1. 40 food workers and janitors from the United States Senate have called it quits Wednesday, April 22 by walking off their jobs. They have now joined 1,000 other labor activists in Washington, D.C. and are calling on President Obama to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. (CNN)
So, a minimum wage can be quickly initiated for McDonald’s employees, but not for one of our country’s Congressional lawmakers? It seems now that you could make do on a McDonald’s paycheck in a small town than you could in our own nation’s capital.
2. London’s Mayor Lutfur Rahman, was found guilty Thursday, April 23, 2015 on charges of corrupt practices in relation to votes, providing false statements, election bribery and exercising “undue spiritual influence” during his mayoral campaign last year. The High Court removed him from office and no news of correctional duty has been released. (Business Insider)
Geesh, all that just for a position as the mayor? That’s a new governmental low for Great Britain.
3. The United States revealed on Thursday, April 23, 2015 that an Italian and American hostage, who were held by the al-Qaida, along with two other Americans who were working with the group, were killed by CIA drone strikes earlier this year. President Obama said in the White House briefing room that morning that he takes full responsibility for ordering the attacks, offered condolences to the grieving families and said that there was no evidence that the two hostages were on the plane at the time of the strike. (CNN)
This may be Obama’s best year ever before his presidency ends. Hostages on a plane are obviously hidden well, so of course, it’s going to seem like there’s no evidence of the victims on the plane. But that doesn’t mean that drone strikes are immediately called for. Listen to Captain Jack Sparrow the next time, Obama, and “wait for the opportune moment” before deciding to strike.
4. To answer for their profits going downhill, McDonald’s headquarters closed 350 of their restaurants in the United States, Japan and China. The fast food chain announced that it’s had an 11% decrease in revenue and a 30% decrease in profit within the first three months of 2015 because of “(competition) with new U.S. competitors, a tough economy in Europe and a food scarcity scare in Asia.” (MSN)
Maybe the U.S. is finally recognizing how much McDonald’s can truly be handled by the average employee or college student that has to wake up at the crack of dawn for work or class. I’m sure Japan and China will be just fine with their ubiquitous white rice as their dinner. But if that’s not enough, they have Panda Express and Starbucks as backups.
5. The 2015 World Happiness Report published its annual study by ranking Switzerland as the happiest country to live in worldwide. Iceland, Norway, Denmark and Canada followed suit in the top five. (MSN)
As Professor James Moriarty said in “Sherlock Holmes,” “I like Switzerland. They respect a man’s privacy here.”
