Author: Mandy Nagy

Authorities announced today that four men have been arrested and charged in connection with a carjacking outside an upscale NJ mall last Sunday that left one victim dead. From the Star Ledger / NJ.com:

Nearly a week after 30-year-old Hoboken lawyer Dustin Friedland was gunned down in a deadly carjacking while returning to his vehicle in an upper level parking deck of the Mall at Short Hills, police this morning arrested four men on charges of murder. The four, were identified as Karif Ford, 31, Basim Henry, 32, Kevin Roberts, 35, all of Newark, and Hanif Thompson, 29, of Irvington. All were being held at the Essex County Correctional Facility on $2 million bail each. Thompson was taken into custody at his home in Irvington. Ford and Roberts were arrested in Newark. Henry was arrested, by an FBI task force, at a hotel in Easton, Pa., said Anthony Ambrose, chief of detectives for the Essex County Prosecutor's Office. He said the arrests began around 9 p.m. Friday and concluded at about 3 a.m. today.

The remains of a missing POW returned home this week after more than 60 years, and a widow who never remarried will finally be able to say goodbye to her husband. From the LA Times:

Army Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Gantt told his wife to remarry if he didn’t come back from the war. She told him no. He had a hard enough time getting her to say yes. He was it. For 63 years, the World War II and Korean War veteran was missing in action and presumed dead, but Clara Gantt, 94, held out hope and never remarried. On a cold, dark Friday morning on the Los Angeles International Airport tarmac, the widow stood from her wheelchair and cried as her husband’s flag-draped casket arrived home. “I am very, very proud of him. He was a wonderful husband, an understanding man,” she told TV reporters at the airport. “I always did love my husband, we was two of one kind, we loved each other. And that made our marriage complete.” Joseph Gantt joined the Army in 1942 and served in the South Pacific during WWII. He met his wife on a train from Texas to Los Angeles in 1946 and they married two years later. They had no children.

A college student's documentary as part of a senior project highlights the impact of social media after Hurricane Sandy, and I think illustrates the role that such communications played in bringing people, community, and information together during a time of need. From Newsworks/Down the Shore blog:

A new documentary by a Rutgers University student focuses on the social media response to Superstorm Sandy. Elizabeth Herlihy, a senior journalism major, recently released "Sandy: A Social Media Storm," chronicling how individuals, media, elected officials, and small organizations leveraged social media to assist storm-ravaged shore communities. Herlihy, whose family lives at the shore, produced the documentary as part of the final requirement for her minor,  "Digital Communication, Information and Media." "Through this minor, I have been able to explore various forms of new media and study its expanding role in our digital society," she said.

A tourist in Australia was rescued after falling off a pier and into the Port Phillip Bay while she was browsing Facebook on her cell phone. From BBC:

A Taiwanese tourist had to be rescued after accidentally walking off a pier in the Australian city of Melbourne while checking her Facebook page. The woman tumbled from St Kilda's pier into Port Phillip Bay late on Monday night. Police were alerted to the incident by a witness and rescued her in a speedboat after about 20 minutes. The woman, who apologised, was taken to hospital for observation but police said she was fine. Senior Constable Dean Kelly of the water police said officers found her floating metres from the pier.

In an interview posted at The Age, Kelly described that he and the other officers arrived by boat and found the woman floating on her back in the water about 30 meters from the pier. ‘‘She wasn’t splashing around too much. She wasn’t in a panic even though she was in the water for probably 20 minutes,’’ Kelly said. He also indicated how police found out what had distracted the woman.

‘‘She had a mobile phone in one of her hands and when we brought her onboard one of the first things she did was apologise and say sorry,’’ Senior Constable Kelly said.

We've all likely encountered people who talk on their cell phones in public, or (gasp) done it ourselves at some point.  Admittedly, sometimes it's almost unavoidable at a place like an airport where you might be trying to coordinate the other details of your travel.  But other times, it's probably avoidable. One prankster had a funny lesson for reminding cell-phone talkers that others around them can hear their conversations. "Don't you hate when people talk loudly on their phones in public? Why not have some fun with it and "crash" their calls!" he posted on his YouTube channel alongside the following video. From the LA Times:

Greg Benson, actor and funnyman, has a new prank video climbing the YouTube charts. "Cell Phone Crashing at the Airport" has Benson and his hidden camera (operated by wife Kim Evey) crowding people at an airport as they talk on their phones. Benson, on his MediocreFilms, has crashed cellphone conversations before -- at a park, a soccer game, on the streets of San Francisco. He responds to others' conversations into his own phone. It takes a moment for people to register the pleasant-looking man invading their space.

