Thursday after no agreement could be made over nuclear weapons.

The summit kicked off Wednesday night and the two leaders were expected to sign an agreement; however, Trump said he walked away because Kim was insistent upon the United States lifting all sanctions on the North Korean economy.

Trump said North Korea must give up its nuclear capabilities and halt nuclear weapon production before any sanctions are lifted. However, despite not signing an agreement, Trump felt the meeting to be very productive and even predicting the two leaders will become great friends.

Although the meeting failed in producing the result the United States hoped for, it did solidify how Trump views the North Korean dictator who is accused of human rights violations and committing brutal atrocities upon his people.

Additionally, President Trump failed to publicly denounce Kim’s atrocities and did not address human rights in the summit at all with the leader. Even more concerning, Trump believed Kim’s denial in playing any part in Otto Warmbier’s death.

Otto Warmbier was an American student who was detained in North Korea for 17 months. He was released to the U.S. in a vegetative state and ultimately died from his condition.

It is alarming that Trump has no problem in calling people out, such as credible and qualified reporters, but praises a brutal dictator. The United States stands as a symbol for freedom and human rights; yet this seems to completely contradict that.

Trump said, “He likes me. I like him. Some people say ‘oh, you shouldn’t like him.’ I said, why shouldn’t I like him? I like him.” Maybe he shouldn’t like him because he is a dictator who is responsible for torturing and murdering innocent civilians.

I applaud the many news media organizations for their editorial pieces about Trump praising Kim. Many reporters point to how this is very concerning as Trump seems to be allowing Kim to continue his human rights abuses. It does not seem Kim will relinquish his power and end his oppressive regime in the near future since it seems Trump sees no problem with his rule.

Cohen hearing erupts in racism debate

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By EVAN SIEGEL

Congressman Mark Meadows (R-NC) found himself in hot water after Michael Cohen’s explosive testimony in front of the House Oversight Committee on Capitol Hill earlier this week. Cohen is facing a prison sentence after several guilty pleas involving campaign finance violations among other crimes. The former fixer for Donald Trump also gave a seven-hour closed door testimony to the same committee yesterday.

During the televised public portion of the questioning, Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib of Michigan accused Meadows of using an African American woman as a prop while he attempted to discredit Cohen’s testimony. Tempers quickly flared as Meadows repeatedly tried to undercut and interrupt Tlaib’s remarks and asked that they be removed from the record. Chairman Elijah Cummings of Maryland quickly interjected to subdue the scene, but the controversy had only just begun.

A video of Meadows in 2012 saying “We need to send Obama back to Kenya, or whatever” resurfaced as soon as the hearing ended. Meadows quickly said he “regretted” the statement, however a full public statement has not been released yet. Meadows was frustrated with the Democrats on the committee for inviting Cohen as their main witness despite the fact that he was an admitted liar and is going to prison as a result.

Meadows was also a member of the controversial “birtherism” debate during the Obama administration. President Obama, who was born in Hawaii, was the subject of countless questioning and doubts over whether or not he was indeed born in the United States. Meadows used this controversy as a primary selling point during his various reelection bids over the years.

Good Samaritan arrested in drug bust

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By LESLIE ANNE DOMINIQUE

Oh how the cookie crumbles…

A man who was praised for buying $540 in Girl Scout cookies last Friday, was arrested on Tuesday for federal drug charges.

Last Friday, Detric Lee McGowen was a hero all over the internet. His story of buying 120 boxes of Girl Scout cookies from freezing children at the supermarket went viral.  The story was picked up by local and national news, with pictures of him and the happy children presented all over.

Unrelated to his generosity, McGowen was arrested on Tuesday and charged by the DEA with conspiracy to import and distribute fentanyl, heroin and cocaine.

McGowen is one of the 11 men tied up in a case claiming that they conspired to import Mexican drugs into the U.S. More than $1 million were found among the defendants.

