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United States re-elects Barack Obama

Wed, 07 Nov 2012 06:14:51 GMT

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Obama speaking to troops at Bagram Airfield in May.
Image: Bill Gowdy, US Navy.

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

Incumbent U.S. President Barack Obama has been projected enough electoral votes to win re-election, defeating Republican challenger Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election. Many of the major media outlets have called the election for Obama.

Obama's campaign succeeded in gaining the vote in the battleground states of Ohio, Iowa, Colorado, and New Hampshire. Romney won in Indiana and North Carolina, two states Obama won in 2008.

Obama thanked voters via Twitter, posting: "This happened because of you. Thank you."

In the race for the U.S. Senate in Massachusetts, Elizabeth Warren, who helped set up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, defeated incumbent Republican Scott Brown. In Wisconsin, Democrat Tammy Baldwin defeated Tommy Thompson for U.S. Senate and will be the first openly gay member of the Senate. In Missouri, Senator Claire McCaskill defeated her Republican challenger Todd Akin. In August, Akin suggested that women who are victims of "legitimate" rape are unable to get pregnant.

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Sources [edit]

"President Barack Obama wins re-election" — BBC News, November 7, 2012
"Barack Obama Re-Elected As US President" — Sky News, November 7, 2012
"Obama wins 2nd term as president" — CBC, November 6, 2012
Jeff Zeleny and Jim Rutenberg. "Obama Wins New Term as Electoral Advantage Holds" — New York Times, November 6, 2012
"Tammy Baldwin wins in Wisconsin, becomes first openly gay U.S. Senator" — Vancouver Sun, November 6, 2012
Katharine Q. Seelye. "Warren Ousts Brown for Massachusetts Senate Seat" — New York Times, November 6, 2012
Lucy Madison. "McCaskill to win Missouri Senate, CBS News projects" — CBS News, November 6, 2012

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On the campaign trail, September 2012

Tue, 09 Oct 2012 03:50:57 GMT

This article mentions the Wikimedia Foundation, one of its projects, or people related to it. Wikinews is a project of the Wikimedia Foundation.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

The following is the eleventh in a monthly series chronicling the U.S. 2012 presidential election. It features original material compiled throughout the previous month after a brief mention of some of the month's biggest stories.

In this month's edition on the campaign trail: Wikinews chronicles three of the lesser-known speakers at the 2012 Democratic National Convention, a controversial pastor and write-in candidate talks to Wikinews about the unrest in the Middle East, and the ballot-qualified American Third Position Party (A3P) presidential nominee travels to Iran to meet President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

1 Summary
2 Lesser-known DNC speakers discuss their experience
3 Wikinews interviews write-in candidate connected to Middle East turmoil
4 A3P nominee meets with the President of Iran
5 Sources

Summary [edit]

September opened with the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina. On the convention's first night, San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro delivered the keynote address, the first Hispanic-American to do so. He discussed the communitarian spirit of the United States and reflected on how his mother "fought hard for civil rights so that instead of a mop, I could hold this microphone." The speech was compared to Barack Obama's keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, and garnered speculation that he would seek higher political office. First Lady Michelle Obama also spoke that night, discussing her husband on a personal level. On the second day, a ruckus ensued as Democrats moved to re-include "God" and support of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital in the party's official platform after removal of the items drew criticism leading up to the convention. That night, women's health advocate Sandra Fluke and Massachusetts U.S. Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren each spoke before former President Bill Clinton took the stage to deliver a lengthy, policy-filled speech. In it, Clinton defended Obama's economic policies, arguing that no previous president, including himself, could have fostered complete recovery this soon in the same economic climate. He concluded that the election was ultimately a choice between the "winner-take-all, you’re-on-your-own society" of the Republicans and the "we’re-all-in-this-together society" of Obama. On the final night, Vice president Joe Biden spoke before President Obama addressed the convention to officially accept the party's nomination. In his acceptance speech, Obama asked voters to allow his administration to "finish what we started", arguing "it will take more than a few years for us to solve challenges that have built up over decades" and Republicans offer only policies that have previously failed.

Castro delivers the keynote address at the 2012 Democratic National Convention.
Image: DemConvention2012.

Foreign policy emerged as a major campaign issue after the U.S. embassies in Egypt and Libya came under attack on September 11, resulting in the deaths of four Americans including the U.S. Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens. Allegedly, the attacks were the result of protests against a YouTube video trailer for the anti-Islamic film Innocence of Muslims, which the Obama administration condemned in the aftermath of the attacks. Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney criticized President Obama for the response, arguing he "was wrong to stand by a statement sympathizing with those who had breached our embassy in Egypt, instead of condemning their actions." An Obama spokesman expressed "shock" at Romney's response, accusing him of "launch[ing] a political attack". Shortly thereafter, Romney also criticized Obama for being unable to find time to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Obama then had an hour-long phone conversation with Netanyahu. Later in the month, Netanyahu appeared before the United Nations General Assembly with a cartoon of a bomb, voiced his concerns that Iran would attain enough enriched uranium to make a bomb by the summer of 2013, and called on the world to act. Obama and Romney each spoke with Netanyahu. Each candidate expressed similar sentiment in favor of further sanctions against Iran.

In mid-September, Romney received negative publicity after the magazine Mother Jones released a video of a fundraiser at which Romney alleged, "there are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what ... [because they] are dependent upon government". He then said his "job is not to worry about those people. I'll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives." Romney's running mate Paul Ryan distanced himself from the remarks, which he labeled as "inelegant". Obama remarked in response, "We don't want an inside job in Washington, we want change in Washington...It can't happen if you write off half the nation before you even took office." The Romney campaign hoped to shift focus from the video to newly-emerged 1998 footage of Obama in which he advocates redistribution of wealth. Additionally, Romney released his 2011 tax returns, as promised earlier in the year. The returns showed he paid $1.95 million out of the $13.7 million he earned on investments. However, less positive news continued for the campaign as September came to a close. Paul Ryan received boos while discussing the proposed repeal of Obamacare during a speech before an AARP forum, which President Obama also addressed. Plus, Obama increased his lead in the polls with Gallup showing a six point Obama advantage, 50 percent to 44 percent in a September 26 poll, up from the 46 percent to 46 percent tie prior to the publication of the Romney video.

Nevertheless, Obama was not the only candidate rising in the polls at the end of September. Libertarian Party presidential nominee Gary Johnson, the former governor of New Mexico, rose to six percent support in a late September Reason-Rupe poll, up from the 4.3 percent showing earlier in a JZ Analytics poll. The Johnson campaign also increased activity. With the presidential debates looming, the campaign filed suit against the Commission for Presidential Debates, alleging anti-trust practices for denying access to third party candidates. With many polls still excluding Johnson at the end of September, Obama led Romney 48.7 to 44.6 in the September 30 RealClearPolitics polling average.

Lesser-known DNC speakers discuss their experience [edit]

While San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, women's health advocate Sandra Fluke, and Harvard Law professor Elizabeth Warren all formally introduced themselves to the national audience at the 2012 Democratic National Convention, they were not the only figures to do so. Small business owner Bill Butcher, firefighter Doug Stern, and mother Stacey Lihn were among the "everyday people" the party invited to address the convention and the nation. Wikinews reached out to these three to learn more about their DNC experience and the process of the convention.

Port City Brewing Company owner Bill Butcher.
Image: Bill Butcher.

Butcher, owner of Port City Brewing in Alexandria, Virginia, says he received the invitation after the Democratic Party found him online while searching for someone who had started a small business during the administration and benefited from its policies. Butcher was able to establish Port City Brewing after obtaining a loan through the SBA loan program, part of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (The Stimulus).

In preparation for his speech, Butcher worked with Obama speechwriters and rehearsed the morning before. Though he admits to being nervous, he discovered that fellow speakers backstage felt similarly. To break the ice, Butcher opened his speech with a joke, apologizing to the audience for not handing out free beer. He then turned to policy, defending Obama as "a president who's on my side ... [who has] kept middle class taxes low...[and] has fought for small-business owners". According to Butcher, the speech was received positively, even among his Republican friends, who felt it "cool" that their buddy had addressed the DNC.

Fire fighter Doug Stern.
Image: Doug Stern.