The White House does not appear to be interested at this time in the possibility of an offer of amnesty for former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, according to comments Monday from a National Security Council spokeswoman. From The Hill: The White House on Monday said there had...

Anti-government protests again continued in Ukraine over the weekend after nearly four weeks of demonstrations, sparked by President Viktor Yanukovych’s refusal to sign an association agreement with the European Union. But after talks over the agreement had resumed earlier in the week, it seems work has been placed "on hold," according to remarks made on social media by an EU official on Sunday. From CNN, EU puts Ukraine deal on hold, McCain addresses protesters:

The European Union has halted work on a trade agreement with Ukraine, an official said Sunday, after Kiev failed to show "clear commitment" to signing the deal. Stefan Fule, European commissioner for enlargement and European neighborhood policy, said on Twitter that the words and deeds of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych and his government on the proposed pact were "further & further apart. Their arguments have no grounds in reality."

Two teens from Illinois want to teach others that you can save someone’s day through simple random acts of kindness. From HLN:

High school juniors Zade Abdullah and Kyle Nutt have been posting hilarious videos to their YouTube channel for a year and a half, but their latest creation has the duo providing acts of kindness instead of comedy. "My parents always wanted me to do good and 16-year-olds are stereotyped for being rotten kids," Abdullah told HLN. "We wanted to show people that all 16-year-olds are not like that. We can be good and do good in the community and make the world a better place." The Dixon, Illinois, teens did what they had to do to spread the word about small acts of kindness. They put on tights.

The duo dressed up as superheroes and proceeded to surprise unsuspecting strangers by paying for a meal at a drive-thru window, handing out poinsettias, paying for the movies one shopper couldn’t afford, and various other acts of kindness.  A friend helped to capture it all on video.

The National Security Agency director and Commander of the United States Cyber Command will continue to be served as a single position with dual responsibilities, rather than splitting the roles into two separate positions. From the NY Times:

President Obama has decided to keep the National Security Agency and the Pentagon’s cyberwarfare branch under the same command despite concerns that it concentrates too much power in the hands of a single military official responsible for both surveillance and directing a growing arsenal of cyberweapons.

As a practical matter, the decision means that Mr. Obama must appoint a four-star military officer to succeed Gen. Keith B. Alexander, the first person to simultaneously run the two organizations, when he retires early next year. Only a military commander can run Cyber Command, which is responsible for defending the military’s computer and sensor systems and carrying out offensive computer-network attacks.

President Obama's "If you like your health care plan, you can keep it" promise was yesterday declared the "lie of the year" by Politifact. It was a catchy political pitch and a chance to calm nerves about his dramatic and complicated plan to bring historic change...

The House is expected to vote soon on the budget deal. You can watch live on C-SPAN. We'll update this post accordingly. UPDATE:  Budget deal was approved.  Final vote on Ryan/Murray Budget in House: 332 Yes, 94 No (Rs 169 yes - 62 no; Ds 163 yes...

A tweet to a local TV news anchor in Florida from a man who says it was intended as a joke has landed that man in hot water with the law. From the Palm Beach Post: A tweet to a local television news anchor landed a Lake...

If you haven't seen this yet, it's packed full of awesome. (Scroll down for video). The USAF Band decided to surprise visitors to the National Air and Space Museum with its first ever 'holiday flash mob.' They documented it on their blog.

Dec. 3, 11:53 a.m. - The Air and Space Museum is buzzing with excitement. The United States Air Force Band members disguised in civilian coats roam the museum, acting as tourists. Observing a sign stating that there will be filming in the area, a group of tourists asks an employee what is being filmed. "Something big is happening in here in seven minutes--stick around!" the employee replies. A group of children speculate what the big surprise could possibly be. "I think they might be launching that rocket!" a young boy chimes. "Maybe we'll get to try on a space suit!" The crowd noise heightens as the clock inches closer to noon.

Minutes later:

We've gathered a few stories of interest on the latest in Obamacare developments and commentary this weekend. Apparently, some insurance agents are feeling left out of "Obamacare."  As the Associated Press reports Sunday, some frustrated insurers and agents wish they could just bypass healthcare.gov and enroll...