Russia Prepares to Evacuate After Syrian Rebels Capture Key District

Syrian rebels gained a big foothold in Damascus with the capture of the Yarmouk district.

It puts the front lines only a few miles from the center of the capital.

The battle is raging to keep it from a government counter offensive and push further into the city.

Over two hundred people are said to have died, just in Damascus, on Monday.

Russia responded to the news by sending warships to the Mediterranean, in case they need to evacuate their citizens who are in Syria.

Russia's growing lack of confidence seems to only reinforce the thoughts that it's all but over for the Assad government.

It really does more and more seem just like a dwindling amount of time is left for the regime.

Over fifty thousand people have been killed in the twenty-one month long conflict.

Senator Daniel Inouye, War Hero, Dead at 88

Daniel Inouye, Hawaii's nine term Senator, died Monday, at the age of eighty-eight. Inouye died at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, in DC, where he had been admitted on December 10.

He was born September 7, 1924, in Honolulu, to Japanese immigrants. When Pearl Harbor occurred he was seventeen and teaching first aid classes. As soon as the US government removed it's ban on Japanese Americans, he enlisted in the Army.

On April 21, 1945 he was leading an assault on German lines, in Italy, when he was shot in the stomach. Despite the wound he did not stop his attack until he had personally taken out two machine gun nests and was wounded again, losing his right arm. On May 27, 1947, he was honorably discharged and returned home as a Captain with a Distinguished Service Cross, Bronze Star Medal, two Purple Hearts, and twelve other medals and citations. In 2000, his Distinguished Service Cross was upgraded to the Congressional Medal of Honor.

Forced to abandon his plans to be a surgeon, by the loss of his arm, Inouye went to college for political science. In 1953, he was elected to the Hawaii territorial House of Representatives, and was immediately elected majority leader. He served two terms there, and was elected to the Hawaii territorial senate in 1957. Part of the way through his first term in the territorial senate, Hawaii achieved statehood. He won a seat in the US House of Representatives as Hawaii's first full member, and took office on August 21, 1959, the same date Hawaii became a state, he was re-elected in 1960.

In 1962, he was elected to the US Senate and only once was there anything like a close election. Until falling ill in November, he had been planning on running again in 2016, for a tenth term.

Last week, when asked how he wanted to be remembered, he said, "I represented the people of Hawaii and this nation honestly and to the best of my ability. I think I did OK."

Instagram Claims Ownership of All Photos Taken With It

Instagram made a huge announcement on Monday, and the reaction has been very unhappy.

The photo sharing app claims that it has the right to use user's photos without paying them for the use, or even notifying them.

Facebook, who owns Instagram, would not just be sharing the pictures for free, but charging people and businesses to use them.
All photographs will become Instagram property on January 16.

The only way for users to not have their pictures used is to delete their accounts, by that time.

If they do so after that time, all photos will belong to Instagram, despite the account being gone.

Users of Instagram have not responded happily to the news.

Some have already delete their accounts, while many others have posted protest pictures.

Pretty much every other photo sharing app has specific clauses, in their contracts, which keep them from using anyone's photos for any purpose, without express permission.

Paragould, Arkansas to Have Armed Unit Patrolling Streets

Paragould, Arkansas has a new plan to deal with growing crime.

Mayor Mike Gaskill and Police Chief Todd Stovall announced a new police unit would begin on January 1.

The new street crimes unit will have officers patrol, on foot, through areas where crime is the highest.

Officers will be wearing full SWAT gear and be carrying AR-15s.

They will also have the ability to ask anyone they see for ID and be able to question them on the spot over their reason for being out and about.

According to Stovall, individuals who do not produce identification when asked could be charged with obstructing a governmental operation.

However, City Attorney Allen Warmath said that arrests would not be made for people who simply did not have an ID.

Warmath said that the focus of being able to stop anyone for questioning, would be to get information from any potential witnesses.

Gaskill said that the focus of the unit would be to ensure criminals and citizens know that the police are there, ready to protect the city. 

More Schools Considering Allowing Teachers to Concealed Carry

For the last five years one Texas school district has allowed teachers and staff to carry concealed weapons.

In October of 2007, the trustees for the Harrold Independent School District approved a policy which allowed faculty to defend the school from attack.

As part of the program faculty must have a Texas license to carry a concealed handgun, must be authorized to carry by the district, must receive training in crisis management and hostile situations, and must use ammunition that is designed to minimize the risk of ricochet in school halls.

Harrold's became the first district in the US to have such a policy.

Now, after yet another school shooting in the country, other districts are looking at Harrold's program and considering starting similar ones.

Opponents say that having guns in classroom is just too dangerous.

Supporters state that people would be less likely to attack and armed school, and that the amount of training protects everyone involved.

Peyton Manning the New Voice of DIA

Peyton Manning is now the new voice of Denver International Airport's trains.

Normally Denver Mayor Michael Hancock's voice welcomes travelers to the eleventh busiest airport in the world.

As of Friday, DIA had switched over to Manning saying, "Welcome to the mile high city".

He also can be heard singing Jingle Bells, accompanied by a piano.

Manning is set to be the heard through January 2, then it will be back to the mayor.

Possible New Rules for Dogs Swimming in Colorado

A series of new rules have been proposed by the Pet Animal Care Facilities Act.

PACFA is a division of the Colorado Department of Agriculture and oversees pet welfare.

The three new rules go over swimming regulations for dogs.

One of them would require that dogs at boarding and day care facilities wear a life jacket if they are in a pool.

Another that dogs would not be allowed to swim if the bottom of the pool is not clearly visible, from the surface.

The third rule would require a lifeguard be present if life jackets haven't been provided.

Colorado state laws already require that a dog handler supervise any dogs that are swimming.

At this point the rules have not been approved, nor has a time table for the implementation been submitted.

Man Claiming to be Marine Stealing Toys for Tots

Police throughout the Denver metro area are looking for a male suspect who's stealing toys.

Claiming to be a Gunnery Sergeant Mix, a black male of age from forty to fifty is going to Toys for Tots pickup locations.

He arrives in uniform and says he's there to pick up the toys, but also takes the collection box.

According to the Marines, real pickup personnel have credentials proving that they are with Toys for Tots, whilst this man does not.

So far he has hit locations in Boulder, Denver, and the Southlands area of Aurora.

Stores are being warned to be on the lookout for this man.

Colorado Sees Largest Number of Background Checks for Gun Purchases Ever

Over the weekend, Colorado saw the largest number of back ground checks submitted, in order to buy guns, within a forty-eight period, in state history.

According to the Colorado Bureau of Investigations, Saturday was the biggest single day, ever.

With the month of December, being not quite two thirds of the way gone, it already is the biggest month, in Colorado history.

The CBI says that out of 285,424 submissions, from January through November, 279,149 have been approved.

Meaning that by the end of 2012, over three hundred thousand new applications are likely to have been approved, in Colorado alone.

It should be noted that that's just submissions and approvals, not necessarily gun purchases.

Once someone has been approved they can buy multiple firearms.

4 Dead in Longmont in Triple Murder and Suicide

Weld County, Colorado 911 dispatchers received a call just after 4am from a female caller.

As they listened, she and two others were murdered, then a male came on the phone said he was going to kill himself and another shot was fired.

When police arrived at the home, in Longmont, they found four people dead from bullet wounds.

Due to the audio evidence, police are treating the crime scene as a triple murder and suicide.

Three of the dead were adults, one of the females may be a teenager, according to police.

Some neighbors reported hearing the shots, but didn't think anything of it, as they regularly hear hunters nearby.