Beyonce Releases New Secret Album

Beyonce, a popular hip hop music artist kept her new album a secret until the day she let it out.  Only a select few knew about the album which was kept a complete secret from all of her fans.  The album has 14 songs and 17 music videos all completely new and never before seen.  There has already been over 400,000 copies of the album sold just a day after the release.

Beyonce is an extremely popular not only for being a great music artist but also for being a positive role model for everyone, unlike a many other celebrities.  Beyonce has several charities in which she donates hundreds of thousands of dollars of her great fortune too.  This is the very first time that Beyonce has released an album without anyone knowing and it’s getting a lot of attention.  The idea of this is very intelligent for several reasons. First, Christmas is right around the corner and people are still out doing last minute shopping for loved ones.  Therefore the album will be the perfect gift for Christmas for many people because Beyonce is such a popular music artist and is widely known.  Secondly because it doesn’t have any suspense for her fans that would patiently be waiting for her music to come out.  Instead when she released her secret album all of her fans get really excited and go out and buy it and that is exactly why so many copies have sold already.

The billboard said that her album is so popular already that it will likely reach the number one spot by next week.  The album was even stirring up a lot of commotion on social media websites like twitter and face book.  It was a trending topic on twitter throughout most of the day on Sunday.  There were 1.2 million tweets about the album in just 12 hours which is 100,000 tweets an hour.  The album also was the most talked about thing on twitter since July when the movie “Sharnado” movie came out.

Just after the album came out, 2 of Beyonces songs ranked number one and two on the itunes charts.  The album isnt quite at the number one spot yet but it is getting there and will be soon.  Many other artist have done something like this also.  In 2011, lady gaga release her album born this way for just 99 cents on Amazon for 2 days.

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/entertainment/beyonce-keeps-new-album-secret-until-day-of-release-over-400000-copies-sold-already

"7NEWS - Beyonce Keeps New Album Secret until Day of Release; over 400,000 Copies Sold by Sunday - Entertainment Story." 7NEWS. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2013.

Famous Actor Paul Walker Dies in Car Crash

Paul Walker was one of the main characters in the famous car racing movies “Fast and Furious”.  Walker was in Southern California Saturday when he died in a horrible car accident later that day.   He was in the passenger side of his good friend Roger Rodas 2005 Porsche Carrera GT when they lost control and ran into a light pole.  Authorities still have the crash under investigation but know that speed was most likely a factor in the incident.  Autopsies on both Walker and his friend, Rodas, are still being waited on to see if drugs or alcohol played a role in the accident but reporters say that they most likely weren’t the issue.

The two were going for a ride in Valencia, in Santa Clarita, which is just 30 minutes north of Hollywood.  They were driving in a zone with a speed limit of 45MPH and most likely lost control of the car, and ran into the light pole which burst into flames upon impact, completely destroying the car.  The wreckage was so bad that it took almost 48 hours to completely indentify the remains to Walker and Rodas.  Dental records had to be looked up to tell exactly which victim was who.

 The Porsche that was driven in the accident is worth $450,000 when bought brand new.  The vehicle is also said to be extremely difficult to handle, which also could be another great factor that lead to Rodas to lose control of the vehicle.  The car is powered by a v10 610 horsepower engine, which is extremely powerful, which leads authorities to think that speed was most likely a factor in the accident.

Could it be pure irony that Walker supposedly died driving like any fast driving scene in the movie he was in that was still in production.  The accident is very sad because Walker and Rodas didn’t get to say goodbye to their families, because they had no idea of what laid ahead of them.  Their families were shocked and horrified by the deaths on the two men who still had a lot of life ahead of them.

In memory of the two men, people from all around California that owned sports cars drove them together across the state.  The accident will continue to be under investigation for several more weeks as investigators look into further details.  Everyone I know was shocked by the death of Paul Walker and I have heard several people talking about his death for the last week.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/30/showbiz/actor-paul-walker-dies/

Duke, Alan, Alan Duke Reported from Santa Clarita; Joe Sutton from Atlanta. Paul Vercammen, Greg Botelho, David Simpson, and Jackie Castillo Also. "'Fast & Furious' Star Paul Walker Killed in Car Crash." CNN. Cable News Network, 02 Dec. 2013. Web. 08 Dec. 2013.

Black Thursday

Everyone knows about the craziness of Black Friday shopping, whether it be the large crowds of people or the insanely low prices and great deals that the store gives.  However, this year stores are trying something new, black Thursday.  There are several pros and cons to this major change, but many people are getting upset about the change.

This year, many stores opened their doors around 5PM-6PM.  I think that their main purpose in doing so is to avoid the large numbers of people spending the night in tents outside the stores in freezing weather and to avoid people getting up really early in the mornings, therefore making it much more convenient for shoppers.

