Wanna get away somewhere safe and sound? Check out these Oases of non-violence. A List Of The Most Peaceful States In The U.S. Yesterday , we posted a list of the most violent states based on a new study done by Institute for Economics and Peace. Today, we bring you the counterpart to that state and highlight the most peaceful places to live and visit. April 24 (Reuters) – Violence and its aftermath cost the U.S. economy some $460 billion last year, according to the Institute for Economics and Peace’s second annual United States Peace Index, released on Tuesday. Those costs – which include direct burdens like medical care for victims and the prison system and indirect factors like lost productivity – vary widely by state, with the most peaceful states bearing the lowest burden and the most violent spending far more. A state’s level of peacefulness is not the only factor that determines the economic toll of violence; its population and level of overall economic activity also has a strong influence. Huffington Post Flip the page to peep the list and see if your state is amongst the most tranquil.
Duke goes early and so does London in the brand-new trailer for ‘G.I. Joe: Retaliation,’ from ‘Never Say Never’ director Jon Chu. By Josh Wigler Dwayne Johnson in “G.I. Joe: Retaliation” Photo: Paramount Crashing through the sky comes the fearful cry of Cobra, but I feel no fear at the laser-blasting terrorist organization’s coming arrival. For one, we all know the Joes have this battle in the bag. For another, there’s a second “G.I. Joe” movie heading our way in just two short months, and by the looks of it, it’s the movie that fans have always wanted. Bring on Zartan, Firefly and the rest of them, I say! Cobra Commander and his minions are out in full force in the brand-new “G.I. Joe: Retaliation” trailer that arrived Tuesday (April 24) courtesy of Machinima . Featuring an introduction from leading man Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, the two-and-a-half minute trailer embraces everything we loved about that first “Retaliation” spot and ups the ante considerably. Keep reading for the five scenes from the trailer we were most excited to see. The Duke Of Hazard “Just don’t kill Duke. That’s really my only request,” MTV.com reader Adam wrote in response to the arrival of the first “Retaliation” trailer some months ago. Unfortunately, Adam, I don’t think your wish will be granted: Rumors have long been swirling about the early exit of Channing Tatum’s “Rise of Cobra” hero, and his limited appearance in the “Retaliation” trailer only fuels that fire further. If there’s a silver lining, it’s that Duke appears to have grown among the Joe crowd quite a bit since last we saw him. He’s got a strong relationship with Roadblock, so much so that he happily volunteers to babysit his fellow Joe’s little girls for a weekend. Duke might not last long in “Retaliation,” but expect his departure — however it comes — to weigh heavily on Roadblock as the film unfolds. The Country Is At War There’s only one man who could destroy G.I. Joe in one crushing move, and The Rock voted for him. Viewers well know that the president of the United States is Zartan in disguise, using his influence to push Cobra into the public eye and assert its dominance over the globe. If you thought the rise of Cobra meant the death of the former president, however, you’d be mistaken: The trailer reveals that the real president (played by “Pirates of the Caribbean” veteran Jonathan Pryce) is still alive, if not exactly well. Two Cases of Thin Mints With few allies left to turn to, Roadblock takes his surviving Joes — Flint and Lady Jaye — and teams up with the reclusive General Joe Colton, the man who started it all. The hero, played by action legend Bruce Willis, has gone from complaining about his high cholesterol to demanding Girl Scout cookies in this newest trailer. And he wonders why his blood pressure is all out of whack! London Bridge Is Falling Down “Rise of Cobra” saw the destruction of the Eiffel Tower. It looks like London’s going to undergo a similar “everything must go” sale when “Retaliation” rolls around. What, you really thought that President Zartan wanted world peace? He and the Cobra gang are behind the massive terrorist assault on the United Kingdom, and it’s going to be up to Roadblock and his pals to prevent further destruction from happening. Ninja Wrap So. Many. Ninjas. But never enough ninjas. There is no such thing, as Snake Eyes and Jinx battling an army of sword-wielding Cobra loyalists on the side of a mountain will surely tell you. Recently, Chu revealed that a nine- to ten-minute, dialogue-free ninja battle would occur in “Retaliation,” and going by the previous trailer and this latest one, it looks like this snow-covered mountain is where it’s all going down. Awesome. What do you think of the new “G.I. Joe” trailer? Sound off in the comments below! Check out everything we’ve got on ” G.I. Joe: Retaliation .” For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com . Related Photos “G.I. Joe: Retaliation” Character Photos Cast of G.I. Joe: Retaliation | Toy Fair 2012
