PoliticsDylan StablefordHead of Commission on Presidential Debates: It’s not the moderator’s job to fact-checkHostra University students playing the roles of the candidates and moderator go through a rehearsal for the first presidential debate in Hempstead, N.Y., on Sunday. On the eve of the first presidential debate of the 2016 election, Donald Trump’s campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, said on Sunday that she doesn’t believe moderators should fact-check the candidates. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to get the moderator into essentially serving as the Encyclopedia Britannica,” Janet Brown, executive director of the Commission on Presidential Debates, said in an interview with CNN’s “Reliable Sources” from Hofstra University, where Monday’s debate, moderated by NBC’s Lester Holt, will be held.
- ScienceThe DriveSpaceX's New Raptor Rocket Engine Shoots Massive Flames, As It Should
For the first time, SpaceX has fired the Raptor rocket engine Elon Musk and his company intend to use to send people to the Red Planet. SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted photos of the Raptor rocket engine churning out streams of fiery exhaust Monday morning. In a tweet, Musk stated that "SpaceX propulsion just achieved first firing of the Raptor interplanetary transport engine." The announcement of the first successful firing comes a day before a speech at the International Astronautical Congress in Mexico where Musk will be discuss his plans for sending humans to other planets in our solar system.
WorldAssociated PressJordanian writer gunned down outside courthouseA prominent and outspoken Jordanian writer on Sunday was shot dead in front of the courthouse where he had been on trial for posting a cartoon deemed offensive to Islam on social media. A Jordanian security official said the shooter was a former imam, or prayer leader, at a local mosque, and said the man had been motivated by his anger over the cartoon posted to Facebook by writer Nahed Hattar. The shooting was the latest in a string of deadly security lapses in Jordan.
- BusinessThe DriveUber Is Researching Flying Taxis
In order to better handle the transportation needs of urban dwellers, Uber is looking into vehicles that could take off and land vertically. In a discussion at the Nantucket Conference yesterday, Uber products head Jeff Holden said the company has been looking into offering short flights around cities “so we can someday offer our customers as many options as possible to move around,” according to Recode. The Uber product boss did not specify whether the vertical-takeoff-and-landing craft, or VTOL, would be piloted like traditional aircraft, remote-controlled, fully autonomous, or some combination thereof, like Airvinci's helicopter drones (pictured above).
- SportsYahoo News PhotoGrieving the death of José Fernández
Jose Fernandez escaped from Cuba by boat on his fourth try as a teenager, and when his mother fell into the Yucatan Channel during the journey, he jumped in and pulled her out.Fernandez’s heroic backstory made his death early Sunday that much more heart
WorldAFPMoscow slams US, UK for 'unacceptable' UN statements on SyriaMoscow on Monday slammed the United States and Britain for accusing Russia of "barbarism" and war crimes in Syria as Russian and Syrian warplanes continued to bomb rebel-held areas of Aleppo. "We note the overall unacceptable tone and rhetoric of the representatives of the United Kingdom and the United States, which can damage and harm our relations," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. Moscow and Damascus were repeatedly accused of war crimes at Sunday's emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to demand that Russia rein in its long-standing ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
WorldAssociated PressAP PHOTOS: Editor selections from the past week in AsiaPhilippine President Rodrigo Duterte said last week that he will invite the U.N. chief and European Union officials to investigate his bloody anti-drug crackdown, but only if he can question them in public afterward to prove their human rights concerns are baseless. Duterte disclosed the offer in a speech in which he again lashed out at critics of his crackdown, including President Barack Obama and European countries. More than 3,000 suspected drug dealers and users have been killed since July and more than 600,000 others have surrendered for fear of being killed in Duterte's crackdown.
- EntertainmentReutersTaiwan braces for arrival of Typhoon Megi on Tuesday
Flights and trains in Taiwan were disrupted by the approach of the third typhoon this month and most cities planned work and school closures for Tuesday. The island's financial markets will also be shut, financial regulators said. Typhoon Megi is expected to make landfall on the island's eastern coast on Tuesday afternoon.
