9-Year-Old Girl Accidentally Kills Shooting Range Instructor

A 9-year-old girl vacationing with her family accidentally shot and killed an instructor at a shooting range, authorities said. The shooting happened at 10 a.m. Monday at Arizona Last Stop, a tourist spot southeast of Las Vegas. According to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office, the instructor – identified as Charles Vacca, 39 – was standing next to the girl, teaching her how to use an automatic Uzi. The girl’s parents stood nearby, capturing video of the experience.

As the girl pulled the trigger, the recoil caused her to lose control of the gun, with Vacca accidentally shot in the head, the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office said. Vacca was flown to University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. Sam Scarmardo, the gun range operator, was distraught about Vacca's death.

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"We instruct kids as young as 5 on .22 rifles, and they don't get to handle high firearms, but they're under the supervision of their parents and of our professional range masters," Scarmardo said.

Source: GMA

ALS Ice Bucket Challenge Takes U.S. by Storm

In the last two weeks, the Ice Bucket Challenge has quite literally “soaked” the nation. Everyone from Ethel Kennedy to Justin Timberlake has poured a bucket of ice water over his or her head and challenged others do the same or make a donation to fight ALS within twenty-four hours.

What is ALS?

ALS was first found in 1869 by French neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot, but it wasn’t until 1939 that Lou Gehrig brought national and international attention to the disease. Ending the career of one of the most beloved baseball players of all time, the disease is still most closely associated with his name. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord.

Motor neurons reach from the brain to the spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the muscles throughout the body. The progressive degeneration of the motor neurons in ALS eventually leads to their death. When the motor neurons  die, the ability of the brain to initiate and control muscle movement is lost. With voluntary muscle action progressively affected, patients in the later stages of the disease may become totally paralyzed.

The ALS Association announced it has surpassed $10 million in “Ice Bucket” donations. 

--> Just recently, The ALS Association announced that it has received $11.4 million in donations compared to $1.7 million during the same time period last year (July 29 to August 16). These donations have come from existing donors and 220,255 new donors to The Association.

With only about half of the general public knowledgeable about amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, the Ice Bucket Challenge is making a profound difference. Since July 29, The Association has welcomed more than 70,000 new donors to the cause.

Another African American Killed by Police Taser in California

Barely one week after the killing of a young Africa American by police in Missouri, another incidence has been reported in San Bernardino, California. A 36-year-old married father of five from California died after being repeatedly Tasered by San Bernardino County Sheriff’s deputies during what was described as an attempted burglary.

Deputies on Tuesday used a stun gun on Dante Parker during an altercation to take him into custody. Officers suspected Parker of breaking into a home in Victorville. 

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According to law enforcement officials, deputies found Parker riding a bicycle away from the residence and tried to stop him, but the hulking man appeared to be under the influence of unknown substances and was belligerent.

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Ebola Survivor’s ostracized

CONAKRY, Guinea (AP) — The medical school professors no longer want Kadiatou Fanta in the classroom. Her boyfriend has broken up with her. Each day the 26-year-old eats alone and sleeps alone. Even her own family members are afraid to touch her months after she survived Ebola. Long gone are the days when she was vomiting blood and wracked by fever. And even with a certificate of health declaring her as having recovered, she says it's still as though "Ebola survivor" is burned on her flesh.

"Ebola has ruined my life even though I am cured," she says. "No one wants to spend a minute in my company for fear of being contaminated." The Ebola virus is only transmitted through direct contact with bodily fluids of the sick, such as blood, saliva, urine, sweat or semen. When the first cases emerged in Guinea back in March, no one had ever confronted such a virulent and gruesome disease in this corner of Africa.

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NEW PHONE: Galaxy Alpha by Samsung

Samsung is putting the pedal to the metal with the Samsung Galaxy Alpha, the first in a new lineup of metal smartphones. The 4.7-inch Alpha is Samsung's first major metal mobile device, with previous Galaxy phones and tablets encased in plastic. Samsung says the Alpha shows off a "new design approach", suggesting more metal marvels will follow. 

The Alpha has a 1,280x720-pixel resolution display, an octa- or quad-core processor (depending on where you live), 4G LTE, the latest Android 4.4.4 KitKat software and a 12-megapixel camera. The Korean company hasn't announced prices, or in which countries the Alpha will appear, apart from the UK, where it will go on sale in early September.

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Ebola Scare: Sierra Leone Cyclist Disappears from Commonwealth Games

A Sierra Leone cyclist who 'vanished' from the Commonwealth Games in an apparent bid to avoid going back to his Ebola-stricken country has been found - but several of his teammates do not want to return home.  The plea from the athletes was made as Sierra Leone sportstars failed to turn up for four separate events, sparking fears that even more of the country's athletes could be going missing.

It comes as the World Health Organisation issued a warning about the epidemic of Ebola in West Africa - which they now say has killed more than 700 people in four countries. Unisa Deen Kargbo, chef de mission of the country's team, says his athletes are scared about returning to Sierra Leone, amid fears they will be struck down by the killer disease.

Mr Kargbo also said he would be 'investigating' why the athletes had not turned up at the various events - because he had expected them to be there.  He told the Times: 'Many people are thinking whether or not to go home now. Everybody is worried and many of them don't want to go home now because of the Ebola. 'We have held several meetings with them, but they are still worried. This virus is spreading around our country and everyone is at risk of catching it.'

Yesterday, Mohamed Tholley, the country's mountain biking champion allegedly failed to turn up to Thursday's time trial. Officials admitted they were concerned he was trying to abscond, to avoid returning to Sierra Leone.  Today, a spokesman for Glasgow 2014 said he was 'not missing' and the chef de mission knew his whereabouts.

But yesterday, Sierra Leone’s men’s and women’s 4x400m relay teams also mysteriously withdrew from first round heats at Hampden Park. The men's 4x100 team also did not run.

source: dailymail