Like Butcher, Stern, a firefighter and member of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), also received bipartisan praise for his speech. As a union advocate for the repeal of Ohio SB 5, which limited the collective bargaining rights of Ohio's public employees, Stern feels the party selected him due to his visibility. Because he received word of the invitation just days before the event, Stern did not have much time to prepare. Rather, he viewed YouTube videos of Presidents Obama, Clinton, and Ronald Reagan to find the right style for delivery. Nevertheless, according to Stern, the best input came from his twelve-year-old son, who advised him that delivering a DNC speech was not such a big deal, since "you give speeches all the time."

In the speech, Stern introduced himself as a former Republican, but held that as a member of the middle class and as a public employee, the "party left people like me." He applauded the Obama administration for continuing federal grants to fire fighters, and characterized Obama as someone who "respects middle-class workers like me and my family." Fellow fire fighters, including those of different political stripes, commended Stern on his remarks, and about a week after the speech, Stern met President Obama in Cincinnati, where he received congratulations. Despite the recognition from his peers and presidential praise, the reception of Stern's son was paramount. While watching a line from the speech replayed on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, the 12-year-old admitted to his father that despite his previous comments, speaking at the DNC was "pretty cool."

Stacey Lihn with her daughter Zoe at the Democratic National Convention.
Image: Caleb Lihn.

Similarly, for Lihn, the night held a special significance due to her family. Lihn, a mother of two daughters one of whom, Zoe, suffers from a congenital heart defect, previously worked with the Obama campaign in March to produce a video documenting how the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) had helped her family pay for her daughter's medical expenses. Looking for someone to discuss health care reform at the convention, the video's producer called Lihn and invited her to speak.

Like Butcher, she rehearsed her speech in the morning prior, finding this to be more emotional than the actual delivery itself. In the heartfelt speech delivered with her husband and daughter onstage, Lihn articulated her appreciation of Obamacare and the fear that the election of Mitt Romney and possible repeal of Obamacare would prevent needed care for her daughter. After the speech, Lihn embraced First Lady Michelle Obama in what she fondly recalls as "a genuine hug — mother to mother." Others appreciated the speech as well. Ed Pilkington of The Guardian wrote that it was not only "one of the most moving moments of the Democratic national convention ... [but] possibly of the entire 2012 presidential race".

For Lihn, despite the acclaim, she was simply speaking as one of many: "Our story is but one of thousands and I knew that, standing up on stage speaking, that I was speaking for all of the parents who've walked in my shoes. I felt the strength of the many babies born with Zoe's heart condition who weren't as fortunate as she and passed away before the age of two. I support the ACA [Affordable Care Act] and will continue to do so for those whose voices cannot be heard."

Wikinews interviews write-in candidate connected to Middle East turmoil [edit]

Pastor Terry Jones in March 2011.
Image: Mark Taylor.

Wikinews caught up with Dove World Outreach Center pastor Terry Jones of Gainesville, Florida. Jones, a write-in candidate for president, is best known for his anti-Islamic activism, which has sparked protests across the Muslim world.

Jones leads an anti-Islam march in Washington, DC.
Image: Mark Taylor.

Jones first gained notice in 2010, after threatening to burn a Koran at Ground Zero on the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The announcement prompted protests in the Middle East, causing President Obama to request that Jones not partake in the activity. He obliged, but later burned a Koran in March 2011, leading to violent protests in Afghanistan including an attack on the United Nations Assistance Mission in Mazar-i-Sharif, which killed at least 30 people.

Recently, Jones has received mention for promoting the film Innocence of Muslims, whose trailer allegedly inflamed riots in Egypt and Libya on September 11 due to its portrayal of Muhammad. During the riots, the American embassies in the two nations were breached, leading to the deaths of four Americans in Libya, including U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens. Jones told The Daily Caller he had remained in contact with the film's director Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, who was jailed September 28 on charges of violating probation. Jones's involvement with the film has led to warrants for his arrest in Egypt, where authorities want to try him for insults to Islam, spreading lies, and harming national unity. Death is a possible penalty for such offenses. Nevertheless, Jones holds that Egypt "would definitely be better advised to put Muhammad on trial."

With Wikinews, Jones discusses ballot access, the Innocence of Muslims, and how he would handle the riots in Egypt and Libya as president.

WSSIn which states have you attempted to gain ballot access?

Pastor Jones: Indiana, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Alabama, Oregon, Iowa, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wyoming

WSSWhat are your thoughts on the film trailer for the movie Innocence of Muslims? Should the filmmaker bear any responsibility for the anti-American protests across the Muslim world?

Pastor Jones: According to many Islamic experts that I have talked to, and the studies that I have done myself, the trailer is very accurate. Muhammad led a very perverted life and a very violent life. On his deathbed in 632, he gave the command to his followers to cleanse the Arabian Peninsula of all unbelievers. That is what Islam has been doing for the last fourteen hundred years, killing, murdering and raping anyone that dares to have a different opinion or follow a different religion.

Absolutely not. In fact, what we have done is we have again demonstrated that Islam in its roots, in its foundation is a violent religion. The Koran is a very violent book. It promotes violence. As I said, Muhammad led a very violent life. In the last ten years of his life he had seventy-eight raids on other villages where he killed innocent people, civilians. It was not even an act of war. It was simply genocide. It was simply the killing of anyone who disagreed with him. It is the time that America and the world stands up and sees the dangers of Islam, the dangers of radical Islam.

As far as we are concerned, as far as our efforts are concerned, we are going to continue to press forward. We are going to continue to raise an awareness of the dangers of radical Islam. The western world must stop appeasing Islam or Islam will continue its acts of terror.

WSSWhat is your response to President Obama's reaction to the protests and attacks on the U.S. embassies? Was Governor Romney's criticism of that reaction appropriate? If you were president, how would you respond to the events?

Pastor Jones: President Obama is an absolute disaster. As president, he bears some of the responsibility for what is going on right now in the Islamic world. President Obama has shown himself to be pro-Islam, pro-Muslim Brotherhood. Since the Muslim Brotherhood has taken over in Egypt, situations for minorities and Christians have gotten much, much worse. We know that President Obama favors Islam. He appeases Islam. He has welcomed CAIR into the White House. CAIR is nothing more than a suit-and-tie terrorist organization. President Obama and his appeasing of Islam has only given them a green light, opened up the door for them to feel as though they can attack our embassies and feel that absolutely nothing will be done. Even now as he has spent $70,000 of American taxpayers' money to run ads in Pakistan appeasing the Islamic radical community, he definitely bears a responsibility.

Governor Romney, or anyone's criticism, of President Obama’s presidency concerning Islam, his economic policies, and many of his policies whether it is immigration or same-sex marriage are indeed justified.

If I were president, my response would be much harsher to the Islamic community. I believe that we should close our embassies in Muslim and Koran controlled countries immediately. We should pull our people out of those countries. We in the west must realize that Islam is not compatible with western society. It is not compatible with western thinking because Islam is missing the basic elements of a free western society. Those elements are freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of religion. Islam has continued to prove over and over and over again that it does not tolerate any criticism of Muhammad, the Koran, or Sharia. It has absolutely no tolerance of any other religion. Because of its past history and the past fruits of the religion, Islam and western society cannot coexist. This is why we should close all embassies in Koran and Islam controlled and dominated countries.

A3P nominee meets with the President of Iran [edit]

Filmmaker Merlin Miller, the presidential nominee of the American Third Position Party (A3P), attended a film festival in Tehran, Iran early in September, during which he spoke to an audience that included Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. After the speech, Ahmadinejad invited Miller to a private meeting, which lasted about twenty minutes. This was the first time a U.S. presidential candidate met with Ahmadinejad, a controversial figure who has called for the dissolution of Israel, questioned the validity of the Holocaust, and spurred Iran's nuclear program, which the U.S. and Israel allege is not for peaceful purposes.

Merlin Miller shakes hands with Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Image: Merlin Miller.

In contrast to such allegations, Miller tells Wikinews that his impression of Ahmadinejad was as "a humble man who deeply cares about promoting truths and the best for his people — including peace." During the meeting, he gave Ahmadinejad a copy of his 2001 film Jericho and his book Our Vision for America. According to Miller, Ahmadinejad wanted it to be communicated to the American people that "Globalists and Zionists falsely portray Iran, as they seek conflict between nations" and that Iran actually desires peace. Miller says that though Ahmadinejad probably did not know much about the specific A3P presidential campaign and platform, he was "aware of the how Zionist interests control our two major political parties" and "was intrigued that alternative voices in America are starting to challenge the injustices of our current political system and the propaganda of our mainstream media."