- U.S.Inside EditionUniversity of Dakota Investigates Two Separate, Racist Photos Posted Online Within 48-hours
The University of North Dakota is investigating two racially charged photos that were reportedly taken by students and posted online in a 48-hour period. The president of the university, Mark Kennedy, said in a statement that he’s appalled at the messages posted to social media. Etonde Maloke, a student at the university, shared what happened on her Facebook page.
PoliticsDylan StablefordHere’s what people are betting on for the big debateWill Donald Trump call Hillary Clinton “crooked”? Will the Republican nominee invoke former President Bill Clinton’s sex scandals? Will moderator Lester Holt ask Trump about his evolution on the “birther” conspiracy? Will the NBC News anchor ask Clinton
- WorldChristian Science MonitorOnce again, despite death reports, Boko Haram leader reappears
Abubakar Shekau, the leader of Boko Haram, made an appearance in a video released by the militant group on Sunday. In the video, he mocked the Nigerian military and spoke about the Chibok girls, who were kidnapped by Boko Haram in April, 2014. The Nigerian military reported that they had fatally wounded Shekau in August.
- BusinessThe DriveSwizz Beatz Hit With $42M Lawsuit for Supercar Fraud
Swizz Beatz is being sued for $42 million for his alleged role in civil racketeering. A lawsuit filed last week in Brooklyn federal court levies a claim that Swizz Beatz leased at least 10 supercars, including McLarens, Bentleys, Porsches and Ferraris, using a company named Metro Gem Leasing and Funding to bankroll the leases, then illegally resold the vehicles. Metro Gem Leasing and Funding, who filed the suit, says they put up the capital required to help Beatz, real name Kasseem Dean, and his wife Alicia Keys lease a slew of high-end rides.
- BusinessThe DriveMercy, the Nissan GT-R Has Gotten Expensive
The R35 Nissan GT-R, the first generation sold in America, arrived at the L.A. Auto Show nine years ago. The spec (478 hp, 434 lb-ft.) put it squarely in period supercar territory. And the price, under $70,000, had everybody in fits. When the first GT
WorldAFPAnti-govt protest in Jordan over murder of writerProtesters called on Monday for Jordan's government to resign over its failure to prevent the murder of Christian writer Nahed Hattar, as the killing was condemned internationally. Carrying his portrait, they called for the resignation of both Prime Minister Hani al-Malki and Interior Minister Salama Hammad. "We handed over 200 names (of people who had threatened the writer) to the governor (of Amman), including that of the assassin, and demanded protection," said Khaled Hattar, one of the victim's brothers.
WorldAssociated PressA Syrian refugee balances life in Germany with chaos at homeSAARBRUECKEN, Germany (AP) — At the intersection, Mohammed al-Haj waited patiently for the "green man." No cars were coming, no policemen watching. Back home in Syria, he wouldn't hesitate.But here in Germany, it's the law, you only cross when the walk
WorldAssociated PressTurks protest assault of young nurse who wore shorts on busTurks donned shorts and gathered in central Istanbul on Sunday to condemn the assault of a young nurse who was attacked on a bus for wearing shorts. With chants of "Don't interfere with my shorts!" the protest aimed to show solidarity with Aysegul Terzi, who was kicked in the face by a man, Abdullah Cakiroglu, on Sept. 12. Cakiroglu confessed to attacking Terzi for what he called her "inappropriate" clothing, yet was released from custody despite expressing no remorse, according to Turkish news reports.
- WorldReutersChina probes North Korea bank suspected of nuclear link - South Korea paper
China is investigating executives of a North Korean bank believed to finance the illicit procurement of arms and materials related to the isolated country's banned nuclear program, South Korea's JoongAng Daily reported on Monday. China and the United States have agreed to step up cooperation in the U.N. Security Council and in law enforcement channels after North Korea's fifth nuclear test on Sept. 9, the White House said last week. While China is North Korea's sole major ally, it disapproves of its nuclear and missile programs.
