Notable deaths of 2017 -- Hugh Hefner, Edith Windsor, Charles Manson,Tagbo, Jerry Sutol O, and others we lost this year

 

Beloved celebrities, athletes that transcended generations and innocent people gunned down in two of the most horrific mass shootings in modern United States history were all taken from us in 2017.

One of the first notable losses of the year came in January with the passing of legendary actress Mary Tyler Moore. The television icon who starred in "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "The Dick Van Dyke Show" was one of the most beloved actresses in modern history. She was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in her early thirties and went on to become an advocate for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Female pioneers who helped shape our history were lost this year, including Clare Hollingworth, a veteran war correspondent widely known for breaking the news that WWII had started, died at the age of 105 in January.

Norma McCorvey was also among the year's deaths. She was the person behind the anonymous "Jane Roe" in the landmark Roe v. Wade case, which ultimately led to the legalization of abortion in the United States in the 1970s. McCorvey eventually split from pro-choice activists and joined the pro-life movement to advocate against abortion, despite her role in its legalization.

Amber alert issued for Houston baby after mother stabbed to death

Authorities have issued an Amber Alert for an infant girl in Houston who was reported missing after her mother was found fatally stabbed. Police initially believed the infant girl was with her father, but Houston police said later that they had found the father in San Antonio, but the 6-week-old baby was still missing.

Houston police said Thomas Bernardez "stated he was not involved in the murder."

Pastor to give money from sale of 709-carat "Peace Diamond" to the poor

An African pastor's miracle discovery of a massive uncut diamond has just been sold at auction so the community leader can bring clean water and medical supplies to his village, CBS Denver reports. The 709-carat "Peace Diamond" was discovered in the village of Koryardu in March.

The diamond's owner, Pastor Emmanuel Momoh, vowed to sell the gem in order bring the struggling village the relief it needed.

"The Peace Diamond will greatly improve the lives of our people as it will bring clean water, electricity, schools, medical facilities, bridges and roads to our villages and the Kono District," Momoh said in a statement, obtained by Forbes.

After an initial offer for the world's 14th largest diamond was rejected by Sierra Leone's government in May, the stone went back on the auction block and sold for $6.5 million in New York on Dec. 4. The hefty price tag, which is actually $1.3 million less than the offer in May, was paid by British jeweler Graff Diamonds.

Eric Lefkofsky: One Of The Most Unique Entrepreneurs Of Our Time

Eric Lefkofsky is a Jewish-American entrepreneur who is the co-founder and CEO of Tempus. It was his desire to help people who suffer from cancer that motivated him to take part in Tempus, which is a company that has made it its mission to change the way that cancer is dealt with. They are continuing to do so and have already done so by creating a database of information that draws from the treatment of previous cancer patients. In doing so, new patients can receive better focused treatment because their physicians have the kind of information in their hands that allows them to make decisions based on solid scientific data rather than taking shots in the dark.

World 100m champion Justin Gatlin caught up in fresh doping scandal involving his coach and agent

Anti-doping and athletics chiefs are investigating claims that members of world 100 metres champion Justin Gatlin’s team offered to sell performance-enhancing drugs .

The Athletics Integrity Unit and the US Anti-Doping Agency are seeking urgent answers from Gatlin’s camp after it was claimed his coach Dennis Mitchell and agent Robert Wagner offered to supply testosterone and human-growth hormone to an undercover reporter.

The Daily Telegraph newspaper alleged that, in an undercover investigation, Mitchell and Wagner had offered to supply banned drugs for an actor training for a film.

Undercover reporters visited Gatlin's Florida training camp and they claim the pair offered to supply and administer testosterone and human growth hormone.

22-year-old mauled to death by her pit bulls while taking them for a walk

A 22-year-old Virginia woman was mauled to death by her two pit bulls while taking them for a walk near her home. They then stood guard over her body after killing her.

Bethany Lynn Stephens was taking her dogs out for a walk in Goochland, in the US state of Virginia, when they attacked her. Bethany’s dad called the emergency services at 8pm on Thursday after she hadn’t returned from walking the dogs. Then he went looking for her in the area where she often walked the dogs and found the disturbing scene. Bethany was found with horrific head and throat injuries while the dogs stood guarding her body aggressively.

