Gun violence now costs Americans an estimated $229 billion a year, including the expense of imprisoning gun offenders, medical treatment for the roughly 31,000 people killed and 75,000 wounded each year, lost wages, and loss of quality of life among victims and their families, according to an analysis by the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation. By the same measures, […]
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$6 trillion – Upper estimate of the cost to the U.S. of conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan
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A Canadian man nearly blew off his own head while trying to kill a mouse with a rifle. Dale Whitmell, 40, tried to crush the scampering rodent with the butt of his rifle, but when he slammed the weapon on the ground, it discharged. The bullet grazed his forehead but did not badly wound him. After being released from a […]
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The oceans, like the rest of the planet, set a temperature record in 2014, at 60.9°F (16°C), or 1.03°F above the 20th century average. Acidity is up as well—a bad combination for sea life.
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After eight years of war, bombings, and brutal sectarian violence, Iraq’s civilian population is now suffering an epidemic of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other mental illnesses, health officials there say. But there are only 100 psychiatrists to serve a population of 39 million.
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“Women deprived of the company of men pine; men deprived of the company of women become stupid.” – Anton Chekhov
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A bungling British burglar who volunteered to be fitted with a police GPS tracker was arrested after he carried out a string of burglaries while wearing the device. Nicholas Broadley, 33, wore the tracker as part of a program to help career criminals go straight. But when police checked his movements, they discovered that he’d been at the scene of three […]
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“I hate women because thy always know where things are.” – Voltaire
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Bird calls, after firefighters in Idaho rushed into a burning building when they heard voices calling “Help! Fire!” only to discover a pair of “talking” parrots. “There was nobody besides the birds inside,” said one fireman. “Smart birds.”
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Percentage of the world’s population that could fit in Texas by living with the population density of New York City: 100
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