Having Black Friday on a Thursday this year upset a lot of people because Thursday is Thanksgiving and you’re supposed to be with your family giving thanks for everything in your lives.  Wouldn’t it be contradicting to have people go out pushing people around to buy things on the very same day that they are giving thanks for everything that they have in life?  This is the exact reason why tens of thousands pledged not to go shopping on Thanksgiving.  In order to get the things you wanted, many people would have to come and stay outside all day and would be away from their families for most of the day on Thanksgiving.  This was yet another reason why people were angry that Black Friday was on Thursday this year.

There is another side to this as well; many people enjoyed the shopping on Black Thursday for a few reasons.  First, I think people liked that they didn't have to get up extremely early in the mornings to go shopping. Another reason why shoppers liked having the mega sales on Thursday night this year is because they could get up at a normal time and still go shopping and get the good deals they want.

Black Thursday turned out to not be a huge success due to the large numbers of people who refused to go shopping.  Hopefully next year stores stick to black Friday like how it’s always been for the sake of the stores and the shoppers.

http://money.cnn.com/2013/11/27/news/economy/boycott-black-thursday/

Kurtz, Annalyn. "Disgusted Shoppers Threaten to Boycott Black Friday (Thursday)."CNNMoney. Cable News Network, 27 Nov. 2013. Web. 08 Dec. 2013.

Fast Food Workers in DC Strike

Recently in Washington DC, many fast food workers have are on strike, demanding a higher pay than just $7.25 an hour.  This is not just the case in Washington DC however, several other states across the nation have the same minimum wages.  These fast food workers aren’t even really making $7.25 an hour, but more like a high 6 something an hour; that is if you include all of the state and federal deductions taken out of each paycheck.  Fast food workers finally decided that enough is enough and went on strike, demanding a higher pay.

Fast food restaurants have been notorious for low wages, and usually just pay workers at the set state minimum wage.  The lowest minimum wage in the nation is a whopping $6.25 an hour leading to Washington State which has $9.19 as the minimum wage.  Fast food restaurants make primarily make their money by making their product for an extremely cheap cost to them and then charging a high mark up on the product to generate a large profit.  It may not seem like they mark up prices much because the cost of making the food is already very low.  Another way the fast food restaurants can generate such a large profit is by paying low wages to their workers.  The reason people work at these places is because they demand little or no skill or knowledge and is primarily manual labor, therefore uneducated people or young teens can work at these places as a source of income.

I myself work at a place which only pays the state minimum wage to employees.  I never really hear people complaining about the pay because the majority of my coworkers are still in school, like myself.  Many of us don’t mind the low wages because we are all just glad we have a job and a source of income too either save up for collage or to spend on certain things.

Obama has proposed a set national minimum wage of $10.10 an hour, but that has just been a proposal and nothing that may happen anytime soon.  Many agree with this proposal because it will help several workers, including themselves, by gaining a larger income.  The people who disagree with the proposal side this way because it would only cause the restaurants the raise their prices and therefore anger customers and have a dramatic effect on the economy.

Many strikes like this will continue to happen across the US in the future and there isn’t much the companies can do about it.  There are several benefits to having the workers work for small pay but also negative effects as well.  For now, the businesses are generating a tremendous profit and therefore will continue to pay their workers at the set minimum wage.

http://www.csmonitor.com/Business/Latest-News-Wires/2013/1203/Fast-food-strikes-and-protests-planned-for-100-US-cities

"Fast-food Strikes and Protests Planned for 100 US Cities." The Christian Science Monitor. The Christian Science Monitor, 03 Dec. 2013. Web. 08 Dec. 2013.

Feds Take Further Look into Kendrick Johnson Case:

Finally, 10 months after the mysterious death of 17 year old Kendrick Johnson, a federal investigator is taking a further look into the case.  The teen mysteriously died last December in the gym of Lowndes High School in Valdosta, Georgia.  Kendrick’s parents and family members have been strongly pushing the last 10 months for the case to be reinvestigated.  Kendrick was found dead last December, when his body was discovered in a rolled up gym mat.  His family had been suspicious that someone has murdered Kendrick, and was just trying to cover up the evidence.

To me, it sounds fairly obvious that if you found someone’s body rolled up inside of a gym mat, that they had been murdered.  I don’t think it should have taken authorities almost 10 months to realize that this was no accident.  Although it took a while, Kendrick’s family is still very thankful the case is under investigation.

The body was found on December 11^th, almost 10 months ago, which was wedged into a rolled up wrestling mat in the high school’s gymnasium.  Blood had soaked his face, shirt, pants, hair, and even started to spill out between the mats.  Within just 24 hours of finding the body, the local police department ruled that they thought there had been no foul play.  This seems like way to little time to know for sure if it was an accident or not.  Police should have talked to his friends, family, and teacher to know more about Kendrick before they could make such a curtail judgment call.  There had even been blood stains on a nearby wall, which police said was unrelated to the case.  Shoes that Kendrick were wearing were not even taken as evidence which came as a huge shock.

