World / Nations Briefs November 12, 2011
Coeur d'Alene Press | UPDATED 13 years, 6 months AGO
Obama spends Veterans Day with troops, hoops
CORONADO, Calif. - Soaking in one of the most spectacular settings of his time in office, President Barack Obama pledged an unwavering commitment to veterans Friday from the deck of an aircraft carrier doubling, for one night, as a gleaming basketball court.
The president's patriotic message to the military crowd, while welcomed, was secondary to the scene itself. The players from two storied basketball programs, No. 1 North Carolina and Michigan State, competed aboard the USS Carl Vinson in the open air, in the dusk of a perfect San Diego evening.
Basketball star power was on hand in the form of Magic Johnson and James Worthy, former teammates on the Los Angeles Lakers and alums of Michigan State and North Carolina, respectively.
The first-ever Carrier Classic gave Obama a chance to honor troops and pay tribute on the 95,000-ton Navy warship that buried Osama bin Laden's body at sea. For the hoops-loving president, topping it all off with a college basketball game played outside and on water was surely unforgettable.
"Every American citizen can make a solemn pledge today that they will find some opportunity to provide support to our troops, to those who are still active duty, to our national guard, to our reservists and to our veterans," Obama told the crowd before the game got under way.
Deaths at three Occupy camps boosts pressure
OAKLAND, Calif. - Leaders across the country felt increasing pressure Friday to shut down Occupy encampments after two men died in shootings and another was found dead from a suspected combination of drugs and carbon monoxide poisoning caused by a propane heater inside a tent.
Citing a strain on crime-fighting resources, police first pleaded with and then ordered Occupy Oakland protesters to leave their encampment at the City Hall plaza where a man was shot and killed late Thursday.
The Oakland Police Officer's Association, which represents rank-and-file police, issued an open letter saying the camp is pulling officers away from crime-plagued neighborhoods.
"With last night's homicide, in broad daylight, in the middle of rush hour, Frank Ogawa Plaza is no longer safe," the letter said. "Please leave peacefully, with your heads held high, so we can get police officers back to work fighting crime in Oakland neighborhoods."
Late in the afternoon, police officers acting at the direction of Mayor Jean Quan distributed fliers to protesters warning that the camp violates the law and must be disbanded immediately. The notices warned campers they would face arrest if tents and other materials were not removed, although the warnings did not say by when.
Shots fired near White House, assault rifle found
WASHINGTON - Police closed a stretch of Constitution Avenue near the White House Friday night to investigate reports of gunfire in the area.
Sgt. David Schlosser of the U.S. Park Police said the White House did not appear to have been the focus of the incident.
Secret Service spokesman Edwin Donovan said witnesses heard shots and saw two vehicles racing on Constitution Avenue toward 17th Street, and one of the vehicles was abandoned at 23rd and Constitution.
Witnesses saw the driver get out and run across the Roosevelt Bridge toward Arlington, Va., Donovan said. He said an AK-47 assault rifle was recovered but no one is in custody.
Police were looking for bullet holes and had not confirmed that shots were actually fired.
Mexico's top Cabinet secretary dies in crash
MEXICO CITY - Mexico's top Cabinet secretary, Francisco Blake Mora, a key figure in the country's battle with drug cartels, died Friday in a helicopter crash that President Felipe Calderon said was probably an accident. Blake Mora, 45, was the second interior minister, the No. 2 post in the government, to die in an air crash during Calderon's administration.
Despite some tendencies to suspect a hit on the top officials leading Calderon's offensive against organized crime, the crash that killed Blake Mora and seven others may have had to do with bad weather. A Learjet that slammed into a Mexico City street in 2008, killing former interior secretary Juan Camilo Mourino and 15 others, was blamed on pilot error.
11-11-11 drives many to tie knot, place bets
In years to come, babies born Friday should have no trouble remembering the date - and in some cases, the exact minute - of their birth.
The day marked the 11th day of the 11th month of 2011. From China to New York, people celebrated the convergence of 11s with a splash by placing bets, tying the knot or making a wish.
Some babies were born right at 11:11 a.m., giving them 1's across the board for their time of birth. In Mount Holly, N.J., Jacob Anthony Saydeh's birth made Veterans Day even more memorable for his military parents.
- The Associated Press