The surveillance state in the United States has only grown in America since the September 11th attacks. It has increasingly been used to spy and intrude on the lives of journalists and activists. And, during a Democracy Now! special, a full hour was spent delving into the National Security Agency’s evolution into an entity that illegally collects and sifts through private emails, cell phone calls and… Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : Firedoglake Discovery Date : 20/04/2012 17:08 Number of articles : 2
During a press conference in Cartagena yesterday, standing alongside Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, Barack Obama addressed the Secret Service scandal surrounding up to a dozen agents and five members of the U.S. military. They are accused of soliciting prostitutes in that nation and have been relieved of their posts. Secret Service Scandal: Discussed by President Obama After praising the role of Secret Service employees in general – telling reporters these men and women perform “extraordinary service” on a daily basis – he decreed the reported actions of the men cited in this weekend’s report: “I expect that investigation to be thorough, and I expect it to be rigorous. If it turns out that some of the allegations that have been made in the press are confirmed, then of course I’ll be angry… We are representing the people of the United States, and when we travel to another country, I expect us to observe the highest standards.” California Rep. Darrell Issa, who leads the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, says he isn’t certain whether Congress will hold hearings on the misconduct. But he does find it hard to believe this was an isolated incident. “It’s not about whether the president was in danger this time. It’s whether or not you need to make changes so the American people can have confidence in all of their workforce,” Issa said on Face the Nation yesterday.
Thomas Kinkade, the acclaimed “Painter of Light” and one of the most popular artists in America, died suddenly Friday in his California home. He was 54. His family said Kinkade’s death appeared to be from natural causes. “Thom provided such a wonderful life for his family,” his wife, Nanette, said in a statement earlier today. “We are shocked and saddened by his death.” His paintings are hanging in an estimated one of every 20 homes in the United States, with fans warming to the familiar feeling of his mass-produced works of art. Art critics often dismissed his work as tacky, but his prints of idyllic cottages and bucolic garden gates helped establish a brand are uncommonly in the art world. “I’m a warrior for light,” Kinkade, famed for his style of painted highlights, told the San Jose Mercury-News in 2002, alluding not just to his skill, but his approach. To Kinkade, light was used to symbolize the divine. “With whatever talent and resources I have, I try to bring light to penetrate the darkness many people feel.” He clearly reached a lot of people. His Media Arts Group company is said to have taken in up to $32 million per quarter from 4,500 dealers across the country.
(John Hinderaker) The United States has now gone almost three years without a budget, because Harry Reid and the Senate Democrats refuse to propose or adopt one. President Obama’s proposed budgets have failed to gain a single vote in support: his FY 2012 budget was voted down in the Senate last year, 97-0, and his FY 2013 budget was voted down in the House this year, 414-0. The Democrats love to castigate… Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : Power Line Discovery Date : 04/04/2012 18:02 Number of articles : 2
Sofia Vergara makes no secret of being a high-maintenance Latina woman- and when you look like she does, who’s going to tell you ‘no’? Sofia covers the new issue of Esquire , and in the accompanying interview she illuminates some of the cultural differences that American men need to understand before dating a Latina woman. Get out your pen and paper, fellas, there will be a quiz: “In Colombia everybody’s very voluptuous and you’re supposed to be. You don’t want to be skinny when all of your cousins are mermaids. You grow up thinking that’s how beauty is.” “There’s nothing slutty about a dental-floss bikini. You don’t even think about it. The first bathing suit your mother buys you is in the shape of a triangle.” “Listen, I didn’t know how to make coffee when I came to the United States. Because in Colombia the maids do it…When I came to the United States and started working, my priority was not to buy a handbag but to spend my money on the maid and a nanny. Always.” “I guess at the end of the day, all women like to be appreciated and treated with respect and kindness. We all want to have sex in a romantic way. But with a Latina, you’re going to have more fun.” Speaking of fun, see more sexy pics of Sofia Vergara in Esquire after the jump!
