Fire Tears Through Refugee Camp Killing 32

Thirty-two people were killed and more than one hundred injured when a fire broke out at a refugee camp, in Thailand.

Twenty-three hundred people were left homeless when the flames tore through the camp.

Ban Mae Surin camp has been the home for Myanmar refugees, since 1992, when the UN opened it.

The UN is working to rebuild the camp, as quickly as possible.

23 Killed in Bangladesh Tornado

At least twenty-three people were killed and around five hundred injured when a tornado struck eastern Bangladesh.

Twenty-five villages reported damage from the storm and winds that came with it.

Rescuers are working their way toward the damaged areas, but fallen trees have blocked railways.

The country is prone to floods, cyclones, and even sometimes tornadoes.

However they normally don't do this much damage.

Prime Minister Mikati Surprises Lebanon With Resignation

Najib Mikati, the Lebanese Prime Minister, announced his resignation on Friday, and it was accepted by President Michel Suleiman, on Saturday.

His decision came a surprise to the country, where he was seen as a peacekeeper.

The country has seen an increase in violence, as the Syrian Civil war spreads across the border.

Fears are that without Mikati at the helm that violence will grow all the faster, and possibly bring another Lebanese Civil War.

It is unclear how quickly parliament will be able to agree upon a new government.

US Senate Passes A Budget

Reid

Well, it’s now been one day since Harry Reid and the US Senate has passed a budget. It has only been four years since they passed their previous budget. I suppose there is no real sense in going overboard on budgets, we can spend as many dollars as we want anyway. Or maybe more precisely print as many dollars as we want.

After pulling an all nighter, ending at nearly 05:00 EDT Saturday morning, and passing with a 50-49 vote, they’ve done it! Over the next ten years, the new budget calls for nearly $1,000,000,000,000 (is that enough 0’s?) in new revenue (taxes), cuts $875 billion with minor cuts in several federal programs (replacing sequester cuts), and permit’s the national debt to grow by over $5 trillion to foreign debt holders. That doesn’t count the debt that the US government will buy.

Some of the decade long proposals include details like $23 billion in internet taxes, an additional $600 billion in top earners taxes, $100 billion in infrastructure investments (spending), and a filibuster proof $975 billion in tax code overhauls (to be debated at a later date).

Don’t worry though, it’s really just the Senates version, and needs to be ratified with the House of Representatives budget proposal. So I would call it just a bunch of ideas being thrown out there for all to see, and not really what they will actually do, if anything.

OH, by the way, I should mention that now they can collect their paychecks, from the “no budget no pay” provision that was passed earlier this year.