The A3P, which was founded in 2010, is among those "alternative voices". Its program calls for a tougher approach to crime, economic nationalism, higher education standards, environmentalism, strengthening of the family unit, a non-interventionist foreign policy, opposition to "third world" immigration, border security, and preservation of "white identity".

Critics such as the Southern Poverty Law Center accuse the A3P of being a white supremacist organization, a charge that Miller denies. Miller appeared on Iran's Press TV, and discussed the use of the term on his Wikipedia profile, which he claimed to have unsuccessfully attempted to change. He argued that the label likely stemmed from his "criticism of Zionism, of Jewish control of [the U.S.] media, [and] of [the U.S.] foreign policy, which is Israel first".

Miller and the A3P have attained ballot access in Tennessee, New Jersey, and Colorado, and have additionally qualified for write-in status in Maryland and West Virginia.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources [edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

"Program" — American Third Position Party, October 8, 2012 (date of access)
"Presidency 2012: Ballot Access" — Politics1.com, October 5, 2012
"General Election: Romney vs. Obama" — RealClearPolitics, September 30, 2012
"Jailed 'Innocence of Muslims' filmmaker faces 3 years in prison" — Los Angeles Times, September 28, 2012
Scott Wilson and Philip Rucker. "Obama, Romney place dueling calls to Israel’s Netanyahu" — The Washington Post, September 28, 2012
Morgan Little. "Lawsuit highlights difficulty of third-party involvement in debates" — Los Angeles Times, September 27, 2012
Anne Gearan. "Netanyahu: Iran could have bomb by next summer if it does not face a ‘red line’" — The Washington Post, September 27, 2012
Peter Grier. "Is '47 percent' comment sinking Mitt Romney's polls?" — The Christian Science Monitor, September 27, 2012
Ed O'Keefe and Rosalind S. Helderman. "VIDEO: Romney shifts focus to Obama's 1998 comments on 'redistribution'" — The Washington Post, September 25, 2012
Merlin Miller. "As The Israeli War Drums Beat" — Veterans News Now, September 21, 2012
Michael D. Shear. "Romney Releases 2011 Tax Returns" — The New York Times, September 21, 2012
"Obama and Ryan talk Medicare at AARP forum" — Daily News (New York), September 21, 2012
Michael Bastasch. "Poll: Gary Johnson rakes in six percent of the vote" — The Daily Caller, September 21, 2012
Brett LoGiurato. "Paul Ryan Hits Mitt Romney's '47 Percent' Word Choice: 'He Was Obviously Inarticulate'" — Business Insider, September 19, 2012
Steven Nelson. "Fla. pastor Terry Jones advises Egypt: ‘Put Muhammad on trial,’ not me" — The Daily Caller, September 19, 2012
David Corn. "SECRET VIDEO: Romney Tells Millionaire Donors What He REALLY Thinks of Obama Voters" — Mother Jones (magazine), September 17, 2012
Elizabeth Flock. "Fringe U.S. Presidential Candidate Scores Meeting With Ahmadinejad" — U.S. News & World Report, September 14, 2012
Sarah Huisenga. "Romney: Obama snubbed Israeli prime minister" — CBS News, September 12, 2012
Lucy Madison. "Amid criticism, Romney doubles down on criticism of White House's response to Egypt, Libya attacks" — CBS News, September 12, 2012
Dan Balz and David Nakamura. "In Democratic convention speech, Obama vows ‘our problems can be solved’ — with more time" — The Washington Post, September 7, 2012
Evan Soltas. "Wonkbook: Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention" — The Washington Post, September 7, 2012
"DNC: Remarks by Bill Butcher" — KCTV, September 6, 2012
Evan Soltas. "Wonkbook: Day 2 of the Democratic National Convention" — The Washington Post, September 6, 2012
"DNC floor erupts over restoring God, Jerusalem to platform" — Fox News, September 5, 2012
Darren Samuelsohn and Josh Gerstein. "Julian Castro: Obama 2004 redux?" — Politico, September 5, 2012
Sarah Aarthun, Ed Lavandera and Mariano Castillo. "Rising star in Democratic Party first Latino to deliver keynote address" — CNN, September 5, 2012
Jim Rutenberg. "Michelle Obama Tops Opening Night for Democrats" — The New York Times, September 4, 2012
"Doug Stern: Transcript of DNC Speech" — Cincinnati.com, September 4, 2012
Ed Pilkington. "Mother Stacey Lihn praises Obamacare for saving her daughter's life" — The Guardian, September 4, 2012
Aliyah Shahid. "Terry Jones, Florida pastor who oversaw Koran burning: I am running for President in 2012" — Daily News (New York), October 27, 2011
Glenn Kessler. "Did Ahmadinejad really say Israel should be ‘wiped off the map’?" — The Washington Post, October 5, 2011
Larry Keller. "New White Supremacist Party has Mass Electoral Ambitions" — Southern Poverty Law Center, 2010
Parisa Hafezi and Firouz Sedarat. "Ahmadinejad says Holocaust a lie, Israel has no future" — Reuters, September 18, 2009

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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.

Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.

FanFiction.Net adult content purge felt across fandom two weeks on

Sat, 16 Jun 2012 14:50:36 GMT

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27 March 2013: Andrew Sayers resigns National Museum of Australia directorship
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13 February 2013: 'Banana Joe' wins Westminster

Collaborate!

Saturday, June 16, 2012

FanFiction.Net's purge removed stories from Harry Potter, Naruto, Twilight, Hetalia - Axis Powers.
Image: alixe75 on ffdotnetrants.

Two weeks ago, FanFiction.Net purged the site of much of the adult content, surprising many fan fiction readers and writers; leaving several archives on the Internet unprepared for a deluge of new users, problems continuing to this day. FanFiction.Net removed around 62,000 stories after a change allowing writers under the age of eighteen to register.

FanFiction.Net spelled out the reasons for their purge on the front page of the site:

“	Please note we would like to clarify the content policy we have in place since 2002. FanFiction.Net follows the Fiction Rating system ranging from Fiction K to Fiction M. Although Fiction Ratings goes up to Fiction MA, FanFiction.Net since 2002 has not allowed Fiction MA rated content which can contain adult/explicit content on the site. FanFiction.Net only accepts content in the Fiction K through Fiction M range. Fiction M can contain adult language, themes and suggestions. Detailed descriptions of physical interaction of sexual or violent nature is considered Fiction MA and has not been allowed on the site since 2002.	”
	— FanFiction.Net

According to alixe75 on LiveJournal's ffdotnetrants, FanFiction.Net deleted 2,002 Naruto stories, 1,497 Twilight stories, 1,256 Harry Potter stories, 670 Glee stories, 364 Inuyasha stories, 364 Hetalia - Axis Powers stories, 282 Kingdom Hearts, 213 Pokemon stories, 143 Yu-Gi-Oh stories, 127 Dragon Ball Z stories and 47 Doctor Who stories amongst others. rahirah on Dreamwidth provided another statistic, "Approximately 11% of all BtVS [Buffy the Vampire Slayer] stories were zapped. That may not sound like much, but FFnet is big - that comes to thousands of stories." feckless-muse on Dreamwidth reported the purge included banning users. Despite the purge, Alexa reports no drop in traffic to FanFiction.Net.

1 Critics United
2 Fan response
3 Fan fiction archives
4 Sources
5 External links

Critics United [edit]

Note — June 20, 2012

Critics United is a subcommunity of FanFiction.Net users; this was not clearly explained in the article.

Some in the fan community blamed Critics United for the purge, and a few Tumblr users created a group to fight them. The group earned a mention on the Huffington Post.

According to feckless-muse, "people reporting these so called site violations are literally ganging up on the writers and leaving comments like the ones below en masse. The poor writers are spending hours (and in some cases months and years for ongoing fics) on their works only to be abused, bullied and then having their work deleted without notice." With these sentiments being echoed on LiveJournal, jessioriginal reported threats from the group at the same time the purge took place.

