National News for March 28 - April 10


April 13, 2009, midnight | By Alisa Lu | 14 years, 11 months ago


This is not original reporting. All information has been compiled from CNN, BBC and the Wall Street Journal. Silver Chips Online posts this news summary to provide readers with a forum for discussion.

Detroit, Mich.
March 29 - General Motors (GM) Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Richard Wagoner resigned under pressure from the Obama Administration. After panning GM for failing to turn itself around earlier this month, the administration asked Wagoner to step aside during a meeting on March 29. Former GM President and Chief Operating Officer Fritz Henderson will take over as Chairman and CEO of the struggling automaker. The administration has given GM 60 days to create a plan to prove that the business can be revived. If GM fails to come up with a viable plan, the government will stop giving federal money and allow the company to file for bankruptcy.

New York City, N.Y.
April 1 - The Central Broadcasting Station (CBS) announced that "Guiding Light," the world's longest-running TV and radio drama, will broadcast its last episode later this year due to decreased ratings. Over the course of its 72-year-long run, "Guiding Light" has broadcasted over 15,700 episodes and won 69 Daytime Emmy awards. The soap opera started as a radio serial in 1937 on the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) before the television was even widely available, then changed its format to a TV drama and moved to CBS in 1952. The show's producer, Procter and Gamble, is still trying to find a cable network that will allow the show to continue. One episode featuring the marriage of supercouple Luke Spencer and Laura Webber drew over 30 million viewers and remains the most-viewed soap opera episode in American history.

Binghamton, N.Y.
April 3 - A gunman entered an American Civic Association building and killed 13 people before committing suicide. Vietnamese immigrant Jiverly Wong, 41, was allegedly upset over losing his job and his poor English skills and entered the building where he once took English lessons to seek revenge. Wong allegedly entered the building through the front door, shot the two receptionists and killed 14 others in a classroom before turning the gun on himself. Receptionist Shirley DeLucia survived by pretending to be dead after Wong shot her. DeLucia then called the police and stayed on the line for more 30 minutes as the police evaluated the situation.

Des Moines, Iowa
April 3 - The Iowa Supreme Court unanimously declared that the passage in Iowan law that limits marriage to a man and a woman is unconstitutional. This decision reaffirms the ruling of a lower court that had ruled that the six same-sex couples from Polk County should be allowed to marry. According to Polk County Attorney John Sarcone, no appeals will be filed and same-sex couples will be allowed to marry 21 days after the Supreme Court's ruling. Same-sex marriage opponents have also said that they will not appeal the ruling to the United States Supreme Court and will instead ask for a constitutional referendum that will give voters the opportunity to decide the fate of same-sex marriage.



Tags: Roundup Obama

Alisa Lu. Alisa is an (almost) junior in the magnet, which is not a good thing, since it means she will be looking like a zombie for the next few years. While not obsessing over school, she can be found on fictionpress.com reading sappy stories and then … More »

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