More than 6,500 inmates are linked to increase in smuggling of drugs, weapons and phones into prisons

More than 6,500 prisoners linked to organised crime gangs are helping orchestrate smuggling rackets behind bars, a new study has found.
One in every 13 of England and Wales' 85,500 inmates are involved in, or have connections to, gangs sneaking drugs, weapons and mobile phones over the walls.
The figure, calculated by the National Crime Agency and the Prison Service, reveals for the first time the scale of a problem fuelling a surge in violence and disorder in jails.
Justice Secretary David Lidington used a keynote speech yesterday to warn that smuggling gangs were attacking prisons to exploit the 'captive market'.
Illegal operations to sneak contraband into jails had changed from 'crude and opportunistic' to 'sophisticated and systematic' – including the use of new technologies including smartphones and drones.
He said: 'The fact is, our prisons are facing a clear and present danger from well-organised individuals and criminal networks.
'These are networks that are every bit as professionally operated as a legitimate business but they happen to be engaged in criminal activity.

Amtrak issues statement on its train derailment that killed at least six people and injured 100 others on its first day of service

Yesterday an Amtrak passenger train derailed outside Tacoma, Washington on a new service route. Authorities said at least six people were killed and more than 100 people were injured and taken to hospitals.

Amtrak President and Co-CEO Richard Anderson said they will "do everything" in their power to support passengers, crew members and their families in the train derailment.

Read the full statement below...

Victim of horror crash which killed six people was drug dealer who once led police on terrifying 120mph chase

A victim of a horror crash which claimed the lives of six people was a drug dealer who once led police on a terrifying 120mph chase.

Kasar Jehangir was in a high-powered Audi S3 with three friends which slammed head-on into a taxi in Birmingham on Sunday.

The 25-year-old and pals Tauqeer ‘Tokx’ Hussain, 26, and Mohammed Fasha 30, died in the crash.

Taxi driver Imtiaz Mohammed, 33, and his two passengers - a man aged 42 and woman aged 43 - were also killed.

Zakkria Khan, 22, who was in the Audi, survived the crash and remains in a serious but stable condition in hospital.

It emerged tonight that Jehangir had only recently been released from prison.

Breast Cancer in Young Women

Breast cancer is more common in older adults. At age 30, a woman’s risk of getting the disease is 1 in 227. By age 60, a woman has a 1 in 28 chance of receiving this diagnosis. Although the odds are much lower for younger women, they can and do get breast cancer. More than 13,000 women ages 40 or under will be diagnosed this year.

When breast cancer is diagnosed at a young age, it’s more likely to be aggressive and to spread quickly. Young women may not get a diagnosis right away because many organizations don’t recommend regular mammogram screenings until age 45 or 50. It’s also harder for doctors to find breast cancer in young women than in older women because younger women have denser breasts. This means that they have more breast tissue than fat tissue. Tumors don’t show up as well on mammograms in women with dense breasts.

Read on to learn about some of the unique challenges young women with breast cancer face and what to do if you’ve been diagnosed.

Jazz Superstar Keely Smith Dies at 89

Jazz superstar Keely Smith, best known for her immortal duets with her late husband Louis Prima, has died of heart failure at 89.

Smith began her professional career her hometown of Norfolk, Virginia when Prima hired her to sing with his band while she still a teenager.

Smith was known for her cool demeanor, her deep smoky voice, and distinct black pageboy haircut, a counter-balance to the high-energy trumpet-playing Prima.

Kaká announces his retirement, wrapping an elite pro soccer career

aká announced his retirement Sunday, officially wrapping an elite pro soccer career that included a final stop helping Orlando City make the jump to Major League Soccer.

The 35-year-old midfielder said in October he would not renew his contract with Orlando City, passing on an offer that would pay him less than the original $7.167 million deal he first signed when the Lions were joining MLS.

Kaká left open the possibility he would play one more year in his native Brazil, take a year off before playing again or retire. More recently, he was linked to a possible return to Italian club A.C. Milan.

He announced his decision to wrap up his career as a player on his social media accounts, posting a picture of himself kneeling on a pitch next to a soccer ball while wearing a T-shirt that read, “I belong to Jesus.”

93-Year-Old Woman Spends 2 Nights In Jail After Eviction From Senior Housing

Florida authorities released an elderly woman from jail on Thursday after police arrested her for allegedly not paying rent at the senior housing community where she had lived since 2011.

Juanita Fitzgerald spent her 94th birthday on Friday in a motel room, The Orlando Sentinel reports. The day before, she had been released from Florida’s Lake County Jail, which is where police took her after she was evicted from her home at the National Church Residences’ Franklin House in Eustis. The facility accused her of refusing to leave.