“	It's been suggested that part of the reason behind the purge were the mass-reports coming from a trollish community on FanFiction that felt they have the right to judge which stories do and do not belong on the site. Unfortunately, they are not alone. My Fatal Fanfiction story—a Fatal Frame parody revolving around the recent purge—was targeted by them. Apparently the short prologue with references to the characters, story, and setting of the game was enough for them to declare my story an original work. They have since demanded I change it or remove it, threatened me, they've reported my story, and they keep leaving those kind of reviews.	”
	— jessioriginal on LiveJournal

Two months ago, David Anderson, of Dudley, Massachusetts, created a petition condemning Critics United which drew increased interest in light of the purge. By earlier today, 224 people signed it including Danny Kleemann of Peoria, Illinois, Brian George O'Connor of Chatham, New York, Tegan Chin of Arlington, Texas, Holly Reichert of Euclid, Ohio, Claire Owen of Houston, Texas, Joanna Zhang of Charlotte, North Carolina, Amber Keystone of Monroe, Louisiana, Lily Hamilton of Charlotte, North Carolina, Allison Law of Charlotte, North Carolina and Erica Winchester of Clinton, Massachusetts who all signed today. Earlier this week, Timothy Hall signed, saying "The profiles are being deleted due to either content violations or inactivity, including the stories in connection with the profiles. Most of profile and story deletions are because of depicted content about adult or violent themes being detailed beyond its 'suggestion' even in the slightest manner."

So great was one person's anger, they created a page about Critics United on Encyclopedia Dramatica several months ago. People mentioned this and praised people trolling Critics United on Tumblr and LiveJournal as recently as yesterday.

Correction — Jun 18, 2012

the Critics United page on Encyclopedia Dramatica was created on June 6, after the purge.

Fan response [edit]

A scene from Mary West's mature rated Harry Potter fan fiction "Time for a Change"
Image: SSHGGillian.

Twelve days ago, a FanFiction.Net contributor named Charlotte Weatherly created a petition on Change.org requesting FanFiction.Net stop its own destruction by purging stories. Earlier today, the count of signatories stood at over 30,000, many offering their perspectives on why the site acted in error. Kara Bularzik's comment, liked over 270 times, said: "... I cannot believe so much valuable work is being trashed because it doesn't fit parameters that have not been strictly enforced since they were put into action. [...] What is the point of a ratings system if anything disagreeable is automatically purged? [...] I am truly disheartened, and I hope either a different course of action is taken or I wish ff.net and its future users (all within the PG reading range) the best as I sadly look for a site where one can truly 'unleash their imagination'." Zaynab Quadri's comment, liked 88 times, expressed a similar sentiment: "Writers give warnings when they write explicit content, so if anyone's reading anything they shouldn't be, that's their own fault. Let the writers have freedom of speech." Lex Black's comment, liked by 30 people, said: "Some of the best stories are being threatened by this. This rule hasn't been inforced^[sic] for ten years and limiting creativity now is ridicules.^[sic] If it upsets you, then be MATURE enough to not read it."

People continue to support the petition, with Maria Adams of San Diego, California, Matthew Sandrock of Santa Maria, California, Jessie Brown of Clinton, Mississippi, Cynthia Mora of Renton, Washington, Anis Rosdi of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, James Clarke of Cedar Point, North Carolina, Blair Ritchie of Ashland, Oregon, Rianna McMahan of Auburn, Washington, Hannah Johnson of Tuolumne, California and C.J. Concepcion of Goodyear, Arizona signing today. Discussion of the petition on a FanFiction.Net message board generated over 3,000 messages, and is still active.

On Dreamwidth, members urged FanFiction.Net users to back up their work lest it be deleted. Users auronlu, vieralynn and others encouraged people to spread the word of possible deletion.

The purge story was picked up by Hannah Ellison at the Huffington Post two days ago, who compared the FanFiction.Net purge to a book burning. Ellison went on to say, "[t]hese unpaid authors are at the mercy of the sites willing to house their work and as such must adhere to the lines drawn in the very murky sand of copyright law. Some of these authors spent months writing and editing novel length works to then have them deleted entirely, as if they were something with no artistic or cultural worth; artefacts that either follow the rules or don't." Ellison's post earned 1,900+ Facebook likes, with 50 comments on the article.

Ellison's story appeared on several Tumblr posts. xmarisolx posted her response on Tumblr a day ago, claiming FanFiction.Net was shooting itself in the foot, driving traffic to other archives such as An Archive of Our Own (AO3). candycanine, quoting Heinrich Heine, supported Ellison's book burning reference.

Talking to Wikinews, former fan fiction writer and current professional writer Angelia Sparrow indicated a lack of surprise over FanFiction.Net's actions saying, "Ten years ago they purged all the NC-17 stuff. Sounds like they just did a cleanup again. We're getting more puritanical everywhere, you know? All Romance Ebooks is strongly limiting what romances can contain."

Long time Thunderbirds fan fiction writer Tikatu told Wikinews, "The content purge hasn't bothered me at all, really, though I've been lurking around on ff.net's Critics United. They've been blamed for all the deleted stories -- never mind that they don't have enough people to have reported that many fics."

Anime fan fiction writer and artist Hurricane Islandheart defended FanFiction.Net's actions, saying "All FF.net was doing was catching up on their site maintenance and reports - people just freaked because they'd finally been caught breaking the rules." She reinforced this idea on her LiveJournal.

“	I think that's what finally killed me about fandom. That bullshit merited coverage by the Huffington Post, and all that happened was FF.net finally decided to deal with some reports and enforce their rules for a little while again. They've done this before. We did it at MediaMiner, when that site was actively moderated - reports would pile up in slack time, when all the mods were busy, and when we'd finally get a chance to look at them, some would take it as a "sudden attack" on their fics. No, it's not a "sudden attack" - you got away with breaking the rules for a while, but now, between some mods who have time on their hands and a group targeting shitty fics, they finally got caught. (For the record - my fics flagrantly disregarded the rules at FF.net, and for the last few years I had a notice up on my profile in boldface that said as much and that I was aware of it. I was never, ever, reported; I never, ever had CU comment on any of my fics; I never, ever had FF.net staff remove them. I finally got sick of the site and took them down myself a few days ago, since I've decided to make my move to AO3 permanent.)	”
	— Hurricane Islandheart on LiveJournal

Fan fiction archives [edit]

In response to the purge, users flocked to other sites and archives. Recommendations for sites included DreamWidth, LiveJournal, YourFanFiction.Com and An Archive of Our Own (AO3).

AO3 experienced down time as the site's servers could not handle the additional load from FanFiction.Net users, generating a number of 50 errors at the height of the problem. The site's parent organization, Organization for Transformative Works, not mentioning server problems on their Dreamwidth account, updated their website six days ago to discuss the situation.

“	This sudden and dramatic expansion has come about largely as a result of changes on Fanfiction.net, who have recently introduced more stringent enforcement of their policies relating to explicit fanworks which have resulted in some fans no longer being able to host their works there. One of the primary reasons the AO3 was created was in order to provide a home for fanworks which were at risk of deletion elsewhere, so we're very keen to welcome these new users, but in the short term this does present us with some challenges!	”
	— Lucy Pearson, Organization for Transformative Works

The traffic increase came on the back of Quantcast-reported increase earlier in the year, 57,201 visitors at the end of April, up from 40,560 at the end of March. Alexa reported a big drop in traffic for the archive the day of the purge and traffic has subsequently remained at above average before FanFiction.Net purge levels. This matches other organizationally reported increase. AO3 took measures to reduce server load such as disabling tag filtering, improving statistics caching, turning off alphabetical listing of users, suspending the ability for people to request invitations to and from the site. Even before FanFiction.Net's adult content purge, AO3's invitation code queue exceeded 17,000. Before the site closed registration, Tumblr user alien-rz requested a code and received a confirmation e-mail saying "You’ve been added to our queue! Yay! We estimate that you’ll receive an invitation around 2012-12-13."

FanFiction.Net users like fujiwara-nanaho registered for Dreamwidth in case FanFiction.Net removed their content.

No problems were reported by Hurricane Islandheart on MediaMiner.Org, an anime-centric fan fiction site popular in the mid-'00s that is largely absent of moderators at the moment. The site saw an increase in traffic earlier this year, going from 24,156 at end-December, according to Quantcast, to 58,558 visitors at the end of March this year.

According to Tikatu, a member of FanFiction.net Writers Unite, an eFiction software based site, YourFanFiction.com went down under the additional traffic strain. According to Tumblr users, having been created in response to the purge, the site swelled to over a thousand users including a number of Tumblr users like bluelilacflame, konata-the-espeon and getwhatyouwantorjustgetold.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources [edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

Hannah Ellison. "The Book Burning That Wasn't: Thousands of Works of Fiction Destroyed and No One Pays Attention" — Huffington Post, June 14, 2012
Lucy Pearson. "Update on AO3 performance issues" — Organization for Transformative Works, June 11, 2012

External links [edit]

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Study suggests successful depression treatment lowers youths' risk of drug abuse

Wed, 06 Jun 2012 00:34:48 GMT

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

A new study by Duke University in the US suggests depressed adolescents who respond to treatment within twelve weeks are at a reduced risk of drug abuse later in their lives.

