What Mattered on Wednesday

What Mattered Wednesday (5.23.12)

Myrna Moore

(International) Egyptian citizens participated in a landmark presidential election today. Four of the 13 candidates have bounced around the top spots, leaving no clear front-runner. The top two candidates will enter a run-off June 16-17, with the victor announced June 21.

 (National) Arizona's secretary of state has declared that Hawaii's official verification of President Barack Obama's birth records meets necessary requirements, meaning the President's name will appear on Arizona's ballot in the fall. The inquiry gave weight to a long-simmering political controversy generated by those who say that Obama was not born in the U.S.

(Regional) A man has survived after being struck by lightning in Pawley’s Island. The man was working outside Tuesday afternoon when a bolt of lightning hit a tree, then jumped to him. The man was taken to a hospital for treatment His name and condition have not yet been released.

 (Odd News) Swedish police have released a picture of a heavyset attempted burglar who wound up wedged in a fence as he tried to make his getaway. A homeowner called the emergency number early Tuesday to report a man who had attempted to break into his house was stuck in a fence outside of his home. Police snapped a picture of the uninjured suspect before prying him free and placing him under arrest.

(Today in History) On this day in 1934, partners in crime Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were killed by Texas and Louisiana state police.

What Mattered Friday

What Mattered Friday

April 20, 2012

by Katie MacDonald

The French elections for president will be held on Sunday. Official andidates were announced Friday. Francois Hollande, Nicolas Sarkozy, Marine le Pen, Jean-Luc Melenchon, and Francois Bayrou will battle it out Sunday in the first primary elections.

The bail for George Zimmerman was set at $150,000 in the Trayvon Martin shooting. Other stipulations regarding his release have not been said yet. 

American Airlines unions and US Airways have struck deals in hope for support of a merge of the two airlines. The unions anger over job cuts and labor costs were discussed. 55,000 pilots are represented by the unions. No merger can be forced simply by unions, but they are hoping to persuade the bankruptcy judge the change is needed.

A woman lost her $56,000 engagement ring when she was grocery shopping. As of yet, even after extensive searching, the ring has not been found.

What Mattered Wednesday

What Mattered Monday (4.11.12)

Myrna Moore

(International) A helicopter training exercise in southern Morocco has left two U.S. Marines dead and two injured. Further information about the incident is being withheld until the next of kin have been notified.

 (National) George Zimmerman’s attorney says Zimmerman will plead not guilty to charges of second-degree murder in the shooting of Trayvon Martin. Attorney Mark O’Mara has asked that people not jump to conclusions about his client’s guilt. Zimmerman has acknowledged shooting Martin but claims it was in self-defense after they got into a fight in late February of this year.

(Regional) A Florence teenager has been sentenced to life in prison after a jury found him guilty of killing a Florence pawn shop employee. Tavario Brunson killed Stephen Deaver wounded another employee at Rick’s Pawn Shop in April 2011. Prosecutors say Brunson stuffed jewelry and other items into a trash bag, but it burst as he tried to get away.

 (Odd News) Firefighters cut and hauled a 600-pound man from his home in order to get him to the hospital. They used a pulley system to lift him out of his home and placed him on a flatbed truck. He was taken by ambulance to a hospital for treatment.

(Today in History) On this day in 1814, Napoleon Bonaparte abdicated his throne and was banished to the Mediterranean island of Elba.

What Mattered Friday

What Mattered on Friday

by Katie MacDonald 

Today in 1896 the first modern Olympic games were held. The ages-old tradition that began in Ancient Greece came back to life in Paris, drawing a crowd of 3,000 and deemed extremely successful. American’s won 9 out of 10 events.

Two Navy pilots, an instructor and student, ejected from their planes before they crashed into an apartment complex in Virginia Beach, Va., early this morning. They dumped massive amounts of fuel out before the malfunctioning crafts were aborted in order to delay catastrophic explosions. They both survived with injuries.

Syrians are taking part in a massive exodus to Turkey to escape relentless attacks. There is talk of mass graves to bury all the victims. Whole villages have been destroyed. The nation is in chaos. Many are coming together for comfort as well as fleeing the turmoil that is Syria.

A Pennsylvania couple loved country music enough to request permission to wed on the stage of the Country Music Awards live in Las Vegas. Martina McBride and Pat Monahan accompanied the couple’s nuptials.

What Mattered Wednesday

What Mattered on Wednesday

by Katie MacDonald

A Virginia man who had suffered from a bullet wound to the face 15 years ago underwent 72 hours of extensive surgery to reconstruct his face. The results rendered him speechless.

A suicide bomber turned a reopened theater in Somalia into a scene of carnage when he detonated explosives. The bombs killed 10 people and wounded many more.

Cancer charities are getting more and more creative. A group of kickball players in Connecticut played a 52 hour game of kickball as a fundraiser for cancer victims. The 42 players beat the previous world record for the longest kickball game in the process.

Today in 1841, President William Henry Harrison died of pneumonia. He had only been in office for 31 days before his death. Today in 1933, the dirigible Arkon crashed, killing 73. It was one of the first air disasters in history.