- WorldABC News VideosUS and UK Left 'Door Open' to Russia in Syria, UK's Boris Johnson Says
George Stephanopoulos goes one-on-one with British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.
PoliticsForeign Policy MagazineIn First Presidential Debate, Watch Out For These 3 Foreign Policy IssuesNEW YORK — On Monday night, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican rival Donald Trump will face off for the first time on one stage at the first presidential debate of their general election matchup, predicted to be one of the most-watched televised events ever. Much of the hype stems from the epic clash of personalities pitting the typically wonkish, staid former secretary of state, New York senator and first lady against the generally rakish, self-described New York real estate magnate who has more experience on reality TV than he does in holding public office — much less national security. The Commission on Presidential Debates announced that moderator Lester Holt of NBC had chosen three broadly defined topics — “America’s Direction,” “Achieving Prosperity,” and “Securing America” — for the 90-minute debate in New York, beginning at 9 p.m. ET, and broken into six, 15-minute time segments.
- BusinessU.S.News & World ReportIs 4 Percent Still the Safest Retirement Amount?
Back in 1994, William Bergman, a now-retired California financial planner, published a report in the Journal of Financial Planning that pegged 4 percent as the "safest" withdrawal number that would hike the odds of retirees not outliving their money. By and large, Bergman's 4 percent rule was meant to cover 30 years worth of retirement savings. Thus, if a newly-minted 65-year-old retiree could manage to limit annual withdrawals to 4 percent of savings, he or she would still have retirement fund cash available to them by his or her 95th birthday.
- TechnologyTech Media Network (Tom's Guide)The Latest Hint That Apple's Gearing Up to Make Cars
Last Friday (Sept. 23), many in the media were shocked to find out that Chris Ziegler, a founding member and deputy editor of The Verge had been working for Apple for two months while still employed by the technology website. This story is bigger than clandestine work hours, though, as it could be the latest smoke-signal from Apple that the company is working on an automobile project. Ziegler's title at The Verge may have been deputy editor, but anyone familiar with his years of work covering the car industry for the website (his last piece covered a partnership between BMW and Intel) can read between the lines.
SportsThe DriveBMW Drivers Had a Really, Really Bad Day at the NürburgringOn Saturday, the Nürburgring hosted the ADAC Barbarossapreis race, the eighth event on the VLN Endurance Championship calendar. The Germs dominated on home turf, handily sweeping the Nordschleife podium. The No. 8 HARBIO Mercedes-AMG GT3 took the overall
U.S.AFPFour men injured in shooting in SwedenFour men were injured, one critically, in the centre of Sweden's southern city of Malmo, in what police said appeared to be a targeted attack by gunmen riding scooters. The shooting broke out shortly before 7pm (1700 GMT) in a street in the southern city's Fosie district. Police in the area evacuated one of the wounded to the city hospital.
WorldAFPTwo Philippine airliners abort flights due to problemsA Philippine passenger jet heading to Japan was forced to turn back Monday after smoke was detected in the aircraft, while the wheel of a second plane caught fire after it aborted taking off from a separate airport, an aviation official said. The first incident involved a Philippine Airlines flight to Haneda which had just taken off from Manila, said Eric Apolonio, spokesman for the civil aviation authority. PAL said there was no panic and the passengers all disembarked safely and would travel to Japan on another aircraft.
U.S.Associated Press2 men arrested, teen detained in California triple slayingTwo men were arrested and a 17-year-old girl was detained Sunday on suspicion of killing three people inside a Southern California home over the weekend, police said. Fullerton police Sgt. Jon Radus would not say if the arrested teen was the missing daughter of two of the victims. "Katlynn Goodwill Yost has been located and she is unharmed," Radus said.