Various local news networks have caught up with the Girl Scouts from Greenville to speak on their experience with McGowen. In an interview with the Greenville News, Karen Kelly, the vice president of the Girl Scouts chapter stated, “Nobody was hurt. Nobody was threatened.… We had no reason to believe that this man was anything other than one of our valuable customers.… This is now in the hands of law enforcement and of course we will cooperate with authorities.”

The Girl Scouts of Greenville are saddened by the actions of McGowen and maintain that the girls are safe and that McGowen presented no form of danger or threat. It has not yet been reported if the Girl Scouts plan on returning the money,

McGowen has been charged with a total of eight drug-related counts and has further been charged with racketeering and conspiracy to deceive the United States.

This story has been reported by a variety of news networks. CNN, NPR, The Washington Post and more have written about the intriguing story. The overall draw to the story is that you never really know a person. A criminal may be who you least expect.

Kacey Musgraves pays tribute to Selena

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By ALEXA ECKEMBRECHER

Kacey Musgraves paid tribute to her fellow Texan and icon, Selena Quintanilla in Houston earlier this week.

Almost exactly 24 years after the late Tejano singer performed her last live and broadcast concert, the Grammy-winning country star covered one of the adored singer’s most popular songs at the same exact venue.

Musgraves, 30, was scheduled to appear last Monday at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo at the NRG Astrodome. She performed many of her hit singles, including songs from her Grammy-wining album “Golden Hour”, prior to surprising fans with Quintanilla’s song “Como La Flor”. Quintanilla, known simply as Selena, performed at the then Houston Astrodome on Feb. 26, 1995. Over a month later, on March 31, 1996, she was then murdered by Yolanda Saldívar, her former fan club president. Selena was 23 at her untimely death.

Musgraves posted about her performave on Tuesday on to her Instagram stories. She wrote “24 years ago Selena performed her last concert here. It was a dream of mine to be able to pay my respects to her iconic legacy.”

Musgraves also tweeted about the event on her twitter account. She wrote “Houston Rodeo! My Texan dreams came true last night. It was everything to me” in one tweet and then “Siempre Selena” in another, attached with a link to a video of her covering the song.

This caught the attention of Suzette Quintanilla, the late singer’s sister, who posted a clip of the performance on her own Instagram. “Awww this makes me wanna shed a tear! Takes me back,” the caption read. “A Big Big Thank you @spaceykacey for the love at the Houston Rodeo tonite with that SELENA Y LOS DINOS Jam!”

Fans all over the world praised Musgraves performance of all social media platforms.

I am glad this topic was covered because I am a big Kacey Musgraves fan and I absolutely love Selena’s music. Likewise, I am glad that all the articles I read mentioned the fact that Selena’s sister acknowledged Kacey’s tribute. Personally, I believe it made the occasion that much more special to Musgraves and the fans that were in attendance.


Student overdoses on opioid Oxycodone

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By SHANIKA ISAACS

A Marathon High School student was rushed to the Fisherman’s Community Hospital in the Florida Keys area on Wednesday for an opioid overdose that caused a complete body shutdown.

According to the Miami Herald, which was one of the only news media sources that covered the incident, the Monroe County 911 operator received a call around 9:48 a.m. that three students took Opioid but only one ‘crashing’ as a result.

Opioid Oxycodone, defined by Erica Jacques who wrote an online article with the VeryWell Health organization, is an opiod painkiller, otherwise known as a narcotic painkiller. It is correctly used to treat moderate to severe forms of both acute and chronic pain. It works by changing the brain’s perception of pain thus providing release. However, with the abuse of this drug it can cause tremendous repercussions for an individual where they can experience irregular breathing and moments of unconsciousness.

The other two students involved in this incident were handed over to their parents who were briefed by Superintendent Mark Porter to expect an undergoing investigation into the matter.

“Our main concern is the health and well-being of the students involved,” said Porter, “Disciplinary actions may be taken once we have all the details of the investigation.”

As the numbers of daily opioid overdose were reported to be on the raise by the South Florida police departments, law makers continue to scramble in finding a way to keep them down. How did the kids get access to such powerful drugs? What is the accountability of the parents in this situation? What are some of your thoughts on the issue?