Clad in an orange jumpsuit, Fitzgerald told WFTV reporters earlier this week that she did not understand why she was being evicted.

Mystery swirls around powerful North Korea official as Hwang Pyong-so remains missing

A North Korean official widely deemed as the nation’s second most powerful figure has been missing for some time, raising speculation that he has been executed.

The apparent disappearance of Vice Marshal Hwang Pyong-so was first reported in November, with South Korea’s National Intelligence Service telling lawmakers in Seoul that he’d been “punished” for having an “impure” attitude about North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

George Zimmerman threatens violence against Jay-Z over Trayvon Martin documentary

Killer neighbourhood vigilante, George Zimmerman who shot to death an unarmed black teenager, Trayvon Martins, is upset about Trayvon Martins documentary Jay Z is making, so he's threatening the rapper with violence.

Jay Z is currently working on a documentary about the shooting of Trayvon and all that came after. George Zimmerman has been unable to hide his displeasure with the documentary and he's being very vocal about it.

the REAL TRUTH about UFOs? Shock theory on where they actually come from

All unidentified flying objects seen over the past 70 years were secret Government experimental craft, according to an expert in the unexplained who researched the subject.

Author Mark Pilkington said agencies like the CIA in the USA were behind a huge double bluff, and were happy the public believed they were alien craft as it took the heat off the top-secret projects that were really going on.

The British author claims the strange craft sighted around the world really do exist – but they are not aliens.

Flying saucers and unidentified aircraft are actually secret technology being developed mostly by the US, he claims.

Pentagon admits running secret UFO investigation for five years

The Pentagon has acknowledged that it ran a secret UFO investigation program for five years, wrapping up in 2012 when US defence officials shifted attention and funding to other priorities.

The New York Times reported on Saturday that the program, tasked with investigating sightings of unidentified flying objects, or UFOs, ran from 2007 to 2012 with $22m in annual funding secretly tucked away in US defence department budgets worth hundreds of billions of dollars.
Its initial funding came largely at the request of former Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid, the Nevada Democrat long known for his enthusiasm for space phenomena, the newspaper said.

Yet according to its backers, the program remains in existence and officials continue to investigate UFO episodes brought to their attention by service members, the newspaper said.

Former Navy pilot describes bizarre encounter with aircraft with 'no plumes, wings, or rotors' that outran his fighter jet

Commander David Fravor recently spoke to The New York Times about an encounter he had with a strange aircraft over the Pacific Ocean in 2004.
He said the whole thing "weirded" him out.
Fravor's account came on the heels of another Times report that the Pentagon spent $22 million in recent years on a shadowy program to investigate UFOs.

Commander David Fravor's colleagues made fun of him after learning he encountered what appeared to be a UFO during a standard training mission off the coast of San Diego in 2004.

Fravor was in his F/A-18F fighter jet when a radio operator asked him to investigate a mysterious, white floating object hovering over the sea, he told The New York Times. He made a beeline for the 40-foot, oval-shaped object. But as he approached, it changed course and disappeared.

Jermain Defoe's bond with seriously ill boy touched the nation: 'Bradley only had a short life but he changed so many lives... including mine'

When the shortlist of contenders for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award was announced last month, many were outraged that Jermain Defoe was not on it.

He deserved recognition, those campaigning on his behalf insisted, because of the heartbreakingly touching friendship and compassion he had shown to Bradley Lowery, a brave little boy who was dying of a rare form of cancer.

Defoe did not join the chorus of resentment. He was grateful for what people were saying about him but that was as far as it went.
‘If Bradley’s family were happy with what I did that’s enough for me,’ he says. ‘God sees everything. Look, if I won the Sports Personality of the Year and I’m standing there with a trophy, it’s not going to bring Bradley back.’

Manchester City star Raheem Sterling is 'called a n***** and kicked repeatedly by fan who "waited for him" outside club training ground' hours before starring in victory over Tottenham Hotspur

   
Raheem Sterling has been racially abused and kicked repeatedly outside Manchester City's training ground, according to reports.
The footballer was allegedly called a 'n*****' by a man who appeared to be waiting for him at the players' entrance.
Sources said the 23-year-old had arrived in his car when he was confronted by a volley of abuse.