The research followed about half of a pool of 439 adolescents who had received treatment for major depression and volunteered for Duke University research. At the five-year study's conclusion the participants were aged 17–23. None of them had previously misused drink or drugs.

Alcoholism risk was unaffected by depression treatment, unlike drug abuse

Of those who had experienced a reduction in depressive symptoms within twelve weeks of treatment, ten percent went on to have drug abuse problems. Of the remainder, a quarter became drug abusers. Alcohol use problems, however, were equally prevalent regardless of treatment outcome.

The study was run by Dr. John Curry, a professor of neuroscience and psychology. Curry noted that the results for those treated successfully held true "whatever they responded to — cognitive-behavioral therapy, Prozac, both treatments, or a placebo".

The study has called for major depression disorder treatments to take possible alcohol and drug use into account. Said Curry, "When the teenagers got over the depression, about half of them stayed well for the whole five-year period, but almost half of them had a second episode of depression... what we found out was that, for those who had both alcohol disorder and another depression, the alcohol disorder almost always came first".

He also said the study had "a take-home message" in "that alcohol use disorders are very prevalent during that particular age period and there’s a need for a lot of prevention and education for college students to avoid getting into heavy drinking and then the beginnings of an alcohol disorder".

Curry, alongside Dr. Susan Silva, a co-author, want more research using larger groups. They also say work towards a comparison with non-depressed individuals is needed.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources [edit]

Janice Wood. "Treating for Depression Can Prevent Teen Drug Abuse" — Psych Central, June 5, 2012
Afrinisa Kankudti. "Depression Treatment Can Cut Teen Drug Abuse" — Medical Daily, June 5, 2012

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On the campaign trail, May 2012

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 03:28:13 GMT

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

The following is the seventh in a monthly series chronicling the U.S. 2012 presidential election. It features original material compiled throughout the previous month after a brief mention of some of the month's biggest stories.

In this month's edition on the campaign trail, the leading candidates for the Americans Elect presidential nomination respond to a major announcement from that organization's board of directors, two presidential candidates in favor of same-sex marriage react to President Barack Obama's announcement of support for the practice, and Wikinews interviews the newly-selected Libertarian Party vice presidential nominee.

1 Summary
2 Americans Elect makes major decision; leading candidates respond
3 Two candidates react to President Obama's same-sex marriage backing
4 The Libertarian Party's newly-christened VP nominee discusses his role
5 Related news
6 Sources

Summary [edit]

May began with the expected withdrawal of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who felt the continuation of his campaign to be fruitless. He endorsed former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, whom the press had already designated as the presumptive Republican Party presidential nominee. Shortly thereafter, former candidate Rick Santorum also threw his support to Romney. Another former Republican candidate, former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, took a different path. He won the presidential nomination of the Libertarian Party to continue his campaign into the general election. Congressman Ron Paul remained a candidate in the Republican race, but scaled back his campaign, announcing the suspension of active campaigning while still competing in state conventions to amass delegates.

Heavily circulated publicity photo of prison inmate Keith Russell Judd from March 15, 2008.
Image: Keith Russell Judd.

Romney swept the Republican primaries in West Virginia, North Carolina, and Indiana, but President Obama had some difficulty in the Democratic primaries in the first two states. 41 percent of Democrats in West Virginia favored prison inmate Keith Russell Judd over the president and 21 percent in North Carolina voted uncommitted over Obama. North Carolina voters also passed an amendment defining marriage as an institution between a man and woman despite vice president Joe Biden's vocal support for same-sex marriage prior to the vote. Biden's statement and the North Carolina result prompted Obama to make an announcement. During an ABC News interview with Robin Roberts, Obama explained that his views had "evolved" and that he now supports same-sex marriage. Romney countered, responding that "marriage is a relationship between a man and a woman."

Obama's primary difficulties continued later in May, as attorney John Wolfe, Jr. of Tennessee won 42 percent against him in the Arkansas primary, and as a similar margin of voters supported uncommitted over the president in Kentucky. Romney easily won the two states' Republican contests, but later faced potential troubles of his own. The Washington Post published a lengthy article alleging that Romney bullied a student while in high school. Romney said he did not remember the episode and apologized for the "dumb things" he did in school. Subsequently, the alleged victim's family disputed the story. Next, the Obama campaign attempted to make an issue of Romney's venture capital activities as CEO of Bain Capital. Cory Booker, the Democratic Mayor of Newark, criticized this attempt, arguing on Meet the Press that advertisements against the firm left him "uncomfortable." Booker later clarified that he supported and still intended to help re-elect Obama as president. In what Real Clear Politics described as an attempt to counter the attacks on Bain and highlight high unemployment as an issue, Romney predicted that if elected, unemployment would fall to six percent at the end of his first term. The Obama campaign and supporters said the announcement was nothing new since it simply mirrored the Congressional Budget Office's projections for 2016, regardless of who wins the election.

In late May, Romney won the endorsements of former President George W. Bush and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Rice's immediate predecessor, General Colin Powell, who endorsed Obama in 2008, withheld an official endorsement, but like Obama, announced his support for same-sex marriage. In the final primary of the month, both Obama and Romney each handily won their respective party's contest in Texas. As a result, Romney surpassed the required number of delegates to secure the Republican nomination and Obama faced his last contested primary on the Democratic side. However, the question of whether Obama's nomination would be unanimous remained unanswered as lawsuits from Judd and Wolfe disputed the party's decision to not award them delegates for which they qualified in the aforementioned West Virginia and Arkansas primaries.

Americans Elect makes major decision; leading candidates respond [edit]

Americans Elect, the non-profit organization that spent an estimated $35 million to attain ballot access in 29 states with hopes of nominating a bipartisan 2012 presidential ticket, decided in May to forego the 2012 presidential race. Via press release, the organization's board announced that none of its candidates had met the minimum threshold, which required the accumulation of 10,000 pledged supporters for "experienced" candidates, and 50,000 supporters for other candidates, prior to the May 15 deadline. Though this decision drew criticism, the board claimed its actions were to maintain the integrity of the organization's rules.

Americans Elect logo.
Image: Americans Elect.

As a result, candidates that actively sought the organization's nomination including former Louisiana governor Buddy Roemer, former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, activist Michealene Risley, and economics professor Laurence Kotlikoff were forced to reassess how to continue their campaigns.

Roemer, who led all candidates with 6,293 supporters, called the decision disappointing and commented that "Americans Elect's procedure was ripe with difficulty related to access, validation and security." Though he simultaneously sought the Reform Party's nomination, Roemer ultimately decided that the party's ballot access in four states was not enough, and suspended his campaign at the end of May.

Anderson, who finished second in supporters with 3,390, referred to the Americans Elect process as "discriminatory", and announced his support for a movement within the organization, headed by delegate Andrew Evans, attempting to overturn the board's decision. Meanwhile, Anderson removed all references to Americans Elect from the front page of his campaign website, and has focused his energies on the Justice Party, which he founded last year. It currently has ballot access in Mississippi and Utah. Anderson is also a candidate for the Peace and Freedom Party, which will appear on the California ballot.

Risley, who came in third with 2,351 supporters, argued that "people feel really used and manipulated" by Americans Elect. In a letter to the board, she wrote that the organization "will be stigmatized as the latest example of third party failure", "Instead of being the prototype for high tech democracy". Like Anderson, she supports the actions of Evans, and has even opened a petition for it on change.org. Since Risley is not competing for another party's presidential nomination, this is now the crux of her campaign.

Kotlikoff, who finished fourth with 2,027 supporters, told Wikinews that he felt the Americans Elect board was more interested in attracting "big names" than focusing on the issues. He cited this as "the most disappointing aspect" of the decision, adding that "big names don't necessarily equate to big ideas or good ideas for moving the country ahead. And all big names start small." Like Roemer, Kotlikoff had decided to also seek the Reform Party nomination, and following the decision, choose to end his Reform Party bid and his presidential campaign as a whole. He opted instead to promote his "Purple Plan", which combines elements of Republican and Democratic solutions to resolve political issues.

Buddy Roemer
Image: Gage Skidmore.
Rocky Anderson
Image: Don LaVange.
Michealene Risley
Image: Michealene Risley.
Laurence Kotlikoff
Image: Hung-Ho Vergil Yu.

