In Case You Missed It: US Reports Record Surplus! Deficit Down!

I filed this under "In Case You Missed It," because you likely did. Especially if you watch FOX "News."

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Image from source, Washington Post

US gov’t reports $116.5B surplus, largest in 5 years; deficit on track for smallest in 5 years

The federal government on Thursday reported a rare surplus of $116.5 billion in June, the largest for a single month in five years. The gain kept the nation on track for its lowest annual deficit in five years. . .

Read more at: Washington Post

NBC News' Richard Engel Survives Kidnapping in Syria

Image from source, New York Times

Whew. Many's the time I've been watching NBC News' Richard Engel report on some strife in the Middle East, missiles exploding around him, and thought, that dude is going to get hurt one day. I've often thought the same thing watching Anderson Cooper in the same sorts of scenarios. Well, Anderson has experienced some harrowing events, but I doubt anything like Engel's recent disappearance. Monday, the news filtered throughout the internet--despite NBC's pleas for a blackout--that Engel and his news team were missing, and had been since Thursday. When you go missing like that in Syria, I can't imagine the odds are good that you'll turn up relatively unscathed. Thankfully, Engel and his team are okay.

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Richard Engel of NBC Is Freed in Syria

Richard Engel, the chief foreign correspondent for NBC News, and his crew had sneaked into Syria before. They knew where to go, where not to go; what to say, what not to say. But last Thursday, in a demonstration of the perils of reporting from the war-torn country, Mr. Engel’s crew was taken hostage by an unknown group and told they would be used to secure the release of hostages being held by Syrian rebels. . .

Read more at: New York Times

Pit Bull Hero

Image from DogFiles

Now here's something you don't see every day. Pit bulls usually get spectacularly bad press. But they're not all bad. My friend Stupid Monkey Planet has had a couple, and they're wonderful. My mom had one that was bug-ass crazy, but it wasn't her fault that someone had raised her for fighting (not Mom). Anyway, it's nice to see the breed--which some communities have actually outlawed--get a good story.

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Stray Pit Bull Saves Woman, Child From Attacker



The wandering 65-pound Pit Bull mix might have seemed menacing to some passerby, but one woman will always remember him as her “guardian angel. . .”


Read more at: DogFiles (via @KaleyCuoco on Twitter)

Three Boys Thought Dead Rescued in Pacific After 50 Days Lost

Image from source, The Herald Sun

I think on Thanksgiving we should get at least one good news story, don't you? Well here's one. Thanks to Stupid Monkey Planet for the link.

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Teens adrift in Pacific in tiny tinnie for 50 days - with only raw seagull to eat

THREE teens survived 50 days adrift in the Pacific in a small tinnie, sharing a single raw seagull and drinking small amounts of rainwater.

Samuel Perez and Filo Filo, both 15, and Edward Nasau, 14, were dehydrated, sunburnt and very hungry when rescued after being spotted by a tuna boat. . .

Read more at: The Herald Sun

Rescue of Chilean Miners Begins, First Man Out!

Image from source, CNN

I was lucky enough to catch the live footage of the first miner rescued from the Chilean mine collapse. Those guys have been underground for 69 days, and now are being slowly extracted, one by one, in a tiny shuttle 22"-wide. I'm crossing my fingers that they all get out okay. And the first guy is out! It's about time we got a happy ending somewhere, right?

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First of 33 trapped miners reaches surface

Rescuers clap and cheer as the first miner to be rescued, Florencio Avalos, 31, leaves the capsule and steps onto the surface for the first time in about 68 days. After hugging several people, he is put on a stretcher and wheeled into a nearby triage center. . .

Read more here (updated frequently): CNN

Iraq Injuries Leading to Advances in Prosthetics

Photo from source, Las Vegas Now

Never let it be said that I don't report the good news around here, if only every once in a while. Stupid Monkey Planet brought this story to my attention. It shows that however bad the situation in Iraq is, there is some good (however small in comparison) that has come out of it.

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Iraq War Creating Advances in Prosthetics

Wounded soldiers returning from Iraq are getting bionic replacement parts, and the new hi-tech artificial legs are available in Las Vegas. . .

Read more (with video) at: Las Vegas Now

Amazing Story of An Explosion, Nobody Hurt

Photo from source, Boston.com

Don't say I never brought you any good news! This is a rather amazing story about an explosion and chain-reaction fire that should have--but didn't--hurt anybody. I heard about this on Air America's The Rachel Maddow Show, and her description was enough to make me post something on it. Check it out.

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Everett recovers after tanker truck explosion

It was an amazing fire: 9,400 gallons of gasoline turning into a wall of flame as it flowed from an overturned truck down a densely populated street. Dozens of people fleeing from their homes.

Even more amazing was the number of injuries: zero. . .

Read more at Boston.com

Obesity Epidemic Plateauing?

Photo from New York Post

Hey, finally some good news. We Americans are fat, but we're not getting any fatter! Apparently, they forgot to survey my household. . .

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Obesity Epidemic In America Shows Signs of Plateauing

The obesity epidemic that has been spreading for more than a quarter-century in the United States has leveled off among women and may have hit a plateau for men, as well, federal health officials reported yesterday.

While the proportion of adults who are obese remains high at more than 30 percent, the rate in 2005 and 2006 was statistically unchanged from the last time government researchers took a national snapshot two years earlier. . .

Read more at: Washington Post