Bond set for captors of disabled adults locked in filthy room

Bond was set $2.5 million each on Monday for two of the captors who allegedly locked four mentally disabled adults in a filthy Philadelphia basement in order to cash in on disability checks, authorities said.

The ringleader, convicted murderer Linda Weston, 50, was being arraigned on Monday morning, Philadelphia Police spokeswoman Jillian Russell said. Police over the weekend had spelled her last name Westen.

"There were a couple water bottles but no food or anything," Green said. "There was a bucket they used to urinate in."

Feds Find L.A. Provides Inferior Education To Black Students

A 19-month civil rights investigation of the Los Angeles Unified School District found that the district failed to provide an equal education to English-learners and black students, resulting in wide academic disparities, the U.S. Department of Education announced Tuesday.

Only 35 Black Calculus Students In All Oregon High Schools

According to a U.S. Department of Education survey somewhere between seven and 35 Black high school students took calculus in Oregon schools during the 2009-2010 school year.

These startling low numbers and other statistics are prompting district leaders to acknowledge and reevaluate ways to reverse the inferior educational outcomes of African Americans in the state.

Lowe’s Closes 20 Stores, Cuts 1,950 Jobs

Home improvement giant Lowe’s Cos. said today it will close 20 underperforming stores in 15 states and cut 1,950 jobs.

Half of the locations closed yesterday while the others will be shut in a month, the Mooresville, N.C. company said today in a statement. Lowe’s, the No. 2 building supply chain after Home Depot, said the move will allow it to focus on more-profitable locations.

Before the closures Lowe’s operated 1,725 stores.

Kenyan Army Invades Somalia

Kenyan tanks, artillery and hundreds of fighters are moving through militant territory in Somalia, residents said Monday.


Fighter jets and helicopters have been flying overhead since Kenyan forces moved en masse into Somalia on Sunday. The invasion came one day after Kenyan defense officials said the country has the right to defend itself against al-Shabab militants after a string of kidnappings inside Kenya. Four Europeans have been abducted and one killed.

Medicare will cut Social Security’s “raise” in 2012

After two years without an inflation adjustment, the Social Security Administration is expected to announce a 2012 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) of more than 3 percent next week. That would be a sizable raise in this economy, and very welcome news to seniors hit hard by rising costs, slumping home equity and very low returns on fixed-income investments.


But the good COLA news will come with a nasty kicker. Many seniors will see a substantial part of the COLA consumed by a higher premium for Medicare Part B (doctor visits and outpatient services), which usually is deducted from Social Security payments. The situation sheds light on the complex interaction of Social Security COLAs and Medicare premiums — and it underscores the critical importance of the Super Committee deficit deliberations on possible cuts to future COLAs.

“Social Security does not add a penny to the deficit and it shouldn’t be part of the deficit discussions,” said Nancy Altman, co-director of the Strengthen Social Security coalition. “The President made it clear that he wanted Social Security on a separate track, but I’m hearing from very credible sources that the Democrats are putting Social Security into play, and that the chained CPI is being considered very seriously.”

How cuts to Social Security Administration will hurt you

“Starving the beast” is a favorite conservative strategy for forcing cuts in federal spending. The idea is to deprive the government of revenue in order to force spending cuts – and resistance to new taxes is a central feature of the current Super Committee deliberations in Washington.
 

6 Offbeat Warehouse Club Savings

Clubs raise the price of membership, but less-publicized perks may offer extra savings.

ADHD Guidelines Issued for 4 and Up

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder can be diagnosed in children as young as age 4, according to new treatment guidelines by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

The guidelines, released Sunday at the academy's annual meeting in Boston, provide instructions for pediatricians on diagnosing and managing ADHD in children 4 to 18. They say behavioral management techniques should be the first treatment approach for preschool-age children.

Detroit contracts expose auto workers' simmering anger

"I think they've finally pushed us to the point that we have to do something," said Kevin Branham, 49, a metal finisher at the plant. "This vote, it's a matter of people speaking out."

Divorce stress meets recession mess, and women struggle