Two candidates react to President Obama's same-sex marriage backing [edit]

After President Obama announced his personal support of same-sex marriage while maintaining it should be decided on a state-by-state basis, two candidates already supporting marriage equality reacted in two very different ways.

Republican Fred Karger, the first openly gay person to seek a major political party's presidential nomination, sent an e-mail to supporters praising Obama for the announcement, saying that "he will be a great advocate as we do battle [against marriage definition propositions] in four states this November." He added, "It's nice to have another presidential candidate on board for full equality."

Gary Johnson in December 2011.
Image: Gary Johnson.

Fred Karger in August 2011.
Image: Gage Skidmore.

Former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, the Libertarian Party presidential nominee, had an opposite interpretation of Obama's announcement. He commented, "while I commend [Obama] for supporting the concept of gay marriage equality, I am profoundly disappointed in the President." "Instead of insisting on equality as a U.S. Constitutional guarantee, the President has thrown this question back to the states." Johnson speculated that Obama cared more about not alienating voters in the swing states of Ohio, Colorado, North Carolina, and Virginia, than supporting change on a federal level.

When approached with this view, Karger argued, "sure, [I] would rather [Obama] came out for a federal marriage solution...[but]" "just his coming out for marriage equality is the key." Karger maintained that the issue would ultimately be decided in the courts rather than in Congress.

Karger is currently campaigning as an alternative to Mitt Romney in California ahead of that state's June 5 GOP primary, while Johnson, whom Karger has described as a friend, is hoping to achieve ballot access in all 50 states to challenge President Obama and the Republican nominee in the general election.

The Libertarian Party's newly-christened VP nominee discusses his role [edit]

After the Libertarian Party nominated former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson for president at May's Libertarian National Convention, upon Johnson's request, the party selected Judge Jim Gray of California for Vice President to complete the ticket.

Gray has worked as a judge since 1983 when Governor George Deukmejian appointed him to the Santa Ana Municipal Court in Orange County, California. Six years later he was appointed to the Superior Court of Orange County. His work in court earned him two "Judge of the Year" awards: first in 1992 from the Business Litigation Section of the Orange County Bar Association, and then in 1995 from the Orange County Constitutional Rights Foundation.

Judge Jim Gray.
Image: Jim Gray.

In addition to his work as a jurist, Gray has been involved in Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and has advocated against the federal government's prosecution of the War on Drugs. Moreover, Gray's vice presidential campaign is not his first experience in politics. He ran for U.S. Congress as a Republican in 1998, and was the Libertarian Party's 2004 nominee for U.S. Senate in California.

Johnson described him as "not only a highly-respected jurist, but he is also a proven leader on issues of concern to Americans – from drug policy to civil liberties to ethics. I am proud he is joining me to offer America a real choice in this election, and excited that his forceful and extremely credible voice will be a vital part of our campaign. Judge Gray is a reformer with the track record and credentials to prove it".

Gray reserved some time to speak with Wikinews about his role as the Libertarian Party vice presidential nominee, what he adds to the Johnson ticket, and what Johnson-Gray can do to better than the 0.4 percent former Congressman Bob Barr and businessman Wayne Allyn Root won as the 2008 representatives of the Libertarian Party.

WSSWhat are your responsibilities as the Libertarian Party vice presidential nominee?

Judge Gray: As the Vice Presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party, I am a team member under the leadership of our Presidential nominee, Governor Gary Johnson, as we campaign to restore Prosperity, Equal Opportunity and Liberty to the United States of America.

WSSHow do you complement Gary Johnson on the ticket?

Judge Gray: It is amazing. In 2010 I wrote a book entitled A Voter’s Handbook: Effective Solutions to America’s Problems (The Forum Press, 2010), which I never considered using in a political campaign. However, in looking at my documented views of our problems and solutions, they are almost completely consistent with those of Governor Johnson. But my background as a federal prosecutor, Navy JAG attorney, trial court judge and former Peace Corps Volunteer is quite different from Governor Johnson’s. Therefore I bring a balance and perspective to the ticket that no other vice presidential candidate will likely have.

WSSHow do you plan to achieve more electoral success than the 2008 Barr-Root campaign?

Judge Gray: Candidly, our strategy is to be polling at 15 percent or above at the end of this coming September. This will qualify us to be in the national presidential and vice presidential debates. If that occurs, all of the common wisdom will change. And during the convention ... in Nevada Governor Johnson was polling at 7 percent. Now he is polling at 8 percent. I deeply believe that when the American people see and understand what Governor Johnson and I not only stand for, but what he has actually done while a sitting two-term governor for eight years, they will rally in droves to our campaign, because they will see the truth that the Republican and the Democratic candidates are almost parallel in the important issues which have led us into financial ruin and despair, and Governor Johnson stands out in front for positive change.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources [edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

"Americans Elect 2012 Declared Candidates" — Americans Elect, June 4, 2012 (date of access)
"Rocky Anderson, Our President 2012 Official Website" — Rocky Anderson, Our President 2012, June 4, 2012 (date of access)
"About - Judge James P. Gray" — judgejimgray.com, June 4, 2012 (date of access)
"Help Us Re-open the Nomination Process for Americans Elect!" — Michealene 2012, June 4, 2012 (date of access)
Rachel Weiner. "Condoleezza Rice endorses Mitt Romney" — The Washington Post, May 30, 2012
Carl M. Cannon. "Romney and the 6 Percent Solution" — Real Clear Politics, May 29, 2012
Abby Ohlheiser. "Colin Powell Endorses Same-Sex Marriage" — Slate (magazine), May 24, 2012
Will Evans. "Americans Elect, promoting third-party candidates, faces internal rebellion" — The Sacramento Bee, May 24, 2012
Philip Caulfield. "Newark Mayor jabs Obama on Romney attacks" — New York Daily News, May 21, 2012
"Americans Elect Will Not Nominate a 2012 Presidential Ticket" — Independent Political Report, May 17, 2012
Matt Negrin. "George W. Bush: ‘I’m for Mitt Romney’" — ABC News, May 15, 2012
Michael Mathes (AFP). "Ron Paul suspends US presidential campaigning" — Yahoo News, May 14, 2012
Billy Hallowell. "Family of Romney's Alleged Bully Victim Speaks Out: ‘The Portrayal of John Is Factually Incorrect’" — The Blaze (web site), May 11, 2012
Jason Horowitz. "Mitt Romney’s prep school classmates recall pranks, but also troubling incidents" — The Washington Post, May 11, 2012
Sam Stein. "Obama Backs Gay Marriage" — The Huffington Post, May 11, 2012
"Gary Johnson Criticizes Obama for Throwing Gay Marriage to the States" — Independent Political Report, May 10, 2012
"Transcript: Robin Roberts ABC News Interview With President Obama" — ABC News, May 9, 2012
AP. "Indiana's Lugar loses, NC passes gay marriage ban" — Fox News, May 8, 2012
AP. "Gingrich ends White House bid: ‘An amazing year’" — The Daily Caller, May 2, 2012
"Gov. Gary Johnson Endorses Judge Jim Gray For LP VP Nomination" — Gary Johnson 2012, April 30, 2012

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What's eating you? US study highlights bedbug incest

Thu, 08 Dec 2011 15:12:34 GMT

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Science and technology

Sources [edit]

"Inbreeding might explain bedbugs' spread" — Chicago Tribune, December 8, 2011
"Research: Bedbugs can thrive despite inbreeding" — PhysOrg, December 7, 2011

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Tropical Storm Irene passes over New York

Sun, 28 Aug 2011 15:30:57 GMT

Sunday, August 28, 2011

United States

Sources [edit]

"Irene batters New York, raising fears of flooding" — BBC News Online, August 28, 2011
"Flooding begins as Tropical Storm Irene lashes New York City" — CNN, August 28, 2011

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Lizards are capable of problem-solving, study shows

Fri, 15 Jul 2011 05:40:23 GMT

Friday, July 15, 2011

Puerto Rican anole tested on a food-finding apparatus normally used on birds.
Image: Manuel Leal, Duke University.

Science and technology

Sources [edit]

Victoria Gill. "Lizard has problem-solving skills" — BBC New, July 13, 2011
Susan Milius. "Learnin' lizards" — ScienceNews, July 13, 2011
Press Release: Duke University. "Brainy lizards pass test for birds" — eurekalert.org, July 12, 2011

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Wikinews interviews U.S. Libertarian Party presidential candidate R. Lee Wrights

Mon, 20 Jun 2011 13:53:40 GMT

Monday, June 20, 2011

Libertarian presidential candidate R. Lee Wrights
Image: Stef Watson.