The family’s lawyer also suspected a violation of civil rights, asking local investigators if they took Kendrick Johnsons case seriously enough.  Authorities replied by saying that they did try their best to find out what happened, but simply couldn’t get enough evidence.  The Lowndes county police ruled that the case was merely nothing but an accident, and put the case aside. Kendrick’s mom later said that her, along with her family, are very happy that the case is being reinvestigated and that all they have ever wanted to know was the truth behind Kendrick’s death.  Police first believed that Kendrick had suffocated while reaching for a sneaker he dropped, but authorities are now thinking otherwise.

Doctors went back after performing an autopsy to perform yet another one to see how Kendrick died, but found his organs had not been replaced.  The body had been stuffed with newspapers, leaving the organs nowhere to be found.  This added onto the family’s suspicions, angering them more to uncover the truth.  Kendrick’s story was spread all over by his family and the news, and was eventually put under reinvestigation which made Kendrick’s family extremely joyful.  The case is just staring to be reinvestigated on the federal level and new clues will soon be discovered.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/31/justice/georgia-gym-mat-death/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

Pearson, Michael, Michael Pearson Reported, Wrote From Atlanta; Victor Blackwell Reported from Valdosta. Devon Sayers, and MaryLynn Ryan Also. "Federal Prosecutor Will Look into Kendrick Johnson Case." CNN. Cable News Network, 31 Oct. 2013. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.

LAX Gunman Targets TSA:

Anthony Ciancia was the man who allegedly opened fire inside of the Los Angeles International Airport this Friday.  Later is was discovered the man didn’t target anyone but the airports TSA agents.  A handwritten letter was later found in a bag at the airport that was written by Ciancia.  The letter that was later discovered was clearly written by Ciancia authorities said, and went into depth about who he was targeting and was said to be a suicide note as well.

The hand written letter was found in a bag at the airport which was said to be dropped by Ciancia.  In the letter, he said that he planned to kill several TSA agents at the airport and said he wanted to “instill fear on your traitorous minds”.  The note addressed his hatred toward TSA officers.

Ciancia entered the airport just after 9am Friday morning wearing dark clothes and armed with a pistol.  Authorities still know nothing about the driver of the vehicle. When Ciancia first entered the airport he shot TSA agent Gerardo Hernandez at point blank range, then fired again, killing him.  Hernandez was the first TSA agent killed since 9/11, when the group was formed.  He then walked through crowds of people in panic, asking them if they were TSA or not.  Police made it to Ciancia where they shot him in the leg, then in the head.  He is still in critical condition at a local hospital.  If Ciancia lives, and is found guilty, he will face life in prison or even the death penalty depending on what the verdict is.

The note that was written by ciancia and found in a bag at the scene resembled a suicide note.  The note also shared Ciancias hatred toward the TSA and explained how he didn’t want to hurt anyone else.  The thing that doesn’t make sense is why he had this strong hatred toward the TSA in the first place.  What had they done to enrage him so much when they were only trying to make people safe?

Ciancias background is being investigated and they already know a lot about the man.  Hopefully he makes it out alive and goes through a fair trial.  Then he will receive the penalty he deserves and will be locked up for the remainder of his life.

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-lax-shooting-gunman-kill-tsa-agents-20131103,0,6151093.story?track=rss#axzz2jcYZSvHo

Mather, Kate. "LAX Shooting: Gunman Wanted to Kill Several TSA Agents, Complaint Says." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 03 Nov. 2013. Web. 03 Nov. 2013.

Many Killed as Thai Ferry Sinks:

Near a tourist resort named Pattaya, just off the coast of Thailand and overcrowd ferry boat sank.  So far, 6 people have died and another 15 people were seriously injured.  Three Thais, two Russians, and a Chinese were killed after the ferry sank.  Among the people injured there is a Russian boy who is in critical condition.

The ferry is has two stories, to hold a large number of tourists, but this can be really unsafe in the event of an emergency.  The ferry had engine issues which cause the boat to sink while off the coast of Thailand.  The ferry had several people on board, making it hard for crew members and emergency boats to be able to help everyone on board.  In addition, there weren’t even close to as much life vests of the ferry as there should have been.

Some people had to hang onto coolers, ice containers or even parts of the boat before rescuers could make it.  Some weren’t as lucky and didn’t have anything to hold onto, and were stuck treading water.  The boat not having enough life vests makes it seem like they don’t really care about the safety of the people on board and only care about making a profit by packing their boat full of people.  All of these boats and ferries need to have more than enough safety vests and other equipment needed to ensure that nothing like this should happen again.  There should even be a law that says that they should have to have enough safety equipment for everyone or they shouldn’t be allowed to go out.

Television cameras were capturing the moment as safety boats were taking people to safety.  There were several ambulances on shore helping those who were in need.  Some people weren’t saved soon enough, and six were killed from the accident, leaving many more injured.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-24796181

"Several Killed as Thai Ferry Sinks off Pattaya." BBC News. BBC, 03 Nov. 2013. Web. 03 Nov. 2013.