CORRUPT BILLIONAIRE: THE UNTOLD WEALTH OF FINANCE/ACCOUNT DIRECTOR OF MIN. OF POWER, WORKS & HOUSING; IBRAHIM TUMSAH WHO IS RICHER THAN FOUR NORTHERN GOVERNORS

  

Whoever carved the name ‘evil servant’ to replace civil servant had Mr Ibrahim Musa Tumsah in mind when he was crafting it. Avalanche of facts in pictorial and documented evidences exclusively gotten by Secret Reporters revealed that all the years that Tumsah has been serving in Ministry of Power Works and Housing as Director of Finance and Accounts were simply to amass the general wealth of the nation to himself and family.
We can report authoritatively that the Director who earn less than Five Hundred Thousand Naira a month has properties splashed all over Abuja, Kaduna and Yobe where he comes from, using his name, brother, children and wives to acquire them.
Some of his multi billion Naira properties discovered by us are:
A quarry plant located in Kuje, Abuja.
Apartment located at No. 34, Euphrates Street, Wuse 2, Abuja.
Apartment located at No. 27, Cairo Crescent, Wuse 2, Abuja.
Twin Duplexes located at No. 5, Sirasso Crescent, Wuse Zone 7, Abuja.
Two houses located at FCDA Quarters, No. 4, Alexandra Street, Wuse 2, Abuja.
A leather manufacturing factory located at No. 22, I.T Igbani Street, Jabi, Abuja.
An egg crates manufacturing factory located at Kakuri Makera, Kaduna.
A large farm located along Biu-Damaturu Road (Gujba) in Yobe State.
A gigantic mansion at Degel-Gobarau Road, Kaduna.

Hugging Babies Born Addicted to Opioids Is a Powerful Treatment

Cuddling newborns is making headway in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) across the country as a crucial part of the treatment plan for babies born addicted to opioids.

A baby is born addicted to opioids every 25 minutes, adding up to more than 21,000 babies each year, a study published in the Journal of Perinatology found.

Inevitably, each baby must endure severe symptoms of withdrawal. This is known as neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS).

Symptoms begin anywhere from 24 to 72 hours after birth. The most common symptoms include visible tremors, piercing screams, vomiting, difficulty breathing and sleeping, fever, sweating, and the inability to eat.

“Maybe six months ago, I was with an infant whose mother was on methamphetamine for the entire pregnancy,” David Deutchman, NICU volunteer at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, told Healthline. “The baby was miserable, and there’s only so much methadone that you can give them to ease their symptoms.”

10 Tips This Sex Therapist Finds Herself Repeating (Sex tips you can actually benefit from)

I have met so many people in my sex therapy practice who long for ‘perfect’, passionate sex — like the kind in the movies, where no one’s hair gets messy and everyone has ecstatic orgasms.

But, that isn’t realistic. That’s Hollywood.

In real life, sex can be confusing, disheveled, and even disappointing. People may feel scared to have sex with their significant others, frustrated about not doing it regularly, or too anxious about whether they’re doing it right.

Often, by the time they visit my office, my clients are also feeling a bit angry. Which is completely normal. Having frustrations is common when expectations aren’t met, and, after having too many fights or avoiding the subject altogether, most people have forgotten how to communicate and hope professional advice can help.

Here are 10 of the most common tips I find myself giving clients to help achieve and live out those feel-good moments we all see on TV.

1. Use your senses
Use your five senses (yes, all five) to focus on your own body sensations. Abandon the performance-based mindset and adopt a pleasure-based approach instead. This helps reduce that kind of sexual pressure most people complain about when it comes to sex-pectations. Practicing this can help you learn to eliminate fears that arise from believing you must know everything about sexual intimacy.

reasons burglars target your home

There's a lot more to protecting your home than turning on a security alarm each night.
Because how you see your home may not be the same way a potential burglar sees your home, the consumer finance website Credit Donkey has outlined a number of ways that your home may be making you an easy target for burglary.

According to Credit Donkey some houses are seen as better targets than others and homeowners can likely change that by just taking some extra precautions.

Some of the reasons that Credit Donkey gives for burglary activity are things that most of us don’t even think about or can really control, like living on a corner or near an alley way. Most of us do work during the day, which we wouldn’t want to exactly change.
Heck, some or most of these things might apply to a great deal of you, like the few weirdos who don’t own dogs.

Pharma billionaire and wife found dead in 'suspicious' case

Canadian police are investigating the mysterious deaths of the billionaire founder of Canadian pharmaceutical firm Apotex, Barry Sherman, and his wife, Honey, who were found dead in their Toronto mansion on Friday.

The couple was found dead after police responded to a medical call just before noon local time at their home in an affluent section of north-east Toronto.