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

R. Lee Wrights, a candidate for the U.S. Libertarian Party's presidential nomination, took some time to speak with Accredited Wikinews Reporter William Saturn about his presidential campaign and positions on political issues.

Wrights, a native of North Carolina, is an activist and lifetime member of the Libertarian Party who currently serves as the editor of several Libertarian publications. He previously worked as a medical technician in the United States Air Force and earned degrees in History and Journalism at Willmar College.

He is currently being challenged for the nomination by National Guard officer R.J. Harris, radio host Jim Duensing, former Nevada Libertarian Party chair Jim Burns, marketing executive Roger Gary and attorney Carl Person. 2008 Vice presidential nominee Wayne Allyn Root is also expected to make a run.

1 Interview
- 1.1 Personal
- 1.2 Policy
2 Related news
3 Sources

Interview [edit]

Ten personal questions were asked followed by ten policy questions.

Personal [edit]

William SaturnWhat are some of your personal achievements?

R. Lee WrightsFounder and editor of LibertyForAll.net, America's premier online libertarian newsletter.

Leading the most-successful volunteer ballot access drive for the Libertarian Party of North Carolina. Serving three terms on the Libertarian National Committee; one term as Vice Chair.

President of the Foundation for a Free Society, a 501c3 non-profit educational organization dedicated to promoting the principles of liberty, personal sovereignty, private property, and free markets in order to create a more free and prosperous society.

WSWhat are your goals in life?

RWRight now I am focused on bringing a peaceful America to my children and grandchildren.

WSHave you ever been arrested or charged with a crime?

RWNo.

WSWhat historical or contemporary figures do you admire?

RWI admire most of the Founders, but especially Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.

WSWho did you support in the 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008 presidential elections?

RWHarry Browne, Harry Browne, Michael Badnarik, Mary Ruwart

WSHave you run for public office previously?

RWA couple of times for local offices, however, I have managed numerous campaigns for other candidates at the local, state and national level.

WSWhy did you choose to run as a Libertarian?

RWI am seeking the nomination because the Libertarian Party faces a critical test in 2012 and I want to make sure that we're up to the challenge. The Libertarian message in 2012 must be loud, clear and unequivocal call to – stop all war! We must stop the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, we must stop the War on Drugs and Alternative Lifestyles, we must Stop the War on Civil Liberties, we must stop the wars on food, healthcare, guns – you name it.

WSWhat do you feel sets you apart from your fellow contenders for the Libertarian Party presidential nomination?

RWI've been active in the Libertarian Party and libertarian movement all my adult life. I've never been afraid to passionately champion the unvarnished libertarian message of individual liberty and personal responsibility. Other candidates have tried to refine, revise or remake the libertarian message in order to appeal to voters. That tactic has failed not only the party, but the cause of liberty, as well. Instead, I propose to embrace the principled libertarian message and will not be afraid to speak truth to power.

WSHow often do you campaign and how would that change if you won the nomination?

RWI am campaigning every day, either in person, online or on the phone and that will not change when I am honored with the Libertarian Party nomination.

WSIf elected, what would you do as president?

RWMy first order of business will be to disengage the United States from the tangle of misguided, immoral and unconstitutional military conflicts we are involved in by using the same authority and power as Commander-in-Chief so many presidents have abused to get us mired in these quagmires in the first place.

Policy [edit]

WSWhat necessary freedoms are currently lacking in American society?

RWAll our freedoms are currently under attack by Democratic and Republican politicians who have conjured up myriads of excuses, "imaginary hobgoblins" to wage war on American citizens and the world. They have manipulated events to distract, divide and terrorize Americans into willingly sacrificing their liberty before the great false god of Security.

WSWhen is government necessary?

RWGovernment is only necessary to protect individual life, liberty and property. The only just and "necessary" government is one, as James Madison said, "which impartially secures to every man whatever is his own."

WSIn a market with little or no government regulation, what prevents an entity from seizing the entire means of production and becoming the new main regulator?

RWGovernment regulation is in reality a method by which large businesses with power and influence use government power to benefit themselves at the expense of smaller competitors. In a truly free market, there will always be competition to prevent one entity from seizing the entire means of production.

WSIn context of government's role, what are your stands on the legality of incest, bestiality and child pornography?

RWWhile these practices might be repulsive to most people, as they are to me, government cannot stop them from happening. Libertarians believe people should be free to make choice for themselves about their lifestyle, so long as they do not harm others. In all cases where violations of human rights occur, the proper role of government is to prosecute those who have committed the violation.

WSDo you disagree with any parts of the Bill of Rights?

RWNo, except that I believe the Second Amendment should have been the first.

WSShould the people of the United States have a right to constitutionally amend the Bill of Rights to increase the power of the federal government and limit individual rights?

RWNo individual, or groups of individuals, has the right to limit another individual's rights. Our rights come from our Creator, not from any government or document. Two people, 200 people, 2 million people, even the world's populations combined do not have more rights than one person. That is why when it comes to human rights, no number is greater than one.

WSShould the lives of American citizens be valued above citizens of other nations?

RWNo. All human beings have equal value. No race, color, creed, nationality, language group, ethnic group – no human being – is of more value than any other. We are all equal under the Creator. Freedom has no race. Liberty knows no color.

WSWhat are your views on immigration?

RWThe so-called "illegal immigration" issue is an economic issue and should be treated as such. We must change immigration law to match the reality of a dynamic society and labor market. Instead of building walls we should be opening doors. America should be creating a sane and humane immigration process to screen out terrorists and criminals while allowing honest, peaceful, hardworking people to come here to work and help build on the American dream as millions have done before them.

WSWhen is war necessary?

RWAs C.K. Chesterton said, "The only defensible war is a war of defense." The libertarian principle of non-aggression does not mean you can't defend yourself. If the United States is attacked, we should defend ourselves using whatever force is necessary, and all the power at our disposal to stop the attack quickly and decisively. But we do not have the right to maintain an occupation force or engage in "nation building" in the aggressor nation.

WSAre you a truther, birther, neither or both?

RWNone of the above. I am a Libertarian.

Sources [edit]

This exclusive interview features first-hand journalism by a Wikinews reporter. See the collaboration page for more details.

"About Lee" — Lee Wrights for President 2012, 2011
"Online Guide to the 2012 Presidential Candidates" — Ron Gunzburger, 1997-2011

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Gene mutation produces autism-like traits in mice

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 15:05:42 GMT

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Diagram of a synapse

By causing the mutation of one specific gene, researchers have produced mice with two frequently encountered behavioral traits of persons diagnosed with autism. Autism commonly affects the ability to interact socially and is associated with repetitive behavior. The finding was reported in the March 20 online edition of Nature.

Using mice, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Duke University mutated one of the genes associated with autism, known as shank3, a gene that controls the production of the shank3 protein present in the brain. Mice that were given this mutation exhibited repetitive behavior and avoided social interactions with the mice around them.

According to MIT Professor Guoping Feng: "Our study demonstrated that Shank3 mutation in mice lead to defects in neuron-neuron communications."

3D rendering of the shank3 gene

Shank3 protein are found in synapses within the brain. Synapses allow brain cells (called neurons) to communicate with each other. The mutation in the mouse gene interfered with this communication, apparently producing the subsequent autism-like traits. Researchers believe their work demonstrates the important role of shank3 in the functioning of brain circuits that determine behavior.

While hundreds of genes have been linked to autism in human patients, only a small percentage have been linked to shank3. Professor Feng hypothesizes that disruptions of other genes that act on the production of brain proteins affecting synaptic communication may also be related to autistic behavior. If this disruption is real, Feng claims that treatments could be developed to correct synaptic function for any defective synaptic protein in an autistic patient.

Feng continued; "These findings and the mouse model now allow us to figure out the precise neural circuit defects responsible for these abnormal behaviours, which could lead to novel strategies and targets for developing treatment."

