U.S. Army recruiters falling behind on goals
WASHINGTON – The Army signed up 27 percent fewer recruits in February than it had expected, putting it behind schedule for reaching its full-year recruiting goal, officials said Thursday. The Army had 1,936 fewer recruits than its February target of 7,050. It was the first time it had fallen short of a monthly target since May 2000 and is another sign that attracting young men and women has become more difficult. An Army spokesman said the active-duty Army has signed up about 94 percent of the recruits it had planned to have at this point in the budget year, which began Oct. 1.
Agency plans passenger screening
The government will begin enhanced computerized background checks on some airline passengers in August, the head of the Transportation Security Administration announced Thursday. The passenger screening program, dubbed “Secure Flight,” is meant to replace a plan that never got to the testing phase because of criticism that it gave the government access to too much personal information. He said the agency plans to start checking passengers in real time Aug. 19, beginning with two airlines. A TSA official said the two airlines have not been selected yet.
California: Nun says she won’t pay
A nun who spent the past 18 months in prison for defacing a missile site is scheduled to be released today, but she may face another confrontation with prosecutors for refusing to pay $3,000 in restitution. Jackie Hudson, 70, was convicted in April 2003 of obstructing national defense and damaging government property. She and two other nuns had poured blood on a Minuteman III silo in Colorado in October 2002, hit nearby railroad tracks with a hammer and then sat down to await arrest. Hudson is in a federal prison in Victorville.
Chimps at sanctuary attack visitors
Several chimpanzees broke from their cages at Animal Haven Ranch near Bakersfield Thursday and attacked two visitors, seriously injuring them, authorities said. One of those injured was hospitalized in critical condition, officials said. A doctor said the chimps chewed most of one victim’s face off and that he would require extensive surgery in an attempt to reattach his nose. The other victim suffered a bite wound to the hand, she said. Sanctuary workers shot and killed two of the chimps.
Connecticut: Yale boosts aid
Yale University increased its financial aid for lower-income families Thursday, the latest move by the Ivy League to attract students who had seen the schools as out of their price range. Beginning next year, families making less than $45,000 will no longer have to pay tuition for their children, and those earning between $45,000 and $60,000 will see their required contributions drop an average of 50 percent, Yale said.
Nevada: Mayor chats about gin
Las Vegas’ mayor made no apologies Thursday after being criticized for extolling gin to a class of fourth-graders. Mayor Oscar Goodman said he was just being himself when he told the students that drinking was one of his hobbies and that the one thing he would want if stranded on an island is a bottle of gin. Asked later by a reporter if he had a drinking problem, Goodman answered, “Oh, absolutely not. I love to drink.” The school’s principal called the comments inappropriate but said the students did not appear to understand. “It just went over their heads,” she said.
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