And at a cemetery! “Created and performed by acclaimed actor Val Kilmer, and seen recently in development by sold-out audiences in venues in Los Angeles such as Disney Concert Hall, Tim Robbins’ The Actors’ Gang, and The United States Veterans Artists’ Alliance Hall, Mr. Kilmer’s production delves into the heart and soul of Samuel Clemens and conjures forth the great spirit of Mark Twain, America’s greatest storyteller. Storytelling was a lifeline for Twain, and in Kilmer’s Citizen Twain , this lifeline continues into and after Twain’s death, making it an appropriate choice to perform the show in The Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.” [ Ticketfly ]
Remember this guy ??? Jamaican drug kingpin Christopher “Dudus” Coke is scheduled to be sentenced this week in federal court in Manhattan after pleading guilty last year to racketeering and assault charges. Coke, who U.S. authorities say is so ruthless that he once ordered a rival killed with a chainsaw, faces up to 23 years in prison. Coke was captured in 2010 in Jamaica during a bloody siege of his ghetto stronghold that left more than 70 dead. At the time, he waived extradition to the United States and vowed to fight drug trafficking, gun smuggling, racketeering and other charges. The 43-year-old Coke has sought mercy in a letter to the judge, but prosecutors have argued that leniency isn’t an option. They want Coke to serve the maximum term and be deported. Coke was a divisive figure in Jamaica, where he followed in the footsteps of his father, Lester Lloyd Coke, better known as Jim Brown, a leader of the notorious Shower Posse during the 1980s cocaine wars. Authorities say he took over the organization when his father, also sought in the United States, died in a mysterious fire in a Jamaican prison cell in 1992. In the U.S., Coke controlled a network of large-scale drug dealers who would send him “tribute” payments of cash, electronics, or guns, court papers say. Prosecutors also allege Coke relied on women to smuggle cocaine – concealed in condoms and inserted into their vaginas – into the United States on commercial flights to New York City or Miami. One woman who refused to do it was gang-raped and murdered, the court papers say. Several women abused by Coke’s gang in Jamaica have written to the sentencing judge asking him to give the defendant a harsh punishment. They’ve also insisted on anonymity. “I might be targeted for death by the Shower Posse if this letter is brought to the public record,” one woman wrote. “But this letter is my contribution to Jamaica and the Jamaicans for their future.” Source More On Bossip! Eff A Traveler’s Digest: 10 Countries With Beautiful BLACK Women Action! Stars That Were Offered Large Sums Of Money To Make Adult Movies…Did They Take It?! TwitterFiles: Tisha Campbell Says People Need To Leave Her Husband Out Of Will And Jada’s “Divorce” Crazy In Love: Women That Went A Little Cuckoo For The Men They Loved
The sudden public emergence of a little-known war criminal named Joseph Kony has created a storm of angry dialogue, suspicious side-eyeing, and an endless stream of online chitchatter the likes of which we haven’t seen since Barack Obama ran for President of the United States in 2008. For those that follow us on Twitter, you witnessed some of the angry rhetoric that soapbox super-heroes have aimed in our direction. Clearly, Joseph Kony is an atrocious human being and the word “criminal” doesn’t even BEGIN to describe the types of activities he’s been involved in. However, there are a whole host of people that do not wholeheartedly believe in the sudden and overwhelming campaign that has sprung up over the past week. Even those who actually LIVE in Uganda have doubts about the latest social cause phenomena. Says Ugandan journalist Angelo Opi-Aiya Izama: ‘To call the campaign a misrepresentation is an understatement. While it draws attention to the fact that Kony, indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court in 2005, is still on the loose, its portrayal of his alleged crimes in Northern Uganda are from a bygone era. At the height of the war between especially 1999 and 2004, large hordes of children took refuge on the streets of Gulu town to escape the horrors of abduction and brutal conscription to the ranks of the LRA. Today most of these children are semi-adults. Many are still on the streets unemployed. Gulu has the highest numbers of child prostitutes in Uganda. It also has one of the highest rates of HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis. If six years ago children in Uganda would have feared the hell of being part of the LRA, a well documented reality already, today the real invisible children are those suffering from “Nodding Disease”. Over 4000 children are victims of this incurable debilitating condition. It’s a neurological disease that has baffled world scientists and attacks mainly children from the most war affected districts of Kitgum, Pader and Gulu.’ Hit the flip to read on…
