Topic: Topeka

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Joplin tornado: Will it be one of the Top 5 costliest?

Joplin tornado, as Sunday's twister has come to be called, is blamed for more than 100 fatalities in the southwest Missouri community. It's the latest in a string of tornadoes this spring. Though hurricanes and earthquakes tend to do more financial damage per event, tornadoes and related events have been responsible for an average 57 percent of all insured catastrophe losses in the United States since 1953, according to a 2009 study by insurance credit-rating service A.M. Best. Not counting the Joplin tornado, where damage assessments have only begun, here’s a look at the five most financially devastating tornadoes in the US, according to the A.M. Best study and federal estimates (reported in 2011 dollars):
April Fool's Day history: five best-ever pranks

April Fool's Day history has been marked by many good pranks, but here are five of the most creative ever.
Why is the Westboro Baptist Church picketing Elizabeth Edwards' funeral?

More known for picketing funerals of US soldiers who have died in the Middle East, Westboro Baptist Church has vowed to picket the funeral of Elizabeth Edwards Saturday in Raleigh, N.C.

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Project Glass taken out for test run by Google co-founder: report

Project Glass, augmented reality lenses from Google, is already being tested by Google employees, including company co-founder Sergei Brin. 
Santorum takes Kansas in a rout, Romney strong in Wyoming

Rick Santorum's strong win in the Kansas caucuses Saturday will give him most of the delegates there. Now it's on to primary elections in Alabama and Mississippi next Tuesday.
Caucuses in Kansas, Wyoming next for GOP hopefuls

Mitt Romney aims to add to his substantial lead in the delegate count, but Rick Santorum is strong in Kansas. All the Republican presidential candidates are concentrating on Tuesday's primaries in Mississippi and Alabama.
Katrina in the Midwest: Tornado-struck town begins road to recovery

Harrisburg, Ill., hit by a tornado Wednesday, was spared by the massive storm system that spawned tornadoes across the East Friday. Instead, it started the process of healing.
Deadly tornadoes hit Branson, Mo., Illinois, and Kansas (+video)

A tornado killed one person near Branson, Mo., overnight. Three more deaths were reported Wednesday morning in Harrisburg, Illinois. Harveyville, Kansas, was also struck by a tornado. Warnings were issued Wednesday morning for Kentucky.
My 'Millennials' generation is busy reimagining a life of ethics

The Millennial Generation is less religious than either the boomers or even Gen-Xers were at our age. But don't be misled: Though we may go to church only on Christmas or celebrate Ramadan but skip the fasting, we are busily and earnestly engaged in reimagining the ethical life.
Free speech covers tweets: Gov. Sam Brownback apologizes to Kansas teen

Gov. Sam Brownback apologized for an overzealous staff. A Kansas teen was told to apologize to Brownback after she issued a disparaging tweet. She now has more than 9,000 Twitter followers.
Why Topeka, Kan., repealed its ban on domestic violence

The move was part of a successful bid to force the county district attorney to prosecute misdemeanor domestic-violence charges, which he wasn't doing because of budget cuts. For now, the crisis is averted, but the deeper budget problem for cities nationwide endures.
Letters to the Editor – Weekly Issue of October 3, 2011

Readers write in with responses to the Monitor's recent cover-story profile of pro-life advocate Charmaine Yoest.
Hundreds of same-sex couples say 'I do' in New York

Sunday was the first day gay couples could be legally married in New York. Hundreds lined up to say "I do." New York brings to six the number of states where such marriages can be performed.
Change Agent
Descendants teach positive lessons of infamous 'Plessy v. Ferguson'

Descendants of the two parties in Plessy v. Ferguson, which established the notorious 'separate but equal' doctrine that legally justified segregation, have joined to create a foundation to advocate for better racial harmony.
Joplin tornado: Will it be one of the Top 5 costliest?

Joplin tornado, as Sunday's twister has come to be called, is blamed for more than 100 fatalities in the southwest Missouri community. It's the latest in a string of tornadoes this spring. Though hurricanes and earthquakes tend to do more financial damage per event, tornadoes and related events have been responsible for an average 57 percent of all insured catastrophe losses in the United States since 1953, according to a 2009 study by insurance credit-rating service A.M. Best. Not counting the Joplin tornado, where damage assessments have only begun, here’s a look at the five most financially devastating tornadoes in the US, according to the A.M. Best study and federal estimates (reported in 2011 dollars):
Terry Jones: How free speech and Quran burning can lead to violence

The violent reaction to Terry Jones burning the Quran at his tiny Florida church continued to spread Saturday, and with it questions about freedom of expression with murderous results.
April Fool's Day history: five best-ever pranks

April Fool's Day history has been marked by many good pranks, but here are five of the most creative ever.
Feds to investigate civil-rights claims against L.A. bus authority

Activists in L.A. say the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has discriminated against minorities and the poor by cutting their bus routes first. The MTA says it welcomes the federal audit.
What recourse now to Westboro Baptist Church's rude protests?

With the US Supreme Court ruling in its favor, Westboro Baptist Church plans more controversial protests at funerals and cultural events. Counterspeech and counterprotests are best responses, say activists.
Supreme Court: 'hurtful speech' of Westboro Baptist Church is protected

Supreme Court Justice Alito is the lone dissenter in the 8-to-1 ruling on free-speech principles, saying the conduct of the Westboro Baptist Church 'caused petitioner great injury.'
How Tucson kept Westboro Baptist Church protests out of town

A Westboro Baptist Church spokeswoman is expected to get air time on two radio talk shows in exchange for the called-off protests. Critics say the church will get more exposure that way, but one of the talk-show hosts says the deal was worth it.
Funeral protest: Arizona rallies to foil Westboro Baptist Church

Funeral protest plans by Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas, have been met with defiance in Arizona. Tuscon residents say they'll block the protesters from getting to the mourners of Saturday's mass shooting. The state legislature has also passed a law to help.
The Confession

John Grisham does not disappoint in his latest thriller about an innocent man hours away from execution on death row.
Westboro picketers outnumbered at Elizabeth Edwards funeral

Members of the controversial Westboro Baptist Church picketed the funeral of Elizabeth Edwards Saturday. But they were vastly outnumbered by a “human buffer” singing Christmas carols.
Why is the Westboro Baptist Church picketing Elizabeth Edwards' funeral?

More known for picketing funerals of US soldiers who have died in the Middle East, Westboro Baptist Church has vowed to picket the funeral of Elizabeth Edwards Saturday in Raleigh, N.C.
What Supreme Court justices asked at Westboro Baptist Church hearing

Albert Snyder says Westboro Baptist Church protesters ruined his son's funeral. The church says it has a right to free speech. The justices asked a lot of hypothetical questions about what constitutes allowable speech.
Supreme Court: Can Westboro Baptist Church protest military funerals?

Supreme Court to hear free speech case pitting a bereaved father against the Westboro Baptist Church, which held an antigay protest near the funeral of his son, a marine killed in Iraq.
Free speech: Westboro church Supreme Court case tests 1st Amendment

A Supreme Court case challenging the Westboro Baptist Church anti-gay protests will test the limits of free speech, with First Amendment implications for other forms of expression such as Quran burning and racist demonstrations.