About one in 110 children in the U.S., and at least one in 100 in UK, have been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, for which there is currently no effective cure.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources [edit]

"Scientists Create Autism-Like Traits in Mice" — US News Health, March 21, 2011
"Protein found in brain cells may be key to autism" — BBC, March 20, 2011
"Autism gene defect identified by scientists" — DailyRecord.co.uk, March 21, 2011
Mit. "MIT Researchers Recreate Autism In Mice" — Medical News Today, March 20, 2011

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NASCAR: Jamie McMurray wins 2010 Bank of America 500

Sun, 17 Oct 2010 14:08:53 GMT

Sunday, October 17, 2010

NASCAR

NASCAR on Wikinews

22 October 2012: Matt Kenseth wins third NASCAR Sprint Cup race of 2012
1 May 2011: NASCAR driver Kyle Busch wins 2011 spring race in Richmond, Virginia
18 April 2011: NASCAR: Johnson beats Bowyer for victory in Aarons' 499
10 April 2011: Matt Kenseth wins 2011 NASCAR Samsung Mobile 500
21 March 2011: NASCAR driver Kyle Busch wins 2011 Jeff Byrd 500

File photo of Jamie McMurray
Image: Kim Phillips.

Charlotte Motor Speedway, the race track where the race was held.
Image: Asmactic.

Earnhardt Ganassi Racing driver Jamie McMurray, who qualified twenty-seventh, won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 2010 Bank of America 500 held yesterday at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, United States. This became his third win of the season.

Kyle Busch was the leader before the final caution, after which McMurray became the leader. Busch was unable to catch him. Following the race, McMurray became the first driver out of the Chase for the Sprint Cup to win in the first five races.

Jimmie Johnson managed the third position in the closing laps of the race, after starting tenth on the grid. Pole position winner Jeff Gordon had a couple problems late in the race, which prompted him to a twenty-third place finish.

Denny Hamlin, from the Joe Gibbs Racing team, clinched the fourth position, after leading one laps during the race. Greg Biffle followed Hamlin in fifth, while Matt Kenseth could only manage sixth.

Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, David Reutimann, and David Ragan rounded out the top ten finishers in the race. Kurt Busch, another driver in the Chase, finished thirtieth.

Johnson maintained the Drivers' championship lead with 5,843 points, forty-one points ahead of Denny Hamlin. Manufacturers' сhampionship standings is lead by Chevrolet with 230, 45 points ahead of Toyota and 85 ahead of Ford.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources [edit]

Wikipedia has more about this subject:

2010 Bank of America 500

"Official Results" — Motor Racing Network, October 17, 2010
"The Race: Bank of America 500" — Jaski.com, October 17, 2010
"Lap-by-Lap: Fontana" — NASCAR, October 17, 2010

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Hurricane Earl threatens eastern US

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 22:54:49 GMT

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Satellite image of Hurricane Earl.
Image: NASA.

Hurricane Earl, a large tropical cyclone in the Atlantic ocean, is currently on course to strike parts of the eastern United States, including the Outer Banks of North Carolina and Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The storm began near the Cape Verde islands off the coast of Africa, and moved steadily to the west. It then neared the Caribbean, and caused damage in Puerto Rico and the Anguilla before taking a more northwards track. As of now, Earl continues on a northward track, but is expected to turn to the east.

As hurricanes generally are difficult to predict and have vastly changing forecasts sometimes, Wikinews will be providing with readers with live updates on Hurricane Earl. If you are in the path of this storm, remember to follow all updates and evacuation orders by local and federal governments.

Hurricane Earl: Current Information As of 11:00 P.M. (EST)

Location: 115 mi south of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina
Moving: North Northeast, at 18 mph (30 kp/h)
Maximum winds: 105 mph (165 kp/h) — Category 2 (SSHS)
Central pressure: 951 MB

Source: National Hurricane Center

1 Live updates
- 1.1 September 3
- 1.2 September 2
2 Sources

Live updates [edit]

September 3 [edit]

Update: 4:30 P.M. EST)

Rain associated with the storm has started to fall in Massachusetts. (OR)

Update: 1:24 P.M. (EST)

The Boston Globe is reporting that the storm may be downgraded to a tropical storm by the time it approaches Cape Cod and its surrounding areas. (link)

Update: 1:21 P.M. (EST)

Earl has been downgraded to a category 1 storm. Its winds are at 85 mph. (link)

September 2 [edit]

Update: 11:40 P.M. (EST)

That is all for Wikinews' coverage for tonight. Please check back tomorrow morning for more updates.

Update: 11:37 P.M. (EST)

Earl's winds have weakened to 105 mph. The National Hurricane Center's advisory shows that Earl is 115 miles away from land. The storm will likely strike early tomorrow morning. (link)

Update: 9:31 P.M. (EST)

The Weather Channel has posted a useful list of all current evacuation orders, road conditions, and power outage reports.

Update: 9:08 P.M. (EST)

US president Barack Obama has just signed a statewide disaster declaration for North Carolina. Obama says that he is "closely monitoring" the storm and will "aggressively prepare" for any damage or impact caused by Earl. (link)

Update: 8:12 P.M. (EST)

The Weather Channel has updated its computer forecast models for the storm. (link)

Update: 8:07 P.M. (EST)

The storm has been downgraded to a category 2 as it nears land. Maximum winds have lowered to approximately 110 mph (165 km/h). Earl is currently located 160 miles south of the Outer Banks. (link)

Update: 7:26 P.M. (EST)

Emergency management officials in Novia Scotia are advising residents to watch the storm closely, as a landfall may be in the future. (link)

Update: 7:11 P.M. (EST)

Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick has declared a state of emergency in Massachusetts in preparation for a possible landfall on Cape Cod. He also deployed the National Guard across possible affected areas. (link)

Update: 6:59 P.M. (EST)

Hurricane Earl has been downgraded to a Category 3 hurricane on the SSHS. Its current maximum sustained winds are 115 mph (185 kp/h). (link)

Update: 6:38 P.M. (EST)

The National Weather Service has issued a tropical storm watch for the coast of New Jersey. A tropical storm watch (TRA) is issued when tropical storm force winds from 39 to 73 mph (63 to 117 km/h) pose a possible threat to a specified coastal area within 48 hours. (link)

Sources [edit]

Vivian Tyson. "Earl to brush Turks and Caicos on path toward US" — Associated Press, August 30, 2010

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

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Loneliness unhealthy as smoking and alcoholism, new study says

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 16:13:02 GMT

Health

Sources [edit]

Adam Cresswell. "Isolation as harmful as smoking 15 a day" — The Australian, July 29,2010
Rachel Stockton. "Social Relation Linked to Longer Life" — Food Consumer, July 28, 2010
BJM Group. "Can your friendships save your life?" — The Guardian, July 27,2010

External links [edit]

Original review article: Holt-Lunstad J, Smith TB, Layton JB (July 27, 2010) Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic Review. PLoS Med 7(7): e1000316. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316. The Public Library of Science, Cambridge (UK)/San Francisco (US).

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NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson becomes first time father

Fri, 09 Jul 2010 01:44:58 GMT

Friday, July 9, 2010

Wikinews Sports

Sources [edit]

Press release. "Johnsons welcome baby girl" — Hendrick Motorsports, July 8, 2010
The Associated Press. "Johnson, wife Chandra welcome baby daughter" — NASCAR.com, July 7, 2010

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Winter wonderland: the recent U.S. blizzard in photos

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 17:04:11 GMT

Monday, December 21, 2009

Weather

Photo gallery [edit]

Snowfall from the storm covering roads in Clifton, Virginia
A wintry scene in the Dupont Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C.
An automobile covered with snow in Dupont Circle
Cars completely buried by snow in Silver Spring, Maryland
A snowplow clearing the snow in the Dupont Circle
Cars buried under the snow in Washington, D.C.
The effects of the storm in New York City
The snowstorm in Rhode Island
The storm in Rhode Island
Accumulations of snow in Washington, D.C.

Has your area been affected by snowfall recently? Post it!

Sources [edit]

"Five dead as snowstorm engulfs US East Coast" — BBC Online News, December 20, 2009
Joseph Burger. "Storm Finally Exits a Snow-Covered East Coast" — New York Times, December 20, 2009

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	[The results] should cause researchers to re-evaluate what they think they know about the evolution of animal cognition.
—Jonathan Losos, biologist,Harvard University

English Wikinews RSS feed.

United States re-elects Barack Obama

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Wikinews interviews U.S. Libertarian Party presidential candidate R. Lee Wrights

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Contents

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September 3 [edit]

September 2 [edit]

Sources [edit]

Loneliness unhealthy as smoking and alcoholism, new study says

Sources [edit]

External links [edit]

NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson becomes first time father

Sources [edit]

Winter wonderland: the recent U.S. blizzard in photos

Photo gallery [edit]

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Sources [edit]